December 25, 2003

     What a wonderful Christmas for me this year!  We celebrated it at my ex-wife's house (Jane) and three of our four children were there: Lynn and her husband, Jeff and children Keri and Stephen; our son Jeff and his special friend Tina and son Brandon; our daughter Connie and her daughter, Jessica--who lives in L.A.--and her son, Cameron, and Cameron's father, Patrick.  Our youngest, Jim II and his Significant Other, Patty, and his children Kayla, Alex, and Dylan, live too far away near Seattle, Washington, so a long telephone conversation had to suffice this time.  All in all, one of the best Christmas Holidays for me in many years, thanks to my wonderful family.

     I want to thank all of you who have e-mailed me with Christmas and Holiday greetings, and I wish to each and every one of you, your families and loved ones, a Holiday Season that is as special for you as it is for me.  And a special "thanks" to our brave men serving in the armed forces around the world.  Our thoughts are with you, and may you be reunited with your families & loved ones soon.

     December 19, 2003

     Wow, so may e-mails from so many of you remembering my birthday.  Thank you all so much, it really meant a lot to me.  Another year older, but another year richer in old and new friends.  I appreciate it more than you could know.

     Many dick jockeys were also reported announcing my birthday, thanks to whomever keeps track of such things and disseminates the information to the media.  Once again, it's much appreciated.

      We're finishing up the final mixing and mastering and dealing with all of the details on the mysterious CD.  We got the Mariachi trumpets back from Florida, so Doyle Grisham and and I will be finishing that and all the rest to get it to the pressing plant right after the first of they year.  Turn-around time is supposed to be, 3 to 7--10 days before we have product.  That's assuming that Famous Music gets us the last license on time.  Oh, I forgot, they're really BIG business, I'm just a single person. Still, maybe we'll get lucky.  If not, maybe I'll leave their song out of the CD, though I like the song, Jimmy Payne and I wrote it some years ago and I really like it.  And, I'd be a song short on the CD.

     Have the most wonderful of Holiday Seasons, from everyone here in Music City, and the Ridge at Kingston Springs.

     Take care.  -Jim Glaser

     December 15, 2003

     I'm so sorry to have to report that the hoped-for December release of my new CD, "Me and My Dream," is not going to happen.  We've finished our part of the job, but the dreaded paperwork I've heard horror stories about has turned out to be true.  Even though I started on this part of the process last Spring, we're still short one license that we need.  You see, these days you have to have all of the songs on a CD licensed, with proof in hand, when you go to the pressing plant to have the copies pressed.  This is because so many people were cutting CDs and selling them and not paying any royalties to the song writers and publishers.  As a song writer myself I'm very much in favor of this process and certainly don't mind doing it, but it's just the maddeningly long time it takes the larger publishing companies on either coast to respond that creates these delays.

     Once again, I'm very sorry to all of you who have e-mailed me, wanting to order the CD as a Christmas gift.

     I wish all of you the very best for the coming Holiday Season!  --Jim

     December 1, 2003

     Things are coming to an end with the new CD, finally.  I could never have dreamed that it would take so long to wrap up all of the details.  Just to bring you up to date, we've finished adding the lead instruments (one of the songs has a fiddle on it, I believe that's a first for me as a solo artist) and we're still waiting to get the tune we sent to Florida to one of Jimmy Buffet's band members who's adding Mariachi trumpets, although I understand that he's nearly finished with it.  Doyle Grisham (co-producer, engineer, musician, mixer, owner of D&D Studios, etc.,) is in Florida this week working on Jimmy Buffet's new album and will return next week.  We will then put the final touches on the mixes and mastering and finally, at long last, ship it off to the pressing plant.  As soon as I get a delivery date from them, I'll put that info, along with the "PayPal buy buttons" on the website for those of you who may want to give it a listen.

     I'll be back here in a few days with the latest.  Until then, take care.  --Jim

     November 30, 2003

     Thanks to all of you who have contacted me with notes of understanding and sympathy about the loss of my dog, Shep.  It has helped more than you will ever know.

   November 18, 2003

My life has been so much better because of you.
Your love never wavered.
You taught me so much, I'll never forget you.

My heart, my home, my life are so empty
and diminished without you.
Photo by Margaret Thrower
     It was a rainy, Saturday here on the Tennessee Ridge where I live, and Shep and I decided to take the day off from doing our miles.  He was in the house with me all day, either sleeping on his pillow by the couch, or on his other pillow beside my bed.  He wasn't out of my sight all day, not even when he needed to go out for his bathroom chores.  He had learned two or three years ago to let me know when he felt the call of nature.  No matter what time of night or day, he'd go to the front door and give a single bark.  Whenever it was, even if it was in the middle of the night, I'd get up and take him outside. He'd do his business and then come back into the house and settle down once again on his pillow.  His steady breathing was such a comfort to me.

     Saturday was another ordinary day.  Shep and the cats, Junior, CleoKatra, and Harry all had their dinner around 5:00 PM.  Shep loved having his little treats after dinner--pig ears where his favorite--and then we settled down to an evening of T.V.  By 9:00 PM Shep was already asleep by my bed and, by 11:00 PM, I turned out the lights, the T,V., and we all settled down for the night.

     At 12;30 AM, I was awakened to some sounds coming from Shep's pillow, and turned on the lights to find him in the midst of a seizure.  I held him until it passed, then he got up and seemed to be disoriented, as if he really wasn't sure of where he was.  He wanted to go out on the porch and I let him--I have a large wrap-around porch and he ran back and forth from one end to the other for nearly an hour.  He seemed to want to go out into the yard and I put his leash on him and took him out to see it he was needing to do some more bathroom chores.  But he didn't, and came back into the house.  Shortly after that he had another seizure, which disoriented him even more.  He didn't seem to recognize the rooms, and finally came back to lie down beside me.  His seizures started coming more rapidly then, until by 2;30 AM they were coming 4 minutes apart.  They were so violent that I found myself hoping that the next one would stop his heart, just to end his suffering.  They didn't, and I feel guilty for having wished it, but I felt so helpless.

     I held him in my arms until the seizures began to abate, around 5:00 AM.  Still, his body quivered and shook until around 6;00 AM, when it finally began to stop.  By 7:00 AM he seemed to be resting, though his eyes were open.  I dozed for about an hour, then called my vet, Dr. Diana Pelletier.  She suggested trying to get a little sugar water in his mouth, because the seizures took so much out of him.

     I gave him a small drink of sugared water but he died shortly after that.

     Dr. Pelletier told me that there was no reason she could think of for the onset of his seizures.  Usually there's a good chance that the animal ingested some toxic substance, but I've gone all over the house and yard and could find nothing.  Plus, as I've already stated, he was never out of my sight for the whole day.  And I have no medications here that he could inadvertently gotten to.  I don't know if it's better or worse not knowing if something I did or didn't do caused this.

   I'm sorry to have gone on so long about this, but it has been cathartic and necessary on many levels for me to write this account of Shep's last hours.  He's done so many of the miles I've done over the past 11 years with me, and looked forward to doing them each day.  There were so many days that it was his excitement and eagerness that got me out there to do mine.  My miles will be so lonely and long now without him.  He taught me so much about what I needed to change in my life, helped me to try to be a better person, more of a human being.  My whole life has a large hole in it, as does my heart, and I dread every day I will have to endure without him.

        November 13, 2003

     Well, we're almost there!  I decided to add some additional background vocals on the new CD yesterday, my daughter, Lynn, added her wonderful voice to one of the tracks, and that does it for the singing.  Nashville fiddle player extraordinaire, Hank Singer, added some of his tasteful licks to one of the songs and Doyle Grisham is finishing up the lead instruments--lead guitar and steel guitar--over the next couple of days.

     We've sent one of the songs to one of Jimmy Buffet's band members in Florida to have him add Mariachi trumpets and, hopefully, we'll get that back in a few days.  Heather Lose is nearly through with the artwork and Carol Vincent & Associates is wrapping up the copyrighting and licensing processes.  If we all stay on track we should be ready to do the final mixes and then send the masters to the pressing plant.  Depending on their schedule, we'll finally have product soon.

     I've had a few e-mails about advance ordering and I've decided not to do that, as I'm not personally set up to take credit cards.  PayPal is the company that handles that and I'm not going to add one of their buttons for the new CD until I have a delivery date from the pressing plant.  But it should be soon, now.

     I appreciate all of your patience.  It's hard to believe that I started this project back in 1997.  Oh, well....

     Have a great Thanksgiving.  Until next time, take care.  --Jim Glaser

    October 24, 2003

     Wow, where has the time flown to.  I guess it's true, time does pass more quickly as we age.  Somehow, that doesn't seem fair!

     The new CD is coming along nicely, I've pushed the release date back once again, but should have it ready for release around the end on November.  Heather Lose, graphics artist, is designing a wonderful package, and Carol Vincent is hard at work securing licenses and copyrighting the new material I've written for this CD.  All of my singing is finished, as well as the background vocals (except for one song to which my daughter, Lynn, will add her beautiful voice in a couple of weeks).  Doyle Grisham is putting on some of the lead instruments, we have a fiddle player hired to come out and do one song, etc.  It's a very exciting time, as I haven't been in the studio in over a decade.

     I had such a wonderful time at Dollywood, and I want to thank all of my friends who came to see my performances there.  I received some great pictures from some of you, which I haven't yet posted on the photos page.  But thanks, just the same.

     I'm also getting my house ready to sell, and that is proving to be a big job.  I've lived here for eleven years and it's unbelievable just how much junk one can acquire in that amount of time.  I've actually had a large dumpster brought out and put beside the house and I'm in the process of filling it up.  Actually, it's nearly full now.

     That's about it for now.  I'll put up a sneak preview of the CD cover as soon as it's ready, and I'll be holding my breath to see if you like the music when it comes out.

     Until next time, take care.  --Jim

    July 10, 2003

     Showtimes for the first week at Dollywood are now posted on the "Showdates" page.  I'll post the second week as soon as I get them.

    Thanks to all of you who have used the new PayPal "buy" buttons to order product.

     I'm still shooting for an October release for the new CD.  At this point, the title will be, "Me and My Dream," a line from one of the songs in the CD.

     Until next time, take care.  --Jim Glaser

     June 25, 2002
     Terry from Tennessee e-mailed me the following information, for those of you who may be interested:
     "...just thought I'd e-mail you to tell you Collectors Choice Music, is offering a DVD on Marty Robbins: At Town Hall Party also featuring Tompall & the Glaser Brothers...They send me a magazine often, as I was looking at the back page, I found that it said , ‘New from Bear Family’, New Import, Marty Robbins: at Town Party..."
     The web address is : http://www.collectorschoicemusic.com
     "The cost is $29.95 and right now there is no shipping charges until 7-11-03. I believe there's 29 songs and maybe a interview or two. It list ya'll singing 7 songs and maybe more with Western, Pop, Country and even Hawaiian folk songs. When you click on their web site go to Featured Artists/Labels, click on 'Bear Family Albums,’ when that comes up click on ... 'complete catalog listing,’ then click on #3 choice (they're shown as 1 2 3 4 5, choose 3) and scroll down to Town Hall Party, Marty Robbins "
     Thanks for the information, Terry.
     Until next time, take care.  --Jim Glaser

June 18, 2002
     I've had a very troubling e-mail from someone who asked me why I was sending them pornography advertisements. She apparently received such an e-mail from someone using my e-mail address. This person was not a fan and did not know who I was. I assured her that the e-mail did not come from me and asked her to return it to me, but she said that she had already deleted it.
     I called my ISP, Earthlink, who informed me that such a thing was very unlikely, but could happen if someone found out my password. As a precaution, I have changed all of the passwords associated with my e-mail and Internet access.
     Please, if anyone out there who reads this has received porno material or pornographic advertisements from my email address, please send it to me, and I will get it to Earthlink.
     And if any of you have received such e-mails from me, I sincerely apologize.
     Until next time, take care.  --Jim Glaser