THE STORY OF GADGET: GADGET WAR

Welcome to WordPress. This web site will give you a new view of the personalities of people and of cities and how they help change each other. Enjoy and please leave me comments so I can explain or change the site for your benefit. The first three posts prepare you for the story that follows. Clicking on pictures should bring up a larger picture. Just hit the browser back arrow to return to the post.

This is a love story too. BJ’s cousin has been caught up in the wars, the wars against the city. He runs in gangs to sell the gadgets. His fatal mistake is he meet the girl of his dreams.

01 Post One: Hello world! I Have A Story To Tell But First…

 

I am a bird. My name is Geru. I fly over Everywhere and see it all. I am your narrator. I explain it all, and none of it, all at the same time and never. You see, the Island of Everywhere is fickle and changeable and as stable as a rock, all at the same time. Let me begin the story and maybe it will make sense. But first lets look at some needed concepts to make it easier. One concept is explained with Rosy, Grandma of the character Molly, and Frank, Grandpa of the character Edgar. Grandma and Grandpa are married, but opposite personalities. They disagree on a lot and add to the story interpretation or action.

MeMyself&I:   This is a story about how the parts of our psyche, of Me, Myself, and I, conflict to operate people as individuals, couples, families, or cities in different situations. It is about how individuals get lost in the situations of a city and have to appeal to their own Me, Myself, and I or to the Me, Myself, and I of others or the Me, Myself, and I of the city as a whole. Yes, cities have a Me, Myself, and an I. You will see later in the story. Let me begin by explaining the roles of Me, Myself, and I. You can see them in the picture of Frank.

Myself is the ‘body’ with all its’ instincts or wants and drives for food, water, and pleasure. Myself is blind and deaf. Myself only thinks rudimentary if at all, it has reflexes.

Me is made up of the Upper Nature and Lower Nature and their widgets. The brain is always going through a feed back loop that can be seen in four steps.

In the Upper Nature it first perceives the world. The widget Ant sees detail and Bee patterns.

In the second step is feelings of avoidance or approaching. The widget Macho, or scaredy-cat, sees danger and Cuddles, the loving dog, sees love.

The third step is to plan how to avoid or approach and object, the other, or food. Geru the bird, that is the thinking part of the ‘Me’ in you, can fly high and see the bigger picture. Then Geru can plan what to do next, to avoid or approach.

And the fourth step is to act on the plan. In the fourth step Rabbit gives plenty of energy but Turtle gives patience by slowing down Rabbit to help the other widgets give continuing help or advice before Rabbit gives ‘Myself’ energy to act. The Upper Nature is the Me that is realistic, loving, wise, and acts in a healthy way, but it is only half of the Me.

The second half of Me is the Lower Nature. It is the survival mode and also goes through the four steps, only Spiedie deceives the perception of self or other, Raccoon is greedy and takes from others, Crow has a selfish view and will blame others to justify what the other Lower Nature widgets are doing, and Coyote is aggressive, a bully. The Upper Nature widgets and Lower Nature widgets conflict with their own points of view. They are all housed in the brain. You can say the Lower Nature is more instinctively connected to Myself.

I (that is the ‘I’) is consciousness. Without consciousness the Myself and the Me are chaotic. This is best seen as such when you are asleep. Me creates a mess of dreams and at times right down terrifying. So ‘I’ has to wake up to control them. I comes in two parts. I is either Mr/Ms Do, who governs the Upper Nature widgets, making sure Myself fits the environment and is functional, or is Dragon who governs the Lower Nature widgets to help them be effective at deception, greed, blame, and running away or fighting. They are needed when there is real danger to react to. The Lower Nature is much faster than the Upper Nature and often responds to false danger, as flashbacks to past events that are no longer real but only seem real. So the Lower Nature then may be only helping Myself to be selfish.  Mr/Ms Do and Dragon can both be in the subconscious playing or fighting in the background trying to help Myself be good or selfish.

In the picture above Grandpa was at first using his Upper Nature (UN) to keep his Lower Nature (LN) from dominating. But when he is confronting Grandma he switches to his LN to defend his actions pushing back her UN. The reason she confronts him is because he is a dreamer that can be run by his LN. When greedy Raccoon and Crazy Crow lead him astray, as Dragon emerges from below to direct the show, Frank may do some dangerous stunts while metaphorically pursuing unfounded dreams of pots of gold at the edge of a cliff near the end of rainbow.

 

 

You will see more of Rosy and Frank as the story unfolds and they interpret things differently. She is more realistic and he is not.

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.02 Post Two: But First Con’t… Little Mr.Do

 

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When we are small our little Mr.Do(s) are inexperienced. If we put two babies together and one of them (Baby A) has a pacifier and the other one does not the little Mr.Do without the pacifier, (Baby B), will want it too. B’s little Myself wants it, both their little Me(s) are too immature to share. Since B’s little I does not know how to stop it’s Me from going after the pacifier his Myself will go after it.

A struggle will ensue. As B’s Macho Fear and Energy Rabbit get over excited they cause a whirlwind of fearful excitement.  B’s Cuddles Love and other Me Upper Nature widgets begin to fly off allowing the Lower Nature widgets to take over. With Spiedie’s eye on the pacifier waiting for Ant and Bee to fly off, and Raccoon’s greed  wanting the pacifier Baby B’s Macho fear runs in circles as his Cuddles love flies off, his Crow blames Geru for not sharing, and his Coyote’ without the patient Turtle or energy Rabbit stopping him, grabs the pacifier. B’s overwhelmed little Mr.Do has let Dragon take over and get mean. Baby A goes through something similar and both babies’ Dragons start to fight. But one baby will be stronger than the other and turn into a Perpetrator leaving the other to be a Victim. Mom to the rescue. She will try to figure out what has happened. The Perpetrator will want to blame the other Baby for not sharing. But she is wise and will not fall for the Lower Nature game of blaming. She will teach them how to love and share. She will calm them returning them each back into a loving little Mr.Do.

As time goes by she will teach them both how to change their Me into being their own wise mothers with moral codes and appropriate behaviors. Then their little I will be able to mother the Me’s Upper Nature widgets and help them get along and not to let their Dragon and Lower Nature Widgets rule. This is called socializing. It is necessary for any group of animals or people to survive and be strong as a group.

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03 Post Three: But First…City Widgets

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  A city, like a person, has a personality and begins to function like a person, after all a city is made up of people. Just like a person, a city has to grow and mature and learn to have a conscience and take care of its widgets, its Myself, its Me, and its I or Mr.Do.

Let me explain. A city’s Myself is the conglomeration of everyone. Lets say we pour  people into a giant baby. This is a new city without many rules or regs. Like an old Western Town it may be wild and silly. The town does not have a lot of resources and may depend on other mother cities for its livelihood.

 

Next we see the Town of Everywhere, on the right, provides food from the fields and clothes from the stores. These are the Myself of the City, they provide food and warmth, we could include shelter and medicine.

As the City grows it will start developing the Me. For the Upper Nature there is the TV station and other media such as newspapers and theaters that will help Ant and Bee look for objects and themes.

Macho scaredy-cat and loving Cuddles are in the green counseling office for helping others be better socialized or calm their fears.

The city’s Geru, the thinker, is the church and the red brick school.

Physical action is Rabbit and Turtle, here pointing to the Law or capital building that has pillars and also houses the police. They keep the boundaries of action clear and enforced.

The City Lower Nature’s Spiedie also points to the media, as they can tell facts or fictions. Greedy Raccoon is housed in the dark dive, the Tavern of indulgence. Crow has the light green novelty and modern age gadgets shop. And the aggressive Coyote is housed in the Factory, the factory that is run by the Town tycoon that aggressively pushes his wears onto the public or illegally to kids to sell in gangs. He is our main villain.

As our city is growing up it has to develop a conscience, a Mr.Do or a City ‘I’. Just as a teenager has to learn the difference between his Mr.Do and his Dragon and learn to choose Mr.Do over Dragon so does the consensus of everyone in the city, the gossip or buzz words of a city. As you see his Mr.Do is too small and his Dragon is too large. This is a young city that prides itself in teenage tomfoolery.

Finally we have the adult city where the I, Mr.Do favors the Upper Nature Widgets. Dragon and the Lower Nature widgets are smaller and kept mainly for unfair situations where Mr.Do can’t negotiate and therefore survival or high ethics are at stake. This may turn into a riot or demonstration. At a national level this could spell war. Yes a nation has a personality too.

The personality of a city, or nation, depends on the laws and organizations that help the citizens perceive, feel, think, and act functionally to the good of all.

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04 Post Four: Chapter 1 Our Story, Lost In The City, Crack and Crash

BECAUSE I HAVE PUT THE NEXT 22 POSTS IN REVERSE ORDER OF BLOG POSTS FOR YOUR EASE OF VIEWING CHRONOLOGICALLY CLICK ON PREVIOUS TO SEE NEXT POST AND CLICK ON NEXT TO VIEW PREVIOUS POST.

The spirits of all the city folks, that is the city’s Mr.Do and Dragon, and the organizations of the city personality, or Upper Nature and Lower Nature of Me, are talking to itself, and make up the Myself or body of the city. They are at it again, never-ending debates over perceptions, feelings, thoughts, and actions. They sort of float above with the city’s conscience, Mr.Do,  and alter ego, Dragon, and conflict with each other.

Dragon is run by the greedy folks who want their way in spite of how others feel. They can act fast and decisive as they do not care about others so they do not have to wait for a consensus.

Mr.Do has to please everyone and so compromise and negotiations are his tools. This slows him down and puts him at a disadvantage to the wheeler-dealer Dragon.

Dragon will always win unless the people choose to follow Mr.Do and not Dragon. As the people lead their daily lives, how they choose on individual and group levels to follow their Mr.Do or Dragon decides the consciousness and conscience of the city.

The majority can rule. But politics of the few will get control if the city allows. This is what our story will look at, the conscience and consciousness of some individuals, groups, and the whole city, from the choices they make. Their choices may be looked at from the  perspective of their present circumstance, past emotions, beliefs, and actions which may be in conflict with their genetic limits. People do not want to crack and crash in the city but it often happens as we have limits and do not keep them in mind as we make daily choices.

As I was saying, the Island of Everywhere is in the middle of the Sea of Nowhere.  A quaint little island, it contains everything.  It has an airfield, a mountain with snow, a desert, a plush field, a lake, and rolling hills.  It has a railroad, a bus, a boat, and a town called Generic.  It is all there in the middle of Nowhere.   Even, the…what’s that I see on the next post, oh brother, the gadget.  The root of all evil is the love of money, the leaves of all evil are the gadgets that money can buy.  Let me continue and it will make sense.

05 Post Five: Chapter 2 The War Of Gadgets

GADGETS are things or substances that alter the way children see the world. Parents protect their children by inspecting and deciding if their children should have any particular gadget. But others have other ideas about that, they want to bi-pass the parents.

There is a war.  Larry’s Dad, the industrial tycoon, hunts for customers to sell the Gadget to.  By day the game of hunting is played in advertisements. When his Dragon inspires an advertisement it is designed to help the gadgets divide the family by encouraging the wrong loyalties, not mom or the family values but encourage rogue individualism by chasing away the fears that the gadget can be harmful.  They want the customers to see, want, think, and do things others or the family may not want them to or wants them to use it for the wrong purposes, or to use them too much.  Such conflicts take the joy out of work and play.  The game is to divide people and conquer or enslave them to the gadget.

A car drives by a billboard and the children whine, “Mom, we got to get the gadget.  Everyone has one and without supervision.  It’s better than homework.  No more homework.  Lets get it now or you are a bad mom.”

That did not go over well with mom.  She answered, “Do not believe everything you read. The Gadget is not the way to happiness.  Love is greater. The gadget addicts us and replaces healthy love and fears. The gadget can isolated us from others and waste our time, family life is chased away by the greed for the Gadget.”

You can not  always tell the enemy who sells hurtful gadgets from those  who protect you from them.  You can not tell until you know who hunts who.

The greedy Raccoon, below the sign, wanting things chases away Macho, the scaredy-cat, the fear of doing wrong, and Cuddles,the loving dog, who wants the best for others.

Rosy and Frank comment below, we will hear more from them.

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06 Post Six: Chapter 3 Gang Wars

In the daytime, parents and others help keep you and your children safe.  They can stop you from being hurt.  Safety and love is the goal of parents for their schools and neighborhood.  In the day time gadget sellers and gangsters are better regulated from violence.  George’s Dad, the mayor, passed a law stating the Gadget is not to be sold to children without parental permission.

Larry’s father fights back deep in the factory by telling his son Larry and his gang, Ragde, Charlotte, and Destiny, to wage gang wars.

By night they play for blood.  Hidden by the night and less eyes to see them, they and other predatory people join in or encourage gang wars by buying their gadgets.  The gangs are the pirates of the sea of stuff.  They steal stuff to buy the gadget and sell the gadget to unsuspecting buyers.  They hunt down the innocent and the weak to sell them The Gadget.

Gang members can’t choose to love or they would not be able to hunt and hurt.  They have to be tough and act out for revenge if anyone gets in their way. They learn to hate love and to love hate. They taunt each other and fight for their own territory to sell illegal gadgets and stuff.  There is no regulation for safety, and no retaliation but to fight.  They are Dragon’s delight.  To show off their toughness they fight, rumble, and hurt each other as they vie with the other gang to gain territory.

As I talk they are fighting in the last of the night’s darkness.  On Snob Hill, the hill we are on, kids are fighting Slob Hill kids, the hill opposite, over territory to sell The Gadget.  The sun is about to come up.

Wait, I see BJ, Larry’s little sister.  She is walking right in the middle of the fight.  Those Bullies will run right over her.  Oh no, here comes a bully now running right at her.  I have got to close my eyes; I can’t watch her get hurt.  No, wait, he is picking her up and running to the sidelines.  I am going to perch on the tree to listen in.

 

BJ, “How could you.  I came to get you.  You are fighting to sell gadgets aren’t you?”

Now there is a rare trait of humans.  Altruism, she is willing to risk getting hurt to help her cousin.

Cuz, “I am taking you to your Dad’s little Cuz.”

BJ, “I don’t want to.  I will just run back to Mom’s”

Cuz, “We will see, little Cuz.”

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07 POST Chapter 4 GM and Frank

Meanwhile, at Grandma Rosy and Grandpa Frank’s house, Grandma is watching what is happening from their window. She has almost an opposite personality from Frank. Her Ms Do is stronger than her Dragon. Her Love widget, Cuddles, her Thinking widget, Geru, and Patience and Energy widgets, Turtle and Rabbit, are bigger then the other widgets. Also her Fear widget, Macho, is fairly small. This will help her be more caring and thoughtful and able to act on Ms Do’s decisions.

Grandpa Frank’s widgets are almost the opposite. He has more patience than action and more perceptive ability then the average person. He is a Geek, that is a Nerd who is proud of it. He will see things more in a negative light and may not want to act on his decisions if he even makes any.

 

Grandma heard the commotion and looks into the situation. She suspects foul play by the city. Frank is skeptical. It is a not a sure concrete statement she made so he doubts it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

08 Post Chapter 5 Our Main Characters

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Right now in the final shadows of night the City’s Mr. Do hidden in the clouds watches from the fluffy clouds above and Dragon is in the distant dark thunderous clouds.  On Snob Hill sits two trees. BJ’s cousin is carrying her away from the fight.

The magic and beauty of Everywhere in the middle of Nowhere is that Everyone sees Everything a bit differently. Our story is set in motion by four very brave and admirable children above their tree house who are good friends and by their four anti-friends ,or ‘not so good friends’, the four that were in Larry’s Dad’s Factor Room. They also are in their own tree.

Everybody living Everywhere in the middle of Nowhere is like everybody everywhere, at least one of each.  Why does our story follow children and their pets?  Because children and their pets Everywhere in the middle of Nowhere do and see everything pretty much as children everywhere.  And they pick pets that accentuate and accommodate their personalities. Their pets are the prototypes of the Upper and Lower Natures of us all.

Let me introduce them.  The darkness of dawn is still covering the land as Larry runs with BJ.

09 Post Chapter 6 Edgar, Ragde, and Molly

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Edgar yells, “Hay!  Bring BJ to us.”

Edgar, the little scientist who scopes the land and stars with his telescope, is sitting in the south end of the largest tree house.  He lives near Bird Lake.  His pets Ant and Bee help his large Ant and Bee Widgets see it all. Ant and Bee weave needles and honey to build nests and libraries of what they see, hear, smell, taste, and feel.  Edgar was looking through his telescope.  Ant and Bee nudge it so he is looking at a billboard about the Gadget.  The Gadget is the new rave of the community and quite a controversy.  Some say it’s the cat’s meow.  Others say it is harmful.

Animals shy away from the harmful, or they get hurt and die, or eaten by predators.  So do people.  But some people don’t know they are dead, the living dead, and that they are part of the dying end of society, like the gangs. That is where Cuz is. Meanwhile, Edgar has spied BJ and her cousin trekking up the hill.

Edgar, “Hay!,” he yells to them,  “I said bring BJ to us.”……

Cuz, “No way!” 

Edgar, “You are that kid that sells stolen Gadgets.  That’s two strikes against you.  You steal and sell those addictive Gadgets in that deceitful advertisement.”

In the other tree is his neighbor and anti-friend RAGDE the mad scientist who is jealous of Edgar. He wants what he wants when he wants it with out regard to anyone anywhere. His pet and enlarged Widget, that helps him deceive others, is ‘Spidie,’ who wants to catch Ant and Bed in his web of deception, and at times succeeds. He is spinning a web in Ant and Bee’s way right now. Ragde loves the Gadget. He wants it when he wants it without regard to anyone anywhere. His pet and enlarged Widget that helps him deceive others is ‘Spidie.’ Ragde loves the Gadget in a bad way.

Ragde, “That is my father’s advertisement and he says the Gadget is good.”

Edgar, “Well, my father writes that the Gadget is dangerous.  Look how they fight over it.”

Molly insists, “Let BJ come here.”

BJ, “Let me go, I love Molly and Cuddles.”

Molly is a little girl after everyone’s heart.  She lives on Slob hill.  She is a moralist and tries to decipher good from bad.  To her everything is neutral and harmless unless a good or bad person uses it in a bad way.  She has taken it upon herself to decipher who is good or bad.  To do that she has to have a model of what people are all about, what their character or personalities are about.  She is sitting in the middle of the tree, which would be the base of the brain if a tree were a brain.  She likes to think of their tree, Edgar’s-Molly’s-Sue’s-George’s, as the Upper Nature or better part of the brain and the other’s tree, Ragde’s-Charlotte’s-Destiny’s-Larry’s, as a more primitive brain and Lower Nature.

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10 Post Chapter 7 Molly, Charlotte, Sue, and Destiny

Cuz, “No, you can’t have her I am going to give her to her Dad.”

Macho the scaredy-cat, who is afraid of most everything, is in the tree with Molly.

Cuddles, Molly’s other pet, is at the base of the tree.  Cuddles lights up Molly’s life with her never-ending love and enthusiasm.

Her shady friend and neighbor Charlotte is in the middle of the other tree, she too was in the factory room.  She and Raccoon, her selfish pet, wants a Gadget, NOW.   They want what they want and they want it NOW.  Raccoon hisses at Cuddles.

Charlotte, “Molly, you should get a gadget.  It would light up your life without Cuddles.”

Molly answers Charolette, “Raccoon is just too lazy to light up your life, and too aggressive to leave Cuddles alone.  And you and Cuz should leave BJ alone.”

Sue interjects, “It would be cruel to turn her over to her dad’s.  She lives with her mom and wants to stay there.”

Sue, that’s my pet and I am her’s.  She is right below me coming up. We live in Pleasant Valley.  Very much like me she wants to see it all and guide the others, create maps, so they don’t get lost or hurt.  She likes to map out how others think, or believe.  I help her as I can fly around and snoop. I am her main widget, Geru.  Who is going to think a bird can spy? I am going to fly over to BJ’s cousin and bomb dive his pocket where his gadget is.

Sue, “You would hurt her by taking her to her dad’s just so he will give you more stolen Gadgets to sell?”

Cuz, “I’ll give you a gadget just to keep you quiet and not tell her mom that I took her to her dad’s and Larry’s House.”

Sue, “No, that would be betrayal to BJ.  She is our friend.”

Sue’s neighbors is Destiny and her pet is Crow.  Yes, you guessed it, they were in the factory room and want what they want and they want it NOW.   I and Crow with our pets sit on the top of our respective trees.  Destiny and her gang, in or near their tree, want Sue and I to talk George into going and buying a Gadget. But Sue’s mom says too much of the Gadget hurts people’s brain and I tend to believe her.

Destiny: She laughs, “You are wasting your time and loyalty. We will win, we have Larry’s Dad on our side. You don’t have a ghost of a chance of getting BJ.”

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11 Post Ten : Chapter 8 The Gadget Snatched

Crow flies and snatches the Gadget from the cousin’s pocket and dangles it in front of George’s eyes.  George likes to do things but often forgets to think about it first.

George, who lives next to the trees, is the owner of Turtle and Rabbit. George snatches the Gadget and turns it on.  Its varying lights glow in the last of the night’s darkness.  Ant and Bee fly over to look at it.  They land smack in the middle of Spiedie’s web.  Macho and Cuddles are mesmerized by the glow allowing Raccoon to get closer.  They do not even notice his approach.  I fly towards George to hit the off switch.  Crow stops me in mid-air with an upper cut to my beak and grabs the gadget dangling it in front of the kids.

Rabbit tries to jumps up and cut off the switch.  The aggressive Coyote corners Rabbit who can’t move.

Crow caws, “Turn it back on, and hurry.”

George looks around at his pet rabbit, and at his friends’ pets.  They were all immobilized and groggy from the light of the Gadget.  That is addiction.  If they spend all their time on the gadget their brains would stop seeing BJ’s plight.

George declares, “How can we sit and stare at the Gadget while BJ is being dragged off.  Give her to us now!”

Larry, (Coyote’s pet, BJ’s brother, and George’s neighbor), lurches forward, “No I am giving her to my father so he will give us a Gadget for stopping her from interfering with the gangs.”

BJ cried out, “He can’t make me stay.  I’ll run home to Mom.”

Macho began to get excited and scared.

Larry torts back, “Don’t be a fool, Dad is more powerful than mom.  Only by his grace do you get to live with her.  If you do not obey he will take you from her and that will hurt mom.”

“Then he is a tyrant,” she yelled back.

Macho fear and  energetic Rabbit began to get scared and excited.  This began an escalating number of events.  Things were about to get really out of hand. Remember widgets, the little creatures in our heads? They are in a dead lock. The Lower Nature and Upper Nature widgets are in a stale mate. This is about to change.

12 Post Chapter 9 Review of The Widgets

A Quick Review: Well, as you remember widgets are the replicas of the animals. The Widgets Ant and Bee like to observe and listen, Macho looks for danger and Cuddles loves, Geru like to fly above and see the bigger picture of the how and why of things, Turtle and Rabbit like to do things, one slowly and the other faster.  We call these widgets our Upper Nature, the part of human nature that likes to do good for others.  Mr. Do listens to them and tries to operate the body, Myself, by influencing the other widgets.

The Lower Nature is the part of human nature that can be selfish or fierce.  Spidie likes to lie and deceive others to get his way, Raccoon likes to scare Macho, stop Cuddles’s love, and blame others for his own doing. Crow thinks everything is mystical or only happens by luck, and Coyote can be a bully.  Dragon listens to them and tries to operate the body if he and his widgets can get control over Mr. Do and his widgets.

The animals themselves are reflections of their pets, the kids.  Edgar’s pet is Ant and Bee, both him and his pets like to observe things.  Edgar’s Ant and Bee widgets are more powerful than his other widgets in his head.  Ragde and his pet Spidie like to fool Ant and Bee and catch them in his web so they can not observe but listen to his wishes instead.  Ragde’s Spidie widget is stronger than the other widgets in his head.  In a normal human Mr. Do and crew rules most of the time and Dragon and gang only if needed. In a defensive personality the Lower Nature often rules if the lower nature widgets can get control.

The key above reminds you which kids, pet animals, and widgets go together and what they look like.

Individual people have widgets in their heads but groups of people share or combine their strongest widgets to make up a set of group widgets.  You will see  as I continue with our story.  The group widgets are in the two trees.  Mr. Do keeps Dragon from taking over Edgar, Molly, Sue and George.

But all this is about to change.

 

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13 Post Chapter 10 Kids Take Off

 

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As BJ yelled back to her brother Larry that their father could be a tyrant, Molly’s Macho fear widget and George’s energetic Rabbit widget started to jump up and down with fear and energy.  Rabbit joined hands with Macho and they began to twirl causing a whirlwind.

They spun around so fast that the other ghostly widgets began to fly off.  Without his widgets Mr. Do was blind, had no feelings, was confused, and helpless.  He fell off the tree.  Dragon and the predatory widgets jumped in the main tree to rule and tell both the gangs what to do.

BJ began to cry as Larry demanded right now that she will go with him or he would pull her away.  Larry’s gang  approached the members of George’s gang to stop them from helping BJ.  They had anger and fighting on their minds.  Everyone was about to brawl and fight to the end.  What a useless activity.  Humans can waste so much time and effort on useless activities and do a lot of damage to themselves. I, and my widget self, and Sue yelled “STOP!”

Sue , “Lets go by the good book and settle this intelligently.  It says to get better advice.  Lets go ask our parents what to do.”

“Cuddles,” I yelled, “calm Macho by licking him. Turtle, grab Rabbit’s tail and slow him down.  Now push away Dragon and crew and get yourselves together.  That’s better.”

With that Mr. Do was back. It is amazing how easily a little bit of wisdom can help to calm all down so they can think better and put Mr. Do back in control, or I should say, all of us work as a team.  If only we could get Larry’s gang and widgets to be part of our team and not bully. We would be dynamite.

George calmly placed a hand on Larry separating him for BJ.  “We will all fight for BJ by asking our parents to intervene!”

All us Upper Nature pets rushed over to the bicycles near by.  Our kids got the hint, snatched BJ, and we were soon on our way to check with their parents what we could do to help her.  The other kids grabbed their bicycle and were in hot pursuit.

Cuz headed the other direction to the Grandparents to get advice on how to get BJ back to return her to her fathers.

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14 Post Chapter 11 Cuz’s Call to Adventure

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On his way to see Grandma Rosy, he sees the girl of his dreams. To Him she is intelligent and beautiful. He finds a rose-tree near by and picked one for her. He asks her for a date. She refuses him.

Lucy:  “I was near by when you saved BJ. That tells me you have a heart. I do not want to date you because you do not always allow your heart to guide you. You want to take BJ to her Father knowing he is rough on her.”

Cuz: “But she needs to be tough or she can not survive in this world. She needs to love hate and hate love. Then she can survive.”

Lucy: “You need to rethink your philosophy. I can not live with it. I love ‘love’ and hate ‘hate’. Our friendship would not last with your attitude.”

Cuz: “But I am happy with fighting, I love the adrenaline. And I get my joy out of the gadget. You should accept that.”

Lucy: “I can’t be with someone who puts the Gadget before Love. You need to grow up. You have a good heart. Let it shine.”

She left as he scratched his head. He watched her disappear and headed on to Grandma to get help getting BJ back to give to her dad and advice on how to win over Lucy.

15 Post Chapter 12 GM’s Lessons

CLICKING ON THE PICTURES CAN ENLARGE THEM. THE BROWSER BACK ARROW WILL BRING YOU BACK.

Cuz says, “I want to get BJ back to return BJ to her dad.”

But GM knows that is not a good idea.

GM answers, “She is happy with her mother and gets love there. Her father is too busy and hard on such a small child.”

Cuz blurs out, “But Dad made me tough by being hard on me.”

GM answers, “But a hard childhood weakens a person and does not make them ready for life. A hard childhood puts people in their Lower Nature, their survival mode, a primitive part of  the brain, it does not think or see the good in things. It is depressive over all.”

Cuz answers, “But being tough and fighting can be fun. The adrenaline is exciting.”

She explains, “Adrenaline is addictive and addictions take away empathy. Lack of empathy stops us from thinking about the logic of emotion which helps us understand people. And if we do not understand people we are handicapped. Net working with people in their Upper Nature is the source of all the great art, literature, and science in history. It is the fountain of life saving creativity. The Lower Nature is about death and failure.”

Cuz laughs and says, “But I can party hardy and not fear or worry about anything. I don’t need to be creative.”

She goes on to say, “Lack of fear and love leaves a person impulsive and naive about people, psychopathic or impulsive without a conscience. They do what they want, when they want, without taking others feelings in account. Self-centered, they do not understand others. Charming by saying what others want to hear, only guessing what others feel they pour on the sugar. Unsuspecting and naive victims will fall for it for a while. But over time they too see the person is self-centered and will avoid them.”

Cuz pauses and thinks a moment and slowly says, “So that is why Lucky would not go out with me. She thinks I am only charming her, that I am not sincere. But I am sincere, I fight hard to get ahead and earn a living. I could protect her.”

GM explains more saying, “You are helping the City to act psychopathic. Cities are made up of people, are a conglomeration of them all, and over time can act in their Lower Natures, and become a psychopathic city, if  there is not enough people who care to return the city to the Upper Nature. Women do not want to have to raise children in a crime city. You are not tough, it’s a war out there, an economic war, and you are a solder, a victim of Human Trafficking,”

Cuz mutters, “Then Lucy was not interested in me because she seen I was involved in a psychopathic endeavor with the gangs who ignore how she and others feel about gangs and the gadget. Maybe Larry’s dad is behind it all.”

It was a new concept to him, he had to maul it over in his mind to really understand. But Cuz has always felt being tough was the only way of life.

He wanted  to know to know how gangs hurt the city and what he could do to help the kids, the little hero’s, in their search for answers of what to do with BJ. How, he thought, how could he help if he did not understand it.

“The kids are going to all their parent for advice,” he lured out, “and they were first headed for the TV station. How can that help or hurt?”.

GM thought for a second and then said, “The TV station is where Edgar’s and Ragde’s dads work so they could help the people in the city see the need for Upper Nature Widgets in their decision-making and choice of what to buy. Or the TV media men could teach people to buy indiscriminately, to give Larry’s dad a profit. The city can then lean even further towards the functional or dysfunctional. They can make or break businesses.”

“And”, asked Cuz, “How can Molly’s or Charlotte’s parents help or hurt?”

People in the city”, she explains, “need counseling to understand how to live in a city and still build a better city personality. If Larry’s dad intimidates everyone the city becomes more psychopathic and Larry’s dad rules their thoughts and actions for his own profits. He offers gadgets to entertain and addict them. People need to decide to be productive not addicted. Many people in Dives, like Charlotte’s parents own, get addicted.”

“What about Sue’s parent’s Church,” spouts Cuz, “versus Destiny’s arcade and novelty shop?”

GM gets a serious look and says, “People and cities need the Upper Nature to be strong to keep the Lower Nature in check. And the Upper Nature uses Cuddles (Love), as a guide. But love has to consult with Geru (common sense and beliefs that work), to check and balance each other so one is aware where love will help and not be destroyed and not just depend on luck or what happens to come along.”

“What about me and Lucy,” asked Cuz, “and the kids helping BJ get back with her mother?”

She goes on to say, “Business that encourage people to be addicted discourage empathy and love, making relationships harder. Relationships,” she explains, “need to be aware of the each others widgets, emotions and thoughts. Lucy said it could not work with you, you did not show her you have beliefs that help. Churches help people with relationships, getting their Upper Natures in balance. If the preacher is afraid to challenge the city politics, to open up our minds to help the kids then the whole city is intimidated.”

“And,” asks Cuz, “how does that affect doing things and buying things?”

GM summaries it all up, “If the city can’t have a healthy Upper Nature then people in the city begin to be intimidated. Without love and intelligence in their daily lives they will buy indiscriminately, making Larry’s dad richer and their own spirits poorer.”

“How can I or the kids help?” asks Cuz.

“Be aware,” answers GM, “that they and the city need a Hero, but the hero can’t be faint of heart, he must have conviction, the courage in spite of fear to do what is right for the Upper Nature, truth, love, sound logic, and helpful action.”

Well, continues GM, “The Arcadia is a place to have fun and fantasy. It is not a vital way to change life style. It depends on luck and blind belief, more blind belief than religions. They do not teach better living. If they fail at the TV station, Counseling and Dive, Church and Arcade, then all that is left is City Hall. But City Hall can be intimidated also.”

She continues, “Fantasy is fun, but unless it has messages to help us to use our Upper Natures it is there only for empty entertainment and if it is the only source of pleasure it becomes an addiction limiting open-mindedness and the Lower Nature again has the upper hand. We need to get pleasure from doing the right and productive things that help everyone. This is where Government comes in.”

“What do you mean,” ask Cuz, “how can Government help?”

GM explains, “It’s all about power, there is no ceiling to greed, it has to be limited by the reality of the situation. People need to limit the ability of Larry’s Dad to sell and addict their children to gadgets. The government helps inform people of the dangers of gadgets so people can make intelligent decision on their use, and limits illegal activities to addict children.” 

To continue she went on to say, “Free Will is only found in the UN. Free Will needs truth, hopeful feelings, sound thinking, and productive actions. The LN is there to help survival, not to be the main focus. It can’t see, feel, think, or act in everyone’s best interest. It is survival of the group not of any particular individual. The city should not revolve around a few but around everyone to offer resources, freedom, and equal opportunity. Government helps this happen.”

So”, she says, “A hero has to command his UN and use LN to augment the UN only when needed for survival of self and the group. LN should defend Truth, Love, Wisdom, and Right Action. You said the Kids were going to their parents work, help them, help them get BJ back to her mother who has many lessons to teach her to be loving and wise. A hero must be all that first, to be able to teach others. Go Cuz, my child, and think deeply about these things.”

“That sounds scary to go against Larry’s Dad,” puzzles Cuz.

GM adds, “Don’t be a victim. Be a Hero.”

“How, Grandma, How?” he inquires.

“First,” she explains, “you must seek the truth so you can see reality, second control your fears by seeking Empathy, Love for BJ and for gaining Lucy as a friend can help control your fears,” replies GM as he begins to leave, “Thirdly, believe in the good of all mankind and plan to do what helps you and others,” she continues as he goes out the door, “and fourthly follow through and do what works, as you grow up you will find your way and not let your Lower Nature control unless needed to save life.”

As he left she yelled, “Balance your widgets, and let the Upper Nature be in charge.”

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16 Post Chapter 13 Cuz Leaves GM’s

 

Cuz left, he did not know what to do, he wanted to do what was right but he was afraid of Larry’s dad. He loved the fight and high it gave him. But alas, he loved Lucy too and wanted a family of his own. It was not easy to grow up and in such a fast way. He went to the hill and seen the kids on their bikes going into the TV station.  

“Could it be,” he thought, “that my childhood is biasing me. I was not always told the truth so I didn’t know how to view life, I was afraid of my dad and my parents did not always show their love, the only belief system I was taught was to do to others before they do to me, and Dad was addicted to substances.”

He turned and yelled to the sky, “Consciousness, tell me what to do!”

Consciousness appeared in the sky riding on Cuz’s Myself in the form of a horse.

Mr Do, Consciousness whined, “I don’t know what to do as long as you are like this horse that does not listen to me. I am weak because you are all about fun and destruction. Dragon and crew pin you down, even your own Macho fear and energetic Rabbit helps them. Until we strengthen all the other Upper Nature widgets, calm Macho, and redirect Rabbit we are unable to fight Dragons.”

“Maybe GM is right,” thought Cuz, “I just don’t know.  Perhaps I have not grown up. Perhaps I do not know how others feel. After all I failed to win over Lucy. OK Grandma, I am going to each of the parents of the kids, I will follow behind them and see what they say so I know what to do.

 

Ant spoke up and said, “Gather as much information as you can.”

“Bee interjected with, “I’ll look for patterns, then we can tell the other widgets what is going on so they can judge emotions and plan what Rabbit should be doing. Mean while, be weary of what Spiedie says or you will be fooled by Dragon and crew.”

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17 Post Chapter 14 KIDS Seeking Help With Media

 

Down the hill we barreled and south we flew to Edgar’s father’s place of work, the TV and newspaper office.  We filed in at record speed with Larry and gang behind us.

They went into the TV room where Edgar’s father sat.  If you used your imagination you could see his number one widget was Ant.  Edgar blurred out the story to his father behind the desk and asked if he could write a story about BJ’s dilemma.

His father, with a very sad and pensive face, nods no.  “I can not do that as I would lose my job.  Larry’s dad is our biggest customer and the TV and advertisement business would fail without his business.”

Larry behind him smirks as does Ragde’s father sitting behind the other desk.

“Did you like my advertisement for the Gadget?” Ragde’s father proudly muttered.  With imagination you could see his main widget was Spidie.

Molly looked him square in the face and retorted, “If you were to take off the cobwebs hiding the rest of the billboard you would see kids in the background all lonely and rejected by their addiction to the Gadget.”

Undeterred by his words they spun off to town where Molly’s mom was a counselor. Surely she would give them more hope.

Molly’s mom’s main widget was a loving Cuddles.  They barged into her agency and into her office where she was puzzling over some papers.

“Mom,” Molly sputtered out, “can you help BJ go home to her mother’s and not be taken to her fathers? She would only be punished for not letting her cousin fight over territory to sell stolen Gadgets?”

“I would if I could,” she quietly replied as if she were tied up to her chair.  “But the police will not do anything to help us.  He has custody and he will just go pick her up at her mother’s.  If I take her I would be charged with kidnapping.”

The kids thanked her and filed out to the bikes. Larry, who was again right behind them again smirked, “Told you so.  People can only act on the feelings my dad allows.”

Cuz had made it to the TV station and learned what the kids had. That Spiedie ruled, the truth would not get out, the truth that over indulging in the Gadget was hurting kids and they were loosing their empathy for others.

As he was about the leave Edgar’s father said, “Seek the truth, look around and decide for yourself if you can tell the truth to others without endangering yourself. It can be scary.”

As he left the building and headed out after the kids and BJ he felt empowered to tell the truth. He looked in the sky and his Ant And Bee widgets had grown along with Mr. Do his conscience. He gazed into the sky and he could see that Spiedie, Dragon and Macho fear had shrunk a little and Ant, Bee, and Mr Do had grown a bit. And Myself, the horse had gotten one leg free.