Out of the Auditory

American Nomads Documentary - Richard Grant - BBC Four

Seems downtime after work tonight consists of BBC Four and feeling like I need to write here. Shoes didn’t stay hung for long eh? Though to be frank, will be here much less often than usual due to work and ‘real life’ reasons.

Anyhoo, caught the very end of this documentary and just thought, now on my bucket list is to go walking with Richard ‘Yogi’ Bair. Fuck vertigo. I want to see the back door! The Sierra Nevada mountains looks soul soothing, beautiful and I’d love to sit and have a conversation with some one who looked into the abyss and managed to find beauty in it. Funny, America never appealed to me as a youth, with the exception of California. I’ve still never been (to Cali). Now, am far more interested in ways of life nothing like my own but will get there soon. My brother’s just back from 9 months in both North & South America, tells me I’d love San Fran. We’ll see. Will watch the complete documentary tomorrow, only caught the last half hour or so today. The closest I’ll get to mountains is the end of June, t’will be a grueling trek round 3 British Isle mountains in aid of something worthwhile again.

Then stayed on BBC Four and a scary 1977 TOTP’s played the below Jacksons track. Wow, a blast back to being 8 again through that song and video of Michael Jackson in particular.

Thought! Didn’t most ‘pop’ stars on that episode look just like everyone else!? What happened to normal looking people being famous?

Exactly when did all the plasticine, airbrushed, skeletal, artificial, perfectly cake baked people get indoctrinated as ‘normal’. Some of the actresses I saw at The Raindance Film Festival last year, literally were a bag of bones, seriously scary! Where have they hidden normal looking famous people? In the cavern of ‘the camera adds ten pounds, so make yourself look like an emaciated third world inhabitant’ or ‘I want you to look like an androgynous heroin chic clothes hanger’ or ‘surprisingly, your face has naturally aged the past few years, please make yourself look like you are artificially going through G-Force 7…minimum’ ? Are we really trapped in the reality of ‘Escape from LA’? (Can Snake save us from the ‘augmentation’ specialists? Don’t watch it, it’s a terrible reality, I mean movie!!) When will they start really stealing body parts? (Oh yeah forget that already happens for organs these days. Lips and tits next, for sure!! Then we can all start looking like Barbie’s mutton mother, yes lads you too, can’t wait!)

Show You The Way To Go - The Jacksons

Morning Lovely Tumblr Folk.

Just wanted to say, thanks for the follows, the comments and for reading in general. My exploration through this place has brought me through a wide range of emotions, informed me, frustrated me, brought me joy, sometimes sadness, brought me new music, new perspective and allowed me to look on in a world created in the vacuum of binary code, anytime, anywhere. Considering I didn’t start here for my own benefit, I have benefited none the less. Gratitude.

I’m hanging up my tumblr shoes for the foreseeable future. The day after my last post my sister was admitted into hospital for emergency surgery. She’s fine now. Life’s still good. Occurrences like these make you reassess where best your energies are spent, particularly when ever increasing workload ensures you have little expendable energy left. One sided conversations aren’t as rewarding as real ones full of depth, love and laughter. Those who want to stay in contact know how. Should the Universe wish it, we’ll bump into one another.

Wishing you all a bright and happy future. Be safe, be happy, be healthy.

Remember the world really is your Oyster. More so now than ever.

If you’re lucky your Oyster may endow you with a pearl.

Within that pearl is wisdom. Be wise.

Peace.

And Love xxx

[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

Eight Thirty Something, The Garden, May 2012

So dusk begins. Sitting here on the bench that creaks and moans with the weight of the years, countless a posterior or posturing having occurred on it’s slowly decaying grain. We both listen to the close of the day, the first day that smells of summer, a fashionably late entrance of sunshine to this May party.

A mouse scuttles from under the upturned wooden flower boxes never put to use. Brown bodied and black beady innocent eyes glance my way as if my presence is an intrusion on it’s daily route. The gnawed at cardboard on the hedge trimmer box in the shed, when replacing the lawnmower, an earlier clue to the tiny rodents existence. The mouse scuttles a little closer looking at me and the open back door, gauging the opportunity and the threat. After a third look it decides to beat a retreat and leave me in my fascination at another addition to the greenery outside my back door.

Already the foxes have moved from their daily sunning and usually undisturbed spot. Where once a winter blooming spray of purple or white heather used to flower, when all other foliage was clawed back against the harsh winter climate, are now only fox shaped scrawny deceased heather patches. The annually returning urban scavengers becoming more a resident of the garden than I. Truth be told I feel like a stranger out here taking over the wildlife’s turf.

It has rained consistently since the word drought was broadcast over the networks, with only a couple of forgiving days when keen gardeners were able to prevent their urban shrub and grassland turning native and propagating as Nature intended. Today the clear blue skies and general enticement of the sun brought me out to tame the meadow of a lawn that has sprouted over the past six or so rain filled weeks. The slight red breasted Robin, not quite plump enough to look adult, follows my traces of the lawnmower round the garden. Either the opportunist looking for whatever morsel it can find once the two foot blades of grass have been cut back or the eager adolescent male defending the territory too vast to cover against an orange mobile grass destroying device. It is clear via my multiple encounters with anything but homosapien life, that I am the stranger of this soil (haven’t mentioned the Cats or the frogs).

Still, I sit with my al-fresco dinner listening to the now dusk chorus and soak in the smell of freshly cut grass. A smell I have come to love since a wee one. It reminds me of summer. Of walking with my olive skinned, worn in, but gentle faced Grandfather. Always a light smell of tobacco emanating from him. The payment of an endless supply of Carroll’s cigarettes for his dedicated years of service in producing them. The unfortunate cause of him being passed away these past 26 years. I’d hold his hand as we walk along Cocklehill Road towards the Main Street and beach promenade, the smell of freshly cut grass and salty air filling my polluted London lungs. The care and attention that folk gave to their gardens always struck me as special. People had room to breathe here. Breathe they did. After every walk with my grandfather, visiting the corner of the world I loved the most, I’d hound my Mum to move back. Not understanding why on earth she would want to leave this picturesque place, at least not until many years later. All this was much to the amusement and delight of her father. Why don’t you he would say? I’d get a scornful frown from my Mum. Towards my Grandfather a look of ‘you know why’.

Cut grass. Memories of family, of history, of innocence, of salty air, of long lost summers and summers to come. Why, I love this little oasis in the middle of the suburban sprawl. The daylight being lullaby-ed to rest by a feathered choir. This moment, right here. Life feels good.

Tomorrow Never Knows - The Beatles

In the mood for two Beatles tracks today.

Here’s to making it through yesterday. Being present today. To sorrow, to joy, to heartbreak, to healing, to redemption, to forgiveness, to understanding, to wounds, to friends, to family, to music, to silence, to losing, to finding, to knowledge, to nature, to sunrise, to sunset, to darkness, to light, to compassion, to renewal, to wholeness and to love. Always to Love.

One thing will continue, Tomorrow Never Knows!

Peace.

All my love. xx

Within You, Without You - The Beatles (George Harrison)

—

“I have no fear of losing you, for you aren’t an object of my property, or anyone else’s. I love you as you are, without attachment, without fears, without conditions, without egoism, trying not to absorb you. I love you freely because I love your freedom, as well as mine.”

Anthony de Mello

The only place to truly love from. Finally, we arrive here. After what seems a long journey. Love x

(Source: starryyeyed, via mor-rioghain)

—

But I’ll tell you what hermits realise. If you go off into a far, far forest and get very quiet, you’ll come to understand that you’re connected with everything.

Alan Watts (via ofthemoonandsun)

(Source: ageofreason, via eswynn)

Nothing Will Ever Change (This Love Of Mine) - Jimmy Jules

Sung with soul. x

Straight Sun - Orbital - Wonky

Orbital’s new album Wonky I bought along with Jack White’s Blunderbuss and The Civil Wars Barton Hollow.

Just listened to it about an hour ago. I have a confession. I am _____ and I’m a danceaholic! I am not ashamed. I am powerless against the beat. I believe there is a greater force than me moving my feet. I promise to fearlessly dance around the kitchen on my own with a big grin on my face. Even when I’m grey, hobbling and saggy in places I can no longer see! I will bring forth this message to fellow danceaholics.

But seriously first few tracks of Wonky are uplifting and optimistic, the above track standing out for me. Then the album runs the whole gamut, Beelzedub is giving the dubstep youngsters a run for their money, with the Jungle/D&B drop implying - this has all been done before kids! Stringy Acid - well take an educated guess with that one. The title track Wonky is what it says on the tin, off key, has potential but don’t like the vocals (video is nuts, have yet to listen to the remixes!). Where Is It Going, got me grinning ear to ear, throwing circles, triangles and squares, wish it went on longer. In the old days or live it would have. Gutted I decided not to see them at RAH now but going to see if Orbital and I, can get a date in December or Bestival has been coyly courting me lately, Orbital now being an added attraction. Seems Orbital’s old dogs aren’t lying down anytime soon.

Here’s to dancing round your kitchen, completely on your own, full of joy. Put on your just can’t sit down gotta dance music, shake some ass and smile. Trust me, you’ll feel better for it! Get this album. (Always good therapy for a shit day too, that, and cooking!) Love x

Mr President, We’re in Trouble (feat. Jimmy Carter) - Fold

Been decorating all weekend, renting a spare room out for a while, ‘til the whole place gets rented. God I hate painting woodwork, once enjoyable, now I’d rather stick pins in my eyes for fun. Thank the Universe for BBC6 Music on the wireless (ok the digital replacement). Kept me company Saturday night whilst I persevered, muttering to myself I’d much rather be out in the pub or at a gig, or the Great Escape Festival Brighton, or at a friends. Anywhere. It came to the early hours of the morning and I was still slaving away (alright don’t feel too sorry for me I’d had my help earlier in the week from friends), when on the Tom Robinson show this track came on.

All afternoon/evening I kept hearing tracks and thinking, must go listen to that again. After inhaling paint fumes all day, I could just about remember that we don’t lick the paint brushes, rollers are not to create bangs and white spirit is not for putting with mixers! Ha, only messing. What did happen when this tune came on, was I repeated it about 5 times in my head so I wouldn’t forget it (or I’d have to listen to the whole show again). Me likely a lot. Not hard to guess why. It featured on the BBC6 Music Introducing Mixtape. ‘Fold’ also claim to be donating profits from sales of the track to the Occupy movement, if that’s true, that’s pretty decent too. More of them on YT.

Enjoy. Or Not.

Now damn it Janet, can it just stop raining so I can get at my garden, tis a jungle out there! Missing miss sunshine, she came and lifted her skirt for only two days, now she’s slipped back into her habit of rain! (that’ll be the none type of sun. Habit, Nun…get it, no? Okay, just me then *whistles and sidles away*)

Love you all xx

Sense, Essence, and Existence: Qualia and Attention

Color, Qualia, and Attention: A Non-standard Interpretation

Austen Clark, University of Connecticut.

Abstract. A standard view in philosophy of mind is that qualia and phenomenal character require consciousness. This paper argues that various experimental and clinical phenomena can be…

A couple of years ago I seriously thought my screws were working themselves loose and took to reading books like there was an expiration date on printing them. Lots about consciousness (again) and brain function. This notion of Qualia (brought into focus by V.S. Ramachandran) kept coming up. A more scientific explanation for the intuitive feelings described in the post below. This education led to conversations with my Uncle who’s a doctor and a general smart alec. He introduced me to a book on esoteric studies/comparisons, plus a whole host of other sites. We discussed the ‘God Particle’ and how science hasn’t really defined/cracked ‘life-force’ as yet. I’m not really that scientifically minded, it was a lot to take in. All that to try and understand an intuitive experience that was baffling the hell out of me! Personally I don’t think we humans understand our own minds and their collective capability, fully, just yet. It seems we have lots of the pieces, just we can’t seem to complete the puzzle. Until then keep paying attention. x

Pearl Within: Why we should listen to the rhythm of our heart

pearlwithin:

i heart connection © erincarver.com

The heart is a mysterious organ. To some it’s simply a very efficient pump; to others it is the seat of the soul. But there isn’t a human being on earth who doesn’t know what it means to feel something in your heart, to have a heart that’s bursting with…

Interesting post. Though don’t think this phenomenon is exclusive to Mother & Child. Sometimes when we are connected to someone, this is the only organ giving you guidance. As stated here, often the brain doesn’t understand why the heart is telling you something is right or more importantly if something is wrong. We just sometimes trust it over the head, especially as it’s proved right many times in the past. The brain then just uses all subsequent information to make an informed conclusion that confirms that intuitive feeling. Doesn’t work all the time or with all people and when it does, we don’t know how long it will last either.

(Source: heartmath.org)

Stumbled across this album/single cover don’t know much about the artist. I just liked the uncomplicated message and straightforward wording. Interesting use of typography.

*Click photo to actually hear their soundcloud. Demons, Spit It Out & In The Park are pretty darn good. Would be interesting to hear a proper studio production with this lovely voice.

I’ve Got This Friend - The Civil Wars - Barton Hollow

This song however did catch me with it’s lyrics.

Yes I’m very late to this Album party but I’m here now and it’s like one of those parties where you walk in to a room warmly lit by an open fire. Every chair looks comfy and people’s silhouettes are created by faint candle light, chilled out on scatter cushions. Someone gives you their seat whilst they grab you your favourite wine and conversations you have are like you’ve been old friends forever. This album reminds me of that kind of atmosphere. Think I might have fallen in love with these two today too. x