The End....

[~Sam~]

Black and white Western Movies. I've been into watching them when I wake up in the middle of the night with a coughing fit. Usually, I'll repack the bowl and enjoy some of the old timers that I used to watch as a kid.

Stony Brooke (Robert Livingston) was my first, real heart throb. As I recall, I used to dream of riding his gorgeous black horse... guess that dream has come true for me. Then there's Gunsmoke, Gene Autry, The Cisco Kid & Poncho, The Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers & Trigger and Zorro .

I suppose the thing that truly gets to me about these old movies is that there is always a moral to the story. The good guys always win in the end. They never get hit by all those flying bullets. The bad guys always get caught or killed, and one always sighs at the end because you know that things have worked out well for all the players.

The story stops, and a sign with THE END written on it appears on the screen.

Back then, there was only One guy who stood for "Truth, Justice and The American Way."

With the upcoming presidential election just around the corner, I find myself looking for that happy ending.

But when you stop and think about it... there really isn't an end to things. The election will usher in a president, fall will turn into winter, and life goes on much the same as it has for millennia.

I suppose that we all have our own goals. Things we have in our minds that want to be finished... We work towards our goals, and see them to completion, but is there an end?

For myself, I greet the day with enthusiasm when I open my eyes and find that I'm still alive. If I'm already awake, I'll take a walk outside to greet the Sun in person. And another day rolls on by... then another, if I'm fortunate.

But should I pass, as I will eventually, just like everything else.. will that be the end? All that lives, dies. For every step we take, thousands of living things we cannot see die under the weight of our feet. When I walk across the pasture I hear the individual blades of grass cry in pain as I bend and flatten them.

Those who have crossed over used to hoover about me. Waiting, just waiting, until I needed some assistance. Or wanting only to needle me about having done things poorly. There have been periods of time in my life when I wanted that otherworldly contact, when I spent All of my hours not living here in the Now. I occupied myself in the past and the future, thinking that this body that carries my spirit around was merely meant for transport.

But this body of mine is a gift of the near future. And when I came to the point of recognizing that I only have this instant, this moment in the frozen river of time, did I become comfortable with living in it.

From my vantage point in the Now, I can travel to any point in the past or the future, in my mind. But, is this reality or fantasy? Does it matter at all? Because the brain/mind does some filing and sorting on its own to make memories more palatable to each of us. So fact or fiction becomes blurred. We remember things and events that have been tempered by our brain/minds to suit us. And that little tid-bit of scientific fact gives me great comfort.

Yes. Here in my own little world, I have created a small bit of heaven. I have the age and experience to make my world flow smoothly. I have bowed out of the world at large... to make our life free from hassle. I have opted to keep my head low, to avoid hearing that Oh! so familiar phrase; "Up Against The Wall Motherfucker!"

In the past I was very politically active. I got a good scare back in '70 when I faced many years in prison. You'll forgive me if I don't want to go there, eh? I've heard it said that one can be free while their body is behind bars. But that's BS. That is a true indication that you're Not living in the now, that you have gone over the edge to live entirely inside your mind. I don't ever want to do that, Or, be behind bars.

The other night Ken wanted to watch the Debates. I didn't. But chores were done and I didn't have anything to read, and even less to say if I came here, so I watched.

Other than a gradiose example of being a Total Fucking Moron... the president left, in my mind, a great deal to be desired. I began asking myself; "Who really is calling the shots as the head of this country?" It sure as hell ain't dubya.

Forgive me for asking... Has anyone become as paranoid as I have become about this administration's long range plans for this country? The program "T.I.P.S." come to mind. We're moving very rapidly towards a police state mentality, and I've been told again and again to keep my head low.

These days, the good guy doesn't always win. The bad guy doesn't always get his just rewards for his ill-thought-out deeds. The movie doesn't always have a happy ending where we all ride off into the sunset.

And... there isn't an End to the story. It keeps on goin'. And going and going and going. No matter if individuals die, if there are no good reasons to attack another land, if the unconscionable and the corrupt win by any means available. No matter if the top .10 of 1% reap all the bennies of an ill-gotten tax cut. No matter if the regime plots Global Conquest.

They have learned very well from the actions of protesters of the 60's and 70's. They are rapidly stealing every civil liberty they can. They are ripe for Power, and their greed is abominable.

On Nov. 4th, I'm going out to cast my vote. It's not much, but it is my only piece of power to change the present administration. Will a new administration be any better? I don't know... it's kinda like the Who's song; "Meet the new boss... Same as the old boss."

Right now I'm goin' down and watch an old western movie. I'll get involved in the plot, cheer when the good guys win and the bad guys lose. Then I'll sigh when the written sign comes on....

THE END
http://www.surfnetinc.com/chuck/elliot15.jpg

[strawpuppy]

Sam, when I was young and my wonderful grandparents used to say "things are getting worse", I wondered if I would say that when I got old.....I am....

Those old black and white movies (our UK ones anyway) were REALLY GOOD....and how clean the streets were, how simple everything was....

Hope you enjoy the movie.

strawpup

[~Sam~]

It's funny about the things our parents and grandparents used to say, Strawpup. I wondered the very same thing about some of the sayings my parents had about the ways of the world. I find myself carrying on the tradition as I hear myself saying their words these days.

I think that the movies cleaned up the picture of life out west in 1800's. Think of all the horse manure on the unpaved, 4 inch deep in mud, streets. Think of no running water and no deodorant. Folks our age, back then, were ready for the undertaker because of the endless work they did and the lack of modern medicine.

Back in 1968, men still wore six shooters on the streets of Nevada. I remember an old Amerindian who used to sit in a saloon in Battle Mountain. When the electricity would go off, as it usually did, he would say; "That's Cochise and his boys. They'll be comin' into town now." And all the cowboys would take their guns out of the holsters and put them on the bar. The wild, wild west.

I did enjoy the movie! Best gunfight I've ever seen.

You take care...

Sam

[~Sam~]

Yesterday we did a road trip to Virginia to visit with friends. On the way home last night, I got to thinking about what I said about folks who live inside their head exclusively being BS.

That was a bit harsh. I tend to forget that there are others who have chosen differrent paths than I. And when one becomes desperate from being in a situation resulting from their own choices, such as being in jail or being institutionalized, I suppose that going inside your head to maintain your personal freedom sensibilities is all you have going for you.

There are many ways of living life. I shouldn't have been so quick to nay-say a way of behavior that results from emotional desperation.

I hope you've all had a good weekend. See you soon.

Sam

"Everything You Know Is Wrong."

[poor_old_dad]

Hi, Sam,

Just a quick line, I got drafted in November, 1967. What you said about, "that going inside your head to maintain your personal freedom sensibilities is all you have going for you." Yea, sometimes it's your only life line.
I also have some things I'd like to say about the idea of things keep getting worse. But that'll have to wait.

Peace, your friend,
poor_old_dad

[~Sam~]

I imagine it is, Dad. I've been in an awful lot of squirrely situations in my time, but I haven't been in combat. I know quite a few who have, though, and not many talk about it.

Be interested to hear your thoughts about "Things getting worse."

I don't know, man. If you look at the history of mankind (the history that's available to us at this time), you'll find that even back in the days of the Etruscans things were just about the same as they are now. Only difference is that there were fewer people. Human nature is human nature. It is what it is, and time, evolution and intelligence haven't changed that fact.

You have those who thirst for power and control and make war, and those who merely want to live, raise their families in a little security and have shelter and food to eat.

My father used to say to me in the early sixties, when I was suing for peace; "Peace is only a brief hiatus between wars." In the forty some years I've lived since I first heard those words, I've kept my eyes opened. I've read histories and philosophies. I've watched the behavior of humans I've come into contact with. And I've lived and learned.

I would like to see a weapon released that would kill every electric motor, fossil fuel engine and nuclear power capability... Forever. We humans would be forced to work together or go extinct if that happened. We would be forced to face each other, in a theater of war, across a field at sunrise. Then go charging at the enemy with swords, shields and sprears... hacking and stabbing our way towards peace.

It is so easy to pull a trigger. It's quick and painless. The reality of seeing someone else drop and suffer and die from the impact of a powder fired projectile is removed from the realm of "action and reaction". The act of killing becomes removed from the real realm.

But, if you had to stand and swing a sword for hours and hours... looking into the eyes of other human beings you are hacking and killing, and standing, face-to-face watching their eyes cloud over in death... Well, maybe then folks would drop their swords and refuse to obey some Hawk's orders.

Like I said... I don't know. But I think things are the same as they ever were.

Sam

[poor_old_dad]

Well, this is just one old hippie's opinion but:

First, with all due respect (which is a lot), I believe that there are ends. An "end" that fits into the definition of the word, "The point in time when an action, an event, or a phenomenon ceases or is completed; the conclusion: the end of the day." [I would add, that after that point there is no going back.] The reason I am so adamant; I believe that if there are no ends, there would be no beginnings. There have been many things in my life that have marked an end and "A New Beginning" (insert trumpet fanfare). To name a few; high school graduation, going into the army, getting out of the army, getting married, and getting divorced. All of these were on one hand the end of what had been and the start of what was to come.

Some things are cyclic, but even some cycles have starts and ends. An example is gardening. Back in February and March, I began what the frost will end. The seasons and my garden go through cyclic dance, but there are many beginnings and ends within them. But that'll be then, now is gone as soon as it arrives.

And then there are things like human nature that are, to me, like the back ground noise or part of the sound track of our lives. It's there; and that is that. On things like that I try to follow the old saying:

I hope I have the courage to change what I can,
the strength to accept what I can't,
and the wisdom to know the difference.

That leads me to the part about something I've heard many times, "Things are getting worse".

My belief is that many really big and important things are NOT getting worse. Many things are much better.

Some examples, in no order:

- I live about 40 miles from Selma. I grew up in Mobile, Alabama. I was a senior in high school when Dr. King tried to march from Selma to Montgomery. The first try he and his followers were attached by the state police. The next week, with federal protection, the march was done. A couple of weeks ago I was in Selma, and I noticed a young(late teens or early 20s) man and young lady chatting in front of the place I was visiting. Nothing significant? It was a young black man talking to a young white girl, in public, in Selma. I remember a time when he (or maybe both) would have been risking their life to do that. Not now, in fact, Selma has a black mayor. This I think is better.

- Similarly, I never thought I'd see Nelson Mandela out of prison and an end to apartheid. He is out and apartheid has ended. This I think is better.

- The Berlin Wall, the Iron Curtain, and the USSR are all gone, without a war. If you look back into history I don't think you'll find a time when so many countries have changed forms of government in such a short time. And they went from totalitarian to democratic (with elections etc). This I think is better.

- We've seen the moon landing and on the 40th anniversary of of the first Sputnik, we saw the start of private space flight. These are the things of dreams for countless years of human history. I think this is also a good thing.

- There's this, here, the Internet. Never has there come close to the scope of person to person, un-censored communication. The sharing of ideas, information, opinions etc. has already changed the world, mostly for the better. Those who are looking at this can just as easily be on any continent or country. They may agree or dis-agree and are free to say so. I really believe that the more of this type communication there is, the less mis-understanding there'll be and the less likely conflict will happen. It'll take time but I think it'll happen and I think this is also a good thing.

- In the late 1960s, my father's mother was in her late 60s. She died due to breast cancer being too far advanced before diagnosed. My father had lung and brain cancer diagnosed early enough for it to be treated and he lived many more good years. This and other types improvement in health care, that don't just prolong life, but prolong good years, I think are good also. (Ok, my english teachers would hate that last sentence.)

I could go on and on, but I won't, my fingers are tired.

Sure some things are worse. Sure there are greedy, war hawks etc. Sure that's not new. But to say that it's all getting worse, I just can't agree.

Peace,
poor_old_dad

[teepi]

I agree with alot of points here.
All so eloquently(sp) written.

I find that my own little spot has gotten better, alot of it from going inside myself and figuring out what I do have the power to overcome on my own.
I used to harbor alot of anger, and I didn't care about myself, and shut myself out from alot of happiness with my children.
Then I got physically free from some things weighing on me and I searched inside my head for what I truly needed.
What I truly need is to look at all things and all others with as much love I can muster up.
When I do this I see with alot more clarity.

I see that things are being played out as they will, some things have gotten better as POD pointed out, but other things have gotten worse, and sad to say I believe that the fiber of what holds us all together is decaying.
Yes ,there are people who are great people who do what they can for others and the planet with what they have at their disposal, but there is such a blatant and an undercurrant cloak of greed that runs through so much.

I don't trust the goverment, the best indicator of future behavior is past behavior....and I have witnessed too many lies...and thats in just what I know, which isn't much.
You know that we live way out here, in our peaceful spot and sometimes I feel it is right on the edge of the world.
Its been a year since I was in a real city, and the day couldn't end fast enough for me, I just wanted to get home.
When I was young I loved the hustle and bustle....now I am full of anxiety about what I see and hear when we go.
Luckily there are towns close that I call the big city but are just a step up from our little town (2 traffic lights)

The advances in technology, to me are a blessing and a curse.
True we didn't live as long back then, but now I worry about the quality of my life rather than the quantity, if they can keep me alive, but I'm in a home or can't afford what I need, I'd rather be on the other side.
The internet is lovely, I wouldn't know you all if I didn't have it,but it isn't as personal as letter writing, and people send me "E" cards now for my birthday....love real cards.
I have alot that I look at from years past.
Its nice that civil rights have come to where they have....but I can't believe that a man like Marion Barry would ever run DC and that he would be RE-ELECTED.
I can't believe that Al Sharpton would get any campaign money.


Alot of the human factor things are great that have changed.
I loved seeing the WALL come down as I have a good friend who was seperated from her aunt for a very long time due to that wall, and she wrote to me about the look on her fathers face the first time he and his sister got to see each other again.

But I do watch the news...about 5-10 minutes is it for me...and phew, that wears me out. Cincinnatti is a big city 75 miles away and it is disgusting about whats happening there.
I keep a gun by my bed, I NEVER thought that would ever be true of me, but I am alone most of the time.And we work hard for the little we have. I'll be damn if some criminal will threaten it.

Yes I look at things with love in my heart and in my head...and it helps me deal with alot of the bullshit I see with my eyes.
I constantly think about others and what they have to deal with and where they came from and I feel for alot of people and I try to help where I can, but it hurts that my husband is away from me all week and every time we turn around someone in the county, state or federal goverment has their hand in our pocket.

There are great things going on, and not so great things going on, my thing is finding MY center and surrounding myself with a good feeling that I make our lives here as nice as I can and I spread around as much as I can.

All we can do is start with ourselves and do what we can.
This is why I am so passionate about people looking into alternative energy sources and being more self reliant.
When we are such consumers we are at the mercy of whims and greed.
I haven't heard much about not being dependent on oil in our reserves and from other countries.
I also don't hear much about the threat in North Korea....mmmm how much oil do we get from them??

But as Sam has said before....the torch must be passed, it is another time coming.

And when and if the shit flies...I will have no regrets.

SAM,POD,Strawpup, I love you all,:)
teepi

[~Sam~]

Well, I would suppose that an end point view would have to include the time frame you're looking at, first of all. But that would get into a conversation about time and its existence. Besides, that one's theoretical in nature until the physicists come up with a more promising conclusion.

I find myself looking at events as flowing through the frozen river of time. One event changing into another. Like Newton's third law of physics; For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Or, one event leading to another event, directly influencing the following event by simply occurring. So, a high school graduation is not the end of something, it is a part of a flowing picture of one's life. It may be something we go through, but it doesn't end at graduation. It continues to be a part of our life's experience as long as we are us. Being us may take us, as individual energy beings, through many life times, as many people. But the fact that we spent four years in school doesn't end with graduation, it follows us through our days.

I feel the same about the seasons that we experience here on this little planet that's rotating on its axis and revoloving around a star in a solar system located in a distant arm of a spiraling galaxy in some part of a universe that's reported to be somewhere between 11.2 and 20 billion years old.

The seasons don't end on a planet whose axis tilts and wobbles as it revolves in its eliptical orbit closer to, then farther away from, our star. We are just subjected to changes brought about by temperature fluctuations resulting from the nearness and farness of the particular part of the planet we're standing on from that star. You see what I'm getting at? Things don't end, they change. One thing becomes part of something else, and so on, and so on, into infinity.

Matter can neither be created nor destroyed. We, and all that absorbs photons and re-emits them so that our eyes see them, are made of matter. What we are, in the physical world, does not end. It becomes part of something else.

In the Spring, seeds that have found their way onto soil, germinate and grow into plants. Those seeds are the result of plant propogation. They are a part of the mother plant that withered last fall. When the plants that grew from those seeds mature, flower, go to seed and wither, they don't end. They break down into their elemental constituents of star dust and are either taken up by other vegetation, become more/less complex molecules, are dissolved in groundwater and move with its flow... but the atoms or vibrating strings that made up the original plant don't end, they are only changed.

And then again, Summer doesn't really end abruptly does it? It flows into fall. Things change again and become something different, but they don't end. They may seem to end because they don't look anything like they used to, but they are there in other forms. And just because we can't see things, doesn't mean that they don't take up space, have height and width and volume.

When the ground lies frozen under the snow, isn't it still the same ground that was there in the summertime? The tiny bacteria and all the types of worms are still there, they're just sleeping. When the temperatures get warmer and warmer, there comes that day when that life in the soil wakes up again and it smells alive to our senses. The life in the soil didn't end and die in the Fall, it was there awaiting those warm days to awaken again and continue the spiral.

When we look at things in terms of our short life spans, we want to see patterns. We want to see circles. For circles are security blankets, they are mantras we hum to fool ourselves into thinking things don't change. And even if they do, they'll come around again on the guitar if we wait long enough. Something 'like' it may come along again, but you can bet the farm that it'll be different... changed in some way from the form we remember as original, but different.

Likewise the course of human history. The Estruscan Empire didn't end when Rome conquered them. They were assimilated into Roman society and their art, philosohy and knowledge was added to Rome's data base.

This leads me to talk about spirals instead of circles. I remember back in art class the teacher saying that there is no such thing as a perfect circle. I think this is still held true.

A complete and perfect circle would mean that there is no beginning and no end, just a continuation of the same.

A spiral, is a continuation of changes. And that's what the entire universe is; change. The latest theory is that there was no big bang. What went bang if there was nothing there? So what we're looking at is a universe that reorders itself in many smaller bangs of locally collapsing star systems. It would be like an unending universe, recreating itself from itself... and most of the matter in that universe organizes itself as spirals.

But back to spirals... From magnetic fields to vast galaxies swirling in space, spirals can be seen in every aspect in nature. We see them in the physical forces which shape the Earth... the tides of the ocean, the winds in the atmosphere... and within life itself. Plants and the horns and shells of animals grow in spiral formations and some animals, especially aquatic species, possess a twisting locomotion. Red Moss, taken aboard the space shuttle, surprised scientists by growing in spiral patterns in 0 gravity.
http://www.fantasy-ireland.com/images/Spiral-Galaxy.jpg



Well, I think I've pushed this as far as I can for today. I'm looking at the clock on my toolbar, and thinking that I have an anniversary celebration to get ready for....


Grant me the senility to forget the people I never liked anyway.

The good fortune to run into the ones I do.

And the eyesight to tell the difference.

I want to get back to this conversation folks... I haven't forgotten you teepi, and there are a lot of things I have left to say about more of the above replies.

Keep Your Powder Dry...
Sam