This is my on line "Collector's Cabinet". It is non-profit and haphazard at best. I leave it to you to sort through and make sense of.The views are mine. The collection reflects some of my interests. But the material must be credited to the vast internet. Otherwise, I never would have been able to amass such a treasure trove. The purpose of this exercise is entertainment, naturally mine, but even more so yours. So, please let me know if anything strikes a chord with you.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Small talk
A total misnomer.
As social animals one of the first things we learn is language. Without them we would never have progressed from our primal familial, clan, tribe groupings to the current multi-national, global concept we life with.
The discovery?,invention?, whatever, of language permitted us to easily convey our thoughts, ideas, feelings, emotions from one to another. We have truly progressed from, "See Bear---RUN!" to watch "'dem Bears!"
The term "small talk" was coined somewhere during this evolution. It's a non-starter. Each of us has to be able to communicate with other humans. To say what we think, explain who we are, espouse ideas...in short make friends. That's how it works. We need people, friends, family, loved ones and the first thing for each of us is to reach out and talk. So, just how does the word small fit with the word talk?...doesn't!
As social animals one of the first things we learn is language. Without them we would never have progressed from our primal familial, clan, tribe groupings to the current multi-national, global concept we life with.
The discovery?,invention?, whatever, of language permitted us to easily convey our thoughts, ideas, feelings, emotions from one to another. We have truly progressed from, "See Bear---RUN!" to watch "'dem Bears!"
The term "small talk" was coined somewhere during this evolution. It's a non-starter. Each of us has to be able to communicate with other humans. To say what we think, explain who we are, espouse ideas...in short make friends. That's how it works. We need people, friends, family, loved ones and the first thing for each of us is to reach out and talk. So, just how does the word small fit with the word talk?...doesn't!
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Devil's Advocate
In an earlier post I mentioned my youth and how a group of us would spend the evenings discussing and solving all the world's problems. Quite obviously no one paid heed. I doubt our parents had a clue what we were doing, but they were pretty sure we were not causing trouble. For us it was an enjoyable way to blow off steam, enjoy ourselves, at no cost and to learn from each other all at the same time.
We didn't quibble over the issue, we didn't care. Nor did we always stay aligned the same. Sometimes we would switch points of view mid-stream. It was a fairly important lesson to learn, that there usually more than one or two answers to each question and that most issues intertwined like nests of vipers.
When I enlisted into the Navy the experience of being among guys that thought differently was not a big deal. I had been practicing before. School, work, social we will all be dumbstruck by the quantity of disagreeable folks out there. If only they would listen to me...
Of all the rights assigned to us, the freedom of speech is the one I find the most easily defended. But, I sure wish that the freedom of the press wasn't attached to it. Defending the "rights" of paid media rabble rousers, that pay lip service to the truth offends me deeply. Sound bites, innuendo and disregard for content or truth can not be the intent of our forefathers when they wrote and instituted the Bill of Rights. It's like watching the news as seen by Orwell! Only it isn't "Big Brother" it's big business. Money for nothing...MTV! Oh well, "That's Entertainment!"
When
When I was a child, learning was as easy as forgetting is now. Observation from all our senses filled our minds as if they were damp sponges. The sponge is much dryer now and wringing something useful from it more difficult. So many of the basic themes of life have changed. When, how and why?
By the time that my Father actually got to see me for the first time, my Mother had already taken me to see my Grandparents in Boston...over a thousand miles distant. Respect for your elders meant something entirely different then. My parents packed us up and carted us to visit all the cousins, aunts, uncles etc. Not them coming to visit the new folks. Tradition is something made up on the fly...wrong! Tradition is built up over a course of time.
Courtesy? Politeness? Decency? All seem to be hidden away, not to be spoken about. To use common sense, to compromise in the name of logical need...gone! As if they had become curse words. Cursing, on the other hand totally common. The ignorant rule. And they are unaware.
I think of myself as an organized individual. With that word I have to add logical. Without logic what point being organized? Ironically I pretty much detest organizations. Whether it be sports, politics, religion, play, whatever, I do not want someone else telling me their purported version of truth and how I must live. And, most assuredly I won't contribute to any such group. It isn't logical. Play dates, quality time...bull! How can you confront a teacher when you haven't a clue about your child? Next time let the baby-sitter go to the conference. That would be more logical. The sitter has most likely spent more real time with the child. There is a reality out there that takes up space just like the 500 gorilla. In order to learn about the world you must partake. Not pick and choose, because sooner or later little Johnny is going to be faced with someone not so nice. He won't learn about that encounter from a "gameboy", or some organized playdate.
...or, perhaps there is some new reality that I am unaware of, where logic and all those other old words aren't necessary!
Perhaps Dave Mason nailed it when he sang, "there ain't no good guy, there ain't no bad guy. There's just you and me..and we just disagree!"
By the time that my Father actually got to see me for the first time, my Mother had already taken me to see my Grandparents in Boston...over a thousand miles distant. Respect for your elders meant something entirely different then. My parents packed us up and carted us to visit all the cousins, aunts, uncles etc. Not them coming to visit the new folks. Tradition is something made up on the fly...wrong! Tradition is built up over a course of time.
Courtesy? Politeness? Decency? All seem to be hidden away, not to be spoken about. To use common sense, to compromise in the name of logical need...gone! As if they had become curse words. Cursing, on the other hand totally common. The ignorant rule. And they are unaware.
I think of myself as an organized individual. With that word I have to add logical. Without logic what point being organized? Ironically I pretty much detest organizations. Whether it be sports, politics, religion, play, whatever, I do not want someone else telling me their purported version of truth and how I must live. And, most assuredly I won't contribute to any such group. It isn't logical. Play dates, quality time...bull! How can you confront a teacher when you haven't a clue about your child? Next time let the baby-sitter go to the conference. That would be more logical. The sitter has most likely spent more real time with the child. There is a reality out there that takes up space just like the 500 gorilla. In order to learn about the world you must partake. Not pick and choose, because sooner or later little Johnny is going to be faced with someone not so nice. He won't learn about that encounter from a "gameboy", or some organized playdate.
...or, perhaps there is some new reality that I am unaware of, where logic and all those other old words aren't necessary!
Perhaps Dave Mason nailed it when he sang, "there ain't no good guy, there ain't no bad guy. There's just you and me..and we just disagree!"
Didn't work
The main concept of advertising is to entice customers, to catch their eye. Recently a couple of ads have caught mine. Actually my ears.
The first one has an actor shilling his new science program. In it, current longevity research is on the cusp of making humans immortal...within the next forty years, or so. Or, as he so drolly puts it, you will be able to marry the same person...FOREVER! Think about it. Are we 30 forever or 70?
The second one is the one I want to toy with. Several members of a family are competing for the last piece of dessert. Best story gets the prize.
This line was my choice, "I drove Gramps to speed-dating." Now this could be a case of extreme over-sharing, but the possibilities seem endless. Starting with, more women live longer than men. So, in this setting do the women "dash" from table to table? Are the tables wheelchair accessible? Do you get extra time if your "walker" jams up? How do we define "speed" here? Can you nap between "dates"? Is the "little blue pill" involved somehow? How can you tell if you win? Should you actually score and set up a real date, do you have to take a teen-ager along to remind you what to do?
As I'm writing this ,I notice that everyone here qualifies. At least on the age aspect. Hell, I'm the youngest one here!
About the ads- I don't remember either product!
The first one has an actor shilling his new science program. In it, current longevity research is on the cusp of making humans immortal...within the next forty years, or so. Or, as he so drolly puts it, you will be able to marry the same person...FOREVER! Think about it. Are we 30 forever or 70?
The second one is the one I want to toy with. Several members of a family are competing for the last piece of dessert. Best story gets the prize.
This line was my choice, "I drove Gramps to speed-dating." Now this could be a case of extreme over-sharing, but the possibilities seem endless. Starting with, more women live longer than men. So, in this setting do the women "dash" from table to table? Are the tables wheelchair accessible? Do you get extra time if your "walker" jams up? How do we define "speed" here? Can you nap between "dates"? Is the "little blue pill" involved somehow? How can you tell if you win? Should you actually score and set up a real date, do you have to take a teen-ager along to remind you what to do?
As I'm writing this ,I notice that everyone here qualifies. At least on the age aspect. Hell, I'm the youngest one here!
About the ads- I don't remember either product!
'nuff said!
MAX-ims
All men are not equal...my dancing is so bad I couldn't get to watch DWTS!
If you are riding to feel "free", why do you need to ride in packs?
Language may be ever evolving, but why do the illiterate get to choose?
65 degrees...muk-luks and parkas!
My posts depend on my memory...where did I put it?
White is the sum of all colors in the spectrum...black is the absence. So, which one is a natural color?
Cool weather means that some of the early morning walkers are actually moving.
7:15, pre-clock changing and they are out walking. Proving once again that dogs are smarter than humans.
At a certain age, long black hair only proves that you need new glasses...or a new mirror.
What not to wear is gone. How about "Dressing from dumpsters"?
If you look like a bum, dress like a bum, talk like a bum...wait: "This is Florida!"
Do they make fur-repellent clothing? Yep! I have a cat.
If you are riding to feel "free", why do you need to ride in packs?
Language may be ever evolving, but why do the illiterate get to choose?
65 degrees...muk-luks and parkas!
My posts depend on my memory...where did I put it?
White is the sum of all colors in the spectrum...black is the absence. So, which one is a natural color?
Cool weather means that some of the early morning walkers are actually moving.
7:15, pre-clock changing and they are out walking. Proving once again that dogs are smarter than humans.
At a certain age, long black hair only proves that you need new glasses...or a new mirror.
What not to wear is gone. How about "Dressing from dumpsters"?
If you look like a bum, dress like a bum, talk like a bum...wait: "This is Florida!"
Do they make fur-repellent clothing? Yep! I have a cat.
Friday, November 22, 2013
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