Adrift on The Sea of Ambiguity….

Posted on March 23, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Nature, whose sweet rains fall on just and unjust alike,
will have clefts in the rocks where I may hide,
and secret valleys in whose silence
I may weep undetected.
She will hang the night with stars
so that I may walk abroad in the darkness
without stumbling,
and send the wind over my footprints
so that none may track me to my hurt:
she will cleanse me in great waters,
and with bitter herbs make me whole.

~~ Oscar Wilde — “De Profundis” ~~

Main Street, Invergordon, Scotland

Hajime…. Well…. I cannot say with any real engagement I am happy with my night of attempting to sleep, as the epic battle into which it turned was fought to a draw. I spent four or so hours up, down, turned over, and groaning in pain, as one hip refused to accept the program, insisting every position I tried to assume was worthy of slipping a sharp knife into the hip, in order to indicate its refusal. Finally, around 2 AM, I found one position, approximating a half-twisted pretzel, in which no knife appeared, and I was able to drop off for about 3 hours or so…. Heaven, in comparison….

Now I’ve related the depths of futility in which I spent my night, let’s move on, before this becomes merely another litany of complaint. Perhaps the process of putting together a Pearl, while fending off the insistent demands of a feline familiar to play, will distract me from the fatigue and overall blah-ness under which I currently labor. It certainly isn’t doing much for my writing skills, or the creative urge, is it? Moreover, the more I type, the more my left arm and hand is trying to tell me this isn’t a great idea; the guitar playing yesterday seems to have annoyed it a bit….. SIGH…. this getting old business just sucks, big-time…..

Ah, well, it’s nothing anyone else isn’t going through, in their own way, so, I’ll quit complaining, and offering excuses, to go make the attempt at coherency which gives me a reason to act sane the rest of the day. Believe me, you don’t want me to skip this; the body count could get massive before the day is out, and, then, I’d have to kill more ignoramae, when the cops come to see what all the fuss is about. Probably best to stay off the streets today…. Y’know, maybe it’s time to…. No, better not. I need to stockpile more necessities first; I guess we’ll wait for that….

On that cryptic, yet hopeful note, I’ll take my leave, to go put this mess together for today. It will be late, and probably long, or, at least, thick, so, gird your grids for that. We’re using one of the Tardis Toys today, just to factor in a bit of random efficiency. It’s pretty cool; here’s how it works….

Shall we Pearl?

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people together to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” — Antoine de Saint Exupery

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

Rather than try to guess what music might go well today, we’ll go with our default, classical music, combined with my own preference for guitar music, giving us, naturally, classical guitar….. Enjoy!…..

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Classical Guitar Music

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https://youtu.be/V80EzF–UNk

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In lieu of a rant today, I’m substituting a poem, written by a blogging friend, a man who lives in Tokyo, and whose haiku and poetry has been one of my favorites for the entire time I’ve been on WP. He is also my most faithful follower, having visited this blog very close to every day since I began posting it here on WordPress. He is a man of great, gentle spirit, with deep compassion, and a love of beauty. This is his poem in response to the official ceremony in Japan, at a memorial for their war dead, on the official first day of the Cherry Blossom Festival, their rite of Spring…. It is beautiful and a powerful message of peace, that I would ask all my followers to share with their own readers…. Thank you, and, enjoy!….

https://ashiakira.wordpress.com/story-poems-2/cherry-blossoms

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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 ~~

3/10/2013

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I began this pearl yesterday, whereupon SB decided to have a snit. Let’s see if it’s ready to cooperate this morning…. Well, that wasn’t so bad; only took a half hour to find three pearls. Ah well, I think it came out pretty well, considering, with a nice twist at the end…. Enjoy!….

There is more to reality than meets the eye.” — Subtle Bee

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.” — The Buddha

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

“The fundamental delusion of humanity is to suppose that I am here and you are there.” — Yasutani Roshi

“Most people are on the world, not in it…” — John Muir

“I expect to pass through this life but once. If, therefore, there be any good thing I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now, and not defer or neglect it, as I shall not pass this way again.” — William Penn

“I just forgot my whole philosophy of life!!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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I did it. That, in itself, is an achievement of grand craic, to be sure. Not only is it done, it’s done in a reasonable time, if we don’t count Daylight Savings Time, which I never do. Why, look! It’s the end of the page. I guess I’ll stop here; looks like it’s made for that. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; I’m determined to do this right, at least once before I kick the proverbial bucket…. Let’s hope that takes a while….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Doubtful dreams, dubiously delivered….

Posted on March 22, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”

~~ Anais Nin ~~

Beauty can be found even in ugliness…

Hajime…. I am empty of words. Those five you see in the previous sentence are the best beginning I could think to write, which goes to show just how empty I am at this moment. In spite of the unexpected sleep that I got, I’m tired, and grumpy, and just not in the mood. For anything.

Since there is nothing to say, I suppose I’ll go with the flow, and try to get a Pearl done without any sort of input from any sort of creative force. Talk about trusting the process…. Now we will see just how reliable the process has become, or, we’ll see an even greater mess than usual. The only fair way to judge it will be from the other end, so, we’ll go there, as quickly as possible. In fact we’re leaving now….

Shall we Pearl?

“Those who really deserve praise are the people who, while human enough to enjoy power, nevertheless pay more attention to justice than they are compelled to do by their situation.” — Thucydides

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Today I feel like hearing from a revolutionary artist. This man’s music is the best example I can think of, for he lived, and made his music, for the people…. He was Jamaican, but, his attitude about humanity was perfectly Irish, for he believed implicitly in their belief, to wit: It is in the shelter of each other that people live….. Enjoy, ffolkes; and, live up to the lyrics….

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Bob Marley
Legend

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https://youtu.be/LMIKy9Orl80

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Since I’ve nothing fresh to say, here is a discussion of morality & ethics from the archives; it will do just fine for the mood I’m in….

From 2/12/13:

I am an asshole. A jerk. A prick. A foul-mouthed, misbegotten excuse for a human being…. I, as is true of virtually all seven billion of my peers on this planet, am nothing more than a hypocrite, deserving of eternal residence in the lowest pits of hell for my perfidy….. What, you might ask, prompted this viciously personal outburst of self-denigration? Well, let me tell you….

Most of us, at some point or another, sit down from time to time to think about our actions, those we are considering, and those we have acted out in the past, to get some perspective on how those actions have conformed to our ethical and moral beliefs. In other words, we sit in self-judgment; whether we do so to praise or to chastise doesn’t matter, ultimately, as long as it is an honest appraisal, and we do not flinch from owning up to our baseness where it is found…..

This is why I am forced to curse myself…. Because I’m not a Catholic, or any other faith that espouses such mummery, (I don’t mean to pick on Catholics…. some of my best friends, etc….. 😆 ….. They’re just an example everyone recognizes, and can relate to as similar to their own….)…. Any who, because I’m not of that Tribe, I don’t have the luxury of confessing to a priest, who would then reassure me that I am still one of the Chosen Ones, and send me on my way having learned nothing but a false sense of entitlement.

I can’t just pass off what I may have done in my life to some faceless butthead in a dress, who, no doubt, has a great laugh at the expense of the penitent, when he and the other priests get together in the rectory for a few drinks, passing around all the latest tall tales and outtakes from the confessional booth…..

I consider myself to be a morally upright person, and hope that my actions reflect that. But, I know for certain that, like every other human being who ever lived, I don’t always live up to those moral beliefs, and fall from grace on occasion…. If I were a less honest man, I’d say that there were mitigating, or at least explanatory reasons for my failures to hold to my own standards, but, if I tried that, my Dad would kick my ass from now until Thursday the next time I see him, so I’m not going to take that chance…. I take full responsibility for my actions, base and cruel as they were, and no one can hold me in lower regard than I do….

I had considered using this venue as a confessional, to air out my transgressions on the stage of reality, but, I don’t think that would be any more ethical than confessing to a priest…. Confession may make a difference to the penitent, by absolving him/her from any lingering guilt that could adversely affect them (i.e., they feel better about themselves after receiving absolution…), but, in truth, it doesn’t mean a damn thing, as nothing is done to balance the scale, in a karmic sense, especially for whatever creature or person that was the victim of the cruelty. The only act that would mean anything would be for the perpetrator to use the experience to motivate them to two things….

One, to try to repair whatever hurt or pain they have caused another creature…. man, animal, doesn’t matter…. They don’t deserve to be victimized, no matter their form, and ALL one can do, to fix any harm they have caused, is the least they should do…. Second, use the experience as motivation to make a change in themselves, to act with greater understanding, greater compassion, and greater control over themselves and their feelings…. which is what guilt is all about, right?…. The difference is that, when one confesses to a priest, and receives absolution, there is no motivation to make any changes in their actions…. They know none is necessary, since they can relieve themselves of any guilt they may feel by confessing…. so, why bother?

On the other hand, when one assumes the responsibility for their own actions, the guilt doesn’t go away…. I will never forgive myself for some of the things that I’ve done in my life (nor will I share them in any attempt to gain forgiveness from anyone else…. it’s none of their fucking business….)(Besides, that whole confessional thing just sounds too much like a blackmail scheme…. the people who confess are sure putting their fate trustingly into the hands of those priests, aren’t they?). That simple fact is what keeps me from falling into the same ethical trap I did when I lost my cool, and acted without thinking, or took my feelings out on innocent bystanders….. Not going to happen again, a sentiment which, I’m sure, is NOT what you can expect from any religicos after confession….

You will note that there are no pearls associated with this discussion…. That’s because I am such an asshole, none were needed to stimulate me into spilling my guts, so to speak…. Besides, I couldn’t find a proper pearl for the beginning of such a somber subject by the time I was ready to write about it…. But, Murphy must have liked the way I dissed myself, because, hunting for an appropriate closer, afterward, I found these two, which, together, make a grand finishing touch for this subject…. Think of them as bookends….

“Character is doing the right thing when nobody’s looking. There are too many people who think that the only thing that’s right is to get by, and the only thing that’s wrong is to get caught.” — J. C. Watts

Boy, that hits the nail on the head, doesn’t it?….. I’ve got these two quotes reversed in the order in which they make the most sense, but, given the state of things here, that isn’t surprising, is it…. This is the one that probably should go at the front of this piece, so, just put it there in your mind, okay? Thanks….. (Note from 2014: Actually, you may, or even should, ignore all of these final comments about pearls, as they are currently out of context, given the fact the pearl that now graces the front of this discussion is so perfectly suitable….)

“We tell lies when we are afraid, . . . afraid of what we don’t know, afraid of what others will think, afraid of what will be found out about us. But every time we tell a lie, the thing that we fear grows stronger.” — Tad Williams, Spoken by Dr. Morgenes, To Green Angel Tower (part of — Memory, Sorrow and Thorn)

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This is an older poem of mine, about an old friend of mine, my constant companion, pain…. It’s one of many, I’m afraid….

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 ~~

9/6/2012

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I don’t know, so, please, don’t ask. It’s just the way it came out, so, deal with it as if it were actually a real pearl…. It’s all I can suggest….

`The time has come,’ the walrus said, `to talk of many things.
Of shoes – of ships – of sealing wax, of cabbages and kings.
And why the sea is boiling hot, and whether pigs have wings.’

~~ Lewis Carroll ~~

~~ The Walrus and the Carpenter, from Alice Through the Looking Glass ~~

“By space the universe encompasses and swallows me up like a dot; by thought I encompass the Universe.” — Pascal, Pensees, n. 265

“Certainly the game is rigged. Don’t let that stop you; if you don’t bet, you can’t win.” — Lazarus Long

“A wise man first determines what is within his control; all else is then irrelevant.” — Epictetus

“You should hammer your iron when it is glowing hot.” — Publius Syrus — Maxim 262

“The great consolation in life is to say precisely what one thinks.” — Voltaire

“And that’s the way it is…” — Walter Cronkite

“‘Scuze me while I kiss the sky…” — Jimi Hendrix, Purple Haze

“Bert? Are you awake Bert?” — Ernie

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Well, it’s done, and that’s the best I can say of it. Moreover, I won’t try to make any excuses or apologies. I’ll just go now, and try to do better tomorrow, should that prove possible, or even imaginable. So be it. See y’all then, should I live through the day & night…. Odds are good….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Soliciting for abrupt renovation….

Posted on March 20, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“I am the shadow my words cast.”

~~ Octavio Paz ~~

Giving new meaning to the word “relaxed”….

Hajime…. ‘If’ is a big word, for having so few letters. We’d all have a tough time explaining options to each other without it, for it is a word indicating the presence of imagination at work, imagining things which might be, but, are not yet real…. It helps us to describe possibilities, and gives us the power to create solutions from out of that imagination…. How many times have you said to someone, “If we do this….”? Or, the very powerful, “What if…:” If you’re anything like me, you’ve said that a lot….

At this point, I imagine y’all are asking yourselves, “What the hell is this about?”, but, I’m afraid you’d be asking the wrong person, if you expect a coherent answer, because I don’t have a clue. As I sat this morning to begin, I found myself completely at a loss as to how to start; no muse, no inspiration, and very little will power, all lacking for unknown, but, no doubt, compelling reason, which will occur to me some years hence. So, I just began to type what was in there, and, what you see is what I had. (Ha! Y’all thought I was going to use wysiwyg again, didn’t you?….) As the beginning of a discussion/rant, it’s not bad. For an intro, it’s a sure invitation to get lost, fast.

In order to regain some sort of integrity, of purpose if not delivery, I think I should probably cut this part short again today. Wandering around, looking for an opening doesn’t seem to be working very well, does it? No, it doesn’t, and, since I do try to be realistic whenever possible, I’ll submit to necessity, again, and leave this to die an unnatural death, on its own. Requiesce in pace.

Now we’ve concluded this portion of today’s program, there is nothing to keep us here, but our own incompetence, which has been amply demonstrated in the past. I have a new method, called the Sandbag, and it works like this….

Shall we Pearl?

“He who has a WHY to live for can bear with almost any HOW.”

~~ Friedrich Nietzsche ~~

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As usual when we go with our default choice for music, the mix you’ll hear is the one which had a picture I enjoyed…. I hope you enjoy it, too….

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Classical Music

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https://youtu.be/qgHNOtQT-aU

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“It’s the RINSE CYCLE!! They’ve ALL IGNORED the RINSE CYCLE!!”

~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~

As I cruised around my collection/database of aphorisms/quotes, etc., I came across this from our old friend Zippy. Now, to look at it, one might think it is just nonsense; one might be wrong about that. To my eye, it’s a deeply metaphorical lament about modern society, and that part of human nature about which I rant here on all-too-frequent occasions, to wit: the human inability to understand themselves, or to use the gift of intelligence and imagination with which they are born. This, of course, confirms your previously held opinion as to my insanity, I’m sure, but, wait a moment or two, and I might just convince you I’m saner than anyone you know.

You see, I’ve read a LOT of Zippy, and you must understand his metaphorical language use in order to comprehend his meaning. Of course, his next statement could very well veer off into yet another dimension, either figuratively, or literally, but, that’s Zippy for ya. Nonetheless, it doesn’t take away from his compassion, it merely highlights his somewhat stubborn refusal to consider any sort of consistency of focus. He prefers to take it as it comes, so to speak. But, if we examine his words above, we can see it relates, in a purely logical way, to where I left off in our last rant, to wit:

“Is consciousness just a special form of hallucination?”

~~ Frank Herbert ~~

I had intended to finish out this rant with a discussion of the issues involved in the impending environmental and societal crises I see coming in the near future. But, I happened to stop in at a friend’s blog, where she had written a poem introducing the video you see below. The video turns out to be a rather excellent discussion of exactly what I had intended to say; moreover, it comes with graphics to support all the arguments, which is a much more effective way to get the points across; it’s all perfectly clear, and shows exactly how we all have allowed ourselves to be trapped…. I think it will do just fine as a finish to this discussion, thus saving me a bundle of time…. Here then, is The Lie We Live, which I found at: https://ladybluerose.wordpress.com/2016/03/19/8358/

The Lie We Live

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https://youtu.be/ipe6CMvW0Dg

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Accentuated Lessons

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

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

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

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

Peace lies within, always…..

~~ gigoid ~~

9/27/2012

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Naked Pearls

Random Thoughts on Life

*********

You live and learn. Or you don’t live long.

~~ Lazarus Long ~~

*********

You may be capable of great things,
But life consists of small things.

~~ Deng Ming-Dao ~~

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To lead the people, walk behind them.

~~ Lao-Tzu ~~

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“Given the choice between the experience of pain and nothing,
I would choose pain.”

~~ William Faulkner ~~

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“Let us endeavour to live that when we come to die
even the undertaker will be sorry.”

~~ Mark Twain, from Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar (1894) ~~

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“We have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.”

~~ Tombstone epitaph of two astronomers ~~

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“An it harm none,
Do what ye will.”

~~ Wiccan Credo ~~

*********

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There are days when creating a Pearl of Virtual Wisdom makes me wonder just what the hell I’m doing here; today has been one of those. However, it’s done, so, I’ll forgo any further waffling over purpose, and get it posted. I’m a firm believer in “better out than in”, as you may know. In any case, I can’t think of any more ways to torture either of us, so, I’ll give it up for today. I will, regardless of whether or not I wish to do so, be back again tomorrow, simply because I’m one stubborn son of a bitch (sorry, Mom…). See ya….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Bombastic echoes in a lovely hat….

Posted on March 19, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

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

~~ Basho ~~

Cross-eyed? Sez who?….

Hajime…. Well, here we are again, ever so happy to be at our desk, bereft of mind, broken of body, and ready to rumble. I know I said I’d have a fully fresh Pearl, but…. reality intervened, so to speak. So, what you get is more wysiwyg, after a fashion. Oh, it’s all relatively fresh, but, completing it all became a bit of a chore when SB decided to portion out pearls at a miserly rate. So, we’ll go to the archives for a rant, and, a poem. Other than that, it’s fresh. Not up to snuff, but, it meets the minimum standard, our default.

I suppose I could chat a bit about my day off, but, as it turns out, it was little more than a period of rest, it seems, as I got little done of a productive nature other than sleep, which, for some unknown reason, came quickly and easily last night. Go figure. At any rate, I have some energy, which I will now proceed to waste shamelessly to get this done. That doesn’t make me a hero, though there are those who might think it does; they’d be off the mark, as there was no altruism or selflessness involved. Just rest and recovery for me; since it seems to have worked, we’ll call it a draw, and move on.

Now we’ve completed the obligatory meaningless drivel for the day, perhaps we should think about getting the slow on the toad for the day. I know I always enjoy life better when it’s in the bag, so, we’ll find a bag, and get in. Why, look! Here’s a nice, reusable shopping bag right here! Funny how that works, eh? We’ll take advantage of the handy prop, which we placed there earlier for just this purpose, so we can say we have lived up to the hype seen in all the ads. Not that we wrote, or even asked for the ads, but, like a hive of bees in your head, there they are. So be it.

That’s quite enough of that, I think. Ffolkes, we’re going on now, before this gets any further out of hand…. Luigi, wake the hell up & get us out of here, now!…. Hang on, ffolkes, Luigi’s still more than just a little hung over….

Shall we Pearl?

“Contrariwise”, continued Tweedledee,
“If it was so, it might be;
and if it were so, it would be;
but as it isn’t, it ain’t.
That’s logic.”

~~ Lewis Carroll, “Alice in Wonderland” ~~

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Fred Neil

Image from thatsallfolk.free.fr via Google Images

It’s been a while since I listened to this man’s music; too long. He has one of the finest voices, ever, and is, quite simply, a powerful songwriter. He’s not very well known, though there are tunes he wrote which everyone alive has heard, and loved…. For example, “Everybody’s Talkin’ At Me”….. Enjoy, ffolkes…

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Fred Neil

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https://youtu.be/NPDGjzhGutU

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As noted, here is a piece that should fit the bill for today; light, but with a touch of wit, not to mention a stiff dose of inanity… or, maybe that was insanity…. Ah, well, so be it….. Enjoy!….

From 6/14/2014:

In this section, we have been running a new style pearl, (there’s that royal ‘we’ again….), with pictures to go along with whatever quotes and/or comments I come up with…. The latest incarnation involves a new subject of interest, the Wise Old Pine Cone, who has been kind enough to allow me to photograph his wanderings around town, to record his interactions with people, and the environment, as he wends his way around the town….. Yesterday, I posted the photos of when I accompanied him to the local ball team’s night game, which came out fairly well….

Sadly, the Wise Old Pine Cone, by the time we left the ball park, had consumed WAY too many brewskis, and has yet to get out of bed…. He’s pretty small, and a few beers really do a number on him; I’ve seen him stay in bed for three days after a bad session with wine, and beer isn’t any better for him…. He’ll be alright, but, he’ll be out of action for a day or two, so, we’ll have to find something else for this section….. Let me think….

Okay, you’ve convinced me…. I’ll rant….

“There is nothing a man can do to guarantee success, but there is nothing that can defeat him if he won’t give up.” — Greg Praino

Well, perhaps I won’t rant today; it doesn’t mean I’m giving up, but…. I just went to look for a rantable headline from the news…. Of the eleven headlines on the world news page, eight were about various bombings, battles, or other war activities, mostly in the middle east, where the Islamic sects are all fighting to see who will become the sole arbiter of the Muslim future….. never realizing how silly and counter-productive they are being, in terms of survival…. But, then, most people engaged in war are not in a very intelligent frame of mind, anyway….

(And, how can a Muslim extremist group name themselves after an Egyptian goddess over seven thousand years old {Isis}? I thought they hated ANY other religion…. Ah well, stupid is as stupid does…)

The point is, I couldn’t decide WHICH subject to rant about…. There are plenty of wars being fought, none of which make any sense…. There are governments still robbing the people, or oppressing them unmercifully; the churches are still butting into everything, as is their habit…. I see where the Pope is trying to be a mediator between Israel & Palestine (good luck with that!….), and now, the Presbyterian Church is doing SOMETHING over in Iraq, or Iran, to get involved with that whole mess…. what a bunch of idiots!…

Cars and factories are still streaming carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide into the air by the hundreds of millions of tons, every day, so pollution continues unabated, and climate change keeps changing, so, we can kiss our asses goodbye, once we figure out how long we have…. Religious fanatics and fundies of all varieties continue to wage their holy wars, blaming all that is wrong in the world on anything but their own actions…. Bankers and politicians continue to work together to steal everything that isn’t nailed down from the public, all enforced by paramilitary police forces, blindly obedient myrmidons with guns, and really bad attitudes, due to their completely unwarranted sense of entitlement regarding their psycho/sociopathic need to be seen as authority figures….

All of the insanity I’ve previously commented upon here continues, relatively unabated, as the world skips merrily down what it BELIEVES is the garden path, completely oblivious, calmly seated in a handbasket, never even wondering why it is getting so bloody hot…. And people wonder why I rant….

I found no particular headline to get me started, but, as can be seen by the above, none are really necessary for me to find my anger about the state of the world…. My anger is based in the realization that NONE of it is necessary; if people would take responsibility for themselves, and stand up to the assholes who are oppressing everyone who puts up with it, we could fix this broken puppy….

I’m a realist, though, and, as far as I can see, realistically, it ain’t gonna happen…. so, I’ll pick a few pearls, to make how I feel about it clear, and be done with it for today…. I’m mad, but, so mad, I don’t even want to talk about it any more….. Here, take these…. No worries, you’ll live; there are only five of them….

“I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.” — John Locke

“All I know is just what I read in the Congressional Record. They have had some awful funny articles in there lately. As our government deteriorates, our humor increases.” — Will Rogers

“I have never found, in a long experience of politics, that criticism is ever inhibited by ignorance.” — Harold MacMillan

“Look for a tough wedge for a tough log.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 723

“You know how dumb the average guy is? Well, by definition, half of them are even dumber than THAT.” — J.R. “Bob” Dobbs, ripping off George Carlin, who made that point YEARS before Bob finished puberty….

There you go, ffolkes…. a pointed, bitchy, but accurate, five-star pearl….. Let’s go on, shall we?….

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

Some days, only this poet will do…..

I measure every grief I meet
With analytic eyes;
I wonder if it weighs like mine,
Or has an easier size.

I wonder if they bore it long,
Or did it just begin?
I could not tell the date of mine,
It feels so old a pain.

I wonder if it hurts to live,
And if they have to try,
And whether, could they choose between,
They would not rather die.

I wonder if when years have piled–
Some thousands–on the cause
Of early hurt, if such a lapse
Could give them any pause;

Or would they go on aching still
Through centuries above,
Enlightened to a larger pain
By contrast with the love.

The grieved are many, I am told;
The reason deeper lies,–
Death is but one and comes but once
And only nails the eyes.

There’s grief of want, and grief of cold,–
A sort they call ‘despair,’
There’s banishment from native eyes,
In sight of native air.

And though I may not guess the kind
Correctly yet to me
A piercing comfort it affords
In passing Calvary,

To note the fashions of the cross
Of those that stand alone
Still fascinated to presume
That some are like my own.

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

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

Naked Pearls

Beginning to End

*********

“When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced.
Live your life so that when you die,
the world cries and you rejoice.”

~~ Old Indian saying

*********

“Belief gets in the way of learning.”

~~ Robert Heinlein, Time Enough for Love ~~

*********

“There’s an alternative.
There’s always a third way,
and it’s not a combination of the other two ways,
it’s a different way.”

~~ David Carradine ~~

*********

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

~~ Publius Syrus — Maxim 233 ~~

*********

“A ship in harbor is safe — but that is not what ships are for.”

~~ John A. Shedd ~~

*********

“If you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

~~ Yogi Berra ~~

*********

“There are places I remember all my life,
though some have changed,
some forever, not for better,
some have gone and some remain.
All these places had their moments
with lovers and friends I still can recall.
Some are dead and some are living.
In my life I’ve loved them all.”

~~ the Beatles ~~

*********

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

Having completed my vow, I’ll take my leave with less than the usual to-do. I will, however, issue the usual caveat, to wit: I’ll be back tomorrow. I figure that’s fair warning, and, I know for sure it’s the best you’re gonna get. See ya, ffolkes; the odds are running in our favor….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Platypae are indefatigable….

Posted on March 17, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“He who possesses most must be most afraid of loss.”

~~ Leonardo Da Vinci ~~

Practicing dignity at an early age….

Hajime…. Having engaged last night in an epic battle for sleep, (which I fought to a draw), I greet the new day with some anticipation, if only for the passing of the night. A small bonus; it’s St. Paddy’s Day, a day when every Irishman in the world goes out to find another Irishman to make a speech to, while pulling at a Guinness or five. It’s also said an Irishman is the only man alive who will step over ten women to get a bottle of stout, but, then I never did believe that one. I am, after all, part Irish, and I hate stout….

I see I’ve managed to lose my way with my usual efficiency in such matters. ‘Tis of little consequence today; I’m late, I’m tired, I hurt, and the day stretches out ahead of me with a promise of more. C’est la vie, as they say in Burgundy and the Cote du Rhone, which are across the channel from Cork/Cobh, hiding behind the Isle of Guernsey. Well, I guess the Cote du Rhone is also on the other side of France, but, hey, I’m talking mostly to Americans, who are famous for NOT knowing any geography. And, now, I’ve managed to insult my own audience…. SIGH…. Today, that’s a big, West Counties sigh, complete with huge indrawn breath, and a sad expression of sympathy.

Such dramatic expression is handy, as well; for example, it got me this much further down the page without much effort, with the possibility of leading us in yet another direction. Since to do so would be to lose our way even more so than we already have, I think we should pass on that, and go directly on to the oyster beds, before I completely lose my way. It shouldn’t take long, as Luigi decided to start his St. Paddy’s Day binge a bit early, like yesterday, and Guido had to be called in to get us on our way. I guess we should probably do something about Luigi; he’s getting a bit unreliable…. Ah, well, that’s for later…. For now….

Shall we Pearl?

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

~~ Simone de Beauvoir ~~

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

Riverdance-Cloudsong-Photographer-Jack-Hartin

Riverdance

Image from thriftynorthwestmom.com via Google Images

Here is my celebration for Saint Patrick’s Day. I’ve seen this company’s show three times now; it gets better every year, and that is saying something. For your enjoyment, here is a full show, well worth it just for the music; the dance and joy is a bonus…. Enjoy!….

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

Riverdance

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

https://youtu.be/gdVF2pefNpg

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

Given my battle during the night, you probably knew we were going to the archives today…. I’ll try to keep it light….

From 2/9/2014:

“The essence of Christianity is told us in the Garden of Eden history. The fruit that was forbidden was on the tree of knowledge. The subtext is, All the suffering you have is because you wanted to find out what was going on. You could be in the Garden of Eden if you had just keep your fucking mouth shut and hadn’t asked any questions.” — Frank Zappa Playboy Interview, April 1993

Hmm…. Frank’s take on matters are such that I generally find myself in complete agreement with what he says. Here, he has again put his finger on one of the more obvious facets of Christianity, one that defies all logical explanation in lieu of subservient belief, to wit: faith vs. knowledge, and the Christian’s unfortunate tendency to embrace the former, without any appeal to the latter….. To my way of thinking, that is not only foolish, but cowardly….. but, perhaps, that’s just me….

The fruit of the tree of knowledge gives mankind the go-ahead to use the brain with which we were furnished at birth; the preachers would have us abrogate that use, having us, instead, give over all our power of belief into the hands of the faithful, who, naturally, have only our best interests at heart….. Sure they do…. NOT. I’m sorry, but, no matter how many times these folks say so, I am not going to accept that they know better than I what is best for me…. Nope, not even if there were twenty Bibles out there, all proclaiming how true they are…. Oh wait, there are twenty of them, aren’t there?…. Oh, well, you know what I meant….

Why do people fall for this? I cannot understand how people, who are normally reasonably intelligent, will, by conscious choice, bury their heads in the sand to buy into this, without ever taking even one moment to examine any of it for truth, or even logical assumption. Is there some kind of mind-control drug in that incense? Maybe in the sacramental wine…. Whatever it is, it turns normally competent, intelligent people into mindless slaves, and does so with their complete agreement and approval….. To my mind, it is one of history’s saddest, most incomprehensible features, when I look at just how easily people fall for such egregious, and so obviously self-serving idiocy, as most of the dogmatic proclamations of the major religions tend to offer up.

“I hope I never get so old I get religious.” — Ingmar Bergman

I am compelled to add, “Me, too!” to this sentiment…. In the recent past, I’ve been taking a lot of shots at religions, and need to make clear that I do not hate Christians, or Buddhists, or Muslims, or the followers of any religion. I think they are being silly, deliberately and evilly so, at worst, or at best, misguidedly so, but I don’t hate, or fear them, as is the case on their part whenever they consider me, or my criticisms of their beliefs. I don’t hold that against them, either, as it is logically consistent for them to do so, given the limitations of their dogmatic position. Since, however, the fervor with which they will often defend their position can reach a rather fevered pitch, I tend to treat many of them like a stinging insect, so I will move, and speak, slowly and carefully, so as not to frighten them more than they already are….

Ethical and moral behavior is not confined to those who follow the precepts of one religion or another, despite what any of the proponents of those religions will try to tell you. In fact, if you look closely, the number of folks who are believers have a much higher percentage of failure in that area than do the non-believers, which only makes sense…. The believers all have a sense of entitlement that gives them the idea that the rules of behavior don’t always apply to them, in terms of how they treat people who are not of the same faith, so, to those who are not of their own sect, they don’t bother being truthful, or honest, or ethical, as those people don’t count, in their eyes. People who make their own moral codes tend to follow them, and are much more tolerant of those who do not share their beliefs.

Basic human nature dictates these responses in people; thus, one can see how dangerous it is to remain ignorant, in the Biblical sense. Those who choose to buy into the myth of the Garden of Eden, giving up all their personal independence of mind for the comfort and safety of dogma, will always fail to act according to their own morality much of the time, generally acting, instead, out of their sense of entitlement, and the belief that all of their sins will be forgiven, merely by the act of confessing them. Only those who consciously choose their moral code have the courage to act it out, it seems, except for those few people who actually try to live according to the morality that is espoused, and is seldom embraced by their less ethical peers.

Having the strength of mind to make one’s own moral code also implies the courage to act it out…. This is why I choose to deny the dogma I’ve been exposed to all my life, as being illogical, and, ultimately, immoral…. It makes more sense to me to make my own decisions on such matters, and tell the busybodies who assume they know best for all to go jump in a lake…. Even better, just shut the hell up, and get out of the way, so the rest of us can get something relevant done, without having to put up with all the nonsense from that quarter….

“What is a church? Our honest sexton tells, ‘Tis a tall building, with a tower and bells.” — Crabbe

Note from 2014: Since the validity of the above remains strong, I leave you with the following pearl, to finish off this discussion with the proper tone of accusation, and indictment, of those guilty of this sort of crime against humanity….

“The impression somehow prevails that the true believer, particularly the religious individual, is a humble person. The truth is that the surrendering and humbling of the self breeds pride and arrogance.” — Eric Hoffer

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

Finisterre

This was the land’s end: the last fingers, knuckled and rheumatic,
Cramped on nothing. Black
Admonitory cliffs, and the sea exploding
With no bottom, or anything on the other side of it,
Whitened by the faces of the drowned.
Now it is only gloomy, a dump of rocks —-
Leftover soldiers from old, messy wars.
The sea cannons into their ear, but they don’t budge.
Other rocks hide their grudges under the water.

The cliffs are edged with trefoils, stars and bells
Such as fingers might embroider, close to death,
Almost too small for the mists to bother with.
The mists are part of the ancient paraphernalia —-
Souls, rolled in the doom-noise of the sea.
They bruise the rocks out of existence, then resurrect them.
They go up without hope, like sighs.
I walk among them, and they stuff my mouth with cotton.
When they free me, I am beaded with tears.

Our Lady of the Shipwrecked is striding toward the horizon,
Her marble skirts blown back in two pink wings.
A marble sailor kneels at her foot distractedly, and at his foot
A peasant woman in black
Is praying to the monument of the sailor praying.
Our Lady of the Shipwrecked is three times life size,
Her lips sweet with divinity.
She does not hear what the sailor or the peasant is saying —-
She is in love with the beautiful formlessness of the sea.

Gull-colored laces flap in the sea drafts
Beside the postcard stalls.
The peasants anchor them with conches. One is told:
“These are the pretty trinkets the sea hides,
Little shells made up into necklaces and toy ladies.
They do not come from the Bay of the Dead down there,
But from another place, tropical and blue,
We have never been to.
These are our crêpes. Eat them before they blow cold.”

~~ Sylvia Plath ~~

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

Our final pearl today is an eclectic, slightly humorous random, harlequin version of an old-school pearl. I hope you enjoy it, for it is one of my better efforts in a while….

The lake rises above the trees:
The image of Preponderance of the Great.
Thus the superior man, when he stands alone,
Is unconcerned,
And if he has to renounce the world,
He is undaunted.

~~ I Ching ~

“It really doesn’t matter if you’re the prey or the predator, if you want to live to see the sunset, you’ve got to start the day running.” — Realist Bee

“Are we THERE yet?” — Zippy the Pinhead

“Brains first and then Hard Work.” — Eeyore, Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne

“A life lived in fear is only half lived.” — Spanish proverb

“You can observe a lot just by watchin’.” — Yogi Berra

“The best way out is always through.” — Robert Frost

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

“Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself
(I am large, I contain multitudes).”

~~ Walt Whitman, Song of Myself ~~

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

Well, it’s done, in spite of some severe demands for attention from our resident familiar, who, for some reason, seems to think today is HER day. Maybe she’s Irish, mixed in with the very apparent Siamese; must be the Calico in her. At any rate, it’s done, and pretty damn fresh, aside from the rant and the poem, which speak for themselves. I’m going to take this opportunity to take my leave, as it were, so, I’ll leave you with my usual caveat, to wit: See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Consider it a matter of submitting to the inevitable….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Winsome wiggling only on Tuesdays….

Posted on March 16, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“It has been said that man is a rational animal.
All my life I have been searching for evidence which could support this.”

~~ Bertrand Russell ~~

Irish Famine Victims Memorial ~ Galway

Hajime…. Fortunately for me, the process I’ve developed over the years continues to stand in good stead for my muse, who is, apparently, on sabbatical. Until she/he/it has returned, I’m on my own, a sure recipe for disaster, let me assure you. To avoid any such less than optimal outcome, I’ve put together a relatively heavy (don’t worry, heavy in weight, not intensity) Pearl, which, though it may take some time to wade through, will nonetheless provide ample food for thought, and some damn find music, if naught else. Where else could you get all that for this price, eh?

I think, before anyone actually comes up with an answer to that query, I’ll use my recently discovered brevity bone to take us out of the intro in a hurry. I’ve found that doing so will, at the very least, put a damper in any pending lawsuits; something out the air at the oyster beds keeps the process servers away…. Of course, the air there HAS been rated by government agencies as “miasma”, so, perhaps they have something about which to complain…. not that we care at all, but, it gives them something to do besides pick at each other.

Now, where was I, before I so rudely interrupted myself? Oh, right. We’re outta here…. See ya down the page ffolkes, and, I’d suggest you use the conveniently located handholds on the wall…. It’s gonna get bumpy…..

Shall we Pearl?

“It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult
words but rather short, easy words like “What about lunch?”

~~ Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne ~~

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

Playing For Change

Today, I feel generous; hence, a double shot of love, from some of the world’s best street musicians and singers, all with one message of peace. Enjoy!….

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

One Love

Blues of People

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

https://youtu.be/4xjPODksI08

https://youtu.be/dXO_0BJdU84

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

I’m still working on a new rant, so, bear with me, as we go with one from about two years ago, which, as with all of my rants, seems to be still valid, in all it says…. Enjoy!….

From 3/16/2014:

“…when all government… in little as in great things, shall be drawn to Washington as the centre of all power, it will render powerless the checks provided of one government on another and will become as venal and oppressive as the government from which we separated.” — Thomas Jefferson, 1821

Before we begin, please read the article attached to the link below; it contains information that will be necessary to a full appreciation/understanding of the discussion to follow…..

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/FDIC-sues-16-big-banks-that-set-key-rate-5318301.php

After reading this article all the way through, I came perilously close to puking, only resisting the urge, strong as it was, because I wasn’t in a place where it would have been convenient….. However, I WAS able to determine, immediately upon completion of the article, that I would definitely be ranting on this one, for sure and for certain…. This CRIES out to discussed, and, who am I to destroy the wishes of such a plaintive, compelling cry for social justice?

Did you catch the key points in the report on these asshole bankers and their naked avarice? To me, one of the key points in the article, which shows just how ridiculous the whole thing becomes when examined in ANY light, is the sentence imposed on the banks for admitting their guilt…. Essentially, the decision says this: a) the banks were guilty of defrauding their customers (again)…. they admitted it without a qualm; b) they only have to pay back PART of what they stole by doing so, and c) they don’t have to go to jail, they get to stay in business, and keep ALL of the profits they made by this theft.

You know, it makes me wonder…. I’d wager serious money (if I could cover the bet…. I’m not a bank, and I bet with honor….)….. very serious money, that the banks, when they planned out their campaign of theft in this instance, included in their plans a certain amount of money to set aside to pay the legal fees involved in defending themselves once they got found out and sued for the fraud…. I BET they knew before they started that, eventually, the SEC and their counterparts (ie, government thieves….) in the BRC would catch them in their thievery, and take them to court, so they set aside a percentage of the profits to be made to cover that, and proceeded with the plan to steal from their customers, (i.e. US, you and me, and all the other little investors whose money they steal on a regular basis….), knowing ahead of time that they’d never do any time in jail, and could count on a certain amount of profit on the deal…

I don’t think anyone would take that bet, unless they’re stupider than they look….. Ffolkes, how much more proof is necessary? How many times do we have to let these assholes fuck everyone else in the world, and let them get away with it, before we do something about stopping it? Personally, I’ve about had it up to here (makes motion at neck…) with their sheer gall, to carry out a scheme like this, in full view of the public, knowing they’ll be able to not only get away with it without ever spending any time in jail for their crimes, but will make a decent profit by doing so…. a profit they, of course, feel is their RIGHT to make, just because they want it…..

It’s not the money…. though, of course, it would help a lot of people if it wasn’t stolen…. No, it’s the sheer effrontery, the gall, the entitlement that gives these assholes the idea they can do this with impunity that bothers me the most…. It’s the kind of thing calculated to piss me off enough to take some action, even if that action isn’t necessarily the one that will help the most…. No, I’m tempted, almost beyond control, to go buy a gun, and a LOT of bullets that go with the gun, so I could start picking off bankers, and politicians, and judges, and police officers, and all the other assholes who dump their loads of BS all over everyone else in the pursuit of their own agendas, never caring at all how many others they harm in the process…

Yep, ffolkes, the time is drawing nigh when my patience will be at an end, and I’ll actually DO something that will, if nothing else, make me feel as if I’d helped in a small way to put a stop to the bullshit going on all around us…. It may not change society, but I’ll damn sure feel a lot better, you betcha….

Bah, humbug! Writing about this has gotten me as worked up as reading the article did originally; I’m sitting here vibrating with anger at the corporate assholes who are constantly degrading life for the rest of us, and wishing there were some way to speed up the time until I can afford to buy a decent weapon (by “decent” I mean, of course, that it will do all I want it to do….)…. I have a feeling it won’t be terribly long now until that day actually arrives…. and I can’t wait, to tell the truth….

I’m too worked up to rant further about this, though I can feel a lot more inside me that needs to be released…. So, I’ll finish off with a little five-star pearl, using as a parameter the same subject upon which we’ve been gnawing…. Hey, it’s a quick, legitimate way to bring this to a dignified, if choppy, ending….. Enjoy….

— How many politicians does it take to change a light bulb? Four, one to change it and the other three to deny it. — Smart Bee

“Dealing with the government is like kicking a 300-pound sponge.” — Finagle’s Law of Government Contracting

“We are hypnotized into believing that two TV sets will make us twice as happy as one TV set.” — Laura Huxley (wife of Aldous)

“The most certain test by which we judge whether a country is really free is the amount of security enjoyed by minorities.” — John E.E. Dalberg, Lord Acton (1834-1902), — “The History of Freedom in Antiquity”

“I don’t want the cheese, I just want to get out of the trap.” — Spanish Proverb

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

Penance, Made Simple

After all the dross is sent away
a celebration can begin,
time will face up to space, to stay
willing, to shine from within.

Anger and confusion come in to share
brushing reason aside,
eager to welcome all that is fair,
alert to danger, eyes wide.

Re-gift the wicked with their own pain
stand with the just;
fail to partake of the ill-gotten gain,
living in honor, the only must.

Standing fast in the face of wrong
is its own prize and reward.
Holding on to truth makes us strong,
well worth working toward.

Little is left to chance by fate
our lessons are never free of cost.
Seldom does reality make us wait
only when alone, are we lost.

~~ gigoid ~~

10/23/2012

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

Since the beginning, I’ve known some pearls are more, well, coherent than others. This one is, in the final analysis, pretty transparent, while simultaneously exhibiting a certain dignified sobriety, which, to me, enhances the message it carries, as a whole. But, then, I created it, so, who’s to say if any of that will be so? I suppose, as always, that may be taken as part of the point of this exercise…. A clue: this is all stuff seldom considered, but, all fairly significant, in its way…. Don’t worry, you’ll see….

“And sometimes the bear eats you.” — Realist Bee

“I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.” — Groucho Marx, 1890-1977

“Sleeping alone, except under doctor’s orders, does much harm. Children will tell you how lonely it is sleeping alone. If possible you should always sleep with someone you love. You recharge your mutual batteries free of charge.” — Marlene Dietrich

“Conventional wisdom says to know your limits. To know them you must find them first. Finding your limits generally involves getting in over your head and
hoping you live long enough to benefit from the experience. That’s the fun part.” — Drew Marold

“No matter where you go, there you are.” — Buckaroo Banzai, Buckaroo Banzai – Across the 8th Dimension

“I’m the one who’s got to die when its time for me to die, so let me live my life the way I want to.” — Jimi Hendrix

“The only people for me are the mad ones.” — Jack Kerouac

“All that we see or seem, is but a dream within a dream.” — Edgar Allen Poe, from the poem “A Dream Within a Dream”

“You have taken yourself too seriously. Knock it off.” — Cheeky Bee

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

I’m a bit surprised to have finished this with as much aplomb as has been the case. Rather than make the seriously bad mistake of trying to explain that comment, I’ll leave you in suspense, thus obeying the old adage about leaving ’em with something to think about. I will, in spite of all attempts to stop me, or dissuade me, be back tomorrow, to do this again…. I can’t seem to stop myself….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Will Robinson was never IN danger….

Posted on March 15, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Toes, knees, NIPPLES. Toes, knees, nipples, KNUCKLES…
Nipples, dimples, knuckles, NICKLES, wrinkles, pimples!!”~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~

Sunrise/Sunset in Florida

Image from http://katiemiafrederick.com/2016/03/09/womens-day-love/

Hajime…. Should this particular Pearl get posted today, it will be a testament to both indulgence and persistence, an odd pairing, if I’ve ever seen one. Nonetheless, ’tis true as the day. Last night, having consumed a rather larger portion of sleep aid in the form of a Toklas brownie of massive strength, (most ffolkes would sleep for days if they ate such a dose), which had the most excellently delightful effect of tumbling me into sleep, hard and fast, & keeping me there for seven straight. Yay, me!…. However, when I awoke, I was still foggy, and in new pain from not moving so long. As I sat with coffee to write today’s Pearl, I was struck by a wave of fatigue so great, I simply got up, & went back to bed…. Hence. the indulgence.

Two hours later, I’m up, and feeling almost real. Now comes the persistence part, for I will try to get this done today, & get it posted in a reasonable time, disappointing, perhaps, a few early readers, but, with the confidence given by getting the damn thing done at all. So be it. I’m not offering any apologies, or any pleas for patience; it all is what it is, and we’ll all just have to deal with the results. Some of your disappointment will, I hope, be mitigated by the most excellent poem I found for today, sent to me by a friend. You’ll like it; if you don’t, well, you don’t know diddly about poetry, so, it’s your loss….

There, I’ve shown my curmudgeonly side, so I suppose that means we should be off to get this done. I do hope y’all enjoy whatever has happened. If nothing else, it’s unique, if in no other way than for the perseverance needed to get it done. Since I can’t think of any tricks, or magic, we’ll simply leave it at that. If you would kindly fasten your belts, we’ll be off…..

Shall we Pearl?

“Is is not true that we have only one life to live;
if we can read, we can live as many lives
and as many kinds of lives as we wish.”~~ S.I. Hayakawa ~~

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Yep. We’re going default, because I’m in a hurry, and because it always hits the mark. As usual, this compilation was chosen simply for the picture it displays when I see it…. Enjoy!….

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Classical Music

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https://youtu.be/1Cp0ypTnu-8

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Time constraints mean we’re going to the archives, as I didn’t have time to finish the piece upon which I’m working…. Here’s one from a while back; I hope you enjoy it….

From 2/25/2014:

From 12/12/12:

“He who proselytizes in the cause of unbelief is basically a man in need of belief.” — Eric Hoffer

This is true…. you never see an atheist going door to door, trying to convert the pious to their unbeliefs. However, I would go further on this train of thought, and add that, “He who proselytizes, in any cause, in basically a man in need of a life.” I’m sure it occurred to Mr. Hoffer, but he was too busy trying to explain this statement to somebody who didn’t understand the word ‘proselytize’….. For my own case, I have never, ever understood why people feel compelled to go door to door to try to get other people to believe what they believe; it’s one of the most persistent delusional systems I’ve ever witnessed, to believe that anyone wants to hear what they have to say, much less they will find their beliefs palatable to others, or find anyone who believes them to be superior to their own…..

“More people would learn from their mistakes if they weren’t so busy denying they made them.” — Smart Bee

Humans seem to have an immense blind spot when it comes to their own actions and beliefs. Most of them never seem to question the things they are told, even when those things are presented with no evidence other than faith. Of course, the people who are invested in the religious system, to wit: the preachers, begin their indoctrination when their constituents are very young, when they are still prone to accept whatever an adult says as truth. This ensures a life-long predilection for being simple to control…. or, in short, mental slavery, if you will. Unless there is some sort of rebellion of spirit, where new knowledge is injected, these poor saps will spend their entire lives believing that what they have been told is real, when, in fact, they are fitting themselves with shackles, that will forever imprison their minds, and their imagination…..

“To defend one’s self against fear is simply to insure that one will, one day, be conquered by it; fears must be faced.” — James Baldwin

In my life-long quest for the truth, I’ve come to believe that religions, while originally intended to benefit people, (by their iconic progenitors, anyway…. I’m sure Jesus was a quite nice man, and wanted the best for those to whom he preached his own philosophy of compassion….), have historically been taken over by the predators who live to control others.

To be fair, some of those who become priests, or any of the other varieties of religious fanatic that prevail in our society, may indeed believe that their beliefs are true, and act accordingly, but the majority are, as far as I can tell, only concerned with maintaining status quo, thereby benefiting themselves, while never actually allowing any REAL progress in the development of the human condition. They would have society behave as if we were still living in caves, in essence, still cowering in our meager shelter while the storms and lightning are raging outside, terrified of the power of what we do not understand, and, therefore, allow ourselves to fear….

“A universe of death, which God by curse
Created evil, for evil only good;
Where all life dies, death lives,
and Nature breeds Perverse,
all monstrous, all prodigious things,
Abominable, unutterable and worse
Than fables yet have feigned, or fear conceived,
Gorgons, and Hydras, and Chimeras dire.” ~~ Milton, Paradise Lost, Book II ~~

(Side note: I’ll bet Milton had a hard time sleeping….)

The Universe is a big place, and there is a lot to learn. Fearing that knowledge, or fearing what changes that knowing will always bring, is the act of a coward, to my mind, and should not be encouraged. Supernatural beings of unlimited power are not a required component to the understanding of Nature and the Universe; we need not fear that our lack of knowledge of how things work is unattainable. Just because we do not understand a part of reality does not mean that whatever it is, is beyond our understanding.

It is not necessary to ask for exemptions, or intervention by our own personal gods, for us to achieve happiness, or even contentment; that is completely within our own power, if we but acknowledge that part of us that is free, and connected to everything else we can perceive. The connections may not be fully understood, but they are there, and if we can only learn to recognize it, the power to change reality lies within us, all the time…. As Epictetus said, “Happiness lies in learning to accept a simple truth. There are some things you can change. And there are some things you cannot.” It’s really quite that easy, you know, once one learns to accept this fact of life…. No dogma required…..

“If brains were outlawed, nothing would change.” — Smart Bee

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Yesterday, I received an email from a friend, a regular visitor to the blog, who knows I enjoy poetry. She sent me this poem, which she found in her own wanderings around the world of reading. My initial reaction was simply, WOW! My second was to go follow the link to find more of his work, and look forward to seeing more of it. The link is provided below…

Alienation

In the good old days
Before rock and roll
Heroin
The velvet underground
Cocaine
Sid vicious
And assorted bad men
And bad women,
In the good old days

No man and never a woman
Would profess their alienation from society
As society was a god society
And if you were alienated from society
You were in effect alienated from god
Which made you a sinner
An outcast
A candidate for purgatory, hell or if unborn or unbaptised,
Limbo.

Thus a man or woman
Would confess their sins
On the first Friday of each month
In the local church to the priest
Who knew them intimately
Despite the darkness
And the little grilled window
And the closeness of voice to ear

And on the first Saturday
All of society
Would be full again
Of forgiven sinners
And the good old days
Would continue

There are of course flaws in this.
In the new days
You can be alienated
From yourself
Your wife
Your mother
Your father
Your sister
Your whole shit gang bang of people you know
You don’t know

And you listen
To sid vicious
Nirvana
Rammstein
The voices in your head
The dreams of your nightmares
The girls of the canal bank leafy walks
The boys throwing cars at each other in the boreens
The men
The women
The whole gee bang sheebang hee bangs

There are flaws in this

And what you project is no longer god
And so no man or woman is god

Cranky tin pan alleyway of a universe
Cluttered with suffering silence once more
As no one knows the unknown language
Of the unknowable when all you can
Know if the echo chamber of the mind and soul and two pence
Mind we rig up with lights and flashing noise
Known as the modern
Keeps mouthing nonsense on top of nonsense
Without due regard to that fucking boat
That brought us here,

Echos of hades, charon, siren siren siren siren

This morning I watched as crows
Grabbed black pudding left out by my girls
On a small wooden bench

And over the hand made wall of dry stone
A thousand bodies kept each other warm
In that other place, no place, some place, where place, what place,
Marked by lichen crusted stone crosses and then some,

Discord they cawed, discord, discord, as they swooped
And watched with eyes sliding magnetically open and closed
Revealing milky white spectral analysis
Of this small earth ball of mucky matter
Which on closer inspection
Reveals much space between
And the nothing inbetween which makes us more of what we are
Much more so than believing we are flesh or bone or even water

The nothing in between, between, the start of and end of the sentence
That begins I am insert whatever the fuck twixt the blanks,
And no amount of miraculous sonerous beautous melodifications
About blooming effing flower petals nor soulful dirges
Can be the blank in the between

Is it a scream, a whooping holler, a mouth rounded beneath
Roundier eyes miracling a confrontation with all of space
And
Maria Callas does not end on that note, ever.

I told the crows to fuck off. I ate the pudding. It is only fair.
My feathers are darker and more spectacular

Though my girls
Whooped and hollered
As I flew away

A space in space.

~~Brendan McCormack ~~

Dublin, Ireland 1970 –
Irish Poet. Two collections published, ‘Selling Heaven'(2013) and ‘Phuckle – Irish Auf English’, (2014). Both available on Amazon.co.uk.

http://hellopoetry.com/brendan-mccormack/

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Our final old-school pearl today is…. Hmm. Well, it is what it is. It’s somewhat eclectic, though, not really. It’s also rather subtle, but, only in defense of its point, which is, as always, left as an exercise for the Gentle Reader…. Hint: it’s about Life.

“At birth we woke to dream in this world between.” — Kan’ami Kiyotsugu

“If ever I become entirely respectable I shall be quite sure that I have outlived myself.” — Eugene V. Debs

“It is not length of life, but depth of life.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“A wise man first determines what is within his control; all else is then irrelevant.” — Epictetus

“Courage is the complement of fear. A man who is fearless cannot be courageous. (He is also a fool.)” — Lazarus Long

“Fear nothing, for every renewed effort raises all former failures into lessons, all sins into experiences.” — Katherine Tingley

“Life has no other discipline to impose, if we would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly. Everything we shut our eyes to, everything we run away from, everything we deny, denigrate, or despise, serves to defeat us in the end. What seems nasty, painful, evil, can become a source of beauty, joy, and strength, if faced with an open mind. Every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such.” — Henry Miller

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I did it. Moreover, in some ways, I did it well, though that may only be my sense of accomplishment talking. Y’all will, of course, make the final judgment on that. Me, I’m gonna go start another Pearl while I’m hot, while simultaneously attempting to distract and entertain my resident familiar, Leelu the Annoyed Magicat. Wish me luck, because I’ll need it. Her routine has been seriously disrupted today, and cats don’t like that much…. Ah, well, I can do it. And, I’ll do it well enough to make another attempt tomorrow…. See y’all then, like it or not….

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy
and everyone else, too…When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

A cohort of significant raisins….

Posted on March 13, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Just trust yourself, then you will know how to live.”

~~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ~~

Nooo! I don’t wanna wake up…

Hajime…. I can relate to Leelu’s picture caption today, especially considering all I am tasked to do today. Since I am up, and reasonably awake, all things considered, I guess I’ll write a Pearl, a process which, by now, almost completes itself, with minimal interference from me. Today, I am hoping it lives up to my trust in it, for, to be frank, I ain’t got much.

Rather than go into any unwarranted detail, let’s just move on to another point of departure, which we can usually find damn near anywhere. That’s the easy part, for we don’t care at all where we leave from, as long as we get somewhere. Naturally, this tends to complicate matters to a degree, as we often don’t know where we are going; life goes on, in spite of it, though, so, we just pretend we don’t care, and find some other reason to be where we ended up. For those who don’t do well with ambiguity, it’s a bit of a hassle, but, life’s lessons never run on a schedule, so, it works out. Besides, if we really wanted to be somewhere, wouldn’t we say so? Yes, yes, we would.

Okay, obligatory nonsense paragraph; check. Let’s see now, what can we do to distract them for another moment or two, while we try to sober up the pilot. Not that he can’t fly drunk; he’s done it often enough. No, he just got so blasted he can’t find the keyhole, and that’s just not right. Nonetheless, we don’t have a backup today, so, we’ll chance it, just to get it done. I’m afraid it may make things a bit, well, unpredictable, but, hey, what’s that to us? We’re immune to such, and glad of it.

That’s it. I can’t think of any more bullshit, or even any goose guano. So be it. If you’d kindly deposit your empties in the appropriate containers, we’ll be on our way. Luigi has been poured into the pilot’s seat, and we’re warmed up & ready to go. If we get there, I’ll let you know. In the meantime….

Shall we Pearl?

“In theory there is nothing to hinder our following what we are taught;
but in life there are many things to draw us aside.”

~~ Epictetus — Discourses, Book i, Chap. xxvi ~~

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Playing For Change

Here is one of the very first videos created for Playing For Change, with some of the finest vocals you will ever hear. Enjoy, ffolkes; you’ll be seeing a lot of these from now on….

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Stand Up

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https://youtu.be/Us-TVg40ExM

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“… as sight is in the body, so is reason in the soul…”

~~ Aristotle ~~

~~ Nicomachean Ethics, Bl. I, Ch. 6, 10966, lines 29-30 ~~

It occurs to me there is yet another example of a part of human existence which, in its core, reflects both the nature of reality, and, that of humanity itself. This, of course, is the duality that exists in the real world, and in the manner in which we perceive that world. We feel, due to the absence or presence of kinetic energy applied to a nerve on our body, which has evolved to perceive that type of energy; in the case of touch, our skin, and the tissue below it, in conjunction with the nerves and brain, receive the energy (a caress, a blow, a breeze…), then, send the signal to the brain for interpretation and response.

This extends to all our senses, in one fashion or another; touch, taste, smell, hearing, vision, all are based on the presence or absence of a particular form of energy for us to perceive and interpret, and our various organs have evolved to do so, with the tools we have as part of our brain’s complexity. This, of course, does not enter into the realm of mind, or consciousness, as yet. That is yet another function, of which we shall speak shortly. For now, it is for us to know we are two in one, in everything we see, think, and do, and to lose awareness of this is to risk confusion, loss of self, and, more trouble than is necessary or pleasant.

For example, the universe exists in a state of change at all times; this is easily demonstrable by watching a river flow, or imagining the Earth turning on its axis as it moves around the sun, which moves along with the other stars in the Milky Way, as it moves through the Universe at large, fleeing the original point of whatever occurred to cause its motion, and set the laws of reality, but, only those WHICH WE ARE ABLE TO PERCEIVE. It is a good thing to remember, we may not be able to perceive ALL there is to our Universe, as we are in one place, and cannot experience all of it at once; there may be places where things are different than here.

But, on this planet, there are now, approximately seven-plus billion human beings, of which 99% not only have no notion of any of this, but, have never in their lives considered any of these simple facts, for that is what I have related. All I have said thus far is simple science, and philosophy, and has been known for millennia by a small portion of humanity. The rest never even consider themselves in this light, or stand outside their own existence to examine just what the hell is going on…. Instead, from birth, virtually all of mankind tends to listen to the versions of reality told to them by almost everyone they know, who has learned what they know from someone else, all without ever looking inside themselves, to compare what is there with what they see, and what they are told, or to examine any of it for its truth.

Why? Or, rather, why not? Why don’t most people look around, and inside, and think about it all, from a point of view other than what they’ve been told? Very few, in my experience, which also compels me to mention how evidence of this is clearly available every day in what we see in the news, on the streets, and in talking with people; the entire world is in such a state of constant turmoil, nobody can truly say they understand all of it, or are even completely aware of all of what is happening. Society has reached a point where its own sheer size has provided so much inertia, all forward motion seems to have stopped, while humanity tears each other apart, in war, after war, while we continue to despoil our own home environment to the point where the planet itself may become inimical to us.

“Is consciousness just a special form of hallucination?”

~~ Frank Herbert ~~

To be continued…..

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For The Blind Poet, Embraced

I sit to open a vein, exposed in public places,
happy to be written, judging by the faces.

None can see the price so willingly paid,
at the feet of imagination is that cost weighed.

Still shadows of reality shine quite as well
to hide all the bleeding as if under a spell;

While visions and fantasies vie for attention,
hoping to win once-hoped-for final mention.

Technology may or may not rue its day
never knowing or caring its part to play.

All the precious moments of inspiration
Fall ever short of our own imagination.

~~ gigoid ~~

9/30/2012

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Naked Pearls

Perspective

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“Put three grains of sand inside a vast cathedral, and the cathedral will be more closely packed with sand than space is with stars.” — Sir James Jeans

“A lie can travel halfway round the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” — Mark Twain

“Fortune is like glass,–the brighter the glitter, the more easily broken.” — Publius Syrus — Maxim 280

“Only a fool is astonished by the foolishness of mankind.” — Edward Abbey

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

“Most of all, I’ve learned that a good time to laugh is anytime you can.” — Linda Ellerbee

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

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As can be seen, it’s done, though with a rather new look. The interrupted rant is to be continued, simply because it is growing too large for one sitting. It’s a delicate point, so to speak, I’m working toward, and will require more thought; hence the pause for a cause. I doubt seriously if anyone objects, he said with a smirk for his own presumption…..

Okay, I believe that is quite enough for one day. I’m off to deal with pain and glory, so to speak, and will return tomorrow, come hell, or high water. In that you may place your belief, if not your complete trust. Me, I’m outta here….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Fluffy pieces of hydrated carbon steel….

Posted on March 12, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“I know but one freedom, and that is the freedom of the mind.”

~~ Antoine de Saint Exupery ~~

By any other name…

Hajime…. Well, I’m here. It’s been a tough week here at ECR, and in Northern Cali, as the rain continues to move in and out, bouncing the barometer around like a super-ball, keeping me in the throes of inflamed arthritic joints for hours & days on end…. Ah, well, such is life for us old farts, at times; it’s a good thing we’ve had lots of practice by now, or nothing would get done at all. But, I digress, as usual…. I’ve been working on a discussion for the rant section, but, it’s grown so epic it’ll need to wait, so, you’ll see an older pearl there today. Otherwise, it’s all as normal as we get around here, and pleasant as white bread toast.

Naturally, having begun today’s mess with a chatty, informative tone, we’ll need to find a different direction to take, to get us toward the oyster beds we prefer to inhabit during our time together. Y’all wouldn’t have any ideas, would you? No. Okay, well, let’s see. Oh, I suppose I could…. no, just did that. Hmm, how about this one? Nope, look, it’s broken. Well, I guess I’ll just have to use the Tardis, and have it washed tonight. Yeah, that’s the ticket….

Okay, if y’all will just file out of the cabin, and head over into the Tardis, we’ll get this slow on the toad for the day. I appreciate your flexibility, and your patience in waiting for me to get my act together enough to put one of these things together. C’est marvellieux! As a thank you, I have entered all your names in our contest, for a chance to win a chance to stay behind next time. Bonus! Okay, I’m done…. Well, I can’t think of any more nonsense, so, that’s the same thing…. Look, what’s that?…. Duck! No, goose!…. Ah, hell with it; Luigi, throw that switch….

Shall we Pearl?

“Thoughts are mightier than strength of hand.”

~~ Sophocles — Phaedra, Frag. 854 ~~

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Playing For Change

I discovered this organization a few months ago, and have been nearly obsessed with taking part in their quest, as it fits in perfectly with my own views of how we can possibly achieve some kind of harmony in the world at large. Laughter, music, and love are the answer to all our problems, if freely felt, and given without regard for any delusions that demean humanity, such as religion, politics, or the seriously negative concept of money. None of them are necessary for people to live, as long as we live, as we always need to, in the shelter of each other….

As I listened yesterday to the first couple videos, which I got when I joined the organization as one of their contributing Ambassadors, my resolve to follow this path was strengthened, especially when I chose to listen first to Imagine, John Lennon’s summary of human wisdom, and then One Love, Bob Marley’s matching manifesto, two of the PFC’s iconic statements of purpose, in song…. The film’s participants exhibit such joy, such freedom of spirit, I weep, every time I watch, as musicians from all around the world join to play the tunes, together… I suggest listening to as many as you can, then, join, begin to share the music, and the love it creates….. Enjoy!….

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Playing For Change

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https://youtu.be/iBnoBetIk1w

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Here is a discussion of the principles of personal security, from 2014. It’s a bit long, but, pretty good in spots; I hope you enjoy it….

From 5/5/2014:

I found these two articles yesterday, after posting the Pearl…. As you’ll see, they provide the perfect jumping point for what follows…. I suppose that, as always, ‘perfect’ is a question-begging word to use, but, hey, I calls ’em as I sees ’em…. when I can find my glasses….

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/03/everyone-is-under-surveillance-now-says-whistleblower-edward-snowden

I had originally intended to have some words regarding this article, as it speaks to some rather important points…. but, then, I saw the following article, and my angst went right through the roof, stimulating the rest…. Now, read this one…. & just include it all together; it’s all of a piece, anyway….

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/18/cia-torture-architect-enhanced-interrogation

Here, then, is an excellent example of the definition of ‘gigo’, (garbage in-garbage out), from the psychologist responsible for the design and codification of many of the torture methods, including “water boarding”, used by the CIA at Guantanamo Bay, and elsewhere around the world….. His comments, which I will examine below, are so egregiously INSANE, I had to read the article in pieces, as I found myself shouting at him, every time he opened his mouth to make one of the reported statements…

I cannot BELIEVE this man was found to be an adequate psychologist, passing his tests and arguing his doctoral thesis, without having at least the basic innate ability to display even an ounce of compassion; I also don’t understand, at all, how he could be considered anything other than the US’s version of the Nazi scientist, the one at Auschwitz, who sent the Jews into the ovens….

Ah, yes, Josef Mengele…. the infamous, iconic mad doctor, the real version, the model for what all the comics use as the ultimate villain so often, whose insanity threatens the entire world, and everyone in it…. I tell you, ffolkes, those people in Washington, D.C. are totally out of control…. I’m not kidding; the current crop of elected officials, as well as the appointees put in place by those (I stared at this point for a long time, and still cannot, for the life of me, think of an expletive that it harsh enough…, so we’ll go with a classic….) assholes, all exhibit every single symptom of the violently insane, who believe their own twisted version of reality is the only real one, who hold on to their paranoid delusions so tightly, nothing, and nobody, can tell them differently….

Hell, I don’t even need, in this case, to resort to my special knowledge and experience, of working with the violently insane as a therapist for over 20 years…. These guys lay it out so clearly, right out in public, there’s no need for me to have to explain…. Their own words convict them whenever they condescend to open their mouths about what they truly believe….

Here, let me show you a couple of examples from the second article listed… The comments in quotes are by the protagonist in this drama, James Mitchell, (Piled High and Deep), Ph.D., formerly of the CIA, the psychologist regarded as the architect of the CIA’s “enhanced interrogation” program…. a description taken straight from the article…. You’ll be able to recognize my comments by the anger and vulgarity the statements produce in me….

“The people on the ground did the best they could with the way they understood the law at the time,” he said. “You can’t ask someone to put their life on the line and think and make a decision without the benefit of hindsight and then eviscerate them in the press 10 years later.”

You can’t? Why not? These people were in no danger; there is no danger, no life on the line, when someone tortures another; only the one being tortured is in danger. And if you do something so obviously WRONG, it doesn’t fucking matter a bit how long it is, you SHOULD be vilified in the press. There is no reason on this Earth why anyone shouldn’t KNOW torturing another human being, for ANY FUCKING REASON AT ALL, is NOT morally defensible. This principle is true even in cases where the ultimate goal is considered good; you’ve no doubt heard the saying, “the end does not justify the means.”

If they didn’t know it was wrong, why didn’t they do it out in the open, where everyone could see what they were doing? Fucking assholes think that their own parafuckingnoia should excuse anything they do….

“Everything you know is wrong.” — The Firesign Theater

“I’m skeptical about the Senate report, because I do not believe that every analyst whose jobs and promotions depended upon it, who were professional intelligence experts, all them lied to protect a program? All of them were wrong? All of these [CIA] directors were wrong? All of the people who were using the intel to go get people were wrong? And 10 years later a Senate staffer was able to put it together and finally there’s clarity? I am just highly skeptical that that’s the truth.”

This one’s easy….and so obvious, I again shouted this at the screen, hoping the asshole would hear me, “Why, yes, you bloody idiot, they CAN, and WERE, all wrong…. and every damn one of them WOULD lie to protect a program, which, in their minds, equals money, or influence….” Then, of course, I realized I was shouting at my computer, so, I sat, tried to calm down, & began to type, to try to release some of the venom and bile that collected so quickly in the face of such evil insanity…. It started when the assbite used the phrase, “Senate staffer” as if that position was held only by persons of dubious character…

When you start from a premise that is wrong, there is no way to make it come out right, and every damn one of those directors started with the idea that whatever they did, right or wrong, shouldn’t be made public knowledge, and that such clandestine prevarication is justified by their goal (which they refuse to consider as anything other than right…. perfect “ipse dixit” logic….)

“If you get the first one in the wrong hole, you’ll never get all buttoned up right.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

This, of course, is completely contrary to the values upon which our nation was supposedly founded; thus, any acts that indulge in that sort of paranoia, which were made on the basis of that idea, are, from the start, WRONG…. It really is that simple ffolkes, and I don’t understand quite WHY the public doesn’t get that, when listening to these lying, insane fools who pursue their delusional fantasies at the expense of the rest of us….

I reiterate…. “Everything you know is wrong.” — The Firesign Theater

Bloody fucking assholes, every damn one of them…..

“If I had a large amount of money I should found a hospital for those whose grip upon the world is so tenuous that they can be severely offended by words and phrases yet remain all unoffended by the injustice, violence and oppression that howls daily about our ears.” — Stephen Fry

I’d say the good doctor Mitchell would be one of the first admissions…. I’ll leave you to consider the following, which pretty much sums up what I see happening in the world today, just about everywhere I look…..

“It is okay to be ignorant in some areas, but some people abuse the privilege.” — Smart Bee

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

Momentary Terror

Absently casual, memories pester endlessly
leaving only bleeding remnants, amiable and loving.
Coming awake, I cry to still the pain, shamelessly.

Elsewhen, time gives surcease, if only to live,
shoring broken pilings, worn and gray.
Passing on, I laugh at the pain, accept all it will give.

Time will build a shelter, warm and ever safe
save for Fate’s busy hands.
Enduring, I follow the pain, knowing it will chafe.

Fixed against a darkened sky of starry black
such beauty brings us to our knees.
Entranced, I welcome the pain, ’tis all I lack…..

~~ gigoid ~~

12/27/2013

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

Naked Pearls

Esoterica

*********

“Books aren’t written to be believed in, but to be questioned.”

~~ Umberto Eco ~~

*********

“If a man take no thought about what is distant,
he will find sorrow near at hand.”

~~ Confucius ~~

*********

“It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.”

~~ Sir Edmund Hillary ~~

*********

“Never fear shadows.
They simply indicate there’s a light shining close by.”

~~ Fearless Bee ~~

*********

“I can handle reality in small doses,
but as a lifestyle it’s much too confining.”

~~ Lily Tomlin ~~

*********

“Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain.”

~~ Mark Twain ~~

*********

“Where pain predominates, agony can be a valued teacher.”

~~ Frank Herbert ~~

*********

“Every man is guilty of all the good he didn’t do.”

~~ Voltaire ~~

*********

“OVER the underpass!
UNDER the overpass!
Around the FUTURE and BEYOND REPAIR!!”

~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~

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

I did it. I had my doubts, as is my wont, but, it’s done, with some minor cheating. I hope y’all enjoyed today’s effort, which, believe me, was an effort. I shall make another attempt at this tomorrow, if all goes well. If not, well, you’ll hear from me….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Flagrant passions arise from mundane roots…

Posted on March 9, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Take away love and our earth is a tomb.”

~~ Robert Browning ~~

Break Time

Hajime….. Good morrow, ffolkes. As I sit to write today, I find myself more than merely reluctant to begin, for I am, alas, unsure of what to say. Not to say that’s ever stopped me before, but, today, I am suffering from the aftereffects of a major battle, complete with increased pain, fatigue, and, the natural accessory for those, a major grumpfest. Oh, good, spell-checquer doesn’t like my coined words; how droll!…. To continue, as is probably clear by now, I’ve got nothing significant to say, other than to inform you today’s Pearl will be severely truncated, because I’m taking the day off. I may even take tomorrow off; if I do, you won’t know until then, because I feel like it.

When I say severely truncated, I mean it, too. All you get today is a rant, and this intro. I know, I know, cruel, but, necessary for my own sanity, trust me. The mood I’m in today, nobody really wants to hear what I have to say, (even though they might find out anyway, if I find the energy to visit any other blogs, and have the urge to let this out on a politico, or a neocon…. but, that doesn’t count anyway, not even karmically….), and, I really would prefer to avoid any lawsuits today…. It would only make things worse, and the world isn’t ready for worse…..

All that said, to little point, or use, I’ll get on with this mess, and leave y’all be for now. I could use one of the Tardis toys to get us onward, but, it seems a waste for so little result, as we are witnessing today. Perhaps I’ll just let this die a relatively natural death, by saying I appreciate the courtesy y’all show us in these lesser states of being; there is still hope in the world when people like those I find here, and on the Net, share the compassion they have with each other…. as they do on a regular basis. It does make this a much more fulfilling experience…. On that pleasant note….

Shall we Pearl?

“Human progress is furthered, not by conformity, but by aberration.”

~~ H.L. Mencken ~~

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

Sandra, the Free Orangutan

As advertised, one rant. This one is in belated honor of International Women’s Day, which was yesterday. I sort of missed it, as I didn’t catch any of whatever advance notice there was, or wasn’t. Regardless, this is a rant on a subject which is perfectly suited for that day, as it speaks of what I call The Plague of Evil, an issue which has contributed to our species’ complete lack of moral growth for our entire history….

From 3/8/2013:

Smart Bee is having a tough morning, pearl-wise; I can’t seem to find a single worthy quote…. so, I’m going to fall back on my vast repertoire of Past Pearls, which I try not to abuse by using too often. In fact, I think this is only the second time in almost two years I’ve done so…. Any who, this particular pearl is a tough one… I wrote it last July, on the third of that month, and it remains as valid today as it was then…. Perhaps more so, as the situation has changed not at all, nor will it until people start to realize the extent of the problem…. I won’t say “enjoy”, as you won’t…. I will say, “listen up, please”…..

“I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming I am a man.” — Chang-tzu, Taoist

So, as it turns out, I am a coward. What I mean by that is, when it comes to emotional pain, I will go through all sorts of contortions to avoid it. I will distract myself, I’ll deny, I’ll forget…. all time-tested methods of putting something unpleasant aside. I can say in my own defense that a) I’ve already experienced enough turmoil in my life, and don’t need more, and b) I have yet to start lying to myself about being a coward in this area…..

How does the butterfly koan apply? That’s for me to know, and you to figure out…. No, really, sorry, I didn’t mean that, just fooling around. It applies because the world exists in duality; we perceive that universe by defining and evaluating those dualities according to their relation to each other (light/dark, etc.) as well as according to our own preconceptions and/or preferences. Sometimes what we perceive is clear and readily defined, while at other times, one can make no “heads or tails” of what we see, hear, taste, smell, or feel. And sometimes, the perceptions are just so powerful that we cannot easily deal with what we are perceiving, so we retreat from them. Or I do, anyway….

Now, my cowardice in this respect is, perhaps, justifiable. I put myself through a lot of hard times during certain periods in my life, and the emotional toll was heavy. I am now more in balance, but the feelings and thoughts I had can come back in full force, at unexpected moments… Such is the case when I read about the sex trade, and think about how many of my sisters in the world are still being abused, physically and mentally, by the misogynistic assholes that perpetrate the atrocities so prevalent in that trade.

I have previously re-blogged several articles from blog sites written by women who have survived, and left, the sex trade. The stories they tell, and the insights they have come to have, are incredibly powerful, and wrenching to the emotions. It is a rare thing for me to be able to stop myself from crying after reading the first paragraph, and it can take me ten minutes to read a two page article, as I have to stop and compose myself before returning to the story being related. I am always astounded by the strength of mind it took for them to get where they are, and I grieve for the pain and misery they still must contend with, as survivors of Hell, burdened with PTSD (my old friend….).

Reading their stories also have the effect on me of wanting to buy a gun, and start eliminating some of the traffickers from the planet. This urge arises out of my anger and guilt, for it is males who perpetrate the atrocities, and I am ashamed of how low others of my gender can sink. But, alas, until I CAN afford to buy one, that little dream will have to wait…..

All I can do is to try to make people aware of the extent of the problem, by directing them to the stories told by the women who have lived through that Hell, with re-blogs and pearls such as this one. That is why I say I’ve been a coward, because my mind cravenly hid the awareness that connects to the outrage I feel when I get started on this issue, not being brave enough to put my emotions up on that higher level….and used the technical glitch I’ve been having with WordPress as an excuse (I’m currently unable to connect to any other WP sites if I’m signed in… I just get sent to a blank page while the browser falls into an infinite loop….).

Hence this somewhat dispassionate discussion of the issue. I’ve managed to get through this without bursting into tears, so I’ll consider myself lucky, and make myself a promise to re-blog for them as soon as I can get there to do so…. and I’ll not let myself chicken out…. This is an issue that will not go away; we men will never be free until we free our sisters from this bondage….

To read some of these articles yourself, use the WordPress search function to find these three sites, by blog titles…. Diary of A Dublin Call Girl; rmott62- Are We Not Human?; and Stella Mar, a Manhattan Call Girl…. all three have powerful messages that need to be spread around the planet….

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

Okay, that’s all I’ve got today. I’m not sure, at this point, whether I’ll be any better off by tomorrow; hard to say at this point. But, I’ll be here, if only to let y’all know I won’t be here. Meantime, y’all stay chill, and be happy, as best you may…. I’ll be back, as somebody once said. See ya….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

gigoid

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

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