Tag Archives: Philosophy

Another in a long line of wretched laundry confessions….

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Ffolkes,

Since it’s already six of one, I’m going to assume that it’s also half dozen of another, and, in spite of how it may seem, or whether or not it is ethical, or moral, or not, that’s the way it will stay. There isn’t a damn thing a single one of us can do about it, so any reluctance to acknowledge this state of affairs can only lead to difficulties for you, and, more critically, for your immediate family…. Sorry, but, natural law is natural law, and there is nothing any of us can do about it, is there? Try to capitulate with some grace, and be a credit to your family, eh?

Nonsense and snide innuendo aside, how y’all doin’? It’s been an interesting two or three days, what with moving, landlord bullying, and internet epiphanies, so I’ll try to correlate some of the more outré information into a palatable format, thus turning shit into jewelry (crap –> pearls). Or not, I’m not sure, and I definitely don’t care HOW it happens, as long as it happens, and does so without bloodshed. I’m running out of bandaging material, or I wouldn’t even care about the blood, so, since I’m strewing BS all over the place at an alarming rate already, we’ll go on, to save resources…

Where, you may ask? Where, indeed…. we are off into the wilds of gigoid’s brain, where there is no telling just what we may find in the nature of biting criticism of humanity’s most dishonorable, shady behaviors (especially as perpetrated by those who would be seen as our leaders…), elegant verse (well, I DO post other poets!….), gut-busting humor, and crunchy, healthful, and flavorful snacks….

Okay, so I’m a bit delusional this morning; it’s a natural defense against getting up so early, which, having failed to keep me asleep, inevitably turns to the bag of tricks furnished by a long history of insane thought patterns, along with years and years of exposure to the most virulently insane folks on the planet, when I worked as a psychotherapist…..

But, I digress…. I think…. Is it possible to digress, when one is already lost in space, and time? Hmm, I’ll have to think about that one, one of these days…. In the meantime, I should probably think about getting started with today’s Pearl…. We are fairly well settled in to the new place, and the cat is now a happy camper, with three more rooms in which to practice her psycho-kitty skills, and an extra person to bedevil…. There are only four more boxes of stuff to put away, and a bed to buy….. otherwise, we are good to go, and much more content to be in a building with only one quiet neighbor, instead of 16, comprised of people displaying diverse levels of ignorance, as well as a significant number with unfortunate taste in music . It’s a good thing, yes, it is….

It is now 0540, and I have the entire day ahead of me…. which, I just realized, is one of my favorite things, because these moments are filled with potential…. nothing is yet determined, and the day is mine to do with as I please…. It’s nice to start it with a kiss from a beautiful blonde, too… Since the day is starting so well, and I have wandered sufficiently around my head for the intro section to reach the legal limit, I’m going to make like a tree, and leave…. Ouch, sorry, didn’t mean to get so old and corny…. it just sort of sounded right, but, next time, I’ll go more modern, and save the corn to cook with…. (Sorry again…. couldn’t help it…)

Shall we Pearl?

“A string of excited, fugitive, miscellaneous pleasures is not happiness; happiness resides in imaginative reflection and judgment, when the picture of one’s life, or of human life, as it truly has been or is, satisfies the will, and is gladly accepted.” — George Santayana
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“The great French Marshall Lyautey once asked his gardener to plant a tree. The gardener objected that the tree was slow growing and would not reach maturity for 100 years. The Marshall replied, In that case, there is no time to lose; plant it this very afternoon.” — John F. Kennedy

What a great little anecdote! I love to see a great life lesson told in a few short words…. Here is a perfect description of the attitude one requires to achieve happiness…. Yes, happiness, an old word, one bandied about much by the uninformed, and the unhappy…. Happy people never need to use the word itself, as they are just…. there. There is little need to think about being happy, when you are, and in fact, not thinking about it is one of the keys to holding it, once found…. Sadly, it is a rare person in today’s world who can sustain long periods where they feel happy the entire time; the world intrudes too much into our lives to give us leave to be happy, unless we know the secret…..

Yes, there’s a secret….. Of course, it’s the kind of secret that is hidden right in plain sight, like Poe’s Purloined Letter. It only requires that one be willing to accept it, and to allow it to enter into one’s spirit, suffusing the world in the less harsh light of contentment, rather than the cold, hard light of resentment. People tend to be like the gardener, blocking their own happiness by finding all kinds of reasons to NOT allow it entry into their world. As humans, we are taught at young age to view reality with stoicism, and mute, unquestioning acceptance of our lot; we are shown all the ways to look ahead, to see the worst of what can happen, in order to be prepared….

But, there is another way to approach the matter, one little known, and therefore little taught…Reality is a tough go, for sure, but, with a little bit of mental effort, much easier than the alternative, one can be in control of how it (Reality) affects one’s life. In short, Life treats us all like shit; what determines how much of it gets in our sandwich depends solely on us, and how we react to that shit…. We can slap the shit between two slices of bread, and choke it down…. or, we can use it as fertilizer, to grow some rather nice weed…. potent, and good for you….

Whatever one decides, the choice remains, as long as one is aware of the options. The problem with most folks is, they don’t see the options, or they don’t believe they will work, as their attitudes keep them from even trying a lot of new ways to do things. I won’t say it is this way for all people, but the greatest majority of people I see in the world are unhappy, without ever realizing that a) they don’t have to be unhappy, and b) being happy is within their power to choose…. It’s too bad, really, because that unhappiness is part of what makes people go wonky, losing integrity, honor, and any sense of morality, in order to reach for an illusion, an illusion of happiness that, even if grasped, will drift away and vanish, like smoke in a breeze….

This little mini-diatribe was intended to be more…. more clear, more inspiring, more helpful in getting people to think in different ways…. However, I seem to have lost that thread, and it’s getting a bit obscure, and thick…. So, I’m going to switch to old-school, and politely ask Smart Bee to give me the right words to accomplish that intent, without having to subject y’all to another thousand words of pedantic persuasion…. Well, that’s how it’s supposed  to work, anyway…. If not, at least it will have been more palatable, with more chocolate chips….

“Going to bed with a woman never hurt a ballplayer. It’s staying up all night looking for them that does you in.” — Casey Stengel

“Pizza is a lot like sex.  When it’s good, it’s really good.  When it’s bad, it’s still pretty good.” — Smart Bee

“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

“Man errs as long as he strives.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Faust

“‘T is but a part we see, and not a whole.” — Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Man, Epistle i, Line 60

“If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything.” — Mark Twain

“Eternity is a mere moment, just long enough for a joke.” — Hermann Hesse

Okay, so, that works, sort of….. My apologies…. It’s not as clear as I’d hoped, though it’s quite good, in its own small way…. Not bad directions, if one is accustomed to pearls…. I’ve got it! Here is an example of how happiness works, and is available for use by anyone who wishes to use it….

I’m happy now…. I’m done….

(That’s it…. that’s the secret….. No? Not clear yet? Ah, well…. Well, we’ll try again later, ffolkes…. just remember, you CAN be happy, any time you wish…. It’s all a matter of choice….  Bonus? Nobody can take the choice away from you….)
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While searching for today’s pearls, I saw one by Pablo Neruda, so I thought I’d find, and use, one of his poems for this section; that decision is always a good one, as there are an awful lot of good poems in his work from which to choose…. Abondanza!….

Lost in the forest…

Lost in the forest, I broke off a dark twig
and lifted its whisper to my thirsty lips:
maybe it was the voice of the rain crying,
a cracked bell, or a torn heart.

Something from far off it seemed
deep and secret to me, hidden by the earth,
a shout muffled by huge autumns,
by the moist half-open darkness of the leaves.

Wakening from the dreaming forest there, the hazel-sprig
sang under my tongue, its drifting fragrance
climbed up through my conscious mind

as if suddenly the roots I had left behind
cried out to me, the land I had lost with my childhood—
and I stopped, wounded by the wandering scent.

~~ Pablo Neruda ~~

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In section 1 today, I spoke about happiness, and how to find it (i.e., stop looking, it’s right there inside you….)…. While I was searching for the proper pearls to use in the old-school portion, the following group of pearls kept popping up…. Together, they all form another fine pearl, pointing in a general way to a picture of just exactly what a person who is happy and whole looks like, or, at least, the kinds of things they do, or say, or just think they say….

“I am free, no matter what rules surround me.   If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them.  I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.” — Professor Bernardo de la Paz

“When the need arises — and it does — you must be able to shoot your own dog. Don’t farm it out — that doesn’t make it nicer, it makes it worse.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s   “Time Enough For Love”

“It is the ability to choose which makes us human.” — Madeleine L’Engle (Walking on Water)

“How much time he gains who does not look to see what his neighbor says or does or thinks, but only at what he does himself, to make it just and holy.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, iv, 18

“I think a man ought to get drunk at least twice a year just on principle, so he won’t let himself get snotty about it.” — Raymond Chandler

“A person will be just about as happy as they make up their mind to be.” — Abraham Lincoln

“Sometimes, you just gotta say “What the fuck.”” — Risky Business

Wow…. perfect…. If y’all don’t like that one, well, there’s just no more hope….
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“All’s well that ends well.”….. There are days, such as today, when this is appropriate, with a slight change in punctuation… Let us say this…. “All’s well that ends, well….”, and leave it at that, shall we? Some days this process goes better than others; given the handicaps, this is better…. Now, let’s see what it looks like from the outside, shall we?….

Hmm…. That took a while…. but, I think it’s all going to be okay. Considering the content of today’s effort, I can only say that I’m good with all of it, as it not only gives me something I can be happy about, it gives me both the means to keep being happy, and a reason to do so… What more can a man ask for from life, eh? Well, winning the lottery wouldn’t hurt, and, I like to follow the example of all cats, who feel that it is always alright to ask for what you want; you won’t get it at all if you never ask…

What this means in the long view isn’t exactly clear to me right now, but, it seemed to fit, so, we’ll just show another cat-like quality, and ignore it…. I’m done, stick a fork in me…. Wait, try again, bozo…. Stick a fork in me, I’m done….. See ya, ffolkes….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Safely ensconced in a new/old cave…..

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Ffolkes,

No worries today, not about the intro…. Yesterday, I moved into a house with my lady Patricia…. Only a few blocks away, but, everything had to go, so, we went… Today, I’m exhausted, still, even though I spent the day watching other people do all the lifting and packing; supervision is harder than it looks, especially when you’re paying for it all.

Ultimately, it got done, in relative jig time, as the actual move was finished in 5 hours, total ( IMNSHO, it’s definitely worth the money to hire professionals; they packed two apartments, and moved all of it, in four hours flat, actually, the rest was set-up and breakdown, and paperwork….). Any who, all things said and done, it’s done, but, counting the cable guy who didn’t come until 1800, it took all day, beginning at 0600, and I ended up standing around a LOT…. hence, exhaustion…

But, no extra pain, so all is well; fatigue will pass over time, as I rest, my only effort being to putter around putting stuff away, or figuring out where to put stuff, or, maybe, moving it to the storage space we now have in the garage…. However, it also means this Pearl will have to come from the archives, as I just don’t have the wherewithal to create a fresh one… C’est la vie, mon amis… At least the internet isn’t an issue this time… the cable guy came late, but stayed until it all worked properly, so, we’re good to go in that respect. Gotta love technology…

I hope y’all enjoy whatever I find for reading today… I’ll be back tomorrow, with some stuff I want to say about the situation that is developing again in the Middle East, with Syria’s civil war…. What a clusterfuck that is turning out to be…  Tomorrow…. for now, here are some pearls pulled from various points in the past two years….

“I wish I was on a Cincinnati street corner holding a clean dog!” — Zippy the Pinhead
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The Pearl of Virtual Wisdom posted on 9/27/11:

Ffolkes,

Morgan Templeton watched with some small pleasure, as the sun rose majestically above the western hills, ablaze with the promise of the new day. As the light spread, he pushed away from the tree against which he leaned, and strode purposefully down to his waiting horse. Swinging lightly into the saddle, he urged the horse into a canter, away from the rising sun, toward the towering trees of the forest that lay across the horizon to the west.

Slowing the horse to a walk as he entered the trees, Morgan passed within the vale, following a slight path that wound through oak, madrone, the occasional pine or fir, meandering ever further into the woods. His eyes never stopped moving, side to side, up and down, back again. He knew it was relatively safe in this part of the forest, but long years of living in danger had taught him never to lose track of his surroundings, lest death try to become too familiar. Safety lay in remaining alert; Morgan had good reason to stay alive, very good reason indeed.

So, I was talking to a friend yesterday, and he says to me, “I just got a new computer for my wife.” I told him, “good trade, dude.” A little humor is always a good way to start the day, don’t you think? I know it always helps me to approach the day with a lighter heart.

What’s that? What happened to Morgan in the forest? Hell, your guess is as good as mine; I just write the damn stuff, I don’t pay any attention to it beyond the spell check. It got me this far, didn’t it? Some days that kind of drivel just leaps onto the screen; some days it leads somewhere, some days not so much. So today was a not so much. Remember what you are paying for this, and be content….it’s worth every penny…..

“In walking, just walk. In sitting, just sit. Above all, don’t wobble.” — Yun-Men

‘You govern a kingdom by normal rules;
You fight a war by exceptional moves;
But you win the world by letting alone,
How do I know that this is so?
By what is within me!
The more taboo and inhibitions there are in the world,
The poorer the people become.
The sharper the weapons the people posses,
The greater confusion reigns in the realm.
The more clever and crafty the men,
The oftener strange things happen.
The more articulate the laws and ordinances,
The more robbers and thieves arise.’
— Tao Teh Ching #57, Lao Tzu

Be the master of your will and the slave of your conscience. — Hasidic saying

In bed we laugh, in bed we cry;
And, born in bed, in bed we die.
The near approach a bed may show
Of human bliss to human woe.

— Isaac de Benserade (1612-1691)

“I can remember the first time I had to go to sleep.  Mom said, “Steven, time to  go to sleep.”  I said, “But I don’t know how.”  She said, “It’s real easy.  Just go down to the end of tired and hang a left.”  So I went down to the end of tired, and just out of curiosity I hung a right.  My mother was there, and she said “I thought I told you to go to sleep.” — Steven Wright

I love this one…”above all, don’t wobble.” Priceless! Perfect advice for leading the good life; don’t wobble. Good stuff…..y’all take care out there…..
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This isn’t from an old pearl, though it has been used in one, at one time or another… It is, however, from the person whose poems I turn to whenever I am feeling…. different….

I’m nobody! Who are you?
Are you nobody, too?
Then there’s a pair of us — don’t tell!
They’d advertise — you know!

How dreary to be somebody!
How public like a frog
To tell one’s name the livelong day
To an admiring bog!

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

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The Pearl of Virtual Wisdom posted on 8/28/11:

Ffolkes,

So many things going around and around in my mind, nothing wants to settle…..it occurred to me this morning that today will be the first day in over 33 years that I have lived alone. For 23 years, up until 2002, I was married and raising our kids; we spent a few days here and there not in each other’s company, but for the most part, we were together, or I was with the kids.

After my wife and I parted ways, and the kids all grown, Noah, my old Aussie heeler mix, stayed with me, and until yesterday, was my constant and faithful companion and friend; dogs never change their minds when they have chosen their object of affection.  This, then, will be a relatively new situation, one that will, I think, require some rather sweeping adjustments on my part. I have no regrets in my life, other than those natural when love chooses not to stay, yet I cannot help but wonder how different life would be had things gone otherwise than they have done.

Well, such is life; we have no choice but to take it as it comes, and do our best to live with dignity and honor. So far, I have managed to live with honor; dignity has been harder to maintain at times, in the face of the harsh light of reality. All I can really say for sure at this point is, I still live. And as long as there is life, there is hope……(thank you Edgar Rice Burroughs)……This morning’s selections were chosen with ‘mind on hold’, but in retrospect, that was probably for the best…….

“I tore myself away from the safe comfort of certainties through my love for truth – and truth rewarded me.” — Simone de Beauvoir

We are not victims of the world we see, but of the way we see the world.

“Blessed is he who has learned to laugh at himself, for he shall never cease to be entertained.” — John Powell

“Official truths are often powerful illusions.” — John Pilger, _Distant_Voices_, 1992 (In today’s world, “often” can be changed to “virtually always”….)

“These PRESERVES should be FORCE-FED to PENTAGON OFFICIALS!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

I stood
Among them, but not of them; in a shroud
Of thoughts which were not their thoughts.

— Lord Byron (1788-1824) — Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, Canto iii, Stanza 113

Doubt is the beginning, not the end, of wisdom.

I guess all I can say at this point is, it’s all a wash. Not a do-over, but at least a start-over. Life, that is, not the Pearl…. Step by step, walking the path toward the future, eyes ahead and eager for new sights, new sounds. If I wasn’t so bummed, I’d be excited; I suppose that in itself could be considered a small life lesson. Sweet and bitter are two sides of the same bagel, and we all would do well to keep that firmly in mind as we find our way down that long road upon which we have set our feet……y’all take care out there…..
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Okay, for a throw-together Pearl, it looks pretty good…. It went fast, anyway, and that was key for today…. As in the intro section, I’ll try to keep from getting crazy, and surprise everyone by just ending it….. here.

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Painfully shy, the marmoset left the lobby…

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Ffolkes,

In life, there are a number of events that occur that cause a great deal of stress to the human psyche. The death of a loved one, major surgery, divorce, losing a job, foreclosure, being falsely arrested, seminal events of many types….. all are guaranteed to put pressure on the mind and spirit…. There  is one I didn’t mention yet, but, is just as hard on people as those mentioned…. I refer, of course, to moving…. whether by choice, or force, having to transplant one’s self and property in a new place puts a great deal of negative pressure on us….

Packing, address change notifications, money worries, all contribute to making a move between two houses one of the more difficult propositions to accomplish with any degree of ease. In about two and a half hours from this moment, I have four professional movers coming here, to make the move from this studio to the new one-bedroom duplex a lot easier on Patricia and I, and I am not regretting a single penny of what it will cost, as it removes almost all of the stress from our part of the move…..

They will pack us up, move everything to the new place, and put it in for us…. All we have to do is stay out of their way, then, unpack and figure out where to put everything….. I’m hoping for a stress-reduced day, if not completely stress-free, because, quite frankly, I don’t have it in me anymore….. This also means this Pearl needs to get done in a timely fashion, so I can gear my head up for the big event…. Even though I don’t have to do the actual work, I still have to oversee all of it, and I have absolutely no doubt Murphy is hanging about somewhere, just waiting for his chance to fuck with me with some insidious, insane-making foul-up…..

Ah well, as I’ve said before, ain’t life grand? I’m going to go get this done, so….. Shall we Pearl?…..

“I’m EMOTIONAL now because I have MERCHANDISING CLOUT!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
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No harm, no foul, right? That’s what I always thought was the rule….What do you do, though, when the foul is vicious, the harm is real, and the referee is corrupt? Such is the case we have here in Amurrica, land of the fee…. and that’s not a typo…. I have a lot to do today, and, thus, have not enough time to rant, but, I have some thoughts on the developing problems in Syria, one of a long line of Middle Eastern situations rife with potentially disastrous consequences for all of us…. Not just the military, or the government, or them, or us….. I mean ALL of us…. If this one gets out of hand, the whole ball of wax could melt in the ensuing fracas….

Jon Carroll has been one of my favorite columnists for a long time now….. He is erudite, intelligent, compassionate, and generally seems to have the same view of events that I do, in the sense that we tend to disapprove of the same habits shown by the BRC….. His take on things often points out parts of the issue that other people may gloss over, or miss completely; he is able to pinpoint those issues with great accuracy, and excellent common sense…. This article meets all those standards…. enjoy this, if you will, in place of my rant on this subject, which will come in a few days, after I’ve gotten settled in the new place, and further developments have occurred overseas…

http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/carroll/article/The-upcoming-unfortunate-war-with-Syria-4772410.php
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Today’s poem has no meaning, beyond the fact that I liked it… it isn’t here because of any deeper meaning, or because it fits in…. I just like it….

An Old Man’s Winter Night

All out of doors looked darkly in at him
Through the thin frost, almost in separate stars,
That gathers on the pane in empty rooms.
What kept his eyes from giving back the gaze
Was the lamp tilted near them in his hand.
What kept him from remembering what it was
That brought him to that creaking room was age.
He stood with barrels round him — at a loss.
And having scared the cellar under him
In clomping there, he scared it once again
In clomping off; — and scared the outer night,
Which has its sounds, familiar, like the roar
Of trees and crack of branches, common things,
But nothing so like beating on a box.
A light he was to no one but himself
Where now he sat, concerned with he knew what,
A quiet light, and then not even that.
He consigned to the moon, such as she was,
So late-arising, to the broken moon
As better than the sun in any case
For such a charge, his snow upon the roof,
His icicles along the wall to keep;
And slept. The log that shifted with a jolt
Once in the stove, disturbed him and he shifted,
And eased his heavy breathing, but still slept.
One aged man — one man — can’t keep a house,
A farm, a countryside, or if he can,
It’s thus he does it of a winter night.

~~ Robert Frost ~~

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As time is of the essence, I have to go into the archives today, to pull out something appropriate for this section… I found a good pearl, from early this year, and it will do just fine…. enjoy!….
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“Can I leave now?  My brain is full.” — Smart Bee

I’m not sure exactly why, but this appeals to me; I’ve felt this way often, and can empathize strongly with whoever wrote it….. In its quiet little way, it also points at my own current state of mind, in that I seem to be out of outrage…. There are so many examples in my perception, of the evil being done every day, by the government, by churches, by random assholes with more testosterone than brains, I’m finding it hard to pick out just one or two to rant about…. For me, that is a disastrous state to be caught in, since much of what I do here involves ranting about stuff that tickles my outrage….

I suppose y’all might just be laughing at me just now, as this may seem like a minor complaint…. and, in a cosmic sense, it really is. But, lest we forget, MY cosmos is the one being affected, which will affect what I write about, and when, and how much, and y’all will be the ones that have to deal with the fallout….. You’ll be singing a different song, then, I’ll wager…. Ripples in the pond, don’t’cha know?….

This isn’t to say that’s what I WANT to happen; I’ve given my opinion previously on how much I dislike being unable to write something, whether it’s a rant, or an old-school pearl, or a poem…. Writing has become for me as important as reading, and I’ll consider writing ANYTHING, if it seems even the slightest bit intriguing, just like I’ll read just about ANYTHING, including milk cartons and cereal boxes, if that’s all there is to read…. Now, writing has assumed an equal importance in my scheme, and any glitches in the process can stimulate worry…. mankind’s true nemesis….

“More people have died of worry, than ever bled to death.” — Lazarus Long…..

Rather than spending any significant amount of time worrying, I decided to seize on what I had, and just jump in & start writing…. So far, it isn’t too shabby, but needs…. something…. aha! A hook…. I need a hook…. okay, let’s see what we have laying about….. Nope, nada damn thing to be seen anywhere in the vicinity, which kicks the worrying up a notch or two, for sure…. Calliope has deserted me for other parts, the headlines are too bland to get worked up about, and the Westboro Baptist Church of Fools has been strangely silent of late…. All I have here, as I gaze around the room in pathetic hope, are the same old items I’ve been looking at for seven months now, since moving here…. most of which has either been already explored, or isn’t worth mentioning….

I see now I should have perhaps prepared for this a bit better; research is always useful, and it would be nice to not have to get all antsy just because my imagination is coming up empty. Whining about it isn’t going to help, or solve the issue, so we’ll skip right by that, and go into strategic planning mode, followed by a dip into tactical operations mode, and we’re home free…. Let’s see now, first, a small diversion… I can do that…. Look, over there! It’s a pearl!….

“Why can’t we ever attempt to solve a problem in this country without having a ‘War’ on it?” — Rich Thomson

Now, THERE’s a question for the BRC, but I’m afraid it wouldn’t get as much response as we’d like…. Good strategy demands, after a diversion, a foray out into enemy territory, to gather intelligence…. so….

“All power rests on hierarchy: An army is nothing but a well-organized lynch mob.” — Edward Abbey

Okay, that’s intelligent…. now, we shoot back…..

“If a million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing.” — Anatole France

Yep, that had to hurt…. Okay, so now, all we have to do to have achieved our strategic goal is to finish them off with unassailable logic, combined with a bit of humor…. no worries…

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

“It’s not the pace of life that bothers me, it’s the sudden stop at the end.” — Hobbes

See? It’s all in the wrist…. Using two pearls for the last thought was deliberate, though it helped that both of them came up one after the other, as if pre-ordained…. But it just fit, as the first supplies the unassailable logic, and the second the humor…. and, as we all know by now, timing is everything……
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This has gone more smoothly than I hoped, so, rather than press my luck, I’ll confess to my duck, and leave it at that…. No, I have no idea what that means… do you? Oh well, no time to worry about it now, gotta go start packing what little there is for my part of today’s effort…. there’s always a few things one MUST handle personally, y’know?…. No way I’m going to trust my collection of prized paper clips to anyone else!…. So, I’ll just go find the velvet-lined manila folder, and get on with it…. This, while not completely cool, or even radical, is, nonetheless, done…. See ya tomorrow, I hope, from a new perspective point…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Happy, carefree moments in subliminal advertising….

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1

Ffolkes,

Lovely, simply lovely…. It’s always a joy to find myself in the throes of an emotional storm first thing upon arising, but, I’ll tell ya, it’s a joy I could do without, for, oh, say, the rest of my life….. I should know better than to do battle with an HMO bureaucracy before I’ve consumed at least two cups of coffee, but, nooooo, I had to call Kaiser right off this morning, to find out a piece of information about a medication I ordered…..

Little did I know when I dialed the number for the automatic system that I’d be getting into a fifteen minute quest to find a human voice…. Murphy must have been grinning maniacally, dancing in place and rubbing his hands together in glee, to see me trying to find a person to talk to so early in the day, on a system where the most you can hope for is to get out without more psychiatric damage….. SIGH….

Today’s Pearl may end up somewhat abbreviated, and, possibly, more than just a little strange, for a number of reasons, which I refuse to relate, they being none of your business…. No, honest, I didn’t mean that; just fooling around. But, it will be a bit less copious than usual, as my sleep seems to have become erratic again; I was up very late, getting up quite late as a consequence, and I just can’t seem to pull my head together enough to get going here…. It might surprise you to know that getting this far into today’s post, a mere one and a half paragraphs, has taken me over 50 minutes, of struggle and confusion, as I try to cudgel my brain into doing what I tell it to do…

Of course, I could go off into a discussion of why I think it’s necessary to post at all…. I mean, my sanity is intact, (technically), and the need for this kind of blather has become less critical in order for me to stay in a state of relative normality, or, as close to that state as I ever get….. This is giving me some minor motivational fits, as I try to talk myself into the mind-set needed to compose Pearls, which, though not far away, is rather subtle and complex, and doesn’t lend itself to “simple”, or “easy” in regards to ANYTHING to do with writing, or thinking…. I’m not sure, exactly, where this mind-set resides inside me, nor do I always know the right way to get it moving when I find it…. Today is a perfect example of that…..

I’m wandering around the intro section, saying absolutely nothing that has any real meaning, or relevance, for anyone but myself, and trying to make it look as if I am a writer, performing the actions that make up the process of writing…. How am I doin’? No? I didn’t think so…. Well, regardless of how it’s turning out, it’s how it’s going to be today, so, we’ll all just have to learn to deal with it, n’est pas? Oui….

Oh, and not only abbreviated (well, sort of….), but, probably, also pulled from the archives…. I’m not up to ranting, obviously, and I’m not sure if I can even get a normal, old-school pearl done….. we’ll see, I guess. But, if it doesn’t go well, I’m going straight to the archives, because I don’t have any patience at all today….

Any who, just wanted to let y’all know how it is today, and give you an opportunity to either bail, or buckle up…. Don’t worry, I’ll do my best to keep us out of any of the places where our survival becomes a question, at least for the first half of the trip…. Once the poem is in there, though, you’ll have to take your chances with the rest of us, because, by then, we’ll have gone too far to turn back….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Normal is boring.” — Fido Dido
_____________________________

Okay, so, not surprisingly, I was wrong…. It didn’t take long at all to put together an old-school pearl, so, that’s what you get…. The primary focus of this one should be pretty obvious, and if not, well, join the ranks of those about whom the pearl speaks…. This one is pretty straightforward, ffolkes…. don’t over think it, or it just slips away…. like trying to squeeze a fistful of sand…. And, yes, bracketing the five main pearls with two from Lazarus WAS intentional, and, yes, you can take that however you like….

“All men are created unequal.” — Lazarus Long

But evil is wrought by want of thought,
As well as want of heart.

— Thomas Hood (1798-1845) — The Lady’s Dream

“After enlightenment, do the laundry.” — Zen proverb

“Every man I meet is in some way my superior.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

How various his employments whom the world
Calls idle, and who justly in return
Esteems that busy world an idler too!

— William Cowper (1731-1800) — The Task, Book iii, The Garden, Line 352

“Baby, after considerable thought I’ve reached the conclusion that the only conceivable legitimate answer to the Universe as constituted is a peal of hysterical laughter.” — Keith Laumer, _Night of Delusions_

Never underestimate the power of human stupidity.” — Lazarus Long
_____________________________

When I’m in a mood such as this one, only one poet will do for me….

I felt a funeral in my brain,
   And mourners, to and fro,
Kept treading, treading, till it seemed
   That sense was breaking through.

And when they all were seated,
   A service like a drum
Kept beating, beating, till I thought
   My mind was going numb

And then I heard them lift a box,
   And creak across my soul
With those same boots of lead, again.
   Then space began to toll

As all the heavens were a bell,
   And being, but an ear,
And I and Silence some strange Race
   Wrecked, solitary, here.

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

_____________________________

Hard as it may be to believe, my mood is deteriorating, rapidly, and I can see that soon I’ll be unfit for human interaction…. So, in the interests of getting done, here is an old rant on gun control issues, just for fun…. The fact I can use the word ‘fun’ in the same sentence as the words ‘gun control’ goes to show just how far down in the dumps my mood has sunk….

“Gun control is not about guns. It is about control.” — Smart Bee

You had to know I couldn’t let this one go….. Yesterday, the POTUS signed several “Executive Orders” regarding the subject of gun control, addressing the issues that much of the American public is focused on directed to be focused on, by the BRC and the media….. Putting aside for the moment the issue of gun control itself, I wish to make it clear that the “Executive Orders” that were used to create the new regulations are a clear and obvious circumvention of the Constitution, and a direct attempt to bypass the checks and balances that our three-pronged government is supposed to be subject to thereby. It seems to be escaping everyone’s notice that the Executive Branch of the government is now MAKING LAWS, not just enforcing them.

The whole system that has grown up around the concept of Executive Orders is, as far as I can see, completely illegal, according to Constitutional law. The President does NOT have the right to make laws, no matter how much urgency is seen to be present, or how much expediency is needed to address a situation. Congress is the body that is supposed to make laws, and the enforcement of those laws is the responsibility of the Executive Branch, with the oversight of both to be accomplished by the Federal Courts….

That is the way it was designed, and that is the way it has worked, to protect our rights as citizens for over 200 years….Now, because of public fear, due mostly to the media frenzy at the behest of the BRC, and the manipulative dishonesty of the corporate masters of that same BRC, the rights we have enjoyed as Americans are now just about all gone.

The assholes who run this country, the corporate masters who pull all the strings from behind the curtains, have successfully created a climate of fear amongst the general populace, and have neatly manipulated events so that it is the public itself clamoring for protection….. from itself. The media have so effectively spread the fear and horror, that the people on the streets are actually asking to have their rights curtailed, “for the good of society”…… What a load of bilge!

I am amazed at times at how naive people can be. The world is a dangerous place, and always has been, as human nature is anything but civilized. Yet people expect the government to be able to eliminate all danger from the public venue. They expect there to never be people who go crazy, and start shooting at everything they see, or attacking their delusional enemies. They expect there to never be an instance where police shoot unarmed citizens, just because they can. They actually expect members of the Beloved Ruling Class to have concern for what is important to them, instead of blithely pursuing their own agendas….. Such naivete is sadly all too common, and is the reason the rest of us will be forced to go along with the repressive regulations that are surely coming….

Yesterday, in discussing the gun control issue with a neighbor, it became clear just how naive, and unwilling to think, the general populace is…. This person is, I’d say, a pretty average citizen, perhaps less educated than some, but with more innate intelligence than many I know of. She actually said “yes” when I asked her if she trusted the police to be more ethical than the average citizen….

When I pointed out the multitude of incidents that occur every day that show police officers to be much less moral than the average joe, she acknowledged the point, but still would not voice mistrust of the police over the citizenry. She actually believes that policemen and women are more capable of carrying a gun, and not using it unethically, than are average folks…. A very, very foolish assumption, to my way of thinking, based on faith, not facts…..

So, what we have now is a dual issue…

First, the government wants to limit the citizenry’s access to certain types of guns, a direct abrogation of the Second Amendment to the Constitution. (Read it…. it says the right to bear arms will “not be abridged.” Period.)

Second, the executive branch of government is being allowed to make law, another direct abrogation of the Constitution, which assigns that function to Congress. If nothing else, these two subjects are going to provide the impetus for a shit-load of public discussion, for sure (Well, I can hope… I guess that’s my own form of naivete)….

The trickiest part of all this is to be able to winnow out the wheat from the chaff, for there will be a LOT of chaff thrown up, much of it by the BRC, as they do all they can to obfuscate the issues, and hide their own manipulative interactions.

You will, I’m sure, see and hear more on this, both here on this blog, and out there in the Big Blue Room. I’m not done ranting on either of these issues, you can count on that. For the moment, I’m going to go search out some pearls to use in the discussions, and leave you to chew on what I’ve already brought up. Don’t worry, I’ll be back, to chew on these bones some more…..

“I have the power to HALT PRODUCTION on all TEENAGE SEX COMEDIES!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
_____________________________

Well, so I was wrong about the length, too… oh, well. Breaks my heart, it does, to be wrong, but, in this case, it works out okay, so, I’ll try not to let it ruin the day…  🙂   

Actually, given my state of mind and body when beginning this morning, this came out pretty well. I’m pretty sure nobody will suggest waking up the Pulitzer Committee to let them know it’s done, but, it makes me feel good to have gotten this far without any major blood loss, which is just as good, right? Right…. Before I say something I’ll regret, I’ll bid the adieu, until tomorrow…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Ecstasy mode has been added as an accessory….

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Reply

Ffolkes,

“Do not settle for less than the best your own excellence can command.” — Anne McCaffrey

Excellence has always been the goal, for almost my entire life…. In school, on the playing field, at work, every activity I have engaged in has been given my best effort at performing the given tasks as well as they could be done, whether physical or mental in nature. Without tootling my horn too loudly, I’ve done pretty well at it…. I was valedictorian of my high school class, played three varsity sports, achieving All League status in both football and baseball, and have gotten consistently excellent work ratings at whatever job I held…. My personal philosophy, Peruaosophy, acknowledges the importance of excellence in my life, with axiom # 4 stating, “Excellence is its own reward.”…..

This morning, I am reaching a milestone in blogging…. This will be my 800th post, in just over two years of blogging, not all of which met my standards of excellence, other than in their consistency of publication, and their technical characteristics, such as grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. As for the literary aspects, I will be the first to admit that what I’ve created doesn’t always tip the scale all the way to ‘excellent’ in every post, but, I made an excellent effort at it, and would imagine about half of it could be considered quite good….. Some of it is pretty funny, anyway….

So, anyway, I am not sure how I should react to this milestone…. I’m well past the time in my life where I’d use this as an excuse to go celebrate, abusing my liver by an outrageous consumption of adult beverages, but, I guess I won’t mind feeling a small glow of satisfaction for the day…. Well, I can do that, once this actually gets posted, and this 800th version of the Pearls of Daily Wisdom on WordPress joins its fellows…. Since I am trying to rest, and gather my resources and energy for the upcoming move I have to make, in two days, it will be nice to contemplate the satisfaction of my achievement while I am doing so…

This event has also had the serendipitous side-effect of giving me enough material for a legal intro section, without having to go through my normal contortions…. I’m sure everyone will appreciate that, given that, according to the stats, whatever I’ve been doing seems to be driving all but three or four hardy souls away…. No matter, Maya is everywhere, and nothing we perceive is real, unless it is……

Now that I’ve written four paragraphs, my brain is starting to wake up, bringing me a bit closer to real cogitation, and I see by the above that once again, I’ve wasted a perfectly good opportunity for some serious humor with a semi-serious, and all-too-sincere discussion of reality’s current configuration settings. I hate to miss a good chance for a joke or two, but, what’s done is done, and it’s too much to expect me to write, and, at the same time, monitor the direction and quality of what I write, so, as is the standard policy here, we’ll leave it in place, and get on with the rest of today’s concourse d’elegance, which, if I am translating correctly, is at least in the vicinity of where we wish to end up…..

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Even as a great fish swims along the two banks of a river, first along the eastern bank and then the western bank, in the same way the Spirit of man moves along beside his two dwellings: this waking world and the land of sleep and dreams.” — Upanishads
_____________________________

In order to have any chance of understanding anything in this section, it is recommended that you first engage your most perceptive, flexible attitude, and read the article found at the end of the link below….. please?…..

http://blog.sfgate.com/morford/2013/08/27/doom-gloom-smile/

In the last few weeks, Mr. Morford has written a couple of excellent essays that parallel my own thinking; this is one that gives a good idea of what goes through my head every day, or whenever I think about the sad situation we are in, as a species, in relation to our planet’s health, and its threatened ability to provide us with an environment that is conducive to our survival…. (Hmm… a little pompously phrased, but, hey, it’s a serious subject….) Those thoughts invariably end up in a scary place, and it is hard at times to maintain the illusion of my own happiness, in the face of the future…. How can I enjoy my own time on earth, when I know that my children’s children will be faced with some very hard times, and choices, as the situation worsens?…

I’m not in the mood to rant, even with the anger and outrage that thinking about the BRC’s complicity in bringing the world to this point gives me; sleep was not to be found last night, and my brain feels as if it is packed in cotton…. safe, warm, and comfortable, but not terribly interested in being sharp…. So, to go along with Mark’s mindful insights, I offer this pearl, to give some color and contrast to a situation that resists any beautification efforts….

“History is a nightmare from which we are trying to awaken.” — James Joyce

How sad and bad and mad it was!
But then, how it was sweet!

— Robert Browning (1812-1890) — Confessions, ix

“Although war is cruel and brutal, it is also dangerous and stupid.” — Yakko Warner

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

“It is not good to try to lead people by hitting them over the head, but for some few, having a bat handy is helpful, just in case.” — Smart Bee

“It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress.” — Mark Twain  Following the Equator (1897)

“YOW!!  I’m in a very clever and adorable INSANE ASYLUM!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
_____________________________

Since today is a milestone Pearl, it seems appropriate to use one of my own poems. Here is one of the first I wrote after beginning to write poems again, after a 35 year hiatus…..

Playing by the Rules

All my days I looked for love,
And found it everywhere I looked.
The years were joyous and fully booked
Seemingly by command from Above.

In return for all of the beauty in Life I found
I played life by the Rules that we all know,
It was from my father I learned the how,
Honest love, given freely, hand-fasted, gladly bound.

It seemed a while as if it were all real,
that fulfillment and contentment could be
as real as the children given us to oversee,
to teach them of Life and Love, and how to feel.

Then storm clouds of grievous change arrived, unbidden
Insidious, deceitful, three steps forward, then one back.
Tearing holes in our beautiful cloth, a heart heard to crack,
Gleeful demons eating life’s bounty, fangs dirty, and hidden.

Pain and sorrow grew, in defiance of all I tried,
Sanctuary turned into a reluctant scene of ritual battle,
Love still lives, but is herded like doomed and pitiful cattle,
While the keening of my soul sounds as if I’d died.

Betrayal in love is, allow me to assure, no small pain to take.
Time has no power to reduce its place in my heart or soul.
My truest love became a stranger, a powerfully sharp toll,
Solitude has become my lot, no killing time for necessity’s sake.

Love yet surrounds me, everywhere; I’m not one of those fools…
Children are forgiving, I’m glad to be able to say,
They show me life’s solid purpose, the old, right way,
I guess  don’t know any other way, than to Play it by the Rules.

~~ gigoid ~~
_____________________________

I had a whole slew of excuses and/or justifications for using an archived pearl in this section, all of which seemed lame once I had written them down, so, I’m not going to give one…. Here is a section three discussion from the Pearl on 1/2/13; I will only say that it seems appropriate for what has happened here today….

“But my dear man, reality is only a Rorschach ink-blot, you know.” — Alan Watts

I enjoy the words of Alan Watts, and have done so since first reading one of his books in college, many years ago. His command of English is so deep and wide that he is somewhat hard to read, due to the weight and depth of both the material under discussion, and of the words he chooses to use. But, working one’s way through to the end of what he writes is well worth all the effort, for he explains the complex, and yet simple, wisdom of the Eastern religions and philosophies, in Western terms, so they are comprehensible to those same Western thinkers, with a clarity heretofore unseen. This particular line is one of his most simply written, yet is still deep and insightful…..

With one swift phrase, Reality is laid bare for all to understand, showing its flexibility, it’s malleable nature able to become whatever we perceive it to be. Each of us has our own interpretation of what we perceive as reality, and it is often very different than what others may believe it to be. Sometimes, I am absolutely amazed at the variety of perceptions that people describe, and feel a lot of satisfaction, on one level at least. That is the level of interaction…. I think it is just wonderful, that people from so many different backgrounds, and so many different ways of looking at the same thing, can still live together on one planet in relative harmony.

It would seem apparent that so many differing viewpoints would cause a lot of trouble, and to some extent that’s true…. There is a lot of trouble on this world, and Reality is not a place for the weak or timid to hang out safely. But, mostly, all the various attitudes and outlooks on life seem to shuffle along without much conflict, at the personal level, compared to what might be expected. One of those little unexplained miracles in life that we often don’t see, or appreciate….. The phenomenon is even more pronounced in institutions such as mental hospitals, where the visions of reality are of such a nature as to seem limitless in their variety. I was always impressed at how people from so many different parts of the galaxy were able to live together in peace….   🙂

For me, the best part about the nature of Reality is this chameleon-like quality: it can be anything we want it to be. We can accept the perceptions it sends us, and even see, and understand, what those are describing to others, thus making it convenient for us to communicate about it. Or, we can choose to alter those perceptions, either in the way we receive them, or in the way we interpret them; either method gives us control over exactly how we view what is now a somewhat questionable form of Reality.

(It occurs to me that maybe I should use the capitalization technique, as with the words ‘pearl’, and ‘Pearl’…. Yeah, that’s the ticket… Okay, so ‘Reality’, capitalized, is what we all agree to see, and ‘reality’ is what each of us sees personally, with the word ‘see’ used to indicate ‘perceive’ because it’s a shorter word, took less time to type, and allowed me to further obfuscate matters in order to create the need to clear them up….. That should help clarify where we are in a sentence, even if it doesn’t actually simplify things at all…..)

Speaking of knowing where we are, this discussion seems to have reached a point where the next destination may be out of reach. Oh, not that the reality of it is too abstruse, or complicated, or even merely disgusting. No, it’s just too esoteric for me at 0815 in the morning, after already composing a couple thousand words on human nature and and the nature of Reality. It is almost a depressing come-down to have to consider ending this, since it was flowing so well, but, the perfect closing pearl showed itself, and I’m not one to argue with Smart Bee, or Zippy….. Stay alert, ffolkes, Reality can suck, and it can bite, when it’s not being nice…..

“I guess it was all a DREAM..  or an episode of HAWAII FIVE-O…” — Zippy the Pinhead
_____________________________

I’m struck at how typical this Pearl has turned out…. It’s over the top, length-wise, but that’s nothing new. It’s all over the map, intellectually, also nothing we haven’t seen before. It’s a little bit egotistical, but, hey, it’s my blog, right? I’m a little nervous about just how it will appear, in the big picture…. I guess I’ll go see now, and get that over with…..

Serendipity has struck again, hard…. I like it, and though I tend to be somewhat biased, I try to maintain some small degree of objectivity, and that part of me says, it ain’t bad…. and, it’s done, making it perfect…. now, with this final word from Zippy, I bid thee adieu, until next time….

“GOOD-NIGHT, everybody..  Now I have to go administer FIRST-AID to my pet LEISURE SUIT!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

All that? Over a few stale maraschinos?….

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7

Ffolkes,

….. And, then, I woke up…. only to find the same white screen staring me in the face, with, again, absolutely no idea what to put on it, to relieve the vast, frightening, vacant blankness….. I am faced with what is becoming my signature struggle, to come up with something catchy, or startling, or any other adjective that would lend itself to getting people to read this, and to providing some sort of incentive for them to come back for more….

It seems that much of the traffic I end up with are folks who are attracted by the title, which as y’all know, has nothing at all to do with what is in these Pearls…. It also seems likely that those who haven’t been here before, and drop in because of what the title promises, might be disappointed to find that, for example, Papal edicts do offer wholesale, not merely retail…. or, that paradoxes don’t burn….

Naturally, I know one cannot depend on statistics to show a true picture of reality, unless one has ALL the data possible, and knows how to analyze it…. requirements that are never true. Data is seldom complete, and people have a tendency to pick out the parts of it that support what they wish to say, usually ignoring the rest….. The implication is clear, to wit: relying on statistics is not conducive to finding the truth of any given matter. So, I keep writing, never knowing if what I’m saying is reaching anyone at all…. Good thing I’m not the nervous type…..  Wait, I AM the nervous type!…. Doh!….

So be it, as I’ve been forced to admit previously…. I can’t change the universe, and worrying about it is unproductive, to say the least. Change will happen whether I worry, or not, and I’m not going to sit around, moaning in despair, just because nobody is out there listening to me when I start shouting into the wind again…. It isn’t as if I am the only voice delivering this message to humanity….

A lot of very talented people have been shouting at the human race for some time now, all through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, into the twenty-first, and nothing of note has happened, nor is happening, to put a stop to those practices that will eventually kill us all…. We, as a species, have received a multitude of warnings in these last few hundred years, all of which point to our overweening avarice, arising from selfishness, and hubris, as the culprits responsible for our unresponsiveness to these exhortations…..

None of the warnings, no matter how elevated the reputations of those giving the alarms, have made the slightest degree of change in how the BRC and the corporate masters who control all the money and resources approach life; the results are being made more obvious as time passes, as the polar ice continues to melt….

I hadn’t intended to rant in this intro section; hell, I had no idea of where I started, much less where I would end up…. But, it’s all six of one, and also a half-dozen of another, so, what the heck, I’m going with it….. If nothing else, it got me this far into today’s effort, which, when I started, looked to be a losing proposition….  I suppose we’ll only know the whole truth when it’s all done, so, let’s get to that….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Evacuate?  In our moment of triumph?” — Governor Tarkin
_____________________________

“There should be more in American liberty than the privilege we enjoy of insulting the President with impunity.” — Austin O’Malley

Yes, yes there should…. Even though I don’t like using that word (should), this is a true statement, one that could only be true for our American society, as one of the most untruthful and corrupt ever seen in history. This form of government, as practiced by those professional liars who infest the system here in America, lies to the public at every turn, and, in general, uses the public platform of their offices to pursue their own agendas, no matter how little those have to do with the public good….

Don’t fret, I’m not going to rant again, though there is much in today’s world about which to be concerned….. I’m just commenting on the first of the group today, to kind of point the way, and let y’all know ahead of time where we’ll be heading…. This is new and different, I know, and there’s no telling whether such kindness and tact will ever be shown again…. but, hey, it’s here today, so, enjoy…. and, please enjoy the following group of pearls, all picked to use as a stone, or a sharp stick, to poke at the BRC, and the people in our world who care only about their own damn selves…..

“A great deal of information we consider to be highly personal, and of interest to ourselves and the town gossip our names, telephone numbers, marital status, educational accomplishments, job and credit histories, even medical, dental, and psychiatric records is now being sold on the open market to anyone who believes he or she might be able to use such information to turn a profit. These transactions usually take place without our knowledge or consent.” — Anne Wells Branscomb, _Who_Owns_Information?_,1994

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

“It is not lack of polling data or campaign contributions that keep many women from ascending higher on the political ladder. It is fear and loathing for the political system itself.” — Madeline Kunin

“How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?” — Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), Sign of Four

“Things are going to get a lot worse before they get worse.” — Lily Tomlin

“Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism — how passionately I hate them!” — Albert Einstein

“I’ve got an IDEA!!  Why don’t I STARE at you so HARD, you forget your SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Hmm…. well, it’s only 94% impenetrable…. I do like a challenge, don’t y’all?….
_____________________________

To go along with my confusion and presumptuousness, I think it would be timely, and reasonably suitable at this juncture, to throw in a small dose of egotism…. I don’t have a new poem yet; it’s still percolating…. but, here is one of my better old ones, though, actually, not so old, as it was written just a couple of months ago…. I like it, and it sort of fits in with the theme so far, so, we’ll all just have to deal….

Dubiously, Soft Morning

Idiosyncratic images, clamoring for regard,
fill up the white, white screen on which I view
my life, never seeing, nor invited to sup
ambrosial remnants of anything new.

Still, but almost in motion, allegory sails away
bobbing gently, quick and easy to find,
signs of one happy child, seriously at play,
blissfully immersed, focused joy in mind.

Formidable cries of outraged simple justice
echo plaintive relevance, in half the time.
Maladaptive infants, destined for hospice
salvage an only child, daring to sing in rhyme.

Creativity equals unquestioning farce,
often reaching for absurdity, brazenly afire.
Instead, a blow is felt that no joy will soften,
accepting the price, added to the cost of desire.

~~ gigoid ~~

_____________________________

I’ve ranted all I am going to rant today, even if what is already done isn’t in a formal costume, so, that leaves either an old-school pearl for this section, or, one of the new type I came up with yesterday…. Well, hell, I’m in no frame of mind to decide something like that, so we’ll leave it up to SB to pick out whatever we are going to use…. If it is only three, well, that will tell me to go with the new format; five or seven will push us into the old…. As I’ve been forced to say several times already today, so be it….

“It was a saying of the ancients, “Truth lies in a well;” and to carry on this metaphor, we may justly say that logic does supply us with steps, whereby we may go down to reach the water.” — Dr. I. Watts

“Murphy was an optimist.” — O’Toole’s Commentary on Murphy’s Laws

“One must be partially insane to remain sane.” — J. Bothwell Avison

“A person who lacks the means, within himself, to live a good and happy life will find any period of his existence wearisome.” — Cicero – On Old Age

“We have only two things to worry about:  That things will never get back to normal, and that they already have.” — Smart Bee

Perfect…. At first, it seemed as if this was destined to be a seven-star pearl, but, it turned out to be the most powerful type, a five-star pearl, with a point so sharp, it could slice sushi…..

I have read and understood the above.   X  ___________________
_____________________________

For once, it all got done, and, somehow, without any real stress…. I can only wish I had noted down whatever it was I did to make that happen, so I could do it again…. Oh, well, such is life, and it’s done, so I will forgo any bemoaning of my fate, in favor of making a clean getaway…. This went so smoothly, it’s done, and, with moments to spare…. Amazing…. Well, like it or not, I’ll be back, ffolkes…. See ya tomorrow, long as the creek don’t rise….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Just stuff another paradox in there; it’ll burn….

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Ffolkes,

A few days ago, I received a notification from WordPress that I had reached my second anniversary of publishing this blog. At the time, I had posted 792 times, about 30 of which were re-blogs. I find myself uncertain of how I feel about it, beyond the initial sense of accomplishment at having completed that many posts, regardless of their worth as literature. As therapy, it wasn’t the most elegant or intensive I’ve ever performed, but, it worked, having kept me from turning into a blithering idiot, sitting on the floor, dirty, rocking and chanting to myself while I pick at my skin….

Now, I’ll admit, it is not a foregone conclusion that I wouldn’t have made it through my period of isolation and poverty without going mad, though some would say that destination isn’t a very long journey for me, considering where I am starting from…. but, I know myself, and though I’ve never given in to the world’s intense pressure before, I am not sure I was strong enough, physically, or emotionally, to make it as well as I did, by using my writing as a way to keep from making that journey. Since I did make it through without succumbing to my pain and fear, it becomes a moot point, and isn’t something I particularly wish to dwell upon; in contrast to what I wrote much of the time, I didn’t much enjoy that time, not after Noah passed on, and I became truly alone…..

Today, I am past that time, and the issues that caused that state of mind are no longer present. This has changed my inner state, as might be expected, making me much stronger, as I’m not so often beset and overcome by any of my fears, because the means to deal with those fears is now part of my bag of resources. It’s hard to understand just how powerful it can affect one’s entire existence to be free of fear…. It has a way of freeing the mind, removing all the distracting emotional content from certain patterns of thought, content that can slow down the mind, or affect its ability to adapt and deal with the issues that arise in our lives…. Without fear to slow us down, we are much better able to enjoy life, as it doesn’t cause us the same emotional distress as when we allow the fear to hold sway….

In truth, this is a lesson I learned long ago, when I was first involved in the martial arts, and knowing it allowed me to work in a field that encompassed a lot of violence, without ever getting injured physically…. mentally is another story, but, this is just the intro section, and we’re already off track by quite a distance, so we’ll not get into that just now…. However, suffice it to say, fear, of the unknown, of violence, or based on lack of self-confidence, is a very powerful force in our lives, and it is critical for us to understand it in ourselves, and learn how to keep it from affecting how we deal with the world. When we try to deal with the universe under the influence of our fears, we fail, every time…. When we learn to let our fear pass over, and through us, without letting it alter our behavior, then we learn to succeed in the world….

Simply put, fear can either make our life a living hell, or we can remove its influence, refusing to allow it to affect how we will live, and, as a result, learn to enjoy the inner peace that comes with that knowledge…. It’s really that simple, ffolkes, and not all that hard, once one gives up the attachment to their fears that has developed over time…. People are often afraid to give them up, as they are more afraid of what is out there to replace them…. Like most folks, they are happier with the devil they know…. So be it, it is only themselves that will suffer for that…. Well, until they get elected, then, their fear and ignorance has a tendency to spill over…. Any who….

Shall we Pearl?….

I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.
I feel my fate in what I cannot fear.
I learn by going where I have to go.

— Theodore Roethke
_____________________________

The above introduction may have clued y’all in to where my head is today, to wit: your guess is as good as mine….. No, I’m distracted today, by thoughts of moving at the end of the month (week), fragments of a poem that has been percolating, stuff to do today out in the BBR, and, of course, the background muttering that is always there, my personal running commentary on what I perceive, and what my inner self is thinking about it…. What, y’all don’t do that? Hmm…. well, I have always had this little voice running in the back of my mind, sort of like an inner sportscaster/color commentator, looking at the world through my eyes, and commenting on what they see, and what I feel about it…..

“Life does not consist mainly, or even largely, of facts and happenings. It consists mainly of the storm of thought that is forever flowing through one’s head.” — Mark Twain

Does this make me strange? Probably…. I don’t much care, as whoever it is in there doing the commentary is a frigging funny guy, constantly  cracking me up with the reactions they give to what I see or hear….. But, I digress, as usual….

This will be an old-school pearl, because that is what I want to do now, and that’s the way it is, so, that’s the way it will be…. I guess I’m getting cranky, what with all the blather I’ve had to put out so far, just to get to this point…. I’m not used to so much typing right off the bat…. Carpal tunnel’s starting to complain, so, we’d best go on to the next stage…. I don’t know, or can’t say, just what the search parameters for this one will be, as I haven’t decided, and it is time to begin, so, tread carefully…. the path could get a bit dodgy to see, and you don’t  want to get off the path….

“Share everything.  Don’t take things that aren’t yours.  Put things back where you found them.” — Robert Fulghum, “Everything I Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten…”

“Be polite to all, but intimate with few.” — Thomas Jefferson

“A child is a person who can’t understand why someone would give away a perfectly good kitten.” — Doug Larson

“My father was a God-fearing man, but he never missed a copy of the New York Times, either.” — E. B. White

“It is not a fish until it is on the bank.” — Irish Proverb

“Don’t try to have the last word. You might get it.” — Lazarus Long

“I feel better about world problems now!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Well, that came out better than I’d hoped…. a bit loose around the edges, but still fairly obscure… I like it, so it stays…. No more argument, now, I’ve decided, and that’s it…. Never mind…. We’ll just go on now, and forget it ever happened…
_____________________________

The last couplet of this poem is a somewhat famous quote, used to illustrate many points of discussion….. I just like the poem itself….

A Vision of Poets

There Shakespeare, on whose forehead climb
The crowns o’ the world; oh, eyes sublime
With tears and laughter for all time!
And Chaucer, with his infantine
Familiar clasp of things divine.
And Marlowe, Webster, Fletcher, Ben,
Whose fire-hearts sowed our furrows when
The world was worthy of such men.
Knowledge by suffering entereth,
And life is perfected by death.

~~ Elizabeth Barrett Browning ~~

_____________________________

I am indeed feeling “differently” today…. so much so that my mind has created a new kind of pearl…. Below are three quotes/statements of position/ideas…. Together, they form a pretty good scale of life, in terms of how it needs to be lived…. These describe the high end of the scale, the low end, and, a middle point, which will show the way…. Enjoy this new kind of puzzle for the mind, ffolkes, and be prepared to use your anti-motion sickness pills, as there are some rather sharp turns along the way to the end of this particular ride…..

Deteriorata

Go placidly amid the noise and waste and remember what comfort there may be in owning a piece thereof. Avoid quiet and passive persons   unless you are in need of sleep. Rotate your tires. Speak glowingly of those greater than yourself and heed well their advice, even though they be turkeys; know what to kiss and when. Consider that two wrongs never make a right but that three do. Wherever possible, put people on hold. Be comforted that in the face of all aridity and disillusionment and despite the changing fortunes of time, there is always a big future in computer maintenance … Be assured that a walk through the ocean of most souls would scarcely get your feet wet. Fall not in love therefore; it will stick to your face … Reflect that whatever misfortune may be your lot, it could only be worse in Milwaukee. You are a fluke of the universe; you have no right to be here, and whether you can hear it or not, the universe is laughing behind your back. Therefore make peace with your God whatever you conceive him to be–Hairy Thunderer or Cosmic Muffin. With all its hopes, dreams, promises, and urban renewal, the world continues to deteriorate. Give up. — Tony Hendra


“Not all who wander are lost.” — J. R. R. Tolkien

“We may not be able to persuade Hindus that Jesus and not Vishnu should govern their spiritual horizon, nor Moslems that Lord Buddha is at the center of their spiritual universe, nor Hebrews that Mohammed is a major prophet, nor Christians that Shinto best expresses their spiritual concerns, to say nothing of the fact that we may not be able to get Christians to agree among themselves about their relationship to God. But all will agree on a proposition that they possess profound spiritual resources.  If, in addition, we can get them to accept the further proposition that whatever form the Deity may have in their own theology, the Deity is not only external, but internal and acts through them, and they themselves give proof or disproof of the Deity in what they do and think; if this further proposition can be accepted, then we come that much closer to a truly religious situation on earth.” — Norman Cousins, from his book “Human Options”
_____________________________

I am, as usual, unsure whether or not what I’ve done today is what can be called literature, but, it is definitely done, so, it will have to do for the time being…. I’ve got too much to do today to start over, even if I go to the archives, and I’m not going there today…. Any who, let’s see just what happened here this morning….

Okay, well, that’s different; what happened is completely outside my experience, and well beyond my ability to analyze, or describe in any meaningful way… Nothing new there, right? Since it’s done, and I have so much to do, I pronounce it finished, and will now take my leave, post haste… Until tomorrow….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

But, Mom, Papal edicts only show the retail cost….

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Ffolkes,

Nervy bastards, aren’t they? Even when it’s counterproductive, or, for that matter, illegal, the congress of holiday droids brought in for this morning’s show insist on keeping their motors idling; it must be admitted, they look wonderful while they’re doing it. Of course, it always seems more like winter when they’re trundling about, showing off their latest chrome package, or some new style of working appendage.

Clyde and Em like to put out special feeders for them, but, if you do that, then use the wrong brand of oil, boy, do they get weirded out; I’ve seen them attack a guy who put one in his blog, and forgot to fill it; the only positive outcome was that the remains fit all in one box….. Maybe this year, we could ask the town council to have them stay over after the holidays, so we can have a better look at them when they’re not so involved in their dances and rituals…..

I give up…. I can’t make this any more obscure, or meaningless, so, I’m on the mark there, but, somehow, it’s just not coming out the way I’d envisioned. I think I’m using the right tone, but, I can’t seem to find just the right level of strangeness…. very essential to this type of outburst…. Maybe if I….. No, that won’t work. Never mind. I suppose this means another morning of blather…. I’d hoped my oh-so-creative-mind could come up with something more fascinating than the recent previous intros have been, but, once again, it seems we’re destined to just wander the corridors of my mind, lost and afraid…

Well, I suppose we don’t HAVE to be afraid, though, at this point, lost is a foregone conclusion…. You may as well as throw “confused” into the mix for today, too, because I can feel it gathering around the edges, and, once it settles in for the day, all bets are off…. We may as well go back to bed, if that is the best we can hope for…. That won’t get this Pearl done, though, and was never really considered as a viable option…. I just like to blather, as we know…. No, that’s not right…. I DON’T like to blather, but, I mostly don’t get a chance to do much else…..

Since we’re destined to experience another metaphor for the rest of our lives here today, I’m going to go with the flow, and use some of my dissatisfaction with the opening to fuel even more blather. It’s the only option, now that we’re this far into the process…. In the past, I’ve made other attempts to place a limit of some kind on the amount of blather that gets spread around, but, the only time it seems to have an effect is in the closing section, where it’s already a part of the task to be done there….. Otherwise, the crap just keeps on flowing out, getting all over the screen, and, no doubt, on your clothing…..

Once again, I’ve gone from fantasy, to folly, sidetracked over into severely stunted sincerity, stepped in some small piles of crap, and, now, come back around to fantasy…. We’ll end this here, as we’ve reached the legal minimum required by law, and can now make a serious attempt to get back into the creative portion of this…. whatever it is…..

Whatever it is, I can see it’s going to be a struggle to get it done today….. It’s never a good sign when I have to use a cudgel to beat stuff out of my brain, which is as close as I can come to an accurate description of how this is going so far…. Damn it, I’d hoped to get out of the intro without having to break into the first aid kit!….. As they are fond of saying downtown…. Oh, well….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“How many, once lauded in song, are given over to the forgotten; and how many who sung their praises are clean gone long ago!” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, vii, 6
_____________________________

I’m a dog lover, having had one in my family since I was born. One of them taught my younger sister and I to walk, by standing next to us, letting us stand & grab their fur, and then walking slowly away, pulling us with them….. Her name was Butch….   😆  

All my life I remember one dog or another being there, providing me and my siblings with the perfect example of how to get by in the world, and how to do that cheerfully; they show by example how to live with honor, joy, and compassion for all creatures. I consider the species to be the most morally and ethically advanced of all those on this planet, and if there were a God, then one could only assume that He put dogs here to be our mentors in that respect…..

My last dog, Noah, was an Aussie Heeler mix, very smart, and very loyal and loving. He lived with us for close to 17 years, passing on in November of 2011. At that time, I wrote a tribute to him, and to his spirit, which, in a way, was a tribute to the spirit of all dogs, who have lived as mankind’s best friend, and teacher, for untold thousands of generations, and years….. I am re-posting it here today, because I miss him….

An Ode to Noah


Noah came to live with us when he was about 10 months old; we rescued him from taking the long walk at the Humane Society kennel in Santa Rosa. It was my son’s fifteenth birthday, and he wanted a dog, swearing up & down that he would take responsibility for its’ care. Pets were always part of family life when I grew up, and our last dog had been gone for a bit over a year, so it was time to expand the family once again.

As Cory and I walked down the aisle between cages at the kennel, a large variety of dogs started a welcoming cacophony of different barks; shrill tiny ones, deep booming ones, polite yips, all blended together in an almost desperate frenzy, as each animal, many of them almost frantic, tried to get our attention. Some pawed at the gate, some jumped up, some looked nervous, others looked friendly, and all of them, it seemed, were making noise.

As we drew near the last cage in the aisle, we saw a medium-sized black and white dog, not barking, not jumping, just sitting down, leaning against the wall by the gate. He was looking me right in the eyes with an expression on his face that just said, “get me out of here, please!”. What could we do? He was obviously our dog, and he realized it too. We told him we’d be right back, and went back to announce our choice, and complete the paperwork.

The attendant brought Noah in to us just as I finished. He still looked a bit nervous, but calm. That is, he was calm until I clasped his new collar around his neck and hooked on his leash. All of a sudden, when he realized he wasn’t going back into the kennel, he was immediately a new dog, wagging his tail furiously, looking at us with his eyes shining, almost dancing and vibrating in his eagerness to go. As we walked back to the van, he walked proudly in front of us, tail and ears up at attention, almost prancing, looking back every few steps to make sure we were still there, a very happy dog…..

Noah settled into the family immediately. He proved to be very well-mannered, both with people, and in his habits. When on walks, he would stop to sniff, and lift his leg, on every interesting bush and tree, just like any other male dog. But when he had to do his secondary business, he made it clear he preferred to go behind a bush, or somewhere out of the way, and preferably out of sight.

He would assume a very embarrassed expression when not sufficiently hidden from sight, and would turn away, as if he felt guilty. A very private, discreet individual, to say the least. If he had been overlong between walks, and was so much in a hurry that he made a mistake on the sidewalk, he would act just like a cat, and pretend that it had not happened. What mess? Who me? I don’t know what you’re talking about…..

Noah was an extremely intelligent dog; I’ve known a great many animals in my time on this old planet, and he’s one of the smartest I’ve ever been around. When he came to live with us, at about 10 months of age, he already knew how to sit on command (both voice and hand), to lie down, and to stay. 

Truth be told, he had a little trouble with the whole concept of stay; he didn’t like being left alone, and would often follow after a minute or two; it’s like he just didn’t want to believe we really MEANT for him to stay. He figured he should be with us so he could do his job. As long as he could see us, he’d stay where he was; if he couldn’t, he believed it was his place to find us, and we just couldn’t come to terms; on this point he was firm.

We also never had to teach Noah any tricks, as he seemed to have figured stuff out on his own, and his way was definitely cool….The first time I ever gave him a treat (a milk bone), I showed it to him and told him to sit. He sat. I told him to speak, and he gave one quick howl. I held out my hand, & he offered his own to shake. I straightened up, tossed the treat in the air, and watched him not just catch it, but after making the in-air snag like a professional left-fielder, he tossed it back up into the air. He watched it hit the floor, whereupon he dove on top of it, rolled over, and did a happy dance, by twisting his back and hips as if scratching his back on the floor.

I swear, he looked just like Snoopy doing the Dance of Joy. When he was done dancing on his back, he rolled over and proceeded to enjoy his milk bone, with a big twinkle in his eye. I always wanted to video the move to submit it for Stupid Pet Tricks on the Letterman Show, but never had a camera handy when he performed his feat, so Noah missed his chance for stardom.

Noah’s gotten old now; we just observed his 17th birthday in February of this year, so in dog years, he’s going on 120 or so. He can’t hear anything but very loud noises, and can’t see more than a few feet, and I suspect that is mostly shadows and moving light. I’m afraid he will be passing on soon, as he can no longer get up without assistance, and cannot control his bodily functions. I sometimes feel like I should have him put down, to ease his pains, but he doesn’t act as if he is hurting, and I can tell he enjoys just lying around and sleeping, as long as he knows I am near.

For his entire life with us, over 16 and a half years, he has been a true and loyal companion. He has observed with honor the pact that was made between man and dog many thousands of generations ago, and taking care of him in his declining years is both a privilege, and an honor. In my entire life, I have never known anyone more loyal, more compassionate, and more courageous in standing up to life. He is by far the best friend that any man could hope for, and by far the best person I’ve ever known……

Noah

R.I.P. Old Friend

_____________________________

This poet needs no introduction; he is, without a doubt, one of history’s finest…. I love this poem, and gladly re-post it today, in deference to my nostalgia jag…..

A Dog Has Died

My dog has died.
I buried him in the garden
next to a rusted old machine.

Some day I’ll join him right there,
but now he’s gone with his shaggy coat,
his bad manners and his cold nose,
and I, the materialist, who never believed
in any promised heaven in the sky
for any human being,
I believe in a heaven I’ll never enter.
Yes, I believe in a heaven for all dogdom
where my dog waits for my arrival
waving his fan-like tail in friendship.

Ai, I’ll not speak of sadness here on earth,
of having lost a companion
who was never servile.
His friendship for me, like that of a porcupine
withholding its authority,
was the friendship of a star, aloof,
with no more intimacy than was called for,
with no exaggerations:
he never climbed all over my clothes
filling me full of his hair or his mange,
he never rubbed up against my knee
like other dogs obsessed with sex.

No, my dog used to gaze at me,
paying me the attention I need,
the attention required
to make a vain person like me understand
that, being a dog, he was wasting time,
but, with those eyes so much purer than mine,
he’d keep on gazing at me
with a look that reserved for me alone
all his sweet and shaggy life,
always near me, never troubling me,
and asking nothing.

Ai, how many times have I envied his tail
as we walked together on the shores of the sea
in the lonely winter of Isla Negra
where the wintering birds filled the sky
and my hairy dog was jumping about
full of the voltage of the sea’s movement:
my wandering dog, sniffing away
with his golden tail held high,
face to face with the ocean’s spray.

Joyful, joyful, joyful,
as only dogs know how to be happy
with only the autonomy
of their shameless spirit.

There are no good-byes for my dog who has died,
and we don’t now and never did lie to each other.

So now he’s gone and I buried him,
and that’s all there is to it.

~~ Pablo Neruda ~~


Translated, from the Spanish, by Alfred Yankauer
_____________________________

Okay, I’m done being maudlin…. I’m in the mood now for some real, honest-to-goodness nonsense…. Smart Bee is generally pretty liberal in handing out samples of same, so I’m going to see what there is today, to bring us a smile, or a belly laugh, or just a chuckle or two….. Any entries you may note that do not have attribution were found that way in Smart Bee…. It contributed several pearls, and I didn’t feel like typing it so many times….

“Ah… memories, memories. Where is that brain damage they promised us?” — Hunter S. Thompson.

“Two men jump from an airplane. The first pulls the cord–and the chute works perfectly. The second pulls the cord–and nothing happens. He keeps falling straight down. As he passes his friend, the guy gets mad, unbuckles the harness, and shouts, “So, you wanna race, eh?” — Charlie Callas

“This passion, and the death of a dear friend, would go near to make a man look sad.” — William Shakespeare (1564-1616), A Midsummer Night’s Dream — Act v, Sc. 1
(I know, not too funny, but it seemed to fit with the joke….)

Fundamentalism: an effective form of mirth control.

He that would not when he might,
He shall not when he wolda.

— Thomas Percy (1728-1811) — The Friar of Orders Gray

Ignorance can be cured.  Stupid is forever.

— Bother! said Pooh, when he realized he wasn’t wearing any pants.

Couldn’t be better if I’d done it myself…. Good to go….
_____________________________

Today’s post is a perfect example of how fear of failure can be a motivator…. Since we are in the closing section, I’m not required to explain that, so I won’t…. Let’s see how badly I’ve screwed the pooch…. Okay, unfortunate phraseology aside, not too badly, I think… It will pass the legal requirements, which is good enough for me….. Not that legal is my primary goal, but, it does fit in with my policy of not attracting undue attention in that respect…. and if that isn’t pompous enough for you, I can try again….

Nah, the hell with it…. I’m done for the day…. See ya….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Save those false pretenses for the coffee cake….

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Ffolkes,

Okay, so what’s the deal here? I get up, all sleepy and grumpy, hoping to find that all is well, and I can get on with the day, only to find that nothing has changed….

There were supposed  to be dancing girls! Yes! Right there in the parlor. And, they were supposed to be wearing matching caftans! But, no, what do I find upon arising? A parlor full of dancing engineering students, wearing togas! Boy! You just can’t depend on anybody these days!…. Since we’re having to forgo the dancing girls, we may as well get started on today’s Pearl….. I suppose I also should come back into a more realistic voice, to make sure everyone ends up on the same page, so to speak….

Hi there! Good morning, sort of… We’re here in gigoid’s parlor, dodging the guys in horn rims dancing around, and waiting for inspiration to show up…. The muses are a bit edgy when they come here, due to Murphy’s uncomfortable habit of including them in his machinations, so I like to have them met at the door, and made welcome…. I had word that they, or, at least, one of them, would be showing up here about now to deliver what I left with them some time ago….

Oh, don’t worry, it’s not anything dangerous… at least, not any more so than the usual stuff we handle here. No, it’s merely some subject lines, a matched set of aphorisms, some platitudes, and a few choice phrases I left in their office when I was there a few days ago; I’ve got others, but, they were out this way today for deliveries anyway, so… I’m almost certain that there was definitely one item they’re bringing that I can use today, but, I don’t remember exactly which stuff got left there, so I have to wait to see it before I can go any further with today’s post…..

Does this mean we’re going to be forced to listen to more of my blathering here in the intro section?…. Well, yes, sad to say, it does mean that…. State law and internet etiquette requires me to provide you with some form of mental stimulation during these episodes, so, let’s see what kind of nonsense I can come up with today…. I mean, it’s not like we’ve already wandered around with our thumbs up our….. oh, wait, yes we have. In fact, that is what we seem to be doing right this very moment, if I’m not mistaken…

No, by heavens, I’m not! We HAVE been wandering around with SOMETHING up our…. well, somewhere, anyway. And, look! We’ve done it again! If you will note, there are five legal sized paragraphs above, all of which are pointing in the same direction, if not with any clarity of purpose. The law governing such things says this is enough for an intro, and around here, we pay close attention to that law…. we have to, due to gigoid’s lack of talent in this section…. Now that my covers are completely on the floor, we’d best get on with it…

Shall we Pearl?…..

Delivers in such apt and gracious words
That aged ears play truant at his tales,
And younger hearings are quite ravished;
So sweet and voluble is his discourse.

— William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Love’s Labour’s Lost — Act ii, Sc. 1

(I know, terrible rhyme, but, it fits, sort of….) (Now you know why you don’t see Will’s work here very often….)
_____________________________

Of all the causes which conspire to blind
Man’s erring judgment, and misguide the mind;
What the weak head with strongest bias rules,–
Is pride, the never-failing vice of fools.

— Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Criticism, Part ii, Line 1

Now, THAT’S a poem!….

Yesterday, I had a bit of time with reduced pain, so I went to cruise the net, heading off to a few WP sites to catch up with some of my favorites, and check out a couple of new ones… I ended up going to quite a few blogs, compared to my normal inability to get anywhere. In my cruise, though, I noted something I hadn’t previously been aware of, regarding the demographics of the ‘Net, in terms of the stand that people take in political matters…

What I noticed is that there is a fairly wide array of opinions, wider than I had known, and certainly wider than anticipated…. But, I also noted that there are way too few of them who seem to be aware of just how badly they are being fooled by those whom they are following in their political pursuits…

On both the right wing, and the left, there seems to be a common ignorance of just how often the BRC lies to the public, and of how little they really care about the people who are behind them on the wagon they are driving…. Not only is this the case, but, there are a LOT of people out there who either don’t care, or don’t have the moral courage to express an opinion about any of what is happening out in the real world. In fact, this latter group, those who choose to ignore the world as much as they can, is the largest group by far…..

“Stupidity may be masked by sincerity, but it is still stupidity.” — Smart Bee

This means, not only are those who are involved in the issues ignorant of the actual truth, but nobody else, aside from a few curmudgeons like me, who hate EVERYBODY, (joke… we just don’t discriminate against anyone when it comes to being critical…. in my mind, they’re ALL fuck-tards….), has any idea of how little integrity, or real knowledge of what is truth, or, for that matter, common sense, there is loose in the world today…. All three of those items, essential to a healthy society, are lacking in our current world culture…. In point of fact, all three of those ideas are not only not loose, they seem to be totally absent from our reality…. much to our chagrin….

SIGH…. This is a rather amorphous rant, isn’t it? I’m railing against human nature again, which is such a huge, slippery concept, it’s difficult to confine it to one or two simple ideas for discussion…. Suffice it to say, my picture of humanity, even that part of it that is tech-savvy enough, and independently-minded enough, to have their own blogs on the ‘Net, fails to show me any of the qualities that will ensure our survival for much longer, and, actually, shows a lot of evidence that supports our extinction within the next 100-200 years….

Once the atmospheric levels of oxygen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and the other elements that make up what we breathe, have been altered to the point of no return, (which happened two years ago….)  it will not take long for us to succumb, as the process of degradation acts in a parabolic fashion, faster and faster the longer it goes on…. The ice will continue to melt, the seas will continue to rise, the air to get dirty, the weather to get stranger, and the people will continue to hide their heads in the sand….

It’s a sad commentary on our race, to my mind, when we, as a species, can’t even seem to pull it together long enough to make a concerted effort to stop those who have destroyed the environment we inhabit, as they have for millennia, and continue to do today, all out of their insatiable greed and utter inhumanity, aided and abetted by the ignorance embraced by most of the rest of humanity .

Hell, most of humanity isn’t even aware there is a problem, or any danger…. How does one overcome that level of ignorance?….. The BRC is a lot better at the carrot and stick routine than are the more honorable people in our world, and aren’t going to allow anyone to take away their privileges and perks; they’ve been at it for centuries, and are so good at it, most people never even realize they are slaves….

Okay, so I’ve ranted…. now I’m gonna go old-school… just because I can….

“A person reveals his character by nothing so clearly as the joke he resents.” — G.C. Lichtenberg

“What the hell, go ahead and put all your eggs in one basket.” — Smart Bee

“You cannot believe in honor unless you have achieved it. Better keep yourself clean and bright; you are the window through which you must see the world.” — George Bernard Shaw

Assume a virtue, if you have it not.
That monster, custom, who all sense doth eat,
Of habits devil, is angel yet in this.
— William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Hamlet
— Act iii, Sc. 4

[A small difference of opinion on the U.S. Supreme Court in ‘Texas v. Johnson’ 491 U.S. 397 (1989)

“If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the Government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.” — Justice William J. Brennan, writing for the majority

“Surely one of the purposes of a democratic society is to legislate against conduct that is regarded as evil and profoundly offensive to the majority of people; whether it be murder, embezzlement, pollution or flag burning.” — Chief Justice William Rehnquist, dissenting

(The question that occurs to me on reading this is this: how can a supposedly intelligent person, with a law degree and everything, have misunderstood the Constitution so badly?….. Astounding, not to even mention how stupid it is, to even TRY to rationalize the legislation of morality, which, in Mr. Rehnquist’s mind, or what passes for one, is confused with custom…. In spite of what many religious fundamentalists, and both right and left wing politicians, would have us believe, morality cannot be legislated, or, for that matter, influenced in any way at all by anything outside the person whose morality is under question…. Nor should morality be confused with custom; they are not the same thing…. nor should they be….)

(The second thing that occurred to me upon reading this was: Does it physically hurt to be that stupid?….)

😆

“Late in the night, we realize that the acts of our lives have not been shadow-free, that we are shadowed by curses and sins –not because we are cursed and sinful by nature, but because with the very origins of the world, one half of which belongs to night, come fearful figures who demand we know them.” — James Hillman

“What GOOD is a CARDBOARD suitcase ANYWAY?” — Zippy the Pinhead

Oops…. sorry, went a little off the rails there at the end; Zippy’s lines can do that, usually without conscious effort on my part…. But, it does rather fit, don’t you think?…. Just think of morality as the suitcase…. go ahead, it’s really not hard, and doesn’t hurt much, once you’re past the initial shock….
_____________________________

Having awakened in a “mood”, I’m trying not to let that spill over into this…. how’m I doin’?…. Oh…. Well, I’m trying, and will continue to do so, so, that’s worth something, right? Right…. Maybe this will make up for it…..

Apollo And The Graces

APOLLO

WHICH of the fairest three
To-day will ride with me?
My steeds are all pawing at the threshold of the morn:
Which of the fairest three
To-day will ride with me
Across the gold Autumn’s whole Kingdom of corn?

THE GRACES all answer

I will, I – I – I
young Apollo let me fly
Along with thee,
I will- I, I, I,
The many wonders see
I – I – I – I
And thy lyre shall never have a slackened string:
I, I, I, I,
Thro’ the golden day will sing.

~~ John Keats ~~

_____________________________

Well, gosh…. I’m not sure what to do now…. I’ve already supplied a fresh, newly minted rant, put together an old-school pearl with some great pearls, and found a great poem…. It’s not often I’m a tough act to follow, but I seem to have put myself in that position, so, we’ll apply some cosmic judo to the issue…. Here are pearls in a bunch…. not grouped, not chosen, just bunched up, into sort of a bouquet… Let’s see what happens….

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

The Three Stooges, the sinking ship, and the lone lifeboat:

Ronald Reagan: “Maybe we should save the women and children.”
Richard Nixon: “F**k the women and children!”
Bob Packwood: “Gee, do you really think we have time?”

— the Stilt Man

“Ever notice that ‘what the hell?’ is always the right decision?” — Marilyn Monroe

Q: “How many lawyer jokes are there? A: 3, the rest are true stories.” — Smart Bee

“Among the rich you will never find a really generous man even by accident. They may give their money away, but they will never give themselves away; they are egotistic, secretive, dry as old bones. To be smart enough to get all that money you must be dull enough to want it.” — G. K. Chesterton, A Miscellany of Men

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” — Aesop (620-560 B.C.)

LIFE, n.  A spiritual pickle preserving the body from decay.  We live in daily apprehension of its loss; yet when lost it is not missed. The question, “Is life worth living?” has been much discussed; particularly by those who think it is not, many of whom have written at great length in support of their view and by careful observance of the laws of health enjoyed for long terms of years the honors of successful controversy.

“Life’s not worth living, and that’s the truth,”
Carelessly caroled the golden youth.
In manhood still he maintained that view
And held it more strongly the older he grew.
When kicked by a jackass at eighty-three,
“Go fetch me a surgeon at once!” cried he.
Han Soper

— Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”
_____________________________

“The sixties were good to you, weren’t they?” — George Carlin

Why, yes, George, yes, they were…. which should be moderately obvious to even the most casual observer…. Now you’ve done it… You’ve uncovered my secret plan, to confuse everyone with so many words, that make such little sense, you don’t know which ones to pick for use, and the little easter eggs I’ve strewn throughout the pages can work their clandestine, subliminal magic….

Oh, well, it couldn’t last forever…. I’ll just go back to the old way of doing things, and bore everyone to tears, but, get just as much done…. For now, though, this will have to do, so I’d best see if it’s worthy…. Be right back….

I must say, after going through it, THIS is a Pearl!…. Somehow, in spite of all Murphy and his myrmidons have conspired to foist upon me, the poor lad will be forced to consider today a major fail…. This ain’t bad at all…. It’s good enough to post, anyway, so, I’m going with that….. In fact, I’m going to get out of here, while the getting is good…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3

Because it mostly resembles a codfish….

Posted on by
2

Ffolkes,

“Oh, no!”, he cried. “Now what?”  Sound familiar? It does to me…. Sadly, this sounds just like what I say almost every time I get up to another of Mr. Murphy’s less than welcome surprises. I’m certain I’m not the only one, either, because I refuse to believe that this kind of stuff only happens to me…. If that were true, I’d be seriously looking for God, to register a complaint, and, since I’m pretty certain that God doesn’t have an office, or keep office hours (hard to accomplish when one is a delusion….), it’s just more productive to take care of it myself…. I know, this makes me one of those heathens, and makes certain that Satan will hold me a place in Hell, right? Well, okay, as long as the A/C works, I’m good with that….

Sorry, didn’t mean to get all crusty right off…. I talked myself into that corner, and there wasn’t any other way out but through sarcasm, so, please, bear with me, as I try to stabilize my neuronic pathways, using my usual bee balm, aka coffee, blessedly strong and sweet. I’ve gulped down a good six ounces so far, and it’s starting to have some effect, so, we should be good to go in just a few moments…. I made this pot really strong, even for me, so it has a dose of caffeine in it big enough to win the Derby, and shouldn’t take long to bring surcease to those parts of my brain that are crying out for it, in such pitiful voices….

The piteous sounds of addictive neurons have faded into mere echoes, and the morning ablutions, including a second cuppacoffee, are well in hand, so, our way  is clear to head off into the hinterlands of perception, to find what there is to find out there to play with this morning. I’m thinking it’s a Smart Bee day, as I ranted yesterday pretty hard, to the detriment of my hips and back… Since old-school pearls, and archive-diving, are less time consuming, we’ll most likely go that route today…. Not that it matters to the three or four readers who stop by…. 😆

It’s rather ironic, actually…. In the last few days, and weeks, I’ve written some pretty powerful stuff, concerning main-stream news subjects that concern everyone in this country… According to the WP stat-bots, I’ve got 302 followers now, but, only about twenty of them are visiting the site on any kind of regular basis, at least, if the Likes and Comments are any indication. The site traffic stats also show small numbers, so I don’t know what to believe…. Ah, well, since I don’t really care if anyone reads it at all, it isn’t an issue that bothers me much…. I just hate not having accurate information…. Well, there is that, plus, I’d really like to be able to know that more than just a couple of folks read what I’ve got to say, because much of it is stuff that this country NEEDS to think about….

So be it…. shouting into the wind is one of my favorite things to do, so, I’ll just keep at it, and hope that the traffic picks up…. Maybe if I pick better poetry?…. Hard to do, since I already post the world’s best poets regularly…. If I keep my own stuff out of the mix, it’s a pretty classy line-up, so not much to complain about there…. No es importante, I’m going to do what I do, no matter how many, or few, folks, or even ffolkes, stop by to read it…. Someday, maybe after I’m gone from this plane of existence, all the millions of words I’ve penned will be published for real, and the world can see what they’ve missed…..

Until then, shall we Pearl?….

A monk said to Joshu, “Your stone bridge is widely renowned, but coming here I find only a heap of rocks.”

Joshu said, “You see only the stones and not the bridge.”

The monk said, “What is the bridge?”

Joshu said, “What do you think we are walking on?”
_____________________________

As threatened promised, below is an old-school pearl. This one was created using the “whatever” technique, which lets SB do the picking, whereupon, I deal with the results in a flexible manner, necessitated by the seeming lack of purpose, but enabled by the level of skill that I’ve developed over time of making something out of nothing…. another metaphor for my writing, I suppose….. Any who, this time, SB was instructed to pick some quotes that show the evolution of the BRC and the theory of government, contrasted by its relevance to the evolution of humanity at large…. I think it came out well…. It’s certainly obscure enough…. just enough, though…. all the needed information is there, if one can let go, and allow the mind to follow the path suggested by the pearls…. Enjoy!…..

“I hate to mention things like this in this feature, but it is one of the more pressing problems in America today, and that is the lack of tap-dancers in the Miss America contest.” — Smart Bee

Their feet through faithless leather met the dirt,
And oftener chang’d their principles than shirt.

— Edward Young (1684-1765) — To Mr. Pope, Epistle i, Line 277

“By definition, a government has no conscience. Sometimes it has a policy, but nothing more.” — Albert Camus

“And waste their music on the savage race.” — Edward Young (1684-1765) — Love of Fame, Satire v, Line 228

“If you made a better rat than a human, that’s not much to boast about.” — Sirius Black, J.K. Rowling, “Harry Potter”

“The message of history is clear: the past lies before us.” — Smart Bee

“Many were increasingly of the opinion that they’d all made a big mistake in coming down from the trees in the first place.  And some said that even the trees had been a bad move, and that no one should ever have left the oceans.” — Douglas Adams, “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”
_____________________________

Today’s choice of poems comes from one of my favorites, Shel Silverstein, who passed away in 1999. The range of feeling in his poetry is astounding, as is his talent of expressing those feelings in the simplest of language…. Abondanza!….

God’s Wheel

God says to me with a kind of smile,
“Hey how would you like to be God awhile
And steer the world?”
“Okay,” says I, “I’ll give it a try.
Where do I set?
How much do I get?
What time is lunch?
When can I quit?”
“Gimme back that wheel,” says God.
“I don’t think you’re quite ready yet.”

~~ Shel Silverstein ~~

Cloony The Clown

I’ll tell you the story of Cloony the Clown
Who worked in a circus that came through town.
His shoes were too big and his hat was too small,
But he just wasn’t, just wasn’t funny at all.
He had a trombone to play loud silly tunes,
He had a green dog and a thousand balloons.
He was floppy and sloppy and skinny and tall,
But he just wasn’t, just wasn’t funny at all.
And every time he did a trick,
Everyone felt a little sick.
And every time he told a joke,
Folks sighed as if their hearts were broke.
And every time he lost a shoe,
Everyone looked awfully blue.
And every time he stood on his head,
Everyone screamed, “Go back to bed!”
And every time he made a leap,
Everybody fell asleep.
And every time he ate his tie,
Everyone began to cry.
And Cloony could not make any money
Simply because he was not funny.
One day he said, “I’ll tell this town
How it feels to be an unfunny clown.”
And he told them all why he looked so sad,
And he told them all why he felt so bad.
He told of Pain and Rain and Cold,
He told of Darkness in his soul,
And after he finished his tale of woe,
Did everyone cry? Oh no, no, no,
They laughed until they shook the trees
With “Hah-Hah-Hahs” and “Hee-Hee-Hees.”
They laughed with howls and yowls and shrieks,
They laughed all day, they laughed all week,
They laughed until they had a fit,
They laughed until their jackets split.
The laughter spread for miles around
To every city, every town,
Over mountains, ‘cross the sea,
From Saint Tropez to Mun San Nee.
And soon the whole world rang with laughter,
Lasting till forever after,
While Cloony stood in the circus tent,
With his head drooped low and his shoulders bent.
And he said,”THAT IS NOT WHAT I MEANT –
I’M FUNNY JUST BY ACCIDENT.”
And while the world laughed outside.
Cloony the Clown sat down and cried.

~~ Shel Silverstein ~~

_____________________________

I was going to be lazy, and pick something from the archives to put here, but, what the hell…. It’s still early, and I’ve got the time… Here is another old-school pearl (still no rant in there, thankfully….), a harlequin, random variety, picked entirely by SB, with no parameters whatsoever…. Should be “interesting”….

“Finding the occasional straw of truth awash in a great ocean of confusion and bamboozle requires intelligence, vigilance, dedication and courage.  But if we don’t practice these tough habits of thought, we cannot hope to solve the truly serious problems that face us — and we risk becoming a nation of suckers, up for grabs by the next charlatan who comes along.” — Carl Sagan, “The Fine Art of Baloney Detection,” Parade, February 1, 1987

(Note the date, please; it is obvious that Carl had yet to process the evidence that proved this had already happened, to wit; Reagan was still in office, and his economic policies were just starting to kill the American economy from the top down….)

“You can best serve civilization by being against what usually passes for it.” — Wendell Berry

“Many candles can be kindled from one candle without diminishing it.” — The Midrash

“Stereotypes are like a supermarket. They are convenient, economical, and useful. They do our thinking for us. We don’t have to waste time trying to make sense of our ignorance. Stereotypes slice through the niceties of language, tide us over the loose ends we don’t understand and wrap up into a comfortable package our narrow-mindedness about everything and everybody except ourselves” — Chuck Stone (Washington Post 6/3/96)

“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” — Sun Tzu

“Listen carefully, I’m lying!” — Little known part of the Oath of Office, as administered to the POTUS every four years…..
(Sorry, couldn’t resist overruling SB on this one…. it’s just too perfect….)

“Anaxagoras said to a man who was grieving because he was dying in a foreign land, “The descent to Hades is the same from every place.”” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Anaxagoras, vi

Well, I think it’s interesting, and that’s what counts, right?…. Since it’s my blog, we’re going with that theory for now….
_____________________________

“The chief aim of wisdom is to enable one to bear with the stupidity of the ignorant.” — Xystus I

There are those who would say the above is a somewhat arrogant statement, in which they’d be correct, to a degree. However, I can only respond, “and your point would be?”…. I’m not going to apologize for being smarter than the average bear; it’s not as if all my vaunted intelligence has enabled me to rule the world, now, has it? Nor has it made me rich, or famous, or widely known and respected, other than, I hope, amongst the few people I call friends… As for the rest of those folks out there, who get upset at having to use their brains for something other furniture, well, too bad, so sad, my bad, fuck it…. And I mean that in the nicest possible way….

Not sure where that came from, ‘cept that I like the quote, and felt it needed some comment or other to ease its passage into infamy…. Now that I’ve disrupted my own routine unmercifully, I should probably look for some way to bring this all to a close, before it gets completely away from me…. Oh, look! Here’s a spot now!….. Since I’ve completed all the required steps, and we have a good opportunity, I’m outta here….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

dozer3