Today we have naming of the parts

At times, during my normal everyday existence, a snippet of past poetry or lyric, or line a from a novel or play will stick in my head. I've been on a cleaning tear, something that I often do to restore balance and structure to any part of my world that is controllable. And while cleaning, the words to a poem have been circling around my skull...

Today we have naming of parts. Yesterday,
We had daily cleaning. And tomorrow morning,
We shall have what to do after firing. But today,
Today we have naming of parts. Japonica
Glistens like coral in all of the neighboring gardens,
And today we have naming of parts.

This is the lower sling swivel. And this
Is the upper sling swivel, whose use you will see
When you are given your slings. And this is the piling swivel,
Which in your case you have not got. The branches
Hold in the gardens their silent, eloquent gestures,
Which in our case we have not got.

This is the safety-catch, which is always released
With an easy flick of the thumb. And please do not let me
See anyone using his finger. You can do it quite easily
If you have any strength in your thumb. The blossoms
Are fragile and motionless, never letting anyone see
Any of them using their finger.

And this you can see is the bolt. The purpose of this
Is to open the breech, as you see. We can slide it
Rapidly backwards and forwards: we call this
Easing the spring. And rapidly backwards and forwards
The early bees are assaulting and fumbling the flowers:
They call it easing the Spring.

They call it easing the Spring: it is perfectly easy
If you have any strength in your thumb: like the bolt,
And the breech, and the cocking-piece, and the point of balance,
Which in our case we have not got; and the almond-blossom
Silent in all of the gardens and the bees going backwards and forwards,
For today we have naming of parts.
-Henry Reed

I like the dichotomy, the oiled brutish mechanical instruction against the pastel grace of the gardens. Perhaps this is my cleansing cleaning, the ordinariness of household chores against the fluttery abstractness of everything else. Easing the Spring, indeed.

Girl with Curls

Not 10 minutes from where I live is the Dali museum. I've been there once. I admit that I'm not a huge fan of museums, simply because I like to ponder and digest, not cruise. Museums overwhelm me. It probably seems just the opposite, since I often will go from room to room at a rapid clip, unless something stops me in my tracks.

The painting from the photo is a Dali, one of his earlier works. All of those eye-tricking complexities that he painted didn't capture me nearly like this one. I liked the perspective, this simple girl a giant against the landscape, and the earthy seduction of the curves of her.

I bought a print of it, it hangs in my living room.

Snakes on a Crane

This morning, I saw a long-legged bird scratching for worms. I was still fifty yards away or so when I saw the bird pull up a very large worm. As I got closer, I realized it was a small snake. It was twisting and writhing, and the bird tipped up its head, trying to gulp the snake down its throat.

As I went past, I watched. I was torn between wanting to save the snake, and a philosophical call to the circle of life. I don't have any particular fear or hatred of snakes, nor any great love for them either. Same with birds. I suppose my decision to do nothing was born from my ambivalence rather than any hesitance to intervene.

I continued on my journey, thinking of the snake and the bird, and was reminded of a poem by Stephen Crane...

In the desert
I saw a creature, naked, bestial,
Who, squatting upon the ground,
Held his heart in his hands
And ate of it.
I said, "Is it good, friend?"
"It is bitter-bitter," he answered,
"But I like it
Because it is bitter
And because it is my heart."

Tyranny or Slavery?

If to become a slave is to renounce liberty, then does that not include renouncing the duties and morality of humanity? Not due to dissension but because conforming is no longer necessary.

The implication of slavery is that the individual who claims title is responsible for the well-being and care of that slave, as well as their actions and words. The slave merely follows instruction in return for being kept.

Am I too traditional? Too historical? I don't see much of that description in contemporary pseudo-sexual M/s behaviors.

Nascent Contractualism and a Rising (Sub)Culture?

Some 16th century philosopher (Grotius) once questioned that if an individual can alienate his liberty and make him(her)self the slave of a master, why could not a whole people do the same and make itself subject to a king?

I read this question and of course immediately applied it to this lifestyle. And while showering (all best thoughts are had in water, have you noticed?), I had this grand vision of a new society founded on BDSM, with an elected King.

While it's amusing to play around with this concept in my head, it makes me wonder, with the climate of today's politics, if we aren't ripe for some regression. Would I pledge my loyalty to a fiefdom? I think certainly, if the laws of feudalism were adjusted to make the lordship based on worth rather than birth. Privilege begets greed.

Pardon my academia, I'm over-caffeinated.