Anyone remember when almost every store was closed on Sunday? I do. Today (Sunday) I went grocery shopping and it was mobbed - in fact, grocery stores and Wal-Mart claim that Sundays are their best shopping days. We used to chill on Sunday. Now we're busting our ass all week long.
Well, I say it's time to slow down dammit. Life is too short. You've got to stop and smell the roses. Don't know how, you say? Well, here's the retrospace prescription - simply watch and/or listen to these recommendations and that peaceful easy feeling you once knew will be back again.
First, it all begins with Bob Ross. I don't care how stressed you are, this guy'll take care of what's ailing you. Watch a few episodes of The Joy of Painting, and you'll be saying "rat race, shmat race" whilst popping a cool one.I once saw ol' Bob pull a small animal from under his shirt. The tiny woodland creature then burrowed in his thick billowing afro. Bob didn't mind, and kept on painting. True story.
In the world of Bob Ross, there are no costly errors and horrible mistakes - only "happy accidents". If only we could all have Bob as our boss.
The next step is to listen to some relaxing music. I want you to get your iPod and delete everything and replace all that Jay-Z crap with the soothing sounds of the seventies...
I don't know if it was all that marijuana smoke or they were just plain tired after the 60's revolutions, but music in the 70's was more often than not, ultra mellow.
Take for instance the Helen Reddy song above, "Peaceful". Let's not forget she was prone to sing about getting high on mescaline (see a previous post). In this song she proclaims:
'cause it's oh, so peaceful here
There's no one bending over my shoulder
Nobody breathing in my ear
Oh, so peaceful here
So many artists made a living off capturing that peaceful easy feeling. Jimmy Buffet wrote song after song about getting wasted on the high seas. John Denver sang about snow covered mountains and the open sky. Seals & Crofts sang about hummingbirds and summer breezes and Bread could sing about nuclear annihilation and it would sound soothing to the ear.
"Summer Breeze" by Seals & Crofts
See the curtains hangin' in the window
In the evening on a Friday night
A little light-a-shinin' through the window
Lets me know everything's all right
Summer breeze makes me feel fine
Blowin' through the jasmine in my mind
Summer breeze makes me feel fine
Blowin' though the jasmine in my mind
See the paper layin' on the sidewalk
A little music from the house next door
So I walk on up to the doorstep
Through the screen and across the floor...
Can you imagine a song like this being popular today? The lyrics are amazing at capturing that mellow feeling of the seventies.... far, far from the maddening crowds.
Sprinkle a little Seals & Crofts (and maybe a touch of Gordon Lightfoot) with your Bob Ross, and you are well on your way along the Carefree Hightway.
You're welcome.
