Bed

Life is always a tightrope or a feather bed. Give me the tightrope.

~ Edith Wharton

- - - - -

I think that to Lily every bed is a dog bed.

Longing

Maybe when people longed for a thing that bad the longing made them trust in anything that might give it to them.

~ Carson McCullers

- - - - - 

I recently read The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. I love southern writers. I haven't read as much of her work as some other, but I like what I have read so far. She is an excellent writer.

I think I can kind of understand what she is saying in this particular quote. What I can't understand is why these half-women collectibles exist.

Exit

 

Leave other people to themselves. You have enough to worry about.

~ Ryan Holiday

- - - - -

Or maybe, leave other people to themselves. You have nothing to worry about. 

(pause)

Maybe that is really profound. Let's pretend it is. Or I will. And you... you, I'll leave to yourselves.

Art

The most regretful people on earth are those who felt the call to create work, who felt their own creative power restive and uprising, and gave to it neither power nor time.

~ Mary Oliver

- - - - -

I think the most regretful people on earth are the ones who accidentally step on dead birds in brand-new socks.

Storytelling

The purpose of a storyteller is not to tell you how to think, but to give you questions to think upon.

~ Brandon Sanderson

- - - - -

Sometimes those questions are, "What is life all about?" or "Am I good person?" or "Do I appreciate enough beauty as I go through each day?"

Sometimes those questions are, "Is someone breaking into my house right now?" or "I don't think I believe in ghosts, but what if they're real?"

Sometimes those questions are, "I'm a much better person than the protagonist in that story, right? Right?!!!"

It depends on the storyteller.

Dogs

Dogs own space and cats own time.

~ Nicola Griffith

- - - - -

I don't think that dogs care about time. Well, other than having a good time. Maybe that's a good way to care about time. At least if you are inherently kind and have a lot of unconditional love to give. 

 

Squirrel

Biologists recognize no known species of all-white squirrels in the world. The Brevard white squirrels, with dark eyes and sometimes gray streaked fur, are not albinos but a white variant of the eastern gray squirrel, and make up almost a third of Brevard's squirrel population.

~ Brevard, NC Official Website

- - - - -

Lily chases squirrels, but she doesn't always see them run up trees. She gets a bit confused sometimes. 

Then she sees a bird or butterfly and shifts gears.

She is an expert at pivoting. 

Flowery

False teachers of the Way of life use flowery words.

~ Bruce Lee

- - - - -

My dad used to say, "A rose, is a rose, is a rose. It doesn't matter what you cauliflower." You'd think that I wouldn't realize how that last word was spelled because he was saying it and not writing it, but you don't know my dad. I'm sure he said "cauliflower" -- ask Kirk if you don't believe that this is true.

Bathrooms

The kitchen. The bathroom. The yin and yang of the household.

~ David C. Holley

- - - - -

So, I watch a lot of home makeover shows. I like them. I also read a lot of real estate listings. I like them. Anyway, how come on so many of those shows people ask for a "bathroom sanctuary"? Whether you define that as a holy place or a place of safety, it seems weird that it would be a bathroom. I'd like to have a basement sanctuary. Or maybe a wildlife sanctuary - though if it was one of those, I probably wouldn't be allowed to live there.
 

Broken

A group is a bunch of people in an elevator. A team is a bunch of people in an elevator, but the elevator is broken.

~ Bonnie Edelstein

- - - - -

An angry mob is a bunch of people in an elevator, but the elevator is broken, and three of the people have fetid flatulence.

Learning

A friend once spotted Marcus [Aurelius] out on an errand. "What are you doing?" he asked. 

"It is good even for an old man to learn," Marcus replied. "I am now on my way to Sextus the philosopher to learn what I do not yet know." It was a stunning scene, particularly after a parade of so many close-minded and ignorant emperors.

"O, Zeus," his friend exclaimed, "The king of the Romans in his old age takes up his tablets and goes to school." 

~ The Daily Stoic

- - - - - 

I'm glad that guy's name was "SextUS" and not just "Sext" otherwise, this story sends a different kind of message.
 

Steps

Well-being is realized by small steps but is no small thing.

~ Zeno

- - - - -

I think maybe we should listen to kids about what life should involve. I think they would say life should be about "Adventures, playing, being around people you like, eating things you like, and puppies." 

(pause)

We might have to impose a few things like bedtime and bathing. That shouldn't be a problem. Kids are not the bosses of us. 

Words

The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter - 'tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning.

~ Mark Twain

- - - - -

The robots who write social media don't always make sense. The quote above for example - as opposed to those who have happily died.

 

Hawk

The hawk was everything I wanted to be: solitary, self-possessed, free from grief, and numb to the hurts of human life.

~ Helen Macdonald

- - - - -

"Lily watched the hawk like a hawk," Leslie said.

Once again, Leslie showed she was wiser than I. Lily too, for that matter.

 

Blur

In the blur of the photograph, time leaves it gleaming, snail-like track. 

~ Wright Morris

- - - - -

Lily is a very nice dog. She loves everyone. She loves me. I know this photo is blurry, but love is a little bit blurry, too. You remember it with soft edges. At least the good part. Maybe it's more jagged and sharp on the sides when love hurts. I just suggest focusing on the good love. 

See what I did there with the word "focus"? Hahahahahahahahahaha.

Reflection

Reflective thinking turns experience into insight.

~ John C. Maxwell

- - - - -

I believe that when dogs reflect they think, "Yes, I must do more of what I have been doing. I love that stuff." 

 

Food

Fine words do not produce food.

~ Nigerian Proverb

- - - - -

The other day a thing popped up on "internalized cannibalism." I was unfamiliar with the concept, so I started to read the list. Something didn't seem quite right -- and by that I mean something beyond the idea of "cannibalism" itself. 

Then I realized the list was about items related to "internalized capitalism." Not the same.

(pause)

Or maybe it is. I didn't finish reading the list. 

P.S. if you type the word "eading" instead of "reading" it autocorrects to "eating" which is particularly funny in a post referencing cannibalism.

Relaxed

I don't have anything to prove anymore. I can relax.

~ Paloma Picasso

- - - - -

What if we went through our entire lives without anything to prove? We could, I suppose. Most of us aren't willing. I imagine that is because of what it would do to our bread.

Numbers

I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done.

~ Steven Wright

- - - - -

I was sick for a few days recently. A couple of people checked in on me. I told them both I was better, but not quite recovered. I wrote one and said, "I'm not quite 10%, yet." I wrote the other and said, "I'm not quite 109%, yet." I probably should have been resting and not texting.

Night

I like the night. Without the dark, we'd never see the stars.

~ Stephanie Meyer

- - - - -

When does night end and morning begin? Is it just after midnight? Is it when the sun starts to rise? 

Nevermind. The truth is, I don't care what you think about this topic.
 

State

Beauty fades. Dumb is forever.

~ Judge Judy

- - - - -

"From Iowa."

 

Dogs

When the dog looks at you, the dog is not thinking what kind of person you are. The dog is not judging you.

~ Eckhart Tolle

- - - - -
 

What if the love of a dog is just Stockholm Syndrome?

Darkness

The darkness declares the glory of the light.

~ T. S. Eliot

- - - - -

It is hard to navigate hard times. Things can seem bleak and dark and heavy. But the next day could be better. Maybe you will find a quarter on the ground. Or maybe you will think a new thought that will give you hope. Or maybe you will think of an old memory that will make you smile.

When people ask you "What is your story?" do you want to tell the story of how you stayed in the darkness or the story of how you danced in the light? Or the story of "Good Country People" by Flannery O'Connor? If it's that last one, let me know so I can hear you tell it. I like that story.

Color

It's okay to show all your colors.

~ Luis Guzman

- - - - - 

People who color outside the lines are crayotic.

Curtains

Behind the curtain's mystic fold

The glowing future lies unrolled

~ Neil Gaiman

- - - - -

Apparently, "it's curtains for you" come from stage plays when he curtain closes at the end of the play. However, if the play is awful, then you're glad when it's curtains. 

Or if it is Jane Curtain and some of her relatives. And if Jane Curtain and her relatives are nice then "It's Curtains for you" when your friend answers the door, well, that could be exciting and a pleasant surprise.

Language is fun.

Mom

Part of adulthood is searching for the people who understand you.

~ Hanya Yanagihara

- - - - -

I have been thinking about searching for my birth mother. 

I'm not adopted. She just keeps hiding from me.

Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

~ Attributed to a lot of people

- - - - -

No.

Paper is edible too, I suppose, but I'm not drinking your paper lemonade either, Lucretia.
 

Died

 

Sunflowers

We're all golden sunflowers inside.

~ Alan Ginsburg

- - - - -

If that were true it might make surgery easier, but you'd probably need both a surgeon AND a botanist, so I doubt that it would cut the medical costs.
 

Clarity

It's a rather rude gesture, but at least it's clear what you mean.

~ Katherine Hepburn

- - - - -

I think it is a good idea to pay attention to non-verbals and things left unsaid. They can communicate a lot. I'm not saying that you shouldn't try to communicate better, but sometimes silence is the best way to make your point. Plus, when you're silent I have more airtime to make my point.