Running on empty the past cuppla, work goes very well but that whole get up early thing and head off to work begins to be tiresome. No doubt I will soldier on for another year or so. The money is good, the work is interesting, and the people are grand. That's worth holding on to for a while longer.
It's a rather damp Wednesday as I write this, hence the nice photo above, to cheer me up.
Weather doesn't generally affect my moods, unless it's pouring rain while I'm attempting to cross the parking lot from the car to the building. Then it's bloody annoying as I can't stand starting work all wet. Umbrellas are rather ineffective here in the 401 as the wind off the bay tends to drive the wind sideways.
Don't mind (much) getting wet going from the building to the car, much easier to change and dry off at home.
But enough of that.
Finger is healing but is rather misshapen, no doubt I shall need to have a professional assess that one of these days, the tip looks rather like a pillow top mattress. Sucker still hurts if I bump it into something, so it's still wearing its little samurai helmet for protection.
The eye is frustrating as Hell, the retina isn't healing as quick as I'd like and I can still remember how good my vision used to be. Oh well, beats the heck out of being blind.
I am sore tempted to comment on politics...
But I just ate.
Talk quietly amongst yourselves, I'll be back. Just not feeling it today.
Topic for discussion - Do animals have souls? Defend your answer.
Yes. It’s why they are delicious, and plants are not.
ReplyDeleteClever, but it was a serious question.
DeleteSome plants are quite delicious, trees have souls and they taste terrible.
Yes, that's why fried chicken and all things pig are called Soul Food!
ReplyDeleteApparently I caught y'all before breakfast.
Delete:-)
Delete😂
DeleteThanks for the update on your health front, was wondering how things were going. Having good co-workers is a big plus and if you like what you're doing, then hey bonus! Those two makes the pay icing on the cupcake. My vote goes with Tom, I eat those critters that threaten the food supply of those poor vegans....... it's tough job but someone HAS to do it.
ReplyDeleteCupcakes are primarily vegetable matter, yet they taste great. Do cupcakes have souls?
DeleteWhen my son pinched off (pressure-amputated) the ends of two fingers, the micro-neuro-doc said to tap them on a hard surface to encourage....... something. Blood flow, harden up the nerves, or some such. I don't know if that's warranted for you, but it was painful for me to watch, much less him to do...... Sometimes tender loving care isn't the best option....
ReplyDeleteI think animals do have souls. When a dog misses it's master and then goes all twisty when they meet again, or our dog gets on the couch and I bark at her to move off, and she slinks around and can't look me in the eye afterwards, tells me they have the feels and understand some things. That's the work of the soul.
There is an old wives tale my fetching missus told me: about feeling sorry for an animal you are about to kill for food. They will cling to life and not die easy if you pity them. I have seen that play out. I think she learned it from her Mayan, Aztec ancestors... So my question is, did her ancestors have a soul????? yikes!!!!
The tip of my finger was semi-crushed. Doc said to massage it, rub it, whatever it took to keep the blood flow going. Seems to be working, but it stings a bit. Nothing like the pain your son had.
DeleteHave you ever thanked the animal who gave its life for your sustenance? I do, feeling sorry for something you're about to kill is not merciful, needs to be quick and clean so the animal doesn't suffer.
I like your answer.
When we butcher a goat or other meat, we don't thank it. It fought to stay alive, I took life from it. I thank God that He put it there for us to eat, and do my dead level best to use as much as possible, so it didn't die for just a backstrap or a roast.... We'll eat it all, or there abouts. First time I had tripas, I thought it was fried macaroni. It wasn't..... But it was tasty!!
DeleteThe in-laws eat everything but the moo... good lesson to learn.
Keep smacking that finger around so it doesn't get entitled.... pain is weakness leaving the body....
I smack the finger a lot, intentionally and unintentionally. The former is good, the latter is OW!
DeleteI would submit that there are some animals that have no soul because they are not capable of accepting that there is a higher power. Cats are the classic example. Dogs, on the other hand, clearly do have souls. They are far more than Man;s Best Friend. To Quote Senator George Vest:
ReplyDelete"Your Honor, the issue here is one that cannot be dismissed.
What is a dog? How much is a dog worth?
The best friend a man has in the world may turn against him
and become his worst enemy.
His son or daughter that he has reared with loving care
may prove ungrateful.
Those who are nearest and dearest to us,
those whom we trust with our happiness and our good name,
may become traitors to their faith.
The money that man has, he may lose. It flies away from him,
perhaps when he needs it the most.
A man's reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action.
The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor
when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice
when failure settles its cloud upon our heads.
The one absolutely unselfish friend that a man can have in this selfish world,
the one that never deserts him
and the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous... is his dog.
A man's dog stands by him in prosperity and in poverty,
in health and in sickness.
He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow and the snow
drives fiercely, if only he be at his master's side.
He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer,
he will lick the wounds and sores
that come in encounters with the roughness of the world.
He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince.
When all other friends desert he remains.
When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces,
he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey around the world,
friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks
no higher privilege than that of accompanying him
to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies,
and when the last scene of all comes,
and death takes the master in its embrace and his body
is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way,
there by his graveside will the noble dog be found,
his head between his paws,
his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness,
faithful and true even to death."
Dave - Nice sentiments about dogs! while I know why you say that about cats, I would disagree. While in some guises they are evil little creatures and prefect killing machines, they do exhibit fondness and even (rarely) put themselves at risk for others, including humans. (have seen a couple of videos of cats driving off dogs that were attacking kids in their family.) So maybe having a soul is nuture and not nature? Or do all souls have to be good?
DeleteDave - Love the poem.
DeleteHowever, I have to disagree with the need for acceptance of a higher power as determining whether or not a living thing has a soul. Especially as regards cats. My cats demonstrate affection, hurt, fear, and many other emotions which some attribute only to humans. My felines are my boon companions, they see into my soul, I see into theirs. Yes, they are generally solitary creatures, unlike dogs who are pack animals and understand that humans can be part of that pack, they've even been known to accept cats as members of their pack as well. Dogs are just more sociable than cats.
Cats can be loyal and will defend "their" humans. The next door neighbors used to have a rather aggressive hound who would occasionally get out of her yard. One day when heading out to check the mail, she came after me (we later got to know each other, she was a good dog, a rescue dog who had been badly abused as a pup, she had her reasons for disliking strangers). Long story short, the same neighbor's cat (part of that dog's pack, and apparently a dominant member) came out of nowhere, swatted the dog on the nose as she was coming at me. It was almost as if she was letting the dog know that this human (me) was alright and to leave him alone. Which she did from that day forth.
As you might gather, I'm a "cat person," and have had cats around my entire life. I understand them, they get me. I love cats and dogs, both species make good companions though in different ways. Read "Epitaph to a Dog," a poem by the British poet Lord Byron, if you get the chance. Very moving.
Tom - I think we're on the same page.
DeleteYes, souls can be evil. The Lord gave us free will, we can choose to be evil, most don't, some do.
Do animals have souls? Yes. When was the last time an animal lied to you? I've dealt with many ornery critters during my life. That was not their soul, it was just a reflection of how badly they had been treated. If you have not already, start here and read forward--
ReplyDeletehttp://lagniappeslair.blogspot.com/2019/08/introducing.html
Ah yes, Merida definitely has a soul, as does Murphy. Good man there.
DeleteOf Course they do.
ReplyDeleteOdd how dusty it just got in here.
DeleteI hear that!
Delete...and almost dinged this post as another quiz. 🙄
Though I was tempted...
DeleteYes, animals have souls, power and size of the soul is based on brain-power and such. Thus, well, earthworm souls are teeny-tiny. Viruses have none, neither do bacteria.
ReplyDeletePlants act as a collective and have a group intelligence (to an extent) so they have a group soul (to an extent.)
Does this stop me from eating or killing either as needed? Nope. Because I've got a bigger soul, and bigger needs.
Curiously, there is one thing in Christianity that doesn't have a soul. That would be an angel. Real angels, not people-angels or spirits. It's why Angels can take on the appearance of having eyes, but their eyes are blank. Because... eyes are the windows of the soul. Which is one of the reasons for blinding an enemy or criminal back in the bad days of yore, deny them (with that niggling, back of the brain semi-thought) entry to heaven because incomplete soul (because no eyes...)
Weird question. But then again, you're a weird man.
As to finger pain, the body 'grows' nerve endings due to stimulus. Thus the whacking and squeezing and massaging, besides the obvious benefit of blood flow. Now, of course, because the previous nerve paths are messed up, new ones are being laid from other areas so you may end up getting a weird 'something's touching the side of my finger' feeling when something is touching the end of your finger. So, basically, your body is becoming as quirky and weird as your mind...
I'll take that as a compliment.
DeleteMany years later the injured finger tip still feels a bit odd. Probably because of some nerve damage, but no pain.
ReplyDeleteAnimals and souls.
Very dusty indeed after I followed juvat's and RHT447's links.
I visited the comments on and off during today and thought about your question.
For dogs, I hope they do, because a lot of them have earned to right to have one.
Now I have to blow my nose again.
Yup, I have a lot of four-legged friends who have passed on. I want to see them again some day...
DeleteYes, of course both dogs and cats...and bunnies, and birds, and stupid cows and smart ass goats all have souls...not sure about chickens tho'.
ReplyDeleteAnd very glad to hear that the finger is coming along. Do the exercises they gave ya...and you probably have a check up with the ortho dude? If not talk with your regular doc person. The nerves will take up to a year to grow back...so don't be surprised if it takes a while. Same for the eye ball. You want it right, not necessarily fast..Yes, both would be nice, but it hasn't been THAT long yet...has it?
I need to see my regular doc soon for an annual physical. I shall broach the topic of my smashed digit with her.
DeleteThe thing is forming a rather interesting scar, kinda horse shoe shaped...
Fast would be nice, but healed 100% (no matter how long it takes) is the optimum solution.
...if there were no cats (or dogs) in Heaven, it would be an dull, empty place...
ReplyDeleteRoger that!
DeleteCan a soulless creature love?
ReplyDeleteBecause our lesser brethren often love us more than any human does.
I rest my case.
Amen!
Delete