I rarely go and look at my Yahoo.ca mail accounts however to-day I logged in and this promotion came shooting across the screen, Can you Beat Karma? Karma the Goat, trimmed out in purple, running through my screen certainly got my attention. As you will see if you follow the link there are a few weeks mapped out with good things to do, presumably so one can 'beat karma'. It's a promotion, it's commercial and it's a bit of fun too. And here is a bit more fun...
For anybody who has bumped into the TV series My Name is Earl you will know that Earl is on a mission to right wrongs after he discovered the concept of karma. A simplified version for sure however it does seem he understands that intention, in his case bad intention, leads to bad things happening.
Here's how Earl started on the upward path:
Earl (Jason Lee, "Almost Famous," "Chasing Amy") has taken one too many wrong turns on the highway of life. However, a twist of fate turns his life into a tailspin of life-renewing events. Earl wins a small lottery, and, after an epiphany, he is determined to transform his good fortune into a life-changing event as he sets out to right all the wrongs from his past.
Before Earl can begin his journey, his inevitable attraction to misfortune surfaces once again. Seconds after winning the lottery, he is hit by a car and while unconscious; the winning lottery ticket blows away.
While in the hospital, Earl watches "Last Call with Carson Daly" where Carson says that his success is a direct result of doing good things for other people. It is at that moment Earl discovers karma- and in hope of a better life, he sets out to correct every bad thing he's ever done starting with a grade school geek, Kenny (guest star, Gregg Binkley), who Earl used to pick on.
Earl's wrote a long list of bad things he has done in his life and in each episode Earl, somewhat assisted by his friends, deals with one of the wrongs by trying to make amends.
So karma is very much in the popular culture. Karma means action by the way, and the reason I was looking at my Yahoo account is directly related to encouraging a good friend in the Sangha to take an action. Specifically, since she is splitting up with her partner, to get her own email address since they obviously will not be sharing the same address, email or otherwise. Yahoo seemed to be a good option.
I wonder if one of the items on Earl's list is, 'read Joy's email'. Just a thought.
