Sometimes you just have to do nothing. I know that’s sounds quite silly considering I’m sitting here blogging about doing nothing and in the process blogging about doing nothing I’m doing something but I’m sure any artist who reads this post deep in their gut they know exactly what I mean. We live in a world where everyone goes and goes, and rarely stops to breathe and realize where they are, where they’ve come from and we’re they’re going. I’m a rather introspective kid when it comes down to it so I spend much of my life thinking, and a lot of the time thinking about thinking. Sometimes we need to stop thinking, we need stop problem solving and we need to stop having 4 hour phone conversations with Directors in LA at 2 in the morning. Sometimes we just need to be still and well, be.

I found myself up at 3:30 AM this morning dozing while skyping concept art and promo ideas for my newest project, a feature film entitled FRUITION HARD LINE (http://www.facebook.com/FruitionHardLineFilm) and it was around 3:36 after failing respond to my Director Timi Brennan’s question I realized emotionally and physically I was wiped out. A lot of unpleasantness had gone down that night going as far as confronting a friend on some very serious issues that were greatly effecting her life and I didn’t even have it in me to get off the floor and crawl into bed. Along with co-writing and producing a feature film, I’m producing a stage play, rewriting a feature length script for the ATL Film Fest screenplay competition and I generally rock a 30 hour work week to pay the bills and continue to move my current projects forward. Its all a little insane and I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’ve been driving myself into the ground. Working so hard to keep banging away at my vision and going above and beyond even what my fellow collaborators require of me, but not taking time to just relax.

Its the dead hottest part of August where I live in the southeast right now and my backyard pool has been calling invitingly for several weeks now. I finally gave in today, pulled on my suit and flopped out in the water for a good hour or so. Needlees to say it was glorious and exactly what I needed. I let my mind rest, my body loosen up and my soul find solace in the warmth of the sun and the peace of country living. I’ve always been one who struggles with balance. I hold the somewhat complicated opinion that no one ever gets anything worth getting by doing the “safe” thing, I say “Let the best crazy person win.” Its all very tongue and cheek and don’t get me wrong I believe every letter of it but again, balance.

I wrote an article for Student Filmmaker magazine this past week about how filmmakers need to have a little bit of crazy, crazy passionate about their projects and crazy purposeful on how they make those dreams come about. I now what to add to that, be crazy respectful of you own mind and your body and it needs. If you body is telling you to rest, then you sure as hell should listen. You’re cheating yourself and the others around by not being balanced. There is a way to be full of passion, tenacity, and go-get-em while still making time to eat three solid meals a day and getting more then 4 hours of sleep. Something a friend of mine on twitter said recently really stood out to be me, Devin Watson (@dklon) being the brilliant experienced guy that he is said “Work smarter, not harder.”

So I’m gonna lay it down right here. I’m gonna go to bed before two. I’m not gonna drink more then two cups of coffee a day, I’m gonna read something besides my emails, and film/marketing books (hello Sandman), I’m gonna go back to doodling on concrete with charcoal from our fire pit, I’m gonna dress up in suits and go to random dance parties with friends, I’m gonna go back to taking long walks in the rain with my black lab, AND I’m going co-write/produce a feature film, produce a stage play and write a damn good sci-fi period thriller. Because I know I can and I have to. Ultimately, doing a little bit of nothing isn’t betraying yourself as artist, its making sure you can remain one.