I’ve been shut in my house for 3 days now. No, someone didn’t come along and nail all the doors and windows shut. I mean, I can get outside, and did just that earlier today. No, I mean I’m sort of trapped here. It has snowed a lot in the hills, and that snow, though beautiful, has kept me from traveling forth from my lovely abode. Normally this wouldn’t be a bad thing, and honestly, it’s not really that bad now. But normally Karen would be here with me, so we’d be in it together. She’d be working, but here, and I’d be able to get some human contact, and maybe a sentence or two from someone else other than… well… me.

I’ve found that since I’m spending so much time alone, I end up doing odds and ends stuff I haven’t gotten to for awhile. Which, for me, means putting more music on the hard drive to transfer to the ipod. It’s a monotonous process, but again, as I think I stated in an earlier post, I get to find music I didn’t remember I had or that I didn’t know we had at all. As an example, I found some great John Lee Hooker today, something Karen brought into our relationship. I didn’t even know we had the cd, and it’s really great. So, though the process is monotonous, I’ve definitely got the music in me and have been tapping my foot the whole time.

Another thing I’m finding is that I haven’t lost old skills… I talk to myself a lot more. I’d forgotten that I used to do it, when I lived alone. Amazing how the little things come back to you. It is just like riding a bicycle…. I haven’t forgotten how to talk to myself… whew… I was worried. An old skill rediscovered!

I’m also stumbling on strange and new interesting things to watch on tv. Today I found a show, a sort of documentary, about dangerous jobs at sea. It covered fishermen in harsh waters, coast guard members who work the Columbia River bar area, and navy seals, among others. It was pretty fascinating. Day time television isn’t what it used to be, it’s better.

So I guess I’ve been stuck here, but not stuck. If that makes any kind of sense at all. I’m one of those people who know how to be alone. I can do it, and what’s more, I actually enjoy it. This experience might be taking that ability to the limit, but I know I still have it. Don’t get me wrong… I’d much rather be with Karen, but if I can’t be… I can handle this. It’s OK. Now I’d best get back to plugging in cds, find something interesting to watch on tv, and then talk to myself about what I’m watching…. I’m easily entertained.

To me it symbolizes balance, unity, connection, constant flow, and change in all things… ourselves, the world, and nature.

According to Wikipedia:

The concepts of Yin and Yang originate in ancient Chinese philosophy and metaphysics, which describes two primal opposing but complementary forces found in all things in the universe.

Yin (Chinese: 陰/阴; pinyin: yīn; literally “shady place, north slope (hill), south bank (river); cloudy, overcast”) is the darker element; it is sad, passive, dark, feminine, downward-seeking, and corresponds to the night.

Yang (陽/阳; yáng; “sunny place, south slope (hill), north bank (river); sunshine”) is the brighter element; it is happy, active, light, masculine, upward-seeking and corresponds to the day. Yin is often symbolized by water or earth, while Yang is symbolized by fire, or wind.

Yin (receptive, feminine, dark, passive force) and Yang (creative, masculine, bright, active force) are descriptions of complementary opposites rather than absolutes. Any Yin/Yang dichotomy can be seen as its opposite when viewed from another perspective. The categorization is seen as one of convenience. Most forces in nature can be seen as having Yin and Yang states, and the two are usually in movement rather than held in absolute stasis.

Summary of Yin and Yang concepts

Everything can be described as both Yin and Yang.

1. Yin and Yang do not exclude each other.

Everything has its opposite—although this is never absolute, only relative. No one thing is completely Yin or completely Yang. Each contains the seed of its opposite. For example, winter can turn into summer; “what goes up must come down”.

2. Yin and Yang are interdependent.

One cannot exist without the other. For example, day cannot exist without night. Light cannot exist without darkness.

3. Yin and Yang can be further subdivided into Yin and Yang.

Any Yin or Yang aspect can be further subdivided into Yin and Yang. For example, temperature can be seen as either hot or cold. However, hot can be further divided into warm or burning; cold into cool or icy. Within each spectrum, there is a smaller spectrum; every beginning is a moment in time, and has a beginning and end, just as every hour has a beginning and end.

4. Yin and Yang consume and support each other.

Yin and Yang are usually held in balance—as one increases, the other decreases. However, imbalances can occur. There are four possible imbalances: Excess Yin, excess Yang, Yin deficiency, and Yang deficiency. They can again be seen as a pair: by excess of Yin there is a Yang deficiency and vice versa. The imbalance is also a relative factor: the excess of Yang “forces” Yin to be more “concentrated”.

5. Yin and Yang can transform into one another.

At a particular stage, Yin can transform into Yang and vice versa. For example, night changes into day; warmth cools; life changes to death. However this transformation is relative too. Night and day coexist on Earth at the same time when shown from space.

6. Part of Yin is in Yang and part of Yang is in Yin.

The dots in each serve:

1. as a reminder that there are always traces of one in the other. For example, there is always light within the dark (e.g., the stars at night); these qualities are never completely one or the other.
2. as a reminder that absolute extreme side transforms instantly into the opposite, or that the labels Yin and Yang are conditioned by an observer’s point of view. For example, the hardest stone is easiest to break. This can show that absolute discrimination between the two is artificial.