Saturday, October 4, 2008

New Day #282

The funnest part about workin' the 'stache is the myriad of associations it conjures. Never before has anything so drastically changed my image--including, but not limited to, a 70s porn star, an Italian barber, Pancho Villa, Freddie Mercury and a lumberjack.

With regards to the latter, it just so happened one of the things on my list was to chop something with an axe. It's true, I've never even chopped wood. But I had this old piece of cedar furniture that had rotted outdoors and I needed to break it apart to put it in the garbage. So I thought as long as I had the moustache, I'd dress like a lumberjack to do it.

This, my friends, is one of the great gifts of this project. I'd like to think I'm the kind of person who would dress as a lumberjack for a household chore just because it makes it funner, but the fact is I probably wouldn't have were it not for this blog. It's hard to articulate why I think life is better if you, say, wear a flower pot on your head, but I've always wanted my life to look like a screwball comedy.

You see, without these random acts of silliness, I quickly become a soggy, sodden, despairing lump of self-pity. This morning, for instance, I woke up pondering what it is I'm doing wrong--why my work hasn't reached a mass audience, what can I do to make that dream happen. It's not that I'm ungrateful for the platform I have, but I've got to make a living. And six months with no contract weighs heavily on me.

(Along those lines, I'd appreciate any thoughts you have as to why this blog has not caught on.)

But then I dressed up like a lumberjack...


and hacked something apart...


and life felt sillier again.


Of course, for definitive lumberjack silliness, you need to watch this.

4 comments:

David S said...

Ah, the Lumberjack Song! I once sang that on my answering machine. It was the first thing my now-wife heard when she first called my number. She *almost* didn't leave a message, but fortunately she did, and she's still putting up with my silliness many years later!

Yeah, chopping stuff up is quite cathartic (as long as you don't chop into your foot, which leads to a different type of release). I believe it stirs up the same endorphins as using a sledgehammer.

therese patrick, author said...

Oh boo hoo for you. You do realize many great authors were discovered and achieved great fame after they were dead.

This project/blog is a book, a great one for the How-To or Self Help market/audience. But you aren't done yet so keep that cute butt in chair and keep writing through the end of the year. Or go off to your favorite bookstore and check out different sections. My recommendation is the metaphysical section, it's a hoot!

Don't forget that you are still working through your mid-life crisis and by age 46 will be a lot more settled and content. That year especially is a pleasant pause before the 50's.

If you want to brainstorm different markets or reaching different audiences, let me know. Until then, stop worrying about making a living and just keep living.

And to microwave eggs, I taught my girls to add a little Velveeta to the mix and stir halfway through the cooking.

E.Iguana said...

That's why I love reading your blog so much. The fun and random stuff that you do. It inspires me personally.

I'm just as random and people don't understand what it's like if you have that mindset. If a blog is what gets you to do that kind of thing. Go with it!

In a world of logic and sense you stand out from all the rest. I liked to believe it was Katharine Hepburn, Judy Garland and I who were all in this circle.

You're in it too :)

gay CME guy said...

70s porn star-check
Italian barber-check
Pancho Villa-check
Freddie Mercury-check
lumberjack-check
OMFG, TOO FUNNY!
OF them all, 70s porn star is my favorite. You just need to make the pics a bit more grainy.