#2.14.22

[honey-and-sting]

The Fog

Sadness has carried me around the muted house, as if I'm floating through doorways mindlessly & ghostlike.

My depression is a fog that rose out from nowhere & swallowed me up until I couldn't see, couldn't feel another living soul.

This poem is me reaching out. Please see me. Please grab my hand & pull me out.

[ri-kisfmine]

INTRO: HI GUYS SO I JUST JOINED TUMBLR IK IVE HEARD IT LIKE EVERYWHERE BUT I DECIDED TO GIVE THIS APP A TRY! So LET ME START OFF BY INTRODUCING MYSELF TO YALL!

(edit: so for some reason there’s some missing errors I’m too lazy to go back and edit it again so SUCKS TO SUCK-)

ANYWHOO-

My name is caywee or Izumi idc what y’all can call me by. I EASILY GET DISTRACTED A LOT like no joke 😞. AND I LOVE TO DRAW AND PAINT IM ARTISTIC but not as Bob Ross But HES COOL THO!

BUT UMM- im into Hazbin Hotel as you can see I have it in the top of the post HEHEHE- I love Lucifer cuz he reminds me of my close friend Max or known as PJ :3.

ALSO IM INTO #kpop IKR ITS SO RANDOM BUT ITS TOTALLY NOT. I’ve been a fan or i should say a engene since 2.14.22 GUYS STREAM IDLE THEIR 7TH MINI ALBUM YIPPIE ALSO MY BIAS IS MINNIE <3. I’m a multi-stan so ITS GONNA BE ALOT OF ME NAMING A LOT OF GROUPS IM INTO SO I’LL UPDATE THAT IN A BIT.

YES IM INTO MUSICALS FOR EXAMPLE HAMILTON, MEAN GIRLS, HEATHERS <3

MOVING ON (SKSKSKSK JAKE TEEHEE-)

I WILL MOSTLY BE TALKING ABOUT APHMAU, FUNNEH ANF FLAMINGO CUZ THEIR MY BEST YOUTUBERS SO DONT BLAME MY FAVORITE PPLS!

BY THE WAY

SOON IM GOING TO MAKE MY ON PROJECT WITH MY POOKIES HELP OF @r1ch1e-l1psh1tz & PJ to work with me in the future ^^

It’s called Be Mine there will be more series coming soon like

• Forever Pathway

• RHS(base irl depending-)

• Your Mine

• Moonlight Paradise

•Forever Yours

• Be Mine: Before I go < depending how the series will go on this may be the last

My friends inspired me sm including aphmau & funneh to think there’s so many opportunities I can do with my life to make my own. BTW do not copy any people series or try to do something stupid this won’t work out for you. There’s got to be some background information on how what your series is going to be about.

I do play minecraft,Roblox with my friends depending their not busy but in December I’m gonna be with my friend PJ since he’s more on VRchat than me hehe.

For some reason I’m not on here as much it’s bc I’m SUPER BUSY WITH SCHOOL AND SKETCHING 😞🙏🏼 YES BEING AN ARTIST SUCKS-

[weidaoduzun3]

Musing on Laozi 5

First let's post two of the three translations of Laozi 5 that I am working with just for clarity, starting with William Scott Wilson's and then Dan G. Reid's, respectively:

Heaven and Earth are not out to make friends; Thus, they treat all creatures as straw dogs. The sage is not out to make friends; Thus, he treats the people as straw dogs. Perhaps this is something like a bellows between Heaven and Earth: It is empty, but never exhausted; It moves, and creatures are manifested endlessly. A lot of words will get you nowhere; Better to just stay centered.

Heaven and Earth are not (willfully) benevolent. The myriad things are treated no differently Than grass for dogs. Sages are not (willfully) benevolent. The hundred clans are treated no differently Than grass for dogs. The gate of Heaven and Earth Is it not like a bagpipe? Empty yet not finished It moves, and again more is pushed forth. To speak countless words is worthless. This is not as good as guarding balance within.

(I will bounce back and forth with the terminology used here.)

The first few lines of this chapter may be interpreted harshly. Plainly and literally, it tells us to treat the Ten Thousand-kinds-of-entities as straw dogs, items used as offerings to Heaven, according to Zhuangzi, and are thrown away when the ceremony is done. Many may think treating the myriad of things as “straw dogs” is harsh, but it teaches equality and impartiality with one’s benevolence ( 仁 ).

Heaven and Earth are not here to be “kind” or out to gain favors from us and befriend us. Which is why all creatures are “straw dogs” to Heaven & Earth. All the Ten Thousand-kinds-of-entities have their own inherent allotted capacities. Once capacities are used up, we transform; we change, and we dissolve from our corporeality. However, our dissolution of corporeality is not equal to the literal discarding of a ritual straw dog. The straw dog is nonetheless fated to be thrown away at the end of the ceremony, with little thought about it. Likewise, we are fated to die. For we are all equal in this one fact: We will change, we will transform, we will die. We are never exempted from our Fate. I will so naively say that The Sage is absolutely aware of this. The Sage takes this impartial judgment of the myriad things and is equally benevolent to all things. More plainly, the Sage treats all people and sentient beings as equals. Not wishing to befriend anyone for the sake of societal piety/expectations or because of rank, but instead dealing with everyone based on their own natural capacities, treating all people and sentient beings with 仁, benevolence, because that is Heaven & Earth and the Sage’s nature. When the Sage embraces the One with Heaven and Earth, the Sage remains empty, so he can be at one with and “filled” with Heaven (Laozi 11 & 22).

When Heaven & Earth and the Sage are not out to “make friends” or are “un-willfully benevolent,” they too treat the Ten-Thousand-kind-of-entities as straw dogs because it is in their impartiality where true benevolence arises. True benevolence begins with a reversion back to one’s original nature (Zhuangzi chapter 2.14.22), which is brought about by embracing the One (執一). According to Wang Bi’s commentary in chapter 10 of the Laozi, this embracement of the One is the true nature of human beings. Wang Bi goes on to further suggest that this “embracement of the One” purifies the spirit to an extent that the Sage is never separated from the abode and the One. Being never separated from one’s original nature (Embracing the One), benevolence is not displayed for things such as societal expectations or because the Sage must show it due to a certain partiality toward another human being (a friend, brother, sister, mother, or father).

Instead, the Sage abides by the tenet: “When you complete a meritorious deed, he backs out and goes home, for this is Heaven's Way.” (Laozi 9.) The meritoriousness of The Sage is so great, that they never try to make themselves known, yet when the Sage does act with unconscious intent, "creatures are manifested endlessly." I take this to mean people will follow the Sages for instructions because of their genuine display of benevolence. They are not consciously trying to attract followers for the sake of fame. Still, the myriad things flock to the Sage nonetheless because of the extremely unconscious impartiality and equality the Sage shows to all things. Likewise, the Sage acts without fabrication; he doesn’t fabricate friendships with people for societal piety or to display that they have many friends. If the Sage is fated to become more intimate with people, they simply do, never fabricating a relationship for personal benefit or societal gain. Instead, Fate will forge a relationship or partnership with the Sage because it will be of true benevolence and an entirely natural union (Laozi 3).

The sage has no preferences. They have no partial inclination to another sentient being, person, or external force. For if they indeed are One with Heaven and Earth, All things are regarded as straw dogs, which I hope is clear now that "straw dogs" are nothing more than a metaphor to orate the equality and impartiality we all should strive for. We see in the Essential Huainanzi 1.5 that:

When perception comes into contact with things, preferences arise. When preferences take shape and perception is enticed by external things, our nature cannot return to the self, and the heavenly patterns are destroyed.

This is also why the Sage does not allow external things to entice him as being joyous (helpful) or despairing (harmful). Still abiding by that impartial and equal behavior as displayed in Laozi 5. As Zhongi says in the Outer Chapters of the Zhuangzi 20.27.1-3:

Hunger, thirst, cold, heat, and the obstacles of poverty, these are the doings of Heaven and Earth, emanated by the movement of fate. By this I mean they happen together in conjunction with them. A minister who serves his sovereign dares not evade his commands; therefore, since one upholds the way of the minister as attentively as this, how much more attentively should one treat Heaven!

All this means is that the Sage does not treat what we call "harm" as actual "harm." The Sage keeps in step with Heaven and Earth, abiding by extreme impartiality and equality, as echoed in Laozi 5 and Huainanzi 1.5. I assume the "Hundred Clans" refers to the Hundred Family Surnames, a text composed during the Song Dynasty that lists five hundred and seven Chinese surnames. So when the Sage treats the hundred clans no differently than grass for dogs [straw dogs], this is just a more specified way of reiterating the first phrase of Laozi 5 about the actual population of China.

So what does it mean when the passage tells us A lot of words will get you nowhere; Better to just stay centered, or To speak countless words is worthless. This is not as good as guarding balance within? Heshang Gong's commentary illuminates these sentences perfectly. Here it is with the Chinese and English.

多言數窮，多事害神，多言售身，口開舌舉，必有禍患。不如守中。不如守德於中，育養精神，愛氣務言。

Having too many duties harms the spirit. Speaking too many words does harm to oneself. When the mouth is open, and the tongue cleaves to the roof of the mouth, there is sure to be misfortune and worries. It is not as good as guarding De (德) within. Nurture and support your spiritual vitality, cherish your energy-breath, and speak infrequently.

Heshang Gong explains here that when one speaks many words, all they are doing is displaying benevolence and righteousness. I am reminded of the Sophist in Plato's dialogues. The Sophist speaks just to speak, acting like they are experts on the subject they are discussing. Sophists are imitators of knowledge, virtue, and justice (Sophist 267 b-c). This is what Heshang Gong is trying to elude too. Sophists harm themselves by displaying themselves as experts in the subjects they orate about. While Socrates and Plato use many words, they always assert that they are not saying or knowing anything. As such, by "not saying anything," Socrates guards his inner vitality and moral virtue (德 De/Te). Heshang Gong is further saying that by 育養精神, we must nurture our inner spirit in a way that leads us to fewer words, fewer desires, and less knowledge (Laozi 3).

With these passages in mind, I hope it is ever clearer why the Sage and Heaven & Earth treat the Ten Thousand-kind-of-entities as "straw dogs." Typing this out and laying out other supporting literature greatly aids my understanding, and I hope the same can happen for you, the reader.

[tomatoland]

The look in question just in case you missed it

The story they’re telling is when they went to see One for the Road last Valentine’s Day 2.14.22 and Force was late.

8.4.23

eng trans ©️

[elceeu2morrow]

"If you keep throwing stuff there won't be any stage left."

Louis, Pittsburgh 2.14.22

[bevebevo]

:D

[illuminatedpopcorn]

[takahashifumiya]

[brianajungwirthinstagram]

Briana followed these accounts | 2.14.2022

[nightmule]

Fitful sleep with fragmented dreams. Something I don't remember happens on the side of the house where the dog has his tie out. I think it involves plants. Maybe a spider. Inside mom is watching something that reminds me of downtown abbey.

Now I am inside the show, still watching but from inside the scenes instead of on the screen. A lesbian maid falls in love with her "spinster" lady and they hire a young gay butler so that they can live together openly, at least in their own home. They grow older and the maid trips on a hair roller and breaks a leg or hip. Now the lady must take care of her, after a decade their roles have been reversed.

I'm at work. We're all talking about a YouTube video about fashion. One of my coworkers says of the woman who made the video "I just wish I had the confidence to wear wigs all the time like she does." I've watched a few of her videos before but never knew this. Later that day somehow I meet the YouTuber and she tells me she's self conscious about wearing wigs but even more embarassed by how little natural hair she has. "I only found out you wear wigs this morning," I say, and tell her what I do for work and that all of my coworkers liked her last video. She seems excited and says she's going to talk about this conversation in her next video, a little shoutout of sorts. I don't care one way or the other I'm just glad she seems happier now.

There is a mystery. I think someone's been murdered, but in that bloodless Agatha Christie sort of way where all the suspects are contained to a house or a village or a party or a boat. Everyone is fancy and old-timey The detective was there too. For some reason the victim's wife is not a suspect. For some reason the detective examines even those people who do not fit the suspect's description of a man with white or pale blonde hair and a cut on his bicep. For some reason this includes him rolling up my sleeves to look at my bare arms despite my brown hair and the fact I'm wearing a dress that shows off my curves. "Not to question your process, detective, but I'm not sure anyone would mistake me for a man in this outfit. It's not exactly very... masculine." He responds by letting his fingers wander lecherously and saying, "No, it's not masculine at all. Not from the front side, the back side, or your good side." I shudder with disgust. The posh woman behind me tells him off, pointing out that he's checked both my arms for cuts already and he should move on to the next suspect since a murderer on the loose seems a bit time sensitive. I turn to her with a grateful smile. She looks like Trixie from Call the Midwife. The next morning the detective and the victim's wife have run away together and it belatedly occurs to me that the detective fits the description of the murderer perfectly. No one pursues them. Life moves on.

[licherature]

Listening to the Carole and Tuesday OST, and then Electra Heart for self care, this Valentine’s Day.

[honey-and-sting]

Sharp

"I may think of you softly from time to time. But I'll cut off my hand before I ever reach out for you again." -Arthur Miller

You were there in my dream- soft as the day you were born & I could have sworn you were light, pure light. I fell in love with you all over again. It was so easy to trust you, to pull myself into your embrace again. It felt like this time could be different. Until you turned sharp again, cut out my heart with a ruthlessness I forgot you were capable of. I felt like I was careening into the darkest pit there ever was & I swore to myself I'd never make the same mistake again.

[ricadiosa]

being on social media on valentine’s day lowkey feels like primary school vday parties. we’re complimenting each other’s fits, exchanging sweet words, admiring gifts, ogling candy and good eats lol, congratulating unions, etc. my heart sings! it’s all so cute stinking cute.🥺

a soft reminder: it’s only one day. especially to those who may not be feeling as inspired by the day. or who may be having a rough go with certain memories. (it is ok to feel what you must.) today can be, and is, made into an important day, yes. but still, it is just one out of many. allow the love, whether platonic or romantic, to come and last past this moment.

wishing everyone a beautiful day of love, whether single or not. may all your wishes come true, and dreams be made reality. 💌

with love,

ashe

[purenumbers]

2/14/22

2 = 1 * √4 = 2 = 2

Also:

(2 + 1)! - 4 = 2 = 2

Also:

2 - 1 = 4 / 2 / 2

Also:

2 * 1 = 4! - 22

[so-idialed-9]

Yes. Thank you.

Fixed it. 😘

I LOVE YOU @indiaalphawhiskey!!!!

No one nails the red trousers thing on Valentine's Day quite like this daddy.

In reference to this.

[elceeu2morrow]

Pittsburgh, 2.14.22