Notes from the Boneyard – A solitary existence

There was an old episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’, set in the future, where instead of prison, a man is sentenced to live his days on a far away desolate planet, in complete isolation.

A solitary existence.

After so many years, a space shuttle is sent to bring the man back home, to Earth.

But he doesn’t want to go.

He’d found his own way of existing up there.

I’ve been thinking about this episode a lot.

There is a lot to be said for existing in the comfort of your own company.

The shackles of society and all of its complications can be a weight that drags you down to the pits of confusion and exhaustion.

People can be very draining.

Sometimes you need a break.

I know from experience and talking to other musicians, that when on the road, sometimes the best part of the night is getting back to your hotel room and just sitting there to decompress.

Sometimes people talk at you, rather than with you, and you have an unrelenting urge to flee their presence.

Sometimes when you enter a social gathering, the first thing you look for is the exit sign.

That’s not to say that being around humans is a drag.

The right kind of people can be uplifting and it’s always a good thing to stay connected with your own crowd.

But the older you get, the number dwindles.

You tend not to tolerate any level of BS.

You can spot it a mile off.

I talked last night with a musician friend in Arizona, who is currently eying up a shack in the mountains, to go live in the wilderness.

Another artist friend is moving to the hills in Cork.

And a pal who tour manages bands around the world for a living spends every New Year’s Eve alone in his caravan in the Lake District.

He says it’s the best day of the year for him, because it’s the only day he can switch off and just be.

I like that.

There seems to be a breed of people now who are getting off the race track and escaping to a simpler way of life.

The Twilight Zone episode is a bit extreme, but there is a certain part of me that is envious of that guy floating around up there, on his very own planet.