slimcat's Comments (5)

“Thought provoking humor is best when it kicks what people hold most dear right square in the nuts. George was, and still is, the Grand Master of this.”

“My wife was an extremely skilled gatherer of information of any type and used this ability in her work as a paralegal researching pharmaceuticals for her firm. Sad and ironic that many of the drugs she researched she ended up having to take. She was a voracious reader who devoured books of eclectic genres. She also loved for me to recite poetry for her and her favorite those last months was Invictus by William Henley. It still flows through my mind with those memories and the last two lines reflect where I now stand:

I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.

Thank you Deborah.”

“For ten months I completely devoted myself to my wife's care as she fought a very aggressive cancer, from the first diagnosis to her last breath as I told her for the ten-thousandth time that last March day that I loved her so much.

We had been together thirty-eight years, retired in '98, had a ten year retirement destination delay to help our daughter and finally arrived on the east coast near her family (a promise I made her) and the beaches of South Carolina when we learned of her illness.

Do I feel angry, cheated? Yes, but only at the odds, like you might feel at the craps table in Vegas, except many magnitudes greater. I am also very tired of being told by family, friends and complete strangers what it is I need to do. It has been a little over seven months and has gotten easier and I know things will improve but it will be on my terms.

So, here I sit , a few months from my 65th wondering what the hell is next. Oh, I do all the necessary stuff like cooking and cleaning, tending the yard, shopping, painting rooms and financial crap, but, what else? I also run, now with a vengeance and have increased my mileage from the last couple of years. It is somewhat soothing to temporarily burn out the emptiness I still feel. Sometimes four, sometimes ten miles, I beat out the rhythm of my remaining life.”

“Beautifully written, inspiring and a dream I have often dreamt until the reality of who and what we are as a species comes crashing in. The Bonobo chimpanzee is closer to this ideal than we are but, apparently, only because of geography. A good first start for us would be to do away with organized religion but that will most likely never happen.”

“>"How can people who profess to believe so deeply in the love and teachings of Jesus Christ be so unforgiving and hateful towards others?"

I've often wondered the same thing and my conclusion keeps coming back the same: they profess these beliefs for personal gain and nothing more. There is just no other reasonable answer and it fits Occam's Razor nicely.”