You know what I don't get? How the dudes who seem most enthusiastic about Bob Marley's music are the ones who seem the least likely to actually need it. I mean, it's always some ultra-chill stoner bro wearing flip-flops and a Marley shirt he bought at the mall extolling the virtues of "One Love" or "Three Little Birds," but I can't figure out what that guy needs his music for. What's the point of hearing "don't worry about a thing cause every little thing is gonna be alright" if you already feel that way? Nah, you know who really needs the message of Bob? Pissed-off, perpetually high strung dudes, like me.

Mind you I'm nowhere near as angry as I used to be (middle school and high school were troublesome times for me), but I still struggle with anxiety, and there are still plenty of times when I can feel excess stress mounting in my head. I lack the ability to be in a perpetual state of mellowness, and music helps me get there.

Now, you might be saying, "John, that's true for everybody? What are you getting at here?" Simple, I think guys - and girls - with serious anxiety issues are the real Bob Marley fans, and the ones who get the most from his message. Put it this way: I would LOVE to be as mellow as Jack Johnson or Jason Mraz, but I know thats not possible. When I hear Mraz sing "I won't worry my life away," it might seem like a nice message, but I know that's not how I operate. My anxiety can be an issue at times, but deep down, I live off of it, I thrive off it. Really, it's one of the bigger things driving my ambitions.

But all of that can get really tiring, and that's when I need a little mellowness in my life. It's only recently that I've had a great deal of interest in Marley's music. I was, of course, quite aware of him, and had heard his most famous tunes, but I was somewhat apprehensive about diving full-on into his music. It's just seemed like such a Suburban White Kid thing to do - become obsessed with Marley's music, soak in the chill vibe of it, and conveniently ignore the more serious political messages (note: I'm not saying every Bob fan does that, so calm down). But recently, I've relented, and found myself embracing the good vibes more and more.

The source of this is rather unlikely. As a diehard New York Yankees fans, I hate the Boston Red Sox and everything they stand for more than anything in the world. But when Shane Victorino used "Three Little Birds" as his at-bat music in the World Series, and the entire crowd sang along with him, I couldn't help but find it endearing (note: it didn't make it any better when they eventually won). It re-invigorated my enthusiasm for the song, and in the coming weeks, I found myself adopting it as something of an anthem. After all, I'm in my first year of graduating from college, looking for consistent work, and that kind of shit can stress anyone out. Marley's message of just letting things go a bit has worked for me, and, shit, probably mellowed me out a bit.

But this brings me back to my starting point: the chill bros are the ones who claim their love for Bob the most, but it's the perpetually strung out who really need him. If you already respond to every potential catastrophe awaiting you with "No worries, bro," what good does "Sun is Shining" really do for you? You'd be smiling in the middle of a typhoon! But for the perpetual strung-out, his message really gets through, and provides a rare bit of relief between panic attacks.