Tag Archives: Poetry

Twelve degrees off of plumb crazy….

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Ffolkes,
And then I woke up….. at sea, again. We are cruising slowly along the eastern coast of Scotland, on the way to Harwich, where the cruise started, ten days ago. It is encouraging to not be seasick, as it means I’ve managed to gain my ‘sea legs’, and don’t have to take any more of the medication, which, while effective, has a side effect that can be most unpleasant, and to which I will not again refer….. I know, it sounds pompous and obscure, but, it is grammatically correct, and better than saying outright that which could drive y’all away in disgust…. Instead, we’ll go on….

The weather yesterday in the port of Invergordon, near Inverness, and Loch Ness, home to Nessie, (the world’s oldest monster, having first been sighted in the fifteenth century), was, to put it simply, miserable and cold. The temperature hovered around 38-40 degrees all day, with a wind that reached gusts up to 50 mph. To get into the town, only a couple blocks away from the ship, we had to walk on a pier about 100 yards long, and I almost lost my hat into the bay a number of times. It was so strong a wind, it literally almost blew me off my feet, and I am no lightweight (I’m about 205 lbs, right now, possibly more after 10 days of eating well…. I’m afraid to actually weigh myself…). It also rained in spurts, so I made only two quick forays off the ship, going a bit crazy again buying little stuff for ffolkes back home….

I did get some nice pix of the landscape, and the quaint village of Invergordon where we are docked. There is a small museum just across from the ship, showing exhibits of the history of the town, and of the area. Inverness has long been considered the capital of Scotland and the Highlands, and the port area has a long history of involvement with the royal navy. I got some nice photos, and found more little pieces of jewelry for my daughter, Patricia, and my adoptive daughter, Cheryl, as well as a couple of cute little stuffed Nessies for my grandson, and Cheryl’s son Marcus. (I told you I went crazy….) I also found more magnets, and a nice pocket watch with a Celtic Knot design for myself. I feel like a real capitalist…..

That last comment is about all the rant I have in me, I think, so we should get started on the rest of today’s pearls…. Section one will be for an old-school pearl, two, of course, will be a poem by somebody, and section three will show the photos I got today in port….. Shall we Pearl?…..
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The following pearl is of the old-school variety, but much fresher….. The quotes sort of picked themselves, with little or no assistance from yours truly, and seemed to know just what they wanted to say, because it took only a few minutes for it all to come together. The point of it all is, of course, left as an exercise for the Gentle Reader, and please don’t throw anything at me….. I’m kind of run down from all the rich food I’ve been consuming for the past two weeks while on this trip. My stomach, and my brain, will both be glad when I’m home again…..

“A man is a very small thing, and the night is very large and full of wonders.” — Lord Dunsany, The Laughter of the Gods

“Patience is sorrow’s salve.” — Sir Winston Churchill

“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.” — Frederick Douglass

“In the part of this universe that we know there is great injustice, and often the good suffer, and often the wicked prosper, and one hardly knows which of those is the more annoying.” — Bertrand Russell

“It takes courage to grow up and turn out to be who you really are.” — ee cummings

“If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours…” — Smart Bee

“A poet who reads his verse in public may have other nasty habits.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”
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Probably the biggest rip-off among all the seriously overpriced stuff one encounters on a cruise is the internet access. The cruise lines have figured out that access is important to their customers, so they will condescend to provide it to them, at a cost that is, needless to say, outrageous…..

I bought the best deal on that access, and I’m paying $0.36/minute. This has been barely enough to get my blog posted each day, with a bit left over for checking email, and reading some of the news. What this means is I don’t have enough time to go look for anyone else’s poetry, so I’m going to go once more to the well, and offer up one of my own for your perusal. I hope you enjoy it…..

Denial of Comfort

Baleful chairs become the enemy, heralded in red
seemingly welcome softness beckons with a smile,
waiting, content with slaughter, they are finally led
screaming in agony, deluged in venom all the while.

Desperate distraction becomes such a friendless fire
for all the patterns of autumn’s pale dismay,
leaving sincerely latent trails in spirals of twisted wire,
while memory insists, again, upon failure, palpably evil, and fey.

Fat, jaded tears would have fallen in good time,
if only the suitable suitor had scaled the garden’s wall.
Credence for discounted prices luckily in their prime
bring only fascinated eyes into such a hallowed hall.

Searching for answers is ever a clever portrayal
with studious accouterments to fulfill each common rule.
Arguably patient pictures of science and honest betrayal
shall evermore languish, in light of passion so elegantly cruel.


~~ gigoid ~~

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As noted above, I got some decent pix of Invergordon, including, at the end of our stay, a local drum and bagpipe band that piped the ship off as it left the dock. I even figured out how to get a few seconds of video, complete with sound, of one of the numbers they played as they marched off. I don’t think I know how to put that up on the blog, yet, but, it was still pretty cool to be able to get it with my new camera…. Any who, here are some of the best shots of the day….
Inverness and Invergordon 006Inverness and Invergordon 007Inverness and Invergordon 009Inverness and Invergordon 010Inverness and Invergordon 012

more Invergordon 006more Invergordon 004Inverness and Invergordon 014Inverness and Invergordon 013__________________________________

This will be the final Pearl for the trip, and it may take me a couple of days before I can get posted again, as the trip back to SF promises to be a marathon event…. I have someone to take me from London to Heathrow, but then must find my way onto the plane, where I’ll sit, and stand, and sit, and stand for the next 11+ hours to get home. I have a car set up to take me back to Vallejo, but I expect by then I’ll be pretty well toasted, and won’t be feeling much like writing, or doing anything more complicated than breathing and sleeping for a day or three…. So, I’ll say adieu for the time being, and hope you enjoyed these little travelogues as much as I enjoyed posting them…. See ya in a couple of days…… Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

It requires a subtle artichoke to turn colors….

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Ffolkes,
And then I woke up….. really damn early. But, then, considering that I fell out completely at about 7:30 PM, it isn’t particularly surprising to wake up at 5:03 AM. I believe I’m beginning to reach the end of my energy for exploring new territories, and for living the high life. Last night, our first whole day at sea, was formal attire for dinner, and I was just not into either getting dressed up, or for making nice with strangers. Even though I’ve made some friends while on board, not many have pursued the relations, nor have I sought to continue any; everyone, me included, seems to be satisfied with brief, friendly, but not particularly open encounters.

This suits my curmudgeonly nature just fine, as I am tired to the bone, of people, and places. Two more days will give me my complete fill of all of it, I’m sure, and I will be glad to fly home, miserable as the flight promises to be, stuck once more in a confined area with 499 others, all pumping body heat, for eleven or more hours. Once I am actually home, I will be very happy to stay there for a long time…..

None of which even considers how glad I’ll be to see Patricia…. It isn’t easy to do this cruising thing alone, even when one is as centered as I am, and able to enjoy being alone. It’s a lot more fun with someone else to share the experience; I found myself wanting to turn to her during the trip, to say “Look!” or “Isn’t that beautiful?” or a hundred other ways to acknowledge the beauty or interesting nature of what I encountered …. Ah well, we’ll be going on a cruise ourselves at the end of June, so, I have that to look forward to…..

In the third section today, I’ll put the few pictures I got yesterday, of some of the desolate islands that make up the Greater Hebrides, and the Orkney Islands which dot the ocean at the northern end of Scotland. The ocean was much more deep ocean in nature, with swells of about 3-4 feet, enough that this massive ship, complete with with stabilizing fins, and a competent master, still tended to rock and roll a bit. I was happy to find that I had acclimated to the motion, though, and never felt a twinge of nausea, even when gazing out to sea, watching the birds, and looking for dolphins, which are known to greet ships in the area, according to the natives in Greenock. The only fin I saw, though, was not a dolphin fin, but a smaller shark of some kind, chasing some prey near the surface…..

The last paragraph sums up my day at sea pretty well; it was a pretty slow day, which gave me time to feel all the aches in my calves from the extra walking I did in Greenock port; I figured out I probably covered about four miles, way more than I’m used to, so some soreness is kind of welcome, in that sense. But, it made for a relatively slow day for events, with the menu at each meal being the most compelling decision I had to make, as the menu depends on which venue one chooses…. buffet, dining room, snack outlets (pizza, gelato, etc….), casual bistro style dining, and the rest of the choices on board. It’s a tough job, but, someone has to do it, so, I gave it my best shot, as it were…..

Wow, I didn’t realize I had that much BS stored up in there…. That’s what I get for not writing for several days, other than to discuss the pictures I took. There’s so much, I think I’d best call a halt here to work on the photos, or I’ll ramble on for days…. Six paragraphs of nothing much is legally enough for an intro section, so we’ll go on to something else now….. Shall we Pearl?……

“Never before have I encountered such corrupt and foul-minded perversity!   Have you ever considered a career in the Church?” — Black Adder II

(I know, complete non-sequitor, but, it’s such a great line, I had to throw it out there…. It’s perfect for a religirant, if I was in the space for one, so I give to you, gratis, in place of said rant….. Okay, now we’ll get on with the show….)
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As yet, nothing rantable has sallied forth to be written, other than the above quote, which stands alone quite well, so I’m going with an old-school pearl. This one was picked in an extremely random fashion, so I can’t say how it will turn out. I trust Smart Bee, though, so we’re going with it, no matter how hard it is to figure, or how obscure it gets…. Some days, that’s just the way I am…. Yep…..

Around existence twine,
(Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!)
ropes of twisted vine.

— Basho

“The one who tells the stories rules the world.” — Hopi proverb

“Fight for your opinions, but do not believe that they contain the whole truth, or the only truth.” — Charles A. Dana

“Closed eyes are not always sleeping.” — Smart Bee

“Honor is the reward of virtue.” — Cicero (B.C. 106-43)

Finally he released the young man, and waded back to dry land. Then Socrates questioned the man. `What did you most want just now?’ The young man replied, `Air.’ `When you want knowledge as much as you just wanted air, you shall have it.’– Some random Greek historian

“2nd star on the right, then on until morning.” — from Peter Pan, by J.M. Barrie, and James T. Kirk, stardate unknown
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In the interests of…. well, something that now completely eludes me, I am going today with one of my poems…. I don’t know if y’all remember this one; it’s one I wrote during the NaWriPo poetry challenge of recent vintage, and is one of my personal favorites…. I hope you enjoy it too….

Ah Ain’t Sho, but Mebbe So….

Fried eggs got nuthin’ on me
Ah’m not even sure of mah name,
or how Ah come to be;
no idea from where Ah came.

Ah does like a mystery tho’,
puzzlin’ things out so’s Ah knows,
good from bad, fo sho,
Ah sho don’t want no rock pillows.

If’n Ah cain’t figure what’s best,
Ah just falls back on mah Daddy’s words,
seems he knowed just whut’d stand the test,
‘n how to gentle the scaredest birds.

,Course, he’d lived a good long time,
‘n had lots of stuff go on by,
went to a war, n’ lost a piece or two,
never once used it fer an alibi.

He tol’ me once, Ah’d best learn to learn,
school’s only cool if ya ain’t already a fool.
Yer own good measure you can earn,
by startin’ yer learnin’ with the Golden Rule.

Always seemed to me as Ah growed up,
he mostly only spoke if it wuz true,
‘n by doin’ that clued me to what’s up,
kept me from stuff that’d a made me blue.

Without ever sayin’ the word itself,
Ah learned ’bout honor, ‘n helpin’ others
not some fake stuff from some shelf,
knowing whut’s right, ‘n that we’re all brothers.

Ah’ve been around long enough now, Ah think,
to get around the block at least two times.
I s’pose long as my head don’t shrink
Ah’ll keep on doin’ right, ‘n making these rhymes…..

~~ gigoid ~~

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Okay, here is where I bore you to death, with the sum total of pictures I was able to get yesterday, cruising in the North Atlantic….
At sea day one 006At sea day one 005At sea day one 004    See what I mean? A VERY slow day, sea-watching-wise…. Oh well, it should be better in Inverness, and at Loch Ness, later today…. I hope…..
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Having thus used up the hours that I awoke early to find in front of me, I’ll now leave you to fend for yourselves the rest of the day, as I must do….. Shouldn’t be too hard, I’m all shopped out, and my legs ache, so I think my time ashore will be limited to just what it takes to get some good pictures to share with y’all…. In the meantime….. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

The sign said it would float….

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Ffolkes,
    Greetings to you, from somewhere on the open sea…. We left Greenock, Scotland, the port town of Glasgow city proper, last night about two hours before sunset, and have been cruising the open sea in a generally north-eastern direction ever since. Normally, I get seasick on the deep waters of our dear planets oceans, but so far today I seem to have acclimated to the motion, at least enough that this morning’s coffee has stayed where I put it, internally speaking. This is a good thing, because, having experienced the condition previously, I can vouch for the fact that it is NOT any fun….

    Since I’m not sick, it should be a nice relaxing day, and I’ll try to get some actual writing done, after I post the pictures from yesterday. I didn’t expect to spend a lot of time on shore, but the walk into town was quite short and manageable, even for me, so I ended up going twice, and spending a lot of cash I hadn’t counted on spending. I don’t regret any of it though, and even bought a couple items for myself.

    I also took a LOT of pictures, especially on the free tour I took around this port town of Greenock, staffed entirely of volunteers, who love their little city. The tour went to the Old West Kirk, one of the oldest buildings in the town, drove up a steep hillside to a view point with some magnificent views, and then downtown to near the ship to walk through an old government building. I skipped the last part, deciding instead to walk back to the ship for a cool down and a nap, in that order, as the bus we rode in for t he tour was sweltering, and I was drenched in sweat…..

    After dinner last night, I also took a bunch of pictures of the staff at the Rendezvous Bar, where I usually go for my pre-dinner cocktail, and my post-dinner nightcap. They’re a bunch of good kids, and fun to watch as they take care of all the old American, French, and British passengers who are mostly three or four times their ages (the last group, sadly, includes yours truly….). I think they’ve sort of adopted me as their mascot, so I took the pix, and told them they’d be famous online by tonight, as they will be…. This is the last text I’m writing for now, because I have a bunch of pix to process so they can be posted, and it takes some time…..

    Today, section one will have the photos from the town, and section three will have the photos from on board last night….. I think now it is time we got on with that, so, Shall we Pearl?…..
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First a couple of landscape shots, then some of the Old West Kirk, and last, some street and building shots……
Glasgow-Greenock Port 004Glasgow-Greenock Port 028Glasgow-Greenock Port 035Glasgow-Greenock Port 015Glasgow-Greenock Port 018Glasgow-Greenock Port 020Glasgow-Greenock Port 023Glasgow-Greenock Port 017Glasgow-Greenock Port 014Glasgow-Greenock Port 011Glasgow-Greenock Port 012__________________________________

I liked the poem from Robbie Burns I posted yesterday so much, here is another by him…..

A Bottle And Friend

There’s nane that’s blest of human kind,
But the cheerful and the gay, man,
Fal, la, la, &c.

Here’s a bottle and an honest friend!
What wad ye wish for mair, man?
Wha kens, before his life may end,
What his share may be o’ care, man?

Then catch the moments as they fly,
And use them as ye ought, man:
Believe me, happiness is shy,
And comes not aye when sought, man.

~~ Robert Burns ~~

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And these are the now famous Celebrity Infinity Players from the Rendezvous Bar….. I would give their names, but I can’t spell most of them, so you can make up your own, if you don’t already know them personally….
Glasgow-Greenock Port 055Glasgow-Greenock Port 051Glasgow-Greenock Port 060Glasgow-Greenock Port 072Glasgow-Greenock Port 068Glasgow-Greenock Port 047Glasgow-Greenock Port 058Glasgow-Greenock Port 066Glasgow-Greenock Port 064Finally, a great shot of the sunset as we left for the open sea….

Glasgow-Greenock Port 041__________________________________

“He was determined to discover the underlying logic behind the universe. Which was going to be hard, because there wasn’t one.” — Terry Pratchett, “Mort”

    I know, I know, I haven’t ranted in two weeks…. but, then, it’s a bit hard to build up a great deal of angst when one’s every need and/or want is being fulfilled. Heck, it’s all I can do to just get this posted with the little bit of text it has…. I have to say, though, I can’t find it in myself to care much, as this is the fulfillment of two lifelong dreams for me, and the rest of reality can just wait for me to finish my trip. I’ve been keeping a weather eye on happenings in the States, and none of it particularly needs my attention yet, as not much has really changed, other than the box scores….

    So, maybe tomorrow will have something a bit more biting in it, as we’re at sea today, so not much picture opportunity once the sun is up, until it goes down again…. There HAVE been some rather stunning sunsets, a couple of which I’ve captured with the camera, and posted…. well, one, anyway…. Now all I have to do is figure out which restaurant or dining room I want to eat in at lunch, tea, and dinner times…. SIGH…. It’s a tough job, but only I can do it…..   Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Aw, go jump in the loch….

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Ffolkes,
It was certainly a surprise to me, to find that Belfast in Northern Ireland was the easiest city to get around in of all I’ve been to on this trip. Not that all the others weren’t lovely, and welcoming, but, this city was even more so of everything, not counting the accents, which were a bit thicker, and harder for a Yank to understand. It also helped that in this city, a free shuttle bus to the city centre was provided (now I’m even spelling in the European manner…. It must be getting near the time to head home…..) The city center is gorgeous, with beautiful buildings of incredible age; the city center area is all considered pedestrian territory, and the traffic there is kept out of the way of the people on foot, with a lot of wide alleys and old nooks and crannys for people to wander on foot.

It’s become obvious to me that my muse decided not to come on this trip. I find myself having a hard time knowing what to say; there is so much to write about, but I don’t feel I have the words in me right now to do it justice. Today, that is probably just as well, as I took a lot of pictures, and want to share them; that takes time, to upload all the picture files into WordPress, even though it is comparatively easy to do in WP. So, you win, ffolkes, because this is all I’m going to write today, other than the identifying captions for the pix. See, this trip is a good thing, for me, AND for y’all….   🙂

Without further ado, (what does that MEAN?), we will go on to the picture portion of today’s Pearl, in two sections….. Section 2 will have a poem, if I can get to one of the sites I use to find it…. If not, well, I can always subject you to another one of mine….  Shall we Pearl?…..
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I only brought one pair of shoes with me, for some now obscure reason, and have been looking all over in the towns we’ve been to, without finding anything I liked. I finally found a pair in Belfast, at a shoe store that I found using the “ask a local” technique; one of the young walking tour guides who hang out by the shuttle bus stop was very friendly, so I asked him where HE went to get shoes, and he not only pointed me to a good store just a block away, he also told me where to find the best pub grub that I wanted for lunch.

He suggested I go about two short blocks, to an alley, down which I would find White’s Tavern, the oldest pub in Belfast, first opened by license from the Queen in the year 1630. It not only had “grand craic”, as the locals say, but very excellent bangers and mash…. Here are some pictures which, since they came out pretty well, will give a good idea of the place, inside and out….
Belfast 013Belfast 014Belfast 010Belfast 011Belfast 012Belfast 008__________________________________

In honor of our visit to Scotland, here is one of the most famous poems by that country’s favorite son, also known as Robbie Burns, or The Ploughmans’ Poet…..

A Man’s a Man for A’ That

Is there for honesty poverty
That hings his head, an’ a’ that;
The coward slave – we pass him by,
We dare be poor for a’ that!
For a’ that, an’ a’ that,
Our toils obscure an’ a’ that,
The rank is but the guinea’s stamp,
The man’s the gowd for a’ that.

What though on hamely fare we dine,
Wear hoddin grey, an’ a’ that?
Gie fools their silks, and knaves their wine,
A man’s a man for a’ that.
For a’ that, an’ a’ that,
Their tinsel show, an’ a’ that,
The honest man, tho’ e’er sae poor,
Is king o’ men for a’ that.

Ye see yon birkie ca’d a lord,
Wha struts, an’ stares, an’ a’ that;
Tho’ hundreds worship at his word,
He’s but a coof for a’ that.
For a’ that, an’ a’ that,
His ribband, star, an’ a’ that,
The man o’ independent mind
He looks an’ laughs at a’ that.

A price can mak a belted knight,
A marquise, duke, an’ a’ that;
But an honest man’s aboon his might,
Gude faith, he maunna fa’ that!
For a’ that, an’ a’ that,
Their dignities an’ a’ that,
The pith o’ sense, an’ pride o’ worth,
Are higher rank than a’ that.

Then let us pray that come it may,
(As come it will for a’ that,)
That Sense and Worth, o’er a’ the earth,
Shall bear the gree, an’ a’ that.
For a’ that, an’ a’ that,
That man to man, the world o’er,
Shall brithers be for a’ that.

~~ Robert Burns ~~

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Above I mentioned a friendly local, who kindly gave me directions to what I wished to find; his picture is the first one below. The rest of this group are shots of the city center in Belfast, a great place to walk around, and to shop… Enjoy!…..

Belfast 006Belfast 002Belfast 001Belfast 003Belfast 004Belfast 005Belfast 007Belfast 016__________________________________

We have only two more cities to visit, in Scotland. Today we will be near Glasgow, which lies twenty miles inland from the mouth of the river Clyde, on the western coast of the big island that contains Scotland, England, and Wales. Glasgow has an interesting history, and it is known as “The Friendly City” for the energy and openness of its inhabitants. I, however, am exhausted from walking around Belfast yesterday, so I think my participation in visiting Glasgow will be limited to just enough to get some pictures of the mostly Victorian architecture.

I may be reaching the limit of my strength for such ventures…. we’ll see how it goes today. Tomorrow is an At Sea day, then on Wednesday, we visit Inverness, on the eastern coast, in reach of Loch Ness…. Who knows? Maybe I’ll get a good picture of “Nessie” the monster who lives in the loch….. Until then, y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

If it would only wiggle, we could save it….

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Ffolkes,
And when I woke up, I was in Ireland again….. Morning, ffolkes…. My consistency in posting has been shot all to hell by this trip, and I can’t say I’m too upset by that, because, hey, cruise ship, y’know? My sense of time is completely whacked, other than to know which meal is being served at one of the half-dozen eating venues on board. Plus, yesterday, I finally got my massage, compliments of guest services, to make up for a few little hitches in their service on the first couple of days I was here…. and it turned both my muscles and my mind to mush….

We spent yesterday in Liverpool, the home of the Beatles, and I was kind of looking forward to seeing the Cavern Club, if nothing else. However, the weather decided to turn wintry, with a temp in the low forties, or less, and a drizzle most of the day. I did get off the ship, to walk around the pier and watch the Ferry Cross the Mersey wend it’s way across the river, and the pictures I took are below in section three…. Today we are in Belfast, Ireland, which is actually still part of the British Isles, and uses their currency, the Pound Sterling, rather than the Euro, which is used by the rest of Ireland. If that is confusing to you, think how they must feel living here….

I’m enjoying the cruise much more now, as I’m learning the ins and outs of the ship, and have made my connections with certain members of the crew… meaning I charmed the hostess in the dining room to seat me alone, so I could enjoy the four course meal, with wines paired perfectly, and didn’t have to make nice with six other people whilst doing so…. As you might guess, it is a big strain on my curmudgeon tendencies to be nice to people all the time….

Of course, dining alone has its hazards, as the nearest table was occupied by a crashing bore, who was regaling his mother with every little piece of Beatles trivia he read in People magazine, and criticizing the town, the people, and everything in general at the top of his voice….. I almost got up and hit him with my walking stick…. fortunately, right at that moment, they brought the Grand Marnier Souffle and my B&B, so he got to live…

Enough rambling and boasting…. I feel like actual pearling today, so fasten those seat belts a little tight; we may hit some turbulence, and we don’t want any injuries we haven’t planned for…. Shall we Pearl?…..

“First, I’m going to give you all the ANSWERS to today’s test..  So just plug in your SONY WALKMANS and relax!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
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When I say I feel like pearling, what I mean is I feel like an old school pearl, where I pick an idea, and use the quotes to lead the Gentle Reader to that general area, so they can enjoy the thrill of discovery, and hopefully, epiphany…. This group is the first since I re-loaded Smart Bee (again….SIGH…..), and could be a good one…. or not, the odds are about even…. Enjoy, mis amis….

“Expect the unexpected, for it will happen, usually when least expected.” — Smart Bee

“And the wind shall say, Here were decent, godless people their only monument the asphalt road and a thousand lost golf balls.” — T.S. Eliot (1888-1965)

“I feel my immortality oversweep all pains, all tears, all time, all fears, – and peal, like the eternal thunders of the deep, into my ears, this truth, – thou livest forever!” — Byron (1788-1824)

“He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because he is sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god.” — Aristotle

“A good listener is not only popular everywhere, but after a while he gets to know something.” — Wilson Mizner

“Like strength is felt from hope and from despair.” — Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — The Iliad of Homer, Book xv, Line 852

“It has long been known that one horse can run faster than another – but which one?  Differences are crucial.” — Lazarus Long
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Since both Pope and Byron were included above, it’s only right that our poetry for the day come from that era, and from the period’s acknowledged master…. Keats…. Hmm…. something is up with either Google, or the on-board network, as I can’t get it to go to Poemhunter.com, where I find most of my poetry for use here…. So, you’ll have to make do today with one of mine, written last March sometime….. I like it….

After the odyssey….

Portraits of iconic symbols, crashing, singing, forgotten;
evolving into mature innovation, as yet pale, and rotten.
Still water justly breeds, impenetrable primal verses resound;
unholy moments tarry, emotion swirls in passion unbound

Spiritual ovulation precedes each pregnant pause;
gravid, time moves on, following destiny’s cause.
Cast adrift on waves of confusion, to a final, damp landing;
salvation beckons sweetly, fed well on understanding.

Dreams directly fall, in night’s grey bower, unbidden;
lingering flavors in simple taste, lovingly, cleverly hidden.
Childish laughter sounds, joyful, bright, and clear;
no need ever to hide, no more monsters to fear.

Temper most foul arrives under unregistered mail;
forgotten taunts live on, lashed by an ancient flail.
Plain dealing delivers such lasting specks of honest hate;
savage in retrospect, never hasty, always running late.

Forever, cries an ambient lover of the pending night;
his pale, weak issue forms its own failing light.
Still, fortune favors such as those who apprehend;
Sweet love of Gaia, let it never end.

~~ gigoid ~~

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Okay, they aren’t much, but these are the shots I took of Liverpool….

The view from the deck of the Infinity…
Liverpool 001On the waterfront….

Liverpool 002One of the beautiful buildings across from the docks….

Liverpool 004And a really poor photo of the Ferry Cross The Mersey…

Liverpool 005That’s all for today, ffolkes….
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I find the process of creating these Pearls is both enhanced and made more difficult by being on the road, so to speak. But, that is a personal problem, and has nothing to do with you, so don’t fret, all will be well, eventually. I’m off to explore today’s venue, Belfast, Ireland…. Wish me luck…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Total addiction to pillaging…..

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Ffolkes,
All of my life, I’ve read stories and books set in Ireland, or by Irish writers, and have always felt an attraction to the country, possibly due to being part Irish myself (at least a quarter, with one grandparent’s family from there….). Yesterday, for the first time in my life, I stepped onto Irish soil; the earth didn’t shake, but I did feel welcomed, by the people, and the land…..Even now, as I write, sentimental fool that I am, it is bringing tears to my eyes, to know I’ve fulfilled a life-long dream, if only partially and incompletely. I guess it isn’t often one gets the chance to connect with their inner soul…..


Whew! Sorry, took me a minute to regain control…. it’s what I get for trying to write before I’ve had any coffee. I’d best wait a bit, so I don’t do anything to embarrass myself any further….  Okay, well, hmm…. It’s now almost dinner time, with a day spent in Dublin between the entry above and now. It’s been one of those roller-coaster days, with high highs, and low lows, most of which isn’t worth discussing. Let’s just say that I spent a good deal more than I’d hoped, but managed to get something for everyone….. I know this is a bit cryptic, but, such is life sometimes; we all have to learn to live with some frustration, I guess, and this is yours…  🙂


I’ve had a great time in Ireland, in both cities in which we stopped. I tried to get in to see the Book of Kells, at Trinity College Library in Dublin, three times, but the lines (queues, as they say here…) were too long for me to stand in line for without causing a lot of severe pain, so that will have to wait for the next trip, whenever that may be. I did walk around the college a while, & got some good shots on the camera, as well as in the surrounding neighborhood, where I had a bit of lunch at O’donoghue’s Pub (A fish bap, with chips, don’t y’know?…), and found the last items I needed to get for people at home. I figure that makes me a champion shopper, as I’ve managed to get all I need in the first five days of the cruise, and can now just walk around to take pictures, enjoy the scenery, and talk to the people.


I suppose that is enough of the chatty intro stuff…. Tomorrow we’re off back to England, first to Liverpool, back to Ireland for one day in Belfast, then I believe it’s Edinburgh, or Inverness, or somewhere else in Scotland, then Wales….. For now, shall we Pearl?…..
__________________________________

This trip has put me a day late and a Euro short…. It is now Saturday, and I have yet to post this… so, section one will be pictures of Cork, and section 3 will be pictures of Dublin…. and, lucky for y’all, little commentary from me…. Enjoy….

St. Colman’s cathedral at Cork (Cobh) port
Day 5 015A local pub…

Day 5 023…. where they built this Guinness….

Day 5 024Ballyrocks Castle, between Cork and Cork port….

Day 5 026__________________________________

A Celtic Haiku

London, Cork, Dublin,
all quite cosmopolitan.
Me? Hick from the states.

~~ gigoid ~~
__________________________________

Dublin, home of the Book of Kells, with lines a quarter mile long, all three times I tried to get in to see it…. SIGH….

The Library Square at Trinity College, Dublin

Day the next 005A statue of George Salmon, one of the college’s provosts….

Day the next 007A Dublin street scene, just outside the Trinity entrance….

Day the next 008A fittingly beautiful sunset to a gorgeous day, headed for Liverpool…

Day the next 013__________________________________

As intimated above, this is late getting posted, so, with no further ado, I will quickly proof, then try to get it online…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Such pretty little teeth you have…..

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3

Ffolkes,
The sun rose slowly, majestic, climbing up to sit on the horizon over the deep expanse of the Atlantic Ocean, halfway to Ireland from the coast of France. As I watched its regular progress toward the zenith, I reflected on the time just spent…..

It seems my muse has deserted me, just when I needed her the most….. Now I’m going to have to re-load Smart Bee, so I can find her again, hiding in one of the quotes I’ll see eventually. We are speeding toward Cork (Cobh), the town on the Irish coast nearest to where the Titanic went down in the early 20th century. It will be my first time off the ship, as I didn’t want to visit Paris for just one day (and, as I discovered, the one day of the week when the Louvre is closed, meaning my only reason to go wasn’t happening….), and I had no interest in the isle of Guernsey, where we’ve been anchored all day…. So, I’m going to go load SB; I’ll be right back to start today’s Pearl…..

“I’m a fucshia bowling ball somewhere in Brittany” — Zippy the Pinhead

Trust Zippy to come up with an appropriate statement to fit any occasion… In this case, he describes my feelings for much of the day yesterday. Since coming aboard this ship, I’ve had several instances of having the staff tell me something, and not having it happen. In and of themselves, each of the incidents might not have been a big deal, but coming one after another, I rapidly lost patience, thanks to the emotional morass that exists in me at all times…. I just don’t deal well with stress anymore…. After the last incident, in the spa, it took me hours to regain my equilibrium, and I still didn’t get my massage! I know that we all have to learn to live with disappointment, but it isn’t supposed to be like this when I’m paying these prices….

Rather than spend another day in the dumps, however, I resolve to put it behind me, at least long enough to put out this Pearl, now being written at 0430 in the morning, because that is when I awoke, fully charged, having gone to bed at 9 PM last night, and spent all night dreaming about…. something. Any who, this meandering batch of BS will serve well enough as an intro, at least until I can find something better….. Shall we Pearl?…..
__________________________________

Sometimes, Smart Bee is smarter than usual. These five little aphorisms point in a direction that will enable me to bring back some balance, and hopefully, allow me to find my center sometime before the cruise is over…. These are all excellent advice, for any day, not just the difficult ones…..

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

— Scottish motto for a house

“If you can spend a perfectly useless afternoon in a perfectly useless manner, you have learned how to live.” — Lin Yutang

“There are always options.” — Worf, “The Emissary”, stardate 42901.3

“To a man of strong character misfortune may do him more good than harm.” — Roger Bacon

“On the other hand, life can be an endless parade of TRANSSEXUAL QUILTING BEES aboard a cruise ship to DISNEYWORLD if only we let it!!” –Zippy the Pinhead
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I haven’t thought about poetry in over a week now, having been somewhat preoccupied with this trip. I find myself in need of some Emily D….

Me! Come! My dazzled face
In such a shining place!

Me! Hear! My foreign ear
The sounds of welcome near!

The saints shall meet
Our bashful feet.

My holiday shall be
That they remember me;

My paradise, the fame
That they pronounce my name.

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~
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In the interests of keeping it simple, here is a picture from my stay in London…. I got several good shots while riding around on the double-decker tour bus, but, since I can’t upload many pix on this network connection on board ship, I’m limiting it to one good shot per Pearl…. This is a picture of the Houses of Parliament with the tower of Big Ben…..
Day 3 and 4 013__________________________________

Not too bad for an off-the-cuff effort….. and, regardless, it’s going to go out, as is…. My plan for today is to brave the rainy weather in Cork, Ireland, long enough to find a sweater or two….. I will try to post again tomorrow, but, given the unreliability of the connections I have, it may or may not be possible…. I’ll do all I can, though, to put out something…..  Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

No worries, there’s plenty of time to…..

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Ffolkes,
Fellatio….. Now, if a word like that doesn’t draw the eye, I don’t know what will. Not that I really need any tricks this morning, with plenty to write about. Of course, none of what I have to write is relevant, but, who cares? Tomorrow, I leave for Europe…. Murphy has done what he can to spoil it, of course, by making me fall for the lady down the hall…. I’ll be going, but the one person I want to have with me isn’t able to come along this trip, so, I’ll end up doing everything by myself…. It will take a bit of the excitement out of seeing all those things I want to see, because I’d rather have her with me to share….

It won’t mean I won’t have a good time; that, I think, would be quite impossible. But, when I’m having that good time, I’ll be a bit sad at having it alone. But, then I’ll think about how nice it will be to have someone there to greet me when I get home, and it will be okay. Besides, in today’s modern world, we have Skype…. so, we’ll be able to talk, and even video chat, while I’m gone, and that will help to reduce the sorrow at not having her here. No substitute, for sure, but better than nothing at all. Plus, I’ve already booked another cruise for the two of us….    🙂   No flies on me….

She’s always wanted to go on an Alaska cruise, so we’ll take one of the new cruises out of San Francisco in late June, which also returns to SF, eliminating a lot of the cost of the trip…. No airplanes or port hotels needed, just a car to the proper wharf in SF, get on the boat, and have fun….. I’m starting to feel just a little bit decadent, and I think I like it…. The old hippie in me is a little miffed, because I’m consorting with the fascist lackeys and enjoying the fruits of my capitalist labors, but the even older hedonist in me is purring, loud and strong….

This will be the last Pearl until I’m in Europe, so there may be a gap until the next one…. I will be flying overnight, going east, which will put me a day ahead…. I’ll arrive in London Friday morning, and won’t post until later in the day, when I can catch my breath from the flight over the pond…. This means there won’t be a Pearl tomorrow, Thursday, unless I can get up really early to put up a quick one…. I’ll try, but that means leaving the computer to be the last item packed, and I may not want to do that… we’ll see…. So, just be aware, there MAY not be a Pearl on Thursday, but will surely be one on Friday, late…..

All of this also means today’s Pearl will be comprised of what I’ll call QuickCheats, to wit: material mostly out of the archives, or what can be found and put together quickly, and a poem from someone else, as nothing is leaking out just now (I do feel a couple of them circling around in there, but apparently, they’re not ready to come out….). Hopefully, none of it will look so familiar it puts anyone to sleep…. but, if it does, there are blankets and small pillows in the overhead compartments….

I think I’ve rambled enough for one morning, and still managed to get the housekeeping done… I even have time for a quick break, but will forgo telling you what I’ll be up to…. And, now, it’s time for the main show…. Shall we Pearl?….
__________________________________

This may be cheating, but, it’s a good  sort of cheat….. This was a rant on gun control that I wrote last year, after one of the spate of incidents in which a bunch of innocent folks got blasted by some crazy man…. Since that particular question is still in the public eye, this is worth a re-run…. (Hmm… I realized my statement may seem a bit calloused… but, that’s merely my attempt to keep emotional distance from the feelings that such events can produce, of sadness and outrage, neither of which will help reach a solution to the problem…) Any who…. abondanza!

“Are we at last brought to such a humiliating and debasing degradation, that we cannot be trusted with arms for our own defense? Where is the difference between having our arms in our own possession and under our own direction, and having them under the management of Congress? If our defense be the _real_ object of having those arms, in whose hands can they be trusted with more propriety, or equal safety to us, as in our own hands?” — Patrick Henry

Here is a subject that is always worth a few words…. I’m a firm believer in the right to bear arms. I do feel that it is probably unnecessary for a private citizen to own, or feel they need, an automatic weapon such as a machine gun, or even an M-16 assault rifle. I can’t think of a lot of everyday situations where one might be called for, but, I wouldn’t want that to be a factor in whether or not I would be allowed to have one, because what Mr. Henry asks above remains valid today….”in whose can they be trusted..  with equal safety… as in our own hands.”

That simple question is one that MUST be answered to even CONSIDER the idea of disallowing citizens the ownership of firearms. It is a certain conclusion, with more than ample evidence, that the police, military, and government agencies and people that I know of, are NOT to be trusted to have the monopoly on guns. Nope, no way will those who seek entitlement and power over others in society ever be trusted fully by the likes of me….

“A strong body makes the mind strong. As to the species of exercises, I advise the gun. While this gives moderate exercise to the body, it gives boldness, enterprise and independence to the mind. Games played with the ball and others of that nature, are too violent for the body and stamp no character on the mind. Let your gun, therefore, be the constant companion of your walks.” — Thomas Jefferson — Encyclopedia of Thomas Jefferson, 318 (Foley, Ed. reissued 1967)

Tom may have gone a bit overboard in his enthusiasm for his personal artillery, but, it does reflect the environment in which he lived, and the culture of the time. In today’s world, of course, physical health needn’t depend on the environment, per se, to provide the exercise our bodies enjoy, and need, to stay healthy and strong. Now we have a fitness center, a faux gym, every third block in major cities, open all night for those insomniacs who want to obsess over their abs. We don’t need to go tramping through the woods with our forty pound musket, trying to spot something appropriate for dinner.

But, even without the need for the exercise involved, if one is going to have a gun, it needs to be used in order to retain its functionality, and one needs to practice occasionally, in order to maintain the skills needed to actually hit whatever at which one is aiming. Society, because of the average person’s fear of guns, and of violence in the whole, has made that more difficult for citizens as time has passed, as those who don’t want to have to deal with violence at all in their lives add the power of the common man’s fears to the effort by the beloved ruling class to take away our guns, which they’ve been trying to do regularly since the inception of this nation.

Our country is still one of the very few in the world where the government actually still has to keep in mind the fact that the citizens are well armed, and able to defend themselves…. Very few governing groups will allow that, and those in power in this country are still trying to get us to give ours up, too. It has been obvious since 1782, when the Constitution and the Bill of Rights came into effect, that those in power would prefer that the populace give up their weapons…. just check Congressional records to see how often a bill is introduced to that effect. To now, all of those attempts have been thwarted, until the latter half of the 20th century, when some limitations were placed on what kinds of weapons would be legal for citizens to own.

But, the effort by the beloved ruling class to disarm the populace continues, and every year I hear talk about new legislation designed to limit the citizen’s access to guns, and place that power monopoly in the hands of the government. I won’t have it, I tell you, and there are a LOT of people in this country who feel the same way…. I have not seen ANYTHING that convinces me at all that the people who run the government are to be trusted with that kind of power. I have seen many, many pieces of evidence to the contrary, especially in the actions of about half of the police forces in the country, who are filled with power hungry sociopaths, who believe they are above the law, and should be allowed to interpret the law to their advantage, and to the advantage of the people who buy them, er…. pay them……

Nope…. none of what I see in society is any evidence of the trustworthiness of the government, and until there is no question of their integrity, (like THAT will ever happen), you won’t be convincing me that they are worthy of my trust…. ESPECIALLY regarding guns…..

“So live that you can look any man in the eye and tell him to go to hell.” —  Smart Bee
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It seems that fate has guided my hand, or perhaps just my eye…. The following is an excerpt from the same old Pearl as the above rant… The Pearls from that time had already evolved into the format we now know and love so well, so it just fits right in, just as if it was meant to do so…. which it was….
—————————————-

As a matter of course, I don’t usually make dedications, but this one just fits so right…. I have a friend on WP, whose site is dedicated to all things beautiful, and everything she posts meets every standard I know of in justification of that. In short, it is a small island in the huge ocean of the WWW where one can go to find a short respite from all the ugliness of modern life, and the vagaries of the human experience…. so here’s one for Carol Welsh, whose site you can find here:   http://carolwelsh.wordpress.com/

A Thing of Beauty (Endymion)

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its lovliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er-darkn’d ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
‘Gainst the hot season; the mid-forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms:
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven’s brink.

~~John Keats ~~

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This last pearl for today will be fresh, or as fresh as I can make it from old, unused pearls, that have been lounging around in my stash for some years now…. It should be okay, it’s all straight out of Smart Bee, back when I could trust it to run…. The point of today’s old-school effort will be as obvious as I can make it, but, I’m not giving that a lot of credence, and neither should you…. I would suggest you take notes, as it could be to your advantage later on…..

“I have the simplest tastes.  I am always satisfied with the best.” — Oscar Wilde

“One might define adulthood as the age at which a person learns he must die and accepts his sentence undismayed. ” — Robert Heinlein

“Principles have no real force except when one is well fed.” — Mark Twain

40. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of luck. — Instructions for life

“Cato used to assert that wise men profited more by fools than fools by wise men; for that wise men avoided the faults of fools, but that fools would not imitate the good examples of wise men.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Life of Marcus Cato

All things good to know are difficult to learn. — Greek Proverb

“Was mir nicht umbringt macht mir streng!”
{What does not kill me, makes me strong!”} — Friederich Nietzsche
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And there you have it… a record breaking Pearl, in re: production time of 75 minutes, so far…. Let’s see if it passes muster…. Oh, it does, it does, at least as well as a number of recent efforts, so we’ll have to let it go, or be accused of discrimination, and I don’t have the time to deal with that….  I apologize for any inconvenience, and please remember to pick up all of your personal items before exiting the vehicle… thanks….  Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Massive portions of buttered peas….

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Reply

Ffolkes,
And then I woke up…. Another day dawns, bringing me one step closer to Europe. Today and tomorrow will be spent on planning, to make sure I’m not going to forget anything important, and packing what little I have left to put in, having spent much of the last two weeks slowly filling up the bag I’m taking. I’m so jazzed, I’ve essentially been ready to go for weeks. If I weren’t relatively ancient, I’d feel like a kid two days before Christmas; as it is, it takes all I have to keep from dancing a jig, or otherwise making an old fool of myself…

This is also affecting my writing, as I can barely keep my mind focused on the task at hand…. it just wants to think about what’s coming up, and will focus in on what I want to do only with great reluctance. I find myself unable to get mad about it, as the rest of my head is also caught up in the frenzy of emotion that goes with this…. So, I’ve come up with a semi-practical solution, which should serve to get the job done for the today, tomorrow, and Wednesday, before I leave at 0800…..

As I did yesterday, I’ll be dipping into the archives for one section, then go with a poem, chosen from the list in my head, and one old-school pearl, of the short, quick, but pointed variety, followed by the usual ridiculously egotistical closing remarks. This should allow me to get posted, with decent material, but take the minimum amount of time to put together. That’s the plan, anyway….

We’ll see just how much of it Murphy lets go without a response…. He’s been quiet so far today, so I’m hoping he’s focused on some other poor fool for a day or two…. He will, no doubt, have a trick or two to show me on the trip, but, I’m hoping he lets me slide here at home before I go…. Cross your fingers, or legs, or knock on some wood, or somehow help to guarantee my desire…. It won’t help much, but, it makes him feel good, and sometimes it will make him a bit more lenient…..

Once I’m on my trip, look for some more changes, as I intend to write about what I’m seeing, and put up some pictures of where I’ve been that day, rather than trying to maintain the long, rambling politico-religious ranting habits heretofore exhibited so regularly. Other changes my be instituted as well, like posting in the evening, after the day’s events, rather than beforehand, like now. So, stay tuned, as we evolve into a mobile state, and I learn how to put all of my adventures online. Hopefully, it will be entertaining, for y’all as much as me…. For now, ’tis enough to know it’s time to dive….. Shall we Pearl?…..
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Here is an old-style Pearl, from September of 2011….

Ffolkes,

Taking pot shots at political figures is a time-honored pastime in this country, and though I try not to engage in doing so on a regular basis, I’m not above letting all my frustration drive me to rant. The current political scene certainly offers a multitude of opportunities, especially now that so many Republican candidates for the Presidential election next year have jumped out into the glare of public scrutiny.

Every day I can read any number of articles outlining the latest spate of nonsense that is uttered by one of them; the difficult part at this point is choosing only one about which to write. Got some rampant ignorance? Plenty of that going around. Want an outrageous claim or two? Step right up. Like to hear the real facts? We can help, it happens every day…..what is a body to do? There is so much to choose from, they all seem to blend together into one giant nightmare of avarice and ignorance.

I guess the part of all this that is most disturbing to me is just how clueless our beloved ruling class has become. Even the most honorable politicians these days must take part in the insanity, if only to maintain their position where they can do some good. The majority of people who have been elected in this country have no real understanding of the mainstream, whatever that may be.

The gap between the wealthy and the poor in this country has never been larger, and is growing every day. How can a person who makes $200,000 a year even conceive of what it is like to live on less than $10,000 a year?  Quite simply, they cannot. More importantly, they have no desire to even try, because their purpose is not to improve the lot of everyone, but to solidify and maintain their own position. They may feel momentary jabs in their atrophied consciences, but easily dismiss them in favor of enjoying the fruits of their public thievery.

The seeds of revolution have been sown, and are being nourished by the ongoing scenario in today’s world. The rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer. The old saw about a watched pot is not entirely true; the pot will eventually come to a boil, given time and heat. I’ve been watching this pot for a long while, and note that the heat has been turned up. Whether I watch it or not, it WILL boil over…….

After that, I need some uplifting, so onward to the good stuff…..

“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” — Krishnamurti   (Amen!)

“You can’t start worrying about what’s going to happen.  You get spastic enough worrying about what’s happening now.” — Lauren Bacall

“I maintain there is much more wonder in science than in pseudoscience. And in addition, to whatever measure this term has any meaning, science has the additional virtue, and it is not an inconsiderable one, of being  true.” — Carl Sagan, The Burden Of Skepticism, — The Skeptical Inquirer, Vol. 12, Fall 87

“What is beautiful is good and who is good will soon also be beautiful.” — Sappho

“Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” — Oscar Wilde (1856-1900)

“The ideals which have always shone before me and filled me with the joy of living are goodness, beauty, and truth. To make a goal of comfort or happiness has never appealed to me; a system of ethics built on this basis would be sufficient only for a herd of cattle.” — Albert Einstein

Alone I sit, waiting for the future to become now. When it does, I’m goin’ there…… y’all take care out there….

__________________________________

No comments are necessary to introduce this, but I’ll just say that I wish I had learned of this woman’s poetry ages ago….

Medusa

Off that landspit of stony mouth-plugs,
Eyes rolled by white sticks,
Ears cupping the sea’s incoherences,
You house your unnerving head—God-ball,
Lens of mercies,
Your stooges
Plying their wild cells in my keel’s shadow,
Pushing by like hearts,
Red stigmata at the very center,
Riding the rip tide to the nearest point of
departure,

Dragging their Jesus hair.
Did I escape, I wonder?
My mind winds to you
Old barnacled umbilicus, Atlantic cable,
Keeping itself, it seems, in a state of miraculous
repair.

In any case, you are always there,
Tremulous breath at the end of my line,
Curve of water upleaping
To my water rod, dazzling and grateful,
Touching and sucking.
I didn’t call you.
I didn’t call you at all.
Nevertheless, nevertheless
You steamed to me over the sea,
Fat and red, a placenta

Paralyzing the kicking lovers.
Cobra light
Squeezing the breath from the blood bells
Of the fuchsia. I could draw no breath,
Dead and moneyless,

Overexposed, like an X-ray.
Who do you think you are?
A Communion wafer? Blubbery Mary?
I shall take no bite of your body,
Bottle in which I live,

Ghastly Vatican.
I am sick to death of hot salt.
Green as eunuchs, your wishes
Hiss at my sins.
Off, off, eely tentacle!
There is nothing between us.

~~ Sylvia Plath ~~

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As promised, or threatened, take it as you may, here is an old-school pearl, fresh as I can make it from my immense stash of Smart Bee’s best….. I hope you get the point of this one, it’s a doozy…. and fun, too! Well, it’s fun if one is used to stretching the limits of the mind…. if not, well, probably not so much….

“Love is not all: it is not meat nor drink Nor slumber nor a roof against the  rain; Nor yet a floating spar to men that sink And rise and sink and rise and  sink again; Love can not fill the thickened lung with breath, Nor clean the blood, nor set the fractured bone; Yet many a man is making friends with death  Even as I speak, for lack of love alone.  It well may be that in a difficult  hour, Pinned down by pain and moaning for release, Or nagged by want past resolution’s power, I might be driven to sell your love for peace, Or trade the memory of this night for food.  It well may be. I do not think I would.” — Edna St. Vincent Millay

“Hang sorrow! care ‘ll kill a cat.” — Ben Jonson (1573-1637) — Every Man in his Humour, Act i, Sc. 3

“Stop thinking, and end your problems.” — Lao Tzu

Untwisting all the chains that tie
The hidden soul of harmony.

— John Milton (1608-1674) — L’Allegro, Line 143

“The truly brave are soft of heart and eyes, And feel for what their duty bids them do.” — Byron

“Life is never fair, and perhaps it is a good thing for most of us that it is not.” — Oscar Wilde, An Ideal Husband

“All of a sudden, I want to THROW OVER my promising ACTING CAREER, grow a LONG BLACK BEARD and wear a BASEBALL HAT!!…  Although I don’t know WHY!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Alas, we never do really know why, do we?…..  TTFN….
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Well, I hope this works….. It does, at least as far as it goes…. I don’t believe I’ll need to worry about replying to the Pulitzer Committee anytime soon…. It’s done, though, and, at this point, that’s all that matters to me…. I’m outta here, ffolkes…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Seven straight hours of polka music….. priceless….

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Ffolkes,
And then I woke up….. The plan was in place, all I had to do was get up, get dressed, and call a cab. Piece o’cake…. I think we may have hit a fortunate bump…. It appears Murphy didn’t get the memo on this, so the plan went off like clockwork. The cab came, I rode it to Kaiser, picked up my meds, and made to the lab in time to be fourth in line. This got me out of there within thirty minutes (they are REALLY slow in the reception process….), whereupon I walked to see if there was coffee available anywhere on the way out…. it was, but I didn’t have exact change, so the danger of biting someone was still high…. I called a cab, as the bus wasn’t due for about 45 minutes, I thought…

But, lo and behold, as I walked outside, the bus was pulling up, so I canceled the cab, got on, and was home in 15 minutes, all chores completed, and still not 8 AM…. not too shabby, I’d say, and a huge thank you, to whoever it was that kept that asshole, Murphy, busy long enough for the plan to be implemented…. I hardly know what to do with myself; it’s really unusual for anything involving bus travel around here to go smoothly, and I am way ahead of schedule now. I suppose, if I were smart, I’d jump right in to the dive for today, and count my blessings….

I’m smart enough, so…. Shall we Pearl?….
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I was cruising through some old Pearls to find inspiration, and found instead a pearl that will work well as section one of today’s effort…. It’s from the Ides of October in 2011…..

Ffolkes,

The Sun, life-giving orb of light and warmth, which dies each night, is born again each morning, gloriously aflame with potential. As the world turns in slow majesty, a scene of aching beauty is revealed; small plants and trees stretching their leaves toward the source of warmth, creatures great and small moving over the land, greeting the day with energy and purpose, colorful birds arcing and swooping through the warming air.

With a look at each other, the two young boys grinned, and with a cry of pure joy, took off running toward a nearby stand of trees. Legs pounding as hard and fast as their hearts, evenly matched, they ran with abandon, startling birds and small creatures, laughing in sheer exuberance. As they came to the edge of the trees, they stopped short, by mutual accord. Breathing hard, they gazed into the shadows, thinking about why they had come, why they were here, filling their souls with beauty at the beginning of the day……

I’m told that constant practice makes for constant improvement, and if this is so, then I should be getting damn close to competence, if not perfection. The paragraph above is the start of yet another story that will most likely never be told. I write them principally to keep dross from building up in my psyche, and as a sort of contrast to the reality of the rest of the piece.

An introductory bridge, as it were, carrying the reader into the realms of thought, where I can then provide you with an upgrade to the DABSDS (Defense Against B___S___ Delivery System) that comes installed in your brain. It gives me a chance to limber up my typing finger, and loosen the mental muscle, which, as we all know, is an essential precursor to the use of these peripherals without sustaining injury.

Today’s group of Pearls is an eclectic one, with a diverse, compelling batch of authors. Cultural values from all over the world, and from many different ages of history are represented here, and I think the variety is part of its strength; it goes to show that wisdom is not limited to one book. Indeed, I believe that the admixture that came together today is greatly enhanced by the contrast of ideas, creating a more powerful effect upon the reasoning mind…..hope you enjoy!….

“If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain dogs I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few persons.” — James Thurber

The only real failure in life is the failure to try.

“It is a misconception that spirituality brings everlasting happiness. There is no such thing. Sadness still comes to the wise, but, unlike most people, their clarity of mind allows them to see beyond the temporal emotionalism of the moment. They are farseeing, and so happiness and sorrow become the same to them.” — Deng Ming-Dao

Down, down, down into the darkness of the grave
Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind;
Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave.
I know.
But I do not approve.
And I am not resigned.
— Edna St. Vincent Millay, “Dirge Without Music”

“Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of–but do it in private and wash you hands afterwards.” — Lazarus Long

“We turn not older with years, but newer every day.” — Emily Dickinson

Trust yourselves, my friends, so that ye may trust one another…..y’all take care out there…..
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I’ve discovered the flaw in my plan… the one I thought went so well this morning…. It’s now a bit shy of 9 AM, and I’m beat…. totally ready for a nap. To save some time, here is an older poem of mine, from sometime last year….. I hope you enjoy it….

Piraeus calls me, silently….

Sizzle, sizzle, crash, bang, boom.
Intellect burning with subsequent doom.
Lingering long over decisive style,
Whistling up chaos all the while.

Such frozen thoughts may shatter,
Should we infer, but, no matter.
Firing blanks is children at play
Blooded sages all gasp in dismay.

Nonsense is good sense at times
Mundane objectives trip lightly in rhymes.
Fallen angels dance on a pin
Until each sinner enters within.

Fast moments with natural rain
Bring ashes, yet still must remain.
Final thoughts clamor for more
Find them only on a far distant shore.

~~ gigoid

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Just so everything today isn’t old and creaky, I’m putting together an old-school group of pearls for your delectation…. Hopefully, this, too, will feel the freedom of a Murphy-less morning, and turn out well, and quickly…. I think this one might make it onto the Quiz, so you might want to take notes….

Cogito, ergo sum.  (I think, therefore I am) — Rene Descartes

Down, down, down into the darkness of the grave Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind; Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave. I know. But I do not approve. And I am not resigned.” — Edna St. Vincent Millay, “Dirge Without Music”

“God is an invention of Man. So the nature of God is only a shallow mystery. The deep mystery is the nature of Man.” — Nanrei Kobori, late Abbot of the Temple of the Shining Dragon, Kyoto, Japan

“A note of music gains significance from the silence on either side.” — Anne Morrow Lindberg

“To a rational being it is the same thing to act according to nature and according to reason.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, vii, 11

Made still a blund’ring kind of melody;
Spurr’d boldly on, and dashed through thick and thin,
Through sense and nonsense, never out nor in.

— John Dryden (1631-1700) — Absalom and Achitophel, Part ii, Line 413

Cogito sum, ergo sum. Circa basta.  (I think I am. That’s close enough.) ~~ gigoid

That turned out well, I think, and this is my blog, so that’s good enough….   😆
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Well, I don’t think the Pulitzer Committee will need to deliberate very long on this one; I am a realist, after all…..

Whoa! Proofing revealed an Easter Egg! My subconscious must have been paying attention today, and slipped in a facer on my conscious brain; each of the pearl sections today have a quote from Edna St. Vincent Millay, the same quote, but used in one as a poem, and in the other as prose.

It was NOT deliberate on my part; I just found it now, as I was proofing for errors. Boy, the stuff that gets done when Murphy leaves me alone is astounding at times…. It makes me wonder how things might be if he would go away altogether…. SIGH…. Definitely wishful thinking….

Moreover, since both of the old-school pearls work just fine, just as they are, I’m letting this fly, as is, and know it will do just fine…. And, in the final analysis, I don’t care, because it’s done…. I’m outta here, gotta go plan for Thursday….  Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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