Dave Pires

Wrapping up my entire life over the last month was an intense exercise in time management. I was prepared to leave for Japan on Tuesday, but unfortunately did not get on the plane. There were a few things that needed to be worked out with my visa, and at a near-crippling cost, I was forced to rebook my flight. If everything goes according to plan, I’ll be on my way at the same time next week.

You can imagine that I was pretty crushed on the night things fell apart, but I’ve been feeling positive since then. Being extremely stressed but on top, and then hitting a low point where I was existing in a void, was quite a contrast. Thankfully that void has given me the chance to unwind, have some good conversations, and tinker with ideas and personal projects that were pushed to the side.

I’ve been enjoying the quiet. The day I was supposed to be gone, my phone didn’t ring once, and truthfully, I didn’t feel like talking to anyone. Since then I’ve ventured out here and there, but mostly kept a low profile. Movement to match my mood. Without the stress scattering me I’ve been feeling good, and good things have come to me.

Earlier today I was reading an interview with Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, who put in a ton of work on Kanye’s new album, in which he said, “Everybody is a contradiction of themselves and not only is that not a problem, it’s a beautiful thing. People should be contradictions. If you’re not, it means you’re not evolving or becoming a better person.” And instead of my brain’s receptionist telling him to take a number, I was able to sit back, absorb what he said with a clear head, and think,  “Damn… that’s some pretty ill shit to come up with in an interview.”

A similar moment happened later when I was listening to a lengthy interview with Just Blaze. He was speaking about how a lot of records are impossible to compare because they’re moments in time. Which is a topic that directly relates to recent conversations I’ve had about The College Dropout vs. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and the total insanity when Jay-Z and Jay E respectively dropped D.O.A. and Exhibit C last year.

Both of those insights triangulate with the end of an interview with Yelawolf that really impacted me a couple of days ago. In it he says sincerely, “The art of dope interviews is dead and gone,” and it really stuck in my mind. I’m thankful for the chance to combine and internalize those three things, and for the real effect they’ve had on me. One of my key hopes for this winter is that I’ll be able to do a lot more of this type of thinking, but with some bigger ideas I have.

For those of you in the Swamp fam that get most of your correspondence from me here, I should explain that I’m moving to Niseko for the season. The obvious reason I’m going is to ski as much powder as possible, but it will be an enriching experience in countless other ways. If any of you are curious, I would set aside ten minutes to watch this segment Poor Boyz filmed there a couple years ago. My favorite skier has always been J.P, and soon enough that will be me. P!