#671441 - 24/12/05 09:03 PM
Too much of a good thing?
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Gromit's Humble Squire
Registered: 02/02/05
Loc: Brisbane, Australia
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Was just having a little ponder this morning- can one get too much of a 'good' thing? And how would you know it was a genuinely good thing if you weren't sure?
And for a little twist.. can two get too much of a good thing? Second question applies here too.
Comments appreciated. Happy holidays all 
PS. It's not all airy fairy, I assure you. Bit more of an in-depth a couple of posts down.
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#671442 - 24/12/05 10:01 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Ry]
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HOP Mad Doctor
Registered: 28/05/01
Loc: San Francisco, CA, USA
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Too much of a good thing is... WONDERFUL! 
_________________________
-Mike )'(
Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella
"A buckuht 'n a hooze!" -Valura
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#671443 - 24/12/05 10:50 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing? *DELETED* *DELETED* *DELETED*
[Re: Doc Lightning]
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Gromit's Humble Squire
Registered: 02/02/05
Loc: Brisbane, Australia
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#671444 - 25/12/05 01:38 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Ry]
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Pooh-Bah
Registered: 16/05/05
Loc: York University
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Yes you can have too much of a good thing... like if you were drowning in melted chocolate. Too much chocolate = Badness. How would you know if it was "Genuinely" good? What do you mean? Good is Good. You can't have something that's "fake" good because that would be bad, or at best mediocre. And what do you mean by "Two" having too much of a good thing? Do you mean like a boyfriend and girlfriend living together, then deciding they're sick of each other after a month? 
_________________________
After much consideration, I find that the view is worth the asphyxiation.
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I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
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#671445 - 25/12/05 06:10 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Sethis]
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Gromit's Humble Squire
Registered: 02/02/05
Loc: Brisbane, Australia
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Well, might sound a bit blasphemous, but chocolate's not really an unreservedly 'good' thing. Hence people referring to it occasionally as their 'only sin'..
Not to mention:
http://panicdisorder.about.com/cs/shfitness/a/chocolate.htm
http://www.thirdage.com/news/archive/980129-05.html
Both of which articles I completely agree with, on the empirical grounds that it does affect me that way, as much as I love it.
So when I refer to a 'good' thing- drugs, alcohol etc. They might appeal to some, but I don't want to address the decadent.
Now, how about things which are good- but not with obvious drawbacks. Vegetables for example. Assuming you love your veggies, which I do. Can you have too much vegetables in your diet? I suppose one could have too much vegetables, full stop- a person's stomach has only so much in terms of physical capacity.
What about time to do what you want? Could a person have too much time to do what they want? Or seeing the world- could having a free pass to see all the countries you ever want to see, and the means to afford it without compromising your lifestyle, be a bad thing?
And on the twist- what about friendship? Can two people have too much of a friendship? Can two people have too much affection for each other?
Branching it out- suppose you thought that yes, it is somehow bad, would you deliberately try to care for the other person less so it hurts less when you're apart, or conversely would care for the person more because you know you'll get it back tenfold? And who'd be right if both parties approached it differently?
And a twist to the twist, if a party of two have a 'good' thing, whatever their identified 'good' thing (vegetables, love, financial freedom etc.) might be, and this time both of you were on exactly the same page and were enjoying it as much as you could, won't that serve to further reinforce your beliefs that the good thing actually was a good thing? So much so that both could accidentally neglect the 'bad' points you maybe would have noticed if it was just a single mind evaluating it?
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#671446 - 25/12/05 06:53 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Ry]
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veteran
Registered: 29/07/05
Loc: lost
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Balance, honey, always about balance. Then next to balance, I find lately I am considering proportion, scale, size....
But why label? Good can become bad, and visa versa, and people will all perceive it differently regardless, when you are talking small scale good and bad at least ... ( like the chocolate versus murder scale . Some debate over chocolate, less over whether murder is bad)
Yes, people reinforce each others perceptions. But is that a bad thing? ;-)
I guess, I would want to know are you happy brushing over the
" bad things" and emphasising the good( could be described just as a posative attitude?) or are they really things that deserve your attention and will grow big enough to bite your ass?( Then it could be a dangerous kind of ignorance)
Be well, love to you
~A
_________________________
"God *was* my co-pilot, but then we crashed, and I had to eat him..."
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#671447 - 26/12/05 06:16 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: BansheeCat]
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HOP Mad Doctor
Registered: 28/05/01
Loc: San Francisco, CA, USA
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More philosophically, the very concept of "too much of a good thing" implies that "good" and "bad" do not exist as intrinsic qualities of any one thing.
Water is necessary and is essential for life. Water is a good thing. Unless you have too much of it and drown. Or have so much pumped into your veins that you drop your sodium and sieze and die.
So water is actually a neutral agent and it's "goodness" and "badness" is based on its context. And that is probably true for all examples.
_________________________
-Mike )'(
Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella
"A buckuht 'n a hooze!" -Valura
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#671448 - 26/12/05 07:40 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Ry]
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Stargazer
Registered: 20/09/03
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 ...had to say that because actually I felt bad in opposing you on so many subjects, doc...  Yes you can have "too much" of a "good thing".. the dose is making the poison here... in water, choclat, money (although for some it's perceived to be evil anyways) in time, sex, drugs, rock'n'roll (or psytrance), of friends, sports, spinning (???), thinking, meditation, yoga, veggies... etc... It's the balance (!) that everyone has to find for her/himself individually... general statements are invalid as some subjects respond to one medicine and another has a totally contrary reaction... some sleep on coffe and get hyper on valium for example... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------       
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#671450 - 27/12/05 02:23 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Ry]
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the floor is a sea of tigers...
Registered: 31/08/05
Loc: Brisvegas
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peace on earth would only happen if we nuked the whole human race out of existance. but then i'm generally pessimistic about the human race as a whole (or at least about those who seem to be in power at the moment).
_________________________
"My body is a well tuned machine... It just needs a competent driver." - ?
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#671451 - 27/12/05 02:53 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: The Misguided Oracle]
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Pooh-Bah
Registered: 16/05/05
Loc: York University
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Depends what you mean by "Peace on Earth".
If you mean "Peace between countries" then I think that is entirely possible. And SHOULD happen.
If you mean "Peace between every individual" then I think you're living in a pipe dream... that's never going to happen.
And you can't have too much peace. Ever.
_________________________
After much consideration, I find that the view is worth the asphyxiation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
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#671452 - 27/12/05 06:39 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: FireTom]
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HOP Mad Doctor
Registered: 28/05/01
Loc: San Francisco, CA, USA
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#671454 - 27/12/05 10:29 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: dream]
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Pooh-Bah
Registered: 16/05/05
Loc: York University
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Nonono dream, it's physical items that are most important!! Haven't you learnt anything? You money, car and house are the 3 main prizes of your life, and your life should revolve around getting more money, a faster car, and a bigger house (with loans of course)!! I laugh at your incoporeal dreams, while sitting atop a big pile of money with many beautiful ladies to rub oil into my tanned muscular shoulders. Yes, you can buy tans. And muscles. Where did I put my credit card? 
_________________________
After much consideration, I find that the view is worth the asphyxiation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
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#671455 - 27/12/05 01:16 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Sethis]
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Carpal \'Tunnel
Registered: 10/07/05
Loc: Preston
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I am a firm beleiver in 'too much of a good thing', I loved it when I didnt hear from my boyfriends for something like 3 days, then one of us would call each other and we would be on the phone to each other for hours until one of two things happend...
a: One of us ran out of credit.
b: One of our batterys died.
...both mid way through a conversation usually. Ah good tmes good times.
_________________________
Chief adviser to the Pharaoh, in one very snazzy mutli-coloured coat
'Time goes by so slowly for those who wait...' - Whatever Happend To Baby Madonna?
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#671456 - 27/12/05 01:23 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Igirisujin]
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Are you up for it??
Registered: 08/12/04
Loc: Auckland
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Brit_Joe 
_________________________
Are you up for it?
;)
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#671458 - 27/12/05 06:35 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Igirisujin]
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Stargazer
Registered: 20/09/03
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Written by: anonymous
At an airport I overheard a father and daughter in their last moments together. They had announced her plane's departure and standing near the door she said "Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Daddy."
They kissed good-bye and she left. He walked over toward the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see he wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by asking, "Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?" "Yes, I have. Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever goodbye? I asked. "I am old and she lives much too far away I have challenges ahead and the reality is, her next trip back will be for my funeral," he said.
"When you were saying good-bye I heard you say, "I wish you enough. " May I ask what that means?" He began to smile. "That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone." He paused for a moment and looking up as if trying to remember in detail, he smiled even more. "When we said 'I wish you enough', we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with enough good things to sustain them." He continued and then, turning toward me, he shared the following as if he were reciting it from memory: I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright. I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more. I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive. I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger. I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting. I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess. I wish you enough "! Hellos' to get you through the final "Good-bye". He then began to sob and walked away.
My friends and loved ones, I wish you ENOUGH!!!! They say, "It takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire lifetime to forget them."
_________________________
the best smiles are the ones you lead to 
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#671461 - 28/12/05 01:59 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: jo_rhymes]
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addict
Registered: 18/05/02
Loc: Netherlands
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Surely the "too" part of the too much finishes this argument? Otherwise it would be the just right amount of a good thing, which would be fine Will too much moderation in your life make you boring?
_________________________
Come forth and thou shalt win enternal happiness. but he came fifth so he won an electric toatser.
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#671463 - 28/12/05 04:27 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Sethis]
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enthusiast
Registered: 30/11/05
Loc: Oxford
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by definition, too much and it's no longer a good thing?
Therefore, no you can't.
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#671464 - 29/12/05 03:12 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: dream]
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Stargazer
Registered: 20/09/03
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Written by: dream
too much sex?! is that after a week solid when you drop dead due to dehydration?
find your own dose
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#671465 - 30/12/05 11:18 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Igirisujin]
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member
Registered: 31/07/03
Loc: Berlin, somewhere
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I think that Paracelsus said something like this:
"In nature everything is poison, it depends on the dose"
So, really: nothing is JUST good, I think. At least, I can have too much of ANYTHING. It just depends on how much (I THINK I can have too much sushi, it just never happened).
(And, for the "too much money", just look at the people that have too much of it, and decide)
_________________________
---
"Angels fly because they don't take themselves too seriously"
G.C. Chesterson
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#671466 - 30/12/05 01:38 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Aliosha]
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addict
Registered: 02/09/05
Loc: Oregon, USA
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Indeed.. too much of a good thing makes it a normal and oft mundane thing.. hence, no longer good. The value of something is usually dependant on it's rarity.
_________________________
Definition of poi- A Hawaiian food made from the tuber of the taro that is cooked, pounded to a paste, and fermented.
Ahnold discussing poi - "It is naht a toober!"
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#671467 - 01/01/06 07:16 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Suibom]
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Stargazer
Registered: 20/09/03
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mmmmmmh yes maybe, but a regular hug from friends, a love that never ends, a twinkle and a smile, a childs glance that cought my eye...
I guess that's something I couldn't get too much from
_________________________
the best smiles are the ones you lead to
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#671469 - 01/01/06 11:22 PM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: Ry]
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veteran
Registered: 29/07/05
Loc: lost
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sunsets, sunrises, swimming, water in general, buds blooming, laughter, kisses,icicles, frost patterns,stones, spinning fire, the sound of rain on the skylight, the moon, leaves falling... Things I never get too much of!They always manage to engage me. (And the list could easily go could go on.) Hmmn. Guess not much seems mundane today. I think usually I only consider things mundane , or get bored, when I am over tired, and need to reset my internal programming... There are lots of things/sensations I enjoy all the time in large quantities, and they still remain good! And though in general I must agree that value is placed on rare things, you can shift perspective. It is interesting to consider what we value and why, why one thing not another. I play with this conceptually in my jewellery designs a lot, juxtaposing alternative, mundane materials- old computer panels, leaves, watch parts, bubble wrap- with so called precious materials like gold and gems. Contrast is fun, and raises the question of what is treasure, what is trash? What if variety was valued more than rarity? Some times I crave mundane, absolutely crave it. I would so love to have more of it... 
_________________________
"God *was* my co-pilot, but then we crashed, and I had to eat him..."
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#671470 - 02/01/06 12:01 AM
Re: Too much of a good thing?
[Re: BansheeCat]
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addict
Registered: 02/09/05
Loc: Oregon, USA
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The examples given really don't hold up to the concept to me. There is a difference between plentiful and "too much".. the question is, can there be "too much" of a good thing. If you can honestly say that the things mentioned could be tolerated by you 24x7x365 till death.. then yes, I am entirely wrong.. but in reallity, that's just silly (but not out of context). And even on a less extreme scale, many of the things mentioned can easily be something that overexposure would lessen their effect.
As far as your jewelry, andrealee, it's not the parts, but the sum that makes the item unique and therefore potentially "good". Many people throw trash and scraps together, and are clever enough in the process to make something admired by society. However, the individual peices, on their own, would still be trash.
Mundane and exciting are ends of a spectrum of familiarity.
_________________________
Definition of poi- A Hawaiian food made from the tuber of the taro that is cooked, pounded to a paste, and fermented.
Ahnold discussing poi - "It is naht a toober!"
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