The world is more amazing than any dream.
Creative people have endless obstinacy.
They continue to be creative through matter what happens.
Their enduring happiness comes from productive work and the transcendental elements of their lifes.
The centrality of productive human endeavor is creating a sense of purpose in life.
What makes work meaningful is not the kind of work it is, but the sense it gives you that you are earning success serving others.
Enjoying your life is the most beautiful thing you can do for yourself.
Love what you do.
Every great story happened when someone decided not to give up, but to keep going no matter what.
Enjoy every moment of your life.
If Plan “A” doesn’t work, there are 25 more letters in the alphabet.
I hope your cognitive faculties are working with a bit more alacrity than your most recent actions exhibited.
Keep smiling.
Keep gathering intellects and forces.
Keep getting people to coalesce around your way of thinking.
Someday, life will tire of upsetting you.
Be in touch with yourself.
Spontaneity is the best kind of adventure.
There is no time to be bored in a world as beautiful as this.
I tried being normal once. It was the most boring hour of my life.
Copyright (c) 2020 by Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2020 by Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved
As a young single parent I created a wonderful world: a world of imagination for children to grow up in.
I filled my condo in Playa del Rey, California with works of art which reflected my uniqueness ingenuity and creativity as a parent.
My home furnishings, furniture and art works displayed my passion as a scholar, patron and collector.
My home was a place of tranquility for myself and my children.
It was a synthesis of my person, my place, my power, my wealth, my creativity, and my ingenuity.
It was filled with treasured works of art.
Copyright © 2019 by Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved
I saw Kevin drawing and painting his picture of Ezekiel 8: 7-9 while Kevin was sitting in a booth in Mel’s Diner in Sherman Oaks, California.
I thought the picture he was drawing and painting was beautiful.
I asked if I could photograph him holding his picture.
He said, “Yes.”
I photographed Kevin holding his painting of Ezekiel.
Then I began to converse with Kevin.
It struck me that Kevin would be the perfect Santa Klaus, because Kevin is so genial, full of good fellowship.
Kevin is naturally jolly.
One thing led to another.
I saw his painting of a woman in pain.
I asked Kevin if I could use that picture to illustrate things I want to write.
Kevin said, “Yes.”
The next morning, I saw Kevin’s paint set sitting alone on a table at Mel’s Diner.
I wrote a note to the absent Kevin, on a paper place setting.
My note said, “Kevin, Good Morning, Gary.”
When Kevin saw my note, Kevin couldn’t help himself.
Kevin immediately illustrated my note with a painting of a captain of an ocean going ship, a picture of a Sea Captain.
Kevin, proudly and with good nature, showed me his illustration of the Sea Captain on the paper place setting on which I had written my note.
Kevin posted a picture of his captain on my good morning note on Instagram @kevinpnolte.
I, of course, photographed the picture of the sea captain on my good morning note to Kevin which Kevin had posted on Instagram.
Then Kevin showed me a sketch he had made of me.
The same day (Saturday, December 7, 2019 Kevin showed me the sketch he had made of me, I met a poet-film-maker at a Holiday Party.
The poet-film-maker talked to me all night long.
She spent most of the evening talking about love.
I took notes as she spoke.
I wrote as she spoke.
The next day, December 8, 2019, I wrote a post titled MEDITATIONS ON HUNTING LOVE, which is posted on my Gary S. Smolker Idea Exchange Blog at https://garysmolker.wordpress.com/2019/12/08/meditations-on-hunting/
That post contains the gist of what the poet-film-maker told me about love and is illustrated with Kevin’s painting of a sad woman.
This is the way creativity works.
Creative things are generated through a natural collaborative effort.
True artists go with the flow.
Gary Smolker, Social Commentator, Values Critic
Copyright © 2019 by Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved
The above photographs were recently turned into posts on Instagram @garyspassion by me.
Below are photos of some of my recent posts on Instagram @garyspassion.
The four photos below with commentary have been posted by me Instagram @garyspassion.
I celebrate freedom of choice in what I wear (when I am not appearing in court as a trial attorney) and so does everyone else in America.
In Los Angeles people can wear whatever they are in the mood to wear and have the courage to wear.
Below are photos of men wearing t-shirts which exemplify the freedom of expression that is practiced all over America.
I turned those photographs into posts on Instagram @garyspassion. See photos below.
I saw the two guys in the t-shirts above waiting to get into a Deli (Nat’s Early Bite) and took the above photos of them as I was leaving.
A “Painkiller” is a drink served in the British Virgin Islands.
A “Harley-Davidson” is an iconic American motorcycle.
American culture is unique in the history of the civilizations of the world.
America is defined by having a multitude of differences in one place, a diversity of cultures and ideas created by a population of people in the United States who are all living in the same country at the same time.
Some people believe that the fact that America has a population consisting of people who belong to a diverse mixture of cultures and who have a diverse mixture of ideas and beliefs is the reason America is such a productive and creative place to live.
Optimism gushes in America.
“Every time I start thinkin the world is all bad, then I start seeing some people out having a good time on motorcycles – it makes me take another look.” Steve McQueen
Even years after his death, Steve McQueen remains an icon of cool.
In his movies, McQueen always had a great motorcycle or car.
A love of motorcycles pulsates in America.
See photos below recently posted by me on Instagram @garyspassion.
These photos/Instagram posts vividly portray American’s present day love for motorcycles.
Go to Instagram @garyspassion for a broader view of life in America.
I have photographed many badass people in L.A. and then posted the photographs I took of them with my commentary on Instagram @garyspassion.
I’ve also posted my photograph (shown below) of computer nerd Kyle with commentary on Instagram @garyspassion
Currently, I have posted 873 posts on Instagram @garyspassion.
Copyright © 2017 by Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved
Gary S. Smolker, Publisher, Social Commentator, Book Reviewer, Movie Reviewer Gary S. Smolker Idea Exchange www.garysmolker.wordpress.com Gary Smolker, Fashion Blogger Dude's Guide to Women's Shoes www.dudesguidetowomensshoes.com Follow me on Instagram @garyspassion
Whoever designed the container shown above has a lot of brain power.
Whoever designed the labels on that container has a lot of brain power.
Whoever designed the paper bag shown above has a lot of brain power.
What you see above is not just a container.
What you see above is not just a paper bag.
What you see above is an example of the creative communication of a sales pitch presented as a message.
You are looking at a container with a story and a message.
You are looking at a bag with a story and a message.
The stories on that container and on that bag trigger action.
Q: Is that a container of ice cream, or a container of hand and body lotion?
A: No. It is a creative advertising masterpiece.
Q: Is that a paper bag?
A: No. It is a creative advertising masterpiece.
The “Charity Pot” container looks like a container of ice cream.
I like ice cream.
The label on the top of the container states, “BY BUYING CHARITY POT YOU SUPPORT GOOD CAUSES…”
I am in favor of supporting good causes.
Another label on the container states, “NOT VIRGIN! Pot made from 100% recycled plastic. Recycle it or bring it back.”
I am in favor of recycling.
The bag states the following:
Those are all appealing stands on social issues.
All of the above influences influenced me to buy that “hand and body lotion.”
Wealth at its deepest root is the product not of physical labor but of intelligence, of creative vision.
Action is required to actualize the vision, but physical labor not guided by human intelligence is virtually worthless.
All business is fundamentally about brain power.
Without the guidance of an idea, action is just mindless motion, without direction, purpose or value.
There is no maximum to potential.
Some people live life fully.
They know:
People who don’t believe in magic, don’t find it.
Life isn’t magical on its own.
We make it magical
In the evolution of advertising, and in the evolution of business, Lush Cosmetics is not a virgin
Lush Cosmetics is a magician who speaks and does business in the language of popular culture.
Lush Cosmetics realized that people have a social conscious and that people are health conscious.
With that realization, Lush Cosmetics became a game changer, a rebel who never stopped redefining the business of cosmetics and never stopped redefining the business of creative communications.
The photographs above show part of the picture of how Lush Cosmetics got from there to here and now…. in the health conscious cause conscious popular culture and…. in the cosmetics industry.
Story tellings is fundamental to our lives.
We all love stories.
It is a testament to the extraordinary world we now live in that Lush Cosmetics is a huge business success.
PEOPLE ARE SEARCHING FOR MEANING!
“Participate in an important social cause” is the central message of Lush Cosmetics advertising: that message is on the labels on “Charity Pot”, and in the statements made on its paper bags, etc.
People connect with others not just with similar passions and interests, but around the causes that most resonate with them.
More and more, brands are identifying with a cause, and making that identification a central part of their ethos.
I believe in magic.
I am not virgin.
I am 100% in favor of powerfully “living the engaged life.”
Gary Smolker
Copyright © 2017 Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved
This is the third in a series of articles I intend to post on the Gary S. Smolker Idea Exchange Blog at http://www.garysmolker.wordpress.com on “LIVING THE ENGAGED LIFE.”
I have continuously made posts on my Instagram account @garyspassion on “LIVING THE ENGAGED LIFE,” and intend to continue to do so.
Follow me on Instagram @garyspassion
See string of email correspondence below.
GREAT XX vs XY CHROMOSOME STORY
—–Original Message—–
From: Grahame Elder <grahame.elder@gmail.com>
To: Gary Smolker <GSmolker@aol.com>
Sent: Thu, Sep 1, 2016 12:51 pm
Subject: Fwd: Gender geography
Gary – Please consider this as your next category for you intensive investigation…
———- Forwarded message ———-
|
The Geography of a Woman
Between 18 and 22, a woman is like Africa. Half discovered, half wild and naturally Beautiful!
Between 23 and 30, a woman is like Europe. Well developed and open to trade, especially for someone of real value.
Between 31 and 35, a woman is like Spain, very hot, relaxed and convinced of her own beauty.
Between 36 and 40, a woman is like Greece, gently aging but still a warm and desirable place to visit.
Between 41 and 50, a woman is like Great Britain , with a glorious and all conquering past.
Between 51 and 60, a woman is like Israel, has been through war, doesn’t make the same mistakes twice, takes care of business.
Between 61 and 70, a woman is like Canada, self-preserving, but open to meeting new people.
After 70, she becomes Tibet. Wildly beautiful, with a mysterious past and the wisdom of the ages. An adventurous spirit and a thirst for spiritual knowledge.
THE GEOGRAPHY OF A MAN
Between about 18 and 90, a man is like North Korea, ruled by a pair of nuts. |
I’ve concluded that life is for living.
I have concluded that the best type of life for me is one in which I stop being afraid of wasting my time by going out or by going to new places or by meeting new people and instead that I should travel to new places, meet new people, have new experiences and learn new things while doing so.
In my opinion life is beautiful and how I live my life is either good medicine for me or poisonous.
The key to being “healthy” for me is knowing how to live.
I’ve found I can –
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park
I recently went on a trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee with my three adult daughters.
One of the great things I discovered while being high up the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is that there is no cell phone reception there.
Consequently it was a place where I could relax and (re)connect with nature.
While I was in the Smoky Mountains I was able to decompress, relieve stress and regenerate my spirit as a result of being in nature with no distractions – as a result of being in a place where there was no cell phone service.
I personally experienced the value of (a) breathing fresh air, (b) seeing clear clean running water in streams creeks and rivers, (c) seeing picturesque waterfalls, (d) hiking in pristine woods and (e) solitude.
As a result of “being “n nature” without the distractions imposed on me by cell phones, Internet connection, talking texting or emailing I was able to see clearly the way things work “in nature” and as a result of that after I returned from my “retreat” in nature with my daughters I have been able think clearly without distraction about several things of concern to me.
Additionally, my trip to the Smokies was an amazing bonding experience with my daughters, nature and myself.
During the entire time I was in the Smoky Mountains I was happy, healthy, full of wonderment and stress-free.
The kinds of experiences I had on my trip to the Smoky Mountains have provided memories which I will enjoy for years to come and a reference point and base line to use when thinking about things in my daily life that are important to me.
The experiences I had and the observations I made on that trip have increased ability to think many fold about how I spend my time and other resources and about medical, financial, family and emotional issues of great concern to me.
The Area In and Around the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The whole area in and around the Smoky Mountains is quite stunning – light traffic on the freeways, lush green all around the hills and in the mountains.
“Nature” is preserved in a pristine state in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
People Who Know How to Live
The people I met in the areas in and around the Smoky Mountains during my vacation/retreat in the Smoky Mountains with my three daughters know how to live.
They live rustic sensible refined remarkable and somewhat “funky” lives.
Every one I met was good -natured, calm, friendly, hospitable and grounded, and seemed to be alert and happy.
The people I saw and met in cafes, restaurants, and grocery stores during my sojourn in and around the Smoky Mountains were striking different from the people I typically see in similar places in and around Los Angeles.
The people I met in the South (in and around the Smoky Mountains) were all very calm, relaxed and laid back.
I didn’t meet or see anyone during my sojourn in and around the Smoky Mountains who was up tight, anxious, or stressed out.
Below is a photograph I took of a man a man I met in the “Lil Black Bear Cafe” in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
I’ve never seen anyone wearing a T-shirt in Los Angeles like the T-shirt the man in the photograph above is wearing.
By the way, the chocolate Bear Claw served in the “Lil Black Bear Cafe” in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee is something to write home about. I ate one. See photos below of the Bear Claw I ate in the “Lil Black Bear Cafe.”
I survived eating the Bear Claw pictured above.
I purchased a T-shirt to celebrate my accomplishment.
See photograph of the T-shirt I bought.
The people I met, and the culture and way of life I observed, in and around the Smoky Mountains was tremendously different from the culture I experience every day in Los Angeles.
I think people in the South (at least the people I met and interacted with) are more “natural” and more in tune with their core human nature that people in and around Los Angels that I see when I go out to eat or to a grocery store or to any other public place in Los Angeles.
Below is a photograph of a man I met in a grocery store in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee and a close up photograph of the T-shirt that man was wearing when I saw and met him.
I’ve never seen anyone in Los Angeles wearing a T-shirt like that.
Popularity of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most popular park in the National Park System.
Ten million people per year visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Everyone Needs A Perfect Place to Think
Everyone needs a perfect place to think without distraction, a retreat.
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is such a place.
All four of us (Leah, Judi, Terra and me) found the Smoky Mountains to be a perfect place to think.
My Search for A Clear Mind
The search for a clear mind is one of my fundamental goals.
The search for a “clear mind” is the fundamental goal of “all” creative and highly productive people.
During my trip to the Smoky Mountains, the solitude I experienced and my interaction with (a) my daughters, (b) nature and (c) the people I met gave me a clear mind.
My Trip to the Smoky Mountains
I left my in Encino, California on May 14, 2016 and visited the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina and Tennessee for ten days, from May 14 to May 24, 2016, with my three daughters Leah, Judi and Terra.
As a result of taking my trip to the Smoky Mountains, I feel totally connected to life – physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
It is clear to me that the state of my energy, my health and of my over-all-well-being are dependent on being connected to nature.
Life is about choice.
I advocate relieving stress, being healthy and living a creative down to earth purposeful gratifying meaningful healthy life.
I’ve found that the best way for me to live is by being connected simultaneously with my natural core and nature.
I’ve discovered it is okay for me to enjoy a glass of wine, to have a beer, to have a shot of whiskey; it is not crazy or a waste of my time to go for hikes in woods, to do yoga, to read a book, to think and reflect in solitude, or to go to car shows, or to take photographs with my iPhone of whatever strikes my fancy, and that it is beneficial for me yo travel to new places to meet new people and to see new things.
In my opinion going to new places, meeting new people, connecting to nature, and having new experiences should be part of everyone’s life goals.
As a result of my recent vacation in the Smoky Mountains I have concluded that –
Failure and Making Mistakes Are A Natural Feature of Life and of Making Progress and of Making Something New
Creativity is a resource we continually draw upon to make something from nothing, to make the non-existent come into being.
Part of being healthy is to not be afraid of trying something new, or trying to do something new.
Inevitably active alive and creative people experience failure and make mistakes.
Healthy people realize mistakes are not a necessary evil.
Mistakes are an inevitable consequence of doing something new, and as such, they such be seen as being valuable; without them, we’d have no originality.
Mistakes and failures are learning experiences.
Think of failure like learning to ride a bike; it isn’t conceivable that anyone could learn to ride a bike without making mistakes – without toppling over a few times.
The first place I landed on my way to the Smoky Mountains was in Asheville, North Carolina.
Asheville is known as “Beer City, USA” because it has so many microbreweries.
We went to Asheville first because my daughter Leah is a beer connoisseur.
I saw “good humor” and “personality plus”, and experienced “positive energy” and “social commentary” everywhere I went during my three day stay in Asheville, North Carolina.
The people I met in Asheville had good nature, and were happy, hospitable, calm, and grounded.
It was pleasant to interact with each person I interacted with in Asheville.
Each of them exhibited a good sense of humor.
Below is a picture of a sign I saw posted in the window of the “12 Bones Smokehouse” in Asheville, North Carolina.
That sign made me laugh when I saw it.
By the way, the “12 Bones Smokehouse” is President Obama’s favorite rib joint.
While in Asheville I saw another which made me laugh.
See picture of that sign below.
It is a sign on the wall of a place where you can self-wash your dog.
I love chocolate.
During my trip to the Smoky Mountains, I visited the most famous place in Asheville, North Carolina: the Biltmore House.
The Biltmore House was built in 1895 by George Vanderbilt.
It is a 250 room house.
It is situated on a 8,000 acre estate.
It has gardens and trails, a conservatory, a bass pond, a boathouse, lawns and woods.
In “the house” itself, there are restaurants, a courtyard market, a bake shop, a ice cream parlor, and specialized stores for shoppers and highly specialized shopping experiences.
For shopping there is a store called “Christmas Past”, a store called “Bookbinder’s”, a store called “Carriage House”, a store called “Confectionery”, a store called “Toymaker’s”, and a store called “A Gardener’s Place.”
My favorite part of the house is the candy store (the confectionery).
I am a fan of tasty chocolate and good advertising.
My First Most Favorite Experience at Biltmore House
My favorite experience, while I was touring the Biltmore House, was seeing what was printed on boxes of chocolate for sale in the “Confectionery.”
See photos below.
I also love cupcakes.
I was thrilled when I saw the package below in the confectionery, advertising cupcakes, yum.
My Second Most Favorite Experience at the Biltmore House
My second best experience at Biltmore House was looking at the exotic flowers growing in the Conservatory at the Biltmore House.
Below are photographs of exotic flowers I saw growing in the Conservatory at the Biltmore House.
My Third Most Favorite Experience at the Biltmore House
My third best experience at the Biltmore House was looking at a group of flowers growing in a pond above the gardens. Those flowers are shown in the photograph below.
For various reasons the Great Smoky Mountains have always been a very special place.
The people who lived in the Smoky Mountains in the recent past were famous for hiding their stills from tax collectors and for selling their homemade distilled spirits when it was against US Federal Law to do so.
Being surrounded by natural beauty and making homemade distilled spirits and having a great down to earth sense of humor has been a way of living in and around the Great Smoky Mountains for generations.
When it was illegal to manufacture or sell liquor, certain people [who lived in and around the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee were called Moonshiners and also called bootleggers] manufactured and sold homemade distilled spirits nicknamed “moonshine”; they manufactured and sold “homemade” wine and whisky (“moonshine”) in violation of federal law.
Doing that earned them a “romanticized” place in the history of the United States.
Today, it is not against federal law to manufacture or sell distilled spirits.
However, in an attempt to take advantage of romantic and nostalgic feelings about “moonshine” and “moonshiners” , major distillers pretend to sell “moonshine” — and promote the sales of their products (wine and whiskey) with sales messages associating their products to individualistic rebel character traits romantically associated with moonshine and bootleggers.
These messages are printed on ancillary merchandise – soft good items – such as T-shirts, pillows, and dish towels sold in “Moon Shine” stores and boutiques in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge Tennessee.
For examples, at their stores in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge the “Old Smoky Tennessee Moonshine” company provides free moonshine tastings, live music, distillery tours and sells “moonshine” (jars of whiskey) as well as T-shirts, Sweat Shirts, and sundry other items.
Wine is a symbol.
The wine industry in Tennessee has made a successful effort to have me associate drinking wine with Individuality, Character, Relaxing, Relieving Stress and Being A Fun and Wise Person.
In their boutique wine and whiskey tasting stores near the Smoky Mountains their customer (me) can’t help but associate Being Fun with Drinking Wine, Wine Drinking.
Below are pictures of miscellaneous soft good items imprinted with messages celebrating and encouraging the consumption of wine.
I recently took the pictures below in a so called wine tasting store in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Notice that each of the items shown in the photographs below cleverly delivers the message that a person who drinks wine is a fun person.
Each message has a “fun”, “be fun”, “have fun” emotional arc I relate to.
I had “fun” reading each message.
I smiled when I read each message.
I took each of the above photographs on May 23, 2016 at the “Bootleggers Home Made Wine” store in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Gatlinburg is a small town located at the foot of the Smoky Mountains in Eastern Tennessee.
Seeing nature in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a spiritual as well as a physical and mental experience.
I can’t imagine any person with sight not being able to visually spiritually and mentally experience the majesty of nature on display in the Smoky Mountains and our deep rooted connection with nature.
Below is a series of photographs I took of the Smoky Mountains behind a layer of clouds I observed from my Majestic View cabin in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, at 6:30 a.m.
Note: the clouds in front of the Smoky Mountains look like smoke coming up from and rising up from the Smoky Mountains.
Next are photographs I took of the same view from the cabin with the Majestic View four hours later at 10:40 a.m. – after the morning mist and clouds in front of the Smoky Mountains began dissipating, then dissipated and then disappeared.
Below are photos taken later in the day.
Below are photographs I took at sunset while standing on the deck outside the kitchen at my cabin.
More Than 40 Note Worthy Waterfalls
There are over 2,000 miles of sparkling rivers, prongs and branches and over 40 noteworthy falls in the Smoky Mountains.
During our time together in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, my three daughters Leah (age 28), Judi (age 31) and Terra (age 45) and I hiked together to several of those noteworthy waterfalls.
Below is a series of photographs I took at one of those waterfalls.
The first photograph is of one of those waterfalls.
The second photograph is of my one of my daughters standing next to that waterfall.
The third, fourth and fifth photographs below are photographs of my daughter standing behind that waterfall.
Below is a photographs I took of my two youngest daughters standing in front of another waterfall.
Below is a photograph of my youngest daughter with me in front of that waterfall.
Below is a photograph of me standing in front of that waterfall.
Below is a close up photograph of of the top of that waterfall.
Below is a photograph of another water fall in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park we hiked to.
Sparkling Rivers Prongs and Branches
Professionally taken photographs:
My photographs:
Below is a picture of my youngest daughter Leah (age 28) Leah took of herself while Leah and I were hiking together through the woods in the Smoky Mountains to Abrams Falls.
It took us five hours of hiking through woods in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to get to the Abrams Falls.
At Abrams Falls water water with the volume of a river plunges 25 feet into a large pool.
The force of the fall throws spray over 50 feet into rhododendron and hemlock on the bank opposite the trail we hiked on to get to the falls.
The deep pool under the falls has a very strong undercurrent.
A sign near the falls warns people not to swim in the pool under the falls – swimmers have drowned. See sign below.
People are also warned to be aware of bears near the falls. See sign below.
Below is a photograph I took of myself in front of Abrams Falls.
Below is a series of photographs of Abrams Falls.
In Gatinburg, several breweries give free tastings in addition to selling “moonshine (whiskey)”; they also sell T-shirts on which are printed provocative messages.
The photographs below were taken by me in the “Old Smoky Tennessee Moonshine’s” store on the Parkway, in Gatinburg, Tennessee on Monday night, May 23, 2016, after Leah and I finished our hike to Abrams Falls.
All of us (Leah, Judi, Terra and Me) got back to our homes by flying out of Knoxville Airport.
Leah and I spent the morning looking around the Art District and the Old City District of Knoxville.
Both are very cool places.
Below are photographs I took which express the “come on in” attitude I experienced in and around the Art District in Knoxville, Tennessee.
At the Curious Dog in Old City Knoxville, Tennessee
See photograph below I took of a booth in the “Curious Dog” in the Old Town section of Knoxville, Tennessee on May 24, 2016.
Photos below are close ups of sections of the mural in the photograph above.
Photograph of a guy sitting in that booth.
Photograph I took the sign on the exterior street side of the entry door to the “Curious Dog.”
Paintings on the Two Walls in A Dead End Alley in the Old Town Section of Knoxville, Tennessee
While walking around the Old Town section of Knoxville on May 24, 20167, with my daughter Leah, we found ourselves walking down a blind alley, an alley the “dead-ended”, an alley which had no exit.
Below are photographs of paintings I saw painted on the two walls in that alley.
Chair In A Shop in the Chicago O’Hare Airport Terminal
Below is a photograph I took of a chair I saw in a shop in O’Hare Airport, Chicago, Terminal 1, Gate B-6, on May 24, 2016 as I was on my way to catch a connecting flight to Los Angeles International Airport, LAX.
I had started my journey home to Los Angeles from the Smoky Mountains on a flight departing from Knoxville Airport.
My trip home involved taking a plane from Knoxville Airport to O’Hare Airport in Chicago and then catching another plane at O’Hare Airport that flew me back to Los Angeles.
It took over 10 hours to get back home from the time I left the Knoxville Airport to the time my plane landed in Los Angeles at LAX, the airport in Los Angeles.
On Saturday, June 4, 2016 I went to return a computer to the Apple Store at the Grove — a upscale shopping cent in Los Angeles.
While I was at the Grove I discovered there was an event, an auto show, at the Grove.
By the way, the Grove is located near the intersection of Third Street and Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles, California.
Of note to me, as a father of three adult women and a lover of women, I saw more women then men looking at the cars on display on the street at the auto show.
So much for the cliche that boys like cars and girls like dolls.
Below are pictures I took of three of the multitude of “classic cars” I saw on the street, on display, as part of the car show at the Grove.
Really interesting: on the top two cars pictured above, the rear view mirror is strapped to the spare tire.
The Smoky Mountains are one of the most bio-diverse places on earth.
According to the National Park Service over 18,000 different types of animals and plants live in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Synchronous fireflies (Photinus carolinus) are one of 19 species of fireflies at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. They are the only species in the Americas whose individuals can synchronize their flashing light patterns.
No one is sure why the fireflies flash synchronously.
The fireflies do not always flash in unison.
They glow in the dark.
They may flash in waves across hillsides, and at other times will flash randomly.
Synchrony occurs in short bursts that end with abrupt periods of darkness.
The Smoky Mountains is also the home of the “American Black Bear.”
More than 1,500 black bears live protected “in the wild” in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
More statistics:
The Southern Appalachians are one of the temperate zone’s hot spots for plants. North of the tropics, only China has more species.
The climate of the park encompasses a range of conditions from warm to cold temperature, and rainfall is abundant everywhere.
Elevations in the park range from 850 feet to 6,643 feet. As one moves from lower to high elevations the climate becomes cooler and wetter and cloud cover is more frequent.
Rainfall ranges from about 55 inches at low elevations to 90 inches on high peaks.
Differences in elevation and the ruggedness of the mountains – topographical features affect soil moisture – result in a vast variety of environments that produce a wide variety of vegetation.
Slope aspect, slope position and slope shape all combine to determine the amount of sunlight reaching a site, its warmth, and its ability to retain soil moisture.
Even if you stay in a narrow elevation range, the habitat changes dramatically. And because habitat changes, the species of wildflowers and plants you see growing also varies.
As a result of its biodiversity and its closeness to population centers, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most popular park in the National Park System; 10 million people visit the park each year.
The National Park Services maintains 380 miles of scenic roadways, 800 plus miles of trails and bridges, 9 front country campgrounds, and more than 100 back country campgrounds in the Smoky Mountains National Park.
ASIDE:
The prime directive of all national parks is to preserve not only native species, but also the natural processes that maintain them.
This year (2016) the American National Park Service turned 100 years old.
I see art everywhere and beauty everywhere.
I can’t wait to tell you about “the Swag” in Waynesville North Carolina; “Lil Black Bear Cafe” in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; and, “Curious Dog” and a blind alley in Old Town Knoxville, Tennessee, which I will do in a future blog post article on the “Gary S. Smolker Idea Exchange Blog.”
The Swag
Below is a photograph of what I found on my bed when I went to my room at the Swag.
There was also a backpack on my bed. See photo below.
There was a note explaining the materials inside the backpack. See photo below.
On one of the night stands besides the bed was a book of poetry. See photo below.
I adopted “Mr. Rocky”, the Black Bear I found on my bed in my room at “the Swag.”
I can’t wait to tell you more about “the Swag.”
We determine the trajectory of our lives.
We should learn how to see.
We should live with our eyes wide open.
We should travel to places we have never been to before and meet people we have never met before.
Having/enjoying good health is a way of life.
Copyright © 2016 by Gary S. Smolker, All Rights Reserved
CONTEXT
Below is an image of the front side of a T-shirt with the initials PUWRFC.
PUWRFC stands for Princeton University Women’s Rugby Football Club.
My good friend Richard Gibson wore that T-shirt at a meeting I had with Richard yesterday.
That T-shirt set the tone of our meeting.
The purpose of my meeting with Richard was to come up with a strategy to recommend to a friend of mine’s daughter Jessica who we thought was on the verge of being exploited by her employer.
Jessica , a highly qualified skilled and experienced woman, was experiencing an on-going frustrating situation at work.
We wanted to make sure Jessica understood our opinion that this is/was an appropriate time to be tough,
THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING A (CORRECT) MENTAL MODEL OF HOW THE WORLD WORKS
During our conversation with Jessica, Richard and I gave Jessica a mental image, a mental model, to have of herself of who she had to be while negotiating a compensation package with her employer.
Richard and I made it absolutely clear to Jessica that there are times when it is okay to be tough; there are times when it necessary for a woman to be “tough.”
The T-shirt Richard wore (front of T-shirt pictured below) was given to Richard by his adoring daughter Caroline.
Below is an image of the reverse side of the T-shirt, Caroline gave to Richard.
I took those photographs yesterday afternoon (May 7, 2016) at my friend Richard Gibson’s home.
The words on the reverse side of the T-shirt are
The four words above (on the back side of the T-shirt) express (encapsulate) the attitude of the National Champion Princeton Women’s Rugby Team during the time Caroline was an undergraduate student at Princeton.
The team, through its T-shirt, signals to member of the team to the world at large that the team and its members (while on the Rugby Football field) have an aggressive take on prisoners attitude.
I sent the above image of that T-shirt to Jessica to reinforce the attitude and mental frame of mine Jessica, Richard and I had discussed at our meeting.
LIFE IS ABOUT HAVING GOOD JUDGMENT
During the four years Caroline was at Princeton University’s she was on Princeton University’s women’s rugby football team.
Each year of the four years Caroline played on the Princeton University’s women’s rugby team, Caroline was an All-American Women’s Rugby Football Player.
Princeton won the National Women’s Rugby Championship three of the four years Caroline was on the team.
When Caroline graduated from Princeton, Richard gave Caroline the choice of training on the United States Woman’s Rugby Team for the Olympic Games or going to medical school.
Caroline chose to go to medical school instead of to train for the U.S. Olympic Woman Rugby Football Team.
Caroline is currently practicing medicine as a neo-natal physician on the staff of the neo-natal intensive care department at world renown Seders Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, California.
Caroline Gibson, M.D. deals with the life and threatened death of prematurely born and or defectively new born babies every day, saving their lives.
The fact that life is not a formula is what makes Caroline’s life, your life and my life interesting.
Life involves having a strategy and positioning.
Outcomes in life depend, in part, on having good judgment, and making good choices and decisions.
There are many alternatives in everyone’s life, many choices to be made.
Whether we are aware of it or not, we have a mental image of how the world works and of our impact on the world.
We are constantly sending impactful messages to everyone who sees us, hears us, and/or reads what we write.
Visual messages and choice of words identify who we are, what we believe, how we think the world works and what we are about.
See for example:
Below is a photograph I took a couple of weeks ago of a man wearing a T-shirt. I believe the T-shirt that man is wearing sends a very clear message (makes a very clear statement) of what that man believes, how he thinks the world works, and of his emotional orientation.
In my opinion that T-shirt shows the man wearing that T-shirt identifies with the toughness and wildness of professional boxer Mike Tyson.
That man is clearly saying (to me) that he is a FAN and fully supports everything about and roots for the success of Brooklyn New York born professional boxer Iron Mike Tyson and identifies with who Mike Tyson is and Mike Tyson’s struggles and approach to life.
The “key” words to me in that T-shirt are “Brooklyn, NY” and “Iron”/”Iron Mike Tyson.”
The man in the picture is celebrates iron/toughness/coming from a rough neighborhood by using the words Iron Mike Tyson.
The message printed on that T-shirt is a provocation — equivalent to dogs peeing to mark their territory. The message in that T-shirt projects physical male prowess, especially in a “fight”, especially in the boxing ring.
The message being broadcast on that T-shirt is: I AM TOUGH. DON’T PICK A FIGHT WITH ME. I AM V E R Y TOUGH.
I took that photograph while I was eating breakfast on the patio at Aroma Cafe and Bakery on Ventura Blvd., in Tarzana, California, two weeks ago.
The Aroma Cafe and Bakery has a palpable energy.
The customers who go there and wait staff there are always high energy.
The Aroma Cafe and Bakery’s menu is an example of unfettered creativity, as is each dish served there.
I’ve been a regular at the Aroma Cafe and Bakery for more than five years.
Below is a picture of a woman wearing a T-shirt which sends an entirely different statement that the T-shirt worn by the man above wearing the Iron Mikey Tyson T-shirt.
The words printed on her T-shirt are The Angels Have Landed.
I took the photograph of her, wearing a The Angeles Have Landed T-shirt (see image below), at the Starbucks Coffee Shop (Starbucks Store # 6630) on the corner of Burbank Blvd. and Van Nuys Blvd., in Van Nuys, California, located at 14431 Burbank Blvd., Van Nuys, last week.
That Starbucks is located in a lower-middle class neighborhood one block away from that portion of Van Nuys Blvd which is the location of Van Nuys’ and Sherman Oaks’ “automobile row.”
New car dealerships, with car lots full of new and used cars for sale, line both sides of Van Nuys Blvd., one block away from this Starbucks.
Many of the customers in that Starbucks are struggling writers, film writers, book writers, joke writers and comedians.
There are many angels in the earth.
Below is a photograph of man whose T-shirt directly deals with his idea, which is a universally held idea, about the “California State of Mind.”
I took the photograph of that man (below, last week) outside of Lido’s Pizza in Van Nuys, California — located at 14232 Victory Blvd., Van Nuys, CA.
Lido’s Pizza has been in business for about 50 years.
Look at the photograph below of the same man with his girlfriend.
Look at the joy on their faces.
You can’t be afraid of who your are.
Don’t run away from your own powers.
Embrace your strengths.
Our choices are affirmations of our values and goals.
Everyone has the power to say, “This I am today; that I will be tomorrow.”
When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. Its to enjoy each step along the way.
Do what you want to do; be yourself.
Play big. There is no passion to be found in playing small – in settling for a life that is less than you are capable of.
GETTING BACK TO MY FRIEND’S DAUGHTER JESSICA
Helping people see possibilities increases the choices they can make.
Jessica is in the process of negotiating her compensation package with her employer, a national real estate brokerage firm.
Jessica has extremely rare specialized training experience skills and ability.
Jessica is a specialist in a narrow segment of the commercial real estate industry.
Richard has more than 50 years of experience in the real estate industry, as a real estate broker, as a developer, as a property manager, as person who raises money for projects, as an investor and as a financier.
After my meeting with Jessica and Richard concluded, I sent a “heads-up, brief summary of our meeting and follow-up” email/letter to Jessica’s sister Sabrina.
Below is a redacted copy of a note I sent to Jessica’s sister Sabrina – via email.
I also sent a copy of that e-mail to the mother of an extremely talented young lawyer friend whom I am very fond of and to that young man.
FOLLOW-UP “HEADS-UP” LETTER
Saturday evening, May 7, 2016
Sabrina
I had a telephonic strategy meeting with your sister Jessica and my friend Richard Gibson this afternoon.
At the beginning of our conversation, I “asked” Jessica to write down the following four words:
Throughout my discussion with Jessica, I repeatedly advised Jessica to be tough in her dealing with you know who.
The attached images are the front and back of a Princeton University Women’s Rugby Football Club T-shirt that was worn by Richard Gibson at our meeting.
Richard’s daughter Caroline played on the Princeton University’s Women’s Ruby Football team for four years; she was an All-American Women’s Rugby Football player those four years and the intercollegiate team Caroline was on won the National Championship three of the four years Caroline was on the team.
Caroline is a neo-natal intensive care physician at Cedars Sinai.
Caroline deals with life and death every day.
Knowing your sister Jessica and Caroline for many years, I know your sister Jessica can deal as coolly under pressure as Caroline,
I look forward to Jessica and you meeting Caroline.
THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY
We cannot sleepwalk through life.
We need a strategy; passion and anger are not enough.
By the way, I am sending a back copy of this note to a young talented lawyer I am very fond of who has been sleepwalking. I am also sending a copy of this email to his mother.
Mother of young lawyer:
Warmest regards,
Gary
Jason Fane’s Comments Regarding that Email and My Reply
After reading the above note to Jessica, my super achieving brilliant friend Jason Fane wrote to me:
“You catch more with honey than with vinegar and make fewer enemies.
“Many battles are won by strategy, and positioning. The opponents may not ever know that there was a battle or that they lost.”
I replied:
“Tell that to the Shepard who threw the rock at Goliath.”
Jason replied:
“OK, where would I find him? Where does he live now?
TAKE AWAY:
At its core creativity can’t be reduced to a formula.
Creativity needs novelty and surprise to seem fresh and new.
However, creativity is just connecting things.
I wholeheartedly agree with what Apple co-founder Steve Jobs said about creativity in in 1966:
“When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things. And the reason they were able to do that was that they’ve had more experiences or they have thought more about their experiences than other people.”
I know creative people draw upon their own lives (personal experiences) as creative fodder.
My favorite Steve Jobs quote is:
“You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”
My favorite quote about the importance of observation in the creative process, is the following statement made by Louis Pasteur:
“In the filed of observation, chance favors the prepared mind.”
My 28 year old daughter Leah Graham Smolker’s latest blog post (on “Leah’s Travel Blog – Journeys Across the Universe) at https://easytospell03.wordpress.com/2016/05/art-travel-soul/ titled “Art, Travel & Soul” posted on May 8, 2016, (today) is a perfect example of all of the above.
In that post, Leah explains that great artists and writers were determined to travel at some point in their life.
Leah explains that, “Art does not exist without travel. Art needs a location. Art needs architecture. Without, there is no soul and there is no spine-tingling gratifying effect to the viewer. Travel is more than nomadic tendencies; travel is the creation of human capital and enterprise.”
Leah is talking about creative artistic masterpieces, not run of the mill ordinary art.
In that post,
Leah gives many examples.
Below are two of my favorite pictures discussed in Leah’s recent blog post titled “Art, Travel & Soul” – which Leah posted earlier today.
I agree with Leah that the two paintings shown below have “soul” and are extremely original.
Those paintings have a spine-tingling gratifying effect when ever I view them.
By the way, Leah and I “rank” people by how much “soul” they have.
Leah and I talk about how much “soul” people have all the time.
I agree with what David Dye, Bill Walton, Michael Jordan and Vincent Van Gogh have said about the human spirit:
ABOUT LEAH
Leah attended school in Mainland China, Thailand and Israel as well as in the United States and has taught in South Korea.
Leah has loved art and reading books her entire life.
Leah has traveled to and “lived” for brief periods of time in thirty different countries.
Unless your are an absolute genius famous for creating things – as well as famous and revered for living a life that pushes boundaries – such as choreographer Jerome Robbin, it is absolutely necessary that you be fun and fun to be with if you want to succeed in life or in business “long term.”
Robbins was a bully and a perfectionist.
Robbins was so despised by dancers that they sometimes refused to speak to him off the stage. But few refused his invitations to perform.
Robbins was widely acknowledged – revered actually – as one of the most creative artists of his time.
In 1949, he contacted his friends Leonard Bernstein and Arthur Laurents with the idea that they should collaborate to create a new musical.
Their goal, Robbins said, should be to establish the avant-garde on Broadway.
These three creative men collaborated on the project proposed by Robbins because they wanted to create something that felt modern yet timeless.
Over the next few years, these three men traded scripts, scores and choreography ideas.
Working on this project required every ounce of their tenacity, artistry, technical wizardry, and endurance.
In 1957 – eight years after they had first embarked on that project – they were finally done. All that was left was to find financial backers.
Nearly every producer they approached turned them down. They were told their “play/musical/dance drama” [Westside Story] was too different from what audiences expected.
Robbins finally found financiers willing to support a staging of Westside Story in Washington, D.C.
Their creation, West Side Story, was first performed in 1957.
When the curtain went down on opening night there was silence.
As everyone prepared to take their positions for the curtain call there was absolute silence, they took their places holding hands.
When the curtain went up, they looked at the audience and the audience looked at them.
And then the audience jumped to their feet, stamping and yelling.
West Side Story went on to become one of the most popular and influential musicals in history.
West Side Story is a genre defying masterpiece.
Robbins, Bernstein and Laurents trusted themselves enough to let their creativity out.
Copyright © 2016 by Gary S. Smolker, All Rights Reserved
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Gary S. Smolker 
SUPER-ACHIEVERS – by Gary Smolker
Sep 26
Posted by Gary S. Smolker
Super-Achievers
Phiona Mutesi (the star of “Queen of Katwe”), Aisholpan Nurgaiv (the star of “The Eagle Huntress”) and Maria Toorpakai Wazir (the star of “Girl Unbound”) are super-achievers.
Each achieved something which was inconceivable in their country, something completely against what is or was expected of girls and women in their country before they did it.
Phiona Mutesi went from the humble beginnings to national and international stardom. She was born and lived most of her life in a shanty town in rural Uganda. She was unable to read or write. She went from living a life of destitution in a shanty town to become a national chess champion in Uganda and then became an international chess champion.
Aisholpan Nurgaiv broke an almost 2,000 year patriarchal tradition of her people. For generations the sacred practice of capturing and training wild eagles has been passed exclusively from fathers to sons.
As a 13 year-old-girl, Aisholpan broke the sacred tradition of only men capturing and training wild eagles in the Altai region in western Mongolia and went on to win the Eagle Hunter/Trainer championship in her country.
Defying fundamentalists threats on her life and on the life of her family, Maria Toorpakai Wazir played squash, became part of Pakistan’s national squash team and an internationally competitive squash player.
Growing up with an athletic physique, Maria dressed as a boy in order to compete in sports and weightlifting.
I did not know anything about any of these three women until I saw a movie about each of them at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival, in Toronto, Canada in September, 2016.
Manly Men
Manly men know there are things worth fighting for.
Phiona Mutesi, Aisholpan Nurgaiv, and Maria Toorpakai Wazir were able to accomplish what they accomplished because of a “father” who respected their intellect, respected their ambition, respected their abilities, respected their character and did what it took to enable Phiona Mutesi, Aisholpan Nurgaiv and Maria Toorpakai Wazir to realize their dreams.
Men, real men, manly men helped/enabled these women prove they could do things their society said a woman couldn’t do and shouldn’t do.
These men were tough and rugged but also the epitome of love and compassion.
These men took responsibility for protecting their children.
These men took responsibility for enabling [female] children to live up their child’s potential.
Many people today are asking these days, “Where are all the real men.”
My recommendation to those people is: “See “Queen of Katwe”, “The Eagle Huntress”, and “Girl Unbound.”
Their actions in their lives, and the actions of many other men like them, demonstrate the core of real manhood.
Real men lift people up.
The Basis of My Personal Interest in the Status of Women, Roles Imposed on Women, and Societal Limitations on the Rights and Freedom of Women
My sense of justice and fairness is repelled when I see women being denied the credit and full recognition they deserve.
I am disgusted and repelled when I see degradation of women.
Women have always been indispensable.
RESPECT due women is coming due to the spread of educational opportunity, due to society allowing women greater independence and freedom, and due to the growing responsibilities of women in society.
Because of all of the above, women are becoming more indispensable than ever.
In their minds, the women I know have jobs that are never about sitting at a desk from nine to five. Instead, their jobs are about getting the work done.
Personal Facts
I have three daughters and a granddaughter.
I am a fashion blogger (on Dudes Guide to Women’s Shoes at http://www.dudesguidetowomensshoes.com), and a social commentator and movie reviewer (on The Gary S. Smolker Idea Exchange Blog at http://www.garysmolker.wordpress.com.
I am interested in anthropology, art, beauty, creativity, consciousness, morality, the history of civilizations, evolutionary biology, psychology, and in evolutionary psychology.
I am also interested in economics and politics.
I am very interested in what it means to be human:
The status and expectations of being married, the rules for raising children, and the power of parental affection on the development of a child are very important to me.
I am very concerned about society’s view of the status of women and women’s rights.
I am very concerned about forces that want to dictate what a woman’s role should be.
I am very concerned about society’s view of the treatment of women in society.
I am profoundly interested in the status of women because I believe the hand that rocks the cradle determines the future of the world.
By the way, according to a recent United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Vital Statistics Report, the percentage of births to unmarried women has sky-rocketed from 5% in 1960 to 23% in 1988 to 41% in 2012.
People Need Be Sustainers Society
In view of the latest media uproar and in view of the simultaneous politician of all stripes uproar resulting from some things Donald Trump said eleven years, people in the United States need to prevent their thinking from being trampled by the volume and intensity of those two simultaneous uproar.
The people of the Unites States need to ask themselves the following line of questions:
After release of the tape,
OCTOBER 12, 2016 UPDATE: Three women have publicly, stated in newspaper interview articles that Donald Trump sexually assaulted them.
To say that animals evolved into man is like saying that Carrara marble evolved into Michelangelo’s David.
MY ADVICE:
Keep in mind:
In Politics
In politics the ignorant and the venal have as much right to their votes as the educated and upstanding.
In politics differences of opinion are rarely resolved and almost never definitively; in politics the best outcomes are typically compromises that leave all parties grumbling.
Super-Achievers (People with Exceptional and Unusable Abilities) Sometimes Have Mental Disorders
Siddhartha Mukherjee reports in his latest book “THE GENE”:
I Relish Absurdity and I Dread Boredom.
Both presidential candidate Donald Trump and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton have a great opinion of their own good qualities.
They both have a great opinion of their personal and social conscience.
They both have a great opinion of all the accomplishments in their lives.
They are both proud of their versatility.
They are both proud of their acute sensitivity to political conditions in the world.
They are both proud of their understanding of the social and economic conditions in the United States, and how to fix what needs to be fixed.
Each of them mix up fancies with realities.
But, do not be led astray by mere appearances.
We might only be witnessing a form of hyper-functional creativity [creative effervescence] in action.
“We of the craft are all crazy,” Lord Byron, the high priest of crazies wrote. “Some are affected by gaiety, others by melancholy, but all are more or less touched.”
Or, as Edvard Munch put it,
Donald Trump’s and Hillary Clinton’s Speeches Are
Great, Spellbinding, and Educational
They penetrate beneath imposing sham to an ugly or common reality.
They mightily list highly visible disgusting states of affairs.
They passionately discuss abuses in the United States that they each claim they will fix.
The world is witness to a great debate on how the world ought to be run.
The world is also witness to a rich and varied discussion on how political campaigns ought to be run.
No One Can Interrupt the March of Donald Trump’s Mind
Nor Can Anyone Interrupt the March of Hillary Clinton’s Mind
Charismatic figures show only strength.
They refuse to buckle under.
They are ace self-regarders.
The usurious self-applause of both candidates while campaigning is entertaining.
Each candidate’s self-applause and each candidate throwing dirt at their opponent makes everybody else’s life less boring.
The Great Experiment Known As Democracy Is Succeeding
Neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton has been deterred by outcries of complaint, or by being hated or by being detested.
Wrangled, brangled, jangled by material designed to engage the public’s intellectual curiosity, everyone in the world listens on and on to what Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have to say — a world-wide audience listens on with rap attention to what they say, never knowing what they will reveal or say next.
Brangle
Brangle is an archaic British word which means
Shedding Light on the Status of Women Today
My daily life, my daily thoughts and my daily actions and interactions bring me into direct contact with (a) the status of women in society, (b) how women dress, (c) social forces relating to the appearance and conduct of women, (d) how women are treated and also into direct contact with (e) the evolving nature of relationships between men and women and between women with men, between fathers and daughters, between daughters and fathers, between husbands and wives and between wives and husbands.
In that regard:
Highly Charged E-mail
On September 23, 2016, I received an email titled “Disappearing Dresses” which contains pictures of traditional female dress in Muslim societies in which at one time women were allowed to wear colorful clothes and where they are now forced to wear black tents that completely hide what they look like.
Below are the photographs of women in colorful clothing copied from that email and presented here in this blog post on the Gary S. Smolker Idea Exchange Blog.
The message to me of that email is that something is wrong in those societies.
I believe it is natural for women to want to be [and to appear to be] attractive to healthy male members of the opposite sex.
I believe it is our biological heritage to allow women to be attractive to men by wearing beautiful clothing.
I believe that mate choice, which favors traits simply because they prove attractive to the opposite sex, is as important a factor in [human] evolution as survival of the fittest.
According to the email I received the photographs below depict traditional dresses freely worn in public by women in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Malaysia, Iraq, Syria, Morocco, and Tunisia before women in those societies were forced to wear a burkas and/or a niqab, covering their entire bodies.
In response to seeing the email referred and the photographs contained therein (see below), one of my friends replied,
An Email Purporting to Show Traditional Dresses No Longer Being Worn for Public Display in Misogynistic Repressive Societies
According to the email I received on September 23, 2016:
This is a traditional Pakistani dress …
These are Bangladeshi dresses…
These are Afghani dresses…
This is an Indian dress…
These are Iranian dresses…
This is a Malaysian dress… (see next two photos below)
This is an Iraqi dress…
This is a Syrian dress…
This is a Moroccan dress…
This is a Tunisian dress…
Note the good cheer and happiness beaming [radiating] out from the women wearing the clothing depicted in the photographs above.
Note the “sexy” [sexually attractive] shoes worn by the woman wearing the traditional Pakistani dress and also the “sexy shoes” worn by the woman on the left in the photograph women wearing traditional Bangladeshi dresses.
Note the bright lipstick worn by women in those photographs.
A WOMAN’S AND A MAN’S CLOTHS ARE A SYMBOL AND A UNIFORM OF A TRAIT OF PERSONALITY AND POWER AT ALL LEVELS IN ALL SOCIETIES
Look at how happy the women shown in the colorful dresses look.
Women dress to make themselves feel well.
“Looking good” – by wearing good looking clothing – makes a woman feel feel good about herself, which in turn makes her have self-confidence which in turn makes her happy; all of which has a giant impact on how a woman expresses herself, behaves and enjoys life.
A WOMAN’S CLOTHING IS IMPORTANT TO HER AND TO EVERYONE ELSE SHE COMES INTO CONTACT WITH.
According to Charles Darwin, as interpreted by Tom Wolf in his latest book “The Kingdom of Speech”: evolution turned Homo Sapiens [man] into a more sensitive animal, which in turn gave him something approaching aesthetic feelings. The male began to admire females who had the least apelike hides because he could see more of their lovely skin, which excited him sexually. The more skin he saw, the more he wanted to see. Obviously valued by the males because their hides were much less hairy, the most sought after females began to look down their noses at the old-fashioned hairy males, one crude step away from the apes themselves. Generation after generation went by, thousands of them, until, thanks to natural selection, males and females became as naked as they are today.
The human mind evolved like the peacock’s tail and the elk’s antlers, for courtship and mating. That is the reason our ancestors became attracted not only to pretty faces and healthy bodies, but also to minds that were witty, articulate, generous and conscious.
Freedom of Expression
I feel very sad that women that women are repressed in so called strict Islamic society; that they are not “permitted” to wear colorful traditional dresses [such as those pictured above].
ASIDE: IN SOME SOCIETIES WOMEN ARE NOT ALLOWED TO LOOK MEN IN THE EYES
I have been told by one women that she was not allowed to look directly into a man’s eyes.
If she did so she was beaten.
Cultural Evolution
As a fashion blogger, I have interviewed many women in America about women’s shoes.
During my many interviews of women, I have repeatedly been told, with few exceptions, by the women I interviewed that they wouldn’t want a guy buying shoes for her.
Many women I interviewed told me they want to pick the shoes they wear for style and to try them on for fit and comfort.
I think that is very sad.
It is very sad that almost the entire male population in the United States, and perhaps almost the entire male population in the entire world, knows nothing about women’s shoes.
“Dudes Guide to Women’s Shoes” http://www.dudesguidetowomensshoes.com
The total lack of understanding and knowledge in the general male population about women’s shoes – the total lack of understanding of what a women’s shoes signifies – caused Lou Coronado and I to launch a blog titled Dudes Guide to Women’s Shoes in August, 2016.
Dudes Guide to Women’s Shoes can be found at http://www.dudesguidetowomensshoes.com.
Evolutionary Biology
You can find out more about Charles Darwin’s theory of evolutionary biology in Charles Darwin’s book The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, published in 1871.
You can also find out more about the theory of evolutionary biology in Geoffrey F. Miller’s book The Mating Mind, published in 2000.
Current Day Women Who Conquered Cultural Hierarchy Impediments in the World of Human Culture Today Who I Saw Celebrated in Three Films at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival
Today, every American male should contemplate what it means to be a manly man.
Think abut these four questions:
Three of the films (“The Eagle Huntress”, “Girl Unbound” and “Queen of Katwe”) I saw at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival are about girls and women who faced and conquered the challenges faced by women in cultures and countries where women are considered inferior to men.
“Queen of Katwe”
“The Eagle Huntress”
“Girl Unbound”
Each of those three movies indicate a path for our unique human capacities for art, music, sports, religion, self-consciousness, and care for others to bring us to a better world.
Our minds are entertaining, intelligent, creative, and articulate far beyond the demands of surviving on the plans of Pleistocene Africa.
Those three movies show how our minds are evolving, not just as survival machines, but also as “make the world a better place machines.”
Copyright © 2016 by Gary S. Smolker, All Rights Reserved
Posted in Charismatic Figures, fashion, Misogynistic Societies, Movie Review, Permissiable Dress in Misogynistic Societies, Social Commentary on Status of Women, status of women, Super Achievers
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