It's Only Rock -N- Roll
I was born and raised in the small community of Malba, which was nestled in the shadow of the Whitestone Bridge, in Queens, NY. My parents had businesses in Astoria, where I also lived for the last 10 years of my time in NYC.
To get to “work” we travelled via the Whitestone Expressway to the Grand Central Parkway which took us right past Shea Stadium. (It will always be “Shea” to me!) Shea was my part of culture and right in my backyard and the view never got old.
When The Rolling Stones announced their Steel Wheels Tour would bring them to Shea, it was a no brainer. We had great seats and it was…well, it was The Stones, man! What else is there to say?
“I wanted to play drums because I fell in love with the glitter and the lights, but it wasn’t about adulation. It was being up there playing.”
I always looked at successful people as having some untouchable quality or they have some immense talent — I’m not fond of that word, but for now it’ll work — that few others possess that makes them. They are “other than” me.
In his book, The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles, Steven Pressfield says: “The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work. The professional concentrates on the work and allows rewards to come or not come, whatever they like.”
Yes, I do work at my business. But I’m a Magician and my job is to play. Success comes or it doesn’t.
Charlies explains it far more eloquently here.
Thanks, Charlie.