Ellijay, Georgia, USA. Thanks for stopping by!
So, we rise from the rubble...
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Sunday, June 21, 2026
"Life Is An Illusion: Playing Your Part "
"Life Is An Illusion: Playing Your Part "
by Madisyn Taylor, The DailyOM
"Having the wisdom to know that life is but a dream does not mean that we ignore living. As children, most of us sang that mesmerizing, wistful lullaby that ends with the words, 'Life is but a dream.' This is a classic example of a deep, sophisticated truth hiding, like an underground stream, in an unlikely place. It winds its way through our minds like a riddle or a Zen koan, coming up when we least expect it and asking that we consider its meaning. Many gurus and philosophers agree with this mysterious observation, saying that this world we perceive as real is actually an illusion, not unlike a film being projected on a screen. Most of us are so involved in the projection that we don't understand it for what it is. We are completely caught up in the illusion, imagining that we are in a life and death struggle and taking it very seriously.
The enlightened few, on the other hand, live their lives in the light of the awareness that what most of us perceive as reality is a passing fancy. As a result, they behave with detachment, compassion, and wisdom, while the rest of us struggle and writhe upon the stage in the play of our life. Having the wisdom to know that life is but a dream does not mean that we ignore it or don't do our best with the twists and turns of our fate. Rather, like an actress who plays her role fully even as she knows it's only a role, we engage in the unfolding drama, but with a little more freedom because we know that this is not the totality of who we are.
And life is more of an improvisation than it is like a play whose lines have already been written, whose end is already known. Like an improviser, we have choices to make and the more we embrace the illusionary quality of the performance, the lighter we can be on the planet, on others, and on ourselves. We can truly play with the shadows cast by the light of the projector, fully engaging without getting bogged down."
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"We are game-playing, fun-having creatures, we are the otters of the universe. We cannot die, we cannot hurt ourselves any more than illusions on the screen can be hurt. But we can believe we're hurt, in whatever agonizing detail we want. We can believe we're victims, killed and killing, shuddered around by good luck and bad luck. "
"Many lifetimes? ", I asked.
"How many movies have you seen? "
"Oh."
"Films about living on this planet, about living on other planets; anything that's got space and time is all movie and all illusion, " he said. "But for a while we can learn a huge amount and have a lot of fun with our illusions, can we not?"
- Richard Bach,
Freely download "Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah "
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Full screen recommended.
Moody Blues, "Land of Make-Believe"
"When That Day Comes..."
"If you had one last breath - what would you say? If you had one hour to use your limbs before you would lose the use of them forever - would you sit there on the coach? If you knew that you wouldn't see tomorrow who would you make amends with? If you knew you had only an hour left on this earth - what would be so pressing that you just had to do it, say it, or see it? Well there is something that I can guarantee - that one day you will have one day, one hour and one breath left. Just make sure that before that day that you have said, done and experienced everything that you dream of doing now. Do it now - that is what today is for. So pick up the phone and call an old friend that you have fallen out of touch with. Get out and run a mile and use your body and sweat. Seek out someone in your life to say you're sorry to. Seek someone In your life that you need to thank. Seek someone in your life that you need to express your feelings of love to. Then when that day comes you will be ok with it all."
- John A. Passaro
"If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make,
who would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting?"
~ Stephen Levine
"If, after I depart this vale, you ever remember me and have thought to
please my ghost, forgive some sinner and wink your eye at some homely girl."
- H. L. Mencken
"The Funniest Post You’ll Read About Stress Today"
"The Funniest Post You’ll Read About Stress Today"
by John Wilder
"I’ve noticed recently that everyone I come into contact with, even retired folks, is in a state of stress. They act like they’re just one more event away from exploding like a blue-haired GloboLeftist who can’t get gender affirmation care for the unborn baby that she’s getting ready to abort and don’t get her started about Cheeto® Hitler. Even your correspondent, me, has occasionally had a foggy head and the vague sense I’m exactly one email away from my brain displaying 404.
In 2026, stress isn’t just a feeling - it’s a weapon. Between 24/7 news cycles on CNN® screaming doom to sell you toothpaste (even though we know that nothing ever happens), social media algorithms feeding outrage to increase the amount of time spent on their “platforms”, and a world that expects everyone to hustle like a gerbil on meth, stress seems like it’s planned. It might be.
The system loves stressed-out people. Big Pharma® has got a pill for every flavor of freakout - anxiety, insomnia, and that “I’m just not myself” vibe. They make bank on misery, raking in billions with no real incentive to solve the actual underlying issue: A clear-headed patient isn’t good for business. I’m not saying it’s a conspiracy - just a system that profits when we’re down.
Don’t get me wrong: meds have their place for some folks, but slapping a prescription on stress is like putting a Band-Aid™ on a Kennedy. Stress is a bully, and I’ve never beaten a bully by giving in. Sometimes I need an overly elaborate scheme involving marbles and a parade float.
Why Stress Wins (and Why It Doesn’t Have To): Stress isn’t just a bad day -it’s a parasite that eats what modern chaos does to people. It’s the ding of a work email at midnight, the headline about the next apocalypse, or the coworker who passive-aggressively “just needs one more thing.” Stress multiplies the events, making a minor blip in a day into spittle-inducing ragebait. But there good news: stress only wins if I let it. I can’t erase it - life’s messy, but I get to choose how to fight. These following strategies are my weapons. They’re simple, mostly free, and don’t come with a side effect of “may cause existential dread” like the relationship I had with my ex-wife.
Get Outside: Touch Grass: Getting time where I am physically away from anything but reality is nice. I can go to my backyard, nearby Mirkwood Forest, or even just sitting in my hot tub with a stogie staring at the night sky. Something about trees, fresh air, and dirt reorients us. We have spent most of history outside, and I think that is why camping is popular – it’s simplification of life and removal from the everyday experience.
Action: Go out and hit the hot tub with a Macanudo®. Or, walk outside for 20 minutes daily, no phone. Bonus points if I spot a meteor or a squirrel riding a rottweiler.
Meditation and Prayer: Meditation and prayer sounds like it’s for hippies in hemp pants and hemp shirts using hemp toilet paper and smoking hemp (they’d pray to a bong if it had Wi-Fi), but, for me, it’s just calming down and tuning out the buzz of thoughts that I’ve got going in the background. Often as I’m going to sleep, I relax, focus on my breath, and pray – often the Lord’s Prayer. Or I count backwards from 500. Results? Five minutes of quiet breathing before bed, and I felt like I’d hacked my own head. No candles, no chanting, no sweaty Asian country with cheap heroin. Nope. Just me telling my worries to shut up.
Action: Five minutes of focused breathing tonight. Unless I fall asleep first.
Laugh It Off: Laughter is universal in its ability to erase stress. For me, writing this blog and prepping these memes and jokes often makes me laugh out loud. It’s fun.
Action: Find something funny. Laugh. Daily. Many people think watching an actress pretending to be an old lady falling down is funny. My weakness is that because I spend so much time on humor is that for me to find it funny it has to be a real old lady falling.
Move Your Body: Stress loves inactivity. Doing anything physical is a good start. Lifting weights. Cleaning the living room. Hitting the elliptical trainer. If it gets my blood moving faster than just sitting there on the couch, it works. No gym membership needed.
Action: Do 15 minutes of anything. Make it fun, not a chore.
Write It Down: Why do I write? Well, for one reason is to eliminate stress. I rarely ever feel stress when I write. It’s an activity that, for me, gets my mind focused and flowing so that I can put the right words down on paper the screen. YMMV, but if you try, remember: nobody’s grading your grammar. Burn the page if you want; it’s your call.
Action: Write for five minutes. About whatever.
That’s it. That’s what I do. Most people think I’m fairly chill, and find it odd that I don’t panic about things. Frankly, for me there aren’t that many things that do cause me to panic because I buy cigars in bulk and generally have a six-month supply on hand. I mean, what else is there to stress out about? It’s not like I have blue hair."
"Happy Father's Day!"
o
"Five years from now… they’ll be taller. Four years… they won’t need you at bedtime. Three years… they’ll start doing things on their own. And one day… you won’t even realize it was the last time they reached for your hand. This song is for every parent trying to hold onto moments that slip away too fast."
"Life is Never Fair..."
"Life is never fair, and perhaps it is a
good thing for most of us that it is not."
- Oscar Wilde
"Americans Are Silently Opting Out of This Economy – Things Are Getting Worse"
Full screen recommended.
The Unfolded States, 6/21/26
"Americans Are Silently Opting Out of This Economy –
Things Are Getting Worse"
"Millions of Americans are still working full-time, earning more than they did just a few years ago, and yet many say they have never felt more financially stressed. So what is really happening? In this video, we break down why more people are quietly walking away from the traditional economic model and why the cost of living crisis continues to put enormous pressure on households across the country. We examine the growing disconnect between economic headlines and everyday reality. While unemployment remains relatively low and consumer spending has not fully collapsed, rising housing costs, grocery prices, childcare, insurance, and debt are reshaping how families live.
This is not simply about inflation. It is about shrinking financial flexibility and the growing sense that hard work no longer guarantees stability. This analysis also explores why the American middle class is feeling increasingly squeezed. From delayed homeownership and postponed family planning to rising credit card dependence and reduced discretionary spending, many households are being forced to rethink what success, security, and financial progress actually mean in today’s economy. The biggest warning sign may not be recession or unemployment alone. It may be something quieter: disengagement. When enough people stop believing that working harder improves their future, consumer behavior changes first. The broader economy often changes after."
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"The U.S. Has Just Hit A Dangerous Turning Point"
Prof. Jeffrey Sachs,
"The U.S. Has Just Hit A Dangerous Turning Point"
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Dan, I Allegedly, "10 Warning Signs We're Already in a Recession"
Full screen recommended.
Dan, I Allegedly, 6/21/26
"10 Warning Signs We're Already in a Recession"
The economy may be stronger on paper, but millions of Americans are experiencing a very different reality. In today's video, I break down 10 warning signs that suggest the economy is slowing and that a recession may already be here. From rising inflation and high interest rates to layoffs, declining consumer confidence, banking instability, stock market volatility, supply chain disruptions, national debt concerns, currency devaluation, and growing geopolitical tensions, these are the indicators that economists and business owners watch closely. Whether you're concerned about your finances, retirement, investments, real estate, job security, or simply making ends meet, these warning signs affect all of us. I'll explain what each indicator means, how it impacts everyday Americans, and what you can do to better prepare for economic uncertainty. The goal isn't fear - it's awareness and preparation so you can make smarter financial decisions in challenging times. "
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