About Wyrd Smythe
The canonical fool on the hill watching the sunset and the rotation of the planet and thinking what he imagines are large thoughts.
Those of us in parts of the country that experience snow and ice and sub-zero temperatures have had a very tough winter this year! As we dig ourselves out from under the covers, it’s nice to finally begin to enjoy the coming summer (despite the chilly Minnesota days this past week of May).
In an email to a friend in Southern California I was bemoaning the awful weather, and she wrote back to remind me that they have their own share of devastating weather. They, too, have suffered under the cruel lash of Mother Nature. My friend kindly sent me the photo you see here illustrating the horrific damage done to their outdoor deck due to a passing west coast storm this past month. Fortunately, once the storm passed, they were able to leave the shelter of their home and begin to set things right again.
It really makes you cherish what you have and reminds us not to take life for granted!
4 Comments | tags: awful weather, funny, humor, rain, Southern California, storms | posted in From My Collection
If you read my Disclaimer you know I’m a little uncomfortable with awards. They are obviously very pleasing to receive, and I appreciate the social aspects involved, but I just find I have somewhat mixed feelings. That said, sometimes I’ve been awarded by a blogger I know and regard, and it’s very hard to be my usually curmudgeonly self.
And given that my nominator, the blogger artist Sheikah on Dark Link/Light Link is one of those young people who gives me hope for the future, I cannot turn my back. In particular this young lady is smart, educated and capable, and if there’s anything I revere in people it’s those very qualities.
So let’s get to it: some Liebster Award fun!
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10 Comments | tags: Alan Dean Foster, Captain Kirk, Captain Picard, David Brin, Hamlet, Kenneth Branagh, octarine, Robert Parker, Spenser, Stephen R. Donaldson, Terry Pratchett | posted in Life
I’m surprised that, despite writing in a lot of comments about how — and if — the world is changing, I’ve never actually written a post about it. I suppose it’s implicit in some of the things I’ve explored, but I’ve never focused on it directly. That’s odd because it’s a key topic of interest, and I’ve always intended to get into it here.
Maybe I tend to avoid it because, as a misanthropic aging curmudgeon, I basically think the world is going seriously downhill, and that’s not a point of view most people want to hear about. And to be honest, it can be hard to separate out stuff I don’t like from stuff I think isn’t good. This is, in part, a search for objective criteria (and comment).
Premise: The world has changed, in many ways for the worse.
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19 Comments | tags: change, changes, changing world, communications, Ecclesiastes 1, global village, Marshall McLuhan, movie violence, TV violence | posted in Life, Opinion
Not too long ago my buddy and I happened to talk about how film maker David Lynch turned the book, Dune, into a movie. We’ve discussed it a number of times over the years; we both give it a low score (for reasons), but we also agree the book is a really tough film assignment. What makes me wonder is how, channel surfing that very evening, I stumble on the Lynch film just starting.
More recently, a chain of thought led to thinking about overly pragmatic people (of the sort many would consider ruthless). That sparked a memory of a Justice League of America story about how Batman completely alienates his teammates on the JLA when they find out he has files analyzing their weaknesses and describing ways to take them down. But what makes me wonder is how, channel surfing that very evening, I stumble on an animated movie based on that storyline.
And the thing is: coincidences like this happen to me a lot!
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6 Comments | tags: 11:11, agnostic, agnosticism, Albert Einstein, atheism, coincidence, coincidences, David Lynch, deism, Dune, Frank Herbert, gnosticism, God, miracles, theism, water stain | posted in Life, Religion
You sometimes hear the quote, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” It’s most frequently attributed to Albert Einstein although it is sometimes attributed to Benjamin Franklin or author Rita Mae Brown.
None of them said any such thing. And poor Albert, he gets more silly quotes (incorrectly) attributed to him than anyone else. I suppose the idea is that, if Einstein said it, it must be right. I’m not sure the actual author is known, but the quote is commonly found in Alcoholics (and others) Anonymous where it references the repeated addictive behavior.
I’ve always thought the insane thing was the quote itself.
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19 Comments | tags: Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, David Brin, insanity, Lawrence Kubie, Rita Mae Brown., sanity, science fiction, Sundiver, The Practice Effect, Uplift universe | posted in Brain Bubble, Quotes
Spring!
The Earth.
Ever looping, ever spinning,
Passes a point.
Spring!
·
The Sun.
Ever higher, ever warmer,
Melts all the snow.
Spring!
·
The World.
Ever turning, ever changing,
Brings forth fresh life.
Spring!
·
Winter’s silence fades.
Birds sing, life renews.
A new year begins.
Spring!
⊥
∇
18 Comments | tags: birds, equinox, melting snow, poems, poetry, snow, spring, Sun, vernal equinox, winter | posted in Life, Writing
Seven billion flames flicker in the night. Some burn bright and fierce, some soft and steady, some jump and dance. Every turn of the world, 350,000 tiny new flames begin to shine.
And 150,000 go out.
A flame that always lit my world, always warmed me, always guided me, no longer illuminates my dark.
My mom. 1924-2014.
“And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.“
Comments Off on Requiescat in pace | tags: age, death, grief, loss, mom, parents | posted in Life
Death Watch. A vigil over a dying person. Waiting. Not knowing which tick of the clock brings change. Tick. This one? Tock. This one?
There are other watches. Surgery watch. That one often brings good news. One can be hopeful. The doctor approaches with a smile; tension releases in a flood of relief.
The only relief here is that someone else, someone you love, is finally free from pain. For the rest there is only loss.
The other side of a life. Birth watch. The watch that brings joy. And cigars and balloons.
Birth. Tick. Death. Tock.
Grains of sand passing through the hourglass of life. Each of us having that brief quick ride through the throat of reality.
And having gone from there to there, at last, coming to rest.
Comments Off on Death Watch | tags: aging, death, loss, love, mom, parents, tick of the clock, time | posted in Life
Computer programmers, and others who work with languages, sometimes use the related terms: semantics & syntax. They are concepts with a specific application to language, but language is communication and there are many forms of communication. For example, when music is viewed as a language one can apply the concepts of syntax and semantics.
This article (in my queue for years) was meant to introduce those two concepts, but my vision for this blog has evolved in ways that largely moot those original intentions. Why write about topics no one is casually interested in, and which are already covered in exhaustive detail elsewhere for those with a serious interest?
Besides… this one… turned out different…
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6 Comments | tags: communication, Computer programmers, forms of communication, language, meaning, poetry, red pencil, semantics, syntax, syntax and semantics | posted in Basics, Writing
It’s poetry week here at con carne! To balance out the seriousness of Henley’s Invictus last time, here’s something a bit more whimsical. And much older; Andrew Marvell ‘s To His Coy Mistress pre-dates Henley by a good 200 years. Yet, both poems are about overcoming obstacles.
It must be said that the obstacles in question here are a bit different from the “bludgeonings of chance” that concern Henley. Marvell has something else entirely on his mind! And while Henley speaks of staying the course against all odds, Marvell’s advice is more carpe diem.
So, for a little fun on Friday, I give you…
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15 Comments | tags: Andrew Marvell, carpe diem, funny poetry, poems, poetry, sexy poetry | posted in Life, Quotes, Writing
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