Thought for Today .... Influence ...

"Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation." (Oscar Wilde)  "Be selective about your external influences." (Brian Tracy)

Esoterica: Excessive influence, even from the work of others in art magazines or books, can lead to malfunctions of the creative spirit. Fen Lansdowne, the brilliant and widely-published bird painter who recently passed away, suffered from a lifelong malady called "The Imposter Syndrome." Comparing himself to others sent Fen into a dark and angry funk that sometimes lasted weeks. When he figured out the cure, it was pretty straightforward: Watch birds. Do drawings. Paint birds.

Fact is, the pursuit of art is a delicate balance between influence and self-assertiveness. As self-realized artists we all have different levels of tolerance for this mystery. Influence is like Scotch; it's good to know your personal limit.

(the above was in an email that artist Robert Genn writes to me daily) ...

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Fw: Writing .... What's It All About

 

I first read something to understand the message ... I do not judge the vocabulary used, the grammar accuracy, spelling or anything other than appreciating the fact that the writer wanted to share their message content with me doing so in their manner, time, and ability to write what they felt worthy of their time to communicate. We all differ in our inclination to write, our education, experience, and ability to write, and our time available to write.

 

Then perhaps I re-read, if time allows and if impressed with the style, imagination, and ability of the writer displayed by what I read, I appreciate the writing more by studying it, perhaps mentally and intellectually assessing it by standards of writing in general or compare it to other works I have read, and in that way, I do learn to improve my own writing, or if possible, ask the writer about what he has written.

 

I am certainly not an accomplished writer although I fortunately have many friends who pride themselves on their authorship, intellectual literacy, and published works. I just simply enjoy writing, but in the past I didn't, not until I learned writing is a great way of sharing something you believe others might want to know or read; it is thoughtfulness, sharing, and also reaching out socially in a way that maybe will increase your circle of friends and self respect. This requires courage because what you write may be obviously achieve the opposite of your intent. However, if it does not accomplish the purpose of your intent then you have not failed because just by writing you do improve your own thinking and may have better results the next time you write. So until the next time, writing, and what's it all about, is an experience in mutual caring, consideration, and communication.

The Ups and Downs in Life

 

 

A friend invited me to go with her and her husband to see a litter of Pekingese and to help her to decide whether or not to buy one of the puppies. They were late arriving, and when they did arrive they explained they had been in a minor car accident; a jeep rear ended them just about a mile from my home.  Accidents are one of the downs in life, having to deal with the insurance claim, the vehicle repairs to the broken tail light and dented bumper with scratches, and upset to plans.  But they were happy nevertheless and we were still going to go look at the 8 week old Pekingese puppies, perhaps just what they wanted and have been searching for. This evening was an up occasion for us.

 

I got in their SUV and we were on the way to Cave Creek, Arizona (North of Phoenix) to possibly select their new Pekingese puppy, it had to be a girl puppy to be a mate for their AKC show quality male, Mofasha. After a short drive on Interstate I-17, then turning off at Care Free Highway, we arrived at a lovely new home. The air was crisp and clean, stars shining brightly in the winter's night sky. The Christmas wreath on the entry door hinted their was happiness in the home within.

 

We were welcomed by Chris and her family.  A Christmas tree with lights twinkled through the front window and holiday decorations, some still in boxes, seasonally added to our warm welcome. It was the most unusual home I have ever seen.  We entered into the front hall with a living room at street level and 8 or so steps leading up to the dining room and kitchen where the Pekingese puppies/parents were .... once in the kitchen you go down about 10 steps to a lower level family room or 10 steps up to the bedrooms and bath area (2 cats were sitting on the stairway looking at us quizzically).  The kitchen had an open balcony overlooking the family room with fireplace below and from elevated kitchen level and dining room, an open balcony looks down to the living room where we had entered.This home had more ups and downs than any I had ever visited before. Chris works for Farmers Insurance Agency, and I am sure she works with customers, their life's ups and downs daily.

 

Jeri and her husband were jubilant and immediately knew they had found their Pekingese puppy plus we were very surprised to learn Chris had another litter of 5 Pekingese puppies only 5 days old and there was one female in that litter also.  Jeri joyfully put a deposit on that one too so now we were all up, smiling, and satisfied with 2 new Pekingese puppies selected.  Chris showed us their pedigrees, we could see the puppies parents were exceptional in every way, and Jeri got the necessary AKC application registration papers after paying Chris for her new puppy. We said thank you, said our goodbyes then left with the warm new puppy cradled in Jeri's hands.

 

Safely returning to my home, I invited Jeri in to give her some puppy biscuits, an exercise gate to make a safe area for the new puppy, and some training pads. She looked at my Pekingese and held the one new expectant Mother soon to have a litter of Pekingese puppies just in time for Christmas, the same Mother of her male Pekingese, Mofasha, born last year.  We hugged one another and said goodbye.  Tonight was an up time in our lives and memories are made up of moments like these.

 

I laid down to go to sleep and did so quickly.  It had been a long day.  The next morning I thought about how many up and downs there are in our life just like the up and down stairs in Chris's many levels home.  The next time you are down, look for the stairs leading up.

 

 

 

 

IMAGINATION

 

I was watching an old Turner Classic Movie on my Cox cable high definition TV a few days ago ... "Miracle on 34th Street" where Santa Claus is teaching a young girl the art of imagination which she was never allowed to develop because her Mother didn't believe that was good and her child would grow up indulging in fantasies rather than functioning realistically ... Her Mother also didn't allow her to believe in Santa Claus and told her that it was only a myth (not allowing the young girl to be a child and play as others normally play)....Well the story is about this elderly man who allegedly is Santa Claus who is given a psychiatric exam and about to be fired as a dangerous maniac threat and instead teaches all the meaning of Christmas and of love.

 

In trying to explain imagination to the young girl, Santa explained that it was a nation.... just like the French Nation, the United Nations, or other nations in the world.... Imagine..Nation.  Imagination is a place where anything is possible, where dreams are made, and where you can explore and discover all you ever wanted to experience and be.  That is not the exact script but vaguely what he said to her so to start he had her pretend to be a monkey and she said "I don't know how to be a monkey" LOL That movie mixes hope with human desire for something to be true or the emotional need to believe against all reason which says it is can not be with elements of reality's realism in such a way it does underscore the value of imagination in our lives.. creativity and imagination .... a wonderful classic movie.  So when someone says you might as well believe in Santa Claus .... well, I still do.... and so does the rest of the world it seems. St. Nicholas ... AKA Chris Kringle ... etc and if someone thinks there is no Santa Claus, he might just prove them wrong this Christmas!

 

Clutter ... the Concept, the Condition, and the Cause

My persistent failing is too much clutter .... in everything I do.... so the quote below I need to take to heart and try to reduce my tendencies to clutter ...

"

Clutter.

In art, it's often what you take out, not what you put in. As a general rule, artists need to smile on simplicity and frown on the extraneous.

"

Clutter quote above would apply to home interior spaces, outdoor landscaping, writing prose or poetry, or dressing yourself to step out for that special event .... It even affects how you do your grocery shopping and how you eat.  Clutter takes control gradually until there you are captive in its clutter clutches!

Clutter is not only a concept but a state of mind.  My mind usually is filled to overflowing.  When I make a pot of soup I always fill the pot too full because my mind wants to continue to add interesting other ingredients. Clutter collects in closets, then in garages, and then the whole house room by room.  

My glass is never half empty or half full .... it is overflowing LOL .... Clutter is crazy .... clutter threatens and overtakes your sanity .... that is why asylums and hospitals are clean, sparsely furnished or not at all (you may just have a cell with four walls and not even a suitable toilet or sink facility .... but it is very therapeutic... your mind now unloads its state of confused chaotic clutter).  Zen and other meditation focuses on getting rid of mental and environment clutter with positive improvement to your spirit, mind, and body. 

Clutter is also how you manage or fail to manage your time .... work alcoholics' ( sufferers of obsessive/compulsive clutter disorder) fail to give necessary space and balance to their work and activities .. they are always VERY BUSY!  "Don't bother me .... I am busy!!!" .... They are too busy for their families, too busy for anything except thinking about their work.... needless to say they have a high divorce rate. 

Clutter seems to be more of a country charm thing than an urban sophisticate problem.  Clutter also seems to correlate with income level.  The poorer your are the less space you can afford for your "valuables" so they get crowded together.  The homeless always seem to push their grocery cart along the street piled high and overflowing with their possessions. If you are poor, whatever you have is a valuable possession and hard to replace plus you tend to receive things others didn't want and gave to you and it  is rude to not value their generosity. The richer you are the more empty your elite estates are perhaps because they have housekeepers who dislike doing the work it takes to clean a lot of accessories or a lot of furniture to move.  The rich are always away a lot traveling and socializing.  They consider the world their own to enjoy via their private jets and alternate residences.  They have learned to travel lightly. Collectors may also succumb to the dreaded clutter disorder because they don't seem to ever have enough in their collection.

Clutter is so common. Those afflicted with the big "C+"  have lots of company who share their same "C+" condition and problem. Being too materialistic, too sentimental, or too afraid to throw anything way, give it away, thinking you might one day need it are symptoms of the "C+" clutter-out-of-control unbalanced person.  Clutter is acquired and learned sometimes as a young child influenced to become similarly afflicted because that is how your family or favorite relative chose to live and maybe had their reasons for their exhibiting clutter in their home, their life, and their environment. As a child you saw nothing wrong with the cluttered mind, life, or lifestyle environment.  It was messy enough to be happy and clean enough to be healthy ..... it was filled with interesting things to see, play with, and enjoy.You learned full was a good thing, and empty a sad thing.

Well, now, I confess.  I am an incurable, clutterly insane, "C+" person.  But I'm happy... because that is the way I have always been and see no reason to change at my age.  But you should change if you believe clutter is bad for the many reasons I have given above.  Change is good, healthy, and helps you improve your life. If you change then perhaps I will too!

Grammar anyone? Language and Communication

In grammar, inflection or inflexion is the modification of a word to express different grammatical categories such as tense, grammatical mood, grammatical voice, aspect, person, number, gender and case. Conjugation is the inflection of verbs; declension is the inflection of nouns, adjectives and pronouns.

Acquiring a language as part of childhood development is an amazing feat yet one that almost all children learn at a very young age then the remaining school years teach the proper use of that language, its grammar, spelling, and vocabulary. 

English is said to be a very difficult language. TalMK has members whose native language is not English and yet they have communication competency and are able to speak and write English as well as other languages .... being bi-lingual or multi-lingual is becoming more common in America especially true for those now in kindergarten. 

One does not have to master any given language before learning foreign languages.... I didn't.  I still lack English language skills, but I did study the Russian and Chinese languages... Computer programming requires learning languages for that occupation.

Silent nonverbal communication is yet another language skill. Language is a concept?  Language is an idea and reflects the culture and customs of people who crafted their language. What do you think is the language of the future? What is the philosophy of it? Who will attempt to control it?  The computer is transitioning us to a new non-personal and safer way of interfacing with one another via the various social media choices and transacting business.  The visceral physical self is not present in communication with others .... less chance of infection? less need for language inflection? The interactive, integrated computer/communications/mass media now as one new direction defining language of the future?

A picture is a fact.
Ludwig Wittgenstein ........ and that is a fact!

http://rsif.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/7/53/1647.abstract

As indicated early by Charles Darwin, languages behave and change very much like living species. They display high diversity, differentiate in space and time, emerge and disappear. ....... The similarities between observed and predicted patterns indicate that an ecological theory of language is emerging, supporting (on a quantitative basis) its ecological nature, although key differences are also present.

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My Poetry Metaphor

Poetry is a can of condensed soup
made of colorful,
visually evocative thoughts
painted with an imaginative,
creative, and inspiring
choice of correct words, ~   
inviting the dinner guest
to go beyond
the borders of the can,
exploring the what is,
and the what is not,
within his own mind.

(Yolanda Martin ©)

For composing the last 6 lines of this poem,
SPECIAL THANK YOU TO
 Daniel Magnus Bennét Björck 

Writing Poetry ... The Bible Poem

I like "normalcy" because of its imperfect/scarce rhyming with "lunacy", its antonym ... although different, you see, we may agree ...  Normality is more for formality .... I believe many a word has been added to the American language or English language just because of a writer's need for it to exist to accomplish his missive: "outsane". Outsane is the superset containing both the sanity set and the insanity set (those two subsets can coincide, be subsets within the other, or be mutually exclusive (mathematical set theory).

 

http://www.public.asu.edu/~aarios/formsofverse/furtherreading/page2.html is an interesting reference for the various kinds of rhyming ..... like when plaid was not an eye rhyme for bad and with uncertain pronunciation via various dialects and countries of origin.

 

I like writing poetry because it harnesses my thoughts and words to the minimum within my ability, captures and conveys a message with a few words in least lines needed, does not consume unjust time of the reader to digest. Poetry can convey what sometimes is too difficult and too lengthy a subject to write about in other forms of literature (defined as the art of written works). Someone actually condensed the Bible to a poem and I inserted it below if you would like to read and share it others...

 

I prefer poems that uplift the spirit, enlighten wisely, and are simply expressed rather than those elaborately, elegantly enriched too ornately or ones displaying unnecessary, high brow profuse profundity. Poems should not be written with the intent to impress the reader, to gauge his reading ability, but should be pearls of thought for its reader artistically, creatively, and inspirationally communicated. While some read to challenge their minds and thoughts and want to emulate the poet's refined royal abilities, perhaps even interacting with the author psychically via the channel medium of the writing, most read and write poetry as a leisure relaxation, a pleasant activity by which they enrich their soul and appreciation for the art of literature's creative writings.

 

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The Bible Poem

by George Rigby
Written in Damascus, Syria in 1941

Jump to biography    

Introduction	The Bible's Books are Sixty Six The Spirit - their recorder; Their stories - how they can transfix So here they are - in order.
OLD Testament	In GENESIS I will begin With Adam, and with Eve Who knew not any form of sin 'Til Satan did deceive. Now EXODUS will tell us most Of Moses - Man of God, And how he led all Israel's host When many miles they trod. To LEVITICUS you have to turn And read about the law; The sacrifices which did burn Unblemished - without flaw. The next one tells of sin and shame And how it all encumbers. This book is good - here is its name DEUTERONOMY - after NUMBERS. Now JOSHUA was told to do By vision - and by sound To there and then remove his shoe From off the Holy Ground. JUDGES tells us - all forlorn Of Samson and Delilah, And how his lovely locks were shorn His sight gone - nothing viler. Then next, there comes a parting scene The story - we all know as The understanding love between Naomi - RUTH - and Boaz. First and second SAMUEL, First and second KINGS : They are a first class manual And full of wondrous things. First and second CHRONICLES now Speak of one good Sire Who gave his gold, and cedar bough Hiram - King of Tyre. In EZRA Six - and verse nineteen A feast has been restored The Israelites - it will be seen Had God, their Lord, ignored. Their story you will all recall Concerning - NEHEMIAH Who started on Jerusalem's wall And built it - Higher and Higher. In ESTHER there's a warning And loudly - it is rung For Haman was, one morning On his own gallows - hung. Faith is something hoped for The evidence - not yet seen; JOB had faith, with patience And few - like him - there's been. David wrote the book of PSALMS And one day in his path He slew a man, of brawny arms Goliath - the giant of Gath. King Solomon was very wise The PROVERBS he did write. To fame, and power, he did arise Please read this book - tonight. ECCLESIASTES, Five-verse one Is very plainly put So when you to God's house have gone Remember - keep thy foot. SONG OF SOLOMON, speaks of Love So turn to it, and search The story speaks of one above Who is waiting for the Church. The Prophets' Books, are next in turn And one is called ISAIAH The "Spirit" helps us to discern And the next is - JEREMIAH. Sorrow and love, are indications Chastening - the theme A wondrous book is LAMENTATIONS Jehovah's ways are seen. EZEKIEL was in Babylon All Judah, was therein To that strange land, they all had gone: God's punishment, for their sin. The children's story, I will pen And grown-ups too, will gape It tells of DANIEL, in the Den And how he did escape. Turn over now, and have no fear A sad tale, you will find The writer, is by name HOSEA He pours to you, his mind. Of insects, does this story speak In JOEL chapter one The land with palmerworms doth reek But do keep reading on. In AMOS and in OBADIAH Is reading at its best Your heart may throb, you will retire Abundantly well blessed. There's JONAH next, who would not preach And so he did set sail. He never thought, the shore he'd reach Inside a great big whale. Jerusalem, The Ancient City Samaria, as well. God does render them no pity MICAH does this story tell. And then comes NAHUM who does quote Of God, who does not fail The wicked city, which he smote By sword by fire and gate. I will rejoice, yes, in the Lord And this verse, you will see. The text itself, I will applaud Read HABBAKUK, chapter three. ZEPHANIAH - HAGGAI - ZECHARIAH too Not forgetting - MALACHI - Will thrill you, through and through.
NEW Testament	MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE and JOHN All speak, with one accord Of Jesus - who is God's dear Son Our Saviour - Master - Lord. ACTS and ROMANS will recall Of one who was converted; You will be told - of one named Saul Whose journey was diverted. CORINTHIANS One - CORINTHIANS Two Give us Paul's advice. He states Christ's love is ever new But he also deals with vice. The next four books* are to the Church All written by one hand. They warn the people, not to lurch For Apostasy was in the land. The THESSALONIANS now we reach And here we have an inkling: "Be Ready" as the books do teach When Christ comes - in a twinkling. The books of TIMOTHY which are two Are followed on by TITUS They point us to the paths anew Where nothing will affright us. "Onesimus" - who once did steal When tempted by the Demon He brought a letter, with the seal Of Paul - to one PHILEMON. HEBREWS is a wondrous tale Of Prophets, old and true "By Faith" their works, they did avail Christ gives that Faith - to you. A Guiding book comes to us now And read - you really must It is the Christian path - I vow The author - JAMES the Just. PETER first -- and PETER second Tells us of Declensions And our attention too, is beckoned To matters, which he mentions. First - Second and Third JOHN And next to them comes JUDE They tell of one - God's dear Son Who gives our Spiritual Food. Then as this story, comes to end We read of Devastation For God - His wrath, will surely send You must read REVELATION. * These four books are:    GALATIANS, EPHESIANS,    PHILLIPIANS & COLOSSIANS

George was born in 1912 in Liverpool, where he lived his whole life. He was very well-known to everyone who worked in the Bibby offices in Liverpool. Known as the "Gentle Giant", he joined Bibby's in 1945 after return from active service and eventually became the company's commissaire, a job he enjoyed very much. He started this job in the King Edward Street branch and moved later to Richmond House. George was married to Elsie in 1937, and they had three girls, Dorothy, Jean and Ruth. He enjoyed the company of seven grandchildren, born between 1966 and 1980. George died in 1982. While serving in the Middle East in World War II, he wrote an amazing poem with a verse on each of the sixty-six books of the Bible while stationed in Damascus in 1941. This poem has since been copied and distributed in paper form throughout the world. As George's eldest grandson, I am proud to be able to put it on the Internet for an even wider audience, and hope that you will take it, pass it on or forward this site's address to those who you think may benefit from it.

Thank you,

Andy Price

Last Updated : 24 Apr 2002

Feel free to email Andy Price (andy@andyscouse.com)

Degrees of Sanity

Let's compare the human mind to a computer and a computer's system operating software.... there is no such word as insaner but the computer thinks there is ... It is also about experiencing infinity and regaining your sanity ....

 

You're inside yourself and are that black box operating software, and as far as you know there is nothing wrong with using insaner to communicate ..... but when you step (special exit) outside that software and compare yourself to other software communications operating systems you learn that insaner is not correct .... while outside your black box, you decide to adjust (self repair and improve) when you go back inside your software based on feedback, new data, current events what you learned to modify while outside your software .... the ability to go in and out of your operating software analyzing sane, saner ,,, insane, insaner as your old words to communicate thoughts ..... after a time you create a new word for this outside your computer box learning algorithm, ability to self repair .... you're outsane your mind ....

 

You know no other computer operating system has this word nor this ability to self repair damaged or incorrect processing and you also know outsane is not presently a word.... you innovate, you create a new word, you define that word and its meaning ..... you use that word "outsane" because it is needed to communicate that one necessarily must go outside the linear range of sanity and insanity to understand where they are located (what point (0 dimension) on the scale (1 dimension length) of that concept;  and in the process, you have created a 2rd dimension (length PLUS 2nd location off the line looking from 3rd point anywhere outside the line and on either side) .... the outsane dimension .... you must be in the outsane dimension (2 dimensions and in infinity) to judge the one dimension line (of infinite length) and observe where your point is located on the infinite scale of sanity at one end and insanity at the other end with both ends extending to infinity.

 

(Conceptual Primer)

a point is 0 dimension...... marker

a line is 1 dimension to infinity ..........  sanity on one end, insanity on the other end with some point indicating your sanity or lack thereof.

a plane is 2 dimensions to infinity......  observation of your point on the line and where you want to be...... your outsane vantage point.

a solid ... form.... in space is 3 dimensions to infinity .......... your holistic self

a 4th dimension is anything you want it to be to infinity (time?) and many other things ..... at a given time

a 5th dimension .. *event"? ,,,,, make corrections, heal, rehabilitate

a 6th dimension .. "system events"?..... while other life goes on and time passes

a 7th dimension ...."Reality"?...... alternate realities ...

the next dimension ..... you are now outside reality ..... you're also outsane ... you have been both sane and insane and see there is really nothing separating the two opposites... (Tao)

Marking Out The Path

 

The Tao that can be spoken

is not the true Tao

Any name which can be given to it

is not its true name.

 

That which was before

Heaven and Earth is Tao.

Tao is the mother of all things.

 

The wise seek its mystery,

and find it made of opposites.

Opposites arise from the same source

and are identical in all but name.

The mystery of opposites is so profound,

to understand it

is to open the door of Tao.

Normal ? Or Not....

Normal?


Normal is not all that great,


Subnormal is not all that bad,


Paranormal is weird fate,


Abnormal is a fact to add.

____________________________

The poem’s subject is one that is sometimes over emphasized.... normalcy .... yet it is always there to remind us of the expectations of others... Happily sometimes we are able to exceed their expectations in a positive way!

Some reviewers have questioned my ealier line writing "some fate" and the answer is that paranormal is more than just a fate ... so much more .... that is why I wrote “some fate” .... then "part fate" then settled on "weird fate" .... it is an ingredient in the quality of being paranormal.

There is a fine line delicate link between intelligence, psychic, and psychotic ... your intelligence is the key to staying in control in mysterious paranormal abilities. Most all paranormal abilities have to be developed and usually individually since others do not sense or feel what you do.


I am sure that everyone has that special quality that surpasses normalcy and that is what to look for when considering others. I shall try to remember that, and so the poem I spent so much agonizing over to get the last line “normal” for the rest of the poem’s lines was worth the time and thought.

The last line “Abnormal is a fact to add” .... is why normalcy is desired .... if abnormal then there is more work required to “exception case” identify and accomodate the abnormalities. No one likes extra work and everyone has better things to do with their time than addressing special needs of an abnormal subject.

Programming is mostly all about providing for the exceptions to normalcy... one has to develop the program so that it handles ALL cases which might ever be encountered in processing input to output... it is easy to code the routine normal processing, but extremely difficult to imagine and anticipate/accommodate the exceptional cases that might be entered. If the programmer developer fails to adequately provide for all conditions of all cases then you have allowed latent opportunistic bugs to exist by your negligence and lack of adequate provisions for abnormalities.

Even if something is impossible and the path of the code should never get to that point, exits must be coded in case the impossible happens (usually as a fault elsewhere in the program processing).... The program developer must think and consider everything possible and impossible and provide proper processing.... then the program developer constructs a test environment to test the program for everything possible and impossible thoroughly to see the program is processing correctly. Eventually, this work does influence the programmer and his life and how he lives it similarly. It is much more complicated than a chess game and the stakes are higher.

As to the poem about being Normal? Or Not ...

There are endless variations and possibilities for that poem ... not only changing adjectives of last word on line, but changing the last word and other words that rhyme with it and changing the number of lines, stanzas, meter, and so on ... Cohesiveness is as necessary as coherence ....

Maybe the poem piqued your interest enough for you to want to modify it ..... I find that when I read poetry written by others I often want to modify the ending lines or something in the poem .... and sometimes do so just for my own enjoyment .... hence over history the many versions in the various languages for selected works of literature ....

I don’t believe “Thou shalt not tamper” .... (or do not alter) is an acceptable rule since in software many times we need to take something as a model or as a launch pad with which to develop to our own custom needs and uses ...

Even restoration of historical paintings allows the painter to “enhance” as his conscience allows him while trying too preserve the integrity of the original artist’s work ... time is an artist modifying everything in preserved Art and so one must consider time when creating something. 

Are You Sane or Not?

Do you agree sanity is a variable relative to perceptions and social interactions and not a constant? .... and it is a poorly defined concept? ...............by psychologists it is defined as an individual functionally "normally" in a specific given environment ..... the individual has to adjust to the differing environments and conditions/stresses in that environment..... when an abnormal combination of events creates loss of loved ones, interpersonal or societal/political/religious conflicts, illnesses, advancing age problems, economic disasters, residence and geographical or work changes, and coincidental other extreme stresses on the person perhaps occurring at the same time (stressor loading) (and given that every person's limits to accommodate conflict, change, and extreme stress is a variable) then sanity is compromised, or at the very least challenged and then that person who was sane becomes insane unable to function  "normally" in their environment...

The person that is trained to cope with increased limits is better able to stay sane than the untrained and unprepared person. Psychological warfare has been around for a long time and begins in early childhood even .... the more protected child is least prepared for later adult real military psychological warfare if improperly trained before hand .... The Asian cultures admirably do mentally equip their very young with martial arts and self discipline to strengthen the mind's defenses, increasing their advantage to overcome their aggressors. When I was playing with dolls, my counterparts were engaged in deadly combats.  I have friends from other countries that have told me their childhood stories, and they were quite different from my own protected childhood.

Corporate America is a real psychological war ground being intensely competitive, ensuring survival of the fittest? reigning supreme? Political persecutions, false imprisonment, ludicrous laws, mindless misdemeanors, social injustice injuries against a sane person can cause loss of sanity.

Every one can be "pushed" over the edge of their sanity and not many know how to regain mental health but remain forever mentally ill. If they are so fortunate to regain sanity they are still considered a mental health and security risk plus suffer social stigma and prejudices.  In America, if one has a medical history of ever being mentally ill then forever considered mentally ill (maybe treatable to live freely in the community but with limiting restrictions imposed, forever monitored and considered a threat to sane society). I find this deplorable and a sign that mental illness is something not yet understood adequately (set apart from health in general and treated differently than other health issues even if the origin of the mental illness is a result of diet deficiency, diseases, tumors, accidental injuries, or any of the other many non stigmatic health afflictions people encounter).

A measure of the quality of society, a country and its people, is to measure and account for how many are mentally ill, in prisons, unemployed, disabled, uneducated, untrained, physically ill,homeless, and helplessly at the mercy of a dysfunctional government. America has a huge debt payable to China and other foreign countries passing that debt on to the next generation. If sanity is defined as being of sound mind and capable of making sound judgments then America is insane.  Is America sane?  Is the world sane? Are you sane?  If in doubt think about how to improve mental health in your own life and that of others. Peace and prosperity will follow.

 

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The Cold Blooded Killer

My close friend is a published author who writes cozy mysteries ..... so I thought I would write this poem about a serious matter as a mystery .... so often the victim asks, "Why me?"  I have looked into the eyes of the criminally insane, been in their presence, and wonder about the evil that dwells within their person.... What makes bad people bad? Pray that they don't cross our paths.

 

 

The Cold Blooded Killer

 

He walked across in front,

His glance glared with horrible hate.

 

Unmasked evil cold, blunt,

He had plan, plus premeditate.

 

Time froze with his confront,

To be his victim, this my fate?

 

Silent witness, I want,

To run, hide, inside self sealed gate.

 

Why did this stranger hunt,

Decide me to be his next stunt?

 

There wasn't personal affront,

Selected just to fill his crate....

 

(Yolanda Martin ©)

 

 

 

 

 

Tiring of Turkey

Frozen turkeys went on sale a week ago and I have already roasted 3 with a 4th one thawing out ... the first 3 were 15 lbs and the one now thawing is 25 lbs ... 

Tiring of turkey, I bought a Hormel Spiral Sliced Ham at Albertson's yesterday and am currently cooking pinto beans with fresh red bell pepper and chili red pepper spices with the ham bone after storing the slices in a zip lock bag in the refrigerator ...

How we choose to nourish our bodies is as variable, individually person to person, as how we nourish our emotions, souls, and minds.  I value the differences and freedom to choose among so many available commodities commercially, mass marketed packages.  What I now miss is the uncommercialized, old fashioned farmer's market and friendly home town preacher where everyone knew everyone else, not only the fields' locations and stock's health and age or river source of the fish they were eating at meal time, but more importantly, the collective spiritually uplifting of everyone within their locality and visiting distance, having mutual concern for the well being of the other whether it be a new birth, a new marriage, or untimely death (death is always untimely it seems). It was always unfortunate if someone died in the winter with the ground frozen hard.

Modern times are separating us from our personal identities as we are asked to present our cards, our membership number id(S) , and passwords to gain access or conduct business. Moving into the future and looking ahead I wonder if we are unperceptively being dehumanized and desensitized to what is most precious in our lives, in mankind's civilization, and our life sustaining environment. ???? Literally, the future is unreal.....