Monday, March 20, 2006

The Phrase that Pays

On this wee bloggie, the phrase that brings more people here than any other, so far, is this one:

"scintillating scotoma"

I'm not kidding. Who knew people were so very hungry for information regarding this odd physical phenomenon?

Because I'm not one to disappoint if I can help it (does that sound right?), please find more info on the SS and all its joys in the following links:

Rather dry reading, but accurate....no pictures

Somewhat more interesting reading, with some pics and holistic advice as well as a spinny moon goddess thingie

A link to a blog that has tons of comments by people who responded with sympathy at the writer's first experience with the oddity

One that'll give you nightmares

Chock FULL of renderings of the aura itself, some with animation

One for the experientially minded among you

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There you have it - my pandering to the community of people who are searching for answers in this crazy world of ours. They seem to ask, I attempt to give. Because I'm a giver like that. NOT a taker, a giver. Give, give, give give, that's me all right.

It's exhausting work, but fulfilling in a hands-off no-shared-germs kind of way.

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Can anyone tell me why Christians go to church on Sunday? Is it because Monday is really the first day of the week and Sunday the seventh? Who decided, or, as I suspect, is a decision still being made and that's why Catholic churches still have Satruday afternoon Mass so that the unsure among them can go to church when they think it's correct so to do, therby appeasing God, who wonders where everyone else is on his day off?

I just don't get it.

Also what I don't get is why I'm thinking about that.

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I've recently come to realize that it's really really hard to just do nothing. I've found that even when I'm "doing nothing" I'm really doing something. Like, if I'm sleeping, I think that would qualify for doing nothing, but then again I'm SLEEPING, so that's doing something, isn't it? If I'm staring listelssly out the sliding glass door hoping to track the sun's path over the back yard on a brilliant but cold Saturday afternoon, then it's not like I'm doing NOTHING, because there's the tracking and staring (and possibly drooling) going on. Frustrating!

Think about it, y'all, it's nearly impossible to do NOTHING. At. All.

Even, you know, once you're dead, you're still actually doing something, whether it's sipping sweet tea with Jesus (substitute activity and deity of your choice here if you're not anticipating this sort of thing for your afterlife - like "deflowering virgins" and "Mohammed," or "french kissing satyrs" and "Gaia" or whatever), or patiently decomposing, or taking up space in that urn on the mantle; it's still SOMETHING.

Is there a verb that describes the act of doing absolutely nothing at all?

Is it, maybe, "blogging"?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think we, as Christians, go to Church on Sunday because during creation, on the seventh day, God rested, and thus it became a day of worship (not work)...I think that the Saturday Catholic services are considered no different from being on Sunday as long as they occur at 6PM or later.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for responding! My follow-up question would be - why don't we say the days of the week starting on Monday then? Do some cultures do this and we've just chosen not to? I always start with Sunday, which would then be the first day of the week and not the seventh, which seems weird. And what about the 7th-day adventists? And why do Jewish people go to synagogue on Friday night if they have the same God the Christians do?

I ask not to be disrespectful, but out of curiosity. Your thoughts are welcome.

kenju said...

Thanks for all the info on the scintillating scotoma; I had heard of migraine auras, but didn't know this name.

rennratt said...

Mmm. People of the Jewish faith attend synagogue pm Friday evenings because the Sabbath begins at sundown that evening and extends to evening on Saturday. Seventh Day Adventists believe that the Bible interprets the 7th CALENDAR/Week day (Saturday) as the day of rest. As a result, they practice Sabbath on Saturday rather than Sunday. Other Christian religions (and yes, 7th Day Adventists are Christians) chose to interpret day 7 as Sunday, and thus practice that day.

Calendar weeks begin either on Sunday or Monday, depending which culture you live in. Off the top of my head, I am not sure which cultures those are...

...I THINK.

Anonymous said...

The French start the week on Monday.

Anonymous said...

Interesting! Wonder why we don't seem to.

Ah well, whatever day one chooses to participate in one's chosen religion doesn't matter, I suppose.