"there’s a groove to be found in every single day, no matter you’re feeling."
in today's audio-only check-in, kirk shares a lesson in making the most of the ups and downs that we all experience in our day-to-day.
a.t.I.t.a. links
"there’s a groove to be found in every single day, no matter you’re feeling."
in today's audio-only check-in, kirk shares a lesson in making the most of the ups and downs that we all experience in our day-to-day.
a.t.I.t.a. links
What’s up everybody?
Today is Wednesday, July 7th, 2021.
This is A TALK IN THE ATTIC, and I’m your host Kirk Ross.
I hope everybody is having a great holiday week. Jessica and I had a great weekend visiting with friends.
Friday, we hit up my hometown for a backyard bbq that featured about a dozen offspring from my close childhood friends. It was awesome to catch up with the parents, of course, but it was even more awesome to see all their kids interacting and having fun.
Saturday, with my Jess’s brother Will, we headed back to the pool party that I talked about a few weeks ago, where we danced and listened to music and swam and laughed.
And then on Sunday, the three of us went out on the boat of the featured guest from episode 11: Andrew from the Woods - we’re a long way from the woods, boy - and his wife Tori. A perfect Day 3 to top off a great long weekend. I love going out on boats, but I must admit, I feel quite helpless in that role.
I’m no natural when it comes to nautical nuances, but I hate sitting around and not contributing. In other words, I don’t know what I’m doing, but I want to help, which is another way to say I’M IN THE WAY.
“Andrew, is there something I can do?”
“Grab a fender a get starboard!”
“Starbursts? I only saw skittles, but i’ll check again.”
“No, starboard side. As in, THE RIGHT SI— You know what, just wait there. I’ll handle it.”
As fun as the weekend was, we’re still feeling wiped out from all the running around and socializing.
So today’s check-in is just that: I’m just checking in. I’m working on an essay about expectations: how we can avoid having them of others, and how we can break the predictable pattern of behaviors that others expect of us, when necessary.
That’s a heavy topic - one that I’m not quite ready to dive into today. But I’ll be putting that episode together over the next week or so. More to follow.
I’m going to leave you with a sort of musical journey. Each of the 4 clips you’re about to hear comprises the exact same notes and progressions. They all use the same drum pattern… And the same keystrokes on my MIDI keyboard.
But as you’ll immediately recognize, they all sound very different from one another.
That’s because each clip features a vastly different tempo, measured in beats per minute, ranging from 90 bpm all the way up to 180 bpm, with stops at 120 and 150 bpm on the way through.
The instrumentation I employed for each tempo matches the genre that typically falls into that tempo range.
I also mixed the instrumentation layers differently based on the tone and feel of each track.
This was a fun exercise for me, one that illustrates just how powerful even the most basic music production software can be. But beyond the impressive ease of use of GarageBand, there’s something else illustrated here.
If we think of ourselves as being made up of the basic foundational notes and inputs that made up the song, then we can think of each song as how we present to the world on a given day.
Think about it, on the days when you’re feeling it, you might present as a 150-bpm hip-hop track. When you’re in the dumps, maybe you’d be a blues jam at a tempo of 75.
But regardless of how you’re feeling on any day, you’re still the same person made up of the same experiences and memories and strengths and weaknesses that you are on any other day.
In other words, don’t worry about having a bluesy day when your brain feels slow and your heart vulnerable. And don’t worry about those anxious days when you can’t get your thoughts together because everything is moving too fast.
There’s a groove to be found in every single day, no matter how you’re feeling.
When you’re feeling sad, embrace the tears; who said you can’t still dance even when you’re feeling down?
When things are hectic, embrace the pressure and the chaos.
When everything is just right, get in the flow and appreciate that the universe is providing such a perfect tempo for your life.
And perhaps more than anything, we can use this lesson to remember that just because you’re experiencing a perfect day doesn’t mean the folks you interact with are too.
If you cross paths with someone having a rough go, offer some of your love.
If you cross paths with someone whose energy seems to be that which you’re missing, borrow some of theirs.
Life is a series of new songs made up of the same old instruments, and I hope what you’re about to hear exemplifies just how much variety exists with just minor mindset adjutants.
Peace out everybody.
BLUES 90 BPM
EDM 120 BPM
HIP-HOP 150 BPM
DRUM N BASS 180 BPM