I became insane with long intervals of horrible sanity.
Edgar Allen Poe

The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all.
- H. L. Mencken

Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so
-Bertrand Russell

What I have been telling you, from alpha to omega, what is the one great thing the sigil taught me — that everything in life is miraculous. For the sigil taught me that it rests within the power of each of us to awaken at will from a dragging nightmare of life made up of unimportant tasks and tedious useless little habits, to see life as it really is, and to rejoice in its exquisite wonderfulness. If the sigil were proved to be the top of a tomato-can, it would not alter that big fact, nor my fixed faith. No Harrowby, the common names we call things by do not matter — except to show how very dull we are ...
-James Branch Cabell

August 21, 2017 - 10:27 a.m.

Party Like It's 2017

I'm getting an early start today. Does that forebode the end of the world? If the sun gets blotted out today we'll know.

Yesterday I made my annual trek to Brooklyn Bridge Park for Katherine and Deb's birthday party. When I lived in Brooklyn, it wasn't much of a trek. I did an excellent job researching the weekend service changes. There were no signs in the stations and the announcements were poor. For the first time, I didn't need to refer to Google Maps to navigate from the subway to the park.

When I went down the stairs yesterday my knee hurt. This is the second time it happened, this was in a different place. I am pretty sure it's tendonitis. It's OK when I sit down or lie down but when I first get up it hurts like hell. Then as I walk it gets better, to a point, then it starts getting worse.

When I got to the party I also had pain in the small of my back and the connection between my neck and right shoulder. I suspect those are caused by carrying my camera around in my one shoulder backpack. As I write this I have an ice pack around my knee and a heating pad on my back. At least I know what to do and have the tools I need. None of this makes me feel old. I have injuries, that's all. I feel the same as I have always felt.

Katherine and Deb don't share a birthday but they come fairly close together and they celebrate them together with a party in a park. It was Prospect Park when I started going. It's an interesting mix of people, most are musical to some degree, some are like me and being musical does not extend to being able to make music.

I knew fewer people there this year than most, just Gidge, Loyse, and Bev. That's not quite true, I knew more but only from other combined birthday parties. I came out of it with two new Facebook friends, Alberto and Regan. I should be adding one more, I'm blanking on her name, a friend that Bev made at Falcon Ridge. I'm thinking Christina but I'm going to use my back and knee as an excuse to not get up and get her card out of my wallet. She's from Guadalajara, my first friend from Mexico. Is it an affectation if I call it Mehico? I always prefer to call places what the inhabitants call it. That doesn't mean I do. I end up saying things the way Americans say them. I just think to myself, "this is wrong."

This party is more active than mine. There's always frisbee, this year there were hula hoops, and paddles and balls. There's also music making. I brought my axe, my kazoo. I'm just cool that way. I managed to be able to play frisbee once my knee loosened up. It took a few throws to warm up but I'm still good at throwing. I'm not as good at catching. The second time I played the knee was going on me and I couldn't run and make the catches. I still love playing. I got my first frisbee in the mid-sixties. For a while I kept upgrading till I had a master frisbee and then moved on to an Aerobie. That's a flying annulus that goes further than a frisbee. I was playing with them regularly through my twenties at least.

I took a lot of pictures and a few videos but I have not edited them yet. I am so far behind with that. I have photos going back years. As I hurt my back and neck carrying the camera I need to do something with the pictures. I love having a camera again, even if it is big and clunky. I was going to say that I'm big and clunky but it's not true. I'm just clunky. This is where you chime in and say that I'm not clunky, that I'm adorable. Why thank you.

I always stay to the end of the combined birthday party but I became to uncomfortable. I had to get home and apply the ice and heat. I hope they didn't do anything fun after I left. I have FOMA.

I had great timing when I got back to Pelham Bay. The bus was there waiting for me. I couldn't run but I did the best I could. I could have relaxed, it must have been there ahead of schedule and sat there for a few minutes.

After I settled in I watched Game of Thrones. I love that I didn't have to rush to catch it at 9:00, I started at 9:20. I started as a skeptic, it took me a season to get into it, now it's my favorite show. Next week is the season finale. How can they make only 7 episodes? Do they expect me to wait almost a year to find out what happens?

Boo, I just realized that I can't see Eilen Jewell like I planned on Wednesday. I am going to the Met game with Alan. When I get up I'll double check and look at my ticket. I hope I put down the wrong date. I am also going to the game on Thursday afternoon. Yes, two Met games in one week. I'm getting that part of my life back. Still, it's Eilen Jewell and Katherine and Sharon are going. I can't be everywhere.

I'm going to take it easy today and get my injuries healed. Good chance I will return to politics tomorrow. I could write about it every day. I could write about writing about it every day. I don't think I could write about writing about writing about politics every day; the regression is not infinite.

Do you know why I so often end with telling you what I'm going to have for breakfast? It's not because breakfast is fascinating, it's because otherwise I struggle with a way to finish. I am not going to tell you today but that might mean sitting here and writing forever. That wouldn't be good, I'm hungry. I will do what my writing teachers taught me. I'll finish with a summary.

Yesterday I did a lot of traveling, was in some pain and more discomfort. It was worth it. I celebrated the birthday of one of my favorite people, hung out with fun people. I was part of humanity. We are all on the same side; we're breathing.


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please hold me accountable.





Memories: Not that Horrid Song - May 29, 2018
Wise Madness is Now In Session - May 28, 2018
The NFL and the First Amendment - May 27, 2018
On The Road Again - May 26, 2018
Oliver the Three-Eyed Crow - May 25, 2018



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Horvendile August 21, 2017
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