The Nut House

Cyberspace can be a dangerous and treacherous place, and things done here could
afflict you real life. For instance ... Identity theft....
I can't call this an Identity theft, but it comes pretty close.
Look at this.

Of course we have the same picture, as Ratatoskr obviously is a red squirrel, and
we have the same location. Why not. But I want me to be Ratatoskr, and not that other
fraud. What makes me really annoyed is that I discovered that page when I tried to get the email account ratatoskr.squirrel@gmail.com .

I like the conclusion in this story. Some of you may have read it several times before,
but I think this story can be repeated. I have translated it from a recently received mail in Norwegian, so maybe there are a few changes to the story as well.

"When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the marmalade jar... and the coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty marmalade jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full.

They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full.

They agreed it was.

The professor then picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.

The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then found two cups of coffee and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life...
"The golf balls are the important things -- your family, your children, your health, your friends, your favourite passions -- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
"The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, your car.
"The sand is everything else -- the small stuff.
"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18 holes of golf. There will always be time to clean the house, and fix the disposal.
"Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the cups of coffee represented.
The professor smiled. "I'm happy you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a few cups of coffee with a good friend."

Not at all due to overwhelming response on my poll, I will write another blog entry.

My topic of the day is "prejudice".
Has anyone else experienced how well it works?

Our mind and memory is very seldom accurate in the way it stores information.
What you see and learn today is actually coloured from your previous experiences,
and what interests you goes more easily into the long-term memory than small incidences
that you did not understand or care about, and therefore forgot very fast.

So; Go into life full of prejudice and the world will actually feel much simpler to
deal with, because you notice only what you already have been thinking! What you read in the newspapers will just be more information supporting what you already knew, and when you listen
to a debate or participate in a discussion at work, you will later remember what you already knew, and agreed on for ages. Imagine the self content you will feel, when you are always
right,



....because you chose not to remember or understand what you did not want to deal with.

When I went to work today I noticed a poem on the subway,
written by Henrik Ibsen. Inspired by London's "Poems on the Underground"
Oslo Sporveier has also provided travellers with poems, for 10 years now, and calls the
project "Dikt underveis". This is the "Ibsen-year" and now we can read
Ibsen poetry all the way to work, school or shopping, and I wanted to
share Ibsen's "Borte" (Gone) with all.


Borte!


De sidste gæster
vi fulgte til grinden;
farvellets rester
tog nattevinden.

I tifold øde
lå haven og huset,
hvor toner søde
mig nys berused.

Det var en fest kun,
før natten den sorte;
hun var en gæst kun, –
og nu er hun borte.


(a Translation, not mine)

Gone!

The last, late guest
To the gate we followed;
Goodbye -- and the rest
The night-wind swallowed.

House, garden, street,
Lay tenfold gloomy,
Where accents sweet
Had made music to me.

It was but a feast
With the dark coming on;
She was but a guest --
And now, she is gone.

I suddenly noticed that I've been a member of the Opera forums for nearly 2 years. Tempus fugit.

It all started when I had trouble viewing Quicktime movies in Opera(version 7.something), and I desperately wanted to find another solution than switching to IE, which at that time was my two options at work.
I followed a few links to "My Opera", searched&found a great number
of threads about it in the forums, and after a few minutes my
problem was solved. Thanks to some of you great Opera users!

And then I found the Lounge.
At first I posted in a few game threads about movies, then
some other threads, then Salmondine, Akh and Macallan started talking
to me and 2 years later I'm still here.

I came for the info, but stayed for the fun.