Well, this will probably place me at the head of the "whiners" list, but this year I plan to play less and enjoy it more. My wife and I are full-time working musicians who work for retirement and convalescent hospitals leading sing alongs. We perform about 40-60 one hour programs a week. Don't get me wrong, it's a GREAT job, and very rewarding spiritually as well as financially, but it's a lot. Also, I'm currently in 4 different bands as the bass player/percussioninst, and gig 3-5 nights a week. I usually do about a half dozen weddings/private parties a month, and I currently have 14 guitar and 8 percussion students.

I have always said that anyone who is lucky enough to earn a living at music and then has the nerve to utter a word of complaint should be taken out and tortured and then shot. Or, worse yet, taken out and given a real job.

I'm thankful for the very good luck I've had, but I really feel like I'm burning the candle at both ends musically, and I sure don't feel any inspiration anymore.

I plan to trim back on the night time gigs and get out to more jam sessions.