Ffolkes,
~~ Aristotle (384-322BC) ~~
Did someone say ‘mouse’?….
Hajime…. Thank the Doctor for today’s post. Without having the Tardis to use, it might never have been completed, much less posted on the correct day. Without going into details of a subject I’m not happy about to begin with, I’ll say this: FUCKING ASSHOLE!
That little outburst was not aimed at y’all, naturally. It’s reserved for our resident asshole, Murphy, and his damned ubiquity. Now we’ve properly labeled him, hopefully to his regret, we can go on to bigger, if not better things. Now, that doesn’t mean I’ve put together a particularly outstanding Pearl for today; hell, I’m not sure it’s going to get done at all at this point. But, it WILL be better than anything you might have seen had I not taken the time to roundly curse the iconic force of nature responsible for much of our difficulty. It doesn’t fix anything, but, I feel better, and, as with any true human, that’s pretty much all we care about.
There…. How’s that for a one-paragraph mini-rant? Not too shabby, and, timely, too! But, then, when one has the power of a Tardis to use, that part is easy. I think, though, I’ve risked disaster long enough; I’m going to quit fooling around in the intro, and move on down the page into the meat of today’s post. It’s not a heavy meal today, so, you shouldn’t require the antacids. We’ll also be offering some bubbly drinks you’ve never tried before, so, save some room for that, okay? For now, we’ll merely flip this little switch right here, and get on with this mess….
Shall we Pearl?….
“In poverty and other misfortunes of life, true friends are a sure refuge. The young they keep out of mischief; to the old they are a comfort and aid in their weakness, and those in the prime of life they incite to noble deeds.” — Aristotle
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Yep; classical music again. I’m up late, & tired, so, go figure, eh? As usual, this compilation was chosen simply because I like the picture it shows on You Tube…. Enjoy!….
Classical Music
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Just get people to stop reading them.”
~~ Ray Bradbury ~~
I’ve made no secret of my thoughts on the general level of ignorance I see amongst the population of the USA, in spite of all the warnings we received from our founding fathers regarding our education as citizens. In fact, the attitude of most people I meet regarding education is rather limited in scope; they don’t believe what they learned in school actually applies to their lives. I’m often asked why I think it does, and this little aphorism from Ray Bradbury is a perfect example of how to answer.
Why? Because it describes modern society perfectly; our nation does NOT read, unless it comes in a comic book (excuse me, graphic novel….), or dumbed down into a summary, as one may find in Reader’s Digest in any particular month. Moreover, the populace of this country does not trust what they read; they’d rather get all their information in short, shiny bursts, complete with catchy jingles to make it easy to remember what they’ve been programmed to buy….
I almost weep at times, just thinking of how stupid the people of this country have become, and cannot help but feel ashamed, and saddened, by the ignorance so aptly named as nemesis by our forefathers. And, it’s all so damned unnecessary! But, the power of words, and ideas has fallen out of favor; I am not capable of fixing the issue all by myself, unless, for some reason, all these folks come to their senses, and learn to see the power of an idea, expressed in a way that passes on the wisdom of the ancients so it can be easily remembered, and used…. To demonstrate just how it can be of service, here is very old pearl from the early days here on ECR, that shows exactly how one idea can help us in Life at Large….
From 9/27/2012:
“Happiness and freedom begin with a clear understanding of one principle. Some things are within your control. And some things are not.” — Epictetus
This statement, and its reappearance in front of me at this exact moment in time, reminded me of why I do this. Making Pearls. Reading, and serendipitously finding a piece of wisdom from a sage of past age that speaks directly to me and my current status in re: dealing with reality without biting myself or anyone else…. Since the start of the morning, to this point, my thoughts and emotions were unreasonably and unexpectedly dragged along on a roller-coaster ride of some proportions, courtesy of, well, let’s just say, a party that I had not expected to be forced to consider as a liability. In fact, I had every expectation of the opposite.
Then, Eureka! On seeing this quote pop up, I realized that my morning’s distress was exactly what I deserved for expecting…. anything. My expectation of how reality would behave is the only problem; without it, I would not be upset…. As I’m accustomed to regular adjustment and deletion of expectations, I have now done so….
So, thank you, Epictetus, for saving me from my own folly…. now, I can get on with the day….
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Today, I feel like something gritty and real. Nobody does gritty and real better than this poet…. Well, I think so. Enjoy!….
Van Gogh writing his brother for paints
Hemingway testing his shotgun
Celine going broke as a doctor of medicine
the impossibility of being human
Villon expelled from Paris for being a thief
Faulkner drunk in the gutters of his town
the impossibility of being human
Burroughs killing his wife with a gun
Mailer stabbing his
the impossibility of being human
Maupassant going mad in a rowboat
Dostoyevsky lined up against a wall to be shot
Crane off the back of a boat into the propeller
the impossibility
Sylvia with her head in the oven like a baked potato
Harry Crosby leaping into that Black Sun
Lorca murdered in the road by Spanish troops
the impossibility
Artaud sitting on a madhouse bench
Chatterton drinking rat poison
Shakespeare a plagiarist
Beethoven with a horn stuck into his head against deafness
the impossibility the impossibility
Nietzsche gone totally mad
the impossibility of being human
all too human
this breathing
in and out
out and in
these punks
these cowards
these champions
these mad dogs of glory
moving this little bit of light toward us
impossibly.
~~ Charles Bukowski ~~
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Notes on Life at Large
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“I happen to believe you make your own destiny.”
~~ Momma Gump ~~
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“When one shuts one eye, one does not hear everything.”
~~ Swiss Proverb ~~
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“Men learn while they teach.”
~~ Seneca ~~
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“A coward is much more exposed to quarrels than a man of spirit.”
~~ Thomas Jefferson ~~
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“Truth is eternal, knowledge is changeable.
It is disastrous to confuse them.”
~~ Madeleine L’Engle ~~
~~ An Acceptable Time~~
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“If the doors of perception were cleansed
every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite.”
~~ William Blake ~~
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“If you cannot find happiness along the way,
you will not find it at the end of the trail.”
~~ Zen Bee ~~
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“Saying is one thing, doing another.”
~~ Michael de Montaigne
~~ Essays, Book ii, Chap. xxxi, Of Anger ~~
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“But pain…seems to me an insufficient reason not to embrace life.
Being dead is quite painless.
Pain, like time, is going to come on regardless.
Question is, what glorious moments can you win from life
in addition to the pain?”
~~ Lois McMaster Bujold ~~
~~ Barrayar ~~
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I’m not entirely sure just how, but, it’s done. I’ll take it. Even better than that, I won’t crow about it, or prattle on about quality, or timeliness, or any of that other nonsense; instead, I’ll just get on with the day, and leave you to yours. I hope, all in all, it’s a good one. Me, I’ll be back tomorrow; just try to stop me… I dare ya….
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy
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, the dubious
The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.
PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.
“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch
À bientôt, mon cherí….
gigoid 
A perfect post my friend. The Bradbury quote is the best. I am proud that my daughter was taught that reading was essential to growth and he has passed that on to my granddaughter. Perfect when you say “they do not believe what they read”….truly sad state……chuq
Thanks, my friend; it came together rather well for a change… and, I have to agree, it’s truly sad to witness the dumbing down process….
Have a good one anyway….
gigoid
“A coward is much more exposed to quarrels than a man of spirit.”
This is a particularly wise one from Thomas Jefferson today..
friend gigoid.. as truly to walk tall and fearless is to avoid
conflict.. and to be confident
is to not need conflicts
for spirit
that does not
regularly exist
as vibRant bEinG oF LiFe..
And it remind me of Yellow Boy.. the
feral one vs.. our cat Moby.. the
big domesticated one..
as he hid from any
male stranger
coming
into the home..
but Yellow boy moves
directly toward the stranger
and sniffs his hand to see what
iT is.. human.. those hands that feed..
that’s all
he needs
to smell..
as cats
are for fights
and reproductive rights..
As you know i Love the written
word.. and the more i play with
it the more i engage my
imagination and
creativity
in fuLL of now..
in floW.. iN ZoNe..
but no.. that’s not enough..
as gaining this state of beinG
oF miNd.. helped to cure me of my
pain.. but it was the dance of lifE
that set me free with the
rest of humanity
bOld
and trUe
iN liGht noW..
wiTh ultiMate
fearless confidence
i never experienced before..
and iT is true.. when a human walks
witH strength and confident grace..
eyes do not challenge as much..
and often look
away..
unless it is the
female of the species
who is bold as well.. hehe..
i Love being animal more than
a human.. i truly do.. as before
i lived in ideas in my head almost
only..
and now
i life as wild
cat free.. and that
is the best feeling i can
imagine.. being comfortable
in my own furry skin..
i never ever had that
before in my life..
after age five..
but the photos
before that
show
a child
of Nature
comfortable in tHeir
own skin.. and that my friend
is what is also increasingly evident..
among a population that is now assessed
by science as having the attention span of a gold
fish.. overall.. a population where there is a disconnect
between mind and body balance.. is a population who will
melt
at any
national crisis
or catastrophe of the future..
and yes.. inevitably.. it is coming..
as i have seen the hatred from where
it comes from.. up close.. and personal..
and unlike.. when Hurricane Katrina
came.. this go around..
i for one will
be comfortable
in my own skin..
thAT iS a huge plUs
iN enjoYing liFe.. as i live
in a place that has no
value to
be destroyed
by others.. iN fAct..
they would probably
Love the Nature oF iiT
so much.. they would
drop the bomb and
embrace the God of Nature FREE..:)
So many of your responses tend to reflect many of the things that go through my head as I distill what to write, it’s uncanny at times. But, synchronicity exists right alongside entropy, so, I suppose it’s a natural result of walking parallel paths for so long. I am trying, not too successfully, so far, to be okay with the oncoming storms, as being merely another part of reality’s strange convolutions, but, it’s hard when I consider all the potential for beauty that will be lost when my grandchildren must face it all, without the benefit of much hope for a good resolution, if they are allowed any time at all beyond the next few years. The simple fact this is also an ego-driven feeling doesn’t mitigate the sadness for me…
But, as long as I pay attention, it will balance out in the end, even if that end is sooner than I might like it to be….
SIGH… being enlightened isn’t as easy as it sounds, I guess…
😉
Love
gigoid
😎
Ah.. yes.. synchronicity.. my friend..
back in the dead zone for those 66
months it was non-existent but
continues to accelerate
now as i stay
iN
ZonE oF
floW as a practice
oF art as the tapestry
Of allthatis naturAlly
streams along as no
separation ‘tween iT
and i..
and that my
friend iS trUly
greaTest magic misSinG
then.. back in the dead zone..
and noW iT seems when one
goes wiTh tHeir trUe WiLL Now
for each individual.. that iS when
liFe SinGS the most beautiful SonG
oF aLL my friend.. iF you WiLL.. a perfect
practice oF SonG iN Fearless Unconditional
Love.. theRe iS no way thiS whole thingy could
fiX iT self to mE.. iF not for real aLL natural magic
mY friend..
with the hUman
miNd and BoDy balance
coming with the metaphorical..
Quantum bEinG WitH the rest
oF Nature.. unleashed.. released..
and sIMply
and complexly
iN Balance.. a
feeling and sensing
gAMe that iS beyond
words oF i.. mY friend..
yet as real.. as any label or
symbol.. i for one.. feel or sense
or even
kNow
for REAL..
So in other
words.. i have
great hope.. faith
and belief the whole
thing WiLL work out..
iN caring way.. but no..
i kNow not how that
WiLL be.. iT
iS beyond
words..
aGaiN..
mY FriEnd..:)
Unreasoning hope is the only kind there is, my friend. That isn’t mine; it was said at the funeral of one of the founders of the EFF, Electronic Freedom Foundation, but I agree with it. Reason dismisses hope with knowledge; but, even knowledge can’t pin down Emily’s feathers for long.
I hope, too. I just don’t think I’ll put any serious money on it…
😉
gigoid
SMiLes.. My friend..
i never play the lottery
Either.. But some how
i won it beyond all
Reasoning odds..
ThaT iS my
Magic and
Most ironically
For me.. At least..
It would be unreasonable
To not have hope with my own
Personal evidence at hand now..
But no.. i still refuse to play the lottery or gamble.. as money is a
Tool that no longer
Rules me.. i’LL
Stay wiTh
Art
Of
Thrive..
sMiLes..:)
Reblogged this on gigoid and commented:
Ffolkes,
Having been rudely awakened at 0430 by a hungry cat, my mood upon arising was further affected negatively by a number of Murphy-esque incidents, which are threatening to push today into the crapper. To avoid any of this leaking into a Pearl, I went back to bed at 0445, & tried again at 0700…. No luck there, either; I’m still half-crazy & close to rage… So, I went to look for a re-blog, & found this one…. It’s got some decent ranting going on, as it was created during the final stages of my opioid withdrawal… At the time it was posted, I had almost gotten to a point where I could actually sleep….
Anyway, I’ll work on finding my balance again, & put THAT into the Pearl for tomorrow…. I’ll also make a strong effort not to lose my cool, & do things I’ll later regret, or, at least, be embarrassed by…. Age DOES bring SOME small degree of forethought, you know….
I’ll see y’all tomorrow, if I get lucky, & stay out of gaol….
gigoid, the unbalanced….
😎