I’m breaking the usual rules and going outlaw.

Today shall be:
Question to you first.
Then story.
Then question again.
Deal?

Question to you:

If you could be any man right now for one week, who would you be?

If you could be any woman right now for one week, who would you be?

Think about it and answer both in your mind. If you happen to be hanging out with people, ask them, too. It gets interesting….

Story Time:

The old blues musicians used to call it, “in the pocket”.

It’s that perfect place in a groove. A moment when everything falls into place, when inspiration has hit, when the Muses themselves flood the room…

That moment when everything is exactly as it should be.

When these two showed up at my hotel room and kidnapped me for two hours…I should have known it was gonna be one of those nights.

We landed at Karaoke from Hell at Dante’s in Portland. Live band. Karaoke. Trouble.

Within 15 minutes of being there, something happened. The band was on fire, people started pouring onto the dance floor, Medusa grabbed my hand and we danced and shook until we were sweaty and wild.

I felt out of my body. I didn’t care about anything else. It was a moment of being surrounded by friends, happy strangers, a band, crazy singing, heat, sweat, wild rock and roll.

I wasn’t going to see 97% of the people in the room ever again. So F it.
I was letting the voodoo of music move me into rapture.

We were in the pocket.

It feels so good when we are wild.
When we let go.
When we say F it.
When we aren’t held back.

Now back to the two people who were your answers for my question today for you….

I will bet money that the reason you picked them, the reason they popped into your mind first – is because they took a chance, they weren’t afraid of their own failures, they made a mark by going that extra bit, they did things that seemed practically impossible.

They got to that moment where they were in the pocket. And they brought you there with them.

You got to see what the old folks call – the shine. When someone’s doing that thing that they are put on this earth to do, and it lights up everyone who sees it.

Now. I can catch that sometimes.
I can be in the pocket sometimes.
I can be the shine for moments, and I’ve been in the shine for moments.
And I’m sharing right now in this diary, my mission is to get in that more. I want to push harder, I want to be raw and honest and unabashedly me.

My post here two days ago – Strip Clubs and You: How To Worship at the Temple?
I wouldn’t have posted that a few months ago. I know that. I would have been afraid to. Afraid of being judged. Afraid of being me. Afraid of speaking my mind about a subject considered taboo.

When I finished writing it, I was proud of it, but I will confess that I hovered over the publish button for about 10 seconds more than usual before I hit it.

And you know what happened? I got praised for it, by people I consider my own personal heroes, like Jo Weldon. And I got attacked for it, by people I’ve never met, who don’t know me.

And you know what? I’ll take that chance.

Because all the people I would ever strive to be like took that chance.

Dr. Seuss once said, “Be yourself because the people that mind don’t matter, and the people that matter don’t mind.”

Now…back to the question. Answer below in the comments – who are the two people (one male, one female) that you would want to be for a week. Then say in one word or a short sentence about each – what quality do they have that you are drawn to the most?

AND then…after you answer think about how you can draw that quality to you more.

One person who comments below will be randomly chosen by random.org to receive a postcard from me on the road. A cute little Route 66 postcard I picked up.

Always interested to see your answers….