Add my "perfectionist tendencies" to this mix, and now I'm cooking with a recipe for disaster. It's easy to tell myself, "You're never going to learn all that music." "You don't have the piano-playing chops you had in college, what makes you think you can play this now?" "These pieces aren't that hard. Why are you having so much trouble getting them?" "You can sing for comedy, but can you sing seriously?" "Your voice after that thyroid surgery 10 years ago isn't the same.

My to-do list at any given time has 150-200 items. With the holidays approaching, this goes up exponentially! My body needed a break. My husband, Doug, turned on the TV, and we were binge-watching Christmas movies before I knew it. We watched A Christmas Story Christmas (sequel to A Christmas Story with Peter Billingsly), Four Christmases (Vince Vaughan & Reese Witherspoon), and Candy Cane Lane (Eddie Murphy).

Thanksgiving is a holiday that has become synonymous with gratitude. But how did this happen? The tradition of Thanksgiving dates back to the 17th century when the Pilgrims celebrated their first successful harvest in Plymouth. They invited the Native Americans, who had helped them survive their first year, to join them in a feast. This was a time of giving thanks for their blessings, thus setting the stage for Thanksgiving to be associated with gratitude.

I just completed my 54th trip around the sun last week. This birthday was a "simple pleasures" birthday. I took the day off of work and spent quality time with my husband, running errands. One of our "errands" was a trip to the Pinball Museum in Tarpon Springs. I love pinball! We played pinball for hours, did window shopping, and then headed home for a lobster and shrimp dinner. We had friends over Friday evening for a birthday party and cocktails. It was just perfect.

Earlier this year, I found myself with 2 pianos. I tried selling one, but no one was interested after 6 months on the Facebook marketplace and another online dedicated piano listing service. I decided to keep it and moved the second piano to my home. What, exactly, does one do with two pianos when one can only play one piano at a time? You make musical lemonade.

I returned last night from Hypnothoughts, the largest hypnosis conference in the world. I was there to teach three classes: Yoda-Nosis, Psycho Patterns, and Comedy Writing for Stage Hypnotists. I was also there to take two courses from David Snyder; Identity by Design and Vibrational Healing. It was an action-packed two weeks.

I’m wrapping up a tumultuous few weeks that have been nothing but GO-GO-GO. I’m tired and unable to get caught up because I've been at Hypnothoughts this past week. Hypnothoughts is the world's largest hypnosis conference, and I'm teaching and taking classes there. I'm having a great time, but at the end of the day, my body tells me I'm doing too much. I need to start saying “NO.”

My first “exposure” to a nudist community was in January 2009 when I was hired to do a comedy show at a clothing-optional resort. I had no idea how that one show would change my life. That one show sent me down a road that would allow me to develop a comedy show that would eventually introduce me to some of the coolest people on the planet and send me to perform comedy worldwide. However, in the early days of my comedy career, I had to keep my shows at nudist resorts and swinger events on the down low.

After last week’s goal setting blog, I set some pretty big goals for myself. And then I looked at my schedule to see when I could work on those goals. And it hit me…I have a real problem!

I have not scheduled any time to work on things that are important to me, because I’m too busy running my business, managing employees, putting out fires, paying bills, managing my health, and keeping active in the community. I have craft projects that have literally, been sitting in a bin waiting for me to get to them for YEARS. What’s wrong with this picture? Maybe those projects aren’t as important, but I still have them. The problem is I have never scheduled time to complete them because I’m so busy trying to make everyone else happy.

These popular lyrics are often sung by those bringing in the New Year. Auld Lang Syne is from the Scots language and means “old long since.” In practice, it means “old times, especially times fondly remembered.” Robert Burns, the national poet of Scotlalnd wrote those words in a poem published in 1796. However, he took a fragment of a folk song that he heard and built more lyrics around it. Auld Lang Syne became synonymous with New Year’s Eve when Guy Lombardo and his band, the Royal Canadians sang a song with those lyrics every year on his broadcast from 1929 - 1976. He became known as “Mr. New Year’s Eve” as a result.

Ahhh...the holidays! They're here! And now, it's time to figure out what the heck is next. You've rushed around for weeks shopping, preparing food, baking cookies, and wrapping presents. Your family is on their way and it's time for the festivities. Whether your traditions are set in stone or you're looking for new ways to enjoy your time with family and friends, check out our 12 ways to make your holidays extra enjoyable.

The holidays can bring out the best…and worst in people. For some the holidays are all about reconnecting with family and friends. For others, the holidays are a reminder of family and friends that have passed on, or pissed us off. Here are a few tips on how to make the most the holiday season…