Joe Walsh................................Ordinary Average Guy
Saturday, November 30, 2013
A darn good question.........................
Which is more dangerous, inequalities of wealth or concentrations of power? And no, they are not even close to the same thing.
From Mark Perry, channeling Thomas Sowell
From Mark Perry, channeling Thomas Sowell
a patient willing..........................
The Wish to Be Generous
All that I serve will die, all my delights,
the flesh kindled from my flesh, garden and field,
the silent lilies standing in the woods,
the woods, the hill, the whole earth, all
will burn in man's evil, or dwindle
in its own age. Let the world bring on me
the sleep of darkness without stars, so I may know
my little light taken from me into the seed
of the beginning and the end, so I may bow
to mystery, and take my stand on the earth
like a tree in a field, passing without haste
or regret toward what will be, my life
a patient willing descent into the grass.
-Wendell Berry
image via
No law...................................
This issue of time underscores how important personal responsibility is in the process of success and personal development. Society doesn't demand the things from you that will make you financially independent, for example. Society does not demand that you take good care of yourself so you can be healthy. Nor does society demand that you will build a financial wall around your family. There is no law that you do any of these things. This all boils down to personal responsibility, self-education and self-development.
-Jim Rohn
-Jim Rohn
Fifty years ago....................................
Brenda Lee...........................................As Usual
About those "crises"................
"Liberty, as we all know, cannot flourish in a country that is permanently on a war footing, or even a near war footing. Permanent crisis justifies permanent control of everybody and everything by the agencies of central government."
-Aldous Huxley, as excerpted from Brave New World Revisited
-Aldous Huxley, as excerpted from Brave New World Revisited
Eagerly..................................
A gentleman never makes himself the center of attention. His goal it to make life easier, not just for himself but for his friends, his acquaintances, and the world at large.
Because he is a gentleman, he does not see this as a burden. Instead, it is a challenge he faces eagerly every day.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guild to Timeless Manners
Because he is a gentleman, he does not see this as a burden. Instead, it is a challenge he faces eagerly every day.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guild to Timeless Manners
Friday, November 29, 2013
For those of you......................
.........who don't believe Thanksgiving is over until you have listened to the whole of Arlo Guthrie's Alice's Restaurant, but didn't want to take the time to do it yesterday - here 'tis:
Playfulness.........................
On being fully human......................
"Doing pointless, purposeless things, just for fun. Doing things for the sheer devilment of it. Being silly for the sake of being silly. Larking around. Taking pleasure in activities that do not advantage us and have nothing to do with our survival. These are the highest signs of intelligence."
"Doing pointless, purposeless things, just for fun. Doing things for the sheer devilment of it. Being silly for the sake of being silly. Larking around. Taking pleasure in activities that do not advantage us and have nothing to do with our survival. These are the highest signs of intelligence."
The real world intrudes..............
.................on the cloistered world of Academe, and those in charge don't seem to be handling it all that well:
"The irony that the very raison d’être of a university—education!—is also its most disposable aspect seems lost on everyone (perhaps because nobody studies English, philosophy, or French anymore, so nobody recognizes irony or knows what a raison d’être is)."
Full post, from whence the excerpt came, is here.
thanks
"The irony that the very raison d’être of a university—education!—is also its most disposable aspect seems lost on everyone (perhaps because nobody studies English, philosophy, or French anymore, so nobody recognizes irony or knows what a raison d’être is)."
Full post, from whence the excerpt came, is here.
thanks
Invisible underbrush..............................
"Both abundance and lack exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend. The invisible underbrush holding us back is our own thoughts. When we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that's present - love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature and personal pursuits that bring us pleasure - the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience Heaven on earth."
-Sarah Ban Breathnach, as excerpted from Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy
Fifty years ago..........................
Elvis Presley...............................Bossa Nova Baby
Eternal..............................
10 Eternal Truths of the Gentlemanly Life
1. A gentleman says "please" and "thank you" readily and often.
2. A gentleman does not disparage the beliefs of others - whether they relate to matters of faith, politics, or sports teams.
3. A gentleman always carries a handkerchief, and is ready to lend it, especially to a weeping lady, should the need arise.
4. A gentleman never allows a door to slam in the face of another person - male or female, young or old, absolute stranger or longtime best friend.
5. A gentleman does not make jokes about race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation, neither does he find such jokes amusing.
6. A gentleman knows how to stand in line and wait his turn.
7. A gentleman is always ready to offer a hearty handshake.
8. A gentleman keeps his leather shoes polished and his fingernails clean.
9. A gentleman admits when he is wrong.
10. A gentleman does not pick a fight.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide To Timeless Manners
1. A gentleman says "please" and "thank you" readily and often.
2. A gentleman does not disparage the beliefs of others - whether they relate to matters of faith, politics, or sports teams.
3. A gentleman always carries a handkerchief, and is ready to lend it, especially to a weeping lady, should the need arise.
4. A gentleman never allows a door to slam in the face of another person - male or female, young or old, absolute stranger or longtime best friend.
5. A gentleman does not make jokes about race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation, neither does he find such jokes amusing.
6. A gentleman knows how to stand in line and wait his turn.
7. A gentleman is always ready to offer a hearty handshake.
8. A gentleman keeps his leather shoes polished and his fingernails clean.
9. A gentleman admits when he is wrong.
10. A gentleman does not pick a fight.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide To Timeless Manners
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Waiting for Pat.............................
Cultural Offering continues his musical march through the "Essential Mixes." One of his most recent mixes featured the work of David Bowie. I know that Kurt is a fan of Pat Metheny. I am eagerly awaiting his compilation of Pat's best work. While we wait, enjoy this personal favorite, a duet (I like to imagine them in the studio together, but suspect that was not how it worked) performance between David Bowie and Pat Metheny:
David Bowie and Pat Metheny.....................This Is Not America
(from the movie Falcon and the Snowman)
David Bowie and Pat Metheny.....................This Is Not America
(from the movie Falcon and the Snowman)
A verse........................
2. Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.
-Colossians 4:2
The Holy Bible
New American Standard Version
-Colossians 4:2
The Holy Bible
New American Standard Version
"People don't often appreciate things that come readily to hand. I'm a person."
So says Greg, who sits at the head of the table at Sippican Cottage and who sends a happy thanksgiving our way. Full post is here. Another excerpt is here:
"And so I offer this little word of thanks, and release it into the ether. I'm glad I'm not alone, and if you're reading this, you're not alone, either, and I'm glad to get a chance to leave a little something in the take a soul, leave a soul dish at the checkout counter of life."
"And so I offer this little word of thanks, and release it into the ether. I'm glad I'm not alone, and if you're reading this, you're not alone, either, and I'm glad to get a chance to leave a little something in the take a soul, leave a soul dish at the checkout counter of life."
"Celebrated by turning inward with family..."
Vintage George Will on Thanksgiving:
Thanksgiving, Hodgson notes, is an echo of the breaking of bread at the heart of Christian worship, and of a Jewish Seder. It also is a continuation, in today's abundance, of harvest festivals around the world, which began millennia ago, when abundance was so rare as to seem miraculous. Hodgson thinks that Thanksgiving expresses "the deepest of all American national feelings" -- gratitude. It is the inclusive gratitude "of a nation of immigrants who have lived for the most part in peace and plenty under the rule of law as established with the consent of the governed."
Thanksgiving, Hodgson notes, is an echo of the breaking of bread at the heart of Christian worship, and of a Jewish Seder. It also is a continuation, in today's abundance, of harvest festivals around the world, which began millennia ago, when abundance was so rare as to seem miraculous. Hodgson thinks that Thanksgiving expresses "the deepest of all American national feelings" -- gratitude. It is the inclusive gratitude "of a nation of immigrants who have lived for the most part in peace and plenty under the rule of law as established with the consent of the governed."
Serving............................
Any gentleman may have friends who do not drink alcohol. Whatever the reason for that choice - religious belief, addiction, or other health concerns - a gentleman respects it. He does not pressure anyone to drink; neither does he ask probing questions. When he is serving as a host, in his own home or a restaurant, he makes certain that his non-drinking friends have plenty of appealing nonalcoholic options.
If a gentleman chooses not to drink alcohol, he does not impose that decision on other people. If he is offered a cocktail, he may say, "Thanks, but I don't drink alcohol. I'd like a soda or some sparkling water - whatever you have handy." He offers no further explanation.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide To Timeless Manners
If a gentleman chooses not to drink alcohol, he does not impose that decision on other people. If he is offered a cocktail, he may say, "Thanks, but I don't drink alcohol. I'd like a soda or some sparkling water - whatever you have handy." He offers no further explanation.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide To Timeless Manners
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
It's not the years, it's the miles...........
The Grateful Dead.................................Ripple
Pondering this one............................
"But the fact remains: Human beings have better experiences when they expect to have a better experience. To hold back on your promise is to deprive your customer of something valuable."
-Seth Godin, as excerpted from this blog post
-Seth Godin, as excerpted from this blog post
About that "settled science".................
"The history of science teaches us to question what we think we know."
Ten seriously significant scientific blunders from the history books.
thanks gerard
Ten seriously significant scientific blunders from the history books.
thanks gerard
May much stay out of our stated plan....
Unharvested
A scent of ripeness from over a wall.
And come to leave the routine road
And look for what had made me stall,
There sure enough was an apple tree
That had eased itself of its summer load,
And of all but its trivial foliage free,
Now breathed as light as a lady's fan.
For there had been an apple fall
As complete as the apple had given man.
The ground was one circle of solid red.
May something go always unharvested!
May much stay out of our stated plan,
Apples or something forgotten and left,
So smelling their sweetness would be no theft.
-Robert Frost
What's ahead.............................?
The mailman just dropped off the latest The Economist. This issue is dedicated to "The World in 2014." Don't you just love predictions? Here are a few excerpts from the essay on "YourTube":
"But in 2014 online video will become a more influential cultural force, changing conversations, communities and what people watch."
"The internet has made people expect that they can access entertainment on their terms: if someone were to make a reality-television show about media consumers today, it would be called, 'Instant Gratification.' Binge viewing, in which the square-eyed audiences (no longer at the mercy of programmers' line-ups) watch multiple episodes or entire seasons in single settings, is becoming common. Netflix actively indulges consumers' gluttony by putting whole seasons of its new shows online all at once. More people will spend weekends without leaving the house, mesmerised by their monitors."
Well, I'm glad we have something to look forward to.............
Believes..........................
In matters of politics or religion, a gentleman does not assume that everyone believes what he believes.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide to Timeless Manners
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide to Timeless Manners
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Timeless.......................................
The Righteous Brothers...........You've Lost That Lovin Feeling
Hagy...............................
Jessica Hagy, as faithful readers will know, publishes Indexed. Here of late she has embarked on a project with Forbes Magazine to mesh her art with The Art of War by Sun Tzu. If you follow the main link, you will find she has completed over 300 specific verse related illustrations. I've barely scratched the surface in viewing them. You can expect to see more than a few of them show up here. Good stuff.
Wealth......................................
"To say that 'wealth in America is so unfairly distributed in America,' as Ronald Dworkin does, is grossly misleading when most wealth in the United States is not distributed at all. People create it, earn it, save it, and spend it."
-Thomas Sowell
via
-Thomas Sowell
via
Hey!........................................
Discovery of Sex
We try to be discreet standing in the dark
hallway by the front door. He gets his hands
up inside the front of my shirt and I put mine
down inside the back of his jeans. We are crazy
for skin, each other's skin, warm silky skin.
Our tongues are in each other's mouths,
where they belong, home at last. At first
we hope my mother won't see us, but later we don't care,
we forget her. Suddenly she makes a noise
like a game show alarm and says Hey! Stop that!
and we put our hands out where she can see them.
Our mouths stay pressed together, though, and
when she isn't looking anymore our hands go
back inside each other's clothes. We could
go where no one can see us, but we are
good kids, from good families, trying to have
as much discreet sex as possible with my mother and father
four feet away watching strangers kiss on TV,
my mother and father who once did as we are doing,
something we can't imagine because we know
that before we put our mouths together, before
the back seat of his parents' car where our skins
finally become one-before us, these things
were unknown! Our parents look on in disbelief
as we pioneer delights they thought only they knew
before those delights gave them us.
Years later, still we try to be discreet, standing
in the kitchen now where we think she can't see us. I
slip my hands down inside the back of his jeans
and he gets up under the front of my shirt.
We open our mouths to kiss and suddenly Hey! Hey!
says our daughter glaring from the kitchen doorway.
Get a room! she says, as we put our hands
out where she can see them.
-Debra Spencer
We try to be discreet standing in the dark
hallway by the front door. He gets his hands
up inside the front of my shirt and I put mine
down inside the back of his jeans. We are crazy
for skin, each other's skin, warm silky skin.
Our tongues are in each other's mouths,
where they belong, home at last. At first
we hope my mother won't see us, but later we don't care,
we forget her. Suddenly she makes a noise
like a game show alarm and says Hey! Stop that!
and we put our hands out where she can see them.
Our mouths stay pressed together, though, and
when she isn't looking anymore our hands go
back inside each other's clothes. We could
go where no one can see us, but we are
good kids, from good families, trying to have
as much discreet sex as possible with my mother and father
four feet away watching strangers kiss on TV,
my mother and father who once did as we are doing,
something we can't imagine because we know
that before we put our mouths together, before
the back seat of his parents' car where our skins
finally become one-before us, these things
were unknown! Our parents look on in disbelief
as we pioneer delights they thought only they knew
before those delights gave them us.
Years later, still we try to be discreet, standing
in the kitchen now where we think she can't see us. I
slip my hands down inside the back of his jeans
and he gets up under the front of my shirt.
We open our mouths to kiss and suddenly Hey! Hey!
says our daughter glaring from the kitchen doorway.
Get a room! she says, as we put our hands
out where she can see them.
-Debra Spencer
Everyone.............................
Everyone has to play the hand they're dealt. This means that you can't make a habit of pointing fingers, blaming others, or complaining. As painful as it can be, unfairness is baked into every aspect of life, and to make a contribution and empty yourself of your potential, you have to come to terms with it and refuse to be a victim.
-Todd Henry, Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day
-Todd Henry, Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day
Necessary.......................
A gentleman clips his nose hairs and the unsightly hairs in his ears. As he grows older, he may also find it necessary to trim his eyebrows.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide to Timeless Manners
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide to Timeless Manners
Jim Tressell (who preached that the punt was THE most important play in the game) would have had a heart attack......
The Coach who never punts (or kicks off deep). Taking the foot out of football. Fun!
Monday, November 25, 2013
Moves on................................
If an apology is sincerely offered, a gentleman accepts it with good grace. He does not pretend that the offense never existed, but he considers it history and moves on. He does not harbor grudges.
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide To Timeless Manners
-How To Be A Gentleman (Revised and Expanded): A Timely Guide To Timeless Manners
Fifty years ago..............................
Muffled drums..........A montage of photos from the JFK services
Full video of the live coverage can be found here
Full video of the live coverage can be found here
Some people I'd like to have a drink with.......
Feel free to add to the list........................
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