Monday 19 January 2009

States of mind

Let's follow-on from the previous post in a roundabout way. Is the metaphorical glass half-full or half-empty? The boys from Liverpool shed some light on the question in a way perhaps only a Brit could - using rain as an analogy.

Incidentally, in my opinion the mark of an excellent band or artist can sometimes be gauged by the strength of their B-sides. In the case of The Beatles - and this song in particular - this excellence is self-evident.

4 comments:

  1. I think the problem is that with life, the glass isn't half empty or half full, it ain't a bed of roses and it isn't what you make it. Our metaphors, despite the fact we all use them are useless. Life is chaotic in a chaotic universe and any attempt to impose order via language or metaohor will not suffice.

    There you pootling about in Gaza , maybe taking the kids to school or doing a bit of shopping when the IDF drops some white phosphorous and as you lie there quickly trying to take stock you conclude that no one would have thought this morning that today would turn out to be such a bummer.

    Thinking this another way having collected a million pounds lottery win you ponder how having seen a 186 bus inspired you to pick 3 of the winning numbers 1,8 and 6 and how had the 174 been on time today may only have won a tenner. Then again the 174 may have run you over after the breaks failed.

    Life is pretty big and often exciting, always scary and seldom dull. There is so much to learn, to see and to do than in any number of lifetimes and only one in which to do as much of it as possible.

    Blinded by the capitalist system money and work become ends in itself as it work becomes the means to buy the things to keep us fit for more work.

    The system may be as chaotic as the universe but if you can't look at the mountain and every day think wow thats a fucking cool mountain then no amount of money will ever help.

    For more on ownership and happiness see the Lickerish Quartet library scene where the castle owner has books, many of which he cant read. He doesnt have to read them or so he informs us, because he "owns them!. So I guess there property and ownership becomes a substitute for experiencing.

    Which leads me to a point- corporations and in particular advertising seek to convince us that possessing this or that item will enhance us. Sometimes when we lose things we mourn them (I did after a burglary in a funny kind of way) but things for things sake are no substitute for experiencing and sometimes just basking in jaw dropping awe at how fucking cool space is.

    Maybe that is how it is. We will never know if the glass is half empty or full because we are too small to see the whole glass and rather than worrying about that we should just enjoy ourselves a bit cos when the rocket hits or the brakes fail on that bus its too late to regret not having more fun.

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  2. hmmm...
    I look at it like this, we have the power to decide how we react to various situations. We are only in control of ourselves, not other people or situations presented, but how WE handle it.
    Life is short, it's best to really LIVE while we have the chance.
    Does it matter whether glass is half empty or full, what we going to do about it?

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  3. Oh and as another thought- the absurdity of the glass half full v empty I suppose is illustrtated in the monty python sketch where the guy gets his arms cut off in a swordfight

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  4. Wow, some hefty nuggets of wisdom for me to digest there friends. I think I'll wash them down with the new-found full-glass option you've given me :)

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