Day 1645: Empathy

Empathy appears in

• two previous titles of this blog — Day 900: The opposite of empathy and Day 208: Another side of mind reading (empathy) 
• this definition:

EMPATHY

1.  the imaginative projection of a subjective state into an object so that the object appears to be infused with it.
2.  the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicit manner; also, the capacity for this.

• the actions of people I love, and
• a license plate from New Hampshire.

Empathy appears in all those places, but not very much in the news lately.  Is it non-empathic of me to believe that most people in the news don’t seem to have the capacity for it?

Are any of my other photos from yesterday infused with empathy?

 

If I were the Queen of Amazing Empathy, I wouldn’t have eaten all those mussels last night.

Alanis Morissette might be the Queen of Amazing Empathy.

I believe that gratitude is part of empathy, so thanks to all who contributed to today’s blog and — of course! — to you, for your empathy.

 

Day 1612: Aficionado

Any aficionado of this blog knows that I often start by defining my terms.

a·fi·ci·o·na·do
əˌfiSHəˈnädō,əˌfisyəˈnädō
noun
a person who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about an activity, subject, or pastime.
“aficionados of the finest wines”
synonyms: connoisseur, expert, authority, specialist, pundit, cognoscente

Yesterday, when we were eating salmon for dinner (prepared by cooking aficionado Michael) …

I announced that Oscar …

… was a fish-ionado.  My son, Aaron, who is a comedy aficionado, thought that was a good one.  Michael, who is irritated by puns, gave me the fish eye.

I don’t see myself as a photography aficionado, but that doesn’t stop me from taking pictures of other aficionados.

 

Later today, I am seeing a tooth aficionado (who reads this blog) for some dental work. Tonight, I’m meeting a building aficionado at our new home by the water to discuss some possible remodeling.

My sister Ellen, who is an aficionado of fun videos, showed me this last week:

I assume the talent aficionados appreciated that.

I am an aficionado of blog comments and expect to be seeing some great ones soon.

I hope you’re an aficionado of gratitude and know I am sincerely grateful for all the aficionados who helped me create today’s post and — of course! — for you.

Day 1590: The inexplicable

Lately, I’ve been encountering lots of human behavior I find inexplicable. Indeed, I’ve been inexplicably signing emails

Confused and confusing,

Ann

If “inexplicable” is inexplicable to you, let’s explain it:

in·ex·pli·ca·ble
ˌinekˈsplikəb(ə)l/
adjective
unable to be explained or accounted for.
“for some inexplicable reason her mind went completely blank”
synonyms: unaccountable, unexplainable, incomprehensible, unfathomable, impenetrable, insoluble.

Actually, when I encounter inexplicable human behavior, my mind CAN go completely blank. That’s why I like to talk to people I love and trust about the inexplicable, to try to make sense of it.

Last night, my inexplicable boyfriend Michael and I walked around our neighborhood, inexplicably talking, talking, talking about politics, murder, greed, cruelty, and other inexplicable inhumanity.  I said to Michael, “We are trying to make the inexplicable splicable.” That got an inexplicably  big laugh out of him.

Are any of my photos from yesterday inexplicable?

Am I letting myself be successful in this post? Or is success itself inexplicable?

Let’s see how inexplicable YouTube can be this morning.

 

Here and now, I am splicably grateful to all who helped me create this inexplicable post and — of course! — to you.

Day 1569: So to speak

“So to speak” has this definition, so to speak:

SO TO SPEAK
as one might say; said a certain way, even though the words are not exactly accurate. “John helps me with my taxes. He’s my accountant, so to speak.” “I just love my little poodle. she’s my baby, so to speak.”

How would you use “so to speak” in a sentence?

People sometimes use “so to speak” as just another conversational place-holder, like”that being said,” which is  often said by Michael, my boyfriend and house husband, so to speak.

Since I am a daily blogger and photographer, so to speak,  here are my pictures from yesterday, when I walked around my neighborhood, so to speak.

 

So to speak with my son, Aaron, who’s studying (so to speak) in Scotland, we use FaceTime on my phone, so to speak.

“So To Speak” is also a song that speaks to many people.

So to speak to me about this post, you can leave a comment below.

Thanks to all who helped me create this so-to-speak post and to you — of course! — no matter how you speak.

Day 1535: Impulse Control

“Impulse control” is a phrase we use in the psychotherapy biz.

I now have an uncontrollable impulse to share a definition.

Impulse control disorder (ICD) is a class of psychiatric disorders characterized by impulsivity – failure to resist a temptation, urge or impulse that may harm oneself or others. — Wikipedia

I am impulsively and uncontrollably thinking about impulse control this morning, probably because

• the President of the United States demonstrates impulse control issues on Twitter and
• some people I know have not controlled their impulses to share their  doubts with me about a decision I recently made.

I hope I control my impulses in responding to people who do not control theirs.

I had photographic impulse control yesterday — I took only these four:

I will not control my impulse to share this video from YouTube:

 

Please share your thoughts about impulse control in an impulsive and/or controlled comment.

As always, I shall not control my impulse to express gratitude to all who helped me impulsively create today’s post and to you — OF COURSE! — for impulsively reading it.

 

Day 1469: Rubatosis

Yesterday, I read here, in “23 New Words for Emotions That We All Feel, But Cannot Explain,” that Rubatosis means “the unsettling awareness of your own heartbeat.”

My regular readers  — especially those who experience sonder (“the realization that each passerby has a life as vivid and complex as your own”)  —  may have the unsettling awareness that I’ve been having rubatosis since my open-heart surgery on September 21. And awareness of your own heartbeat IS unsettling, especially if it intensifies when you’re trying to sleep.

I’m now experiencing jouska (“a hypothetical conversation that you compulsively play out in your head”) about vemödalen (“the frustration of photographing something amazing when thousands of identical  photos already exist”).

I shall now overcome any monachopsis (“the subtle but persistent feeling of being out of place”), kenopsia (“the eerie, forlorn atmosphere of a place that is usually bustling with people but is now abandoned and quiet”), exulansis (“the tendency to give up trying to talk about an experience because people are unable to relate to it”),  and occhiolism (“the awareness of the smallness of your perspective”) to share this song.

 

I am not feeling mauerbauertraurigkeit (“the inexplicable urge to push people away, even close friends you really like”), so I invite you to make a comment with no fear of anecdoche (“a conversation in which everyone is talking but nobody is listening”).

While I may have rubatosis,  I also have the comforting awareness of gratitude in my heart for all those who helped me create today’s post and for you — of course! — no matter what emotions you’re feeling but cannot explain.

Day 1276: DNA

It’s part of my DNA to Define, Now, Any concept that Definitely Needs A definition, like DNA.

DNA
noun   BIOCHEMISTRY
1. deoxyribonucleic acid, a self-replicating material present in nearly all living organisms as the main constituent of chromosomes. It is the carrier of genetic information.
2. the fundamental and distinctive characteristics or qualities of someone or something, especially when regarded as unchangeable.
“diversity is part of the company’s DNA”

It’s part of my DNA to Duly Note Anything that inspires my blog posts.

My Downstairs Neighbor’s Attire shows that loving dogs is part of her DNA.

While it’s part of Karen’s DNA to love dogs, it’s part of my DNA to love cats.

 

It’s part of our cat Oscar’s DNA to Duplicate Numerous Attempts to use my laptop.

It’s part of our cat Harley’s DNA to Decidedly Notice Anywhere my boyfriend Michael is.

It’s part of some people’s DNA to Display Accumulations, Naturally.

It’s part of my DNA to share things that catch my Discerning and Naive Attention.

It’s also part of my DNA to Definitively and Naturally  Adore

• creative teaching and
• music.

If those DNA songs Do Not Appear directly above, they Do Now Appear here and here.

Decidedly Natural Appreciation to all those who helped me create this DNA post and to you and your DNA (of course!) for being here, now.

Day 1160: Celebrity

Let’s celebrate the beginning of the weekend with a definition of celebrity (probably written by some non-celebrity):

ce·leb·ri·ty
səˈlebrədē/
noun
a famous person.
synonyms: famous person, VIP, very important person, personality, newsmaker, name, big name, famous name, household name, star, superstar, movie star
the state of being well known.
“his prestige and celebrity grew”
synonyms: fame, prominence, renown, eminence, preeminence, stardom, popularity, distinction, note, notability, prestige, stature, repute, reputation
“his celebrity grew”

What do my celebrated readers notice about that definition?

Here’s another definition of celebrity, written by a non-celebrity at the celebrated Merriam-Webster:

celebrity
noun ce·leb·ri·ty \sə-ˈle-brə-tē\
Popularity: Bottom 50% of words
Simple Definition of celebrity
: the state of being famous or celebrated
: a person who is famous

Full Definition of celebrity
plural ce·leb·ri·ties
1: the state of being celebrated : fame
2: a famous or celebrated person

Examples of celebrity in a sentence
The actress lived a life of celebrity.
There were many celebrities at the party.
First Known Use of celebrity
14th century

What made you want to look up celebrity?

This non-celebrity would like to celebrate and answer the question I found in that Merriam-Webster definition of celebrity.  That is, what made me want to look up celebrity?

1. Since I did not make it onto the TV show “The Voice,”  I doubt I will ever become a celebrity (according to the definitions above).
2. Yesterday I took a picture of somebody who is a celebrity to me.

That, my celebrated readers, is Bah, who works at the garage where I park my celebrated yellow car.  Bah told me he is also the head cook at the hospital where I work, which means that, thanks to him, every Friday I can celebrate THE BEST MACARONI AND CHEESE I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE (featured in previous, perhaps celebrated posts here, here, and here).

Bah also told me, yesterday, that he is one of the celebrities in this celebrated  flu-fighting video (appearing at 0:23, 1:07, 2:49, and 3:42):

Perhaps, like Bah, I’ll be a YouTube celebrity one day, too (especially since I’m working on a theme song for my team at work).

Do any of the other photos I took yesterday fit today’s topic of “celebrity,” to you?

Now it’s time to celebrate your thoughts and feelings about this “Celebrity” post.  If you leave a comment below, you’ll  be celebrated (if not a celebrity) at The Year(s) of Living Non-Judgmentally.

Celebratory thanks to Bah, to  Carl Jung,* to THE BEST MACARONI AND CHEESE I’VE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE, and to everybody and everything else that helped me write today’s non-celebrity post.  I am now officially celebrating you — of course! — for visiting here, today.

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* Yesterday morning, when I was driving into work, I heard beloved Boston celebrity Laura Carlo announce on WCRB classical radio that it was “National Take Your Action Figure to Work” day. Isn’t that something else to celebrate?

Day 1138: Cards

Somebody at work, yesterday, talked about the agony of waiting to hear whether she’ll get a green card from the USA government, allowing her to remain here with her husband.

At my try-out for “The Voice” in Philadelphia next weekend, I’m hoping to receive a red card, which will get me into the call-back auditions.

My friend Eleanor sent me this card for my birthday:

Card-carrying meteorologists around here are predicting bitter cold for the next few days.

Here are some new photos I could store on a memory card:

The word “card” also means (according to those cards at Merriam-Webster):

a usually clownishly amusing person : wag <he’s such a card>

Some card created this video called Sad Cat Diary:

Any thoughts or feelings about any of these cards?

I’d like to send each one of you a thank you card for reading my blog today.

Day 1112: Emergent Complexity

Yesterday, I met my friend Peggy at the deCordova Museum in Lincoln, Massachusetts.

The deCordova — with its amazing sculpture park, gift shop, and creative exhibits — has been a favorite destination for me and my 17-year-old son Aaron for years. The original plan was for Peggy and I to meet at the museum’s gift shop at 11 AM, but when Peggy  called me from her home in Worcester, at 10:20, to tell me she’d be a little late, she wondered  whether we should meet somewhere else instead, because the winter weather  would definitely interfere with our visiting the deCordova’s beloved sculpture park. However,  I just said no to a different meeting place, since I thought the deCordova’s gift shop and the main building would still be a great place to spend time, especially since my main goal was to hang out with her.

Is there any emergent complexity in this post, so far?

In order to judge whether complexity is emerging here, you probably need a definition of “emergent complexity.”  However, all the definitions of that, emerging online, have too much complexity for me.  For example, I found an  article — “Emergent Complexity : The Fourth Law of Thermodynamics?” —  where the very title seems questioning and unsure.

 Here‘s the least complex definition emerging online, in the emergent moment:

An emergent behavior or emergent property can appear when a number of simple entities (agents) operate in an environment, forming more complex behaviors as a collective. If emergence happens over disparate size scales, then the reason is usually a causal relation across different scales.

 .

To help with the emergent complexity in this already complex post, I’ll explain that the term “Emergent Complexity” was used yesterday by  Marty, an incredibly helpful and charming staff person at the deCordova gift shop.

Here’s Marty:

Marty used the term “emergent complexity” when he, Peggy, and I all had different visual associations with this pair of earrings:

… which reminded Marty of jellyfish, Peggy of flowers, and me of flying saucers.

I wonder what emergent complexity in each of our personalities those different associations reveal?

There was SO MUCH fabulous emergent complexity to be discovered yesterday at the deCordova gift shop, thanks to Jane …

… who has been emerging at the deCordova  gift shop as a terrific buyer for many years.

Here’s some emergent, complex photographic proof of Jane’s incredible buying skills:

 

What do you think of the complexity emerging there, at the deCordova gift shop?

If the emergent complexity of any photo montage here is too complex to read, clearer and larger photos should emerge, if you click on them.

If you need more emergent complexity from yesterday, there’s more!

What best represents “Emergent Complexity” to you?

Before the ending emerges from the complexity of this post, here are more associations, from complex me,  about “Emergent Complexity”:

• Sometimes, the complexity of thoughts emerging from our minds can interfere with our choosing helpful actions.
• As I’m preparing for my try-out for “The Voice” next month, I can get tied up in the complexity of my thoughts and feelings about that, which might get in the way of my enjoying the experience.
• The human mind’s complexities — with tendencies to go into the future with  fear of the unknown and into the past with regret about what cannot be changed — often interfere with the emergent riches of the current moment.

I look forward to the complexity of comments emerging from this post.

Emergently complex thanks to Peggy, Marty, Jane, the deCordova, and every other person, place, and thing contributing to the complexity of today’s post.  Special thanks to you — of course! — for all your complexity, emerging here and now.