confuse the lucid

Zsofia Forro: Hungarian, Romanian and French Tutor

2011-10-30T07:36:00.000-07:00

You know how people are always asking you where they can learn Hungarian, Romanian or French, how barely an hour passes without someone pestering you? Well now I can give you the solution!

Send them to this wonderful Hungarian, Romanian and French tutor. The tutoring is mainly based in Bristol and Somerset (Glastonbury, Yeovil, Bridgwater, Taunton etc.), but in the age of technology I'm sure arrangements can be made for international tutoring. She will also cover your translation and interpreting needs for these languages.

You can check out her qualifications and background on her website, but as someone who has kept her under close observation for the last two years I would like to add to whatever is written there in saying that she has a good mixture of intelligence and empathy, amiability and professionalism and that I heartily recommend her!

If you sign up to her fun and interesting newsletter, you get a free audio lesson to download (these normally supplement the one-on-one tuition).

Best wishes,
Mark

P.S. The promised pictures of Romania will have to wait a bit longer, but in the meantime here is one of a horse riding trip we went on in Transylvania.

Space Hotel

2011-08-27T16:06:00.000-07:00

Space hotel to give rich a thrill that's out of this world: Russian aerospace engineers join race to provide wealthy thrill-seekers with the ultimate holiday destination
(From The Guardian)

Mark's Hotel Review: 1/5 stars

When I saw this hotel advertised in the brochure it sounded wonderful: I could get away from the mundane life here and hang out with the stars! Well, after a long and arduous journey (public transport in the area is non-existant to say the least) I arrived. From the outside the hotel was clean. There was no graffiti, no mess on the streets, in fact, no streets! I felt a twinge of doubt about the lack of people in the area, it was somewhat creepy, the place was devoid of life!

The room I was staying in was comfortable, and I certainly felt a weight off my shoulders at having arrived and being away from the gravity of everyday life. The bedroom and facilities were remarkably clean, but that was hardly surprising: the cleaners would not have had much work to do as both rooms were tiny. Another negative was the décor. They had made the place to look like a space ship, so 1970's, so dated!

The view from the hotel was indeed stunning. Still, looks can be decieving. The surrounding area was inhospitable to say the least. When I asked the staff on duty if there were any cafés or museums around that they recommend they looked at me incredulously. Further, when I told them I was going outside to have a look around, I was told that I would not last long out there alive! Imagine being told that by the receptionist! Needless to say I was too scared to leave the building the entirety of my stay.

Resigning myself to my fate I decided to check out the resturant. Again, it was small, and the same weird space ship decoration was still in evidence there. The selection of drinks was particularly limited and (there is no polite way to put this) half the time it was as if I was drinking recycled urine! Also, the food was all reheated, as if even the staff didn't dare a trip out for fresh vegetables (perhaps even vegetables wouldn't last long around there and, thinking about it now, I don't remember seeing a single tree the whole time!).

Needless to say the hotel did not have a swimming pool, which is a great shame, as the weather was perfect all week. I was just glad to have bought enough to read: I had recently been getting into science fiction and had taken out several books from the library before I left. I do sometimes wonder what it would be like to be in space, quite fun I imagine, certainly better than that small hotel in the middle of nowhere! One out of five, a poor place for a holiday, stay away!

------oo------

So hope you enjoyed my review! Sorry for the long time between posts these days, but there is so much to be doing in the world! At some time I intend to put up some photos of my time in Romania, but it may be a while yet!
Regarding my actual views on space hotels, I am actually in great favour for. Not the hotel per se, but rather that technology is still developed in that direction.
I understand the argument that there are people not being fed enough down here to be wasting money up there. However, it doesn't work like that, it isn't that simple. The people doing this are not choosing between feeding the poor and going into space, they are choosing between building the worlds tallest building or such like and doing this. Besides, it is entirely possible to reduce world hunger and have an active space program.
And it is never just about space hotels, it is about learning how better to take stuff into space, how better to live and carry out experiments in space, about how to overcome huge technological feats. This technology all comes in useful. In a way this is a brilliant plan to save money. Instead of paying to build the rockets and the space centres, and paying the astronauts to go there, you get the astronauts to pay for project and to pay for the privilege of going!
Why do I think it is important to go into space? Well why is it important to explore new areas on the map, or to see how silicon conducts electricity? I think it is the same thing: because you might find something that changes life for the better such as new places to live, new ways to connect to others, new possibilities, things you cannot even imagine until you do the exploration.
There is another rather interesting thing to consider about space travel: for the majority of this planet's existence it has been uninhabitable, and not just at the start. Fairly often most of it is covered in ice, quite often masses of volcanoes trash the atmosphere and plant life all but vanishes. We just don't notice this because we are like mayflies, we live for a day, not even! Our stories that have been passed on for the longest still only tell us about what happened a week ago. Get some perspective - ask a mountain!

So long, and thanks for all the fish...
Mark

Stories Within Stories

2011-03-10T08:04:00.000-08:00

Nostralis

By Mark Jack

Prop, of the Klimba people, sat on a small ledge at the base of a huge tree trunk. He sucked on some pieces of bark as he stared out across the valley, idly listening to the chatter drifting up towards him. Of all the Klimba people he personified what was most disliked by those of the valley. He spurned the depths, the God-warmth, the highly regulated life, and instead followed his joy in the hills and on the trees.

The joy was only ever partial though. All too often the sharp edge of the machines swept through the land, tearing through tree and often ground. There was little protection to be found on this denuded landscape, and strong winds and heavy rain ravaged the land. His people, and all the many races, survived by hiding in whatever nook or cranny they could find.

At times it would seem that the machines had forgotten about this world. The stumps of trees up on the hills would begin to grow, striving upwards towards some unknown and futile goal. But perhaps then a flood would come, and not long after, while the moisture still clung to the trunks of the still young trees the machines would strike.

To Prop it seemed that the floods were coming less often these days and the trees were growing taller than he could remember. He pondered amongst his many selves if the two things were related. The bark of the tree around him still glistened with moisture and he wondered if the machines would strike now.

As if to mirror his thoughts messages from the Order came through that the machines were coming and that all beings were to cling to their God. The Order lived in the deepest parts of the valleys, where the God-warmth was felt the strongest. It was they who sent out the messages that guided how all may live and kept the civilisation running smoothly in the face of these difficult times. It was also from whom, while never explicitly stated, that the deep prejudice against the Klimba came. Of course they never said things like 'dump your waste up in the Klimba's region', or 'don't trade with them, they are inferior, ungodly, and should be despised', but they did say things like 'God is warmth, God is in the depths, and all who are good and pure strive to be closest to him.', and that seemed to be enough.

The message coming from the Order now caused barely a ripple in Prop. Sometimes they did hold power over him, when they were on the winning side of the conflict within him. Certainly if he climbed higher they did cause him to doubt and to turn back, but now he wasn't that high.

He thought of all the others running into their holes, to cling to the ground and God-warmth. Down in the valley the other races spent most of their time that way, so he heard.

Of course Prop had never seen those places, the Klimba people were shunned, not only that but he felt uncomfortable in the warmth. He shuddered at the thought, for, as the Order said 'Be not like those who live high, for they shall fall off into the sky and be damned'. Well, he hadn't yet fallen off into the sky, despite many close brushes with the machines. Many a Klimba had shown startled surprised to see him sat, gloomily perhaps, but alive, on a flattened stump of a tree that was until a short time before his playground.

Prop also knew from all he heard that he would never see the Heavenly Kingdom beyond the farthest hills. It was said that there no storms could reach, that nectar flowed rich and the gentle warmth of God wafted softly over all. Try as he might Prop couldn't bring himself to feel upset about that: yes the food sounded good, but the warmth didn't, and he quite liked a mild storm from time to time. Perhaps he could dwell in the entrance to the Kingdom he mused, and get others to pass him food. But he was damned no doubt, for he lived high and it was where he seemed to fit best.

Something certainly felt missing from his life, perhaps his people were cursed. If any did try and live in the warmth of the valleys they tended to dwindle and die. Even up here on the hills disease was rife. It seemed more than the segregation could account for.

Another message came from the Order, stronger, more insistent: people must cling to their God, the machines are surely imminent. Prop inwardly sighed and slid of his ledge, the ground was several handholds away but he moved with ease. The usual throng of beings that was the norm he only found as he moved in between outcroppings and into the crevasses and wide spaces beneath the surface.

Even here on the hillside he found the warmth too much and started to feel lethargic. He found a damp and slightly cooler hole in one of the walls and molded himself into it. He fell into a slumber, but as he did his consciousness drifted out and he vaguely felt the goings on around him.

He felt the trees growing taller, the Order sending out messages of the machines coming, the anxiety building throughout land. He dreamt of huge caverns, warm and dark, of bursts of huge energy shooting along impossible distances, of power that made him shake in his sleep and push deeper into his hole. He felt the trees still growing, heard the Order speak of disloyalty to God, of being tested, of how the machines were coming. He sensed people growing hungry and fretful.

He awoke later to a buzz of messages, people had been to the surface and were babbling about a great change. The Order were sending rapid, loud messages, but they sounded erratic, contradictory. One message came through loud and clear though, no one was to climb the trees, for that was the stairway to damnation. Prop was confused, there should be no trees now. He sped towards the surface, and was stunned.

The trees were growing up at dizzying heights, blocking out parts of the sky. The wind and rains they had known of the storms were now softened and there was a great quiet over the surface. But more than all that the presence of God could be felt more strongly everywhere; His warmth filled the air.

The excitement grew in Prop, but the warmth suffocated him. Something deep within him wanted to climb. He clambered over and through those around him to get to the base of tree. One of his arms reached and gripped it. Messages came from the Order that up in the trees was the way to oblivion, that no one was to touch the trees. The message rang false and Prop reached for more handholds. The voices around him shouted that he stay, voices gathered over the years within him told him to stay, but they rang true neither. With doubt he started to climb, amongst himself he questioned the voices, weakening the doubt. Around him the shouting to stay grew stronger, but arm after arm of his reached up and pulled. Slowly at first did he reach the holds but then faster and faster. He found his rhythm and grace, and his love of the tree and the climb grew. The voices below and within quietened and with the cooling of the air peace grew within and around him. He sucked in the freshness. Those of him with longer and stronger arms thrived. The tree provided him with nutrients he had barely known before and he grew way beyond what would have been recognisable as him before.

Time passed and still he climbed. Between him and the tree was joy, they spun together in a dance; he leapt for a hold while the tree came to meet him in perfect union. He swarmed around and up. Along the tree some of him found places to settle, having found their peace with life. But still part of him climbed.

It was some time later, after days of the climb had past, that Prop entered a crevasse that was dark and jagged. He worked his way upwards, groping in the dark but ever moving. Before long he saw far above him light coming through a long narrow crack. He quickened his pace. Soon he was clambering over the top ledge into the blinding light. When he adjusted to the light he found himself on a flat plateau on the top of the tree. He recognised it as a place he had sat once, sad. Now he looked about and a thrill took him. Over the twisting tops of the trees about him, looming huge on the horizon, he stared, fixated, into the twin caverns of Nostralis, the Heaven of his people.

Or, to put it a different way,
I now have a beard and moustache!

Well, I hope you liked it! I apologise as it is probably a bit late for this story, as me having facial hair is old news to a lot of you, and I am going to cut it off in a couple of weeks anyway – the weather is warming up and it also makes licking food off my plate more difficult!

I have had a few sources of inspiration for this story. Perhaps Carpet People by Terry Pratchett was one of the first, later my ponderings on Gaian Theory and later still a somewhat bizarre and humorous conversation I had with a fellow trainee in a Zen monastery when we pondered what religious faith the cells of my body held towards me their God! Recently I came across this fun and thought provoking poem by W. H. Auden, which hopefully I am not breaking any copyright laws by posting here...

A New Year Greeting
by W.H. Auden

After an article by Mary J. Marples
in Scientific American, January, 1969

On this day tradition allots
to taking stock of our lives,
my greetings to all of you, Yeasts,
Bacteria, Viruses,
Aerobics and Anaerobics:
A Very Happy New Year
to all for whom my ectoderm
is as Middle-Earth to me.

For creatures your size I offer
a free choice of habitat,
so settle yourselves in the zone
that suits you best, in the pools
of my pores or the tropical
forests of arm-pit and crotch,
in the deserts of my fore-arms,
or the cool woods of my scalp.

Build colonies: I will supply
adequate warmth and moisture,
the sebum and lipids you need,
on condition you never
do me annoy with your presence,
but behave as good guests should,
not rioting into acne
or athlete’s-foot or a boil.

Does my inner weather affect
the surfaces where you live?
Do unpredictable changes
record my rocketing plunge
from fairs when the mind is in tift
and relevant thoughts occur
to fouls when nothing will happen
and no one calls and it rains.

I should like to think that I make
a not impossible world,
but an Eden it cannot be:
my games, my purposive acts,
may turn to catastrophes there.
If you were religious folk,
how would your dramas justify
unmerited suffering?

By what myths would your priests account
for the hurricanes that come
twice every twenty-four hours,
each time I dress or undress,
when, clinging to keratin rafts,
whole cities are swept away
to perish in space, or the Flood
that scalds to death when I bathe?

Then, sooner or later, will dawn
a Day of Apocalypse,
when my mantle suddenly turns
too cold, too rancid, for you,
appetising to predators
of a fiercer sort, and I
am stripped of excuse and nimbus,
a Past, subject to Judgement.

Officially an Immigrant!

2010-03-07T00:49:00.000-08:00

So I am back in Romania and I have my residency permit, I am now officially an immigrant and therefore I will be lazing around doing no work, living off benefits and stealing everybody's jobs. Neo-racism doesn't specify exactly how this is done but no doubt destroying the fine traditions and everything this country stands for will come quite naturally now. 'Immigrant', a word surrounded by dark shadows of twisted meaning, put there by those with a less than generous turn of mind.

But nations are as transient as bubbles on water, they form, join, split, pop and reform, so who is calling who an immigrant anyway? And to say that one bubble is better than another, madness! Its all the same water, its just forming pretty shapes!

Well this is a post of my journey from one bubble to another (bubbles inside bubbles). I apologise now for the quality of some of the photos and the lack of others, I lack the obsession, sorry I mean motivation, that many have towards taking photos. Also in taking photos on a moving coach there were quite a few very interesting pictures to the right of the photo I actually took! (Click on the photos to see large versions)

So, I set off from Birmingham at 9pm on a Tuesday, arriving by coach in London just before midnight. Here was my first challenge, enduring the night in Victoria coach station.

My bags contained many books that I would be needing on the project, solar power and equipment, netbook, and of course clothes, packed so that my two bags would form a reasonably comfortable bed to lie on. I found myself a wall near where others were trying to sleep and made my nest. Not being tired I got out Terry Pratchetts new book from my bag and settled down to read, Pratchett did not disappoint! I needed the toilet though and it was a few hours before they would open them. What a strange phenomenon, being somewhere on my planet where there was likely no legal place for me to perform such a basic bodily function!

At about 1am I was a little surprised to be told to leave the coach station because it was closing for the night, as I had specifically contacted the coach station before to see if it would stay open. I told the man this and was directed to a small room at the other end of the place, there was a toilet near this place too, bliss! So I remade my bed, much to the envy of those practicing contortionism in the metal chairs, and settled down again. Mainly I read, I did try to sleep at times but largely failed, not due to discomfort but mainly I think to the general level of alertness I keep while traveling and possibly to the eternal daytime that seems to exist in places like that.

Daytime came, or rather the buzz increased and the shutters went up (the mechanical sunrise!) and it was time to check in. On the coach I headed straight for the back row and sat roughly in the middle aiming to give out the message that 'yes you can come and sit on the back row, but maybe one of those other empty seats will be just a little bit more convenient for you'! It worked beautifully, aided by the fact that the coach was quite empty anyway. At 8am Wednesday morning we set off, and at 8.30am we returned due to a 'technical error' (half the passengers were missing!).

London, obviously so...
A couple of hours sleep later and the cliffs of Dover...
...where I assume we had missed our boat (and my hoped for hot meal, not of course that I was short for food in my bags), because we then headed down the coast to the channel tunnel. (Other explanations for leaving the ferry port are possible, for instance the driver may have had a phobia of boats, and while he had been psyching himself up for it and thought he could do it panicked at the last moment; or there could have been a giant iceberg floating past, full of thriving polar bears, that the international community of scientists busy conspiring to fake global warming didn't want anyone to see and so diverted all traffic under the sea instead of over it).

Heading down the ramp to get on the train...
A horse on the hill, running away from the trains...
A short nap later and France...
A few sandwiches and an open source story from Cory Doctorow and I am in Belgium...
The last stop in Belgium a father an his two children got on the coach, and their need for three of my five seats was greater than mine so I didn't fight for the space!

Germany passed in darkness, and generally sleep, though there was the odd stop (two euros to use a toilet, well done civilisation!)...
And then dawn, with her fingertips of gray, found us in Austria...
OK, so a point I want to make, for every pretty city center there are a handful of very ugly industrial parks around at best, and at worst vast slums (though not in our bubble at present). In obsessing about beauty and things that are shiny, we create much that is so ugly, and then we hide all the ugly stuff, where it then festers. This I think is true on many levels, physical and otherwise. I don't think it is just within a city that the 'nice' parts necessitate bad parts, the 'developed' world looks and operates how it does by exporting a lot of the ugliness and suffering to the developing world. What is beautiful and ugly seem a bit blurred to me these days however, maybe precisely because of this, for how can a new car or a supermodel be beautiful, when you really see all that is behind them within them? And which is ugly, a fine house with a family in conflict, or a small shack where a community meet as friends? But back to my original point, city centers are a facade, here is Vienna....
With stories, food, music and watching Europe go by I enter Hungary, and success, I am about to arrive without once loosing my coach!
On the journey to Hungary when we stopped on the way you could never be quite sure what language you were meant to speak, not least because with no boarder controls you are never quite sure what country you are in, and the question 'what country is this?' seems up there with 'what year is this?'; not questions I feel inclined to ask even when I need to know! So arriving in Hungary was great, I knew what language I was meant to speak, and even better I could speak at least a few words (I make no claims about having those words understood, but I felt good just being able to say them!).

I left the coach here, caught the subway to the train station (Updated Mark's Subway Ranking 1.Bucharest 2.Paris 3.Hungary 97.London - I don't know what the other 94 subway systems there are ahead of London, but my loathing for London's tubes assures me they must be there), and there after getting my ticket and having a look around I stood resting my back a little before searching for food. My name was called and there appeared one of my hosts from Forest Garden, she was traveling back from Sweden on the same day, a most happy coincidence! So we stashed our bags in left-luggage and went looking for food together. Nearby we found a Chinese restaurant and had a very tasty and long meal chatting away there. It was just what was needed!

When it was time for her train we headed back to the station, she left heading directly to Transylvania, and I settled down to read a bit more Pratchett while waiting for my train to Bucharest. The train I caught was the night train, and so I was in a carriage with six beds. The carriage I was in I was sharing with four friendly Romanians. The train had barely set off before they insisted on sharing their food with me, and wine, and palinca (a spirit made from plums). We only spoke a very very few words in common, and eventually found the best way to communicate was through drawing pictures, which was fun!

It was getting dark at this stage so we made the beds, and I was on one of the top bunks. There I slept soundly, only waking to show passport control my passport as we crossed the boarder into Romania. I woke not long after dawn, who was at that time making her foggy tendrils visible through the forest of the Carpathians. The journey through these mountains was the most beautiful part of the trip...
My traveling companions for the train journey...
A picture of the beast that carried me, finally in Bucharest...

So now I am back with Sophie, here in the capital of Romania, and very nice it is too! Within a week I will be off up into the mountains, to begin the next thing.

:)

Mark

Ecosia

2010-01-19T05:12:00.000-08:00

Good day to you all!

I have just found out about a search engine that donates 80% of its profits to saving the rainforest (working with WWF) and which runs all its servers on renewable energy (servers are hungry and hot beasts to tame). It also, unlike Google, deletes all of your search results in a short space of time and doesn't use them for marketing purposes.

The address is http://ecosia.org/

Pass on the message!

Thanks

Mark

Consuming Adjectives

2010-01-06T04:50:00.000-08:00

One thing I noticed when in Romania was that fruit and vegetables, as long as you didn't buy them from the new supermarkets that are springing up, tasted considerably better than that available here in our oh so wonderfully developed Britain! Even some vegetables I don't normally like were tasty. Interestingly, a UN or WHO report on Romania I read a while ago referred to its agriculture as being underdeveloped and in need of modernisation through the converting of land to large scale industrial farming. Maybe they mean everyone's food should be brightly coloured, shiny and made of plastic, but that doesn't make sense to me! But oh how stupid I am being, they weren't talking about quality in the report, and there was me thinking that they must have been, me with my mentally abnormal bias towards the health and happiness of individuals; they were talking about maximising outputs and profits. (In fairness they think that this will mean there will be more money available for treating illness, which is an interesting approach to take - reducing the healthiness of food to increase the money available for treating ill health).

Anyway, I rant! The point of this blog was an excellent quote from an article (Gazpacho and Coffee) in Resurgence magazine talking about food quality...

"In Armando’s view, his staff, earning £7 a day and growing their own vegetables amongst the coffee, ate better than most British people earning ten times as much. He went on to say, in a bemused way, that our food seemed to be more about consuming adjectives than quality, citing the packaging in supermarkets and the absurdly florid descriptions on restaurant menus"

'Consuming adjectives'! Yes that sums it up nicely! It is another part of the shared delusion we live under, where words, images and associations become more important than reality*. This is exemplified for me by the use of TV to advertise purfume - if you smell your TV while the advert is playing you will find it smells the same as when the advert is not playing (although if the world had a sense of justice the TV would smell more like excrement when the adverts are on)!

Have a nice day!
Mark

*The question of what do we class as reality is an interesting one. So much of what we take for real is clouded by our preconceptions, like if someone gives you a red sweet and tells you it is strawberry flavoured how you are more likely to taste strawberry, or if you expect a person not to be nice you will see the negatives more, or how you only see certain details of your environment when they have a relevance to you or you purposely open up to them (the sides of roads to me always used to look like green mess, now I see many different plants all with their own styles and uses). What I am suggesting here is that what we believe absolutely to be real contains much that is subjective (not objectively real), and this might have more and more increasing subtle levels to it, until you start to wonder what is true. If you think this is mere philisophical rambling and has no relation to living life then consider how much of your energy is spent chasing or fighting stuff that isn't real, and how much could be gained if we were to see a little bit more clearly, if we were to have a little more awareness.
A further thought on this is, if so much of our world is subjective, and we purposely shape and create this subjective (as is done in advertising), then are we creating a new reality and a new reality with with its own existence and worth? For example, if you buy perfume based on a stylish advert, others may see you as stylish, and you live in a world of style. However I think a new reality isn't created, rather an existing one is perverted. For instance, the basis for judging someone based on style is maybe linked to judging how well someone can look after themselves, which in itself could have worth. However, the world of style, I would suggest, has become divorced from these roots as image is picked up from mass media and is focused on at the exclusion of much else, and being able to fit in with that image may for some be dependent on credit cards or going along with the status quo, both of which right now seem unsustainable and therefore not necessarily the best way you can look after yourself. What do you think? I welcome a discussion on this, so feel free to leave a comment.

Give a man a fish...

2010-01-04T11:42:00.000-08:00

There is a proverb that gets used quite often, especially in relation to charities helping poor countries...

'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you will feed him for a lifetime'.

Well for a long time I have disliked that quote, for a start it shows arrogance on the part of the would-be teacher, who seems to be assuming that those that are hungry are so because they are not as cleaver as we. Of course that isn't always the case, and often it is valuable to share skills. But, and this may be the cynic in me, I also dislike it because it doesn't seem to match up well with some of my understanding of how things are and it ignores some fundamental issues. My version of the quote would be...

'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, try and teach him to fish and he will tell you "don't be stupid, I know how to fish, but the fish in the sea have been wiped out due to overfishing by the west, the smaller rivers are drying up due to climate change, and the larger river is polluted because of a factory upstream owned by a western corporation"'

Well today Andy Zaltsman provided me with a new version (on BBC iPlayer currently)...

"Give a man a fish and you will feed him for a day, but lease him a fishing rod and he will feed you cut-price fish for a life time, and that is a competitively priced labour market you have got there! Plus since you own the rod he better fish and fish hard, otherwise you can take his rod away, no rod means no wages and no wages means no imported tinned fish, which is now all he and his family can afford to eat!"

It seems to me that people, globally, often are not poor because of random chance or due to a lack of effort on their own part, rather, that people are poor largely because we have created a world that requires some to be poor so that others can be rich. This does imply a power to be able to create things differently though.

Thanks for reading!
Mark

P.S. Terry Pratchett has a rather humorous adaptation of this quote 'give a man a fire and he is warm for a day, set a man on fire and he is warm for the rest of his life!'

Dr Seuss's Copenhagen by Marcus Brigstocke

2009-12-24T03:05:00.000-08:00

An awesome rhyme about the Copenhagen climate summit from the Now Show...

Dr Seuss's Copenhagen by Marcus Brigstocke

The delegates came and the delegates sat
And they talked and they talked till their bums all went flat
Then a delegate said of the country he knew
"We must do something quick but just what should we do?"
So they sat again thinking and there they stayed seated
Sitting and thinking "the planet's been heated"
"I think" said a delegate there from Peru
"That we all must agree on some things we could do
Like reducing emissions at least CO2"
So they nodded and noted then vetoed and voted
And one of them stood up and suddenly quoted
"It's the science you see, that's the thing that must guide us
When the leaders all get here they're certain to chide us"
So they sat again thinking about what to think
Then decided to ponder what colour of ink
To use on the paper when they’d all agreed
To be selfless not greedy McGreedy McGreed
"But how do we choose just what colour to use?"
Said a delegate there who'd been having a snooze
"We need clear binding targets definitive action
We must all agree clearly without more distraction"
So they sat again thinking of targets for ink
But the ink in their thinking had started to stink
And they started to think that the ink was a kink
In the thinking about real things they should think
"If ze climate needs mending then zis is our chance"
Said the nuclear delegate sent there by France
"We need to agree on one thing to agree on
Something we all want a fixed guarantee on"
"Yes" said another who thought this made sense
Some value for carbon in dollars or pence
But the mention of money and thoughts of expense
Had stifled the progress and things became tense
The fella from China with a smile on his face
Said "Who put the carbon there in the first place?"
"Wasn't us" said the U.S then Europe did too
Then a silence descended and no words were spoken
Till a delegate stood up, voice nervous and broken
"Is there nothing upon which we all can decide?
Because on Wednesday my chicken laid eggs that were fried"
"We all like a sing song" said the bloke from Down Under
But then the great hall was all shouting and thunder
Policemen had entered and were wearing protesters
Who they'd beaten and flattened like bloodied sou'westers
The police had decided to downplay this crime
With prevention detention and beatings in rhyme
The Greenies who'd shouted and asked for a decision
Were now being battered with lethal precision
All sick of inaction and fed up of waiting
All tired of the endless debated placating
They'd risen up grating berating and hating
So the police had commenced the related abating
Ban Ki-moon put his head in another man's lap
And was last heard muttering something like "crap"
But the chap next to him said "It's more like it's poo"
So the great hall debated not what they should do
But how to decide between crap cack and poo
"It is poo" "It is cack" "It is crap" "We agree"
Which was written and labelled as document three
"I think if we all find one thing we agree on
Then maybe Brazil might be left with a tree on"
So they sat again thinking of trees and Brazil
And of glaciers which had retreated uphill
And they thought of the poor folks whose homes were in flood
But less of the protesters covered in blood
They pondered the species so nearly extinct
It's as if they all thought that these things might be linked
"We need a solution we need action please"
Said a lady who'd come from the sinking Maldives
The others all nodded and said it was fact
That the time must be now not to talk but to act
Then Obama arrived and said most rhetorical
"Action is action and not metaphorical"
"Wow" they all thought "he must mean allegorical"
"I love it when Barack goes all oratorical"
"But the problem I have is that Congress won’t pass it
"Bugger" said Ban Ki then "sorry" then "arse it"
Then Brown said "I've got it now how does this strike you?
It's simpler when voters already dislike you"
He suggested the EU should lead from the front
So The Mail and The Telegraph called him something very unpleasant indeed
So the delegates stared at the text with red marks on
Ignoring the gales of laughter from Clarkson
No-one was satisfied nobody won
Except the morons convinced it was really the sun
And they blew it and wasted the greatest of chances
Instead they all frolicked in diplomat dances
And decided decisively right there and then
That the best way to solve it's to meet up again
And decide on a future that's greener and greater
Not with action right now but with something else later

Romania: Parks, Mud Volcanos and Snowy Mountains

2009-12-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

One of the things I learnt from going to Romania is that I am not a good tourist. I don't mean in the sense of urinating up famous monuments while being stupidly drunk, as the British have been gaining a reputation for doing recently, but rather that I don't tend to find myself by the famous monuments in the first place. If I did happen to end up by a monument or an important building I would arrive at the scene lacking the item most treasured by tourists the world over, that being a camera, and I must confess I actually have an aversion to saying 'cheese' in front of whatever assemblage of stone, concrete or metal I find myself by.

Like most I do have a curiosity about my surroundings, I enjoy exploring, and find glimpses into the past interesting. So well I do think the creations of the rich, the powerful, or the pious, that were built to show just how rich, powerful or pious they were may well deserve the drunk Brit treatment, overall I enjoyed having a nosey around the towns and cities I visited. But like I said, I took no camera! All is not lost however for those of you who at times enjoy life through these colourful rectangles because on a couple of cool trips I went on someone's kind father had a pretty awesome camera to record things, and later, back at Forest Garden our hosts kindly took up the rectangle capture duty.

So this is my very delayed photo blog of Romania.

--o--

One of my first priorities, indeed my continued priority, in Bucharest was finding the best places where the green stuff grows. The nearest and the best of these was Herăstrău Park (I don't know how this is pronounced, to me it was just 'the park', or if there was any confusion over that it was 'the big park'). The park comes complete with many trees, a huge lake, lots of little paths, big bushes, and beautiful and sometimes weird wild dogs. In short, many cool places to explore. There is a difference there compared to parks in England that I noticed. I was walking around Hyde park once (which is nowhere near as good what with the Victorians needing to loosen up a bit), and there was a tree stump that had been cordoned off! Presumably the local warden had deemed this tree stump a danger to the public! In Herăstrău Park in one place they had dug a small but long trench, maybe for some piping or drainage, and it was quite amazing, without there being any warnings, cones, or fences, people managed not to fall in! Actually, one thing I miss about Romania now that I am back in the UK, is being able to pass from one railway platform to another by walking over the rails, it is such a hassle having to use bridges or subways!

So...

Me hanging out with one of the locals :) :P

Random views of the park...

A really cool game of table tennis...

Trying (and failing) not to hit the wild dogs that came to chill with us...

Part of the big lake in the park (who's water looks strangely computer generated up close!)...

--o--

One weekend Sophie's family took me to the corner of the Carpathian mountains to see the mud volcanoes, that was a very cool trip! Forget what man can create, show me what nature can create, and keeps on recreating!

It needs no comments...

--o--

The photos of the first time at Forest Garden Sanctuary I have already shown you (here). But I returned a second time (and will return again :D ). This second time was a slightly different experience, because this time I had company in the cottage. To begin with there were four of us volunteers, chopping wood, cooking, painting, doing a little stone masonry (for free, so does that gain me entry...?!). Although we were given two rooms between us, being sociable creatures we all ended up sharing one. It was nice, and the cottage became more alive and much less scary at night. Good company can certainly make some aspects of living in the near wild less of a challenge!

The two girls then left, leaving me and another lad. We decided it would be fun to take up the challenge of digging a two meter deep storage well for rain water, which we did, and it was.

The well needed concrete rings to line it, big heavy concrete rings, that usually need some kind of machinery which we didn't have to lower them into the hole. What we had was one short bit of unconventional looking rope, and a couple of trees standing about. A trip to a shop later and we had a long bit of conventional but not so thick looking rope, but it was the best the shop had.

The best laid plans...
...may often work, but, there we all were, ready to let the rope slowly loosen from around the tree, the ring was slowly moved into position next to the hole, and the rope snapped...A little bit of rubbing our heads together and we got the ring to where we wanted it...But you live you learn...And much to our collective surprise, perfect...

So, I am lying nice and warm in my comfortable bed, it has not long got light and I am waking, coming slowly into full consciousness, feeling quite relaxed and refreshed. I roll over then sit up towards the window to open the curtain. I am dressed in a second, it has snowed! We knew it was going to get colder, but we hadn't expected this! (For me England is a damp failure in this regard, so often disappointing in the snow department!)

So we were up and out in no time, and I had the suggestion that we go and look for bear tracks in the snow. Now there is one thing about looking for bear tracks in the snow, and that is that you don't expect to find them, it is like looking for Santa's sleigh marks on the roof. But no, this is not England, this is Transylvania and I am up a mountain in a forest, there are bear tracks in the snow! And although it must have been a fairly small bear, no other animal has footprints that big here (though thinking about it now I wonder whether a lynx does, though I doubt it would be big enough). This was maybe 150 meters from the cottage at a rough guess!

I learnt something else that morning too: soap doesn't work when it is frozen! I had got into the habit of getting some water out of the well in the morning, tipping some into a bowl on the wash area and having a quick wash there. Well I had left some clean water in a bowl out from the night before so I found the mound of snow I thought that was, and found the soap under more snow. Then after breaking the soap away from the frozen wood I plunged it and my hands into the bowl. The soap scratched my hands a bit and that was it, no bubbles, nothing, just very very cold hands!

Well here are some pictures from our morning walk to the spring (sorry, neither me or the lad I was with when we went looking for tracks had a camera)

Our pack brothers...
Bobby has just seen a tasty ankle to bite...
Apples, now with 20% snow at no extra cost...Yes click on the picture if you want, zoom in on my hand if you have too, yes that is a pair of my socks on my hand, yes there is a hole in it...Ah, to be in a forest in the snow...Its a good day when you find a half eaten carcase on the ground...At the water hole...:) ...The end (for now)...
Lots of thanks to all the really cool people I met that gave me company, fed me, took me to interesting places, or often all three! I had a really good time and have many happy memories.

And thanks Sophie-Sophie, for being awesome!

Romania: The Cottage in the Forest on the Mountain

2009-09-16T01:06:00.000-07:00

Living up the mountains...

When I walk outside at night there is a very real chance of walking into a bear that has come to raid the apple trees. When I go to bed at night I bolt the door, for although it is extremely unlikely, there is still a tiny possibility that hungry wolves may push open the door and come slinking in to my bedroom in the dark. I am living in a place of childhood dreams, I am in the cottage in the forest where stories happen, adventures take place and archetypes take form.

By the cottage is the well, here I draw my water. The old barn is close by too. The setting is complete. The children's stories of forests and bears, wolves and old cottages contain for me a feeling of power, and although they are written of things no longer experienced in England and elsewhere they inspire emotions that are real and can shape our internal world. The reality may have faded in a lot of the west but the collective memory hasn't. Well here in Transylvania I felt that energy, that power, nothing has faded, it is alive, well, and at night at least a little scary! Having a large staff when walking in the forest, and having a fire lit in the evening both feel reassuring. Again these both seem to have symbolic relevance too, they contain meaning within stories. Something inside me must also remember that fire can bring safety.

So here I feel like I am in a place of power, something stripped from England where we took away the danger and the power left too. To me it feels as if when you take away the wolves, the bears and the forest, with it goes the air, the beauty and the strength. We have tamed nature in the UK and we are left with just that - tame nature. England at best becomes pretty much just one big garden, especially in comparison with here.

Interestingly, when the two women who own the place moved here they hadn't considered their safety with regards to living in a forest, but security soon arrived in the form of three wild dogs who they took in and who now protect them. It would seem that the wild can also protect.

So the place where I am at is called Forest Garden Sanctuary, it is the beginnings of a permaculture garden and a sustainable home in creation, and I am volunteering here. Arriving here was most amazing, it is up in the mountains and there is forest all around. It is several kilometers away from the nearest village. The air smells amazingly fresh, there are mature trees all around, and nature thrives. On a warm day walking along a path many lizards will be scurrying to get out of the way and at night you can hear animals moving around. Although it is late in the season there are many flowers growing in the meadow, and I have seen more different plants growing naturally here than I have seen anywhere before.

At the moment the two women who hold the vision of this place and have been working hard (sometimes in challenging conditions) to create it are focusing on sorting out accommodation, water and sustainable power, and although they have a small garden growing food they are leaving food production on a slightly larger scale until these priorities are dealt with. Jobs I did here this time involved a bit of landscaping including creating car parking space, helping a bit with firewood, cooking, and painting (with homemade organic paints). I will be returning here in a few weeks to help out some more, and I am thoroughly looking forward to it.

P.S. Sorry for the long time without posts, but I have been somewhat preoccupied with finishing uni, recovering from finishing uni, and enjoying my time in Romania. However more posts will come soon. Meanwhile here are a few more pictures from the Forest Garden...

A local lizard...
On the way to the main house...
Sophie and I near the main house...
Sophie and I outside the cottage...
The wood shed...
A veiw of the forest...
A neighboring hut and more forest...
A strange yet interesting plant...
Apples, 100% bearless...
Sophie and two of the dogs near the main house...
Inside the main house...
A veiw of the cottage from the back of the main house...

"fashion is the antithesis of sustainability"

2009-05-06T08:58:00.000-07:00

Welcome to a new era in lazy blogging: I find a really good article, I post it!

The Tyranny of Trends by Charty Durrant

Of course I can't resist airing some views of my own on the subject! But really, read the article rather than my stuff, it is better, I just rant and point fingers!

Anyway, it appears to me that many people claim to not follow fashion, while still actually following fashion: buying new clothes every month or couple of months because other clothes are 'old', or because they have been worn too often, or because they 'just don't look good on me anymore', or for the ultimate ignorance 'because I haven't got anything to wear', is following fashion. For I have not met anyone who has said these things who hasn't got at least ten different outfits in their wardrobes that are the right size and are not falling apart. If you don't believe you are following fashion consider any other culture than the western one (even how our culture was not so very long ago) and see how they compare.

The argument that 'I don't buy fashionable clothing' doesn't hold water because there is a fashion in 'ordinary unfashionable clothes' and a fashion in alternative fashions. Styles change, people buy new clothes, it is the same thing. Marketing departments would not be doing a very good job if they only created sales out of those who willingly follow fashions, so they subtly create stuff for the rest of the market too: fashions for the conscientious, fashions for the unfashionable! Oh and buying organic and fairtrade clothing does not get you off the hook while you still have clothes that are in one piece and fit (and buying nothing is so much more environmentally friendly than buying anything).

Basically, the extremes some people go to make a lot of us look very moderate, but compare our moderation to that of other times and other places and you will see how extravagantly we are living

Also, the article makes a very good case for the benefits of weening yourself off fashion, "We may look good, but we feel bad.". But "Once we dismiss the illusion of glamour and wake up to the power and delight in having less stuff and more time, we can embrace being more human."

Finally, a quote from the article: "As the effects of the credit crunch begin to take hold, psychologists have coined a term for heavily addicted shoppers who eschew food in order to afford the clothing they crave: ‘fashionrexic’". Wow! Scary, but still wow! Who would have guessed what us humans are capable of!

Hmm, so much for lazy blogging!

Positive Change II

2009-05-02T07:52:00.000-07:00

Today I came across a really great article called The Great Turning by Joanna Macy. It addresses the shift happening within the world, from the "Industrial Growth Society to a life-sustaining civilization". What I like most about the article is that it incorporates the different aspects of this shift; it has helped me link the jigsaw pieces together and has helped answer some questions I have had for a while. These questions include what is the point of direct action or protests (like stopping someone chop down a woodland) when the problem is so global and there are so many problems that we can't address them all? Or what is the point of trying to change government when it takes so long for any changes to be made? Or what is the role of spiritual change in the changing of the world?

The article lays out the three dimensions to the change that is going on: actions to slow the damage to Earth and its beings; analysis of structural causes and the creation of structural alternatives; and shift in Consciousness. It describes the parts these all play and gives examples of each. It is an article that to me helps create a more whole understanding of part of the change we humans are undergoing, and in doing this it creates more faith in the fact that positive change is happening.

I will leave you with a quote from Joanna Macy's website:

"The most remarkable feature of this historical moment on Earth is not that we are on the way to destroying the world-we've actually been on the way for quite a while. It is that we are beginning to wake up, as from a millennia-long sleep, to a whole new relationship to our world, to ourselves and each other."

Positive Change

2009-04-20T06:54:00.000-07:00

"Hold onto the faith, this life is a miracle,
Each moment is new, one step at a time.
Rise up from the fear; be free of the manacles,
Let love be the key, one step at a time."
(Seize The Day - Rise Up)

Over the last couple of weeks, I have been feeling something, and I am interested to know if you have been feeling it too. What it is is this: in subtle ways there are a lot of positive changes happening. Now it may well be that I am projecting my internal reality on to the outside world, but I will explain and maybe you can judge for yourself.

Firstly, a discussion of positive change cant be made without reference to Obama! Now I have my doubts about this man, but then anyone set up as a messiah I would have my doubts about. However, in the last week or so he released documents, against the wish of ex CIA chiefs, that detail the torture America was involved in. To me this shows greater openness, and a willingness to say 'look we were wrong'. Until that truthfulness exists how can positive change take place? So I am happy about that little sign.

Secondly, on a slightly more personal note, I got a bunch of my friends happily munching on some wild plants yesterday. It showed a general spirit of openness and an ability to overcome prejudice that I hadn't seen to such an extent before.

Thirdly, people are opening up to the merits of fairtrade produce and organic produce, opening up to the realisation they can make positive changes in the world by the choices they make.

Fourthly, a bit of a strange one, is the outcry in the media about the recent police brutality at the G20 summit where one person was killed by the police. Now while it is negative that the police are acting in bad ways and at times for political motives, that this is now in public awareness and being investigated, for me is positive change. I was aware of other acts of police violence a few years ago that were unreported in all the main media. So it is positive that while there may be some negative controlling forces in the world, these forces are not all powerful and are being challenged.

Fifthly, a few weeks ago I spent a weekend at a charity called Salem (http://www.saleminternational.org/). This is a small charity that is highly active in doing peace work, environmental work and looking after children. While there I met many really inspiring people engaging in really cool projects where they are making great impacts. With these people there was a great sense of support, a great sharing of experience and strength. It gave me the knowledge that what ever difficult changes we as humans have to face we will not be facing them alone, and also that humans can be so creative, supportive, loving and fun!

Sixthly, the sun is shining and I have a really great girlfriend!

An Open Letter to the Pope.

2009-03-22T06:51:00.000-07:00

Dear Pope,

Following your recent statement that AIDS 'cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms' but that they 'even aggravate the problems', I feel that I must offer you some advice: it is really about time that you get a technician to have a look at your direct connection to God, I fear there is some interference on the line. Have you thought of upgrading to broadband?

I have heard, as no doubt must you (though I can certainly get you references if you have not), that God is both loving and wise. AIDS as you may or may not know causes vast suffering, causing many, many deaths, including leaving countless children orphaned. You therefore understand that God must want this situation remedied? Now I know your life in the Vatican is a little sheltered, but surely in your time in the Hitler Youth you must have learnt that most ordinary humans like sex. You must also realise that God is wiser than to suggest for an entire continent not to have sex until the AIDS epidemic ceases and that therefore condoms, and education on the proper use of condoms, is the best option.

I therefore suggest that the message from God was not that AIDS 'cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms' but that they 'even aggravate the problems', but rather 'AIDS CAN be overcome through the distribution of condoms, and good education on their use can FURTHER HELP the problems'. I hope this clears up any confusion on your behalf and I am sure you now understand the importance of maintaining a good quality connection. If you ask my advice, Virgin Media seem to offer quite a reliable broadband connection service - I have never had any problems connecting to my friends, it is also aptly named for a Pope!

Yours sincerely

Mark J

PS. Thousands of millions of men, women and children are dying of malnutrition, ever thought of using the church's vast wealth and influence to feed them?

We have got to survive, and we have got to learn.

2009-03-18T12:19:00.000-07:00

"NOTHING REVEALS THE thin veneer of civilisation like a threat to its fuel or food supply, or the cracks in society like a major climate-related disaster. But that, increasingly, is what we face: the global decline of oil production; a global food chain in crisis due to multiple stresses including imminent, potentially irreversible global warming. These linked, interacting dynamics are complicated by yet another: a rich-world debt crisis.

In Britain, the first six months of the Second World War became known as the ‘phoney war’ because at that point there was no fighting and the conflict seemed unreal. In spite of all the news reporting, I sense in Britain today a ‘phoney calm’ that belies the seriousness of these inexorable trends." (Article)

My thoughts: we have got to survive, and we have got to learn. Otherwise what is the point? To have got this far, and then to die. Or to survive and then create the same situation some time in the future. A better world is possible, it is also the only option available.

Oh and start a vegetable garden as soon as possible, because it may help protect against experiencing real hunger, hunger not felt in this country for many decades. We are not far from crunch time.

We are nine meals away from anarchy.

This article explains more and explains it well: Planet Crunch

Maybe I should write in a more gentle manner, but there is no point, there will be no more gentle reminders from here on in, the world will not be gentle with us. We must find our positivity in life, find positive ways of living, love is always possible, joy can always be found. But what is the point in tying pretty ribbons on rabid dog. IGNORANCE IS NOT BLISS, it is a lack of awareness, and having a lack of awareness not only leads to suffering, it leaves you in a worse place to be able to deal with suffering - which kinda reminds me of a poem...

Autobiography in Five Short Chapters
~ Portia Nelson ~

Chapter 1
I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost ... I am helpless.
It isn't my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.

Chapter 2
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don't see it.
I fall in again.
I can't believe I am in the same place.
But it isn't my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

Chapter 3
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in ... it's a habit.
My eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.

Chapter 4
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

Chapter 5
I walk down another street.

My thoughts: walk down another street
Your thoughts?

Paying the Torturer

2009-03-10T17:14:00.000-07:00

The UN has condemned the British government for playing a part in the torturing of some prisoners (The Independent news article).

If you are living in the UK and pay taxes some of your money funded this.

Sustainable Eating Challenge Part IV: The Final Day

2009-03-02T06:11:00.000-08:00

I'm here, I've done It!

Well pretty much anyway! The couple of days I spent at CAT I ate whatever - people have got used to cooking vegetarian or dairy free food, but specifying the country where you want your food to come from would probably be a bit much for most people! I also couldn't take three days worth of food with me - ok so I could, but I didn't ok, stop judging me!

Oh and one day I ate egg sandwiches of unknown origin! Hmm, also brought some bread who main ingredients were from the UK but other ingredients may not of been. And then there were the crisps that were likewise.

But other than that, all was good! It all became second nature in the end, I became used to it. I guess we become creatures of habit and even when a huge range of food is open to us we tend to stick to a few common dishes, so whether you can eat all foods or only a type of foods the amount of variety in your diet still evens out to about the same.

So what have I learnt? Well, that eating locally is the most environmentally sound option all other things being equal. The problem is, all other things are very rarely equal at all! If you get foods that are locally grown but out of season the energy used in storing them might be greater than transportation cost, also if the foods you get locally were grown in a very energy intensive way (non organically and using much machinery) that may be worse for the environment than transporting more naturally grown food. Most importantly, it may be more difficult to get non-animal sources of protein, oils and fats locally - I couldn't get oils to use in cooking from the UK so had to use butter, and I also ended up using milk and cheese that I rarely normally use.

Lets have a look at the case of animal foods: eating meat is responsible for the largest environmental costs in food production, followed by dairy - this is because vast amounts of resources are taken up just keeping the animals alive. The following facts I found cited in the excellent book 'The Prophet's Way' by Thom Hartmann. I haven't included everything but if you are interested the full list can be found here where the proper author is cited and references given.

(The most relevant bits are in bold)

Distribution of food resources & world hunger

Amount of soy grown in the United States consumed by livestock: 90%
Amount of corn grown in the United States consumed by livestock: 80%
How frequently a child on Earth dies as a result of malnutrition and starvation: Every 2.3 seconds.
Amount of total US grain production consumed by livestock: 70%
Amount of US grain exports consumed by livestock: 66%
Number of children who die as a result of malnutrition and starvation every day: 38,000
Amount of world grain harvest consumed by livestock throughout the 1980's: Half
Number of people who will die this year as a result of malnutrition and starvation: 20,000,000
Number of people who can be nourished with the nutritional value of the grain and soy used to produce the meat, poultry and dairy products by the average American each year: 7
Number of people who could be fed using the land, water and energy that would be freed up from growing livestock if Americans reduced their intake of meat by 10%: 100,000,000

Resource utilization

By 1977, the amount of all raw materials (base products of farming, forestry and mining, including fossil fuels) consumed by the US, devoted to the production of livestock: one-third
Pounds of grain and soy used to produce 1 pound of food from: Beef 16, Pork 6, Turkey 4, Chicken/egg 16
Amount of nutrient wasted by cycling grain and soy through livestock: Protein 99%, Carbohydrate 99%, Fiber 100%

Land utilization

Amount of Earth's land mass grazed by livestock: one-half
Amount of US cropland producing livestock feed: 64%
Amount of US cropland and producing fruits and vegetables: 2%
Pounds of edible product that can be produced on one acre of prime land: Cherries 5000, Green beans 10000, Apples 20000, Carrots 30000, Potatoes 40,000, Tomatoes 50000, Celery 60000, Beef 250

Energy consumption

Calories of fossil fuel expended to produce 1 calorie of protein from beef: 78
Calories of fossil fuel expended to produce 1 calorie of protein from soybeans: 2
Amount of total energy expended in American agriculture devoted to livestock production: almost half
Energy expended to produce one pound of grain-fed beef: equivalent to one gallon of gasoline

Water consumption

Activity that accounts for more than half of all water consumed for all purposes in the United States: livestock production
In California, the number of gallons needed to produce 1 edible pound of: Tomatoes 23, Lettuce 23, Potatoes 24, Wheat 25, Carrots 33, Apples 49, Oranges 65, Grapes 70, Milk 130, Eggs 544, Chicken 815, Pork 1630, Beef 5214
How long it takes a person to use 5200 gallons of water showering (at 5 showers per week, 5 minutes per shower, with a flow rate of 4 gallons per minute) : One year

Soil erosion

Current annual topsoil loss on agriculture land in the US: Over 5 billion tons
Amount of original US cropland permanently removed from production due to excessive soil erosion: one third
Pounds of topsoil lost in the production of one pound of feedlot steak: 35
Current annual topsoil loss on agriculture land worldwide: 26 billions tons
Time required for nature to form one inch of topsoil: 200 to 1000 years
Direct and indirect costs of soil erosion and runoff in the US annually: 44 billion
Historic cause of demise of many great civilizations: Topsoil depletion

Desertification

Regions most effected by desertification: All cattle-producing areas, including the western half of the United States, Central and South America, Australia and sub-Saharan Africa.
Amount of Earth's land rendered unproductive by desertification annually: 52 million acres
Percentage of Earth land mass suffering desertification: 29%
The five leading causes of desertification: Overgrazing of livestock, over-cultivation of land, improper irrigation techniques, deforestation, prevention of reforestation
Primary contributing factor in all cases: Cattle production.

Rainforests

Estimated area of rainforest destroyed annually: 125,000 square miles.
Amount of meat imported in 1987 by US from Central and South America: 300 million pounds
Current rate of species extinction due to destruction of tropical rainforests and related habitats: 1,000/year
Amount of medicines available today that have been derived from plants: one-quarter
Leading cause of rainforest destruction in Central America: Cattle production
Amount of Central American rainforests cleared to create pastureland for cattle: 25%
Monetary value of 50 years harvest from one hectare of naturally occurring rainforest produce: $6,330
Monetary value of 50 years production of cattle ranching from one hectare of cleared and burned rainforest: $2,960

Carbon dioxide

Amount of global carbon dioxide emissions created by the burning of fossil fuels: two-thirds
Amount of fossil fuels burned to produce the beef currently eaten annually by the average US family of four: 200 gallons
Amount of carbon dioxide released in the atmosphere by burning 200 gallons of fossil fuels: 2 tons
Amount of carbon dioxide released in the atmosphere by the average American car in six months: 2.5 tons
Estimated atmospheric carbon dioxide released in the production of an average steak: The same as a 25-mile drive in a typical American car.
Amount of global carbon dioxide emissions created by the burning of biomass: one third
Amount of carbon dioxide released since 1970 from rainforest cleared and burned for cattle pasture: 1.4 billion tons

Water pollution

Production of excrement by US livestock: 230.000 pounds per second
Amount of waste created by 10.000-head feedlot: Equal to a city of 110.000 people
Amount of wells and surface streams in the US contaminated by agriculture pollutants: half
Water pollution attributable to US agriculture, including runoff of soil, pesticides and manure: greater than all municipal and industrial sources combined

Pesticides

Increase in overall pesticide use since 1945 (when petrochemical based agriculture became popular): 3300%
Increase in overall crop losses due to insects since 1945: 20%
Increase in the amount of pesticides applied per acre of corn since 1945: 100000%
Increase in corn crop losses since 1945: 400%
Amount of total herbicides used that are applied to corn and soybeans (primarily feed crops): 61%

Health

Calcium content in various foods (per 100g): Broccoli 246, Kale 74, Chickpeas 75, Soybeans 131, Sunflower seeds 40, Hazel nuts 60, Cow milk 28, Eggs 27, Cheese 100/350
Diseases linked to excess animal protein consumption: Osteoporosis and kidney disease
The average measurable bone loss of female meat-eaters at age 65: 35%
The average measurable bone loss of female vegetarians at age 65: 18%

Pesticides

Major source of pesticide residues in the western diet: meat, poultry and dairy products
Food most likely to cause cancer from herbicide residue: Beef
Number of slaughtered animals tested for toxic chemical residues: One in every quarter million
Amount of US non-vegetarian mother's milk with significant levels of DDT: 99%
Amount of US vegetarian mother's milk with significant levels of DDT: 8%

Antibiotics, Hormones and other Drugs

Amount of total antibiotics need in US that are fed on livestock: 55%
Staphylococci infections resistant to penicillin in 1960: 13%, in 1988 91%
Major contributing cause: The breeding of antibiotic resistant bacteria in factory farms due to routine feeding of antibiotics to livestock
Amount of US livestock and poultry receiving drugs during their lifetime: 80%
Amount of FDA (Federal Drug Administration) that failed to verify the data on the safety of new drugs used on animals to the General Accounting Office (US) : 54%
Effectiveness of the FDA data review process: highly questionable as it is made to detect fraud in reports on new drugs
Substances found in 63% to 86% of milk samples in 1991: Sulfa drugs, tetracycline and other antibiotics
Potential cancer-causing substances detected in recent years in the meat supply: choramphenicol, cabadox, nitrofurazone, dimitridazole, and ipronidazole

Sooooooooooo, it can be be concluded that as I ended up eating more dairy food on this diet that some of the benefits of me eating local food have been offset!

Basically then, the best diet environmentally (and probably also healthwise) is one where meat and dairy are minimised and where local, organic, in season food is consumed and ideally (for health as much as anything) in its least manufactured form.

So where do I go from here? Well, I think I will largely continue with eating UK foods, such as, jacket potatoes and mushy peas, maple peas and barley and homemade apple cake, which are a few of my favorites. But I will use olive oil and oat milk instead of the dairy (which didn't seem to agree with me anyway). I will continue eating organic, local and in season vegetables. Although I will not eat foods from abroad as a major part of my diet I will at times treat myself to some such food, for example, chocolate! In fact, I may just stay up till past midnight tonight to do just that!

The Centre for Alternative Technology

2009-02-22T09:01:00.000-08:00

Image of eco-cabins ~~robbed~~ recycled from CAT's website

This weekend, together with a bunch of cool people from Green and Away, I stopped in an eco-cabin at the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) in Wales.

The place is set in a beautiful wooded valley and the site itself is full of life, with trees and many plants growing up, and a lot of wildlife flying, scurrying, croaking and clucking around. This in itself is quite surprising considering the majority of the site evolved atop a slag heap of waste material from a slate mine!

What is most inspiring about the place is that it has been created by a bunch of committed people, containing many specialists in their field, who find out about or invent technology that may help people live sustainably, build it, try it out and see what works. They then share the knowledge that they gain and train others in using it.

This has resulted in a lush site full of many interesting things: living and working spaces that are beautiful, energy efficient and built in sustainable ways; pollution-free ways of powering everything such as microhydro, wind power and the like; sand filtered water from a reservoir; organic food and herb gardens; amazing ways of treating waste, such as reed beds for a very ornate and healthy way of treating sewage; and many other things. The site works so well that they are actually net exporters of power, providing the rest of the electric grid with more energy. Neither do they require mains water or any help dealing with sewerage. They started out with very, very little money too.

It is quite amazing to see what is possible. Often we live in dull buildings in ugly cities, that are hugely inefficient, very polluting, isolating, harmful to life and just generally not that pleasant to live in. But we could be living in such beautiful places within a happy, supportive community where life could thrive, oh, and accidentally save the world¹ while doing it!

¹ humans' place in the world

It's ok, let's talk

2009-02-12T09:30:00.000-08:00

(Coldplay - Talk)

Talking openly and honestly with someone you trust, where you don't judge but try to understand, where there is respect, empathy and truthfulness concerning feelings and intentions, can enable people and their relationships to flourish beyond what is often thought possible.

Often, however, that doesn't happen: we play emotional games, we act self-defensively and we generally act in ways that create strife. So, which are your favorite ways of causing rifts in relationships?! Mine are displacement and stonewalling, but there are many others to choose from...

Globalization: "Everybody Does That"
Blame-Shifting: "And you do the same thing but worse."
The Victim: "I'm so good to you, and you treat me so badly."
Gas-lighting: "I was just kidding; Can't you take a joke?"
Entitlement: "You are the one who made me angry; You deserve it."
Denial: "I'm not angry."
Displacement: "Just because you had a bad day at work, don't take it out on me."
Guilt: "I work my ass off to give you everything and you can't even make me some tea."
Shame/Blame: "You are a human slug; you never do anything."
Stonewalling: "This is the way I am, take it or leave it."
Projection: "You think I'm stupid, don't you?"
Devaluation: "You really could lose some of that extra weight."

Actually, I am not proud to have used any, and it hurts to see any used. I really strongly agree with Dr. Bill Cloke's article (from whence these came) that "To not defend ourselves, but instead hear what is being said, and then be able to express our understanding through acknowledgement will beat a box of chocolates any day" (Thanks to Sophie's blog on being open for bringing my attention to this quote). Deeply connected relationships are so important in life, so, so valuable. For these understanding and compassion are essential, and these require openness and honesty. It may be difficult to understand and accept another, to be open to their views, and their criticism, but the benefits that are gained from this make life worth living!

I also believe that only through healing rifts in our own personal lives can the healing of the larger rifts between communities and between nations be achieved.

I know I have just as much work to do here as anyone else and so I am most grateful to all those who spend the time to listen to me and to understand me, and I hope that I too can return this gift to others.

Happy Valentine's day! (And happy non-Valentine's days also!)

Happy Valentine's day, or not! (It all depends where you get your gold)

2009-02-10T12:27:00.000-08:00

"The production of one gold ring generates on average, 20 tons of mine waste. Gold mining has been linked to violent conflict, has displaced people off their lands and traditional livelihoods, and poisoned waterways with toxic chemicals" (Earthworks article)

But if you are a traditionalist (if indeed gold rings are traditional) all is not lost, because you can get responsibly sourced gold (the above site will probably tell you more)

Anyway, I now know why Mordor in the Lord of The Rings is so dark, why little grows and the inhabitants are angry and twisted - Sauron did not follow The Golden Rules set out by the No Dirty Gold campaign!

I can just imagine Sauron (or the Eye of Sauron) sat at his laptop in the depths of Mordor peering at the No Dirty Gold website reading "As an industry leader, you have a real opportunity to be at the leading edge of the jewelry industry when it comes assuring..."!

Just because you are paranoid...

2009-02-08T11:59:00.000-08:00

There is an expression that 'just because you are paranoid, it doesn't mean they are not watching you'. Well, this expression can be done away with because, paranoid or not, they are actually watching you!

An article in the Independent today stated that the government intelligence centre will store "names, addresses, telephone numbers, seat reservations, travel itineraries and credit card details for all 250 million journeys made in and out of the UK each year". This is added to the recording of "every phone call, email and internet visit made in the UK " that is already planned (Independent article), and the storing of innocent people's DNA (Liberty human rights website).

While a lot of people are concerned over this, rightly stating that it is a breach of personal privacy, others aren't. The argument is that if a person is not doing anything wrong, what have they got to fear. Well this is true, but the problem is the definition of 'wrong' changes. Once a government decided it was 'wrong' for Jews to exist, or those helping Jews to exist. A fair few governments think it is 'wrong' for political activists to exist, for human rights activists, women's rights activists or any other activists to exist. It also becomes so easy in a world full of fear of 'terrorists' to brand someone you don't like as such. In some countries I would be branded a terrorist for writing this blog. Now that you have read this blog you are now an associate of this terrorist and have been recorded as such in a central database.

So apparently it is being done for our safety, and maybe it is, I don't know. But just a brief look at history and a brief look at governments around the world should tell you that it isn't safe in the long term.

We are said to live in a democracy so I suggest we get more informed as to the issues (here is a start), that we inform others, and that we then make our choice be known and be acted on.

As always I welcome your comments.

PS. For a free audiobook of George Orwell's 1984, which is both a very interesting novel and a very powerful warning of what can happen with too much surveillance, click here.

Sustainable Eating Challenge Part III

2009-02-06T12:00:00.000-08:00

OK, so far it has been a bit of a roller coaster ride. The first day I was pretty ecstatic trying out new recipes, such as the spelt pancake with apple and honey, but when it came to trying out the split peas which I had in a stew in the evening things starting looking a bit bleak. The thought of only being able to eat split peas for a month is something I hope none of you have to consider!

However, things quickly started looking up again when my unleavened bread and my biscuits came out of the oven - I could do this thing! A day or so later things again were not looking good, the excitement of pancakes and biscuits had past and the reality of not being able to eat chocolate for the next few weeks had hit - the North of England sadly isn't known for its cocoa plantations!

Again though, things picked back up - I discovered an unlikely comfort food: mashed potatoes (and other vegetabls) with fried eggs. Quick to make and tasty, it makes all things well again! Added to this is the discovery that maple peas are actually really nice and that they go well with butter, barley and vegetables. My liking of apples has also increased, and today I found some British pears which will make a positive addition to the diet.

I also decided to get some yogurt today. I don't normally have much dairy, but as my diet is quite constricted I thought this would help give me more variety.

It has also been the case that I have had to buy more non-organic food than normal - it would seem that often organic food is imported whereas its non-organic counterpart is more easily available from this country.

NEWS JUST IN: While I have been writing this blog my carrot and honey cake has finished cooking and it has turned out beautifully. The need for chocolate has been staved off for another day! I can make this, one day at a time!

(Part I and Part II are here)

Connecting Through Food: Sustainable Eating Challenge Part II

2009-02-02T11:10:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I begin only eating food grown in the UK. (See original Mark's Sustainable Eating Challenge post).

I was feeling seriously concerned over the lack of UK foods available in the shops, but today things are looking much better. I have found a source of split peas, maple peas and marrowfat peas, all good sources of protein and all grown in the UK. The maple peas were a bit of a find, apparently parched peas made from maple peas is a local traditional dish - with the city I'm living in (Preston) being mentioned repeatedly in the places I was looking for information.

I have also now got UK grown spelt and rye flour. UK honey and UK barley malt.

So I am feeling really excited now, and there is this feeling of naturalness, of power, of connectedness. I have a strong feeling that over the next few weeks my roots are going to grow deep into the ground of where I am, powerful, thick, deep roots, like that of an oak, that is going to ground me and provide me with much nutrients and energy. It is amazing, feeling like this makes me wonder how people cope with eating international food all the time - it must make people, indeed has made me, kind of spread out, weaker, lacking a powerful connection. Well that is how I feel right now, it will be interesting to see how it goes, but wow I'm excited!

A few dishes I am looking forward to trying...

Split pea, barley and vegetable stew.
Unleavened honey rye bread.
Spelt pancakes with stewed apple and barley malt.

So much heaven, so much hell...

2009-01-30T15:47:00.000-08:00

(Faithless - Bombs)

"So much heaven, so much hell, so much love, so much pain
So much more than I thought this world could ever contain"

Many many times I see this, I feel this, it is as Echart Tolle says: "Things are getting worse and better at the same time, although the worse is more apparent because it makes so much ‘noise’"

When reading or thinking about things going on in the world my feeling can be so dramatic, and at times so opposed. On the one side I come across subjects that cause me much grief and despair: there are those who are developing more and more sophisticated ways of killing people (Wired for War); those who are damaging people's health in the pursuit of profit; there is the loss of much of beauty in the world; there are those that through their ignorance hurt others so badly, that through maliciousness can destroy lives; and such like.

On the other hand there are those things that give me so much joy, that lift me up, that make me feel everything is alright: there are those developing a deep understanding of how to heal others, and freely sharing their work; there are days with friends when we all share in many ways; there are times with my niece, who shows an intelligence and innocence of being that adults could learn from; their are those developing new, sustainable, loving ways of living; there are those who are waking up spiritually, are looking at the world through fresh and compassionate eyes; and there are those moments that awareness and peace descends, being felt in the soft rain, or in the streetlights reflecting off the pavement, or the sound of birds singing in the dark.

So much heaven,
So much hell,
So much love,
So much pain.

It is hard sometimes, the problems can seem so large, so beyond our power to change. But they are not, they can never be. As ever, the words of Gandhi speak to me:

"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall — think of it, always."

Mark's Sustainable Eating Challenge

2009-01-29T12:52:00.000-08:00

The challenge:

To eat nothing but food grown in the UK.

Additional factors:

Vegetarianism and limiting dairy, eating organic.

Length of challenge:

Four weeks.

As part of my uni course we have a nutrition module, as part of that we have to put ourselves on a diet. For mine I chose this. I believe learning to live locally is the only sustainable way of living right now and will be the only way of maintaining a secure food supply in the future. However, a large part of the food I eat is from abroad. In the last two days I have eaten food from the UK, Turkey, Swaziland, Spain, Germany, Canada, Italy, Holland, the Dominican Republic and many other countries that were not listed on the food - and this is the norm, or even better than the norm as I do already get all my vegetables locally.

I am really excited about undertaking this challenge, although after looking around my local health food shop and my local supermarket I realise it will not be easy as very, very few of the foods that I looked at were from the UK. I have a good supply of vegetables, as I am a member of an organic box scheme that delivers organic vegetables to me weekly that are all grown in the UK (Abel & Cole), but other than that it will be a real challenge.

I should be reasonably ok with getting grains, as wheat, barley and oats are grown here, but getting enough proteins will be difficult - so far all I have found is local organic eggs. My normal sources of protein such as lentils, chickpeas and many nuts and seeds are all imported and I am yet to find UK equivalents. I will of course have to cook most things from scratch and will not be able to buy snacks or anything like that as all of these food items contain ingredients from various countries, often with them not being listed.

I start next Tuesday and I will keep you updated as to how I'm doing. If you know of any good UK food or have useful recipes please let me know, I need all the help I can get!!

Where the TV Should Go

2009-01-27T10:42:00.000-08:00

In five months I will leave the uni I am at behind and so with it the student house I now occupy. This means that at the moment our landlord keeps showing triplets of little students around.

So today as I was chopping vegetables in the kitchen I heard a voice from the other room:

"That is where the TV should go"

Amazing! The student didn't say "that is where a TV COULD go", it was definitely "that is where the TV SHOULD go". As if there was a TV shaped hole in the universe that quite obviously needed filling, that the idea of it not being filled was something that could not be comprehended. The universe would be right again when the TV was properly instated.

Wow!

In the words of Einstein: "A question that sometimes drives me hazy: am I or are the others crazy?"

Anyway, walking back up to my room, soup simmering nicely, it occurred to me I could do a little product placement in my own house, see if I could influence the subconscious of all the visitors! I put some extra herbs on top of my soup so the house smelled nicely of herbs and good food cooking, rearranged my organic veg box so the name and the 'organic' showed, positioned some good books so the titles could be seen, had some of my camping equipment partially on show so it would give the impression of activeness, had the title of my blog up on my laptop. If I had had more time I could have made posters with subtle subconscious cues in them, hey I could even have had music playing with very subtle background words. Ah but I must resist the dark side!

But after all it wouldn't work - we have no TV! All I would do would be clouded by that aberration of nature!

Medicine, Money, Malaria and You!

2009-01-26T05:46:00.001-08:00

The production and supply of pharmaceutical products is an entirely commercial venture, or in other words, your medicine is supplied by those who have to put profit before social and environmental costs. In the words of the Director of Roche in Korea "We are not in business to save lives, but to make money. Saving lives is not our business."

I have discussed before the problem of pharmaceutical companies manipulating the medical profession in order to make money (see here), but in this post I will address the issue of the provision of health care, of who gets treatment and who doesn't, of who lives and who dies.

In an article in the Independent today it was stated that the weak value of the pound could lead to a shortage of drugs in the UK as imports become less profitable and exports more profitable (see article). Basically, you may not get the medicines you need on time because the money market dictated otherwise. This situation is, however, a very positive one compared to how it is in some other countries or how it could be here in the future.

I first became aware of this problem a few years back, about the time I was becoming interested in studying herbal medicine, when I went to a seminar on using natural medicines in the tropics. The seminar was run by an amazing charity call Anamed (www.anamed.net), whose basic aim is to educate people who may not have access to medicines, such as in parts of Africa, to be able to treat common conditions, such as malaria, effectively with herbs. It was when reading up on the information for this seminar that I found out about the problems concerning the provision of medical treatment and realised how they might apply to Western countries in the future.

In parts of Africa the reasons for the lack of medicines can be many, though mainly it comes down to money. Often drugs are simply not affordable. In some cases where a person can buy the drugs even simple medication may cost a month's wage. In other cases it is the problem of infrastructure that makes drugs inaccessible - health centers are too far away, roads are too poor, deliveries can't get through. So what is done? well, a lot do the only thing that can be done: die. They may die of a serious case of malaria, or they may just die of diarrhoea. So this is where Anamed comes in - teaching simple things like oral rehydration solution for diarrhoea, herbs for malaria (Artemisia annua) and other things.

The question of poverty in Africa is a topic for a different post, but I will look here at how it relates to a specific case, that of malaria. Artemesinin is (in combination with a few other medicines) the leading drug for the treatment of malaria and it is currently extracted from the plant Artemisia annua. It is grown in huge plantations in some African countries, is purchased by pharmaceutical companies at a very low price, it is shipped over to America or a European country, the artemesinin is extracted and then sold back to the African country at a price most people can't afford - so people die. Where the drug is purchased by those rich enough, the money goes back to the pharmaceutical company, meaning the African country gets poorer. The actual herb Artemisia annua can be drunk as a tea to treat malaria and is just as effective as the drug, though taking slightly longer to have its effect.

So anyway, drugs become scarce if a country becomes poor or the infrastructure breaks down, and pharmaceutical corporations follow where the money leads. Who is to say that our country will always stay rich and function smoothly? When you consider the far reaching effects of financial instability (which is likely to increase in the long term) and the looming problems of both the energy crisis and climate change it seems wishful to think that we are immune to these problems. Pharmaceutical companies are no more stable than other industries, such as the automotive industry, or the money grabbing industry. So as things can't or won't stay the same, and as millions are already dying due to the lack of health care, what needs to happen?

Take the money out of medicine

Pharmaceutical corporations should not be allowed to profit from what they do, health should not correlate with your pay packet, essential medicine should be freely available to all whether an individual has money or not. An option may be nationalising the pharmaceutical industry with the development and production of drugs being paid for by the government. This would be easily funded by the savings gained from the NHS not having to buy drugs from pharmaceutical companies and by the profits from the sale of non-essential over-the-counter drugs. Knowledge of how to manufacture the drugs could be freely shared between countries further increasing benefit. Or maybe there is some other scheme that would work, but however it is done it should not be a profit making business. If this was done it would also have the following benefits:

Doctors would have less bias information on the effectiveness of drugs.
Research showing harmful effects of drugs would not be hidden.
More holistic drugs could be researched (pharmaceutical companies don't want people too healthy, it is bad for business).
Drugs would be freely accessible to all.
Drug supply would be more stable.
Government money would provide more medicine instead of making a few rich.
Effective alternative treatments would not be suppressed.

Increase the use of natural medicines

They can be produced where ever in the world you are.
They are cheap.
They have been shown to be effective (Artemisia annua can effectively treat malaria, with treatment only lasting a couple more days than treatment with Artemisinin).
People could easily treat themselves for minor complaints, therefore reducing the pressure on the NHS.
They have limited side-effects and are generally more safe.
They can help the local economy when produced and used locally.
They are much more environmentally sustainable.
Focusing on a more holistic approach to health would mean less people getting ill in the first place.

As always your comments are welcome.

Time monster

2009-01-24T07:54:00.000-08:00

Recently I am forced to postulate the existence of a new creature. It is quite a large creature, just a little smaller than your average cow, although it manages to fit into fairly small spaces such as a person's bedroom. It manages to remain quite hidden, but if you could see it, you would see it is quite stocky, like a softer and more flabby hippopotamus, and has a long snout that flares at the end, a bit like an aardvarks snout, but much bigger.

The reason why I'm convinced of its existence is that there is one following me around; I know this because it is using its snout to suck up time, my time. This animal that we are dealing with is in fact a Time Monster (Monasteriense vicis). I do not believe this is an unusual case either, you too may be a victim.

I believe our uni library may be a breading ground for these creatures: you walk in there in search of a few books and several hours get sucked up, leaving you wondering home in the dark, feeling slightly dazed and a little sick with only a handful of books to account for your time. It would seem these animals will follow a person back to their place of residence where they will make themselves quite comfortable in the person's room. It would appear that here they can make night time pass more quickly, meaning you have to sleep for longer and wake up late. They seem technology savvy and can manipulate computers to their advantage, with them being so familiar with the Internet as to make me consider whether part of their existence is in fact a part of cyberspace.

There is though one place were these creature appear not to be able to tread...

A place where time is felt in its entirety...

Lectures!

If only I could train these animals!

Not One Death

2009-01-22T13:23:00.001-08:00

Not One Death

Not one death is acceptable,
Not one civilian casualty.
Not one dead child in a father's arms,
Not one freaked child at a dead mother's side,
Not one man left lying in a street,
Not one emaciated corpse thrown in a hole.
Not sad but unavoidable,
Not acceptable.

.

Sleep deprived with aching body and raw fingers, but very happy!

2009-01-21T10:40:00.000-08:00

So it all started at midday Friday. Half way through my meditation session my phone goes, I answer, it's Tim: do I want to go climbing? yes!

I leave my meditation, grab my harness and climbing shoes and head off to the pub where we are meeting and having a bite too eat first.

Tim and Meg have already finished eating by the time I get there, but they dutifully watch me munching through my (free) veggie-burger and chips. We chat for a little while, with music videos shining down on us from the walls in the dark, relaxed Adephi pub.

Tim drives us over to the leisure centre with the inside climbing walls, and Meg signs a form making her responsible for my life and death, so that I can get in. The entrance area is warm and smells of chlorine, but we walk through some double doors into a spacious hall where the air is fresher and full of life. On all the walls going up to the tall ceiling are huge fake rock faces with ropes trailing up them and smaller rock faces with thick cushioned mats underneath them. We put our climbing shoes on, I take mine off again, remove my socks, then strap myself back in - lots of little customs to learn in this new world.

We warm up by climbing the smaller walls with the padded floor: that's fun, scaling up the fake rocks feeling like a monkey, then falling or jumping back down onto the very compassionate flooring. Tim and Meg are very good at this, flowing up the difficult walls gracefully, I... well... give me time!

After this we strap ourselves into our harnesses and tie ourselves on to ropes. The bigger walls await. This is fun, but there is nothing like being suspended by a rope a distance from the floor, trying to get a firm grip on the next handhold to make you realise the importance of strong arms - I made myself a commitment to get my weights out again! It tests your faith also - letting go of a wall high above an unsympathetic floor, when your comparatively little friend (I'm about 2 meters tall) is the only person on the other end of the rope, isn't the most natural thing to do, but still, she said it would be fine, and indeed it was. Meg did not go shooting into the air as I shot towards the ground, indeed, it was quite a leisurely backwards stroll to the floor. I however, did send Tim shooting towards the floor when it was my turn on the other end of the rope, for some reason I though that was what he would want, it didn't occur to me that he had no idea he was flying towards the floor because I was controlling it that way or because I was out of control, but I slowed him before he and the floor got to know each other too much and apologised for my rather large mistake!

A bit more climbing later and it was time to go, my hands worse-for-wear and my upper body muscles fatigued. We headed around to our different houses to collect the gear we would need for the following day, stopped of at the supermarket to stock up with food, and then off to Meg's house where Tim and Meg cooked us a tasty Moroccan dish. After munch Tim taught us how to read the details on maps, to take grid references, and take bearings. After sitting cross-legged in a quiet corridor with map and compass in my lap I finally managed to figure out in my head what was going on with all these difference Norths (true north, grid north, magnetic north) and what this meant for not getting lost. A relaxed evening chatting and watching cartoons later and it was time for bed. My sleep patterns were messed up so I lay awake in my sleeping bag most the night reading 'The God of Small Things' - I really good book that is amazingly difficult to describe!

We woke up early in the morning and the sun was shining - not quite living up to the 'severe weather warnings' of the forecasters. No worries, breakfast of eggs, beans and toast, a quick shower and a packing of bags and we are off to Anonymous-friend-who-lives-in-the-hills' place. Still sunny.

At Anonymous-friend-who-lives-in-the-hills' beautiful house in the hills we drink tea and look at maps. Anonymous-friend-who-lives-in-the-hills' sister arrives and off we go. The weather is cold and very windy now, no worries, warm and windproof clothes and my neck warmer sorts that and we begin, maps and compasses at the ready.

Walking up the road towards where we will get on to the moors Tim tells us how to count our paces to measure distances. Mine are about 54 paces to every 100m. The map tells us it is 500m to the next pub so we try it out...

1,2,3,4,5,6... hmmm the sun's nice ...33,34,35,36... I'll take my hat off ...50,51,52,53,54 100m! 1,2,3,4... why do these cars think we shouldn't be on the road ...44,45,46,47... there is the wall, the map is trustworthy ...53,53,54 300m, or was it 400m? 1,2,3,4,5... definitely 300 ...20,21,22,23... my paces are shorter, should add more to make up ...54,55,56,57,58,59,60 400m ...33,34,35... its windy, my hair is in my face, nice though ...52,53,54 500m! Yeah sweet pretty much by the pub. Not the most well looked after pub in the world that, it looks like it had be left on the bottom of a scummy lake for a millennium before being lifted out, dumped at the side of the road, and left to dry. But no worries, we have food, we carry on walking, I keep counting, 150m 'til the path we need.

Well the path wasn't obvious, but the counting meant we knew where it should be. We climbed the fence that had been inconsiderately been built across it and carried on. On the moors now, with the strange grass, and the spiky plant with flammable sponge inside that I have no name for, Anonymous-friend-who-lives-in-the-hills has a possible name for it, but I forget. Burnt patches of moorland are here too: they have strange moss and lichen growing on them, vast empires of tropical rainforest no more that a centimeter high, an ant's paradise.

Now it is time to look at maps, we look at the surroundings, look at maps again, put compasses on maps, line up where we want to go, set compasses to grid north, alter compasses to magnetic north, chanting the magic words 'grid to mag add, mag to grid get rid'. We're set, the compass points the way, we pick out land features and walk. And walk, and stop, and stare and walk again. Chat and wonder, and amble and joke and breath fresh air! And feel hungry. We head towards some rocks and find a spot out of the wind, hemmed in by the rock, a spot popular with the sheep. Out comes the stove and soup, out comes the tea, the hot chocolate, the bread, the snacks: all made twice as nice by the walk, the scenery, the company and the warmth on a cold day.

We finish eating and I step from out of the rock shelter and the wind hits me, not just the wind but snow as well. Great! I jump around on rocks a bit, then get packed to move. We head back, it's probably not best to go on, some are too cold and it is still a fair walk.

We head towards a reservoir, hats down, neck warmers up to nose, brightly colour ninjas, flying over heather. Or stomping through heather, tall heath, with hidden holes and streams. Falling, laughing, stomping, down towards the reservoir.

We are back to the road. It is a shame to walk on a road with countryside about, but it is the best option. I practice counting!

1,2,3,4,5... hmmm, hard to talk while my mind is counting, hard to use the vocal part of my brain for two things at once ...27,28,29,30... how about I set my mind counting in the visual part of it ...41,42,43,44 [seeing the numbers in my head, more than hearing] 45,46... difficult, not quite there ...51,52,53,54... hmmm, the one hundred could be a picture too ...100m [larger, in red, to the side of the picture of counting numbers in my head] 1,2,3,4... this will need practice, but how amazing if my mind could do it automatically, I could be talking, doing other things, and occasionally look back at the pictures in my mind to see how far I had come, will need a lot of practice though!

We are back to the car park, nearby is a strange dome with round window holes and a globe that reflects all. It immediately becomes one of my favorite random installations. Pictures are taken.

Back to Anonymous-friend-who-lives-in-the-hills' house where she prepares us a bean stew with dumplings. We lounge around sipping wine, with me dozing slightly, feeling very hungry with the smells from the kitchen. Jessie the cat sniffs my hand then enjoys a bit of petting before going to eat. We have a bit of an effort at a sudoku puzzle, but give up, too tired. Music is playing, we are relaxing.

Food is ready! Yum! Thank you very much Anonymous-friend-who-lives-in-the-hills!

Its time to go, sad but true.

We drive through the dark: weary, achy, happy

Nature helps you think - it's official!

2009-01-20T11:53:00.000-08:00

Taking a stroll through nature can significantly improve cognitive function compared to walking in a city, according to a recent study (article - Natural Thinking).

But why bother studying it, is it not just obvious to anyone who has ever walked through the wonders of nature, or do we need studies now before we can contemplate such a thing?

"Shall I spend another five hours in front of the TV, or shall I go for a stroll through the woods?"
"Well you'd improve your cognitive function by over 20% if you did walk"
"OK I'll do it! It will help me understand the complex story lines going on in Coronation Street"

Walking in nature is good also because there is lots of, er, nature. For me that is enough, anything else is just a bonus!

The weekend just gone I had a really good 20% improvement in cognitive function. You will be able to read all about it shortly, but I advise that you don't: switch your computer off, strap on your walking boots and stroll! :-)

Who would have thought staring at a wall could be so nice!

2009-01-13T09:32:00.000-08:00

I light a candle.
I light some incense.
I give my respects to the universe.
I sit, half-lotus, facing the wall.
My eyes are open, my gaze softened.
I bow.
My hands rest loosely in my lap,
I am aware of my body,
Of the room,
Of me just sitting,
Peaceful.
My mind makes noise.
I notice the noise.
I am aware.
I just sit.
Peaceful.
My mind wanders,
I think of things,
I am lost in thought,
Lost to the peace.
I notice,
I am back,
Here,
Now.
Peaceful.
My breathing soft.
Aware.
Peaceful.
Beginnings of thoughts arise,
But pass.
Peaceful.
A thought arises, it takes me,
I think of my next blog post,
I think of this,
I think, i feel enjoyment,
But peace has gone.
I notice.
I am back.
Peaceful.
Beginnings of thoughts arise,
But pass.
Peace...
My alarm goes.
I stand,
Bow,
Blow out the candle,
Wander down stairs
And make soup,
Planning this blog,
Thinking of essays,
Occasionally glimpsing
Peace.
Always there.
Waiting.

Greenpeace - genius!

2009-01-13T07:11:00.000-08:00

Some of you may of heard of a proposed new runway for Heathrow airport (London, UK). The one that is likely to be accepted by the government this week, at a time when we have a choice between decreasing CO2 emissions or dying.

Well, Greenpeace has just purchased a plot of land right in the middle of the proposed site!

Newspaper article
Greenpeace Airplot website

He he he! Genius! Greenpeace, you have made me very happy today!

Detoxes Dont Work, In Skeptisism We Trust

2009-01-10T17:42:00.000-08:00

DETOXES DON'T WORK

A common headline at this time of year.

This is generally said by a scientist of the evangelical skepticist type. Or by one of their disciples.

Of course they say this strutting along with their heads held high in the knowledge that they alone are saved from the fiery pits of superstition and are living in the kingdom of true and everlasting knowledge.

But as is often the case with those who state absolutes, their absoluteness makes them wrong.

In science there is not The Truth, there are only competing bodies of evidence. I have read evidence supporting some types of detox (fasting), no doubt the skeptics have some evidence that shows some types don't work, probably, or maybe not, some scientists are just as religious as the rest of us: once they have formed a set of beliefs they will dismiss or fight alternative beliefs and will criticise perfectly valid research. Once the scientific / medical world ridiculed the idea that washing hands before performing a medical procedure was a good idea!

OK, actually I want to make something clear, science is good and useful, it is dogmatic belief which is not. Science done properly is a remedy against dogmatic belief: if evidence comes to light that contradicts your beliefs you should take that evidence seriously and question your beliefs. Sadly in practice this isn't always done, instead evidence that contradicts beliefs is treated harshly while evidence that supports those same beliefs is warmly accepted no questions asked.

So anyway, if lots of people feel better after doing a detox it is no good going up to them, slapping them in the face and telling them to stop feeling good because actually their liver was doing a good enough job of detoxing them anyway. OK, the word detox is very poorly defined, and the money addicts are of course cashing in on this as much as anything else, but the statement 'Detoxes don't work' is wrong. Saying some detoxes or detox products don't work may very well be true, but for some people some types of detox do have a positive effect - or so I believe anyway!

Nothing happening

2009-01-10T16:51:00.001-08:00

Today there is nothing to report.
Nothing is happening, anywhere.
People may stay in bed or wander about as they wish.
Food will be available to those who want it,
disease has been temporarily suspended.
The weather will be warm with a light breeze.

Enjoy

Feeding wolves

2009-01-09T06:48:00.000-08:00

Hi, I recieved this story in my inbox from ooffoo yesterday and really liking it decided to share it...

There's a wonderful story that has been attributed to the Native American Cherokee Indians. The story is about a boy who tells his grandfather that he is feeling very angry and upset. The grandfather explains to the boy that he too sometimes feels angry but also he often feels very happy. The grandfather says it is as if there are two wolves battling inside him. One is very angry, aggressive and acts out of fear. This wolf wants to fight all the time. The other wolf is happy, playful, and only wants to make friends and live in peace. But the two wolves are constantly battling inside. The little boy asks: which wolf wins?

And the grandfather replies: 'the one I feed'

Doctor good, pharma bad?

2009-01-08T08:29:00.000-08:00

I know a fair few medical doctors (including four of my own relatives) and without exception all are very good people and very skilled: they are kind and caring, wish the best for others having dedicated their lives to serving others and have undergone extensive and difficult training. How then did they end up with such jerks as pharmaceutical companies? It is like a beautiful, caring, intelligent woman ending up in a relationship with an ugly, twisted, malicious monster!

I'm sure there are nice people working in pharmaceutical companies - in my more sceptical moments I think they just wondered in by mistake and couldn't find the exit, but I'm sure they are there, fervently trying to design a new drug to save the lives of those around them. BUT THEN THERE IS THIS:

"We are not in business to save lives, but to make money. Saving lives is not our business." (Director of Roche in Korea when challenged about providing AIDS drugs to those who couldn't afford them) (article)

"Disease mongering" - Pharmaceutical companies undertaking marketing to convince healthy people they are sick and to make people think mild diseases are more serious (BMJ article)

Pharmaceutical companies trying to bribe governments into allowing their products to be used - even if the science says they are no good (Guardian article)

Pharmaceutical companies ghost writing research to make it look unbiased (journal article) or forcing researchers not to mention harmful effects of drugs (article).

Adverse drug reactions killing over 100,000 people a year in the US (Lancet article) with serious side effects of drug affecting many many more.

Basically, when doctors get a large amount of their information about drugs from drug reps; when training or research centers can be under the pay of pharmaceutical companies; when research and clinical trials contain, for many different reasons, bias; when all other alternatives are suppressed; when pharmaceutical products can involve hidden (or overt) harms: where does that leave medicine?

On the plus side however, I really believe that if pharmaceutical companies' money making motives were removed, the doctor's art and the amazing advances of biomedicine that have been made would loose their tarnish and medicine would really shine again.

As always, your comments are welcome.

Ok, so here goes - death, destruction and rebirth

2009-01-06T10:27:00.000-08:00

OK, so here is an issue that I have to address, but it is not an easy one. Those of you who know me will probably have heard me mention these things before because sometimes it just comes out! Still, they are not issues I like to address because it involves human suffering. Still, no harm in starting it off with a cartoon...!

Ok - so it will get positive towards the end, but first, a journey through hell...

So widespread job loss, devaluation of currency, people losing their homes, people going cold and hungry - bad yes? See, this is where it gets difficult, because from much reading, from listening to talks and having discussions I can't help but think that how ever bad that might be, it is possibly better than the main alternative. (There is a third option, a difficult one, but it is there, difficult, but possible). Let me explain.

Economic downturn is causing many problems, however it has some positives: CO2 emissions are set to drop as industry declines (Article - Slump Means EU Industry Carbon Caps No Longer Bite). It is essential that CO2 emissions drop as we are now reaching the point where climate change spirals out of control (Cartoon - Wake Up, Freak Out - then Get a Grip), however, industry is dragging its feet because making proper (real, effective) changes would in the short term damage profits. Is, therefore, a major recession the only way to make them change? I hope not, because who could? Who could wish mass job losses and mass homelessness - no one!

And yet if real changes aren't made - and we are talking big changes, major lifestyle, social, political changes - the alternative is so much worse. If climate change continues to worsen and ecosystems (including the soil which grows our food) continue to die humans die too. Estimates have been made as to how many people would survive, different estimates have been made, the most generous I have found is 1.7 billion people surviving, the worst is 100-300 million people surviving (Article - The Silence of the Greens). There are currently 6.8 billion people alive on this planet. If serious positive changes aren't made 3 out of every 4 people dead by the most generous estimates, 59 out of every 60 dead by the worst estimates. Of course all these people would not die instantaneously, I'm guessing it would be over the next 50 to 100 year. I can't even begin to imagine what that would be like, those are just numbers to me, but if I imagine what that means in terms of my family and friends - this is not a pleasant subject. This isn't something that will happen in the future, it has already started: global food supplies are very low and the number of malnourished people is just about to cross the 1 billion point (Article - Food Crisis Could Worsen Next Year).

So things are going to change and are going to do so with or without our will with either industry continuing and the environment dieing or industry dieing and the environment and people not dieing as much.

OR

The third option, thankfull a third option: we stop fighting (personally and globally), we stop dragging our feet, we get to know our neighbours and our local community, we create loving supportive relationships, we develop a joy in living that is independent of what we own, we help each other learn and develop, we learn how to live sustainably, we develop new skills to help ourselves do this and we share them, we reassess what we really need and stop using what we don't need, we buy local organic food, we leave jobs that cause environmental damage and create life-sustaining jobs, we use less energy, start living together in communities so as to use less energy as a whole, we stop buying stuff, we stop most driving and flying, and more. Only two things are needed to do this...

We have to want to change
and
realise that it is not a sacrifice but
that there is much joy in it.

Really - imagine what it would be like living surrounded by your best friends every day, living in beautiful surroundings, having stress free and worthwhile jobs, being safe in the knowledge that violence has all but ceased, to know you are doing right, to feel love more, to feel connected - it is ours if we want it!

Thank you for listening and please leave comments, I need both your support and disagreements in this! Mark

Harvard referencing for pubs

2009-01-05T08:06:00.000-08:00

As many readers are no doubt aware, vast quantities of insightful information is often obtained whilst in a pub. Sadly however, this information is generally not regarded as reaching high academic standards and often information is not properly attributed to rightful author (often being just vaguely attributed to 'the lads'). In order to clear up confusion and to reinstate pub gained information to its rightful place the current author has produced the following suggestions as to how the Harvard referencing system could be used for benefit.

Referencing one author (male)

Important information to include is the author, the year it was said, the title of the revelation, the pub where it was stated, and the amount of alcohol the author had consumed. An example follows.

In text reference:
My mate Bob (2006) said that the government is making cows fart more to stop global warming

End text reference:
Bob (2006) You know wot mate, wot that them gover, govermunt doin bout clum clum climate thingy. Queen's Head pub: 7 Pints

Referencing two authors (male)

This is done in the same way as above, but including both authors

In text reference:
Last week I was having a drink with my mates and they said that immigrants are stealing all the trees (Bob and Shad, 2007)

End text reference:
Bob and Shad (2007) Them bluddy foreigners. The King's Arms Pub: 6 pints, 7 shots of Whiskey (total)

Referencing more that two authors

Often the knowledge gained at a pub will be the result of the efforts of several person and much alcohol. Often it is not clear who was actually present at the time and so for referencing this type of information the expression 'the lads' can be used instead of names. An example will be given

In text reference:
I was down the pub last week and the lads (2008) decided that football would solve world hunger because everyone would stop fighting and eat more hot dogs.

End text reference:
The lads (2008) Did you see the match? The Harvester pub: 17 pints (total)

Referencing female authors

Although times are changing, women, though often admired and talked about, can often not be included in conversation in a typical pub and lager environment. They can be included at times through them being in a relationship with one of 'the lads' present. An example of how they are referenced is given below.

In text reference:
Although some present reckoned that America should declare war on all Muslim countries my mate Bob's missus said that that is was a really stupid idea showing both needless cruelty, a lack of understand and respect for different cultures, and an emotional and mental intelligence of an angry wasp

End text reference:
Bob's missus (2008) Bob you're drunk and you're talking crap. The dog and Bear pub: 1 glass of white wine

Secondary referencing

Although often cited as a reliable source, being often revered as the fount of absolute knowledge, the Daily Mail (often referred to as just 'The Mail') is about as reliable as the average drunk person and by being quoted by a drunk person it is often distorted even further; time and effort is saved by merely referencing the drunk. An example is given below.

In text reference:
It must be true that Britain is being destroyed by allowing all these foreign doctors and nurses into the country, i read it in the mail (cited by Mat, 2006)

End text reference:
Mat (2006) I don't trust the lot of them. The Curry House: 5 pints, 3 whiskeys and five bottles of some strange fluorescent blue stuff.

A final note from the author

If you have any suggestions in the furthering of this important cause, please do not hesitate to leave a comment below. It is the sincerest wish of the author that information gained from 'the lads' or from 'my mate bob wot knows this stuff' receives the full attention it is worth. It is left to the reader to decide how much that is.

Mark

Woo! Go beaver!

2009-01-03T14:41:00.000-08:00

A beaver has escaped, built a home and started work on a dam (times article). Even when some idiots are invading the Gaza strip I can be happy! (Though should I be?!)

But back to beavers - they apparently help clean rivers of pollutants as well as being so cool!

A quick note to the inhabitants of earth...

2009-01-03T05:10:00.000-08:00

To those running businesses and corporations: agree to serious CO2 reductions and find new ways of continuing your business in a healthy way because, as many of you seem yet to have realised, YOU CAN'T MAKE MONEY IF YOU ARE DEAD AND THE WORLD AROUND YOU IS DEAD, YOU IDIOTS!

To those thinking corporations are to blame and politicians should step in: YOU BUY THIS SHIT THAT CORPORATIONS SPEW OUT, where do you think your iPod comes from; your car; your new laptop; your new speakers; your new clothes; the plane you flew abroad in; your new electric toothbrush; the servers that support all your online avatars; your new accessories; all that meat you are eating; your processed food and its packaging; that new clock that looks oh-so-good in your newly decorated kitchen; your new carpets and furniture; your updated appliances, because wouldn't life be easier if your iron heated up quicker and the kettle kept itself warm; your new mobile with new bouncing tv around the globe technology; the technology, factories and transport systems that support all the above. WAKE UP AND STOP KIDDING YOURSELF THAT BECAUSE YOU RECYCLE, HAVE BROUGHT AN ORGANIC TOP AND RESISTED HAVING TWO NEW PHONES A YEAR INSTEAD OF ONE THAT YOU ARE DOING YOUR BIT!

Ok, ok, so I am wrong to shout, it is most understandable that the majority of people have gone down this route, it was seen as the way to progress, the way to happiness, the way to health, the way to respect from your peers. I know me shouting is likely to polarise the alternate views even further, that views become more entrenched with people defensively protecting their views and ways of being, so I apologise and I ask you to recognised it is because of the frustration I feel and the threat I perceive to what I hold dear that arouses my anger.

Thank you for listening and I welcome your comments

Mark

Do we have ideas, or do ideas have us?

2009-01-02T13:33:00.000-08:00

Right, we obviously like to think that humans are the center of the universe, much like thinking the sun and the planets, indeed the whole universe, rotates around OUR planet, but here is a little problem that has just occurred to me: ideas seem bigger and more dominant than humans, with humans just forming little parts of an idea. Let me explain...

When we are born we largely inherit beliefs of our parents, for example, if your parents happen to believe in creation as opposed to evolution you will likely do the same. So the idea was inherited, you didn't create the idea, you were born into it. Beliefs like this are also self-sustaining, controlling your interpretation of evidence: if you believe in creation you are likely to dismiss evidence for evolution and visa versa. Now add this to the fact that often ideas control how people live their lives and you have to start asking who is the boss!

An idea may be formed of millions of people, controlling all of them to an extent, might pass itself from one group of people to the next, have its individual participants develop and spread it, will resist its members transferring from one ideology to another.

Of course this doesn't just apply to religion but to all ideas, often with the bigger the idea the bigger its power. All is dependent on what information or ideas you come in contact with and often there is little choice - it depends on the community you were raised in and the media you come in contact with. It also seems very unlikely for anyone to know enough information to be able to choose for themselves and be unbias enough to choose freely between ideologies.

So which is bigger and more in control, our ideas or us that hold the ideas?

It would seem often it is the ideas; often, but not always.

It's mine and I own it!

2009-01-02T08:17:00.000-08:00

Hello and to those who choose to read my ponderings and rantings, welcome!

And how great, people can come and go, listen and ignore as they see fit, and no one will mind. I can rant and lecture at will without loosing friends!

Ah, so many opportunities to rant at things, it brings a sense of potentiality, openness, peace, so much so, I don't feel I need to rant right now. Instead I will sit in this happiness and watch the horizon, with the joy of what will come.