Nibble the Product

You may have seen the video of the McDonald's CEO pretending to eat his company's new burger. He appeared stiff, alien, and uncomfortable. I thought it was his first day on the job, maybe his first day on the planet. He referred to it as 'Product' before managing the tiniest nibble, obviously disgusted.

A bunch of other burger joints made parodys, showing that they made burgers that could actually be enjoyed.

I wanted to make my own, where I gobbled down some mushrooms or maybe an entire sheet of fake (drugless) blotter acid, then declaring them 'delicious products. However, with psychedelic censorship being what it in on social media, I was worried that would be the end of my account.

It reminds me of the Simpson's episode when Marge fed the three eyed fish to Mr. Burns.

It reminds me of when Steve Jobs said he'd never let his kids use an iphone.

McDonald's knows it's selling us stuff that is terrible for our physical health. Apple is selling us stuff that it knows is terrible for our mental and emotional well-being.

A wise woman once offered me this suggestion: "Don't buy things from people who hate you."

I do my best.

I don't love talking about these sorts of topics, and i'm not going to go too deep. There are a lot of topics I just don't care to tackle. However, it's moments like this, that I'm reminded that corporate America seems to be at war with us, too. They are battling for our attention, our value systems, and our money.

How to fight back? I'm not aware of any way to do this in a big way. The best thing I've come up with is to meditate, to consume less, and to create more. To grow my awareness, reduce my reactivity, and to encourage others to do the same. Here are two things to try to fight back. Again, it's not much, but it's not bad for a Tuesday.

Buy local. Think Globally, Act locally.

I've been a buy-local kind of guy forever, shopping at farmers' markets and local food brands from the co-ops. Crafted goods from small American businesses when I can afford it. It was easy when I was just one guy. It's gotten harder as the family has grown, and even moreso when we moved from the city to a tiny town. I buy from Amazon a bit too much.

Output before input - Create before consuming.

A phrase coined by Tom Sachs I try to make a little art of do some writing before I look at my phone. I spend a lot of time in front of my screens and I try to make sure some of that is done putting creating content instead of just consuming it. This email for example. People sometimes seem surprised that I am so regular with my posting. It's a value. Any moment you're reading my email or my social media posts is a moment that you aren't watching something that was created by someone who hates you. I love you. I want you to be safe, happy, and enlightnened. I want you to be able to be able to have a product worth nibbling, devouring, or savoring, as is revealed in each moment.

For some reason, Jim Morrison's quote has bubbled to the top of my mind, "No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn."

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The Golden Road

The Golden Road has evolved into a wonderful group of practitioners.

We meet every Thursday at noon eastern, and there are monthly masterclasses as well.

There is also a large archive (over 200 hours) of psychedelic education and past talks.

The wonderful people who show up share not only their journeys, but the journeys of those they steward. It's become a place of learning, support, accountability, and peer review. Folks are learning some things from me, but they are also learning from each other. We all face unique challenges as we work in this space, and it's great to have a place where we can bring them for non-judgmental feedback and reflection. You're invited. Click here to join​

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