Food, Music, Home and Acceptance

I have an obsession with two things - food and music. When I’m dead and gone my life’s work will have been dedicated to the incredibly visceral combination of the two. This is the kind of thing where level of intelligence is absolutely moot. It’s about that deep inward feeling that consumes us when we’re experiencing it. They are truly original forms of therapy. The heart is made up of four chambers and I’m apt to say that music and food are two of them.

Every Sunday, a tiny “Rustic American Eatery & Bakery” known as Salt of the Earth hosts incredibly talented guests for their music series. This restaurant is located in Fennville, MI which has an approximate population of only 1,400 people. You could miss driving through it if you sneezed and you certainly would regret it. This tiny town is the buckle to West Michigan’s agricultural belt. To quote their website, “Salt of the Earth celebrates the bounty of the Michigan farm, beverage, and roots music community.”. They actually partner with farmers, growers, brewers and distillers within a fifty-mile radius to provide a long forgotten quality of freshness in today’s food and it’s perfect partner-in-crime... music.

Last night we experienced, local to West Michigan indie-folk sensation, The Crane Wives for an unexpected feeling of euphoria (at seemingly the world’s best venue). They usually play to much larger crowds, but Salt of the Earth is a very special place. Their genre is outside of my go-to-music, however their enthusiastic passion still invoked something in me. They introduced The Diving Bell as their only “happy” song and then laughed because it starts off by referencing drowning. Their metaphors were raw and perfect as if they were lovingly ripened and picked from the garden of life.

I don’t mean to misquote one of their singers, but she said something to which I directly related. I wish I had it recorded, but I believe it was along these lines, “These songs are from our own personal experiences and anxieties. We interpret our emotions through our music. And that’s hard to do when you’re happy because when you’re happy...you know...you’re distracted.”. I’m telling you a huge gong crashed in my brain after she said that and life made just a little bit more sense right then.

Here we were in this perfect sized room with probably less than seventy-five people. On the table sat a bottle of Bordeaux, handmade aged cheddar pierogies with buttered red cabbage, a sweet-smoky wood-fired pizza and the best damn s’more on the planet. The timelessly enchanting melodies of The Crane Wives brought the whole experience full circle, making our toes tingle. Our server said they were “just the cutest band in the whole world”. She may have been right, but they reminded me more of a wolf-pack howling at the moon in perfect three-part harmony. Maybe a cute wolf-pack, though.

The Crane Wives @ Salt of the Earth - 10/26/14 - (photo credit: ShantsBySchantz)

The truth is our food came from the surrounding fields and our music came from our neighbors. This was more than the essence of Americana. This was more than a campaign known as Pure Michigan. This was more than West Michigan, even. This was the pioneering spirit of our home and all of us there accepted that we were a part of it together. Which reminds me, those other two chambers of our heart are exactly that - home and acceptance. Damn, that was delicious.

Scotty J ~ "If we can focus on living and loving locally, we can lead by example globally."

Check ‘em out here on the web...

http://thecranewives.com/

http://www.saltoftheearthfennville.com/index.htm

...and find your way to ‘em in person!!

WE ARE VERY LUCKY

   I rose up out of my slumber this morning to an email from a very close friend. The subject line was blank and in it he simply wrote, "This changed me for the better. Check it out.", with a link to this awesome video (please watch before proceeding):

   That was, without a doubt, extremely fucking powerful. Asher Roth is a hip-hop artist out of Philly sharing this incredible message - WE ARE VERY LUCKY. We walk around this modern world and tend to forget this. We forget to feel the breath in our lungs and the hearts in our chests; we forget to feel alive; and we forget about everyone else who forgets about this too. Our everyday struggles are so small compared to the fact that we actually HAVE the life itself, to live each day. Like the song says though, "Someone's always caught up in the fast life.".
   My friend who sent me this faces that challenge regularly. He's a true family man. His gorgeous wife loves him unconditionally and the two of them have the absolute best behaved children on the planet. Everyone that comes into their home gets treated like family because they simply wouldn't have it any other way. However, something deep rooted in his past (well before starting his own family) haunts him every moment of everyday.
   Once his family gets to bed, he's left alone with his guilty conscience. He loses himself in the darkness, suppressing it with booze and cocaine. As the night turns to dawn; his guilt becomes regret and his self-value drops through the floor. It's followed up with a wicked hangover and severe anxiety for a couple of days. THIS is being caught up in the fast life. It has been going on for years now and he's finally reached a breaking point.

FRIENDSHIP.

   We've been friends since we were kids and confidants in all sorts of matters over the years. Honestly, he has helped lift some of the heaviest stones off of my chest. I know all about his gloomy past and self-deprecating actions. At times, I've felt like a shitty helpless friend. About a month ago, he wrote me one of the most compelling and passionate confessions. He felt as is if he's been living a lie. It was about his guilt for the past, remorse for the present, his fear for the future and his love for everyone involved. He wants life to be better and admitted he did not know where to start. Though he didn't see it, this open self-awareness has become the foundation for setting his goal.
  Change like this does not happen over night. Fully adapting to a new perspective takes its time and old habits die HARD. We've had some extremely moving and positive conversations since then, but last week he found himself hanging out in the darkness again. The booze, cocaine, depression and anxiety rolled through like a freight train. He wrote me a letter second guessing his new direction, feeling guilty about even trying to change. His brutal honesty filled my heart.
  Like me, all of his emotions are fueled with passion. We both have an obsession with music, humor and people's drive to be creative. I made sure to relay that in my response and I reminded him that I would never love him any less for being himself. Then I joked about him calling me a "hippy", sent him a link to a song and asked him to listen. I told him to listen to it a million times, if that's what it took to get the lyrics to sink into his heart. I myself didn't have the words, but I refused to leave him hanging. This song describes such a willingness to seek the life you want. Have a listen..

   We all have a choice to hold onto what makes us strong and let go of what makes us weak. We need to learn from our experiences and let go of the past. This is my friend's daily battle and he has to be the warrior that overcomes it. And I will always fight my own battles right along side of him, as a reminder that he's not alone. Brothers-in-arms fighting the good fight; both on a search for our honest selves. The more truth we reveal, the better men we become.
   This morning the music revealed to him an absolute truth - WE ARE VERY LUCKY - to have lived through what could have easily killed us. WE ARE VERY LUCKY - for the love from our families. WE ARE VERY LUCKY - for knowing we want to change for the better. WE ARE VERY LUCKY - for caring about and sharing the things that mean the most. WE ARE VERY LUCKY - that it makes us smile to make someone else smile. WE ARE VERY LUCKY - to have a friendship like this, regardless of our demons.

WE ARE VERY LUCKY FOR TODAY!!

Scotty J ~ "It doesn't take a whole day to recognize sunshine." - Common

Listen to "The Fast Life" by Asher Roth here!!
 
 
 

  

Passionate Cave-man Seeks Dancing Cave-woman

   There is something really special about waking up with a smile, getting stoned while a fresh pot of coffee brews and cranking up the music loud enough for the birds to enjoy. This usually encourages me to sing at the top of my lungs (occasionally free-styling) and move wildly about the cottage (otherwise known as dancing). Honestly... I do this with every ounce of passion in my body. I consider things like this "strength-building" for my soul.

   I don't want to get into a debate about smoking weed, having too much caffeine or not being able to turn up the music, so others can sleep. I'm saying do whatever it is that lets you let it all hang out there. Humans have been beating on drums and dancing naked around fires probably ever since we started walking upright. When we hear a song we love, we feel it in our bones. Everything we know about the modern world just vanishes and the music plays right through us, literally. Yes, even "twerkin'" counts.
   It was nice to wake up this way because I've been fighting a strange emptiness this week. Life is definitely good, but this has been a different kind of primal feeling. I yearn for the company of a lover. A feminine touch, if you will. Where our physical connection would cast us off to our dreams every night and jump-start our human confidence every morning. I mean this in the most unselfish way possible; she has to want it for those very same reasons. We don't have to start a family or save a million dollars, we just have to make love. As our lives unfold, our love will be there to iron out the creases.
   My belief is that if two people share the primary goal to start and finish everyday making love to each other; they will not fail in life. The laws of attraction still apply, but their commitment to primitively expressing themselves has no allowance for modern-day complications. All other things become second to the passion they share together.

I gave her that bone (yeah, I said it.).

   I know there are a lot of you out there thinking, "What?!? It's not really that simple. Scotty has his head up way up his ass... again!", and that's okay!! You don't have to dance or have sex with me, we can still be friends. However, I do believe there are other people out there that share this visceral outlook on survival. Being human comes before a nationality, an occupation or an affiliation of any kind. We're prehistoric DAMNIT!! That means we knew how to live before we knew ANYTHING!!!
   The primitive passions rooted in music and sex are inside all of us. It's just naturally a part of the human existence. I appreciate those examples others have set out there for me to believe in this. Sometimes we settle on comfort and not passion to guide us through life (which I'm definitely guilty of in my past and I know some of you are too!), but we don't have to remain that way. Life will always have the most reward if we stay true to ourselves about how we see fit to live it.
   So, in the meantime... the birds and I are just going to keep on moving to the music, strengthening our souls. The woman of my future is out there just beyond the horizon, doing a dance of her own. When the two of us eventually meet, our passions will intertwine and we'll only do what comes natural. We'll settle for nothing less!! So all of you reading, please do me this favor... put on this fifteen minute long song, stop thinking too much and dance like nobody's watching...

Scotty J. ~ "Something about the music, it got into my pants."

My kind of woman.

Music and Me

   My blog entry from last week created quite a stir. Friends and strangers alike, sent messages sharing their stories of lost love and words of encouragement. Honestly I didn't expect it, but I absolutely appreciate it. Unfortunately, there was one person who found my post atrocious. My former lover unleashed a wrath of emotions, disapproving of my topic choice.
   I fell back on the one thing that has always carried me through tough times, music. I don't make it. I can't play any instruments. However, I am always listening to music. The two universal languages in the world are love and music. We all can relate to both. Music has the ability to provide answers to the most difficult questions we ask ourselves. When I'm not discovering new music, you can find me jamming out to ALL of the classics. Every genre offers something unique. Over the last week of my travels I've listened to an abundance of music.
   FUNKtion's "Whatcha 'Gon Do" has been one of the most powerful remedies to my current life situation. Lead singer Andrew Schrock brings comfort to his listeners' ears by helping them move on from lost love. He pours his heart out about the shortcomings of people in failing relationships. In the chorus he asks, "Whatcha 'gon do when love is lost?" He then follows up with the simple and obvious answer, "Pay the price and accept this cost." There's no better to move on, than to believe in these words. After he gives us the answer we need to move on, he asks, "Will you be lost?" My answer... Not anymore Brother, thank you for the guidance.

Click here to listen:

https://soundcloud.com/funktionkzoo/03-whatcha-gon-do

   I have always been in awe by how well we relate to music. Currently at the top of my news feed on Facebook, a friend posted, "As I was pulling into the Parkview campus parking ramp, Sweet Emotion came on the radio. Now all I need is to be driving "The Judge". It's a Dazed and Confused kinda day." That just makes me smile. Every time I hear the song "Sweet Emotion" by Aerosmith, I think of that movie too. If I could pack all of my buddies into a car and head for the Moon-tower, trust me I would. Most of us that know the movie "Dazed and Confused" probably feel this way too. It is such a great flick with an amazing soundtrack.

Trailer for "Dazed and Confused"

Reminiscing about this movie makes me wish that I kept this mustache:

Pucker up ladies!

   Have you been listening to music today? Did it remind of you someone? Motivate you? Mellow you? Make you sing and dance? or even make you feel like yourself? I am willing to bet it did and I hope it always will. Let the music play and enjoy the soundtrack for life my friends. 

"MUSIC FOR LIFE"

HI-TEK featuring J-Dilla, Nas, Common, Marsha, Busta Rhymes

Scotty J - Music is for life.

Is There Anymore Room for Me.. In Those Jeans?

   Have you ever had one of those moments where you've made somewhat of a regretful discovery? You know what I mean... like walking in on someone going to the bathroom, seeing your buddy's girl out with another guy, or sharting yourself. It's nothing catastrophic, but it makes you uncomfortable nonetheless. I had a brief moment of this earlier in the week. It happened when I was pawing through the glove box in my folks' car and I came across this eloquently titled compilation of music:

   That's right... "Get UR Dick Wett". I'm assuming the extra "t" on the word "Wett" implies an overly abundant amount of moisture. Either way, I was a touch mortified at first. 

   Upon reading this title, a very regretful mental image came to mind. I know we all don't really want to think about our parents like that, but due to the creatively graphic name of the album.. I was caught off-guard. After a moment, I took a deep breath and loaded it into the stereo. I don't know what prompted me to do that, I'd guess my love of music is responsible for making that decision. I had to know if it was an album worthy of its moniker.

   This was a soulful mix. Romantically charged with the sounds of D'Angelo, The Roots, Ginuwine, OutKast and The Temptations. I'm talking about some serious "baby-making" music. A couple of candles and a bottle of wine was all it needed. Forget dinner, you'll be busy "Surfin' and Turfin" your woman all night to these tunes. Listening to the CD in its entirety actually made for a grand experience.   As much as we don't want to think about old people "doin' it"; when I get older I still want to be knockin' boots. I'm sure you do too.

   Lovemaking, taggin' or just boring (and literal) ol' sexual intercourse. No matter what you call it, it makes us feel incredibly human. It's hot, passionate, a little dirty ( or a lot... if you're lucky), natural and gratifying beyond words. These notions shared with someone else at the very same moment make life so real on a whole different level. I'm pretty sure it's the original inspiration for "teamwork". Maybe the best way to describe it is, "Sex - naughty and necessary.".

   After listening to this mix one more time, it dawned on me that a roommate of mine had actually made it. We were only 19 years old and I'm sure just about anything would've helped our game back then (except for that blatant title, maybe.). Who knows how long it's been in my parents' possession, but clearly they didn't find a need to get rid of it. Hopefully, they enjoyed the music and maybe felt a little inspired by it all. 

   We all deserve to enjoy someone on this level. There is always a time between two people where words do not suffice, so let the music play. Go ahead, put in your best "Get UR Dick Wett" mixtape. Listen and relax. Let your guard down, forget the drama and just be as physically human as possible. Make love today, define love tomorrow.

-Scotty J-  "If you don't like sweets, eat something salty."