Tag Archive for: inspiration

david bowie quotes

The stars look very different today.

David Robert Jones (8 January 1947 – 10 January 2016), known as David Bowie was an English singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, arranger, painter, and actor. Bowie was a figure in popular music for over four decades, and was known as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s. His androgynous appearance was an iconic element of his image, principally in the 1970s and 1980s.

On 10 January 2016, Bowie died at the age of 69 after an 18-month battle with liver cancer at his home in New York City. [from Wikipedia]

  1. You can neither win nor lose if you don’t run the race
  2. I don’t know where I’m going from here, but I promise it won’t be boring.
  3. Maybe I am insane, too — it runs in my family — but I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human. I felt very puny as a human. I thought, ‘Fuck that. I want to be a superhuman.
  4. Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.
  5. I’m an instant star. Just add water and stir.
  6. The truth is of course is that there is no journey. We are arriving and departing all at the same time.
  7. Frankly, I mean, sometimes the interpretations I’ve seen on some of the songs that I’ve written are a lot more interesting than the input that I put in.
  8. I’m not a prophet or a stone aged man, just a mortal with potential of a superman. I’m living on.
  9. I suppose for me as an artist it wasn’t always just about expressing my work; I really wanted, more than anything else, to contribute in some way to the culture I was living in.
  10. I’m just an individual who doesn’t feel that I need to have somebody qualify my work in any particular way. I’m working for me.
  11. I’m looking for backing for an unauthorized auto-biography that I am writing. Hopefully, this will sell in such huge numbers that I will be able to sue myself for an extraordinary amount of money and finance the film version in which I will play everybody.
  12. All my big mistakes are when I try to second-guess or please an audience. My work is always stronger when I get very selfish about it.
  13. I re-invented my image so many times that I’m in denial that I was originally an overweight Korean woman.
  14. david bowie tributeMake the best of every moment. We’re not evolving. We’re not going anywhere.
  15. There’s a terror in knowing what the world is about.
  16.  I’m very at ease, and I like it. I never thought I would be such a family-oriented guy; I didn’t think that was part of my makeup. But somebody said that as you get older you become the person you always should have been, and I feel that’s happening to me. I’m rather surprised at who I am, because I’m actually like my dad
  17. That’s the shock: All cliches are true. The years really do speed by. Life really is as short as they tell you it is. And there really is a God – so do I buy that one? If all the other cliches are true… Hell, don’t pose me that one.

The Top 10 David Bowie Songs:

A Heroic Eulogy to the Fallen Legend:

From DJ Skratch Bastid:

RIP David Bowie.

Late night in the studio… took a break from working on a new mix to check my feeds… only to find it flooded with news that the legendary David Bowie has passed. Lots can be said & written to eulogize prolific artists like him, but I think the most appropriate way for a DJ to celebrate my favourite artists is by sharing their music. So how about a little routine?

1983’s “Let’s Dance” was produced by David himself & Nile Rodgers (from Chic, recently featured on Daft Punk’s ‘Get Lucky’), and was Bowie’s biggest song to date, 20 years into his career. The guy never stopped creating — he stayed recording and collaborating with artists like Arcade Fire & LCD Soundsystem over the last decade, and even put out an album two days ago, before his untimely passing. If that’s not motivation as an artist, I don’t know what is. So this one’s for you, David — a tribute, just having some fun with a dancefloor smash that has always been a favourite to double copies of while keeping people moving. Don’t mind the smilin’, I can’t help it. Rest easy…

RIP David Bowie.Late night in the studio… took a break from working on a new mix to check my feeds… only to find it flooded with news that the legendary David Bowie has passed. Lots can be said & written to eulogize prolific artists like him, but I think the most appropriate way for a DJ to celebrate my favourite artists is by sharing their music. So how about a little routine? 1983’s “Let’s Dance” was produced by David himself & Nile Rodgers (from Chic, recently featured on Daft Punk’s ‘Get Lucky’), and was Bowie’s biggest song to date, 20 years into his career. The guy never stopped creating — he stayed recording and collaborating with artists like Arcade Fire & LCD Soundsystem over the last decade, and even put out an album two days ago, before his untimely passing. If that’s not motivation as an artist, I don’t know what is. So this one’s for you, David — a tribute, just having some fun with a dancefloor smash that has always been a favourite to double copies of while keeping people moving. Don’t mind the smilin’, I can’t help it. Rest easy…#GoProMusic

Posted by Skratch Bastid on Monday, January 11, 2016

Rolf Potts VagabondingRolf is one of the most accomplished travel journalists of our time, having reported from over 60 countries for major venues like National Geographic TravelerThe New YorkerOutside, and the Travel Channel. He is a high-profile proponent of independent travel. His book Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel was one of only four “fundamental books” Tim Ferriss mentioned in The 4-Hour Workweek, and was one of the two main sources of inspiration behind my nomadic lifestyle. His second book, Marco Polo Didn’t Go There, details personal anecdotes from 10 years of traveling and travel writing. With his extensive experience traveling on a shoestring, Rolf shows how nearly anyone can achieve the dream of extended overseas travel.

You can learn much more about Rolf on his bio site and at Vagablogging.

In this call, Rolf phoned in from Philadelphia (where he’s currently a writer-in-residence at University of Pennsylvania) and we discuss:

  • Rolf’s past life prior to writing two acclaimed books
  • His 2 years spent teaching English in Korea
  • The impetus for writing Vagabonding and his philosophy behind the book
  • Mentioned: Walt Whitman, other favorite books and sources of inspiration: vagabonding.net/resources
  • How living out of a van, traveling around the US in 1994 helped give him the long-term travel itch
  • How Rolf went from first published article to his first book deal in less than 2 years, and his advice for those seeking to get a book deal and agent
  • Mentioned: Rick Steves, also Travel Writing 2.0 by Tim Leffel
  • Great places for generating online buzz: The Guardian, San Francisco Chronicle, New York Times, and networking in the travel & lifestyle design blogging community. Make yourself very accessible on your blog…
  • “To become a good travel writer,  you need expertise.” Rolf recommends travel blogging, infusing your writing with personality, being as engaging as possible, and wise use of free content online to get your name out there. Listen in for much more…
  • How to avoid being a walking dollar sign when you travel in developing countries
  • Is there a rule-of-thumb for avoiding the typical tourist route and traveling to places that are not full of tourists, where you can find a more non-commercialized or unique experience?
  • All about Rolf’s workflow, how he finds the motivation to keep working even after becoming a stunning success (and being featured in interviews and media all over the internet and the world), and how to maintain discipline as a freelancer
  • About the sacrifice of traditional stability, home & family, and how to tell your family you’re going off to travel long term (note: it wouldn’t hurt to give them a copy of Vagabonding)
  • How Rolf started the No Baggage Challenge in 2010—traveling light to 12 countries on 5 continents
  • Mentioned: luggage-less traveler Jonathan Yevin
  • Lessons learned in hyper-minimalism: don’t weigh yourself down with things. And what items does Rolf now travel with and consider essential?
  • About the writing workshop Rolf runs in France every July at the Paris American Academy
  • Why he loves Bangkok and why revisiting Khao San Road feels like going back to kindergarten
  • and much much more…

This was a great one, so make sure you give it a listen! Find Rolf at rolfpotts.com and vagabonding.net and if you have questions for him, email [email protected]