Metal Buddha | Life is short, meditate naked. | Page 2

Memoria In Aeterna

Posted: 07/11/2011 in Uncategorized

My friends Falling To Pieces have released their album Memoria In Aeterna, which I wrote about here. They have made the album available for FREE download on their site www.fallingtopieces.net. If you would like an actual cd, they will send it to you for a penny plus shipping.

It gives me chills. That is all.

\m/

Falling To Pieces

Posted: 06/13/2011 in Inspiration, Love, Metal, Music

A few months back I wrote a post about some recent deaths of musicians in our local metal community. One of those fallen musicians was Nicci D. of the bay area band Falling To Pieces. I know it’s been a rough few months for the band, yet they are strong dudes, I know this for a fact. Before Nicci’s death, they had been in pre-production for their new album. Well, in their own words, here’s what they did:

In October of 2010, Falling to Pieces began pre-production on our 3rd album. Working hard and tracking rough song ideas and vocals, we were shaping up some of our best songs to date. On November 6, 2010 our singer Nicina “Nicci D.” Acevedo was taken from us in a tragic motorcycle accident. Without hesitation we knew what we had to do. We decided to honor Nicci by going forward and finishing the album we had started with her. After tracking all of the songs in the studio, we then took her scratch vocals from pre-production and lined them up with the new recordings. We then reached out to some of Nicci’s favorite friends, local musicians and peers to guest spot on the album and without hesitation, people responded. We poured our hearts and souls into this album and backed up by some of Nicci’s favorite local and national artists, we can only hope that this album puts a smile on her face and allows her memory and legacy to echo on into eternity. Of all the albums any of us have ever been a part of… this is the one we are all most proud of.
Nicci – Even though we will never get to perform these songs live with you at the helm, we know that you will be with us for every note we play from this day forward. You will always be missed, never forgotten, and with your strength we will carry on to accomplish what we started with you. We dedicate this album to the loving memory of Nicci D. You are forever in our hearts and I hope we’ve made you proud. We love you kiddo! See you on the other side.

I am looking forward to getting my hands on this. You can hear some teasers of the new tunes here:

To be honest, I’m still torn up about Nicci’s passing. Nick, Kimo, Ruxton, and Scott…love you guys. Thanks for honoring Nicci’s memory by blessing us with this album.

On Being a Man

Posted: 05/28/2011 in Compassion, Inspiration, Love

I found this story on Art Of Manliness, which is one of my favorite sites. I will admit, I had to go find a tissue after watching this. I don’t have a lot to say about it, other than it is the best example of being a hero.

This man gave his life to alleviate serious injury or death to his wife. I feel compassion for her in that she lost the love of her life and what she has to deal with now, but at least she can know she had someone who loved her to the depths of his core, and not only could say it, but proved it. Don Lansaw was a true man. Safe travels, sir.

The video would not embed, so you will have to click the link.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/#43174546

Volbeat

Posted: 04/08/2011 in Metal, Music

For a few months now I’ve seen various friends posting status updates on Facebook and tweeting about this band called Volbeat, from Denmark. I didn’t pay much attention, as I haven’t had much time to check out new bands lately. Plus due to the fact that Volbeat seemed to carry a lot of hype, I didn’t get in any hurry to check them out. Well, I finally broke down and decided to see what the hype was about.

All I can say is HOLY SHIT. From the first couple minutes of the first track I heard (or saw a video on youtube, I don’t remember) I was diggin’ it. This band doesn’t just play music that is outside the box, they pull their boots on and kick the shit out of the box. They take a blender and toss in some metal, rockabilly, country and good old-fashioned rock-n-roll and crank it up, mixing up a musical margarita that I’m not ashamed to order, just leave out the little umbrella.

Yes, I usually listen to a lot heavier metal, but there is something about this band that’s just…it’s hard to explain. They’ve just “got it.” I hear they put on a helluva live show too, which unfortunately I missed this week. They played in my town with The Damned Things, and I wasn’t able to make it due to work. I would love to see these guys tour with Black Stone Cherry and Clutch. Not saying they are similar, but they aren’t dissimilar either, I just think that would be a killer show.

Here’s some ear-porn for ya…

Happy listening,

\m/ Metal Buddha \m/

Big Pimpin’

Posted: 04/03/2011 in Uncategorized

Figuratively, not literally. This is just a quick post to alert all three of you that read ye olde Metal Buddha of a couple of new blogs to check out…pimp them out, if I may.

The first is a group blog I started writing for in addition to my own. It’s called Chaotic Nirvana and covers a wide range of topics including spirituality, relationships, poetry and much more. It’s candid and chaotic. Duh…WINNING.

The second is a brand new blog started by my friend/roommate Cameron called The Passive Habit. He is a talented writer who will cover topics such as religion, politics, etc., and is well-read and well-spoken. I know this because of the discussions we’ve had in our smoking lounge (aka the garage). Cameron has tiger blood and Adonis DNA so check it out.

Now where’s my money, bitches?!

\m/ Metal Buddha \m/

There’s A Lesson Here Somewhere

Posted: 03/06/2011 in Practice, Spiritual

Yes, it has been awhile since I have posted on my blog. Life has been a whirlwind as of late, and even though I have had the time due to not working much, I have not had the motivation. This happens pretty frequently. There are times when I feel my only escape from the normal bullshit of life is to open a text editor and go to town. Then there are times when I feel so complacent and apathetic I don’t feel like doing shit. As far as my practice is concerned, I couldn’t even tell you the last time I sat down to meditate.

Since there have been changes to my life over the last few months, there have been a lot of questions: Will I get to work next week? How am I going to pay those bills? How do I dig out of this hole I’m in financially and emotionally?

The end of February also marks the time of year where I find myself depressed due to it being my son’s birthday and a week later the anniversary of his death. It’s been 6 years but the pain is still there. I know there is a lesson in all of this as far as practice goes but right now I’m swimming in confusion.

However, as I’m typing this, I am realizing where my practice has been. I’ve been keeping busy making improvements to my new residence; cleaning the carpets and such. My roommates and I have been working on the yard, clearing out weeds and trimming dead branches and also planning a garden. We have started the seeds, and within a couple months are hoping to enjoy the fruit (and vegetables) of our labors. It’s hard work, yet it is exciting to see the transformation. So there is my practice; out with the old and in with the new. Sweep the dust and push the dirt (as my dharma homie ZDZD says).

I’ve also been able to spend some more time with my son, which is great. My roommate/best friend/boss (now that he got promoted to DM!) recently got me into playing disc golf, and in turn we got my son into it as well, so I bought him his own set of discs for his birthday. I have found an activity that gives us a chance to not only spend time quality time together, we get to be outside, where the courses are setup in a way that it’s like being on a nature hike. That, and we got a killer deal on a ping pong table!

My apologies for the stream of consciousness, but that’s the product of my state of mind lately.

Peace,

\m/ Metal Buddha \m/

Confession

Posted: 01/29/2011 in Buddhism, Precepts

I have a confession to make that may draw out some criticism:

Me being a vegetarian has become an epic FAIL.

I don’t have a lot to say about this. I feel I made a valiant effort, but found I just couldn’t do it. I’m not going to blame it on the fact that I moved in with my best friend who is an amazing cook, and the food he makes is irresistible. I am a big boy and I can say no if I want to.

I’m going to be completely honest here. Being a vegetarian (haha I just typed “vagetarian.” I’m still THAT LOL), turned into more of something for others than it was for me. I seriously thought more about what other Buddhists would think rather than the correct intention of not eating meat, and that’s not right. I also fell into the mindset that “oh, if I don’t become a vegetarian, I’m a hypocrite.” I guess I’m just not to the point in my practice yet where I can quit everything cold turkey that goes against the precepts.

I’ve had a rough few months personally that I won’t go into detail here, and my practice has seriously been lacking. I’m just at a point in my life where I have some shit to deal with. No, I’m not quitting this blog and I’m still a Buddhist.

That’s it, I don’t know what else to say, really.

The Zen of Moving

Posted: 01/13/2011 in Happiness, Spiritual

As of the first of this year, I have relocated from living with my family into a house with my best friend since childhood/coworker. This is the reason I haven’t had much of an online presence as of late. Between packing, moving and unpacking/organizing all while trying to work and spend time with my son, it seems there aren’t enough hours in the day for everything.

It was a big change for me, and it was definitely time to make the move to mark a turning point in my life recovering from the craziness that has surrounded me for the last year and a half. The divorce is almost final and I have a good job…although the time off sucks.

I needed this.

It gave me a chance to start fresh. Change is inevitable, and I’ve always tried to welcome it in my life, even though sometimes it’s hard to handle. It’s a true test of my mettle (metal? haha) how I respond to changes, forced and unforced. My intent is to accept whatever comes my way with open arms and just be. Life happens, and accepting the good and bad is part of it whether we like it or not. Yes, it will be rough financially, but I have accepted the fact that I can only do what I can do, no sense in worrying about it. I will just shrug my shoulders and find the best solution rather than laying awake at night stressing about it. Well, at least I will try.

I don’t know if moving is really Zen, but hey, the title caught your eye, right?

With Heavy Metta,

\m/Metal Buddha\m/

Through The Fire And The Flames

Posted: 12/11/2010 in Karma, Mindfulness, Spiritual

Yes, I named this post after a song from that cheesy band Dragonforce, but it was the first song about fire that came to mind. Sue me.

As I was sitting in meditation earlier today, I started to lose focus on the breath and my eyes wandered to the dancing flame of a lit candle. I was mesmerized and it made me think about fire and how it is used can be good or bad, all dependent on the purpose or intention behind it.

We can strike a flame to light a candle, which in turn can light another candle, and so on and so forth, bringing light to darkness, such as in a vigil, fostering community, love, and remembrance.

We can strike a flame to bring warmth to a cold house.

We can strike a flame to cook a meal to provide sustenance to a hungry stomach.

Or on the flipside, an arsonist can strike a flame to burn down a building or cause a forest fire.

I think what it boils down to is the intention behind the striking of the flame. Fire is a dangerous thing. It burns and consumes anything in its path. How it is used determines whether the outcome is good or bad: a meal to feed the hungry or a burned down house.

It’s the same way with our words. How they are used determines whether the outcome is good or bad: we can give someone hope who otherwise thinks their life sucks or we can use our words to be hurtful and damage their emotions further.

Fire is powerful. Words are powerful. Use them wisely.

Meditate and destroy,

\m/