Responsible Adult, Me?

Inspector #20

Inspector #20

Ambassador of Tone
Fallen Star
Country flag
Things really changed for us two years ago when CPS awarded me custody of my 6 year old, after his mom and boyfriend beat him pretty severely.

All of a sudden, the whiskey drinking 51 year old retired gunslinger is walking a kid to school in the mornings and helping with homework I hardly understand.

Progress on my album has been put on hold for now. Renovation of the studio also halted as we have converted it to a room for our next to oldest boy while he finishes up his degree.

Just last week, the 19 year old left for college in Washington State!!!

No complaints here, as I feel blessed to be a blessing, but its like i am afraid i will literally die before i finish the CD.

There is not a quiet moment in my life at present!!!

Thankfully, i am able to play bass for the blues band regularly and some studio work and guitar students still seek me out....otherwise, I would likely go crazy.

Frequently, I sit down and write a song fragment, but my duties or other obligations (i.e. supporting other musical projects) pulls me away, derailing my creativity.

Saturdays are usually my play all day time. I just jam as much as I can while everyone is off doing other things.

The weekend of March 3-5th was spending quality time with my wife time. I didn't pick up a guitar for three days!!!

Most mornings, i'm up at 4:00 and start banging away on my unplugged Squirecaster for a few hours until everyone wakes up around 6:15.

I often get emails from E.S.G. asking if I ever sleep.

Recently, i got asked to play rythym and lead on a local band's cover of Rosanna by Toto. That was really cool...

The train of life is pretty slow right now...

I bought my wife a "no reason" ruby heart pendant and surprised her tonight...supervised homework, then we watched Masha and The Bear, tucked in the little one, said our prayers, posted a bunch of photos here in a totally inappropriate thread, showered, then decided two or three cups of coffee would help me sleep better...which it does...and here I sit posting away.

Having an ASD really makes you wierd to other people. The band loves me because I smile a lot and keep quiet.

Sometimes I wonder about eternity. I have always believed in God and a heaven and hell, but I sure hope they don't put me on janitorial staff up there.

I wonder if I will run into Lemmy and Ronnie Dio.

Will there be beer in heaven???

Our daughter turns 13 on May 5th. I already have her gift.

I'm almost out of whiskey. Costco sells the big bottles, basically Chivas Regal. I am doing better. I'm halfway through the gallon I got for Christmas. That's a HUGE reduction for me!!!

I think I will drink a beer right now just to read the label. Stella has been being brewed since 1366!

Can't decide which guitar of mine I like best.

What's it like to be normal???

Geez, no wonder I really don't know anybody!!!

This is how my mind jumps around. Its like this 24/7. Kind of annoying.

Then poetry comes into my head...

Oh darkened soul I ponder how
Your painful secrets disavowed
A lifetime hiding in the shadows
This world condemns you to the gallows...

Amid the sound of distant thunder
I walk in darkness filled with wonder
I feel the closest to the sunlight
In the solstice of the moonlight

Some think me evil, mad perhaps
My thoughts, so far beyond their grasp.
My painful hymn of isolation
A symphony of condemnation

There is no prison like the mind
So few escape its ties that bind
And then, can one be truly free?
From such a mental travesty?

I learned to live to spite those souls
Who sought to drive me to the shoals.
To those who dug for me this well
A very special place in hell

Crazy..it came as fast as I could type the words...makes no sense.

Like me....
 
I've read about heaven. Not only is there no beer, but all your allowed to do all day is tell the boss how great he is. Sounds like North Korea to me, so no thanks.
 
I know you will not acknowledge it, but you are doing just fine. If you are "weird" it is because there should be more like you. BTW, I think about existence a lot, my thoughts are always racing and I rarely sleep. So we are less "weird" together. Soldier on brother!
 
DonP said:
I've read about heaven. Not only is there no beer, but all your allowed to do all day is tell the boss how great he is. Sounds like North Korea to me, so no thanks.
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No, no, no! Heaven is the place where you can drink all day, and never get drunk. You just get that slight "fuzzy glow" as Robben Ford puts it, and you stay that way all day. And you never get hangovers, of course.
 
Gahr said:
No, no, no! Heaven is the place where you can drink all day, and never get drunk. You just get that slight "fuzzy glow" as Robben Ford puts it, and you stay that way all day. And you never get hangovers, of course.
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Darn! I was obviously shown the wrong book as a kid. Actually, to be fair, I was never shown any book - which is even better.
 
Robert, I know exactly how you feel, being an active lawyer/rocker in his late 30s who wants to rock the intercourse' world with my 6-string guns but having to work for real to pay the bills and take care of an 8-year old daughter.

Trust me, these things ARE good to keep us with both feet on the ground.
 
Having raised my grandson since he was a baby, I understand your challenges to balance out the things that YOU want to do. Priorities change. I've always tried to include him in all facets of my life and hobbies. He has helped set up for live recordings and live sound since he was 7. I try to make every moment some kind of learning experience for him and let him do as much as possible on his own. It might not be the way I would do it but he learns from it.
He has been the joy of my life for the last 18 years and will be graduating HS in a couple of months.
Life has been hectic but quite enjoyable. Yes, personal projects have been put on hold but I found out early on that if I worried about them, the frustration would drive me nuts. Mental peace and tranquillity are far more important to let that happen.
 
Being a good Father and Husband to your Wife is the most important role you can do. Sorry bout what happened to your boy.beatin a kid is just molested up and they should horse whip the mother and her ol man. you get to play in bands and that is cooler than hell. i got Anxiety and a few OCD traits myself so i suppose we all got some issues lol. Rock the Fook on Robert. Being a good Dad and Hubby is the best job youll ever have.
 
Robert Herndon said:
Things really changed for us two years ago when CPS awarded me custody of my 6 year old, after his mom and boyfriend beat him pretty severely.

All of a sudden, the whiskey drinking 51 year old retired gunslinger is walking a kid to school in the mornings and helping with homework I hardly understand.

Progress on my album has been put on hold for now. Renovation of the studio also halted as we have converted it to a room for our next to oldest boy while he finishes up his degree.
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Having raised my two daughters from the time they 3 and 7 by myself, I have gained the utmost respect for both single moms and dads. I did a lot of the same things you did Robert, put my music career on hold, learned how to do a french braid, have tea parties and explain the facts of life. I rather enjoyed that time, until one day my 7 year old came home and asked me what a pedophile was, seems I had a neighbor had started that rumor, he and I had a "Coming To Jesus" talk. I pondered a lot of things after that encounter (including a battery charge which was later dropped.) You (and I.) did what we had to do.... Kudo's to you, you did good.
 
RVA said:
I know you will not acknowledge it, but you are doing just fine. If you are "weird" it is because there should be more like you. BTW, I think about existence a lot, my thoughts are always racing and I rarely sleep. So we are less "weird" together. Soldier on brother!
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It's good to know that!!!! My mind is like a bus station!!!!
 
flatrockmobile said:
Having raised my grandson since he was a baby, I understand your challenges to balance out the things that YOU want to do. Priorities change. I've always tried to include him in all facets of my life and hobbies. He has helped set up for live recordings and live sound since he was 7. I try to make every moment some kind of learning experience for him and let him do as much as possible on his own. It might not be the way I would do it but he learns from it.
He has been the joy of my life for the last 18 years and will be graduating HS in a couple of months.
Life has been hectic but quite enjoyable. Yes, personal projects have been put on hold but I found out early on that if I worried about them, the frustration would drive me nuts. Mental peace and tranquillity are far more important to let that happen.
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Very noble, Man....

Blessings be upon you!
 
Sérgio said:
Robert, I know exactly how you feel, being an active lawyer/rocker in his late 30s who wants to rock the intercourse' world with my 6-string guns but having to work for real to pay the bills and take care of an 8-year old daughter.

Trust me, these things ARE good to keep us with both feet on the ground.
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You may not believe it, but I can so totally relate to what you wrote. I nearly became a lawyer...

I gave 20 years of my life to police work. Spent two years in law school, then dropped out to become police chief in 2009, and finally retired in 2011. I'm happy to be out. I have been a good and responsible fellow. Pay my bills on time, am faithful and content with my wife, drive a car that I like, without concern for whether other people this it's cool or a status symbol...I'm happy

However, what has been bugging me the most is always having been a support musician. I'm not unhappy playing bass, because we produce a very good product, but I keep dreaming about completing my CD, rather than working behind the scenes.

There is, within me, a craziness...a musical insanity of sorts...I envision a sort of "New Motorhead," with a dash of 1980's Dio...something totally original, but yet rocks as hard as a melding of these two styles...something I truly feel is missing in modern music...

There are some songs, even some of the "Classics" that I have never heard all the way through. If the guitar work is boring...if it doesn't grab me, I won't finish listening to the track...
 
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From what I gather, your young son is very fortunate to have you there for him. And visa versa... right?

I also can't help but notice your many references to drinking the hard stuff. Watch your health... uhm... responsibly... :cautious:. That boy, and others I'm sure, are going to need you to be around for a long time. Plus, you gotta finish that CD... :dood:
 
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