Monthly Archives: February 2018

Late 2013. Jonathan and I had been trying to grab lunch for awhile. We hadn’t seen each other in months. He is one of the smartest guys I know. The kind of person you listen to. Growing up he was both a brainiac and an athlete, but like me, gained a lot of weight as an adult. As he walked up the sidewalk I barely recognized him. He looked 20 years younger and 50 lbs lighter. He read a book called “Eat to Live” and eating a plant-based diet.

Dec 31st 1013 A slammed back my last whiskey for the night and wrote a note to tell the bartenders at Kaleidoscope I would miss them. I think I actually wrote “fuck y’all,” but they knew what I meant. I had decided to not drink for the next 90 days. You know, to “prove” I wasn’t an alcoholic and to try to lose weight.

January 2014 I searched for the the most beginner yoga class I could find. I committed myself doing a Basics of Ashtanga yoga class at Balance Yoga. I was introduced to yoga by a girl I dated in graduate school. We did not have such things in the small rural Georgia town I grew up in. Search engine optimization (SEO) and love led me to Ashtanga yoga.

Over the course of the next few months:

I did not drink, practiced yoga 2-3 times a week, ate a plant-based diet and walked 2 miles twice a week. Atu and I played racquetball once a week. I lost 26 lbs in 90 days.

Ninety days later, on March 31st, my birthday, I started drinking again. I fortunately did not give up yoga. I credit the loving community at Balance Yoga.

The next few years I persisted on a mostly vegetarian(ish) diet. I ate eggs at Waffle House most mornings. Most evening I had whiskey, brussel sprouts and pimento cheese. I was injured a lot. Drunk a lot. And unhappy a lot. I got down to 182 lbs but was not healthy. I plateaued in life.

Jan 1st 2017. I stopped drinking. I follow the Ashtanga method of yoga and practice Mysore style 5 days a week. I seem to have an aversion to led primary. I try to eat healthy, but eat more sugar than I’d like. I read and write. I am happy, healthier and in love with my life. My goals and practice are now spiritual and philosophical; fitness is just a side effect.

I started the day with a hangover. Unfortunately this was not uncommon back then. I had to “teach”. Today would be a movie day.

I enjoyed teasing my students with music, movies and people outside of their pop culture knowledge. We had “guess the song” pop quizzes that featured 90 rap, 80s music and golden country. With my head pounding and looking for something somewhat science based, I happened upon “How William Shatner Changed the World”. They would meet Captain Kirk.

A thesis in this movie was that much of the technology we enjoy today was first “invented” by writers and set designers who constructed technology out of words and carboard boxes. This on-screen technology etched in some kid’s mind, and they dreamed of building it one day.

Years later I was invited to ideate with some really smart people for friend’s new business concept. Their professions ranged from art, design, policy to technology. Chris Appleton of WonderRoot and I openly discussed the differences and similarities in how artists and software engineers think and work. I realized how little I knew about an artist’s work, but something seemed familiar and akin to why I enjoyed programming.

Artists can “build things” way before the technology exists. I began to question just how fictive our world is.

I set out to learn more about the local art community. I didn’t know where to start. Nevertheless I set out. My plan was to engage with Chris and WonderRoot, but along the way I found BURNAWAY. I joined BURNAWAY’s board knowing very little about art. I wondered how my country ass would fit in.

I was at opening at Kibbee Gallery There was this damn pink cat with big green eyes. I was mesmerized by this piece but was afraid to buy it. I didn’t know if it was the “right” type of art to buy. I worried if other people would like it. The same themes that have haunted me my entire life.

Preston approaches me. “Butler if you like it, buy it. It is obvious you do. There is no requirement other than if YOU love it or not.” I bought my first piece of art that night.

Tonight I am helping host BURNAWAY’s Art Crush. I hope to see you there. Come as you are.

NO whiskey was consumed in the recreation of this event. See less