Day 669 (Tidbits)

A seeming "Call To Arms" awaits on the Day 669 post on Blake Ford Hall's The 800 Days blog. This isn't Blake's call, however - it's a call sent out by ANONYMOUS. As well, it's not an average Call To Arms (a call to pick up weapons)...

You'll have to think in metaphors beyond what you usually do (we think in metaphors ALL THE TIME - but often, not very complex ones, for daily living) and really open your mind to receive the message that ANONYMOUS has provided.

Here's an article ABSTRACT (only) that I found when searching for a way to explain how we think in metaphors all the time. The Abstract provides enough information to explain this - without going into the whole article (it's better than a definition I found on a popular online dictionary):

Metaphors We Think With: The Role of Metaphor in Reasoning.

I'm finding the messages of ANONYMOUS increasingly more interesting as time goes on. I feel that whoever is behind ANONYMOUS is very intelligent, versed in psychology and possibly even sociological studies... however I am TRULY beginning to question the purpose and ethics of ANONYMOUS...

• Anonymous speaks of freedom - using the terminology of oppression (is this ethical?)
• Anonymous uses emotional phrases to target the underdog (knows which particular words work on the psychological make-up of an oppressed target population)
• Anonymous seems to understand large-group dynamics (sociological knowledge - ie: "when and where should I, Anonymous, place my messages for universal effect and viewing?")

I'll let you decide if my statements above are anything you want to think more about.

Anonymous is calling out to a number of target groups:

• Youth
• To The Intellectuals (those with critical thinking?)
• The Strong
• Journalists
• The Weak
• The Clever
• Free Thinkers
• Poets 
• The Wise

The only thing that settles my mind a bit over ethical issues here is that ANONYMOUS clearly sends out a call to various target groups - essentially, trying to name most groups, save for "authority" groups. At first, I was worried that - with ANONYMOUS' mix of oppression language with freedom concepts, Anonymous was targeting just "the oppressed" populations (which could turn out a MOB), but Anonymous is - in my opinion - calling out to people FOR the purpose of critical thinking, reasoning, etc. Time will show whether I am wrong or right here... (Yes, I've ended up QUESTIONING the motive of ANONYMOUS even though Anonymous makes very blatant, clear statements most of the time... it has been the "language of oppression" inserted in much of Anonymous' messaging that sends up red flags for me).

Let me know what you get out of Anonymous' message, posted by Blake for the Day 669 entry over on The 800 Days blog on Sunday February 20 2011.

Day 676

Blake is featuring works by bibi16 on his The 800 Days blog for Day 676! Blake announces bibi16 as his "comrade in arts," which is fitting when you see one of bibi16's poem titles:

"Hitler's Mother"

The last two lines strike me hard,

"No one offers consolation
To Poor Hitler's Mother"

The second featured piece, "Blowing Him Again," by bibi16 caught my attention immediately - not by its title but - by its alliteration and repetitive rhyming at the beginning... weaning, tiny, teeny djinni (genie/jeannie), breaking, bottles, barefeet, burning [...] Butterflies bleed."

POWERFUL attention-getters, along with impact of concept once you read how these words are all used together!

It ain't over til its over.

bibi16's works arrive on Blake's Day 676 post on Sunday February 13 2011.

Day 683 (Tidbits)

A poem dedicated to Blondepoet/Debbie Murray is what is in store for you once you visit Blake's Day 683 post over on THE 800 DAYS blog.

To my knowledge, Blondepoet is someone Blake has never met as she lives in Australia. I'm familiar with Blondepoet from a writing site we all frequent and so I have a special interest in this poem - about a person Blake and I both know of but have never met. I've read Blondpoet's writings online, too.

My fave lines of the poem:

• To write our poems and sing songs for people we shall never meet, and singing words to people who we shall know only inn our dreams,
• but never do remember when we wake from the walking sleep upon a morning glorious sweeter once it is weened

I'm not positive I kept with the line structure Blake intended for these two lines but I hope he will forgive the line manipulation in favour of my presenting the lines on my blog to indicate the powerful message about acquaintanceship/friendship over distances...

In my interpretation of the poetry, the narrator (possibly Blake, maybe an anonymous narrator within the poem) is basically saying - "Distance is NOTHING... personal connection with people is everything and is what is important."

I also like the end of the third line, the message, "[...] and our two worlds collide" - very graphic, apt, metaphorical but powerful...

I also really love the balance brought about by the last few words of the last line, "[,,,] like so many a fairytale completes." What an awesome way to wrap up a poem with balance in both temporal concept (distances bridged) but literal suggestion (end of poem, completion of fairy tale).

The Day 683 post is associated with Sunday February 6 2011.

Day 690 (Tidbits)

You might need a tissue by the time you've finished reading Blak4d's Day 690 entry over on The 800 Days blog. I did. Although the video at the top of the post might make you grin (it has censored nekkid gals on it), and the poetry just below the video might make you think, the explanation which follows at the very bottom of the post will likely cause you to need:

R.I.P. Deserae!

The Day 690 post is dedicated to Deserae and is associated with the posting date of Sunday January 30 2011.

Day 697 (Tidbits)

It seems Blake is pressed for time around this point in blogging for THE 800 DAYS blog, so his Day 697 post features some interesting photos from a friend, Joe Lee.

In my opinion, the fourth photo down shows an INSANE pyrotechnics trick... is that FIRE blown from a guy's mouth...?? That's what I see!

Plugging my ears so I won't hear when the guy starts screaming, "AAAACK I'm On FIRE!"

Blake sure knows a lot of interesting people who also possess interesting skills. Myself, I can't say, "I have a friend who blows fire out of his mouth," but I can still ask, "Do you?"

:)

The absolute truth is: I need to catch up to Blake on FB or some other long-distance way to find out more about Joe Lee and some of the other people he has featured in pics, words, music, etc., on the 800 Days blog since I've been low-profile online...

The day 697 post on The 800 Days blog is associated with FIRE!!! and Sunday January 23 2011.

Day 704 (Tidbits)

After the complex information from the previous (Day 705) post, it should come as a pleasant surprise that Blake has placed something creative and a little lighter for the Day 704 post on his THE 800 DAYS blog.

Oh, don't put away your thinking cap yet...

You're still going to need to think about what you read over on Blake's blog...

Here's a suggestion - make sure you read through the Day 704 post twice in this manner:

• Right click and open to Blake's blog so you can see his text - WHILE - you play the Charlie Daniels Band vid posted below
• Keep Blake's text open and read through while hearing an instrumental version of the Charlie Daniels Band tune in the appropriate you tube vid

1. Open lyrics - Blake's Blog: Day 704 "The Devil Loves California" by Blake Hall

Watch the following video, Charlie Daniels Band's "The Devil Went Down To Georgia"

2. Now Keep the lyrics open and watch the next video - instrumental version of the Charlie Daniels Band song... sing along if you're comfortable doing so... and sing BLAKE's "The Devil Loves California" lyrics in place of the C Daniels Band ones!!

Now, if you've watched the vids and read along with Blake's lyrics, you've probably had some fun! Hopefully you kept your thinking cap on while doing all this because there are some very interesting twists in Blake's lyrics.

Lines I like:

Honey milk and silver spoons, with guns and stripper bars
Because hells broke loose in Santa Cruz and evil here is art
If he wins he gonna skin your naked bones for gold
And if you loose California get your soul

I like the bit about "art" here!

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed the content and media for Day 704 'cos I sure have!

The Day 704 post is associated with Sunday January 16 2011.

Day 711 (Tidbits)

Blake and Rothlyn are tryin' to kill my brain cells with computer jargon now... The Day 712 post was about computer "stuff" (notice, I don't have the computer tech lingo "down"?) and now, Day 711 content on Blake's THE 800 DAYS blog is a followup of sorts - on computer STUFF.

The question is asked: IS WINDOWS A VIRUS?

Okay, so the content is partly a joke - but read it through carefully over on THE 800 DAYS blog because Windows Operating System DOES perform in some ways that are similar to a computer virus. "Stuff" I am not too happy to learn (didn't I mention in an earlier post that I am going to attempt to learn Linux in the year 2011. If not... now I'm saying it - and, btw, sort of terrified about it).

There's a "Quick Method To Reset Parental Control" featured in the Day 711 content and it's offered in step by step fashion in less than 10 steps!

As well, Rothlyn Giles explains "Console Emulation" and I obviously have to read this information more than the once to get it because I LIKE POETRY versus computer jargon. I'm having some trouble seeing any metaphors in the content and, for me, this is a bummer but I realize that I should know more about computers than I do and that I don't play any cool games because I am afraid of console emulators and run away everytime I see words even faintly resembling the same.

source

I'm going now - to recover from reading computer jargon but I do realize the value of console emulators now. Actually, I'm going to an online dictionary site to find synonyms for the words used in the Day 711 article on Blake's blog - just so I can find some words that rhyme with console emulator and thus, I may find a couple of metaphors yet!

:)

The Day 711 post is associated with Sunday January 9 2011.

Day 718 (Tidbits)

On the second day of a brand new year, there are continued messages from yesterday - wisdom from the (Native) elders - being presented for the Day 718 entry on THE 800 DAYS blog.

To help readers get into the right mind-set for listening to the Elders, Blake has positioned an appropriate vid in the top-most position on the blog post. This first vid is cool. The music starts heavy on the Native drum beat and chanting but transitions quickly to including modern drums while also adding flute/pipes. Have a listen and get into the right spirit for listening to the Elders in the videos which follow...

In the "part 4" video, the female Elder starts off with the topic of "Individual Missions." In short - each individual has a "mission" as they come to exist on the earth. The Elder clarifies that this mission isn't something gain by searching for it - but rather - it becomes known to us.

In the "part 5" vid, the male Elder speaks about mandates and responsibilities that each human being has on this Earth. For anyone who thinks that Native spirituality is about silly mythology of uncivilized people and such, they should really listen to the very heavy responsibilities this Native Elder speaks about - and realize that the accountability most Natives feel toward fellow humans and all living beings - including to the elements, Earth and everything, really - is anything but silly or uncivilized. Natives have a very intricately developed, complex and quite rational explanation for why we should all respect all living things.

The "part 6" video shows Natives honouring both old and new beliefs and organizational activities. Natives are attempting to sort through what modern governments are doing and are trying to incorporate acceptible government policies and blend into society in reasonable ways - but without losing key components of their culture. The speaker here is Ojibway, speaking of this group's doings and needs, but to my knowledge, most Peoples are attempting to heal from the abuses of the past and combine cultures in the best way. It is possible that many non-Natives do not realize what an undertaking this attempt at peaceable combining of cultures is...for Peoples who have been severely oppressed and damaged to the point of losing some parts of their culture as unrecoverable.

I hope people will respect the content in the videos Blake has selected for the Day 718 entry on THE 800 DAYS blog and I personally still feel that the Native messages are a fantastic way to begin the New Year with!

The Day 718 post is associated with Sunday January 2 2011.

Day 725 (Tidbits)

There are two displays on THE 800 DAYS BLOG for the Day 725 entry.

First off, there are some pics displayed (artwork by Falon Jones) - and then another poem by Blake Hall...called Necronomajia.

My favourite lines of the Necronomajia piece are (the last 5):

"It's changing my mind and it's changing my goals

And sometimes I wish it would just tell me

What I don't want to know...

Is it golden, is there silver in gold

Life is hopeless but the riddle is old"

Now it may or may not be significant that at the end of the last line, there's no period...

Regardless of whether Blake made a typo or not, to me, within the context of this piece being poetic, the lack of indication to "stop" as a punctuation mark, the period, commands - means that the entire last sentence is up for discussion, pondering over, consideration. Therefore, "life is hopeless" might be up for discussion rather than a conclusive, final statement. Also, it may be up for discussion, this riddle, its age - or maybe the un-ended statement (considering it without a stop/period/end) means the riddle is timeless and not bound by the constraints of our perception of time.

The last two lines, the words, "Is it golden, is there silver in gold - life is hopeless but the riddle is old" are both "questions" and statements...

There is no actual punctuation question mark, either - so by form, the words are a statement but by context, they are questions. As statements - something is golden and something else precious is in gold. As Two questions: Is it golden? Is there silver in gold? The last identifiable concept I can backtrack to is that the poet is speaking of a soul (the narrator's soul - might not be the poet himself - but is the character/speaker/narrator within the poem)...so, perhaps the soul is golden, according to the narrator within.

Luckily, a question is being asked - not only giving the reader permission - but actually commanding the reader to think about this concept... for me, punctuation cues in poetry are usually commands. Punctuation is often used in place of a word or to emphasize concepts that a poet has condensed the words for or used where a poet has taken away words - so I take every question mark and contextual question very seriously in poetic works - as a command to actively ponder the question.

"[...] And sometimes I wish [...]" occurs prior to these last lines, so the concepts in these particular words are important because they are stated more than once - within the confines of condensed poetic ideas. Often, with poetry, words are excluded, concepts refined down to as few words as possible - sometimes poetry is very much like a puzzle intended to be sorted out by the author...so when words repeat, I have learned that this often means the repeated words are some of the most important in the entire piece. ie: poets, stating one thing ONCE, rarely need to repeat a phrase or word unless doing so is an act of emphasis or contrast. Here, I think the said words are for emphasis. Also - there are two different wishes repeated - a lot going on here.

1 wish: To be left alone
2 wish: To be told something

The title, Necronomajia, in my opinion, must be Necro+Magic together. Magic. Death. Death leading to Magik (death to life - magic is often equated with energy/life). Death is Magick, and magic, since it is everywhere, belongs with death/life concepts. (Blake will have to correct me if I'm interpreting grossly wrong here). The term makes a lot of sense and has impact upon the senses when broken down like this... thus, Necronomajia is a written, poetic work about DeathMagick and ends with no end (period).

Very interesting.

I'll have to build a better summary later - the poem has given me a lot to think about and I'll actually have to go doodle this out a bit on paper...

Read the poem in its entirety on The 800 Days blog... let me know how YOU interpret the poetics.

The Day 725 post is associated with Sunday December 26 2010.

Day 732 (Tidbits)

Okay, I honestly don't know where Blake find the stuff he finds to put on The 800 Days Blog but the Day 732 post is definitely as interesting as all the rest. AND as unexpected...

It's a letter, signed by a "Sir Abel Hammer" (I didn't hear of this incident, it's all new to me), and issued forth to thousands of independent media organizations in the Spring of 1991 (April 1 1991?)... Blake got this off the Vax Mainfraime where he was going to college in the Spring of '91.

It started, something like this:

UNTO : EVERYONE
Thru : Jeshua Ben Joseph
The Vatican
Vatican City, Italy
RE : THE TRUTH ABOUT JESUS

Now, Blake posts the content of the letter (saved, perhaps, as text since it came off the Vax Mainframe?) but describes the seal/image which interrupts part of the text. Blake describes it as: "Then there was the symbol of an eagle attacking a rattlesnake in battle embossed in gold leaf overlay [...]"

I couldn't find this, but I looked up some keywords and am taking the liberty to post a pic below and see if Blake responds to tell me if it looks anything (or nothing) like the image he saw within the Sir Abel Hammer text...

Here's what I found:

Anyway, from what Blake described, the symbol/in the letter might have had a shape something like above.

There was more text that continued on after the eagle/snake symbol. The remainder of the letter was about God, the Son deity, saying "God alone is God," describing the Son as a Hammer and Christ The King... messages that Jesus is the Anti-Christ, False Prophet, Beast, Whore of Babylon, is represented in many great artists' and authors' works (Dante, Milton, Blake), etc... Wow, heavy, heady stuff - but the letter's not concluded yet... There is at least another full and detailed paragraph about Jesus The Anti-Christ, then the letter concludes with:
"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD
SHALL BE KNOWN TO ALL
SINCERELY ,
SIR ABEL HAMMER.
4-1-1991."

So there ya have it. I've never heard about this before but it seems quite an incident. Certainly the statements made by SIR ABEL HAMMER and the method by which the aforementioned circulated this message is some sort of BIG NEWS, isn't it?

Very interesting. I'm sure this will spark some discussion with anyone who remembers this incident.

The Day 732 entry on THE 800 DAYS blog is associated with Sunday December 19, 2010.

Day 746 (Tidbits)

Man, I almost hate it when Blake writes on/brings out topics involving harm to animals. I have a soft spot for animals and actually you might call it more of a "reverence" and awe-filled respect for most of them (Remember my rescue cat? Best pet ever!).

Blake's Day 746 entry on THE 800 DAYS BLOG is about life harmed by man-made catastrophes. I want to quit using the word "CATASTROPHE," too because I have a reverence for NATURE and catastrophes happen in nature. Man Made DISASTERS happen when mankind destroys or makes objects and situations which destroy life. Human life, animal and plant life, spiritual feelings/life... Man (okay, and WOman) is the WORST destroyer of all and, frankly, reading about
manmadedisastersmakesmeveryangrygrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

GRRRRRRRR!

SOMEONE HAS TO BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR DESTROYING LIFE!

*Yikes* I am overheating!

...particularly after looking at the pictures of beautiful animals on The 800 Days blog, reading the stats on how much LIFE has been affected by oil spills - sometimes by "singular" events.

The content is about the possibility of EXTINCTION OF MULTIPLE SPECIES as a result of man made GARBAGE and INDUSTRY... also, human error leading to preventable accidents.

One concept most of the world probably adheres to THAT I WILL NOT is the concept of land ownership and regional boundaries - ie: nationalism and related concepts.

I don't understand how people can believe in the concept of the earth/world as having places where people OWN sections of land, air, sea...

MAPS are TEMPORAL GUIDELINES and navigational tools but authorities use these items to prove OWNERSHIP and authority over spaces that we're supposed to all have reverence and respect for, that we will all benefit much more from by NURTURING AND SHARING TOGETHER...

Consequently OWNERSHIP and POSSESSION of significant spaces and locations on this globe is a TEMPORAL CONCEPT, not a norm, law, fact.

Strangely enough - even when, BY MUTUAL AND MANUFACTURED CONSENT, the world's citizens allow for sections of the globe to be utilized by certain businesses and individuals, when a DISASTER HAPPENS, we find out that, really - NOBODY CAN OWN ANYTHING... we get lack of accountability, and vast areas of polluted, disrespected land, sea and air, that nobody CAN REALLY BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR...because nobody can truly own a place or space to the exclusion of all others, anyway.

I am ranting...

Abrupt cut off on this post - so I can go do some anger management.

BLESS YOU ALL WHO DO NOT OWN OR THINK YOU OWN WHAT IS COLLECTIVELY THE WHOLE WORLDS' SPACES.

Day 746 on The 800 Days blog is associated with pictures of beautiful animals that are in danger of extinction and the article is also associated with Sunday December 5 2010 in the 800 Day Countdown.

Day 753 (Tidbits)

For the November 28 2010 post, Blake's Day 753 entry on THE 800 DAYS blog is about books... used books, selling used books, everything about used books. Blake reviews a really great book - about selling books online. The book is called "Selling Used Books" by Stephen Windwalker. It appears that Blake really liked this book, however, he makes sure to outline both the pros and cons in the material.

Who doesn't love what this all sounds like? For someone like me... anything about BOOKS is a good post, good information...and, by the way, I'm trying to see how many times I can use the word "books" in a single post.

Okay, so I'm a bit of a book geek... here's proof:

Old 2nd Hand Book, Progress and Poverty by Henry George (still borrowing this from a friend - may have to purchase another copy and give the newer copy to my friend). Oh! and look behind me... ONE of the bookshelves in my bedroom... the little shelf. FULL of books...

Next:

Just a little light reading (The Paranormal: Research and the Quest for Meaning) that I am NOT going to turn around and sell off on eBay, Amazon, etc., because this is one of my best reference books...it doesn't EVER get lent out...

Nice glasses eh? Eh....well, they're NEW - and they help complete my geek persona.

One more:

One of my favourite books in the past 5 years - great piece of reference material (socio-history, socio-psychology and tidbits on oppression of the masses via TIME control), Jeremy Rifkin's Time Wars: The Primary Conflict in Human History.  Again, you won't see me parting with certain books and this is another book that stays in my collection.

So what do my four-eyes photos (it's okay - I am EMBRACING geek-hood and geekness, so "four eyes" isn't the nasty name to me that it once was for many when eye glasses weren't quite so common as today), my snapping pics of books that I will NOT part with - what do these things have to do with Blake's article about how to make oodles of money selling used books?

NOT MUCH... other than to show you a prime example of WHAT NOT TO DO and how NOT TO advertise for yourself if you actually want to make money selling used books.

LOL - Instead, you should read the article then go get the book Blake has so kindly and thoroughly reviewed for us! (I am going to get it and stop fooling around - so I can learn to make more money online from the things I love - BOOKS).

And with this short pic-filled post, I am going to leave off so that you can go and I CAN GO read Blake's article in more depth again, myself... I am going to learn much more about selling real hardcopy books online (thank GOODNESS it's dealing with real bona fide paper/cardboard, bound, hard copy, you-can-touch-them BOOKS and not "eBooks") by reading the said article ever so carefully and then asking Blake H some questions...SHOULD I decide to sell a few books (but not the ones shown above).

The Day 753 blog post over on THE 800 DAYS blog is associated with the date, Sunday November 28, 2010.

Day 760 (Tidbits)

Get your left and right brain parts working together before delving into the Day 760 material on THE 800 DAYS blog!

There are definitely some unrelated tidbits put together for this post but don't worry... they're all enjoyable anyway.

I got SUCKED IN BY BLAKE... *LOL*

There's a text/image "loop" application of some sort right at the beginning of the post... I WATCHED/READ IT ALL TWICE haha! You might, too... btw, the "Action Jackson" font IS pretty cool, so look for it!

On a more serious note, Blake continues outlining and presenting some messages from a personality we've seen on two other posts already - "EDEN SKY." In an audio presented on the 800 DAYS blog, Eden Sky endorses and speaks about "The Universal Flag." The link provides Brian McClure interviewing Eden Sky on the topic of The Universal Flag and the concept behind this is that this flag transcends borders, race, etc. This audio is "Show 89: A Conversation With Eden Sky" from August 28, 2010. Much of the content should interest almost any person who can manage to find this recording... it's on very important information about "TIME," along with The Universal Flag.

I have a special interest in "TIME" because I've been studying about how humankind has manipulated time over the centuries...and I've been studying this topic of time in a multidisciplinary way - for about three years. A great book I've read more than once and that I keep close at hand AT ALL TIMES is Jeremy Rifkin's "Time Wars." If you can find this book, read it! You will NEVER look upon a sundial, clock or digital timekeeper of any kind in the same way after reading the Rifkin material... You will never think of the work week, the workday or things of this nature in the same way ever again... You will also likely want to learn more about "circadian rhythm" too, but...hey, I'm going too far here and getting off topic!

In short, I have found that Eden Sky's information is NOT in any way challenging to Rifkin's material or material studied on historical time-keepers and time-setters (like St. Benedict of Nursia)... and am quite happy to have come across the McClure/Sky interview!

Aside from the audio material available via The 800 Days blog, the Day 760 post also contains some fantastic images!

Then once you scroll down past some images - after careful observations, of course, then BINGO! You get to some really COOL, BASIC information about The Mayan Calendar (Mayan Calendar for Dummies - YES !!!)...thank goodness because there definitely ARE a lot of info bytes on varying topics so far on THE 800 DAYS blog...

Article: 2012 : the Pleiades and the Mayan Calendar for Dummies

Definitely read all the content for this post on the 800 DAYS blog. The 2012/Pleiades/Mayan Calendar article is a collaboration between Blake Hall and Cricket Rockastellar and is basically subtitled, "A User Guide For The Rest Of Us." If you've had a lot of difficulty understandint Mayan Calendar information, reading this article will clear a lot of things up and make things clear for you. 

What you'll find:

• explanation of what Pleiades is/are
• list of items contained in The Pleiades
• basic workings of the Mayan Calendar
• the basic four cycles of the calendar
• some historical information about the Mayans
• walk-through tidbits regarding mathematical calculations
• some narrative/mythological details on Quetzalcoatl
• details on something known as the Hell Cycle
• details on "The Time of Flowering"

more...

It's a good idea, as stated at the beginning of this post, to get your left and right brain portions working together here. This means - get your CRITICAL THINKING "going on" when you read this post! There is a lot of information here but all of it is important as basic, fundamental information on Mayan Calendar details that will help people understand more in-depth and possibly more difficult discussions and details later on as the Countdown progresses and more 2012 Theories, Mayan Calendar Theories, etc. are introduced.

The Day 760 post coincides with Sunday November 21 2010.

Day 767 (Tidbits)

The topic of the Day 767 post on THE 800 DAYS blog is "Cyberpunk...As a Religion?"

Basically, Cyberpunk is a sort of lifestyle or a sub-culture...and it's also a science fiction media genre (lit, film, art) but on THE 800 DAYS blog, Cyberpunk is talked about in terms of religion. It's a lifestyle full of computers, gadgets, computer lingo, etc.

In the Cyberpunk science fiction genre, Cyberpunk is generally a blend of "cybernetics" with "punk," and as such, incorporates a mix of information technology and advanced science (cybernetics) with at least some marked degree of breakdown in (punk) in the social order, possibly a radical change in social hierarchy and social controls.

Artificial Intelligence, Hackers and Mega-Corporations tend to be subjects/themes in Cyberbunk culture and in the plot of cyberculture novels and film, generally a power struggle is acted out, usually between an extreme underdog versus (cyberpunk) a mega-corporation or the extreme whole of society itself. Sometimes the actions is with the cyberpunk group versus the authorities which uphold a certain, rigid dominant ideology of the society. The underdogs rely largely on outwitting the authorities with monumentally outstanding displays of technological know how - fantastic, speedy knowledge and work with or via computers, gadgets, etc., and usually the underdogs use the megacorporation's or the society's most highly acclaimed tech gadgets against the megacorp' or society...sort of a "using their own weapons against them" deal.

Much of the cyberpunk lit out there is definite and impressive social commentary against power, oppression and control and there are rarely any ambiguous statements made when cyberpunk is the genre used to embed social commentary messages in text or film. The message is clear "you megacorps and corrupt societies will NOT gain control of everything."

So, Blake asserts, on The 800 Days blog, that Cyberpunk can actually be thought of in terms of a religion. I keep preferring to say "lifestyle," however, points made on the 800 Days blog are pretty strong, so I have to concede that maybe "lifestyle" isn't the best descriptor for those who are extreme cyberpunks. Not to mention the fact that Blake mentions:

"The technology has a spirit of its own, as valid as the spirit of any creature of the goddess. This is the spiritual force we, those who are called technopagan, feel and must express. Not surprisingly, we find ways of bringing technology into our worship."

I suppose that in much of the cyberpunk literature - especially lit and film that is "future-based" the technologies, items, computers, etc., are shown as transforming society and cyberpunks are shown as "doing the impossible" through sheer human effort of mind, along with extreme expertise and knowledge of how to make gadgets perform in ways nobody would expect or assume gadgets could ever perform... essentially, the cyberpunks are extraordinary and they make machines do surprising, extraordinary tasks.

In all of this, we can definitely see a parallel between the cyberpunk and "the faithful" of many religions - who all intend to persevere through what ails in this world. There are parallels between the cyberpunk making a machine/gadget do the impossible - and the pagan working his/her magic which is either forbidden in society or said to be impossible in soceity.

Reading the Day 767 post lead me to do some searching for examples of "cyberpunk-ness" and I turned up the short story called "Cyberpunk" in my searches. It's an interesting little short story and the author, Bruce Bethke, is credited with having coined the term "Cyberpunk" via his short story title of the same name. The story is entertaining and is available all over the place online.

Here's a handy link: http://www.brucebethke.com/articles/shortstories.html  it's from Bethke's own site and you'll find a free pdf of the Cyberpunk story that is readily downloadable.

Well this is all for now... I actually want to read that Cyberpunk story one more time - it's got some sub-culture lingo that gave me a little trouble during the last read-through...

The Day 767 post is associated with Sunday November 14 2010 in the 800 Day Countdown.

Day 774 (Tidbits)

This is one of the best posts I've come across so far over at The 800 Days blog. Right near the top of the entry, Blake Hall has placed a very interesting and inspirational video - a hopeful message from a woman named, "Eden Sky," who is a self-described "Red Self-Existing Skywalker."

WOW...

With a title like that - c'mon...admit it - YOU HAVE TO LISTEN!

Go To the 800 Days blog, entry for Day 774 (day seven hundred and seventy four)

Now I have to say that after I listened to Eden speak via the you tube video, I had to just sit back and BREATHE a sigh of relief for this very positive message about the month of December in the year 2012.

FINALLY... some positive STUFF!

I also had to remark - to myself (because the only other entity at home happened to be my cat, who doesn't particularly CARE that 2012 is coming 'cos he's an angel, anyway)... "Mythbuster, now T - H - A - T which was recently heard - is SO COOL." Also, "WE DON'T HAVE TO BELIEVE IN IT TO TAKE ACTION."

What I mean by that last statement is that, basically, WE NEED TO GET OUR SPIRITUAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL SHYT TOGETHER... and even if we don't believe in the conclusions about WHY Eden says we should get our shyt together - IT WILL NOT MATTER what we believe because...

Okay... I know, I'm gettin' fired up and ahead of things here. Let me backtrack just a bit...

Basically - Eden says something is in motion in the universe anyway... we are all out of sorts, partly because we're living in a time period where a final wrap up of events, environmental, spiritual, planetary and universe STUFF is going to happen - WITH OR WITHOUT our caring about what's going on...

To make things beneficial and positive for our human species, we can cleanse, get straightened around, get our ducks in a row, so-to-speak.
Or
We can ignore everything, continue killing the environment, the world around us... whatever's "coming" or "about to happen" is so much larger than us that it's going to happen anyway...

Those who are creating positive changes can benefit...

Those who aren't... SEE YA!

And the world will be left in a better shape or in a state that is sort of "supposed to be," according to the cosmos...If that is MINUS a bunch of hundreds-of-thousands of people who don't want to create changes for the positive...

Oh well *shrug*

Basically, Eden Sky is talkin' about GALACTIC ALIGNMENT theory within the 2012 Prophecy which follows a timeline marker of the 13 Moon Natural Time Calendars (13 Baktun Long Count Mayan Calendar) and points to a date - December 21, 2012, for the date when the world as we know it, will end...

How to live from this day onward 'til December 2012:

• Find our calling, our breath, our centre, our grounding and calm
• Live by moving with and toward our healthy passions
• Move toward our callings
• Purify and heal
• Reject artificial time as much as is possible
• Get back to "earthy" things, be aware of the presence of the earth
• Look outside to get a bearing on what time of day it is
• Look at the stars, look at the daytime sky, the clouds, the night, the day
• Cleanse and become stewards of those weaker than ourselves
• Become stewards over the earth and respect the environment
• Find and project our compassion
• Become an "agent of calm"
• Gratitude, gratitude, gratitude and love... 

Eden says that what we project upon the date of December 21 2012 has the power to influence what sort of day/time that date will actually be... We can shape what the day will be like. The date is expected to be our ultimate awakening.

Now you might never believe in the telepathic possibilities that Eden Sky is talking about in the video - but believe me - even if you don't believe and feel that this is all just a bunch of bulljunk, doing the things from the bullet points above sure isn't going to do any harm to you or anyone else.

And if this date and alignment is coming... NOT doing acts of stewardship and cleansing and all the rest sure - and expecting awesome results from these - well it's just silly - so ya might as well "go with the positive, healthy, beneficial flow."

Day 774 in the 800 Day Countdown is Sunday November 7, 2010.

Day 781 (Tidbits)

Wow... part of the post on the you-know-which blog leads right back to HERE! The "Follower" blog I've created here has been recognized in a big way on The 800 Days blog as the beginning of the Day 781 content.

A BIG THANK YOU TO Blake! *thumbsup*

However, the main content of the Day 781 post isn't about THIS blog or about my stuff - it's about the OBVIOUS special day and DATE for the Day 781 post...

HALLOWE'EN! October 31 2010 is Day 781 in the countdown!

There are some brief introductory bits about Hallowe'en as "Samhain" (pronounced, "sow-un" - some say "sow-en" or "sow-een" but generally the phonetic "sow-un" is quite universally accepted around the globe and particularly by Celtics and scholars of Celtic peoples) and as being a day/eve of celebration as marking the Pagan New Year or Halloween Eve.

Call it what ye will... for most people in the western world, it means "CANDY NIGHT" or "Trick-or-Treat" time. Rather, all the costumes, dressing up, candy-giving and candy taking is the western world's capitalist, opportunist exploitation of a very sacred Pagan date and celebration... I'll back up to the Trick Or Treat stuff sometime soon in another post 'cos Hallowe'en has many legends just too FUN to overlook...but for now, in keeping with the way the topics are lined up on the 800 Days blog, I'll stick to the review and commenting for the Day 781 post.

You won't be able to miss the "account" of a "happening" on a past Halloween night that should make readers think about what is important in life... you won't miss this account 'cos it's in big, BOLD lettering, right after the awesome mention of this blog... This "event" happened during the Witching Hour on Samhain... but the year is not given. No matter - read and be grateful... for life spared - for strange things unexplained by science... for some things ARE explained by other means and in the end... are just TRUE and Possible... you'll get what I mean once you've finished reading the BOLD TEXT.

Another article found at this location: 20 Paths To Freedom And Possibly Being a Better Human Being

Don't fret about the link too much - the content is made plain and clear right on the blog. The author at The 800 Days blog is offering some ideas on how to be a better person... pretty simple stuff here (simple concepts but not particularly EASY to put into practice if you're not truly inclined and dedicated toward doing so).

Read carefully... there's a serious CHALLENGE here in the Day 781 post. A personal favourite of mine on this list is number nine (#9)... "STOP IDENTIFYING YOURSELF WITH A NATION OR COUNTRY." This one, I am up for concerning the challenge posed.

I'll explain... I'm against Nationalism. I understand why this point is in the challenge and message. I have written an article prior to my work on this blog that explains my views on Nationalism: Dangers of Nationalism.

Naturally, the rest of the points on the list - 19 more and a total of 20 - are things I have to work on...

Which points will you work on? To bring about a better human being in the world - YOU? Basically, Day 781 contains an awesome checklist to consider for becoming a better person. Isn't it time?

The Day 781 post was on Hallowe'en Day/Eve, Sunday October 31, 2010.

Day 788 (Tidbits)

If you've been following "The 800 Days" blog by Blake Hall as I have been, you/we've seen articles and information about Wicca, the number 23, about Witches, Vampires, UFOs and Hopi Indian legends...

We were bound to end up on the topic of Satanism at some point without being too shocked - but if you ARE shocked and worried about the term, concept or religion of "Satanism"... just hang on a minute.

Trust me - the Day 788 material from the 800 Days blog is NOT going to freak you out, "convert" you or even frighten you. It's some pretty straight-forward historical, temporal and logical information about Satanism.

My favourite phrases/concepts from the Day 788 blog post:

"Modern Satanism as a whole is not Anti-Christian. Satanism is Anti-Stupidity."

How about this: we just drop all the propaganda B.S. and just go read about a certain viewpoint on Satanism and THEN see how this information sits with us?

Article: In Defense of Modern Satanism

Day 788 in the countdown is the date Sunday, October 24, 2010.

Day 795 (Tidbits)

Ohyeah - the 800 Days blog is getting really interesting now... aliens, Scriptures (Genesis) nice... but WAIT...

A little tidbit on the "APACHE Myth of Creation" too!

Very nice... aliens/ufos, religion, Native myth of creation... we can't get better than this... well, until we start getting into Magic - or Magick/Magik - and Magickal Theories.

For now, check out The 800 Days blog and PAY ATTENTION to the Day 795 post material. I'm 100% sure that there are segue points being made here!

Definition/explanation of segue on Wikipedia: SEGUE (basically a transition from one concept to the next... usually in a build-upon a-to-b-to-c sort of way).

Again, I'm pretty sure people need to read this Day 795 post carefully - also, with open-mindedness - because I think more is coming in future posts that will build off a few simple, clear statements from Day 795. I mean, The Scriptures have puzzled mankind for ages. So have ufo sightings and theories (sorry, ppl, but I have to state - LOUDLY: "UFOs are NOT (in my opinion) brand new "Tech" phenomena we're just starting to see NOW, since the 20th century and to present."). The myths and lore of Native/Aboriginal peoples is always full of analogy, hints at various phenomena science has trouble understanding, so getting into Native lore - NOW - this early into the 800 day countdown must MEAN SOMETHING and is ever so likely to be important in the days to come as the countdown proceeds.

The date of posting for Day 795 was Sunday, October 17, 2010.