Without Clothes

So I'm writing an album... Just as something to do with my spare time this year. It will hopefully end up being a full length. It's about being naked and smiling.

Track list (Not in any particular order):

1. Did I Just Hear You Think? (Song for Ben)

2. Blind Willie McTell (Dedicated to Lithana)

3. Amor Veil (Song for Catherine)

4. Ballad of a Thin Man (Dedicated to Jack)

5. Cyclical Self-Feeding Monster (Song for Hayley)

6. Don't, Don't Rob My Lotion (Song for Jason)

7. Chemicals (Song for Bonny)

8. Broken Emotion (Song for Ashleigh)

9. This Is Why I'm Naked (Song for Josh)

10. Oh Zachary! (Dedicated to Zac)

11. Yet to be named (Song for Roshan)

12. Satan Gave Me A Taco (Dedicated to Bryce)

This is not final, although if your name is there, it will be in the album. This is my way of showing my appreciation towards these people. So yeah, if your name is there, thank you so very much.

I?

This. Gorge. Tundra. Hunting. Iridescent. Listen. Horus. Phylum. Terror. Jump. Igloo. Sigil. Shard. Coin. Round. Sever. Arm. Toilet. Hill. Marshmallow. Song. Hear. Two. Zebra. Grey. In. For. Twice. Little. Tube. That. Got. Ill. Jill. Joy. Happy. Ugly. Sometimes. Juice. Alive. When. Jest. Face. Core. Porpoise. Eleven. Different. Some. Why. Turret. Secular. Sex. Some. Ulladulla. Fine. Printer. Porous. Nine. Ferret. Chemical. Hill. Brain. Squawk. Bird. Lime. Drink. Forsake. Cup. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Pain. Face. Convulse. Decode. This. You. Freak. Of. Isles. Within.

How to be happy all the time

I can't tell you how to do that.

Buuut... There are a few things everyone who is enlightened must acknowledge.

1. You are where and who you are in the present. To spend that moment wanting to be someone or somewhere else, you are declaring that you wish to be discontent. It is not easy to see things this way, but it is well worth it.

2. It may seem contradictory to the previous point , but you must also constantly strive to better yourself. Enlightenment is a path of wisdom, self-awareness, and universal realisation. The reason this is not a contradiction is that you must still maintain that you are the best you can be in the present, and that you are satisfied with your position. Even though you are not where you want to be, be satisfied that you are on your way there.

3. This is not just a society we live in, it is a universe filled with living things which, to the objective eye, are all equal. To have peace within yourself, you must not hinder that of other living things. You've all heard the saying: treat others the way you wish to be treated. This goes for all living things, it maintains a balance of sorts.

4. The former points may or may not be wrong. Having said that, knowing and living by this has made me a much happier person than I was. All I can hope for by writing this is that someone is influenced by it in a positive way.

It is pretentious to hear a sound and announce the sound is there

Learn to read hard.

Because I am writing hard. I can’t write like most people do, not well. I can think hard, and deep, but I am not articulate. Which is why when something like this pours onto paper, it is in a format that may clog your optic nerve. That is why when I write something like this, it must not only be a book to read, but a book on how to read the book you are reading (how silly!).

To commence reading you must understand a few things:

1. For the purpose of this book, everything is made up of vibrating strings. Your uncle is strings, your grandmother is strings, light is strings, parsecs are strings, and guitar strings are strings. The speed at which these strings vibrate determines their properties (basic string theory). In this way we can measure every property of every object in one spectrum: frequency. She loved him at 400 Hz, he fucked her at 880 Hz, he released his bowels at 40 MHz (that’s a lot of hertz, he should get that checked out).

2. Everything perceived is a verb. When looking at the world this way this fact is quite clear. Her eyes were not blue, he perceived them as blue. Her eyes were radiating light at 450 GHz. Of course it would butcher the English language to write it in that format, but it is important to take note of it.

3. Keep in mind that this can most likely be disproven, that doesn’t mean you should go off and work out how to disprove it, you will not enjoy the book nearly as much.

4. People are subject to random physical changes. A reckless disregard for the laws of physics shall be present in this book, mainly because it is more entertaining for me and you. Do not be dissatisfied with the serious and intellectual nature of the content though, there will be meaning behind every word (even if it is not apparent to you).

5. I have no idea what I’m going to write about, but with these five precepts it will most likely be something. I am going to begin by naming well thought out chapter ideas, these will be the building blocks.

I will begin later because I am tired. Here is the first chapter title, you may read it, though when I begin writing again, it will most likely change:

1.

The Town That Did Not Hear

LOOK DOWN

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             :++++++++++++++++++++++/   

          

A Selection Of Zen Koans

Buddha said: "I consider the positions of kings and rulers as that of dust motes. I observe treasures of gold and gems as so many bricks and pebbles. I look upon the finest silken robes as tattered rags. I see myriad worlds of the universe as small seeds of fruit, and the greatest lake in India as a drop of oil on my foot. I perceive the teachings of the world to be the illusion of magicians. I discern the highest conception of emancipation as a golden brocade in a dream, and view the holy path of the illuminated ones as flowers appearing in one's eyes. I see meditation as a pillar of a mountain, Nirvana as a nightmare of daytime. I look upon the judgment of right and wrong as the serpentine dance of a dragon, and the rise and fall of beliefs as but traces left by the four seasons."

1. A Cup of Tea

Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (1868-1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.

Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor's cup full, and then kept on pouring.

The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. "It is overfull. No more will go in!"

"Like this cup," Nan-in said, "you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?"

34. A Smile in His Lifetime

Mokugen was never known to smile until his last day on earth. When his time came to pass away he said to his faithful ones: "You have studied under me for more than ten years. Show me your real interpretation of Zen. Whoever expresses this most clearly shall be my successor and receive my robe and bowl."

Everyone watched Mokugen's severe face, but no one answered.

Encho, a disciple who had been with his teacher for a long time, moved near the bedside. He pushed forward the medicine cup a few inches. That was his answer to the command.

The teacher's face became even more severe. "Is that all you understand?" he asked.

Encho reached out and moved the cup back again.

A beautiful smile broke over the features of Mokugen. "You rascal," he told Encho. "You worked with me ten years and have not yet seen my whole body. Take the robe and bowl. They belong to you."

35. Every-Minute Zen

Zen students are with their masters at least ten years before they presume to teach others. Nan-in was visited by Tenno, who, having passed his apprenticeship, had become a teacher. The day happened to be rainy, so Tenno wore wooden clogs and carried an umbrella. After greeting him Nan-in remarked: "I suppose you left your wodden clogs in the vestibule. I want to know if your umbrella is on the right or left side of the clogs."

Tenno, confused, had no instant answer. He realized that he was unable to carry his Zen every minute. He became Nan-in's pupil, and he studied six more years to accomplish his every-minute Zen.

Is That So?

The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbours as one living a pure life.

A beautiful Japanese girl whose parents owned a food store lived near him. Suddenly, without any warning, her parents discovered she was with child.

This made her parents angry. She would not confess who the man was, but after much harassment at last named Hakuin.

In great anger the parent went to the master. "Is that so?" was all he would say.

After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time he had lost his reputation, which did not trouble him, but he took very good care of the child. He obtained milk from his neighbours and everything else he needed.

A year later the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told her parents the truth - the real father of the child was a young man who worked in the fishmarket.

The mother and father of the girl at once went to Hakuin to ask forgiveness, to apologize at length, and to get the child back.

Hakuin was willing. In yielding the child, all he said was: "Is that so?"

9. The Moon Cannot Be Stolen

Ryokan, a Zen master, lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening a thief visited the hut only to discover there was nothing to steal.

Ryokan returned and caught him. "You have come a long way to visit me," he told the prowler, "and you should not return empty-handed. Please take my clothes as a gift."

The thief was bewildered. He took the clothes and slunk away.

Ryoken sat naked, watching the moon. "Poor fellow," he mused, "I wish I could have given him this beautiful moon."

13. A Buddha

In Tokyo in the Meiji era there lived two prominent teachers of opposite characteristics. One, Unsho, an instructor in Shingon, kept Buddha's precepts scrupulously. He never drank intoxicants, nor did he eat after eleven o'clock in the morning. The other teacher, Tanzan, a professor of philosophy at the Imperial University, never observed the precepts. Whenever he felt like eating, he ate, and when he felt like sleeping in the daytime he slept.

One day Unsho visited Tanzan, who was drinking wine at the time, not even a drop of which is suppposed to touch the tongue of a Buddhist.

"Hello, brother," Tanzan greeted him. "Won't you have a drink?"

"I never drink!" exclaimed Unsho solemnly.

"One who does not drink is not even human," said Tanzan.

"Do you mean to call me inhuman just because I do not indulge in intoxicating liquids!" exclaimed Unsho in anger. "Then if I am not human, what am I?"

"A Buddha," answered Tanzan.

16. Not Far from Buddhahood

A university student while visiting Gasan asked him: "Have you ever read the Christian Bible?"

"No, read it to me," said Gasan.

The student opened the Bible and read from St. Matthew: "And why take ye thought for rainment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They toil not, neither do they spin, and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these... Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself."

Gasan said: "Whoever uttered those words I consider an enlightened man."

The student continued reading: "Ask and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened."

Gasan remarked: "That is excellent. Whoever said that is not far from Buddhahood."

89. Zen Dialogue

Zen teachers train their young pupils to express themselves. Two Zen temples each had a child protégé. One child, going to obtain vegetables each morning, would meet the other on the way.

"Where are you going?" asked the one.

"I am going wherever my feet go," the other responded.

This reply puzzled the first child who went to his teacher for help. "Tomorrow morning," the teacher told him, "when you meet that little fellow, ask him the same question. He will give you the same answer, and then you ask him: 'Suppose you have no feet, then where are you going?' That will fix him."

The children met again the following morning.

"Where are you going?" asked the first child.

"I am going wherever the wind blows," answered the other.

This again nonplussed the youngster, who took his defeat to the teacher.

Ask him where he is going if there is no wind," suggested the teacher.

The next day the children met a third time.

"Where are you going?" asked the first child.

"I am going to the market to buy vegetables," the other replied.

First cousin, twice removed, three times a virgin.

Accept religion: it accepts you.

Say I gave you an apple, made of solid gold with the words "To the prettiest" inscribed on it. Would you accept it? Would you be flattered? Would you try and eat it? Would you give it to someone else? Would you sell it? Would you throw at it at your father? Would you dip it in green paint and put it inside your pocket? Would you place it in a cabinet? Would you place a cabinet in it? Would you rub it between your toes? Would you bash it against your abdomen?

Eris is the Greek God of discord. There is no God of order. Entropy dictates an incline towards disorder. I dictate otherwise. So does Malcom. Do you believe this?

The ground is closer to the sky than you might realise. You might realise you don't want to read this. Don't come crawling back to me when your tears are filled with buckets and you can't satisfy yourself but to know why.

Sound the alarms

This word is harm

This one is Pete

This one is feet.

Listen to me:

Don't believe

Anything you read.

Especially that.

"There are great truths and there are trivial truths. The opposite of a trivial truth is plainly false. The opposite of a great truth is also true." -Neil Bohr

Destitute of passion, I write from inspiration.

I’ll let it pour out like warm expressive pus.

I had a rather amorous encounter once, twice, three times. Once that shaped me especially. It wasn’t love at first sight, he stole my attention the same way a peculiar figure would steal my eye in a shopping centre. Of course unlike a peculiar figure, I had classes with him almost every day. I’d observe him subtly during class, first with quick glances to assess his appearance: A unique taste in fashion, a confident, slightly overemphasised strut, blonde hair, slim with a very slight build. I would enjoy running my eyes up and down his body, eventually too much to keep it brief, so he would often catch me.

First conversation was brief, something about the teacher. We shared a common amusement in his wild tangents. I think he had some idea of my attraction towards him, as he spoke with a dominant confidence. First date was my idea. It went well though my heart did do a number on my ribcage. He hid behind a cup of coffee to try and keep himself dominant, it worked. Later that night we lost our inhibitions and broke walls. About a week later he seemed quiet around me, his face slipped, it’s happened before. The second weekend he stayed over he spat bad poetry into my lips and I felt a year pass between us. He wrote me a letter. I wrote him a song, with a beat for every day my Facebook status had his name in it.

The whole ordeal was a role reversal for me. The one before him, a girl who fell in love with me, was my amusement for her turmoil. She lied more than once before I stole her inhibitions and forced her to confess. That night I stole her innocence and experienced my first taste of empty pleasure. I confessed to her friend the day after. They’re no longer friends. I came back to her after every unsuccessful pursuit, and she was hopeless to my charm. I tore at her flesh with hooks and devoured her. She would tear at others in retaliation because she wouldn’t dream of harming me. When there was nothing left for me to devour, I left her to soak in alcohol and tobacco stained tongues. She searched for me often, crying every time I wouldn’t stand to face her. She tried to take the hook into her own hands once or twice, eventually admitted to an asylum. She was no longer a problem for me to deal with.

Such decrepit actions were unavoidable. My scarred flesh will heal and so will hers. Maybe he will never be harmed… but I doubt it. The world doesn’t lean one way for too long before it falls. You can’t keep all that flesh forever. Where would he keep it?

"I wanted all things
To seem to make some sense,
So we could all be happy, yes,
Instead of tense.
And I made up lies
So that they all fit nice,
And I made this sad world
A par-a-dise."

Providing You with Fresh Consumables

Open Wide.

This is to be a weekly section split into subcategories.

Music: Neutral Milk Hotel

To those of you who haven't heard of this fantastic band, you have no idea what you're missing. They're a what I would define as new folk (although Wikipedia will call them indie rock), I highly recommend checking them out so you can decide what to call them for yourself. They were formed in 1991 by singer guitarist and songwriter Jeff Magnum unfortunately only recording two full length albums in their 7 year long career.

Recommended album: In The Aeroplane Over The Sea

Check them out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iipO9Tvk1EI&feature=related

Literature: The Picture of Dorian Gray

Most people would of heard of this book already, it is the only novel ever published by the ever-witty playwright Oscar Wilde. Here is a blurb taken from the cover "Dorian is a good-natured young man until he discovers the power of his own exceptional beauty. As he gradually sinks deep into a frivolous, glamourous world of selfish luxury, he apparently remains physically unchanged by the stresses of his corrupt lifestyle and untouched by age. But up in his attic, hidden behind a curtain, his portrait tells a different story…"

I found this book immensely absorbing, you can tell right away that it is written by someone who is used to the format of scripts which is something I really liked. It focuses very strongly on the dialogue which Wilde is rightly famous for and only drifts away from the characters very occasionally to describe insignificant things of beauty,

which might seem frustrating if it were not the main theme of the book.

Where you can buy it: If any book stores don't sell this you are well within your rights to burn the store and it's manager to the ground. It's part of that puffin collection of paper backs which sell for around 10 dollars, so I recommend buying that. You'll say about half price in comparison to any illustrated editions.

Website: Nedroid.com

Go there now, It is a spectacular comic of bizarre stylistic humour.

Sample Page: http://nedroid.com/2009/12/what-to-buy-for-the-guy-who-likes-everything/

Artist: Patrick Hughes

Hughes' work is full of irony. By creating a world solidified into perspective he makes pictures that come alive before our eyes.
In the myth of the sculptor Pygmalion makes a stone woman, whom Aphrodite brings to life as Galatea. Hughes makes wooden lumps of space and you bring them to life by looking at them. It is sculpted painting, solid space.

Website: http://www.patrickhughes.co.uk/

Recommended artwork: http://www.flickr.com/photos/38864566@N00/2479491895/

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The Truth, and Why it is a Lie

It's important to remember that nothing in this blog is necessarily true. I may state my opinions as though they are fact from time to time because that is the form they take for me. They are however no truer than all religious publications, or your own opinion of yourself. This doesn't mean I am being arrogant to state these things as fact though, because whether I say it is truth, or an opinion... Well you get the point.

Scientific Theory is Religion.

Think about it, it might not mean anything, it might be just a phrase I put there with the intention of making you think about it, but it might also be an idea I've put a lot of thought into.

So, I sat down with the intention of writing about truth. Naturally, I don't like the word. It's important to me not to brand anything with it, as it's impossible to prove it. "Cannibalism is wrong" is not truth, it's societal ethics. "The Earth revolves around the Sun" is not truth, it is a perception.

Anything I say is not truth. I can and will explain my perception of the way things are and the control we have over that, but its not truth, and that is not important.

"Truth" is not as useful to us as a well told lie.

Religion is an example of this. I view religion as a lie, in the same way I view things as the truth. No religions can be completely ruled out as false or correct, but what is important is the influence they have on people's lives.

People who believe they are on Earth for a reason, whether it's true or not, are more fulfilled for it.

What is the point of knowing the truth if the cost is living a pathetic existence? Especially when you're no closer to proving it then the rest of them.

Some people may not agree with me, but the most important thing you can do with your life is being content. Not just satisfied or fulfilled, but content. To have the feeling that you're working towards something, but not to mind if you ever reach it. Be content with your journey and not the goal.

-"Live by the foma that make you brave and kind and healthy and happy."