A Message from the Aether

For as long as I can recall, I've collected bits of wisdom, quotes, and epigrams that I've found amusing, interesting, or worth pondering. I'm fairly certain I started collecting because a girl I knew (and wanted to date) had her own collection. (Amazing how that works, isn't it?)

At first, I wasn't very organized about it. I just scribbled things down. I didn't keep very good track of my sources either. I was simply saving random bits of knowledge that spoke to me in some way. I couldn't tell you where I'd found it, who had written/spoken it, or where it was originally published...but I had the wisdom.

Sometimes, I'd print things out and tape them to places where I'd see them on a regular basis, including computer monitors, keyboards, refrigerators, etc. The photo shows one such poem after a bit of mileage beyond what is typical.

I found the paper in the driveway one morning, dripping wet, bedraggled, and a little worse for wear. I don't know how it got there and I'm not sure how long it had been there. The point is that I found it and realized it was something I'd saved years before. It was something that had helped me get through college.

I can't tell you where it's from and I have no idea who to credit it to. I can tell you that I added the last line because the poem itself made a lot of sense to me at the time.

I thought I'd share it because it showed up at a time I needed the reminder.

The text is as follows:

It's not easy...

-- to apologize,
-- to begin over,
-- to be unselfish,
-- to take advice,
-- to admit error,
-- to face a sneer,
-- to be charitable,
-- to keep trying,
-- to be considerate,
-- to avoid mistakes,
-- to endure sucess,
-- to profit by mistakes,
-- to forgive and forget,
-- to think and then act,
-- to keep out of a rut,
-- to make the best of little,
-- to subdue an unruly temper,
-- to shoulder an undeserved blame,
-- to recognize the silver lining.

But it always pays (generally)

You might think it's a little much, maybe even a little preachy. Like I said, it was something I was grateful to find and re-read after all the recent drama. I took it as a message from the aether, something the Universe had placed at the right place and the right time to remind me of the kind of person I want to be, if I can.

I thought I'd share. Enjoy.

--f

Photo credit: Me.

Fear...and...then...What?

I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
-- Bene Gesserit Prayer,
as quoted in Dune, by Frank Herbert.

Remember when I recently mentioned that music was a good indicator of what was going on for me? I'm in a strange space tonight. Listen to the music in the video and read the prayer quoted above.

Listen to the full clip, please. The pay off comes at about 6:10. As crazy and frakked up as things are, note where the piece ends.

It explains what I can't put into words tonight.

So say we all.

--f

P.S. The music, by the way, is a cut from the Battlestar Galactica Season 2 soundtrack. It's called "Prelude to War" and was featured in the episodes "Pegasus" and "Resurrection Ship, Parts 1 & 2"

A Little Light Reading

Sorry for being so quiet lately. Everything's fine, I've just been a bit busy lately.

JP is recovering nicely from her recent procedure. She's not yet 100%, but she's getting there. Her humor's back and it's nice to see her lively again.

What amazed me most through this experience was how tired *I* felt. No matter how much I slept last week, I felt like I was always on the verge of nodding off. We're sure it was a combination of me worrying about JP leading up to (and during) the surgery as well as the extra running around while trying to stay on top of the chores.

A few weeks ago, JP and I went to an appointment with her OB/GYN regarding the surgery. While waiting, I looked through the various magazines for something that looked interesting. Not suprisingly, there were magazines about parenting, children, fashion, style, cooking, and other subjects that tend to appeal more to women than to men. There's nothing wrong with that, especially given the typical patient in that particular waiting area.

I wanted something, well, different. I searched through the nearby piles, looking for something more interesting to me. No luck. More of the same. I went over to the other side of the room, hoping there would be a least one news magazine. Some women read Time, don't they? Newsweek?

Nothing. I check out the third corner of the waiting room. Stacks of Parents magazine. Baby. Cosmo.

Come on! I know I'm not the only guy to ever show up in this waiting room. I can't be.

At this point, I'll take People, Entertainment Weekly, or even Highlights Magazine. Nothing.

Eventually, we were called back into an examination room. While waiting for the doctor, I looked at the magazines jammed into the little plastic hanger they usually have on the wall. It was more of the same...until I pulled out a rather large glossy from the back of the stack.

Now, I know I'm not the only guy to have been in the examination room.

It was clearly outside of the demographic.

It was a copy of Warships magazine. Not exactly my cup of tea, but it's better than trying to find something palatable in cosmetics ads.

Of course, that's when the doctor showed up. Oy!

I know; "keep my day job." For those that are still reading, here's what I think it about the funniest thing I've read in a few weeks.

Photo credit: U.S. Navy