Yacht Eureka -- The sHipsbLog for the Whingin' Pom

2004-06-25T03:26:00.000-07:00

Oceanic Songline:
Somewhere in The Pacific

You know when you have been at the helm for too long because the globe of the compass becomes a crystal ball revealing your innermost secrets and desires, dreams and wonders. Telling you strange things; a story of two small vessels, deposed presidents, gifts not given, no teddy bears picnics (thanks to Linda), dolphins tame wild birds and all mannner of awe inspiring things.

We have rum through a whole gamut of feelings since being escorted out of Nauru, so near yet so far. Although our skipper Lance - an inspiration - put it so well in his message; "We lost but we won". Echoing the Eureka Stockade.

I felt for Keith the most as he has long standing friends in detention with whom he has corresponded. A call from a prominent QC has suggested that some of us may yet be able to return bearing gifts.

We are like a stone dropped into a still pond creating ripples long after we have disappeared from view; who knows ultimately what will result from this action, like the proverbial butterfly of chaos theory; the gentle breeze from its wings over China create a storm on the other side of the world.

We all feel it has been worthwhile and a success and quite amazing in what has manifested. Indeed some of us at times have felt the brush of other things, higher powers maybe, who knows?

Maybe others will see ordinary people taking action at injustice and will be moved to act as well. If we all picked one issue that burned at our hearts and acted in some way it would be a very powerful force indeed.

I believe that this action has gone beyond the old political paradigm of left and right and has embraced a broad coalition of interests, and has been a mirror to them. Something like the nascent stirrings of a new politics as has been suggested by Ken Wilber and others; integral politics.

Merging political activism with a diverse inner spirituality as predicted by the 8th century Buddhist Kalachakra Tantra; Shambhala Warriors - rainbow warriors of love and compassion. The world needs all of us latent Shambhala Warriors to recognise ourselves, to hear the call, the pain of Gaia, an ecology in distress, to raise our voices and be heard above the din of rampant unsustainable globalisation before it is too late. There is so much to do and so little time.

Rant over!
Basta!

love

joty

2004-06-12T15:21:00.000-07:00

Paradise with Malaria

Log 12 June 2004 - Santa Cruz - Solomon Islands

The triangular mass of a volcanic island heralds Santa Cruz - sacred cross - of the Solomon Islands. Behind us a black cloud stretches across the horizon that will eventually catch up with us as we enter the narrow strait.

The locals greet us from dug-out canoes (they can take up to two months to chop out) trading fruit, papaya, pineapple, ginger as well as fresh free range eggs. One wants batteries for his torch so that he can go fishing for coconut crabs.

In the shallows small shoals of fish all leap into the air to escape marauding bigger fish. We hoist our yellow quarantine flag and await customs as we are more off a C of E training school filled with lovely students that we have made deep and meaningful heart and soul connections with, it’s so beautiful here.

--------------------

I have been going through my fear barriers sailing, and I have pushed out of my comfort zones - transformational. There is also the emotional pressure cooker of living on top of each other and we all cleared the air this morning.

Yesterday I had a birthday I will never forget - Elliot brought the beautiful monks over - they dress in blue with a rosary of cowrie shells - to sing us songs from the shore, Lance got the sparklers out which we waved rock concert style as sang, it was so beautiful i nearly cried, but I am shedding tears now as I write home and write this... purification at a deep level.

This is an amazing voyage on an inner and an outer level, and I am currently overwhelmed with the love, beauty and wide smiles of the local people.

I will leave to others, Stav, Nerida, to describe other aspects of the voyage as they write so well. I am amazed at the other crew members of both vessels they are all too beautiful.

We leave tomorrow on the final leg to Nauru hopeful of 24 hour visas and we all know that whatever happens it will be amazing.

--------------------

For news about flotillas of Hope please visit:

www.flotilla2004.com

http://hopecaravan.com/discuss/viewforum.php?f=6 (Flotillas of Hope – News)

2004-05-29T04:13:00.000-07:00

A ROLLING CHUNDER

South Bellona Reefs - 500 nautical miles in 5 days Sand Cay - lat 1 47 20 long 159 33 20

Saturday 29 May

Red. Red. Red. The red glow of the compass burns into my retinas.
No stars, all the constellations are new to me the Southern Cross replace the Pole Star, or clouds to set my bearings by. All the muscles of my arms and shoulders burn and ache.

Standing at the helm at a 15 degree angle in lumpy seas, high winds of 20 knots plus, My right foot bearing all the pressure. We plunge headlong into the night under sail hitting 10 knots at its peak.

I look up from the compass, my world, and we are heading straight towards a menacing big black cloud, which is rearing ahead of us. Shit I think we are heading straight into a storm. Then I scan the horizon for other vessels and the storm cloud is everywhere I look, retinal afterimage. Relief.

Eureka is asleep except for me and the ocean. The ocean is empty. Emptiness. The deep blue. We are mere specks on the ocean. I understand why the ancients; the Greeks and the Romans posited sea gods.
Triton. Neptune. Vast uncontrollable energies.

The Australian 'Eureka Rebellion' Southern Cross Flag - a white cross with 5 white stars has now shredded and only 4 stars are left at the back of the boat.

Dawn. Stavros is flung from the wheel, panic, disaster, the steering cable has broken. We wallow in the choppy seas. Ruth and Lance are the heroes of the day diving into the bowels of the boat to fix it. Stav holding the rudder in place chunders, I replace him, I chunder, my first, sweat is dripping off all of us it is so hot. I wonder if we would have survived in those 10 meter waves Lance spoke about. Ruth and Lance fix it and we are on our way again, relieved. I chunder in the head, the toilet, I retch nothing comes up, I have barely eaten.

The second night out from Cape Morton is a different story. Continuous sailing, steering at the helm, sleeping, feeling queasy is how I fill my time. But this time Eureka is flying along, finely tuned like a thoroughbred horse. The wind and tides appear to be with us, I enter the 'zone' as I helm, I reach a deep place of meditation. It is beautiful, so different from the night before.

The waxing moon is half open close to the horizon; golden red like a crock of gold. It suddenly disappears behind a cloud. Cloud hidden, I am reminded of the Zen poetry of Ryokan.

The next day dawns fair. So far the sea and weather has been more like the English Channel but now the promise of the Tropics which Lance waxes lyrically about appears to have reached us.

On the journey glad news has reached us of Aladdin’s release and granting of an Australian visa, we cheer!
We also hear that the opposition on Nauru has gained control so hopes rise that we will be able to land after all.

We are nearing the end of the first leg of the journey; we will wait at the reef for One Off - providing they are not too long - before heading off for Santa Cruz.

joty

2004-05-24T02:31:00.000-07:00

24 May 2004 s

153.27 south/27.02 east Global Positioning Satellite Co-ordinates

We are on Moreton Cape anchored just off of Moreton Island, in the lee of a fishing trawler, so

3.06 pm message from Holly in America just in on the satellite phone 131 refugees released in 1 days!!!!!!

so when Ruth and Lance went for a swim in their birthday suits there was some concerns that the fish waste from the trawler would attract sharks.

Last night our anchor dragged and we were dangerously close to a warning pole.

Today dawned calm but a we bit cloudy, after today we head off into deep water and won't be anchoring again for a while.

Food wise we are well stocked at present, last night I made a broccoli salad, for breakfast Stav made grilled cheese tomato and onion on toast, and for lunch skipper Lance made a delicious stir-fry.

I was feeling a bit off and , real queasy and under the weather this morning, emotions running high, thinking of family and friends back home, reality biting, a come down from the adrenalin charged emotional bubble we have all been in. I also see this as a rite of passage and a big purification in this time of my life.

I feel very privileged to be on the Flotilla of Hope.

The send off was beautiful, lots of gifts and love as always. A cool teddy bear, signed and some cheeky comments that we will put behind us, from the lovely Brisbane uni media students Rebecca, Lily and Tess from Tas, they have really added something to our project joining us in Sydney at the beginning and being at the final send off in Brissie.

I got a lovely cake from Linda and the Byron crew, plus they sent crystals for all of the children in Nauru and for us.

Thank you everybody that has contributed to this project.

There is so much I could write but we have to conserve energy, although we have a generator to recharge them, on ONE OFF they have a 'rainbow' energy invertor to run their laptop off, on which they have navigation charts running off the GPS.

449 nautical miles to our first stopping point...
basta

2004-05-22T00:31:00.000-07:00

16 May 2004

‘Hope. We bring you hope.
In the dark of your despair
We still care for you.
And we’re here to let you know we’re here
And we won’t let the world forget about you.’
Joanna Leigh

Arrived in Newcastle around 4 am. Tired and a bit queasy.
Once again the sendoff was an emotional affair, again all the crew spoke. I spoke of the Eureka being this focus of so much love. I also ‘joined the dots’ and brought in the international aspect of fighting the common enemy of Bush, Blair and Howard.

We were blessed by a priest, a Pureland Buddhist chaplain, a Quaker and a young Islamic Iman and a young Islamic woman, those last two actually touched my heart the most; their Muslim community were standing around hands cupped around their hearts, as he recited the Koran and stumbled slightly in his pronunciation, recitation – it was very moving. Then they create da tunnel of love and we walked down saying goodbye, very emotional.
We had been given various talisman and protective amulets. More inner flotilla.

A beautiful sunset, good sailing, a swell of two meters and light wind.

18 May 2004 Coffs Harbour – Dolphins….

‘…include the postage stamp…’

2.30am

Just arrived.

Before dusk we put in 3 reefs in the sail as the forecast was for increased wind. Next day 17 May dawned bright, calm and peaceful.

Lance put the opera singer Andrea Boticelli on the stereo and we all got soppy and emotional. Later in the morning we saw two light coloured dolphins streak past, a pod was swimming around the bow waves. They proceeded to give us a magnificent display. Two jumped towards each other, then over to the port side 2 jumped then 3 the 4 then 5, I was blown away and saw it as confirmation and a good omen. Suddenly I was connected to those crazy FLIPPER programmes I used to watch as a kid.

Word came through – mobile phones were still working – that 70 refugees have been released to New Zealand!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It really lifted our spirits and we could imagine the joy in the refugees’ hearts.
In Australian parliament the head of the Ozzie Greens said it was the first victory for the flotilla.

6.30 pm

God Speed!

We charge headlong into the night, a gale warning of winds 25 – 30 knots waves 2 – 3 meters high, ringing in our ears.

Ruth has been telling me her amazing sailing adventures, solo sailing, she went sailing at 17 with Colin. At one stage they were on an amazing island FERANDO DE NORONHA where there are 100’s of dolphins which they swam with.
Brilliant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(It is quite hard writing below deck, everything zooming up an down)

I had again this feeling about my role in the world, it’s kind of hard to explain,
I feel its kind of like being a bee who goes around the world pollinating. Weird shit. We’ll have to see how that pans out! Ha-ha! I must listen to my heart and see what calls me. It may be a load of bollocks.

19 May 2004

Despite the dire warnings of gales we managed to keep ahead of it and reached the everglades around 4 pm, we saw wallabies on the shore. Beautiful.
We eventually found a sheltered spot to anchor up and celebrated with a glass of champagne. The send off at Coffs was sweet and more media interviews, this thing is building. We stopped briefly at Byron Bay, O too briefly because of the following weather. The coastguard canoed out with an umbrella saying FREE THE REFUGEES, we were sorry we couldn’t stop.

Byron Bay is the most easterly headland in Australia, discovered (which was a surprise to the local indigenous people I guess) on the 15 May 1770 by Captain Cook who named it after the poet Lord Byron’s grandfather. Don’t ask me why please. Answers on a postcard.

We carried on past SURFERS PARADISE, the wind dropped and the sea grew calmer. WE dropped anchor and Stav cooked up a storm. Stav told us the amazing story of how he met Cat Stevens, he’s a real raconteur! like the rest of us, Stav, has now started going barefoot on the boat and the cheesy smell in the cabin is greatly reduced! Phew!

20 May 2004 Pelican Slipway Redland Bay

A short cruise today, through a beautiful landscape, brought us to Pelican Slipway, home of Keith and Anne and the other Flotilla boat the ONE OFF.
Keith is a lovely guy and has a long prophet like beard, actually with his hat on he looks like Fidel Castro… but that’s where the likeness ends. He has a ready smile and a lovely manner about him.

Keith took us into Brisbane Customs Office to get clearance for the trip.
We met the rest of the One Off crew there Elliot the 18 year old film maker and Nerida a 24 year old research scientist. Cool people.

However as soon as we told the customs guy we were from The flotilla boat Eureka, he went EUREKA! And disappeared into the bowels of his office and half an hour later he said a crisis has arisen and he would send officers out to clear us on Sunday. hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

May not be able to post for a while now as we head off into the adventue of the high seas and high politics...

2004-05-21T23:17:00.000-07:00

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, and not when I came to die discover that I had not lived.

Thoreau

F L O T I L L A S of H O P E 2 0 0 4
Sydney * Newcastle * Coffs Harbour * Pelican Slipway, Redland Bay * Brisbane

joke---

How do know when a plane load of poms has landed

when the engine stops you can still hear whining...

MAY 14 2004
Vocatus atque non
Vocatus dues aderit

Arrived in Sydney, missed my lift, so made my way to Milsons’ Point railway and Lance took me down to Eureka moored in Lavender Bay, he is quite a guy, a 78er and a living legend a founding member of the Sydney Mardi Gras…

By the afternoon Stavros and Ruth arrived, on my first meeting with them I was impressed by their openness and warmhearted hospitality.

We cruised around to Sydney Fish Market and had a glass of red wine. Stav had driven the hire car back and Ruth got a call onboard to say that the Parliament on Nauru had voted to not accept the armed police that the Howard Government wanted to send to Nauru. He also told her some interesting news about some secret protection we had… However the Government of Nauru have enacted a law to stop any vessel entering their territorial waters and impounding the vessel, fining or imprisoning thee crew. Apparently this is of dubious legality and is against SOLAS.

Nauru secretary of Justice Denzil Serieviate said our entry into Nauru would be considered prohibited immigration and we could be fined upto $3000 and imprisoned for one year.

Lance said that the rule on the ocean was that you don’t need visas before you leave Australia. He said yachts are entitled to enter ports – you don’t turn people away at sea especially in small boats in the middle of the ocean.

The detention camp on Nauru was set up by the Australian government in September 2001 as part of the sop-called - Pacific Solution – Nauru got $31 million over 2 years to house refugees from the Mt Tampa. The camp holds 277 people, inc 83 children mostly from Afghanistan and Iraq.

Over coffee and a hearty breakfast in the Sydney Fish Market Stavros told me about the origins of the flotilla project.

He was rediscovering his Greek roots in Greece, naturally, and he found himself in the sacred mountain – Mount Athos – and his amazing meeting with Gerontos ‘wise old one’ and what the heart of Gerontos was moved to do, but this is part of Stav’s story so I cannot relate more at present, but it was pretty amazing.

Stav said it was about “reactivating his activists’ heart” he was at home in his room learning astrology, “generating energy for the next stage” On the 18 may 2003 he sent out the seminal email which led to the Flotilla of Hope.

Stav works with the Gurdijieffian concept of the Ennegram, the octaves and the laws of 3 and 7. All stuff I was into as a young man. By his reckoning we hit stage five – which relates to ‘cooking the food’ around May 30 – June 4.

This is when destiny, the final stage of the project, the trip is set. His teacher told him that the Ennegram was a doorway for Gentiles to enter the Kabblah.

Lance is a materialistic Marxist – on the surface – but even he was talking about this being a ‘mission of god’. We all laughed about being like when John Belushi sees the light in the cult film THE BLUES BROTHERS. Stav talked about calling on the gods. I said I had been praying to higher forces, calling on the goddess, Green Tara, Vajra Yogini to protect us and help us. Also I am hoping to make contact with the group, the ‘hive mind’ of the dolphins we meet on route.

We are a load of crazy f*cks!.

We call it the INNER GAME OF THE FLOTILLA. Stav and I connect on that inner level, we stumbled upon each other on the ‘Spirit and Politics’ bulletin board.
We discussed the amazing miracle of this project coming together and I said to Stav that it was like the concept in Chaos theory called the STRANGE ATTRACTOR. Stav sees himself as a channel for these energies, it wasn’t something he could have put together by himself.

Later we did the shopping $1000 bucks five trolleys being filmed by Brisbane media students Lily and Rebecca, it was a gas. We had a meal and showers at a very neighbour of Lances, Margaret. ON the news it said that 30 refugees from Nauru had been released and we hadn’t even left Sydney yet.

15 May 2004
We left Sydney Fish Market and we are now at the Police Wharf – the wrong place. WE put the banners and flags up, REFUGEES ARE US… a UN flag, an aboriginal flag, a red flag and a rainbow flag, a potted biography of lances political activist history. We also have a Tibetan prayer flag, with the Kalachakra symbol on it, blessed by Ngakpa Karma Lhundrup Rinpoche.

We had an amazing send off, speakers, musicians, including Joanna Leigh’s Flotilla of Hope Theme tune http://www.joannaleigh.live.com.au.
When the Lord Mayor of Sydney poured champagne over the bow of the Eureka we were all in tears, the priests’ blessings were also very powerful; I have never experienced that before. We felt that the Eureka was the focus of an incredible outpouring of love. Emotions were running high.

Weather wind S/SE 15/20 knots swell 1.5 to 2 meters.

2004-04-26T01:30:00.000-07:00

8am Sunday Morning.
A beautiful morning, a beautiful day, drove over the downs towards the bluebell wood.
On this very quiet road on this Sunday morning I saw bunch of cars in this field and some hippy vans, and then three crazy people standing in the road - flagging me down in the road.
I thought, oh, could be trouble, I'll slow down they'll drag me out and whatever…

But no they need a lift into town, been had an outdoor all night party. So I said yes, dropped my plans. I drove a few hundred feet so I could turn around. They looked kind of worried and it transpired that they'd been told that Brighton was the other way by a very naughty woman… they obviously had no sense of direction or didn't think about the position of the sun or anything. Had they walked that way they would have reached Ditchling beacon and been even farther from home…

One English and two Colombians, the girls worked in a restaurant INDIAN SUMMER a cool Indian restaurant that serves Southern Indian food sounds good.
Indian Summer
www.indiansummer.org.uk
Victoria Terrace,
Kingsway, Hove,
Tel: 01273 773090
http://www.thisisbrightonandhove.co.uk/brighton__hove/leisure/eating_out/indian/indiansummer.html
www.indiansummer.org.uk

2004-04-22T03:04:00.000-07:00

Great news from Matt 'that another boat has joined the Flotillas of Hope for our journey to Nauru for World Refugee Day, June 20th 2004.

The Malahini II and her crew with Alison Buchanan, recognised Aboriginal artist have decided to join the Flotilla heading to the island gulag on Nauru. More news coming soon.'

2004-04-22T02:23:00.000-07:00

In 1520 the murk of the native fires along the coast caused Ferdinand Magellan, to chart the place he had found as Tierra del Humo -- the Land of Smoke. Magellan's King Charles V of Spain, preferred Tierra del Fuego - the Land of Fire.

When Magellan's large sailing craft moored in what we now call the Magellan Strait the indigenous people only saw the small landing craft that came ashore. It is said that only the shaman could vaguely make out the larger vessel. For the rest of them the horizon was unbroken.

In their culture they only had small canoes, they had no language, no metaphor or analogy for a larger vessel. It seems that their language was describing their reality, which was based on their environment which didn't include large sailing boats. Likewise the Inuit surrounded by snow, have many words for different from of snow, slush, ice and so on, which was for us is just snow.

'To think is to speculate with images.'
Giordano Bruno
Frances Yates
Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition

It is well known with anthropology that language affects perception, so in relation to correction our perception of selfhood little things may help like saying 'anger is arising' rather than 'I am angry'

It is one thing to know that by 'holding' or 'grasping' I create the illusion of self, it is another to feel it, to know it at a deeper level, to actually be aware of our greater connection with the 'web of life' as Chief Seattle allefedly described it. It is the difference between first order and second order change.*

The sense of self, of a separate identity is so embedded in the culture and language of the West that it is difficult to shake free from it. various practices the Buddha taught help to free ourselves, he likened it using a raft to cross to the other shore.

In other cultures and other species it is different. Scientist speculate that dolphins have a 'group mind'** or 'pod mind' as their communication and perceptual system is of a public nature being based on sonar, echolocation broadcasts and echoes…

*
http://www.thenationalacademy.org/Ready/change.html

**
'…given the intraspecies independence of cetacean life (due to voluntary breathing and protection), sophisticated representation of one's self in a group may have developed.

…the public nature of echolocation broadcasts and echoes may result in sharing of perceptual information to such an extent that self-nonself boundaries in dolphins become fuzzy or functionally useless. A perceptual world constructed of shared raw data could permit intense group cohesion (and subsequently a different kind of individuation). A dolphin may include other members of his group as part of his "decision-making unit" or self (a so-called "group mind", Jerison, 1986). This could help explain widespread observations in cetaceans of reciprocal altruism and inter-species altruism, a phenomenon believed by many to be specific to humans

http://home.onemain.com/~dk1008206/html/dolph1.htm
http://whales7.tripod.com/policies/levasseur/levass2f.html
Hive Mind
http://www.kk.org/outofcontrol/ch2-a.html
Kevin Kelly - Out of Control

2004-04-21T03:02:00.000-07:00

'I try to remember that it's not me... trying to protect the rainforest.
Rather, I am part of the rainforest protecting itself.'

John Seed, Australian rainforest campaigner

Stavros left a lovely voicemail message yesterday, he is on Eureka doing groundwork on communications, high frequency radio, laptop, satellite phone and so on. And he just try phoning me, Sydney to Brighton, England and was gobsmacked that it worked!
He was so enthusiastic - it was very sweet and funny.

I have been scaring myself and activating my catastrophic side by reading my LONELY PLANET Health Guide for Oz, NZ & the Pacific.
ISBN 1 - 86450 - 2. A very interesting read. I need to stay healthy on the voyage. So yesterday I bought some 'health boosters' it recommended on page 60:

Acidophilus - a probiotic to develop an ecological balance of bacteria in the gut

Glutamine - an amino acid for immune system functioning.

Grapefruit Seed Extract - in fact I was given Grape Seed, but its an anti-oxidant so should be good

L-arginine - an amino acid involved in immune function and promotes wound healing

Echinacea - immune booster.

Vitamin C, and I still need to get:

Cats Claw, from the Rain Forrest it has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties

Aloe Vera - immune enhancer

And now for something completely different;
My thoughts have been stimulated by a question from a Buddhist about rebirth. Once again the wave rears its head before me.

'I have read that according to Tibetan Buddhism when a sentient being dies he/she may take another rebirth in the time frame from 3 days up to 49 days.... being maximum time 49 days.' And so on…

This has led me to look deeply at this question anew for myself. Below is how I have clumsily groped towards an answer, I hope you get my drift.

Is it possible that it is the wrong question that is being asked because the question makes an assumption; it posits a self to be reborn. At a deeper level the other thing to consider is what is it that dies? What identity, which 'I' or 'self'****?

Is it our clinging to the conception of a self that needs to die?

You throw a stone into a still pond, the concentric ripples surge out and then dissipate. Our life, our identify, is as the wave rolling toward the beach. Are we as the wave, that undulation through the sea, what dies as it crashes on the shore? Physics describes a wave as:
'a phenomenon that does not have mass and therefore does not occupy space. Waves travel through space.'* Is the wave our action, do our acts - our karma - make us what we are?

'For the Buddha taught, in his central doctrine, the dependent co-arising of all things… The Buddha said "She who sees the Dharma sees dependent co-arising, and she who sees dependent co-arising sees the Dharma." Thus, when he taught, he was said to turn the Wheel of the Dharma.'**

Five centuries later the second turning occurred at the beginning of the Mahayana tradition, the Wheel of Dharma turned again to redeem the Buddha's core teaching. With this new phase came new terms like EMPTINESS - 'the other face of dependent co-arising is emptiness of own being**'

So as we break down outmoded ways of thinking, the old dichotomy of self and world practising INTERBEING*** we realise that all our actions impinge on all beings.

The Buddha's doctrine of 'paticca samuppada'**** 'represents to him a dynamical process of interdependent factors' 'In early Buddhist view, a person's identity resides not in an enduring self but in his actions (karma) - that is in the choices that shape these actions. Because the dispositions formed by previous choices can be modified in turn by present behavior this identity as choice-maker is fluid, its experience alterable. While it is affected by the past, it can also break free of the past.' Sankharas: memories and habits "which stock the mind" and impel us onward.

Systems-theologian William Everett puts it as 'the self is a decision centre', we are our actions (karma) our actions (karma) are us.

As Macy puts it '…the behaviours we choose and the goals we pursue take root in the psyche. They affect the ways we interpret experience (emptiness) - and these ways constitute who we are. Doer and deed co-arise. Hence our continuity of character, bearing the stamp of repeated choice and habit. Hence also our freedom, for the causal flow of co-arising is altered by each present act of will.

Here then is the answer to the question, "does it matter what we do?" It matters to the extent that WE matter. Indeed, our acts matter-incarnate-IN us, for they make us what we are.'

So then what is 'it' that is 'reborn'? Are we like holograms that contain the whole, each piece of a broken hologram contains the whole. So do we all contain the Buddha, the Dalai Lama within us like a dharmic strand of DNA?

Any one baby is a buddha…

'The Dharma Wheel, as it turns now, also tells us this: that we don't have to invent or construct connections. They already exist.
We already and indissolubly belong to each other, for that is the nature of life. So, even in our haste and hurry and occasional discouragement, we belong to each other. We can rest in that knowing, and stop and breathe, and let that breath connect us with the still centre of the turning wheel'**

"My actions are my possession,
My actions are my legacy,
My actions are the womb that gives birth to me."
----Anguttara Nikaya spoken by The Buddha

So I found that thinking about what a wave was helped me,
I find metaphor and analogy helpful in my thinking, for me the definition of a wave summed it up nicely.

I live by the sea, and often practice on the edge of the beach.
Oftentimes these meditations are my deepest, or should I say just deepest. Deepness arising.

It is truly exquisite when the sense of self drops and there are just waves crashing on the beach, light glinting on the water, wind on skin; world as lover, world as self. Truly conscious of the connections to the web of life. All too briefly I am one with the web of life. I savour those glimpses.

I love practicing outdoors, especially since a long retreat a couple of years ago in the foothills of the Pyranees, meditating in a barn open on all three sides, the view the snow capped mountains.
Very Ryokan*****

If your hermitage is deep in the mountains
surely the moon, flowers, and maple trees
will become your friends.******

Ryokan Taigu (1758-1831)

_________________
* chemed.chem.purdue.edu/genchem/glossary/w.html

**World as Lover, World as Self
Joanna Macy
Isbn 0-938077-27-9
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0938077279/104-5118948-1887919?v=glance

***Interbeing: The Heart of Understanding. Thich Nhat Hanh calls earth ethics "interbeing" and uses a sheet of paper from the book to explain what he means.

"If you are a poet," Thich Nhat Hanh begins, "you will see clearly that there is a cloud floating in this sheet of paper. Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow; and without trees, we cannot make paper. The cloud is essential for the paper to exist. If the cloud is not here, the sheet of paper cannot be here either. So we can say that the cloud and the paper inter-are.... You cannot point out one thing that is not here [in this sheet of paper] - time, space, the earth, the rain, the minerals in the soil, the sunshine, the cloud, the river, the heat. Everything coexists with this sheet of paper.... This sheet of paper is, because everything else is." Thich Nhat Hanh can thus conclude that when we say something with our whole being, and not just with our mouth or our intellect, we can transform the world [3-4,50].
http://www.uua.org/ga/ga99/306earthethics.html

****
Upádánapaccayá bhavo; bhavapaccayá játi; játipaccayá jarámaranam...
(With holding as condition, being; with being as condition, birth; with birth as condition, ageing-&-death... )

The fundamental upádána or 'holding' is attaváda (see Majjhima ii,1 -M.i,67-), which is holding a belief in 'self'. The puthujjana takes what appears to be his 'self' at its face value; and so long as this goes on he continues to be a 'self', at least in his own eyes (and in those of others like him). This is bhava or 'being'. The puthujjana knows that people are born and die; and since he thinks 'my self exists' so he also thinks 'my self was born' and 'my self will die'. The puthujjana sees a 'self' to whom the words birth and death apply.[d] In contrast to the puthujjana, the arahat has altogether got rid of asmimána (not to speak of attaváda), and does not even think 'I am'. This is bhavanirodha, cessation of being. And since he does not think 'I am' he also does not think 'I was born' or 'I shall die'. In other words, he sees no 'self' or even 'I' for the words birth and death to apply to. This is játinirodha and jarámarananirodha. (See, in Kosala Samy. i,3 -S.i,71-, how the words birth and death are avoided when the arahat is spoken of.
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/9366/noteps2.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/9366/noteps1.htm

*****
http://www.tamucc.edu/~sencerz/ryokan.htm
http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Campus/4178/Ryokan.html

******
http://www.hermitary.com/articles/ryokan.html
_________________
I try to remember that it's not me...
trying to protect the dharma.
Rather, am I part of the dharma protecting itself?

2004-04-18T11:39:00.000-07:00

"Agir pour le meilleur, se préparer au pire et accepter ce qui vient"

An interesting juxtaposition of a film about
Katsushika Hokusai’s print The Great Wave - which I have always loved - and an article in today's Observer magazine about 'catastrophic thinkers'.

The film was fascinating as it talked about artists of the 'floating world' school in Japan and Hokusai’s growing fascination with waves.

In fact modern science has shown that such big waves - other than tsunami - do in fact exist in the Pacific Ocean.

This is one of my worries about sailing aboard the Eureka - fueled by watching the film PERFECT STORM - is being overwhelmed by a freak wave in shark infested waters. So when I read the article today on 'catastrophic thinkers' it made me pause for thought.

Am I a 'catastrophic thinker'? I do think that I might die youngish or indeed not grow to a ripe old age.

A few years ago when my para-glider instructor crashed and broke his spine I gave up para-gliding because I thought that could happen to me, yet I am considered a reckless fast driver…
I am also a risk taker, a 'catastrophic thinker' who takes risks perhaps?

__________________
Relevant links

Katsushika Hokusai’s The Great Wave
THE PRIVATE LIFE OF A MASTERPIECE
BBC Two, 8.10pm
April 17, 2004
Television: Saturday, April 17

BBC Two, 8.10pm

Katsushika Hokusai’s The Great Wave is the most recognisable image in Japanese art, depicting a towering wave about to overwhelm three boats. This accessible programme provides a gripping lecture on the woodcut, discussing the background and explaining why it is so important. For many Japanese, it presents an image of courage and perseverance. In the West, it provides a vision of implacable nature that taps into an age of anxiety — the sense that we are all about to be engulfed by catastrophe. Hokusai painted it having been driven out of retirement by poverty. "Until the age of 70," he wrote, "nothing I drew was worthy of notice." David Chater
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7946-1075096,00.html

Do you feel lucky? -
'catastrophic thinker'
"Whether you're an 'unrealistic optimist' or a 'catastrophic thinker', our failure to properly evaluate risk is a hazard. Jo Carlowe considers the perils of living dangerously"
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,1192555,00.html

"Floating World Anita Schillhorn van Veen
In Japan during the Edo period (1603-1868), the shogunate heaped together all things immoral - gambling, theater, prostitution, bars – into districts separate from the rest of the city in an attempt to both provide and control licentious activities. These areas came to be known collectively as the "floating world," a heady terrain of sex and art, an island of hedonism in a balancing act with strict patriarchal morality and social code. Tokyo’s district, called Yoshiwara, or "happy fields," was the most famous."
www.substancezine.com/issue5content/ i5pdfs/floating.pdf
www.lost-in-translation.com
www.demonlovermovie.com
www.substancezine.com

2004-04-17T12:14:00.000-07:00

Although this morning was overcast and cold the afternoon brightened. Went for a walk to Firle, classic English country house, a folly, sheep, bluebells, primroses and cricket. Shetland pony's the colour of rocking horses, one came right over.

A house had free-rang eggs for sale, 50p pence for a half dozen bantam eggs, 70 pence for full size. A brilliant yellow yolk made a gorgeous fritjatta with spanish onions and potatoes.

2004-04-17T02:36:00.000-07:00

There is a very interesting and relevant article in the RAND REVIEW* called

Transcendental Destination.

It discusses the notion of "noopolitik" as a "new form of statecraft for the information age. noopolitik would seek instead to advance national ideas, values, laws, and ethics across the "psychic terrain" of the noosphere that envelops the planet. Noopolitik represents an evolutionary leap in statecraft made possible by the information revolution."

And that the "leading practitioners of noopolitik are neither nation-states but human rights and other activist groups and NGO's (Non Government Organisations)

Using electronic communications and other strategies ; the transnational defense of Zapatista insurgents of Sub-commandant Marcos who forced the hand of the Mexican government on behalf of the Mexican indigenous communities in Chiapas. "Greenpeace forced Shell Oil to change its policies with respect to the North Sea and Nigeria. Other groups induced the sportswear maker Nike to promise compliance with child labour standards."

It also mentions the campaign to ban land mines; the Greenpeace-led campaign against French nuclear testing in the South Pacific; and the Internet-based efforts by Burmese and Chinese dissidents.

Human rights, activist groups and NGOs "have the capacity to organize quickly and transnationally in ways that avoid the bureaucracy and rigidity of conventional international institutions"

It goes on to talk about the "development of "truth-seeking teams of "special media forces" armed with the weapons of the media" and that they "would be dispatched into conflict zones to help settle disputes through the discovery and dissemination of accurate information."

Information seeking is one of element of the "Flotillas of Hope" campaign.

Relevant links
*
Transcendental Destination:
Where Will the Information Revolution Lead?

http://www.rand.org/publications/randreview/issues/rr.12.00/transcendental.html

The Information Revolution and the Destiny of America http://www.fathom.com/feature/121989/

2004-03-11T13:57:00.000-08:00

****************************
How the pines shake! Pines are the hardest sort of tree to live when shifted to any other soil, and here there's none but the crew's cursed clay

Old Manx Sailor
Moby Dick Melville
Herman Melville
****************************

At the beginnings of this project I forwarded a Flotilla of Hope email to many people, and one managed to find its way to Jenny and the Atlantis Ecological Community in Colombia and Becky her daughter at the Atlantis Foundation in Cork.

Jenny's daughter Becky was working on their craft 'Atlantis Warrior' in a dock in Cork, Eire. A 1911 trawler.

The trawler, was it seems awaiting, its destiny, fate, kismet.

Now, 9th March 2004, Jenny sends word from the mountains of Colombia to the effect that Pete ~ sometimes Greenpeace Skipper and working with Martini and Rien on the Diego Garcia boat project ~ has visited Becky in Cork and is keen to help.

The idea of a global peace flotilla really appeals to him.

And so Jenny her daughter Alice, her boyfriend and their 9 month old baby! are all aiming to join Becky in Eire and to join the voyage.

2004-03-05T04:33:00.000-08:00

******************
"I'd rather be a tiger for a day than a sheep for a lifetime"

Neil Tucker's favourite adage inscribed on a memorial plaque, 15,000 feet at Mount Pissis base camp, Argentina ~
only twenty four he died in a climbing accident.
******************
Last night attended a meeting of a new political party born out of the anti-war movement: "RESPECT". It's a broad coalition that includes Muslims and Left wingers and anti-war activists amongst others. They are going to put up candidates in the European and London Assembly elections this summer - June 10, the day before my birthday. Both these elections are PR (proportional representation) so there is a good chance that they will be able to get some people elected. Unfortunately they are running against the Greens, who would agree a deal of standing down in some areas.

George Galloway , the MP who was expelled by the Labour Party for his anti-Iraq stance, was a key-note speaker and he gave a rousing speech.

I picked some information on the Green Party (UK) national conference in Hove (15 minutes away!) and on Friday March 12 one of the themes is asylum and they are showing a film LIBERATING THE WOOMERA DETENTION CENTRE!

I will set out my stall there and promote the Flotilla…

2004-03-02T07:54:00.000-08:00

GOODBYE Mr BLAIR?
_____________________________________________
"The only way to bring down Blair and change the political
context is to take non-violent direct action"

Two articles in todays Guardian discuss Blair being forced out of
government.

David Cameron* suggests that Blair could depart No 10 before
autumn and gives nine reasons slightly tongue in cheek

Whereas George Monbiot** suggests a more
route, accompanied by campaigns of lobbying and letter-writing.
"To become a civilised, moderate, responsible nation, in other
words, we must first become a nation of extremists" states
Monbiot.

However even if 'people power' succeeds he suggests that Blair
would be "succeeded by someone almost as bad"

"But" he says "the political context in which that someone
operates will have changed. He will be forced to govern with one
eye on the people, and to demonstrate that his policies differ
from those of his predecessor. And the issue he would be
obliged to address first is Britain's relationship with the rest of
the world. Whoever succeeded Blair in these circumstances
would tone down our foreign policy until it resembled that of the
other northern European states."

When one considers how limited a 'democracy' we live in, in
that mostly only those of us who live in a 'marginal seat' can
have any chance of changing our elected representative.

Can a new kind of politics be built using the internet to increase
voter participation? The internet and email has a key role in
winning key marginal seats in a general election.***

After the recent US election, the Democracy Online Project****
found that 40% of all US web users regarded the web as
to decide how to vote>.

*
Bye bye Blair
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/labour/comment/0,9236,1160220,0
0.html

**
Extreme measures
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1159775,00.ht
ml
http://www.monbiot.com/

***
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/talking_politics/1298697.
st
m

****
http://www.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9910/15/net.impact.on.poli
tics.idg/

2004-03-01T02:31:00.000-08:00

A 600 mile round trip to the ancient medieval city of York to see Joe, my step-son and his girlfriend Sarah, who is from Spokane, near Seattle. They are both studying there and are contemplating marriage so Sarah can stay whilst Joe finishes his course, they even have a date, 24 July. It is not just for a visa they both love each other deeply.

Arrived Thursday night and by Friday morning York had been turned upside down so all the snowflakes were in the air. Beautiful, but cold.

The Minster is the lynch pin which holds the city together its gothic arches looming over the medieval 'shambles' and appearing through gaps between the ancient dwellings.

The City walls held the denizens of York safe from the marauders of the forest. Like cities of that era it reminded me of Canterbury and Bruge in Brussels.

On the Saturday I looked in the Guardian magazine and was disappointed to see that they had not printed my letter referring to the 'Gulags in the Sun' article and the flotilla.

Although I am rapidly becoming a 'flotilla of hope' bore, I am finding it difficult to get any enthusiasm from people about the project, whereas I am filled with enthusiasm. Maybe that is the problem.

2004-02-22T15:11:00.000-08:00

****************************
Have the fearless attitude of a hero and the loving heart of a child
Soyen Shaku
****************************

Had a great Chinese meal , TIME in East Street, then saw SOMETHINGS GOTTA GIVE, loved it. Earlier walked by the marina, had a hot chocolate with marshmallow… very tourist like in my own town.

Yesterday was a very enlightening Retreat day with Stephen Bachelor, author of BUDDHISM WITHOUT BELIEFS at the Bodhi Garden, and on Friday night did a DJ gig in Lewes for SUSSEX RIGPA ~ Sogyal Rinpoche's group, he wrote THE TIBETAN BOOK OF LIVING AND DYING.

Very interesting article in the Guardian magazine on Saturday called GULAGS IN THE SUN* where Thomas Keneally mentions the Pacific Solution and Nauru. Good to see the profile being raised.

*
"The other week, on Australia Day, I was involved in an Australian
citizenship ceremony, at which we sang:

'For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share... '

It seems to some Australians a great loss of innocence that such anodyne
lines cannot now be sung without a shared wink of irony with a kindred soul,
someone as disappointed as I am over the Australian government's infamous
detention policy for asylum seekers."

2004-02-19T03:39:00.000-08:00

************************************
It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

The Invitation
Oriah Mountain Dreamer
http://www.oriahmountaindreamer.com/
************************************

Yesterday, in an attempt to reduce my ecological footprint*, I drove to Richmond on the River Thames to look at a van to live in.

A three and a half ton Mercedes diseal van, 2.8 engine, with power steering. It’s no spring chicken, (its done 250,000 miles) a bit rusty and tatty needs some TLC, but would be do.

Spring, summer and autumn, cook on a gas fired barbeque in my beachut ~ between the marina and the Brighton Pier ~ shower and email from my gym at the marina, sleep in the van… fired by 'biofuel' carbon-neutral diesel (recycled vegetable oil) so that it would smell like a mobile chip shop. Hmmmm nice.

*http://www.lowimpact.org/
http://www.lowimpact.org/course%20outline%20biodiesel.htm

2004-02-16T01:36:00.000-08:00

************************************
"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed - and thus clamorous to be led to safety - by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary."
H.L. Mencken
************************************

Last night, low-budget " TOUCHING THE VOID, the true story of two climbers and their perilous journey in the Peruvian Andes in 1985, garnered the Alexander Korda outstanding British film award."* At the UK BAFTA awards.
* http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,12589,1149040,00.html

I think that the style of that film ~~ in-depth interviews ~~ cut with reconstruction, could be a template for one of the FLOTILLA films.
Maybe inter-cut with documentary footage and current media coverage.

_____________________________
UN SPY SCANDAL

Yesterday the OBSERVER** (uk) ran the story of GCHQ whistle-blower KATHARINE GUNN.
Described as 'a hero of the human spirit'
She leaked documents about the cynical spying operation by the UK and the USA which undermined the peace efforts of the UN just before the IRAQ WAR.

She is being convicted under the OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT and will appear at the Old Bailey on the 25 Feb. I will aim get up there to demonstrate my support.

** Penn's praise for spy heroine
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/politics/story/0,6903,1148459,00.html
Britain spied on UN allies over war vote
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/politics/story/0,6903,1143550,00.html

I am incensed by state sponsored lies and spin and cynical manipulation of public opinion. Many people I talk too are becoming apathetic because they don't believe politicians and feel powerless to change situations. This is very worrying, but quite understandable.

Last year, I faxed this to Tony Bliar:

"12 Feb 2003

Tony Blair PM
10 Downing Street
London WC2

Dear Mr Blair

Re: The increased security alert and the war against Iraq

I must say I am very skeptical of the increased security alerts just announced (tanks at Heathrow airport). Can you tell me what new information led to this?

In reference to The Americans terror threat assessment now raised to "Orange" level, according to MSNBC and NBC NEWS "FBI officials stressed that they had no specific
information indicating that new attacks were planned."

I must concur with H.L. Mencken who said:

"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed - and thus clamorous to be led to safety - by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary."

Yours sincerely"

Of course I never received an answer.

Then on the 11 July 2003 this was the letter I sent, still no reply.

"Tony Blair PM
10 Downing Street
London

"Fishmongers sell fish, warmongers sell war, both may sincerely believe in their product."

Dear Sir

It was with some satisfaction I read of the comments made by Sir Roderic Braithwaite, former head of the joint intelligence committee (JIC), who commented on the overselling of the war.

"… then the real overselling were the continual assessments of an imminent terrorist attack in London, advising housewives to lay in stocks of water and food, I mean all that stuff ... tanks at Heathrow. I mean that, I call that overselling."

I enclose a copy of my letter to you at that time stating the same. It was patently ridiculous because all a terrorist would have to do; would be to pull over onto the hardshoulder of the M25 to attack an aeroplane.

I note as well that Donald Rumsfeld has admitted that no new information was uncovered about WMD but that the old information was now seen through the prism of '9/11'…"

So how to revitalise the political debate so that people don't lose hope, how to feel powerful within this disempowering situation that we find ourselves in.

What to do… more actions like the Flotilla that challenge empire.

2004-02-15T13:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday truckloads of Valentines arrived from the post office and next year they say they will have to open a special sorting office just for me.

Which was nice.

Today a lovely family meal at THE FISH FACTORY in Worthing.
("A Handbag!" THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING ERNEST)

I had red mullet grilled (3) and chips, hmm nice with a very nice white wine.
I like my food and am something of a trencherman.

Back on the coalface of the Flotilla BB we are having a heated debate about the possible filming and script of a documentary.
Interesting stuff.

I wonder if my gene pool is up to the Flotilla challenge, filming, sailing, cooking, knots, human rights…

Now have a spec for Eureka: Looks good.
Eureka is a sloop-rigged Swanson 42. Sloop rig means she has one mast, and one headsail. She was designed by Ron Swanson and is 12m / 42 feet long. She is fibreglass construction, and heavily built for cruising rather than
racing. She is a double-ender, which means she has two 'sharp ends', which is for the purpose of breaking a following sea.

She was lovingly built by
Rob D and Roger C and they intended to call her Imagine. Bought by Michael C (sailed in the MED - Turkey),
ex-Hydrographer (chart-maker) of the Australian Navy, launched in 1981 as Eureka, she sailed around the world. Eureka is now owned by Lance, who has sailed her for the last 10 years up and down the Australian east coast and
into the Pacific.
__________________________

Today my favourite website was:

http://www.studsterkel.org/

***************************************
"I believe in the forest, and in the meadow and in the night in which the corn grows"

Henry David Thoreau

~ Borrowing some land from Emerson and an axe from Bronson, Alcott, and accepting a suggestion from Ellery Channing, Thoreau went to WALDEN POND, in CONCORDE, in 1845.
***************************************

2004-02-13T01:31:00.000-08:00

It also irritated Rettenberg (a Russian) that his English friends were so ready to lecture him on the backwardness of his country and criticize its system of government - the autocracy of the Tsar. If only Russia would become a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarch, he was told, then it could join the community of civilized nations and all would be well.

But was Britain a democracy? Did it not rule, without consent, a large part of the world's population? Had not Britain exploited its maritime supremacy to conquer, annex, seize and sequester any port or patch of land that might serve its vanity and interest?

Alice in Exile
Piers Paul Read
(Set in 1913)

It was interesting to come across this extract when, in the Flotilla project, we are dealing with legacy of empire and colonisation by the Empire of the United* Kingdom

Also when you look at Bliars and Bush's rush to war with Iraq and the mirage of Weapons of Mass Destruction, how Blair ignored enormous groundswell of popular opinion, that we still barely have a democracy.

The Flotilla is highlighting the Australian Government's abusive "Pacific Solution" which incarcerates refugees and their children in a Nauru concentration camp

CLOSE DIEGO GARCIA, BRING BACK THE CHAGOSSIANS

Recently we heard of the "peace fleet" action for repatriation of the indigenous people of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean ~ halfway between Africa and Southeast Asia ~ that came up at the NO US BASES campaign at the World Social Forum in Mumbai this year (and in London next year).

Britain leased Diego Garcia, halfway between Africa and Southeast Asia, to the United States.
Thirty years ago 2,000 Chagossians were relocated, the entire population of the Chagos archipelago, Most of whom live in poverty now on Mauritius.

Olivier Bancoult, leader of the Chagos Refugee Group, is searching for a suitable vessel to return to Diego Garcia with 250 people.**

Just last year a group of Chagos inhabitants lost their fight for the right to return to their homeland, from which they were unlawfully extracted by the United Kingdom more than 30 years ago.

They camped out protest in Gatwick Airport terminal (just half an hours drive from me).

I am amazed at how all these issues interlink and overlap. A different kind of globalisation.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3177260.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/southern_counties/3054271.stm

2004-02-12T06:09:00.000-08:00

Breaking news in from Sydney
_______________________________
the Wobbie: The pitbull of the ocean:
Orectolobus ornatus*
SYDNEY

An Australian** swam 300 yards with a shark clamped to his leg before driving a mile for first aid to get it removed.

Luke Tresogglavic, 22, was snorkeling of a beach near Newcastle, 100 miles north of Sydney, quite near Rut and Stavros, when a woebegone bit into his left leg.

Although wobbegongs are one of Australia's smaller shark species, the power of it's jaws has earned it a reputation as the pitbull of the ocean

After wrestling, in the manner of WWF, Mr T. Luke to his friends staggered on to the beach where two sunbathers were open mouthed at his demand for some tinnies of XXXX to ease the pain, they were otherwised engaged studying postures form the KARMA SUTRA at the time.
"Jesus" Mr T expostulated "I am as dry as a dead dingo's donger"

The aforesaid sunbather tried to prise open his mouth, then Mr T said "No not me, the damned shark on my leg!"

"They couldn't remove it," said Mr T, an attractive welder. "It was stuck there. I decided I had to get into the car."
"I was hurting like hell. The shark was thrashing around all over the place." It reminded him of that one night stand in the back of the car recently. He wedged the 2ft long shark against the gear lever s he drove with one hand to a surf club.
Lifesavers there could not break the wobbegong's grip so they plunged it, still attached to Mr T's leg, into a huge bucket of fresh water and drowned it.

*
The Wobbegong Shark - Orectolobus ornatus
http://www.boattalk.com/sharks/wobbegong.htm
Size - 10 feet in length.
Diet - The Wobbegong has wormlike projections around its mouth that it uses to suck prey into razor like teeth.
Habitat - indigenous to Australia and the coastal reefs of the Pacific on the ocean bottom, waiting for fish to approach.
Reproduction - The female hatches about 20 pups within her body, then gives birth to them.
**AUSTRALIAN
Pronunciation: o'streylyun
Definition:
1. [n] the Austronesian languages spoken by Australian aborigines
2. [n] a native or inhabitant of Australia
3. [adj] ofor relating to or characteristic of Australia or its inhabitants; "Australian deserts"; "Australian aborigines"

Synonyms: Aboriginal Australian, Aussie, Ozzie

See Also: Aboriginal, Aborigine, Australia, Australian Aborigine, Austronesian, Austronesian language, Commonwealth of Australia, denizen, dweller, Dyirbal, inhabitant, Jirrbal, native Australian, Walbiri, Warlpiri

Definition:
\Aus*tra"li*an\, a. [From L. Terra Australis southern
land.]
Of or pertaining to Australia. -- n. A native or an
inhabitant of Australia.

Matching Terms: Australia, Australia chestnut, Australian Aborigine, Australian ballot, Australian blacksnake, Australian capital, Australian cockroach, Australian coral snake, Australian crawl, Australian Desert, Australian dollar, Australian grass tree, Australian hare's foot, Australian heath, Australian magpie, Australian nettle, Australian nettle tree, Australian pea, Australian pine, Australian pitcher plant, Australian reed grass, Australian sea lion, Australian state, Australian stilt, Australian sumac, Australian sword lily, Australian terrier, Australian turtledove

2004-02-11T09:53:00.000-08:00

Kovalam Beach § Kerala

5.30 awakening to hear the Iman softly calling the faithful to prayer, then a pack of feral dogs howling at the moon, the old women tending the Shiva Temple just outside my window (Park Lane Hotel, just back from the German Bakery) gently chanting Om Namaha Shivaya.

Dawn and its chi kung on the beach and then meditating and yoga by the waves… a Kashmiri tea and fruit pancake at the "German Bakery" for breakfast, tea at "Fusion" cafe to watch the fishing nets being hauled in, a scene unchanged since Biblical times…
Watching the sun go down outside "Santana's" in the evening for fresh fish and coconut rice.

After a long walk, with BRUNO ~ CHRIS's chocolate Brown labrador, around the Novington Estate in the South Downs that surrounds Brighton and a pint of mulled Old Ale in the JOLLY SPORTSMAN pubJust had a § TALI MEEN § Kerala Fish Fry which took me back to Kovalam Beach just this New Year gone, 2004.

PRACTICALY ALL NON-VEGETARIAN FAMILES WHO LIVE ALONG THE SOUTH INDIAN COASTS PREPARE THIS DISH ON A DAILY BASIS. USE ANY FIRM FISH, SUCH AS COD, HADDOCK OR MONKFISH.

PREPARATION TIME 30 minutes + 30 minutes resting
_______________________________________________
500g (1IB) WHITE FISH CUT INTO BITE-SIZED PIECES
HALF TEASPOON CUMN SEEDS
1 TEASPOON ANISEED
12 DRY ED CHILLIS, DE-SEEDED IF WISHED

rub the fish pieces with some salt, rinse, drain well and leave in a colander*. Blend the spices with the garlic and salt to taste to a smooth paste. Dry the fish. Smear the fish with theground mixture and leave it for 30 minutes,
Heat the oil in a wok** (making sure that your martial arts technique of "wok qi"*** is up to scratch) when oil nearky smoking add the fish and fry until golden brown and mildly crisp, about 15 minutes. Serve with lime wedges, rice and a lenti dish. Nice.

*colander: Col´an`der
Noun 1. colander - bowl-shaped strainer; used to wash or drain foods

At the bottom of the immense cavity burrowed hundreds of small extinguished craters, riddling the soil like a colander, and overlooked by a peak"
Round The Moon by Verne, Jules

All the while I was eating, and after that when I was drinking the punch, I could scarce come to believe in my good fortune; and the house, though it was thick with the peat-smoke and as full of holes as a colander, seemed like a palace.
Kidnapped by Stevenson, Robert Louis

** wok - Cantonese pan with a round-bottomed pan that ranges from 1 foot to 4 feet in diameter. Almost every Chinese family owns one. It is most often used for stir frying, but can also be used many other ways, such as in steaming and deep frying or to make soup. One advantage of woks is that the shape produces a small, hot area at the bottom while using relatively little fuel.

Stir frying is a Chinese cooking technique commonly used in Chinese restaurants because of its fast cooking speed. Cantonese restaurant patrons judge the chefs by their "wok qi"*** (their ability to bring out the qi of the wok, which shows in the food as the look, smell and taste).

A round bottom pan called a wok is heated to very high temperature. Then, some oil is put in, followed by seasoning and the food items. The food is stirred and tossed very quickly using a big metal spatula. Some chefs will lift the wok to the side to let the flame light the oil, or a dash of wine spirit, on the food to give it extra flavor. Most dishes are cooked this way within 30 seconds.

Some dishes that require more time are cooked by adding a few dashes of water after the stirring. Then the wok is covered with a lid. As soon as steam starts to come out from under the lid, the dish is ready. In this case, the food is stir fried in high heat for the flavor and then steamed to make sure it is fully cooked.

Stir frying at home often cannot achieve the same great flavor as in restaurants mainly because the wok is not hot enough and the wok is too small to allow fast tossing. Most home kitchens are not equipped to handle the large amount of oil vapour produced as a byproduct of proper stir frying.

Many western cooks on TV demonstrate stir frying on low heat with a small wok and a stirring motion comparable to tossing a salad. This is a western adaptation of stir frying, but is dissimilar to the traditional Chinese method.

In a joke sports introduced by the German comedian Stefan Raab woks are used in bobsleigh track. In November 2003 a first "official" championships was held in Winterberg, Germany.

2004-02-10T01:28:00.000-08:00

This morning a large thump on the mat announced the arrival from Ruth, my sailing guru, in Newcastle, Australia of my ZEN & the Art of MARINE RADIO**: MARINE RADIO OPERATORS HANDBOOK (** everything you wanted to know about marine radio but were afraid, or couldn't be arsed to ask)

This morning I have learnt that if the Eureka is in '...grave and imminent danger..." we send a DISTRESS SIGNAL; M A Y D A Y, then the DISTRESS CALL;
MAYDAY
MAYDAY
MAYDAY
THIS IS
EUREKA (+ CALL SIGN)
EUREKA (+ CALL SIGN)
EUREKA (+ CALL SIGN)

and then the DISTRESS MESSAGE
POSITION
NATURE OF DISTRESS
OTHER

So even though I am a borderline nerd, even I may have been bored by this before, but now my life and others may depend on it, it all seems compelling bedtime reading.

2004-02-09T09:39:00.000-08:00

Comforting words from the
WORST-CASE SCENARIO BOOK:
"A shark attack is a potential danger for anyone who frequents marine waters, but it should be kept in perspective. Bees, wasps, and snakes are responsible for far more fatalities each year, and in the United States the annual risk of death from lightning is 30 times greater than from shark attack."

"How to Fend Off a Shark

1. Hit back. If a shark is coming toward you or attacks you, use anything you have in your possession—a camera, probe, harpoon gun, your fist—to hit the shark's eyes or gills, which are the areas most sensitive to pain.

2. Make quick, sharp, repeated jabs in these areas. Since sharks are predators and will usually only follow through on an attack if they have the advantage, making the shark unsure of its advantage in any way possible will increase your chances of survival. Contrary to popular opinion, the shark’s nose is not the area to attack, unless you cannot reach the eyes or gills. Hitting the shark simply tells it that you are not defenseless.

How to Avoid an Attack:
1. Always stay in groups—sharks are more likely to attack a solitary individual. Do not wander too far from shore. This isolates you and creates the additional danger of being too far from assistance.

2. Avoid being in the water during darkness or twilight hours, when sharks are most active and have a competitive sensory advantage.

3. Do not enter the water if you are bleeding from an open wound or if you are menstruating—a shark is drawn to blood and its olfactory ability is acute.

4. Try not to wear shiny jewelry because the reflected light resembles the sheen of fish scales.

5. Avoid waters with known effluents or sewage and those being used by sport or commercial fishermen, especially if there are signs of bait fish or feeding activity. Diving seabirds are good indicators of such action.

6. Use extra caution when waters are murky and avoid showing any uneven tanning and brightly-colored clothing—sharks see contrast particularly well.

7. If a shark shows itself to you, it may be curious rather than predatory and will probably swim on and leave you alone. If you are under the surface and lucky enough to see an attacking shark, then you do have a good chance of defending yourself if the shark is not too large.

8. Scuba divers should avoid lying on the surface, where they may look like a piece of prey to a shark, and from where they cannot see a shark approaching.

9. A shark attack is a potential danger for anyone who frequents marine waters, but it should be kept in perspective. Bees, wasps, and snakes are responsible for far more fatalities each year, and in the United States the annual risk of death from lightning is 30 times greater than from shark attack.

Extreme Survival
http://www.worstcasescenarios.com/mainpage.htm

THE WORST CASE SCENARIO SURVIVAL HANDBOOK by Joshua Piven and David Borgenicht page 46

2004-02-09T05:46:00.000-08:00

The ship sank. It made sounds like a monstrous burp. Things bubbled at the surface and then vanished. Everything was screaming: the sea, the wind, my heart. From the lifeboat I saw something in the water.

I woke up with a start, the magic realist novel I am reading, THE LIFE OF PI, had fallen from my hands, this is the beginning of PART TWO: The Pacific Ocean, Chapter 37...

But this is the stuff my nightmares are made of.

Two big fears for me to confront on the Flotilla trip; drowning, I only learnt to swim at age 24, and my other irrational deep-rooted fear of sharks from too many JAWS repeats, and in THE OBSERVER yesterday (Sunday 9 Feb 2004) the tragic story of Bethany Hamilton America's teenage surfing sensation who lost her arm in a shark attack.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/osm/story/0,6903,1140756,00.html

So a time to whinge and a time to die...

2004-02-09T05:45:00.000-08:00

2004-02-07T19:38:00.000-08:00

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do.
So throw off the bowlines.
Sail away from the safe harbor.
Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover.

Mark Twain

Hi, my name is Joty and I an a white male living in Brighton, England. This is my first blog so I will welcome any feedback on how I am doing. I will try not to whinge too much. Promise.

Somehow I managed to find myself as part of the crew on Yacht Eureka as a part of the FLOTILLA OF HOPE campaign sailing the high seas for the people trapped on the small pacific island of Nauru. I feel very privileged to be apart of this human rights adventure.

"Some of us (myself included) have gone from observer to participant to activist!!!"
Ruth Boydell
Sailing Guru to Flotilla of Hope

Although I have been politically aware and active for some time, my sailing experience is limited to three sailing on the Norfolk Broads in the UK…
http://www.huntersyard.co.uk/

I started off in the great cloud of people who are learning from and listening to the
arguments of the various human rights and peace movements.

I seem to be moving into the bull’s-eye,
where the most active and most visible people hang out at the center.

I am aware of the whole circles of people surrounding this centre who are discussing the arguments, donating money, learning, and changing their minds.

As I wrote in the FLOTILLA OF HOPE bulletin board:

" Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing…
…Our strategy should be not only to confront empire, but to lay siege to it. To deprive it of oxygen. To shame it. To mock it. With our art, our music, our literature, our stubbornness, our joy, our brilliance, our sheer relentlessness - and our ability to tell our own stories. Stories that are different from the ones we're being brainwashed to believe."

Confronting Empire
ARUNDHATI ROY
WORLD SOCIAL FORUM BRAZIL 2003

The 'Flotilla' is one notable expedition which is confronting empire at this pivotal time:
a part of what JOANNA MACY calls THE GREAT TURNING.

"The Great Turning is a name for the essential adventure of our time: the shift from the Industrial Growth Society to a life-sustaining civilization."
http://www.joannamacy.net/html/great.html

This quest will shine a light into the darkness for the people of Nauru and giving them hope, a light at the end of the tunnel; a light of inspiration for others of us in the rest of the world.

"Many people don't get involved in the Great Turning" writes JOANNA MACY "because there are so many different issues, which seem to compete with each other. Shall I save the whales or help battered children? The truth is that all aspects of the current crisis reflect the same mistake, setting ourselves apart and using others for our gain. So to heal one aspect helps the others to heal as well. Just find what you love to work on and take joy in that. Never try to do it alone. Link up with others; you'll spark each others' ideas and sustain each others' energy…"

The flotilla is a living example of this."

Enough for today

Basta
As they say in Italy,
ENOUGH.

Do they say basta pasta!?