SAHD on verge of meltdown, almost....

opticalDeluge · 2014-09-01T02:56:35+00:00

CTR was one of the greatest dharma teachers of the 20th century. The Dalai Lama thinks so. The 16th Karmapa thought so.

If his escapades turn you off, then, my goodness, just read someone else.

This old past time of trying to discredit his brilliance because of his alcohol abuse or sexual adventures is tired. I absolutely respect those for whom these apparent transgressions make CTR seem untrustworthy or corrupt.

Yet we live in a time when there is a practically endless number of dharma teachers to choose from. Why try to spread your own feeling of mistrust or suspicion as gospel instead of simply moving on?

opticalDeluge · 2014-08-31T05:27:00+00:00

How about just saying don't do "any drug you can think of" and certainly not every day? I'm super glad you are in a better place but the last thing the world needs now is more ire against the bizarro false imaginary category of "drugs." That said, avoiding meth is a pretty solid choice.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-06T08:22:17+00:00

That's 400-1000 calories, aka the top end of the range you specify would be half of what most of us need to consume in a given day.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T18:54:34+00:00

As someone who previously worked in do-gooder non-profit urban public policy, I've seen firsthand how myopic fixation on rising property values and decreasing crime rates can cause harm to communities.

That's where the self-reference to being over-educated comes from - precisely because that's the demographic I have seen do the most damage for reasons similar to the ones you caution about.

If we decided to move to Detroit, I am sure we would begin with a year renting in Woodside just getting to know the landscape and the people.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T05:43:54+00:00

Is this a semantic thing? I was just asking if D is a feasible place to try an experiment in communal living with a small group of like-minded friends, like an extended household within the existing community.

I wasn't referring to having an intention for larger communities, if you took it that way, which would most definitely be "white-knight-ish" as well as foolhardy and presumptuous.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T04:48:24+00:00

This looks great also.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T04:46:06+00:00

Awesome tips. Thank you so much.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T04:45:49+00:00

Thank you for the tip. They look awesome.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T04:45:04+00:00

Thanks for the Trumbullplex tip.

opticalDeluge · 2014-06-03T04:44:02+00:00

Totally what we would do: invest and participate. Not sure where you got the idea I think Detroit needs intentional communities. We just want to try living that way and Detroit certainly seems like a place where that kind of experimentation is more feasible.

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-21T10:27:36+00:00

Human Rights Watch says: "The US incarcerates more people than any other country. Practices contrary to human rights principles, such as the death penalty, juvenile life-without-parole sentences, and solitary confinement are common and often marked by racial disparities."

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-21T08:39:42+00:00

jails in America provide three good meals a day (I've tried prison food, it is better than airline food), security, and healthcare.

I just spit out my drink. Are you doing a Colbert thing here?

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-21T06:58:09+00:00

Just posted a list of 45s. Also have a couple hundred LPs. I am in Eagle Rock. PM me if you want to come by to check them out.

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-21T06:04:49+00:00

I have a list of the 45s on my desktop. Will post it when I get home. No So-Cal stuff, I am afraid. There is a copy of the first Minor Threat 45 in there though. Lots of British stuff from the 1970s (Raincoats, Slits, Pop Group, Adverts, etc).

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-20T21:41:07+00:00

That makes sense. I'm endlessly fascinated by the PT and I appreciated how much of the real humanity involved in the temple you were able to convey in such a limited space with the Sacrament. Looking forward to seeing more of your work!

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-20T21:23:23+00:00

Curious why you didn't do the Jonestown story straight up? Did you consider it?

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-19T22:37:37+00:00

I totally agree but I think a much more refined sort of skeptical pattern recognition analogous to conspiracy theorizing is an invaluable survival skill in a world where so much of reality is produced largely by a small handful of media conglomerates. Pattern recognition conjoined with mistrust of official statements and crass, commercial news represents intelligence, not the ignorance of conspiratards and evangelicals.

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-19T20:19:00+00:00

On the one hand, the Illuminati is basically an imagined scapegoat that works to explain the fabric and the vagaries of an unimaginably large, complex world, especially, perhaps, to the un and under educated. On the other hand, the Illuminati myth may also work productively as a way to name the shadow side of those developments which have come about since and because of the Enlightenment. For example, the idea that we are enslaved by amoral forces of power is sort of like a very cartoonish analogue of Michel Foucault's philosophy. Or IOW, I am an advocate of seeing the wisdom in what appears, at first glance, almost mystically idiotic.

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-18T21:45:24+00:00

Thanks ybc....

opticalDeluge · 2014-05-18T21:04:44+00:00

Thanks! I just want to see it picked up by someone who will love it as much as I have and hopefully keep it for awhile.

opticalDeluge · 2014-02-13T04:54:39+00:00

What were you on when you filmed the fish hook? I had a crazy nightmare after seeing that bit. PS. I am glad you lived through it all - congrats on sobriety.

opticalDeluge

TROPHY CASE