Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Welcome to the occupation...

By the way, this is one of my favorite REM songs of all time. To those reading this, perhaps a download and listen during this post is appropriate. Note to self, you know a lot about music and should write it down sometime.

I am officially taking off the shackles and just using this as an online notebook. Too much cool stuff happens to me every day and I feel the formality of a normal post prohibits me from posting more. Look at this, it has been since March that I have posted and I have visited no less than 15 awesome restaurants (and some crappy ones) during that time.

Tonight, Welcome to the occupation... Really this is about the fact that everyone is everywhere. Tonight I was at dinner and drinks at the SoHo Grand with people from Amsterdam, Germany, Cincinnati and New York. Respectively these people are from New Zealand, California, Norway, Australia and the UK. Very smart people, all of whom are interested in what I have to say because apparently I am pretty smart too.

All of this comes rather easily, is it because of the hard work, the smarts or my ability to read and adapt to situations? Something to explore moving forward.

Lesson here is really separate from me, and that is people (those who matter and you want to be around) get past things like "where are you from" pretty quickly. They want to like you and to be liked, they want to be challenged, they want to learn something and they want to teach you something. So, know when to listen and when to talk, and be authentically you. Because that is who they want, not some version of yourself you think you should be around them. Creating connections across the globe is easier than you think. Perhaps it will be the norm in 20-30 years but now it most certainly is not.

NYC, man what a great place. No city is like it. Period. Modern, old, cool, cliché, and just plain huge. It is really a canvas for great people to do great things, for people to struggle upon, to discover one's self and to get lost in the enormity of things...

I know, right? Very philisophical for a Tuesday night, but perhaps a post that will actually resonate in 20 years and bring me back to a place and a feeling that is all too real right now. Finally I will leave with something which is very troubling to me. This is how do I share such revelations with Susan, my true love and soulmate, when I experience them without her but because of her at the same time? I aspire to greatness which I know I could never achieve alone. Perhaps she is the 'it' I speak of? Does she listen to Welcome to the occupation and understand me better?