What Humans Do

[desert_max]

Boy, is that an open-ended thread title! It was intended as such. I don't know if anybody has been paying much attention, but it might appear that old desert_max has begun waxing a bit philosophical of late. Maybe so, but I'd like to think that I always had a bit of a poet in me. I just don't always let it out, and I think catharsis is good for the soul from time to time. So, I'll open the kimono a bit and maybe justify some of those slightly abnormal posts.

How do we define humanity?

People are born, they grow up, they build memories, they marry, they buy some property, acquire some stuff, and they grow old. (If they are lucky). But, inevitably, at the end of that sequence of events, humans also pass from this plane of existence. Most of the time, you really don't know when that's going to happen - you can approximate it, but you don't know. But, it is what humans do. It's the thing we all have in common and can all relate to. The fact that we can contemplate it at all makes us special!

So, I became aware 6 months ago of a condition that will ultimately be terminal in my case. There's some uncertainty on the timeline, but estimates have ranged from 18 months to 5 years. Obviously, I'm going to shoot for the later and maybe try and extend that, but it's still very fluid. Yes, it is cancer. Yes it is aggressive. No, it was not detected early. It was asymptomatic.

Now here's the deal, I am not looking for sympathy and damn sure don't want it. What I did want to convey is something that should be on the forefront of all of our minds, and I don't think was on mine. Apologies if you guys are just saying to me, "Well, duh!" But since our time here is a privilege and its duration is an unknown, we should maximize every day and every minute of every day. Never assume unlimited time. Treat your activities, your interactions and your expressions of love to those close to you as if time is short. It could very well be!

So, this is not a morbid "Oh, the guy's a walking stiff" kind of a thread. I just wanted to raise everybody's level of awareness and appreciation of the little things - especially some of you younger guys. I'm not going anywhere, I enjoy this corner of the interweb pretty much as any other spot I frequent.

It's what humans do!

See you around!

 

[Pighuntingpuppy]

Sorry to hear mate. Make the best of what you got left.

 

[CaptainKyle]

Very well said ! My thoughts have been with you !

 

[Radioguylogs]

desert_max:

I appreciate the gift you are sending to all of us.

I try to be aware of our finite exitance and remember to do all the things that matter,...even chase a few dreams along the way... but your message is a clear reminder that helps us to stay focused on what's important.

Thank you desert_max.

Let's ride on with complete awareness.

-Mike

 

[wacokid]

Research fasting and cancer. Fasting starves the cancer cells of sugar it needs to thrive. You have to accept having cancer, you do not have to give in or rely solely on medicine to get rid of it.

https://www.cancercenter.com/community/blog/2021/06/fasting-cancer
http://www.mercolafastdiet.com/blog/intermittent-fasting-cancer-therapy.aspx
Best of luck, and thanks for the insight.

 

[rrego]

That was very inspirational to me. Wishing the very best for you and more.
Written by a real man.

 

[Jerry Klay]

Great post and good luck in the FIGHT!

Keep us posted and I expect there is a huge resource of knowledge and people willing to help here..

 

[Parminio]

I've never been healthy.

My mother was a complete drunk. When I was 4 years old I was left in the back of a car she left in neutral as she went in to get more beer and it coasted out into the road and was run over by a Peterbilt.

6 months in a body cast later, it's been hell ever since. I have degenerative disc disease, arthritis, I've battled cancer twice, lost my left kidney, part of my pancreas, some muscle tissue, I've had 4 disc in my neck replaced and it's fused, back surgery, two knee surgeries...

You get the idea.

I'm 54.

With it all, I call it a win. They didn't expect me to live this long. I was also told I'd be walking with a cane by age 50 IF I would be able to walk at all.

Someone far wiser than I once said, "Life is what happens to you while you're making other plans."

That's typically why I don't think too far ahead. My wife still does, but she's 10 years younger than I am and far healthier. And Russian. Her parents are in their mid 80's and still going strong.

What depresses me about humanity is its current state. Most people live in a world of make believe, completely divorced from anything remotely considered reality. You can't talk to them. You can't reason with them. You can show them an apple, take a bite of it, offer it to them and they'll say it isn't an apple, you're lying and turn and walk away from you.

What made humanity is our ability to create and question.

• We harnessed fire.
• We created the wheel.
• We created the violin, the horn, the Les Paul.
• We wrote music, painted pictures, acted in plays, carved sculpture.
• We built buildings, dams, highways, rockets to space beyond our solar system.
• We asked, "Why are we here? What is our purpose? How long have we got?"

Then we created the home computer.

And that has been the downfall of us all. It thinks for us now. It shows us only what we want to see based on whatever belief we may have or whatever warped thought someone puts in our heads. It is why we are where we are now as a nation and a planet.

We are in a shitload of trouble as a species, folks. We're killing each other. We're killing our planet.

If anything is going to save us, it will eventually be our humanity.

If we can find it again, one last time.

 

[user 77084]

 

[desert_max]

Oh boy was I a Talking HeadsFan. I love it. Thanks for the link.

I saw them once in Billerica Massachusetts at a small venue. Apparently, the facility didn’t have enough juice to power their equipment, so they had an auxiliary generator outside. Something like halfway through the show, music stopped, light show went down, house lights came up, and we were all wondering what the heck was going on.

Turns out there had been a small fire in the generator outside. After about a 30 minute delay Byrne comes on and says they would continue the show but would need to be running under house lights and reduced amplification.

The first song when they started back up?

 

[VMAXXIMUM]

Thanks desert_max. It's easy for the day to day to distract us from the really important stuff. A reminder is always helpful.

 

[02GF74]

Hell this certainly is different from the 'my Vmax won't idle' threads.

One could wonder whether it is a good idea, to use the phrase 'to air one's dirty laundry in public', as there are nasty people out there that can lead to a whole world of arguments and unecessary stress.

I'd like to think, and what I have seen so far, that this forum is not one of those places and that people are and will be supportive.

To be human is winning the jackpot in the lottery of life. We have the ablility to think and communicate our thoughts to other humans as well as understand the needs and feelings of others. We also are aware of death and the nothingness that follows it, and that is truly the most frightening thought, but we could not funciton if we lived our lives dwelling on it. The thought has to be put away to the back of our minds.

This forum should not be the primary place where you post your thoughts, although it is sometimes easier to 'talk' to strangers than those that are close to you. I hope you have family and close friends around you.

I lost my sister due to cancer. When I sat at her bedside in her final days, I was struck dumb with silence, only after she had gone did I find all the things I wanted to tell and say to her, but it was too late. So don't make the same mistake, you have been given advance warning that your time is short so use that time wisely.

Yours is a good reminder to appreciate what we have and those close to us, because none of that will last forever.

Carpe Diem - make the most of the present time and give little thought to the future - is the motive here and I try to instill that in myself but by nature I'm more of 'go with the flow type' so it's a struggle.



Best wishes, tough times ahead