04/26/2012
Posted by thetickthatbitme in Reblogs.Tags: Letters from the Earth: Uncensored Writings (Perennial Classics), Literature, Mark Twain, microbes, nature
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Viral Pandas, a very interesting blog about the human-animal-internet connection, has a great post up today with an excerpt from Mark Twain’s “Letters from the Earth” concerning microbes and the story of Noah and the ark.
We’ve been considering the romanticised view of nature that is often portrayed online – dramatic skylines, beaming sunsets, perfectly sculpted silhouettes, and animals as well as humans placed majestically in the centre, airbrushed and beautified. Worms, bugs, and mites do not seem to exist often in this cyborg world; rarely acknowledged, spoken of, shared or liked.
We appreciate beauty, we understand.
But still, we were quite taken with this eloquent quote from Mark Twain’s ‘Letters from the Earth’; a poetic, beautifully written description of the very thing that usually makes us squirm.
Perhaps it still does, just a little, but we’ve taken it as inspiration for the opposite of our domesticated head – the ‘Wild Man’ (coming soon!).
Mark Twain
“Noah and his family were saved — if that could be called an advantage. I throw in the if for the reason that there has never been an intelligent person…
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THE TICK THAT BIT ME 
Reblogged this on food for health and happiness and commented:
i just read an incredible piece by mark twain called “letters from the earth”. “vial panda” first included this in their post called “a most disagreeable situation”. the, “the tick that bit me” reblogged it. it is so incredible and so hand in hand with something it seems we have all forgotten as we set out to “kill the bad guys”.
in his piece “letter from earth” mark twain writes beautifully about human microbiota. i am only humbly commenting on it. i would first like to provide you a quick definition of the human microbiota. wickpedia says:
“The human microbiome (or human microbiota) is the aggregate of microorganisms that reside on the surface and in deep layers of skin, in the saliva and oral mucosa, in the conjunctiva, and in the gastrointestinal tracts. They include bacteria, fungi, and archaea. Some of these organisms perform tasks that are useful for the human host. However, the majority have no known beneficial or harmful effect. Those that are expected to be present, and that under normal circumstances do not cause disease, but instead participate in maintaining health, are deemed members of the normal flora. Though widely known as “microflora”, this is, in technical terms, a misnomer, since the word root “flora” pertains to plants, and biota refers to the total collection of organisms in a particular ecosystem. Recently, the more appropriate term “microbiota” is applied, though its use has not eclipsed the entrenched use and recognition of “flora” with regard to bacteria and other microorganisms. Both terms are being used in different literature. Studies in 2009 questioned whether the decline in biota (including microfauna) as a result of human intervention might impede human health.”
a few thoughts of my own: we the human animal are made up of about 10 billion cells. that’s a lot of cells. now brace yourself as i provide another fact. when you read this please keep in mind that the following fact : in your body at this very moment you have aprox. 10 trillion microbes. they are in you on you and for the most part we have no idea what most them are up to. yes, some of them are pathogenic but we need this10 trillion strong microbe world in us. based on cell count we are more microbe than mammal. luckily the sum is greater than the parts. it is something to think about when you feel you must go on that killing spree. antibiotics can be lifesaving and i did have to give myself some very strong intramusclar rochephin shots as part of my lyme treatment. things were out of hand. my lungs were massively infected and it was becoming more and more difficult to breath. this post is not knocking life saving antibiotics that those of us with lyme and morgellos have had to do. it is just something to think about. many of those microbes are intimately a part of our immune system. the ones in our gut collectively weigh about 3 pounds (that’s a fact btw). i am sort of wondering how mark twain was so hip to all this. it’s pretty impressive. “the tick that bit me” is a very well written and informative blog and something worth checking out. not just for the lymies either. if you have morgellons it is worth your time to begin to understand lyme disease. we all have a whole lotta bugs in us but how in the world will we separate the good guys from the bad guys. we can’t. nor can antibiotics as they kill without discrimination. like said antibiotics can be life saving but at some point in our illness’s it is prudent to consider the good guys. not just your gut flora but the whole population and what they mean to us and at some point striking deals while seeking balance.
Thanks for reblogging!
anytime..i love your blog. you write so well and it is so informative. thank you for what you are doing.