I'm Back

Hello. Did you miss me? If you're like most people, you didn't realize I was gone, but that's okay. I didn't miss me much either.

Every year for the past 21 years (yes, since 1993), I've spent four days in January working at the West Coast's largest trade convention, the NAMM Show. It's a gathering for all the people in the musical instrument and professional audio industries, which is where I've earned my living for my entire professional career so far. My job is most simply described as a "marketing guy". For my various clients, I write and distribute press releases, make print ads and online banner campaigns, create web sites, make all manner of content, administer sales software, design graphics, and all that kind of stuff. At the show itself, I often act as a spokesperson for the companies I represent, and assist them in the efforts to get the media to pay attention to their products and their message.

It's much more than four days in January; it's actually months of preparation, and the period of 5-6 weeks leading into the NAMM Show is my busiest time of year by far. Also, just because the show is over now doesn't mean the insanity ends right away; people like me have tons of follow-up to make sure the efforts spent at the show were worthwhile. So while I can't exactly relax and bask in the fruits of my labor, it is a huge relief that the show itself is done, and I can start to refocus my energies on things that are a little more personally fulfilling, like my music.

Here are some silly pics I took of myself (except the second to last one, which was taken by the amazing Ken Lee), often looking every bit as frazzled as I feel throughout a trade show. I'd put in some captions, but they'd all be pretty damn similar (except for the last one, when I've wrapped up the show and have stopped at Denny's on my way home with my lovely Kat, where I look genuinely more relaxed).