The "Hey Look at Me" Strain of Pop!

There is that extreme form of Pop Culture. I call it the "hey look at me" strain.  If you are not seen in Pop, you don't exist. The trick is to do anything to get attention. You may strut, and pose, and shake your ass, and stick your tongue out, and make a fool of yourself, it's OK. There is no shame. Or being shameless is totally fine, or just part of the game. And what outraged people last week, isn't outrageous enough this week to turn heads, so there is always an escalating extremeness that never quite gets satisfied. And as long as you garner attention, as long as those eyeballs are on you, and the cameras are pointed at you, and the tongues are wagging about you, and the keyboards are clicking describing you, you are happening, and well, that's all that matters.  It's a weird, soul-less kind of thing. And it's beyond good or bad, it's just about attention. And attention must be paid. And it's a bubble. It's insubstantial. But it is what it is.  It's a beast. A beast to behold. And it's amazing to watch what people will do, what kind of sacrifice they will perform on the altar of Pop. Really. And sometimes you have to watch. Like watching a car wreck. Can't take your eyes off. And well, we are all implicated in this somehow. And it's trivial, and stupid, and sort of oddly dehumanizing. But it's just another form of Pop that has been finely honed. It sucks the oxygen out of the air, and sometimes it just takes your breath away. And that's a sort of attention too. So, yes...

Our Own Little Godzilla!

"Ironic" doesn't quite do it. Maybe "unfathomable" would work better. The one country in our world that has actually had two nuclear bombs dropped on them, the one country that understands the devastation of nuclear power better than anyone else, first-hand; that country actually convinced themselves that nuclear power could be harnessed for peaceful purposes. They convinced themselves they could build a nuclear reactor that was "fool-proof," and so they built one on the edge of the sea.

We are talking about the country that birthed "Godzilla," remember the large lizard hatched from the collective horror of radioactive contamination? That country. And well, we all have sort of gone along with this "safe nuclear farce." We have listened to those who told us that nuclear power is safe, and can easily provide us with energy. So there are nuclear reactors all over the world, generating waste that no one really knows what to do with.

Seems insane. Stupid, for sure.  And well it turns out that the story continues.  Supposedly 300 tons of radioactive water is pouring into the sea every day from that very unfortunate "nuclear disaster" that occurred on March 11, 2011! Boggles the mind. And well, what is to be done? Most people just close their eyes and try to forget.  This is an open wound, and it's contaminating our world and everything in it.

So I'm re-posting our song that was spawned by the accident. Is it in "bad taste?" I don't think so. I'd say building a nuclear reactor on the edge of the sea was in bad taste. People convincing us that nuclear power was safe is bad taste. The nuclear industry is bad taste! This is our own little "Godzilla," a reaction to the horror. A little song kick-started by the fear, the horror of nuclear contamination that threatens to engulf us. And well, it's got a nice menacing guitar riff, and I hear a little bit of X, The B52's and Yoko in there.  Rock and Roll! It's all we have to try to stare down the face of the unfathomable!

Exploitation/Empowerment?!

Do I really have anything to say about "twerking?"  Well, haven't they been twerking in strip clubs for years? Nothing new, except I guess, when ex-Disney stars do it on TV. And really, why is it that Miley Cyrus gets all the flack, but Robin Thicke emerges unscathed? How is it that Thicke can have young, nubile women fall all over him in various stages of undress onstage, and in his videos, but he gets to just smirk and stand around like a mannequin and pretend to be cool?

And isn't Thicke just a dork? I mean, really, take all those sexy models away and what do you have? It all seems like a "double-standard," ridiculous and unfair. And where is the line where exploitation and empowerment intersect? Is Miley being used, is this all just a continuation of being pimped for years by Disney? Isn't the whole celebrity culture a sort of exploitation? Or is it empowerment? Is Miley just empowered to use her sexuality as she sees fit?

I guess it comes down to a question of autonomy, and really, I guess, only Miley Cyrus can make the call. And Robin Thicke, yikes. It's amazing what passes for entertainment! He looked like a clueless, faux, referee in that black & white striped suit! Take your exciting as a wooden post schtick and go home dude!

Bullets in the Garden

My lovely companion was watering the garden last evening. We have a bounty of tomatoes, and herbs ripe for the picking. She was poking around in the dirt and found a little baggie filled with bullets. A very unique harvest. Little shiny bullets waiting to be loaded into a gun. We alerted the cops and a bulked up young officer came and took the bag of bullets away.

We have some neighbors, kids, teenagers, young adults with lots of time on their hands. It doesn't take a major leap of deductive reasoning to figure where that little baggie may have originated. 

Forget politics or the NRA. By what logic does it make sense to live in a society where easy access to weapons is a reality? If you'd see these kids, you might think they're just kids, average kids, kids looking for trouble. Hell, yes, they are teenagers, of course they are looking for trouble. That's part of the adventure of being a teenager.

Weapons, guns loaded and unloaded, just up the ante for the kind of trouble they can get into. This is the reality in so many neighborhoods around this city. Our little neighborhood seemed sort of insulated from some of the harshness you see on urban streets, but it's an illusion. It's here too. In our backyard. In our garden. And well, there's no getting around it. You just hope those bullets don't eventually find a home.

And does that mean we should arm ourselves too? The thought crept across my mind - a little black cloud of fear. It seems sad and absurd. Part of the problem, not a solution. Our little garden holds dark, metallic secrets.

Mary Karr's "Same Self"

Finished Mary Karr's "Cherry." Lots of insights big and little. Maybe that's the nature of a perceptive person, a great writer, focusing on events in a life. I came across her concept of "same self." Kind of the kernel of a personality. The essence. That little dot of integrity that you carry with you even as you navigate through the valley of death, through the pain and heartache of a life well-lived.

And some folks lose this kernel, or misplace it, or cloud it with drugs, or turn away from it or deny it. Maybe this "same self" is also what some would call character, or will. It's a little thing, but a big thing too. And maybe some are born to it, and carry it with them throughout their lives. And maybe for some it's luck or circumstance that allows them to "hold on" to that essence.

Is it innate, or learned? Or is it really just an illusion of integrity? And maybe you can't really deny it, right? Same self. Always. No matter what. For good and bad. A blessing and a curse.

The Wisdom of Keanu!

I think my favorite Keanu Reeves movie is "My Own Private Idaho." Keanu plays an updated version of the Young Hal from Shakespeare. A really great, quirky, cool movie with River Phoenix.

Turns out Keanu is quite philanthropic.  Which is amazing and great. You wish you could be in his shoes. So successful and wealthy from those Matrix movies... and he shares the wealth with others. Admirable! Keanu!

“Money doesn’t mean anything to me. I’ve made a lot of money but I want to enjoy life and not stress myself building my bank account.  I give lots away and live simply, mostly out of a suitcase in hotels. We all know that good health is much more important.” - Keanu Reeves

Texas Blues & Boogie

Mary Karr, writing about her younger self, recounts when she first discovered Texas blues. She reminded me of all those great Texas Blues folk (the 2nd generation white/albino types).  As she puts it, they were the exotic ones, the rare birds who emerged out of that parched landscape, the odd ducks who stood out in that the small town mindset and had such an overabundance of that "fuck you," attitude that no one dared mess with them.

Think the Winter Brothers (Johnny & Edgar), Janis Joplin, and Billy Gibbons and ZZ Top...(later Stevie Ray Vaughan), amazing Texas blues and boogie... and ZZ Top - those beards, and that funny little noodle-hat Billy always wears. American originals.

We are One of Them

Awhile back I discovered Bandcamp. It's an "on-line music store." It's a pretty cool site, musicians and bands can upload music and merchandise and sell their wares worldwide. It's also an amazing little eco-system. A gazillion bands waiting to be discovered.

It's a little mind-boggling. I have been clicking around on the site, listening to music from all over the world. Every kind of music imaginable. It's pretty impressive. I mean it sort of knocks you out: an overflowing of great sounds out there, from all these bands you've never heard of.

whitewolfsonicprincess will be soon joining the masses. We plan to upload a digital download of our CD 10+1. Folks will also be able to order our CD to be shipped anywhere in the world. Also, we will be releasing a digital download only of a live show recorded awhile back at an amazing venue, an old church with perfect acoustics. Think Wall of Sound! Also, we will be selling a band t-shirt.  We think it will be a minor work of art. A must-have. Really. 

So yes, remember that documentary about the little baby turtles running to the sea? That's sort of like Bandcamp. All these little hatchlings, tiny beings, hoping to be big sea turtles. We are one of them. 

Web of Iron

Mary Karr is a great writer. A poet. I'm reading her memoir "Cherry,"now. Beautifully done. She perfectly evokes a time and place now long gone: late sixtes/early seventies in rural Texas.

Her use of language transports you. You enter another consciousness, another world. You see the outlines of your world too, even though all the particulars of your early life are so different.

Mary comes across as a tough cookie, a hard case, a brilliant girl destined to escape. She's a sensitive soul, with a "deepened heart," deepened by suffering. She knows things. You learn.

She is also a prodigious reader and she references some other great writers too...

"Time's march is a web of causes and effects, and asking for any gift of mercy, however tiny it might be, is to ask that a link be broken in that web of iron, ask that it be already broken. No one deserves such a miracle." - Jorge Luis Borges

The Secret. Again.

That's what I love about this vast, inter-linked, ever-expanding, always enlightening web we call Pop Culture. David Foster Wallace brings me to Mary Karr and Mary Karr brings me to Miroslav Holub.

Ode to Joy

You only love

when you love in vain

Try another radio probe

when ten have failed,

take two hundred rabbits

when a hundred have died:

only this is science.

You ask the secret.

It has just one name:

again.

Miroslav Holub

The Struggle

We struggle to get in, we struggle to get out. We struggle!

Vivid Dreams

Vivid dreams. You wonder. What do they mean? I dreamt that my arms were paralyzed. My hands were useless. And my vision was "altered." I saw black as white, and white as black. Everything was reversed. This all seemed so real. Like another life I've lived. This morning I wonder if there is a message, or a lesson to be learned? I search for a clue. Seems like some grand metaphor or poetic truth. But finally, not sure what it all adds up to. If anything. It was just a dream.

Just the Highlights!

I wish I could eloquently paint a picture of our day yesterday. But I'm just not that great of a writer. If I were David Foster Wallace, yesterday could probably be a 300 page volume with 150 or so end-notes.

Instead, I will list some highlights:

We conspired and wrote down our plan to rule the world. We talked to the little birdies. We watched Go-Go dancers prance about on a little summer stage. We were stirred by the Soul Keepers. We were introduced to a little green parrot. We roamed about a big comfy recording studio and looked in awe at the Trident mixing board that was used by Roger Waters and Bob Ezrin for "The Wall."

We were photographed, video-taped and recorded as we played three of our songs in studio. We watched a stark naked woman wrap herself in saran wrap, and then struggle to burst from the constraints of the wrapping. We sandwiched ourselves into a Red Line train, a Blue Line train, and a taxicab. We ate at Falafel and Grill on Milwaukee, and devoured platefuls of great Lebanese food. We were stunned to watch two very charismatic, mysterious and beautiful people (a sultry woman and a dark, stoic man) demonstrate how the human body can be evocative, and poetic and really say it all. Two amazing Spanish dancers who silently, bathed in powerful, soul-enriching sounds blew our minds and fed our souls.

Etc... it was a long, fruitful and strange day...

Cate Blanchett - Astonishing!

We don't go to movies like we used to... probably actually go to the movie-house maybe 10 or less times a year. Very, very selective in our choices. We did see Woody Allen's new movie "Blue Jasmine." Woody wrote and directed it, but really, I think we can safely say it's Cate Blanchett's movie. She is so amazing. A powerful, glorious performance. She channels Blanche Dubois and shows a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown. No, she is past the point of no return. Over the verge.

The movie is beautifully written, perfectly cast. And quite of the moment. But Blanchett is just over-powering. It got me thinking that she is one of the finest actors I have ever seen.  How many women could honestly and perfectly portray Bob Dylan, Queen Elizabeth, Katherine Hepburn, and identical twins from different sides of the street?

I have never seen Blanchett in a bad movie, or role. She is very selective herself, great, challenging choices. A wonderful, actor willing to take risks and putting herself deeply into any role.... astonishing!

Kanye - The Seventh Beatle?!

Has the worm turned on Kanye? I don't know. Love him/hate him. You can find lots of people who will line up in both camps. (Lou Reed is in the "love him" camp). And isn't he is flirting with disaster at every turn? You can't ride the Pop Culture wave forever. And if too many cameras and eyes are focused on you, aren't you finally rendered completely ridiculous? And if you plunge into the tabloid world, aren't you for sure, sullied, dirtied and rendered unserious?

I don't know. But I do love this. Kayne and the Beatles. Mashed up! From the Tutankhamun Brothers. I know it's not a new idea, it's been done before (Jay-Z), but to my ears this is brilliant, funny and superb... in a perfect world, Kanye would have been the 5th Beatle (no that would be George Martin), okay, the 6th Beatle (no that would be Billy Preston), okay how about the 7th Beatle? In Shade of Black!
 

We all Take Flight!

So consciousness (see previous post) is basically a love story.  When it comes to our bodies, it's more like a love/hate thing. Our bodies have their own trajectories. Kind of independently from our desires/wishes.

I think of Jeff Goldblum in "The Fly." Haven't seen the movie since it came out many years ago (1986). Don't really know if it's a good movie or a bad movie. But I do remember experiencing the horror as Goldblum turns into a fly. It was very convincing: funny and horrific.

I think it's memorable because it's so primal and something we all experience. Very Kafka too. Our bodies take these turns, as we grow, as we age. They surprise us and "horrify" us. We realize that there is another agenda, another time-clock. And diet and exercise only do so much. There is the genetic entity that asserts itself.  We become what we are destined to become.

That's just the way it is...

There is Awake and then AWAKE!

Consciousness  - "the state of being awake and aware of one's surroundings." Also - "the fact of awareness by the mind of itself and the world."

Yes there is "being awake," and "being AWAKE!"  We live for those times when we are fully awake and alive to the mind itself and the world.  I have fallen fully in love with being conscious.  I do want to "lose myself," but only if it's a portal to a "deeper consciousness."

Sometimes being conscious is painful, you are sensitive and aware of everything around you: the love and the hate, the joy and the pain, the life and the death. But I wouldn't trade it for anything. How is it that we have emerged into the world, that we can actually be conscious? It's a strange, beautiful thing.

If we could bargain, we might want to trade in our bodies, they are frail and subject to age and infirmity. They are unreliable. But consciousness is something you'd like to keep.  Forever.  But is it contingent on these bodies we lug around? Don't really know, but that appears to be the grand bargain of our existence.

Losing it is the Key!

Chet Baker famously sang... "Let's Get Lost." And maybe we really do have to "get lost" to actually find ourselves.  That would be just the kind of contradiction that would "make sense" in this crazy-ass predicament we all call life.  

The mad ones, the alive ones, the folks with the flame turned way up high, well, they lose themselves in something bigger or beyond themselves, and that losing it is a key to finding some deeper meaning, to discovering a deeper more fulfilling experience, to living a life to the max.

You can lose yourself in the creative realm or the destructive realm. It's best, more positive, to do this losing in the creative realm. That's not to say it won't be frustrating, or challenging, or sometimes unfulfilling. But when it works, there is nothing that can hold a candle to it.

The Lobby!

Yes, still thinking about the Abbie Fest over the weekend.  Three stages featuring theater, music, comedy, miscellaneous acts.  An amazing out-pouring of creativity, commitment and anarchic joy. You really had to be there to understand.

And there was a "fourth stage" - the Lobby at the Den. Turns out the funky, cool lobby with the leather couches and comfy chairs was a major part of the Fest. It was a meeting place, a way-station, a gathering of the tribes place, a confessional, a pulpit, an altar, a place for ritual sacrifice.

Just absolutely amazing to have an opportunity to meet and interact with an impressive cross-section of the creative Chicago community. And a few of our conversations were so soul-stirring, so essential, so life-affirming, so inspiring.

I would say that it was everything. And more. It was a baptism, a resurrection... it was what it's all about. It was the center of everything - a raging, seething, over-flowing beast... yes, the lobby!

Abbie Fest - A Seething, Multi-Headed Beast!

Abbie Fest 25. You want to grasp it, to hold it, to keep it near to your heart. You don’t want to let it go, but you must, it’s over. You couldn’t see it all. You couldn’t take it all in. You couldn’t be there for every hour, every show. This year the fest was hosted at the Den. It was a seething, multi-headed beast. There were three stages, so you had to make decisions, in the moment. Our Abbie Fest was significantly different than everyone else’s Abbie Fest.

Yesterday, the last day, Sunday, we arrived late afternoon, not really sure what we wanted to see, we just wanted to be there and discover whatever could be discovered. 

Two of the highlights for us:

We watched a man eat fire, insert a nail into his head (via his nostril), light a florescent tube by shooting 120,000 volts through his body and walking on a pile of freshly chopped up glass. Our lovely companion was selected from the audience to stand on this same man’s head as he placed his face firmly in the mountain of glass. She nearly passed out at the thought, and then she placed her feet on his head and she stood. That was probably a once in a lifetime experience.

We also saw One Wing Low, all-girl band on the Music stage 2B. They made me think of Sleater-Kinney, one of our friends thought, Bikini Kill. Cool, elegant, wonderful, edgy, rock & roll. They played a very engaging, exciting set of songs.  Very inspiring.

We saw lots of other cool acts – theater, music, etc. We also spent lots of time hanging out out in the lobby talking to actors, writers, directors, musicians, inspiring and engaged people from all walks of life. Can’t really convey the beauty of it all. We didn’t want it to end. We didn’t want to leave. But finally we did. Yes. Abbie 25. We were there… yes.

Abbie Fest 2013 - Day 2 - Love for the World and All the Things in It!

If you want to follow along and keep up with what's happening at the Abbie Fest this weekend, be sure to check out Terry Flamm's Brokenhearted Toy.  Terry is an uber-blogger who writes about music and pop culture. He has his finger on the power-pop pulse and so much more!

My thoughts on Abbie Fest Day Two: This is a multi-headed beast. You can't rule it. You don't own it. You can ride the wave of energy for a short time, and then you must let go. You won't understand it. Or be able to define it, or put it in a box. And just when you think you know what it's all about, something will happen that will blow all your thoughts and expectations out the door.

We performed our Mixtapes 2013 show last night.  It seemed to go over well. Nice audience response. We didn't have any hiccups or blown lines. We presented it as it is, and well, it's a piece about where we are now, which I guess is sort of lost and disconnected, and well, we are left with a heart-felt genuineness and love for the world and the things in it.

Not sure if all that came across. But that's kind of what we were doing... the show before us, from Citizens Relief, was an absolute stunner! The Two Character play from Tennessee Williams. And Citizens' Relief was just amazing, superb, etc. I mean, it was so fucking great! Wow. Abbie Lives!

Better To Burn Out and Live to See Another Day!

The 25th Abbie Fest took flight last night. We did our part on Stage 2B... it was "Get Right with God," featuring our band, whitewolfsonicprincess.  Yes, 2B as in To Be. Better to be than not to be.  It was an incandescent performance. I can tell by the amount of sweat generated by my body. I pretty much burned up and melted on stage. I am working on different ways to spontaneously combust! Almost reached total flame-out. I really was the "Prince of Wands."

It was just Bass, Acoustic Guitar and Vocals. We are pretty damn tight, even if and when we are ragged, and if we are ragged, it's because of me, I'm spiky & frayed around the edges, but hell, it's not r&r unless someone bursts into flame, or bleeds, or breaks something. That's my role. Being in that little black box theater with a focused and engaged audience just kicked the intensity level up to the freaking max. Intense. We definitely did not "phone this one in." I have the evidence. We recorded the show, we are thinking of maybe posting a few tracks on Band Camp soon!  Maybe a "Live at the Den EP"... maybe!

The band before us, was Names Divine, they played a totally cool, dissonant set of broken and jagged songs. It was completely "broken music," detuned and noisy. Gloriously broken music. I loved it! Day two of the Abbie Fest today... and it's theater for us... "The Cheerleader and the Astronaut" on the Main Stage at 8:00 p.m.  I wonder if I can find another way to reach a new level of combustion?

Note: This is cross-posted over at our r&r diary!

A Fatter World!

If you walk around in this world you notice that everybody seems to be getting fatter. Lots of fat. Fat people. Fat dogs. Fat cats. Fat.

Well, even lab mice are getting fatter. Did something happen? Is there something in the air, in the water? How is it that people and animals on the planet are getting fatter? Collectively! What the hell is going on?!

We Live, And We Wonder

You always find the freakiest stuff in the Science Times section of the Times. The Cosmologists and Physicists are the really far-out set.

The atoms that compose us, are the same as, and were manufactured in, the stars. 

And little beetles find their way by the light from the Milky Way...

Kind of makes you think we don't really know what's going on, and will probably never really figure it all out.  I have spent most of my existence trying to crack the nut, trying to understand the world, and find my place in it. And well, crack open the Science Times (for instance) and well, it's pretty damn obvious I might as well give up that fool's errand. I am not, we are not, going to figure this one out... we live, and we wonder...

And maybe we are here just so that the Stars have someone/something to notice them out there in the darkest night?

Tradition with a Twist!

For us, our theater group, Black Forest, the Abbie Hoffman Died for Our Sins Fest, is a tradition. Tradition as in doing traditional things. It's always in August. It's always a festival of theater, etc. And well, almost always, it's hosted at Mary Arrchie's space at Angel Island.

This year, the 25th, it's hosted at The Den. So tradition with a twist. We visited the Den last night for the first time to run tech for our two shows. What a cool, funky, space. It just has a great cozy, classy, bohemian vibe.

And the tech booth - lighting board & sound system are really first class. Just upped the ante. We are pretty happy with the way our shows are rounding into form.  Another rehearsal or two and well, "show-time!" This one will be memorable. If you live in or around Chicago, you should check it out this weekend!

Emperor Time!

"Okay, yes, I've played the lowly straggler, the ragged soul, the wandering Fool. It's now time to put that crown of Gold on my head, it's time to make some executive decisions, lay the foundation for a kick-ass edifice, to ride the wind, reap the harvest and cash in some chips.  It's "go time," baby! I must. Yes."

What a Strange Predicament!

Person #1 - "I liked you better when you were reading "Infinite Jest."

Person #2 - "Yeah, me too."

So yes, we are looking through the glass darkly. We are equipped with home-made tools. We are imperfect beings, with only partial knowledge. We don't know what we don't know, but we do know that what we don't know is substantial.

And then, still, knowing all that, we must act. Act with conviction. We must make decisions, choices, and plans. And every action counts. Everything we do, and everything we think, has meaning, or influence, or consequence.

It's a precarious thing. Our condition. And we change, and the world around us changes. And we don't know if that's how it always works. We do know there are cycles, but even the cycles are not eternal. There is change, and growth, and death, and decay... and birth, and life... and well, there is a long chain of being that goes back millions and millions and billions of years.

And we are so small. Tiny.  In the grander scheme. We are heavy and light. At the same time. We can disappear. Evaporate. Hardly leave a trace.  What a strange predicament...

A Special Kind of Genius

Greater minds than mine have grappled with the comprehensibility and the incomprehensibility of the universe we live in. Einstein is almost as infinitely quotable as Yogi Berra.  If you could combine the genius of an Einstein with a genius of a Berra? Well, damn, you might really have something. Grappling with "Time." Did Einstein really say, "The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once."

Makes you think you really don't know anything. You experience the world but you don't really know what it is, you experience time, but it's a mystery too. You live your life, but in very fundamental ways you don't understand it at all. 

So yes, you get it, time is subjective. You are a subject, and an object simultaneously. The world is full of subjects and objects. And everything is marching to it's own drum beat, it's own time-clock. And that time-clock is dependent on the subject, the perception of the subject. 

You are marching to your own drum beat. But you don't own the drum, you don't call the tune. Still in some way you own it. It's yours. In that way you do own it. Totally. You are the Universe. And you can't opt out. Not really.

Broken TV - Don't Worry, It's Always On!

This is a little side-project of mine. If not now, when? Broken TV. Don't worry it's always on. This is the debut single! Available now on BandCamp! Check it Out!

Microcosm of Life

It's almost like I anticipated (see previous post) a frustrating rehearsal last night. We broke our piece down into even smaller pieces and worked the bits. It was clunky.  No flow. Frustrating. Kind of ugly.

It's just part of the process. Doubt floats up to the conscious mind, but that's part of the process too. We worked some things out, tightened some things up, re-thought a couple things. All good work. Even if it didn't feel all that good.

It's the necessary work for a higher purpose.  A little microcosm of our lives.

Many, Many Useful Things!

The Gurus will tell you that you should work on being fully aligned - heart, head, spirit, and that you should seek inner peace.  That's nice. I mean, really.

But you know, it turns out that frustration, fear, pain, worry, doubt, guilt - yes, all of these are useful things. Some of our best creative work comes from conflict, comes from the darker side of the feeling spectrum.

What's great about the creative life, is that everything can be used, everything can be channeled, all life is just so mulch for our creative projects. Creativity is all-inclusive, all-consuming, everything counts.