It's Cold

Somewhere else, I mean. Yes, it is something like 23 degrees here but it's really not too bad. I just got back from a walk and I'm not a popsicle or anything. Why was I on a walk at 4:30 am? Because I got tired of rolling around the bed. I don't know if you have this problem but my mind never stops going. It really doesn't. I can quiet it down considerably if I try. Sometimes I distract it. But it just never stops. You say: "Isn't that a good thing? You must solve all types of problems and come up with all kinds of great ideas." Solving a problem is one thing, not 813 things. That's how many ways you end up looking at a problem as you lie in bed for hours. Then if you only had one problem, that would be a joyous occasion. And there are the self-imposed problems, too. Like this blog, for instance. You're here, dear, because I made you by choice. And everyday that I don't post something adds another problem and 813 more solutions.

I've been wanting to talk about the enemy for sometime now but I have a hard time coming up with all of it. Andrew said somewhere(i couldn't find it, see if you can) that Old People are the Enemy. Something like that. Well, I agree. But it's not age that does it. It's an attitude that they get because of their age. It's hard to define but I'm willing to bet that it has something to do with the closing in of impending mortality. We're still young, friends. We're not close to death yet. And if we are, we'll burn out brightly. People will see it. Old people just kind of wither.

I think it's important that we understand why they are the enemy and what makes them so opposed to youth and youthful attitudes before we start killing them. Just so we know who we killed.

I am torn. Should we try to win them over? Or just let them die? Or should we demoralize them before they go by explaining that they're from a different time in history and whatever efforts they've made to preserve that time have been in vain, that we've won, the young will always win because we inherit everything anyway, you can give it to someone else, you can claim no responsibility, put it into trusts, or just burn it on your funeral pyre but you have still left us with everything and we will soon do with it what we wish?

I think one thing I always had a problem with was sticking to the old ways just because they were the old ways. I mean, seriously, how many times have the old ways been so good that no new idea had a chance at improvement? Yet, still they cling to these fucking bones of value like that's all there ever will be.

And maybe I'll get old some day and think that we had all right and these young whipper-snappers don't know what they're doing to my world that I worked so hard on but I doubt it. Maybe I'll die before I get jaded.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

So sometimes I don't know what do with the things that have been put in front of me. But I think about it a lot. Some might say that I think too much.

But sometimes, sometimes I find a really cool word.

Avoirdupois

You're definitely going to need to hear this one pronounced. So go check out the clever little tool that Dictionary.com provides.

You'll be surprised if you try get all frenchy on it.

Self-Published Bullshit

no way
i'm so fucking hot
i can't weed
jump right
cheers, mates
thanks to the flying stars
keep going baby
she's going
let's step on the tacos
what time is the mosquitoes?
they're much more worse than the tacos
what time is it? i can't
finish it
sip that shit
sorry
i hate to bite it i'm just telling you
it was me and ross in the car i don't know
ross just assed out
is love forever can you find love forever
and if you can can you keep it forever?
and she'll leave you troubled worrying all the time
harmonicas ring in the background
and the party once again moves outside no
smoking in the house
she kept me down and ran me all over town
a wonderful party in the smoke and the heat
it makes everyone else just a little crazy
love me
take off your clothes
and this demon around he can't keep me down
she gives true love like a bowtie
and the colors and the sounds
and the whir of the fan
blow blow sweet wind on me
outside yelling distracts my mind
hurry and hurry wash me over
harmonicas ring
beautiful words of infinite wisdoms of finite passivity
meditate and see and beuatlfjk adijnljsf
she runsa rascke sofre oim
a jdkooijcadnriadkfaeoiADFASIVMAir
jjjjunbethera f
the weeds takes hold
my fingers race
love and death surround me
love and nnmbness
her phone call wakes from sleep the demons inside and they roar
angry beasts to bring dreams and fear
what night is this
what fall is this
bring me 'round to the day that compses a night of horrors
sigh
run
shake
fun peace and mercy
siletn smoke rises blue smoike
light smoike put me out into a tray that runs over with stories

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

For many, many reasons this week's word is perfect. And you're glad of it.




Catharsis




Oh, I love the smooth th in this one. How it rolls on across the A and into the R. And you're all well aware of how much I like words that end with S. Yum.



We only really need the first definition of this one:



--noun. the purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tensions, esp. through certain kinds of art, as tragedy or music.



Actually, I dance a lot. And beat on things to make rhythms. I'll pretty much dance anywhere, just so you know. I don't even need any extra music. There's a constant soundtrack in my head. Don't ask for more details on that one.

I throw my own Party

It's my blog-iversary. That's right. I've been blogging for one year now. And it's been challenging. And fun. And pretty rewarding.

Anyway, I've planned on sharing with you the whole gist of the blog and what the point is for quite some time now. I figured if I could make it a year then I could really start taking it seriously.

So here's the deal: Many of us have a desire to evolve. To move on past the old shadows of the past. To shake off the shackles of traditional thought. We want to think better.

But while we work on this, we cannot be content to merely save ourselves. We must help others. Bring them up with us.

Recognize this image? It's an illustration of Plato's Allegory of the Cave.

If you're unfamiliar, go read it. If you now understand that we're freed prisoners, help me out. Thank you.

Thanks, Liz, for making me do this.

The Strategy of Peace: The Global Challenge

My grandmother gave me some books a couple weeks ago. Among them Senator JFK's The Strategy of Peace. I have begun reading it and will post highlights that I think are still relevant to the way we should look at our world, now 50 years later.

...[W]e move from crisis to crisis for two reasons: first, because we have not yet developed a strategy for peace that is relevant to the new world in which we live; and secondly, because we have not been paying the price which that strategy demands--a price measured not merely in money and military preparedness, but in social inventiveness, in moral stamina, in physical courage. Because that strategy has not been developed nor that price paid, it has not been too difficult to forecast with a reasonable degree of precision where our national fortunes would trend. They would trend in the direction of a slide downhill into dust, dullness, languor, and decay.

At home, we must demonstrate that we can educate our children adequately in a world where ideas and technology are increasing in importance, and where excellence must be nurtured and cherished. Our democracy must demonstrate that it can restructure its urban organization, in the light of the revolutionary enlargement of our population, now increasingly concentrated in metropolitan areas.

The American, by nature, is optimistic. He is experimental, an inventor and a builder who builds best when called upon to build greatly. Arouse his will to believe in himself, give him a great goal to believe in, and he will create the means to reach it. This trait of the American character is our greatest single national asset. It is time once more that we rescue it from the sea of fat in which it has been drowning. It is time once more to get on with the business of being true to the work of a Choosing People--a people who voluntarily assume the burden and glory of advancing mankind's best hopes.

Or something like that, eh?

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Right to it, shall we?


Rhapsody

Here's the thing: I don't know why there's an H after the R but I like it. You can try to pronounce it if you like. I'm not sure it's a good idea, though. Do make sure the P gets plenty of attention. And soften the D as much as you can.

Using this word may make you seem pretentious. Or a child of the 80s. I haven't decided. But if you know the really sweet definitions(all six of them), you may use it with honour:


1. Music. an instrumental composition irregular in form and suggestive of improvisation.
2. an ecstatic expression of feeling or enthusiasm.
3. an epic poem, or a part of such a poem, as a book of the Iliad, suitable for recitation at one time.
4. a similar piece of modern literature.
5. an unusually intense or irregular poem or piece of prose.
6. Archaic. a miscellaneous collection; jumble.


Let's take a brief glimpse at Number 2. Ecstatic? Enthusiasm? Very cool. And how you not get ecstatic and enthusiastic about one of the greatest Asian rockers of all time. No, not William Hung.








Ha. Party on, Wayne. Party on, Garth.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

*Sigh* It's Wednesday again and everyone is shouting from their beds "What's the word?! What's the word?! What's today's sexy word?!"

Calma, ragazzi. <--Not the word. But rather sexy, no?

No, I think today's word will be...........

Absolution

I understand that many of you may say that this word's connotation keeps you from seeing it as sexy but slow down. Pronounce it sllllooooooowwwwwwly.

Works, doesn't it? Just make sure that you make the A sound somewhere in between the short ă and the dull schwa. (yes, i just called the schwa dull. get over it.)

Let me take your preconceived notions for a moment, thank you, and fling them out the window. Wonderful. We will now take a closer look at the definition of this word:

1. act of absolving; a freeing from blame or guilt; release from consequences, obligations, or penalties.
2. state of being absolved.

One does not have to be particularly religious to use words that have been mainly associated with religions. I think the act of absolution is a fantastic behaviour to have in your repertoire, both getting absolved and doing the absolving. See, to me there is a greater power in absolution than forgiveness. Forgiveness is more like "Yeah, you fucked up big time. I acknowledge that fact and since you've apologized, I now forgive you." Whereas absolution says "You messed up? I didn't notice. Kiss me."

Sorry, I'm a big Muse fan.

Lips are turning blue
A kiss that can't renew
I only dream of you
My beautiful

Tiptoe to your room
A starlight in the gloom
I only dream of you
And you never knew

Sing for absolution
I will be singing
And falling from your grace

There's no where left to hide
In no one to confide
The truth burns deep inside
And will never die

Lips are turning blue
A kiss that can't renew
I only dream of you
My beautiful

Sing for absolution
I will be singing
And falling from your grace
Sing for absolution
I will be singing
And falling from your grace

Our wrongs
Remain unrectified
And our souls
Won't be exhumed

Reader Response

I'm trying to figure out when exactly we're supposed to talk about things like religion and politics if we can't do it over drinks. "Two things you don't discuss at a bar: religion and politics." That's what everyone says, right?



And if those two are out, what about philosophy? Can we talk Nietzsche and Boyer? Or maybe just the old guys: Epicurus and Plato.

So please respond by saying what you think are acceptable topics when alcohol is being consumed and why the others are taboo. Thank you for your thoughts.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Rapscallion

I really like that first R. Especially if you can roll it just a bit. Then the flow stops abruptly at that P. It's like they had two words and just slammed them together hoping no one would notice. But the sexy S makes up for and the double L and yuhn to wrap it up. Wonderful.

Also, I think what helps make this word sexy is that the people who say it inevitably have British accents. Or maybe Irish. Either way, that's sexy.

So what is a rapscallion?

It's like you all said "You!" at exactly the same time. Thanks. Well, maybe, but I'll never admit to it. To being--

a rascal; rogue; scamp.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Speaking of sucking the marrow, how about a very sexy word for it?

Medullary

The difficulty here is that the dictionary offers 3 different pronunciations and 1 isn't quite sexy at all. So we'll just skip over that one, won't we?

How are your phonetics this morning?

mej-uh-ler-ee

Mmmmmmm, c'mere, woman. And take off all those clothes!

So it means something related to the marrow of the bone or the medulla oblongata, which I thought was funny because those two things aren't really related. It has something to do with the way the Latinate has come down through the language, yada yada yada. Anyhooz, check out this medical dictionary definition and see if you don't feel like you could perform surgery afterwards:

1 a : of or relating to the medulla of any body part or organ b : containing, consisting of, or resembling bone marrow c : of or relating to the medulla oblongata or the spinal cord d : of, relating to, or formed of the dorsally located embryonic ectoderm destined to sink below the surface and become neural tissue

Ha. Brilliant. "Dorsally located embryonic ectoderm." Cool.

How do you like your Marrow?

The other night I was talking to a couple guys about a lot of things including beliefs and reality. One asked me,"Why, if you believe that this life is all there is, are you online discussing this stuff instead of out living and sucking the marrow from life?"



The problem is that this question implies certain criteria for what it means to "suck the marrow", as if there's some checklist for the activities that one must participate in so that they may look back at death and say that, indeed, life has been full.

I, being an open hedonist, believe that this is not the case. No one's list will match up with an other's list. Not a single person on the planet will find perfect agreement about what should be done, seen, heard, smelled, tasted, etc.

Should we all go canyon-jumping in Switzerland? Well, as someone who's done it, I tend to lean toward "yes", but I cannot tell you that your life must have sucked if you didn't. Should we all read Harry Potter, Jane Austen, The Iliad, Vonnegut or Danielle Steele? See?

Don't assume that whatever you think is "the good life" is what is. Everyone has their own feelings and opinions on what's fun, necessary, important and crap. While I am sure that many people do find several things in common, that does not mean that it is the standard.

What's my point? Stop telling other people that they shouldn't do that or listen to this or read that or travel there. Let them go and do for themselves. Stop being a cock block. People's jollies are to be gotten however they see fit. STFU. thank you.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Rebellion

Rs make for sexy sounds. Then the double Ls and the diphthong. Ending with a soft N. Pretty nice.

I'm just going to use the second definition from Dictionary.com.

--noun.

2. resistance to or defiance of any authority, control, or tradition.

Sure, whatever, right?

Here's the deal: For some, rebellion is a bad thing. Why? Why do we think it's a good thing to fall in line, be a good dog, just take the medicine, etc.? I'm getting really pissed off at these people. We should all be fighting back against something all the time. Goddammit, fucking say something. I'm getting all worked up. I'm going to grab a beer and a smoke. I'll be back.

Okay, I've settled down. I just think that for some living the way we're "supposed" to live is enough. Listening to whomever it was that told me what to do is not enough, though. I have to investigate it for myself. I want to know the deeper reasons. And here is where I get into trouble because I make a stand for a logical and sophisticated approach to the everyday. If someone tells me that this is how it is, I don't blindly concur. I don't toe the line. I ask why the line is there, who put it there and what made them think that it should be there. And, usually, I move it. I am a rebel. I'm fighting against conventional thinking for the simple fact that rarely is it thinking at all. If it's just convention, there's probably very little thought going on. You're just listening to "them". "They" love to have you do what you're told. It serves their purpose. Listen, I'm not a conspiracy theorist. I'm not talking about active agents that belong to the Illuminati or New World Order. "They" are incredibly nebulous because "they" aren't actual beings. This is the reason it's so hard to fight. With no clear enemy, at whom shall we aim our guns?

Speaking of Rebellion: Today is International Blasphemy Day. Say it loud, say it proud.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

This is going to be a good one. Get ready...

Ataraxia

Yeah, let that X really do its job. And the diphthong at the end is real nice.

And what, dear readers, does this sexy word mean?

–noun
a state of freedom from emotional disturbance and anxiety; tranquillity.

Beautiful. I swear I don't choose our words based on their definitions but maybe mostly sexy words have mostly sexy definitions. Meh...

How should we proceed?

Absolution

Revelation

Resistance






Something about gaining for yourself then spreading it to others until everyone has it.

Truth. Silly.


Find Absolution in what you don't know and haven't done.

Receive a Revelation of the Truth. Perhaps from a Black Hole.

Then stand up to those who try oppress. Form a Resistance. An Uprising.




But don't be violent. Be Loving. Use your words, man.





Then just rock out.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Sooooo, can anyone tell me why I've been thinking that this day is Thursday for the past 4 hours? No? Yeah, I don't know either. Sorry. Let's get to it.

Discalceate.

The hard 'd' really does it for me. And the 'l' and 'c' right next to each other allow your tongue to do something special, no? As for the ending, I prefer the phonetic spelling to be [dis-kal-see-it]. Don't do the long 'a'.

With me so far? Well then, what does it mean?

--adjective

without shoes; unshod; barefoot.

Barefoot. Cool. That's sexy, yes? Maybe I should have put a sexy picture of feet? But I like her freckles so much. Fine fine.

There. Happy? Yeah, me too.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Equilibrium





I'm still unsure whether we should use the long E or short E at the beginning. I'm more inclined towards the short E. Ek-kwuh-....yeah, I like that better.









1. a state of rest or balance due to the equal action of opposing forces.
2. equal balance between any powers, influences, etc.; equality of effect.
3. mental or emotional balance; equanimity: The pressures of the situation caused her to lose her equilibrium.
4. Chemistry. the condition existing when a chemical reaction and its reverse reaction proceed at equal rates.



A state of rest or balance due to the reaction and its reverse proceeding at equal rates. Cool.

Please fall in love with something not human today.

Dear World: Bring it on

I need something to do. Other than brood and fuss. I wonder sometimes if everything I do is totally inconsequential.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Okay, I hate to be all scientific on y'all's asses but here we go.


Lepidoptera

Oh, it's sexy once you learn how to say it properly. Go to the page on my favourite site, Dictionary.com, and she'll say it for you. Aaaand, it's pretty sexy. However, the definition isn't quiet sufficient for a full understanding of it so I'll add a little bit.

lepidoptera---noun. the order comprising the lepidopterous insects.

Yeah, see? "But what-the-fuck is a lepidopterous insect?" you ask. I thought you might. I would.

So let's check out the definition of lepidopterology, that is, the science of studying those silly lepidopterous insects. noun--the branch of zoology dealing with butterflies and moths.

Fuck yeah! Butterflies, baby! That's right, boys and girls, today's sexy word is the scientific term for butterflies. You now have permission to be totally turned on.

I can't get enough of naked women

So if you're wondering where I get the pictures for Wednesday's blogs and other times when I want sexuality, it's here. I want to hang out with everyone seen there. And their friends. This morning, while looking for today's graphic, I got distracted. Anyhooz, no sexy word yet. But I will post one before midnight. Promise. XOXO

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

This one's fun. And its definitions are very, very interesting.

Meretricious.

I know, I know, we like the words that end with essesssssssss. It's because they're so fucking sexy. What are we gonna do? And I like the Rs in this one, too. Especially the first one. Try rolling it like a Spanish R. I'm still not sure which is sexier but it's fun to practice. Ready for the definitions?

1. Of or pertaining to prostitutes; having to do with prostitutes.
2. Alluring by vulgar or flashy display; gaudily and deceitfully ornamental; tawdry; as, "meretricious dress."
3. Based on pretense or insincerity; as, "a meretricious argument"

Ha. Tawdry, insincere prostitutes. Sounds like a good Saturday night. I don't see myself using the first one very often but I'm pretty sure I'm going to garner a lot of pleasure by telling someone that their argument is "meretricious." Oh fuck yeah. Suck it. Meretriciously.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Capricious

One hard 'c' and one soft. And a 'p' that really punches.

–adjective
1. subject to, led by, or indicative of caprice or whim; erratic: He's such a capricious boss I never know how he'll react.
2. Obsolete. fanciful or witty.

More on needs and wants: I had an Economics teacher who posited that there are no such things as 'needs', only 'wants'. You don't need to eat. You want to live so you want to eat in order to live. Once we come to the realization that we don't really need anything but want everything, we can become more comfortable with not having certain things or even being okay with losing things. For example, when my parents would ground me to my room for being exactly myself, I was able to find enough pleasure within my room that the grounding meant nothing close to punishment. Become not so attached to those things that ground us. Free yourself of restrictions and realize that everything and everytime is what you make of it. Want to derive the purest, simplest pleasure from those things that you already have. Or can get without any measurable effort. Sometimes good things aren't "worth the sacrifice." Many things require no sacrifice whatsoever. And perhaps very little effort other than a mental reworking. That in and of itself, I'll grant, can be quite the effort. Changing a mental attitude is often the most difficult of all changes. But still, it requires very little money. And often the time required can be used for other things at the same time. I know that I constantly think of this blog while working. Two birds with one stone, and all that jazz. Use your time wisely.

Sunday Zen

I threw my cup away when I saw a child drinking from his hands at the trough.--Diogenes


What is it that you actually need? How many things have you bought that remain unused? How many times have you said lately that 'I need a good egg-yolker' or 'I need to go to the store to get some more sheet weights'?

Hey, you can spend your money however you want. It makes no difference to me, really. I'm just saying that maybe you should realize that you don't really need all that stuff. Sure you want it. You can afford it. But Life(as you know it) would not be any less had you not those things. Got it?

You Watch Yer Fuckin' Mouth!

"The whole point o' swearin' is that it ain't appropriate." --Kaylee Frye

I was watching an episode of Firefly last night while I finished up my second martini and that cute little mechanic was having a debate with the good doctor about cussin'. What if we viewed those words, the seven dirty words that the FCC won't let us broadcast over the airwaves as just more superfluous language that anyone can use if they know how? I mean, I know people who use lots of multisyllabic words that are completely unnecessary to their meaning but they like to employ their vocabulary in such a way that not only are they getting a point across but it also sounds good.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Mazarine

It's only sexy if you pronounce the 'i' short. A long British 'i' would fuck it up. Oh! and make sure you let the 'z' be what it is. Don't rush over it, turning it into an 's'. What a waste!

--n. A deep, rich blue.


Yep, that's it. Just a colour. Cool, eh?

Weekend Thoughts

I'm not sure what to call her yet so we'll just call her my Blue Bird who Likes Lists Girlfriend. We went to Memphis this past weekend to see Wicked, the musical based on Gregory Maguire's book Wicked. It's the story about the Wicked Witch of the West from the The Wizard of Oz. When I read the book a couple years ago, I totally fell in love with Elphaba. That's her name. She was an idealist and a dreamer. One who wants good for all and is totally uncompromising with her moral standards. Almost to a fault. But how can someone who enforces their moral standards be called faulty? Anyhooz, there's one song sung by the Wizard that goes like this:

A man's called a traitor - or liberator
A rich man's a thief - or philanthropist
Is one a crusader - or ruthless invader?
It's all in which label
Is able to persist
There are precious few at ease
With moral ambiguities
So we act as though they don't exist

And it's so true. We always have to have good guys and bad guys. It takes so much effort to actually think about every one's situation and truly discover who was in the wrong, if anyone was, that we are quick to label someone simply in order to put our own minds at ease. Often the case is that we haven't taken the time to hear both sides of the story or we convince ourselves that we don't care or that our first instinct is right. That's bullshit. And we know it. Slow down a little bit. Wait for the truth to come out. Investigate. Ask all the questions and let the answers come on their own accord. Don't force some one's confession. Look at the evidence. Even the seemingly insignificant parts. If the desire is Truth then it's worth waiting for. And here at HtKtSooYE, the desire is Truth. All of it. Even the painful stuff. We're going to deal with it.

Don't judge someone out of haste. Relax. Have a drink. And a smoke. Breathe. And finally when the Truth comes oozing out of the cracks, hold your cup there until it's full and take a sip. It might bite back at first but you may learn to live with it. You'll have to. The Truth does not compromise. It does not conform. It simply Is. Embrace it.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Tempestuous

Let me address one thing, quickly. Our sexy words are not chosen because of their definitions necessarily but their sounds. Just to give you a little clue as to what we're looking for we love voiceless dental fricatives (not a totally unsexy little phrase right there), bilabial plosives and nasals of almost any variety. That's just the consonants.

Carrying on...

Tempestuous. Like the way that 'MP!' hits? Me too. Oh, the esses are so seductive, aren't they? I want to hold that last one for days: tempestuoussssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss. Allora, what does this word mean?

Well, my typical source Dictionary.com let me down, well, okay, not let me down per se, but they just don't have near as cool a definition as the New Webster's Dictionary, 1990 ed. (yes, I have ancient dictionaries lying around the house. shit.)

Tempestuous-------adj. very stormy; turbulent; subject to storms of passion.

Ha! I just like the last little part there. "Storms of passion." Nice.

For posterity I'll include Dictionary.com's version, too. But I'm warning you, it's not near as cool.

1. characterized by or subject to tempests: the tempestuous ocean.
2. of the nature of or resembling a tempest: a tempestuous wind.
3. tumultuous; turbulent: a tempestuous period in history.

Told you.

So I haven't been thinking too much about enlightenment these days. Other than my own, that is. I mean, I could throw some random shit out there but we don't want that. We want substance. We want Truth. We want reality and how to deal with it. Here's just one thing that I think is fun and sort of comes from my Buddhist background:



Nothing. Why is it so scary? Are we so attached to things--material and otherwise--that we can't just let go and hold nothing? See nothing? Hear nothing? Say nothing? Try being very silent and still. Try emptying your mind and area. No reason for being for just a few minutes. I could tell you what happens but I'm not a surprise spoiler. Trust me, it's worth it. Nothing.

Growing Up

So the BSHB/G and I (and a few other friends) where at a music show the other night. The artist on stage was one that is basically the very reason we're all together. Or at least, that I'm there among them. She said "I think I'm over him. I'm going upstairs."

So what is it when you outgrow a particular musical influence? It's not as if we don't love what he did for us in our times of hardship and uncertainty? Right? I'm sure I'll never skip past his songs when they pop up in shuffle mode. But, yeah, I'm sort of in the same boat. Thanks, dude, for doing it. We're grateful for you getting us through. We're going to move on now but we will never forget you.

And with that, another time of our lives passes by.

Happiness is a Dirty T-Shirt (worn inside out)

Give up on trying to be everything you've been told you should be. There are simpler goals. And far more fulfilling. It doesn't always have to be about grandeur. Sometimes it's about nothing at all. And how, exactly, does nothing make you feel? Good? Bad? Medium?

There's a concept I've been working on and I like to call it channelling the aesthetic. The goal, put simply, is to find the beauty in whatever is in front of you and embrace it. Then once you've noticed it yourself, shine it outward so that everyone else will notice. See? You've grabbed a beautiful part of the world and held it up for everyone else to see.

Try practicing this concept while sweeping, driving, riding the elevator, or watching someone pick out a dress. Seriously, it's amazing.

Wednesday's Sexy Word of the Week

Semantics. That's right. Say it like you mean it. Semanticsssssss. Mmmmmm. Turned on yet?

–noun (used with a singular verb)
1. Linguistics.
a. the study of meaning.
b. the study of linguistic development by classifying and examining changes in meaning and form.

more

Also, why do people bitch and moan so fucking much? It's starting to get on my nerves. Shit, man, if you would just shut up and take it, I promise, it wouldn't be as bad as you're making it out to be. And maybe I'm not annoyed so much at the complaining but at the poor wording and expression of it. If someone can say something eloquently, anything at all, I'm happy. But if you can't even string together one coherent sentence so that your audience is aware of what the fuck you're talking about, drop it. (yes, i am totally aware of the irony on display)

This Is Just to Say

Hotly debated and fiercely defended is the concept of love.

It is maligned and revered all at the same time.

Why are we so caught up by it?

It makes our fingers tingle and our legs ache.

Sometimes we can't eat or sleep.

We cry when it ends and we cry when we realize it's so so good.

Poets find it fascinating and cannot leave it alone.

It seems that everyone longs for it though few ever find it.

"I'm in love."

"I hate love."

"I believe in love though I fear its consequences."

"You're crazy!"

I just wanted to say a little bit this morning about the fact that love is one of the more controversial factors of life. Who, where, when, why and how all apply. And we are rarely able to put any of these into words. To be sure, we all love being loved and sometimes it's the only reason we end up loving the other. The BSHB/G says I'm in love with falling in love. And sometimes I think that's true. But not just love. I am in love with lots of things. It's just that love is a more dangerous one. It breaks your heart. There's a Drive-By Truckers song that says "The very nature of love is to grieve when it's over." And it will end. Maybe it won't end until you die, but it will. We know this much about it. Does that mean we should avoid it?

How about approaching love like any other hedonistic experience? Embrace the beauty while it's there. Enjoy that rush in the pulse and the flutter in the belly. Do it right. Passionately. Take it in. All of it. Then, when it's over, cry a little, smile at what you had, hope for its encore, smoke a cigarette, write a poem, take a walk and get ready to do it all over again.

Love is not to be avoided. Just do it knowing that it is as fleeting as the winter cold and the summer heat: certain to fade and sure to return.

Thoughts of Another from a Secluded River

My God! I'm thinking, what incredible shit we put with most of our lives--the domestic routine (same old wife every night), the stupid and useless and degrading jobs, the insufferable arrogance of elected officials, the crafty cheating and the slimy advertising of the businessmen, the tedious wars in which we kill our buddies instead of our real enemies back home at the capital, the foul, diseased and hideous cities and towns we live in, the constant petty tyranny of automatic washers and automobiles and TV machines and telephones--! ah Christ!, I'm thinking, at the same time that I'm waving goodby to that hollering idiot on the shore, what intolerable garbage and what utterly useless crap we bury ourselves in day by day, while patiently enduring at the same time the creeping strangulation of the clean white collar and the rich but modest four-in-hand garrote!
Such are my--you wouldn't call them thoughts, would you?--such are my feelings, a mixture of revulsion and delight, as we float on the river, leaving behind for a while all that we most heartily and joyfully detest. That's what the first taste of the wild does to a man, after having been too long penned up in the city. No wonder the Authorities are so anxious to smother the wilderness under asphalt and reservoirs. They know what they're doing; their lives depend on it, and all their rotten institutions. Play safe. Ski only in clockwise direction. Let's all have fun together.

--Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire

Dear Reader

I feel accountable to you. And I've let you down. I'm sorry. I'll admit that I get all kinds of ideas for posts when I'm driving but then I get home and sit down at the machine and lose everything that was rattling 'round in my head. So let's be completely random for just a moment:

For some people, the words that they already have a quite enough. They get the things done they need to do for the day. They can buy their beer and Ramen noodles, pay their bills, and watch TV. But for others, myself and most of my friends, we need new words. And I'm not really sure how we're going to accomplish expressing ourselves without reworking our lexicons. I have an idea that if we learned a few new languages we could somehow find 'le mot juste' within one of those. While I'm sure that onlookers will view us with contempt as we switch back and forth between languages, my ultimate goal is that we move our society along in a more meaningful direction. So fuck 'em. (How's that for common everyday words?)

My Beautiful Secret Holding Bird/Girlfriend said that we need a new word for saying "I love you. I'm sorry. Thank you." because those words have become overused and therefore almost meaningless. So I set to work. We're currently trying to get the word 'louethia' into circulation. Now I didn't do any etymological research. I didn't try to be all scientific about that shit. So this word may not stick but we're trying it. The wonderful thing about this word is that it is certain not to get overused just yet (since we just made it up!) because it shouldn't be. It's usage is for very specific occasions. When it is used, there should be weight and purpose.




Along similar lines, may we talk about what love actually is? We throw this silly word around so much and I have really become aware of its usage as a way to circumnavigate an actual apology: "Oh, you know I love you." To which I reply "Is that so? Well then why do you only tell me so when you've wronged me(even if it was superficial)?" I'm not saying that we should go around telling people that we love them all the time. That would get tiresome. And how! But how about we use the word when we actually mean it? When someone does something good for you or just tugs at your heartstrings with their actions, make it a positive reinforcement. People really like knowing why it is that you feel the way you do about them. "Why do you like me?" Instead of having to make a list--although those are fun and, I think, meaningful--just catch them at those beautiful moments. For instance, last night I missed out on the opportunity and I regret it. Hanging out on the porch, patio, veranda, promenade, drinking wine and smoking cigarettes(among other things ;), laughing and not really talking about anything of any particular import is sort of a dream of mine. When I am old and no longer running around trying to arrange the rest of my life, this type of thing will be why I get up from my afternoon nap.

More about love to come...

If this doesn't get your blood pumping...

Square One

We humans have a great advantage over the other animals on the planet. We have a collective memory through our writings and memes that we have been able to build upon for thousands of years allowing us to continue press on with our search for the Big Questions. There have been many of these questions that have been answered, however unsatisfactorily, throughout the ages. The important one that must always remain in the front of the skeptic's mind: "Yes, but is it true?"

We, especially now, live in a world which inundates us with information. We are constantly grasping for a greater understanding of everything from economics and psychology to politics and biology. For the most part we can rely on those that lead their fields in discovery because once they think they've found something, they run it past many others in their fields so that they may be checked just to make sure their observations weren't biased or mere mistakes. The great thing is that they still don't get too offended when we say "I don't understand." If they're true to what they do, they are happy to explain, often starting at the very beginning and leading us along the paths of discovery by the hand.

We should be proud of our heritage of curiousity. We should embrace our fellow humans who have come before us and challenged the status quo when it didn't match up with their world views. This is even true with those who were wrong. Somethings necessarily have to be hashed out in reality in order to test their viability. I, for one, am thankful for failed experiments as much as I am for the ones that worked. How many different materials did Edison try for his light bulb filament before he found one that was safe and reliable?

He tested the carbonized filaments of every plant imaginable, including bay wood, boxwood, hickory, cedar, flax, and bamboo. He even contacted biologists who sent him plant fibers from places in the tropics. Edison acknowledged that the work was tedious and very demanding, especially on his workers helping with the experiments. He always recognized the importance of hard work and determination. "Before I got through," he recalled, "I tested no fewer than 6,000 vegetable growths, and ransacked the world for the most suitable filament material."

source

Maybe you aren't smiling like I am, but I find it wonderful that he knew it would work if he could only find the right one.

And when I read this passage in a letter written by the fascinating SciFi writer H.P. Lovecraft, I could not help wanting to stand up and say "Sir, will you please count me among those?"

You are forgetting a human impulse that, despite its restriction to a relatively small number of men, has all though history proved itself as real and as vital as hunger--as potent as thirst or greed. I need not say that I refer to that simplest yet most exalted attribute of our species--the acute, persistent, unquenchable craving TO KNOW. Do you realise that to many men it makes a vast and profound difference whether or not the things about them are as they appear?

And this is the case for so many people that I find around me. We just want to know. We have a desire to find out that which is true and that which is false. And some make arguments for falsehood saying that despite their lack of Truth, they give us comfort. Well, so does alcohol but that doesn't make it the most healthy habit does it? Would you stumble around content and ignorant? Ignorance is bliss, so they say. Then we read Voltaire. Oh dear, sweet Voltaire, how we wish you were here now.

A condensed version of the story The Good Brahmin(borrowed):

"I wish I had never been born!" the Brahmin remarked.

"Why so?" said I.

"Because," he replied, "I have been studying these forty years, and I find that it has been so much time lost...I believe that I am composed of matter, but I have never been able to satisfy myself what it is that produces thought. I am even ignorant whether my understanding is a simple faculty like that of walking or digesting, or if I think with my head in the same manner as I take hold of a thing with my hands...I talk a great deal, and when I have done speaking I remain confounded and ashamed of what I have said."

The same day I had a conversation with an old woman, his neighbor. I asked her if she had ever been unhappy for not understanding how her soul was made? She did not even comprehend my question. She had not, for the briefest moment in her life, had a thought about these subjects with which the good Brahmin had so tormented himself. She believed in the bottom of her heart in the metamorphoses of Vishnu, and provided she could get some of the sacred water of the Ganges in which to make her ablutions, she thought herself the happiest of women. Struck with the happiness of this poor creature, I returned to my philosopher, whom I thus addressed:

"Are you not ashamed to be thus miserable when, not fifty yards from you, there is an old automaton who thinks of nothing and lives contented?"

"You are right," he replied. "I have said to myself a thousand times that I should be happy if I were but as ignorant as my old neighbor; and yet it is a happiness which I do not desire."

This reply of the Brahmin made a greater impression on me than anything that had passed.

Will you join me on a quest for what is real? Let us go, then, you and I...

I'm a Liberal (again)

So the other day, when describing myself as liberal, Papillon said that it's funny I should use that word because it's a word that religious people use and since I'm not religious, why should I use it. Well, in short, for lack of a better word. Also, it is a relative and comparative term. But can I use that term without it being relative? Can I just say "I'm liberal" without defining conservative? Let's see what the dictionaries have to say:

New Webster's Dictionary
liberal
a. Generously ample; profuse; favorable to reform or progress; not too literal or strict; free.--n. One who advocates great political freedom

Merriam-Webster's Online
liberal
1 a: of, relating to, or based on the liberal arts b archaic : of or befitting a man of free birth
2 a: marked by generosity : openhanded b: given or provided in a generous and openhanded way c: ample, full
3obsolete : lacking moral restraint : licentious
4: not literal or strict : loose
5: broad-minded ; especially : not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or traditional forms
6 a: of, favoring, or based upon the principles of liberalism

*note that the 3rd defnition and the only seemingly negative one is labeled as obsolete. hmmmmm

See also: Dictionary.com's much too long definition

So, yeah, so far so good, right? Would anyone say that they are opposed to reform or progress if pressed on the issue? "Oh, yeah, we could stand for a little change here or there." But we will bother to make the change? Will we stand up for the change? Here's one that I found fascinating when Googling "what it means to be liberal". It's the Wikipedia entry for a History of the term "liberal" . Just some pieces of this article:

...a long history in the English language with the meanings of "befitting free men, noble, generous"...

The first English language use to mean "tending in favor of freedom and democracy," according to the OED, dates from about 1801 and comes from the French libéral,...

Classical liberalism is an ideology that includes limited state intervention of macroeconomic infrastructure. Classical liberals such as Adam Smith, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin supported state intervention of infrastructure.

Now, I don't know about you but I have no problem being free, noble, or generous. Nor would I be upset if someone accused me of being like Thomas Jefferson. That guy was fucking awesome.

But so far we've been rather vague, using generalities that would be tough to nail down. Do liberals have any tenets, credos, etc.? Well I think spiderleaf over at Daily Kos did a pretty good job. I'll grant that this post is a little old--oh teh internetz don't forget--but that doesn't make it any less useful(funny how I considered something from 2005 "old"). Here are a few points from the post What it means to be a liberal:

I believe all people were created equal and deserve equal protection under the law.

I believe every person has the right to knowledge (i.e. a good education)

I believe we have a duty to protect the less powerful among us.

I believe in freedom of speech and expression, no matter how painful.

Again, I almost defy anyone to argue with any type of strong position against one of these. I think we liberals are getting very tired of being vilified because of our oppositions. We're trying to take stands here. Stands that we view as being vital and crucial to the better-working of the society in which we've found ourselves. We have open minds about a great number of things and find ourselves willing to consider but we have to draw lines somewhere. Like, for instance, here, in the sand. Liberals were the ones who opposed hanging witches, the buying and selling of human beings, taxation without representation, absolute monarchies, genocides, making people sit on different sides of the diner based on their skin colour, limiting an individual's right to practice her religion(or non-religion), telling a woman her "role" in the household, and burning books. Anything else you'd like to add?

Another article I found, also titled What it means to be a liberal, by Geoffrey R Stone makes a list of the ten things that many liberals will probably agree with. He prefaces by saying that "not all liberals embrace all of these propositions, and many conservatives embrace at least some of them." Mr. Stone, perhaps conservatives who find themselves agreeing with a majority of these should rethink the label they give themselves. Again, it seems that the word liberal has been given a negative connotation for quite sometime now and it's about damn time that liberals stand up and say "Enough!"

Now an argument, perhaps, would be to say that liberals are taking a stand of moral superiority with an arrogant attitude about the whole thing. To that I would reply yes. Seriously, what's the point in arguing your side if you think it's an inferior position to begin with? This is the reason that people get into arguments: each thinks s/he is right. Which is fine but then we have to get down to the basics and bases of our positions. The whole debate on torture that's raging across the information superhighway is a very good example. Some people think it's okay and some don't. And of course, those that don't get very adamant about it:





He says "It's wrong. That's it.----It doesn't matter. We don't do it."

And I say "Preach it, Brother!"



Ahem, sorry, I didn't mean to get off on a rant. But you can see how it evolves now, right? It's funny how this liberal POV tends to make liberals seem as if they're attacking when I think the word 'attack' carries such a violent feeling with it. How about pointing out? Drawing attention to? Disagreeing with?


Remember our initial question? Can the adjective 'liberal' be used without being a relative and comparative term? *sigh* No, it seems. How can you advocate progress or reform if there is nothing to progress from? So are we, as liberals, okay with that? Since I'm forced to be relative we should touch on the other terms. The ones we're comparing/contrasting. Okay, check this shit out. It's Merriam-Webster's Thesaurus entry for the Near Antonyms and Antonyms of the word 'liberal':

Near Antonyms hard, rigid, strict; doctrinal, dogmatic; bigoted, intolerant, narrow-minded; reactionary
Antonyms conservative, conventional, nonprogressive, old-fashioned, orthodox, traditional

OUCH! Seriously, someone wants to be the opposite of liberal?



Post Script-Papi, this is not meant as an argument. Merely a clarification. :)

I'm Electric not Blind

My house got zapped last night so I had to run to the hardware this morning and grab some fuses so that I could be connected to the world again. First of all, the hardware was one of those old family joints where you can barely get down the aisles and the old guys are drinking coffee and moving real slow.

On the way back to the house, I was behind this car that had about a dozen bumper stickers supporting blind people and their dogs. ?!?!?!?!? One thing you don't want to run into on the road: A blind driver.

All Apologies

I have been neglecting you, Dear Reader. However, that neglect is only in the fact that my recent posts have been lacking and not my recent thoughts. I will get back on track soon. Right now, I just want to crawl in to the fetal position surrounded by bottles of the reddest wine. I won't but I want. Instead, I'm taking the abstaining policy for a few weeks, choosing to remain sober at all times, ingesting only water, coffee, and juice(unfermented). This policy should make me more productive at a time when I need all I can get. Also taking a backseat to "doing things" will be my push into ever more current music. From here until there it's all Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart. Let's get those Alpha-waves rolling.

I'll check in from time to time just to check on things then we'll get down to business when libation inspiration returns :)

How much?

So on our way back from the Ryan Adams show we saw many signs indicating "Adult Stores". These were on pretty empty stretches of the interstate between places where normal people stop. I assume(carefully) that they're strategically placed for lonely truckers that need a little break in their drives. My jewish friend asked "Do you think sex is/can be transactional?"

I think that sex is transactional. And can be. However, I think I answered a different question than he asked. He was referring to a more here's-your-haircut-here's-your-money-transaction. So you pay a prostitute and she takes your money, giving you some sort of sexual favor in return. It's an agreed upon price and action/service, everyone walks away satisfied, right? I don't think so.

It seems that we've lowered the sex standard instead of elevating it. It's just entertainment.

While I agree that it is very entertaining, a fantastic pastime, I'm afraid that it should mean more than that. I think it's transactional in the way that a good conversation or a good book is. Both persons/entities gain the pleasure of enjoying the other and being enjoyed.

Perhaps if a sex worker actually goes into the job wanting to have sex and give sexual pleasure to people who long for it then s/he can walk away from the day a little wealthier and a little more fulfilled in life. But I feel that this is rarely the case. And the patrons probably don't get the same sort of fulfillment. That's why they continue to return and perhaps form a nasty spiral into addiction and more and more questionable behaviors.

We should treat sex as a beautiful part of life. We should allow the intimacy of being *gasp* naked with another person to enhance our aesthetic natures. Don't think of it as sustenance. Think of it as a luxury. Bread is necessary for survival. Good bread is beautiful and fulfilling. We do have an urge within us to mate. But we rarely have propagation sex. It's usually for pleasure. Which is fine. But let's rise above that evolutionary drive, the Freudian desire. We can continue to evolve and look at sex from a higher consciousness, while being aware of our most basic instincts and not allowing them to be the drving forces within us. Knowledge and education now become important. Instead of telling us not to have sex and making us sign some stupid fucking promise, they should have told us why we feel like having sex, how to be careful, and when it's most appropriate. There may not be so many "backseat babies" this way. Let's make it okay to have sex. But make it okay to be okay with it. No one forcing or begging or chasing or paying.

Blackout

So you know how certain smells, tastes, words, or sounds can take you back to places that you remember for so many reasons other than those sensory stimuli but still you find yourself transported just by that simple thing? It happened to me tonight. On the way home from my GG date Muse came on the iPod shuffle songs mode. The song Blackout from their Absolution album. An album I have memorized because it was all I listened to on my Walkman for about a week of travelling through Spain. I walked the entire length and breadth of Valencia listening to Muse and taking in the smells, sights, and breezes of such a sweet Mediterranean city. Ah, Valencia. Take me back.

MY KNEEEEEZ HURT!!!

So today we went to the Smithsonian Institution's Hirshorn Museum, Museum of American History, Natural History Museum, and American Art Museum. I wish I was brilliant enough with my words to give these places the praise they deserve. Seriously, I've been to museum's all over the world, okay? These are great. Especially, of course, the natural history one. The dinosaurs are awesome. And the mammals. And the orchids. Wow. I did take a few pictures but I'm not going to post them today. The weather was nice. A little cool but nice.

Can I just rant a bit about people being so overly controlling that no one has fun? Listen, I realize that if a group consists of easy-goers then it's possible that nothing will get done. But if it's three easy-goers and a stick-up-the-ass, things are bound to get nasty. Easy-goers are can be real chill when things are cool, but the real ones will get riled up pretty quickly when their easy-going attitude is being trampled upon. Don't you think that's how it should go? We're fine for almost most of the time. I guess it's just that we choose our battles and it seems to be that the battles we choose are really about particulars but rather principles.

Oh yes, now you may jump in and say "Wait, you're easy going? I thought you were a self diagnosed obsessive-compulsive." That's true. I won't argue. Here's the deal. I'm working on it. I have been for a long time. I really works me on the inside like you wouldn't believe, but I seriously try to let lots of things go. I just bite my tongue. But I sometimes find myself at odds with something that's so out of line that I have say something. I think perhaps the problem is that all the tension built up from having held my tongue for so long comes out all at once. Whoops! I'm actively trying. At least I have self-awareness.

Next!

Our Nation's Capitol

Arrived in DC this afternoon and basically just drove around. Ate at a quaint little place called Bourbon. I had the turkey club.

The drive across Tennessee and Virginia wasn't bad except we got caught in NASCAR traffic just outside of Knoxville this morning. There's a track in Bristol and apparently a big race today. Who couldn't have planned for hellacious traffic on a Sunday morning. ah well.

I'm very in love with this city already. It's hard to explain though. The layout is just cool. The cuz and I walked back from my mom's hotel tonight. We passed right in front of the capitol building:

For some reason that's the best I can do for now. Sorry. I'll figure out how to put them up better later but I'm headed bed for now. I'm pooped from riding in the car and this cold isn't helping any.

Road Trip

Okay I'm sitting here waiting on the rest of the crew to come pick me up. I've set the thermostat, wait, have I? Hold on...Okay got it. Everything's unplugged except the computer and radio. They're always the last things to go. I've got underware, pjs, pants, shirts, toothpaste, laptop, charger, cellphone, charger, iPod, charger, smokes, lighters, books, paper, shoes, socks, toothbrush, deodorant, face wash, razors, q-tips, jackets, umbrella, scarves, cologne(justincases), money(?), yoga mat, map, etc. I'm hoping to get some good reading and thinking done on the way to Knoxville and if they've got wi-fi, I'll post tonight. Otherwise, what have I to say? Nothing, I guess. I'm still anxious about leaving. I get this whole "What-am-I-forgetting?" freak out every time, but I'm a list maker and boyscout so I always have more than I'll ever need. I just can't help it. A little obsessive-compulsive, I am. Just a little.

Oh, Wednesday my jewish friend and I drove to Memphis to see Ryan Adams and had some really great talking on the way there and. I'll mention some of that throughout the week too. Thoughts about music, sex, relationships between humans, and more.

They should be here by now. Shit, I hate waiting.

Pacifism

I'm in an online religious studies class this semester and today we were asked a discussion question today. This was the question:

The Dalai Lama's beliefs and actions earned him the Nobel Peace Prize. He consistently teaches non-violence. Do you think non-violence or ahimsa is possible and more than just an admirable view? How can religion play a role in bringing about non-violence and peace?

Here's how I responded:

The Buddha was once asked if he had ever been provoked to such anger that he wanted to hit another man. He answered, "Yes, but then I realized that he and I are the same and by hitting him I would be injuring myself."

When one chooses to be nonviolent it has a disarming effect on his/her opponent. That is, the opponent is not used to fighting someone who refuses to fight back and even though the opponent may vanquish the pacifist, it is a hollow victory indeed. While nonviolence certainly is more than an admirable view, these days it rarely seems to be honored to the point that we choose it. It seems that we mostly give it lip service by saying something like "Oh, yes, we'd like to have peace but we have to defend ourselves." Well, I'm not sure that's true pacifism. Certainly not the kind that Gandhi espoused.

I think religion can play a role in supporting and encouraging nonviolence and peace by promising a reward for those who adhere to it in this life with a reward in an afterlife. However, I think that nonviolence, martyrdom, and self-sacrifice often get confused by religious people to the point that they feel dying "fighting" is an option. Until nonviolence is truly embraced and coexistence is accepted, real peace will remain impossible.


Whaddya think?

Deep Thoughts

Since a lot of the purpose of this blog is about keeping the truth from blinding, here's a little tidbit we were discussing today: Don't be in a hurry to be right. Many times we're confronted with a new idea or concept or even just a fact about our world that we didn't know yet and we feel pressed to have an immediate and profound reaction to it. Perhaps by the individual who shared with us or maybe by the group that surrounds us as we learn. But there's no hurry. As a matter of fact we should not feel pressed to form an opinion so quickly at all. How could we be intellectually honest with ourselves by trying to think deeply within a thirty minute period? Think deeply?, you ask. Yes, think deeply. About everything. Critically, of course, but that is merely applying scientific methods and questions to the idea. Deeply would be to try to apply to your life and see if such a concept has ever or will ever be relevant to your life. If it has not or will not, perhaps it's not a good one. Or maybe you just don't know about all of your future yet. Or you haven't thought about all of your past. To discard or dismiss an idea quickly is also bad form. These things must sit, allowed to seep into our consciousnesses then they will bubble to the surface when you least expect it, shining forth a light into what was once a dark corner of our knowledge. This post isn't meant to be a deep thought but rather instructions on how to have them. Just one road. There are many.

News: I'll be heading for DC next week for spring break with my mom and three exchange students. We're driving so I'll have plenty of time to read, write and think(oxford comma omitted). There will be pictures too. YAY!

Stop looking at me!

One's the Eye of God

One's the Eye of Sauron

But which is which?

Dear Rapturist

I was reminded of this issue by these guys and thought I'd go ahead and make a quick post about it. At work a few weeks ago one of our regular customers and I were chit-chatting about this and that when the "End Times" came up and I said that I'm not quite ready for that yet. She said she's ready to go to heaven. Well, madame, I replied, if heaven's got all those people that are in church on Sunday morning, I do not want to go there. They're boring. Plus, I've still got some stuff to do here. Like: books, wine, kisses, foreign lands, tacos, bungee jumping, sailing, and LSD. And that's the short list. I really pity people who are so frustrated, or disappointed(?), with this life and world that they hope for something beyond. I know why they're distraught, I think. Because their beliefs forbid them from experiencing so many of the things that make this world beautiful. If you can't play, why stay, right? It's a terrible situation. I wish there were some way to free them. They should read this essay by Robert Ingersoll and see what awaits them on the other side of slavery.

Girls Girls Girls

So here's a little bit about feminism. I've been called a feminist so apparently I'm qualified to make observations and so forth:

Females and males are different. Biologically they do different things. They are not, however, differently intelligent. They are not meant to perform different tasks. My wife, if I ever get one, will not be "expected" to cook and clean and stay home with the kids. 1. I like to cook. 2. If she makes more money than me and that's highly probable, I'd be more than happy to stay home. I open doors for girls. And guys. If she asks me out on a date, she should pay. And vice versa.

Now, understand that I probably do give girls a little bit more attention and special treatment than I give men but that's because I like them more. I find them more attractive.

Here's the deal, in our world, where people of all sorts of sexual orientations are becoming accepted(finally), there's no longer one single combination of couples so there really can't be a cookie-cutter model for the home. We can't say that men make the money and women keep the house because then a lesbian couple would be broke and a gay couple's home would be disgusting.

This stuff also rolls on to attitudes about sex. For instance, while I do find Roissy's blog tremendously entertaining, the double standard on women being sluts and men being studs is antiquated. Mostly because it's a construction that we talk about but never really find ourselves clinging to deep down inside. Prudes that are female probably want to have lots of romping and rolling. They call sluts sluts out of jealousy. I'm trying to remove words like slut and whore from my vocabulary but they're so ingrained that it's difficult to do. Promiscuous has a negative connotation, too. How to refer to a female that's had more than 1 sexual partner? What about 20+? A man? Have we ever quantified?

And why are women victimized? Why do we always say the man took advantage of the woman? Women are perfectly adept at getting what they want. In fact, we talk about how they hold all the cards. So can't they deal them out when they want to?

One last note: ladies, please hold us to the same standards you hold yourselves to. If you shave and wash and match and shit, expect your man, any man, to do the same for you. Men are pigs because you let us be. Oh, this isn't telling you to brutally psychologically whip your man into shape. And don't be passive-aggressive either. Tell him what you want. Same goes for dudes, too.