Excerpt to Living On The Edge

Bohemianism is a way of life, a state of mind, an atmosphere. It's about living richly and irreverently, beyond convention. It's about being uninhibited, unbuttoned, creative and free.
Bohemian Manifesto is your entry into this world. It distills the penchants and peccadilloes of every kind of Bohemian and examines their vanities, vehicles, poetry, performances and passions - everything that makes the Bohemian so deviant yet so divinely seductive. What's on their shelves? In the tub? On the turntable? What's running wild? Bohemian Manifesto shimmers with all the incandescent ingredients that give counter-culture lifestyle its romantic reputation.

Living On The Edge

So I have this book about what it means to be a bohemian. Ordered it from Amazon.com, the place where you can supposedly buy yourself a new life just by reading books and shopping there. *drips with sarcasm*

But I guess what is closer to the truth, is that people live their imaginations and desired lives through books, precisely because it is unattainable to them. Fiction allows them the imagination of what their lives would have been if they had made their bets and staked their claims on risky ventures and life gambles. Self help books tell them how it is all not too late to still live out your dreams no matter how rich or poor you are, or how old you are by just following 7 simple steps.

Then there are those books called autographies where great leaders and megastars sell their live stories to publising companies for royalties that will make them even richer. People bold enough to read these accept that they can never be like the author but are smart enough to know some men do deserve respect and admiration for their courage, mettle and ingenuity to turn their dreams into real life success stories in a very pragmatic and fickle world. They look instead for where they can learn from these heroes and evaluate their lives against these great stories of inspiration and call to humility.

So which category do I fall into? It is not difficult to guess as you read on my meanderings about what real gypsy life is about, from someone who works at a 9-5 job pushing computer buttons and scowling after renovators and contractors who dare to deliver a less than honest day's job. And that is why I am such a cynic. Of all people, I feel that I am the most natural gypsy in the world at heart. But my life paints an entirely different story. So am I a hypocrite? Maybe, just maybe...

In any case, the book I read that finds me constantly nodding my head in complete agreement and identification is called "Bohemian Manifesto - A field guide to living on the edge". One day I'll tell you what kinds of "edges" I've passed by, and how in some cases I've even gone OVER the edge to miraculously return from. But that is a different post, and a different story. Later.

The Gypsy Inside

I've always had a love for bohemian furniture. Now that I've got my own place, I started out with a bohemian design that has not been entirely successful due to lack of skill and exposure of my interior designer. Apparently, I'm the first and only one of his clients to ever request for a bohemian design.

So what defines what is bohemian? A bohemian is used to distinguish people who used to live in Bohemia, in the Czech Republic. However, the second meaning was given by the French to denote a gypsy or someone living a gypsy lifestyle. Wikipedia defines it as:

In modern usage, the term "bohemian" can describe any person who lives an unconventional artistic life, where self-expression is the highest value — that art (acting, poetry, writing, singing, dancing, painting etc) is a serious and main focus of their life. The term was applied particularly to the poets and writers of Carmel-by-the-Sea and the Bloomsbury Group in the first half of the 20th century, and, early in the 21st century, to a style of female fashion ("boho-chic").

So if I know I'm a bohemian at heart, what does that mean? Should I be off on some quest to find my true self? Find some form of expression for my true feelings to attain the highest value of life? It doesn't sound too bad, if this form of lifestyle were sustainable!