Hero worship

"One who thinks he knows, knows not.
One who thinks he doesnt know, knows."
- Joseph Campbell

Watching PBS and a broadcast of The Power of Myth, the series of interviews with Joseph Campbell by Bill Moyer.
Heh.. during the interviews, Joe Campbell handles every question with aplomb.
Except for one:

Bill Moyer: "... so, what about Faith?"
Campbell: "Faith. Now, thats a tough one."

To me though, the answer isnt to be found in the answers. True direction is found in asking the right questions..

So Campbell poses this question in his answer::

"What is the value of Faith?"

Good question.

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I used to be a voracious reader of books.

Until I worked in a bookstore. And in the orgy of free riches and blowing all my salary for books, I became sated.

For years after, I had piles of books lying around unread.
In fact, it was over 300 books. (I know this because this is how many books I gave away. I couldnt throw them away.) Unread.

So, from reading hundreds of books in a year, I may now read six.

I remember seeing the Joseph Campbell books, particularly the ones with Bill Moyer and putting them on my short list of Books to Read.

So before I forget, let me add his books to my To Be Read pile.

I just hate to do that, because - unless the book is in front of me.. I wont get around to getting the book and reading it.

Reminds me of Sarte's 'Cycle of Life'

A child starts out and transforms into a camel. The camel gets to its knees to receive the load of life. The heavier the better. He runs out on his journey and the load eventually transforms the camel into a lion. The lions mission is to go search for and slay the dragon of "I shalt'. Once the battle is over, and the dragon of "I shalt" is slain, the lion transforms into.. a child.

Im not an empty vessel anymore, needing the load of books. Im more particular. The books Im looking for are the weapons, the inspirations, the experiences need to slay the dragon.

However, there are things to I need to learn.

The journey aint over yet.
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On my reading list

Power of Myth
From the transcripts of the TV series. I should really get the accompanying DVD's too.

Some suggest that is a great primer for his seminal work
The Hero with a Thousand Faces

The book that was the basis for Star Wars, Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" series, Apocalypse Now etc etc.

Seeing all this makes me want to see his personal journey.. but he never had the desire to do a biography.

So, since his death - other people tried to do his life justice.

The Hero's Journey : Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work and Joseph Campbell: A Fire in the Mind

I am actually more interested in his life's journey...

The first thing Id better do when I get to Cali .. is get a library card.

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Quotes from the show, famous for coining the phrase "Follow your bliss."

'The urge to possess to use, is pornography
The urge to reject, to criticize, is didactism.
But the urge to hold, to examine, to experience.. is to find the epiphany of the sublime."

"When youre on your journey, and the end seems to get farther and farther away... until you get to a point in your life when you realize the journey is the end."

California expectin'

What jennifer said, and she LIVES there.

I wasn't sure quite what to expect. I was half afraid we'd show up and be surrounded by a room full of poster children for California fitness - all tan and muscled and lean, dressed in their neon-colored biking outfits with perfect white teeth and perfect smiles.

I take it grossly outta context, but that imagery articulates some of my expectations of Cali.

Thru gritted teeth.

Tech shit is warping my tiny lil mind.

Right now, tasks that are queued up on the cerebellum rotisserie

VPN setup.
Exchange Server installation and Outlook integration.
Routing of mail and web mail access.
Setting up Filemaker databases.

These are all projects within themselves. Each and everylovin one.

Fuck me.

As I was telling George yesterday, having your mind in tech mode makes it not run at the same speed as the rest of the world.

Your mind is in full troubleshooting mode. As well as research and development mode. And you have to have the answers on the tip of your brain.

Apart from my laziness, that is why my writing has sucked these last two months.

And people wonder why I keep trying to get away from this shytte.

Thats why Im enforcing a policy of work smart, not hard. When its quitting time, its quitting time.

Now, VPN access is mapped, on, secured and stable - time to start the mapping of resources and machines. Oy.

No, wait - thats an aiyah.

Aiyah!

----------------
Must. resist. drama.

For.

Angst is Lame.

Measurements

Useless benchmarks in my life that have good stories behind them.

Coldest temperature Ive been through:
- 35F.
1982.
Chicago, Illinois
(The windchill that night was minus 82, one of the coldest measurements Ive been through. Actually, its THE coldest Ive experienced while outside..)

On that night I got frostbite on my hands and face, putting me in the hospital for a few hours.
I got it while outside trying to start my Audi Fox, because I was working the closing shift during high school at the Jewel Foods on Green Bay Road in Evanston.
The gas had frozen, so I hadda call my pops to pick me up.

The next morning, the temperature went up to a balmy -15. Naturally, the engine started right up on the first crank.
As I waited for the engine to warm up (you DONT wanna drive away immediately in sub-freezing temps), I kicked one the rubber mudflaps to clear some of the accumulated ice/snow - the rubber shattered like glass, shards flying every which way.
For months afterward, Id look at the jagged gap on the ever-more pliable rubber in wonderment.

I never bought gloves or any other piece of clothing from KMart ever again.

My fingers are still quite sensitive to heat and cold. (Which is why its painful for me to handle a hot cuppa coffee.)

Hottest Temperature
118F (as measured by the bank thermometer). 2001
Bayonne, NJ

Oddly, in all the times Ive lived down south - Ive never seen temperatures go past the low 100's in the summer.
But in Chicago and New York, every so often - the temp would soar over 105.

I never understood that.

Highest mountain climbed :
7,050 feet
Blue Mountain Peaks, Jamaica

Jamaica has the tallest mountains in the Caribbean region. Its actually considered an alpine zone (a warm one) smack in the middle of the tropics, where rainforest flowers grow along side evergreen Fir and pine trees.

Its beautiful, with an awe inspiring view of the southern plains, extending to the deep blues of the Caribbean Sea. Then everything is obscured as the fog rolls in almost every afternoon, the sun passes to the west and the mountains turn their distinctive blue hue.....

I want to retire there.

Fastest Speed
132 mph
Batavia, Illinois
1986 Mustang GT

My neighbor test drove cars for Consumer Reports, so I had a delightful assortment of new cars to drive.
The only ones he never let me drive were the Porsche's. Mainly because of their agreement with Porsche North America.

Heehee. Much fun. The most memorable car of the lot WAS the Mustang GT.

I still lust for a FHP interceptor.

Incidentally, Ive never gotten a speeding ticket that exceeded 63 mph. I swear to gawd.

Most expensive meal
$132 for two
1987
Downtown Chicago

I dont remember the name of the restaurant, nor the girl I was with.
I dont even remember what we ate.
I just remember the tab.

We didnt even order any liquor.

The Rules

" As I reflect on before
and recap the situation
I guess from experience
comes education.. "
- Shining Star - The Roots with D'Angelo & Erykah Badu

Listening to my morning wakeup diet of Ja Rule ..

This rip is from George.
And then there's Robert Evans' "Rules":

Beware of midnight promises.

Instant gratification takes too long.

Suffering is overrated.

Planning is for the poor.

An attack of the heart ain't worth a heart attack.

Rejection breeds obsession.

When more than two people know something -- it ain't a secret.

Better to have no men than yes men.

Bad luck starts with bad ideas.

Guilt is the mafia of the mind.

Once is a mistake. Twice? A failure.

The fuckin' you get ain't worth the fuckin' you get.

Heheh. All too true. :-)

Thanx G.

Sometimes ya need to be reminded.
---------
Thanks cyn. I appreciate the props.

Just when I was starting to feel left out.. ;-)

Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em.

JPennant: : Im in a quandary meself

JPennant: : sorta
quasar: ?
quasar: what happened?
JPennant: : 'should I stay or should I go"
quasar: hm
JPennant: : stay here a little longer and feel like Im not getting what I want to do done
JPennant: : or go to cali asap and .. follow the dream
JPennant: : my choice
quasar: what does your heart tell you?
JPennant: : that I need to drink and not think about it right now
quasar: lol
quasar: then do that..
quasar: wait and watch..
quasar: you'll take the right decision


She's right.

The hardest trick in life is knowing when to leave....
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On a steamy South Florida night, listening to

Tito Puente - Mambo Diablo
Erykah Badu - Next Lifetime
Groove Theory - Never Enough
D'Angelo - Brown Sugar
Me'shell Ndegeocello & Marcus Miller - Rush Over
Tito Puente and Latin Jazz All-Stars - Oye Como Va
D'Angelo - Shit. Damn. Motherfucker.

Smooth, steamy grooves.

Been how long?

For a short period I crashed at Rich's house in Staten Island

Richmeister: Hey Joe
JPennant: yo!
Richmeister: Is there a place I can mail you something?
JPennant: if it comes within the next week or so, sure :-)
Richmeister: heh how 'bout after that?
JPennant: not sure where I'll be or when
Richmeister: When you get settled into your next spot for a while, why don't you let me know where - I found your Street.Com mug after you left, figured I'd send it to ya
JPennant: I forgot I had one
Richmeister: heh been awhile, I know
Richmeister: It was hidin in the dishwasher =-O
JPennant: ????
JPennant: you had a dishawasher?
Richmeister: Yeah, you didn't know that?
JPennant: again, I dont even remember you had one
Richmeister: heh
JPennant: honestly

I left his house in April of 2001.
I know a lot has happened since then, but damn.

It hasnt been that long ago, has it?
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In the sprit of wrapping things up, I gave back the borrowed digicam....

Here are a few random





























Nah, it hasnt been that long...

Heh.

I was just chastised for not putting a link to an article that I sent out in my DawgSpam.

Id also made a mistake as to which newspaper was the source.

Heh. I was chastised for that too.

I am bemused.

Im grateful to the folk who wanna read the crap I pass on, but chastised?

This guy was someone Id met at a party, Ive never actually seen again. He often passes on the articles Ive sent. I get some of those too.
Personally, I kinda feel its tacky to recieve stuff I sent out in the first place..


Bemused, I tell ya.