Video Killed The Radio Star

Well, the first episode of "Chris Huff Studio" (my new video blog) is finished and uploading as we speak. I plan to film these at least once a week to air out some of my unaired material. 50 songs or so in the can, basically recorded in demo versions, but unperformed and unloved. That's where you come in. As I post these, I hope to sort the wheat from the chaff and hopefully people will comment and let me know what they think so I can begin to construct my next series of recordings. Some of these songs will probably not exist in any other form as they don't necessarily fit into the "overall scheme". But esp. for those fans of the Benadryl song (and you have been quite vocal, Lord love you :-) ) I think you will enjoy this. I hope you do. In any case, I'm releasing it to cyberspace shortly.

I am in the middle of an updating frenzy. My poor website has been ignored for so long! What the hell have I been doing with my time? It seems like since I left my day job that my time gets filled with so many non-musical things. Such is life I suppose. But as the bank balance slowly dwindles, I find myself pushing towards more and more focus. Reading a great book recommended by Ariel Hyatt (www.arielpublicity.com) and Derek Sivers (www.sivers.org). T Harv Eker: "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind". 1st principle: Rich people are not victims. Don't blame, don't justify, don't complain. Basically, don't cast yourself in the role of the victim because then that's what you will attract.

It's hard not to complain! I unfairly snapped at my wife for complaining (I should probably let her in on my little secret that I've learned in this book and been trying to practice - ya think?). Complaining is human nature, isn't it? After all, if I can't bitch about the weather, my poverty, my lousy breaks, this crazy recession, my lack of income, my crappy windows on the house, the lack of air conditioning in my studio, the gig I had on Saturday in a smoke-filled room for a bunch of senior citizens, etcetera etcetera THEN WHAT WILL WE TALK ABOUT????? T Harv goes even further when he says that we need to stop complaining internally too. It's hard!

This also ties in to my yoga practice. For the last 7 years, I have been a devotee of Svaroopa yoga (www.masteryoga.org). This yoga is so real it might as well be a reality show! It is so expanding it's like the best acid you never had. It is gentle, relaxing, focusing, deep, and brilliant. Completely has changed my life for the better. You can tell the difference between me on a yoga day and a non-yoga day. I am much less of a jerk. Anyway, Svaroopa yoga through Swami Nirmalananda (formerly Rama Berch) teaches us that happiness is an internal state, not an external state. Happiness comes from within and is a state of BEING regardless of external circumstances. If you rely on things outside yourself to make yourself happy, you will always be unsatisfied. Open the well within! Like the Robert Hunter lyric says "There is a fountain that was not made by the hands of men".

So I had a really frustrating situation come up with a client this weekend, and I complained once to my mommy and then stopped. I even stopped complaining inside. I pretended I was back at my old customer service job and thought "This client is unhappy. How can I fix the situation? It's all on me. " So I focused on how we could fix it and I'm happy to say even though the situation is not yet resolved, I feel like I am handling it professionally and not falling into victimhood. It is not easy! Like I said, when you stop complaining, what do you talk about? I am feeling more expansive and freer than I have felt in a long time. I am working more and complaining less. I slept like 14 hours yesterday, kind of a detox sleep I think, where I dreamt about sitting at a SF Giants game with a friend from high school.

Happiness comes from within. Rich people believe "I create my life". I have a vlog! Also, I am going to see Leonard Cohen on May 12th. Only 2 gigs this week which is not so good but I am going to make the most of my time. Namaste baby!