The Magic of Monotony

Reading the title, one has to wonder to some degree, exactly what the hell I might be speaking of. I mean, how can there be magic in something as simple as monotony? Monotony is boring, monotony is repetitive, monotony is uninteresting and requires nearly no thought at all to do. Any person on the planet can do this. In fact, many people do monotonous tasks everyday and see no magic in it. So where am I getting such a crazy notion that it can be magical?

In order for you to see what I am getting at, you must first understand that I am not speaking of monotony as a daily thing, or even a regular thing. Instead, I am referring to monotony, as a break from the creative process.

Too many creative people move from one creative process to another, and then complain that the creative juices, have stopped flowing. They suffer from “writer’s block” or the blank palette. They cannot get past the intro to find the song.

There is a very simple reason for this. Creation requires energy. A certain kind of energy and like all energy, it must be refilled or it runs dry. When the batteries die, we must recharge them. We are not able to do this if we continue using power. We must step back from all creative processes and do something mundane, something simple, something monotonous. When we turn off those creative power cells, power down the engines, we give them time to recharge.

For many creative types this may seem like blasphemy. Impossible for them to do. Yet, it must be done if we want to come back to the art of creation, fully recharged and infused with new and exciting ideas.

For me, I step away from the computer. This is an absolute must, because nearly everything I create, requires the use of a computer. I cannot write, compose music, or edit graphics, without the use of that inferno machine. So I step away. I move in the opposite direction. I turn to nature. I turn to the outside. I turn to everything that is non-technological. By example, here are a few picture of projects I did this last week, to get away.

 

 

 

 

As you can see, I planted flower beds, put up shepherd hooks, put together a patio dining set, built a foundation, and helped put together a shed. All of these tasks required little to no real thought. They just consumed time, and allowed the creative batteries of the mind, a chance to recharge.

Maybe the outdoors is not your thing. Maybe it is not for you. That does not mean there is not something that is right for you. It could be cooking, visiting people, volunteering, shopping, etc. Whatever it is, it should be something that takes you away from the creative environment and gives you a chance to recharge, a chance to regroup and come back with renewed energy, ideas, and vision.

Give it a shot the next time you find your creative endeavors waning. You can thank me later.

Axe

Funny Autocorrects!

Autocorrect was supposed to be one of those great inventions that makes life easier, but like most things invented, it has its flaws. Here is a post I found with some extremely funny auto corrects. If dirty language is an issue for you, you might not want to click the link…you’ve been warned!

Axe

There are times..

There are times… when we want to run out the door and scream in someone’s face, yell at the world, rattle the cage until it falls to pieces. The rage inside and the injustice of things people do or say to us seems, so overwhelming, so intense, that for a few minutes, the only thing we can think about is how to make them pay, how to make them see what they are doing. We want to shove into their face and down their throats the facts, the reality, the very truth of the matter. Of how deeply, they are hurting people. We want to rip open their tiny little minds, and let something other than dust, get inside.

Luckily for us, we are a civilized society and doing such a thing is frowned upon. Thus we must we refrain…take a time out. We must try to walk a distance from the entire situation and clearly think about, how we deal with such acts, of deliberate hurt. If we do not do so, then we in turn become as they are. We become that which we despise. This is most certainly not the course we wish to drive upon.

Therefore, we step back. We fume, we vent, we discharge, however slowly, until the anger becomes more of a dull ache. We succumb to the pain inflicted and delve into its depths for awhile, letting ourselves float in the dark, cold embrace of sorrow. Sometimes we hope that we drown in the dark waters of the mind, but alas, it never does seem to take us. Finally, after some time, we rise from this also.

Then we begin to reflect upon all that we have seen and felt. We realize upon reflection, that the hurt they caused us, will someday come back to them. That their words of deception will only come to deceive them. Their self-righteous attitude will only bring their downfall, for pride always comes before the fall. We begin to see that our present, will be their future. A shimmer of pity may pass through us, because we realize exactly what these people, who with their clouded minds, do not see. The damage they have inflicted on others. But the small sliver of pity we feel, fleetingly passes because we know, that they have already chosen their path, and now must deal with the consequences of their choices. Of all the universal laws, one has always remained true. What comes around, goes around. We reap what we sew. If we build upon the sand, we will have no place to stand, when the tide comes in.

There are times… when we want to say more but then we see, with true clarity, that we never seem to say what really matters.

JB

 

RIP George H Schacherl

My father-in-law died on Tuesday(April 9th, 2013). Many emotions have sliced their way through me during these last few days. So many, in fact, that I have been reluctant to post about it until now. If you are going to make a public statement about a life event, then you should at least have an idea of how you really feel about it. Furthermore, you want to do the subject justice.

Me and George, met shortly after I and his daughter began to get serious, in our relationship. He readily accepted me and he never wavered from that position. He was one of the few, of my wife’s family, who did so. He showed me on many occasions that he was happy to have me as part of his family. He actually came by to visit us and often invited us to go do things together. Never once did he show me an ounce of disrespect. In fact, at one point he even stated that I could call him Dad if I so desired. The way he treated me, was completely the opposite from most of my wife’s family, and in him, I found a person of honor, kindness, wisdom, and understanding.

During that last years of his life, Alzheimer’s laid claim on him, however, due to a falling out with the rest of my wife’s family, we were unable to visit him. This is where the mixed emotions came in. Of course, like any other human being, I was deeply saddened by the loss but I was also angered that other family members were so filled with pride, that they could not reconcile differences, in order to allow for us to visit George before he died. This not only made the loss that much greater but it turned what was a temporary rift into a permanent one. This was not something you could take back or fix with an “I’m sorry”. None of those things would bring George back and allow us the opportunity to say goodbye. There is simply no way to justify this course of action and no remedy for it. I once thought, that everything was forgivable, but now I see there are some things, permanent things, that cannot be.

This only, in the end, adds yet another layer of sadness upon what was already a deeply saddening situation. For not only is George lost to us, but now the family members responsible for this outcome, are also permanently lost too. It was this fact alone that left me stunned for days. I simply could not accept that any human being would do something this hurtful to their own family. Coming to terms with it, accepting it, really does not do anything for me. I just leaves me cold.

I guess the only thing I can do at this point is try to focus on the great memories we shared and move on.

George, I hope wherever you are, you find some decent people, who are worthy of what you have to give. I also hope, that we shall once more see each other, when my path upon this earth ends. Take care, and thank you for being the dad I never really had.

RIP George H Schacherl (1/28/30-4/9/13)

Dark Dayz(Writing)

Not every day is the same. We view each day through different tinted lens. Lens that are shaded a particular color. That color is based upon many factors. How we feel… does our body ache or feel good, are there easily definable pinpoints of stabbing pain or a just general over body ache? How well our mind is processing information… have the clouds lifted and thoughts flow, do they focus on a particular thing, a past memory, or are they long lost in a field of fog, drifting randomly like a leaf in the wind? Even dreams from the previous night can have an impact upon the next day. Is there still lingering images from the previous night’s slumber? Were they good things we dreamed of such as a vacation to a tropical island, where we lay upon a beach with sand inbetween our toes, the warmth of the sun beating down, softly caressing every inch of our body? Were they nightmares of yesteryear, moments of life we urgently wish we could forget, or perhaps new phantoms that chase us through garish rundown buildings that lay in wait, hoping to crash down upon us?

The many things that can effects the color of the lens through which we view our lives, are so varied and in constant flux, that listing all them would be an exercise in futility. So let us not continue down this path, for in the end, we all have 15 billion other things we could deem more worthy of doing. Lets just accept the simple fact that everyday our view of the world is changed by interal influences that we are often not aware of.

I won’t go into this next concept too deeply but  I shall dip my toes into the water briefly, and say casually, that there are obvious external influences upon our view of the world, each and every day. Things others, can and often do, change our view of the world. This is perhaps more obvious to most. Other people have an impact upon us, to be certain. Some more than others but in the end, no matter how well we have trained our minds, into believing that what others say and do matters not, some of it still manages to creep in. Like little microscopic bugs, their words and deeds sink into our flesh and poison us. Fill our mind with the things from past, present, and future, that we do not wish to dwell upon, yet have no power within to stop the thoughts from spiraling down. Down, deep down, into the dark recesses of our mind. Filling the dark cracks and expanding them, until there is nothing left but darkness.

That external stimuli combined with an internal dialogue, throw us into an abyss of sadness. Sadness, so deep, our very bones weep with the pain. This pain pulses and each pulse grows increasingly more intense until a cresendo of agony; a cresendo of sadness is reached and the only thing we now desire is to escape. For all thoughts and feeling to cease. We begin to wish, for the one and only thing, we know for certain will end them both. We seek to die. We beg for it, plead for it, we scream for it. And after all the begging, pleading, and screaming, has ceased, because we no longer have a voice for it. It comes. The release from the madness finally arrives. The numbness drips in and fills us. It makes us immune to it all. No more pain, no more sadness, no more memories or nightmares or anything. Just a dark, lonely, cold numbness.

But, until the sweet comfort of the numbness arrives, we must bear out the dark day. Until it arrives, we must relish and even embrace it, for a moment or two. Because even in that dark time, we are at least still feeling something.

Axe

Brief Update

Just wanted to say sorry to anyone who might of missed me (like that ever happens, lol!) and let you all know…yes, I am still alive and ticking (Yep, just like a time bomb). Been busy updating a few things, mainly my home studio and my phone service. Finally moved into the digital age on those. I will post a video and some photos as soon as I have everything completed. Until next time I post…

Take care and be good to each other…don’t make me come over there!

Axe

Interesting…

Despite the fact of being ignored by the vast majority of people on social websites, it seems Reverbnation has elevated me to Rank#1 for my local area. I find that interesting and a tad frustrating at the same time.:( Oh well..here is a screen shot as proof, in case anyone thinks I am making it up. L8trz!

(You can click on the pic to see it full size.)