56 Comments

You are not alone. I took early retirement and suddenly all I could think about was death and what would end up getting me. Finally coming out of it a bit after a LOT of soul work. I was born in 1962, I loved Sam Kinison and that little sideways smirk with the chuckle. I also loved Andrew Dice Clay. Glad I lived in a time when humor wasn't so politically correct.

Expand full comment

You and me both! The world sure could use a Bill Hicks and a George Carlin about now.

Expand full comment

Yep Fraulein we were getting it raw.

George Carlin was one of my favorites.

Expand full comment

1 John 4:18 (CSB)

There is no fear in love; instead, perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. So the one who fears is not complete in love.

Grace. Peace.

Expand full comment

Physics confirms what the spiritual believes. We are all made of energy. Energy never dies. (First law of thermodynamics). Life here is a testing ground. I think we all go somewhere else. I’ve never believed otherwise and face death of my “people suit” with no fear. ✨💜🙏🤗

Expand full comment

This made me smile. Thanks for the comment!

Expand full comment

He was talking to a memory-induced hologram of Howard Stern. What a way to go.

Expand full comment

😂

Expand full comment

You will continue to create your world around you in death, just as you do in life. With a new set of rules of course.

Have you ever done anything else?

👻❤️👻

Expand full comment

I like it!

Expand full comment

I remember when Kinison came on the scene, he was like a cyclone ripping through the comedy world, absolutely loved his raging style. In regards to the death perspective, there is an interesting channel on YouTube that is all videos of NDE experiencers telling their stories, it is quite fascinating and a lot of their experiences are quite hopeful. Here's a link: https://www.youtube.com/@TheOtherSideNDEYT/videos

Expand full comment

Thanks for sharing!

Expand full comment

And yeah, GOOD stand up is such a transcendent experience live. We are going to see Duncan in AVL next month!! I’m fucking pumped, he’s one of my all time favorite humans.

Expand full comment

Stand up is the best man. We just saw Joe List at the comedy cellar and he KILLED

Expand full comment

My favourite thing lately is Joe List sharing his videos of going on stage to do crowd work and completely bombing. He has turned bombing into an art form.

Expand full comment

Nice. I saw him once in Philly and again at the opening night of the Mothership. We just happened to be in Austin, I wasn’t missing it.

Expand full comment

Wow that’s so sick that you went to that show

Expand full comment

It was special. I’ll never forget that night. I really hope Joe somehow or another finds and reads the story I wrote about it, and I hope he receives it as the thank you note it was meant to be.

❤️👻

Expand full comment

Who reported this amazing conversation? His wife, I presume?

Expand full comment

It was his brother and another friend. They were driving to the same place, so when Sam’s car got hit they pulled over/turned around to help.

Expand full comment

Thanks!

Expand full comment

Hi, I'm actually a stand-up; I met Carl Labove (RIP) Kinison's best friend, who was with him when he died.

Anyway, Sam was one of the best to ever do it. He was truly an original.

BTW Joe List ain't no chopped liver either. I've also had the pleasure of working the cellar, in Vegas.

Expand full comment

Thanks for reading! I failed to mention Carl who I had saw was also with Sam when he died. Joe List is awesome. If you ever do shows in NY would love to see one of yours!

Expand full comment

Great, John!

Expand full comment

On that note, the only thing that is scary is going under anesthesia.

I've only gone under once. It was when I had my wisdom teeth removed.

It was a strange experience. I was laying in the chair, IV in my arm, the dentist said, "How much do you weight?" I said, "255 pounds." Then the dentist said, "Nighty night..."

Then I woke up and 2+ hours had passed. But I had no recollection of time -- at all! It was as if no time had passed.

It was a strange feeling, because I more or less, wasn't there for those 2 hours.

That being said, I wasn't dead either, so there's that., but it did make me think, because it was much different than sleeping. That was probably the strangest experience in my life so far as consciousness goes.

I'm a Christian, and I know that there's more to this existence after death. I can't possibly comfort you, because I don't begin to know how to do that. But I can tell you that there's no reason to believe that the lights just go out when we die.

I can't imagine that nearly every religion on the planet is wrong about there being an afterlife. That would require the work of a good "coincidence theorist" to make that plausible. 😉👉

Expand full comment

Thanks for the comment. I went under anesthesia when I was 16 and it was one of the craziest moments of my life. Time stopped. I was suddenly on my couch watching South Park, and my mom was getting ready to take me to the hospital. I had time traveled back to the morning. Then I was back in the hospital bed, and suddenly felt myself get sucked inside of the bed and down into a terrifying place before finally coming to the hospital once more, finishing my countdown, and blacking out. I woke up a few hours later and told my mom I had gotten dragged to hell. she was horribly embarrassed since I said it in front of a room of nurses. What a trip down memory lane!

Expand full comment

That sounds like results of a ketamine heavy anesthesia mix.

Expand full comment

That's brutal.

My experience was that of “nothing” at least for those 2+ hours.

I've read a few interesting studies about what happens to people under anesthesia. It appears that people are not completely unconscious, but that they nearly always lose memory during the time that they are under.

However, it stands to reason that sometimes people remember what happens when they are under. After all, we sometimes remember dreams.

Expand full comment

Maybe I’m bullshitting myself but for 99.999999% of time I haven’t been here and there will be A LOT of time after I’ll be gone. I’m a believer so I believe I will be hanging with Jesus playing hockey again(Jesus has a WICKED slap shot, we all have to ask him respectfully to tone it down) and having an otherwise awesome time forever. If I am wrong then it will be similar to getting propofol. Everything will be gone. Either way I just don’t think it will be bad. The problem is your autonomous brain(the brain that thinks its own thoughts and is out of your control) cannot stand the thought of YOUbeing gone.

Expand full comment

"Marlboro's. MARLBORO'S!

"You see this? THIS IS SAND!"

Expand full comment

Read a few score more afterlife books. Meditate upon what is noted. Gather new experiences.

Peace and Health.

Expand full comment

15 years ago I suffered a heart and was rushed to hospital. While on the table getting checked by emergency staff, the head surgeon, who was heading for lunch, walked past the room and asked what was happening. As he told me later if he hadn’t asked, or hadn’t been going for lunch, there was a good chance I would have died ( as it was I technically did die but only for 3 minutes).

I don’t really think about the actual heart attack and aftermath but do think about the happenstance of both of us being were we should be at that moment.

I didn’t see a tunnel or a light or get a message but I did come through it with a profound sense of peace and it changed my life around completely.

Mainly, don’t stress the small stuff, there’s more to life than work.

And when you think I should do… well whatever it is, be it just stop and smell the roses, then do so.

Expand full comment

Thanks for sharing that. Glad you’re still here

Expand full comment

About Steve Jobs from someone who was there:

"Before embarking, he'd looked at his sister Patty, then for a long time at his children, then at his life's partner, Laurene, and then over their shoulders past them.

"Steve's final words were: 'Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.'"

Expand full comment

That’s awesome. I wonder what he saw

Expand full comment

Btw, ever hear of Dr. Michael Newton and his books Journey of Souls and Destiny of Souls? Totally changed my views on death and the afterlife...

Expand full comment

I havent, but I’ll definitely need to check it out.

Expand full comment

It's mind-blowing…and makes perfect sense to me. You might want to also check out Sacred Contracts by Caroline Myss. 🙂

Expand full comment