Autumn Zebra

In dealing with more people through work than I would have normally dealt with, I have come to the conclusion that many of the incomprehensible things people say are in fact the result of certain problems they have, or, as I like to think of it (at the moment, until I find a better phrase) "imbalances in their personality". I can't identify what the imbalances ARE at the moment, but I'm imagining that there's a perfect state where people can deal with everything that comes their way, are pleasant to interact with, reconciled with their past, free of guilt, etc. Nobody's perfect however, so we all have problems. (Note that personality is probably not the best word here, because even people in the perfect state would still have their unique personality that makes them them - but doesn't include the things that make them miserable and unpleasant.) Anyway, people are off-kilter, and this makes them respond to things oddly. For example, today at work there was ...

As it rains, I wonder whether I would be better off in 15th Century (European) clothing, or not. As I sit here with my butt and lower legs of my trousers still wet 2 hours after coming out of the rain, I consider that a shift, petticoat and dress, of linen, wool and wool, would no doubt have stopped the water soaking through to my skin. In "the past" it was sometime acceptable to take off "dresses" or gowns and sit around in petticoats and whatever else was worn on the top half, so I could be doing that whilst drying my dress. Of course I would have had a long woollen cloak over the top too. I'm not sure if they were lined or not. In any case, I'd like to make some common woman's clothing from anywhere in the 15th to 18th centuries and see what it is like wearing only linen and wool. One definite advantage is the multiple layers on the top AND bottom halves, instead of only a skirt or trousers covering your legs.

It's amazing how many of the low reviews for books on Amazon could be rewritten up as follows: This book contained exactly what one would expect from the title, cover illustration, description and other reviews. I wanted and was expecting something entirely different and so bought this book for no apparent reason. If I'd researched this book at all before buying it I wouldn't have this problem, but since I didn't I'm giving it a bad review for not miraculously changing it's contents to suit my needs. Still, if you live in the USA, the books and postage are pretty cheap so you can probably afford to buy them entirely on a whim. I tend to only look to buy books I've seen elsewhere and are generally well-recommended, so they seldom tend to have any bad reviews that are actually valid.

The NYU Child Study Center in the USA ran a series of ads, briefly, fashioned as "ransom notes" from mental illnesses. The ads were pulled after numerous people complained and a petition was started to end it. The purpose was to raise awareness about childhood psychiatric illnesses, but the people who complained were adults with the illness as well as parents of children with them. This is the text of the ads: We have your son. We will make sure he will no longer be able to care for himself or interact socially as long as he lives. This is only the beginning…Autism. We are in possession of your son. We are making him squirm and fidget until he is a detriment to himself and those around him. Ignore this and your kid will pay…ADHD We have your son. We are destroying his ability for social interaction and driving him into a life of complete isolation. It’s up to you now…Asperger’s Syndrome We have your daughter. We are forcing her to throw up after every meal she eats. It’s on...

This is what I was thinking about today whilst walking down the hill to work. Most of the time when I am particularly tired, but also at various other times, I will be existing pretty much inside my head, without interacting with or receiving much input from the outside world. These are a couple of examples: When I am walking to or from work, or really anywhere, I am sometimes completely unaware of my surroundings. I don't notice anything, but still get where I am going on auto-pilot. I am looking at the ground in from of my feet, but not really LOOKING because I don't notice anything that I see - I assume some part of my brain is checking for obstacles or something. My eyes aren't focused at this stage; everything is blurry. Sometimes I look around and I still am mainly in my head rather than "out there" so my eyes remain unfocused - everything is blurrier than normal and I still don't see anything any more than a cursory survey of my surroundings. Sometimes ...

Today's junk mail started: Finally you will never have a problem with your size any more. I immediately thought of short people and dwarves. I'm not convinced that's what they meant, however.

Just because you are driving a four wheel drive doesn't mean driving one wheel up onto the pavement should be part of your parking strategy. Learning to park properly should be part of your parking strategy. Thank you.