Holding the Attention — A List

 

“Tell me what you pay attention to and I will tell you who you are.”
— Jose Ortega y Gasset

 

My attention tends to shift amidst many different areas and I never know which facet of my being will come into play. Here are some of the things that tend to capture it these days:

 

      • Whispered words and Loud conversations
      • How the light falls on the leaves – Light in general and darkness and the interplay between the two
      • People’s hearts – People’s eyes, spirits and stories as well.
      • My Family
      • Art- Both creating my own and enjoying that of others. Favourites: Dali, Escher. Alex Grey, Austin Osman Spare, Caravaggio, Vincent Van Gogh, Bosch, and lots of others including that of many friends on Tumbler and Face Book.
      • Bad Jokes and Good Wordplay- I love playing with language and making it dance.
      • Books- Favourite writers are Charles deLint, Spider Robinson, Aleister Crowley, Austin Osman Spare, Michael W. Ford, Robert Anton Wilson, Ken Wilber,Neil Gaiman and an almost endless list of others.
      • Archetypes-Myths, Legends, Songs and of course Comics.
      • Music– Of all kinds. My tastes tend to change and evolve. Some favourites currently and perennially: ELP, Queen, Behemoth, Metallica, Neil Young, Dana Owens (Queen Latifah), Watain, Bob Marley, Animals as Leaders, Walk Off the Earth, Acherontas, Postmodern Jukebox, Emme Ya and again I could keep going endlessly
      • People’s conceptions of the universe. I prefer to hear people’s unique takes on spirit as opposed to prepackaged ideas that they gained either at their parent’s knee or their latest conversion. I want to hear the kernel of truth that I believe each of us carries within.These days my studies have taken me more towards the goetia and left-hand path topics tho I am always interested in hearing and discovering truths as each person knows them.

I am always interested in learning more about the people who read this blog. Feel free to share what captures and holds your attention these days
Blessings, G

 

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Questions Asked and AnsweredQuestions Asked and Answered by G A Rosenberg

 

Galactic Building BlocksBuilding Blocks Towards A Cosmic Fractal by G A Rosenberg

Spending TIme

“Do not confuse “duty” with what other people expect of you; they are utterly different. Duty is a debt you owe to yourself to fulfill obligations you have assumed voluntarily. Paying that debt can entail anything from years of patient work to instant willingness to die. Difficult it may be, but the reward is self-respect.
But there is no reward at all for doing what other people expect of you, and to do so is not merely difficult, but impossible. It is easier to deal with a footpad than it is with the leech who wants “just a few minutes of your time, please—this won’t take long.” Time is your total capital, and the minutes of your life are painfully few. If you allow yourself to fall into the vice of agreeing to such requests, they quickly snowball to the point where these parasites will use up 100 percent of your time—and squawk for more!
So learn to say No—and to be rude about it when necessary. Otherwise you will not have time to carry out your duty, or to do your own work, and certainly no time for love and happiness. The termites will nibble away your life and leave none of it for you.
(This rule does not mean that you must not do a favor for a friend, or even a stranger. But let the choice be yours. Don’t do it because it is “expected” of you.)”
― Robert A. Heinlein

 

Years ago I realized that while money comes and money goes, that the main currency we have is our time and our attention. This gets affirmed to me daily when I see people doing anything possible to get money, including spending almost every moment they have. It’s true that money pays for food and shelter and our so called basic needs but any of our other needs such as companionship, love, relaxation, meditation and pursuit of enjoyment it is time that becomes the more valuable commodity. Yet so often we are spendthrift with our time, doling it out to everyone who asks or demands it leaving very little for ourselves. That’s ok if we are living the moments we spend on others and ourself, fulfilling our true selves (in Thelemic terms our true will). But if what we do with our time has no value than we are wasting that currency. We can do better.
Blessings, G

 

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Rise or FallRise or Fall? by G A Rosenberg

 

Crimson and AmythystCrimson and Amethyst by G A Rosenberg

Quote of the Day – July 10 2012

“Never try to do anything that is outside of who you are. A forced smile is a sign of what feels wrong in your heart, so recognize it when it happens. Living a lie will reduce you to one.”
― Ashly Lorenzana

For only the second or third time since I started doing the daily quote I am including a quote that I am having a difficult time with. Oh the basic idea I agree with that ideally we should live our lives in such a way as to express honestly who we are at any moment. Yet in the lives most of us live there seem to arise times when it is necessary to smile. Showing anger at your boss in social situations does not lend to job security. Becoming frustrated around in-laws is not conducive to harmony in marriage.

I am not advocating phoniness. In these types of situations I try to find reasons to smile. It’s all a matter of focus. Do you pay attention to your boss belittling you in subtle or not so subtle jabs or do you enjoy the decor of the resturant or the beautiful hillside and sunset? There is always something positive to focus on tho sometimes it can be difficult to do it. Tho with practice it becomes easier. For me it comes down to this Do I want to be the guy who is usually and easily frustrated or the guy who finds something to enjoy in most situations?
Blessings, G

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Forces at  Work by G A  Rosenberg

Quote of the Day – November 28 2011

“The ego is nothing other than the focus of conscious attention.
–Alan Watts

and what we focus our attention on prospers so may haps the ego has function after all. It must otherwise why would we have it? Have been thinking a lot about subjective reality. When we communicate what do we communicate to each other? We communicate our own subjective reality, no more no less. By sharing our experiences, thoughts, senses with others, we both increase our understanding and elicit theirs with the end result being that we gain greater understanding into whatever parts of reality we share. The better our communication, the more accurate our view of objective reality may become. Perhaps why honesty becomes so highly valued. A liar can fuck with other’s reality to the extent that they let themselves believe him
Namaste, GAR

Two versions of the picture tonight with vastly different colour schemes

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Soup’s On by G A Rosenberg

Soup’s On (Gold-Green Variation) by G A Rosenberg