some days are better than others
Some days I feel a fire in my belly and nothing can get in my way. I am writing the best songs of my life, I am playing them with the best musicians out there, I am in love, I am loved, I’ve got two feet lickin’ dogs: All is right with the world. The problem is, keeping fuel on a fire in a world that doesn’t have enough kindling to go around. While I believe nothing easy is worth doing, the apparent impossibility of doing things against the grain is at best daunting, and at worst akin to wearing an anvil for a necktie. My father once told me, when things are getting you down think a higher thought. So when I reach a roadblock in my music career, resulting in the faint flicker of my fire manifesting a self-destructive phrase in my brain along the lines of “the corporate music industry exists to keep guys like me out,” I am to spin it into “I don’t need them, music is now a DIY enterprise.” This higher thought will enable me to find a path around the roadblock, and continue along my path of Indie-Americana bliss. But us broody types seem to get off on that pain. While we recognize the self-destructive nature of sentiments such as these, we have been programmed to believe them to be self-serving. Like using the dark side of the force, our hate makes us strong. This, my angst ridden brothers and sisters, is bullshit. Our hate keeps us standing still, our hate makes us bitter, and our hate will consume that flame quicker than a skinny Asian at a hotdog eating contest. So I write today’s little rant while my flame is full aglow. I hope I can look back on this one and smile the way I am smiling right now. So light ’em up, make some noise, and if you ever need some kindlin’, give me a call.