Unsquare: The Quest for Simplicity.

I read an article recently about new, trendy cocktails you should try the next time you go out. I hate these articles. I don't know why I read them. Sometimes I feel like I don't have a partner, sometimes I feel like my only friend I should be 'in the know' as a bartender that can deal with pretentious clientele. 

Afterwards, I felt the same way I always do: simple is best. 

Don't get me wrong; I watch Top Chef and the like, and there is a time and place for creative cuisine and inspirational drinks (i.e. celebratory occasions). In regards to routine behavior,  however,  a simple martini or booze+rocks is a decision the unflappable gentleman makes. It shows far more character than anything requiring over 4 steps to concoct. There is beauty in the simple. It displays an acquired taste. There is also mystery, for it begs the question how one went about acquiring that taste.  

I guess I should have prefaced the aforementioned by stating, 'this is assuming your affection for said alcohol/spirit is genuine. Otherwise, stop bullshitting yourself and be proud of your malibu baybreeze or basil/lavender/sage/frankincense/parsley/sage/rosemary/thyme, etc mojito. To thine own self be true, right?'.

Reading helps me unwind, along with music, and as I finished the article my feelings on simplicity were reaffirmed. 

The staccato emanating from the speakers was almost primitive. Like most music I've been listening to recently, it had to be either jazz or funk inspired. Hand claps, a drum that's being played mostly on the rim [like someone playing on a wooden table], percussive piano ], and something slightly askew. The simple resulting in a beautifully layered sound. I got up and looked at iTunes: Unsquare Dance by Dave Brubeck. The piano was a dead givaway, but the time signature was different than the typical 4/4 used in most all popular music. A quick check on wikipedia yielded the following: 

Dave Brubeck's liner notes: "Unsquare Dance, in 7/4 time, is a challenge to the foot-tappers, finger-snappers and hand-clappers. Deceitfully simple, it refuses to be squared. And the laugh you hear at the end is Joe Morello's guffaw of surprise and relief that we had managed to get through the difficult last chorus".

I want to be deceitfully simple. Growing wiser as you grow older is a choice. You have to be conscious of all experiences to keep them in context and evolve.

The internet is great. None of this would be here if there was no internet. But; as great as it is, as much as it's streamlined things, it also gave us more sizzle than steak. It's sped everything up, changed the game as far as how we receive information, it's become a race to see who can inundate us with as much stuff, as quickly as possible, in an attempt to keep our attention for more than 30 seconds. All of this in an effort to convince advertisers it's worth giving them money based on your attention rates. What the fuck happened to content? We're living in an age of specialization where most people specialize in telling you why you shouldn't listen to the other specialities.

Coffee. Used to put loads of sugar and cream in it. Now it's closer to black [especially the better the quality]. Same can be said for alcohol and all other vices. The older I get, the less filter I need, baby! I don't want infused vodka. How about you make a vodka that tastes good enough on its own? Miles Davis famously said, "Don't play what's there, play what's not there." Then I hear this guy, Skrillex, is popular and I want to smash my face into the closest table.

At the beginning of the year, I posted something that said, "In regards to purchases, buy things that truly and consistently improve your life rather than make it grow in size." I even posted a Rorshach test with it to expand upon the idea of looking at something differently to improve instead of accumulating things and wasting money. (You missed that part, huh? It's cool, you can look at it again here.)

I've been posting stuff under The Leisure Study's umbrella (Blogspot, .com, tumblr, twitter, FB) for a year now and I feel like I'm just offering you my real voice. I get lost in the flood from time to time, just like anyone else, so please don't feel as though I think I'm immune to the aforementioned criticisms on behavior. I'm trying to get better. I'd like to thank all of you that have stopped by the last year, shared posts, written emails, followed on twitter, liked on facebook, etc.

There's nothing better than sharing something with someone than knowing they appreciate it.

You guys are awesome!