My computer is down, and I've been away from the internet since last weekend. I'm kind of surprised how easy it's been to stay away and ignore the computer. Now I wish I didn't have e-mail to answer.
Apparently it's going to take a few hours to fix my computer. I'm not going to monkey with it until next week because I have stuff to do and the internet isn't as important as it used to be. I'm a LOT more productive without it. I'm using Toni's laptop until I get mine back up.
Recovery-wise I'm doing pretty good. The weather is warmer and there's a lot more skin showing, and I still have to stick with the basics and keep doing what I've always done and bounce my eyes. It gets a bit tricky at work when I can't look at a customer, but I'm not going to stop doing it.
I have a chapped lip. Oscar keeps rubbing against my leg and getting hair on the A&D ointment I have on it, but I'm taking it as a compliment. We've been putting in 12-14 hour days at our little company for the last three days. I put nine hours at the theater today and tonight I'm going to work until I get this massive order out the door.We're trying to get the board cleared by the end of next week, and we'll get pretty close.
I have to admit I'm enjoying living my life without worrying what anybody is gonna think or say here. HA - maybe ignorance is bliss when it's other people's not knowing that makes you happy. I was thinking that I've been inviting a LOT of input I'm not sure I want anymore. I think that creating that distance between myself and others has allowed me to focus more on my wife and our relationship, and that's been a good thing.
Anyway, now that we're all caught up, I want to talk about words. Particularly, profanity seems particularly vulnerable. I have two points here:
#1) Society can change and cause words can lose their impact. For example, when I was a little kid "bastard" was a bad word. As I understand it, it meant that your Dad and your mom weren't married when they had you. I guess that's a slam against your family. Today, however, I think that word has lost all meaning. I mean, if your parents aren't married when you're born, does anybody care anymore? Hell - I know a LOT of bastards and I really like them. I don't think bastard is really worth anything anymore.
#2) Who is the governing authority that decides what's a cuss word? Take, for example, the many words for human excrement.
A) Poo-Poo: this word it taught to our children at a very young age.
B) Poop: a shortened version of poo-poo
C) Crap: same thing, but somehow this is worse than poop
D) Shit: same thing as crap, poop, and poo-poo, yet this one is profanity.
Who made that decision?
I know there's a verse in the Bible that says "Let no unclean word come from your mouth" or something like that, but who decides what words are unclean? I don't know how to answer that one. I don't know that God has a lit of words that you aren't supposed to say. I think he measures your heart and the intent behind the words you use. Does that make sense to anybody else?
Anyway, it's been a week and that's about the only worthwhile thing I managed to come up with. I don't know if it's sad, or funny, or neither, but I sure got a lot of work done this week :-)
779 days sober, for Friday.
4 comments:
I think it is funny that point #2 references human excrement.
Somehow, the conversation always turns back to poop.
An internet fast is always a good thing. Too many e-mails.
Perhaps by "unclean word", the Bible is not meaning, specifically a "bad word", but rather that you should not say bad things. Two completely different things.
You know how we have the phrase "a kind word" - that generally does not refer to a single word, but to the sentiment conveyed by the series of words spoken to someone.
So, maybe the Bible is saying don't "trash talk".
I too think it abso-fucking-lutely ridiculous that I can say "FRAK", and that is completely fine. Or, a FarScape fan might say "FRELL" instead and no one would think twice. But, Oh My God, throw out the syllables ph-uh-k, and suddenly you're a leper or at best a Neanderthal or something. It is retarded and makes absolutely NO sense.
Words convey meaning, and for one set of syllables to be considered "vulgar" when they mean exactly the same thing as another "not offensive" string of syllables used in the same context is just illogical and childish.
Your example works as well. It is entirely arbitrary to declare "poo" or hell, even "feces" as "acceptable", but "shit" is deemed inappropriate. That nonsense is a kind of excrement that comes from Bulls, I hear.
I love this post, man! Zach is always pointing out the double standards we have. WE can talk about suicide in songs on the radio, but they'll bleep out the word shit? You're right- who decided that . Seeming random and arbitrary. I love it! Thanks for sharing your wife with me when I was in TX! I had a fun!
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