Death of Hypatia®

Author: Death of Hypatia Inc.

  • Know Thyself #94

    Know Thyself: PDA

    I found myself considering what I think of Public Display’s of Affection.

    I learned that positive/negative/indifferent feelings were dependent on four factors:

    • Setting (notice your audience and where you are): child’s birthday party, bouncy house…nope. Christmas party, beneath Mistletoe…yep.
    • Intensity (Motion Picture Association Film Ratings): PG13/R seem a good bar.
    • Duration (really?):  No need to breath in/out of the nose for survival, cute. Someone(s) is/are timing you, why?
    • Disruptive level (degree to which PDA interferes/suspends and/or influences the enjoyment of other humans): Private Gondola ride slipping through the canals of Venice at sunset…doesn’t bother me. Adjourning seat on any mode of transport….bothered. Also bothersome: on-line, while operating heavy machinery, physically touching anyone not involved, and/or in the direct sightline between a stage and a ticket holder.

    Where’s your bar?… more “Know Thyself #94”

  • WIBCI Post #93

    WIBCI today’s heroes were better?

    Remember the phrase ‘Don’t be a Hero’? Per thefreedictionary.com it defines this idiom as follows:

    don’t be a hero

    cliché
    Don’t put yourself in harm’s way in order to save other people.
    I ask if you remember this phrase because, I feel it isn’t as commonly used as it once was.
    Maybe because lately, no one needs to be warned away from selfless acts that put yourself in danger?
    What do YOU think?

     … more “WIBCI Post #93”

  • Know Thyself #93

    Know Thyself by Noticing:

    I was standing outside in a hushed space, ready to notice something beautiful. The area I was in was the perfect blend of open areas and screening fauna, where you felt unnoticed in the open. The nagging voices in my head that bully fun away, can be quieted in places like this.

    A huge gust of wind swirls through and mini cyclones of leaves rain down thick as snowflakes for an elongated moment.

    In that moment I noticed and felt connected; for a moment I was truly awake and alive. (In Your Eyes is obviously still on my mind).

    Try it for yourself; find time, and go outside until you notice something.… more “Know Thyself #93”

  • WIBCI Post #92

    WIBCI we paid attention to the pattern of failure?

    It seems to me that what we are talking about are is the possibility of people who have been put on pedestals, and ‘God-ed up’ for such a long period of time, that they lose touch with everyday rules and they think their privilege exists beyond what other people think it is.

    -Tony Kornheiser Pardon the Interruption

    This was said about a fallen sports hero, but I feel this quote could be attributed to a myriad of people in today’s cesspool of personalities.

    Who do YOU think Kornheiser is referring to in 2o15? If it wasn’t limited to sports and 2015, who could this quote be referring to today?

     … more “WIBCI Post #92”

  • Know Thyself #92

    Know Thyself.

    I dislike my fridge.

    I feel it embodies all that is bad about technology. It is allegedly ‘smart’, yet undeniably unhelpful.

    It can heat water, but your choices are not limited to cold or hot water, no! What do I think it is? A plebeian 1990’s water cooler?! Hell, my bougie appliance can warm water to the proper temperature for tea, cocoa, OR soup.

    You know what would be helpful? If I could know how much water was dispensed. The appliance knows it, but chooses not share it. The water has a constant flow, yet the ounces displayed increase like a free jazz base line. It knows how much it has disbursed, why not let us in on it? I’ll take it one further, could it not only display the proper amount, but HOLD it for two seconds so our tiny human brains have enough time to recognize and compute? AND dare I ask that we are given a two second grace period to decide and possibly choose to add to the amount already dispensed without having to do math in our heads?!

    My fridge can show a slideshow of pictures but it can’t tell me how much water is in my glass.

    I shit you not.

    Did the pitch for such a useless perk include homeowners gathering friends and relatives around the 4″ diagonal to view sunglassful family selfies in front of things in Florida?

    My fridge is a jerkstore. I know it and it knows I know it. And according to the immortal words of GI Joe, knowing is half the battle.

     … more “Know Thyself #92”

  • WIBCI Post #91

    WIBCI we learned to  Live Life Lyrically?

    Think of a song you really like and use the ole inter-webs to find the lyrics. No matter how many times you heard a song, no matter how ‘by heart’ you think you know it, I bet you learn something and/or think of the song differently when you read word for word what the artist/poet wrote.

    The following are the Lyrics to In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel, which you may know. I found I couldn’t help hearing the song when I read the lyrics, but knowing the tune is not compulsory (if you haven’t heard it, I propose a listen). To me Peter seems, well….intense, attentive, and fortunate.
    Love, I get so lost sometimes 
    Days pass and this emptiness fills my heart
    When I want to run away, I drive off in my car
    But whichever way I go

    I come back to the place you are

    All my instincts, they return
    The grand facade, so soon will burn
    Without a noise, without my pride
    I reach out from the inside

    In your eyes
    The light, the heat

    (in your eyes)
    I am complete
    (in your eyes)
    I see the doorway
    (in your eyes)
    To a thousand churches
    (in your eyes)
    The resolution
    (in your eyes)
    Of all the fruitless searches

    (in your eyes)

    Oh, I see the light and the heat

    (in your eyes)
    Oh, I wanna be that complete
    I wanna touch the light, the heat, I see in your eyesLove, I don’t like to see so much pain
    So much wasted, and this moment keeps slipping away
    I get so tired working so hard for our survival
    I look to the time with you, to keep me awake and alive

    And all my instincts, they return
    And the grand facade, so soon will burn
    Without a noise, without my pride
    I reach out from the inside

    Mr. Gabriel has looked and seen: The resolution of all the fruitless searches, in someone’s eyes…….
    Damn Peter.
    I have not seen such things in anyone’s eyes, nor, to my knowledge, have such things been seen in my eyes.
    Doesn’t sound like it sucks.
    What do YOU think?
    … more “WIBCI Post #91”

  • Know Thyself #91

    Know Thyself through SAMENESS and DIFFERENCES:

     

    It’s the sameness that I’m talking about now. Sameness in spite of difference or different sounds of the word. The same ideas, a different color, but the same spirit; different churches, but the same faith; different liquor, but the same hangovers; different jokes, but the same laughter; different faces, but the same humanity.

    Thank God for the differences! Cause it is out of those differences that culture grows, and grows big in all directions at once.  

    -Orson Welles

    I think it means it is in our differences and similarities where we discover our true selves. One requires perspective and empathy to truly be a part of this world. If you are only focused on yourself, if you judge people depending on whether they agree with you or not, and/or if you are for things that are advantageous for you regardless of impact to others….you are missing the big picture, the variety of life, and the whole point.

    What does this mean to YOU?… more “Know Thyself #91”

  • WIBCI Post #90

    WIBCI HISTORY were more ingrained in us?

    Paul Strathern said of a person:

    “…a teacher throughout his life and never sought to hold public office, yet no man throughout human history has ever had such a lasting effect on the world. “

    Who do YOU think Paul Strathern is discussing? Think about it and I’ll let you know in WIBCI Post #96.… more “WIBCI Post #90”

  • Know Thyself Post #90

    Know Thyself through what words MEAN to you:

    I believe in the antithesis of some words, where the amount of one is due to the lack of the opposite. I find this action/reaction negative relationship especially true in terms of character or morality.

    Not all words but some words.

    For instance STRONG and WEAK:

    STRONG: / strawng / adj. /: having, showing, or able to exert great bodily or muscular power; physically vigorous or robust.

    WEAK: / week / adj. /: not strong; liable to yield, break, or collapse under pressure or strain; fragile; frail.

     

    I think intimidation is a STRONG reaction of WEAK character. Someone with STRONG principles does not need to silence critics. STONG convictions eliminate the need to manipulate the populace’s opinions through Gerrymandering or making it difficult to vote.

    Those whom are WEAK deceive, distort, and evade, those who are STONG have no need to.

    What do YOU think? What is STRONG to you, what is WEAK?… more “Know Thyself Post #90”

  • WIBCI Post #89

    WIBCI we thought more about the WORDS we use?

    You ever notice that words, like songs, can get played out? Like they don’t mean what they were supposed to mean anymore.

    Take this word for instance: GREAT: / greyt / adj. /:

    1. unusually or comparatively large in size or dimensions.
    2. large in number; numerous.
    3. unusual or considerable in degree, power, intensity, etc.

    Not only has this word been squeezed of all meaning, all three definitions per Dictionary.com seem to be subjective. As if the word can have one meaning to the speaker and a different one to the audience.

    The adjective also can’t seem to stand on its own, when used by itself, you are unsure if the ‘Great’ is good or not so good unless there is a helper adjective. The phrase ‘Great God’ can only be interpreted properly if you hear the inflection and/or have background.  The Great Depression was not great for anyone, and Alexander ‘The Great’, was not great for everyone.

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: a less subjective word was inserted into our daily vocabulary? WIBCI words meant more?… more “WIBCI Post #89”

  • Know Thyself Post #89

    Know Thyself by paying attention to your stream of consciousness….

    I like storms. I like to be as close to them as possible, during the worse of it, while remaining dry.

    I was recently watching a storm and realizing I enjoyed it when I thought of the animals in my hood. There are no open ranges in sight where I call home, but as it also is not Times Square, we have wildlife. As I have mentioned in an earlier post we have a copious amounts of birds that like to welcome the day all together each morning at 4am. But where do they go during unusually aggressive weather? There aren’t a ton of wise-owl sized holes in 400 year old oak trees that I can see from my porch. Where do they go? I know they make it through the worst of the storms due to the aforementioned daily 4am singalong, but I’m confused as to where and how. I’ve seen some of these flimsy things y’all call nests, one ambitious squirrel or a microburst and it’s toast. Do they have an agreement like emergency sleepovers where they bunk with the larger animals in dens? Somewhere there is a place big enough for the massive raccoons and enormous turkeys to lay their substantial heads. Do the little birds jam themselves in tailpipes or form little bird chains holding onto one another beak to claw through hurricanes in holly bushes?

    Anyways, that’s where my mind went. Day dreaming is underrated in my opinion.

    Sit down and see where yours goes.… more “Know Thyself Post #89”

  • WIBCI Post #88

    WIBCI we has less adult anxieties?

    Remember when you were a kid and you worried basically about nothing?!

    When I was a kid if I lost something (which was not rare) and actually realized it whilst still out and about (which was rare), I may have experienced a momentary feeling of loss and/or feigned a glance or two about my immediate location, but I would quickly move on and play in a puddle.

    Remember how mittens were connected by a string that would go inside your snowsuit sleeve, across your back and out the other sleeve? This allowed you to throw off mittens with abandon when  barehands were needed, like for making really good snowballs, itching, picking, pinching, or flicking.

    I wish we had these mitten-connectors for adults. I would like to shake off my gloves on impulse without having to shove them somewhere or inevitably drop one, never to be seen again. I don’t need the anxiety or the puffy pockets.

    Coolest thing for me about being a kid was being a kid. I think we need more things that we know are going to be there so we can get back to being.

     … more “WIBCI Post #88”

  • Know Thyself Post #88

    Know Thyself before and after the pandemic:

    Do you think the pandemic changed you in ways that have stuck, good or bad? And/Or are there areas where you have reverted back to how you were before 2021ish, like Covid never happened?

     

    On one hand, when it comes to clothing, I have found I value comfort over fashion more than I had in a pre-pandemic world. I learned how to make bread and appreciate puzzles. I mastered the art of binge-watching, traffic was glorious, and I love all the outdoor dining/seating that came out of it.

    But, on the other hand, the pandemic gave us the fist bump, politicized vaccines, made it okay that commercials are everywhere and often, and somehow made us forget how to hang out… in a group… in public… conversing….. with eye contact, hand gestures, and witty repartee.

    On the other hand… per toilet paper usage, I party like it’s 1999.

    You?… more “Know Thyself Post #88”

  • WIBCI Post #87

    WIBCI politicians agreed on whom we honor?

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: the same politicians who feel honor bound to memorialize a conservative political speaker, also found it necessary in 2020 to memorialize a woman who spent 27 years of her life on the Supreme Court fighting for the rights of ALL Americans?

    WIBCI our government venerated civil servants who revered all people?… more “WIBCI Post #87”

  • Know Thyself Post #87

    Know Thyself:

    The Nobel Peace Prize per Wikipedia is: ‘awarded to the person who in the preceding year “shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses’

    Do YOU think when considering the qualifications of the 2025 winner of the Nobel Peace Price that it should be taken into account that in 2025 one of the assumed candidates pardoned 1,500 criminals convicted of a politically fueled insurrection?

     … more “Know Thyself Post #87”

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