“Banging” seems popular this season….

Posted on November 3, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Friends are needed both for joy and for sorrow.”

~~ Yiddish Proverb ~~

With a brilliant smile, and a pithy remark for the kids, the Samurai baking enthusiast shouldered his pack, took up his walking stick, and left the building with Elvis…. They didn’t know where they were going, but, they sang happily as the strode along, down the wide pathway leading from the city to the river’s edge. When they came to the water’s edge, they kept walking, straight into the swiftly flowing stream, step by step, until the water covered their heads. A couple of moments later, both men emerged, head-first from the water, as they continued their stroll up the far side of the river’s bed, to the roadway above….

Sliding into the multi-colored VW bug parked at the side of the road, the Samurai baker, turning to Elvis as he turned the key in the ancient car’s ignition, remarked, “Well, do you think any of them bought our story?” “They must have,” replied the King. “They didn’t hassle us about leaving, and if they’d known the whole story, we’d be locked up right and tight!” “You’re right, I guess,” sighed the Samurai, picking a bit of flour from his eyebrows. ” I wonder if they’ll ever get that stuff out of their town fountain’s filter?” “Who cares?”, Elvis grinned, “we’ll be on Mars by then!”

Hmm… a bit cheeky, but, not bad. I suppose, one of these days, I’m going to have to take this process a bit more seriously, by finishing at least a short story based on one of the introductory paragraphs I’ve created here over the years…. If I had any interest at all in ever making any money at this, I’d do that…. but, I don’t, so, if I were y’all, I wouldn’t hold my breath too long….

Speaking of which, I’m not going to make y’all wait too long today to get going. I’ve got a lot to do out in the BBR today, all of which promises to be a lot of fun, and very satisfying, to boot. One is allowed to hope, at least, so, I will. What I will NOT do is belabor any more points, or keep us wandering around in this section. Instead, I’m going to take advantage of that opening right THERE…. and get us out of here…. Hang on, it’ll be another bumpy ride, but, should get us where we need to go…..

Shall we Pearl?

“If we are not stupid or insincere when we say that the good or ill of man lies within his own will, and that all beside is nothing to us, why are we still troubled?” — Epictetus (c. 60 AD) — Discourses, Book i, Chap. xxv

Very good question, Epi…. We’ll get to that….

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Today’s video selection is another blast from my past… James Taylor’s album titled after one of his biggest hits, is probably one of the all-time best selling albums from that era, so much so, it can be considered to have achieved icon status… I know that it is one of the most fondly remembered albums of my youth, and still manages to hit all the sweet spots…. Enjoy, please…. I did, and am….

James Taylor – Sweet Baby James (1970) (Full Album) HD

http://youtu.be/UaySP-L4OOk

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“If knowledge can create problems, it is not through ignorance that we can solve them.” — Isaac Asimov

In the upcoming days/months/years, you’ll see a change in the articles I’ll be using to supplement my arguments, on those subjects about which I rant. I am really tired of depending on just one, or three, or even four news purveyors, as they have all become sycophantically similar in the weight of their computing footprint; loading their pages can take forever, even at current speeds, because they like to include as many photos, videos, and income producing ads as they can… This is an example of how businesses pander to the stupid; they have determined that most of the people on the ‘Net, especially those who will click on anything bright, shiny, or lurid, prefer pix and vids, because they don’t have to read, or think; that’s all done for them…

SFGATE, the New York Times, even the UK Guardian, all have gone to a format heavy on less than challenging materials, though some in-depth, text-heavy reporting can be found on the Guardian, with a bit of digging. Other, internet based companies, like Huff post, and Bloomberg, etc. were already more like People magazine than a hard-line news reporting outlet…. Many of them now also want the reader to register on the site before being allowed to read anything other than headlines; this is so they can obtain your profile data, allowing them to sell that information, opening the registered reader to copious amounts of spam emails, all wanting to sell something, or seduce more data out of the victim…

Rather than spending my time to search far and wide every day for interesting material, both to read, and to use to discuss current affairs, I downloaded a RSS feed aggregate program, from Source Forge, the open source software development organization online, a clearinghouse for programmers working to develop new and more powerful tools, free to all, each one written in open source programming language(s), making them open to being improved by all who use them….

Now, any time I wish, I can open the RSS Owl, and find the latest news from virtually, and literally, any number of sources I wish, including all those I used to have to visit on my own…. The aggregate organizes all of it into appropriate categories, so I can find just the type of news I wish to explore, from all over the world… It starts with several thousand RSS feeds, from all over the internet, and the world, and can filter the results to fit any key words, or types of stories I want it to focus on, giving me just those in the categories I choose…. Pretty nifty, eh? Any time I find a new source of information with an RSS feed, I can add those to my reader, and see whatever they post, within seconds of it going online….

With the national, state, and local midterm elections coming up in a couple of days, I thought it would be good to start the new format/source utilization with a report on some of the issues being decided on Tuesday, all over the country… It’s a pretty good summary piece, and pretty fair-minded for a progressive site like the Daily Kos…. Other examples of new material will follow, as sort of a new kind of pearl…. I’ll see you at the end, hopefully not a bitter one….

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/11/02/1340952/-Abbreviated-Pundit-Round-up-Fear-and-lying-edition?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dailykos%2Findex+%28Daily+Kos%29

Well, there you go, ffolkes… This is how the new format, for this section, will look… or, knowing me, by tomorrow it may be completely different… But, rather than keep you now, glazing your eyes over with a rant on the upcoming election tomorrow, I’ll wait until AFTER the election, which promises to provide a wealth of material upon which to rant, as the Democrats and Republicans continue their battle for control of America’s wallet…. I’ll leave y’all with an appropriate thought, or two, as identified by our resident dB, Smart Bee….

“You are all depending for your spirituality on someone else, for your happiness on someone else, for your enlightenment on someone else…. You have been accustomed to being told how far you have advanced, what is your spiritual status. How childish! Who but yourself can tell you if you are incorruptible?… I desire those, who seek to understand me, to be free … from the fear of religion, from the fear of salvation, from the fear of spirituality, from the fear of love, from the fear of death, from the fear of life itself…. You can form other organizations and expect someone else. With that I am not concerned, nor with creating new cages, new decorations for those cages. My only concern is to set men absolutely, unconditionally free.” — Krishnamurti (1895-1986) From his last speech to the Theosophical Society

Me, too….

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One of the blogs I follow is that of a poetess of great talent, who writes under her own name, Mari Sanchez Cayuso…. She posted a blog with a short paean to Ms. Plath, which reminded me it had been a while since we’ve used her poems…. Here, then, is one of my favorites of hers, though all of what she wrote is pretty amazing…. Loosen up any resident constraints upon your imagination, ffolkes, you’ll need it to read Sylvia….

Witch Burning

In the marketplace they are piling the dry sticks.
A thicket of shadows is a poor coat. I inhabit
The wax image of myself, a doll’s body.
Sickness begins here: I am the dartboard for witches.
Only the devil can eat the devil out.
In the month of red leaves I climb to a bed of fire.

It is easy to blame the dark: the mouth of a door,
The cellar’s belly. They’ve blown my sparkler out.
A black-sharded lady keeps me in parrot cage.
What large eyes the dead have!
I am intimate with a hairy spirit.
Smoke wheels from the beak of this empty jar.

If I am a little one, I can do no harm.
If I don’t move about, I’ll knock nothing over. So I said,
Sitting under a potlid, tiny and inert as a rice grain.
They are turning the burners up, ring after ring.
We are full of starch, my small white fellows. We grow.
It hurts at first. The red tongues will teach the truth.

Mother of beetles, only unclench your hand:
I’ll fly through the candle’s mouth like a singeless moth.
Give me back my shape. I am ready to construe the days
I coupled with dust in the shadow of a stone.
My ankles brighten. Brightness ascends my thighs.
I am lost, I am lost, in the robes of all this light.

~~ Sylvia Plath ~~

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Y’all have been here before (unless you’re a virgin Gentle Reader…), you know what to do…. So, do it…. Today, we are, once again, talking about LIFE AT LARGE, as it applies to us naked apes….

“Everything is in a state of metamorphosis. Thou thyself art in everlasting change and in corruption to correspond; so is the whole universe.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, ix, 19

“The need to be right is the sign of a vulgar mind.” — Albert Camus

“Convictions are more dangerous enemies of truth than lies.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

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

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire; you will what you imagine; and at last you create what you will.” — George Bernard Shaw

“Sometimes I think we’re alone. Sometimes I think we’re not. In either case, the thought is quite staggering.” — R. Buckminster Fuller

Pity this busy monster, manunkind, not.
Progress is a comfortable disease.

~~ e.e. cummings, One Times One ~~

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Today’s Pearl is now in that state in which I am able to pronounce it done… or, close enough for our purposes…. Since the BBR is calling me, I shall be off…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

It’s only a bastardized version; there’s no glaze….

Posted on October 28, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Time is like money; the less we have of it to spare, the further we make it go.”

~~ Josh Billings ~~

I love this picture; I don’t think I even need to say why, as it’s pretty self-explanatory. It was taken from the London Daily Telegraph, from their Animal Pictures of the Week feature last week. They always post a lot of good pix, so, what the hell? It gets us started right?….. Right….

That said, I had a long day yesterday, with more exercise than I am used to; my plan to diet and exercise more is going pretty well. It did, however, leave me rather tired and sore today, meaning I’ll need to go walk off the stiffness, so it conditions the muscles, rather than just collapsing, and letting the good I managed go to waste…. What that means for y’all is a shorter Pearl, and less wandering blather here in the intro section….

In fact, I am going to employ my newly developed ruthlessness in this regard, and send us on to the next section without further delay. Look, see? There is our opening, right there…. Hold on, ffolkes….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Imagination creates reality.” — (Wilhelm) Richard Wagner

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Picture: Colonists on Mars, from Space.com’s article on the company proposing to colonize Mars by 2026. Artist’s rendition.

“The challenge of space exploration and particularly of landing men on the moon represents the greatest challenge which has ever faced the human race. Even if there were no clear scientific or other arguments for proceeding with this task, the whole history of our civilization would still impel men toward the goal. In fact, the assembly of the scientific and military with these human arguments creates such an overwhelming case that in can be ignored only by those who are blind to the teachings of history, or who wish to suspend the development of civilization at its moment of greatest opportunity and drama.” — Sir Bernard Lovell, 1962, in “The History of Manned Space Flight”

A very astute observation; if it not for other factors, apparently unseen, or, perhaps, uncredited, by Sir Bernard, this would be true…. He forgets to mention, however, that, even should we accept the challenge of achieving manned space flight in the near future, it will have to be made on an emergency basis, with us being FORCED to retreat into space, because we have made this planet unlivable for any species with our physical requirements for life. If we DON’T make it into space, there is a very good chance we won’t survive, as a species, at all….

I have come to the conclusion lately that we have little hope of saving this planet; if we wish to survive as a species, space is our destiny. I am thinking that this whole environmental crisis that has evolved may just be a stimulus, an unconsciously directed push, by our species’ gestalt, to get us to grow the fuck up, and start doing what we were always meant to do; our real destiny lies in travelling to the stars…. The first step toward achieving that destiny is to colonize this solar system, thus removing extinction from our menu of choices, should we fail to save the planet from our foolishness over the past 5000 years….

Here then, for today’s video, an educational video from NASA, a look at this beautiful home of ours, from space…. Think of this as pictures from Home, as we travel the wormholes to the stars…. Provided,of courser, we can stop killing ourselves long enough to build the ships we need….

NASA | Vital Signs: Taking the Pulse of Our Planet

http://youtu.be/mrnBdcdM4UM

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I’m going to be a nice guy again; it’s not natural, I know, and doesn’t fit with the image I generally try to create, but, I’ve been ranting so much, I figure y’all could use a break….. However, in keeping with the spirit of this section, today’s ranting will be provided, free of charge, by the world’s current most influential comic/social commentator, one Russell Brand, a self-made intellectual and societal critic, a self-styled revolutionary who has recently called for a world-wide revolution against our corporate masters….

The video I’ve embedded today will show you a good example of his style, and the link I’ve put in will connect you to Mr. Brand’s own You Tube page, where he posts a video almost daily, commenting, in his unique style, on the daily events of note around the world…. I enjoy the hell out of him; from all I can tell, most of what he says, minus the hyperbole, is pretty right on…. See for yourself, ffolkes…, and, enjoy, please…. perhaps tomorrow, you’ll find another of my rants here, depending, of course, upon my mood at the time… See ya…

Russell Brand Destroys MSNBC Talk Show Host – Discusses Bradley Manning And Edward Snowden

http://youtu.be/ynUjo99Gzbk

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Here is a poem of mine; it is here simply because I haven’t been out of town farther than about 35 miles for almost a year now; I’m getting restless to be on the road…. When I do get there, one of the places I intend to go first lies to the east, across the big pond we call the Atlantic Ocean, a beautiful green island, which one may trip over on the way to London…. I speak, of course, of the home of a large number of my ancestors, the Emerald Isle…. It isn’t my best effort, but, is one of my favorites, because it’s also my most sincere pieces, for certain….

Days and Nights of Eire

Comforting, a dream creeps oft into my mind
On the elven hills of Eire lives the vision I find.
Elegant, gracious, everlastingly draped in beauty
Just payment of simple homage lives as joyous duty.

Fairies and druids walk abroad in ghostly parade
Gracing each hearth with its own welcoming shade.
Castles and heroes yet live in tale and song
Proving love for the land in each heart strong.

From cold of winter into glorious young spring
Brown, and gray, to emerald green songs to sing
Soft rains always follow winter’s great tempest
Eire dons its emerald coat from east to west.

Old and strong, connections call out in dreams
Nothing that was known remains as it seems.
Immersion in ancient runes and battle hymns
Offering sanity in place of grievous whims.

Time and place can tell a much different tale
Judgment should never be a final sale.
Yet something solid and real calls me to go see
Where dreams of loving beauty may actually be….

~~ gigoid ~~

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This is a very special pearl, ffolkes…. I had collected a few of the included pearls before beginning this morning, but, when I sat to complete it, Smart Bee came up with the remainder in under one minute, possibly a new record, with only one rejected offering…. It is one of the finest indictments of the political AND religious beasts I’ve ever seen, bracketed with comments on human nature which explain/justify the others…. Solidly, it kicks them right in the ass, with sufficient force to drive their assholes right up onto their face…. Enjoy! I sure did…..

“Liberals, in that they are required to love entire groups, lose their rights to hate individuals within those groups. Racists, in that they are required to hate entire groups, lose their rights to love individuals within the groups they have to hate. I am neither a liberal or a racist and reserve the right to call a son of a bitch a son of a bitch regardless of race, creed or color, one son of a bitch at a time.” — Smart Bee (Google says so….)

“I’m completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death.” — George Carlin

“God created sex. Priests created marriage.” — Voltaire

“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”

Do you know Presidents talk to the country the way men talk to women? They say, Trust me, go all the way with me, and everything will be all right. And what happens? Nine months later, you’re in trouble!” — Murphy’s Discovery

“Bourgeois morality is largely a system of making cheap virtues a cloak for expensive vices.” — George Bernard Shaw

:Whoever invented the eraser had the human race pretty well sized up.” — Smart Bee

See? If there were any politicians in the room, they would be bleeding from a dozen wounds….

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Rather than tempt Fate any further, I’m going to do a quick proof, then get this posted, before Murphy wakes up…. I’ll see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, provided we are all still here…..

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Fricasseed rutabaga with mulled acorn sauce….

Posted on October 21, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“History has the relation to truth that theology has to religion — i.e., none to speak of.”

~~ Lazarus Long ~~

The picture today goes to show that, a) timing IS everything, and b) even amateurs get lucky sometimes…. I took this from the deck of a cruise ship while docked in Scotland, at Greenock, the port town closest to Glasgow. After some mild fixing of the picture’s features to bring out it’s best appearance, it became clear the sky to the right side is different from the sky on the opposite, left side, with the rainbow serving to mark the line between the two opposing filtered views…. One obviously is where the rain is still falling, producing the rainbow as the light is broken up passing through the raindrops, each of which acts as a small prism, breaking the white, transparent light into its component colors…

For me, knowing what is happening doesn’t reduce the beauty, or the wonder of a rainbow….. One does not have to subscribe to the myths that grow up around such natural displays in order to appreciate the beauty; for me, just seeing it is wonder enough. That I can comprehend the process makes it more precious to me, as an example of how the universe yields its treasures to us little by little, exposing us to its idiosyncrasies and oddities one at a time, to allow us to study, and reason, and apply the power of our imagination to satisfy that monkey-curiosity, so much a part of us, which demands we know the WHY of all we see before us….

That, as you can see, is a fairly objective, yet accurate assessment of part of our nature, or, at least, that part of it I allow to affect my life…. We do, of course, have options, choices of what to believe, and how to act; as we learn, we know more how to make those acts the right actions, that will make life better for all of us, rather than choosing to behave in ways that cause trouble, for myself, or for others…. Sadly, mental discipline, and the power of reasoning, is all-too-often utilized by those who have chosen to assume the mantle of predator, a choice our entire culture seems to adopt at times, a choice which has turned our society into one marked by violence, and, in my view, insanity on a global scale….

Now, perhaps, you will see my own problem, at least in terms of writing this blog…. Starting out with the beauty and wonder of a rainbow, I end up ranting about human nature, with implications of impending global doom, in less than four paragraphs…. If it weren’t such a PITA, I might consider it a gift, of sorts….. But, my readership numbers seem to indicate it has become old, which, I am sure, it is…. Even I am getting tired of spouting off against the idiots who are making our world such a fucked up mess, threatening to kill us all by drowning us in our own shit (figuratively speaking, though, not by much….); my spouting doesn’t seem to have much effect….

Plus, if I rant here in the intro section, it diminishes the impact, if any, of whatever rant I’m planning for section two…. SIGH…. It’s a conundrum for which there may be no solution, given my own nature, and my need to write in order to maintain any semblance of sanity….. Oh, well, there isn’t anything to be done about it just now, so, I guess I’ll take advantage of the exit I see coming up, thus kick-starting the rest of today’s effort, such as it may be…. Hang on, ffolkes, that exit hole looks a little tight….

Shall we Pearl?

“A wise man, recognizing that the world is but an illusion, does not act as if it is real, so he escapes the suffering.” — Buddha

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Whether you realize it or not, you’ve heard this woman’s music…. In today’s world, it would be hard NOT to hear it, as she, and her band of string artistes, made the music for a movie that all of society has either seen, or heard of….. I speak of the Lord of The Rings, of course, in the movie version…. Angele and the band played the theme song written for the first movie, The Fellowship of The Ring, entitled “Concerning Hobbits”, which you will hear in one of the first two or three pieces in this collection of their work; it will sound very familiar, as it has been all over the airwaves since the movie came out…. Enjoy, ffolkes, this is a great band….

Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà: 50 videos

http://youtu.be/zUWneBGoTh8?list=PLws4cSjvcS5q5x_v79DoLDqyonAH1nCtm

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I am apparently burnt on ranting; I don’t seem able to work up the angst to begin…. Ah, well, I’ve done so much of it in the past, there’s always one that will work…. here, for example, is a good one from last year, just after I got back from Europe…..

From 5/30/2013:

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” — Aristotle

For much of my life, since reaching what I like to call the age of reason, at about 10 or 11 years of age, I have been aware of this aphorism from Aristotle. If not the aphorism itself, the principle was clear to me from a young age, and I chose then to always strive to be excellent, in whatever I chose to do. You see, I also found out, it requires a deliberate choice to pursue excellence, because it a) doesn’t just happen by itself, and b) it annoys other people. It is the second factor that dictates the need to make a deliberate choice; most people make the opposite choice, to be average, to not stand out too much, unless it is to their advantage to do so, to control or impress others, not for the state of being excellent.

More explicitly, most people try to excel at tasks, or games, or whatever, in order to promote their own agenda, not for the sake of just wanting to do things right, or to scratch the itch of curiosity, or to be the best person one can be. And society at large is quick to show their disapproval if someone is too different in this respect; the normals are afraid of both of the other ends of the human spectrum, the incurably unintelligent AND those who perceive more, and when most people are afraid of something, they make life hard for it, if not downright unbearable, and/or dangerous. Pink monkeys don’t go over well in a brown monkey tree….. They tend to either leave the forest, live in misery, or dye their fur brown, in short order….

This is why the choice must be made, to pursue excellence; it’s not an easy decision, but critically important. It is also a decision that can’t be made half-way; once committed, it extends to EVERY area of one’s existence, requiring effort and dedication to achieve to any significant degree. I can only speak for myself, but it was the best decision of my early years, and I have never regretted making it, because the rewards are much greater than mere comfort, or any other I can think of that comes with giving in to peer pressure; to live with not seeking all there is to see, hear, and do in life, and do it with style, intelligence, and honor.

“By steadily disciplining the animal nature, until it becomes one pointed, it is possible to establish conscious awareness of The Eternal.” — Lao-Tzu

This is a bit metaphorical, but describes well the intensity and consistency of effort that is required to maintain an excellent attitude about life. It’s hard to keep it up all the time, and I have to admit I’m as human as anyone else, and get tired, not to say just plain frustrated, when I cannot easily, or even eventually, reach the goals I’ve set for myself. Fortunately, I also know that being human is okay, and just because I am not always at my best, does not mean it is not still within me, ever within my reach, whenever my perceptions are clear enough to show me the way. The path to Truth, fortunately, is always well lighted, though it may get confusing, and sometimes seem dark through the power of illusion; it never stops being the Truth, though, and that makes it always attainable….

Perhaps there will be some who will read this treatise, and think it arrogant, or condescending; I hope not, because it isn’t intended to be so. It is intended to be a sharing, of the understanding I have that can be of help to anyone in their life. This understanding is based on what I know to be true, and not on fear, or lack of understanding of what is real, in both Nature, and in people. There is great potential in people, much more than we, as a species, or as individuals, ever achieve…. partly because much of humanity is content to be normal, to sit back and let other people decide how the world should go, because it’s too much work to try to control their own world.

We can be so much more than a society of couch potatoes, sagely listening and nodding our heads in agreement with the talking heads we see on the Tube, or laughing ourselves mindless over the insane, or downright stupid acts of imaginary people meant to be metaphorical, but only seen as role models for a reality that doesn’t exist. Even the advent of computer technology, with all its nearly unlimited potential for what only twenty years ago would have been called “magic”, has not inspired people to strive to be excellent, in work, in play, or in ethics; certainly not in government. Instead, we are drowning ourselves in fashion apps, or photo apps, or social media apps, and losing even more connection with the real world in the process….

Ah well, I suppose all will turn out how it will, in spite of my objections, or anyone else’s indifference. C’est la vie, as the French would say…. such is life; I think it appropriate that we hear from the ancient sages about that, as we started, to close this series of thoughts and rambles perfectly… well, maybe only one ancient sage…..

So be it…. gigoid has spoken.

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According to the above rant, this poem of mine goes well with the theme, so, here ’tis….

A Failure to Germinate

Marking the days in elements of sad disarray
only holds me thrall, as I laugh while I may.
With cold, hard hands so impatient and cruel
pulling me to this vale of tears, a pathetic old fool.

Feelings sit silent, cast in shadows and light
breaking forth to implicate such vengeful might.
Just below the surface they patiently hide
to sally forth bravely, colors bright as they ride.

Tears and pain transform valued assets in hand
while comfort and serenity retreat to a far land.
Bold, bright patterns of hope garnish my ruinous state
until reality enters, full of disdainful portions of hate.

I sort out the illustrious measures of vision gone mild
only to find them transformed, now vicious and wild.
In my deepest desires I find myself calloused and cold
with faithless advocates whose souls have been sold.

My search finds little to support any hope of relief
far too much time has passed to bolster such belief.
The sad becomes real, and real becomes unfounded
until flights of such fancy are all dead, and grounded.

Nature has informed me of the newly hatched crime
that reality has boasted of proudly, time after time.
The last answer we think of is always the best
as we come to terms with fate, our hope at rest.

~~ gigoid ~~

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Man, n.: An animal so lost in rapturous contemplation of what he thinks he is as to overlook what he indubitably ought to be. His chief occupation is extermination of other animals and his own species, which, however, multiplies with such insistent rapidity as to infest the whole habitable earth and Canada. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

Day before yesterday, for some unknown reason, I took a moment during the day to sit down & just go through Smart Bee, to see if it had resolved whatever issue(s) that have been bothering it, preventing it from cooperating with any searches to any appreciable degree…. I don’t know yet if it has resolved those issues, but, this time, it regurgitated so many pearls, all on the subject indicated by the entry above, from the Dictionary I use most often, including, it seems, the concomitant subject of Life at Large, especially as it applies to Life in this country…. It was so prolific I had to create the first-ever 13 star pearl, just to include all the stuff it threw at me that fit…. plus an intro, and a closing pearl, to seal the deal with a flourish…

Enjoy, ffolkes, and don’t worry; this one explains itself as it goes along. You won’t have any trouble keeping up…..

“Few are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of the colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world that yields most painfully to change. Each time a person stands up for an idea, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.” — Robert F. Kennedy Speech, South Africa, 1966

“I am an agnostic; I do not pretend to know what many ignorant men are sure of.” — Clarence Darrow

“He who dies for virtue, does not perish.” — Plautus (B.C. 254-184)

“The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; the second is war. Both bring a temporary prosperity; both bring a permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunists.” — Ernest Hemingway (1898-1961)

“Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors and miss.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

“If it is not seemly, do it not; if it is not true, speak it not.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, xii, 17

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” — The Constitution of the United States of America Amendment 4, 1791

“The belief that there is only one truth and that oneself is in possession of it seems to me the deepest root of all evil that is in the world.” — Max Born, physicist

“Aryse ye techno Serfs! Let us seek out the bloated aristocrats, and roast them in their own juice upon the fires of righteousness and justice!” — Dan, rabble rousing the contractors

“In this world there is always danger for those who are afraid of it.” — George Bernard Shaw

“Human beings are perhaps never more frightening than when they are convinced beyond doubt that they are right.” — Laurens Van der Post, The Lost World of the Kalahari (1958)

“The three branches of government: lobbyists, media, PAC’s.” — Smart Bee

“I love my country too much to be a nationalist.” — Albert Camus

See? Told ya…. However, my lawyer tells me I should provide a disclaimer with this one, so, here it is, in all its marginally (il)legal glory….

“I demand IMPUNITY!” — Zippy the Pinhead

YOW! ‘Nuff said….

So be it….

gigoid has spoken, more’s the pity…..

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

So much for planning…. Without going into the details, let me just say…. HONK! That’s all ffolkes, I can do no more damage, and may just cause actual trouble if I continue, so, I’m outta here…. See y’all tomorrow….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

The replacement toads are working fine….

Posted on October 17, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Be slow in choosing a friend, but slower in changing him.”

~~ Scottish Proverb ~~

Yesterday gone, now, brain tired. Sleep good, not long enough. Pronouns lost. Can’t find, don’t care. Bogus, again….

Well, I’m not sure just what that means, or where it came from…. To look at it from here, it almost seems as if the poor, wee penguin lad or lassie we see here is saying all that; its expression certainly seems to fit. I happen to know, however, that I wrote the above, in perfect sincerity, at the time, so, it wouldn’t be fair, or even legal to blame the bird, even if it isn’t a member of my church (which I don’t have, anyway…. a church, that is….). There are strict laws about pinnipeds, you know…. Besides, it’s too cute to abuse….

Of course, the fact I won’t allow myself to abuse even a bird kind of sets me apart from the general run of humanity, but, that’s okay. I’ve always felt a bit out of it, in the sense that I’m different than the average bear…. much like Yogi, if you think about it…. or, maybe Boo Boo, who had several IQ points more than Yogi displayed. I suppose, if you stop to consider, even that makes me different, for most of the folks who make up humanity don’t analyze cartoons, or compare bears to people…. more’s the pity….

Don’t worry, I’m not going to use that as an excuse to rant in the intro again. I’ve given myself a stern talking-to about that, and we’re hoping for some good results from that…. It sees to be helping today’s post, at least, as I haven’t gone sober on you yet, but, hey, the day is young…. but, since we’re in the query mode, how do y’all think it’s working? Is this any better than usual? Or, is it just as bozoid, unorganized, and silly as most of my beginnings? Hmm….. I may have just answered myself….

Oh well, it worked well enough to get us this far; I see an exit opening up not far away…. Good thing, too, as my hands and shoulders aren’t holding up too well today…. even with magic cream, it’s getting hard to type for long…. I’m going to have to consider getting myself some voice recognition software for the computer, so I can speak my Pearls…. Soon enough, I won’t be able to type well enough to keep it up. For the moment, though, I’ve managed to get far enough to be in reach of that exit I mentioned…. so, I’ll use my new-found ruthlessness to get us on into the day….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“The people I distrust most are those who want to improve our lives but have only one course of action.” — Frank Herbert

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

“I don’t know that atheists should be considered citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.” — George Bush in Free Inquiry magazine, Fall 1988

Let’s talk about….. stupidity. It’s a subject all humans need to be aware of, not just because it can be troublesome for them in their own private lives, but, due to having reached epidemic proportions in society at large, it has begun to affect public life, as well…. a fact which only makes sense, as human nature will, of course, always affect human society…., No matter how much we like to think of ourselves as intelligent, or competent, the power of stupidity, to make itself felt in human affairs, is enormous; we tend to forget that we have a duality of nature that allows that sort of conundrum, in almost every human endeavor….

The above statement, from one of the Shrubs (which one really doesn’t matter; the apple didn’t fall far from the tree in that family….), is, patently, false, and is obviously a result of the ubiquitous human tendency to assign meaning to symbols, and, in the process, to assume truth, when it is actually false…. The word is NOT the thing; nothing we say or do will actually change that; it is only our own human (stupid) mental habit of assuming it can, that allows such egregiously false statements to occur at all…. People WANT it to be true, so, they assume it is, just because they say it is…. typical “ipse dixit” reasoning….

“I think as long as you suffer for your sins, they don’t count.” — Calvin

Ipse dixit, “He himself said it”, is the same sort of reasoning as this little gem of immorality from Calvin, speaking, in this case, without Hobbes’ input, obviously. It arises from the set of delusional beliefs taught by almost every religion, for each one is convinced they are the ONLY right set of beliefs, because their own particular prophet, or reformer, said it was so…. This leads, every time, to a sense of false entitlement, based solely on beliefs held without any evidence of support, or, for that matter, any evidence at all, beyond the fact that it was claimed by someone to be true….

The problem we have, here in the good old US of A, is that the people who are holding those delusions as true are the sworn leaders of the country, so, when they come out with bullshit like this, a lot of foolish, gullible people believe him, and will thence act as if it is true, when, if one is at all familiar with those documents upon which this country was founded, one can see the above statement, by a former president, no less, is completely false, and gives a very clear indication of how things are going wrong for all of us….

I could rant on this one all day; there are any number of quotes and aphorisms on the subject, each of which could conceivably lead us into another aspect of the issue, thus increasing our understanding, as well as boring us to tears…. Hah! Caught y’all, didn’t I? I can feel y’all glazing over, and leaning toward skipping down to the music video, so, instead of taking this further, we’ll just drive the point home with an old-school thrashing of our beloved ruling class, with some comments/observations on politicians, preachers, pimps, myrmidons, and those of their ilk (you know, the ones we call Asininnies…. when we’re not calling them assholes….) It will be a severe thrashing, too, with nine pearls to smite them….

“Perhaps the most widespread illusion is that if we were in power we would behave very differently from those who now hold it — when, in truth, in order to get power we would have to become very much like them.” — (Lenin’s fatal mistake, both in theory and in practice.)

“Governments which suppress freedom of speech… act like children who shut their eyes in order not to be seen.” — Ludwig Boerne, _Die Freiheit der Presse in Baiern_, 1818

“Being against torture ought to be sort of a multi-partisan thing.” — Karl Lehenbauer, as amended by Jeff Daiell, a Libertarian

“I’ll put an end to the idea that a woman’s body belongs to her . . . the practice of abortion shall be exterminated with a strong hand.” — Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), “Mein Kampf”

(This one may seem a bit harsh, and/or out of place. to some…. But, I say, NOPE…. This is EXACTLY the same sort of attitude all too many of our elected officials possess, today…. so, nope….not too harsh as an indictment of the modern politician….) (See: Tea Party….)

“I think there are only three things America will be known for 2,000 years from now when they study this civilization: the Constitution, jazz music, and baseball.” — Gerald Early, writer, baseball documentary, 1994

“Lysander said that the law spoke too softly to be heard in such a noise of war.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Life of Caius Marius

“Democracy, which is a charming form of government, full of variety and disorder, and dispensing a sort of equality to equals and unequals alike.” — Plato, The Republic. Book VIII. 558

“Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do.” — Bertrand Russell (1872-1967)

“Never appeal to a man’s “better nature.” He may not have one. Invoking his self-interest gives you more leverage.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

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

I didn’t get to see this group when they were touring, back in the day, but, I heard this album within days of its release; it has remained a favorite of mine ever since. At 14:12 on this video, the band jumps into a song, entitled “Only You Know and I Know”, in which Eric Clapton goes into a completely insane lead guitar riff, covering almost a full minute, that I consider to one of the very finest pieces of improvisational genius I have ever heard, from him, or any other guitarist, in the entire history of Rock and Roll, which I have personally witnessed from Day One…. No shit, ffolkes…. If you play, or just love guitar, you will be amazed; it’s almost orgasmic…. The rest of the album rocks out, too…. Turn it all the way up for this one, ffolkes, it’s the only way to hear it….

Delaney & Bonnie and Friends: On Tour with Eric Clapton (1970) Full Album

http://youtu.be/BscKvUJVmLA

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

This poem was written on a day like yesterday…. It’s one I don’t think I can do any better, or say any of this more accurately…. I suppose, if I were a bit more evolved, I’d be able to be thankful that my pain and misery can at least stimulate me into bleeding this kind of insight onto the page…. Can’t honestly say I am, though…. but, at least this one affords me some small degree of post-misery relief, pointing out the path to serenity….

Raging at Aging

As old as you feel, we are told, is old as you are,
custom assures such vision will carry us far.
Reality begs to differ, may it be so bold
it is really quite painful, and very, very cold.

The power and strength felt in our halcyon youth
desert us with age, yet another unwelcome truth.
Irony rules our time here on this bountiful earth
as we reflect the changes over time since our birth.

As physical powers fade from this fragile shell,
we learn our mind can serve us quite as well.
The strength that once filled our bones and hearts
is now applied by our will, to more arcane arts.

Life’s greatest gift is our freedom of choice
no matter how often we forget, we still get a voice.
Energy, or apathy, by our will we may choose,
failing to do so, our only way to lose.

Each of us lives in the grip of time and space,
always seeking our balance, our own chosen place.
One must accept reality, for it is true at the core,
all we can do, is all we can do, and nothing more.

~~ gigoid ~~

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

Smart Bee seems to be trying to have some fun today; the first five quotes came up within moments of each other, in order, so, the rest must be just waiting for us…. Let’s see what there is for us to find, shall we? Careful, though, I’m letting SB have total control, so, be alert…. The only parameter I asked for was to choose from the subject of humanity, warts and all….

“It is easier to love humanity as a whole than to love one’s neighbor.”– Eric Hoffer

“Christianity might be a good thing if anyone ever tried it.” — George Bernard Shaw

“Where can you find a good lawyer? In the cemetery.” — Smart Bee

“Dying is a very dull, dreary affair. And my advice to you is to have nothing whatever to do with it.” — W. Somerset Maugham

“It has yet to be proven that intelligence has any survival value.” — Arthur C. Clarke

“A reverence for life does not require one to respect nature’s obvious mistakes.” — Robert A. Heinlein

“If what the philosophers say be true,–that all men’s actions proceed from one source; that as they assent from a persuasion that a thing is so, and dissent from a persuasion that it is not, and suspend their judgment from a persuasion that it is uncertain,–so likewise they seek a thing from a persuasion that it is for their advantage.” — Epictetus (c. 60 AD) — Discourses, Book i, Chap. xviii

Oops…. Smart Bee tried to lose us there, didn’t it?…. Talk about quick changes; that was like a 180º turn in mid-air at 300 mph; at the apex of the turn, one would be hitting about, oh, 6-8 g’s, I think. If we hadn’t been paying attention, it would have smeared us right up against the cabin wall in the rear of the vehicle…. and, all that for a long winded way to say people will, whenever they can, look out for Number One before anything else…. I suppose this means we need a couple more pearls, just to finish it out with a bit of smooth, to counteract the rapid mind fuck SB attempted….

SIGH…. It’s too bad…. Things were Going So Well, too….

BTW, FWIW, IMHO, yes. OTOH, AAMOF, maybe not. — Smart Bee

“A closed mouth gathers no feet.” — Finster’s Law

I guess we should have looked at the last one first; it may have saved us a bit of aggravation, if not time…. Oh, well, at least it’s the last section for today…. Gee, how did he do that?….

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

Well…. In spite of myself, I got it done. Some of the above was produced yesterday, during the less miserable moments of the day, and, after I had already gone through the morning’s extreme annoyances…. I was nice today, and didn’t share all that with you; you may thank me later…. Today, I must, again, sally forth into the Big Blue Room, to do battle with the huge bureaucratic forces of evil, otherwise known as Kaiser Permanente, to try to figure out how to decrease the number of days I lose to physical issues…. Wish me luck; I’m going to need a lot of it….. At least I can feel some sense of accomplishment, for having gotten this done in a timely fashion…. even if I did have to get up early to do it….

Enough, I’m out of cheese, so I don’t need any whine…. Reality doesn’t care, anyway, so, I may as well keep the rest to myself…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Positive feedback often garners negative results….

Posted on October 15, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

~~ Aristotle ~~

Today’s post will be very late, comparatively; I actually slept last night…. plus, waking up late means waking up sore & stiff, so it takes a bit longer to get the old bones moving in the morning. As a result, you may see some cheating below, in terms of some older-post-utilization…. To begin at the beginning, the photo is from the London Daily Yell (Telegraph), from their Week in Pictures feature last week…. It is, to me, a perfect example of the importance of timing, though it doesn’t really make clear HOW important…. You see, in my experience, timing is EVERYTHING….

Well, perhaps not QUITE that, but, very little in life is more important, nor as universally acknowledged as being essential to the success of almost any venture, or act. Without it, all become chaos; order becomes impossible, and we find ourselves fighting against Murphy at every step. This morning is a good example, but, I’m too tired already, and my hands are too stiff, to explain it to my own satisfaction, so, you’ll just have to take my word that it is true, and we’ll get on with the rest of this mess…. See, the lack of correct timing is already having a deleterious effect on this Pearl…. In fact, I can’t think of any previous Pearl that has started off so awkwardly…

In point of further fact, I’m certain that I need to take control, somehow, in order to be able to finish this at all…. Now, if only I had some way to do that, we’d be in good shape. Since I don’t, I’m going to have to get ruthless…. and, not merely ruthless, but, ruthless at the proper moment, thus demonstrating the veracity of my statements above…. I suppose, given the obvious handicaps under which I’m operating today, I should be happy with that, and, to be sure, I am…. I’m just not ecstatic, which I much prefer to mere happiness…. Don’t we all?…

But, that won’t get us down the page, either, so, here comes the ruthless part…

Wait, Ruth, come back!…. Well, she’s gone, so, we are now officially ruthless…

Shall we Pearl?…..

“It has long been known that one horse can run faster than another – but which one? Differences are crucial.”

~~- Lazarus Long ~~

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

Yesterday, while working on today’s Pearl ahead of time, I had planned to use this section for another collection of depressing news about the happenings out in the Big Blue Room…. but, I got depressed, (naturally…), so I quit after finding a couple of news items about typical ongoing issues… I was going to leave them here, as an adjunct to a rant, but, the one I found isn’t the right one for that, so, they’re gone…. Instead, I have a rant on human nature from a couple of years ago…. Enjoy!…. It’s less depressing than the news, I can attest, though it does take a few shots at some iconic public figures of undetermined moniker…. You’ll know to whom they refer, trust me…

From 11/24/2012:

“Happy is he who dashes the heads of his enemy’s children against rocks.” — Psalms 137:9

I don’t know about you, but that strikes me as a little harsh, don’t you think? I mean, talk about exploring the deepest depths of evil possible to the soul of man! And we thought that our modern rock and rap lyrics were funky?….. Rappers get pretty nasty, but I haven’t heard this degree of nasty from anyone on the radio…. yet…. Not that I haven’t heard some egregious BS, but nothing so graphic and personal as this little song from the priests of Judaism…. fine upstanding fellows that they are…. NOT!!

First, I have to say, I hope this is a sham, or at the very least, a misquote. If it is an accurate reprint from that Psalm, well, it indicates a number of things to me, some about the past, some about the present…. Mostly, though, when I read it, I get a horrible visual image in my mind’s eye of some grinning moron holding a baby by the ankle, and….. no, I’m not going there, even for the writing practice…. I guess I’m a coward, if that means I’d have to continue to make graphic a concept that should never ever have even occurred to anyone, much less been written down….

What was the purpose of that, I wonder? As a teaching song? As a victory hymn? From an Old Testament version of the 3 Stooges? I’m not even sure I want to know that much about it, come to think of it…. It kind of makes one wonder, what kind of culture would have such a concept as a part of its morality…. but, sadly, through most of human history, if I’m not mistaken, acts like this, and others just as egregiously violent and cruel, have occurred over and over; moreover, they continue to do so today in some parts of the world, where civilization is only a thin veneer over the native cultures, which are still mired in the middle ages….

Our own society shows signs of the kind of culture that would grow out of such concepts, a sort of casual attitude about violence when aimed at an objectified enemy. The less humanity we ascribe to those enemies, the easier it is to perform inhumane acts against them; witness the torture going on at the Guantanamo detention center…. Just another of the charming traits of which our species may boast….. It fits right in with our tendency to react to our fears by covering them with anger, and with our tendency to act violently to achieve our ends. Sometimes, it’s enough to make me wonder how we got as far as we have down the evolutionary path.

“What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau

This concept is probably what has saved us, at least to this point. We are indeed creatures of a dual nature, reflecting the duality of existence in the universe in which we live, the duality we perceive in every element of that universe. The light to our dark side, our saving grace, are these elements of compassion and empathy that we can also display, given the right circumstance and opportunity. The Dalai Lama, who has been known to show some rather deep wisdom, has said that compassion and kindness are his entire religion, and that mankind cannot survive without living according to the precepts of such characteristics. I happen to believe he is most likely correct.

The attitudes that that Old Testament culture created and sent crashing through Time are bound to lead us to extinction, for they completely ignore the laws of nature. Our own greed and unwillingness to accept our own place in nature will remove us from this life, as surely as we are stripping the earth of its material resources in our search for wealth and power. None of the people involved in that effort to achieve power are either aware of, or willing to consider, their own complicity and guilt, and will fight to their own death to preserve their assumed right to oppress the rest of reality in their personal quest for domination.

The sad part is that they are taking the rest of us with them down that road…. and it is all because basically, deep down where it counts the most, a lot of people are, quite simply, assholes….. Quite frankly, the universe will be better off without the great majority of them. It’s a shame all the good ffolkes have to pay the same price, isn’t it?…… Ah well…..

“May you be in heaven a half hour before the devil knows you’re dead” — An Irish toast

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

Okay, so, as you see by this, I can be shameless as well as the next guy…. This cat needs no introduction; he’s an Internet star, a meme of incredible power, and now, a commercial success as well, having made a small fortune for its owner…. and, it’s kinda funny, too….. This video assures that we are meeting all standards of fairness, having plumbed the initial depths of cuteness yesterday, with puppies…. What could be more natural than to follow that with cats?….. Enjoy!….

Original Grumpy Cat Videos

http://youtu.be/tWRe6BOk7PA

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

I’ve used this poet’s work before; she astounds me with her talent. I’ve included the link to this poem, so you can see some of her other work, but, I warn you…. bring kleenex, and be prepared to be astonished….

http://maggiemaeijustsaythis.wordpress.com/2014/10/13/my-name/#comment-46737

My Name

just the beginning,

slithers off wet lips
like it’s charming.

“Mmmmm.”

Mockingbirds and Mallards
sing of my
slick footprints.

I step in.
I step out.
He stepped out.

We spread together as far as Summer would take us.
We flew down south in high, asthmatic screams;

nocturnal – fugitive.

At first blush they call,
crested blue,
aggressive,

at least to human ears.

His after tastes like a razor blade,
but I am a glutton

and so they
chirp, chirp, chirp.

~~ maggiemaeijustsaythis ~~

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

Fortunately for me, I finished this old-school pearl yesterday, so, that’s something, I suppose…. I could sit here, blathering, for some time, having warmed up now, and found my glibness…. but, by this time, I’m sure y’all are getting a bit tired, too, so, I’ll be compassionate, and just let you read the pearls…. Just follow the bouncing idea ffolkes, and let it tickle your fancy….. it will, given half a chance…. And, if nothing else, all of these are pretty good advice on how to at least LOOK at life, if not exactly how to deal with it….

“I detest life-insurance agents; they always argue that I shall some day die, which is not so.” — Stephen Leacock (1869-1944)

“It’s hard to seize the day when first you’ve got to grapple with the morning;” — Smart Bee

“All say, ‘How hard it is to die’ – a strange complaint to come from the mouths of people who have had to live.” — Mark Twain

“”Go to Hell!” or other insult direct is all the answer a snoopy question deserves.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

“Our mind is capable of passing beyond the dividing line we have drawn for it. Beyond the pairs of opposites of which the world consists, other, new insights begin.” — Herman Hesse

“The worst sin towards our fellow creatures has not been to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that’s the essence of inhumanity.” — George Bernard Shaw, _The Devil’s Disciple_ [1901]

“It’s OKAY — I’m an INTELLECTUAL, too.” — Zippy the Pinhead

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

Okay, all things considered, it ain’t too bad…. I may have to consider more Pearls based on cheating, as this came out pretty well; if I were sure that was the way it would happen each time, I might even start to count on it. If I were that gullible, that is…. I’ve been around the block enough times to realize such an idea was planted in my head by my old nemesis, Murphy… As soon as I placed any credence in that, and actually began to depend on such a tactic, he’d step right in, and make my life a living hell in a trice…. So, forget THAT!

Instead, we’ll do as we always do, and leave tomorrow up to tomorrow…. For now, I’m done, and I wasn’t sure that would happen at all, so, I’m happy…. or, at least, content. Besides, I can always change my mind tomorrow, right? Right. See y’all then, ffolkes….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Worshiping at the altar of self-mockery….

Posted on October 12, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“The man who fears no truths has nothing to fear from lies.” — Thomas Jefferson

I’m not altogether proud of this picture, obviously with good reason… It’s the best shot of the full moon I managed with my little Cool Pix camera, sitting on top of my walking stick to keep it steady as the moon rose over the trees…. It has kind of a hint of all that, the clouds, the trees, the moon… without ever quite bringing into enough clarity to make it compelling, other than as an exercise for the eye/brain imagery interface, to resolve the flaws when it gets into the brain, using our resident equivalent to Photoshop… sort of a Photoshop for the brain, so to speak… I suppose one could claim it is ‘mysterious’, but, that might imply one was TRYING to make it that way, which would be a lie….

According to Jefferson, then, I have naught to fear…. from truth, or lies…. Well, at least, in this instance, anyway….

Other than that, it serves only to anchor down the top of the page, after a very good quote, while, at the same time, yet, inadvertently, I assure you, providing material to fill the first paragraph…. SIGH…. I couldn’t have done it better if I’d actually tried, believe me or not. Oh, and, no worries if you don’t; believe me, that is….. I’m not very much offended by being misunderstood, even when that misunderstanding isn’t my fault, or doing; I just hit the miscreant with a brick, and go on about my business. So,as you see, as long as you put on the helmet we offered you at the door to the cabin, you’ll be fine. They (the helmets) are fully tested to be able to withstand much more than a mere brick wielded by an old man with arthritic hands & a grumpy disposition….

Golly, Wally, now what? The usual lack of creative material is currently holding sway in my brain, in spite of adequate morning ablution. This means it will get rantish later on (oops, I think I just coined another word, applicable to blogging…. rantish…. I like it…. It’s going in the dictionary….), but, it can’t be helped. I’m betting though, just the mere act of coining has distracted all of us enough we didn’t even notice how well the new word will fit well into a poem…. Spell Checker showed me several similar words that rhyme quite nicely, when I told it to add it to the list of acceptable words, one of which was an all-time favorite of mine, as it is another word that describes ME…. that word, of course, is dilettantish….

Okay, I’m going to be a nice guy…. I’ll stop here, without subjecting you to further early morning teasing. I know this hasn’t quite achieved the usual level of aggravation, to which y’all have become accustomed, but, we’ve got a ways to go, and I’m a bit tired this morning…. I guess opening that second bottle of John Daniel’s finest wasn’t a good idea, though, I must confess, it seemed like it at the time…. Of course, that was probably just the first bottle talking, but, hey, we listened, so, we have no excuses….. nor, are any offered, as my relationship with John is a private matter, between the two of us alone… and, I’m lying anyway, to prepare you for section one, where we will talk about our beloved ruling class; it’s best to give some warning, I think….

Of course, warning you gives you the chance to slip out, and just go on to the video section, but, hey, I’m required to make the attempt, if only for my own records, to cover my butt, which is hanging out quite attractively, don’t you think? I do…. But, whether or not the sight of my butt drives anyone away, we are going to go on with this, just because my dad taught me to finish whatever I start…. even the silly stuff….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Indecency, vulgarity, obscenity – these are strictly confined to man; he invented them. Among higher animals there is no trace of them. They hide nothing. They are not ashamed.” — Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910) — Letters from the Earth (1905-1909)

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REVOLUTION, n. In politics, an abrupt change in the form of misgovernment. Specifically, in American history, the substitution of the rule of an Administration for that of a Ministry, whereby the welfare and happiness of the people were advanced a full half-inch. Revolutions are usually accompanied by a considerable effusion of blood, but are accounted worth it — this appraisement being made by beneficiaries whose blood had not the mischance to be shed. The French revolution is of incalculable value to the Socialist of to-day; when he pulls the string actuating its bones its gestures are inexpressibly terrifying to gory tyrants suspected of fomenting law and order. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/oct/11/russell-brand-revolution-alienation-despair

Perfect timing; Russell Brand, the British comedian/shock jock/social critic, just released a new book, entitled, “Revolution”. The above link leads, not to the book, but to a reporter’s review of it, including comments from the author as to his motivation for writing it, and for now espousing revolution in the world, for realio-trulio, no foolin’, no bullshit…. which, as you might imagine, is a concept I can get behind in a New York minute (which, as you may know, lasts about a nanosecond…)…. Can I call ’em, or what?

I’ve been saying for a couple years that the Asininnies were getting so egregious in their looting of society, they’re not bothering to hide as much, and that this would eventually lead to revolution… Of course, I was the one making the suggestion, but, I also knew, and stated, that society was going to mirror my own reactions, and the idea of revolution would become more real as time went by. It had to happen, as history provides us with many examples of following the same path in previous centuries…. This has all happened before, ffolkes; the names have been changed, not to protect the innocent, but, just because new assholes are born every minute…

“The United States has entered an anti-intellectual phase in its history, perhaps most clearly seen in our virtually thought-free political life.” — David Baltimore

And, WHY are the Asininnies so able to lie to the public so successfully? Well, because people, for the most part, and in the greatest number, are fools, easily led by the nose, and perfectly susceptible to manipulation, due to their gullibility…. They, the pundits and talking heads who get elected, KNOW this about people, and are shameless, and ruthless, in applying it as often as they can…. which is all the damn time, every damn day…

“If a lie is repeated often enough all the dumb jackasses in the world not only get to believe it, they even swear by it.” — B.B. Franklin

I was glad to see that the movie about Edward Snowden is coming out; it will certainly add to the situation described above, i.e., it will provide that much more evidence of how the governments of this world have worked to subjugate and repress the general population, increase the wealth gap, and, steal as much as they can, while they can…. Below, you’ll find a link to a review of the film, a link to the trailer on You Tube, and a player to watch that trailer here, if you wish…. I hope everyone alive with two working neurons in their head will see this, for then, revolution would be assured….

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/oct/11/citizenfour-review-snowden-vindicated-poitras-nsa-journalism

“He means well” is useless unless he does well.” — Plautus

As far as I can see, Mr. Snowden has done well….

http://youtu.be/XiGwAvd5mvM

At this point, I will show mercy…. I could easily rant for a while longer, but, to spare you further torment like that, I’ll finish off this section with a relatively short pearl, to take the rest of my shots at the Asininnies, wherever they might be….

“There is a great deal of human nature in people.” — Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910)

“The right to revolt has sources deep in our history.” — Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas

“The only sure bulwark of continuing liberty is a government strong enough to protect the interests of the people, and a people strong enough and well enough informed to maintain its sovereign control over the government.” — Franklin Delano Roosevelt

“And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” — Isaiah, Isaiah 2:4

(Gee, why does it NOT surprise me to see this, and to realize that, when it comes to government, they stopped paying attention to this sort of idea long ago?…. In fact, I’m fairly sure it has NEVER been tried….)

“Cops do it with nightsticks.” — Smart Bee

“The remedy in the United States is not less liberty but real liberty — an end to the brutal intolerance of churchly hooligans and flag-waving corporations and all the rest of the small but bloody despots who have made the word Americanism a synonym for coercion and legal crime.” — Archibald MacLeash (b. 1892)

“The price of liberty is, always has been, and always will be blood: the person who is not willing to die for his liberty has already lost it to the first scoundrel who is willing to risk dying to violate that person’s liberty. Are you free?” — Andrew Ford

That should do it….. So be it. gigoid has spoken….

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

A great many people will never have heard of this artist, which is a shame, but, pretty much was the way he wanted it. Fred Neil was a legendary performer, not to the public, who only knew of him through two of his songs, which EVERYONE heard on the radio at one time…. Other than those, he produced only three albums, which never hit the mainstream….

But, among other artists, he was, and, is still regarded as one of the very best blues players/singers to ever live, with an incredibly creative talent on the guitar for making new melodies and riffs, and a voice that could rip out your heart with feeling…. The video is the best version of his most famous song, but, you can see more of his work, including all his albums, by following the link to the You Tube page…. Enjoy, ffolkes; if you haven’t heard him before, you are in for a huge treat… You especially must listen to his song, “The Dolphins”…. it is INCREDIBLE!…..

Fred Neil: Everybody’s Talkin’ At Me

http://youtu.be/M-Ql1284QLw

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While searching for another poet, I came across this gem, which is new to me…. Since it also fits in with an ever-present theme here on ECR, I though it would go well, even if it’s a bit long…. It makes up for it with relevance….

Television

The most important thing we’ve learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set —
Or better still, just don’t install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we’ve been,
We’ve watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone’s place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they’re hypnotised by it,
Until they’re absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don’t climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink —
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK — HE ONLY SEES!
‘All right!’ you’ll cry. ‘All right!’ you’ll say,
‘But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!’
We’ll answer this by asking you,
‘What used the darling ones to do?
‘How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?’
Have you forgotten? Don’t you know?
We’ll say it very loud and slow:
THEY … USED … TO … READ! They’d READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching ’round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it’s Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There’s Mr. Rat and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They’ll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start — oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They’ll grow so keen
They’ll wonder what they’d ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.

~~ Roald Dahl ~~

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

To finish of today, Smart Bee came up with a seven-star pearl made up of some comments/observations regarding the bane of our existence as humans…. ourselves….

“And it shall some to pass that idiots shall roam the earth, and morons shall rule the masses.” — Smart Bee

“We learn from experience that men never learn anything from experience.” — George Bernard Shaw

“It’s not very pleasant in my corner of the world at three o’clock in the morning. But for people who like cold, wet, ugly bits it is something rather special.” — A.A. Milne’s Eyore

“When we talk of tomorrow, the gods laugh.” — Smart Bee

“The frightening thing is not dying, the frightening thing is not living.” — T-Bone Burnett

“Extinct is forever.” — A little reminder from Smart Bee

“A little learning is a dangerous thing but a lot of ignorance is just as bad.” — Bob Edwards

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

Here is your homework for tomorrow, ffolkes; as determined by SB, this will give you the best chance of surviving the night with your insanity intact…. Write an Essay: “Describe the universe in 500 words or less and name 2 examples.” I thought it would be a good addition to also have you explore one of your two examples (not this one), with proof of completion to be provided by a video recording of your trip…. If you need a camera, the equipment desk has a number of Go-Pro models for you to check out for use….

There…. I don’t believe I can do any more, or cause any more confusion, so, I may as well get on with the rest of today…. I hope y’all enjoyed today’s Pearl; it took some effort and thought, both of which I am currently in short supply….. and, no comments from the peanut gallery about always being in short supply of those products…. Do I insult you? Well, not directly, anyway…. I think it would be best if I just go now…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Bound for Bohemia….

Posted on October 7, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“One ought, every day at least,

to hear a little song,

read a good poem,

see a fine picture,

and, if it were possible,

to speak a few reasonable words.”

~~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ~~

Since I never learned to speak, or read, or write in Latin, the soothing release of creating a poem in Virgilian hexameter is denied me; this is too bad, since I could use the bleed-off of some of this internal pressure. Beset on all sides, (for how does one escape one’s own memories?…), I have been withdrawing from the outer world, partly for my benefit, but, mostly to keep from inadvertently dumping on those who don’t deserve it, a nasty little habit to which just about everyone alive falls prey, at one point or another in Life. At least I’m old enough to see it coming, isolating myself until the danger passes….

My mind is being stubborn, though, and even staying away from the public as much as possible isn’t doing the trick; waves of dark memories keep assaulting me at odd moments, bringing with them the same passions they held when current, thanks to the now seemingly permanent stripping away of all my distance from them, a distance hard to build, and harder to maintain, apparently… It’s been a couple years since I felt this unstable…. and, I want to go on record as saying I don’t much like it…. a perfectly natural reaction, by the way….

That is my main problem, you see…. One of the psychiatrists I saw for a time told me once that I wasn’t really insane, so much as having a sane reaction to insane conditions in my life…. Not terribly helpful, other than as a directional pointer, but, it does make it a bit easier to accept, as being the only course of action available to keep myself sane…. It’s just that the sanity I’m experiencing resembles too closely the insanity I’ve also seen… more’s the pity….

So, I’m subsisting through each day, minute by torturous minute, trying desperately to find my center again…. It is an old, familiar search, but, sadly, needs to cover new ground each time I have to go looking for it… so, any maps or techniques I’ve managed to keep are not valid, or particularly useful in completing the search…. All the answers are to be found buried in new ground, which I first must find…. It sounds complicated, and, to an extent, it is… but, it’s also very simple, once I find the key, which is knowing not so much what to stop, but, where to look for something to distract me from the insistent remembrances that plague my waking hours…. i.e., finding that distance, between me and the pain, whether physical, or mental….

Ah, the hell with it, I’m just whining, so, fuck it…. I see a place we can break loose here, so, let’s take advantage of it while we can…..

Shall we Pearl?

Let us begin with a pearl that puts a very fine point on a core reason for the state of the world today, concerning how those who prey on others can bring themselves to do so, seemingly without conscience, or empathy of any kind….

“Alienation without must be accompanied by alienation within; that is the law for every social level, even individuals. To harm one’s fellows, even one’s enemies, harms you, takes away some essential element from your self-respect and self-image.” — Greg Bear

Or, as someone said, long ago, in a simpler time….

“It belongs to human nature to hate those you have injured.” — Tacitus (54-119 AD) — Agricola, 42

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

Having spent the last few days in conflict with myself, I accept there is no rant in me just now; one must be confident to spew….. As part of the battle, here is a piece from shortly after this blog was begun, with some words about some of what I’m dealing with…. You could easily skip this section today, as it is chiefly here to assuage my own needs…. But, it’s not a bad little pearl, so, read on, if you’ve got the time….

From 9/24/2011:

Ffolkes,
I once read an article or essay somewhere that made this claim: when we cry or feel deeply sad over the death of a loved one, we are really crying for ourselves, not for the departed. In at least one respect, that is true; the person who has passed away is no longer suffering, and presumably has gone on to a better place, so in truth we ought to be happy, not sad. But we are sad, because it hurts to know that one in whom we have placed our trust and love will not be around anymore for us to be with, to talk to, to enjoy. So in that sense we are crying for ourselves, in lamentation for lost love.

But, unlike the author of the piece I was reading, I believe that is okay. It is, if nothing else, a completely human reaction to feel pain at a loss, and to a certain extent our reaction may be called selfish; no one can deny that selfishness is purely human. But it is more than merely selfish, because humans are never just one thing at a time. We also feel our loss in other ways, and with other feelings.

There is relief, for the ending of whatever pain the loved one may have been experiencing. There may be guilt, too, for taking the presence of the loved one for granted, or for not telling them they were loved. All of these differing reactions, and the many more I haven’t mentioned, only prove our humanity more, for in spite of what some would have us believe, we are not simple creatures. The relationships we build throughout our lives are held together with a myriad of feelings, all relating to the other person and the time we have shared with them. Our feelings don’t occur alone; there are always more than only one, for when they occur, they engender other feelings, which will then cause another, and another, and so on.

These thoughts, and a million more, have been circling around in my head for about a day now, since my brother called yesterday to let me know that our mother had passed away at about 1:00 pm. It was not unexpected; she was 90 years-old, and had been in the hospital for a week after suffering a massive stroke. I am sad, of course, and will miss her very much, but in truth, I don’t think it has really hit me yet.

When my father passed away, 20 or more years ago, the full reaction didn’t come until weeks later, and I have the feeling that in this instance, it may be some time before I can grieve fully. It’s just so hard to accept their absence; there is never any real belief they are gone until one day, all one’s feelings just crash in at once. So, I have that to go through yet, which is okay by me. I have enough problems just now, and can’t really afford to fall apart at present.

Today’s Pearls were picked out before I heard about my Mom, and so have no particular point in light of that. They are. however, well able to make their own point…..

“A ‘No’ uttered from deepest conviction is better and greater than a ‘Yes’ merely uttered to please, or what is worse, to avoid trouble.” — Mahatma Gandhi

“He who is most slow in making a promise, is the most faithful in the performance of it.” — Rousseau

“Here I am in the POSTERIOR OLFACTORY LOBULE but I don’t see CARL SAGAN anywhere!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

“If you never assume importance you never lose it.” — Lao-tzu

“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total oblivion. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me and turn my inner eye to follow its path. When the fear is gone, there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” — The Litany Against Fear (Frank Herbert, -Dune-, 1965)

“Before you speak, just remember that you will not be asked to explain what you did not say!” — Smart Bee

Such a fine group of Pearls really deserves some witty or profound remark in response, but I’m afraid that may be asking too much of my Muse today, so we’ll have to make do with this…..y’all take care out there….and don’t forget to tell the people you love that they are appreciated. Ya never know when they might not be there any more to tell…..

Note from 2014: Okay, grieving for today is done…. let’s go on, shall we?…..

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

I picked this out days ago; if you’ve never heard of this artist, I’m not surprised, but, am also disappointed, as he was a legendary performer, and songwriter, perfectly voicing the beliefs and feelings of the time he was performing…. He also is one of the very few artists to give it all up when he started to become famous; he didn’t like the way it was changing his life, so he retired, to a private existence, only re-emerging recently to give us a bit more of his music… This was one of his few live performances, before he retired….

Cat Stevens, Live in Williamsburg, Va., 1976

http://youtu.be/pFuL3_RmxII

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

One thing about angst; it can make me bleed words….

Tempered Flesh, with Blood

Tiresome, the darkness, sitting in the sun,
submissively balancing over the pit.
Quiet as old terror, each brick one by one
building crescendo, sans music, sans style, sans wit.
Shadows thrown offer speculative fiction,
earning respite from burgeoning miscellany.
Light’s presence offers potential benediction,
if not divine, perhaps, then, beautifully zany.

Hours pass in days, minutes in a week,
challenging Reality to argue, adding a subtle smirk.
One humbly submits in hope of grace, small respite to seek,
in spite of prescient insistence ’twill never work.
Wave upon wave crash against the bloodied shore,
wearing down all natural defense.
All light is extinguished, darkness evermore;
if preserving life and love, sin no more.

~~ gigoid ~~

I’m not certain it’s done, but, that’s all there is for now…. I have a feeling it will grow further; for now, it’s all I have in me….

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

Now we come to the freshes part of this pearl…. picked out yesterday, in the midst of the cacophony in my head, I cannot vouch for how it came out, though I do accept responsibility…. Try to enjoy it anyway, okay?….

“What then in the last resort are the truths of mankind? — They are the’ _irrefutable_ errors of mankind.” — Nietzsche

“Freedom of speech and freedom of action are meaningless without freedom to think. And there is no freedom of thought without doubt.” — Bergen Evans, The Natural History of Nonsense (1946)

“Human Kind cannot bear very much reality.” — T.S. Eliot, “Burnt Norton”

“To see what is right and not to do it, is want of courage.” — Confucius Analects

“We learn from experience that men never learn anything from experience.” — George Bernard Shaw

“Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.” — Aldous Huxley

Far or forgot to me is near;
Shadow and sunlight are the same;
The vanished gods to me appear;
And one to me are shame and fame.
They reckon ill who leave me out;
When me they fly, I am the wings;
I am the doubter and the doubt,
And I the hymn the Brahmin sings.

~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~

“Brahma”

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

Before I forget, today’s first photo, of the beaver family, is another shot from the London Daily Telegraph Animal Pictures of the Week series. This one had a nice story: A young couple started observing two beavers in the wild, watching from a distance as they built their dam, had a baby, living their peaceful lives… After a couple years, the beavers became so accustomed to their presence, they allowed them to approach closer, to the point of greeting them whenever they came to visit, and posing for this picture…. It’s nice to see a story about something other than bombs, and rape, and police aggression…. hence, the inclusion here, as a reminder of something good in the world….

Thus far today, I have abused a surly security guard, two smarmy lab technicians, and one way-too-perky nurse, who dared address me prior to having coffee, but, I didn’t kill anyone while I was out, in spite of being caffeine-challenged…. Even when the sunshiny little perkette smiled at me & gave out with a classic cliche, (She actually said, “you’re alive!”, when I growled at her), I managed not to hit her with my stick, though sorely tempted. I did, however, reply to that statement with “Yeah, and not real f__ing happy about it, either!”, so, she went away with a bit less of a shine on her day…. I was sorry for it, but, it was her own fault for talking to me after I’d already growled a warning….

On that note, I’ll be leaving now, before I dump on somebody else…. See y’all tomorrow…. maybe…. I might have fled the country by then….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Four plastic tug boats and a waffle iron….

Posted on September 21, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Thoughts are mightier than strength of hand.”

~~ Sophocles ~~

(496-406 BC)

— Phaedra, Frag. 854 —

Okay…. the quote? It’s a good one, but, hey, duh! As for the picture, you may have seen it; I’ve seen it two places on the web, just in the three days since it was released; this copy came from Space.com… It is a picture of an artist’s rendering of a massive black hole, found by astronomers in a dwarf galaxy near another larger galaxy it orbits, or, more accurately, is part of in a eons long dance of exchanging materials….. Just a little reminder of how small we actually are, in relation to the Universe…. Of course, when one speaks of the Universe, and the stars, one must also think of the music of the spheres, so real, yet invisible to any as-yet-known instrument, our Home rings with music, pouring out of everything that exists, with most only as silent witness…

Music….. It’s a huge part of me, which, for too long, I haven’t allowed to be as much a part of my life as I’d prefer, for a number of reasons… or, if I have let it in, it hasn’t been to the degree I’ve recently come to realize is important to my health, in more than merely a physical sense. How much it CAN be has yet to be determined, but, I’m going to give it more of a chance to fulfill the need in me, to listen to it, to play, to sing, to dance, even if only in a chair. It has always been around, it seems, but, not always at the times I, perhaps, needed it most…. which is a bit mysterious, as music is pretty readily available anytime, anywhere…. Fortunately for all of us, it will have to remain a mystery, as I don’t have time to go into long, sad stories, especially to start the day….

Ever since I managed to stumble onto the method for posting music videos here on the blog, I’ve been listening to some of the stuff that first got me involved in playing my own music, through the simplest expedient at the time, learning to play a guitar, singing the lyrics, and, quite simply, freeing my spirit…. which had not even realized there was a sky, much less that it could fly in it…. Since that time, making it, along with listening to it, has almost always been a part of my life; always, but for the last few years, at least, not to a degree I would like it to have been…. But, my passion for it remains, dormant for now, until the urge to play hits…. “Then I’ll pick up my guitar & play…” et cetera, et cetera, et cetera to paraphrase Pete, and Yul….

In addition to its power to affect each of us individually, music can be a powerful teacher, to all those who hear it…. Ideas (freedom, liberty), attitudes (patriotism, loyalty, community spirit), language (slogans, songs, poems), all are susceptible to modification under the magic auspices of music, affecting people on a society-wide basis, merely by a popular song, or a series of articles, or movies starring heroic actors….

Witness the US government movies prior to, and during WWII, and the Korean ‘conflict’…. (Do fewer people die in a conflict than in a war?…. Just wondering….) Many Hollywood musicians, singers, dancers, actors, and all the supporting people in the studios worked diligently to pass on the government’s key ideas and attitudes that would support the war efforts…. Very strong stuff, some of it, hidden in most excellent swing band style, complete with singing sisters…

See how easily I can fall into a rant…. Ah well, I am in too good a mood to worry about all that right now…. besides, I’m sure there is plenty of THAT going on down below…. For now, just know that I love music, and, most likely, so do you…. so, I’ll give you a tip, that may help you, or not…. Most of the videos I’ll be adding in the new second section, inserted after the intro (where I’ve decided the video pearls will live here on ECR….), if you let them run to the end, no matter how long, will offer you choices of similar videos, by the same, and other artists…. So, merely by stopping by to read, you can, if you wish, have the entire day’s play list right at your fingertips…. as long as there are more music choices you enjoy…. after each of which, more choices show up…. Cool, eh, what?….

We’re all about public service here at ECR, as y’all well know…. so, I’ll also take this moment to mention the Walk the Walk for Climate Change that is happening right NOW in NYC, and in cities all over the world, to tell the leaders there at a summit on that subject, that the people want to see real changes made, and no BS….. I’d be there if I could, but, since I can’t, I’m sending all my curmudgeonly outrage into the airwaves to them, and letting y’all know you can do the same…. Give the asininnies and the BRC a loud THPPT!, and tell them to get off their duffs, and get to work saving our asses before it’s too late….

I for one am probably too old to make it to the first Mars or asteroid colony, or even the second, if it works…. but, if that looks like our only hope, well, I’ll be pounding on the air lock door before they take off; hell, I’ll ride on the outside, if I have to…. Just give me a space-suit, a rope, and a strong magnet or two, and I’ll get there if I have to tie myself to the radio disc….

Probably enough fantasy for one morning, wouldn’t you say?…. Well, too bad; I would. No, just joking, fantasy is always in order, almost anywhere but on a space ship, where mathematics works better…. It did get us this far, though, which will do for our purposes…. In fact, we can just turn right here, and….

Shall we Pearl?….

“It may be true that my desk here is really “nothing but” a transient eddy of electrons in the flux of universal process. Nevertheless, I find that it continues to support my feet, my revolver, and my cigars all day long. What happens when my back is turned I don’t know. Or much care. That’s no concern of mine.” — Edward Abbey

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“Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century:

Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others;
Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected;
Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it;
Refusing to set aside trivial preferences;
Neglecting development and refinement of the mind;
Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.

~~ Marcus Tullius Cicero ~~

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Officials-demand-criminal-probe-of-PG-amp-E-s-5767564.php

I had originally thought to put an older rant here, and shall do so, forthwith…. The above link is to a current article, from a day or so ago, talking about the most recent corruption shown by PG&E and the Public Utilities Commission, which is, ostensibly, a public entity charged with overseeing the utility company…. As the article shows, the relationship they’ve developed has gone beyond that, into a symbiotic state, showing quite well how businesses work to corrupt government agencies….

But, rather than rant on that today, I’ll give you an older rant, that deals with the same issue, to wit, lies, lies, and more damn lies from the people who are allegedly working for us, the people, but, who, in fact, have been looting the treasury, giving most of our money to the bankers and shadowy corporate interests (most significantly, the arms dealers who make such a profit on all the wars the governing assholes engage in….), who give not the slightest shit for anyone but themselves, for almost the entire history of this country….

Below, you will find a small temporal anomaly, but, as long as you don’t try to keep up with where in time you may be at any particular point in the piece, you’ll be fine… In other words, suspend your normal hold on reality, and just go with the flow…. believe me, you DON’T want to actually try to know when you are; it could cause problems in the space-time continuum that might get out of hand, potentially resulting in an explosion to rival the FIRST Big Bang…. It would be better, all around, if you just didn’t even bother to try….

From 6/3/2013:

I have a lot to do today, and need to get started early to get it all done,,, so, I’m cheating here, but in a good way. This is a Pearl from November of 2011… Much of it is apparently written around the same subject as discussed in section one of today’s effort, so I’m including it here, to save myself some time, and give y’all a bit of contrasting text to compare…. You can check for me to see if what I wrote then is consistent with what was done today, or if it was better, or worse…. Whatever it was, it’s a bit long, so, here it is, so you can get started….

11/16/11
Ffolkes,

Good morrow to you…. let us begin as we mean to go on….

“Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” — Gene Fowler

This line is included today merely to give y’all an idea of what I go through every morning to produce this…. whatever it is. It is a pretty good description, actually, because when I’m done, I actually feel battered and bloody. Bloody well used up is what it is. Maybe it’s easier for other writers; I don’t know. But for me, to produce something that my standards will allow me to publish for others to read, is much like having a piece of my soul ripped out. The funny thing is, though it hurts a lot, I wouldn’t stop doing it, even if I could. The pain of creation, which after all requires destruction first, is a worthy payoff for the sense of accomplishment I get when I see one of my pieces online for all to see. Quite a rush, actually….

“Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted.” — Aldous Huxley

This observation, as far as I can tell, is 100% accurate, and because it is, many of the problems society is facing are easily explained, if not easily resolved. For example, when was the last time you gave a thought to what else besides oxygen is in the air that you take into your lungs on the average of 15-20 times per minute.? When you last got a glass of water from the tap, did you stop to think about what was in the water you use to drink, cook with, and bathe in? As Mr. Huxley pointed out, most folks, yourselves included, seldom think about or appreciate such simple necessities, or what might happen if they were no longer available.

What will we do when the air is so full of carbon dioxide that the amount of oxygen in it is decreased below the point where it will sustain life? Will we all have to wear breathing apparatus in order to brave the outside world? What will happen to all the other animals if there isn’t sufficient air? What will you do when the water you drink is no longer safe to consume? We need water as much as we need air; our chemical make-up is 90% water, and not having enough of it to replace what we lose is a sure path to the grave within a matter of days.

There are other issues connected to this subject; the consistent degradation of our planet’s ecosystem has a great many negative effects, small and unnoticeable at first, but growing larger over time until they are added to the list of processes that will eventually lead to extinction of all of this planet’s life forms. Part of the problem is that it is a slow, insidious process, this degradation, and the deleterious outcomes are not evident until too late to reverse.

Remember, the Universe doesn’t care, one way or the other, whether we survive or not; the rules are the rules, and fighting against the natural laws of our space-time continuum is a fool’s bet. Like it or not, we, as a species, are going to need to make some serious changes to the way we do things, if we are to survive at all. And we will need to do it starting yesterday….

“A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.” — Albert Einstein

I really admire Albert Einstein, and not because he was a great scientist, as well as one of history’s shining examples of men and women who greatly advance human knowledge, and do so out of their love of mankind. Albert’s wisdom was not restricted to the principles of physics and math; he had a unique way of looking at the world, and the ability to share their deep insights into life and the universe for the benefit of others. He was an eternal optimist, and as the above quote demonstrates, had a firm grip on the concept of living with honor and dignity.

He believed in the inherent goodness of every man, and lived his life in a way that it stands as an example for the rest of us. I cannot wholly agree with what he states above, because I have a much darker view of what human nature is capable of, and less faith in mankind’s willingness to submit to natural law. But what he said does show with clarity where our salvation lies, and in his own inimitable manner, he shares his deeper knowledge with the rest of us in the hope it will inspire others to act honorably….

“To laugh often and love much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to give of oneself; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sing with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier: this is to have succeeded.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

From what I gather in my study of 19th century American writers, a lot of the best were what I would call masters of advanced curmudgeonry. Emerson, Walden, Thoreau, were all libertarians living in compromise with a democracy, and spent much of their time either complaining about society, or hiding from it in their forest retreats. This is not to say that what they wrote was bad or mistaken in premise, necessarily, but if you read their work with this in mind, it becomes apparent that they didn’t much like other folks, or put much trust in their rationality.

But, as the included quote indicates, being a curmudgeon doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t understand humanity, or what it takes to make life complete. This paragraph from Mr. Emerson demonstrates this perfectly. One cannot argue with conviction that all of these attributes listed, and experiences from a long life, are positively rooted, and make perfect sense. Whether or not we actually have all of these characteristics is unimportant; the list remains valid even if incomplete. And it provides anyone with a good map and directions that can be useful to us in our pursuit of happiness….

So much for another day…. Hopefully, you have consumed a fair portion of food for thought, and found it palatable enough. If not, feel free to let me know, and I’ll see if I can come up with something more savory…. in the meantime, y’all take care out there….

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Today’s music video will be classical, because I like it, and I’m feeling the need for something uplifting, to go with the change of pace….

Enjoy!…..

Classical Music for Spring : Vivaldi, Strauss, Schumann

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Today, I feel like one of the classical romanticists…. Ah, here’s a good one….

He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven

HAD I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

~~ William Butler Yeats ~~

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This section normally holds an old-school pearl, and, it shall… but, first, a bit of artwork that will drench your eyes in beauty….. The web site at Space.com held an astronomical photography, posting the winning photos here: http://www.space.com/27197-astronomy-photo-contest-winners.html?cmpid=558274 The photo you see is the overall winner; I’ve included the link so you can go see the rest of them…. some are incredible, like this one….

Gorgeous, yes? Now, here is the pearl that was originally to go here…. This one is DEFINITELY random….

“The most important thing in acting is honesty. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.” — George Burns

“If a person offend you and you are in doubt as to whether it was intentional or not, do not resort to extreme measures. Simply watch your chance and hit him with a brick.” — Mark Twain, Advice to Youth Speech, 1882

“If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

“Give me a place to sit, and I’ll watch.” — friend of Archimedes

“You say you want a revolution, well you know, we all want to change the world.” — (Beatles) Revolution

“Now is the time for all good men to come to.” — Walt Kelly

“Do not try to live forever. You will not succeed.” — George Bernard Shaw

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It’s a bit of an epic, but, it’s done, and I’m not going to second-guess myself at this point….. In fact, I’ll be unusually brief, and merely say, see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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 *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

No more effective than a blank stare….

Posted on September 18, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Safety is on the shore, but the pearl is in the ocean.” — Chinese Proverb

Well, damn! That must be why I keep getting wet! Who knew?

I did, of course…. but, since the pearl was about pearls, I couldn’t resist…. How ’bout that picture, eh? I like it, not because I took it, but, because it’s a metaphor….. as is damn near everything around here. This one though, is not so much a metaphor, as a reminder that beauty comes in many guises, and may be beautiful merely for existing…. This flowering weed was growing in an abandoned lot near my place, where I found it on one of my meanders through the ‘hood; I live in an economically depressed city, in a relatively poor section, on the edge of the old downtown neighborhood…. There are a lot of abandoned lots, where new construction awaits a buyer with actual money to spend…

But, in spite of the depressed feel one gets viewing the entire lot, this weed was flowering madly, with these vividly blue flowers, showing off its colors to a world that does not care at all, spitting back at reality in defiance….. which only made it look more beautiful to me….. I admire that sort of tenacity at life, even if it is futile, as it mostly is when dealing with human civilization…. I’m not going to fall into a rant, but, this flowering weed can serve as a strong poke in the ribs for us, if we could only learn to understand what it is saying to us….

I haven’t felt good for days; not terrible, but, moderately miserable, I’d say…. I am still not quite right, so this will be a short intro today…. Thankfully, I managed to hit the archives for a bit, and found enough to fill in what I can’t write fresh for the day’s post…. Some may regard it as cheating, or at least dwelling on the past, but, hey, if it’s still a valid subject for ranting, it will fit, because my rants are usually fairly flexible, in that they may speak of specific times, but, the issues are more universal, and generally are still manifesting themselves in society, thus making even an old rant up to date…. Well, it sounds good, and it works for me, so, that’s what we’ll do…

Beyond that, I make no promises; what you will see is what you’ll get, and that’s the extent of it…. I wish this…. whatever the hell it is that won’t leave me be, would go away; it’s gone well past the predicted stay, and I’m not happy about it. If it doesn’t get any better today, I’m going down to Kaiser and pitching a fit, as I asked for their help four days ago, without anything ever happening…. SIGH, if they get damaged in the process, well, they have no one but themselves to blame…. By the time I get there, if I have to go, I will NOT be a happy camper, and will have every intention of blasting whomever comes within reach of my voice….. and damn the consequences….

Such being the case, perhaps I’d best get on with the rest of this mess; I doubt the sheriff will let me post from jail….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“In the world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants and the other is getting it.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

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

As is my wont, when I haven’t been feeling well, I work ahead, using old rants and pearls from the archives, as much of my material is concerned with issues that won’t go away…. Here is a politirant from 2013; it’s a two-fer, and rather long, so take a deep breath, and enjoy!….

From 12/21/2013:

Below, you will find the rant to which I referred above…. it’s another long one, thanks to the support I again found in the archives, but, it’s worth the read, for it will all point toward the rant I’m planning for tomorrow, one that will be a culmination, and a summarization, of all the rants I’ve done up to this point…. For today, please read, and pay attention to this, as it will end up being important for all of us…. a point which I hope to make clear tomorrow….

In order to achieve the proper understanding of this issue, and the following discussion, aka a ‘politirant’ of first magnitude, the article attached to the following link should be read first…. It contains some interesting information that is critical to the dialogue that may ensue, or, in any case, for a full data set to use for analyzing the issue at large…. Go ahead, we’ll wait here….

http://www.sfgate.com/business/technology/article/Judge-NSA-program-is-likely-unconstitutional-5068946.php

It isn’t often this happens twice in a row, but, since I’m always attuned to the possibility of serendipity, it did…. happen twice, that is…. Below, you will find a rant I posted back in early March of this year, which, given the information contained in the article attached to the above link, is astoundingly accurate as a response to the actions demonstrated by the administration in this entire scenario….

First, let me say that I’m very, very happy that a federal judge had the courage and integrity to stand up against the tide of administrative pressure, which, as we all should realize by now, originates from the dens of the shadowy corporate masters, and special interest groups who dictate society’s course to suit themselves…. If you haven’t noted this from what you see happening everywhere in the public sector, well, I can’t convince you, but, it remains, nonetheless, the truth, well-documented in the news….

The government, of this country, and just about every other in the world, is in the control of the corporate special interests who control virtually ALL the money, and, along with that, ALL the resources needed to keep society working. It has been this way for millennia, and they are only getting better at the controls they possess over the happenings in the world around us, honed by centuries of practice and deception…. They are so good at it, virtually nobody even realizes the true nature of their control, or the extent of it…. and, that is just how they like it….

But, there are moments when a bit of progress is made in keeping at least a minimum of mankind free of much of their influence, and this ruling in a federal court is one of those moments in history…. It still remains to be seen whether the rest of the federal courts, up to and including the Supremes, will continue to see the actual truth, or whether they’ll begin to color it, too, with the paint provided by the special interest groups, in whose best interests lie the abrogation of the amendments…. For the moment, though, we can be encouraged, at least a little bit…

I was especially heartened by two parts of this report…. First, the judge acknowledged James Madison, as one of the framers of the Bill of Rights, speaking of his obvious and well-placed mistrust of just this scenario, of corporate interests dictating the abrogation of civil rights, such as in this case, the Fourth Amendment, by those in power, and how Mr. Madison would be “aghast” at how far it has come true today….

Second, I was encouraged to see the steadfast dismissal of the reasoning by the administration’s lawyers on the basis of constitutionality, as it goes to prove the contention by Eric Snowden, that the laws and policies being perpetrated by the NSA would be found to be such, to wit: illegal according to the Constitution of the United States…. which would, in turn, prove his innocence under the laws of our country, which, theoretically, rewards those who speak the truth in defense of their fellows….

Good to know SOMEONE is paying attention in the judiciary system…. even if one of the Shrubs appointed him… That, apparently, didn’t turn him away from the Constitution, unlike the POTUS who gave him the job, who was on record as thinking some of the Bill of Rights went too far in giving people certain rights….

Further than that, the arguments presented below are the correct response to the above, which also goes to prove one small point, to wit: even nine months ago, I knew something was wrong in the pictures I was seeing out in the real world…. Enjoy!….

*Note from today, in 2014…. In reading over this, just prior to posting, it is obvious the last line above is confusing to the maximum, due to the excess of different posts and dates from which the rant(s) came… I knew this would happen if I started using the Tardis…. I’m losing track of when I am….. Okay, but, this time, ’tis a simple fix…. Just forget to look for the arguments below (as promised in the line, now two lines up from this…. (whew, it IS getting confusing, isn’t it?)….), as they were there, only in the SECOND post, in, well, I forget when it was, now, and since it’s done, now, it doesn’t matter does it?….)

There, are you less confused now? No? SIGH….. Ah, well… too late now, I suppose…. Onward….

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I know it’s a bit early to think about winter, but, it has been so bloody warm here for so long, on average, it is as if summer has come to stay… So, I thought of this poem, which, as it turns out, is better than I had thought I remembered it to be, ending up giving me a nice reminder of the cold weather which is, in winter, much more of a possibility…. Something to look forward to, at times, must come from memory…. Present reality can be stingy about providing such for us…. Hope this brings a moment of quiet reflection for y’all, as well….

An Old Man, Snoring….

Winter arrives with gusts of wind and rain,
clover spreads green amongst the hedges.
Urban gardens quiver, and dream of spring again,
gargoyles stoically crouch on corniced ledges.

Umbrellas sprout over heads shrouded and hatted,
dotting the sidewalks in colorful profusion.
Urban denizens pose sketches, framed and matted,
adding casual beauty to fill the illusion.

Hissing tires, swishing along with the wipers
join nature’s orchestra smoothly, as percussion.
Dripping gutters sound gong tones, true pipers,
a sudden roar of wind hushes all discussion.

Dreams of summer heat form the crux of desire
as winter chills our souls from without.
Sitting in warmth, gazing into an imaginary fire;
content to know spring will come, no doubt.

~~ gigoid ~~

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In order to say there is at least one fresh section today, I offer for your consideration the following old-school pearl, a random, harlequin style, with no obvious parameters…. often, these turn out to be the very best kind, so, we can hope…..

“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I do not believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they cannot find them, make them.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

“Forgive me my nonsense as I also forgive the nonsense of those who think they talk sense.” — Robert Frost

“You can’t make up anything anymore. The world itself is a satire. All you’re doing is recording it.” — Art Buchwald

“Certum est quia impossibile est.” [It is certain because it is impossible.] — Tertullian (160-240 AD) — De Carne Christi, c. 5

“One truth stands firm. All that happens in world history rests on something spiritual. If the spiritual is strong, it creates world history. If it is weak, it suffers world history.” — Albert Schweitzer

“Destiny is but a phrase of the weak human heart – the dark apology for every error. The strong and virtuous admit no destiny. On earth conscience guides; in heaven God watches. And destiny is but the phantom we invoke to silence the one and dethrone the other.” — Edward Bulwer-Lytton

“He declared that he knew nothing, except the fact of his ignorance.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Socrates, xvi

Works every time…..

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The following is a test/experiment for me in geekitude; if it works, you will be able to see a video, of what, you may not believe, but, will quite possibly enjoy…. No worries, ffolkes, or even folks, it’s completely innocuous…. It is merely a test of whether or not I am using the code to put it up on my site correctly…. I guess, if it is, as I hope, also effective for email, it could work there as well…. Without further ado…..

I’m writing this before I know if the above worked…. I don’t have much left, so, I’m just going to say, I hope I’ll see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Look for a post perhaps later than usual…. We’ll see what happens…. Okay, now I’m gone…. really, I am….. You can go now, really, it’s okay; we’re done here…..

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

Bust it up, boys! It’s all gotta go!….

Posted on September 13, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“He who despairs over an event is a coward, but he who holds hopes for the human condition is a fool.”

— Albert Camus

It’s really too bad I’m so late today; getting the little bit of extra sleep always does me good, but, then, upon arising, I must deal with the White Rabbit syndrome, which always afflicts me on these mornings…. My sense of duty is so strong, even letting myself get some extra Z’s will cause my inner critic to sound off, trying to flip me over into guilt, just because I had a tough day yesterday, and paid the price in sleep….. Oh well, nothing much I can do about either end of that, so, we’ll just pretend it isn’t happening at all, and go on to bigger & better things….. provided, of course, we can find anything like that around here….

It is now the usual time I post, and I’m just getting started; haven’t even been in to complete the day’s routines that come prior to starting. I hate to break routine like this, but, my skeleton insisted, so, what is done is done…. However, since I am late, I’ll try to keep this intro out of the usual ranting mode I fall into…. It shouldn’t be too hard, my mind is relatively blank this morning, anyway…. In fact, it’s so empty, maybe I’ll just forgo any sort of intro at all, and…. no, wait, too late, we’re already this far in…. Everything else would fall over in a heap, if I leave this right now…. gotta remember those weight-bearing walls stuff; the intro does more than just decorate the top of the page, y’know….

I realized, while completing some of this routine, I feel as if my life is on a cusp, that the decisions and directions I choose now will lead to a new, and important time in my life, and have been feeling so for some time now…. I’m not sure exactly what the feeling means, in terms of how to react, but, I know that caution is called for; I’m old enough to be a little leery of how snap decisions can affect us later in our lives…. But, I’ve always been one who tries to live like a tiger, who explores the world without fear, rather than a turtle, who remains whole, and alive, by pulling in their head, and ignoring the world, when danger threatens….

That said, I’m looking forward to the future, which, given my age, my understanding of reality, and my absolute agreement with what Camus said in today’s opening lines, is somewhat of a surprise…. There isn’t a lot of good news out there regarding our future; I suppose that goes to show, with us humans, our own little slice of reality is what concerns us the most, and, in the final analysis, the world’s events are less important to us, than those that affect us directly…..

That, my friends, is human nature, which, though we cannot change it to any real extent, we can learn to live with it, and adjust the way we allow that to control our decisions…. Right action doesn’t always, in fact, seldom, run parallel to what is true in reality; often, we must act in ways that go against the grain, if only to maintain our own dignity, and self-respect…

All of that being said, to little purpose beyond organizing my own thoughts, I see we’ve again come far enough to call this an intro, and get on with the rest of the daily mess…. I’m going to show some unusual flexibility in this regard, and go along with that assessment, thus freeing us to get on with it, such as we may…. Since we are in the exact position needed for this extraction, I’ll just throw this switch right here, and we’ll be gone, onward….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Wherever I go, there I am, Pooh mused.” — Found in Smart Bee, unattributed; possibly from “The Tao of Pooh”, in which we see Pooh as a metaphorical manifestation of the concept of the Uncarved Block, an elemental source of truth through simplicity.

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

“If you’re a circus clown, and you have a dog that you use in your act, I don’t think it’s a good idea to also dress the dog up like a clown, because people
see that and they think, “Forgive me, but that’s just too much.” — Deep Thoughts, by Jack Handey

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/michael-stipe-talks-freedom-towers-dark-nationalism-on-9-11-anniversary-20140911?utm_source=newsletter&utm_content=daily&utm_campaign=091214_1601&utm_medium=email&email=alphagigoid@gmail.com

“The Freedom Tower was meant to inspire patriotism and instead embodies the darker sides of nationalism,” Stipe wrote. “The 9/11 attacks and the Bush administration’s response, buoyed by the media, and our shock at having finally been direct victims of terrorism, paved the way for a whole new take on ‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself.’ There was no longer any need to explain or publicly debate militaristic power, or the police state mindset. To do so was to be the opposite of a patriot.” — Michael Stipe, REM frontman, and NYC resident, who, on 9/11, lived just a few blocks from Ground Zero….

My first impression, upon reading the first few paragraphs of this article in Rolling Stone, was one of dejá vu, for every single thing Mr. Stipe is quoted as saying were thoughts that went through my head, at the time of which he is speaking, ie. the after-effects, and after-events of that day’s infamy….. He, too, as I do, holds the media at fault for egregiously fanning the flames of ignorance and fear, labeling all those who attempted to formulate a reasoned response to any, or all of it as being unpatriotic, even, treasonous….

The whole “French” thing that happened soon after the attacks, when France showed a moment of rationality before committing to war, is a perfect example of how both the media and the government were complicit in making things worse than they already were, deliberately using this to modify pubic opinion, harping on the public’s fear and anger, thus manipulating them into adopting the attitudes they needed, in order to accomplish their goals…. which is, as is patently obvious, the tens of BILLIONS of dollars that have, since that time, poured into the coffers of the arms dealers, all over the world…..

If anyone out there believes that isn’t true, well, ffolkes, come on down & say so; make sure you bring some evidence ffolkes can see, and feel, and touch…. In short, REAL evidence, not opinions… These are opinions, backed by such evidence, which can be found in any news distribution site…. I predict nobody will do so, because, as they know, there is no evidence to support their position….

In the 13 years since that day, the only people in the world who have benefited, in any way, from any of the subsequent events in the world, have been those who make munitions, arms, and the other equipment/tools necessary to the waging of a modern war…. Everybody else is in worse shape, and we are ALL that much closer to the END GAME, coming in a much nearer future than anyone will admit, the day when Mama Gaia comes to collect the bill for our foolishness, having previously ignored all her warnings of our impending EVICTION from Earth….

Every act taken by this government, along with every other government around the world, along with the media, and any other of those who ostensibly are the leaders, the movers and shakers of society, since 9/11/01, has moved the date of our eviction closer, until now, it is so close, people are having to actively adopt positions of complete denial, in order to maintain their focus on the living their lives, so they too, can be one of the rich elite, who, in spite of what they believe, are also going to die, right along with the rest of us….

Okay, now that I’ve depressed myself, and anyone who read that…. let’s have a few pearls, to try to shake off the blues…. or, to at least, learn how to sing them with feeling…. Okay, I know what should do the trick…. All it will take is to set a specific parameter, and we’ll see some gems, that may even be pretty enough to take our minds off the coming horrors, as people begin to realize just what we’ve done to ourselves…. The “mash up” as I believe the Brits call it, that is coming to ALL of us here on Earth, is going to be ugly, and harsh, and no fun, at all…. Sorry, ffolkes, but, the evidence is all there, and, it doesn’t lie…

“The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.” — Mark Twain

“All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for good people to remain silent.” — Thomas Jefferson

“No public man can be just a little crooked.” — Herbert Hoover

“I judge people by what is in their hearts–not by the color of their scales.” — overheard in a bar on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.

“In our country are evangelists and zealots of many different political, economic and religious persuasions whose fanatical conviction is that all thought is divinely classified into two kinds – that which is their own and that which is false and dangerous.” — Justice Robert H. Jackson

“We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken away from a man except one thing: the last of the human freedoms— to choose one`s own attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” — Victor Frankl

“It was a JOKE!! Get it?? I was receiving messages from DAVID LETTERMAN!! YOW!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Note: the second quote in the above pearl, from Tom Jefferson, is one I’ve used before; this time it was found as part of an excellent blog post by another blogger, whom I consider a friend, also a published author, thanks to the help of HER (and my) friend, and blogger extraordinaire, Red Dwyer, whom you can find at her own site, below…. Thanks, Lizzie, for the reminder…

You can find that post, a good one, by Lizzie C, here: http://runningnakedwithscissors.com/2014/09/12/slo-patriotism-respect/#comment-11461

Red’s site, where you’ll always find a good post, can be found here: http://mommasmoneymatters.com/heart-vs-mind-4/comment-page-1/#comment-32626

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

In keeping with my new policy to seek brevity for these Pearls, and pearls, here is a short, very powerful poem, from a gritty realist from the 20th century, who, as a street poet, is, in my mind, one of the most powerful of social critics we have….

Cause And Effect

the best often die by their own hand
just to get away,
and those left behind
can never quite understand
why anybody
would ever want to
get away
from
them

~~ Charles Bukowski ~~

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

While sitting at the computer yesterday, (or. it may have been that Tuesday, back in ’98…. Ah well, no matter….), I brought up Smart Bee, to look for a quote to go with the picture for the day…. SB was in a mood, for sure; if I didn’t know better, I would have thought he’d been watching the public channel of the legislature again, and saw something that upset its sensibilities somehow…. but, the TV is not working, so, it had to be something else….

Regardless of the cause, in a very short burst, the following pearls came sliding out, requiring only organization into the most effective order, which is my job…. That’s done now, so, here they are, for your delectation…. Oh, yeah, I think the target, one of the usual suspects, as well as the parameters used to pick the oysters, will be obvious before too long…. Especially since it’s the same target we aimed for in section one, above….

“Lust of power is the most flagrant of all the passions.” — Tacitus (55?-120?)

An Elementary-School student’s comment on politics: Some of our presidents never did much else and are famous only because they became president. — Smart Bee

“Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.” — H.L. Mencken, “Little Book in C major”, 1916

BATTLE, n. A method of untying with the teeth of a political knot that would not yield to the tongue. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

“America may be unique in being a country which has leapt from barbarism to decadence without touching civilization.” — John O’Hara

“Giving power and money to the government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.” — P.J. O’Rourke, former Gulf War correspondent, summing up what he learned during two years of research on how our government functions.

“Old men are dangerous; it does not matter to them what is going to happen to the world.” — George Bernard Shaw

On that final note, allow me to remind you the average age of a Senator in the US is…. well, it’s OLD; at least 70, if not higher, I’d wager…. Not only are those in charge of this nation dangerous men, as noted by Shaw, but, as millionaires (every one of them but, I think, two….), they are completely disconnected from the people whose interests they ostensibly serve….

In plain and simple truth, they are old, rich, white men, for the most part, whose only investment is in service to their OWN interests, first, and foremost…. Seriously, ffolkes, anyone who believes differently is clinically delusional, and would do well to think seriously about taking medication to help with that…. They have some now that work fairly well….

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

‘Tis fortunate, indeed, most of this was completed prior to getting up today; otherwise I’d have still been here at lunch time…. It’s done, though, and that’s the key point, so, I’m outta here, on a mission to get this posted…. See y’all tomorrow ffolkes, and keep your ears open for possible changes around here, if only in my personal location…. I’m getting itchy feet….

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

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: George Bernard Shaw

“Banging” seems popular this season….

Fricasseed rutabaga with mulled acorn sauce….

The replacement toads are working fine….

Positive feedback often garners negative results….

Worshiping at the altar of self-mockery….

Bound for Bohemia….

Four plastic tug boats and a waffle iron….

No more effective than a blank stare….

Bust it up, boys! It’s all gotta go!….

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