h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Don't forget to reply
To your friend "Retiring Vi."

Sorry Lu, you've disappeared from my own front page. I'll see if I can find you and answer you shortly, if that's OK. Thanks for reminding me.

Your friend, Jab

To my friend "Retiring Vi"
Don't forget to reply!

Hope everything's all right. Love to hear from you,

Jab

Hello Dear Jab,
Got over flu, felt wonderful, now got a cold. No, course I'm thinking of you, & trying to work out 'bout Eeyore & Marvin. The fruit of my loins has decided to do home schooling, it's rather good fun, and I never did believe school, as such, was right anyway. It's lovely to follow what you really believe in.
I really enjoy finding entertaining ways of teaching him. But when it comes to maths, science, and some other things, then it's more a question of him teaching me. There are sites on the internet that help with home-schooling as well. I'd quite like him to learn a bit of philosophy. Any beginners books that you can recommend? I'm roping mates in to teach electronics and auto'. He's teaching me metal-work etc. which is great, because it helps me with independence.
He's always got good reports from school, but it's always, always been hard to persuade him to go. He doesn't get bullied, just can't stand the interminable nature of it all, and gets bored.
Obviously, I'm biased, but I think he's very clever, and they do at school too, despite his frequent absences.
How are you? The projectile vomiting & headache thing you mentioned got on a plane and arrived here. What happened with the CERN thing? Did they find anything out?
My sister tells me England is reverting to the Victorian era, she seems to think they'll be reopening the workhouses before too long.
The weather here's improving and I got a new pair of shears, which I'm addicted too, so Ive been doing heaps of gardening. Tom too, we're putting it under the heading "Sport", along with cycling.
I must get to bed. I do hope all is well with you. When I get to England next(?)it'd be nice to meet up. Interesting about lovely Mrs Thatcher having dementia, wonder if it's improving her morals?
Much love and's Lu.

Hiya Lu,

It's my turn to be under the weather, so I can't give you a proper answer. All I can say is that your posts are fascinating - and I'm glad you're at least a little bit better. (I can only give short answers, apart from my poem which sank without trace).

If you could tell me how old the sprog (kid) is, I'll try to help with philosophy books, but it's no good if he himself isn't interested. And at most ages a kid has to be something of a genius - but all mums know their kids are geniuses

Yours,

Jab

Tea and sympathy from me. My cold's much better, but I have to fill in tax forms, I do loathe forms, you have to go round searching for numbers, for days on end, then you get all worried because you can't find them. It's a "form" of torture.

What was the poem that you mentioned? Tom (my sprog) is 15.I think he is interested in philosophy, because we discuss things like that quite a bit. I noticed that Tom and all his friends, at about 7 or 8 became fascinated with infinity. Then I remembered that I went through the same thing at the same age.

So pleased that you like my posts. I like yours too. Take care and hope you feel better soon.
Lu

Lu - re. your post 4.

1. Don't try to work out an answer for the paradox. That way madness lies. It's just a paradox, with no special 'answer', and it's been with us since the Ancient Greeks, something like 3000 years ago.

2. I hated school, with a vigorous and profound hatred. I hated the work, which was pointless and slow, oh so slow. I hated the silly discipline. I hated the teachers, who were even more stupid than me, in my adolescent opinion. I hated the second-hand opinions rammed down our throats. I hated getting up in the mornings. I was not a success and I left early, only going to university later. But Einstein was just as bad! Your sprog is going in the right direction, as far as I'm concerned.

3. Philosophy. You could do much worse than going through Bertrand Russell's 'The Problems of Philosophy'. It's short, exceedingly logical (not 'logic' as such, do not fear), and it's been in print since 1912. Quite the best intro, even though some ideas are out-dated. But you and I know that to be out of fashion is NOT necessarily to be wrong. It's the book I started with. An alternative might be The Central Questions of Philosophy by A.J.Ayer (my tutor), but it's perhaps a bit harder, though just as clear. Or there's Sophie's Choice by some Dutch gentleman, but it has a girl as central character, it's discursive like a novel, and the philosophy's much more questionable. Home learning would be great for this subject, if you discuss things thoroughly. As with an adult.

I'm glad you're better Lu. I love your posts to me. Please forgive my method of replying, if it sounds unfriendly, but it's because I take you seriously.

Pip! Pip!

Jab

Hello, My Dear Jab,
My turn to apologise for being long winded in replying. I did write you a message, and then the power failed, & all was lost, but here I am now!

I can't tell you how much I appreciate your support re: home-schooling, I seem to be getting a lot of flack for it hereabouts. I too loathed and detested school, and really, in my heart of hearts, believe it to be inhumane. It's really nice to know that there are others, (though a minority) who feel the same. As far as I'm concerned, all the others' are being dishonest with themselves, and can go & boil their heads.

Someone, (trying to be helpful) once told Tom, that school would "make him a better man". Eventually, I told this person, that I thought that what he'd said was rubbish, and that school was ghastly. It seems a rotten thing to do to your child, - school- I mean, but it's only now that I have enough confidence to (a.) have faith in my own beliefs, & (b.) know that I can teach him as well as any school-teacher, and hopefully make it fairly enjoyable. Anyway, we're in good company, William Blake, one of my very bestest heroes, agreed, & managed to do without school perfectly well. There's a lot I agree with Mr Blake on.

Meanwhile... I'm finally figuring out algebra. Something which was always a complete enigma to me.

I shall get the Bertrand Russel book, and the one by A. J. Ayer. Is my ignorance showing, if I tell you that I think I've heard of him?
By the way, you forgot to mention our very own, Jimbo Jones! - who, as you said, never wrote, a single word that could be criticized.

By the way, do you remember me saying about Australians having a different concept of sentimentality? Someone here told me that they thought Will Blake's poetry sentimental.?!?!- It beats me, how a rose with a worm in it, can possibly be called sentimental! Maybe there's something I don't get.

Sorry, another long epistle! It's just that I agree with everything, every attitude, every word, you say. (Except, I really do like Henry James - but I think that might be because he had a rather feminine point of view.) You are undoubtedly a kindred spirit!

Take care, do hope you're well again, write soon,

Lu

Hiya Jab!
Liked your very concrete poem. It'd be good to have it inscribed in stone or concrete. What did you reckon on Gerty Rude Steens' one? I think she had some help from her friend Ali Cebtoklas

Don't know it, OzRetrying Mauve Flowergirl. Is it by A. Pseudonym on h2g2 or by the original Rude Gert?

I have managed to read the AutobiographyofofAli CebT, though. All through. Not many can say that, salve veritatum, (I can't find df online for you to find - it just means truthfully).

Thanx for the praise for me pome! I like your works too, as you know.

Jab

It's a parody of rude Gerty

Are you okey dokey?
Don't forget to reply
to your friend retiring Vi

Hi Lu,

I'm dokey okay thanks.

1.Your last post was not entirely comprehensible or answerable. Please dilate.

2. I have been sorting out a new computer and sorting out me 'ead. Have you any news yerself?

Jab

Good to hear you're dockey cockey. The poesy 'bout Dirty bacon sandwich, lying in the gutter. post 1060. was a parody of Gerty the Dirty Rude Stien. Think the original goes:-
Would he like it,
If I told him,
Would Napoleon,
If I told him.....etc.

Deathly monotonous, but actually the tutor who introduced me to Dirty Gerty, also introduced me to Carson Macullers, though I didn't get round to reading her till much later. This tutor was also deathly monotonous, her tone of voice was always the same, but she seemed terribly intellectual at the time.

Yes, I'm O.K. Hope your new computer and head are all in order, just remember,, not to mix the placement of your nose and ears up though. Personally I find these things most confusing. Last time i sorted out my head, I got my mouth at the back of my neck! Eating got really difficult. They never translate these instruction manuals, from the Chinese very accurately.