Anyone ever loose "the fire"??

Bad Brains · #1 09-12-2005, 05:53 PM

Since about early August my boss to my second job called up and asked if I wanted a couple extra nights a week to work for a few hours. Next thing I know i'm basically working close to two full time jobs at once.

At the same time some crap happaned with my classes for the fall semester and severe stress and depression kicked in at the same time. I really lost the will to even go back to school becase i'm extremly sick of it and i'm not really getting anywhere. Classes started about 2 weeks ago and I have been driving home on the weekends (3 hour drive) to work.

My mind has been going a million different directions and i'm completly swamped with so much stuff to do at once. I havn't even had time or a way to move my stuff into my apartment so while i'm here I have to sleep on the floor.

Anyways I don't even have the desire to play anymore latly. I used to look foward to practice but I don't know when or if I will ever get back into it again. I guess i'm just mentally exausted with everything right now (can't even manage my classes right now).

Anyone else here ever loose the fire to play for whatever reasons?

**Adam Barkley** · #2 09-12-2005, 05:57 PM

My cat is an outside cat. But if she were an inside cat, the act of her escaping would be comparable to her getting loose.

I loose the "fury". Occasionally I unleash the "frickin' fury".

westland · #3 09-12-2005, 06:28 PM

These sorts of overload and motivation problem periods occur periodically, and you just have to work through them and suck it up. It sounds like you need a vacation, but can't break away. As an alternative, try to break out of your normal routine without pushing yourself too hard. Eventually this will pass

Dan1099 · #4 09-12-2005, 06:39 PM

Where ya goin to school at, man? If you ever need to get out or whatever, let me know.

DaftCat · #5 09-12-2005, 06:46 PM

I got back 2h ago from getting my fretting pinky XRayed. Been sore for months and although I am bandless now, 6 weeks ago I was gigging 3-4 nights a week. There were tunes I just couldn't do like I used to because I now play with three fingers instead.

This has stopped me a bit from learning new tricks and new material.

Hang in there, and allocate time to yourself. You only live once you know.

DCat

Bad Brains · #6 09-12-2005, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan1099

Where ya goin to school at, man? If you ever need to get out or whatever, let me know.

CMU, and I can't stand it here. Everyone here drives me nuts.

MJ5150 · #7 09-13-2005, 12:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bad Brains

Anyone else here ever loose the fire to play for whatever reasons?

Yep. I have not played my Jazz in over four months. The last time I turned on my iAMP was to show my son how his iPOD would sound through it into my Epifani cab.

I got caught up with playing golf, baseball, basketball, camping, backpacking, weight training, home remodeling, spending time with my wife and son, and so on. Before I knew it, I had zero desire to even open the case for my Jazz. I still don't. I wanted to sell my gear, but a very close friend of mine here at TB told me to just hang on to it until I am ready to play again. Coming up on six months now, so I'm thinking it isn't coming back. You may see a few ads from me in the For Sale forum soon. I NEVER thought I would get this way. I spent so much time getting my rig perfect, and finding a cool group of guys to gig with. Now, I could not care less.

-Mike

Dan1099 · #8 09-13-2005, 06:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bad Brains

CMU, and I can't stand it here. Everyone here drives me nuts.

Lol. I know the feeling. I have a couple of friends who go there. Not my kinda place. But if you ever feel like it, I'm in the Farmington Hills/Southfield area, just gimme a holler.

B-NoteCowboy · #9 09-13-2005, 09:01 AM

I only loose the fire after eating salsa and jalepeno burgers with garlic cheese fries.

But that's another story for another time.

Maybe you should take a break from it? If music isn't a catharsis for your stress and depression, there's something wrong and you shouldn't go through the motions. Don't press it, take a break and then eventually you'll pick it up again with more passion than before or you'll find out what really motivates you (something other than bass or music?).

Good luck. Depression and stress are killers. Don't let them eat you up.

Woodchuck · #10 09-13-2005, 10:02 AM

Oh yeah! I was in 6 bands at one time, and I was burned the hell out! I actually quit playing for a month. Afterwards, I quit 4 of the bands, and found the love again. Mine was a case of overextension.

bassontherun · #11 09-13-2005, 10:12 AM

Definitely! Spent two years with a band, became ultra-frustrated with their lack of chemistry and direction. Took a couple of years off (played very little music). Got a call from them 6 months ago-- the bass player that replaced me went AWOL with shows booked. Subbed for the band a couple of times and found the chemistry to be first rate (singer slowed down on his drinking, and the world's laziest drummer had been replaced). I've been back in the band for 4 months now and couldn't be happier. Taking a break often allows other issues to work themselves out, and you'll find yourself in a better position. Even if you don't go back to the same band, school, job, etc., you'll have a better perspective and understanding of your place in the band, school, job........

Posts above are correct, take a break form any of the various duties you feel that you can (the second job, music, etc). Anything to reduce the stress. HOWEVER, I sure can't recommend leaving school (maybe changing schools, but no quitting outright). I was halfway through college when I married wife #1 and started working full-time. Started taking 6 or 9 hours a semester at night. Took me another 6 years to finish (most people are called "Doctor" by then

). Always wished I had focused more on college than all of the other stuff and just finished in a timely manner! I can say definitively that once you put college on the back burner, it's REALLY hard to make it your primary focus at any point in the future (funny how life gets in the way).

Good luck, and remeber to work on the stress reduction first. It's better to perform well at one or two tasks than to perform poorly at many.

NJL · #12 09-13-2005, 10:16 AM

I was playing 4-5 times a week with 4 bands (along with a full time job).....It literally almost cost my marriage....

I'm down to 1 band and up to 2 nights a week....

I was burnt out too...on everything....

NewWaveBasser · #13 09-13-2005, 10:48 AM

Bad Brains: I'm at that point too... sorta...

Down in Puerto Rico just about everybody wants to do Yngwie Malmsteen guitar-obsessed supermetahl.

Way too many bands with pointy black guitars, people all dressed in black 'cause black is macho... super-solo-obsessed guitarists AND drummers...

I do not want to do that kind of show-off I'm sooo bad music, but I cannot find anybody with my same musical tastes/interests. OK, without a band. The bands are already formed and no one is building up new ones. I tried to create a band but drummers only wanted to solo, solo, solo. That and a guitarist just left in a cowardly manner.

Now, I'm studying a Master's in Graphic Design, and that takes my time.

With no hope of finding non-metal musicians in this tiny island, it's like for now I don't see myself playing...

Pruitt · #14 09-13-2005, 11:52 AM

I just took roughly 10 years off from playing, as I became involved in other things. It was a concious decision I made so I could pursue some athletic endevours while I was still young enough to do so. I knew at the time that once I got older and my body broke down, I'd return to playing again. It turns out that age was only 43. lol

Take some time off, but I wouldn't sell off my equipment unless my financial situation forced me to. I held onto my '79 Stingray, and it went up in value considerably since I had last played it. More importantly, it was like returning to an old friend when I finally picked it up again. I know I'm glad I hung on to all my gear during that time.

I'm not in band at the moment, that hasn't been my focus since I've returned. Instead, I'm taking lessons again, writing music, helping some old friends with recording stuff they've been working on and just generally enjoying myself getting back into music. I don't regret the time I took off from playing at all, I had a great time doing other things and made a lot of good friends. But I also know I'll be focusing on music for many years now, and that's great too! It's all good!

Good luck and have fun!!

invader3k · #15 09-13-2005, 12:21 PM

I don't think anyone has really posted the obvious response to "Bad Brains" yet:

It seems to me that you just have too many commitments. If you don't even have enough time to move your furniture into your apartment, that is a big problem. Evaluate what you're doing. Do you really need two full time jobs? Do you really have to commute that much? Are sure you want to be in college right now? People aren't meant to run themselves ragged. It's a recipe for depression and/or a mental breakdown.

Maybe once you get the above issues in your life sorted out, you will once again find the time and passion for music. It's hard to focus on music when you barely have any free time for yourself.

lefty · #16 09-14-2005, 09:20 AM

i quit for 7 years. i did`nt have the desire AT ALL! my friends were trippin` out on me they could`nt understand why i did`nt want to play. they would call me up to jam i`d go over there and play a little bit and i`d think dude this isn`t doing it for me. i finaly found a real good home church and had been goin there for a couple of years and they put out the call for musicians and i thought it would be good to serve because i really like this chuch. man my wife really thought i was joking because i really not fond of praise music eccept for gospel type. and then BAM!!! back in action bought a bunch of new gear started playing jazz doig some recording. never sell your gear i would`nt do it i knew i`d need it again someday.

Dr. PhunkyPants · #17 09-14-2005, 09:33 AM

At my advanced age, I've noticed that everything in life moves in cycles. We have happy times and we have sad times. We love the people in our lives, then we resent them.

I think we cause ourselves a whole lot of EXTRA angst by thinking that we ought not feel the way we do. Better by far to just take a step back, and say "Well, I'm sad right now. I don't feel great about my life. Guess this is a low point. It won't last forever, even though it feels that way now. Oh well, it is what it is." And go on and have your day.

As the I Ching teaches "To persevere is favorable". There is no success, there is no failure. There is no right, there is no wrong. There is only the presence of intention or the absence of intention. The absence of intention is what really hurts.