Pushing Keys

Yeah, uh……. not sure what I am going to write. I honestly have no point I want to make. I’ve no grip. Not a bitch to voice at all. So, you’ve got to be wondering what the hell I’m going on about? I just had a hankering to post something on my blog. It has been a while. Some people manage two, three, or even ten posts a day. I’m lucky if I have the gumption to create two posts in a week. Most of them are about running. Sometimes they are about our cats. On occasion, I voice some political or social opinion. However, they tend to be loosely formed and without specific evidence to support them. It’s not that the evidence doesn’t exist; it’s that I’m too damn lazy to research, instead just surfing the headlines of the major news outlets.

Oh! There it is. I heard it. Did you? The collective gasp as people clutch their pearls because I dare to surf the headlines and not dig deeper. Whatever. I don’t dig deeper because most headlines are misleading; the stories focus on generating fear to suck the readers deeper and increase clicks or drive up ratings. If I’m going to post a political or social opinion, I want it guided by facts. I’ll scour a few stories to see what facts are consistent across the media landscape.

However, I avoid religious sites. They are notorious for cherry-picking only those facts that support their ideology and denigrate all other doctrines. Once upon a time, the Christian Science Monitor was a great news magazine. They had enough faith in their beliefs that exposure to other facts did not threaten them. But that was a different time before planes hit buildings and the nation collectively shit its pants. Faith that all is part of a bigger plan got lost. Suddenly, the Children of Creation started pointing their fingers, denying each other that status. We all are of Creation. We are all part of the Whole. The belief that all are belonging to the whole weakened.

And that’s the problem today. Many peoples’ beliefs are weak. They do not have enough faith in what they believe, afraid of any information which counters what they desperately cling to in a vain effort to avoid the perception that their religion, ideology, or doctrines are false. But these constructs are not fact-based. Metaphysics is about accepting we have very little knowledge about life and the universe. Ultimately, it’s about our lack of facts. Scientific methods work towards changing how we understand life because of the realization we lack facts. Religions, ideology, and doctrines also need to be about dealing with and accepting change. Change for which we have no understanding. To embrace change without facts showing how and why it is needed is not only reasonable; it is necessary. Those people desperately clinging to their way of thinking without allowance for change seem always to be the same who are afraid and angry.

Permanence is an illusion. Impermanence is the foundation of life. The only permanence in life is that it changes. Grasp the paradox that life changes is permanence, and we all might find the peace we seem to have lost.

Well, would you look at that. Seems I found a point.

I Am So Bored I Changed The Blog

As you can see, a new theme has been employed at this here old blog. I hope you enjoy the new look. If you don’t, what do I care. Like your opinion matters to me?

Really, it doesn’t.

No. Really.

Just keep it to yourself. Okay?

Whatever. Bite me.

Goodnight Blogstonia

The Castle

Sleep well. Watch out for those creepy bed bugs. Don’t get caught up in any nightmare conspiracy theories. But do have nice dreams. Well behaved dreams.

Wait.

Nevermind.

I forget who I am talking to. The fact that you read my blog is the first hint that you’re incapable of behaving, let alone have well behaved dreams.

Anyway, good night.

Oh, and don’t tell anyone that tomorrow’s Monday.

New Look, Same Wordsmith.

I dressed up the blog a bit. Hope you like it. And if you don’t, who the hell asked you?

Wait.

I did, didn’t I?

Sorry about that.

A New Addition to the Side Column

Back in the heady days of 2003, when political blogs were all the rage, this custom developed over linking to other blogs. My old, deceased blog Rook’s Rant, had at least 250 links from other blogs. As I said, those were heady days.

As time went by, maintaining a blog became more and more of a chore. I coded my first website by hand. However, that was both too time consuming and overwhelming. Then Movable Type came along, offering a free, though a slimmed-down version of their blogging software. Over time Movable Type itself became too complicated. Also, Rook’s Rant was dying. So I bought myself a new domain name, and Guy Andrew Hall was created.

Today there is no online political blogging culture. Most of the more successful blogs converted to news aggregator sites with fees, such as Daily Kos and HuffPost. What I once called Blogstonia (there was Left Blogstonia and Right Blogstonia) no longer exists. Most other bloggers moved on as political blogging became another past fad.

That’s the way of it, though. Once capitalism becomes involved, free expression becomes suppressed. Not out of any nefarious design to eradicate free speech. It was out of a desire not to turn off readers. Money equals hits and free speech does not make money.

Anyway, this post was initially just an announcement about a new feature in the side column – a blogroll. There are a few bloggers still hanging on. My hope is to scour the internet in search of any other remaining political bloggers.

How About a Return to Blogging?

Bloggers, we need to start moving away from Facebook. Facebook is nothing more than Microblogging. It’s quick-hitting, preventing substance, and invites superficiality. Bogs of the past were able to provide the meaning beyond the one-paragraph posts we see on Facebook.
Then there is the issue of control. We can now control the advertising that shows up on our blogs if we choose to have advertising.
Finally, we can avoid Facebook jail when complaints result in that dreaded banning by an anonymous bot without any investigation or coherent guidelines. And I’m speaking kindly here.

Just Chattering Away on the Board

My coffee cup

I do enjoy the process of writing. Well, that is, when not pressured to write for work or school. Then it becomes pure torture. Let me reiterate that – PURE TORTURE!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, right now I’m just typing away. I’ve no subject I want to elucidate upon, nor any nefarious behavior of others I want to condemn.
I am just putting one word onto the screen after another—that flow of words that occurs when I’ve no thought of the end. My writing could go on and on without limitation. It’s a worthy goal to write without any concept of the finish. Hell, I’d as soon write a whole lot about nothing than a little bit about something.

Are you with me so far?

And isn’t that a line in a song?

And does it fucking matter?

Well, it could be I’m out of fucks to give. Yeah, that’s it. I’m all out of fucks to give. And I’m not in the mood for any fucks. Not at the moment. Move along and mind your own business.

Oh, and you in the back? Yeah, the one with the shit-eating grin starting to open your mouth. I wouldn’t get caught up in any semantic antics. Sit down, resume your nose picking, and leave the sarcastic heckling to the professionals.

You know what? I changed my mind. I suggest you don’t pick your nose. I’m not sure you’re qualified to perform brain surgery.

Oh, there’s my cue to step away. Yeah, no. I’m not going to tell you the cue. Ain’t none of your business. Alright, alright. Settle down. Put your fucks away. I ain’t got the room. I told you that already. You forget what you read? Man, I’d suggest you call a neurologist. That is if you can remember how to use a phone.

Okay, okay. I’ll stop chattering on and on. Bye, you all.

Loss of Motivation

Gandolf

I have lost all motivation for blogging. I do not have the energy to share my thoughts with the few readers that frequent. My motivation always fluctuates in regards to blogging. However, since about October of last year, life has been handing me one challenge after another. These challenges have severely impacted my self-esteem and self-worth. It is only recently that I’ve begun to pull myself out of my morass. I have done some posts on the challenges, but I’ve not taken the time to write more extensively on them and how I’ve allowed them to beat me down. Suffice it to say that I’ve worked on self-compassion. So, this post – hopefully – is the first effort at getting myself back into a desire to write.

Sadness

Gandolf

I want to mourn for the world

The one we have lost

I want to wail to the heavens

Loudly

A cry of agony

To render even star song silent.

I want to mourn for the world

Sadness

Morning World

Just Keep Running

So, I’m up and at it early on a Sunday morning. I’ve finished my morning routine of mindfully writing a journal entry, read my horoscopes, and made some chess moves at Gameknot. Now I’m going to get ready to put some time on the treadmill. After that, it’s a run to the store to replace the Cream of Chicken soup I accidentally grabbed yesterday with a can of Cream of Mushroom soup that’s needed for the pork steaks. Once I get home with that, I am going to isolate myself into my office and get my school work done.