Two of Sadie's Favorite Things...

Snow and sticks

Homer and His Lessons Live On

Exactly one year and one month ago, my favorite dog in the world, Homer, was struck and killed by a car in front of our house. The next morning I wrote a blog post about the life lessons Homer taught me. In March, that post grew into an ebook, Homer the Hound Dog's Guide to Happiness, which has gotten rave reviews from readers all over the world.

That blog post was also shared with author and publisher Louise Hay, when a friend pointed me to her Facebook post asking for stories of pet loss for a book she was writing.

Today, that book, You Can Heal Your Heart, is released. It is all about grief and healing a broken heart from a variety of situations. When co-author, David Kessler, called me a few months ago to let me know my story was going to be in the chapter on pet loss, he warned me that our names would probably be changed. He said Homer became Buddy in the final manuscript. I told him it would mean a great deal to me if Homer was Homer. He agreed to check with the book editor.

Just last week I spoke with David again, he informed me that "Homer is Homer and Andy is Andy". I was thrilled! "Lessons From Homer" is the subhead in the pet loss chapter. I'm anxiously waiting to hold the book in my hands. This blows me away for many reasons.

Louise Hay and me

First, Louise Hay is an icon of personal triumph and growth. Her book, You Can Heal Your Life, was a life-saver for me. I've lost count of how many times I've read it. A couple years ago I had the chance to meet and chat with her, and her presence was such pure love, I never wanted to step away.

More surprisingly, and what moves me to tears every time I think of it, is that in a mere 13 months Homer went from being a lifeless body I cradled in my arms, to having his love and wisdom span the globe, impacting thousands, even hundreds of thousands of people. I somehow feel more connected to Homer now than ever. I can't wait to see what he does next.

Holotropic Dance Party

Yesterday I took part in my 7th Holotropic Breathwork and it was by far the most celebratory one I've done. From the very first moments I was laughing and dancing on my mat, having a grand ol' time.

For those who don't know; Holotropic Breathwork is a group event of self-exploration that uses rapid, deep breathing and loud, evocative music (think tribal drumming, instrumentals, ancient chants, nothing has English lyrics) to enter a non-ordinary state of consciousness. It can seem very much like an acid trip, but you aren't under the influence of anything except for your self. After breathwork you draw your experience in a mandala. I can't draw for shit (especially after a 2 1/2 hour Holotropic trip), but I love my mandalas. I even wrote a book about my prior Holotoropic Breathwork experiences because I want more people to know about this process and give it a try.

Dancing on strings

My session was very music driven. At the start I was tiny and jumping on guitar and piano strings trying to avoid the one being struck, then as the music became more drumming tracks I was hiding under different drum heads, avoiding being struck. It was all a fun game. Felt like I was part of a con man's shell game, that I was the pea. Even though I'm actually just lying on my back on a matt and this is all happening in my mind (or in some other realm?) I was dancing, swaying, and gyrating to the music the whole time.

As the songs went on, I found myself in this huge underground dance club all carved out of stone. It looked like Stonehenge had been rebuilt as some sort of goth, gay, fetish, dance club. I was like a tourist being shown all around and these huge German muscle men who were dripping in sweat and oil kept coming up to me saying, "We want to oil you up." I laughed out loud each time, because they kept reminding me of the Saturday Night Live characters, Hanz and Franz, saying "We want to pump you up!"

Orgy

There was a different style of mayhem and debauchery in every corner of this place; it had orgies, hula dancers, African Masai warrior dancers, people pouring hot wax onto each other, and all sorts of scenes out of something like Eyes Wide Shut. It seemed like every culture and every fetish was represented and I just kept laughing at each new sight, each new discovery. The music was cranking, the bass was pumping, lights and glitter were flying everywhere - then the Pope arrived! He was atop the whole scene in an elevated DJ booth. Turns out this secret underground club is beneath the Vatican!

Pope goes clubbing

The Pope was going totally sick throwing streamers and glitter all around, loving everyone, reigning over the debauchery and fun. The Germans kept offering to oil me up and tried teaching my different dances. I just laughed and laughed and laughed. Everyone was insanely buff and gorgeous (like when Homer Simpson tells a story and he looks like Hercules in his mind.) I commented to people around me that this was some sort demented Dance Party USA, the Pope yelled out, "No! It's Dance Party Universe!"

The music slowed down a bit and became this amazing, heavy bass riff. I turned to follow a couple German muslceheads into a tunnel. Actually we were all earthworms now and were creating a tunnel through the rock and dirt to leave the Pope's bash. We burrowed and tunneled further and further into the ground, as the bass kept getting louder and deeper, shaking everything around us.

Hell bass jam

We finally broke through to some sort of cave and there was Nikki Sixx from Motley Crue, Gene Simmons from Kiss and the Devil all playing bass. Nothing but bass, and it ROCKED! We were all headbanging in hell! The Devil had this amazing red, glass upright bass. He said he was just a misunderstood character out for some fun. It was all I could do to not leap up on my mat and start throwing my fists in the air. It was like I was at the best, most intense concert ever. It was definitely turned up to 11!

Lighter of Light

The music moved into a slower, lighter, orchestral section and I ascended up out of hell. It was still very much in a rock and roll theme as I was raised up on some infinite rising platform straight out of a KISS stage show. As I rose higher and higher, I received messages of, you are much more than that, you have a bigger role than to just rock out. This was the first period of tears in my breathwork. (Unlike my initial breathwork experiences a few years ago which were nothing but tears.) I was overwhelmed with love and joy, also with a sense of purpose and meaning. I was shedding tears of joy, not pain or sadness. I was told I'm a "Lighter of Light" - which is a phrase I've heard repeatedly in recent months as I've worked in my Akashic Record.

Then I entered a very serene and peaceful period. Similar to a very deep state of meditation. It was timeless and blissful. I recall one scene of yelling at my wife, Lori, who wasn't there, "Enough with the raisins!" Every time she comes across food with raisins she goes on and on about how much she hates raisins, and raisins ruin food... Muffins and cookies with raisins were served that day and that all popped into my mind somewhere between Heaven and hell.

Homer

The only other time I remember crying was when I felt my late dog Homer's presence. Homer is actually part of a book by Louise Hay and David Kessler coming out on Feb 4, called You Can Heal Your Heart. Sobbing, I asked Homer if he was happy with what I've done with his lessons, his story. He was. He told me he was proud of me and so appreciated my work in spreading his wisdom. The book from Louise Hay comes out exactly 1 year and 1 month from the day Homer was killed. Then I saw our first cat, Garfield. I remember saying, You guys didn't even know each other.  Many years passed between Garfield getting killed by coyotes and us getting Homer. They said, we know each other now! And then our other deceased cat, Samantha, whom did share our home with Homer too sauntered by. The music transitioned into a beautiful harp composition and Homer was now playing the harp with his tail.

I was filled with so much love, peace and joy. I wallowed in those emotions for the remainder of my time. When I opened my eyes about 2 1/2 hours after I'd closed them, I didn't feel out of it or disoriented. I was so ready to get to my mandala, I had been drawing it in my mind all along. Wishing I had the skill the get the amazing scenes in my head onto paper. But alas, I'm still a kindergartener when it comes to marking up paper.

Here is the entire mandala.

Dance Party Universe!

At home that night, Lori and I were watching Saturday Night Live and one of my favorite characters, Stefon: showed up again. Stefon is the city correspondent on Weekend Update and I realized that my Dance Party Universe was one of Stefon's clubs. This place has everything...

This breathwork was also special because I introduced a friend to it. At first she was nervous and scared, asking why would anyone do this more than once? Three hours later, it was "I can't wait to do this again!"

Sunday Morning

On this January morning I was looking out my home office window and had one of those amazing little moments. One of those moments of insight and introspection that may mean nothing to anyone else, but which brought tears to my eyes.

I looked out my window seeing the grey, gloomy sky, then gazing higher above, almost straight up, I saw clear blue sky. Such a gorgeous expanse of limitless blue with white puffy clouds zooming by. The clouds were moving so fast it looked like a time lapse film that compressed the cloud movements of an entire day down to seconds. I looked back at the horizon - the grey clouds sitting there motionless.

In the peripheral vision of my right eye, I could see dark, ominous trees. I turned to them to see a field of leafless, dark shapes with translucent rays of light poking though, giving the branches ominous highlights. It was rather eerie and menacing, a bit of a traditional Halloween scene.

I realized all of this was happening at the same time. All of these scenes, these views, were real; and my mood, my emotions, my outlook, changed depending on which one I focused. The overall scope was too grand for me to see all three aspects at the same time. I had to choose what I wanted to see; what I wanted to focus on. I got to choose what I wanted to experience.

The sky is always blue. It is the clouds that are sometimes grey. The sun is always shining, we just don't always see it.

Life is always good, we just aren't always aware of it. Sometimes we are deceived by the filters, the clouds, the temporarily leafless, scary trees. It is all good.

2013 was...

It was the year I got my worst day out of the way quickly. It was the January 4th I lost my best dog, Homer. It was also the year I became a best-selling author (three times!) and one of those books was all about Homer, so it was especially meaningful.

It was the year of a great visit to Detroit (of all places!) for Metallica's 2nd Orion Music and More festival, where not only did I see my 32nd Metallica show, but also a secret performance of "Kill 'em All" under the name of Dehaan and I got to get my mitts on one of Jame's guitar while Lori sat behind Lars' drum kit. I also won tickets to an advance screening of their IMAX 3D movie, "Through The Never," which was the most amazing filmed concert experience ever!

It was the year I finally left corporate America, after threatening to do so for 90% of my career. Woohoo!

It was the year of certifications as I earned them in: Positive Psychology, Soul Entrainment, Akashic Records, Infinite Possibilities, Playing the Matrix, and a few others I'm sure I've forgotten about. It was the year of meeting Anita Moorjani, Mike Dooley, Andy Dooley and hundreds of other new best friends. It was also the year I was interview on TalkingAboutSuicide.com

It was the year Lori and I had our first joint speaking engagement, our first experience teaching together, our first classes taught at home, and the first time she filled in for me to teach a class. It was also the first time we both interviewed for the same job and the first time I wanted someone else to get a job I interviewed for. It ended up being the year Lori got her dream job, being a life coach at a local hospital.

It was the year I maintained a yoga practice and got hooked on Body Combat classes. It was my first full calendar year of living the Virgin Diet (well, most of the time). It was the year of my first on-line, on-demand course, The Power of Gratitude, and also the first time I taught a webinar.

It was the year Sadie, the three-legged wonder dog, bounced into our lives. It was the year I worked on five feature films, but still have yet to be seen on a theater screen. It was another great year of friends, family, concerts, movies, books, classes, clients, fun, love and growth. Thank you for being a part of it. What more could I ask for?

2013 was my best year so far, and I've got an even better feeling about 2014. Bring it on!

Talking About Suicide

I recently discovered a very cool website, TalkingAboutSuicide.com, working to remove the stigma of suicide attempts by allowing people to openly share their stories. The site was created by Cara Anna, a journalist and suicide attempt survivor, and has dozens of frank, open discussions about depression, suicidal thinking, attempts and what comes after.

In case you didn't realize it, I am a survivor of years of suicidal thoughts and multiple suicide attempts.

You can read my full interview here.
http://talkingaboutsuicide.com/2013/10/27/talking-with-andy-grant/

The Power of Gratitude

My first online course is live, and over 650 people have signed up in the first week! I am blown away.

The course is, "The Power of Gratitude: Learn how to improve the quality of your life with an attitude of gratitude." It is based on my in-person gratitude workshop, but it ended up being longer than my live event (over four hours of content!) and it is cheaper than attending the live event too. Plus, you decide when to take it, what speed to go through it, and you’ll always have access to it. I decided to launch it at the amazing price of only $37, but I want reward my people with a special deal of only $19. That’s right, use the link here and you get this 4 hour+ course for less then twenty bucks!
https://www.udemy.com/the-power-of-gratitude/?couponCode=navitas1




Check this rave review:

“This course is incredible. It really made me stop and think about so many things I take for granted each day. I enjoyed doing the exercises that were included in the course. Your energy and enthusiasm are contagious!” ~Sue

In the course we will explore gratitude from a spiritual, energetic, and scientific perspective. Whether you’ve been keeping a gratitude journal for years, once had a gratitude practice but have stopped, or even if you think the notion of gratitude having any effect on your life is utter nonsense I invite you to join me. You will take part in a number of journaling exercises and learn simple rituals you can use on a daily basis to bring about an attitude of gratitude in your life. I’ll share my story later, but let me say up front that everything I’ll teach you is something I used to think was a ridiculous waste of time – that is until I tried it.

I will share with you scientific studies from the field of Positive Psychology proving the amazing power of gratitude on your health, happiness, relationships and well being. You don’t have to believe I word I say, just be intrigued enough to put some of the practices I’ll share with you to work and then decide for yourself. Sign up now!

Orion Music and More 2013 - Day 2

A superb day and an outstanding weekend.

The day kicked off with our self-guided tour of downtown Detroit, then we were on the first bus to Belle Isle for day 2 of Orion Music and More. All the transportation and entrance problems that plagued many yesterday seemed to be cleared up today.

Our first stop was the Metallica Museum, which is full of old gear, artwork, stage props and some handwritten lyrics. Then it was music time as I managed to see 10 different bands today. 

I caught All Shall Perish, a very heavy, hardcore band who got a serious mosh pit going right from the start, then Cauldron who looked and sounded like Kill ‘em All era Metallica. After those more traditional metal acts things got really interesting. The Dirtbombs are a 6 piece band with two bassists, three drummers and a guitarist - but wait there's more! They alternate. A drummer swaps with a bassist and vice versa. They covered INXS’ Need You Tonight with a drummer taking lead vocals into the crowd then taking a drum into the crowd for their final song. Sick and fun. But the funniest band of the weekend is Fidlar, a 4 piece punk band (who introduced themselves as Metallica, LOL) with such classic 2 minute sing along choruses as; “I drink cheap beer, so what, F you!” “I sit home and drink alone, you are such a whore!” and the power ballad “I didn’t know I was so good at making you feel awkward.” Plus all these songs were signed by women at side of stage for some hearing impaired fans. It was hilarious! If these guys show up at a dive near you, go see them.

Then Metallic’s own Rob Trujillo jammed with the unrelated yet similarly named skate board husband and wife Trujillos for a jam know as Trujillo Trio. They were straight ahead thrash who were then joined by Mike and Rocky from Suicidal Tendencies for a raging version of Institutionalized. 

Destroid

I saw a few songs by the drums and guitar duo, Japandroids. They didn’t do it for more so I wandered over for a couple songs by Vista Chino until Fu Manchu started. I dug them a lot as they were pretty straight ahead hard rock and did a great cover of Godzilla by Blue Oyster Cult.

Up next, I dove back into the EDM tent to see Destroid, and I've never seen anything like it before. Three cyborg, Cylon-like creatures playing drums and synth guitars and commanding people to dance and obey them in evil robot voices. Fun as shit! They got a serious pit going and I was totally energized for the main attraction.

Metallica. After the surprise set yesterday, we all knew more surprises would come. They did. I had no idea what song might show up next. At least two songs were premieres for me. Another 6 probably haven’t been heard by me live in over ten years. They sounded tight and looked so amazingly happy. They are really at the top of the world.

The more songs you don’t recognize, the more excited I was.

Setlist:

Blackened

For Whom The Bell Tolls

Disposable Heroes

Harvester of Sorrow

The Day That Never Comes

Carpe Diem Baby

I Disappear

Sad But True

Welcome Home (Sanitarium)

Orion

One

Master of Puppets

Battery

Nothing Else Matters

Enter Sandman

- encore-

Turn The Page

Creeping Death

Seek & Destroy 

Make a Wish kids join Metallica on stage

Detroit is the new home for Orion. While last year's show at Atlantic City was certainly easier for us to attend, if I had to decide right now - I think I'll be visiting Detroit again.

Here is all the official Orion photos, broken down by band.

UPDATE: 6/11/13
Last night I finally figured out the significance of "Dehaan" the fake name Metallica performed under on Saturday. Their upcoming Imax 3D concert film, Through The Never, is more than a concert film, it has a narrative and actors too. The lead actor is Dane DeHaan. So if you recognized that from the get go (which I did not), you might have been in the front row for the big surprise.

Final numbers: Came back with 5 new Metallica t-shirts, 1 new pick, and shows #31 and #32 under my belt. In all, I saw 16 bands over the weekend. And for first time in my life, I got to hold one of James' guitars in my very own shaky hands! And Lori got to sit at Lars' drum set. Sick!

 

Orion Music and More, Day 1

We started off the morning exploring Detroit and the Renaissance Center. Lori and I hopped on the People Mover and took 15 minute ride on this monorail thing which is only two cars long and had a total of 3 other passengers. All we could do was think of the legendary Simpsons monorail episode and laugh. But Detroit has some really cool, unique architecture and some quite beautiful spots downtown - it was surely worth the 75 cents the 15 minute tour took. Met one guy who is a local and said he was going to Orion later too.

Then we roamed the river walk and bizarrely futuristic hotel/GM HQ/mall thing. Took a lot of Larry pictures then hopped on first bus to get to Orion. 

Globe of Death!

After about half the attendees entrance was rejected by malfunctioning scanner systems, we got in, bought 3 new Metallica shirts and entered Kirk’s Crypt since we spotted a very short line. The crypt is a showcase for all of Kirk Hammett’s horror movie memorabilia. It was bigger than last year and more freaking people dressed up inside and turning it into a haunted house. We watched a demo with a makeup pro turning a girl into a zombie too.

Then we had killer food from Detroit’s world famous Slows Bar-B-Q; Triple Threat on a Stick and Mac & Cheese.

After that it was time for the first bands to start. Caught The Bronx and liked them a lot. Then we moved on to local band Battlecross who were the heaviest of heavy with tremendous in sync head banging and a great cover of Slayer’s “War Ensemble.” After that we roamed in the Met Club tent and got to pose with Metallica’s gear, check out the new Metallica pinball machine and cavort with a whole lot of other Metalli-crap, followed by the car show and Globe of Death - a cool motorcycle stunt show, which was also something done by The Simpsons.

Dropkick Murphys

The next band was Boston’s own Dropkick Murphys and I must admit I had no idea these guys were big anywhere outside of New England, but they got a big crowd and rocked hard. They also represented Boston in a major way, thanking everyone for support after the marathon bombing, playing their Red Sox, Bruins and Mickey Ward inspired songs, plus Shipping Up To Boston and a cover of AC/DC’s T.N.T. - just when I thought that was the highlight they told us Metallica was playing a surprise set of old shit - we bolted and I got there as The Four Horsemen was starting and I quickly realized they were playing Kill ‘Em All from start to finish. Heaven! This surprise was cool beyond words. I’d only recently accepted they’d play only once, then they pull this out. I love this band. Needless to say, they kicked ass and then it tool a little bit to find Lori again. With her full permission, I left her behind as I raced to see the mighty Metallica. She got there too, but by then there were thousands of bodies between us.

Secret Metallica Gig!

Kill 'em All, start to finish.

We eventually found eachother and headed to the EDM tent for Bassnectar. Lori didn’t last long, but I had a blast. He played some Hendrix, Nirvana, Beatles and even Motorhead all remixed, sampled and dancified with an insane amount of bass. The kids loved it. It was the next generation mosh pit, everyone going off in sync but without the violence.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers closed the night. Most of the hits are a bit slow, for my taste, to follow Kill ‘Em All and Bassnector, but once they cranked into Higher Ground I was rejuvenated. Man, I forgot how many radio hits RHCPs have had over the years. Much like last year, the bus ride home was a blast with the whole bus singing Creeping Death, and one out his mind fan trying to choreograph different verses for front and back of the bus, and then even calling for the elderly bus driver to take a verse. The driver responded by turning up the volume. Smart dude.

Great day. And tomorrow is the REAL Metallica show - can’t wait to see what tricks they pull out next. 

Metalli-stats

I'm writing this at 35,000 feet above the ground flying to Detroit for Metallica's Orion Music & More festival. 

This next Met show is my first show since the last show which was the best show ever. Last June at the inaugural Orion in Atlantic City, I won snake pit passes and was in the 2nd row as Metallica played their Black Album in its entirety. I'd be lying to say I'm not disappointed they are only playing one night as opposed to two this year, but I am psyched to see what surprises the band might have in store for me, plus discovering a slew of new bands to become a fan of (last year I fell for Ghost and Volbeat), and I'm really excited to dive into the EDM tent (Electronic Dance Music). I don't know squat about it but every now and then I hear a hard rocking bass-heavy track that makes me think I'm ready for an all night rave. 

Sunday night will be my 31st Metallica show. This is the fifth time I've flown to see them, and the trip gives me a new city and state not just for concerts but for visiting at all. The goal is to visit all 50 states, this puts me at 29 I believe. 

My Metallica t-shirt count is now at 102 with more to be purchased this weekend. And one of the coolest things about these festivals is meeting people who put my numbers to shame. In Atlantic City, the tiny woman in front of me in the front row was at her 50th show. And she lives in Japan!

Larry The Lizard picks up his Orion pass

GM Renaissance Center, Detroit

My Personal Experiences with Holotropic Breathwork

Healing and Mystical States Are Just a Breath Away: Personal Experiences with Holotropic Breathwork is all about my experiences with Holotropic Breathwork - an amazing modality for healing via non-ordinary states of consciousness.

The book covers six of my first-hand accounts of breathwork. I dig deep into my journals and share details for the first time. I'm doing this because I want more people to now about the powerful, mind-warping trips they can take merely with their breath. Holotropic Breathwork is the most powerful personal growth and transformation tool I have encountered. It was nothing short of miraculous for me.

In case you didn’t realize it, you don’t even need a Kindle device to read Kindle books. There are apps that allow you to read Kindle books on just about every device from a PC to an iPad.

Get the whole collection!

Loving Yourself: A Workshop for Men

I'm teaching a new workshop next month - Loving Yourself: A Workshop for Men – on Thursday, May 9th 6:30-9:30pm at Heaven on Earth, in Pembroke Ma

No, this isn’t about masturbation. This is a live workshop about what we truly want and desire most, yet so few men are willing to even speak of it: Love. We will focus where I believe love starts, self-love.

Do you feel unable to ask for the love and support you want?

Do you feel blocked in expressing your love for others? What about for yourself?

If you can’t fully love yourself you can never give or attract the amount of love you desire and are worthy of.

Ladies, we adore you, but you will not be able to attend this event. This is an experiential workshop especially for men. The evening will be a combination of guided meditation, lecture, and exercises rooted in energy work and research from Positive Psychology.


Unconditional love is the greatest gift you can give to yourself. Let’s make it happen.
Be sure to bring a notebook and pen for journaling exercises and to capture your “aha” moments.
Thursday, May 9th 6:30-9:30pm. $49. Click here to register.

Homer the Hound Dog's Guide to Happiness: 6 Life Lessons I Learned From My Dog!

Today, two months after losing my beloved dog Homer, I'm proud to announce that the eBook full of his wisdom, love and photographs is available. Homer the Hound Dog's Guide to Happiness: 6 Life Lessons I Learned From My Dog! can be downloaded for the Kindle, and in case you didn't realize it you don't need a Kindle device to read Kindle books. There are apps that allow you to read Kindle books on just about every device from a PC to an iPad.

Homer the Hound Dog’s Guide to Happiness: 6 Life Lessons I Learned From My Dog!(Insights and photographs courtesy of my dog of 9 1/2 years)

When my dog Homer (affectionately called Homey) died suddenly in early January, 2013 it was one of the most emotionally painful events in my life. Homer had been by my side every day for over nine years.

In my initial days of grief, I began to realize all the wonderful things Homer taught me. I even consulted an animal communicator, or pet psychic. The messages received from Homer confirmed that I had to write this book.

This guide to happiness allows Homer to live on, touching more people.

I want to say thank you...

More love for Homer.

Life Lessons From My Dog

Homer

Six Life Lessons Homer Taught Me

Live In The Moment

The present moment is all that matters, nothing in the world lives this way quite like dogs and Homer rocked that out hard.

He jumped off our bed each morning ready and eager for the day. He never held a grudge or was stuck in the past. When Lori or I came into the house, whether we’d been gone five minutes, five hours or five days, Homer was waiting at the door. Tail wagging, face radiating, absolutely thrilled to see us again. He greeted every moment like it was a long lost friend.

Treat Everything Like It's Your First Time

Each meal, each treat, each walk, each person was met by Homer with such vigor, excitement and fun. His energy and enthusiasm was infectious. Everything was a celebration. Homer had a lust for life unlike any other dog I’ve met.

Ask For What You Want

Homer was a master manifester. He would sit, whine, stare, drool, beg… whatever it took to get what he wanted. It never failed to work. His perseverance and tenacity was amazing. People always gave in and gave him a treat, pet, hug…whatever it was that Homer wanted.

Unconditional Love

Give and receive it. Be a conduit of love. Homer enjoyed other dogs but he loved people. He lived to sniff, snort, and smell people, and nothing made his eyes light up like being pat by a stranger when he was out for a walk. 

Homer loved and protected our kitten, Marge, to such an extent that when Marge became fully grown and would lunge at Homer and smack him in the face with her paws, he wouldn’t even bark at her. He just took it, because he loved Marge.

Don’t Judge

Don’t judge yourself or others. Most of the time Homer was a Zen Master - so sweet, easy going and relaxed. Once, a neighbor's dog bit Homer in the cheek. Homey just stood there shocked, like “What’s your problem, man?" But when thunder or fireworks struck; lookout! He would be a shaking mess and bolt for a spot in the basement without any windows to ride the storm out. It was his own personal panic room. He didn’t care what I thought, what you thought, and he didn’t cast judgment on himself for his anxieties, his many anxieties. He was also the rare dog that hated car rides. He would start drooling and trembling just seeing us pack luggage. The back seat of our car would be a lake even after a short drive with Homer in the car.

Leave An Impact

Homer was hit by a car and died Friday Jan 4, 2013 at the age of 9 1/2. The outpouring of love and support from friends, family and neighbors has astounded me. Homer gave nothing but love and has left a sad hole.

The sky seemed duller when I first opened my eyes this morning. The house too quiet. Life itself seems stiller, emptier.

It hurts to wake up and not have him laying at my feet.

It hurts to look out any window and not see him in the yard.

It hurts to see his tracks in the snow, knowing their won’t be anymore.

It hurts to not hear his many sighs and moans; he was like an old Jewish man.

It hurts to not to have my living alarm clock wake me up to get him breakfast.

It hurts to put on my socks and shoes without him coming to sit beside me.

It hurts to walk into each room and find it empty.

It hurts to not hear his early warning system when anyone comes down our driveway.

It hurts to not put my used dish on the floor for my heavy breathing dishwasher.

It hurts to see each toy, knowing it won’t be played with again.

It all hurts because there was so much love and joy.

Now it has moved on. We were spoiled.

2012: That's A Wrap!

The year that was, what a year it was. This was the year I did more than I ever thought possible. Instead of assuming I didn’t have time for things, I decided to find out how many things I could do with my time. There was some sadness, sickness and death, but overall 2012 was outstanding.

It was by far the best year for my acting career. I worked multiple days on four feature films with such stars as Tom Hanks, Josh Brolin, Kate Winslet, Sandra Bullock and Steve Carell, one TV movie and the web series Cheerleaders vs Redneck Zombies with included a fun filled day and night for our premiere at Six Flags New England in October.

Saw some great movies that lots of others did too; Hunger Games, The Avengers, Ted, Django Unchained and some of my favorites that it seems almost nobody else went to: Cabin In The Woods and Looper top that list.

Didn’t make it to a lot of concerts, but the clear highlight of the year, if not the decade and possibly my life was Metallica’s Orion Music and More Festival. At the two-day extravaganza in Atlantic City Lori and I both got to be in the snake pit for night 2 when they played the Black Album in its entirety. There was also my dream lineup on The Tour - Motley Crue and Kiss, plus Tesla, Scorpions, and System of A Down.

In the world of fun, I drove a Lamborghini and Lori drove a Ferrari on her birthday. And of course there was another trip of a lifetime as we visited the Galapagos Islands in December. That was an awesome trip, I love visiting places where animals have no fear of man. There aren’t many such spots left in the world. We enjoyed outstanding weather, scenes, activities, animals and people and I now love snorkeling.

I don’t think I’ve ever attended more courses, classes and live training events. The list includes Reiki, Photo Reading, Project Management, Positive Psychology Certificate, Social Media Expos, Brendon Burchard’s Experts Academy and High Performance Academy, Product Launch Formula… JJ Virgin turned my food world upside down and I enjoyed a full year of Group Power and Centergy exercise classes. At a time when many people are setting weight loss resolutions once again, I’m weighing less than I have in over twenty years.

I became officially certified as an Enwaken Coach and had more energy coaching clients than ever with NavitasCoach.com and I joined forces with other energy coaches at EssenceCoaches.com, I also taught my first live workshop and had my first paid speaking engagement. I tried cranial sacral massage, reflexology, got certified in Reiki level II, got a new tattoo, took part in multiple master mind groups and did Holotropic Breathwork for my sixth time.

This was the first year without Patriots tickets after 10 years of sitting at Gillette Stadium, and surprisingly I never wished I still had them. And I was once again thrilled that I sold my Super Bowl tickets instead of witnessing a Pats loss in person.

What is 2013 bringing….
More learning, teaching, and growing. More concerts (Lady Gaga and another round of Orion are definite), acting, and the goal travel destination is Antarctica. Lori and I have been talking about speaking together for a while, it is actually happening January 12 when we’ll both talk to a local NAMI group. I’m preparing more Larry The Lizard books, my own book, live workshops and an online course. And whatever else catches my eye in the next twelve months. Bring it on!

Guest Blogging and Positive Psychology

I've had the pleasure of being a guest blogger on a couple sites this week.

I invite you to check out "Keep The Good Going: The Choice Is Yours" on the NAMI Mass blog. NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness and I spoke at the Massachusetts convention last October.

The other blog post is at EssenceCoaches.com, a new group of energy coaches I'm part of. I'm a featured coach this week and wrote a short piece on Transformation. I was also interviewed along with two other coaches on the Meet The Coaches Blog Talk Radio program Monday night. Check out my bio page to learn more about essence energy work.

Both posts were greatly influenced by the Certificate in Positive Psychology program I'm currently taking. It is being taught by professor and author, Tal Ben-Shahar and has been outstanding so far. Earlier this month I spent an immersion week at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in the Berkshires of Western Mass as part of the program. It was an amazing week of lectures, exercises, new friends and many things I don't normally do, like yoga every morning and dance yoga with a hundred people. It made for quite a strange transition going from Kripalu to working on Cheerleaders vs. Redneck Zombies!

I've visited Kriplau a couple times before for Holotropic Breathwork, but had never been there for a full week or had time to explore their many offerings. This time I tried Cranial Sacral Therapy, Reflexology and Neuromuscular Therapy.

Cranial Sacral was not at all what I expected! I thought it was some sort of head massage but it was a full-body, slow-motion wrestling sort of thing. I was twisted into all sorts of shapes and positions that I was surprised I could be in, yet I was so calm and relaxed I could have fallen asleep. And it definitely put me in altered state - swear I was seeing sound waves at dinner after my session, and it felt like I was on a major delay from someone asking me a question and me having any clue that I should respond. Very, very trippy. My altered state only lasted for an hour or so (I think) and I will definitely try this again.

I've heard of Reflexology for many years but this was my first experience with it. It was quite cool and relaxing. Nothing near as trippy as Cranial Sacral. It was wild to have so many sensations in my feet which I thought had two options; ticklish and numb. Bizarre to have my lip twitch or an arm jolt due to touching one point on a foot.

Neuromuscular Therapy, which is the most painful thing I've ever experienced, was much more than a traditional massage. I was so close to screaming STOP! Great practice for going to my happy place and breathing into pain. Whoever created this must be a big fan of banging his head against the wall because it feels good when you stop.

I get to do it all again in April when we have another immersion week. Already looking forward to it.

Cheerleaders vs Redneck Zombies

It has been a banner time for my extra work, or background performances as snotty people might say. This year I've been in scenes with Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Kate Winslet, Josh Brolin, and Steve Carell to name but a few. Three cheers for being blurry bits in the background!


Zombies and Cheerleaders in a gentler time.
AF Grant with Meredith Prunty

For the second time in my illustrious career I get to play a zombie. Not just any zombie, but a redneck zombie! What might that mean for a zombie? You'll have to wait a bit until this web series premieres later this fall to find out. Ever since I got into the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) in 2008, I've only gotten extra work, but on this project I'm a featured human once again. At least before becoming a zombie. Most actors rush to review a script for how many lines they have or try to figure out how much screen time they'll end up with. I prefer to see how much killin' I get to do or how grisly my death is. This project covers both criteria nicely.

Zombies love making new friends.
With Emmy March and Taylor Kudalis

Last weekend was publicity day and most of the cast and crew got together for some video and stills mayhem. The real production will be in September and episode one should hit the web around Halloween.

You can actually be a part of it by making contributions to the project. You can give as little as a dollar, but giving more will get you some goodies, all the way up to being an executive producer. How sweet is that? You can buy yourself a title, just like in Hollywood. So if you want to see me kill some cheerleaders, or if for some reason you want them to survive, consider a contribution.


Check out the official site. You can also follow along on Facebook.



Stand back. It's a slap fight!

The CvsRZ cast and crew.

Part of the zombie horde.
With Savannah Reinitzer and Mark Burzenski.

Orion Music & More - much, much more

Metallica's first (annual?) Orion Music & More festival was easily the best festival of any kind I've been to. Top notch location, planning, transportation, logistics, bands, set times, staging.... even prices were reasonable. Bottles of water I've seen go for $8 at most venues were only $3, plus there was free water refilling stations. The last big giant outdoor mess I went to was Woodstock '94 and it was a big giant mess.

Lori in Kirk's Crypt

James Hetfield said repeatedly from stage that they decided to have "a backyard BBQ" and thanks for showing up, but it was so much more. This was really a Metallica Theme Park - between the Custom Car Show showing off a few vehicles from James and 100 others, Hit The Lights Films curated and hosted by Lars Ulrich, "Kirk's Crypt" showcasing a sampling of Kirk Hammett's massive horror movie props and memorabilia collection - complete with live girls and ghouls making it more of a haunted house than just a tent full of stuff, Skate board ramps with pros and Robert Trujillo showing their stuff, a Metallica Museum of art and artifacts, 30+ bands hand picked by Metallica playing on four different stages, and most them were introduced by a member of Metallica. This truly was Metallica's back yard and they played perfect hosts.
I must admit I only went to this for Metallica and I hadn't even heard of many of the bands playing, but I left a fan of many of them and isn't that the point of this sort of eclectic festival?

Day 1, June 23, 2012
We are on the 1st shuttle bus from our hotel, the Borgata, at 11am (only 4 people on it) and were at Bader Field before gates opened at noon and started meeting people from all over the world right away. I've been in the Metallica Club since 1994 and my fellow clubbers have consistently proven to be the coolest people on the planet.
We had tickets to see Lars' dad Torben Ulrich's film "Before The Wall: Body & Being" and were in the front row for an hour of discussion with Lars and Torben and the "gift of gab" is definitely a family trait. It was a fun and funny experience.
Since we had bumped into comedian Jim Breuer that morning at the Borgata (he really does always look stoned) we hit the comedy portion next (it was also the only stage with shade). Lars showed up to introduce Don Jamieson and then James introduced his good friend Jim Breuer who is living his dreams combining metal and comedy. He was a blast!

Rob jams with Suicidal Tendencies

By this point in the afternoon I had yet to see a band, though I did hear The Sword cover "Cheap Sunglasses" from afar, so it was time to take my position for Suicidal Tendencies, a punk/skate/metal fav of mine since the 80's, and since this was Roberts first band I was confident of a reunion. I placed Lori near the sound board and moved deep into the crowd at The Damage Inc. stage. ST were introduced by Robert, who said he wouldn't be here today if not for this band. They opened with 'You Can't Bring Me Down" and then right into their biggest/oldest hit, "Institutionalized" (the infamous "all I wanted was a Pepsi" song) and the place went frickin' nuts. I was scared a few times. Boots, bodies and blood were flying. I didn't know till later that someone went down hard and was taken away on a stretcher. I tossed a few willing participants up for some crowd surfing and had an awesome time. Robert did indeed strap on a bass and jammed 4 or 5 tunes from "Infectious Grooves" - a bass heavy side project from ST. Heaven. When I turned to leave I couldn't believe how large the crowd had gotten.

Then it was Metallica time. Ride The Lightning night - the first Met album (yes album!) I bought back in high school. Our outstanding Met Club Ultra package got us into an exclusive area up close to the stage. As the thousands behind us chanted "VIPs suck!" I smiled to myself with metal glee.
Lori made some friends as I left her behind to go deeper by another 20 feet or so towards the stage.
Metallica played arguably the best show (this was #29 for me) I've ever seen complete with four songs I've never heard live before and one song, "Escape" that they played for first time ever! James joked right until the very start of it that he didn't want to play and could they just skip it. It's a song the entire band never wanted to see on their set list.  While it is the weakest song on the album, I've always liked it and thought it sounded great live. Another highlight was "Trapped Under Ice," a personal favorite they've only played a handful of times.
They opened four epic favorites: "Hit The Lights", "Master of Puppets" (my sides already ached from singing/screaming), "The Four Horsemen" (holy shit!!), and "Sad But True" -- followed by new song "Hell and Back" (from EP of 4 tracks from Death Magnetic sessions) then into all of Ride The Lightning, for the first time anywhere, but played in reverse order to keep me having to think, I guess. The amazing night ended with "Battery," "One," and "Seek & Destroy". Wow.
But there was still another day. A day with passes into the Snake Pit - the hole within the Metallica Stage!!

Day 2
Decided today was going to be about seeing bands. We caught a few songs by the moody, distortion heavy three-piece A Place to Bury Strangers and then checked out Liturgy - a two piece band. Two guys shredding on guitar. Nobody else. Interesting. Their bio lists four guys, so maybe two slept late, I don't know.

Ghost

I had been told ahead of time to see Ghost and I'm glad I did. They were on the main stage at 2pm and were introduced by James who said, "it's never too early for scary." Ghost are a group of anonymous ghouls from Sweden under white masks and robes lead by a skull faced Pope. I loved the music and the act. It felt so good to get a subtle head nod of approval from the Evil Pope. They were the most polite satanists you could ever meet and a good time was had by all. James stayed for the whole set and was rocking out at stage right.

Robert Introducing Soul Rebels

Next we caught the Soul Rebels, a brass group from New Orleans who opened for Metallica at their 30th anniversary Filmore Shows in December. They got introduced by Robert, and were a lot of fun. They even covered "Enter Sandman". Saw another first - moshing to a brass section.
Next up was another comedian, Shuli Egar, from the Howard Stern show. He was pretty funny, but I needed some metal. So I left Lori there and went to see Volbeat, a metal band from Denmark who are a top 10 act in Europe.  I'd never heard of them, but everyone I met talked about them, which was verified by the massive crowd at the Fuel stage waiting for them. James introduced them too and stayed for their set as well. They did a Johnny Cash cover and that fit them well, all dressed in black and rocking hard. They won me over.

Eric Church

Then it was time to prepare and get into the snake pit. I even persuaded Lori to join me there for Eric Church so she could decide herself to stay or not. Eric Church was another act I'd never heard of but I guess they are a pretty big deal in country. But they aren't country like I expected - they had pyro, smoking guitars and Black Sabbath riffs. I'm shocked to say I was front row and going off for a country act.
After that we could hear a blazing set by Avenged Sevenfold from across Bader Field as we waited for the return of the Mighty Metallica and the first time playing of the Black Album in North America. I was one person away from the front stage barrier. In front of me was a 5' tall woman from Japan at her 50th Metallica show. I made it my mission to keep her safe - cuz I wasn't gonna have clearer lines of sight over anyone else.

Kirk

They opened with the same two songs as Saturday night then varied it with "Fuel", "Bellz" and another rare personal favorite from Justice For All, "Shortest Straw".  Then into the career changing, blockbuster, Black Album, in reverse order. I absolutely loved the deep tracks "Struggle Within", "My Friend of Misery" and "The God That Failed." Hell, I loved every single song, even the one I never really cared for, "Don't Tread on Me." As I did the previous night, when they played "Nothing Else Matters" I thought of Lori. (when we first met 16+ years ago she didn't know what a Metallica was. Then a few live shows, "Nothing Else Matters" as our wedding song and BANG, she's in the fucking pit! How lucky am I?)

James

At the end of Sandman I abandoned my front position to dig into the back and find Lori for the encores, "Blackened" (SWEET!), "One" and "Seek & Destroy."  I caught a pick from Kirk after having one tossed by James rebound off my head earlier in the show and we limped away exhausted, enthused and grateful for yet another amazing show.  Can't wait for next year.

James & Rob

Final bow at Orion

good night!