Beyond the Mortal Coil

[ehowton]

Have you ever supposed that you may really be better off dead? Douglas Tibbets never thought so either, despite the fact his life was a wreck. But everything began to look better after he met Myra, an advanced psychic who awakened his own psychic abilities and slowly helped turn his life around—growing self-assurance, a promotion at work, and a new love interest, Shirley. Then came the telepathic assaults. Douglas and Shirley narrowly fend off the bizarre forays into their minds while seeking the unknown assailant. But when they at last, find the attacker, they are both murdered. And that's when their lives truly begin.

I've often wished I could novelize my philosophies on life, much as Ayn Rand did with her two flagship novels - to provide a vehicle in which to promote them. And while Beyond the Mortal Coil cannot be compared to a Randian masterpiece in any other way, it does deal with the nature of the human experience, and its manipulation. Mostly shit I've been saying in the annals of this blog for years - that planting even very tiny seeds of positive change and watering it with repetitious practice, can reap enormous self-confidence later. That practice being of course, "Fake it until you make it." By pretending to have the very characteristics you desire, you will soon have them for realz. Its like r/l larping.


I greatly enjoyed this book, more than I anticipated. There were too many similes in the three-chapter exposition for my liking, and the contrast between the antagonist's vocabulary and his milktoast shamefacedness was a little off-putting, but by chapter eight I'd forgotten all about it, and was entirely engrossed. Total read time: Approximately 8 hours.


Now I didn't know this, but you can purchase kindle e-books and save them to your Amazon Cloud e-reader and read them in your browser - without actually owning a kindle. Which I don't. This is how I read the last three chapters of the book, so I could post this the next day :)


Anyway, reading the epilogue got me to thinking about love again - and all the limitations we place on it. Too many limitations on who we're allowed to love, and who not. Love transcends all these artificial barriers we place on ourselves and others. Class and station and race have mostly gone away, but not other malum prohibitum taboos. I guess we all have a little Puritan in us. His will be done. Why I've heard a lady who wouldn't bat an eye at homosexuals announce that "25 years is my limit for age differences!" Really? What if the *perfect* mate were 26 years older, or younger. Think about that - the perfect mate fell outside your rigid limitations by a single year. What then? And if you give in for the sake of a year, what about 27 years? Would you give in for two? And we all know where this leads - back to Sodom and Gomorrah. And yet if something as easy as when we were born can be set aside, cannot other limiting factors as well? I've fallen in love with much older women, and I've fallen in love with much younger women - simply because of who they were and nothing else. Hell, I've even dreamed I might've fallen in love with a dude. Love simply, is. If I've learned anything this past year, its just that, that love is. It exists and there is nothing we can do to control it.

Go out today, and be excellent to each other.

And don't worry so much about what other people might think.


FOR A LIMITED TIME THIS E-BOOK IS ONLY $.99!



Not an accurate representation of ehowton reading.

Comments

[anakngtinapa.livejournal.com]

So much love for the last part of your entry. And you're looking fancy, sir.

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

Why thank you, ma'am. Entirely contrived, I assure you!

[jobu121.livejournal.com]

Ok, before I answer you. I wanted to start with the picture. Dude that is a great pic. May I ask what flavor is in the pipe and what is in the glass.

I did like the 80's flick - Better off Dead - sorry dating myself aren't I?
Lane Myer(John Cusak): "Sorry Johnny, I don't have a dime."
Johnny: "Didn't ask for a dime. Two dollars."
Lane Myer: "My little brother got his arm stuck in the microwave. So my mom had to take him to the hospital. My grandma dropped acid this morning, and she freaked out. She hijacked a busload of penguins. So it's sort of a family crisis. Bye!"
[slams the door shut]
"Wheres my two dollars!"
Sorry I totally digressed on your first sentence. HAHAHAHAHAHA

I like the "fake it until you make it" and yes let us all be excellent to each other.
Thanks for the link just downloaded the e-book.

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

Dude that is a great pic.
Thank you!

May I ask what flavor is in the pipe and what is in the glass.
"Dr. Watson" in the pipe, Franzia "Chillable Red" (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31298785@N03/5108530813/in/photostream/lightbox/) in the glass.

"Wheres my two dollars!"
TWO DOLLARS!

I like the "fake it until you make it"
Snowflakes falling on...something poetically depressing (http://ehowton.livejournal.com/47931.html)

and yes let us all be excellent to each other.
Party on, Garth.

Thanks for the link just downloaded the e-book.
Freaking SWEET!

[(Anonymous)]

I downloaded a sample of this onto my Kindle. Thanks for the heads up. I'm always looking for new reading material.

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

As my last post (http://ehowton.livejournal.com/420759.html) indicated, I haven't had an opportunity to read in about a year - but an 8-hour novel is good. Of course it held my interest. I could restart and finish Atlas Shrugged in under a week if I set my mind to it.

Always so much to do!

[(Anonymous)]

I get nervous is I don't have something to read. I love the Kindle as there are a lot of free books. Saves me a ton of money.

I still highly recommend Diana Gabaldon to your wife.

`galinda822

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

lol - I thought that was you. Was I right about The Chatham School Affair ? Was that you? I CANNOT REMEMBER IN MY OLD AGE!

[(Anonymous)]

Sorry, I just realized that I didn't "sign" my comment before.

Honestly I can't remember if I recommended it to you or not. I have read it and liked it (as I did all his books).

I'm the one that can't remember things here lately...talk about old age! LOL!!!!

`galinda822

[suzanne1945.livejournal.com]

I appreciate your candid review of "Beyond the Mortal Coil". Your picture is a great enhancement.

Isn't there a quote that "Love knows no boundaries"? Tried to find the origin of said quote, but was unsuccessful.

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

Why thank you. "Candid." Yes. How very diplomatic of you.

And I'm sure you're right about the quote. It would be my guess however, that its triteness would be woefully inadequate to encompass everything I'm trying to convey here. Its easy to believe "love knows no bounds" when you're a fair-haired virginal maiden envisioning a caucasian heterosexual male astride a white steed. In fact, I'm pretty sure that quote was designed for less attractive fair-haired virginal maidens in their anticipation of the same being true for them, and not necessarily hairy overweight Bolsheviks getting ready to wed a 9-year old Asian to secure land after pounding his buddy in the ass. "Love knows no bounds" is probably pretty meaningless at that point :/

[suzanne1945.livejournal.com]

Such pessimism! You must interpret the quote differently than I. Now why does that not surprise me.:)

[celtmanx.livejournal.com]

"Not an accurate representation of ehowton reading."

No, it's not. You are wearing pants.

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

Showoff!

[pcofwildthings.livejournal.com]

I appreciate your review. I am coveting your hard copy there. I downloaded the Kindle version for PC, but where I prefer reading is far from the computer screen. Perhaps your help will be enlisted to record the audiobook version (hint-hint)? :)

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

Hrm. My enormous ego, paired with your request and a goblet of wine and I'm thinking you're on to something!

[pcofwildthings.livejournal.com]

Yay! I am willing to test market the demo, even. I listen to people blather on all day. I'm sure that would be much more interesting than financial data (she says as she goes back to work, goblet of wine now empty...)

[michelle1963.livejournal.com]

Now, the two of you have given me something else to think about!!!

Okay, pcofwildthings, the hard copy version is now available here: https://www.createspace.com/3769438 or on Amazon. I don't know what the shipping is for the first place or if it's eligible for super saver shipping on Amazon. (Need to get my ducks in a row now that I'm back from Vegas.) Unfortunately, the hardcopy is not as reasonable as the 99 cent digital copy. It's $8.25. Create Space and Amazon both need their cut. Ahem.

[pcofwildthings.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I found it on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Mortal-Coil-William-Churchman/dp/1469902923/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328026149&sr=8-1

And it does qualify for super saver shipping on orders over $25!

[codekitten.livejournal.com]

ha! i love the picture...since you are suggesting that this is set up, maybe next time cross your legs at the knees to complete the look?

this book is already on my Kindle as "next to read"!

[ehowton.livejournal.com]

Crossed-legs, check.