Los Angeles // Where is Mercury?
If you want to be a rock and roll star, buy yourself an electric guitar and learn to play. It’s some of the best advice I ever heard. It comes from a prelude to an MTV live music set by the Counting Crows in the late 90’s. I find myself mouthing the words after an interaction with the supposed insta famous cartel on a Thursday night in LA. Coachella starts tomorrow, technically today as it’s 2am and the day changed. We won’t be in bed for 10 more hours. I don’t know that yet.
I can feel this unique residue on my skin. She touches it. She likes it. An hour earlier I was dancing with a snake wrapped around me. I named it Phil. Who’s ever been afraid of something called Phil? Not me? This was a big snake. My first snake dance. Some girl just put it on me. I assume she was momma to the snake. You gotta give it to LA some times, not many late night clubs have snakes to dance with throughout the night. Certain places just create adventure.
Three years ago flying into LA, I met a girl on the airplane. She was assigned next to me. I had the cheapest ticket (a middle seat) she was my window. Needless to say when we landed she was giving me a ride 45 minutes away to my destination. It was going to be an expensive UBER. God works in mysterious ways. That trip was filled with so much spontaneous perfection. Looking back it feels like a dream. You wonder how so many things could’ve worked out so perfectly. Was I extra nice that week? Was I looking better than usual? Did it have something to do with where Mercury was? I have no idea about Mercury but for funnies sake, I like to explain all my great life fortunes to where Mercury was. People usually just look confused and then I can move on. “You’re a damn rock star and don’t forget it.”
I message a friend who needed a cheerleader. I think cheerleaders are far under appreciated in life. Cheerleaders are divine. When I’m being perfect I’m always trying to be someone’s cheerleader. And I’ll never be sad when one of my cheerleaders is near by. I’ve been calling people rock starts much more often now and ever since. It must have been LA. After you see the rock stars closets, you realize they are a lot more messed up than you. And I’m sure the life can be fun but only to the level that you can appreciate it. They need a cheerleader right now and I play all the roles. Great photographers could also be called the best cheerleaders. We cheer you on. You may be cold. It may be windy. Some tourists back there may be seeing up your dress but right now we don’t care about any of that. We are here to capture you in the moment. This is your album cover. You picked up the guitar and learned to play and here you are to show the world. Show me.
