Michael's Musings

Come Closer, It Doesn't Smell
Michael Shinafelt

"I wish I was like you...Easily amused" - All Apologies, Nirvana 

It takes a lot to amuse me in the world of entertainment. In life not so much there are so many amusing and amazing people, places & things to engage in the world around us. While I am not one of those overly perky people I am certainly not a pessimist either. I would clarify myself as a realist. 

Life is a series of moments and how you experience them is up to you....time to throw me in the shallow water before I get too deep!

Let's all put on a folk hat and learn something about a foreign culture

Khloe Kardashian & Kylie Jenner are both pregnant. Smells like ratings spirit

Did you know you can purchase Vampire Repellent from Gwyneth Paltrow's life style brand Goop? It's supposed to ward off "Emotional Vampires" - I can save you $100, cut them out of your life. Yeah, it's that simple.

R.I.P. Hugh Hefner you were a true original

Started up yoga again my arms and back are SAF! But it's worth it!

Turns out Tyra Banks is good for something. Whilst trying to treat my dry skin issue I remembered some celebrity had once said they use Vaseline on their face. It works, and the celeb was Tyra.

Vulgarity is an important ingredient of life. F#ck you if you disagree!

Send In The Insane Clown Posse
American Horror Story

No matter what I think about it this season of American Horror Story is certainly the most audacious! 

When someone asks you why the response should always be: Because I can

AT&T needs me to spank them, hard!

What's on my mind? You, you are always on my mind


No one needs squad goals - are you listening Taylor Swift???

Keep Calm and As If...

Pretend I am a cult leader and mindlessly follow me at:

https://www.instagram.com/michaelshinafelt/?hl=en
https://twitter.com/MShinafelt   

Michael's Musings

The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of...
Michael Shinafelt

This week one thing really comes to mind: Stay Queer As F#ck! Queer meaning be bold, be individual and most of all be present. This is to all my friends, who break the mold and follow their own paths and to those who I don't know, yet do the same. 

Moving forward...

Free your mind and your ass will follow

You know the world is f#cked when you see a headline giving credibility to Ivanka Trump's thoughts on politics

Own it when you get your tit in a ringer

I'm just a pool boy, from a pool family

My hybrids are better than your hybrids

Two movies I am actually can't wait to see (trust me this is rare) IT & Mother!

And then there's the latest Taylor Swift single...

Headline I Love! Texas Pizza Hut Employees Deliver Free Pizzas by Kayak to Harvey Victims Trapped in Their Homes

Yoga is a helpful thing

Are you a therapist now, wiener man?

I hope American Horror Story: Cult is better than that Roanoke garbage

Get your freak on with me at:

https://www.instagram.com/michaelshinafelt/?hl=en
https://twitter.com/MShinafelt   

Michael's Musings

The Real Man Behind The Curtain
Michael Shinafelt
Photo: Jay Jorgensen

This has been a week. What kind of a week has it been Michael? The kind where you need to ignore the little orange man behind the curtain. I'm in touch with reality, he isn't. 

If you need to ask who that is, you really shouldn't be here, or really anywhere else for that matter. 

Figure it out. It's time to move on, let's have some fun...that is all. Good times ahead!!!!

Smells Like Nixon Spirit, Only 10 Time Worse!

I'm too sexy to be thirsty

Grab a bag of cucumbers & bananas and carry on

Black Man in Hollywood this past week standing over Vera Miles Star ranting: I see you Vera Miles you're a Ni**er! Perhaps in another life.

Helpful Hint - Never drink Tejava Tea with a smoothie the acidic combo made me hurl

Ida Lickhammer made a triumphant return to my Instagram page this week

The boat belonged to a kooky old witch - the more you know

Finally went back to yoga yesterday, hate it, but love what it does for me

Fashion Police was on at the same time as Pretty Little Liars this past week. Which one did I watch???

l-r Marla Graves, Erik Rimmer, E.G. Daily & Moi

A shout out to E.G. Daily and her family. Be well my friend. If you watch TMZ you know why...

Bitch, why are you trying to hug me? We are not cool like that!

I am thinking of writing a children's book

Remember this Sunday werd to your Mother

Time to bid adieu, follow me, because your Mama says at:

https://www.instagram.com/michaelshinafelt/?hl=en

https://twitter.com/mshinafelt?lang=en  

Chillaxin With Trevor Hall

Trevor Hall Chillaxin
Photo: Emory Hall

Chill dude, Trevor Hall is an accomplished musician. His music with it's eclectic mix of acoustic rock, reggae and Sanskrit chanting – echo with the names and teachings of divinities, while maintaining an incredibly and refreshingly universal message. While on the road, Trevor sees the stage as his moving temple, a place where he can share in the experience of his spiritual journey with his audience. His latest album Chapter of the Forest reflects all of the above and more...it's chillaxin time with Trevor Hall!

MS: Hey Trevor how are you?

TH: I'm good, thanks.

MS: I was listening to your latest album Chapter of the Forest right before you called, I liked that listening to it was like taking a journey, you start one place and end up another.

TH: Thank you, thanks so much.

MS: Your music is very spiritual and a mixture of rock, folk, pop and world music.

TH: Right, right. I had to disguise the world music with more popular forms of music so that people would understand the message better.

MS: You took off on a pilgrimage to India right after a successful run in music, what made you want to do that?

TH: Well I've been traveling to India for, seven years. I got burnt out and needed to get my strength back and India is that place, I just took a long time off and went there for about three and a half months or so. It was out of a need to connect again and get my spiritual strength back and physical strength, so I went on a retreat, no phones, no E-mails, nothing like that.

My healing started to happen and when I came back I really started writing a lot of the songs for Chapter of the Forest. 

MS: You met your wife in India and got engaged to her. Did you meet her on this pilgrimage or before that?

TH: I met her in India the year before. Then when we went back in 2013 I proposed to her then in the same place where we met. 

MS: How cool! Being a spiritual person are you into yoga by any chance?

TH: Not really a lot of Hatha Yoga, what people call yoga today in the West. There are actually many, many limbs of yoga, so I practice kind of different things. I probably should be doing yoga more because my back is tight after being on the tour bus. (laughs) The tour is actually really amazing that were on right now, Michael Franti is super into yoga so before every show during the day they have a huge yoga class for all of the musicians. So if I wanted to get healthy this is the tour to do it! (laughs)

MS: So how is the tour going?

TH: It's going great, last night we were at San Diego State University it was such a nice time because there were so many wonderful bands on the bill. Also I am traveling with a super fun group of guys, it's just a really nice time. Sometimes tours, ya know, you don't know who you are traveling with, they play a different style music and they clash or something, but on this one everyone is like a big ole family it's been really enjoyable.

MS: Tell me a little bit about the inspiration for Chapter of the Forest, something other than your pilgrimage to India.

                                                           "Chapter of the Forest"
TH: Chapter of the Forest is the meditation I did and it's about going back inside. The forest for me is a mystical place for solitude and silence. Obviously I believe in the external forest, but I also believe that all these sacred landscapes are also inside our own body. Chapter of the Forest in our hearts or in our mind is that place of stillness, meditation , reflection and rejuvenation type of thing. I'm really influenced by the Indian Saints, one of the Saints says that you can't live in the world continuously or else you'll drown. From time to time you have to retreat in solitude. Whether that be the corner of a room for an hour, or a forest for a month or a year. 

I took that really literally and said: "Stop I'm burnt out" and went up into the forests of Vermont and Maine with my wife and just really tried to slow down. As that happened after a while I started picking up my guitar, not because I had to but because I wanted to, I love music and that was the feeling I was trying to get again after being so burnt out, it became just a job for me at some point. That's when Chapter of the Forest really started to come to life and as that was happening all the experiences I had, had in other forests all over the world, like India and Nepal, these memories started to resurface and give me inspiration and that's where a little of the Indian element came from on the album. 

But I really wanted to do something rootsy and raw, and not be chasing that number one single. Something that was really pure and from my heart, that's what this album is all about. 

MS: I completely get it, it can become disheartening when you are creating for the sole purpose of making money.

TH: Yeah.

MS: Make yourself happy first, that's the most important thing I think.

TH: Right, right, I agree.

MS: Here's something random, when I did a Google search of your name a meme came up with Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka saying: "You test drove Trevor Hall, tell me about his triangle"
do you know what that means? (laughs)

TH: Tell me about his triangle? I have no idea what that means (laughs) Yeah I have no idea what that could mean. 

MS: Thanks Trevor, have fun on the rest of your tour.

TH: Thanks man.

Join Trevor in the forest at: http://www.trevorhallmusic.com/