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No, not the Monty Python movie. The real meaning of life. A few days ago, I heard that Buddy Miles died. He was 60 years old, which is pretty old in the rock music biz. But it’s still way too soon. And it got me to thinking about other people who died way sooner than their time - usually due to drugs or the lifestyle they chose.
People like Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Jerry Garcia, Buddy Miles, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Kurt Cobain, Elvis Presley, John Lennon, George Harrison, Patsy Cline and Buddy Holly. I knew the first five people, and their deaths saddened me. But all of those people enriched my life to a great extent - and that’s really what this month’s article is about - the meaning of life.
Life is about living; it’s that simple. As you get older (I’m gonna be 71 in May), the things you remember are the good times you’ve had, the great people you’ve known and the cool things you’ve done. The bad stuff slips into forgotten memories and your only regrets are about the things you still haven’t done, and the people who aren’t around anymore that you shoulda told how much you liked (or loved) them. That’s what becomes most important as you grow old.
Strangely enough, you don’t remember the times you had to sleep on somebody’s couch, or been out of a job, or been broke or even hungry. I don’t know why that is. It just is. What you do remember are the good times you’ve had, the neat places you’ve been to, the cool friends you had and stuff like that. Your only regrets are not doing more really fun things. Security is way overrated. Go on tour; quit your job if you hafta. You’ll remember the tour long after the job has faded from your memory.
Make a CD with your band - not just to sell or get jobs, but to pass down to your kids when you’re older. Take a lot of pictures. Get out and go places. There are people around me that have never been more than 100 miles from where they were born. How sad is that? Take a few more chances in your life. If it doesn’t work out, don’t worry about it; things change, life goes on - nothing, but death, lasts forever.
Live for today (and if you wake up tomorrow, live for tomorrow as well). Someday you’ll thank me for it. (Harvey Gerst), ITR Studios, http://ITRstudio.com
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From Rob Bryan & Skid Dickson of Rob’s Billiards
Rob’s retirement and investment planning tip for 2008
• If you had purchased $1,000 of Nortel stock one year ago, it would now be worth $49.
• With Enron, you would have $16.50 left of the original $1,000.
• With WorldCom, you’d have less than $5.
• If you had purchased $1,000 of Delta Air Lines stock, you’d have $49 left.
• But, if you had purchased $1,000 worth of beer at Rob’s Sports Bar one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the cans for the aluminum recycling refund, you would have $214.
Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to join the Rob’s program, drink heavily and recycle.(Rob)
Skid’s reflections on beer
Sometimes when I reflect back on all the beer I drink, I feel ashamed. Then I look into the glass and think about the workers in the brewery and all their hopes and dreams and their little children and wives and, my god, what would happen if I didn’t drink this beer? They might lose their jobs, be out of work, their dreams would be shattered, and those children and wives would go hungry. Then I say to myself, “It is better that I drink this beer and let their dreams come true than be selfish and worry about my liver.”
I should probably think about the guys at the Johnny Walker distillery too. (Skid)
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