Self-Titled

Ikkyu, the Zen master, was very clever even as a boy.  His teacher had a precious teacup, a rare antique.  Ikkyu happened to break this cup and was greatly perplexed.  Hearing the footsteps of his teacher, he held the pieces of the cup behind him.  When the master appeared, Ikkyu asked: “Why do people have to die?”

“This is natural,” explained the older man.  ”Everything has to die and has just so long to live.”

Ikkyu, producing the shattered cup, added: “It was time for your cup to die.”

From Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.

This made me laugh.  Clever kid.  I’ll try to remember this technique the next time I do something bad.

Sozan, a Chinese Zen master, was asked by a student: “What is the most valuable thing in the world?”

The master replied: “The head of a dead cat.”

“Why is the head of a dead cat the most valuable thing in the world?” inquired the student.

Sozan replied: “Because no one can name its price.”

From Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.

Apple Boss: Hey font guy, are you done yet so we can fire you?

Apple Font Guy: Err…no!  I still have to do the…um…Braille font!  Yeah, and the…um…Cherokee font!  I’ll get back to you.

I’m going to puke if I read about “the cloud” or “cloud computing” one more time. It’s become popular in the past half year but it doesn’t describe anything new. Sometimes the computer tech industry has more ridiculous fads than fashion.

I went to the Pismo fireworks show for the Fourth of July with Esther. I had never been before, but our timing was perfect. It was pretty cool, there were tons of people there, on the street near Splash and on the beach on either side of the pier. The place was pretty well lighted and there was plenty of space to sit on the beach. The fireworks were launched from the end of the pier and they seemed to explode pretty close to the ground. A few sparks seemed to almost hit the ocean before disappearing. The finale was pretty cool to watch because they showered sparks from the pier railings down to the water like a curtain of fire. There were tons of illegal fireworks too, which helped fill the gaps before and after the main show. We had barbecued earlier that afternoon, so it was a pretty good fourth. I hope everyone had fun.