The Church of Monday Night Football

Welcome wonderful readers. Those of you who know me know that I have my own religious beliefs. I strongly believe that every individual needs to develop their own spirituality. Yahweh doesn’t work for me. The Buddha taught me much but I don't agree with everything he taught.

The one church that I have enjoyed over time is the Church of Monday Night Football.

Tonight especially. Those of you who know me even slightly know that I am a long time Oakland Raiders fan. I have an Al Davis tattoo, almost all of my dogs have had a Raider game (Marcus, Howie, etc.) Some of my cars have had Raider names. My closet is stuffed with silver and black.

Tonight is special in that My Guys are playing my most hated team the Dogassdenverbroncos, or Doncos for short. Denver has been playing especially well lately and the Raiders have by most (not mine) accounts one of the worst rosters in the league. Still there is hope, there is always hope.

I will spend some time today getting my “game face” on. Yes, I have painted my face for a game but I don’t usually don face paint for a TV game. I save that for trips to the stadium.

So, why am I a Raider fan? Tomorrow I’ll discuss why I believe football is the superior sport. Football is my game.

Growing up in the Bay Area my family were all 49er fans. Me, I’m just ornery enough that I became a Raider fan. I like the niners OK but the Raiders are my team. 

I loved Al Davis’ rebel image. He did things his own way. The Raiders were one of the last teams to have a publicity department. Al’s thought was winning was all the publicity they needed. They did their own scouting when everyone else in the league besides the Cowboys did it throught a combine.

I loved that the Raiders constantly brought in misfits and castoffs and gave them a second chance, many of them grasping the opportunity and making second careers for themselves.

. . . and yes I love the laundry. Silver and Black is a cool color combination. I’ve had friends debate my football obsession by claiming my devotion to the Raiders is nothing more that following the laundry of the team. The players change, the coaches change. The only thing that remains is the uniform. So yes I like the colors. I wear silver and black most of the time.

Football fans might like to point out that the Raiders have not been very good for a long time. Yes it’s true. Yes it’s true that some of that is the fault of al Davis. His desperation for one last Superbowl drove the team into the ditch. But, I am a fan and being a fan is all about hope.

Sure we’re big underdogs tonight. No on is picking my guys to win, but I’ll watch and I’ll begin the game with the premise that the Raiders will find a way. Facts do not matter. Stats do not matter. Pundits dissing my team does not matter. 

GO RAIDERS!

Tomorrow: my notes on the game and thoughts on why I believe football is the best sport to follow.

Earth Year 2013

Never mix red wine with Oodo.

End of the week.

Hello fine readers. I have company coming into town from BC. Friends I recently visited up there are coming down here. They should be in town soon and I have so much to do to get ready.

Coming next week: Monday I will discuss my opinion on which is the "best" sport.

After that I will return to my and Philip the Bard's discussion of hedonism.

In the meantime have a great weekend . . . see you Monday.

BTW . . . GO RAIDERS!

Philip the Bard's Harappan Blog: Phil's defense of Harappan Hedonism

Greetings intrepid readers. My last post mentioned the notion that Harappans and Earthers don’t always get along. Hmmm. Did I ruffle some feathers?

Yes, there has always been friction between the two peoples. This started even before Harvest Day, when the Earther’s wrecked our homeworld.

When they first arrived on Harappa almost ninety years ago (has it been that long?) their first impression of us was not good. You have to remember that the Pax Veridis was still going on and the Greenies controlled most of Earth. The Greenies were never very fond of intoxicants of any kind. On the other hand we Harappans loved to party. Most of us still do. So from the very beginning the two worlds were at odds.

The Founder, Marcus Johnson, was a drinker himself. He didn’t smoke that we know of but he tolerated smokers, that we do know.

Harappan philosophy has always been about the miraculous nature of life in the Universe. We exist in a mostly cold and lifeless space. A Harappan knows and understands the fleeting nature of life. We feel it is our responsibility to experience as much of life as we can. If intoxicants help with that, then so be it.

The dictionary definition of hedonism:

hedonism |ˈhēdnˌizəm|

noun

the pursuit of pleasure; sensual self-indulgence.

• the ethical theory that pleasure (in the sense of the satisfaction of desires) is the highest good and proper aim of human life.

Harappans have come to embrace hedonism. I don’t know if it is something that came from the Founder or if it evolved from the myths he passed on to us.

I understand that Earthers use the term “hedonist” as a pejorative. Even now that the Greenie’s prohibitions are waning, Earthers have not embraced Harappan Hedonism. They see it as wasteful.

We Harappans see it as our obligation. At one point Earthers argued that we would be further evolved if we concentrated on more productive issues. That presupposes that the physical takes value over the intellectual, emotional or spiritual.

Does humanity really need another starship or factory? Sure we could increase production by spending less time socializing and partying, but then would we know less about ourselves, our friends, our family, human nature?

I am not saying Harappans aren’t hard workers. We strongly believe the individual has an obligation to contribute to society. Some contribute by building houses, some contribute by making art or music, some contribute by sittin’ and thinkin’, and some contribute by spreading joy, happiness and fun.

Never mix red wine with Oodo.   

Philip Normer

Kushan Year 87

Earth Year 2479

How our memories work . . . or don't.

How our memories work . . . or don’t.

Several years ago while returning from a backpacking trip with friends, we stopped at a state park on the way home for a short rest and a good view of the mountain we’d just climbed (Mt. Shasta)

As we pulled into the parking lot there was already another car parked there. Parked there, with a bear butt hanging out the back window.

We honked our horn and drove up next to the other car and chased the bear away. Evidence left behind included fast food wrappers.

We drove immediately to the Ranger’s office to report the incident. The four of us backpackers, all experienced in the woods, gave our descriptions of the bear.

Four completely different descriptions. Brown, black, red, big, little, medium, shaggy, smooth . . .

It had only been minutes since we’d all seen the same bear. For none of us, was it our first bear. Yet we could not agree on a single thing about this creature. 

Naturally I had the correct description of the animal . . . or did I?

Since then it has always been an interesting thing for me how people remember things. I have tried to explore this issue in my writing. In my (unpublished) novel “The Best in Each Other” I have the same story told more than once by different people and it comes out a bit different in each telling.

I play with this some in my sci fi writing. There is a scene in “Kusha” where Dorian Thain and his nemesis Mrs. Carmini discuss memories that are quite dissimilar.

Have there been times in your life where you questioned your memory? Maybe you should.

Earth Year 2013

Never mix red wine with Oodo.

Notes from the Author: Why I write.

Why I Write

Many writing friends tell me that for them writing is like breathing. They have to do it every day or their life is not right for them. 

Me? I am not that kind of writer. I write because I have a very specific story I want to tell. When the story is done I may not write again. Fear not if you enjoy reading me this story is very very long.

What I am publishing now, the sci fi series, is just the conclusion of a story that will eventually take us back to Eighteenth Century France.

When I publish “The Mother of the Galaxy” the final book in the sci fi series (this summer) I will begin work on the French Historical Romance. 

What ties these two stories together? 

They as a complete collection will be a family saga. Marcus Johnson is the last in a line that begins when two French Huguenots come to America before the Revolution.

My, as yet unpublished, novel “The Best in Each Other” is part of this saga and introduces us to the first “Johnson” in the line.

The initial story is based on a family myth, that recent evidence suggests may or may not be true.

Tomorrow I will discuss one of my favorite themes to explore: How Our Memories Trick Us.

Earth Year 2013

Never mix red wine with Oodo.

Philip the Bard's Harappan Blog: What it means to be Harappan

Greetings charming readers. We’ve been discussing ancestry. We’ve mention the ancestry of the Thains. Marcus Johnson and the Mother herself. When humans scattered themselves over four worlds family lines became blurred and confused.

I have no clue as to my Earthly family connections. My family came to Harappa with the Founder and they all agreed by his provision that they not discuss their Earthly roots with succeeding generations.

In that way my family is very typically Harappan. I know absolutely no one in my family who came from Earth. I don’t know if I am related to any famous Earthers.

I know my family line back to Wallace and Nora Normer, who had four kids. Wallace and Nora were born on Earth but beyond that we know nothing about their Earthly history.

They made the choice to cut ties with their ancestry. Their Earthly family lines ended with them. I don’t know if there are any Normers on Earth. I presume that there are but I have made no overtures to contact them. Why would I? They are of Earth and I am of Harappa and now Kusha.

Earth has come through their religious wars and has become something it was not for all its history but I still have no desire to go there or establish any real connection. I have everything I need here on Kusha.

Never mix red wine with Oodo.   

Philip Normer

Kushan Year 87

Earth Year 2479

Philip the Bard's Harappan Blog: Ancestry of the Mother

Greetings fetching readers. We’ve been discussing ancestry. Some time ago we discussed Max Gavaskar’s connection to Debendra Gavaskar the discoverer of the Gavaskar Field. Actually, we mentioned that there is no known connection between the two famous people.

So, what do we know about the Mother’s ancestry. Not much. We can trace her family line back to the “Firsters”. Firsters were the first generation of settlers who came with Marcus Johnson to Harappa.

The Firsters made a conscious choice to cut ties with Old Earth. They famously did not tell their children the truth about how people came to Harappa. The first Harappan Gavaskars did this and so we can not trace the Mother’s lineage beyond her Harappan roots.

Max Gavaskar is therefore truly Harappan. She claims no Earthly connection.

Never mix red wine with Oodo.   

Philip Normer

Kushan Year 87

Earth Year 2479