I Still Want To See You I Just Don't Want To Hear You

I Still Want To See You I Just Don't Want To Hear You

Friday night Ellen and I went to a concert to see "The Boxmasters." If you don't know that band, they've been together for over forty years. Their lead singer is Billy Bob Thornton. If you just came in from Mars and don't know who Billy Bob is, here are just a few of his credits;

Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker, singer, songwriter, and musician.

Thornton had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller One False Move, and received international attention after writing, directing, and starring in the independent drama film Sling Blade (1996), for which he won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. He appeared in several major film roles in the 1990s following Sling Blade, including Oliver Stone's neo-noir U Turn (1997), political drama Primary Colors (1998), science fiction disaster film Armageddon (1998), the highest-grossing film of that year, and the crime drama A Simple Plan (1998), which earned him his third Oscar nomination.

In the 2000s, Thornton achieved further success in starring dramas Monster's Ball (2001), The Man Who Wasn't There (2001), and Friday Night Lights (2004); comedies Bandits (2001), Intolerable Cruelty (2003), and Bad Santa (2003); and action films Eagle Eye (2008) and Faster (2010). In 2014, Thornton starred as Lorne Malvo in the first season of the anthology series Fargo, earning a nomination for the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie at the Emmy Awards and won Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Film at the 72nd Golden Globe Awards. In 2016, he starred in an Amazon original series, Goliath, which earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama.

Thornton has been vocal about his distaste for celebrity culture, choosing to keep his life out of the public eye. However, the attention of the media has proven unavoidable in certain cases, his marriage to Angelina Jolie being a notable example.^[1] Thornton has written a variety of films, usually set in the Southern United States and mainly co-written with Tom Epperson, including A Family Thing (1996) and The Gift (2000). After Sling Blade, he directed several other films, including Daddy and Them (2001), All the Pretty Horses (2000), and Jayne Mansfield's Car (2012).

Thornton has received the President's Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, a Special Achievement Award from the National Board of Review, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He has also been nominated for an Emmy Award, four Golden Globes, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. In addition to film work, Thornton began a career as a singer-songwriter. He has released four solo albums and is the vocalist of the blues rock band The Boxmasters.

Much to our surprise, the band is a fantastic rock and roll band and they really rocked the house at the Red Rock Casino. Also, to our surprise, Billy Bob's voice sounds forty years younger than his years. The band writes their own songs and has published three albums.

Many of the song titles are quirky. For example:

"You Creep Me Out"
"I Got Glendale"
"Science Fiction"
"Never Been Dead In My Life"
And our favorite "I Still Want To See You I Just Don't Want To Hear You"

That song reminds me of the times when someone would say something to you that pisses you off and you would say back: "Talk To The Hand." It also gives Ellen and I something to say when we have a heated discussion - "I Still Want To See You I Just Don't Want To Hear You."

Sooo, when you're having a verbal battle with your spouse, friend or relative, you now have the power to say:

I Still Want To See You I Just Don't Want To Hear You

The only Zen you find at the top of a mountain, is the Zen your brought up with you

The only Zen you find at the top of a mountain, is the Zen your brought up with you

My friend Mike Bemiss sent me an email and ended it with: "The only Zen you find at the top of a mountain, is the Zen your brought up with you." Mike is a very talented guy who illustrated my first book: "Never Buy A Hat If Your Feet Are Cold - Taking Of Your Career And Your Life." He also wrote the forward in my book; 

"Beware Of The Known

It's not the UNKNOWN that we must fear. As children everything was unknown. But as we get older, we start to build walls around ourselves, at the limit of what we KNOW. We build the walls of our own jails, with fear of failing at doing something UNKNOWN.

Too soon, we build a castle of security around ourselves. It has no doors, and few windows...it is the KNOWN. We live and die in there, with only an occasional timid peek out a high window, at the UNKNOWN.

We build the walls of our KNOWN so high, that we cannot escape - and our souls wither and die for lack of new experiences.

I refuse to build that wall. Each stone I would use to build it, I'll use instead as a stepping stone into a new and different UNKNOWN. And when I die, as we all do eventually, my only regret will be that I never got to discover that next UNKNOWN, just over the horizon. I want to build my castle around the entire Universe.

I appreciate the KNOWN, but I refuse to be limited by it. It can be a trap - if you let it - and you will never experience the next UNKNOWN. And that is the most special UNKNOWN of all:

The Next One"

As you can tell, Mike and I have the same philosophy of life. Sooo, his signature at the end of his emails got me thinking - what the hell is ZEN? Sooo, I looked it up on the internet and found:

What is the Meaning of Zen? by Rafael Espericueta  The word Zen has become part of the English language, but what exactly does it mean?  It’s much easier to answer the question “When is Zen?”, for that answer would have to be “Now!”.  The whole point of Zen practice is to become fully aware, here and now.  To come home to the present moment; this is truly where we live.  Thinking verbally takes us far into the past, or into the distant future.   But both past and future are fantasies, since the future isn’t known and our memories of the past are often quite distorted accounts of what really happened.  Zen exhorts one to “Come to your senses!”, for when we get lost in thoughts of the past or future, life passes us by.   When one mindfully dwells in the present moment, one completely dissolves into whatever activity manifests.  One becomes the activity.  Most people have had peak experiences, which all involve being so totally involved with life that one’s sense of separateness dissolves into the experience.  Very Zen. The word ‘Zen’ is the Japanese attempt at pronouncing the Chinese word ‘Chan’, which in turn is the Chinese attempt at pronouncing the Sanskrit word ‘Dhyana’, which translates as ‘meditation’.  And indeed, the word Zen conjures up an image of motionless Buddhist monks lost in deep meditation.  This mysterious image becomes less mysterious when you realize the monks are simply practicing being here now.  And even cats frequently practice that. Cognitive scientists tell us that it takes about a third of a second for our brains to start thinking about a sensory experience (meaning verbally interpreting it).  A third of a second is a vast chasm separating one from “right now”.   A Zen master once proclaimed: Lightening flashes, sparks fly! In one blink of the eye, you have missed seeing.  Living fully and authentically in the present moment makes each instant of one’s life a peak experience.  Each moment is filled with a profound peace and clarity.  Each moment is perceived to have infinite depth and significance, charged with magic and mystery, infinitely precious.  Zen brings us face to face with our true original nature, undefiled by cultural conditioning and painful neurotic tendencies.    Words and concepts can be useful, but mistaking them for reality is a big mistake.  Concepts about reality are not reality.  The menu is not the food.  Dissolving all ones preconceptions, beliefs, concepts, and judgments about ourselves and the universe, can be a very liberating experience.  What a relief to let go of all that baggage!  (Most or all of it is not true anyway.)    Simplicity is often associated with Zen.  And Zen practice is indeed simple, if not easy.  Just practice being fully present, right here, right now.  Perceive directly, without filtering perceptions through beliefs and preconceptions.  Dissolve into the eternal now, and realize that the Universe itself peers out through your eyes, hears through your ears, and breaths each breath.  Unity beyond all conception.  If not now, then when?

What I got out of that definition is that ZEN is all about living in the NOW. That means to me, being brave and go after all the UNKNOWNS out there. That means to me, focusing on what is happening NOW and not focusing on the past or the future. In my first book, I wrote an example from Ken Keyes's book (and one of my favorite books) The Three Prescriptions To Happiness. I'll paraphrase:

A man is being chased by tigers. he runs away only to end up at the top of a cliff. As the tigers' approach, he decides to grab a vine and slowly go down the cliff. When he gets half way down the cliff he realizes there are more tigers at the bottom of the cliff. He looks up and the other tigers are still at the top. 

Then he looks straight ahead and sees a small strawberry bush growing out of the side of the cliff. He plucks one of the berries and eats it...it's the sweetest, most delicious strawberry he ever tasted. 

What I got out of Keyes's story is we all have tigers up above and below, but instead of focusing on the tigers, I choose to enjoy the strawberry of right NOW. 

What ever happened in the past is over and done. As far as my future, what I'm doing right now has a big impact into my future. If I can live my life in the NOW, which is very hard, then; 

I will bring my ZEN up the mountain

Name Three Things You Would Change If You Could

Name Three Things You Would Change If You Could

Until I retired at sixty two, my life was a roller coaster. I was all over the map socially and always taking career risks in business. However, looking back, I'm not sure what I would have changed. 

I guess, I would like to take back some financial mistakes I made, but those mistakes would only have given me more money. I'm not sure having more money would have significantly change my life for the better.

I had two marriages that didn't work out, but I might not be the person I am today if I didn't go through those divorces. I am sure I wouldn't have appreciated my Ellen if I didn't go through those rough patches in my life.

I changed jobs within companies and changed companies more than most. Although each change was stressful, I loved the business I was in, I loved the learning and I loved the people I worked with. In my opinion I had a fabulous career. How many of you can truly say you've had or have a fabulous career? 

The bottom line for me is that I had a wild and crazy social life and a wild and crazy business life. Looking back and looking forward, I love my life and I'm not sure I would want to change anything.

Now, what about you? If you can name three or more things that you would have changed in your life I believe you didn't have that great of a life. If you haven't learned from those things you would like to change, then you'll keep making similar mistakes in the future.

We have all made mistakes. We have all said to ourselves: "What The Hell Was I Thinking." The key is did you recover. The key is did you create a better life even with those mistakes. The key is the past is the past and loving life must be your future.

In one of my five hundred plus blogs I stated: "try to not say: "I shoulda or coulda" for three months." If you can do that you will be a better person and a happier person. If you can look at your past and not say: "I shoulda or coulda" you have accepted the past and only focused on the good stuff. 

I hope for all of us that we can't Name Three Things You Would Change If You Could from the past and never create Three Things You Would Change If You Could in the future.

You Have That Power

Violence Around The World Is Caused By A Higher Being

Violence Around The World Is Caused By A Higher Being

This is not a blog about religion. This has nothing to do with God. Those who believe in God as a higher Being and Heaven as a great place to go, would never believe that God would create the bad things that are going on in the world.

The higher Beings I'm talking about are Aliens. OK, you probably are assuming I've gone nuts, but there is always a reason behind my madness. 

There is no doubt in my mind that there are higher beings (much higher than us) somewhere in the Universe. Let's say you're an Alien Being from another planet whose planet is dying and you need to find another place to live. If you're anything like us, Earth would be a great place to live.

However, Earth is already dying because the people on Earth have been and are now doing their best to kill themselves and the natural resources of this beautiful planet. Sooo, these higher Beings need to get rid of all the Earthlings. 

In the movies they have Alien space ships coming to Earth and blowing everything up. Well, how in the hell is that going to get them a better planet to live in. The answer is, anybody a lot smarter than us, would think blowing up the planet they want to use as their new home is a non-starter.

Sooo, what's their solution - make Earthlings hate each other. Make Earthlings afraid of each other. Make Earthlings very depressed. Make Earthlings go insane and start killing each other. Make Earthlings want to have a gun. Make Earthlings believe that this life sucks and suicide is the way out. Make Earthlings willing to blow themselves and others up because they think they will be pleasing their God. Make some of the Earthlings in power to ignore Climate Change.

How these higher Beings (Aliens) are doing this is by using inferred signals to mess with our minds. Why would they travel many, many light years to Earth when they are smart enough to find an easier way to fuck us up.

I admit this all sounds crazy, however, how would you explain the destruction that's going on in the world. People have always killed each other, but now there are mass shootings and mass bombings. Now there are Countries that are at war with their own people and killing as many as they can.

Even though most Countries (including America) are supposedly living better than their forefathers, today these Countries have a higher suicide rate than they ever had before. America's forefathers said: "bring us your tired and your poor." Now, America and other Countries are saying: "get the hell out of my house - your problem is not my problem. 

You see, when we finally kill off each other with either our hatred or the destruction of the planet, the earth will, over time, renew itself and eventually leave a beautiful blue planet for the higher Beings to live in. Then and only then will they come.

Why is there so much bad shit going on in the world - trust me it's not because of the Devil. It may sound insane, but I contend it's because:

Violence Around The World Is Caused By A Higher Being