Art, I saw the smile. Maybe I should have added one to my post. Wondering what it would have been like if folks told McColl "If you wrote it, don't sing it here!"

Ambition is the root of all failure, and desire the root of all heartbreak. (Ooh...look! I've gone all Taoist...) I wouldn't want to imagine the world without either, though. To be realistic, the only ambition I have the power to make realitiy is what I, myself, can do. Ambitions and desires that rely on other people to make reality are dreams, and dreams need luck to come true. Trying to force other people to make your dreams come true for you often winds up in failure. Who wrote "you gotta sing like you don't need the money?"

Art, I've been bitter. The one big lesson I learned from it is that I don't like feeling that way. What makes me feel bitter is always wanting something I can't have, whether it's money, recognition or friends that don't want to be friends. I can go through life blaming other people for how miserable I am, or I can just get over it or find something I can do that will make me happy. (Note: I mean something positive. I do not mean boiling anyone's bunny rabbit, slashing their tires or leaving flaming dogshit-in-a-bag on their front porch.)