Blooming, looming, grooming

Inequality. There's a lot of it about. But, one's perspective is a function of who you are. Seems patently obvious. Really, we only seriously compare ourselves to our peers and we do this because we are comparing machines. 

And stupid.

A mouse is very slightly less intelligent than a person, but it isn't stupid. People are stupid because they think they constitute the pinnacle of some evolutionary master plan rather than just occupying a niche. 

Here are ten reasons why people are just plain dumb;

1. Homeopathy.   
2. Big Brother
3. Creationism
4. American gun laws
5. shopping centres
6. starvation
7. self-immolation
8. prudishness
9. hubris
10. Easy-open sachets

Why there is Hope

Babies are not stupid. In fact they are paint peelingly astute. No other mammal gives birth to offspring that are defenseless for two years and then need a further ten to reach sexual maturity. Human children are able to do this because they are much (more intelligent, better, natural, manipulative, spontaneous) than us.

Easter Monday

Easter Monday was a particularly chipper day. A school holiday but not a bank holiday here in Spain. There was a nice buzz but not too many people about so we went to the beach, played football and ate ice cream.

Skyward

Sand castles and lots of metallic blue beetles; looking like a very thin Buddha.

Today is Sunday and the sky is industrial revolution or manic depression, heavy with some primeval force. The dogs are lethargic and my back feels like someone has injected me with polonium and then attacked me with a meat cleaver. It should be focusing but isn't.  

Back to Easter Monday.

Gentleman

This particular ice cream concoction is called a gentleman. Basically it's chocolate ice cream, chocolate and cream. It's very healthy and good for you, and I should know because I ate half of it.

Cocoon

Guess what I found in the garden only two weeks ago. A strange chrysalis. A black butterfly emerging from a stripy carapace. Everything is the wrong way round over here, not just the butterflies. Rich people don't pay taxes, the poorest of the poor pay 24% minimum and when you are self employed you have to pay a bundle of additional taxes. The ex-economy minister was robbing everybody blind, engineered a fiscal amnesty protecting the whole debauched, paunched bunch of thieves and suited low-lifes in the government and opposition and spent two nights in prison.  Compare this to the father who has just been imprisoned for three months for slapping his 14 year old son for coming home late. I despair.

Butterfly

And now for something not completely different. I went to the court on Friday of my own volition to find out about the progress  of the custody case. The psychological test which must take place before the case can continue, it is "suspended" at present, will not be carried out before September. This means that it will be well over three years before the custody is decided, during which time there are hugely negative impacts for Jacky and for me. But of course nobody cares about things like that just so long as the lawyers get paid and it's easy to manipulate the system if you are rich or powerful. 

Big colour tulips

Still trying to get my head around probability theory. While not as beautiful as the tulips, it's still attractive because it fails to do what you think it will. This is because it is almost impossible to understand probability or randomness intuitively. Here is a basic problem, this is for babies. But if you are not very careful you will find yourself to be a baby.

If you roll a dice the probability of getting a six is one in 6 or 1/6

If you roll a dice twice the probability of getting 2 sixes is 1/6 times 1/6 or 1/36

But what is the probability of getting at least one six when you roll a dice twice? and how do you work it out? Why would anyone care?

Iris against weigela

 Can't help thinking of Van Gogh when I see these flowers. They were more successful to my mind's eye than were the sunflowers. The sunflowers were just dead but the irises were childishly cartoonish.

Glaucoma getting worse

Well, perhaps I should do some stuff. I have a small blackboard in the kitchen and I write my lists of things to do. Lists of 4. I don't trust myself to be able to do more than 4 things.

 Today's poem:

"Have you finished?" she asks again.
And all the other four-year olds
The veteran souls of tears and toys
the voice that scolds
the voice that chides

Listen.

"Have you finished?"

"Have you finished?" A voice from work
Exhausted, hollow, listening dreams
The listening eye that listens red
The voice that screams
The voice that stabs

Listen!

  "Have you finished?"

"Have  you finished?" a female voice;

Demanding through the veil of years,

The silken verbiage that stings

The voice that leers

The voice that smooths

"Please listen!"

"Have you finished?"

 "Have you finished?" young to old.
Hit me hard but don't ignore me
Hurt me wholly, see right through me
The voice is free
The voice fading

Listen!

"Have you finished yet!"

"Have you finished?" voice of choice:
I haven't even started yet
Burning the mantle of regret
I haven't nearly finished yet!
Beyond the grave the voice is mute
Is mute.