Uncanny Austrian,  Heavy waters beauty boil,  Crafting heaven here.  Daily Stoic: Your shame is not mine. Your credit is not mine. Neither are mine, yours.  We each rule our own virtues and vices. I cannot lay my blame upon you nor steal your credit.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: Requiem in D Minor, K. 626, 1: Introitus: Requiem  (to 4:43) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Hurdles in my path,  Round rapids and hidden rocks,  Find the course. Find peace.  Daily Stoic: Today I will meet with . . . the ignorant.  People may oppose my path. Ok. It happens. They do so out of ignorance. Had they the same knowledge, the same attitude, or the same goals, we would be in agreement.  This is not their fault.  It's simply how things turned out here, now.  I choose to fight against them, accept their opposition and change my course, ignore them and move on, try to persuade them, or do something completely different. It depends on the situation and my relationship with them.  I should not turn my back on them but try to understand and work with them.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Meditation III: Today's Music: Nocturne by Dobrinka Tabakova

Shut the fuccupcakes.  When the moon hits your eye like... Puns make life worth living.  Daily Stoic: Which soul will I wear today? That of an adult who follows Nature and seeks to do the right thing.  I should have no other souls.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Never miss a good chance to shut up. ~ variously attributed Today's Music: Canarios, Traditional improvisation , Version by Jordi Savall

Million suns, flying — A swarm patterns the night sky — Minds everywhere. Nice.  Daily Stoic: "No thanks necessary or expected."  That should be my attitude. Having done the right thing should be enough. It often is . . . but not always.  Time to do better.  And to remember that these are the words of a Roman emperor to himself. Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: Three Latin Motets from The Last Supper, 3: 'In supremae nocte cenae' — 'On the night of the last supper' by Harrison Birtwistle Daily Shakespeare: Macbeth , Act 1 Scene 1

Novae of moments,  The light of ancient mistakes,  Banks against self-harm.  Daily Stoic: As a novice, caution.  A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.* Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: Sonatine 2: Mouvement de minuet by Maurice Ravel (1874-1937) ================================= * I was feeling prolix this morning. Here's the original draft of my mediation.  I like the revised version better.  Novitiate, newcomer, abecedarian . . . whatever fancy term you want to use for greenhorn, this status is nothing to be ashamed of, but care must needs be taken.  As I continue my journey into an examined life, I have to remember how ignorant I am still. I've learned a lot in my life, but it's merely the first surface of the subject. I have to keep my lack of understanding and my inability to act properly in mind, forefront, foremost, lest I o'erstretch my reach and err for lack of practical knowledg...

Spoiling my favors Milk left in the sun, curdled,  Care must be taken.  Daily Stoic: Do the right thing. Move on. Do the next right thing. Move on. Repeat.  At what point does it say I should brag about it or hold it as a debt on another?  If I expect return as an investment, my deed may have been virtuous, but my motivation spoils it somewhat.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Meditation III: Today's Meditation IV: Today's Music: String Quartet in G major, op. 76 no. 1 1: Allegro con spirito  (to 5:37) by Joseph Haydn

Rules, connected, felt Gimme something as good now Common good, for all.  Daily Stoic: Follow the simple rules to best arrange my life.  Be active. Be clear. Be directed. Be moderate. Be real. Be cool.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: Nocturno, op. 7 by Franz Strauss Daily Shakespeare: Henry IV, Part I , Act 3 Scene 1

What I do, kindness,  Like plants growing in the spring,  Both body and soul.  Daily Stoic: It's not a task. It's not onerous. It's not something to bitch and moan about.  It's my life and I'm fucking lucky to have it. The work I do to be a good person is my privilege. Remember that.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: 'Bess, you is my woman now' from Porgy and Bess by George Gershwin Daily Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet , Act 5 Scene 3 

Hey nonny nonny And a hey and a ho hee Playing, turning words.  Daily Stoic: What is my art? Words, I suppose. I work with them, I'm good at it, and I enjoy it. Plus, there's a certain mystery to placing word just so that they turn the perfect phrase.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: Song without Words in E major, op. 19 no. 1   by Felix Mendelssohn

Wherefore shall I go?  Floods bearing all before them?  My course is my own.  Daily Stoic: I've never had a leader. Never needed one.  I've had mentors — my parents, for example, and my friend — those after whom I've patterned parts of my life.  I've had managers and supervisors — pointing me toward whatever goal is appropriate at the time — those whom I allow to direct the small portion of my life within their purview.  But I've never truly had a leader. Someone to whom I dedicate myself to achieve their goals rather than my own.*  I guess I've never needed one. Even when my life seemed to have no purpose at all, I knew my purpose was still my own. I need not adopt someone else's vision to give my life meaning.  Another factor: I don't recognize any authority over my own.  Does that mean I cannot be coerc?  By brute force or vicious threat, others may impose their will on my body, putting me in a cage or endangering those I ...

Way stations inside — Fairy hollow, hidden world — Playing for the crowd.  Daily Stoic: I let myself get distracted. A lot. Criticizing what should just let be or accepting without question something of unclear provenance.  Not seeing the world as it is but as my mind would remake it, had I the power.  Monkeying around instead of getting on with it.  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: Gladiolus Rag by Scott Joplin 

Pretty, scenty, wow!  Flowers rot, next year's crops' food.  But but but sights! Smells!  Daily Stoic: Read for lessons, not for trivia. Great works teach great morals, if I but care to look.  Today's Meditation: Today's Music: Symphony no. 5 in c sharp minor 4: Adagietto: Sehr langsam by Gustav Mahler Daily Shakespeare: Macbeth , Act 1 Scene 6

Bitch whine grouse complain,  Squeaky wheel making a noise,  Shut up, you ingrate.  Daily Stoic: Unpleasant things abound in this world. Starting each day with tumbling out of my warm, soft bed into the . . . slightly lower warmth of my house? Next to my loving spouse, below my wonderful children, to go to a job I find easy, with at least a bit of satisfaction, and good pay.  WTF do I have to complain about ffs?  Today's Meditation: Today's Meditation II: Today's Meditation II: Today's Music: 'My Ship' from Lady in the Dark by Kurt Weill