Hello Friends:

There are essential things in life.... family, friends, nourishment, shelter. And then there are the accessories.... those things that are not necessary, but help to give the spice and flair to life. Today I list six of those beautiful spices:

1. The Novel - more so than movies or television or even theater, the novel is the most magical of the visual spices. To think that a series of chaotic spatterings of ink on a bunch of wood fibers can transport you anywhere within the known or unknown universe is a true spice and gift. The author of a novel is a true magician.... he or she can spin ideas in such a way to allow us to see a veritable motion picture in our mind's eye.

2. Music - to think of it scientifically, music simply are clusters of harmonic sound waves.... yet the skill that song writers have to gather and coordinate these sound waves is immense.... and the effects are equally so. Those harmonic waves can alter our mood, have us experience the pinnacles of joy or the depths of sorrow.

3. The Pipe - perhaps not for everyone, but for me, the pipe is a beautiful mistress, a true love. She is my friend when I am lonely and my support when I steel myself for battle. The nourishment she provides me is temporal and ethereal.... yet it is profound. The lovely smoke that I draw in from her stem bathes the neurons of my mind in a gentle wash that soothes, and cleanses my thoughts and helps me to retain a pure focus.

4. Pets - my dogs (the two of them) and cats (the three of them) are by far the most significant, yet our family's other pets are also helpful. Dogs and cats and pets in general seek nothing but companionship and do not hold grudges or hoist their anger upon you. Unconditional love and affection are what pets nourish you with. Whether you are a saint or a bum, a rude arrogant bastard or a kindly empath, your dog or cat will still befriend you.

5. Alcohol - Somewhat the "yang" to the "yin" of the pipe above. A well mixed drink can provide an alternate nourishment, one that has mental value close to that of the pipe. Again, the ethereal and temporal nature of this nourishment is part of its charm. As it permeates from your gut into your bloodstream, the beautiful boozy sensation of the alcohol regulating the brain into a slightly lower volume... so that the thoughts and ideas of the day... be they good or bad.... become a bit muted and less forceful.

6. The Bedding of a Woman - the pure physicality of this activity (of course excluding those times where said activity is needed to perpetuate the species (ala Darwin or Dawkins)) is again a delightful spice of life. Both temporal and yet long lasting, the act of making physical love with a woman is a way to transcend your mind and reacquaint yourself with the animal nature within our every cell. It is a way to have your mind quiet to near stillness, so as to experience the rest of your nervous system at a heightened level. More significant than the beautiful release that ends the love making session, the process itself provides the most potent spices. Nurturing a woman bodily and emotional so that she encourages your physical nature inside her heightens the dual nature of this spice. The thrusting of oneself, varying in rate from slow and steady to rapid and chaotic over lengths of time, helps to make time become meaningless. The feelings as your body surge both hormonally and emotionally along with hers helps you to transcend yet fully embrace the corporeal body.

Six spices... while not essential, make life the joy that it is.

PipeTobacco