Tag Archives: Walt Kelly

As endings go, it mostly sucks….

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Ffolkes,

“Be afraid.  Be very afraid.”

~~ Yakko/Wakko/Dot ~~

Alaska Grand Adventure 086

Beacon Hill Park, Victoria, B.C.


Good morning…. In spite of nearly six straight hours of sleep, and a cup of blood, I can’t seem to find anything worthwhile to begin today’s effort. This, of course, is nothing new, or particularly unusual; it is, however a pain in the ass. Rather than whine about it, or fight it, we’ll just perform a most excellent piece of cosmic judo, allowing the process to fix itself…. It’s been going so long now, it pretty much runs itself, once I get it started…. We can hope that’s true, if naught else….

Shall we Pearl?….

“When did rules ever stop a determined feline?” — Smart Bee

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BigAjzLgT (2)

    I had a hard time deciding on a video, so, you ended up with one of my favorites, to wit: Sherlock. Here is a movie with Jeremy Brett as the great detective, one I haven’t seen yet…. Enjoy!….


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Sherlock Holmes
The Master Blackmailer

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buddah-out-to-lunch_s

“Strange, because they are so frankly and hysterically insane — like all dreams: a God who could make good children as easily as bad, yet preferred to make bad ones; who could have made every one of them happy, yet never made a single happy one; who made them prize their bitter life, yet stingily cut it short; who gave his angels eternal happiness unearned, yet required his other children to earn it; who gave his angels painless lives, yet cursed his other children with biting miseries and maladies of mind and body; who mouths justice and invented hell — mouths mercy and invented hell — mouths Golden Rules, and forgiveness multiplied by seventy times seven, and invented hell; who frowns upon crimes, yet commits them all; who created man without invitation, then tries to shuffle the responsibility for man’s acts upon man, instead of honorably placing it where it belongs, upon himself; and finally, with altogether divine obtuseness, invites this poor, abused slave to worship him!” — Mark Twain, _The Mysterious Stranger_

I’ve always loved that passage from Twain; it’s so damn sharp! My own brain today resembles an old, used sponge more than anything else, so, we’ll pick out a rant from the archives to sublimate…. Enjoy!….

From 4/5/2014:

“In God We Trust.”  I don’t believe it would sound any better if it were true.” — Mark Twain

Boy, it sure wouldn’t, would it? But, you can add that particular phrase (“In God….”, etc.) to all the others coined by the snakeheads, and the BRC, to justify their social interactions, all of which serve THEIR ends, not yours…. Having the populace believe the above makes for a very easily manipulated group of people, all of whom are primed to believe whatever they’re told, by someone on TV wearing a suit with a flag pin, or up in the pulpit…. Now we’re supposed to believe them when they talk to us about spying, and lying, and generally being the assholes they cannot help but be…. ( Hmm, a bit awkwardly phrased, but you get my drift, right?…)

http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/Senate-committee-OKs-release-of-CIA-torture-report-5375716.php

Following this line, in summary of the most critical of the information contained therein, I have copied an excerpt from the above article, a brilliantly obscure statement of compliance (?), kinda sorta, from some guy who works at the CIA. That critical excerpt, taken directly from the above, is this:

“CIA spokesman Dean Boyd said his agency would “carry out the review expeditiously,” but suggested the process may be difficult.”We owe it to the men and women directed to carry out this program to try and ensure that any historical account of it is accurate,” Boyd said….”

That’s right, that’s what he said, right out there in public, where it was recorded by numerous reporters…. This person, this… Boyd person, is the mouthpiece spokesman for the CIA, an agency whose very existence, (its raison d’etre, its excuse for being part of our world at all), is to provide intelligence (in the form of information, a task that does not necessarily require significant levels of IQ in its operatives…. Flexible morality, yes, but, not IQ points….) from outside the borders of the USA, by inhabiting, and exploiting, the world of shadow, the battlefield of covert operations in other countries, using techniques and methods of operation based on illusion, misdirection, misinformation, and lies…. This is common knowledge, and not subject to debate…. look it up in their charter documents….

This Boyd person, and I use the term loosely, by making this statement, obviously expects us to believe that his agency, whose very existence is rooted in lies and the spread of misinformation, is ready, and willing to give us, or anyone else, an ACCURATE picture of what they’ve been up to? I don’t know about y’all, but, I’m insulted….

In fact, I can’t recall at the moment anything more egregiously untrue, or as insulting, since Nixon’s “I am not a crook!” back in the 70’s…. Or, maybe, Shrub, Senior’s “Read my lips… no new taxes.”….. Since the sheer illegitimacy of both of those statements has long been a forgone conclusion, no longer a matter of debate, I’d say it’s a fair assessment to make of this particular little piece of verbal bullshit…

http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/Cuban-Twitter-heads-to-hearings-in-Congress-5375669.php

Then, searching further among the headlines of BS we are supposed to buy into, we come to the LATEST of the clandestine shenanigans our beloved Barry, and his “transparent administration” has been up to in the last few years…. Without bothering to actually TELL anyone, some government lackeys, encouraged by the “Arab Dawn” phenomenon in the Middle East, an event whose roots were nourished by the social networking capabilities of Twitter and Instant Messaging technology, decided to attempt to foment rebellion in Cuba among the youth of that country, by deliberately setting up a social network of their own, using it to not only encourage dissent, but, also, (they like to multi-task…) to gather information about the users in Cuba…

Well, I’m shocked…. just shocked, I tell you…. What a surprise, eh? To think that our Beloved Ruling Class here in America, land of the FREE (white Christian minority) would stoop to such egregiously deceitful and deliberate influencing of public sentiment to further their own interests, why it just makes me feel so….  slimed…. Which is how the Cubans must have felt when they found out it was all a sham…

Boy, there’s sure nothing like going around the world making new friends and influencing people, right?…. Christ on a crutch, what the fuck were they thinking? Have these assholes become so blinded by their own sense of entitlement they can’t see just how STUPID that is? Apparently not, which is what will come out, I think, in these hearings…. More stupidity, that is….

It’s all a big clusterfuck, just another example of entitlement gone wild and crazy, making the pundits and elected assholes at every level believe they can be as stupidly obvious about their self-serving avarice as they wish, and nobody will ever care, or catch them at it…. which is a concept, given today’s world, that is not only easily seen as more than just a little stupid, it approaches the level of severe mental retardation…. Having spent a lot of time, (3+ years), taking care of people whose average IQ hovered around 4, I can testify that this sort of belief is about the only sort of which they are capable…..

They’re all a bunch of smarmy, self-serving, avaricious assholes…. and THAT, my friends, is me being NICE!….. I merely used a bit of vitriol, with only one questionably unwarranted word of insult…. I COULD have been extremely nasty, turning viciously vulgar, without breaking a sweat, or becoming at all disconcerted…. Yep, I could have said, fuck them all, really hard, right in the ass, (unless, of course, they LIKE that….); then, kick their sorry asses right down to the lowest levels of the hell they so richly deserve…. but, I won’t say that….

gigoid, the dubious, has spoken.  So be it….

“…. I’m IMAGINING a sensuous GIRAFFE, CAVORTING in the BACK ROOM of a KOSHER DELI –” — Zippy the Pinhead

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Comedy_Tragedy

Elemental, dear Watson….

Don’t worry,
it’s not
me
you hear
screaming.

It is
only
my bones,
giving in,
to
cowardly,
pathologically,
repetitive,
fucking,’
complaints
of
past abuse,
and
all the fun
we had.
playing,
hard.

I don’t mind
too much;
I can spend my
TIME
in another space
in my head,
pretending
my bones
don’t
exist….

It
is,
indeed,
a shame
they
always
come
back….

Fuck.

It
hurts.

More proof,
I guess,
either
God isn’t,
or,
He  is.

IF

He isn’t?
Oh,
Well….

Ante up.
Deal.

IF

He is?
Then,
I don’t fucking care
who
doesn’t like it,

I say,

He
is
a bully,
a coward,
a hypocrite,
and,
truly,
an enormous asshole.

I suppose,
God
 is
what comes,
to,
and
from,
People,

because

 they
feel
a need,
for
someone
to
blame,
for
a
Universe
they
cannot
understand
or
accept.

I
will
take the complaints.

After all,
they
are
my bones.

~~ gigoid ~~


Written 9/13/2014.

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Aristotle_Bust_White_Background_Transparent

    Aristotle graces the top of today’s final section, as the primary inspirational figure in the following group of pearls…. It’s a good one…. You might even want to take notes, as it’s all stuff you’ll be able to use later….

“There’s only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.” — Aldous Huxley, Time Must Have a Stop

“In the words of Shankarachaya, “All impossible things can be made possible save the bringing of the fool’s mind to the point of truth.” — Hazrat Inayat Khan (Sufi writer)

“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free your very existence becomes an act of rebellion.” — Albert Camus

“What is the hardest task in the world?  To think.” — Emerson

“For him who has conquered the mind, the mind is the best of friends; but for one who has failed to do so, his mind will be the greatest enemy.” — Bhagavad Gita (c. B.C. 400)

“One who is plenteously provided for from within needs but little from without.” — Goethe

“The greatest homage we can pay to truth is to use it.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” — Aristotle

“Don’t take life too serious. It ain’t no ways permanent.” — Pogo, by Walt Kelly

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Well, it’s done. I’ve been doing this long enough now to realize it’s just going to have to go out the way it is; I’m not in the mood to fuss with it. Hell, I’m not in the mood to do much but chew on innocent bystanders; I’m thinking I’ll stay in today, & avoid any jail time…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, as long as the alarm goes off….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

dozer3


À bientôt, mon cherí….


					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Thereby hangs a pail on a nail….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




My imagination makes me human and makes me a fool;


it gives me all the world and exiles me from it.


~~ Ursula K. Le Guin ~~


Mixed days 037


Interior scenes from a train….




Good morning…. I got nothin’. Nothing at all, at all…. Not only can I think of nothing to write about, I can’t seem to even work up any angst about not being able to do so. this is going to make it a hard row to hoe today, for sure and for certain…. I suppose, that being the case, I’ll just issue the usual warning about keeping your hands inside the vehicle, and get on with it…. Try not to expect too much today, alright? I hate to disappoint people,  & it looks as if we’ll be having a special on that today….


Shall we Pearl?….


“..  I wonder if I ought to tell them about my PREVIOUS LIFE as a COMPLETE STRANGER?” — Zippy the Pinhead


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bozo_0




    It’s time to head back to our roots…. Here is a collection of cartoons starring the clown who started it all…. Enjoy, ffolkes….




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Bozo The Clown
















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le penseur-rodin




“And it does matter.  An honest man or woman is an honest man or woman more because he or she is honest in the small, everyday things that “don’t matter” individually, but which make up a well-lived life, than because of some single great temptation that was passed.  A person who is concerned about individual rights or about individual dignity makes his or her difference not because of any sweeping great statement or action, but because of the accretion of small, individually seemingly insignificant acts that spread that dignity and confirm those rights through every action they take.  It matters because every action you take, and every action I take is an expression of the human spirit.” — William Oliver (oliver@uncmed.med.unc.edu)


What a fine beginning quote for a rant; it fits right in with our usual theme, and provides a good jumping off point for a discussion of current events…. Since a rant, or even a discussion is pretty much out of the question today, I’ll fill in with some rather good pearls from SB, before it went into its current snit…. Here for your morning enjoyment are some comments on modern life, as seen here on ECR…. The first one will give y’all an idea of exactly how far humanity has advanced over the last 4800 years…..


“The Earth is degenerating these days. Bribery and corruption abound.  Children no longer mind their parents, every man wants to write a book, and it is evident that the end of the world is fast approaching.” — Assyrian Stone Tablet, c.2800BC


“The gods can either take away evil from the world and will not, or, being willing to do so cannot; or they neither can nor will, or lastly, they are both able and willing. If they have the will to remove evil and cannot, then they are not omnipotent. If they can, but will not, then they are not benevolent. If they are neither able nor willing, then they are neither omnipotent nor benevolent. Lastly, if they are both able and willing to annihilate evil, how does it exist?”  — Epicurus — Aphorisms, c. 300 B.C.


“Heaven does not choose its elect from among the great and wealthy.” — William Makepeace Thackeray, The Virginians (1857-59). Chapter 5


“The remedy in the United States is not less liberty but real liberty — an end to the brutal intolerance of churchly hooligans and flag-waving corporations and all the rest of the small but bloody despots who have made the word Americanism a synonym for coercion and legal crime.” — Archibald MacLeash (b. 1892)


“Acquittal of the guilty damns the judge.” — Horace


“From the standpoint of any sane person, the present problem of capitalist concentration is not only a question of law, but of criminal law, not to mention criminal lunacy.” — G. K. Chesterton, A Case In Point, The Outline of Sanity


“Americans like to talk about (or be told about) Democracy but, when put to the test, usually find it to be an ‘inconvenience.’   We have opted instead for an authoritarian system *disguised* as a Democracy.  We pay through the nose for an enormous joke-of-a-government, let it push us around, and then wonder how all those assholes got in there.” — Frank Zappa


“There are some politicians who, if their constituents were cannibals, would promise them missionaries for dinner.” — H.L. Mencken


“Food for thought is no substitute for the real thing.” — Walt Kelly, Potluck Pogo


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Comedy_Tragedy




    Well, of COURSE it’s one of mine; I told y’all I had nothin’ new…. Ah well, sometimes old is better….




Random Exposure


If I only knew what I was doing here,

I could give others a clue.

Reality gets stranger every year,

and I’m not sure what I should do.


Singing happy old tunes, in an old, gravely voice,

gives me a lot of pleasure.

I’m only glad I can still make a choice,

to look at life, to take its measure.


Memorable moments keep passing by

gilded, framed in precious emotion.

I never have to ask anyone why,

no need for a stronger potion.


Everything in life is clear, to me

there is no doubt, no misunderstanding.

We’re all good, as you can see,

members of Life, in good standing.


Life can be hard, or it can be great fun;

the right path is there for each of us to take.

That choice is often a difficult one;

pay close attention to the choice you make.


~~ gigoid ~~




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buddah-out-to-lunch_s




    As noted in the intro section, I’ve got nada…. This, of course, means you get another archived pearl for the final section…. The pearl I found to fill in today is a pretty good one, from a pretty good year…. Enjoy!…


From 5/5/2013:


Today has turned into a traditional Pearl… though the intro is shorter than usual, the rest of it follows format perfectly, with a rant in section one, a classic poet, and poem, in section two, and a third section, which obviously is supposed to be an old-school grouping of pearls…. I confess that I keep a stash of quotes from Smart be, to the tune of about eighty-seven pages of a document, so I’m not as short of quotes as I’d thought to be. I’m going to use it for a couple days, & let the real Smart Bee have a vacation, to see if that will fix the corruption in the file….


I know, wishful thinking, but, it’s worth a shot… If it works, it will piss Murphy off, so I’d do it that way anyway, for just that reason…. Any who, today’s group will be VERY random, so bear with me…. Buckle up, please, we can’t proceed until all seat-belts are fastened securely…. insurance rules…




But the sunshine aye shall light the sky,

  As round and round we run;

And the truth shall ever come uppermost,

  And justice shall be done.


~~ Charles Mackay — Eternal Justice, Stanza 4 ~~




“A competent and self-confident person is incapable of jealousy in anything. Jealousy is invariably a symptom of neurotic insecurity.” — Robert Heinlein


“Life is a long lesson in humility.” — James M. Barrie


“Ridicule is the best test of truth. — Lord Chesterfield


“If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is part of yourself. What isn’t part of ourselves doesn’t disturb us.” — Hermann Hesse, _Damian_, 1919


“There are two sentences inscribed upon the Delphic oracle, hugely accommodated to the usages of man’s life: “Know thyself”, and “Nothing too much”; and upon these all other precepts depend.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Consolation to Apollonius


“Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.” — Smart Bee


Now, that’s not bad at all…. a very cogent grouping, I think…. Let yourself flow with it, and you’ll end up in a place you will like, I guarantee… If not, well, that’s okay too…. some of us need to let things stir around a while before consuming it… or something…. Ah hell, just listen to the last one, and all will be well….


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It’s done. Since that is the BEST I can say of it, we’ll let it die a peaceful death, moving on to the next item on today’s agenda, which happens to be missing…. Oh well, I didn’t feel up to much, anyway…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, should there be no other option….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….







		
	
					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Popular hairstyles on sale, cheap….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Climate is what you expect.  Weather is what you get.”


~~ Lazarus Long ~~





White Buffalo Calf Woman




White Buffalo Calf Woman


Image from Google Stock Images




This one is going to be strange; there’s no way around it. I am up on time, but, clueless. I’m confused, which is normal. I hurt, but, not so badly as the past few days. Yet, not a damn thing occurs to me to start this Pearl off with any pizazz, or dignity, or anything in between. Therefore, there is no way to predict, at all, what might happen today…. I’m not sure if I should be nervous, or filled with joyful anticipation. Since I went with the nice picture of the Lakota Spirit woman, who brought them their beliefs and wisdom, I’ll go with the latter, and hope for the best.


Such a lack of direction also may affect this intro, as is probably already obvious. I can’t think of another time when I was so out of it, mentally, after nine hours sleep…. The knife in my hip finally went away yesterday afternoon, without first giving me any clue as to A) why it happened, or B) what fixed it. I was sitting in the chair, uncomfortably shifting my weight around to get comfortable, when I realized it had dissolved, in a manner of speaking; it had simple gone away, without notice, or fanfare….. at which point, the stress and struggle of the last five days of fighting against the constant, unrelenting pain caught up to me….


So, I went to bed, at about 6:45 pm, sleeping fairly well until about 3:45 am, with only two trips to the restroom during the night…. possibly the best night’s sleep in weeks…. I’ll take it, naturally; I just wish I felt more together upon awakening. I seem to be less able to get up & begin functioning right away, as has always been my habit….. another gift from Father Time, I suppose (or, is that the Time Bitch I hear so much about from so many women?….).  Whatever the case may be, I’m up, and moving, if not exactly spinning along like a top….


Oh well, it will have to do. I’m tired, I’m confused, and I don’t even like Jesus; oh, wait. That’s already a song….. okay, well, I’m done, anyway. This intro has reached a point I can call it legal, even if it doesn’t quite cut the mustard. It will have to do, for I’m just not together enough to try any harder…. not that it would get any better for having done so, but, I would have a better excuse to blame someone else, right? Right…. Now I’ve rejoined the human race, we’ll leave that subject behind, and get on with this….. Look Ma! No hands, and no emergency methods…. Yet, we are outta here, and on to the oyster beds, tout suite….


Shall we Pearl?


“Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not; it is the first lesson that ought to be learned; and however early a man’s training begins, it is probably the last lesson that he learns thoroughly.” — Thomas H. Huxley


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15112676-wolfgang-amadeus-mozart-1756-1791-on-engraving-from-1908-one-of-the-most-significant-and-influential


Mozart, Image from Google Stock Images




    Not only am I confused, but, decision making seems to also be a problem…. Hence, we’ll go with something to soothe the mind…. Enjoy!







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Music for reading – Chopin, Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, Debussy, Liszt, Schumann 
















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le penseur-rodin




From 2/3/2013:


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


This is one of many statements of its type, some from Miss Lily, some from other comedians and social philosophers, all of whom are special to me…. They are special because they poke fun at society in the mildest way, but with clarity that is belied by their apparent simplicity and obvious humor. It is easy for a lot of folks to dismiss little gems like this, as being unimportant, or less than serious, just because it speaks with tongue in cheek… Nothing could be further from the truth, as this statement is absolute gospel to a large percentage of the adult population of this country….


“Reality is for those people who can’t handle drugs.” — George Carlin (My attribution here might be incorrect, but, George inspired the line, if he didn’t write it himself….)


Here is another line from the revolution that happened back in the 60’s and 70’s, and it points up a very definitive difference between those folks who spend their time in the mainstream of society, and those who exist at the extremes, in this case, in what is generally conceived to be on the Left end of the scale…. Those who inhabit the other end of the political spectrum tend to rely on alcohol to blunt the effects of Reality on the brain, rather than what are dismissed by them as recreational drugs, such as marijuana, psilocybin, mescaline, etc.  In some ways, you can get a good idea of the philosophies themselves by looking at how they approach the subject of drugs and alcohol, and by the differing methods of enhancing life with them….


Those who rely on alcohol are those who prefer to NOT know the truth, about anything. It seems to me that the physical effects of alcohol parallel exactly the way these folks look at life…. When under the influence of alcohol, one’s senses are depressed, and it is much harder to see the truth than at other times…. and that is the way they like it…. With consumption of alcohol, the hearing decreases, judgment is impaired, vision blurs, sense of touch is lessened, and fine muscle control is compromised, pretty much in that order of occurrence. It is the same each time, but with continued regular consumption, a certain tolerance is developed, a tolerance that slightly mitigates the effects, but certainly does not keep them from happening.


Those who use drugs to enhance or adjust their view don’t deny the truth, but they want it to be all prettied up for them in some way, so it isn’t so harsh and ugly…. Most of the effects of the drugs are in the mind, with some notable exceptions;  the perceptions of all the senses are not depressed, but altered in some way, usually personal to the user, in physical response to the chemical in the drug that causes the cognitive alterations.  Either way, whether with drugs, or with alcohol, perception of the truth is what ultimately suffers, which is what the proponents of both ends of the spectrum tend to forget, or deny….


“Have you ever wondered if taxation without representation was cheaper?” — Smart Bee


I have…. It is and it isn’t, and we are witnessing that phenomenon right now….. This may be why many people have such a hard time with reality; when one becomes aware of just how screwed up things are, and how much lying, cheating, and stealing is going on right before our eyes, it is rather daunting to take in all at once, so people do as they’ve always done, and slip into massive denial of the truth, preferring to just ignore the evidence that is slapping them upside the head…. One time, I actually sat down to do the math on the above question, and what I found was surprising…. Neither way works…. There just isn’t any logical way to govern people, and make it either profitable, or even reasonably cheap…. Well, not as long as the lying, cheating, and stealing is part of the equation, anyway….


“The word “dog” does not bite,” — William James


Boy, if that isn’t the truth…. but, try to convince the general public of that….. It is one of the basic issues to be considered when speaking to the public, one that the BRC and PTB members all know very well, as it is their chief weapon in controlling the populace…. Most folks don’t think…. when they do, it causes them pain, so they tend to let someone else do it for them, and just go along in blissful ignorance, accepting whatever they’re told without a clue. They never consider that the word itself is not the thing it describes; even worse, they don’t care to know….. It is the simplest thing in the world for the Beloved Ruling Class to fool the public, because they actively participate, with apparent glee, in their own debasement….


“As a matter of cold fact, a lot of people have no use for you because they can’t use you.”  — Smart Bee


Sometimes, I’m not sure which disgusts me more…. the callous disregard for others that is the defining characteristic of all politicians and preachers, or the deliberately blind, fawning ignorance of those who refuse to become fully human, use their minds, and take responsibility for their own life…. To my way of thinking, both are deserving of every bit of trouble that reality can give them, just for their intransigence…. otherwise known as rampant stubbornness, or more simply, massive stupidity….


I’m being deliberately offensive this morning, as I’m sick and tired of how the general public refuses to wake up and smell the gunpowder, and I don’t really care if it hurts someone’s feelings. Anyone who disagrees with my assessment is free to offer up their own take on the matter, and I’ll give it equal time for discussion…. but, if what I’ve said hurts feelings, then apparently what I’ve said strikes just a little too close to the truth for comfort, and I would suggest that the person take a look at that before setting themselves up for embarrassment, by trying to argue without a leg upon which to stand….


In the past year and a half, I’ve written thousands and thousands of words trying to wake people up to how much they are giving away by refusing to think. It is my greatest hope that what I have to say may have some small effect on the world, an effect that might in some way contribute to our chances of surviving our own foolishness. I’m afraid my hope is, sadly, rather slim, but, I am not ready to quit my campaign, nor to change tactics. I’ll keep on poking at the BRC, and the priestly hierarchies, and every other enemy of mankind (for that is how I see them….) for as long as I can, and hope for the best….


“One of the greatest advantages in the world is enjoyed by the person who says and insists that they are telling the truth, when in fact, they are telling the truth.” — Smart Bee




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Comedy_Tragedy


Image stolen from Talesfromtheconspiratum.com






Don’t ask me why, but, this poem just seems like the only one for today…..






The world is too much with us; late and soon


The world is too much with us; late and soon,

Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:

Little we see in Nature that is ours;

We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!

This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;

The winds that will be howling at all hours,

And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;

For this, for everything, we are out of tune,

It moves us not.–Great God! I’d rather be

A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;

So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,

Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;

Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn. 


~~ William Wordsworth ~~




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Morning muse



    The following pearl is indescribable; moreover, I haven’t a single clue as to what any of it means…. Anybody got any ideas?….. Feel free to comment on this one; it may need it….


“One should always be a little improbable.” — Oscar Wilde


“Few things are less enjoyable than being old enough to know better.” Smart Bee, with no argument from gigoid


“I don’t think it would have all got me down quite so much if just once in a while- just once in a while- there was at least some polite little perfunctory implication that knowledge should lead to wisdom, and that if it doesn’t, it’s just a disgusting waste of time.” — J.D. Salinger, Franny & Zooey


“Why don’t cannibals eat clowns? Because they taste funny.” — Smart Alec Bee


“He bids fair to grow wise who has discovered that he is not so.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 598


“There’s no easy quick way out, we’re gonna have to live through our whole lives, win, lose, or draw.” — Walt Kelly


“In the words of Shankarachaya, “All impossible things can be made possible save the bringing of the fool’s mind to the point of truth.” — Hazrat Inayat Khan (Sufi writer)


“I think the dragon’s asleep.” — Famous Last Words


“And weep the more, because I weep in vain.” — Thomas Gray (1716-1771) — Sonnet, On the Death of Mr. West


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


I can’t say how I did it, but, it’s done…. Though much of the pain I’ve had for the past five days has passed, the exhaustion remains, from the battle to keep from becoming homicidal. I’m taking the rest of today off…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, should I survive that long…. The odds are good….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch






Featured image




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Here’s the point….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Fear has its use but cowardice has none.”


~~ Mahatma Gandhi ~~


SJohan-Red-Monkeys-850x566 NG1


Simen Johan ~ National Geographic ~ Red Monkeys




Damn! This hurts! But, I won’t let it stop me, so, you won’t hear me complain any further. It will, however, keep this intro to a minimum, come hell or high water, whatever that means. It also makes me somewhat of a fool, for trying to do this while completely distracted. Foolishness is one of my strengths, or, so I’ve always believed, so, it shouldn’t affect the overall output; only the timing, and the     quantity of mess I can create in one morning… That’s what the label says, and that’s my story.


In order to make it a shorter story, I am going to use method #4 right away, so we can get on with this before I start whimpering, or before my left arm gives out completely…. Don’t worry, even if I have to crawl into the chair after each break, I’ll finish this, or die trying. Since my left hand is almost dead now, I will now employ our emergency exit…. Hang on, ffolkes, it’s bound to be a bumpy descent….


Shall we Pearl?


“Animals have these advantages over man: they never hear the clock strike, they die without any idea of death, they have no theologians to instruct them, their last moments are not disturbed by unwelcome and unpleasant ceremonies, their funerals cost them nothing, and no one starts lawsuits over their wills.” — Voltaire


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




maria_muldaur



Maria Muldaur ~ Image from Pinterest.com via Google Images




Here is more music from my days as a hippie, during the latter half of the 1960’s, from one of my favorite singers of the time; she can still croon out a pretty nice love song today….




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Maria Muldaur




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Dont keep calm




Image stolen from Talesfromtheconspiratum.com






Ffolkes…. I had a rant started, but, it got moved down the schedule, as I just don’t have it in me today…. Here is a fairly short discussion from 2013, speaking again about our plight as humans in a dying culture…. so to speak…. Take it as you will….


From 3/5/2013:


“The thinking that we are doing has brought us to where we have already been. In order to go somewhere else, we must think in a different way.” — Albert Einstein


One can always trust Albert to state profound ideas in the simplest way…. you gotta love that. Here, his insight has pinpointed the root problem with which our species has to contend if we are to survive to the next millennium, and illuminates the necessary element in solving the issue, all in two short, simple statements. We humans have made a real mess of things, to put it mildly, and now are faced with a dilemma never faced in all our history as a species…. that we know of…. Perhaps Atlantis fell for exhibiting the self-same lack of ethics and moral advancement as our society has done, and Mother Nature stepped in previously, as she is close to doing now…. There is no way to know for sure…. What is certain is that our own time is nearing an end, unless we make an unlikely change in our attitudes and habits….


This is the root of the problem we face, that the necessary changes need to be made in the human psyche, our souls, as it were, and it just isn’t going to happen unless each and every person alive makes the change. The assumption that we have the right to use the resources of the planet for our own benefit ONLY, to strip the physical world of all the materials we want to use for our own purposes, no matter what effect it has on the rest of what exists here has only one outcome possible, and that is our own self-destruction, taking many innocent species with us… The plants, the other animals, the immense beauty of the physical world in which we live are all being wasted by mankind’s insane rush to obtain and hoard anything considered useful to themselves, at the expense of all else…..


This attitude indicates an inferior spirit, one whose moral and ethical advancement is arrested, and even reversed, until all that is left is pure, unadulterated avarice and greed, and complete dispassion for other life-forms. If you have ever seen an open wound, an ulcer, then you know just what the spirit of such a person is like… and the pain they cause for everyone else…. Unfortunately, this ulcer cannot be treated with ointments, and a clean bandage…


To my mind, the necessary changes that can save us are obviously spiritual in nature, and will require some kind of spiritual awakening in ALL humans on the planet, a realization that we are part of a larger scheme of things than merely our own concerns, and that our participation in that larger view of reality is necessary for us to survive. If we continue to deny the reality of this, then our selfish destructiveness will be brought to an end by our own actions. Unless we can get those who care not for anything but themselves to alter that state of mind, we are all going to die, because there won’t be any breathable air, or any non-toxic water, or any food that will sustain us… We will have fouled our own nest unto extinction….


“Our humanity were a poor thing were it not for the divinity which stirs within us.” — Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626)


Francis doesn’t get much air time on this blog, since most of what he says is crap; he tends to hide a nimble mind behind a screen of religious fervor that colors most of his thinking. In this particular phrase, he is close to a truth, but where he uses the words “divinity which stirs within us”, I would say, “the divinity of which we are part.” Robert Heinlein’s character, Valentine Michael Smith, in Stranger In A Strange Land, perhaps said it best when he said used the phrase, “Thou Art God”…..


Only when we come to understand that we are part and parcel of everything else that exists, no more, no less than any other part, can we reach the understanding, and the compassion, that will be needed to overcome the problems we have created through our specie’s deliberate ignorance and avarice….. We must accept the responsibility that comes with divinity, to cherish and protect all the different parts of reality that make up the whole of our being, instead of using whatever we see to increase our own creature comforts, at the expense of the rest of reality.


Our species MUST undergo a spiritual awakening, or we will surely be condemned to an ignoble end, much like the thousands of species our kind has already added to the list of those who have disappeared from this plane of existence. I wish I could say that all I’ve said here is speculation, but, there is too much hard evidence that supports what I’m saying to ignore. The time we have to awaken our brothers and sisters who have been brainwashed into disbelieving their own power is growing very short, I’m afraid…. I’m also afraid that it isn’t going to happen, and that would indeed be a great waste……


During his 1956 presidential campaign, a woman called out to Adlai E. Stevenson “Senator, you have the vote of every thinking person!” Stevenson called back “That’s not enough, madam, we need a majority!” — Smart Bee


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emily-dickinson-poet


    Today we’ll go with an old favorite; this poet, to me, epitomizes the meaning of the word itself. She, and her work, define poetry like no other….

Enjoy, ffolkes…. (Well, Shawna doesn’t have to unless she wants…..)




I measure every Grief I meet

With narrow, probing, Eyes–

I wonder if It weighs like Mine–

Or has an Easier size.


I wonder if They bore it long–

Or did it just begin–

I could not tell the Date of Mine–

It feels so old a pain–


I wonder if it hurts to live–

And if They have to try–

And whether–could They choose between–

It would not be–to die–


I note that Some–gone patient long–

At length, renew their smile– 

An imitation of a Light

That has so little Oil–


I wonder if when Years have piled– 

Some Thousands–on the Harm– 

That hurt them early–such a lapse

Could give them any Balm– 


Or would they go on aching still

Through Centuries of Nerve–

Enlightened to a larger Pain– 

In Contrast with the Love– 


The Grieved–are many–I am told– 

There is the various Cause– 

Death–is but one–and comes but once– 

And only nails the eyes– 


There’s Grief of Want–and grief of Cold– 

A sort they call “Despair”– 

There’s Banishment from native Eyes–

In Sight of Native Air– 


And though I may not guess the kind– 

Correctly–yet to me

A piercing Comfort it affords

In passing Calvary– 


To note the fashions–of the Cross– 

And how they’re mostly worn– 

Still fascinated to presume

That Some–are like My Own– 


~~ Emily Dickinson ~~




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




le penseur-rodin


    This pearl, a nine-star necklace of shiny, mysterious gems, created itself, in a manner of speaking. However, rather than distract, and, possibly, bore you to death trying to explain how, I’ll just tell you, it seems to be speaking, in a general, yet pointed way, about living Life with Reason as one’s guide, rather than allowing ignorance to rule one’s fate….. If y’all think otherwise, feel free to say so, if you dare…. Oh, not that anything untoward would happen to you, but, remember, here on ECR, we deal only with what is provable in Reality, so, any nonsense will be treated as such…. Any reasoned response is welcome, of course, with sincere approbation. (Well, look it up, for goodness’ sake!…. It’s a simple copy & paste on Dictionary.com….)


“The glory of a firm, capacious mind.” — Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — The Odyssey of Homer, Book iv, Line 262


“… denn da ist keine Stelle, die dich nicht sieht. Du musst dein Leben andern. (… for there is no place that does not see you. You must change your life.) — Rainer Maria Rilke, “Archaic Torso of Apollo”


“Be not as one that hath ten thousand years to live; death is nigh at hand: while thou livest, while thou hast time, be good.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, iv, 17


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


“It is neither wealth nor splendor, but tranquility and occupation, which give happiness.” — Thomas Jefferson


“Truth is eternal, knowledge is changeable. It is disastrous to confuse them.” — Madeleine L’Engle, An Acceptable Time


“Food for thought is no substitute for the real thing.” — Walt Kelly, Putluck Pogo


“A man should never be ashamed to own he has been in the wrong, which is but saying, in other words, that he is wiser to-day than he was yesterday.” — Alexander Pope


“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” — Plato


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


Well, it’s done, That, I think, is as far as I should go in describing what happened here; anything more would tempt fate, not to mention Murphy. If I could reach it at all without stabbing myself, I’d pat myself on the back for a job well done…. except that it would be more accurate to say it is a job; well, done. So be it. gigoid has spoken, probably more than was wise. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, should I be favored by the gods of serendipity, and, provided I can get my tenses and persons squared away….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch




Featured image




À bientôt, mon cherí….



					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Dodge those taxes with dignity and aplomb….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Nature abhors a vacuum, but not as much as cats do.”


~~ Lee Entrekin ~~


russian-blue91

Turn it off. Now. 


 Photo stolen from Wolfie, at:



 https://europasicewolf.wordpress.com/2015/02/04/mewling-the-blues-to-the-ancient-mythological-cat-goddesses/


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




Anyone who has lived with a cat knows the opening quote to be an exact statement of truth. I have never met, or observed any cat, in my entire life, who did not absolutely resent the mere presence of a vacuum, even if not operating, with every fiber of their being. If even one of them ever acquired a set of tools to suit their paws, I suspect, one morning, we would all find our loud, offensive-to-the-nature-of-CAT cleaning appliances in a small neat pile of metal pieces, covered over lightly with dirt, somewhere outside the house…. That one cat would destroy all he found in his neighborhood, then pass the tools and skills on to the first cat he met, until every vacuum in the world was useless…. If they could use computers, it would happen all that much faster…. probably in a matter of hours after booting up….


Yet, still, in the quiet moments between heartbeats, the soft, lyrical sound of simple peace may steal through the rear window of each person’s mind, to fill the air with the almost-painfully somber melody of broken dreams. Nighttime brings panic and fear, not slumber; terror rules the hours until light. Light brings its own baggage, weighting down each one it touches, bearing them down, down, to the pitted earth, never again to rise with any degree of hope….


Boy, that turned a little dark corner there, didn’t it. I have no idea how what I started as a lyrical fantasy, grounded in peace and beauty, to the nightmare of the fight with inner demons…. I suppose I need to watch the road signs more closely; the turn I took was NOT into the street I thought I was headed for, by a long shot….. Of course, by logical concatenation, since the street signs are put up by the government, they could conceivably be a lie….


Okay, sorry…. I know it’s too early for such a drastically rude shot to the head of a pundit, but, I’ve never been one to pass up a good opportunity like that one. I promise, no more ranting in this section, for today, at least. Naturally, this leaves us once more in the clutches of the dreaded “What the fuck do we do now?” beast, with its slavering jaws of death, smellier than the filthiest asshole in creation. Whew! Powerful stuff! I think I’m going to make an executive decision; this intro has gone completely off the wire, and out of the dimension. There’s no hope now of ever getting back on any reasonable track down the page without some sort of drastic intervention…. Hang on, ffolkes, I’m pulling the switch on #4…..


Shall we Pearl?




“It’s a bit hard to bullshit the ocean.  


It’s not listening, you know what I mean?”


~~ David Crosby ~~




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


One can never watch too many cartoons, I say. We all need regular doses of fantasy to balance out the extreme levels of bullshit that permeates almost every level of our lives in this sad old world…. Besides, it’s always good to spend time with old friends….




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Heckle and Jeckle










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Truths would you teach, or save a sinking land?


All fear, none aid you, and few understand.


~~ Alexander Pope ~~ 


~~ Essay on Man, Epistle iv, Line 261~~


Dont keep calm


     Pearls of Virtual Wisdom, as a blog, continues to evolve, along with me, as I become more competent at formatting the text and pictures, learning to take advantage of how they can work together to strengthen whatever points I’m trying to get through to people. Today, rather than a rant, I’m going to use the principle of “a picture is worth a thousand words”, to deliver my usual indictment of the Asininnies, those who have perverted human culture for their own aggrandizement. You’ve seen all of these before on this site; I seem to have collected enough of them to form a pictorial old-school pearl, filled with my entire pantheon of issues about which to rant….. I don’t think I’ll need to say anything more; from this point on, it’s pretty self-explanatory…


Enjoy, ffolkes; it will be a nice break from the 2-3000 words I could have used to speak to all these pictures, each of which highlights part of the problems we face today, threatened with extinction as a species by the ignorant, cruel, selfishly self-centered actions of a precious few extreme assholes, disguised as human beings….. I might add, all of these pictures are taken from REALITY; there’s no speculation involved in any of these issues…. Remember that, next time you hear one of the Asininnies speak about “conspiracy theories”, or, try to deny culpability for all of their chicanery…. It isn’t a fantasy if it comes straight from reality, to slap you in your very real face….. or, shoot you in your very real heart…..




Albert E & true sin600801_388558564581781_493680709_nFlulaval-vaccine-insert-no-controlled-trials-640Isaac AsimovFlulaval-Influenza-Vaccine-Insert-600Ginsburg on CU 8-20-2014Pope Leo X220px-Pogo_-_Earth_Day_1971_posterjimmy sez

Orwell on footballtrickle down theory

nsadogWe the People...


     There you go, ffolkes. The first ever fully-pictorial pearl. Not too shabby, and, it certainly saved y’all a shit load of reading, didn’t it? I kind of like it, but, it’s going to take a while now to collect enough pointed bamboo sticks to create another punji pit, placing some nice atropine on the points of the sticks, to provide that extra touch of agony to their deaths… Then, we’ll need to find a good spot to put it, where it can catch any stray Asininnies passing by, concealed well enough to ensure they take their final fall, about 12 feet down, to meet their chosen fate.


I  find it to be only justice to consider such a cruel method of eliminating these human vermin, justice provided by most efficient bamboo stakes, tipped with a poison to paralyze the diaphragm, adding a touch of terror to their agony, hopefully for a good long while, until the numerous holes in their body bleed sufficiently to allow them to die the death they so richly deserve…. This has the added advantage of reducing the number of targets left to destroy in future revolutionary outbreaks, which I consider a pretty sure thing, given today’s state of world affairs…. It’s always a good policy to get a running start on unpleasant tasks, such as vermin control….


Gee! Do ya think I’m a little pissed off? Well…. you may be right…


gigoid, not speaking much, but, enough….


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


After such a compelling graphic rant, only one poem of mine will do….




Geezer to Congress, with Love


Politicos don’t care much ’bout seniors and their ilk,

except for their money, I thinks;

Though they talk as if they’d cozen them in silk,

what they actually do, it stinks.


“The banks are failing, we can’t allow that!”,

steal from the aged, that’s their plan.

“Their life’s ending, that’s plainly where they’re at,”

lie shamelessly, because they can.


Maybe just once, if we all act together,

it couldn’t miss.

Right on their shoes, no matter the weather,

take careful aim, and piss.


Why the hell not?

It’s worth a shot!


~~ gigoid ~~




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


I suppose the only proper way to describe what follows would be to call it a tongue-in-cheek pearl. Each one, which SB gave up in its inimitable style, isn’t actually as shallow as it may seem at first, once one gets past the flippancy, or in some cases, the simplicity…. No matter, they’re fun, and there are plenty of them, so, enjoy…. or not. I like to give everyone a choice, as you know….


“Sinners can repent, but stupid is forever.” — Smart Bee


“Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do.” — Bertrand Russell (1872-1967)


“What is becoming is honest, and whatever is honest must always be becoming.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 B.C.)


“Anything may be divided into as many parts as you please.” Commentary: In this case, ‘everything’ may be viewed as a subset of ‘anything.'” — Law of Arbitrary Distinction


“A closed mouth gathers no feet.” — Finster’s Law


“Ah say, son, you’re about as sharp as a bowlin’ ball.” — Foghorn Leghorn


“Out of the crooked timber of humanity no straight thing can ever be made.” — Immanuel Kant


“Immanuel doesn’t pun, he Kant.” — Smart Bee


Doh! Sorry, ffolkes, I couldn’t help myself. SB threw them out there, & I fell right into the trap…. Okay, here is the correct final pearl for this particular group…


“Never refuse to do a kindness unless the act would work great injury to yourself, and never refuse to take a drink- under any circumstances.” — Mark Twain


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


Thankfully, most of this got done yesterday; getting it all done this morning would have been impossible, given the state of affairs in my body. Though my refusal to submit to any further med reduction has finally reached a point where I am able to get some sleep, I still awake in more pain than I’ve had to deal with for over seven years. Any thanks I may feel for this gift can be delivered directly to the door of a large soulless corporation, care of two doctors/slaves who are carrying out their draconian policy of punishing anyone who may not wish to submit to wearing a collar.


However, rather than continue to rant here in the closing section, I’ll make a 90 degree turn, and merely say, “See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, when we’ll fire off another round of shots, at those insane fools who would kill us all in their cowardly, insane quest for power….”




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch


dozer3




 À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
I’ll take that last glazed pineal gland, please….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Admission of ignorance is often the first step in our education.”


~~ Stephen Covey ~~


chacalacascape-Gregory Basco

Chacalacascape — Gregory Basco




Mr. Covey, in his opening line, makes a valiant attempt here; sadly, he comes up slightly short of creating a truism. While what he notes IS true, he apparently lacked full confidence in his convictions, causing him to hedge his bet a little in his statement. A more correct word, with much more scope and perspective, is available to use to increase the accuracy of the concept; that word, which fills the lack in his original quote, would more accurately be as follows:




“Admission of ignorance is ALWAYS the first step in our education.” 




Socrates, perhaps mankind’s most revered sage, knew this quite well, making the admission of his own ignorance freely, and frequently….. Perhaps the most famous story we have demonstrating his sagacity, out of many examples of his wisdom preserved throughout history, is the story of his lesson to a potential student, wherein he pushed the lad into deep water, telling him to come back to learn, when he wanted knowledge as much as he wanted air to breathe…. Simple, yet, effective lesson, wouldn’t you say?


I’ve always thought so, since first hearing it, in elementary school, but, then, I suppose one could say I started out a bit strange, a pink monkey, don’t y’know? Ah well, I’m good with it; I never could understand wanting to be like everybody else. It always puzzled me why anyone would want to be someone else; if I was, who the hell would I be? And, why am I asking you? You probably don’t have any more idea than do I, which puts both of us up that proverbial creek, sans a paddle, wouldn’t you say? I think, given the number of question marks in this paragraph, we’d best get on with something  of a different nature, or color, or, well, anything at all but more of this silliness…


Can’t think of what I was trying to do there. Oh, wait….. Okay, I know what’s happening now. It’s my subconscious again, fussing around with the routine, probably has an issue to work out. It always does this to me when it’s trying to get my attention somehow….. I guess it does make communication difficult, when the two parties involved are separated by the veil of consciousness…. Every time it wants something, it has to work out some metaphorical code, to grab my conscious mind’s attention, directing it toward whatever has been chosen as a means of getting its point across…. It even SOUNDS complicated…..


Today, though, I think we’ll just wait until after we’re done, then I’ll figure out what it wants…. For now, I think I’ve blathered uselessly for long enough. Other than the initial short discussion of the classic lesson from Socrates, we’ve managed to make our way to a legal cut-off point, without having paid the slightest attention; no bridge tolls paid, either. Of course, we didn’t cross any bridges, but, you know those stat monkeys; they want us to keep track of EVERYTHING…. Bozos, every one of ’em…


Okay, I’m done. We’ll go on to the rest of today’s effort, leaving this right here, in this lonely, deserted area, with the nearest phone two miles away at a strip mall. I hope y’all brought your survival kits; we may need them, if we can’t find our way back here to the vehicle…. Besides, it’s questionable whether we’d be able to find it anyway, as the automatic camouflage utility will cover it in a holographic image of the surrounding trees, making it virtually impossible to find, anyway. If that happens, we’ll be late getting back, for sure, as Luigi will then have to fire up the swamp buggy to come get us…. Oh well…. such is life….


Shall we Pearl?


Pearls of Virtual Wisdom, August, 2011 to February, 2015 = Slightly less than 2.5 million words (Precisely, 2,478,983, according to Open Source Software’s Word Count utility….). — gigoid, showing off his addition skills, thus, clearly demonstrating the keen appreciation of the trivial which characterizes the prototypical bozoid personality….


To a Bozo, trivial statistics are not merely food for thought; they are Meat, Potatoes, AND, a Vegetable!…. Note the number of words used to talk about one simple stat…. Now, we can spend an inordinate number of otherwise fruitful hours, trying to calculate if the number of words written, as shown above, to wit: 2,278,983, is a Prime Number! It sure looks like one…. What fun we’re going to have!


Oh, heck…. Never mind. It’s a complicated calculation, which I’m not prepared to pursue just now. I guess we can just go on to the rest of today’s post, which, if the intro section is any indication, could prove to be an experience none of us have experienced in our lives…. I’m a little nervous, but, let’s go on, shall we?…..


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syf roses


     Each year, the Grateful Dead web site organizes what they call the Dead Covers Project. Fans are encouraged to make a video wherein they play and/or sing a version of one of the Dead’s songs. They then upload the videos to a You Tube page dedicated to the “covers”, so all the fans can enjoy them, with prizes awarded to those voted the best by the viewers…. It’s a great way to get new music from America’s most dedicated fans, by some very good musical artists…. The link below will take you to the page where one of the fans has compiled 114 of the videos from 2014, for your listening and viewing pleasure…. and mine…. Enjoy, ffolkes, there’s some good shit here…..




Dead Covers Project 2014











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We the People...


 “The rights you have are the rights given you by this Committee [the House Un-American Activities Committee].   We will determine what rights you have and what rights you have not got.” — J. Parnell Thomas


Hmm…. I’m not entirely certain of exactly when this statement went into the Congressional Record; the HU-AAC operated in the early 1950’s, during the era of McCarthyism, that black period of US history when the number of insane Senators elected to seats in Congress approached numbers paralleled only by the numbers we see today, when the world, and this country, have been inundated in the effects of long-term insanity, now being displayed so prominently in legislative and governmental facilities all over the world. But, I do know the statement fits in perfectly with the obvious sense of entitlement the current crop of pundits displays toward the public…


The infestation of vermin in Washington D. C. has reached epidemic level; soon the only solution will be to fumigate the whole town, moving the government to Topeka, or somewhere, until the smell is gone. Then we can send everybody left back to their jobs, minus the most egregiously stupid that were eliminated in the pogrom…. It shouldn’t take more than a week or two to treat the infestation; we’ve got some pretty good pest control chemicals available to us these days…. I’ve seen some even cockroaches don’t like….


Almost any the current products on the market should take care of a hundred Senators, a pack of Representatives, and a building or two filled with bureaucrats such as the Supreme Court and the President, etc…. They’re nastier looking than cockroaches, & definitely make a bigger mess, but, generally, they’re not as tough, or efficient at resisting chemical attacks…. Well, those obese pigs who walk around with basketballs under their suits, who eat a lot at McDonald’s, might be more poison-resistant than a cockroach, due to their diet, but, a bit of old-fashioned strychnine should deal with them just fine….


Hmm…. I detect some vitriol and resentment in my tone; I wonder where that came from? No telling, really; the number of different ways these assholes annoy me every day is something I gave up trying to count, or keep track of, long ago. It happens so often, I’ll make myself crazier than I already am if I keep counting them, & reacting every time. They fuck someone over so often, it gets hard to fit any more resentment in my craw, every time I hear of their latest act of infamy. They’re like the frigging Energizer bunny; when it comes to dirty tricks, lies, theft, massive stupidity, and greed, they just keep going, and going, and going…. You’d think they’d at least take a break to change batteries once in a while, but, it never seems as if the shit stops flowing, ever….


Have you heard the latest BS they’re lying to the public about? Check out the picture below, noting the highlighted text….






Flulaval-vaccine-insert-no-controlled-trials-640


     Yep. That’s right. The words you read are not an illusion. They are printed on the drug information sheet included in the box with each vial of vaccine, as required by law…. Of course, the big pharmacy and HMO corporations aren’t allowing patients receiving the vaccine to SEE this, or to read it before receiving the shot; in fact, they will mostly refuse to show it at all, disposing of them before allowing the vaccine near a patient. The copy you see was stolen by an activist…. And, yes, it DOES say exactly what it means…. NO clinical trials performed, IF any actually occurred, showed ANY effectiveness AT ALL in preventing the disease. NONE. ZERO. ZILCH. In short, it’s useless, and probably dangerous….


This means, of course there are millions and millions of Americans receiving vaccinations, which contain trace amounts of mercury, and other harmful substances not commonly known to the public, that do not serve any purpose at all…. Or, at least, no purpose that bodes well for the public. They are deliberately selling this lie for unknown purposes, that obviously have nothing to do with any sort of benefit to those being vaccinated. Who KNOWS what crap they’re injecting along with the vaccines?


They’re not telling us much, that’s for sure; their silence on this issue indicates to me there is a lot more they’re not telling the public…. That, ffolkes, is simple logic…. Paranoia is justified when it becomes clear one is being persecuted and oppressed; the need for change then becomes clear, as does the need for clarity of mind, which will create in us a real thirst for justice.


I’ve made a tactical error in this rant…. I began with a good premise, & ran with it a good long way; the direction took a bit of a side-trip into a related subject, then turned again; now, I’m not sure how to connect it all back together. I think I’ll just bail for today, & let an old-school do the work to bring it to a close…. Here s a group that comments on, well, stuff…. you’ll see… It’s all related, if a bit tenuously in spots…


“Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage.” — H. L. Mencken (1880-1956)


“RIP: The U.S. Constitution–one amendment at a time.” — Smart Bee


“Food will be scarce; you will have to scavenge.  Learn to recognize foods that will be available after the bomb: mashed potatoes, shredded wheat, tossed salad, ground beef, etc.” — Safety Tips for the Post-Nuclear Existence


“We need excellence in public education and if the teachers can’t do it, we’ll send in a couple of policemen.” — Frank Rizzo, Philadelphia Bulletin, Oct 19, 1973


“They are cold-blooded. They are completely ruthless about protecting what they have. The only thing they connect to is the money aspect of life.  Let’s face it: That’s the American way.” — Jeffery M. Johnson, regional chairman of the District of Columbia United Way, speaking of drug dealers.


“Whenever you hear a man speak of his love for his country,  it is a sure sign he expects to be paid for it.” — H. L. Mencken


“I’ve been vaccinated against rabies.  *snarl*” — Random flu vaccination recipient


“Annual drug deaths: tobacco: 395,000, alcohol: 125,000, ‘legal’ drugs: 38,000, illegal drug overdoses: 5,200, marijuana: 0.  Considering government subsidies of tobacco, just what is our government protecting us from in the drug war?” — William A. Turnbow


“A guilty conscience never feels secure.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 617


Well…. If we consider the last pearl to be true, there are a great many uncomfortable people in our nation’s capital…. Evidence of it’s truth can be found in one simple fact of note: it is still being used in everyday conversation, still considered as wisdom, more than 2000 years after Citizen Syrus  made the original observation….


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I’ve shared poems from this young lady previously; in my opinion, humble or not, she will someday be considered one of the world’s greatest. Perhaps it is the powerful obscurity of her metaphor, highlighted by the stark realism of the images she creates, often violently graphic, yet never offensive, that attracts me; I do love my metaphorse.


It could also be just the way it feels to read her work, as if she is speaking a deeper truth, from a connection to the universe she alone feels so strongly, in a language that is just on the edge of comprehension, though completely unknown…. Though you may not understand exactly what she is saying, you will know how it feels to see what she sees…. Read this, then follow the link, which will take you to her web site; besides this poem, you can find links to much of her past work, including her book, recently published…. Pay attention, ffolkes, THIS is genius at work/play….




Pecan


Of all the parts I could choose of you, I need only two;

The round, full seed inside and

the strong bulge that protects you. 

I know your shell, hard as a pecan, hanging on ripe roots underground,

sipping on the end of the season.

You rip fingerprints from the

skin of the persistent, leaving your mark for the rest of winter. 

I am careless, like you. A vulture

hovering overhead. Unease grows soft inside you; brown fruit meant for the ambitious. 

I wait for destruction, for decay, for the cycle to recycle, again and again. 

But during the wave of high desert winds, in the middle of

God and all of his plans,

I perch on a branch where your life begins and pray for your pain to dissolve with the land.


~~ Maggie Mae ~~


https://maggiemaeijustsaythis.wordpress.com/2015/02/02/pecan-2/#comment-47186




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Life at Large. We all spend time here on Earth, born to a life of physical and spiritual challenges, all of which are made more complex by the intricate patterns of atoms and molecules which, when touched by the spark of life, speak in DNA, the code of effectively infinite variety which determines the configuration of the life for which it forms the pattern. We humans are ONE of the more complex forms on this planet, rivaled, perhaps, only by the dolphins and whales, whose DNA is, in some ways, related to our own; the dolphins, it is clear, have the most complex brains of all the creatures here on Earth.


This is shown clearly in research, and by simple observation and deduction…. For example, I observe that dolphins pay no taxes, nor do they suffer the pains of commuting to work through a fog of air cluttered with particulate matter; that seems pretty intelligent to me. I also deduce their advanced intelligence, from the simple fact they can learn our languages easily (so far, any of them we’ve attempted to teach them, they can learn….); we have only learned a small part of their language, not even enough to know yet if they possess & use more than one…. Their brains, when compared to ours, are larger on average, in sheer size, and in relation to body size.


So, since I can’t tell you how dolphins talk, or share with you any of the wisdom their greater intelligence must have given them, I’ll have to settle for some of humanity’s finest pieces of advice, to those who wish to lead a life filled with dignity, purpose, and peace…. Well, we try, anyway. A lot of ffolkes in history seem to have worked out some pretty good stuff to help us learn to cope with life; it isn’t their fault if not enough people have paid enough attention to them…. Below you find a nine-star pearl full of that wisdom; Smart Bee and I both think these are some of the finest lessons of all we’ve learned….




“If you don’t know, say so.” 


~~ Mom’s Hint #012 ~~




“The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.” — Lucretius


“…to emphasize the afterlife is to deny life. To concentrate on Heaven is to create hell. In their desperate longing to transcend the disorderliness, friction, and unpredictability that pesters life; in their desire for a fresh start in a tidy habitat, germ-free and secured by angels, religious multitudes are gambling the only life they may ever have on a dark horse in a race that has no finish line.” — Tom Robbins, _Skinny Legs and All_, 1990, p. 305.


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


“Know how to listen, and you will profit even from those who talk badly.” — Plutarch


“I like that moment central to danger… when you become so thoroughly concerned with acting deftly, in order to be safe, that only reaction is possible, not analysis. You shed the centuries, and feel creatural. Of course you do have to scan, assess, and make constant minute decisions. But there is nothing like thinking in the usual methodical way. What takes place is more akin to informed instinct. For a compulsively pensive person, to be fully alert but free of thought is a form of ecstasy.” — Diane Ackerman


“Anyone who imagines that all fruits ripen at the same time as the strawberries, knows nothing about grapes.” — Philippus Paracelsus


“Place your clothes and weapons where you can find them in the dark.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”‘


“What a man has, so much he is sure of.” — Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) — Don Quixote, Part ii, Book iv, Chap. xliii




“Don’t take life too serious. It ain’t no ways permanent.” 


~~ Pogo, by Walt Kelly ~~




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Well, it’s done. Again. What a let down…. No, not a let down, a bummer. No, wait. That’s not right, either. Oh, hell, I don’t know, and, what’s more, don’t care any longer, simply because we ARE done. Go figure…. Gosh, ffolkes, I have no idea what happened here, but, it does LOOK done, so, I’m going to trust my instincts, such as they are, and let if fly without even going over it for typos…. Today, in that respect, y’all are on your own. I think I’m going to go look for my mind, which seems to have taken a powder….. I’ll let y’all know tomorrow where I had to haul it home from…. See ya, ffolkes….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch


dozer3






À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
We boil the spread sheets, but, all clip art gets baked….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Nothing can be done at once hastily and prudently.”


~~ Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 557 ~~


POTD_Crew_Space_Tr_3124538k


     I’ve  been using a lot of space photos lately; this one is an artist’s rendering of the newest NASA manned spaceflight capsule, the Orion, as it docks at the ISS. Having always been a space flight enthusiast, an amateur astronomer, and a reader of science fiction, it all fascinates me. I had originally intended to study astronomy or astrophysics in college, and always wanted to be an astronaut, every since the very first manned flights, back in the early 60’s….. I even made a personal vow, at age 11, that I would not die on Earth, but, would be buried on another planet, even if only the Moon…. A bit fanciful, but, I still mean to try to survive long enough to get off Earth at least once….


Chances are getting slim that will ever happen, but, hey, a man has to have a dream, right? My dreams these days involve survival of the species, mostly, as that seems to me to be our most pressing circumstance, as humans…. We don’t have much time left, if any, to make an effort to establish ourselves on another planet, or planetoid, by which, I refer to moons, asteroids, comets, etc…. There are lots of places in our solar system containing abundant natural resources, easy enough for us to find and utilize, though not all of them are other planets…. In fact, there are fewer obstacles to overcome in order to colonize the asteroids than we may encounter trying to live on Mars…. It is amazing how much EASIER it is to live without gravity getting in the way, technologically speaking…..


Whether we try to establish colonies on Mars, the asteroids, our own Moon, Luna, or the moons of Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus, (of which there are more than a hundred….), it is becoming more imperative each day that we make some sort of decision, and get started on doing so, without any further delay….. We don’t have a lot of time before living on this planet will become an even greater technological challenge than living in space, with no gravity, and abundant solar and nuclear power, an existence made much easier to maintain than here on Earth. where we will see the necessity to find or manufacture our own air, food, and water…. None of these are impossible tasks, but, they won’t happen unless we first admit the danger, and the necessity to establish more bases for humanity to survive, in various points around the solar system…. If we continue to confine ourselves to one planet, we won’t survive at all….


Okay, I’ve now ranted, though it may not seem as if I have…. It sort of crept up on all of us I think…. After looking over what I’ve written above, I can’t say there is anything missing, or flawed, so, it will do, both as an intro, and as a mini-rant…. I didn’t mean to start out so strongly, but, the picture got me going; a view of the infinity of space will always stimulate my mind’s eye, pointing it toward the possible futures we may experience…. The planetary environmental crisis here on Earth is worsening each day, with new weather patterns being noted all over the world…. The coming year is predicted to be the warmest our planet has EVER experienced, according to all the historical and environmental evidence there is to be found, and we still don’t know how that will affect us, or the rest of our planet’s ecological balance…


Before I hare off in another direction, with a new rant on a new, related issue, I think I’ll take this opportunity to get us out of the intro, and down the line to the video section…. Today’s Pearl is going to be a fairly fresh one, even if the rant section may have to go with an archived piece; I don’t like to rant twice, and this is already enough to make ffolkes uneasy, I’m sure…. We’ll see how it goes when I get there…. for now, I see our turn coming up, so, put your liquid refreshments in their holders, tighten your belts, and hang on, because we’re going in…..


Shall we Pearl?….


“Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when he is called upon to act in accordance with the dictates of reason.” — Oscar Wilde


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


Okay, so, what did you expect? More cats? No way; I don’t like to repeat myself…. Today, you get PUPPIES!….







The Cutest Puppies Compilation 


































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I went through the news yesterday, where I found the BRC, and the Asininnies, to be in full control. The news is mostly concentrating on the race issues brought to the surface of the nation’s attention, stimulated by the recent court failures to prosecute police officers who kill citizens. While this is, of course, an issue that must be addressed, it does focus attention  elsewhere than on the actions of our leaders, thus giving them the time and space to hide their true agendas from public view, by acting clandestinely to secure their aims…. The lack of any other news of significance is a sure sign that things are worse than they seem….


So much so, I am unable to find a reason to rant…. Oh, it’s not as if there isn’t any subject to rant about; the problem is that there are too MANY subjects to choose from, each of which represents yet another way the predators who prey on society are displaying their lack of compassion for any of the other members of their species, using them simply as a means of consolidating their own powers. To anyone with more than two neurons working together, it is quite obvious; to those who base their lives on accepting what they are told, nothing is amiss, at all…. After all, it’s Christmas, right?


Rather than spend eight or ten paragraphs trying, once again, to bring their chicanery to the attention of anyone happening by to read, I’m putting together an old-school indictment, to indicate to those who come by, exactly where they can see for themselves just how badly we are all being screwed, by those who would have us believe in their altruism…. which, in fact, does not exist at all…. So, here are some observations about those assholes who would be king…. Pay close attention, ffolkes, and any of you folks who might see this; it’s all true as the day….. Let’s see how vicious we can be this early in the day, shall we?….




One murder made a villain,

Millions a hero. Princes were privileged

To kill, and numbers sanctified the crime.


~~ Beilby Porteus (1731-1808) — Death, Line 154 ~~




“The truth is often a terrible weapon of aggression.  It is possible to lie, and even to murder, with the truth.” — Alfred Adler (1870-1937)


“The question is, why are politicians so eager to be president?  What is it about the job that makes it worth revealing, on national television, that you have the ethical standards of a slime-coated piece of industrial waste?”  — Dave Barry, On Presidential Politics


“The American Republic and American business are Siamese twins; they came out of the same womb at the same time; they are born in the same principles, and when American business dies, the American republic will die, and when the American Republic dies, American business will die.” — Josiah W. Bailey


“In many if not most elections, the consequences come to about the same  result as two bald men fighting over a comb. Whichever one gets elected is  going to commission the design of a new comb, and it is going to be expensive. Of course, most government expenditures are not as significant as the purchase of a new comb, but the point is made.” — Smart Bee


JUSTICE, n.  A commodity which is a more or less adulterated condition the State sells to the citizen as a reward for his allegiance, taxes and personal service. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”


“Politics is a pendulum whose swings between anarchy and tyranny are fueled by perennially rejuvenated illusions.” — Albert Einstein


And remember, let’s do it to them before they do it to us. — Final line, US Senate Oath of Office


“Man is descended from a hairy, tailed quadruped, probably arboreal in its habits…  For my part I would as soon be descended from [a] baboon … as from a savage who delights to torture his enemies … treats his wives like slaves … and is haunted by the grossest suspicions.” — Charles Darwin (1809-1882)


“Giving power and money to the government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.” — P.J. O’Rourke, former Gulf War correspondent, summing up what he learned during two years of research on how our government functions


“It is terrible to contemplate how few politicians are hanged.” — G. K. Chesterton, The Cleveland Press, 3/1/21


Well, it took eleven pearls, but, I think we finally achieved the proper degree of disdain and vituperation…. If not, we can always try again tomorrow….


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Just to keep this all in my court, here is another old one of my own….




Random Visions/Coloring Between the Lines of Grief


Everywhere is dark, and shining,

    with points in dissonant pain.

Sharp, senses dull past divining,

   tears burn, a torrential rain.


Escape! Flee within to cower,

    find an unconscious cave.

Call on Morpheus’ power

    deny reality’s beckoning wave.


Light breaks, drawing the inner eye,

    leading to the slippery slope.

Risk is critical, we may only sigh,

   yet welcome, for bringing hope.


Sanity seems far out of reach

    Insanity’s a stronger friend.

Decisions made will merely teach

    our way toward Death to wend. 


Lost, while still on familiar ground,

    the future yet undesigned.

Making way on paths unfound,

    to Now, as yet undefined.


~~ gigoid ~~




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Okay, not bad…. All that is left now is to put together an old school pearl…. I’m getting a bit dazed and confused; it happens sometimes when the news is making me nervous with its lack of stuff to write about; I’m always concerned the Asininnies are busy behind the scenes, preparing more nasty surprises for us, usually springing their crap on Monday mornings, when everyone is busy worrying about getting back to work…. I think I’ll let Smart Bee pick out the rest…. I’ve chosen the the first two pearls, and SB will choose the other five; for fun, you can try to pick out the two I put in, to see if it is as obvious to you as it is to me…. or, you may just enjoy them, taking the meaning as you may….


“If I do not do it now, when shall I do it?” — Dogen Zenji


“Anacharsis said a man’s felicity consists not in the outward and visible favours and blessings of Fortune, but in the inward and unseen perfections and riches of the mind.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — The Banquet of the Seven Wise Men, 11


“Here is the beginning of philosophy: a recognition of the conflicts between men, a search for their cause, a condemnation of mere opinion, and the discovery of a standard of judgment.” — Epictetus


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


“Food for thought is no substitute for the real thing.” — Walt Kelly, Putluck Pogo


Well…. There you go. A nearly perfect five-star pearl, to balance the eleven-star version above…. of which I will say this; I could have made that one even longer. There seems to be no end of quotes vilifying the Asininnies; they’ve been a pain in society’s collective ass for a long time… But. these five sparkling gems almost balance out the dirt they tend to toss around….


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Okay, so much for another morning…. Given the amount of pain in my hands and shoulder, I’m astounded I got this done at all…. I have yet to proof it, but, it felt as if it actually had something worthwhile to say, even if it didn’t say it as well as I might like… Nonetheless, it got said, so, that will have to do for another day…. Living up to that initial quote, from our old friend, Publius Syrus, was harder than it seemed; still, perseverance, as is its habit, managed to win the day…. I’ll see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Well, that’s my intention, anyway….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest  Carole, Mark, and Theresa…

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


Kowabunga!






À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
This bear’s brain has been softened!….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“We have met the enemy and they are us and you are me and we are all together”


~~ Walt Kelly, Lennon, and the Beatles ~~


Alaska Grand Adventure 013


     Given the state of affairs in which most of us exist, it seems pointless to bother explaining my own particular brand of insanity; nobody would blink, or wail, or fall down in shock and awe. Of course, if my own oddities don’t cause any sort of public display of astonishment, beyond the occasional snort of disdain, or the random chortle at my discomfiture, (only present, I assure you, because it’s too damn early in the day for such philosophical discussions)…. well, then, I wouldn’t expect to astound my audience with tales of strange behavior on the part of our Beloved Ruling Class, or that of my own particular nemesis, the dogma dogs….


When I think of the centuries of progress we have lost by listening to these fools, it depresses me, deeply; no other human activity plays such a large part in holding us back, as does the delusion of a supernatural force at large in the universe that, according to those who buy into that sort of thing, has some sort of obsession with having us worship them, bend our will to them, and otherwise surrender much of our humanity in order to make this delusion happy…. Now, if you were offered that as a deal for a used car, would you take it? Would you make that deal? I don’t think so; we all know how much used car salesman have OUR interests at heart…. Tricky Dicky taught us that….


I’ve done it again, haven’t I? Ranting before I even wake up, it seems, as I am, just now, finally awake enough to take note of what my fingers have been up to the last few minutes…. It seems my sub-conscious mind is chewing on the subject of dogma dogs, and their deleterious effects on human culture, since first gaining popularity back in the early days of our civilization’s rise from living in caves to living in cities built of metal and brick… Not that this “rise” has taught most people to think any more efficiently than when their most complex need was where to find another animal to kill. Hell, most of the folks alive today wouldn’t last ten minutes if they had to feed themselves, if there was no Burger King nearby….


Ah well, I suppose it’s only natural for me to complain; I am, after all, a human, with the same faults and prejudices most of us fall prey to, with, perhaps, just a few less delusions than is usually the case. Some of us humans have learned to pay attention to that little voice that whispers to us when we are told something that challenges our understanding; most people give that up to avoid having to think, or make decisions for themselves about what to believe. Those of us who have decided not to engage in such weakness, unfortunately, don’t seem to be able to convince the rest of the world of how little they actually see, or understand…. Instead, the world trudges on toward its doom, blithely blind to their own danger, or their own part in creating that danger.


Having now completely lost all track of where we might be in this process, I think I’ll abandon all hope, and just go on with the rest of today’s Pearl…. There doesn’t seem to be much point in belaboring this point any further; I’m mostly preaching to the choir, anyway, I think; most of my Gentle Readers, I find, are of that part of humanity that doesn’t buy into the bullshit being tossed around by the BRC; it might be more effective if anyone who actually needed to know this stuff would stop in to read…. But, that probably wouldn’t work, anyway, as they’d just bail the first time I asked them to think, or to answer a question they don’t understand…. SIGH….


But, we’ve managed to get far enough down the page to allow me to get us out of here without further claptrap (wonderful word, that….), so, I’ll just turn this little wheel here, push this lever down, press this button, and, voilá, we’re outta here!…. Hold on to your loose packages, ffolkes, the turn here is a bit sharp….


Shall we Pearl?


“In the handbook, it says that most people ignore the strange and unusual;  while I myself *am*… strange and unusual.” — BEETLEJUICE


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


I feel like a bit of political satire, with a dash of impropriety, and some well-earned snark…. in other words, let’s see what our old friend Russell Brand has been up to of late, shall we?….. He is one of the few people in the public eye who is actively proposing world-wide revolution against those who would kill us all in achieving their own ends…. Here is his interview on Letterman last month, with a number of other available videos listed at the You Tube page where the link leads…. Listen up, ffolkes, he’s telling it straight….







Russell Brand on David Letterman – October 13th 2014 – Full Interview 































 


 




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“Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live.  It is asking other people to live as one wishes to live.” — Oscar Wilde


I’ve ranted already, filling up a great deal of the intro with my usual diatribe against organized religion, and the dogma dogs who would have us believe all that nonsense, so, I’ll spare you another one today, and proceed with an old-school pearl to serve the same purpose…. This one is, obviously, aimed at those foolish, but dangerous predators who prey upon the weak and gullible among us…. a group which sadly includes the greater portion of humanity….


Note, please. the first entry, which attempted to warn people against these liars and manipulators, is part of a work written long before the birth of Jesus Christ, the dogma dogs’ most frequent choice for their insane machinations….


“Some foolish men declare that a Creator made the world.  The doctrine that the world was created is ill-advised, and should be rejected.  If God created the world, where was He before creation?  How could God have made the world without any raw material?  If you say He made this first, and then the world, you are faced with an endless regression … Know that the world is uncreated, as time itself is, without beginning and end.” — The Mahapurana, Jinasena


“The Church hates a thinker like a criminal hates the police.” — Smart Bee


“To certain individuals of small minds and overweening ambition, there is no greater insult than to be proved wrong.” — Thomas H Dyer 1984


“People in general are equally horrified at hearing the Christian religion doubted, and at seeing it practiced.” — Samuel Butler, in “Samuel Butler’s Notebooks”


“Worship the gods, listen to their advice, but don’t lend them money.”– Smart Bee


“Wickedness is a myth invented by good people to account for the curious attractiveness of others.” — Oscar Wilde  “Phrases and Philosophies for the Use of the Young”


“What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau


Smart Bee is a bit testy this morning; these are the best I could find…. So, I’ll leave you with a short statement of my own advice when confronted with someone trying to get you to swallow their hook, line, and sinker…. to wit:


“Get a taste of religion. Bite a preacher!” — Smart Bee, with gigoid’s full agreement


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


Some poems, and poets, need no introduction, nor adornment…. Enjoy!




I Speak Not 


I speak not, I trace not, I breathe not thy name; 

There is grief in the sound, there is guilt in the fame; 

But the tear that now burns on my cheek may impart 

The deep thoughts that dwell in that silence of heart. 

Too brief for our passion, too long for our peace, 

Were those hours – can their joy or their bitterness cease? 

We repent, we abjure, we will break from our chain, – 

We will part, we will fly to – unite it again! 

Oh! thine be the gladness, and mine be the guilt! 

Forgive me, adored one! – forsake if thou wilt; 

But the heart which is thine shall expire undebased, 

And man shall not break it – whatever thou may’st. 

And stern to the haughty, but humble to thee, 

This soul in its bitterest blackness shall be; 

And our days seem as swift, and our moments more sweet, 

With thee at my side, than with worlds at our feet. 

One sigh of thy sorrow, one look of thy love, 

Shall turn me or fix, shall reward or reprove. 

And the heartless may wonder at all I resign – 

Thy lips shall reply, not to them, but to mine. 


~~ George Gordon, Lord Byron  ~~




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


Since Smart Bee is a bit out of sorts, we’ll go with a choice from the archives…. This pearl was first posted on 7/13/2012, though, to look at it, you’d think it was made to go with the rant section above….

——————-


Here then is an old-school pearl…. Strung together, each of these distinct ideas blend to become one scathing exposé of society today…. Just what that exposé consists of is, of course, left as an exercise for the Gentle Reader…..


“And it came to pass that in the hands of the ignorant, the words of the bible were used to beat plowshares into swords…” — Alan Watts


“Religion is the masterpiece of the art of animal training, for it trains people as to how they shall think.” — Arthur Schopenhauer


“What do you mean, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch?” *YOU* are the free lunch!” — Solomon Short


On a sidewalk near Portland State University someone wrote `Trust Jesus’, and someone else wrote `But Cut the Cards’. — Smart Bee




Those Jesus Freaks

Well, they’re friendly but

The shit they believe

Has got their minds all shut.


~~ Frank Zappa, “The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing” ~~




“Honesty isn’t any policy at all; it’s a state of mind or it isn’t honesty.” — Eugene L’Hote


“Apes evolved from Creationists!” — Smart Bee


Well, there you have it…. perhaps a bit less scathing than sardonic, but attractively presented, if nothing else, eh? Don’t forget to offer a cut to the player on your right before you deal the cards ….


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


Well, I’ve done it again, Ollie…. There’s no going back now, and, since I never intended to do that, anyway, we can proceed to close this out with only minor guilt, which, I’m happy to say, I gave up years ago…. We all need a hobby, right? Right…. On that note, I’m outta here, ffolkes…. See y’all tomorrow….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest  Carole, Mark, and Theresa…

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


Kowabunga!






À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Four plastic tug boats and a waffle iron….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Thoughts are mightier than strength of hand.”


~~ Sophocles ~~


 (496-406 BC)


 — Phaedra, Frag. 854 —




Artist’s concept of supermassive black hole within M60-UCD1


     Okay…. the quote? It’s a good one, but, hey, duh! As for the picture, you may have seen it; I’ve seen it two places on the web, just in the three days since it was released; this copy came from Space.com… It is a picture of an artist’s rendering of a massive black hole, found by astronomers in a dwarf galaxy near another larger galaxy it orbits, or, more accurately, is part of in a eons long dance of exchanging materials….. Just a little reminder of how small we actually are, in relation to the Universe…. Of course, when one speaks of the Universe, and the stars, one must also think of the music of the spheres, so real, yet invisible to any as-yet-known instrument, our Home rings with music, pouring out of everything that exists, with most only as silent witness…


Music….. It’s a huge part of me, which, for too long, I haven’t allowed to be as much a part of my life as I’d prefer, for a number of reasons… or, if I have let it in, it hasn’t been to the degree I’ve recently come to realize is important to my health, in more than merely a physical sense. How much it CAN be has yet to be determined, but, I’m going to give it more of a chance to fulfill the need in me, to listen to it, to play, to sing, to dance, even if only in a chair. It has always been around, it seems, but, not always at the times I, perhaps, needed it most…. which is a bit mysterious, as music is pretty readily available anytime, anywhere…. Fortunately for all of us, it will have to remain a mystery, as I don’t have time to go into long, sad stories, especially to start the day….


Ever since I managed to stumble onto the method for posting music videos here on the blog, I’ve been listening to some of the stuff that first got me involved in playing my own music, through the simplest expedient at the time, learning to play a guitar, singing the lyrics, and, quite simply, freeing my spirit…. which had not even realized there was a sky, much less that it could fly in it…. Since that time, making it, along with listening to it, has almost always been a part of my life; always, but for the last few years, at least, not to a degree I would like it to have been…. But, my passion for it remains, dormant for now, until the urge to play hits…. “Then I’ll pick up my guitar & play…” et cetera, et cetera, et cetera to paraphrase Pete, and Yul….


In addition to its power to affect each of us individually, music can be a powerful teacher, to all those who hear it…. Ideas (freedom, liberty), attitudes (patriotism, loyalty, community spirit), language (slogans, songs, poems), all are susceptible to modification under the magic auspices of music, affecting people on a society-wide basis, merely by a popular song, or a series of articles, or movies starring heroic actors….


Witness the US government movies prior to, and during WWII, and the Korean ‘conflict’…. (Do fewer people die in a conflict than in a war?…. Just wondering….) Many Hollywood musicians, singers, dancers, actors, and all the supporting people in the studios worked diligently to pass on the government’s key ideas and attitudes that would support the war efforts…. Very strong stuff, some of it, hidden in most excellent swing band style, complete with singing sisters…


See how easily I can fall into a rant…. Ah well, I am in too good a mood to worry about all that right now…. besides, I’m sure there is plenty of THAT going on down below…. For now, just know that I love music, and, most likely, so do you…. so, I’ll give you a tip, that may help you, or not…. Most of the videos I’ll be adding in the new second section, inserted after the intro (where I’ve decided the video pearls will live here on ECR….), if you let them run to the end, no matter how long, will offer you choices of similar videos, by the same, and other artists…. So, merely by stopping by to read, you can, if you wish, have the entire day’s play list right at your fingertips…. as long as there are more music choices you enjoy…. after each of which, more choices show up…. Cool, eh, what?….


We’re all about public service here at ECR, as y’all well know…. so, I’ll also take this moment to mention the Walk the Walk for Climate Change that is happening right NOW in NYC, and in cities all over the world, to tell the leaders there at a summit on that subject, that the people want to see real changes made, and no BS….. I’d be there if I could, but, since I can’t, I’m sending all my curmudgeonly outrage into the airwaves to them, and letting y’all know you can do the same…. Give the asininnies and the BRC a loud THPPT!, and tell them to get off their duffs, and get to work saving our asses before it’s too late….


I for one am probably too old to make it to the first Mars or asteroid colony, or even the second, if it works…. but, if that looks like our only hope, well, I’ll be pounding on the air lock door before they take off; hell, I’ll ride on the outside, if I have to…. Just give me a space-suit, a rope, and a strong magnet or two, and I’ll get there if I have to tie myself to the radio disc….


Probably enough fantasy for one morning, wouldn’t you say?…. Well, too bad; I would. No, just joking, fantasy is always in order, almost anywhere but on a space ship, where mathematics works better…. It did get us this far, though, which will do for our purposes…. In fact, we can just turn right here, and….


Shall we Pearl?….


“It may be true that my desk here is really “nothing but” a transient eddy of electrons in the flux of universal process. Nevertheless, I find that it continues to support my feet, my revolver, and my cigars all day long. What happens when my back is turned I don’t know. Or much care. That’s no concern of mine.” — Edward Abbey


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




“Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century:


Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others; 

Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected;

  Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it;

  Refusing to set aside trivial preferences;

  Neglecting development and refinement of the mind;

  Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.


~~ Marcus Tullius Cicero ~~




http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Officials-demand-criminal-probe-of-PG-amp-E-s-5767564.php


I had originally thought to put an older rant here, and shall do so, forthwith…. The above link is to a current article, from a day or so ago, talking about the most recent corruption shown by PG&E and the Public Utilities Commission, which is, ostensibly, a public entity charged with overseeing the utility company…. As the article shows, the relationship they’ve developed has gone beyond that, into a symbiotic state, showing quite well how businesses work to corrupt government agencies….


But, rather than rant on that today, I’ll give you an older rant, that deals with the same issue, to wit, lies, lies, and more damn lies from the people who are allegedly working for us, the people, but, who, in fact, have been looting the treasury, giving most of our money to the bankers and shadowy corporate interests (most significantly, the arms dealers who make such a profit on all the wars the governing assholes engage in….), who give not the slightest shit for anyone but themselves, for almost the entire history of this country….


Below, you will find a small temporal anomaly, but, as long as you don’t try to keep up with where in time you may be at any particular point in the piece, you’ll be fine… In other words, suspend your normal hold on reality, and just go with the flow…. believe me, you DON’T want to actually try to know when you are; it could cause problems in the space-time continuum that might get out of hand, potentially resulting in an explosion to rival the FIRST Big Bang…. It would be better, all around, if you just didn’t even bother to try….


From 6/3/2013:


I have a lot to do today, and need to get started early to get it all done,,, so, I’m cheating here, but in a good way. This is a Pearl from November of 2011… Much of it is apparently written around the same subject as discussed in section one of today’s effort, so I’m including it here, to save myself some time, and give y’all a bit of contrasting text to compare…. You can check for me to see if what I wrote then is consistent with what was done today, or if it was better, or worse…. Whatever it was, it’s a bit long, so, here it is, so you can get started….


11/16/11

Ffolkes,


Good morrow to you…. let us begin as we mean to go on….


“Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” — Gene Fowler


This line is included today merely to give y’all an idea of what I go through every morning to produce this…. whatever it is. It is a pretty good description, actually, because when I’m done, I actually feel battered and bloody. Bloody well used up is what it is. Maybe it’s easier for other writers; I don’t know. But for me, to produce something that my standards will allow me to publish for others to read, is much like having a piece of my soul ripped out. The funny thing is, though it hurts a lot, I wouldn’t stop doing it, even if I could. The pain of creation, which after all requires destruction first, is a worthy payoff for the sense of accomplishment I get when I see one of my pieces online for all to see. Quite a rush, actually….


“Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted.” — Aldous Huxley


This observation, as far as I can tell, is 100% accurate, and because it is, many of the problems society is facing are easily explained, if not easily resolved. For example, when was the last time you gave a thought to what else besides oxygen is in the air that you take into your lungs on the average of 15-20 times per minute.? When you last got a glass of water from the tap, did you stop to think about what was in the water you use to drink, cook with, and bathe in? As Mr. Huxley pointed out, most folks, yourselves included, seldom think about or appreciate such simple necessities, or what might happen if they were no longer available.


What will we do when the air is so full of carbon dioxide that the amount of oxygen in it is decreased below the point where it will sustain life? Will we all have to wear breathing apparatus in order to brave the outside world? What will happen to all the other animals if there isn’t sufficient air? What will you do when the water you drink is no longer safe to consume? We need water as much as we need air; our chemical make-up is 90% water, and not having enough of it to replace what we lose is a sure path to the grave within a matter of days.


There are other issues connected to this subject; the consistent degradation of our planet’s ecosystem has a great many negative effects, small and unnoticeable at first, but growing larger over time until they are added to the list of processes that will eventually lead to extinction of all of this planet’s life forms.  Part of the problem is that it is a slow, insidious process, this degradation, and the deleterious outcomes are not evident until too late to reverse.


Remember, the Universe doesn’t care, one way or the other, whether we survive or not; the rules are the rules, and fighting against the natural laws of our space-time continuum is a fool’s bet. Like it or not, we, as a species, are going to need to make some serious changes to the way we do things, if we are to survive at all. And we will need to do it starting yesterday….


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


I really admire Albert Einstein, and not because he was a great scientist, as well as one of history’s shining examples of men and women who greatly advance human knowledge, and do so out of their love of mankind. Albert’s wisdom was not restricted to the principles of physics and math; he had a unique way of looking at the world, and the ability to share their deep insights into life and the universe for the benefit of others. He was an eternal optimist, and as the above quote demonstrates, had a firm grip on the concept of living with honor and dignity.


He believed in the inherent goodness of every man, and lived his life in a way that it stands as an example for the rest of us. I cannot wholly agree with what he states above, because I have a much darker view of what human nature is capable of, and less faith in mankind’s willingness to submit to natural law. But what he said does show with clarity where our salvation lies, and in his own inimitable manner, he shares his deeper knowledge with the rest of us in the hope it will inspire others to act honorably….


“To laugh often and love much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to give of oneself; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sing with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier: this is to have succeeded.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson


From what I gather in my study of 19th century American writers, a lot of the best were what I would call masters of advanced curmudgeonry. Emerson, Walden, Thoreau,  were all libertarians living in compromise with a democracy, and spent much of their time either complaining about society, or hiding from it in their forest retreats. This is not to say that what they wrote was bad or mistaken in premise, necessarily, but if you read their work with this in mind, it becomes apparent that they didn’t much like other folks, or put much trust in their rationality.


But, as the included quote indicates, being a curmudgeon doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t understand humanity, or what it takes to make life complete. This paragraph from Mr. Emerson demonstrates this perfectly. One cannot argue with conviction that all of these attributes listed, and experiences from a long life, are positively rooted, and make perfect sense. Whether or not we actually have all of these characteristics is unimportant; the list remains valid even if incomplete. And it provides anyone with a good map and directions that can be useful to us in our pursuit of happiness….


So much for another day…. Hopefully, you have consumed a fair portion of food for thought, and found it palatable enough. If not, feel free to let me know, and I’ll see if I can come up with something more savory…. in the meantime, y’all take care out there….


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


Today’s music video will be classical, because I like it, and I’m feeling the need for something uplifting, to go with the change of pace….


Enjoy!…..




Classical Music for Spring : Vivaldi, Strauss, Schumann








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


Today, I feel like one of the classical romanticists…. Ah, here’s a good one….




He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven


HAD I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,

Enwrought with golden and silver light,

The blue and the dim and the dark cloths

Of night and light and the half-light,

I would spread the cloths under your feet:

But I, being poor, have only my dreams;

I have spread my dreams under your feet;

Tread softly because you tread on my dreams. 


~~ William Butler Yeats ~~




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


This section normally holds an old-school pearl, and, it shall… but, first, a bit of artwork that will drench your eyes in beauty….. The web site at Space.com held an astronomical photography, posting the winning photos here:  http://www.space.com/27197-astronomy-photo-contest-winners.html?cmpid=558274   The photo you see is the overall winner; I’ve included the link so you can go see the rest of them…. some are incredible, like this one….





Aurora over a glacier lagoon


     Gorgeous, yes? Now, here is the pearl that was originally to go here….    This one is DEFINITELY random….


“The most important thing in acting is honesty. If you can fake that, you’ve  got it made.” — George Burns


“If a person offend you and you are in doubt as to whether it was intentional or not, do not resort to extreme measures.   Simply watch your chance and hit him with a brick.” — Mark Twain, Advice to Youth Speech, 1882


“If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)


“Give me a place to sit, and I’ll watch.” — friend of Archimedes


“You say you want a revolution, well you know, we all want to change the world.” — (Beatles) Revolution


“Now is the time for all good men to come to.” — Walt Kelly


“Do not try to live forever. You will not succeed.” — George Bernard Shaw


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


It’s a bit of an epic, but, it’s done, and I’m not going to second-guess myself at this point….. In fact, I’ll be unusually brief, and merely say, see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest  Carole, Mark, and Theresa…

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”


Kowabunga!




 À bientôt, mon cherí.




 

					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
From this perspective, it’s clear the vicar was nude….

			
						

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Ffolkes,

Day the next 013    This picture was taken somewhere in the North Atlantic Ocean, during a trip around the British Isles…. It may just be my favorite picture, of all I took on that trip…. The color, the composition, it just speaks to me, in a lot of ways, bringing with it memories of that time, along with appreciation, for the picture’s potentiality for cogitative stimulation…. The first thought that always occurs to me is how it is impossible to tell, just from the picture, whether this was taken at sunrise, or sunset; it could easily be either one….. Not bad, for an old fart with his first camera, eh?….


Today’s Pearl will be odd, as if, A) you hadn’t heard THAT before, and, B) just as if it could be anything else, when one considers the source, to wit: me, in all my strange glory…. What do you mean, that isn’t glory, it’s dirt? I’m not going to even bother to think about THAT statement; no way that could be true…. I mean, if that were true, what was all that….. well, never mind. I think, upon reflection, we should just skip right on by this little episode, and chalk it up to the early hour, even if it’s a late early hour, for me…. It’s getting harder to drag myself up each day, but, that, too, is nothing new, is it?….


Age, pain, bozoid tendencies…. I’ll tell ya, ffolkes, it makes for an “interesting” life, one you would think would offer plenty of material for a writer….. and maybe it does, for a writer whose mind is normal… My own idiosyncracies tend to color my perceptions, as they do for all of us…. mine just have a greater effect on me than most ffolkes suffer; maybe it has to do with all the spikes, thorns, and broken glass covering the material my head produces. It does get a bit iffy trying to handle it without injury, especially given my known habit of beating myself over the head with certain types of information, so it is more easily assimilated…..


I’m wandering again, aren’t I? This is what happens when I sleep late; I wake up foggy, (normal for me…), but, start writing anyway, as I’ve found the process of creating these introductory sections eventually wakes me up enough to get through to the end of a Pearl…. Well, so far, anyway….. Apparently, once I’m relatively awake, I can do this in my sleep…. Your guess is as good as mine as to whether it helps, or hinders to write while somnolent; I DO keep getting them done, so, I suppose that’s something….


Well, now, there’s a pretty mess, eh? It seems I turned the picture, which is somewhat undefined by itself, into yet another reason to ramble and blather my way through the first section, all without ever coming to any conclusions, but, without haring off into uncharted regions of my mind, or anyone else’s, for that matter…. What did I just say? Let me go back a second, & analyze that last sentence…. Okay, yep, it’s as I thought…. I’m reaching the point of incoherency, so we have to stop now, or someone will get hurt…. and it’s most common for me to be that someone…. So, instead….


Shall we Pearl?….


“If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you’re a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind.” — Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.


Okay, well…. that explains THAT….. Onward, ffolkes….


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


I may have mentioned I’m up pretty late, (or not…. I am now, though, right?…. Mentioning it, that is…. I’m up late… there, now you know….), which precludes a FRESH rant, especially given the news of late, which has way too many subjects that would be suitable…. In today’s state of mind, picking one could be as hazardous as writing one…. So, here is a reasonably priced discussion of some esoteric minutiae for your reading pleasure…. Oh, and keep your neurons fired up and ready with this one, ffolkes, it’s a bit deeper than usual, even if it doesn’t touch on anything particularly volatile…..


From 10/21/2012:


I keep six honest serving-men

(They taught me all I knew);

Their names are What and Why and When

And How and Where and Who.


— Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) — Just So Stories (1902) “The Elephant’s Child”


I first read the phrase “feeding the Elephant’s Child” in a Robert Heinlein novel, many years ago, and enjoyed it as a metaphor for reading/learning, before I knew from whence it originally came. Once I did know (a moment of illumination whose exact placement in time is hazy….), I liked it even more, from an aesthetic standpoint. The above little ditty is brilliant doggerel, astute observation, and deep insight, all presented in a simple, straightforward style, with a powerful, basic lesson for any would-be philosopher, or any one who wishes to encompass reason as their modus operandi, so to speak. Besides which, I find that another piece of Bob’s advice fits well with this one, to wit: “Life tastes better in big bites….”


“Never wear anything that panics the cat.” — P. J. O’Rourke


I like this, a lot. It summarizes perhaps one of the most elemental rules of getting along in the Universe, in essence saying, “You can learn a lot by watching what happens around you…” It is the perfect companion to the concept of learning as presented above, as it contrives to speak to both sides of Reality, i.e., how you approach reality (the clothing you choose to show to the cat….) and how reality will change to react to your approach (the cat’s opinion of your clothing….) It also gives one a subtle warning about how the wrong clothing can produce unwanted consequences, and we all know how an offended cat is likely to respond…. as Mark Twain once remarked…. “A man who carries a cat by the tail is learning valuable things. He will never again be dim or doubtful. Chances are he’ll not carry the cat that way again, but, I say, if he wants to, let him!”  You can’t say fairer than that….


“All that we are is the result of what we have thought.” — Buddha


One can always trust the Buddha to state the most profound thoughts in the simplest way…. I often wonder how he came to such a complete understanding of Murphy, whose presence is acknowledged in all of what the Buddha stated, but whose ministrations seem to have passed by the Buddha’s existence…. either that, or Murphy shows him a lot more respect than he does anyone else alive. At times, it seems that what the Buddha states, such as in this statement, is, in at least one respect, an answer to a question that is raised when Murphy intervenes in our lives…. in simpler words, he explains why Murphy is able to affect us as he does, by cutting through the bullshite we perceive to the truth of what is real….. SIGH…. one of these days, enlightenment will slap me upside the head, and I’ll be able to see Murphy coming…. I hope…


There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.” — Bob Dylan


Often I feel as if not only is life a joke, but it is our duty and purpose on this plane of existence to codify that joke, to put it down on paper, or on screen/disc, to free ourselves from the prison of sobriety, achieving an understanding that everything in this silly universe is here for our amusement, and we have been taking it, and ourselves, seriously for entirely too long….. So seriously, we have begun to offend those parts of the universe that just want us to relax and enjoy ourselves, and the time is growing nearer when we will have to admit that the joke is on us, for not being able to change our inner selves enough to be able to handle the humor of our situation…. See, the universe thinks death is funny…. not because it is cruel, but because death is just another part of life, and it doesn’t care about one more than the other…. See, now, isn’t it funny how you never noticed that?…..


I once read a science fiction novel, whose title and author escape me completely; in all it was very poorly written, with prose that did not live up to the good ideas contained in the plot line. However, it was a great plot line, in all….Specifically, there was one chapter I liked, which had a super-genius taking on the task of finding the solution to a mathematical treatise, an equation so complex and advanced that no civilization in the galaxy had ever been able to completely solve it.


The genius/hero of the book shut himself up in his room for three weeks, working on the problem. At the end, he was thinking so hard he entered a trance-like state, computing while nearly dead…. after a week of this, he suddenly opened his eyes, gave a look of astonishment, and burst into uncontrollable laughter for approximately 25 minutes. When he could finally control himself, he simply said, “It’s a joke….” and would never discuss it again….


In a pearl such as this one has grown to be, there comes a time when I have to decide whether to continue on, to try to reach the conclusion that was nebulously hovering somewhere in my mind as I began, or to admit that I have once again wandered into uncharted territory, and might find it a bit tricky to find my way back to clarity. This is that time…. and I’m leaving it up to Smart Bee, as always…. If I don’t find a proper pearl to carry on the tenuous chain of thought I’ve created, then we’ll take the first one that will appropriately wrap it up as a lost cause….. all within a specified number of attempts…. so, here we go… You’ll know in a moment what will happen….


“In a word, neither death, nor exile, nor pain, nor anything of this kind is the real cause of our doing or not doing any action, but our inward opinions and principles.” — Epictetus (c. 60 AD) — Discourses, Book i, Chap xi


There, see?…. That didn’t take long at all…. and I managed to find the perfect pearl to cover both bases…. In this case, we will use it as an ending quote, since it sort of summarizes a lot of the discussion, after a fashion. It could conceivably also be used as a springboard for further discussion, but this has gone on long enough, and I wouldn’t want to lose anybody due to an injudicious application of excess verbiage, culminating in tedium…. Of course, we may have reached that point some time ago, but, hey, who’s counting?…. Any who, I hope you enjoyed this little foray into not very much….


🙂


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Being late means not having the time to go search for anything from other authors to fill up the empty spaces between lines; this can be a good thing, or not, depending on a lot of factors, which we won’t go into now…. Suffice it to say, it’s usually easier to find one of my own to go with whatever is taking place, and today is no exception to that observation/rule…. I wrote this in October of 2012, during the period of time after my retirement when I was in my deepest depression, and living under the most trying circumstances I’d experienced in many years…. I guess it goes to prove that poetry comes out of human experience in a more compelling fashion when that experience is a test of their endurance, or stamina, or however one describes the effort of standing up to the crap life sends our way, every day…. Enjoy, ffolkes, this is one of my best….






Seeing is Conducive to Belief


Folly sits so comfortably upon my fevered brow

one would easily believe that I would know how

to look at Life with a jaded, weary eye

seeing enough, and more, to know Why.


Such seems the case, as I will it to be,

an open book of a face, it looks so like me;

what’s known to be so, needs no close attention

familiar sights require no minding, nor mention.


The eye is drawn at once to the stark and new,

and sent back to sleep by successful review.

Once we find evidence we feel we understand,

curiosity languishes, dismissed at command.


Ancient sages knew the insidious value of illusion,

preachers and pundits know the power of confusion.

Each pair of eyes contains its own point of reference,

each mind sets its own standards of preference.


Seeing is believing, for those who live in thrall,

accepting what is perceived is all they ever recall.

Unknown to them, reality follows another set of rules,

Deeper, more dangerous, and no place for fools.


~~ gigoid ~~


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Even though I’ve managed to get caught up to schedule fairly well, by dipping into the archives instead of going fresh, I’m still feeling rushed from being behind all morning…. An old-school pearl should fix that, and takes no time at all…. as long as Smart Bee is cooperating today…. Let’s go see what it’s got for us, shall we?…. No parameters, we’re going with pure impulse for this one…. Good luck! Buena suerte!  We might need it….


“Actually officer, if you factor in the earth’s rotation, we were all speeding.” — Smart Bee


“And don’t tell me God works in mysterious ways, Yossarian continued There’s nothing mysterious about it, He’s not working at all. He’s playing. Or else He’s forgotten all about us. That’s the kind of God you people talk about, a country bumpkin, a clumsy, bungling, brainless, conceited, uncouth hayseed. Good God, how much reverence can you have for a Supreme Being who finds it necessary to include such phenomena as phlegm and tooth decay in His divine system of Creation? What in the world was running through that warped, evil, scatalogical mind of His when He robbed old people of the power to control their bowel movements? Why in the world did He ever create pain?” — Joseph Heller, Catch22


“The universe is as it is because if it were any different, we wouldn’t be here to observe it.” — Stephen Hawking


“I refuse to have a battle of wits with an unarmed person.” — Pogo, character in “Pogo,” comic strip by Walt Kelly


“I am not a wimp.” — George Bush


(Sorry, George, but, yes, you are a wimp, and I have to say, I don’t mind telling you….. If you have to say it, it’s proven…. Q.E.D.)


“… as sight is in the body, so is reason in the soul…” — Aristotle — Nicomachean Ethics, Bl. I, Ch. 6, 10966, lines 29-30


“Facts are not truths; they are not conclusions; they are not even premises.  The truth depends on, and is only arrived at by a legitimate deduction from all the facts which are truly material.” — Samuel Taylor Coleridge


Well, there you go…. That went well, and quickly, just as planned…. Damn it! Now I have to keep a watch out for Murphy; things have been going WAY too well thus far….. Watch my back, would you?…. I’ll go try to finish up….


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Well, ffolkes, as I stated in the intro, it turned out quite interesting…. Better behaved, all in all, than I’d expected, so, since I’ve already thus been rewarded by the Universe for my perseverance, I’ll take my leave without further ado, or fuss…. See y’all tomorrow….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest  Carole, Mark, and Theresa…

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


—

Sometimes I sits and thinks,

and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid the dubious


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