Yesterday I told the tale of two Michael Boltons. The one everyone knows about --the guy from Office Space. And the other one, who allegedly sings.
Today, we cross the tracks, to talk about James Brown.
Both of them.
There's the James Brown you all know. He of Hot Pants, Sex Machine, and Make it Funky fame.
And then there's the other James Brown. A fellow copywriter and sometimes-Scrabble-opponent.
Fried from the stresses of the advertising business, James decided to take up meditation. This was no flight of fancy. In fact James dove in until the water went above his head. Making a full commitment, sojourning to India and indeed becoming a full time instructor.
He was so successful at it, he turned it into a thriving business.
If only all the other freelance copywriters out there were so industrious and scratched their entrepreneurial itch. I would have advertising gigs up the ying yang.
James often writes about the benefits of meditation online. And as I ride the tumultuous wave of fathering two teenage daughters have often thought maybe I should smoke some of what James is smoking.
But tempted as I might be, I just can't pull the trigger. You see, I'm just not a meditation type guy.
Maybe it's because I was born in the Bronx, NY, but I don't have the gene for relaxation.
It could also be a tribal thing. Jews are known to worry. And for 5,000 years the world has done its job of giving us something to worry about, pogroms, the Inquisition and The Holocaust, spring to mind.
It might even have to do with an early childhood incident.
When I was 11 my father signed my brother and I up for a Krav Maga course taught by the JDL, of all people. They started the self defense class with mandatory 10 minute meditation session. But as were told to slip into a state of peaceful relaxation, the instructors would come around from behind and launch a sneak attack, usually a hard slap to the back of the head, on one of the unsuspecting students.
All this, in the name of environmental awareness.
Anyway, I'm sure James Brown has a great deal of valuable advice in this arena. And one day I might even take him up on the course. Until then, I will draw my inspiration and wisdom from that other James Brown fellow (the interview and the fun starts at :043)...
2 comments:
Wait! Are you telling me that the meditation class I'm attending in Laguna Beach next week is NOT with the guy in this video? Aw crap. Fucking hippy parents!
I am a friend of James Brown. I meditate 2 times a day consistently and have now for 7.5 years. I was born and lived in the Bronx until I was 9 years old. I am also a Jew. All those are pretty crappy excuses. Pull the trigger.
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