No, no, not the Toast Points!….

Ffolkes,

    This coming Saturday is another of those days in one’s life that begins to assume a proportion of importance, and significance, greater than the other days, even other special days. On the one hand, that can be a delight; in other ways, not so much…. You see, it will be my 64th birthday…. I’ve finally reached that age Sir Paul and the boys sang to us. so many years ago, in a song whose poignancy now can bring me tears, rather than the hope and joy it brought me as a teen, when I first heard it…. Oh, which song is that? Why, “When I’m 64″, of course….

The song itself is a love song, obviously, which is why I say it’s poignancy, at least for me, assumes a melancholy aspect, rather than the comforting one it formerly held…. You see, the song makes the assumption that one will HAVE someone to love at 64, a feat which, somehow, managed to escape me…. I have my friends and my family, but, in essence, and in the final analysis, when I go to bed at night, and get up again in the morning, I am alone….

Oh, not completely, of course, and to be honest, I am thoroughly enjoying my solitude…. One doesn’t realize just how soothing being alone can be, until it actually happens. Nobody to tell me to pick up my socks, nobody to worry about waking up with my noise, nobody to cook for, nobody to pick up after…. all those little idiosyncrasies, and small annoyances that build up resentment over the time one lives with another person, never even get the opportunity to bother me, as I don’t have to deal with such things, at all… It really IS a nice way to live, if one can afford it….

I also love being retired, for a lot of reasons…. In fact, one of those reasons was brought home to me yesterday…. I went outside to sit on the porch a while; one of the landlord’s handymen was in the yard, getting it ready for winter. As I watched him sweeping some leaves, I was forced to admit that it was very pleasant to be able to sit on a nice day, and watch someone else do work, without any need whatsoever to join in….. Made me feel quite smug, actually, and improved my mood immensely…

So, I will remain alone, and mostly enjoying it, until serendipity strikes again….. If I were less polite, I could speak now of my hopes in that respect, but, rather than get any more maudlin, or more revealingly inane, I’ll take this little self-exploratory exposition, and play it as it lies…. In fact, that opportunity approaches quickly, and, it so happens, is located right next to one of our exit opportunities…. Ffolkes, I’d suggest you tighten your seat belts, and hold on, ’cause we’re goin’ for it….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Do you call yourself free?  I want to hear your ruling idea, and not that you have escaped from a yoke.” — Nietzsche, “Thus Spoke Zarathustra”

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For the past month or so, I’ve been indulging myself…. Rather than read so much, I’ve been exploring You Tube, our society’s repository of video entertainment, ranging from private/personal videos to blockbuster Hollywood/Bollywood classic movies…. Personally, I find it serendipitous to have found a treasure trove, at least, for me…. Well-written, accurately portrayed versions of the Sherlock Holmes stories, from a long running series on BBC, are giving me, literally, hour upon hour of solid entertainment, without having to strain my eyes reading all night….

Well, I suppose the computer screen is no less troublesome for my eyes, but, it is easier than reading to watch the stories acted out, and very well acted, at that…. Jeremy Brett, as Sherlock Holmes, with Edward Hardwicke as the estimable Dr. Watson, were one of the very best Holmes/Watson pairings, with just the perfect degree of edge to their relationship, perfectly matching the pair’s bookish, very British, complex male intimacy…. and, Mr. Brett possesses the perfect build, voice, nose, and intensity of gaze to portray Holmes, as he did so admirably for 12 years….

Basil Rathbone, of course, set the standard for playing Holmes, and I find it interesting that the two men I consider to have done that the best, resemble each other very closely…. Both tall, (well, they APPEAR tall… perhaps an actor’s trick, but, nonetheless, both fit the image…), slim as a whip, with an aquiline nose and face, and those intense eyes, that can bore a hole right through one’s mind…. Brilliant, both of them…. Enjoy, ffolkes, I am doing so, a lot….

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“The entire world is being driven insane by this single phrase: ‘My religion alone is true.'” — Ramakrishna, Hindu saint & reformer

I would like to comment on the above statement, to set the stage for what comes after…. This short, pithy statement from a Hindu saint, to my mind, simply resonates with truth, a truth so deep it penetrates into virtually ALL categories of human interaction, and can be seen as the core reason behind a great many of the ills we are witnessing in society today…. The attitude he expresses, echoed by nearly every human being on the planet, no matter WHICH of the thousands of religious sects or philosophies to which they subscribe, has spread to include race, or nationality, or town, or university, or bloody bowling team….

The attitude he observes is so prevalent in society, the divisiveness isn’t even considered to be a problem; it is seen to be the natural state of affairs for mankind, so nobody even bothers to try to change it, in themselves, in others, or in the world at large…. They just accept their own racism/bigotry as “normal”, their aggressiveness as “courage”, and their stupidity as “faithful loyalty”, never realizing their loyalty is to ideas and concepts that were proven wrong centuries ago, or are simply a matter of traditional custom, and, thus, justifiable by right of common cause…. another ill-conceived idea, as it doesn’t ever consider whether the commonality extends outside their chosen group, the ones who spout the nonsense they with which they identify the best….

So, we end up with a society wherein the so-called leaders of the group lie to the public as a matter of policy, using a blend of partial truths and outright lies to manipulate the public into thinking, and acting, according to THEIR OWN agenda…. The public, meanwhile, are confused even further by those religious leaders who perpetuate their own agenda, wherein they counsel the public to obey temporal authority, if they wish to be rewarded with eternal life when they die, counting on their fear of death to convince them of the (false) need to give up their right to make up their own minds….

This sort of manipulation now extends to almost every corner of our society, as the government has gone completely rogue, turning away from the principles of a democratic republic, as our founding fathers wished this country to be run, straight toward the money, offered to them by those corporate snakeheads who have assumed the actual control of society, buying politicians, judges, and priests to do their will for them, allowing them to remain behind the scenes, to enjoy all of our money and resources that flow into their coffers each day…..

We, the people, end up with a government that lies to us, spies on us, and treats us as their own personal set of market slaves, while those who actually control the resources, and the money, go about their own business at the top of the heap, without a thought, or an ounce of compassion, for all of the misery and pain they cause to the other members of their species….

In short, they disgust me, and, though I am a compassionate man, I would feel NO remorse whatsoever should I ever break down, overcome my basic beliefs, including my own reluctance to kill, and start eliminating as many of them as I could identify…. I’m getting pretty damn close to that point, and, since I’m also getting to an age where I don’t much care whether or not I live much longer, I’d be the perfect assassin, with no fear of death at all…. and, all because of headlines like the following, which give you an idea of just how much the people in our beloved ruling class don’t give a SHIT about you, or anyone but themselves…..

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/us/us-secretly-monitoring-mail-of-thousands.html?_r=0

“The troubling part is that they don’t have to report the use of this tool to anyone,” Ms. Orr said in an interview. The Postal Service declined to comment on the case.”

This one doesn’t really surprise me, except for the fact that the article was allowed to be printed; it does tend to pull their covers…. That, in fact, may be the scariest, most disturbing part of all of it…. It is getting to the point where those who are responsible for most of the evil in the world seem to NOT CARE any longer if we know they are there…. They just go ahead with what they want to do, and don’t even bother to explain themselves…. even when exposed, such as now….

Now, THAT scares me…. What will we do, if they are so secure, they don’t even feel they need to hide their control any longer?…..

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/nyregion/two-governors-shifts-on-ebola-are-criticized-as-politics-not-science.html

“Charity should be spontaneous. Calculated altruism is an affront.” — Edward Abbey

This headline is here to show again how the politicians of this country, of which governors are perhaps the most egregiously corrupted, use the fears of the public for their own agenda, to try to position themselves into portraying an image to the public that has nothing to do with reality…. They imposed the quarantines IN SPITE of knowing there was no medical justification for it… plain and simple, they lied, merely to make themselves appear to be strong leaders, who are concerned over threats to public safety…. The only safety the public needs is to be protected against THEM, seems to me….

Oh well, that’s enough ranting for one day…. Pretty soon, ffolkes, I’m going to STOP writing…. Then, who knows? Maybe I’ll go hunting…. sounds like fun to me….. I’ll leave you with two thoughts from Smart Bee and Zippy, which will provide the perfect closing thoughts…..

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

“Yow!  Are we wet yet?” — Zippy the Pinhead

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On days such as today, when I’ve ranted, again to little purpose, I feel a bit down…. but, in those cases, a poem like this is a sure cure for any such indulgence of will…. Enjoy, ffolkes, this is one of the best, ever…..

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An odd little pearl, composed of a series of comments on the state of being Man (includes Woman; we only use Man in be in tune with the most common standards of use, but, either one works, because, in this case, it includes both….

“The balls of sight are so formed, that one man’s eyes are spectacles to another, to read his heart from within.” — Johnson

“You aren’t responsible for what someone else loses you are only responsible for what you give and if you have given your best that’s more than they would have had without you.” — Callan Williams

“He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because he is sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god.” — Aristotle

“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask and he will tell the truth.” — Oscar Wilde

“As men, we are all equal in the presence of death.” ~~ Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 1

“What’s a `pantheon’, and why is it mad at me?” — Famous Last Words

“For to err in opinion, though it be not the part of wise men, is at least human.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Against Colote

That’s really not too shabby, ffolkes…. The last one, from Plutarch, (Who is, perhaps, next to Aristotle and Plato, my favorite ancient philosopher), sounds to me like a paraphrase of the Theory of Bozoid Tendencies…. I guess, among all his other talents, Plutarch must have been precognitive, as well….  Ya think?….

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I went to bed early, due to a tummy/gut upset (some part of my dinner wasn’t what my body likes, or can tolerate, apparently….), so, I was up way early, too…. Hence, this is done, and it is still shy of 6 AM…. But, that also means I can hit the day running, so, what the hell…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

À bientôt, mon cherí….