But it goes beyond that. Democracy is a great IDEA. Unfortunately, thanks to the mindset of much of humanity, it really does not work for large populations. When our view of the world is fairly divided by two opposite extremes, large groups of humans will rarely effectively agree on ANYTHING. While a number like 51% is a MATHEMATICAL majority, in terms of social conscience, it is not a majority at all. Democracy can only truly be effective if 1. Everyone’s vote carries equal value, and 2. MOST people agree on the same fundamental ideals.

Our nation is not a democracy. It never has been. It uses democratic principles in the process of government, but it is not a democracy. It stops being a democracy as soon as we allow one person to make decisions for many (despite THEIR opinion). It stops being a democracy when the vaunted vote of the many can be overridden by the few.  It stops being a democracy when the government lives by a separate set of rules then the governed. It stops being a democracy when money has more value than life.

True, voting has more impact on a local level. But even there the division of ideals can be very evident. Laws are only effective if they are enforced and obeyed; putting more laws on the book rarely does much of anything except bog down the legal system. And many laws are not about justice and protection, but about profit for specific groups. On top of all that, thanks to the media being all about revenue and propaganda and NOT about the sharing of accurate information … even those who do their homework will often find it difficult to know the truth of the issues presented.

THAT is why I don’t vote. Because I don’t believe my vote is anything other than a statement of opinion.

Having said this, I just finished filling out my voter registration card. I am going to vote this year. “Why?” Some might wonder. Here is why:

Donald Trump is dangerous.

It’s as simple as that. The problem is not the man himself, but what he represents. He essentially is nothing more than a narcissistic blowhard; nothing more than a three-year old child craving attention. Anyone can shout loudly. People such as that only become dangerous when others pay attention to them. They become dangerous when others actively SUPPORT them. A dictator is nothing more than a person with strong ideas without others willingly doing as they dictate. Donald Trump is dangerous because the hatred and intolerance he preaches HAS SUPPORTERS. Quite a few of them in fact.

This is why I am choosing to vote. I still think the system is flawed; that my vote is really basically just an opinion. But this is an opinion that MUST be shared. Hillary was not my first choice. But not for the reasons most people think. I think she would be a quite effective president. The hatred and nonsense claiming she is unfit is nothing more than thinly masked misogyny. I just thought she might maintain the status quo, when I believe the focus SHOULD be on fixing the whole system. But to think that Donald Trump is in ANY way a superior candidate than she is speaks more about who YOU are than who they are.

No government has power unless the people give it to them. We tend to forget that, or fear the consequences of standing against the powers that be, but if the many hold strong against the few … they can be the victor in any conflict. As long as intolerance still exists in this world … I will not sit idle. As long as one group of people thinks they are somehow superior to others based on something as flimsy as the color of their skin or the ancient documents they read … I will not sit idle. As long as people think that owning the most toys is more important than compassion … I will not sit idle.

This is not about America. I believe nationalism has lived beyond its usefulness. It is time we start thinking about the Global Community (this is why I started my PAX Nation project). Donald Trump will not make this country “great” again. What he , and those who follow him, will do is set the very concept of democracy back 200 years. He will turn our nation into a caricature of what it was intended to be, and in the process destabilize the entire world. This is ultimately about the future of humanity … even the very planet. It is time we shifted away from selfishness and greed; away from fear and separatism. It is time we relearned the art of cooperation and the power of compassion.

This is why I am voting this year. I WILL NOT SIT IDLE.

It is time to replace divisiveness with compassion! Show your support!

Have you registered to vote yet?

If a staunch NON voter says he is going to vote … maybe YOU should think about it too. Complacency is the ally of oppression. If you agree with ANY of what I said, it is time to VOTE. There is still time. REGISTER TODAY!!

It is time to replace THOUGHT with ACTION!”  DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!

The post Standing up for what is right first appeared on thrumyeyes.

Thus the blog started morphing into a blog AND a “store” … rather unsuccessfully I might add. My first attempt involved a LOT of time, resources and effort … resulting in a slightly better site that had the POTENTIAL to make a little money, but not really very well. I had all sorts of issues with both functionality and updating … forgetting the whole aspect of nobody knowing it is actually there. But me being the stubborn cuss that I am (and also being in serious need of an influx of funds of any sort), I am revisiting the whole store idea, though coming at it from a different angle.

I have updated the site over the last few days, so that it is (hopefully) more navigable. I have made it possible to see ALL of the photos I have in the media library, and also made it possible to BUY any of them with a variety of product possibilities. I have numerous photos from my many other blogs that I want to share here, and will begin that process shortly. I will continue blogging here, but with a different focus. Where once the blog WAS the site, now this is a (very) large collection of photos that happens to have a blog attached. My blogging will shift into more about the hows, whats, and whys of my passion for photography rather than just sharing the occasional photo. Don’t worry, I will continue to share every photo worth sharing (and probably quite a few NOT). But the blog itself may contain a few more words than has been the norm (starting with THIS).

I have the product, the means, and a fair amount of skill. Now all I need is customers.

If you are interested, take a look at the types of products available. Or just browse the site and start filling up your shopping cart. If you have no interest in buying anything here (I won’t be offended, I swear), then maybe you can share the site with others who might be. As an added incentive, and an official welcome to thru my eyes by taochild …

The post Change is in the air first appeared on thrumyeyes.

What IS love, and why is it so hard for some to find it?

I recently … well more accurately – often … put some thought into this matter, and suddenly, in that crazy, eye-opening way that so often floors me:

UNDERSTOOD

Love can only be defined by individuals. It is not possible to put a dictionary definition on it; a distinct THIS IS LOVE, because it only works correctly if we each figure it out for ourselves. If we constantly pursue someone ELSE’s definition of love, then it will never quite match us. We will always be wanting. So for all out there seeking love … if you are having a tough time finding it, maybe you need to understand what you are actually looking for first. For only YOU can truly understand what YOU mean by love.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

The post Fanning the flames first appeared on thrumyeyes.

Hmmmm

It started off as an adventure. Gradually it morphed in walk-about. Then it shifted into a whole new realm … maybe the world of dreams. But as a I ramble about this, I am clarifying for myself. What I am doing is simply LIVING LIFE.

Finally.

That said, part of the lack of posting about life recently is being too busy living it, part of it is living said life in the woods far from any communications capabilities other than smoke signals. Fortunately, I am momentarily pretending to be civilized, so time for a bit of an update. Team Idiot finally escaped the dangerous jungles of suburban Cleveland, managing to make it all the way to the safety of the Spiritual Way Station known as Damascus, VA. Unfortunately, the spiritual world is both of light AND shadow. It seems this past winter shadow seeped in deep, and instead of the bright greeting we were hoping to find, we were instead met with the worst of the human spirit. Apparently free and happy spirits are not welcome to the spiteful spirits that actually try to dominate this otherwise beautiful haven.

But I digress. Back in part of the heart of Appalachia, the team intends to hang here until the Bacchanalian Fest known as Trail Days is over, then decide where to wander to next. Gonna find a place to sit down, do artsy stuff, sell said artsy stuff, hopefully rendering financial issues less of a P.I.T.A.  I will personally try to actually finish one or three of the ever growing number of projects I keep creating.

That was an awful lot of words to get to my ultimate point, that I have gone and started yet ANOTHER blog, kind of spin-off from this blog. Our newest member of Team Idiot is Brown Dog, who has left the city for the first time to explore the wonders of nature. It’s a work in project, but check out …

THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF BROWN DOG.

The post This time I took a left first appeared on thrumyeyes.

But, once again thanks to advances in technology, we have plenty of things to fear in this world, so I will conveniently ignore that part and focus on the positive. This whole journey, that started as a digital escape from a cave, became a plan for a couple of dreamers to take over the world (at least THEIR world), and ended up with a slew of unexpected tales that were not in any way expected … is far from over. However as some doors shut and others opened, a maze of choices became apparent. I have been so busy wandering this maze lately that I have neglected actually documenting the journey, which has not only increased my own confusion, but left a few interested parties hanging. In other, less long-winded words … time for an update!

Of the original idiots, THE Idiot is now an artist of note. He has shifted his talent as a writer into equally amazing talent as a painter, and the only thing that really stops his works from becoming invaluable masterpieces is that he is … in fact … still alive and painting. He has evolved from Notable Idiot to a man with a superpower. Shelbygrl has reemerged, doing her best to live a happy life despite the various roadblocks obstacles some trickster deities keep tossing in front of her. My newer hiking companions have all continued on with there lives, though Grey Wolf may be starting the trail fresh. And then there is me, myself, and I.

Ironically, I seem to know the less about where the three of US are going then my companions.

My physical journey with a destination turned into a mental journey with multiple destinations, and now it is a spiritual journey where not only is the destination unclear, but I am not even sure of the path I am ON. I now have THREE manuscripts in the work, NINE pseudo active blogs (and several more I have a hand in), two of them theoretically to earn money, one to consolidate, one to save the world, and the rest to entertain or at least generate a thought or three. I am physically sort of stranded in Ohio at the moment, which was not on ANY path that I envisioned taking.

Despite the multiple projects, lack of direction, occasional battles with dark lords, and horrible diet, I oddly feel I am right where I need to be.

This blog will get a bit of an overhall in the near future, as I have been doing with the others. I am working on pulling all the parts of me into a coherent whole. I don’t know what the final product (or products) will be, but if anyone is still curious … stay tuned!

The post Digging out of the snow first appeared on thrumyeyes.

Being the excellent planner that I am not, I checked routes on Google. To the bar; from THAT bar to “MY” bar … er … um … office. Filled out an online application, got an email saying come in for a talk, and the process was started. Of course in my usual perfect timing, this day it decided to snow. Oh well. Walking in a light snow can actually be quite refreshing. I walked to he potential job site, actually FOUND it with only slight difficulty, had my ten minute canned interview (stay tuned for results), then began the walk to the office to get some REAL work done.

Pause for sarcastic laughter.

It is one of the many ironies that govern my life that the more “civilized” and area is, the less capable I am of navigating it. Put me in the woods, and I will rarely get lost. Put me in something man-made, like say a city or a mall, and I will be lost for hours. I am glad (?) to say yesterday was no different. I apparently totally misread the map for my return journey. Add to that the lowering temperature, the increasing snow, and my tendency to go into the “zone” when conditions become less than comfortable, in no time I was … completely unsure where I was.

I am one who travels by landmarks. Like trees and rocks. Stock buildings, highways and advertising signs completely baffle me, especially when they keep repeating themselves. After a few, “I’ll turn here, it is bound to take me somewhere,” mishaps, I finally ended up somewhere that there was potential for warmth and better yet … directions. I shed what remained of my pride and … dun dun dun … asked. I may be remembering incorrectly at this point, but I am pretty sure the answer was, “You are in the wrong state.”

Finally I figured out where I needed to be, roughly 5 miles That-a-way. Fortunately it was now getting darker, colder, and snowier, ensuring I didn’t settle down in someone’s yard for a nap. So after a walking only about nine miles out of my way, I finally made it to the “office”, I stayed long enough to thaw out before I skied back to my room to crash for the night.

So basically I walked roughly 13 miles and got slightly hypothermic for a ten minute interview for a job I may or may not get. All in all a rather productive day.

The post Return of a footsore Idiot first appeared on thrumyeyes.

If I didn’t believe it before, I sure do now. What we NEED and what we WANT are rarely the same thing. Maybe true understanding will come when they are.

I have learned so much in recent weeks, ironically much of it in the last few days. I expected to face physical and mental challenges on this adventure … what I did NOT expect is to come face to face with my deepest fears; to stare despair directly in the face. I recently posted this in the Social Media world:

Achieving the heights means looking deeply into the depths, and going the other way. A true test of character – how we deal with despair.

This particular lesson I learned in a very direct and painful way. I have had a VERY rough few days. Anyone who actually bothers to follow me online in any way may have noticed a trend in my recent status updates … this was all part of my new lesson. Without getting repetitive, I will just list a few things that I have most recently learned (or re-learned yet again). Maybe others will take something out of it … maybe no one will even see the list. Either way, putting it in words ensures the lessons, taking it from the realm of ephemeral to the solid state. Maybe I will actually benefit this time?

Life lesson time:

• This is really a reminder that I seem to keep needing … EVERYTHING in life is based on choice. Love, hate, happy, sad, pain, pleasure … EVERYTHING. The image we see in the mirror is perceived ENTIRELY how we CHOOSE to. You don’t like it, change your perception.
• Ultimately, the only person we can rely on to make our lives what we want is ourselves. Others will come along who will help or hinder, but only WE can make ourselves into the person we want to be. The moment we relinquish this power to another we have basically failed ourselves.
• A sense of humor may be even more important than a sense of hope.
• Life is ALWAYS precious. ALL life. Anyone who does not recognize this fact has seriously missed the point.
• Barring some drastic cosmic event, tomorrow will always be another day. Which means that WHATEVER may have happened today will now be the past. Instead of living life as if today would be our last, maybe we should live it as if today is our first; as if we were just born. Maybe if we choose to experience life with the wonder of discovery instead of in a desperate effort to not miss anything, we would have fewer difficulties.
• Happiness is not really my ultimate goal. ALL emotions have value. The key is to incorporate them all into the Ideal Me, to own them, not to let them own me. The simple truth is sometimes there really is nothing to be happy about. Pretending it does not make the “bad” things go away. But if we just remember that difficulties are ALWAYS temporary, and do our best to do what we NEED to do, happiness will return.

This list could go on and on. Like I said, I got slammed with a barrage of epiphanies recently. But I guess the rest of the lessons have to wait for the proverbial book. Which is one of the things I need to complete to finally make me the me I wanna be.

Stay tuned. Maybe I will start getting it right this time around.

The post Walk a mile in my shoes … or better yet in my mind first appeared on thrumyeyes.

He walked. And walked. And walked. Then walked some more. As he walked, worlds were created and destroyed. Thoughts paraded in an endless stream, and then were no more. Sadness opened the floodgates, anger beat holes in the walls, and curiosity did its show and tell. And the man continued to walk.

Sometimes the little voice inside the man, the voice of wisdom … the voice of censure … the voice of creativity … the still small voice that should be heard but is so often ignored … spoke to him. It said that maybe he should ask for directions. The man answered his voice, “How can I ask directions when I don’t know where I am going?” The voice then said that there were people wondering where he was … maybe even concerned about him. Again the man flippantly answered, “I’d tell them where I was if I actually knew.”

The man walked on.

The still small voice, not to be deterred, got wily. It appealed to the one thing the man rarely ignored … his hunger. With this backup, the man decided that he would stop walking … at least for the moment. He found the nearest place to sit and eat (at this point no longer so near), and stopped his feet for a bit. The still small voice took advantage of the pause, and finally got the lost man’s attention.

After eating, the man considered what the voice had been telling him. He also considered maybe actually picking a destination. As these thoughts bounced around the emptiness inside, a couple with a cute young girl came in to order some food. Shortly thereafter, a woman came in with an equally cute and young boy. As far as the man could tell, these people did not know each other.

This did not deter the young girl. She was so excited to see the young boy, that they were immediately friends. For several minutes they interacted on a level of pure joy, giggling and laughing. It was a pure, innocent moment. It made everyone there, including the lost man, smile with the simple love and happiness of the moment. The man thought to himself, “Yes, that’s it.” The still small voice agreed.

Suddenly the persistent shadows; the enemies of innocence, came rushing into the room. It dawned on the man that his enjoyment of the moment would so easily mark him as something not to be trusted in this world gone mad. He was a nameless wanderer; a stranger. If ANYTHING happened to these children in the immediate future he would be the automatic scapegoat, the demon in the room.

The moment was made. The moment was lost.

Shortly after this stark and ugly thought, the little boy left, and the little girl slipped into a screaming tantrum. The man, always alert for lessons to be learned, wondered what the moral of THIS story was.

Even the still small voice has not answered him yet.

The post A morality tale first appeared on thrumyeyes.

For instance this particular tale, which is labeled (now somewhat inaccurately) a Tale of  a Trail, has grown so exotic that even those of us living it are not completely believing all aspects. It started as an attempt for two slightly scarred by life kindred spirits trying to find something they both felt they had lost. Months later, we both are in the process of exploring what it is we may have actually needed … again ironically barely following the path we set out on. Mark, Idiot Extraordinaire and Dream Starter, thought he would regain his life and heal by a healthy little stroll through the woods with a friend. He may have indeed regained life and healing … yet he never even set foot on the trail. Not only has he become a master artist that can still be successful without having to spare an ear, but he is returning to his literary genius persona with a …

 … NEW BLOG …

In the mean time, I am still on walk-about, trying to figure IT all out. I am more and more realizing that I need to stop looking for what I want and allow my needs to be heard. Somewhere in there, I hope to write a book or three, sell some photo art, and maybe even accidentally help an occasional soul in the process.

I like to think I am becoming more and more “Picnic” as I keep stepping forward. Good or bad, Picnic is gonna be a damn enjoyable story!!
[mapsmarker marker=”28″]

The post The best story ever told … for real this time … first appeared on thrumyeyes.

Now that the nature of my journey has changed, I am beginning to see the world differently. Where I have been … Damascus … is a crossroads of sorts. Physically it is a bit of nowhere that somehow connects many different pathways. It is nature and man-made trying to find a balance. Yet spiritually, it is much more. I call it the Doorway to What If. Because it is connected to both the human world and the world humans are trying to leave behind, I am still inundated with all that I was escaping (recovering?) from. Every time I see or hear the news; every time I see the worst of humanity in action … all I want to do is run back to the woods … which is easy in Damascus. On the other hand, at times it is a struggle for fringe dwellers to easily survive the area.

Thus for the moment the adventure once again moves to Ohio. It is not the state of my dreams. I have never even considered it as tops on any list of places to visit. But I am here now, and may be for a while. Fortunately I have learned (remembered?) one simple little fact that oh so many seem to forget often …

THERE IS BEAUTY EVERYWHERE!

As the darker side of life invades our senses, we start forgetting this. The ugly; the dirty; the undesirable somehow claim our focus, blinding us from that refreshment that our souls so need. But the beauty is there if we remember how to see it. It takes effort at times, but a single flower; a smiling child can still be seen in even a war-torn country. And sometimes it is just that small bit of hope that keeps us going.

Not that Ohio is a hopeless place. But the reality so far has set straight some preconceptions I did not even know I had. These are a few moments and sights I caught the other day. I know many who have followed this journey might be disappointed by the new directions it is moving in, but I hope there is still something of interest in what I share.

[mapsmarker marker=”29″]

The post Open your eyes! first appeared on thrumyeyes.