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I ALMOST FORGOT… while getting caught up in calendars, to-do lists, outgoing trash and general catching up… to look up and be thankful for everything I have right now, right in front of me - cardboard moving boxes, dirty dishes and all. Because life is always perfect in a way - if I choose to see it that way.
UP TO MEET THE SUNRISE ON MY 50th BIRTHDAY… and it dawns on me how unconventional my current life in Bali might seem to those living outside of this particular reality matrix. After all, my kitchen sink is installed into an outrigger canoe - located on the roof above my bedroom obviously - and my living room and kitchen area have an ocean view - but no doors, windows or even walls. And this to me seems perfectly normal at 50 years old. Along with the 20 coconuts piled up in our dining area and the machete we use for…
LEMBONGAN LIFE. Finally discovering what I came to Bali for. And so it is. 🙏☀️✌️
IT’S SO COOL TO SEE… one of my old school photographic prints showing up on the wall of some dear friend whom I apparently gifted it to many moons and decades ago - in this case one of my favorite homes ever - in one of my favorite towns ever - Granada, Spain. Thank you Miguel Hitos and Miriam Font for sharing this with me today - it put a smile on my face to remember our buenas ondas together - and my second life that always awaits me in Spain. Os mando besos, abrazos, salud y amor desde La Isla de Dios! 🙏🧡✌️
EARTHBORN TAKE-OVER MAKE-OVER POP-UP CONCEPT… my second experiment in two days - showing the owners of a resort some ideas of what could be done with a currently under-utilized space on their property - essentially an open air hut that I envision transforming into a “Botanical Tea Hut & Eco-Boutique Art Gallery” - serving up an array of fine Taiwanese teas in ceremonial fashion - surrounded by a finely curated selection of art, objects, artifacts, & botanical plants - all offered for sale to guests and visitors. What I love about this concept is that it only took only 1 person less than 1 hour to set up with no prior planning - and 1 hour to pack up and be gone. Poof!✨ 😁 It’s not difficult once you already own a boatload of pillows and cushions and fancy teas and petrified wood and volcanic glass and Bhutanese raw silk and Javanese white teak and Sandalwood incense and potted plants and essential oils and bamboo trays…etc. etc.
SO THANKFUL TO BE LIVING HERE! Although nothing about the journey to get here was easy - easy is rarely interesting. So if it’s the interesting one seeks in life…
HAPPY HEALTHY HUMANS… and ascending masters of community consciousness coming together in unity for food, fun and fantastic vibes - it’s what I strive to see manifest in the world. And voila. It’s Earthborn. It’s nature’s way. ✨📸✌️
NO FILTERS REQUIRED… I just look up from my chopping board for one brief moment and there it is starting right at me - a slice of the life that I long dreamed of - manifesting here and now - as I fret about the kitchen, barefoot and in board shorts, attempting to soon feed 30+ people a memorable and potentially life changing meal of raw superfoods. So the story goes…
NO FILTERS REQUIRED. Yeah, it really is that kind of place. Lembongan Island - Indonesia.
ONCE UPON A LONG TIME AGO… I lived and worked in Lisbon, Portugal for a hot minute - and during that time I ventured out to a remote location called “Cabo da Roca” - which happens to be the most Western point in all of Europe - and the shortest crossing of the Atlantic to the Americas. This is a thermal inkjet print of a digital optical scan of a positive color film slide (FujiChrome 100) shot on a point-and-shoot instamatic pocket camera. Indeed a bazar mix of high and low technologies - and yet 20 years later the print image still remains. And when I look at it I can sometimes remember the smell of the air here. It’s a thing. #
NOW WHAT TO DO WITH ALL THESE CRAZY PICTURES? Which I can’t believe are still in my life right now - after somehow having my portfolio box transporting these photos fall off the moving truck in transit - which was then somehow discovered by local villagers who then somehow decided to stick it into some bushes on the roadside., where somehow a friend of mine randomly noticed it - so when I randomly asked about my missing portfolio he knew exactly where to take me. So apparently the universe wants me to keep these little fragments of my lives past for at least a little bit longer .
OSO THE BUDDHA BEAR WINS AGAIN... and to me it doesn’t really matter that I’m his personal servant, private chef, p**p cleaner-uper, financial advisor and overall lifestyle enabler.
LIVING IN EVOLUTION… giving AI a chance to prove its design intelligence. Considering it was free and took only 5 minutes to generate, I’ll consider this a very decent first iteration to set a direction on tone, style iconography and most important to me: a unique and compelling type font.
BREAKING OUT THE NEW TEA SET… and settling into the new home. And feeling so thankful for the abundance and friendships around. 🙏🧡☀️
BALI STYLE… granted it’s not my style which is much more of an artist-recluse meets beach-bohemian vibe, but the pool-in-your-living-room is definitely a thing over here.
THE TEA SHACK COMES TO LIFE… Mocking up V1.0 of my enhancements to the sunbed shade shack in my front garden - attempting to transform it into a private fine tea for two meditation and conversation den - with Bhutanese raw silk from the Himalayas and petrified wood from Java to set the tone. Next up: blinds and lighting.
Wizards Den… slowly coming to life. With Oso supervising obviously.
DAY 1 IN OSO’S NEW VILLA… and despite the boxes that still need unpacking I’m certainly digging the fresh vibes and sound of songbirds in the background.
EVERYDAY WONDER. Counting my blessings in Bali and reminding myself: happiness lives in simple things and beautiful things - and their appreciation along the way.
JUST YOUR TYPICAL CARD PULLING, CRYSTAL CARRYING, ICE PLUNGING CACAO DRINKING BUDDY HERE… showing up to do some serious clearing and manifestation work today. It’s definitely a different matrix out here and altogether. #
LET THERE BE LIGHT! That seems to be the theme of my upcoming birthday as I celebrate with the launch of Earthborn Art & Artifacts - my evolving private collection of unique and one-of- a-kind objects like these teak sculptures that I swept up before they were even finished or put onto display at the Amori Gallery in Ubud - and then I made the first ever request to the owner to customize each one into a “sculpture of light” - and now two weeks later voila! 😁🙏✌️
DON’T LET LOOKS FOOL YOU…that’s probably wise advice for life in general, but always applicable to Oso the International Puppy Monster - who knows full well he can easily become the boss of almost any human situation or interaction by utilizing his ridiculous looks (thanks to my amateur hair trimming skills) and over the top attitude to cast magical charms on people here, there, and pretty much everywhere.
LIVE IN WONDER. LIVE IN GRATITUDE.
JUST BECAUSE.
FROM DREAM TO DESTINY…Remembering the fateful moment I first glimpsed an image of the Tiger’s Nest monastery in the Kingdom of Bhutan on the cover of AFAR magazine - and I decided in that moment that I must see this magical place for myself. And then, after much dreaming, planning and visualization, it finally happened - and my life has never been the same.
NEXT LEVEL ADVENTURE NOW UNDERWAY… the research and planning has begun to design new possibilities for life-changing adventures that will transform one’s self - and a world that awaits your discovery.
A TIME FOR TEA. Learning the art and culture and ceremony of fine tea.
NO WORDS REQUIRED. Flashback to one of the most profound and interesting human interactions I’ve ever had, involving a silent conversation of gestures and smiles with a young Himalayan monk in the remote mountains of Bhutan who seemed to understand precisely the language of my heart.
WHERE BEAUTY RESIDES GOODNESS FLOWS. Make art. Make love. Make beauty. Make believe. Make manifest.
A SLICE OF LIFE IN AMED. Not perfect but always interesting. When will you come join us?
New York, NY
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