Unnecessary Perpetuations and Unavoidable Deviations

In attempts to expound upon my unusual encounter with the light from above, I’m going to continue to harness this devilish transgression of my soul. In layman’s terms, the ensuing babble will be a staunch continuation of my previous blog, regarding stereotypes and deluded musical taste. 

Allow me to begin with a common phrase that has been riddled with delusion and perpetuated by the masses for far too long: “Don’t squander your time.” It seems beneficial to read this statement with a formidable grandmotherly tone. So, try again with the added dialect, “Johnny, don’t squander your time!” Hopefully, that was a helpful enterprise. What’s the point, Brandon? Why is time so precious?

What’s the freaking point? My real or imagined issues with the perception of time lie within the understanding that these phrases sound entirely reasonable to digest. To reassure this point, you’re most likely thinking, “Yes, this is a necessary attitude to have in order to be successful” or simply, “There’s nothing wrong with managing time effectively” and of course everyone constructs their own construals of what that means. In 2015, it appears as if we consume these type of dimwitted ejaculations as common normalities, possibly absorbed on an entirely unconscious level. And what’s wrong with that you object?

The time effective outlook is flawed because it paves the way for a lack of enjoyment across all fronts, and more specifically, in relation to music. It's important to take a stand, and let go of any thoughts related to proper time usage. We must deviate from the idea that finding time to enjoy a new band is impossible and that we don't have time to engage in frivolous musical escapades. Music is not frivolous and neither is happiness. Make the damn time, because you're worth it and "squandering" time might do much more good than people want you to believe. Let everyone else engage in chaos and you can take part in experiencing the beauty in your local music scene. 

We must experience the dark before we shall know the light and I don't want to make a blanketed statement in one regard or another, so I'll tip-toe along between two distinct mindsets of time appropriation. The transition from dark to light comes with its mind numbing dullness and that's the middle ground, more on that front in the following sentences. These questions regarding the importance of time management all require one’s ability to maintain a high level of self control and honestly, I can’t think of any personal attributes that are more important in determining personal success. High self esteem correlates strongly with high rates of academic achievement, and it's an even stronger indicator of academic success than any other personality dimension, including your IQ score. Self control has a strong correlation with overall health, including the subcategories of cardiovascular, dental, sexual health, as well as reducing overall stress and addiction levels. High self control also correlates with greater economic success, and of course the most important statistic of all, greater emotional well being. So, from this perspective, it seems like the proper mentality to reinforce the necessity to perpetuate these questions of time allotment, thus promoting an increase in self control. Because we all have self control, why not learn how to exert the beast. Well, I guess that’s the hopefully outcome of such endeavors. 

Since understanding the perceived advantages in uttering such gibberish, lets catapult back into the dark side of these questions.

This brings us to the fundamental observation of whether or not one can actually squander time? Our continual comprehension that we must seize time and make use of it appropriately seems to be the root of our misunderstanding of what time is. Isn’t this notion nothing more than capitalism weaving its way into our corrupted brains? Make use of your time by working 80 hours a week and disregard the corporate scandals, your repulsive salary and your perverted boss. I shall not digress! Furthermore, can leisure time truly ever be leisure time? If we have to set aside time to be actively lethargic, are we really escaping from our everyday needs of making optimal appropriation of our time? Can we achieve optimal relaxation if our needs are constantly swinging along the pendulum of our right and left hemispheres? Enough with the questions! I am not a philosopher, and I will not be locked away for this tirade of restless jabbering. However, there are a few reasons why I think the time seizing mentality can negatively effect our everyday activities and overall quality of life. So, lets broach that gargoyle.

How tiresome is it to constantly have to fill your time with decisions and activities that are arbitrarily “meaningful"? Of course, my viewpoint stems from my own comprehension of the meaning of life. Not that I necessarily have any sort of framed idea of what the meaning of life is, but I have an understanding of what it might not entail. I do not hold with those who believe that in order to achieve success in life, we must fill our time with the “appropriate actions”, whatever those may be. And this leads us back to the musical realm, and why leisurely activities are so important. 

First, I should state that I am not claiming that listening to music is an appropriate use of your time, as I do believe it's unique to the individual. Personally, musical enjoyment is an ideal use of my time and a much more rewarding activity than engaging in never ending attempts hoping not to squander my time, yet it vanishes like my youth, nonetheless. Simply, having the notion of not wanting to squander your time can lead to an overall lack of enjoyment in life, because we might constantly find we are searching for meaning in every single thing we do. Aren’t we missing the whole point? Might we be overlooking the fruitfulness of the birds in the trees and the worms in the soil, while we are constantly searching for meaning? What if meaning is finding happiness, without having to interpret meaning in everything and everyplace. Happiness is not synonymous with purpose. What if not having a purpose can allow us to a freer, more enjoyable state of mind? Is it possible that our goals are what bring us sorrow? Have I actually talked about music? Is it better if I allow you to make your own connections from one area to the next? After all, meaning is what you make it. Are you asking yourself the right questions? I know I'm not, it's so hard to know which question are supreme. I'm unmoved by compliments, I am a cycle of sorrow, but the one thing that can shake my horns is music. Hopefully it can be decided that we have the time to explore some new music. Let me relocate your attention onto an enviable human and a sensational writer, Seth Bernard. He has for years been a staple in the Michigan music scene and continues to gift this lovely state with treasure after treasure.

A taste of the lyrics from "Being this Being"

"What do I need? 

I know I got it somewhere

What do you need? 

You know you got it in there

He says he knows what you need better than you

but he don't know you like I do and I don't know you

Like you do"

I couldn't help adding one more of Seth's. Here's a little glimpse of the lyrics:

"No definition can define

No refinery can refine 

No designery can design

our way back to the garden of eden

Still we've been warned 

been scorned and for-lorn

and yeah we've been torn 

between selfish action and self satisfaction"

In closing I'll end with a couple more items that contributed immensely to the inspiration of this blog, including the song "Time" by Pink Floyd, followed by a nice little parable:

The Parable of the Mexican Fisherman

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them. "Not very long," answered the Mexican. "But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American. The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family. The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?" "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs ... I have a full life." The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you!  You should start by fishing longer every day.  You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. "And after that?" asked the Mexican. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers.  Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can  then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City!  From there you can direct your huge new enterprise." "How long would that take?" asked the Mexican. "Twenty, perhaps 25 years," replied the American. "And after that?" the Mexican asked. "Afterwards? That's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing.  "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!" "Millions?  Really?  And after that?" "After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."