Hitting the books

I'm taking an Introduction to Business course through my local community college.

Some "gems" from my textbook:

What is so amazing about Dudley’s success is that he started a manufacturing business in his own kitchen, with his wife and children serving as the new firm’s only employees. He went on to develop his own line of hair-care products and to open a chain of beauty schools and beauty supply stores…While many people would say that Joe Dudley was just lucky or happened to be in the right place at the right time, the truth is that he became a success because he had a dream and worked hard to turn his dream into a reality.
**********
Business is the organized effort of individuals to produce and sell, for a profit, the goods and services that satisfy society’s needs.
**********
(emphasis mine)
Business, 9th Edition
Authors: Pride, Hughes, Kapoor
(c) 2006

It's full-on "American Dream, Inc." with the none-too-subtle blurring of the distinction between wants and needs. I almost laughed out loud as I read each of those passages.

Then I remembered that people actually believe this stuff.

A bit of fun

I'm working on coming out of hibernation. That fact that I have to work at it indicates that I'm still pretty tired at the thought of making nice with anyone. Not that I don't have nice people with whom to make nice. Just, it seems like so much work, ya know?

At any rate, I finally made it to Queer Knitting after about a 2.5 month absence. In that time, our regular hang out closed up shop. We've found the most delicious new place: Twisted. It's yarn with a smattering of other crafty stuff plus all sorts of tea.

I enjoyed a lovely cup of peach, my usual tea of choice. I also came across this gem.



I recognized it from AF's blog. As soon as I started paging through the book, I knew I must, must, must have this book. I'm seriously considering taking a quick trip to the craft store to get supplies.

I love this one:



And I love my Samalicious.

I live my life in growing orbits
which move out over the things of the world.
perhaps I can never achieve the last,
but that will be my attempt.

I am circling around God, around the ancient tower,
and I have been circling for a thousand years,
and I still don't know if I am a falcon, or a storm,
or a great song.
--Rainer Maria Rilke (translated by Robert Bly)

Losing Control

The other day my sister E. and I were spending a lovely weekend hour conversing about nothing and everything.

"You have always had control issues," she said (or something like that). "It's interesting to me because I've never felt the need to have so much control, the way you do."

"Do you know about internal vs. external locus of control?" I asked.

***

The extent to which I feel out of control correlates strongly with the rise and fall of depression. It's not clear to me that one causes the other. It's more like they are iterating functions of each other, spiraling into fractal-formed waves of fatalism.

Here is your task. If you complete your task successfully, you will be rewarded. If not, you will be punished. Nothing you do will affect whether or not your task is deemed successful. Go.

***

I'm going to motivate you now.

If you accomplish the task I assign to you, I will give you $30 million.

You're motivated now, right? That's a really good reward, right?

Here's your task: Raise one of your great-great-great-grandmothers from the dead.

What's the problem? Don't you want the reward? Don't you care? You'll have $30 million!!! Why aren't you motivated?

I motivated you, damn it. Stop being so negative.

***

What's the point? Why? What for?

It won't work. I can't. It's not in my control.

Who gives a fuck?

A freakishly long tongue

His tongue sticks out of his mouth a distance equal to the length of his paw! Where does all that tongue disappear to most of the time? I mean, it's not like Sam just has his tongue hanging off to the side of his mouth all day. He's not a dog, you know. ;-)