Go for it lorikeet…
But you need to understand the ground you walk on is sentient.
Literally, the soil.
Is that what this is? You think you’re fucking smart?
Everything you see around you is sentient life.
Even a photon.
Eternal forms are the only thing that’s not sentient.
You’ll understand someday.
You mean…I can dig a hole and hump the ground until I spill my seed, I can then piss on it…and a flower will bloom?
I’m consent violating the shit out of the ground I’m jumping on right now.
Take that, bitch!!!
I have no friends.
Oh, I understand buddy…I’ve understood a long, long, time ago.
The ground gives you permission.
What if it doesn’t like you anymore?
You’ll not be allowed to walk anymore.
You’re trying to be condescending about things you don’t understand.
That’s not a good deal for you if you keep pushing it.
+++Well, as long as it’s not going to be easy for a stalker to use fakery to get into your arms, I’m glad to hear that.
On the other hand, if you watch enough episodes [over here] of Dateline and 48 Hours, you encounter all of the grim tales of men who were able to “charm” their way into the lives of women who ended up paying the “ultimate price” for not being able to see through their own “technique”. And, being blind, you have one less sense at your disposal.+++
I don’t think that being blind makes it any less easy to recognise the ill-intentioned, the obsessive weirdos and the freaks.
+++Well, my point revolves more around thinking it through “philosophically”. The way in which who we think we are is often embedded in the fact that we have not had many [or any] truly traumatic/dramatic experiences able to reconfigure our “sense of self” into something we might never have thought possible.
If the man I was after returning from Vietnam ever met the man I was before going over there, he would scarcely recognize him.+++
We don’t really know how we’d react until something happened. These things primarily affect us at an emotional level.
+++Here, of course, that inherent gap between the words “my appearance” for those who can see themselves and those who cannot. Similarly between those who can see you and those who cannot. What [more specifically] do you mean when you speak of your own appearance?
For example, a sighted women might change her hairstyle because she believes it will make her look “prettier” and thus more “desirable” to men. Or if she is a lesbian to women. Or she might wear a short skirt and a plunging neckline blouse because she thinks it would make her look “sexier”. Is there the equivalent of that for you?+++
I’m neat, clean and tidy, both in my personal grooming, and my flat. I don’t wear make-up, however, and nor do I style my hair. In terms of clothing, while I do occasionally go shopping with a friend, for the most part practicality is the primary concern. I have no idea about colours, or the latest trends, etc., and I’m much happier when I don’t have to bother thinking about such things at all, for example, at work, where we have a uniform.
+++Okay, thanks, I’ll keep that in mind. Does your reader alert you if I use asterisks before and after the words I type?+++
Yes, reading out punctuation (including asterisks) is an option that I always keep on.
+++Cute. And amusing. Okay. But just remember that cute and amusing isn’t the way that some men will see it. It’s just that since it is a visual thing it’s not really possible for me to explain what I mean by that. Or I can explain it only up to a point. When I speak of it being erotic, what can that possibly mean to you? How would a sighted person go about making you understand an erotic photograph? After all, for example, nudity to a sighted person is going to be different from nudity to a blind from birth person. Other things are going arouse a blind person. And that may or may not be communicated effectively when one person is sighted and the other person is blind. That’s why it seems [to me] that communication here would be easier if both are blind.+++
I have a pretty good idea why sighted people get so aroused by nudity, because I know how sensuous it is to explore the well-toned human form. The difference is that I have to use my hands, etc., to do so.
+++Just out of curiosity, have you ever had a blind romantic partner? I’m not sure if we discussed that here or in our email exchange. Not sure, in other words, what you mean be “incestuous” and “close-minded”. Do you mean everything revolving around being blind? About what sets you apart from others rather than what does bring you together?+++
No, I’ve never had a blind romantic partner. With regard to the blind community, I find it very insular and closed off from the world. Many blind people only socialise with other blind people, and as a result, most blind people end up with blind partners. It’s also, in the UK at least, dominated by a single organisation, the RNIB, which, while it undoubtedly does a lot of useful work, and its online shop is really good, is also highly politicised.
+++How then might it be subject to change? Would the change come more from what the Goddess communicates to you, or what you communicate to the Goddess? Which of course is very, very difficult for me to understand.
Anyway, I hope that you do find someone – the right person – who prompts you to opt for intimacy. I hope that someday you are here telling us about him.+++
I might meet someone outside of a romantic setting, such as at a Pagan event, and fall in love. It’s happened before, after all. Though admittedly that all went pear-shaped in the end.
Admittedly, I can only try to imagine being blind myself. And if I could not see what people are doing around me, I’d always be wondering if I was missing something…some clue about their behavior that might be embedded in a gap between what they tell me their intentions toward me are and what they really intend instead. Though, sure, maybe the other senses are accentuated that much more to figure these things out. Here of course I always hope that’s the case for you.
True.
So, anyway, since you are far more out in the world with others than I am, if you ever do tumble/stumble into a dramatic experience that does prompt you to reconfigure who you think you are, let me know. It’s something I might be able to advise you regarding.
Me, I pretty much wear the same very, very casual clothing all the time. No makeup or styled hair either.
But, if you were to become involved in a romantic relationship with someone, would that change things? Would you start to think to yourself, “I want to be ‘sexier’ for him?” Or feel sexier for him? Dressing in a different way, behaving in a different way? Or is that just not something that would really matter to you at all? I’ve been in relationships where, for some women, that was very important, while for others, not important at all. But I have never had a romantic relationship with a blind woman. So, I’m not really sure how or why that might matter.
Yes. That reminds me again of the film Blind Beast. Here is the trailer but, unfortunately, it is in Japanese. Maybe one of your sighted friends can describe it for you.
youtu.be/QD3q-0Pli9c
The “blind beast” is a sculptor. He uses his hands as his eyes to explore the naked body of a woman he has kidnapped in order to sculpt her. Nudity and art.
Here is a link to my “review” of the film on my now defunct film thread here at ILP: ilovephilosophy.com/viewtop … d#p2446066
Here, of course, there is no way for me to even begin to grasp the world you live in. Or the world that those who are blind and prefer the company of other blind people live in. Ultimately, it comes down to whether the choices that any particular individuals make brings about happiness and contentment and fulfilment in their life. And, since your own life seems to filled with all three, that’s the bottom line. So, I don’t think it comes down to how one ought to live. Only that the way one does live works well for them in terms of satisfying their wants and needs.
Again, when it comes to the future, we just never really know. There can be so many things beyond our control. It really comes down to what we allow ourselves to be open to. What both fascinates me and baffles me is how that works for you in regard to both the Goddess and nature. You have this commitment to abstain from sex for all those years. But how was that communicated to you? If, for example, you are a Catholic, you can go to church, to Confession, and communicate to a priest in regard to your sexual behaviors. But what of the Goddess? How far does this commitment go? Suppose you have sexual thoughts or masturbate or are around others who are being sexually explicit in their language. Is that communicated to the Goddess? And how does the Goddess through nature communicate Her/Its reaction to that?
iambiguous wrote:
This is creepy… you are creepy.
The woman is 30 years of age.
She knows the drill.
It is men like you she, and all women, should be wary of.
That post in and of itself isn’t creepy.
It’s all of them combined from him in this thread.
Unless a guy flat out tells you: I don’t have sex.
Expect creepiness. It’s what guys do best.
Fortunately, if Maia herself comes to the same conclusion, she can end the exchange and that will be the end of that.
Or, sure, maybe they actually will invent that machine that allows her to be inside my head in order to discover if “creepiness” is, indeed, my motivation.
Instead, from my frame of mind, the exchange revolves around…
1] her informing me that she had made this commitment with the Goddess
2] her informing me that she had been stalked by Adam here at ILP
3] her continuing to exchange posts with him still
That intrigues me. Especially the part about the Goddess in a world where other Pagans – re The Wicker Man – go in just the opposite direction in regards to sexuality.
The thread is not in the philosophy forum for nothing.
Alright. Go for it. Nobody is stopping you.
I’m just going to quote Shakespeare “the ‘man’ doth protest too much”
Not only that but, for all you know, I might have a “condition” too.
+++Admittedly, I can only try to imagine being blind myself. And if I could not see what people are doing around me, I’d always be wondering if I was missing something…some clue about their behavior that might be embedded in a gap between what they tell me their intentions toward me are and what they really intend instead. Though, sure, maybe the other senses are accentuated that much more to figure these things out. Here of course I always hope that’s the case for you.+++
People’s intentions are usually conveyed in how they say things, their tone of voice, and so on.
+++True.
So, anyway, since you are far more out in the world with others than I am, if you ever do tumble/stumble into a dramatic experience that does prompt you to reconfigure who you think you are, let me know. It’s something I might be able to advise you regarding.+++
Who knows what may happen.
+++Me, I pretty much wear the same very, very casual clothing all the time. No makeup or styled hair either.
But, if you were to become involved in a romantic relationship with someone, would that change things? Would you start to think to yourself, “I want to be ‘sexier’ for him?” Or feel sexier for him? Dressing in a different way, behaving in a different way? Or is that just not something that would really matter to you at all? I’ve been in relationships where, for some women, that was very important, while for others, not important at all. But I have never had a romantic relationship with a blind woman. So, I’m not really sure how or why that might matter.+++
I wouldn’t describe my choice of clothing as casual. Certainly not, for example, when I’m off on one of my camping trips, or going to some Pagan event or festival. I like to think of myself as quite fastidious and precise, as well as practical, when it comes to things like that, as indeed, in quite a lot of other areas of my life, too.
+++Yes. That reminds me again of the film Blind Beast. Here is the trailer but, unfortunately, it is in Japanese. Maybe one of your sighted friends can describe it for you.
youtu.be/QD3q-0Pli9c
The “blind beast” is a sculptor. He uses his hands as his eyes to explore the naked body of a woman he has kidnapped in order to sculpt her. Nudity and art.
Here is a link to my “review” of the film on my now defunct film thread here at ILP: ilovephilosophy.com/viewtop … d#p2446066+++
Not sure that’s the best advert for blind people, and judging by your review of the film, that’s only the start.
+++Here, of course, there is no way for me to even begin to grasp the world you live in. Or the world that those who are blind and prefer the company of other blind people live in. Ultimately, it comes down to whether the choices that any particular individuals make brings about happiness and contentment and fulfilment in their life. And, since your own life seems to filled with all three, that’s the bottom line. So, I don’t think it comes down to how one ought to live. Only that the way one does live works well for them in terms of satisfying their wants and needs.+++
Absolutely.
+++Again, when it comes to the future, we just never really know. There can be so many things beyond our control. It really comes down to what we allow ourselves to be open to. What both fascinates me and baffles me is how that works for you in regard to both the Goddess and nature. You have this commitment to abstain from sex for all those years. But how was that communicated to you? If, for example, you are a Catholic, you can go to church, to Confession, and communicate to a priest in regard to your sexual behaviors. But what of the Goddess? How far does this commitment go? Suppose you have sexual thoughts or masturbate or are around others who are being sexually explicit in their language. Is that communicated to the Goddess? And how does the Goddess through nature communicate Her/Its reaction to that?+++
It just felt like the right thing to do. My love life was going nowhere and I needed a period of spiritual reflection. I’ve had no communication about it, and it certainly wouldn’t affect my relationship with nature if I were to stop. But to be honest, Shieldmaiden has a good point, and this line of questioning is starting to stray into areas that I’m not particularly comfortable with. I’m always happy to discuss my life and thoughts, about pretty much anything, but there are some things that are better left unsaid, I think.
For once this simpleton is correct.
I already commented on the “cringe” factor elsewhere…but didn’t want to inhibit its unfolding.
Iamacreepybitch is definitely fucked up.
I especially liked how she casually inserted a comment about masturbation
Very smooth…Ha!!
The “I am your protector”…falls into her self-ascribed role of “defeating the forces of evil” those dreaded “objectivists” who have stood in the way of mankind reaching a peaceful compromise and bringing about Utopia…
Me, as in a “fulminating fanatical objectivist” she continuously “thumps”, i.e., defeats in her mind though she has no clue what I, nor anyone else, is actually saying.
HA!!!
She’s so fanatical she cannot see how she projects.
On the other hand, since you have never been able to actually see how people do behave around you, how would you know what they are capable of doing by way of acting out ulterior motives? It’s true that those who are not blind often underestimate the abilities of those who are, but it can also be true that those who are blind might overestimate their ability to judge people in a world they can’t see.
I recall that scene from the Norwegian film Blind where the blind wife is in bed with her husband. She asks him what he is doing on the laptop and he says it’s about his work as an architecture. In reality he is online with his lover. One peek at the laptop screen might have ended that marriage.
Human relationships can be tricky enough with all five senses. And all the more problematic with less than five. Especially sight and hearing. Or again so it seems to me.
Yes, that is basically the point I am making about human identity embodied in dasein. We think our Self is on solid ground. Then “something happens” and it’s considerably less so.
Okay, but love and sex – romantic relationships – can often be anything but fastidious and precise and practical. Perhaps that might be a subconscious or unconscious motivation for abstaining from sex…to keep that potential turbulence – passion – at bay. The Goddess then becomes a kind of psychological defense mechanism for you.
Let’s call this a “wild ass guess” on my part. Again, given the gap between our individual lives.
You’re right. He does kidnap her. And it is basically a “psychological horror” film. Also, my film reviews were almost entirely in regard to my own philosophical assessment of things. What things “mean” to me.
Also, absolutely subjective. Except for the parts where our own individual experiences overlap and, up to a point, we are able to communicate our thoughts and feelings about these things with others. Still, the tricky part always being when our value judgments are not in sync. The part I root in dasein and you and others root in other things.
Okay, but “it just felt like the right thing to do” still leaves me both fascinated and baffled as to how the Goddess and nature play a part in that. This is something, from my own frame of mind, you might possibly probe more deeply yourself in regard to your own thoughts and feelings…or just accept that it is a “spiritual” or “mystical” or “energy” thing?
Which, of course, in a philosophy thread in a philosophy venue becomes something else altogether. Still, I am often pointing out the gap between words and worlds. Your words and your world, my words and my world. The inevitable “failure to communicate” about things like this perhaps.
Again, as I noted above, this thread only exists because…
1] you told me about this commitment with the Goddess
2] you informed me that you had been had been stalked by Adam here at ILP
3] you continue to exchange communication with him
Then this part:
I think after I explore Pagan morality, I will explore in turn Pagan sexuality. See just how far removed it is [for some] from The Wicker Man.
Yes, some people are less comfortable talking about sexual matters than others. And that too is no less rooted in dasein.
But how can exchanges unfold in a philosophy venue relating to things like commitments to chastity and stalking and male/female relationships online and it not revolve around our own behaviors?
So, perhaps, if you are not comfortable going there it is time for another “collapse” between us. And if that be the case, I will understand. It’s happened before for other reasons. I would certainly not feel any less respect for your intelligence, emotional depth, accomplishments, curiosity, and tolerance for other people’s point of view.
Me, I can only ever go where I think it is important to go. Discussions revolving around my own “win/win” assumptions. A discussion that might bring me up out of my hole…or bring someone down into it.
If it’s dreck, you must reject.
Really, I won’t even try to imagine what this true creep posted above.
Maia,
I consider myself these four things:
A shaman, a Shintoist, a pagan and an ordinary guy living a monks life.
I’ve explored the religions and those are my categories.
Everyone can be categorized.
I think other understandings of life are delusional, by people who lack access.
I can’t explain the color green to you, but you seem to have access.
I worship nothing. I bow to nothing. In Jewish terms that would be idolatry.
But I do cultivate gratitude. My mom taught me that.
+++On the other hand, since you have never been able to actually see how people do behave around you, how would you know what they are capable of doing by way of acting out ulterior motives? It’s true that those who are not blind often underestimate the abilities of those who are, but it can also be true that those who are blind might overestimate their ability to judge people in a world they can’t see.+++
I know exactly what my abilities are, having had a lifetime to find out.
+++I recall that scene from the Norwegian film Blind where the blind wife is in bed with her husband. She asks him what he is doing on the laptop and he says it’s about his work as an architecture. In reality he is online with his lover. One peek at the laptop screen might have ended that marriage.
Human relationships can be tricky enough with all five senses. And all the more problematic with less than five. Especially sight and hearing. Or again so it seems to me.+++
That’s just a film though. I would like to think that in real life, she would know that her husband was up to something from his tone of voice and all sorts of other clues. And in any case, if she wasn’t blind, her husband wouldn’t have done it that way, so it basically all equals out.
+++Okay, but love and sex – romantic relationships – can often be anything but fastidious and precise and practical. Perhaps that might be a subconscious or unconscious motivation for abstaining from sex…to keep that potential turbulence – passion – at bay. The Goddess then becomes a kind of psychological defense mechanism for you.
Let’s call this a “wild ass guess” on my part. Again, given the gap between our individual lives.+++
I don’t think I’m any less passionate than most people. But passion wasn’t the issue. The issues were love and trust. And when those things are betrayed, it’s a real passion killer.
+++Okay, but “it just felt like the right thing to do” still leaves me both fascinated and baffled as to how the Goddess and nature play a part in that. This is something, from my own frame of mind, you might possibly probe more deeply yourself in regard to your own thoughts and feelings…or just accept that it is a “spiritual” or “mystical” or “energy” thing?
Which, of course, in a philosophy thread in a philosophy venue becomes something else altogether. Still, I am often pointing out the gap between words and worlds. Your words and your world, my words and my world. The inevitable “failure to communicate” about things like this perhaps.+++
Since I’ve always felt this connection to nature, what I have come to call the Goddess, I can’t really imagine what it would be like not to have it. Extremely boring, I suspect. As a part of nature, I know I’m part of something bigger, something magical and powerful. And sometimes I feel the need to give something back, to sacrifice something, simply out of gratitude for all the blessings of my life.
+++I think after I explore Pagan morality, I will explore in turn Pagan sexuality. See just how far removed it is [for some] from The Wicker Man.+++
Again, the Wicker Man is just a film. It bears about as much similarity to actual Paganism as Serendipity does to actual relationships.
+++Yes, some people are less comfortable talking about sexual matters than others. And that too is no less rooted in dasein.
But how can exchanges unfold in a philosophy venue relating to things like commitments to chastity and stalking and male/female relationships online and it not revolve around our own behaviors?
So, perhaps, if you are not comfortable going there it is time for another “collapse” between us. And if that be the case, I will understand. It’s happened before for other reasons. I would certainly not feel any less respect for your intelligence, emotional depth, accomplishments, curiosity, and tolerance for other people’s point of view.
Me, I can only ever go where I think it is important to go. Discussions revolving around my own “win/win” assumptions. A discussion that might bring me up out of my hole…or bring someone down into it.+++
Well, you know what I think, so please bear it in mind, when you ask me things.
Yes, gratitude. A very important feeling, in my opinion.
With all the hell realms I’ve been through…
Do you realize how good we have it here?
And people just throw goodness like that in the trash, constantly.
Yes. I feel tons of gratitude.
Another thing my mother taught me is “cafeteria style spirituality”
You take what you want and leave what you don’t want.
Yes, I consider myself very blessed and lucky to have been given the life I have been.