June 17th, 2009 - Baby Tyler's Arrival!!!!
1:35pm on Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009. This is when my son came into this world, forever changing my life for the better. Tyler Matthew Kominski was born eight days past his due date and he definitely looked it! He was a big boy at 9 pounds and 1.4 ounces. He already had little blonde hairs all over the top of his head and he came out crying his head off, which is a great sign and a little like his crybaby Daddy.

He was almost immediately taken to the N.I C.U. (Newborn Intensive Care Unit) of Montgomery General Hospital for standard cleaning and check ups but things ended up being far from typical. Only two hours from his great vaginal exodus, the Doctors discovered that the poor little guy had TTN, which is an infant respiratory condition. He was only getting between 82 and 85 percent of the oxygen that he should have been getting. Additionally, he had a small heart murmur and two potential infections for which they needed to take several blood tests. The poor little guy! He was immediately strapped up to a little hospital cradle unit. He had oxygen running into his nose. He had his left arm in a splint with two I.V. lines running into it. He had three monitors hooked up to his chest. His little feet were all scraped up from the blood test razors that they have to use to get the blood samples. It was a total nightmare for Elizabeth and myself. Then, it got scarier. The Doctor told us that Tyler had to be transferred to Georgetown University Hospital because they have a much better NICU than Montgomery General does. So, I begged Elizabeth to get some sleep and I followed the ambulance from Montgomery General to Georgetown. By the time things we all settled and Tyler was checked in and being cared for, I had been up for 53 hours straight. I passed out at the hospital.

The next morning, I woke up and took a sink shower (gross, I know) in the public restroom. I walked into the NICU and found my brother Mark waiting for me in the reception area. I escorted him in to see Tyler and I was overjoyed to see Tyler's skin color was looking much better than the night before. Later that day, Elizabeth was released early from Montgomery General and she came over to Georgetown. We found out shortly after she arrived that Tyler was going to have to remain in the NICU for at least four more days while they monitored his condition. Although we were really disappointed to hear this, as time played out, it was very beneficial not only for Tyler's health but for Elizabeth and me to learn several things about Tyler and his needs from the experts in the NICU and to be able to practice these things under their guidance.

Every day, Elizabeth and I would arrive at the hospital around 8am and every day we would leave around 10pm. Every day, Tyler get better and better. On Saturday night, June 6th, Tyler was released from the hospital and we finally brought him home. Since he was born, he has been the light of our lives. We are fascinated by every little thing that he does. He is the best thing that has ever happened to either of us. We thank everyone who has helped us out for your continued support and for being there through all of the sadness that lead to all of the happiness and things keep getting better and better!

-Philly



March 12th, 2009 - FIVE RANDOM THINGS
Hello, everyone.

I am what George McFly was accused of being...I am a slacker. Believe me, I had no intention of ignoring my journal writing responsibilities. As a matter of fact, I had every intention of writing my next journal about the hours and hours and hours of labor I have been putting into the restoration and betterment of my house before my little Sherbert (my future son's nickname...unbeknownst to him, this has been his nickname for ten years now) arrives. However, I have head out on the road with the guys without taking a barrage of photographs detailing my hard work, so a journal on this topic will have to wait at least another week or so.

In the meantime, I thought it would be delightful to pick FIVE random things out of thin air, RIGHT NOW AS I TYPE THIS, and give my immediate thoughts on them. So here we go....the first five things that pop into my head are:

1) The Andromeda Galaxy
2) Uma Thurman
3) "Another White Dash" by Butterfly Boucher
4) That Mexican Restaurant in Houston
5) Martin Wisor

Okay.

1) The Andromeda Galaxy...well, why not? The thing is friggin' HUGE. It is at least as big as our own Milky Way Galaxy and it is going to collide with us in a few billion years. It is something like 2.5 million light years away and I think it looks pretty nice and tidy and organized from afar. WHY DID THIS COME TO MY MIND: I was playing around with a program on my computer called "Stargazer" for a while on this trip...basically, the program acts like a telescope and allows you to view the heavens at any time from any latitude/longitude.

2) Uma Thurman. What's the deal? The Office did a whole show debating whether or not she is hot. Either way, I think that the KILL BILL movies were great and not for the action, just for the entire idea. I like the way it played out. She is great in roles where she is not trying to be funny. Gattaca, Pulp Fiction...whether or not she is attractive, she has a certain coolness to her. WHY DID THIS COEM TO MY MIND: God Knows! I think that after thinking of the Andromeda Galaxy, my mind went immediately to the movie "Gattaca"...weird...

3) "Another White Dash". This is a song by a band that Chris Bruno saw open for the Barenaked Ladies once. He said they were 100% trash. I have never seen them live, but ever since my wife played this song for me, I liked the production of it and the "vocoder" sounding effect on the chick's voice. I also really like the line "There is something about having everything you think you ever need sitting in the seat next to you". There are a few other gems on their album as well. WHY DID THIS COME TO MY MIND: We are driving to Texas right now and there are millions of white dashes that we are passing in the road.

4) That Mexican Restaurant in Houston. MAN THE FOOD HERE KICKED ASS!!! I don't remember the name, but I ate there twice when we were in Houston last fall. I am DEMANDING that the band go there to eat after our gig on Thursday. WHY DID THIS COME TO MIND: Because the food was totally incredible.

5) Martin Wisor. MARTYYYYYYY!!! Martin has been a friend of mine for years and years. His family is great. He is a witty fellow and he has a completely wacked sense of humor. A great guy. WHY DID THIS COME TO MIND: Because the Dude was up on Facebook at an un-godly hour that only musicians are up at. By the way, Martin is the blonde dude in the photo near the far right.

Okay! I'll see you all soon!

- Philly



January 19th, 2009 - Phil's Ten Favoirte Songs Of All Time
After taking an hour out of my day and making a list of 143 songs that I love, I disciplined myself and got extremely picky. I have here my ten favorite songs of all time. I cannot order them form least favorite to most favorite but I can list them. Each of these songs is etched into my memory because they remind me of a good time or a good era in my life. Drum roll please.....

- "Drive" by THE CARS. This song is simply timeless to me. It has been one of my favorites ever since I was about 5 years old. The lyrics are not really the reason, they are irrelevant to me...what moves me about this song is that for several years, it was played during the summer swim team's end of the swim season banquet slide show. I loved being on the swim team and it was such a huge part of my childhood. My wife, Donnie (our drummer) and several other important people in my life were on the swim team. There was something remarkable but sad about every awards banquet. This made for some really special memories for me.

- "The Rain Song" by LED ZEPPELIN. An astonishingly beautiful song on its own, this one transports me to another place in another time. I love listening to it in headphones. I discovered Led Zeppelin, for REAL, around 8th grade (my last year of middle school). That year, I was in the school Play, which was YOU'RE A GOOD MAN CHARLIE BROWN. I played Schroeder. The several months encompassing the play and it's rehearsals were so much fun for me. I had a lot of friends who were in the production and tons a good memories. On the night of the last performance, I remember feeling really sad and depressed that it was all over. Ironically, it rained and I remember going for a walk out in storm and not caring about getting soaked. When I got home that night, I turned on my CD player and the Rain Song came on first. I listened to it over and over and over again. What a beautiful song.

- "No Better" by JONATHA BROOKE. It was my first year of college at my first University (the University of North Carolina at Wilmington). It was also my first semester. One of the music classes I was enrolled in was a basic history of music course. Everyday, and I mean EVERY DAY, the Professor played this song before class. It had a really tight rhythm and some really nice acoustic guitar playing. It also featured a really unique singer, who, at the time, reminded me of a female Sting. The song turned out to be "No Better" by Jonatha Brooke. As soon as I found this out, I went and bought the album and pretty much became a fan over night. The entire album, called "Plumb", reminds me of my year at UNCW. I can't think of anything else when I listen to it.

- "The Wild Wild Sea" by STING. Far and away one of the best lyricists to hold a pen, this Sting tune, as well as the entire album it is part of, moves me more than anything else he has ever written. That, for ME, is saying a whole lot! I pretty much think this guy is God's gift to music. This song is very special. It is a work of art about the passing away of his father. I lost my Mother to Ovarian Cancer eleven years ago and so his story in this song is somewhat sentimental to me. It is scripted in metaphors and beautiful imagery. It builds really nicely and it pulls you into it's music like the undertow pulls on your legs at the beach. Brilliant song. The top of the mountain for Sting, as far as I am concerned.

- "Twilight In Your Hands" by STEVE STEVENS. Besides the fact that this guy is one of the sickest guitarists on the earth, he is a pretty incredible song writer and he collaborates really nicely with other musicians. His album "Flamenco A Go Go" is one of the top five BEST PRODUCED albums I have heard in my lifetime. Incredible tones, incredible songs, incredible mixing ideas. It is like sex for your ears when you listen to this album in a pair of good headphones...NO JOKE! In fact, I would love to meet Steve Stevens one day and spend an hour inflating his ego by relentlessly telling him how AMAZING the production of this album is. This song is my favorite of the lot. It never fails to transport me to some far off beach somewhere.

- "Strange Desire" by INXS. Michael Hutchence was the model front man of bands should learn from. Awesome voice, great stage presence, excellent songwriter. INXS' album "Welcome to Wherever You Are" is another one of my top five best Produced albums of all time. This song is timeless to me. It reminds me of my first trip to Nags Head, North Carolina in 1992. I love Nags Head. When I die, hopefully when I am 102, I hope that I go out in the style of the novel THE NOTEBOOK: With Elizabeth in my arms. Except, my favorite songs should be playing and we should be in Nags Head (if it isn't under water by then).

- "Fumbling Towards Ecstasy" by SARAH MCLACHLAN. This girl and my wife are, without a doubt, my two FAVORITE female singers (and that bit about my wife is in no way because I am married to her...I love her voice). Although I like this song on it's own, no other version she has done of it holds a candle to her live version from her "Mirrorball" live CD. It is amazing. It has an incredible groove, feel and aura about it. I can't get sick of it.

- "Pachabel's Canon in D" by DAVID LANZ. A nice little ditty on it's own, but...it was made immortal, in my opinion, by one of my favorite pianists, Mr. David Lanz. I begged my wife to let us hire him for our wedding but she said that $5500 plus hotel costs plus piano rental and airfare was way too expensive for him to come perform. I TOLD HER THAT IT WAS A BARGAIN!!!!!! Well, I lost that battle but I have most of his CDS and I think he has an incredible gift on the piano. In addition to being a great musician and songwriter, he creates nice adaptations of other people's songs. His version of this Pachabel classic is pretty incredible.

- "Getaway" by TRAIN. Train's Grammy winning album, "Drops of Jupiter", is the best thing they have ever done and, I am sad to say, probably the best thing they will EVER do. The songwriting on this album is incredible. The production is Brendon O'Brien at his absolute best. Every song is a winner on this disc. I find several of the songs to be timeless but "Getaway" stands out in front of the rest. It was also performed very well live on their "Midnight Moon" DVD.

- "Freedom Calling / No Matter What You Do (hidden track)" by COLIN HAY. In is no secret that, in many regards, I think Colin Hay hung the moon. Great guitarist, great songwriter and a funny dude. When I was narrowing down songs, I had eleven of his tunes on my list (more than any other artist). Of the eleven, I chose these two. Both are from his incredible album "Transcendental Highway". "Freedom Calling" is a very hopeful song. I love these lyrics from one of the choruses: "Maybe its time to find another place...where nobody even knows your face...there is no need to be afraid...for it's only freedom calling". I also love the last few lines of the song: "I no longer need to understand...what it is to truly be a man...only when I gave up on my master plan...did I then hear freedom calling". The second tune, "No Matter What You Do", isn't really that much of a song. It is a short hidden track at the end of the Transcendental Highway album. I just love it, though. I feel like these two songs need to be paired together for no other reason than they keep me smiling.

Phil



January 12th, 2009 - PHIL FAVORITE MUSICIANS AND PHIL'S FAVORITE ALBUMS!
Hi everyone. Okay, I have been thinking about this for some time now. It is fairly easy for me to list my favorite musicians and my favorite albums because I decided not to put a cap on how many I could choose. However, it is a little more difficult for me to list my top ten favorite songs. But, I squeezed my brain and I think I have come up with my top ten. So, let's start with my favorite musicians in order from most favorite to least of my most favorite:
  1. Tie between DAVID GILMOUR of Pink Floyd and PINK FLOYD
  2. U2
  3. Tie between STING and THE POLICE (although, I prefer Sting)
  4. DAVID GRAY
  5. COLIN HAY
  6. THE WEEPIES
  7. YES (specifically from about 1975 until 1995)
  8. Tie between WETTON/DOWNES of Asia and ASIA
  9. RUSH (specifically from about 1977 until 1996)
  10. SARAH MCLACHLAN (specifically from 1993 until 2004)
  11. DAVID LANZ
  12. BRANDI CARLILE
  13. DAR WILLIAMS
  14. MARK KNOPFLER
Here are my most favorite albums. I could not decide upon an "ultimate favorite" but I could break them down into tiers of TOP 21 FAVORITE and 22 RUNNER-UP albums:

TWENTY TWO RUNNER-UP FAVORITE ALBUMS: MY TOP TWENTY ONE FAVORITE ALBUMS (not in order): Next week...my top ten favorite songs as well as explanations for why!!!!!

Phil

January 5th, 2009 - A NEW BABY...OUR FIRST BABY...GIRL OR BOY?
On Wednesday, September 24th, 2008 I was loading our equipment into a new venue in Indianapolis when I got a very interesting phone call. "What are you doing right now"? The voice asked. It was my wife. I told her I was loading in and about to sound check. Then she said "well...I think we're pregnant"! Naturally, I asked her to take six or seven more pregnancy tests. She sort-of listened to me and she took two more. It was certain.

Wow. I wasn't worried. I wasn't shocked. I was actually pretty excited. The only thing was, we decided that we were going to keep it a secret until LLOYD DAY 2008 on December 13th. So, it came as no real surprise that by the time OCTOBER rolled around, ten people already knew!

When December 13th arrived, it turned out to be one of the best days of my life. It was so nice to see so many friends and family who traveled so far be at the show and announcing the news was really nice.

On January 6th, 2009, we will find out if it is a boy or a girl. Elizabeth is due on May 25th!

Phil

January 3rd: The Homeless Dilemma
When I come across the homeless, I feel so bad for them. Especially in Chicago or New York or anywhere that gets really, really cold in the winter time. There have been times where I have walked a homeless man into a pizza place and bought him a slice after a show. Often, I give one of the guys that stand on the corner a dollar.

I know that a lot of people think that it is a waste of money but I don't. Regardless of how they spend the money I give, it must make them a little bit happier to be able to get something that allows them to feel a little better about themselves and their situation. The fact is, I am lucky to have things better off then they do and it is an obligation I feel to help them out a little.

What really pissed me off, though, was one freezing evening in Chicago. The band was walking down Michigan Avenue and it was close to the holidays. We came across a homeless man who looked as if he had been sitting in the cold for days. I decided to reach deep, well...deep for me anyway, and give him twenty bucks. Two seconds after I gave him the money, he asked me if I had another twenty I could give. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. One minute I felt pretty good about myself and the next I was pissed off that I had given this ungrateful jerk a twenty.

But in the end, not everyone is a jerk. Many of these people need help and we should give what we can to them. It's cold out there! No one should have to suffer through that

Phil

January 1st, 2008 - An End To Our Illustrious Road Trips?
Now that 2009 has arrived, I am realizing that I will most likely no longer be taking any more mini-vacations with my wife...that is, unless the baby approves! And why wouldn't the baby want to go surfing in Hawaii? Why wouldn't the baby want to sample the magnificent and unmatched quality of the fine coffees of Rome and Paris? Why wouldn't the baby want to tour D'Jibouti with the band? Okay, that one is easy to answer.

But seriously, I am finding myself extremely lucky to have been able to take so many really nice vacations over the past three years. Elizabeth and I were able to find so many relatively inexpensive vacation packages and I had the time of my life.

In December of 2006 we spent a week in Paris. The following December, we visited Rome for a week. Being in Europe during the holidays is breath-taking. Additionally, You can find incredible travel deals if you are willing to fly out on Christmas day and fly back on New Years Eve. We were able to find airfare for two and hotels for a total of $1100 for each of these trips to Europe. Pretty nice!

In 2008, we drove from San Diego to Wine Country in California. In June, my wife sent us to Costa Rica for a surfing trip. Then, in August, we flew out to Seattle to visit my friend Jeff for a few days.

I will miss traveling with my wife. I am certain that we won't be doing it for a while as we raise the little one but...I am also pretty certain that I will be occupied with other things!

Phil