The Qi of Za, and other Miscellany

Hey you. The one reading this. When was the last time you received a postcard? If you want me to send you one, give me your address.

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Bertrand Russell, Unarmed Victory- "I dislike Communism because it is undemocratic, and Capitalism because it favors exploitation."

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On this day in 1949, 25 year-old Hank Williams made his debut at the Grand Ole Opry, and he became the first performer to receive six encores. That's too many encores. 

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Yoda: "Careful you must be when sensing the future, Anakin! The fear of loss is a path to the Dark Side."

Anakin: "I won't let my visions come true, Master Yoda."

Yoda: "Rejoice for those around us who transform into the Force. Mourn them, do not. Miss them, do not. Attachment leads to jealousy, the shadow of greed, that is."

Anakin: "What must I do, Master Yoda?"

Yoda: "Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose."

June 11, 2020

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I told Zuzu that if she drew a picture of Darth Vader to give me when I got home from work today I would be very happy. She watched a drawing tutorial and did it!

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Yuval Noah Harari, from 21 Lessons for the 21st Century- "If by 'free will' you mean the freedom to do what you desire - then yes, humans have free will. But if by 'free will' you mean the freedom to choose what to desire - then no, humans have no free will."

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At least we have a trustworthy guy in charge during this nuclear scare, a guy who always keeps his agreements, a thoughtful and reasonable guy not swayed by emotion who would never act on a whim. Hoping for the best. One thing seems certain... up until this moment, not bombing each other was the correct choice, and perhaps it always will be.

June 11, 2018

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Alexander the Great died on this day in 323BC. "I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion."

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Trump is cancelling his trip to England because the people don't want him there. Is that a simple majority that don't want him there? If so...

June 11, 2017

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Existential Comic- "When you blame a poor person for not getting a better job, you accept that while their job is necessary, the person doing it should be poor."

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I suppose people who are anti-gun control are pro-gun chaos?

June 11, 2014

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Daydreaming about the past, nightmaring about the future.

June 11, 2011

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When it comes to spitting out cherry seeds and kicking them before they hit the ground, I have no peer. I'm the jack of several trades nobody cares about.

June 11, 2011

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Schopenhauer said "man can do what he wills but he cannot will what he wills" and I'm trying to will myself into not believing him.

June 11, 2011

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One word to those of you able to watch movies on netflix instant- Anvil!

June 11, 2011

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What was the world like before qi and za were added to the Scrabble dictionary?

June 11, 2011

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On this day in 1955, eighty-three spectators were killed and at least 100 were injured after an Austin-Healey and a Mercedes-Benz collided at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the deadliest ever accident in motorsports.

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Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin became the only prisoners to escape from the prison on Alcatraz Island on this day in 1962. 

Nine years later, to the day, the U.S. Government forcibly removed the last holdouts to the Native American Occupation of Alcatraz, ending 19 months of control.

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On this day in 1963, Buddhist monk Thích Quảng Đức self-immolated in a busy Saigon intersection to protest the lack of religious freedom in South Vietnam. He crosses my mind all the time. He's the extreme example of how much it's possible to do for a cause you believe in.

Also on this day in 1963, Alabama governor, George Wallace, defiantly stood at the door of Foster Auditorium at the University of Alabama in an attempt to block two black students, Vivian Malone and James Hood, from attending that school. They registered later in the day, accompanied by federalized National Guard troops. He crosses my mind all the time. He's the extreme example of the depths one will plunge when they believe in pure bullshit.

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Chuck Palahniuk, Survivor- "The only difference between a suicide and a martyrdom really is the amount of press coverage."

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The U.S. Government executed Timothy McVeigh on this day in 2001 for his role in the Oklahoma City bombing. His last meal was two pints of Ben & Jerry's mint chocolate chip ice cream.

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On this day in 2004, Cassini–Huygens made its closest flyby of the Saturn moon Phoebe.

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The poet, Ben Jonson, was born on this day in 1572.

"Drink today, and drown all sorrow;

You shall perhaps not do it tomorrow;

Best, while you have it, use your breath;

There is no drinking after death."

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Yamamoto Tsunetomo joined us on this day in 1659. From The Hagakure:

"We all want to live. And in large part we make our logic according to what we like. But not having attained our aim and continuing to live is cowardice. This is a thin dangerous line. To die without gaming one's aim is a dog's death and fanaticism. But there is no shame in this. This is the substance of the Way of the Samurai. If by setting one's heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he pains freedom in the Way. His whole life will be without blame, and he will succeed in his calling."

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It's Richard Strauss's birthday, born on this day in 1864 in Munich, Germany. There's a famous limerick about him:

Said the famous composer R. Strauss

When asked why he buggered a mouse: 

"Though it's cunt is quite tiny 

On occasion it's heiny

Will stretch quite as big as a house.

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Japanese novelist and short story writer, Yasunari Kawabata, joined us on 1899.

"Cosmic time is the same for everyone, but human time differs with each person. Time flows in the same way for all human beings; every human being flows through time in a different way."

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What's a pirates favorite letter?

No, everybody thinks it's R, but it's really the C.

Jacques Cousteau was born on this day in 1910.

"The Sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever."

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Vince Lombardi was born on this day in 1913. “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”

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Gene Wilder joined us on this day in 1933.

"I'm going to tell you what my religion is. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Period. Terminator. Finito. I have no other religion."

Sounds familiar.

Dalai Lama- “This is my simple religion. No need for temples. No need for complicated philosophy. Your own mind, your own heart is the temple. Your philosophy is simple kindness.”

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John Wayne died on this day in 1979. He said that he believed in white supremacy until black people can become responsible for themselves.

Reminds me what Ronnie Chieng just said in his stand up special, Speakeasy. People are always comparing the top 10% of One race to the bottom 10% of another race. That's the beginning of a genius joke that I'm not about to ruin here.

Wayne on the Native Americans:

“I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. …Our so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.”

Quite a symbol of masculinity. Sounds like an argument that would justify someone coming here, killing us, and taking our land.

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King Kamehameha Day in Hawaai, made famous from The Brady Bunch visiting his statue. At least to me.

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Other notable birthdays- Henry Hill (1943), Joe Montana (1956), Peter Dinklage (1969)

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Oh no, Francois Hardy just left us. This is one of my all-time favorites. She released an album several years ago said this to the interviewer:

“I sing about death in a very symbolic and even positive way. There is an acceptance there, too. For instance, there is a song called “Special Train,” which I like very much, but at my age, I can really only sing about that one very special train that will take me out of this world. But, of course, I am also hoping that it will send me to the stars and help me discover the mystery of the cosmos.”

https://youtu.be/XPkBMqehr5k

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Sam Harris- "I do not choose to choose what I choose. There’s a regress here that always ends in darkness."

http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/you-do-not-choose-what-you-choose/

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The Hill- Trump Admin To Stop Granting Asylum To Victims of Gang Violence, Domestic Abuse

In his defense, I'm sure this makes a lot of sense to a psychopath.

http://hill.cm/FgeS2hq

June 11, 2018

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Two thousand five hundred people are still dying a week, and the age group with the most dying is 50-74. Experts believe we will stay around that 2500 if we don't get 75% vaccinated. For the people who somehow think the odds are more in their favorite to not get vaccinated, yes well, but it really is too bad for the people with diseases that prohibit them from getting vaccinated.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/06/10/us/covid-death-patterns.html

June 11, 2021

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Bill Burr- "A good story is always you doing something wrong, you know? That's why nice people are so damn boring. I mean, they're nice, but their stories suck."

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If God created the sun on the fourth day, how did four days go by?

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Gareth Reynolds and Pete Holmes talking about Jay Leno's Doritos commercials, pretending he's a Doritos chef... "I sauced all these isosceles." Pete was laughing his head off.

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Carl Jung- "Man needs difficulties; they are necessary for health."

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Norman Douglas, South Wind - "What is all wisdom save a collection of platitudes?... [But] the man who orders his life according to their teachings cannot go far wrong."

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Miguel de Unamuno- "Only in solitude do we find ourselves ; and in finding ourselves, we find in ourselves all our brothers in solitude."

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George Bernard Shaw, Fanny's First Play- "It's all that the young can do for the old, to shock them and keep them up to date."

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Doris Kearns Goodwin, Wait Till Next Year- "I would never confuse the temporary leaders of a country for the country itself."

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Jung- "Your visions will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes."

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Dylan- "Strange how people who suffer together have stronger connections than people who are most content."

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Albert Einstein, The World As I See It- "I do not at all believe in human freedom in the philosophical sense... Schopenhauer’s saying, ‘A man can do what he wants, but not will what he wants,’ has been a very real inspiration to me since my youth; it has been a continual consolation in the face of life’s hardships, my own and others’, and an unfailing wellspring of tolerance. This realization mercifully mitigates the easily paralyzing sense of responsibility and prevents us from taking ourselves and other people too seriously; it is conducive to a view of life which, in part, gives humour its due."

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On the boobs of a barmaid from Crail,

Were inscribed all the prices of ale.

And on her behind,

For the sake of the blind,

Was the same – but only in Braille.

Addendum

Myspace Blog

June 11, 2007

Sweet Jesus!

Maybe it's wrong of me, perhaps due to a complete lack of morality, but I love it, LOVE IT, when adults don't get the candy they want out of the vending machines. I see it all day, everyday. Giant children, held together by a thread because they didn't get their 3 Musketeers.

Once a guy kind of freaked out after several attempts. "What??? Nothing with chocolate will come out!!!" I tried so hard not to laugh.

You know who the best people are? The blasphemers. "Jesus Christ, why can't I get any Skittles?!"

I've noticed that these people go through Elizabeth Kubler-Ross's five stages of grief, the stages one goes through after the death of someone close:

1. shock/alarm- "What? No. Why? This can't be!"

2. anger- banging and vitriol, occasionally misdirected in my direction

3. bargaining- repeated button-pushing, consideration of trying another, wishing the whole thing never happened

4. depression- sighs, hanging head, quiet contemplation

5. acceptance- the empty-handed solo walk of shame back to the car

You wouldn't believe what I saw once. Not just one hanger, but two. Imagine- two Mike and Ike's hanging off the same corkscrew! Unbelievable. We were all saying "Jesus Christ" that time, but not in disgust; we were on our knees. Two hangers- that is nothing short of a miracle. Either that, or you'll just happen to see some crazy things if you spend thousands of hours of in these rest areas… these blessed, blessed rest areas.