You Are Simply The Best

An exceptionally good person, a man, posted a comment on ‘Facebook’ that demonstrated that he was feeling a little ‘low’.

Perhaps his self-confidence had failed him—temporarily, we hope; or, perhaps, he was just feeling that the World was against him.

We all get that from time to time. Even the strongest person in the World has doubts occasionally. Nobody is on top of everything all the time.

I made a comment to him that is a truism. It is so true that we often don’t think of it. In the same way that really simple things can sometimes evade our thoughts due to their absolute simplicity.

It is this idea that makes ‘Occam’s Razor’ so difficult to achieve.

The comment was this, “You are the best person that you know.”

Of course. Obvious, isn’t it? Stands to reason, doesn’t it? Everybody knows that, don’t they?

Apparently not. Nevertheless, it remains perfectly true.

We can sometimes think that we know other people. We grow up with someone or we live with someone for a long period thus we believe that we know that person. 

But we do not.

The only person we know for sure is ourselves and, even then, we are often deceived. Our minds work in mysterious ways where we often remember what should have happened rather than what actually did happen.

Memories are distorted, our minds fill in the gaps and that gives us a false recollection of people, places, events and times.

Even so, we still know ourselves better than we know anyone else.

We may, for example, find ourselves wishing we were someone else.

We may decide that we should rather be someone rich, successful, famous, handsome or popular.

The problem with that is that we have no idea what devils they have running around in their heads. What is it that upsets them, drives them to drink, drugs, desperate measures to seek ever more elaborate thrills.

What depressions were in the head of celebrities who took their own lives?

The person you wish to be may be, as so many have, on the verge of suicide.

There have been a few over the recent years. People who have all the qualities that make them the source of envy or jealousy from the masses.

The ‘masses’ are you and me.

Why should we want to be them?

It is far better to be ourselves—warts and all, as they say, than to be someone else with their baggage and mental diseases.

(I use the term ‘diseases’ here advisedly: if you are not ‘at ease’ then you are ‘dis-eased’ is how I interpret it.)

This means that it can only be true that you are the best person that you know. If you are, as indeed you must be, the best then you should be proud of being you.

You may not be highly qualified, wealthy, high ranking, popular, hugely successful or literate but you are still the best.

Other people are different; other people have other qualities, desires, aims, ambitions, but that does not make them better than you—only different.

Know, then, that whoever or whatever you are I admire you. You are still here with us. You are a survivor. Irrespective of your personal beliefs and motivations:

You are the best.

Silly Old Moo in the Back!

The photographs, below, were taken at some unknown location in Malaysia. They depict a car, a Toyota Vios, I believe, with plates indicating that it was registered in the State of Pahang.

Please examine the photographs carefully.

At some point in your perusal of these pictures it will have occurred to you that the passengers, in the rear of the car, are unusual. Well, you may regard them as being unusual where you come from.

These are depictions of the sort of intellectual level that we have come to expect of people operating vehicles Worldwide.

Nothing, it might seem, surprises us any more.

Two cattle in the back of a small family saloon are what we have come to expect. It comes as no surprise to see such a car being used to transport livestock about the countryside.

Clearly the owner of these animals has considered their safety very carefully. Note that they are belted in so as not to break the law with regard to rear seat passengers or, indeed, ‘insecure loads’.

Of course, it now leads us to wonder, since the belts used were from the front seats, what safety features the driver (and passenger? Was there one?) was relying upon for his/her on security.

Yes, yes! It is unlikely that the driver was a female. She would only have put one cow in the back.

It is almost possible to imagine the scene, “Yes, constable, we have done this many times and never had an accident.”

It only takes once.

But there’s the rub, is it not? They have done this ‘many times’. It is not too much of a stretch of the imagination to believe that this is true. That this is not the first time that cattle have been carted around in the back of a small car.

What is worrying is that this is, very likely, not the only person doing this. How many other people are wandering around the countryside with cars containing who knows what?

My fear is that we shall go up to the Cameron Highlands shortly and see a Range Rover on the way down with an elephant in the boot. Not to mention a Tapir in the front seat and a family of Pangolins in the rear!

Other Writers

I have often said, and by ‘often’ I mean repetitive to the point of boredom, that extinguishing someone else’s light does not make your light burn any brighter.

Those people who have great faith and comfort in their beliefs do not need to attack other people’s beliefs unless they feel insecure; perhaps their own faith is not as strong as they would like it to be.

We frequently see this personal attack—an ad hominem, if you will, launched at people on the Internet by those who are incapable of arguing* a point successfully and so they rely on attacking the belief or the person.

So it is in other fields, too.

Those who take the trouble to read this ‘Blog’, and I thank you for your patience and diligence, will know that I am a very ordinary person.

My field of expertise is in teaching aviation people about aeroplane systems and what we call ‘Human Factors in Aviation’.

Writing stories and this ‘Blog’ is a relaxation that gives me enormous pleasure. It allows me to let off steam and advertise things that need promoting (rather than selling).

Many of the things I write about are there because I do not understand them and, in putting it down on ‘paper’ there is an attempt to put things in order in my head.

That last is not always successful. At my age the ‘little grey cells’ (with apologies to M. Hercule Poirot) are not as active as I should care for them to be.

To return to that original point about extinguishing people’s lights it has come to my attention that there are those who write books and stories that do not care to talk about anyone else’s literary creations.

This puzzles me.

Is it possible that these writers feel threatened by ‘opposition’?

Surely, someone else who writes is a colleague and not an enemy.

Usually different writers select different genres and styles, thus another writer cannot be in competition.

I have several friends who write. People buy (I earnestly hope) their books, enjoy them and then, having been prompted into an urge to read—an enjoyment of turning the page whether on paper or electronically, they may discover my stories.

I have mentioned Ray Owen’s book ‘The Hole’ before. It is an excellent read. A copy of it is on my desk at this moment. It is available from Amazon for as little as $10.99 (£9.50 in UK).

‘The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman’ is a wonderful, award winning, story from Robin Gregory. Robin is a warm-hearted and down-to-Earth lady with a magnificent imagination that she has given free rein to in this story. Well constructed and delightful it is also available on Amazon for a mere £14.00 (£8.98 in UK).

An Australian writer called R. B. Clague has given us ‘Whitefella Dreaming’. A tale to stir the imagination based on an unusual situation. From Amazon at only $15.99 (£10.40 in UK).

Just three examples of books by fellow authors that are really worth buying and reading. Each one will have taken a great deal of effort and sacrifice to write—sacrifice in terms of time and family life. Each one is an effort of will to sit down and write it; an effort to compose, put it in order; an effort to proof-read, correct, edit.

Yet each one comes to you for less than the price of a good meal or, maybe, a packet of cigarettes but will entertain you for longer than either the meal or the cigarettes. Certainly they will be better for your health than the ‘fags’!

They may entertain you for longer than it takes to read them. I am often haunted by mental images that come to me after reading a good story—these are no exception to that.

The main thing to note from this is not the ‘advertisement’ for Robin’s, R. B’s or Ray’s books (strange how they are all ‘R’s) but that by promoting them they have damaged neither my book sales nor my reputation.

They are different genres, of course, but even if they were all science fiction the styles would be completely different and the stories widely dissimilar but all would be enjoyable.

Sometimes making other people’s lights shine brighter makes your own light that little bit extra luminescent.

* It was once said to me that an argument is an exchange of ignorance whereas a discussion is an exchange of intelligence.

Beauty v. Attractiveness

How embarrassing. Citizens of countless Worlds throughout the Galaxy were on the edge of their seats watching the ‘Miss Universe’ contest when, inexplicably, the wrong winner was announced!

Shall we just stop for a moment and consider this?

The host made a mistake. We all make mistakes but this guy, whoever he is, has been pilloried on the Internet for his.

His mistake was watched by thousands of people at the venue and millions on TV.

Worse; his mistake sent a young girl from a state of total joy into the depths of despair. One moment she was on top of the starry expanse and the next plunged into a black pit.

Yes, she became second from a stellar host of young ladies, which, as we all know, is a remarkable and praiseworthy achievement. But it is not winning. Nobody will remember the runner up, will they? Of course, in this case they very well might.

On the other hand the sun shone brightly on the young lady who was nominated into second place when she was suddenly elevated to the crown that now had to be removed from one head and placed on the her own.

How did they both feel? One was exquisitely joyful at being, unexpectedly, crowned as the most beautiful woman in the known Universe and the other had her very soul jarred into grief at being pushed aside.

Who was right? Who deserved to win and who did not? Opinions will vary based, not least, upon the nationality of the winner and runner up.

Possibly you may feel that your particular favourite should have done much better if not actually to have received the ultimate accolade.

What of the host? The ‘Master of Ceremonies’?

I must complement him on his courage under fire. On being corrected he must, surely, have felt that the floor of the Galaxy would open up and transport him away from this eldritch place where his dreams of stardom lay shattered around his feet.

He put on a brave face that he really cannot have felt and went out there to remove the ultimate prize from one young girl and have it placed on the ‘First Runner Up’, as I believe they call her.

I have great respect for all three of those people in that situation. The ex-winner showed grace with aplomb and the new winner was humble in victory (as we were taught). The MC proceeded with professional courtesy.

But what of the rest? Those massed ranks of girls who were left behind? Those who were discarded as inferior to the final five – or three, whatever the number might be? Are they to be vilified as failures? Are they no longer to be described as “the beautiful Miss…” by her friends and peers from wherever she appeared from in the first place?

The problem with this is that they are, one and all, described as ‘attractive’.

This is a potential trap.

Indeed, many young ladies may be regarded as physically attractive—it is that physicality that causes us to be attracted to someone in the first place. But it is just that. Physical.

How many times have you had a Christmas present, given the current season of festivities, that is beautifully wrapped and, therefore, enticing, only to find that it contains nothing of any great interest to the recipient?

How much nicer is it to get something that is not necessarily wrapped so gaily and find that, inside, it contained everything you could possibly want?

Attractiveness is something that comes from within. Beauty is just the wrapping, it is also transitory, very often.

There is no denying that the two girls at the centre of the storm were beautiful—as were all the other girls in this pageant but were they attractive?

Sex is undeniably a wonderful thing but I ask myself, ‘What to do with the other twenty three hours, fifty-eight minutes and thirty seven seconds of each day?’

You need someone you can talk to; someone smart, intelligent; someone with a sense of humour who enjoys similar things to you.

My wife (BOM*) is a star at cooking while I, on the other hand, thoroughly enjoy eating. What a great team we make.

I like to think that there is more to a beauty pageant contestant than well-applied makeup; that, behind that mask of cream and rouge, there beats a brain worthy of the name.

Maybe it is a fantasy but there is no harm in it.

Incidentally there is a young lady called Chele Sellman (progenitor of the ‘BFF Crew’—a series of educational and entertaining books for children) who said of this competition, “I believe this ‘Miss Universe’ is fixed. I have been watching for several years and every time the winner is from Earth!”

You see? Smart and intelligent with a sense of humour. They abound.

*BOM = Beloved Of Mine

Fast Food

Note that the following is my personal view and, for the most part,  my opinions.

At some point in the recent past I referred to a popular fast food chain as producing what I described as ‘toxic waste’.

Of course, this was not intended as a specific description based on any sort of fact but, rather, is my sentiment regarding my dislike for that particular product.

Any widely franchised fast food, slow service, is an anathema to me. Having tried to eat at these places in the past has merely reinforced my belief that such establishments should be avoided at all costs.

Why?

Because they rarely produce anything worth eating.

Strange how they look so appetising in the picture! 

Let me just enlarge on that for a moment.

I have the great fortune to live in a warm, friendly country called Malaysia. One of the benefits of living here is that there is a wealth—plethora, if you will, of wonderful food outlets everywhere.

I sit typing this in a part of the country known as Kota Bharu in the North-East State of Kelantan where there are superb dishes available all of which are sheer pleasure on the palate.

In other areas there are also delicious items readily available—each State and region has its own delicacies to tempt the taste buds, a curry, for example, in one part of the country is different to the same curry sampled in another part of the country.

A version of the wonderful 'Nasi Lemak' at half the price of a burger.

Then we come to the fast food chains.

Their product is, to me, bland—tasteless. The helpings are small when compared with the price. Some fast food outlets are ridiculously priced when the size of the helping is considered.

But what of the idea that these products are ‘toxic’?

Recently a description of the contents of a famous outlet’s foodstuffs was posted to put the idea across that they had been misrepresented to the public. They wished to put the record straight; to assure us that their burgers were good for us, that they contained only the best ingredients.

The problem with this proclamation was what was not said. One of the things they told us about was the use of ‘pink slime’, which is reclaimed meat, gristle and cartilage from animal carcasses that have already been stripped of usable meat. The recovered ‘meat’ is usually hydraulically removed by high-pressure water jets and then ground up to form the infamous ‘pink slime’.

They told us that ‘pink slime’ is not used in their meat patties because it is illegal in most countries. My instant response is, “What about the countries where it is legal?” Nothing was mentioned about that.

It is true that the patties taste differently in different countries. Those for sale here in Malaysia are required to be halal; one wonders if those sold in Texas are also halal? Doubtful.

There was also a discourse on the use of chemicals as colouring and preservatives.

These additives are, they tell us, perfectly safe as they have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States of America.

I am now filled with panic.

The FDA have passed a substance called ‘Melatonin’ as safe. It can be obtained, in the USA, over the counter freely as an aid to overcome jet lag—a disturbance in the Circadian Rhythms experienced by long distance travellers.

High Dose Melatonin Tablets

Melatonin is a hormone that occurs in every living cell—plants, animals, fish, fungus, microbes, us. How bad can it be?

Let’s look at the side effects of taking it:

“Some unwanted effects in some people, especially at high doses (~3mg/day or more) may include: headaches, nausea, next-day grogginess or irritability, hormone fluctuations, vivid dreams or nightmares, reduced blood flow, and hypothermia.”

It should be noted that, in most countries around the World, this substance is either available only on prescription or it is illegal. It is, for example, banned in Canada and illegal in the European Union.

The FDA have also approved the use of several of ‘Monsanto’s’ products that are banned in an increasing number of countries.

So can we trust their, the FDA’s, decisions on the preservatives and colourings used in the fast-food chain products?

You can make your own decisions on that, of course, but I choose to avoid it.

I firmly believe that eating at a fast food establishment is to take in food that the human body is not adapted to eat. We have enzymes in our digestive tract that have been developed over a very long time to deal with specific food sources and these burgers are not one of them.

If I was completely honest I would say that the only fast food chain that I will patronise is ‘Subway’. At least they have flavour and wholesome fillings.

Even if their ‘Twelve-Inch’ sandwich is only 11” long*!

12" 'Subway' 

 *There is a viral Internet gossip that says 'Subway' 12" sandwiches are short by 1". 'Subway' say they are looking into standardising and ensuring that all their 12" sandwiches really are 'Footlong'!