tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50522591327367518622024-02-20T09:58:55.692-08:00I don't know, but neither do you.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-34806726307617122102017-06-08T08:23:00.001-07:002017-06-08T08:23:05.218-07:00Frank Stein - Unfrozen - Short story<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">FRANK STEIN –
UNFROZEN<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">By Travis E. Hughes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="display: none; font-family: Arial; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-hide: all;">Top of Form<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">When the news broke that the cure for cancer had finally
been achieved, Mary Wollen Stein wasn't thinking about her husband who had died
so many years before, but instead she thought of her niece Alliah, who would
now be saved. But it was a phone call from the Cryonics Institute that reminded
her of her obligation. Her husband had achieved great things in his short life.
A billionaire by the age of thirty, Frank Stein had ensured his family's legacy
for generations to come. But all that money couldn't stop the cancer from
taking him at age thirty-seven. It was a family secret, one forged out of
embarrassment perhaps, that her husband had made arrangements to be
cryogenically frozen in liquid nitrogen just as he was dying, fifty years
before. Once the cure was announced, the cryo-lab had set about making several
phone calls to families who's loved ones had died from the disease.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Mary made no public announcement. She didn't even tell her
children or grandchildren about it. She'd always been skeptical of the whole
thing and assumed that instead of being buried or cremated, Frank had simply
been frozen, but either way he was long dead and gone. She'd remarried, twice,
once divorced and the second left her widowed. She'd seen more life without
Frank than with him. She was pleased that her third husband Tom hadn't been
frozen. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It took her a few days to respond to the lab, but on a cold
rainy morning she made the drive to Boston from Manhattan to be there when they
revived her first husband. The place felt very sterile and the acrid stench of
chemicals clung to the air as she was ushered through plastic curtains into a
large room. A metal tank had been wheeled into the room and a hose drained away
the liquid nitrogen, slowly as the body was gradually warmed. Still feeling the
shock of anticipation commingling with fear and skepticism, she waited as the
body was carefully lifted out of the tank and placed on the table. Several
tubes were attached and a blood transfusion pumped the thawing body full of not
only fresh blood but mixed in it was the nanotechnology responsible for eating
the tumors and the cancer cells. Seeing Frank there on the table became
overwhelming and she threatened to pass out. To what end would this venture
take? His body had been preserved at thirty-seven, she was in her late eighties.
What was the point of it all? More questions than answers swirled her brain as
the procedure continued into the hours. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Finally, well into the night, with only a doctor, a lab tech
and two assistants, Mary stood as they set about reviving her long dead
husband. "His vitals are good," said the doctor to the tech. "We
are waiting consciousness."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And then, in the wee hours of the morning, Frank's eyes
blinked and his fingers twitched. His toes curled and his mouth sucked in a
deep draught of air. She could feel her limbs tingle and again the threat of passing
out washed over her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"Mr. Stein?" asked the doctor. "Can you hear
me?" Frank eyes blinked open. They were pale and watery. But more
than pale, they were dead. Lifeless. Frank slowly looked around the room, a
frown of confusion his only expression.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"Can you speak?" asked the doctor. But Frank
remained frowning and contemplative.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"Have you done this before?" asked Mary, standing
to get a better view. But the lack of an answer concerned her. "Have
you ever revived anyone before? What can we expect here?"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"We have not," the doctor finally said. "You
were the first family member to oblige the patient's wishes."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"What place is this?" Frank's former body asked.
It was enough to startle everyone in the room, but the one startled the most
was Mary. Frank's voice... It wasn't Frank's voice at all. Frank had a slight
New York accent, having grown up in Brooklyn. This sounded nearly English.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"What manner of witchcraft do you play at?" Frank
asked trying to sit up, but failing due to muscle atrophy. Mary screamed and
covered her mouth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"Who is this man?" she asked finally. "What
is your name?"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Frank slowly turned his dead, pale eyes to her. It sent ice
shards down her spine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"I am Emptiness. I am Despair," whispered Frank's
mouth in an English accent. Mary screamed and hurried out of the lab and down
the long corridor. She wanted to run, but her aging body would no longer allow
for that, so she walked as briskly as she could. She felt her hips pop,
bone against raw bone. Once in her car, she looked back at the tall, unassuming
building with its grey brick and subtle sign that read; Cryonics Institute. The
lights flickered in the windows and then the streetlight snapped off with a
spark. Screaming again, she floored her car and missed the turn. Her car
careened off the road and down an embankment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="display: none; font-family: Arial; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-hide: all;">Bottom of Form<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-48555925791468713512016-10-06T06:54:00.001-07:002016-10-06T06:54:55.433-07:00For Halloween!
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
On HELL</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">I just figured out one plausible description of
Hell. It considers the theory that reincarnation is one part of a complex
system that makes up the universe. Which it has also been suggested to be a
living organism; a divine being of some kind. Souls are scattered fragments of
the previous, pure spirit of the creator. All living organisms must possess
some of the tiniest fragments of divinity to live. It’s why wheatgrass has DMT
in it. Like raindrops are human souls and water is God, or the Universe itself,
which we call God. It’s up to interpretation here. *Please note: The Author tends
to take leaps of pure fancy and does not entirely and whole-heartedly believe a
word he’s written, however, he is an Optimistic Agnostic, right? So he looks
for patterns that are or aren’t there, and he draws lines between them. He’s
primarily a fiction writer. Always keep that in mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">But back to reincarnation. So here are some rules:
Our souls evolved with or along side our physical form. So we climbed the
direct bloodline of modern humans. We started out simple and extremely
fragmented, perhaps as microbes even. Then we started to cluster back together
and form more complex life. So some might ask, where you a rat? No, because
that’s not a human ancestor. But we were some similar, tiny rodent like,
primate creature crawling around in the trees. We tend to stay close to
bloodlines. Like dolphins in pods, we swim upstream along what we perceive to
be a linear progression but that’s only how it is shown to us in retrospect. We
start out clustering together, drawing into clumps because, even though we
aren’t aware yet enough to voice it, we draw power from groups. That’s because
we’re all divine and the more divinity we gather, the more divine we become.
It’s why we like teams. It’s why we like choirs. It’s why we like parties. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">So it could be said that living a physical life is
also an important element of the complex system. It’s the exercise to make the
muscle stronger. Why? That’s beyond understanding. How? Again… same answer.
Patterns are all I see. If you get into the idea that there are multiple
universes, then you’re talking a very complex system. The universe itself
reincarnates in that case. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">So you ask, what about the soul of my dog? What’s
he going to do to reach nirvana? Dogs will have their day on another planet or
perhaps this one. Technology and human science could advance enough that dogs
and dolphins and parrots and pigs are smart enough to reach spiritual
enlightenment. All of this is fodder for science fiction, please realize. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">But there are times when a planet dies and all the
life must travel together as one enormous pod of dolphins toward a new planet
with the possibility of being able to sustain life. They work in concord with
nature to facilitate conditions conducive with nurturing life intelligent
enough to reach nirvana so that basically they can stop being born. They can
stop suffering.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">Suffering is the key. If it doesn’t burn, then you’re
not doing the exercise correctly. Life cycle trials were how souls made it back
into the Cosmic Choir. It was an exercise of some kind. Shattering ourselves
into fragments and then creating a physical universe for us to enter. It does,
at times, feel like a video game. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">Another rule: Entire civilizations can and often
do reincarnate at the same time. The United States is Ancient Rome,
reincarnated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ancient Rome is Atlantis,
reincarnated. So then, The United States is also Atlantis, reincarnated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s basic logic, people. That’s because we
like to clump in our familiar pods. Only the pods have grown over the eons to
include entire generations and civilizations. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">So think about time passing. Each generation has
its heroes, its enlightened ones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
those reach nirvana eventually. They stop joining the game of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if the purer souls throughout history have
already reached nirvana, or heaven or that unpronounceable word the ancient
aliens use, that means the only souls still in the game are the shitty ones.
The devils and the fiends. So that is how hell is going to play itself out. The
only people still around in some distant future are the souls of the evil
people who couldn’t reach nirvana. They are the only ones left in the cycle of
reincarnation. So each generation gets increasingly worse, because any person who
reached enlightenment and is able to help people, stopped being born. So the
world is left with shit. And that’s hell. You can die. It’s a physical place.
But you just get reborn, again and again. Surrounded by only the worst souls in
history: child molesters, former slave masters and serial killers, Caligula, Hitler
and Vlad the Impaler. And maybe the rest of us stop paying attention to them
struggling and bickering with each other, and because they no longer exist to
us, they truly aren’t part of the universe we create next. A new game perhaps,
with new rules. And the really foul fiends are not there to mess up our new
game. Better for the collective hive or heavenly host, depending. Keep
eliminating the weak until they are no longer among us. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 120%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Cochin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cochin;">But there’ll be plenty a temptation in the new
game to draw a few weaker ones astray. Egos rise. Power corrupts. </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-46438983193520205002016-08-06T10:57:00.001-07:002016-08-06T10:58:23.952-07:00On Aliens and Evolution<style>
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ON ALIENS AND EVOLUTION</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Arcturus is a fifth dimensional
civilization and one of the most advanced extraterrestrial civilizations in our
galaxy. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
If you’ve read my blog before you
may have realized that I support a theory that competes directly with the
Ancient Alien Theory in that it recognizes the evidence but sees an alternative
explanation. However, I do believe that in the vastness of our universe that
not only life but also intelligent life has to have evolved. It has to have. In
my theory sentient beings being distributed throughout the universe is crucial
to the idea of the universe being a complex system and thoughts and emotions
are forms of energy. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
In researching a sci-fi screenplay
I came across a list of the various alien species that regularly visit earth.
This list provided a brief description of each race of alien. It’s quite an
extensive list. If anything someone put some real thought and energy into it. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
So one thing I found interesting
about these various alien species is the fact that they are usually similar to
things we find on earth. There are the reptiles and the birds among them. This triggered
a thought about evolution and Earth’s history. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Let’s start with the birds. Many
ancient cultures claim that the sky people helped them form their societies and
build their monuments. The Anunnaki were a major part of Mesopotamian
mythology. They were winged creatures that resembled birds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Among the Egyptian gods there were birdlike
beings. The Native Americans also worshipped bird creatures who gave them
knowledge and wisdom. We even have the winged angels in our folklore. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Someone said one of the major
differences between humans and all the other creatures on earth is the fact
that we build things and have technology. This made me think about nests. I
began to consider the birds. Birds are extremely intelligent beings. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Watch a
Nat-Geo special on crows or parrots and you’ll be amazed. One of the things
they do is build nests. But ancient hominids, our pre-humans, also built nests
in the trees. These nests become more elaborate as the human evolved, until
nests became homes and homes became villages and villages became cities and
technology and ideas came together until eventually humans were able to leave
the planet earth. As of now, for only short distances, but we can do it; and if
we’d spend our resources on exploring space as opposed to building weapons of
war, we’d be much further out there now. Birds are the watchers of the forest.
They alert everyone of danger. The bird flocks together and works in harmony.
They are a more peaceful being than humans. They don’t kill for sport. So here’s
my question of the day. What if it happened in the very distant past with
birds? A certain species of bird evolved and expanded from building elaborate
nests to villages and finally cities and rocket ships?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if a group of them left earth before a mass
extinction took place? But they are still interested in earth because this is
where they came from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if it’s
happened several times throughout the history of Earth? There are the reptilian
aliens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if they were a small
species of dinosaur that evolved and left the planet before the meteor whipped
out their cousins? We only know the broad strokes of history and have no clue
of the details. It is certainly possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Reptiles then gave way to the birds and now its the mammals turn to
evolve and leave the planet. Perhaps that instinct is written into the code of
the universe? The code is like an instinct. What if life is meant to evolve
into intelligence and leave its home planet and mingle with other life until
we’re all connected? Then the universe will truly be self-aware. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-33324485995668057422016-04-28T08:21:00.000-07:002016-04-28T08:21:45.644-07:00On the Cosmic Choir
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ON Harmony…</div>
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<br /></div>
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“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">When you find peace within yourself, you become the kind of person who
can live at peace with others.</i>” –(Vlad “The Impaler” Dracula). </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Heavy-handed mockery, they all
felt insecure. “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pain is inevitable.
Suffering is optional.</i>” – (Ivan the Terrible). We’re all just swirling
eddies, sucking in and spitting out, rolling along the crowded river, pausing
to dance for an interval before needing to continue on with the current. It’s
about ego versus the collective. It’s about agony and it’s about pain being necessities
of life. It’s about swimming in reality’s bone-chilling waters. “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Happiness can only come from acceptance.</i>”
– (Pol Pot). Disappointment and pain are major parts of life, the sooner we
realize this the better we are in dealing with life.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow</i>.” – (Joseph
Stalin). If we really are a collective, spiritual hive, then shouldn’t we
contribute? And shouldn’t we listen to those who have? For example, an old man
once told me that if I ever owned my own business: “You should only hire smart
people, even if they threaten your own intelligence. And when dealing with
people you care about, never cut what can’t be untied gracefully.” Thanks
anonymous old man.</div>
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<br /></div>
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If there is such a thing as a
collective consciousness, then everyone’s ideas belong to everyone else. Right?
They’re there to be shared. So thanks, Einstein. And you’re welcome for
relativity, everybody else. </div>
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<br /></div>
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When dealing with adversity some
people can become very superstitious. Take my proctologist. It just keeps
getting weirder and weirder with that guy. I don’t have the heart to tell him I
don’t even like ice cream. He thinks it brings good fortune. I think it brings
awkwardness. But there we find ourselves, seated across a wrought iron table,
in plastic chairs, napkins being held down by stones and drinks, because the
breeze threatens to scatter them across the busy road, wondering how in the
hell I got myself into this position; the conversation boarders on the absurd
and the indecent. Will this end in a fist fight? Life’s good, if you don’t
weaken. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Your definition of yourself has
drastically changed, recently. What’s the new definition? That, you can’t say.
Not yet, anyway. But by the end of the day, in a way, we’re all okay. Who were
you before you weakened? Introvert in a clown’s veneer, playing the fool,
playing it cool. We constantly gamble on happiness. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Confidence works like the Force.
Those who have it are force-wielders able to bend reality to their own will.
Someone asked me once if confidence and faith were the same thing. Nope. But
maybe I was wrong. I have no confidence left to say. “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Indecision is the inkling of fear</i>” – (Caligula).</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">In all things it is better to hope than to despair</i>.” -<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Idi Amin). But aren’t we all searching for
something more? Is anyone really satisfied? Maybe? I’d like to meet a satisfied
person and ask them if they haven’t just given up. Then I think about what
sorts of things would give me satisfaction. Isn’t the point of life for us to
suffer? Suffering is where we find strength and humility. But suffering comes from
desire. Desire comes from dissatisfaction. We want to use each other to fill
the gaping holes in our own lives. We project traits onto the people we meet,
hoping them to be true. They rarely are. We all get caught up in our own
fantasies, only to have them destroyed when reality reveals itself. Everyone
has weaknesses. Everyone is flawed. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Music is the mediator between spiritual and sensual life</i>.” -
(Saddam Hussein). If there is a collective consciousness, it must work like a
massive orchestra or choir and you must be able to sing in key if you want to
join in. That takes practice and most likely training. Suffering is the
training ground. Like a muscle, in order to grow stronger it must be broken
down. So if you’re out there somewhere on your own journey, and you’re
suffering, well, good for you. If you don’t weaken, you’ll only grow stronger.
The Lord said humble thyself in the sight of the Lord. Life is meant to humble
us. You can’t sing the solo in every concert, you must be humble and sing your
part in harmony with everyone else around you. And remember, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">One day is worth a thousand tomorrows.</i>”
– (Josef Mengele – aka Angel of Death).</div>
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<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-20055192697685069302016-01-07T08:26:00.000-08:002016-01-07T08:26:54.285-08:00Money makes the World Go Round!
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ON MONEY</div>
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<br /></div>
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It’s the root of all evil! Some
people know that I HATE money. I truly believe it to be the instrument of all
the world’s problems. Greed is destroying our planet right now. Conspiracy
theorists point out the satanic symbolism on the dollar bill as proof enough
that this is true. They say the devil created money and the material world to
enslave humanity. If not the devil then we’ve done it to ourselves. In my last
novel I explored a world without money. I really enjoyed going to that world
and examining the freedom it provided. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Religion teaches us that there are two
worlds in which humans exist: the material world and the spiritual world, and
they are at odds with each other. We can spend our lives trying to attain one or
the other, but not both. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The material world is dominated by
the idea of the “survival of the fittest” and the strong eat the weak. At the
heart of the material world there’s a lie or at least a contrived concept that
paper equals power. With money one attains the ability to control the immediate
environment as well as the people in that environment. When we only experience
the world through our basic, tangible senses we forget the greater truths of
life. So many people have given over to the “dark side” of life and are living
solely in the material world. People ask upon first meeting someone else, what
they do for a living. Why does that define us? External power is the only power
one can attain from the material world. External power is not internal power. It
is quite the opposite. I’ve suggested we’re on the cusp of a new era in human
evolution. We’ll never achieve it when the material world is the world in which
the majority live. External power stems from fear. Fear is the tool those with
external power use to control others. The more external power one attains the
larger influence they can have over their expanding environment, to where
someone like Donald Trump wants to control the entire planet; such is his ego. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rex Mundi</i>! Ego lies at the heart of the
quest for external power. Ego is a false belief that we are all individuals,
living only one lifetime, trying to eek out the most we can from the material
world before we’re turned once again into dust. The fear that this might be
true keeps even religious people rooted in the material world. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Think about violence. What is at
the heart of all violence? The competition to control the external world is
what is keeping humanity down and could quite possibly (most likely) lead to
our doom. Those with power want to keep that power as long as they can. But the
truth is, external power is fleeting and can be lost over night. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
We should be in quest of internal
power. What a better place this planet would be if we all were seeking to
control our internal worlds? If one were to achieve internal power, one would
never lose it. All of humanity’s best intentions stem from the internal world. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Selflessness. I struggle with this, as do most
people. I often think of how this will serve me in the long run, whatever
“this” may be. It is because we’ve been conditioned to think this way. But in
order to start evolving in the right way, we must be conscious of our decisions
and our motivations. It comes down to intentions. When we ask ourselves what’s
our real intention in doing something, then we begin to step back from the
material, sensing world and question things on a higher level. What really
matters? What’s really important in the long scheme of things? It’s a simple
question that can lead to the right decision. It’s in the ability to step back
and see the larger picture that can solve so many problems peacefully.
Christians used to say, “What would Jesus do?” Jesus represents the right
decision and the proper perspective. Subconsciously we all know what Jesus
would do. We just forget to ask that question.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-16795255831404820092015-11-11T18:05:00.003-08:002015-11-13T05:27:49.041-08:00The Holy Bible<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
On The Bible</div>
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<br /></div>
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When someone says to me that the
Bible was divinely inspired I answer them by saying everything is divinely
inspired; that is if you believe in divinity.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“It is easier for a camel to pass
through the eye of a needle than a rich man to get into heaven.” What modern readers don’t
realize is that ancient walled cities had smaller tunnels called the eye of the
needle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Camels had to be stripped down
of all their belongings, or what they were carrying in order to slip through
the tunnels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So instead of it being
impossible for a rich man to reach heaven, the rich man needed to be stripped
down of his worldly possessions. But this is only one of COUNTLESS
misinterpretations we modern readers of the Bible have come to believe.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
What are my thoughts on the Bible
specifically? Do I find it strange that the Bible has claimed for two thousand
years or more that we all hail from one lineage and that there was a first
woman and a first man and that this has been recently confirmed by DNA science?
How would the ancient Hebrew writers have known that? The religious person
answers that God inspired them with the truth. Perhaps so, but not in the way
we traditionally think of it going down, with a white bearded God whispering
into wise men’s ears. It could have something to do with my earlier post about
the Zero-point field; if eternal knowledge is imprinted on the fabric of the
universe and is to some extent accessible to those in tune with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I would also add that these men filtered
this cosmic knowledge through their own biases, imaginations and cultural
contexts. They filled in the gaps that they didn’t understand with their own
mythologies. </div>
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<br /></div>
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To deal with the Bible we first
must define the Bible. The Bible is a collection of writings authored by mostly
anonymous men over hundreds of years, after having been passed down orally for
generations before that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of the
early books can trace their origins to older civilizations like the Sumerians
and the Babylonians.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no
accurate estimate as to how many books were written in the vain of the biblical
books, but this brings us to the political decisions that created the modern
Bible. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Emperor Constantine converted to
Christianity to unite his empire, though he was still a pagan long after his
supposed conversion. But when he took over the faith, he reorganized it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A pagan took over Christianity and made it a
pagan religion in disguise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A council
decided what books should and should not be included in the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The books that didn’t fall in line with the
new direction of the faith were lost to time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Romans, still pagans at heart, reformed the church to be designed
like the Roman legions and power was given to one man above all, the new Pope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The theory contends that the pagan gods were
actually powerful demons that, some time in the past, appeared to ancient man,
created civilization and demanded to be worshipped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They required blood sacrifice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That certainly falls in line with demonic
ideology. Jesus said that when two or more people are gathered in his name then
he is there. That’s because our thoughts and our emotions are physical waves of
energy that effect reality. Together large groups of people worshipping
anything, feeds that thing with divine power. It’s all about directed energy.
Emotions are the most powerful thought waves we produce. That’s why there is a
thing called home-team advantage. It’s why momentum is a true phenomenon that
can be physically felt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The demons knew
this. They lurked in the shadows after Jesus came to deliver us from their
oppression but it only took a few hundred years for them to take back their
power. They turned Jesus’ message against itself. It’s why there’s so much
hypocrisy in religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s why things
don’t make sense. Why so many religious people come from a place of fear. Not
all religious people, granted, but take a look at religious fanatics and there
lies real fear inside of them. They own a lot of guns and are scared of their
own shadows. They worry that the world is doomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what about faith?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rex
Mundi</i> (the king of the material world) still rules from on high. He feeds
on our fears and profits from it. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
That is not to say that good men
haven’t come along and tried to do good things through religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The light prevails but against great
odds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And most people who practice
religion are trying to do good things and get in touch with God. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
But back to the Bible… People who
take the Bible word-for-word and completely literally, have no idea how far
those words have had to travel and how they’ve had to take on new forms along
the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From the extensive game of
telephone, that is the oral traditions of a wandering people, to being captured
in first clay tablets in Babylon, to Aramaic, to then being converted by the
early Hebrew writers to fit the culture of the Israelites to then being
translated into Greek and later Latin and Middle-English, to finally Modern
English.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of what people assume are
in the Bible are actually Christian traditions that came later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take the idea that Mary, Mother of God, was a
virgin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The text didn’t originally use
the word virgin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Hebrew the word was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">almah</i> which means simply a young woman
of marrying age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When it was translated
into Greek the word became virgin. Think of how steeped into the mythos of
Catholicism the idea that Jesus was of a virgin birth. Now, can it be argued
that if she hadn’t been married before she was still a virgin? Sure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there are endless examples of the
original texts saying one thing and their subsequent translations meaning
something slightly different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
inspiration of the virgin birth comes from Greek and Roman mythology.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 384.0pt;">
Here’s where I think the Bible
could be an instrument of positive power. It goes to the faith people put in
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s their faith, or positive
emotions being projected toward it that gives it it’s power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not the holy object that has power; it’s
the collective belief in it that does. We are divine, we’ve just forgotten. Were
we all to awaken to this fact and actively work together and forget all those
things that divide us, then who knows what we could accomplish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could banish these demons from this planet
all together and live in harmony with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that will never happen, I’m afraid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re too addicted to fear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s too much money to be made from
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But who knows? Something to think
about, I suppose.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-48659692832569022072015-09-25T12:33:00.001-07:002015-09-25T12:33:17.388-07:00The translation of the Long Lost Writing of a Shaman
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
On The Long Lost Writings of a Shaman
of the Potawatomi Tribe.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Here’s an excerpt from the lost
writings of Tecompa Red Foot, that I found buried in my yard last spring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As translated into English by a professor of
Potawatomi Studies who’s name shall remain anonymous for legal reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ownership of these lost manuscripts still
remain in question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I felt that the
writing was too interesting to allow to be stifled by lawyers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The professor in question has taken some
liberties with some of the terminology, like Atlantis and others, because he is
uncertain how else to translate the name of the ancient culture other than
Atlantis; as he is certain that is what he is referring to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Radio
carbon dating of the manuscript reveals it to be between 150 to 200 years
old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
SOUL GROUPS AND THE FALLEN ONES </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And so it was, I
ventured into the spirit realm and found my forgotten guide, the elder brother
spirit Ra Ott Tov.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked him if I
were dead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">He
smiled and said, “Death is but one of many possible states.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this is not the state you’re in.”</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Then
I knew that I had reached this place while still my body remained unharmed. It
was possible, as the great Shaman Occum Black Bear had told me when he taught
me the ancient secrets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had said one
could reach this place while still attached to your earthly vessel, but it took
a pure soul and an open heart, and extreme peace of mind.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I
had no eyelids to close and so I couldn’t blink.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I surveyed this place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bright lights glistened all around me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was surrounded by all the colors of nature
and then colors I had never seen before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I have no words for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw
beings in the distance as if across a bridge, the kind built by white men in
their cities, curved and ornate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
brighter across the bridge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It appeared
to be a garden and there were beings there and they played as small children,
giggling and chasing and frolicking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
I was forbidden to cross the bridge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
asked Ra who they were.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“They’re
from your soul group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s your clan,”
he said to me without using his voice, but instead spoke silently to my inner
ear.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“My
ancestors?” I asked. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Some
of them are, yes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of them have been
your brothers and sisters, and some have been your wives and children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are the souls that detached from the
source together in your earlier state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When the universe was much younger and closer together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As your original clump of the divine energy
shot away from the explosion that created this universe, you were propelled
further into the void and you began to splinter and drift apart into smaller
pieces until you became an individual. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your clan all comes from the same original
clump that broke off and flung out into space. You remained together for
millions of years, observing the early universe through one collective
consciousness. From there you began to explore the universe and search for
wonders to report back to the source what you had observed; because the
universe can’t exist without observers to bare witness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were all just watchers for a billion
years. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Content to report what we’d all
beheld to the greater knowledge banks of the divine source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then there came something that astounded us
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We called it life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the smaller fragments of divine
energy had found a way to exist in the physical realm. They came from the
stars, out of them, transformed from divine energy into usable radiation and
heat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“It
was the larger clumps that had tricked them into using their energy for
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They wanted to see what would
happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It mirrored the complex system
that makes up the entire universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Large
powerful clumps of the divine source, that had yet to completely splinter as
you had, began to manipulate this life and to direct it and experiment with
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had the power to affect the
reality of the living dimensions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
emboldened some of the more powerful clumps and fed their egos, making them
large powerful individuals. They severed their connection to the collective
love source and sought to become powerful entities with their own
freewill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They marveled at their own
creations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And some were ghastly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was all based on the concept of
competition for energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The strongest
and most adaptable survived while the weak were eaten for their energy stores;
energy being the same name for the divine source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the days of early life, it was some of the
smallest, mindless fragments of divine energy that began to inhabit the
physical realm. The larger clumps of energy would splinter off tiny fractions
of themselves and send them into the living dimensions to see what would
happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But as life became more complex,
larger fragments of the divine energy became entangled. For it takes this
divine energy to have life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And more of
this energy concentrated requires larger spirits to inhabit and maintain
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These became the animal spirits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Other spirits who had lived and died and were
reborn and died again, decided to linger in nature like nymphs and fairies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tired of being eaten, they instead chose
other paths.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some were used to inhabit
the trees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this did not satisfy some
of the powerful beings, which had been called the Fallen Ones by the larger
clumps that still held their connection to the divine source and served the
Will of One.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Will of One is another
name the ancients gave to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the
Fallen Ones learned they too could gain power by converting smaller fragments
away from the divine and fooling them into worshipping and serving their ways
instead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They use fear and lies and
false promises to achieve their means.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And thus evil was harnessed and used as an alternative energy source
from the divine; because there is balance in the universe of good and
evil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dark energy exists and the Fallen
Ones have turned to using it, along with the power they gain by feeding off of
smaller beings that they have convinced to serve them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They maintain their power over these smaller
beings by keeping them believing that they are alone and they are only tiny
individuals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They feed the egos of these
smaller beings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They keep them
distracted and fighting among themselves so that they will not unite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once united they will realize their
collective power over the Fallen Ones.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My elder brother spirit guide, Ra, took a moment for me to process this
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt a warm embrace as I floated
inside of a large blue sphere some where out in space, as the entire night sky
was now surrounding me in all directions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I need only wave my arms and I floated as if underwater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I had no need to breathe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“And
all of this is being played out in the spirit realm?” I asked finally,
returning to his side at the mouth of the gilded bridge.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“And
now it has manifested itself into the physical world as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the larger battle is being waged in the
spirit dimensions, yes,” he said, holding up his right hand as if making an
oath. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“But
this battle has been playing out on every world that holds life,” he continued.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Why?”
I asked.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Because
life is the resource they value and hope to control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So powerful entities are being held in check
by powerful deities that still serve the Will of One.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have placed regulations on these evil
ones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Fallen Ones are
cunning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rules are in place but
there are ways around them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ones who
have chosen to exist in the physical world are the players in their game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They can open doors for these evil ones to
enter. ”</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“So
there is life throughout the universe?” I asked, looking up into the starry
sky. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Yes
and they’re all involved in this spiritual battle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each planet is a battle-field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because once life became so complex that a
spirit that had enough energy to be self-aware and conscious came into being
that is when the battle took on a new perspective and that’s when it became
possible to rule an entire planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When
humans arrived on this planet the stage was set for a final confrontation on
this planet, between the Fallen Ones and those who serve the Will of One.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Humans were the final experiment of the Will
of One, but also the Fallen Ones too saw them as potential.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Humans were going to be the weapons used by
both sides for the collective soul of the planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Fallen have closely watched and
manipulated human development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
brought the early humans into contact with another race of being </i>[presumably
the Neanderthals]<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> in Europe that was
older and wiser.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When these two beings
mixed their genes, the newer more evolved human with a brain able to understand
more of the secret truths emerged.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“The
Fallen Ones appeared to early man and proclaimed to be gods to these more
evolved creatures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were the ones
who first painted their experiences on cave walls and made more complex
tools.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Fallen Ones manipulated the
early humans into worshipping them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many
times the Will of One intervened and drove the Fallen away, but always they
returned to wreak havoc. They preyed on human weaknesses and the baser
emotions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They drove wedges between
people. They fooled them into worrying about material possessions and power. By
then they decided to introduce the humans to civilization and to remove their
connection with the natural spirit of the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This had been done on other planets and it
had served the Fallen well in the past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They taught the humans to become specialists and to depend on society so
that without society they could no longer exist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then all they had to do was control the
rulers of this society and they controlled the entire population.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though
the humans always had a choice, but were tricked into making the wrong
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was human freewill that the
Fallen Ones manipulated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They made them
think they had freewill, but they left them little choices but the ones they
had guided them to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“A
powerful Fallen One, who has had many names throughout time, became the most
powerful ruler of Earth and all the other Fallen Ones fell in line behind him.
They called him their Master.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has
been called The Devil, Samyaza, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
white men call him Satan and Lucifer.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“He
came to be born in the flesh nearly twenty thousand years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This shocked them all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He retained his powers and came to bring his
chosen tribe to rule the planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
was done when the ice was still over most of the planet and winter lasted for
years on end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things were out of balance
in those days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Satan’s people
created a mighty empire and their civilization made many enormous advances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His civilization was based on the earlier
notion that the strongest survive and advance the race.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Satan found a balance between science, logic
and reason and removed the spiritual aspect, convincing his people that he was
the one true god, while hiding the truth from them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But from time to time a human would open his
heart to the Will of One and try to speak out against Satan but they would be
burned alive for heresy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
civilization of [Atlantis], founded by Satan, came to use science and mathematics
to solve many riddles of nature and to advance to great heights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Will of One intervened and sent a
comet into the ice above the American North.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The result of the shock sent the earth off of its axis and melted a good
deal of ice at once.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The steam rose into
the atmosphere and rained down for months, as the melting ice fell into the
seas and caused fantastic waves to destroy all the cities across the planet, as
by that time the great cities were on the coastlines of the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The [Atlanteans] had created a sea-faring
civilization and it was destroyed in a matter of days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The continents were transformed over night
and all was lost, save a few pockets of survivors scattered across the planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were left to rebuild and start
over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many saw it as divine intervention
and the gods punishing them for worshipping Satan instead of the Will of
One.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They returned to nature and once
more were harmonious and at peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
of course the Fallen Ones returned to find those they could exploit and
manipulate and they found a way to rule over mankind once more by creating new
gods for them to worship; these were the gods of the ancients, the pagans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And once again the Fallen guided mankind back
to civilization and to worshipping them as their gods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when a prophet would come to speak the
truth, the Fallen would manipulate the message and convert it to fall in line
with their ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was done when the
Romans turned to Christianity and they retained their evil influence over the
Christians, and they were once again Satan’s people, perpetrating evil in the
name of their church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Satan’s people
came to our land and stole it from us and murdered our people, all in the name
of their faith. The Will of One would never condone the sort of brutality the
Christians have perpetrated against our people and all the other people they have
enslaved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They try to convert our people
to their faith in the name of saving us from damnation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I proclaim they are corrupting our children
and turning them to evil. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-7593191445550103322015-09-06T09:53:00.002-07:002015-09-06T09:53:30.311-07:00Zero Point Field or the Cosmic Internet?
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
On The Zero Point Field</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
For those of us not versed in
scientific understanding and especially scientific terminology, I’m going to
attempt to explain an interesting theory circulating that ties into the bigger
theory I’m constantly alluding to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
In Quantum Field Theory, the vacuum
state is the quantum state with the lowest possible energy; it contains no
physical particles, and is the energy of the ground state (Peter Baksa – The
Blog, HuffPost).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What the research
suggests is, in the universe there is no absolute empty space, there is no vacuum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The universe is filled with what’s called
zero-point electromagnetic radiation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
suggests that the collective potential of all particles everywhere with their
individual zero-point energies merge into one universal zero-point field that
permeates the universe on the Planck scale. The important thing to take away
from this is the concept of the collective field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember the idea of collective
consciousness?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These theories begin to
lay the groundwork for attempting to explain how the mind/ brain waves/ emotional
thoughts initiate transactions in the natural universe; how our thoughts
commingle with everything else, and cause matter to manifest in our lives
(Baksa – The Blog, HuffPost).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thoughts
equal energy and energy equals matter, then thoughts become matter. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember that book <u>The Secret</u>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is there something to that?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
So taking this to its rational
conclusion; everything and everyone connects through the zero-point field,
where a collection of electric charges or energy from every thought, action and
event that’s ever taken place in the universe is stored.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It contains ALL the information from the time
the universe sparked into existence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>String theory suggests there are eleven dimensions instead of the three
to four we can be aware of and contained in one of these dimensions is all this
cosmic knowledge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s a cosmic
well of information that exists out there that certain people, with a higher
number of microtubules in their brain cells, have access to; at least to some
extent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more in tune the
individual’s brain in receiving this cosmic information the “wiser” they are
and some have become the prophets of the past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps in this dimension, the space and time break down and do not
exist and therefore the future too can be perceived?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It could explain “divine inspiration” or
inspiration at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also explains why
and how the universe could be considered a living organism, alive and conscious
and how we play a part in the collective consciousness by feeding our thoughts
and emotions and experiences into the zero-point field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
like we’ve tried to recreate this experience by creating the Internet or the Cloud
to store our collective information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The cloud has existed since the beginning of the universe and it’s
called the zero-point field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps we
can train our brains to receive more of the well of information by meditation
and deep contemplation and reflection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We need to quiet our brains in order to hear or receive this
information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we pray we are
basically sending our thoughts to this well and asking for answers from
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps that’s how the universe
grows and evolves, by sending consciousness throughout itself and then allowing
for this consciousness to learn and inform and experience everything to feed
the whole.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does this take away from the
concept of a higher being or God?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, it
simply pushes back the concept of God to an even higher realm of
existence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could God be the final result
of a massive complex system that exists not only in our universe but also in
the multiverse as well and then even beyond that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If so, each of us plays an intricate part and
is actively participating in the god-experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
There does seem to me some sort of
design and I cannot accept all of this happened randomly simply out of
chaos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s too beautiful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Internet didn’t come into existence by
itself; it took people to create it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Such is the same for the complex system that makes up our universe and
beyond that, the multiverse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t
exist independently, but work in congress with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That also suggests that negative thoughts and
actions affect the zero-point field as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Keep that in mind when going about your day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re not in this by yourself; every thought
you have is fed into the field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like
to think karma helps sort all of this out and keeps the scales balanced in the
long run, but it’s up to you to feed the zero-point field with positivity and
love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cited</i>:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
[The Zero Point Field: How Thoughts
Become Matter? Peter Baksa.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Huffington
Post]</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-9889925228280322222015-08-11T22:45:00.000-07:002015-08-11T22:47:04.857-07:00Why are there only 16 basic personality types?<style>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
ON PSYCHOLOGY AND ASTROLOGY</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
When you think about it, how is it
possible that the signs of the zodiac can be so accurate so often?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How can an exam like the Myers Briggs
personality test break every single human being down into 16 basic personality
types?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That doesn’t make any sense to
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we’re all individuals, with our
own brains, there doesn’t seem to me any way they can predict that with any
sort of accuracy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet corporations rely
on tests like the Myers Briggs for their human resource departments all over
the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Astrology has countless
devout believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How is it that when you
meet someone new you already know them because they are so much like someone
else that you’ve already known?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It feels
preprogrammed and NOT at all random.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s like the automotive industry; the car companies only make so many
different models.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Humanity seems to be
the same, when it comes to personalities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What are the implications of this phenomenon?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Before I continue I must preface
and declare that I don’t completely believe these hypotheses or theories and
some, if not most of the people who will read this will scoff, some might even
grow angry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is simply an
interesting idea; so relax and play along if you will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I came across a concept recently that has had
me pondering this and then it dawned on me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
The important thing in this
hypothesis is to consider another definition of sub-consciousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this context, “you” are a small fraction
of the greater you that exists on a higher plain of existence; as a vital part
of the multiverse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your subconscious is
actually a frequency being broadcasted by the universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think of the Internet, your brain cells act
together like the components of a computer with a wifi connection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think of your present body, more specifically,
the microtubules in your brain cells, are receivers, like antennae or a
satellite dish, they pick up a signal and they amplify a version of your
greater soul or self into reality; basically expressing “you” in the physical
world. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It almost makes our bodies
avatars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But while we’re existing in our
bodies we think we’re individuals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
really everyone who is your personality type is receiving and broadcasting the
same cosmic frequency as you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
larger self that is you has been dispersed across the planet or maybe the
universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The signs of the zodiac could correspond
to the origins of the broadcasts?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Capricorns are tuned to a station that
broadcasts out of that constellation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
could be the origin of the broadcast is the fabric of the universe itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The personality types were part of the Big
Bang, and are expanding outward from the initial explosion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Along with all the energy in the universe,
there came consciousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now what about
aliens?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their physical brains could be
tuned to another set of frequencies; ones our brains don’t have the range to
pick up, though some could have our basic personality types.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are only so many of these frequencies
that us humans can and are tuned to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
things that make us individuals are our experiences; so nurture makes us
individuals but nature offers finite options.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are rare, higher frequencies that enlightened people can tune to, but
most people have the 300, with the sports package.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While some just have basic cable and then a
few poor souls can only get the local channels with rabbit ears. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It explains where inspiration comes from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It explains the idea that there is cosmic knowledge
out there to be tapped into.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The higher
the frequency the more of this cosmic knowledge or wisdom one can express and
broadcast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sounds far fetched?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Certainly there are things this idea can’t
account for?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>True.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s also difficult to imagine that I am not
just me, but a whole group of people, sharing the same soul.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s almost depressing in a way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It takes away ownership of your soul.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This idea doesn’t line up all the way, but
it’s something to consider on a drive to work or at a cocktail party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
But keep in mind just how much of
“reality” we are not able to detect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The light spectrum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sound
spectrum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have instruments that help
us see more of reality than our poor human bodies can detect, but still it’s
only a fraction of what’s really out there in existence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Science tells us there are several more
dimensions than the four we know of and there are also quite possibly several
other universes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve speculated about
the universe being a living organism in the past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if consciousness is woven into the
fabric of the universe?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if it
doesn’t reside inside of us, but comes from out there somewhere?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an intriguing thought at least.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-30629685839477903092015-07-13T21:19:00.000-07:002015-07-13T21:19:29.508-07:00Cyber Civil War<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
ON AMERICAN POLITICS/</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
-- THE CYBER
CIVIL WAR<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
It’s all over Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram, and all those newer ones that I’m too old to know about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Confederate Flag and the Rainbow Flag are
at war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re being ripped apart at the
seams, America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both sides are so unwavering
and tenacious and stupid to notice, or worse care, that we’re being played for
fools.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re the bringers of our own
doom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s that famous concept that
psychologists will speak about; the concept of Us and Them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve spoken about it often, but I feel it’s a
nail worth hitting over and over until it’s driven into the wood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I am pessimistic enough now to realize
that it’s never going to hold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
still I harp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first couple of days
after they legalized gay marriage, we ripped each other apart on everyone’s
personal digital soapboxes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It got crazy
there for a few days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the dust began to settle and fatigue had
set in, the realization occurred that you’re never going to change someone’s
mind when it comes to ideology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People
are entrenched in their long held beliefs and personal dogmas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why do we feel the need to make these melodramatic
proclamations on Facebook?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two things
happen; we push those away who disagree with us, and we galvanize those who
agree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“You said it, brother!” vs “You’re
going to hell! Sorry but it says so in the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God’s word!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> God's Love Letter to Humanity. </span>End of story, so, FU!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>F stands
for Forget!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because I’m a Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But you get the message.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
We’ve seen it happening gradually,
from the nineties when, out of sheer political hubris they shut down the
government.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The two political parties
in this country have gotten completely out of hand and they’ve turned America
into a disgusting joke.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s
something of a news flash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those
politicians don’t really believe the same way you do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They just know that in order to keep their
very cozy jobs, with government insurance btw, they will say what the majority
of people in their districts want to hear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They’re like professional wrestlers, (spoiler alert), they’re just
putting on a show.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To them it’s a
game!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They really don’t give a damn
about you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t care how good of
actors they are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’ve all been
elected thanks to somebody else’s money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To get those cozy jobs, they had to promise they’d look out for the
interests of the people who put them there first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact is in order to keep us from waking
up to the reality of what’s really happening in Washington, they stage this
show to keep us divided and to keep us attacking each other instead of
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They know what buttons to press;
what stories to leak into the press; what issues will draw blood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They knew gay marriage would distract us and
stir the dust enough for cover of what they really were up to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The same can be said about the irrational,
relentless attack on the Confederate Flag in all its forms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Dukes of Hazzard?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s a well-orchestrated attempt to start a cyber civil war that will
distract America from facing her real problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The gay marriage debate turned eventually into a debate about state’s
rights and the power of the federal government; which is getting into Civil War
territory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You really think it’s a
coincidence that the Confederate Flag is all over Facebook, while the two main
ideologies of this country; namely Conservatives and Liberals, rip each other
apart and polarize this nation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re
laughing at us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we’re going to take
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Because we’ve all got smart phones and enormous TVs and instant gratification.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re dumbing us down and sexing us
up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Making us horny and stupid and very
controllable, while they steadily take our rights away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’ve whittled our attention-spans down to
toothpicks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can’t go ten seconds
without glancing at our phones, or soon our smart-watches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s feels so convenient for them, that I
can’t help but wonder if it’s all part of the plan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And now its time for a commercial about why
it’s socially more polite to have a smart-watch over having to pull our phones
out of our pockets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“A glance replaces
the clumsy adventure of digging into your pocket or purse.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
And then there’s Donald Trump and
that whole circus. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s for
another day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-79306814544004549842015-06-16T09:41:00.002-07:002015-06-16T09:41:58.400-07:00The State of Youth Sports!
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
ON CHILDREN’S
SPORTS TODAY</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Remember when you were a kid and
you played all kinds of different sports and participated in various
activities?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fast-forward to today and
that reality has changed drastically for our kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Someone along the way decided we needed our
children to be specialists at the one sport they love the most.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For most kids, it’s the sport their parents
love the most, because they are too young to know the difference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And once it “clicks” with a kid, like the
first time they hit a homerun or score a goal, then it’s game on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They need to play all year long; fall-ball,
winter, spring, summer tournaments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
never ends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A good friend of mine, a
fellow coach, made a comment asking why we would schedule a vacation during
soccer season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My reply was that its
always soccer season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has all gotten
extremely insane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
And yet I am one of the biggest
perpetrators of this around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though
I openly admit its madness, I actively and willingly participate in this as a
coach and now a member of the board of my children’s soccer league.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love coaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is my hobby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some guys golf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I coach soccer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which brings me to my present dilemma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The politics of youth sports, namely soccer,
is a wild and precarious beast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it’s
all based on a long con being pulled on suburban soccer moms and dads the
country over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s called “club ball”
and it’s a pack of lies being sold to people to get their money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It promises college scholarships and
glory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what’s even worse is that
the high schools not only promote this notion of if they didn’t grow up playing
club ball then they’ll never make the high school team, they even refuse to
consider talented athletes who don’t adhere to the model.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s this fear that’s put into the heart of
parents that lingers over our wallets like a vulture on a limb. And even though
I know it’s all b.s., I also know that its how it is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t change it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t fight against it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my afore mentioned good friend, my mentor
of soccer coaching, and yes that’s a thing, even though it sounds ridiculous,
but I’ve learned a lot about coaching from him and I use his methods when I
coach my other teams, etc, but this friend of mine is trying to fight against
it and I admire his efforts for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s
right to do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His rebellion puts me
in a perilous position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On one hand,
his rebellion thus far has been successful and promises to be even more
so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We put together a “select” team of
girls my daughters’ age about two and a half years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We trained them ourselves and kept the costs
down, considerably compared to club fees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In the winter we had a chance to compete against some of the top clubs
around our area and we not only competed at their level we excelled and beat
most of them by large margins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We beat
the number one team (one of the top teams in the state).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We got a lot of notice and our team has a
strong reputation now in our area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
were the Rocky of club soccer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love
the underdog and it was amazing to see the faces of those people paying
thousands of dollars for a product inferior to what we were offering for a few
hundred bucks at the end of it all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>People stuck around to see what we would do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They watched us beat some serious clubs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now they’ve started to bring their daughters
to our team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friend has the potential
to build a team even stronger and bigger than the winter team that was so
successful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s important to note that
his daughter is one of the best players on the team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s very athletic and aggressive and has a
powerful shot that scores a lot of goals for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s also important to note that my daughters
are not quite up to that level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
are good players but they don’t have that killer instinct that makes a great
athlete.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right now, one of my daughter
is more into it that the other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I
always ask them if they still want to play and they always say yes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They both still love to play and I’m of the
belief that soccer is one of the best sports for kids to play for health
reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like the fact that they have
to run around all the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But on the
select team, the one daughter that’s not into it as much, doesn’t play as much
as the other one, but both are on the cusp of the middle ground as far as
talent on the team goes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of that
comes down to personality as much as anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On this team, I am the assistant coach, so I have no say on who sits
out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which is how it should be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I’m the head coach of my son’s team, I
make those decisions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The head coach,
my friend in question, the rebel leader, has a very high standard for the
girls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which is something I like about
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He pushes them all to excel, and
that’s something I think we’ve lost sight of in our modern society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His daughter can and usually does live up to
those standards, where my daughter, the one that’s not as competitive or into
as the other, often falls short of his standards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When we were kids there was a thing called a bench-warmer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the problem is, she’s not that bad at
soccer, she’s better than most girls around, but on this team, of very gifted
players, she’s not quite there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
an A level team while, right now, she plays at a B or C level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So it can be awkward at times when she
doesn’t get as much playing time and when she does go in the pressure is so
much on her and her personality isn’t full of confidence anyway and so she
plays tense and it comes across as timid and he pulls her right back out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It breaks my heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep in mind, this is competitive soccer, not
some average rec team playing for fun and not keeping score.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I get that he wants to win and that he’s
going to play the people who play the best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I do the same thing on my boys team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I have seen her trying to improve but sometimes I wonder if it’s too
late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I don’t want for her to give
it up yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She likes it and its good for
her to push herself at something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Coach
pushes her during practice and I like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So here lies part one of my dilemma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As mentioned before Coach is adding a bunch of new older players to the
roster for next year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wants his
daughter and his Rocky team to play “up” an age level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get that. That is very good for his
daughter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not so good for my daughters,
especially the one that’s not so into it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is good for her during practices to play up, but not during the
games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So she’s being trained very
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my wife is very concerned that
she’ll never see the field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, I’m a
believer that if you think you’re good at something, you’ll be more likely to
try harder at it than if you don’t think you’re good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So sitting the bench all season isn’t going
to make her love soccer or try harder at it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s not her personality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
wish it were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish she was Rudy and
would train and work on it in the off times and try to earn her spot on the
team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But like I said, she’s not that
into it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wonder though, that if she
thought she was good at it, would she try harder?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know one thing, she has a better shot at
choice B as opposed to choice A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Another aspect of my dilemma is my
boy’s team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried to reproduce the
Rebel team with my son’s age group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
put together a group of boys who all stood out on their rec teams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took these All-Stars and put them together
at the end of fall and I thought I had a super team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when we went into the winter season
against club teams, we got our butts handed to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although in fairness, we improved toward the
end of the season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I found that the
parents didn’t gel like they did on the girls’ team and some of my parents were
unruly and judgmental.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I even received
reverse racism in that one parent went over my head and asked if his son could
play for a coach who spoke Spanish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
white coach doesn’t understand soccer like a Mexican does.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t offended by this; I found it funny,
but also I had a sense of good riddance toward that parent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was a nightmare to deal with, walking up
and down the sidelines yelling at his kid in Spanish, micromanaging every move
the kid made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s for another
story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My point is, it wasn’t the
wonderful experience I had with the girls’ team and the cool parents and fun
tournaments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another problem again comes
back to personality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found coaching my
own son was a challenge of personality and wills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wouldn’t act the way he sometimes acts
with another coach, refusing to do things, whining about a certain drill he
doesn’t like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We left many practices
with him being grounded from something or another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of my three kids, however, my son has the most
drive and love of the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
understands it better than his sisters ever did and he plays at a higher level
than they did, especially at his age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He’s three years younger than them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He enjoys watching it on TV.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
loves to go to the Chicago Fire games and wear his foam finger and yell and
cheer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Soccer is one of our bonds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Now to back to the long con.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am still aware that in this society, as it
stands, if a child doesn’t play for a club, then they won’t play in high
school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rebel teams aside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is inevitable that we will have to take
them to one of these expensive clubs sooner or later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fear of later being too late,
lingers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it too late for my daughter
who isn’t as into it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the
positive things a club like the Chicago Fire offers is, they have different
level teams for kids to play on that meets their abilities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if she gets put on a team that’s C level,
then maybe she would have more playing time and therefore grow more
confident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that all depends on the
coach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is unknown.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish I knew the future but unfortunately,
right now, I don’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My son and wife
really want him to play for the Chicago Fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He loves the idea that it’s the same club as the profession team he so
loves to root for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the problems with the Rebel club system
is that we have to find games to play when and where we can.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Coach doesn’t want to enter into the regular
club league yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s getting into the expensive side of
things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He thinks we’ll get more games
out of just taking them to tournaments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He’s right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my wife likes to
have a set schedule.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She likes to know
what’s happening way in advance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Rebel club can’t guarantee this regularity, because we are always looking for
tournaments to enter, and in the meantime looking to pick up friendly games
with various people when we can.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
might not know that we have a game in two weeks until the week of. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Peel the onion further to
reveal:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Rebel club is growing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ve added several teams this spring to be
carried over into the fall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something is
building here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am a part of that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am a key member of the board who advocates
turning the rec program into something more resembling a club.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though I know in the long run it is a
futile effort and that we will not achieve club status and recognition by high
school standards and it will have been in vain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Unless we succeed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And there aren’t
that many obstacles standing now in our way of turning it into a club.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Coach has been handed the keys to the castle
and is taking over as Commissioner of the rec program.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which means that there is no one standing in
his way and he can take this program to the next level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s exciting and fun to be part of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like I said before, I love coaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it’s not about me; it’s about my kids and
what’s best for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am losing a few
boys from my select team, but in the fall I will be gaining several older boys
and we will be playing “up” an age level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is good for my son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unlike
my daughters who might not be able to play up, my son can and will come out of
a season with older boys that much stronger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But on the other hand there’s that personality clash between my son and
I, where he’d grow more from another coach, in my opinion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But on the other hand, it is a bonding
experience for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We spend that time
together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My wife really wants to let
him try playing for the Chicago Fire club.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s a bigger more established and proven institution in her mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus there’s that set schedule, where you
can prioritize life around it, instead of waiting to make plans until we know
when the games are going to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
likes to make plans well in advance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
I find myself between a rock and a hard place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t want to be the parent that breaks up the Rebel girl’s team, not
after all they’ve been through together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They love each other, those girls, and they have real pride in that
team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus, Coach and I are very good
friends, and we work very well together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t want to walk away from a program that I helped establish and let
down those people who have joined in on building it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are several people coming back to our
anti-club from club teams because they believe in what we’re trying to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rebellion is growing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
I thought I had a solution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I proposed that I send my son to the Fire
Club and I stay on as coach of the Select boys Rebel club team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We keep the girls team together for one more
season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Coach suggested that would
not look good to the parents that are sticking with our model that I don’t
believe in the model, or the idea that an anti-club can exist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would be kind of weird to coach a team
without having my son on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Coach has been working hard to
keep me involved in the new anti-club and I’m flattered that he thinks I’m such
a good coach or whatever that he needs my help to keep his rebellion
going.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So it’s basically down to if I
want to continue to coach I need to keep my son involved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One compromise is that the Fire program
doesn’t yet know where they’ll send my son to play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s down to two possibilities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A town fifteen minutes away is possibility
number one and number two is a town thirty minutes or more away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My wife and I agree that number two won’t
work for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I spoke with a
representative for the Fire and told him that if that’s where they try to send
my son to play that we won’t be participating in the program.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So there’s my out for club ball this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Usually when presented with a choice,
there’s one that’s better than the other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here I can see both sides equally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m fine with either outcome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On
one hand, I’ll feel like I’ll be letting some people down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the other, coaching soccer and running a
league comes with a lot of headaches and stress that I don’t really want or
need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if he goes with the Fire I
won’t have to deal with as much stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It will be someone else’s problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
Here’s where I get a little
spiritual or whatever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I grew up as a
Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One aspect of Christianity is
that when presented with a dilemma it is always best to leave it in God’s
hands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As corny as that might sound to
some people, I see it as the universe helps us decide things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s a passive way of going through life,
sure, but I do want to believe that things happen for a reason.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though, I have friends who will adamantly say
that is NOT true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The curse of my mind
is that I can see all sides of things from many perspectives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes my beliefs malleable and constantly
in flux.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I decided to wait and see
where they send my son, to make my final decision.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they say he’s supposed to play in the
town thirty minutes away, then the universe decided I should stay and coach and
help build the anti-club for another year at least.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem is, Coach wants an answer
sooner, rather than later, and the Fire isn’t letting us know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I may be forced to decide before the
universe weighs in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I guess that’s
still the universe deciding?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s not
get weird here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But why am I developing
an ulcer over all of this? It’s just little kids playing soccer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
If you’ve read this to its
conclusion and have advice for a man standing on a fence looking at two
pastures, one new and ripe with possibilities and the other established and
proven, but also expensive and a scam and part of the order of things, of which
I always like to rebel against, as is my nature, please feel free to
comment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could use different takes on
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If anything its’ a slice of
reality that parents deal with now days with youth sports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-19612532370489280032015-03-25T09:15:00.002-07:002015-03-25T09:16:21.910-07:00On Us and Them<style>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
I, like so many people, was at one
point fascinated by the Tudors and Henry XIII’s exploits with his wives and his tumultuous relationship with
Christianity, particularly the Vatican.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The ripple effect the impassioned decisions made by King Henry XIII set
families against themselves for generations to come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Reformation and the Counter-Reformation
split one of the world’s largest religions into two competing branches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like that imagery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is very important to understand why the
world is the way it is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The history of
religion, namely Christianity, is something everyone who calls it their faith
should understand and put into context.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
realize this is my opinion, but this is a blog entry, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe faith is a wonderful thing to
have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I also think blind faith is
dangerous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People with blind faith are
easily manipulated and even easier sent in the wrong direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Informed faith, with the understanding that
most things will never be understood, but it’s okay to be open to new
information as it comes, is much more beneficial to society.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Why
do people become so offended when someone disagrees with them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is it about the human condition that
causes a person to become suspicious and affronted by anyone who believes
differently?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What are they so afraid of?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
realize that this doesn’t apply to everyone, but it explains the majority.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People kill each other over
differences of opinion regarding their heart-felt beliefs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They always have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes me wonder if they always will?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would hope not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m holding on to the notion that the world
is about to undergo another major transformation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My fear would be that, as mentioned before,
it usually takes a catastrophic event to upset the status quo enough for change
to happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not something that keeps
me up at night or anything, but it’s always just sort of there in the
background.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I watch the news looking
for it from time to time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I realize the
world is about to outgrow itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Earth
can’t sustain this many people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
enough fear mongering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t worry
about things I can’t control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a
waste of energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Just some thoughts for today.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-82056366366378451612015-02-05T17:42:00.000-08:002015-02-05T17:42:02.278-08:00In honor of my hero - Boots Hodge
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
ON FREEMAN “BOOTS” HODGE</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Boots was born either June 1<sup>st </sup>or June 2<sup>nd</sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The man with two birthdays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His mother Alice said it was the first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The state said otherwise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His mother wasn’t the kind of woman one
wanted to argue with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Neither was his
father. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flavius Hodge carried a gun on
his hip and rode a horse for transportation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His grandmother was supposedly a Choctaw princess, his grandfather,
according to legend, was an outlaw on the run in the Oklahoma territory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are only pieces of the early legend of
Freeman “Boots” Hodge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In truth, very
little was known about his grandparents on his father’s side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His father, Flavius was a half-breed who
didn’t own a car until the 1950s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Evidently he wasn’t the kind of man you messed with. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Boots came from a big family. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were seven kids. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They, like many families in those days, called
each other nicknames that stuck through the rest of their lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His older sister’s name was Gal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots had a brother named Buster, who looked
almost identical to him after they’d both lost their hair and wore horn-rimmed
glasses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We thought we had two Grandpa
Boots the first time we saw him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Two
Grandpa’s was like having two Santa Clauses!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He had another brother named Pee-Wee and one named Buddy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tobe and Pete didn’t get as colorful
nicknames but they were spoken about fondly by the rest of the family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They lived in New Mexico and western Texas
during the 1920s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the dustbowl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hard times that followed him around for
his entire childhood began in those wild, untamed, arid climes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He grew up tough and quickly. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He grew to have grit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was put to work by the time he could mount
a horse, which was about around the time he could walk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They scraped and busted their tails from sun
up to sun down and still barely had a pot to piss in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d work all day only to find out the fella
he’d labored for didn’t have a dollar to give him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d sometimes have to settle for food or practical
items as forms of trade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots learned
early on how to be resourceful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
also learned that family, a strong one, could survive anything. </div>
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The event that would end the challenging chapter of his childhood
would be World War Two.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He enlisted and
was sent to the South Pacific, the Solomon Islands, Guadalcanal to be more
specific.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Four of his brothers fought overseas
during the war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His family had no idea
where those boys were for three to four years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Boots snuck a reference to the Bible and Solomon into one of his letters
and it made it past the censors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Alice
Hodge had dark hair when Boots left in 1942 and white when he got back in
1945.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots never once talked about the
war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He never watched a single war
movie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had nightmares so violent and
horrific that he rarely slept through the night without a violent episode.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He remarked later that he was surprised and
grateful his wife Madie put up with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Madie was equally special in her temperament as he was and they made the
perfect couple. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was patient and kind
hearted to the ninth degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Snippets gathered
from visiting war buddies over the years began to imply that Boots saw and
experienced the worst of the seven hells.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All he’d say about it was, “You
can have a unit of men march and fight through the jungle and when they come
out the other side you’ll have as many different versions of what happened as
there are men left to tell about it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
lost a lot of buddies in those jungles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is unclear but he once insinuated that he’d been a sniper of sorts
perched atop a jungle tree and taken out many a “Jap”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was made to me in reference of his plan to
shoot a dog that was harassing his cattle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He could put an eye out from some extraordinary distance was the initial
hint, and something along the lines of that’s what he did over there from a
treetop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One story he did relay openly to me on one of my
magical Sunday visits after his wife passed and I was in college, goes
thusly:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was unloading a ship and was
bringing a load to shore when the ship was struck by a torpedo and blown to
pieces right before his eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d
missed it by minutes. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another time he
ducked to tie a bootstrap and a shell flew right over his back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His unit was lost and he wondered around the
theater for a while, joining with different units along the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He drove a bulldozer for one unit and may or
may not have had a pet monkey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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The years that followed the war were difficult ones for him
and his otherwise stoic resolve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He did
what he always did and sucked it up and moved through it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first great step forward was meeting the
true love of his life, Madie Hudson in Whitharral Texas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After their first encounter she went home
and told her sister she’d met the man she was going to marry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d found his salvation.</div>
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He worked for a pipeline in east Texas when his first son Tom
was born.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sue followed a couple of years
later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Opportunity came for him to
start over in Missouri and so he moved his young family north and built from
scratch a new life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They lived in tiny
shacks or at one point a barn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
worked all the time and saved his money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When Madie’s family came to visit they asked her what she was doing
living in a barn?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Boots promised her
that if she’d stick it out he’d build her a house on some nice land.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is unclear if he had his entire vision for
his future then or if it came to him over time, but he eked out a living and
finally was able to purchase a large plot of land that butted up to the
Oklahoma boarder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the war the
government had mined the larger older trees and what was left was underbrush and
saplings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a tiny two-room
shack with an outhouse surrounded by budding forest upon rocky ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again his family and hers wondered if he’d
lost his mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What could he do with
that forsaken place?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He worked
construction by day and built Madie her house by night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took him awhile but he built that house practically
by himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom, who was at the time ten
years old and ready for serious labor, helped him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Madie also worked her fingers to the bone to
make that vision come true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes a
curious neighbor (by neighbor I mean a person who lived two miles away) would
stop by and help out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People were like
that then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus Boots, an imposing
cowboy right out of the movies with his homespun philosophy and strong commonsense
approach, made a good first impression that lasted a lifetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People automatically respected Boots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While he was working construction all those
years he’d stick around when the plumber would show up and he’d watch him work
and ask him questions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He did this with all
the contractors until finally by the time he built his own house he knew how to
do it all himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For a man with an
eighth grade education he was a brilliant engineer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He could envision something in his mind and
make it into reality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He never understood
why no one in his family inherited that ability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he set his mind to something consider it
done, no matter how ambitious.</div>
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When the house was completed Boots built a chicken coup and
a milk barn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He bought some chickens and
a milk cow and set about making his property self-sufficient.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He plowed a garden and Madie worked it
during the summers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He called it his
garden of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He explained how the
garden of life sustains us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps it
was his Choctaw blood but he was a spiritual fellow even when thinking about
something as mundane as a garden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d
tell Tom how the garden of life needed to have vegetables and things to sustain
us but it also needed a watermelon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
it was also very important to keep the weeds out of your garden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He meant figuratively and literally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He also planted roses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The garden of life needed roses, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom
spent more time with him than almost anybody and was the recipient of much of
Boot’s profound wisdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’d be
working beside one another, usually for long distances of silence, when all of
sudden Boots would straighten up and look off into the distant trees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d sigh and say, “Son…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Tom would stop and look up at him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Don’t pick other people’s scabs.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom would nod and they’d both go back to work.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom would work out what he meant by that
and come away with the truth beneath the odd comment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone has scabs in their life, leave them
alone and let them heal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of Tom’s
many jobs was to herd the cattle up to the barn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots would warn him not to stand behind
those cows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“They’ll kick the devil out
of you.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But sure enough, one day Tom
was in a hurry and one kicked him square in the gut.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It knocked him to the ground where he writhed
in pain, unable to catch his breath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Boots walked past him and with his southern drawl said, “Well, I told ya
not to get behind ‘em cows.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life was a
lesson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom didn’t have a curfew in high school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he came home late Boots would find
something important for them to do at four in the morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do what you want, but be ready to live with
the consequences, was his philosophy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d
later turn those lessons into personal cards that he would send his children
and grandchildren in the mail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He sent this
to his daughter Patty, my mother, when she was an adult with four kids. </div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Good Judgment comes from experience, a lot of that
comes from bad judgments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whenever you
see darkness there is an extraordinary opportunity for the light to burn
brighter. -Good luck with your back – Dad.”</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Boots worked construction and his business partner
was an old cowboy from Texas who’d made a lot of money in oil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His name was Mr. Smith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of Boot’s favorite stories to tell was
about this colorful man. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span>Mr.
Smith drove an old beat-up pickup truck and wore overalls, looking like a dusty
old farmer. The guy from the bank was there and Mr. Smith pulled up in his old
truck and looking like he just milked a cow and the banker tried to warn Boots
about going into business with that guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Boots didn’t say anything but, “Oh-kay,” and the banker told him he’d
look into Mr. Smith for him to make sure he wasn’t making a mistake. Boots
smiled and let him do the research needed to explain Mr. Smith’s economic
status.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The banker came driving up, he
jumped out and said, “You definitely should go into business with this
guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You have any idea how much he’s
worth?” Boots just smiled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He did not
believe in putting on heirs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the
sign of a weak man to try to impress others with his wealth or style.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“You can send a fool to college but all
you’ll get is an educated fool.”</div>
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He wore the same denim shirt for as long as I could
recall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I later found out he had several
denim shirts that all looked alike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Cowboys boots, faded blue jeans, denim shirt with snap buttons because
he’d cut his thumb off when he was an apprentice in Texas, large white, or
slightly yellowed cowboy hat, this was his uniform.</div>
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The thumb story is a famous one in the legend of Boots
Hodge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He sliced it off when he was an
apprentice in Texas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story goes
that he sliced it off, picked up the severed piece, drove himself to the
hospital but they couldn’t sow it back on and so he stood there calmly, holding
the flap of skin against his hand while they stitched him up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His pain tolerance is a large part of his
legend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He never took pain pills no
matter how severe the injury.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t
that he had dulled nerve endings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His
tolerance came from a stubbornness of the mind, a mental toughness that refused
to let pain interfere with his day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
was so disciplined in everything he did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He believed in putting off or foregoing gratification for what needed to
be done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was up at four o’clock every
morning and went about working his property all day long with a skip in his
step, because he was doing what he loved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
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Eventually Boots grew weary of putting up with the fickle
mind of housewives changing their minds with the wind and so he brought home
four piglets and from there went into the hog business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was here his brilliance and ingenuity
would shine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom recalls the first time
one of the pigs was giving birth, how it couldn’t handle the pain and chased
its rear end around in circles until finally giving birth and killing the
baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots fattened that pig up and
sold her for her meat and then favored the pigs who gave birth easily and from
there he went from four pigs to four thousand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He revolutionized the pig farming industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He designed his operation in such a clever
way so that it would only take Tom and Boots to work the entire thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom
shoveled a lot of hog manure and feed in his young life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots worked out a system for everything;
from how the barns where constructed to the alleyways and shoots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He realized that one of the biggest problems
facing pig mortality was newborns being rolled onto by the mothers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So he designed a trap door in the birthing
cages that opened for the baby to fall through into some straw under a heating
lamp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So in the spring when most
farmers were bringing three to four new pigs to the market, Boots brought a
dozen or more. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He built a cage with two
decks for his truck to drive them all to market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He caught the notice of many people and a
few college professors of agriculture came to see the operation and to study
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He made them change clothes before
they could go out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn’t want
them getting his pigs sick.</div>
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While they worked extremely hard, Boots took his family on
at least one vacation every year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They’d go to Colorado and Wyoming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He’d have his nephews, who lived up the road, look after the farm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the
while his hog business continued to expand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He built what would later feel like an entire town on his property with
various sized barns and outbuildings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
had it all organized with different sections for pigs recovering from giving
birth, to areas for fattening them up, to weaning them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After he retired from the business, his
abandoned pig town turned into a fantasyland for his grandchildren.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It fueled my early imagination and we loved
to have all sorts of fantastical adventures out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a magical place to grow up. For his
children they had hundred of acres to ride their horses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They explored the vast forest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots would say, if you get lost try to find
a fence and follow it home. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a
spring fed pond with an enormous weeping willow tree that they’d swim in on hot
summer days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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When Tom was in high school he came to his dad, seated in
his favorite recliner, in the place it would remain for sixty years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots was reading the evening paper and Tom
told him he’d like to try football.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Boots didn’t say much, maybe grumbled from behind the paper, peaked over
the top and then went back to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom,
feeling a bit rejected, shrugged and left the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next day, when Tom returned from school,
Boots handed him a pair of cleats. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
didn’t say anything else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So Tom went
on to try out for the team and he had his butt handed to him by an older
boy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He got pounded all week and began
to hate the idea of playing football.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was later embarrassed to admit that he seriously thought about
quitting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there were those damned
cleats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those cleats weren’t in the
budget.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots had stretched to get them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was just starting out in his new pig
farming business and things were tight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tom
stuck it out and eventually, after college, became the football coach in
Seneca.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was by far the most
successful coach in the history of that school and in fact one of the top in
the entire state of Missouri.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s in the
Missouri sports hall of fame for coaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The stadium in Seneca is named, Tom Hodge Stadium.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a small southern town, high school
football is the NFL.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots and his wife
Madie collected all the articles written about their son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were both extremely proud of him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Boots would send Tom, then in high school or when he’d come
back for summer break in college, to markets to buy up the runts and they’d
bring them back and Boots would shoot them with boosters and fatten them
up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was always thinking of new ways
to improve his operation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was at a
trade show many years later and saw his invention being demonstrated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He recognized the guy who claimed the patent
as one of the professors who’d visited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The guy shrugged apologetically, and most likely frightened for his
life, but Boots shrugged it off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The guy
said, “I looked and you didn’t have a patent on it, so…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots had made plenty of money off of his
invention, he didn’t need the glory for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He wasn’t one to hold a grudge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He’d say, <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Don’t waste your time or your money feeding your
ego.”</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">He’d say, “The true measure of a man is how he
treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or “The true measure of a man is how he
handles a crisis.”</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">He was in the hog business for twenty years before
debilitating headaches bothered him so much he decided to look into it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d had skin cancer and probably wondered if
the constant headaches weren’t something serious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He never told Madie or his kids when he went
to see his doctor but whenever he came back he explained that he was allergic
to the pigs’ dander and would be selling them off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was going out of the hog business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It must have been a difficult decision to
make.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Boots sucked it up and made
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The headaches must have been
horrendous for his pain tolerance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps they were making him cranky?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He had grandkids by this point. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He doted on them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He stopped cursing after I began to repeat
everything he’d say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He also stopped
drinking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was never a hard drinker
but he’d have a beer each night; sometimes Jack Daniels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He gave it up to set an example to his
grandchildren. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">He often remarked how the ghosts of his war buddies
would dance around his bed at night asking what went wrong with the country
they died for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In his mind his
generation spoiled their children, because they didn’t want them to have the
hard life they’d had, but it made them soft and weak and in turn they produced
children even more spoiled and soft.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
foresaw America’s decline from the world’s greatest country to the limp
bureaucratic nightmare it is today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
didn’t think highly of politicians and the government.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He worried about one world government.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said someday that’ll happen and we’ll all
be in trouble.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">His retirement plan was based on an idea he’d had
perhaps all along; to section off his land into plots and to lease it to people
with bad credit or who weren’t able to get loans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When they would default he’d take the land
back, but if they could pay it off then it was theirs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Few of them did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His plan is now helping his children in
their retirements. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of his big
philosophies was about need versus want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We only need a few things to sustain us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rest is what we want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d say, “No luxury should be purchased with
debt. When people tell you they need something, usually they’re confused about
what that means.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To say a few words for a man who put little stock in words
seems ironic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said, <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“No
one can talk for more than five minutes without exposing the extent of his
ignorance.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span>He was a man of
action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn’t say I love you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He showed it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wore the toughest exterior of any man I’ve
ever known, but beneath that cowboy hat there beat a warm and kind heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That man loved his family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Kodak would go out of business if it
weren’t for our family,” he’d say pointing with his half thumb at all the
pictures on his walls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As he got on in
years, he’d say it every time you saw him. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When his wife got sick he’d carry her up the stairs each
night for bed and carry her down again in the morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When she was out of it towards the end, he
picked her up one afternoon and she looked up at him with love drunk,
teenager-eyes, all doughy and she said, “Wanna dance, cowboy?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And he let her stand on his feet and they
swayed back and forth for a moment and then he scooped her up and carried her
up those stairs and sat with her until she fell asleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A large piece of him died when she did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But he was too sturdy to show it and he bit
his lip and his enormous adam’s apple would quiver and he mustered on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was a special time for him and me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was living in Joplin, going to school, and
every Friday Aunt Sue would take my laundry back to their house, she lived with
him, and I’d swing by every Sunday and pick it up and we’d have lunch and talk
for an hour or more and then I’d head on down to Neosho to see my parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We did this every weekend for a year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We grew very close.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d tell the stories he loved the most.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They usually had multiple meanings and were
full of life lessons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Boots truly was a living legend, by definition. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He earned the respect of every man he’d
encountered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boots Hodge. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was an inspiration, a guide, a cowboy guru.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was the cowboy John Wayne was pretending
to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But at the end of the day John
Wayne was just Marion Morrison and Grandpa was still Boots Hodge. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“In the battle between the stone and the stream the stream
always wins because it’s persistent.” He’d write these nuggets of wisdom in his
famous cards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know that he came
up with all of those himself, if he’d picked them up along the way or what, but
he knew the importance of seeing the world in those types of terms. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here’s a poem they found in this personal things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">My Self</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">By Freeman “Boots” Hodge</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I have to live with
my self, and so</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I want to be fit for
myself to know,</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I want to be able as
days go by</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Always to look myself
straight in the eye,</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I don’t want to stand
with the setting sun</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
And hate myself for
the things I’ve done</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I don’t want to keep
on a closet shelf</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
A lot of secrets
about myself,</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
And Fool myself as I
come and go</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Into thinking that
nobody else will know</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
The kind of man I
really am</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I don’t want to dress
myself up in Sham</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I want to go out with
my head erect</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I want to deserve all
men’s respect</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
But here in this
struggle for fame and pelf</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I want to be able to
like myself.</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I don’t want to think
as I come and go</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
That I’m bluster and
bluff and empty show</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I never can hide
myself from me</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I see what others may
never see</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I know what others
may never know</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
I never can fool
myself-and so</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Whatever Happens I
want to be</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Self Respecting and
conscience free</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Boots</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
He was a man of extreme reason and intuition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He lived in a world of logic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it didn’t make sense to him, then by God
he wouldn’t do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if it was
broken, then by God he could fix it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He did
things HIS way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said to be happy; you
need to be your own boss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said, don’t
follow the crowd, go your own way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find
your own path. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He taught us to think for
ourselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Institutions were generally
bad ideas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The government had no right
to tell us what to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wouldn’t wear
his seatbelt in the hopes of being pulled over just so he could explain to the
cop what he thought about that particular communist law. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d say, “I think the seatbelt is the best
invention since birth control, but the government has no right to tell a man,
who fought for his country, that he HAS to wear it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He taught us the
difference between religion and spirituality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He didn’t need to go to church every Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact he refused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He hated preachers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All but one, a man named Griff, who wasn’t anything
like any other preacher we’d ever known.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was a special case and he earned the respect of Boots as he sat with
Madie as she died.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
He was at Boot’s funeral and someone asked Griff if Boots
had asked him a lot of tough questions during those times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“No,” said Griff, “He pretty much just told
me stuff.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Boots found God sitting on a stump at sunrise on his back
forty watching a deer graze in the distance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The irony to me was that people were always trying to “save” him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you
were at his funeral and saw the amount of love and adoration being given to
that great man, then maybe those folks would have all done better to follow his
example.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who needed to save who?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was he perfect?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Like everyone he was flawed, but that’s what made him who he was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But damn if he wasn’t a very good human to
live up to. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
He was an idol, a legend, a hero to his family and that
extended beyond blood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Boots was very active in the Warrens Branch
Community, serving many years on the school board.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was one of the original founders and
leaders of ‘Busy Beavers’ 4-H Club. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d
host mini rodeos on his land called shodoes. He’d plow the ground to make it
softer and the kids would ride calves and horses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He coached Tom’s baseball team and when they
won first place he made it clear he didn’t want his name on that trophy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t about him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was a selfless man to the core.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We found the drafts for a few of the cards he’d sent to
everyone and I’d like to include this here for posterity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The following are the words of Boots Hodge to
his family.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">“Boots-isms”</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Tom & Sue</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“A hundred years from now, it won’t matter what my
bank account was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sort of house I
lived in, or the kind of car I drove.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But the world may be different because I was important in the life of a
child.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Tom & Merlene</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“The most certain sign of wisdom is to make your
home a refuge from the rest of the world.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Sue</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“It is loving and giving that make life worth
living.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">And giving that love to children can make a
difference in their life forever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
can do a great job at that.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">- Have a good day<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>-Dad</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Patty</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Good Judgment comes from experience, a lot of that
comes from bad judgments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whenever you
see darkness there is an extraordinary opportunity for the light to burn brighter.
“</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">-Good luck with your back – Dad</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“When you come to the end of your rope tie a knot
and hang on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone gets the same 24
hours in a day, the difference is how you use it.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Bobbie, Patty & Tera</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Just be yourself and never look back and don’t take
life or death too seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Making it
in life is kinda like busting bronc’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Your going to get thrown a lot, the secret is getting back on.” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">-Just an old Cowboys way of looking at it. Grandpa
Boots</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Pam</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“By changing the inner attitudes of their minds,
can change the outer aspects of their lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Never take the advice of someone who has not had that kind of trouble.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">-I think you have proven that, just be your own
person you can’t please everyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“The true measure of a man is how he treats someone
who can do him absolutely no good.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Merlene</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Anyone who says raising kids is not the most
difficult job in the world is not doing it right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memories are your most valuable possessions.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Travis</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“There is not half the pleasure in processing an
object as in the effort to attain it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Let go of the what-If, don’t put your life on
hold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Trust your hopes not your fears. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Optimism is a gift</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">The most certain sign of wisdom is a positive
outlook.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Marcy</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Grab happiness in the passing moments of life and
never look back.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Never feel lonely in the kitchen, food is very
friendly.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Treat your kids like you wanted your parents to
treat you”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Mark</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Happiness is a byproduct of an effort to make
someone else happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The most wasted days
are the days when we have not laughed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
happy marriage puts the marriage before the children. Two people loving equally
is a rare occurrence.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Tera</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“You’ve got to be original, because if you are like
someone else what do they need you for?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Scott W.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“No matter what kind of backgrounds two men are
from, if you go ‘Hey man, women are crazy’ you got a friend”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Josh and Amy</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Love begins in the eyes and quickly goes to the
heart, and only sometimes ends up in the brain.” – Boots</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Eric</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“The greatest conflicts are not between two people
but between one person and himself.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Ryan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Not everything can be made sense of</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Your Eyes are the windows of your soul.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">We are sometimes taken into troubled waters not to
drown, but to be cleansed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Use your memory to make your life more
enjoyable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Look back at your ancestors for strength; carry a
can-do attitude with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Banish the word ‘cannot’ from your vocabulary;
every person is born with a talent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">A good idea is usually risky, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">The door to success is always marked ‘Push’</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Contentment is worth more than Riches.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Lacy</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Be afraid only of standing still.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grab happiness in the passing moments of
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are sometimes taken into
troubled waters, but not to drown but to learn how to swim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes things that hurt-teach skill and
confidence are an unconquerable force.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every person is born with a talent, use it.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Don’t be discouraged by your mistakes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Accept the good and run with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Opportunity sometimes knocks very
softly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surround yourself with things
that make you smile.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Ross</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“We are all treasure chests of talents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Sights and remarkable gifts we are judged
by what we finish, not on what we start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The secret of success is doing something you love.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Tayler</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Never grumble, it makes you as welcome as a snake
at a picnic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Its best to keep your
troubles pretty much to yourself cause half the people you tell them to won’t
give a damn, and the other half will be glad to hear you have them.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Follow your hearts’ desire and it will lead you to
great adventures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For when you follow
your heart life becomes joyful.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Britnie</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“You must do crazy things once in awhile to keep
from going nuts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just don’t do anything
that conflicts with common sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
best advice is don’t give it.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Hudson</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Hey a true friend will tell you when your hats on
backwards, just how did you get so stupid, well maybe it’s the company I keep.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Hayden</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Its better to have one good friend than many
acquaintances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The most certain sign of
wisdom is a positive outlook of a person is defined by what he makes of himself
during his lifetime.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">Charlie</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Most folks are like a bob-wire fence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have their good points.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nobody ever drowns himself in his own
sweat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Never joke with mules or cooks as
they have no sense of humor.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">More….</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Today you don’t have to lift a finger, you are
royalty, the hero of the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You don’t
know about war, poverty or disease, you only know love, enjoy the moment.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">-Grandpa Boots</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“If you have a loving family its amazing what you
can do without.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Don’t pet a porcupine unless you are looking for
trouble.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life is an emotional journey.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“No luxury should be purchased with debt”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Never sacrifice your principles to please anyone”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Aim at fulfilling whatever talents you have
inherited.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Having an education is different than having plain
ol’ horse sense.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“You can ruin the present by worrying about the
future”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“A stumble may prevent a fall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t put your life on hold”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Trust your hopes not your fears”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Just be yourself and never look back, and don’t
take life or death too seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love
all, trust a few, do wrong to none, your eyes are the windows to your soul.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Knowledge is a precious treasure that cannot be
given away nor stolen.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“After you climb to the top of the wall don’t kick
over the ladder”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Good fortune is usually the result of wisdom and
hard work, not luck.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Optimism is a gift”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“There is no security on this earth only
opportunity”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Its no disgrace to fall down, the disgrace is not
getting up and going ahead.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake
up”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“An imagination can make reality more joy able”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Its easier to accept love than to give it”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Wisdom is sometimes disguised as foolishness”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Don’t waste your time or your money feeding your
ego”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Just remember don’t pursue happiness, create it.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Kids need more hugs than they need things.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“The greater the obstacles the more glory in over
coming it.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“You can never go wrong when you follow your
dreams.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Never play leap frog with the unicorn”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Never pet a porcupine. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">If you carry yourself like a beauty people will
think of you as one.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“You can never step in the same river twice you can
just about always stand more than you think you can.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“No one can talk for more than five minutes without
exposing the extent of his ignorance.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Watch what happens to a wagon when one wheel comes
off”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“A good reputation cannot be bought for any amount
of money”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Intelligence is not enough, using intelligence
wisely is the key”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Respect yourself and others will respect you.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“Happiness comes from a persons character”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Wawati SC Regular";">“The squeaky wheel will be the first to get the
grease, but if it keeps on squeakin’, it’ll be the first one to be replaced.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-20005715284917766722015-01-28T11:55:00.003-08:002015-01-28T12:03:38.013-08:00Mythology<style>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
ON MYTHOLOGY</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
A study conducted on Catholic nuns
and Buddhist monks, revealed that when individuals are in a state of concentrated
meditation and prayer the neurons stop firing in the parietal lobe of the
brain; the area responsible for spatial orientation and physical
awareness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another study showed that
when individuals suffer from temporal lobe seizures and also others who have
had that region of the brain stimulated using electrodes produce sensations
that are considered intense religious euphoria or experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Atheists look at that and interpret it as
proof that there is nothing spiritual going on at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There you go.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I’m not devout to anything yet and so I
say simply, “I don’t know…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But for me
some interesting questions arise for the thought experiment; do we remove a
portion of our ego when we turn off the region that is aware of our physical
body?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isn’t it our egos that have fooled
us into thinking we’re individuals separate from the universe in the first
place?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does that portion of the physical
brain naturally block or impede our true connection with the universal
consciousness?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is the parietal lobe our
anchor to the physical realm?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or is it
all electricity and energy distribution? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it all in our heads?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I struggle with this debate all the
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
There have been
other studies that suppose our brains naturally need to impose order to
everything; that we need to understand everything as having a cause-effect
relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We simply can’t accept
chaos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things cannot happen
randomly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
I’m currently
enrolled in a mythology class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
semester just began and the second chapter in the book looks at the origins of
myth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where do they come from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The book breaks down several competing
theories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s the Archaic view that
basically says that, to the ancient Greeks, myths were substitutions for
history and theology, but also offered examples of heroic actions that promoted
certain courageous standards for not only their citizens but their leaders as
well. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were “externalist” theories
that state that myths were a prescientific attempt to explain natural
phenomena.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some believe that myths
derived from explanations for certain ancient rituals and customs; as
justifications. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
The “internalists”
view myth like Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung did, as stemming from our
subconscious; that they are expressions of the human mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jung had his mythological archetypes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
My friend Matt
Savage wonders if myths were actually viewed as fiction but accepted and
celebrated as holding universal truths worthy of veneration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He likened it to Harry Potter or Star
Wars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We know these stories are fiction
but we celebrate them as our modern mythology. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
There was the
Hellenistic theory that supposed that the ancient gods were based on leaders
from the distant past whose exploits had been so exaggerated over time that
they took on divine qualities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like
this theory for reasons I’m unaware of other than it supports my theory on the
Biblical stories and oral tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
compare it to the game of telephone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Each time the story is told to the next person it takes on a subtle but
important variation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But over thousands
of years those variations have grown to the point that what’s left is nearly a
completely different tale.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But boiled
down and below them there was once some truth to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
That leads into a
section I found to be missing from the text book; the Ancient Alien Theory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A kid seated behind me brought it up in class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As much as I don’t trust the Ancient Alien
theory its hard to watch the so-called History Channel and not come away with
at least a few more questions than you have answers on that subject.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea is that mythology comes from the
ancients’ misunderstanding of technology well beyond their wildest imaginations
and so the aliens became gods.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
A competing theory
to the aliens is the ancient demonic theory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This one I’ve employed in a series of books that have yet to be
completed, but that I started over ten years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea is that the ancient gods were
actually powerful demons that corrupted and subverted the truth and tricked
ancient man into worshipping them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
idea that the act of being worshipped made them extremely powerful makes more
sense to me as far as their motives are concerned, than the ancient aliens
needing to create a race of workers to build the pyramids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What also makes the ancient demon theory such
an intriguing one to me is how these pagan gods influenced history all the way
into our modern world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think about
Christianity’s relationship with the pagans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Constantine wasn’t the Christian saint they’ve made him out to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was still a pagan worshipper long after he
legitimized Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what
people don’t realize is that he corrupted the faith and from that moment
forward the pagan’s controlled it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When
Rome took over Christianity it no longer belonged to the pure of heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They stepped into the shadows, these demon
gods, but they never left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And plenty of
evil was done in the name of the church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>According to the theory, that evil was orchestrated by these demonic
forces, to be carried out under the false name of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why does the Vatican have an ancient Egyptian
monolith in its courtyard?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
The idea that for
thousands of years mankind made blood sacrifices to these demons, which we know
from the stories weren’t shining examples of morality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Zeus raped a lot of virgins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The conspiracy folks will say these pagan
demons are still at work in our world today, whispering into ears if not making
straightforward deals with extremely powerful people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you want to lose your mind look into pop
music and hidden symbolism throughout it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It will make your hair curl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
But I have to
leave it with the understanding that I don’t claim to have any answers only
questions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I see patterns in things, but
then again that’s what all of our brains do automatically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We look for and some times fill-in patterns
everywhere we look.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But sometimes the
patterns fit and tell us things. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-60104957676494006542014-04-28T11:35:00.000-07:002014-04-28T11:35:42.879-07:00Is the Universe a Super-Organism?
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Super-Organisms</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p>I keep coming across people who say things that suggest they
are open to a new interpretation of spirituality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m watching my generation stepping into the
seats of power and influence, slowly but surely, and the world changing to
reflect our more open minded take on reality.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I keep coming across the elusive theory I often refer to in
the voices of my fellows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has yet to
have a name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It questions more than it
answers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, a lot of us are no longer
willing to accept the old models of religion, but are not yet willing to give
in to the dogmatic conviction that there is nothing beyond the human
experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can see the convergence of science and
spirituality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think a staunch atheist
is just as closed minded as a far-right-winged, bible-thumping literalist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To assume you understand all the mysteries of
the cosmos is a bit narrow in scope, no? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of my best friends are atheist and to
them I mean no disrespect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think if it
comforts them not to believe in anything beyond the chemical reactions of the
brain, then so be it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I prefer to muse on the idea that the cosmos has the
possibility of being an enormous super-organism, just as the human body is a
complex system of smaller components.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
We start with the question: What does it mean to be alive? It’s
all about the flow of energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Energy
resources drive complex systems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well
the universe has energy flowing throughout it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s hard to think in terms that grand, but
take comfort in knowing that there are patterns in everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They repeat on all levels, from quantum to
multiversal.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
According to Wikipedia:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Any contiguous living system is
called an organism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Organisms undergo
metabolism, maintain homeostasis, can grow, respond to stimuli, reproduce and,
through natural selection, adapt to their environment in successive
generations.</i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So you might say, well, the universe doesn’t do all those
things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How do you know?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You have to look in terms of the concept of
there being multiple universes to begin to see how this may be happening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea is that this universe is the clone
or spawn of an older universe, which was the spawn of an even older
universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to many leading
scientists today there are countless universes in the sea that is called the
multiverse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we used to worry about
feeling insignificant when we imagined that the sun didn’t revolve around the
earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But realize that we are not
removed from this system but are very much a part of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why would the patterns cease to exist the
larger you get in scale?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could each
universe be like a cell inside of a larger super-organism?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cells divide just like they do in living
organisms on earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The universes could
be evolving and natural selection could be rewarding those that are more
hospitable to create life and new universes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Blackholes could be the spawning grounds of new universes.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Someone might say, what does that do to the concept of
God?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes God infinitely greater and
many times more vast and complex.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What
does that do the idea of you as an individual?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It suggests that it doesn’t stop with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can believe that you are made up of tiny
particles that have come together as a complex system to make you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then we think that’s the end of the line
for complex systems?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what if you’re
not the highest beings in the universe?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What if we are all tiny components in a larger complex system?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We think we’re individuals but really we’re
not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re all connected in this way, coming
together to make something greater and more complex than ourselves, just as the
cells in our bodies do, or the atoms of the cells and so forth.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
There has been a lot of research done lately on the idea of
there being a “collective consciousness” or a “unified field of consciousness”
surrounding this planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1980
Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) lab began to study how focused
group intention and attention brought order to random computer output. Random-number-generating
(RNG) computers have suggested strongly the existence of a collective
consciousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1995, for example,
Roger Nelson and Dean Radin began researching similar effects that occurred
when mass attention was captured by events like the O.J. Simpson trial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The research shows that romantic couples
working together can affect the RGNs six times as much as individuals. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Suggesting love binds us together and makes us
even stronger as something else beyond our individualities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Global events that capture our attention collectively
have powerful sway on the RGNs that are in place in various locations on the
planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>9/11 had a tremendous effect on the
random-numbers-generating computers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
has been much more independent research done on the subject.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to research it for yourselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea is that collective consciousness is
a mode of awareness that emerges at the first transpersonal stage of
consciousness, when our identities expand beyond our egos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We intuitively can sense and work with the
interactions between our and other’s energy fields, physically, emotionally,
mentally and spiritually. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This projection
of emotions and thoughts is a real phenomenon, just ask anyone who is afraid of
horses or dogs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These animals are well
aware of our emotions, because we project them. The theory suggests that consciousness
has the ability to exist beyond the constraints of space and time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it suggests that our individual consciousness
has a part to play in the larger more complex system as one collective hive
mind that surrounds the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea
is then carried on to the galaxy and the clusters of galaxies all the way to
the universe and the multiverse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
basic patterns don’t break down the larger you get.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They too expand and form an even larger
complex system called the super-organism. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Could that be what the Bible was talking about when it said
God created man in “their” own image?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is not a Him but an Us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In that we are all particles of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our egos have convinced us that we are
individuals, separate from the divine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Could it be we are part of a chain, connected somewhere along the way,
in an infinitely immense system?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I sure don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do
you?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-76097914422608851942014-03-24T07:50:00.000-07:002014-03-24T07:50:19.923-07:00Dogs
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Dogs</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I grew up with dogs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I loved my childhood dogs; especially Splicer, the little black mutt who
despite his strange name was very smart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was special.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I grew up in
the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You didn’t have to walk
your dog, you just opened the door and it went outside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It came back when it was ready to come
inside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I first lost my affinity for
dogs when I moved to the city and my roommates had a little devil of a dog, who
nipped at people’s ankles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He loved to
stalk you under the table and latch on to your ankle with a quick snip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He got me a few times before one weekend when
my roommates had to go out of town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
stayed behind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was Thanksgiving and
the weather had turned bitter and cold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I had to walk the dog and pick up its poop with a plastic bag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought, I would never like to have a dog
in the city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided that since I was
stuck with the dog, I’d win it over by showing my dominance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I took an oven mitt and played a game with
the dog by grabbing his mouth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He tried
to bite me but couldn’t break through the mitt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I simply held on until he relented and stopped fighting me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It became a thing we did the entire
weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he’d growl at me, I’d get
the mitt out and grab his snout and hold on until he stopped fighting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the end of the weekend he was seated by my
side on the couch, panting and obedient.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He never tried to snip my ankles again after that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I grew fond of the little critter but I never
grew fond of walking him outside in the freezing cold.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So it can be said that I never wanted a dog of my own, since
becoming an adult.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I married someone who
felt the same way.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
But when you have kids they reach a certain age and they
start begging to get a dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of my
daughters in particular is an avid animal lover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She cries about not having a dog.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Recently my father came to visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He started in on how good it is for kids to
have a dog. He worked my three children into a dog frenzy by taking them to a
local pet store to look at puppies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
was like, “Dad, we’re not getting a dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You’re only going to upset them.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They have a picture of a sweet little puppy from the pet store as a
screen saver.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At about this time a guy
who works with my wife was planning to go out of town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a puppy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s about a year old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s on a special diet and has all this
medicine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She chews up everything she
can get a hold of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So my wife, with a stroke
of genius, tells me about how they are going to have to put the dog in a place
while they go out of town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She asked me
if we should agree to watch the dog for the weekend and make our kids do all
the work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew it would be a challenge
but I agreed it was a good idea.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
We got the dog on a Thursday night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It came with a long list of
instructions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The owners were very
apologetic and kept asking if we were sure about this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had committed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could survive one weekend. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kids went around the house picking
everything up that could fit into the dog’s mouth, or so they said they
did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stuffed animals were bagged and put
away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Small toys were put into
bins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dog jumped up on me, trying
to lick my face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pet her behind the
ears and kept her from licking me on the lips. At first the dog was a nervous
wreck, running all around, checking everything out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kids were all excited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The time came for them kids to walk the
dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Keep him in the backyard,” said
my wife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Five minutes later, she looked
out the back door and didn’t see them.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Trav, where are they?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You’d better go out and look for them.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So I threw on a coat and shoes and headed out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found them in the front.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We live in a cul-de-sac and the neighbor kids
were playing on the huge snow mountain the plowers had pushed together in the
center.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dog was pulling my daughter
around from kid to kid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone was
worked into a whirl of new doggy excitement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“What happened to staying in the backyard?” I asked.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“I tried,” said my daughter, looking near tears.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“If you can’t walk the dog without it pulling you all around
the place, then we need to call (the owners) and have them come and get
her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because that’s part of it,” I said.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“I know,” she said in her whiney voice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My other daughter helped her and they brought
the dog into the garage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it was
soaked and muddy from the filthy snow pile.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I found some old towels and made them dry her off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
My wife had tickets to a concert and I stayed with the kids
and the dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had the kids take the dog
out one more time before starting our bedtime rituals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They managed to keep her in the backyard this
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the bedtime rituals, which are
already a pain in the ass, were wildly interrupted by the dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kids fought over which room she would
sleep in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They kept calling her into
their rooms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Go to bed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one’s
getting the dog tonight, if you all keep calling her. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trust me, she’ll go where she wants to
go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get in bed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will close your doors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now get to sleep!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried to keep cool but I find bedtime makes
me very cranky even without a new dog in the house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With the added stress of the dog distraction,
bedtime had become infuriating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I
imagined that once the house settled down the dog would too and I could have
some peace and quiet to maybe get some writing done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that was not to happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dog whined at my door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I finally opened the door and let her in and
she kept jumping up on me while I was trying to write and licking my ear and
head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It barked at me. Then it left the
room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Five minutes later I heard my
daughters calling me.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Dad! Dad!” I came out of my room to hear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“She peed all over the floor, Dad. I told you
we should have taken her out one more time.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I had them throw on some boots and coats and take her out
again, while I cleaned up the pee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At
this point I had a clear thought. While this sucked, it was going according to
plan. A devious smile crept over me, while I was on my knees soaking dog piss
out of my carpet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went downstairs to
watch TV after the kids settled back into bed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The dog followed me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She jumped
on me and started to lick me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pushed
her off and dried my head with my sleeve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Finally the dog settled on the couch beside me. But when my wife got
home and we went to bed, the dog jumped into our bed with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We got horrible sleep. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dog moaned and whined all night long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next day it was just me and the dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried to write in the morning, but she came
and jumped on me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She then brought her
toy ball and dropped it by me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She barked,
meaning she wanted to play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went
downstairs and found wads of paper everywhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She found my son’s art supplies and ripped up some of his drawings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The owners said to crate her if she didn’t
let me write, so I put her in her cage downstairs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She barked the entire time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I let her out and she followed me everywhere
I went.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Always under foot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided to take her for a walk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad happened to call when I was out with
her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He found it hysterical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was not laughing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I kept thinking this was all his fault. That
night, I settled down to watch TV after the kids went to bed and the dog was
with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After a while I heard her
climbing the stairs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hoped maybe she’d
go and sleep with the kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But a few
minutes later I heard the sound of plastic being chewed on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I ran up the stairs.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“What have you got?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Spit it out!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I grabbed her by
the mouth and struggled until finally a small Lego piece fell out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I put it on a ledge she couldn’t reach and
returned to my stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A minute later
there came the same sound of dog teeth working plastic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought we’d done a thorough sweep of the
house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I stormed into the girls’ room and flipped on
the lights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were both asleep. I
shook my daughter on the bottom bunk.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Get up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We need to get everything up.” I was
purposefully being loud and abrupt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
got drowsily out of their beds and half-assed an attempt to dig under their bed
for any loose items.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After a moment of
watching this, I got on my knees and dug under their dresser, pulling out item
after item of loose plastic toys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
piled them on the bed. “Find spots for all of this stuff.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“I’m tired, Dad,” said my daughter.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Yep. Having a dog sure is tiring, huh, kids?” I said,
basking in victory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
By the third night, my son was the first to admit he no
longer wanted a dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“When’s this thing
going home?” he asked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the last day
even my animal loving, motherly little daughter admitted it was too much work
to have a dog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They stopped asking for
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For now, anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-35426948260130169232014-03-17T11:39:00.001-07:002014-03-17T11:39:24.687-07:00Indigo a'go go
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Indigo Children</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
As mentioned before, I met a very interesting woman who
claimed to have one foot in the fifth dimension.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was very fascinating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I refer to her as the “highly spiritual”
lady.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She could see through her “third eye.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She holds seminars on the subject.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a very interesting conversation as you
can imagine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
This “highly spiritual” lady I spoke to mentioned Indigo
Children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d perhaps heard of it, but
hadn’t given it much credence before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I decided to look it up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
the idea that a large number of unique children are being born into the world
with much more frequency.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are said
to be vibrating at a higher level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
children are said to have indigo auras and to be much more in touch with the
universe and to possess special, unusual and sometimes almost supernatural
qualities; such as psychic abilities. Many of them are misdiagnosed with
autism, ADD and ADHD. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact is
children are different these days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes,
I know it has a lot to do with the parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But even then there’s something going on that isn’t quite right; mass
autism, and wide spread gluten and peanut allergies?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wheat hasn’t changed nor has the
peanut.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is believed by some people that our DNA is
changing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no proof of this and
the evidence is sketchy at best, but I always like to play the “what if” game. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, according to some New Age parents, it is
said these children are coming to earth to help us and to teach us things; to
help guide humanity into the next age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Coming
to earth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From where?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The lady alluded to another planet, as if they were older souls from
another part of the universe, from a society more advanced spiritually than
ours, incarnating into human bodies, but that’s getting into another bag all
together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me though, it’s a
wonderful concept if anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a
storyteller, I love this kind of thing.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The qualities listed for these children are
interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some are born with what the
old folks call a sense of entitlement, because they feel they are special.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They almost expect you to realize how
important they are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have more
confidence than most children today but way more than all children from the
past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They despise authority for the
sake of authority, for they believe we are all equal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rules almost seem silly to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t like school because they know that
school is going about teaching them in the wrong ways, not giving them
real-life experiences, but instead instilling a worker slave mentality upon
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They feel removed from the
rigidity of the structured world, for they see past structure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are spontaneous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One huge problem with their feelings of
alienation is they often turn to drugs in their teens and early
adolescence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They first seek them for
mind expansion but easily become ensnared in the void of addiction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a snare put in place by the forces
working against the better good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Indigos are considered systems busters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And they believe the systems were put in place to hold us back and to
control us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s especially true of
economic systems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of them despise
money but some have figured out how to use the system to acquire wealth in
order to remove themselves from its burden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They do things completely different than how it’s been done for years
and years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They break traditions, for
they see them as trivial and superstitious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They don’t read books from cover to cover anymore, but they are usually
smarter than most people for they seek out their knowledge through a more
precise method.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have the internet
at their finger tips and they know how to use it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They prefer to guide their own education and
while they don’t do well in school, later in life, if they can stay focused and
not distracted by their own self-destructive pursuits, they will be the wisest among
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They can be seen as anti-social
unless they are with other Indigos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They refuse to be ruled by fear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They act out because of this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They are rebelling against a system that doesn’t make sense to
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are usually highly creative
and headstrong. And they are inheriting the earth soon. So say the New Age
parents of Indigo Children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A bit much to digest but I thought it was
worth a look.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Skeptics of the Indigo Child Theory, and that includes most
people, claim parents who believe their children are Indigo are doing so as a
way to avoid considering psychiatric or pediatric diagnosis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There’s nothing wrong with my child!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s special!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It could be argued that it is wrong and
dangerous to justify disruptive and rebellious behavior from a child as being
symptoms of a higher consciousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure
and that’s living in reality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I’m a
fiction writer at heart, remember. I get to live outside of the system of
reality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe I’m an Indigo Child?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can definitely identify with some of the
supposed qualities of the Indigos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s why I found it most interesting, I suppose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know…</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The “highly spiritual” lady told me that when the age of ego
dies and the age of Christ-like consciousness emerges, that is when we are
ready to move forward and to seek a more harmonious existence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that age has begun, she told me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps our brains will start producing more
oxytocin, the chemical responsible for our feelings of love, trust and
compassion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oxytocin is exclusive to
humans alone.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
But there are those who seek to divide us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They benefit from us warring with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They created dogmas and politics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are the ones who are purely ego
driven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have to be in control and
they will do anything it takes to keep it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We should realize we’re all truly equal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No human should have dominion over another human.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only real tool they have is money,
influence and fear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But as I’ve said
before, we are born knowing right from wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s been proven by years of study at Yale and other institutions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all intuitively know it, despite what the
world has thrown down on us to alter our realities. We began to “think” instead
of “feel” and confused ourselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our
egos have gotten in the way of our instinctual understanding of morality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a newborn baby is a clean slate, how
could it understand morality? Where does that knowledge come from if not from
the universe itself? </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-81455519330656880872014-03-10T09:53:00.003-07:002014-03-10T09:53:42.561-07:00Human Development
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Human Development</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
What if the Mayans were right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if in 2013 we entered into a new phase of
human development? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A New Age. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It takes millions and millions of years for
selective breeding and mutations to create subtle changes in a creature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Homo sapiens went from walking upright to making
tools to speaking logically and thinking abstractly in a relative blink of an
eye in terms of evolutionary time scales.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why don’t other animals speak logically to each other?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No other animal does it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whales and dolphins are close, and we don’t
really know how smart they are, but they aren’t building cities and they have
no real technology. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re not
exploring space. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But why would
they?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t need to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They get along just fine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the need to survive or be wiped out of
existence that drives a species forward in evolutionary terms.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Early humans were screwed if not for their advanced brains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had few if any defenses out there in <st1:place w:st="on">Africa</st1:place> against saber tooth cats and enormous lions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Selective breeding took such a gamble on
humanity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t make sense how it
even worked out for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What sort of
random, chaotic, accidental process leads to the channeling of energy away from
the physical body in favor of a more complex brain, in an ecosystem that relied
on speed and brawn to survive?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
a real disconnect in logic when imagining the millions of years it took while
the early human brain was first developing and the body was losing physical
strength.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems like we shouldn’t
have been able to make it out of that epoch alive as a species. We shouldn’t be
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were too easy to catch and eat.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Imagine that energy is currency.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So in order to pay for more complex brains we
needed to divert payment away from the physical strength first before it could
be paid to the brain, leaving weak animals that are just starting to develop a
smart brain out in the middle of Africa to fend for themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not yet smart enough to make a fire to ward
off predators and not fast enough to run away from them, and definitely not
strong enough to stand and fight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
only thing I can imagine is that there was a time when the tribe of early
humans found refuge near the coastline.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We lived off of fish primarily and avoided the savannahs and its
predators.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This could also be where we
lost our body hair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s called the
Aquatic Ape Theory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The humans who could
swim the fastest caught the most fish and therefore had the most children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ones with the least amount of body hair
could swim the fastest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Okay. And all
that fish protein helped improve our brains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That works. But that had to have happened at a crucial point in our
development. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The timing had to be
perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is that the answer?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or was something else influencing our
development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Protecting and guiding us? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Angels?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Aliens? Who really knows?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
up to faith for some people and future scientific discoveries for others.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The fact that the result of the evolutionary gamble created
beings who could look up into the sky and speculate, seek to unlock the mysteries
of the universe and to explore it, makes me wonder about the question of why
evolution would favor brain for brawn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We are manifestations of the universe, products of it, having been made
aware of the universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The universe
became conscious through us; at least in this tiny spec of someone else’s sky.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
We made a huge leap forward in a way that’s never been done
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, are huge mental leaps aspects
of being human?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Are we undergoing one of these major leaps in human
understanding and progress?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most people
would probably say no. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are probably
going in the other direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Media is
definitely dumbing us down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But let’s hear from the ones who say yes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just for the fun of it.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
In the last hundred and fifty years we’ve gone from the horse
and buggy to the space age, the internet, the smart phone and Google Glass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happened?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And now here we are, sharing ideas like never
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had a very interesting
conversation with a lady last week about what she called the “awakening” taking
place in our world right now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The lady
was very interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll refer to her
as the “highly spiritual” lady.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
holds seminars on spirituality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She said
things that I too have contemplated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
the more people I talk to, the more I come across people who surprise me and
say things that you never heard before about religion and the universe, things
I thought only I thought about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The old
literal interpretation of the Bible and history are changing. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fastest growing religious affiliation is
“Non-affiliated.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By current
projections, by 2050 Non-Affiliated will be the box checked off the most of all
other religions upon survey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many
fundamentalist would say that’s what’s wrong with our world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact is, more and more people I talk to
seem to see the world in a complete new and different way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t accept the old models of what
their grandparents believed in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we
ready for more information?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we ready
to wake up to a new reality?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
It could be argued that thanks to modern media we have all
been indoctrinated by the same sources.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
all watch the same shows and therefore ask the same questions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe so. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But isn’t that a form of global collective
consciousness then?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The earth is developing a nervous system through our smart
phones and devices. We’re creating, with technology, a digital collective
consciousness surrounding the planet that is connecting us all in a global web.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If done right, the internet could lead to
real, honest, global democracy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Yeah,
right,” says the CEO, coughing on his cigar smoke.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There’s no money in it.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There will never be harmony among humankind
due to human ego and greed,” says a friend of mine. I agree with him, most of
the time, but sometimes I like to think otherwise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure, it appears that way now, based on the
old models of society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there have
been enormous shifts in the way humans think, recently and in the past.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
It’s like the first time a cave dwelling ancestor of ours
decided to paint a picture on a cave wall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We suddenly began to think abstractly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No other creature had ever done that on this planet before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it wasn’t exclusive to one human being in
one cave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are hundreds of caves
that they’ve discovered throughout the world that have abstract paintings in
them that go back as far as forty thousand years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wonder who was the first human to do that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did cave art develop slowly over a long
period of time?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t really
know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s evidence that one of the
oldest cave paintings discovered is just as sophisticated as art that was
discovered from periods twenty thousand years later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did it start by accident?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An early human blew red ochre onto the wall
and thought it looked cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems
that eventually it became part of their religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At some point we developed art and the
creation of that art became a spiritual experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something happened, rather suddenly by evolutionary
standards, that can’t be easily explained.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m certainly not going to try to explain it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the fact is, we suddenly began to think
abstractly and to represent that abstract thinking in art.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By evolutionary terms that happened VERY
recently; a major shift in the human brain, almost like an upgrade took place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it happening again?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we on the cusp of another leap?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m on the look out for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then again, who knows?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Or better yet, I don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<o:p> </o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-87652874916662195042014-03-03T09:05:00.000-08:002014-03-03T09:05:17.544-08:00What ever happend to being Humble?
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Humility</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
What ever happened to being humble?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t people realize that you earn more
respect when you are good at something and also humble about it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not talking about false humility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Oh, now, you’re just saying that.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it better to be good at something, like a
sport, and instead of dancing around after you score, you simply nod your head
and jog back to your side of the field to start again?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wouldn’t you rather see that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the olden days people were humble when
they did something amazing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Einstein
didn’t go around saying, “In your face, Newtonian science!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happened to our world where that’s
acceptable behavior?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t you realize
how foolish a cocky person looks when they fail?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the basis for good physical comedy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The high brow person who falls down is much
funnier than the good hearted, humble guy falling down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But why do people feel the need to celebrate
and parade their accomplishments to everyone else?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s like we’re all clamoring for
attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Much like writing a blog
about yourself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I think part of it stems from the inability to see how we
look from other people’s perspective.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
must be harder than I think, to put yourself in someone else’s shoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People say they do, but they usually
don’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really think through the
scenario, and imagine you’re them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How
would you really feel about it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some
people, it seems to me, live in the moment, on the edge of being offended,
unable to take the split second required to imagine another more rational
explanation for a comment or an action.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
When I was starting out as a young writer, I had some
extraordinary luck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mistook this luck
for my own immense talent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was part of
a group of comedians that put on a sketch comedy television show for the
college station.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a blast doing
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The director of the station
submitted two of our sketches to a short film festival in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Kansas City</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We won first and third place in the contest for sketches that turned out
to be short films.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the judges was
a <st1:place w:st="on">Hollywood</st1:place> producer who we spoke to after the
ceremony.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He really enjoyed our
work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had written my first screenplay
and he said he’d read it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few weeks later,
I finished another screenplay. Around that time, I received a letter from the
producer that turned out to be a very positive rejection, stating that he saw
something special in me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said I had a
unique voice and he’d love to read more of my work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I sent him the next screenplay. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He really liked it, but...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We worked on draft after draft of the screenplay
until eventually he took it to Fox Search Light to see if they’d be interested
in making the film.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was twenty-one
years old. It was my second attempt at writing a screenplay. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During this period, I was hanging out with my
new artist friends and I had become quite full of myself and enamored with my
abilities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fox Search Light rejected the
screenplay, or I should say they “passed” on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But by that time I’d moved to <st1:city w:st="on">Chicago</st1:city> and was wrapped up in the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Second</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">City</st1:placetype></st1:place>
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was arrogant in those days and
I fumbled several opportunities by my own hubris.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over the next several years I was slowly but
surely humbled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though, painful, it was
the best thing for me as far as my personality goes. It’s important to mention
that I say I was cocky, I don’t mean outwardly cocky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mine was a more internal arrogance that
affected many bad decisions I made over the years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Had I been more humble and willing to put in
the extra work and diligence needed, who knows, my life could be very different
than it is today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s not the
point I’m trying to make.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s about
humility. I think this happens to everyone in some capacity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People who are good at things when they are
too young and cocky to realize it often find painful humility in later
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s those guys who weren’t
arrogant to begin with are the ones that people are drawn to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those are the people, other people want to see
succeed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So I look at Jimmy Fallon and think, what a good person he
must be because he’s a humble guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
seems that way anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People seem to
generally like him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I look at Leo Messi,
the soccer star, arguably and potentially the greatest of all time, and add
even more respect for him by the way he carries himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He doesn’t slide across the ground when he
scores.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s low key.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s good and he knows it and doesn’t need to
hype himself even more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being arrogant
is a huge indicator of insecurity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
My uncle Tom is a living legend in his corner of the
state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was the football coach for a
small town called Seneca.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His record for
State Championships is staggering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Year
after year he took a new group of kids far into the state tournament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He inspired kids to play at the top of their
game and to reach inside themselves, to push themselves, to give their complete
best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The football stadium is named
after him now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But also what’s made him
such a revered legend in the town is the way in which he carries himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s quiet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He’s an extremely deep thinker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s the first thing most people would say about him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He listens and watches instead of idly making
small talk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when he does speak
there’s usually a kernel of wisdom in his words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a unique way of speaking which my
brother Josh can impersonate perfectly, but that only adds to his legend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s funny and extremely dry as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’d never hear him brag about any of his
accomplishments, he usually down plays them. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what makes him an even greater legend is
how he and my aunt Merlene adopted three kids with high needs and rescued them
from horrible situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They did it
once their children were grown, when most people were settling down to start
the next phase of their lives and retire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They are selfless people and it amazes me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Its people
like this we should have our children immolate, not some arrogant, over paid
professional athlete who dances around the end-zone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Children are growing up today to think its okay to be cocky
and to celebrate themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I fear it’s
the wrong message.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then again, life
has a funny way of humbling us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
maybe that’s the point of living.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Eventually someday, in some remote future, we’ll all be humbled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could it be said that in order for there to
be harmony on earth, we’d all need to be humble? That’s going to take some time, though,
I’d imagine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we have time according
to the theory I keep alluding to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be
patient with those who struggle with their egos, they’ve taken the wrong path
and will need more time to find their way back to the right one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when they get there, it is believed it
will be firmly taught and for them the humbling process will be a powerful one.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Humble thy self in the sight of the Lord.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember? </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
In order for complex systems to work, each part must be in
harmony with the rest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could humanity
eventually come together to form a truly complex system, in say a thousand
years?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most people would say no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s ridiculous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe it is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But you know me, I like to imagine.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
What is a complex system?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anything with smaller parts that come together to make something greater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Atoms make cells which make up our entire
bodies. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How is it that each atom knows
it’s a part of the complex system and what its job in said system is?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s a good question, but they do at some
level because without this knowledge we’d fall apart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagination alert: Could each human be like
an atom inside of a more complex system that has yet to come on-line at its
fullest capacity?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What could we do once
we came on-line?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We know that by a few
people coming together working in harmony for the same end goal, forming a
small version of a complex system, that we can go to the moon and fathom
quantum mechanics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In nature complex
systems are every where.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if that’s
what we were meant to do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could the concept
of a global consciousness be such a complex system?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we got rid of all the things keeping us
apart and at odds with each other, then what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But that’ll never happen!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know,
but it’s okay to Imagine, Mr. John Lennon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Imagine indeed.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-31860777420629633462014-02-25T09:34:00.001-08:002014-02-25T09:34:18.565-08:00Utopia - Social Audit, part one.
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On Utopia?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">CHAPTER ONE<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1. Maintain humanity under five hundred
million in perpetual balance with<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>nature. 2. Guide reproduction wisely – improving fitness and diversity…”<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">--Georgia Guidestones, <st1:city w:st="on">Elbert
County</st1:city>, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Georgia</st1:country-region>,
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">USA</st1:country-region></st1:place>.<o:p></o:p></i><br />
<br />
Five hundred million souls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No more.<br />
“Back in my day,
before that damned, fake, alien attack, right, global warming was hot boxing this
planet, kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Literally.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though he appeared a middle-aged man, with an
occasional grey dusting on an otherwise thick head of dark blonde hair, Grandpa
Jax was quite old; three hundred and fifty-one years old to be exact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In being old, he was avowed to redundancy,
as though he’d run out of new things to say, but still liked the sound of his
own voice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And so it was a speech the
family had endured for over three hundred years, often delivered during times,
such as this particular autumn evening, when the youthful old man was feeling
long jawed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of his brood nodded and
continued to consume their sumptuous Sunday feast, unphased.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were being served impeccably by their
personal robots of varying makes and models; reflections of the individuality
of each master.<br />
“Ice caps were
melting, animals were vanishing, earthquakes leveled third world cities, and
violent storms raged over the seas and land.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now this was all thanks to human greed and over-population, right?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grandpa Jax glanced around the long table at
his uninterested progeny, gathered in his ornate dining hall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His steel-blue eyes burned with a passion
that he’d inherited from his renowned father; a very famous <st1:place w:st="on">Hollywood</st1:place>
actor in the time before the Great Galactic Massacre; GGM.<br />
“So, while one
percent of the population controlled ninety-nine percent of the wealth, the
rest of the billions of people squandered in debt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And these wealthy white dudes, right, this
one percent, whose bloodlines could be traced back to the ancient kings of
Europe, and even supposedly all the way back to the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt, used
their money to buy the politicians and in-turn the world’s governments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They controlled everything that transpired on
this spinning clump of rock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they
trumped up a world wide debt crisis so nasty that their banks had to bail out
the entire global economy, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
should have been worried when Apple and Google merged and then swallowed
Wal-Mart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we were all distracted
binge watching TV shows on Netflix.<br />
“Companies
became too big to fail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Supreme
Court allowed corporations to act as individuals and basically buy
politicians.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And through back-room, corporate
takeovers, mergers, and shady banking schemes the world’s economy ended up in
the hands of only one huge conglomeration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In the end, kids, this single corporation owned the whole world.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was during these fits of sanctimonious
melancholy, when he’d had his fourth glass of wine, or smoked an entire joint
by himself, Grandpa Jax felt the need to implant his version of history on the
rest of his clan; the Pitt-Howard Family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was an attempt to quell the guilt he felt for having survived the
massacre of the dark and the poor, as his betters would unceremoniously refer
to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the purer bloodlines
would say the aliens did Earth and mankind a great favor by eliminating the
weaker “sheeple” or “feeders” as they were referred to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the Ancient Alien theorists it
was what they’d done at the end of the last ice age as well, when they’d
cleared <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place> and therefore the world of the
Neanderthals, to make way for humans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
can’t check these facts because its all been deleted from the cloud, but it’s
true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They used this powerful weapon
called HARP to unleash concentrated bursts of radiation, from the upper ionosphere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s what those aliens’ ray guns really were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an inside job.”<br />
Grandma Sophia grinned
away her silent rebuttal and pecked at her salad of mixed greens, freshly
picked by robotic hands from the family gardens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of those gathered, she’d suffered the
conspiracy rant the longest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But unlike
the others, she’d lived through the actual events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She knew there were things he’d say that
possibly held water, but she never believed the aliens were faked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grandpa would often say she was perfectly
brain washed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But she’d seen the mother
ship above <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Los Angeles</st1:city></st1:place>
with her own eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She saw the one over <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Denver</st1:city></st1:place> as well.<br />
“Those space
ships were holograms,” Grandpa Jax said, anticipating her counter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’d known each other far too long.<br />
“What was real
was that those fake alien ships killed six and a half billion people, Mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wiped the poor bastard’s off the face of the
earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had adopted African brothers
and sisters!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grandpa slammed his fist
on the table, rattling the fine silverware and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">China</st1:country-region></st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was hard to tell if the outbreak was part
of the act.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grandpa Jax had also been a
famous actor; the son of <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Hollywood</st1:city></st1:place>’s
most famous power-couple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On his
mother’s side, he was a third generation thespian and so it was embedded in his
DNA.<br />
“Of course, us
select, fine bred, rich folks, the one-percenters, were sent to the secret
bunkers to wait out the attack, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We spent over a year down there, kids, in these underground towns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was rumored that the corporate lords had
made a deal with the aliens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was
another conspiracy theory, but I say there weren’t any aliens to begin with, so
it’s moot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They even set that shit up,
man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Back before it all went down, for
years on TV they’d show all these shows about aliens and how they were secretly
watching us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were preparing us for
the idea, so that when they did it, we’d believe them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was one show called Ancient Aliens, and
now that show’s basic concept is a commonly accepted theory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was all bullshit.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grandpa stared at the back of his hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It should’ve been wrinkled and withered, this
he knew instinctively, but it wasn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His skin was tight and elastic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What a world this is</i>, he thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">It just
keeps going…</i><br />
“So…” began
Grandma Sophia, thinking he’d wound himself back down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But she was mistaken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And before she could alter the direction of
the conversation with another word, he’d taken back up the posture of the man
on stage, with his hands flourishing and fingers wagging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’d been away for a lot of years, traveling
the world, visiting her son on the moon, even spending a good deal of time in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">India</st1:country-region></st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’d forgotten how the old man could
perambulate himself into such a passion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He reminded her of a small, nippy dog, furiously humping the leg of an
overly polite house guest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She vowed to
leave again, soon after her grandsons’ birthday party was over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were twins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were turning three hundred.<br />
“And eventually
we were able to come back out top side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Let me tell you, guys, it was not nice to see…even worse to smell. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The decay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The rot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just bodies and
debris.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only people left were those
of us who had been invited to the bunkers under the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Denver</st1:city></st1:place> airport and other top secret locations
in the various mountains around the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And we inherited it all, man, take as much as you want, you know, on
account of everyone’s distant relatives being dead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, no body inherited that property?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll take it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thanks.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A loud snap of burning
wood, from the enormous, marble fireplace behind him, added to the effect. <br />
“It was
something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then there were some hard
years where everybody went back to the land of their forefathers, the places we
inherited, and we sort of fended for ourselves for the first couple of years
before things got going again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over
time, nature came back to take what was rightfully hers, though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was the first positive thing that
everyone began to post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The water was
cleansed by the natural earth and she was healed and restored to her pristine
health, and everyone rejoiced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yay!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There were alien cults that sprang up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>People worshipped them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Eventually the church of the alien god Baphomet became the dominant
religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He demanded blood sacrifice
and so a race of mindless clones were created to serve as sacrificial infants. Oh,
and guess what, kids, Baphomet isn’t an alien god-king from another planet,
he’s a god dammed powerful demon from a higher dimension.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s another discussion.” Grandpa made
the ancient, forbidden sign of the cross to ward off evil.<br />
“So, when the
clean up was done and the lights were turned back on, we all rebuilt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The corporation was up and running again and
in some way, shape or form, we all worked for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But after a little while the illusion of
money became exposed and we all realized we didn’t need it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were plenty of resources to be had by
everyone, right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that’s the second
positive thing people began to post on the cloud.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all sort of agreed to end the illusion of
money.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He grinned and his reddish brown
beard spread open for his mouth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
“That’s about
the time the robots came to replace labor, when the money became unnecessary
and totally obsolete.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone retired
to do what ever they desired, and that was the final positive spin that was
needed to make us forget all about those angry aliens. Thank our Lord, the CEO,
the great and wise Emperor Pope of the Earth, Lord Rothschild, crowned and
anointed by the alien god Baphomet himself in the Galactic Peace Treaty. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
“As long as we
agreed to control our own numbers and be good stewards of the earth we would be
allowed to keep it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they all spun it
as this utopian society; the dawn of the greatest age of man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they released the real medicines, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They implanted us survivors with these nanobots
that float around our blood streams and cure every possible disease, including
the disease of aging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People used to get
sick and old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You don’t understand that,
you kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, they’ve rejuvenated us
all to our primes…” Grandpa paused for effect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His eyes appeared glassy and feral.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He scanned the room for a face he could connect with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of them avoided him, but J, his two
hundred and eighty-five year old grandson, his youngest heir.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>J grinned down the table at the old man as
though he thoroughly enjoyed the performance.<br />
His cousin T,
seated across from him, held his eyes on his plate, concentrating on his thick
cut of prime rib.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was hard to tell
if he was genuinely fixated on his meat or was simply not interested in
engaging the old man.<br />
For T, it was,
of course, the latter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>T knew that by
making eye contact, Grandpa would zero in and then spend the remainder of the
evening following him from drawing room to parlor, with encore after encore of
his favorite performance, loosely titled; The Great Alien Conspiracy Theory.<br />
“See, then here
comes the catch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They sterilized
everyone so that the only way anyone can get pregnant is through licensed, artificial
insemination, which they control, and it can only happen if someone registered in
the region dies; which almost never happens naturally.<br />
“The only reason why Grandma and I were spared in the first
place was because we made for good breeders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Bottom line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And this is the
unspoken truth about our perfectly balanced utopia,” Grandpa said to J.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
TO BE CONTINUED…</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-86036133430235974052014-02-17T12:59:00.000-08:002014-02-17T12:59:27.157-08:00The History of Religion
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On History</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Twelve Apostles took the teachings of Christ to the people
and formed the early Christian Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The simple message of ‘do unto others as you would have done to you, love God and your neighbors,’
spread like a prairie fire across the <st1:place w:st="on">Mediterranean</st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It upset the powers that were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It under-minded their ability to control
people by way of religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First the
Jews and then the Romans persecuted the early Christians.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They tried to destroy the rising
religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the year 300 it had gotten
too imbedded into the culture to contain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Constantine</st1:place></st1:city>
I issued the edict of toleration in 313.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He made religious tolerance a law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That was for ALL religions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Though, he claimed he’d had a vision of a cross in the sky before riding
into a successful battle. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was with
the symbol of the cross that he retook <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rome</st1:place></st1:city>
and claimed his empire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite claims he
converted to Christianity, there is a lot of evidence that he still held true
to his pagan beliefs. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He certainly
didn’t practice Christianity primarily as the Arch of Constantine is decorated
with images of the pagan goddess Victoria.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sacrifices were made to the gods like Diana, Hercules and Apollo on its
dedication, which took place after his conversion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no Christian symbolism on the
Arch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His coinage continued to carry the
symbols of the sun god, long after his supposed conversion to
Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he dedicated his <st1:city w:st="on">new city</st1:city> <st1:place w:st="on">Constantinople</st1:place>
he did so wearing the Apollonian sun-rayed Diadem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sign of the cross was not present.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, despite this, in the year 325 <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Constantine</st1:place></st1:city> called
together the First Council of Nicaea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was the first in a series of councils which sought to define and contain the
theology of the faith. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Constantine</st1:city></st1:place> set out to establish orthodoxy to
unite his empire, to eliminate debate and dissention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Romans sought to control Christianity and
to use it as a tool to bring the two halves of their empire back together and
to once again control the people by way of religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They organized it to resemble the Roman army;
with Cardinals as generals and the Pope as Emperor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They rejected books and teachings that were
not in line with their intents. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Books
that suggested the way to find God started from within the individual first and
grew outwardly were thrown out. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Certain
apocryphal teachings of Jesus Christ were rejected for not being in-line with
the Roman structure.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
There’s a popular theory that suggests that the early pagan
gods were actually demons who revealed themselves to man and attained power
through worship and veneration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
demanded blood rituals for it gave them more essence and strength. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So, a pagan steered the Church in his desired
direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Christianity in its purest
form was meant to end the worship of these demonic forces, and it did in the
beginning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Overall it succeeded because
not very many people today worship the pagan pantheon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, behind the scenes the Roman
controlled Catholic Church made the Pope the true king of <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place>
for nearly two thousand years. Power and greed ruled the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many dark and sinister things were done in
the name of the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We call
it the Dark Ages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The suppression of
mankind took place under early Christian rule.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Witch trials and Crusades, acts of sadistic torture, as well as
countless other examples of evil deeds were done under the guise of
Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heretics were burned at
the stake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What part of Jesus Christ’s
personality did they take that from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What part suggested it was okay to burn someone alive if they didn’t
believe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Oh, you don’t agree with
me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, then you can just burn to
death!”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The Bible is a series of books brought together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s what the word means.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bible was brought together by the
Romans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The books they kept were very
good books, written with good intention, full of beautiful metaphors, and
crafty symbolism but they presented only a glimpse of all the teachings of
Christ and the ideas that had come about after his death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Gnostic Christians held to a different
interpretation of Christ’s teachings all together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They said you didn’t need a priest to find
God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They believed in
reincarnation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This wouldn’t do for the
Romans who needed the individual to need the church in order to find
salvation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tithe! Tithe!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tithe, or you are going to be tortured for
eternity in HELL!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rule by fear!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is fear but a negative emotion?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Negative emotions have a lower
frequency.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They come from the evil side
of the universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love and compassion
vibrate with the highest of frequencies and can only lift us upward.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Martin Luther as well as a few others brought about the
Reformation, because they knew instinctively that something wasn’t quite right
with the way the religion was being conducted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They brought about the Protestant Reformation that would divide <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place> and become deeply entangled with political
struggles for centuries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Renaissance
brought about even more change and the light was brought back out to once again
shine away some of the darkness that had entrenched itself into the
culture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because there was enough of the
truth out there to do that; but just enough to keep darkness lurking in the
shadows, waiting for a chance to take back some of the control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Age of Enlightenment and the Scientific
Revolution further pushed us onward toward the light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the old guard fought against this with
all its might.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Science is from the
devil!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wars were fought to bring the
wicked back to the fold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
But as long as fear remains as part of the faith (directly,
the fear of sinning and being punished for breaking the laws of the church, and
ultimately going to hell), then the darkness has a foothold in the church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Men created those laws. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People don’t need them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A recent study at Yale showed that babies are
born with the ability to know right from wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s not taught, it’s instinctual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why is that?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I had a very interesting conversation on Facebook with a
friend that went on for a couple of days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He posted something I found very interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the genealogical list of names from
Adam to Noah, translated into English from their Hebrew roots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Adam – Man</div>
Seth – Appointed<br />
Enosh – Mortal <br />
Kenan – Sorrow<br />
Mahalalel – The Blessed God<br />
Jared – Shall come down<br />
Enoch – Teaching <br />
Methuselah – His death shall bring<br />
Lamech – The Despairing<br />
Noah – Rest, or comfort.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
“Man is appointed mortal sorrow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Blessed God shall come down
teaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His death shall bring the
despairing rest, or comfort.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I thought about that and how the writers of the ancient
books were very clever and perhaps there was some ancient magic or mysticism or true prophecy
written into the bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Certainly there
were wonderful metaphors written therein.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he went on to post that Moses wrote the
Torah and how he had written it three thousand years ahead of Christ’s
birth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the statement about Moses
having written the Torah that struck me and took my mind from the original
thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I asked him why we believe
Moses wrote the Torah himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
explained that the first book of Moses is called Genesis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my argument is that Tom Sawyer wasn’t
written by Tom Sawyer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Moses didn’t
make it to the promise land.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His people
did, but he himself died in the desert.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So when would he have had time to write the Torah?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were moving around the desert.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe he did it at night in his tent?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess he might have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that led to a much broader conversation
about the literal interpretation of the Bible as opposed to a metaphoric
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He claimed at first that he did
take the Bible completely literally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That surprised me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked him
about Noah’s <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Ark.</st1:place></st1:state><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I explained that there are over five thousand
different species of mammals alone on the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did he really think Noah saved every living
animal that exists today on a giant boat?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That story existed before the Bible in several cultures, suggesting that
something did happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem is the
stories vary to fit into the culture telling it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Epic of Gilgamesh tells of Gilgamesh
building a boat to save all the animals in <st1:place w:st="on">Mesopotamia</st1:place>.
It is an older account of Noah’s flood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So we believe the newer version of the story, told even further from the
original event?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hasn’t anyone ever
played telephone before?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know how
that turns out, right?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The fact that so many cultures have a flood story suggests to me
that there was a civilization on earth before the end of the Ice Age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was global and advanced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then something happened that changed the
landscape of the earth in a very small amount of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1901, they discovered a solidly frozen
mammoth in <st1:place w:st="on">Siberia</st1:place> with remnants of fresh
summer flowers and vegetation in its stomach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Like it went from a summer day to a deep freeze in a matter of
minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One theory is that a comet or
meteor crashed into the ice sheets over the <st1:place w:st="on">Hudson Bay</st1:place>
and shook the earth off its previous axis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a great apocalypse. The
sea faring, global civilization lived off the ocean and most of their cities
were along the coastlines. Off of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Japan</st1:country-region>
and <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">India</st1:place></st1:country-region>
there are ruins of enormous structures that were not exposed above the ocean
since the end of the Ice Age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are
supposedly ruins beneath the <st1:place w:st="on">Caribbean Sea</st1:place> as
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These were all inundated and
submerged in a matter of days if not instantly by tidal waves hundreds of feet
tall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The few people who managed to
survive went to higher ground, some on boats, and waited out the shifting and
settling of the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had to learn
to survive again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’d lost
everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were relegated to
living off the land and hunting and gathering again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They told the stories to their children’s
children and the story changed to fit the culture telling it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>New civilizations came to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The stories came down to the Hebrews and
someone, maybe Moses wrote it down as Noah’s <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Ark</st1:place></st1:state> among the other creation stories. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
There are several other, older versions of Bible stories in <st1:city w:st="on">Samaria</st1:city> and <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Egypt</st1:place></st1:country-region> as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is important to understand that men wrote
the books of the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They could have
been channeling the collective consciousness of the universe but they were
interpreting this knowledge through their very limited and superstitious human
brains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is why when you look close
enough you’ll see the inconsistencies and why people over the centuries have
had to adjust and interpret the Bible to fit their dogma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Well, what Paul is actually saying here
is…” (add some preacher’s ideas.)</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I think it’s possible for the Bible to be a place of solace
and peace, to help guide lives, because people are seeking God in the
pages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But God, if you believe in God,
is everything in the universe, and if you believe the theories, the multiverse
as well is all part of a larger system that we too are part of, down to the
strings that connect everything at the smallest scale of our universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are all God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if you seek God anywhere you will find
Him, or It, because He’s already there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some find God in nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s why
religions can act as divine roads, because if you seek you will find.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t matter what religion it is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some are more restrictive than others,
however, but somewhere there will be a glimmer of truth behind it, just
obscured by superstitious dogma and human folly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if you seek God because you are afraid to
die and end up in hell, then you are heading the wrong direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
This is where we always say you have to have faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what exactly are you basing your faith
on?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s an important question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you base all your faith on the Bible, the
one put together by a pagan Emperor, then what are you basing your faith really
on?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sand?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can be shown that God didn’t personally
write the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We know the stories
come from older stories and have been changed to fit a larger story line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s wrong with trusting God is everything
and everywhere and that by vibrating with a higher frequency and radiating love,
that we are serving His will, which is harmony?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Being positive and giving to others, showing compassion and not
promoting fear and hate is walking with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why do people need to take the Bible literally?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s like a life-preserver for most; they
cling to it to stay afloat spiritually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I’d suggest learning to swim would be a better way.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I once had a conversation with a guy who was studying to become
a preacher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked him about the
dinosaurs and the age of the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
believed the earth was only four thousand years old and that the devil put
those dinosaur bones out in the desert to fool mankind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
needed to believe that or his whole faith would collapse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s fragile faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s a lot more going on in the universe
than we will ever really know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep that
in mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So making your faith brittle
and stiff, restrictive, leaves it easily to be broken by the next new
discovery. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-16219951520628839892014-01-29T10:59:00.000-08:002014-01-29T10:59:13.537-08:00Storytelling
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
ON AUTOBIOGRAPHY AND STORYTELLING</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p>My grandfather didn’t speak often of the war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The few times he’d reference it there would
be this sentence attached:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“A dozen guys
could march through the same jungle and when they come out the other side,
there’d be a dozen different versions of what happened in that there jungle.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Because I enjoy seeing the world a certain way, I saw it as
a sign, of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two people brought
this subject to the forefront this week; one a very good friend and the other
my cousin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both are very intelligent
men, who I have great respect for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
cousin is the smartest guy I know, and I’ve known a lot of smart people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He suggested we recreate our past to justify
our reality or our present version of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
With that in mind; how reliable is any autobiography or
supposed true story?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s always going
to be skewed and one dimensional.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So what
is reality and how dependable are we to discern it?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
We only see a small portion of the light spectrum and can
only hear a set frequency of sound waves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That means there’s a lot we’re missing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s for this reason I don’t like to rule anything out as being impossible;
unless of course it has been proven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We’re so arrogant to think we have all the answers.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I remember being on a baseball team as a child and the
pitcher was the coach’s son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was an
awful pitcher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember one game he
walked several runs in before a kid hit one over the fence for a grand slam.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the game the coach yelled at us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Johnny can’t do it all himself.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember being outraged. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He just did. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The experience stood out to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That guy really believed that his son wasn’t
to blame for the game being stopped by the ten run rule.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He walked the entire team in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How was it any one else’s fault but Johnny’s?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
People see the world subjectively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They see it how they want to see it, or
expect to see it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They recreate the past
to fit the present.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What really
happened?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How many factors are you
missing in describing a situation from the past?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every story, myth, legend, historical account
that’s ever been told has been subject to this fact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How can we take anything as being the
truth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s only the truth to us if we
think it is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are the kinds of
thoughts that keep me distracted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Even our memories aren’t the originals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are remembering the memory of the memory
of the event as lastly stored in our long term memories, not the actual
event.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each time we remember something,
we only remember certain details and we imagine the rest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The imagined parts become part of the greater
narrative that is the memory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the
next time we tell it, we won’t even remember what parts we made up and what
parts really happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each time we
retell a story, tiny details shift and alter and the emphasis on one theme or
another gains importance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A story can
one time be a funny yarn about how wild and crazy you were as a young man and
later that story could be a cautionary tale.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every time you hear or read a story you should take this into
account.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did Johnny really give up a
grand slam to end the game?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t
know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember the coach yelling at
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember us all taking a knee
behind the dug out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I remember a
snow cone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story has become my focal point of why
you can’t rely on people’s account of events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I saw it first hand and made that connection at that moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or did I?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Who knows?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
It makes me think of the double slit experiment in quantum
physics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It suggests reality acts one
way when no one’s observing it and another way when there is an observer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Google it if you’re not familiar with
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May I suggest there’s a lot more
going on than we know at this point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
more we learn the less we know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now to
clarify that, it should be, the more we learn the more questions we give birth
to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The danger is trying to act like we
know anything at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We just have
theories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, I know that terrifies a lot of
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They gain great comfort in
thinking that what they believe is the actual truth and they’ve found it and
it’s all going to be okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They leave
all those looming questions to someone else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But deep inside, we all should know that stories aren’t one hundred
percent reliable, especially ones from the ancient past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could there be ancient, divine magic woven
into sacred tales?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won’t rule it out,
of course, that’s not my style.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
comes down to faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I respect people of
faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But as far as being historically
one hundred percent accurate, of course they are not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are subjective tales told by humans who
were victims of the imagined memories they’d come to believe.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
My cousin suggested how we see a moment from the past will
depend on how good the future is to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>People blame their horrible childhood for how bad their present is.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Throughout history we’ve always relied on people’s
subjective view of the past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But in the
future we’ll be able to pull up any moment and examine it for how it really
transpired.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, as we’ve seen
with “Reality TV” the records can be edited in such a way as to paint a
different reality as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If everything is recorded in the future, they
still won’t be able to read the minds of the people involved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, wait.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They’re working on programs to read thoughts as we speak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happens when the robots can read our
minds, man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re totally screwed then,
bro.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone’s going to have ocular
implants that will display information at all times while recording what they
see and hear every second of the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
if you wanted to remember something, you’d simply replay it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our brains will shift.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We won’t need to use our memories for the
same reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We won’t need to learn
things the same way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wonder if we’ll
lose something fundamentally human in the process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it that filling in of the gaps that we all
do when attempting to recall the past that makes us who we are?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I think there’s something to be said for this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s the art of storytelling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We should then take all storytelling as being
a subjective form of art and enjoy the metaphors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We, as subjective storytellers, weave
patterns into our tales to give them meaning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We aren’t reporting on exactly what happened, because that’s impossible
without technology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So here’s to the art
of storytelling!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s to the human
experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And damn those mind-reading
robots!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-38050254078666634272014-01-20T10:10:00.001-08:002014-01-20T10:10:55.390-08:00Karhythms and Coincidences. Part Two
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Karhythms and Coincidence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Part Two</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
In the summer of 1999, I met my future wife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was running with her group of like minded
friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her band.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of them, a guy named Craig, worked with
Shad, the guitarist in our group at an Italian restaurant, in the Gold Coast of
all places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was one block from my
first apartment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Craig and Shad became
instant friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shad was playing his
music in bars and Craig became one of his earliest champions, outside of the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Joplin</st1:place></st1:city> crew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d seen her once at one of Shad’s
shows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was seated at the end of the
bar, watching him attentively and clapping after each song.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Later, Craig told Shad that his friend, that
hot girl at the bar, really liked Shad’s music, that she was a fan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember remarking that she was really
attractive and that was a good sign for future fans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know why I’d thought that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pretty girls attracted more guys, I guess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I remember being envious of his ability
to attract women with his music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
wished desperately that I would have studied music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still do. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Of course for different reasons.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One night Craig brought the girl in question,
the first female fan, Colleen, over, with a couple of other people to hang out
in The Crow’s Nest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It turns out I was
there, but in my bedroom with the girl I was dating at the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So she met the others but didn’t meet
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
It would take a Bob Dylan concert to bring us together for
our first real encounter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bob Dylan had
become a link in a chain of karhythms that tied us to the beat poets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
We purchased tickets to see Dylan and my mother told me that
it was Bob Dylan’s song “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right,” that had been a
source of great comfort to her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just the
week before she had been struggling through a painful incident and she played
that song over and over on her drive to Branson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had gone to stay a couple of days in her
friend’s cabin near the lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She needed
to leave town. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a sad time for our
family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were all traumatized by it
and my mother had told me the story of how that song had given her such
comfort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She hadn’t been a huge Bob
Dylan fan, she was a Simon and Garfunkel and a Peter, Paul and Mary kinda gal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the latter’s version of the song, I’m
pretty sure, she was listening to on the drive to Branson, but we talked about
how important Bob Dylan had been to music and so on and what a perfect song
he’d written in capturing how she felt at that moment, about how much strength
it gave her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found it strange that I
was going to see Bob Dylan for the first time, having bought the tickets the
same day she’d driven to Branson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bob
Dylan was in the air, let’s just say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like
the universe was saying the Bob Dylan concert was a significant event.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was important that I was seeing him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t explain it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So it happens that Craig and Colleen among others of their
group were at the concert as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Craig
and Colleen came down to our seats to talk to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only I didn’t know who she was at first,
having had consumed many beers. I just thought she was some random pretty girl seated
near us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She looked different than she
had at the bar watching Shad play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
was wearing a homemade shirt and her hippy attire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We struck up a conversation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was very excited to see Bob Dylan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried to stress the significance of
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was still reeling from the idea
that it was important that I was seeing Bob Dylan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I compared it to going back in time and
watching Mozart perform.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
historically relevant that we were seeing this man in person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of the conversation I invited her
to a party at our apartment. There was no such party, but I figured if her
group showed it would then in fact turn into one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was very easy to talk to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt as though I’d known her from somewhere
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was so familiar to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Traffic getting out of the lot kept them from
driving all the way down town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She still
lived in the suburbs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I was directing a sketch comedy show in a small theater on
the north side and invited Craig to come see it and to bring his friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We needed audiences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So when he did arrive he brought with him
Colleen, among other friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Another concert had been scheduled for later that week, this
time it was Tom Waits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While I’m a huge
Tom Waits fan, it had been a long summer of concerts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t like the crowds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I opted out and Craig ended up with my
ticket. This we decided after my comedy show, at the bar across the street from
the theater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So Colleen asked me what I
was doing that Saturday instead of going to the concert.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She suggested that since Craig and the boys would
be at the concert that perhaps we should hang out until the show was over and
meet up with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For some reason, I
was under the impression that Craig and Colleen were involved to some
degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This turned out not to be the
case, but at the time I was leery of inferring anything other than a plutonic
evening of hanging out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few days
before Saturday, Shad insisted that Craig and Colleen were just friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Craig had a thing for Colleen’s sister Dawn,
who lived in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">San Diego</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was going to eventually move out there to
be with her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But still, I assumed the
outing wasn’t a date.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One smaller
coincidence, but one that helps me forever remember the date, was that my
brother Josh and Shad were born on the same day at the same hospital.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was August Twenty-Sixth. They literally
met at birth in the paternity ward in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Joplin</st1:city></st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would take another eighteen years for them
to meet up again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So on Shad and Josh’s birthday, August Twenty-Sixth, I took Colleen
to my favorite Mexican restaurant, just down the street from The Second City in
Old Towne.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I ordered a pitcher of
margaritas because we were hanging out and drinking together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I figured that’s what you did when you hung
out with someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I’ve said, she was
extremely easy to talk to and she laughed at my lame humor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The margaritas helped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We bonded over our parents’ mirrored
hardships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’d gone through something
similar, but hers had ended differently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As we were leaving the restaurant I stumble out the door, literally
tripped on the rise and I caught myself on the buzzer outside on the wall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It rang throughout the restaurant for a while
before I could get my balance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Colleen
found this to be the funniest thing she’d ever seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried to wave an apology to the nearest
waitress as we hurried away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The late summer heat still blanketed the air.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She suggested we go to the fountain in Grant
Park.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We still had some time to kill
before the concert was over, a lot of time actually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We took a cab to <st1:street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Michigan Avenue</st1:address></st1:street> and strolled through the
park, talking and laughing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we
arrived at the fountain, it was gurgling and dormant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We stood talking, when a gypsy lady, at
least that was my first impression, mumbled to get my attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was hunched over and short, so I bent
forward to hear what she was saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As
I did this she stuck a rose into my hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I then realized, or assumed, she was homeless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I pulled out a dollar and handed it to
her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At least she was trying to sell something
instead of just begging, I thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
next thought was that she could take her rose back and sell it again to someone
else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t need the rose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But she’d disappeared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked around and couldn’t see her
anywhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Well</i>, I thought, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I’m stuck
holding this rose now</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Honestly that
went through my thick head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oh wait, there’s a perfectly lovely girl
right there, maybe she’d like it. </i>So I handed it to Colleen. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now she wasn’t in my head and didn’t hear my
stupid voice going through all of this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She simply saw it as a romantic gesture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So she grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me into her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And just as our mouths began to explore one
another’s the fountain erupted!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
As if on cue, the lights came up, the music blasted
classical music, and the water shot high into the air.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was just like the beginning of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Married with Children</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What an omen!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Love and marriage indeed.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
To mark the occasion of our first meeting we named our son
Dylan.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Another karhythm happened a few years ago, but more
recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had written my second novel <u>The
Primrose Path</u> and was very proud of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I sent out what must have been fifty query letters to agents and
managers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ones I heard from all
said they liked it but it didn’t fit with their agency or some variation of
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t figure out what was
wrong. I had an author friend of mine read my query.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She made a few suggestions but overall it was
a good letter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was growing more
depressed by the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the meantime I
had written a play for my brother Ryan who was living in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Chicago</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was acting and had been in a few plays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is very talented.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He called me with an idea about
reincarnation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For fiction reincarnation
is a wonderful concept in my opinion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s up there with time travel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So after several phone calls I sat down to write a play that he could
star in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We figured he was in with an
acting company and could most likely get it to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a reading at the theater with a group
of actors and it was received very well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was able to really hear it for all of its strengths and weaknesses and
I did some major renovations on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
then Ryan presented it to the producer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At first the producer said he was interested in maybe doing the
play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But he back peddled around the end
of the year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I began to think the
problem was me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps I was
cursed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t even know if I really
believe in curses but I was in a dark place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The producer, though he really liked the play, had booked the theater to
another lady who’d written a musical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He’d done business with her before and he knew her well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ryan was moving to LA at the end of
spring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His wife had taken a job there
and, being an actor, it was time for Ryan to make the leap from the minors of <st1:city w:st="on">Chicago</st1:city> to attempt the big leagues of <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Hollywood</st1:city></st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The play had to be done that spring or never.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looked like I couldn’t even get a play
produced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cursed concept grew as more
rejection for my novel came my way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then in late January or early February my wife’s grandfather passed
away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had given up hope for the play
but it was still on my mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the
church during the funeral service my son Dylan asked rather loudly if the
priest was Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It triggered a thought
about God and my concept of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
began to pray.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it wasn’t a
conventional, “Dear God,” prayer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
more of a meditation and a chant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
closed my eyes and chanted over and over again, letting my mind vanish
almost.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only the chant existed, “Please
lift my curse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please lift my
curse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please lift my curse.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know how long I did that for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went to a strange place for just a
moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then the service was over and we
all went to an Italian restaurant to eat lunch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was seated at my table when a text arrived
on my phone from my brother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“They’re
going to do the play.” </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Ryan had given the play to a director who he really
respected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The director had directed
several shows for the producer and had a long standing relationship with
him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The director must have spoken with
the producer and the producer decided to do two shows on Fridays and Saturdays
instead of one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The director really
wanted to direct our play. He too was moving to LA and it would be the last
play he’d direct in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Chicago</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, the musical would be the early show and
we’d be the late one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
The experience taught me a great deal about writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And working with my brother was a true gift
that I will always have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That summer I
wrote another novel <u>Devil Music</u> that I am also very proud of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It gave me a better understanding of
writing multiple characters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagining
actors in the roles helps, for those young writers out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know if there really was a curse, or
still is, and I don’t know if I was able to lift it long enough to get a play
produced and therefore be afforded the invaluable experience of working with my
brother before he left town for good, but then again, neither do you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Here’s a story that I like very much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s
it mean?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably nothing, but it’s
interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wonder how many people
you’ve been in close proximity to as a child or as a younger person, but never
met until years later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’ve always
been a younger person, though, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On
a basic level it just means, we all move around a lot and there are hot spots
where people gather.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re bound to
run across someone you’ll later meet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I’m still playing what-if.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s fun.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1285238/Engaged-couple-discover-paths-crossed-Disney-World-toddlers.html"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1285238/Engaged-couple-discover-paths-crossed-Disney-World-toddlers.html</span></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I remember my family’s first trip to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">New York</st1:state></st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was sixteen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We decided to have
lunch at the Hard Rock Café.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My hometown
friends, Dan Dunham and Clark Rhodes were there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Neither of us had any idea the others were
going to be in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">New York City</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My family walked into the crowded restaurant
and we were awaiting our table when I heard someone shouting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Hughes!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Travis Hughes.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was
shocked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked around and finally up
to the balcony to see Dan Dunham, a guy I grew up with, one of my best friends,
and another really good friend, Clark Rhodes, standing in the balcony waving to
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were on vacation visiting Dan’s
uncle who lived there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were visiting
the Italian side of our family on <st1:place w:st="on">Staten Island</st1:place>
but had come into the city to do touristy things and wound up at the Hard Rock
for lunch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were a thousand miles
from home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Strange things can and do
happen all the time; anomalies in the coherent fabric of reality?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But spend your days rolling dice and looking
for patterns, eventually you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will</i> go
insane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trust me.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-5619599319617501472014-01-16T10:23:00.001-08:002014-01-16T10:23:24.899-08:00Karhythms and Coincidences - Part One
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
On Karhythms and Coincidence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Part One.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
When I was a young artist, someone, an older artist friend,
gave me a copy of the novel <u>The Alchemist</u> by Paulo Coelho.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the allegorical story of a young
shepherd and his journey to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>
from his homeland in <st1:place w:st="on">Andalusia</st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a book about finding one’s own
destiny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The underlying New Age message
is that if you really want something, the entire universe conspires to help you
along your journey to achieve your dreams. It’s like that book <u>The Secret</u>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, according to one theory, which I will elude
to from time to time, destiny is the plan you laid out for yourself before you
were born; when you were ready to return to earth and face your karmic
sentence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But putting reincarnation
aside for a moment, the book was a great inspiration to me as a young writer
setting out to chase my dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should
buy a copy and give it to a young artist I know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sad to report that I lost my copy along
the way.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
There was another book out around that same time titled <u>The
Celestine Prophecy</u> by James Redfield.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This novel’s theme is similar in that it is about paying attention to
the signs of life, especially the coincidences. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These coincidences and happenstances work like
road signs along the way, essentially.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
in my early adult years I paid attention to coincidences and took note of the
strange twists in life’s tale.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many of
the biggest moves in my lifetime have been shrouded by these strange events.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Two teachers, one my junior year, followed by another, more
adamant one my senior year, steered me toward writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had always been a writer but I didn’t
realize that’s what you called someone who did it for fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first book was written in
kindergarten.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can remember sitting at
our kitchen table and drawing the picture of the super kid flying out his
bedroom window.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’d accidentally found
some radioactive kool aid and acquired super powers as a consequence. The
scientist who accidentally left the kool aid out was desperately trying to
track the super kid down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was five so
the words were spelled phonetically and it ended openly, as do some of my adult
books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had my first success in sixth
grade with my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>Boogerman </u></i>series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The heartfelt story of a booger that comes
to life and the people’s lives he touches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So for whatever reason I have always been a writer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My imagination is a fertile garden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t mean that as a boast, I’m just
telling the truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t help it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s perhaps more of a curse than a
gift.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It gave me frightening childhood nightmares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes the world a strange and almost
foreign place for me to navigate as an adult.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ask my wife, I still have the mind of a child. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The question would be, where did that come
from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genetics is to blame for a lot of
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father is an incredible story
teller and my mother loves to read.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now
according to the theory, I chose that combination of personalities to achieve
my destiny of becoming a writer in this life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I had been in search of such a karmic pattern and found it mixed
perfectly in them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I chose to be left
handed, thus more likely to be creative.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
Okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should stop
here and explain something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I enjoy
thought experiments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love to suppose
what-ifs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This mindset allows me to
consider anything without passing judgment on it as preposterous or
impossible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I imagine instead the
implications of something if it were to be true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I have to fall back on my title, I don’t
know, but neither do you. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the
whole point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anything’s possible to
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s dangerous at times because you
want to believe something and so you might get caught up in, say a conspiracy
theory, and really let it affect your life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I used to be like this when I was a young man as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I’m a bit more skeptical, but I still
enjoying looking around at all the things I know and trying to see if the
theory fits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of times there will
be things you can point to and say well, that can’t be true and so the
credibility of a theory loses its sway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But as you can tell, I like the theory I’m eluding to so often here
today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m still looking for
inconsistencies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve yet to find
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure others will be able
to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
You might say “What’s the theory?” at this point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll get to that later. For now we’re only
talking about one aspect of the much bigger theory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This aspect shows up in many other theories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Note: I sometimes refer to philosophies as
theories. It keeps us all on the same playing board.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So in college I took a job at <st1:city w:st="on">Garfield</st1:city>’s
Restaurant in the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Joplin</st1:place></st1:city>
mall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is here that I met the people
who would affect my life in tremendously profound ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the first time, this group of friends
understood the real me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They saw the
artist I was becoming and they treated me thusly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were fellow artists coming into their
own as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were a remarkable group,
I have to admit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The theory suggests we
came together because we were supposed to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps we’d even known each other before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We certainly inspired one another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I often joke that had we all studied music as
children we would have become the next Beatles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Only one of us had studied music, however.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is the best guitarist I’ve ever
known.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He indulged me by putting a few
of my poems to music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We likened ourselves
to the modern beat generation, only of varying disciplines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think that most artists experience this
early camaraderie with fellow artists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
even think it happens with non-artist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s when you’re looking for your mate so you run in packs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It happens in college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You leave your childhood and re-invent
yourself at this age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You form a band.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe it’s not a musical band, but it’s a
band non-the-less.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Gang.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Posse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some people in my home town formed them with their young adult church groups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So when one of our ilk moved to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Chicago</st1:place></st1:city> with his new wife and fellow comrade,
I ventured up to visit them. This was at the end of their first summer in the windy
city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It all started when I was standing
in my parents’ swimming pool talking on our cordless house phone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was back when that was still a
thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was my friend Paul and he was
describing the view out of his thirteenth story apartment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is important to note that I have always
been fascinated by large cities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Growing
up in the country, I always pretended to be in a big city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I imagined looking out the window of my
parents’ car and seeing tall buildings where fields were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I could picture in great detail what he
was describing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sounded so incredible
and to hear that he was able to live this way and it wasn’t scary or unsafe at
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He lived in a very nice
neighborhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being naïve they’d moved
to the Gold Coast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were in the
thick of it, right above <st1:street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Division
Street</st1:address></st1:street>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To
see the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Hancock</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Building</st1:placetype></st1:place> they only had to look up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He called to tell me they were filming a
movie on his block.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was watching
actor Tim Roth walk along the sidewalk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He tracked him into a bar across the street.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He hung up and rushed to the elevator and
scuttled to the Hotsy Totsy Bar to stalk the famous actor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He never mustered the courage to speak to
the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Reservoir Dogs </i>star but he did
strike up a conversation with the bar tender.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Tom Neery, as was his name, a name I would hear often in the coming
years, though I never met the man, told Paul about a job opening at his former
place of employment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He even gave him
the permission to use his name when applying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They liked referrals there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
didn’t trust complete strangers coming in off the street.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bar was called The Last Act.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was located exactly across the street from
The Second City.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For you who are not
from Chicago or familiar with comedy, The Second City is holy ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is from here the likes of John Belushi,
Bill Murray, John Candy, Mike Myers, Chris Farley, Tina Fey just to scratch the
surface, all got their starts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Saturday
Night Live’s Lorne Michaels favorite hunting ground for talented comedians and
improvisers is The Second City.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, a few
things about me: I was obsessed with Saturday Night Live from the first episode
I ever saw.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both my brother Josh and I
were both for ever changed by that experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Church Lady was the first skit we watched.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ironically or coincidentally, the ability to
laugh at the Church Lady and not feel like I was sinning was the first step in
my growing awareness of the hypocrisy and inconsistencies of my childhood
religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I grew up very afraid of
making a mistake and going to hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Another thing about me, I like to consider myself a fairly funny dude,
when I’m in the right setting of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was voted Class Clown and all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My brother and I would do Hans and Franz impressions at family parties
and in front of my parents’ Gang.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ryan,
my youngest brother, who is now an actor, could do every character Dana Carvey
did. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So to me SNL was part of who I was
growing up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had a major impact to say
the least. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
My friend Paul convinced me to come and stay for a few
weeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was early September, the best
time of year to visit <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Chicago</st1:place></st1:city>.
His wife Cheri had inspired me to start reading Jack Kerouac and it all felt
very <u>On the Road</u> to travel and sleep on his couch. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was working at The Last Act Bar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked him how funny some of the comedians
were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said they didn’t have anything
on us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the things that had
brought our group together besides our artistic natures was our senses of
humor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were all funny dudes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
I couldn’t wait to hang out at his work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was going to be the highlight of my
visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I arrived and they picked me up
from the airport.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can still remember
the feeling of driving up on and then into the tall buildings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My neck was craned and my eyes full of moist
astonishment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Soundgarden’s “Black Hole
Sun” was playing on the radio.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
1996.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
So the next day after I arrived we took bikes around the
neighborhood and he gave me a local tour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We went out to <st1:placename w:st="on">Oak</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">Street</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Beach</st1:placetype>
and then across to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Lincoln Park</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We ended the tour by going to The Second
City.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I stood and examined the carvings
in the façade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The faces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then Paul noticed that The Last Act wasn’t opened
for lunch. They were supposed to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
took me through the alley and into the beer garden and then into the back
door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There behind the bar stood a
stocky old man chewing on a cigar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
was short and funny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was a man from
another era; pissed off that his bartender didn’t show up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He tried to call the guy but there was no
answer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The guy was Tom Neery’s best
friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He even tried to call Tom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He looked at me and asked Paul. <span style="mso-tab-count: 3;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“You’re
buddy know how to bartend?” he asked, removing the cigar stub and gesturing at
me with it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>“Sure,” I
lied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d waited tables for three years,
I could figure it out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I called my
mother and told her I was staying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
said she figured as much when I’d left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I slept on Paul and Cheri’s couch for a few weeks until we moved
downstairs to a larger apartment and I slept on an air mattress in a spare
room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I came to study at The Second City
for the next two years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I received a lot
of attention and it went to my head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
was acting for fun, it wasn’t my dream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was to be a source of creative exercise to help my writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there for a time, it appeared I could
really pull it off. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t have a
solid enough acting background to make the Second City Touring Company, so I
left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I met some fascinating people,
some I would later see on TV and in the movies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By my second year, Paul and Cheri had
learned enough about the city to realize that where they were living was not a
practical place for two kids in school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They were looking to move to a more reasonable neighborhood up
north.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s when I decided to call the
other members of our group still back home to come and have an adventure with
me in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Chicago</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Four of us rented a large, gorgeous apartment
in Lakeview.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually there came to be
eight people who had worked at <st1:city w:st="on">Garfield</st1:city>’s in <st1:city w:st="on">Joplin</st1:city> <st1:state w:st="on">Missouri</st1:state> living
within a two block radius of each other in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Chicago</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We called the central hub of this group, our big apartment, The Crow’s
Nest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Magic and insanity ran rampant in
that place. The first Thanksgiving none of us went home and we enjoyed a
raucous feast and I reflected on the strange events that had brought us all
there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was here in The Crow’s Nest
where we coined the term karhythm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was the combining of karma and rhythm as in the karmic rhythm of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We took notice of it throughout our journeys
through the city and would report strange coincidences we’d come across.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bill, an actual painting and sculpting
artist, one day suggested a new name for a red crayon to be Neck Red.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On our way to lunch to Bamby Thai Restaurant,
he sang the tune for Warrant’s “Cherry Pie” but the lyrics were “She’s my Bamby
Thai, tastes so good makes the Chinese cry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sweet Bamby <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Thai.</st1:country-region></st1:place>”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He stopped and knelt over and picked up a red
crayon on the street and showed it to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Karhythm?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He put the crayon in
his pocket.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the year 1999, we vowed
to really pay attention to the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Somewhere I have written down all the karhythms we reported to each
other that year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
TO BE CONTINUED…</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5052259132736751862.post-88370617452528464222014-01-02T09:49:00.001-08:002014-01-02T09:49:20.925-08:00The Newest Year of them All! <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">On family and the holidays</div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The holidays are over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For some this is a sad realization and others it comes with a sense of relief, and then for others, they are charged with a new sense of purpose and determination to get back out there and give it a little extra this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>New Years Resolutions!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our month long Christmas orgy is over. It was what it was, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">I think one of the interesting things about the holidays is the amount of self reflection that unconsciously takes place over the course of all those parties; spending so much time with family and old friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We look at our families and we see them for all their scars and truths, we know their real natures intuitively because we know them to dwell some place inside of us as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are extensions of our selves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Often the thing that irritates one family member about another is the very trait that they themselves struggle with the most.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some people have the self-awareness to see this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And so they make an effort to correct it, though it will always be an effort, one that they will often lose sight of along the journey of living their daily lives; caught up in the flow of the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why the whole ritual of the holiday season is good for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It gives us a much needed break from living the same day over and over again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It gives us the chance to reflect and hopefully recharge enough to get back to pushing that damn boulder up that hill. </div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The trip through your past, facing and reconnecting with people who knew you when you were a child, makes you fill in the gaps that you’ve inadvertently taped over about yourself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But while some are self-aware and able try and think before acting or speaking, many, many others I fear are not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is self-awareness any way?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it an over active frontal lobe?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People who are not self-aware have less electricity running through the front of their brain?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that when we drink, that’s the first area of the brain to fall asleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That voice in our head goes to bed and we continue to ramble about the party, the dark passenger doing things for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s another topic though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wonder why for certain people that voice is very loud, often too loud, and it makes them neurotic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have trouble getting anything done, they’re like Congress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While others that voice is barely audible and sometimes not there at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it is there it’s not very wise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then for others that voice is a paranoid lunatic, suspecting every one of plotting against them and imagining everyone’s worst thoughts projected back at them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember in Sunday School the teacher told us that voice was Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why does Jesus make Mr. Franklin think his neighbor is angry with him because he didn’t wave at him today?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or make him assume that every comment that comes his way is loaded with spiteful subtext?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because they’re not channeling Jesus?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus loved his metaphors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People tend to forget that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But really only for Jesus was that voice Jesus. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">But this brings me to an interesting thought experiment I heard about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Zen master said to his congregation to try something different the next time they were to come into conflict with another person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They said step away from the situation, if only in mind, and imagine summoning a being of light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It could be Jesus, or the Virgin Mary, or Buddha, The Archangel Michael, or Mohammad or <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>, or Harry Potter, you get the idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagine calling upon Ghandi or Mother Theresa and asking them to take over your body for a little while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You then ask them to handle the situation for you and to show you how it could be done with grace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will tell you to imagine yourselves living the other person’s troubled life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And once you have done this, you say, but that’s no excuse for acting like a total bitch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the being of light says, yes, this is true, but remember, you’re not perfect either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And you say, if they’re going to dish out shit to me, then I’ll dish it right back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the being says, take the high road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kill them with your poise and wisdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here let me show you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the being, wearing your body like a suit, steps into the conflict and soothes it rather quickly, then they proceed to show you how to best handle the situation by showing the other person that, while irritated, you still have love for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You learn to speak rationally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the conflict ends with a new understanding and truce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The being helps everyone see things from a higher perspective.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then it is over and the being returns you to your body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So where does this being come from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was it inside of us all the time?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is that what they meant by saying that voice is Jesus?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It could be Jesus if we let it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus is a concept in this case; an ideal to attempt to live by.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Zen master said to go around acting like you are enlightened and eventually you just may stop acting and start being. </div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Ask people to best describe Jesus’ nature to you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Especially fundamentalists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to say I condone labels but okay, for the sake of my point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What would Jesus be like to talk to and be around?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember those T-shirts and bumper stickers that read: “What would Jesus do?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why didn’t the people who put them on their cars stop and honestly ask that question in every situation they were in. Maybe some did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One thing Jesus did well, besides turning water into wine and healing the sick, was to prioritize what is important and what isn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep the prize in mind at all times, the prize being enlightenment and all else becomes less important. Jesus didn’t hang out with the popular people or the upper class, did he?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He chose the fringe guys to hang out with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He turned the other cheek.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He cared about everyone, not just one group or another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People tend to forget so much of what they learned every Sunday in their local churches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are caught up so much in the daily events of their lives that they don’t have time to quiet the outside voices to listen to the inside one. </div><br />
So we know this is true about people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We know that no matter how much you try to make them see things in a greater perspective they will never actually change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite what the movies tell us, people do not have a great character arch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They may become self-aware enough to want to change but these things have become too ingrained into who they are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing makes sense outside of what they have always believed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So those of us who are self-aware can say, okay, they won’t ever change, so I have to accept that and understand that and learn to work around whatever trait it is that most irritates me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a difficult task to attempt, no doubt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s family, right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">So we get to hit the restart button and we get back to our lives in the newest year of them all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is okay to say, this year, I’m going to try to become the best version of myself ever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good luck with that. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember that thing you’re doing is the exact same thing your father does, or your mother does, or your sister does.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do try and listen to that being of light some times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They just may help us all have a better world to live in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or, I don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11051222259064832352noreply@blogger.com0