United States of Me

The egalitarianism typical of human hunter-gatherers is interesting when viewed in an evolutionary context. One of humanity’s two closest primate relatives, the chimpanzee, is anything but egalitarian, forming hierarchies that are dominated by alpha males. So great is the contrast with human hunter-gatherers that it is widely argued by palaeoanthropologists that resistance to being dominated was a key factor driving the development of human consciousness, language, kinship, and social organization. . . [WIKIPEDIA]

While I’m loathe to give credit to the hardcore Silicon tech bros due to so many of them having a bent toward misogyny and authoritarian ideals, which also made Trump so appealing to so many of these tech nerd dictator-wanna-bes, a la Peter Thiel, however, one of their ideals that somewhat sort of does appeal to me is a their striving toward a kind of hyper-freedom/ individualism, a striving so much so that some, again a la Peter Theil, are working to create these technology island havens of sort where each island would be governed autonomously as its own country and where, it seems to me, the island owners could proclaim themselves king or queen.

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The Lullaby Effect of Carter & Lovecraft versus When Nietzsche Wept

I’m only a so-so fan of HP Lovecraft. I guess I’ve read as much of him as I have more out of a sense of allegiance to the horror genre than a sense of loyalty to his literary acuity.

Which is why I was somewhat surprised when I found myself selecting Jonathan L. Howard’s CARTER & LOVECRAFT the other night when cruising my Overdrive app looking for an audiobook fix for which to fall asleep to…

Which, to me, is the primary purpose of audiobooks – literary lullabies.

And most of the audiobooks I listen to do a great job of it.

In fact, they do such a great job of it that most audiobooks I listen to, I don’t finish because each night I always have to go back to the last point in the book I can remember before drifting off to sleep the night before, which is, more often than not, only a minute or two after I started listening.

And the books I do manage to get through before the loan ends I often only remember in sketchy patches…

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Papers, Please

This amazing short film is trending on youtube. I don’t always check to see what’s trending on youtube because usually there are only inane things I have no interest in; however, I may have to start checking more often if there is the chance that there is more quality art to discover such as this quality production.

Interestingly/oddly, the film is based upon a video game created by Lucas Pope.

Perhaps there is hope for humanity after all…

#prayforartforartishumanityshope

 

Depressing Pasty White Boys Playlist for Melancholic Moods and Writing Inspiration

So, the past couple weeks I’ve been in a last-minute frenzy (the best way I find to write) to finish the screenplay for a feature film version of Leave.

Yeah, we’re now – no jokin’ – just days away of getting Leave, the short film version*, in the can and we will soon be submitting the production (and let me tell ya, it’s been one hell of a production (to say the least)) to all the various and sundry film festivals throughout the lands near and far.

And, as we’re all hoping (I know, I know all you hardcore military grunts – HOPE IS NOT A COURSE OF ACTION!), and some of us are even borderline expecting, that there will be some interest after seeing the short film from the moneyed movie moguls who will be out there cruising all the various and sundry festivals looking for their next feature film project…

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What do you do with the scraps of wood that have been cluttering your garage for over a decade?

Table Scraps
Table Scraps

Well, I make me a highly unsightly yet highly functional bed desk and manuscript holder in an effort to make the sorrowful task of writing a little less sorrowful, and from which I posted this self-aggrandizing semi-selfie (it has my feet in it anyway).

Anyway…

Write on!

#amwriting
#screenplays

 

No Mind, No Attachment

Wu_nothing

The Mind in its dimensions is broad and great, like empty space. It has no sides or limits, it is neither square nor round, neither large nor small. It is neither blue, yellow, red, nor white; it has neither upper nor lower; it is neither long nor short. It knows neither anger nor pleasure, neither right nor wrong, neither good nor evil. It is without beginning and without end. But good friends, do not, hearing me speak of emptiness, become attached to emptiness.

Shin’ichi Hisamatsu, from The Characteristics of Oriental Nothingness

 

#ofthejournals