What life looks like and what other peoples lives look like

This blog post is a general opinion piece about what I've been reflecting on lately, and how that reflects on music and the music scene in Chicago in general, in terms of what we expect and what it looks like. Since I moved to Chicago last August, I've been lucky enough to be introduced and kind of submerged into the 'scene', though I hate the kitschiness of that phrase. I've met and been acquainted with people who have met and spoken to musicians that I grew up admiring and idolizing. To feel the layers of separation become thinner has given me a sort of jolt. It makes you realize that while there IS a sort of "in group" of people connected to the music industry, the barriers to introducing yourself to that group are much weaker than one may think. This is because musicians are the people who listen to and support other musicians the most. I believe this is the same for most sects of life, whether it's music or other forms of art. The people who make the art themselves are the ones that support other artists the most. It's a self-sufficient cycle of sorts. This means that whenever I meet someone who I think is much cooler/talented/accomplished than me, they always shock me with the kindness and enthusiasm with which they show my pursuits. There is the idea of people who are successful as having lives that are out of reach, impossible to even imagine. I think this idea comes from how little we tend to understand about people's lives, especially the musicians of the past. But what I've come to think about more and more is the fact that the people that I've met who have gone on tour in Europe, or who have been on red carpets, ---have all also known about the mundane, the brain rot, and the day-to-day events of life. We all live the same hours, and most people do the same things. I realized the other day when I was telling my coworker about my life, is that when they hear or see things about my life, they might think that I am somehow different from them. But to tell the truth, to achieve something does not take that much. I suppose I am lucky, and that plays into it, but you only have to try a little bit and be kind for things to move along. Ambition is important, but most people don't spend hours every day doing something to achieve something. It's ok to live life slowly, I guess, and I just think it's important to remember that the people that we think are so cool are also just people who also put butter on their toast and stare at nothing sometimes. Nobody is an alien.