One of the often overlooked benefits of television advertisements is their ability to reassure one that one’s physical inadequacies are widely shared. For example, as I approach my 90th birthday, I have more and more difficulty putting on and taking off my socks, thanks to the fact that I continually lose flexibility. Even in a Continuing Care Retirement Community like the one in which I live, these problems are not the subject of casual conversation so that would be easy to suppose that they afflict me alone. But then I see an advertisement for a device that is designed to help put one socks on, and I realize that if it is worth advertising this gadget than the problem must be widespread. Curiously, that is reassuring.
I was not always thus. Seventy-five years ago, when I was a
teenager at Forest Hills high school, I was actually a member of something
called the Captain’s Corps. We had
special uniforms (long red pants and a T-shirt) and during gym did simple
gymnastics exercises on the parallel bars and such like. In those days, I could
actually press up into a handstand and walk about on my hands, accomplishments
which, though not very impressive, strike me now is incomprehensible. Indeed,
it was while showing off my gymnastic abilities that I suffered my one bone
fracture. I was doing a handstand at a party on the arms of an easy chair and
when I came down I banged my right foot on a wooden chair, cracking a bone in
my big toe. My uncle Anoch, who was an
orthopedic surgeon, put a big cast on my foot, forcing me to stay home for
several weeks while the toe healed. Having nothing better to do while I sat on a
chair with my foot on a hassock, I spent the time learning trigonometry, and
managed to pass the Regents examination at the end of the semester, thereby
excusing me from taking the course on the subject.
11 comments:
It's hard to imagine what you would have done if you had broken your leg.
Mr. Wolff, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for the 9 Youtube lectures on Kant. I am 57 years old and decided to read Philosophy to keep my mind in shape - which naturally led me to Kant's CPR.
I have been reading the book along with watching the lecture video series and your analysis is definitely for me a sine qua non for understanding the intricacies of this great book. I scarcely know German but I am lucky to know English well enough to grasp your courses.
Currently just have passed the 8th lecture and am mustering all my ability to cover the second analogy before delving into your final lecture.
Thank you and bear in mind that somewhere far away there is a unity of apprehension brim-full of thankfulness for your work.
Have a nice ride and looking forward to meet each other in the noumenal realm :)
Thank you, Iulian, It is for me a miracle that my lectures can reach so widely scattered an audience.
Lol:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/F4VoHTJXkAAkRl6?format=jpg&name=medium
Whose mugshot looks more bad#@&: Giuliani's or Trump's?
Marc has emailed once again. Read at my website if you like...
To ML:
I got one too. Marc argues that every Georgia defendant was simply exercising his or her First Amendment right to say ridiculous things about the 2020 election, which is not a crime.
Sigh.
Marc sent me a further comment, which I can send those who write to
amosxxxx@gmail.com
Once again, I do not necessarily agree with the content of Marc's comment.
Trump spent days practicing that mug shot.
I can't reach M Llenos's site, as it happens (I've tried in the past). Perhaps just a quirk w the devices I happen to have.
As for what M.S. is writing, as long as he's not insulting me I don't really care. That stance is solipsistic, but so be it.
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