Later I'm thinking, "not that I have anything against oatmeal," when I
remember an oatmeal definition of heaven, so let me explain:
Oatmeal hell: you are floating in oatmeal. Somehow you can breath,
but there's nothing to see, nothing to experience, no pain, no pleasure,
no contact with anyone or anything else, forever.
Oatmeal heaven: a friend described breakfast on a Zen retreat. After
having got up at 4 in the morning and meditated for N hours, they have
breakfast: oatmeal with a couple raisins in a wooden bowl. When they
finish the oatmeal, they pour tea into the bowl and swish it around to
rinse the bowl, then drink the tea. My friend said this was
just about the best meal he had ever had.
--Steve
-- sw@tiac.net Steve Witham web page under reconsideration "In many fairy tales the intrepid hero slays dragons, battles giants and monsters, witches and sorcerers. Eventually the intelligent child begins to wonder what these heroes are out to prove." --Bruno Bettelheim