I went to a KISS concert in Phoenix last Tuesday. The epitome of spontaneity… I didn’t know what to expect, but they are still kickin, actually. The quality of the show was absolutely phenomenal. The pyrotechnics and lights were what made it so great. Oh, and the confetti during the finale didn’t hurt too much either. That video will be posted soon.
On Thanksgiving, I believe it’s only appropriate that I disclose what I’m thankful for. I am thankful for my Dad and my entire family :) here we are in Chicago.
I just sat down with my dad to watch Twilight. I know… I almost can’t bring myself to watch it as sappy ole’ Kristen Stewart mopes around the screen. I couldn’t get through the book, so we’ll see if I can make it through the movie.
Woke up singing this song, and haven’t been able to stop singing it all day. It is one of my favorites off of the album.
12/14 at the Mayan in Los Angeles. You would go if you know what’s good for you.
I was walking out of a Wal-Mart yesterday (gross, I know) and saw two large, haggard looking women sitting behind a rickety table with a homemade sign that read:
“If ya sign, ya’ll can’t whine.”
It was about legalizing marijuana. This link reminded me of this and of how out of place it was to see those two women soliciting about marijuana outside of a the silently (or not so silently) religiously affiliated Wal-Mart. The comments to the question on that NPR blog are hilarious.
“Put down the crack pipe. There’s no one offering your 4yo a doobie. Your hallucinating. Smoke something that is good for you”
being my favorite.
Who knows after that. Ideally, I’ll come home and get deeper into my homework, but I don’t know. No time to do it tomorrow, really, because it’s FOUNDERS DAY! Yeeeee I am so excited! Speaking of sorority…
I decided to apply to be a CLC. I’m really serious about it. I’ve put a lot of thought into it. In fact, I think about it every day, so that’s how I know I at least need to apply. If I don’t get it, that’s cool. I tried and I won’t be mad at myself for not trying.
w00t.
I have a goal. Within the next 1.5 months, I would like to be able to run (jog, really) a 5K without stopping. I feel like it’s pretty ambitious, but here is what I have done to take steps in the right direction…
Today, I did 4 miles. Not all running, by any means. I ran, jogged and walked all of it. But still, I have never done 4 miles all at once before, so I am pretty darn proud of that. Gotta love the endorphins.
I’ve learned over the years that everything is more or less the same amount of work, so you may as well set your sights high and try and do something really cool.
There are other people around who can do the mediocre, meat-and-potatoes work that anybody can do. So let them do that. You make the art that only you can make. You tell the stories only you can tell.
As a solution to various problems you may encounter upon the way, let me suggest this:
Make Good Art.
It’s very simple. But it seems to work. Life fallen apart? Make good art. True love ran off with the milkman? Make good art. Bank foreclosing? Make good art.
Keep moving, learn new skills. Enjoy yourself.
Most of the work I’ve done that’s been highly regarded has happened in places where, when I was working on it I tended to suspect that it would go one of two ways - either I was doing something cool that, if I was lucky, people would talk about for some time, or I was doing something that people would have a particularly good laugh about, in the places where they gather to discuss the embarrassing mistakes of those who went before them.
Be proud of your mistakes. Well, proud may not be exactly the right word, but respect them, treasure them, be kind to them, learn from them.
And, more than that, and more important than that, make them.
Make mistakes. Make great mistakes, make wonderful mistakes, make glorious mistakes. Better to make a hundred mistakes than to stare at a blank piece of paper too scared to do anything wrong, too scared to do anything.
Critics will grumble. Of course they will. That’s one of the functions of critics. As an artist it’s your job to give them ulcers, and perhaps even something to get apoplectic about.
Most of the things I’ve got right over the years, I got right because I’d got them wrong first. It’s how we make art.
| — |
Making mistakes is awful. God awful. I hate making mistakes. It throws me into the depths of disappointment and depression. I hate to say I agree with this dude, but I do. If I haven’t made mistakes, as cliche as it sounds, I wouldn’t be here. That’s stupid. I don’t think you should have to build upon mistakes to make you better because they make you feel worse for what seems like so much longer. |
