GREENMUSE is a regular reader and fan contributor at antiMUSIC, the views expressed here don't necessarily reflect those of antiMUSIC or our sponsors, but we are sure you will enjoy what he has to say! 

Greetings and salutations, tis your old pal Stinky McWhistles with another mind bending trip into something or the other. This time its going to be something not really music related, yet at the same time it is. I�ve been having a few different conversations with people lately and they all seem to center on one issue; age. It�s my birthday at the end of next month, I�ll be a ripe old 24. Or maybe 25? I really stopped paying attention after 21. age is an odd sort of thing, I�ve seen other people I grew up with and they seem old to me. They forgot everything they once held dear and now are doomed to follow the same cycle of their parents; going from the counter culture to the adult contemporary set on an inclined plane, zooming with alarming speed at that brick wall at the end . And if and when you collide with this wall, you won�t even realize it. All of a sudden boom, you toss out all the music you held so dear and exchange it for the NOW collections. Don�t laugh it has happened to a ex girlfriend of mine. I was back in the home town and was at Krispy Kreme donuts(the best ever) and I spotted her in there, all grown up and no longer a hip young devotchka. No, she was dressed rather nicely and was with an equally nicely dressed guy. After earing in on the conversation all I could do was just shake my head. They were actually talking about current music, and in a positive light. Gone was the rebellious young girl I once knew. When walking through the parking lot I passed by her car, and in the center console, to my horror was 3 of the NOW compilations. I nearly laughed so hard I shat myself.

A lot of people seem to forget entirely about the things they once loved when they get older. I�ve known a few people from school with whom id compare sketches and other tidbits of art. We were passionate about this, and the last time i saw them. They do not draw anymore. They could care less about art, its useless, and a waste of time they say. it seems becoming an adult goes hand in hand with losing passion for life. i know the real world is a hectic place when the golden school years end. Reality crashes with a heavy iron fist. But that�s no need to forget who you once were. i have a fulltime job, a small family all my own. But I still don�t let that grind me into becoming a sensible adult, a lot of people don�t let this happen, but it does happen to the majority for some reason.

I�ve yet to understand how or why this happens to people, and to a lesser extent why it hasn�t happened to me. I know I�ll be doomed to be the guy who will be stuck in a time warp and still being the same when I�m 60, much like the aging hippies that still populate our world. Sure they are kinda silly, a bit weird, maybe even scary, but the ones that scare me are the ones who slap a Grateful Dead bear sticker on the back of their Mercedes SL500. The old hippies may seem kinda kooky to us, but be kind, that could be you or one of your friends in a couple years.

24 or 25 is really on the warning track of the baseball field of life between childhood and full fledged adulthood. Try never to forget who you were or who you truly are deep down inside. Success is nice, but don�t let it consume you into an unrecognizable shell of your former self. so long little brothers and sisters, the eternal rebel without a cause --GM

Greenmuse loves to hear from you, post a message below or send him an email at [email protected] (he does get some rather strange emails from time to time... there was this one from a 14 punker girl who asked him if he wanted to...)