Music is the lens through which I know and have come to understand the world around me. From the lyrics in a Bob Dylan song, the melodies in a Schumann character piece, the fury in a Beethoven Sonata or the tension in punk record I have felt humanity’s fury, passion and love. I have come to know and accept what it is to be thoroughly human. I have worked through the toughest decisions and healed from painful experiences. As a child I can recall feeling the vibrations resonate through my body. I did not always understand what the words meant but I could feel their intention. I did not understand how the chords and melodies were formed but I wanted to learn. Intuition informed me that music had great healing potential.
     As a musician and creator of music I strive to connect the listener with the part of their soul that may lie dormant in day-to-day life. I find music to be transportive; with the ability to bring you to places of great joy, peace or meditation. In a world full of temptations and addictions, music is worthy drug.
     The themes that weave themselves throughout my work include personal acceptance and the destruction of humanly conceived barriers that block us from the freedom that acceptance brings. In our communal world we have to work to break down stereotypes, fight racism and sexism, and resist self-destructive behavior. I believe music mirrors those battles and reflects them back at us. The contrast between dissonance and consonance in the sounds we hear are metaphors for the battles we fight. We also learn to label music as good/bad, legitimate/fake, serious/popular. In life we label our experiences as good/bad, consonant/dissonant and these decisions affect our worldview. The ultimate goal of my music would be to help the listener transcend their own detrimental thought-patterns and reach a state of constant questioning and openness.
     The word RECOVERY has recently become the center-stone of my songwriting and compositional work. I believe that we are in a constant state of recovery whether it be from something visceral like alcohol or drug addiction or recovery from a limited worldview. We can recover ourselves from self-destruction behaviors through opening our hearts and minds to alternative ways of thinking. Music is the perfect catalyst to transform a once-dreary thinker into an optimistic dreamer.
Through the use of dissonance and consonance I try to assert that what we once thought was ugly or unwanted (dissonance) can lead to what is true and beautiful (consonance). The two states of sound, or being, are not mutually exclusive. Going one step further I strive to blur the lines between classical and pop music, suggesting that perhaps these genres are not so different from one another.
     The lyrics in the song “The Knife” reflect a young woman deciding to literally cut the darkness right out of herself. The metaphor is striking yet uplifting when we sing, “and she was coming out of the darkness, into her own light (life). She will learn forgiveness even if she has to cut it out with the knife.” The woman in the song hears the “sound of a thousand bees” (dissonance) and is “brought to her knees” (consonance) in reflection of what she has to do to heal. What might look macabre (dissonant) from the outside creates joy (consonance) on the inside.
     Our environment teaches us what to like and our experience informs us of what is real. We have to decide the truth. Through music I hope to widen the listeners ear and in doing so their heart and minds. Only then can we live in full recovery.

(It is dark age people: in my dream last night I went to a doctors office. Doc pulled me aside and said, “look, we need to talk about how you are going to pay for this before I look at you. If you don’t have insurance it’s ok. If you do, I will have to charge you for every question you ask me.” I said I did and spent the next 3 hours trying to find the receptionist as the tumor on my leg kept growing. I literally woke up crying.)

You probably just decided it wasn’t worth worrying about health insurance. “It’s all a scam,” you think (you’re right by the way). But then you hear the story of your friend who fell off a balcony and spent weeks in a hospital. Or your buddy who thought he was healthy and then had a heart-attack. Or one of your good friends gets a cancer diagnosis at a young age. It’s not hard to believe it could happen to you. It happened to me. I had a small tumor growing on my back that I discovered at age 29 because I accidently touched it wrong, got all nauseous and dizzy, and almost passed out. I got it cut out. I'm good now. I had insurance.

I don’t want to scare you. And I don’t want to cause you to go out and spend a bunch of money. But until our system changes and we wake from this healthless dark age we need to look out for ourselves as best we can. No benefit concert can help you if you need cancer treatment.

For the past 10 years I have had an individual PPO health insurance plan. PPO stands for “Preferred Provider Organization.” I pay a premium of $200 a month to Blue Cross Blue Shield to have access to benefits from doctors that are in their network. BCBS covers a large majority of patients in TN and therefore has created a wide-reaching network. They also have the ability to negotiate their maximum payable amounts with doctors (more on this later). BCBS is a mammoth and they have a lot of bargaining power.

With my plan I have what’s known as a co-pay. I “co-pay” with BCBS to get services I need. For example, if I get sick I go see doc and I pay $30. Then BCBS pays the remaining amount of whatever they have pre-negotiated the value of the service to be. Nice right? I don’t ever have to worry about anything except that $30 copay!

The catch is-you don’t know what those negotiated fees are. And they are wildly VARIABLE depending on whether you are insured or not (hence the dream I mentioned earlier). For instance, say I had no insurance plan. I go to the same doctor and pay $60 out of pocket. If the doctor bills the insurance company he will charge them AS MUCH AS HE CAN GET AWAY WITH. It may be as much as twice what he would charge me if I were uninsured. With my copay I never know what things cost and if I have lab work done or any procedure outside of the norm, those fees are gently worked into my premium over time (but that’s a whole new article.)

If I have a cold it would be more sane to just use the walk-in clinic at CVS.

Now I am paying roughly $2,400 a year for this plan that covers my office visits with a copay. The real major medical coverage doesn’t kick in until I have met my $5,000. deductible. So what am I paying for? I’m now actually paying $2,400.00 a year plus my copay ($30 a piece) for that doctor visit. Even if I had some crazy lab work, X-rays etc, it would probably be less than $2,400.00. Did I mention my deductible with this plan is $5,000.00?

Over the past 10 years that means I have paid $24,000 for roughly 4 routine doctors visits (for colds or respiratory infections) and one minor surgery that cost about $1000 if I had paid out-of-pocket.

Enter rational thinking.
(Or at least a band-aid until the rest of the country wakes up and stops allowing themselves to be robbed.)(I could have bought a house.) (or a yacht) (or an RV to tour in).(hmm maybe that’s what is wrong with our economy-all our disposable income goes into the health disposal.)

Enter in the health savings account. Let me explain this in the simplest way I can.

You cannot open a health savings account without first having a high-deductible health plan in place. You will see this: HDHP-HSA qualified. HSA stands for Health Savings Account. You put money into your personal HSA. The HDHP covers you in case you end up in the hospital.

HSA’s are offered by banks. HSA’s are controlled by you. YOU decide how much to put into them. YOU decided if and when to withdraw from them. They are like IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts) except even better because you can DEDUCT your investment from your income taxes. And there are no tax penalties to WITHDRAW the money if you use it for qualified medical expenses? What are those? Well, that trip to doc or that prescription to clear up your infection.

(Here is some more good news. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, your HDHP will cover preventative services 100%!!! That means you do not have to meet the deductible first! I have attached a list of those services at the bottom of this article.)

These funds that YOU deposit into your HSA earn interest (TAX FREE) and they never go away. You know how you have to meet that deductible every year? Well, your funds don’t start over they STAY in your account from year to year GROWING with interest. If you don’t get sick, you keep the money. NO throwaways. Simple. That money can become your deductible if you ever need it.

How will you know if this is right for you? Well, if you are an independent musician and are relatively healthy and have no dependents, this might be perfect for you. You can save up to $100 a month on premiums and deposit it into an account. You probably don’t have a retirement fund and an HSA can help you in your retirement if you make it that far. If you are past 27 that is...just kidding. This is actually a good plan for healthy families as well. Side-note!!! BCBS is the ONLY company that offers maternity and there is a 10-month waiting period. Don’t get pregnant before you have paid them for a full year for maternity...they won’t cover you.

Here is how I decided for myself. I calculated all my medical expenses over the past year. They were much less than my BCBS shield premium of $2400. In fact, they were about $300 total. The year of 2009 was my worst medical year because I had a cancer diagnosis. Even in that year, my expenses were less than $2400. For me, it makes sense to not waste that money and to save for when and IF I need it. Here are my calculations below. There is a handy online calculator to help you decide too!

Don’t forget to find out how much your prescriptions cost if you have any. I had an Rx copay as well and when I called to find out how much my migraine medicine cost I was shocked to discover it was $299.99 for 9 tablets. BUT-when I asked how much it was without insurance and with Rx discount cards the cost was more like $80. STILL LESS THAN MY PREMIUM if I fill it only 3 times a year. Oh, if I get it from Canada it’s even less.

Then I learned about the various overseas Rx services. That’s right, get your meds from places where health care isn’t INSANE. Check out www.yourrxdiscounts.com and www.canadarx.com. YAY for Canada! CVS also has a great plan for seriously cheap prescriptions and you don’t need insurance to get in on it.
www.hsaforamerica.com/Vicki
I applied for a HDHP and my premium will be about $115 instead of $220 (which is what it is now). Please remember the plan does need to be listed as a Qualified High Deductible Plan vs only High Deductible Plan. The reason is, there are High deductible plans out there that are not qualified to be HSA compatible.

Check out www.hsaforamerica.com/Vicki for some really detailed info and to get started with a quote.

STEPS TO TAKE:
1. Calculate what you spent on health care last year. Include prescriptions and even contacts and glasses because you can use your HSA for those items too!
2.Calculate your annual cost for your current plan.
3. Apply for a HDDP. (you can use www.ehealthinsurance.com)
4. Subtract #3 from #2. This is the amount you can potentially save in your HSA.

Decide if what you save will cover what you came up with in #2. If it’s close, you stand to save even more that amount in taxes. And if you don’t use it then watch it grow. Just make sure you pick a HDDP that has an out-of-pocket maximum that you can handle in a worst-case scenario.
Contact me if I have missed any pertinent detail or you are confused:)



Here is my sample breakdown.

Health Savings Account (HSA) vs. Traditional Health Plan
A HDHP with a HSA could save you $228 per month.
(Your entire $1,000 HSA contribution can be paid from HDHP qualified plan premium savings. Your unused HSA account balance is $600 for the year which rolls over to next year, tax-free (state taxes may vary).
Input Summary
Annual prescriptions 1
Annual doctor visits 1
Marginal income tax rate 25%
HDHP Qualified Plan vs Traditional Health Plan
Monthly premium $115 vs $200
Annual deductible $5,200 vs $5,000
Maximum annual out-of-pocket $5,950 vs $5,000
Co-pay for prescriptions $0 vs $10
Co-pay for doctor visits $0 vs $20
Other expenses $300 vs $300
Co-insurance 0% vs 20%
HSA Contributions $1,000 vs $0
Current HSA Account Balance $0
Health Savings Account (HSA) vs. Traditional Health Plan http://www.e-wisdom.com/calculators/hsa-vs-traditional-calculator.php

Results Summary
HDHP Qualified Plan Traditional Health Plan Difference
Annual premium $1,380 vs $2,400 save $1,020
Estimated medical expenses $400 vs $330 -$70
Estimated HSA withdrawals $400 vs $0 -$400
Estimated HSA tax savings $250 vs $0 -$250
Total annual cost $1,530 vs $2,730 $1,200
Total monthly cost $128 vs $228 $100
Unused HSA Account Balance* $600 vs $0 $600
Your unused HSA account balance is $600 for the year which rolls over to next year, tax-free (state taxes may vary).
Information and interactive calculators are made available to you as self-help tools for your independent use and are not
intended to provide investment advice. We cannot and do not guarantee their applicability or accuracy in regards to your
individual circumstances. All examples are hypothetical and are for illustrative purposes. We encourage you to seek
personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding all personal finance issues.
Health Savings Account (HSA) vs. Traditional Health Plan http://www.e-wisdom.com/calculators/hsa-vs-traditional-calculator.php

Preventive Services Covered under the Affordable Care Act


If you have a new health insurance plan or insurance policy beginning on or after September 23, 2010, the following preventive services must be covered without your having to pay a copayment or coinsurance or meet your deductible, when these services are delivered by a network provider.

Covered Preventive Services for Adults

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm one-time screening for men of specified ages who have ever smoked
Alcohol Misuse screening and counseling
Aspirin use for men and women of certain ages
Blood Pressure screening for all adults
Cholesterol screening for adults of certain ages or at higher risk
Colorectal Cancer screening for adults over 50
Depression screening for adults
Type 2 Diabetes screening for adults with high blood pressure
Diet counseling for adults at higher risk for chronic disease
HIV screening for all adults at higher risk
Immunization vaccines for adults--doses, recommended ages, and recommended populations vary:
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Herpes Zoster
Human Papillomavirus
Influenza
Measles, Mumps, Rubella
Meningococcal
Pneumococcal
Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis
Varicella
Obesity screening and counseling for all adults
Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) prevention counseling for adults at higher risk
Tobacco Use screening for all adults and cessation interventions for tobacco users
Syphilis screening for all adults at higher risk

Covered Preventive Services for Women, Including Pregnant Women

Anemia screening on a routine basis for pregnant women
Bacteriuria urinary tract or other infection screening for pregnant women
BRCA counseling about genetic testing for women at higher risk
Breast Cancer Mammography screenings every 1 to 2 years for women over 40
Breast Cancer Chemoprevention counseling for women at higher risk
Breast Feeding interventions to support and promote breast feeding
Cervical Cancer screening for sexually active women
Chlamydia Infection screening for younger women and other women at higher risk
Folic Acid supplements for women who may become pregnant
Gonorrhea screening for all women at higher risk
Hepatitis B screening for pregnant women at their first prenatal visit
Osteoporosis screening for women over age 60 depending on risk factors
Rh Incompatibility screening for all pregnant women and follow-up testing for women at higher risk
Tobacco Use screening and interventions for all women, and expanded counseling for pregnant tobacco users
Syphilis screening for all pregnant women or other women at increased risk

Covered Preventive Services for Children

Alcohol and Drug Use assessments for adolescents
Autism screening for children at 18 and 24 months
Behavioral assessments for children of all ages
Cervical Dysplasia screening for sexually active females
Congenital Hypothyroidism screening for newborns
Developmental screening for children under age 3, and surveillance throughout childhood
Dyslipidemia screening for children at higher risk of lipid disorders
Fluoride Chemoprevention supplements for children without fluoride in their water source
Gonorrhea preventive medication for the eyes of all newborns
Hearing screening for all newborns
Height, Weight and Body Mass Index measurements for children
Hematocrit or Hemoglobin screening for children
Hemoglobinopathies or sickle cell screening for newborns
HIV screening for adolescents at higher risk
Immunization vaccines for children from birth to age 18 —doses, recommended ages, and recommended populations vary:
Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis
Haemophilus influenzae type b
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Human Papillomavirus
Inactivated Poliovirus
Influenza
Measles, Mumps, Rubella
Meningococcal
Pneumococcal
Rotavirus
Varicella
Iron supplements for children ages 6 to 12 months at risk for anemia
Lead screening for children at risk of exposure
Medical History for all children throughout development
Obesity screening and counseling
Oral Health risk assessment for young children
Phenylketonuria (PKU) screening for this genetic disorder in newborns
Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) prevention counseling for adolescents at higher risk
Tuberculin testing for children at higher risk of tuberculosis
Vision screening for all children

From the i105 website...it looks like you only get this CD at the Disc Exchange and the Preservation Pub. But it's worth the trip to hear original music from local artists such as Scott Miller, Cutthroat Shamrock, The Drunk Uncles, Roman Reese and HUdson K. Actually, as of this posting I have not even had the chance to hear our live recording. It was done at the shed in a couple of takes without any edinting or proofing...now that's CHARITY! HAH~

Christmastime is a time for sharing and caring. Homegrown for the Holidays: Volume 2, is a continuation of a charity project that began in 2010. It's our way — i105 WFIV and the artists who perform on this disc — to celebrate the season and GIVE back to our community. Proceeds from the sale of this CD will directly benefit the chosen charity.

Homegrown for the Holidays: Volume 2THANK YOU to Martha Christian, Cutthroat Shamrock, The Drunk Uncles, The Hotshot Freight Train, Hudson K, Scott McMahan, Ryan Michaels and Shannon Haley, Scott Miller, Sarah Pirkle and Jeff Barbra, Roman Reese and the Cardinal Sins, Karen E. Reynolds, The Songbirds, Brent Thompson, and Matt Woods for giving yourtime and talents to record this CD project. Please support these artists whenever you can.

THANK YOU to Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson for the use of THE SHED, equipment, Mark Akers - recording engineer, and other employees to record, master, and host the live Homegrown for the Holidays concert event.

THANK YOU once again to Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson and our other partners for helping to underwrite the costs of producing and distributing the finished project.

This year's charity is the Knoxville Ronald McDonald House. Knoxville's Ronald McDonald House has been providing a home-away-from-home for families of sick and injured children since 1985. It is open to any family with a child, age 21 or under, who is receiving medical treatment at an area hospital, including East Tennessee Children's Hospital. Since its opening, more than 45,000 people have found a home when they needed one the most.

The house provides facilities for sleeping, cooking, laundry and play. Relatives are also welcome to stay in this house, including grandparents and siblings of the child receiving medical treatment.

The Ronald McDonald House also offers a day-use program where families with children at Children's Hospital or other area hospitals can use the house's laundry, cooking and other facilities during the day. This provides a way for families to complete daily tasks while away from home but still remain close to their sick child.

Most importantly, the house is a warm and friendly "HOME" where families meet other families whose children are experiencing similar medical problems, which allows them to draw additional comfort and support from new-found friendships.

The Ronald McDonald House relies solely on the support of the community. Your purchase of this CD will directly benefit families in need.



Donations may be mailed to:
Ronald McDonald House

1705 W. Clinch Ave.

Knoxville, TN. 37916
For More Information: (865) 637-7475 • Website: www.knoxrmhc.org


Homegrown for the Holidays: Volume 2 performers

* Martha Christian - www.marthachristian.com
* Matt Woods - www.therealmattwoods.com
* Karen E. Reynolds - www.karenereynolds.com
* Hudson K - www.hudsonkmusic.com
* Ryan Michaels and Shannon Haley - www.ryanmichaelsband.com
* Cutthroat Shamrock - www.cutthroatshamrock.com
* Scott McMahan - www.reverbnation.com/scottmcmahan
* Roman Reese & the Cardinal Sins - www.romanreese.com
* The Drunk Uncles - www.thedrunkuncles.com
* The Hotshot Freight Train - www.myspace.com/thehotshotfreighttrain
* The Songbirds - www.myspace.com/sweetsongbirds
* Brent Thompson - www.brentthompsonmusic.com
* Scott Miller - www.thescottmiller.com
* Jeff Barbra and Sarah Pirkle - www.jeffandsarahonline.com

Well, I won't lie. I have been hunkered down working on new material. It's a tortured artist life for me. (To be read in the most dramatic voice possible). Seriously, creating is probably my favorite part of the whole music experience.

 

I want to ask you to be a part of my creative process.

 

Here's how:

 

Reply to this email (or Christina@hudsonkmusic.com) or got to the Hudson K Facebook page and leave me 3 words.

 

Example:

 

Amphibian, toast, glue. (come up with you own please:)

 

If I use your words together in a song you will receive a free copy of the new record (when it's done of course) and credits on the album. It's amazing what a little catalyst can do for the process.

 

The artists that I have been grooving on the hardest lately include:

Fever Ray

Lykke Li (Please go see her in November at the Orange Peel...then come to the SA Brewery afterward to hear Hudson K)

Crystal Castles

Mum

 

 

OK, that's it. See below for cool shows we are doing an tune into 90.3 The Rock tonight to hear me and Fine Peduncle play live. We are promoting a bike ride/show this Friday evening.

Recovery Blog #1

Some mornings you wake up feeling lousy. You don’t want to get out of bed. You dread the chores ahead of you and the people that want things from you. You feel like you can’t get ahead of your to-do list etc.

Other mornings you wake up refreshed and aware of all of the good things in your life. You can see clearly that people love you, you have a roof over your head, and you are not hungry.

This dichotomy of emotions got me thinking. Why can’t I wake up every morning feeling this good? Or can I? Is it all just a manner of reconditioning thought patterns?

This past month I have witnessed a family member going through the throes of recovery and have learned more from her experience as a bystander than I could have ever imagined. Her process of questioning her own behavior has challenged me to think about why I do the things I do and why I can’t find joy in the simple things like taking a walk. I am becoming aware of my lack of presence in the now. I am realizing this lack of presence is due to some simple conditioning that is wreaking havoc on my daily life:

The problem:
I can’t feel content or happy if I am not being “productive” or working toward a goal.

Now don't get me wrong, being productive and having goals is very worthwhile. But when it consumes your being and creates a negative space in it’s wake then you have a problem.

I would like to challenge myself, and anyone else out there for that matter, to begin to change their thought patterns. A thought can be like a cancer that spreads uncontrollably through your body and mind.

I challenge myself instead to think : “I have worth and value no matter what my productivity level is. I enjoy the simple things in a day like coffee, a phone call, lunch, a smile. I make art because I love it and enjoy the end result. I enjoy the process of getting there. I can see mistakes as stepping stones.”

Hopefully this re-conditioning will change me from a high-anxiety competitor into a peaceful warrior. IF you feel like negative thought-patterns are ruining your joy in life please chime in! I would love to see the responses!