Leo Tolstoy

I received a Tolstoy quotation in my email today. After a bit of research, I discovered that he is the source for some interesting lines:

One should strive not to lie in the negative sense by remaining silent.

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.

Some mathematician has said that enjoyment lies in the search for truth, not in the finding it.

Death destroys the body, as the scaffolding is destroyed after the building is up and finished. And he whose building is up rejoices at the destruction of the scaffolding and of the body. 

Love hinders death. Love is life. Everything, everything I understand, I understand only because I love. Everything is connected only by that. Love is God, and to die—means that I, a part of love, return to the common and eternal source.

- Leo Tolstoy, novelist and philosopher (1828-1910)

Yesterday

Late morning:  I go to the bus stop to get the bus to the Convention Center.  After waiting a few minutes, a man arrives. He introduces himself, offers to shake hands, and we chat a bit until the bus arrives.  Once on board, he sits across from me and continues to make occasional conversation.  At one point he mentions football, and a discussion of Beavers and Ducks ensues, with other passengers joining in.  After he leaves the bus, a woman who was in on the football discussion continues talking with me, this time about Jewish holidays.

Early evening:  I go to the bus stop to get the bus to go home. There are not many passengers at first, but more board at every stop.  Somewhere along the line, I realize that four of the five people in my immediate vicinity are on smart phones or tablets or some kind of electronic device.  One man has a white cord snaking up to his earphone.  As more people board, and I look around the bus, I notice that the screens of some electronic devices illuminate their users' faces with an unearthly glow. I suppose I could strike up a conversation with someone, but they all seem to be engrossed in what they are doing.

If You Like The Weather...

After last weekend's rain, we were blessed with a few days of sunshine before the rain returned this evening.  If there's one thing we know about the weather in Oregon, it's that it's liable to change.

Dave Thurlow, host of The Weather Notebook, said this in 1997: 

A weather saying that is common in New England goes, "if you don't like the weather, then just wait a minute." New Englanders tend to be proud of their changeable weather; however, they don't always understand that weather is just as changeable in other parts of the country.

We've found the same saying applied to the weather in Texas, Missouri, Alabama, Michigan, and Washington. California, of course, has the saying that "if you don't like the weather, you're crazy." This business about "liking" weather has significant meaning to people in many parts of the country, not just New England. People not only like their weather, they seem to be proud of it. So why are some people so tuned in to the weather?

In this day and age, it's not like we have to run home and tend to the livestock at the first sign of a storm. Cars and planes are slowed down by the weather only about five percent of the time. There has to be something about weather that transcends the daily comings and goings of life.

Maybe it's our full menu of weather treats across the country. Maybe it's the joy of the changing seasons. Or maybe we feel that something that is most familiar and shared with our neighbors, such as the weather, is something we pay attention to. So, if you didn't like today's weather, then just wait until tomorrow. (www.weathernotebook.org/transcripts/1997/04/24.html)

The Rain Is Here

If you live in the Portland area, you know the autumn rains began on Friday after weeks of sunny weather.  I don't mind the rain so much - maybe because I grew up in the Willamette Valley.  However, the longer the rain continues, the more likely it is that complaints about the weather will follow.

I remember a nursery rhyme:

Rain rain go away,
Come again another day.
Little Johnny wants to play; 
Rain, rain, go to Spain,
Never show your face again!

According to www.rhymes.org.uk, this rhyme originated in the 16th century at the time of the Spanish Armada. The British defeated the Armada, in part because of the stormy weather. Apparently the rain was a valuable ally.

There Was No Debate

There was no debate in my mind about whether to watch the debate this week.  I spent some time with friends (with no television), then went to Fred Meyer to pick up photos and a prescription.  I feel I used my time wisely, and I look forward to getting a good night's sleep.

Happy Birthday

There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.
- Edith Wharton

(painting shown is by Libby Caldwell)

Still Blooming

Even though it's autumn, some flowers are still blooming like it's summer.

I find it interesting how the seasons overlap. Not only do flowers bloom while leaves are falling, but sometimes the seasons of our lives seem to overlap, too.  Old age and childhood seem to co-exist in my mother now.  Sometimes I see an adult acting like an adolescent - or vice versa.  There is not a clean edge or a sharp dividing line between each stage - which can be a little disconcerting.  I can never be quite sure what to expect next - from the weather or from people.  Maybe that's why I never know what's going to pop up next on my blog.  Maybe that's the way life is supposed to be.

Mad Hatter Day

Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!
How I wonder what you're at!
Up above the world you fly,
Like a teatray in the sky.

Among the many minor holidays, October 6 is listed as "Mad Hatter Day," probably because of the paper tag showing in his hat band. (The tag is believed to be an order to make the hat and shows its cost as ten shillings and sixpence.  But, it could be interpreted as October 6.) 

According to www.holidayinsights.com, Mad Hatter Day is a great day to be silly.  Why not celebrate silliness by wearing a top hat, asking unanswerable riddles, and spouting nonsensical poetry a la Lewis Carroll?

"Why is a raven like a writing-desk?  Have you guessed the riddle yet?” the Hatter said.
“No, I give it up,” Alice replied, “What’s the answer?”
“I haven’t the slightest idea,” said the Hatter.”

Words

When playing on-line word games, I am amazed at some of the words that are allowed.  Apparently, my vocabulary is more limited than I realized.  I'm not talking about big words - I'm talking about 3-letter words.  Did you know...

• ais are South American 3-toed sloths
• mir is a village community in czarist Russia
• oka is a unit of weight or capacity
• oud is a musical instrument of the lute family
• ras is a family of genes that undergo mutation

“All the ideas in the universe can be described by words. Therefore, if you simply take all the words and rearrange them randomly enough times, you’re bound to hit upon at least a few great ideas eventually. Sausage donkey swallows flying guillotine, my love assembly line.
”

                 ― Jarod Kintz from www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/words

We'll Take Fall Together

Shall we take Fall together,

go sifting through the fallen leaves
and gaze upon the golden hues,
while waiting for the freeze?
We walk a little slower now,
our warm days have all but gone,
we will have to bundle up,
now that Fall has come...

                  - Gary Davis

(from www.familyfriendpoems.com)

Debating the Debate

I had quite a discussion with myself prior to tonight's debate.  Did I really want to watch it?  Would I feel "out of it" if I didn't watch it?

Like many politicians, I compromised.  I had the TV turned on to the debate, but I kept busy doing other things while staying within earshot.  Now that it's over, I'm not sure whether or not I'll "watch" the next one.

I didn't think that anyone gave a stellar performance, and that includes President Obama, Governor Romney, and Jim Lehrer.  If I had to vote for someone based on the televised debate alone, I would try to think of a write-in.

Fortunately, I can do my own research and make my decision based on the candidates' records of public service rather than a media event.  The value of the debate, in my view, is debatable.

The Fallen Leaf

October is the fallen leaf, but it is also a wider horizon more clearly seen. It is the distant hills once more in sight, and the enduring constellations above them once again. 

                        - Hal Borland

(photo shows leaf found on my welcome mat today)

October Already!

Darn the wheel of the world! Why must it continually turn over? Where is the reverse gear?  - Jack London

London's words sound like how I feel when I realize it's already October 1 and the year 2012 is speeding by. How can it possibly be only three months until the end of the year?

His references to wheel and gear also remind me of how quickly technology advances and how slow I feel I am to keep up with it. 

All of this has me starting to get a little panicky, but then I see this poem by Cindy Cheney:

IME

Like a petal in the wind

Flows softly by




As old lives are taken

New ones begin




A continual chain

Which lasts throughout eternity

Every life but a minute in time

But each of equal importance 

(photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/japanate)