Gibberings CLXI: The Numerals are Probably Wrong, The Words Within Most Certainly Are

[Sammy G]

I attempted to read something by Marquis de Sade which was 225 years old and it was unreadable. As is will Self though whos works are only 10 years old.

Will Self is known for being excessively verbose, pretentious and a little yawnsome at the best of times.

Not much of the stuff he writes is bad per se, but a lot of it is self-indulgent. You're not missing all that much if it doesn't grab you.

As for de Sade, I assume you were reading a translation? It's best if you miss out the philosophy nonsense and skip to the salacious bits, though even then you'll probably find it inordinately florid by modern standards.

reading will self's books are a good way to expand your vocabulary, certainly.

So is taping your eyes open and headbutting a dictionary, but I wouldn't rush to recommend it.

 

[spacejunk]

Nice to see people talking about linguistics and the history of language, literature, etc.
I don't have much to add, coming from a part of the world where institutionalised attempts were made to eliminate ancient languages, belief systems and cultures of the region.
No linguistic evolution, just colonial oppression.
Anyway - sorry to digress! Keep going, please. A little light intellectual relief goes a long way on bluelight IMHO.

 

[Ceres]

I'll spare you the rest.I have a lot of time for will self's style. Umbrella was a bit heavy though.

 

[Sammy G]

Blimey! You really do have time for The Self, don'tcha? I think he's much better at journalism than he is at fiction, generally. He's a Burroughs / Ballard fanboy with too much of the guiltily-privileged Brit about him for my liking.

I hope your Amis collection extends to The Information as well. And good to see VALIS knocking around Gibberings.

 

[Ceres]

I have a love/hate thing with martin amis, some of his stuff is garbage. My other shelves have stuff like herman hesse and kafka and more camus and a swathe of random victorian era stuff. Don't have time to read these days sadly.

 

[Shambles]

It also bothers me how people from NA can be 22 years 'clean' and still pop out for cigarettes every 20 minutes while other people are talking.

Y'know AA/NA actually recommend people continue smoking rather than trying to quit. One of very many reasons I can't stand the cunts. Their success rate is also half that of those that go it alone. They keep that a bit quiet but their internal figures get leaked often enough for it to be kinda unavoidable as just the way it is. No wonder really given they blame the addict for everything, force them to go over and over and over and over and over the horrid shit they went through in the past and tell everybody that there is literally no point in doing anything other than asking on a "higher power" to save you from your wretched self. Fukkin thing's a cult. And an especially pernicious and nasty lil cult at that.

*disclaimer: if it works for some, great, but the vast, vast majority just get locked into an endless cycle of relapses and guilt-trips.

I think Shambles might be the guy with the really good response to those questions..

If it were me, though, I'd be tackling the particular substances that are adversely affecting my life, and not "drugs" as a whole.

Then you would be saying exactly what I would. Do your best to tackle any drugs which really are causing you problems pretty much each and every time you use them, others are pure recreation or whatever if they don't cause you problems.

I once went on a course which happened to be run by NA (I didn't realise this before agreeing to go). Turned up four days into a peev run utterly off my tits, corrected all the bullshit myths and downright lies the "(ex-copper) tutor was spewing, chased peev in the toilets at every opportunity and - would you believe it - they asked my DSP if I could take the rest of the classes at a different place instead.

Aberystwyth gets massive flocks of Starlings. Prior to migration it seems they all head to Aberystwyth Pier, and can be seen in huge swarms.

Starling's over Aberystwyth Pier.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSNHaatMC4w

Just up the road from me (as you know ) so seen 'em many times. Aber beach is a bit shit being mostly pebbles with a smattering of sand, but it's great of a summer around dusk with the fires lit, starlings a-swirling and a headful of acid

EDIT: I has bookshelf enviez now, Ceres!!!

 

[Sammy G]

I have a love/hate thing with martin amis, some of his stuff is garbage.

He's been garbage for years, aye. I read the stuff I liked when I was seventeen and haven't revisited it, so I have no idea of how he'd chime with my older, less patient, drug-damaged self.

Though I have time for Al Crowley and Kenneth Grant, so I must have a fairly high tolerance when it comes to the self-indulgent.

 

[Sammy G]

I've been seriously thinking about attending a local manic depressive support group (Bipolars Anonymous if you like) recently, but I haven't plucked up the courage.

At least that's one group where they're not going to bother to ask you to believe in a higher power than yourself.

 

[mydrugbuddy]

So is taping your eyes open and headbutting a dictionary, but I wouldn't rush to recommend it.

Hahaha Ive said this before but i like Self's short stories, they are far more 'accessable' and comprehensible than his novels, which do get you reaching for the dictionary twice every sentence. One of the short stories is called 'the lump of crack as big as a house' or something like that, and another was about flies taking over a weirdos house. All very eccentric but engaging stuff, the novels are just too much for mere mortals though.

 

[Sammy G]

The Rock Of Crack as Big as The Ritz? I remember that.

the novels are just too much for mere mortals though.

There's simply much better stuff out there, even if his style doesn't alienate you. Though if it tickles your fancy then that's what matters.

He seems to tickle quite a few people's fancies.

 

[mydrugbuddy]

I have a love/hate thing with martin amis, some of his stuff is garbage.

Time's Arrow is fucking fantastic. Again, more accessible than some of his other books, which frankly, were over my head

 

[mydrugbuddy]

The Rock Of Crack as Big as The Ritz? I remember that. .

That'll be the one.

 

[Shambles]

The Rock Of Crack as Big as The Ritz?

I smoked one of those once.

I've never read any of Will Self's books but he never fails to impress me when I've seen him talk on any subject so sure I will get around to reading him one day.

 

[Sammy G]

Skip the novels and read Junk Mail. Captures him before he became a TV celeb.

I smoked one of those once.

You probably did an' all!

 

[Uncle Robert]

Their success rate is also half that of those that go it alone.

Any idea how the figures for those that go it alone are collected?

If it's done by survey/groups I can't see current addicts getting involved in the kind of studies as much as people who succeeded in sobriety.

 

[mydrugbuddy]

Almost by definition the people that literally 'go it alone' wouldnt be known about or picked up by any survey. I suspect that a person who gets into difficulty and doesnt seek some kind of referral to an agency but succeeds entirely alone is very rare. Seeing a key worker/support worker wouldnt count as going it alone surely but its something that isnt NA ?

 

[Albion]

I've started going down the NA route again, in all honesty it hasnt been going so well. I do see the postives in it, because there are some but as has been said I struggle with the complete abstinence, I have a problem with heroin, nothing else.

I always find the actual problem of addiction hasn't been addressed, they've addressed the drugs but not the addictive nature, theyre all obsessing over new cars, e-cigs etc, while this is from a health point of view a better thing to obsess and be compulsive over the addictive tendancies havent been addressed. I honesty dont know if they can be cured.

I go in with the attitude of just taking from it what works for me, higher power, abstinence, nah....

I do find it therapeutic to just be honest to myself and others, something a fail at on both counts outside of the rooms...

KEEP COMING BACK, IT WORKS IF YOU WORK IT, YOU'RE WORTH IT Hate that part....

Im just clutching at straws to be honest cuz everything else has failed up until now...

Good luck albion

I can relate and agree with everything you've said here. I think you're right; honesty is crucial, and while it is an effective tool for recovery and self-rehabilitation, it's generally more ace for your mental health than anything else.

KEEP COMING BACK, IT WORKS IF YOU WORK IT, YOU'RE WORTH IT

That sickens me. We all hold hands and wave our arms up and down as we shout it out. Well I don't; I don't know the words, but my god...It's patronising. I really don't need a 'power rangers are go' type morale boost. It just makes me feel worse.

 

[ColtDan]

Mesmerizing

A Spinning Mosaic of Patterns Drawn with Wet Clay on a Potter’s Wheel

 

[ScotchMist]

Bwahahahaha, 'power rangers are go'...!

I couldn't believe what was happening when I saw that for the first time. Its fuckin bizzare and completely unnecessary, ive always got really sweaty hands to...!

If I wasn't so desperate that ritual alone would of been enough to have me running for the hills.

I don't get how at the start of the meeting the Literature states NA is a non religious organisation and then reference "GOD" fairly frequently. I know they throw the little sly disclaimer in there that you can interpret him/she/it however you like but I don't get why its mentioned at all..? The groups I go to arent religious at all so im lucky in that respect, I don't think they are anyway. Theres no recruiting going on anyway

Its strange, I like the absolute honesty though... "SO KEEEEEP COMING BACK"......! fuckin hell its awful isnt it.

 

[Eveleivibe]

This discussion is interesting.
By the way, FG is doing ok. He just responded to an E-mail I sent him.

Evey xxxx