DAILY PHOTO: Cricketers at Maharani Laxmi Bai College
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Author Archives: B Gourley
UNITED STATES LIMERICK
There was a philosopher from the USA
Who was always charging into the fray.
He’d take either side --
Go deep or go wide --
So long as said fray didn’t come to gunplay.
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PROMPT: Hardest Personal Goal
What was the hardest personal goal you’ve set for yourself?
Levitation. I’ve failed time and again.
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FIVE WISE LINES [October 2025]
I had better never see a book
ralph waldo emerson; The american scholar
than to be warped by its attraction clean out of my own orbit,
and made a satellite instead of a system.
Free should the scholar be, — free and brave.
Ralph waldo emerson; The American Scholar
If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine, it is lethal.
Paulo coelho
What you’re supposed to do when you
Maya angelou
don’t like a thing is change it.
If you can’t change it,
change the way you think about it.
Don’t complain.
No man ever steps in the same river twice,
Heraclitus
for it’s not the same river
and he’s not the same man.
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DAILY PHOTO: Sas-Bahu Twin Temples, Gwalior
PLAY: “A Streetcar Named Desire” by Tennessee Williams
A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee WilliamsMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Available online – Internet Archive
I’ve never seen the play, nor the movie. Of course, this is one of those works that has so scrawled itself across pop-culture that it’s impossible to go in without some reference from it kicking around in one’s brain, be it the pained shout of “STELLA!” or character names like “Blanche DuBois” or “Stanley Kowalski.” Even the name of the plantation on which the fallen socialite sisters grew up, Belle Reve, has been lent to a prison for supernatural villains in the world of DC Comics.
At the play’s heart are two sisters raised in a wealthy Southern family. One, Stella, has adapted well to the family’s fall from grace. Stella has married a fellow who is rough around the edges (to say the least,) Stanley, but Stella is satisfied that Stanley is a dependable provider — even if he does rough her up a bit now and again. The other sister, Blanche, hasn’t coped nearly so well. Blanche lies perpetually to try to shield herself from reality — and to present a more appealing reality to others. It is when Blanche, having nowhere else to go, moves into the small New Orleans apartment of Stanley and Stella that the tension is set to form the play’s story.
I enjoyed reading this play. It’s well-paced and effectively mixes comedy and drama. It’s in character building where the play shines. The main characters are well-defined and behave quite believably within the context of each one’s neuroses and vices. The constant conflict between Blanche and Stanley drives the story.
I’d highly recommend this for readers of plays and / or of American Literature.
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ARMENIA LIMERICK
There was an artist from Armenia
Who worked in many a media.
Work iconoclastic…
Or pornographic;
Often it started straitlaced but got seedy-ya.
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PROMPT: Favorite Artists
Those who cross boundaries. William Blake with painting and poetry. Yue Fei with martial and poetic arts. Rabindranath Tagore with music and poetry. Da Vinci with painting and sculpture. Weird Al with accordion music and comedy.
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BOOK: “The Virtues of the Table” by Julian Baggini
The Virtues of the Table: How to Eat and Think by Julian BagginiMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher Site – Granta
This book examines the nexus of food and philosophy, from the ethics of butchery to the virtue of authenticity to whether hedonism is a necessary component of eating philosophically. Much of the book challenges or debates conventional wisdoms such as whether local foods are inherently better, whether dining is always and everywhere a social activity (or should be,) and whether organic is always preferable. The book covers a wide variety of topics including: mindfulness, gratitude, skepticism, fasting, willpower, spontaneity, technology, etc.
The book offers many ideas for reflection though sometimes it felt like it rambled on for more than the issue in question necessitated.
Each chapter ends with a discussion of a particular food and its preparation as thought relevant by the author. This is a nice grounding mechanism for discussion that tends otherwise to be cerebral and philosophic.
I’d recommend this book for anyone interested in thinking more about food and its intersection with philosophy of life.
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Tiger Riding for Beginners 