Ffolkes,
It may be harsh, but it has to be said….Ben Franklin was a sanctimonious ass, and I mean that in its’ basest, most derogatory sense. Who else but an ass would say things like “Early to bed and early to rise, make a man, etc….” or “The early bird gets the worm”? As one of my favorite sci-fi authors said, approximately, “all the aphorism about the worm proves is that the worm should have stayed in bed.” And early to bed, etc., is fine for those who fall asleep instantly, having the benefit of no worldly problems, and remain asleep through the night due to having no imagination. I’m 60 years old, and I can’t remember the last time I could count on falling asleep easily without first consuming a significant amount of adult beverage, or staying asleep for more than a couple of hours before some physical prompt has me up and going to the bathroom, or just laying in bed wondering how long it would be until morning. As far as I’m concerned, Poor Richard can take his little Almanac, and his advice, and place them forcibly in one of his orifices where the sun don’t shine…..just as it isn’t here at 0530 as I sit to compose this, having once more awakened at 0515 for no apparent reason. Wise man, my dying ass…..
I dove for these Pearls yesterday as I was in the throes of extra-pyramidal side effects, due entirely to the asinine ordering requirements dictated by Kaiser Permanente for dealing with a controlled drug. Thanks to those obscene regulations, I have spent much of the last three days with dyskinesia, malaise, and an intermittent splitting headache just for good measure. In case you are not a former PT, dyskinesia is that condition of muscular and nervous agitation that makes one’s muscles twitch and dance, combined with a feeling of restless dread and diffuse anxiety that makes the nerves hum like a redneck with a kazoo. Add in the headache, (of the ilk that blurs the vision and causes whimpering in strong men), and you can imagine how difficult it is not only refrain from biting my self, but to refrain from biting anyone who crosses my path. All this, of course, is then complicated by trying to deal with people who have become bureaucrats, who have no conception of anything outside their own little sphere of inattention, and whose sole purpose is to keep anything from getting done. It’s enough to give one visions of mayhem and violent death for all bureaucrats, preferably by my own hand.
Sorry about the above rant……well, actually, I’m not. I could actually care less right now what anyone thinks, about anything. Nonetheless, I do think that the following Pearls will strike some good chords in many folks, and even more in those ffolkes who are familiar with this process, and how it provides some fine rules for life, or at least for looking at life in a different way. Regardless, they are what they are, and I hope you enjoy them…..much as I can hope anything at all……
“I sometimes think that God in creating Man somewhat overestimated his ability.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a, star to steer her by,
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,
And a gray mist on the sea’s face and a gray dawn breaking.
— John Masefield, Sea Fever, first stanza.
Yesterday is but a dream, tomorrow but a vision. But Today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, and every tomorrow a vision of hope. Look well, therefore to this Day. — Sanskrit proverb (I like this one a lot; it covers a lot of bases….)
“It’s not denial. I’m just very selective about what I accept as reality.” — Calvin (“Calvin and Hobbes”) (Calvin is actually a sociopathic idiot, but Hobbes, I firmly believe, will someday be considered one of the 20th and 21st centuries’ most cogent philosophers….)
“Men fear thought as they fear nothing else on earth, more than ruin, more even than death….Thought is subversive and revolutionary, destructive and terrible, thought is merciless to privilege, established institutions, and comfortable habit. Thought looks into the pit of hell and is not afraid. Thought is great and swift and free, the light of the world, and the chief glory of man.” — Bertrand Russell (1872-1967), “Selected Papers”
So live that you can look any man in the eye and tell him to go to hell.
Well, there you have it. That’s the best I can do, under the circumstances that currently prevail. My greatest desire just now is that tomorrow will be different, if only I can survive until then without committing any acts that would land me in jail. Wish me luck…..and, y’all take care out there……

Oh my, I see why you need the bourbon now. That is horrible and to add to it all a headache. I too, hope tomorrow is different…and better for you! How frustrating!
Aye…all in all its been a tough week in my neighborhood. I’m not a drinker most days, but I’m holding a wake for my dog, who passed away Saturday. I have high hopes that the gods will soon see fit to remove the curse for however I’ve offended them…..S’okay, all will be well, and all will be well in the end…thanks for checking out the blog…..see ya around the web….