Diary #003 - Monday Muse
What’s inspiring me right now…
This weekend we had a magical time in Barrio Logan, the fountain of endless good vibes. We went to the Mermaid Art Show at La Bodega Gallery which featured my art for the second year in a row. We saw real-life mermaids who had swam out of the dark depths of the ocean to spend the evening with us. A student from my class came to the art show, seeing my art and the art of countless others, a life and career first! My heart was bursting with good feelings and gratitude. We flitted around the neighborhood, delighted and slightly boozy, stopping into Beat Box Records to size up the wares.
Beat Box Records is expertly curated and it is difficult not to want to walk out with the whole store. They always have something juicy playing on the turntable, setting the mood for copious music consumption. We browsed the shelves. There, in front of me, something caught my eye. A strange record in a plain sleeve the center bearing the likeness of Wilbur, some pig. I was intrigued, I took it out of the sleeve to reveal the lush turquoise vinyl. In tiny writing on the sleeve I read, RARE! Prince Bootleg, Live Show. Could it be? In such an odd package, the Purple One appearing to me, as he had so many times before, in the buzzy light of the record shop. I asked the girl manning the counter, with the excellent eyeliner, if I could give a listen, just to confirm it indeed was what it claimed to be. I only needed 10 seconds of sound to be sure. $40 was quickly produced and off I went with my new record.
Prince has been a creative spirit guide of mine since I was 15. His enchantment, energy, but most of all, his commitment to production over commercial success inspired me. Prince has had so many, many more flops than hits and when you think of all the hits he’s had, that creative output is outright astronomical. I could go on but I am not in the proselytizing business today. My connection to Prince is mine alone.
Prince appears to me in many kinds of ways, on the radio, on a TV screen in a taqueria, in books, and of course, in record shops. The show on this record took place in 1989, the year of my birth, in Frankfurt Germany, the homeland of some of my ancestors, in the year the Berlin Wall was toppled. Could it be a more kismet find? I like to think of the people at this show coming together from East and West Germany to dance and sing to the music of Prince and feel his incredible energy. It must have been quite the show. Sheila E. and Rosie Gaines both took the stage with Prince that night. The setlist spins from one jam to another, Prince keeping the energy high the whole time and letting those gracing the stage with him have their moments to shine. I’ve already listened over and over, getting lost and time traveling to the beat.
On this Monday, November 12th, as Jupiter makes its first steps into Sagittarius, I am inspired by my guide Prince. I am inspired to produce, to give my light and energy, to put on a fucking show. To turn up the volume on the good things in life and to, maybe even above all, listen. Many feelings of gratitude flow forth. Thank you Beat Box Records, thank you friends, thank you stars, thank you Prince. O(+>
What is inspiring you this week?
