What is a Quafaie?


Quafaie (pronounced: kwa FAY) are fantasy creatures that exist in the fantasy writing of Hugh Kemeny, and are created by him. They are primarily in Hugh Kemeny’s Black Phoenix short stories...

To learn more, read this post: What is a Quafaie?

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 18/19 Oct 2014



Fine words and an insinuating appearance are seldom associated with true virtue.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 20 Oct 2014



Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.
- Dalai Lama
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 21 Oct 2014

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Short Movie Comparison (Potential Spoilers)

Saw 2 action fantasy movies over the past 2 days both about ancient powerful relics found in ancient ruins. And how the protagonists have to prevent the bad guy from using the relic for evil and destruction. Of course the protagonists win, and (spoilers below)
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the relic is placed in storage by the government (to never be seen again?).
(potentially more spoilers - names of the movies)
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The first movie I watched last night, came out in 1981 (set in 1936): Raiders of the Lost Ark, I watched it in preparation to eventually go see the Indiana Jones exhibit at the Telus World of Science - Edmonton.
The second movie I watched tonight, came out in 2014, and starts off set in 1988! though moves to 2014 quickly: Guardians of the Galaxy.

Just thought it was an interesting comparison. There are probably more movies out there with the same similarities, just haven't seen any others in a while.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Daily Inspiration

To know that you do not know is the best.
To pretend yo know when you do not know is a disease.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 16 Oct 2014





You will not be punished for your anger;
you will be punished by your anger.
- Buddha
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 17 Oct 2014

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Happiness is the absence of the striving for happiness.
- Chuang Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 15 Oct 2014

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Humility is the solid foundation of all the virtues.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 14 Oct 2014

Monday, October 13, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 26 Sept 2014


People are difficult to govern because they have too much knowledge.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 13 Oct 2014

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Indolence is a delightful but distressing state; we must be doing something to be happy.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 23 Sept 2014


Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.
- Buddha
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 24 Sept 2014


Nothing is softer or flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 25 Sept 2014

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Daily Inspirtation

With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink and my bended arm for a pillow - I have still joy in the midst of these things. Riches and honors acquired by unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 20/21 Sept 2014


It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.
- Buddha
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 22 Sept 2014


Without knowing the force of words, 
it is impossible to know men.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 11/12 Oct 2014

Friday, October 10, 2014

Daily Inspiration

The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 29 Aug 2014


Heaven's net is indeed vast. Though its meshes are wide, it misses nothing.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 19 Sept 2014


We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.
- Dalai Lama
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 10 Oct 2014

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent than the one derived from fear and punishment.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 28 Aug 2014


A family is a place where minds come in contact with one another. If these minds love one another, the home will be as beautiful as a flower garden. But if these minds get out of harmony with one another it is like a storm that plays havoc with the garden.
- Buddha
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 18 Sept 2014


True words are not beautiful.
Beautiful words are not true.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 9 Oct 2014

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Daily Inspiration

There is goodness as well as greatness in simplicity, not in wealth.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 27 Aug 2014


To be empty is to be full.
To be worn out is to be renewed.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 17 Sept 2014


Be a light unto yourself.
- Buddha
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 8 Oct 2014

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Although it is difficult to pinpoint the physical base or location of awareness, it is perhaps the most precious thing concealed within our brains. And it is something that the individual alone can feel and experience. Each of us cherishes it highly, yet it is private.
- Dalai Lama
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 26 Aug 2014


Man is born for uprightness.
If a man loses his uprightness, and yet lives, his escape from death is the effect of mere good fortune.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 16 Sept 2014


Truth is what the voice within tells you.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 7 Oct 2014

Monday, October 6, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.
- Buddha
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 25 Aug 2014


You must not lose faith in humanity.
Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 15 Sept 2014


Zen teaches nothing.
Whatever teachings there are in Zen, they come out of one's own mind. We teach ourselves; Zen merely points the way.
- D.T. Suzuki
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 6 Oct 2014

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Honest differences are often a healthy sign of progress.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 27/28 Sept 2014


Not engaging in ignorance is wisdom.
- Bodhidharma
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Mon 29 Sept 2014


To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Tue 30 Sept 2014

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Daily Inspiration

The mind's capacity is limitless, and its manifestations are inexhaustible. Seeing forms with your eyes, hearing sounds with your ears, smelling odors with your nose, tasting flavors with your tongue, every movement or state is all your mind.
- Bodhidharma
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 23/24 Aug 2014


Great men are they who see that spiritual is stronger than any material force, that thoughts rule the world.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 13/14 Sept 2014


The habit of giving only enhances the desire to give.
- Walt Whitman
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Sat/Sun 4/5 Oct 2014

Friday, October 3, 2014

Daily Inspiration

So the most difficult thing is always to keep your beginner's mind. There is no need to have a deep understanding of Zen. Even though you read much Zen literature, you must read each sentence with a fresh mind. You should not say, "I know what Zen is," or "I have attained enlightenment." This is also the real secret of the arts: always be a beginner.
- Shunryu Suzuki
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 22 Aug 2014


Forget injuries, never forget kindness.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 12 Sept 2014


If you use your mind to study reality, you don't understand either your mind or reality. If you study reality without using your mind, you'll understand both.... The mind and the world are opposites, and vision arises where they meet. When your mind doesn't stir inside, the world doesn't arise outside. When the world and the mind are both transparent, this is true vision. And such understanding is true understanding.
- Bohidharma
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Fri 3 Oct 2014

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Daily Inspiration

Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 21 Aug 2014


It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
- Henry David Thoreau
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 11 Sept 2014


Do not think you will necessarily be aware of your own enlightenment.
- Dogen
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Thu 2 Oct 2014

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Daily Inspiration

To be able to practice five things everywhere under heaven constitutes perfect virtue.... (They are) gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.
- Confucius
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 20 Aug 2014


If you cannot find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?
- Dogen Zenji
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 10 Sept 2014



To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.
- Lao Tzu
Zen, 2014 day-at-a-time calendar; Wed 1 Oct 2014