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Ridiculous To The Sublime. …

If you describe something as going from the sublime to the ridiculous, you mean that it involves a change from something very good or serious to something silly or unimportant. Kind of describes our world today. It is not new. Thomas Paine used it in the Age of Reason: “One step above sublime is the ridiculous.”

Another way to put it is sublime is a feeling of awe,euphoria, out of an out-of-this-world type of thing. You see an incredible sunset along the shore. You listen to music that just lights you up. You see a child or old man and you feel all sorts of emotion from joy to sorrow.

Ridiculous is more of a puzzlement, disbelief, absurdity that no matter how hard you try, you cannot make sense of. People say stupid things in the middle of a poignant moment. In the vernacular, it is more like WTF?

I read a column in the New York Times this AM. It had to do with the lack of desire for the milenials to have children. It could be money,one’s career, age but this seemed to gravitate towards their upbringing. Yikes!

It seems that all their anxiety, depression or crappy attitude towards life was a result of their potty training or the lack of attention from their parents. It could also be a mean sibling. I had an older brother whom I swore was one of the original Al-Qaeda cohorts from his brand of torture. Probably didn’t feel all that great, but is this a reason not to have children?

I quiz my kids as to whether we were too strict or harsh in grounding them or giving them curfews. They laugh and say they probably deserved it. Can you not look at your kids or grandkids and feel an immense pride in who they are and what they have accomplished? Could you in any way say you wish you had not brought them into the world?

Our world is bipolar. We constantly try to be perfect at this or that. There is always one more peak to climb. Part of this is a desire for achievement and recognition. Part of it is just sick. If you think you are the first to try to make sense out of your surroundings, think again. Plato, Socrates, Kant, and Camus have been down this road without much success. And yet we keep trying. 

The sublime to me is when I just kick back and look around me. This is not the disease of old age or too much time. It is just plain and simple reverie. Forget about how big your house is or how cool your car is. Look at a piece of furniture and figure out how many pieces there are and where they came from. How many different people from all over the globe had a part in making it? Sorry, the Donald is going to change all that last part. Absurd? Maybe. 

I do try to make sense of all this. I look for the common denominator. What is going to tie this all together? The fact of the matter is, this calliope plays a different kind of tune for all of us. You and I see different shades of green. Different colors of red. We all want to fit in and be part of something. We seek fame and fortune and compare ourselves to others. Yet the biggest part of belonging is that we are all incredibly different. 

I love reaching out to people. Some respond and some don’t. I like to recognize them. If I am in Publix, I look at their ID and call them by name. I like to hear about them. I am probably the anti-Christ of the Progressive insurance commercial, where the guy is trying to teach people not to be like their parents. My father taught me to say hello to everyone to make sure I never thought I was better than someone else. Ridiculous? I hope not.

The sublime is seeing someone smile back. I cringe every time His Hairness speaks. He is trashing some person, institution, or belief, whether it is a head of state or a member of the court. He likes to make fun of them. Put them on the defensive. Sure, his cost-cutting makes sense, but does his lying and ill will have to be accepted also? Maybe that is his sublime? Who knows?

People of all shapes and sizes are fraught with anxiety today. Believe me, if you really think about it, there are reasons aplenty. By the same token, there is so much good. Think of the world as a physical place. It really hasn’t changed for millennia. It is how we view it and react to it that shapes our psyches and way of life. It’s the old, half empty,half full deal but it really is true. There is so much out there 

I am not a psychologist by any stretch. I do try to find what works. I am at my best when I am myself, warts and all. Yes, I piss some people off. But I do cause some others to laugh or smile. Just like you, I am just another schmuck trying to make my way in the world. What a wonderful world that is. Just thinking about that is my sublime, no matter how ridiculous that may appear to you. 

As always,

Ted The Great

Factoids;

Ridiculous could be a form of alternate reality. 9/11 was a hoax. We did not land onthe moon. It was all done on a sound stage.  January 6 was just a bunch of unruly tourists. You really didn’t commit a crime so I am going to pardon you. Murder, theft, tax evasion are just figments of one’s imagination. Really?

.The sublime can be seen as a psychological state involving feelings of awe, wonder, and even a sense of one’s own insignificance in the face of something greater. 

Sublime can be experiencing a hurricane, a starry night, or a volcano. It provokes a feeling of awe. It could be just the waves crashing on shore or a sunrise. All very cool in their own right. 

The word “sublime” originates from the Latin word “sublīmis,” meaning “lofty,” “elevated,” or “raised up.”

The word “ridiculous” originates from the Latin word “ridiculus,” meaning “laughable” or “that which excites laughter”. 

Seize The Narrative….

A narrative is simply an account of a series of events. To almost everything in life, there is a way of looking at an occurrence or occurrences and developing a feeling pro or con. You adopt the theorem or you fight it. There are a bunch of variables. 

If you look at your personal belief system over time, you have watched the movie or read the book many times over. These viewings could range from family to world affairs to morality or even something as simple as what floats your boat.  You come to a conclusion that is yours and yours alone.  

Religion or morality is a great example. You have somehow developed a theory that starts off with some sort of belief and it is related or taught to you by parents or some sort of organization. They are telling you a story that has been passed down to them over years and centuries. Depending on their gravitas and authenticity, you accept it as gospel(no play on words). 

Maybe somewhere down the line, someone else enters the picture with an alternate set of rules. It could be the same story but just told by a different author, looking at things through a different prism. Hmm… Now what do I do? You feel unease, because you are petrified of giving up on what you have known for all those years. Yet something deep down says they may be right. Aha. This is the critical moment. It is when you really start to think for yourself. 

To me, it is like a kid in a candy store. Dark allies and rabbit holes get me going, if nothing more than just feeling alive. It is probably because I have been out on a limb so many times that I am used to it. The counter to that is, I am so stupid that I don’t realize how perilous this is. Tragic flaw. 

If I am going to listen, I have to be wary of the author. Do they really know what they are talking about and are they being straight with me? Do they have their facts straight or are they playing fast and loose. Are they thoughtful and eloquent or are they bombastic with little regard for the truth? Do hyperbole and vagueness pervade their delivery or perhaps it is just an intended deceit? 

Sorry to be so unforgiving, but today’s discourse leaves me wanting. I have found myself casting a wary eye in all sorts of arenas. Google or Bing, deliver answers to my search. They are creating a narrative but sadly, it is skewed. Over numerous inquiries, they have figured me out.  That’s great because I haven’t figured me out. But I digress. I only hear one side, be it left or right. That is all I see. Are they telling me the truth? Sorta,maybe, kinda. But most of us will never know. 

I love to listen to pundits expound on this or that. I also like to listen to cold, hard facts and develop my own conclusions. Unfortunately, the lines have become blurred beyond distinction. People watch the news and will take it once again as gospel truth. It had to be right because I watched it on FOX, CNN or MSNBC. And they all play to their fan base and sing to the choir. 

So what, you say? Just ask Francis. The now-gone Pope was a treasure to some and a curse to others. During his papacy, the reformers were jubilant and the conservatives despondent. But he had the upper hand. Infalible or not, he was doing the driving for a billion plus Catholics. There were murmurs of discontent but for the most part, the faithful got behind him. 

Where am I going with all of this? Think about all the narratives of your own world. Who are you listening to? A variety of people or the same old hacks. Is their agenda in sync with yours or one you are not terribly comfortable with? Are you overcome with the blare or are you able to discern what you are comfortable with and able to defend?

Most of all is the sheer number of inputs to our psyche. Each one tells a story. Interestingly, the core elements of a narrative include: plot, characters, setting, theme, conflict, and point of view. They meld but each part is distinct and subject to scrutiny. How far we go is probably a combination of how important it is and how hard do we want to work? 

Right now, there is a section of our society that feels lost. They have no coherent story, and even worse, they have no lead singer. On the other side, there is one faction that is dominating the airwaves. I am not saying one is right or wrong, but I would like to hear an alternative thought process. I feel that when one or the other dominates, the message can be flawed. No discussion. No original thought. Boring to a degree and at the same time scary. What do you think? What’s your narrative?

As always 

Ted The Great 

Factoids:

A narrative starts with a fact. JFK was shot in Dallas on November 22,1963. You can only imagine the plot line or lines that ensue. People can twist and turn and play with facts. 

Controlling the narrative refers to what is being told, by whom, and what outlets one employs. Totalitarian governments don’t let anything get out without careful review and squash any contrary opinions. 

Spin doctors” refer to individuals, often public relations advisors or media consultants, who develop or manipulate messages to influence public opinion or portray a situation in a favorable light. Politics and corporate image creation are fertile fields that are there for the taking. 

Life can be broken down into several key narrative threads: the journey of self-discovery, relationships with others, and the pursuit of purpose and meaning. These narratives weave together to create a unique and evolving story for each individual…..This was from AI. Not bad