Conversations with Calliope

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Getting back into the routine. Yesterday was taken up with financial arrangements and other tasks which kept me from my literary endeavors.
CALLIOPE: And today?
JOE: I couldn't face you until I had at least finished my column for this Saturday. I wrote it on Dealing with Stress and Its Discontents.
CALLIOPE: Vaguely reminiscent of Freud.
JOE: Very astute. I have never been a great fan of Freud but I found a couple provocative statements in the introduction to Civilization and Its Discontents which formed the basis for my column.
CALLIOPE: What, pray tell, were the statements?
JOE: One was that people would rather suffer than change. The other was that as long as there is culture people will be unhappy.
CALLIOPE: Rather pessimistic I'd say.
JOE: That was my first reaction as well. I went on to explain how much of our stress seems to arise from our unrealistic expectations about life.
CALLIOPE: That's it?
JOE: No. I suggested some alternative ways of viewing and handling our life circumstances.
CALLIOPE: That's better. I'm looking forward to reading it.
JOE: You will find it on my website on Saturday. Talk with you tomorrow.