Man Alone

If you can mentally separate solitude from loneliness today, your time alone will seem alive with possibility.

Unknown
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Hello Arkene
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There is a big difference between aloneness and loneliness. I've lived alone now for almost 15 years. I often wish I had some companionship, particularly of the female persuasion. But since I am not vigorously pursuing it, or even passively pursuing it, I guess it's not that vital to me.

The fact is I keep excellent company with myself. I agree with almost everything I say. I don't bitch at myself for leaving my dirty socks on the floor. And when I come through the door everyone here is glad to see me.

One sad part is that since I don't have anyone to talk to, I talk to myself. Out loud. And since I've grown used to talking to myself I've caught myself doing it in public. So now I am giving the impression of a harmless old coot sitting on a bench mumbling to himself.

One happy part of aloneness is the absence of interruptions. My head is full of ideas, most of which I can do nothing about confined as I am with serious lack of abundant income, unable to transport myself easily and living in an area seriously arid of any cultural activity. But there are some ideas growing up out of the top of my kitchen table which can grab my interest with a fist and set me to working something out, whether a painting, a story or a blog entry. My time is my own, it belongs to me and my muse, my angel of inspiration.

Life is a grand puzzle. I've tried throwing away the pieces in the past, but, no good, they won't go away. Now I cherish them. Each time I put two pieces together I'm delighted. That I have no one to show it to is frustrating. But I know it's a puzzle with an infinite number of pieces and if someone else joins a few pieces and they fit with mine, very good. And if they don't both of our lives are enriched anyway.

In my solitude lands are explored, discoveries are made, mysteries unfold, principles are learned, knowledge grows, wells are filled, stars are captured, majesty is revealed and possibilities are endless.

DB - Vagabond Journeys
Never give up.

Rain, Stew And Things

The difficulty lies not in the new ideas, but in escaping from the old ones.

John Maynard Keynes
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I like rain. When it rains most people run inside and hide. But I like the rain, especially in the summertime, not just because it cools everything off, but because it cleans the air. It's like Mother Nature giving one of her children a bath. After the rain everything looks so clear and clean. It creates a fresh look at the world.

Many people also don't like the bathing that makes them take a fresh look at themselves, their lives and the world around them. A fresh look implies the possible necessity of changing things. People refrain from taking up and considering new ideas or seeing old ones in a brighter light.

Why adopt some new idea or some new way of doing things if it hasn't been tried before? Because if we don't, it will never be tried. Why hold on to old ideas and old ways of doing things even though they have proven to be ineffective and incorrect? Because they are familiar. That kind of thinking is like the serpent swallowing its own tail, slowly poisoning itself to death. The focus is in the wrong direction.

We always have a chance to bag up all the trash and take it to the dump. It's not a new beginning, it's a new look, without all the clutter, at the same things that hove been going on ever since there were humans walking the earth.

I know there are people who disagree with me, even in this email/journal land, people who will say the rain only brings mud, but I say let the rain come, let the bathing begin and let's have a fresh look at this strange, unpredictable, mysterious thing known as the world we live in.

DB Vagabond Journeys
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Midweek puzzle: STEW

change Internet provider (6)
switch from off to particle (5)
Calloway born old (7)
auto rust (6)
pan to the office (6)
crush a hotel unit (8)
vigor for each )6)
sounds like a basement type thing (6)
worn around the neck down south (8)
southern California jungle beast (8)
answer to exist (5)
drink to the king (4)
beer joint to the left end, yes (6)
bad humor afoot (4)

Enjoy your dish.
DB
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WINTER QUESTION
(This is not a contest)

What was the most significant event that happened in 2010?

dbdacoba@aol.com

Only 6 responses so far

I await your answer.
DB
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