perhaps

In retirement one is afforded the luxury of thought.

When employed life is filled with the urgency of maintaining the good graces of the employer as well as the need to maintain the health of the body and cleanliness of the homesite, whether it be a one room efficency or a sprawling extravaganza celebrating good fortune.

 

Much can be said about the years spent earning a living and the web it weaves about the individual, Many never see any time for themselves during their pursuit of the dollar and the things it can buy. Many never see enough dollars to buy themselves any free time either while they are employed or to able them to retire. For those individuals their thoughts are more of the present and immediate urgent fight for survivial. for those persons we can wish them the best and hope for them some of the better life while we ponder for a solution to give everyone a better existence.

 

Then for those of us who have fallen into the good fortune of being born in the right place at the right time we have the opportunity to consider the case of humanity. we may choose to accept the way things are or we may choose to search for a way to make things better for everyone including ourselves and those close to us. Not many of us a fortunate or gifted enough to be thinkers, the brains of the outfit. There are not many who truly are problem solvers or great.

 

when considering the entertainment field we see few who have risen to the top, as they say  of the cream, those few who shine above the crowd. the very few who we admire look up to and pay attention to as masters of their craft. there are few very well paid entertainers. of all the people on the planet there are very few who we all know. and it is very amusing that all of us know a very few individuals {that is, individuals with whom we are familiar with as seeing them on the silver screen or hearing them speak or watching them perform}. we all know michael jackson as a master of his craft and celine dion a star in her own right. yet there are hundreds of thousands of faces as backup singers and musicians who are there playing for us every day, and we have no idea who they are.

 

and we, how many people know we exist, and for that matter, how many people care that we exist, yet to us, our existence is of utmost importance. and we live in our little worlds as stars shining forth.

 

odd though, about the superstar, what pivots them into the galaxy of the universe as brilliant beacons, we all search for  the formula, we dream of winning the lottery, we dream of being superstars.

 

religion for some is the solution to all the striving, for few it is reckless abandon and then there are those of us who simply give up.

 

does free will or predestination rule.

 

i have put thee in the center of the universe in order for thee to see better what is there. i did not make thee either a heavenly or an earthly creature, either mortal or immortal; i created thee so as thine own sculptor thou makest thine own features. Thou canst degenerate into an animal: but thou canst also be reborn, through the free will if thine own spirit , into the image of god.

from "oration on the dignity of man" pico della mirandola (1463 -1494)

quoted from, death and westen thought by jacques choron published by the macmillian company 1963

 

wheter free will or predestination, we are included somewhere in the choosing of what happens to us, within the limited framework of what is available to us.

 

we get to be as big as we can be, whether we like it or not.

Fw: NOW

You look at your hands

You see  cracks

 wrinkles where once smoothness

 weathered furrows,  protruding veins

some mottled complexion

an automatic bend of the fingers  no longer straight

 scars accumulated over the years

 nicks of time   marking the tapestry

skin losing  suppleness

 muscles  strength ebbing

 hands, still large

grander and more noticeable than the stature

big for your size

yet smaller than last remembered,
 less obvious suddenly now

unseen for awhile

prominent today

prominent now
unavoidable

No more the youthfulchubby digits with skin so taught

 the knuckles smooth

grand tools still to be mastered
clumsy

Now
 less pliable

 thought needed for their every maneuver

 still

they be quiet

no longer hurried

no longer running ahead of the heart

acting on their own

less active, poised, waiting

with no regret
no need

no urge

no want

silent

Their story a painting
 the textured lines of time

not simple journey

not the direct route

segues

of roads and villages
some intersect

the complicated trail
 a complex of hamlets that neither

lead to each other nor relate

yet evolve as a pattern

that meanders upon old age

success and failure

battles with wounds

ribbons for honours

with a jumble and tumble 
a trifle tribute

meaningless and meaningful

meaning less now
than what they meant then

hurdles lept

jumps made, jumps failed

sprints faltered

things done

and the desires undone

the plunge into life

the fire to live

the thirst of adventure

the burst for independence

all sewn together with the threads a weave

the fine lines of the tapestry of time

painted on each  fingers

of not idle hands

workers hands

tools of the trade

companions for the road

the luggage
containing the will, the strength, the desire

the odd, self conscious appendages

tip-toeing through time

participating, acquiring, experiencing, enduring

anticipating, sensing, feeling, discerning, discriminating

working, waiting

now

they grow white with age the gnarls of time winding cells

into valleys

the deep crevasses drying as we speak

sands of dunes that have washed away the youth

at the instant

it is yesterday

the beginning

the anticipation

 now

it is the journey complete

the road travelled

the fait accompli

the hands of time

attached to the arms

of the passage

with the present

a surprise

for the busy

living the time

not letting it pass

waiting for it to pass

surprise

for the one

who wakes up

now

glancing then

noticing the travel

wondering

was it worth it

was it valuable

was it meaningful

the hands of time

travelling through today

dancing the steps of yesterday

counting the paces to reach today

reflecting

was it done right

was there anything that could have been done better

is there anything undone

how

now

shall and will

the fingers fold the woven fabric of the veins

of then for the blanket of now

the questions
 now the same

the answers
 now unknown

the hands grasp

as the fingers clasp

the hard work done

the rest will come.

REALity

Albert was right
The world a short person sees is very differrent from that of a tall person

VIewing the world from five feet is mostly looking at the dirt or asphalt, depending on where you live

Now that people are grown taller
for a person of five feet
the view standing in a subway car is always the back of a person
usually right between the shoulder blades, and if it is winter, the
inhale of wool from someone's overcoat

At football games, the play is usually missed, unless you are sitting in the
first row, when everyone stands to see or celebrate the move.
The five footer never sees the game, never knows what has happened.

Standing on a ladder is also a different view of the world, more of a 'sky' view
the horizon is higher
the scenery more encompassing

Sitting on the ground
gives you a down to earth perspective
an appreciation for all things that crawl
a closer bond
a greater attachment with terra firma

when standing, we seem to be in control of the earth
as though we can walk all over it
as though we are what makes the world turn
as though we are why it exists

when sitting on the ground
we are small
and the world is all around us
and we are not the center of the universe
but swallowed up by it

depending where we stand
the view is different
like turning a picture upside down
what we see has not changed
only our perspective has

children see things as very small
their world is not nearly as big as they are
and as we age the world becomes larger
and larger
and we finally become very small

our mind has absorbed more and more
of what is around us
and still there is more
and we keep seeing
and absorbing
and still there is more

then, the minds eye becomes filled
and there is room for no more
and we see
and we no longer absorb

and we see
again
what we saw
and again we do not absorb

we are like windshields on an automobile
deflecting all that gets in the way
blowing it off in all directions
and what sticks to the window
we keep repeating
but we do not absorb

and we wander the world
in our own little shell
part of the planet
and separate from the planet

in our own little world
with nothing entering nor leaving

until our little world
closes its doors
and is no more

and what we see and what we saw
is different
than what they saw and what they see
and may not be
at all
what is

therefore

what is real
is only what we think is real
unless we are not sure
whether or not it is real.

tennis

Is there any other profession that tolerates
employees verbalizing grunts and groans
as a sign excessive exertion while performing
their duties

Imagine the dentist that groans for the
strain of pulling a tooth

or the surgeon who sighs and moans
with every cut

how about the pizza maker groaning
while spreading sauce

or the grocer screaming to reach the top shelf

how about Tiger Woods grunting with every stroke
or the basketball player straining to reach the hoop
screaming whoaaaa

the only other groaners we have heard
are the football players as they are hit by their
300lb. opponent with a force to otherwise
knock any other person unconscious

what was once a sport
a pleasure to watch 
individuals tested to their limits
striving for the goal, the best
as commentators laud and praise 
with joy their achievements

now all we hear is suffering
as though they are
travelling through the gauntlet
where they are brutally beaten from
beginning to end

tennis the new sport
where  players
are paid millions 
to express their
suffering as though
they have never
been prepared for a match
as though they are being
punished as Roman gladiators
as squealing pigs sent to slaughter

tennis - the most unprofessional sport
down there, with a fixed match in boxing
a poor example of humanity
performing.

For them and for us

There is not enough
for them
and for us.

Resources are scarce.

There is not enough land
for them and for us.

There is not enough water
for them and for us.

There is not enough food
for them and for us.

There is not enough money
for them and for us.

There is not enough work
for them and for us.

Jobs are scarce!
People are looking for work
People are idle
standing by
wondering
thinking
wishing
hoping
waiting
starving.

Idle time,
the time to think of self worth
the time to measure one's life,
lost aspirations
burdens
responsibilities
obligations
pressures
promises.
Pointless mindless hunger
wallowing in self pity and fear
alone with everyone else
unable to solve the problem
no opportunity
no choice
no where to turn
no one to look to
no solution.

The boom bust economy
the have the have not.
having money with no time to spend it
having time with no money to do anything with
the rules apply
you must succeed
you must acheive

no opportunity
no solution
not enough to go around
empty bellies
idle minds
waiting watching hoping

to frightened to read
to frightened to smile
to frightened to live

waiting watching hoping
no help in sight
no solution

to little for them
to little for us
no more to share
no one to care
no one to help
no one
to solve the problem

we all want to live
we all want to survive
we sit and we wait
the days linger
the nights linger
the time stands still
the air is thick
it is difficult to breathe
there is not enough air
we try to breathe
we are choking
we can not breathe
we are hungry
we are tired
we are alone
it is cold
it is hot
we look but we do not see
there is nothing to see
there is nothing for you
there is nothing for me
there is none for them
there is none for us

time is at a standstill
something must break
you can scream
you can yell
it will not help

there is nothing to eat
there is nowhere to sleep
there is no way to sleep
just stand there
in the twilight
don't move
let the world spin around you
stand there and watch
but do not see
as you stand there
lost at sea
floundering
with no opportunity

THEY
have set up the game
THEY
have made the rules
THEY
have given up
caring
their greed has reached it's peak
THEY
want it all
THEY
will not share
THEY
do not care

as long as they are safe
as long as they are fed
as long as they can sleep

they will not believe
that we have nothing to eat
that we have not slept
that we have no way to feel safe

THEY do not care
and we shall pay the price
WE are expendable
THEY are safe

and that is the way it is

for them and for us

FALLEN

Prior to GWB it was the practice of the television news to show the arrival

of the fallen

 

Those who have met their end in service to their country

on foreign soil

 

The arrival of their flag draped coffins from the cargo hole of planes

carried with solmenity by their comrades in arms

through the portal of soldiers at attention

 

Watched by millions

as they stop their lives

to pay their respects

and ponder the lives

of those who have sacrificed

everything for what is

the freedom of the nation

 

For the few minutes the stars and stripes in horizontal

the minds of Americans would travel to the place of conflict

and imagine what transpired

 

For the moment thoughts would linger over all past battles

and all the fallen in defense of the country and the prices paid

for that which we still have

 

And all thank the fallen and mourn their loss and grieve for their

families

It was a time of unity, the nation grieved as one, the pain felt by all

personal painful and real

Every living room a funeral parlor with the smell of flowers and death

The time when all would recognize the the expense of the conflict

the reality of war

 

Now after GWB the news simply reports ten dead, five dead

and the news continues

with no time for thought

at what we do

Well

It seems as thought the world is weeping
rain pouring down the Mississippi
into Louisiana
that lowly state in America
where the Army Corps of Engineers aka the US Government
is openning the flood gates, washing away farmlands in
Louisiana
to save more populated areas.
They are also offering free therapy sessions so the people could
feel happy.

They flood your crops, wash away your lifes investment
and then offer free therapy to feel good.

There has been no mention about paying them for their land
and investments, they simply erase, by their choice, someone's existence, like eminent domain. "Hey lets flood Louisiana, that will change the landscape, new shorelines."

The US Government is the new "BIG BUSINESS" in the world, they are taking over everything, mandating how lives are lived and lost, telling us what we can eat, where we can live, and how we can live. The US government is no longer protecting the people it is in fact ordering the lives and demanding how the world shall exist.

There is no longer any illusion of freedom. Ethanol has raised the cost of food to luxury prices, America seems to be getting even with the Oil producing countries for not supplying cheap oil to America. They say it is to make America energy independent but that is not really the case, since ethanol puts water into auto engines producing poor performance and the need for additives to eliminate the H2O from the fuel.

And now to make peace with the oil producing Arab countries, Mr Obama is changing his allegiance with Israel, shifting his support.

Deals are being made, lines are being drawn and the die is cast.
And the world weeps.
Earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis
the forces of the collective unhappiness
temper tantrums
of the masses
"the tremor in the force"
the fear and greed with the ignorance and want,
channeling the frustration, anger, disapointment, disillusionment, and unhappiness into an energy so strong that it moves mountains.

The people are only ruled by their choice,
they only allow themselves to be ruled
and when the rulers are unfair, unkind, unjust
the people revolt

The revolution has begun and is flowing across the shores
from land to land
and there will be change
and there will be pain
and there will be a new order
and things will be the same

there will always be those who win and those who lose
and the best you can do
is to try to win
and not alienate anyone on the way

for as they say
you meet them on the way up the ladder of success
and on the way down the ladder of success.

Osama Bin Laden

We, the United Stated of America, killed Osama Bin Laden, of which I am responsible. It is my country, these are my people and I must accept responsibility for those acting on my behalf.

And I do not necessarily agree or condone what has occurred.

Assuming: Osama Bin Laden is guilty of everything he has taken credit for and has been given credit for.
The question still arises, why in fact, did they kill him, without his American day in court.

America advertises its love of the letter of the law, and the laws on which the nation was founded.
Then WHY
* why did they lie about how he died
  first they said he died in battle
then they changed the story stating that he was unarmed

* why did they deem it necessary to kill him without letting the world see that he was a prisoner

* why did they make the choice to kill someone without arms to defend themself

* why if it took ten years to find him, where they in such a hurry to eliminate him.

There are more unanswered questions and confusion than when he was alive.

Revenge and fear, perhaps the motivation
The act seems to be a vigilanty group, taking the law into their own hands, judge and jury.

Why did they do it?
It seems more like someone trying to hide something, rather than protection.

They hunted the man for ten years, three thousand six hundred fifty days plus the days for the leap years, did they have a deadline that they had to meet in order to get paid.

I don't know how you feel about all of this, maybe you don't know either, but it seems to me that there is something going on that we don't know about. Something is being hidden from us, about this whole affair.

Consider the fact, that the US was warned repeatedly about attacks on the World Trade Center AND the 'intelligence' was disregarded.

Somewhere there is information about the attack on Pearl Harbor was not a suprise but the excuse the US needed to enter the war. That the powers to be permitted the attack.

There is more to this, there is more than governments involvement, there is even more than OIL. Unless OIL is in fact the deciding. Perhaps OBL made someone in one of the oil producing countries angry and we are doing their bidding. How did they find this guy, finally?

These guys are supposed to be good at what they do, how did he elude them?
Even though we are unfamiliar with that part of the world there are people who know the lands intimately. Something smells about the whole thing, from the bombing of the towers, to the killing of OBL.

The twin towers on any average day had one hundred thousand people working in each tower, and there were train links and stations in the basement and underground shopping malls, cities below ground leading to the towers, and only three thousand people died. I can't believe they were that lucky 0.015% of the average daily population without the many tourists wandering there.

Maybe in my lifetime the truth will come out, in the mean time, I continue to doubt the morality and judgement in killing OBL without his American day in court.

then them

Alcohol
medicinal
festive
warm
all the things you want it to be
when you want it to be

then there is the cumulative affect
years of consuming in excess
produce ugly effects
that tip the scale over the edge
no matter who you are
there is a negative effect to excess
of anything

excess red meat - gout
excess sugar - cavities and diabetes
excess carrots - turning orange
excess tobacco - cancer & emphysema
excess fruit - the runs
excess nuts - oily skin
excess salt - dry skin

but excess alcohol
effects them and you

Dr J & Mr Hyde is probably
about drinking alcohol
and how it changes a personality
and how the changes affect other persons

but the excess drinker does not believe
the changes as told to them by others

In the USA drunk and disorderly is a crime
yet, it can not effectively be regulated
without prison time
and alcoholism is considered a disease
and alcoholics are punished for their 'disease'

Perhaps it is only fitting that they, the alcoholics
are punished for their disease
because all other diseased persons are equally punished

the slow of mind do not earn high salaries
the physically disabled have not the same access as the able
the emotionally challenged are sedated, incarcerated, separated, isolated
and berated

the bald and the hairy are laughed at
the short and tall are stared at
the old are discarded
the young abused

the aggressive, rewarded
the regressive, pitied

the ugly - of mind, of body, and of soul
are so ugly they control

the beautiful - we want to control

why

If I was a woman I would cry when I saw injustice

 

If I were a man I would raise my fist in rage at the sight of injustice

 

Were I a child I would wonder in awe and confusion about unfairness

 

There is a passage in Lady Chatterly's Lover which speaks about,

after the country fair, the master beat the slave, the slave beat the cow

and the cow went into the field to cry

 

Link tv is airing a program about the 'Israeli lobby' crediting it with motivation for

the invasion of Iraq and proposing it will be responsibile for the invasion of

Iran and WWIII

 

In the program they state that Colin Powell addressed the UN assembly before the

invasion of Iraq, with intelligence gathered from 'Israel' and that Colin Powell's

credibility is what sold the premise that Iraq had WMD

 

Link tv also aired a program about the attacks of 9/11, which posed the questions,

or more stated, that the US was warned by various countries before, and about

the attacks, and that the 'officials' of the US protected themselves from harm,

by staying aboard a ship when attending a foreign meeting, and travelling by private

jets for personal safety. The lingering questions about whether or not the planes would

have been stopped by the air national guard or whether the attacks were permitted

or simply gross incompetence is a good maybe. But much consideration should

be afforded conceit - it could and would not be possible, or imaginable on American

soil.

 

Oil dependence, or oil monopolies are probably more to blame. Autos now are getting

better mileage and alternative fuel is burning the corn most would rather eat.

 

Without oil, albeit, without cheap oil economies are at a standstill. The US is FORCED

to find cheap oil, cheap by American standards, at the high price other nations must pay.

 

Responsible partnership is an old story, stewards of the land a makebelieve fairytale

thrown on the back burner of expediting a quick fix.

 

 

a young man

There was a young boy working one of the side shows in Coney Island during the nineteen-sixties. He was perhaps eighteen years old. He was one of the attractions, along with the bearded lady, and the leopard lady, a woman with a skin pigment issue that showed light and dark patches of skin on her body. For twenty-five cents a person would walk through to peer at these people standing or sitting on the stage.

The young boy was sitting in a chair, he had no arms. Between two toes of one foot he held a pencil with which he wrote upon a piece of paper.

Amazed by what she had seen, the ten year old went home and spent hours staring at her toes telling them to move. She thought for days about that young boy without arms and what his life might be like. All the things he would never do.

Eventually she was able to pick up clothing with her toes. She was still thinking about that young boy, as she moved her leg with the shirt between her toes closer to her hand to grasp the cloth.

Other things and life got in the way of her continuing to develop the skill of using the toes for more than balance, she learned to flex her muscles like the body builders, and to slow her heart beat.

She hated the thought of the way that young man had to earn a livelihood and had no respect for a society that forced him into such a demeaning position. Realizing the amount of concentration it took to make the toes move independently showed how much character that young man had. And yet he was so far outside the mainstream that he was lost to any of the opportunities afforded other young people.

At the time the society had no interest in investing in his future. He was one of the 'freaks' in the 'freak show' for people to gawk at.

twitter

Twitter is the new age route for communication
The new mail
The proof that people need to communicate
And now
We want instantly to be in touch
That we must be connected (to each other)
is a remarkable surprise
we who crave privacy
we who crave independence
we who want to be alone
and go through years of earning
to afford palaces where we can isolate ourselves

yet,
we must communicate to express our feeling
to get in touch with our selves
funny
we want to be alone
and we can not be alone
we set it up to be together
whenever and where ever we want

people are [dying] to communicate
young people are [dying]
to text each other

we want to be heard
we want to be noticed
we want to make a [positive] difference
except for those who choose to make a
negative difference like me madoff

or, is mr madoff , off his mind mad
how does one enmass billions
and cheat millions
while communicating
{we want to hear what we want to hear}
and we hear what we want to

and we must do it together
what ever it is
we must link [ourselves]
to a oneness
whether or not it is a benefit to any of us

we must connect
we must link
we must be together
we as a one
get into and out of trouble all-together
and whatever it is 
we must do it together

it seems we[men and women] must
and seek unity
whether it be religion or politics
we must be together
we must be part of something
bigger than our self

so we tweet and twitter together
therefore we must be birds!

An old story

Seventh grade 1959, the first male teacher at the catholic elementary school resembles Ichabod Crane, tall, skinny, black hair and a slight hunch to his back. He favored the arts, classical mucic, rigid classes, and physical punishments. He had no problem bashing a child across the nuckles with the blackboard pointer or using the pointer to point and fondle the girls dresses. All the students marks suffered during his term, whether through his strict grading or general malaise is a point debated. He was the least favorite teacher of all the students.

 

One day, Bobbi and Jennie decided to steal all his keys and throw them away. The principal, all the nuns and Mr Ronney were in a huff for the missing property. Teh students became agitated by the odd event, there was an air of discomfort disturbing the whole school. Bobbi and Jennie bragged to Margie what they had done.

 

Margie could not, in her mind, understand the logic for the act. She did not see any good by what they had done, and further saw the upheavel placing a cloud of turbid turmoil in the environment. She, on her own, chose to 'rat' on the girls. The girls were made to pay for the replacement of the lost keys, and any locks which would have to be replaced.

 

Some time later, Margie was walking on the way home from school with other friends. Jennies brother was riding his bike with Jennie on board. He was delivering his sister to beat up Margie for 'ratting her out'. Margie's uncle was driving down the street at the same time, he saw what was happening and picked Jennies brother up from the neck of his shirt. He lifted him off the bike, he let go of the handlebars and the bike fell to the ground. Jennie turned and was startled, so was her brother. Margie's uncle let go of the kid and that was the end of that.

the continuing saga

He doesn't remember

neither does she

He says she did it
and she says, if she did, she does not remember
He doesn't see so good
neither does she
He does not hear so good, or blocks out
most of the sound around him
she hears more than she wants and
has not the ability to block things out

her nerves getting shattered by the
drone of life that surrounds her 

he talks about everything and alot
and she gets overwhelmed by all  the data
he keeps feeding her


he is quick to reason while
she is slow to absorb,
 often
she answers the question he asked five minutes ago
and he gets confused because for those five minutes
he has been talking about something else


they both passed middle age, way awhile ago
set in their ways
with health issues to annoy them, they  
annoy each other

when they communicate
they both forget words, nouns  as well as adjectives, 
languishing
with each sentence, choosing words that
resemble nothing to relate to the subject at hand
both their minds growing older with difficulty finding
the words they knew unable explain what they want to
say, their minds 'dead ending' losing their way
to the reservoir of the dictionary they enmassed in their heads 

neither sleep well, one snoring louder than
the other, with his prostate calling 'tis time again
to void'

he forgetting what he said
or, keeps remembering to say the same thing
over and over


she constantly getting annoyed, with him repeating, while,
he believes he is making a the statement for the first time
and is surprised by her annoyance

he getting angry when she doesn't tell him something
she saying she told him three days ago

she always thinks she is right and has to have the concrete
fact to prove her wrong, then she is stunned by her
mis-knowledge and cannot believe that she is remembering
something wrong

yet
her problem solving skills are grand, while he is always giving
her the problems to solve

but she can no longer add or subtract or balance her checkbook

when she shops she gives two twenties for an eighteen dollar bill
then hunts for days for the twenty she has lost, never realizing
the clerk has palmed her bill

he, being mechanically challenged, throws away anything that does
not work
she opens up and inspects anything that is not functioning, hoping
she can fix it

he, the meat and potatoes man in the household, had ordered meals
with specific vegetables for each animal, avoiding leftovers
she eats most anything with the preference for non meat meals, saving
leftovers as treasures for tomorrow




to be continued

comments please

Elder, "Keep your mouth shut. Don't tell anyone how you feel, do not share your opinion, it won't do any good, noone will listen to you anyway, what makes you think you have something important to say, you don't know anything, you haven't been here long enough to know what goes on, so how do you come up with the idea that you have something valueable to comtribute, let those who know what is going on take care of it, mind your own business, don't bother saying anything, they'll just laugh at you."

 

Youth, "But I know when things aren't right, I know what is wrong, and if I don't speak up it will go on as it always has, and I will regret not saying anything to try to make it better."

 

Elder, "Better? How can you make it better? People have been struggling and striving for centuries, tens of centuries. Besides, it is better, think about the Romans, feeding people to the lions, countries invading countries, stealing their wealth, slaughtering their people. Think about the era of the sweat shop, the choking coal mines, slavery, all those things are gone. Now we have competition, the free market system, democracy and equal rights."

 

Youth, "YeaH! i KNOW equal rights. We each have the right to PURSUE happiness, like the dogs at the track chasing the rabbit, but the dog never catches the rabbit. It is just a system to keep us all busy, so we don't start any trouble."

 

Elder, "Don't make any waves, don't make them notice you, then you can live your life. The world belongs to a few very rich people, they are in control, there is nothing you can do"

 

Youth, "Revolt."

 

 

Fw: So who is it?

 

 

 

SOME OF

 

The people who smoke

 

The people who drink soda pop, beer, and coffee

 

also,

 

The people who eat fast food and chew gum

 

They are the persons

 

credited with the sloppy job

of destroying the roadways of America

 

They, especially the smokers and drinkers

who throw plastic, metal, and aluminum

from their vehicles, aiming at every tree

and roadway

 

Then there are those who have tires that are

good for recycling but they are too lazy and slovenly

to bother to transport them to the centers

instead they leave the job to those who appreciate

the natural beauty, while it lasts

 

America, once was beautiful one or two lane roads

that rambled through little hamlets, each with their own

personality

 

Those stops are almost all gone

Now there are roads wide enough to see nothing but

macadam

monotony

and more macadam

 

You no longer see the small shops

decorated with the personality of the purveyor of goods

The small eateries with Mom and Pop behind the counter

The variety store with little nicknacks made by local artisans

 

Everything is the same

You ride down the road

with only the destination in mind

No longer the distractions of the communities on the way

Road

Stretches of road

and more road

the drone of the tires

nothing to see

nothing to look at

nothing along the way

to change the view

all the same

destination bound

 

no opportunity to segue into another world

no sight of the people near where you travel

the lonely open road

with nothing but the destination

 

and the trash strewn along the way

the new view of America

macadam, weeds, maybe trees

the flying plastic bags

the dead tires

broken chairs

torn shirts

shattered buckets

an old couch

another dead tire

bottles, green and clear

shiny aluminum cans, crushed and ripped

broken brown bottles, some still holding beer

 

the new view of America

 

some roadways have billboards

advertising

gambling

restaurants

paint

automobilies

realtors

banks

and motels

 

but you never see these things from the road

you must turn off, miles to the left or right

of the direction you are pointed in

 

travel some more out of the way

way away from where you are going

 

to get lost along the way

no direct route back to the direction you were pointed

 

more driving

more gas

more trash

all along the way

to where you are going

with nothing to see along the way

but what people have discarded another day

 

the past is all you see

what people did

what people left

for you to see along the way

in the direction you are pointed

 

they, whomever they are,

have left you macadam, and mayhem

to amuse you along the way

 

on the new roads of America

that go to where you are going

with nothing to see along the way

but the trash of someones yesterday

 

 

 

adrift

The strong-arm of attention
has arraigned the brain
the obstinate immortal
enchant, casting the spell
of an unlettered stench
speeding the ill wind to confer
the box of religion to spare the fixed
crabbed executive

and that folks is the result of the
random choice of words from the dictionary
and the random sort of those words
into something that sounds readable
or probably something a politican
would say

Guess you could put this in the category of
another silly mind game to amuse 'the little
gray cells' and keep the wheels turning

as well as a distraction from what is reallly
going on

sorry to inconvenience you with the dribble
of fatigue
but writing instead of sleeping seemed like a good idea
although the trifle is not worth while
as I attempt to rhyme a rythmn to unlock the thought
that has stalled the brain into inertia

inertia is more damaging than indifference
inertia is the brick wall that controls
and holds the soul, locked in a nowhere
with nothing to stir the imagination.

without the imagination inertia is the ship at sea
without wind for its sails
adrift with the tide, swaying from side to side
listless, quietly getting lost in the sea
no land in sight
no stars to steer by night
no sun to point the way
adrift on the water
with the smell of the salt air
and no other sight than the sea
oh my oh me
nothing but sea

silly, more

Somebody, anybody, everybody, a body, your body, my body, this body, that body,

maybe things disappear when you stare at them long enough

or does your consciousness disappear

exhaustion changes everything
the things cared about before exhaustion
become irrelevant and unimportant
they disappear from the want
and the relevance becomes irrelevant
except food
food is always important except when we are full
do we ignore the hungry when we are full
and do we give solace to the hungry when we too are hungry
'body fuel'
fuels the body, what a funny word
which one
both of them
silly again
words
can have import
FOOD
becomes a revered word
when the combinations
arouse the senses
sparkling revues
mouth watering
words to ignite plans and postures
preparation and anticipation
NOW
picture the empty plate
without
and before the food
which will not appear

are you full
have you had enough
is the thought and the memory
of those memorable meals
enough to sustain you through your hunger

how long can you do without
how long can YOU, yes YOU
be without, and do without that something
that enters the mouth and travels through
to the stomach

can you afford to do without
will you choose to do without
must you do without
how do you do without

without is the answer

Dear Diary,

Dear Diary,

Today, like every other day, I spent time washing my face, brushing my teeth, dressing, preparing meals, consuming meals, cleaning up the mess made from preparing the meals and consuming the meals.

The rest of the day was spent, travelling to the store to shop for things to prepare for meals to consume, stopping for gasoline to run the engine to take me to the store to purchase the food for the meals to prepare and consume.

Also, visited the post office to deliver the all important tax papers for 2009 taxes. Watched some new on tv, not much news, mostly, newscasters opinions of the news, they still have to describe news events by their feelings like horrible, terrifying. Like they think I care how they feel about the news they are reporting. Like their feelings are more important than the news.

Why don't they just say, an earthquake hit Indonesia, not a terrifying earthquake hit... We don't care if they are sad about something, what is important is the report, fighting in Lybia, not dangerous fighting, we know all fighting is dangerous, someone always gets damaged. Like all the news is new to them, like they never heard it before. Why can't they just tell us what is going on, instead of giving us their personal opinion. I don't know them so what value is their feelings to me. Let me form my own opinion, don't tell me how to feel about something!

Well, after getting upset about the news reporters, more than the news, so namaste yoga was the trick to relax the mind and wake up the body.

I thought about all the work I still had to do, and still plan to do. Sent some emails to keep in touch with friends, individually instead of facebook, in your face everybody knows what your thinking.

Fed the cat, brushed the cat. Washed some dishes, took a shower.

Thought about the hair thinning, and wondered how I will look bald, maybe I should shave my head instead of counting strands, must consider the options.

Saw some sun, some clouds and some sky today. Heard the wind whistling in springtime and rain. Saw some daffodils and the peach trees beginning to bloom while the grass is turning a rich green.

Saw lots of cows today on my way to and from shopping,some were black,  some were brown, and some were white. Reminds me of the thousands of tons of irradiated water washed into the ocean today because of the reactor problems in Japan, bet that sure will put a crimp on China's fish industry. Lots of unrest in the world. Hati is still struggling, now Japan, now Indonesia. It is an odd feeling when thinking about the problems of the Whole World. All I can do is think about it, with out any answers, just a heaving burden, like a weight upon my shoulders for All is my family,  thinking about the unhappiness each is felling and the sadness forced upon them. I wish there was a way to make them smile.

                                                                 Sincerely,
                                                                  miceLLe

debris

So somebody in Florida burned a Koran
and they are rioting in Afghanistan

they are afraid
afraid that what they, both in Florida and Afghanistan
believe in will be invalidated

they are so insecure in their beliefs that they are atttacking
others for their beliefs

the new crusades
those who have so little are fighting for the illusion
and many will die
for what they believe

for they cannot live without the illusion
for they cannot give up the illusion
despair is what they do not want
and being alive without the promise of something
better in the after life is more than they can handle

they have to believe in the better life later
because the life they lead now is so unfulfilling
most of them  are men of course
they have to lead the way to a better existence
they believe what was written so long ago
interpreted by other men

they can not consider that the books were written
by others who wanted to control,
those boss of bosses giving orders

have they at all considered that most of what has been written
is simply a how to book for the human body
like the automobile manual
telling that too much of any one thing will rot the system
that fasting is a good way to clean the pipes

the Catholic church was known to order eating meat on Friday
was a sin, to give the fish industry an opportunity for business

the Koran ordering the death of infidels is a fine way to insure
complete control, without opposition

religion fighting governments for control
the have nots fighting the haves
for what they have

again ignorance and want rearing their ugly heads
and again we have no one smart enough to figure out
how to multiply the loaves and fishes (it is presumed that
individuals present at the event many years ago, contributed
what they had to help feed the masses present at the event)
and help us out of this predicament

thus, we are forced to live through history repeating itself
and all we can do is watch the movie
I.E. except for those of us forced to participate in the drama
the hard times for all they are a coming
except of course for a select few
who will be insulated from the falling debris