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LETS NOT BELIEVE OUR WAY TO MEDIOCRITY...COULD ANYTHING REALLY BE WORSE?
Some of us are just not sure how to tap into our greatest strengths and make them our lives work. Duh... To make them who we are.
That's why seeing LADY GAGA and Artists like her, can give us a little bit of that push in the right direction...This woman just believes so passionately, that you know who you are and you can tap into that potential at any time. (Passionate people are contagious)
You want to live in the real world though...We can't all play piano and strut around before Millions of People shouting....I am on the EDGE OF GLORY... and it comes off as just being honest.
I am meeting so many talented and spectacular people recently that have something really special to give...It may be great music or simply poetic words or unique hair styling, or just creating monumental baked goods...But I notice more than often that there is something missing, something untapped in their life pictures.
Some of us have some obvious and seemingly humungous obstacles that we are dealing with and that need to be overcome..Fears and Anger and Addiction..
For others..we are superstars in our own minds, but on the playing field of life, we are slightly unstable. We need a usable formula and something real and new to get through.. If we get over this thing that keeps dogging us....then we will be there...on the edge of Glory.
I am writing a book that synchronizes some of my struggles and theories that have challenged me, but ultimately worked for me in the end. It only took years (god) of trying and failing, and trying again, to figure this MOTHA out.
I am just a regular guy, but I have read it all and tried it all...and have some profound (to me anyway) insights to share.
Nothing is permanent...You have to be real, relevant and honest and giving...every single day of your life, or you could just become ordinary, or worse...7 seconds from now...
Here is a peak:
THE WAY OUT BOOK
1: Decide that you want to make a real change now.
2: Understand what you will be up against.
3: Envision your new potential life of freedom and success.
4: Get rid of your past blockages and failures.
5: Make it happen...NOW... with a formula that you already know.
6: Maintain your freedom and guard against the two triggers that might
cause you a relapse: Boredom and Overconfidence.
7: How to make sure that you “give back” to your community, and your friends
and family. (Including the world community) What you give out ....you will
naturally get back.
8: How to be one... wealthy Motha Fker with a conscience, and the only way to do
that, is to abandon your "ego" for good.
TO MY FRIENDS...MY ADVICE IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE. Who knows if it will help, or if it is personally applicable... I know I personally was always reticent to accept advice from the many... and would always want to know the credentials of the person it was coming from.
I AM REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO PUTTING IT ALL OUT THERE FOR PEOPLE TO TAKE IN...... THE REAL HONEST RIDE WAS RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME. I DIDN'T HAVE TO SIT ON ANY MOUNTAIN TOP...ALTHOUGH IT MIGHT HAVE ADDED SOMETHING SPECIAL.
I LOOK FORWARD TO HUMBLY SHARING.
RICK
These two photos have absolutely nothing in common.(lol)......or do they?
SUMMER CONCERTS ARE ON MY MIND. KEEP IN MIND I AM JUST AN AUDIENCE MEMBER AND DON'T SEE MYSELF SECRETLY AS A PERFORMER. NOT EVEN BEHIND MY SHOWER CURTAIN.
One of my favorite concert stories I remember is about a concert of Michael Jackson's........(Saw Michael in concert in the mid 80's as well as with the Jackson 5 in the 70s)
NOTE: (I apologize to the close friends over the years that had to wade through all my Freddie Mercury QUEEN concert stories that opened with my "sweaty palms" and "jailhouse rock" ..("Keep Yourself Alive" to 60,000) ...stories of Springsteen and Streisand ....and to Elizabeth who went to see Michael Jackson with me 25 years ago..I really blew it, I am sorry.
Concert Moments:
The Amnesty International show from the first row was an intense experience......Lets not go there now. Well, ok i will say......Biko and meeting Kris Kristofferson, and the Cadillac Ranch that closed Maple Leaf Gardens for good. Interesting moments. I don't want to fade away.
To Recap....The Amnesty Show at MAPLE LEAF GARDENS.....Opened with KD LANG who was followed by TRACY CHAPMAN....who was followed by PETER GABRIEL.....who was followed by STING....who was followed by BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN....UNREAL entertainment for a great cause. (Like I really cared)
A concert that I attended as well was the WHO's Farewell concert. It was alot of hype and tension, and quite frankly the concert wasn't their best.. They delivered a few more Farewell shows over the next couple of years. Daltrey's screaming on "Won't get fooled again" will never be equaled however.
It's about openings. The insane moment of a good opening. My friend Marc told me about an ELO opening at exhibition stadium with a SPACESHIP slowly prying itself open and LASERING the crowd to the song.."TELEPHONE LINE"...Sounded wild.
Anyway, back to Michael.
Michael Jackson was playing Wembley Stadium and was about to meet Lady Diana before the show...He met her briefly back stage and she told him that her favourite song was DIRTY DIANA....a song that Jackson had just removed from the performance in reverence to DI... He didn't know what to do. He couldn't possibly play this song. He told her that he was sorry that he didn't feel comfortable singing it that night. She was slightly disappointed but carried on with a smile and took her seat.
So when the lights dropped down on 70,000 screaming fans. Jackson opened the show....With a thumping rendition of DIRTY DIANA...The crowd and the princess were firmly placed in the palm of his glove. (Forgive me)
Two of the most powerful alternative concert experiences occurred in Toronto with my friend Cory... Philip Glass doing Koyanisquatsi live with the film projected in the background...and Tangerine Dream live...Both had me stumbling out of their metaphysical world in a daze. Could have been the Marijuana, but I believe it was the Art.
Throw in Billy Idol and The Cult in there, LENNY KRAVITZ, PRINCE and INXS and I am getting you briefly up to speed. Did I mention STYX's Paradise tour.
I don't go to alot of live shows anymore, but am considering going to see Pearl Jam this Summer. It will probably be the last opportunity to do so.
What is it about the Summer and the need for a spectacle?..I have spectacle withdrawal I think....A concert event, not just a show. I still get that itch. I never did see Pink Floyd with those giant Pigs.
I hope this old heart of mine can still take it. Might be interesting to pass out as Eddie Vedder delivers a soulful rendition of Jeremy though.
From a story buried deep in my mind:
I slept in the night and you were there...I was startled by the ferocity of your image.
I was at some sort of a performance when I saw you. It was you. The real you. Your eyes lashed onto mine immediately and watched, holding them. I could feel what you were thinking. You were angry, but wouldn't let me go.
You actually joined in the play as an actor at one point, I believe you were swimming. It was dark... you were one with the water.
I tried to move, to get closer. I didn't want to let you know that I had not even considered your prescience in such a very long time. Yet you were here ... and a force. I kept shifting around, mesmerized.
I moved closer, to see you, to feel your energy again. You were still you. Strong, wild and utterly amazing. Yet...........
I was frightened by what you had to say..What you could say.
I have moved on so far in my life..It's all so impossible from here..The powerful new direction, the new woman ,the daily affirmations and collaborations, and then there was you. Just you.
You are but a distant bus stop now that I always pass, but refuse to look at...
...I do look............once in a while... My heart tells me to.
You are so close to being gone. I saw the tights that you wore, a style I didn't recognize, and the way your toes hung from them onto the bare floor. Was that black makeup around your eyes? Had you been crying? I may have imagined it...
I have moved so far. So far over our line. I know you would understand...But you didn't tonight, tonight while I slept. You wanted to tell me something. I would have listened... But I couldn't hear you...
It is all far too late. If you read this.......you know I speak only of you.
My Immortal Beloved.
How did it all become so?
In the end I lost my favourite new shirt as someone was playing a trick on me.....I needed to wake up....When I just did, I was confused, confused to see my shirt hanging on a chair beside the bed. You......you were just gone.
You are so close to being gone....and completely wiped from my memory...Sad really.
Now it's back to sleep to try to recapture the feeling. I will erase all of this in the morning......
RL
Remember Andre Agassi uttering the words "Image is Everything" on the Canon camera commercial from the 90's?
(Speaking of the 90's, did anything culturally significant actually take place in this nebulous decade?)
"Image is everything".................almost as iconic as.. "Nothing comes between me and my Calvins"....how did that grab you in the 80s?.......a little Brooke Shields and Andre Agassi tie in.
Because I used to create advertising for a living and understand the basic Wilson Brian Key tutorial behind the stuff...I wanted to talk a little about Facebook and image.
If we really are "the sum of our actions" (Aristotle)...... do we manufacture a social facade on the net that is so surprisingly complex, it actually acts as a giant pseudo replacement character.
It has the time and perspective carefully built-in and represents that side of us that we wish was our real projection in face time.
Is it like putting on a public mask that doesn't quite fit?
What i am getting at in my pedantic little way, is that you can inheritently feel the plethora of untruths when you look through certain peoples profiles on Facebook. You can feel them trying to project confidence, and twist expertise in areas that you sense that they are at the very best...slightly insecure in. (I think it is just human nature to want to look well rounded)
On the other hand....one gets the feeling that some people just naturally understand the best way to manipulate their image in a way that would be interesting to others. They massage it......just a little bit towards accomplishment one day.....and then....just a little bit towards whimsy the next.
What is identity? Is it your perception of the sum total of all your experiences or is it something more? Surely, what other people see...is generally leaps and bounds away from what you perceive yourself to be. Ego or no ego. Lets move on.
Do you really want to post.... that you are sitting at home eating your second bag of potato chips, farting and watching a show based on a group of Addicts that go out to night clubs and get obnoxious. It may save you the physical pounding of doing it yourself, but it may not be the picture of self-determination that you really want to share.
In real life.....perhaps there is a guy who doesn't see himself as being a great ladies man for example..Other than in cyberspace...he certainly has never really picked up that model or actress and taken her back to the hotel.(I pity him..lol)..
The experience was just been synthesized by watching a movie.... All of a sudden, you will see a series of photographs on Facebook that intimate that this kind of adventure has actually taken place, with this guy and an entourage,(of many) under a blood red sky... in Monte Carlo...I am reaching here, but you get the idea. Why not?
I noticed that I recently included a photo of myself with my famous second cousin on my profile. What kind of insecurity was that born out of? It doesn't particularly wreak of self-confidence and modesty. More work needs to be done Lynn.
Is it alright to manipulate your image? We are all really tuned into the station of "I hope I am admired and look youthful in the process"...............Heaven forbid if I get too many people telling me what a great guy I am..........I will immediately need the meditation chamber and a good kick in the ass......That's my reality.
On the bright side of life. Some people are just genuine..You sense their honesty on all levels. They are not scared to show you their insecurities and shortcomings, whether it is on Facebook or in person. They wouldn't think of manipulating the PR machine.
They are not really that self involved, every conversation is really not about them... they are good listeners.. The thing that intrigues me about these people is the easy way they get lost in their own quests for new experiences and the shared joy along the way. They are wonderfully infectious. I love these people. There is a refreshing simplicity in their honesty.
I could name a few of these people, but I don't want to embarrass them..Perhaps I will just tell them in person, the old-fashioned way.
The last thing that was resonating with me today was this idea that we create this image and put it out there for old friends and new acquaintances to see. It will stay out there now, electronically, as posted, for years to come..(Energy is neither created or destroyed)
Will we look back and be completely disgusted by what we were trying to achieve behind the transparent walls of our own maniacal insecurity?..........or will we say........yeah...that was me.....I love the furniture I am sitting on in that profile picture..........It really articulates the way I was feeling back in 2011.
"Image is everything" and then there is me.
Rick
