Perception is Reality... Or Not.

Each of us views the world around him* in a different way. Sometimes we agree on our observations and sometimes we do not. And, like everything human, it gets steadily more complex. Even if we agree on a basic observation, we may disagree as soon as detail is added or requested.

The sky is blue (except in Los Angeles) but what shade of blue? Cobalt? Azure? Robin's egg?

"Let's go out to eat."
"Fine, I'd like that. Where?"

"That shirt is nice and so are those pants... but not together."

(Speaking of which, why are pants plural but bra is singular?)

And those are differences that are unlikely to start a war. Trivial ones. And they start enough arguments on their own. Which can lead to divorces... which are like wars fought with lawyers where all but the lawyers lose.

Mostly, we appreciate fine perception. The artist who sees fine detail and can render it in his paintings, for example. The photographer who manages to find that clever juxtaposition of images within his focus.

But only if we agree with them, isn't that so?

Headlines create images in my mind which sometimes seem impossible. For instance, this recent one:

Investigators comb ocean for Air France evidence

Are they going to change the waves any? Where would they get a comb big enough to do the job? Will they offer a trim and perhaps a tint?

I often dislike my perception since it seems a bit twisted. I want things to be literal, clear, well defined. And life just isn't that way. So I distort what I see and hear even more just to amuse myself.

Sometimes I do not have to do anything... just wait as facts emerge. As in David Carradine's untimely death. I always enjoyed his acting and his choice of movies (mostly 'B' types). I would rather he had had a heart attack or stroke or something and died peacefully in his sleep, however.



Sotomayor Breaks Her Ankle


She apparently sustained a small fracture when stumbling while hurrying to her plane which took her to D.C. for meetings with senators. Excuse me? Aren't we supposed to arrive early so we can get through security? Wouldn't you expect a Supreme Court Justice to be cautious and careful in everything he or she does?

It's an absurd world.

* The English language sometimes annoys me because it has no singular pronoun for male and female... like "herm". That would work because the only other use for it is a hardly used nickname for Herman and for cults related to Hermes.

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