Bill's Blog (7)

They're Made Out of Meat

by: Terry Bisson



"They're made out of meat."



"Meat?"



"Meat. They're made out of meat."



"Meat?"



"There's no doubt about it. We picked up several from different parts of the planet, took them aboard our recon vessels, and probed them all the way through. They're completely meat."



"That's impossible. What about the radio signals? The messages to the stars?"



"They use the radio waves to talk,… Continue

So we were lying on our backs on the grass in the park next to our hamburger wrappers, my 14-year-old son and I, watching the clouds loiter overhead, when he asked me, "Dad, why are we here?"



And this is what I said.



"I've thought a lot about it, son, and I don't think it's all that complicated. I think maybe we're here just to teach a kid how to bunt, turn two and eat sunflower seeds without using his hands."



"We're here to pound the steering wheel and scream… Continue

The great swordsman Yagyu Tajima-no-kami became a teacher at the shogun's court. One day, one of the shogun's personal guards came to him and asked him to give him training in fencing. The master looked at the man and said, "As I observe, you seem to be a master of fencing yourself. Tell me to what school you belong before we enter into the relationship of teacher and pupil."



The guardsman said, "It shames me to confess it, but I have never learned the art."



"Are you… Continue

When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me that I should get it fixed. I am a master procrastinator, however, and I always managed to have something else to take care first: the car, finishing up something on the computer, playing guitar - something that was always more important to me.



Finally she thought of a clever way to make her point. When I arrived home one day, I found her seated in the tall grass, busily snipping away with a tiny pair of sewing… Continue

(A compilation of student research, edited by Stephen Hicks, Rockford College)



Is philosophy a waist of time? Ethical debates have been around for a long time, but nobody seems to have any answers. Ethnics are very important. Ethnics are a code of values to guide human life. Basically, what you do with your life comes down to your personal ethnics. For the world to be good means having strong Altruistic people to help the society survive in this doggy dog world.



To… Continue

Ikkyu, the Zen master, was very clever even as a boy. His teacher had a precious teacup, a rare antique. Ikkyu happened to break this cup and was greatly troubled. Hearing the footsteps of his teacher, he held the pieces of the cup behind him. When the master appeared, Ikkyu asked: "Why do people have to die?"



"This is natural," explained the teacher. "Everything has to die and has just so long to live."



Ikkyu, producing the shattered cup, added: "It was time for your cup… Continue

It was very crowded at the supermarket, and the customer in front of me had a large order.

As the harried looking clerk lifted the final bag for her, its bottom gave way, sending the contents crashing to the floor.

"They just don't make these bags like they used to," the clerk blurted to the customer. "That was supposed to happen in your driveway."