January Stray Thoughts

Is it finally here, the end of this loong January 2026? Fingers crossed, another 31 days won’t be slipped in before February begins.

With all that is happening in the world right now, I turned my attention to reading Carl Jung’s thoughts when he was nearing the end of his life. He died at Kusnacht in Zurich, Switzerland at the age of 85 yo which is only a few years beyond my own age today. While not a strict Jungian, (not unlike the stance of ‘spiritual but not religious’) his thinking and writing has had an important impact on my own life and, if you’ve been reading some of my earlier posts, I’ve spoken of his relevance to those in The Afternoon of their lives. This may be You which I hope is so because you are the ones I write to/for.

Carl Jung had a pessimistic view of the future of Western civilization. He lived through two world wars, saw the development and use of the atomic bomb and witnessed the rise of totalitarianism in Europe and Asia. However, it was not only the external events ongoing but equally important was his psychological diagnosis of modern men and women. His belief was that there are a vanishingly small number of people who possess the wisdom, strength, and courage needed to keep us safe in an age where we possess technologies capable of global destruction and mass enslavement.

From “The Collected Works” he wrote:

“Is everything right with the human mind?. . .The benevolent god of science that had done such marvellous things for the benefit of man had uncovered his dark face. He produced the most diabolical war machinery, including the abomination of poison gases, and human reason got more and more obscured by strange and absurd ideas.”

Carl Jung, Collected Works Volume 18

His greatest fear was that psychologically unstable individuals would rise to power in nuclear armed nations (and how many are there in 2026?), triggering a third world war.

“. . .the unleashing of atomic energy…has given the human race the power to annihilate itself completely. The situation is about the same as if a small boy of six had been given a bag of dynamite for a birthday present…How can we save the child from the dynamite which no one can take away from him?”

Carl Jung, Epilogue to “Essays on Contemporary Events”

So this what has been in the very front of my mind in January. I don’t have any answers apart from reminding myself over and over again the truism stated by the cartoonist Walt Kelly through the mouth of his character Pogo, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” I am far from a pessimist but as I’ve said before, I feel certain we all have the capacity for both good and evil, all of us.

“Watch your thoughts, they become words;
watch your words, they become actions;
watch your actions, they become habits;
watch your habits, they become character;
watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

I don’t know who originally wrote this but it has been around for decades. I believe it to be true.

I conclude this first stray thought with a hardly astute observation that some of the Beautiful Strangers and Dear Friends who subscribe or follow do not like to read and comment on topics such as this. I understand. I also know that it’s impossible to keep the unpleasantness/inconvenient truths of the world and us out of our minds.

And now, a few more stray thoughts which are benign.

It’s not even my birthday and I bought myself some surprises. The first is the J Crew 1988 roll neck sweater, men’s medium because I wanted a drapey look and the heavy cotton fabric is both luxe and sturdy. I’ve worn it a lot since it arrived with jeans, pile lined sweatpants on frigid days and regular trousers. Maybe we all return to our initial style esthetic. Who knows. Any ideas?

The next is a vintage Austrian loden coat circa maybe 1960. It’s quite beautiful and in perfect condition. It even has a detachable hood. With the current ongoing single digit and below temps, it’s not my first choice to wear outside but before this I wore it often and I know there will be better “normal” winter days ahead.

Next is a Wooj Design lamp “made by robots and people” in a small studio in Brooklyn. Who would have thought. My decor is more toward Scandi with some softened industrial pieces such as this lamp named Brut in a nod to the Brutalist style from the 1950’s which is in most public buildings and apartment housing in my beloved Netherland.

Finally (she said, sheepishly), I have a new Marimekko duvet cover. The colors and design elements are softer than the other more typical Marimekko I have and it will carry me through until warm spring weather arrives.

Maybe I should have put all of those things in a single paragraphs and hope it wouldn’t look like I went over board on self-indulgence. Ah, well, I did a dry January so there was no wine for me, not even a hot cider and brandy to keep the evening chill at bay. And I’m intending on a No Buy February. Just saying…

I’ve been cooking so many soups, stews and casseroles that I haven’t had much interest in restaurants. With all the kitchen activities, I’m reminded of how little one actually needs in the way of kitchen ware and gadgets. Fresh herbs (Aerogarden, mostly) and some good spices (Epices de Cru/Spice Trekkers in Montreal, thanks to Duchesse at Passage des Perles who knows about far more than pearls and fashion) are what elevates everything. But if you are in need of vegetable peelers, Kuhn Richon Swiss ones are the best… you just have to buy once and they’ll keep going on and on. I can also recommend Oxo kitchen tools which last forever. Too bad it took me years to learn the lesson of spending more money on seemingly inconsequential gadgets.

“The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny” is more than three-quarters of the way finished. When it’s over, the characters will remain with me and I’ll continue to mull over the commonalities between their life events and my own. By chance, do you have any recommendations for the next reading adventure?

On the viewing scene, I’m still very much anticipating each new weekly release of Apple’s “Tehran” and Prime’s “The Night Manager”. Nothing lasts forever so please add your favorites and I’ll happily check them out.

Mary Oliver will again have the last word. This is from “Winter Hours Prose, Prose Poems and and Poems”, copyright 1999, First Mariner Books and is entitled, fittingly enough in Part Four ‘Winter Hours’:

Let your light shine, Dear Reader.

(Showing off the Brut lamp)

PS I’m resending this out because a subscriber has let me know that the platform is not allowing her to comment because she is not a subscriber. I hope my fiddling has corrected this in the app because not being able to interact with you defeats the whole purpose.