Whose Music Woke You Up Today?

I listen to a huge variety of podcasts, radio shows, and read a lot online as well. So, forgive me for being able to relate the source of this advice because I'd like to give them credit. I'm not even really sure what the official topic of the show was. Still, one of the announcers was talking about the attitude of your day been determined during the first few moments after you wake up. What they recommended was listening to music when you first woke up for a few minutes before you throw back the covers and get out of bed to start your day.

From the time I was in junior high until I stopped living on my own, I owned clock radios that allowed me the choice of alarm, music, or combination of both. Because I was a typical teenager growing up, I used both and at full volume to ensure that I was up in time to greet my day. Because of the way the device worked, I had no choice as to what music would play much of the time it was something like a transmission repair commercial.

Now, I have several devices that can wake me up and do so to a specific song if I choose. I was an early adopter of the Amazon Echo, and now my house is populated with these devices as part of my smart home set up. Several months ago, I replaced my last clock radio with an Echo Show device.  It has many alarm options including things like the ability to play whatever song you want to wake up to or a selection of songs by a particular artist. Being someone who is always preferred variety, I choose to select the artist and have kismet determine the title.

I will say that I have chosen a wide variety of things to wake up to in the past few weeks. I went from Lynyrd Skynyrd to Linda Ronstadt to Santana and even the Mamas & the Papas. Then I played folk music for a few days, including Peter Paul and Mary, John Denver, Harry Chapin, and Jim Croce. Most of the time, I would wake up in the first notes and immediately recognize the song. Still, a few times, I've had to ask Alexa to tell me the title I was listing to. None of that matters, I am reconnecting with a lot of old music I had forgotten. The part that matters is the difference in the way my day has gone since then.

On the whole, I have felt more positive heading into my day – – which is saying a lot given the current condition of the world. Sometimes, I'm left with the tune running through my head, requiring me to feed my brain more songs by the same artist. Other times, I'm flooded by remembrances of events associated with the song. I let my mind wander off to people and places stowed in the deep recesses of my memory. I think all of this is a good thing.

Anyway, try it out for yourself. Many devices can help start your day with whatever music you want to awaken you. The only rule, if you can call it that, is that once the song starts playing, you let the entire tune play before you get up and get out of bed. Unless you're playing In A Gadda Da Vida or American Pie you only delay your day by three or four minutes – no biggie. Give it a shot for a week. See what it does for you.

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It's a Long, Long Time To Hang In the Sky

Made it back from the United States to Kuwait with no significant issues; now I am counting down the last 55 days that I have remaining on my tour.

As I sat on the plane flying back, the words of an old John Denver song kept running through  my head: "it's a long way from LA to Denver, it's a long time to hang in the sky".  I wonder what John would've said about the 16 hour flying time from Detroit to Kuwait City.

One pleasant surprise during my trip back was Qatar Airways. The airline totally rocked it,  From the space allocation in economy class, in-flight amenities, customer service that I experienced from check-in to arrival was top notch. The in-flight meal they served was the best I've ever had in my entire life. If there was a restaurant that had their Lamb Chili on the menu, I would be a regular patron. It was awesome.

Another thing deserving of kudos was the fact that my baggage made the plane change from American Airlines to Qatar Airways in Chicago even though my arriving flight was delayed and there was less than 30 minutes between arrival and takeoff. As I stood by the baggage carousel in Kuwait City I was totally surprised when my baggage came out and I did not have to file a missing bag report.

If I have any more flying to do before I depart or I ever need to book a flight in this region again-- I will be doing it via Qatar Airways if at all possible. Airlines in the United States could learn a lot about customer service and exceeding customer expectations from them.

I'm currently suffering from jet lag, which will take three or four days to settle down, the human body is not built for transitioning 7 time zones in a single day. But, once that is passed that will get back to work on my Kuwait Bucket List.

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