Wednesday, August 31, 2011
The E's, L's and P's of Public Speaking
It is feeling and force of imagination that make us eloquent.
Marcus Valerius (Martial)
******************************
One summer I conducted a series of seminars on public speaking. They were in New York City and people came from all over the country to attend. They were three day seminars. On the first day I asked the participants to prepare and deliver a three minute speech on any topic. They were all certain they couldn't possibly come up with anything to say for three minutes. By the end of the third day I could hardly shut them up.
There is a lot to teach and explain about public speaking to those who aren't accustomed to doing it. I told them that if I just lectured I would talk for a day and a half but that, since the point was to get them speaking, they would have to hear things from me on the last day they wish they had heard on the first. Nevertheless, I got them up and speaking while the rest of the class critiqued and only lectured them for an hour or two in the morning.
On the last day my lecture was about roots, stems and blossoms, or, in other words, preparation, practice, presentation: a useful triangle. Although they are useful illustrations, I don't generally like to confine things to the idea of three parts, a triangle of parts, because usually one aspect of something will ooze over into another aspect, like colors in a rainbow.
But in my own research I came across a dynamic concept from an ancient Greek philosopher and teacher of rhetoric (which had a much more respectable meaning back then than it does now) named Aristotle. And his idea is as applicable today as it was then to teach, convince, inform, sell, campaign or just chat. Aristotle's triangle consisted of the three Greek words ethos, logos and pathos.
Ethos is basically you're right to speak on whatever topic it is. If you know a lot about a subject (nobody knows it all) then you have the ability to speak on it and anyone who is interested in it had better listen to you. One of my clients was a man who sold specifically men's suits. He gave a talk on how good men's suits were constructed. It was fascinating because those of us who wore men's suits took a lot for granted and didn't know there was so much to the making of them. The speaker really knew his business. He had the ethos.
Logos is much of the same, although it has more to do with the subject matter, the depth of information, the facts and figures, the examples and illustrations. Logos is the substance of your talk. It is where the words are important, where they must convey the right meaning, clearly and in an interesting manner. One of my clients was an engineer who explained how to make a one inch piston fit into a one inch socket since there had to be an adjustment to one or the other or else they wouldn't fit. He managed to explain some complicated engineering design concepts with words that were clear enough so the rest of us could understand them. He had the right logos.
Pathos is perhaps the most important of the three, at least it is if the other two are firmly in place. Pathos refers to your own personal involvement in the subject you are discussing. Pathos gives energy, focus and purpose to all that you say, it's the fire underneath your words, it illustrates and proves your right to be there. One of my clients, on the last day, sat at the table in front, folded her hands together and spoke without any notes about the charitable organization she volunteered for. By the time she finished it was important to everyone in the room. She had the ethos, the logos and she loved her subject so much that she enthused everyone.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
19 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Marcus Valerius (Martial)
******************************
One summer I conducted a series of seminars on public speaking. They were in New York City and people came from all over the country to attend. They were three day seminars. On the first day I asked the participants to prepare and deliver a three minute speech on any topic. They were all certain they couldn't possibly come up with anything to say for three minutes. By the end of the third day I could hardly shut them up.
There is a lot to teach and explain about public speaking to those who aren't accustomed to doing it. I told them that if I just lectured I would talk for a day and a half but that, since the point was to get them speaking, they would have to hear things from me on the last day they wish they had heard on the first. Nevertheless, I got them up and speaking while the rest of the class critiqued and only lectured them for an hour or two in the morning.
On the last day my lecture was about roots, stems and blossoms, or, in other words, preparation, practice, presentation: a useful triangle. Although they are useful illustrations, I don't generally like to confine things to the idea of three parts, a triangle of parts, because usually one aspect of something will ooze over into another aspect, like colors in a rainbow.
But in my own research I came across a dynamic concept from an ancient Greek philosopher and teacher of rhetoric (which had a much more respectable meaning back then than it does now) named Aristotle. And his idea is as applicable today as it was then to teach, convince, inform, sell, campaign or just chat. Aristotle's triangle consisted of the three Greek words ethos, logos and pathos.
Ethos is basically you're right to speak on whatever topic it is. If you know a lot about a subject (nobody knows it all) then you have the ability to speak on it and anyone who is interested in it had better listen to you. One of my clients was a man who sold specifically men's suits. He gave a talk on how good men's suits were constructed. It was fascinating because those of us who wore men's suits took a lot for granted and didn't know there was so much to the making of them. The speaker really knew his business. He had the ethos.
Logos is much of the same, although it has more to do with the subject matter, the depth of information, the facts and figures, the examples and illustrations. Logos is the substance of your talk. It is where the words are important, where they must convey the right meaning, clearly and in an interesting manner. One of my clients was an engineer who explained how to make a one inch piston fit into a one inch socket since there had to be an adjustment to one or the other or else they wouldn't fit. He managed to explain some complicated engineering design concepts with words that were clear enough so the rest of us could understand them. He had the right logos.
Pathos is perhaps the most important of the three, at least it is if the other two are firmly in place. Pathos refers to your own personal involvement in the subject you are discussing. Pathos gives energy, focus and purpose to all that you say, it's the fire underneath your words, it illustrates and proves your right to be there. One of my clients, on the last day, sat at the table in front, folded her hands together and spoke without any notes about the charitable organization she volunteered for. By the time she finished it was important to everyone in the room. She had the ethos, the logos and she loved her subject so much that she enthused everyone.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
19 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Vagabondism 146
Vagabondism #146 "Most of the miraculous things that happen in the world are things the world doesn’t know about."
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
Stop Thief !
I am too interested in my own ideas to copy anyone else's.
Margaret Mahy
********************************
Plagiarism, stealing someone else's ides or even copying them and claiming ownership is one of the most reptilian practices human beings can engage in. It's fraudulent, disrespectful and those who do it even lack their own self respect. In some cases it's even illegal.
There are those who will infringe upon a copyright and publish something that belongs to someone else. There are those who will see a good idea from a literary, artistic or manufacturing source, make a simple change in it and pass it on as their own idea. But the worst are the moral idiots who simply copy what they see or hear oblivious to the fact that they are stealing. That sort of thing happens in show business all the time and the audience is usually unaware of it.
Many years ago on the Ed Sullivan TV show I watch a comic perform, move by move, Marcel Marceau's "The Mask Maker." That is a very famous act of Marceau's and that guy just lifted it.
I once went to an Off Broadway show that was billed as a new play. It was in fact a total rewrite in modern vernacular of a play by Henrik Ibsen. Nowhere during the evening or even in the program was credit given to the original author.
I have suffered from the actions of these idiots myself. Here are three examples, one of them rather terrifying.
I was doing a comedy in Florida. At the beginning of the second act my character was asleep in a chair. A noise woke him up and getting up he tripped over the footstool. It was a funny piece of business. But one day, while we were still in rehearsal, the young woman in the cast saw me do it and thought she would do the same thing. But she would do it in the first act, before I did it, making my action redundant and no longer funny. The next day the director had cleverly removed the footstool. So I came up with a different action, slipping off the chair and landing with a thump on my butt. Since the actress was wearing a long dress, she couldn't do that.
I was in a drama Off-Broadway. In one scene my character slaps another one in the face very hard. I had him prepare for it by taking my jacket off and hanging it over the back of a chair. It was a very strong moment. But another actor saw me do that and thought he would do it also, but again he did it earlier in the play, so I had to come up with something else. I wrapped my hand in my handkerchief and punched him instead.
As a radio announcer I did two remote broadcasts. They were very difficult, 4 hours on my feet, live, from record stores, with an audience seated watching me. At the end of the first one I went through a list of all the people who had participated from the store and the radio station, including the assistant producer who was in attendance. I thanked everyone and returned the program to the studio. The audience applauded me.
But the assistant producer saw me do that. So at the second remote broadcast he collected everyone's name, said that he wanted to say a few words before I signed off and went through the list thanking everyone and then returned the program to the studio himself, leaving me standing there, then he went "whew" as if he had done all the work. They applauded him.
The next day, back at the studio, one of the other announcers came up to me and said that he had heard the remote the day before and then said "He stole your curtain call." I said "Yes he did." "Why is he still alive?" the other announcer asked. And that is when I invented the statement "They can steal my fish, but they can't steal my ocean."
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*****************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
19 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Margaret Mahy
********************************
Plagiarism, stealing someone else's ides or even copying them and claiming ownership is one of the most reptilian practices human beings can engage in. It's fraudulent, disrespectful and those who do it even lack their own self respect. In some cases it's even illegal.
There are those who will infringe upon a copyright and publish something that belongs to someone else. There are those who will see a good idea from a literary, artistic or manufacturing source, make a simple change in it and pass it on as their own idea. But the worst are the moral idiots who simply copy what they see or hear oblivious to the fact that they are stealing. That sort of thing happens in show business all the time and the audience is usually unaware of it.
Many years ago on the Ed Sullivan TV show I watch a comic perform, move by move, Marcel Marceau's "The Mask Maker." That is a very famous act of Marceau's and that guy just lifted it.
I once went to an Off Broadway show that was billed as a new play. It was in fact a total rewrite in modern vernacular of a play by Henrik Ibsen. Nowhere during the evening or even in the program was credit given to the original author.
I have suffered from the actions of these idiots myself. Here are three examples, one of them rather terrifying.
I was doing a comedy in Florida. At the beginning of the second act my character was asleep in a chair. A noise woke him up and getting up he tripped over the footstool. It was a funny piece of business. But one day, while we were still in rehearsal, the young woman in the cast saw me do it and thought she would do the same thing. But she would do it in the first act, before I did it, making my action redundant and no longer funny. The next day the director had cleverly removed the footstool. So I came up with a different action, slipping off the chair and landing with a thump on my butt. Since the actress was wearing a long dress, she couldn't do that.
I was in a drama Off-Broadway. In one scene my character slaps another one in the face very hard. I had him prepare for it by taking my jacket off and hanging it over the back of a chair. It was a very strong moment. But another actor saw me do that and thought he would do it also, but again he did it earlier in the play, so I had to come up with something else. I wrapped my hand in my handkerchief and punched him instead.
As a radio announcer I did two remote broadcasts. They were very difficult, 4 hours on my feet, live, from record stores, with an audience seated watching me. At the end of the first one I went through a list of all the people who had participated from the store and the radio station, including the assistant producer who was in attendance. I thanked everyone and returned the program to the studio. The audience applauded me.
But the assistant producer saw me do that. So at the second remote broadcast he collected everyone's name, said that he wanted to say a few words before I signed off and went through the list thanking everyone and then returned the program to the studio himself, leaving me standing there, then he went "whew" as if he had done all the work. They applauded him.
The next day, back at the studio, one of the other announcers came up to me and said that he had heard the remote the day before and then said "He stole your curtain call." I said "Yes he did." "Why is he still alive?" the other announcer asked. And that is when I invented the statement "They can steal my fish, but they can't steal my ocean."
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*****************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
19 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Monday, August 29, 2011
Vagabondism 145
Vagabondism #145 "Some have it hard and some have it easy, but everyone has it."
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
The Night Irene Came To Town
Did Irene huff and puff and blow my house down? Did the river overflow it's banks and flood my basement? Did the torrential rain soak me to the bone? Did the street outside become knee deep in water? Did the branches crash through my window? Was I carried out to sea by the surge? Did the 100 mph wind blow me 20 miles from my house? Am I sick, homeless, hungry, destitute, without food, without water, without clothes, with no place to go?
No. None of the above.
Did I lose power? Yes. But not for long. Late last night I was searching for some news about the local conditions. I knew the hurricane was out there, the wind and rain was proof of that. But I couldn't find any news of New Jersey or Pennsylvania. All the news channels were telling me what happened in North Carolina and Virginia or what was going to happen in New York. I couldn't find out what was going to happen or what was happening to me. So I did the next best thing. I went to bed.
I fell asleep at about 2:30 with apocalyptic rain smashing against my windows. When I woke at about 7 the power was out. I made a cup of coffee from the hot water tap (I've done that before), lit a candle, checked to see that the bird feeder was still there and settled down to a dark, cold and quiet day.
I was expecting that the power would be out for several days but amazingly the power company had it back on by 3 pm. So here I sit, typing away, with no scars as a result of the worst East Coast hurricane in years. I'm one of the lucky ones.
I can read about the devastations some people have suffered and are still suffering from: wind, water, submerged cars, collapsing trees and buildings, injuries and deaths. I have friends in New Jersey, New York and New England I haven't heard from. I have people to check on, people to love.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
19 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
No. None of the above.
Did I lose power? Yes. But not for long. Late last night I was searching for some news about the local conditions. I knew the hurricane was out there, the wind and rain was proof of that. But I couldn't find any news of New Jersey or Pennsylvania. All the news channels were telling me what happened in North Carolina and Virginia or what was going to happen in New York. I couldn't find out what was going to happen or what was happening to me. So I did the next best thing. I went to bed.
I fell asleep at about 2:30 with apocalyptic rain smashing against my windows. When I woke at about 7 the power was out. I made a cup of coffee from the hot water tap (I've done that before), lit a candle, checked to see that the bird feeder was still there and settled down to a dark, cold and quiet day.
I was expecting that the power would be out for several days but amazingly the power company had it back on by 3 pm. So here I sit, typing away, with no scars as a result of the worst East Coast hurricane in years. I'm one of the lucky ones.
I can read about the devastations some people have suffered and are still suffering from: wind, water, submerged cars, collapsing trees and buildings, injuries and deaths. I have friends in New Jersey, New York and New England I haven't heard from. I have people to check on, people to love.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
19 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Vagabondism 144
Vagabondism #144 "If happiness is to be found anywhere surely it will be in pursuing one’s grandest goals and highest ideas."
dbdacoba@aol.com
dbdacoba@aol.com
Waiting For Irene, Part 3
It's Saturday evening as I write this. It's a dark, dismal, rainy day with a strong sense of foreboding in the sky. Irene is scheduled to visit the neighborhood sometime Sunday morning. So by the time you read this, if you do, she will have already begun her merry dance.
Irene is armed to scrape the New Jersey coast, and that means Atlantic City. The crazed religionists should have a ball with that one. "They're being paid for their sins. God hates gamblers." And so on. 'And as for New York, with their same sex marriages, they deserve everything they get." Right.
I am worn out from doing all the things I'm supposed to do to prepare. There will be wind, there will be rain, there will be floods. But the only thing that most concerns me is that there will be loss of power. Everything in my apartment is electric, except the heat (wouldn't you know). I've got the flashlight and the candles. My laundry is done. I'm convinced that the washer exacts a tax of one sock from me every time I do the laundry. I'm hard boiling the half dozen eggs, but I don't think I'll color them with cheery designs, that's a different type of celebration. I have food that doesn't need cooking and plenty of drinking water, thanks to the angel down the street.
I'm almost directly in the path of the mighty Irene, so there is no telling what is going to happen. How long my power will be out is anybody's guess, but until it's turned back on the Vagabond won't be able to communicate with anyone except the birds and squirrels. But if my juice is still flowing Sunday morning I'll post "Waiting For Irene, Part 4"
I hereby accept all good wishes for my survival and well being and for that of all other Northeasterners.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
18 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Irene is armed to scrape the New Jersey coast, and that means Atlantic City. The crazed religionists should have a ball with that one. "They're being paid for their sins. God hates gamblers." And so on. 'And as for New York, with their same sex marriages, they deserve everything they get." Right.
I am worn out from doing all the things I'm supposed to do to prepare. There will be wind, there will be rain, there will be floods. But the only thing that most concerns me is that there will be loss of power. Everything in my apartment is electric, except the heat (wouldn't you know). I've got the flashlight and the candles. My laundry is done. I'm convinced that the washer exacts a tax of one sock from me every time I do the laundry. I'm hard boiling the half dozen eggs, but I don't think I'll color them with cheery designs, that's a different type of celebration. I have food that doesn't need cooking and plenty of drinking water, thanks to the angel down the street.
I'm almost directly in the path of the mighty Irene, so there is no telling what is going to happen. How long my power will be out is anybody's guess, but until it's turned back on the Vagabond won't be able to communicate with anyone except the birds and squirrels. But if my juice is still flowing Sunday morning I'll post "Waiting For Irene, Part 4"
I hereby accept all good wishes for my survival and well being and for that of all other Northeasterners.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
18 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Vagabondism 143
Vagabondism #143 "A good deed done by a wicked man may be accidental, but it’s still a blessing."
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
Waiting For Irene, Part 2
And still I wait. Is it apocalyptic? Is it catastrophic? Is it just one grand mess?
I appear to be still directly in Irene's way in her slow march north. Perhaps I should refer to it as the War of Southern Aggression. (Some of you will get that.) But she has been downgraded to a category 2 hurricane, so the floozy has lost some of her spunk. Still 100 mph winds is not something to scorn, snicker, thumb your nose, bite your thumb, flick your chin or shake your stick at. The main concern around these parts is about the amount of rain. There are many waterways to consider. Out my window I can see the Delaware River. It will overflow it's banks, most likely. I am far enough away from and above it to have it cause me a problem, most likely. But there are people who live along its banks. They have a problem.
Am I prepared? Who knows. Today I will tie back the bird feeder so it doesn't blow away, hard boil the half dozen eggs, cook the two chicken legs, make lots of ice and store food with them in the zip locks and generally spend the day puttering around pretending I'm an old man.
The angel who lives down the street and who drives me shopping showed up unexpectedly at my door with a 2 gallon container of drinking water. Bless her heart.
There are massive evacuations going on everywhere on the East Coast. Warnings are rampant from the local police up to the President of the United States. Shelters are getting ready to open, instructions about what to do are being posted everywhere and everyone is busy.
Will there be a lot of damage? Of course there will. Will we survive it? Of course we will. It will become part of the history of the turbulent and cantankerous year of 2011. "The Day Irene Came To Town"
Join me tomorrow, if you can, for Waiting For Irene, Part 3.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never Give Up
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
18 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
I appear to be still directly in Irene's way in her slow march north. Perhaps I should refer to it as the War of Southern Aggression. (Some of you will get that.) But she has been downgraded to a category 2 hurricane, so the floozy has lost some of her spunk. Still 100 mph winds is not something to scorn, snicker, thumb your nose, bite your thumb, flick your chin or shake your stick at. The main concern around these parts is about the amount of rain. There are many waterways to consider. Out my window I can see the Delaware River. It will overflow it's banks, most likely. I am far enough away from and above it to have it cause me a problem, most likely. But there are people who live along its banks. They have a problem.
Am I prepared? Who knows. Today I will tie back the bird feeder so it doesn't blow away, hard boil the half dozen eggs, cook the two chicken legs, make lots of ice and store food with them in the zip locks and generally spend the day puttering around pretending I'm an old man.
The angel who lives down the street and who drives me shopping showed up unexpectedly at my door with a 2 gallon container of drinking water. Bless her heart.
There are massive evacuations going on everywhere on the East Coast. Warnings are rampant from the local police up to the President of the United States. Shelters are getting ready to open, instructions about what to do are being posted everywhere and everyone is busy.
Will there be a lot of damage? Of course there will. Will we survive it? Of course we will. It will become part of the history of the turbulent and cantankerous year of 2011. "The Day Irene Came To Town"
Join me tomorrow, if you can, for Waiting For Irene, Part 3.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never Give Up
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
18 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Friday, August 26, 2011
Vagabondism 142
Vagabondism #142 "You are the sunshine and the starlight. You are the green of the grass and the sound of the flute. You are the outcome of creation; at one with the sea and the sky." http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
Waiting For Irene, Part 1
Will there be a Waiting For Irene, Part 2? Who knows. That there is a category 3 hurricane approaching is a sinister enough experience to live through. But there is something grotesque about waiting for it.
A day or so ago I read that Irene was down in the Caribbean. She's still in the Caribbean. A day or so ago I read about what damage she had done in the Bahamas. I'm still reading about the damage in the Bahamas. It's as if Irene is waiting around until everyone is sufficiently frightened or sufficiently evacuated before she launches her attack. Or she's inching along, driving in the slow lane and taking her sweet ladylike time to get here.
Reading all about what is liable to happen when the hurricane finally arrives, the 100+ mile per hour winds, the foot or more of rainfall, the surges and all, is like watching the coming attractions of a Hollywood Blockbuster film I don't think I want to see.
Governors are declaring states of emergency all up and down the East Coast, news organizations with their high tech maps are showing where the hurricane is likely to go as if colored dots on a wall could describe such an event. In some cases we get photos and videos of past hurricanes to further illustrate what the possibilities are. Hurricane experts are trying to describe the extent of the danger to the land. And yet, as usual with natural disasters, overhead hangs the sword that no one really knows what's going to happen.
Irene will probably make landfall in North Carolina, but maybe not. She could possibly blow out to sea and spare everybody, but maybe not. She could zip right into the middle of New York City and cause damage that is impossible to imagine or calculate, but maybe not.
The local forecast is for "heavy rain." Oh really? New Jersey is one of the states that is supposed to be the most vulnerable to Irene's fury. If you look at a map of New Jersey you will see that it bends slightly in the middle and where it bends a bit of Pennsylvania is pushed into its side, like a punch in the stomach. In that bit of Pennsylvania is where I live. So does that put me in the path of Irene? Probably, but maybe not.
This is an adventure story. Will it have a tragic ending or a happy ending? Who knows. Stay tuned for "Waiting For Irene, Part 2"
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never Give Up.
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
18 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
A day or so ago I read that Irene was down in the Caribbean. She's still in the Caribbean. A day or so ago I read about what damage she had done in the Bahamas. I'm still reading about the damage in the Bahamas. It's as if Irene is waiting around until everyone is sufficiently frightened or sufficiently evacuated before she launches her attack. Or she's inching along, driving in the slow lane and taking her sweet ladylike time to get here.
Reading all about what is liable to happen when the hurricane finally arrives, the 100+ mile per hour winds, the foot or more of rainfall, the surges and all, is like watching the coming attractions of a Hollywood Blockbuster film I don't think I want to see.
Governors are declaring states of emergency all up and down the East Coast, news organizations with their high tech maps are showing where the hurricane is likely to go as if colored dots on a wall could describe such an event. In some cases we get photos and videos of past hurricanes to further illustrate what the possibilities are. Hurricane experts are trying to describe the extent of the danger to the land. And yet, as usual with natural disasters, overhead hangs the sword that no one really knows what's going to happen.
Irene will probably make landfall in North Carolina, but maybe not. She could possibly blow out to sea and spare everybody, but maybe not. She could zip right into the middle of New York City and cause damage that is impossible to imagine or calculate, but maybe not.
The local forecast is for "heavy rain." Oh really? New Jersey is one of the states that is supposed to be the most vulnerable to Irene's fury. If you look at a map of New Jersey you will see that it bends slightly in the middle and where it bends a bit of Pennsylvania is pushed into its side, like a punch in the stomach. In that bit of Pennsylvania is where I live. So does that put me in the path of Irene? Probably, but maybe not.
This is an adventure story. Will it have a tragic ending or a happy ending? Who knows. Stay tuned for "Waiting For Irene, Part 2"
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never Give Up.
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
18 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Vagabondism 141
Vagabondism #141 "Doing things that make you feel good about yourself does not necessarily mean you’re morally right."
dbdacoba@aol.com
dbdacoba@aol.com
What are you?
It's strange how one feels drawn forward without knowing at first where one is going.
Gustav Mahler
***********************
There's the story of the man who became a nuclear physicist because when he was in high school he found, by accident, in an encyclopedia, the scientific explanation of rainbows.
There's the story of the South American Indian who found a guitar sitting alongside a remote trail, picked it up and discovered that he could play it and went on to become a well known musician.
And there's the story of the business man who developed a problem with his throat and, on the doctor's suggestion, took up singing to exercise it. Within a few years he sold his business and became a full time opera singer, something he never thought he would be.
Here's my story.
It was 1958. I was 19 years old. I had just left college prematurely because I didn't want to be a well rounded liberal arts student, or a well rounded anything else. It was the era of the Beatniks. My sister once said she thought I was probably one of the originals. That was probably so.
I knew I wanted to do something interesting with my life, but I couldn't decide what that was. There were several options, specialties of activity, roads into the unknown, sturdy brass hinges to hear scraping as they opened the door I would step through.
I enjoyed writing. I had written a short story and some poetry which a lot of people seemed to like. I had been a music student, learning violin, percussion and composition, and I had played drums for a jazz trio in the area. I had done some work for the local police department and was encouraged by the captain to go to the police academy and have a career in law enforcement. I had worked for a French chef, a wonderful man I admired, who wanted to teach me all about cooking and how to be a chef and manage a kitchen. I had done some acting in school and for local theatre groups and I enjoyed it. While in school I took a geology course from an inspiring teacher and became very interested in geology, an interest I still have. I had done some drawing, painting and design and wanted to get formal training in art. I really didn't know which direction I was going in, but I also didn't think about it much.
One afternoon I went to visit my sister. She was having a dinner party later that day. I was early and tired from something, so I lay down on her living room couch to take a nap. In the middle of the floor was her vacuum cleaner waiting for me to wake from my nap so she could vacuum the floor. She was in her kitchen preparing the dinner. The radio was on to a classical music station.
When I began to awaken the radio was playing the Symphony #2 by Sibelius, As it neared the end I, in my half sleep, was seeing a vision. It seemed that screens were passing in front of my face, each one replacing the one before it, back and forth, in and out they went. And each one had an image that represented one of the options of my life. There was a screen the showed me as a drummer, another that showed me as a painter, another as a chef, another as a cop, another as a composer, another as an actor, another as a poet, another as a scientist and so on. These screens just kept passing in front of my mind's eye as I listened to the finale of the Symphony which is a combination of march and hymn. When it was over I got up and stepped quickly over the vacuum cleaner and when I did one of those screens popped back into my head and on it was written "You're an actor." I knew right then it was true.
Everything else became a hobby or a special interest. From that very moment I became an actor and I never looked back.
Dana Bate
The True Vagabond
(Never give up.)
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
17 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Gustav Mahler
***********************
There's the story of the man who became a nuclear physicist because when he was in high school he found, by accident, in an encyclopedia, the scientific explanation of rainbows.
There's the story of the South American Indian who found a guitar sitting alongside a remote trail, picked it up and discovered that he could play it and went on to become a well known musician.
And there's the story of the business man who developed a problem with his throat and, on the doctor's suggestion, took up singing to exercise it. Within a few years he sold his business and became a full time opera singer, something he never thought he would be.
Here's my story.
It was 1958. I was 19 years old. I had just left college prematurely because I didn't want to be a well rounded liberal arts student, or a well rounded anything else. It was the era of the Beatniks. My sister once said she thought I was probably one of the originals. That was probably so.
I knew I wanted to do something interesting with my life, but I couldn't decide what that was. There were several options, specialties of activity, roads into the unknown, sturdy brass hinges to hear scraping as they opened the door I would step through.
I enjoyed writing. I had written a short story and some poetry which a lot of people seemed to like. I had been a music student, learning violin, percussion and composition, and I had played drums for a jazz trio in the area. I had done some work for the local police department and was encouraged by the captain to go to the police academy and have a career in law enforcement. I had worked for a French chef, a wonderful man I admired, who wanted to teach me all about cooking and how to be a chef and manage a kitchen. I had done some acting in school and for local theatre groups and I enjoyed it. While in school I took a geology course from an inspiring teacher and became very interested in geology, an interest I still have. I had done some drawing, painting and design and wanted to get formal training in art. I really didn't know which direction I was going in, but I also didn't think about it much.
One afternoon I went to visit my sister. She was having a dinner party later that day. I was early and tired from something, so I lay down on her living room couch to take a nap. In the middle of the floor was her vacuum cleaner waiting for me to wake from my nap so she could vacuum the floor. She was in her kitchen preparing the dinner. The radio was on to a classical music station.
When I began to awaken the radio was playing the Symphony #2 by Sibelius, As it neared the end I, in my half sleep, was seeing a vision. It seemed that screens were passing in front of my face, each one replacing the one before it, back and forth, in and out they went. And each one had an image that represented one of the options of my life. There was a screen the showed me as a drummer, another that showed me as a painter, another as a chef, another as a cop, another as a composer, another as an actor, another as a poet, another as a scientist and so on. These screens just kept passing in front of my mind's eye as I listened to the finale of the Symphony which is a combination of march and hymn. When it was over I got up and stepped quickly over the vacuum cleaner and when I did one of those screens popped back into my head and on it was written "You're an actor." I knew right then it was true.
Everything else became a hobby or a special interest. From that very moment I became an actor and I never looked back.
Dana Bate
The True Vagabond
(Never give up.)
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
17 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Good Night Irene
Accordingg to the maps Hurricane Irene is scheduled to hit my house at 8 o'clock Sunday morning. C'mon Irene. Show your stuff.
Vagabondism 140
Vagabondism #140 "What is your next step forward in life? It’s the one right in front of you."
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
Alone
It's 1:30 p.m. My housemates are all at work. I am alone. I hear heavy footsteps on the stairs as a giant approaches. His footsteps get louder and the force of them shakes the walls.
The giant shakes the house. My desk shakes and the monitor in front of me sways back and forth. I feel the rumbling underneath me. "This feels like an earthquake" I say out loud to no one, because there's no one here. I am alone.
I quickly turn off the computer, get dressed and evacuate the building. Once outside I want to know if any of my neighbors experienced the same tremors. But there are no neighbors around. Where are the people? Across the street two girls come walking from the library, chatting as if nothing happened. Was it only my house that shook and trembled and will it happen again?
I worry about Leslie's cat, and about Dan's tropical fish. I worry about myself, where I will go if my house falls down.
I go back up to my apartment on the top floor of a three story builing and collect a few things just in case. I turn the computer back on to get some news and I hear about Libya, a woman from Utah who's been missing and about a hurricane named Irene, a female giant, a giantess, making her way up the east coast.
Finally there is news about an earthquake in Virginia that sent shock waves all over the east. So it wasn't just my house. That's mildly comforting. They evacuated the Pentagon and the Capitol. They evacuated the White House. How do you evacuate the White House I wondered? Does everybody go out into the garden?
There was talk of aftershocks. We were told to prepare for aftershocks. How do you prepare for aftershocks? The giant is fast and dangerous and doesn't announce himself the way a hurricane does.
What's up? The east coast does not have earthquakes. Is there more to come? Hurricanes on top of earthquakes on top of flash floods. That's a mean sandwich, hard to digest.
I, for one, have decided I'm not going to worry about it. I'll take what comes and deal with it on my own. That's my best and only choice, because I'm alone.
DB - The Real Vagabond
Never give up.
***********************
I wish I had a comfortable chair.
************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
16 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
The giant shakes the house. My desk shakes and the monitor in front of me sways back and forth. I feel the rumbling underneath me. "This feels like an earthquake" I say out loud to no one, because there's no one here. I am alone.
I quickly turn off the computer, get dressed and evacuate the building. Once outside I want to know if any of my neighbors experienced the same tremors. But there are no neighbors around. Where are the people? Across the street two girls come walking from the library, chatting as if nothing happened. Was it only my house that shook and trembled and will it happen again?
I worry about Leslie's cat, and about Dan's tropical fish. I worry about myself, where I will go if my house falls down.
I go back up to my apartment on the top floor of a three story builing and collect a few things just in case. I turn the computer back on to get some news and I hear about Libya, a woman from Utah who's been missing and about a hurricane named Irene, a female giant, a giantess, making her way up the east coast.
Finally there is news about an earthquake in Virginia that sent shock waves all over the east. So it wasn't just my house. That's mildly comforting. They evacuated the Pentagon and the Capitol. They evacuated the White House. How do you evacuate the White House I wondered? Does everybody go out into the garden?
There was talk of aftershocks. We were told to prepare for aftershocks. How do you prepare for aftershocks? The giant is fast and dangerous and doesn't announce himself the way a hurricane does.
What's up? The east coast does not have earthquakes. Is there more to come? Hurricanes on top of earthquakes on top of flash floods. That's a mean sandwich, hard to digest.
I, for one, have decided I'm not going to worry about it. I'll take what comes and deal with it on my own. That's my best and only choice, because I'm alone.
DB - The Real Vagabond
Never give up.
***********************
I wish I had a comfortable chair.
************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
16 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Vagabondism 139
Vagabondism #139 If we knew we would live forever we would knuckle down and get busy."
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
Stuck
Man, you are such a difficult problem to yourself.
Alexander Pope
*********************
One day I saw a clown perform a funny act. He had his finger stuck in a bottle. He tugged, he pulled, he twisted, he shook, he held the bottle between his legs and tried to pry his finger out with the other hand, he even tried swinging the bottle back and forth trying to dislodge his finger. Finally, exhausted, he removed his hand from the bottle, reached into his back pocket, took out his handkerchief to mop his brow, put the handkerchief back in his pocket and then stuck his finger back in the bottle and started tugging again. It was very funny, but it was telling us a serious story. How many problems do we create for ourselves that we could have avoided or solved if we only applied some reason, and aforethought?
On a more serious note, one night I was driving back to New York City from New England. I had heard on the news that there was a major protest by the gas stations in New York State against the oil companies I think, and that all the gas stations in the state had closed. So I stopped in Connecticut and filled up the tank. After I crossed the state line into Westchester County on the highway I saw that, indeed the gas stations were closed and dark. After several miles I saw a guy at a gas station desperately trying to open a closed and locked gas pump. It was a futile effort. He didn't have enough gas to get where he was going and he knew it. If he didn't get some he would probably be stranded on the highway. He wasn't going to get any out of that pump. It was too late on a 65 mile an hour highway to turn back and give him some of mine, so I just kept going.
I don't know what happened to that poor fellow. Maybe he had enough to take the next exit and turn around back to Connecticut. That would have gotten his finger out of the bottle.
New York City has several daily newspapers. I would sometimes see someone walking down the street with all of them tucked under his arm.
Evidently he was concerned about being out of touch with the world's events, so he hoarded newspapers. I wonder how much of them he read or if it was just the security of knowing that he had the news with him. I wonder what his apartment looked like.
I knew a man who hoarded the Sunday New York Times. He had stacks of them in his apartment, unread. Some people hoard food because they fear not having enough to eat. Very rich people hoard money because they can. Those who have more than they need fear not having enough so they stash it away where it's safe. In a bottle.
I hoard books. I fear ignorance, inanity and stupidity. It's a form of my germane claustrophobia. So I hoard books. I always have a book in my pocket or my back pack just so that no matter where I am I will have something interesting to read, a catalogue of ideas and creative expressions. I don't know how many books I have but they control my apartment. They let me live here. Do I have my finger stuck in a bottle?
We can all be free of the traps we set for ourselves, just as the clown showed us, if we can admit two things. One, there are habits and behaviors that do us no good, muddle up our lives and tie us down. And two, there are difficulties we have made for ourselves, we invented them, gave them justification and now they control us.
Moral: Take you finger out of the bottle and get on with life.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
***********************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
16 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Alexander Pope
*********************
One day I saw a clown perform a funny act. He had his finger stuck in a bottle. He tugged, he pulled, he twisted, he shook, he held the bottle between his legs and tried to pry his finger out with the other hand, he even tried swinging the bottle back and forth trying to dislodge his finger. Finally, exhausted, he removed his hand from the bottle, reached into his back pocket, took out his handkerchief to mop his brow, put the handkerchief back in his pocket and then stuck his finger back in the bottle and started tugging again. It was very funny, but it was telling us a serious story. How many problems do we create for ourselves that we could have avoided or solved if we only applied some reason, and aforethought?
On a more serious note, one night I was driving back to New York City from New England. I had heard on the news that there was a major protest by the gas stations in New York State against the oil companies I think, and that all the gas stations in the state had closed. So I stopped in Connecticut and filled up the tank. After I crossed the state line into Westchester County on the highway I saw that, indeed the gas stations were closed and dark. After several miles I saw a guy at a gas station desperately trying to open a closed and locked gas pump. It was a futile effort. He didn't have enough gas to get where he was going and he knew it. If he didn't get some he would probably be stranded on the highway. He wasn't going to get any out of that pump. It was too late on a 65 mile an hour highway to turn back and give him some of mine, so I just kept going.
I don't know what happened to that poor fellow. Maybe he had enough to take the next exit and turn around back to Connecticut. That would have gotten his finger out of the bottle.
New York City has several daily newspapers. I would sometimes see someone walking down the street with all of them tucked under his arm.
Evidently he was concerned about being out of touch with the world's events, so he hoarded newspapers. I wonder how much of them he read or if it was just the security of knowing that he had the news with him. I wonder what his apartment looked like.
I knew a man who hoarded the Sunday New York Times. He had stacks of them in his apartment, unread. Some people hoard food because they fear not having enough to eat. Very rich people hoard money because they can. Those who have more than they need fear not having enough so they stash it away where it's safe. In a bottle.
I hoard books. I fear ignorance, inanity and stupidity. It's a form of my germane claustrophobia. So I hoard books. I always have a book in my pocket or my back pack just so that no matter where I am I will have something interesting to read, a catalogue of ideas and creative expressions. I don't know how many books I have but they control my apartment. They let me live here. Do I have my finger stuck in a bottle?
We can all be free of the traps we set for ourselves, just as the clown showed us, if we can admit two things. One, there are habits and behaviors that do us no good, muddle up our lives and tie us down. And two, there are difficulties we have made for ourselves, we invented them, gave them justification and now they control us.
Moral: Take you finger out of the bottle and get on with life.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
***********************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
16 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Monday, August 22, 2011
Vagabondism 138
Vagabondism #138 "When we no longer notice justice, mercy, reason, kindness and honesty, it will mean that the world is finally at peace."
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
What's so funny?
The wisest of you men is he who has realized, like Socrates, that in respect of wisdom he is truly worthless.
Socrates
****************
In a steam driven locomotive or other large machine wood or coal is burned to heat water and create steam. The steam is then carried through pipes to mechanisms that drive pistons or other devices. There are valves to siphon off excess steam. Hence we get the expression "letting off steam."
If the safty valve isn't allowed to open the machine will shut itself down or blow itself up, and that's what happens to a lot of people. Those who are steamed up all the time about something and don't have or don't use a means of blowing off steam are in for trouble of one form or another. Either they will implode, go into denial, stop thinking, stop doing and stop dealing with the things they need to deal with. Irresponsibility, defiance, anti intellectualism, anti culturalism, the self dumbing down of people are the way marks of such implosion. Then there are the exploders who try to wipe out the things they can't deal with through violence, the prevention of other people's rights, using personal power to corrupt righteous causes and eventual self destruction.
All of those negatives could be prevented by a little blowing off of steam. I think, and many others think so too, that the best valve to open for the stressing and squirming of the overwhelming difficulties of life is a sense of humor. There isn't anything in life that can't be graced by a sense of the comical, a sense of irony, absurdity, the ridiculous; a sense of humor.
The ability to laugh at ourselves is a great talent which anyone can develop. Comedians are in the business of showing us how funny we are. The great thinkers of the world all exhibited the ability to laugh at things. Socrates obviously had a sense of humor, Einstein certainly did, I think Jesus Christ did, although I'll get an argument about that from some stuffed up Christians who haven't found their own steam valve yet. One can not successfully carry with them a huge load of thoughts and actions, of cares and responsibilities without occasionally being able to see the funny side of things. That's why the kings and monarchs of old had court jesters.
We are all inadequate at having the truth and wisdom we are supposed to have. It is healthy to be reminded of that now and then. If the major politicians and the big CEOs are too stuck on themselves to be able to see it then they would each do well to have a jester on the payroll to remind them. There would be a lot more cooperation and a lot less mud slinging.
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
******************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
16 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Socrates
****************
In a steam driven locomotive or other large machine wood or coal is burned to heat water and create steam. The steam is then carried through pipes to mechanisms that drive pistons or other devices. There are valves to siphon off excess steam. Hence we get the expression "letting off steam."
If the safty valve isn't allowed to open the machine will shut itself down or blow itself up, and that's what happens to a lot of people. Those who are steamed up all the time about something and don't have or don't use a means of blowing off steam are in for trouble of one form or another. Either they will implode, go into denial, stop thinking, stop doing and stop dealing with the things they need to deal with. Irresponsibility, defiance, anti intellectualism, anti culturalism, the self dumbing down of people are the way marks of such implosion. Then there are the exploders who try to wipe out the things they can't deal with through violence, the prevention of other people's rights, using personal power to corrupt righteous causes and eventual self destruction.
All of those negatives could be prevented by a little blowing off of steam. I think, and many others think so too, that the best valve to open for the stressing and squirming of the overwhelming difficulties of life is a sense of humor. There isn't anything in life that can't be graced by a sense of the comical, a sense of irony, absurdity, the ridiculous; a sense of humor.
The ability to laugh at ourselves is a great talent which anyone can develop. Comedians are in the business of showing us how funny we are. The great thinkers of the world all exhibited the ability to laugh at things. Socrates obviously had a sense of humor, Einstein certainly did, I think Jesus Christ did, although I'll get an argument about that from some stuffed up Christians who haven't found their own steam valve yet. One can not successfully carry with them a huge load of thoughts and actions, of cares and responsibilities without occasionally being able to see the funny side of things. That's why the kings and monarchs of old had court jesters.
We are all inadequate at having the truth and wisdom we are supposed to have. It is healthy to be reminded of that now and then. If the major politicians and the big CEOs are too stuck on themselves to be able to see it then they would each do well to have a jester on the payroll to remind them. There would be a lot more cooperation and a lot less mud slinging.
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
******************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
16 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Vagabondism 137
Vagabondism #137 "I am grateful that my few friends are fascinating people." http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
No Rules
The artist needs to be possessed of a good disposition as well as a moment of inspiration, because whatever is made according to instructions and rules turns out to be spiritless.
Immanuel Kant
************************
I used to say, half jokingly, half seriously, that I reinvent that art of acting with every role I get.
One of the best directors I ever had the privilege of working with is Charles Hensley. He came into rehearsal the first day of the first play I did with him wearing a button which read "There are no rules." Immediately I knew there was a man I could work with. He is a director who understands one of the basic principles of good theatre and how to achieve it: "Direct the Play, Not the Players."
I have known too many actors and other artists who waste their time (and other people's) looking for a path of instruction, a list of duties, in short, rules. When they find them, or make them up, their work becomes assembly line and uninspired.
The making of rules to work by, for an artist or anyone, is just as dangerous as doing something a certain way because "we've always done it that way." I used to know a world class flutist who told me that he once played with an orchestra whose conductor had a strict method for playing the music and would allow for no originality. He didn't play with that orchestra again.
The creative experience is just that, an experience. It isn't something the artist makes up. It exists in the mental realm of imagination, appreciation and discovery. Inspiration, when it comes, is a gift. But the artist must put himself in the way of it by an openness which doesn't come out of a rule book.
In my opinion, which I will defend with unarguable facts, any time, any where, 2 of the worst things a director can do to mess up the rehearsal process are 1 demand a performance level at the first rehearsal and 2 ask for improvisations before anyone knows the story. I've been through both and can attest how just plain stupid they are. In both cases they delay the creative process instead of adding to it.
I have a friend who is right now involved in a production of a Shakespearean comedy. At the first rehearsal the director wanted the actors to be up on their feet, walking around, speaking up, speeding up and relating to each other. In other words he wanted a performance. It doesn't work that way.
I was in an Off Broadway show where the director wanted the cast to improvise before we had a chance to investigate the script. As a result we improvised ourselves off into a fog. It doesn't work that way either.
On the other hand the actor who was trying to give the director a performance on the first day directed me in a Chekhov play. We spent a long time sitting around, reading and discussing it, learning about Chekhov and about life in Russia during the time of the play. Rich, excellent background work. When we got up on our feet the cast knew their parts very well. Then one day the director asked us to improvise the first act. That was one of the best experiences I ever had in the theatre. I faced and solved acting problems I might have just walked through, without knowing it, using only the Chekhovian dialogue.
And the aforementioned Charles Hensley, the "no rules" man, directed me in a Shakespearean comedy. We spent many days sitting around a table reading and talking about the play. By the time we got up to move around we were a tight ensemble company. Charley trusted us. And the performance that emerged was one of the best I've ever had the pleasure of being in. It was fresh, original, unforced, liberated, exciting and I reinvented myself again.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*******************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Immanuel Kant
************************
I used to say, half jokingly, half seriously, that I reinvent that art of acting with every role I get.
One of the best directors I ever had the privilege of working with is Charles Hensley. He came into rehearsal the first day of the first play I did with him wearing a button which read "There are no rules." Immediately I knew there was a man I could work with. He is a director who understands one of the basic principles of good theatre and how to achieve it: "Direct the Play, Not the Players."
I have known too many actors and other artists who waste their time (and other people's) looking for a path of instruction, a list of duties, in short, rules. When they find them, or make them up, their work becomes assembly line and uninspired.
The making of rules to work by, for an artist or anyone, is just as dangerous as doing something a certain way because "we've always done it that way." I used to know a world class flutist who told me that he once played with an orchestra whose conductor had a strict method for playing the music and would allow for no originality. He didn't play with that orchestra again.
The creative experience is just that, an experience. It isn't something the artist makes up. It exists in the mental realm of imagination, appreciation and discovery. Inspiration, when it comes, is a gift. But the artist must put himself in the way of it by an openness which doesn't come out of a rule book.
In my opinion, which I will defend with unarguable facts, any time, any where, 2 of the worst things a director can do to mess up the rehearsal process are 1 demand a performance level at the first rehearsal and 2 ask for improvisations before anyone knows the story. I've been through both and can attest how just plain stupid they are. In both cases they delay the creative process instead of adding to it.
I have a friend who is right now involved in a production of a Shakespearean comedy. At the first rehearsal the director wanted the actors to be up on their feet, walking around, speaking up, speeding up and relating to each other. In other words he wanted a performance. It doesn't work that way.
I was in an Off Broadway show where the director wanted the cast to improvise before we had a chance to investigate the script. As a result we improvised ourselves off into a fog. It doesn't work that way either.
On the other hand the actor who was trying to give the director a performance on the first day directed me in a Chekhov play. We spent a long time sitting around, reading and discussing it, learning about Chekhov and about life in Russia during the time of the play. Rich, excellent background work. When we got up on our feet the cast knew their parts very well. Then one day the director asked us to improvise the first act. That was one of the best experiences I ever had in the theatre. I faced and solved acting problems I might have just walked through, without knowing it, using only the Chekhovian dialogue.
And the aforementioned Charles Hensley, the "no rules" man, directed me in a Shakespearean comedy. We spent many days sitting around a table reading and talking about the play. By the time we got up to move around we were a tight ensemble company. Charley trusted us. And the performance that emerged was one of the best I've ever had the pleasure of being in. It was fresh, original, unforced, liberated, exciting and I reinvented myself again.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*******************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Vagabondism 136
Vagabondism #136 "One advantage to being a retired actor is that I don’t have to do any second rate theatre."
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
Gettiing It Wrong
Mistakes are part of the dues one pays for a full life.
Sophia Loren
************************
"What ho, Mrs Brisket,
Why not take a plunge and risk it."
Watch your step. But keep walking.
Watch your back. But don't turn around and go that way.
Watch your mouth. But don't be afraid to speak up.
So what if you make a mistake? So what if you screw something up? Join the human race.
Mistakes are good things, they're blessings. Why? Because they are filled with lessons. They are sudden gusts of knowledge through the brain, slippery ice under the feet of our certainty. Mistakes are the things that grab us and fling us forward into a better understanding of who we are and what we're doing.
I was just talking to my fried Marty and saying that in this entry I could recite a catalogue of my mistakes. But I don't want to. That would just depress me and then depress you. It is much better to recite the lessons learned. And even better to describe the positive results of those lessons.
To not take things for granted is to be open to exploring all the facets of whatever I come across. To not judge anyone or anything just by appearances is to discover hidden values. To acknowledge my mistake and take it's lesson to heart is to be thrust forward into a greater, higher place in my own thinking. To refuse to accept the claim of my own limitations imposed on me by my errors is to yearn and strive for a limitless life.
To risk taking the plunge in any of life's adventures is to risk getting my feet wet in the mud puddle I didn't see. It's to risk stubbing my toe, bumping my head and slipping on the ice. But the adventure of a full life is worth the risk.
Some mistakes loom very large in one's history. They may cause deep regrets and years of repair. Those require time and space in our lives. But the learning is even more valuable and needed as we become better, more fulfilled creatures.
I think my errors should be put into a box. They've had their day, and paid their way. I will put the box into the closet, close the door, forgive myself and get on with my full life.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
Sophia Loren
************************
"What ho, Mrs Brisket,
Why not take a plunge and risk it."
Watch your step. But keep walking.
Watch your back. But don't turn around and go that way.
Watch your mouth. But don't be afraid to speak up.
So what if you make a mistake? So what if you screw something up? Join the human race.
Mistakes are good things, they're blessings. Why? Because they are filled with lessons. They are sudden gusts of knowledge through the brain, slippery ice under the feet of our certainty. Mistakes are the things that grab us and fling us forward into a better understanding of who we are and what we're doing.
I was just talking to my fried Marty and saying that in this entry I could recite a catalogue of my mistakes. But I don't want to. That would just depress me and then depress you. It is much better to recite the lessons learned. And even better to describe the positive results of those lessons.
To not take things for granted is to be open to exploring all the facets of whatever I come across. To not judge anyone or anything just by appearances is to discover hidden values. To acknowledge my mistake and take it's lesson to heart is to be thrust forward into a greater, higher place in my own thinking. To refuse to accept the claim of my own limitations imposed on me by my errors is to yearn and strive for a limitless life.
To risk taking the plunge in any of life's adventures is to risk getting my feet wet in the mud puddle I didn't see. It's to risk stubbing my toe, bumping my head and slipping on the ice. But the adventure of a full life is worth the risk.
Some mistakes loom very large in one's history. They may cause deep regrets and years of repair. Those require time and space in our lives. But the learning is even more valuable and needed as we become better, more fulfilled creatures.
I think my errors should be put into a box. They've had their day, and paid their way. I will put the box into the closet, close the door, forgive myself and get on with my full life.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
Friday, August 19, 2011
vagabondism 135
Vagabondism #135 "Even a small improvement you make in someone else’s life can bring joy."
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
Liberty Up To A Point
Claiming for ourselves liberty of conscience, liberty to worship, we shall see to it that every other individual enjoys the same right.
James Larkin
*********************
Mine is the true religion. We have freedom of worship in this country so you can go on wearing your strange clothes and doing your silly rituals, even though God is not listening to you. And no, you are not welcome to build your "house of worship" or whatever you call it, in our community.
------------------------------------------
Hi, I'm Jack from the Neighborhood Association. I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you're going to have to remove that American flag and the flag pole from your property. We have rules against such things.
----------------------------------------
He: "Excuse me but does this book store have any books on Judaica?"
She: "Yes. I think we have a few."
He: "Where would I find them?"
She: "In the occult section."
----------------------------------------
Buddy, you better remove that "Smith for Congress" sign or I'll remove it for you.
------------------------------------------
"He was safe. My son was safe. Why did you call him out? Change the call. No? Here's my fist in your face, maybe that will improve your eye sight.
-----------------------------------------
Folks, I have a list of authors and some books that are inappropriate and offensive. I have a court order to have them removed from the town library. Meanwhile my Co-Chair is checking through the school libraries and the local book stores. If anyone of you would like to read some of these awful publications to see what I'm objecting to, they will be in my office.
-----------------------------------------------------
This gay rights nonsense has gone too far. Those queers are everywhere. Now they even let them in the military, smearing the reputation of our good fighting men and women. Next thing you know they'll be wearing green berets. Won't that be cute. They are getting married to each other. What a laugh. Homosexuality is a sin. It goes against the Bible, the Constitution and everything America stands for. I wouldn't let my son near one of those faggots. As a Scout leader I can assure you absolutely, there is no homosexuality in the Boy Scouts.
---------------------------------------
We certainly don't want Smith representing us in the legislature. So I suggest a recount, and during it we can make some minor adjustment in the results so this voter mistake won't affect anything.
----------------------------------------------------
Why did you bother rechecking those figures? It doesn't matter if they're not 100% accurate. Send them through anyway. You're wasting the company's time.
-------------------------------
"The Doctor amputated that patients leg."
"What was wrong with the leg?"
"Nothing. They gave the Doc the wrong X-ray to look at."
-----------------------------------
Now children, before we start there will be no wearing of scarves in my class. Isaac take off the little beanie, and Maria put away the cross. OK class, now we can begin.
---------------------------------
No Miss, you are not going to that civil rights demonstration. I don't care about your politics or your feelings, no daughter of mine is going to be seen with a bunch of loud, dirty, ass pinching anarchists.
-----------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
**********************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
James Larkin
*********************
Mine is the true religion. We have freedom of worship in this country so you can go on wearing your strange clothes and doing your silly rituals, even though God is not listening to you. And no, you are not welcome to build your "house of worship" or whatever you call it, in our community.
------------------------------------------
Hi, I'm Jack from the Neighborhood Association. I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you're going to have to remove that American flag and the flag pole from your property. We have rules against such things.
----------------------------------------
He: "Excuse me but does this book store have any books on Judaica?"
She: "Yes. I think we have a few."
He: "Where would I find them?"
She: "In the occult section."
----------------------------------------
Buddy, you better remove that "Smith for Congress" sign or I'll remove it for you.
------------------------------------------
"He was safe. My son was safe. Why did you call him out? Change the call. No? Here's my fist in your face, maybe that will improve your eye sight.
-----------------------------------------
Folks, I have a list of authors and some books that are inappropriate and offensive. I have a court order to have them removed from the town library. Meanwhile my Co-Chair is checking through the school libraries and the local book stores. If anyone of you would like to read some of these awful publications to see what I'm objecting to, they will be in my office.
-----------------------------------------------------
This gay rights nonsense has gone too far. Those queers are everywhere. Now they even let them in the military, smearing the reputation of our good fighting men and women. Next thing you know they'll be wearing green berets. Won't that be cute. They are getting married to each other. What a laugh. Homosexuality is a sin. It goes against the Bible, the Constitution and everything America stands for. I wouldn't let my son near one of those faggots. As a Scout leader I can assure you absolutely, there is no homosexuality in the Boy Scouts.
---------------------------------------
We certainly don't want Smith representing us in the legislature. So I suggest a recount, and during it we can make some minor adjustment in the results so this voter mistake won't affect anything.
----------------------------------------------------
Why did you bother rechecking those figures? It doesn't matter if they're not 100% accurate. Send them through anyway. You're wasting the company's time.
-------------------------------
"The Doctor amputated that patients leg."
"What was wrong with the leg?"
"Nothing. They gave the Doc the wrong X-ray to look at."
-----------------------------------
Now children, before we start there will be no wearing of scarves in my class. Isaac take off the little beanie, and Maria put away the cross. OK class, now we can begin.
---------------------------------
No Miss, you are not going to that civil rights demonstration. I don't care about your politics or your feelings, no daughter of mine is going to be seen with a bunch of loud, dirty, ass pinching anarchists.
-----------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
**********************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Vagabondism 134
Vagabondism #134 "Every moment that you spend facing down fear and trouble makes a difference in the world."
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
Free At Last
It's not that we need new ideas, but we need to stop having old ideas.
Edwin Land
***********************"
"He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound." (Isaiah)
----------------------------------------
I awoke this morning with a reaction to some dream I had been having. I dont remember the dream but the feeling I had was how important freedom was to my life and to life in general.
Shortly after, I heard a meek chirping noise and again I discovered one of the very young finches inside my apartment. The poor creatures must have been in here all night, wondering where he was and where his buddies were. I opened the door and took him to it. He wasted no time accepting his freedom.
It may be that freedom is the most important motivating force of life. We begin our days by getting free of the womb. After that we face a seemingly endless parade of locks, blocks and obstructions to get through.
The paradox to life is that freedom isn't free. We pay a heavy price for it. But as Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, "No price is too high for the privilege of owning yourself."
Life, for most of us, is a process of getting free of one encumbrance only to tie ourselves up with another one. Once we stop being babies, learn to walk and then to run, the world is a big adventure and we are free at last. And then "slam" the door closes and off we go to school. That form of imprisonment goes on for many years until we graduate and step out into the word, free at last. Until we get a job.
Feeling free is not the same thing as freedom. A false sense of security is more dangerous than insecurity. Back in the 40's and 50's, when I was growing up, a major ethic, in that post depression era, was to have a job. If you had a job you were secure. It was expected that you would stay at that job, working for that company the rest of your life until you retired and it was assumed that your job was secure. There was a lifetime commitment between the employer and the employee. With the rise of organized labor a man's salary, security and working conditions improved to the point where he could think about settling down to raise a family and maybe even owning a home.
It all seemed like the American Dream working itself out as the philosophers of 20th Century ideas had envisioned it. America was, after all, the land of the free. But the fact was freedom under those conditions was not attainable. An employer owned your job and therefore he owned a major part of your life. It was a false sense of security which seemed better than the desperate insecurity that had beleaguered the early 20th Century.
The 60's came and things began to unravel. Employers started replacing workers and workers started changing jobs. The work place was no longer the arena of freedom. Also, along came the skyrocketing cost of things like health care which meant that the simple job a man had was no long capable of taking care of the family he had begun. The husband's salary was not enough so the wife also had to go to work, meaning that holding the family together became an improvised affair. As the expenses and responsibilities piled up something was slowly disappearing from the mental environment. It was the sense of freedom. We were tied down to jobs, debts, family obligations and physical limitations.
We went looking for things to give us a sense of freedom. Vacations are a usual choice. Depending on a man's income he could take the family skiing in the Alps, or to a cottage on the beach or he could sit around in the living room, spending time with the kids, watching TV, resting and playing games. But wherever he went the vacation ended and he went back to the servitude of the job he never left.
He could be inventive, enterprising and manipulative, and rise in the ranks of wage earners, but whatever his specialty, profession or career he was still tethered to it.
Then came retirement when he thought he'll be free at last. But what he found was a whole new set of responsibilities and a life of commitments, because he is used to it.
The fact is that he lives his life according to theories he has inherited from the past, from his parents, teachers and society in general, hence he is bound to them. His first step toward freedom is to know that and not let those ideas control his life, as useful as some of them may be.
At some point, after all the slavery he's been through or put himself through he may realize that freedom is something that exists only in his thoughts. He's paid a heavy price for that realization, but at last he can begin to do the amazing thing of taking possession of himself. He's had the right all along to claim ownership. It doesn't matter who he works for or what he does, how big his family is or where he lives, who his friends and neighbors are or how much money he has. None of those things define him. He is a single entity, a unique idea in the vast universe of existence with total authority for being there. It took a long time, many struggles and a hefty price to find out that he has always been free.
DB
Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Edwin Land
***********************"
"He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound." (Isaiah)
----------------------------------------
I awoke this morning with a reaction to some dream I had been having. I dont remember the dream but the feeling I had was how important freedom was to my life and to life in general.
Shortly after, I heard a meek chirping noise and again I discovered one of the very young finches inside my apartment. The poor creatures must have been in here all night, wondering where he was and where his buddies were. I opened the door and took him to it. He wasted no time accepting his freedom.
It may be that freedom is the most important motivating force of life. We begin our days by getting free of the womb. After that we face a seemingly endless parade of locks, blocks and obstructions to get through.
The paradox to life is that freedom isn't free. We pay a heavy price for it. But as Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, "No price is too high for the privilege of owning yourself."
Life, for most of us, is a process of getting free of one encumbrance only to tie ourselves up with another one. Once we stop being babies, learn to walk and then to run, the world is a big adventure and we are free at last. And then "slam" the door closes and off we go to school. That form of imprisonment goes on for many years until we graduate and step out into the word, free at last. Until we get a job.
Feeling free is not the same thing as freedom. A false sense of security is more dangerous than insecurity. Back in the 40's and 50's, when I was growing up, a major ethic, in that post depression era, was to have a job. If you had a job you were secure. It was expected that you would stay at that job, working for that company the rest of your life until you retired and it was assumed that your job was secure. There was a lifetime commitment between the employer and the employee. With the rise of organized labor a man's salary, security and working conditions improved to the point where he could think about settling down to raise a family and maybe even owning a home.
It all seemed like the American Dream working itself out as the philosophers of 20th Century ideas had envisioned it. America was, after all, the land of the free. But the fact was freedom under those conditions was not attainable. An employer owned your job and therefore he owned a major part of your life. It was a false sense of security which seemed better than the desperate insecurity that had beleaguered the early 20th Century.
The 60's came and things began to unravel. Employers started replacing workers and workers started changing jobs. The work place was no longer the arena of freedom. Also, along came the skyrocketing cost of things like health care which meant that the simple job a man had was no long capable of taking care of the family he had begun. The husband's salary was not enough so the wife also had to go to work, meaning that holding the family together became an improvised affair. As the expenses and responsibilities piled up something was slowly disappearing from the mental environment. It was the sense of freedom. We were tied down to jobs, debts, family obligations and physical limitations.
We went looking for things to give us a sense of freedom. Vacations are a usual choice. Depending on a man's income he could take the family skiing in the Alps, or to a cottage on the beach or he could sit around in the living room, spending time with the kids, watching TV, resting and playing games. But wherever he went the vacation ended and he went back to the servitude of the job he never left.
He could be inventive, enterprising and manipulative, and rise in the ranks of wage earners, but whatever his specialty, profession or career he was still tethered to it.
Then came retirement when he thought he'll be free at last. But what he found was a whole new set of responsibilities and a life of commitments, because he is used to it.
The fact is that he lives his life according to theories he has inherited from the past, from his parents, teachers and society in general, hence he is bound to them. His first step toward freedom is to know that and not let those ideas control his life, as useful as some of them may be.
At some point, after all the slavery he's been through or put himself through he may realize that freedom is something that exists only in his thoughts. He's paid a heavy price for that realization, but at last he can begin to do the amazing thing of taking possession of himself. He's had the right all along to claim ownership. It doesn't matter who he works for or what he does, how big his family is or where he lives, who his friends and neighbors are or how much money he has. None of those things define him. He is a single entity, a unique idea in the vast universe of existence with total authority for being there. It took a long time, many struggles and a hefty price to find out that he has always been free.
DB
Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
15 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Vagabondism 133
Vagabondism #133 "They can steal my fish but they can’t steal my ocean."
dbdacoba@aol.com
dbdacoba@aol.com
Connections
Man stands at the juncture of nature and spirit, he is involved in both freedom and necessity, he is both limited and limitless.
Reidar Thomte
******************
My uncle Stanley Bate was a successful painter. He lived and worked in the Hudson River valley, as did many other great painters. I learned an important concept from him, the art of visualization. It's the act of connecting the seen with the unseen, the fact with the fiction, of bringing together two realities, of telling a story by means of a story.
One of my favorite paintings of Uncle Stanley's is a picture of four empty chairs and four empty music stands grouped around in a semi circle. It's called "String Quartet."
Every work of art is limited by dimensions, materials and the craftsmanship of the artist. But there is attached to it something unlimited, something which exists in the artist's imagination. That something is the true story of the work of art. The art itself is merely a manifestation of what is really taking place. the proverbial tip of the iceberg.
I took that lesson and began to apply it to my own work. When a character enters a scene the actor has to know when to start in order to be in the proper place at the right time, or how many steps it takes him to get into place. He also needs to know why his character is entering the scene and where he is coming from. That's the objective reality of the moment. But the actor also has to know and bring on the stage with him the subjective reality of the character, a certain mentality, a remembrance of sights, sounds and aromas, a lifetime of experiences.
I also began to realize how important it was to visualize the life behind the words. Even in the case of master playwrights like Shakespeare and O'Neill there was more work to be done by the performer. Each speech carried the obligation to fulfill the words with the sights and sounds of not only the subject being discussed but the real life that surrounds the person speaking it. The words may evoke the image but the image is different for each actor who speaks them.
Miles Davis said "Don't play what's there, play what isn't there." Louis Armstrong said "What we play is life." An actor who doesn't know his words is lost in a jungle of confusion and uncertainty. Just as an actor needs to know his words, so a musician needs to know his notes. From that basis he can then play the visions and memories in his head, the stuff that "isn't there."
So when we look at a painting, watch an actor perform or listen to a piece of music we have the freedom and obligation to look beyond the facade to the super reality, the unlimited life of the artist and the art. To really listen to the music or the drama is listening instead to what the artist is saying which can't be said in notes and words. When we do that we can experience surprising results.
DB - The True Vagabond
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Reidar Thomte
******************
My uncle Stanley Bate was a successful painter. He lived and worked in the Hudson River valley, as did many other great painters. I learned an important concept from him, the art of visualization. It's the act of connecting the seen with the unseen, the fact with the fiction, of bringing together two realities, of telling a story by means of a story.
One of my favorite paintings of Uncle Stanley's is a picture of four empty chairs and four empty music stands grouped around in a semi circle. It's called "String Quartet."
Every work of art is limited by dimensions, materials and the craftsmanship of the artist. But there is attached to it something unlimited, something which exists in the artist's imagination. That something is the true story of the work of art. The art itself is merely a manifestation of what is really taking place. the proverbial tip of the iceberg.
I took that lesson and began to apply it to my own work. When a character enters a scene the actor has to know when to start in order to be in the proper place at the right time, or how many steps it takes him to get into place. He also needs to know why his character is entering the scene and where he is coming from. That's the objective reality of the moment. But the actor also has to know and bring on the stage with him the subjective reality of the character, a certain mentality, a remembrance of sights, sounds and aromas, a lifetime of experiences.
I also began to realize how important it was to visualize the life behind the words. Even in the case of master playwrights like Shakespeare and O'Neill there was more work to be done by the performer. Each speech carried the obligation to fulfill the words with the sights and sounds of not only the subject being discussed but the real life that surrounds the person speaking it. The words may evoke the image but the image is different for each actor who speaks them.
Miles Davis said "Don't play what's there, play what isn't there." Louis Armstrong said "What we play is life." An actor who doesn't know his words is lost in a jungle of confusion and uncertainty. Just as an actor needs to know his words, so a musician needs to know his notes. From that basis he can then play the visions and memories in his head, the stuff that "isn't there."
So when we look at a painting, watch an actor perform or listen to a piece of music we have the freedom and obligation to look beyond the facade to the super reality, the unlimited life of the artist and the art. To really listen to the music or the drama is listening instead to what the artist is saying which can't be said in notes and words. When we do that we can experience surprising results.
DB - The True Vagabond
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Vagabondism 132
Vagabondism #132 "If you want to learn the truth of something imagine looking at it from the side you can’t see."
http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
dumped
Today I spent several hours writing a piece about facing the future without regrets. When I went to post it the screen went blank. Back on again the entire piece was gone. The computer took all my work away with one click. It's too late to write it over. But I will live to write another day.
In the meantime here is a reprint from the summer of 2009.
Daring Do
Greatness is a road leading towards the unknown.
Charles de Gaulle
**********************
Star Trek
"The bear went over the mountain to see what he could see."
-----------------------------------------
Those who are given the opportunity and freedom to follow a line of study as far as it can take them are blessed with the possibility of discovering areas of unrevealed knowledge and understanding, what no one has ever encountered before, where no one has ever been. Mathematicians, astronomers, physicists, anthropologists, those practicing on the esoteric edges of science, architects, composers of music and, yes, also poets, when engaged to their utmost, may reach the end of the traveled path, step into an unknown territory of discovery, put down a marker for the future and try to describe what they find.
I don't know much about science, but I know something about art. The first and every time I see "The Piano Lesson" by Matisse I am taken gently by the hand and led into a world of painting I know little about yet.
I have heard Beethoven's "Grosse Fugue" for string quartet many times and it is still a mystery to me. What was it that Beethoven saw in his deafness and what was he trying to tell us about it?
On what obscure mountain top was Shakespeare when he wrote "The mightiest space in fortune nature brings to join like likes and kiss like native things."? And what was he saying when he wrote to lead us there "Impossible be strange attempts to those who weigh their pains in sense and do suppose what hath been cannot be."?
The challenge has been made, the door has been left open for others to follow, for you and I to approach the mystery, to go one step beyond, to find another treasure, another magic stone on which is written a new name no one knows.
The air is thin and hard to breathe, the way is treacherous and the terrain frustratingly difficult to describe, but, though we may be standing on the shoulders of the great ones who went before us, the experience of our own genius can only be won by moving off of the shoulders and placing a foot carefully but steadily down onto a step we cannot see.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
****************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
In the meantime here is a reprint from the summer of 2009.
Daring Do
Greatness is a road leading towards the unknown.
Charles de Gaulle
**********************
Star Trek
"The bear went over the mountain to see what he could see."
-----------------------------------------
Those who are given the opportunity and freedom to follow a line of study as far as it can take them are blessed with the possibility of discovering areas of unrevealed knowledge and understanding, what no one has ever encountered before, where no one has ever been. Mathematicians, astronomers, physicists, anthropologists, those practicing on the esoteric edges of science, architects, composers of music and, yes, also poets, when engaged to their utmost, may reach the end of the traveled path, step into an unknown territory of discovery, put down a marker for the future and try to describe what they find.
I don't know much about science, but I know something about art. The first and every time I see "The Piano Lesson" by Matisse I am taken gently by the hand and led into a world of painting I know little about yet.
I have heard Beethoven's "Grosse Fugue" for string quartet many times and it is still a mystery to me. What was it that Beethoven saw in his deafness and what was he trying to tell us about it?
On what obscure mountain top was Shakespeare when he wrote "The mightiest space in fortune nature brings to join like likes and kiss like native things."? And what was he saying when he wrote to lead us there "Impossible be strange attempts to those who weigh their pains in sense and do suppose what hath been cannot be."?
The challenge has been made, the door has been left open for others to follow, for you and I to approach the mystery, to go one step beyond, to find another treasure, another magic stone on which is written a new name no one knows.
The air is thin and hard to breathe, the way is treacherous and the terrain frustratingly difficult to describe, but, though we may be standing on the shoulders of the great ones who went before us, the experience of our own genius can only be won by moving off of the shoulders and placing a foot carefully but steadily down onto a step we cannot see.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
****************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Monday, August 15, 2011
Vagabondism 131
Vagabondism #131 "Literalism is a lid that must be pried open to get to the true metaphorical meaning underneath."
dbdacoba@aol.com
dbdacoba@aol.com
Knowing Everything
The greater our knowledge increases the more our ignorance unfolds.
John F. Kennedy
*************************
"The best actors in the world, either for tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastoral-comedy, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comical-historical-pastoral, scene undividable, or poem unlimited:" (Shakespeare)
An authority: Someone who knows more and more about less and less until he knows all there is to know about nothing at all.
When I was in high school the options were very simple: math, chemistry, biology, physics. That was more or less it. Over the years the more that has been discovered the more specialized science has become: anthrozology, primatology, robotics, evolutionary computation, paleobotany, astrochemistry, climatology, microbiology, crystallography, nanotechnology, nonEuclidian geometry and so on.
How does a young scientifically inclined person make a choice out of that cornucopia of disciplines, especially as they seem to be dividing themselves every day? There use to be a saying that two advanced chemists can't talk shop to each other because they haven't spoken the same language since 10th Grade Chem Lab.
The true mystery of all this is that Nature, like Life, is a very complicated thing and the more we know about it the more there is to know. And also, like Life, there is a lot of guess work involved, trial and error, hypotheses proven or unproven, theories that fly or crash. And, if anyone cares to face it, that's what makes everything so interesting.
I would like to know everything there is to know as impossible as it is. And that's why I'm glad to learn something every day. Being retired I don't have to ask myself what good it's going to do for my career, not that I ever asked myself that. And I am glad there is always something more to learn.
Lunar geology anyone?
--------------------------------
DB - The Vagabond
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
WEEKEND CONTEST ANSWERS
4 Weird Songs
Once again Geo was the only contestant. So he wins the grand prize of a stuffed organ grinders monkey, complete with cup and funny hat.
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
You may be the apple of your mother's eye, but you're not appealing to me.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
I got a rose between my toes from walking barefoot through the hot house to you, baby.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
Who was having napoleons with Josephine while Bonepart was away at the war?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Cigarettes and whiskey and wild, wild women, they'll drive you crazy, they'll drive you insane.
Thank you Geo.
DB
*************************
John F. Kennedy
*************************
"The best actors in the world, either for tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastoral-comedy, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comical-historical-pastoral, scene undividable, or poem unlimited:" (Shakespeare)
An authority: Someone who knows more and more about less and less until he knows all there is to know about nothing at all.
When I was in high school the options were very simple: math, chemistry, biology, physics. That was more or less it. Over the years the more that has been discovered the more specialized science has become: anthrozology, primatology, robotics, evolutionary computation, paleobotany, astrochemistry, climatology, microbiology, crystallography, nanotechnology, nonEuclidian geometry and so on.
How does a young scientifically inclined person make a choice out of that cornucopia of disciplines, especially as they seem to be dividing themselves every day? There use to be a saying that two advanced chemists can't talk shop to each other because they haven't spoken the same language since 10th Grade Chem Lab.
The true mystery of all this is that Nature, like Life, is a very complicated thing and the more we know about it the more there is to know. And also, like Life, there is a lot of guess work involved, trial and error, hypotheses proven or unproven, theories that fly or crash. And, if anyone cares to face it, that's what makes everything so interesting.
I would like to know everything there is to know as impossible as it is. And that's why I'm glad to learn something every day. Being retired I don't have to ask myself what good it's going to do for my career, not that I ever asked myself that. And I am glad there is always something more to learn.
Lunar geology anyone?
--------------------------------
DB - The Vagabond
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
WEEKEND CONTEST ANSWERS
4 Weird Songs
Once again Geo was the only contestant. So he wins the grand prize of a stuffed organ grinders monkey, complete with cup and funny hat.
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
You may be the apple of your mother's eye, but you're not appealing to me.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
I got a rose between my toes from walking barefoot through the hot house to you, baby.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
Who was having napoleons with Josephine while Bonepart was away at the war?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Cigarettes and whiskey and wild, wild women, they'll drive you crazy, they'll drive you insane.
Thank you Geo.
DB
*************************
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Vagabondism 130
Vagabondism #130 "Direct the play, not the players."
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
The Path Of Life
The biggest problem you ever have to overcome in life is yourself.
Dana Bate
**************************
I read through the news every morning. I ignore the headlines because they are misleading. Much of the media just grabs attention through headlines that don't appropriately reflect the story. So I read the story and thus am informed about the desperate situations going on in the country and the world. I wonder what a simpleton like myself can do about any of it and feel impotent.
I look around my apartment at all the chores and cleaning up that has to be done and chastise myself for my reluctance to drop everything else and do it.
I open my check book, look at my balance and wonder how I'm going to meet my finacnial obligations without depriving myself of coffee and cigarettes. I feel bad that I can only squeeze out a $10 contribution to organizations to whom I would like to give hundreds.
I read through my journal entry for the day and worry over whether or not I have expressed myself properly, if my ideas are clearly written and the motives behind what I've offered are to benefit the reader to the best of my ability.
But all of these thins are secondary to the errors of judgement, failures, mistakes of life, remorse, regrets, hopes, doubts and fears for the future that attached themselves to me like my own skin.
Those nasty parasites are enemies to happiness, and yet how easily I invite them in and become their host. I can clean out the kitchen sink. Why can't I clean out my head? Because to worry about myself and entertain all my faults and flaws is a habit. And that habit is built upon one embedded, rock solid, ice cold misconception. It's called "material personality."
You are not what you eat. You are not what you see in the mirror. You are not your job description. You are not what it says on your drivers licence, not your social security number, not your shoe size, nor your skin color and you are certainly not what you are subconsciously worried about right now.
All of it is part of the masquerade of human life, the games we play, the show we put on for ourselves and others. As an actor I was certified to depict human life in all its facets and to understand just how fictional most of that life is. If there is no other lamp I can carry forth out of 50 years of being a performing artist it is the one that lights up the path to being and the joy of being, the path to freedom from our self imposed limited personalities. Holding on adamantly to who we think we are just makes becoming who we are more difficult.
As human beings, on whatever level of existence, we are more interesting, complex, creative, adaptable. versatile and capable than we give ourselves credit for. The path to life is to discover that, understand it and prove it.
Dana Bate - The Real Vagabond
Never give up.
*********************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
WEEKEND CONTEST
4 Weird Songs
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Good luck.
DB
*************************
Dana Bate
**************************
I read through the news every morning. I ignore the headlines because they are misleading. Much of the media just grabs attention through headlines that don't appropriately reflect the story. So I read the story and thus am informed about the desperate situations going on in the country and the world. I wonder what a simpleton like myself can do about any of it and feel impotent.
I look around my apartment at all the chores and cleaning up that has to be done and chastise myself for my reluctance to drop everything else and do it.
I open my check book, look at my balance and wonder how I'm going to meet my finacnial obligations without depriving myself of coffee and cigarettes. I feel bad that I can only squeeze out a $10 contribution to organizations to whom I would like to give hundreds.
I read through my journal entry for the day and worry over whether or not I have expressed myself properly, if my ideas are clearly written and the motives behind what I've offered are to benefit the reader to the best of my ability.
But all of these thins are secondary to the errors of judgement, failures, mistakes of life, remorse, regrets, hopes, doubts and fears for the future that attached themselves to me like my own skin.
Those nasty parasites are enemies to happiness, and yet how easily I invite them in and become their host. I can clean out the kitchen sink. Why can't I clean out my head? Because to worry about myself and entertain all my faults and flaws is a habit. And that habit is built upon one embedded, rock solid, ice cold misconception. It's called "material personality."
You are not what you eat. You are not what you see in the mirror. You are not your job description. You are not what it says on your drivers licence, not your social security number, not your shoe size, nor your skin color and you are certainly not what you are subconsciously worried about right now.
All of it is part of the masquerade of human life, the games we play, the show we put on for ourselves and others. As an actor I was certified to depict human life in all its facets and to understand just how fictional most of that life is. If there is no other lamp I can carry forth out of 50 years of being a performing artist it is the one that lights up the path to being and the joy of being, the path to freedom from our self imposed limited personalities. Holding on adamantly to who we think we are just makes becoming who we are more difficult.
As human beings, on whatever level of existence, we are more interesting, complex, creative, adaptable. versatile and capable than we give ourselves credit for. The path to life is to discover that, understand it and prove it.
Dana Bate - The Real Vagabond
Never give up.
*********************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
WEEKEND CONTEST
4 Weird Songs
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Good luck.
DB
*************************
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Vagabondism 129
Vagabondism #129 "Look for the structures of things that exist in time, and the rhythms of things that exist in space."
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
Wise Man
Ten thousand fools proclaim themselves into obscurity, while one wise man forgets himself into immortality.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
*******************************
Ecclesiastes: 9:14 - 17 There was a little city, and few men within it; and a great king came against it, besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it.
Now a poor wise man was found in it, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.
Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength. Nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.
The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the cry of him who rules among fools.
___________________________
So have we yet had ten thousand fools proclaiming themselves through the halls of Congress? Or are there more to come? What more damage can be done?
We have a Patriot's Act which has nothing to do with patriotism. We have a Tea Party which has nothing to do with the original Tea Party. We have No Child Left Behind which encourages giving passing grades to failing students, closes schools and leaves a lot of children behind. We have a War on Terror which will never be won. We have a duly elected President who can't be
President because he's the wrong race. We have freedom of worship as long as it's Christian. We have squeamish proclaimers on Wall Street who arbitrarily lower our nation's credit rating. Congress has erected bulwarks against the American people. Our economy is besieged by the super rich. We have two very expensive battles going on in Asia neither of which we will win. We have labor unions to protect the rights of working people which are being eroded and closed down. We are "one nation, indivisible" except we're not. We are the "land of the free and the home of the brave" except that we're not. We have a comprehensive health care plan that is being torn apart and ultimately destroyed. We have seen the unadults of the House of Representatives bang the gavel down on the results of undisguised gloating hatred.
A patriot is one who stands up for his country even if it means standing up to his government. Where are the patriots? The goal of the original Tea Party was "No taxation without representation." If the wealthy are not paying their fair share of taxes why are they so strongly represented in Congress? "No child left behind" means that the entire nation should be focused on making sure American children ore getting the best education possible. We have road rage, racism, mothers killing their children, students killing their teachers. Terror is alive in this country and there are root causes for it that are not being investigated and addressed. We have never won a war we fought in Asia except when we dropped two atom bombs. There are those who are dedicated to getting President Obama out of office for no other reason than he's black and they've been doing that from the very start before he could even do something they didn't like. Freedom of worship means the Muslims can build a mosque wherever they want to. People fought and some lost their lives to establish the labor unions in this country. Without them workers will be exploited, and there will be slave labor. The kings and strong men of Wall Street are the biggest bunch of flip floppers in the country and they have convinced themselves and most of us that their figures represent the realities of economic life. We are not one nation, indivisible anymore. We are the Conservatives against everybody else. We are not a land of the free and home of the brave. Some of our freedoms are being eroded as the clock ticks and we have spawned a large group of cowards who sit in seats of power. Many American people are fed up with the government for just that reason. Why have many Americans even lost the consciousness of being an important people? Why have they lost self respect? Why have they lost the moral high ground? Why have they lost a sense of values? One group of Americans has been tricked into taking sides against another group. We are on the cusp of another Civil War.
So what's next? What else can they do? They can refuse to enact an intelligent and equitable tax structure and continue to defer to the rich which will deprive the treasury of money it could use to help improve the standard of living for the rest of us. They can minimize Medicaid and Medicare so that only the select few can afford to get and stay healthy. They can take away Veterans' benefits thus making the military a less attractive choice for young people. They can abate Social Security thus rendering thousands if not millions of older folks homeless.
The country needs that poor, wise man who forgets himself into immortality to drive out the villains and save the city. Where is he?
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
WEEKEND CONTEST
4 Weird Songs
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Good luck.
DB
*************************
Martin Luther King, Jr.
*******************************
Ecclesiastes: 9:14 - 17 There was a little city, and few men within it; and a great king came against it, besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it.
Now a poor wise man was found in it, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.
Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength. Nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.
The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the cry of him who rules among fools.
___________________________
So have we yet had ten thousand fools proclaiming themselves through the halls of Congress? Or are there more to come? What more damage can be done?
We have a Patriot's Act which has nothing to do with patriotism. We have a Tea Party which has nothing to do with the original Tea Party. We have No Child Left Behind which encourages giving passing grades to failing students, closes schools and leaves a lot of children behind. We have a War on Terror which will never be won. We have a duly elected President who can't be
President because he's the wrong race. We have freedom of worship as long as it's Christian. We have squeamish proclaimers on Wall Street who arbitrarily lower our nation's credit rating. Congress has erected bulwarks against the American people. Our economy is besieged by the super rich. We have two very expensive battles going on in Asia neither of which we will win. We have labor unions to protect the rights of working people which are being eroded and closed down. We are "one nation, indivisible" except we're not. We are the "land of the free and the home of the brave" except that we're not. We have a comprehensive health care plan that is being torn apart and ultimately destroyed. We have seen the unadults of the House of Representatives bang the gavel down on the results of undisguised gloating hatred.
A patriot is one who stands up for his country even if it means standing up to his government. Where are the patriots? The goal of the original Tea Party was "No taxation without representation." If the wealthy are not paying their fair share of taxes why are they so strongly represented in Congress? "No child left behind" means that the entire nation should be focused on making sure American children ore getting the best education possible. We have road rage, racism, mothers killing their children, students killing their teachers. Terror is alive in this country and there are root causes for it that are not being investigated and addressed. We have never won a war we fought in Asia except when we dropped two atom bombs. There are those who are dedicated to getting President Obama out of office for no other reason than he's black and they've been doing that from the very start before he could even do something they didn't like. Freedom of worship means the Muslims can build a mosque wherever they want to. People fought and some lost their lives to establish the labor unions in this country. Without them workers will be exploited, and there will be slave labor. The kings and strong men of Wall Street are the biggest bunch of flip floppers in the country and they have convinced themselves and most of us that their figures represent the realities of economic life. We are not one nation, indivisible anymore. We are the Conservatives against everybody else. We are not a land of the free and home of the brave. Some of our freedoms are being eroded as the clock ticks and we have spawned a large group of cowards who sit in seats of power. Many American people are fed up with the government for just that reason. Why have many Americans even lost the consciousness of being an important people? Why have they lost self respect? Why have they lost the moral high ground? Why have they lost a sense of values? One group of Americans has been tricked into taking sides against another group. We are on the cusp of another Civil War.
So what's next? What else can they do? They can refuse to enact an intelligent and equitable tax structure and continue to defer to the rich which will deprive the treasury of money it could use to help improve the standard of living for the rest of us. They can minimize Medicaid and Medicare so that only the select few can afford to get and stay healthy. They can take away Veterans' benefits thus making the military a less attractive choice for young people. They can abate Social Security thus rendering thousands if not millions of older folks homeless.
The country needs that poor, wise man who forgets himself into immortality to drive out the villains and save the city. Where is he?
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
WEEKEND CONTEST
4 Weird Songs
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Good luck.
DB
*************************
Friday, August 12, 2011
vagabondism 128
Vagabondism #128 "The worst enemy of old age that can overtake someone is fear. It must be defeated."
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
Astonish Me
Novelty in the presentation of a concept is a principal demand made by the fine arts upon the poet, even if the concept itself should not be new.
Immanuel Kant
***************************
In theatre, film and TV drama the story always involves a crisis of some sort. And the story is built around an idea, a truism, a life lesson that is recalled or relearned for the audience.
Of course we could always wait until the audience is seated then have someone step out in front of the curtain and say "Patience and persistence in pursuer of a goal generally succeed in obtaining it. Thank you." Then take a bow and send the audience home. But to drive that lesson home it's much better, not to mention much more enjoyable, to show someone actually achieving a goal through all sorts of difficulties while practicing the acts of persistence and patience, to identify with that character and get involved in his life as the evening progresses.
All art is the pointing of a finger, the opening of a door, the shining of a light. What is seen as a result is important to the viewer and the listener as it is to the artist. The good artist is the one who can discover and open a door that has not been found before, to reveal the truth of things in a new perspective. Whenever I see a painting I always ask myself what I see in it I have never seen in any painting before. I do the same with music.
There is imitative art and there is creative art. And there are surprises. There's a famous story about Serge Diaghilev, the choreographer of the Ballet Russes in France. A young Jean Cocteau was to write the scenario for a new ballet and when he asked Diaghilev what he wanted the reply was "Astonish me." And he did.
To astonish one like Diaghilev who has seen it all is no easy task, but it isn't done through magic tricks or splashy productions. It is the effect of a deeply penetrating and inspired poetry that renders a cosmic truth clearer then has been remembered. It's what changes one's life.
I have been astonished a few times in my life by films I've seen, actors and musicians performances, poems I've read and paintings I've stood in front of. An artist will keep reaching into the unknown to find the amazing things that need to be found and known. There is no finer task for an artist.
Someday I hope I will astonish you.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*************************
WEEKEND CONTEST
4 Weird Songs
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Good luck.
DB
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Immanuel Kant
***************************
In theatre, film and TV drama the story always involves a crisis of some sort. And the story is built around an idea, a truism, a life lesson that is recalled or relearned for the audience.
Of course we could always wait until the audience is seated then have someone step out in front of the curtain and say "Patience and persistence in pursuer of a goal generally succeed in obtaining it. Thank you." Then take a bow and send the audience home. But to drive that lesson home it's much better, not to mention much more enjoyable, to show someone actually achieving a goal through all sorts of difficulties while practicing the acts of persistence and patience, to identify with that character and get involved in his life as the evening progresses.
All art is the pointing of a finger, the opening of a door, the shining of a light. What is seen as a result is important to the viewer and the listener as it is to the artist. The good artist is the one who can discover and open a door that has not been found before, to reveal the truth of things in a new perspective. Whenever I see a painting I always ask myself what I see in it I have never seen in any painting before. I do the same with music.
There is imitative art and there is creative art. And there are surprises. There's a famous story about Serge Diaghilev, the choreographer of the Ballet Russes in France. A young Jean Cocteau was to write the scenario for a new ballet and when he asked Diaghilev what he wanted the reply was "Astonish me." And he did.
To astonish one like Diaghilev who has seen it all is no easy task, but it isn't done through magic tricks or splashy productions. It is the effect of a deeply penetrating and inspired poetry that renders a cosmic truth clearer then has been remembered. It's what changes one's life.
I have been astonished a few times in my life by films I've seen, actors and musicians performances, poems I've read and paintings I've stood in front of. An artist will keep reaching into the unknown to find the amazing things that need to be found and known. There is no finer task for an artist.
Someday I hope I will astonish you.
DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*************************
WEEKEND CONTEST
4 Weird Songs
___________________
ZEY NKZ VQ AFQ KCCUQ ED ZEYM NEAFQM'T QZQ, VYA ZEY'MQ IEA KCCQKUWIR AE NQ.
W REA K METQ VQAJQQI NZ AEQT DMEN JKUBWIR VKMQDEEA AFMEJRF AFQ FEAFEYTQ AE ZEY, VKVZ.
JFE JKT FKXWIR IKCEJQEIT JWAF LETQCFWIQ JFWUQ VEIQCKMA JKT KHKZ KA AFQ JKM?
GWRKMQAAQT KIS JFWTBQZ KIS JWUS, JWUS JENQI, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY GMKYZ, AFQZ'UU SMWXQ ZEY WITKIQ.
Good luck.
DB
*************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Vagabondism 127
Vagabondism #127 "Which comes first, the music or the dance?"
http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
Hold The Straight Jacket
I seldom think about my limitations and they never make me sad.
Helen Keller
************************
There are many different kinds of limitations one can face in one's lifetime. Dwelling on them and their effects is one sure way to end up in a straight jacket.
Some people suffer from severe physical limitations, as did Helen Keller, blind and deaf from early childhood Some have less severe, but troublesome physical limitations of some sort. There are limitations of time, environment, upbringing and opportunities. And a particularly insidious form of limitation has to do with failures, things not done or not done properly.
Keller overcame her limitations in remarkable ways, learning to speak, earning a Bachelors degree from Radcliffe, wrote many books, gave lectures, won many awards, traveled around the world and established The American Foundation for the Blind.
There are many stories of people, crippled in some way, overcoming the obstacles and beating the odds against them by accomplishing things that seemed impossible. Those people are inspirations to all of us.
We've all heard of people who were born in impoverished circumstances who went on to become successful. Elvis Presley was born, alive, in a two room house in Tupelo, Mississippi, while his twin brother was not so lucky, born dead.
Paradoxically, there is a limitation to being born into wealth. I've seen examples of it. A boy growing up in a house of rich people, especially if he is an only child, may have everything taken care of for him. There will be no lack of anything. He may be pampered. Until he finally steps out into the real cold, hard, pick pocket world. He will probably adopt a very bad attitude when he sees that people are not deferring to him as he is used to.
I grew up in poor circumstances, never got a college education and was deprived of many things my childhood buddies took for granted. Even so I feel I have lived an active, productive life. But if I made a list of all the things I didn't do that I wanted to, all the things I wasn't able to do and all the things I did wrong through some lack of mine, the list would probably stretch down the street.
Sure, the blind and deaf can crawl into their own limited world and not venture anything else, the poor boy could not pick up the guitar and try to make music, the rich boy could go back home and live in luxury without having to deal with the cruel world.
And I could sit around and feel sorry for myself, regretting all the things I didn't get to do. But I refuse to walk into that dark, sad fog of self indulgent misery. That would be one sure way of driving myself permanently crazy. Straight jacket time.
It doesn't matter what we don't have and didn't have. It's what we do have that counts. And the world needs it.
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*********************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Helen Keller
************************
There are many different kinds of limitations one can face in one's lifetime. Dwelling on them and their effects is one sure way to end up in a straight jacket.
Some people suffer from severe physical limitations, as did Helen Keller, blind and deaf from early childhood Some have less severe, but troublesome physical limitations of some sort. There are limitations of time, environment, upbringing and opportunities. And a particularly insidious form of limitation has to do with failures, things not done or not done properly.
Keller overcame her limitations in remarkable ways, learning to speak, earning a Bachelors degree from Radcliffe, wrote many books, gave lectures, won many awards, traveled around the world and established The American Foundation for the Blind.
There are many stories of people, crippled in some way, overcoming the obstacles and beating the odds against them by accomplishing things that seemed impossible. Those people are inspirations to all of us.
We've all heard of people who were born in impoverished circumstances who went on to become successful. Elvis Presley was born, alive, in a two room house in Tupelo, Mississippi, while his twin brother was not so lucky, born dead.
Paradoxically, there is a limitation to being born into wealth. I've seen examples of it. A boy growing up in a house of rich people, especially if he is an only child, may have everything taken care of for him. There will be no lack of anything. He may be pampered. Until he finally steps out into the real cold, hard, pick pocket world. He will probably adopt a very bad attitude when he sees that people are not deferring to him as he is used to.
I grew up in poor circumstances, never got a college education and was deprived of many things my childhood buddies took for granted. Even so I feel I have lived an active, productive life. But if I made a list of all the things I didn't do that I wanted to, all the things I wasn't able to do and all the things I did wrong through some lack of mine, the list would probably stretch down the street.
Sure, the blind and deaf can crawl into their own limited world and not venture anything else, the poor boy could not pick up the guitar and try to make music, the rich boy could go back home and live in luxury without having to deal with the cruel world.
And I could sit around and feel sorry for myself, regretting all the things I didn't get to do. But I refuse to walk into that dark, sad fog of self indulgent misery. That would be one sure way of driving myself permanently crazy. Straight jacket time.
It doesn't matter what we don't have and didn't have. It's what we do have that counts. And the world needs it.
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
*********************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 14 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Vagabondism 126
Vagabondism #126 "In order to know what’s what, you have to read, not only between the lines, but behind them."
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
http://tinyurl.com/6xvgzz8
Cats
Love, and do what you like.
Saint Augustine
************************
There was an acting teacher named Michael Shurtleff who would say that the first thing an actor should look for in his character is the love. Where is the love? It could be love for another person, for a family, a job, a career, a hobby, a house, a pet or oneself. Wherever the love is everything else relates to it.
I knew a woman who lived in a big, beautiful house in Southern California with lots of land around it. She had a husband, two grown children and a lot of animals. There was a stable with two horses. In the house was a singing bird of some sort, a tank of tiny fish and a small, sweet dog. Outside the house there were 22 cats. That's not a misprint. 22.
Only one of those cats ever came into the house. The rest lived in the trees and bushes around the property. I was visiting her one day at feeding time. She would mix up a big tub of food, take it outside and put it here and there on some wooden boards in a corner of the property. The cats came from everywhere, out of the trees, from around corners, up out of the ground for all I knew.
She never gave names to any of them although she recognized them all. But one of them was called Trouble because that's what he was. He was definitely the bully of the group and the other cats stayed away from him.
But he got into a serious fight with something because one day he should up at feeding time with a very badly wounded eye. No one could get near Trouble, so it was impossible for her to take him to the vet. She called the vet and explained the problem. He told her to come over and he would give her something to help.
What he gave her was a powder to mix with the food that put all the cats, including Trouble, to sleep for a while. So she walked through a yard full of sleeping cats, picked up Trouble, put him in a box and drove him to the vet. The vet removed his eye, cleaned him up, kept him for a few days and then she came and got him.
When she got home and let him out of the box he took off. But he was back the next day at feeding time.
She loved those cats.
-----------------------------
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Saint Augustine
************************
There was an acting teacher named Michael Shurtleff who would say that the first thing an actor should look for in his character is the love. Where is the love? It could be love for another person, for a family, a job, a career, a hobby, a house, a pet or oneself. Wherever the love is everything else relates to it.
I knew a woman who lived in a big, beautiful house in Southern California with lots of land around it. She had a husband, two grown children and a lot of animals. There was a stable with two horses. In the house was a singing bird of some sort, a tank of tiny fish and a small, sweet dog. Outside the house there were 22 cats. That's not a misprint. 22.
Only one of those cats ever came into the house. The rest lived in the trees and bushes around the property. I was visiting her one day at feeding time. She would mix up a big tub of food, take it outside and put it here and there on some wooden boards in a corner of the property. The cats came from everywhere, out of the trees, from around corners, up out of the ground for all I knew.
She never gave names to any of them although she recognized them all. But one of them was called Trouble because that's what he was. He was definitely the bully of the group and the other cats stayed away from him.
But he got into a serious fight with something because one day he should up at feeding time with a very badly wounded eye. No one could get near Trouble, so it was impossible for her to take him to the vet. She called the vet and explained the problem. He told her to come over and he would give her something to help.
What he gave her was a powder to mix with the food that put all the cats, including Trouble, to sleep for a while. So she walked through a yard full of sleeping cats, picked up Trouble, put him in a box and drove him to the vet. The vet removed his eye, cleaned him up, kept him for a few days and then she came and got him.
When she got home and let him out of the box he took off. But he was back the next day at feeding time.
She loved those cats.
-----------------------------
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
***************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Vagabondism 125
Vagabondism #125 "Everything is unusual. All things are extraordinary."
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjottings.blogspot.com/
Babylon
Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light.
Helen Keller
******************
The damage has been done and is still being done. The venomous economic polices sowed in the early years of the 21st Century are now displaying their bitter, vicious fruits and are being consumed. Large corporations are still dumping toxic wastes into the land and water, the super wealthy are still stashing away more money than they can ever use, those who live with no threats are still making decisions which threaten the lives of other people, the issues of real value to our way of life, peace, freedom, liberty, are just hollow words rarely spoken these days, the children of Israel are again captured and enslaved by the captains and kings of Babylon.
Where are the leaders? Where are the people of hope and vision? They are not in the board rooms of big business. They are not among the wealthy, purchased Congresspeople, arguing like faux attorneys in the defense of criminal activities. They are not in the news media that picks and chooses what to report and eliminates all the inconvenient news.
There are the destroyers and the builders. The destroyers, the dictators who suppress the people and then violently put down any objections, those who would pull down our President for racial reasons, those who would minimize the presidency for poor political reasons, those who would destroy the government as it stands, those who would exacerbate our unemployment problems by cutting down the unions, those who hitch their wagons to plundering corporations, those who eliminate taxes in order to justify closing down programs that benefit average people, those who reduce the country to the same level of cowardice and emasculation that bedevils them, are having their day.
That day must be followed by the strong and the brave who are not mesmerized by the fear of prosperity and justice. We need the leadership of those who look up, not down, who feel the spirit of the future, who build on solid ideas of the greatness of the human race and who have faith in it. We must have those who are proud to be citizens of the world and are not afraid to claim the rights of honesty, affection and goodness.
There are too many negative people in the world, many of them are sitting at desks in our Congress and behind the granite walls of Wall Street. but I want to believe, and I do believe, there are enough of them on the cusp of waking up to the light that is always there for those who have the faith to see it and the courage to follow it. The Children of Israel escaped from Babylon. So can we.
DB - The Real Vagabond
Never give up.
******************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Helen Keller
******************
The damage has been done and is still being done. The venomous economic polices sowed in the early years of the 21st Century are now displaying their bitter, vicious fruits and are being consumed. Large corporations are still dumping toxic wastes into the land and water, the super wealthy are still stashing away more money than they can ever use, those who live with no threats are still making decisions which threaten the lives of other people, the issues of real value to our way of life, peace, freedom, liberty, are just hollow words rarely spoken these days, the children of Israel are again captured and enslaved by the captains and kings of Babylon.
Where are the leaders? Where are the people of hope and vision? They are not in the board rooms of big business. They are not among the wealthy, purchased Congresspeople, arguing like faux attorneys in the defense of criminal activities. They are not in the news media that picks and chooses what to report and eliminates all the inconvenient news.
There are the destroyers and the builders. The destroyers, the dictators who suppress the people and then violently put down any objections, those who would pull down our President for racial reasons, those who would minimize the presidency for poor political reasons, those who would destroy the government as it stands, those who would exacerbate our unemployment problems by cutting down the unions, those who hitch their wagons to plundering corporations, those who eliminate taxes in order to justify closing down programs that benefit average people, those who reduce the country to the same level of cowardice and emasculation that bedevils them, are having their day.
That day must be followed by the strong and the brave who are not mesmerized by the fear of prosperity and justice. We need the leadership of those who look up, not down, who feel the spirit of the future, who build on solid ideas of the greatness of the human race and who have faith in it. We must have those who are proud to be citizens of the world and are not afraid to claim the rights of honesty, affection and goodness.
There are too many negative people in the world, many of them are sitting at desks in our Congress and behind the granite walls of Wall Street. but I want to believe, and I do believe, there are enough of them on the cusp of waking up to the light that is always there for those who have the faith to see it and the courage to follow it. The Children of Israel escaped from Babylon. So can we.
DB - The Real Vagabond
Never give up.
******************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Monday, August 8, 2011
Rolls Royce
When the mechanic who fixes the Rolls Royce pays more in taxes than the man who owns it there is a problem, and Congress can't solve it.
Vagabondism 124
Vagabondism #124 "Life is a game in which only the other side knows the rules."
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09144446186279708019
Old Folks
Just look at the events in our lives. No description to someone who hasn't been there and lived it will ever convey the full experience.
Marty Brandel
***********************
How many of you have ever spent several nights sleeping on a hammock in the midst of a jungle? Not too many I suppose. I know I never have. But my friend Marty did and he's back with photographs and experiences to tell about. If you're on Facebook scroll down and check out his pictures, Marty Brandel.
I knew a man who was in the Navy during the Second World War. He was on board a ship in the Pacific Ocean during the famous typhoon. He calls it "a little weather" but to hear him describe the fear and confusion on board, and the fight they had to keep from turning over, it is not an experience I would like to have had.
I remember reading about a woman who was packing up to leave the couple's summer home deep in the forest, her husband having already left. She accidentally tripped and fell down the cellar stairs breaking her hip. She could not climb back up the stairs, and she was pregnant. She gave birth to the child during the cold, dark winter. There was food in the cellar. They both survived. It was before the days of snowmobiles and there was no place for a helicopter to land. So at the first melt her frantic husband drove back in and found his wife alive with a new born baby. She has a story to tell.
There is a prejudice against older people. I have finally begun to experience it myself as I have grown older. It's a stupid prejudice as almost all of them are, and it's based on simple ignorance.
Not too long ago I was standing in line at the supermarket behind a very old lady who was fumbling in her purse for the money to pay for her groceries. In my younger years I would have been impatient and wondered why, since she knew she had to pay something, she didn't get her money out a head of time, instead of waiting until everything was rung up and the total was given. I have since realized that in all probability a little old woman may feel vulnerable and not want to display her money until it was necessary.
The man behind me in line told her harshly to stop fussing and get going. I turned to him and I remember saying "You should live so long. She's an old lady, she's lived a long time and she has a right to dodder if she wants to." Then I turned to her and said "You take your time, sweetheart." She looked up at me, smiled and thanked me.
My own grandmother, who was a difficult but interesting person in her 80's when she told me about how, when she was a youngster, she barely escaped being kidnapped into a prostitution ring. She was a show girl and it was thought that all actresses were loose and available. Another prejudice.
The fact is that people who have achieved some serious decades of life have no doubt faced things and gone through experiences we can only guess at, not having been there when it happened. I have some of my own stories to tell.
Who knows what that ancient lady in the supermarket has seen in her lifetime? How could we ever know what the woman in the cellar went through or the man on the ship?
My friend Marty made it out of the jungle safely. Welcome home Marty. I'm glad King Kong didn't getcha.
--------------------------------------
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
********************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Marty Brandel
***********************
How many of you have ever spent several nights sleeping on a hammock in the midst of a jungle? Not too many I suppose. I know I never have. But my friend Marty did and he's back with photographs and experiences to tell about. If you're on Facebook scroll down and check out his pictures, Marty Brandel.
I knew a man who was in the Navy during the Second World War. He was on board a ship in the Pacific Ocean during the famous typhoon. He calls it "a little weather" but to hear him describe the fear and confusion on board, and the fight they had to keep from turning over, it is not an experience I would like to have had.
I remember reading about a woman who was packing up to leave the couple's summer home deep in the forest, her husband having already left. She accidentally tripped and fell down the cellar stairs breaking her hip. She could not climb back up the stairs, and she was pregnant. She gave birth to the child during the cold, dark winter. There was food in the cellar. They both survived. It was before the days of snowmobiles and there was no place for a helicopter to land. So at the first melt her frantic husband drove back in and found his wife alive with a new born baby. She has a story to tell.
There is a prejudice against older people. I have finally begun to experience it myself as I have grown older. It's a stupid prejudice as almost all of them are, and it's based on simple ignorance.
Not too long ago I was standing in line at the supermarket behind a very old lady who was fumbling in her purse for the money to pay for her groceries. In my younger years I would have been impatient and wondered why, since she knew she had to pay something, she didn't get her money out a head of time, instead of waiting until everything was rung up and the total was given. I have since realized that in all probability a little old woman may feel vulnerable and not want to display her money until it was necessary.
The man behind me in line told her harshly to stop fussing and get going. I turned to him and I remember saying "You should live so long. She's an old lady, she's lived a long time and she has a right to dodder if she wants to." Then I turned to her and said "You take your time, sweetheart." She looked up at me, smiled and thanked me.
My own grandmother, who was a difficult but interesting person in her 80's when she told me about how, when she was a youngster, she barely escaped being kidnapped into a prostitution ring. She was a show girl and it was thought that all actresses were loose and available. Another prejudice.
The fact is that people who have achieved some serious decades of life have no doubt faced things and gone through experiences we can only guess at, not having been there when it happened. I have some of my own stories to tell.
Who knows what that ancient lady in the supermarket has seen in her lifetime? How could we ever know what the woman in the cellar went through or the man on the ship?
My friend Marty made it out of the jungle safely. Welcome home Marty. I'm glad King Kong didn't getcha.
--------------------------------------
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
********************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Vagabondism 123
Vagabondism #123 "I choose to live without wanting the stupid, self-indulgent satisfaction of revenge."
dbdacoba@aol.com
dbdacoba@aol.com
Step Into Reality
Belief in myths allows the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.
John F. Kennedy
***********************
Hooray! Someone has found the Garden of Eden. But due to the movement of the Earth's crust it's currently at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. No problem. Divers are going down hoping to find the Tree of Life and bring up some of the pods and seeds to plant so that the wealthy can live forever, those being the only ones rich enough to afford the exorbitant prices the finders will demand. There will be a black market, I suppose, but that's no guarantee of a cheaper price.
Meanwhile others are exploring the mountains of the Near East to find the planks of the original Noah's Ark while others are combing the desert of Iraq looking for bricks from the Tower of Babel.
It is an amazing thing that there are still unfortunate people who believe that creation literally started with a man made out of mud, a woman ripped from his side and that evil began with a talking snake and a bite of forbidden fruit.
Myths are wonderful things. They are the stories the human race has invented to explain the unexplainable. There are myths all over the world in every culture and language, some are ancient and some are recent.
There are myths dwelling in the halls of Science as well as the tents of nomads. The difference is that those myths are exploded when they are replaced with facts, discoveries and the logic of clear headed thought.
I like myths. All the plays I've ever acted in were myths, all the characters I played were mythological creatures, some larger than life, some smaller. But each of them had the duty of expressing truths and posing the questions that would not be heard outside of the fiction. Shakespeare's King Henry the Fifth asks "Can the king who commands the beggars knee command the health of it?"
The apple fell from the tree until Newton discovered the Law of Gravity and determined that it was pulled instead. Is the Law of Gravity a myth? Most likely so. But, as with any myth, it's real meaning must be discovered and determined before we can take the next grand step into the kingdom of reality.
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
****************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
John F. Kennedy
***********************
Hooray! Someone has found the Garden of Eden. But due to the movement of the Earth's crust it's currently at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. No problem. Divers are going down hoping to find the Tree of Life and bring up some of the pods and seeds to plant so that the wealthy can live forever, those being the only ones rich enough to afford the exorbitant prices the finders will demand. There will be a black market, I suppose, but that's no guarantee of a cheaper price.
Meanwhile others are exploring the mountains of the Near East to find the planks of the original Noah's Ark while others are combing the desert of Iraq looking for bricks from the Tower of Babel.
It is an amazing thing that there are still unfortunate people who believe that creation literally started with a man made out of mud, a woman ripped from his side and that evil began with a talking snake and a bite of forbidden fruit.
Myths are wonderful things. They are the stories the human race has invented to explain the unexplainable. There are myths all over the world in every culture and language, some are ancient and some are recent.
There are myths dwelling in the halls of Science as well as the tents of nomads. The difference is that those myths are exploded when they are replaced with facts, discoveries and the logic of clear headed thought.
I like myths. All the plays I've ever acted in were myths, all the characters I played were mythological creatures, some larger than life, some smaller. But each of them had the duty of expressing truths and posing the questions that would not be heard outside of the fiction. Shakespeare's King Henry the Fifth asks "Can the king who commands the beggars knee command the health of it?"
The apple fell from the tree until Newton discovered the Law of Gravity and determined that it was pulled instead. Is the Law of Gravity a myth? Most likely so. But, as with any myth, it's real meaning must be discovered and determined before we can take the next grand step into the kingdom of reality.
DB - The Real Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.
****************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
Only 13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Revolution
If there is going to be a revolution, which is a sure thing if the situation doesn't improve in this country, it will be paid for out of the empty pockets of the poor and there will be real, justified blood in the streets. We are fast becoming a non Nation, a staggering invalid, crushed under the weight of misplaced and misused wealth.
I hope I live long enough to see the ignorant and dangerous extremists cut to the ground by the sabers of intelligence, reason and compassion for the American people and all the poor, suffering people of the world.
DB
I hope I live long enough to see the ignorant and dangerous extremists cut to the ground by the sabers of intelligence, reason and compassion for the American people and all the poor, suffering people of the world.
DB
Vagabondism 122
Vagabondism #122 "The most difficult love, but the most needed, is the inconvenient love."
http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
http://vagabondjourneys.blogspot.com/
Write Your Heart
The writer, when he is also an artist, is someone who admits what others don't dare reveal.
Elia Kazan
********************
A man asked if I would read and critique his play. I had been recommended. The play was about a famous assassination and the way he described it I thought it might be interesting so I agreed. What I thought was going to be a drama turned out to be a musical, of sorts. It opened with a chorus of guys in a pub. The dialogue was cliched and predictable, the characters were two dimensional and the plot was boring. I fell asleep while reading the first act.
Among the worst things about it was that he tried to reproduce English accents: "Oi" instead of "I" and "eer" instead of "here." And at one point he brought George Bernard Shaw into the pub.
The play had no drama. It was a piece of history trying to be a play. There was no point of view and not a single word from his own heart. There was no suspense, no justification for the assassination and virtually no reaction among the other people to it. I told him all this and I also said that if he wants to bring Shaw into the play he had better write dialogue that is at least as clever as Shaw's.
Another fellow, one who had successfully written a few plays, had just finished one about an S&M relationship. I was in the first public reading of the play. In the discussion that followed it was felt by many that he did not sufficiently cover the subject. He had written more about the effect of the relationship on the main characters instead of the relationship itself. He admitted that, said that he was a pipe and slippers sort of man and didn't really want to have to think about such a relationship in his life even though the story was important to him. But he took the criticism properly and did some good solid rewriting.
I was cast in a film about a father daughter relationship in which the girl had been abused and was confronting her father about it years later. The major scene in the film was this confrontation. The director was also the writer and I'm sure the story was autobiographical.
Every time we rehearsed this scene there was a long discussion about what my character thought and felt. She never seemed to be satisfied with my answers. I pointed out to her that since she wrote the script she should be the one with the answers. But it didn't take long to realize that she was trying to psychoanalyze her father through me. She never discussed the scene with the actress playing the daughter nor did she give her any notes. As a result actresses were getting disgusted with all the time wasted on figuring me out and they left. Girls went through that role like people through a revolving door, each one of poorer quality that the last. The final girl didn't even play the scene to me.. It didn't matter to the director who played the girls part, she was only interested in my character.
There was no scene in the script depicting the abusive moment that had taken place and I told the director that she had to write it in to the story or no one was going to understand or believe the drama.
She did, and the scene she came up with was so simplistic, minor, innocent, accidental and easily forgivable it didn't justify the confrontation. That's when I left the job. I know she interviewed other actors but I don't think the film was ever made.
Verisimilitude for an artist is an important and sometimes scary thing. One does not need to experience murder, perversion or child abuse to write about them when the artist's creative imagination supplies the materials. Shakespeare was certainly not squeamish about writing of lust, violence and cruelty.
I have written and will write about parts of my life that some men would not dare admit to about themselves, the dark places, where fools fear to tread. That's all right, all as it should be. I am blessed/cursed with being a creative person. I have no choice.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
Elia Kazan
********************
A man asked if I would read and critique his play. I had been recommended. The play was about a famous assassination and the way he described it I thought it might be interesting so I agreed. What I thought was going to be a drama turned out to be a musical, of sorts. It opened with a chorus of guys in a pub. The dialogue was cliched and predictable, the characters were two dimensional and the plot was boring. I fell asleep while reading the first act.
Among the worst things about it was that he tried to reproduce English accents: "Oi" instead of "I" and "eer" instead of "here." And at one point he brought George Bernard Shaw into the pub.
The play had no drama. It was a piece of history trying to be a play. There was no point of view and not a single word from his own heart. There was no suspense, no justification for the assassination and virtually no reaction among the other people to it. I told him all this and I also said that if he wants to bring Shaw into the play he had better write dialogue that is at least as clever as Shaw's.
Another fellow, one who had successfully written a few plays, had just finished one about an S&M relationship. I was in the first public reading of the play. In the discussion that followed it was felt by many that he did not sufficiently cover the subject. He had written more about the effect of the relationship on the main characters instead of the relationship itself. He admitted that, said that he was a pipe and slippers sort of man and didn't really want to have to think about such a relationship in his life even though the story was important to him. But he took the criticism properly and did some good solid rewriting.
I was cast in a film about a father daughter relationship in which the girl had been abused and was confronting her father about it years later. The major scene in the film was this confrontation. The director was also the writer and I'm sure the story was autobiographical.
Every time we rehearsed this scene there was a long discussion about what my character thought and felt. She never seemed to be satisfied with my answers. I pointed out to her that since she wrote the script she should be the one with the answers. But it didn't take long to realize that she was trying to psychoanalyze her father through me. She never discussed the scene with the actress playing the daughter nor did she give her any notes. As a result actresses were getting disgusted with all the time wasted on figuring me out and they left. Girls went through that role like people through a revolving door, each one of poorer quality that the last. The final girl didn't even play the scene to me.. It didn't matter to the director who played the girls part, she was only interested in my character.
There was no scene in the script depicting the abusive moment that had taken place and I told the director that she had to write it in to the story or no one was going to understand or believe the drama.
She did, and the scene she came up with was so simplistic, minor, innocent, accidental and easily forgivable it didn't justify the confrontation. That's when I left the job. I know she interviewed other actors but I don't think the film was ever made.
Verisimilitude for an artist is an important and sometimes scary thing. One does not need to experience murder, perversion or child abuse to write about them when the artist's creative imagination supplies the materials. Shakespeare was certainly not squeamish about writing of lust, violence and cruelty.
I have written and will write about parts of my life that some men would not dare admit to about themselves, the dark places, where fools fear to tread. That's all right, all as it should be. I am blessed/cursed with being a creative person. I have no choice.
DB - The Vagabond
Never give up.
**************************
SUMMER QUESTION
Summer is moving along, people.
It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.
Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
dbdacoba@aol.com
13 answers so far.
You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.
DB
************************
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