Friday, January 9, 2009

Earth Acne


My girlfriend and I have a theory about the earth, that it is much like the human body with hotbeds of eruption and then landscapes of inactivity, that the body's greasy, sweaty areas of glandular excitement like the base of the nose with its blackheads, whiteheads, and pustules, or the tushy/vagina/penis region with all of its discharge, can be likened to those places on earth that host war and mayhem generation upon generation. Maybe there is some barometric hormonal earth thing going on that just keeps everyone in those regions all whizzed up.

This theory came about as we lay in bed and discussed Palestine and Jerusalem, the middle East in general, northern Ireland. The earth's equivalent of the back of a nostril, the mouth, the forehead, places always festering and in turmoil. And then there's Scandanavia. What goes on there? Scandanavia is the back of your hand, a thigh, a smooth and effortless place with nary a zit or boil.

I'm a Jew who certainly does not want to ever experience a genocide or pogrom or even a Bernie Madoff, on the other hand killing can't ever be right. Just as in a family in which hitting is never the answer, how can bombing alongside a school be the answer.

Then again, I'm too much of a Freudian to believe there ever will peace on earth. The earth will bubble over with aggression so long as beings inhabit it. The best we can hope for is to slow it down. Who knows. I am no politico. It just doesn't seem right. This violence. Violence begets more violence, does not make the world a safer or better place.

Meanwhile we have such a kitty saga going on. It will take days to tell. Until I begin that story I highly recommend eggplant parmesan with goat cheese instead of mozarella.

And Newman's Limeade mixed with Seltzer.

And warm sake.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are not your only reader...just added you to favorites..your writing is witty and entertaining and I am out here, keep blogging and thanks. I can relate.

Anonymous said...

Well come back

Anonymous said...

Don't jump, but here we go with another reader confessional, confessing to reading you. (Boo!)

Glad to see you back again. I kept getting sad looking at the cartoon of the crying puppy.

And so's you have company in your misery: my fear is that the earth will simply bubble over, period. Not with agression, just with plain ole excess heat.

Now, to rummage in the pantry for some sake. Thanks for the tip.

Anonymous said...

Pretty interesting, a gay intellectual. I live in Manchester myself next to the 313. Whether gays, blacks, jews, it's nice to know someone with an advance sense of humor and pleasant intellect live in my town.

Valued Families said...

Glad you are back! This equally crabby gay mom in Wisconsin is happy to hear other voices from the trenches.

GIsen said...

I just discovered your blog and what laughs. I'd read more if I have internet access at home,but that should change once all the debt of moving is done way. I'll pop in when I can.

Terry said...

I agree killing's not ever right.

But these problems aren't just somewhere over there. The use of most of the world's resources by the seemingly unblemished rich nations gets played out in grabs for oil in the mideast (why we spend billions and send weapons and troops there). The violence manifests here too - fueled by drug trade it's mostly in our poorest communities.

All this sounds like tired political diatribe, but I have first hand experience. Working with kids who've lost too many friends. Then losing my brother on 9/11.

But I also see great hope in the simplicity of what you say - there are many answers beyond killing if we seek (and invest) in them. That's why I joined September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows (www.peacefultomorrows.org). The name is from a Martin Luther King Quote which supports your premise: "Wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows." We've met with groups in conflict around the world who are coming together as families to break the cycles of violence. This includes Israeli and Palestinian families who've lost loved ones to the fighting (a group called the Parents Circle).

But to get at the solutions we do need to look honestly at the full picture, and our (even if it is unwitting) complicity in it.

Anonymous said...

I really agree to this, I believe that we are the universe, the man is the sun, the woman is the moon and the stars are its children.

The earth is like a tiny molecule in our body, and as you zoom out all the planets, solar systems, stars etc form the body of a human in a metophoric way.

I love this post, and it is much on par with the way I see the world.

Thanks for the inspiration.

Unknown said...

Hey, I'd like to post your blog on my blog, and have you do the same. I'm www.chermom.wordpress.com and the title is Middle Aged Queer Mom. Thanks!

Unknown said...

Want to trade links? I am Middle Aged Queer Mom at chermom.wordpress,com. Thanks fro writing!

Unknown said...

Oops! I AM middle aged- I already asked:-)

wholesalers dublin said...

I was amazed how wonderful your thought was and I am looking forward for more interesting topic you can share with your subscribers and readers. Thanks a lot.