These Things I Believe...or did a few years ago

This was sort of a creed I created as the foundation of my new, but imcomplete religion. I have handed this to the relig-oo's that knock on my door. And I ask them, "Have you found the answers you seek?" I should have handed them out at our local polling, election-type place.

I think I’m only wasting time…but is anything really wasted if there is an infinite supply?

I have all the time the world has to offer.

And if the world ends tomorrow…time goes on…and on

I don’t think I’ll regret all that “wasted time” when the world blows up…I’ll be busy ceasing to be.

Worrying about your wasted time is, after all, worrying about your own mortality.

Don’t do it…

If you’re focused on your death, you’ll forget to notice your life.

Why remind yourself, constantly, that you will, one day, die?

I…we…must lower the premium on time…it ain’t that precious…it’s infinite.  The human mind must evolve to the next level of awareness…a universal one.

Throughout time, humans reached different levels of awareness…oh, there is land on the other side of the ocean…the Earth isn’t flat, you say…The Earth is not the center of the universe…we can travel off of the Earth!!!???  All of these truths changed human awareness.  Primitive man could not even fathom more than he could see.  Try explaining how we made it to the moon to King Arthur’s Court…You cannot see the next evolutionary level when you’re below it…but it seems quite ordinary once you’re beyond.  Our collective intellect has grown so rapidly over the last 200 years, we’re becoming arrogant.  We know it all.

Ha!

The wisest man or woman knows that s/he knows nothing…the most advanced notion Socrates ever had…and here we are, at the peak of civilized life…and we’re in danger of ruining it all…life, that is…because we think that we know it all.

We must accept that there is a reason for life.  We may never see it in our Earthly days…it may be part of a much larger process---impossible to ascertain from our vantage or knowledge.  But we must trust in this evolution…for it is inevitable.

Our reason for life is to evolve…everything is part of a process.

You want to cook some yummy chicken…first, marinate that bird over night, right?  You have to let the juice do its job.

Time is the marinade and we are chicken…I mean, the chicken.

This, of course, is just a literary device…a tangible example…the purpose of life is to evolve as a species…the purpose of that is intangible and unimaginable.  Just believe it is there

If we could see the reason why our species evolves as it does…then our purpose of evolution would be complete…its obviously not…so we continue to evolve…whether you worry about wasted time or not…we still evolve…whether or not you’re rich or beautiful or powerful or virtuous or evil or religious…time goes on, humans evolve.

Since there has been human, s/he has sought reproduction and survival...every human everywhere…if we reproduce, and survive long enough to teach our young---we evolve---it is the only thing that EVERY generation of human being has successfully done.

Sure, some people die early…and some people don’t want kids…and war, pestilence, and other maladies have forced high mortality rates and lost generations. But there was always a next generation---SUCCESS!!  We evolve.  If that’s what we do, is it not our purpose?

Believe it…and stop worrying about time...wasted time…time left on Earth

Worrying is the only true waste of time, or our lives.

Parts of a story...or stories?

At first it was going to be some sort of Island of Dr. Moreau allegory type thing. But then the character in my head became part Senator and part Priest. I think that started the arguement. That's the one I think I'll continue with...

                “You are all, no doubt, incredibly interested to hear my tale.  To know the events that transpired and the many things that happened leading me to my current situation.  Stranded for weeks on this island, so far removed from my public life---I’ve had plenty of time to reflect on these events.  I’ve replayed them in my mind over and over again, ensuring that no detail was forgotten.  Despite your instinct to dismiss this as the ramblings of a madman whose brain is so sun-soaked, his grasp on reality drifts further and further away with each passing day, please be assured.  I, at no point, lost any of my mental lucidity.  Every word, as astounding as they might be, is accurate.”

There was a time when I did not look as I do today. Now I am an old man, far removed from the days of my prime. The lines in my face are marks of wisdom. And my beard was much darker and much shorter. I have been on that island for six thousand, five hundred, ninety-four days…that’s a touch over eighteen years.

Through the intervention of chance, I was afforded ample time to delve into thought. There were periods of my island life where I did no more than eat, drink and be meditatin’. If the meaning of life is purpose, I had to find one.

It became clear to me that my purpose was to think…to delve deeper into thought than was thought  humanly possible before.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“The people crave a Messiah! They don’t want to hear your rhetoric!”  His voice was old, but it was strong. “The people want to feel a passion! A purpose! “Belief” is, you will find with the benefit of experience, a power that can control the masses!”

He held their attention, if not their endorsements.

“It is the truth, and it is laid out before us, in the annals of written history,” the Preacher picked up a stack of old looking papers. “You know it to be true, Senator!!” He threw the papers in the general direction of the man with caring eyes.

The Senator looked down his nose at the yellowed papers lying at his shiny feet. Without the slightest flinch, the statesman stood balanced. “How arrogant of you to assume the will of the people?! You can offer salvation from their worst fears of death. But you cannot offer anything more than false hope in their current reality!” The Senator summoned a look usually reserved for the (talented) gardener. “Your ‘history’ should show you the shortcomings of belief based government.”

T he Preacher nearly reeled from the verbal assault. The Senator brushed non-existent lint from the sleeves of his custom-fitted suit. The Monk seemed to float in between the two of them. “Just because you disagree, does not mean either is wrong.”

“Thanks, Yoda,” The Senator swiped the Monk out of the way with the back of his hand. “What’s with all the religion in the room?”

The Preacher was communicating on a much more human level.  He motioned to the Monk with his thumb. “He’s the mysticism of spirituality.” His thumb turned to his own chest. “I’m the church…what man can do in the name of God.” He added, as if clarification was needed, “whether it be good, or it be bad.”

This was an attempt to write a funny article about home improvement

I wasn't feeling it--I'd have to start making things up. I was too competent!

                Why pay someone to do what you can do yourself?  The question has become more pertinent given our current state of economy.  Need to change your oil?  Do it yourself!  The lawn needs its annual aeration?  Do it yourself!  Time to clean out the gutters?  Do it yourself!  D…I…Y…

                Recently at Casa de Hirsch, we decided the home needs some improvement.  By “improvement” I mean that a gaping hole in the ceiling needs patching.  I need to “improve” the kitchen floor by changing it from plywood with intermittent bathroom rugs, into an actual finished, splinter-free product.  Thus, I spent some time and money at the local home improvement store.  And by “some” I mean “a ton and a half.”

                The beauty of the Information Age is that there are no more trade secrets.  Anything and everything is just a Google away.  Step-by-step guides and helpful tips are literally at your fingertips.  All I have to do is buy a few tools and follow the instructions.  I can read and I have mastered most of my basic motor skills. No problem.

                In fact, when I asked the home improvement specialist at the local home improvement store if it was worth seeking a professional to get the floor installed properly, he looked at me with a condescending smirk, and assured me that laying vinyl tiles is “easy.”  It was as if I asked if I needed help chewing my food or brushing my hair.

                “Easy.”  If a home improvement specialist tells you something is “easy,” it most likely means that a home improvement specialist with years of experience, the proper tools, and an accessible knowledge base would knock out your entire to-do list, before you figured out the difference between a Phillips head and a jigsaw. (A jigsaw can draw blood quicker.)

I started this thread when we thought we were moving to Colorado

I didn't get very far--we changed our minds quickly!

I have lived all over the East Coast and quite frankly, I am sick of it.  From the North to the Mid-Atlantic to the South, I’ve seen it all.  And I’ve seen enough.  Certainly I am not the first to feel the westward pull, just the most recent.  You are all witnesses to my Manifest Destiny.  The goal: Colorado.

Currently, I live in the South.  The “New” South they call it. It is the land where northern transplants migrate in search of greener pastures and warmer winters.  It is the land where the good ol’ boys, their heels stuck in tar, cling to an increasingly obsolete way of life.  The cultures clash like tectonic plates grinding together in a societal earthquake.

The famous “Southern Hospitality” keeps things civil.  But Yankees are hardly welcomed with open arms.   And the thing we’ve noticed most about “Southern Hospitality,” is its lack of depth.  You often get smiles to your face and snide remarks when you turn your back.  The sting of losing the War can still be felt.

If this is indeed the “New” South, I shudder to imagine the Old South.  The thought of raising my kids, the unfortunate natives, in this sticky mess of humidity and ignorance makes me sick to my stomach.

Neither my wife, nor I chose to settle here.  But circumstance brought us together as kindred outsiders on this Bible belt, along Tobacco Road.  We’ve made it work now for a dozen years.  Recently we took a break from the rigors of everyday life.  We both had the same epiphany:  Why do we still live here?  Other than the proximity to our families, we could think of no reason.  So we decided to make it happen, to get out of this place.

Junk Drawer

I just went through a drawer whose depths had not been breached for many a night. Oh the treasures we found!! An auto-folding book light!! A old looking leather box!! "The Sock Hunt" game from a Highlights magazine.
I guess the moral is, "Don't overlook treasures while you stare out the window."

Am I who you think I am?

Although I've grown up, I will always be an impressionable child to certain people in my life. It happens to you too, I bet...that is, if you're as old as I am. To be fair, there will always be people in my life that I consider my learned elders and I try not to embarass them too much.<br>
These people have already seen me fall short of expectations. So, rationally thinking, there is no reason for me to be any less than myself...to speak my mind openly. But I don't. That lingering childhood notion of being who they want you to be, has never been fully exorsized from my psyche.<br>
Posting across the web presents you with diverse audience, precisely everyone! I feel the the standards of my work are still , consciously or subconsciously, defined by the those I'd least like to offend. This is fine. Actually I think it's advisable.<br>
But I'm trying to increase my voice on the Web.<br>
My solution?
Create an online identidy.

I want him to be polarizing...you'll either hate him or love him. Maybe I'll make a few characters. Then I can play up his/her dominant personality trait, i.e. Republican, atheist, conspiracy theorists. Or maybe a guy who thinks that America can be saved by gardening and yoga.

Still thinking of names and characteristics--I may let some of you know in time.

fresh emotion

options

It seemed to me, but I couldn’t be sure.

Experience I could not afford.

Were You and you---having a laugh?

The bounds of the game were erased

I fear I missed it.

I missed it.

Will it ever arrive in quite the same way?

We all felt the notion.

Everyone gave it a thought.

Here’s to upping the option.

The seed has been planted.

We need to nurture it.

Make sure it stays vibrant and fresh.

Let it grow into something beautiful,

something delicious.