How was that? Any better than the usual crap? Ah, well, I kinda thought so myself….. It isn’t easy to do this EVERY DAY, you know. Perhaps, Y’ALL might try it someday; come up with an interesting opening, bright and charming enough, or compelling enough, to create the desire to keep reading in whomever may stop in to read. Only then can one realize they have completely fucked up, and have locked themselves into an activity which is pretty much guaranteed to drive one absolutely, fucking crazy, trying to do the nearly impossible….. No wonder daily newspaper columnists are considered the elite of the news rooms…

However, I’m the one who chose to do this, and, since the act of giving up isn’t an option for me, due to the strength of my earliest conditioning by the Sergeant and the Mom, (no, I don’t think of him like that; that’s what all the men he worked with in the Army called him, if no officers were around….), neither of whom would approve of abrogating a chosen duty. So, I’ll keep on muddling along, until a good reason to stop presents itself, whereupon I will have to go this entire process again…. Oh, joy….

Since I’ve now depressed even myself. perhaps we should just get on with the rest of today’s messiness….. That seems, to my limited perception, the only way to save this…. In fact, no Luigi, no Guido; I’ll just teleport all of us over to the oyster beds, and be done with it…. No need to hang on, or even put down your beverage; you won’t even notice, as I’ll use the newest toy in the Tardis to get us there; it’s pretty cool…. Watch this….

Shall we Pearl?….

“If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of potential — for the eye which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints; possibility never.” — Soren Kierkegaard

It’s strange, as it wanders into distant realms of thought, filled to the borders with truth and beauty; it also dives into the depths of human nature, where darkness, too often, has its way. But, it’s all fucking true, so, fucking pay attention, please?…. Besides, if you get it, you’ll also get a big surprise; something you were not expecting, but, will enjoy immensely…. Promise…. and, you know I don’t use that word lightly, ever…..

“Do not be afraid of enemies; the worst they can do is to kill you. Do not be afraid of friends; the worst they can do is betray you. Be afraid of the indifferent; they do not kill or betray. Yet only because of their silent agreement, betrayal and murder exist on earth.” — Bruno Yasienski, contemporary Soviet novelist

“As every thread of gold is valuable, so is every minute of time.” — John Mason

“Little girls, like butterflies, need no excuse.” — Lazarus Long, “Time Enough For Love”

“When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.” — African proverb

“I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.” — Frank Lloyd Wright

“In endowing us with memory, nature has revealed to us a truth utterly unimaginable to the unreflective creation, the truth of immortality….The most ideal human passion is love, which is also the most absolute and animal and one of the most ephemeral.” — George Santayana, Reason in Religion

“Socrates was in the right to insinuate, in his elegant Greek expression, that what is got over the Devil’s back is spent under his belly.” — Alain Rene Le Sage (1668-1747) — Gil Blas, Book viii, Chap. ix

“A wise man never loses anything, if he has himself.” — Michael de Montaigne — Essays, Book i, Chap. xxxviii, Of Solitude

Done, in spite of several complicating factors. So complicated, the act of completing this missive became more than just a small challenge. Having successfully navigated the winding course to bring us this far, I’ll perform now my best act of compassion of the day. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, if the Internet is still functioning…. Odds are good….