Surrender to the Rock Series - Post #2 - get outta your own damn way

That ninja appears to be much taller than the advertised twelve feet....

What are we talking about here?  We are talking about a band called Twelve Foot Ninja.  Where are they from?  Australia. Are they weird?  ABSOLUTELY.  Are they still making music?  Sadly, no.  Their vocalist decided to depart the band in 2022. Then why are we here, Nick?  We are here to talk about a song from their 2016 album, Outlier.  What song, Nick?  Ok enough, lets just get into it....

You see why I love these guys, right?  They are strong with the sillyness.

Artist: Twelve Foot Ninja

Album: Outlier

Song: Sick

First thing -  this band is weird in the best ways.  I guess they would be considered 'progressive' metal since one song can have super heavy down-tuned guitars, a jazz section, some Latin rhythms, really nothing would be surprising. I loved them first because of their weirdness, and discovered later the messages behind some of their songs.  One song in particular is especially relatable for me.  .... Sick - lyric video below.

As always, the first thing that grabbed me and pulled me in was the music.  It starts with some funky guitar, then into some heavy shit, then back to the funk for the verse.  It bounces around in this fashion the entire time.  The funky parts make the heavy parts seem heavier and the heavy parts give me more appreciation for the lighter funky parts.  You get it...  right?  👅😁

The music sucked me in, and after a few listens, I started to hear the lyrics.  The lyrics are what I wanna talk about for this Surrender to the Rock post.  Let us break down some of my favorite lines and what they mean to me.

Are you sick of being tired?  Are you tired of being sick?

    So many times I have heard in meetings "I was sick and tired of being sick and tired." Waking up every morning feeling like shit and saying to myself, "Enough.  I will not drink today."  But by 3 or 4PM I had changed my mind.  Every damn time.... for years.  

THE FACT IS THAT MOST ALCOHOLICS, FOR REASONS YET OBSCURE, HAVE LOST THE POWER OF CHOICE IN DRINK. OUR SO- CALLED WILL POWER BECOMES PRACTICALLY NONEXISTENT. WE ARE UNABLE, AT CERTAIN TIMES, TO BRING INTO OUR CONSCIOUSNESS WITH SUFFICIENT FORCE THE MEMORY OF THE SUFFERING AND HUMILIATION OF EVEN A WEEK OR A MONTH AGO. WE ARE WITHOUT DEFENSE AGAINST THE FIRST DRINK.  p. 24 of the book Alcoholics Anonymous

As you grip for the future, it slips out of your hands. The bitter sweet truth you know too well... you've got to take it.  You've got to face it where you stand.

    I work very hard these days trying not to live in the future or the past.  It takes constant awareness because I naturally want to worry about the future and make decisions based on things gone awry in the past.  That tendency is part of what kept me drinking for so long.  Anytime I was sober I was never in the present moment.  I was always thinking about what might happen or something that did happen and I just wasn't comfortable in my own mind until I could drink.  Drinking made it possible for me to avoid uncomfortable feelings and it did that sometimes by forcing me into the present moment.  After a couple drinks all the noise in my head was tamped down and I could listen to music, or do the dishes, or play drums, or ... do anything and focus on what I was doing.  Unfortunately, eventually I needed alcohol to enjoy anything.  When you get to that point the thought of quitting seems impossible.

Get out of your own damn way.

    This is applicable to so many things in my life.  In relation to any change there is this little bastard nay-sayer giving me a list of reasons why I shouldn't try it or can't do it.  What I need to do in those moments is pick up this little version of myself, set him to the side, and keep moving forward.  Hey me... get out of my damn way.

Don't ask if refusal offends.

    Or, as he says in the song... DON'T..... ASK.....IF......RE......FU......SAL.....O......FENDS! This is empowering, especially in those early days of quitting a substance.  Especially alcohol since it is socially available/acceptable/expected in so many situations.  It's ok to decline without explaining yourself.  It's ok to decline and say nothing.  If someone thinks it strange that is their issue to deal with, not yours. Another situation similar to this is at family gatherings or pot lucks at work.  If I don't want to partake in Betty's 18 cheese fondue I don't have to.  And, I don't have to explain why.  I can explain if I want to, sure. But if my refusal offends...  that's not my problem.  💥

I can get a handle on it I can get a handle on it I can get a handle on it I can get a handle on it I can get a handle on it

    This is pretty self-explanatory.  As I was thinking about what to comment I decided the first words of Chapter 3 in the AA book "More About Alcoholism" describe it best.......

Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his fellows. Therefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people. The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death. - Page 30, Alcoholics Anonymous

    

I hope everyone has a joyful and prosperous 2025 and I hope to write many more posts in the coming year.  

✌🤟🤘