Ffolkes,
Well, I’m back. It seems as if I’ve been gone forever, but that’s probably the coffee’s fault. It’s so wonderful to be at home, where I can count on that first cup of coffee in the morning to be a good one…. I won’t go into great detail now, but, suffice it to say, I am less than totally happy with the coffee on cruise ships, and leave it at that, in celebration of the first good cup in a week, ready for me to drink, with the proper condiments, when I arise, at the very moment I need it the most…..
I’ve survived yet again, even without being able to post a blog each day as intended…. I also didn’t take very many pictures, finding it quite relaxing this time to NOT worry about that, or about writing. I’m sorry, but the internet they use on the ships is pretty bad, compared to just about any other I’ve ever connected to, and trying to work around their deficiencies just made it too much work.
So, I ate, and slept, ate some more, and walked around the ship doing stuff that seemed fun at the time… Or, we’d go ashore when in port, walk around a bit to see the sights, and have lunch in a different venue, if there was a nice place to go… In short, I did practically nothing for seven days…. I did so much nothing, I only had time to read two books…..’Twas grand, to be sure…. even though I’ll have to read a lot for a while to feel right….
For most of the time since receiving my disability status, and the money they owed me for the years they made me wait to get it, I’ve traveled, as I intended from the moment I heard I’d be getting back payments of my monthly checks… I’ve spent almost a full month of days on cruise ships, on three separate cruises, to Europe, Alaska, and Mexico; I’ve been to Texas twice, and to Oregon once. I’ve also used the money to live as comfortably as I can, with absolutely no regrets about how I spent much of it on myself, fulfilling my own dreams, an event which has never before occurred in my life….
Since the age of 28, when my kids came along, all of my money has gone to take care of was necessary for others, rather than what was desired by me, and I have NO problem with that; it’s the way it should be for a man with family to care for…. I’ve put off all of my youthful wishes to travel, without any regret at all, sublimating by traveling with the family when I could afford to do so…. In fact, taking them on a cruise, when the kids were pre-teens, is what hooked me on cruising in the first place….
There are times when I feel a pang or two of discomfort, but, that has more to do with my lifelong pursuit of truth, my political and social views, and the insidious way money corrupts, than it is about my own weakness for luxury… There is a part of me that KNOWS that cruising is really just another of the corporate masters’ illusions, only made available to the general public to keep their eyes focused on unreachable goals, and away from the nastiness they perpetrate in other areas of our existence….
Going on a cruise is fun, but one should always keep in mind that it is not normal, and people who actually live in a way that allows them to do that sort of thing on a regular basis are a big part of the problems we have in society. In addition, such industries, making billions of dollars annually, are a constant drain on the planet’s resources, put to use to keep the circus interesting for us, but actually keeping us under the thrall of those who actually control the money…. I KNOW all that, and it is all absolutely true, yet, I still enjoy the experience of living in decadence, even for a short time….
I think, over the next few weeks, I’ll discuss this further, as it is something I think is worth examination from a critical standpoint…. It will also give me a chance to get back into ranting before I really get back into the swing of things out in the real-time world…. For six days, I’ve ignored the news completely, and have no clue as to what is up in the world; I didn’t even read the headlines. It actually surprised me to find myself last night watching Game 3 of the World Series, as I had forgotten it was opening last week…. Actually, that’s a good feeling; I always enjoy my bouts of ignorance, and can see how it is an attractive state to live in, for those folks who are able to shut off their thinking apparatus…. Mine always pushes its own power button, so it never shuts off for long….
Okay, that should be enough…. I’ve rambled and blathered, I’ve made a few pointed remarks about the bad guys, and reasserted my geopolitical views. I’ve bragged about my travels, and been trite, and even a bit ashamed…. and, best of all, I haven’t spilled anything on anybody! Bonus! Any who, I think I’d best get on with this, and see if I can salvage any of my dignity…. Doubtful, but ever hopeful, I plod on….
Shall we Pearl?….
“Homo sum; humani nihil a me alienum puto.” [“I am a human, and nothing human is alien to me”] — Publius Terentius Afer, c.190-159 B.C. — Heautontimoroumenos, a. 1, sc. 1, v. 25
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First, to get the trip off my mind and out of my head, let’s put in the pictures I DID take while on the cruise…. As I mentioned, there aren’t a lot of them, as I ended up taking the trip off from ALL of my usual activities, including taking pictures…. I did manage to get a couple from each port we stopped in, but, only a couple, so there aren’t many to choose from, or worth showing… but, what I have are here for y’all to see, such as they are….
Our ports of call were, in order of visit, Santa Barbara, Long Beach, San Diego, all in California, and Ensenada, Mexico, leaving and coming back to home port in San Francisco…. I’ll try to put the pix up in order, but, I’m still not totally adept with the adding media functions in Word Press, so we’ll see how that goes….. Since I’m home, and don’t have to worry about network speed, it should be possible to add some comments, but, that is still to be determined…. At any rate, here are the best shots I DID take, and I hope you enjoy them….
The first stop was Santa Barbara… these were taken from the tender on the way to shore, on State Street, and more from the tender on the way back to the ship…
I was right… the order of the pix isn’t correct, but, hey, they’re here, so… Next came Long Beach, where I had lunch with one of my old friends, (he’s not so old, but we’ve been friends for almost 25 years…), on the Queen Mary I, right next to where our ship docked… Believe me, there wasn’t anything else to take a picture of… It IS the port of Los Angeles, don’t y’know….
Next came San Diego, where we docked next to the USS Midway, a WWII aircraft carrier, now a museum, and some old, tall ships on the other side, at the San Diego Maritime Museum….
Our last stop was in Ensenada, Baja Mexico, where I was so distracted by all the street vendors I got only one picture, and then forgot the camera was even in my pocket… This was the scene in the courtyard where the shuttle from the ship dropped off the victims, er, tourists in the downtown area….
Okay, ffolkes, that’s the extent of it… I told you I didn’t do much, and I meant it, didn’t I?… I hope I didn’t bore y’all too much… I had fun, any who, so, all is well in the land of gigoid….
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Choosing the first poem to post was tougher than I had imagined it would be; hopefully, you will enjoy this one, as it cost me a lot of effort to decide which one to choose…. In the end, I chose one that I’ve used before, a couple of times…. Each time, I see in it more of myself than I saw before, which convinces me of its universal relevance….. But, mostly I just like it…. that counts for something, I hope….
I.
There was a naughty boy,
A naughty boy was he,
He would not stop at home,
He could not quiet be-
He took
In his knapsack
A book
Full of vowels
And a shirt
With some towels,
A slight cap
For night cap,
A hair brush,
Comb ditto,
New stockings
For old ones
Would split O!
This knapsack
Tight at’s back
He rivetted close
And followed his nose
To the north,
To the north,
And follow’d his nose
To the north.
II.
There was a naughty boy
And a naughty boy was he,
For nothing would he do
But scribble poetry-
He took
An ink stand
In his hand
And a pen
Big as ten
In the other,
And away
In a pother
He ran
To the mountains
And fountains
And ghostes
And postes
And witches
And ditches
And wrote
In his coat
When the weather
Was cool,
Fear of gout,
And without
When the weather
Was warm-
Och the charm
When we choose
To follow one’s nose
To the north,
To the north,
To follow one’s nose
To the north!
III.
There was a naughty boy
And a naughty boy was he,
He kept little fishes
In washing tubs three
In spite
Of the might
Of the maid
Nor afraid
Of his Granny-good-
He often would
Hurly burly
Get up early
And go
By hook or crook
To the brook
And bring home
Miller’s thumb,
Tittlebat
Not over fat,
Minnows small
As the stall
Of a glove,
Not above
The size
Of a nice
Little baby’s
Little fingers-
O he made
‘Twas his trade
Of fish a pretty kettle
A kettle-
A kettle
Of fish a pretty kettle
A kettle!
IV.
There was a naughty boy,
And a naughty boy was he,
He ran away to Scotland
The people for to see-
There he found
That the ground
Was as hard,
That a yard
Was as long,
That a song
Was as merry,
That a cherry
Was as red,
That lead
Was as weighty,
That fourscore
Was as eighty,
That a door
Was as wooden
As in England-
So he stood in his shoes
And he wonder’d,
He wonder’d,
He stood in his
Shoes and he wonder’d.
~~ John Keats ~~
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“Ninety percent of everything is crud.” — Sturgeon’s Revelation
It’s always tempting to write a rant using this statement by one of Science Fiction’s most revered and highly respected authors; I usually refrain from doing so in order to avoid any chance of my thoughts becoming part of that ninety percent so eloquently highlighted…. It is also a temptation to discuss the merits of the statement in terms of accuracy, but, that also tends to enter the realm of surreality, as the truth of the statement is all too often proven, not only by those who are critical of it, but, also, by those who are asserting its veracity…. Personally, I find it best to merely accept it, just as it is, and be done with it….
In light of that, and in the interests of time management, (plus, I wouldn’t want to drive anyone away on my first day back by being too heavy-handed, or any more bozoid than is necessary….), this section will be the latest in a long line of pearls of virtual wisdom that chose themselves…. Well, the one parameter used today was the above revelation, so it should work out well, as we are, in new-age parlance, ‘going with the flow’…..
Remember, ffolkes, to correctly interpret the following, you will need to place the above revelation in its correct position among the others, an exercise that, as always, I will leave to you, as the prerogative of the Gentle Reader in all such instances….
“We rest here while we can, but we hear the ocean calling in our dreams, And we know by the morning, the wind will fill our sails to test the seams, The calm is on the water and part of us would linger by the shore, For ships are safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.” from “Ships”, by Tom Kimmel & Michael Lille
“If it ain’t broke, maybe you need a bigger hammer.” — Smart Bee
“If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those of us who profess to favor freedom yet depreciate agitation are men who want the crops without plowing up the ground. They want rain without thunder. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters…This struggle may be a moral one or a physical one, but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without demand. It never has and never will. Show me the exact amount of wrong and injustices that are visited upon a person and I will show you the exact amount of words endured by these people. These wrongs and injustices may be fought with words or with blows or both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppose.” — Frederick Douglass (1817-1895), Letter to Gerrit Smith [March 30, 1849]
“There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. books are well written, or badly written, That is all.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
“Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed.” — Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Letter to Gay, Oct, 6, 1727
“What do they call a comedian who doesn’t get any laughs? A philosopher.” — Phil Proctor
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Oddly enough, this didn’t go too badly; I had some reservations when I sat down, but, I don’t think I’ve done anything here to be ashamed of…. Not any more than usual, anyway…. Let’s see how it holds up under scrutiny….. I can’t honestly say I think this is great literature, but, it won’t poke out your eyes, or, more importantly, make you want to poke out anyone else’s, mine included…. That being said, I’d best leave it as it is, and hope for the best…. I’ll try again tomorrow to get a few steps further toward coherence, and toward sanity….
Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark, and Theresa…
and everyone else, too…
When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.
Which is Why….
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.
gigoid
gigoid 
nice share
Thanks, my friend…. a good time was had by all, and sharing only makes it better, for me…. 😀