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Bowled over by a Boston Brahmin….

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Ffolkes,

“Reality is not a constant.”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

A Starry Combination

Image from Space.com Pictures of the Day, 3/23/2015


“Nobody knows the troubles I’ve seen…” Imagine you’re hearing that on the radio, standing in the shower, thinking about the past…. Then, imagine, for just a moment, you are not naked. What the hell are you doing in the shower fully clothed? Are you nuts? What possessed you to…. Oh, never mind…..

Howdy, ffolkes. As might be noted, I’m a bit under the weather, or, is that over the top? Probably the latter. Nevertheless, this still must get done; hence, the nonsensical BS in the opening paragraph, such as it is. I have little clue as to why that popped out, actually. It just seemed to want to be a part of today’s mess, though goodness knows why. It’s bad enough for us, who HAVE to do this, or go mad; choosing to do so isn’t what I’d call showing the best sense. But, then, what can one expect from a completely imaginary figment of my imagination, but for nonsense…..

I’m late again, of course; that’s why I can’t seem to find anything to talk about here. It’s all screwed up…. or, I suppose it would be more accurate to say I have once more screwed it all up. Such incompetence isn’t my natural milieu, I swear. I used to be considered a fairly competent person, back in the day…. I guess we all fall into that hole when we get to a certain age; it sure doesn’t help to know that, I’ll tell you for sure. It does, however, offer an excuse, and, maybe, if we’re bold enough, it will get us out of this seemingly endless display of idiocy….

You may be asking yourself WHY you made the decision to stop in, today of all days, when I can’t seem to find my way out of the intro. Go ahead, ask…. it doesn’t matter, because I can’t tell you. I’m having enough trouble hooking up this emergency kit, which, if I don’t get done in the next 20 seconds, won’t work at all…. There! Got it…. Okay, ffolkes, I’ll have to ask y’all to return to your seats now. This particular little method for getting us down the page is a little rough; oh, hell, I’ll be honest. It’s a fucking disaster, but, it works. Just close your eyes, (or, put on the masks provided in your seat back in front….), hold on to your neighbor’s hand, and pray!….. We’re goin’ in……

Shall we Pearl?

“It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

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jimi h


Image from http://www.shoutout.com via Google stock images

It’s time for another blast from my past…. This man needs no introduction; simply, the most talented guitarist who ever lived…. Had he lived longer, the entire world would have known his name, forever. As it is, his early work remains some of the strongest, most brilliant pieces of impromptu, innovative brilliance ever heard on the guitar; the like will never be heard again…. Ladies and gentle ffolk, I give you Jimi Hendrix…..

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The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Purple Haze

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https://youtu.be/pjWfxhEfM6U

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Ffolkes….. I first wrote this ode shortly before Noah’s passing, in 2011, posting it online at some pet-oriented website by Triond, an online posting brokerage for bloggers, or other authors wishing to post anything online… I have used it here on WP a couple times, correcting typos here and there as I find them. This time, I’ve gone through to polish up the style and errors of syntax, grammar, or just plain dumbass non-professional writer mistakes which I’ve learned to avoid, or edit. It should have more impact, and be easier to read; I hope you enjoy it. I loved this dog as much as any I’ve had in my life, if not more; he was indeed my best friend for a long time….

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Noah Dog, 1994 ~ 2011


“We give them the love we can spare, the time we can spare.  In return dogs have given us their absolute all.  It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made.” — Roger Caras, “A Celebration of Dogs”

An Ode to Noah

Noah came to live with us when he was about 10 months old; we rescued him from taking the long walk at the Humane Society kennel in Santa Rosa. It was my son’s fifteenth birthday; he wanted a dog, swearing up & down he would take responsibility for its’ care. Pets were always part of family life when I grew up, a policy I’d followed in my own; our last dog had been gone for a bit over a year, so it was time to expand the family once again.

As the door opened into the kennel where the dogs were held for viewing, a large variety of dogs started a welcoming cacophony of different barks; shrill tiny ones, deep booming ones, polite yips, all blended together in an almost desperate frenzied concert, as each animal, many of them almost frantic, tried to get our attention. Some pawed at the gate, some jumped up, some looked nervous, others looked friendly, and all of them, it seemed, were making noise.

When we drew near the last cage in the aisle, we saw a medium-sized, sad-eyed, black and white dog, not barking, not jumping, just sitting down, leaning against the wall by the gate. He was looking me right in the eyes, with an expression on his face that just said, “Get me out of here, please!”. What could we do? He was obviously our dog, so, we told him we’d be right back, then, went back out to the office to announce our choice, & complete the paperwork.

The attendant brought Noah in to us just as I finished. He looked a bit nervous, but, looked around with a curious, calm eye. That is, he was calm until I clasped his new collar around his neck, then hooked on his leash. All of a sudden, he realized he wasn’t going back into the kennel; instantly, he was a new dog, wagging his tail furiously, looking at us with his eyes shining, almost dancing and vibrating in his eagerness to go. As we walked back to the van, he walked proudly in front of us, looking back every few steps to make sure we were still there, tail and ears up, a very happy dog…..

Noah settled into the family immediately. He proved to be very well-mannered, both with people, as well as in his personal habits. When on walks, he would stop to sniff, and lift his leg, on every interesting bush and tree, just like any other male dog. But, when he had to do his secondary business, he made it clear he preferred to go behind a bush, or somewhere out of the way, preferably out of sight.

He’d assume a very embarrassed expression when not sufficiently hidden from sight, turning away, refusing to look up, as if he felt guilty. A very private, discreet individual, to say the least. If he had been overlong between walks, so much in a hurry he made a mistake on the sidewalk, he would act just like a cat, refusing to even look at it, pretending it had not happened. “What mess? Who, me? I don’t know what you’re talking about. C’mon, let’s GO….”

Noah was an extremely intelligent dog. I can say that, as I’ve known a great many animals in my time on this old planet; he was one of the smartest I’ve ever been around, in spite of very minimal formal training. When he came to live with us, he already knew how to sit on command (both voice and hand), to lie down, and to stay. All without needing to be reinforced, I might add….

Well, in truth, he did have a little bit (actually, a LOT) of trouble with the whole concept of stay; he didn’t like being left alone, I guess. When told to stay somewhere out in public, he would often follow after a minute or two; it’s like he just didn’t want to believe we really MEANT for him to stay. He figured he should be with us so he could do his job. As long as he could see us, he’d stay where he was; if he couldn’t, he believed it was his place to find us; in his whole life, we just couldn’t come to terms about it; on this point he was firm.

We also never had to teach Noah any tricks, as he seemed to have figured stuff out on his own, & his way was definitely cool…. The first time I ever gave him a treat (a milk bone), I showed it to him, told him to sit. He sat. I told him to speak; he gave one quick, obviously joyous howl. I held out my hand, & he offered his own to shake. I straightened up, tossed the treat in the air, for him to catch….

I then watched him not merely catch the darn thing, but, after making the in-air snag, he tossed it back up into the air. With a gleefully joyful expression, he watched it hit the floor, whereupon he dove on top of it, rolled over on his back on top of it, & began to perform  a happy dance, by twisting his back and hips as if scratching his back on the floor. I swear, he looked just like Snoopy doing the Dance of Joy. When he was done dancing on his back, he rolled over, with a smug smile, proceeding to enjoy his milk bone, with a big twinkle in his eye. I always wanted to video the move to submit it for Stupid Pet Tricks on the Letterman Show, but never had a camera handy when he performed his feat, so Noah missed his chance for stardom.

Noah’s gotten old now; we just observed his 17th birthday in February of this year; in dog years, he’s going on 120 or so. He can’t hear anything but very loud noises, can’t see more than a few feet; I suspect all he sees now is mostly shadows and moving light. I’m afraid he will be passing on soon, as he can no longer get up without assistance, or fully control his bodily functions. I sometimes feel like I should have him put down, to ease his pains, but he doesn’t act as if he is hurting, and I can tell he enjoys just lying around, dozing, as long as he knows I am near.

For his entire life with us, over 17 years, Noah has been a true and loyal companion. He has observed, with honor, the pact made between man and dog, many thousands of generations ago. Thus, taking care of him in his declining years is both a privilege, and an honor. In my entire life, I have never known anyone more loyal, human, or animal, more compassionate, or more courageous in standing up to life. He is by far the best friend that any man could hope for; what’s more, he is, by far, the best person I’ve ever known……

Rest in peace, my old friend….

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Comedy_Tragedy

Image from Google Stock Images


Today, it is only one of mine, simply because I’m so late I didn’t have time to go look for anyone else’s…. Since I have not ranted in DAYS, this one should sublimate for me a bit….

gigoid’s lament

Not a bit of all the pain I feel
is worse than all I see;
all worldly truth, solid and real,
has faded away, never to be free.

Honor stripped of all regard,
while compassion simply fails;
 Ignorance , powerful, hard,
crows as reason wails.

Crushing resistance, mandating the vote,
selling illusion, smiling all the while.
Pundits, speaking purely by rote,
arrange all the lies in a tidy pile.

Stupidity ’tis said, is a risky choice;
the price is always the same.
Reality has no pity, no warning ever voiced,
only a gravestone, carved with, our name.
~~ gigoid ~~


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Morning muse

    Ffolkes…. the following old school pearl is damn near perfect. I say so only because there is nothing about it I can find to indicate it is anything LESS than perfect…. Ergo, it would be a good idea for y’all to pay close attention, and use all of your reasoning abilities, both inductive, and deductive, to form the intended conclusion(s)…. There… if that wasn’t obscure enough, or confounding enough, well, I can try again…. No, okay, here you go; pay heed, this will definitely be on the Quiz we all must take to exit this life…..

What’s madness but nobility of soul
At odds with circumstance?
 
~~ Theodore Roethke, “In a Dark Time” ~~


“If it had been a bear it would have bit you.” — Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) — Polite Conversation, Dialogue i

“The devil does not stay where the music is.” — Smart Bee

“It’s a poor sort of memory that only works backwards,” the Queen remarked.” — Lewis Carroll, “Through the Looking-Glass”

“Each of us visits this Earth involuntarily, and without an invitation. For me, it is enough to wonder at the secrets.” — Albert Einstein

“I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together!” — (The Beatles) I Am The Walrus

“Anything that kills you makes you…well, dead.” — Very, very Smart Bee

“Sure, understanding today’s complex world of the future is a little like having bees live in your head.  But there they are . . .” — The Firesign Theater, “I Think We’re All Bozos on This Bus!”

All things must change
to something new, to something strange.~~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ~~


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It’s done; not without a struggle, but, done nonetheless. (I will say, this vertigo crap is getting old, fast.) In fact, so done, I’m already gone…. See y’all tomorrow, 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

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À bientôt, mon cherí….



Turnips & aquavit; breakfast of champions….

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Ffolkes,

“Nothing in human affairs is worth any great anxiety.”

~~ Plato ~~

3-1-2015 009

Afternoon sun shines

brightly through the pepper tree.

Beauty strikes at will.

~~ gigoid ~~

Oh, no! Just when I thought I had this figured out, I get up to find myself again confronted by a vast white space, with nothing worth writing to be found anywhere in my mind…. Scary, and frustrating, since I had achieved a bit of success at getting them done in a timely fashion…. Y’know what, ffolkes? I’m not even going to fuss with it at all. The damn screen up here can remain blank, for all I care. I’m going to be as ruthless as I’ve ever been, even counting the time I…. no, I probably shouldn’t share that. The statute of limitations hasn’t passed yet. Ah well… Any who, I think we’ll just end this right here, before we get fully started, and before this gets any stranger than it already is…. Luigi, get us out of here!….

Shall we Pearl?

“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.” — Oscar Wilde, “Oscariana”

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elvin b

Image from elvinbishipmusic.com via Google Free Images

One of this artist’s peers once said of him, “He’s ain’t good lookin’, but he sure can play.” Elvin Bishop’s primary source of fun in life was playing music on stage; one could tell that by the constant grin on his face as he played. No other artist I ever saw in a live performance consistently gives his all for his fans onstage like Elvin; I’ve been to see him in a lot of different venues, and it is ALWAYS a great time…. In fact, I’m thinking of making his song, Travelin’ Shoes, my theme song…. Enjoy, ffolkes, it doesn’t get any better than this for live music….

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Elvin Bishop ~~ Travelin’ Shoes 1975 BBC

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le penseur-rodin

Le Penseur ~~ August Rodin


A short, but, potent rant from the intro section of the Pearl posted on 10/5/2013:

Unbeknownst to the remainder of the world, I struggle, here in the dark of the morning, waging war with the always-present, never-sleeping, force of evil, that the world calls Bob, or sometimes, Steve-a-rino….. No matter what name we use, by any other token, they are very, very bad evils, whether in their initial, merely bloody, sharp-sword incarnation, or if they’ve gone into complete chainsaw mode. Either way, somebody is in for a world of hurt….

“What the hell is he babbling about now?”, is probably the foremost question in your mind(s) right now…. (I know, assuming that more than one mind currently reading this is being, perhaps, too hopeful…. My readership has taken a severe dip lately….)…. I’m babbling because, hey, it’s what I’m best at, and nothing else seemed as if it was going to get me down the road toward a real Pearl, so, I just went with it…. It’s not as if y’all had gotten accustomed to a more elegant format around here, now, is it? No, we’ve been stuck in bourgeois mode for quite some time now, with no real change of venue in sight…

Not that there’s anything wrong with being bourgeois; it’s only when we start trying to break into proletariat mode trouble begins, as it always does in such cases….. The human animal, though it always seems to fall into some form of hierarchical society, seems to function most efficiently when categories such as bourgeois, proletarian, or any others based on financial worth, are NOT used to determine one’s relative place in society…. The only truly honorable form would be a society where one’s social standing was based solely on how much one gave back to that society…. This, however, is mere speculation, since no human society has ever been structured in such a manner that it could be considered as “honorable”…..

Society has always been structured to favor those with the most resources under their control, which is why we are seeing the issues we now have to deal with, as the effects of entropy over time wear away at the foundations upon which it is built. Money is an artificial concept, not really a part of reality, other than as we humans perceive it to be, and therefore, only has the importance that we place on it. Making it the primary social factor that determines how high up in society one rises in the estimation of peers is destined to become a problem, as human nature tends not to share very well…. in short, people get greedy, and hoard all the resources (money) to themselves, ensuring their own place, and keeping others in a place lesser than their own….

Politicians, bless their black, lying, little hearts, would have us believe we live in a classless society, that everyone is equal, and has equal rights…. Well, ffolkes, guess what?…. That’s just another of their ubiquitous lies, and society isn’t like that at all…. At every level, built in prejudices and misconceptions, guided and kept true by unseen, but iron-clad cliches, color people’s viewpoint with the brush of discrimination, based on how much money a person makes, or what color their skin may be, or where they were born, or whether or not they stand up to pee…

People use a myriad ways to decide that other people aren’t as good as they are, all of which are lies; all of those thousands of prejudices are taught by, enforced by, and continuously enabled by the BRC, our Beloved Ruling Class, who believes their place at the top of society is inherently theirs. Given this long-held delusion, and the fact that it has held sway over the rest of society for over ten thousand years, it seems clear they have no intention  of ever relinquishing that place to anyone else….

Oops, it happened again, didn’t it? I fell right into another opening rant, never realizing what I was up to until I was a thousand words down the pike… I guess it’s okay; I don’t see any casualties, other than my own readership’s numbers, so, apparently nobody was standing close enough to get hit by the flying shrapnel….. The fact that there ARE no casualties is not necessarily a good thing, you know….. a couple of bodies would at least indicate that there is SOMEONE reading this stuff, but, I guess my ego doesn’t really need THAT kind of proof…. It’s all a wash anyhow, as I ran out of lime and sulfuric acid, and I’d have a hard time disposing of the corpses… so, it’s just as well….

On that note, I think I’d best get on with it…. Shall we Pearl?…..

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

“To sit silently,  and look wise, is not to be compared to drinking sake and making a riotous shouting.” — Ono No Tabitu

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About Hopi Indian Symbols

    I found this poem from e.e. cummings hiding in Smart Bee, whereupon it was instantly chosen for today’s poetry section, because, hey, good stuff. The Kokopelli adornment above just seems appropriate; if the reason for that is unclear, I suggest googling the name for some background….

Most simply put, according to the Navajo/Hopi beliefs about Reality, Kokopelli is a spirit form, which they see as a very basic part of everything, a representation of one of the eternal principles they saw in the world; in this case, of Entropy, in flesh form…. Coyote, the Trickster is one of the manifestations of his spirit; sometimes seen as his companion, other times he is a shape-shifter who assumes coyote form… One can never tell what the Trickster might be up to in Reality, so, it’s well to plan for his presence….

jake hates
   all the girls(the
shy ones, the bold  paul scorns all
ones; the meek           the girls(the
proud sloppy sleek)  bright ones, the dim
all except the cold  ones; the slim
     ones  plump tiny tall)
    all except the
           dull ones
gus loves all the
   girls(the
warped ones, the lamed  mike likes all the girls
ones; the mad      (the
moronic maimed)   fat ones, the lean
all except   ones; the mean
   the dead ones  kind dirty clean)
    all
       except the green ones

~~ e e cummings ~~

Hmm…. I may have chosen better than I knew… It occurs to me, perhaps Mr. Cummings wasn’t talking about girls, at all…. ya think? Bears thinking about, I’d say….

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buddhacat

    Today’s final pearl, in my mind, is pretty obviously a recipe…. Any ideas as to the dish it describes? Feel free to comment below….

“Each of us bears his own Hell.” — Publius Maro

“We are all captives of the pictures in our heads.” — Walter Lippmann

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

“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, _Demian_, 1919

“I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act.” — G.K. Chesterton

“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

“If a man remembers what is right at the sign of profit, is ready to lay down his life in the face of danger, and does not forget sentiments he has repeated all his life when he has been in straitened circumstances for a long time, he may be said to be a complete man.” — Confucius — Analects, XIV.12

When I ‘m not thank’d at all, I ‘m thank’d enough;
I ‘ve done my duty, and I ‘ve done no more.

~~ Henry Fielding (1707-1754) ~~

~~ Tom Thumb the Great, Act i, Sc. 3 ~~


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Since I managed to begin with alacrity, I shall end the same way. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, with the usual caveat…. to wit: as long as I remain at liberty….

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….


Off with their Keds!….

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Ffolkes,

“Cat philosophy: When in doubt, cop an attitude.”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

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Your will is my will….


Good morning…. For someone such as myself, deeply connected to the power of the Metaphorse, the feeling with which I awoke today is terrifying…. I can’t seem to find any understanding of metaphor anywhere; my mind sits and stares blankly, just trying to make some sense of the simple, uncomplicated expressions with which I am presented, such as the fine statement of confusion, below, from our old pal Zippy…. Anyone with the most simple understanding of such matters would realize Zippy was just looking for condiments; he was probably holding a Polish Dog, so he was temporarily overcome by the olfactory stimuli…. He has such a sensitive proboscis, after all…

Nonetheless, we have a job to do…. It’s a tough job, cleaning out a mind like gigoid’s every day, but, it has to be done, or the Space/Time Continuum would take a severe beating, and nobody wants that…. So, rather than whine any more, let’s just get on with it, hoping against all hope that Smart Bee isn’t in the mood for bullshit…. I’m afraid, if that’s the case, it could get a little messy before we’re done…. Oh, well, no choice, so, let’s get on with it….

Shall we Pearl?

“Is a tattoo real, like a curb or a battleship? Or are we suffering in Safeway?” — Zippy the Pinhead

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groucho and carmen

Groucho & Carmen

Image from Pinterest.com via Google Images


Since we began the day with silly, it behooves us to continue in the vein…. What could be sillier than Groucho?….

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Copacabana

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le penseur-rodin

    In February of this year, I created a pearl of good quality, which I ended up giving a title, an extremely unusual event, to be sure. It seems to be the right choice for today’s ranting section, simply to avoid any conflict with the tone of the rest of today’s effort…. In short, it seemed like the right thing to do, so, deal with it…. Really, it’ll be fine….

From 2/12/2014:

I’ve never gone for titling Pearls of Virtual Wisdom, or pearls, either, for that matter. For this one, though, if I were asked to give it a title, it would have to be:

The Rise and Fall of Homo Erectus

We shall never cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

~~ T. S. Eliot ~~


“Life is pleasant.  Death is peaceful.  It’s the transition that’s troublesome.” — Isaac Asimov

“Everything is simpler than you think and at the same time more complex than you imagine.” — Goethe

“Nothing is easier than self-deceit. For what each man wishes, that he also believes to be true.” — Demosthenes

“Expedients are for the hour; principles for the ages.” — Henry Ward Beecher

“If a man could pass through Paradise in a dream, and have a flower presented to him as a pledge that his soul had been there, and if he found that flower in his hand when he awoke – Aye, and what then?” — Coleridge, “Anima Poetae”

Like leaves on trees the race of man is found,–
Now green in youth, now withering on the ground;
Another race the following spring supplies:
They fall successive, and successive rise.

~~ Alexander Pope ~~

~~ The Iliad of Homer, Book vi, Line 181 ~~


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Comedy_Tragedy
Unbidden, treasure unfolded…

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid ~~

“Poetry–even bad poetry–may be our final hope.” — Edward Abbey

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A-laughing-girl-and-her-camel

    Okay, that does it…. This is the last time I give SB, or anyone, for that matter, free rein to pick out their own pearls…. The following nine-star group of gems (for lack of a better word) has to be the strangest damn pearl I’ve ever seen…. But, it all hangs together, and, damn it all if it doesn’t make a weird kind of sense…. You tell me….

“You can lead a yak to water but you can’t teach an old dog to make a silk purse out of a pig in a poke.” — Opus

“Happiness is inward, and not outward; and so, it does not depend on what we have, but on what we are.” — Henry Van Dyke

“To say yes, you have to sweat and roll up your sleeves and plunge both hands into life up to the elbows. It’s easy to say no, even if it means dying.” — Jean Anouilh

“While all things have their opposites, it is also true that in each the spirit of the opposite exists. — Hazrat Inayat Khan, Sufi writer

“I reject that philosophy. The impossible often has a kind of integrity which the merely improbable lacks.” — Douglas Adams through Dirk Gently

“Clay is moulded to make a vessel, but the utility of the vessel lies in the space where there is nothing. … Thus, taking advantage of what is, we recognize the utility of what is not.” — Lao Tzu

“If a camel flies, no one laughs if it doesn’t get very far.” — Paul White

“So, this doesn’t mean anything, but at least it’s not obvious nonsense.” — Hugh Young

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

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I think, maybe, tomorrow, I will take a bit more interest in what takes place here…. Today’s effort, such as it is, was brought to you by the number 13, and through the kind auspices of that fine old philanthropic institution, Bones For Bozos; fortunately, for them AND us, they didn’t know anything about it. I’ll be back tomorrow, to see if some sort of amends can be made to all who were offended by today’s nonsense…. We’ve got a slush fund that may be able to help any who suffered DNA damage…. As long as I’m not incarcerated at some undisclosed location, I’ll see y’all tomorrow, 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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

dozer3


À bientôt, mon cherí….


Puccini? No. Verdi? Ah!…. Book ’em, Dano…

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Ffolkes,

“Sex is better than reading; no overdue fines.”

~~ Jean-Luc Picard ~~

yeoldemanscythe_UK tel 7-19-15 1251

Ye Olde Man & Scythe, est. AD 1251

Image from the UK Telegraph, article on the oldest pubs in England, July 2015


Good morning…. I wasn’t entirely sure it would be…. Yesterday morning, I fell into a very Murphy-like trap, no doubt of my own making in some way; most of his work is usually connected somehow to a moment of inattention on our part…. Just because I complain about Murphy’s Law doesn’t mean I don’t also understand karma…. It’s all on me, ultimately. Like most ffolkes, and, for that matter, all folks, we need to vent the frustration of our own stupidity now and again…. Thankfully, my whining never lasts long; then, I can get on with fixing whatever I’ve broken, metaphorically, or literally…

Yesterday’s troublesome issue fell into the latter category. Firefox has been my browser of choice for many years, but, the latest version doesn’t seem to agree with one or more of the security programs I choose to use; essentially, every time I opened it up, it froze up on me, big time…. I was unable to successfully troubleshoot it, so, I had to figure out a workaround, which meant I didn’t get posted until about 0715, much later than usual. The mere fact yesterday’s mess got posted at all should earn me a ‘geek of the week’ award. for finding a quick workaround, that promises to be a better fix than planned…. Essentially, I switched to Opera, as my default browser, and all seems to be well… That works for me, for the nonce, which is way better than not, anachronism or no….

Right. I’ve done it again, haven’t I? I’ve blathered to open up the day’s adventure in folly, thus guaranteeing a certain degree of peretroinyeka, which is an obscure, not to mention non-existent Ukrainian word meaning “nothing at all”. See, my lawyer told me to stop making guarantees, so, well, we have to resort to little tricks like that to keep from breaking any rules that could lead to litigation…. The budget won’t stand it any more….

Okay, we’re lost good and proper now, aren’t we? I may as well just throw my hands up, and be done with it. Nothing else seems likely to get us anywhere at this point…. So, imagine, if you will, me, rolling my eyes, throwing up my hands, and cursing the gods of blogging, whom we know as Norm and Nancy the Nifty…. Okay, okay, I’ll stop. You don’t have to get all weirded out…. Shoot, go back above, & have a pint in the pub, then we’ll get started… Go ahead, we’ll wait…. Ah hell, no we won’t…. Luigi, let’s go; we’ll give them a refund when we get back….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Sigh… Every day I thank my statuette of Wilma Flintstone that I was born normal.” — Zippy the pinhead

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jackbruce
Image from bbc.co.uk via Google Images


Jack Bruce is one of my favorite old time rockers; he’s remained true to his music, and way of life, since I first heard/saw him, way back in his days with Cream, in the 60’s, of which time I have many good memories….. Contrary to popular belief, not ALL of us were so stoned we don’t remember it…. I will confess to partaking of my share, and possibly more, but, hey, we were all young once, right? Here is a documentary on Jack’s life and work which I think y’all will enjoy…. Besides, it get us down the page with some really good music…. Enjoy….

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Jack Bruce – The Man Behind the Bass

(BBC Documentary)

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We the People...

“Men rattle their chains to show that they are free.”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

“…and so castles made of sand slip into the sea eventually.”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~


Though I’m up in plenty of time, I’m not in a ranting mood; I feel better than usual, which causes less angst to accumulate…. It did give me time to find a good rant for today, though. This one is, sort of, a summary of indictments of our Beloved Ruling Class, may their skin itch unbearably…. It’s fairly short, and, I think it’s one of my best…. but, then, I’m biased…. You tell me what you think, if you should feel the urge…. Otherwise, just read, and think about it; I’ll be happy with that….

Written June, 2012; last posted November, 2013:

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

The framers of the Constitution knew what they were doing when they tried to build in safeguards into the system of government they chose after the revolution against England. They structured it with checks to the balance of power in each section, Executive, Legislative, and Judicial, reserving, as well, several rights to the people that had historically been reserved for the governments themselves, including the right to bear arms, one every government in history has tried to restrict for its own use. The right to bear arms, the right to vote, the right to gather to protest, to speak freely, all these have, at one time or another through the last four or five millennia, been restricted by governments, until men like Jefferson, Mason, and Washington took those rights for themselves, supposedly securing the same opportunity to their descendants.

In fact, I regard it as proof of this assertion, to find that the government, not only of this country, but all of them, is STILL trying to restrict the rights of the populace to bear arms. To my way of thinking, the most recent attempts by the government to curtail the public’s ability to obtain the means to protect themselves adequately merely serve to point out how accurate are statements such as the above, showing how little human nature has evolved, or advanced in the intervening years…. I’d be hard pressed to call the changes we’ve seen anything other than a retreat, from achieving a more civilized society. The populace continues to live in fear, most of which is manufactured by that very same government, to distract them from what is going on behind the scenes; for example, observe the data mining and illegal surveillance being carried on by Saint Obama and the current administration….

Sorry to apply the sarcastic epithet to the POTUS, (no, I’m not, but, I AM polite….), but, his recent actions have revealed a lot of stuff that indicates, yes, he IS a politician, and, as such, has been lying to the public on a regular basis since entering office, a habit much practiced by all those who enter those hallowed doors, as it turns out.

Historically, it seems, ever since I’ve been alive, for the last 64 years, each and every man who has been in the White House, with the possible exception of Jimmy Carter, has lied to the public on a regular basis, without qualms, and without apology…. This isn’t news, or new news, at all…. just go back over the headlines and op-ed pages over that period, and the evidence of what I have asserted is plain to see….

This is why I won’t ever consider any alterations to the second Amendment, or the First, or to any of them…. I still regard them as law, and see any attempts to restrict them as being acts of treason against the principles by which they were conceived and enacted. I DON’T trust ANY politician, not one who spends millions to get elected, even if, or especially if, the money isn’t theirs…. The mere act of WANTING to be an elected official implies insanity to me, either of a sociopathic nature, or an evangelical one, either of which is dangerous to allow into any position of authority over others, as they will ALWAYS act to serve their own self-interests first…..

’Nuff said….. gigoid has spoken, and has no more to say on this subject, except….. Leave my Bill of Rights alone, or pay the consequences…..

“Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man’s original virtue. It is through disobedience that progress has been made, through disobedience and through rebellion.” — Oscar Wilde

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Note from 2015:

I’d been working on an old-school pearl for this section, when I found the above & decided to re-use it. As it turns out, what I’d been working on was right in the same vein, so, I just left the needle where it was, and here they are, to finish this section with a bang…. sort of…..

And Katerfelto, with his hair on end
At his own wonders, wondering for his bread.
‘T is pleasant, through the loopholes of retreat,
To peep at such a world,–to see the stir
Of the great Babel, and not feel the crowd.

~~ William Cowper ~~

~~ The Task, Book iv, The Winter Evening, Line 86 ~~


“It’s possible to fight intolerance, stupidity, and fanaticism when they come separately.  When you get all three together it’s probably wiser to get out, if only to preserve one’s sanity.” — Adam Dalgliesh, in Devices and Desires, by P.D. James.

“All governments need enemies. How else to justify their existence?” — Edward Abbey

“We must never forget that if the war in Vietnam is lost… the right of free speech will be extinguished throughout the world.” — Richard Milhouse Nixon, 10/27/65

(Yes, he actually said that, in public…. No, I have no idea what he was thinking….)

How sharper than a hound’s tooth it is to have a thankless serpent.” — Smart Bee

“And some of your elders remember pleasures with regret like wrongs committed in drunkenness. But regret is the beclouding of the mind and not its chastisement. They should remember their pleasures with gratitude, as they would the harvest of a summer. Yet if it comforts them to regret, let them be comforted.” — Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet

(No, I don’t always understand myself…. but, it fits, doesn’t it?….)

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Comedy_Tragedy

    A new poem has been leaking out, a few verses at a time, for several days; it has apparently stalled after two stanzas, & I don’t want to force it, or it could simply disappear altogether…. Here’s a two-fer sublimation, with a couple of my older poems, along the same lines as today’s overall theme, whatever that may be…. Enjoy, please….

Momentary Terror

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid ~~

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Making Room

Our souls, they say, are like shapeless, infinite bags
in which we put all our pain, all our joyous wonder.
Broken hearts and thrilling love, riches to rags,
endless perceptions of serenity, and thunder.

‘Tisn’t simple, this spiritual journey to peace
memory is fickle, easily led astray;
darkness, ever lurking, without surcease
turning innocence to harm, from simple play.

Balance is the key.

Timing is everything.

Good can change bad, bad can change good.

Pain makes room for more joy in our souls.

The only power we need is the power to change ourselves.

~~ gigoid ~~


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Aristotle_Bust_White_Background_Transparent

    When y’all see Aristotle at the top of this section, it should be clear it’s time to put on your thinking caps. Although this nine-star collection of gems has only one entry by one of Mankind’s earliest polymaths, the point(s) being presented are all well within the sphere of influence of his ideas. One of his sayings was, (not the one included here), in fact, the inspiration for axiom #4 of Peruaosophy, which, as you all know, states, “Excellence is its own reward.” Each of these, then, is a reward to its author, and a gift to all of us…. Enjoy….

Als das Kind noch Kind war, gab es diese Fragen:

Warum bin ich mich, und warum nicht dich?
Warum bin ich hier, und warum nicht dort?

“When the child was a child, there were these questions:

Why am I me, and why not you?
Why am I here, and why not there?”

~~ Rainer Maria Rilke ~~


“Know, first, who you are; then adorn yourself accordingly.” — Epictetus

“The only courage that matters is the kind that gets you from one moment to the next.” — Mignon McLaughlin

“Belief is the death of intelligence.” — Robert Anton Wilson

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

“All I know of love is that Love is all there is.” — Emily Dickinson

“Love withers under constraint: its very essence is liberty: it is compatible neither with obedience, jealousy, nor fear.” — Percy Bysshe Shelley

“Curiosity will conquer fear even more than bravery will.” — James Stephens

And if I laugh at any mortal thing,
‘T is that I may not weep.

~~ Lord Byron ~~

~~ Don Juan, Canto iv, Stanza 4 ~~


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It can be a challenge to actually determine the quality of each day’s mess around here; it’s all a bit close to home for accurate judgment with an objective eye…. Nonetheless, I’ve spent enough time on this one to ensure a pretty high degree of, if nothing else, relative coherency, if not outright clarity…. both of which would be, no doubt, a refreshing change for y’all…. I do love my obscurity. But, it’s enough; my sanity is intact for another day, so, I’ll take it out into the BBR and give it a test run up against the real deal…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, unless one of you tracks me down, & shoots me… Oh, with a camera, of course…. Bye!….

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….


ALL policies are foreign….

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Ffolkes,

“Illusion is the first of all pleasures.”

~~ Voltaire ~~

Leelu willing me to play

Leelu, asserting her will….


Hajime….

Other than the fact I’ve been up now for six days, there’s no really good reason not to do this. Therefore, I’ll do it. I won’t, however, make any claims as to quality, or, for that matter, quantity. It’s here, it’s done, deal with it. I have to, so, you may as well. I’m also damn tired of coming up with new shit for this intro, so, fuck it. Let’s do this…..

Shall we Pearl?….

“It is the edge and temper of the blade that make a good sword, not the richness of the scabbard; and so it is not money or possessions that make man considerable, but his virtue.” — Seneca

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vivaldi-antonio
Antonio Vivaldi

Image from 8tracks.com via Google Images


Today’s musical selection is, without doubt, my favorite single piece of classical music. When I worked the night shift, this concerto got me through more hours than any other piece… Enjoy!….

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The Four Seasons
Antonio Vivaldi

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Aristotle_Bust_White_Background_Transparent

    I’ve a fresh rant brewing, but, ’twasn’t done, and, besides, it’s been a tough night. I’ll sublimate, again, with a nice little discussion from the archives. Enjoy!….

From 4/17/2013:

“A thing is not proved because no one has ever questioned it…. Skepticism is the first step towards truth.” — Smart Bee

As I was cruising through Smart Bee this morning, looking for inspiration for section 3, I came across this little gem, unattributed. It sounds like it could have come from a number of different philosophers, all of whom are noted for their wisdom and perspicacity (another great word….). It is also a part of the human flaw that has contributed to many of the problems we face as a society, and as a species.

Actually, it might be more accurate to say that the lack of this in humans is part of the flaw; most people one talks to would not agree with this idea, as stated. In fact, it is directly opposed to the educational premises of many cultures, especially those heavily influenced by religions, such as those in Mexico, Central and South America, where Catholicism is a powerful factor in society, and in the governing of that society. India, and much of the Eastern Hemisphere, too, have societies that are heavily influenced by religion, though with more participant sects than is true in the Western Hemisphere; Hinduism, Buddhism, Shinto, to name a few, are always a contributing factor in the political events that have shaped history.

“The common dogma [of fundamentalists] is fear of modern knowledge, inability to cope with the fast change in a scientific-technological society, and the real breakdown in apparent moral order in recent years That is why hate is the major fuel, fear is the cement of the movement, and superstitious ignorance is the best defence against the dangerous new knowledge. When you bring up arguments that cast serious doubts on their cherished beliefs you are not simply making a rhetorical point, you are threatening their whole Universe and their immortality. That provokes anger and quite frequently violence.” — G Gaia

As a result of this influence, many people tend to reject skepticism, as it doesn’t fit in with what they have been taught, which is to never question anything told to them by persons in positions of authority. Churches tend to encourage this sort of attitude, as their outrageous claims of divinity, and supernatural events performed by their deities, do not stand up well to scrutiny by an objective eye. The leaders of the churches thus play right into the hands of the Beloved Ruling Class, as they counsel their flocks to obey worldly, temporal authority as readily as they are conditioned to obey the secular variety…..

“I just stepped on a factoid!” – Zippy the Pinhead

Thankfully, not all of humanity is defenseless against this sort of conditioning. There are many ffolkes out there who don’t buy into the sort of psychological blackmail being promulgated by the preachers, priests, imams, and shamans of all shapes and sizes around the world, and a large number of them seem to end up blogging, right here on WordPress…. So, I end up preaching to the choir pretty often. But, that’s okay, too, because I know that occasionally, one of those folks who do believe in what they are told, without any questions or doubts, will read this, and, if nothing else, will think about what I’ve said…. Who knows, maybe I’ll go viral, and the whole world will remember that WE ALL ARE GODS?”…… (Remember?  Axiom # 3…. “Thou art God, you know…. Let’s do lunch….)

“Youth of today!  Join me in a mass rally for traditional mental attitudes!” — Zippy the Pinhead

I suppose that’s a note from my subconscious, to let me know I’ve gone far enough off the rails for now, and should let these good people get on with their lives, rather than wandering around in mine…. Goodness knows where we’ll end up…. So, anyway, just remember to cultivate your sense of doubt, your “crap detector”, as it were, and never, ever take anything “on authority”, without tangible proof…. You’ll find Life to be less confusing that way; certainly, it makes it a lot easier to look yourself in the mirror in the morning…..

“This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher must learn not to be frightened by absurdities.” — Bertrand Russell

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Comedy_Tragedy
Accentuated Lessons

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

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

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

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

Peace lies within, always…..

~~ gigoid ~~


Written 9/27/2012.

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About Hopi Indian Symbols

    A slightly recalcitrant SB finally gave up a closing pearl for this one, an event it’s been putting off for twenty-some hours.  I think it came out well; the final result makes the wait worthwhile for me. Enjoy, ffolkes….

“I must invent my own philosophical systems,  or else be enslaved by other mens'” — William H. Blake

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

“Is consciousness just a special form of hallucination?” — Frank Herbert

“The trail is the thing, not the end of the trail. ravel too fast and you miss all you are traveling for.” — Louis L’Amour, Ride the Dark Trail

“How could the drops of water know themselves to be a river? Yet the river flows on.” — Antoine de Saint-Exupery

“All teachings are mere references. The true experience is living your own life. Then, even the holiest of words are only words.” — Deng Ming-Dao

    I saw Eternity the other night,
Like a great ring of pure and endless light,
All calm, as it was bright;
And round beneath it,
Time in hours, days, years,
Driv’n by the spheres
like a vast shadow mov’d; in which the world
And all her train were hurl’d.

~~ Henry Vaughan ~~

~~ The World ~~


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This one is another testament to stubbornness, as much as anything else. Nonetheless, it’s done, and that’s all I care about. Especially at almost 2 AM. I guess I’ll go get it posted, and see if maybe I can fall out for an hour…. Fat chance. I will, however, be back tomorrow, regardless of whether or not Fate allows me to gather Morpheus’s boon to my breast….. Who needs sleep? Apparently, not me….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

dozer3


À bientôt, mon cherí….


Isles of Langerhans? No flights from here….

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Ffolkes,

“Give light, and the darkness will disappear of itself.”

~~ Erasmus ~~

Busy Leelu

Leelu, playing with her prey….


Hajime…. ‘Tisn’t often I forgo fooling around when I write. Hell, the whole idea of me writing is fooling around, if it comes to that. Which it has. Come to that, I mean. Therefore, and hence, today, I’m going to do the next best thing to promising NOT to do so, which is to just go ahead and fool around all I frigging want. See, I’m retired, and, as a retired American, old-fashioned variety, I can do whatever the fuck I please, as long as I keep what I do either legal, hidden, or, (for my own benefit), ethically sound. So, gird your grids, ffolkes, we’re goin’ in….

How was that? Any better than the usual crap? Ah, well, I kinda thought so myself….. It isn’t easy to do this EVERY DAY, you know. Perhaps, Y’ALL might try it someday; come up with an interesting opening, bright and charming enough, or compelling enough, to create the desire to keep reading in whomever may stop in to read. Only then can one realize they have completely fucked up, and have locked themselves into an activity which is pretty much guaranteed to drive one absolutely, fucking crazy, trying to do the nearly impossible….. No wonder daily newspaper columnists are considered the elite of the news rooms…

However, I’m the one who chose to do this, and, since the act of giving up isn’t an option for me, due to the strength of my earliest conditioning by the Sergeant and the Mom, (no, I don’t think of him like that; that’s what all the men he worked with in the Army called him, if no officers were around….), neither of whom would approve of abrogating a chosen duty. So, I’ll keep on muddling along, until a good reason to stop presents itself, whereupon I will have to go this entire process again…. Oh, joy….

Since I’ve now depressed even myself. perhaps we should just get on with the rest of today’s messiness….. That seems, to my limited perception, the only way to save this…. In fact, no Luigi, no Guido; I’ll just teleport all of us over to the oyster beds, and be done with it…. No need to hang on, or even put down your beverage; you won’t even notice, as I’ll use the newest toy in the Tardis to get us there; it’s pretty cool…. Watch this….

Shall we Pearl?….

“If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of potential — for the eye which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints; possibility never.” — Soren Kierkegaard

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

    Today’s musical selection is in the Classical genre, with a composer whose works comprise possibly the largest number of works, of every category, as anyone who ever composed misic. His music is familiar to almost everyone who has watched movies made since before his death in 1921, as many movements from his symphonies were, and are, used as background for many scenes in dramatic and comedic films. I’ve included below a link to his biography on Brittanica.com; he was an interesting man, who led a very full life, adding much to the best art and thought of humanity…. Hopefully, what I’ve embedded will be a collection of his music in 50 You Tube versions, which should play automatically once begun….  Enjoy!….



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Camille Saint-Saëns

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le penseur-rodin

    I don’t have the chutzpah, or, any angst to speak of today, to write a rant/discussion, . Can’t say why; might have a lot to do with feeling decent for a change. Nor do I wish to burden y’all with another archived piece…. Whatever the reasoning, or reasons, I will, instead, limit this section to ONE graphic pearl, which just happens to be my favorite of all the memes and little pictures with sayings I’ve collected off the Net over the years…. This one is both a rant, and a discussion, all rolled up into one picture, and, a short verse from the Tao Teh Ching…. It’s all it needs, believe me….

Lao Tzu sez
Q.E.D.

Lao Tzu has spoken.

So be it.


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Comedy_Tragedy

    I was looking through my poetry files, wherein I found one I haven’t used since 2013. It’s not bad, so, to allow my bones time to make more blood, after the new poem leaked out the day before yesterday (posted yesterday), I’ll use it today…. I hope you enjoy it. To some extent, it’s a metaphoric summary of my life, as it existed, so to speak, in that particular time….

Honorable Request

Days, filled to a brim with fluff and time, pass
dimly into memory, bit by combative bit;
ever mournful, yet loud with life and sass,
only in dream do we meet, and dance, and flit.

Souls, spinning ’round in gleeful wonder, comply
as they must, never given a reason;
somberly proper, yet limber and quite spry,
dancing on to greet each bright new season.

Storms, angered by apathetic care, rage
proceeding into ministerial glare, unknown;
clothed in colors, purified solely with sage,
past an infinite future, already flown.

Life, plumbed to its depths and secrets, keeps
flowing with currents, strong and fairly found;
love stands, asking release, as it slowly weeps,
seeking refuge unasked, to stay honor bound.

~~ gigoid ~~

10/13/2012


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Yin-Yang-symbol-sun-and-moon

    My only possible comment on this pearl is “Wow”. You’ll note, please, I used that exclamation without the usual exclamation point; that is simply because it’s not THAT important. It is, however, a damn fine pearl, of, perhaps, my favorite sort, a random, harlequin pearl that created itself…. No apologies, but, you will definitely need to be on your mental toes for this one, ffolkes.

It’s strange, as it wanders into distant realms of thought, filled to the borders with truth and beauty; it also dives into the depths of human nature, where darkness, too often, has its way. But, it’s all fucking true, so, fucking pay attention, please?…. Besides, if you get it, you’ll also get a big surprise; something you were not expecting, but, will enjoy immensely…. Promise…. and, you know I don’t use that word lightly, ever…..

“But first, are you experienced?”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~


“Real life is, to most men, a long second-best, a perpetual compromise between the ideal and the possible; but the world of pure reason knows no compromise, no practical limitations, no barrier to the creative activity.” — Bertrand Russell (1872-1967)

“Do not be afraid of enemies; the worst they can do is to kill you. Do not be afraid of friends; the worst they can do is betray you. Be afraid of the indifferent; they do not kill or betray. Yet only because of their silent agreement, betrayal and murder exist on earth.” — Bruno Yasienski, contemporary Soviet novelist

“As every thread of gold is valuable, so is every minute of time.” — John Mason

“Little girls, like butterflies, need no excuse.” — Lazarus Long, “Time Enough For Love”

“When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.” — African proverb

“I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.” — Frank Lloyd Wright

“In endowing us with memory, nature has revealed to us a truth utterly unimaginable to the unreflective creation, the truth of immortality….The most ideal human passion is love, which is also the most absolute and animal and one of the most ephemeral.” — George Santayana, Reason in Religion

“Socrates was in the right to insinuate, in his elegant Greek expression, that what is got over the Devil’s back is spent under his belly.” — Alain Rene Le Sage (1668-1747) — Gil Blas, Book viii, Chap. ix

“A wise man never loses anything, if he has himself.” — Michael de Montaigne — Essays, Book i, Chap. xxxviii, Of Solitude

“Hospes, ad hunc tumulum ne meias.

Visitors, kindly do not piss on these bones.”

~~ Anonymous Roman epitaph ~~

buddah-out-to-lunch_s

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Done, in spite of several complicating factors. So complicated, the act of completing this missive became more than just a small challenge. Having successfully navigated the winding course to bring us this far, I’ll perform now my best act of compassion of the day. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, if the Internet is still functioning…. Odds are good….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Featured Image -- 5012


À bientôt, mon cherí….


Winsome wiggling only on Tuesdays….

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Ffolkes,

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

~~ Bertrand Russell ~~

famine memoria

Irish Famine Victims Memorial ~ Galway


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

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

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

Shall we Pearl?

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

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


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Yield_Logo
Playing For Change


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

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One Love

Blues of People

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Sandclock .jpg

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

From 3/16/2014:

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

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


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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Comedy_Tragedy
Penance, Made Simple

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

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid ~~

10/23/2012


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pearls_3

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

dozer3


À bientôt, mon cherí….


Doubtful dreams, dubiously delivered….

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Ffolkes,

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

 ~~ Anais Nin ~~

ugly beauty

Beauty can be found even in ugliness…


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

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

Shall we Pearl?

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

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Bob Marley

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


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Bob Marley
Legend

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Sandclock .jpg

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

From 2/12/13:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Comedy_Tragedy

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

Denial of Comfort

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid ~~

9/6/2012


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Morning muse

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

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

~~ Lewis Carroll  ~~

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


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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“Bert? Are you awake Bert?” — Ernie

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

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch


À bientôt, mon cherí….



Inflatable Gorgonzola? Aisle three….

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Ffolkes,

“I am not the rose, but I have lived near the rose.”

~~ H. B. Constant (1767-1830) ~~

Belfast 010

White’s Tavern, Belfast, Ireland

Opened 1630 by Royal License


Hajime…. Lest I begin to list, either literally, or, metaphorically, let it be said, while there is still time and wherewithal to do so, we have never, ever been so fucking tired, or, for that matter, the other way around. Of course, such presupposes carnal activity, which is, sadly, currently not an issue in this house, so, perhaps we won’t say that after all. After all, if we said it, there’d be no taking it back, right? Okay, so, let’s just forget this entire paragraph, shall we? I think, if we are to make any progress at all today, that would be best.

In case it isn’t clear, I’m weary. And, not just from living with insomnia, either. I’m weary of the world at large, I think. Part of this is my current lack of social interaction, other than here on the internet, which, though pleasant and fulfilling, isn’t the same as face to face time with other people. Last evening, I dined with my daughter to celebrate her birthday a few days ago, a thoroughly enjoyable time. But, I realized it was the first time I’d actually spoken to another person in two weeks, outside my house, who wasn’t on the other side of a counter, or, standing in a line somewhere. Rather a come-uppance to my mindfulness of my own life and times, if you get my drift.

‘S okay, though; no big. It will give me a short-term personal goal for the nonce, just what I’d been looking for, to supplement my other personal plans for this year, all of which will take time to mature, as they involve the collection of resources over time. I know, pretty obscure, but, at the moment, the best I’ve got to talk about. I’ve had so much time with my old friend, and been so locked into flowing to cope with it, I’ve not had any time to think about writing, other than what was absolutely necessary to post each day…. SIGH. I’m such a wimp sometimes…. but, after a few moments, my natural buoyancy reasserts itself, and we go on, in spite of any crap such as this little chat, which has, quite obviously, lost its way in melancholic wandering around in my head.

So be it. We’ve reached at least one of the required levels of idiocy to call this an intro, yet, I feel it needs more. I suppose I could try some…. No, did that last month. I also did THIS last month, so should probably use another method here, too. Aw, fuck it. I’m done. Let’s go on down the page, without any more bullshit, okay? Sometimes, ya just gotta quit banging yer head against the wall….

Shall we Pearl?….

I have realized that the past and future are real illusions,
that they exist in the present,
which is what there is and all there is.”

~~ Alan Watts ~~


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hendrix
Jimi Hendrix

Image from alexpress.com via Google Images


Yesterday, a Gentle Reader mentioned this artist, whereupon I realized I’d never included any of his music here. To rectify such a cultural faux pas, I am including the longest live session I could find on the first page of You Tube, a concert from 1970 in Philadelphia. Since, at the time, he was the best rock guitarist alive, it promises to be pretty good…. When he succumbed to the BRC’s poisons in his life, we lost a man who was, perhaps, destined to be the best ever, for within his short time on Earth, he had already taken the guitar to heights never before seen, or even considered for a musical instrument, of any kind…. Quite simply, he was made of music…. and the PTB of society cannot tolerate such beauty for long…

Think about it…. Why else would drugs STILL be an issue in society, if the PTB didn’t want it that way?…. End of rant; enjoy the music….

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Jimi Hendrix

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Plato-Aristotle

“The truth is that Christian theology, like every other theology, is not only opposed to the scientific spirit; it is also opposed to all other attempts at rational thinking. Not by accident does Genesis 3 make the father of knowledge a serpent- slimy, sneaking and abominable. Since the earliest days the church as an organization has thrown itself violently against every effort to liberate the body and mind of man. It has been, at all times and everywhere, the habitual and incorrigible defender of bad governments, bad laws, bad social theories, bad institutions. It was, for centuries, an apologist for slavery, as it was the apologist for the divine right of kings.” — H. L. Mencken

I’d intended to use Henry’s quote to discuss religion yet again. However, I fell out for a couple hours, awakening in time to finish today’s Pearl, but, not in time to rant on such a subject. As is our attitude today, so be it. Here’s one on the same subject from the archives, to fill in as we may. Enjoy!…

From 12/2/2012:

“There is one God, but which one is He?”

~~ Smart Bee ~~


Now, this is the proper use of reason and inquiry! Such a small question, made gargantuan by the depth of its insight. Which one, indeed, is the real God? There are as many answers to this question as there are what I like to call “preachers”, for want of a better word (I should maybe try to pick a better one, I suppose….); “preachers” are men, or women, who have decided upon one particular system of beliefs on the subject of divinity as being the correct one, to the exclusion of all the others. In spite of the lack of hard evidence on hand for any of the different belief systems, these folks choose one, and stick to it like a barnacle…. which, come to think of it, is probably what it feels like, after a while….

Depending on to whom the question is put, the answer may vary from Odin the All Father of Norse mythology, to the God of Zoroaster, whose specific appellation escapes me just now. In between you will find God, also known as Yahweh/Jehovah to the those of the Tribe, Allah to the Muslims, and just plain old God to most of the Christian sects. There is the voodoo god, Jobu, in the Caribbean; Set, or Mammon, or any of the other ancient earth gods;  Ra of the Egyptians; Krishna, and all his incarnations, i.e., Kali, Yama, Ganesha, Maya, and the others in the Hindu pantheon. The American Indians seemed to favor the Great Spirit. Ancient Druids and Wiccans follow the Goddess, with gods and goddesses from the Greeks and Romans thrown into the mix, just for fun. The list seems as endless as human imagination….. which it is, since all of them spring from that source.

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

~~ Smart Bee (and, most likely, the Dalai Lama….) ~~


As far as I know, Buddha never claimed to be a god, and was, to my mind, not particularly clear on the subject of divinity, as directly related to humanity. The same seems true of Taoism, though certain of its sages seem to hold some of the old Chinese mythology beliefs on Heaven, and the creatures who inhabit that domain, another concept for which there is only imaginary evidence to support its veracity, and its reality. In this way, I see these philosophies as superior to the religious doctrines that purport to worship a deity, as they rely on reason, personal responsibility, and compassion to direct action, rather than fear of reprisal, or hope for reward, as is the wont of religious dogma and doctrine.

This perception of mine may be because I have always thought that the entire concept of a deity is not capable of being described, or understood, if one is to assume that a god is what it claims to be. How can a mortal understand an immortal? There is no common ground, other than the assumption of existence, for which there can be any reason for one to be connected to the other, as we could not comprehend their existence. We, limited to our human perceptions, have no direct evidence of a deity that can be experienced by those perceptions.

Anyone who tells you they do is lying, even if they believe it to be true, unless they can share that experience with another human, directly, with evidence for the senses we possess, not merely for what we wish to be true. Feelings don’t count, nor visions only seen by them, or voices in the head, and neither do personal revelations, or religious fevers, or speaking in tongues…. See, hear, touch, smell, taste…. that’s what we have, along with the ability to reason, and our imagination. That is our tool kit, and unless one of the tools fits, it isn’t real, to our perceptive ability. Items purported to be evidence that come from imagination are just that…. imaginary, and cannot be considered proof of anything other than the naivete of the speaker, and of any who choose to believe them.

“It is a great advantage for a system of philosophy to be substantially true.”

~~ George Santayana ~~


SIGH…. People are people, though, and they will choose what to believe according to what they feel, most of the time, rather than according to what is the truth, which requires effort to find. It has even been said that humans have a tendency more often than not to make choices that are bad for them, just for that reason, that it is too much effort to think their way through to the truth that would ultimately help them. As long as this is true, then our species is in danger, from itself, and its own delusions…. Sad, in a species of such promise…..

“And on the 8th day, God woke up and said “Whew! It was just a dream!”

~~ Smart Bee ~~


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

Comedy_Tragedy
A Dubiously Soft Morning

Idiosyncratic images, clamoring for regard,
fill up the white, white screen on which I view
my life, never seeing, nor invited to sup
ambrosial remnants of anything new.

Still, yet almost in motion, allegory sails away
bobbing gently, quick and easy to find,
signs of one happy child, seriously at play,
blissfully immersed, focused joy in mind.

Formidable cries of outraged simple justice
echo plaintive relevance, in half the time.
Maladaptive infants, destined for hospice
salvage an only child, daring to sing in rhyme.

Creativity equals unquestioning farce,
often reaching for absurdity, brazenly afire.
Instead, a blow is felt no joy will ever soften,
accepting the price, added to the cost of desire.

~~ gigoid ~~

7/26/2013


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

About Hopi Indian Symbols
Naked Pearls

Courage

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

“Courage is not the towering oak that sees storms come and go;
it is the fragile blossom that opens in the snow”

~~ Alice M. Swaim ~~

*******

“It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person,
“Always do what you are afraid to do.”

~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~

*******

“A coward is incapable of exhibiting love;
it is the prerogative of the brave.”

~~ Mahatma Gandhi ~~

*******

“No man can be brave who thinks pain the greatest evil;
nor temperate who considers pleasure the highest good.”

~~ Cicero ~~

*******

“Courage can’t see around corners, but goes around them anyway.”

~~ Mignon McLaughlin (The Neurotic’s Notebook) ~~

*******

“Courage begins when we can admit that there is no life
without some pain,some frustration;
that there is no tragic accident from which we are immune;
and that beyond the normal exercise of prudence
we can do nothing about it.”

~~ Victoria Lincoln ~~

*******

“As for courage and will
– we cannot measure how much of each lies within us,
we can only trust there will be sufficient
to carry through trials which may lie ahead.”

~~ Andre Norton ~~


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

Considering I put in half a night & part of a day to get this done, I’ll take it, no matter how it floats, or, whether it floats at all. In fact, I’ll use this opportunity to get us all out of here, allowing us to get on with the day. I hardly need to mention, I will be back tomorrow, apparently whether I sleep, or not. Oh, well…. See y’all then….

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

Featured Image -- 7198


À bientôt, mon cherí….


From inside the pentagram….

0
0

Ffolkes,

“Never do a thing concerning the rectitude of which you are in doubt.”

~~ Pliny the Younger — Letters, Book i, Letter xviii, 5 ~~

not so crooked

Shadow of a not-so-crooked old man….


Hajime…. As I sit to begin this morning, I am struck by just how important to my sanity this process has become. Of course, sanity is a question-begging term for most folks, Most ffolkes, too. For me, it’s not a question, at all, at all. I am crazy as a bed-bug, as the saying goes, but, rather than suffer from it, I tend to revel in it. But, then, I am strange, and have accepted it as reality. In fact, being ‘tetched’, as it were, has afforded me untold opportunities in Life, of which otherwise I might never have seen or heard, to my everlasting regret. Since I don’t believe in regrets, I chose insanity.

You see, insanity is not the boojum most folks would have us believe. It is merely another of the many states of mind we humans can adopt, a state which, in truth, is merely another method humans have developed to deal with a big, scary universe they don’t always understand. It isn’t, as we are told, a bad method, it’s merely strange, compared to what most people have experienced. Strange and different don’t always have to mean ‘bad’; if it works to help the person deal with life more effectively than their previous method, well, so be it, in my book. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

But, the rest of the world doesn’t much like strange and different; those two adjectives have, unfortunately, been given a bad rap, in my estimation, and needn’t be viewed askance any more than any other such superlatives. In fact, they offer many advantages the merely sane are unable to even perceive, and, in their own way, are honorable methods for dealing with Life at Large. Well, I find them so, anyway….

I think I’m lost. I haven’t a clue how we got to this point, other than by indulging my own talent for blather. Since we’ve gotten to this point without having any real direction, perhaps it would be best to get on with the show, before we reach the point of no return. We need the return, for the deposit. Therefore, I am calling a halt to any further nonsense, sense, or blather, and will now flip this little switch right over here, which should take us directly to the oyster beds, express-style…. Hang on….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Mongo only pawn… in game of life.”

~~ Alex Karras in “Blazing Saddles” ~~


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

bonnie (2)
Bonnie Raitt


The musical selection for today is an example of pure self-indulgence. I feel like listening to something both soothing, and hot. I can’t think of a better artist to cover both. Here is a live concert from the Oakland Coliseum in 1989. It just doesn’t get any better than this, ffolkes, not in my world…. Enjoy, if you will….

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

Bonnie Raitt Live

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

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

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

Dont keep calm

    Yesterday, for a time, before my back & shoulders began to react to the oncoming rain we’re expecting today, I spent time commenting on a friend’s blog. He posts mostly about politics and issues in the Middle East, and can be found here: https://lobotero.com/ 

My comments became rather a lengthy series of mini-rants, and, apparently, have cleared out any angst that had built up. So, in today’s section reserved for such ranting, you get an old-school pearl, designed to create more angst, or, as we like to call it sometimes, stimulating our rage against the Machine…. It isn’t the most pointed pearl ever, but, it gets rather esoteric and strange in spots…. As well, it’s got some rather tasty shots…. Enjoy!….

“The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal.” — Aristotle

“In all levels of life, the sheep are safe only when the wolves are not hungry.” — F. J. Lovret

“If you have ever seen a four-year-old trying to lord it over a two-year-old, then you know what the basic problem of human nature is — and why government keeps growing larger and ever more intrusive.” — Thomas Sowell

“When I was seven years old, I was once reprimanded by my mother for an act of collective brutality in which I had been involved at school. A group of seven-year-olds had been teasing and tormenting a six-year-old.  It is always so, my mother said. You do things together which not one of you would think of doing alone…. Wherever one looks in the world of human organization, collective responsibility brings a lowering of moral standards. The military establishment is an extreme case, an organization which seems to have been expressly designed to make it possible for people to do things together which nobody in his right mind would do alone.” — Freeman Dyson, Weapons and Hope

“A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.” — Paul Simon

“King Arthur and his armored goons of the Round Table functioned as the Politburo of a slave state: Camelot. Of all who have written on the Matter of Arthur, from Malory to White, only Mark Twain understood this. But Mark Twain was a great writer.” — Edward Abbey

“How many Presidential family members does it take to screw in a light bulb in the White House? Two, Hillary for her office, Bill for the rest of the White House.” — Snarky Bee

“I am quite sure that (bar one) I have no race prejudices, and I think I have no color prejudices or caste prejudices nor creed prejudices. Indeed I know it. I can stand any society. all that I care to know is that a man is a human being – that is enough for me; he can’t be any worse.” — Mark Twain — Harper’s Magazine, September, 1899

“If voting could change the system it would be illegal.  If not voting could change the system it would be illegal.” — Schroedinger’s Cat

“Our subjectivity
Is a mirrored,
Spiked casket.”

~~ Deng Ming-Dao ~~


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

Comedy_Tragedy
After the odyssey….

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

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid ~~

3/10/2013


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

pearls_3
Naked Pearls

Life according to Jimi

*********

“But first, are you experienced?”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

*********

“[Freedom is] the power to live as you will.
Who then lives as he wills?”

~~ Marcus Tullius Cicero ~~

*********

“Make haste slowly.”

~~ Ben Franklin ~~

*********

“Where no hope is left, is left no fear.”

~~ Milton ~~

*********

“If you want to be loved, be lovable.”

~~ Ovid ~~

*********

“I have noticed that nothing I have never said ever did me any harm.”

~~ Calvin Coolidge ~~

*********

“The shortest and surest way to live with honor in the world
is to be in reality what we would appear to be;
all human virtues increase and strengthen themselves
by the practice and experience of them.”

~~ Socrates ~~

*********

“Use a mirror in difficult times:
You will see both cause and resolution.”

~~ Deng Ming-Dao ~~

*********

“If I don’t meet you no more in this world
Then I’ll see you in the next one.
Don’t be late”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

*********


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

Having fulfilled the minimum requirements for a Pearl of Virtual Wisdom, we shall take our leave. We shall, in the interim before our return, attempt strongly to rid ourselves of this damnable royal “we” into which we keep stumbling. We are hopeful of success. We are also outta there, until the morrow. Count on it….

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….


Too early for desperate measures….

0
0

Ffolkes,

“Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice.
Tolerance in the face of tyranny is no virtue.”

~~ Barry Goldwater ~~

violet-boys-2

Violet Moore & sons, circa 1917….

Image from the Moore Family archives….

Hajime…. The people you see in the above photo are my relatives, to wit: My grandmother, my father, and his younger brother, one of two he had. When the photo was taken, I believe my grandfather was still off fighting in WWI, somewhere in Europe. I love it, and not just because they’re my ‘people’, as they’d say in the South. It’s a great snapshot of the time, & given the personal connection, tells me a lot about the people who are in it. In particular, though I didn’t know her until much later in her life, the expression on my grandmother’s face tells me a story, and enhances what I know of her, with her kindness, humor, and patience obvious for anyone with wit to see….

As an old fart with broken emotions, just looking at this picture makes me a little weepy, but, in a good way. I guess the old saw among women, regarding tears, is true; some tears are happy tears, that come when one feels so much love, it has to come out, and the tears are how they can be shared. Maybe it’s not true, but, it feels true…. So be it. It’s family, and needs no excuse for love to be felt…

I guess such an emotional opening rather limits the direction we can take from here. Rather than try to find one that will efficiently segue into the material below, I’ll just use the “fade away” method to move us along to where we need to go. Such indulgence isn’t at all normal, but, when have we ever worried about being normal? To be honest, I wouldn’t know quite how to react if anyone ever accused me of being so… but, that’s another story, for another time. For now, we’ll just do this, and be done with it….

Shall we Pearl?….

“But first, are you experienced?”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

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

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

I spent a lot of time this morning, pre-pearl, to write a friend to whom I owed a letter; unfortunately, this pushed me over into time I needed to spend to get this done. The end result of this is not having the time to… wait a minute! I’ve got a Tardis! What was I thinking? Okay, never mind. We’ve got classical music today, simply because I like it. Deal with it; I must, and so must y’all…. Try to enjoy it, anyway… It is, after all, some of the best music ever played, y’know?….

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

Mozart Symphonies 1-20

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

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

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

Comedy_Tragedy

Confidentially Paranoid

Only when the bright sunlight of dreams draws nigh
can the dark glass of reality factor true value..
Destiny’s horses run in fear as time goes dry,
for grappling with fate in such traitorous venue.

In pallid costumes made of graven cast-off tales,
fallen angels and demons show the measure of faith.
No sad transactions should escape these well-marked trails,
no angry relatives cast insults to a sedentary wraith.

Meaning can always hide in literal cold intent,
yet show mere facets of honor to perishable youth.
Sincere contentions leave with sorrowful bent,
while bastardly arguments fill in poorly for the truth.

Gone are moments filled with florid blasts of rhyme
left to molder on the shoulders of unreasonable hope.
Only courage can save these measures of unspoken time
to gather new issues, powerfully broad, painful in scope.

~~ gigoid ~~

2/25/2015

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Fun with Karma….

*******

“…The Universe is thronged with fire and light,
And we but smaller suns, which, skinned, trapped and kept
Enshrined in blood and precious bones, hold back the night.”

~~ Ray Bradbury ~~

*******

“It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible,
but also for what we do not do.”

~~ Moliere ~~

*******

“Everyone who lives dies, but not everyone who dies has lived.”

~~ No Fear ~~

*******

“You can’t just feel happy; to feel anything you have to feel everything.”

~~ Callan Williams ~~

*******

“If you would know a man, observe how he treats a cat.”

~~ Subtle Bee ~~

*******

“We’re tossed by the winds of fate, Maggie Mae.
Once we end where they blow us, we make of ourselves what we will.”

~~ Niall Feeney, in Nora Roberts’ “Born In Fire” ~~

*******

“It’s so much more friendly with two.”

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

*******

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

Well, there you go… or, rather, there ’tis. Done, and done in time, if not comfort. So far today, I’ve written a long letter, had two cuppas, and faked a routine. I’ve also completed a Pearl, for what it’s worth. To me, it’s worth what I paid for it, if nothing else. Y’all will have to make up your own minds as to whether the cost was worth it, or not. Me, I’m outta here. Of course, I’ll be back, but, I don’t want to scare anybody…. 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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Featured Image -- 2780

À bientôt, mon cherí….


A seasoning of reason….

0
0

Ffolkes,

“If it’s a despot you would dethrone,
see first that his throne erected within you is destroyed.”

~~ Kahlil Gibran, 1923 ~~

bloom

Bougainvillea blooming….

Hajime…. I made it. The holiday is past, for most of the world, and I didn’t go postal. This, naturally, can be considered a victory, mostly. Mostly, I’d just as soon forget the whole month, in many respects, though it was not without moments of exquisite irony, to be sure. But, it’s also mostly gone, so, I can tone down the intensity of my self-control a bit, knowing much of the danger is past. Oh, no danger for me; just for the mundanes. It’s nice to be able to leave off the vest, and only carry the usual number of concealed weapons, rather than the full complement. Less weight, easier on the back, y’know?….

Okay, okay, I’ll just drop the whole subject. I really don’t feel like ranting, except that I do. In this case, it’s for the best if I just note the degree of angst present today, take the necessary precautions, and get on with posting today’s mess. Really, you don’t really want to know the rest; trust me on this. To forgo any further discussion, which may prove unhelpful, I’m using my executive privilege to declare this intro complete, as is… I know it’s too early, and y’all don’t even have your orders placed. But, it can’t be helped; if we don’t go now, the ensuing explosion could throw us completely out of orbit, & it’s best we don’t test that particular potential eventuality. Instead, let’s do this….

Shall we Pearl?

“If I don’t meet you no more in this world
Then I’ll see you in the next one.
Don’t be late”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

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

the-beatles-band-cover-in-black-and-white_72147496118

The Lads

This morning, I wanted some music/entertainment to give the Gentle Reader two things; one, an idea of how I feel today, having survived another Xmas season of insanity. Second, I wanted something fun, or, at minimum, light-hearted, without becoming maudlin, or sappy. A light flashed on in my head at that point, and the name of this movie came scrolling across the ticker-tape in my head; hence, this most excellent blast from the past…. I hope you enjoy it; it’s a classic, you know….

Late note: None of the links on You Tube for the full movie were free; all required some sort of payment, or registration. So, here is a collection of video clips from the movie, with some extras thrown in…. It’s worth it to hear the music, if nothing else…. and, gives an idea of why I don’t much enjoy the Christmas season, due to the commercial flavor of all going on…. Enjoy anyway!….

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

The Beatles
“A Hard Day’s Night”

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

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

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

Comedy_Tragedy

Lamenting Empathy, No Grace

Strange, strong, passions burn from within
Selling nothing short, nor out
Consumed, loudly, failing to mark the spin
Sad, resigned, in singular redoubt.

Fallow grounds for twisted seed
Become fated, grow, and die.
Experience never fills critical need
Save perhaps once, in ages gone by.

Shouting in severe, dulcet tone
Brittle, flaking, destiny floats away
Making noise, rattling the bone
Simply ageless fears held at bay.

We mask our illusions in faux belief
Tied to reality by matter of rote,
Send them postcards, without relief
Consecrated time, forever remote.

~~ gigoid ~~

12/19/2014

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

On the path to an eternal Now….

*******

“My standard answer for that is, I don’t know.”

~~ Honest Bee ~~

*******

“Nothing exists except for atoms and space; everything else is opinion.”

~~ Democritus ~~

*******

“A bird does not sing because it has an answer.
It sings because it has a song.”

~~ Chinese proverb ~~

*******

“Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.”

~~ Subtle Bee ~~

*******

“Nothing is more dangerous than an idea…if it’s the only one you’ve got.”

~~ St. Thomas Aquinas Bee ~~

*******

“Well, Darkness has a hunger that’s insatiable,
And Lightness has a call that’s hard to hear.”

~~ Indigo Girls ~~

*******

“You thought, as a boy, that a mage is one who can do anything.
So I thought, once. So did we all.
And the truth is that as a man’s real power grows and his knowledge widens,
ever the way he can follow grows narrower:
until at last he chooses nothing,
but does only and wholly what he “must” do.”

~~ Ursula K. LeGuin, _A Wizard of Earthsea_ ~~

*******

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

Now disaster has been averted, (neatly, too, I might add…), I’m going to end this here, using a little bit of that leftover executive privilege mentioned in the intro. I’m not certain it is still valid, but, it will do for our purpose today. To make sure that happens without delay, or consequence, I shall bid thee adieu, until next time. If all goes as planned, that will be tomorrow morning, same time, same bat-station. And, no, I don’t know why; it’s just the way it is….

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

Featured Image -- 10691

À bientôt, mon cherí….


Indications of future relevance….

0
0

Ffolkes,

“Love withers under constraint:
its very essence is liberty:
it is compatible neither with obedience, jealousy, nor fear.

~~ Percy Bysshe Shelley ~~

pink bush

Bursting with summer color….

Hajime…. The area of the world in which I reside, northern California, is currently experiencing an intense wave of heat. Yesterday, it reached 97ºF (36ºC) in the little seaside town where I hang, which put both Leelu and I into a state much akin to comatose. At 9 PM it was still 90º, so, sleeping was somewhat problematic. We survived, though, if uncomfortably. Since the coming week is predicted to be even hotter (Wow! But, climate change is a myth, right?), I’m considering spending it sitting in a tub of cool water….

If I were less empathetic, I’d turn on the fan for Leelu, & go find an air-conditioned place to hang for a while. But, that would be rather rude, making my familiar go through that alone. She’d live; her species evolved in the desert, & she’s well adapted, instinctively knowing how to deal with such temperatures, by, mostly, not moving. But, I’d feel guilty the whole time, knowing I was being selfish….If she liked to swim, I’d have her join me in the tub, but, though water fascinates her, it isn’t enough to make her want to immerse herself in it; she shares the usual cat philosophy, which prompts them to mostly refrain from having much to do with it, unless thirsty, or watching it run….

There, I think that should be enough chatty conversation for one day. I’m glad I got it all out at once; it’ll save time later, not having to meet the quota. Since I reached this plateau rather quickly, showing an unprecedented degree of efficiency for 5 AM, I’ll use the empathy I possess, what little of it there may be, to issue an order to cease & desist, with the additional hope my fingers get the message, before haring off into another tangential paragraph. To ensure compliance, I’ll resort to trickery. Look! Over there! Isn’t that Elvis?….. Okay, so, it’s just Leelu. It got us here, didn’t it? Sheesh… So much for trying something new….

Shall we Pearl?….

If six turned out to be nine, I don’t mind.

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

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

Though not, technically, late, yet, I’m feeling the pressure of deadline; probably it’s just my own, (well, not probably; ’tis undoubtedly mine…). In such cases, when I’m feeling a bit washed out, or, just lazy, this is our default choice. As is the usual case, as well, the one chosen had the picture that caught my eye…. Enjoy, if you will….

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

Classical Music

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

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Comedy_Tragedy

Sublimation

In the deepest, darkest hours of the night,
horror drapes the shadow of fear on a tortured mind.
Endless, hopeless, wave after wave of fright
weave a tapestry shroud, stifling, brutally unkind.

Fear, then pain, trade off in durance vile,
offering only blackness as a temporal guide.
No moments of clarity, no comfort, no guile
with no respite, nor any safe place to hide.

Hour after hour, time stops dead in its tracks,
the path back to sanity ends, no big surprise.
Every passing second becomes new hope, dashed,
while our remaining strength fades and dies.

God shall never be forgiven, nor ever praised.
No such pale, sad illusion can explain such reality.
Any reasonable chance for joy to be raised,
requires more than mere ghostly personality.

Hope isn’t needed if one finds the center of the soul;
all the answers we ever need are there.
Killing fear, creating joy in life, for these there’s no toll.
Love, friendship, laughter, are ever the healthiest fare.

~~ gigoid ~~

12/1/2015

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Notes on Life at Large….

*******

“Read nature; nature is a friend to truth.”

~~ Edward Young ~~

*******

The real questions are the ones that obtrude upon your consciousness
whether you like it or not,
the ones that make your mind start vibrating
like a jackhammer,
the ones that you “come to terms with”
only to discover that they are still there.
The real questions refuse to be placated.
They barge into your life at the times
when it seems most important for them to stay away.
They are the questions asked most frequently
and answered most inadequately,
the ones that reveal their true natures
slowly, reluctantly,
most often against your will.”

~~ Ingrid Bengis ~~

*******

“In order to be, never try to seem.”

~~ Subtle Bee ~~

*******

“The world is so constructed,
that if you wish to enjoy its pleasures,
you must also endure its pains.
Whether you like it or not,
you cannot have one without the other.”

~~ Swami Brahmananda ~~

*******

“When the situation is desperate,
it is too late to be serious.
Be playful.”

~~ Edward Abbey ~~

*******

“The truth knocks on the door and you say,
Go away, I’m looking for the truth,
and so it goes away.
Puzzling.”

~~ Robert Pirsig (quoted in “Zen To Go”, Jon Winokur) ~~

*******

“You are on a well traveled path.”

~~ Subtle Bee ~~

*******

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

A quick perusal of what happened above shows a relatively iconic Pearl; all the correct elements have been included, & the quality level is acceptable. Since it has the added attractive feature of being done, I suppose the best idea is to end it here. The closing section, after all, exists solely for that purpose; who am I to challenge destiny? Well, I guess, like any human, that’s not really relevant, since that particular habit seems ingrained in our species. Rather than explore such a deep well now, I’ll merely say, see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, should that destiny come to be. And, that’s a wrap….

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

Featured Image -- 13568

À bientôt, mon cherí….



                       

Up the creek, paddling madly….

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Ffolkes,

“It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion;
it is easy in solitude to live after our own;
but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd
keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.”

~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~

Mt Tam

Mount Tamalpais from the northern SF Bay….

Hajime…. My journey into the depths of the machine yesterday turned into the expected nightmare, in which it seemed reality was determined to furnish me with numerous assaults upon my sensibilities, testing my resolve, as well as my control, both of which proved to be sufficient, if only just, to prevent leaving any corpses behind me as I wended my way across the desolate landscape, in a desperate search to find one redeemable instant of time. No luck there; this travesty of our former democratic republic’s process of finding justice is as broken as the rest of our society; I witnessed nothing to indicate that “justice” was the goal of any of it.

Added to the apparent lack of intelligent purpose in which they insist on pursuing, my physical issues decided to chime in, making it essentially impossible for me to participate with any degree of comfort, much less any ability to maintain my cool; fortunately, a compassionate drone used some bureaucratic expertise to excuse me for the day, which is the good news. The bad news is, it was merely postponed to a later date, so, I must contemplate having to do this again in a month, unless I can talk my doctor into writing a letter to get me out of it…. SIGH… I suppose, given the potentially disastrous outcomes that were both possible, and, showing strong odds of occurring, the way it came out is more good news. The bad part is having to deal with it again later…. Life in Dystopia, I guess…

I was so morose by the time I finished dealing with all that, I decided to blow off the rest of the day, then went out & treated myself to a good meal at a good restaurant, complete with cocktails & wine…. It helped, but, has complicated this morning’s agenda with the resultant hangover…. Go figure, eh? Ah well, ’twas well worth it….

All the above, though it wanders about in much confusion, was pointing to this instant in time, where I inform y’all of having to rather ruthlessly trim today’s (semi-) complete Pearl, into the abbreviated version you will find below. In fact, all you’ll see today are the pearls I collected for the old school section, and the two most excellent examples you found atop and at bottom of this section…. In fact, the closing pearl for this intro makes a rather accurate assessment of my day yesterday, so, at least we have that to hold onto as something positive to note… It ain’t much, but, it don’t take much to make me happy…. In my current state, I’ll take it….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Mit der Dummheit kaempfen Goetter selbst vergebens.”

[Against stupidity the very gods contend in vain.]

~~ Friedrich Schiller, “The Maid of Orleans”, Act iii, Sc. 6 ~~

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

“As it is written….”

*******

“A single event can awaken within us
a stranger totally unknown to us.
To live is to be slowly born.”

~~ Antoine de Saint-Exupery ~~

*******

“And can you teach me to how to dance real slow?”

~~ Don McLean, “American Pie” ~~

*******

“The world is what it is, no less and no more,
and therein lies its entire and sufficient meaning.”

~~ Edward Abbey ~~

*******

“Change can be exhilarating, joyous, liberating.
But it can also be terrifying,
because, in a deeper sense,
you are questioning your very identity and sense of value.
But take the risk.
It’s worth it.”

~~ Dee Hock ~~

*******

“Do not seek death; death will find you.
But seek the road which makes death a fulfillment.”

~~ Dag Hammarskjold ~~

*******

“If I don’t meet you no more in this world
Then I’ll see you in the next one.
Don’t be late”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

*******

“There will come a time when you think everything is finished.
That will be the beginning.”

~~ Louis L’Amour ~~~

*******

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

Considering the multitudinous handicaps with which I saddled myself today, I’m pretty stoked at just getting this done, which it is. Done, I mean. In fact, it’s so done, I’m outta here, so I can pull it together enough to, maybe, get another one done for tomorrow. Odds on that are running about even, so, we’ll see how it goes. I hope y’all had, and have, a better day than described above… I guess that wouldn’t take much, would it? Okay, so, I also hope you have a day you can enjoy…. Me, I’m goin’ back to bed awhile…. then, we’ll see what reality has to offer up for today…. 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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Featured Image -- 13855

À bientôt, mon cherí….



                       

Logical Technicolor dreams

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Ffolkes,

“I’m going to happydance among the stars and wear my stripes anyway I want to.”

~~ Stripes the tiger ~~

I spy...

I spy a spider!….

Hajime…. It’s been, literally, months since I last experienced such an uncomfortable night’s sleep. Hip, leg, & back pain got me up 3 times during the endless night, soothed only by immersion in hot water. While making it tolerable, such treatment has no lasting effect on the condition, so I decided to finish the current Pearl in the works, & get it posted while I’m forced to remain non-ambulatory by the pain. SIGH…. Ah, well, I can tolerate one night’s lack of slumber; I just hope I can settle it down enough to get my exercise in today….

To create the impression I’m efficient, and actually know what I’m about, I’m going to forgo any further attempts to rationalize my inefficiency, or my recent absence here in cyberspace. Instead, we’ll just get on with it, & do whatever it takes to get this slow on the toad. Whatever THAT means…. I’ll even go so far as to not pretend I’m employing any of our infamous tricks to get us down the page, but, rather, merely say….

Shall we Pearl?….

“A beginning is the time for taking the most delicate care
that balances are correct.”

~~ from “Manual of Maud’Dib” by the Princess Irulan ~~

~~ from “Dune” by Frank Herbert ~~

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

About Hopi Indian Symbols

The image used for this section today is, as many of y’all may know, Kokopelli, the Hopi/Navaho trickster. It is NOT a picture of today’s guest artist, a magic dragon, because, apparently, images of magic dragons cause Windows to freak out. Don’t worry, you’ll get to see him, in action, in the embedded video of his performances as a runner-up finalist in America’s Got Talent in 2015. You can find him via Google, where there are links to his website. Frankly, he’s funny as hell, and a pretty good magician, too…. Enjoy!….

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

Piff The Magic Dragon

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

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

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

Comedy_Tragedy

Denial of Comfort

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

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

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

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

~~ gigoid ~~

9/19/2012

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Hmmm….

*******

“Still round the corner there may wait,
A new road or a secret gate.”

~~ J. R. R. Tolkien ~~

*******

“Why are we here?
Because we are here.
Roll the bones.”

~~ Rush, “Roll The Bones” ~~

*******

“If you want to know all about the sea,
you go and ask a sailor, or a marine biologist, or an oceanographer,
and they can tell you a lot about the sea.
But if you go and ask the sea itself, what does it say?
Grumble, grumble, swish swish.
It is too busy being itself
to know anything about itself.”

~~ Ursula K. LeGuin ~~

*******

“The light is reached not by turning back from the darkness,
but by going through it.”

~~ Leonard Roy Frank ~~

*******

“Cat advice: Take some time to eat the flowers.”

~~ Subtle Bee ~~

*******

“The secret of a good sex life is to have a good sex life….
In other  words, kid, don’t let yer meat loaf.”

~~ R. Crumb ~~

*******

“If I don’t meet you no more in this world
Then I’ll see you in the next one.
Don’t be late”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

*******

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

Hmm…. not bad for what it is, I’d say. But, then, I’d say that no matter how it turned out; professional responsibility, y’know? Besides, such a throw-away comment isn’t altogether out of place, since we’re here at the end, where it can’t cause any further harm. Or, for that matter, any further interest. I suppose they can’t all be brilliant. ‘Twould be nice to see, though, if only once. SIGH…. Never mind, no need to get all maudlin at this stage. Let’s just issue the usual caveats, & be done with it, shall we? Be well, mes amis, be happy as you may be, and non carborundum illegitimi (never let the bastards get you down….)! 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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Featured Image -- 15450

À bientôt, mon cherí….



                       

Drifting way off center….

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Ffolkes,

“The truth is straight ahead so don’t burn yourself instead;
try to learn  instead of burn–hear what I said.”

~~ Jimi Hendrix ~~

morning colors

Study in light & shadow….

Hajime…. Well, he said, it’s finally done. Since it is, he added, let’s forgo any nonsense, & just get it posted, without any of the usual folderol (great word….). In fact, we’re probably going to cause a bit of surprise, if not outright shock, at the suddenness of the shifts and changes you’ll experience today. Just in case you feel some skepticism, watch closely….

Shall we Pearl?….

“If all our misfortunes were laid in one common heap,
whence everyone must take an equal portion,
most people would be contented to take their own and depart.”

~~ Socrates ~~

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

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

Given the length of time I had to find something, I suppose it’s a bit of a letdown to find I’ve gone with a default selection. So be it; at least it’s done. Moreover, it’s done well, with some of the finest music ever written…. Enjoy!….

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

Chopin
Classical Music

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

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

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

Comedy_Tragedy

Though less troublesome of late, personal demon wars continue to be waged on occasion. This one is from a time when I was trapped in some of Hell’s lower regions…. Thank goodness THAT’S over & done…

Banishing demons….

Endless nights lead inexorably into endless days
while the battle for peace rages.
Lost arts find new meaning used in new ways;
to burn, yearn, and turn all the new pages.

Darkness falls heavily on bowed shoulders, contrite;
fireworks travel fast in nervous tissue.
The pace is kept, clean, but, never erudite;
such a pale tale of ancient issue.

Peering in terror down long, long halls of night
brings only confusion, destitute in sorrow.
Cannot time become our enemy, eager to fight
on the side which may never see tomorrow?

The longing gaze of passion, for reason to live,
must fall ever more faithfully into sedition,
else the clinging visions we claim to give,
shall not prevent reaching inevitable perdition.

Rising up, clarity of purpose shines the light of day
upon such a desolate landscape of absent release.
There is no escape, no furthering of the way.
Time never knows how to grant peace.

~~ gigoid ~~

Yep. It’s new. Written last night, 11/23/2015, amazingly enough, in between bouts of pacing & twitching. Oh, joy!…. It helps. A little…..

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Signposts….

*******

“True merit, like a river, the deeper it is,
the less noise it makes.”

~~ Lord Halifax (1633-1695) ~~

*******

“It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible,
but also for what we do not do.”

~~ Moliere ~~

*******

“Fear is the lock and laughter the key to your heart.”

~~ Steven Stills ~~

*******

“Happiness follows sorrow,
sorrow follows happiness,
but when one no longer discriminates
between happiness and sorrow,
a good deal and a bad deed,
one is able to realize freedom.”

~~ Buddha ~~

*******

“All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love.”

~~ Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace ~~

*******

“By space the universe encompasses and swallows me up like a dot;
by thought I encompass the Universe.”

~~ Pascal, Pensees, n. 265 ~~

*******

“Listen to the colour of your dreams.”

~~ John Lennon 1966 ~~

*******

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

There you have it, ffolkes. Not the greatest Pearl ever written, but, it’s got all the correct parts, so, we’re gonna fly with it. I cannot say with any degree of accuracy how long I’ll be absent this time; sitting down has become not merely problematic, but, actively painful to an extreme, to the point where I’m actively reluctant to do so at all. C’est la vie…. no choice but to obey my body’s demands. I’ll do my best to keep in touch, but, I have a feeling my days of consistency in posting are well past…. Sorry for my absence from y’all’s web sites, too; reading is getting harder every day, as I continue to slowly lose visual integrity, (translation: I’m going blind…) SIGH. Ah well, life goes on, & the BBR is calling me. I’ll be spending more time there than here, but, will try to drop in to check in when I can…. Y’all be well & happy, & stay strange…. 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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Featured Image -- 15463

À bientôt, mon cherí….



                       

A pail of blue zitis….

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0

Ffolkes,

“Be virtuous and you will be eccentric.”

~~ Mark Twain ~~

seagulls

Congress is in session….

For the first five-plus years I wrote this blog, I posted every day, almost without fail. I had found producing it each day offered me the best way to feel sane, and whole, a condition which, at the time, was difficult to attain, as I was in severe pain much of the day, a condition I found to be counter-productive, to say the least. After finally gaining some control over my health issues, & finding the proper eay to treat them, the ensuing better health had an unplanned effect, to wit: I felt less need to spew out my thoughts on the internet, and less need to maintain my relative sanity by that method alone. Exercise and human interaction became more entertaining, and more attractive than it had for many years.

I remained, and still remain, a curmudgeon at the core, but, there are now more frequent instances of breakthrough empathy, and I find it more pleasant to discuss philosophy face to face with others than to write about it, & use delayed discussion, via email or comments online, as a means of interaction. I also don’t seem to feel any emotional loss for having abandoned most of my online community, at least on the primary level it once enjoyed; face to face interaction, though less ordered, & less predictable, is nonetheless more emotionally satisfying. I suppose that fits in with being human; we humans NEED to experience community, & the more intimate, up-close & personal it is, the better we like it.

This change in my personal weather pattern has had the effect of slowing down my work online; I can’t seem to find the inner angst necessary to drive me to post each day. Nor do I feel much sense of loss, & what I do feel is mostly connected to the 20 or 30 ffolkes who have been my ‘mates’ of longest standing. The real world is, after all, more compelling than the digital world, perhaps because it connects to both mind AND body at once. I am unsure of exactly why I find such amiguity preferable; I just know I do. As I have been known to say, so be it…..

On that plaintive, yet somehow positive note, I’ll leave off this wandering introspection, & get on with posting what I’ve cobbled together for today. It’s a pretty good one, if perhaps, as it’s author, a bit ambiguous. As Gilda Radner noted, ambiguity, in terms of reality, is delicious….

Shall we Pearl?

“It is an open question whether any behavior
based on fear of eternal punishment can be regarded as ethical
or should be regarded as merely cowardly.”

~~ Margaret Mead ~~

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

jimi h

Jimi Hendrix

This artist needs no introduction, at least, not for anyone from my generation. Even older folks know of Jimi, and the newer generations seem to know him well, also; his music is timeless, in its way. But, then, genius usually has that effect on normal people…. This is an old video, but has great sound, so, enjoy!….

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

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

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

Comedy_Tragedy

Gently Came a Wounded Child

But you shall not escape my iambics.

Soft, sinuous patterns of unearthly beauty
blithely commune with sinking stars,
as pale shadows of former virtue hover
near, ever clean, ever tolerant.
These unbidden habits are worn with age and care,
ready now for dissolution,
welcoming gladly the kiss of Death’s handmaiden.

Unknown to all, the child stands aside,
weeping for the lost days of youth,
days that now shall never be,
nor yearned for ever after.
Only darkness shall lay upon the landscape,
cold, hard, eternal.

Such then are the signs and portents
as we enter into the unknown future,
they are grave indeed.

Uncertainty will be our sole companion,
as the search for hope yields no result.
The lamentations of the gods
shall sound the elegy for Man,
who never learned to see the gift that was made,
so many echoes ago, in the hopeful past;
thus will we pass this plane of existence
as we came, baffled and afraid….

~~ gigoid ~~

written 2/2/201

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

pearls_3

Naked Pearls

Oddly enough….

*******

“A short saying oft contains much wisdom.”

~~ Sophocles (496-406 BC), “Aletes”, Frag. 99

********

“You’re not the only one who’s made mistakes,
but they’re the only things that you can truly call your own.”

~~ Billy Joel, “You’re Only Human” (Second Wind) ~~

********

“I will show you fear in a handful of dust.

~~ T.S. Eliot ~~

********

“Chaos is but unperceived order.”

~~ attributed to Fred Hoyle ~~

********

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether twenty or eighty.”

~~ Henry Ford ~~

********

“Happiness follows sorrow,
sorrow follows happiness,
but when one no longer discriminates
between happiness and sorrow,
a good deal and a bad deed,
one is able to realize freedom.”

~~ Buddha ~~

********

“Forget what you know and learn.”

~~ Roger von Oech ~~

********

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

Such as it is, here ’tis; I do hope you’ve enjoyed our little foray into uncertainty. I know I have, so much so I will, no doubt, do this again in the near future. As noted above, I probably won’t post every day, but, every second or third day seems as if it will work just fine. Until I do return, y’all be well, be happy, & stay strange, In the midst of the current capitalist frenzy involved in this “season of giving” (funny how giving to the poor got turned into what we now see…), being strange is one of your most effective defenses…. Works for me, anyway…. 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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Featured Image -- 8118

À bientôt, mon cherí….

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