Thought of the Day #276 - Admitting a Prejudice

Driving down the highway and seeing deer antlers sticking out the back
of a truckbed, I will admit that my first feeling is "idiot on board".

I'm sure not all hunters are idiots, but a great many are. The guys that
brag about the number of points on the stag's rack only makes me think
the guy (or girl, for that matter) is speaking proudly of their IQ
score:

"Gun go boom, deer died, I have 10 point IQ. Me wanna put on wall. Ain't
I great?"

Sorry, but that's how I see it.

I really would prefer that hunting was a fair fight. I would have
respect for guys who would run up to deer and take 'em with their bare
hands. Now, THAT would be impressive.

Thought of the Day #272 - Hate & Fear

I believe that hate is often tied to fear - fear of the unknown, fear of
becoming more like the person hated, fear of the persons actions, etc.
Quite simply stated, if we overcome unfounded fears, we have less hatred
towards our fellow man.

Thought of the Day #228 - Fat Art

I can't tell you these are 'fat positive' or even remotely positive at all, but I can tell you that I find them thought provoking. I don't know if the artist was trying to reach out from a fat body or if she's reliving her fat days filled with pain? I really don't know. In any event, I find them darkly thought provoking, something which I feel is pretty rare from today's art. Please visit Joanvix's Etsy shop here: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7527087 for more. Be sure to check out the sold items, too: http://www.etsy.com/shop_sold.php?user_id=7527087

 

 

Thought of the Day #222 - Open to Interpretation

I believe that everyone offers something beneficial to society.
Significant benefits or miniscule, they all do their part. So, seeing
how everyone has that potential for good, I wonder what causes people to
make poor societal or personal decisions.

It dawned on me that maybe they're seeing things differently than me.
I'm not just saying from a philosphical standpoint, but actually seeing
different colors or shapes...or maybe the sounds they hear are
interpreted by their brains in such a way that the sound of nails on a
chalkboard to them sounds like a quacking duck.

We know how the body's tools are designed, but we have no concrete idea
how our brains *actually* interpret this information. For instance, if
we both had the same set of eyeballs connected to our brains and a crow
flies by. My brain sees a black bird, and when I peek into your brain
you are seeing what I might call a pink elephant. Same input, it's just
that our brains interpret the information from the eye-tools
differently.

So, let's say this is what is happening...and you make a foolish
decision punch your boss. Maybe it's not your fault, but it's that your
brain is completely seeing things differently. Possibly the details that
were interpretted by your brain were somewhat skewed, not by personal
choice or the inability to manage emotions -- it's just the facts
completely skewed. With the information your brain being so diffeent,
your action was correct given the data.

There has to be a reason for ill reasoning and poor decisions, and maybe
this is a potential cause?

Maybe? Maybe I'm just wrong.

Thought of the Day #175 - Air Burial

 

Crazy lookin' birds, but soooo awesome, too. I haven't ever seen them here in Utah before yesterday. I've only seen one in the wild a few years ago while trekking through Death Valley.

They reminded me of the concept of an "air burial" that is performed in some parts of the world. Basically, the body is chopped up and placed on a "air burial" platform or location where meat eating birds frequent. The birds eat the flesh and you ~soar~ into the afterlife (or lack thereof). While the idea is a bit creepy, there's a complete homage to the circle of life that I sincerely appreciate. In fact, if they offered that as an option here, I would definitely request it upon my demise.

Thought of the Day #106 - Passing Seasons and Years

 

When I took this photo today in downtown Salt Lake City, I was reminded of how quickly things change and how if we don't stop to take it all in, we'll miss it. One of my uncles died a couple of days ago, and he was just around 80 years old. If he was able to see beautiful blossoms every year, he would have only had the opportunity to see 80 changes of season. And, even then, probably only 77 where he was even aware of trees at all. Not that many, really. Blossoms, like life, are fleeting so be sure to soak it all in while you can.

Thought of the Day #91 - Morning Rush

I think as kids we were taught the need to rush, rush, rush by eating
cereal in milk. Seriously, if you like the snap, crackle, pop of Rice
Krispies in the morning, you've got about 35 seconds from crispy
cacophony to silent mush.

Pilgrimage

When I see a photo of a pilgrimage or a large demonstration, I often wonder how many people in the photo are thinking:

• How the hell will I get out of here?
• You know I'm here just 'cuz my dad wants me to be...
• If I fall...I am so dead, dude.
• Shoot...Where did I park??
• Maybe I don't feel like everyone else in the crowd, but how do I dare say something?
• I could soooo be home playing Guitar Hero right now.
• Before this moment, I had no idea how claustrophobia felt.

Please Help Me...I'm Falling

When I'm super tired, I often do that *pzzsap* electrical jerk when I'm
just about to doze off to fairy dust land. You know the one that you
hope no one noticed...or was seriously injured by? Yeah. That one.
Whenever my body does that, my brain decides it's one of two things--
either falling down stairs or slipping and falling on ice. These are
two things that I've done with great gusto and really don't care to
relive when I'm so close to my happy place. Do you think there's a way
to train my brain into thinking of sliding down a water slide into a
really big pool, or even better...the point-of-no-return prior to an
orgasm? They're all out of my control to a certain extent, and would be
much more fun to relive.

Humble Pie

While I can't find any assurance of the origins of this quote, it has been ascribed to Jonas Salk, "If all the insects on earth disappeared, within 50 years all life on earth would disappear. If all humans disappeared, within 50 years all species would flourish as never before."

There appears to be no purpose, as far as Earth's ecology goes, to our existance on the planet. Nothing else relies upon us to survive. Basically, we do nothing to aid in the Earth's survival. Whether or not you believe in the theory that global warming is exclusively man's doing, you cannot deny that we are doing more harm than good to the planet's natural existance. Maybe some would see this as a clear example of man's supremacy, but I think that probably originates from a false pride in superiority. In reality, we're all just blight.

Me. By Gosh. It's soooo me.

I'm sure I can't be the only one online to get sucked into taking the "online quiz". You know, it helps me know where I really stand in this world. Of course sometimes, it helps me to figure out my best sleeping position, too. Heavy hitting stuff, I tell ya. So, to cover all of my bases, I've kept my online test results in a draft folder to someday use on my site. Now, I'm opening the vault to openly share all of myself with you...my one faithful reader. Without further ado, I give you...well, me...in a painfully accurate nutshell:

• I am twisted. (from How evil are you?)
• I am Superman (from Superhero Personality Test)
• My IQ is 142 "A Universal Genius" (from the Testriffic IQ Test)
• My idea sleeping pose is "Excalibur" (from Find Your Pose)
• My impending death: As the unfortunate target of a serial killer, a rope is tied around your wrists, and a second rope is tied around your ankles. The ropes are tied together and hung on a hook from the ceiling, leaving you suspended facing the ground. Concrete blocks are placed onto your back until the weight becomes so great, your arms and legs are torn from your body. (from The Death Psychic)
• My personality type: INTJ 22-38-1-44 (from Humanmetrics' Jung Typology Test)
• My alter ego is Goofy. Yup! (from Which Walt Disney Character is Your Alter Ego?)
• I have been banished you to the Second Level of Hell! (from Dante Inferno Hell Test)
• I have a North Central American accent. Seen Fargo? (from What American accent do you have?)
• I am a Social Liberal (80% permissive) and a Economic Liberal (28% permissive) You are best described as a: Strong Democrat. (from The Politics Test)
• I am Carole Lombard (from The Classic Dames Test)

Found, Read and Agreed

I thought I'd share a few thoughts once in a while which ring true in my wee little skull. While I may or may not agree with these entirely, I hope you're able to take a portion of it to mind as I have. Today's entry:

Ten Rules for Being Human by Cherie Carter-Scott

1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's yours to keep for the entire period.
2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, "life."
3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error, and experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately "work."
4. Lessons are repeated until they are learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson.
5. Learning lessons does not end. There's no part of life that doesn't contain its lessons. If you're alive, that means there are still lessons to be learned.
6. "There" is no better a place than "here." When your "there" has become a "here", you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here."
7. Other people are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.
8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.
9. Your answers lie within you. The answers to life's questions lie within you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.
10. You will forget all this.