Degrees of Depersonalization and Repersonalization
The Danish astronomer who mapped the stars, Tycho Brahe, left us on this day in 1601. He had dinner with the Royal Family and had to go to the bathroom very, very badly, but it was against protocol, so he held it, held it, held it, and his bladder burst. He cautionary tale!
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What a way to honor the dead!
Washington Post- This woman bakes recipes she finds on gravestone epitaphs: ‘They’re to die for’
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/10/24/gravestone-recipe-epitaph-ghostly-archive
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There is a desk lamp in my office that is difficult to turn on. You turn the little knob, the light flickers, it goes out. You turn it again 10 times and nothing happens. You turn it again, and it flickers again, then nothing. You turn it again, you almost get it, it goes out. I resist the urge to throw the light through the plate glass window, and keep trying until it stays on. I recognize that my emotions, once recognized, can be quelled. The only way to operate reasonably in the world, is to operate calmly.
I'm going to attempt to apply my little daily ritual of Zen patience to the Phillies game tonight, but I'm going to fail miserably and get very riled up! Victory is always sweeter after you've tasted defeat. Let's do this!
October 24, 2023
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From Wikipedia: Fanta originated in Germany as a Coca-Cola alternative in 1940 due to the American trade embargo of Nazi Germany, which affected the availability of Coca-Cola ingredients. Fanta soon dominated the German market with three million cases sold in 1943.
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After appointing Oliver Wendell Holmes to the Supreme Court, and then disagreeing with one of his first decisions, Teddy Roosevelt said, "I could carve out of a banana a judge with more backbone than that." That's one of the all-time great insults! Unfortunately that type of thinking was the catalyst for the Federalist Society.
October 24, 2020
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Disorienting watching the Halloween Simpsons episodes with my kids... just one after another after another. I used to have to wait a year for each one and treated Halloween Simpsons Night as a religious holiday.
October 24, 2020
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Ahhh, so the DOJ is investigating it's own investigation into Russia. When they are done with that investigation they need to investigate that investigation, and so on.
October 24, 2019
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Steinbeck lost the first manuscript of The Red Pony and had to rewrite it. The legend is that years later the original was discovered and there were only seven words that were different. Imagine that.
October 24, 2015
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The thing about Mourdock's rape comment is that it calls into question whether God is all-powerful. (Mourdock believes he is.)
October 24, 2012
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Degrees of Depersonalization
While waiting for The Social Network to begin, I eavesdropped on the mom and two college-age sons in front of me. She would talk to one and the other would text. Then she'd talk to that one and the other would text. The conversation was boring- she was asking them about what restaurants deliver to their apartment. I was pretending to read my book but I was peering under it, trying to see what the one kid was texting, but I couldn't see it.
I think at that point I was about ten degrees removed from the real world.
Let's break it down. I was: -in a movie theater -by myself -pretending to read -watching a kid send a text message -that I can't even read -while an actual conversation is happening right next to him -a conservation that exemplifies the disconnect growing between them -as we all get ready to watch a movie about a website -a website that helps you feel connected to those you know, even though you are nowhere near them -as I planned to write this, on that very website.
I think I need to build a fire tonight. What's up with you?
October 24, 2010
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Kickball
As Lane and I played tennis over by the kickball field at F&M yesterday we saw two kickball teams show up and start practicing, getting ready for a game. They were actual TEAMS, with shirts with numbers on the back and everything. They probably warmed up for ten minutes or so and then started playing. They weren't very good. They had one of those red bouncy balls and barely kicked it out of the infield. We saw someone make it to third but we weren't even sure if anyone scored. After (no joke) maybe 20 minutes the game must have been over and they all disbanded. They might have played 3 innings... 5 tops. Start to finish they couldn't have been there more than a half hour. I never saw a kickball game before where everybody lost. Still, in that short span of time they played more than we have for 6 months. Can we not do better than them? Should we play next weekend? Sunday? That's Halloween... clever people can dress up as Bigfoot.
October 24, 2010
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Terrified to death by a donkey.
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On this day in 1901 retired teacher Annie Taylor celebrated her 63rd birthday by becoming the first person to survive a plunge over Niagara Falls. She went over it in a barrel with a mattress in it, along with her heart-shaped lucky pillow and emerged 20 minutes later at the bottom.
That's tantamount to a suicide attempt, right?
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United Airlines Flight 608 crashed over Bryce Canyon National Park on this day in 1947, killing all 52 passengers and crew onboard. Beautiful park, but not the best way to see it.
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On this day in 1975 in Iceland, 90% of women took part in a national strike, refusing to work in protest of gender inequality.
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Bassist for the Rolling Stones, Bill Wyman, joined us on this day in 1936. He was his former wife's step-grandpa. Here's how:
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Notable deathdays- Maureen O'Hara (2015), Bobby Vee (2016), Fats Domino (2017)
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Remember when Sarah Palin accused Obama of a "shuck and jive schtick?" What a great person.
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The Onion- Trump Announces He's a Very Sad Man
Now THAT would be an October surprise!
http://www.theonion.com/articles/trump-announces-hes-a-very-sad-man,30077/
Oct 24, 2012, 10:24 PM
Postscript- Of course the Onion had this guy's number back in 2012. Really, we all had his number back in the 90's.
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Dangerous Minds- LIST OF REASONS FOR ADMISSION TO AN INSANE ASYLUM FROM THE LATE 1800'S
I nearly went insane trying to figure out how this list was alphabetized.
http://dangerousminds.net/comments/list_of_reasons_for_admission_to_an_insane_asylum
October 24, 2013
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Whoever could have guessed that when you demonize your enemies, your supporters are going to take you seriously? Answer: anybody who considered it.
October 24, 2018
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Rolling Stone- Taibbi: Is It Fair to Blame Trumpism for These Latest Explosive Devices?
Good point... the culprits are often counterintuitive. Nevertheless, I bet you could make a list of the people Trump tweets negatively about the most, and I think you'll have a pretty precise list the intended bomb victims.
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/explosive-devices-trumpism-746826/
October 24, 2018
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Consequence of Sound- Richard Linklater to write, direct new movie about comedian Bill Hicks
Oh my... a sure-fire smash hit.
https://consequenceofsound.net/2018/10/richard-linklater-bill-hicks/
October 24, 2018
Postscript- Why can't we have this film!!!???
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USA Today- Half of Trump supporters believe in QAnon conspiracy theory's baseless claims, poll finds
It would be great to one day discuss issues, but it's hard when half of one party believes the other party runs an elite child sex-trafficking ring. Meanwhile their infallible leader was great friends with the one sex trafficker everyone knows, and when asked about the arrest of that sex trafficker's girlfriend/cohort, he said of her, "I wish her well." Does this seem backwards somehow?
"When posed as individual parts of the conspiracy — namely, that Democrats run an elite child sex-trafficking "cabal" and that President Trump is making efforts to dismantle it — about half of Trump supporters, whether they'd heard of QAnon or not, said they believe in both parts."
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/10/22/qanon-poll-finds-half-trump-supporters-believe-baseless-claims/3725567001/
October 24, 2020
Postscript- People battled me on this but a few months later they temporarily took over the Capitol during the certification of the transfer of power.
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Watch this big, poor baby go from a shit-eating grin to a big sourpuss in .1 seconds. So sad... just so sad that other leaders aren't hopping on board with his name-calling-based leadership style.
https://www.alternet.org/2020/10/trump-tried-to-get-another-foreign-leader-to-cut-a-de-facto-campaign-ad-it-failed-miserably/
October 24, 2020
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A rainbow has only one side.
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Rene Descartes, Meditations and Other Metaphysical Writings- "The reading of all good books is like a conversation with the finest minds of past centuries."
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Jerry Seinfeld- "If aliens are watching this through telescopes, they're going to think the dogs are the leaders of the planet. If you see two life forms, one of them takes a crap, and the other ones carrying it for them... Who would you assume is in charge of that society?"
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Jose Ortega y Gasset- “Our firmest convictions are apt to be the most suspect; they mark our limitations and our bounds. Life is a petty thing unless it is moved by the indomitable urge to extend its boundaries.”
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Bukowski, Sunlight Here I Am: Interviews and Encounters:
"For those who believe in God, most of the big questions are answered. But for those of us who can’t readily accept the God formula, the big answers don’t remain stone-written. We adjust to new conditions and discoveries."
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Santayana- "My atheism, like that of Spinoza, is true piety towards the universe and denies only gods fashioned by men in their own image, to be servants of their human interests."
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Nietzsche- "Faith: not wanting to know what the truth is."
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Oscar Wilde- "Experience is merely the name men gave to their mistakes."
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Norm Macdonald- "OJ Simpson was in a different kind of courtroom this week attempting to regain custody of his two children. In order to prove to the court how much he loves his kids, OJ pointed out quote ‘Hey, they’re still alive, aren’t they?’”
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