How to get FREE ENERGY

Residual Income

 What Is It and How Does It Work? By Suzanne Flynn

 

A residual income will earn you money even when you're not on the clock. Owning rental units, collecting royalties or investing in a savings and investment program are examples of what is called "passive income".

Wouldn’t it be nice to earn money while not working? That money is called residual, or recurring, income. It's what can happen after you put a lot of time, effort and sometimes money into a job to continue to get paid for the work months or years after it's done. (Salary jobs are part of linear income. This income is directly related to the number of hours you work. If you work 40 hours, you get paid for 40 hours of work.) Once you set up your business to earn residual income, you continue to make money while doing other things – maybe even starting a new business to generate more residual income!

Types of Residual Income

Some examples of residual income sources include:
•Royalties from intellectual property, such as books and patents
•Subscriptions, advertisements, donations or affiliate links from your blog or website
•Transferring the rights to a song you recorded, a book you wrote, a software program you created or a gadget you invented to a company agreeing to pay you a percentage of each copy of your work sold
•Purchasing an office or apartment building and leasing or renting out the properties
•A savings and investment program that earns interest
•E-book sales
•Stock photography royalties

If you think about it, you can take 3000 bucks and sock it away in an annuity at 3% to 7% interest annually. That means your money you have saved all year only earned you 90 to 180 dollars as residual income. Not much but in about 25 years you might have doubled your money if you live long enough to see it to 6000 dollars.

Well Melissa and I went to a meeting on Sat. evening and I saw a heck of a lot of people from all walks of life who believe in this. I saw someone who is there and who is able to stay home with his kids, drives a nice car, and lives in a really nice home I might add, and all he does is help people learn how to do exactly the same things he did. He doesn't sell anything to anyone. He hosts meetings in his home, and shows a couple of videos on a large screen TV, drinks a Vodka and Tonic and answers questions. I want that job!

Even if you just do the minimum, the residual income is almost twice what I make every month at my regular full time job. I was astounded when I saw the breakdown and how it works. I was also astounded when my sponsor told me he has only been doing this for about 4 months and he was able to go out and buy a new car with his earnings. Not a brand new off the lot car mind you, but he paid cash for a great late model used car. That to me is sucess. (A car with a working AC right now would be sucess!) The new car can always come later because residual means that money he used will be there again like clockwork next month, and the next month, and the next month and is very likely to increase as associates and customers increase. Making sense yet?

So you don't want to be an associate? Big deal! How about if you can get your electricity charges for free just for being a customer and referring a few close friends or family. Yes you still have to pay a small delivery charge because OnCor still owns the production and powerlines but still you can get your energy portion significantly reduced, or even free. Thats pretty cool if you ask me. I could think of a lot of other things I could do with an extra 250 simolians a month, couldnt you? (Hey there's a new car payment, or a bathroom remodel.). Even though I'm not an associate and just a customer, Im still getting something like a residual income just from the free energy. No down-side there either! Is it getting any clearer yet? I thought so. Does any of this interest you?

Oh yeah, how many people do you have to refer to qualify? Do you know 3 people who use electricity and pay an electric bill each month? Unless you are a hermit I would just about bet you do. That's all I'm going to say for now. If you are interested then you will have to contact me or Melissa at email me   texasredphotography@gmail.com , or call 254-744-5196 and just say, "So whats all this stuff about residual income you are talking about, and how can I get me some too?" we will be glad to help you. Or better yet just go to our site and sign up! Sign up or Join! http://melissaarnold.myignite.com/index.asp?CO_LA=US_EN

Join a fantastic team that is learning and enjoying  what true freedom is all about.

Lets do this thing together!

Dale and Melissa Arnold

Hateful Words

I went to photograph a gig that I have at The Courtyard Theater in Plano, Texas for their Texas Music Series yesterday. Radney Foster was on the calendar and is a favorite of mine but I had not seen him live until about 3 weeks ago at Love and War In Texas located in Plano, Texas I took my daughter along on a job to photograph his performance to the later and was so moved by this song he recently wrote that it about made me lose my composure while working. That is not an easy task. I do not know if it was because he wrote it after his 11 year old daughter went to him after hearing a hateful word or because I have an 11 year old daughter that I wish I could make deaf to those kinds of words that seem to resonate in and through humanity and so many times try to annihilate those who someone might disagree with. It so deeply cuts my heart on a normal day, but after standing in the foyer of the theater, and listening to Radney explain the night his daughter came to him with one of these words...it has haunted my soul for hours.  I have a lot of kids by any standards foreign or domestic, and I have often tried to analyze why I chose to have a large family. At 46 now, I think at the deepest part of who I am are these words of hate that I heard so many times loud and whispered throughout my life and I just wanted to grow some better humans.  I am in the process of accomplishing this and can only wonder what hurt will cross their paths in love for others.What I have learned is that some people hurt because they hurt on the inside. Kids learn from watching their broken adults hurt and bleed on others only to be heard. I've learned that a hug is good medicine and a prolonged hug is mystical. Looking into someone's eyes with a genuine smile makes a day go better or opens up a black box that should have never been kept but can be empty in minutes. I am a fan of people in love or in friendship or in an intensely honest relationship. When I photograph an event, my focus seems to be catching the good stuff. We need more. We need better words. We need to know that no matter what color you are, or where you are from, or what darkness has your life in captivity that the words needed are                                                            

YOU ARE AWESOME!                       I'm here for you

          I Understand        You Are Beautiful
I Care               I Love you           You Rock!
You are not alone        Let me help you
Amazing           So Smart!       You can do it!
         Gorgeous       I believe in you


 Children have such an innocence about them unless they were born into pain. It is the world around them that takes away the ability to see clearly. My Grace, who is almost 12, has the beautiful in her to love those in need. I would like to say that I have done something right but the truth is that she has taught me on several occasions what love looks like when it is done with a genuine heart. She is only one of 12 children that God has blessed me with and I bet  that is a direct reflection on the love I needed to learn after surviving my childhood. Seems evil goes after the purest of beings in our world...children. So we as the adults in charge, need to watch the way children play. We need to watch over those entrusted to us as guardians in a learning state of mind. We all come from diverse places and blood lines and cultures...but we cannot deny we are all human. Lets start there.

Photo found on sandycturk.blogspot.com















Not In My House
(Radney Foster/Allen Shamblin)

I’m a son of the south who heard that word too much
growing up.
Something down in my soul knew that was a stove
you shouldn’t touch
All that hate, all that shame, all that anger, all that pain
Redneck racist, hip hop rapper or some kid using it just for laughter

Not in my house, not from my mouth,
I’m gonna sing for the souls who get kicked around
Words aren’t a weapon just to cut you down
Not In my house

There’s a guy on the street with a sign that says
“God hates fags” and that’s so wrong
And it crushes my soul to see evil burn so strong
Stones and sticks, politics, the devil holds your coat while you get in your licks
Why do we think so small when God’s so big

Not in my house, not from my mouth,
I’m gonna sing for the souls that get kicked around
Words shouldn’t be a weapon just to cut you down
Not In my house

Tonight I own this stage
And me and this six string machine
are gonna kill some hate
‘Cause you don’t talk to my friends that way
You don’t talk to my brother that way
And you damn sure don’t talk to my daughter that way

Not in my house, not from my mouth,
Not on my watch, not when I’m around
Words aren’t a weapon just to cut a woman down
Not in my house, not from my mouth
I’m gonna sing for the souls that get kicked around
Words shouldn’t ve a weapon just to cut you down
Not In my house

©2014 Alamo Lounge Music (ASCAP), All rights administered by Kobalt Songs Music Publishing/Built On Rock Music (ASCAP) (admin. by Clear Box Rights)

Radney Foster – electric guitar, vocals

Hangers and Wet Laundry

Many years ago, I had several images impact my heart. Have you ever just been standing still and felt time wind to a stop as if it were intentionally trying to get  your attention? I have. I remember coming home one night from work on I-30 and watching a car spin out of control in front of me. As it bounced off the concrete median, I could not help but notice how slow it seemed to spin.  My heart sure was not beating slowly. My reactions to jerk my own steering wheel in a safe direction sure was not slow.  Although this very short occurrence in the past moments of my life seem to resemble one of these images burned into my brain that I have been trapped by tonight, it is not. I have, however: been able to travel back to several "dits" on my life's timeline to similar ones. The birth of my first daughter. My eyes cry even as I sit and briefly remember how precious that was. Even further back I can see out my window at 9 years of age as if there has been no time passed waiting on my first pet I lost to return home.  I had a friend at 12 years of age that came to my house one night, very late, only to tell me that her step brother had just raped her and her father hit her until she promised not to tell anyone. She told me. The horror of that moment was so innocent but burned into my heart with such helpless devotion to my friend. Years later I saw her at a neighborhood pool. The exchange of words spoken through childhood eyes was still saturated in a deep secret shamefully kept and she looked like the wreckage my heart felt for her years before. When I was 6, my new daddy, had hidden some Easter eggs in the yard. His delight was to see me frantically searching for the ever mischievous bunny that was just around the corner but I was not fast enough to catch him. I learned to be faster. My dad was watching me, but somehow, even through such young eyes, I have a vision of his very animated face cheering me on to catch that bunny! That very same yard is also where I found my first treasure, a silver dollar. I often wonder if he did not plant it in my favorite digging hole just so I could find the treasure that I KNEW was out there somewhere. I loved feeling the cold dirt and even mud on my hands!  I sure love him for those times. When I was young, I felt safe because he was my dad. I cannot explain why, I just did. He taught me to run into what I was afraid of. A friend is often defined by the trouble they help you avoid, but I love the partnership of defying that which strikes fear into the depths of our souls. Many dark passageways. I grew up going to the lake at my grandparents lake house in central Texas. The sun was hot and the water was ICE COLD! The ledge was a good 15 feet off the water and underneath was the unknown. The first time I determined in my gut and jumped into that scary shark infested LAKE, I must have been in the air for at least 5 minutes! Hitting the icy water sure made me wish I had been. It was one of many times that I would have a love affair with water or maybe just the exhilaration I felt while immersed in it. Still, this is just one of those memories that are time coded at half speed but not at a dead halt. I used to volunteer at an "old folks home". I know it is not politically correct to say that  now days but it has such sweet connotation to me. It has been lost to our children now to see things as they are and be able to share it appropriately from our their perspectives in a search to find a way to make all people happy. All people are not happy. All people are not equal in so many things. It is why we need each other. I miss those days terribly. Well, one day , while running into the rooms of old folks that could not leave their rooms nor did they have family to visit, I came across a man who was standing by his chair near a window. He was very tall and thin with the blackest hair I had ever seen on a face with so many wrinkles. He smiled so big when I walked in. Leaving his room at that point was not an option. We miss such sweet insight to the past and future when we run past careless pieces of our life that have no real rhyme or reason. At least , it seems that way at the time. That afternoon is a blur. It really was. Somewhere during that day I did leave but not until I heard that he was an Italian Officer in WWII, saw some pretty buttons that he caressed like an old friend, told me about men he had lost through a trembling voice, and a wife he missed dearly. At 14, I could not process those words of images, but now , much later, I often think of his smile. So few people smile like that anymore at anyone they do not know. I have always felt connected to something that I cannot explain but it always has a real face. His was one of them. That same year, I spent time with my Great Grandma by marriage only but she never, not one time, made me feel less important than any of the other great grand children. Man, did she have stories. Between General Hospital and As The World Turns, I heard of coming to Texas in a covered wagon. One time she took her shotgun to her sons after they broke a tree, I think. She looked at me and told me that she hit the ground on purpose cause she wasn't aimin' at any one of them boys  anyways. I was in awe of her. One of her 10 or 11 kids lived with her til she passed. Aunt Neil never married that I know of but she sure knew something about mothering a young girl. Taught me the proper way to snap peas and how amazing fried squash from your own garden tastes with a big glass of sweet tea. Too few years left at that point but I did not know such things. I laid on her bed with the cotton bedspread. You know the kind that feels so soft and  has loops all over it in designs. Huge windows and sweet summer breezes in Nanny's house one summer out of 45 or so now.  I don't have to close my eyes to live that moment again.  There was a day that stood out from some just like it  for some reason. I felt fear. I had felt fear before and walked in the darkness to conquer it before, but this was different. I had fallen in love and now had been thrown aside as if my love was not good enough. My sweet precious children were crying and the sirens were going off. A tornado had just touched down not 1 mile from my house. I had no car because he left it with the friend who took him to the airport to meet her for the first time. He never returned.  Two in diapers, and four looking at me in fright and I was scared for the first time in forever. I remember choking back the tears and calming my kids down with many prayers. Standing at the kitchen door, I was my laundry. I had no dryer and my laundry was getting wet and rained on and tossed about. I do not know what the wind speed was measured at, but there were only a few items of clothing left on the line by morning. It rained for a few days and I just watched my laundry get wet then dry, wet then dry. I did not even attempt to bring it in. It seemed so unreal that my laundry was still a complete family of clothes and we were not. Trees went down that first day and then again on the third day. The house next to ours had a tree that had been severed in two. A coat hanger was hangin on a knot of this broken tree. Just sitting there through the entire storm. It stayed on that tree knot through the wind and rain. I had no where to go so I watched my laundry not dry and the hanger not fall. The first day of sun, I discovered that my laundry was in the trees and I had boys underwear in places that I could not even go up to take down. This moment is frozen in time. This moment was when I was afraid and time stopped and  said, "Look!".  People are precious, no matter where they are or who they are or what pain they feel. The eyes of others have seen things that don't change with time.

 Take some time to borrow someone else's eyes~Mel

Words.

The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government – lest it come to dominate our lives and interests. –

Patrick Henry

I chose to answer a post on my own wall this morning about a comment made last night by myself....it was curiously and mysteriously interrupted and disallowed by the facebook gremlins. So, I decided to write it somewhere safe and then link it like everything said should be done anyways. : )

Written last night by me:

"I FIND IT QUITE INTERESTING TO READ WHAT THE MEN WHO FOUNDED OUR GREAT COUNTRY WROTE AND PUBLICLY PROCLAIMED, WHEN WE ARE NOW GIVEN THE RIGHT TO SPEAK FREELY AND QUICKLY TOLD TO HUSH IN THE NAME OF PEACE."

       response from a fb friend:

       The freedom is there, but that doesn't mean everyone will like it. I may not agree with      
       (whoever)  but I say go ahead and say it. People getting irritated is not the same as it
       being illegal. You're not responsible for other people's reactions.

While this sounds good it started me thinking about the legalities of free speech. Why, in our country, can you go to jail or have your wallet raped by the powers that be, for something you say.


                                                                      Words.

"Sticks and stones may brake my bones, but words will never hurt me"

 

 

How many of us, as children cried, prissed, and yelled these words back at some other kid trying to hurt our feelings?  I sure had my fair share of it being the fat, little red- headed,  freckled, poor kid in school while my mom waited tables and my dad went to school and bar tended. Our forefathers spoke out generously with warnings and ideals often and until they were heard. Why, today is it legal to file against someone in court for something that is mere letters. There are words I loathe. The word nigger is one I do detest, not because I am black (I am not)or because I am ignorant (I am not), or because it evokes some personal pain I feel for a people wronged, but because it produces an arrogant wardrobe to those who use it and have no right to wear that wardrobe  for a difference in skin pigmentation. Should someone go to jail, I do not think so. I am a chunky, red-headed, Christian, conservative (in most things), mother of 11 children, who also believes that abortion for any reason is murder, homosexuality is a choice and not genetics, and that spanking children is a must when done without anger and as a last resort to teach bad behavior consequences. I hold dear my Bible and all who have gone before me and been killed for it along with the reverence of the soil I lay my head on and the blood shed to protect it.  I have had some of the most awful things said to my face in public by those compelled to try and make me feel bad for something they felt by my very presence. Should I file a lawsuit? No. Should I take the opportunity to speak and refute those possibly misplaced angers, yes. So many people today spout about their own rights, but fail miserably in my opinion to look at the possible addition they can contribute to society and posterity. My Nanny called it a legacy.

 

Legacy:

 

 anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor

 

I have heard the words Entitlement Generation used alot in the last few years. It rang in my brain as I watched the political monster move thru our country this election. Political promises to people who do not understand it is an impossibility to fullfill. The culture of our country is being redefined by a weakness to address the issues instead of pacify the incessant "toddler" in the room. Haven't you ever seen the frantic mother or father in the grocery store running around with the screaming brat of a kid, trying to buy their silence instead of turning that kid over their knee and rewarding that bad behavior with something as a reminder of what NOT to do? I have. That very minute (the one of panic buying), a parent has lost the honor and ability to effect and teach that child (future Americans) correctly. Government has never been an institution to be trusted. Ours is no different. Time and change has left us with people in charge that are stealing the safe and giving it to the neighbor across the street while shoving ice cream after ice cream down the screaming brat's face who wants nothing more than what it wants to feel good reguardless the consequence. So many people with their hands out wanting them filled with little to no reguard of the consequence to the security of the economy or future of our country and a pen in the other to check mark the box of who fills it more.

 

Entitlement at it's best (or worst).

 

I am not sad today because the guy I voted for, lost. I am sad today for the policies that are going to change our country from liberty and true freedom to dream, to a controlled and enslaved lifestyle that will not be known til it bares it's nasty teeth. Little ones, those who chose to live apart from the responsibilities of our country but want everything in return, will be the first to say ouch and wonder what and why.  I would look behind the curtain before you sound that cheer too loud. Money is not free,it cost someone.  Maybe you don't care about the future, have no kids, and want to party on what you can get from anyone first.....I am not.  That is all I have to say today. ~Mel

 

 

 

 

Rash Of The Titans: Two Tons of Steel

Rash of the Titans by Dale Arnold of hwy82musicreview.com

There are rumors, and there are rumors, but the fact of the matter is one of the greatest icon bands in Texas music, Two Tons of Steel, has gone their separate ways. At least with the members we all have grown to know and love that is. Knowing this kind of thing happens frequently in the industry this is no shock to me and is to be expected. Musicians have great passion for their art and it can create huge riffs in the fabric of the space-time continuum when a group as well rounded and famous as Two Tons of Steel turns supernova. What most folks do not realize is the sacrifice our friends go through to stay on the top. The endless hours traveling from town to town, and gig to gig in the close confines of a van can take their toll. Staying away from home and loved ones for such long periods along with other issues that come up just from being around the same people day in and day out can be hard on even the best of friends. Musical interests change over time and every band member has a personal idea of what they want their career to be, and an opinion of how to get it there. I have seen it happen many times over the years as members change and morph into other bands, and great bands separate looking for that ever-elusive perfect sound that propels them into the high-dollar arenas. Let us face a fact that is what the quest for the true final nirvana is; Finding the one great opportunity; the one big break that propels a band into stardom. It is a quaint idea most of us blissfully entertain that musicians play simply for the love of the song, but in today’s world that is growing more increasingly rare. It is naiveté for all of us on this side of the fence to think our favorite musicians and bands do not want; nay need this to be able to continue to bring us the wonderful sounds and lyrics we all enjoy so much.

This is where we come in as friends and fans that support these high-spirited folks and show them that no matter what the reasons were for the dissection were still out here and still listening. Sure, it is hard to grasp that the band members will not be the same anymore. Sure, it is a little un-nerving to think the sound may change from what we know and love. Sure, we may have alliances to some of the jilted members for whatever reasons. But putting all of the selfish and prideful issues aside, just think of all of the new and even greater possibilities. Change is an opportunity to grow. We have the opportunity to dissipate the differences and anxieties. We have an opportunity to move in a different direction under an entirely new set of circumstances.

From the bands perspective the separation can produce new music, and new sounds. The time apart can give the space needed to heal any wounds caused in the name of passion. The infusion of new members not only adds some fresh new sound to the mix but new direction and new ideas. The separate musicians are now able to pursue personal interests related to family, musical careers, or primary jobs. New bands formed and new friendships are forged. I say there is more to gain all around from the dissolve of a group so we should not pine and despair. Seize the day my fellow Two Tons fans. Pray for all of the guys and hope them the best. Look forward to new territory and new beginnings. The Beatles, the Eagles, Crosby Stills and Nash, John David Kent and The Dumb Angles, Two Bar Town, Whiskey Road Show, Miles From Nowhere, and now Two Tons of Steel, it has happed to us all at one time of another. A meeting of the minds and a parting of the ways is sometimes necessary. I wish Kevin, Dennis, Chris R., and Doddsy all of the best as I know everyone of their die-hard fans out here do. I look forward to hearing and seeing each one of them again out on the circuit alone, or together. I am proud to call them my friends, and I will support them in whatever endeavors they have. I’ll be the loudest one in the front row when the reunion tour comes around. Two Tons! Two Tons!

Dale Arnold

Co-owner, CIS officer

Texas Red Productions

Texas Red Photography

www.hwy82musicreview.com

Breathing, when you want to hold it or scream!

For all my grammar freaky friends, this blog will undoubtedly drive you batty. I will be as unethically grammatically wrong as possible to make my point with pictures, runons, and inappropriately placed punctuation. Jus' sayin' ahead of time: )

I slowed down today, when on a normal day, I wake up racing to the coffee pot, drink one cup really fast while making breakfast for my brood, start a few projects on the computer, answer more than a few phone calls, run someone to somewhere that needs to be there NOW, only to do the same repetition of activities two more times during the day. At the tail end of that day, take a shower that puts me to sleep before I stumble to the bed. Today was a different travel for me and an intentional one at that. I realized that my little one was asking me to look at him in the face. One of my teenagers mumbled something in passing that did not even register until he was headed up the stairs. My 5 year old daughter said she did not feel special today...........................that one hurt a little more than I wanted to admit to at first. It is true that I "have alot on my plate" with 9 kids at home, a husband worn smooth out, and a business to run almost alone. I thrive on the activity of it all  most days, but TODAY I had to tell myself

STOP!!

     STOP!!!    STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
                                                            STOP!!!                               
STOP!!!!                                                                 STOP!!!!!


I took a deep breath, which I reccommend to all who have over-achieving brain activity in order to allow more oxygen in.  I called a friend who could relate to most of all what I was going through, but certainly not the kid factor. My goodness, how easily we dive into the activity that surrounds those we love without much thought to how the activity may just be a selfish endeavor covered up by a blanket of reasons why we love those people in our lives. Might be is all I said becuase I certainly don't think I am only doing these things for myself. I am saying that once in a while, look into those little eyes and love 'em back no matter how inconvienent it might seem. Sip the coffee instead of down it for the next two or three.(Some of us are also guilty of the monster addiction: )) The handholding and kissing in a normal day is far over looked by those in my position too. So very little investment that I almost overlooked the HUGE returns! Life is crazy enough.....I KNOW because I actually stopped and read some news today. THIS I DO NOT RECCOMMEND TOO OFTEN. I don't know who realy cares anymore or who truly listens to my rants, but I do know that we all seem to be hurting and hurting the wrong people in our lives...not that you should hurt ANYONE, but it is inevitable if you chose to love someone else. Sometimes, we hurt those closest to us because we cannot see past the last one we loved that hurt us. Seems to me that it is all so messed up way too often and it makes my heart sad at being anything remotely close to a hurt for someone I say I love dearly..........stay connected. Stay soft. Don't buy into that line of thought that the HURTING ONES have to believe in to survive. I took a deep breath today. Loved on my little ones more. Went to McDonalds with my 5 yr old(which I cannot personally stand!) Took time to pray with them before bed. (Even though my two youngest boys decided to secretly get their older brothers super glue and proceed to stick it to their TEETH!!!!! Where do they come up with this stuff!) I sent my husband a "sweet text" and then a hug. I am going to practice, just tomorrow, looking at who is talking to me. Hug my husband when I see him (He is one of the hurting ones without eyes to see me,YET) I am going to listen more than I speak (HAHA I will just write more I think! but that doesn't count : ) The world is just as crazy, the mean lady at the grocery store will still burn a hole in my head for being in her way, and I will still be behind on my projects until they are done. I will still have just as much to do, but maybe, just maybe! those little changes will change how what I am doing is percieved by the LOVED ONES in my circle of life. I stopped, and took a deep breath.

NOTATION:
Some elements of my rant may not make sense to some, hit spot on for others and be completely picked apart by a few left.....but I sure hope that it was condusive enough for YOU to have taken something with you when you finished. We, NONE OF  US, are perfect, but don't settle for the UN'S IM'S and IN'S at all.

unloving
inconsiderate
unattentive
intolerant
unappreciative
inappropriate
uncaring
untrusting
impatient
unsharing
impertinant
unreasonable

Thank you Mark Allan Atwood.....the most eloquently spoken description of my work...... EVER.

"Melissa's work www.texasrephotography.com brings to photography what songwriters and performers can only hope their art brings to the ears and hearts of their fans. There's a vibe, an 'aliveness' to her live music photographs that literally steals the moment, places it captive in her hands and then allows later viewers to relive more than merely the look of that second in time. Her grasp of colors, contrast, angles and the very emotions that ripple across the faces and bodies of the performers she photographs, allows her to tell a story as powerful as any of her subjects. Further, her understanding of those same requirements to capturing great live shots helps her still photo work to be anything but still, brimming with life and a realness hard to translate through a lens. Simply put, she has a gift for both creating and recreating, that elevates her work to the top of my list."   
                                                                                   

                                                                                    Mark Allan Atwood www.markallanatwood.com

Mark Allan Atwood and Brimstone

– Rebels, Old Souls, New Horizons

Over the past two years Melissa and I have worked closely with Mark Allan Atwood on several projects and we have gotten to know him much better not only as a friend, but as a sounding board for our ideas about the Texas music industry. I think I know Mark well enough by now to voice my take on his songs without offending. Mark Allan Atwood has been a Texas musician and songwriter for many years and I consider him a Texas treasure. Not only is he one of the best singer songwriters around, he is one of the least appreciated in the business today. He has a quality and cohesiveness to his lyrics that, although not always apparent at first, subconsciously grow as one listens to the songs. The words pass through your ears and roll around in your head, then the true lyrical greatness, feelings, and depth of meaning follow after. He has a strong singing voice, clear and loud, or soft and low when required but always demanding your attention. It does not matter if it is a slow serious song or a belting ballad he annunciates the choruses with heart and feeling, and not an ounce of trepidation.

Listening to the rough tracks from several of the songs on the new CD “Burned at the Crossroads” I’ll admit I was a little nonchalant and cursory at first. Later I was able to listen more closely to the music and the complexities of his words while Melissa was developing the ideas she would later use as the album artwork.

I am going to get the only issue I have with this collection of great songs out on the table and up front. I  also know it is a personal opinion. Not one that is unfounded, although it is an unpopular position with younger musicians today. It seems as if almost every songwriter has a signature song with references to Marijuana. It’s nothing new to the business, but it tends to limit the marketability of a song when it comes to airplay time. Let’s face it, the bottom line is in the end every song written has a dream of being a number one hit on the radio. Otherwise, why try to market the song in the first place. I personally would have liked to have seen at least two of the first four songs, be different songs. Preferably not three songs about drug use at the veritable beginning of what I think could be a defining point in Mark Allan Atwood’s musical career. I have no issues with the songs themselves per se, just the order they were placed in during engineering. I believe in putting your best foot forward so to speak, and one song with some vague references could be more easily acceptable in my humble opinion. Though I am suitably impressed he figured out how to use the word “Paraquat” in a song. . There I got it off my chest, let’s move on.

All that being said this collection of hit songs excels on every other level. Produced and engineered by Brimstone and Adam Odor (Stone Cringe) and recorded by the guys at Yellow Dog Studios, This CD touts guest appearances by Lloyd Maines and subtle background vocals by Bonnie Whitmore, and includes the songwriting talents of Heath Childs and Dennis Phillips. The top notch talent of the Brimstone band consists of Mark Allan Atwood on vocals, guitar, and harmonica, Wayne O’Neil on lead guitar, Matt Nunn on Bass, Rich Tulp on Drums, and “Uncle” Mitch Connell on Piano and B3 organ.

There are many reflective and precise songs on this CD, and every one is unique and imaginative. Some are dark, and some are retro and groovy like the song “Liar”, but every song on the CD invokes common feelings we all have at some point in our lives.

“Anyone listening” is one of the most powerful songs I have ever heard. Everyone has felt the cold grasp of loneliness at times. There are so many people in our world today who battle with loneliness and depression. From the plight of the elderly, to the struggling teenager, to the handicapped veteran, all of them are screaming out just to be noticed. Wanting anyone to acknowledge them, spend a moment or two talking with them, showing them they really matter and still have some worth in life. Another powerful and well written song is “Dead man”. It’s about the end of a relationship, and the beginning of the long hard road to surviving that loss. It speaks of the situations we create for ourselves, when we are forced to accept the harsh reality of life without someone we rely on. In “Good Old Days” and “Ocalla Road” Mark sings about nostalgia for the things of an earlier time, and a younger world when life seemed more safe and simple. By far the most fun song is “Good Dog”. The gals will giggle, and the guys will say sheepish things but the truth is a dog really can be a man’s best friend. When it comes to unconditional love, a good one can’t be beat.

Finishing up, I want to comment on “Ghost”, and “California” two of the premiere songs on the CD. Singers like Townes Van Zandt and Doug Sahm were the pioneers who forged the way for many early Texas and Americana musicians. Townes’ lyrical style has always been a driving force for Texas songwriters. They all want to write songs as close to his style as they can. His music was raw and gutsy, and  definately not flashy or mainstream.  Musicians struggle to write songs like those and still remain unique and different, and then to be acknowledged as such. It works really well but sometimes it works too well. “Ghost” is about the spirit of Van Zandt always being present for some. There is always one guy in the crowd who wants to hear “Pancho and Lefty”. Listen carefully to the words of “Ghost” and you’ll hear a little bit of TVZ in every sentence. Then skip on over to “California” at the end of the CD. A haunting dreamscape Mark paints of the California Gold Rush and a mine cave-in in a small town. The song begins with a first person narrative from a trapped miner awaiting rescue that never comes. Then the story changes to the point of view of the great, great grandson of that very same miner and a revelation of what it must have been like. Mark Allen has written a spectacular song, with a twisted and riveting ending. My final opinion on Mark Allan Atwood’s composition “Burned at the Crossroads” is this is one of the most down to earth, bare bones, hard hitting CD’s of the year. Raw, emotional, entertaining, and energetic, and one of my favorite CD’s of all times. Mark Allan Atwood and Brimstone are a fast rising force in Texas Music today and all I can say is great work, and keep ‘em coming!

Dale Arnold

Co-owner, Co-producer

Texas Red Productions

www.hwy82musicreview.com

~Where LIVE music is an addiction!

Justin Bowerman

In Persuit of Life,Love and…well…Wild Game.

In the pine thickets of East Texas and forests of Southern Arkansas is where I grew up. My family hails from in and around the Texarkana area. During my early childhood and young adult life I hunted and fished almost every part of these areas. That is one of the main reasons why Justin Bowerman’s musical style has such a nostalgic attraction for me.

When I first got his CD "Rock You"  and even before I listened to his music, I took a long look at the musicians who recorded the material. Immediately I knew it was going to sound and be a great CD. The cover art was simple and un-cluttered sporting his unmistakable fish-hook signature logo, and some very tasteful and well placed candid photos. The music was recorded and produced by Stormy Cooper (The Roger Creager Band) at Stormy Cooper Media in Houston. Stormy also performed on the CD along with Josh Owen, and Allen Huff also of The Roger Creager Band. Veteran Bassist Rankin Peters who has been called the best Bass player in Texas. Others contributing their talents were Fiddle player Chris Whitten (The Cody Johnson Band), sound engineer Lyndon Hughes on drums and percussion, and the great Kenny Jackson on Steel Guitar. Slipping the CD into my player, I eagerly drank in every song. His voice has a smooth, velvet-like texture, easy on your ears. Justin can hold the vocal strong notes to just the right length.

Songs like “Jugline”, and “Deer Meat” are a sportsman’s anthem. I can picture all of the Hunter’s and Fishermen standing up when one of these songs comes on the radio. Removing their hats, and wiping a sympathetic tear from the corner of an eye. “Hell or High Water” continues the call of the wild. It speaks of stepping out of the daily grind and letting nature take its course. If you ask me, it could possibly start another back to the land movement.

Justin Bowerman has appeal for the ladies too with songs like “Rock You”, “Almost Love”, and “4^th of July”. Justin shows he can write and sing a great country Love song that everyone will like. The Guys had better grab their best sweetheart and start boot-scootin’. I’ll bet the girls will be swooning and screaming at the edge of the stage when he belts out any of these tunes, or I’ll buy you a Kenny Chesney CD.

A personal favorite of mine is “Listen Good”. My wife has a saying whenever someone ends up telling her, a perfect stranger, their life story just like Justin sings in this song. She say’s “My sign must have been on”. Pertaining to the old Peanuts comics where Lucy has her psychology stand set out and gives Good old Charlie Brown her personal life advice for a nickel. It’s a song about how folks sometimes cope with the stress of everyday life, and the good-hearted people who get the wave of emotions that tend to spill out at awkward moments.

I’m not going to give away all of the gems Justin has put on this well made, great listening and fun compilation of songs. You will have to get his CD and judge for yourself. Justin Bowerman has all of the makings of a great singer and songwriter. He writes his lyrics from the heart, and his life. He has something to say through his music that every listener can relate to, and succeeds in bringing you right into his frame of mind. It shows Justin can hold his own, as far as song writing and musical skills go, with any of the popular artists out there today. I’m waiting on Justin to head out on tour so I can catch him live onstage. Watch your local venues for his name, and don’t miss out on hearing an All-American original like Justin Bowerman.

Dale Arnold

Co-Owner, Co-Producer

Texas Red Productions

http://www.hwy82musicreview.com/

~Where LIVE music is an addiction!

Dusitn Durham and Safari Road- This "Two Lane" leads to one great country sound

If I had a dollar for every time I did something for no good reason, I would be a wealthy man. I walk around occasionally in a daze, wondering where the time slips off to. Mind you, it doesn't bother me too much since I seem to be taking care of business. But, I have come to a realization that not slowing down long enough to see what is going on around me is what really bugs me. A while back Melissa and I met a musician named Dustin Durham. He writes songs, and plays guitar for Safari Road.
Safari Road is a local band from Bosque County Texas that writes, and records, and performs pure Texas country from the heart, all over the state. For no good reason one day I was reading some e-mail correspondence between he and Melissa and ran across a couple of his songs, one of them being "Bosque Country Nights". It hit me that I had been in the little town he was singing about. It brought back memories of campfire picking and howling at the moon near Bosque Bottoms. So I decided to listen to the next tune called "Nightfall", and I hear more small-town Texas. I spend most of my time trudging around the DFW area, and I find it therapeutic to get back to the dirt roads, and small country towns of rural Texas. "FM 219" is a song everyone can identify with. Weather it’s where you live, where you want to live, or what you like to do it’s all in this song. "In My Own Time" personifies the Texas broken-hearted blues. It reminds me of Merle Haggard, or Waylon Jennings. The raw and soulful lap-steel guitar, and direct to the point lyrics make you feel the drama of the moment. "Sunshine" is an escape tune. It’s the 4-o-clock office daydream. The "Man it’s just too nice a day to be working!" feelings everyone knows. Kind of makes me want to play hooky from work and head to Galveston for the weekend. The remaining tunes "Change Your Mind", then "Superman", "Famous", and "Around" turned out to be great songs.
Before I knew it I had listened to the entire CD. Appropriately named "Two Lane", it’s available at all the usual online sites, or at any of their gigs. The CD boasts the phenomenal talents of Bob "Slim Bawb" Pearce who produced and sat in, along with Dusty. The album was released on www.radiofreetexas.org in early March of 2012, and already has five songs among the top in Texas music. The hit "FM 219 is currently at #6. The words and music of Safari Road is soothing and unrefined, clean-cut and well-played. The entire collection of songs is honest Texas country in purest form. It’s good for dancing, drinking, or just listening to when you are cooking out on the grill with your friends. So, if you’re out visiting your favorite Texas venue and Safari Road is playing, just throw a little sawdust on the floor and watch the magic happen. Remember while you are listening to "Two Lane" and Safari Road, it always helps to slow down and revel in the spontaneous moments of life. I promise you will be glad you did.

Dale Arnold
Co-owner, Co-Producer
Texas Red Productions
www.hwy82musicreview.com

The Washers - "Tired Eyes" - A little texas band with a lot of heart

The Washers

Growing up around South Texas I had the opportunity to get to know many classic country artists who passed through from Nashville. I got to see many greats such as Waylon Jennings, Moe Bandy and Joe Stampley, Marty Robbins, Hank Snow, and many more. I never knew there was an under-the-radar movement of great songwriters flowing just below this limelight. Although many years ago it seems, I will never forget how it felt the first time I heard a song by Doug Sahms, Ray Wylie Hubbard, or Townes Vanzant. Many times I exclaimed, “What great songs, how come I haven’t heard of these guys before now?” It was a rush of well-being. Just like finding a forgotten twenty dollar bill in the pocket of your jeans. It felt exhilarating, almost like finding buried treasure. It seemed to open a whole new chapter in my musical appreciation journal.

 A few weeks ago I was contacted to do a music review for a band of musicians from the Houston area I had never heard of calling themselves “The Washers”. I didn’t know what I was in for but I agreed to listen and find the time to write some words of encouragement. When I contacted Matt Kopycinski back asking him for a few of his favorites from their newly released CD entitled “Tired Eyes”, I literally had no idea what to expect. What I heard took me by surprise and back to those days in the late-seventies when I discovered Texas Americana and the likes. The immediate feelings of, “Why aren’t these guys touring all over the U.S. in a Prevost bus, packing every show to the front doors?” came back along with a flood of good memories. I started listening to each song, and making mental notes, trying to be professionally critical of the music. Pleasantly speaking, I found myself liking everything I heard, and having fun!

 The tempos in “Two Left Feet”, and “Like A Gypsy Should” immediately had my feet tapping, and my head nodding to the down-beat. The songs are polished, and recorded flawlessly, upbeat and totally dance-worthy. Even their mandatory “Texas song” “Here In Texas”,  was not the usual, overly self-absorbed, we-know-everyone-wants-to-be-a-Texan, trivial expression. It rings of missing loved ones waiting back in Texas, and how there is really no place like Texas. Harmonic vocal forms, and great lyrics permeate the bodacious ballads of “Park Light, Drive”, and “Regret”. These songs ring with sin, and the excitement of doing all the wrong things and making them feel so right.

By far my personal favorite has got to be “Ashes”. Not since The Mavericks went their separate ways have I heard such a blues-y, crying steel guitar, coupled with dynamite lead licks, and pinings of lost love, and jilted romance. A hauntingly good reverb sound and a little slide guitar tie it all together nicely. I listened to it several times over just to keep the feel of the moment.

The Washers are some of the best new Texas talent I have heard in a long time. It’s fresh, alive, and young country to the max. The musical styles of each of these multi talented musicians meld very well together. I’m what you might call a fan at first listen, and I’ll be catching up with these guys in person real soon. I got a huge hankering to take my "Two Left Feet" and spend the night making lots of four left turns with my sweetie.

 Hey! What do you know, I just found a twenty dollar bill in the back pocket of my old jeans. Must be my lucky day!

Dale Arnold

Co-Producer, Co-Owner

Texas Red Productions

Music Review

I am idealistic, hopeplessly optimistic, and been called naive by some I love, but......

(another sporadically deep process of thought on this dreary Winter day of January 2012)
to the artist who writes and sings...............


I absolutely love creative people. Music and art are funny things. We have art teachers and vocal coaches and those who are good and sometimes great at helping some "rise above the rest" to perform their art in a manner that a certain demographic of people will pay alot of money to see, support, and freely promote. What does it really mean? I see so much on so many different levels of a few people who THINK they have what it takes for YOU the musician to "make it big". Twist it, tighten it, color it up til it isn't what it was born to be so it looks and acts and breathes like something else they know that glitters. I am sorry that I would rather sit in the bus station in South Louisiana and listen to an old black man sing about his life travels rather than pay 25.00-200.00 to get in to an arena to see a fraction of what could be only to have that money used to kill and distort the musician and music that was gifted to that person in the first place. That is not to say that some do rise on what they are and see "fame" without distortion. It is not the norm from my observations.

I absolutely love wildflowers..some, who know me, would not be surprised in the least. I love wildflowers because their beauty is untamed and free. Music, when sang by those who feel it, live it, love it, cry with and for it, die in it, and share it are much like wildflowers. The "scene" that some want to cover and write about and be close to for personal gain, is not as interesting as the alternative. If you write, please write for those like myself who want to hear what you have to say.:) Sing it, whisper it, scream it, laugh it out loud, but don't give up no matter what.  I personally don't ever want to be stuck with the twisted and tainted-ly changed to fit an other's prideful interpretation of what you write. This does not include co writing by the way which I find more and more fascinating each time I am witness to it. We speak to one another on different occasions and have great conversations, but there is something about having a song written to and for you that is special. Beautiful. All those I call friends who understand this, thank you for giving to the rest of us a piece of yourself or your life.

Absolutely beautiful.

Does anyone observe what I see too?

Music is truly an undefinable art of soulful expression......some will get yours, others will not.

Today's philosophy?

Hallway Demons

As children, we endure most things that come our way. I see in my own children a resilience that I wish I could still tap in to from time to time. It is my experience after 43 years of life, that most people edure change, loss of a grandparent, the ridicule of a bully, the betrayal of a best friend, or the tragedy of the death of a family pet. Even more in the past 20 years, have deep issues with too much change or the loss of attachment to people due to divorce, marital affairs of their parents, or even death due to passionate anger. Not a single person still attached to the human race by DNA can get thru one or all of these curve balls on our own. Stories of that special friend, grandmother who would not give up, teacher who spent countless hours on a troubled kid, or a special friend who just held the hand of a tornado til the winds died down. Sometimes, in part or in full, a child slips through the hugs, hand holds, and comfort of another person that walks with those little feet through the fire seemingly alone. Those burn marks and scars stay on a person forever. I often have said, in testimony to others of where I have been, that in a mirror I see a burn victim. An intrigue and repulse at the same time fills my heart for who I was, where I have traveled from, and who I have become. When things or people happen to someone that early in life, good and bad, there is a place to go that feels better even for a short while. This introduces alcohol, drugs, addictions, the abuse of people (who have not their own faces) and violence.               Anger.                           I know there are those who do care, but some see these grown children and scoff at them with such harshness.That is not to say, there are only child-like qualities by any means! To remain childish in play and have an accepting heart to new is a much needed quality in most adults.  It pains my heart to no end when I hear or see the hidding of ones own skeletons only to crush another for theirs. We all walk, talk, make love, have friends, work, smile, cry and get angry,  Some walk dark hallways in a constant state of anxiety anticipating  the unexpected jolt of an ever present demon Others as part of solitary survival, choose to sit and have dinner with the enemy not knowing just how to get up from the table safely. Every failed attempt brings more failure to a life that is in need of hope and security. As created beings, holding the ability to share a smile, hold a hand, and let a hug linger, could we not all decide to sit down at the table and devise a plan to help those who can't stand, get up and walk slowly away from that horrid dinner? I can often be quoted in saying that "People are the best and worst thing on this crazy rotating rock" I chose to let someone help me walk a long while ago. I chose to gather strength from those God puts in my way long enough to get my attention even now. Without Light, there will always be a dark hallway. Without those who share that light and love, dinner alone will forever cripple great people! After all,  we are only grown up little feet.

When will this all be takin serious? When we no longer exist?

With this administration, I'm sure my profile will be flagged or something very unAmerican...but I just cannot let this one go.: ( If you hate politics on facebook even though it is a social platform for many, this is your cue to NOT READ.... go away and click the x at the top right hand corner of the screen. If you decide to read, it is not my fault that you did.

My kids came home yesterday talking about how gret it is to build a mosque in America and the peaceful beliefs of Islam. I have a major problem with this. I am a conservative, Christian, military-minded, mother of 12 (one who is presently a US Marine) who cannot understand how, in our own schools, we have to choke down what is really going on with our country. We were attacked by a religious sect of people with no reason to live but rather are rewarded to die and kill as many "infidels" as possible when they see no possible conversion to Islam. We, as an American culture, have rewritten some of history trying to hide the uglies of history, when all we need to do is tell the truth and learn from it. I do not HATE anyone. I do teach my children patience, grace, and loving others wherever they are in life or culture. I also believe in killing to protect the innocent or the endangered. I also believe in protecting the people of our country, foreign and domestic or in some cases fighting those who are the enemy of this country, foreign and domestic. I am going to spend the better part of my week teaching my elementary kids about not only 9-11, but about being an AMERICAN.

"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence,[note 1] promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
For those of you who do not know what that is...it is the BEGINNING of a piece of very important paper that governs or should govern our country. Please educate yourself and your kids.
There is evil in the world.
There are enemies of governments, religions, and races.
We had better start understanding what a "Holy War" is about....we have had one declared on us by a whole group of people.
http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution.html

hwy82musicreview.com

Today is a day of contemplation. What I would like to do and what I am allowed to do and what I can accomplish inspite of certain elements in life can all converge on one little spec in time. This is that moment for me, which I am sure will not be the last time I sit in the middle of it all wondering how to proceed.: )  To carry ideals is painful enough at times, but to leave integrity behind is far worse than I can carry. Me, well, I have no option to not carry ideals along with a whole lump of integrity or I cease to remain who I have become. There are those who proceed forward with neither and seem to get far more than those who cannot. I hold for the hope that when the race is ran, there will be a measurable difference that matters to the right onlookers. That is the answer for today.

yes.

Again. On another day. No matter what. with the same ideals. With the same measure of integrity.

One of my FAVORITE places to be......more than just a place to go.

Love & War In Texas

I have discovered a place just off I75 in Plano, Texas that I feel there is no pretension in.  Texas is known for our hospitality and our kind words even if they drip with poisonous honey, but it is a rare find in a restaurant/bar/venue that I can be myself and it be totally acceptable. I am nothing extreme by any means, but the attraction this place has for people who love music and love those who love music is  unbelievable. So many times, much to the wait staff's dismay, you will find yourself not wanting to leave "just yet". An amazing place to eat, listen to music, and feel at home with others you may or may not know.  If you haven't experienced it yet, get there when Zane Williams plays, or Eric Beatty, or Robby White. A truest type of people , from owner, to management, to wait staff, to fans, to musicians......

On a swing

Sometimes, no matter what you do or say, those you love and respect will misunderstand you.  Most of the time it is something that could have been spoken more in depth or given more explanation, but often is not. I am guilty for an unreal expectation of those closest to me to know me well enough to give me the benefit of the doubt as I would.  It is not always the case.  It so saddens me when relationships are not protected as they should be and things far less important in the long run are prioritized .  There is a lesson here which I always look for when things get out of wack......slow down, smile often sincerely, love deeply, take time, show love when hurt is expected, and show grace for everyone at all times(because you can never truly walk in someone else's same shoes).  To live honestly, love whole heartedly, never trade trust for suspicion as a first option, let anger linger in dark hallways for days so that understanding will give light to the situation, and never let an opportunity to encourage someone pass by is what I want others to remember about my very short life is up.

I have been a bit mellow tonight and in the quiet of my evening had time to think about some things. Those who know me know that quiet is not usually a characteristic of my daily routine.: ) So I embraced it to meditate on those I love and the kind of person I want to be.: )

~Mel

Granger Smith " Five More Minutes" and Unsent Letters"

Texas Music: My Passion

Texas Music: My Passion: "I have been wanting to write a bit on why I do what I do. So many of my musically-oriented friends have asked me this question. It's really ..."