Friday, December 01, 2006
Worldwide Corruption Index
I got an email from Gallup that ranks 101 countries on a Worldwide Corruption Index. The lower the number, the less people feel that their country is corrupt. The U.S. falls somewhere in the middle. Finland has the lowest amount of perceived corruption. And which country has the most? Drumroll please . . . . Lithuania.
My funk has lifted from yesterday. After my post, I did my best not to frost the frog, although he did get a little dab of icing. (Why am I picturing the frosting as pink?) The mood passed completely on my drive to work. When the air is particularly dry in Minnesota, all of nature's details come into sharp focus. (Is that because there's less water in the atmosphere?) Often, while I'm driving to work, I'm in my own world and put most of my attention on the road, not on the long distance. Not so this morning. The trees were sprinkled with hoar frost. The river had a coating of ice with a streaky dusting of snow. The sun filtered through the gray clouds, creating an easy glow. The air was cold and snappy. Heaven.
My funk has lifted from yesterday. After my post, I did my best not to frost the frog, although he did get a little dab of icing. (Why am I picturing the frosting as pink?) The mood passed completely on my drive to work. When the air is particularly dry in Minnesota, all of nature's details come into sharp focus. (Is that because there's less water in the atmosphere?) Often, while I'm driving to work, I'm in my own world and put most of my attention on the road, not on the long distance. Not so this morning. The trees were sprinkled with hoar frost. The river had a coating of ice with a streaky dusting of snow. The sun filtered through the gray clouds, creating an easy glow. The air was cold and snappy. Heaven.
Labels: corruption, frost the frog, funk, gallup, minnesota, nature, problem, U.S.
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Funk
I'm in a funk - and not the groovy kind of funk, either. The yucky kind. Happens sometimes. It'll pass. Meantime, I'll try not to "frost the frog." This is a saying I heard from a Buddhist priest (no, not Judas Priest - BUDDHIST priest). Actually, she's a priestess, but I couldn't resist the play on words. (How bad is my funk, really, if I can continue joking?) Anyway, this Buddhist priestess was giving a talk about what to do when life comes flying at you full force and you don't know what to do. (Picture a hundred knives, point first, coming right at you.) The Buddhist would let it fly. Do none of it. But, if you feel you MUST do SOMETHING, pick only one thing. (Buddhists are cool like that - no absolutes.) The one thing you really shouldn't do in this sort of situation is to frost the frog. This means don't add to the problems heading your way. Christians, if slapped, are taught to turn the other cheek - which pretty much means getting slapped again. Buddhists don't go for the extra punishment. The first slap is enough. This asking for more punishment is frosting the frog, which most human beings are incredibly good at. I think my funk is a result of my frosting a frog. Time to stop.
Writing forces me to put the frosting away. The frog's not gonna taste any better with it anyway.
Writing forces me to put the frosting away. The frog's not gonna taste any better with it anyway.
Labels: buddhist, christian, frost the frog, funk, problem, writing
