What's black and white and BEN all over?

What's black and white and BEN all over? Today's newspaper! Specifically, the Des Moines Register Datebook features a glimpse of our very own Ben Williams, available here , and shows the heart of the one we think of as a "gentleman of jam" and "lovable hippie guru". Seriously, we're super-proud of our friend's talents and accomplishments, and hereby proclaim this as the official kickoff weekend for "The Year of Ben", not only with Kaleidoscope & Lady Blue, but especially Truth Be Told, his jam band that is rapidly rising to the top of the hippie heap.

I can't begin to tell you how much the friendship of Ben, his wife Lori, and their sons JB and Jeremy, means to us personally. (Trivia--Ben actually officiated the wedding ceremony of Brandon and me 1-1-05, and our first concert event together was with Ben and Lori to see Gov't Mule in Omaha 9-16-04--we've come a long way since that infamous car ride, haven't we!) Suffice it to say, their support in ways big and small has continually revolutionized our music and our lives. What a miracle to experience more of our dreams bobbing and weaving their way into "kaleidoscopic" reality every day. So as our tribute song, "The Gospel of Ben" says:

On this golden road of devotion
I want men of passion in my band
And in this world of lukewarm locomotion
I have faith in the faith of our faithful friend
I believe, I believe, I believe in The Gospel of Ben...

The M of our EMT group

At Kaleidoscope, we're fortunate to be on track with an acclaimed small business source called "The E-Myth." This school of thought outlines an "EMT magic combination" for a managerial team, Entrepreneur-Manager-Technician. Joe Koelling's our Technician, I'm the Entrepreneur, and the Manager is none other than the incomparable Ben Williams. Ben is "quite a human resource," as his abilities take shape in an awesome combination of skills all perfectly designed to fit together for building our business, almost as if he were born for it! This past year, after achieving top-level accolades in his insurance career, Ben (and his family--Lori, JB, and Jeremy) took an extraordinary dive off the safe status quo board into the challenging liberation of the faith ocean, in order to pursue the awakening of some long-sleeping dreams, not only for his own sake but to impact countless songs and lives.

Per "The E-Myth ", the Entrepreneur works a little IN and a lot ON the business, the Technician works a little ON and a lot IN the business, and the Manager works both IN and ON the business. Ben shows natural wisdom in both these directions, transforming our daily grind into daily gratitude. Yes, that sounds a little precious, but it's true nonetheless. Connect with Ben at Kaleidoscope, or at his bands' shows (Lady Blue--www.myspace.com/ladyblueband as well as the new jam band he leads called Truth Be Told--www.myspace.com/truthbtoldband, and the acoustic trio Embryo). And don't be surprised when you find yourself believing as we do, in "the gospel of Ben".

Shout-outs welcomed...!