• The Handy Academic Practice
• Go for Shelter

The Handy Academic Practice

Harvard takes perfectly good plums as students, and turns them into prunes. - Frank Lloyd Wright

Maybe that architect quotation needs some reservations to it. The following will show how to -

In academic communication there are formal ways of showing due reserve by oft-repeated stock phrases and fragments. Try "in my opinion" and "I feel that . . . " at times as well. If a group of common reservations (qualifications) are gathered and presented as a meny to chose from, then academic reservations may not be tight-mouthed. Click on "Reservations" above, for an example.

If you want to make a statement with a great many qualifications, put some of the qualifications in separate sentences. - Sir Bertrand Russell, "How I Write". In The Basic Writings of Bertrand Russell, ed. Robert E. Egner and Lester E. Denonn. London: George Allen and Unwin, 1961:63-65.

It is easy to go to core matters by having a row of presupposed reservations and qualificatons at hand, and choose one or several of them as the needs arise. One result of this practice is a handy style, and such a style means a lot.

Handy: convenient to handle or use; practical; well designed; user-oriented; nifty (etc.)

Some talk big about their bosses and publish a lot of books and stuff to get a future. Well, mobilise reservations and common sense enough to resist teachings of authoritarians: The basic lesson of Buddha's teachings to Kalama villagers in the substantial Kalama Sutta may ideally help a lot against spending money on cults or books of little worth.

Consider Fruits

If there is no apple one eats a little carrot.

Buddha teaches quality communication. He also points out that proper, main teachings are excellent in the beginning, in the middle span, and in the long haul to the end [Compare]. It may be variously interpreted, as "excellent in the beginning (sila: moral principles), excellent in the middle (meditation, or focus) and excellent in the end (panna, insight, wisdom). If the time factor gets into the goings, the middle span and long haul could be where to find various fruits of teachings in a life. It could be in ten years, for example - depending on the plans that are into it, and so on.

By figurative means "the fruits" refer to consequences or results. One should learn to build sensibly and fairly well on his or her own behalf and gradually get able to favour family and kin. That is what a family tends to be a help for.

Try to attune to and address your essential being so as not to get outsmarted, and before you decide on vital matters. "Listen to your heart," "Consult your pillow (sleep on a matter)", rather than getting outsmarted by any mean means or unfit goadings.

So set in some fit mental reserves to be alerted, and thereby helping yourself, your family, your kin and so on - because you could improve a lot by such means.

When the apple is ripe it will fall.

Enduring drivel or better

The olive grove of your grandfather, the cherry trees of your father, and your grape vines.

Some give stones instead of bread, but fit balances matter in Taoist philosophy, with teachings of yin and yang hovering over them.

Now, plants co-operate or fight one another for Lebensraum, for space to live in. In a clearing, a slowly progressing battle for soil, light and other necessities goes on. Most trees compete tactlessly in the long run and perhaps below the surface soil too, for that reason. You may not detect that ongoing fight. Still it is at work, both over the ground and underground.

A tree shows: "There is no fair reason to endure what's bad and not really needed or welcome." "To your own self be true . . ." Look to trees. From old times, most trees help themselves to remain and may benefit from a good gardeners' help.

~ೞ⬯ೞ~

Go for Shelter

Marriage is a little bit like buying melons, you need a little luck.

Marriage is shelter to some; gardens behind walls to some, lightning rods are shelter to some - and when birds of a feather - like penguins - flock together, it is in part for shelter too. Another kind of shelter is from deep inside.

Don't be an onlooker only; seek shelter and manage tree-planting instead. There is a great need of more trees around, and especially old trees.

A British Harley Street doctor found thirty-seven plants and trees that helped him through pangs, one by one - and so on to the next pang and plant, until the Dr Edward Bach's remedies were had.

The Bach remedies is a set of thirty-seven plants or plant parts, and an extra remedy that combines seven of them as one remedy, the "Rescue Remedy". The Bach centre in Wales brings Dr Bach's remedies and heritage to people still, and stand by Dr Bach's remedy descriptions. Many seek the shelter (the benefits) of the Bach remedies.

"You reap what you sow:" Results depend on good choice of remedies, proper administration of them, and follow-ups also. That is how such things are said to works. [Homeopathic remedies] — [Bach remedies]

Beech Brandy

An American monkey, after getting drunk on brandy, would never touch it again, and thus is much wiser than most men. - Charles Darwin

If you are intolerant, you could benefit from being surrounded by beeches, alone in a forest - is the special derivate from Dr Bach's "Intolerance: Beech" You may not know thoroughly till you have tried some dozens of times and noted what moods you get into, and see what aspects of your health changes for better, worse or not at all. The self-helper's method of trying things over twenty times in a row and treat the data in much similar ways as in other forms of research, stems from the Swedish professor Olov Lindahl. He makes clear how to conduct a series of so-called clinical trials in Vetenskap och beprövad erfarenhet rendered into "Science and Tested Experience" here (1978).

Instead of having many persons test a method or remedy, use one person as a tester many times on end, in a series: "One person and often" and not "Many persons once or twice or thrice each". The data that is added in each of the two approaches, may be handled alike from there on. Dr Lindahl's approach to testing gives a rough inkling once there are estimates of the so-called placebo-effect (an effect of faith, coincidence and other factors). This kind of explorative longitudinal self-testing is made plain in the book (Lindahl and Lindwall 1978, 109-16)

If you don't have a beech forest to test out near you, take heart at least tentatively, exploratively, for Dr Bach said he learnt to capture the beech influence in some brandy. We may not ignore it reminds of getting a spirit into a bottle. Me many call it "the spirit of the beech conserved in spirits," if we will, but that may sound too disrespectful to same. A few drops of a Beech remedy as made in Dr Bach's way - many, many have sought comfort or shelter in such ways - at regular intervals. Slowly, slowly the intolerance against the good doctor's methods and remedies may go away . . .

If you are a stubborn, intolerant guy, however,

the quite gentle Bach remedy may not do enough for you.
That is what could be told you too.

Not to forget, on this site you learn to add some cool, apt reservations to things others tell you, right or wrong, with little good proof to back it up full well.

There are books to read into about the Bach remedies.

Oak Brandy or hug an oak

Unless a tree has borne blossoms in spring, you will look in vain for fruit on it in autumn. - Charles Hare

You could ask, "If I am fond of oaks, is it a sign of something I need from them? The Bach centre tells that the Bach Oak remedy (or contact with oaks in nature), is for "the plodder who keeps going past the point of exhaustion". Somehow, "provided Dr Bach's remedy works in such mysterious ways full well," I add.

The remedy name is "Oak". Bach remedies are for sale in pharmacies. They are not exactly cheap, but hugging an oak for ten minutes five times a day does not necessarily cost money, only reputation, perhaps -

But you are free to go into a nice spot in a wood and make an Oak remedy yourself if you care to. Dr. Bach has explained how easy it is to do it by way of the Sunshine Method as it is called. Then you make your own remedy, and is spared from oak-hugging four times a day in rain or shine or in front of others.

Dr Edward Bach says his oak-derived remedy is "For those who are struggling . . . to get well . . . though their case may seem hopeless . . . They are brave people."

If you think this is drivel and that wine from oak barrels is good enough oak influence for you, is there help to be found in a bottle of "beechied brandy" against intolerence? Do you know if you haven't tried some twenty times or so? And do you know if you have not tried enough, and kept notes and so on, so that a statistician may gauge probabilities, detect possible patterns and such things? And do you know for sure even then?

1. Dr. Bach's Remedies have an oak influence in one of its bottles of brandy.
2. Oak (Quercus) is the name of a homeopathic medicine too.

Vine Brandy (another Bach essence)

Eat coconuts while you have teeth.

In contrast to oaky fellows, Jesus identified himself as a vine. "I am the vine," is in one of his sayings [John 15,5]. The vine is a climber. How are vine people according to Dr Bach?

Certain of their own ability, confident of success . . . they think that it would be for the benefit of others if they could be persuaded to do things as they themselves do, or as they are certain is right . . . they will direct their attendants.

The vine type tells others what to do, Dr Edward Bach tells others, and seems certain to be right . . . It also sums up much concerning Jesus the Vine, Jew and Healer. Jews rejected him at large.

You may try vine as a Bach remedy, if you are rigorous, even fanatical, and needs to relax and get tolerant.

Many humans carry loads

A big tree has withstood many a wind.

There is a dire need for large trees on the planet. Trees produce needed oxygen, shade against the sun, a little shelter from a starting shower, and fruits - many of which benefits birds, animals and humans. A significant part of mankind's heritage is knowledge of which plants and fruits are edible, and which may be made edible or more tasty by some kind of processing.

There is much more to be said here. A forest is a helper, a cluster of trees of the same kind feel fine among humans.

The "fruit" of the plane-tree in a fable of Aesop's, is the cooling shade it gives. One more "donkey fruit": carried loads.

What about Bramble Brandy a la Bach?

One is wise to cultivate the tree that bears fruit in our soul. - Thoreau

"Fruits in the soul" may be said to be fruits (effects) in the mind or psyche by other terms. In the mind, that is where a lot starts. Dr Edward Bach did not have to cultivate all the trees he plucked blossoms and leaves from - he went to them and did his work. But if you have a plot of land, you could cultivate or plant such trees to have them at hand, or walk among, hug too, perhaps.

Dr. Samuel Johnson (1709-84) said: "Large parts of what people believed was true in earlier centuries, are deemed stupid and dangerous folly nowadays." [◦Link]

Samuel Johnson ascertained and believed what he wrote was true, yet have a look in an updated book on herbs to get informed and benefit from current knowledge at least.

In doubt? Test and make "averaged" more or less sure by available statistics

A society grows great when old men plant trees, knowing they shall never sit in their shades. - Greek proverb

A human may find out how not to live with much uncertainty and may get a better life in so doing. Besides, for the lack of hard facts, there are statistical data, where one calculates and takes into account a lot to ascertain whether something is at work, or how probable such effects can be under such and such circumstances.

If you are feeling confused and think Bramble Brandy helps you to get optimism to manage all right, you may then benefit from a possible placebo effect. Take that into account so as to counteract it. Proper research designs are able to, statistically speaking. Brandy-given optimism is not all that is needed for all right verification. First postulate something, like "Bramble Brandy promotes quick-witted, able humour". Then let many informers, loads of informers describe how they were or felt before taking Bramble Brandy as prescribed, and after some time, for example ten weeks on Bramble Brandy. Are patterns emerging, and how many speak of similar changes in their words, how often and so on? Then rest assured that much depends on how well the research is carried out also.

And first of all, test whether Bach remedies have any general effect.

Dr Fred Kerlinger (1910–91) shows there are several main ways by which fragile people would like to think they know, just by being opinionated, which is not good enough. [Kerlinger and Lee 2000,, chap. 1] Better learn to reserve yourself - and try to stick to knowledge won by open-ended enough investigations. Keep a certain distance or reserve in the public arena and balance well.

◎ We ascertain things by open-ended investigations with or without pre-made designs. Compose yourself for it to your ability.