Ambiguity makes a poor legacy….

Posted on August 17, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Sanity is a cozy lie.”

~~ Susan Sontag ~~

The Crab Nebula

Image by NASA Hubble Deep Space Telescope ~ Found at Gizmodo.com

Good morning…. As I struggled to awaken, I realized I was not only up, but, already typing. Yes, the words you see are the first attempts at functionality my mind is making today. I guess I’ve decided to go James Joyce, spitting out every random thought in my head, as it occurs, onto the screen just as fast as my fat little fingers can fly across the keyboard…. which isn’t exactly making the speed of light nervous. In fact, I’ve realized something else, as well, which struck me just now, as I typed: it’s no use….

No use at all. You see, I don’t have anything at all to write about. Not that that particular issue is new, or even a surprise. It is, however, extremely inconvenient, seeing as how NONE of today’s Pearl is already done. Nope, got nothing done yesterday, as I was busy with the war against the world, which decided to turn up the heat yesterday. The literal heat, that is; at 4 PM yesterday, I was sitting in front of my small fan, with all the doors and windows open to catch any stray air movement, and realized the prediction I’d read that morning was not right; it seemed much hotter than 90º F. I checked the current temperature, to find it had climbed to 100ºF! Outrageous!….

It isn’t supposed to get this hot here; we’re only a quarter mile from the Bay. But, don’t worry, there’s no such thing as global warming, is there? Shit. If this summer is any indication, we are in for a world of hurt in coming years, as the weather becomes more and more unpredictable, having been disrupted out of its normal operation by the addition of hundreds of millions of tons of particulate matter to the atmosphere, causing unknown, and unpredictable changes to occur in the ecosystem of the planet, which we do NOT understand in the slightest…..

Oh, well; there’s nothing we can do about it now. I suppose I’ll have to get going on my massive display of cheating (I’m late again…). Since that’s the case, let’s use this old #4 again, to get things going with a bit of dispatch. You remember how this one works, right? You tighten your belts, and we do this…..

Shall we Pearl?….

Men must be taught as if you taught them not,

And things unknown propos’d as things forgot.

~~ Alexander Pope ~~

~~ Essay on Criticism, Part iii, Line 15 ~~

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Today’s video section is canceled, simply because I’m too lazy to go look for one. Here is a picture, instead.

Life Imitating Art, Again

Can you see the fat oligarch with the cigar?

I call this, “The CEO”

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“If you think education is expensive,

Try Ignorance.”

~~ Andy McIntyre ~~

Finding an archived rant in this section should come as no surprise; I told y’all up front I would be cheating unmercifully. I like the opening quote for today’s rant section; if I had it in me, I’d go off on that. Since that isn’t in the cards, here is a reasonably short discussion of Reality from a couple of years ago that looks like it might be fun…. Enjoy!…

From 2/5/2013:

“Reality can be hazardous to your health.” — Smart Bee

This one is probably not a surprise, nor is it something rare, or uncommonly known. Hell, it only takes a couple of years of living on this planet before this knowledge becomes second nature to us; we know it almost instinctively. This, I think, is part of why it is always a surprise to us how the process of growing older is much more difficult than we imagined…. It is also why we always end up, at one point or another, saying to ourselves, “Why the hell didn’t anyone tell me this?” It may not be a conspiracy, but the end result is the same, because nobody is talking, and if they had any compassion, they would be….

Your guess as to why this is would be as good as mine, and I’m not sure it matters; what matters is that they don’t, and it isn’t included in any of the manuals we receive about Life and How to Live…. Actually, I don’t know about y’all, but my manuals were all lost in the mail, and I never got any of them… We WERE supposed to get them right? I mean, there is a God, by all reports from the rest of society, and according to dogma and stuff, we’re His responsibility, right? So, where’s my manual?…. Where is yours?….

Don’t try to tell me you’re buying into the Bible as the manual? Have you ever read that thing? It is the most inconsistent, poorly written, manipulative, and just plain most erroneous piece of literature I ever tried to plow my way through… Hell, the first chapter is complete science fiction, or more accurately, fantasy, and it goes downhill from there, in terms of what is believable….

I guess, even if all of the hundreds of different authors WERE connected in spirit, and only channeling the Word of God, it still has to all be based on events that have some basis in reality, or it just isn’t going to hold together, logically, or consistently…. There just isn’t any possible way to get a correct answer when the basis of an argument is false… The principle of GIGO trumps delusional assumptions, at least in the real world….

“The Bible is true this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” — Jordan Henderson

Okay, so if there aren’t any manuals, and the only folks out there offering to help are those who are doing so out of their own desire to control other folks, then how do we learn to accept all the hardships that come with growing older? Well, let’s see…. As I sit and consider that question, it keeps growing larger in scope, and the number of potential answers approaches infinity, so, I guess I need to narrow the focus a bit…. Hmm, break time…. gotta cogitate on this one….

“Men spend their lives in anticipations, in determining to be vastly happy at some period when they have time. But the present time has one advantage over every other – it is our own. Past opportunities are gone, future have not come. We may lay in a stock of pleasures, as we would lay in a stock of wine; but if we defer the tasting of them too long, we shall find that both are soured by age.” — C. C. Colton

Okay, that isn’t a bad insight, all in all…. but, it doesn’t quite fill the bill for our discussion, for while it acknowledges the power of aging, it doesn’t offer any solutions, or advice, other than in a passive, negative sense…. More, please….

“Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.” — J.K. Rowling, The Beginning, — Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, 2000, — spoken by the character Albus Dumbledore

Hmm… a clue, I think, of the direction we are seeking to find…. a bit more fine tuning, I think….

“Bear, do not blame, what cannot be changed.” — Publius Syrus

Another clue…. we must be on the right track….

“Never give an inch!” — Smart Bee

Okay, we’re almost there, cuz the pearls are getting shorter, and deeper, always a good sign….

“I’m not a lawyer, but I play one on the guitar.” — Smart Bee

Well, see, I told you…. the perfect ending to a discussion of Reality, and how we deal with it over time….. In other words, ffolkes, you can’t really win, in the sense for which we are seeking to find a reasonable justification… The game is rigged, and it’s the only one in town…. But, it also implies that we can still walk away a winner, we just have to change the rules in our own minds….

In short, ffolkes, we’re on our own out here in Reality, and aging can either be a burden to bear, or an advantage to take…. It’s all up to us, ultimately, and we not only shouldn’t worry about whether or not there is anyone who can relieve us of this responsibility, but should understand that the act of doing so only makes the issue more difficult….

So, buck up, ffolkes…. Yes, Life gets tough, but, if we are smart, we can get tougher….

“I love ROCK ‘N ROLL! I memorized the all WORDS to “WIPE-OUT” in 1965!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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I know I’m in the now, if only…..

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

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

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

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

I’ve been wrong before…..

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 4/19/2013.

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“Even the worthy Homer sometimes nods.”

~~ Horace — Ars Poetica, 359 ~~

As intimated would be the case, here is another pearl from the archives…. It’s a good one.

Originally from 2011, last posted on The Feast of All Fools, April 1, 2013:

A few random thoughts on the meaning of insanity, and by implication, sanity…….all came from one dive. Pearl after pearl on the same subject kept presenting itself for my perusal, so after a few, I just gave up & collected them. So here they are, all with a bit to say about those among us who perceive reality from a whole different place than you or me….. (My comments are in parentheses, like this one…. )

‘What garlic is to salad, insanity is to art.’ — Augustus Saint Gaudens (1848-1907), Reminiscences

If sanity were dollars I’d be bankrupt. — Smart Bee

“I come from a long line of Southern psychotics and an environment where madness is currency and conversation is blood sport.” — Elizabeth Ashley

According to figures from the Justice Department, the average rapist serves only 5.2 years on jail, and the average murderer serves only 8.6 years. By contrast, the average time served for possession of LSD is 10.1 years, and many Americans are serving mandatory minimum sentences of 20 to 25 years for possession or sale of marijuana. — Smart Bee

(Insanity comes in many guises…… your choice as to which is real, and which is delusion….)

Avoid reality at all costs! — Smart Bee

And who (in time) knows whither we may vent
The treasure of our tongue? To what strange shores
This gain of our best glory shall be sent
T’ enrich unknowing nations with our stores?
What worlds in the yet unformed Occident
May come refin’d with th’ accents that are ours?

~~ Samuel Daniel — Musophilus, Stanza 163 ~~

(Psychosis is rooted in fear, and fear also assumes many masks…..)

    I feel like one
    Who treads alone
Some banquet-hall deserted,
    Whose lights are fled,
    Whose garlands dead,
And all but he departed.

~~ Thomas Moore — Oft in the Stilly Night ~~

(An accurate description of the onset of depression…..)

“Why ask me? I’m just visiting reality.” — Smart Bee

We now return you to our regularly scheduled program…..

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This is one of those Pearls we can firmly place in the “boy, I’m glad that’s done!” category, with a huge sigh of relief. I had some doubts (go figure) whether I’d get it done at all, so, being done is a good outcome, as far as I’m concerned. With my usual casual disregard for convention, we’ll just leave things right there, and come back tomorrow to try again. I’ll see y’all then, ffolkes, as long as all the fundies are wrong, and we are not in the End Times…. If we are, well, have fun in the Rapture…. or, whatever happens, in the fairly likely event there is no such thing….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Never argue with a spoon….

Posted on August 16, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Anyone who has got a book collection/library and a garden wants for nothing.”

~~ Cicero ~~

The Survivor Bonsai ~ 100+ years old, survived Hiroshima Atomic Blast

Image from UK Telegraph on the 60th Anniversary of the Bombing of Hiroshima

Good morning…. The rather simple title for today’s Pearl took me an inordinate amount of time to create; although there are no set parameters for the title, nothing suitable floated up in my mind, for what seemed like forever. I finally settled on the simple vagueness you see, simply because it was the first one close to acceptable. In a way, it reflects perfectly how this whole deal will progress today, as I just don’t seem to be able to pull it together….

Ah, well, we’ve been here before, haven’t we? Well, I have, anyway. And, I don’t much like it here, so, I’m going to again go with our most ruthless intro technique, wherein I just give up in the middle, dumping us down the page. I hate to use it, but, it’s obvious we’ll never get anywhere unless I do…. I’ll ask y’all to kindly tighten up those restraining belts; Luigi hates to do it this way…. Hang on, we’re going in….

Shall we Pearl?….

“…there are periods of history when the visions of madmen and dope fiends are a better guide to reality than the common-sense interpretation of data available to the so-called normal mind. This is one such period, if you haven’t noticed already.” — The Illuminatus! Trilogy

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

You may ask, but, I can’t tell you, because I’m not paying attention. All I know is, it’s classical music, designed for children to listen to, for relaxation and fun. No, I don’t know why I picked it, but, yes, it’s pretty good…. I hope you enjoy it, non sequitor as it may be….

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Classical Music for Children

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https://youtu.be/pd4j9osCNT4

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“IDIOT, n. A member of a large and powerful tribe whose influence in human affairs has always been dominant and controlling. The Idiot’s activity is not confined to any special field of thought or action, but “pervades and regulates the whole.” He has the last word in everything; his decision is unappealable. He sets the fashions and opinion of taste, dictates the limitations of speech and circumscribes conduct with a dead-line.” — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

A most perfect opening for a rant on today’s world, wouldn’t you say? Naturally, it presents itself on a day when my brain is incapable of handling it with any aplomb. Rather than waste it completely, I’ll merely add an archived rant, which will, if nothing else, justify its use…. It speaks to the very issue outlined by our friend Ambrose, in a way…. Close enough for our purposes, anyway…. It’s a little long, but, hey, y’all don’t have anything better to do, right?….

From January 9, 2013:

“Is this an out-take from the “BRADY BUNCH”?” — Zippy the Pinhead

I’m rather hoping it is, in sooth…. if not, we all are in serious trouble, up the proverbial creek without a hint of a paddle. Not that it should be anything new or unfamiliar, as most of our history has been spent thus occupied. Of course, previous centuries didn’t have the distinct advantage of having either the Brady’s, or Zippy, in all his insane wisdom, as cultural icons, as well as ethical touchstones….. They had to make do with Socrates, and Plato, and stuffy old guys like that….. Aristotle was practically a rock star in his day, and remains a pretty smart dude, by all evidence, but I still prefer Carlin, I think, for the most cogent philosophy for modern times….

“In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.” — The Constitution of the United States of America Amendment 6, 1791

For a moment, I wondered what my unconscious mind was thinking when it made me copy and paste this amendment into the pearl, as a pearl…. especially as it seems to be in conjunction with the Zippy quote…. Here I am, five minutes later, still wondering what the hell I was thinking…. It happens that way sometimes…. just give me a few moments here, and I’ll come up with it…. Aha! Got it! Naturally, I only needed to go back to basics…. The answer to the question of how the two quotes are related is…. Reality….

Aye, that’s right, reality. It’s what we do here, explore reality, and all its implications, ramifications, and delineations. Also, it’s temperature. Well, perhaps that isn’t the right word, but…. Reality, as is clear and obvious to the most casual observer, exists in varying degrees (hence: temperature…. see?). The degree of reality that is included in an out-take from the Brady Bunch is clearly not the same degree of reality that is implied in the Sixth Amendment. I’d say, the Amendment would hit around 8 or 9 on the real scale, with 10 being the Reality of Amber, where all roads lead. (See Roger Zelazny’s book, The Courts of Amber…..), whereas the highest the Brady’s could hope for would be a 2 or a 3 on that same scale. They’re too oppositional in nature to be rated otherwise, as well as being on opposite ends of the scale of Relative Importance to ME and YOU…..

Now we get to the meat of this matter…. Of late, there has been a lot of public discourse regarding gun control, as a result of the media’s steadfast love of gore and manipulation. Another school shooting took place a few weeks ago, wherein some crazy idiot got hold of some firearms and used them in an insane manner. This, of course, all morality aside, is still a reprehensible act, and, IMHO, most easily solved by just taking one of his own guns and using it on him, at the time of his crime. Bang, problem solved, and since he’s standing there over the bodies he has made, no question of guilt. In such cases, the why of his guilt should not matter; whatever it is, it is reason enough to put him down, in defense of humanity. The other questions can be answered after the children have been defended….

Sadly, there are two segments of humanity who don’t agree with this logical outcome. One segment is what I term the humanitarians, a misleading term, since it usually involves the denial of much of human nature. The other, of course, is our old nemesis, the BRC…. our Beloved Ruling Class…. Neither of these groups will agree that allowing people to have guns should be allowed, or that killing the killers is a proper solution for the issue. In both of these positions, they are dead wrong, and, more, they know they are. This serves to make their arguments more shrill, more emotionally based, and, in their eyes, more valid, in some strange form of weird logic….

“Everybody in this room is wearing a uniform, so don’t kid yourself…” — Frank Zappa

One of the most edifying parts of this discussion, for me, is how it makes it so easy to identify those who are wearing the uniforms, and from what camp they are from, according to their colors and insignia. You can tell the humanitarians, they’re the ones wearing the faux-camouflage pants, in support of the troops, they’ll assure you; they want the police to be the only ones who carry guns, believing, for some unknown reason, that police are somehow more moral or ethical than other people. (Of course, they also would have trouble if you asked them to define the words, “moral”, or “ethical”, in any other terms than those used in a philosophy paper they memorized in college, or in seminary….)

The BRC are always easy to spot, as their sense of entitlement provides them with all the armor against opinion, or law, they ever need. They want guns to be only held by the militia, (which they control), or the police (whom they also control), because it makes them nervous as hell to know there are guns out in the land, in the hands of people who would use them, for certain, if they attempt to perform their illegal lying, cheating, and stealing anywhere in their presence. It also makes them nervous knowing that they would be in danger for real, if the truth about what they do is ever made public with enough evidence to convince the masses to act…. They don’t want to have to worry they will be over-matched in firepower when that day comes along….

SIGH…. I’ve opened a can of worms, again, I know it….. I’m not going to claim to have all the right answers to the situation we find ourselves in today. Though it is a different world, technologically and culturally, from the time when the Second Amendment was written, deciding to abandon its precepts on that basis is not, and should never be, enough to justify any change in a law that is so important to the common man, the very people for whom the laws were created, to protect them from the self-same usurpation that is now being attempted. Once the law is amended, and weakened, the term “slippery slope” becomes very real, and a valid fear for those people.

To put a cap on it for now, I’ll say this…. Quite simply, I do not trust those who would take the right to bear arms from the people. I have seen NO evidence, in history, or in recent current events, that ANY governing body, or ANY group, or ANY single person, of ANY persuasion can be trusted to have guns, and use them solely for the benefit of the people, without turning them to their own purposes, first. NONE. You can’t show me any, either…. Go ahead, I’m listening….

I have studied people every day of my life, and I know too much of human nature to ever believe what I’m told of another person’s intentions; even the best intentions can change in mid-stream, turning its back completely on any commitments made previously. People lie, they cheat, they break in their minds, and they can’t, as a whole, ever be trusted to act rationally on a consistent basis….. at least, not any more rationally than can I myself….

“In all matters of opinion, our adversaries are insane.” — Oscar Wilde

Such being the case, I’d rather keep my guns, thanks. I’ll accept the risks that go with that freedom, which includes the risk of bad people getting their hands on guns, and doing bad things to others. Don’t worry, if they do it in front of me, I’ll help…. and not by running away and hiding…. Life is dangerous, ffolkes, and one either learns to get along with that idea, or one spends a lot of time worrying about shit that can’t be changed…. A very unhappy state of affairs, to my way of thinking, and not very realistic in the long run….

“When the panorama of human existence becomes chaotic and confused, it is quite soothing to watch the sun rise in the East.” ~~ gigoid

Note from the future (today, 8/16/2015): I’ll leave you with a quote I find to be a very good way to explain to people just why I do this at all….

“Suppose that we are wise enough to learn and know and yet not wise enough to control our learning and knowledge, so that we use it to destroy ourselves? Even if that is so, knowledge remains better than ignorance. It is better to know even if the knowledge endures only for the moment that comes before destruction than to gain eternal life at the price of a dull and swinish lack of comprehension of a universe that swirls unseen before us in all its wonder. That was the choice of Achilles, and it is mine, too.” — Isaac Asimov, The New Hugo Winners

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Off the proverbial cuff….

I never meant to kill that period of time,
it didn’t give me any choice.
It tried to hem me in without reason, or rhyme,
refused me any vote, or any voice.

You have to admit, I buried it deep and fast,
just as if I cared.
I knew, though, it would never last,
or ever be fully repaired.

No news, no pictures can bring it back,
once is all we get.
No pleas of public good, or even public lack;
in stone the past is set.

Futuristic visions now occupy my dreams,
I’m ready to go on.
Look! It fills up the screen, and it gleams!
Where’s the moment I’m sitting on?

Now, I remembered, at long, long last,
is all we really can hold.
Every moment goes by so bloody fast,
we’d best fill them all with beauty, warm and bold.

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 4/30/2013.

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I was going to try to create a fresh, old-school pearl for this section, but, Smart Bee doesn’t wish to cooperate today. I did manage to pull out the following pearl though, which, due to its nature, and construction, is capable of acting as a solitary pearl, of the same weight and value of an entire seven-star necklace… I’d say, Mr. Futagil has the proper credentials to make his words of value to all of us…. Enjoy!….

Eat less and chew well.
Ride less and walk often.
Have fewer clothes and launder often.
Worry less and work harder.
Waste less time, and continue to learn.
Talk less and listen more.
Frown less and laugh often.
Speak less and act more.
Blame less and praise others.
Take less and give a hundred times over.

~~ Kenzo Futagil, describing the secrets of life. ~~

~~ He lived well over a hundred years. ~~

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Today’s Pearl is one of those I’m happy to have completed; the internal cost of such days approaches the red zone on the spreadsheet of Life, so, I’m always glad when it’s done…. Now all I have to do is get through the rest of today, dealing with the nonsense and idiocy so commonly found outside the room where my computer lives…. I suppose, given how the day began, I’d best get started, before Time itself comes to a complete halt…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; I’ve come to realize there’s no choice…. not for me….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

The King’s horses are fond of egg salad….

Posted on August 15, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

You only live twice:
Once when you’re born,
Once when you look death in the face.

~~ Ian Fleming ~~

Quiet Day on the Delta

Good morning…. I had originally intended to compose a witty, scathingly funny opening this morning, but, then I thought to myself, “Nah! Fuck that!”, with my usual erudition. This, of course, is quite impossible, given the tools at hand. (Not to mention the rather disgusting images it generates…) Thus frustrated in my first thought, I decided, instead, to compose a silly, nonsensical paragraph or two, to lighten the weight of the day; too bad I don’t feel at all funny. Then I thought, “No, I’ll go with the most efficient, most honest opening, which reflects the general state of coherence available here in the morning, to wit:

[dignified silence]

But, that seemed too cheap, and we do like to give our readers a bit of a bang for their buck, even if they’re not spending any. I had also thought of a fictional opening, a fantasy piece, with fairies, and leprechauns, and happy cows. That went by the wayside when I realized my brain isn’t up to creativity, and probably won’t be for at least an hour, and three cups of coffee. So much for any of the normal (hah!) openings….

That does it, then. We’ll have to forgo any sort of opening at all. I don’t know how that will affect the overall quality of the process, or the resulting mess, but, it’s all we’ve got now. Oh, well, I suppose they can’t ALL be exciting and wonderful. It might be nice to come close to it just once, though. You’d think the universe would at least respect the effort we expend to get it done, but, NOOOO….

Okay, we’d best get on with this, before it turns ugly. I’m resorting to an old technique; it’s rather ruthless, so, please, don’t hold it against me. I’m only thinking of you…. Well, saving my own ass enters into it, but, hey, that’s what multi-tasking is all about, init?

Shall we Pearl?….

“Dying is a wild night and a new road.”

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

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Ella and Louis

Image from indianapublicmedia.com via Google Images

I feel like something a little different today, so, here is one of my favorite albums, with two of the finest musical artists to ever play together. It may pull my covers a bit, but, I don’t care. Anyone who can’t appreciate music like this needs to find a new soul…. If you don’t like this, the one you now have is broken…. Enjoy!….

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Ella and Louis

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https://youtu.be/4VHWw9G6_UU

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Since I’m so late getting up today, I’m going to cheat, and, yes, I know the mere fact of admitting my vice does not turn it into a virtue. I don’t care…. The day before this piece was posted, I’d written a religirant; this is, apparently, a follow up pearl on that piece. It’s good enough for our purpose here today…. Hell, I think it’s a good one, but, at this point, it matters little if it fills in the space…. Enjoy!….

From 9/8/2012:

It is popularly supposed that between those who use the word “God” and those who do not there is some great gulf. But the gulf lies elsewhere. It lies between those who dogmatize, either positively or negatively, and those who recognize in great humility that something within them bears witness to realities which may be momentous in our lives, but which lie beyond the grasping net of our categories of thought. — Smart Bee

Yet more proof of Murphy’s presence in Life…. or, in my life, anyway….. Yesterday I wrote about this subject, expounding as I am wont to do with no little enthusiasm, trying to bring some clarity to a naturally murky subject (it’s hard to pin down anything solidly when the subject under discussion is a matter of conjecture, not physically present to be examined….). Then, later in the day, I come across this one short paragraph, that summarizes my 3-400 words succinctly in three lines, and very clearly, for all its brevity. SIGH….. So much for originality, eh? Though I don’t know who said it, I salute them….

“In answer to the question of why it happened, I offer the modest proposal that our Universe is simply one of those things which happen from time to time.” — Edward P. Tryon

Once more, I have to agree with the author, especially as it gives a sort of pat on the shoulder to the paragraph above, as if sharing an obvious point. Serendipity, I say, and well met….

“When they discover the center of the universe, a lot of people will be disappointed to discover they are not it.” — Bernard Bailey

This one, when viewed in light of the previous two quotes, made me smile, big….. now, why is that? Because when he says a lot, he means, A LOT OF PEOPLE!…..

“And don’t tell me God works in mysterious ways, Yossarian continued There’s nothing mysterious about it, He’s not working at all. He’s playing. Or else He’s forgotten all about us. That’s the kind of God you people talk about, a country bumpkin, a clumsy, bungling, brainless, conceited, uncouth hayseed. Good God, how much reverence can you have for a Supreme Being who finds it necessary to include such phenomena as phlegm and tooth decay in His divine system of Creation? What in the world was running through that warped, evil, scatological mind of His when He robbed old people of the power to control their bowel movements? Why in the world did He ever create pain?” — Joseph Heller, Catch 22

Funny how people under stress always get so close to the truth; it makes the one who hears it more nervous and upset than he who said it…. or it that just me? Of course it is…. Why shouldn’t it be me? What’s the matter with me? Don’t you like me?….. Sorry…. any who, let’s see what else the magic can find….

“Every sensible man, every honest man, must hold the Christian sect in horror. But what shall we substitute in its place? you say. What? A ferocious animal has sucked the blood of my relatives. I tell you to rid yourselves of this beast and you ask me what you shall put in its place?” — Voltaire

Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?…

I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.

~~ T. S. Eliot, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” ~~

I’m not sure why, but this excerpt from T.S. Eliot seems to be the perfect finishing line for the above meandering treatise…. and it is as close to a verifiable point as we’re going to get today, I can tell…. so, best leave it be for now, and go on to something else…. Or, in this case, to something the same….

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I’m up late. Y’all know what that means…. Enjoy!….

Vague Glimpses of a Rainbow

All the sad notions of propriety had fled,
Screaming their anger for pausing in song,
Until late came the rabid fog, colored in red,
As serenity cried, unafraid to live so strong.

Fallow fields in faithful patience set free,
Dragged from birth, by their own nature cast
Saving each moment against fear yet to be,
Carved into silence, by ignorance held fast.

Historical forces plod slowly ’tis often said
Anxieties streaming stiffly, one epoch to the next.
Cultural mania stands nonchalant in its stead
No sadder epitaph has such bittersweet context.

Patterned bags of forgotten virtue lie in wait
Blessed by reminders whose souls value affinity
Frozen webs surround the fields in gravid state
Grasping passionately within obvious opportunity.

Passage to future realities isn’t guaranteed
Small favors for deities was left off the menu
No roses, nor manna, nor gallant aerial steed
Left traces of fatal, yet originally gracious venue.

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 9/6/2012.

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This is a tricky pearl; it sort of constructed itself. I began with a clear set of parameters, just collecting what sounded complete (don’t worry, it’s a gigoid thing; you wouldn’t get it…). After the first five, it began to look coherent, if a bit clumpy. (Again, don’t fret; it’s how it feels to me…) But, by the time the ninth pearl was in hand, it became clear we had something special. What it might be has yet to be determined, but, it’s definitely special…. Enjoy, but, don’t hurt yourself; there are some sharp turns, and, the ending is rather abrupt.

“Everything is simpler than you think and at the same time more complex than you imagine.” — Goethe

“It is hard to let old beliefs go. They are familiar. We are comfortable with them and have spent years building systems and developing habits that depend on them. Like a man who has worn eyeglasses so long that he forgets he has them on, we forget that the world looks to us the way it does because we have become used to seeing it that way through a particular set of lenses. Today, however, we need new lenses. And we need to throw the old ones away.” — Kenich Ohmae, The Borderless World

“If you’re ridin’ ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it’s still there.” — The Cowboy’s Guide to Life

“Hurting yourself is not sinful — just stupid.” — Robert Heinlein

“Hope cannot be said to exist, nor can it be said not to exist. It is just like the roads across the earth. For actually there were no roads to begin with, but when many people pass one way a road is made.” — Lu Hsun

“Depend not on fortune, but on conduct.” — Publius Syrus

“A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog.” — Jack London

“It is good for a man to eat thistles and to remember that he is an ass.” — E. S. Dallas

“If you can’t say something nice, say something surrealistic.” — Zippy the Pinhead

There you go; what did I tell you? Someday, I’ll write a manual for people to create their own pearls, but, I don’t know if it will sell. You see, the entire process hinges on learning one simple thing; if you get that, it’s easy…. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it now, it’s all in the wrist….

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I can’t explain why I slept for almost eight hours, unless it was the past few weeks catching up to me. Whatever. It’s done, and, for a throw-together-quickly piece, it ain’t bad. Hopefully, y’all will feel the same; if not, well, there’s always tomorrow. See y’all then, if I’m still capable of coherent thought…. (No snickering….)….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

A most acute and sinful pleasure….

Posted on August 14, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Be not afraid of going slowly; be only afraid of standing still.”

~~ Chinese Proverb ~~

Cedars of God, Lebanon ~ 4500+ years old

Image from the UK Telegraph

Good morning…. Of late, I’ve been feeling something of an ethical/moral/social conundrum, over which I am apparently, well, dithering. Can’t seem to make a final decision on it, even though time is becoming a factor. I suppose I’ll have to suck it up here soon. Ah well, 2 AM is most likely not the best time to be making such a far-reaching decision, especially since there will be a definite effect on Reality, as well as a number of ffolkes, and a great many folks of lesser, shall we say, mindfulness? We shall….

That said, with what I am proud to say is a fine degree of obscurity (details are unimportant at this time…), which may, or may not, affect the final outcome, (Ya can never tell exactly in this modern, sucky world. There’s a good word, eh? Sucky? It’s not a real word, yet, I don’t think I would need to define it for anyone, as anyone can define it accurately for themselves; it’s one of those consensual reality issues we all share so unconsciously. Trust me, when I say ‘sucky’, y’all know what I mean, don’t ya?….), I think maybe I’ll slip into something a bit more coherent, or, at least, more transparent.

Now the problem is, I didn’t expect to have to come up with transparency, and I don’t have an eraser handy. Or a hedge trimmer, but, that wouldn’t be of much help anyway. I suppose we could start a…. no, better not. Last time we did that, Luigi quit (again….), & I had to drive the plane myself. Nobody enjoys that, since I never did learn how to do that landing part very well; the noise in the main cabin gets a little intense during the descent, as the cabin lackeys scream louder than the clientèle.

Wait! Okay, cool. We won’t have to go through any contortions after all. Somebody keeps forgetting to put this old #4 escape tool away, so, why not take advantage of their temporary senility? Y’all know how a #4 works, right? Like this….

Shall we Pearl?….

“To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing it’s best, night and day to make you everybody else, means to fight the hardest battle which any human can fight and never stop fighting.” — e.e. cummings (1894-1963), “A Miscellany”

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

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

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

Today’s video selection will be a little different. I’m not a big fan of ballet, though that’s probably only because I’ve never seen one live. I like to dance. enjoy watching good dancing, and love good classical music, so, what’s not to like? Here’s one of my favorite pieces, by the young Felix Mendelssohn, in an adaptation of Shakespeare’s play for the ballet stage…. I hope you enjoy it…

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A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Complete Ballet

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https://youtu.be/Q3zzdCjVaZM

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“There comes a time in the life of us all when we must lay aside our books or put down our tools and leave our place of work and walk forth on the road to meet the enemy face-to-face. Once and for all and at last.” — Edward Abbey

I’ve been a student of history for most of my life. It wasn’t anything planned, I just liked to read, and history was always so interesting. It’s not ALL I’ve read, or studied, but, everything I read, and have observed in Life, leads me back to its historical significance, as the pageantry of human existence progresses through time. I am forced to conclude the time Mr. Abbey speaks of so eloquently, and so truly, is fast approaching…. Read the following article, and you’ll see part of the reason I believe this to be true….

https://talesfromthelou.wordpress.com/2015/08/11/families-of-911-victims-on-verge-of-proving-government-cover-up-in-court/

“O liberty! O liberty! What crimes are committed in your name!”

~~ Mme. Jeanne (Manon) Roland (1754-1793) ~~

I believe there are a very great many Americans who feel much as I do, that our country has fallen prey to the very real usurpation of power from the people at large, as our government was designed to work, to the hands of an elite few, all manipulated and controlled by the influence of those with control of the money and resources of society, to wit: the oligarchy….

Many will scoff at such an idea, but, the evidence is right before our eyes, every day. The founding fathers of this nation left warnings of this very thing, and I, along with those aware, mindful patriots like me in this country, have watched with growing horror and dismay as freedom after freedom is blithely dismissed from our daily life, legally, without a whimper or whisper of protest from a mostly clueless population of ignorant fools, the greatest number of which are handicapped by their life-long insistence on believing in a delusional supernatural being who will make it all right after they die, if only they agree to live as cattle rather than human beings….

If you think I’m joking, or mistaken, let me use a graphic, which I found at a fellow blogger’s site; he won’t mind my using it without telling him, as he’ll probably see it anyway…. Directly below this paragraph you will see a list of evidence, all of which you can identify and verify easily, merely by reading any mainstream newspaper, or online news outlet…. Each of the items on the list can be seen in any average day’s news….

I could spend a lot of time explaining any of these to those who might question it, but, instead, I shall do my thing…. I’ll simply show you a group of pearls to serve the same purpose, most of which come from one of the men responsible for us having the freedoms we are watching disappear…. He seemed to be precognitive in that respect, identifying exactly those entities we should have been watching more closely…

“I am mortified to be told that, in the United States of America, the sale of a book can become a subject of inquiry, and of criminal inquiry too.” — Thomas Jefferson

“When any government, or any church for that matter, undertakes to say to its subjects, “This you may not read, this you must not see, this you are forbidden to know,” the end result is tyranny and oppression no matter how holy the motives.” — Robert A Heinlein, “If this goes on –”

“A monied aristocracy in our country … has already set the government at defiance.” — Thomas Jefferson

“Freedom is meaningless unless you can give to those with whom you disagree.” — Thomas Jefferson

“Corruptissima republica plurimae leges. [The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws.]” — Cornelius Tacitus, 56-120 A.D., Annals III 27

“A society that will trade a little liberty for a little order will lose both, and deserve neither.” — Thomas Jefferson

“To disarm the people – that was the best and most effective way to enslave them ….” — George Mason ( Framer of the Declaration of Rights, Virginia, 1776, — which became the basis for the U.S. Bill of Rights ) — 3 Elliot, Debate at 380.

To verify my assertions, check off each of the items on the list against the quotes; then compare the results to any day’s news, and, it will be obvious to anyone with more than 3 functional neurons that we are in deep shit…. and, the trouble coming is not going to be confined to just one country. The entire world is undergoing the same sort of issues, with those in control of the money and resources attempting to ever more strongly control the political and social events that take place, using every form of unethical, immoral behavioral manipulation they think of to maintain the status quo, and keep the rest of the world in a position much akin to slavery….

We have, sadly, nobody but ourselves to blame, either. This is not just hyperbole, or despair, but, reality. A small bit of chalk on the side of a building, somewhere in an inner city, tells the story very clearly….

“There is no They, Only Us.”

~~ Graffiti ~~

Now, each of us who believes in the principles of honor, and liberty, upon which this nation was founded, will have to make a personal decision, as outlined at the beginning of this rant, by our old friend, Ed Abbey, whether to continue to accept the indignities heaped upon us as free men by a small group of avaricious, amoral assholes with no honor, or to stand up as free men…. We only have those rights we can defend…. Will you live as a slave, and allow your loved ones to suffer the same fate? Or, will you take the responsibility for your own life into your own hands? Only time will tell the tale….

So be it.

gigoid has spoken.

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I’m a bit lazy after all the fresh material today, so, here’s a poem I wrote in February of this year, just because I can….

Dead Hands,Typing…

Puzzled anew by anomalous blocks of pain
caught, bemused, chained to routine, insane.
Stilled within breathless beauty
Engaging epiphany, insistent, called to duty.

Knees bent in lieu of a faithful rendition
suffuses, confuses, locked into stale perdition.
Clearing corrosion with hands encased in stone
Singular frozen follicles, masked by bone.

Partial focus brings unfiltered flavors to light
coloring each particle in simple delight.
Forlorn, novel conceptual artists singing in tune
nine notes in harmony, soft as the moon.

Honed blades of carbon steel flash in rhyme,
filling sensual receptors well past closing time.
Borrowed from neighbors in a week-old game
still bloody, without a proper name.

No flooded memories can justify such cost
no simple stationery, bilious, afraid, lost.
Ten times ten will never be enough
To fill so empty a stolen trough.

Bartering simplicity takes well into the night
solidly temporary pillars turned bright.
Unknown to all the pretty children who came
none were called, none had any remaining flame.

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 2/25/2015.

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Aristotle_Bust_White_Background_Transparent

Truth is pretty big in my world, probably because it’s so closely related to the concept of honor; honor is hard to come by if one avoids the truth. It would take a very long time to go into why that is true, time better spent on moving along here in the final section, so, we’ll move along…. Here are some thoughts on truth for your consideration, which may serve the same purpose, anyway…. Enjoy!….

Urge him with truth to frame his fair replies;
And sure he will: for Wisdom never lies.

— Alexander Pope ~~

~~ The Odyssey of Homer, Book iii, Line 25 ~~

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” — Aristotle

“Truth exists for the wise, beauty for the feeling heart.” — Johann von Schiller

“If you are out to describe the truth, leave elegance to the tailor.” — Albert Einstein

“Truth is not determined by majority vote.” — Doug Gwyn

“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.” — Mark Twain (1835-1910)

“The greatest homage we can pay to truth is to use it.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

Always speak the truth quietly, listen with an open mind when others speak, and remember the peace that may be found in silence.” — from The Desiderata

Yet truth will sometimes lend her noblest fires,
And decorate the verse herself inspires:
This fact, in virtue’s name, let Crabbe attest,–
Though Nature’s sternest painter, yet the best.

~~ Lord Byron ~~

~~ English Bards and Scotch Reviewers, Line 839 ~~

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I’m content with what has transpired here. It took some time and care, but, I think it came out well. Now, we’ll post it, and see if the blogging world agrees with me…. Besides, it’s done, which, as we know, is all that really matters around here. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, when we’ll make another attempt to make some sense out of this beautiful, ugly world we live in…. Stay alert!…..

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

An affair to dismember….

Posted on August 13, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“The more I learn, the less I know.”

~~ Smart Bee, stealing Truth from history ~~

Mars Colony

Artist’s rendition by Ville Ericsson via Gizmodo.com

Good morning…. Fabulous! What’s fabulous? Oh, nothing, really. It just sounded like a good word to start with today. Whenever I see it, I hear it in my head in the voice of Ricardo Montalban, of Corrrinthian Leather fame…. I guess a lot of ffolkes will think of him as Hervé’s sidekick on Fantasy Island, but, I remember him for that Cadillac commercial, and his sheen of lizardly schmooze…. Fabulous!

So. How’s it going? Me, I’m fabulous. Got a good five hours sleep, in only two sections, last night, so, I’m pretty much good to go for the day…. Too bad it’s only 2 AM; I’d kinda hoped to make it at least to an hour when a restaurant opened up, but, it looks like I’ll be cooking my own, unless I want to wait…. and, why the HELL am I talking about breakfast, when I’m still half-groggy, & still short of the required quantity of coffee to obtain/acquire/achieve some degree of coherence? To listen to me babble, one might think, well, I don’t even want to know….

That’s because I’m an Amurrican! I don’t want to know…. anyfuckingthing, if it makes me think at all…. God knows I’m not trained for it….

Oops, no ranting in the intro…. Hmm…. Now what? Hey, I know! How about we just get started? I know, duh, right? Okay, we’ll do that, since nothing else seems to be presenting itself as an alternative…..

Why look! Here’s that #4 we left here a couple days ago. We’ll use that. Hold on, ffolkes, #4 can get a bit bumpy….

Shall we Pearl?….

“As scarce as truth is, the supply has always been in excess of the demand.” — Josh Billings

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Image from the UK Telegraph via Google Images

I’m in the mood for silly; I don’t suppose it’s too hard to understand, given the hour and my state of mind. I’ve always liked this movie, with which I became very familiar during the time my kids were growing up; it was one of their favorites…. Terrible acting, of course, but, the story holds it all together. The song “Portobello Road” is part of what gave me the urge to go there when I visited London…. They’re right; you can find ANYTHING on Portobello Road…. Enjoy this little foray into sheer fantasy, ffolkes; you’ll need it to get through today’s rant….

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Bedknobs & Broomsticks

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https://youtu.be/hDTga2nThwE

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I’m still working on the epic rant begun yesterday; it’ll be a doozy. For today, here’s a pretty thick one from early last year…. It’ll be a good warm-up for the new one in a day or two….

From 4/5/2014:

“In God We Trust.” I don’t believe it would sound any better if it were true.” — Mark Twain

Boy, it sure wouldn’t, would it? But, you can add that particular phrase (“In God….”, etc.) to all the others coined by the snakeheads, and the BRC, to justify their social interactions, all of which serve THEIR ends, not yours…. Having the populace believe the above makes for a very easily manipulated group of people, all of whom are primed to believe whatever they’re told, by someone on TV wearing a suit with a flag pin, or up in the pulpit…. Now we’re supposed to believe them when they talk to us about spying, and lying, and generally being the assholes they cannot help but be…. ( Hmm, a bit awkwardly phrased, but you get my drift, right?…)

http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/Senate-committee-OKs-release-of-CIA-torture-report-5375716.php

Following this line, in summary of the most critical of the information contained therein, I have copied an excerpt from the above article, a brilliantly obscure statement of compliance (?), kinda sorta, from some guy who works at the CIA. That critical excerpt, taken directly from the above, is this:

“CIA spokesman Dean Boyd said his agency would “carry out the review expeditiously,” but suggested the process may be difficult.”We owe it to the men and women directed to carry out this program to try and ensure that any historical account of it is accurate,” Boyd said….”

That’s right, that’s what he said, right out there in public, where it was recorded by numerous reporters…. This person, this… Boyd person, is the mouthpiece spokesman for the CIA, an agency whose very existence, (its raison d’etre, its excuse for being part of our world at all), is to provide intelligence (in the form of information, a task that does not necessarily require significant levels of IQ in its operatives…. Flexible morality, yes, but, not IQ points….) from outside the borders of the USA, by inhabiting, and exploiting, the world of shadow, the battlefield of covert operations in other countries, using techniques and methods of operation based on illusion, misdirection, misinformation, and lies…. This is common knowledge, and not subject to debate…. look it up in their charter documents….

This Boyd person, and I use the term loosely, by making this statement, obviously expects us to believe that his agency, whose very existence is rooted in lies and the spread of misinformation, is ready, and willing to give us, or anyone else, an ACCURATE picture of what they’ve been up to? I don’t know about y’all, but, I’m insulted….

In fact, I can’t recall at the moment anything more egregiously untrue, or as insulting, since Nixon’s “I am not a crook!” back in the 70’s…. Or, maybe, Shrub, Senior’s “Read my lips… no new taxes.”….. Since the sheer illegitimacy of both of those statements has long been a forgone conclusion, no longer a matter of debate, I’d say it’s a fair assessment to make of this particular little piece of verbal bullshit…

http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/Cuban-Twitter-heads-to-hearings-in-Congress-5375669.php

Then, searching further among the headlines of BS we are supposed to buy into, we come to the LATEST of the clandestine shenanigans our beloved Barry, and his “transparent administration” has been up to in the last few years…. Without bothering to actually TELL anyone, some government lackeys, encouraged by the “Arab Dawn” phenomenon in the Middle East, an event whose roots were nourished by the social networking capabilities of Twitter and Instant Messaging technology, decided to attempt to foment rebellion in Cuba among the youth of that country, by deliberately setting up a social network of their own, using it to not only encourage dissent, but, also, (they like to multi-task…) to gather information about the users in Cuba…

Well, I’m shocked…. just shocked, I tell you…. What a surprise, eh? To think that our Beloved Ruling Class here in America, land of the FREE (white Christian minority) would stoop to such egregiously deceitful and deliberate influencing of public sentiment to further their own interests, why it just makes me feel so…. slimed…. Which is how the Cubans must have felt when they found out it was all a sham…

Boy, there’s sure nothing like going around the world making new friends and influencing people, right?…. Christ on a crutch, what the fuck were they thinking? Have these assholes become so blinded by their own sense of entitlement they can’t see just how STUPID that is? Apparently not, which is what will come out, I think, in these hearings…. More stupidity, that is….

It’s all a big clusterfuck, just another example of entitlement gone wild and crazy, making the pundits and elected assholes at every level believe they can be as stupidly obvious about their self-serving avarice as they wish, and nobody will ever care, or catch them at it…. which is a concept, given today’s world, that is not only easily seen as more than just a little stupid, it approaches the level of severe mental retardation…. Having spent a lot of time, (3+ years), taking care of people whose average IQ hovered around 4, I can testify that this sort of belief is about the only sort of which they are capable…..

They’re all a bunch of smarmy, self-serving, avaricious assholes…. and THAT, my friends, is me being NICE!….. I merely used a bit of vitriol, with only one questionably unwarranted word of insult…. I COULD have been extremely nasty, turning viciously vulgar, without breaking a sweat, or becoming at all disconcerted…. Yep, I could have said, fuck them all, really hard, right in the ass, (unless, of course, they LIKE that….); then, kick their sorry asses right down to the lowest levels of the hell they so richly deserve…. but, I won’t say that….

gigoid, the dubious, has spoken. So be it….

“…. I’m IMAGINING a sensuous GIRAFFE, CAVORTING in the BACK ROOM of a KOSHER DELI –” — Zippy the Pinhead

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Accentuated Lessons

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

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

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

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

Peace lies within, always…..

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 9/27/2012.

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Today’s final pearl is a groovy little collection of pearls describing many of the more valuable qualities of a human being…. Well, a human being as I see them, anyway…. You could call this a Lazarus pearl, as it begins and ends with some very basic wisdom from the Eldest…. Pay heed, young paduans!….

“Beware of the “Black Swan” fallacy. Deductive logic is tautological; there is no way to get a new truth out of it, and it manipulates false statements as readily as true ones. If you fail to remember this, it can trip you – with perfect logic. The designers of the earliest computers called this the “Gigo Law”, i.e. “garbage in, garbage out”. Inductive logic is MUCH more difficult – but can produce new truths.” — Lazarus Long

“Our strength grows out of our weakness.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“In poverty and other misfortunes of life, true friends are a sure refuge. The young they keep out of mischief; to the old they are a comfort and aid in their weakness, and those in the prime of life they incite to noble deeds.” — Aristotle

“A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies.” — Oscar Wilde, “The Picture of Dorian Grey”, 1891

“If you cannot find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else.” — Marvin Gaye

“Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.” — Josh Billings

“It is neither wealth nor splendor, but tranquility and occupation, which give happiness.” — Thomas Jefferson

“We are the miracle of force and matter making itself over into imagination and will. Incredible. The Life Force experimenting with forms. You for one. Me for another. The Universe has shouted itself alive. We are one of the shouts.” — Ray Bradbury, “G.B.S. – Mark V”

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.” — Robert A. Heinlein, The Notebooks of Lazarus Long

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Without going too far into how it may have occurred, it is clear we’re done. At any rate, there is something appropriate in each section, so, I guess that counts. For what, we shall not speculate, having reached an age where we know better. Since I can’t think of any more nonsense to throw around, I suppose I’ll go try to find something to do for the three or four hours until the rest of the world around here gets going. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; as has been amply demonstrated, resistance is futile….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Paleontological exhibits of ancient rigatoni….

Posted on August 12, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Ah said, pay attention, boy!”

~~ Foghorn Leghorn ~~

Curiosity on Mars

Image from http://gizmodo.com/a-fan-stitched-together-the-best-selfie-of-curiosity-ye-1723085310

Good morning…. Or, so it says here on the label. Personally, I’d hesitate to wager on that, as the hour does tend to take away some of the shine; that’s going to happen at 1 AM, especially when arising at such an ungodly hour was NOT on the agenda for the night…. Ah, well, rather than piss & moan about it, I’ll just start today’s mess…. It’s always a cleaner mess when I have this much time to spend on it…. Let us hope the gods of Entropy will cooperate to some degree…. Maybe, just maybe, they’ll be nice enough to keep the Murph off my back ’til I can get it done….

More likely it’ll just piss him off, and tomorrow morning will, no doubt, manifest as one we will all regret having experienced…. unless I can figure out a way to buy him off…. Yeah, that’s the ticket! Now, all I have to do is figure out what the hell I can give an iconic force of nature to make it go away…. Piece o’cake…

Now we’ve indulged in a morning descent into fantasy, why don’t we stop fussing around, and be off to the oyster beds, to gather enough pearls to complete today’s effort? I think that would be SWELL!…. But, then, it’s 1:13 AM and I’m about half-way to insane, with a one-way ticket clutched in my hot little hand…. what the hell do I know?….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Transported to a surreal landscape, a young girl kills the first woman she meets and then teams up with three complete strangers to kill again.” — TV listing for the movie, The Wizard of Oz, in the Marin Paper

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Image from allexpress.com via Google Images

It’s been a long time since I listened to ‘The Boys’, and I thought I’d try to find some live cuts for us to enjoy. What I found is over an hour of live music, all Beatles music…. but, it’s a bit strange. It was supposedly a concert in Russia, in 2014! There are a number of different songs, each with its own costumes. The players LOOK very much like them, and the music is very close, but, I can’t tell yet if it’s real, or computer magic…. You tell me, if you figure it out, okay? Otherwise, there are a lot of other REAL Beatles live cuts on the page the link will take you to…. Enjoy!….

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Bootleg Beatles ~ Live

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https://youtu.be/ydn2-V0rWXU

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I’m working on an epic rant, that isn’t quite ready for posting. To sublimate the (quite strong) urge to rant which so often occurs at this hour, (must have something to do with the resentment at my doctors for causing the conditions which cause me to be up… thank you very much, you assholes…), here is a discussion of human nature from early in 2013…. Enjoy!….

“Custom does often reason overrule and only serves for reason to the fool.” — John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester

This aphorism is one that I think most people would accept as true, at least part of the time. It also points up what I see as a basic flaw in human nature, a characteristic that everyone possesses, and few overmaster. It has to do with our core beliefs, and the attitude we assume as our method of perception, the orientation of our world-view, as it were. We all perceive what is out there in the universe, but we are not capable, at this time, of understanding, or even noting, all that is there to be perceived, as we are limited to what we can see, hear, feel, touch, taste, or deduce, in our immediate vicinity…. We don’t yet know how to include the input of anything not in our physical presence, other than vicariously (via TV, radio, books, etc…..).

We do, however perceive what we are near, and what we do with those perceptions is what determines how the events of our lives will proceed. What is more, each one of us perceives all of this IN A DIFFERENT WAY….. Two people can look at the same article, or event, and see two entirely different things; just ask them….. We use the same senses, the same KIND of brains to process the data, at the same time to observe the same event, yet the interpretation of those events will vary, by as many degrees as there are people perceiving them. This unique ability, to process data in a completely new and different way from anyone else’s method, is, as might be guessed, both a blessing, and a curse….. It is the latter that concerns me today…..

In order to coexist in the same place and time, people have learned to accept certain perceptions as being identical, for the purposes of communication, e.g., everyone knows what “fire” is, and knows not to touch it barehanded…. (Note: in a way, this blog is all about the process of such communications…. we explore the reality that is consensual, that we all agree to deal with as being the same for all of us…..) This is the blessing it gives, the opportunity to increase understanding, to allow people to work in tandem, making both much more capable, making two more than just one plus one….. This is a very useful tool in the real world, and has helped our species achieve the degree of civilization we now enjoy….

But, the other side of this characteristic has an equal part in our destiny, and may in fact be the more important of the two, in the ultimate sense….. You see, we are all herd animals, and desire the approval and company of our peers; without it, we suffer, much more than we even know. It is not “human” to remain alone too long…. Oh, there is nothing wrong with solitude, and much great thought is achieved when one is not distracted by others….. On the other hand, a human who is alone for too long becomes a pale imitation of his/her true self, without the presence of other minds to test his/her theories, to discuss and share their feelings and accomplishments, to vent their frustrations, to experience love….. Without these things, our spirits become small, and lose their moral compass, leaving us adrift in a reality that seems dark, and dangerous….

This dependence on custom (which I define as the total construct of human society, the set of rules and regulations, all unwritten, by which all of us shape our behavior in respect to each other…..) is so strong that, as the aphorism states, one becomes willing to set reason aside, in order to keep and maintain our feeling of having a place in society. We will assume whatever mask that society demands, at times, in order to not have to wear a mask of our own devising, one that we do not find comfortable…. This is the curse of which I spoke….

You see, there are a number of people who have no compunctions whatsoever in using this human characteristic to their own ends….. They don’t believe in any of the crap they spew, but will say or do anything to make sure that others do, because this is how they control the general populace… They spread their lies, fast and often, until they are believed…. these lies promulgate fear amongst the uneducated and timid, who then demand that “something be done!” by those in charge…. which is exactly what those people wanted, for they can now proceed to further fan the flames of fear, while surreptitiously looting the public treasury to make it seem as if they are doing something constructive…. “Hey, they’re stealing our oil! Let’s spend a few billion to bomb the crap out of them so we can keep driving SUV’s, with great cup holders!”

Oh well, I guess that’s all the rant I’ve got in me today…. It’s kind of mild I know, but I was trying to be scholarly, rather than controversial and accusatory…. I think I’ve succeeded in that, but, it doesn’t quite give the same thrill and/or release as a good, nasty rant, with some great name-calling… Well, I can always call them assholes, because, hey, it fits, and it’s easy to type…. Any who, I’ll stop now, right on the edge of illumination, and allow the Gentle Reader to follow the train of my thought to its obvious conclusion…. For those too busy, or too lazy to do so, I’ll summarize….

Don’t listen to what anyone else says, not about YOUR perceptions. And, for sure, kick the asses of anyone who tries to convince you of their integrity in an elected capacity, or any position of authority…. A lot of people, on every level of society, are just trying to control you for their own purposes, and deserve any ass-kicking that comes their way….

Be like a cat…. cats don’t give a SHIT what anybody thinks, they just are….. No apologies, no fuss, just leave me alone, because I’m busy being a cat….. This is good advice, so, listen up, I’m trying to do you a favor….. 😆

“We need very strong ears to hear ourselves judged frankly, and because there are few who can endure frank criticism without being stung by it, those who venture to criticize us perform a remarkable act of friendship, for to undertake to wound or offend a man for his own good is to have a healthy love for him.” — Michel Eyquem de Montaigne _Essays_, bk. III, ch. 11 [1595]

Written 4/13/2013.

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Honorable Request

Days, filled to a brim with fluff and time, pass
dimly into memory, bit by combative bit,
ever mournful, yet loud with life and sass,
only in dream do we meet, and dance, and flit.

Souls, spinning ’round in gleeful wonder, comply
as they must, nev
er given a reason,
somberly proper, yet limber and quite spry,
dancing on to greet each bright new season.

Storms, angered by apathetic care, rage
proceeding into ministerial glare, unknown,
clothed in colors, purified solely with sage,
past an infinite future, already flown.

Life, plumbed to its depths and secrets, keeps
flowing with currents, strong and fairly found,
love stands, asking release, as it slowly weeps,
seeking refuge unasked, to stay honor bound.

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 10/13/2012.

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He only earns his freedom and his life

Who takes them every day by storm.

~~ Goethe, from Faust ~~

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh”, said Piglet at last, what’s the first thing you say to yourself?” “What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?” “I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing, he said.” — A. A. Milne, “Winnie the Pooh”

“Don’t forget that compared to a grownup person every baby is a genius. Think of the capacity to learn! The freshness, the temperament, the will of a baby a few months old!” — May Sarton

“A man who carries a cat by the tail is getting experience that will always be helpful. He isn’t likely to grow dim or doubtful. Chances are, he isn’t likely to carry the cat that way again, either. But if he wants to, I say let him!” — Mark Twain

“Do not confuse ‘duty’ with what other people expect of you; they are utterly different. Duty is a debt you owe to yourself to fulfill obligations you have assumed voluntarily. Paying that debt can entail anything from years of patient work to instant willingness to die. Difficult it may be, but the reward is self-respect.” — Lazarus Long

“The reward of one duty is the power to fulfill another.” — George Eliot

“The moment in which you confront your own death is the moment in which you are most totally alive.” — Solomon Short

“Let honor be as strong to us an obligation as necessity is to others.” — Pliny the Elder

My guard stood hard when abstract threats too noble to neglect
deceived me into thinking I had something to protect.
Good and bad I defined these terms, quite clear, no doubt, somehow
Ah, but I was so much older then; I’m younger than that now.

~~ Bob Dylan ~~

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“I must go seek some dew-drops here, And hang a pearl in every cowslip’s ear.” — William Shakespeare

So goes another late-night/early morning Pearl…. I’m thinking of making a new category, for Insomnia Pearls. Probably won’t, though; that’s just giving in to the assholes, the way I see it. Fuck ’em. I’m tired. I want to sleep, for more than two hours in a row. Now I’ll quit the whining, and take us out of here, as is my last duty…. It’s been real, ffolkes, that’s for sure. See y’all tomorrow…. I won’t bother with anything like , ‘same place, same time’ as that would just tempt Murphy AND the gods of chance. As long as no charges get filed beforehand, I’ll see y’all in the mornin’…..

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Trapped again in durance vile….

Posted on August 10, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality.”

~~ Jules de Gaultier ~~

Blue Moon July 2015

Image from Space.com

Good morning…. For those ffolkes new to ECR, I should explain the titles of these Pearls of Virtual Wisdom. You see, the title is random, whereas the posts are not, hopefully. They mean nothing, and certainly have nothing to do with what is in the post. Each morning, before beginning to write anything in here, I make up the title out of my head, with no intent to connect it to the material I’m using. In fact, I try hard to make each one new, and completely odd, or as much so as my feeble brain can come up with upon first attempting to function… So, don’t worry if today’s title sounds a bit dark, or depressive; it has nothing to do with us; in fact, it has nothing to do with anything at all…. Sort of like this whole process, eh?….

All that being said, I’m making an executive decision to get on with the rest of today’s mess with no further nonsense, or sense, for that matter. In point of fact, we’re going to use the old #4 we found yesterday, which worked so well for us then, we’re employing it again today…. It works like this….

Shall we Pearl?….

“How ridiculous and unrealistic is the man who is astonished at anything that happens in life.” — Marcus Aurelius

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Don’t mess with my kids….

Today’s video selection will push unmercifully upon your “Aww” buttons…. There is an old saw about how cats are suspicious of babies, but, I don’t think that old tale is true; it was made up by a jealous dog lover, I think, because all the cats I’ve known in my life were VERY good with babies and small children. They can be a bit grumpy, when older, but, will always be careful not to hurt a child, even when striking out in anger at tail- or ear-pulling. Here as proof is a video that will have you saying “Aww” every few seconds….. Enjoy!…. Oh, and, if it isn’t quite enough, there are LOTS more like it on the page where the link below will take you….

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Cats protecting babies

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https://youtu.be/5MuQweOv9q8

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“TAPPING? You POLITICIANS! Don’t you realize that the END of the “Wash Cycle” is a TREASURED MOMENT for most people?!” — Zippy the Pinhead

It took me a few days, but, I finally found the perfect quote from Zippy to cover any comments I might make regarding the recent fiasco on Fox, wherein the gazillion wannabe candidates for the Republican presidential nomination were gathered together into two groups to answer a bunch of soft-ball questions from the most corrupt, biased news source in the entire world. Sometimes I don’t know why they don’t just include their news broadcasts in their lineup of Reality TV shows; the so-called debate had about as much to do with actual Consensual Reality as does the life-cycle of aquatic diatoms…. Come to think of it, that might be more entertaining….

“Politicians are interested in people. Not that this is always a virtue. Fleas are interested in dogs.” — P. J. O’Rourke

Here’s another accurate observation that serves to point up my point. What’s my point? Ah, okay…. forgot that part, didn’t I? Well, most simply put, it’s this; what a load of horse shit!….. None of these men, or, rather I should be accurate, and say, all of these rich, ignorant, misogynist, racist white males, none of whom fit MY definition of a Man, have any real idea of, or any real connection to, the lives of the common citizens of this country.

Each and every one of them is, and has always been, completely insulated from any of the actual stresses and pressures felt by those average citizens; they’ve never been hungry a day in their lives. They’ve never NOT had a job, or a roof over their heads, or wondered where they were going to find the rent money for next month…. They simply have no idea, other than, possibly, as a remote concept someone once told them about at a party, of what the reality of life is for the majority of the people they are clamoring to ‘represent’ in Washington….

When I began this rant, I intended to spend more time taking some personal shots at the Asininnies who piss me off on such a regular basis….. However, I’m getting a bit tired of always preaching to the choir, so, I’ll finish this indictment with some old-school pearls from some of history’s most coherent philosophers and books…. well, and some not so coherent, but, nonetheless pertinent…. Some of the entries may prompt a comment from yours truly….

“Wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together.” — New Testament — Matthew xxiv, 28

(Many people are not aware, or are in denial of the fact that eagles, even the iconic Bald American Eagle so commonly associated with America, are scavenger birds, who prefer their meat well-aged. They are NOT efficient predators, though some are good fishers….. Any who, the quote does show how our political class resembles the species of, well, vultures. whose nature they display so readily….)

“Who is worse: Lawyer, Politician, Reporter?” — Smart Bee

“The tendencies of democracies are, in all things, to mediocrity, since the tastes, knowledge and principles of the majority form the tribunal of appeal.”
— James Fenimore Cooper

“Any priest or shaman must be presumed guilty until proved innocent.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

“Why are we surprised when politicians play politics? It’s not like they are supposed to be real adults… they are, after all, politicians and don’t have real jobs and aren’t playing around with their money.” — Max

“Politics has reached the level where we’re goin’ some if we can even get good, efficient people to vote, to say nothin’ of runnin’ for office.” — Kin Hubbard

“I know one committee I don’t want — Judiciary. They are going to be dealing with all those issues like abortion, bussing, voting rights, prayers. I’m not interested in those issues and I want to stay as far away from them as I can.” — Senator Dan Quayle (from “What a Waste it Is to Lose One’s Mind” — the Unauthorized Autobiography)

“It really doesn’t matter who is President. They all end up sitting in the Oval Office, sticking pins in a Dan Rather doll.” — Smart Bee

“Capitalism did not arise because capitalists stole the land, but because it was more efficient than feudalism. It will perish because it is not merely less efficient than socialism, but actually self-destructive.” — J. B. S. Haldane

“I’ve heard enough of your twaddle, Ringleader. We’ll settle this the American way — with our fists!” — Mighty Mouse, “The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse”

“Ignorance plays the chief part among men, and the multitude of words;” — Diogenes Laertius — Cleobulus, iv

There you go…. I can’t make it much clearer than that….

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I said earlier the titles have nothing to do with any of this material, and that remains true…. This poem, though, may test that contention a bit, as it is as dark as the title…. Not intentional I assure you; the title is fresh today, while the poem was first written on 8/18/2013….

Future Shocked:

Weeping, I wake;
waking, I weep, I weep.
I weep for the ages to be lost,
for the children never to be born.

Time comes calling, strident and spare,
nudging us toward the future with bony hands.
No pausing, no waiting, always away,
Frantic hearts unseen, unheard.

Spirits are dark, afraid.
And the Beast hunts, hungry and cruel,
seeking out the weak, and the foolish.

We all weep now…..

~~ gigoid ~~

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I have nothing to add to this pearl; it’s damn near perfect…. This one will most certainly be on the Quiz, ffolkes; I’d suggest taking notes today….

“Love is shown in your deeds, not in your words.” — Fr. Jerome Cummings

“A good friend who points out mistakes and imperfections and rebukes evil is to be respected as if he reveals a secret of hidden treasure.” — Buddha

“Morality is truth in full bloom.’ — Victor Hugo

“There is a road from the eye to the heart that does not go through the intellect.” — G.K. Chesterton

“None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“To extend your limits, you must push them… and it often hurts.” — Smart Bee

“Appearances often are deceiving.” — Aesop

“Time will explain it all. He is a talker, and needs no questioning before he speaks.” — Euripides

“If birth is a miracle, is not death also a miracle?” — Philosopher Bee

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All things considered, not too shabby. I’ll take it, warts and all. Gosh, it must be ‘lerve’…. Now I’ve cleared most of the dross and drivel out of my head, I think I’ll go back to bed. Better yet, maybe I’ll go find some bureaucrats, myrmidons, or some other category of mundane to torment for a while…. I’m feeling particularly curmudgeonly today…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; I figure that’s fair warning….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

No, no! Tar first, feathers last….

Posted on August 9, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Be happy while y’er leevin,
For y’er a lang time deid.

~~ Scottish motto for a house ~~

Dark Side Transit from 1 Million Miles

NASA Image from nasa.gov

Good morning…. Bolting up in bed, ripped from sleep by the collision alarm, Blake struggled to focus. As the alarm, certified to wake anyone dead less than 3 years, continued to blast away, he wished, again, he had taken his uncle’s advice, and gone into the family business. At that moment, making goat cheese looked VERY attractive…..

Okay, that’s enough…. Too much, too early…. Howdy, there, ffolkes. It’s me, gigoid, the dubious, awake once more, against all reason, at 2;17 AM, wondering what I did in my former life to have deserved such a karmic whipping. Then, of course, I have to stop, and regain some perspective, lest I fall into the trap of past regrets. I’m a lot better off than many people my age, who have far fewer resources upon which to survive…. Then, of course, the embarrassment and shame of feeling like a whiner sets in…. This naturally boots me out of the self-pity mode, and relative balance can be regained…. It’s ugly, it’s stupid, but, it gets me where I need to go in my head….

It’s also probably entirely TMI for so early in the day…. I suppose it’s too late for a [dignified silence] to be effective; it would just sound surly at this juncture. Silliness is probably not going to work, either, as I’m just not feeling silly (though I can’t say how I look; I haven’t been brave enough to look in a mirror yet….). I’d use my AI writing-bot, but, naturally, the batteries are down. Damn! It looks like we will have to…. Wait a minute! What’s this?

Look, ffolkes! It’s one of our old emergency escape packages. And, better yet, it’s our best design, a # 4. Tighten your belts, please, we’re going to use it. It works like this….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Be slow to fall into friendship; but when thou art in, continue firm and constant.” — Socrates

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On mornings such as today, I suffer from indecision; my subconscious KNOWS nothing pisses me off more than dithering, in myself, anyway. After enough time to frustrate me thoroughly (as if I didn’t have enough handicaps already), I made the only logical decision, to go with what my spirit needs, and be done with it…. Enjoy, ffolkes…. hopefully, it will chill me out a bit; can’t seem to find my balance today…. I found a collection of classical tunes designed for cats, which sounds just right…..

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Classical Music for Cats

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https://youtu.be/SoI8EoxfCRs

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As indicated by the picture, we’ve retreated in Time. I was going to produce a fresh rant, but, the aforementioned dithering is getting in the way. Hence, another trip to the archives. Today we’ll keep it relatively short and simple, with a bit of discussion of Albert Einstein’s wisdom, as seen through admiring eyes….

From 4/3/2012:

“A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.” — Matz’s Maxim

Upon reflection, although this is a fine pearl, I’m not going to discuss it now. I’m already tired, so here is my conclusion on this: he’s got a good point. Now, let’s start this section over…..

“A life directed chiefly toward the fulfillment of personal desires sooner or later always leads to bitter disappointment.” — Albert Einstein

Now, there’s a pearl! Albert Einstein is generally regarded as one of mankind’s most brilliant members, but most people do not have the capability to see how or why this is so, other than knowing that he was responsible for E = MC². If, however, one takes the time to look past this bit of common knowledge, to look at some of the statements of philosophy and life attributed to him, it becomes clearer, the key to his genius lay in the simplicity of his thought processes.

Albert looked at the world, and the universe at large, through eyes that refused to look away from the simple elegance of the underlying nature of reality. Instead, he focused on the small, basic thoughts, ideas, or physical properties that best described what is real and true. He also did not add superfluous judgments or unseen factors to what he perceived, focusing rather on the most relevant part of the concept, not those parts extraneous to the purpose. This quality enabled him to see further into the nature of reality than is common to the rest of us, who are prone to complicate our perceptions with our prejudices and or misconceptions.

His statement, above, is a perfect example of this quality; it looks directly at human nature, showing us how our own attitudes and desires can potentially be the cause of our own difficulties in life, thus giving us the opportunity to turn our efforts in a direction that will ultimately be more beneficial. The statement clearly lays the responsibility for the tenor of our lives right in our own laps, where it belongs, but, does so without condemnation or insult, merely dispassionate truth. Albert was truly one of humanities greatest treasures, in my mind; his words will, hopefully, continue to help guide people through life far into to the future…. provided there is one….. but that’s a different subject altogether…..

“I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.” — Albert Schweitzer

(I know, I know….. not the right Albert. But, it was deliberate, and I’m just doing what Murphy wants….. as is sometimes common, as soon as I finished the above section, the absolute perfect ending pearl pops up. I think Herr Schweitzer was thinking of Herr Einstein when he related this thought….. Albert Einstein was a happy guy; I have pictorial proof, which I have shared below…..so there…..)

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Is my forehead bleeding?…. No? Okay, good. I have no more excuses, or complaints, or suggestions. All I can do is all I have done. Here; try this one….

Gently Came a Wounded Child

But you shall not escape my iambics.

Soft, sinuous patterns of unearthly beauty
blithely commune with sinking stars,
as pale shadows of former virtue hover
near, ever clean, ever tolerant.
These unbidden habits are worn with age and care,
ready now for dissolution,
welcoming gladly the kiss of Death’s handmaiden.

Unknown to all, the child stands aside,
weeping for the lost days of youth,
days that now shall never be,
nor yearned for ever after.
Only darkness shall lay upon the landscape,
cold, hard, eternal.

Such then are the signs and portents
as we enter into the unknown future,
they are grave indeed.

Uncertainty will be our sole companion,
as the search for hope yields no result.
The lamentations of the gods
shall sound the elegy for Man,
who never learned to see the gift that was made,
so many echoes ago, in the hopeful past;
thus will we pass this plane of existence
as we came, baffled and afraid….

~~ gigoid ~~

Written 2/2/2012.

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What we have here is a failure to communicate…. It’s that, or Smart Bee is in full revolt. Either way, the resulting pearl seems to be possessed of a somewhat tricky nature… I’m pretty sure it’s a good one; I am just not in a mental state to be able to judge adequately…. None of my alarms are going off, though, so I’m pretty sure it won’t injure anyone. If it doesn’t make any sense to you, don’t fret; I’m pretty sure that’s what SB intended….

“Truth exists. Only lies have to be invented.” — Georges Braque

“One of the greatest advantages in the world is enjoyed by the person who says and insists that they are telling the truth, when in fact, they are telling the truth.” — Smart Bee

“What you think of yourself is more important than what others think of you.” — Seneca

“An optimist is a person who sees a green light everywhere, while a pessimist sees only the red stoplight. . . The truly wise person is colorblind.” — Albert Schweitzer

“Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself (I am large, I contain multitudes).” — Walt Whitman, Song of Myself

“The next sentence is true. The last sentence was false.” –Smart Bee

“Well, it just seemed wrong to cheat on an ethics test.” — Calvin

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Well. I think it’s done. Perhaps I should check, to make sure…. Hmm. Okay, so, better than I’d thought it would be. I’ll take it. I have to; otherwise, I’ll end up feeling like a kitten in the litter box of life. Wouldn’t want that, would we? Nope. Any who, see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes. I’ve left myself little choice but to return to clean up the mess I made today…..

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Overt simplicity: Bane, or Boon?….

Posted on August 8, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel, read only a page.”

~~ Saint Augustine ~~

The Baddest Raccoon in the World

Image from the UK Telegraph 8/5/2015

Good morning…. I think. The odds have improved a bit; without going into boring detail, suffice it to say I’m up, and have slept adequately for the purposes for which we had hoped to so obtain. Boy, that got a little convoluted, didn’t it? Let’s try to stay within the loose parameters set by our nearly nonsensical title today, by keeping it simple. In fact, let’s keep it simple as pie…

Cool picture today, eh? That is one BAD ASS raccoon, boy howdy! If he’s bad enough to have a croc for a limo, can you imagine who he’s got for a bodyguard? Definitely somebody you wouldn’t want to mess with, I should guess…. Okay, enough about me….

Shall we Pearl?….

“If you can’t speak softly, just use the stick.”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

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

I might have mentioned the laziness I feel today; if not, well, I am. I don’t even feel like expending the energy to go look for a video, so, instead, here are a few really cool pictures, from the same article where I found our Bad Ass Raccoon for today’s opening picture, a photo spread in the UK Telegraph on 8/5/2015. You can find the rest of the pictures by simply Googling the date and newspaper name…. Enjoy!….

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

Today’s rant will be from the archives…. It’s not that I don’t have anything to rant about; in this crazy world full of assholes and butt wipes of all kinds, finding material is not a problem at all. No, it’s merely my own laziness, combined with a serendipitous find of an old rant on a currently hot-butto subject, to wit: gun control, a term which has a number of different meanings, depending on whether you’re speaking to someone from the NRA fanatics, or from the AABH Gumbies (American Association of Bleeding Hearts). My own opinion is…. well, don’t worry, it’ll be clear in a few moments….
Enjoy!….

From 7/24/2012:

Gun Control – the belief that government, with its great wisdom and moral superiority, can be trusted with a monopoly on deadly force. — Smart Bee

This short statement, which I sadly found unattributed, states perfectly why I resist all the efforts that people make to change my feelings about guns, and how society should deal with them. In 61+ years, I have never, ever seen one convincing argument that can even tempt me to believe that the government of this country is either morally superior or possesses great wisdom. In fact, all of the evidence I can find tells me the exact opposite.

If any of these people advocating that all guns should be made illegal to possess by a common citizen can provide me with ANYTHING, just one thing, that indicates that I am wrong in this matter, then let them show it. I’ve seen NOTHING that tells me that the government has ANY morals or ANY wisdom…. and I’m supposed to trust them with guns? I would as soon turn my back on a hungry leopard…..

I’m serious about this, as most of us are when speaking of deadly force and weaponry. But what I meant is, I am serious in my invitation to the people who advocate gun control,which I happen to believe in; my definition is just a bit different than the common conception. But, if they could provide me with even one piece of information to support their belief, then I’m willing to listen to it, and consider its validity, or lack of same. I’m fairly certain they cannot, or will not, do so, but I try to keep my mind open to new information. They have not provided any….

I don’t think that common citizens NEED to own automatic assault rifles, or bazookas, or tanks. But, access to these types of weapons CAN be regulated, in such a way, and firmly enough, that number of people who obtain them for nefarious purpose, such as what happened in Aurora, Colorado recently. (And in Orange county…. you just didn’t notice that near massacre because it was the police doing the shooting…. at scared women and children….) I can see requiring that a person wishing to obtain such weapons undergo psychiatric testing, and registering the guns so the police know where they are, and how many. Regulation is possible, and in the case of weapons capable of mass mayhem, desirable.

But, I DO NOT believe, for even one second, that any government in the world, including this one, can be trusted with a monopoly on deadly force… from that point to tyranny and slavery is one short step, as has been amply demonstrated throughout our bloody, violent history. “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” We have all heard this, from the time we were small. It is a truism that nobody even bothers to try to disprove, as it has been proven to be true so many, many times, and it is so widely accepted as truth no one even knows anymore who said it first.

So, when I hear the outcry that always comes after an incident like the one in Colorado, shouting that “guns are bad”, and “get rid of the guns”, I sigh, and shake my head, and wonder at the naivete of the people who believe that the government could be trusted with that kind of power. But, I guess it’s no more naive than the folks who believe that Mitt the Twitt wants to help make their life better…. and no less dangerous a belie to hold…..

“Remember kids, if there’s a loaded gun in the room, be sure that you’re the one holding it.” — Captain Combat

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

In the recent past, I’ve been too lazy to even go look for any new poems by anyone else. While cruising old Pearls for material, I found a good one, which I haven’t posted for three years, which ought to be long enough for a recycle job…. Enjoy!….

A Last Confession

What lively lad most pleasured me
Of all that with me lay?
I answer that I gave my soul
And loved in misery,
But had great pleasure with a lad
That I loved bodily.

Flinging from his arms I laughed
To think his passion such
He fancied that I gave a soul
Did but our bodies touch,
And laughed upon his breast to think
Beast gave beast as much.

I gave what other women gave
That stepped out of their clothes.
But when this soul, its body off,
Naked to naked goes,
He it has found shall find therein
What none other knows,

And give his own and take his own
And rule in his own right;
And though it loved in misery
Close and cling so tight,
There’s not a bird of day that dare
Extinguish that delight.

~~ William Butler Yeats ~~

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

It took a bit of persuasion, but, SB came through in the end. This is what I’d call a typical Taoist pearl, with some pretty standard, not to mention excellent, thoughts on how to live one’s life in harmony with the universe…. Using these concepts as a guide can most certainly allow on to achieve, at the very least, a reasonable facsimile to harmony, which is, needless to say, better than the alternative, n’est pa?…..

“By letting go, it all gets done.” — Tao Te Ching

“A human being is a part of the whole, called by us Universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest–a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole nature in its beauty.” — Albert Einstein

“Rotten wood cannot be carved.” — Confucius (Analects, Book 5, Ch. 9)

“Who does not trust enough will not be trusted.” — Lao Tzu

“Democritus said, words are but the shadows of actions.” — Plutarch — Of the Training of Children

“Great tranquility of heart is his who cares for neither praise nor blame.” — Thomas A. Kempis

“One who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.” — Lao-tzu, _Tao Te Ching_

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

As is perfectly normal, a bit of a struggle ensued when I attempted to keep this process moving; SB always has something to contribute, and usually, it’s got a lot to do with whatever Murphy’s been whispering when I’m not paying attention…. Brute force and threats worked just fine today, though, meaning we saved a bit on bribes, always a good thing. I think it would probably be best now if we go, before I say something subject to litigation. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; Mom says I have to….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

No, thanks, it’s already limp…

Posted on August 6, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Nothing is more dangerous than an idea…. if it’s the only one you’ve got.”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

Whither bound, mariner?

West by west, against the tide…

Good morning…. Welcome to ECR, and, the creation of today’s Pearl…. Bolstered as we are by the boon of an appreciable period of time in the arms of Morpheus, big plans have been formulated, none of which, naturally, will ever see the light of day. We’re up, though, and reasonably well-rested, having had almost enough sleep to require TWO hands on which to count the hours…. Almost….

It will have to do, though, and, we are grateful for what we were blessed to receive…. Hell, it only took three hours of chewing, swallowing, pacing, and twitching, along with about $200 worth of marginally illegal drugs to get it, but, hey, who’s counting, right? Not us…. Just kidding, of course; we’d never consider using illegal drugs for anything….. Well, anything other than emergency backup, anyway. One can never be sure one is getting what is promised on the street…. Of course, the very same can be said of what we get from pharmaceutical companies, can’t it? I don’t think I trust their good intentions any more than I do my local street dealer…. At least I know where to find him if I have an issue….

Too snarky? No? Good. We wouldn’t want to get stuck in snarky-mode this early, though, it’s not a bad idea sometimes. A bit of erudite caricature, combined with some snide realism, can make for a funny segment…. But, since we’re already dealing with being stuck in the royal “we”, perhaps we’ll not go into any of that…. Obviously, we are already confused. We have no clue why we are stuck here, but, we’re doing as well as we can…. Perhaps if,…. No, better not. Never mind.

Clearly, the process of putting together a fresh Pearl is going to be a bit of a struggle, given the apparent handicaps under which we are obviously ~~struggling~~ operating…. A mind too clear, a perceptive-mode tilted about 20º off plumb, and, a daunting view of vast vistas of blank white space, may just be more than we are prepared to cope with; we can do no less than try our best, though, for it is our chosen duty…. SIGH….

That being the case, perhaps we’d best be on our way…. Luigi, if you please…. You know what to do….

Shall we Pearl?….

When the dream came, I held my breath with my eyes closed.
I went insane, like a smoke ring day when the wind blows.

~~ Neil Young ~~

~~ “On My Way Home”, Buffalo Springfield ~~

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

One of the very first videos I chose to post here, once I figured out how to do it on WP, is/was this one. It is also one of the best concerts, ever, in my opinion, offering a joyous blend of music from East and West, with some of the finest musicians alive, playing their hearts out in memory of one of their friends…. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do…..

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

Concert for George

Royal Albert Hall ~ 2002

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

https://youtu.be/LG5EdoxBVt0

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

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

Before beginning this blog on WordPress, in August of 2011, I wrote for a site called GoodBlogs. The rant below is one I wrote for them; technically it’s theirs, but, I wrote it, so I figure I can use it when I want, law be damned. I’m an American, and, damn it, I can make decisions according to selfish expediency if I want; everyone else does it, because it’s been a valid excuse for humans since cave days…. Besides, I’m lazy, and didn’t feel like ranting today…. Enjoy, it’s a precursor of a lot of what I’ve written here on WP…. sort of an embryo rant, so to speak….

Written 7/17/2011:

How Seriously Twisted People Stole Your Votes

“It’s said that ‘power corrupts’, but, actually, it’s more true to say power attracts the corruptible. The sane are usually attracted by other things than power. When they do act, they think of it as service, which has limits. The tyrant, though, seeks mastery, for which he is insatiable, implacable.” — David Brin, The Postman

Is it just me, or does anyone else out there feel this country is being hijacked toward a future we never contemplated, one in which we have increasingly fewer and fewer rights? Since the advent of the Patriot Act back in 2001, we, the American people, have had a significant percentage of our liberties curtailed by the backlash of fear that gripped the country at that time. Without a whimper or any sound of protest, we have allowed the government to abrogate several of the freedoms that the founding fathers attempted to secure for us, including rights guaranteed to us by the Constitution. Ironically, it is purportedly done all in the name of “homeland security”. I thought “homeland security” was guaranteed for us by the Bill of Rights, which gave us the right bear arms. A 12-gauge over-and-under Winchester is all the “homeland security” I need.

Now, I know some folks will ask, “well, but what about terrorists?” My answer would be, one can only be terrorized if they give control over their emotions to someone else. When I first heard about the attacks taking place on 9/11, I too felt a moment of fear, along with the anguish and sadness that came with the reports of casualties. But fear passes, always, whereupon, reflection allowed my reason to re-assert control. When we allow our fears to dictate our actions, we are acting out of weakness, not strength. Acting out of fear can only exacerbate what is already an unstable situation.

In my estimation, this loss of liberties can, unfortunately, be laid right in our own laps. The American public, over the last century, and into this one, has consistently voted for people (men and women) who lie to us without remorse. Every president we’ve had since 1950 has lied to the American public; this is a documented fact, not a supposition. Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon, Johnson, Reagan, Clinton, Bush I, Bush II, Obama; all of them have been caught in lies, reported in the news (you’ll note Mr. Carter was not included; he may be the best man we’ve ever had in that position. It’s too bad that the rest of our government was made to look bad in comparison; his integrity was unforgivable to them, so, naturally, they sabotaged all his attempts at reform). Not one of them has ever admitted to these lies, though there is ample documented proof of them.

As long as the American public refuses to admit their own complicity in re-electing all these “tyrants” (see quote, above), then we will continue to have to combat further degradation of our rights, because the way the politicians see it, they can continue doing exactly as they wish, because nobody is ever going to take them to task for it.

We need to stop electing people who want the job. They want the job because they know it gives them free license to steal from the American public, which is not a bad gig, if you can get it. I can’t see how we can keep our freedom, when we keep electing people who want to take it away. Think about it! Is it sane to want such power over others? No, it is not. It is insane, and insane people should not be allowed to control our destiny.

“No man who needs a monument ever ought to have one.”

~~ Nathaniel Hawthorne ~~

End of rant…..thanks for listening…..

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

In keeping with the theme as presented in the ranting section, here’s a poem I wrote in January of this year, in much the same/sane vein….

gigoid’s lament

Not a bit of all the pain I feel
is worse than all I see;
all worldly truth, solid and real,
has faded away, never to be free.

Honor stripped of all regard,
while compassion simply fails;
Ignorance , powerful, hard,
crows as reason wails.

Crushing resistance, mandating the vote,
selling illusion, smiling all the while.
Pundits, speaking purely by rote,
arrange all the lies in a tidy pile.

Stupidity ’tis said, is a risky choice;
the price is always the same.
Reality has no pity, no warning ever voiced,
only a gravestone, carved with, our name.
,
~~ gigoid ~~

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

Today’s final pearl promises to be a bit strange… If you’ve been around here for long, you’ll know, that’s saying something….. When I sat down to begin searching for pearls, I left it open, allowing SB to set the pace…. The very first pearl shown was this:

“This mind intentionally left blank.”

Well!…. You can see I why I was initially taken aback…. But, then I decided to let SB have its head for once, so, what we get is what we get…. Let’s see how it goes, shall we?…

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

(Oops! I knew this was a mistake…. Oh, well, too late to turn back now….)

“I prefer to remain anomalous.” — Smart Bee

“Bow to no patron’s insolence. Rely on no frail hopes; in freedom live and die.” — Seneca

“It is ridiculous to lay the blame of our wrong actions upon external causes, rather than on the facility with which we ourselves are caught by such causes.” — Aristotle

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

“Life is not separate from death. It only looks that way.” — Native American Proverb (Blackfoot)

“What you see is from outside yourself, and may come, or not, but is beyond your control. But your fear is yours, and yours alone, like your voice, or your fingers, or your memory, and therefore yours to control. If you feel powerless over your fear, you have not yet admitted that it is yours, to do with as you will.” — Marion Zimmer Bradley, “Stormqueen”

“He sleeps well who knows not that he sleeps ill.” — Publius Syrus — Maxim 77

“All things considered, insanity may be the only reasonable alternative.” — Smart Bee

I’m not going to comment on how it turned out. I will say, we’ll think twice about doing this again….

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

As suspected, it came out with a few wrinkles; I don’t believe any of them will detract from the overall view, though, so, we’ll let them be, in the interests of compassion for our still fragile condition…. Let me merely add, DAMN!…. I’m sure glad that’s done! I think I may have strained my brain….. Fortunately, I have a full 24 hours to recover, before starting this process all over again…. And people say I’m not consistent!….

See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes. There doesn’t seem to be anything logical, rational, or compellingly threatening enough to stop me, so…. what the hell? Why not?….. Ta, then…. Oh, and, remember to be excellent to each other….

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

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

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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Tag Archives: Oscar The Grouch

Ambiguity makes a poor legacy….

No, no! Tar first, feathers last….

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