Appreciation

Rick · 9th August 2010, 02:08 AM

Yes, mate .
I have a thousand things I have collected or found that appeal to me and bring great memories and pleasure .

Very few of these go into my fetish box .
These few that are in it, are somehow quite different from the others .

So maybe I've drifted us off topic a bit .

Funny how thin the veneer of modern enlightenment actually is sometimes...., at least in my case .
I don't think I'm alone .

Anyway, back on topic .

A. G. Maisey · 9th August 2010, 03:06 AM

Rick, I'm inclined to think that all of this is most definitely on topic.

My original question in Post # 1 to this thread was:-

I would welcome the thoughts of others on the link between the appreciation of art and objects and the maintenance of sanity in a world that is rapidly decreasing in size at the same time that it is equally rapidly increasing in ordinariness.

Yes, certainly we've tended to focus on art, and collecting as opposed to pure appreciation seems to have dominated the thoughts of most of us, but these last few postsare, I feel, getting close to the heart of the matter:-

for one reason or another a "thing" can make us feel good.

It might be because it stirs a memory, it might because it opens the door to the steppes of Central Asia, it might because it transports us to a beach somewhere on the other side of the world, it might be because it makes us feel safe.

Whatever the reason might be there is a link between the "thing" and something that is happening in our mind, and that link has a positive effect.

I reckon we're on topic.

Rick · 9th August 2010, 03:35 AM

Funny, you know; many will not show their Pusakas nor even their kerises on this site .

I would never share pictures of the contents of my fetish box .
Beside being off-topic I feel they would be diminished somehow by doing so .

Call me whatever you like .

Somehow it seems like more than appreciation; more elemental .

A. G. Maisey · 9th August 2010, 04:02 AM

Yeah, I reckon that's a part of it:-

things that one identifies as a part of oneself should remain unique unto oneself

I feel that its OK if we allow close friends to see and handle our keris, but I cannot bring myself to post pics of my personal pieces for the world to see.

Appreciation

Elemental.

The two ideas are probably related, and if we talk "elemental" we can move away from the purely human.

Here in Oz we have a bird called a bower bird. It builds a bower out of grasses and twigs and strips of cloth etc, in which it dances to attract a mate; this bird has an obsession with all things blue, and it decorates its bower with anything blue that it can find.

Don't tell me that bird doesn't appreciate the colour blue. A link between the blue thing and what is happening in the bird's mind, even though it might be driven by inheritance.

As for names, I used to know bloke who would say:- " you can call me anything you like --- just make sure you smile when you say ba***rd"

Bill M · 9th August 2010, 10:37 AM

drdavid · 9th August 2010, 11:45 AM

No fair, now you guys are talking rock collections. I moved out of my parents place well over 30 years ago, they still ask me when I am going to get my collection of rocks out of their old shed. Like you Alan, i was involved in collecting rocks from lots of interesting places in New South Wales and Queensland, and I too have a lot of thunder eggs (an enclosed generally star shaped agate for those not familiar with the term). I spent a lot of my youth poking around old mine dumps, creek beds and cliff faces. And for Rick, David and Jussi, my favourite form of exercise is hiking up mountains. Where I live they are not like the Alps, only rising up to 1400 metres but there are hundreds and hundreds of them. Mind you some of them you have to hike for 3 days to get to the bottom so that you can walk to the top. Each one I walk up, I have to collect a small stone from the top. Otherwise I wasn't there. Fetish is a pretty good word for it really.
DrD

A. G. Maisey · 9th August 2010, 02:11 PM

You sound a bit like me Dr.

I've got some really good stones.

I mean really powerful stones, like from Candi Sukuh and Candi Panataran. And thats apart from from the 4.5 tons I have from various other locations. Just can't walk away from a good rock. Got my eye on one up near Abercrombie Caves. Its buried in a creek bed, and involves a steep 500 yard carry to get it to a vehicle. Looks like it weighs about 250-300 pounds. That's going to take some ingenuity.

Jussi, the reason I included "art" along with "objects" was because I wanted people to consider things like the performing arts. I considered "enjoyment" and "satisfaction" and a few other ways of phrasing the idea I had, but when I went that way I just couldn't get away from food, sex and drugs. I put a lot of time into phrasing that idea.

9th August 2010, 02:08 AM	#1
Rick Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,339	Yes, mate . I have a thousand things I have collected or found that appeal to me and bring great memories and pleasure . Very few of these go into my fetish box . These few that are in it, are somehow quite different from the others . So maybe I've drifted us off topic a bit . Funny how thin the veneer of modern enlightenment actually is sometimes...., at least in my case . I don't think I'm alone . Anyway, back on topic . Last edited by Rick; 9th August 2010 at 03:20 AM.

9th August 2010, 03:06 AM	#2
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	Rick, I'm inclined to think that all of this is most definitely on topic. My original question in Post # 1 to this thread was:- I would welcome the thoughts of others on the link between the appreciation of art and objects and the maintenance of sanity in a world that is rapidly decreasing in size at the same time that it is equally rapidly increasing in ordinariness. Yes, certainly we've tended to focus on art, and collecting as opposed to pure appreciation seems to have dominated the thoughts of most of us, but these last few postsare, I feel, getting close to the heart of the matter:- for one reason or another a "thing" can make us feel good. It might be because it stirs a memory, it might because it opens the door to the steppes of Central Asia, it might because it transports us to a beach somewhere on the other side of the world, it might be because it makes us feel safe. Whatever the reason might be there is a link between the "thing" and something that is happening in our mind, and that link has a positive effect. I reckon we're on topic.

9th August 2010, 03:35 AM	#3
Rick Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,339	Funny, you know; many will not show their Pusakas nor even their kerises on this site . I would never share pictures of the contents of my fetish box . Beside being off-topic I feel they would be diminished somehow by doing so . Call me whatever you like . Somehow it seems like more than appreciation; more elemental .

9th August 2010, 04:02 AM	#4
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	Yeah, I reckon that's a part of it:- things that one identifies as a part of oneself should remain unique unto oneself I feel that its OK if we allow close friends to see and handle our keris, but I cannot bring myself to post pics of my personal pieces for the world to see. Appreciation Elemental. The two ideas are probably related, and if we talk "elemental" we can move away from the purely human. Here in Oz we have a bird called a bower bird. It builds a bower out of grasses and twigs and strips of cloth etc, in which it dances to attract a mate; this bird has an obsession with all things blue, and it decorates its bower with anything blue that it can find. Don't tell me that bird doesn't appreciate the colour blue. A link between the blue thing and what is happening in the bird's mind, even though it might be driven by inheritance. As for names, I used to know bloke who would say:- " you can call me anything you like --- just make sure you smile when you say ba***rd"

9th August 2010, 10:37 AM	#5
Bill M Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: USA Georgia Posts: 1,599

9th August 2010, 11:45 AM	#6
drdavid Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 372	No fair, now you guys are talking rock collections. I moved out of my parents place well over 30 years ago, they still ask me when I am going to get my collection of rocks out of their old shed. Like you Alan, i was involved in collecting rocks from lots of interesting places in New South Wales and Queensland, and I too have a lot of thunder eggs (an enclosed generally star shaped agate for those not familiar with the term). I spent a lot of my youth poking around old mine dumps, creek beds and cliff faces. And for Rick, David and Jussi, my favourite form of exercise is hiking up mountains. Where I live they are not like the Alps, only rising up to 1400 metres but there are hundreds and hundreds of them. Mind you some of them you have to hike for 3 days to get to the bottom so that you can walk to the top. Each one I walk up, I have to collect a small stone from the top. Otherwise I wasn't there. Fetish is a pretty good word for it really. DrD

9th August 2010, 02:11 PM	#7
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	You sound a bit like me Dr. I've got some really good stones. I mean really powerful stones, like from Candi Sukuh and Candi Panataran. And thats apart from from the 4.5 tons I have from various other locations. Just can't walk away from a good rock. Got my eye on one up near Abercrombie Caves. Its buried in a creek bed, and involves a steep 500 yard carry to get it to a vehicle. Looks like it weighs about 250-300 pounds. That's going to take some ingenuity. Jussi, the reason I included "art" along with "objects" was because I wanted people to consider things like the performing arts. I considered "enjoyment" and "satisfaction" and a few other ways of phrasing the idea I had, but when I went that way I just couldn't get away from food, sex and drugs. I put a lot of time into phrasing that idea.