Planting truth in fallow fields….

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Ffolkes,

Within the oyster’s shell uncouth
The purest pearl may hide,
Trust me you’ll find a heart of truth
Within that rough inside.

 ~~ Mrs. Osgood ~~

pluto nasa ukg 9-17-15

Pluto as seen from the Dawn Horizons Spacecraft Mission Flyby

Image from the UK Guardian 9/17/2015


Good morning, ffolkes. I’m tired, even after having slept a solid 8 hours for the first time in ages. I am also way, way off center, due to a concatenation of circumstances, many of which were not in my control, though in my possible sphere of prediction (had I been, naturally, more centered to begin). As a result, I find myself in the position of needing to make some alterations in lifestyle and routine in order to return to, and stay at my center of being, such as it is….

All that said, (with some difficulty I might add…. LeeLoo’s newest trick is to lick my hand, then drape herself comfortably across my wrist, leaving my fingers free to type, literally, as I am typing this while she lays there, purring contentedly, as if she had nothing more important or valuable to do but lie on my hands watching me type….. SIGH….) I am going to make a few changes here on ECR, as well. For some days after today, you may see some re-blogs, complete Pearls, from the archives…. Those will be the days I am avoiding any outside contact, as I intend to hunker down again, drawing myself into myself, until I find my center, and nail it to my forehead…. Other days, you’ll see nothing at all; those days I’m hiding, probably from myself, as well as the world…

So, these posts may not be as fresh as usual for a while…. Who knows? Maybe it won’t take long, and I’ll be back on track by tomorrow….. More likely, based on experience, we’re looking at a few weeks, while I go through my internal contortions, those necessary to realign my self to the universe, as I understand it…. At least this time I won’t be carrying around a beach ball on my belly…. It’s all gone ffolkes…. I weighed 179.8 lbs today, for the third day running. That is a weight I haven’t seen in over 25 years, and I’m not stopping there; I’ll quit worrying about it at all when I get back to 160 lbs., which is my natural weight for this age and height…. I’ll be buff again!….

Or, a reasonable facsimile of buff; much healthier, anyway…. For now, let’s get today’s Pearl done, since the cat seems to have fallen asleep on my wrist…. Take it away, Luigi!….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Humanity has the stars in its future, and that future is too important to be lost under the burden of juvenile folly and ignorant superstition.” — Isaac Asimov

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pearls_3

    Not only am I far from center, I can’t even figure out what direction to start searching for it. So, here’s the deal…. I’ll put together one old-school pearl, with as many good aphorisms as SB will give me, and be done with this for a while…. Obviously, (to me), I need a break, to recharge my batteries, or some such odd analogy…. which just goes to show how much I need this…. Here’s what I could find, ffolkes…. The first one probably gives away where I am heading; the rest are for show, though not insignificant in their own right/light…..

“Nothing is more useful than silence.” — Menander

“Experience is the only prophecy of wise men.” — Alphonse de Lamartine

“Life without music would be an intolerable insult.” — Edward Abbey

“After I’m dead I’d rather have people ask why I have no monument than why I have one.” — Cato the Elder

“This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.” — H.H. the Dalai Lama

“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.  With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) Essays: First Series (1841) “Self-Reliance”

“If you can see a thing whole… it seems that it’s always beautiful. Planets, lives…But close up, a world’s all dirt and rocks. And day to day, life’s a hard job, you get tired, you lose the pattern. You need distance, interval. The way to see how beautiful the earth is, is to see it as the moon. The way to see how beautiful a life is, is to see it from the vantage point of death.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, Dispossessed

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I’m done. Literally, and, figuratively. I may, or may not, post tomorrow; don’t be at all surprised if I don’t post for several days…. I need…. a lot. I want more…. Both are not good, and, thus, must be dealt with…. Not to worry, I’m tough, and I’ll be fine. I just need to NOT for a time. I’ll be back when I AM….

Y’all take care out there,
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

dozer3


À bientôt, mon cherí….


					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Wait, sir! Squeegees are NOT allowed….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Live a life worthy of the things that will be said of you when you’re dead.”


~~ Ambidextrous Rex ~~


7-31-2015 065


Stealth Rock Surfacing to Fire Weapons






Good morning…. Life can sure bring us new challenges…. Has anyone else noted how little we generally expect them when they come? It’s always a surprise, even though the same sort of events have occurred many times throughout our lives. I suppose it’s the same sort of amnesia women get after childbirth, that allows them to make love again, knowing the risks…. That’s a joke, by the way. I suppose it might not have fallen so flat were it more of a logical progression, rather than the usual male short-sightedness…. Ah, well, chalk it up to a routine shot to shit….


This morning, that routine has centered around a small extortionist, who insists this time of day is when I should pay attention to HER, not the computer. When I sat down to begin today, LeeLoo came over to the computer & sat directly on the keyboard, staring at me as if to say, “Well? What about ME?”…. She refused to be distracted, & I ended up sitting with her in my arms, purring, while I thought of all the time I was wasting….. until I fell back asleep…. SIGH…. Bloody little tyrant, she is…


I suppose this means this intro section will be turning into a morning report on cat antics, as I can see this is to become the new routine, with me attempting to furnish the cat with activities to distract her from the computer, so I can rush to put out the morning Pearl, in the MORNING! It promises to be a series of Keystone Kops episodes, to be sure…. For today, we’ll call this an intro, even though it barely makes the grade. Luigi is here, though, and we’re all set to go, so, let’s get it done, while LeeLo is buy tearing up the magazine I gave her….


Shall we Pearl?….


“The apple cannot be stuck back on The Tree of Knowledge; once we begin to see, we are doomed and challenged to seek the strength to see more, not less.” — Arthur Miller


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sleepy cat




This is the goal.


Image from Pinterest via Google Free Images




In keeping with the theme as described in the introductory section, here is some music designed to help our furry friends find some peace, for long enough to give us some respite…. Enjoy! As I sincerely hope LeeLoo does….




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Relax My Cat































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fabricate-supreme-being




Image Stolen from TalesfromtheConspiratum.com




“History does not record anywhere at any time a religion that has any rational basis. Religion is a crutch for people not strong enough to stand up to the unknown without help. But, like dandruff, most people do have a religion and spend time and money on it and seem to derive considerable pleasure from fiddling with it.” — Robert Heinlein, Time Enough for Love (1972)


I’m really late; I had intended to give myself enough time to write about religion today, as I found the above meme on a friend’s site, and found the perfect quote to go with it…. But, I’m too late, and, now, too tired to get it done, so, I’ll do what I always do in such cases; cheat. Here’s a religirant from the archives…. I’ve done quite a few of them, so, it doesn’t take long to find an appropriate entry…. Enjoy!….


From 4/17/2013:


“A thing is not proved because no one has ever questioned it…Skepticism is the first step towards truth.” — Smart Bee


As I was cruising through Smart Bee this morning, looking for inspiration for section 3, I came across this little gem, unattributed. It sounds like it could have come from a number of different philosophers, all of whom are noted for their wisdom and perspicacity (another great word….). It is also a part of the human flaw that has contributed to many of the problems we face as a society, and as a species.


Actually, it might be more accurate to say that the lack of this in humans is part of the flaw; most people one talks to would not agree with this idea, as stated. In fact, it is directly opposed to the educational premises of many cultures, especially those heavily influenced by religions, such as those in Mexico, Central and South America, where Catholicism is a powerful factor in society, and in the governing of that society. India, and much of the Eastern Hemisphere, too, have societies that are heavily influenced by religion, though with more participant sects than is true in the Western Hemisphere; Hinduism, Buddhism, Shinto, to name a few, are always a contributing factor in the political events that have shaped history.


“The common dogma [of fundamentalists] is fear of modern knowledge, inability to cope with the fast change in a scientific-technological society, and the real breakdown in apparent moral order in recent years That is why hate is the major fuel, fear is the cement of the movement, and superstitious ignorance is the best defence against the dangerous new knowledge. When you bring up arguments that cast serious doubts on their cherished beliefs you are not simply making a rhetorical point, you are threatening their whole Universe and their immortality. That provokes anger and quite frequently violence.” — G Gaia


As a result of this influence, many people tend to reject skepticism, as it doesn’t fit in with what they have been taught, which is to never question anything told to them by persons in positions of authority. Churches tend to encourage this sort of attitude, as their outrageous claims of divinity, and supernatural events performed by their deities, do not stand up well to scrutiny by an objective eye. The leaders of the churches thus play right into the hands of the Beloved Ruling Class, as they counsel their flocks to obey worldly, temporal authority as readily as they are conditioned to obey the secular variety…..


“I just stepped on a factoid!” – Zippy the Pinhead


Thankfully, not all of humanity is defenseless against this sort of conditioning. There are many ffolkes out there who don’t buy into the sort of psychological blackmail being promulgated by the preachers, priests, imams, and shamans of all shapes and sizes around the world, and a large number of them seem to end up blogging, right here on WordPress…. So, I end up preaching to the choir pretty often. But, that’s okay, too, because I know that occasionally, one of those folks who do believe in what they are told, without any questions or doubts, will read this, and, if nothing else, will think about what I’ve said…. Who knows, maybe I’ll go viral, and the whole world will remember that WE ALL ARE GODS?”…… (Remember?  Axiom # 3…. “Thou art God, you know…. Let’s do lunch….)


“Youth of today!  Join me in a mass rally for traditional mental attitudes!” — Zippy the Pinhead


I suppose that’s a note from my subconscious, to let me know I’ve gone far enough off the rails for now, and should let these good people get on with their lives, rather than wandering around in mine…. Goodness knows where we’ll end up…. So, anyway, just remember to cultivate your sense of doubt, your “crap detector”, as it were, and never, ever take anything “on authority”, without tangible proof…. You’ll find Life to be less confusing that way; certainly, it makes it a lot easier to look yourself in the mirror in the morning…..


“This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher must learn not to be frightened by absurdities.” — Bertrand Russell


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Comedy_Tragedy




    In 2012, I began writing poetry again after a hiatus of almost forty years; this is one of the very first I created after breaking the barrier I’d built between me and that part of my soul…. I hope you like it….




Accentuated Lessons


Bold statements of calculated intent

Become common rule of the malcontent.

Avarice assumes such attractive wear

Beguiling deception, illusory and fair.


Grasping and pulling with ghostly hands

Legally proper in all the signatory lands.

Seeking and finding each vulnerable soul

Anguish as payment for exacting the toll.


Wraiths of commerce’s invisible dead guards

Still haunt the dreams left in sad empty yards.

While absentee nobles sit in stiffly elegant splendor

Served by sad-faced detainees in abject surrender.


Escape from reality is illusory at best

Often we falter and fail its daily test.

Only when focused on inner strength

Does peace stay with us for any length.


Peace lies within, always…..


~~ gigoid ~~




Written 9/27/2012.


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ankh




    Our final pearl today is a rather standard group of aphorisms on Life at Large…. It’s all good advice, ffolkes, so, pay heed, if you would live your own life well….




“Be virtuous and you will be eccentric.” 


~~ Mark Twain ~~


“Honor is the reward of virtue.”


~~ Cicero ~~


“Have the courage to live. Anyone can die.”


~~ Robert Cody ~~


“There is only one success — to be able to spend your life in your own way.”


~~ Christopher Morley ~~


“There is only one universal goal: a gracious death with no regrets.”


~~ Deng Ming-Dao ~~


“He does not seem to me to be a free man who does not sometimes do nothing.”


~~ Cicero ~~


“Do not settle for less than the best your own excellence can command.”


~~ Anne McCaffrey ~~




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Well, it’s done. I’m pretty sure, anyway. I suppose I better check; hang on a moment….


It’s a damn good thing I checked. I had completely forgotten to complete one of the sections! Ah well, chalk that one up to LeeLoo, who picked the moment I found the missing section to knock over my almost full cup of coffee, just to give me something to do, more amusing for her than watching me type. Hilarious…. not.


But, NOW it’s done, and I can try to get it posted before she finds a way to set something on fire…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, as long as the building is intact…. Oh, shit, there goes the corner bookshelf!…. See ya…..




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….







		
	
					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Ice the melon, warm the brandy….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“A person needs a little madness, or else they never dare cut the rope and be free.”


~~ Nikos Kazantzakis ~~


spitzer20150820


NASA Spitzer Telescope Calendar Pictures for 2016






Good morning…. The cat finally let me pick a name for her. She has reacted to only one name, and, as is the usual case, it’s a perfect fit. She is Leeloo; pronounced just as spelled, it’s the name of the female lead character in a Sci-Fi movie, The Fifth Element. The whole movie was a very long drawn out metaphor for the concept that Love is the final element of harmony in our Universe, so, considering the cat’s personality, it fits the metaphor quite well….


The character in the movie was very catlike, anyway, so, it’s all good…. She has signaled her approval of her name by settling down on the edge of the mouse pad to doze while I’m typing this…. Of course, that doesn’t mean a flood of words is filling my head, encouraging me to choose just the right ones to thrill and amaze y’all with my new-found brilliance; in fact, nothing of the sort is happening in this head, or any other head in the immediate neighborhood. Even Leeloo has gone to sleep, finding this missive, thus far, to be less than stimulating….


I’m afraid I’ve been thrust into the grasp of a new learning curve, and will be manipulated into adjusting even more of my writing habits to suit the needs and/or desires of a small creature who is fascinated by every move I make at this computer. Already, as is patently obvious, the content has expanded exponentially, to include her antics, and progress in the molding of the household to her standards. SIGH…. I was JUST getting comfortable the way I was….. Axiom #2 in action, I would say….


Now we’ve received the morning metaphor from the Universe, it might be a good idea to get this slow on the road…. I know, let’s do this….


Shall we Pearl?….


“I’ve reached that age when a good day is one when you get up and nothing hurts.” — H. Martin


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Leeloo




Milla Jojovich as LeeLoo in The Fifth Element



Image from http://www.moviedata.net via Google Images




The movie from which LeeLoo’s name was chosen is still protected, so, to see it, you’ll need to find a copy yourself… I’ve included a You Tube exploration of some of the movie’s lesser known anomalies, on a page where you can see any number of clips from the movie, to get an idea of why I’ve named my cat after a fictional genetically enhanced goddess, in the role of a metaphor for the power of human love…. Enjoy!….




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9 Things You Didn’t Know about The Fifth Element

















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le penseur-rodin




    I’ve spent a lot of time, and words, detailing what I believe to be wrong with human nature, and, with the loss of integrity, honor, and sense of personal responsibility displayed by the vast majority of Americans, both in and out of government. I’m not in the mood to rant about it, because I’m in a lot of pain, and it might color my words to the point of irascibility, which detracts from its power of persuasion…. Well, that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it. Here, instead, is a short, seven-star pearl to accomplish the same purpose; each of these is something either missing from the American character, or, is all-too-present to do anyone any good….


“Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism — how passionately I hate them!” — Albert Einstein


“Moral certainty is always a sign of cultural inferiority. The more uncivilized the man, the surer he is that he knows precisely what is right and what is wrong. All human progress, even in morals, has been the work of men who have doubted the current moral values, not of men who have whooped them up and tried to enforce them. The truly civilized man is always skeptical and tolerant, in this field as in all others.His culture is based on “I am not too sure.” — H.L. Mencken


“You’ll never have a quiet world till you knock the patriotism out of the human race.” — George Bernard Shaw


“I know of no book which has been a source of brutality and sadistic conduct, both public and private, that can compare with the Bible.” — Lord Paget


“One of the most frightening things in the Western world, and in this country in particular, is the number of people who believe in things that are scientifically false.  If someone tells me that the earth is less than 10,000 years old, in my opinion, he should see a psychiatrist.” — Francis H.C. Crick


“One of the annoying things about believing in free will and individual responsibility is the difficulty in finding someone to blame your troubles on.And when you do find someone, it’s remarkable how often their picture turns up on your driver’s license.” — P. J. O’Rourke


“Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.” — Albert Einstein


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Comedy_Tragedy




Blithely Untitled


A poem came to me today, willy, nilly,

along with a sharp blow to the head.

Since it left me feeling just a bit silly,

anything that rhymes should lessen the dread.


Manifesting destiny into a small, insidious group

we push on toward sanity, concentrating hard.

Full engaging moments spent navigating the loop

shall ever make a difference to victims found in the yard.


Still corpses of creatures, straight out of nightmare

fill up the corners of our tortured minds.

While ever saddened, the iconic male, most debonair,

gazes softly, ironically, at all the mutual interest he finds.


Moronic public statutes compel outbreaks of sanity,

responding to momentary impulses toward inducing peace.

Still, the motions get completed, in fertile stages of inanity

while the bulk of our inmates can find no surcease.


Reluctant motivation to continue is unbound,

striving to ascertain how far there yet remains to go.

No precognitive guesswork will make any less of a sound

to soften the final strains, or teach us to truly know.


~~ gigoid ~~




Written 27/2014.


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pearls_3




From 2/28/2013:




Against the Word the unstilled world still whirled

  About the center of the silent Word.


~~ T.S. Eliot ~~




I’ve always been fond of this little snippet from T.S.; it has a certain charm to it. I find to be pleasantly complex, while yet describing a very basic idea. Of course, it’s not a rantable item, nor particular helpful in any sort of self-improvement activities. But, I don’t much care, I just like it, so there….


Actually, I’ve included it where it is as a filler; Smart Bee is being particularly uncooperative this morning. It’s almost as if it were suffering from what I am, and is trying to tell me, to wit:


” — Bother! said Pooh, as his fur turned gray and he began losing his memory.” — Smart Bee


So, in the face of such obstruction, I have only one defense, and that is to go old-school, reverting back to the type of pearls as demonstrated in section one today…. I give you therefore, the next in a seemingly endless parade of aphorisms, all pointed in one direction, or at least, one dimension….. Let’s see what we find….




Content if hence th’ unlearn’d their wants may view,

The learn’d reflect on what before they knew.


~~ Alexander Pope — Essay on Criticism, Part iii, Line 180 ~~




“Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice: It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.” — William Jennings Bryan


“Our genetic heritage endows each of us with a series of emotional set-points that determines our temperament. But the brain circuitry involved is extraordinarily malleable; temperament is not destiny.” — Daniel P. Goleman


“It is one of the commonest of mistakes to consider that the limit of our power of perception is also the limit of all there is to perceive.” — C. W. Leadbeater


“I have learned this at least by my experiment: if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” — Henry David Thoreau, “Walden”


“Metaphysical totalitarianism of any kind stifles the freedom we have as human beings. It is not acceptable to have a religion where the alternative to faith is punishment – that’s how you train dogs, not develop people.” — Deng Ming-Dao


“There was once a man, Harry, called the Steppenwolf. He went on two legs, wore clothes and was a human being, but nevertheless he was in reality a wolf of the Steppes. He had learned a good deal of all that people of a good intelligence can, and was a fairly clever fellow. What he had not learned, however, was this: to find contentment in himself and his own life.” — Hermann Hesse, Steppenwolf


Not bad, a seven star pearl, in less than a hundred clicks…. I’ll take it, and run…..


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This process has become even more of a struggle to complete; perhaps it will settle down a bit as the kitten requires less attention, though, that may take a while. Ah well, it’s done, and only about 3 hours later than usual… I must say, it’s nice to have LeeLoo sleeping on the mouse pad as I write, even if I have to move the mouse elsewhere…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, come what may….




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Inexorable notions of impropriety….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“We say the cows laid out Boston. Well, there are worse surveyors.”


~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), “Wealth” ~~


Supermoon August 2015 020


Yep. It’s Luna.




Good morning…. Yet another day spent slipping into the mire…. As I sit here, I find myself having to defend the keyboard against the imprecations of a psycho kitty, who thinks she should have some input into what I’m typing today. Her main problem, I think, is not knowing the entire alphabet; otherwise, I’d probably be watching her type this, rather than the other way around…. Fascinating!….


Ah well, it’s just another adaptation, I guess, one I have to deal with if I’m to ever get this Pearl posted. I’ll not tempt Fate, nor will I push my luck; instead, we’ll just go on, as if I knew what I was doing…. Luigi is going to ‘gently’ convey us to the oyster beds, where we shall hope to find what we need for the day…. Let’s do it now, okay?….


Shall we Pearl?….


“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” — Friedrich Nietzsche


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photos-of-dogs-and-cats-together




Image from arzapizza.com via Google Images




It looks as if I’ve given up on maintaining my reputation as a crusty, irritable old curmudgeon with these cute animal videos, doesn’t it? Oh, well, what the hell; I like them, so, fuck it…. Guess it won’t be too long before the new psycho kitty has company…. Enjoy, ffolkes…. and, for any Asininnies who MAY be reading, pay attention to how well our companions on the Trail of Life get along together when we don’t interfere with our own idiocy….







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Dogs & Cats Playing Together




















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Dont keep calm




    I came across this statement from Edward Abbey last evening, while searching for pearls. It is the clearest statement of reality in this country today I know of, though. it was first uttered in the last century; I know not exactly when… I am compelled to say I would agree with each and every word….


This, ffolkes, is the statement of an American patriot. The only real kind I know of, a man the men who formed this country would understand. It’s also the statement of a man with whom I’d be honored to stand…. any time, anywhere.


“The tank, the B-52, the fighter-bomber, the state controlled police and military are the weapons of dictatorship. The rifle is the weapon of democracy. Not for nothing was the revolver called an ‘equalizer’ Eqalite implies liberte. And always will. Let us hope our weapons are never needed — but do not forget what the common people knew when they demanded the Bill of Rights: An armed citizenry is the first defense, the best defense, and the final defense against tyranny. If guns are outlawed, only the government will have guns. Only the police, secret police, the military, the hired servants of our rulers. Only the government — and a few outlaws. I intend to be among the outlaws.” — Edward Abbey (1927-1989)


Nothing I could add would say it any better, so, I’ll just leave it there…. After all, what else is there to be said?


So be it.


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Comedy_Tragedy




    I am not sure why, but, this poem seems appropriate for today, as a representation of my recent ordeal overseas…. Too much of the trip was spent in a state similar to this, so, let all memory of that time be gone with this posting….




Dead Hands,Typing…


Puzzled anew by anomalous blocks of pain

caught, bemused, chained to routine, insane.

Stilled within breathless beauty

 Engaging epiphany, insistent, called to duty.


Knees bent in lieu of a faithful rendition

suffuses, confuses, locked into stale perdition.

Clearing corrosion with hands encased in stone

Singular frozen follicles, masked by bone.


Partial focus brings unfiltered flavors to light

coloring each particle in simple delight.

Forlorn, novel conceptual artists singing in tune

nine notes in harmony, soft as the moon.


Honed blades of carbon steel flash in rhyme,

filling sensual receptors well past closing time.

Borrowed from neighbors in a week-old game

still bloody, without a proper name.


No flooded memories can justify such cost

no simple stationery, bilious, afraid, lost.

Ten times ten will never be enough

To fill so empty a stolen trough.


Bartering simplicity takes well into the night

solidly temporary pillars turned bright.

Unknown to all the pretty children who came

none were called, none had any remaining flame.


~~ gigoid ~~




Written 2/25/2015.


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lao




    A simple little pearl about Life at Large to finish the day’s effort…. Pay heed, and enjoy Life better!….




Who sees all beings in his own Self, and his own

 Self in all beings, loses all fear.

 

~~ Isa Upanishad ~~




“The older we grow the greater becomes our wonder at how much ignorance one can contain without bursting one’s clothes.” — Mark Twain


“Don’t be ashamed to say what you are not afraid to think.” — Montaigne


“All is flux, nothing stays still.” — Heraclitus


“Patience is the companion of wisdom.” — Saint Augustine


“Cease to be ruled by dogmas and authorities; look at the world!” — H.G. Wells paraphrase of Roger Bacon’s works


“The shortest and surest way to live with honor in the world is to be in reality what we would appear to be; all human virtues increase and strengthen themselves by the practice and experience of them.” — Socrates


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Well, there you go. Late again, thanks to the regularization of my life, and the literary advice of a small fur-bearing critic. Now, if I can persuade here to move long enough to post, we’re good to go…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, like it or not…..




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Kowtowing to the inevitable….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

				5			

					


				

			
Ffolkes,




“Weary is the path that does not challenge.  


Doubt is an incentive to truth and patient inquiry leadeth the way.” 


~~ Plato Bee ~~


today 001


Miss Cthulthu Invasion




Good morning…. Yesterday, I took a short walk in the morning, as I’d been having a bit of trouble getting the brain going. Upon returning home, I approached my porch steps, where I heard the unlikely sound of a kitten desperately mewling…. I took two steps up, to be greeted by the above face, eyes latched onto mine, yelling at me to “open the door, NOW!”, as only a young, ferocious kitten can… She entered her dominion eyes straight ahead, then asked to be picked up and cuddled for a while, purring like a tiny locomotive….


The picture gives a good idea of her; I think she’s possessed….. Actually, she’s a sweet little Siamese mix, with more than a bit of the devil in her. I suppose she’s been deposited with me to keep me occupied, like I had nothing better to do than cater to a small, fur-bearing extortionist. Ah well, what are ya gonna do? Obviously, I’ve been appointed as her keeper by Bastet; so much for my plans to get a dog!…. Hmm…. come to think of it, a puppy may be just the thing to keep her in line, or, at minimum, give her somebody ELSE to wrestle with; my old skin is already picking up scratches galore….


So, now you know why I’m late, and, why I’ve had a bit of trouble establishing a routine for blogging since my return…. Since yesterday morning, my new routine has a new, vital factor to take into account, one who insists on having her time at her convenience…. So be it…. For now, let’s see if we can get a Pearl done, or, faked, if necessary…. Luigi, take it away!….


Shall we Pearl?….


“Let a man in a garret but burn with enough tensity and he will set fire to the whole world.” — Antoine de Saint-Exupery


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





today 012




Yes, it’s my typing chair


And, yes, the house looks like a two-year-old moved in…. Everything on the floor is now a toy.




Anyone who has been here before knows what is coming. The rest of y’all can just enjoy!…..




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Cats

















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Aristotle_Bust_White_Background_Transparent




“That which is incapable of proof itself is not proof of anything else.” 


~~ Shelley ~~






I’d hoped to have at least a mini-rant, or a discussion of philosophy this morning; the cat has other plans. Here is a pretty good little piece from the early days of this blog, which may serve the purpose as well….


From 9/19/2012:


“Beauty as we feel it is something indescribable; what it is or what it means can never be said.” — George Santayana


This observation by Mssr. Santayana seems to me to explain most of the movies that come out of Hollywood, or anywhere else. Each of us, though we cannot always say what we see as beautiful, knows what it looks like when we encounter it; every movie made is an attempt to attract people with visions of commonality, beauty that all can agree on, and, of course, pay money to see. It’s a manufactured market, only there because people want to experience those feelings, and are convinced that they can by participating in the public viewing of someone’s idea of beauty (or comedy, or evil, or any other intriguing related emotional experience)….


It reminds me of the concept of perfection…. We all have heard that “nobody is perfect”, or “nothing is perfect”, and there are numerous philosophical treatises that attempt to prove that perfection is beyond human attainment. My question for these people is this: if there is no such thing as perfection, then why do we have its image in our minds? It seems more logical to me that perfection is merely very rare, but examples of it are bound to occur, just by the law of averages, and when it does, we have the perceptive ability to see it, to acknowledge and appreciate its perfection….


The statement also can be viewed as another way of looking at the nature of reality, or the Tao of life. Is not the very first line of the Tao Teh Ching a paraphrase of the above? “The Tao that can be named is not the true Tao.” It touches on the very base of natural law, of how reality is not what we can say of it; it is more than just the description of it. By observing what is real, our perceptions remove the part of what has occurred that gives it body and substance, what makes it real…. If Albert Einstein’s God is the true one, then He left clues to this aspect of reality all over, but especially in physics, as noted by the famed Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, which so poignantly points out the folly of placing one’s total faith in what is perceived…. because by seeing it, it has already changed, to suit another of reality’s aspects, Change….


Axiom # 2 of Peruaosophy states: “The Nature of the Universe is Change. Unpredictable, innovative transformation of Reality is the Norm. If you have a problem with this, you are in for a rough ride.”  Since Peruaosophy is my own philosophy, I can tell you, without fear of lying, that the axiom is absolutely true. It has been tested by every method I could think of, all through my life, and I can assure you that it is a factual statement. Trust me….


Okay, so you don’t have to take my word for it…. test it yourself. If you can find a single time when you can say that it is untrue, you document that, and send it to me. I’ll check it out, if any are sent in, but I have serious doubt that I’ll get any replies, as I’m confident of the axiom and its veracity. It doesn’t mean it is better, or more real than any other viewpoint or world view, but I’d wager it stands up to any of them without flinching or looking away….


Now see what I’ve done? I’ve talked myself into a corner, and can’t figure out how to tie all this mental meandering together with any aplomb. I’m sadly short of quotes, so we’ll have to make do with whatever I can come up with on short notice….. let it suffice to say that I believe in beauty, as little as it can be described, and I believe in perfection, in reality, and in the nature of everything…. After all, to be perfect, one would need to also be perfectly imperfect, else how would one tell?  And I know for a fact that many of us are imperfect; at times, I am so myself, on rare occasions…..     🙂     Besides, nature itself is full of examples of perfect beauty, anyway…. just take a walk in a garden when it is blooming with roses, and you will find any number of physical examples of the concept……




Turning and turning in the widening gyre

The falcon cannot hear the falconer;

Things fall apart: the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere

The ceremony of innocence is drowned….


~~ William Butler Yeats, The Second Coming ~~


His head,

Not yet by time completely silver’d o’er,

Bespoke him past the bounds of freakish youth,

But strong for service still, and unimpair’d.


 ~~ William Cowper (1731-1800) — The Task, Book ii, The Timepiece, Line 702 ~~




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





Comedy_Tragedy




Gauges of Pain 


Consciousness devolves in pools of gripping fears

holding hostage any hope of serenity,

sharp stabbing motions and greedy tears

nary a moment passes without common calamity.


Always a surprise, nothing soothing ever found,

leaving only breathless clinging pain,

salvation seemingly absent, it muffles all sound,

bringing ever more sadness and rain.


Solitude is ever present to claim my time,

lonely hours and relentlessly long days,

no radio plays such music in secular rhyme

happy, vibrant voices belong to elder ways.


Life can be justified it seems to say,

by hopeful favored moments of pleasure,

seemingly friendly, pointing out the only way,

to bring back happiness in minimal measure.


Days of horror and embarrassing tears

serve ever to drive wretched hours to withhold

promising naught but sorrow in coming years,

black, bitter memories that never grow old.


Cold, cold the days fly by,

can it really be our only token?

Never to say, or know just why

the pain never stops, even when spoken…


~~ gigoid ~~




Written 9/10/2012.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





A-laughing-girl-and-her-camel




    I really don’t think this pearl needs explanation; all ya gotta do is enjoy it, just as if you were a camel, or a little girl….




Discourse on virtue and they pass by in droves.

Whistle and dance the shimmy, and you’ve got an audience.


~~ Diogenes ~~




“Save your breath, you may want it to clean your glasses later.” — Julius Tannen


“If you define cowardice as running away at the first sign of danger, screaming and tripping and begging for mercy, then yes, Mr. Brave man, I guess I’m a coward.” — Deep Thoughts, by Jack Handey


“Careful, Mister.  Old Zeek is liable to fire that sucker up!” — Gaffer Bee


“If one studies too zealously, one easily loses his pants.” — Albert Einstein


“God must love assholes — She made so many of them.” — Druidic Bee


“Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.” — Geeky Bee


“I don’t think Mr. Ranger is gonna like this, Yogi…” — Booboo Bear




Do what you wanna, do what you will;

 Just don’t mess up your neighbor’s thrill.

 And when you pay the bill, kindly leave a little tip

 To help the next poor sucker on his one-way trip.


~~ Frank Zappa, “You Are What You Is” ~~




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





today 013





Well, it’s a Pearl. It’s got all the necessary parts, anyway, so, I’m going with tradition, & pronouncing it done. That being the case, and the cat being asleep for a while (thank Bastet for cat naps….), I’ll try to post this before it spoils in the heat…. I’ll try again tomorrow, ffolkes; perhaps we can even find something relatively fresh in my head other than mush & blather…. Fat chance, but, hey, hope springs eternal…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; damn it, anyway!….




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Absent gestures of high regard….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

				10			

					


				

			
Ffolkes,




“Man has made use of his intelligence, he invented stupidity.”


~~ Remy De Gourmant ~~


Last of Eire 2015 019


Cows is Cows ~ These are Irish Cows




Good morning…. I could, in view of the actual nature of Reality, express that sentiment much more accurately, but, what fun would that be? Nobody really wants to know, anyway, right? So, what’s the point? None. And, if we can do nothing else around here today, let us at least try to have a point….


Wait. Do we really want to set a precedent like that? Maybe we should rethink that for a moment; it’s not as if there’s any real money riding on the decision, so, nobody will pay any attention. In this society, money talks, bullshit walks, as it is said in many places, all of them financially certified as bankable, the ultimate test of reality for an oligarch. Oops…. How did we start ranting so quickly? I wasn’t even feeling any particularly sharp angst anywhere, were you? Hmm…. the urge must be getting pretty strong…


It will have to wait, though, as I’m not done here in the intro….. Or, wait a minute…. Am I? Let me just check this little gauge right over here, and…. well! I’ll be damned! (No doubt on that one, is there?…. Ha!) According to this, we ARE done! There’s a bit of nonsense, a greeting, of sorts, some mini-ranting, or facsimile thereof, and some general confusion. Yep. That’s all of them…. Okay, then. Luigi, it seems we are finished here; take it away, as soon as you…..whoa! Hang on, ffolkes…..


Shall we Pearl?….


“There is no sun without shadow and it is essential to know the night.” — Albert Camus


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





Last of Eire 2015 024




Ireland’s Best Feature ~ The Irish




I’m not in the mood to search You Tube today, so, I’ll put in some of the pictures I took in Ireland/Europe…. I didn’t get as many as I wished, being a bit under the weather, and I’m grateful for the help I received in getting as many as I did…. Enjoy, ffolkes….





Last of Eire 2015 002




Galway B&B


Last of Eire 2015 006


Gaelic/English Road Signs


Last of Eire 2015 003


Common Sight on any walk in Ireland


More Galway 005


Monument to the Famine Victims ~ White Strand Beach, Galway


More Galway 033


Monument to the Famine Victims II


More Galway 044


Abandoned Church in Galway


More Galway 051


Typical Irish Colors for Buildings


Last of Eire 2015 013


Scenes from a train ~ Leaving Galway for Dublin




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13923408614402




    I had thought by now I’d feel like ranting; I even let a bit of angst out in the intro as a precursor…. Now I’m here, it’s all gone, and I don’t even care. I’ve got a few little indictment style shots I’ve collected, which, if SB will cooperate by augmenting with a couple more, will serve our purpose ‘sufficient unto the day’, as it were…. And, if not, well, it will have to do, anyway….. Enjoy, ffolkes, it’s all true as the day….




1. No matter what they’re telling you, it’s not the truth.

2. No matter what they’re talking about, they’re talking about money.


 ~~ Todd’s Political Principles ~~




“There is not enough love and kindness in the world to permit us to give any of it to imaginary beings.” — Nietzsche


“Any system of religion which has anything in it which offends the mind of a child cannot be a true system.” — Thomas Paine


“By definition, a government has no conscience. Sometimes it has a policy, but nothing more.” — Albert Camus


“Make money and the whole nation will conspire to call you a gentleman.” — George Bernard Shaw


“It’s hard to decide if T.V. makes morons out of everyone or if it mirrors Americans who really are morons to begin with.” — Martin Mull


“Mankind…  infests the whole habitable Earth and Canada.” — Ambrose Bierce


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





Comedy_Tragedy




Serendipity Morning


My mind wants to fly, 

   my soul wants to hold close, the source, 

strong, the moments of time; 

   each as precious as golden thread, 

binding together such elements of longing desire. 


Love hovers, always patient, 

   seeking the open heart, 

reaching for the promise of tomorrow….. 

   only for one, only for now, only what is real…. 

Dreaming, the morning calls, 

   heavy with mordant belief, 

replete, and eternally alive…..


~~ gigoid ~~




Written April Fool’s Day, 2013.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





pearls_3




    In order to get this done, I’ve gone to the archives. Believe it or not, this Pearl has taken more than seven hours to produce…. Something must be done. Damn! Guess who gets THAT job? Yep…. SIGH… We’ll see how it goes; for now, this will do….


From 6/24/2013:


All things considered, it’s been a good morning…. This isn’t to say it hasn’t been without its difficulties, but, I’m trying really hard not to be a whiner, so we’ll pass over all that, and get on with it…. Here is a seven-star pearl for your delectation, lovingly selected over the last hour from Smart Bee, who has been a bit off, but, came through in the end. The point of this is related to the above rant, but, not so’s you could tell at first glance…. Don’t sweat it, it’s all good stuff, even without the point, and who wants a point that’s all belabored, anyway, right?…. So, make sure you have your chopsticks, the protective bib provided for your convenience is in place, and you should be able to get through it without any new laundry bills…..


“You can best serve civilization by being against what usually passes for it.” — Wendell Berry


“All things come round to him who will but wait.” — Henry W. Longfellow (1807-1882) — Tales of a Wayside Inn, The Student’s Tale


“Against those skilled in the attack, the enemy does not know where to defend.  Against the experts in defense, the enemy does not know where to attack.” — Sun Tzu


“What matters today is not the difference between those who believe and those who do not believe, but the difference between those who care and those who don’t.” — Abbe’ Pierre


“If you make people think they’re thinking, they’ll love you; but if you really make them think, they’ll hate you.” — Don Marquis


“I don’t necessarily agree with everything I say.” — Marshall McLuhan


“The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” — Eden Phillpotts


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


It’s done; no more can, or should be said of this one. I won’t detail all the weird stuff that kept it from getting done before this, but, it includes cats, and hats, and that’s that. Enough, I’m outta here, and I MIGHT explain tomorrow, should I make it that far…. See y’all then, ffolkes….




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Tinny pegs, and tall….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

				8			

					


				

			
 Ffolkes,




“Fortune is unstable, while our will is free.”


~~ Diogenes Laertius — Epicurus, xxvii ~~


Dublin to Galway 011


Deeper Dreams/Eireänne




Good morning…. I use the term, not JUST loosely, but, in full knowledge it’s unreasonably optimistic, even now, when any good at all would be, well, good.


Hmm. That didn’t come out quite right, did it? Not quite as planned, either…. Oh, well….  So be it, anyway.


Hi, there. I’m back. Sort of. Are we confused yet?


Oh, good. Me, too. But, it’s okay, because at least I’m home to BE confused. Here, if and/or when I must spew, I know where to go, whether the need(must!) be mental, physical, or spiritual…. Each, as you know, of course, requires a different receptacle, all designed to prevent cross-contamination, of which none wish it so…. No, we all wish to keep them separate, in sturdy, attractive, thoroughly-tested nocturnal urns of great beauty, which I keep in numerous handy locations at home. (Doesn’t everyone?) In public, or on the road, as we’ve/I’ve been recently, one can’t always arrange matters so neatly, not ahead of need, anyway.


I wasn’t sure whether to go into moderate piles of detail, a lot of detail, or no details at all, at all, regarding my recent trip; there is certainly a LOT of stuff I need to process in my own mind about what occurred while I was gone. For the moment, since I’m still pretty effing tired from the rather extreme effort I had to expend to reach home, I’ll forgo any long diatribes, merely alluding to the entire episode as my Latest Slip/Slide/Ride Around the Learning Curve…. It has a nice, obscure, yet enticing ring to it, I think…. How ’bout y’all?….


Oh, don’t worry…. I don’t expect a lot of comments on that. Almost purely rhetorical, it was, so, relax. mates…. But, feel free, of course, to add one at the end, should you be so moved. No blockage encouraged here; we don’t even like the word. We like the word moved better. Speaking of which, if I DO decide to discuss the trip, you should find it in the ranting section, since I’ve already perused the news, observing nothing upon which I would comment, other than a lack of stuff on which to comment…. Ahem.


There. That will do. It will have to do, because that’s it for the intro…. In fact, look, it’s an old #4! Better duck, hang on, or go back to sleep….


Shall we Pearl?….


“When you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” — Bishop Desmond Tutu


Well, maybe that’s a little grim for a first day back; let’s try again, shall we?….


“A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” — George Bernard Shaw


Better…. Let’s do this….


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





15112676-wolfgang-amadeus-mozart-1756-1791-on-engraving-from-1908-one-of-the-most-significant-and-influential




    To keep from overtaxing my brain, which is not yet fully recovered from our ordeal (See? Getting there…. it’s OUR ordeal now, which means the various parts of my shattered psyche are now within shouting distance of each other; first time in days…), I’ve chosen a rather mundane, average, unknown to me mix of our default music from You Tube, simply because I know it will do for our purposes today…. And, who knows? I can use all the healing power I can get…. Enjoy, ffolkes…..




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The Mozart Effect

Heal the Body

















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More Galway 056




Typical Irish Pub in Galway




Being the sort of person I am, I could easily write a million words about my trip to Ireland. In my head, I’ve already done so…. Sadly, I don’t think I can keep up with all that typing, as the little bit so far required today has taxed my rusty skills, and my carpal tunnels. So, here is a short, two pearl rant on my thoughts re: the oligarchy, and its ubiquitous attempts to shove its collective ass in everyone’s faces, all the time, everyfuckingwhere in the everfuckingworld…. There are only two, remember, so, try to keep up….


“There’s no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you.” — Will Rogers


“Once, there was NO fun…  This was before MENU planning, FASHION statements or NAUTILUS equipment… Then, in 1985..  FUN was completely encoded in this tiny MICROCHIP…. It contains 14,768 vaguely amusing SIT-COM pilots!! We had to wait FOUR BILLION years but we finally got JERRY LEWIS, MTV and a large selection of creme-filled snack cakes!” — Zippy the Pinhead


There you go. Now we can get on with the small amount of detail I am allowed to share regarding my time away…. Who’s saying what’s allowed? Oh, no worries, I am…. Who here would care what THEY would allow? Hah! Give me a break…..


Sorry, cheap hack crap, I know. Let’s start again, or, over, or, something….


So, I went into this pub in Galway, where I proceeded to have pizza. Wait. It wasn’t a pub. Walked around the Spanish Arch FOREVER looking for a relatively quiet place for a bite, but, could not find any, it being the night prior to their local version of the Super Bowl, to wit: the Irish Football championships, with Galway playing Kilkenny for the premier league title, for the 8th year in a row (Galway having lost the previous 7 times….). Needless to say, the place was jumping, and, yes, finding a seat anywhere was a challenge.


It took so long, I apparently reached what I discovered was the very end of my rope. Feeling tired but normal, I ordered a second glass of wine after a decent pizza marguerita in an Italian restaurant (in a place called the Spanish Arch, in an Irish town, with a Romanian waitress and a Polish bartender….). I took one sip of that wine, then, stood up, & quickly retired/teleported myself to the nearest restroom, where I proceeded to toss the entire remaining contents of the day’s consumption into the commode, calling desperately for RALPH! With the help of relative strangers, I made it to a taxi, back to the B&B, and into bed, where I remained, essentially, for days….




Always we hope

Someone else has the answer

Some other place will be better

Some other time it will all work out.

This is it.

No one else has the answer

No other place will be better

And it has already turned out.

At the center of your being

You have the answer;

You know who you are and what you want.

There is no need to turn outside

For better seeing.

Rather abide at the center of your being

For the more you leave it

The less you learn.

Search your own heart and see

the way to do is to be.


~~ Lao Tzu ~~




SIGH…. At the time, I’m afraid the sheer genius, and truth, of Lao Tzu’s famous lines left little impression on me, though, now, it makes perfect sense why my subconscious mind chose it for that spot in this missive. Naturally, there was no one else who could make the necessary decisions, so, with the aid of one particularly strong, compassionate person, I was able to get myself home from Galway before I, a) died, b) killed someone, c) first b, then a, d) a+b+c, or, e) started the revolution right there and then….


So, without getting into too many details, other than to say, gee, thanks, doctors, you fuck heads…. I’ll just say this…. Trying to exist without perpetrating violence upon STUPID sheeple for 28 hours straight, while confined in a closed space, with intermittent, all-too-frequent, alternating chills, nausea, muscular twitching, severe stomach pain, and, periods of panicked anxiety, all enhanced by various painful joints, muscles, and/or every single molecule in my body on full alert…. but, don’t move around the cabin!….


Great fun…..


End of rant, and, end of complaints. It’s all getting better, little by little, as I rest, applying the missing pieces to the puzzle of why it happened…. which I do happen to know, and am dealing with in my own fashion…. I’m hoping another day or two of rest will do the trick; it will take that long just to get my internal clock right, I should think…. Ah, well, so much for the world traveler, eh?…. More later on all this, ffolkes….




“I grow old ever learning many things.”


~~ Solon ~~




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





Comedy_Tragedy




Stray Cats


The veils that billow and fold 

between dreams and reality

 may sometimes part, 

showing the visions of one to the other, 

blending, bleeding as one, 

only to bring us up short, 

closely jammed against immovable fate. 


Still, we keep our watch, 

seeking to find the vision

 that brings with it the mark of reality’s regard, 

a humble mind, and a compassionate heart. 


Events of broad impact draw us away again, 

distracting with shiny glitter and tinny music, 

leaving our feelings raw and bruised, 

the victim of universal disregard. 


Now, in the twilight of years, the music is fading, 

and the glitter has all gone…. 

yet the memory of visions remains sharp and clear, 

melancholy reminders of reality’s promises, 

unkept….


~~gigoid~~




Written 4/12/2013.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





ankh




    This is a really old-school old-school pearl, which I now don’t have time to explain….. It’s okay, though, because this one will stand up no matter what…. Go ahead, try to knock it over….


“Deem not life a thing of consequence. For look at the yawning void of the future, and at that other limitless space, the past.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, iv, 50


“Sick cultures show a complex of symptoms … but a *dying* culture invariably exhibits personal rudeness. Bad manners. Loss of consideration for others in minor matters. A loss of politeness, of gentle manners, is more significant than is a riot.” — Friday’s boss, Mr. Two-Canes Baldwin, from “Friday” by Robert A. Heinlein


“Most people would rather give than get affection.” — Aristotle


“Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.” — Ovid


“One isn’t necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.” — Maya Angelou


“To cheat oneself out of love is the most terrible deception; it is aneternal loss for which there is no reparation, either in time or in eternity.” — Soren Kierkegaard


“Always be a little kinder than necessary.” — James M. Barrie


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


No, I don’t know what happened; all I know is I’ve been at this for hours, and it’s done…. Now to see if I can post it…. We’ll try again tomorrow, ffolkes, if I’ve regained some energy, or, have decided to give in to the demands of Fate. Hmm…. Not bloody likely, I think. We’ll see….




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Flying off the panhandle….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

				8			

					


				

			
Ffolkes,




“Experience is a good school, but the fees are high.”


~~ Heinrich Heine ~~


More Galway 050


Farewell to Galway




Good morning…. Well…. and, no doubt, that’s a deep subject.


Ta dum.


Ladies and gents, I’m off home. Without going into TMI, I’m not as well as I’d thought, without the support of my home network of solutions to physical issues I possess. I’ve changed me ticket, and am already making plans for a return trip in a few months, since I didn’t get to finish what I wanted to do this time.


Needless to say, I’m a bit unhappy to be going, (that is indeed a bit of an understatement….), but, I’m adult enough to realize I couldn’t do it without the support. In fact, I’m not well enough to do any more…. I’ll try to get a Pearl out by Saturday, but, we’ll have to see what kind of recovery time I have these days….


I’ll see you in a few days, ffolkes….


Shall we Pearl?….


“When a person can no longer laugh at himself, it is time for others to laugh at him.” — Thomas Szasz, The Second Sin, 1973


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Bye for now….




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Portable referendums seem to be de rigeur….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

				4			

					


				

			
Ffolkes,




“While there’s life, there’s hope.”


~~ Cicero ~~


Ireland 089


Street Musicians in Galway




Good morning…. Today’s effort will be a short, slight one, in a manner of speaking. I’m on the road again today, back to Dublin from Galway, taking a train this time, to see something other than the freeway…. I’ve included a few pictures from various spots around Galway; I have lots more to show in later blogs, but, this was what I could get ready for now…. I’ll try to get some more up in a day or so, once I’m settled back in Dublin….


For now, I’ll once again dump y’all down the page with no further ado, and be back to blather at a later date…. I’m having a great time, and blogging is now secondary in my hierarchy of important stuff to do…. So….


Shall we Pearl?….




“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.”


~~ Walter Winchell ~~




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




Ireland 063





The view from the B&B toward Galway Bay & the Aran Islands


Ireland 074





View of the River Corrib





Ireland 072






Patterns in the Foam on River Corrib






Ireland 046






Local Resident Raven, eyeing dinner






Ireland 079






Swans on the River






Ireland 081






In the Spanish Arch post Rugby Cup frenzy






Ireland 087




Typical Irish Building Colors






~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Okay, ffolkes, that’s all you get today…. I’m off on the almost never-ending search for adequate coffee to go with the morning’s breakfast….


(Okay, short mini-rant: Finding good coffee in other countries, even those like England and Ireland, who do enjoy some good coffees, is harder than it may seem…. One must go to the coffee specialty houses, like Starbucks, or the Irish/English equivalent, to find just a decent cup of French Roast, or an espresso; the normal restaurants and public houses don’t seem to regard it as an important item…. Finding a good cup at one’s B&B is a real treat…. I’m glad the first place I stayed had a proprietor who DID know how to make coffee; she used a Vietnamese style press to make hers…. But, that’s a rarity….)


End of rant, and, end of today’s Pearl…. I’m off into the BBR for new adventures, so, see y’all in a day or two…. Have fun, ffolkes, I sure am….




Y’all take care out there, 

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








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Smatterings of coherency…

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

				8			

					


				

			
Ffolkes,




“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow.




The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.


~~ Abraham Lincoln ~~


Dublin to Galway 002


The garden at San Augustine’s in Dublin




Good morning…. I see I’ve been remiss in posting lately, but, I shall beg your indulgence in light of being rather more interested in what I’ve been up to here in Ireland. Since the last post, I’ve feuded with the car rental company, who tried to slip a 950 Euro hidden charge on me, nearly maxing out my credit card, and throwing my budget to the wind…. However, that’s history, and I’m so jazzed at all of everything to care much. In fact, I want to get out and doing now, so, I’ll post a few pictures, with the promise of more on the next post, with more information as to what I’ve been up to to distract me so well…


So, see you next time, in a day or three, with much more…. For now….


Shall we Pearl?….


“Dignity does not consist in possessing honors, but in deserving them.” — Aristotle (384-322BC)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




Dublin to Galway 007


Near the bus stop in Swords. Dublin on the way to the airport for a bus





Dublin to Galway 005





Flower Pots at the Dublin Airport, to catch the bus to Galway





Dublin to Galway 008





Oslo’s Pub in Salthill, Galway










Dublin to Galway 010





Street scene at Spanish Arch in Galway








Dublin to Galway 011





Murphy’s Bar in Spanish Arch, Galway






~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


That’s all for today, ffolkes… I’ll have a lot more for you in a day or two, if I can overcome some of the minor issues developing on a physical front…. For now, I’m going to go explore, as long as I can…. See ya, sooner than it may seem….




Y’all take care out there, 

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










Kowabunga! 
Kowabunga!






À bientôt, mon cherí….