An anecdote on wisdom and anecdotal evidence.

I once asked a wise fellow the following question: At night, when I've had a difficult day, or a great day, should I work, sleep, or read?

He said, more spewing the words upon my previously parched countenance than speaking them into my ready ears: "Read! Always read, you damned fool!"

I learned also the difference between knowledge and wisdom on that day. Knowledge is spoken by others, wisdom is felt and tasted by oneself. 

P.S., anecdotal evidence is highly unreliable and precious.

Stand back, I'm doing poetry again!

De Perspecti Natura (On the nature of perceiving thoroughly)

Brilliance abounds, from canyon precipice to familial edifice;

From the level plane of success to sinuous ebb of distress.

The light is seen by the bold, men who've studied the time of old

A wise man did once profess, the dying secrets of his finesse:

A perspective learned and true, is the biggest stick in a dark purlieu.

A tongue, supple, but not glib, is sharper than metal to pierce through the rib.

Poem by David J. Deardorff

Aside for future reference: This was a facebook response I posted on account of the following picture and a related discussion (it's a picture of mine from the Grand Canyon, hence the first line involving a canyon):

eo die, mihi est philosophia de maestitia

Applied proper, reticence in speech can be the most unerring form of persuasion, silence between keys the note of perfect poignance, and grief the most trenchant manifestation of love.

David J. Deardorff  De Maestitia

Lord's Prayer in Latin - Translated by David Deardorff.

Religion is becoming more important to me these days in accord with life events, and I am greatly missing Latin studies this semester so I thought I'd translate some familiar ecclesiastical documents to keep some of those language gears turning .

I thought I might as well start with the Lord's Prayer, Pater Noster. I've not used any translation notes, and I don't claim to know the vocab or idiomatic uses of these words during the early centuries AD (I think this version came from around the 4th century AD). I'm a classical latinist, which is more the academic Latin than the people's Latin but I'll give you my first shot.

It's relatively literal, I've tried to stick close to the Latin.

Pater Noster

Pater noster, qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum. Adveniat regnum tuum. Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra. Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. Amen. 

Our Father (Translation by David Deardorff)

Our father, who is in the heaven(s), consecrated is your name. Your kingdom will come. May your will be done, just as (it is) on heaven and on earth. Give to us today our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive (those) in our debt ( literally = having been in our debt). And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen

The Latin itself is relatively simple, it's meant to be understood. The "Et ne nos...a malo" reads, sinistrodextral, practically like English.You can see a few differences from the translations you might already be familiar with. Most noticeable to me was the "forgive us our trespasses" part that I'm familiar with. They get the translation "trespasses" from the word "debita" and "debitoribus" which are both derived from the perfect passive participle of the Latin verb Debeo (pincipal parts = debeo, debere, debui, debitum) which roughly means "to owe" - this is exactly where we get the English word "debt". So the translation of trespassing is a creative decision for a more polished translation of its day. The verb governing the aforementioned sentence is "dimitte" and "dimittimus" (principal parts = dimitto, dimittere, dimisi, dimissum) which literally means to "dismiss, discharge" , that is to say, "forgive."


The "for thine is thy kingom" part was never written in the original and accepted Latin texts, in case that's bothering anyone.


Most common English version of "The Lord's Prayer" that I've been exposed to personally:

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen

P.S. If anyone who knows late biblical Hebrew ever stumbles across this post and can give me an original translation based on that text, I'd love to hear it.

DD Craft Brew Review: FD's Gonzo Imperial Porter

Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter

Beer Type: Imperial Porter

IBU: 85  ABV: 9.2%

Appearance: Gonzo pours espresso black/very dark brown, like a carbonated black coffee, if you will. There’s a slight foamy head that dissipates quickly.

Scent: Aroma is of dark chocolate, roasted coffee and perhaps a hint of black olives (likely from the interplay between the malt, hops, and alcohol.)  The bouquet is citrus from the hops.

Taste: Starts off tasting like bitter chocolate, coffee, and malt and then evolves more to a taste of barley wine. The finish is a dry bitter finish, with a nice spicy kick from the hops. The hop kick gets heavier as the beer warms. The body is quite full, the carbonation goes some way at making it feel lighter in the beginning, but this is still a full bodied brew. Considering the 9.2% alcohol content by volume, this is dangerously drinkable as a beer - the "alcohol bite" is slim.

Comments: Overall excellent beer, I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys port beer and especially to anyone who enjoys IPAs as you will appreciate the addenda hops here. Plus, how can you not grin at a beer whose name is inspired by “Dr. Gonzo” and has a Hunter S. Thompson quote on the box?

My rating: 9.0/10

"Why?"

Riddle me this:

Why answer a question with a question when you can not answer with a question?

To wit, how do you answer a question with a question when you cannot answer with a question?

Why answer something to which there is no question? 

To wit, how do you answer something to which there is no question?

How do you explicate an edifice for which there is no conceptual construct?

If music is between the notes, then philosophy is between the tautology, a polarization between the oxymora.

- David J. Deardorff

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Natus causae existentiae 

It’s a binding call, of a sort. A call that rings not the ossicles of your ears, but rather plucks the strings of your soul in the chords of a siren; chords that are felt, not heard – a call always answered, yet heard naught…

This is not fate,

this is not about a dog tied to a cart plunging downhill,

this is not about inevitability,

this is not about responsibility,

this is about the nature of things at a fundamental level:

This is the wisdom of a learned and tempered compassion;

this is atonement, not triumph – symphony, not melancholy. 

- David J. Deardorff

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The Ediety Tie Knot (The "Merovingian")

So, I was in a fit of ennui with respect to all the standard tie knots out there, and quite frankly most old man knots don't work well on me because my neck is exceptionally small and my collars follow in suite (14 1/2" neck - try finding that size in men's clothing). The half-windsor is my knot of choice, it's easy to tie, easy to adjust, and easy on the material... However it's a ubiquitous knot that's somewhat status quo and safe.

Being the huge nerd  curious thinker that I am, I thought it would be amusing to attempt to tie the "Merovingian" knot from the Matrix, I had read about it being an esoteric iteration of a french knot.

This knot turns out to be a tricky one to tie, and I ended up modifying the sequence a wee bit because I like my knots to be symmetrical and this is one of those knots where you have to fight the material at each twist if you want it to look right (at least for me, maybe you knot experts out there would have no trouble.)

Here it is with my shirt and coat, forgive the weirdness of the dimples - I had taken the tie off and then put it back on. This messes up the dimples because you adjust the length with the "fat end" of the tie since one actually ties this using the small end, thus if you move it up and down in excess you'll change the dimples.


Here's what this knot would look like in a shirt and coat, standard look:

Closer look at the knot geometry, no flash.

Knot with flash, another look at the geometry:

An out of context picture of the knot (retied, you really can't take this tie off and on more than once). This helps you see the size of the knot better.

If you're interested in tying the knot google "ediety" knot, you'll end up on 1-2 videos and maybe 1-2 pdfs as well, each as cryptic and frustratingly simple as the next :)

- D