ShenLung

OH! 'drops, you're a genius! I'd completely forgotten about the utilization of light therapy (rose colored glasses, great for seasonal effective disorder!!) There's one technique that has no downside at all, and is good for anyone.

Mantis, please forgive me. In the rush to discuss the topic, I failed to ask; is this information for you, to aid you with depression, or for you to have some tools to help someone else with depression? Spouting ideas like a fountain might provide some useful answers, but the more detail that you can give the room, the better focused the answers will be.

Around these parts, a plant closing down for deer season is a fairly common occurance, if it's a small operation.

I especially like option 1: To explore the depths and experience them with my own eyes ... 1000 years might go too quickly

I am not a very wise man, but I cannot help but ponder on those old warriors Who, having their fill of death, would shave their heads, and enter the monastery spending the remainder of their days in prayer and meditation. Removing themselves from the field of conflict - what compassion!

I like that ... a gift has value in it's appreciation; otherwise, it is just a nuiscance.

I got out after '91. During the cold war, it felt like protecting people from great evil, but it began feeling more like protecting great evil towards the end.

At 10:28 in the SOFEX clip, the gentleman being interviewed tells a whopper. The only time drug cartels in mexico recieve arms "from the US free market" is when the cost is subsidized by US taxpayer money. AR15's are too expensive compared to other weapon platforms (say, Norinco AK-47's, which come from China, originally). The best source of illegal arms in the US is through the Mexican connection. Boatloads of the stuff coming in, cheaper than we can buy arms in the US, and better quality than is available to the average citizen, unless we build our own. Zetas have US made arms that were manufactured for the military, shipped to the Mexican government, then diverted into their hands. A-2's, M2HB's. I do not know if that pipeline is still open, but that is where they got their firepower originally - NOT from private US citizens. Without very tight regulations and controls, we cannot even have this kind of weaponry in our posession. side note, Norincos ... just about the cheapest, they do get imported as semi automatic rifles that anyone can buy, and aren't too bad for a lightweight sporter. Some of them have issues with the firing pin retention, but there's a replacement kit for that, costs just a few dollars. Yugos and Romaks are better, imo civilian converted Russians best if that's your thing. Bah, I don't like AR's or AK's Gimme something that shoots farther and hits harder, like this: Romanian built PSL 54C with trigger job courtesy of RSA, and a Kalinka optics 4-16x50mm scope and high profile mount. Great for boar hunting, with the ability to switch over to iron sights when you've got a 500+lb tusker charging at you. Sure beats fumbling for a sidearm! I don't know if TPTB are setting up false flags or not, but there are shady people doing devious things ... and if it results in the inability to eliminate agricultural pests effectively, these pigs will absolutely destroy crops. Lost crops = starving people ... and I hate seeing people starve for no good reason. (edit) sorry, put the pic with the original military scope up first by mistake. Not bad up to 200 yards, but pretty loose after that.

Everywhere, just one perfect spheres of colored glass I've lost my marbles

I don't suggest placing armed guards or arming teachers as the ultimate solution, but an interim security measure, until such a time as the deeply rooted ills of our society have been adequately adressed and resolved. Most of the real work lies in taking personal responsibility and working towards building a civilization that respects the lives of others ... should this ever come to pass, we could still walk around with weapons on, but they would be rusting away from disuse .. I wouldn't mind seeing that world emerge.

Greater the scale, the bigger the cracks

Where there are corpses, the birds gather, also. Sky burial is an intresting custom; the body goes back into nature very quickly. The following is apocryphal; any semblence to the experience of any person, living or dead is purely coincidence: There once was a man who, upon undergoing hypnosis, was able to recall a past life as a mule. When asked about the life experience, he said, "The food was plain, but plentiful. I worked hard nearly every day of my life, and my owner beat me repeatedly." Asked if he bore any ill will towards this cruel owner, he replied, "No, he is a saint; if it had not been for the beating, I would not have desired to be born as a man in a future life." Another: A young man on a spiritual pilgramage was passing through a small villiage near the Wudang mountains. From the locals, he learned of a holy man who had been living on one of the peaks, standing upon a rock for the last 130 years. Not entirely believing the tale, but still fascinated by the possibility of meeting one of those legendary hermits who know the secret of life's meaning, the lad climbed up to the peak. There, sure enough, he found a man, balanced upon one foot atop a large boulder, overlooking a gorge. "are you the man the villiagers speak of, who has perched upon that rock for 130 years?" The boy asked. "Yes." The hermit replied. He shifted his weight forward slightly, and rose up off of the ground so that only the tips of his toes remained attached to the earth. The young man thought the question welling up inside him might be impertinent, but could not restrain his curiosity. "What are you doing?" He asked. The hermit lowered himself, and placed his second foot down, turning slightly to look at the youth. "For the last one hundred and thirty years" he said, "I have been working up the courage to jump."

Sociopath.

The missus suggested writing down the troubles on a piece of paper, then disposing of the paper in some way ... a variation on the same conept of "find something to do to adress the problems for which nothing can be done". Sometimes words don't work, though .. it is just raw feeling. Hmm ... bubbles. Fitting a bubble bath into the schedule might be easy enough!

When pondering concepts, either sitting or moving are fine for me; when working with energy, movement to get tuned in, and either movement or stillness to do ... whatever I'm doing at the moment. Sometimes I walk until I find the right place to sit down, or get up and move when the place isn't right for the thought.

I hear they're serving oats and molasses at the holy house of Sinfest .. he IS a demigod, isn't he?

I ... have just realised ... I .... I'm not doing ... enough horse stance!

Eggnog and gingerbread ... mmm

The following announcement has just been handed down from our beloved guru: "The demonic identity of the false prophet declaring Dec. 21st as the end of the world has been revealed, and the unclean spirit has been bound for 1000 years. Do not be dismayed, and remember to continue the daily recitation of the mantra: Owa, Tegu, Siam! Enlightenment will surely come upon you."

Very important: if some final battle between the forces of good and evil is going to be a central part of the dogma, do not provide a date for this event. Time catching up and putting the lie to it can unhinge the entire plan.

True, that - gotta delegate.

I dunno, Aaron ... that sounds like a lot of work .. Isn't avoiding real honest work part of the attraction in being a cult leader?

Speaking of side effects ... a While back, one of the major pharma companies noted a high incidence of smoking cessation in patients recieving one of it's anti-depressant medications. So ... they lowered the dose, repackaged the pill, got a new patent, and marketed it as a means of quitting smoking! Plenty of people took the drug for this purpose, and it did help many in some ways .. but with the usual sleep disorders, mood alterations, and outright psychotic episodes.

I was just watching the Falun Dafa clip ... the thing that those in positions of power seem to fear the most is that the people will grow to such a degree that they will no longer have any use for others to rule them; they may be responsible for themselves.

So far, you seem to be doing well: keeping mindful of the present moment, some looking ahead to be useful in the future. You are helping where you can, but I sense that it is in those areas that cannot be helped that the emotional logjam is starting to form up. Sharing burdens does help to lighten them, and you are doing this, also. If you can take the time to have a journey into the countryside, a day spent with nature can be very cleansing. A few very nice brooks out near Harrisburg come to mind, but something similar might be found near philly, too. Something to try might be to stop at a florist, and pick up a few flowers. Nothing fancy, but look for nice, full, concave petals. At one of these brooks, have a seat and get yourself settled into a state of calm reflection. One by one, pick the petals from the flowers, thinking on those things that are making you feel sad. Place the petals on the surface of the water, and allow the brook to carry them downstream. This excercise can also be accomplished in meditation at home (and you can make it summer by the brook, also, which is nice). The problems will not go away, but the sadness can be lessened with this technique.