Damn the Tournedo! Full meat ahead!….

Posted on April 12, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.”

~~ Oscar Wilde ~~

Natural Symmetry

In previous posts, for a long time, this intro would be quite long, as I thrashed about in my mind to find something worthy of being written. The process, of course, was complicated by physical issues, and, of course, my own natural degree of weirdness, and my inherently bozoid nature. Then, I got ruthless, for a while, which seemed to help, but, wasn’t very satisfying, as it felt like trickery more than literature…. Now, I’m once again stuck for what to do, without any of the bad habits available for use, since swearing off all whining and/or ranting in this section…. which, quite naturally, leaves me in the lurch, a place I’ve been before, and hoped never to occupy again….. SIGH….

Oh, well, so much for the “plans of mice and men”, as the saying goes…. In this case, I’d prefer it go away, but, one can’t deny reality, so, I’ll just have to deal. I think I’ll use a bit of that vaunted ruthlessness today; it feels as if this could easily get away from me without it. All that being said, to even less purpose than usual, I suppose we should get on with the rest of what we must do to get done….

Very well, then. Please place all beverages in the provided holder, tighten up your restraints, and we’ll be on our way. Luigi! Take us down! Use the proscribed route; I’ve got an exemption for today. Hang on, ffolkes….

Shall we Pearl?

“It’s called the American Dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.”- George Carlin

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Phoebe Snow is one of the most underrated artists in our world; her voice is unique, and powerful; her songs touch the very core of the humanity we all share…. To my mind, that makes her one of our Singers, of more value to the Universe than anyone who wears a power suit and flag pin…. or, a cassock and surplice…. Enjoy!….

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

Phoebe Snow Live

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https://youtu.be/QVX_rPpxtIU

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A Powerful Ally

From April of 2012:

“As great scientists have said and as all children know, it is above all by the imagination that we achieve perception, and compassion, and hope.” — Ursula K. LeGuin

I think that everyone can agree with the above statement; it would be hard to think of an argument that would have any kind of negative effect on this concept, as it is about as true as true can be. Arguing with this would be akin to trying to describe the contents of a room with no lights or windows, from outside the room, with the door and your eyes closed, with no moving around or touching allowed…. Having thus identified the importance of imagination in human existence, we can move on to a discussion of how powerful a tool it can be when applied to the mechanics of living.

As humans, we use imagination in every aspect of life; whenever we encounter a new situation, whether problematic or merely interesting, it is our imagination that we use to inspect the characteristics of the event, and to judge its relative size, shape, and degree of difficulty. It is our imagination we use to discover a course of action that will enable us to deal with the situation to our best advantage, or not, depending on our own skill at using it. And in those situations where a clear course of action is unclear, our imagination can provide us with entirely new ways to approach and cope with what we have encountered.

Of late, I have been reading a lot of articles written by women who have survived and exited, by their own efforts, the atrociously cruel life of those trapped in the human sex-trafficking industry. These articles are perfect examples of the power of imagination, from women who have experienced, and survived, the most degrading, debilitating, indifferently cruel treatment known to humanity.

That life, or living death, more like, was the lot of these enslaved women, and children, until they were able, by virtue of their strength of will and imagination, to free themselves. For every single one of them, their imagination was both friend and foe, first as fuel to the fire of their very real fears for their lives, but ultimately, the force that enabled them to see the path they would need to walk to take back their life. Without it, they would be doomed to death, ultimately, for the insane, perverted misogynists who control this deadly trade have no compassion, and no compunctions about silencing those who would defy their will….

But, happily, for these as yet all-too-few amazingly strong, imaginative women, a path to freedom was found, and now, they are all determined not only to live out their own lives according to their own standards, but to support each other, and to speak out against those who would continue the madness from which they fled, to do whatever is needed to give aid to the women and children who are still enslaved by these indifferently cruel masters of evil…. and one of the forms that aid can take, is to stimulate imagination in the victims, so they to may come to an understanding of how it can help even the most despairing soul to fight for freedom…. understanding like this….

After a while you learn the subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul,
And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning and company doesn’t mean security,
And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts and presents aren’t promises,
And you begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes open, with the grace of an adult, not the grief of a child,
And you learn to build all your roads on today because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans.
After a while you learn that even sunshine burns if you get too much.
So plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure…. that you really are strong,
And you really do have worth.

~~ Author unknown, but brilliant ~~

That is what it is all about, to my mind. Once these unfortunates are able to realize that they do indeed have worth in the eyes of the Universe, a whole new vista of possibilities opens for them, each one with the promise of freedom shining brightly, to show the way….

For life, with all it yields of joy and woe,
And hope and fear (believe the aged friend),
Is just our chance o’ the prize of learning love,–
How love might be, hath been indeed, and is.

~~ Robert Browning (1812-1890) — A Death in the Desert ~~

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“Now here’s something you’re really going to like!”

~~ Rocket J. Squirrel ~~

Ashi Akira is one of the few of my most loyal Gentle Readers, perhaps the most loyal, a distinction he shares with Willowdot 21, both of whom have been around since very soon after the beginning of this blog on WordPress. There are several others, who stop by on a regular basis, to catch up if they’ve missed a few, and I really appreciate all of them, since I don’t get much chance to reciprocate, not as much as I would prefer to do; plus, I don’t promote the blog at all, so, I know those who come do so by choice, mostly. I find that a worthwhile reason to do my best at it….

Ashi-san also posts just about every day, though his posts are much easier to read than mine, as he is a master of haiku…. He DOES have other work/pages, which I’ve never had the strength/time online to explore, but, this much I know of him re: haiku…. He has this form of poetry down to an artful science/scientific art…. This one proves it; even to one as dubious as me….

Her Flowery Smile

Her flowery smile

Floated awhile silently

A shallow spring dream

~~ Ashi Akira ~~

https://ashiakira.wordpress.com/2015/04/11/her-flowery-smile/#comment-8495

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“He who knows best knows how little he knows.” — Thomas Jefferson

“The liberty of man consists solely in this: that he obeys natural laws because he has himself recognized them as such, and not because they have been externally imposed upon him by any extrinsic will whatever, divine or human, collective or individual.” — Mikhail Bakunin, God and the State

“The veracity which increases with old age is not far from folly.” — Francis, Duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680) — Maxim 416

“Look to the essence of a thing, whether it be a point of doctrine, of practice, or of interpretation.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD)
— Meditations, viii, 22

“Believe me! The secret of reaping the greatest fruitfulness and the greatest enjoyment from life is to live dangerously!” — Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900)

“Those things that nature denied to human sight, she revealed to the eyes of the soul.” — Ovid (43 B.C.- A.D. 17) born on Mar 20, Roman poet

“Sometimes, if you stand on the bottom rail of a bridge and lean over to watch the river slipping slowly away beneath you, you will suddenly know everything there is to be known.” — Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne

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The simple act of posting these Pearls for the last two weeks has been an adventure, for lack of a better word. When you see it each day, you can be sure it was an extreme effort to get it there, for it has been, every day now for what seems like forever. But, it’s done for another day, so, I can put aside any possible guilt, and get on with the crap I’m dealing with…. I’ll see y’all tomorrow, come hell, or high water, or, as is most likely, the complete collapse of civilization…. Take your pick; they’re all pretty well certain to be part of our future….

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Salvation in a plastic cup….

Posted on December 7, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“To use words but rarely is to be natural.”

~~ Lao Tzu ~~

According to Lao Tzu’s observation, this little fellow is as natural as he can be; cheeky little devil, too, he was, marching right up to me as I took his picture, virtually demanding I come up with a treat of some kind. I shared a small piece of my muffin with him, which he seemed to appreciate, snatching it up & devouring it right in front of me…. Afterward, though, he turned away, ignoring me completely, once he decided I was no longer a food source…. Ah well, I don’t suppose it’s unnatural for him to be a scrounge, considering where he hangs out, in the local park with all the drug dealers and their customers; food treats wouldn’t be among the stuff they drop on the ground….

Now I’ve spoken about the opening entries, where the hell am I supposed to go with this? It’s not as if I’m bursting with energy, or lacking in my usual degree of obstacles to getting this done; the day has begun with a sharp knife seemingly buried in my left shoulder, right in the joint under the scapula, a delightful condition which makes me want to bite myself already….

I have a feeling there will be some rather frightened, sweaty people going home after work today; I need to go out into the world later, to carry out some business. In the state I’m in, there is almost certainly going to be strained interactions; my tolerance for foolishness is at a premium, and there are a LOT of fools on the loose today, what with the Christmas shopping frenzy currently taking place in this country….

Oh, well, they’ll just have to watch their step, I guess, because I’m in no mood to put up with any nonsense. In truth, I (almost) enjoy forays into the commercial world this time of the year; it offers so many opportunities to let out those little annoyances that we all save up throughout the year, onto targets well-deserving of our ire, as they share their ignorance and foolish incompetence with the rest of the world, dressed up like elves….

Y’know, I think I’ll switch directions altogether here…. This one seems not to lead anywhere I’d really like to be; this season is hard enough without letting myself get all worked up over the foolishness of the world. I already know I’ll be beset by crowds of shoppers, all hurrying to complete their lists before anyone else, so they can get home to practice their egg nog recipes, or bake more fattening cookies, while humming “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen” along with the Muzak playing in the elevators… However, there really isn’t any reason to let myself get worked up over any of it…. Instead, I’ll just be ruthless, ending this here, while I still have a bit of control over what may happen…. In fact, we’re leaving, now….

Shall we Pearl?

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

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Deciding on a video each day has been added to those daily tasks I have set myself which fall into the PITA category after a time…. Coming up with an interesting story, or bit of music, or just an idea, or meme, is the same sort of task as finding material for ANY pearl, to wit: not as easy as it seems it would be…. This, no doubt, has to do with doing it every day; everything seems more complicated when it’s a daily ritual. A kind of importance beyond its apparent position is lent to each one, as it must hold the readers’ attention, and provide some entertainment…. That’s the idea, anyway…. Ah well, there’s no sense in complaining about it; I did it to myself, didn’t I?

Here, then, is a bit of classical music, with some cultural panache, to soothe my fevered brow…. well, maybe not fevered, but, bothered, for sure…. No worries, ffolkes, it’s self-inflicted, so, you shouldn’t have to worry about splashes…. Just enjoy the music…..

The Lord of the Rings Symphony

http://youtu.be/mfFQuhWaA_k

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My hands are again unable to maintain typing for any length of time, necessitating another trip to the archives in order to complete today’s Pearl…. I’m not going to even comment on this one; no matter what it is, or what it’s about, it will have to do…. So be it, gigoid has spoken, for what it’s worth….

From 6/9/2012:

My life, described in six words….

“Looked for love, found it everywhere.” — gigoid, to KDFC DJ Hoyt Smith, 2009….

While listening to the radio one day, the DJ was talking about a meme activity he had been received via email earlier that day from a listener. The challenge was to describe your life in exactly six words; he gave several examples of those who had already responded, and asked the listening audience to call in with their own. After a couple of moments the above six words floated to the surface of my mind, almost unbidden, so I called in, and, to my surprise, my call was taken, and my quote was put out over the air.

For life, with all it yields of joy and woe,
And hope and fear (believe the aged friend),
Is just our chance o’ the prize of learning love,–
How love might be, hath been indeed, and is.

~~ Robert Browning (1812-1890) — A Death in the Desert ~~

Considering that what I said in those six words is as true as the day, it felt kind of good. Fortunately, it didn’t lead to any more than 15 seconds of fame, the time it took to say my name, and my contribution…. It isn’t that I was hoping it would lead to an appearance on Letterman or anything, but it did feel pretty good, as I am proud of the quote….

Of course, I’ve never found the secret to getting love to stay, other than that love between friends that is so important. Our culture, so tenuous in its support of monogamy, provides people with so many ways to leave a relationship without penalty, no one seems interested in making them last an entire lifetime any more. It’s like, “Oh well, that didn’t work… there’s lots of fish in the sea….”, and, off they go into the dating world again…. Frankly, it makes me dizzy….

I can’t say I know what the problem is in society that dooms relationships these days; if I did, then it wouldn’t be a problem, as I’d know what to avoid…. What I do know is that on five occasions in my life, I’ve given my heart to a woman, and spent all my energy giving my all to that relationship, faithfully and fully. On all of those occasions, the woman eventually decided, for their own personal reasons, that they didn’t want to continue, and left. I guess they like Will Shakespeare more than I do… as they seemed to take on his attitude…

“I dote on his very absence.” — William Shakespeare (With all he wrote, even HE came up with something coherent occasionally….)

I’ve been fortunate, I guess, in that of those five times, only three were painful in their intensity; two of them were relatively amicable breakups. But, it hurts when a woman I’ve loved for 23 years, and intended to die with, decides she’d rather pursue other options; it hurts, a lot…. It also hurts when a woman has said she loved me for ten years, and has been lying the whole time…. that kind of betrayal has a very lasting pain, and is slow to pass…

I hear you reproach, “But delay was best,
For their end was a crime.” Oh, a crime will do
As well, I reply, to serve for a test
As a virtue golden through and through,
Sufficient to vindicate itself
And prove its worth at a moment’s view!
. . . . . .
Let a man contend to the uttermost
For his life’s set prize, be it what it will!
The counter our lovers staked was lost
As surely as if it were lawful coin;
And the sin I impute to each frustrate ghost
Is–the unlit lamp and the ungirt loin,
Though the end in sight was a vice, I say.

~~ Robert Browning (1812-1890) — The Statue and the Bust ~~

Pain is an old friend, though, in all its various guises, and I know it always passes in time. Now I am looking for love again, in my own time, still trying to find that one woman who can be both loving and honest, over time. The ones I’ve known so far have all had a problem with that last part…. it’s not something our society teaches well. But, until I find her, I’ll have to make do with the pain…. But, I know she is out there, somewhere….. There’s got to be some woman who would enjoy being worshiped by an old, fading, but faithful, romantic curmudgeon with a soft spot for dogs, cats, and kids….

In the desert a fountain is springing,
In the wide waste there still is a tree,
And a bird in the solitude singing,
Which speaks to my spirit of thee.

~~ Lord Byron (1788-1824) — Stanzas to Augusta ~~

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The above is, of course, merely a complaint, during one of those days when being alone was becoming tiresome…. To prevent falling into a rut, here is a poem, of mine, which speaks to another subject entirely…. In fact, it’s my most recent poem, and speaks to more than one subject…. I think…

A dream, weeping….

“Never a dull moment to spare”, he said
with a crooked grin, and a broad wink.
“Can’t keep Reality hanging by a thread….
what would Chaos, or Entropy think?”

So, we plucked up our dreams of old,
to carry us on, in dutiful, strong arms,
stuffed a candle in the remaining fold,
for luck, and perfect proof against charms.

Storms follow the sun, but, never stay;
lessons round every corner, all free.
Past fleeting doubts, in a sad disarray,
the journey becomes the reason to be.

Simple kindness manifests untold riches,
in defiance of common cause’s demise.
Bold courage, hanging in stitches,
mends wounds that come as no surprise.

Still, waters run deep, ’tis said by many.
Too much pain cannot apprehend
the salient, sharp points of epiphany,
nor, plainly, to wisdom aspire to pretend.

Folly dogs even the simplest truth,
fumes of toxic ignorance and bile,
alienated as a loose rotten tooth;
it often hides itself, for a long while.

Sought after eons ago, we cried out,
to believe, to suffer no more doubt.
But found instead good reason,
for love, and truth, from season, to season.

~~ gigoid ~~

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Okay, so, I gave Smart Bee its head yesterday, and this is what it came up with, after a period of conflict over whether or not it would be done at all… I won…. It seems to be another pearl addressing how to express human nature with some dignity, and how to maintain one’s honorable opinion of one’s self….

“He who boasts of his ancestry praises the merits of another.” — Seneca

“An ancient buddha said, Mountains are mountains; waters are waters. These words do not mean mountains are mountains; they mean mountains are mountains.” — Dogen

“No man is an Island, entire of it self; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were; any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” — John Donne (c.1571-1631) — Devotions upon Emergent Occasions (1624) “Meditation XVII”

“One should seek virtue for its own sake and not from hope or fear, or any external motive. It is in virtue that happiness consists, for virtue is the state of mind which tends to make the whole of life harmonious.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Zeno, (B.C. 335?-264), liii

“Since we cannot know all that is to be known of everything, we ought to know a little about everything.” — Blaise Pascal

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

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

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Regardless of how any of this came out, it will have to do, as I don’t have the time, or the wherewithal, to go back & start over…. In any case, I’m calling it done, and beating a retreat while I still can…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. I don’t seem to be able to stop myself….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Only when it’s in public view….

Posted on December 3, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Truth never hurts the teller.” ~~ Robert Browning ~~

A large, yawning chasm of empty space seems to have filled up my head, where usually I find a swirling cloud of random thoughts and feelings, all prompted by perceptive anomalies, or in reaction to some stimulus provided by a world gone mad…. This, of course, isn’t anything we haven’t seen before around here; this daily blog business seems to breed such incidents of oddity…. I’ve even become accustomed to the fear and loathing that accompanies the ranting process, a natural side effect of having to look at Asininnies for so long at one sitting…. Kind of similar, they say, to the effects of long-term drug use on the liver, with some small differences in detail…

None of that, it seems, is giving me a clue as to what might go in this section today. If we go by what has gone before, we’re attempting to wander around the area, blathering, until something definite occurs to me to address, or, maybe, some strange impulse from deeper within my subconscious mind will float up, bringing with it an idea we can use to keep this from stagnating…. which, by the looks of this paragraph, is NOT too far off…. Damn it, why does this have to happen when I’m feeling shitty, and my hands are killing me? It’s almost as if Murphy….. oh, shit, Murphy….

Fuck me hard, I’m screwed now…. I forgot all about Murphy, difficult as it may be to believe, and I know now what I may be in for…. He’s had time, thanks to my neglectfulness, to set up any number of foul-ups in my world, which I will proceed to stumble upon every hour or so, as I try to complete even ONE of any necessary tasks today…. He KNOWS my schedule, dammit; with that knowledge, he can set me up for many, many falls, all in one day, without much effort at all… What have I done to myself? I’m tempted to say “ARGGH!”, but, that would be weak, and foolish, so, I won’t….

I will, however, take this opportunity to get the hell out of this section, before it blows up in my face, any more than it just did…. I’m glad I got some of this Pearl done yesterday, while my hands were out of action, & I was forced to use a bunch of archived material…. Don’t worry, though, it’s all good stuff, and hasn’t been seen in some time, so, it shouldn’t set off your antique-alarms…. Sorry in advance, but, this is the best you’ll get today…. I’m going to be quite busy, I’m sure, dealing with a number of crisis situations throughout the day, so, it will have to do…. This rain is due to stop by tomorrow, or the next day, and I should get a break from this arthritic pain that has dogged me for five days now….

In keeping with the latest regulations, this is the end of this intro section; whatever you’ve seen here in the past has no further relevance, given the news we just received…. It’s probably a good thing I didn’t go to read news this morning…. If the last couple days of it are any indication, the world has gone stark, raving mad, and nobody is even paying attention…. SIGH…. I guess you could say that’s nothing new for this species…. Let’s get on with this, okay?….. Hang on, we’re going in!….

Shall we Pearl?

“Do not they bring it to pass by knowing that they know nothing at all?” — Terence (185-159 BC) — Andria, The Prologue, 17

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I’m having a hard time deciding on today’s video; therefore, I will go with an old favorite….. I think, given the material we have today, some classical music will be good for us…. I know I’ll need it, for sure…. It’s always the right choice when one is looking for music by which to think, or read, or relax…. In fact, let’s make it holiday-friendly, with some Christmas music, Celtic style…. Enjoy!….

Weihnachtslieder Weihnachtsmusik – Christmas Music Celtic Harp

http://youtu.be/4alfM-EBVHE

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“The wind passeth over it, and it is gone;” — Old Testament — Psalm ciii, 16

As I’ve stated, my hands are not up to typing out a rant, no matter how fresh it may be, or how justified…. Instead, here is a good discussion from last year, early… It isn’t terribly long, but, fairly cogent, and, will fit in with the needs of today’s Pearl quite nicely, I think….

From 2/22/2013:

“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” — Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Albert, though absolutely correct in his assessment of the danger of atomic war, was somewhat premature in this prediction of the form our doom will take. He, himself, were he alive today, would probably agree that we now face a much graver, if no less permanently fatal, danger, one with even more grave consequences for humanity than an atomic holocaust. There is a possibility, slim though it may be, that we could survive an atomic war, though civilization would be in greatly reduced circumstances. The danger we now face is worse, in that it allows no possibility whatsoever that we will survive it at all….. None….

I’m referring, of course, to the effects of global warming, and the continuing assault on the environment made inevitable by human greed and avarice, and humanity’s massive denial of the facts that are being shoved in our faces. This denial is so strongly entrenched that it prevents most people from even looking at the evidence that is available, because, mostly, they don’t WANT to see it. It makes them afraid to even think about the subject, so they refuse to do so, in spite of the fact that doing so will eventually cause their demise, as well as that of everyone they hold dear….

I spend a lot of time, and words, on trying to convince people that this issue is not one that is going to go away, and will not be solved by ignoring, and even denying, its presence. I try to mention that none of my predictions are confined to this blog, that there is ample scientific evidence, freely available, online, or in libraries, and news reports, that shows very clearly just how little time we have left to either stop our depredations on the environment, and that demonstrates quite plainly how critical it is to find some way to correct the damage we’ve done. Otherwise, there is absolutely no doubt at all that we, as a species, will join the ranks of the Dodo, and the T-Rex, and all the other promising life forms that once existed on Earth, which are now extinct.

If you have, or know of, any evidence to the contrary, I hope you will be kind enough to show me where I can look at it; I would be thrilled to find some hopeful data on the subject. However, I’m fairly confident no one will take me up on that, because, to my extensive knowledge, there is no such evidence, so it would be hard to produce out of thin air…. which is what we all will be breathing in the relatively near future….

Normally, at this point, I would go into my usual rant about the responsible parties in this mess, to wit: the Beloved Ruling Class, otherwise known as the 1%, or the Corporate Masters and their Pious Lackeys, the Priestly Hierarchies….the Asininnies, in short. They hide behind their compound walls and watch as the rest of us labor on their behalf, as the atmosphere continues to become overloaded with millions of tons of particulate matter every second, while the oceans are filled up with toxic unnatural substances that cannot be destroyed, or eaten, or otherwise used to enhance life. Our planet is being turned into a refuse dump, and we are about to lose our jobs as subsidized scavengers…..

Today, however, I’m reserving my anger for the Universe at large, for its cruel, dispassionate treatment of me and my family, so I don’t want to take the time for my usual indictment of those assholes…. Besides, there’s always tomorrow, right? I can say that now, and maybe for a time, but, I won’t be able to always say it…. We have been served our final notice of eviction ffolkes, and, any folks listening in…. The landlord, a lady by the name of Gaia, is tired of our constant degradation of the property, and wishes us to vacate, so they can repaint, and put down new carpets…..

“You know,” he added very gravely, “it’s one of the most serious things that can possibly happen to one in a battle — to get one’s head cut off.” — Lewis Carroll, “Through the Looking-Glass”

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In light of the rather sober nature of the message in the above rant, here is something a bit lighter….

Roses for Noses

I have a bozoid personality, of the first degree;
nobody, I mean nobody, knows that better than me.
I often wonder, as the world goes around, and around
how many others have realized just what I’ve found….

I know for a fact, I’m not the only bozoid one;
too many people laughing out there, having fun.
Is their laughter, though, at themselves first?
Or is it some other impulse, like purple liverwurst”….

I’ve always loved to make others laugh and giggle,
since my tender youth, when my ears began to wiggle.
The world is full of humor, but not always easy to find
so laughing at myself I learned never to mind….

We bozos know each other, here, there, and everywhere
there’s no hiding such joy, it just wouldn’t be fair.
We all have one feature, our great bulbous nose,
and there’s no doubt at all, cuz it just grows….

There’s nothing like a good, big mistake, a disaster,
to show us the folly of living life faster and faster.
Nothing in the world can ever take the place,
of seeing in the mirror, a happy, smiling face….

Don’t be shy, just let it all hang out;
we bozos have more fun, there’s no doubt.
Life’s too somber and gray if we let it get on top
if we don’t stay loose, the pain won’t ever stop….

My advice to all of you, out there in the world,
let noses grow round & red, keep hair tightly curled.
Find a way to let your spirit out often to play,
you’ll never once regret any price you pay.

~~ gigoid ~~

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

This is what I like, or, perhaps, ‘am forced’ is a more accurate phrase, to call a random pearl…. The quotes you see below collected themselves, by the insidious method of getting included in with another group, on a subject which, though close to this in spirit, is not amenable to the degree of functionality necessary to bring coherence to the whole…

I see by the above statement, which approaches total inscrutability quite closely, the lack of organization inherent in the random method has spilled over into my thought patterns, and we’ll get no more clarity out of me today…. In truth, the only thing left to do now is to let them stand alone, to take their lumps like the rest of us who live here in the real world…. There probably IS a point here, but, I’m damned if I’m in a mood to try to find it…. you’re on your own there, ffolkes…. Try not to strain anything, okay? My insurance guys are already pissed off at me….

“There are no straight lines in space.” — Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

“If you would know a man, observe how your cat treats him.” — Smart Bee

“History is a pack of lies about events that never happened told by people who weren’t there.” — George Santayana

“Let thy speech be better than silence, or be silent.” — Dionysius the Elder (430-367 BC) — Frag. 6

“Insanity — a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world.” — R. D. Lang

“There are some jobs in which it is impossible for a man to be virtuous.” — Aristotle (B.C. 384-322)

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

Don’t blame me; I just work here…. To be honest, this one says more than it may seem at first glance…. Let it percolate a bit, and it should, at the very least, bring a slight smile, or even a snicker, to an otherwise lost cause…. SIGH….

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

Well, it’s done…. Sadly, that’s about the best I can say…. To bring meaning to the old saw about keeping silent if one’s words don’t improve the silence, I’ll stop now…. Imagine that; gigoid, showing tact…. What’s the world coming to?….. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. nobody seems willing to stop me, so, I’ll be back then, with more (insert pithy, Anglo-Saxon epithet) to throw out there….

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Morning becomes eclectic….

Posted on July 20, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Dharma: What is the greatest mystery of all?

Yudishthira: That each day, death walks the earth, and we continue to live as though we were immortal.

— The Bhagvad Gita

A while back, I posted another picture much like this one, both of which were taken somewhere on the Irish Sea. One was taken at sunrise, one at sunset, but, for the life of me, I can’t tell which is which, as they both appear to be capable of passing as either one….. I’m ALMOST sure this one was taken in the morning, but, since I can’t be sure, I’m not going to commit myself one way or the other…. Especially since they can pass for each other…. I will, though, say this… photography isn’t as easy as it looks….

None of which is particularly cogent, or meaningful, in the larger sense. The quote from the Bhagavad Gita is one I’ve used often, as it speaks to a facet of human nature against which I rail continuously, or consistently, anyway…. I’m talking about the human sense of entitlement, that sense of fatalistic egotism that motivates much of humanity’s actions toward each other, and reality at large….. Humans seem to believe in their own immortality, despite having the reality of death staring each one of us in the face….

Perhaps it is this dichotomy that is the true motivation; we know, deep down, we cannot expect to live forever, but, as a species, it is possible to envision mankind stepping into the future, though it may not look just how we had imagined. Whatever is the true case in each person’s existence, many people seem to think that, because they are entitled to live, they are entitled to everything else they desire, as well…. So, they take it, regardless of how the process of acquisition harms others, or denies the simple rights of others, to live, in peace, without fear….

It sounds pretty simple, and, it is…. This simple fact of human nature, this overweening egotism, and the false sense of entitlement that goes along with it, is the root cause of most of what is wrong in this world….. Most of the problems faced by mankind are connected to the danger of extinction as a species we face, due to that same sense of entitlement, which prompts us to continue the use of carbon based fuels to run our society, to fill our ever-growing needs for more and more power, in spite of the very obvious negative results of doing so….

The evidence is clear; if we continue to walk down that path, we WILL die, all of us, and there isn’t anything that will stop it, once the catalytic process has begun….. which it did, several years ago…. Yet, mankind continues to skip merrily down that path, eyes closed to the possibility they just might be wrong, while the pollution continues to pile up, and the moment of no-return draws ever closer….. In fact, we’re so focused on ourselves, and our own wants and desires, the point has probably already been reached, and passed, without us ever realizing what we have done….

SIGH…. I did it again, didn’t I?…. I didn’t mean to rant, but, when I get started on this, I can’t seem to stop myself from ranting about it….. People are SO STUPID! It makes me crazy, to sit here and watch them go through all this idiotic bullshit, spinning madly in place while Rome burns, laughing like loons and cursing the gods…. which are laughing their immortal asses off at the stupid little humans, pretending to be something they’ve never been….

I have an early appointment out in the Big Blue Room this morning, so a large part of this Pearl was completed yesterday…. I have to warn y’all, this one turned into an epic, but, it’s got a lot going for it…. a new, fresh poem nobody has seen before, unless you were one of the two or three people reading this blog back in June of 2012, and a fairly long discussion of “the properties of love”, in the inimitable words of Steve Miller…. Lots of good stuff, so, I think, given the already out of control size and content of this intro, we can easily get by with calling it a finished product…. so, I will…

Shall we Pearl?….

How much a dunce that has been sent to roam
Excels a dunce that has been kept at home!

~~ William Cowper ~~

(1731-1800) — The Progress of Error, Line 415

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

I cannot tell a lie…. Well, that isn’t true. I can, but, I have a hard time justifying it to myself, so, I keep it to a minimum, and mostly succeed… It’s not usual, I know, for people to even think about it, more’s the pity, but, that’s just the way I am…. So, since I can’t, I’ll tell you right now, I don’t have the wherewithal to rant any more this morning…. The intro took most of my angst away; the emotional power just isn’t there now, so, anything I did write would be a bit frail; I like my rants to be robust, if nothing else….

So, we’re going to do this…. Below is a link, to yet another example of A) how egregiously the governments of the world, ours, the Brits, and all of them, are bumbling around, spying on you, me, and each other, while the public sits and watches as they try to justify their insane paranoia by telling the public it’s all for their own good…. It’s bullshit, of course, but, that’s their story, and they are sticking to it….and B) how the lies aren’t even being addressed by those who are telling them, but, rather, are being labeled as legal, by the passing of legislation making it so….

Since I’m NOT going to rant about it, I’ll follow the link with a seven-star pearl that takes aim at those who are involved in the whole ugly mess at the top of the heap, which, in my mind, is beginning to resemble one of those snake pits we hear so much about…. Hiss, hiss, wriggle…..

Enjoy the pearls, ffolkes, and try not to let the article depress you any more than necessary…. If you must, you can be glad this is the BRITISH government that is being exposed in this article…. at least it’s not our own….. THIS time, anyway…. Of course, ours is busy with its own illegal spying programs, none of which have been shut down, or even restrained, in spite of all the hullabaloo over it…. Ah well, see you in the poetry section, ffolkes….

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jul/18/intelligence-services-email-database-internet-tribunal

“This message has been personally tested and certified by Big Brother Bill, Senator Exon, and the Religious Right to be PC, containing only the best of family values, and Safe For The Children ™. Disclaimer: The caffeine made me do it.” — Smart Bee

“The trouble with most people is that they think with their hopes and fears rather than with their minds.” — Will Durant

“Americans used to roar for Liberty, now they bleat for Security.” — Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

“Money will buy a pretty good dog, but it won’t buy the wag of his tail.” — Josh Billings (pseudonym of Henry Wheeler Shaw (1818-1885))

” — I’d love to, but…the President said he might drop in.” — 4 of 101 Easy Ways To Say NO

“It does take a perverse form of optimism to have any faith in the news media when almost every time they cover something you _know_ about, they get it wrong. Maybe they’re wrong that often covering subjects in which I’m not an expert? Naw, it just couldn’t be.” — Grant Edwards

“It ain’t me; it ain’t me; I ain’t no senator’s son!” — (Creedence Clearwater Revival) The Fortunate Son

Yep…. As I’ve noted previously, it’s all in the wrist….

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

Yesterday, after writing the new poem, (Which, I have to say, came as a total surprise to me; I thought I was done for the day, intending to find somebody else’s work to post…. Without any warning, it just pumped out, like I’d sliced an artery, or some major blood vessel in my mind….), I was looking at some old Pearls, from 2012, when I came across the following poem, apparently one I wrote, and posted, on a day near the entry I was searching for….

Seeing it again was a surprise to me, I think, not just because I didn’t have it in my collected poetry, but, because I only vaguely remember it, and had completely forgotten it in the process of collecting the poetic works I’ve done here…. I vaguely remember I wrote this at a time when I had all but given up on writing any more poetry in my life…. I suppose it serves as more evidence that poetry produced in times of uncertainty or stress turns out more powerful than other times…

It occurs to me, this kind creative outburst, for me, anyway, is a matter of the necessary internal dynamics undergoing, or perhaps, processing, some sort of energy, which arises from friction between opposing internal emotional responses…. a long winded way of saying I feel conflicted, or repressed, or stressed in some way, so, a poem bleeds out…. Hell, who knows, and who cares? Not me…. If I can do this, then forget it entirely for two years, analysis isn’t needed, and might even cause problems, so, we’ll leave speculation to the critics, and just go on to the poem… Enjoy, please, it’s pretty good, I think….

From 6/13/2012:

Unbidden, treasure unfolded…

Taken by surprise, Psyche sits numb
Amidst tall phrases worn of elder time
Seeking a not-new place from which to come
No shiny new horizon, nor altered paradigm.

Sudden regrets shape dreams as times maintain
Shades of memories bring poignant clear sight
Visions of duty, each chosen wild campaign
Shouts echoing clamors to enfold the night.

Arisen from less than eternal havens of sleep
Facing moments created in torment and pain
Destiny weighs upon those chosen to keep
As the sparrow flies now to sever the twain.

Faded pathways lead away, hazy and long
Burned out verges, so long unknown
Images of yesterday, clear and strong
Bleed into today, though t’is but my own……

~~ gigoid ~~

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

Since I found the above, shamelessly using it for today’s poetry section, I’ll continue with full disclosure, & tell you I also found this during the same search…. In fact, this was the object of the search…. Due to recent events of note in life, the following discussion struck a chord in me; after re-reading it, I see it remains mostly valid…. Thus, will make a nice fill-in piece for this last section, where I so often struggle for something worthwhile, or at least compelling, to write…. This is not, perhaps, all that compelling, but, it is fairly uplifting in its overall tenor, and, as a bonus, contains a nice complement of classic poetry, well matched to the discussion….

From 6/9/2012:

My life, described in six words….

“Looked for love, found it everywhere.” — gigoid, to KDFC radio DJ, Hoyt Smith, 2009….

While listening to the radio one day, the DJ was talking about a meme activity he had been told about via an email earlier that day from a listener. The challenge was to describe your life in exactly six words; he gave several examples of those who had already responded, and asked the listening audience to call in with their own. After a couple of moments the above six words floated to the surface of my mind, almost unbidden, so I called in, and, to my surprise, my call was taken, and my quote was put out over the air.

For life, with all it yields of joy and woe,
And hope and fear (believe the aged friend),
Is just our chance o’ the prize of learning love,–
How love might be, hath been indeed, and is.

~~ Robert Browning ~~

(1812-1890) — A Death in the Desert

Considering that what I said to Hoyt in the above six words, upon reflection, is something I can, and still do, say is as true as the day, it felt kind of good to have it shared over the air…. Fortunately, it didn’t lead to any more than 15 seconds of fame, the time it took to say my name, and my contribution…. It isn’t as if I was hoping it would lead to an appearance on Letterman or anything, but it did feel pretty good, as I am proud of the quote…. (Still am, in fact, and it still rings true…. gigoid, from the future, which is now the present, but used to be the… Oh, never mind….)

Of course, though finding love has never been difficult, I’ve never found the rest of the secret, the other part, about getting love to stay, other than that love between friends that is so important. Our culture, so tenuous in its support of monogamy, provides people with so many ways to leave a relationship without penalty, no one seems interested in making them last an entire lifetime any more. It’s like, “Oh well, that didn’t work… there’s lots of fish in the sea….”, and off they go into the dating world again…. Frankly, it makes me dizzy….

I can’t say I know what the problem is in society that dooms relationships these days; if I did, then it wouldn’t be a problem, as I’d know what to avoid…. What I do know is that on (at least) five occasions in my life, I’ve given my heart to a woman, and spent all my energy giving my all to that relationship, faithfully and fully. On all of those occasions, the woman eventually decided, for their own personal reasons, that they didn’t want to continue, and left. I guess they like Will Shakespeare more than I do… as they seemed to take on his attitude…..

“I dote on his very absence.” — William Shakespeare ( Though I hold most of his work to be crap and nonsense, even he came up with something coherent occasionally….)

I’ve been fortunate, I guess, in that, of those five times, only three were painful in their intensity, leaving my heart shattered, my life in tatters; two of them were relatively amicable breakups. (Sure they were; that’s what I keep telling myself….) But, I’ve just gotta say, it hurts when a woman I’ve loved for 23 years, and intended to die with, decides she’d rather pursue other options; it hurts, and it hurts a lot…. I can testify, from the evidence of a more recent nature, it also hurts when a woman has said she loved me for ten years, and has been lying the whole time…. That kind of betrayal brings a very lasting pain, and is slow to pass…

~~ Robert Browning ~~

(1812-1890) — The Statue and the Bust

Pain is an old friend of mine, though, in all its various guises, and I know it always passes in time. Now I am looking for love again, in my own time, still trying to find that one woman who can be both loving and honest. The ones I’ve known so far have all had a problem with that last part…. it’s not something our society teaches well. But, until I find her, I’ll have to make do with the pain…. But, I know she is out there, somewhere….. There’s got to be some woman who would enjoy being worshiped by an old, fading, but faithful, romantic curmudgeon with a soft spot for dogs, cats, kids, & a good laugh, along with a severe case of wanderlust to complicate the issue….

In the desert a fountain is springing,
In the wide waste there still is a tree,
And a bird in the solitude singing,
Which speaks to my spirit of thee.

~~ Lord Byron ~~

(1788-1824) — Stanzas to Augusta

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

This was found along with the above discussion; it’s too good to NOT include, so, you get it today, as a bonus pearl…. It’s pretty much a stand-alone anyway, requiring nothing to make it whole and complete….

The thought manifests as the word;
The word manifests as the deed;
The deed develops into habit;
And habit hardens into character.
So watch the thought and its ways with care,
And let it spring from love
Born out of concern for all beings.

~~ The Buddha ~~

I can’t think of a single thing that needs to be added here, so I won’t….. As Nike says, “Just do it….”

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

For a post created willy-nilly over the last 18 hours, this isn’t bad…. It’s also an epic Pearl, well over a couple three or so thousand words, I’d estimate…. Not bad for one I intended to get done quickly, so as to be ready for the business I have in a couple of hours…. In fact, I’m so happy with it, I’m outta here…. See ya, tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid the dubious

Regret makes a poor supper….

Posted on July 7, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

You probably can’t tell from where you’re sitting, but, I am not altogether….. well, anything…. I’ve been sitting here, on this side of the screen, for quite some time, just staring at the vast plain of unrelieved white, again, as my mind tries to find sufficient energy to write something more coherent than a simple “ugh”, which is about the extent of what is happening in there…. As you can see, however, nothing much is happening….

Yesterday, I took the young paduan pine cone for an outing into the City (that’s San Francisco, for those of you who live elsewhere in the world….). He/we had a great time, mingling with the massive crowds at the Ferry Building, and Fisherman’s Wharf. It was a gorgeous day in the City, if a bit breezy, and the citizenry came out by the tens of thousands to flock around all the shops and sights there, at Pier 39, the Wharf, and the Financial Plaza across the Embarcadero, where a craft fair sets up on the weekends….

We rode the ferry over from where we live, and wandered around for a good four hours, taking pictures of the young cone on his first trip to the City….. He was incredibly excited, and we managed to get a lot of good pictures….. However, I’m exhausted, even this morning, after eight solid hours of sleep; I blew right past any nap time I might have used, instead spending those hours walking around with the young cone, basking in the sun, and enjoying the panorama of humans on constant parade… As a result, I’m more than just a bit low on fuel today, which is making this a very difficult procedure…. I know, I’m whining, but, hey, I’m entitled…. I’m an American….

There…. that’s about all the rant I have in me today…. Yep…. You know what that means….I’m going to cheat, naturally…. what else did you expect? Section one will come from the archives, and the poem will come from someone else…. I’ve got enough in me to put out an old-school pearl, I’m pretty sure, so section three will be fresh, anyway; the photos from yesterday’s outing will have to wait until tomorrow…. I’m telling y’all now so, if you wish, you can skip the old stuff, or just go home hungry, should you not feel up to my cheating ways today…. I’d offer an apology, but, I’m not THAT nice a guy….

Actually, I am, but, since it’s MY blog, an apology isn’t legally required, any more than we are legally required to get paid for any of this…. which, come to think of it, is really too bad…. It would be nice to be able to get paid for what I’m going to do anyway…. Oh well, such is life, and we’re stuck with it just the way it is….. (I won’t bother to mention that, since I’m writing this, we’re not so much stuck with it, as we are stuck with it….)

Now, where was I? Oh, right, the rest of the Pearl…. Now that I’ve thoroughly confused, and possibly annoyed my entire reading base, I’ll get on with it, if only because it’s the only way I’ll ever get done….

Shall we Pearl?….

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

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

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

As noted above, here is a rant, of sorts, from the archives….

From 7/10/2012:

“If you sincerely desire a _truly_ well-rounded education, you must study the extremists, the obscure and nutty. You need the balance! Your poor brain is already being impregnated with middle-of-the-road crap, twenty-four hours a day, _no matter what_. Network TV, newspapers, radio, magazines at the supermarket… even if you never watch, read, listen, or leave your house, even if you are deaf and blind, the _telepathic pressure alone_ of the uncountable normals surrounding you will insure that you are automatically well- grounded in consensus reality.” — Rev. Ivan Stang — High Weirdness By Mail

Humanity exists, and anything that exists, can be expressed with mathematics. For our purpose here this morning, we will use the mathematics that describes the demography of the intellect. When looking at the whole body of people that comprises mankind, if you divide the different levels of intelligence, as rated by IQ, you will immediately see that as a whole, mankind can be expressed as a bell curve. Broken down most simply, there are about 5% of people who are genius’, about 15% slightly above normal, 60% average, 15% slightly below average, and 5% very, very slow thinking folks. It’s a bit simplistic, but it is accurate, believe me….. I’ve done the math…..

“The world is crazier than we think.” — MacNeice

In light of this, the statement above from the Reverend Stang becomes a truism, as well as pretty good insight. One cannot say they know what humanity is all about without including those who exist on the fringes, the 5% genius, and the 5% slow. This is obvious…. What is not so obvious is that one can use the same bell curve, and percentage breakdown, to describe the morality of mankind. We have 5% very ethical, morally upright folks, who act rightly, from right thinking. We have about 15% who mostly do good, and mostly try to be moral. We have 60% who very seldom consider either concept (morals & ethics) but generally act from right thoughts taught to them by their parents and peers. Again, there are 15% who act immorally a lot of the time, and 5% who are the actual acolytes of Satan, so to speak….

“Does history repeat itself, the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce? No, that’s too grand, too considered a process. History just burps, and we taste again that raw-onion sandwich it swallowed centuries ago.” — Julian Barnes

What is unfortunate is that the 5% who are totally immoral, or rather, amoral, comprise the largest part of our beloved ruling class. They are joined by the 15% who mainly act immorally; this group is where you will find most priests and others in the sadly patriarchal hierarchies of the religion institutions. This grouping is, to me, the most egregiously evil of all of them. Priests and preachers, in general, counsel their parishioners to obey the beloved ruling class, knowing full well that they are condemning them to slavery. I find this to be reprehensible, but the indoctrination given these people is so strong, they never even realize what they do; they even believe that they are being helpful.

My defence is of God, which saveth the upright… — Psalms 7:10

I believe that people should be treated with respect, right up until they provide evidence that they are not deserving of such, at which time, I place them into the bottom 20%, where I can regard them as fair game. This policy has provided me with numerous opportunities to puncture some of their balloons, when those silly fools come to the door wanting to proselytize to me about their religion. I have a great time with them, quoting to them from their own bible (whichever one it may be; I’ve looked through all of them….), and using their own premises to show them the fallacies. I’ve sent many a troubled young LDS elder back to the fold with a head full of doubts, and really enjoy the image that puts in my head about the next time they speak with THEIR elders…. the more discord and doubt I can sow in that fecund field, the better I like it.

So, I heartily agree with Reverend Stang, though probably for different reasons. I find it a bit unusual for a Reverend to recommend diversity in education at all, but, hey, no matter why, if he gets folks to at least look at the fringes, it can teach them a lesson or two they would never get in Bible Study classes…. and that is a good thing…..

Besides, I couldn’t resist writing about this, as the good reverend used the term “consensus reality”, and that, after all, is what I do…..

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

I’ve said it before, and will probably say again…. this is my favorite poem, of all I’ve ever read….

All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace

I like to think
(and the sooner the better!)
of a cybernetic meadow
where mammals and computers
live together in mutually
programming harmony
like pure water
touching clear sky.

I like to think
(right now please!)
of a cybernetic forest
filled with pines and electronics
where deer stroll peacefully
past computers
as if they were flowers
with spinning blossoms.

I like to think
(it has to be!)
of a cybernetic ecology
where we are free of our labors
and joined back to nature,
returned to our mammal
brothers and sisters,
and all watched over
by machines of loving grace.

~~ Richard Brautigan ~~
1967

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

Y’all know what’s in store for you in this section; the only part you don’t know is the style of pearl to be presented…. which is a piece of information you will have to do without today, as I don’t know it…. This pearl may well approach a real, accurate definition of the word “random”, as I am refusing to apply ANY parameters at all…. We’re going with total impulse today, just to see how it works…. Enjoy!…..

“The Bible contains six admonishments to homosexuals and 362 admonishments to heterosexuals. That doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love heterosexuals. It’s just that they need more supervision.” — Lynn Lavner

“Your reality is a figment of my imagination.” — Smart Bee

“Everything is worth what its purchaser will pay for it.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 847

“Of course the US Constitution isn’t perfect; but it’s a lot better than what we have now.” — Eric Sheppard

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

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

“Do you know that disease and death must needs overtake us, no matter what we are doing? What do you wish to be doing when it overtakes you? If you have anything better to be doing when you are so overtaken, get to work on that.” — Epictetus

“My face is new, my license is expired, and I’m under a doctor’s care!!!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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

Well…. there you have it. I should probably add, “such as it is”….. but, I won’t. It’s done, no matter what other flaws may be present, so, you’ll all just have to deal with it the best you can…. I’ll make sure to get the pix of today’s trip processed for tomorrow, so, that’s something, I suppose…. Somebody once told me to leave ’em wanting more, so, I’m outta here, at this point, where, if you DON’T want more, well, there’s no hope, for you, or for this blog…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…

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

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

Which is Why….
—

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

gigoid the dubious

Suffering slightly from anaerobic syncopation….

Posted on June 2, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

I can’t have what I want, so, I’ll take what I can…. There, that marks me as an American, don’t you think? It’s a typically American male attitude, for sure; just go watch freeway traffic for a while, & you’ll see what I mean…. But, I’m not here to rant (not in THIS section, anyway…), so perhaps I should begin today’s Pearl in a slightly different fashion…. that is, if you can call this fashion…. more like the direct opposite of fashionable, I’d say…. But, then, I AM a cynic, mostly, so, that, too, might be suspect to some people….

Well, that was certainly a wash, wasn’t it? Not a single compelling phrase to be found…. Hell, one of those is probably not to be found in the vicinity, though we do like to pretend they can be…. Unfortunately for me, today, that could conceivably have an effect on the content of this Pearl, which is already somewhat uncertain, what with the new format and all…. Why, I find myself to be downright discombobulated over it…. or, was that upleft discombobulated?

(I always wondered about that word, ‘downright’…… How did a piece of directional advice come to mean “absolutely” or even “completely”? Gotta wonder about the English people sometimes…. or, at least, about the meanings of English words….)

Aha! I’ve figured it out! Wait….. Well, maybe not…. I thought for a moment there I actually had a clue, but, it was only a random neuronic twitch in that area of the brain…. No, wait, maybe not…. Okay, now I’m REALLY confused, and haven’t a bloody clue about either how I got to this point, or what the hell I should do to find my way out…. I haven’t been this lost in an intro for, heck, a couple of years…. make that days….

Oh, I admit, I’m often at a loss as to how to start this business each day, but, generally, I can ramble and blather long enough to get it done…. This, though…. I don’t know if it can be salvaged…. I think I’m going to have to use the old #4 method yet again, in order to bring this to anything like a reasonable conclusion…. It is our most heavily used emergency tool, mostly just because it works so well…. How does it do that, when all the other methods are so inconsistent? Well, it goes like this (and, I’d advise you to take a firm grip on the provided handhold…. Jeez, it’s right there on the wall, next to your seat….)…..

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Things which you do not hope happen more frequently than things which you do hope.” — Plautus (254-184 BC) — Mostellaria, Act i, Sc. 3, 40, (197.)

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

Here is the second exhibition of what someday will be hailed as the saving grace of this blog (Well, I can hope, can’t I?….), a newly constructed photo-pearl, all for y’all…. I rode the ferry from the town where I reside to San Francisco for the morning, to take some pictures around Fisherman’s Wharf, just to practice my picture skills, and enjoy the crowds…. It was a good time, and I think I got some decent shots, even if my choice of subject matter is still a bit odd, compared to any sort of norm…. Please, enjoy, dammit!….

“Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing -absolutely nothing — half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” — Mr. Toad in The Wind in the Willows (1908) by Kenneth Grahame (1859-1932)

Although I can’t fully agree with Mr. Toad, at least, not in this instance, I thought it fit quite nicely with this picture, which, as far as I can tell from having watched the harbor for a while, is a picture of a traffic jam on the water here…. Well, it’s as jammed as I’ve ever seen it, anyway; it’s a small town, relatively speaking, and since the naval base closed a couple of decades ago, there just isn’t as much money in town, and, nowhere near as many people who can afford to go boating, a fairly expensive hobby…. It’s fun to sail, but, the actual expense of owning a boat is well beyond the income average around here…. Just another example of the growing income gap in this world, I’d say….

“Flowery oratory he despised. He ascribed to the interested views of themselves or their relatives the declarations of pretended patriots, of whom he said, “All those men have their price.”” — Sir Robert Walpole (1676-1745) — Coxe: Memoirs of Walpole, Vol. iv, p. 369

After disembarking the ferry in SF, I walked down a few yards, & took this picture of the entrance to Pier 39, one of the most unabashedly mercenary tourist traps in the City…. I wandered through the labyrinthine winding pathways, designed to highlight each shop’s “unique” piles of absolutely useless, worthless CRAP, such as the “World’s First Magnet Store”, or Bubba Gump’s Shrimp restaurant, or the chocolate shops, or one of the OTHER three magnet shops…. I swear, if you don’t want to eat, or buy crap, there isn’t a whole lot to do there, except watch people…. Since I arrived earlier than most, even that pastime was limited….. Ah well, there WERE pictures to be had, so, I took them….

For example….

“For “ignorance is the mother of devotion,” as all the world knows.” — Robert Burton (1577-1640) — The Anatomy of Melancholy, Part iii, Sect. 4, Memb. 1, Subsect. 2

I know…. It takes a “different” sort of mind to come up with such connections…. This is the crab sculpture placed at the entrance to Pier 39… the picture before this was taken while standing just behind this sculpture, looking away from it toward the end of the pier, and the water…. This is right out on the Embarcadero, where the world can see it as they ride by in their Mercedes, or their tour buses…. I thought it was the perfect statement to go in front of such an place, where the gods of economics hold sway over all other considerations…. As long as the money flows, the crab is happy….

“Knowledge dwells in heads replete with thoughts of other men; wisdom in minds attentive to their own.” — William Cowper

I was fortunate in finding a place from which to watch the session of Congress that was being held at the pier yesterday…. It was part of my reason for going, to be able to observe the workings of our government in action…. When I took this picture, a debate was going on over a bill on the floor…. By the sound of the different comments by each of the politicians at the meeting, there was NOT going to be a vote on the bill today…. It almost sounded like a filibuster, but, why would anyone do something so stupid, just to express their opposition, when right action prior to that time would mitigate any need for such?

I never could understand Congress very well; it always seemed like a way to get those idiots off the streets, which is fine, but then they had to go and let them vote themselves a key to the treasury….. Ever since, we’ve been headed downhill, toward the stunningly final conclusion we are now practically guaranteed to find waiting for us at the end of the day, while all the while, the sea lions keep barking, to no effect….

“You begin saving the world by saving one person at a time; all else is grandiose romanticism or politics.” — Charles Bukowski

For the entire three or so hours I wandered around the Wharf area, the fog and mist hung in the air, softening and blurring everything, leaching the color from the very air…. except for the flower bed above, which was the loveliest sight I saw the entire morning…. Just as I took the photo, a blackbird fluttered through the lens, landing in the exact center of the picture, as if trained to be there on command…. He/she is a little hard to see, as it naturally took advantage of the background to blend in, but, still is a perfect example of how the animals that live with us on the planet have a better grip on what is important than our own species….

Well, that’s how it seems to me, anyway…. All the humans there, milling around in huge numbers, drawn together to seek out cultural phenomena to experience, so they can go home and say they have “been there, done that” to all their acquaintances, never once realizing that there is nothing unique, or uplifting, or particularly moral about these cultural experiences…. which were impressed upon them by OTHERS as being something of worth, of being a place they should see and experience….

So, they come to SF, and go to Fisherman’s Wharf, and Pier 39, where all of the WORST examples of Americanism can be found, in tourist shops that sell more of the iconic images that reinforce the cultural importance of the visit…. Souvenirs to take home as proof they were actually here, with the other 10,000 or so individuals from out of town, or country….

The flower bed, to me, was the most REAL part of the whole day’s experience, and well worth riding the ferry for an hour each way….. To me, the experience was an opportunity to assimilate a piece of wisdom that probably no more than one or two ffolkes on the wharf that day were capable of understanding…. the rest of the people were there to either spend money and see stuff they could talk about at home, working in one of the tourist traps, picking pockets or running scams on the tourists, or were jogging through on their way back to their apartment near the beach…. That was fine with me, as it is an endless parade of human folly, all in one spot, so I can sit in the shade or sun, depending on the weather, and observe the panorama of human folly in all its insane glory….

“The years teach much which the days never know.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), “Experience”

I took the picture above as the ferry pulled away from its berth at Pier 41, on its way home…. It’s a perfect picture to end my day, even though I took it at about 1130 AM…. I rode the ferry home, & proceeded to collapse for a nap as soon as I got home…. Upon arising, I went through the pix, editing and deleting as needed, then picked out these few for today’s Pearl…. It seems to work out well, now that I’ve got a handle on how to format everything, and to use my tools in the correct order, to be able to fit together picture, pearl, and comments, so they are, at least, comprehensible, or in some approach coherency…. So far, I think I’m doing okay, and I know it will get better with time….

I hope y’all are enjoying the new format; it’s a lot of fun for me, and is giving me a whole new perspective on this daily blog thing…. Some might say that a new view on this is long overdue, but, they’re just jealous, so pay them no mind…. I think, though, this is going to work well, and as soon as I figure out how to use this format to rant, well, ffolkes, then all bets are off, and the world may never be the same….

That said, lets’ move on to poetry, eh?….. Thanks fer listenin’…..

That ‘s the wise thrush; he sings each song twice over,
Lest you should think he never could recapture
The first fine careless rapture.

— Robert Browning (1812-1890) — Home-Thoughts from Abroad, ii

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

Oddly enough, I have the urge to poem…. stand back, and don’t let any of the splash get on your clothing. It has been known to cause spontaneous combustion, or, as in at least two cases, toxic shock…. I have no idea how this will turn out, so, wish me luck….

Pure Truth: Elsewhen

Everything I say and do, I’m sure,
only comes from what I know.
If what I’ve said or done is good, and pure,
I can say it’s not just for show.

Sometimes people don’t quite get me.
It can be a pain, for sure.
I try not allow it to keep me from being free,
especially when my thoughts may be impure.

In fact, I try quite hard most of the time,
to keep from hurting folks.
If our culture more often approached sublime,
I wouldn’t have to take so many pokes.

Now I’ll make another sacrifice, for y’all,
not for karmic advantage, or, not merely so….
But, to save me from yet another downfall,
I’ll stop here; ensign, make it so….

~~ gigoid ~~

I believe I was right to be nervous about the outcome…. but, it’s not bad…. I have the feeling it may get edited, sometime in the future, but, for now, it will do for our purpose….. I forget who said that all poets are mad, though not all mad men are poets, but, I can relate, for sure and for certain…..

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

Saved by the old school bell…. It’s getting late; the sun is well up, and I have yet to finish, much less post…. So, this will be a rapid-fire, randomly chosen pearl…. often the best kind….

“I may be crazy, but I’m not stupid.” — Smart Bee, quoting gigoid, the dubious

“I have a feeling that at any time about three million Americans can be had for any militant reaction against law, decency, the Constitution, the Supreme Court, compassion and the rule of reason.” — John Kenneth Galbraith

“All of Finagle’s Rules may be bypassed by learning the simple art of doing without thinking.” — Wingo’s Axiom

Beware
Of entrance to a quarrel; but being in,
Bear ‘t that the opposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice;
Take each man’s censure, but reserve thy judgment.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not express’d in fancy; rich, not gaudy;
For the apparel oft proclaims the man.

— William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Hamlet — Act i, Sc. 3

“If there were no God, it would be necessary to invent him.” — Voltaire (1694-1778) — Epitre a l’Auteur du Livre des Trois Imposteurs, cxi

“Of all forces acting on man, change is the most beneficial and the most cruel.” — Smart Bee

“Everything flows and nothing abides; everything gives way and nothing stays fixed.” — Heraclitus

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

I can see that I will either need to get up earlier, or work on these ahead of time; it takes a significant amount of time to create it all from scratch…. But, then, I don’t always write a fresh poem, either…. It’s good, I think, that I tweaked my back in my sleep again last night; it will keep me from overdoing it today…. and, boy, doesn’t THAT sound old and tired! I’ll have to think about that….. For now, without even checking this over, I’m outta here….. See ya, ffolkes….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid the dubious

He’s big… I don’t know if I can take the mime…..

Posted on April 1, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

‘Tis April Fool’s Day, ffolkes, which is why I am NOT going to apologize for the title of today’s Pearl…. In fact, I’m feeling a bit of, perhaps, unwarranted pride in that one; it isn’t every day I think of such a fine piece of classical punning, much less get such a public opportunity to display it…. My only regret is that I can’t hear the groans and/or other sounds of sheer disgust that it may engender….

Now, some folks, even some ffolkes, might be upset to be given such grief over a mere pun, but, to us punsters, such reactions are a sheer delight,considered to be applause, as the proper reward for our efforts…. Hell, a good pun can actually make the audience nauseous, so the sounds of worshiping at the throne of Ralph are also considered to be music, to the ears of a true punster…. I’ve heard reports of an unexpected pun causing a nosebleed, but, I just assumed that was on the part of the punster, as a result of the punch in the nose by his, or her, ~~victim~~, er, audience…..

Now that I’ve come as close to an apology as I intend to come, we can head off into the wilds of Consensual Reality…. That is, we could, if I could find the damn keys to the gigoid-mobile. I had the darn thing waxed & polished up, and all the fold-down tables on the seat backs are new. We were also going to offer free WiFi on today’s flight, but, unless we find the keys, we won’t even be offering the daily tour…. Hang on, I think I remember where I set them down…..

YES! Here they are, right where I left them (Naturally…. did you ever notice that EVERY time we lose something, it’s always in the LAST place we think to look for it?….) (Well, of course it is…. DOH! Once it’s found, you don’t need to look for it anymore, whatever it is…. which makes it the LAST place, doesn’t it?….. Sometimes, I amaze myself with my own stupidity….) (Hah! Gotcha!…. It’s April Fool’s Day, and THAT was the SECOND, OR THIRD joke of the day…..)

Don’t worry, ffolkes, I’m almost done…..

What to do, what to do…. I’ve performed two or four obligatory jokes to honor the holiday we are celebrating today, & now find myself a trifle short of material…. Well, at least, short of the sort of material that might work here in the intro (I can put the pornography anywhere, and it will garner views, so I don’t use it here…. and, no, you can’t borrow it….). Maybe I should….. No, I promised I wouldn’t do that anymore….. Well, perhaps those old…. no, I looked at them a couple of days ago, and they won’t even sparkle any more, much less explode….. Hmm…. I know! We can break out the old, perfectly rounded, embarrassment-proof, left-over political dross left here by that candidate last November….. No, that’s out, too….. We took that stuff to the dump last month….

Oh well…. I suppose we don’t HAVE to make this any more of a standard intro than it already isn’t…. Nothing we have on hand is going to do much to make the price of the ticket worthwhile….. unless, of course, we can spot a herd of asininnies to torment. That always makes everybody feel like they’ve gotten their money’s worth….. which is a good thing, as we hate to have dissatisfied passengers on the Reality-busting gigoid-mobile, especially since we don’t actually charge any REAL money…. I always feel so, so GUILTY when someone isn’t happy with their ride; since it’s free, I kind of feel like I’ve let ffolkes down….

Now that I’ve typed up, let’s see…. SIX complete paragraphs, all chock full of time-and-taste tested April Fool’s Day material, none of which hits even a 2 on the sobriety scale….. I only wish I could say it’s even funnier than it appears to be, but, I’d just be fooling with you, so, I won’t say that…. I suppose NOW would be the best time to issue the warning….

On this particular day, one can NOT predict just exactly HOW MUCH, nor HOW LONG I may be affected by the events of the day, so it’s best to leave a lot of clear space around wherever I may be standing, sitting, or walking, as foolish, bozoid events can break out at the slightest provocation…. In other words, it can get a bit weird around here, so, please, don’t be offended by anything you see or hear today, and, please, wear the Kevlar vests provided by our insurance brokers…. Thanks….

On that note, we should proceed, before anyone starts to panic….. Shall we Pearl?…..

“Evolution–life’s a niche, and then you die.” — Smart Bee
_____________________________

Yesterday afternoon, I found the following articles, all on one subject in which I am VERY interested, all of which, taken together, prompted the outburst you see below…. It’s not as fresh as the day, but, yesterday’s not TOO far gone, so, I think it should be relatively crisp and savory…. It’s all, once again, perfectly true in all its assertions, as evidenced by the information provided in two of the links, which lead to the report mentioned in the first post, complete with justifying data…. Let’s dive in, shall we?….

ETHNOLOGY, n. “The science that treats of the various tribes of Man, as robbers, thieves, swindlers, dunces, lunatics, idiots and ethnologists.” –Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

Or, in this case, climatologists, and those who love them least….

I have used this little entry from the Devil’s lexicon merely to highlight two factors as part of our discussion…. The first factor is to lay claim, as our statistical universe, to both the perpetrators, and the victims who are affected by the issue of climate change; in fact, with this factor, we make the obviously valid assumption that, in respect to pollution and climate change, all the various tribes of Man are both victim and perpetrator, in one…. The second factor I wish y’all to remember is a reminder, of the practical mistake in using science as the sole arbiter of any discussion, much less those concerning issues that can lead to one’s personal annihilation, aka, the final end results of man-made, unchecked changes to the climate of our planet….

With that dubiously high-falutin’ paragraph of intent behind us, allow me now depress you…. a lot….. (Fear not, it’s only for a while, and we’ll try to keep it light and humorous, as far as we can with such issues….)

The first link leads to an article from the NY Times, concerning one of the latest reports on climate change, this one issued by an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, comprised of a significant number of highly respected scientific experts from many different countries, with advanced degrees, and established reputations, in a number of relevant disciplines….

The next link is a short summary of the report in a PDF document format; the third is a link to the actual report, on the website of the panel who compiled it…. The last link included is a summary of the entire report, compiled by a reporter from a UK news outlet, put together for their readers, explaining many of the details of the report…. as well as including remarks from a scientist who takes a differing viewpoint….

I will comment on a number of ideas presented in the articles, hopefully AFTER you have read them…. but, if you want to skip most of the actual reading, that’s cool, the last part will stand alone, as long as you’re aware of the general area under examination….You’ll also be able to appreciate more whatever attempts at humor there may be if you do…. See you on the other side of the links…..

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/01/science/earth/climate.html?_r=0

http://ipcc.ch/pdf/ar5/pr_wg2/140330_pr_wgII_spm_en.pdf

https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg1/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2593198/Climate-change-lead-war-famine-extreme-weather-claims-IPCC-report.html
Pictured above is the handsome, eminent Dr. Richard Tol, a scientist connected to the University of Sussex in the UK, a self-identified climatologist, (What? You’ve never heard of him? Gosh….. Nor have I….), who, with a smug, smarmy expression, stated unequivocally that all the scientists who wrote the report just a paranoid lot, a gaggle of Chicken Littles….

Well, okay, he actually just said he thought the report was an over-reaction, because HIS OWN calculations show there is much less to worry about than these worrisome ninnies are bleating about all over the news…. (Okay, he didn’t say “worrisome ninnies” or “bleating” either…. Sheesh, try to be a little dramatic, and what do I get?…. Nothing but grief….), as he stood, in an unknown location, blinking bemusedly at the reporter, obviously trying to glean as much air-time as he could possibly garner, by coming out with such a preposterously silly-ass view….

I’m sorry…. I have to say, by all appearances, this guy sure seems to have not the slightest clue as to how to get other folks believe him when he voices such , er, well nonsense?, Eh….? You’d think, if he was going to argue AGAINST all the “better known, more prestigious” scientists in the group of climatologists on the Intergovernmental Panel, ~~who were picked over him for the project~~ , er, who drew up the report, he would have at least arranged for a photo that didn’t make him look like he forgot to take his medications for the last few days…. or, alternately, that he not only knows what a hair dresser is, but, has been to see one in the past year….. Either one might just have helped his credibility factor a tad, don’t y’think? Nice tie, though….. once one gets past his expression and hair, which looks as he he set off a small explosion in it before breakfast….

But, then, humans, as a result of the bozoid features of their nature, will deliberately, and foolishly, speak out against just about anything at all, just to make noise…. I mean, look at the political world…. Well, no, wait…. Never mind, let’s don’t…. I’m not sure my stomach lining would remain intact after picturing the sheer amount of stupidity necessary, for all the pundits on the political front, to deny what is slapping THEM in the face, literally as well as figuratively….. There is, positively, (yes, you read it correctly… I said positively, NOT possibly…. positively….), no greater number, all in one select group, of sheer, ignorant fools, anywhere at all , than are currently taking up space in the Republican, and Democratic, Parties of the US Congress….

I’m talking about the sort of complete and utter idiots who continue to maintain their standing as naysayers on this issue, claiming to question both the fact of climate change, and the idea that it is caused by mankind…. They’re usually the same idiots who regard Evolution as an unproved theory, clutching their faith-based misconception of dogma tightly to their ears, as protection against hearing the definitive, obvious proof of its invalidity, rather than accepting its true status, as the FACT the rest of the scientific community regards it to be….. That much DELIBERATE stupidity, in one place, beggars the imagination, not to mention the danger it represents to the mind, and spirit, of anyone trying to calculate what are apparently negative IQ numbers….

I swear, last time I sat down to do the math on that ( That is, by calculating the # of Senators who disbelieve in climate change, and/or evolution, divided by the IQ points indicated by being able to formulate that denial, expressed as a negative number, where necessary….), I was not just appalled, I was stunned into stupefaction myself, ending up feeling the NEED to eat chocolate, just as if I’d been face-sucked by a Dementor….

If the figures are correct, it lowers the average IQ of a US Senator down into the 55-70 range, with 100 as the average human’s intelligence quotient. When I tried to perform the same set of calculations for the House of Representatives, the computer laughed at me, refusing outright to even consider having anything to do with requiring it to express a number so minuscule….

I’m depressed now. Are you depressed? I am…. I think I said that….

Oh well, who cares? None of any of this will matter in 500 years, because, by then, IF there are ANY humans still alive, they will be those who, in the last moments before succumbing to death by suffocation, were able to, somehow, flee this planet, to establish a colony somewhere else in space, overcoming all the necessary scientific and technological obstacles to survival that will ensue, to, perhaps, be able to cling to a precarious existence, on Mars, or the Moon, or one of the moons of Jupiter or Saturn….

Or, maybe, the Asteroids…. which are, in truth, the simplest way to live in space, if necessary….

Those bodies, millions upon millions of pieces of rock and ice, which orbit the Sun between Mars and Saturn, are what appears to be left over from another planet, apparently destroyed a couple billion years in the Solar System’s past… All those left-over planetary pieces are chock-full of all kinds of raw materials, most likely including water, and the raw materials needed to grow food, as well as to build our machines to travel and live in space, thus sustaining any remnants of civilization we may be able to save…. if any at all…. Power, of course, would be available in the form of both sunlight, and the presence of a gravity well in the system at large, as well as in the almost unlimited materials present in the asteroids themselves….

After the aforementioned passage of the next 500 years, given the parameters of this, and other, reports on the subject, it is for sure and for certain, almost a foregone conclusion, NONE of us humans will be left alive on THIS planet, because it will no longer be capable of supporting our form of life….. By that time, it will exist as a new planet, empty of life as we know it, one with a non-oxygen based formula in the atmosphere, fatally toxic to us, and to every other form of mammalian, reptilian, amphibious, land, or solely water-dwelling, avian, and possibly, insectoid life that now exists here….

Who knows if bacteria, virae, lichens, fungi, and molds will survive?…. We’ve found some of them on space rocks, and on spacecraft returning to Earth, so, they’re pretty tough, it seems…. But, the rest of us? Unless, as I said above, we manage to emigrate at least a few of us to another place, we’re history, count on it….

Believe it, ffolkes, because THIS is the most likely scenario, of all the ones I’ve looked at in the last 50 years of watching this “sad tale of never-ending woe and struggle”….

I’m gonna go find something more fun to do, to drive off this depression…..

“Hold the MAYO & pass the COSMIC AWARENESS…” — Zippy the Pinhead

O’Neill: “Tell you what, let me put it nicely. Get me the hell outta here!” — from Stargate
_____________________________

Here is a poem from Lewis Carroll…. I’m hoping I won’t need to explain the reason it fits in with today’s theme, other than to say, when reading this, allow free rein to your sense of metaphor…. (Hint: Little Birds = denizens of human society….)…. Enjoy!…..

Little Birds

Little Birds are dining
Warily and well,
Hid in mossy cell:
Hid, I say, by waiters
Gorgeous in their gaiters –
I’ve a Tale to tell.

Little Birds are feeding
Justices with jam,
Rich in frizzled ham:
Rich, I say, in oysters
Haunting shady cloisters –
That is what I am.

Little Birds are teaching
Tigresses to smile,
Innocent of guile:
Smile, I say, not smirkle –
Mouth a semicircle,
That’s the proper style!

Little Birds are sleeping
All among the pins,
Where the loser wins:
Where, I say, he sneezes
When and how he pleases –
So the Tale begins.

Little Birds are writing
Interesting books,
To be read by cooks:
Read, I say, not roasted –
Letterpress, when toasted,
Loses its good looks.

Little Birds are playing
Bagpipes on the shore,
Where the tourists snore:
“Thanks!” they cry. “‘Tis thrilling!
Take, oh take this shilling!
Let us have no more!”

Little Birds are bathing
Crocodiles in cream,
Like a happy dream:
Like, but not so lasting –
Crocodiles, when fasting,
Are not all they seem!

Little Birds are choking
Baronets with bun,
Taught to fire a gun:
Taught, I say, to splinter
Salmon in the winter –
Merely for the fun.

Little Birds are hiding
Crimes in carpet-bags,
Blessed by happy stags:
Blessed, I say, though beaten –
Since our friends are eaten
When the memory flags.

Little Birds are tasting
Gratitude and gold,
Pale with sudden cold:
Pale, I say, and wrinkled –
When the bells have tinkled,
And the Tale is told.

~~ Lewis Carroll ~~

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Aye, the Tale is told, and told well…. I do enjoy a good metaphor, don’t y’all? We’ve made it as far as the last section, without any major mishaps, or any sort of diversionary actions that smack of Murphy’s tender touch…. for which, we are eternally grateful. In the perhaps futile hope of continuing this run of sheer luck, we’ll proceed to dive, to see if there are enough pearls available to fulfill our goal for the day…..

Parameters, today, are unnecessary….. serendipity is at loose in the world on days such as today, so we’ll trust in that to provide us with what we seek…. knowing that what we find will be worth the search…. If not, well, I can always comfort myself with the old saw about the journey being more important than the destination….. Abondanza!…..

How he lies in his rights of a man!
Death has done all death can.
And absorbed in the new life he leads,
He recks not, he heeds
Nor his wrong nor my vengeance; both strike
On his senses alike,
And are lost in the solemn and strange
Surprise of the change.

— Robert Browning (1812-1890) — After

“If you stand straight, do not fear a crooked shadow.” — Chinese Proverb

“The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” — Bertrand Russell

“A little folly is desirable in him that will not be guilty of stupidity.” — Michael de Montaigne (1533-1592) — Book iii, Chap. ix

“I am, therefore I am.” — Akira

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

And in your dreams you can see yourself
As a prophet saving the world
The words from your lips
I just can’t believe you are such
A fool.

— Frank Zappa, “Oh No”.

Wow…. Serendipity, indeed….
_____________________________

Well, Stanley, this is ANOTHER fine mess you’ve gotten me into…. It is, however, done, and, if I say so myself, it’s done reasonably well….. Of course, one must keep in mind what day it is, too…. On that scary note, I’ll see y’all tomorrow…. Okay, sorry, can’t help it…. I suppose it’s not as scary, as it is resigned…. Okay, now I’m done…. probably finished as well, but, only time will tell on that one…. See ya…. for real this time….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid the dubious

How to train predator birds with vertigo….

Posted on March 31, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

A word is dead
When it is said
Some say.
I say it just
Begins to live
That day.

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

Was Emily channeling the future with this poem? With the correct tilt to the head, with a slight look around the corner of the eye, this ~~would be~~ IS a very good statement to support the concept of blogging…. Each of us bloggers MUST abide by this feeling, in order to continue to post….

Well, I do, anyway…. But, I’m an Emily fan, so maybe that has something to do with it….. We all tend to fall back on the words of our favorites when it comes to justifying our own existence, or, in this case, our own continued presence on the web….

Okay…. So, was that a bit more comfortable? I thought a bit of a different opening might be in order….. Not that I feel the old way wasn’t working, but, I’ve never been quite satisfied with that part of the Daily Pearl…. Breaking past the morning block that almost everyone’s mind suffers upon first awakening has become, if not easy, at least doable….. But, the fear of the blank white screen still hovers in the background, always ready to jump up, freeze my brain’s connection to my fingers, & generally put a complete halt to the morning’s process of writing….. Damned neuroses!….

In the last few months, I’ve managed to NOT feel the fear so consistently, by using a combination of trickery, cheer leading, and flat out lying to myself, which seems to be working fairly well…. we haven’t had a freeze-up in close to a year. But, it’s never been an easy process, and I’ve never felt fully engaged in how it gets done….

I’ve always felt that somewhere, deep inside the back reaches of my brain, there is a structure, a building of words, so to speak, that I will someday find, establishing a solidly constructed edifice here at the beginning of each Pearl, to mark the beginning of another fine piece of work….

That is probably just another of my fantasies, but, hey, it’s MY fantasy, so leave it alone, okay? We all need our illusions to keep us going…. I know this; otherwise, why would we put up with so much fictional bullshit from our leaders? I’ve always known, and been saddened, by the knowledge that our leaders are liars; congenital, trained, or just naturally glib, it doesn’t matter, they’re all a bunch of self-serving assholes who would lie to their own mother if they thought it would buy her vote….

Oops! Ranting mode…. stand clear, please…. Okay, I turned it off, you can relax….. Almost started in on the BRC there…. I guess they just make too attractive a target to leave them alone too long…. I’ll not start that here in the intro today, though, for which I’m sure you are thankful….

I suppose, given we’ve managed to wander through a number of paragraphs already, we could conceivably call this completed, and get on with the day’s business…. Since I’ve had eight sold hours of sleep, and my pain meds are currently ahead of the pain, score-wise, I think I’ll go ahead and do that…. I suppose there are worse ways to start the day….

In fact, I KNOW there are, as I’m familiar with just about ALL of the different ways one can start badly….

Shall we Pearl?….

How good is man’s life, the mere living! how fit to employ
All the heart and the soul and the senses forever in joy!

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

_____________________________

As iterated above, ranting is on hold…. Since it is, and I want to keep going, we’ll put today’s old-school pearl here…. It will give me something easy to do, and pass the time until I am ready to go find something in the news upon which to focus my vitriol…. a waste bin, as it were, for the angst I wish to throw away…. For now, let’s find a group of pearls that says something about Life At Large….

“You may be sure that when a man begins to call himself a realist, he is preparing to do something he is secretly ashamed of doing.” — Sydney Harris

(Side note: When applied to politicians, the accuracy of this statement approaches 101% validity. — gigoid….)

“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” — Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) –Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759

“Wisdom outweighs any wealth.” — Sophocles (406 BC)

“I never resist temptation, because I have found that things that are bad for me do not tempt me.” — George Bernard Shaw, “The Apple Cart” (1929), Act II

“You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.” — Beverly Sills

“In morals, what begins in fear usually ends in wickedness; in religion, what begins in fear usually ends in fanaticism. Fear, either as a principle or a motive, is the beginning of all evil.” — Mrs. Jameson

“Why does there have to be an end to the rainbow? Can’t we just let beauty exist without trying to prove that it dies?” — Spite, The University of Akron

PERFECT! Q.E.D., mon amis….
_____________________________

Here is one of my favorite poems; it’s been here before, and, no doubt, will be here again…. This time, it has the name of the translator, who does an excellent job of creating a compelling English equivalent from the ancient Chinese verses….Enjoy!….

Drinking Alone

I take my wine jug out among the flowers
to drink alone, without friends.

I raise my cup to entice the moon.
That, and my shadow, makes us three.

But the moon doesn’t drink,
and my shadow silently follows.

I will travel with moon and shadow,
happy to the end of spring.

When I sing, the moon dances.
When I dance, my shadow dances, too.

We share life’s joys when sober.
Drunk, each goes a separate way.

Constant friends, although we wander,
we’ll meet again in the Milky Way.

~~ Li T’ai-po ~~

tr. Hamil

_____________________________

“When I see a bird that walks like a duck and swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck.” — Richard Cardinal Cushing

“If you call a dog’s tail a leg, what do you have? A dog. Calling a tail a leg, doesn’t make it a leg.” — Abraham Lincoln

Aren’t these complementary pearls great? They’re the perfect lead-in for a rant about politicians, most of whom are of the type of person (I use the word liberally….) who regularly attempts to convince the public they are NOT a duck, or a dog, when, in truth, they either quack, or bark, quite clearly…..

The subject of politicians lying to the public is one I spend a lot of time writing about here, so it would fit right in with all of my other rants very well…. Unfortunately, the news is currently being usurped with a story that makes it far to EASY to show how wide-spread the issue is in our government….

Leland Yee, a California State Senator from San Francisco, and Raymond “Shrimp Boy” Chow, a Tong leader from SF’s Chinatown district, (Kinda makes ya wonder, don’t it? “Shrimp Boy?”….. Personally, I get all SORTS of weird mental images popping up when I say those two words to myself….), have been arrested, and are being charged with a number of counts related to their (alleged….. 🙂 …) long-term involvement in drugs, gun-running, political corruption via voting, murder-for-hire, and just about every crime against society that exists, save for, perhaps, stealing from babies….. and that one isn’t out of the question for these two…. I just didn’t see that among the charges for which they were indicted….

It seems that for over twenty years, Yee was selling votes and political influence to Chow, and others, for lucrative economic advantage, for him, and for those who benefited from the programs he voted in to being. He also laundered millions of dollars of ill-gotten gains, by using his political campaign accounts to accept donations, for the Chinese Tong, run by Chow….

This money was collected from prostitution, drug, and racketeering enterprises, all run by the Tong. An undercover FBI agent infiltrated the Tong organization, establishing trust by posing as an ex-Mafioso of high repute, whereby he was able to gather tons of condemning evidence of their corruption, for over four years before the arrests were made…

But, it’s all too easy a target…. In fact, the focus being placed on these two will, long-term, have the opposite effect that it should….. These two clearly criminal individuals are providing too obvious a target for the public’s ire, thus taking it AWAY from all the other, less obviously corrupt politicians out there, almost ALL of whom are hard at work raiding the public treasury, but are much better at hiding their machinations than these two clowns appear to be…

Putting all the public’s attention on a couple of bozoids, who managed to get caught, literally red-handed, with their fingers in the public till, will ultimately have the effect of making other politicians appear to be more honest than they actually are…. That’s human nature, and the pundits, who all know this, will be using it to their advantage for a long time to come….

So, rather than waste a lot of my time and angst-driven energy on ranting about the corruption they are exposing, I’ll just remind you that what you are seeing is NOT atypical for politicians, and shouldn’t be thought of as an anomaly, but, rather, as an omen of things to come, when we expose ALL their asses, and throw them ALL out of office, and out of our lives…. (Picture an iceberg, 90% unseen, floating on the ocean…. Yee & Chow are a small part of the ice visible above the water line….)

Then, when I know you’ve realized that, in spite of all the nonsense in the news, detailing the shenanigans of what they’d like us to believe are swans swimming in the public pond, you now see they are really only ducks, stealing food from the swans, and the dogs, to wit: from you and me… Once you’ve realized how the politicians of this government are NOT in the business of helping us, but are only in Washington to steal as much as they can during their term of office, is the absolute truth, with a capital T, we can go on…..

Now, since y’all have put up with my blathering for so long on such an obvious issue, I’ll reward your forbearance by throwing together a set of pearls to further illustrate and/or enhance my points, to close this off with a flourish…. which, though not particularly common here, is, no doubt, warmly welcome when it occurs…. Enjoy!…..

“The seeds of our own punishment are sown at the same time we commit sin.” — Hesiod

(Sin, otherwise defined as voting…. the two words are interchangeable when politics are involved….)

“Intolerance of ambiguity is the mark of an authoritarian personality.” — Theodor W. Adorno

Gerald Ford: In the Bob Hope Golf Classic, the participation of President Gerald Ford was more than enough to remind you that the nuclear button was at one stage at the disposal of a man who might have either pressed it by mistake or else pressed it deliberately in order to obtain room service.” — Clive James

“If they become politicians they were switched at birth.” — Mom’s Hint #096

“A kitchen in every pot. I mean, a pot in every — I mean, a chicken in every…” — George Bush, 1988

“All a man needs to be elected President is the kind of profile that looks good on a postage stamp.” — B.B. Franklin

“We can’t be so fixated on our desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans…” — President William Jefferson Clinton, USA TODAY 11 Mar 1993

“As Athenodorus was taking his leave of Caesar, “Remember,” said he, “Caesar, whenever you are angry, to say or do nothing before you have repeated the four-and-twenty letters to yourself.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Caesar Augustus

“Now I’m having INSIPID THOUGHTS about the beautiful, round wives of HOLLYWOOD MOVIE MOGULS encased in PLEXIGLASS CARS and being approached by SMALL BOYS selling FRUIT..” — Zippy the Pinhead

Damn, that was close…. I thought for sure I’d NEVER get out of there!…. Smart Bee took me at my word, and proceeded to inundate me with pearl after pearl that just fit into the group seamlessly…. I managed to keep it down to eight, then got lucky, and found the perfect Zippy quote for closing it off with just the right touch of nearly-coherent insanity…. “He was bigger than me, Ma, but, I took ‘im down!”….. Now we can all go get some rest….

You, you, and you, panic. The rest of you, come with me….
_____________________________

I suppose we will be forced at this point to declare a moral victory…. We only had to leave behind three bodies in a state of panic, but, the rest of us made it through to here, so, I have to count that on the positive side of the scale…. Otherwise, they’d close me down….

Besides, one of the three bozoids we left behind was a trained bozoid, so they’ll all eventually stop screaming & jumping around like idiots, whereupon the bozo will get hungry, and the others will follow as he goes off to find the exit door behind the nearest banyan tree….

On that phantasmagorical note, I’m outta here…. and, none too soon, I’m can tell…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid the dubious

Hardly softened, barely covered, finally started, & completely unfinished….

Posted on March 1, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Darling!”, cried the woman at the next table, “You look fabulous! Where did you get your hair done?” As she continued to gush at her companion, I tuned out her voice, while looking toward the door, hoping to see my own appointment waiting there. No luck there, so I let my eyes scan the dining room of the very upscale restaurant in London’s East End, idly noting the few other early diners at tables around the room, several of which sat in front of windows overlooking the busy street below. Catching the eye of a roving waiter, I ordered a drink, and sat back to await the arrival of the man who was going to provide me with the means to destroy millions of people, over a very fine dinner…. I couldn’t wait….

Well, that’s quite enough of THAT….. I’m no more impressed than you probably are, or aren’t…. Not my best effort, to be sure, in spite of the copious amounts of blood that accompanied its creation…. That one HURT to get out, and, after reading it, I can see why…. My sub-conscious mind, having already made its judgment of this little piece of crap, tried to clue me in the entire time I was writing, but, I was determined to finish it, with the result, as you can see, that I’ve managed to completely waste my time, and possibly yours…

S’okay, though, we’re all good…. Even though my morning routines seem to have been wiped out, and I’m operating totally on instinct today, I’m sure I can fix this, and make it into what will someday be called an ordinary Pearl…. I say ‘ordinary’ because it will have 1500-3000 words, with some ranting, a poem, and some pearls of virtual wisdom to chew on…. The quality of that content is, as you know, subject to a wide range of both good and bad, and, since such judgments are entirely personal, anyway, I won’t even bother to consider that when performing the fix….

How, you may ask, am I going to save this? I’ll admit, it won’t be easy, or simple, and it may just leave me with a lot less blood than I started out with today…. But, I’m committed, and ready to make any sacrifices I must, to save this Pearl from becoming just another blog…. Of course, this may mean y’all will have to walk home, but, I don’t mind sacrificing the Reality-Mobile, if we can get this Pearl to breathe again….

Oh, wait, that’s right, I forgot…. Y’all could take the zip-lines back to the mainstream, if you have the cojones to zip five miles from the heights of reason down to the mundane flats of complacency….. The lines are free to all, they’ll supply y’all with free gloves, and there’s a shuttle to the top of the line from here…. it’s not far, only a couple of miles up the mountain….

There, with that taken care of, I can now concentrate on the delicate matter at hand…. While I do this, please stay back a few feet…. even the noise of your heartbeats can frighten the ‘puir wee beasties’, and they’re skittish enough today…. Okay, here we go…

Shall we Pearl?…..

“I don’t mind occasionally having to reinvent a wheel; I don’t even mind using someone’s reinvented wheel occasionally. But it helps a lot if it is symmetric, contains no fewer than ten sides, and has the axle centered. I do tire of trapezoidal wheels with offset axles” — Joseph M. Newcomer
_____________________________

“The truth is on the march and nothing will stop it.” — Emile Zola (1840-1902), “J’Accuse!”

I found the following article in the news a day or two ago, and set it here to form the nucleus of a rant I planned to write, on gun control, and the 2nd Amendment issue at large…. However, while waiting for today to arrive, I found the following rant from last year, and decided it says part of what I wish to say very well, so, I’ve put it immediately after, as a prelude to any fresh comments…. if I can find any in this less than completely cooperative text editor I call my mind….

For now, please read the article, keeping an open mind about both sides of what this implies…. If those sides aren’t clear to you, the key words to look for that will identify the players for each team are words such as “critics” or “supporters”, or more simply, “cops”, and “victims”….. (Sorry….. please, DO try to keep an open mind, even if I tend NOT to practice that myself, quite so well as I may preach…. a perfectly human habit, I might add…)….

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/6-San-Francisco-police-officers-indicted-5273906.php

From April 20, 2013:

Quis custodiet ipsos Custodes? [Who guards the Guardians?] — Smart Bee

This is the perfect opening for a discussion of gun control, for me, as I believe strongly this is the bottom line issue for that particular subject…… Sure, taking guns out of the hands of people who are insane is a good thing; nobody, I think, can argue that. The problem lies in figuring out WHO gets to decide what sanity is, the same issue that comes up in discussing getting rid of firearms altogether.

You see, I’m sorry, but, I just can’t bring myself to trust the Beloved Ruling Class to decide who is sane, and who isn’t. Part of this stems from the fact that I don’t consider anyone in public office to have a very tight grip on sanity to begin with…. How effective can it be to have insane people making the rules for deciding who is insane? Not very, I suspect….

Yet, I read many articles that profess the belief that the police, and the army, who naturally would have to have guns (Why? If nobody is supposed to have them, why would they need them?), are more trustworthy than the common citizen. I’m sorry, but, just what planet did you say you came from? It certainly isn’t Earth, because, last time I looked, here on Earth, all the police, and all the folks in the army, and the folks who tell them what to do, are all PEOPLE, just like anyone else…..

They’re all suffering the same fears, the same delusions or preconceptions, and the same lack of morality, as does the average joe on the streets. In fact, in light of my experience observing and identifying psychiatric symptoms common to the insane, I can honestly state I see a higher percentage of police and military personnel who display a distinct lack of a strong, internalized moral compass, based on a rational compassion for others, than I see in the general public.

Part of the problem is exemplified by what I DO see, which is, police and military institutions, as they are organized and run, become attractive to the type of person who enjoys having power over others, whose self-image requires them to be in a position of authority, in order for them to be able to view themselves in a positive light, to see themselves as successful individuals. They equate money, and the power to control other people, with the concept of success, thus gravitating naturally to those sectors of society that deal in those commodities.

Normal, stable personality types seldom need to exercise power over others, and never do so out of a personal neurotic need, and so avoid such pastimes as bullying, or aggressive interactions as a rule of thumb…. To the selfish, and the sociopathic, however, the police and the army are seen as a path to what they term as success. If you see a flaw in this logic, please, enlighten me…. Until I see some evidence to the contrary, though, I find this to be a valuable, and accurate summation of the situation, thereby affording myself the opportunity to avoid the majority of their machinations, at least in a directly personal sense….

We all have to deal with them eventually though, so it’s good, I think, to be aware of the above arguments, as it will forewarn anyone who absorbs it, and takes it to heart, allowing them to defend themselves from the worst of the BRC’s attempts at repression, or oppression, if not all. Maintain a high level of doubt when considering announcements and decrees, stay alert to the news, and the meaning behind what you see there, and be ready to jump when the balloon goes up.

Things out in the Big Blue Room are getting a little bit pretty damn serious in spots, with potentially disastrous possibilities being threatened on a lot of different fronts, so, for those of us who wish to survive, it would be a good thing to be ready for whatever may take place, no matter how insane…. And remember, guard yourself, against the Guardians themselves, if need be…..

“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift; the rational mind is faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.” — Albert Einstein
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We return now to the Consensual Reality currently in place today, March 1, 2014….. no better, and much worse off in general, than we were when this was first written, eleven months ago….. If I were to begin here, taking this rant to the places it conceivably could go, we’d all be here far longer than any of us wished…. Me, because I’d have to speak to the other implications of gun control, and I’m already burnt out for today…. and you, because you, too, have, no doubt, had quite enough of this, thank you very much…. One can only be serious so long before one requires a bit of a break, what?

Well, I do….. require a break, that is…. So, onward…. Stay alert, ffolkes, and keep your powder dry, because you just can’t trust ANYONE who SAYS they have YOUR best interests at heart…. unless, maybe, it’s your mum, dad, brother, or sister, or loyal lover….. and they could still get it wrong, right?…. Nobody’s perfect….

“We make so much sense around here it’s frightening!” — Smart Bee
_____________________________

I’m afraid y’all have pulled my covers, but, only because I’m such a shameless egoist I encourage such humiliations; I consider it part of curmudgeon training, adding just the right tones of bitterness and resentment on my part, and righteous indignation and disgust on yours…. which hopefully does not also get on your shoes…. There, now you can’t say I never make myself look foolish….

Staying with that theme, I now present to you my entry for the 19th day of April last, during the National Month of Poetry Challenge, when writers all over WordPress, and other blogging sites on the Web, all committed to write and publish a poem a day for the entire 30 days…. I missed a day or two, but, managed to write a lot of not-too-shabby poems, and several excellent haiku, if I do say so myself…. which, obviously, I have just done…. duh….. Enjoy, please….

From April 19 , 2013:

Haiku VIIThe sun has come up,
once more we rise, and then shine.
Standard issue day.

~~ gigoid ~~

Fatal Supplication

But what becomes of our deepest dangerous dreams?
Does fantasy rescue any part of life’s imperiled favor?
Reality becomes but silvery pairs of mismatched teams,
Dining with affable elegance, such diffident waste to savor.

Who decides what sorrows to carry bravely to term?
Will fragrant moments of sanity make hasty manifestation?
Only Time’s patient mutability sends messages so firm,
Yet salient impersonal vexation lends credence to ripe imagination.

Can folly bring out sadness and rampant visions of beauty?
What kindness can be found in distant open relations?
With countless faces the dead disturb with dire impunity,
From separate caches of wisdom come simple stylish privations.

Shall shallow emotion serve to provide such explanation?
When does avaricious intensity assume primary focus?
Plain answers slide softly through with multiple mitigation,
While conceptually indignant concepts engage a fatally personal locus.

~~ gigoid ~~

_____________________________

The die is cast, and reality has taken the shape it will hold, until it changes again…. All we can do is go along with what the universe has in store for us, helpless to make changes anywhere but in our own minds, to our own character…. Reality itself, in spite of our delusions to the contrary, is NOT amenable to our desires, and only matches them randomly….

It’s best to learn to get along with that piece of information, because it is one that isn’t going to ever change…. In fact, our own inability to change reality may possibly be the only thing in the entire universe that is NOT subject to change… Hmm… That will take a bit of deeper thought, I think, before we can call that one a truism…

Philosophical, and/or metaphysical, or even metaphorical, considerations aside, it’s time for an old-school pearl, if for no other reason than my own wish to keep from having to rant overmuch…. I’m trying to cut down, for my health… so to speak…. For now, let it suffice to say, shall we dive for some pearls?…. I think it would be for the best….

“Within the oyster’s shell uncouth
The purest pearl may hide,
Trust me you’ll find a heart of truth
Within that rough inside.”

— Mrs. Osgood

“I don’t want to die! Existence is one of my stronger points!” — Ron Warren Evans

Remembrance and reflection how allied!
What thin partitions sense from thought divide!

— Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Man, Epistle i, Line 225

“Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself.” — Charlie Chaplin

It’s got to be the goin’,
Not the gettin’ there that’s good.

— Harry Chapin

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

Are there not, dear Michal,
Two points in the adventure of the diver,–
One, when a beggar he prepares to plunge;
One, when a prince he rises with his pearl?
Festus, I plunge.

— Robert Browning (1812-1890) — Paracelsus, Part i

Perfect! A pearl, book ended by two pearls about pearls, creating a pearl of pearls, with the power to cause ecstatic cognitive trance states at the drop of a metaphor!…. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did….
_____________________________

Well, THAT was fun…. sort of…. Actually, I did have a bit of fun today, and nobody got hurt, that I can see…. I call that a good day of writing. Whether or not that is something that reality can agree with is, at this late point in the process, rather moot…. Which, convoluted as it may or may not be, is merely another way of saying, it’s done, and, I’m outta here…. See y’all tomorrow, most likely….

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

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

Which is Why….

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.gigoid the dubious

Improbably imbued with ponderous value….

Posted on December 10, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Vague flutters, as tiny wings not seen, but heard on the very edge of awareness, fall obscurely upon the dark shadows, soullessly inhabiting these empty halls. A terrible, heavy silence grips the night by the throat, quelling any thought of outcry, any hope of warning, as minute by minute, the hour of fate approaches unbidden, unwanted, unknown…. Baleful denizens of darkness cower, shivering in the cold of a terror so great, so powerfully evil, all hope died, screaming, before it was ever born…..

Then, of course, I woke up, and all was well…. or, as well as things can be, all things considered…. At least we’re not in the evil grip of some kind of Steven King-like novel, like the poor sap in the first paragraph, eh? I’d hate to go there every day, even if only in my head…. Having been blessed once more by 10 solid hours of sleep, I feel GREAT! Well, I feel pretty good, anyway; I don’t think I’ll be climbing any mountains anytime soon, but, I may be able to make it past 2 PM without a nap, if I’m lucky, so, that’s a good thing, right? Right….

In the last week, other than two trips out of the house to take care of some business out in the BBR, we’ve been stuck in the house ever since getting back from the cruise from hell, me with bronchitis, and my lady with a cold she managed to pick up inadvertently upon arriving home…. For the past five days, we have been alternating sitting, taking meds, and sleeping, pretty much, with some minor writing on my part in the early mornings, while my brain is actually functioning at a relatively normal level…. Part of what has kept us in the house, aside from illness, is the weather here in California, which has been reminiscent of Alaska in the early winter…. seriously…

It has been well below freezing point for five nights running, with temps here last night down to 21 degrees F…. For a town right on the water of a bay, on the Pacific Ocean, at around the 37th parallel, that is COLD!…. Especially here in this part of the state, where ‘mild’ is the word we use most often to describe our weather patterns…. This year, 2013, the area has had approximately five to six inches of rain, with only twenty-one days left in the year, whereas, the annual average is close to 24 inches…. But, there’s no such thing as global warming, so, hey, not to worry, eh?….

Okay, that’s enough… Some fictional musings, some personal patter, a bit of weather, a mini-mini-environmental rant…. It will suffice for our purposes here…. I think we’re good to go for a dive… If things turn out to make that an erroneous decision, well, hey, we’ve been wrong before, haven’t we? Yes, yes, we have….

Shall we Pearl?…..

That ‘s the wise thrush; he sings each song twice over,
Lest you should think he never could recapture
The first fine careless rapture.

— Robert Browning (1812-1890) — Home-Thoughts from Abroad, ii
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“Whenever, therefore, the profession of arms becomes a distinct order in the state….the end of the social compact is defeated… No free government was ever founded, or ever preserved its liberty without uniting the characters of the citizen and soldier in those destined for the defense of the state…Such are a well regulated militia, composed of the freeholders, citizen and husbandman, who take up arms to preserve their property, as individuals, and their rights as freemen.” — Richard Henry Lee

I mentioned a few days ago that I’d found a good quote for the beginning of a rant, and I was right, wasn’t I?….. Specifically, for a politirant, concerning gun control, and the misguided attempts to alter the Second Amendment to the US Constitution, if not wholly, at least by abridging its intent. This, I believe, is a HUGE mistake, even though it was fully expected by those who first made the law, to wit: Jefferson, Franklin, Mason, Paine, Hamilton, etc…. our founding fathers, in short. All of them believed very strongly that this amendment was the very backbone of what made our freedoms possible, and were leery of ANY changes to this law….

“Liberty cannot be guaranteed by law. Nor by any thing else except the resolution of free citizens to defend their liberties.” — Edward Abbey

Those fears were expressed, verbally and in writing, many times, before and after the Constitution’s approval, and all the available evidence shows how little these men trusted the monied, or titled, elite in society… More than once, in correspondence with each other, they discussed their mistrust, of the bankers, the corporations, the aristocrats, the professional politicians, the professional soldiers, and all who support those categories of society. They knew that, as soon as the laws were passed, these special influences would begin using their money, and their influence, to try to abrogate the intent of the laws, limiting them, altering them until they no longer were capable of protecting our rights….

“Freedom isn’t cheap and it never goes on sale.” — Smart Bee

That assault on the Bill of Rights, especially those of the First and Second Amendments, has been continuous since 1786, as can be seen by the Congressional logs of bills that were brought forth at one time or another throughout our history, bills attempting to limit the power of the amendments; some were successful, some were not….. and the assault is not over; it continues to this day, as the special interest groups all clamor to fill the public’s attention with unreasoning fears, by making a huge hullabaloo over EVERY shooting that occurs in this country….

Well, as long as it suits them, of course…. They don’t make a big deal out of one of their police or paramilitary types blowing away some ‘perp’, (…. kind of a demeaning term, don’t you think?…. As well as prejudicial… A ‘perpetrator’ is one who is considered guilty of an act, by connotation, if not denotation….), who is robbing a store because he needs food, or drugs…. Even the shooting of some little kid playing with a toy gun brings no particular outrage from the governors, or even the media, in response to that lack…. No, those types of shootings get little attention past the first report; the only investigations into THOSE incidents are internal, and never find any blame, or file any charges….

No, it is the incidents where some crazy asshole, most likely some private citizen with a long time internal struggle to be normal, gets hold of a gun, goes to some public area, and proceeds to blow away a bunch of other innocents…. These events, relatively isolated in comparison with other types of shootings, of any kind, are the incidents that are brought into the limelight, so that every detail of the agony of the victims is expressed, fanning the public’s outrage, making them afraid for their own safety…. This makes them much more malleable when the talking heads propose their newest limits to the guns that the people can have…. Don’t worry, they’ll get them all, it will just take them more time…

As I’ve stated before, I’m a warrior, raised by a man of honor, and have studied the Art of War, (both the book by Sun Tzu, and the actual Art itself….), for almost my entire life…. and though I don’t, as a rule, use guns (They’re too loud, too complicated to maintain in the field, & hard to use with stealth…. heavy, too….. Knives, and sticks, of many shapes, are quieter, simple to use, & much easier to conceal…. Ropes are pretty useful, too….), I do know how to use them….

If I should ever need one, why, then, I’ll acquire one, from someone who has more than they need, to use as I so require. Then I’ll put it away again, or give it back to the owner, if that individual happened to loan it to me…. If the gun I end up using was pointed at me, well, they won’t be needing it back, anyway….. So far in life, I’ve been smart enough to avoid the necessity of dealing with that, and have had no need for one, so, I’m content with that, for the time being….

But, no matter what the talking heads may do, or say, or how they may change the laws, our founding fathers already GAVE me the rights I have, and I won’t be giving them up, no matter how many legal sounding words they may send through their lips…. It will all be just noise, as far as I am concerned…. There is no rationalization that is, to my mind, conceivable, that could persuade me to give up those rights, because I’ve already heard them all…. After all, in addition to my book/day from 1961 onward, I HAVE been watching TV since the early 1950’s, (I remember the Republican convention in 1954 that nominated Eisenhower, watching it on a small B&W console TV…. “I LIKE IKE!”….), so, I’ve seen or heard just about every political lie there is to perceive…. They just recycle the same old BS every time, anyway….

I’m tired of ranting about this, because, to me, it’s already a settled issue in my mind…. so, let’s see if I can find some pearls to lighten up the tone, and still deliver a few shots to the midsection of the pundits and preachers out there, who deserve as many shots as we can give them….

“War is a matter of vital importance to the State; the province of life or death; the road to survival or ruin. It is mandatory that it be thoroughly studied.” — Sun Tzu

(Which is why I sincerely urge each and every one of you to PAY ATTENTION!….)

“The devil can quote Shakespeare for his own purpose.” — George Bernard Shaw

(And, too often, does so, right on TV, wearing a dark blue suit with a power red tie and a flag pin….)

“The state is the great fictitious entity by which everyone expects to live at the expense of everyone else.” — Frederic Bastiat

“To use power is to make yourself infinitely vulnerable to greater powers.” — Bene Gesserit

“A promise must never be broken.” — Alexander Hamilton

(Wait! How did THAT get in here?…. Oh, okay, it’s alright, he’s not a pundit, just a founding father…. If a bit of a prude in some ways…. Smart, but a bit anal, y’know?….)

“The Bill of Rights goes too far–it should have stopped at “Congress shall make no law” — Smart Bee

“The man who finds a truth lights a torch.” — Robert G. Ingersoll, _The Truth_

“In the midst of this sublime and terrible storm [at Sidmouth], Dame Partington, who lived upon the beach, was seen at the door of her house with mop and pattens, trundling her mop, squeezing out the sea-water, and vigorously pushing away the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic was roused; Mrs. Partington’s spirit was up. But I need not tell you that the contest was unequal; the Atlantic Ocean beat Mrs. Partington.” — Sydney Smith (1769-1845) — Speech at Taunton, 1813
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I like this, not merely because it is beautiful in its execution, but for what it says, as well…. Exquisitely romantic, and powerfully emotional, it is indeed what I consider the BEST kind of poetry…. to wit: it affects the reader, engaging and enlightening at once…. Enjoy!

Sonnet 14 – If thou must love me, let it be for nought

XIV

If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love’s sake only. Do not say
‘I love her for her smile — her look — her way
Of speaking gently, — for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day’—
For these things in themselves, Beloved, may
Be changed, or change for thee,— and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity’s wiping my cheeks dry,—
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love’s sake, that evermore
Thou mayst love on, through love’s eternity.

~~ Elizabeth Barrett Browning ~~

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“One of the most difficult of the philosopher’s tasks is to find out where the shoe pinches.” — Ludwig Wittgenstein

But, other times, the fools make it easy to show just where the pinch is biting…. such as when this fool opens his mouth…. You MUST read this, please… I know it is a hard one to believe, but, it was reported with a straight face by the news outlet, just as if it were real news, so we owe it the respect of doing the same, no matter how egregiously insane it may be…..

http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2013/12/07/santorum-mandelas-fight-for-freedom-like-the-fight-against-obamacare/

Can you believe the sheer, blind selfishness of this man? No matter what his issues, he was asked to comment on the life of someone who died, and regardless of his own position, he could not put aside his own personal foibles long enough to make a statement of compassion for the family, or the loss to the world…. No, he attempted to equate the works of one of the last century’s most well-loved, and universally respected figures, trying to turn the moment to his own political advantage, with possibly the weakest, most illogical, most ill-informed argument I have heard outside a second-grade classroom, when the teacher asked the little boy why he ate his neighbor’s cookie….

“People become educated, as against trained, insofar as they achieve a grasp of certain critical principles, and the passion to choose, organize and shape their own ideas by means of them. Education is not a mere piling up of more and more bits and pieces of information. It is a process of deciding for ourselves what we believe. It implies a self-motivated action upon our own mental nature and a process in which we learn to open our mind, to correct and refine it, to enable it rationally to learn; thus to empower it to analyze and digest its own knowledge, to gain command over its own faculties, to achieve flexibility, fair-mindedness, and critical exactness. More and more students should have assignments that challenge their minds to think for themselves.

This requires, of course, that they are encouraged to question what is presented to them for belief, not only in the various subject areas, but on TV programs and movies, in news broadcasts, in the talk of their peers and others, in political speeches and personal discussions, in everyday decisions and ways of living. And they should do this not to discover that everything is relative and arbitrary or a matter of opinion, but that all beliefs and points of view are subject to rational analysis and assessment. Ideally the process will come to pervade the school climate and be reflected in the deepest structures of school life. By this means, schools can perhaps become, as they should be, leading institutions in society, paradigms of rationality, helping an irrational society to become what itself has said is its own highest goal: a free society of free and autonomous persons.” — Richard Paul

Rick Santorum is a perfect example of the kind of first type of education described in this quote, with a lot of well-memorized factoids running around in his head, which he is able to regurgitate in various formats on demand, all without ever having to apply a single moment’s actual thought, or use them to reason with for any purpose…. When one reasons, one might come up with a conclusion, which is a risk for a pundit….. He is a well-programmed autobot for the Republican right, which, for me, is a continual delight, as he also has an almost Romney-esque ability to keep his foot planted firmly between his teeth for long periods of time, and still talk around it…. This was a perfect example of that skill, along with a display of callous ignorance and lack of compassion that is merely astounding, rather than particularly surprising.

In a way, though, he is also a frightening phenomenon, for there are actually people in this country who take what he says as gospel, who dote on his unpopular opinions, mostly because they tend to fall into misogynistic, racist, bigoted, fundamentalist Christian guidelines,…. a group of characteristics, you will note, that purportedly have NOTHING to do with government, other than as things to fight against inclusion in that process…. Yet, there he is, the darling of the fascistic fundies, just like that hive of bees in my head that, in spite of telling them of all the flowers that are in other locations, remains ensconced in the eaves under the roof of my mind…. and, well, there they are, so what do I do with them?….

“Annoy a Fundamentalist: Tell him the truth!” — Smart Bee

Hmm, that’s good advice…. To get back to Rick’s case, at least there are times like this one, when he provides me with at least a few moments of hilarity, at the breadth and depth of his stupidity, until, saddened by the same sheer ignorance in one in a position to do so much harm, I become depressed again, when I think of how many idiots are out there taking him seriously….. SIGH….. That thought is SO depressing, I’m going to quit this rant, and go find something fun to do, just so I don’t have to think about him any more….. Wish me luck, and I’ll wish it back at ya…. And remember, ffolkes, I may not be right, but I make up for it by being sure…..

“For the love of God, folks, don’t do this at home.” — David Letterman, CBS Late Show, demonstrating the Donut-o-pult, 1995
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I’m not entirely certain just how it happened, but, I think I’ve done it…. Let’s go see…. Well…. I’m still not sure, but, now, at least, I know it did happen, so…. I guess I’m outta here for today…. See ya….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

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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Exploring Consensual Reality

Tag Archives: Robert Browning

Morning becomes eclectic….

Regret makes a poor supper….

Suffering slightly from anaerobic syncopation….

He’s big… I don’t know if I can take the mime…..

How to train predator birds with vertigo….

Hardly softened, barely covered, finally started, & completely unfinished….

Improbably imbued with ponderous value….

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