Tag Archives: Albert Einstein

Twice-baked brains, aux bleu….

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Ffolkes,

“Service to others
becomes a necessity
in seeking virtue.

~~ gigoid, 10/9/2018 ~~

eugene vineyards

New Vineyards near Eugene, Oregon….

In the past eight days, since last posting a Pearl, the various parts of today’s post fell together in a random order that eventually achieved some coherency just yesterday. My life outside this room where the computer lives has been, more than I care to think it could be, ‘interesting’, and I use that word in the oriental sense, not occidental. Friends in crisis, personal demon wars, trying to stop smoking tobacco, risky business, all have occurred of late in rapid=fire succession, unwilling to allow one the time to either prepare, or recover. SIGH…. (that’s a West Counties sigh, long, sad face, slowly indrawn breath exhaled with force and a shake of the head….). ‘Tis easy to see why I’m so hard-pressed to get anything done, with so much distraction from any purpose I choose to follow….

But, all of us live in the same reality (that’s why I explore it….), with one difference, that being our own perception of it. That said, it remains both no MORE difficult, or, any LESS difficult than anyone else’s reality, no matter how perceived; in the end, we all must face it alone. That’s why I have come to believe so strongly in the old proverb about ‘living in the shelter of each other’; without each other, we all get lost, and lonely. Sometimes, that can happen even when we are with each other, so, it’s a good thing to also remember the other old proverb, i.e., ‘if you want a friend, be one’….

I’m doing some writing on the side for a friend, and have also procrastinated on getting it done as quickly as I like, so, I’m gonna leave this be so it can get posted, & do my best to quit complaining at myself long enough to get something else done. Wish me luck, ‘cuz I have a feeling I’ll need it….. For the nonce, I’ll see you down the page a ways….

Shall we Pearl?

“Go softly, for you tread on my dreams.”

~~ William Butler Yeats ~~

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john lee chicken mambacom

John Lee Hooker

Image from chickenmamba.com via Google Images…

Here’s another artist who should need little introduction. If one knows anything of the blues, he is an icon; if not, well, he’s still an icon, just one of whom you don’t know, to your loss…. until now, of course. I’ve included two live videos, as anything he does live is impeccable, IMHO…. I hope you enjoy it….

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buddah-out-to-lunch_s

For old times’ sake, just because….

From 10/16/2014:

“The effort to understand the universe is one of the very few things that lifts human life a little above the level of farce and gives it some of the grace of tragedy.” — Steven Weinberg

In the past year and some time, I’ve written many words… more than I care to think about just now, and a number that some would say deserves the term “interminable”….. None of them comes closer to summarizing how I feel about life in general than this…. I’ve never seen it before, to my knowledge, which detracts in no way from its deep resonance with my core beliefs.

I spend a lot of time discussing those parts of life that lean toward the direction of farce, with no little outrage at the depth of human cupidity and well, bozoid tendencies. In my own way, I suppose, this could be construed as my own effort to try to understand the universe, and our place in it…. I hope so, anyway…. because understanding life has been my only quest for the greatest part of it that I remember, reaching back to when I was five or six, and desperately trying to blend in with all the orange monkeys, while secretly wearing my own coat of blue…. For the two years after beginning school, and being exposed all day to the world outside my family, the gap between myself and my peer group seemed to be unpredictable, in terms of what they perceived, and what I could see and understand.

This isn’t to imply I was an outcast; merely an “egghead”, or other such complimentary terminology, as I found the actual school part of it all quite simple. This did, on the positive side, give me enough time to learn to adapt, and make myself likable for other reasons… sports being one, and applying the principle of “to have friends, be a friend”; I was always generous with helping others in school, with whatever I could do. Plus, I do LIKE people, as a rule…. they often disappoint, but, if one pays attention, they also never fail to amaze, in so many ways.

This study of my peer group from my first memories has persisted throughout my life, and remains today my primary focus of self-directed education, so to speak. I love to sit in public places and watch crowds; I don’t much like being IN crowds, so much as watching them interact with each other, all according to the dancing rules we all learn, from kindergarten onward…. From the first time I ever attended a county fair, my favorite activity at each, was to race through all there was to see, spend all my disposable income, and then spend the remainder of my time sitting near the front gate plaza, watching the people as they came to the fair….. endless entertainment, and still is…. only now, I walk the streets when I’m able, or sit in the public parks, libraries, and coffee shops, wherever I live….

“Sometimes one pays most for the things one gets for nothing.” — Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

One of the things I’ve learned about people is that human nature is just that… a force of nature. It has not changed much, if at all, since we humans were living in grass huts at the junction of a river; there are still good people, and bad people, and they are most often the same person…. because we all have our own unique view of the world, and our own feelings about what we see and believe we understand. We don’t always have all the information we need at critical times in our lives, and so make decisions that affect our behavior or outlook, decisions which become habits, leading us to believe these habits are justifiable because they work to keep us comfortable…. until they don’t. Life always changes, there is nothing that can stop it from doing so; if we do not learn to change ourselves, to adapt to the changes in the universe around us, it will end up destroying us.

The universe has no mercy, no pity; these are human concepts, and not a part of reality at all. But, being human, we crave justice, for things to be fair…. we bend our efforts to changing the universe to meet our wishes, never realizing that it is folly, that reality does not work that way, and there is nothing at all we can do to alter that reality according to our wishes without suffering the consequences. How quickly those consequences will result in our demise as a species is, of course, a matter of some debate. I tend to believe that we are nearing a breaking point, and the universe is going to be submitting a bill for payment to us, for the damages to our living domicile for which we are responsible, in the very near future…..

It must be noted that most of what I write about, whether I write well, or merely a lot, lends itself equally well to tragedy as it does to farce. In fact, it should also be noted that this is a good metaphor, for human nature. We are contradictory creatures, you, and your Uncle Bob, your Aunt Shirley, and I, and everyone else who makes up human society, filled with warring impulses, and wildly differing viewpoints. The expression of our nature in the real world reflects all of that, in all its tragic, farcical, gloriously foolish splendor…. We inspire and disgust each other on a daily, sometimes hourly basis, especially if one watches a lot of TV, with its completely distorted approximation of reality…. I have pretty much given up on TV completely, as it merely serves to fuel my outrage, and that, as you may have noted already, needs no further encouragement….

Well, a thousand or so words should be enough for a retrospective musing on human nature….. especially when they flow out as smoothly as these. I’ll leave this here, and most likely come back to it another day…. I will leave you with this fine observation from Mssr. Darwin, of The Origin of Species fame…. a book which gave birth to perhaps the finest scientific advance of the millennium, the since-proven Theory of Evolution….. surely a magnificent creation of the human spirit that encompasses both of the elements, farce and tragedy, we explored above….

“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” — Charles Darwin

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Comedy_Tragedy

“But groundless hope, like unconditional love, is the only kind worth having.”

~~ EFF co-founder John Perry Barlow, “Cynthia Horner’s Eulogy”, Apr. 1994 ~~

Unsolicited Gratitude

Fear becomes familiar when reality bodes us ill
pain assumes first position, no matter our will.
Powerless, we founder, no strength to prevail
anguished and afraid, against unwanted Fate we rail.

Still, a grain of hope deep inside, hidden well against need
gives us reason to survive, our starving souls to feed.
Failure of courage burdens time, of being bested,
until our souls, in submission, become foully infested.

Bitter tears wash through us each day, with little care,
no thought, no feeling, no wish, or need to be fair.
Rendered clueless, confusion falls upon us, as prey,
we surrender a piece of our soul, little as we may.

Yet, always, a bright beam of hope is seen from afar,
no matter how dreary, or dark, it may seem where we are.
None knows, nor would consent to tell, it seems
from whence it hails, or why it so brightly gleams.

Saving our sanity, absolving our unwanted fears,
dispelling the myths and lies that come with the years.
Each man has known the precious gift that hope may give
And gives glad thanks, as long as he may live.

~~ gigoid ~~

10/10/2012

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pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Stones on the Path….

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“Fate is a river. Free will is a paddle.”

~~ Subtle Bee ~~

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“We can not live for ourselves alone,
our lives are connected by a thousand invisible threads.”

~~ Herman Melville ~~

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“Time carves all.
Let yourself be carved to attain your true nature.”

~~ Master Po ~~

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“What I gave, I have; what I spent, I had; what I kept, I lost.”

— old epitaph

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“Seek not to follow in the footsteps of men of old;
seek what they sought.”

~~ Matsuo Basho ~~

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“Creation is a mighty joke, but the laugh is at my own expense.”

~~ Meher Baba ~~

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“All is flux, nothing stays still.”

~~ Heraclitus (540?-480? B.C.) ~~

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Well, there you go…. Such as it is, I offer it up for your perusal, and, hopefully, your approbation. If not, well, the effort is always worthwhile, for all one may learn. I’ll quit pontificating, or, even merely being naturally pedantic, long enough to bid thee farewell, until the next time, which will probably be in a day or three. Who knows? This little foray may have broken the dam upon my fountain of expression; I guess we’ll see, won’t we? Until we do, y’all be well, & happy as you may be. As has probably become obvious by now, if nothing else, you can leave the ‘being strange’ part to me….

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….

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Chilling the bones of metaphor….

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Ffolkes,

“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 (BC 469-399) ~~

glacier melt

Glacier melt in Tracy Arm Fjord….

Hajime…. At my age, I should have learned not to expect rational, or even polite, behavior from any of my fellow humans; I’ve certainly witnessed enough evidence of the absence of either quality in the majority of those who call themselves ‘people’ during my time here on this planet. But, as has been noted by many, hope springs eternal, so, I keep making the attempt to relate to people, only to find disrespect and entitlement without reason. It seems the act of common courtesy has become lost from society, in the simplest of interactions between the members of that group. The most obvious is in the area of basic communication habits, such as those involving the use of a telephone….

In today’s culture, damn near everyone I can find uses their “smart” phone to screen calls; nobody, except, apparently, me, actually answers their phone. Instead, they let it go to a voice mail box, to leave messages that apparently don’t get listened to, for nobody returns calls, unless it suits their own needs or purposes. The simple courtesy of a timely response seems to have been displaced by narcissistic entitlement, and the disrespect that is implied when communication is ignored. It has become, in my experience, an event of noteworthiness when someone actually answers the phone when I call, even businesses. Nobody wants to actually speak with anyone else; texting, which removes the responsibility of exchanging emotional cues from speech, is the default response, and that is often ignored as well…. and, I just don’t get it….

I could continue in this vein for a long time, but, I don’t believe anyone else cares enough to either read it, or respond to such complaints… which, ultimately, also says a lot about the state of modern culture. Also, I have noted a distinct drop in the traffic here on ECR, due, no doubt, to my own absences, from here, and from visiting other blogs. Of the registered 700+ followers of this blog, perhaps 10 or 12 still stop by with any consistency, and only two or three even let me know they’ve been by by leaving a “Like” or a comment. It seems there are still a small percentage of people out there who care to demonstrate the respect of acknowledgment without first receiving it; mostly, I have no idea how many ffolkes drop in, unless I want to chase down the stats in one of the WP admin pages.

It’s early in the morning, about 0430, pre-dawn here in California, and I’ve been up a couple hours dealing with a resurgence of PTSD symptoms, brought on by assaults upon my tender sensibilities by a series of rude responses I have received during attempts to connect with people. At this point. a statement I made yesterday in response to a Facebook query to describe how I felt right then is still appropriate; I stated I was feeling ‘indiscriminately homicidal’…. Today, perhaps, it is even stronger, so, I guess I’ll be avoiding the rest of my species today, if only to avoid the inconvenience of having to dispose of the corpses that might conceivably accrue by daring to go out & try to relate with any of them. SIGH…. ah, well, so be it….

At least the angst built up by this war with my inner demons has stimulated me enough to post some fresh material; hell, this is the first time I’ve ranted in a couple months. Though I can’t say it felt very good to release all this deitrus, I suppose it will eventually show some positive effects. One may hope, may one not, even if hope is a futile pastime? One may…. so, I shall. I shall also show a bit of the courtesy I so desperately miss in others, by cutting off any further blather, in favor of getting on with the rest of today’s mess. I hope you enjoy it, futile as it may have been as a form of therapy…. In any case, let’s do this, eh?….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Kindness is more important than wisdom,
and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom.”

~~ Theodore Isaac Rubin ~~

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Today’s musical selection is, for me, an obvious one. I need the soothing sounds of a classical nature; it’s my default, and today, it’s also yours. I hope you enjoy it as much as I intend to…. Abondanza!….

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Classical Music

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Comedy_Tragedy

Further Proof

No evidence exists, no rumored promise
of a guide on the path we seek.
Salient information lies hidden, seeking solace;
each possibility lost, no longer unique.

The past cascades through today, resolute;
finished and gone, by all reputable report.
Common failings decry any fever in the root,
as pillars of salt offer up little retort.

Longitude has latitude, one dimension to the next;
truth and lies, mirrored, transform on first exposure.
Born in chaos, living in change, by guile and pretext;
artful insanity, with no rational cure.

‘Tis no wonder, some do say now and then,
such creatures are doomed, by their own hand.
Cursed by the force of their very own ken,
until only the leaving seems very grand.

Perhaps, but, then, say those who doubt,
it’s all part of how it works, in fact.
We can’t know, really, what it’s all about
without completing the final act.

Is there any hurry?

~~ gigoid ~~

6/23/2016

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pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Yep….

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“Any fool can know.
The point is to understand.”

~~ Albert Einstein ~~

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“Anywhere is walking distance, if you’ve got the time.”

~~ Steven Wright ~~

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“Look well into thyself; there is a source of strength
which will always spring up if thou wilt always look there.”

~~ Marcus Aurelius ~~

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“In the moment between stimulus and response lies freedom.”

~~ Steven Covey ~~

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“Before you can be creative, you must be courageous.
Creativity is the destination, but courage is the journey.”

~~ Joey Reiman ~~

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“Every action in our lives touches on some chord that will vibrate in eternity.”

~~- Edwin Hubbell Chapin ~~

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“Do not speak of what men deserve.
For we each of us deserve everything,
every luxury that was ever piled in the tombs of the dead Kings,
and we each  of us deserve nothing, not a mouthful of bread in hunger.
Have we not eaten  while another starved?
Will you punish us for that?
Will you reward us for  the virtue of starving while others ate?
No man earns punishment, no man  earns reward.
Free your mind of the idea of *deserving*, of *earning*,
and  you will begin to be able to think.”

~~ Odo, “The Prison Letters” (by Ursula LeGuin, “The Dispossessed”)

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Well, it’s done. I can’t say, nor will I attempt to say, anything about how it may have turned out; I’ll leave that to anyone else who cares to make note of it. I’m going walkabout, before the rest of the world around here gets up, so I won’t have to talk to any of them. I’ll see y’all, probably fairly soon, as writing does help me stay moderately sane, or, at minimum, less insane than the usual case. On that less than positive, but, realistic note, I shall bid thee adieu, until we meet again. See ya, 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

Featured Image -- 15355

À bientôt, mon cherí….


					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Pulchritude has intrinsic value….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“Each has his past shut in him like the leaves of a book

known to him by his heart,

and his friends can only read the title.”


~~ Virginia Woolf ~~


Alaska taxi


Alaskan Taxi off to Juneau, or the interior….


Hajime…. I skipped posting anything at all yesterday, & frankly, I can’t work up any particular emotion about that. Even a couple months ago, going even a day or two without writing or posting would have prompted an outburst of creative angst sufficient to produce any number of words, most of which could be construed as purposeful, if not elegantly literate. But, these days, I’m lucky to produce a complete, even sparsely filled out Pearl; hell, the poem I’ve been trying to write has gone & disappeared entirely, no dregs of it to be found anywhere…. SIGH. Even that, I’m afraid, doesn’t stimulate any guilt, which tells me, at least on one level, my sanity no longer depends on this process, though, I have to admit, it is soothing in some way to have written an entire paragraph, even one as choppy & pungent as this one…. Hey, it’s all fresh, so, whattya want? Ibsen on demand? Jackson Pollock at a moment’s notice? Hah…. Not here, ffolkes….


That isn’t to say I don’t have a Pearl for today. But, it’s being posted late, without a fresh poem, and it’s not going to get any better, or, any less fulfilling for me, so, I’m gonna post it, late as it is. It’s only late because I now sleep normally, arising at a time when I’d have been up writing, & getting ready to post for at least two hours. Hell, it’s already light outside, which isn’t normal for this process at all. But, despite my new ability to actually sleep for a normal period, thus resuming a diurnal existence rather than an insomniacal one (well, one equally nocturnal as diurnal, anyway….), it can’t be called anything but nearly normal, a phrase I thought never to apply to any of this. Normal just hasn’t been in the works for a very long time, & I’m not certain I like it….


But, there it is, in all its mundane glory, so, we’ll post it & see how it flies. In fact, we’ll do that now, so I don’t lose what little nerve I have remaining. We’ll use one of our oldest, most reliable techniques, too, just to keep things moving in the proper direction. It’s very simple, & works like this….


Shall we Pearl?….


“To live content with small means,

to seek elegance rather than  luxury,

and refinement rather than fashion,

to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich,

to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly,

to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart,

to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasions, hurry never,

in a word to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious,

grow up through the common, this is to be my symphony.”


~~ William Henry Channing ~~


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chase goehring


Chase Goehring


Image from Facebook.com via Google Images


This young singer/songwriter is another fine talent, a finalist in the 2017 America’s Got Talent competition, playing all original songs for his performances. He made it to the Finalist list, but, didn’t receive enough votes to make the Top 5. I think he is going to one day be well-known, for his songwriting skills and originality will ensure him a place in the music industry. I thoroughly enjoy his music, and hope you do as well….


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Chase Goering

 AGT 2017






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Comedy_Tragedy


Augmentation: Inner Aye


Distant, peals of thunder, vividly.

Closer, a patter of rain, falling gravidly.

Between the light and the darkness of fear

find merely the remnants of one lonely tear.


Do not hate us, though we have not sinned;

eager for courage, upon whom all hope is pinned.

Tales of insolence, hatred, or fallen virtue

fill us up, not down, in such pristine foreign venue.


Capable hands severed, able hands tied;

the future is angry, all but now denied.

Multiple times, warnings sounded across the pale

nobody heard, nobody came to tell the tale.


Gifted by time, salience fails in epic rhyme;

watchmakers watching, each a separate crime.

Logical solutions refuse to emulsify

forever pretending to cruelly crucify.


Blood will fly alongside pertinent composure,

never seeking, never finding tea, or closure.

Falsely laid trails on mountains of gold

imply no happy endings, no fortunes told.


Ages past have no time for repetition;

further chances only lead to perdition.

Destiny feels a shameful portion of guilt,

for a thousand sand castles, never built.


~~ gigoid ~~


3/2/2016


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pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Further notes on Life @ Large….


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“Each of us visits this Earth involuntarily, and without an invitation.

For me, it is enough to wonder at the secrets.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


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“A man is a very small thing,

and the night is very large and full of wonders.”


~~ Lord Dunsany, The Laughter of the Gods ~~


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“I am free, no matter what rules surround me.

If I find them tolerable,  I tolerate them;

if I find them too obnoxious, I break them.

I am free  because I know that

I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.”


~~ Professor Bernardo de la Paz ~~


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“It is something to be able to paint a particular picture,

or to carve a statue, and so to make a few objects beautiful;

but it is far more glorious to carve and paint

the very atmosphere and medium through which we look,

which morally we can do.

To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.”


~~ Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), “Where I Live”


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“Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.”


~~ Things We Can Learn From Dogs ~~


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“… denn da ist keine Stelle, die dich nicht sieht.

Du musst dein Leben andern.”


(… for there is no place that does not see you.

You must change your life.)


~~ Rainer Maria Rilke, “Archaic Torso of Apollo” ~~


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“Nothing endures but change.”


~~ Heraclitus (540?-480? B.C.) ~~


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Well, there you have it, such as it is. I’ll be back in a day or three, hopefully with more creative material than today’s mess… which is okay, but, I wouldn’t call it an iconic Pearl…. It’s just a Pearl, of Virtual Wisdom, at that, so, use it with care. Be well, be happy, be strange, and, damn it, stay alert…. I’ll be back, as the saying goes….


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


Featured Image -- 15342


À bientôt, mon cherí….


 

					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Counting to infinity….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“Dragon? What dragon?”


~~ Famous Last Words ~~


viansa entrance


Winery entrance road, Sonoma Valley….


Hajime…. Elements of style & grace notwithstanding, there is a lot to be said for virtuous industry, even if the root cause remains an anomaly. In the larger sense, this implies a certain responsibility, to find purpose wherever it may hide itself, allowing no stray miscreants opportunity to fail, hirsute as they may be. Untidy, as a descriptive adjective, falls consistently short of successful parody, while an old, broken pantheon of forgotten gods sits, weeping silent tears, in memory of faded glory. All remains dark on the horizon, where the sun has forgotten to rise, again….


There. That, I think, is a sufficiently strange opening paragraph, which demonstrates both my erudition, and my insanity. The latter, in particular, holds me at ransom this morning, in spite of waking in a relatively common manner. The oddity of my own mind’s path often washes me up on the shore like this, leaving me high & dry with nothing but what passes for thinking to consume. As you may guess, it can be somewhat tricky to deal with reality, &, as the opening paragraph clearly shows, that’s no small feat. Since the only way to get past all of it is to let it flow out of my head as quickly, & ruthlessly as possible, such displays of perversion become the norm.


Ah, well, one can’t have everything, can one? No, of course not. Where would one put it all? Moreover, one remains responsible for one’s own words, no matter how oddly they strike the psyche of the world. My own manner of coping, as you can plainly see, is to take it to the limit, where the boundaries of sanity are stretched past their own belief; only there can I find my own balance, teetering in jeopardy, but, safely insane…. So be it….


I did manage to put this Pearl together, though without the new poem, which continues to dribble out, rather than gushing. Since all the proper elements are in place, and, we have sufficient blather accumulation here in the intro, why don’t we just cut our losses, & get on with it, so we can all move on to bigger, or better things…. It should be easy today; I’ve already softened the edges of reality, right in front of your eyes, so, the transition should be pretty seamless…. Watch and learn….


Shall we Pearl?….


“Remember that happiness is a way of travel, not a destination.”


~~ Roy Goodman ~~


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bonnie (2)


I had a hard time deciding on music today; eventually, I went with my own preferences, which is why y’all are being treated to one of the finest musicians alive today, who has been entertaining millions of people for several decades. Fine, fine blues & slide guitar, a voice like an angel, a red-haired beauty…. what’s not to love about her? Here she is, ffolkes, live in Oakland in 1989, it’s Bonnie….


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Bonnie Raitt

 Live in concert 1989






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Comedy_Tragedy


Neurons/Parade Rest


Forlorn, he thought, but, then,

no, not really so.

Old, sad, strong; polluted by time’s red pen.

Nowhere left, to be, nor to go.


Tricks, not treats, forever remote,

strike fear into hearts fettered in fog.

Biting deep, stinging, we simper by common rote,

mired eternally in such bilious bog.


Torturous vision, bloody, capitulates in duplicate;

don’t ask for whom the spell trolls.

Ambiguity is real, impossible to extricate,

that’s how it rocks, then rolls.


Spiteful instruments offer no respite, patently.

Filigree lacks properly significant doubt.

Alternative answers formulate motivation, elegantly,

portraying reality as a vulgar lout.


Poltroons, there’s a good word,

for idiotic farmers, enthusiasts who borrow

time, filled with the blood of a bird;

solitary, the trickster cannot follow.


Affable moments trip the light, fantastic;

salacious intimacies fill a shimmering bower.

Night falls, eventually, monastic;

eternity calls with irresistible power.


~~ gigoid ~~


8/11 – 8/15/2016


***************************************


pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Living & dying in 3/4 time….


*******


“Dum vivimus, vivamus.”


(While we live, let us live…)


~~ Latin proverb ~~


*******


“You see things, and you say “WHY?”

But I dream things that never were,

and I say “WHY NOT?”


~~ George Bernard Shaw, “Back to Methuselah” ~~


*******


“In the bigger scheme of things,

the universe is not asking us to do something,

the universe is asking us to be something.

And that’s a whole different thing.”


~~ Lucille Clifton ~~


*******


“The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.”


~~ Bertrand Russell ~~


*******


“If you find it in your heart to care for somebody else,

you will have succeeded.”


~~ Maya Angelou ~~


*******


“I feel better about world problems now!”


~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~


*******


“Now he has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me.

That means nothing.

People like us, who believe in physics,

know that the distinction between past, present, and future

is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


*******


***************************************


I am not too sure what happened today, but, it happened, so, I’ll be content with that. And, so will you. By the power vested in me as a human in good standing, I declare this version of the Daily Pearl to be complete. I’ll even forgo the usual nonsense, & merely say, see y’all soon. I’m going walkabout….


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




À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Trudging through real-time….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“If you are out to describe the truth,

leave elegance to the tailor.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


old friends


Friends of long standing….


Hajime…. Though this Pearl is being posted very late, it’s all relatively fresh, as I hadn’t done anything more than pick the opening picture when I arose today, also late. I can, therefore, consider it a moral victory, which as we know, humans are liable to do at the drop of a cliché. I also have the option of telling myself, better late than never, but, that would be a value judgment, probably not appropriate in this instance. In fact, I’d hesitate to make any sort of value assessment of this one, at all; I’m not terribly fond of assuming great risks for little reward. In fact, we’re ALL a bit cowardly about that sort of thing, probably a left-over impulse from our past; stepping outside the cave posed some rather compelling dangers to out well-being, & I guess we still remember that….


Regardless, it’s done, such as it may be, & I’m not going back & doing it over. In fact, I’m going to get myself out of here, & on down the page, before I lose my nerve, or, regain my senses. I’ll just use this old method I found laying here, which works pretty well, if I remember correctly. It’s pretty much a gimme, since it drops us all like a hot, well, you know. Watch closely, or you’ll miss it, & then where would you be? Right…. Careful, the next step’s a bit steep….


Shall we Pearl?….


“Neither can I believe that the individual survives the death of his body,

although feeble souls harbor such thoughts through fear or ridiculous egotism.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


***************************************


sam bailey


Sam Bailey


Image from pinterest.com via Google Images


In 2013, this singer walked onto the audition stage of the X Factor UK, appearing to be exactly what she was, a 35 year old mother of 3, working as a prison officer, married to a laborer. She proceeded to blow away the room, singing a cover of a very difficult song by a major star. She went on to win the talent contest that year, delivering performances that brought standing ovations from the crowds, and the judges, time after time…. I’ve embedded a collection of all her performances, each of which will blow you away with the power of her voice. She reminds me a lot of Kate Smith, the most powerful voice I ever heard, rivaling many operatic singers. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do; she has the kind of voice that can bring chills, or tears, or any other emotion as strongly as anyone I’ve heard…. Abondanza!


***************************************






Sam Bailey






***************************************












***************************************


***************************************


“Poetry is a deal of joy and pain and wonder, with a dash of the dictionary.”


~~ Kahlil Gibran ~~


Comedy_Tragedy


Platitudes for Attitudes


Platitudes shake us, attitudes break us.

Life can be a real pain, y’know?

Still, if we don’t fight where it takes us,

it’s a pretty straight row to hoe..


A lot of what we see and hear

isn’t always in the best of taste.

Life at large can be one long frisson of fear.

Making an effort often seems a huge waste.


Pundits, dogma dogs, myrmidons, oligarchs & pimps;

assholes and predators every one.

Twisted, sick, anti-humans; anomalous, ignorant wimps.

Logic says, every time, lobotomize ’em, & be done.


Illusions, delusions, confusions, a dedicated data dump,

bilious, divisive, spicy with hatred and fears.

Inflation, immigration, promises from the clownish Trump

Leaving even our basest survival heavy with tears.


Ancient sages left signs on the path to peace,

for those with wit to see.

No need for undue effort, no quest for golden fleece.

All we ever need to do, is be.


~~ gigoid ~~


8/29/2015


***************************************


pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Hmm… That’s funny….


*******


“A civilized society is one which tolerates eccentricity

to the point of doubtful sanity.”


~~ Robert Frost ~~


*******


“Should I get locked in the PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE today

— or have a VASECTOMY??”


~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~


*******


“To err is human, to forgive is unusual!”


~~ Sardonic Bee ~~


*******


“I believe in nothing that I cannot touch, kiss, embrace…

The rest is only hearsay.”


~~ Edward Abbey ~~


*******


“Impropriety is the soul of wit.”


~~ W. Somerset Maugham ~~


*******


“Live for those private moments of wild abandon!”


~~ Opus ~~


*******


“Whatever you are, be a good one.”


~~ Abraham Lincoln ~~


*******


***************************************


Well, there you have it. I’ll be nice, simply because I must; there’s no other options at this point. I’ll even forgo the usual caveats, or trite euphemisms, in favor of a rapid exit, stage left. How do I know it’s left? Because, obviously, it isn’t right. See y’all next time, when I take another shot at whatever it is I’m shooting for…. Don’t ask because I’m sure I don’t know…..


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


Dozer


À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Intrinsically relevant rumination….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“Never fight with a bear in his own cave.”


~~ Subtle Bee ~~


fog eating GGB


Fog eating the Golden Gate Bridge….


Hajime…. The picture I chose to adorn the top of today’s post is rather more relevant than usual. That is to say, generally, I don’t make any attempt to make it so, but, as I begin to type, it occurs to me that I am the bridge, and my fatigue is the fog; I’ve swept away the mists from the surface of the bay, and cleared my towers, but, the fog continues to hover close by, swirling about & trying to reclaim the waters of the Bay.  I guess this means I’ll be taking yet another nap after getting this posted. Ah, well, ’tis just as well, for, I don’t think I have any desire to accomplish anything much beyond getting posted; doing so may shoot my wad, but, so be it.


Looking back over that opening paragraph has clued me into the risks of trying to compose anything strong in my current mental state; it’s a bit too fragile, I think, to support much powerful thought, or writing. Since I’ve, supposedly, reached an age where forethought is common, I guess I’ll use a bit of it to convince myself, and y’all, to move right along into the rest of today’s mess, so as to avoid fulfilling the risks, & ruining the rest of the day. In truth, to do otherwise would be tempting Fate, and Murphy, so, I’ll use some of that aged wisdom to keep anything untoward from moving past potentiality into reality.


Fortunately for me, doing so is fairly simple; in fact, it lends itself to our most efficacious method for closing an intro, to wit: old #4, which always seems to work best when applied without delay. Much like this, as you shall see, if you watch closely….


Shall we Pearl?….


“If what Proust says is true,

that happiness is the absence of fever,

then I will never know happiness.

For I am possessed by a fever

for knowledge, experience, and creation.


~~ Anais Nin ~~


***************************************


royalty-free-clip-art-vector-logos-of-black-and-orange-floral-acoustic-guitars-by-seamartini-graphics-6573


Here for your listening pleasure is a fairly new collection, described as a collection of soothing, relaxing works by Ottorino  Respighi. I listened to the opening bars to make sure it’s okay, & it sounded pretty good to me. I hope you enjoy it, as you peruse today’s mess. Abondanza!….


***************************************






Classical Music






***************************************












***************************************


***************************************


Comedy_Tragedy


Beyond Agapé


Passion burns and shines like iridescent paint

yet solitude stands mocking such mundane complaint.

Schemes and dreams promise to tempt attraction

never ending effort spends wit in perverse reaction.


Hale and hearty reports of honor and love

draft recruits to collect manna from above,

while searching each soul for that which will serve

to bring pure sensation to each expectant nerve.


How simple to fall into complete helpless hope

of two hearts bound in tradition, with cultural rope,

living a simple life, shared, in joy and in grief

promises consummated, in consensual belief.


Reality dictates our degree of control over its state

insisting on changing whether or not we can wait.

Love will be present when we are completely at peace,

allowing ourselves, to give of ourselves, without cease.


~~ gigoid ~~


10/4/2012


***************************************


pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Iconic pearls of virtual wisdom….


*******


“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 ~~


*******


“Grain grows best in shit.”


~~ Ursula K. LeGuin ~~


*******


“Perhaps I know why it is man alone who laughs:

He alone suffers so deeply that he had to invent laughter.”


~~ Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche ~~


*******


“How can I lose faith in the justice of life,

when the dreams of those who sleep upon feathers

are not more beautiful than the dreams

of those who sleep upon the earth?”


~~ Kahlil Gibran ~~


*******


If we lose affection and kindness from our life,

we’ve lost all that gives it charm.”


~~ Marcus Tullius Cicero ~~


*******


“Every man is a divinity in disguise, a god playing the fool.”


~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~


*******


A human being is a part of the whole, called by us Universe,

a part limited in time and space.

He experiences himself,

his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest

–a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.

This delusion is a kind of prison,

restricting us to our personal desires

and to affection for a few persons nearest to us.

Our task must be to free from this prison

by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures

and the whole nature in its beauty.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


*******


***************************************


As the Colonel was fond of saying, I love it when a plan comes together. It’s done, & seems to be a pretty strong offering, considering the operational handicaps we had to overcome. I’ll take it, & make my run for the border with no further delay. I may even be back tomorrow, though such confidence may be premature. I suppose, like most every day, we’ll just need to see how it goes. Until I do, y’all be well, be happy, & remain in the vicinity of strange…. Trust me, it’s for the best…. See y’all on the flip side….


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


Featured Image -- 14126


À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Bones of stone….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“I saw Eternity the other night,

Like a great ring of pure and endless light,

All calm, as it was bright;

And round beneath it,

Time in hours, days, years,

Driv’n by the spheres

Like a vast shadow mov’d; in which the world

And all her train were hurl’d.”


~~ Henry Vaughan, “The World” ~~


zoe in wonder


At 2, the world is full of wonder….


Hajime…. We begin today with an observation on Life:


“In any given set of circumstances,

the proper course of action

is determined by subsequent events.”


~~ McDonald’s Corollary to Murphy’s Law ~~


Don’t worry, I’m not going to hare off into yet another complaint against Murphy’s trepidations; I only bring it up in order to give me an excuse for not having been writing much of late. The excuse part is realized when one considers the corollary lesson implied by this, to wit: “the hard way is always the easiest way”…. Essentially, taking the hard way is just what I’ve been up to, though, to watch, that might not be readily apparent. But, trust me, at my age, making changes of ANY kind is the hard way….


I’ve found, in achieving this age, remembering to assert one’s will to taking the most difficult choice is important to the process of finding happiness, which in the final analysis, is what being human is about. It may seem counter-intuitive, but, trust me, it’s as true as anything you will ever hear or know, at least for us humans. As a modern philosopher once noted….


“Happiness is the only sanction of life;

where happiness fails,

existence remains a mad and lamentable experience.”


~~ George Santayana ~~


Finding our bliss, as Joseph Campbell has noted in his work, is, possibly, the most important thing any of us can do in our lives, for the quest to find it, and to follow it, is what makes us what we are. Our lives are a form of poetry, the most singularly human activity in which we engage, for poetry is our reaction to life, our expression of our inner being as it makes its way through the cloud of perception into the depths of Reality, seeking that which makes us what we are, a child of nature, part of the whole, and complete thereby…..


Part of my search has led me away from posting very often; it has not eliminated the need to do so. So, to fulfill that need for now, I think we’ll cease and desist any further discussion of how, or why, & just get on with what I’ve put together for today’s mess. I’ve even called in our old pilot, Luigi, who will now take us directly to the oyster beds of imagination, where we may gather up the pearls earmarked for this Pearl…. Hang on, ffolkes; it’s been a while, & Luigi is probably a bit out of practice….


Shall we Pearl?….


“None can love freedom heartily but good men;

the rest love not freedom but license.”


~~ John Milton ~~


***************************************


carly rose


Carly Rose


Image from Soundcloud via Google Images


In today’s musical selection, you will be treated to one of the finest performances you’ve ever seen by a 13 year old girl; this is followed by watching her turn into a star quality performer time after time, as she goes on to shine in the competition on the X Factor TV show in 2012, ending as the runner-up to the winner. She has continued to grow as an artist, and a quick Google search will bring you to her home page. For now, please enjoy a number of most excellent performances, by one of the big stars of tomorrow….


***************************************






Carly Rose Sonenclar

 X Factor, All Performances






***************************************












***************************************


***************************************


Comedy_Tragedy


Pensive early and late…


Endings aren’t always a new beginning

I’m sad to say.

Sometimes it’s just an ending

there’s always a price to pay.


Still, it’s only money, he said

watching it piss away

Did everything ‘cept meet Fred

‘n had a good time the whole way.


Even the bad stuff turned out well,

life lessons are just that way.

Knowing what’s right, you can’t always tell,

we don’t always know the right things to say.


I’ll take all the hard times, without complaint,

learning isn’t always easy to take.

Kindness, patience, and compassion without restraint,

are still the best decisions we can make.


~~ gigoid ~~


4/26/2013


***************************************


pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Passage to eternity….


*******


“To grow old is to pass from passion to compassion.”


~~ Albert Camus ~~


*******


“A heart is not judged by how much you love

but by how much you are loved by others.”


~~ The Wizard of Oz ~~


*******


“The more you love, the more you can love—and the more intensely you love.

Nor is there any limit on how many you can love.”


~~ Robert Heinlein ~~


*******


“There are only two ways to live your life.

One is as though nothing is a miracle.

The other is as though everything is a miracle.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


*******


“How you do anything is how you do everything.”


~~ Zen proverb ~~


*******


“Tomorrow never comes! It’s all the same fuckin’ day, man!”


~~ Janis Joplin ~~


*******


Do not stand by my grave and weep.

I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.

I am a diamond glint on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.

I am the gentle Autumn rain.

When you awake in the morning hush.

I am the swift uplifting rush

Of quiet birds in circling flight.

I am the soft star-shine at night.

Do not stand by my grave and cry.

I am not there… I did not die.”


~~ Prayer of the Makah Indians ~~


*******


***************************************


Though I cannot say it is the best effort I’ve ever made, it’s not bad for a Pearl that took four days to complete. As such, it fits our regulatory paradigm, & will serve nicely as the latest in a long series of similar posts. Though this may seem as if I am denying, or avoiding the concept outlined in the introductory discussion, it’s not; finding an ending is NOT as easy as it might seem, nor is it an easy thing to ‘settle’ for less than perfection, especially for those of us who strive for it on a regular basis. But, I digress (go figure, eh?)….. Since I am here at the end, let’s end it. See y’all in a day or two, when I’ve again spilled my guts onto another screen. I would advise y’all to stay strange, and alert; both are of value in today’s uncertain world…. Ta, then….


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




À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
It’s ALL a coin with two sides….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“If the doors of perception were cleansed

every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite.

For man has closed himself up,

till he sees all things thro’ narrow chinks of his cavern.”


~~ William Blake, English poet, artist, and mystic ~~


dock


Possibilities abound….


Hajime…. Though I never achieved much in the way of balance yesterday, I did manage to stay out of gaol, which wasn’t as simple as it may seem, given the one social encounter of my day was with a cabbie firmly in the ranks of the ignorati. Suffice it to say, I left him (mostly) alive, but, ’twas a close thing…. I stayed in after that, to reduce my chances of failing in my chosen duty,  thus keeping myself from the attention of the local myrmidons…. Good thing, there, too; I wasn’t in the mood for dealing with the general run of entitlement seen in many too many officers of the ‘law’ in today’s world; it’s getting rather ubiquitous, & I’m often tempted to abrogate duty in favor of justice.


All in all, though, I digress. I don’t have much time, as I’ve been co-opted again to babysit today; Zoe’s coming, & the adventure begins anew. I did manage to get mostly done with the Pearl for today, though the poem still hasn’t quite come completely clear yet. But, that’s easily remedied with an older poem, so, we’re good to go, and, since we are, we’re going. Moreover, we’re going now, before I lose my chutzpah, or my window of opportunity. See ya down the page, ffolkes. Hang on, we’re going down hot….


Shall we Pearl?….


“Small is the number of them that see with their own eyes,

and feel with their own hearts.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


***************************************


Dont keep calm


In an attempt to keep relatively current with the world at large, (for the purposes of overall security; it’s wise to know WHEN to jump, as well as in what direction, if & when the time comes….), despite my deliberate hiatus from watching any TV, or other kinds of news cruising, I watched this video, which seemed a good way to hear/see a summarization of all I’d missed. I was so engaged by both the speaker and the content, I am including it here today; I think every American citizen would do well to pay attention to what he says….. not for their own good, directly, but, for the good of the country itself….


***************************************






Hasan Minhaj

 2017 White House

 Correspondents Dinner






***************************************












***************************************


***************************************


Comedy_Tragedy


Illusory Time


Viewed from askance, the river is long;

deep, uncompromisingly intent, swift and strong.

In duality, perception creates our only reality;

such faux metaphoric paradox enforces mutability.


By two we perceive, both zero, and one;

digital, binary, on or off, such fun.

Separate, melded, we exist, knowing not what we know

ego, striving to be solitary, looking above, seeing below.


Furiously asleep, cultural anomaly claims a victim of choice;

validly unconscious, nobody speaks, nary a voice.

Potential escapees stir in dreams, fighting to wake,

until taking the wheel, for their own bloody sake.


Pots boil in due time, when the fire’s hot,

time exists to our advantage; or, not.

The solitary warrior, head bent in pain,

fights on, with, or without gain.


Night fell, day after day it persisted;

of those who knew, none showed any care, or resisted

Angels, ministers, none had any defense, nor grace;

all that remains is a face.


~~ gigoid ~~


10/22/2016


***************************************


pearls_3


Naked Pearls


If you think about it….


*******


“All of the animals excepting man know

that the principal business of life is to enjoy it.”


~~ Samuel Butler ~~


*******


“Do all the good you can,

By all the means you can,

In all the ways you can,

In all the places you can,

At all the times you can,

To all the people you can,

As long as ever you can.”


~~ John Wesley ~~


*******


“We don’t receive wisdom;

we must discover it for ourselves

after a journey

that no one can take for us

or spare us.”


~~ Marcel Proust ~~


*******


“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 ~~


*******


“Once you can accept the universe as being

something expanding  into an infinite nothing which is something,

wearing stripes  with plaid is easy.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


*******


“The only thing I know for sure

is that I know nothing at all, for sure.”


~~ Socrates ~~


*******


“All this happened, more or less..”


~~ Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut, 1968 ~~


*******


***************************************


“In the midst of the word he was trying to say,

In the midst of his laughter and glee,

He had softly and suddenly vanished away

— for the Snark *was* a Boojum, you see.”


~~ Lewis Carroll, The Hunting of the Snark ~~


Neither Snark, nor Boojum here; however, I AM in a hurry now, lest I get stopped in the midst of getting this done. Wish me luck today; she’s a pistol…. See y’all, maybe even soon…. Be well, & alert; it’s the least you can do….


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


Featured Image -- 14041


À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
‘Tis more than clever, but, less than orange….

			
						

				Posted on   by  			

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“Each of us visits this Earth involuntarily, and without an invitation.

For me, it is enough to wonder at the secrets.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


cali skyline


Identifiably California….


Hajime…. I can’t remember off-hand, & am too lazy to go find the answer this early, but, I believe it was Plato who once related, “If everyone were to bring their troubles to a common pile, upon seeing them all, most would be happy to take their own, and go away.” On this blog, that particular phrase has found its, perhaps, most genuine believer…. Each of us, in our own way, thinks the pain and difficulty we encounter is the worst; subjectivity lends, apparently, a focusing eye to such matters, much in the way a magnifying glass focuses the small into the large for the ease of our eye…. Yet, when viewed in light of the problems we find others to have, they automatically shrink, in importance, and impact.


My trouble yesterday, which prompted me to blow off the entire day, was merely physical, & self-inflicted, to boot; to be honest, I over-indulged the night before, with a short, but, intense conversation with my old friend Jack Daniels, & spent the day recovering my equilibrium, with 3 naps…. felt good, too….. The only thing I managed to get done was to feed the cat, & find a few pearls for this Pearl, so that, whenever it gets posted, it will go smoothly…. Of course, as we all know, that’s tempting Murphy to take a hand, but, since he usually does, anyway, what the hell…. we’ll take the risk, & the consequences, just like a big boy…..


I am, after all, quite familiar with Murphy’s antics, & know not to offer him much with which to work his ‘magic’. When he does manage to poke us, it’s a good idea to just smile, shake one’s head, & take the lumps; nothing else seems to help any more than that, & is essentially fruitless, anyway, so, why not go with the flow?  Today, the flow is down…. down the page, & on into cyberspace, where you’ll find all the elements of an average Pearl, with above average music, average poetry, & some fine thoughts on Life at Large. All for the cost of an internet connection, & a few moments of your time & mental energy. What a bargain, eh?….


Shall we Pearl?


 


“In a mad world, only the mad are sane.”


~~ Akiro Kurosawa ~~


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royalty-free-clip-art-vector-logos-of-black-and-orange-floral-acoustic-guitars-by-seamartini-graphics-6573


One of my blogger friends enjoys classical guitar music, & mentioned a while back he was listening to this artist. Since I hadn’t heard any flamenco in quite some time, I figured he would be a good choice for today. Here is a play list with 200 videos to choose from, featuring the brilliant guitar work of Carlos Montoya…. Abondanza!….


 


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Carlos Montoya




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Comedy_Tragedy


Augmentation: Inner Aye


Distant, peals of thunder, vividly.

Closer, a patter of rain, falling gravidly.

Between the light and the darkness of fear

find merely the remnants of one lonely tear.


Do not hate us, though we have not sinned;

eager for courage, upon whom all hope is pinned.

Tales of insolence, hatred, or fallen virtue

fill us up, not down, in such pristine foreign venue.


Capable hands severed, able hands tied;

the future is angry, all but now denied.

Multiple times, warnings sounded across the pale

nobody heard, nobody came to tell the tale.


Gifted by time, salience fails in epic rhyme;

watchmakers watching, each a separate crime.

Logical solutions refuse to emulsify

forever pretending to cruelly crucify.


Blood will fly alongside pertinent composure,

never seeking, never finding tea, or closure.

Falsely laid trails on mountains of gold

imply no happy endings, no fortunes told.


Ages past have no time for repetition;

further chances only lead to perdition.

Destiny feels a shameful portion of guilt,

for a thousand sand castles, never built.


~~ gigoid ~~


3/2/2016


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pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Yep, all true….


*******


“Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.”


~~ Seneca ~~


*******


“True dignity is never gained by place,

and never lost when honors are withdrawn.”


~~ Phillip Massinger ~~


*******


“A good example is the best sermon.”


~~ H. Jackson Brown


*******


“When the fight begins within himself,

A man ‘s worth something.”


~~ Robert Browning — Men and Women, “Bishop Blougram’s Apology” ~~


*******


“Anybody remotely interesting is mad,

in some way or another.”


~~ Dr. Who ~~


*******


“Intellect annuls fate.

So far as a man thinks, he is free.”


~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~


*******


“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”


~~ Oscar Wilde, “Lady Windermere’s Fan” ~~


*******


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I hope y’all enjoyed today’s journey through the backwash of my mind; I did, if only because now I don’t have to feel guilty for not meeting my self-imposed task. In today’s world, that’s pretty much more than one may expect, so, I’m gonna take it, and run for the border…. which seems to be right here…. Y’all stay strange, ffolkes. It may not always be comfortable, but, it certainly makes things more interesting…. See ya tomorrow, if all goes according to plan….


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….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Culled from the secondary lists….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


“If you want to be happy, be.”


~~ Leo Tolstoy ~~


defiant.JPG


Defiant beauty….


Hajime…. Oh. My. Gosh.


Hmm…. I can’t say, with any degree of confidence, that’s going to grab anyone’s attention. Not for long, anyway. I also must say, I’ve done better. Since I’m mostly honest, I’ll have to add, I haven’t done much worse, either. Oh, well, I suppose I can’t expect to be able to come up with the perfect opening line every day, now, can I? Not with any hope of being right, or, successful at it. But, since it really doesn’t matter a bit, I’ll let it go, & just get on with what we came here for, to wit, mucking about in boats.


Oh, right. We don’t have any boats, or, any water to float them in. So much for whimsy. Due to the now unfortunate circumstances in which I find myself, I suspect I’m going to have to resort to yet another odd technique to get us anywhere near our intended destination; everything I’ve tried thus far seems more than a little too odd, even for our loose standards. As those standards have evolved over time, in a way only they could, we should respect that, if only as far as it can be thrown. Or, we could continue to spout complete nonsense, as we now seem to be doing. Either way, I don’t think we’re going to find any real literature here today….


Again, my only possible response must be, oh, well. It’s patently clear, by now, I don’t have it today; if I had any of it at all, it would have shown up by now. To avoid any major embarrassment, (rapidly approaching from the East), I’ll cut this short, & just get on with posting what I’ve put together. It really isn’t a bad pearl; I just blew the intro up to see if I still could. Mission accomplished, so, I’ll use one of these quick, brutal closing methods, & get on with what remains of the day. Besides, I can’t think of any more bullshit to throw…. Go figure; I’ve used it all up…. Probably a good thing, eh?….


Shall we Pearl?


“It is not necessary that whilst I live I live happily;

but it is necessary that so long as I live I should live honourably.”


~~ Kant, Immanuel (1724-1804) ~~


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playing-for-change


Lately, it seems I’m running late more often than not; oh, well, he said, with chagrin. So be it. (He said that, too…) Here, then, for our default choice of the day, is more from Playing For Change, my favorite charitable organization, promoting peace around the world through music…. Enjoy, ffolkes…. It’s far better than the alternative, wouldn’t you say?….


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Playing For Change

Gimme Shelter






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Comedy_Tragedy


Bulletin


Patterns exist to bring sanity, if illusory, at best;

follicular, reality seems to slip and slide.

Still, formal insanity consistently fails the ultimate test,

why place faith in answers. from which truth can hide?


Following the music brings us back in good time;

forever seemingly retreats from relevance.

Crazy, time stands still with yet another innovative rhyme,

no burgeoning intentions for sale, to shimmy. or dance.


Folly sits easily upon this brow;

fateful and afraid, entropy bows in shame.

Into the river of time, slowly, forgetful of how

courage gives strength, no matter the game.


Capricious, the muse demands obedient attention

at risk of exhibiting true durance vile.

Bereft, single copies sit unused, despite all intention;

while singular examples of fate pass at the stile.


Seminal events bring their own weight;

no scale necessary, no guessing by eye, or hand.

Only one lesson to learn, just pay the freight;

the music is playing, and you’re part of the band.


~~ gigoid ~~


8/6/2016


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pearls_3


Naked Pearls


Dubious is good….


*******


“The only thing I know for sure is that I know nothing at all, for sure.”


~~ Socrates ~~


*******


“Not everything that counts can be counted;

and not everything that can be counted counts.”


~~ Albert Einstein ~~


*******


“How does it feel?

To be on your own

With no direction home

Like a complete unknown?”


~~ Bob Dylan ~~


*******


“Live dangerously and you live right.”


~~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, “Faust” ~~


*******


” Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself

(I am large, I contain multitudes).”


~~ Walt Whitman, “Song of Myself” ~~


*******


“It is in changing that things find repose.”


~~ Heraclitus ~~


*******


“Everything that has a beginning has an ending.

Make your peace with that and all will be well.”


~~ Buddha ~~


*******


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I would wager I’ve already used more than my fair share of expediency thus far, so, I’ll forgo any further display of my brand of humorous commentary, in favor of letting y’all off the proverbial hook for today. Obviously, I’ll need to try this again, to see if I can’t improve on what happened here today. Shouldn’t be too hard, I think, given the sheer idiocy I seem to have let out up above. Again, the only possible comment must be, oh, well. So be it. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Well, that’s the plan, anyway….. We’ll just have to wait & see what reality thinks about that….


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


Featured Image -- 12787


À bientôt, mon cherí….