Welcome to this fresh new blog-o’-mine.
I come to you bearing gifts of ideas. Ideas timely to help both you and I navigate through these remarkable times we are in.
Some call this the ‘end times,’ however I prefer to think of this as a period of transition. It’s a sure thing that “the times, they are a changing.” The ballots were cast for change, but few knew what changes would be involved.
Change happens all the time. Within a given status quo, there is change, whether it is apparent, or simply potential is a point not worthy of debate. Rapid change is often frightening, and often not for the betterment of those affected. For instance: a landslide may well be a good change for the earth, in order to stabilize the topography. However, a landslide is not that great for those who are living in its path.
Anyway, here we go and I haven’t even gotten on topic yet and it’s my first post on this fresh blog. Then again, I may not be too far off topic, since I intend it to be a broadly defined and all-encompassing topic.
It’s All Too Much applies, in my mind to pretty much everything going on in the world today. Perhaps that concept is my ticket to the Old Fogy Section. Somehow I think not.
In this blog, among other things, I intend to explore the concepts of abundance versus lack, the source of supply, the excess of things, manifestation, magick, prayer, good versus evil, poverty versus wealth, loaves and fishes, water and wine, Ygdrassil, recycling, use versus abuse, gluttony and greed, fear, the media and government, talk radio, supply and demand, security, stewardship, outsourcing, multi-tasking, love, gratitude, faith, trust, discernment, Kindle, paper, salt,sugar, oceans, oil, the depletion of resources, fairness, balance, kindness, Karma and truth. Along the way, I may come up with a few more things to comment upon, ya’ just never know.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
I recall that, as a kid, we enjoyed as many as ten or twelve different varieties of chewing gum. There were the Wrigley’s: Spearmint, Juicyfruit, Doublemint. There was Cinnamon Dentyne. And then there were those unusual varieties called Teaberry, Clove, and BlackJack. If you wanted to blow bubbles, you could choose between Double Bubble and Bazooka Joe and with either choice, you were awarded a free tiny comic strip. And then there were those little pellets of gum called Chicklets. I remember a yellow box, but I think there were one or two other choices as well.
Not once did anyone ever complain about a dearth of chewing gum choices.
And now, at the candy counter in the airport, I tally:
Dentyne in 5 flavors
Wrigleys in 5 flavors
Wrigleys specialty gums in 7 or 8 more flavors
Trident in assorted sizes and shapes totaling over 12
Orbit has at least 10
Stride has 5 or more.
Well, the list goes on. And the price goes up, from $1.20 to $3.50 for a mere pack of gum. What are all these gums? Did you know there are so many varieties that they do not all get sold? They have expiration dates! Did you know gum expires? What with all the odd chemical sweeteners in the majority of them, who knows what they may transmogrify into after a certain date? It boggles one’s mind. Is expired gum something to fear, like snake venom? Why make these products in the first place? What happens to expired gum? Can it be recycled into something? Toys? Patio furnishings? Rain ponchos?
Health food stores have assortments of gum that are less disgusting in content than standard commercial varieties. And at a certain Interstate exit ramp restaurant chain you can still buy Teaberry and Clove.
Back to the airport: I have seen passengers take up to fifteen minutes to ponder the gum choices before finally making their selection.
Magazines: I counted six different magazine titles showing pictures of the same exact celebrities on the covers. Often the only difference from one to the next is the name of the magazine. The content is the same. Why so many? How does one decide whether to read about Brittany Spears in a blue dress or a silver skirt? The depth of thought not required to write these articles is exceeded only by the depth of thought not required to desire to read them.
As a journalist, I will probably have more to say regarding magazines at a later time.
Too much.
Way too much.
I did not realize how deprived I was 25 or 30 years ago, when all I had was CBS, NBC, ABC and Public TV. (not to mention only 10 gum choices) We enjoyed the shows that were on. We watched the actual news being reported, and were told not only weather prognostications, but the vital statistics of the day just passed.
And then came cable. That was pretty cool for a while. We had Animal Planet, the Discovery Channel, and MTV, which actually played music videos ALL DAY LONG!
Then someone decided we needed several hundred stations to watch which necessitated more technology which we had to purchase, and more utility bills. And the programming went to hell. There was nothing worthy of an hour or two of my time, so I finally had to have the whole thing disconnected.
Whoa! I see I’m on a rant. Sorry .I did not mean for this to devolve into such vituperation. My point is, each day seems to bring us an appalling increase in choices that we think we need to make in order to survive, be cool, keep up, or simply to make up for the lack of depth and meaning in our lives.
I am not a Luddite. I am very grateful for so many of the advancements technology has given us over the years. For instance: I love air conditioning. I very much appreciate my dishwasher, washer and dryer, hot water heater, my Tahoe, my fridge and my deep freeze. And two years ago, I finally succumbed to the temptation of an electric can opener because the opening of multiple dog food cans each morning had just gotten too difficult for stiff morning hands. My toaster, coffee maker and 2 or 3 other small appliances are a pleasure to use as well. However, I know how to function without them. And oh yeah! Thanks to all the powers that make possible my computers and the internet. A delight and a blessing with a potential dark side. (how many hours have I spent pointlessly engaged in truly petty coasting, cruising, and forwarding of mass emails?) If it’s an addiction, at least it is legal and won’t harm the liver.
Even as a metaphysician, an alchemist, and philosopher, I can appreciate the Catholics for coming up with the idea of the Seven Deadly Sins.
As a follower of Yeshua (you may think of Him as Jesus) I know sin to be a synonym for error or mistake. Sin sounds so dreadful. There are many dreadful acts committed by humans and like anyone, I want vengeance as my first knee-jerk reaction. But, as I was saying, as a follower of Yeshua, forgiveness is one of the great virtues I work on daily in my alchemical transformation program.
Back to sin, or the Seven Deadlies. Let’s agree to think of them as the Seven Deadly Errors. Greed is the foundation of our societal problems today. And in many ways, it is the foundation of the other six deadly errors we as humans allow ourselves to fall prey to.
And that is the topic we shall explore more closely in the next posting.
Other upcoming topics will include personal power and manifestation. You have it.
Excessive expostulation versus personal responsibility.
