Monday, February 6, 2017

Whole Earth

This past weekend, we explored a few new antique stores and indoor flea markets around our new (since 2015) home.  I came across something that I'd been sorta-kinda hunting for, for at least a decade.  Of course I knew I could order these things online, but it never rose to that level of importance.


But now... I'm left gibbering "Where have you been all my life?!?"

Click on any of these for bigger, more legible versions.

Seriously, this freakin' thing is amazing.


I've skimmed up to page 19 or so, and found dozens of new insights.  The edition I have is 450 pages long.


I think I've dreamed about reading this, but after waking up I never knew what it was, or whether it was a real thing.


Is it going to change my life?  Still too soon to know.  I'm not about to go living in a yurt or making my clothes from macrame.  That's only a tiny part of what this thing was all about, anyway.  It will help with developing the GBG.


I have so much to learn.


12 comments:

  1. A great find from a time of thoughtful enthusiasms. Whole Earth Catalogue was a staple of my early adulthood education. Thanks for sharing. More please.

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    1. Thanks, Geo. I'll certainly share any new insights that I'm able to articulate.

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    2. 'Whole Earth Catalogue was a staple of my early adulthood education.'

      Why am I not surprised?

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  2. 'I think I've dreamed about reading this, but after waking up I never knew what it was, or whether it was a real thing.'

    And you got to live it? To hold it in your hands? I'm too happy for you to be jealous. I live a lot of my days feeling half of what you've written above. Reaching, hoping. Sometimes the answer, for me, is to make what I'm missing. Seems that may be part of the message, here?

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    1. You bet. El Inframundo don't lie.

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    2. I love that same line in your post - the best kind of deja vu. I'm so happy for you that you found this.

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    3. FYI, about two weekends ago, which was just about two weekends after finding this thing, I saw another one in a different used bookstore. If it wasn't the same identical edition, I'd've scarfed up that one, too. :-)

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  3. Okay, so gotta talk to you about something a little off topic...

    I am currently reading Magic of Numbers by Eric Temple Bell which covers a whole lotta math history. In it, he mentions the five 3-D shapes that are composed entirely of regular polygons: the regular, convex polyhedrons. Suddenly, I make a connection, one that I suppose has been rattling around in the back of my brain most of my life: D&D dice! It's the 4-, 6-, 8-, 12- and 20-sided dice. I knew they were all composed of regular polygons but I didn't realize they were the ONLY shapes that were.

    I am about 50/50 on the book so far but it was worth reading just for that.

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    1. A topic after my own heart! The 5 Platonic solids were the originals for D&D in the late 1970s, but a few years later 10- and 30-sided ones also became popular. Those aren't perfectly Platonic, but they're "close enough." Back in 2011, I ranted a bit about the still-crazier shapes of 5- and 7-sided ones were coming onto the market. :-)

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    2. Just read your older post. I am highly skeptical.

      I remember the 10d. That came with the Basic set. I don't know if I have ever seen a 30d.

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  4. From the bits you showed, it reminds me of Lost. Specifically, the Dharma Initiative.

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    1. Ha! Maybe the sixties were like that, in general. Except: replace the hidden cabal with a proponent of the philosophy on every street corner... :-)

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