Catching the Big Fish

Okay, where to begin. I have a lot of love for David Lynch, and reading this (which I did in about an hour, it's quite short and spaced out), I heard his voice, which is very pleasant. I got a kick out of some of it.

I think my notes (not all of which are below like they usually are) are divided between three categories: advice to the artist, notes on Transcendental Meditation, and Lynch Trivia. I really enjoyed two of those things.

Lynch Trivia – there is quite a bit to love. The accidental discovery of BOB in Frank Silva standing next to a dresser. The evolution of INLAND EMPIRE. The trivia about Kubrick calling Eraserhead his favorite movie (what the fuck does it feel like to have one of the best to ever do it call your film his favorite? Must have been nuts.). Lots to love.

T. Meditation – listen. I don't find a lot of this all that much different from the hokey stuff that Rick Rubin was peddling in his book (which I detested). There are some differences. One, Lynch is notably less preachy. He is trying to convince you to give it a shot, and he goes on some really wacky tangents. Talking about Unified Field Theory and modern science catching up with ancient vedic science. None of that works for me. It gives me the willies. I'm allergic to it.

I don't believe that meditation can let you tap into some great unifying force that connects everything. I do believe that taking some time to chill out and let your emotions settle can be healthy. Much of this stuff is the same as radical acceptance and mindfulness. Those are two things I like. Do I like them because they've been sanitized of Eastern influences? That would be a troubling thought. I don't think so. I think I like them because they don't try to tell me that the world works in ways that my eyes cannot see and my hands cannot feel. I don't have to accept any mysticism with them. I don't know. This is not an uncomfortability I had to confront at all with Rubin because much of his writing seemed completely batshit to me. Perhaps I am a hypocrite – probably I am.

Here's the rub: if taking 20 minutes in the morning and the evening to calm down is helpful to you, and you want to call it meditation, or mindfulness, or anything else, that is none of my business. What do I care?

I've tried meditation a bit, including a few years ago after I read Ruth Ozeki's The Face: A Timecode, which I think about a lot. Lynch says that meditation lets you tap into a wellspring of bliss and inner happiness. I am not convinced there is such a wellspring inside of me. I don't know. I don't think most people I know would say that I'm the happiest person in the world. Not that I want to be thought of as depressed or constantly sad. It's just that happiness is something I experience in the moment with people and not in quiet times by myself. I need a lot of external validation for that. Perhaps that is an insecurity that Lynch would say rests in my inner self, and that meditating on that would help me. That is probably not so far from what a therapist would say. I'm a social worker, I know. But so it goes and all that.

Lynch a few times mentions published research. I can't help but notice at no point is this cited anywhere. That doesn't impress me. I would be less annoyed at this lack of citation if other things weren't cited in the back. There are also a few names mentioned as doctors or whatever and I wondered what I'd see if I googled these names and ultimately I don't think it's worth my time to go poking around because what do I care?

Advice to the artist – there is a lot of it to be had and I like it all. All of it involves truth, which is important to me. I would say it is a core value.

[Sound] is just another tool to ensure that you're following that original idea and being true to it.

Stay true to yourself. Let your voice ring out, and don't let anybody fiddle with it. Never turn down a good idea, but never take a bad idea.

I don't necessarily love rotting bodies, but there's a texture to a rotting body that is unbelievable. Have you ever seen a little rotted animal? I love looking at those things, just as much as I like to look at a close-up of some tree bark, or a small bug, or a cup of coffee, or a piece of pie. You get in close and the textures are wonderful.

Selected notes/highlights:

you.

being true to it

If you stay true to the idea, it tells you everything you need to know, really.

be

show

Keep your own voice.

Stay true to yourself.

What an interesting dive into the creative mind of David Lynch. This book talks about a little bit of everything, from his childhood to art school to the moment he decided to become a filmmaker to the highs and lows of his career. All of it revolves around his deep love and longstanding practice of Transcendental meditation, the linchpin (pun intended) of his creative life. Well worth the read if you are a creative and interested in how other creatives think.

"We should all be like puppy dogs, wagging our tails."

What a bonkers book.
I'll have to look up the TM fund that he supports with his name.

I'm sure meditation and relaxation would help people in high stress environments but what a bonkers notion it is to believe that it's a solution to any of the stressors (poverty/racism/misogyny/transphobia/war/inequality/inequity) other than a soothing balm.

Short and sweet. You ain't gonna learn how to meditate, or anything concrete at all, but you get to see David Lynch's brain in action as it meanders around thinking about stuff in a very distinct tone.

Plus you might appreciate some previously unexamined details of life, like the perfect soundtrack for a scene or the granularity of rotten flesh.

A great collection of anecdotes from Lynch, discussing his life, creativity, and TM. You're not really going to learn anything about how YOU can harness your creativity or how to meditate, you're just going to learn how Lynch does and his journey. It's a fun, light read if you love hearing Lynch talk (which I do).

David Lynch makes films. Odd films. Zany films. Nevertheless, I've run across many people who are creative yet cannot write and still try to write.

It's okay. David Lynch is not one of these.