dual personalities

Tag: quotes

May 6, 2016

“It is not enough to be industrious; so are the ants.”

by chuckofish

Today we note again the anniversary of the death of Henry David Thoreau in 1862.

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Let us not forget these wise words:

The fate of the country does not depend on how you vote at the polls — the worst man is as strong as the best at that game; it does not depend on what kind of paper you drop into the ballot-box once a year, but on what kind of man you drop from your chamber into the street every morning.

—Slavery in Massachusetts

Hear, hear!

Have a good weekend. Happy Mother’s Day!

4 Comments
May 4, 2016

Mid-week pep talk

by chuckofish

 

Henry and William James, brothers, early 20th century

Henry and William James, brothers, early 20th century

“Now, my dear little girl, you have come to an age when the inward life develops and when some people (and on the whole those who have most of a destiny) find that all is not a bed of roses. Among other things there will be waves of terrible sadness, which last sometimes for days; irritation, insensibility, etc., etc., which taken together form a melancholy. Now, painful as it is, this is sent to us for an enlightenment. It always passes off, and we learn about life from it, and we ought to learn a great many good things if we react on it right. (For instance, you learn how good a thing your home is, and your country, and your brothers, and you may learn to be more considerate of other people, who, you now learn, may have their inner weaknesses and sufferings, too.) Many persons take a kind of sickly delight in hugging it; and some sentimental ones may even be proud of it, as showing a fine sorrowful kind of sensibility. Such persons make a regular habit of the luxury of woe. That is the worst possible reaction on it. It is usually a sort of disease, when we get it strong, arising from the organism having generated some poison in the blood; and we mustn’t submit to it an hour longer than we can help, but jump at every chance to attend to anything cheerful or comic or take part in anything active that will divert us from our mean, pining inward state of feeling. When it passes off, as I said, we know more than we did before. And we must try to make it last as short a time as possible. The worst of it often is that, while we are in it, we don’t want to get out of it. We hate it, and yet we prefer staying in it—that is a part of the disease. If we find ourselves like that, we must make something ourselves to some hard work, make ourselves sweat, etc.; and that is the good way of reacting that makes of us a valuable character. The disease makes you think of yourself all the time; and the way out of it is to keep as busy as we can thinking of things and of other people—no matter what’s the matter with our self.”

–William James, (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910), American philosopher and psychologist

2 Comments
May 3, 2016

Happiness is…

by chuckofish

“For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you. Books help us understand who we are and how we are to behave. They show us what community and friendship mean; they show us how to live and die.”

―Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

I have a pile of new and vintage books to read.

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What is better than that? A window with a nice view. Maybe someone bringing you a cup of tea or making dinner for you?

I guess I am getting old, but that sounds very good to me.

3 Comments
April 29, 2016

“Heroic, is it? Bedad, it’s epic! Ye begin to perceive the breadth and depth of my genius.”*

by chuckofish

sabatini

Today is the birthday of author Rafael Sabatini (April 29, 1875 – February 13, 1950). He was born in Italy, the son of an English mother and an Italian father–both opera singers, which explains a lot.

Sabatini wrote in English, and all in all, he produced 31 novels, eight short story collections, six non-fiction books, numerous uncollected short stories, and a play. I think I read Scaramouche way back when, but he is best known these days because of two great movies and a bunch of other not-so-great movies, which were inspired by his novels. I’m thinking, of course, of Captain Blood (1935)

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and The Sea Hawk (1940)

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both starring Errol Flynn and directed by Michael Curtiz.

But we mustn’t forget Scaramouche (1952) which starred Stewart Granger

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and The Black Swan (1942) with Tyrone Power–

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both not as good despite being filmed in flaming technicolor. (There are also quite a few old silent movies based on his adventure novels.)

Anyway, I suggest we all watch movies this weekend inspired by the stories of Rafael Sabatini. We could do a lot worse. I vote for Captain Blood which is full of action and good dialogue:

Arabella Bishop: Oh, forgive me for not recognizing you, Dr. Blood. You’re so changed… and for the better.

Dr. Peter Blood: The Governor tells me I have you to thank for that.

Arabella Bishop: You don’t sound very grateful, Dr. Blood.

Dr. Peter Blood: Do you suppose I’d be grateful for an easy life, when my friends are treated like animals? Faith, it’s they deserve your favors, not I. They’re all honest rebels. I was snoring in my bed while they were trying to free England from an unclean tyrant [King James].

Arabella Bishop: I believe you’re talking treason.

Dr. Peter Blood: I hope I’m not obscure.

Have a great weekend!

*Captain Blood by Rafael Sabatini

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April 20, 2016

It’s my birthday and I’ll wear a crown if I want to

by chuckofish

katie

“Age has given me what I was looking for my entire life – it has given me me . It has provided time and experience and failures and triumphs and time-tested friends who have helped me step into the shape that was waiting for me. I fit into me now. I have an organic life, finally, not necessarily the one people imagined for me, or tried to get me to have. I have the life I longed for. I have become the woman I hardly dared imagine I would be.”

–Anne Lamott, Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith

Daughter #2 arrives this evening and daughter #1 tomorrow morning. My brother and sister are coming to town on Friday!

Safe, smooth travels to all.  Margaritas all around!

4 Comments
April 18, 2016

With hearts aflame*

by chuckofish

It was a lovely flyover weekend with temperatures here near 80 degrees on Sunday.

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I worked hard outside on Saturday spreading mulch and my back hurt on Sunday so I slowed down some. I planted geraniums in pots.

FullSizeRenderThe boy came over on Saturday night because he was “batching  it”–we watched our all-time favorite episodes of Miami Vice:

“Out Where the Buses Don’t Run” (season 2, episode 3)

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with Bruce McGill as Hank Weldon

and “El Viejo” (season 3, episode 7)

El Viejo Willie Nelson

with Willie Nelson as Jake Pierson

They never disappoint. We are huge nerds, I know, but we amuse ourselves.

In church we sang one of my favorite hymns which always makes me cry.

And it did.

I leave you with the third verse:

The sure provisions of my God attend me all my days;

oh, may thy house be mine abode and all my work be praise.

There would I find a settled rest, while others go and come;

no more a stranger or a guest, but like a child at home.

(Isaac Watts)

Have a good week.

*Hymn #478, Jesus, our  mighty Lord, our strength in sadness

8 Comments
April 14, 2016

Happy birthday, Susiebelle

by chuckofish

Darling daughter #2 turns 26 today! I will toast her tonight and miss her all day, but we’ll celebrate together next week when she comes home to celebrate my birthday. My cup runneth over with love.

susieanddog

“She was beautiful, but not like those girls in the magazines. She was beautiful, for the way she thought. She was beautiful, for the sparkle in her eyes when she talked about something she loved. She was beautiful, for her ability to make other people smile, even if she was sad. No, she wasn’t beautiful for something as temporary as her looks. She was beautiful, deep down to her soul. She is beautiful.”

–F. Scott Fitzgerald

And a birthday shout-out to Sarah Michelle Gellar, who turns 39 (!) today. Some birthday Buffy might be in order…

3 Comments
April 13, 2016

Let me just say this about that

by chuckofish

So we all know that the Cardinals got off to a slow start. They lost their first three games to the Pirates. Immediately the nay-sayers were all, Oh no! And it’s going to be a terrible season! Mike Matheny doesn’t know what he’s doing, yada yada yada.

The Skipper calmly replied that we’re not hitting. We’ll figure it out and fix it.

St. Louis Post Dispatch photo

St. Louis Post Dispatch photo

In the next four games the Cardinals scored 41 runs. Forty-one! Runs! In one game they hit three pinch-hit homeruns–a MLB-record.

The nay-sayers say, So are the Cardinals good? Or are the Braves and Brewers just bad?

Please. The Cardinals will be just fine.

The nay-sayers can sit on a tack.

And here’s a little pep talk for Wednesday:

“Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair. In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber. So long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer and courage, so long are you young. When your heart is covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then, and then only, are you grown old. And then, indeed as the ballad says, you just fade away.”

–Douglas MacArthur

4 Comments
April 6, 2016

“Speak, thou vast and venerable head”*

by chuckofish

I wrote myself a note last week about April 5th being Gregory Peck’s 100th birthday–blogpost idea!–but, of course, I got sidetracked. Anyway, April 6th is as good a day as any to toast the divine GP.

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I mean really, he was just the best. Not only was he one of the handsomest actors of all time, he had one of the all-time great voices.

He was in some of my favorite movies: Twelve O’Clock High (1949) and To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) and How the West Was Won (1962) foremost among them. And he was also great in Roman Holiday (1953), On the Beach (1959), The Big Country (1958), and as Ahab in Moby Dick (1956). He made some pretty bad movies watchable, such as Captain Newman, M.D. (1963) and Duel in the Sun (1946).

He was on the UC Berkeley crew team in 1936-38. Again awesome.

I DVR’d On the Beach yesterday, so I am going to watch it.

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So a toast to Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003). Why not treat yourself to one of the above films? You deserve it.

And as this is Wednesday and time for a mid-week pep talk, I leave you with this:

“We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”

–Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning

*Ahab in Moby Dick

6 Comments
April 5, 2016

The sufferings of this present time*

by chuckofish

Screen Shot 2016-04-04 at 4.09.53 PM

My Monday felt like the above…not that I actually got into a fight or anything. But it was a hectic one, complete with a funeral at 11:00 a.m. (the worst time possible) and a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by the Shakespeare Festival St. Louis back at work in the afternoon. Throw in the usual A/V issues and that was my day.

Phew. But spring is here.

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Life is good, as they say.

“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”

–Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I did that.

*Romans 8: 18

4 Comments