"...high call volumes..."

 don't they know that we know that the phrase "we are experiencing high call volumes" is just a b.s. way to stall the process and bide them more time? 

it's a robot!  it. is. a lie. 

* is this truly our best?

* if these two knuckleheads are the best that we can muster, then the joke is truly on ourselves. 

b114 (5.15-1.2023): she still haunts my dreams

she still haunts my dreams ^[1]

by joal

 

she still haunts my dreams

still f---s with me (at night)

still complex (it seems)

still leaves (without a fight)

                                                   …in my dreams

_______________________________

 

·        last night, it was a weird car situation (she was driving, ineptly). 

·        she was abducted (willingly) by a group of hippie-savages. 

·        while i was relieved that i was rid of her, she was/is still/present… in my mind.

 

for whatever reason, she still holds a place (in my heart & mind).              

 

_______________________________

[1] martino, j. (5.15-1.23). she still haunts my dreams. book 114: untitled.  © 2023 by joal martino. 

b114 (5.12-1.2023): bent-over (yet again)

bent-over (yet again) [i]
by notta d. e. mocrat

we strike-out-looking (often)
a game of ‘let’s pretend’
it’s all about the ratings
bent-over (yet again)
______________________________
 
·       the d_ckless democrats (once again) concede… allowing the republican train-wreck a platform, thereby gas-lighting his base into m(ass) adoration.

·       the d_ckless democratic party that can do no better but to wheelchair-out a mumbling, old geezer – as the best of their best!

·       what scares most non-republicans (self-included) isn’t that mr. t. is (in any way) ept… but that his opposition is completely inept!
 
in the end (as always) both parties (in the two party-system) win.  they are, after all, on the same team.
 
you and i, however, not.
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (5.12-1.2023). bent-over (yet again). book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.

b114 (5.11-1.2023): just stop watching sh--

just stop watching sh-- [i]
by notta w. atcher

it won’t change the outcome more than anything like this
why give it an audience?
just stop watching sh--
______________________________
 
·       otherwise, we become it.
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (5.11-1.2023). just stop watching sh--. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

b114 (5.6-1.2023): no more sbs

no more sbs [i]
by n. o. moore

no more sbs
no more texts or phone
no more sbs
no more faking moans
no more sbs
worse than all the rest
that was a close shave [ii]
no more sbs
______________________________
 
·       in the original, “no more texts” was equally good, as “no more tests.”

it feels really, really, really good to be rid of the sbs.
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (5.6-1.2023). no more sbs. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.

[ii] reference to book 113: close shave.

b114 (4.29-1.2023): lost in the transition

lost in the transition [i]
by ima wie

boy meets girl (another world) they’re in a sad position
there’s no middle-man when s/he’s lost in the transition
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.29-1.2023). lost in the transition. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.

b114 (4.27.2023): when fox tucks tail

when fox tucks tail [i]
by n. oslrac

when fox tucks tail (you’d think that [for a moment] she is done)
but power talks (spew lies and hawks) as stupid watches on
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.27-1.2023). fox tucks tail. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.

b114 (4.25-1.2023): the steaks are high

the steaks are high [i]
by a. lot & a. t. stake

psychedelic mushroom
cower, eat (then sigh)
there’s no way to cope today, hey! - when the steaks are high
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.25-1.2023). the steaks are high. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.

b114 (4.22-1.2023): what if god was a pagan?

what if god was a pagan? [i]
by a. sun & a . son

what if god was a pagan?
what if god/nature: one?
what if (instead of human) replication was the so/un?
 
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.22-1.2023). what if god was a pagan? book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

b114 (4.21-1.2023): psyche o. & e. m. pathic

psyche o. & e. m. pathic [i]
by twi n. flame

psyche o. and e. pathic met (a bar in the mid-west)
both were quite neurotic but their game became their quest
both were quite compulsive but decided to en-join
both were quite bipolar (like two sides of the same coin)
both were quite obsessive (like depressed and then ecstatic)
both were quite dis-similar, together:
 
psycho-pathic 
 
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.21-1.2023). psycho-pathic book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.

* don't even TRY to get the last word...

...with someone who has a borderline personality disorder. 

* the only "happily ever after"...

...is Now! :) 

* all in one

...is when one verse of a song tells a whole story.  for example:

"i was cuttin' a rug 

in a place called the jug 

with a girl named linda-lou 

when in come a man 

with a gun in his hand 

and he was lookin' for you-know who." [1]

______________________ 

[1] lynyrd skynrd's gimme three steps. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJZrXhMBG1E

b114 (4.16-1.2023): on[e]ly

why? [i]
by a. rising

alternative titles: on[e]ly; one[ly]; (one)ly

 
question: why does any (one) person have to love only (one) other person?
answer: they don’t!
 
the “love only me” rule is often imposed by the (one) person who wants to control you, your love, and your behavior.
_______________________________ 

• the unspoken truth (that almost everybody knows)... is that human beings are really, really bad at loving only one other. 

_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.16-1.2023). on[3]ly? book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

b114 (4.15-1.2023): waking-up to pink

waking-up to pink [i]

by a. rising

it is hard to fathom (what any-body thinks)
it is “up & at ‘em”
waking-up to pink

 

_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.15-1.2023). waking-up to pink. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

* Air BnB just lost me

 Air BnB just asked me to "verify" myself by using "Plaid" to get into my bank account.  I've been a 5-star customer with air BnB, have had zero issues, and my credit cards have been verified multiple times before while using the Air BnB booking system.

Now, they want to get into your bank account!  Don't do it.  I (just now) removed all of my credit card data from my Air BnB account, and booked a hotel instead.

Goodbye, Air BnB.  

You just lost me.

* autonomy, freedom, power...

somehow, growing-up (although i craved attention), it wasn't fame.  i had a knowing that it was great to have a great (albeit small) group of friends who held mutual admirations of each other while being able to live with each others' quirks and even some ill-advised decisions.

i valued privacy, yet wanted to be known.  a showman who, like the guy in the wizard of oz... prior to his becoming the wonderful wizard.

i knew that power corrupted powerfully, and that 

i'd be powerless under its power.  

freedom was an innate knowing, and freedom from certain responsibilities, addictions, fatherhood, command, meant being able to have local power... which is kind of like buying/eating locally.  

my brother, we lived the dream.  we had an autonomy that can never again be experienced in a world of instant media -- potentially going viral.

if this blog ever gets too famous, i will enjoy it for the moment, prior to disappearing into a void of a whisper of a shadow: insignificant, unimportant, incognito, and free.

_________________________ 

* excerpted from an email to a friend.

b114 (4.11-1.2023) freedom from fame

freedom from fame [i]
by f. reename

born (and named) with freedom
what is in a name?
name a way to be (be free) to me:
freedom from fame
 
_______________________________

[i] martino, j. (4.11-1.2023). freedom from fame. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

* the universe (explained)

 

b114 (4.9-1.2023): i (100 genders)

i (100 genders) [i]
by g. enders

i (100 genders)
i identify
with a race or species or deep-space or pizza-pie
 
i can flow between (which benefits return-to-sender)
i am what i feel i am
i: 100 genders
_______________________________
 
·       genders, quite frankly, should have no meaning at all.
·       race, ethnicity, etc. should have no place on any job application or any other identification.
·       country, city, or itty-bitty thoughts about who i am should be able to change… in a moment’s notice, for my own benefit.
·       i can be purple, female, native-american, cat, pigeon, amoeba, cosmos… in any moment of my own choosing.
 

i’m feeling really non-neutral, right now.

 

they flow.

_______________________________ 

note: i don't care what you are, and (in the privacy of your own privacy), i don't care what you do -- when it comes to gender.  but...

to be completely honest, it’s the non-binary-ish who need to decide who they are… and they should receive absolutely no benefits given to gender or race or creed or whatever it is that they choose to identify as.  

for example: a high-t person who has a penis does not have the right to "identify" as female so he can beat-up girls in m.m.a. 

_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.9-1.2023). i 100 genders. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

* "you should never..."

 "you should never ask a fish how to catch it.

you should ask a fisherman how to catch it."

-richard cooper

* value-able & sacred

 

 

“there are only four questions of value in life:

(1) what is sacred?  

(2) of what is the spirit made?  

(3) what is worth living for?  and…

(4) what is worth dying for?  

…and the answer to all of these is the same: only Love.”

-don juan demarco

* carnivore

my apologies:

 

b114 (4.5-1.2023): i woke up, uh... unmarried :)

i woke up [i]
by t. rapped
                                                         alternative title: true story
 
it was my wedding day, and i was having doubts.
 
i went for a walk, amid thoughts of divorce.  loss.  failure.
 
i thought about the little things: dual insurance (double [potential] loss).  her medical bills.  potential car accidents.  implant issues.  her borderline personality.  potential arguments.  all of the potential things that could ever go wrong.
 
on the walk, i met an insurance salesman.  i poured my heart out, and said i was scared-to-death.  i verbalized all of my fears, and i could see it in his eyes: “what in the world made you propose?” 
 
without him responding in words, i made a plan.  i wouldn’t sign the marriage license.
 
back at the house, everyone on my side of the family was gathered.  they could sense my anxiety.  those who had experienced wedding days knew what i was going through.  i had an aura of “i don’t want to go through with this.” 
 

simultaneously, i was in Love.

 
all the while, my mind was racing with thoughts of the repercussions (and the broken heart) if i didn’t go through with it.  i was completely torn, and the clock was ticking.  in my mind, the signing of the documents would occur after the wedding, and (maybe) i could get sick (or something) and not sign.
 
but the documents were there, ready for signature, in the living room, and they wanted me to sign now, prior to the bride’s arrival!  i saw the spot (with my spelled name, and the line for my signature).
 
i left the room, and was met outside by a few brothers/friends who knew better than to advise, at this point.  everyone was dressed-up.  i poured my heart out, and explained all of my fears.  they all knew that i didn’t want to go through with it.
 
back in the living room, a short, stocky, bossy woman with short hair looked at me with a furled brow. she said something inaudible, and approached me (to walk me to the signing-papers… in front of everyone!).  she was loud, and everyone was watching.
 
i walked toward the signing table, not really knowing what i was going to do.  was i going to let everyone down?  was i going to break the heart of my beloved?  hundreds of conflicting thoughts and feelings were simultaneously battling, inside of my head.  

“you’ve got to do it! 

--------------- 

don’t!”

 
little miss bossy was shouting something about signing, and i extended my arm, flat-hand... a few inches in front of her big, fat mouth, shutting-her-up.  i said “shut-up.  i’m a big boy.  i’ll do what i want to do!”
 
then…

i woke up.

_______________________________
 
·       i cannot remember ever feeling better, waking from a nightmare.
·       true story.
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.5-1.2023). i woke up. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

* thank you

 just watched the movie "brian's song" for the 101st time.

how many wonderful times (on this here planet) have i had?

how many completely out-of-this-world experiences can i be grateful for?

many, many, many!

too many.

:)

thank you. 

b114 (4.2-1.2023): never goin' back to you

never goin’ back to you [i]
by movin’ ontoo

sung to the chorus of kenny chesney’s 

"save it for a rainy day”

 
we’ve always re-cycled,
we’ve always been hot
we’ve always come back, baby ready-or-not and
 
we’ve always re-played, and
we’ve always re-viewed
 
but i’m not comin’ back to you
 
we’ve always re-vamped and
we’ve always re-coiled and
we’ve always re-minded and always re-boiled, and
 
we’ve always re-mained and
we’ve always re-scued
 
but i’m never goin’ back to you
_____________________
 
·       as one who never, ever says “never,” it feels really, reeeeeeally good to say it (this time).
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (4.2-1.2023). never goin’ back to you. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino. 

* options

freedom means having options.

in relationships, that means having multiple close friends and several high-value acquaintances.  surround yourself with good people. 

one option, in relationships, is to enjoy spending time with yourself.

enjoy your own time, your own space, your own persona.  be comfortable with you.

smile.

* save it for a rainy day

 

b114 (3.30-1.2023) if "it didn't make it"

if “it didn’t make it” [i]
by a. survivor

if "it didn’t make it"
if it did not survive
if it didn’t have enough to be (to stay) alive

if "it didn’t make it"
if the going (tough)
if "it didn’t make it," then it shouldn’t have:

 

enough

_______________________________
·       living things seek to survive, then thrive.
·       if it (the bird, the bee, the relationship, the tree) didn’t make it, then it (simply) didn’t have what it would take... to make it.
·       why is this so hard to comprehend?
·       if it didn’t make it, then it wasn’t supposed to replicate itself.
_______________________________
[i] martino, j. (3.30-1.2023). if “it didn’t make it”. book 114: untitled. © 2023 by joal martino.