The sky is cryin'...

One thing that has bothered me above all else about this here pandemic thang is if masks are so effective, why can't we do anything? I would wear a mask to attend a concert, I would wear a mask to gather in a group of more than 25, I would wear a mask to attend a funeral or wedding or visit a person in the hospital...

But I am told to wear a mask and do very little. Why is that? I am told that masks stop the spread, but it is never mentioned anywhere that masks also stop one's existence as a human...

So masks either stops the spread or they don't - there is no inbetwixt...

On a side note: my current employer will be installing temperature reading time clocks in two weeks, six months of this part of the world being shutdown and now we are worried someone may have a fever. This I find humourous...

Another weekend break from reality...

And so I sit regretting looking at the Interwebs. I have grown tired of the crapfest the place I once loved has become. Back in 1994 whence I first gazed upon the marvel of it all I was amazed, but more than 25 years later I am tired of it all...

And why is this? Well, I will tell myself - the major reason I despise it so is people. Twenty- five years ago it was the wild west, it was the new frontier, it was an escape from reality. Now everyone is there, and everyone feels the need to express their opinions and then when one does not agree with them, there shall be the Great Reckoning, and if agreement is not met then comes the total and utter destruction of one's life, both physical and digital...

And that's the way it is - angry mods with torchs and pitchforks descending upon the castle to destroy the 'monster'. And it is a pity that the Interwebs became such a place of intolerance...

And now time to walk...

Had a conversion today with a coworker about the names of sporting teams so this has been on my mind...

The following is my opinion and my opinion only; and I am not here to sway opinions for I am not being paid enough to do such. When a team name is chosen, the name is chosen from a position of strength - the name is to invoke fear and respect in the hearts of the enemy. 'Our team is not to be messed with for we shall destroy your weak and feeble team.' A team name is not chosen to be a laughingstock nor is it chosen to show weakness...

So my opinion is that one should take pride in having some recognition that your people are winners, they are brave, strong, fierce, warriors who shall be triumphant...

I like the imagery, I do not wish this to be forgotten. There should be constant reminds of one's heritage present around this here globe. The past should not be buried within museums, it should be out there and in yer face...

Some folks should just get over themselves, if you're offended you have every right to be, but if you start force feeding me your opinions, I will have a problem with that. In the profound words of Rush 'Conform or be cast out'. In all honestly I would prefer to be cast out...

For those who don't know me on a personal basis, my high cheekbones are a product of my N8V Ancestry...

So concludes this rant whilst I occupy the Sittin' Spot in my usual place of escape...

And so I find myself in my primary Great Wood today though sittin' spot numero uno is a wee bit wet for the rains have inundated the land. So now I find myself at sittin' spot numero dos, which does not have the picturesque view of the primary sittin' spot though it will do for the time being...

I have often wondered why it is that some dogs find me appealing. Just 15 or so minutes before I reached the sittin' spot I came upon a gentleman and his dog Lucky. The gentleman and I gabbed about photography for a couple of minutes. Lucky checked me out, sniffed me up and down, allowed me to scratch her behind her ears. Then whence time to head off in opposite directions, Lucky decided she wanted to play, and gave the gentleman an extremely difficult time when he tried to walk. This happens at least once per walk where a puppy decides that I am the human it wishes to play with at that particular time...

It has been almost 30 years since I last had a canine critter, and it may be some time before I get another, but one day things will be right in the world and I shall have a puppy as a companion...

Now time to walk and document my time...

Another weekend upon which I have ventured forth in the wilderness though not the usual wilderness of my Saturday excursions, but rather the second of my three favourite locations. In each and every one of these three, I have a spot designated as The Sittin' Spot where I pause and reflect upon matters of great importance...

On today's sit I am pondering the fact that I really should have someone along for my excursions. In is highly unlikely that I should become lost in any journey for I feel that being lost is but a figment of an overactive mind unless one would happen to walk through some interdimensional portal and find themselves in a world that they have never experienced. So for the most part, one is on Earth, this particular planet is round, if one walks in a specific direction one should find something that might be familiar and if not familiar, will at least give a clue as to where to go...

As for water and possibly food, I do not doubt my survival skills in such matters...

So why would I want a companion to spend my time with? What is the underlying reason for my desire to have someone along for the journey? As any good manual on the subject will state it is for safety in case of accident or medical emergency. But, and I mean BUT, this is not the reason for if I shall die within the Great Wood I shall have died happy knowing that my flesh will go to good use...

The reason I would enjoy having someone along for the adventure is that I would like to share all I see, all I smell, all I experience with someone. Much of the experience I cannot document with my camera, much I experience I cannot put into words. "Hey, look at this!" "Come here and smell this here!" And such. And I hope they would do the same for me with things that I may not have noticed...

So ends my tale though I have heard deer and a hawk I have yet to be able to get a photograph though I do have a multitude of dragonfly stills taken whilst a small flock followed me about...

And so I find myself in the Great Wood once again, and I am at the Sittin' Spot at the midway point in my walk. And I do not know how long I have for it has been predicted that a massive storm shall hit this land, which brings me to my thoughts for today...

Listening to pandemic news is much like listening to a weather forecast. If there is a 90% chance of rain some people will cancel all plans and shelter in place, some people will not cancel their plans and take rain gear expecting to be rained upon, and some will go about their lives not worrying about whether they get wet or not...

And so I sit here listening to the wind blow through the trees, the creaking of those who shall fall at some point, and thinking I may get wet or I may not and such is life...

So I sit and share my thoughts with all those who may wish to read such nonsense...

I have reached the usual half way point in my adventure where I find myself sitting for a bit and pondering the great mysteries of this universe. My particular sit on this particular day I find that I must share this physical space with a mouse - not just any mouse, but a mouse who has left this physical realm though physical form of this critter remained behind. As for why this critter is in the state it is is a mystery for which I have no answers. And yet there it is...

I suppose I could speculate as to how it arrived in this state - was it food for an avian type critter that lost its grasp plummeting the unfortunate mouse to its demise? Was it slow acting poison from a venomous critter that ended the mouse's life at that particular spot? Was it natural causes from an unhealthy diet being in close proximity to humans for far too long? Or was it from old age and organs just stopped working?

I shall never know the full story of my wee friend as we sit and ponder all that is...

Currently I am out on a walk having taken the day off to take my mother to the doctor's. As some folks know (via Facebook or Instagram) I always take my camera - a fine bit o' technology. And over the course of my photographic hobby I have been puzzled by a nagging dilemma within my cranium...

And that is the fact that either I do not perceive yellow correctly or my camera does not. I often times take photographs of yellow flowering lifeforms, and yet whence I review the photographs they are not as I saw them in the wilds of the Great Out of Doors...

How would one know if the reality they perceive is a reality that actually exists or if it is just a figment of imagination? How do I actually know what yellow is?

‘Tis the day of the semi-regular ‘What if I entered the Great Wood and never returned to civilization?” post… 

Could I survive alone in the Great Wood? Indeed I could and I do believe I would flourish both physically and intellectually. There is just too much distraction in the ‘real' world, too much beyond my control, too much to deal with on a regular basis, too much… 

Would my presence be missed by those I have left behind? There may be a few who would wish for me to remain, but for most of humanity the impact of my exit will have absolutely no impact upon them whatsoever. In statistical terms, the margin of error would negate any results that would be favourable to me… 

There would be a few individuals who I would miss interacting with though most certainly they would be the ones who would understand my departure the most… 

So should I stay or should I go? This is the question that has been on my mind for quite some time now. And possibly one day I shall have a satisfactory answer. Until that future time arrives, I shall do as I have been and escape from time to time and enjoy nature in all its glory much as a murder of crows sit above me calling out into the treetops... 

A culmination of four months of dealing with the world… 

The following is based upon my own personal experiences and in no way reflects the views or opinions of the management here in my head. Being such I shall not argue or debate any points of this post, and I shall most likely never read any replies if there happen to be any. Thank you… 

First of all I would just like to state I am tired of what I shall refer to as ‘shelter shaming' – the whole ‘stay at home, save lives’ thing. I have worked six days per week during pandemic. It is not my first pandemic nor shall it be my last though it is my first (so far at least) where it seems as if the rules are being changed and updated much like Windows operating systems. I was perfectly fine with flattening the curve, it made perfect sense to keep everyone safe, pause the world for a brief time, and let life reset. Then the rules changed and we needed testing to resume our way of life. Okay, not too bad, a test for the virus is not terribly difficult to develop and being the corona virus is a broad category of viruses this should be relatively quick to implement. Then? THEN! We cannot resume our lives until a vaccine has been developed? A freakin' vaccine, a vaccine takes years of research, development, testing, and so on and so forth… 

Secondly I have grown tired of the entire “but science" answer to any and all disagreements upon this here virus. That is not how science works. If one is to never question anything we have concluded science, and we can move on to something more important. If one's hypothesis is flawed or incorrect from the onset, the conclusion will be meaningless. If the data collected to support the hypothesis is wrong, again the conclusion will have no merit. I do not know how many times I have been dumbfounded by the fact that someone's argument will revolve around this scientist said this, this group of “smart" people concluded this as if their conclusion was set in stone and shall never be deviated from. Degrees do not equal intelligence, all it show is the degreed individual did the required work to achieve the “smart" status. And OMG! If someone has a doctorate or postdoctoral degree, we must kiss their butts and worship them for they are divinity (please note that the sarcasm in the previous sentence was intentional). I would like to note for anyone who feels that I am antiscience, I would just like to point out that I have donated almost 45 years of computer time to scientific research (no, not Seti@home, which I felt was a colossal waste of time and resources to try to hear something profound from a race that may have died off millions of years ago), and I am employed as a supervisor in a materials testing and research facility… 

I do not have many years remaining on this planet and I have done my part to flatten the curve and through it all I drove my 300 plus miles per week and worked. I have eaten in the parking lot at the Mickey D's closest to work five days per week through rain and snow and sunny days and cloudy days, and I am tired of it all… 

There is a little secret that those controlling our lives won't tell – if one keeps everything 100% sterilized and never comes in contact with another living being, at the end of the journey your only reward is death. One can do one's best to postpone it, but the results are always the same. History books are filled with page after page of those who are no longer amongst the living and countless more who lived out their lives and did nothing that was recorded for posterity… 

I am tired of everything…