aisle 13

So I worked on a story the better part of last year.  It was to be my ticket into a new adventure.  (We'll see how that goes.)  A good portion of the story was the music that was playing as the hero walked around in a grocery store.  Many of my readers felt the music detracted from the story, and so I removed about 9/10s of it.  Here is the story in music:

"Blackbird"

"Black Star"

"I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)"

"Church On White"

"Summer Skin"

"I've Seen Enough"

"Spring And By Summer Fall"

"The Fall"

"Indra"

"Xanadu"

01/11/09

Pandora in the NOW!

(Newly Ordered World?)

Pandora is, like Eve, a woman.  It is the feminine side of human nature--feeling, instinct, imagination, intuition--which must probe for the truth despite the consequences.

The insects, unlike warmer blooded creatures, are far from human consciousness and relationship.  We cannot communicate with them, but are stung and goaded by nature itself.

The chest which Zeus sends to mankind with Pandora is like the apple in the Garden of Eden: something which is forbidden yet impossible to resist.  It contains knowledge of the reality of human life, which means the death of naiveté and childlike fantasy; yet it also contains the most precious attribute of the human spirit (69). 

Like the cards of the Hermit and the Hanged Man, the card of the Star is a card of waiting, for the sense of hope is a fragile light which glimmers and guides but does not dispel the darkness altogether.  Hope is therefore shown as a female figure, because it is the irrational side of us - the intuition - which perceives the Star in the middle of the noxious swarm of Spites (70).

Thus the Star, the guiding vision of hope and promise, arises not from intention but out of the ashes of the Tower which has been destroyed.  The Fool waits amidst the rubble, without any clear sense of how or what to rebuild.  In the midst of this confusion and collapse of old attitudes and structures, the faint, elusive yet potent Star of Hope rises (71).

~from The Mythic Tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke & Liz Greene.  Fireside, NY: 1986.

We are coming to a day soon, that has the conspiratorial part of me wondering.  So I'm obviously obsessed with the idea of "the underworld."  It is my contention that we went into The Belly of The Whale with the collapse of the Tower(s) on 09/11/01.  Well I think we are about to face it from the other side of the mirror:  01/11/09.

Obama is clearly the Star of Hope.  We may be coming out of the whale.  And it may happen soon too.  I just don't know if the rubble of the recently fallen Tower that we fools are standing in, is the WTC, the year 2008, the end of the term of the Bush administration, or if it is the corpse of capitalism.  Maybe it is all these things.

It is also pretty clear to me at this point, that Sirius is "The Star".  The long dark night of the soul is the period from the solstice to the sun's rebirth on the 25th.  Sirius is the star of hope pointing to where the newborn sun will rise again.  Then, a week later, it is at it's highest point overhead at the stroke of midnight.

And so, what does this mean?  Hajo Banzhaf has this to say in his Tarot and the Journey of the Hero regarding the Star:  "When the tower of false consciousness is smashed to pieces, all the upside-down concepts of a solely quantitative, linear form of time made of the past, present, and future collapse (187)  ."  And what's left?

The timeless NOW.  "This leap of consciousness is like bathing in the fountain of youth.  It saves us from being fixed on time and gives us the gift of boundless freedom from time (188)."

Next time, I'll talk about our guide through "the underworld" (The Anima, or Animus). Hopefully I'll get to some good old fashioned synchromysticism soon.  I think The Black Hole is the key film for me right now. It's study will include Monica Bellucci, Eden, NYC, Iris/Temperance, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman/Olivia Newton-John/Naomi Watts--Australia, etc . . .

"It Only Takes A Moment"

Do you know where "The New Earth" is located?  There is only one spot where one can find it, (and you are there NOW!)  What about purpose?  Have an idea about what one should value and where to find it?

ACCOUNTANT

So Lloyd, you graduated Lakeside, right?

LLOYD

Yes sir.

ACCOUNTANT

What are you going to do now?

JIM

Yeah Lloyd. What are your plans for the future?

LLOYD

Spend as much time as possible with Diane before she leaves.

JIM

Seriously, Lloyd.

LLOYD

I'm totally and completely serious.

JIM

No, really.

LLOYD

You mean like career? Uh, I don't know. I've, I've thought

about this quite a bit sir, and I'd have to say considering

what's waiting out there for me, I don't want to sell anything,

buy anything or process anything as a career. I don't want to

sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or

processed, or... process anything sold, bought or processed, or

repair anything sold, bought or processed, you know, as a career

I don't want to do that. So, uh, my father's in the army, he

wants me to join, but I can't work for that corporation, so what

I've been doing lately is kickboxing, which is really a, uh, new

sport, but I think it's got a good future. As far as career

longevity goes, I don't really know, because, you know, you can't

really tell. Your training sticks (?) as a fighter, you know,

but it's no good, you know, you have to be great, but I can't

really tell if I'm great until I've had a couple of pro fights.

But I haven't been knocked out yet. I don't know, I can't figure

it all out tonight sir, I'm going to hang with your daughter.

Sonny: I've come to take you out of here.

Kira: It can't be done. No one's ever taken anyone out of here. Not in the whole history of... the whole history!

Sonny: I'll make them let you go. Zeus! Zeus, you hear me?

Kira: Oh, God.

Female Heavenly Voice: [after Kira's "Suspended in Time"] Maybe just one moment, darling.

Male Heavenly Voice [Zeus]: Well, maybe just one moment. Or forever. I keep getting them mixed up, too.

The Star

Paper Trail

December

On My Night Stand

• McSweeney's #24
• The Mythic Tarot-Sharman-Burke, Greene
• The Mythic Image-Joseph Campbell
• Discovering The Mind-Walter Kaufmann
• The Hero With A Thousand Faces-Joseph Campbell
• The Stars-H.A. Rey
• Metamorphoses-Ovid, trans Rolfe Humphries
• Vacation-Deb Olin Unferth
• Remainder­-Tom McCarthy
• I Am A Strange Loop-Douglas Hofstadter
• A New Earth-Eckhart Tolle
• Tarot and the Journey of the Hero-H. Banzhaf
• Everything That Rises-Lawrence Weschler
• Reading Like A Writer-Francine Prose
• Deep Economy-Bill McKibben
• The Shape of Things To Come-Greil Marcus
• Black Elk Speaks-Neihardt
• Your Code Name Is Jonah-Edward Packard
• Parzival-Eschenbach
• D'Aularies' Book of Greek Myths

Actively Reading

• The Mythic Tarot-Sharman-Burke, Greene
• A New Earth-Eckhart Tolle
• Tarot and the Journey of the Hero-H. Banzhaf
• D'Aularies' Book of Greek Myths
• Parzival-Eschenbach
• I Am A Strange Loop-Douglas Hofstadter
• Everything That Rises-Lawrence Weschler

Listening To

• The Mirror Conspiracy-Thievery Corporation
• Presence-Led Zeppelin
• The Essential Clash
• Cosmic Game-Thievery Corporation
• A Charlie Brown Christmas
• The Royal Tenenbaums
• Radio Retaliation-Thievery Corporation

Viewed:

• The Truman Show
• National Treasure
• National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets
• Xanadu
• In Search of Myths & Heroes
• Hancock
• The Da Vinci Code
• Lost (Season four)
• Wholphin # 7
• Kung Fu Panda
• Wall-E
• Short Circuit
• Indian Jones and the Last Crusade
• American Outrage-(from Wholphin #5)
• It's A Wonderful Life
• The Royal Tenenbaums
• Tin Man
• The Black Hole
• I, Robot
• I Am Legend

2008: opening the hatch

I can identify with John Locke.  I want to be special.  I want to do something important.  I want to believe that I'm the hero.  But, in truth, all I do is "push the button".

This has been a pretty strange year for me and those around me.  What was the point?  I think the following image sums it up pretty well.  It was a year of backsliding caused by our perception of lack: (and with backsliding we receive separation as opposed to unity.)

I suppose that I've determined that the most important thing that I do is this.  This chronicle of my exploration has very little ego involved.  Here I seek truth not recognition.  I have no idea if anyone reads this, and at this point, don't know if I care.  (I signed up for google analytics at one point, but then felt like Big Brother and refused to "watch".)  I do this, my blog, because I feel I must, not because of the promise of some future reward.  When I started "pushing the button" I was convinced that the island would somehow reward me for my selfless work, but alas, I still stock magazines, deliver Chinese food, and will likely be fruitless in my application to the creative writing program I'm applying to next month.

I think I'm o.k. with this.  After I send in my submission, I will likely share it with you.  I have a feeling that you will "get it".  This year for me has been about the preparation for opening my heart.  That is, transcending "the gut" Chakra and moving up to the heart, to La Vita Nuova, The New Earth. 

I'm back to robots and hearts again.  I understand my fascination w/ the moon and space.  I've made peace with 2008 and think I understand "its purpose".  I'm ready to embrace the term "Synchromystic"--I've done this my whole life.  I've always read "the stars" for meaning.  So synchromystic?  Yes.  cinemalchemist?  You bet!

Call me DJ Ishmael.  I'm ready to follow Ahab into the whale.

Here is a description of "the hatch" (I know I'm loosely mixing a couple of Lost ideas together) from Joseph Campbell's The Mythic Image:

Just below this lotus of the heart there is pictured a lesser [octagonal], uninscribed lotus, at about the level of the solar plexus, supporting on a jeweled altar an image of the Wish-Fulfilling Tree.  For it is here that the first intimations are heard of the sound OM in the Silence, and that sound itself is the Wish-Fulfilling Tree.  Once heard, it can be rediscovered everywhere and no longer do we have to seek  our good.  It is here-within-and through all things, all space.  We can now give up our struggle for achievement, for love and power and the good, and may rest in peace.

Leap of Faith

I feel like we have returned to the edge.  Jumping might be the best thing for us, but first we have to let go:

Dory He says it's time to let go! Everything's gonna be all right!

Marlin How do you know!? How do you know something bad isn't gonna happen?

Dory I don't!

Of course maybe we need to encounter our shadow before we are ready?  Maybe we need a crisis to break through to our unconscious self?  We need to face the Devil?

I've been thinking about jumpers.  I think we are on the ledge again.  See Jake for more.

Dory Here comes a big one--whooooooo! Come on, you gotta try this!

Marlin Would you just stop it!?

Dory Why? What's wrong?

Marlin We're in a whale! Don't you get it!?

Dory A whale?

Marlin A whale! 'Cause you had to ask for help! And now we're stuck here!

Dory Wow. A whale. You know I speak whale.

Marlin No, you're insane! You can't speak whale! I have to get out! I have to find my son! I have to tell him how old sea turtles are!

Dory Woo-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-hoo! Hey. You okay?There, there. It's all right. It'll be okay.

Marlin No. No, it won't.

Dory Sure it will, you'll see.