Knowledge is Power

All I really need to know I learned in Robert Fulghum's "All I really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten."

It's worth repeating:
Share Everything.
Play fair.
Don't hit people.
Put things back where you found them.
Clean up your own mess.
Don't take things that aren't yours.
Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.
Wash your hands before you eat.
Flush.
Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.

This book came out in the 80s I believe, and was very popular. I always wanted to read it, but kept forgetting about it. But when my new wife moved her books into my apartment (more than twice the number of books I have; and I thought I read alot), I saw this in her collection. So I read it, and it's good. I also read his next two books, "It was on Fire when I Lay Down on it," and "UH-OH: Some Observations from Both Sides of the Refrigerator Door." All three were fun to read, but I liked the first on the best. I see he has several other books out that look interesting. I'll have to add them to my Christmas list.

But as I said, I thought I read a lot, but my wife easily has twice as many books as I do. Most of mine are from high school and college, Sci-fi and Fantasy stuff. Hers are more classy, though she has a good collection of fiction, too. Oh, and two of her suggestions were published in volume 2 of "Live and Learn and Pass it on."

More parents should teach their children' Mr. Fulghum's list.


-- C.
PS: Yes, I did buy the book with my wife's suggestions and her name is listed in the credits.

Recent changes

More about me. I've been married nearly two months now (since 9/4/05) and I couldn't be happier. A lot of things have changed in my life during that time. For example, her two cats have moved in (you can see photos of them on my flickr page). They are nice cats and fun to have around. I just wasn't prepared for the amount of fur they leave behind. Nor the occasional hairball. But they are easy to care for and are certainly entertaining. I just bought a laser pointer keychain and have been driving them crazy with it. They need the exercise though.

I was a little concerned about living with someone. I've never had a roommate since I moved out of my parents house, and quite like the freedom that provides. But we've been getting along very well. We're very compatible. Which is a good thing to find out before you get married.

And in-laws. I get along well with her family, and they have accepted me. Last weekend I rode with her and her parents to Minnesota for her cousin's wedding. 12-14 hours in a car with your parents-in-law will test your relationship. But yeah, everything went well.

As a side trip we drove to Itasca State Park to see the headwaters of the Mississippi River. You hear about Niagra Falls, the Grand Canyon, Devil's Tower, Mount Rushmore, and so on, but I'd never heard about the Mississippi headwaters. They need to do more advertising. Lake Itasca is beautiful and very peaceful. The park rangers placed stones at the edge of the lake, where it spills out into the river, so you can walk across. At this point, it's only about 20-30 feet wide, much narrower than anywhere else on the Mississippi. Unfortunately we were there in late October and the water was freezing. We took off shoes and socks and got about a third of the way across before deciding it was too slippery, but mostly too cold to risk a fall. There is a narrow log bridge where you can cross in comfort though. I just wish I had thought to toss a stone across at this point so I can tell everyone I threw a rock all the way across the Mississippi River.


-- C.

What the heck is a "cerpicio"?

Way back when I was taking college classes (okay, only about 10 years ago, but it seems much longer), I took an Intro to Philosphy class. The professor asked us find the definition for the word "cerpicio" as homework. No one found the answer.

The next day we talked about Descartes and his "Evil Genious". This Evil Genious was trying to convince a man that the world around him was fake, an illusion, as if made of paper. Only the E.G. could tell the difference because he had an extra sense, he could "cerpicio" the difference. He went on to talk about "thick" illusions (I'm not much of a philosopher so I won't go into more detail).

But I thought "cerpicio" was a neat word. Later on, when creating a character for an online Role Playing Game (RPG), I decided to use the name Cerpicio. After all, it would just be a virtual character living in a virtual world. All illusions. I thought it was a clever fit.

And I've used the name ever since.

But when I search for "cerpicio" now I have trouble finding it under Descartes' work. Usually I find old posts of mine. I did find one page on O.K. Bouwsma's discussion of the Evil Genious though.

Anyway, this is my first post in my first blog. I should stop now before I start to babble.

More later.
-- C.