Saturday, January 8, 2011

Vistas Through the Fabric of Illusion


WE ALL CONTINUALLY MOVE ON
THE EDGE OF ETERNITY AND ARE
SOMETIMES GRANTED VISTAS
THROUGH THE FABRIC OF ILLUSION.

~ Ansel Adams


Of Note: Wonder if there were those who were able to pull back the fabric of illusion at any time? Witches have such a reputation in Romania where officials wear purple to fend off evil spells. Their incantations are taken quite seriously. So much so, that the government has decided to officially recognize the ancient profession. Why? It needs the tax revenue. In the country where gypsies originated, fortunetellers will also have the opportunity to begin contributing 16% of their earnings to the national coffers. Many witches are not taking this lying down and have put curses on the government, which is only trying to make ends meet during the global recession like every other nation. The Queen of the Witches is the most put out. She was imprisoned in 1977 for witchcraft by a dictator, who employed his own personal witch, and proclaimed from her castle that her curses always work, "So beware!" Other more moderate witches are viewing this as a step up. They believe that witchcraft is a legitimate profession, and it will be a blessing to be recognized as such. One opined: "The law is very good. It means that our magic gifts are recognized, and I can open my own practice." We can only hope that the good from the white witches offsets the bad from the black ones. The Romanian government may soon find out which group has the most power: those who place curses on it out of anger or those who are grateful for the opportunity to use their magical gifts for the good of the nation.


Today's Weather Report: It is as if 7 - 9 degrees Fahrenheit was the official temperature of January. It's not bad really because this time of year often brings -20 degrees for days on end. I'm sure before the month is through, we will see those frigid temps. All told, it's been a very mild season with few days even below zero. The electrician is working on the generator today again. He comes usually on weekends so this has been a long, drawn-out process. What he originally thought would take 4 hours from start to finish has taken hours upon hours. What he didn't know when he started, was the state of the electrical system here, which is multi-layered as additions to the structures were built. The electrician finally decided that the generator would have to be installed like that at an institution. When the generator engages, all lines will be energized as opposed to most household installations, where only 10 to 14 lines are energized. Live and learn, but the costs have skyrocketed. Now I have some sympathy for contractors such as Boeing or Martin Marietta, who cannot keep within a budget no matter how hard they try.