Freedom is a word that I rarely use without thinking

Back when I was moderately successful at being a student, Dr. Elia told us repeatedly that many morals in epic literature were based around the concept of courtesy.

i.e. It is discourteous to kill one's child, and Agamemnon was smote by Clytemnestra.

The Greek gods were always smiting people for their lack of social graces and most of mythology is based around that principle.

Narcissus was too into himself and the gods saw fit to turn him into a flower for eternity.

In the Lady and the Tiger, the barbaric king puts his daughter's lover in the arena for daring to aim above his station.


I used the term "lacks decency" today. It's a Janine term. She told me I "lacked decency" because I went into the house where I used to live and removed approximately an 8th of my worldly possessions from harms way.

My mother laughed and said, "That must hurt to use that term."

It did.

And the moral of this story?



Always return your phone calls.