I didn’t start writing quite as early today but it is still morning, 10:24. The great donut diet experiment continues. I took my walk to Krispy Kreme yesterday even though it was misty with an occasional drizzle. I almost turned around and stayed home but decided that it wasn’t so bad, and I need to get out and get some exercise. Even though it was totally overcast I still got the benefits of being exposed to sun, even if it is not as powerful as direct sunlight. The light screens they use to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) recreate the light of a cloudy, not clear day. It’s enough to trigger the hormones that regulate your internal clock. I just yawned so this still needs time to work. Because of the weather I didn’t stay out as long or walk as far as the previous days. I walked only 3.13 miles and burned only 272 Calories. That is still more that then 190 Calories of the donut. Here’s the thing, I’m not crazy about Krispy Kreme original glazed donuts. The health benefit is the most important reason I do this. If there were a KK around the block I would not get one every day. I’d get one every time I happened to walk by. I guess I should explain to new Gentle Readers that Krispy Kreme gives a free donut if you can prove you’ve gotten your COVID-19 vax. I was amused when I ordered and the person at the register said to her coworker, “Another OG.” That’s for “original glazed.” It does make the whole experience feel cooler.
Now for something completely different, magic spells. I love fantasy, I’ve reread Lord of the Rings something like 50 times, I’ve read every Discworld novel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is on my short list of favorite shows, at least the first three seasons. Despite that I have always had problems with the theory of spells. How can saying words make changes in the natural world? Do they imply a deity, making spells just specialized prayers? Understanding words needs implies an intelligence with consciousness. That works in LOTR as there is a deity, Eru, as well as the Valor, who have great powers, but people invoke them by name, as in prayers. It’s not certain words that apparently compel the deity to do your bidding. There are exceptions, the Gates of Moria open on speaking the word, “mellon,” but that’s technology that the dwarf Narvi built into them. It’s like my phone responding to “Hey Google?” The intelligence there is not in the phone, but in the builders of the phone.
Even worse what’s with spells having to be in a specific language. Why is every Harry Potter spell in Latin? Was there no magic until Latin came into being? Why is it special? Why not Egyptian, Chinese, or Sumerian? They are far older languages. Do magicians in other parts of the world all use a language that was spoken only in Europe? If not, why not translate the spells into English? On Buffy the spells are often in languages, other than Latin. That at least lessons the Eurocentric bias of much fictional magic .
Spells are always passed down or found in ancient tomes. Where do new spells come from? Do wizards sit there saying random words to see if something happens? Do they cast spells by accident in casual conversation? On the TV show The Magicians they use hand motions, not spells, but it’s really the same thing; the language is sign language. Who is translating the words in actions?
Even though I’m an atheist I can accept the internal logic of praying. There is a self-consistent theory to explain the efficacy. In Hebrew school I did ask why we study everything in the original Hebrew and say prayers in Hebrew. The official explanation is that god wrote it all and might have put meaning into the original text that we won’t understand and will be lost in translation. Not a great explanation as we’re not understanding the meaning, but perhaps it allows people in the future to get it even if we don’t.
I’ve been thinking about this since I was a little kid but I’m not sure if I ever expressed it. I’m glad to finally get it off my chest. If you tell someone else about this make sure they read the original text as I might have included meaning that you didn’t get.
Huzzah, I finished this before 11:30 I’m getting back to my preferred schedule.
Wise Madness 