“If possible, try to find a way to come downstairs
that doesn’t involve going bump, bump, bump, on the back of your head. -“
~~ Pooh in Winnie the Pooh, A.A. Milne ~~
The bar at Shelbourne Public House, Cork, Ireland…
I missed posting again for another day, but, it (mostly) wasn’t my fault. Smart Bee, my database of quotes, was acting a bit fractious, & it took until late in the afternoon before I assembled sufficient pearls to make up the final section. As they say across the pond, c’est la vie, amis; or, as they say downtown, too bad, so sad. Or, more aptly, as I have been known to say, so be it. At this juncture, I’m just happy it’s done, even if I still have yet to write anything resembling a rant, or discussion of anything more than the immediate needs of the moment. And, right there, it’s another ‘so be it’…..
In fact, I’m going to continue in the current vein, & just get on with the posting process, before I lose either my nerve, or the prevailing wind. ‘Tis simple enough to accomplish, as you may or may not know. All I have to do is this….
Shall we Pearl?
“For a man can lose neither the past nor the future;
for how can one take from him that which is not his?
So remember these two points:
first, that each thing is of like form from everlasting
and comes round again in its cycle,
and that it signifies not whether a man shall look upon the same things
for a hundred years or two hundred, or for an infinity of time;
second, that the longest lived and the shortest lived man,
when they come to die, lose one and the same thing.”
~~ Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, Meditations, ii, 14 ~~
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Celtic Symbol
This is one of my default musical choices, to which I generally retreat two or three times per week, to listen to while puttering, or working at something constructive (a rare occasion, admittedly… SIGH). It always serves to give me the best chance to think…. well, I think it does. I hope you enjoy it as well…
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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
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Naked Pearls
Ponderous points….
*******
“Any idiot can face a crisis.
It’s this day-to-day living that wears you out.”
~~ Anton Checkov ~~
********
“All our decisions are made
in a state of mind
that is not going to last.”
~~ Marcel Proust ~~
********
“If you think you’re free, there’s no escape possible.”
~~ Baba Ram Dass ~~
********
“We shall never cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”
~~ T. S. Eliot ~~
********
“In comparison with heaven and earth, man is like a mayfly.
But compared to the great Way,
heaven and earth, too, are like a bubble and a shadow.
Only the primal spirit and the true nature overcome time and space.”
~~ Lu Yen (fl. 800 A.D.) ~~
********
“Every man takes the limits of his own field of vision
for the limits of the world.”
~~ Arthur Schopenhauer ~~
********
“Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.”
~~ Basho ~~
********
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See? That didn’t hurt at all, did it? What’s more, it may have even been beneficial, in some abstruse fashion. Rather than dwell upon what cannot be altered, or even fully defined, let us move on to the rest of this fairly fine morning, just as if we had some silly reason to do so. I shall try to post again soon; I may even write something more than the usual drivel. As it always does, time will tell, the blabbermouth…. Y’all be well, happy as you may be, and, for goodness sake, be as strange as you can be; it really is your best defense against the world’s own version of strange,…. 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.
“Indifference is isolation.
In difference is texture and wonder.”
~~ Edwin Schlossberg ~~
“Sfera con sfera” (Sphere within a sphere)
Sculpture by Arnald Pomodoro, @ Trinity College Dublin….
In what is no doubt a vain hope, the old man sits to write, in spite of the vast plain of nothing that fills his nearly vacant mind. Such a vacuum is not surprising, given the hour (0530 on a Sunday morning), following the previous nine hours of sleepless tossing & turning. No rational, or irrational reason can be identified for such a night; no serious pain & no serious stress in life at large seem to be the order of the day. Probably, I could obsess over it much of the day, but, since that seems as unproductive as the night just spent, I decided to just start writing & see what happens….
As you probably noted by now, I’m ignoring the previous two day absence from this space; since all I did was spend the entire time wandering around my head, alternating that relatively pointless occupation with binge-watching old TV shows (mostly Have Gun Will Travel, from the 1950’s, or My Favorite Martian, from a few years later….), there’s no point in detailing that time any further, as I don’t intend to offer any excuses. I did manage to cobble together the necessary pieces to complete this Pearl, but, had absolutely no motivation to write the intro, or the exit lines; thus the short hiatus, and the resultant necessity for this mini-diatribe, such as it is….
When I began this intro, I had intended to at least make an attempt to make it, if nothing else, funny, and/or, rational; by now, you can probably tell, as can I, neither of those two states are possible; I’m just too tired & weirded out to get there. In fact, I have a feeling if I don’t bring this to a rapid conclusion, we may never get out of here at all. Rather than lose another day, I’ll perform what has become, of late, our default technique, to wit: the hot potato drop, which works like this….
Shall we Pearl?
“Death tugs at my ear and says: “Live, I am coming.””
~~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. ~~
Me, too, & if you’ve ever had you ear tugged by Death, you’d know, as Oliver and I do, you pay attention, & get on with living life large…. Hence, my tendency toward absence from cyberspace more often than not…. SIGH…. Choices, choices….
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Leo Kottke
Image from npr.org via Google Images
In 1969, while attending UC Berkeley, I got tickets to see this artist. I’d never before seen or heard such fine guitar work, & was, by accident, introduced to an entire world of music heretofore unknown to me. Leo, John Fahey, and a slough of fine young (at the time) guitarists gave me the inspiration to learn to play myself, & though I’ve never come even close to this sort of expertise, it gave me, literally, music in my own soul, for there is no better feeling I’ve encountered in Life than the one I get from making my own music…. Please enjoy, if only in memory of my own youthful enthusiasm….
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Cognitive Abstinence
Ever affable, serendipity calls on random days
bringing gifts, wrapped in flesh and bone.
Tempting fate, color springs from intricate stone;
singing, laughing, poised to amaze.
In metaphoric haste, clues gather to confer;
graceless, with absently casual frivolity;
fraught with severely limited civility,
lead yet into realms where hope may infer.
Allegory has faded, past all disrepute;
indelible, entropy holds the field today.
Honorable, the children stand, resolute,
justice is spent, the old-fashioned way.
Temporary measures no longer apply
to foster dreams; endless nightmares parade.
Forlorn, empty, the unwashed masses cry,
while time slips away, sleeping in the shade.
Wondrous moments continue to accumulate
odd gestures of indignant fortitude.
Destiny embraces no desire to illuminate;
with such a cavalier attitude.
Pale, afraid, the joker sits to compose
one final ode to reason.
Such grandiose dreams, a dying rose,
dragged along from season to season.
~~ gigoid ~~
12/1/2016
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Naked Pearls
On being human….
*******
“I’m having an emotional outburst!!”
~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~
*******
“Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.”
~~ Basho ~~
*******
“That’s right, yes, you’re going, you’re gone for ages,
already gone, you’re still here, just arrived, haven’t even met you yet.
It all depends on who you are and how you look at it.
Strange business, time.”
~~ Doctor Who, “Dragonfire” ~~
*******
“The real purpose of books is to trap the mind into doing its own thinking.”
~~ Christopher Morley ~~
*******
“Cogito, ergo sum presupposes “I”-ness.”
~~ Smart Bee ~~
*******
“Kindness in words creates confidence.
Kindness in thinking creates profoundness.
Kindness in giving creates love.”
~~ Lao-Tzu ~~
*******
“God has no religion.”
~~ Mahatma Gandhi ~~
*******
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Well, another one bites the dust. Once the dust settles, you’ll be able to see the bite marks, and will know just what it was all about. Or, not. In either case, it’s done, & I’m outta here…. Given my recent lack of consistency, my only remark will be, I don’t know exactly when, but, I’ll be back. I hope y’all continue to enjoy whatever it is I do here; if not, well, I’ll try to do better…. Be well, be happy as you may be, and stay strange; believe me, it’s your best defense….
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.
“Food, sleep, fear, propagation;
each is the common property of men with brutes.
Virtue is really their additional distinction;
devoid of virtue, they are equal with brutes.”
~~ The Hitopadesa (600?-1100? A.D.) ~~
Defiant Beauty….
Hajime…. It’s been a week or more (I’m too lazy to actually stop to figure out the exact interval…) since I last posted a fully fresh, fully filled-in Pearl, & I said I’d post, so, to avoid any significant build of inner angst (some folks call it ‘guilt’, but, not me, nosiree…. too personal….), I’m going to go ahead with what I’ve cobbled together, so I can work on a properly constructed piece of work, one with which I can be content. With this one, I am, if not content, then, tolerantly bemused. There’s a good older poem of mine, some fine music (three centuries of music enthusiasts can’t be ALL wrong….), and a number of excellent pearls strung together to make up the final, always odd finishing section of old-school pearling. Not bad, given the severe shortage of time spent at the computer in creating it….
Whatever my reasoning, or, euphemisms used, it’s going to have to serve, because I’m too invested in playing in the real world to stop at this point, with so much of the world still to explore. I’ll work hard to finish off the new poem, if only to get it out of my head, so, it won’t be long before the next fresh Pearl shows up. I’m sure, by now, y’all are thrilled to hear that. Well, perhaps ‘thrilled’ puts a strain on your credulity, but, you know what I mean, right? If not, boy, I’ve been doing something wrong, or, have been gone too often for my irony to register. SIGH…. Oh, well, that’s Life, y’know? Delicious ambiguity….
For now, let’s quit fooling about, & get on with what I have for y’all to enjoy today. I’ll even refrain from employing any of the customary BS, & just say this….
Shall we Pearl?….
“Just being weird is enough.”
~~ Truthful Bee ~~
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We’re going with a default selection today, to save time and cognitive angst which builds up the longer I take to make a decision on it. We’re also going with my personal favorite composer, for similar reasons… I do hope you enjoy it; I intend to do so as well…. Abondanza!….
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Classical Music
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The new poem isn’t done; it’s leaking out in small pieces. Here is one of my better efforts from 2013….
After the odyssey….
Portraits of iconic symbols, crashing, singing, forgotten;
evolving into mature innovation, as yet pale, and rotten.
Still water justly breeds, impenetrable primal verses resound;
unholy moments tarry, emotion swirls in passion unbound
Spiritual ovulation precedes each pregnant pause;
gravid, time moves on, following destiny’s cause.
Cast adrift on waves of confusion, to a final, damp landing;
salvation beckons sweetly, fed well on understanding.
Dreams directly fall, in night’s grey bower, unbidden;
lingering flavors in simple taste, lovingly, cleverly hidden.
Childish laughter sounds, joyful, bright, and clear;
no need ever to hide, no more monsters to fear.
Temper most foul arrives under unregistered mail;
forgotten taunts live on, lashed by an ancient flail.
Plain dealing delivers such lasting specks of honest hate;
savage in retrospect, never hasty, always running late.
Forever, cries an ambient lover of the pending night;
his pale, weak issue forms its own failing light.
Still, fortune favors such as those who apprehend;
Sweet love of Gaia, let it never end.
~~ gigoid ~~
3/10/2013
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Naked Pearls
Further Notes on Life @ Large….
*******
“It is in changing that things find repose”
~~ Heraclitus ~~
*******
“Anyone can hate. It costs to love.”
~~ John Williamson ~~
*******
“If you want to be happy, be.”
~~ Leo Tolstoy ~~
*******
“Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard.”
~~ Anne Sexton ~~
*******
“The Soul is born old, but it grows young;
that is the comedy of life.
The Body is born young and grows old;
that is life’s tragedy.”
~~ Oscar Wilde ~~
*******
“Be not anxious about what you have, but about what you are.”
~~ Pope St. Gregory I ~~
*******
“How admirable,
he who thinks not,
‘Life is fleeting’,
When he sees the lightning!”
~~ Basho ~~
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I did it. Again. I don’t know how, or why, and don’t wish to tempt fate by trying to figure it out. I’m just going to be happy with what there is, & move on to different, if not better things. Y’all enjoyed it, I hope; if not, well, as Epictetus said, happiness & freedom begin with a clear understanding that some stuff isn’t within our control Cute, eh? And, just tricky enough to be true. I’ll see y’all in a day or two…. Be well & happy, 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.
“Do every act of your life as if it were your last.”
~~ Marcus Aurelius ~~
Solitary splendor….
Hajime….
“I love mankind; it’s people I can’t stand.”
~~ Charles Schulz, aka Charlie Brown ~~
It’s unusual around here (if anything I say or do can be said to be anything but….) to begin the introduction with a second pearl. Today, (or, yesterday, if you prefer, as I’m writing this then… Time Lord business, pay no mind….), besides going completely overboard with the parenthetical remarks, I’ll be coming as close to ranting as I have in some time… I suppose I should find another descriptive word to indicate the sort of discussion in which I plan to engage, sotto voce, as it were; ’tisn’t really a rant. Perhaps a word I already utilize each day will give the proper ‘look & feel’ character; that word is ‘Exploring’, as used in the official blog title, at the top of the page.
Yes, that will do quite well, I should say; I’m going exploring, in my mind and heart, for the words to express what I find there, and how Life at Large, which we can also call consensual reality, has affected me in the recent past, which, as I type, I realize means, also, the distant past. What we know is always aware of what we have been through before, if only for its lingering effects on our attitudes & habits. Modern pop psychology would call those our ‘tapes’, that which we received before we were even self-aware, picked up in our relatively long immediately-post-natal learning period. Part of why I explore is to identify these ‘tapes’, to examine them for current relevance, or, mark them for deletion.
So, ready or not, here we go. We’ll begin with some thoughts on a subject I find to be part of the core of what I wish to explore, from a man I respect highly, dead or not. George was a thinker; more, he was a man who loved humanity, which allowed him to see all their foibles & idiosyncracies with a ruthlessly honest eye, and the genius to make them listen & laugh with him at their own bozoid natures….
Without ever using the word, George identifies the single most critical element, to my mind; that word is ‘fear’. He alludes to how it is exploited as cruelty, and, it is, for it spreads the fear it fans to others, sans any purpose but self-interest. Humans, though one plays hell getting them to admit it, are not all that different than our ancient cousins, who lived huddled in temporary safe havens, such as caves, or convenient groves of trees, afraid of everything in their environment they did not understand, other to know its danger…. To believe what religion claims to be true brings comfort to those who cannot learn to face, & control their fears, promising to them what they already possess.
Learning to control fear is, then, a human’s most critical lesson to learn; without such control over our own emotional state, we are susceptible to manipulation by those who serve only themselves. People learn to ‘believe’ instead of learning to ‘learn’, thus developing the habit of NOT thinking, but, making decisions based on beliefs, which were motivated by their fear…. As can be observed throughout history, this results in a pretty miserable time for most humans, a life much harder than it needs to be.
Some days ago, when I began this exploration, I had a specific purpose in mind; that has since eroded into a number of possible arenas to explore, ultimately leading me to the conclusion I’ve again bitten off too big a bite to chew. To continue would be counter-productive at this point, with the most likely result nobody would finish reading, simply because it has become too complex to be a cogent lesson. As an attempt to regain control of our destination, I will abandon any hope of completing my treatise, & end it with some pearls which can give some direction to your thoughts, leaving it there with some reluctance, and some relief….
I’ll probably take up this gauntlet again, when I am able to focus again on the path to where I wish to go…. For now, here are three thoughts to provide some food for your own processing appetite….. Then, we’ll go finish the rest of today’s mess, so we may all get on with our day…. I think that’s the way to go, so, off we go….
The evidence of the emotions, save in cases where it has strong objective support, is really no evidence at all, for every recognizable emotion has its opposite, and if one points one way then another points the other way. Thus the familiar argument that there is an instinctive desire for immortality, and that this desire proves it to be a fact, becomes puerile when it is recalled that there is also a powerful and widespread fear of annihilation, and that this fear, on the same principle proves that there is nothing beyond the grave. Such childish proofs are typically theological, and they remain theological even when they are adduced by men who like to flatter themselves by believing that they are scientific gents…” — H. L. Mencken
“I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to colleges, which they have proudly taught to others, and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives.” — Tolstoy
“The spirit is fascinated by the future, wants to know the meaning of everything, and would like to stretch, if not break altogether, the laws of nature through technology or prayer. It is full of ideals and ambition, and is a necessary, rewarding, and inspiring aspect of human life. The soul is… embedded in the details of ordinary,everyday experience. In the spirit we try to transcend our humanity; in the soul, we try to enter our humanity fully and realize it completely.” — Thomas Moore
Whew! Made it. Okay, ffolkes, that’s enough blather from me for one day, I should think. Let’s see what else we can find to mess with….
Shall we Pearl?
“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark;
the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”
~~ Plato ~~
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Naturally, spouting off for so long in the intro has made me late. That means, as you know, we go with default music, which, in this case, means a collection of classical pieces to read by…. Three hours worth ought to do it, I think….. Enjoy!….
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Classical Music
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Intelligent Crimes
The value of wit is often said to cause harm,
for those who think, such is its greatest charm.
The new and the bold cannot be fulfilled
if innovation and change is left unwilled.
Society behaves at its base as a mob
conformity and submission its primary job.
Any sign of rebellion against the mob’s rule
is met with resentment, naming such rebel the fool.
Intellect and talent are looked at askance,
expressing artistry stands nary a chance.
To stand out from the rest of mankind
is fraught with danger, for body and mind.
Often I stand to watch in solemn dismay
as beauty and joy are left by the way,
ignored and reviled by the unwashed masses
who prefer darkness, and acting like asses.
With shouts of derision the normals make known
their fear of intelligence, greater than their own.
They hope to stop all semblance of progress;
for thoughts and ideas, they couldn’t care less.
The world struggles on in spite of all opposition,
managing to maintain its advanced position.
Pulling the foolish along in spite of reluctance,
helping each to learn the survival dance.
Hard though it may be to keep up with the future
genius manages its plans to develop and nurture.
In the final analysis, those who live by reason
enjoy life the most, season to season.
~~ gigoid ~~
10/7/2012
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Naked Pearls
It’s a puzzle, isn’t it?….
*******
“Birth is the beginning of death.”
~~ Realist Bee ~~
*******
“A fiery soul, which, working out its way,
Fretted the pygmy-body to decay,
And o’er-inform’d the tenement of clay.
A daring pilot in extremity;
Pleas’d with the danger, when the waves went high
He sought the storms.”
~~ John Dryden — Absalom and Achitophel, Part i, Line 156 ~~
*******
“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.”
~~ Sir Richard Steele (1672-1729) ~~
*******
“An age is called Dark not because the light fails to shine,
but because people refuse to see it.”
~~ James Michener, “Space” ~~
*******
“He does not seem to me to be a free man
who does not sometimes do nothing.”
~~ Cicero ~~
*******
“Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.”
~~ Philip K. Dick ~~
*******
“Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.”
~~ Basho ~~
*******
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Y’all may consider this Pearl somewhat overdone. It’s what happens when I get too focused, & try to pack too much into one place. But, it’s done, and, all things considered, it will do. If nothing else, anyone who finishes it all can give themselves a hearty heigh-ho, just for wading all the way through to the end. I’d award prizes, but, the budget just won’t stretch that far this month. I guess all that’s really left to do is to say fare thee well, & add in the usual caveat, to wit: I’ll be back, eventually, to post more (non)sense for your perusal. Until then, be well, be safe, and for goodness’ sake, keep those thinking caps on…. It’s your best defense, and, quite frankly, your only hope….
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.
“So then, these are the foundations, as they call them,
of all mixt bodies, and of all wonderful operations:
and whatsoever experiments they proved,
the causes hereof rested (as they supposed) and were to be found
in the Elements and their qualities.”
~~ Giambattista Della Porta – Natural Magick ~~
Ignoring it all, as only a magicat can….
Hajime…. Rather than search through what I’ve already found to be an empty well, I believe it’s time to reiterate one of the most important, if not critical elements of these Pearls, which we are compelled to label as Virtual Wisdom, in order to maintain the proper frame of reference. Maintaining that frame is the responsibility, of course, of the Gentle Reader, aided as well as possible, when possible, by yours truly, in what I write, and what I try to provide, in the way of validly useful information to give shape, color, and tenor to the frame. The title, then, assumes an important place in the process, since it’s the first thing seen by each reader. That’s why it never has anything to do with the actual Pearl itself; you see, if we tried to do that, you’d come into this with an image, and an idea, that came from your interpretation of whatever the title may say…. To avoid any predisposition, the title, as far as I can make it so, means nothing, and has no relation to what passes below.
This may seem a bit, well, odd, but, it’s what I have found will work the best to prevent the reader from heading off into areas which will prejudice their flow of thought. Instead, knowing it means nothing relevant, each Gentle Reader learns to leave their mind open, free to hare off in whatever direction my insanity takes us; insane, yes, but, on the road to enlightenment. Crazy people aren’t necessarily stupid, you know; crazy isn’t always a handicap for humans. If you’ve ever been there, you’d know…. Besides, if the reader doesn’t know what to expect, it makes for better entertainment, if only for me.
That being said, to as little purpose as I could manage, I can now relate the bad news. Well, maybe it isn’t bad; like most of the news we see nowadays, it’s just news. Attach too much importance to it, and it can take over your life, leaving you in a state of continuous depression, as wave after wave of downright crazy shit bombards your sensibilities, as the world wends its wobbly path toward its destiny, whatever that may be. Since most of humanity has no clue, about where they’re going, or even where they’ve been, you can see the potential for disaster, I’m sure.
Oh, right, the news. The news is, I’ve got a Pearl finished. It’s not bad, even without a rant to stimulate and balance our angst; I kind of gave up ranting here on ECR, to spend the angst and energy commenting on other blogs & Twitter. I’ve also taken to dropping little rant bombs on Facebook, which amuses me no end, as well as providing valuable cathartic elements for my therapeutic relief. All that aside, this Pearl, while fairly standard, has some decent stuff included, which I find to be comforting, for unknown reasons. But, since the whole point of this process is to find my own balance and sanity, even comfort found without attribution is welcome….
I guess four paragraphs of rambling, introspective blather is enough for any intro, so, without any further waffling, I now declare this Pearl open for business….
Shall we Pearl?
“The worst deluded are the self-deluded.”
~~ Christian Nevell Bovee ~~
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Loreena McKennitt
Image from innerviews.org via Google Images
I’ve heard this artist’s name a number of times, without ever taking time to explore her work. Like much in my experience, I’ve heard some of it, enough to make what I now hear familiar… It doesn’t detract from the purity of her voice, or the connection her music creates within the listener; it appeals to ancient rhythms that live already in our consciousness, though not perhaps, consciously. I hope you enjoy learning about yourself while you listen, as I do….
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Loreena McKennitt Live
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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 ~~
2/7/2014
********************************
Naked Pearls
Esoterica….
*******
“How admirable, he who thinks not,
Life is fleeting,
When he sees the lightning!”
~~ Basho ~~
*******
“The least initial deviation from the truth is multiplied later a thousandfold.”
~~ Aristotle ~~
*******
“It’s exhilarating to be alive in a time of awakening consciousness;
it can also be confusing, disorienting, and painful.”
~~ Adrienne Rich ~~
*******
“I like reality. It tastes of bread.”
~~ Jean Anouilh ~~
*******
“Freedom is what you do with what’s been done to you.”
~~ Sartre ~~
*******
“Because it’s there.”
~~Sir Edmund Hillary ~~
*******
“Education never ends…
It is a series of lessons with the greatest for the last.”
~~ Sir Arthur Conan Doyle ~~
*******
********************************
Having developed the process for creating Daily Pearls of Virtual Wisdom over more than five years now, on WordPress alone, I have come to trust it implicitly, for just the reason demonstrated today. It’s done, and done well, in spite of my own mental fog, and a conscious will still only half-awake. Not bad for 0455 am on a winter’s morn, eh? I think so, and, that’s what counts here. Besides, it’s done, and now I can go find something more realistically productive to do. (Fat chance of that…. shhh, he’ll hear me…) Let’s get started on that, shall we? See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; on that you may rely….
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.
“Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.”
~~ Basho ~~
Enjoying it WAY too much….
Hajime…. It’s late getting posted, and, it’s not much, but, hey…. it got done, & that’s what counts in the blog world. Plus, it gives me the chance to post this picture, one I find much solace in having taken myself. I’m not even sure WHY it is such a good feeling; must have something to do with the elegance of the elephant’s pose; the sheer dignity overwhelms my sense of irony, I guess. Whatever the case may be, there it is, and ain’t she just the picture of fun? Well, she’s having fun, anyway….
Speaking of fun, let’s go post this, and try to get out there to have some it it ourselves today; what do you say? Sound like a plan? Well, alrighty then…. Since I can’t hear your responses anyway, I guess I’ll quit the bullshit, and go get this slow on the toad. Yeah, that’s the ticket….
Shall we pearl?….
“Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.”
~~ William Butler Yeats, “The Stolen Child” ~~
********************************
Naked Pearls
Just stuff to remember….
********
Freedom begins between the ears.
~~ Edward Abbey ~~
*******
“What we do for ourselves dies with us.
What we do for others and the world
remains and is immortal.”
~~ Albert Pine ~~
*******
“There is no method except yourself.”
~~ Harold Bloom ~~
*******
“It is the mark of an educated mind
to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”
~~ Aristotle ~~
*******
“Don’t be afraid your life will end; be afraid that it will never begin.”
~~ Grace Hansen ~~
*******
********************************
Since I seem unable to rant, whether because of inability to sit long enough, or, lack of organization, matters not; it’s not getting done. Here’s a poem I wrote earlier this year to sublimate the urge to rant, which serves nicely today, to fulfill our need…. I hope you enjoy it….
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
********************************
That will have to do for today, ffolkes. Though the process seems to hold up to our new format, there are still some bugs that need to be worked out. I’ll try to work on that, in time to return tomorrow, same Bat-time, same Bat-station…. Count on it….
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.
“To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else.”
~~ Emily Dickinson ~~
“You’re not a real person until you’re ignored by a cat.”
Hajime…. The official title of this blog, as it says right at the top left, is Exploring Consensual Reality. Today’s version of Reality is simply too much for me to deal with; the sun came up, and I just don’t know what to do about it. Not that I’ll ever need to do anything about it, but, we humans do have our irrational fears…. It’s been said, with good reason, by a number of really smart ffolkes, worry kills more people than bullets. I can attest.
Since my mind is in revolt, (or, maybe that should be, my mind is revolting….), the mess you’ll see today will be a cheap imitation of a real Pearl, since most of it is destined to come from the archives. That is the only way it will get done at all, I’m afraid, even though it’s Sunday, and nobody really cares except me. Oh, well, he said, with some relief. That’s show biz….
That’s all, ffolkes. I’m off now, to go put this together, best I may; y’all can stick around to see what happens, or bail now. As ever, it’s up to you. In the meantime, I’ll go do what needs doing, and be done with it. Let’s get started, ‘kay?…..
Shall we pearl?….
“Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.”
~~ Basho ~~
********************************
Naturally, in order to save time, we’re going with our default musical selection. Enjoy!….
********************************
Classical Music
********************************
********************************
********************************
While searching for a rant in the archives from 2014, I found this one, from 2012, which will do nicely….
From 6/26/2012:
IDIOT, n. A member of a large and powerful tribe whose influence in human affairs has always been dominant and controlling. The Idiot’s activity is not confined to any special field of thought or action, but “pervades and regulates the whole.” He has the last word in everything; his decision is unappealable. He sets the fashions and opinion of taste, dictates the limitations of speech and circumscribes conduct with a dead-line.” — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”
When I picked out this pearl, I had intended to write a piece exploring human intelligence. However, my brain had a different plan, and all of the thoughts that I had marshaled to use went into the wind, poof, gone….. Since I’m feeling a bit lazy today, I’m keeping the pearl, and writing something about it anyway, so there….
Ranting about human stupidity is an endless challenge; there is so much of it to pick from that the choosing becomes harder than the actual writing. Every day’s news brings more examples of how dumb folks can be, and finding just one that is acceptable is merely a matter of deciding which is the better choice from a humorous view, or a serious view, or whatever viewpoint from which we will write. I’ve yet to see a single day when there weren’t at least four or five instances of stories that illustrate how talented people are at finding new ways to show how stupid they really are…..
“Never underestimate the power of human stupidity.” — Lazarus Long
We’ve all seen this one, I think; if not this one by Robert Heinlein, then one from another author or philosopher. It’s a pretty common theme, after all. Often, examples can be found on the front pages, especially during election years. But the back pages also carry numerous examples, taken from real life…. such as this one….
Back when I was attending the University of Utah, The Daily Utah Chronicle ran a joke ad for a debate between Phil Donahue and Whiskers the Lamb. Over 30 people showed up. (what they were expecting, God only knows.) — Smart Bee
In order to further prove my point, here is an example taken from today’s news….
This link leads to a very short article from Yahoo news, a perfect example of how the world is going mad, step by step….. I’m not even going to comment on the article, as it’s already too hard to think about it without laughing at the absurdity of the whole issue…..
Okay, I think my point is proved. The human race is pretty stupid, and getting stupider all the time. Sure, we’ve got men in space, we’ve raised the average age to 72 with medical advances, we’ve been to the moon. But we also are still making war on each other. We still abuse animals, and women, and children, and any thing else that is weaker, and will stand still. We are still killing ourselves, and denying that it is even happening. My only hope at this point is for something to happen to change human nature, to turn us away from this path we’ve chosen to walk. I hope it will happen, but I’m afraid the power of stupidity may just be greater than the power of hope….
********************************
The following was first posted on 5/13/2014:
I’m going with whatever serendipitously throws itself under the wheels of this bus we’re on…. Here is a thought, and a poem, from two classical Chinese poets, to whose translators I offer my complete admiration, and thanks, for such excellent work….
“If you work on your mind with your mind, how can you avoid an immense confusion?”
~~ Seng-T’San ~~
Alone, Looking for Blossoms Along the River
The sorrow of riverside blossoms inexplicable,
And nowhere to complain — I’ve gone half crazy.
I look up our southern neighbor. But my friend in wine
Gone ten days drinking. I find only an empty bed.
A thick frenzy of blossoms shrouding the riverside,
I stroll, listing dangerously, in full fear of spring.
Poems, wine — even this profusely driven, I endure.
Arrangements for this old, white-haired man can wait.
A deep river, two or three houses in bamboo quiet,
And such goings on: red blossoms glaring with white!
Among spring’s vociferous glories, I too have my place:
With a lovely wine, bidding life’s affairs bon voyage.
Looking east to Shao, its smoke filled with blossoms,
I admire that stately Po-hua wineshop even more.
To empty golden wine cups, calling such beautiful
Dancing girls to embroidered mats — who could bear it?
East of the river, before Abbot Huang’s grave,
Spring is a frail splendor among gentle breezes.
In this crush of peach blossoms opening ownerless,
Shall I treasure light reds, or treasure them dark?
At Madame Huang’s house, blossoms fill the paths:
Thousands, tens of thousands haul the branches down.
And butterflies linger playfully — an unbroken
Dance floating to songs orioles sing at their ease.
I don’t so love blossoms I want to die. I’m afraid,
Once they are gone, of old age still more impetuous.
And they scatter gladly, by the branchful. Let’s talk
Things over, little buds —open delicately, sparingly.
~~ Tu Fu ~~
********************************
I’m so late, and so discombobulated (fine word!….), I’m going to the archives for the final, old-school pearl today; why not? Here is one from 2014 that will do nicely….
From6/21/2014:
Once again, I had hoped to have more pictures today, but, the Wise Old Pine Cone has been busy with his new student, so we’ll have to settle for a fresh, old-school pearl….. We’ll make it a random, harlequin style pearl, as they’re the quickest to put together, as the parameters involved are so flexible…. Enjoy!….
“This is a wise maxim, “to take warning from others of what may be to your own advantage.” — Terence (185-159 BC) — Heautontimoroumenos, Act i, Sc. 2, 36, (210.)
“The turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover the core of strength within you that survives all hurt.” — Max Lerner
“Though all the winds of doctrine were let loose to play upon the earth, so Truth be in the field, we do ingloriously, by licensing and prohibiting, to misdoubt her strength. Let her and Falsehood grapple: who ever knew Truth put to the worse in a free and open encounter?” — John Milton (1608-1674) — Areopagitica
“He who wears his morality but as his best garment were better naked.” — Kahlil Gibran
“After all is said and done, a hell of a lot more is said than done.” — Olmstead’s Law
“…for the most part happiness consists in being willing to be what you are.” — Erasmus
“Honor is the reward of virtue.” — Cicero (B.C. 106-43)
Sometimes this process doesn’t work; this is NOT one of those times…. This is a good pearl, ffolkes…. Serendipity strikes again….
********************************
Thanks to my extensive archives, it’s done, even if incredibly late. Oh, well. I’ll try again tomorrow; who knows? I may even get a real Pearl finished by then. Either way, I’ll be back; on that you may rely…..
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.
“Emancipate yourself from mental slavery;
none but ourselves can free our minds.”
~~ Bob Marley ~~
Random Building, Liverpool, England
Hajime…. I’d thought to begin today’s effort with a fictional opening. The resulting morass of insanity created in my mind was too much, even for me. Rivers of blood, fires raging, world’s colliding, dogs & cats mating; not going there so early in the morning. Besides, I figured, given the explosion of Gentle Readers who came by yesterday, I’d best come up with something a bit more, shall we say, attractively intellectual, if I hope to see any of them again. Of course, finding anything resembling intellectual in this head may be asking a bit much of reality, but, hey, it was a thought…. Not all of them can be good ones….
Since any elegance has been shot down so effectively, maybe I should wander off into nonsense for a while. It’s one of my best things, especially on a day like today, when Murphy hovers over my shoulder, tapping random fingers to create typos, and the forces of chaos are standing ready to bury anything resembling coherence. Trying for ANY directed thinking is probably not going to work; entropy rules apply on all levels during such a storm of inanity. I suppose I could shoot for sheer insanity, but, that always makes it hard to get back to even a semblance of normalcy. Maybe today isn’t the best time for that.
Oh, well. So much for thinking my way out of this. Leelu isn’t helping either; her only answer to my queries is, “Aren’t you going to throw that paper?” She’s kinda focused on routine at this time of day. Damn! It sure can be a pisser, ffolkes. Trying to come up with a compelling intro every day is NOT as simple as it may seem, especially for someone with my proclivity for self-abnegation, combined with an extreme talent for waffling. Hey! Wait! There’s the ticket! Yeah, that’s it; we’ll smother the whole thing in syrup! Then, nobody will be able to even tell how awful it was…. I knew I could figure it out….
On that odd little note, I think we’ll go on, before this becomes any more impenetrably obscure. I think, if we go on right now, we may be able to save this. It’s worth a try. We’ll just use this ruthless little number right here, which will get us out of here practically before I can fini….
Shall we Pearl?….
All of us who are worth anything,
spend our manhood in unlearning the follies,
or expiating the mistakes of our youth.”
~~ Shelley ~~
********************************
Yep. You guessed it. Today is a default music day. How do I know this? Well, it may come as something of a shock, but, I just know. So be it. Give yourself half a chance, & you’ll enjoy it. A whole chance could lead to even bigger things, but, I don’t want to spoil any surprises, so, just listen up, & pay attention. All will be well….
In the past five years or so, while writing this blog, I’ve discussed this concept any number of times. In doing so, I have progressed in my thinking from a tentative agnosticism to a firm atheism regarding the idea of a God. All my explorations and research into the subject have confirmed my initial unease at accepting the generally accepted view, to wit: I find absolutely no convincing evidence in reality to support the idea there is some supernatural being sitting up in the sky, who created all we perceive, and actively gives a crap about what happens to us. Sorry, but, that’s the truth; there just isn’t anything to be found to make that true; this makes believing in it a delusion, as far as I am concerned.
Once that is accepted, it becomes easy to see just how bad the whole idea has been for humanity. The difficulty arises from the simple fact that those who choose to believe such nonsense make a couple assumptions, neither of which is true, but, if held as such, cause the believer to act completely contrarily to all common decency, because they have made themselves separate from the rest of humanity, by choice. One false assumption made is to believe the idea that only they possess the actual truth about such matters. This gives them a false sense of entitlement, while simultaneously giving them permission to cease all rational thought, both of which are disastrous for society at large.
I could, and probably should, continue in this vein for some time…. However, to keep from overdoing it, I’ll retreat into the archives to finish this small indictment…. Here is a relatively short, but sweet, treatise on this subject, from a slightly different starting point, though nonetheless cogent for that. It will do until I build up enough new angst to finish this off properly. Plus, it will move us along, so we aren’t stuck here in today, forever…. Enjoy!
From 12/5/2012:
One day a gate breaks down between heaven and hell. So St. Peter arrives on the scene and calls out for the devil.
And the devil saunters over and says, “What do you want?”
And St. Peter says, “Satan, it’s your turn to fix it this time.”
And the devil says, “I’m sorry. But my men are too busy to worry about fixing a mere gate.”
And St. Peter says, “Well, then, I’ll have to sue you for breaking our agreement.”
And the devil says, “Oh yeah? Where are you going to get a lawyer?”
— Soupy Sales
It occurs to me, Soupy’s next line from St. Peter would have to be…. “I don’t need one, I’ve got a fix in with the judge….” That would give not only balance to the argument, but would accurately reflect the actual level of corruption implied in the picture of the universe painted by the Judeo-Christian model of religion. It would also probably more closely reflect Soupy’s sense of humor, which was much more pointed than he got credit for…. People just thought he was a little strange sometimes, not recognizing lines that were making active fun of the establishment (as we old hippies were wont to call the mainstream of American society…..).
In reality, this joke is another example of the bad press that the Devil always gets; it isn’t often you’ll see a joke that ends up with Satan coming out on top. No, he is always given the role of the asshole, the manipulator, the one who wants to drag us down into Hell for eternal torment. Everyone seems to forget that they have ascribed omnipotence, and omniscience to God, and that He is the one who a) made the Devil the way he is, and b) could change it if he wished…. which seems to indicate that he DOESN’T wish to rid us of Satan, but prefers he be around to tempt and distract us…. That sounds to me like just a bit of manipulation in itself; how ’bout y’all?….
The preachers would have us believe that God allows Satan to exist out of his sheer benevolence, forgetting this is the same God who, in the Old Testament, sent forty bears to a town to kill all the children, just because a few small boys made fun of one of His prophets. He is also the one who threw Satan out of Heaven for objecting to some of what He had done on Earth, then turned around and allowed him free access to us humans, just so He would have a ready-made way to test us at His convenience. Just a little self-serving, don’t you think? This God, to my way of thinking, acts more like a spoiled little kid than a deity capable of creating universes…..
Okay, I’ll quit now. It’s really too easy to shoot at dogma; it never tries to hide, and just stands there, looking dumb, as you sight in on its forehead. But, hey, it’s a necessary job, and somebody’s got to do it…. Boy, it sure would be nice, though, to see humanity grow up, and learn to face reality without crutches, and without having to invent a supernatural being to explain away the stuff that isn’t clearly understood…. But, I guess it is job security, in that sense, because it means I’ll always have something about which to write….
“I’m RELIGIOUS!! I love a man with a HAIRPIECE!! Equip me with MISSILES!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
********************************
Momentary Terror
Absently casual, memories pester endlessly
leaving only bleeding remnants, amiable and loving.
Coming awake, I cry to still the pain, shamelessly.
Elsewhen, time gives surcease, if only to live,
shoring broken pilings, worn and gray.
Passing on, I laugh at the pain, accept all it will give.
Time will build a shelter, warm and ever safe
save for Fate’s busy hands.
Enduring, I follow the pain, knowing it will chafe.
Fixed against a darkened sky of starry black
such beauty brings us to our knees.
Entranced, I welcome the pain, ’tis all I lack…..
~~ gigoid ~~
2/4/2013
********************************
Naked Pearls
Truth in advertising…
*********
“A man that should call everything by its right name
would hardly pass the streets
without being knocked down as a Common Enemy.”
~~ Lord Halifax ~~
*********
“Driven by the force of love
the fragments of the world seek each other
that the world may come into being.”
~~ Teilhard de Chardin ~~
*********
“Everything that I understand,
I understand only because I love”
~~ Leo Tolstoy ~~
*********
“A ship in harbor is safe — but that is not what ships are for.”
~~ John A. Shedd ~~
*********
“For age is opportunity no less
Than youth itself, though in another dress.
And as the evening twilight fades away,
The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day.
It is never too late to start doing what is right.
Never.”
~~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ~~
*********
“Nowhere is now here.”
~~Nakagawa Soen Roshi ~~
*********
“Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.”
~~ Basho ~~
*********
“An it harm none,
Do what ye will.”
~~ Wiccan Credo ~~
*********
“Do you love it do you hate it
There it is the way you made it”
~~ Frank Zappa, “Brown Shoes Don’t Make It” ~~
*********
********************************
Okay, ffolkes. It’s done. Not only is it done, but, upon reading it, I have to say…. Now, THAT’S a Pearl! Full of smarm, nonsense, sense, and some pointed sarcasm, too. Not bad for an old fart with flat feet, flatulence, and a funny red nose. Since I don’t think I can possibly do any more damage than I’ve already done, I’ll leave you here, sans any further torment. I will, however, issue the usual caveat and disclaimer, to wit: it’s not my fault! If you can believe that, my work here is done. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; just try to stop 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.
Looking south from La Bufadora, Ensenada, Baja Mexico
Hajime…. Today’s effort, which has already suffered a start-over, is rather eclectic, general, and long enough to choke a horse. But, it’s okay, because it’s all proven material, having come from yet another deep dive into the archives. As noted previously, I’m leaving on a trip tonight, and won’t be posting tomorrow morning, unless I have time to find one to re-blog (yeah, that’s the ticket….). So, I’ve tried to put together a worthy one to hold y’all until I can return to the keyboard with something fresh…..
In order to keep from making it TOO long, I’ll make this intro short, as has been our habit of late. It’s a good habit, I think, especially considering some of the intro sections we’ve created in the past, many of which approached a thousand words or more. But, we’re not going that route today; in fact, now I’ve related that, we’re done here. Let’s go on to the rest of today’s mess, before Murphy notices we’re gone, okay? Okay….
Shall we Pearl?….
“Since everything in life is but an experience perfect in being what it is,
having nothing to do with good or bad,
acceptance or rejection,
one may well burst out in laughter.”
~~ Long Chen Pa ~~
********************************
We are going with our default today, simply to save time & energy, of much use elsewhere in today’s schedule…. Enjoy!….
Today’s rant is a general, all-purpose rant against the Asininnies, from the early part of 2013, while my supply of angst was nearly limitless. It’s a bit lengthy, as I took shots at most all those I consider to be part of the problems we face in today’s world. I hope you enjoy it….
From 3/15/2013:
“Republican views of the world differ from Democratic views of the world. The reason for this is that these views are based on different compilations of misinformation.” — Smart Bee
There are moments, such as this one, when I believe the people, or person, who put together the database known to me as Smart Bee, is perhaps the most intelligent creature on this planet….. I’ve been ranting about politicians for years, trying to show people how dangerous it is to believe ANY of the stuff that either party is slinging at us to try to convince us they are worthy of our votes. Now, in one short aphorism, of two lines, we are given a perfectly reasonable explanation for all of the crap we hear from them…. Essentially, this says that every one of them is full of shit, and everything they say and do is destined to fail, because it is ALL based on incorrect information, or, to be more accurate, on unwarranted assumptions about reality…..
The most important part of this description is its impartiality of indictment. Both parties are brought into scrutiny, and found wanting, of any real knowledge of the truth, because they are both basing all of their premises on false beliefs, just for starters. Add to that, since they are politicians by choice, their genetic predisposition is to self-aggrandizement, and they show an inherent inability to tell the truth. It becomes rather easily seen why our society has become, well, insane…. It’s a short trip to crazy from where they begin the journey…. and they don’t take any detours on the road….
You see, both parties are convinced of a complete falsehood, one that humanity has been struggling with for centuries…. This lie is so basic, it colors and affects everything they do to try to manipulate the world into going the way they wish it to go. As long as they continue to try to do this, our society is doomed to failure in the long run, for the lie goes against the very nature of reality…. Simply put, these people believe they can legislate morality…. They believe that they can make laws, and people will go against their very nature to follow them, in spite of the fact that the law they propose is contrary to what comes naturally to humans, to wit: self-centered, grasping behaviors that only benefit the perpetrator, and no one else…..
We have laws against stealing…. and the most accomplished thieves we see in our culture wear suits and live in Washington D.C. We have laws against killing each other, but, people still get killed, and, if the killers do so while wearing a flag, or a badge, they are considered heroes, no matter how many they kill. We have laws that supposedly protect women, children, and the aged, from suffering abuse, but, just look around you, and you will see no end to the depredations that society allows to be perpetrated upon these three most vulnerable members of our society, all very much within the legal limits of the public morality, as given in the law books….
“[…] For all our conceits about being the center of the universe, we live in a routine planet of a humdrum star stuck away in an obscure corner […] on an unexceptional galaxy which is one of about 100 billion galaxies. […] That is the fundamental fact of the universe we inhabit, and it is very good for us to understand that.” — Carl Sagan
The people who get involved in politics, and religion, for much the same reason, believe they are special, and entitled to take all they can from the universe, because they are the be-all, and end-all of the evolutionary ladder. It says so right there in the Bible….. They don’t care that reality says differently, because their sense of denial has been fine-tuned since shortly after they were born, and they are capable of ignoring facts right up until they slap them in the face…. (Witness the Republican melt-down in the last Presidential election, when the Republican party got slapped in the face by their own lack of contact with reality…..)
In spite of all the massive amounts of evidence to the contrary, these folks believe in their own divine entitlement as the lords of creation, chosen by God to do with this planet as we would, without regard for any of the other creatures that live here with us, or for the beauty and balance of the land that sustains us. As far as they are concerned, other people and animals, and natural resources, are theirs to do with as they wish, with God’s blessing…. The fucking assholes…..
I apologize for the vulgarity, to my readers, but not to those at whom it is directed…. To them, I say, fuck you, and fuck you again…. I regard all politicians, priests, preachers, police, lawyers, judges, and corporate misogynists of all shapes and sizes to be INSANE…. floridly, and viciously insane, without any of the moral standards that the rest of mankind embraces. These assholes are responsible for our imminent demise through environmental destruction of the ecosphere, as well as for the endless preying on the weak and vulnerable to suit their own depravity, and lack of moral fiber.
“All ambitions are lawful except those which climb upward on the miseries or credulities of mankind.” — Joseph Conrad
Sexual slavery, corporate collusion to fix wages and prices, legislative corruption and oppression, judicial malfeasance and more corruption, governmental incompetence, religious repression and collusion with politicians, all serve the purposes of the ruling class to a T, no matter how much suffering it causes to others…. As long as they have what they want, nothing anyone else says or does matters at all….
I hate to be a harbinger of bad news, but, I call ’em as I see ’em, and I see what is real…. None of what is wrong in the world will change, until the major portion of mankind makes a change of spirit, and the people, as a whole, decide that the few among us who are bold enough to act must, in fact, act. The evil among us will not go away, or stop, of its own accord, and waiting for them to come around to a more amenable state of mind isn’t going to work, as that just isn’t going to happen.
If we wish to survive, they have to go, and mankind must find a new way to get along with each other than the out-dated ways we have been trying for millennia… Those old ways leave too much power in the hands of people who will give in to the temptation that goes along with such power over others, and must not be allowed to happen any more, not if we wish to survive to see any future at all….. The universe doesn’t care one way or another, so we’ll have to be responsible for our own actions…. as we have always been, and have always been afraid to admit….
“If we do not permit the earth to produce beauty and joy, it will not produce food either.” — Joseph Wood Krutch
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Today’s poem is from a poet who has graced our pages before. Simply put, she’s one of Mankind’s treasures, though she was a broken spirit, with a lost soul, who finally ended her own pain. Before she left us, she gave us the power of her genius; it wasn’t enough to save herself, but, what she wrote gave it all to the world….. I hope you enjoy this example of that genius….
Insomniac
The night is only a sort of carbon paper,
Blueblack, with the much-poked periods of stars
Letting in the light, peephole after peephole . . .
A bonewhite light, like death, behind all things.
Under the eyes of the stars and the moon’s rictus
He suffers his desert pillow, sleeplessness
Stretching its fine, irritating sand in all directions.
Over and over the old, granular movie
Exposes embarrassments—the mizzling days
Of childhood and adolescence, sticky with dreams,
Parental faces on tall stalks, alternately stern and tearful,
A garden of buggy rose that made him cry.
His forehead is bumpy as a sack of rocks.
Memories jostle each other for face-room like obsolete film stars.
He is immune to pills: red, purple, blue . . .
How they lit the tedium of the protracted evening!
Those sugary planets whose influence won for him
A life baptized in no-life for a while,
And the sweet, drugged waking of a forgetful baby.
Now the pills are worn-out and silly, like classical gods.
Their poppy-sleepy colors do him no good.
His head is a little interior of grey mirrors.
Each gesture flees immediately down an alley
Of diminishing perspectives, and its significance
Drains like water out the hole at the far end.
He lives without privacy in a lidless room,
The bald slots of his eyes stiffened wide-open
On the incessant heat-lightning flicker of situations.
Nightlong, in the granite yard, invisible cats
Have been howling like women, or damaged instruments.
Already he can feel daylight, his white disease,
Creeping up with her hatful of trivial repetitions.
The city is a map of cheerful twitters now,
And everywhere people, eyes mica-silver and blank,
Are riding to work in rows, as if recently brainwashed.
~~ Sylvia Plath ~~
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Our final pearl of the day is a short, five-star statement which speaks of some of the more subtle, but, important points about how to live life well. Short it is, but, I guarantee, it’s long on wisdom…. Sometimes, it’s the shorter pearls that pack the most punch….
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“It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person,
“Always do what you are afraid to do.””
~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~
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“Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair,
but manifestations of strength and resolution.”
~~ Kahlil Gibran ~~
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“It is not good for man to achieve all they wish.”
~~ Heraclitus ~~
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“Happiness depends upon ourselves.”
~~- Aristotle ~~
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“How admirable, he who thinks not,
Life is fleeting,
When he sees the lightning!”
~~ Basho ~~
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Oddly, for a change, today’s thrown-together-in-a-rush Pearl came together smoothly; so smoothly, I’m caught without much to say here at the end. I’m not going to predict its quality, any more than I would ever do so, but, it feels okay, and we’ll let it fly solo, just as it is. So be it. Hopefully, I’ll have time to find a re-blog for tomorrow; after that, it’s all up in the air as to what may occur. But, then, that’s pretty much always the case, and not just here on ECR. See y’all down the road a piece, ffolkes. I may be late, but, I’ll be here, come what may….. 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.
Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.
~~ Basho ~~
Cross-eyed? Sez who?….
Hajime…. Well, here we are again, ever so happy to be at our desk, bereft of mind, broken of body, and ready to rumble. I know I said I’d have a fully fresh Pearl, but…. reality intervened, so to speak. So, what you get is more wysiwyg, after a fashion. Oh, it’s all relatively fresh, but, completing it all became a bit of a chore when SB decided to portion out pearls at a miserly rate. So, we’ll go to the archives for a rant, and, a poem. Other than that, it’s fresh. Not up to snuff, but, it meets the minimum standard, our default.
I suppose I could chat a bit about my day off, but, as it turns out, it was little more than a period of rest, it seems, as I got little done of a productive nature other than sleep, which, for some unknown reason, came quickly and easily last night. Go figure. At any rate, I have some energy, which I will now proceed to waste shamelessly to get this done. That doesn’t make me a hero, though there are those who might think it does; they’d be off the mark, as there was no altruism or selflessness involved. Just rest and recovery for me; since it seems to have worked, we’ll call it a draw, and move on.
Now we’ve completed the obligatory meaningless drivel for the day, perhaps we should think about getting the slow on the toad for the day. I know I always enjoy life better when it’s in the bag, so, we’ll find a bag, and get in. Why, look! Here’s a nice, reusable shopping bag right here! Funny how that works, eh? We’ll take advantage of the handy prop, which we placed there earlier for just this purpose, so we can say we have lived up to the hype seen in all the ads. Not that we wrote, or even asked for the ads, but, like a hive of bees in your head, there they are. So be it.
That’s quite enough of that, I think. Ffolkes, we’re going on now, before this gets any further out of hand…. Luigi, wake the hell up & get us out of here, now!…. Hang on, ffolkes, Luigi’s still more than just a little hung over….
Shall we Pearl?
“Contrariwise”, continued Tweedledee,
“If it was so, it might be;
and if it were so, it would be;
but as it isn’t, it ain’t.
That’s logic.”
~~ Lewis Carroll, “Alice in Wonderland” ~~
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Fred Neil
Image from thatsallfolk.free.fr via Google Images
It’s been a while since I listened to this man’s music; too long. He has one of the finest voices, ever, and is, quite simply, a powerful songwriter. He’s not very well known, though there are tunes he wrote which everyone alive has heard, and loved…. For example, “Everybody’s Talkin’ At Me”….. Enjoy, ffolkes…
As noted, here is a piece that should fit the bill for today; light, but with a touch of wit, not to mention a stiff dose of inanity… or, maybe that was insanity…. Ah, well, so be it….. Enjoy!….
From 6/14/2014:
In this section, we have been running a new style pearl, (there’s that royal ‘we’ again….), with pictures to go along with whatever quotes and/or comments I come up with…. The latest incarnation involves a new subject of interest, the Wise Old Pine Cone, who has been kind enough to allow me to photograph his wanderings around town, to record his interactions with people, and the environment, as he wends his way around the town….. Yesterday, I posted the photos of when I accompanied him to the local ball team’s night game, which came out fairly well….
Sadly, the Wise Old Pine Cone, by the time we left the ball park, had consumed WAY too many brewskis, and has yet to get out of bed…. He’s pretty small, and a few beers really do a number on him; I’ve seen him stay in bed for three days after a bad session with wine, and beer isn’t any better for him…. He’ll be alright, but, he’ll be out of action for a day or two, so, we’ll have to find something else for this section….. Let me think….
Okay, you’ve convinced me…. I’ll rant….
“There is nothing a man can do to guarantee success, but there is nothing that can defeat him if he won’t give up.” — Greg Praino
Well, perhaps I won’t rant today; it doesn’t mean I’m giving up, but…. I just went to look for a rantable headline from the news…. Of the eleven headlines on the world news page, eight were about various bombings, battles, or other war activities, mostly in the middle east, where the Islamic sects are all fighting to see who will become the sole arbiter of the Muslim future….. never realizing how silly and counter-productive they are being, in terms of survival…. But, then, most people engaged in war are not in a very intelligent frame of mind, anyway….
(And, how can a Muslim extremist group name themselves after an Egyptian goddess over seven thousand years old {Isis}? I thought they hated ANY other religion…. Ah well, stupid is as stupid does…)
The point is, I couldn’t decide WHICH subject to rant about…. There are plenty of wars being fought, none of which make any sense…. There are governments still robbing the people, or oppressing them unmercifully; the churches are still butting into everything, as is their habit…. I see where the Pope is trying to be a mediator between Israel & Palestine (good luck with that!….), and now, the Presbyterian Church is doing SOMETHING over in Iraq, or Iran, to get involved with that whole mess…. what a bunch of idiots!…
Cars and factories are still streaming carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide into the air by the hundreds of millions of tons, every day, so pollution continues unabated, and climate change keeps changing, so, we can kiss our asses goodbye, once we figure out how long we have…. Religious fanatics and fundies of all varieties continue to wage their holy wars, blaming all that is wrong in the world on anything but their own actions…. Bankers and politicians continue to work together to steal everything that isn’t nailed down from the public, all enforced by paramilitary police forces, blindly obedient myrmidons with guns, and really bad attitudes, due to their completely unwarranted sense of entitlement regarding their psycho/sociopathic need to be seen as authority figures….
All of the insanity I’ve previously commented upon here continues, relatively unabated, as the world skips merrily down what it BELIEVES is the garden path, completely oblivious, calmly seated in a handbasket, never even wondering why it is getting so bloody hot…. And people wonder why I rant….
I found no particular headline to get me started, but, as can be seen by the above, none are really necessary for me to find my anger about the state of the world…. My anger is based in the realization that NONE of it is necessary; if people would take responsibility for themselves, and stand up to the assholes who are oppressing everyone who puts up with it, we could fix this broken puppy….
I’m a realist, though, and, as far as I can see, realistically, it ain’t gonna happen…. so, I’ll pick a few pearls, to make how I feel about it clear, and be done with it for today…. I’m mad, but, so mad, I don’t even want to talk about it any more….. Here, take these…. No worries, you’ll live; there are only five of them….
“I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.” — John Locke
“All I know is just what I read in the Congressional Record. They have had some awful funny articles in there lately. As our government deteriorates, our humor increases.” — Will Rogers
“I have never found, in a long experience of politics, that criticism is ever inhibited by ignorance.” — Harold MacMillan
“Look for a tough wedge for a tough log.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 723
“You know how dumb the average guy is? Well, by definition, half of them are even dumber than THAT.” — J.R. “Bob” Dobbs, ripping off George Carlin, who made that point YEARS before Bob finished puberty….
There you go, ffolkes…. a pointed, bitchy, but accurate, five-star pearl….. Let’s go on, shall we?….
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Some days, only this poet will do…..
I measure every grief I meet
With analytic eyes;
I wonder if it weighs like mine,
Or has an easier size.
I wonder if they bore it long,
Or did it just begin?
I could not tell the date of mine,
It feels so old a pain.
I wonder if it hurts to live,
And if they have to try,
And whether, could they choose between,
They would not rather die.
I wonder if when years have piled–
Some thousands–on the cause
Of early hurt, if such a lapse
Could give them any pause;
Or would they go on aching still
Through centuries above,
Enlightened to a larger pain
By contrast with the love.
The grieved are many, I am told;
The reason deeper lies,–
Death is but one and comes but once
And only nails the eyes.
There’s grief of want, and grief of cold,–
A sort they call ‘despair,’
There’s banishment from native eyes,
In sight of native air.
And though I may not guess the kind
Correctly yet to me
A piercing comfort it affords
In passing Calvary,
To note the fashions of the cross
Of those that stand alone
Still fascinated to presume
That some are like my own.
~~ Emily Dickinson ~~
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Naked Pearls
Beginning to End
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“When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced.
Live your life so that when you die,
the world cries and you rejoice.”
~~ Old Indian saying
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“Belief gets in the way of learning.”
~~ Robert Heinlein, Time Enough for Love ~~
*********
“There’s an alternative.
There’s always a third way,
and it’s not a combination of the other two ways,
it’s a different way.”
~~ David Carradine ~~
*********
“It is sometimes expedient to forget who we are.”
~~ Publius Syrus — Maxim 233 ~~
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“A ship in harbor is safe — but that is not what ships are for.”
~~ John A. Shedd ~~
*********
“If you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
~~ Yogi Berra ~~
*********
“There are places I remember all my life,
though some have changed,
some forever, not for better,
some have gone and some remain.
All these places had their moments
with lovers and friends I still can recall.
Some are dead and some are living.
In my life I’ve loved them all.”
~~ the Beatles ~~
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Having completed my vow, I’ll take my leave with less than the usual to-do. I will, however, issue the usual caveat, to wit: I’ll be back tomorrow. I figure that’s fair warning, and, I know for sure it’s the best you’re gonna get. See ya, ffolkes; the odds are running in our favor….
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 