Saturday 7 September 2013

10. Taking action

Connecting with the ancestors 
Just a quick additional update. I normally post just one post at the beginning of the month, but things have moved on a little...
I have been busy decorating, my wonderful meditation room is no longer [I am actually sad about that!], it is now a bland and boring as fuck magnolia and white box.
My bedroom is also now completed, again it is boring- just the sort of thing that sells [apparently].
I am in the process of doing the bathroom, so it is a busy time for me right now. But I do feel as if I am taking action...

Work sacked me!!! I have no idea what to do next, but will continue this weekend charging around with paintbrush in hand. I shall start looking for another job on Monday. 
Something HAS to turn up, I have bills and a mortgage. I live [and have done for 4 years] on my overdraft, so obviously no savings. 
My MOT is looming in the background...
Offering

Watch this space!!!  

Talking of watching this space...does anyone read this stuff? 
Leave a comment below if you do, it would be nice to know. Cheers.

You can also 'follow by email', meaning that when/if I post, you get a short message letting you know. See the box, top left...

As this is just a short update, I will leave you with TWO 'thoughts from within'...


THOUGHTS FROM WITHIN;

Know yourself!


The purpose of life is to recreate yourself anew. Challenge your present way of thinking and move into a grander and larger experience of who you really are.
Know yourself…really get to know yourself. I think that spending time alone with yourself can only be a good thing, it doesn't have to be boring, personally I meditate, but you can just sit quietly for a few minutes a day, go for a walk, sit alone in a meadow, try to see yourself how others might see you- ask yourself, is there something I need to change about myself, then work on how.

Yes, you are human, but you are also so much more. In truth you are a perfect spiritual being having a human experience, encountering life in the world of form. That sounds really great, even poetic and magical, but life can be hard anyway. Let’s face it, we all experience the imperfections that come with the territory of being human. Often, we feel like tremendously limited, ordinary people who enjoy occasional moments of spirituality. It’s certainly not easy to practice spotless ways of living all the time so we’re sure to fuck up and have days when our attitude is more than a little self-defeating. And that’s OK.

To be honest, everything is OK, you are you, warts and all. However, there is always a much deeper version of you hiding just under your skin, once you start tapping into who that person is, it is like being reborn, becoming awake. Even becoming FULLY you?

Focusing on what you appreciate can help you feel more spiritually connected. Being or feeling grateful also helps, it is a nice way to live, and you will begin to see more.
The older I get, the more I realise life is quickly over, I have lost many friends over the years, and my years are numbered! There comes a point in everyones life when they suddenly realise that they have probably lived over half their life, then they realise they have lived more years than they have left to live, then the realisation that you have maybe 10 or 20 years left…just 10 or 20 more summers, perhaps 20 more times of walking through the autumn leaves! 
A scary thought, but nothing is permanent, which is why knowing yourself, and finding that spiritual connection is so important- time is running out!

Close your eyes, sit quietly and think. Meditate. Do guided imagery. Stare at the ocean. Let nature inspire you.
It’s hard not to feel the presence of something magical and spiritual when you’re admiring the grandeur of mountains, deserts, streams, oceans, lakes, forests, wild animals, and gardens. Drift away whilst watching the sky, connect with the inner you, the real you, and allow yourself to shine.
Take time - Feel the energy
Start to think what is it that you REALLY want out of life, where do you want to go, what do you want to do, what do you want to experience? Knowing yourself will allow these questions and their answers. We have one life, a life that can either pass us by, or a life that we take hold of and lead us into a direction that we WANT to be heading in. 

Get to know that spiritual part of yourself, and follow your bliss -x- 

Like this? Don't like this? Comment, and let me know your thoughts...

FACEBOOK

I admit that once I actually loved Facebook, and to a degree, some parts of it, I still do. But lately, I am finding it less and less interesting, even annoying!

People post the same old shit, same old scams and hoaxes that have been going for years.

Seeing my friends and families photos, and sharing my own, is what I like/liked most about Facebook, a photo and a caption can generate a belly laugh or bring tears to my eyes.  
But, for me, the annoying part is where you have what you think is a great photo, you might get one or maybe two comments, perhaps a couple of likes as well, then you see a photo of someones dinner or their dog, which has 30 likes and 20 comments! Totally ridiculous, whats the point in me sharing my photos on FB, why not put them into instagram, Flickr or any other site? At least that way, they don’t get lost in a pile of statuses, videos and other pointless shit.

Turning the details of our lives over to Google and Facebook is making them rich at the expense of our freedoms. Most people hate the idea of big brother, yet there we are all offering up our personal info, helping big brother out. Yes, I am also guilty of this, I have said where I have been, who with, and then shared the photos! If the government want to track me, I am actually working for them, and for free!!!
I suppose when a service is free, you are the product! 
Fools are parted from their privacy just as easily as from their money, it seems.... I try to overcome that by not using my real name, I have changed my name on FB half a dozen times.

What about these FB ‘friends’? 
Whilst it is true that through FB I have made possibly 4 or 5 real friends, friends that I talk to and see outside of FB, well for the majority of them, there’s a reason we don’t associate other than on Facebook.  For most, it’s not because of a geographic disparity or because they don’t have an email address or phone number—it’s because we’re simply not actual…friends.

One thing that has really bugged me over the past 4 years is that FB has shown me quite openly and quite obviously, that people, and especially family, either don’t care, or can’t be bothered!
I get very few likes or comments on my photos from family, and if I put a serious status up, as I have the last 3 or 4 statuses, not one single comment from family at all! 
I have been suspended from work, then I put a status up during that time, finally work sacked me! 3 or 4 statuses relating to all this stuff going on and I got just one comment from a family member. I would have liked maybe a friendly word, some advice or anything from my family!!
At the same time, I could see them commenting on bullshit/boring/pointless statuses from their friends. Perhaps I am reading too much into this, but a serious status is like a cry for help, doesn't it deserve just a simple comment? Maybe not!

I'm on a mission to simplify life, to slow it down to a pace at which it can actually be consumed, not just tasted.  I don’t want to hide behind the ubiquitous, “I'm really busy” as a badge of honour.  
I want a lower cost of living (not just financially) and a higher quality of life.  I want to limit the number of things that compete for my attention so that I can apply more attention to those things I care the most about.

I am now quite disillusioned with FB, and with myself- for spending so much time on there!
So, although I am not ready to delete my FB once and for all, I am taking a back seat. I will pop on there from time to time, if I can be bothered- we will see.

The fact is the real people in my life will still remain in my life, if they want to and can be bothered. 
I think a phone call, email and especially a meet up, is far more important than anything FB can offer me. I will now see who wants contact with me, as they will have to actually think about me, and pick up the phone or knock at my door…

Peace  -x-
Nature is my church

Sunday 1 September 2013

9. Sunny September

Time spent in nature
is never wasted!

Well, here we are, hurtling towards autumn already. The mornings are quite chilly, but the days warm up until they become blessed with the heat of summer towards the late afternoons. The trees are heavy with leaves right now, but showing slight changes as the weeks move on. Some months [some years] go by so quickly. I do love trudging through the autumnal leaves, and each year the colours just blow me away, I shall miss the summer, but welcome the change that comes with autumn.

August saw me suspended from work on some silly allegations, which has resulted in a few phone calls, emails, letters and an official hearing which I had to attend. I then had to attend a disciplinary hearing on my birthday, what a treat! It is all bullshit, but I have treated it as a nice long paid EXTRA holiday, and have been out and about most days, as the weather has been amazing. I was never going to let it worry me one bit. My wonderful friend Lore sent me a text that sums it up, and something that we would all do well to remember ‘you are not your job’. What a wise friend I have there. 


Wanderlust
I spent a night in the woods, which was so nice to reconnect. The crows were very loud this time, especially around 9pm. Once they settled to roost, the woods took on a nice relaxed feel, it was warm and quiet.
I woke at just before 5am, to be greeted by a wonderful dawn, the sky was black/blue/red/purple and yellow…really magical.
This taught me that one day I shall invest in a good quality camera, the one I currently use does a nice job, for £50, but it can’t capture what I actually see.

I have managed to sell a few of my ‘items’, although I have learnt that many of my things are quite unusual, and are proving difficult to sell. I have also began decorating, and having a general clear out of my crap. It feels that the chains are getting looser all the time, a nice feeling. Although I want to sell as much as is possible, I feel that I shall end up dumping a lot in the nearest skip! Whatever will be, will be.
I bought a Swan double saucepan, which a traveller recommended. Basically, it is like a large saucepan, [but its two!] split in the middle, with separate handles. You just need to cook on a nice low gas, cooking both sections at once- saving on gas.

I had my hands tattooed yesterday, it is a design that I have been carrying in my head for a long time. It is an ‘OM’ or ‘Aum’ symbol, I have it split in the middle, so that when my hands come together it makes sense, to me it is all about connecting, when we connect we feel whole. A connection could be a friendship, it could also be about connecting with nature, or with your inner self. I also had the word ‘Wanderlust’, for obvious reasons!
I say that being tattooed and having tattoos are good for the soul, which probably no one understands, but I love getting a new tattoo, the whole experience [to me] is quite spiritual, a tattoo is a permanent change to your body and the way you look, and sometimes it changes peoples perception of you. But it also brings on a permanent change inside, like letting go of the old you, perhaps?


I have been trying to think of both the positives and the negatives of a life on the road. To be honest, when I think of a negative, there are far more positives surrounding it.
I have though about it being a really hot night, and leaving my windows open- imagine a hand coming through the window at midnight!!! But with a shout, a torch, flash of camera etc, they should bugger off. I know that is unlikely, but it was just a passing thought. I always have a baseball bat at hand, due to my past, and that has spoken for me in the past!
Another negative would be that I could breakdown down some lane somewhere. Again, turning that around, I have joined a fantastic group on Facebook called NATMECH, they are all new age travellers, and loads are mechanics, obviously they are all mobile, so can come to my rescue, plus I could join the AA.
Water and electricity will probably prove to be a pain at times, but there are ways round that.
I couldn't really find many negatives, the positives [as I have mentioned before] are what is driving me forwards. Waking up to a sea view, a forest view, hills etc…  money can’t buy that!
Being off grid, away from the matrix would be amazing, and living a quiet and peaceful life, doing things on my terms is what this new life would be about.

The truth is, I don’t and can’t fit into the life I have tried living- for far too many years!


So, I am still pretty much set on the idea. I am making progress, slow progress, but things are coming together.


There is a comments section at the bottom of every post, if you would like to ask/know something- or simply wish me luck?

Although I write this blog for myself- it would be nice to know if someone, somewhere reads it?!!!!!  LET ME KNOW, please. You don't need to leave a long message, just 'me' will do, or your name...anything! I am just trying to find out if anyone reads my posts- or perhaps I am wasting my time?

You can also 'follow by email', meaning that when/if I post, you get a short message letting you know. See the box, top left...

Peace.   -x-

 








Thoughts from within.  Authority and respect.

I have always had a problem with authority, or those in their supposed authority positions, this includes the police, churches, the council, bailiffs etc. I also have no respect for out dated ridiculous traditions like the monarchy or the vatican.
This has caused conflict in my life, time and time again, especially with bosses, who I regard as just another person at work- I don’t and can’t hold them in some kind of misinformed esteem.

Things like the TV licence, bailiffs, the poll tax and the census ruffle my feathers, in a big way. I have been to court a number of times, and that in turn also winds me up, with their supposed authority over me!

Those in positions of power got there by screwing over those beneath them and don't deserve any respect. I don't think anyone should have power over anyone else, we should all be equals and free to do as we want as long as it isn't harming anyone else.

I do have respect for people that have earned it, like doctors and nurses, that have proven they are good at what they do and have valuable skills that help people, they deserve all the respect they get.
However, politicians, corporate CEOs, police, military, etc. get no respect from me unless they have earned it by standing up for the rights of others or sacrificing for the good of the people. Respect has to be earned not given away just because some idiot was put into a position of power; most likely by another idiot.

When people say they want their kids to respect authority, what they actually mean is they want them to obey authority!
You hear it over and over again, “You should show respect for authority!”
Why? What makes authority right? If we have any sense at all, we require a reason before respecting anything.
Hitler became an authority via democratic process. Did that make him worthy of obedience?

Authority is an abstract; a secondary, not a primary. We ought to respect things that are profitable to men.
But, while I am more or less condemning authority, I am fully aware that without some kind of authority, we would all be living in fear of our lives. As much as I hate it, we probably need the army [just incase], we also need decent police, who are capable of working under the oath that they swore.
What this means is that obedience to authority is not virtuous by itself, only that it can become a practical necessity to achieve some goal that is virtuous.

We should only resort to going on someone else’s word when we have insufficient information and insufficient time to gather the facts and decide upon it. And even in these cases, we really should consider the benevolence and honour of the person calling the shots.

The Queen and the pope could eradicate world poverty in a single minute, IF they chose to. Their authority over us is bullshit, and I have NO respect for either.



Respect should go to individuals who earn it, not to positions.



Peace -x-