Unwelcome signs of renewed affability….

Posted on July 17, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Do you believe in reason?”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

Pluto

Image by NASA’s New Horizons Spacecraft, on flyby of Pluto 7/14/2015

Good morning…. Gird your grids for a big one, ffolkes…. This one got away from me…

Yesterday, in the afternoon, I had a period of what I call F.T.D. time, (fuck the doctor) in which my attention required distraction from physical issues… In short, I went pearling, to keep from giving in to screaming bones and twitching muscles, (courtesy of 2 ignorant Kaiser employees who mistakenly call themselves doctors…), which generally makes me want to hurt things…. Any who, I found an old intro that was, to be frank, amazingly strange and wonderful, for some reason… It’s long, and it wanders around unmercifully…. but, it got where it meant to go, and did it with some aplomb… I like it so much, I’m going to subject you to it again, and I don’t even care I may lose half my readers in the process…

Here, then, is the intro section from 6/24/2014….

Ffolkes,

Seemingly, my ego knows no bounds…. or, I’m becoming too much a blogger, having lost track of what is important in the search for material about which to write EVERY DAY…. I also figured out it’s the ‘every’ part that makes the difference; once one has committed to a fresh post each day, there is no more leniency allowed…. or so it seems to me….

Ego, though, is NOT allowed to be the driving force behind all I do; that particular battle has been waging inside me for most of my life, ever since I learned allowing ego to drive one’s bus is to court a life full of misery and pain, not always my own…. which only makes it worse. So, I try to focus on duty, instead, which may have elements of ego in it, from the process of choosing, but, duty, by its nature, and by what I was taught about it, does not lend itself well to ego driven choices. As one who accepts the entire concept of duty, as well as what it means, one realizes duty to others is the only one that counts toward earning self-respect….

I suppose all that’s a pretty high-falutin’ chain of reasoning, basically amounting to an outburst of well, bullshite, ostensibly lamenting my lateness, which, today, is great, indeed…. Having slept an hour past my normal time to arise, the coffee, while ready, has been cooking for all that time, and should make up the difference in time by loading me up with a truly massive dose of caffeine in the first cup…. I can attest, actually, as I can feel my typing speed increasing as I type this sentence…. Not bad, eh? Another couple blathering, wandering paragraphs, and this will look just like a Pearl that started on time…. whatever that may be…..

Face it now, ffolkes…. when I’m this late, there’s no telling what may happen; this process is already about as random as I can make it…. When fate steps in to fuss with the timing, or the layout, or any of the interior furnishings, the degree of randomness only increases, not arithmetically, but, worse, hyperbolically…. which, though, perhaps, a bit canny, is NOT in itself hyperbole…. Besides, I really meant to write the word, “parabolic”, which is the correct word for my meaning…. hyperbolic merely describes the end result better, as it’s meaning implies a parabola with a slope approaching infinity…..

I should know…. hyperbole is one of my favorite tools as a writer, especially when writing about politicians, or preachers, who both have made the use of hyperbole a part of their everyday patterns of communication…. If you don’t believe me, just go listen to a sermon, or a political speech some day, counting the number of times the pastor-person employs it in their speech; it might just amaze you….. Me, I got tired of it, so I don’t much listen any more…. Of course, in my case, that started at about age 4, so I’ve had lots of practice at ignoring their nonsense….

Look, it’s an intro! Not just ANY intro, either…. It’s got a mini-rant flavor to it, and actually sets the stage for what MAY come after…. I can guarantee no fresh rant today; there isn’t time to go further into that sort of byplay with my targets with what is left of my morning. But, that’s okay, I’ve got a good one on tap from the archives, as mentioned earlier this week…. The Wise Old Pine Cone is gone for a day or two, attending a tournament down south with his paduan…. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go with them, so I won’t have any pictures of that…. The old one has promised me I could take some shots of an upcoming lesson when he returns, so, that will be good…. For now….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.” — Oscar Wilde, “Oscariana”

Not too shabby, I’d say…. Let’s get right on with today’s mess….

Shall we Pearl?….

Call any vegetable,
Call any vegetable,
And the chances are good
That the vegetable
Will respond to you.

~~ Frank Zappa, Lyrics in “Absolutely Free” ~~

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Image from free-covers.org via Google Images

Recently, one of my Gentle Readers commented on how often I retreated to the past for this video section…. My primary response was to go “Thtptptptpt!”, but, since it was a friend, I merely said I’d see what I could do…. To show I was listening, here’s a band we’ve all listened to for a very long time, since they began back in the 60’s…. On the page where I found this video, of a show in 2013, there are videos of live concerts by this band dating from 1969, right up to 2015…. Ffolkes, I give you one of the finest musical groups to ever sit down to play….. Chicago….

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Chicago Live

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https://youtu.be/bADzaPb4W4w

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“Well, O.K. I’ll compromise with my principles because of EXISTENTIAL DESPAIR!

~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~

Of late, my level of angst seems to have dropped below the level necessary to produce a rant of sufficient vitriol to cause some damage. I’m still having some issues there, so, I’m cheating again, with a fairly cogent, reasonably short little diatribe from a couple years ago…. It will have to do….

From 3/17/2013:

“If you have an important point to make, don’t try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time–a tremendous whack.” — Sir Winston Churchill

I’ve used this quote previously, usually as part of a group of pearls leading to some point or another; it’s a very good quote, strong, positive, with a solid essence of meaning. It’s also damn good advice, which I try to heed at every opportunity I give myself to rant…. Winnie had a very good point here, mainly because he had the task of getting an entire island full of asses who believe themselves to be independent minded to work together to save those selfsame asses from the Germans, who were themselves displaying their own form of assholiness…. A bloody disgusting task, if you ask me, but, he was obviously the man for the job, as he seldom gave a shit about what anyone else thought, about much of anything….

The insight shown in this statement, however, is much deeper than is at first apparent…. Winnie understood that the average Englishman, as is true for the whole planet, as a rule of thumb, is pretty stupid, and stubborn to boot, being mostly unwilling to listen to anything they don’t wish to hear, whether smart or dumb, much less see any need to act on it. This, as might be clear to others, as it is to me, is NOT a particularly valuable frame of mind if one wishes to survive, and Winnie, knowing his people, was quite willing to use a two-by-four as his primary teaching tool to get his points across to the idiots he was forced to deal with during WWII….

Sad to say, this stupidity on the part of the larger part of humanity continues to this day…. Witness, if you will, the current crop of movies, if you wish to get a clue as to where the mind of humanity is focused…. It may amaze you, and will most likely depress you, to see that there is not a single movie about anything more serious than adolescent acne anywhere to be seen… Oh, there are what are termed psychological thrillers, but, they are mostly just shock literature, designed to make a good screenplay more than to explore the human psyche…. Nothing out there is remotely intelligent, because there just isn’t a market for it…..

I’m not proposing any solutions here; this is strictly a gripe session, for my benefit only. I get so tired of watching the parade of human events, because it so often turns sad, and depressing, to see how stupid and ignorant people can be…. and how cowardly most people are in asserting morality in public…. You know a society is going downhill when the police drive around acting as if they are under siege, and the people do not trust them at all to show either fairness, or restraint. In the town where I live, the worst traffic offenders I see on a daily basis are the police, who set the worst possible example for other drivers, even, and especially, when they are NOT responding to calls….

And the government wonders why nobody trusts them? Our society is sick, ffolkes, and I’m out here with my pile driver to hit that point again. That last paragraph was my second hit, and now, the tremendous whack of which Winnie spoke….

We are all responsible for the sorry state of the world, equally…. Those of us who are not actively engaged in actions which are destructive, are guilty of not speaking up often enough to get the attention of those who are, nor are we engaged in doing anything which will stop their deliberate depredations. They are guilty of being assholes, yes…. but we are all guilty of complicity in that, and can claim no less responsibility for when we fall down the hole we’ve been digging for ourselves…. And, that is the TRUTH….

“I’m amoral, and it’s been bothering my conscience.” — Smart Bee

“To escape criticism — do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.” — Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915)

“You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.” — Romans 2:1

(I’ve always maintained there is a lot of good advice in the Bible, as long as one doesn’t go all fanatic about its origin…. this is a perfect example of that contention….)

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Funny Bones

Dreaming the way home, lost, unseen,
from the dance, where
he felt so free, and clean.
Sorrow couldn’t find him there.

Waiting, filling up the hours, hoping,
some connection can be found
keeping busy as bees, coping.
Love creeps in, without a sound.

Fat days, skinny nights, passionate
visions of semi-conscious entities,
cannot seem to fully illuminate
or hide our innermost frailties.

Resolute, find the perfect sense, codify
simple rules with every breath
never waiting, anxious to modify.
fear nothing in life, not even Death.

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 5/13/2013.

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Those Gentle Readers who come here often will recognize today’s picture for this section. It’s Lao Tzu, of course, author of the Tao Teh Ching, the Taoist Master I consider as one of my mentors, as far as any ancient sage can be. The pearls you will find below are typical of the ideas Lao Tzu concerned himself with in speaking of the Tao, all of which are representations of the Reality he saw, and knew he could not fully describe…. In short, these are rules for living, any of which, when applied to one’s approach to life, can be of great comfort and value, bringing serenity, and joy, to balance the pain and strife with which the Universe presents us to cope with as a matter of course….

The most significant part for me is that all of these gems were given to me by SB in one swell foop…. Yep, the first seven pearls I looked at were these…. I think that says something about synchronicity, as well as serendipity, two of the nicer manifestations of the forces of entropy in our world…. Enjoy!….

“No one regards what is before his feet; we all gaze at the stars.” — Quintus Ennius

“Do not turn back when you are just at the goal.” — Publius Syrus — Maxim 580

“Je plie et ne romrs pas. (I bend and do not break.)” — Jean de la Fontaine

“I am defeated, and I know it, if I meet any human being from whom I find myself unable to learn anything.” — George Herbert Palmer

“…the wise man looks into space, and does not regard the small as too little, nor the great as too big; for he knows that there is not limit to dimensions.” — Lao Tzu

We view things not only from different sides, but with different eyes– we have no wish to find them alike.” — Pascal

“What is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads.” — Albert Camus

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Given the circumstances under which today’s Pearl was constructed, the mere fact it is done should be noted for historical relevance; few instances in the long history of mankind will demonstrate the degree of silliness, and sheer irrelevance, shown here today. Not only that, but, it was completed completely in the nude!

Not really; it’s a bit chilly for that; but, I was nude under my clothes; does that count? Yes, I’m a bit punchy. It may not look like it, but, this one took a lot out of me, in spite of the lack of fresh material…. Oh well, enough whining; we’ve all got better stuff to do, now this is out of the way. Y’all should go do that, and so shall I…. I’ll be back tomorrow, ffolkes; that’s the only warning you’ll get…..

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….

Come Tuesday, it’s all new soup….

Posted on June 17, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

I believe that it is better to tell the truth than a lie.

I believe it is better to be free than to be a slave.

And I believe it is better to know than to be ignorant.

~~ H. L. Mencken ~~

Light reflecting the duality of Reality

http://phys.org/news/2015-03-particle.html

Good morrow…. maybe. Only time will tell, I suppose. Time is again a factor, so, with no further attempts at feeble wit, we shall begin today’s version of the morning follies….

Shall we Pearl?

“The wise learn many things from their foes.” — Aristophanes (c. 450-385 B.C.) — The Birds (414 B.C.), line 375

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Image from http://www.dixiechicks.com/home-1

When this group made the comment about the Shrub, at the concert in Europe, I knew I’d like them; their fantastic music doesn’t hurt, either…. Enjoy, ffolkes….

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Dixie Chicks

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https://youtu.be/TV-qgC6fVO8

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I’m late enough to cheat…. Don’t forget, I AM an American!…. In government, it’s what we do…. What this means for today’s post, as you might have guessed, is an old-school pearl, with parameters set to indict our Beloved Ruling Class yet again…. It ain’t art, but, it’s Ibsen…. Wait! Scratch that… Reverse it…. But, then…..

Oh, never mind…..

“A society of sheep must in time beget a government of wolves.” — Bertrand de Jouvenel

“In the one hand he is carrying a stone, while he shows the bread in the other.” — Plautus — Aulularia, Act ii, Sc. 2, 18, (195.)

“Only poor men get hanged.” — G. K. Chesterton, ILN, 7/17/09

“When men get in the habit of helping themselves to the property of others, they cannot easily be cured of it.” — The New York Times, in a 1909 editorial opposing the very first income tax

“I felt like I was in charge.” — Vice President Dan Quayle, — after working the Panama Canal’s locks

“Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty–power is ever stealing from the many to the few.” — Wendell Phillips

“The mystery of government is not how Washington works but how to make it stop.” — P. J. O’Rourke, Parliament of Whores

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Stray Cats

The veils that billow and fold
between dreams and reality
may sometimes part,
showing the visions of one to the other,
blending, bleeding as one,
only to bring us up short,
closely jammed against immovable fate.

Still, we keep our watch,
seeking to find the vision
that brings with it the mark of reality’s regard,
a humble mind, and a compassionate heart.

Events of broad impact draw us away again,
distracting with shiny glitter and tinny music,
leaving our feelings raw and bruised,
the victim of universal disregard.

Now, in the twilight of years, the music is fading,
and the glitter has all gone….
yet the memory of visions remains sharp and clear,
melancholy reminders of reality’s promises,
unkept…..

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 9/6/2012.

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Our final pearl of the day is a standard pearl, set with our most common parameters, to wit: comments on Life at Large…. The conclusion is, naturally, left as an exercise for the Gentle Reader….

“Be not ashamed of thy virtues; honor’s a good brooch to wear in a man’s hat at all times.” — Ben Johnson

“Not by years but by disposition is wisdom acquired.” — Plautus — Trinummus, Act ii, Sc. 2, 88, (367.)

“His own character is the arbiter of every one’s fortune.” — Publius Syrus — Maxim 283

“Do not look for all the answers at once. A path is formed by placing stones one in front of the other.” — The Giant from Twin Peaks

“Cultivate only the habits that you are willing should master you.” — Elbert Hubbard

“The power to stand alone is worth acquiring at the expense of much sorrowful solitude.” — George Bernard Shaw

“The fastest draw is when the sword never leaves the scabbard. The strongest way to block is never to provoke a blow. And the cleanest cut is the one withheld.” — “Kensho”, by Dennis Schmidt

“On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.” — Things We Can Learn From Dogs

He who knows man is clever;

He who knows himself is enlightened.

He who conquers men has force;

He who conquers himself is truly strong.

~~ Lao Tzu ~~

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I’d say this one could be called an unconscious pearl…. I swear, I was NOT conscious for much of the time spent creating it. I can’t have been, for I don’t remember anything but the Dixie Chicks (seeing a group of beautiful women so early tends to fog the male brain….)…. Ah well, by all available evidence, it’s done, and that’s all we care about, right? Right…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, if the force field holds….

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….

Fabulous shoes, Margo. Jimmy Choo?….

Posted on April 5, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“And God said: “Let there be cats!”.

and He was promptly ignored.”

~~ Genesis 6:66 ~~

Image stolen from the Europa Ice Wolfie

Morning, ffolkes. Gosh, I don’t believe I’ve seen a screen this white in a long time. Empty, too. I suppose I’ll have to do something about that…. Hey, I’ve got a great idea! Why don’t I write a Pearl? Yeah, I think I will. I haven’t done that in, well, at least 23 hours or more….

You may cease the giggling now, or, wait!…. Was that a growl I heard from the back of the cabin? No need to get testy. Just because I try something new doesn’t mean y’all can just fire off like that. Think of what could happen if one of those actually hit me! Nasty. Okay, so, I know it’s not all that, or even all that funny, or compelling, or any other descriptive pronoun one wishes to use, but, hey, it was different….. Alright, alright, I see your point….. SIGH….

Okay, so, I’ll do this…. I’ll give up. Ffolkes, this is the intro. The Pearl, such as it is, is below. Go read it.

That’s all I’ve got….

Shall we Pearl?

“Nothing endures but change.’ — Heraclitus (540?-480? B.C.)

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Camile Saint-Saëns

Image from Wikimedia

At one time, I heard this man described as the hardest working classical composer of all time; he wrote an INCREDIBLE amount of music in his lifetime…. and, as far as I can tell by what I’ve heard (quite a bit of it..) all of it was as good as these piano concertos…. Enjoy, ffolkes, this is one of humanity’s brightest lights….

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Camile Saint-Saëns

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https://youtu.be/eIZpyoKHhXo

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It’s been quite a while since I talked about Pearls, so, today’s rant will be replaced with an older discussion of said Pearls, from the archives….

From 3/28/2012:

“All art is autobiographical. The pearl is the oyster’s autobiography.” — Federico Fellini

It has been a while since I talked about Pearls, so when I stumbled upon the above quote, I knew it was time….. Pearls of Virtual Wisdom come with a caveat and disclaimer, to wit: These Pearls consist of ideas and concepts, and even procedures, that are Virtual Wisdom. They should never be confused with, or used as, Real Wisdom; the results can be somewhat unpredictable, have been known to cause injury, and in one case, (my own), have resulted in months of severe depression. (Of course, that depression may not be due strictly to the intrinsic differences in the Pearls themselves, but rather a direct result of inattention to which variety I was using at the moment) Regardless of how real Pearls of Virtual Wisdom may appear, or how shiny they look to the untrained eye, the author assumes no liability for failure to heed this caveat.

That being said, let us for a moment consider pearls as incarnations of jewels, as the precious gems of rare beauty and great value they become when freed from the oyster, the shelter which created each layer of the pearl’s beauty out of its own pain…. The soft sheen of a fine pearl, luminescent in the dimness, glowing in the light, has captivated the eyes and imaginations of men and women since the first oyster was plucked from the sea bed to become someone’s supper, and has inspired those who fall under its spell to acts of great sacrifice, and acts of great cruelty, in the quest to possess these timeless treasures from the sea.

Thus the metaphorical nature of the Pearls of Virtual Wisdom becomes apparent, as we see that although virtual wisdom looks just like real wisdom, the difference may be likened to the difference between naturally produced pearls, and those that are cultivated in laboratories. One is shiny, and of great value for its rarity and beauty, naturally endowed; the other is shiny, but of lesser value, due to lesser rarity, and a somehow lesser beauty, as made by the hand of man. The subtle differences are of little note, except to Reality, which always knows which wisdom is which, as it knows which pearl is which; hence the caveat and disclaimer, to avoid any conflicts with Reality due to negligence on my part…..so, please use these Pearls with appropriate caution, and they will bring you joy for years to come…..

“Did an Italian CRANE OPERATOR just experience uninhibited sensations in a MALIBU HOT TUB?” — Zippy the Pinhead

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All Things will Die

All Things will Die

Clearly the blue river chimes in its flowing

Under my eye;
Warmly and broadly the south winds are blowing

Over the sky.
One after another the white clouds are fleeting;
Every heart this May morning in joyance is beating

Full merrily;
Yet all things must die.
The stream will cease to flow;
The wind will cease to blow;
The clouds will cease to fleet;
The heart will cease to beat;
For all things must die.
All things must die.
Spring will come never more.
O, vanity!
Death waits at the door.
See! our friends are all forsaking
The wine and the merrymaking.
We are call’d–we must go.
Laid low, very low,
In the dark we must lie.
The merry glees are still;
The voice of the bird
Shall no more be heard,
Nor the wind on the hill.
O, misery!
Hark! death is calling
While I speak to ye,
The jaw is falling,
The red cheek paling,
The strong limbs failing;
Ice with the warm blood mixing;
The eyeballs fixing.
Nine times goes the passing bell:
Ye merry souls, farewell.
The old earth
Had a birth,
As all men know,
Long ago.
And the old earth must die.
So let the warm winds range,
And the blue wave beat the shore;
For even and morn
Ye will never see
Thro’ eternity.
All things were born.
Ye will come never more,
For all things must die.

~~ Alfred Lord Tennyson ~~

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Today’s final section is another pearl giving advice on how to live life in such a way it becomes a path to peace, rather than a constant struggle to survive…. Enjoy!….

“Down in their hearts, wise men know this truth: the only way to help yourself is to help others.” — Elbert Hubbard

“What is known as wisdom is ultimately only a perpetual thinking it over, i.e., non-action as first impulse.” — E.M. Cioran

“I count religion but a childish toy … there is no sin but ignorance.” — Thomas Jefferson

“Cato said, “I had rather men should ask why my statue is not set up, than why it is.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Political Precepts

“Examine what is said, not him who speaks.” — Arabian proverb

“It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.” — Sir Edmund Hillary

“Dwell as near as possible to the channel in which your life flows.” — Thoreau

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“How did the great rivers and seas gain dominion over the hundred lesser streams? By being lower than they.” — Lao Tzu

And THAT is why this is the most important of today’s aphorisms; this concept seals the deal on all that went before…. If y’all need a bit of time to assimilate that idea, well, now is a good time to take it, ‘cuz I’m outta here…. See y’all tomorrow, 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Can you spell ‘balderdash’ boys & girls?….

Posted on January 29, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued.”

~~ Socrates ~~

Euro-Union Mars Science Lab, Artist’s rendition of post-landing configuration.– from Space.com

I’m wondering, if the folks over at Kaiser are feeling a little premonition, a small niggling at the back of the neck, or a vague feeling of uneasiness. If not, they probably should, because I guarantee, they are about to become engulfed in a shit storm. Having reached the end of my patience with the issue they’ve forced upon me, I have consulted the proper authority (Sun Tzu, The Art of War), determined a plan of battle and engaged the first scouts to gather intelligence. Small events have been set in motion, which, combined with the other facets of the plan, will come down on their heads in an avalanche of legal and marginally legal manipulations and court appointments to keep their wolf-pack full of lawyers busy for years to come.

They poked into the wrong beehive this time, picking on a target well able to protect himself from their feeble attempts to control my life, to force me to live according to their perverted version of reality. They will find that to be a decision they will come to regret. I have previously stated my reluctance to suffer the machinations of fools; this is no exception. My father would be disappointed in me if I allowed a soulless corporation to dictate to me how I should live; I have no intention of allowing that to continue, to their everlasting regret.

That being said, perhaps y’all will understand why I am so FUCKING TIRED, of pain, of side effects that bring nothing but misery, of the unending stress; most of all, I’m tired of not sleeping…. go figure. Since Kaiser, along with a group of brainwashed, cowardly physicians, who have surrendered their dignity, and their souls, to keep their jobs, afraid to buck the insane demands of the corporation, lest they lose their place in the insane race to achieve the American Dream, long proven to be an illusion, fostered by the elitists who control the world to maintain the status quo, which favors only them, have decided to fuck with me….. Well, let me just say, I am the wrong choice for them to pull this on….

Whoops…. I’ve done it again, haven’t I? Oh well, chalk it up to being preoccupied with pain, and the cause of the pain. My anger is so large, the universe is full; it’s got to go somewhere, or I will explode, at which time a large number of assholes will begin to disappear from the face of the Earth, continuing to do so as long as I can evade their clutches. I’ve taken all I intend to take, of being treated like a slave, who has no rights, and no power…. I may not have the resources of a world behind me, but, I think they’ll find I am quite able to gather the necessary elements to create more trouble than they’ve ever encountered, and, I am quite familiar with the arts of warfare, having been born a warrior….

I hope against hope it won’t come to pass; unfortunately, it may already be too late. We’ll see how the next day or two goes, then decide, Meanwhile, I’ve completely screwed the pooch with this intro, so, I’ll just use the ever-popular emergency method #4, to ease us down into the next section…. That one goes like this….

Shall we Pearl?

“I’ve learned to accept birth and death… but sometimes I still worry about what lies between.” — Smart Bee

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Over the past two days, I’ve been reliving my youth, with cartoons from the Saturday morning lineup I was fond of watching every week. Here is another old friend, Yogi Bear, with his old friends, Boo Boo, and the Park Ranger…. Enjoy!

The New Yogi Bear Show – Grin & Bear It

http://youtu.be/UhqHtxGLt68?list=PL_4hXCUn-FQCnjStEjFb2961a6Ff5xvvj

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“A power has risen up in the government greater than the people themselves, consisting of many and various and powerful interests, combined into one mass, and held together by the cohesive power of the vast surplus in the banks.” — Johann L. Uhland (1787-1862) — Speech, May 27, 1836

Zowie! Eureka! I knew I’d heard this somewhere before, but, couldn’t remember the author’s name. In stating this observation, made not long after the US government was formed, the author takes the hand of Thomas Jefferson, who expressed his fear of exactly this happenstance, in numerous letters to friends before, and after, the signing of the Constitution. He recognized the overpowering ambition and thirst for power so obvious in those who embrace it, attempting to warn his fellow citizens, many times….

As is plain to see, nobody paid the slightest attention, whereupon the bankers, in close conjunction with their myrmidons, i.e., the pundits and lawyers, continued to pursue their evil intent, to secure their hold over government, and, thus, society…. They’ve been so successful, we see in today’s world, they control every level of the national scene; witness the number of Republican presidential candidates who have been sucking up to the Koch brothers, and the Citizens United PAC, with their unlimited pile of money, in use in today’s world buying the loyalty of every single politician they can pervert to their insane desire to make the world over in their own image…. It doesn’t seem to matter at all to them that image is a clear, crisp photograph of the worst HELL imaginable, or that it would entail oppressing 99% of the human race….

Why are many scientists using lawyers for medical experiments instead of rats?

a) There are more lawyers than rats.

b) The scientist’s don’t become as emotionally attached to them.

c) There are some things that even rats won’t do for money.

~~ Smart Bee ~~

Gee, do ya think I’ve lost some of my respect for lawyers, and their second-slimiest clients, the bankers? (First place in my hell is reserved for pimps, and those who abuse women, children, or animals…. which, of course, lawyers and bankers do by proxy, with their usual complete indifference to the suffering of others….) Why no, of course not. I’ve lost ALL of it, with what I consider damn good reason, based on 64 years of observing the human drama, along with my own personal experience with both categories of asshole…. The only respect for any of them I have, is for those who actually HELP people, without considering what they can get out of it, other than their own satisfaction for helping people find justice, and a reasonable fee for that help, whether the fee is taken in pies & chickens, eternal gratitude, or simply cash….

In keeping with today’s theme of picking on lawyers and bankers, and, to save energy for my upcoming battle, I decided to pick out an old school pearl, aimed at the former, as they’re an easier target, all in all…. They’re just SO…… weaselly! Well, there are some are exceptions, sure, but, the others infest the world so prominently, the good ones are hard to find…. Ah well, here are some observations about them, from Smart Bee, and a number of other people who feel the same as most everybody else, about those lawyers who use their skills to benefit themselves, showing complete indifference as to whether it benefits anyone else….

Liar, n.: A lawyer with a roving commission. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

“A group of white South Africans recently killed a black lawyer because he was black. That was wrong. They should have killed him because he was a lawyer.” — A. Whitney Brown

“Always take a lawyer with you, and bring another lawyer to watch him.” — Bo Diddly’s Observation on the Law

“Fleas can be taught nearly everything a lawyer can.” — Smart Bee

“Here’s an amazing story. A man in Orlando, Florida, was hit by eight cars in a row and only one stopped. The first seven drivers thought he was a lawyer. The eighth was a lawyer.” — Jay Leno

“If a lawyer and an IRS agent were both drowning, and you could only save one of them, would you go to lunch or read the paper?” — Smart Bee

“In a man’s world…simian aptitudes are rated high, and so not too many women get in. To succeed as a lawyer, for example, a woman would have to throttle two of her chief attributes: her disdain for the petty accumulations of useless knowledge, and her sharp feeling for the truth. What men in their imbecility consistently mistake for a deficiency of intelligence in women is merely an incapacity for mastering small and trivial tricks.” — H. L. Mencken, Chicago _Sunday Tribune_, January 8, 1928

“In the Norse mythology Loki originally was on the side of the rest of the gods, helping them once or twice using particularly nasty forms of trickery. He was a cunning negotiator with a talent for technicalities. He was sort of the Norse equivalent of a lawyer, no doubt the reason they tied him down in a pit dripping acidic venom on him.” — Martin Terman

“How many lawyers does it take to change a light bulb? You won’t find a lawyer who can change a light bulb. Now, if you’re looking for a lawyer to screw a light bulb… ” — Smart Bee

LAWYER: A professional advocate hired to bend the law on behalf of a paying client; for this reason considered the most suitable background for entry into politics. — Definition from “THE CYNIC’S DICTIONARY”

Needless to say, I could do this forever, no sweat, or guilt; there are already nine pearls, and I’ve only used three of the ten pages of quotes I’ve collected on the subject. But, I suppose there ARE more productive things we could all be doing. This is pretty cool, but, as with all good things, it can’t last forever…. Onward, into the day….

Oh, hell…. Naturally, AFTER I’ve finished, I find the PERFECT pearl for this group. Since we’ve already completed it, I’ll just tack it here on the end, where it will enjoy its highlighted position; I call it perfect because it takes a shot at two categories at once, both of which are current players in my personal drama…. This one tells it like it is, for sure and for certain….

“Doctors are the same as lawyers; the only difference is that lawyers merely rob you, whereas doctors rob you and kill you too.” — Anton Chekhov

gigoid has spoken…. So be it.

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

“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 ~~

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

I managed to get a bit more sleep than usual last night; no idea why, as I was mostly uncomfortable all day, & didn’t expect to sleep much at all. Ah well, gift horses, and all that….. I’ll see now if Smart Bee is awake and aware enough to cough up a few pearls; if not, I’ll find a good one in the archives to take up the slack. Let’s see what happens if I give SB a set of weird parameters, eh? See if you can figure out what they were, why don’t you? If naught else, it will get us down the page to the closing section…..

” Never use your thumb for a rule. You’ll either hit it with a hammer or get a splinter in it.” — Uncle Ed’s Rule of Thumb

“It is no use to blame the looking glass if your face is awry.” — Nikolai Gogol _The Inspector-General_ [1836]

“The laugh of a child will make the holiest day more sacred still.” — Robert G. Ingersoll (American lawyer and orator 1833-1899)

“I exist as I am, that is enough.” — Walt Whitman

“One can endure sorrow alone, but it takes two to be glad.” — Elbert Hubbard

“All men are created unequal.” — Lazarus Long

“Awright, which one of you hid my PENIS ENVY?” — Zippy the Pinhead

Well. Hmm. I think, perhaps, I’ll not comment at all on this one…. We’re done, ffolkes; looking at this pearl tells me, we’re just in time, too….

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

I did it, against all odds…. not that anyone would have put any money down, anyway. Hell, I wouldn’t have bet on me this morning, and it’s my blog. Oh well, I suppose they can’t all be perfectly okay; with this one, I think I’ll avoid any attempts to categorize or label it, all for the better, I think. In fact, I think I should go now, before I lose it any further….. I’ll see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, given a rising tide and a bit of luck…..

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Running with the Rabbits….

Posted on January 26, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“It is sometimes expedient to forget who we are.”

~~ Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 233 ~~

Weather.com Amateur Photo Contest Entry

Now I know…. I’ve wondered, but, this proves it beyond all doubt…. When y’all hear, or see, me say that, in that way, you may rest assured the concept involved has been doubted, investigated, and proven by factual evidence one can hold in their hand, or see with their own eyes…. at the same time, preferably. So, with the final piece of evidence in hand, I can pronounce this to be fact….

What? Oh, right, sorry…. I’m referring, of course, to Pearling…. I’ve often wondered if I had chosen wisely, to make this process the lynch pin, so to speak, of my entire life, responsible in great part for any sanity I may be fortunate to possess. Now, I am up almost two hours later than has been my habit for months (thanks to ignorant doctors….), to perform an act which has no real purpose beyond what I’ve just mentioned. Yet, because I am late, feel like I’m in White Rabbit mode, all fussed and bothered because I’m late, guilty, Guilty GUILTY!…. Humph!

Nobody is paying me. Nobody will miss any deadlines. Nobody will die (that isn’t scheduled to do so by Fate). No animals will be harmed. But, I feel guilty, for not getting posted by this time, but, horror of horrors, got more than 3 hours sleep for the first time in almost seven weeks…. That means two things…. First, I got lucky last night…. NO, no, not THAT kind of lucky, though the young lady who helped me out IS quite pretty. No, one of the budtenders from the collective where I get my cannabis products came by to deliver an order, & was kind enough to apply some magic cream to my entier back for me, to reach where I cannot….

Glorious! The magic cream made me feel almost normal for nearly two hours, putting me in an almost giddy mood….. THAT is why I was lucky….sheesh. Y’ll should get your minds out of the gutter…. Any who, after that, I slept, not like a baby, which wakes up often, and wets the bed, but, like an adult with a clear conscience, i.e. peacefully…. Well, as much as ever happens, all to the good, in my book…. I woke up, saw the clock, and rejoiced, as I groaned, knowing the guilt would drive me like a Cadillac….

Now y’all have been treated to five or six paragraphs of chatty nonsense, none of which has anything to do with this Pearl, other than peripherally, I think I’ll get a move on, to see if I can’t finish this quickly, get it posted, and bring an end to the guilt…. Oh, I just realized, I never did say what the hell I was talking about up there, did I? Well, the presence of my guilt, which I ONLY feel when abrogating Duty, indicates to me that Pearling IS the proper job for me, at this point in my life…. So, the pressure I put on myself to get it done each day, having written as well as I can, is my chosen Duty, which makes it okay to feel the guilt, for a moment…

The rest of course, was just babbling, to get us to this point, where we will proceed to employ our now-habitual ruthlessness, and get us the hell out of here, before I can embarrass myself any further….

Shall we Pearl?

“Consistency is contrary to nature, contrary to life. The only completely consistent people are dead.” — Aldous Huxley

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

“…. to boldly go where no man has gone before.”

~~ Star Trek, opening lines…. ~~

Panorama of Mars, as seen by NASA’s Rover, Opportunity, January 2014

Click to Enlarge

Eleven years ago, NASA’s Rover, Opportunity, landed on Mars. Its rugged performance in covering in its travels, literally, thousands of square miles of the Martian landscape, surpassed all expectations by far, as did its twin Rover, Spirit, which landed shortly before Opportunity. Both Rovers exceeded their mission parameters, exploring Mars as far as they could go, searching for signs of life, or the conditions which may have indicated the presence of those factors which would allow life to exist….

Flowing water, a sure sign of that possibility, was found to have once been common on parts of Mars, as was evidence that microbial life could have existed…. The video gives a good explanation of the extent to which the Rover mission has been an unqualified success…. Hopefully, the embedding code will work this time; if not, just click on the link to view the video on Space.com, where I found it…. I’ve also included, at the end of the section, an Infographic Poster NASA created to show the accomplishments of NASA’s probes, including an artist’s rendition of the newest Rover on Mars, Curiosity….

NASA’S Rover Opportunity Celebrates 11 Years on Mars…

http://www.space.com/28353-mars-rover-opportunity-11-year-anniversary.html?cmpid=558946

Infographic Poster of NASA’s Mars Rover Missions

Click on Picture to Enlarge

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

“”Again, our observations of the stars make it evident, not only that the earth is circular, but also that it is a circle of no great size. For quite a small change of position to south or north causes a manifest alteration of the horizon. There is much change, I mean, in the stars which are overhead, and the stars seen are different, as one moves northward or southward. …All of which goes to show not only that the earth is circular in shape, but that it is a sphere of no great size: for otherwise the effect of so slight a change of place would not be so quickly apparent. Hence, one should not be too sure of the incredibility of the view of those who conceive that there is a continuity between the parts about the pillars of Hercules [the strait of Gibraltar] and the parts about India, and that in this way the ocean is one.”” — Aristotle, De Caelo, Fourth Century B.C.

Solid logic, brilliantly applied to simple, accurate observation…. it doesn’t get any better than this, for humans. Nobody has ever expressed so well, or so tactfully, exactly how absurdly STUPID one must be to believe the world is flat, or that the Earth has the remotest possibility of being the center of the Universe…. Yet, there are still, in this age of computers, with machines made by the hand of man exploring other worlds in our solar system, hitching rides on comets, who believe both of those concepts…. The most ironic part of that idea is the FACT that at least three or four such people, supposedly with college educations, and/or law degrees, are currently members of the US Senate…. with the distinct possibility there are a few more disguised as Members of the House of Representatives….

Can you believe that? Though I find it hard to do so, I must, as those fools have already made their positions clear, in public statements on record…. In spite of that, they continue to get elected to their positions, year after year, indicating there are a large number of people in our country whose degree of stupidity rivals that of a rock…. of the dirt or mineral variety, not the music genre…. I swear, it scares me to death sometimes, just thinking of how many IDIOTS voted for Mitt Romney in the last election…. At least Barack Obama is a skilled liar; it makes it easier to see why people get fooled by him. But, Mitt the Twitt, he is so obvious a liar, I’m continuously surprised he doesn’t break into laughter every other sentence, at the sheer unbelievability of the crap that comes out of his mouth….

There are rumors Mitt will run again in the next national election…. I can’t say I’m thrilled to hear it, even though he is such an attractive target for us bloggers…. I think, though, if it comes to pass again, I might consider my alternate future plans, reverting to the hunting trip I’ve been planning most of my life…. which is an oblique reference I don’t intend to discuss. ‘Nuff said on that….

The mere thought of having to look at, and listen to that idiot (Romney) again, even if he doesn’t garner the nomination, makes me ill. Ill enough to quell any further thought of ranting; it’s too hard to maintain any objectivity when I get that angry. Rage does make life harder, but, the mere idea of so much SHEER IDIOCY ever getting anywhere NEAR the White House will put me there in an instant, so, we’ll finish this otherwise excellently started rant with an old school pearl, taking our best shots at those Asininnies we call the Pundits…. Oh, what the hell, we’ll throw in any good shots we come across that will bring a good wince from any of those categories we love to hate…. dogma dogs, legal eagles, pimps, snakeheads, you know, all the assholes…

“How many things, both just and unjust, are sanctioned by custom!” — Terence (185-159 BC) — Heautontimoroumenos, Act iv, Sc. 7, 11, (839.)

“It is not possible to find morality in struggles for power. Your enemies view you as you do them and likely regard themselves as virtuous in their attempts at mayhem upon you. In struggles for power, your judgments should be based entirely on self-interest and finding as direct and economical a route to your goal as possible. If that route is bloody and barbaric, so much the worse for those who oppose you.” — V, anonymous author of The Mafia Manager, St. Martin’s Press

“To get rid of a pain in the neck, try yawning.” — Smart Bee

“Whether women are better than men I cannot say — but I can say they are certainly no worse.” — Golda Meir

“Truth is a statue, and you are all just a bunch of pigeons.” — Smart Bee

“It isn’t pollution that’s harming the environment. It’s the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.” — Vice President Dan Quayle

“Half a mind is a terrible thing to waste!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Note: The last two pearls are connected; I happen to know the quote by Zippy first appeared the day after Dan the Man made his now famous observation…. Fuck ’em all, the assholes….

gigoid has spoken….

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

Here is one of my older poems, included today simply to save time…. a futile pastime, at best, but, one we humans insist on pursuing, in spite of numerous years of experience with such frustration…. SIGH…. At least we can write poems when we feel bad about it….

Seeing is Conducive to Belief

Folly sits so comfortably upon my fevered brow
one would easily believe that I would know how
to look at Life with a jaded, weary eye
seeing enough, and more, to know Why.

Such seems the case, as I will it to be,
an open book of a face, it looks so like me;
what’s known to be so, needs no close attention
familiar sights require no minding, nor mention.

The eye is drawn at once to the stark and new,
and sent back to sleep by successful review.
Once we find evidence we feel we understand,
curiosity languishes, dismissed at command.

Ancient sages knew the insidious value of illusion,
preachers and pundits know the power of confusion.
Each pair of eyes contains its own point of reference,
each mind sets its own standards of preference.

Seeing is believing, for those who live in thrall,
accepting what is perceived is all they ever recall.
Unknown to them, reality follows another set of rules,
Deeper, more dangerous, and no place for fools.

~~ gigoid ~~

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

Pearl type: Old school; Category: Constructed previously via subconscious misdirection; Method: SB to pick, sans parameter; DoD (Degree of Difficulty)**: 8/10; Format: Minimalist style…. (** indicates degree of MY difficulty; the Gentle Reader may find their own DoD by multiplying the given figure by a factor of three… Thus: today’s GRDoD is: 24/13…. See how that works?….

Hey, it had to be done. The proctors were starting to complain about never being able to find any pearls using any sort of search criteria, or anything to enable them to fix out risk factor ratings, refusing to give me ANY until I’d made some categorical divisions, so a data table could be formulated to track statistical minutiae, thereby confusing the issue sufficiently for them to feel comfortable…. I could tell them it won’t help, but, they’ll have to learn on their own; everybody does…. Y’all can just enjoy the results, which you will find immediately below this line…. Don’t worry, I fixed it all so it won’t be a difficult point to find today…. didn’t want to confuse the proctors…. yet….

“Inasmuch as the mathematical theorems are related to reality, they are not sure; inasmuch as they are sure, they are not related to reality.” — Einstein’s Observation

“All men should strive to learn before they die what they are running from, and to, and why.” — James Thurber

“Down in their hearts, wise men know this truth: the only way to help yourself is to help others.” — Elbert Hubbard

“It is not a man’s duty, as a matter of course, to devote himself to the eradication of any, even the most enormous wrong; he may still properly have other concerns to engage him; but it is his duty, at least, to wash his hands of it, and, if he gives it no thought longer, not to give it practically his support. If I devote myself to other pursuits and contemplations, I must first see, at least, that I do not pursue them sitting upon another man’s shoulders. I must get off him first, that he may pursue his contemplations too.” — Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience

“If you cannot find it in yourself, where will you go for it?” — Confucius

“To give pleasure to a single heart by a single kind act is better than a thousand head-bowings in prayer.” — Saddi

“It is well for people who think to change their minds occasionally in order to keep them clean….For those who do not think, it is best at least to rearrange their prejudices once in a while.” — Luther Burbank

There you go…. I hope nobody strained anything….

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

Well, I did it. Not only that, but, I’ve found a new piece to add to the ending statements of farewell, as a reminder to practice what we preach, as far as possible in this world of woe…. In the meantime, I’m outta here; see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Remember to always….

“Practice random beauty and senseless acts of love”.

~~ Battle cry of a Warrior of Light ~~

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

His reality check was returned for insufficient funds….

Posted on July 14, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

There are times, such as today, when I just don’t have the chutzpah for this…. On those days, fortunately, I can dip into a very large repository of my older work, since, over the last three years, I’ve written over 3 million words, equal to more than 4000 pages of material. I know, it’s more than it seems like I could have done, but, hey, at about 2000 words a day, it adds up quickly….

Not to say all of it is Pulitzer-candidate-worthy, by any means, although, in my estimation, a few pages of it could make the grade, if it was all in one piece…. But, that isn’t why I wrote it; the main thrust of my efforts were taken to prevent overt insanity taking over my life, sending me into a depression I would no doubt have wallowed in for a long time…. For a while there, it looked as if my retirement wasn’t going to go well, but, everything has worked out for the best, and I am content….

I am not, however, quite ready for this today, so, I’ll be dipping into the past again, to find something suitable for today’s “look and feel”, and screw Steve Jobs, even if he IS dead…. In fact, let’s start right now, with a bit of a fictional opening from the past….

From 7/13/2012:

“What we have heah, is a failyuh to obfuscate.” On that hopelessly obscure note, the tiny little alien, which looked suspiciously, not to mention confusingly, like an orange bulldog in a green jumpsuit, wobbled what was apparently his head weakly from side to side, formed what seemed to be a smile with what seemed to be a mouth, closed what appeared to be his eyes (I think it’s a he…), and fell backwards into the lap of the fat dignitary seated in back of the podium…. the mayor, I believe….

Everything would have been okay, but the mayor apparently thought the alien was going to throw up on him, and proceeded to dump the poor wee beastie off the stage, into the crowd, which started using him for a soccer ball (the alien’s personal defense system caused him to roll up into an impenetrable ball…. cute, but confusing fir the crowd, I suppose….)…. A real mess…. While it wasn’t the most dignified ending to a press conference I’d seen in my days in the mayor’s office, it was better than the one we tried to hold after the sewers all exploded at once…. No matter how hard we blew the fans, the smell wouldn’t disperse….

Ever since the entropy bomb went off last year, it’s been pretty crazy around here, what with the Anti-Alien groups fighting it out with the End of Timers, while the remnants of the churches are busy dealing with the twelve disciples of Jesus, who ALL rose from the dead, and are now recanting their stories on the talk show circuit, with franchised copies of the shows running even on Al-Jazeera….. When the Chief of the World Police issued his proclamation of insanity, and said his officers would now be found patrolling the subways, because it was too dangerous for them on the streets, well, things really began to deteriorate….

End of fictional opening…. I don’t know about y’all, but, I like it…. In fact, it’s entirely possible I may just make this the first of these fictional openings I’ve done to be chosen for completion…. It’s a good start, so I may see where it takes me for a while…. It’s just so weird, it just might make a good story…… provided I can find the proper middle, and ending to fit the beginning…. Time will tell, I suppose….. For now, this intro is, again, getting out of hand, so, we’ll just bail…. right here, right now….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Practice yourself, for heaven’s sake, in little things; and thence proceed to greater.” — Epictetus (c. 60 AD) — Discourses, Book i, Chap. xviii

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

As mentioned above, today’s Pearl will contain a lot of archived material…. Let’s begin with a fine rant from last year, in the spring….. or, in the words of Willy-boy from Avon, from the Ides of March….

From 3/17/2013:

I have used this quote previously, usually as part of a group of pearls leading to some point or another; it’s a very good quote, strong, positive, with a solid essence of meaning. It’s also damn good advice, which I try to heed at every opportunity I give myself to rant…. Winnie had a very good point here, mainly because he had the task of getting an entire island full of asses who believe themselves to be independent minded to work together to save those selfsame asses from the Germans, who were themselves displaying their own form of assholiness…. A bloody disgusting task, if you ask me, but, he was obviously the man for the job, as he seldom gave a shit about what anyone else thought, about much of anything….

“I’m amoral, and it’s been bothering my conscience.” — Smart Bee

“To escape criticism — do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.” — Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915)

(I’ve always maintained there is a lot of good advice in the Bible, as long as one doesn’t go all fanatic about its origin…. this is a perfect example of the veracity and relevance of that contention….)

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

This poet needs no adorning phrases from me, or anyone else; his work has stood on its own, very well, for a long time…. All you have to do is enjoy it….

SWEENEY AMONG THE NIGHTINGALES

APENECK SWEENEY spreads his knees
Letting his arms hang down to laugh,
The zebra stripes along his jaw
Swelling to maculate giraffe.

The circles of the stormy moon
Slide westward toward the River Plate,
Death and the Raven drift above
And Sweeney guards the horned gate.

Gloomy Orion and the Dog
Are veiled; and hushed the shrunken seas;
The person in the Spanish cape
Tries to sit on Sweeney’s knees

Slips and pulls the table cloth
Overturns a coffee-cup,
Reorganized upon the floor
She yawns and draws a stocking up;

The silent man in mocha brown
Sprawls at the window-sill and gapes;
The waiter brings in oranges
Bananas figs and hothouse grapes;

The silent vertebrate in brown
Contracts and concentrates, withdraws;
Rachel née Rabinovitch
Tears at the grapes with murderous paws;

She and the lady in the cape
Are suspect, thought to be in league;
Therefore the man with heavy eyes
Declines the gambit, shows fatigue,

Leaves the room and reappears
Outside the window, leaning in,
Branches of wisteria
Circumscribe a golden grin;

The host with someone indistinct
Converses at the door apart,
The nightingales are singing near
The Convent of the Sacred Heart,

And sang within the bloody wood
When Agamemnon cried aloud,
And let their liquid droppings fall
To stain the stiff dishonored shroud.

~~ T.S. Eliot ~~

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

This section will, as usual, hold an old-school pearl, in order to soothe my guilt, by producing at least this much of today’s post fresh…. such as it is…. This one has parameters of its own; I let SB figure out what might work, and can only hope for the best…. Let’s see what’s out there, besides the Truth…. Fox and Mulder told us, so we can be sure, the Truth is Out There…..

Freedom has a thousand charms to show,
That slaves, howe’er contented, never know.

— William Cowper (1731-1800) — Table Talk, Line 260

“Thou art the man.” — Old Testament — 2 Samuel xii, 7

A monk said to Joshu, “Your stone bridge is widely renowned, but coming here I find only a heap of rocks.”
Joshu said, “You see only the stones and not the bridge.”
The monk said, “What is the bridge?”
Joshu said, “What do you think we are walking on?”

“Conquer your fear and you need fear no more.” — Smart Bee

“He said that men ought to remember those friends who were absent as well as those who were present.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Thales, ix

Of all that writ, he was the wisest bard, who spoke this mighty truth
He that knew all that ever learning writ,
Knew only this that he knew nothing yet.

— MRS. APHRA BEHN

“The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water, but to walk on the earth.” — Chinese proverb

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

Here we are…. finally…. I’m a bit confused, but, that’s normal; my confusion arose when I ask myself why the last pearl took twice as long to complete as the first two… If the intro hadn’t taken so long, I’d still be there, would never have gotten here, and thus, would have been even later…. It’s as if this morning’s supply of entropy exceeds the serenity of spirit I’ve built up, so much so, it started affecting reality more than its presence would normally warrant…. or something…. Well, it’s that, or I’m a bozo, and we all know what that implies, don’t we? Yep, and since we are proscribed from discussing that in public, lest we singe our eyebrows, we’ll just ignore the whole issue, and do our best to bring this to a close…. Since doing so with any degree of dignity is long gone, we’ll just do this….

See ya, ffolkes, it’s been real…. Tomorrow, maybe I will have found some of my sanity, or, at least, a semblance of same sufficient to produce a more elegant submission…. Choppy and strange as it is, this will have to do….. Ta then, luvs…..

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark, and Theresa…
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

‘Twould be worse in reverse….

Posted on July 4, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Of conundrums, paradox, brouhahas, and over-priced coffee, I am particularly dubious. Being dubious, about everything, is what I do, of course, but, faced in the morning with the sort of stressful issues that such nouns can bring with them, I tend to become rather more certain, at least in terms of how to react…. which isn’t pretty, most of the time.

I’m thinking it’s probably a good idea I am a solitary person while writing early in the morning. Besides the attraction of the quiet and the lack of distracting issues, such as people, the odds are those people, and thus myself, are safer, as there’s no chance of them getting annoyed, injured, or even killed, and less chance of my subsequent arrest and incarceration, for having given in to my homicidal impulses…. especially so early in the day…..

Having thus issued the obligatory warning and disclaimer, I’m safe from prosecution…. unless I snap, and actually end up putting my hands on one of the Gentle Readers…. Hard to do through the Internet Cloud, but, better safe than sorry, I always say…. (Actually, I can honestly say that phrase, “better safe than, etc.”, has never passed my lips, for which I’m eternally grateful….

No worries, ffolkes, I’m just practicing my nonsensical hyperbole, so, none of this either matters, or has any real meaning beyond what it says in the dictionary…..) Also, I’m only being silly, as I’d never harm a Gentle Reader, for ANY reason…. Well, not intentionally; they do take a risk by reading all this, but, that’s part of the package, and covered by the insurance, so, no worries there, either…..

I’m not sure, though, at this point, just how to keep this from getting even stranger….. I seem to be following my fingers with my mind, more than the opposite…. Of course, I could always resort to one of the emergency methods for getting back on track, but, I don’t know, I’m kinda enjoying this sense of undisciplined freedom…. Who knew that complete blather could be so liberating? Not me…..

Of course, I’ll have to figure out, at some point, just how to bring it all back into line, at least enough to get us into the next section… We may not find my sanity waiting for me there, but, it will have the minimum effect of taking us out of this mode…. I hope…..

I’m thinking, given the strength of the WEIRD this intro has engendered so far, we could be in for a wild ride today….. I have been known to become fairly odd (a euphemism, to be sure….), so, if you have any doubts about your ability to cope with such…. feneric garicallery, (No, I know, not the right words, or, even ACTUAL words, but, they’ll do for now, until I can figure out what WILL work there….), don’t forget to fill out the emergency contact cards in the compartment on the seat back in front of you. We prefer knowing WHICH hospital to take you when the strangeness becomes too much to bear….

Of course, it IS always an option to just go ahead and BE strange, right along with me…. which has the added advantage of helping y’all to understand more of what I write, at least from a metaphorical standpoint….. It’s easier to recognize insanity, and/or, genius, from INSIDE an attitude, than it is to try to “get it” by observing from the outside…. Take my word for it, if you opt to NOT enter my world, it will never make as much sense to you…. It can get a bit scary, especially when taking responsibility for one’s own actions, but, trust me, it’s the only way to go…. and, the stranger, the better….

On that note, I need to point out that, once we get to a certain point of strangeness, I can take no further responsibility for any of what may occur…. and don’t tell me that’s not fair, because it’s right there on the contract you signed when you came in…. What do you mean, you didn’t sign anything? How did you get past Luigi, if not? He wouldn’t let anyone in who hadn’t signed…. What? He’s not at the door? Where the hell is he? What am I going to do now? Oh shit….

Well, ffolkes, as I said, things might get strange, and if Luigi isn’t at the door, “persuading” people to sign the contracts, and noting down excuses, we’re in serious trouble…. Nobody, apparently, is legally protected today, so, as we continue on, keep in mind, not only will you NOT be able to sue ME, or WP, but, you won’t even have the right to sue yourself any longer, as you’ll probably be confined to a locked ward, with no electronic devices allowed in your cage, er, room…. The rest of us, having had our inoculation against all forms of oddity, will go on to finish today’s effort…. with some extra effort, it can be done…

Shall we Pearl?….

“Genius may have its limitations, but stupidity is not thus handicapped.” — Elbert Hubbard

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

The Wise Old Pine Cone has been putting me off for a full photo shoot, being busy with his new student…. but, he did allow me to get a few shots, along with some pictures of another Cone, whom I met while out walking the other day…. I’ll tell that story below… for now, though, here is a small group of pictures of the Wise Old Cone, his paduan, his girlfriend, and a random Cone on the street…. Enjoy!

Or, tolerate, anyway….
    This is Cicero, a somewhat bedraggled young Cone, whom I met at the bus stop down the street…. Actually, the meeting, it turns out, was NOT a chance encounter, as Cicero had been waiting for me to show up there, he tells me, for a couple of days….. He asked if he could accompany me on my trip that day, so I told him to come along…. We went to one store, where I picked up an item, then went to wait again at another bus stop….
    While there, he informed me he has been studying the Way of the Metaphorse for a couple of years, but, was having trouble getting any further along his path on his own…. He had seen my earlier photos of the Wise Old Cone, and hoped to persuade me to put in a word for him, to see if the Old One would take him on as a student…. He had a photo he’d had taken, of him in a most difficult stance, which you see below….
    We decided to have a bite to eat at a local cafe, during which time he related his background to me, and gave me his contact numbers…. Here we are, waiting for the waitron* to take our order….
    Since I could not commit to the young cone in place of the Master, I told him I’d take his information to him, and put in a good word…. He seemed happy at that, so I felt I’d done a good deed….

I did manage to get a few candid shots, of the Old One in his daily activities around the house, where he’s been staying, with me…. Below, you see the Wise Old Cone, watching a movie with his student, and his girlfriend….

    Next, a picture of the Old Cone and his paduan learner, watching a Harry Potter movie on the computer…. The shapes on the screen are an artist’s rendition of some Dementors, I believe….. Oh, and does anyone know how to keep the flash from reflecting, without moving to the side?….
    Next, here is the ONE photo I have, so far, of the Wise Old Pine Cone, teaching advanced meditation techniques, using a stone as focus…. Well, that’s what I think it is; it COULD be them practicing lifting the stone with their minds, but, I didn’t see it move, so, I’m guessing it’s the meditation lesson this time….
    Okay, so this is NOT the Wise Old Pine Cone, though there is some slight resemblance, around the eyes…. This is a terminally cute penguin, from a zoo somewhere in Europe… The picture was found in the Daily Pictures section of the UK Guardian, I’m pretty sure…. It was that, or the London Daily Telegraph picture section…. I forgot to write it down, but, having seen most of THEIR pictures elsewhere on the net, I’m pretty sure these are fairly public in their attribution…. Any who…. isn’t that the cutest face? I think so, and, it ends this pearl on a slightly less fictional note, that may just save the Pearl at large….. Time will tell, I suppose…. Onward, ffolkes….
“Life has no other discipline to impose, if we would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly. Everything we shut our eyes to, everything we run away from, everything we deny, denigrate, or despise, serves to defeat us in the end. What seems nasty, painful, evil, can become a source of beauty, joy, and strength, if faced with an open mind. Every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such.” — Henry Miller
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This poem is the latest of all I’ve written; it was first bled out on February 7 of this year…. I hope you enjoy it, in lieu of anything fresher…. It’s as fresh as I have just now…. and fits today’s theme, as well as anything would….

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, to teach us to really know.

~~ gigoid ~~

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

This pearl was composed yesterday, on 7/3/2014, inadvertently, that is to say, accidentally. In sooth, I should probably use the word ‘serendipitously’…. I was just sitting at the computer, taking a few moments to check the calendar about an event…. In opening my calendar, I, in my cute, but, annoyingly absent-minded way, displayed my bozoid tendency by hitting the button to shut down…. Doh!

When I booted back up a couple moments later, Smart Bee had the first quote, by Tacitus, already on screen, which, naturally prompted me to look at the next, and the next, until, all of a sudden, there it was, complete, staring at me, winking at me with a crooked grin. (Well, okay, maybe not, but, it SOUNDS neat, eh?….) With the slightest of editing, to put them in the correct order, according to their meaning, (which is not always clear at first…. but, you knew that….), I had a pearl worthy of the next Pearl, thus, saving me time tomorrow, morning…. which is now today….. And a damn good thing, too, as this seems to be taking FOREVER to finish….

Creating pearls the day before they are used does, I suppose, make it a bit less fresh, in the strictest sense, but, doing so is useful in making it a bit smoother in the morning…. and none of that makes any difference at all, to either of us…. Enjoy the pearl, which, I may add, is one that you could pay attention to…. it COULD be of benefit to you in dealing with REALITY…. just saying….

“A bitter jest, when the satire comes too near the truth, leaves a sharp sting behind.” — Tacitus

“Homo sum; humani nihil a me alienum puto. [I am a human, and nothing human is alien to me] — Publius Terentius Afer, c.190-159 B.C. –Heautontimoroumenos, a. 1, sc. 1, v. 25

“It’s not only what we do, but also what we do not do for which we are accountable.” — Moliere**(see below)

“Alcibiades had a very handsome dog, that cost him seven thousand drachmas; and he cut off his tail, “that,” said he, “the Athenians may have this story to tell of me, and may concern themselves no further with me.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Alcibiades

“Never do anything stupid.” — Ben Crenshaw

“Every animal knows more than you do.” — Native American Proverb (Nez Perce)

“A can of ASPARAGUS, 73 pigeons, some LIVE ammo, and a FROZEN DAQUIRI!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

** Have you ever seen a more complete, simple, yet accurate statement of the basic Principle of Karma? Only in, perhaps, the original discussion in Sanskrit, I think, about 5 or 6 thousand years ago; this is, by far, the best I’ve ever seen in English…. Not too shabby, for an Occidental mind….

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

If I could spell hallelujah, I’d say it…. Oh, wait, I just did, didn’t I? Oh well, I suppose it’s too late to worry about how weird anything might sound, or look…… for today, anyway. I’m really glad I issued the disclaimer in the intro, otherwise, I’d doubtless be buried in litigation before I could think of a lawyer joke…. which, for me, isn’t hard at all….. I have a friend who USED to be a lawyer, so, I’ve had lots of practice…. What that has to do with anything neither matters, nor is it relevant to our discussion today…. It did, however, slow us down enough I can fully apply the brakes, and bring this behemoth to a full stop….

Thanks fer listenin’, ffolkes…. It may not have been ordinary, but, it’s been real…. See y’all tomorrow, unless I can come up with a good reason to take the day off… Oh, wait, that’s right, TODAY is the holiday! SIGH…. Some day, I’ll get it right…..

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark, and Theresa…
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

It’s just like the other one, mate…..

Posted on May 14, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Just once, I wish…. Shit! Duck!…. Get down, you bozos, this is live fire!…. Crap, who wasn’t paying attention to the perimeter alarms? Where’s my M-16? Thanks, keep your head down…. Oh, okay, Stan, no worries, we’ll check those later…. Damn, ffolkes, sorry ’bout this…. Stay behind the armored plating, & you’ll be fine….

We haven’t had an attack like this in months, since putting in the new digital cams on the perimeter…. Looks like they finally hacked them, or brought them down somehow; Stan says the monitors are dark…. Well, hang on, they never bring enough firepower; this should only take a few moments to drive them off….

Okay, good work, troops…. Ffolkes, you can go ahead and take your assigned seats now…. we’ll be taking off for the pearl beds in a few minutes…. Anybody sustain any injuries they can’t deal with using the first aid kit in the seat compartment? Good…. Stan, you’ll check the troops, please, to make sure they’re all intact? Thanks…. Me, I’ll get into the cockpit, and fire this sucker up….

Well, THAT was exciting, yes? Nothing like some adrenaline to get the juices moving, is there? My issue with that is the four hours it takes me to get over those little rushes that are our gift from our little supercharger gland…. It’s kind of fun, feeling ten feet tall and covered with armor, though it does take its toll later, when the crash comes at the end of the rush….

I prefer to have copious quantities of a preferred adult beverage on hand to consume, or some other merely semi-legal substance that will instigate the same sort mellowing process, with fewer side effects than the alcohol…. I guess my “spirits” are getting old; I know my liver is, for sure…. Can’t take those mornings after anymore….

Oh, that? Ah, don’t sweat the small stuff; this morning’s attack was actually a planned exercise; I don’t advertise them ahead of time, for a lot of reasons, the main one being security…. But, the forces that were firing at us, though using live ammo, would only have aimed to wound, not kill. The exercise is part of a mutual-assistance agreement I have with another libertarian down the street…. Once a month, unscheduled, we each mount a surprise attack on the other’s property, just to keep us each in tune, and give some practice to the shock troops who will be taking the brunt of any defensive casualties, as part of their contract….

Of course, all of the above paragraphs are a complete fabrication….. I don’t believe there are more than three or four words of truth in any of them, or all of them together, even though I padded them as much as possible…. What d’ya think, eh? Not too bad, and certainly not the average opening you’ll find anywhere else… I do try to find something new and fresh for y’all, and sometimes it works better than others, I’d say…. Whether or not THIS is one of those if for y’all to say….

Regardless of how it turned out, though, it IS an intro section, and, as such, there are certain regulations that must be observed…. Not that we pay all that much attention to them, but, we do observe them, from afar, with great admiration…. In spite of our lack of respect for those regulations, we do keep them in mind when composing this, even though WE are only ME; I just fall too easily into the royal ‘we’, so easily adopted when using the famous “sotto voce”…. as we do here, unashamedly, we admit, but, to great effect…. sort of…. To frequent effect, anyway….

Having thus used it, without the typical abuse that can follow, mostly, I believe I have reached the minimum limit of the aforementioned regulations, so, I’m going to summarily end this, hoping to go on to something a bit more entertaining…. I know, this wasn’t bad, but, I didn’t hear any outright guffaws, so, it needs a bit of work…. In the meantime….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Anyone who isn’t confused really doesn’t understand the situation.” — Edward R. Murrow

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

Any one of the following articles would, under most circumstances, be sufficient to produce a rant, if all things were equal…. At the moment, for a day or two, they are NOT equal…. Mother Nature is giving us a taste of how miserable the weather can be, and of how unpredictable it has become in these days prior to the completely chaotic time to come in the future, as the effects of global warming become more pronounced…. For now, She’s giving us a small heat wave, in May, with temps in the area threatening to hit triple digits….

Fortunately for me, the town I live in only expects to get into the mid-90’s, Fahrenheit, which isn’t too bad, but, given my decreased tolerance for heat, is more than enough to put me into a comatose state for much of the day, motionless in front of a fan on high speed…. I just can’t take it like I used to be able to do. Right now, it’s pretty nice outside, at a bit past 4 AM, but, the air is still, there’s no fog, as we usually see in summer, and it already feels muggy…. These are typically NOT good signs for the rest of the day; they tell me that HEAT is on its way….

As such, my energy levels are dropping dramatically, as I KNOW I’ll be needing it all to keep myself still, and cool, for much of the day, confining any physical activity to the morning, or late evening hours. I went to the bother of collecting these articles, so, I’m leaving them here, for you to peruse in your spare time; they’re scary enough all by themselves, even without my added commentary designed to bring out the obvious flaws or lies that you’ll see in them… especially the first one…

The two on either end are quite scary in their implications; the potential scenarios that have evolved, and those yet to formulate, from those issues, are NOT comforting, to say the least…. The one in the middle, on the FCC decision, is more encouraging, as it seems the noise we consumers made about it is having an effect on the officials involved…. YAY! It’s nice when so many people speak that they HAVE to listen….

But, I’m already tired, and sweaty, and it’s only 0423 in the morning, so, from this point, you’re on your own with these…. I WILL follow them with a five-star pearl to drive some of the points home, or, as in this case, to provide some contrasting information, in an ethical sense…. Enjoy this little taste of current events, please, or, at least, LISTEN UP….

http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/NASA-spots-worrisome-Antarctic-ice-sheet-melt-5471531.php?cmpid=hp-hc-nationworld

http://blog.sfgate.com/techchron/2014/05/12/fcc-chair-said-to-be-backing-down-on-plan-to-destroy-net-neutrality/?cmpid=hp-hc-bustech

https://news.yahoo.com/spying-on-millions-of-americans-living-in-the–united-states-of-secrets-183952032.html

“Sanity is for the masses who don’t know how to handle insanity.” — Tim Sailer

“An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.” — Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915)

“The most common sort of lie is the one uttered to one’s self.” — Nietzsche

“The measure of man is what he does with power.” — Pittacus

“There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: (1) not going all the way; and (2) not starting.” — Buddha

Ffolkes, I just can’t make it any clearer than that, without resorting to a rant….

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

Since this will be an entirely fresh Pearl today, I’d best go with a poem of my own, to save the reputation of anyone else I might choose….

Accentuated Lessons

Bold statements of calculated intent
Become common rule of the malcontent.
Avarice assumes such attractive wear
Beguiling deception, illusory and fair.

Grasping and pulling with ghostly hands
Legally proper in all the signatory lands.
Seeking and finding each vulnerable soul
Anguish as payment for exacting the toll.

Wraiths of commerce’s invisible dead guards
Still haunt the dreams left in sad empty yards.
While absentee nobles sit in stiffly elegant splendor
Served by sad-faced detainees in abject surrender.

Escape from reality is illusory at best
Often we falter and fail its daily test.
Only when focused on inner strength
Does peace stay with us for any length.

Peace lies within, always…..

~~ gigoid ~~

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

Having decided to forgo a rant today, that means this will be another old-school pearl…. Yes, I’m being nice today; I’m too hot & bothered to spend the energy to be a curmudgeon… Enjoy!….

“Apparently I’m insane. But I’m one of the happy kinds!” — John Young

“In a technological world where anything is possible, paranoia will reign supreme.” — Stephen Crandall

“Never encourage Politicians, Fools, or Punsters!” — Smart Bee

“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” — Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

“Common and vulgar people ascribe all ill that they feel to others; people of little wisdom ascribe to themselves; people of much wisdom, to no one.” — Epictetus

” … for these truths hold good for everything that is, and not for some special genus apart from others. And all men use them, because they are true of being qua being … For a principle which everyone must have to understand anything that is, is not a hypothesis … Evidently then, such a principle is the most certain of all; which principle this is, let us proceed to say. It is, that the same attribute cannot at the same time belong and not belong to the subject in the same respect.” — Aristotle

“All great deeds and all great thoughts have a ridiculous beginning.” — Albert Camus

And sometimes, they end on that same silly note…..

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

After reading this, in editing/proofing mode, I think it would be best if I keep this closing section relatively short…. There’s too much in the above that could construed as legally actionable, or, at the very least, taken wrongly by those who find it hard to operate BOTH of their functional neurons at the same instant…. which is a clandestine insult those self-same few will never get, as it flies, serenely, right over their heads….

In any case, I heard an old saw once that says an author should always leave his audience wanting a bit more…. Unable to decide if I have reached that point, or not, I’ll concede its relevance, and just take my leave…. See you tomorrow, ffolkes….. if I don’t melt….

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark, and Theresa…
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 gamut from savage to sweet isn’t posted….

Posted on December 12, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Though the odds are always against it, the possibility exists that, at this moment, I am one of the single richest men in the world. Of course, this would only be true if I’ve won either of the two lotteries in which I hold tickets for last night’s draws….. One, the Super Lotto, is worth about $45 million or so, and the Power Ball, I’m told, is worth a couple of hundred million, or so… At that level, it really doesn’t matter much exactly how many millions, does it? They all kind of blend together into one amorphous, but large, bundle that is more than the human mind is capable of grasping in one take…. I suppose, after taxes, if I’d won the Power Ball, I’d be richer to the tune of about $100 million…. I think I could live with that….

I just checked, though, and once again, I’m still poor…. for that matter, three dollars poorer, for having bought the tickets that lost last night’s draw…. I still have two more shots at the big time, on Friday, when the Mega Millions jackpot is drawn, and, if my superstitions have any basis in reality at all, now would be the time to show it…. Friday is the 13th, a calendar day that always had good omens for me, as far as I go in believing such things….. It’s true, though, that I’ve had a lot of good stuff happen to me on that day, so, I’m hoping, this time, the universe at large can see its way to granting me just this one little thing….

You see, this one is for 400 million dollars! Yep, a shot at the true big time, a real golden ticket, that would furnish me with enough to make a good start at organizing and funding my own revolution, should I wish to use it in that direction…. Of course, first I’d buy myself and my family some real estate, or maybe my own cruise ship, but, then, boy, you’d start seeing some changes in the world, to the tune of however many congressmen I could buy to keep in MY pocket for a change…. Maybe even a Senator or two, as well…. they seem to go well as seasonal gifts, wouldn’t you say? Maybe just a federal judge or two, making decisions that would benefit me for a change, instead of all those assholes who don’t give a shit for the little guy….

It’s hard to say how I’d spend that much money…. Like most, of course, my mind would turn to MY OWN interests, first…. I AM a human, you know…. But, before long, my conscience would kick in, and I’d start thinking about how I could use all that scratch to start some trouble for the PTB and BRC…. I don’t like to think that just because I join the ranks of those who have such wealth, that I would also fall into the same moral morass into which they so often tumble; I like to think I would use my resources to benefit more than just myself. Perhaps I’m wrong in that, but, I don’t think so…..

Money may be a powerful aphrodisiac, able to lure the weak into displays moral or ethical failure, but, I don’t think its power is greater than that of the man under whose moral authority I was raised…. I’m the one who has to gaze into the mirror every morning, and look myself in the eye….. with his memory peering over my shoulder, to see that I do so…. 🙂 Spooky, but, comforting….

Ah well, it’s a pleasant fantasy interlude, dreaming these dreams of wealth beyond measure…. as long as we remember they ARE fantasy…. If it drops into my lap, well, then I’ll yell and scream, and jump for joy…. until then, well….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“You seem to have one of the common American delusions: that the Eleventh Amendment in the Bill of Rights grants you the right to go through life without being offended. Think again.” — ALY
_____________________________

Most mornings, in this space, I would begin a rant…. a religirant, a politirant, or, perhaps, a universirant, covering ALL the bases I can touch. This morning, however, I am not in the mood for such seriousness, nor am I feeling particularly outraged at the usual suspects, even though I am absolutely positive I COULD be, if I bothered to look for a reason in the news…. I just haven’t done so yet today, and fortunately for y’all, I don’t feel like doing it just now…. Instead, we’re going to look for some pearls to put into a nice little necklace, one that might even choke the BRC where they stand…. But, if nothing else, it will keep me busy, and out of trouble for a time…. I’ll be right back, with some dandy little ideas for y’all to peruse….

“The more I see of the representatives of the people, the legislatures of this land, the more respect I develop for members of the animal kingdom. Fleas and ticks the dogs get, other forms of vermin are not so common. These species got something going for them that we humans need to imitate.” — Smart Bee (which means Google doesn’t know who said it first…. I asked…)

BEST non sequitor FOR 1988: “Let’s cut through the demagoguery. America is #1.” — George Bush

“There’s no such thing as a dangerous weapon, only dangerous men.” — Lazarus Long

“Men trust their ears less than their eyes.” — Herodotus

“A statesman is a politician who places himself at the service of the nation. A politician is a statesman who places the nation at his service.” — Georges Pompidou

“Any government will work if authority and responsibility are equal and coordinate. This does not insure “good” government; it simply insures that it will work. But such governments are rare–most people want to run things but want no part of the blame. This used to be called the “backseat-driver syndrome.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

“Give a monkey a brain, and he’ll think he’s the center of the universe.” — Smart Bee

Well, I see this section DID turn into a rant, of sorts…. The ending really tied it all together with a bow, though, didn’t it?….
_____________________________

There are times, I think, when life gives us a little surprise, without us being aware that we needed one….. This poem brought one of those moments, for me…. Incredibly powerful, this…. have a care….

A Smile To Remember

we had goldfish and they circled around and around
in the bowl on the table near the heavy drapes
covering the picture window and
my mother, always smiling, wanting us all
to be happy, told me, ‘be happy Henry!’
and she was right: it’s better to be happy if you
can
but my father continued to beat her and me several times a week while
raging inside his 6-foot-two frame because he couldn’t
understand what was attacking him from within.

my mother, poor fish,
wanting to be happy, beaten two or three times a
week, telling me to be happy: ‘Henry, smile!
why don’t you ever smile?’

and then she would smile, to show me how, and it was the
saddest smile I ever saw

one day the goldfish died, all five of them,
they floated on the water, on their sides, their
eyes still open,
and when my father got home he threw them to the cat
there on the kitchen floor and we watched as my mother
smiled

~~ Charles Bukowski ~~

_____________________________

There is still no rantable emotion floating or gloating around my psyche, (well, there is, but, it’s connected to the above poem, and I can’t touch it right now, or I will shatter into about a billion little pieces…..), and I’m reluctant to go read the news so early in the day, lest my interest serve as a goad to reality, tipping us over into a cross-dimensional crisis in the space-time continuum of some sort or another…. Wouldn’t want that, now, would we? Nope, not us…. I suppose this means that I’ll either have to go find something old from the archives (“No, no,” they cried, “anything but THAT!”…..) or fall back into old-school mode again….

I see by the lack of any reaction whatsoever that, once again, I must make my own decision on that….. Oh, wait, that’s right, I’m SUPPOSED to make those decisions…. right. Okay, well, then, here we go…. Of course, this time, I have absolutely NO idea where this may go, as I don’t know where we’re starting, or anything about this at all… In fact, I wash my hands completely, ffolkes…. this one is on SB, or anyone but me…. and y’all are on your own….

Those green-robed senators of mighty woods,
Tall oaks, branch-charmed by the earnest stars,
Dream, and so dream all night without a stir.

— John Keats (1795-1821) — Hyperion, Book i

“Paranoia is simply an optimistic outlook on life.” — Smart Bee

“All is vanity and vexation of spirit.” — Old Testament — Ecclesiastes i, 14

“The industrial way of life leads to the industrial way of death. From Shiloh to Dachau, from Antietam to Stalingrad, from Hiroshima to Vietnam and Afghanistan, the great specialty of industry and technology has been the mass production of human corpses.” — Edward Abbey

“A statesman is a successful politician who is dead.” — Thomas B. Reed (1839-1902)

“Genius may have its limitations, but stupidity is not thus handicapped.” — Elbert Hubbard

“The essence of good and evil is a certain disposition of the will.” — Epictetus (c. 60 AD) — Of Courage, — Discourses, Book i, Chap. xxix

Hmm…. Actually, ffolkes, that isn’t a bad pearl at all…. Tart, sharp, and with a twisty turn at the end, right into personal responsibility…. quite professional, if you ask me…. not to mention, hey, free….
_____________________________

There, I’ve said it…. or, implied it, which serves the same purpose. Since I have, I’ll just go see how it settled into the packing materials…. I have the impression, after re-reading this, that I should NOT fuss with it any further, but should leave it alone, lest it exact an even larger price than it has already…. On that somewhat melodramatic, unaccountably somber note, I bid thee adieu for today, and will see y’all tomorrow…. given all proper universal alignment of necessary elements….

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark, and Theresa…
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

A plethora of pentangular puff pastries….

Posted on November 30, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Surely,” I thought to myself, “surely there won’t be any more fear.” Then, I woke up, only to find that, once again, the screen is blank, and so is my mind…. If I were a writer for a magazine, or a news paper, or some specific job that hires writers, perhaps I wouldn’t face such a conundrum each morning…. I’d have my assignments of what to write already waiting for me, as given to me by my editors, may they rot in hell…. (Sorry, editors, but your reputation precedes you….) The assignments would, no doubt, be as boring as they could make them, but, they’d be subjects, and I wouldn’t have to fret and fuss over finding something to start with….

Of course, I can always go into the “whine and cheese” mode, like this morning, where I just complain about how much of a hassle it all is; it may LOOK like it’s easy to put together, but, it really isn’t, you know…. Trying to do this, while making it sound and look different than all the other times I’ve used this method, well, it isn’t as simple as it may seem…. Of course, nothing about writing on a daily basis is as simple as it seems, either, at least, not as simple as it looked before I began doing it…. The actual doing of it takes more dedication and perseverance than it seems as if it would, when looking at it from the outside….

The advantage to this type of intro section is, naturally, the very thing I complain of, to wit: no restraints on me as to what I can write…. I can do this, I can write a fictional beginning, or I can do something entirely off the wall…. and no comments about ALL of it being off that wall, if you please…. I get that enough from my own head; I don’t need y’all to reinforce that idea any more than it already gets….

If you’ve been watching the last few weeks, you’ll see that I’ve gotten rather good at saying nothing for about four or five paragraphs…. Every day, for some time, I’ve managed to fill in this section with nonsense, or blather, either of which takes up the required space, but, without all the wear and tear on my bone of creativity….. (I only have the one, you know, so it’s kind of overworked….) I’ve been sleeping more in the last week, too, which has also had a small effect on things, though I’m still not certain what that effect might be…. It just makes me sound as if I know whereof I speak, which is important for an op/ed writer….

That is what I really consider myself to be, at the bottom…. I write opinion editorials, which I and many others call rants….. Why? Well, because if I didn’t, all that stuff would sit inside my head, and rot…. The end result of that particular form of chemical reaction is NOT healthy, for me, or for whomever is nearby when it comes rushing out of my head, percolated from merely food for thought, into outright outrage, and justified anger, toward that portion of humanity that preys upon the remainder….. I can’t seem to help it, the evidence is right there in the news, for all to see, and I just can’t let it lie, sleeping dog or no…

So, I’ll keep on keepin’ on, so to speak, as long as the Beloved Ruling Class continues to screw over the rest of humanity….. Given the state of the planet, and the rate at which we continue to pump particulate matter into its atmosphere, that really won’t be all that long…. more’s the pity…. I was really looking forward to seeing the rest of the galaxy, too….

Shall we Pearl?….

“For him who has conquered the mind, the mind is the best of friends; but for one who has failed to do so, his mind will be the greatest enemy.” — Bhagavad Gita (c. B.C. 400)
_____________________________

Though I described above how a pearl will generally include something rantable, or at least, formerly rantable and now archived, it should be noted that I do try to keep things as fresh as possible….. But, it gets hard, especially since the damn horse died…. I keep beating on it, but it won’t get up!…. Nonetheless, the subject matter will remain the same, in general…. the folks who stick it to the rest of us don’t change their spots, so they’re always there as targets…. At the present moment in time, however, my head isn’t quite ready for such vituperation… or perhaps it would be more accurate to say my HEART isn’t in it right now, as the emotions behind the rants are what make them powerful, on those occasions when they do achieve the proper tone of accusation and outrage….

Hence the following harlequin pearl, odd-numbered star variety, gathered fresh today for your perusal and delectation, snatched from the jaws of the Smart Bee to provide y’all with this morning’s food for thought, to go along with all the usual holiday hype we suffer from this time of the year…. I hope you enjoy them, they cost me a LOT of effort today…. Well, I’m assuming they will…. they always do….

“Every man is a damn fool for at least five minutes every day; wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit.” — Elbert Hubbard

I aske not labored letters which should weare
Long papers out: nor letters which should feare
Dishonest carriage: or a seer’s art:
Nor such as from the brayne come, but the hart.

— John Donne

“It is not the fact of liberty but the way in which liberty is exercised that ultimately determines whether liberty itself survives… When liberty is taken away by force it can be restored by force. When it is relinquished voluntarily by default it can never be recovered.” — Dorothy Thompson, American journalist, author (1894-1961)

There lives more faith in honest doubt,
Believe me, than in half the creeds.

— Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892) — In Memoriam, xcvi, Stanza 3

“I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is they must change if they are to get better.” — G. C. Lichtenberg

“Having the fewest wants, I am nearest to the gods.” — Socrates

“I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity.” Albert Einstein
_____________________________

In the past few days, I’ve been posting poems that didn’t need any help or introduction from me; the sheer genius they displayed spoke for itself…. Rather than rely entirely upon the works of other people, I’ve decided to spread a bit of the blame onto my own shoulders, so there can be no speculation of discrimination, or lack thereof…. I know exactly how my poetry stands up to the classics; no illusions of grandeur there, believe me…. But, sometimes, I do okay….. If nothing else, the rhymes are almost always consistent, so, I’m happy….

I know I’m in the now, if only…..

Oh, there it is again, fiddle faddle;
Begone, I said, vamoose, skedaddle!
It looked at me as if I were insane:
Scoffed, it did, filled me with pain.

Where does it come from?
Where does it live?
I’d stick out my thumb,
if I had more to give.

If only, should, would, could it be?
It went away again, this time free.
It will be back again, this I know;
or I’m wrong, and it won’t show.

Who cares?
Who hears?
Such goings on wobble the sphere,
I wish it wouldn’t do that here.

I’ve been wrong before…..

~~ gigoid ~~

“Not all men who drink are poets. Some of us drink because we aren’t poets.” — Smart Bee
_____________________________

“A man who can fool chiefs, and even gods, must still face the monsters he himself created.” — Old Maori saying

Introspection has always been a hobby of mine, but, since turning the ripe old age of 63, it seems to have become even more of a time-consuming process for me than has been true for most of my life…..

I can remember lying on my bed in the state of Washington, when my father was stationed there at Fort Lewis…. I would stare at the bottom of my brother’s upper bunk, and imagine all manner of things, including about myself, and my place in the universe…. Even at the tender age of 8 or 9, as the son of an Army sergeant, I had been many places, and seen more of the world than is usual for anyone other than Army brats…. our proud designation for ourselves…. The quest to maintain one’s personality in the face of all the changes going on around us gave me the impetus to perpetually be aware of more than is the norm for kids of that age; at least, it always seemed so, from what I can tell from my knowledge of others of that age….

Now that I’ve reached an age that completely got skipped in my earlier musings of what life would be like, I seem to be thinking back and forth more often, making connections with the past that explain certain elements of my own persona as they manifest today…. My hair, for example…. (I know, I know, my hair isn’t generally the subject of a rant, but, that’s not really what this is…. this is more of a…. a retrospective, yeah, that’s it…. a retrospective…. so, calm down, I’m not going to get all graphic, or gloomy, or pick at anyone in particular, other than myself…. ‘kay?…. ‘Kay!…..)

So, I was looking at my picture on my About page, and can only say that, well, there I am…. My hair is even longer now, (a bit grayer, too….). as I see no particular reason to cut it…. which is the root thought that stimulated this entire subject today…. A little while ago, I was standing outside a moment, with my hair not yet tied back into the usual ponytail, and the wind was blowing it around a bit….. I started to get annoyed, then realized I could only blame myself for it getting in my face, because the solution to that problem is right over there in the drawer, where the scissors live…. I thought to myself, how many times has someone asked me, “why don’t you cut your hair?”, and realized I couldn’t count that high…

My own reaction to that particular query is to think, (again…), to myself, “Well, actually, the question that occurs to me to ask is, why don’t I NOT cut my hair?”…. It seems to me, when I stop to consider the matter logically, and reasonably, that if the hair grows, as it has always done, it must have some sort of evolutionary purpose for doing so, right? It seems logical to me…. Therefore, it seems logical to ask, as well, “who am I to fuss with evolution?” This line of reasoning, naturally, tends to piss of most of the folks who make the original statement to me…. but, I figure that sort of anger is a personal problem, don’t you? I can’t go around taking the heat for what other people don’t like about me, when their anger is based on THEIR beliefs, not mine….

In a way, I suppose it’s the old hippie in me…. Aha, you say, now we’re getting to the meat of the matter! And, typically, I am supposed to say, at this point, “Just what do you mean by that? I don’t know what you’re talking about….” Then, I smile, and get on with what I was doing, which is explaining why being a hippie is not what most people would think…. I mean, there were a lot of popular misconceptions floating around all during the 60’s (Believe me, it was a very confusing time…. I know, I was there….), when there were a lot of people who thought that there was something wrong, or even evil, about being described as one of those misunderstood knights of the sub-culture….

Yes, I said knights…. Jedi knights, before they were the iconic, eternal, peaceful warrior as made popular in later years…. Hippies were the knights of the 60’s and 70’s, diligently tilting at all the windmills we could find, poking our noses into the business of the military-industrial complex, which I now refer to as the BRC, until they were sick of the sight of anyone with long hair….. Back in the day, even the most rigid of conservative hawks understood that they were witnessing a change of culture, and there was nothing they could do to alter the course that history was taking…. The power of love, and compassion, and freedom swept through the entire world, as well as refreshing American society, with repercussions still being felt today….

One of the most important characteristics of hippies that I don’t think most people understood is that we were only interested in revolution in the sense that revolution means change; no hippie worth the name ever wished to violently overthrow anything that didn’t threaten violence first…. But, it is also true that real hippies have no objection to using violence to defend themselves, a fact which always comes as a big surprise to those who would try to oppress them. As with any tool, honor has to be the regulatory agency for determining which tool should be used, and how…. This, sadly, is a concept that those who prey on other people, who seek power over them, can never truly understand, as it is not a part of their perception of reality….

I see that I’ve reached a point where this must either get very pointed, or fade into the background for the time being….. I’m feeling mellow, due to re-connecting with the halcyon days of my youth, so I’ll show mercy here, and opt for the latter…. Besides, I’m all out of introspection for the nonce, and there’s no telling when it might drop back by…. I’ll leave y’all with one final pearl, to seal the deal….

“Oh, how we fear the metamorphoses through which we truly become fledged humans, real mensches of the species homo sapiens. Yet even if we do not willingly undergo them, changes pursue us just the same. The woman who never bears a child metamorphoses in different ways. We may dig in our heels and dare life never to change, but, all the same, it changes under our feet like sand under the feet of a sea gazer as the tide runs out. Life is forever undermining us. Life is forever washing away our castles, reminding us that they were, after all, only sand and sea water.” — Erica Jong: Parachutes and Kisses
_____________________________

Okay, housekeeping…. I’m leaving in the morning, to go on another cruise, and doubt seriously if I’ll be able to post on Sunday…. Just too much to do out in the BBR, and no telling how the internet on board this new ship will turn out to be, speed-wise… So far, they’ve all been different…. Most likely, though, I will post on Monday, Tuesday, & possibly Wednesday, but, again, maybe not at all until Thursday…. I’ll just have to wait to see how it all pans out…. Suffice it to say, if it comes down to posting, or interrupting fun, well, we know what will win out, don’t we?…..

Now, let’s see how this came out….. Okay, well, it’s long enough, and it’s not overtly stupid, or mean, so, I’ll call it done, and be done with it…. Lots of stuff to do to get ready…. NOT! I’m ready, for just under 22 hours from now, when I’ll walk out that door, on the way to the airport…. See ya, some time or another, ffolkes….

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Theresa, Mark, and Carole ….
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

Ned Moore, aka gigoid, is a 70 year-old, (!!!… When did that happen?….), retired dilettante, who would rather read than eat, most days. His first blog, "gigoid’s folly", has been emailed out to folks he knows for about 18 years now. He still considers it his best defense against angst, and the ever-present specter of sheer insanity..... Due to rigorous curmudgeon training requirements, he has discontinued his Facebook presence, but still indulges in the occasional Twitter session... In essence, he's socialized, but, not overly sociable; all labels and stereotypes are forbidden in his presence... and he doesn't care what anyone thinks about that..... In fact, he doesn't want to talk anymore.... If you feel you MUST contact gigoid, his email address is: alphagigoid@gmail.com You can go read now.... Go on, beat it.... gigoid, the dubious

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gigoid

Exploring Consensual Reality

Tag Archives: Elbert Hubbard

Fabulous shoes, Margo. Jimmy Choo?….

His reality check was returned for insufficient funds….

‘Twould be worse in reverse….

It’s just like the other one, mate…..

The gamut from savage to sweet isn’t posted….

A plethora of pentangular puff pastries….

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