Nice One!

You can be fully satisfied with where you are, understanding that you're eternally evolving. When you get into that place of feeling appreciation of where you are and of who you are, and appreciation of what you are, and you accept that you are a never-ending, always unfolding Being, then you can stand in that delicate balance of being optimistic about what is to come, without being unhappy about where you stand. Find a way of eagerly anticipating future changes, while at the same time you are in love and satisfied with who, what, where and how you be.
Abraham-Hicks

Reggae Evolution - Best of 2007 Show

Jah Ray and I have joined forces for the Best of 2007 show and it will air on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 from 7-10 PM on KAZI 88.7 FM. We have picked out the very best tunes for the year so I hope you can tune in.

If you missed the show, you can download it here: Music4Life Podcast.

DJ-RJ

Relay For Life

We have started a team at the radio station to raise money for Relay For Life in April.

My Reason to Relay is to join people around the world in celebrating those who have survived cancer and supporting the lifesaving mission of the American Cancer Society.

Please make a donation to me or join my team. You are helping deliver the hope that future generations will not have to endure cancer threatening the lives of their friends and family. We have the power to fight back against a disease that has affected me and millions of others.

RELAY FOR LIFE

Thank you!

RJ

Year End

Well, I am happy to say I have no foreign items protruding from my body. I have healed from my two recent surgeries and I have lots of energy.

I am looking to rock some Christmas parties if anybody is interested. Let me know!

RJ
973-8686

More Victory, More Love

Well today I had that catheter taken out of my shoulder and what a relief that is. It's buried under the bandages, so maybe it hasn't fully set in yet that it is really gone. I imagine in a few days I will get to see what it looks like when I unveil it. The doctor had mercy on me and only charged me half-price, so I give thanks for that blessing.

Went tonight to my friend Jason's birthday celebration at Momo's. I heard a great band named Suzanna Choffel. They were quite soulful and sweet vocals that reminded me a bit of Nelly Furtado. The drummer had a hilarious 70s wig on and the keyboard player's dog wandered off and onstage while they were playing. Check them out.

Just started reading my 2nd book by Paul Ferrini this week and he is just amazing! Teaching me moreso that LOVE is what we should all be doing with everyone that we meet and not worrying about what we perceive to be wrong with people and judging them. Read his Mastery Prayer.

Let us all remember how loved and blessed we are to be alive right now.

DJ-RJ
ps: From his 12 Guidelines:
Experience your equality with every person you meet. If you think or feel that you are "less than" or "more than" another person, understand that fear is present. Take a deep breath and be aware of the fear and the unworthiness behind it. Then bring love and compassion to yourself.

Surgery Went Well

I am at home recovering from surgery. Mom and I went for breakfast after we got out. I was a lil groggy and didn't eat much. I had the tube removed almost 5 months to the day of having it put in. So happy to have it out!!!!!

Great!!!!

Today is the last day of having the feeding tube in!!!! I can't wait to get this thing removed tomorrow morning. Mom will be taking me bright and early at 6AM. Should be back home by 9:30 or so.

Next Wednesday, I will go see Dr Ashworth and have the port-a-cath removed from my shoulder.

Life just continues to get better for me and I am so thankful for this opportunity to have life!

RJ

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Now playing: Abjeez - Nasle Man

Two New Interviews

Two great reggae artists, one from Germany and one from Ohio plus you can hear me playing drums too on one of them. Hope you dig these:

Music4Life Podcast

Bless You in all that you do!

DJ-RJ

Makes Me Wonder...

Other studies have found that electromagnetic waves from mobile phones may affect people's health. A preventative medicine team led by Prof. Choi Jae-wook of Korea University surveyed 177 brain cancer patients admitted to the hospital in 2005. In 137 or 77.4 percent of the patients the cancer was located near the spot where the patient held their mobile phone.

"People who held their mobile phones to their right ears got cancer on the right side of the brain, and those who used the left ear got cancer on the left side of the brain," said Yoon Song-yi, one of the team's researchers. "It's too early to conclude that the way they used their mobile phones increased their risk of getting cancer. The final results will come by the end of the year."

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200711/200711050007.html

My cancer was in the left side of my mouth, the same side I always have the cell phone on.

RJ

Saturday Update

Lots of things happening this week!

I went golfing yesterday with Will and we played at Hancock and had a great time. It was a perfectly beautiful day too.

The other big news is that I have scheduled the removal of my Gtube for November 13th. My prayer is that I can find a way to pay for the facility. Last time I was fortunate to only have to pay $1,000. Maybe they will give me the same deal again and an angel will help me come up with that amount.

Still more big news is Anne and I joined Lifetime Fitness and we will be working out together and getting fit. The place is just amazing! Check it out, north and south locations.

Gotta get ready for my gig today. Enjoy this lovely weather!

Peace to you!

RJ

Lucky Dube

I just found out Lucky Dube was shot and killed this evening. He was the biggest reggae star from South Africa. I met him once after a show at Liberty Lunch, and he was a kind loving man.

I will do a tribute to him on my reggae program on KAZI 88.7 FM between 7 and 10 pm.

With lyrics like these his music will keep touching many hearts for years to come:

When you flash that badge
You want everyone to shiver
When you flash that badge
You want everyone to worship you
I got no time to worship human kind
I only worship the All Mighty
Through his prophets I have learned
To give respect to everything he created
I give love to those who gimme love
Love those who gimme war
I love those who hate me
I bless even those who curse me year x 2

Chorus
Gimme gimme respect
Show me show me respect.

You could be the president
You could be his deputy
You don't even have to know
My political affiliation
You don't even have to know
My religious affiliation
Respect me, for who I am
And not what I am
Nobody even cares about your dollars
Nobody even cares about your bling bling

Give love to those who give you love
Love to those who hate you
Bless even those who curse you, yeah x 2

Chorus
Gimme respect

Tennessee Update

Dad and I got to play 18 holes of golf today and it was fun. Reminds me that I need to play more often. Here's Dad:



The trees here are changing and it is beautiful. Haven't seen too much yet. Took it real easy yesterday. Went with dad to his bowling league last night. Got to meet the whole team. Nice guys:




More later...

RJ

On The Road Again...

The last week has been incerdible. Did radio on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday I got to play drums with Lion Head at Flamingo. We did a 2 hour set and I don't know how I was able to pull it off still. I had a great time though! Got to be creative and take the music to some cool places. Ras Jorge played bass and we figured that we hadn't played together in about 17 years or so since the old Root 1 days. Here we are (thanks to Debbie for taking the shots):


Here I am playing and to my surprise singing too. I was able to hit some notes:


Did my usual thing at Sacred Shelf on Thursday. Mostly took it easy on Friday and then Saturday had a planning session with a couple and went to mom's church fall-fest after that. Saturday night, I got to open again for Ricardo Lemvo & Makina Loca. They blew me away again as they have every time! Such incredible African and Latin music! Anne and Alex went and we all danced and enjoyed the vibes.

Here is a video clip I shot of the incredible drummer:



Friday night got to play dress up:



Sunday I played a wedding in Georgetown which went very well other than when it rained on the dancefloor. We moved the dancefloor to the covered area and it was fine.

Today is Monday and I am getting ready to get on a plane to Tennessee to see my dad and spend some time up there. Flying in to Nashville and then driving over to Fairfield Glade. I hope to take some pictures while I am there.

Have a blessed week!

RJ

Great Swing Music

Mom, Lori and I went to see A Ride With Bob Friday night at Paramount Theatre. It was a play that told the story of Bob Wills written by Ray Benson of Asleep At The Wheel. The music was incredible and the actors were great too. Learned a lot about Bob's life and what he went through.

I was really impressed by The Quebe Sisters, who my sister had seen a few weeks ago in Ft Worth. These 3 young sisters play fiddle and sing like The Andrews Sisters. Simply amazing! We go to meet them and buy a CD. Quite impressive to see so much talent! Check them out!

Last night I performed at a wonderful wedding at Great Hills Country Club. The dancefloor was full almost the whole night. Got a chance to play some cumbias for a change and enjoyed that. They also had mariachis and a Dragon Dancer that was very cool.

RJ

October 13th - Will You Come Celebrate With Me?

I am really excited about this show!!!!! Come out and celebrate with me and dance your butt off!!

RJ

On Saturday October 13th, Flamingo Cantina continues its exploration of international flair as Ricardo Lemvo and Makina Loca fuses an entire diaspora’s worth of influence to a chassis of Afro-Cuban origin. Born in the Congo of Angolan ancestry, Ricardo Lemvo formed Makina Loca 17 years ago in Los Angeles and the 10-piece band quickly attracted worldwide attention with their seamless blend of Cuban son montuno and Zairean soukous. With Lemvo fluently singing in each of Spanish, Lingala, Kikongo, French, English, and Portuguese, a Makina Loca set conjures exotic travel as an escape route from American cultural isolation. Promoting its fifth album titled Isabela after Lemvo’s newborn daughter, Makina Loca expects to open the hearts of those long-due for the Cuban clave’ rhythm to act as their Afro-Latin tour guide.

DJ-RJ opens the show with a hot mix of salsa, merengue, bachata, reggaeton and more.

Doors at 8:30 p.m. Cover is $12/$14; tickets are available at End of an Ear Records located at 2209 S 1st St and Flamingo Cantina located at 515 E. Sixth Street, venue phone 512/494-9336. www.flamingocantina.com.

Good News!!!!!

My first CT scan results came back today and no cancer !

YEAH!!!!!!!

RJ

Closer To Thee

I discovered a CD today called Grace by Snatam Kaur while working at the bookstore. Or maybe it discovered me? She sings the Sikh devotional music, Kirtan and I am totally blown away! I digest a lot of music and not many things have this kind of effect on me. I have been listening to it all day while driving around and it brings me closer to God. The pure love and joy put into these recordings sinks deep into your soul. It keeps you in such a high place that you will feel the effects and stay in a loving mind-state after enjoying it. I'm sure this won't be my last CD of hers.

Thank you Snatam for the beautiful gifts you give us.

Check her out!

DJ-RJ

Updates - Flying Solo (NOT so low)

Hey amigos!

I am having a great Wednesday here as the beats keep rolling...

I got my CT Scan done today in Round Rock. My doc will get the results tomorrow. Not sure when they will trickle down my way. I have an appointment to see my doc on October 5th. Hopefully I will know before then.

On Sunday, I did my first wedding by myself with no MC to run the mic. My voice wasn't great, but sufficient to get it done.

Kris Brown has been here for the last two days doing overdubs on the Iginga album project. It's coming along nicely.

I have been able to eat a bit here and there. Lo-mein with tofu seems to go down pretty easily and it is tasty!

Gotta get back to my laundry.

Love to all of you !!!!!

RJ

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Now playing: TC - Flatline
via FoxyTunes

Sacred Shelf

I trained today with Barry at the bookstore and it was great. We had some great reasoning and I picked up on things pretty quick. We have great things for gifts: cards, awesome books and CDs and lots of cool stuff. I will be here on Thursdays and my first day will be this Thursday from 10a-2p. Come by and see me and say hello and pick up something for those you love.

We're inside Unity Center at 9603 Dessau Rd.

RJ

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Now playing: Liquid Mind (Chuck Wild) - I Am Willing
via FoxyTunes

Big Weekend

This was a busy weekend for me! Almost like my normal life used to be...

Friday night, Anne and I went out to see Stephen Marley & Zap Mama at Emo's. Stephen Marley was as I had expected. Zap Mama, however, blew me away! They're from Belgium and they played so many styles of music with incredible female harmonies. From funk, hip-hop, reggae, rock, African music, latin and all very tightly executed.

Check them out: Zap Mama

Saturday night I did a wedding out in Buda at Kali-Kate with DJ Ted and it was great. Ceremony was flawless and Ted's humor on the mic really made for a nice evening.

Today was a huge day for me. Had a great morning at church. I volunteered to help out at Sacred Shelf, which is our awesome bookstore. I am excited to begin training and learn more about all the great books, CDs and things we sell, plus getting to know more of our members. I will be there on Thursdays from 10-2pm.

I went out with some friends to Mongolian BBQ and I got a plate of food and was able to eat about half of it. It was so tasty! Onions, tofu, veggies, and even iced tea!

After that I went home and took a nap and then went to see Anne & Kalaiah. We hung out and Anne cooked a real nice meal with an awesome smokey seitan that was tasty! She also made a soup which I had two bowls of. Very tasty!

Interesting that my sense of smell has become much more sensitive since I've gone through this. Food is tasting great and I am truly savoring it.

RJ

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Now playing: Alaine - Rise In Love
via FoxyTunes