Marcus Aurelius - Meditations

“The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.”

That's a philosophy I have always felt attracted to. Thanks for that, Marcus; got any more tips?

Sure, Nigel, Try these.

"A cucumber is bitter. Throw it away. There are briars in the road. Turn aside from them. This is enough. Do not add, 'And why were such things made in the world'?"

You are so right about cucumbers. Tasteless and devoid of any nutritional value. Beloved of the upper classes in crustless sandwiches. 

"Whatever happens to you has been waiting to happen since the beginning of time. The twining strands of fate wove both of them together: your own existence and the things that happen to you."

Oh, so there is no point agonising about Arsenal's defence against Liverpool tomorrow?

"In your actions, don't procrastinate. In your conversations, don't confuse. In your thoughts, don't wander. In your soul, don't be passive or aggressive. In your life, don't be all about business."

Could you please mention this to Boris? His government's guidance on the virus has left me confused and bemused. It's OK to go to crowded pubs but I have to wear a face mask when I'm in an almost empty Lidl? Where's the consistency?

"A person who doesn't know what the universe is, doesn't know who they are. A person who doesn't know their purpose in life doesn't know who they are or what the universe is. A person who doesn't know any of these things doesn't know why they are here. So what to make of people who seek or avoid the praise of those who have no knowledge of where or who they are?"

Mm. Could you stick to some practical advice?

"When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: The people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly. They are like this because they can't tell good from evil. But I have seen the beauty of good, and the ugliness of evil, and have recognized that the wrongdoer has a nature related to my own—not of the same blood or birth, but the same mind, and possessing a share of the divine."

Hey Marcus, you sure meet with some awful people.

"Keep this thought handy when you feel a bit of rage coming on--it isn't manly to be enraged. Rather, gentleness and civility are more human, and therefore manlier. A real person doesn't give way to anger and discontent, and such a person has strength, courage, and endurance--unlike the angry and complaining. The nearer a man comes to a calm mind, the closer he is to strength."

OK, I'll definitely do this when I'm driving. Thanks a bunch for all these thoughts; you've made my day more meaningful.

You're welcome. I hope this helps.

Yours,

Marcus

Seahorses

Did you know that there are seahorses in British coastal waters? I didn't. But I read recently that conservationists are worried that the recent influx of visitors to the Dorset coast has placed its protected seahorses at risk.

There are apparently seahorses in The Shetland Isles and the west and south coasts of the UK. Well I'll be blowed.

Of course we Cornishmen (I'm interpreting that as living in the county) are used to regular sightings of sharks, dolphins and fin whales. I've never seen the basking sharks that are around our coasts, nor the fin whales. I did once see a pod of humpback whales on a memorable whale watching cruise from Brisbane, Australia.

There are in fact 43 species of seahorse. The big-bellied seahorse can reach up to 35 cm in length, while pygmy species are 2 cms or less. Which is remarkable; I'd love to see one of those. You can see pictures of them all at iseahorse.org. Dorset's seahorses are spiny seahorses, which are in the middle of the size range.

Like chameleons, seahorses have eyes which move independently of each other; useful I guess for spotting their live prey. And making sure no bigger predators can creep on them from behind.

I'm not really sure what Dorset visitors are doing to threaten the seahorses but...

please STOP!

Not a lot of people know that

So said Michael Caine. But apparently it was Peter Sellers who first used it, mimicking Michael Caine on the Micheal Parkinson show. Because he said Caine was always quoting the Guinness Book of Records.  But everyone can hear Caine's voice saying it, as he did in Educating Rita.

That led me to investigate other wrongly attributed sayings. mashable.com tells me that Sherlock Holmes never said "elementary, my dear Watson". George Washington didn't say "I cannot tell a lie". Niccolo Machiavelli was not the first to voice "the ends justify the means". And Albert Einstein is wrongly attributed with saying "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results".

All the things I've ever learned have been trashed. Is nothing sacred?

What's your plan for tomorrow...

...is the first line of a song Take Back The Power by a band called The Interrupters. One of the great joys of blogging, at least my style of it, is expanding your own knowledge and, hopefully, that of your readers. I came across this song as the theme music for a Sky Documentaries' show "Hillary", about Hillary Rodham Clinton, as she calls herself. The first lines of the song are an apt introduction to the subject of the documentary:

What's your plan for tomorrow

Are you a leader or will you follow

Are you a fighter or will you cower

It's our time take back the power

I have never heard of The Interrupters. It turns out they a ska punk band. I have absolutely no idea what that means but it bears investigation, even sounds fun. I certainly enjoy the song and add it to a Spotify playlist. It has drive, energy, noise and raises the heart beat. 

I learn that ska punk is a "fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock. So says Wikipedia but I reckon even I could have figured that out. I still have to find out what ska music is and it turns to be of Jamaican origin, pre reggae. It has a walking bass line (I know what that is from listening to Oscar Peterson in my youth) with accents on the off beats (as you get with reggae). And lots more that I won't burden you with - check it out if you want to know more or, better, listen to the song.

Anyway, the documentary is fascinating. I have one episode of the four to go but I get the gist. Does it tell me more about Hillary Clinton than I already know? Yes, it does. As far as I can judge, it is a fair assessment of her life and work. Like all of us, and particularly people in positions of power, there are good things and bad. Successes and failures.  I didn't have any preconceptions (well not too many) about her going into the programme and I think I have a sense of when I am being "had", of a biased product placement. I don't think that was the case. It is true that the majority of those interviewed were well disposed towards her but that's because these were the people who knew her well, so I accept that. It's definitely not hagiography.

There is a great deal of face to face interviews with her. The questions are more like prompts, because she seems like she relishes getting everything out there, feels the need to explain herself, and you only need to prompt her about an episode in her life and she's off, streams of consciousness. Can I tell whether she is telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? No, but could I with most politicians?

The song's chorus is:

We don't need to run and hide

We won't be pushed off to the side

I think that sums Hillary Clinton up. If you can find it, it's worth watching. 

Sandy or stony?

Summer is back in St Austell, after days of grey skies and intermittent, unpredictable showers.

That's probably double tautology.

I decided a little walk to Charlestown was in order, to check out the beach, which (like the rest of the world) is now open. It's not much of a beach. Tiny.

And no sand.

A pebble beach. Not the Pebble Beach, of course.

There are hundreds of revellers, some  of whom are enjoying a swim.

And the sun.

Not much social distancing but the virus had all gone, hasn't it? Er, not totally.

Well we can mingle, yes? Without face masks? Er, not sure.

But that nice Mr Sunak says I can get a Big Mac for 50p can't I? Not yet.

But I'm not here to talk about confused government messaging, this is about beaches.

Why is the word beach used to describe markedly different things? Charlestown beach is small pebbles. Unlike Whitstable, which is great big boulders. Beaches IMO should have sand. Like Bondi. Even Margate.

On a sandy beach you can do things: dig, make castles with moats. What can you do on a stony beach? Throw stones, that's it. Stony beaches hurt your feet when you are approaching the water for a paddle; sandy beaches are beautiful on the feet. Although the sand gets in your sarnies; get pizza and beer instead!

The biggest problem though is not knowing what you're going to get. Checking out a four bedroom villa in Greece: "50 metres from the beach". Great; kids, pack your buckets and spades. Dad, I can't make a sand castle here; it's stones!

I suggest better wording: Whitbeach for pebbles/stones, Marbeach for sand. But the thing about all these beaches now is: they're open! Once the Cornish visitors have gone home, in September, I'll be there again.

Three word problem

The Britannia Inn. Open for lunch. Many outdoor tables. Some with roofs. Ideal for sun. And persistent drizzle. Met with Tony. Alcohol free beer. Heineken Zero Zero. San Miguel better. But not here. Cornish Brie ciabatta. With crispy bacon. And tasty chutney. Mixed berry Pavlova. More Heineken Zero. Tony needs haircut. Won't show photo. Much witty conversation. Back to normal. At least nearly.