viking moses
I went to see my friend Brendon Massei (aka The Viking Moses) play an acoustic set at Lorem Ipsum Books the other night. He got into town that afternoon, shot off an email to me, and luckily I was free to come see him.
See, I’ve known Brendon since about 3rd grade and ever since then, he’s managed to breeze into my life frequently enough to remind me what an extraordinary individual he is and how nice it would be to have him around more often.
After I graduated college and was living in New York, he got my email address from a mutual friend and contacted me when he came into town. It had been quite a few years since we had seen each other and I had no idea what to expect.
Into my favorite bar (The Fat Black Pussy Cat) wanders this scruffy-looking, furry-faced wandering minstrel. We had as long as it would take to finish a couple beers to catch up, and in that time I found out that he had spent that past year (maybe longer) traveling around the world with his guitar. He played shows, met new friends, slept on new friends’ couches, and moved onto the next town to do it all again. Broken only by brief stretches of rest at his mom’s or a new girlfriend’s, Brendan lived as a nomad.
That was perhaps three years ago and he’s been doing the same thing for all this time. Sometimes he tours with other bands, sometimes he’s on his own. He’s always writing new material and he records it when he can find studio space. He gets by with humility and gratitude, and he loves what he does.
It just blows my mind that someone can give up the things he does (home, food, comfort, security, money) to do what he loves. That is a level of passion almost unimaginable to me (and I’m an artist who makes my fair share of sacrifices). I am awed and humbled by his life–and inspired to make the most of my time on this earth.
I think I’m pretty good about following my dreams, making use of my skills, working hard and challenging myself. But I love running into Brendon because he always makes me realize there’s another level to strive for.
