day 8 | ‘the impossible dream’

old stereo receiver from the 1970s

the impossible dream

January 1987, Journal Excerpt. Sacramento, CA

sundays are for putting things in order so you can spend the rest of the week
watching them fall apart

“the impossible dream” is playing on muzak. i keep the soft and easy radio station
on at all times, played through a thrift store stereo with the treble turned all the way
down and the bass turned all the way up. it creates a muffled fog machine of music
that obscures all the other distracting sounds and noises. i started doing it when
the new neighbor moved in upstairs. he’s big and gross, belching and pacing
constantly. constant thumping. back and forth to the refridgerator or the bathroom
or who knows where the hell he’s going. it’s a tiny apartment – there’s not too
many possibilities. also things like dripping faucets and noisy toilets – can’t hear
them with beautiful music making everything easier to accept. the people who talk
on this station say “soft music that feels good”, and they act like they are your friend.
“if I’ll only be true to this glorious quest”

another rainy day. stayed home sick from work and wrote lyrics
sitting in the usual chair with my clipboard and one of my bic roller pens (the only
kind tolerable). this is what the “way to write” book recommends, so the whole act
becomes habit. ritual. sit in the chair, pick up pen, mind starts thinking, or
creatively wandering