Things...


Hmmm. Since I had two wisdom teeth taken out the other day, and then since I came down with the flu (so bad that Issac now imitates me by running to the toilet and spitting in it), I can't think. But I have spent a lot of time in bed reading, and had the good consideration to post some interesting tid-bits for your enjoyment. (#1 and #2 came from Harper's magazine.)

1) From Stanley Elkin in The Franchiser:

Maybe all that distinguishes man from the beasts is that man had the consideration to invent garbage can liners. What a convenience! We die, yes, but are compensated by a million conveniences. Hefties are just the beginning. We perfect ourselves, we reach toward grace--I foresee a time when there will be flowered sheets and pillowcases in motel rooms. This is a deflection to convenience and the magnitude of the human spirit, the leap to comfort. The chemical creams...the chemical creams. You know, the little sacks of powder you put in your coffee. I foresee the day--someone may be working on this right now--when coffee creamers chall be mixed with saccharine in the same packet! There you go: convenience! And do you think for one minute that the man now waiting for this great idea's time to come will have thought it up for mere money? No. Unthinkable. It will hit him on an airliner like an inspiration, for the grace of the thing, only that, for the convenience it would make, and if he profits by his idea, why the money will be only another convenience. Someday a visionary shall come among us. He will lobby Congress to legalize pot on the principle that it would be a terrific boon to the snackfood industry! Oh, friends, the quality of all our lives shall rise like yeast. I love this world, this comfortable, convenient world, it's pillow condition.

2) Did you know that scientists have found that homosexual sheep have peculiar brains? Did you know that there were such a thing as homosexual sheep? Did you know that astronomists are arguing over whether or not Pluto should be demoted as a planet or Sedna admitted? That new research suggests that medical x-rays cause thousands of fatal cancers every year? That 4 % of the 13,129 varieties of dirt in the U.S. are endangered?

3) Final thoughts: Do you think it is disturbing that one half of the world is living in a "pillow condition," fretting over fake sugar and garbage can liners, while the other half of the world faces events like those taking place in Darfur? We are so fortunate to live in the USA, and we could become unfortunate if we don't continue to excercise our rights to vote and to educate ourselves about current issues.