‘It lifts and separates’ is a slogan that will be familiar to those of my generation - it was advertised as the chief virtue of the Playtex ‘cross-your-heart’ Bra in the impressionable days of my youth. However, it also serves as a memorable illustration of my theory concerning the origin of what we think of … Continue reading Why Writing is like a Playtex Bra
Category: MUSINGS ON . . .
occasional effusions on every subject under the sun
Liars in public places
'die breite Masse eines Volkes... einer großen Lüge leichter zum Opfer fällt als einer kleinen' - 'the broad mass of a nation will more easily fall victim to a big lie than to a small one.' (Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf) 'These are people who are bent on trying to reverse the substance of Brexit and … Continue reading Liars in public places
The Actual Colour of the Sun
‘The sun is actually white, it just appears yellow to us through the Earth’s atmosphere.’ This is a line that appeared on Facebook a while ago, courtesy of my friend Else Cederborg, who posts all sorts of curious and interesting things. It is a common form of argument that most will readily understand and generally … Continue reading The Actual Colour of the Sun
‘Like, yet unlike.’
'Like, yet unlike,' is Merry's comment in The Lord of the Rings when he first sees Gandalf and Saruman together: Gandalf, returned from the dead, has assumed the white robes formerly worn by Saruman, who has succumbed to despair and been corrupted by evil and is about to be deposed. So we have two people … Continue reading ‘Like, yet unlike.’
The curious case of Toom Tabard and the Indyref Paradox
Psychological projection is a theory in psychology in which humans defend themselves against their own unconscious impulses or qualities (both positive and negative) by denying their existence in themselves while attributing them to others. For example, a person who is habitually rude may constantly accuse other people of being rude. It incorporates blame shifting. – … Continue reading The curious case of Toom Tabard and the Indyref Paradox
St. Anselm and the Blackbird
Blackbird Its eye a dark pool in which Sirius glitters and never goes out. Its melody husky as though with suppressed tears. Its bill is the gold one quarries for amid evening shadows. Do not despair at the stars’ distance. Listening to blackbird music is to bridge in a moment chasms of space-time, is to … Continue reading St. Anselm and the Blackbird
Expressing conviction
In an earlier piece ('For us, there is only the trying') I observed that one of the insights that come with being a writer is the tentative nature of all writing, that it is always an attempt, and to that degree, never certain of success. I have been considering the implications of this insight since. … Continue reading Expressing conviction
The Opaque Window: a fable
People live beside an ancient wall. In the wall is an aperture, a window, which has great cultural significance for them. Many of them gather regularly to stare at the window, an odd practice, as all the panes are opaque; you can see nothing through it, though it does, to a very slight degree, admit … Continue reading The Opaque Window: a fable
The Bonfire of Responsibility
The thing about systems is that they are designed to work as a whole, each component interacting to produce the desired effect. To interfere with one part is to throw the whole out of kilter. If it is your job to make hard decisions it is wise to consider and indeed consult the opinion of … Continue reading The Bonfire of Responsibility
More thinking about thinking
As I remarked elsewhere, a lot of my own thinking might be described as ‘subvocalisation’, i.e. speaking without voicing the actual words. Even as I am typing this, I am constructing the sentences ‘in my head’ - though I would not say that I hear them: this is not someone else’s voice, it is mine, … Continue reading More thinking about thinking
COMPLEAT TROWZER 