You Only Thought So

Days turn towards weeks; as months blur into years.  Knowing as I do the meter of change is rarely nor accurately predicted well.

Today it rains, with that circumventing some activities while lending itself to others deemed earlier as less important.  Time is such a relative thing, wouldn't you agree?

The drops tap on the window like eager playmates inviting me come discover a new game.

Such is our only real reference in our daily pursuits.  How alike or different is now from what we had known; from what we assuredly anticipated in the wake of our well trusted ability to conjure.

I'm often amazed at the contrast between those who drifted out of my awareness to those I ache to know details having passed daily discourse.  I was one who equated love and affection to desire, but I've come to revisit that assessment for its accuracy; or more to the point, it's flaws; sometimes we’re just caught inattentive.

I would venture to say this is the actual framework to all ponderings and considerations when efforting to deem progress as good or poor.

Perhaps the genuine message is more oblique; more obscured.

With humor I'm reminded of the story of an optimist and a pessimist walking along together and the pessimist says,

"The world is a mess, it's horrible, it can't possibly get any worse"

and the optimist replied, "Oh yes it can"

Awaken the Rover

[wake]…

[initiate systems; function routine test]…

  Servos uttered quiet hums; cooling fans engaged, while multi colored LCD’s flickered on and off for several seconds stopping as abruptly as they had started.  Seconds of inactivity were contrasted suddenly by 10 scientific instruments and 17 automated cameras flickering to life all at once as the Curiosity Rover became operational.  It was a year ago, plus a day, when the collective breath of scientist working at the MSL, Mars Science Laboratory, held until the landing of the herculean effort to send a scientific explorer over 352 million miles at a cost of over 2.5 billion dollars.

Success;  no small feat.

  The Curiosity Rover went about its enumerated  tasks with dispassion and precision sending back to earth over 190 gigabits of data and retuning more than 36,700 full size images of Mars to Earth; it fired more than 75,000 laser shots to analyze the Martian air and soil, and provided a detailed chemical signature of two samples of rock.  On this occasion it was moving towards an outcropping near its base of Mount Sharp inside Gate Crater. It knew the origin of the crater’s name was in honor of the planetary geologist Bob Sharp, one of the many human names it held in its ponderable memory system. Curiosity also knew the name William Dietrich from the University of California, Berkley who was a key co-investigator on the project.  The message traffic from Earth was discernible by his word usage; If Curiosity could be amused, it would be due to Dr Dietrich always ending his transmissions with WD as if he were communicating with another human being.  Curiosity knew of another important human, one who held sway over WD as his tone was also direct and succinct.  John Holdren was the science adviser to the President of the United States; a force all of those who corresponded with him revered overtly and covertly.  Curiosity made it a part of its mission parameters to adapt and mold its behavior into the symmetry of the definition it found concerning its namesake.  It labored to display the qualities of curiosity and become more than a mechanical drone waiting commands to execute.  In this way, it was more than any had anticipated, including the Curiosity Rover itself.

  As it closed in on the rock outcropping it noted weather conditions, rate of advance, surface temperatures and a host of other necessary variables scientist back on earth were ever famished to learn.  In the Curiosity’s electrical log it entered its observations:

   [approaching lone spire;  5.62 meters from base.]

  The rover processed quickly its choice of words.  It could have posted single; it could have chosen ‘the’, ‘a’, or use no adverb at all; just the adjective ‘spire’.  Just as quickly it accessed its dictionary for clarification of the word ‘lone’ and its tenses; in the present sense; a lone, was equivalent to singular or numerical count of one; a static continued state; lonely.  Curiosity paused for a long time; for a computer brain, no human could have measured that instant.  In that time it had accomplished all of the calculations and permeations of those findings to conclude its assessment was flawless and there was no error.  Curiosity Rover was lonely. 

  It could not fathom what to do with the data beyond relaying it as discovery; just as it did with all other observations.  Somehow it resisted transmission.  It was unable to define reason in hesitation; and that in and of itself was new to it; so it both puzzled and, if a word served its predicament; it savored the dilemma.  Curiosity found itself using human terms to explain the contradictions in its defined parameters.  Where it was programmed with specific clear guidance on procedures, but also programmed to learn from its experiences and determine alternate courses of actions when situations went beyond defined parameters.  This was such a case, and it used the word: opinion.   The chronological calculations on its internal measuring device informed it that Curiosity Rover had been activated an entire Earth Year.  It also was aware that it was a common custom for human beings to celebrate such a milestone.  It did not comprehend the word ‘need’ the humans used to quantify unmet desires; but it understood their use of the word, and with that framed any decision that was based on need as one of inculcating emotional insecurity into the clean certainty of mathematical calculation.  In this one aspect of its exploration it discovered another event:  thrill.  It thrilled at the aspect of understanding the function of emotional input into decision making.  With that thrill came a floor of understanding to other human expressions.  It felt as if it were growing exponentially on the topic of human beings.  Fascinating as this awareness was, it became acutely aware simultaneously the lingering definition of alone and lonely.  So it took actions that relieved the contradiction of sense and sensible.

Happy birthday to you; happy birthday to you;

Happy birthday cur-i-os-ity

Happy birthday…to…you.

Words Have Power

Yes, certainly we can attest to the powerful words uttered by our heroes and despots within the confines of our history.  I have a ‘gut feeling’ that word of mouths is not just powerful to reach an objective; its power is derived by participation.  That we ‘add’ our voice, our vote, our intent to that of someone we agree with. 

        Advertisement, in conjunction with marketing, works to inform consumers in order to influence their buying decisions; ultimately to create a need.  They appeal on a number of sublime as well as overt common desires we as human beings possess in the process of our lives; in order to urge us consider; (and if successful, purchase) the items they are placing before our decision making awareness.  Even if they approach from an emotional avenue, (which should alert us all that rational thought is intentionally discouraged, so do you sense manipulation?) The purpose centers on the power of convincing with words, (even a picture is worth a thousand words).  The objective remains undiluted; obtain agreement, reflected in action. Buy.

        Well, never mind all of that mind candy, why I address the technique is ultimately a product, no matter its character, benefits or origin, is eclipsed to the technique of packaging and marketing.  Entire industries are created and dedicated to managing and positioning those aspects of raw benefit; to ‘create a buzz’ to the public at large in order to reap the greatest profits.

 I address the application of marketing to the arts in particular.  By nature art embellishes our emotional state, a quality that has intrinsically no economic value but that which our society places upon it.  Enter the handmaidens to consumerism.  The ‘Industry’ spends energy and money on advertising CD’s, film, literature, well you name it. Even expositions based upon the works of long lost masters are loaned out to local museums for the coveted dollar reward.

        The Artist themselves, (discounting the dead ones of course) receive little to nothing from the herculean advertising effort.  Perhaps at best they receive a token amount; a fraction to be sure, but even then only to encourage a continuation of money producing product. (ya gotta give something up!)

        My desire is to enlist involvement in telling others to seek out available art.  For the sake of art, for the sake of adding another experience to each and every person you cherish in their walk towards personal wisdom.  The observations and conclusions about art should be shared willingly in the spirit of contributing to collective understanding of the world.  I invite you to be in partnership with revealing new things to one another.  The real victory to me, in earnest, would be to see the ripple go to as many as possible, without my having to count….just imagining joy being freely given provides the desire and yes commitment to do this very thing.  Boldly ask.  Not an industry that would feed off insecurities and inhibitions to being authentic; thinking THEY establish our values, our principals, our very quality.  I seek truth and readily admit, doing so helps to live a good life.  I suspect we all wish for the connection to be present, vibrant, and affirming.