I have a feeling that something big is about to happen.
I don't know if it'll be good or bad, except I don't feel impending doom.
It's quite possible it's just the way my planets are squared with the stars that makes be feel this way,
or maybe I've been lost in my thoughts for too long, I don't know.

But it just seems as though, reading all the political news, the war news, etc etc, that either things are gonna get real bad real quick, or things will start happening in a posative, progressive way and the gloomy feeling that fair play in the modern world is impossible, will be put to rest.



What do you think? Am I picking up on some planitary vibes?
Or am I just a guy that needs to go watch a few sunsets and mellow out?

I feel more hopeful politically than I have in a while. Obviously Barak Obama has a lot to do with that, but I feel an overwhelming sense of dread - irrationally so - whenever anyone mentions the notion of him going to Iraq. It would just be too easy to pull off a political assasination there and make it look like just another random incident.

I also feel like economically things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. I think that the floods in the midwest are going to do really bad things to food prices soon and that plus the cost of energy are going to be too much for a limping economy to sustain.

I think it's going to be ugly for the people that base all their happiness on the size of their stock portfolio, but I think for a lot of people it's going to actually be a really good thing. If gas gets to $10 per gallon, Wal-Mart won't be able to ship their junk all the way from China and undercut local made products. Local farmer's markets and food co-ops will become a lot more important, both because it won't be financially feasible to ship vegetables all the way across the country and because more people will have to produce usable products from their own labor just to get by. A really bad economy can't do anything but break the cycle of consumerism so many people are caught up in.

I'm not sure that's what you meant, but it's something that's been on my mind lately.

Well sky, perhaps your cosmic intuition is picking up this. This is an analysis from a respected republican (he is personally a republican, he doesn't work for the gop) election analyst.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Strange polling results - fact or fiction?

Recent polls in Ohio and elsewhere have raised eyebrows here at Election Projection. For instance, polls released yesterday by SurveyUSA and the Democratic-leaning polling firm Public Policy Polling show Barack Obama with decisive 9- and 12-point leads in Ohio, respectively. After very close races in 2000 and 2004, these margins seem out of place. Indeed, The Anchoress wrote me an email in which she points out very suspicious partisan breakdowns of those who participated in the polls. Public Policy Polling surveyed 55 Democrats for every 30 Republicans, and SurveyUSA was just about the same, 52% to 28%.

For Republicans, the initial tendency is to dismiss the results out of hand, figuring such inconsistency of partisan participation belies an agenda on the part of the pollster. Such a conclusion might be justifiable for a blue-tilted firm like PPP, but SurveyUSA does not fit that mold. In 2004, SurveyUSA was one of the most accurate polling companies, correctly picking 13 out of 14 battleground states in which they conducted polls.

So let's assume for a moment that these partisan numbers are appropriate. We must then conclude that McCain is headed for a bountiful drubbing in November barring some radical turnaround. Still, it is difficult to conceive that Democrats comprise nearly twice as much of the voting public in Ohio as Republicans do. If only there were a way to know. In fact, we do have some concrete data on which to test the makeup of voters this year. That data? The voters this year.

We just happen to be going through a primary season in which real voters have cast real votes. Perhaps we can gather useful information from those results. To that end, I have tabulated the results of all primaries (not caucuses) held between January 1 and Super Tuesday on February 5. I omitted primary contests after Super Tuesday since the presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain, had been all but decided by then. What I found is a staggering advantage for the Democrats.

During that time period, Americans cast 25.3 million ballots in 17 states, excluding Florida, and Democrats accumulated nearly 62% of them! Let me put that number into proper perspective. In 2004, the Democratic cut in those 17 states was just 51.2%. If we transpose those numbers to Ohio, where 2004 exit polls gave a 5-point partisan advantage to the GOP, we can start to draw some quantitative conclusions.

In 2004, Democrats edged Republicans by 2.5% in the group of primary states I've included in this test. This year, that advantage ballooned to 23.2%, a 20.7% change. It follows that, all things being equal, the partisan breakdown in Ohio would change from a 5 point edge for the GOP in 2004 to a Democratic advantage of almost 16 points this year. So how do the polls from PPP and SurveyUSA stand up to this test? Not too well. However - and this is a scary thought for Republicans - they are no more off the mark than a poll giving Democrats a six to eight point advantage.

Bottom line? Obama may not be winning Ohio by a dozen right now, but it's hard to justify denying that he is winning. And that's 20 critical electoral votes currently in Obama's column that President Bush picked up in 2004. But there's more. The election does not begin and end in Ohio. Many battleground states will fall into Obama's column if the precedent set in January and early February is duplicated on Election Day. Unless something happens to quell the enormous enthusiasm permeating Democratic circles nationwide, the presidential election of 2008 may look a lot like the one in 1980 with a great communicator of a different stripe leading the way.




Perhaps your super natural karma detection powers are picking up on an impending obama surge? My own aura is telling me that obama may soon begin pulling away from Methuselah in a significant way.

More and more of Bush's misdeeds that were once pooh-poohed (hate that term, but I couldn't think of another tonight) as being exaggerations by left wing zealots seem to be becoming accepted as common knowledge. It took a long time, but I don't think anyone doubts the truth of the Valerie Plame affair anymore. That US attorneys were dismissed for failing to prosecute Democrats isn't denied much, altho a few lamely argue that he had a right to do it. The Katrina debacle is frequently laid at the administration's feet by candidates and others and not challenged. Chickens seem to be roosting and blame properly assigned; I guess only time will tell if accountability follows. You have to watch C-span 3 to know it, but Henry Waxman's been a very busy fellow and laid a pretty good groundwork to demonstrate the criminality and corruption that been happening. I hold onto some hope that some of Bush's minions might be prosecuted after he's out of office and unable to pardon them.

Right now it seems as though congress will capitulate and give the Telco's immunity.
In the story I read, from the AP, they described it as "bush's Illegal domestic spying program"
Not simply his spy program. The use of the word Illegal is significant I think.


It seems as though most people simply accept that Bush and co are corrupt and incompetant, and that they lied us to war, and that they authorized torture of POW's, and simply accept that they'll get away with it!


However, everything has a tipping point, and I wonder if we're not getting close.
All it would take is something like Pelosi or Reid to change their minds.

We live in interesting times my friend.

This is an age of awareness like none before. We know how the global economy works and who it benefits, who it harms, where it's conscience lies. We know how our political institutions have become (or always were) the pawns of other interests.
We know that we are rapidly depleting this planets ability to sustain life as we know it. We know that the reason that criminal harm inflicted on Giai cotinues because a rich and powerful elite have established systems (which they are determined to keep in place and strengthen) which make it almost impossible for us to break free of current economic practices.
We also know that the whole structure and fabric of our societies cannot possibly last in the face of peak-oil, which will impact pretty much every aspect of our lives.
We3are also aware of many, many other related dangers (fascism and authoritarian governments in the 'free' world, nuclear threats, climate change, out of control inflation, etc, ect).

On top of all that we've got those Mayan calender 2012 predictions, biblical end of world, predictions (to name just 2 that spring to mind) the discovery of some dwarf-star comet thingie (Planet X or Nibiru) that's going to enter out solar system in the next few year sand reek havoc. Oh, and we've got polar shift to contend with.

It strikes me though, that all of this is bringing out the very best in ordinary, every day people like you and me. People are more inclined than ever to lend a hand where it is needed, to get involved and create solutions to our most immediate problems,l to share a smile with a passing stranger, to invest a little of themselves in each other and in the planet earth. The grass-roots actions of ordinary, everyday people is gathering momentum at such a rate there is every reason to believe that, difficult and devastating as many of the challenges we face will be, we will survive and have much to teach and share with future generations.

Hello



Something "big" is happening all the time, is what I reckon. It just depends on whether or not our antennas are open to tapping into the energy of What Is... I think a very good way of tapping into the energy, might be just to go watch a few sunsets and mellow out...

Actually I said that as a figure of speech.
I have been one who for many years now has known that the true nature of life and it's value is in the small things.
Like sunsets, and sunrises, and flowers, and laughing babies, and dogs chasing frisbies, and the way a dragonfly can hang on the air, and the taste of sea spray, and shooting stars, and the patterns in rock formations and thunder storms, and on and on and on.


What I'm refering to in this case is specifically political. The Bush atrocities have gone unavenged for years. The crimes have gone unpunished. There is an unballance, and one thing the Universe does not abide, is unballance. It seems to me as though a rubber band has reached it's breaking point. Maybe not quite that dramatic or quick. Maybe a rubber band in slow motion?

From what I read from you so far, *I* have a feeling that a person of your stature would be very capable of attaining a comprehension of connectedness, of all things relating to each other, and there being no imperfections in this design. The (any) Universe, and universal element, therefore, by definition would be balanced, by that understanding, as they'd be there because without them, there would not be a Universe.

You may be right, there could be something "in the air" on the political plane, and a shift of some sort might be waiting to happen. I hope you *do* have the ability to tap into that energy, because it could be exciting to see the creations sprouting from this shift...

I feel we have been watching the sort of speeding up that may proceed a collapse of some kind.

People, just regular folks have been managed aside from the process, and most put up with it because so far the managed system itself has provided enough. What tends to happen historically when humans try to manage in this way is a process of increasing complexity, then the margin of return from that strategy begins to diminish, and the societies collapse. The speeding up is a frantic effort to deal with the declining margins. The margins in all cases can be grounded in energy, since all life depends on energy transformation. We are seeing a rise in cost of energy which is also related to its declining margin needed for successful management of this sort of system, which of course, depends on growth. Like cancer.

If you were a cancer cell and someone told you what you are doing would eventually kill your host, would you stop what you are doing?

If that's what we are doing, can we?

If you were any kind of cell, which you are, basically, could you stop your natural multiplying, procreational nature?

Yes, thanks to science I can stop the natural multiplication, though I have absolutely no desire to stop the procreational nature.

I'm sure, however, would (and could) you, from a cell's perspective, stop multiplying on your own accord, without the help / use of an external factor such as science, if 'someone' told you you're killing your host? ;-)

That's the same argument I get from the conservatives. Only they use concepts like "free market" to explain the obvious "facts" about individual consumption behavior.

"We don't need no stinkin' gov'mint regulators tellin' us what to do!"

"Gobal warming? You liberals are always running around like chicken little: The sky is falling! The sky is falling!" (Sorry Sky, that was an accident, didn't meant to imply anything )

From the cells perspective, I have no brain, and therefor no ability to know anything other than instinct.
Though I do get your point.

Unfortunately, many people with working brains DO know better, and go right ahead and kill them selves.
Slow Suicide.

Alcoholics that keep drinking even though they pee blood.
Obese people that keep eating even though climbing the three front steps of the house makes their chest hurt.
Smokers that keep on smoking through the tube in their throat.
Motorcyclists and their crotch rockets that speed along with the notion that THEY won't become an instant organ donor.

The list goes on and on.

Fortunately, there are many people like you and me that do our part to save them from them selves.
I'm a WSU Clark County Master Composter/ Waste Reduction Specialist, among other things. In this capacity I teach that you can save lots of money, and in the process, almost as a by product, be an environmental good guy.

I'm thinking of this now globalized neoliberal form of capitalistic, infinite growth society as a whole as a kind of cancer to the biosphere, and telling an individual he or she is participating in the destruction of the biosphere.

I find it weird that there is so much resistance to something that seems obvious to me. And thus I recognize what I see isn't what everyone else sees. And then I come to this problem: what if I'm right? We are all together killing our host?

I see the planet as a living organism, and we live as part of that organism.
So yes, when we harm the planet, clearly we are harming ourselves as well.

Unfortunately, most human beings see them selves apart and seperate from the world, and as such, the world is theirs to control and to dominate and to take from in anyway they can imagine. Trying to get most people to think of the planet as a living being, and all living things as well as all people are just part of that living organism, they'll look at you like yer some kind of wacked out liberal high on mushrooms!

There you go!

Now maybe you can see how I came upon this notion of telling a cancer cell it's going to kill itself by killing it's host, and wondering if we are any different. I mean, are we really any different in the sense of being conscious enough at a group organizational level to act in a ways that can avoid disasters.


What would that take? I wonder...

a disaster.

(sigh) yeah, that's kind of how I see it.

Come on guys, buck Up!!! Yes Sky, there are days, even hours when I feel that a giant flyswatter is about to hit all of us and knock us right upside our collective heads! We humans always embrace the best and worst of times almost at the exact same instance! Look at the Book, Tale of Two Cities!

Yes, there is a lot of sh#t! going on and from the perspective I been reading, it's got all of us with a screaming case of the heebie-jeebies!! But, take a look at your favorite person in the world. Do they not make you smile and have your heart melt when they come into a room! Love does conquor all! Go pet a dog or a cat, make love to someone you really care about. Watch a movie that will either make you cry or laugh, better yet, in keeping with the theme I'm trying to draw out, see a movie that will cause you to do both, laugh and cry!!

I know we do not know much about each other on this site, but know that I enjoy reading things from you guys, even if it scares me or makes me angry...know your lives do matter to me and I look forward to reading things from you all. I think in the coming years we're going to need each other to help each other get through the rough times which I think may be ahead of us. I hope some of you feel that way about me as well!

I'm an optomist Toons.
I'm not worried. Everything is happening just as it should.

Conservatives told me too that I am ridiculous for having an equal / similar regard for a plant's life as I have for my own life. I nurture flowers and plants as I nurture my child. I do not feel superior to a plant in any way. Plants turn toxic carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen. If not for plants, we could not be here. So yes, they deserve my utter respect, as well as my utmost to make sure they are nurtured and watered. Also, this, to me, is an example of how All really *is* One. If we hurt our flora, we hurt the planet, thus ourselves.

But I'm not convinced it's the same as telling a cancerous cell it's killing its host. The cell is doing what it is designed to do. It is there, because the host summoned it there, on some level, it doesn't *just* appear out of thin air. Are humans doing what they're designed to do? And is an effect of that the downfall of our host? If so, are humans then but a pawn in a game on a larger scheme?

Also, I'm not convinced it would take a disaster to bring awareness. We've already had so many disasters, and still, things are the way they are. Small things may have changed, but the general problem is still here. I believe it's because people still do not believe in Oneness, they still live their lives according to their sense of separatism, even though science is now backing up what new agers and spiritual teachers have been saying for many, many years. If you think about separatism, you may see how the effects of that could lead to our current situation, and basically, most of our situations throughout history.

It doesn't take a disaster, it takes a miracle... ;-)

Usha, I'm not a very wise person nor am I a very deep person in the philosophic sense. I have no great theories about the universe, or being one with everything. I have to put things into a common ordinary way to make sense of this thing called life. The best way to comment on what you and and Sky are writing about is from the movie, "It's a Wonderful Life." When George Bailey realized how his life affected others, it helped me to realize that each and everyone of us is affected and effected by others. We do not live in a vacuum, everything is interconnected, from Zuzu's petals, to having an ill timed conversation by phone with another. For every action there is a reaction that I believe spreads like the ripple in lake, everything and everybody is touched by a "ripple affect" of actions and thoughts by others. I guess thats the power we have as human beings,and I think the great thinkers of the human race have had the same notion but in a far more profound way and have been better able to write and talk about it than I.

Life is precious in all its myriad forms and its a mystery how we all are connected to it from the moment of conception to our last breath on earth. I like being involved with the mystery though, even if I cannot figure it out or have the ability to discuss it at great length, life is a great adventure and its a gift to coin a phrase, that keeps on giving! My belief is that at the center of the ripple is GOD, or Prime Mover, or Budda, or what ever you may call it. That Author is what keeps the substance flowing outward to us and back to its source from us!

I like this part of the site, I don't feel like I'm being judged by my ability to be logical or not logical, I kinda feel that this "watercooler" part of the forum is place to listen to ones heart and place that heart with rhythm of others hearts.Thanks!

Toons is quite correct about that "ripple effect."

That's why we are active the way we are. That's why I'm here on this forum, with over 27,000 posts. Because we become the makers of ripples.

Another analogy I have used is that of Johnny Appleseed, in that I go around planting seeds, and without waiting to see if it grows, I move on to plant other seeds, and so on. I do it at work all the time. I'll make a statement about political reality, and let the person that asked me the question in the first place think about it on their own. The point is, I don't want to educate anybody! I can't! 1st, that's not my job and 2nd, ya can't educate anybody that doesn't wanna be educated. And those that do, don't need me. They will find the answers because now they are looking. And that's what I'm trying to do when I plant seeds. Like the car window graphics I made.

http://www.oldamericancentury.org/bb/index...7&hl=window

People would ask them selves, and several asked me, what the hell is the PNAC? I replied, go home and Google it!. The point is, it caused them to ask questions, or even ask just one question. If they did go home and google PNAC, there is no way they could get through that without realizing a few things, and having even more questions. And thus begins the process of self education.

The person that seeks the answer to a question, is paying attention to the answer. If you try to tell someone what the truth is, most don't hear you. So, keep on making ripples. That's the most effective way to be pro-active and make a difference. The only draw back is that you rarely get the instant gratification from seeing your success.

Toons,



Absolutely agreed about the ripples in the water-effect. I've read some of your posts, and I believe you are wise. Wisdom doesn't solely stem from being a great thinker (although I believe you might be a greater thinker than you yourself believe you are ) nor from being able to write it down, talk about it, or being "profound" about it... But that's just my opinion!



Very true. In addition, I'd like to suggest that the lake which makes the ripples become a reality, the source of the ripples and the ripples itself, are One and the same force. Much like little beams of sunlight are also a part of the Sun, it's one giant force of energy.

I believe this is also why Sky has a feeling! If humanity *is* the energy, than we can also tap into the same energy on another level.

Sky,

Excellent!

I haven't read all of this thread yet so I apologies if I'm repeating anyone, but when I read this post and wanted to comment.

You see, I don't believe we are a cancer. Far from it!
The systems by which we live, those prescribed long before we were born into this lifetime, cause our activity on the Earth to be detramental, as a cancer would be, to our host. But our systems are not what we are, and so we do have the ability to change how we impact our host.
As you rightly, I believe, point out Ren, there is a systemic collapse in progress and that is what gives us, as creative beings, the opportunity we need (should we take it!) to formulate systems which will allow us to live in harmony with our host and with all those other life-forms she sustains.

I've just completed a weekend course called 'Training for Transition' (connected to the Transition Towns movement you introduced me to (I still can't thank you enough for that!! )). I can honestly say it was the most inspirational, encouraging, enlightening two days I've ever spent!

The act of simply connecting to other people from around the north of the country, feeling their energy and recognising their commitment to creating/developing sustainable living practices and to encouraging, empowering and enabling all members of their local communities to do the same was extraordinary!
That the whole idea (and energy) behind this great movement of people is inclusive, respectful, nurturing and 'whole thinking' to coin a phrase, helped me to see more clearly than ever that we wont always live as we do today, that we really can stop destroying our host. And not just 'can' but, I (now) believe(!), WILL.


And now I'll continue reading the thread.

To continue from my previous post, I think this must be just about the best thread I've ever read in here! Thank you! So much is being said that resonates with me, much of it very profoundly! The energy that surrounded me this weekend still surounds me this Monday, thanks largely to the nature of this discussion.

I've been saying for a while now that we are 'energetic creators' (as well as physical), with all that that implies.
Sky, from now on I'm going to be saying 'we are the makers of our ripples'!

Thank you all. I'm happy and encouraged to share a planet (and this very remarkable time) with you!



Toons, it's a pleasure to have you around.



Beautifully put, Usha!

Isn't it wonderful that Sky started this thread with a Feeling that might not be good, and now, all of us are in a feeling that things will get better, change is possible, it may be painful, just like childbirth must be painful, but through the pain....we have a New Life, and new life is hope and you know that old expression, "hope springs eternal."

Bravo, Folks! We can overcome, we can cope, we can grow, through our tears we will see another day, the tears will wash us clean and focus our communal energy to smile and work for a better tomorrow.Community, respect, love I believe that should be our calling!

Toons,



No offense intended in your direction in any way, shape or form, but believe me, if they're going to drag a melon out through the eye of a needle using a vacuum pump, and you're body is starring as the needle, you really want to beat up the person who says: "Hope springs eternal."



Beautiful! Inspiring, wise, soothing and energetic.

Karen, the argument that goes with my comment is this: humans use cultural systems to adapt to their environment. It's therefore the systems we employ that will determine whether we are a cancer or not. We have a choice, once we realize that. We can observe our cultural systems and what they are doing to the planet. Cancers can't really do that. But potentially we can. Thus we can then potentially evaluate and change our cultural system from one that is based on infinite growth and consumption of everything our clever little minds can devise, to cultural systems that are in harmony with the biospheric processes that we also recognize through our abilities are what make life possible. Some people, however, argue that we can't. That the best solutions are determined by free market capitalism.

Do you see what I'm driving at here?

Human beings themselves aren't cancers, but it turns out we can evolve cultural systems that may be.

Oh, I absolutely see what you're driving at, Ren, and I see the reality of what you're saying.
I know that I tend to over-emphasize the positive aspects of being human - I guess because I'm deeply invested/involved in them - but I do also see the dangers of our situation.

You're quite right in suggesting our cultural (and economic) systems are, basically, cancerous. And one very real danger that we face right now is that so many of us don't even question these systems, never mind challenge them! Also there are many others think/believe that we have no alternative but to continue to pursue economic growth while yet more have vested interest in maintaining the free market system as it is, no matter the cost!
Personally, I find it absolutely incredulous that some people cannot envision our existence beyond the systems that we currently live by, but the fact is those people are out there and in great numbers than I like to acknowledge.
It's true that we have got a huge task on our hands to turn such thinking around and to address the (many and massive) imperfections in our current systems and to develop new ones which allow us to live in harmony with/on this finite and spectacular planet.
But I think it is also true that every day more and more people are waking up to the facts that, not only should we change our systems, but also that we CAN develop alternatives.
It seems to me that, as a species, we are in varying stages of wakefulness. - While some sleep soundly, with no sense of danger, others woke to the dangers long ago and already preparing the way for those who are only now waking up.

The question is, are we moving quickly enough to mitigate the dangers we face/create? My answer to that is I honestly don't know! I think it could go either way right now. But that's why I'm doing all I can to facilitate the changes we need to make on a broad scale, with the help of a wonderful bunch of people I'm now involved with at Transition Towns. (Did I ever thank you for sending me that link to them??? ) - It's SO GOOD to be involved with a bunch of pro-active people in my own city and accross the country! Seriously Ren, I can't thank you enough!!!

I'm really happy you have this opportunity, karen. I hope it spreads, I know from experiencing it that your energy is an important element added to it. Positive energy is infectious, just as negative energy is.

I do my negative energy bit in hopes of cracking some egg shells. I try to talk to people directly, and it's difficult to get across that changing a dangerous paradigm involves action on their part, not complaining... at least with many of those I get to talk to it seems difficult. But change itself is difficult to imagine. Those people you've connected with in these transitional communities, they are this era's courageous "pioneers." The frontier is right there in Liverpool.

The elites involved in the accumulating wealth paradigm aren't ever the slightest bit interested. Unfortunately they predominate at the level of setting policies.

Spreading Transition Culture

Three short films about Transition in New Zealand

Excellent stuff !

You see, I believe in interconnectedness between events / happenings as much as I believe in interconnectedness between people. I don't know what the reason is, but everything in my "gut" is telling me that there's a reason why my life is the way it is, on this particular moment, and that I wasn't supposed to be anywhere else, or I would be. What if the state of humanity / this planet is exactly as it should be?

You see, I believe humanity has all the answers it claims to be seeking. I believe the answers have been given to us so many times, that we've become immune or something. Or maybe just incapable of listening. I don't think it's Bush's fault, or the neocons, or the rightwingers, or Americans, or Iraqis, or the Whatchamacallits.

It's either all of us. Unless it's none of us.

Personally, I wonder if this global awakening you're talking about has anything to do with the state of the world as we perceive it. The only reason why we're sucking this planet dry, is because we are sucking ourselves dry. In that regard, we are cancerous. Note that 'cancer' isn't necessarily a bad thing. People born under the fourth sign of the zodiac are also called Cancer. Cancer (as in a tumor) can also be seen as being on the brink of enlightenment, healing, change. Some societies do view it that way. Just as other societies believe that one's soul is incompletely as soon as they're faced with sickness. And of course, our self-proclaimed "civilisation" believes that cancer is sheer evil.

*If* we are a cancer (and by 'we', one can also read our systems, structures etc) then 'we' also have the power to overcome it. I just don't know if we 'overcome' it by the grace of All Which Is (call it God, Universe, pick any name that tickles your fancy) or if there's something that we ought to be doing. After working with people who have cancer (terminal stages) a lot, I know that they're mostly being.

Maybe the emphasis is too much on "We need to ACT, DO, etc." And on the other hand, there's been a lot of action on this planet. What if it's more simple than that...?

What if all we have to "do" is... just be...?

"Sometimes nothing is a real cool hand." Cool Hand Luke

FYI,


I plant fruit trees.

I live in a mobile park, so my space isn't big. But so far I have 3 small apple trees. I plant one a year.
The idea is that when these trees are fully mature, eventually I'll be gone.
But maybe, hopefully the trees will still be here.

Hmmm. I don't understand this.

Usha, the quote comes from the character Cool Hand Luke, which is also the name of the movie, Cool Hand was played by Paul Newman. I believe the quote refers to playing a hand of cards.

Super, thanks Toons!
Now I have to figure out the relation between the quote and the topic at hand...

Sky,

Yes, I hear what you're saying. We've registered for a plot of land for recreation and for growing stuff on. My primary intention was to solely plant flowers. You see, I'd like to make the world look pretty. If that's the only thing I'll do for this world in my current capacity, then that is a life well spent, in my opinion. But now that the forms are filled out, and the land is awaiting us as its new tenants, some trees and fruit and veg seem like a pretty decent idea as well. Also, I want to start baking bread from scratch myself. Plus, I brought a child into this world, who will hopefully have a future ahead of her, that allows her to pick the fruits of our labour in the presence... a labour that is rooted in self-sufficience, even whilst living in a very big, crowded and polluted city, with shops in every street...

I believe the purpose of this life for me, is to detach from materialism. That might be my soul's biggest accomplishment.

Usha, you offered a cycle of contradicting options that end with the conclusion:

What if all we have to "do" is... just be...?


So I said:



Luke didn't try to be cool. Luke was just Luke. But he was idolized for just being Luke.

Yeah, sometimes I really do love thread drift.



Luke was idolized for being Luke, this is true. But what was it about Luke that caused people to idolize him?

The little guy fighting against the machine. We can all relate.
The little guy standing up for what's right. We all wish we could be that noble.
The little guy, squashed like a bug for not going along to get along. Again, we can all relate.


It's what I felt like where i work, as the "token liberal" during the Bush years, highlighted by 9/11.
I had to make a choice between being liked, and being who and what I know I am.

So much so that when the song in that video came out, I took it as my personal theme.

I may or may not have many people around me, but when I am alone in my quiet times,
I truly like the company that I keep.

After all these years now, I'm pretty sure I made the better choice.

Just like Luke did.




Singer Songwriter Harry Nielson once wrote the score for an animated movie.
The most well known song was "Me and My Arrow"
There's a quote from that movie that has always been with me, a quote that says the same thing as that famous Cool Hand Luke Quote.


You don't have to have a point, to have a point. (The Point)




Can you see the similarity with the movie Cool Hand Luke?

Do you wanna see the whole movie???


Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Part 4


Part 5


Part 6


Part 7


Part 8




Be yourself, and you might just like who you really are.

I was reading Sky's comment and the thought struck me... what is my theme song, then to futher think, I wonder what other's theme songs might be? I would love to hear what others theme songs might be!! I think that could be a "window into our souls" so to speak!

My Theme Song is: The Impossible Dream from the Musical Man of LaMancha, I really like the version song by Andy Williams! Yea, I know I'm dating myself again!!! But to me the words reflect what I think about the kind of person I would like to be, "to fight for the right, without question or pause, to be willing to march into hell on a heavenly cause". That just sends chills up my spine when I sing it and tears to my eyes when I try to live it!!

Superman, 5 for Fighting.

I don't have a particular theme song, As soon as I work through a thematic event in my life, I would then have to search for a new song. I do have songs that speak to me.

'Just BE' is a phrase I use as one of my personal reminders... It kind of helps me catch up with myself when things get hectic.

I really like your thinking here Usha. It very much matches my own. And active as I am in my effort to bring about changes in so many aspects of 'our' modes of being I don't doubt that we're all just where we need to be, doing just what we need to be doing. Not that I don't get myself into a state because we're not doing enough! - Yes, i contradict myself often. That's why I use phrases like 'just be' to get myself caught up!


I'm not sure that it's relevant, but today I've had the whole morning to myself, just to wind down and breathe. I've got in the habit of writing 'to do' list just lately, so I don't forget stuff and today I wrote one that I really like:
1. Approach life with an open mind, an open heart and open eyes.
2. Remember to breathe.



I planter a few apple pips last summer. Five came up and two have survived and become little baby trees. Trouble is, now I have nowhere to plant them. I'll find somewhere though.. somewhere they will be left in peace to grow.



Ren,
I don't think you realise just how much of an inspiration you are to me - your energy, that is. I've never once seen you as being negative in energy or in words. Yes, sometimes you address the negative aspects of human impact on this planet, but that in itself isn't negative, and neither is the energy you generate when you speak/write of such things.
Just wanted to make sure you knew that.


Oh yes, theme songs! Like Usha, mine change as my life changes. A theme musician on the other hand - Van the Man! (the Astra Weeks album is replete with themes!)

Most of the music in my life connects me to the various times in my life.
Music is like a road map, and individual songs are the road signs.

Thanks, karen, it helps in some undefinable way to get that back once in awhile. I really don't want to hurt anyone.

Ren, I don't think you have to worry about offending anybody, you seem like a very class act woman, with alot of smarts, I've read your threads and your DEEP, sometimes, I really have too read them several times to understand what your saying, buts thats okay...I'm older and it takes time sometimes for things to get through this brain of mine....I like what you say and the same goes with Usha, Karen, antifey, Jack and of course SKY!!! Oh, I forgot Pete and Seuss you guys have some smarts going for you as well!!!!

I will speak only for myself, even though it applies to everyone.
You can't hurt me, unless I decide to let you.