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While growing up in Southern California has its positives, I knew at an early age that I wanted to go somewhere that had less concrete, more trees, and empty waves. I moved to Drain, Oregon in 1989 when I got my bachelors degree and lived out in the woods. I started teaching music and PE in private schools, coaching water polo, and substitute teaching in the classroom. All of this took a lot of time, but didn't quite add up to a real paycheck. After a year of driving an hour to the beach several times a week, I moved to Coos Bay, Oregon and have lived here ever since. I've got an unique mix of parts to my life. My wonderful wife, Dayna, and my great kids, Kelsey and Zach are a constant piece of inspiration and support in my life. After the last five years as an elementary school principal, I'm now the principal of Sunset Middle School. I love working with this age group of kids and our staff has been fantastic. I'm truly blessed to have such an incredible job that I love. I've been living on the ocean for my entire life and couldn't imagine surviving living away from it. I have surfed since I was a pup and ride Gerry Lopez surfboards. I have been kite surfing for several years now and Jimmy Lewis has been making my great kiteboards for the Oregon surf. Lately, I've been standup paddle surfing and I'm having a blast. Regardless of the conditions, I can find something to keep me busy in the ocean. I've had 4 encounters with Great White sharks since January 1993 and have a special place in my heart for this incredible species. Of course, I love to play music. I went home in 4th grade after Mr. Burger played some fiddle tunes for us and I wanted to play the violin. I'm still playing the violin today, abeit not quite as often as the guitar and mandolin. I have an addiction to fine instruments and have several hanging in my studio. I must say, however, that my favorite guitars come from Austin, Texas and are created in the Collings factory. While I've owned several fine guitars, I can't find any I like better than Collings. I've also got a great Collings F5 varnish mandolin that is a great compliment to my John Sullivan 'shark' and my 2 point Nugget. When I was a child, I grew up in the water and I loved cowboy stuff. It was a common site for me to be running around in boardshorts while I was wearing a gunbelt and cowboy boots. I don't wear that outfit today, unless I've had heaps of tequila, otherwise it may have taken off as a fashion trend. I currently have five CD's available and the next few are written but not recorded. Look for the next this fall. All five CD's are very different, as are the different facets of my life. I love to play jazz on the mandolin and on "The Daily Bills" you can get the flavor of that. Bill Bartels is a fantastic guitar player and a true friend. We recorded that in '99 and are still playing together today. "Whiskey Run, Setting Sun" is an all original, instrumental CD that is inspired by my classical and jazz background as well as the Pacific Northwest and the South Pacific. Whiskey Run is a beach close to my home where we kitesurf regularly and I have had more than a few beers while watching the incredible sunsets after a kitesurfing session. I've written songs for years, but never really performed them. About ten years ago, I decided to start singing them for folks and it's been a blast. I've got turned on to several Texas songwriters and they've all been inspiration to me, especially Robert Earl Keen. I took a trip to Austin in November '06, and drove to Houston to record 'Saltwater Cowboy' at Sugar Hill recording studio. Sugar Hill has heaps of mojo. The Stones, Freddy Fender, Willie Nelson, on and on and on. I figured the good vibe of Sugar Hill wouldn't hurt one bit. Saltwater Cowboy is a taste of some of the original songs I've written. When I write songs, they just come out. I can't really plan it or schedule it, it just pops. It was great to record Smile and Pretend at The Congress House in Austin, Texas with Mark Hallman. Angela Thomas and Kevin Fox from Austin and Collings Guitars added some nice vocals and bass respectively. I also added some fiddle on this album. The first song on the album is also the title of the album, "Smile & Pretend." The more you think about that phrase, the more you see how it can fit into so many situations of life. I hope you enjoy the music. You can listen to all of it here, on my website. Our newest CD, Three Hands on the Wheel, is pretty close to our live sound. I've been playing the electric guitar more than acoustic lately, but it's all authentic. All but one track were a 'first take'and they all turned out cool...much thanks to Mark Hallman. We played music every Thursday evening at the High Tide Cafe in Charleston, Oregon for over seven years. Charleston is a little fishing town on the ocean end of Coos Bay. Since January of 2012, we've been playing on Thursday nights at Sharkbites on Hwy 101 in downtown Coos Bay, across from the historical Egyptian Theater. It's a great place to share our music, we're always packed, and the fish tacos are awesome!