The Hound of the Baskervilles

Elementary, my dear Watson...

Hello there, classmates.

Whoops, might have fudged on the intro line there, eh?

As they say: Variety is the spice of life.

Sometimes, at least.

There's a certain comfort in things that stay the same.

Do I digress? Hardly.

One man that forever stays the same in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous books is the very well-known Sherlock Holmes.

You've just had a small taste of my wonderfully convoluted thought process. Be fore-warned.

(theme music)

It's time for the Big Title Text Inside the Post Bit!

Sherlock Holmes &

The Hound of the Baskervilles

It all starts when a man named Dr. James Mortimer travels from Devon to London, and appeals for help to our great genius: Sherlock Holmes. Dr. Mortimer, after being accepted inside to the company of Holmes and his companion/chronicler Watson, then explains to them that the Baskerville family is believed to be cursed. He even tells them the story of said curse, which goes as follows:

A wicked, arrogant man who had lived two centuries before and ruled over Baskerville Hall; a man named Hugo Baskerville, became infatuated with a yeoman's daughter. So infatuated, in fact, that he up and kidnapped her - imprisoning her in his bedchambers. He then went to have a drink with his friends down stairs in the dining room. As he became inebriated, laughing with his friends, the young woman escaped. Upon going up to his bedchambers and finding the woman gone, a drunk and enraged Hugo swore to give his soul to the Powers of Evil if he could overtake the woman. He then took after her, helped by his hunting hounds and his equally drunk friends, across the desolate moorland. Eventually, after losing track of him, his friends found both Hugo and the woman dead, a ghostly and giant hound standing over the body of Hugo. The hound plucked out Hugo's throat and spirited off into the night, leaving behind terribly frightened men.

Stay tuned for more!

As always, your host,   

"What's wrong with me, doctor?"

A diagnoses for your Yom Kippur...

Hey there, classmates.

After reading an amazing article on aish.com,I decided that Yom Kippur should go by in two steps. There's probably a million different sub-steps, but that'd take quite a while. So for the sake of this post, we'll say two steps and write about the first.

What's the first step, you ask? Well, as if you were visiting a doctor, the first step is diagnosis. Need I define diagnosis? Probably not. I'll do it anyhow, though.

Diagnosis:

1.

Medicine/Medical .

a.

the process of determining by examination thenature and circumstances of a diseased condition.

b.

the decision reached from such an examination.Abbreviation:  Dx

2.

Biology . scientific determination; a description that classifiesa group or taxon precisely.

3.

a determining or analysis of the cause or nature of a problemor situation.

4.

an answer or solution to a problematic situation.

Okay, so I defined it. Or rather, Googled it and copied/pasted the definition here on the post.

Now, as we all know, I'm thrilled with analogies. So, on that note, let's begin:

Say you went to the doctor because you had a hernia, and you told the doctor you just had indigestion -- he'd probably give you the wrong medicine and it would just make you sicker.

Now, as you might imagine, there are many people who are not aware of this "hernia". There are also, however, some who are not willing to admit they have this "hernia".

Okay, so maybe my analogy didn't entirely fit.

My point is, there are people who have done things very wrong, yet they won't admit everything they did. They'll take the medicine for indigestion instead. You're probably saying "Well, G-d knows all that I've done wrong." Entirely true, as he is all-knowing, but it's the same as making your sibling angry, s/he won't give you what you truly want -- forgiveness -- unless you repent everything. Poor sister must have to deal with your "indigestion" quite a bit.

So if you lighten up what you've done wrong; if you only repents for a few of your sins, how can G-d justify giving you your medicine of forgiveness? Your just going to make your hernia a lot worse.

So, when 6 'o clock comes around tonight, set your heart to do what's right. Diagnose each and every one of your problems, and let the doctor know what's wrong with you.

As always, your host,

Oh Look, I Have Some Change

Try the updated Blogger interface? Pshaw...

Hey there, classmates.

The new Blogger dashboard colors are Orange, White and disgusting.

That's my personal opinion, at least.

I realize it's been there for a while, so you're probably asking yourself: "Why does he address this NOW?"

I've got a good answer to that one.

I logged on to Blogger today wondering what in the world I was going to post about today. I was then, and suddenly, annoyed by the "Try the updated Blogger interface" link that pooped up at the top. I'm a firm believer that Blogger is fine JUST the way it is. Why is this? Well I'll explain it like this:

When one thing stays the same for a long time, and your mind gets used to it -- gets comfortable with it -- then when something or someone tries to change it to the way THEY think is best you naturally get very, very annoyed.

So what is change?

I'll stop here and state that someone needs to make a theme song for my definition time. It's quite an important event.

Let's define it:

Change:

1.  to make the form, nature, content, future course, etc., of (something) different from what it is or from what it would be if left alone: to change one's name; to change one's opinion; to change the course of history.

2.

to transform or convert (usually followed by into ): The witch changed the prince into a toad.

3.

to substitute another or others for; exchange  for something else, usually of the same kind: She changed her shoes whenshe got home from the office.

4.

to give and take reciprocally; interchange: to change places with someone.

5.

to transfer from one (conveyance) to another: You'll have to change planes in Chicago.

"Pfft, dude, we know what change means."

Yea, I know. We all do. It happens every second of every day. Every time we breathe some minuscule thing changes.

So what's the big dealio with change, then?

Well it's a big deal when it, itself, is BIG. So when you breathe, the air changes. How will that affect you? It won't. Now you're brother who's been gone for more than a year moves back in to your cozy little nook of a home on the corner of Burgess and Marie and wants to change his lifestyle. Does this affect you? Big time. My cozy little home has suddenly changed. Everything I was comfortable with having to myself I am now uncomfortably sharing. It's annoying, it's frustrating and it's not fair!

Well, Mr. Jacob, life isn't fair sometimes. Sometimes you have to sacrifice or change things so that others can better themselves.

Who says? Who's gonna make me?

The answer to the second one is: Know one but yourself.

The answer to the first is: G-d says.

Sacrificing ourselves for others is something G-d rewards, and something you'll feel good about afterwards.

Change things for others, help them along at the expense of yourself, and you will be blessed.

Now here comes the big "book-tie-in".

Sherlock Holmes.

The Hound of the Baskervilles.

As I've not read very far into the book yet, I couldn't find anything to do research on. But listening to the story of the Baskervilles lineage... Well I'll give you two characters.

Sir Hugo Baskerville–This 17th-century Baskerville ancestor spawned the legend of the family curse. Sir Hugo had been the picture of aristocratic excess, drunkenness and debauchery until, one night, he was reputedly killed near Baskerville Hall, in the wilds of Dartmoor, by a demonic hound sent to punish his wickedness.

Sir Charles Baskerville–The former lord of the manor of the Baskerville estates in Devon, Sir Charles was a superstitious bachelor in waning health. Long terrified by the Baskerville legend, his footprints show that he must have been fleeing from something at the time of his recent death in the grounds of Baskerville Hall. Furthermore, the paw-prints of a large dog marked the soil near his corpse. Sir Charles had been a philanthropist. His enlightened plans to invest funds in the isolated district surrounding Baskerville Hall prompts his heir, Sir Henry, to want to move there and continue his uncle's good works.

Sir Hugo's description is very well.. descriptive. He was a wicked man, lead by his emotions so far as to bring this "curse" upon his family's lineage.

Sir Charles' doesn't really describe him as well as they do in the book. He was constantly scared that the curse would be brought onto him by the wicked acts of his ancestor. Therefore he swore to do right. He was an honest business man, a friendly host, and was constantly giving great sums of his wealth to charities.

Sir Charles' example, though one formed on his cowardice, still stands firm amongst the ranks of others. Can you changing your ways, going against the evil of your ancestors, change your curse into a blessing? Indeed, it can.

So, in hindsight, maybe I should give Blogger's new layout a chance. Who knows, maybe it needs it.

As always, your host,