That the dawn can be as inspiring as it is painful, is something The Duke has had to grudgingly accept. Not being one for toddling off to the sleeping quarters at any reasonable hour, I'm often lying awake, staring at the DVD shelves, with morning light spilling through the window, thinking, simultaneously, I need to sleep, and also, what goods might my brain produce upon awakening?
I find myself in the unwelcome predicament of being desperately imploring a sleep of some nature to veil my caffeine riddled psyche, that I might arise afresh and continue the good work of The Duke and his grossly limited motherfucking vocabulary, yet also, so frenzied are these thoughts and musings regarding the next of mine keyboard ponderings, that the very act of contemplation keeps me saucer-eyed.
Sometimes good shit comes of this. Of the two (still unpublished) novels I've finished, both arrived in such unwelcome fashion, when an eye was about to shut, to remain locked and impenetrable for at least seven hours, when all of a sudden the ultimate opening sentence passes like a whisper through the skull, building and feeding until it becomes a deafening crescendo that only biro to paper can quell.
Indeed, the first nine paragraphs of my second novel, Chasing Polyhemnia, were concerned with nothing more taxing than how ill-mannered these unwelcome, yet undoubtedly amazing, ideas can be.
Robert Lewis Stephenson, following such a burst of inspiration (and also some cocaine), wrote The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde in three days straight. Amazingly, he started from scratch a day into the proceedings. Stephenson gets cursed with insomnia and imagination, and he produces a work of immortal wonder. The Duke suffers the same, and the result of his sufferings?
"Shit, man, that Michael Jackson is one anarchistic motherfucker, is what."
I'd kill for a Jekyll And Hyde, is the crushing truth of the matter.
But no, the good Lord in His infinite wisdom has decided that for The Duke, the task at hand will be nothing more than to muse upon just how much this multi-millionaire rock-star is the very embodiment of disestablishmentarianism. A Rebel Without A Clue, if you will. A motherfucker what just don't give a damn.
Article comments
1 - Al Barger
Yeah, well Al gots a SPECIAL PLACE for his unique type of "anarchy" all picked out is what.
2 - Eric Olsen
Duke, a very brilliant piece.
I sympathize with your insomnia - it appears to be the curse of a very fertile imagination. I would suggest cutting the caffeine down to a dull roar nd checking into mild sleep-inducers like Valerian and Melatonin. I take them both every night and sleep pretty well, and I am not unfamiliar with the demands of a cycling brain.
Re MJ, you expressed your views and sympathies very well, and I agree with your conclusion that while he was probably a fucking loon 30 years ago, after years of isolated reign he is now a raving fucking loon. I have no idea if he committed the acts he is accused of but I wouldn't be surprised either way.
I also had affection for him for most of his life/career (they are only divided by about 10 years) but now I think his lunacy has become a danger to himself and others. I'm not sure what the anser is, but regardless of the outcome of his current dealings with the law, if he doesn't somehow align himself with reality, it can only end in tears.
Get some rest, buddy.
3 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Al, thats some freaky malarky. Is that you in the blue top, incidentally?
Eric, thank you good sir.
I'm always contemplating methods of getting to bed earlier and so on, but to no avail. Too much trash to be watching and discussing and what not. All my attempts fail. Like the other night, i thought i'd put on an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm before i went to bed. quarter to five and i realise how damn late it is. Then i go to bed and put on the commentary from Pi to listen to that the brain might be preoccupied, but no, "this shot here..." what shot where? I must look, and thus, efforts are scuppered once again.
Hehe. It would be terribly sad if it wasn't so amusing.
Thanks for the kind words regarding this dose of scribbling. I think i'd been wanting to write about this carry-on for some time, but needed the anchor, if you will, which arrived in the form of the anarchist musings. At half 6 in the damn morning. lol
4 - Eric Olsen
I was on a very late schedule for many years due to the DJing and all, and people who haven't talked to me for a while are astounded to hear I get up at 6am 5 days a week now and have been for a few years. I just don't have any choice. It still doesn't feel right, though.
5 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Eric, it most certainly don't feel right. I keep saying, well, it's just like if someone was on night shift. You get up at 2PM then stay up till 6. But still, normal folks seem awful content with the bed-at-reasonable-hour thing.
It's not as bad when its a choice, but when you WANT to sleep, but the head won't let you, that sucks right there.
6 - Eric Olsen
because I don't have any choice as to my schedule and have to get a reasonable amount of sleep, that's why I use the Valerian, Melatonin, antihistamine, ...