Safely insane amid the noise and tedium…..

Posted on February 27, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Unbeknownst to the rest of us, the warranty on this state of reality has expired, and I don’t think there will be any renewal, not for us, and not for the dreams we once held. Sad, but true….. A lesser man might become depressed, or fall into the state of mind where a lack of caring, about anything, becomes attractive, rather than the low-level sense of doom that is the lot of those who have any wit to spare. Instead, I think…. I’ll have a beer…..

Or maybe not…. it’s a bit early for a Budweiser, I suppose. I’m not sure exactly what the above paragraph is all about, other than as a possible lead-in to a rant, and it’s WAY too soon in this process to start that….. I haven’t even had enough coffee to be able to blink without concentrating, and I can’t be trusted to tie my shoes yet, much less start ranting about the environment, or whatever…. Hell, as is obvious, I couldn’t get through an entire paragraph without resorting to silliness….. It may be a gift, in some instances, but, just now, it’s more of a PITA…… If you don’t know that particular acronym, well, that is probably just as well…. If you do, then you’ll get my drift….

As might be apparent by now, I’m a little scattered, a little off, today. In such cases, it’s easy to tell how I’m doing, as this intro becomes rather a battleground for sanity, and gets stranger by the second the longer it goes on, and on, and on, and on…… Now, strange isn’t necessarily a BAD thing, not if it’s adequately appreciated, and taken full advantage of….. It’s when folks try to stop it, or make it normal that it gets all crazy and violent. Some folks never pick up on that, and so spend their entire lives fighting against it, rather than being able to embrace it, and allow it to become an asset, rather than a liability…. It’s easy, fun, and much more comfortable than trying to be a conformist…

Since I don’t wish for that to even have a chance to happen, I might do well to get on with business today, rather than trying to squeeze out every last drop of asininity I can from the beginning of this missive. There’s still a ways to go before I can call it a day, so, I’d best be getting to it….. Shall we Pearl?…..
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“Oh my GOD — the SUN just fell into YANKEE STADIUM!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

I’ve just spent more than enough time looking for a pearl, and this is the best I’ve seen….. Pathetic, don’t you think? Although I really like Zippy’s little pronouncement for it’s absolutely brilliant level of strange, it doesn’t help in coming up with something, anything, about which I can write. Having already started late today, and now an hour or more into the process, I am, relatively, no further along than when I began, especially if you don’t count the intro section, which is, if not exactly Pulitzer material, at least has the distinction of a small dollop of humor, bordering on verifiable silliness…..

Well, that last sentence certainly wound its way through the grammatical and punctuation minefield, didn’t it? Any who, I was busy complaining about the lack of material…. I’m so dry, in my own head, I’m actually going to resort to a re-post…. Here is an old, and old-school, Pearl, first published, or sent out via email, while I was still working at NSH, which would make it about six to eight years ago….

At that time, the Pearls were all in the format you see below, and were sent out to about 250 hospital employees each morning via the hospital network….It drove the IT dept. crazy when they’d see the network bandwidth patterns go crazy when I sent it out…. Apparently, the Pearls, enjoyed by so many, were a bit of a load for the network at the time of sending….. Oh well…. Any who, enjoy…..

When Reality becomes moot…

Ffolkes,
Spinning, twisting, caught up in the vortex Reality creates, we look about with trepidation, seeking, seeking, and never finding the path to the future that will ease our way. Entropy makes us weep, with deep regret, the choices we never made, the truths we never spoke, the challenges we didn’t meet. In spite of all this, we go on…with courage and good humor. And why? Because we can…..and must.

Did you ever watch Sesame Street? If so, you may remember a repetitive piece called “One of these things is not like the others.” This morning we bring you another version of that, called “Betty Likes It”. If you don’t get it, don’t worry, it’s just about as obscure as I can be, meant to confuse, as the puzzle is an easy one. Comments or criticisms are welcome, though the latter will most likely be cheerfully ignored. You computer ffolkes should like it…..

RTFM – Read The F#*@^| Manual

I admit it, I tried MS-DOS, but I didn’t inhale.

“If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization.’ — Weinberg’s Second Law

For Dessert? I’ll take a piece of cherry 3.14159!

The definition of a successful life must include a commitment to serving others.

So, which is different? If you can’t tell, well, just look for the one that feels the best when you use it…. y’all take care out there…..

This Pearl was first published circa 2006…..
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Where The Sidewalk Ends

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
and before the street begins,
and there the grass grows soft and white,
and there the sun burns crimson bright,
and there the moon-bird rests from his flight
to cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
and the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
we shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow
and watch where the chalk-white arrows go
to the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we’ll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
and we’ll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
for the children, they mark, and the children, they know,
the place where the sidewalk ends.

~~ Shel Silverstein
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Truths would you teach, or save a sinking land?
All fear, none aid you, and few understand.

— Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Man, Epistle iv, Line 261

Ah, Pope! I regard Alexander Pope as the premier of all the romantic poets…. Deeply insightful, and ornately beautiful, his verse continually amazes me. This poem, Essay on Man, has more couplets and quatrains of great power in it, all of which make excellent excerpts, than in any other work I have ever seen, bar none, save, perhaps, Ode on a Grecian Urn, by Keats. Line after line of great composition, and insight after insight into the nature of Man, Mssr. Pope created one of Mankind’s most precious treasures in this epic work…..

I identify very closely with this couplet, as it is rather a good description of what goes on here. Even though I continue to rant and rail against the people and institutions, and ideas, that I believe are holding us from becoming all we could be as humans, I am often struck with how little response I get from anyone who doesn’t feel the same way….. which is another way of saying that I believe that, most of the time when I rant, I’m preaching to the choir, in a manner of speaking…. It’s more than just a little bit of a frustration, as I believe what I have to say is important to all of us, to, as Alexander so aptly puts it, to “teach, or save a sinking land.” If people continue to ignore what I’m saying, the consequences to be faced are horrendous, not from me, but from Reality…..

“All fear, none aid you, and few understand.” This, too, seems to be a completely accurate picture of ECR and the rants that are fostered here. Actually, if the BRC was a little more nervous, and paid a bit more attention to me, I think I wouldn’t be so frustrated, as what I’m saying SHOULD make them nervous, since most of it pulls their covers ruthlessly. At least, I hope it does…..sometimes, I have a hard time with ‘ruthless’…. too much of a softie….. SIGH…. I can’t help it if I don’t enjoy hurting people…..

However, any hurt that I cause the BRC is NOTHING, NOTHING when compared to the pain and misery that will be our lot when the massive stupidity our species has displayed for the past 5000 years finally catches up to us…. Yesterday, I posted a quote from Lazarus Long, from The Notebooks Of, that is germane to this discussion…. It said this:

“Stupidity cannot be cured with money, or through education, or by legislation. Stupidity is not a sin, the victim can’t help being stupid. But stupidity is the only universal capital crime; the sentence is death, there is no appeal, and execution is carried out automatically and without pity.” — Lazarus Long

We are writing our own judgment, with our continued denial of the facts about global warming, and the serious effects of overpopulation and pollution on the ecosystem, and are being quite insistent on making it happen as fast as we can. This leaves us little time at all to save those of us who don’t go along with this stupidity, who would sooner survive into the next millennium, rather than die, to the last man, in this one.

I only wish that more people would start to throw off the state of mind that leads to denial, and start kicking some 1% ass, as the issues around all of this aren’t the major problem for us. The main problem is the assholes who are in charge of the world, who don’t have a clue as to just how stupid they are being, and are driving us, blindly, down the road to extinction…. Their intransigence in denying all of the evidence that is there is, in my mind, about as deliberately stupid as one can be, and it’s just a damn shame that, because they are stupid, I have to live with the consequences…. or, more accurately, die from them….

Ah well, c’est la vie! Writing my rants, and shouting the message from the vantage of this blog, are about all I can do…. As I’ve said before, all you can do, is all you can do…..

“Imagine the Creator as a low comedian, and at once the world becomes explicable.” — H. L. Mencken (1880-1956)
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I’ll take it…. and there is nothing about “settling” in that decision. It isn’t bad, considering the struggle I went through to write it…. It’s tough to come up with around 2000 words a day, and make it all fresh and excellent…. Not that I’m complaining; I’m the one who decided on this format…. It’s all good, or, as John Lennon’s mom used to say, it’s nothing to get hung about…. Not sure what she meant by that….. 🙂 Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Don’t bust your gaiters, boy, it’ll get bigger….

Posted on February 26, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Balderdash! That’s all it is…. even if it weren’t so disgustingly gross, I wouldn’t touch it with gloves and a stick. If they want that dealt with by me, they’ll have to come up with some compensation, that’s all I have to say….. Either way, I want it off my lawn, today….. Damn dragons!…. Can’t finish what they eat, gotta leave carcasses lying about on people’s grass like some werewolf…. and, where the hell am I going to dump an entire lawn full of half-chewed sheep? Bloody nuisance, that’s what it is…..

Howdy, y’all…. how’s it shakin’? The lines written above are all smoke, only there to provide a platform for the first word, which, all by itself, is a word of such class and power, it can support an entire paragraph, one with no real information in it, and no meaning at all, turning it into a thing of, well, if not beauty, at least, interest….. Well, for me, it does…. I love the word…… “balderdash”…. it’s got everything a word needs to make it special. Odd spelling, funny sounding, and an ancient meaning, that has little modern relevance, beyond its use, as in this case, as a prop for words that otherwise would have little purpose, and draw no attention whatsoever….

I’m running much later than I have for awhile; late night, dealing with issues, so you’ll need to be careful where you sit. Why? Oh, sorry, forgot to tell y’all…. I got my shipment of plastic Jesus holders, perfect for the dashboard of your car, to sell on EBAY, but the box broke during shipment, and sort of exploded when they threw it on the porch from the truck, so there are plastic shards, some of them quite sharp, and a mass of those styrofoam packing peanuts, everywhere….. It was a bloody mess, I can tell you; thank goodness it wasn’t the fish sauce that’s getting delivered tomorrow…… If that gets broken, I’ll be fighting off cats for weeks….. Any who, I didn’t have time to clean it up last night, so watch where you park your butt….

Alright, I’ll stop now…. It is a terrible thing to wake up to an empty mind; equally terrible, as you can see, is what happens when I try to write anyway. SIGH…. (That’s a big, drawn out, fully ironic, Clare County sigh….) I don’t really mean to do that to people, but, what else can I do in such instances? Order in? Outsource? Give up? None of those options is palatable for me, as they all involve admitting I’m unable to do it myself, and I’m not going there. I HAVE to write…. I get all twitchy, and irritable, if I go too long without spewing some of what is in here, and can bite if severely tested; my insurance won’t cover any of that, and the damn police get so irritated when they have to come talk to me about another dead body….

Okay, I’m done now…. really, I am. I think that’s enough to be able to call it an intro section…. it doesn’t actually introduce anything, but, it does kind of give you an idea of what you’ll be dealing with in the way of thought processes. You might want to take advantage of the full-body armor, and the upgraded helmets today…. The weather looks a bit chancy for this kind of diving, and flying…. Without any further literary abuse, we will now head out to corner Smart Bee, and find a few appropriate articles of stimulation….. Shall we Pearl?…..
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“Is this the line for the latest whimsical YUGOSLAVIAN drama which also makes you want to CRY and reconsider the VIETNAM WAR?” — Zippy the Pinhead

I’ve decided to publish a book, I think…. It’s actually already written, so it should be out within a few months, as soon as I figure out a way to complete the publishing part…. 🙂 Actually, that sounds as if it is a joke, but, I’m quite serious, which is the funniest part of the joke. I even have the title, sort of… or, rather, I’ve got some ideas for one, but need to pick one & quit waffling…

The basic premise is to polish up the best Daily Pearl from each month I’ve been writing them, put them together into one document, and have an agent see if anyone is interested in it…. I’ll make sure to include my own poems in the appropriate sections of each Pearl, so I don’t have to worry about any attribution for the work of others…… I’ll use the Introduction to deliver the basic necessary accessory concepts, to wit: Peruaosophy, the Philosophy of Pearls, the definition of ffolkes vs. folks, Pearls vs. pearls vs. pearls, etc. I’ve heard of a blog publisher who may be able to help, and I’ll contact her soon, too… when I’m ready with the finished document of Pearls…. Oooh, inspiration strikes!…. I’ve got it…. the title….

A Necklace of Moonstones ; Pearls of Virtual Wisdom*

*Not recommended for use as Real Wisdom. Any use not intended may lead to joyful chuckling, or in severe cases of exposure, cogitation.

So, whattya think? Will it sell? Will it make anyone laugh? Will it make the BRC nervous? Will it piss off the Pope, and the Ayatollah? Will it save the planet, and us in the process? Will it stimulate anyone into thinking about, well, anything?…. Any of the above would be an acceptable outcome, for me…. I guess I’ll have to put it out there to find out, though in reality, only the latter queries are important to me….

Selling it is only important because it means ffolkes are reading it; the money, while welcome, isn’t the issue. With my retirement from the state, and my SS benefits, I’ll be comfortable enough, and be able to mostly do what I want to do. I’d probably end up giving most of it away, anyway, other than a bit of it I’ll use to leave a legacy for my son, daughter, and grandson. I won’t be around this old planet more than, say, thirty or so years more, no matter how much progress medical science makes, so why would I want to hoard it?

No, whatever money I make from a book, or books, will go to people and organizations that are working to improve our chances of survival, or to working on taking mankind to the stars, which I still believe to be our destiny, should we manage to survive our infancy, and the moral childishness that threatens our continued existence. Other than being able to eat, live indoors, see a doctor when I’m sick, play occasionally, and travel a bit, I don’t have a lot of expenses…. oh, and a phone and computer, with Internet access. Beyond those, my needs are few, if any, so I don’t think I’d have any problem with putting the money to work for people….

Talking about it isn’t going to get it on the market, no matter how convincingly I write out the plan…. I have to DO it…. and I’ll start later today, after this Pearl is posted, and I’ve finished any chores that need doing (the trash is getting a bit smelly, full sink, etc……). No worries!

🙂 Wish me luck!….. I will, no doubt, need it…..
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On a day such as today, I should probably put one of my own poems here, but I don’t have anything pushing me to get out of my head, so we’ll just have to make to with somebody else today…. Let’s see who I can find…. Aha!…. Lord Peter’s favorite poet, and by deduction, probably Dorothy L. Sayer’s as well…. Another of the mystic romantics, John Donne.

Here is a two-fer, in two parts… First, a link, to a poem very appropriate, given today’s rant, below, about Mother Earth… it’s a long poem, which is why I’m using a link, so you may also have the second, without getting buried in verbiage right here…. so, first the link, to a poem entitled, “Anatomy of the World”, then the most excellent poem, A Valediction of Weeping….

Anatomy of the World

A Valediction Of Weeping

Let me pour forth
My tears before thy face, whilst I stay here,
For thy face coins them, and thy stamp they bear,
And by this mintage they are something worth,
For thus they be
Pregnant of thee;
Fruits of much grief they are, emblems of more,
When a tear falls, that thou falls which it bore,
So thou and I are nothing then, when on a diverse shore.

On a round ball
A workman that hath copies by, can lay
An Europe, Africa, and an Asia,
And quickly make that, which was nothing, all;
So doth each tear
Which thee doth wear,
A globe, yea world, by that impression grow,
Till thy tears mix’d with mine do overflow
This world; by waters sent from thee, my heaven dissolved so.

O more than moon,
Draw not up seas to drown me in thy sphere,
Weep me not dead, in thine arms, but forbear
To teach the sea what it may do too soon;
Let not the wind
Example find,
To do me more harm than it purposeth;
Since thou and I sigh one another’s breath,
Whoe’er sighs most is cruelest, and hastes the other’s death.

~~ John Donne
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“We are going to have to find ways of organizing ourselves cooperatively,sanely, scientifically, harmonically and in regenerative spontaneity with the rest of humanity around the earth…. We are not going to be able to operate our spaceship earth successfully nor for much longer unless we see it as a whole spaceship and our fate as common.” — Buckminster Fuller

Bucky said this some time around 1968 or 69; Google would know….. but I remember it well, as part of the argument that first convinced me of the imminence of the danger from overpopulation, pollution, climate change, and all of the other foolish, self-destructive behaviors in which our specie has engaged for millennia. The cumulative effects of all of these issues is approaching a flash point, a point that, quite possibly, may already have been reached, and passed, without anyone noticing…..

Perhaps the worst example of the entire problem is the movie “An Unpleasant Truth” with former VP Al Gore narrating a summary of these issues, with all the then currently available evidence, all of which taken together was rather impressive, as well as fairly well unarguably accurate. In other words, it told the exact truth, and clearly….

I call this the worst example because this perfectly told truth of the matter was ridiculed, reviled, and dismissed, by the governments, and the public, one by ignoring it, and the other by refusing to listen, reacting instead to an unfortunate delivery style. Yet, every word Al spoke in this movie is true, and is being proved today, with the already extreme climate changes we are witnessing on a world-wide scale…..

“What are the facts? Again and again and again — what are the facts? Shun wishful thinking, ignore divine revelation, forget what “the stars foretell,” avoid opinion, care not what the neighbors think, never mind the unguessable “verdict of history” — what are the facts, and to how many decimal places? You pilot always into an unknown future; facts are your single clue. Get the facts!” — Lazarus Long

But, the stupids keep on decrying any changes have happened, and blithely ignore the warmer, dryer winters, the cooler, wetter summers, the shrinking polar ice (at BOTH poles!…), the instability in the biosphere, the tons of carbon monoxide and particulates being added into the atmosphere every second, and all of the other evidence that PROVES them wrong. It isn’t a matter of there not being any real evidence, it is a matter of the evidence being ignored, or challenged, that is proving to be the hardest obstacle to be overcome if we are to survive beyond the next 100 years….

Yep, that’s my estimate, based on all the different estimates I’ve read about, the evidence I’ve examined, and my take on how society is dealing with all of it…. I don’t see the changes needed happening, not yet, nor is there much indication that a way to stop the assholes in power from their insane intransigence, and selfish hoarding of resources for their private use.

The atmosphere is almost full, and the balance of the gases and elements that make up the air we breathe is, WITHOUT FAIL, going to begin to change, eventually changing into air that will not support our life form, meaning, we won’t be able to breathe it; we will suffocate….. This process, well understood by science, has already begun, and will happen faster with each passing day, once it reaches a certain critical point…. That point, if not already reached, is not far off…..

Now, I know there is hope, and that everyone who reads this will give me positive reasons for that hope…. and I agree with all of them. I don’t want to die, and I don’t want my children, or their children, to have to face the same issues in order to save themselves. I’d much rather just shoot the motherfuckers who are causing all of it right now, and be done with it…. Sadly, that won’t work, so we’ll have to figure out something else to do…. I am not enough of a genius to be able to figure out exactly what that might be, though I have some ideas that would help, I’m sure…. But, I’m not in a position now to have those ideas instituted, so they are moot, unless I can assume such a position….

Hope is, therefore, just about ALL I have left….
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I suppose I should finish this now, since it’s done….. A moment, if you please…. Okay, not too bad, all in all. It felt a bit rough, while putting it together, but it seems to be standing up just fine, so…. I’m going to declare it “done” before I can change my mind, or my shirt, whatever that means…. I’m going now…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Subtle signs of imminent success….

Posted on February 19, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
As the author of the original Theory of Bozoid Tendencies, it is not unknown for me to provide entertainment to the world at large, by acting out my own particular brand of nose-honking, giant-shoe wearing, pie-throwing hilarity. I didn’t, however, expect to find myself in the position of having my own brain commit a mental screw-up of such major proportion as to challenge Barnum & Bailey for the most clownish activity in a single event, all for the sake of a rant that would otherwise have been overlooked as being pretty tame, compared to some that have been set free in this venue. However, when the nose grows, you have to let it show….

Ayn Rand is NOT Anais Nin, by any stretch of the imagination; just ask Google, as I should have done…. One wouldn’t think so, anyway, unless they read my rant from yesterday, wherein I completely transposed the two, not just once, but, numerous times. I can only plead E.O.A., a medical condition for which there is no known remedy or cure, other than quasi-voluntary euthanasia…. (E.O.A. = Early Onset Alzheimer’s…) I can also only apologize to the shade of Ms. Nin, who didn’t deserve my accusatory defamation, since the ideas that prompted it belong entirely to Ayn Rand…..

Somehow, in the vast cavern of emptiness that I call my mind, the two names were interchanged, one for the other, and I ran with it all the way to the wrong goal, on the wrong field, in the wrong stadium, in the wrong city, in the wrong country, on the wrong continent, and on the wrong planet…. Other than that, I stand by everything I said…. Embarrassing as all get out, you betcha, but, honoring the truth includes exposing my own transgressions, if I expect to have the right to examine those of others….. Damn it…..

On a more positive note, if nothing else, my literary, and literal, faux pas DID give me a certified excuse to write the above paragraphs ahead of time, (i.e., yesterday….) which I jumped on right away, as it will give me a bit of space in the morning to come up with something appropriate for the intro section, other than the hyper-entropic convolutions I’ve been spewing recently. Not to say they’ve been bad, just frighteningly random, to someone who is fond of their serenity….. and that is probably quite enough of a head start…. everything after this point is fresh; everything before this point is, well, not stale, but not fresh…. you know what I mean….

I’m going to try make it difficult to tell though, so, no worries….. Actually, I’d thought to spend a bit more time apologizing for my foolishness, but, I figure some of y’all got a good laugh out of it, so I can probably get by with what I’ve got so far, without having to worry that guilt will rise up and smite me later on. And now, of course, I’ve begun to babble, James Joyce-style, which means we must be getting near the required number of words and paragraphs to meet the intro standards….. thank goodness!

Not that I was getting nervous or anything, but I’ve already had to wring out my t-shirt twice since starting today, so maybe we should just let all this go, and get on with the true object of today’s post, to wit, some cogent postulations on events in reality. Or, I could take a break here, and let it percolate for a bit….. Nah, it would no doubt get snatched up by Murphy, who would then proceed to change a letter here, a word there, and before I know it, another letter from a lawyer to report more legal action against me….. No, thanks, I’ll just stay right here, and get started on today’s dive for something to chew on…. Shall we Pearl?
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Yesterday, on Monday, the 18th, another blogger came by the blog to read my post, and made the comment below…. It was such a compelling comment, I am reproducing it here, verbatim, to attempt to give it the attention it deserves, as a very good question indeed….

“I just finished a book by the NY Times ‘The Ethicist’ called Be Good. It was about how to be ethical in various practical circumstances. It made me realise how little I care about being ethical in many minor ways. Just by living it seems that we inflict suffering – it’s impossible to be completely in the right at all times, or for one’s impact on the world to be only good (car driving, for instance, or milk drinking). So the aim is to minimise the bad rather than eliminate it – every bad thing not done is something to feel slightly better about.???” — butimbeautiful, 2/18/2013

In the final analysis, I agree with the part of this that states that it isn’t possible to be perfect in our attempts to be completely ethical, without entering into the realm of good vs. bad, and having to make a decision that is not exactly the most ethical, or that will cause pain or hurt to another. Sometimes, as is pointed out, we must do so for the sake of our own safety, or for another ethically acceptable reason, but, mostly, it turns out to be a decision based on expediency, or, what is most convenient, or most comfortable, for the person making the decision. Ms. beautiful surmises, then, that the aim should be to minimize the effects, and to accept the karmic burden without guilt over things we cannot control….. if I am reading it right….

I am compelled by my own beliefs to disagree, to a certain extent…. In my mind, ethical perfection is a goal, one that we are constantly trying to reach…. Once we start lowering our own standards in the struggle to reach that goal, we take the risk of allowing this expedience to become an acceptable reason to abrogate our duty; it becomes not an anomalous decision, but a common one, used any time we have our own reasons to not wish to comply with a certain ethical request, or decision to be made. There is an old saw about the “slippery slope” one enters when deciding to make ethical decisions, and this is exactly what it refers to…. taking that first step onto the slope is risky, and often disastrous…..

I think it is better, most of the time, to try to maintain one’s ethical standards, no matter the cost to my own feelings, or to anyone else’s. The respect I gain for myself by doing so can easily outweigh any guilt or discomfort I might feel from having to let my standards down, and makes the effort worthwhile, in my mind. I’m not always going to succeed, as I am human, like everyone else, but, if I can, I will NOT lower my standards for the sake of expedience….

So, I guess what I’m saying is, I agree that we, as humans, cannot always meet the ethical standards we set up for ourselves…. but, it is a mistake to believe that not meeting those standards is okay…. I think that ethical perfection is not only possible, but critical, and the practice of always trying to maintain one’s standards is worth the pain it may cause, both to myself, and to others…. because, in the final analysis, I refuse to give up my self-respect for the sake of expediency, that modern society forces us to confront every day….. Patting myself on the back for NOT doing bad isn’t the same as doing good, no matter how logical it may seem….

In my head, all these arguments and discussions eventually get to a point where the easiest way to express my own thoughts on the matter is to bring in one of my oldest pearls, one I’ve used often, one that fully explains, and fully expresses my feelings on morality and ethics…. I will use it now to finish off this pearl, before it gets any more cumbersome…. just pay attention to this one, as it forms a large part of my own personal view of life, and how it should be lived…..

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

But there is no reward at all for doing what other people expect of you, and to do so is not merely difficult, but impossible. It is easier to deal with a footpad than it is with the leech who wants “just a few minutes of your time, please — this won’t take long.” Time is your total capital, and the minutes of your life are painfully few. If you allow yourself to fall into the vice of agreeing to such requests, they quickly snowball to the point where these parasites will use up 100 percent of your time — and squawk for more!

So learn to say No – and to be rude about it when necessary. Otherwise you will not have time to carry out your duty, or to do your own work, and certainly no time for love and happiness. The termites will nibble away your life and leave none of it for you. (This rule does not mean that you must not do a favor for a friend, or even a stranger. But let the choice be yours. Don’t do it because it is “expected” of you.) ”

— Lazarus Long, in Time Enough For Love, by Robert Heinlein.
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Well, I knew there was a poem floating around in there somewhere…. and, gosh, here it is! I can’t say I’m completely happy with it…. I think in the future, it may grow some more verses…. but, for now, it’s done, so…. what do you think?….

Waiting to Find

Feeling and looking routinely fabulous,
seldom seems as hauntingly ridiculous,
scintillation is hardly more perilous,
or quite as fascinatingly anomalous.

Gaia pales in the face of redundancy,
yet welcomes elemental shades of necromancy,
never failing, episodic bouts of philanthropy,
can often be misconstrued as misanthropy.

It’s all much too fancy,
yet not sufficiently chancy,
to fulfill the promise made for pants.
It can’t be the thyme,
so it must be the rhyme.

~~ gigoid
__________________________________

“In the midst of the word he was trying to say,
In the midst of his laughter and glee,
He had softly and suddenly vanished away
— for the Snark *was* a Boojum, you see.”

— Lewis Carroll, The Hunting of the Snark

I came across this little gem as I cruised Smart Bee this morning, immediately copying and pasting it over here…. but, without any clear idea as to why I did so, beyond its obvious appeal as nonsensical metaphor. So, I’m now sitting here, staring at it, wondering how the hell to turn it into a pearl worth publishing with my name attached to it….. In most cases, it wouldn’t be an issue at all, as I can generally turn nonsense into further nonsense without conscious effort, but, something about this today is tickling my unconscious, and I won’t be able to do anything else until I figure out what that may be….

In one way, what I said about it being a nonsensical metaphor is absolutely correct…. one not even particularly obscure, that could easily be applied to describe the first section of today’s Pearl, at least up until the point of the final pearl’s inclusion. But, as I ponder its deeper significance, I see that it could also be a metaphor for the last three years of my life, if not all of it…. which surprised me to some extent, until I realized that this will help me to endure the waiting I have yet to experience in my quest for disability benefits, at least to the extent of allowing me to see the humor, and irony, that life always includes as part of our package of experiences on this planet.

“.. are the STEWED PRUNES still in the HAIR DRYER?” — Zippy the Pinhead

See, that’s the Snark….. which, given my history with prunes, is more apropos than you can imagine…. but, then, when you consider this….

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

…. you will realize, as did I, that this, this is the Boojum, you see….

Now, I realize, at this point, you are having some questions as to my sanity, and may be wondering about when my next dose of medication is due….. but, allow me to assure you, I am quite lucid, and just playing with your head, and mine….

What I’m trying to say here, is that nonsense, and metaphor, have been instrumental in the maintenance of my sanity over the last three years, as I have been compelled by circumstance to watch the state and federal government bureaucracies grind their way to a decision on my disability application.

If it weren’t for Zippy’s wild, yet stabilizing influence on my moods, I’d say it was a distinct possibility that someone would be dead, and I’d be in jail…. or more likely, a mental institution, but this time without the advantage of carrying a key to the outside doors….

However, Zippy does exist, as does Pooh’s evil twin, and any number of other characters who can get me, and keep me, in touch with my bozoid side, where the world is always happy, or at least blissfully ignorant…. Making puns and bad jokes is, I would guess, more socially acceptable than leaving dead bodies strewn over the landscape, so it is a good thing, all in all, that I am in tune with that side of reality, and can use it to protect myself, to a degree, from the depredations of the rest of reality, with its massive indifference to human suffering….

I guess you could say that nonsense and whimsy provide me with the rose colored lenses my glasses need for me to be able to see the world in a form with which I can cope….. long enough for reality to catch up with my plans, and dreams…..

— Bother! said Pooh, as he hacked up a hairball.

🙂
__________________________________

Well…. I’m speechless. All I can say is, it’s done, and I don’t know for sure how I feel about that….. I’ve gone back over it once, and still don’t get it… It all sort of hangs together okay…. I don’t know….. Oh, well, it will have to do, as it’s too late now to start over…. besides, no matter what else someone else might say or think, I like the poem, so…. you’ll just have to deal with the rest of it…. I did…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Muttered curses followed the abbot out the door….

Posted on February 17, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
I’m here. I’m up. I don’t want to be, but here I am. Why am I forcing myself to do this? No frigging idea…. I could be in bed, warm and comfy, trying to get a bit more sleep. I could be, but, I’m not, thanks to….. karma. I know, I know, you’re saying, “what?!” It’s too early for dealing with karma, mostly, but, that’s all it could be. The only thing I can figure is that over time, several small things must have snagged on a curve in the pipes, and built up into a major event that needs accounting.

(Note the clever use of metaphor, karma being equated to raw sewage, sans graphic illustration…. Not too bad, pre-coffee….)

Typical bookkeeping on the part of the universe, to hit me with the bill for this all at once, at 0530 in the morning…. I don’t see why it couldn’t have waited an hour or two, or submitted separate bills for each transgression… But, no, that would be too easy for me…. the karma droids have apparently been taking lessons from Murphy, the asshole….

Not that karma has no resources of its own to exact payment for our foolishness. No, indeed, it does just fine finding ways to allow the universe to fall on us, in a way that not only hurts, but humiliates as much as possible. I suppose if one had to do that kind of work, such little perks would be an important part of the compensation, though I can’t see myself doing it for long without some sort of side bonus that would add to the enjoyment. But, then, that’s me, and I’m special….

That’s it…. I can’t take this any more…. I’m wandering around here, trying to find a way to open this Pearl with some style, and this is the best I can come up with…. Pathetic! Coffee’s ready, so I’m outta here for a minute or three…. I’ll be back when I’ve regained my senses….

I’m back, but I’m not certain I’ve regained much in the way of creativity. I’m still stuck here in this pathetic pastiche of minimally related ideas and words, desperate to discover a path back to some kind of literary credibility, and hoping for even a smidgen of inspiration…. Diversionary tactics and distracting trips down the path to nowhere aren’t going to get the job done, no matter how badly I want it to…. No big surprise there, though…. SIGH…. What is it about mornings that brings out the fatalist in us?

Okay, I’ve got it! I’ve just had a flash, an idea of such importance I’m not sure if I can even describe how big it is…. I just realized that Murphy, as much of an asshole as he is, still has to have a boss, right? Somebody has to sign his check on payday, I bet, just like the rest of us…. All we need to do is find that guy, and remove him from reality, or take away all his pens, or something ….

Murphy isn’t going to keep doing what he does without getting paid; he’s too big of an ass to work for free (I think, to do his job, one would HAVE to be free of any kind of altruistic impulse, or any sense of compassion….), so if we keep him from getting paid, maybe we could get, if nothing else, a little break from his attentions, at least until they find a new patsy, er, force of nature….

What do you think? Will it work? No? I was afraid of that…. Oh, well, you can’t blame a guy for trying…. and, if nothing else, it got me the rest of the way to the end of this intro section…. Sorry about the obvious use of the distraction, but I really thought I had an idea there for a minute…. Just goes to show one should never, uh… well, one should always… No, wait…. Okay, people shouldn’t ever…. Oh, never mind, this is all screwed up anyway, so let’s just get on with it, okay?…. Shall we Pearl?
__________________________________

“Any body of men who believe in hell will persecute whenever they have the power.” — Joseph M. McCabe (1867-1957)

This statement is made as an assertion, without any supporting evidence, other than the author’s confidence in making it. While it happens to be relatively accurate, it points out the danger of making any such assertions when applied to human nature. One may never predict, with any expected degree of accuracy, just how a human being will act in a given situation; that is part of what makes us human.

But, observation over time can give us a pretty clear indication of some of the more likely reactions, as people tend not to hide even their basest impulses in situations involving power over others…. In fact, one might accurately say that, very often, the opportunity to have power over others will prompt those base impulses to manifest themselves in action, giving rise to such aphorisms as “power corrupts….etc.”….

In beginning this pearl, my initial thought was to explore and rant, but, I’m more curious about a part of this issue that seldom is examined, to wit: What is it in human nature that causes us to more often choose the path of weakness over that of virtue? By this I mean that, if one assumes the truth of what Mr. McCabe has said, then what is it in men that makes it so?

Why is it human nature to choose to ignore evil, giving our tacit approval by our silence, rather than showing the courage to speak out? Why do people make the decision to put aside their compassion and empathy, and live life without any regard for what effect their actions have on those around them? In short, what is it in mankind that makes us such assholes?…..

I don’t think that is an unreasonable question, vulgarity aside, and given the evidence of history, I don’t think it is an unreasonable conclusion to draw from the available facts. People, given half a chance, will choose to fuck over somebody else rather than give up a single thing they consider their right to have, or to do; I don’t think there is anyone who can deny that this is an unfortunate truth about people, as a group, and as individuals. Too many people refuse to use the mind they are born with, and spend their entire lives living with blinders, and blundering around reality, breaking china and annoying the other customers…..

“All our actions take their hues from the complexion of the heart. As landscapes their variety from light.” — W. T. Bacon

Sure, there are a few of us out there who do use their minds to better purpose, for the most part, and generally try to find, and employ, virtue and morality as best we can. But, it seems that in order to be the kind of person who cares about other people, one must give up that part of their human nature that allows them to take advantage of other people, to deny empathy or compassion, and live according to only one rule, which says, “Me First!”…..

Those are the people who WANT to be elected to office, so they can legally steal, and arrange matters to better suit their own needs and desires; people who care about others don’t want any part of having power over them, and thus are never, or, at best, rarely seen in the public venue….

I don’t know what that part of human nature is, precisely, that makes people choose evil over good, but, it is common in our world, and the people who display that particular characteristic have managed to gain a stranglehold on the rest of us, by their insidious, hidden, obsessive hoarding of resources and power.

It isn’t a situation that is going to respond to normal pressure in order to resolve; drastic, extreme measures are the only method that will have any lasting effect…. Unfortunately, I don’t think any such action is going to take place outside of the realm of speculation, because it is already too late, and nobody is paying attention to how close the final curtain is to coming down…..

Now that I have thoroughly depressed myself, and you, I’ll go on to another pearl, with this admonition… Please think about this fact, that there are a small number of people whose choices of how to live are going to kill all of us, themselves included, unless society makes changes in the way it works on a moral level…. This is not speculation, there is ample evidence to be found, based on scientific fact, and supported by logic and observation. Whether we as a species go out with a bang, or a whimper, is up to us…. as it has always been….

“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start my friend, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.” — Carl Bard
__________________________________

A Faery Song

{Sung by the people of Faery over Diarmuid and Grania, in their bridal sleep under a Cromlech.}

WE who are old, old and gay,
O so old!
Thousands of years, thousands of years,
If all were told:
Give to these children, new from the world,
Silence and love;
And the long dew-dropping hours of the night,
And the stars above:
Give to these children, new from the world,
Rest far from men.
Is anything better, anything better?
Tell us it then:
Us who are old, old and gay,
O so old!
Thousands of years, thousands of years,
If all were told.

William Butler Yeats
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“Be not careless in deeds, nor confused in words, nor rambling in thought.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, viii, 51

Okay, that does it! Now I have two-thousand year-old philosophers making fun of me! Marcus must have somehow entered a time warp, found a laptop with internet access, and read a couple of my intro sections; only if that were true could he have nailed me so well…. Shoot, and I thought I had everyone fooled…. This is embarrassing, to say the least. I’m so upset, I’m going to have to resort to an old-school pearl to calm myself down enough to get done with this missive. Oh, well, at least with an old-school pearl, I don’t have to try to think on a conscious level, so I should be able to avoid any further humiliation at the hands of a dead celebrity…..

This will be an unusual pearl, as the entries have yet to be picked, and will reflect solely what seems apropos at that moment in time…. which COULD end up brilliant, or it could be crap…. let’s go see what Smart Bee has for us today…..

“When will I learn? The answers to life’s problems aren’t at the bottom of a bottle. THEY’RE ON TV!” — Homer in “There’s No Disgrace Like Home”, from The Simpsons

“It’s amazing how much “mature wisdom” resembles being too tired.” — Lazarus Long

“If you juggle with knives, you’re likely to get cut.” — Kieran Donegal

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on,–
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone.

— John Keats (1795-1821) — Ode on a Grecian Urn

“I speak truth, not so much as I would, but as much as I dare; and I dare a little the more as I grow older.” — Michael de Montaigne (1533-1592) — Essays, Book iii, Chap ii, Of Repentance

“God: What one human uses to persecute another.” — Smart Bee

Okay, I’m going to do something I’ve never done before…. Here are two pearls, either of which would make a fine closing pearl for this group, though with totally different outcomes…. I’m giving them both, and you can use the one you like better, or both, or neither…. Reader’s Choice, as it were…. here you go….

“I am a traffic light, and Alan Ginsberg kidnapped my laundry in 1927!” — Zippy the Pinhead

or…..

“Anybody can make history. Only a great man can write it.” — Oscar Wilde

Ta da! Cue music, fade lights, and, exit, stage right, or left, or, hell, just go….
__________________________________

For a while there, I thought they were going to win, but I was able to persevere, and emerged the victor in the end…. Now that I have finished sharing my delusions, I can go forth and carpe that old diem…. Well, maybe I’ll have some oatmeal first….. I’m satisfied, if not content, with today’s effort, and, since it is done, so are you…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Well, it does match the door stop….

Posted on February 16, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
One week into the six, and my ass hurts already….. I don’t think I’m going to be able to make it all six weeks here in front of the computer without suffering from some major ass bite. Which is fine, if only I had some way to exercise without turning into a lump of pain. That, to me, is the worst part about having the type of pain I do, i.e., I can’t DO anything I used to do, in the way of physical exertion…. it’s all history, thanks to the cumulative effects of hard physical exercise during the first 40 years of my life…..

Some years ago, when I was first seeing my doctor about my back, and the pain therein (which, at the time, was constant and unrelenting….), he told me that my condition was becoming increasingly common in men and women who had been athletic for much of their lives…. It seems that in later years, the body begins to break down faster, and to a greater degree, than those of people who were not so sports oriented. According to him, my years of playing football, basketball, and baseball, when added to my martial arts conditioning, and over 700 fights in which I engaged in my work, all served to take its toll on my back and joints…. If I had stuck with being a nerd, rather than a warrior/nerd, I’d have been better off, it seems….

I found, and still find, it ironic, that the very activities that I was always told would keep me healthy until my dying day are responsible for the rapidly deteriorating tissues and joints that are giving me fits, here in my declining years. And still, because of the way our culture is skewed, sports and physically extreme activities are encouraged, because it is a billion dollar business, selling sports, and sports accessories.

Sports figures are made into cultural icons, and even held up as examples for the young to emulate, no matter how strange or stupid they may be….. There are a number of things that the BRC encourages among the populace, such as sports, for one, that are NOT what they seem to be….. More than anything else, these activities, (the movie industry, travel industry, and others) exist for the benefit of the BRC, not the people, and actually serve to distract the public from what is actually going on…. The public is actually encouraged to take part in these activities, as the leaders know that those things keep the public busy with stuff that really doesn’t matter, and not focused on what they are doing behind the scenes, about things that DO matter….

How the hell did that happen?….. Here I am, only four or five paragraphs into the intro, and I’m ranting already…. I didn’t even notice when I slipped on the Ratty Old Robe of Outrage and started in on the BRC…. it’s becoming too natural, I guess; I barely know I’m doing it…. Well, it could be worse, I suppose…. I could be the kind of person who didn’t give a shit, and not get outraged at all…. which wouldn’t make ME a happy camper, though there might be some who would smile and nod in approval….

Ah well, it’s quite liberating to let that kind of angst out, so I’ll just let it go without further comment, and get on with today’s Pearl…. Once more, I’ve managed to create an intro out of virtually nothing; that’s got to count for something, right? It says so right here on the label….. Right….. Shall we Pearl?….
__________________________________

“Laws are only words words written on paper, words that change on society’s whim and are interpreted differently daily by politicians, lawyers, judges, and policemen. Anyone who believes that all laws should always be obeyed would have made a fine slave catcher. Anyone who believes that all laws are applied equally, despite race, religion, or economic status, is a fool.” — John J. Miller, And Hope to Die (in _Jokertown Shuffle – Wild Cards IX_)

Fiction is the repository and temple of the Metaphorse…. which explains this passage from a novel I haven’t read, but obviously need to get around to finding, so I can. This is such a perfect statement of Reality in society today, it could only be said in a work of fiction, because anyone stating this in the public venue would be shouted down by the aforementioned politicians, lawyers judges, policemen, and may I add, preachers/priests and the rest of the priestly hierarchies…. none of whom would wish for the truth of the idea become commonly held knowledge, or even a point of discussion…. They have too much invested in keeping things just as they are to allow any such utterance, without the protection of metaphor….

With metaphor, in both prose and poetic form, the truth can be intimated, and made clear for those who otherwise would never even consider the concepts involved, without being connected directly to Reality itself. Most of society has been brainwashed since birth, and are trained to accept as true anything told to them in a newspaper, on a TV by a person in a suit, or by someone holding a Bible, no matter how disconnected from Reality that may be. Reading things in a book, a piece of fiction, they are taught, is suspect, and not to be believed without corroboration from someone in authority….

“God said it, the Bible told me, and I believe it, so that’s the end of it!” How many people do you know who would say that? It saddens me no end to know that even I, who tend to drive that sort of person crazy in no time at all, know several folks who feel this way. I have to say, if nothing else, these folks are stubborn, but, stubbornness is not always a survival technique… it can also serve as a death warrant. One has to learn to give up knowledge that is shown indisputably to be false, or face consequences not to their liking.

As I’ve stated before, I have no issue with ffolkes who are sincerely devout in their beliefs…. I’ve found that people who do try to live by the rules that Jesus put forth are generally good people, with good instincts, and have a lot of compassion and kindness in their nature. I have at least two people in my own family who fit that description, and at least three of the people with whom I grew up are what I would call true Christians, because they use their faith as a supportive tool to enhance their lives, not as a crutch, or a reason to feel entitled…..

In other words, they don’t use their faith as a mask, to hide from the world what they really are like inside…. or, as tool of manipulation, to further their own agenda, which generally involves theft from everyone else, in one form or another….. I have found, by experience with real people in the real world, that a good 95% of those who claim to be Christians are NOT true believers…. Only about 5% of those who call themselves Christians make any attempt to live up to that social reformer’s rigorous standards….

Of that figure, 95% of all self-identified Christians, the great majority can be considered, and are generally labeled, as the ignorant masses, whose minds have been under the control of someone else their entire lives. The smaller percentage of that number, probably only about 1 or 2% of the 95%, are those who either don’t believe in the dogma at all, but use it as the modus operandi for their sociopathy, or those who at least believe it on the surface, but only because it is to their advantage to do so… They would believe anything at all, if it kept them in power….

“Always watch where you are going. Otherwise, you may step on a piece of the Forest that was left out by mistake.” — Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne

I’m not sure whether those who stubbornly cling to their faith (i.e., they walk through the Forest with eyes closed….) are like that because of their nature, or their nurture, and in the final analysis, it doesn’t matter. But, it sure would be nice, for those of us who ARE aware of the truth behind the lies we’ve been told all our lives, to have a few more of us out there, working against the small percentage of people who are taking advantage of the massive ignorance and apathy of the great masses of people, who don’t have the time or mental energy to care about anything but what is happening right in front of them.

Those who control society for their own personal benefit, without any regard for the rest of humanity’s suffering at their hands, aren’t going to change, and they aren’t ever going to give up what they’ve got without a struggle…. I can only wish for enough ffolkes like myself, who can see the truth, to find a way to save at least a few of our species, if only for some galactic zoo of extinct species…… If enough of us get together, there is still a small chance, though the odds of success are diminishing, second by second….

“I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.” — John Wayne

(Did your jaw drop as far as mine when you read that?)

Bah! Enough pessimism for one day…. let’s go find something a bit more uplifting, shall we?….. As a parting thought, please note the following, which serves to illustrate and define the general feeling in modern society, in terms of ethics and morality…. Consider, if you will, the cultural paradigms that are needed to make this statement a joke, one that no one at all would think was out of place…. In other words, by its calm acceptance of the implied lack of ethics, it shows how deeply ingrained is the attitude (made crystal clear by Mr. Wayne…), in the members that make up that society….

“I think our No.1 problem is that nobody wants to take responsibility for anything, but don’t quote me.” — Randy Glasbergen, “The Saturday Evening Post
__________________________________

The Meehoo with an Exactlywatt

Knock knock!
Who’s there?
Me!
Me who?
That’s right!
What’s right?
Meehoo!
That’s what I want to know!
What’s what you want to know?
Me, who?
Yes, exactly!
Exactly what?
Yes, I have an Exactlywatt on a chain!
Exactly what on a chain?
Yes!
Yes what?
No, Exactlywatt!
That’s what I want to know!
I told you – Exactlywatt!
Exactly what?
Yes!
Yes what?
Yes, it’s with me!
What’s with you?
Exactlywatt – that’s what’s with me.
Me who?
Yes!
Go away!
Knock knock…

~~ Shel Silverstein — from the book “A Light in the Attic” (1981)
__________________________________

Having spent most of my severe angst in section one, I’m not even going to try to start another rant, but will instead move right to an old school pearl…. Gotta save a little of that negative energy in case some store clerk gets uppity…. 🙂

This one is truly random, with just a hint of order hidden amongst the entropy and chaos, kind of like a hidden treasure, y’know? Well, that’s how it’s supposed to work, anyway. If not, well, it’s all good stuff to think about, and will get us through to the end….. or close enough for our purposes here today…. Someday, I’m going to have to figure out just what that is…..

“The correct way to punctuate a sentence that starts: “Of course it is none of my business, but –” is to place a period after the word “but.” Don’t use excessive force in supplying such a moron with a period. Cutting his throat is only a momentary pleasure and is bound to get you talked about.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

“When you live in the shadow of insanity, the appearance of another mind that thinks and talks as yours does is something close to a blessed event.” — R. Pirsig

“I know th’MAMBO!! I have a TWO-TONE CHEMISTRY SET!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
(You’ve got to love Zippy’s ability to put his finger on what’s REALLY important!….)

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

— Emily Dickinson

“Man is a rope, tied between beast and overman–a rope over an abyss. A dangerous across, a dangerous on-the-way, a dangerous looking-back, a dangerous shuddering and stopping.” — Friedrich Nietzsche, “Thus Spake Zarathustra”

— Bother! said Pooh, as he talked Kanga and Roo into a threesome.
(Oh, that Pooh!…. such a naughty bear…..)

“Sometimes our light goes out but is blown into flame by an encounter with another human being. Each of us owes the deepest thanks to those who have kindled this inner light.” — Albert Schweitzer

Well, there you go…. If y’all can’t figure out a moral, or a hint of one, from that seven, well, I’m failing in my task…. But, if you can’t, no worries, as it’s my fault for being too obscure, and not leaving enough sign posts to the clues…. We don’t grade in this class anyway, it’s not even pass/fail, and doesn’t count toward graduation…. In fact, the only way to take this course is to audit it unofficially…. Ah well, as I said, they will all stand alone, anyway, so…. if nothing else, enjoy!….
__________________________________

I don’t like to judge these Pearls as they go out, other than from the basic standards I apply to everything I do in life, so I’m not going to say anything about this one except I’m satisfied with it, and it’s done…. Those last three words alone make it all worthwhile, given the effort it took to get there…. So be it…. there’s another three appropriate words for today…. 🙂

Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Sparky was filing his teeth when he exploded….

Posted on February 15, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Once again, fear strikes deep into my soul, faced as I am with a blank sheet of paper and an empty mind. That’s figuratively speaking, of course, as we’ve progressed beyond the paper stage, so it’s actually a blank white screen I’m looking at…. The mind remains empty, alas, and the fear grows….. Well, literal or figurative, we’ve got some issues to deal with, so, I’d likely do well to follow my usual policy in such cases, and go take a break now…. I’ll be right back….

In the usual state of affairs around here in the morning, such a break would solve any difficulties I am encountering in getting started, but today seems to be resisting normality a bit more than is standard. Of course, ‘normality’ is rather scarce here anyway….. The paper/screen is now a bit less blank, thanks to my gift for producing something from nothing, but still with no indications of anywhere brilliant to head off to…. I’m going to have to figure something out here pretty quick, as we’re now two paragraphs in, and still not a single clean idea, or literary device, to be seen…. The brain cops are going to want me to move along soon, so let’s try this….

Howdy, ffolkes! How are y’all this fine morning? It’s 0458 here in Northern California, and I’m once again up, eyes wide open, and rarin’ to get going on today’s Pearl, having already had coffee and a session of worship at the porcelain throne! Why I am up at this hour remains a mystery, but, since I’ve been arising at 0400-0500 now for the last six days or so, I suppose I have to accept that arising at this insane hour is becoming a new routine, that my brain has decided upon without any input from my conscious mind. I’ve tentatively come to terms with it, as I don’t seem to be able to sleep past those hours, no matter when I crash….

But, that’s okay! I’m fine! I’m happy! I’m absolutely fucking crazy!…… Well, maybe not quite that far yet, but, if this keeps up, it won’t be long before that latter statement becomes reality….. Come to think of it, though, maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing….. If nothing else, it might give me a whole new set of ideas for intro sections, coming at the issue from a totally new, and unpredictable direction every day! Hmm…. well, for now, I’ll keep total insanity in reserve, as a backup procedure, such as I had to use yesterday, when it was necessary to break down and use Emergency Procedure #4….. I think I’ll call this one the Bell Jar Procedure, in honor of Sylvia Plath….

And, see, it works….. or, rather, it worked today…. Without having to actually go totally batshit crazy, and without actually having to write anything particularly coherent, or sensible, I’ve completed a five-paragraph-intro….. without you ever noticing what I was doing! Amazing, eh? And so creative! And, if I keep on with the exclamations, and the back-patting, I’m going to hurt myself, so, maybe we’d best get on with the rest of today’s effort….. Shall we Pearl?…..

“I was trying to daydream, but my mind kept wandering.” — Steven Wright
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“How many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb? Only one, but it takes a really long time and the light bulb has to want to change.” — Smart Bee

Boy, if it wasn’t for the power of metaphor, I would be lost!….. This statement, though presented in a manner that makes it obviously a joke, is actually quite serious in its relevance to sanity, psychiatry, and how the mind works, in general. I worked for many years in the field of mental health care, as a therapist, and I can tell you quite honestly, that this is absolutely true, in many cases of what the rest of society terms insanity….. a word, and a concept, that most of society avoids at all costs, and completely misunderstands, for the most part…. You see, every person who lives in this society on Earth today is just a little insane, with some of them reaching higher levels through their own efforts to excel…… 🙂 Society itself is insane, you see, and one needs to be the same in order to effectively cope….

It may surprise some ffolkes to know that they are insane; I know it surprised me when I first became aware of this fact. We all go through our lives with a certain image of ourselves, and very rarely does that image in our minds look insane. But, let me assure you, there really isn’t any visible way to be able to tell if a person is insane, as it is completely invisible, under most circumstances, as long as the person isn’t speaking, or acting in some way that provides a clue as to their inner state of mind. Even for those of us trained in recognizing its presence, through the use of observation of other defining characteristics, there is no guaranteed method for spotting someone with a mental condition, unless they give it to you up front by acting out in some overt fashion.

Sure, there are tells, as a gambler would say…. When one eye is happily spinning in the opposite direction as the other, it’s a pretty good sign of some inner turmoil…. Pacing and mumbling to oneself, back and forth in a small area, while ignoring all around them, can be another dead giveaway of someone who is experiencing a few extra perceptions in comparison to the rest of us. Sometimes, really bad grooming can be a sign that the person’s mind isn’t focused on how they affect others, and staring at a wall, holding what appears to be a conversation with oneself, can be another indication that not all is well in that person’s world….

But, without some overt signs such as these, you just can’t spot mental illness, and it is extra hard to see it in one’s own image, since we tend to clean that up before we look at it, or try to share it. And, since EVERYONE ELSE is also insane, at least a little, it can be hard to spot, for the same reason one cow in a herd is hard to pick out. You may have heard the old saw about “one in four people are insane, so if you have three sane friends, it’s you”….. What would be more accurate to say is, “all of you are insane, but three of you are coping well with it in an effective manner, and one isn’t…. ”

It’s helpful to know that the overt signs one may see are indicative of the severity of the condition, i.e., the more acting out one observes, the more severe the break in the mental state. But, that isn’t always accurate, as normally sane folks, acting in the grip of strong emotion, can show the same kind of acting out, with the difference of not having it occur all the time, but only when provoked. Thus, it can be seen, it can be very difficult to judge whether a person is insane, or merely temporarily out of control…..

This is where I bring it all together, by referring back to the original pearl…. Coping with life can drive anyone crazy, and does, every day….. Some cope with it better than others, and those are the people who are considered to be sane, as they can deal with reality without resorting to outlandish ways of dealing with their fears. Those who cannot find ways of coping with their fears, which arise from what reality gives us to deal with, end up acting in ways that are strange and uncomfortable for the rest of us, and are often dangerous, in a physical sense, for them, and for those around them…..

In all my experience, with every kind of mental illness I saw in almost 30 years working in mental hospitals, the primary characteristic of those who got better, was that they made up their own minds to do so…. That’s it…. Simple as it may seem, deciding to give up the methods they used, and make a change, was always based on a personal decision on their part, and was THE key ingredient in the regime of ideas, medicines, therapies, and treatments used to combat their illness. In other words, it took a long time, and they first had to want to change….. Without that, nothing worked…. It is a well known aphorism among mental health therapists that, “they get better IN SPITE of what we do, not because of it….”

So, if you’re getting worried about your own coping skills, just keep in mind that to remain sane, it means you have to want to do so…. But, that’s all it takes, if your are sincere, for you will do whatever else is needed, once your will power has been engaged…. That’s what people do….

“Great minds think alike, apparently so do we.” — D. Bennett

“Falsely luxurious, will not man awake?” — James Thomson (1700-1748) — The Seasons, Summer, Line 67
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In keeping with the tradition established for today, and in honor of yesterday’s romantic events, here is a brilliant poem by someone very familiar with the idea of insanity, as it was her lifelong companion….. Maybe that’s why I feel so connected to her?…..

Mad Girl’s Love Song

“I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead;
I lift my lids and all is born again.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)

The stars go waltzing out in blue and red,
And arbitrary blackness gallops in:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.

I dreamed that you bewitched me into bed
And sung me moon-struck, kissed me quite insane.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)

God topples from the sky, hell’s fires fade:
Exit seraphim and Satan’s men:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.

I fancied you’d return the way you said,
But I grow old and I forget your name.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)

I should have loved a thunderbird instead;
At least when spring comes they roar back again.
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)”

~~ Sylvia Plath

Brilliant! Absolutely, insanely brilliant! 🙂
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“The media are now the tool of tyrants and despots. Tyrants and despots encourage fear, because fearful people will accept extreme political solutions, will demand extreme political solutions.” — Jon Carroll, S. F. Chronicle, January 8, 1997

Jon Carroll, on the political scale, would be considered to be just a bit left of the center, maybe a foot or two, as he tends to side with liberal ideas more than conservative. Over the years, I’ve found his take on life and society to be, most of all, even-handed, and reasonable. He avoids the trap of becoming overly critical of conservative ideas, while at the same time showing absolute fearlessness in addressing difficult questions and issues. As a media member, for him to make this statement was most likely painful, in that he had to admit his own culpability to do so. He does that, quite well, without becoming overly pedantic or shrill about it…. while still nailing the controversial point he is shooting at….

The recent hullabaloo over gun control is a perfect example of the process he describes, in action. Whenever a madman grabs a gun and starts shooting people randomly, or even targeting one group or another, the media immediately descends in hordes on the location of the shooting, giving out endless bulletins with the latest news on the events, interviewing police, victims, bystanders, and pundits to provide “balanced coverage” of events the public “has the right to know”…. regardless of how degrading, or painful, or ignorant, or insane, or stupid it may sound, or how much pain it may cause the victims. No stone is left unturned to examine and evaluate every emotional nuance for the viewing public, without any regard for morality, or justice, and definitely without any regard for compassion, or empathy….

After the event has ended, the media then turns to the “discussion” of the meaning of the events, which means it gives the Beloved Ruling Class a free source of advertisement for its agenda, which, allow me to reassure you, has nothing to do with what may be good for YOU. All the talk you hear from politicians after these shootings is aimed at increasing the fear of the public, to make them believe they are powerless in the face of a madman with a gun, and only if the people will allow ONLY the police and government to have guns, why, everything will be fine, and there would never be any more shootings at public schools…

I’m sorry, but, I’m afraid I can’t buy that…. There are over seven billion people on this planet, and there is nothing at all that is going to prevent some of them from going crazy, getting a gun, (or knife, or poison, or grenade, or dynamite, or…….) and using it on other folks. Believing such nonsense is, I’m sorry, just stupid….. It won’t stop, and there is nothing that will stop it, unless we figure out a way to change human nature…. a quest that, so far, has been completely unsuccessful, and isn’t likely to ever be otherwise….. People have violence in their nature, and thinking that the government, or any other entity, can change that is, well, not too bright….

But, fear is strong in most of society, and those folks have no clue, in general, that they are so easily manipulated. They tend to allow anyone who promises them to stop the fear to tell them what to do, just so they don’t have to think about it, or face it themselves. Governments have known this for centuries; look up Hermann Goering, the Nazi general under Hitler, some time, and see what he had to say about the people, and how their leaders could, and did, make them do whatever they wished, just by fanning their fears….. It’s a practice by no means uncommon among governments throughout history, up to and including the present day version….

Yep, ffolkes, that is indeed what it means…. most people are cowards, plain and simple…. When it comes to their own fears, they won’t do much of anything in the way of conquering those fears themselves…. They would much rather let the politicians promise them to keep the streets safe, if only they will give up the right to defend themselves, or allow a preacher to tell them to submit to earthly authority in order to receive eternal life (Or, in other words, “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday, for a hamburger today…..” — Wimpy, Popeye’s friend, and metaphorical common man….). The media, whether out of ignorance, or out of deliberate dispassion, will continue to give them a public platform from which to perform their manipulations, and never blink an eye in guilt….

Me? I’ll pass on the hamburger, thanks, and go make sure my powder is dry…..

“I now have absolute proof that smoking even one marijuana cigarette is equal in brain damage to being on Bikini Island during an H-bomb blast.” — Ronald W. Reagan
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Okay, that will do…. It is barely after 0700, and I’ve proofed once, and buffed a few scuffs so they shine a little…. It will have to do, as I’m not going back and doing it again…. not unless I suffer a power surge that deletes it all, an unlikely event in the face of the precautions I have in place to deal with that possibility….. 🙂

Nevertheless, precautionary techniques notwithstanding, it’s done…. So be it…. It’s probably a good thing, as I’m getting tired of pretending to be sane, and need to go let it out somewhere…. Oh, wait, that’s what THIS is supposed to do…. Oops…. Well, we’ll just have to hope for the best, I suppose….. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Ten paces south from the gargoyle….

Posted on February 14, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
I was warned, but I didn’t listen. Of course, I never believed it could actually happen, not to me….. Like every other fool in history, the admonition of my peers was lost on me, filled as I was to the brim with confidence, and pride in my skill. And, like every other fool in history, I failed, badly….. What is it about wet paint that makes men want to touch it, to find out if it is actually wet? What is it about a “Keep off the Grass” sign that makes our toes itch for the feel of the lawn? Why does a door that says, “No Admittance” make us want to see what is behind it?….. SIGH….. We’re all a bunch of little kids at heart, aren’t we?…. Just trying to find out what the world is made of, and getting told to watch our step…..

Hmm…. I’m not sure where that paragraph came from, nor am I certain at all of where it intended to get to, so, in retrospect, it’s probably just as well that I leave it right there, and not get into any further exploration of that train of thought. It sort of wanders around up there, spinning some light magic, but then fades away, as if unconvinced of its own purpose…. And there I go again, talking about my writing as if it had a will of its own…. Regardless of how out of control this blog may seem to be, the words don’t write themselves, but, I tend to get carried away with my anthropomorphism at times, so, please, bear with me….

Now where shall we go? I’m faced this morning with a totally blank Pearl template…. the only thing I had written ahead is the ending line. Although this is a good thing, it does leave me in fear, as any author would be, faced with such a bright, shiny vast plain of whiteness, just begging to be filled with words of wit and magic, while I cower in abject trepidation at the sheer folly of my ambition, and pray to my muse for salvation….. Since my muse seems to be mad at me again, I could have a long wait….

We’ve got trouble, ffolkes, right here in River City…. It starts with T, and ends with ubble, that’s Trouble, and we’ve got it right here. (Can you hear the trombones?) Once again, the intro section has gotten away from me, and wandered off into areas of my head that could conceivably alter the course of history, should they be brought into the light of day. Since the alterations may or may not be such that they would help, it would probably be best to just give up again, and get on with today’s Pearl. I’m going to have to rely solely on Smart Bee to pull this off, and hope that there are a number of good pearls to get me going…. Only one way to find out, I suppose, so…. Shall we Pearl?…..

“Everyone knows that dragons don’t exist. But while this simplistic formulation may satisfy the layman, it does not suffice for the scientific mind. The School of Higher Neantical Nillity is in fact wholly unconcerned with what does exist. Indeed, the banality of existence has been so amply demonstrated, there is no need for us to discuss it any further here. The brilliant Cerebron, attacking the problem analytically, discovered three distinct kinds of dragon: the mythical, the chimerical, and the purely hypothetical. They were all, one might say, nonexistent, but each nonexisted in an entirely different way …” — Stanislaw Lem, Cyberiad

Now, that sounds like it belongs here, doesn’t it?…. In a way, you COULD say that this blog nonexists in an entirely different way…..
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As is the case in many instances, when faced with a literary conundrum in the morning, I’m resorting to default, and firing up an old school pearl for your perusal and edification (if that can ever be said to be true of pearls….)…. The following seven pearls were, of course, chosen at random, and without conscious volition, but with an eventual destination in mind…. Today, we are fortunate to note that the destination is also random, as is the conclusion to which you will be led, willy-nilly…. That conclusion is, naturally, left as an exercise for the Gentle Reader…..

“I am not young enough to know everything.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

“Democracy is based on the assumption that a million men are wiser than one man. How’s that again? I missed something.” — Robert A. Heinlein

“A heretic is a man who sees with his own eyes.” — Gotthold Ephraim Lessing

If a cat spoke, it would say things like “Hey, I don’t see a problem here.” — Smart Bee

“Some people think only intellect counts: knowing how to solve problems, knowing how to get by, knowing how to identify an advantage and seize it. But the functions of intellect are insufficient without courage, love, friendship, compassion and empathy.” — Dean Koontz

“Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?” — Abraham Lincoln

“Do your Duty. Honor the Truth. Respect Life. Share your Love.” ~~ Axiom #7, Peruaosophy

I know, I’m a strange puppy…. If it helps, I mean well…. 🙂
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This is a poem I’ve used before…. I like it a lot, and it fits my mood, somehow…. Enjoy!

Shui Tiao Ko Tou

Will a moon so bright ever arise again?
Drink a cupful of wine and ask of the sky.
I don’t know where the palace gate of heaven is,
Or even the year in which tonight slips by.
I want to return riding the whirl-wind! But I
Feel afraid that this heaven of jasper and jade
Lets in the cold, its palaces rear so high.
I shall get up and dance with my own shadow.
From life endured among men how far a cry!

Round the red pavilion
Slanting through the lattices
Onto every wakeful eye,
Moon, why should you bear a grudge, O why
Insist in time of separation so th fill the sky?
Men know joy and sorow, parting and reunion;
The moon lacks lustre, brightly shines; is al, is less.
Perfection was never easily come by.
Though miles apart, could men but live for ever
Dreaming they shared this moonlight endlessly!

Su Tung-p’o
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The issue of gun control is currently a HOT BUTTON issue for a lot of people in this country…. At least, it is for those who enjoy over-reacting to all the violence reported in the news….. They seem to forget that there are now over 7 billion people on this planet, with more crowding on every second, and the increased violence we are seeing is a natural result of overpopulation combined with stupidity, both of which exist in ample supply in our society….

The following is a piece I wrote not long after one of the school shootings in 2012, which, to my mind, pretty well summarizes my objections to the foolish and unwarranted fear that has prompted the idiotic notion of repealing the Second Amendment altogether…. Here is my response to that notion….

“Firearms stand next in importance to the Constitution itself. They are the American people’s liberty teeth and keystone under independence… From the hour the Pilgrims landed, to the present day, events, occurrences, and tendencies prove that to ensure peace, security, and happiness, the rifle and pistol are equally indispensable…. The very atmosphere of firearms every- where restrains evil interference – they deserve a place of honor with all that’s good.” — George Washington (bogus?)(who cares? I don’t, it doesn’t make it any less true if it was said by someone else…..)

I am constantly hearing people these days spouting off about gun control, and how guns should be outlawed. This is a viewpoint that I have never understood, because it makes a totally unwarranted assumption (more than one actually, but one that is most important….), i.e., guns cause violent behavior, and if people couldn’t legally own them, violence would stop.

This is naive, and unreasonable, given that there is absolutely no evidence to support such a contention. There is no evidence whatsoever that violence is NOT part of human nature; this is a psychological FACT, not subject to debate. People have violent tendencies, and violence is the primary response of a great many people who have never learned how to use their reason to control their emotions.

Though I’ve never owned or carried a gun, I am a firm believer in the Second Amendment to the US Constitution, in its most literal sense. Without the right to bear arms in our own defense, we, as citizens, would be at the mercy of whomever was in office at the time, and would have no recourse at all to any redress of grievance against those officials, since they could not be forced to comply with law.

I do NOT trust any elected official to act in MY best interests; human nature also decrees that they will act in their OWN interests first, with no compulsion to even consider anything else. Making it a law that only police and government lackeys could legally be armed is a sure way to guarantee that the average citizen would be at the mercy of these so-called leaders, mercy being a quality that they have never heretofore demonstrated in any fashion.

As I said, I don’t own or carry guns, yet. I’ve trained myself to be dangerous without the use of them, and feel no fear that I cannot deal with an armed man to my benefit; this is simply because it is the person holding the gun that is the danger, not the gun itself. Speed, power, and accuracy are the key elements to controlling a violent situation, along with some forethought and preparation, and the ability to keep a clear mind when under duress.

When a person is holding a gun, they feel ten feet tall and invincible, but they remain human, and humans can be controlled with superior strategy and tactics. It does no good to hold a gun, when the target won’t sit still, or even remain visible….. and in these cases, that sense of invulnerability becomes a liability to the gun-wielder.

However, most Americans do not have this sort of skill set, nor the state of mind that makes it work. In the hands of a skilled warrior, a gun becomes a dangerous weapon indeed, for it will be used to achieve the warrior’s goals, as any weapon would, and not employed to merely bully others into doing what is desired, which is the usual use of these kinds of weapons in the hands of the ignorant and deceitful. And politicians, by the very nature of their sociopathy, do get rather deceitful in the pursuit of their self-centered ends. The desire to be in public office, to me, is a sure sign of a sick mind, as a healthy one has no need to assume power over others, being content to be in control of themselves.

At this point in the narrative, I got a bit sarcastic, caustically so, directed at those shrill advocates of this kind of legal oppression, laws that attempt to legislate morality, so I’ve stopped it here to avoid offending anyone unduly. I agree with the need to tighten the regulations regarding assault weapons, but not as far as is wanted by the fear-mongers.

I also think it is a good idea to keep guns out of the hands of children, and people who have demonstrated the lack of emotional control needed by a free citizen of this country, to own and use a gun appropriately, i.e. the mentally ill, who are characterized by a lack of impulse control…. Not a good characteristic for someone with a gun in their hands….

But, once again, I must caution people to examine any laws that do get passed closely, for going farther than intended, which the people in charge have a tendency to do, to slip stuff by the public….

I’ll try to wake up your precautionary instincts by asking this….. If the insane are not to be allowed full rights as a citizen, who is it that gets to decide who is insane? The same issues of trust are present, or absent, in that idea, as in the assumption that the Beloved Ruling Class will act in our best interests….. They can be trusted to act in their own interests first, and we all would do well to keep that in mind…..

“There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.” — Bob Dylan
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There are many here among us who are CERTAIN that life is but a joke, Bob, and today’s effort is simply further evidence in support of that conviction…. But, today’s Pearl is done, so, who cares? Not me….. Having cheated a bit, by reprinting a couple of items, I’ve got some time to kill…. But, rather than fill it by tormenting y’all any further, I’ll be a nice little blogger, and leave you in peace….

Happy Valentine’s Day, ffolkes….

May love and joy light your way,
and keep you warm this winter’s day….

Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Exercising your legal option to forage….

Posted on February 11, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
I remember what happened just recently when I tried to write pre-coffee, and since I promised not to allow it to happen again, hang on a second….. Oh, bless me, that’s good….. Okay, we’re good to go now…. Having consumed that first, life-giving sip, of “dark brown morning nectar”, (thanks, Doc….), I can now turn my mind to more productive matters…. Damn, that first sip is just so…… good! And the next few ain’t too shabby, either, as the world continues to come into sharper focus…..

Okay, now what? We are firmly ensconced in front of the keyboard, and the morning is bursting with promise…. Of course, we don’t necessarily know if that promise will be something we want, but, hey, you take what you can get, right? It’s always best to face the world with a touch of fatalism, especially when one’s subconscious mind wakes one up at 0533, with tears flowing down one’s cheeks, and no clue as to what the tears are for….. Most upsetting, without even going into the embarrassment factor….. I mean, how humiliating can it get? I’m 62 years old, a full-grown man, and my emotions are SUPPOSED to be under my control, not laying out there on my sleeve for the world to pluck at…..

Now, 20 minutes later, the tears are gone, but the fragility remains, along with the excessive amount of fluids in the head, that the body creates just to make things messier….. and that damn asshole Murphy KNOWS that I have that unreasonable fear of Kleenex, from that incident as a child, that I still can’t talk about much…. I think I told you about it….. You know, that time with the clown, the priest, the pony, and the convention of county sheriffs from around the US. It was a mess…… So, any who, I’m stuck using TP to wipe my nose, which is really hard on it, as TP is NOT as soft as it claims…. Sometimes, this whole circus doesn’t seem worth getting out of bed for, you know?…..

But then I think about Pearls…. and I realize they are what make my life worthwhile…. The process of creating them each day has kept me sane now for going on two (or was it twelve?…) years, and I’m hoping it will stretch to include the next few months, until my SS comes through, so I don’t end up in a locked facility somewhere, babbling to myself and smiling at the butterflies only I can see…. They’re quite beautiful, you know…. Since most ffolkes, or folks, either, can’t see them, I tend to keep them to myself, though…. It’s just easier that way…. People can be so harsh…..

Now that I’ve reached the point of nearly pulling my covers completely off, I think it would be best if I just gave up trying to make any sense out of this intro, and get on with today’s dive…… Oh, look, over there!…. it’s Madonna! Oh, no, wait….. never mind, false alarm…. it was only Lady Gaga….. Oh well, I’ve got their autographs already, anyway…. Shall we Pearl?…..
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“Disco oil bussing will create a throbbing Naugahyde pipeline running straight to the tropics from the rug producing regions and devalue the dollar!” — Zippy the Pinhead

So, a few days ago, the POTUS said that one of his priorities for his final term would be the issues surrounding climate change and global warming, to try to make an effort to halt the greenhouse effect, caused by the particulate emissions from billions of motor vehicles, that is threatening our very existence. He then proceeded to make it clear that he was just kidding, as he also indicated that he will most likely approve the new, massively-destructive-to-the-environment XP Pipeline, that is proposed to be built from the Arctic to the US, because it will help the economy by producing, get this, about 6000 jobs for Americans.

6000….. That’s it…. There are over 20,000,000 (twenty MILLION) people out of work in this country, so we’re talking about a percentage increase of…. hold on, gotta find a pencil & paper….. okay, that’s .0003%….. In English, three ten-thousandth of a percent. So, basically, we’re talking about giving in to the fat cats, who want the billions of dollars of profits they will make, at the expense of the environment, out of our pockets, by the completion of this project, for an increase that barely registers on the scale at all…. What I am wondering is just how many of those billions of dollars made their covert way into the POTUS’s re-election campaign treasury…..

The XP Pipeline project has been labeled as a disastrous idea by almost every environmental agency in the country, and the world; there is no doubt whatsoever that building it will adversely affect hundreds of species of animals, reducing their habitat, and will further add to the already massive amounts of pollution going into the air every moment. It will only provide a minuscule number of jobs, jobs that could easily be created by the enhancement of the alternative energy industry, or by instituting programs that would repair our national infrastructure of roads, dams, and other public facilities, all of which are in need of renovation.

No, instead, the POTUS, in a move that gives away his real agenda in office, has agreed to allow the fat cats to have their pipeline, in exchange for a reduction in the amount of static they give him on other issues, of less vital interest to the rest of us, but have a greater PR value. I am disappointed, to say the least, but not particularly surprised…. I do believe that Barry has a higher degree of morality than the average politician…. but, it MUST be remembered that he shares one important characteristic with every other politician…. he WANTED the job…. That kind of ambition is, in and of itself, an indication of a type of insanity common to our leadership, all the more dangerous because he APPEARS to be concerned for the people….. And, if he believes his own hype, that makes him the most dangerous of politicians…. remember what is said about the Road to Hell, and what it is paved with….

Regardless of that, how can anyone claim to be concerned about the rights of the little man, and still approve the Patriot Act, or whatever they’re calling it now, large parts of which are in direct opposition to the Bill of Rights….. He signed that off on his first day of office, in his FIRST term…. That act, to me, was a dead giveaway that all was not as it seemed, in his case…. Subsequent events have proven that my initial unease was, and is, well-deserved, as he continues to smile and play to the people’s desires on one hand, his left, while covertly screwing them by signing them into slavery with his right hand…..

“The only guarantee of the Bill of Rights which continues to have any force and effect is the one prohibiting quartering troops on citizens in time of peace.” — H. L. Mencken (1880-1956), 1951

Ah well, I don’t suppose I’m surprised by these revelations; there have been hints and clues to be found since his first term as POTUS, and probably before…. I am, however, pretty disappointed, because I had held out some hope that he was different, and that the changes he would try to get done would be of help to the common man, i.e., me, and the rest of us here in the trenches of reality….. I had hoped that he would NOT compromise with the !%, standing up for the people instead….

I should have known better….

“If doctors ever tell you that you’ve “flipped out,” don’t believe them, and just keep on doing what you were doing, because something tells me “the Man” is behind this.” — Deep Thoughts, by Jack Handey

“If I’ve offended anyone, my efforts have been rewarded.” — Smart Bee

“I had a hunch something like this would happen.” — Written on grave
__________________________________

Democracy

Democracy will not come
Today, this year
Nor ever
Through compromise and fear.

I have as much right
As the other fellow has
To stand
On my two feet
And own the land.

I tire so of hearing people say,
Let things take their course.
Tomorrow is another day.
I do not need my freedom when I’m dead.
I cannot live on tomorrow’s bread.

Freedom
Is a strong seed
Planted
In a great need.

I live here, too.
I want freedom
Just as you.

~~ Langston Hughes
__________________________________

” — I’d love to, but… there’s a disturbance in the Force.” — 13 of 101 Easy Ways To Say NO

I’m going to remember this one…. We all have times when we need an excuse to say no to someone who asks for our time, especially as once you give in to them, they won’t stop asking…. I would say “that’s human nature” but you might think I meant it as an excuse. Let me assure you, I don’t…. or rather, I do…. or,…. hell, I don’t know what I meant…. but, it ain’t no excuse….

People will take advantage of others at every opportunity, it seems, and I don’t regard that as an acceptable characteristic, and hate to encourage it by giving in to the emotional blackmail that almost everyone resorts to to try to motivate people into doing their will….

Robert Heinlein made what I consider to be the best summary of this issue when he wrote:

“But there is no reward at all for doing what other people expect of you, and to do so is not merely difficult, but impossible. It is easier to deal with a footpad than it is with the leech who wants “just a few minutes of your time, please — this won’t take long.” Time is your total capital, and the minutes of your life are painfully few. If you allow yourself to fall into the vice of agreeing to such requests, they quickly snowball to the point where these parasites will use up 100 percent of your time — and squawk for more!”

“So learn to say No – and to be rude about it when necessary. Otherwise you will not have time to carry out your duty, or to do your own work, and certainly no time for love and happiness. The termites will nibble away your life and leave none of it for you. (This rule does not mean that you must not do a favor for a friend, or even a stranger. But let the choice be yours. Don’t do it because it is “expected” of you.)”

None of us likes to refuse what others ask of us, but you must learn to differentiate between altruism, which is an indulgence we can little afford, or exercising our personal choice, which may, or may not, meet the other person’s needs…. But, then, their needs aren’t really your problem, are they?…. Nope, they aren’t…. no matter how much, or how often, those others may try to get you to buy into it….. Or, in other words, you have to CHOOSE to feel guilty, ffolkes…. nobody can do that for you, no matter what they tell you….

So be it…. gigoid has spoken….. 🙂
__________________________________

Well, it’s done, but that may be the best I can say about it…. In fact, I’m taking a chance here, and letting it go, in full appreciation of the risk I’m taking in doing so…. I could seriously damage whatever credibility I may have created with this one…. Oh well…. It’s a good thing I don’t do it for profit, or for fame…. sanity is good enough for me, and that’s all I hope for at the end of each Pearl….. Currently, I have to admit, the jury is still out….. 🙂

Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

Oatmeal seems a bit punitive, don’t you think?

Posted on February 9, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
I’d like to take a moment here at the beginning today, to give thanks, for coffee, and so should you…. If it weren’t for the blessed black gold, this would be an entirely different blog, I’m sure, since it is the only thing makes life worth living prior to 7 AM in the morning. Without the blessing of its goodness, I firmly believe the world would be in a state of constant warfare…. seriously.

I know that, for me, having to do without it in the morning is not merely unacceptable, but criminal, and if I didn’t have it within moments of getting out of bed, well, let’s just say the world would regret it…. So, thanks, coffee, for being the world’s peacemaker, and my personal salvation….

Now that we have the daily dose of humility and sardonicism out of the way, we can get on with the regular program, which, sadly, hasn’t been put together yet…. That isn’t unusual around here, as I don’t decide where to go with this until I start writing, and often, even then, haven’t a clue as to what I will come up with. In fact, at this point, I’m writing this about three words ahead, so it is just about as fresh as literature can be…. Of course, there is no way to tell what is going to happen next when I’m in this James Joyce-like frame of mind (you know, stream-of-consciousness writing….), which, given the proclivities of this blog, can lead to some rather surprising places. But, you’re all adults, right?…. If not, well, sorry, you’re on your own….

No, you’re not, I’m not allowed to abandon readers in mid-blog; there are rules. Or, at least, so I’m told…. If there ARE rules to this blogging stuff, I would like to know about them, or how can I effectively break them?…. Hah!… Gotcha! You thought I was going all mundane on you, didn’t you? Well, forget, it, we don’t play that tune here at ECR, so just put it out of your minds, such as they are, and buckle up, because we hate having to scrape passengers off the windshield….

Hmm…. This is getting further and further from any connection to reality, I see…. It’s hard to know just how far I can go when there is no grid for reference. Speaking of references, did you see the news yesterday? Oh, neither did I…. Well, how ’bout that Super Bowl, eh? Lights out!….. No? Hmm…. Okay, I guess I’ll have to break down and admit it…. I’m lost again. I

‘ve written myself right into a corner, with no windows or doors nearby, and can’t find any way to get back on track, without resorting to something silly, like deus ex machina, or some other literary device to bring it back into line with the real world. I don’t want to go there; I promised my Mom I wouldn’t do that sort of thing….

Alright, I give up…. I can’t find the path, so I’m just going to sit down right here, and wait for the rest of the group to catch up. That’s what the Scouts recommend if one is lost in the wilderness, so that you don’t tire out, and preserve energy, as well as make yourself easier to find.

Since I didn’t bring a book, I’ll just sit here and hum, while in my mind, I am searching diligently through Smart Bee, looking for some shiny pearls for discussion…. or maybe it’s the reverse, and I’m actually searching Smart Bee, while I’m sitting quietly in my mind, humming to myself. Either way, this intro section is done, or as done as it is going to get….. Shall we Pearl?…..
__________________________________

Been there. Done that. Reincarnated. — Smart Bee

Reincarnation is a fascinating concept, especially given its controversial nature as being in opposition to what is believed by many of the world’s most influential religious systems. Some do, and some don’t believe in it, and I have yet to determine, through either research or luck, just why some do an some don’t…. I mean, I know why, in the sense that it doesn’t fit in with the dogma of those religions that subscribe to an afterlife consisting of harps and clouds, while it does match those that have a clearly different view of what happens after death. No, I mean I don’t understand why….. oh. Wait….

You know, I just realized, as I wrote that last line there, that this is a complete waste of energy and time, and further, is in direct violation of one of my own personal rules of life, for avoiding hassles in same…. That rule says, “Asking why is a waste of time, especially as regards human behavior…. so don’t bother.” It’s an old lesson, and one that I should have realized I was close to breaking before I did, as I’ve had a lot of experience with it in my time. Hell, I’ve had enough time that almost everything is something I’ve had experience with; maybe I can use that as an excuse for missing this time, yes? Well, okay, maybe not…. Still, I can claim a lot on my mind, and nobody can tell me different, so there….

Any who, getting into the “why” of how folks choose their beliefs about a subject as speculative and controversial as reincarnation is bound to be a subject that would entail a great deal of delving into human behaviors that would only serve to frustrate me no end. If there is any area of existence that people are more foolish, or deliberately ignorant about, than such a subject as the afterlife, well, I don’t know what it is. Add to that the very dominant tendency on the part of most people to choose one religious dogma over another, based solely on how much it makes them think (seeking the lesser of two evils, in their minds….), and you get subject matter that can only lead one to drink, to try to get the bitterness and shame out of one’s head….

Me? Hell, I have no idea what will happen when this life ends, not in any specific sense…. I believe that my consciousness, as a form of energy, will not be destroyed, and that part of the universe that manifests as the essence of Ned will merely change form…. to what form I couldn’t say. I can say, though I am in no particular hurry to find out, it sounds like a great adventure, and I’m looking forward to knowing the answers to all the great questions that we humans ask ourselves during our stint on Earth, in the form we currently inhabit, even if those answers aren’t anything like any of the speculative concepts I’ve heard of or seen, or thought of myself…. As Bob Heinlein said, “…. Soon enough, you will know, so why fret about it?”

“He who awaits much can expect little.” — Gabriel Garcia Marquez
__________________________________

My Nose Is Growing Old

Yup.
A long lazy September look
in the mirror
say it’s true.

I’m 31
and my nose is growing
old.

It starts about 1/2
an inch
below the bridge
and strolls geriatrically
down
for another inch or so:
stopping.

Fortunately, the rest
of the nose is comparatively
young.

I wonder if girls
will want me with an
old nose.

I can hear them now
the heartless bitches!

“He’s cute
but his nose
is old.”

~~ Richard Brautigan
__________________________________

Well, ffolkes, I’ve gone and done it now….. or, I’ve tried, anyway. Below you will find an odd number of pearls (odd only in number, not necessarily in content, though that is a value judgment you will have to make….), all of which I chose while riding on the very edge of the conscious/unconscious mind…. That is to say, I let my subconscious pick the pearls while consciously holding a certain thought, or actually a feeling, or maybe it was a vision…. anyway, I held that in the forefront while the sub went diving….

These are the result, and I’m quite pleased with them… The thought/vision/emotion that prompted the outcome is, of course, left as an optional exercise for the Gentle Reader…. though you might be wise, today, to decline. I can’t speak for the potential toxicity of any of this…. Enjoy!

“At the back of our brains, so to speak, there was a forgotten blaze or burst of astonishment at our own existence. The object of the artistic and spiritual life was to dig for this submerged sunrise or wonder; so that a man sitting in a chair might suddenly understand that he was actually alive, and be happy.” — G.K. Chesterton

“Actually, there IS a banana in my pocket…” — Smart Bee

“The more people I meet, the more I like my dog.” — David Paranka

“Maintain thy airspeed, lest the ground rise up and smite thee.” — Smart Bee

And finds, with keen, discriminating sight,
Black ‘s not so black,–nor white so very white.

— George Canning (1770-1827) — New Morality

“What interests me is whether God had a choice when he created the world.” — Albert Einstein

“Curiouser and curiouser!” — Lewis Carroll, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”

Well, there you have it…. Once again, a fine testament to the power of nonsense, and just plain doubt, in the real world…. Think about it…. or not….
__________________________________

Considering this only took about two hours to produce, I feel fortunate, as I was a bit worried it would take longer, and I’d be rushed to get done before having to go out to deal with my appointment at 10…. an appointment I cannot afford to miss, as it is the LAST doctor I should be required to see for now, with a decision from SS presumably forthcoming, once it is received and integrated.

I am assuming, of course, (dangerous, I know, to assume anything, but justified with federal agencies, as they have many, many priors….) they will do that in their usual snail-like pace; if so, I can hope for a decision of some kind in about six weeks, or maybe eight…. I’m not even going to think about how many desks it has to pass over before that time, as it would only make me more insane…. Since I’m already insane enough, thank you, I’ll just go to the appointment, and then hunker down and try to forget it all…. like that is going to work….

Ah well, don’t want to turn this into a pity party, so, since the rest of it seems to be done, I’ll let this fly, and hope for the best…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

gigoid

This order can’t be filled…. it’s digital….

Posted on February 4, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Okay, wait….. hang on, the coffee’s ready……Oh, that’s good! I’m glad…. now, nobody will have to die. This is a good thing; we hate having to dispose of dead bodies before dawn; there isn’t much room left in the backyard…. Besides, I’m feeling too lazy to put an ad in the paper for a new lackey…. SIGH…. It’s so hard to get good help these days….

Now that the fantasy portion of this missive is past, it might be a good thing to explain that, though I often speak lightly of eliminating those in this world who annoy me, I’m actually a pussycat, and have yet to become a “made” man in my life, an accomplishment of which I am deservedly proud.

Like all of us, I’ve had numerous occasions in life when the urge to end it for someone else becomes nearly unstoppable…. why, just the other day, this guy…. well, it doesn’t matter, because I let him live, little as he deserved it….. I’ve done that several times over the years, and thus far have been able to control the urge before giving in to it…..

This isn’t to say I left those idiots to get on with their life, or whatever excuse they use for one, without exacting some payment for their asininity; I don’t believe in letting stuff like that slide, or they’ll begin to think they can do it to anyone…. No, each of the folks who annoyed me enough to have caused me to come close to losing control have paid for their lack of sense, and the payment was such that they regret their foolishness, for certain.

But, they walked away, so in the ultimate sense, they were lucky…. in pain, but lucky to be alive, and knowing it…. Actually, I found the time with that cowboy in Nebraska to be quite rewarding, though I’m sure he had a hard time explaining to his booted and belt-buckled buddies why he’d pissed his pants while talking with the long-haired hippie in the gift shop….

So, when I write of using one of the myriad of techniques for killing I’ve learned, or talk about my wish to see someone suffer great harm, be advised that it is mostly just talk, designed to help me get rid of the urge, instead of hanging on to whatever has annoyed me…..

Often I accompany such threats with vulgarity, because swearing is more of a release than almost anything else we do without resorting to actual violence, and using it diminishes the need to bring ourselves to the point where such potentially dangerous emotion becomes reality…. When life does get to that point, and I am required to step up and use what I’ve been trained to use, I consider it a loss, a fail, for it means I lost control of myself….

“True power is when we have every justification to kill, and don’t.” — Oscar Schindler

Non-violence HAS to be a choice, and only those who truly KNOW violence, from both sides of the coin, can really understand how hard it is to try to live without resorting to its finality. Those who retreat from violence in fear give themselves no choice, and suffer the consequences of that decision regularly, as life will tumble them about just as if they were clothes in a dryer. Those who use violence regularly, as a means of coping with the world, will almost always come to a violent end, eventually, as there is ALWAYS someone who is bigger, or faster, or stronger, or smarter…..

Only those who are perceptive enough to learn to make the decision to NOT be violent, even thought they know how to do so, have an even chance of getting through life with the most satisfaction, of being able to control what happens around them, without giving in to the urge to kill….

Having made my decision today, as must be done daily, to do my best NOT to kill anyone, I guess I should quit blathering about it, and get on with today’s business….. Shall we Pearl?…..
__________________________________

“Asking a Republican Senate and Democratic House to make a law is like trying to fry a single egg in two pans.” — New York Times, Jan. 20, 1981

Vice versa is no doubt true, in my estimation, as well as my experience, as the reverse is what we are currently dealing with in the seat of our pants, er, government…. such as it is. If you can’t tell, let me make it crystal clear…. I’m more than just a bit tired of all of them, and really wish they’d leave us all alone for a while, and let us set things to order…..

It shouldn’t take more than a week or two, if they’ll agree to stay out of the way, I’m sure…. Once we have things set up the way we want it, there won’t be any need for them to return to work, anyway, but we don’t have to tell them them at first…. We’ll just let them think they’ve still got the keys to the kingdom, then just laugh at them when they start to whine about the changes….

Oh, didn’t I mention, the first task would be to boot their asses out, in a figurative sense? I mean, we don’t really need them do we? We can take care of each other without all the interference and manipulation we now suffer…. We just have to figure out how to do this without bloodshed, as it has always been accomplished up to now…. it doesn’t seem to work very well, does it? The world is not going to shit, it is already doo doo, and I don’t mean doo dah…. We don’t have the time, or the resources to spare, to keep doing the same old shit we’ve been doing, so, they’ll just have t get over it…. It’s not ABOUT them, even though they want it to be…..

It is about survival…. our survival as a species. I keep pounding on this point because I’m in a near-constant state of panic, because, for all accounts and purposes, it may be too late for us to stop the global climate changes by reducing our particulate emissions. We’ve been pumping shit (shit that is composed of varying percentages of Carbon monoxide, toxic industrial poisons, and about a hundred other substances that have no business in our air….) into the atmosphere now for about a hundred and fifty years or so, since the beginning of the industrial revolution, and the cumulative effects are now at a point of irreversibility. The climate is changing, as we watch, and there is no longer any way to stop it….

For the past 25 or more years, the amount of stuff going into the atmosphere has been doing so at a rate of HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF TONS (tons, not pounds or ounces, but tons….) PER HOUR. Per hour…. now, today, as of this moment, we are dumping over a thousand tons into the air every three seconds, according to the World Clock at Poodwaddle.com, here…. You can see for yourself, here…. http://www.poodwaddle.com/clocks/worldclock/ It’s frightening, but it’s all real, and true….

I guess what I’m trying to get to here is that the folks who are currently in our government, running things, AREN’T doing anything about all of this, any more than those who came before them…. In fact, a disturbing number of them refuse to accept the truth of the matter, an idiotic viewpoint all-too-common among the faith-based among them…. The rest of them don’t want to acknowledge the issue because it threatens their pocketbooks. Whatever their reasoning, or lack of it, they aren’t going to help at all; in fact, they are the biggest part of the problem, and need to be removed before we will be able to actually DO anything that might help, late as it is….

President Barry has promised to address the issue, strongly…. Well, it’s a bit late, Barry, but, let’s see what you can do…. But, I’d suggest getting off your ass and doing it fast, because the storm is building, and it will blow us all to hell, quickly, if we don’t batten down the hatches and get to work at dealing with the core issues….. which are human cupidity, human avarice, human indifference, and human stupidity, the REAL Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse…..

How admirable, he who thinks not,
Life is fleeting,
When he sees the lightning!

— Basho
__________________________________

Momentary Terror

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid

I’m not sure what to think about this poem, but, it had to get out, or it would have festered…. Does that mean it is ulcerous, or merely has the potential to be so? You tell me….
__________________________________

Once again, fate has conspired to force my hand, to the point where I must prevaricate in order to stay on track…. which is to say, I’ve been stupid, and lost my way to wherever it was I’d planned to go…. As is my wont in such cases, we will go old school, with a group of pearls that all have something to say about something or other…. Today, we’ll address stupidity, and how all of us on the bus may fall prey to it at times…. Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes, the bear eats you, as they say…. Here are some thoughts on the matter from some pretty famous ffolkes, and a couple not so widely known, but respected for their wisdom in their own circle….

“The majority of the stupid is invincible and guaranteed for all time. The terror of their tyranny, however, is alleviated by their lack of consistency.” — Albert Einstein

“There is no sin except stupidity.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), “The Critic as Artist”, 1891

“There is no nonsense so arrant that it cannot be made the creed of the vast majority by adequate governmental action.” — Bertrand Russell (1872-1967), “An outline of Intellectual Rubbish”

“Stupid is as stupid does.” — Mrs. Gump, Forrest’s mama

“The only evidence against evolution are its opponents.” — Smart Bee

Boy, if that ain’t the Truth, in big, shiny letters ten feet tall!…. In contrast, below you will find one of my all time favorite aphorisms, from my all time favorite author, advising us of what we CAN be, if we choose….

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

Well, there you have it. Such as it is, it is all my own, save the quoted aphorisms, so take it all with a big dose of well- salted skepticism; don’t worry, it’s all designed to stand up to that kind of scrutiny, I hope. I’ve proofed it once, so it must be done…. and, as such, is no longer my concern, right? Okay, I’ll drop it…. just remember, it doesn’t HAVE to make sense, it just has to be real…. and there is no question of that, at all, at all…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

—
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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gigoid

Exploring Consensual Reality

Tag Archives: Robert Heinlein

Safely insane amid the noise and tedium…..

Don’t bust your gaiters, boy, it’ll get bigger….

Subtle signs of imminent success….

Muttered curses followed the abbot out the door….

Well, it does match the door stop….

Sparky was filing his teeth when he exploded….

Ten paces south from the gargoyle….

Exercising your legal option to forage….

Oatmeal seems a bit punitive, don’t you think?

This order can’t be filled…. it’s digital….

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