We generally consider our waking life to be a serious and real thing whereas we think of dreams to be completely illusory. Our attitude defines a vast chasm between these 2 different realities we all inhabit. We generally find that our waking life is consistent from day to day, unlike our dreams. Our dreams are usually quite varied and different night to night. One night we're being chased by demons, the next night we're surfing with Jesus. We can agree on our collective understanding of our waking life, we all reach consensus. We can agree on past and present events that we all experience. We also find consistency from day to day. One day we're stuck in traffic going to a crappy job, and the next day we're stuck in traffic going to a crappy job. So we consider it to be more real and valid than our dream life.
However I expect that there are others out there like me who've experienced breaks and violations of the laws of dreaming. Dreams aren't always inconsistent. And they're not just a personal experience. Let me share with you some examples. Just last week I was having a dream where I was hanging out with an old friend. I decided to take him to a local bar/club near where I grew up. It was right down the street from where my mother lives. I'd been there before and was telling him what a fine place it was. When we got there we found that it was just as I had told him and I was lucky enough to meet the manager. I'd always wanted to meet the manager and tell him what a fine place he ran. When I woke up, I remembered that there is no such place in the city. But in the dream I had remembered the place clearly and remembered having had some good times there. The memories however were from other dreams. I can remember about 3 or 4 times I'd been to that place in different dreams.
Theres another very similar place which exists only in my dreams. There is this large Hilton Hotel on the corner of Sunset Blvd and La Cienega in Los Angeles (my hometown). It has a beautiful fountain in the front and a lavish lobby with lots of cool art. I'd visited this hotel in a few different dreams in varying capacities. In the "real" world theres just an old office building there. But when I'm dreaming, I always remember this hotel quite clearly and love to go there.
We also dismiss dreams because they seem to be a private matter that is unshared. Well Ive had a few shared dreams with other people. I know I'm not the only one to go through this. I know a few other people, usually couples who've shared dreams. The nature of the dream does not really matter. The point is that we were able to verify the shared aspects of where we had been in dreamspace. Vanilla sunset skies, giant mountains floating in the clouds, crystal cathedrals on the tops of the mountains, and giant waterfalls crashing down into the fog. It was all specific enough to convince me that it was not a coincidence.
Of course there is enough strangeness to write many many books on dreaming. When I was young, I had a really cool lucid dream. I realized in the dream that it was a dream and decided to fly over the neighborhood. I saw into peoples back yards and saw that a number of my neighbors had swimming pools. There were more than I would have guessed. So the next day when I was awake, I went around peeping into peoples back yards. Sure enough, the folks that had pools in the dream had pools in the waking life.
I cant say that I know enough to draw any particular conclusion from this except to say that our most basic understanding of dreams is completely wrong. Any scientist who tells you that its all in your head or just chemical reactions has no idea what they're talking about. If you've ever studied astral projection, shamanism, or Carlos Castaneda, you're lucky enough to have heard some alternative explanations for dreaming. I don't want to spend all day paraphrasing all that since that information is already out there online. If I had to make a guess as to what is going on, Id say that we live in a thought responsive cosmos. While awake, we live in a collectively created and shared reality. While asleep, we cross the boundaries between individually created realities, and collectively created realities.
The Samurai used to have a saying that when you have a nightmare, you can easily console yourself by telling yourself " it was just a bad dream", and that the same consideration, can just as easily be extended to your waking life.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Synchronicity
I used to really stand up and take notice when there was some synchronicity or serendipity in my life. I once had a journal where I would write it down every time it happened. I started to notice it more and more in my life as well as the lives of the people around me. It seemed as though once I started paying attention to these occurances, they happened with greater frequency. It was as though the universe was speaking to me and once I started listening, it spoke more. It became such a frequent occurance that I stopped paying so much mind. It became an ordinary and commonplace thing, like just part of the game. To me life is like a great symphony and as with any great symphony, there will be some bits which echo other bits. Thats how you get a melody right?
If you are not familiar with this let me give you some examples. I was walking about my apartment with a wandering mind and stepped on my cat Winds' tail.."meow!" he said. Well I usually am very careful to avoid walking on my cats, but just a few seconds later Im walking into the bathroom and step on his sister, Clouds' tail..."meow!" Last week I almost got into an accident because of somebody in my left side blindspot and for whatever reason I didnt check there. That happened twice in one day! Another one from last week was that I was talking to somebody about bald gay guys and mentioned the singer/artist Moby. Well it wasn't more than an hour before one of his songs came on the radio. Once I was in the office looking for a sharpie and couldnt find any. I said to my friend at work "Hey remember that old song 'Where have all the cowboys gone?'? Well somebody aught to write one called ' where have all the sharpies gone?'" We had a little chuckle but then about 20 minutes later that cowboy song came on the radio. We both thought it was quite an amazing thing. That very same night during a conversation with another co-worker the song Closer by NIN came up and sure enough within an hour it came on the radio.
Once I was driving down the road in Pasadena (thats where I live) and a commercial came on the radio for Jiffy Lube . They were talking about all the stresses and strains a car has to endure and they mentioned "potholes the size of Pasadena", and just then I hit an enormous pothole.
I was sitting at work once wondering when the movie Naqoyqatsi would arrive on DVD. I looked it up online and found that it was set to be released 6 months ago, but was tied up in some legal dispute. Just a few hours later the movie landed on my desk as a job ( I work on movie posters and DVD packaging for a living). A few months later when I got the DVD I had it playing while I was getting ready to go out. I was emptying my wallet of excess change and had a pile of coins in my hand. I just happened to look up and saw on the movie, a flury of coins flying through the air.
These sort of things happen all the time and most people just dont notice. At least it happens to me quite a lot. I could go on and on with examples but I wont. Its never anything significant. It’s never anything big or earth shattering in my life. But to the discerning eye, it is pattern in the chaos. If youve ever worked a cash register or observed one being worked you’ll see it. It will be slow all day, and then for no apparent reason, at 3:27 there will be a mob of 20 or 30 people all at once. If you’ve ever read or heard Terrence Mc Kenna speaking his mind, he’ll be quick to point out that time has a quality that comes and goes, one that ebbs and flows. These qualities are completely dismissed by modern science and acknowledged only by astrology, numerology, and the I Ching. McKenna calls this novelty and you can see it in human history. As he puts it, we’re all brought up to believe that every moment in time is the same as every other moment. But if you study history you’ll find that this isn’t the case at all. Not every year, decade, or century is the same as every other. There will be centuries of nothing, and then all of a sudden the great Rennaisance, or the Golden Age of ancient Greece. Ask anybody who survived the 60's in America if they've seen crazy unexpected moments in history. Quite often lots of bad things happen all at once. I'm sure we've all had days, weeks, or even years of our own life that were like that, where all the bad crap you could imagine all came bearing down on you all at once.
So last week was just filled with serendipity and synchronicities. They were happening every day. The near car accident for one. I lost track of all the times I saw strange groupings and patterns in my life. It was like groupings of groupings. Ive heard people call this moments of timefullness and opportunity. Its like a doorway into potentiality which allows us to manifest change. Well I've seen this happening before but I've never quite been able to surf that wave. Maybe its just a practice for me before the real one hits. I once had a dream about surfing a mile high tidal wave with Jesus. Though I know that the giant tidal wave is a common archetype in the collective unconscious. Carl Jung would say that I'm not the first person to have that dream. I guess I should accept it as metaphor and pay more attention to the waves of life.
If you are not familiar with this let me give you some examples. I was walking about my apartment with a wandering mind and stepped on my cat Winds' tail.."meow!" he said. Well I usually am very careful to avoid walking on my cats, but just a few seconds later Im walking into the bathroom and step on his sister, Clouds' tail..."meow!" Last week I almost got into an accident because of somebody in my left side blindspot and for whatever reason I didnt check there. That happened twice in one day! Another one from last week was that I was talking to somebody about bald gay guys and mentioned the singer/artist Moby. Well it wasn't more than an hour before one of his songs came on the radio. Once I was in the office looking for a sharpie and couldnt find any. I said to my friend at work "Hey remember that old song 'Where have all the cowboys gone?'? Well somebody aught to write one called ' where have all the sharpies gone?'" We had a little chuckle but then about 20 minutes later that cowboy song came on the radio. We both thought it was quite an amazing thing. That very same night during a conversation with another co-worker the song Closer by NIN came up and sure enough within an hour it came on the radio.
Once I was driving down the road in Pasadena (thats where I live) and a commercial came on the radio for Jiffy Lube . They were talking about all the stresses and strains a car has to endure and they mentioned "potholes the size of Pasadena", and just then I hit an enormous pothole.
I was sitting at work once wondering when the movie Naqoyqatsi would arrive on DVD. I looked it up online and found that it was set to be released 6 months ago, but was tied up in some legal dispute. Just a few hours later the movie landed on my desk as a job ( I work on movie posters and DVD packaging for a living). A few months later when I got the DVD I had it playing while I was getting ready to go out. I was emptying my wallet of excess change and had a pile of coins in my hand. I just happened to look up and saw on the movie, a flury of coins flying through the air.
These sort of things happen all the time and most people just dont notice. At least it happens to me quite a lot. I could go on and on with examples but I wont. Its never anything significant. It’s never anything big or earth shattering in my life. But to the discerning eye, it is pattern in the chaos. If youve ever worked a cash register or observed one being worked you’ll see it. It will be slow all day, and then for no apparent reason, at 3:27 there will be a mob of 20 or 30 people all at once. If you’ve ever read or heard Terrence Mc Kenna speaking his mind, he’ll be quick to point out that time has a quality that comes and goes, one that ebbs and flows. These qualities are completely dismissed by modern science and acknowledged only by astrology, numerology, and the I Ching. McKenna calls this novelty and you can see it in human history. As he puts it, we’re all brought up to believe that every moment in time is the same as every other moment. But if you study history you’ll find that this isn’t the case at all. Not every year, decade, or century is the same as every other. There will be centuries of nothing, and then all of a sudden the great Rennaisance, or the Golden Age of ancient Greece. Ask anybody who survived the 60's in America if they've seen crazy unexpected moments in history. Quite often lots of bad things happen all at once. I'm sure we've all had days, weeks, or even years of our own life that were like that, where all the bad crap you could imagine all came bearing down on you all at once.
So last week was just filled with serendipity and synchronicities. They were happening every day. The near car accident for one. I lost track of all the times I saw strange groupings and patterns in my life. It was like groupings of groupings. Ive heard people call this moments of timefullness and opportunity. Its like a doorway into potentiality which allows us to manifest change. Well I've seen this happening before but I've never quite been able to surf that wave. Maybe its just a practice for me before the real one hits. I once had a dream about surfing a mile high tidal wave with Jesus. Though I know that the giant tidal wave is a common archetype in the collective unconscious. Carl Jung would say that I'm not the first person to have that dream. I guess I should accept it as metaphor and pay more attention to the waves of life.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Content vs. Form
Well I've had many a debate (usually with fine artists) about the importance of content over form. Coming from a background in illustration my interest is usually toward form. By that I mean that I have an interest in aesthetic value, or simply put, stuff that looks cool. But many folks prefer the value of content or, the meaning behind the form. Many folks value only art that has some deeper idea, thought or message behind the image. They would say that form is useless and meaningless without some content or deeper meaning. Ive no problem with people who hold this view. I dont feel that way but I think the world is a better place when there is a variety of opinion on these issues of taste. Some people feel the need to convince the world that their opinion is the true and correct view. They see their way of thinking as being of a higher order and more elevated. Well I don't think that any opinion can really be better than another. I see this issue with most major Hollywood blockbusters, in that they are all form and visual flare with very little content other than rehashed old cliches. Im sure my brother who is a writer would agree with that one. I on the other hand can enjoy a movie purely for its aesthetic value. I still enjoy a well crafted story and find movies that have both content and form to be the most fun. I would say the same of art. But given the choice between aesthetic value, and ideas, I'll take the aesthetics. Im sure there are a lot of fine ideas coming from the minds of artists out there, but I'll just take the cool imagery for myself and leave it at that. This is the same as my attitude towards music. I love music and songs, but rock n' roll singers would be the last people I'd turn to for good ideas or advice. I think its a pretty funny that people value the thoughts and ideas expressed by people like Kurt Cobain and Marilyn Manson. I expect I'd enjoy having a beer and friendly chat with either of those dudes, but I wouldn't turn to them for a paradigm shift. When I want to think, I usually prefer to go to scholars, writers, and philosophers. I respect ideas from scientists like Michio Kaku, movers and shakers like Ghandi, philosophers like Lao Tzu and Ram Dass, and teachers like Allan Watts. While people like Andy Warhol, Marcel Duchamp, and even Salvador Dali, may have had a lot to say, none of it really interested me at all ( though I still dig Dalis' work on both the visual and gut level).
I think a lot of artists, especially students in school will lie to people and themselves about what they like. There is a pressure in a lot of facets of the art world to hold substance as more valuable than form. There is a type of group mindset in many places that many people fall into without realizing it. I have seen this in art school and I've seen it in the world of galleries. Artists will go into one of these fields with a love of aesthetics and form and it will get squeezed out of them by critics and art teachers. They will try to interject content into works that don't need it like comic book art or sci fi/ fantasy illustrations etc. . With a collective group mindset leaning towards the content, they will move away from what they really like to get recognition, appreciation, and the approval. This to me is a loss of individuality and always frightening when it happens in our culture.
Admittedly, its impossible to create an image without any idea or feeling behind it. The imagery has to come from somewhere even if it is subconscious. Carl Jung described the unconscious mind as a vast dark ocean surrounding the tiny island of conscious thought. I tend to agree with this and I think without some semblance of thought or emotion behind an image, you'd end up with a bland neutral grey canvas. If for example I was to paint a landscape or a simple still life, there isn't much of an idea behind it, but the way I paint it, the subject I pick, the strokes I use all say something, but thats just getting into the realm of psychoanalysis I think.
Simply stated, I like stuff that looks cool. I have no shame in admitting this and if you dont feel that way Im cool with that. If you feel as I do that most artists are overly emotional, naive, and lacking in anything interesting to say, then I offer my thanks and congratulations on reading all the way through my silly naive little rant.
I think a lot of artists, especially students in school will lie to people and themselves about what they like. There is a pressure in a lot of facets of the art world to hold substance as more valuable than form. There is a type of group mindset in many places that many people fall into without realizing it. I have seen this in art school and I've seen it in the world of galleries. Artists will go into one of these fields with a love of aesthetics and form and it will get squeezed out of them by critics and art teachers. They will try to interject content into works that don't need it like comic book art or sci fi/ fantasy illustrations etc. . With a collective group mindset leaning towards the content, they will move away from what they really like to get recognition, appreciation, and the approval. This to me is a loss of individuality and always frightening when it happens in our culture.
Admittedly, its impossible to create an image without any idea or feeling behind it. The imagery has to come from somewhere even if it is subconscious. Carl Jung described the unconscious mind as a vast dark ocean surrounding the tiny island of conscious thought. I tend to agree with this and I think without some semblance of thought or emotion behind an image, you'd end up with a bland neutral grey canvas. If for example I was to paint a landscape or a simple still life, there isn't much of an idea behind it, but the way I paint it, the subject I pick, the strokes I use all say something, but thats just getting into the realm of psychoanalysis I think.
Simply stated, I like stuff that looks cool. I have no shame in admitting this and if you dont feel that way Im cool with that. If you feel as I do that most artists are overly emotional, naive, and lacking in anything interesting to say, then I offer my thanks and congratulations on reading all the way through my silly naive little rant.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Rainy Day!!
I just looove the rain.
Its raining now and that makes me smile.
I should move to a rainier place.
Theres snow up in the mountains.
maybe I'll go build a snowman this weekend
Its raining now and that makes me smile.
I should move to a rainier place.
Theres snow up in the mountains.
maybe I'll go build a snowman this weekend
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
2007 Review
2007 is finally gone and not a moment too soon. The story was lame and the special effects were overworked. The characters were bizarre and I felt no connection with any of them. The acting was good, but hampered by poor direction. Maybe if we can resolve this writers strike, things will get back into the groove. Though the last part of the year where Chris and Oziris went to Europe was cool. The subplot with the receptionist in Paris was too funny. And all the stuff with Alvin and the chipmunks was good fun too.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Something
December is almost here and Im trying to get my fill of Christmas spirit before I scuttle off to Europe. Im lucky enough to be spending a couple weeks in Italy and Im pretty excited about that.
Finally things are getting settled in my apartment. Ive moved back into my place and its really nice. I got a new paintjob and a new carpet. With any luck I can keep clutter and junk down to a minimum. Right now Japanese teahouse is the motiff Im going for. Though I think the cats liked it better with all the clutter, but for now, theyre getting more comfy since the furniture is going back to where it was (at least some of it is). Ive managed to pair it down to the bare essentials. There was quite a lot of junk just taking up space. Now its become a wonderful place to live instead of just a storehouse for my stuff.
Finally things are getting settled in my apartment. Ive moved back into my place and its really nice. I got a new paintjob and a new carpet. With any luck I can keep clutter and junk down to a minimum. Right now Japanese teahouse is the motiff Im going for. Though I think the cats liked it better with all the clutter, but for now, theyre getting more comfy since the furniture is going back to where it was (at least some of it is). Ive managed to pair it down to the bare essentials. There was quite a lot of junk just taking up space. Now its become a wonderful place to live instead of just a storehouse for my stuff.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Nothing
My apartment and home is fast becoming a big nothing. Theres been a crubling peeiling, water damaged wall next to my bed for longer than I can remember and its finally being fixed by the management. The entire main room is being repainted and recarpeted and I have to completely evacuate the room. There are a couple interesting points staring me in the face today. Both points are about the importance of stuff. Firstly to me, and secondly to my cats. Im piling all nonessential stuff into my moms garage. But what is essential stuff? Well Im starting with the least important things, like old magazines, toy laser guns, my collection of audio cassettes, a 3 foot tall godzilla toy etc, and moving on to medium important things like old paintings, drawings, and all the old cameras my father left me. As I pair it down more and more, I keep thinking about what I could really live without. If god forbid, my mothers house burned down, would I miss any of that stuff? Though Im sure Id have greater concerns than for my stuff if somehting like that happened. I guess when you break it down, the most important stuff of my life is not really objects so much as relationships. I could live without my stuff. But I think Id be pretty lost without any loving connections, with people or pets. And that brings me to my second point. The importance of stuff to pets. My cats, Wind and Cloud are not happy kitties right now. Their world is being slowly dismantled. As the main room empties out they have fewer places to go and fewer things to sit on. With almost no potential targets for catattack, they are getting bored. Pets are special in that they have neither the same needs of wild animals nor the needs of people. Kitties need lots of petting , food, water, and lots of little nooks and crannies to investigate. Its a kitties job to investigate those places for the sake of all the rest of us who have neither the time , inkling or ability to see whats behind the computer desk, or up on the top shelf of the closet. Its a kitties job to test out all the potential napping places in a home. Well I guess Im sorta stopping them from doing their jobs. But it cant be helped. Ive explained this to them as best as I can but that doesnt make it any easier for them. With a little luck it will all be finished and back to normal within a week. Hopefully the big nothing that is my home right now will be a nice something once again.
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