So why are we here?

I love this question. Ironically, I get it a lot (apparently some think that I philosophize about things like this; they give me far too much credit). On blogs, it's our own way to justify why we have a blog. I'm no different than anyone else in that regard, but I like to think that being honest about it counts for something.

For those who are interesting in "why are we here?", George Carlin had an interesting response to this question during his "Jammin in New York" comedy special back in 1992. Regardless of your feelings toward the man, his philosophical insights are some of the most amusing you could ask for.

But I'm digressing...

Back in August of 2008, Bob Souer made the comment that I really ought to start up a blog based on my knowledge of voiceover recording. Let me be the first to say that while I have earned the reputation of taking the concept of voiceover from a home studio to the point of overkill at times, there are others who know just as much as I do, and probably more. More to the point, I am a relative unknown within the world of voiceover, and to a certain extent I prefer it. More importantly though, who really cares what my insights into things are anyway?

Later on in the day, I ran into Bob Bergen. Bob's a great guy, one of the most knowledgable and talented guys I've met in the world of voiceover (seriously, he's a walking encyclopedia). He's also quite the stalker, but only if you're Mel Blanc (and to learn more about that story you need to either attend one of his workshops, or his one-man show... both of which I highly recommend). Anyway, while we were sharing a little time to catch up on each other's lives he made the comment that I was very observant about things, and always bringing out the pros and cons of whatever issues I adressed in the various voiceover forums, regarless of whether the topic was popular or not. I had been weaning myself away from them since I saw a lot of negativity and was concerned that I'd become the same, but Bob's comment let me know that I was being anything but, and that my view on things outside of the studio were something that others really appreciated.

(on the side, I have real money for anyone who can tell me how he's 10 years older than I am and looks 15 years younger)

That evening, I shared some time with both Dave Courvoisier and later with Ron Levine, shooting the bull and exchanging some tales of adventure from our infamous pasts. Dave was serving as the M.C. for the VOICE conference and is just one heck of a talented and nice guy, and Ron... well Ron is Santa Claus, so how can you not love the guy? Then you get to hear his work and you're totally blown away.

Well, on both occasions they make comments about my experiences in life and how they've shaped me, and how much fun it would be to share those experiences with others since it's brought me into the world of voiceover from a different route than most others. I have my own biases towards my experiences in life, but I found it interesting how differently I came into the fold compared to most others.

That's it in a nutshell. My self-aggrandizing reasons for being here. While I'm doing this, I plan on blogging a bit about my experiences, tossing out assorted wisdoms regarding the art of mixology, a lot about voiceover and recording.

Cheers!