NMP: MM Dispatch

Do you.

They say if you do it this way, with this filter, and that audio bite, you’ll get more followers.

You need more followers. You won’t have any more followers. You won’t amount to any algorithmic substance.

NMP: Not My Problem. Honestly, I don’t really care. I’ve spent so much time and energy caring that it’s almost bordering on ridiculous. I cared if I had the right sunglasses, the right pants, the right music. I cared what complete strangers thought of me, I carried what the valet guy thought, what the barista thought, what my friends thought.

When I look back at how much energy went into absolutely nothing important, it’s mind-blowing.

One of the most amazing things about getting older is realizing that you don’t give a shit. All those things that once occupied prime brain real estate? Completely disheartening. Now, I’m free. It’s NMP.

I once dated a woman, AK. She was a real battle axe, in all the good ways. Her motto? NMP. She lived it 76% of the time. It was super admirable. I wasn’t comfortable, or more importantly, confident enough to just hold my own space and not worry about others.

But now? Luckily, I’m not young anymore. In this world where tech social bros and bots are working overtime to mess with our minds, I can stand firm and sleep well at night knowing that soooo many things are NMP.

You hear those stories about older folks dropping wisdom and knowledge about the best parts of getting older. NMP never seems attainable when you’re young. You think you’re above it all, that you don’t care. However deep inside you know you care way too much.

But then one day...

BAM

NMP!!

Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

One crucial aspect of the NMP mindset is NOT focusing on the trivial things in life. Whether it's worrying about your sunglasses or what the barista thinks of you, it’s really not worth your time. She can barely spell your name right—why in the name of the good Lord Baby Jesus should you care what she thinks?

Instead, you save that mental space for what truly matters: your health, checking in with friends to see if they’re doing okay, going for longer walks with your dog, enjoying your morning coffee, or savoring the crackle of a vinyl record. You start to cherish those small moments that create a more solid foundation for who you are.

Here's a prime example that just happened to me while I was writing this post.

I was a bit behind on this draft, and it was Saturday evening around 5:46 p.m. I was waiting for a friend to join me for a radio interview to promote our pop-up gallery next week. With some time to kill, I decided to start writing while hanging out on State Street. Technically, I was on Daytona Street, but who's keeping track?

I could hear a homeless woman yelling and screaming nearby. I could only catch glimpses of people’s concerned faces as they walked past the intersection, away from where she was. I minded my own business and kept working on the draft. Then, the yelling got closer. The woman rounded the corner, visibly distressed, carrying all her belongings in one arm.

I looked her dead in the eyes. She looked back at me. Then, something shifted. She stopped yelling, quietly muttered to herself, and walked past me with her head down.

I can't help but think that if I wasn’t in an NMP flow state, she would’ve sensed my unease and given me an earful, disrupting my space. But she knew—she could feel that I was solid, stable in my own skin. She knew she couldn’t rattle me because, after all, it was NMP.

LOVE & LIGHT;

MM

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