GaryM's blog

I write this with my own blood, though I know it will not be read.

I cannot say for sure how much time I have left, how long these doors will hold back the seething bubbling anger of the secret warrior priests of the Order of the Earth.

About two years ago, I decided I would take up oil painting and as it is with me where interests grow and fade, I only ever finished a single painting.

I was trawling through some documents, and happened upon a photograph of the said painting (my mother has the original I think). In the spirit of the festive season this shall be your collective Christmas card.

I have just read a very thought provoking post on the BBC website, you can read the full article here.

The article poses four questions, the answers to which are as slippery as the floor at Clare's pool party.

I've done a copy / paste number on parts of the four questions...

Ja, I know I am cheating. But I really love this Christmas story:

THE GIFT OF THE MAGI
by O. Henry

Suppose you wanted to drive from one end of your city to another. Suppose too that you had never been to the other end of your city, and that your journey held some measure of danger. You would probably want a map.

Maps show you the way, they point you in the right direction. At the very least, they give you a image of the direction in which you should be heading. Of course, the map is not the road. You wont see traffic jams on the map, nor parts of the road where the tar has become broken and pitted.

Following a discussion on theology, I promised David in a comment that I would respond to the question “Why do we need mythology?”

Well, it's an awfully difficult question to answer, and I will have to try and answer it in a few parts. Also, I have to say up front that I am no expert on anything and this is merely my opinion.

David, you wrote this post yesterday. The gist of it is that we are exploiting our natural resources blindly and in an unsustainable fashion and you wish to raise awareness on the the issue. My contention is that if we shared a common mythology that included nature and our place in nature, the problem you are calling attention to would just not exist.

Theological debates tend to be very tiresome affairs indeed. Often, those who believe themselves to be involved in the same debate may as well be on different planets shouting into tin cans tied together by a really long piece of string; it just doesn't work. I am no expert on theology but like everyone else, I have an opinion on the matter. If you don't want to know what my opinion is, read no further...

I have a new word of the day. Rather than detract from my current favourite blog word, cromulent, this word augments it magnificently.

Die golwe weet waar breek die branders -
Hulle dink hulle's vry
Die wolke wentel in die hemel maar
Op die winde moet hul ry
Dis vroeg in die dag, op Blouberg se strand
Die wind gaan nog waai, die son gaan nog brand
Maar dis koel na die lang nag
En ons groet die dag

Laurika Rauch

Main Entry: idyl·lic
Function: adjective
Date: 1856
1 : pleasing or picturesque in natural simplicity
2 : of, relating to, or being an idyll

Just thought I might give a little creedence to the view looking out my backdoor...

I dont think our word of the day is up to scratch, I really don't. The word of the day should come replete with definitions and examples.

The word of the day is backwards

If anyone is struggling to find suitable poem / picture combinations, I supply herewith a small kit that may be used to create their own:

A picture with an alliterative title, all ready for you to "roll your own" poem...

I have decided it is poetry and picture day today.

That I may be that I may be the only one who thinks this should be so is of no importance.

Post a poem and a complimentary picture that are associated for any reason you care to choose.

This is my entry:

The word of the day is "Legs"

Oh Fuck It! Just Fuck It...

Things get better and then they get worse. Then they get better again. The only problem is that when the get better, they don't seem to reach their previous peak. It's as if there is some kind of morality inflation, or perhaps better put, an inflation of immorality.

I ...

Went on a picnic...no...
Went to a picnic...no...
Went with a picnic...no...
Went picnicing...no...
Ate some food on a blanket on the ground outdoors.

Cue Meryl Streep speaking in a husky Nordic accent...I had a small project in Africa...

I was cruising the Internet this morning looking for a 3D mesh of a photon gun to use as the basis of an animation I am trying to do. A 3D mesh is essentially a set of co-ordinates of an object that will allow a computer 3D drawing program to render that object.

A little like this:

In Bombay

I think of my journey's end and I wonder about the light. I think of my route and wonder if I should take the left fork or the right.