Fragmental beginnings

 The view from my window is quite pleasant, the rooms empty except for the few belongings I took along in a suitcase. It is kind of refreshing to not have to have so much stuff anymore.
Work is fine but exhausting - everything is new, that's why!
Have my own internet access since yesterday and will participate here and there more again in the days to come.
Today only these images - soon more.
Must go ... right now!

Back again, work done for the day. 
This is my mental diary style, images, impressions, not many words.
Not many words for you...
And I presently save my breath and comments not to specify political, ecological and economic issues. You know it all, if you truly wish to know it all - and therefore you can create your own very picture without any problem. This is the curse of being connected with no possibility of making any difference, through the internet that is. An abstract kaleidoscope of impressions dancing in front of your eyes and mind. What can I do to better such a situation, not only my own, but perhaps the one of my neighbor, or my surrounding community? That is a question that pops up for me a lot these days. It actually does. And since I am now in the profession to take care of people with special needs, this question has become even more urgent: What can I do for the "Common Man/Woman"? (additionally) A question to ponder. I hitch hike a lot these days, and people stop. What I see in their behavior and reactions is: I don't mind to connect, tell me your story!  Isn't that a natural urge that often gets pushed under the carpet, the possibility to exchange your own observations of how life is for you and how you deal with it, even if it is with a stranger? 

Is there a tomorrow?

I certainly bore you to death by again picking up this subject. But now it's definitely closure time.
Tree planting, a plum tree I believe last Saturday in honor of Emily. I came a bit late, so I was not able to join the bunch of people to ride a horse up the dirt road - unfortunately! Haven't been on a horse for many years, would have liked to do so now. But oh well, maybe I can persuade the family to give me a horse and then take a ride at a later point. I am rusty, need to replenish.

Did you know that horses are one of the oldest species of animal life on earth, genetically speaking? They survived the dinosaurs, maybe because they were more intelligent than them.
I wonder how the human species will do in the future, is there a tomorrow?
They, the humans,  are a beautiful and soul-full creature, but somehow they seem to have a hard time connecting to all what is around them. 

The Swiss and the Lebanese

The two countries have several things in common. They are both small in size, have a diverse population, a multitude of religious beliefs, snow in the mountains, and are surrounded by much more powerful states.
What they don't have in common, is that Lebanon can be reached by a sailboat from anywhere in this world while Switzerland remains an enclave only to be reached by foot only. There are some vulnerability issues as well. Switzerland has denied to be part of the European Union, making itself a country with less strings attached. Lebanon on the other hand does not know if it wishes to be "attached" or not. It stumbles into its future rather than walking a straight path.
Unfortunately people in Lebanon pay the price, and the cedar trees are crying.
The deadly assassination to one of the top military generals today becomes an other
story of despair.
I am thinking that Lebanon has to become more egocentric and act like Switzerland did 700 something years ago, namely feel and convert the pride of it's existence to every intellectual, every farmer, every clerk, every shop keeper, every musician.
Only then, Lebanon will arise out of the ashes like a phoenix.
If this doesn't move, the days of Lebanon are counted.
Be well, Lukas.

...images this time stolen from the web - one is the shore towards west, the other snow and cedar trees in the mountains in Lebanon

gloom of scorpio

I was going to write something here ...
Wasn't it so, that this particular zodiac sign could be redeemed?
Scorpio, the only living thing that can take its own life without outer help or other measures. Fierce, but not graceful.
The eagle on the other hand elevates far above and with keen and unrivaled vision - spots out its pray. No poison involved, just skill.
It has come to my attention that the American Eagle has been swapped, transformed into a scorpio.
Now we will just have to wait and see if and when the US will commit suicide with its own poison and ram the tail into its rear.
The beauty of the eagle once reigned. It shall re-arise when the poison is gone, after the Scorpio's death has been reafirmed.

east and west

Last evening I took these pictures from the rising moon in the east and the setting sun in the west. (Full moon is today)
It made me think of the difference in qualities and why the sun is setting while the moon is rising, a metaphor of todays global situation.
The "moon-forces" are on the rise, while the "sun-forces" are veining. We should try to keep a balance. Think about it, Islam is moon. Turkey (the Ottoman empire) even has a moon on their flag; moon forces are the propellant of the middle east: Division between intelligence and the propulsion of universal compassion. So while the sun-forces drown today, the moon-forces rise. Why is that so?
Simple: The sun has lost its luster, the rays can't keep a balance by themselves. Humans disrespect the sun and with it all earth existence. The West is Not the Best ( mocking the Doors) - the west lost touch in how to meet the east, balanced - with confidence and less violence.
No matter what religious or spiritual background you have, the present issues can't be solved physically and confrontational, but that is what is happening right now in high gear. No, I am not a "peace-freak" and "tree-hugger" at all - don't get me wrong. There are times to die and there are times to live. But it strikes me, that nowadays we have been pushed out of equilibrium by "moon-forces" being on the rise on this planet.
The virtues of moon forces: Diversity, specialization, reflective intelligence, consciousness of rhythms in time.
The virtues of sun forces: Unity, illumination, aural intelligence, consciousness of time in space.
Both are needed, but none should overpower.

this one is for Ingrid ... and whoever else cares

I hear a knock at my door, it is 6:30 AM, an unusual time of day to expect visitors. It turns out it is "Doctor Todd" the only mechanic on the island. Every morning he is walking his dogs, passing my house.
"Lukas, I believe there is water in your boat" he said. "How much, can I still bail her out?" I replied. "I don't know, I didn't had a close look. I'll give you a hand once I brought my dogs home."
I rushed to the float to see what was happening. There she was, full of water, the waves dashing in pushed by an unruly sea. I was about to say - forget this boat, let her sink when Todd appeared with his little Wrangler Jeep.
For 45 minutes I was standing in the water up to my balls, a bucket in hand racing against the odds of either getting a heart attack or else loosing the race against the vicious waves.
I won. Smashed up legs and freezing, but no heart attack. All this because I forgot to pull the plug on the self-bailing hull.
Earlier that week the throttle cable on my moped broke (hard to find replacement) - the work situation is uncertain, the mornings are misty and damp.
All images of my present mood.
So you see Ingrid, my motivation to post is somewhat subdued. I am stumbling through the midlife crisis of my island life!

Ahah or Ahlah, like playing the lottery

The dude is probably long dead due to kidney failure. Nevertheless, the US senate doubled the bounty on his head, now being $50 MILLION!
I wonder if the State Department or any other US agency has DNA samples of Bin Laden, you know those tissue samples who can prove if you were the rapist or murderer. If not, it might well be worth to construct his capture and killing. What will it take to create a fake scenario that will convince the world ... one, two , even ten million?
It's easy. Even if you invest 20 million dollars in staging a fake display of his death and then win, you'll be left with a profit of a staggering 30 million. That's what I would call a good investment, ingeniously done , or perhaps just a lucky move of sorts.
But believe me, Osama is dead. A suffocated dragon, drenched in his own blood. Simply dead, basta, finito! The more interesting question is: Why does the US right now double the reward for his capture in the political climate we presently live in? Why now? If 25 million didn't do it for a camel herdsman in the past, are 50 millions gonna do the trick or any difference subsequently from now on? Why is it so that the US is playing lottery with Osama? Don't they know that this kind of ticketed gamble has almost a zero chance of return, a poor mans taxation at best?
I guess the empire is getting desperate. They don't know either way in or out anymore.
So - where is it people, of that what is left, that what they once used to call the true spirit of America?
Freedom reigns only to the ones who are honest and true by heart, nothing else will suffice.
America take heart, literally ... otherwise you'll be left treading down paths of Mordor, stranded without the help of hobbits or Gandalf.

Parades and Pirates

Not knowing what to expect, I watched the celebration of US Independence Day (4th of July).
Some of the island youth decided that enough is enough and the only way to regain independence is to become active.
After all, counterinsurgency might actually save Democracy, or that freedom we are always bragging about in this country.
Let's savagely regain our liberties, stolen from us by the cronies in power = become a pirate!

youth-hangover

Coming home at 4:30 in the morning, sleeping three hours, then getting up and facing a new mission seems to be a frequent occurrence for young people these days.
In the old times, when I grew up, we simply got a spanking from our parents trying to put us back in line. Those days are gone. Not that the spanking had any revolutionary effect, but it slowed us down, at least momentarily.
The present generation of parenthood, whilst upbringing their kids, subscribe and rely mostly on that "dog-treat-training" method: "Honey, if you don't bark and you'll promise to be a good kid, I'll buy you a new CD player" ... or what have you not. I believe that method is doomed as much as the old fashion ways were. Actually it is worse. It creates spoiled brats waiting for life opportunities to be served on a silver platter.
So what is there to do?
I have a friend who lives in Vienna, Austria. He sends my daughter weekly parcels of junk from China via the internet. Should I be grateful? No, I should spank him the old fashion way! His only achievement for now is to put my daughter in a state of delusion, believing that material happiness is delivered by mail, for free of course. What a moron.
In the "very old" days they used to recite: "No matter is without spirit, and no spirit is without matter." That should be the doctrine taught to these youngsters - instead we flood them with fake artifacts made and assembled in a far-eastern manufacturing slave compound ... just in order to keep their temper tantrums down. Sick. The "West" is spoiled rotten ...
And all it takes to turn this around would be to teach our kids fundamental values again. Values of grace and awe, not shock and awe - and perhaps some modesty.

18 - 21 - 50

(picture) final results from my protege, shown yesterday at the senior project presentations

With 18 you can get a license to kill (join the army) - but you can't purchase a beer to soothe your nerves.
With 21 you finally can have a beer, but you are growing tired of killing.
With 50 you lost the taste for beer and you're too old to join the army (though they recruited 45's for the manslaughter in Iraq as of late. An unconventional move, saturated with an aura of desperation).
Those are some given parameters of US stepping stones in civic life. But this is not what we are celebrating today. My daughter, son, and myself don't gel to this concept.
My daughter is about to launch into studies of healing humans, becoming a nurse. My son , after a three year apprenticeship with a fine stone mason, ventures towards sustainable agriculture, healing the earth. Me, I try to leave the cynic behind and enjoy life the way it seems to evolve in the present (before all the ice-caps have melted). My goal is to make a difference locally and disregard global schemes of capitalistic and political games aimed towards enslaving the general populous.
So we are celebrating 21 and 50 today. The May birthdays. In September will be the 18 year benchmark celebration.
The year 2007 is a pivotal point within the narrow borders of the life within my family. My birthday hopes and wishes to the broader world, is that change can also happen on a grand scale, namely to take care of this precious jewel we call Earth.
Let the party begin - pictures will follow later.

Rachmaninoff - nah, Beethoven

Is it interesting to say that I came across an absolutely gorgeous Steinway? Probably not that interesting. Anyhow, this thing is in some rich persons home, and I have nothing to do with it, unless you call the person who let me in, my friend. As I was touching the keys, I realized how little I remembered, from way back then ... when I had a few lessons.
But the sound was magic, you didn't even had to know how to push the keys. Some instruments just lend themselves to virtuosity without the baggage of proficiency.
I forgot the lines, but then I remembered the tunes.
Life is a bag, then you empty it's contents on the table of "today" before you go further. Vinaigrette or Russian?
I'll take plain vinegar, salt and olive oil at this point.

... interesting how and why this post stirred some compulsive reactions and comments

broken dreams

cut it short

TO PRESIDENT BUSH

This thin-lipped king with his helmeted head
Remembers the quirky fits of light
That tempt the cobra. No, the temper of the dove
Does not fit him; and nothing in the world
Can bring him to bless. He will not feed,
Nourish or help; in his rabbity hand
Lifted in the fading light of the hemlocks
Waves to them, gestures to the young to die.

Robert Bly

_____________________________

The working class always has to march. It has been this way forever. And then you see the stinking 5% of the ruling class still smoke their Cuban cigars in the back-rooms, exempt from federal non-smoking regulations, while denying that Cuba actually exists.
Anyhow, street demonstrations are done and over with, clear bullshit. They don't change a thing. The only discourse right now is to act locally - and fuck globally....
I don't wish to be a total pessimist, believe me, I'm not. But politicians, even the ones with good intentions get corrupted within a short period of time. There seems to be no escape from this trend. It is a waste of energy (if you have anything of that left) to demonstrate against the Bush administration, and also a waste of time in my eyes.
Instead we should start to create cells of independence, may it be in networking local businesses (we have a local currency where I live in the US, a good start) or just put more effort into sustaining and promoting local assets we already have on our hands.
I am a strong believer that peace can not be obtained through political means anymore within this system we currently are forced to subscribe to.
And even if I don't yet have the final cure, or a quick fix, I still manage to keep an upbeat and positive attitude.
So do you I hope!

Children

Some years ago I carved a headstone (grave-yard-stone) for a girl that died of cancer - and she was only nine years old.
Today I am thinking of all the children who died or got maimed by other causes around the globe. Mostly due to violence of adults, fighting wars that seem to be a priority in their minds.
It still is incomprehensible to me that violence is the major religion on this globe and that people don't seek betterment. Is greed and dominance that important? I start to believe that the humans are the stupidest animals around, going down the road of self-extinction by their lack of cognitive cooperation. It is pretty sad actually.
Instead of diligent research into causes of cancer, they ban cigarette smoking and keep the dirty coal-plants burning.
Instead of eliminating causes of terrorism, they fight wars that create more anger and terror.
Instead of converting to alternative energies, they keep producing gas guzzling cars.
Instead of using intelligence, they provide gut feeling homophobia.

It seems that the human animal only learns being faced with death and catastrophes, and even then it is a questionable success. Politics, religion and cooperate greed of the capitalist system are the main culprits of our demise.
The children of the future, our future, depend on us.
Let us make an effort and give them and us a chance!

so you are tired of politics?

I can read the the message loud and clear - your participation on this board is on an all time low. I hear you - politics stink!
Ok, so let's go back to art, sex, drugs and rock'n roll ... or a sublime combination of all of the above.

To start this of, why don't I share a picture with you I took last summer.

So, the fine news are that a good friend in Austria send me a digital camera with a superb lens, a lens manufactured by the Leitz company in Germany, the best lens manufacturer there is. So from now on the battle between shadow and light will come easier.

Shadows and light,
shadow and light - what is it - can I really capture it now, capture who will win that battle between darkness and illumination?

Easy Rider

A nice truck, a nice road in the middle of my town, lot's of wood for the winter - what else?
Well, look at the truck door, must be from the town maintenance crew or something.

So let's have a closer look.


Gotcha - "State Of Confusion"!

fly - go, go and fly

The last geese gathered and started their journey south. With shrieking sounds they said good bye to the ones left stationary on the ground. May their travels be safe.
Sometimes I wish we as humans would be able to elevate ourselves like geese and see things from above, a perspective a bit more unifying than those petty morasses of daily jungle life we so eagerly swallow as our standard nutrition.

dusk

Today the world is too crazy and it gets more and more difficult to keep track of all that is going on. I feel remorse for that assassination that happened in Lebanon, makes that country even more fragile than it already is.
My thoughts are not "positive" and gravitate more towards dusk rather than dawn -
There might be a chilling beauty to be found in the dark, but there is wonder and rejuvenation in the promise of light to come.

are you vegetarian, vegan or plainly undecided?

Now that we had the grand American "smoke-out" today, we have to put our focus on an other of them traditions: The Thanksgiving turkey! Will you survive the feast or bow down and become a vegan (no shoes made of leather please, 'tis made of animals, no snickers either - they are made of oil ... deceased dinosaurs) ... please come in cotton socks to enjoy the bounty, or for god sakes just walk barefoot.

How will you celebrate Thangsgiving?

P.S. my son claims to get up at 5 in the morning and shoot a wild turkey tomorrow. I personally savor wild turkey. Let's wish him luck!

crumble and decay

A kiln in the middle of the woods falling to peaces, a bridge that will become oblivious if not maintained. Just images I know. How are we holding up as humans I wonder? I received an email from a friend of mine yesterday, he lives in Europe. He made a good point. To put it blunt and short: Europe is not a nation! The present loss of identity due to economic preferences of companies supported by bone-head politicians become the stumbling stone of decay for European countries. So you may say: What do I care?
Well perhaps you should. I hate to preach in an "Eurocentric tone" but today I will. If Europe brakes, the rest of civilization will crumble just like the lime kiln in the posted picture. After all, for the last 1000 years or so all impulses of furtherment - good and bad - originated from there; not from Africa, not from India, not from the Middle East, not from the Americas. Did I leave out the Southern Hemisphere?


So lets skew our thoughts for a moment to the present decaying empire, the USA - stuck in the Middle East, overcome by Japan economically (Toyota has now become the number one car maker in the world and made 3 billion profit while Ford lost about the same amount during the last fiscal year) so thereby and by many more examples I could list the US will be soon hopelessly shoved into a corner of it's own survival. Not good. What the heck does that have anything to do with Europe you might ask? Well it does because the present empire was build on European roots. So when the baby has no more milk to nibble from the mothers breast, the sibling dies. If Europe goes, the US will follow.

















And as far as I am concerned this is already the case, it is already happening.
And again, as my friend pointed out, Europe is not a country - but rather an agglomeration of unique nations that have now been destroyed by the greed of commerce and the call for globalization.
What a pity.