Adults Only

There’s a story or three to this week that I’d love to share with you.  For example, how did I inadvertently get my first 18+ rating on YouTube?  How did I discover the wealth of wisdom in a new friendship? And how did ‘coincidence’ suggest I begin working on ASMR Affirmations for Moodscope?

Let’s begin with a new mantra that I learned from deepening a friendship: “What will I do today that my Future-Self will thank me for?”

This arose from a series of serendipitous events.  I’ve not been having a proper day off – clear of technology.  By last Wednesday, my innermost being had had enough.  I was invited to go for a walk near Worth Matravers – my home for many years.  With road works outside the house, I figured my chances of getting any voice over work recorded were slim… so I went for a walk 3x longer than my goal, with ups and downs that covered the equivalent of 27 floors!

The walk was exhausting and exhilarating!  Breathless for much of it, I made the decision to listen to author Lee Groombridge, who has written an excellent short book on resilience.  “What will I do today that my Future-Self will thank me for?” comes from Lee.

My Future-Self thanked me for the walk and the deeper friendship… though my physical self wasn’t too happy with me for the following 48 hours!

A week earlier, I had recorded the waves by Boscombe Pier using slow motion video.  This post had received positive responses from some viewers, and one mentioned the hunger on YouTube for ASMR.  This is a form of quiet speaking and other sounds that can provoke a deeply pleasant response.  Inspired, I rewrote the Moodscope statements as affirmations and whispered them over some new footage I had captured of clouds passing overhead – the Cloud Whisperer or Wellbeing Whisperer.

I didn’t like it.  Penelope confirmed my worst fears when she said the whispering sounded creepy!  This morning I’ve re-recorded it using quiet speaking rather than whispering.  You can see the new video here…

https://youtu.be/Jhqa6jisxUU

Inspired once more to take time out, Penelope and I went to Sculpture by the Lakes near Dorchester.  This is a mixture of indoor and outdoor sculpture set in acres of lakeside gardens.  It features many works by Simon Gudgeon as well as work from 30 of the UK’s most celebrated sculptors.  The works are magnificent.

And this is how I got my first 18+ rating on YouTube.  Let me say that the art is occasionally of an adult nature.  In fact, no children or dogs are allowed into the gardens.  Like Adam and Eve, some of the works don’t even need clothing!  YouTube thought my video unsuitable for young eyes, and thus I learn another lesson.  However, my Future-Self thanks me for going there and for capturing the memories on film!

The spooky thing is that a friend bumped into us there and suggested I did… ASMR recordings!  When the ‘Universe’ works so serendipitously, it’s good to listen…

Here's a video version of this Podcast: https://youtu.be/4gdVHA_gjeI

Adults Only - An Inspirational Podcast

Euphoria

The joys of Ambient Metal.
164 bpm
Remixed from the Ambient Metal sample library.
Image from NightCafé

Ambient Metal Construction Coming Home 164bpm

Retro Future brings the essence of synthwave to your fingertips. Dive into a world of nostalgic 80s vibes blended with futuristic sounds. Packed with neon-lit beats, lush pads, and analog-inspired basslines, this collection is perfect for crafting timeless grooves with a modern retro edge.

RF 2 Loop Track

RF 1 Loop Track

Psalm 23

Progressive Chaos with Milk and Cookies

I have watched the northern lights begin to climb,
A slow electric fire, a ghostly pantomime.
They dance on the ice of a silent fjord,
A spectrum bleeding from a hidden source.
And I thought of the charge in the air when you are near,
A static tension, beautiful and clear…
A gift to match that celestial show…
But I have no heavens to bestow.

(Chorus)
For had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would lay them down where your pathway goes,
A phantom ribbon, a synthesized rose.
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet.
Tread softly, love, tread softly,
For you tread on my dreams.

(Verse 2)
My studio is built of failing amps,
And melodies that fade from memory's maps.
My instruments are breath and a fragile hope,
A worn-out tape on a broken loop.
I have no anthems, no stadium's roar,
Just this quiet hum behind a locked door…
A simple chord progression, raw and true…
That I'm weaving into a sky for you.

(Chorus)
For had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would lay them down where your pathway goes,
A phantom ribbon, a synthesized rose.
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet.
Tread softly, love, tread softly,
For you tread on my dreams.

(Bridge)
And every dream is a shimmering thread,
A synthesizer's voice, in a beatless bed.
One careless word, a change in the key,
And the harmony shatters, the vision flees.
This frequency is all I can ever send,
My vulnerable signal, my truest friend.
So know the ground on which you stand,
Is the mix-tape of my heart, held in your hand.

(Outro - Fading Arpeggio)
I have spread my dreams…
Under your feet…
Tread softly…
(You tread on my dreams…)
…on my dreams…

The Song of the Dreamweaver - Progressive Rock

Touching on the grandeur of Progressive Rock Concept Albums of the 1970s...
Interpreting the musical styles and genres of each Gospel and The Book of Acts.
It's way deeper than you may think.
There are sacred geometric shapes that reflect the movement of genres and time signatures from Matthew's commitment to order through to John's looser flowing style and then on through The Book of Acts initial chaos resolving into the New Order of the Early Church

Synoptica plus John and Acts - The Shape of Things to Come

Healing Scriptures - Divine Medicine

The World has changed, and what a wonderful opportunity we have to change with it.  We can have change thrust upon us, causing us to react, or we can experience change and choose to respond in ways that suit us.

I believe it's the ideal time to reflect on whether our current location and vocation suit us.  When we change our environment, we transform our mental state, and thus our experience of life.  Whilst physically relocating may not be an option for you or me, choosing to spend more time in places that lift our spirit is most certainly an option.  And what about vocation.  Whilst I don't use 'revocation' in this recording, the concept is there.  If we can relocate for our wellbeing, why can't we revocate!  We can put first-things-first and find a vocation that will better suit the next chapter of our life.

If you were to retrain for a new vocation, what profession or career would you choose?  Imagine there are no limits, and give the answer that comes from your heart?

Which locations have special meaning and significance for you?
How could you spend more time there?

https://youtu.be/LNBjMRvOB5M great remix from the Pet Shop Boys

Location And Vocation x3

"Becoming Heroes," is the podcast for the Hero inside of you.  Every Hero needs a Guide to help them become the best version of themselves.  Our podcast brings you the best Guides and guidance in bite-sized chunks of awesomeness!

Adults Only - An Inspirational Podcast

Lex McKee

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