Category: Life

TWO COFFEES, TWO SCONES

There’s an older couple here at this Starbucks I’m at right now.

Two tall coffees. Two scones.

No phones. Just sitting there, sharing a little moment.

Are they a couple? Is this a date? I have no idea.

It’s two people sitting there, seemingly enjoying a meal. At this Starbucks, on a warm day, on a spring day.

DO LITTLE BIG THINGS

It’s all about the mini versions of the big thing you wanna do.

I can’t always drive to the closest mountain here and go for a run, but there’s a park nearby that gets about 200′ of elevation. Run it a few times, I can get close to 1000′ of climbing in one run.

Can’t play MSG quite yet? Well, book a show a little closer to home. Play a 25 minute set. Write better songs. Over and over again.

Yeah, quitting work and ditching every responsibility sounds nice, but we’ve got rent to pay.

Do small versions of the big things you wanna do, then when the big thing arrives, you’re ready.

ALWAYS BE BLOOMING

Oh boy, James Victore never disappoints.

The quote below is in response to someone asking how to move forward creatively even though they’re older now:

Yes, “to do” is the answer. Action!

Action, action, action! Create, create, create

Shut up, stop waiting, and just make the thing. Take one step closer to the doing the thing.

Maybe you can’t direct a play tomorrow, but you can start writing the story. Sketch up the logo. Talk to someone who might want to do the same thing.

Action.

ARTISTS ARE ALWAYS WORKING

From ‘The life and the work are equally important‘

“Let’s face it—artists are always working, though they may not seem as if they are. They are like plants growing in winter. You can’t see the fruit, but it is taking root below the earth.”

André Gregory

My goodness, I believe this to be true.

I feel like my creative life has had so many stops and starts, as if it must be one continuous flow to be valid, but this quote above reassures me I’m wrong.

(via Austin Kleon)

BACK TO THE NIGHTMARE

We endured a pandemic. Life shut down. Live music stopped. No more going to the movies. It was take-out only at food stops. I avoided aisles at the grocery stores when it was filled with too many people.

Through all that, and a million Americans dead, it’s like we just couldn’t wait to get back to being miserable.

I’ve talked to a handful of people recently, and no one’s fucking happy. Short fuses, bad tempers, and people being shitty everywhere.

Oh, we can get back to “normal” a bit? Great. Time to be miserable.

ALL IN THE DOSE

Finally re-found this quote from Joe Holder:

“sometimes, all the time, never”

don’t think of exercise as an “all the time” activity—key is just to not let “sometimes” become “never”

don’t think of “junk food” as a “never” occasion— key is to just to not let “sometimes” become “all the time”

it’s all in the dose

Joe Holder via Twitter

PULLING FOCUS

This quote rattles my bones:

‘I was working in film production and was responsible for what’s called “pulling focus” – as the character moves across the scene, the focus puller keeps them in focus. That’s what I did for 10 years, mostly for commercials. But commercials are the most transient things you can possibly make. It’s so much energy, but they last for 30 seconds and are gone from the world. I wanted to make something more permanent.

Adam McDermott of Linus Bikes

EMPTY

Who remembers quiet Fridays? When all the demands of the week regain momentum just to crash into your Friday afternoon like a dumptruck? Sure. Why not.

Been trying the Pomodoro method of time management, and time blocking, and whatever, but really the best for me is “I’m working on this one thing, all my notifications are off, I’ll tackle the next action item when this one is complete.”

Multi-tasking is a myth, and a brain drain.

Photo taken with my GoPro 8.