The Sunday Morning Muse, December 30, 2007

"We're poor, but H and R Block gave us some money." Jimmy, age 7, overheard in a store.

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I've been giving some thought to buying a computer or maybe a laptop. The income tax checks are the next thing to really look forward to, and if I come across a deal perhaps I'll go for it, and be able to pay it off just like that!

It's funny how a seven year old's view of the world is really not so far off target. I have always thought of the income tax check as "free" money. Not money withheld from me all year that I could have had a little at a time all along, but, in a sense a "Christmas club" kind of check that used to arrive in the mail just at about the time I was tapped out with winter heating bills and such.

Art Bell to Host Annual New Year's Shows

Here's some good news. Art Bell, who retired from Coast to Coast AM this past year, plans to host the show Sunday night Dec. 30 and Monday night December 31st for a two part annual prediction show. Refer here to my postings on last year's show.

The fun part is when he takes caller predictions from this past year, 2007, and determines if they came true --- giving them DINGS and BONKS. Then callers are allowed one prediction a piece and he keeps a compilation for the following year to see what came true.

You can review some predictions from the website.

If you are an insomniac or are up really early.... flip around the AM dial. You are sure to catch it somewhere.

We'll Tak' a Cup o' Kindness Yet, for Auld Lang Syne

I've sung at least part of the song dozens of times but until last night I did not know what Auld Lang Syne meant.

wikipedia:

Auld lang syne literally means "old long since"—but a more idiomatic English translation would be something like "long long ago", "days of long ago", "in olden days", or even "once upon a time".

Holiday Wishes from Me and Sweet Pea

List of Top 10 Lists for 2007

Here is a link to Time Magazine's list of 50 Top 10 Lists. I skimmed a few.... and it's amazing how my awareness and connection to things other people feel are important, is drifting into the mystic. Number one song? Rehab, by Amy Winehouse? I clicked on the Youtube video and watched it. If this is the best our culture can do we are in serious trouble. That's all I'm sayin'.
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The number one Fashion Must-Have is the Tent Dress pictured above. I wouldn't be caught dead in that dress. Or even at work.
Hell, maybe like the 8 or so men's size large teeshirts I have around the house, I can always sleep in it.
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Under the Top 10 Religion Stories of the year, the elimination of Limbo didn't even make the list. Imagine that. Just goes to show you that some people aren't even paying attention.
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When you read a few of the other lists, I can't help thinking the following. As Former Representative James Traficant used to say.... Beam me up Scotty.

Sunday Morning Muse, December 23, 2007

I put a coin sorter type device on my Christmas list this year. No, it's not a 36 inch digital TV, that's on the list, too. However no one is going to buy me that anyway. Ahem. I can go out and buy a coin sorter myself very easily, and probably may end up doing that if no one buys it for me this year--but that, to me kind of defeats the purpose. It makes no sense to buy a coin sorter to count up all your coins, in hopes of having a little "found money" to spend, if you spend that money first buying the damn coin sorter.

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This old guy from Indiana actually bought a $25,000 dollar truck with the coins he saved over 13 years. Imagine that. Hell, I'd be lucky to be able to buy a new pair of winter boots with my coin money, but hey, I'll enjoy them far more than seeing the jars of coins in the bottom of my closet taking up space now.

God Bless Us Everyone! -- Tiny Tim

The sick little boy with the beautiful voice..... what was the matter with him? Livescience has a great piece speculating about what actually ailed Tiny Tim. Kidney disease? Rickets? Internist Dr. Daniel J. Glunk, president-elect of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, examines the theories.

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Trivia:

How Small We Are, How Little We Know... is the title of an album of songs sung by Richard Beaumont... the Tiny Tim shown above--who starred in the Albert Finney version of Scrooge. (My favorite version)

The Shortest Day

And so the Shortest Day came and the year died
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive.
And when the new year's sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, revelling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us - listen!
All the long echoes, sing the same delight,
This Shortest Day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And now so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
Welcome Yule!

--The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper

May the Darkness Illuminate the Light

It is still the longest night as I write this missive. Today is the first day of Winter and the days will slowly get longer.

I was privledged to get a chance to walk a meditative labyrinth at dusk. Labyrinths have been around for over 4000 years, and take various forms.

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I was struck by the complexity, as I had never seen one. Some people don't know the difference between a labyrinth and a maze. You actually walk into and out of a labyrinth through the pattern. I immediately wanted to know more about the origins of this particular one I walked which was based on the one at the Cathedral on Chartres, France:

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link

One of the most famous aspects of the cathedral in Chartres is the spectacular rose window over the great west doors. It has the same dimensions as the labyrinth and is exactly the same distance up the west wall as the labyrinth is laterally from the cathedral's main entrance below the window. An imaginary cosmic hinge located where the doors and floor intersect would, if closed, place the rose window directly on top of the labyrinth, thus the sparkling, colored light of the window and the darkness of the labyrinthine pilgrimage are combined.

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Walking a labyrinth is a deeply personal experience. You can clear your mind completely, or recite a mantra to yourself, or go into the walk thinking about a problem that troubles you. I used my walk to reflect on the need for Peace in my life. The War, the partisanship, the religious conflicts going on.... I wanted to keep myself open to anything that would guide me to a more peaceful way of dealing with life in the coming year.

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It takes about 10 minutes to walk at a casual pace to the center of the labyrinth. At the center is a special place that you may want to spend time reflecting or praying or doing whatever you feel compelled to do at the moment. A change occurs after that. Whereas going into the labyrinth you meditate on the problem.... on the way out you open yourself up to receiving a solution.

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At some point during my walk back out, the words of St. Francis of Assisi entered my head. A poem I had read again and again in my life, but it had been a long time since I read it. I didn't quite remember much of it other than the first few lines.... Lord, make me an instrument of thy Peace.

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Be a peacemaker, in other words. That's what I got out of my 20 minute walk in and out of the labyrinth. Don't go looking for peace. Help create it.

As We Begin the Holiday Season. . .

This is a great message right now. Thank you Suki for sharing it with me. It speaks volumes. I searched around to find out the explanation for the various symbols that make up the COEXIST bumper sticker. Here goes:

(from www.stampandshout.org)

Every letter has a symbol that represents a system of thought: The crescent and star for Islam; the pentagram for Wicca; the relativity formula for science; the star of David for Judaism; the Karma Wheel dotting the i for Buddhism; the Tao symbol for Taoism; the cross for Chrisitianity.