~C4Chaos

IceRocket: On Being an Author

IceRocket flattery
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

Well, what do you know... I've never written a book, published a paper, or have been sane and coordinated enough to write my thoughts on paper, but according to IceRocket, I'm a freakin' author. That's numinous nonsense!

"I have never thought of writing for reputation and honor. What I have in my heart must come out; that is the reason why I compose."

- Ludwig van Beethoven quote

Freakin' Bell

Whenever I forget to close Ottmar's blog in one of my Firefox tabs, that mindfulness bell always catches me off guard, especially when I'm wearing my earphones listening to iTunes with the bloody volume in full blast! One of these days Ottmar's blog will either give me a heart attack, or a rude awakening. Damn! There it goes again!

Rebecca Blood's Bloggers on Blogging

Rebecca Blood, the blogger who inspired me to blog with passion and compassion, has an ongoing series of interviews with A-list pioneer bloggers. Here's an excerpt from the David Weinberger interview.

For me, a community is a group of people who care about one another more than they have to. I do feel part of an ever-changing community of bloggers and readers. That's not to say that everyone who ever glanced at my blog is part of that community. But there are people I've come to know over the years either through their blog or through their comments on my blog. Some of them mean a lot to me. And this is not a binary club that you're either in or out of. It's far smudgier than that, as it should be. There are blogs I read that I feel emotionally attached to written by bloggers I don't know personally but about whom I've come to care. I'm more than a reader of them but less than a community member. It's an extension of the attachment we feel to favorite printosphere writers, but the blogging world is more intimate and less guarded.

Check them out. And when you're done, check out the niche cryptic fluffy bloggers on B-SCAN.

Thanks to Caterina for the heads up.

Seeking Enlightened Developers

This job posting cracked me up. Too bad I don't know a damn thing about Ruby on Rails. It makes me feel like a rusted pipe nowadays.

Desired skills: CSS design skills and failiarity with AJAX integration in Rails is a plus. Extra points if you're vegetarian/vegan and know who Ken Wilber is or what 'integral' means ;)

My Profile In Haiku

While playing around with zaadz, I thought of creating a very short online profile for my cyber-sub-persona. So there. It's got everything and then some.

through this viewfinder
while weaving a bluesy trail
i ask -- who am i?

Sir Tim Blogs

timbl's blog @ web comments
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

So I am going to try this blog thing using blog tools. So this is for all the people who have been saying I ought to have a blog.

- Sir Tim Berners-Lee's blog post [via]

Whoa! This one goes straight to my Google Reader. Could be a hoax. But still very fluffy.

Wilkenson Blogs

A shout-out to my good friend Wilken who started blogging as a way to remember. Miss you guys.

Ditto on this MD

So it seems people learn his model, go around applying it to things they read about but when challenged have nothing to rely on, to back up and argue besides Wilber's very generalized 'orienting' model. His work covers so much and summarizes in a way that people just swallow it down (download IOS ring a bell?) and instant analysis not using the general lens or IMP of AQAL but using Ken word for word or pretty damn close to it often....

I have to say that I am disappointed with the derogatory manner in which you continue to refer to ken in your writings. And please do not interpret this as some kind of a defense for kw for I do not feel the need to "protect" him or to be out there in cyber-space writing apologies for him everywhere. Rather, this is about protecting the integrity of your own work - why would you choose to jeopardize your efforts by lowering yourself to name-calling and vocal bullying? And let's be honest, you are clearly openly attacking people here, and not their ideas.... Continuing to speak in such a manner will only serve to discredit the strong work that you are producing and the service that you are performing for the larger community. I say, honour your own efforts by maintaining a sense of dignity about your ideas. In the end, this will come across as a certain subtle confidence which can only serve to aid in the delivery of your ideas and provide a kind of buttress for your emerging philosophy as well as a bolster for your own academic integrity.

Thanks for setting the record straight, Matthew. And for the record, I care too.

Civility in Blogging

When I started to think about what I wanted to speak about today, the phrase "civility in blogging" kept on popping into my head. When I say "civility in blogging," I'm basically referring to the demeanor or the desired demeanor that we conduct ourselves when we're blogging. Civility is a difficult concept to speak about without sounding preachy or condemning. I don't want to give a lecture today on civility -- God only knows that my coworkers would laugh to hear me talk about politeness. Instead of lecturing, I really just have a simple question: Can we as bloggers be more civil?

Just read this speech Mena gave on Les Blogs. It was brave of her to bring up this topic. Civility in blogging -- I would love that! But alas, it's like asking everyone in a big family to behave on the dining table. Not everyone are on the same level of maturity (e.g. kids, teenagers, senile folks) hence everyone will behave at their (sigh) level of development (foodfight anyone?). Nothing bad there. No conspiracy. It's just is. Now think globally and give everyone the power to spill their guts out online and then ask for civility, you see my point? Of course this shouldn't stop those who are at the higher level of understanding (read: mature) to call for a change for the better, and actually do something. And let's not forget the responsibility of the readers too.

Blogging is here and is evolving in hyperspeed, and with it carries humanity's good and not-so-good side. I'm on Mena's side on this one, but I don't see any quick solution to this, well, except maybe for those A-list bloggers (and the like), who wield more power than us lowly bloggers, to be not only passionate and civil, but especially to be more compassionate with their expressions.

"Utopias are great - until people start moving in." Amen to that!

[ps. when the president of my blog-tool of choice speaks her mind candidly like this, i know that i'm in good hands.]

1,042 posts = Two Years in the Rabbit Hole

This is my 1,042nd post. Two years worth of awareness embodied on virtual binary pages. Not much has changed in terms of style and design. No new dramatic phases as before. But one good thing about the practice of blogging is that I can glance back into the temporal log of this and that.

- Godspeed Brother Wayne
- Election Blues
- B-SCAN was born
- Got a new laptop
- Bodymind-For-LIFE done!
- Tsunamis strike
- Met with Apo Jim
- Painting with Light got some attention
- Went back to Boulder for a visit
- Met Brian Greene
- Generation Sit was launched
- Got my Rebel XT; took pictures like crazy
- www.kosmicaperture.com was launched
- Got my PSP
- Played at the park and made a buck
- Live 8
- Lance made history
- Absolution completion
- Kosmic Aperture featured on Integral Naked
- I finally saw House of Flying Daggers
- Katrina's wake up call
- Jamming with my cousin Abbie
- Highschool buddies tracked me down
- Got my iPod Nano
- My first open mic in Seattle
- Got sucked into the world of Tom Leykis
- Received a warm welcome into The Singularity

And this bodymind's stream of consciousness continues...

The Bible is Not Infallible

Amen!

THE hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church has published a teaching document instructing the faithful that some parts of the Bible are not actually true.

The Catholic bishops of England, Wales and Scotland are warning their five million worshippers, as well as any others drawn to the study of scripture, that they should not expect “total accuracy” from the Bible.

“We should not expect to find in Scripture full scientific accuracy or complete historical precision,” they say in The Gift of Scripture.

V's got RSS

Victoria now uses Blogger with RSS enabled. Finally! You go girl! One more blog added to my bloglines subs.

Fluffy Party Animals?

I saw this posted on Geoff's blog (see Oct. 2 entry). WTF? I'm filing this under integral and weirdstuff. Take that, you Sentient Blob!

Katrina's Wake Up Call

Hurricane Katrina August 28 2005 NASA
Originally uploaded by 敏.

It's a bitter spill to swallow. Especially when there was sufficient warning.

Random acts of nature are constant reminders that in spite of humanity's accomplishments, we're still as helpless as newborns. Our lives, our possessions, our society, our history can be wiped out at any moment. Such is the nature of this chaotic non-linear kosmic jacuzzi we're all swimming in.

Looking for something to blame is part of being human. But so is doing however whichway to help out and learning from past mistakes. It's during times like these that I find solace not in a vengeful god, or the chaotic indifference of nature, but in the bittersweet reality of impermanence.

"What does a 12-bar guitar solo do when it catches solar wind and whips around the galaxy?" Good question Paul. I don't know. All I know is that The Sky Crying.

How can you help the victims of Hurrican Katrina? If you're suspicious about charity organizations, you can always try Craigslist.

Conversations with G-Dawg

Upon logging into my Typepad account one of the featured weblogs caught my attention. The blog is called Conversations with Jesus and Buddha. My first reaction was a raised eyebrow and a wrinkled forehead. Man, you must be kidding me. There's already enough basketcase in the blogosphere. Aren't there enough Conversations with God and Course in Miracles already? Pardon my sarcasm, but where I came from everyone seems to be able to talk to angels, elementals, saints, masters, aliens, dead people, spirits, you name it. They even have an organization to develop these abilities. Allan Kardec would rollover his grave (pun intended).

But *gasp* I still forged ahead and clicked on the site. I don't know. The tone of the writing seem sincere. And the dialogues exhibit a compassionate intelligence. Consider this dialogue between the author and Master Jesus about the film The Passion:

“The Jews didn’t kill me anymore than the Romans did. That will be confusing to many who wish to pin the blame on someone so that they can seek justice in the form of revenge. Again, this isn’t necessary in my name, and I’m the one presumably wronged here so my wishes must be weighed. The longstanding enmity between Christians and Jews over this episode is unnecessary. Jews are reluctant to drop their defense and Christians are holding on to a grievance that isn’t true.”

Nifty eh? My only comment is that, since it is a conversation with Master Jesus, why put a copyright? Wouldn't it be better if it can be ripped, mixed, and burned?

Anyway, I think I'll look around and eavesdrop on the author's conversations with Maitreya. Wherever, whatever, or whomever these conversations are coming from, they're a lot better than my own mental chatter.

God is a Blogger

Let me wrap up this ISC inaugural event blog with a story telling by Ken Wilber about how theology becomes poor facing the new moment of the world. He began with the theme "God is a blogger." He told us that God have been blogging from the very begining about atom to animal to human being to theologian. Suddenly, evolution becomes conscious of itself. God starts to look back what He wrote before and realize that He has to reconcile what He write today with what He wrote yesterday. God knows for long time ago that He is omnipotent, ever-present, and infinite. But when He looks back in the blog He has written, He see the evolving theologian from believing in egocentric God to ethnocentric God to worldcentric God. Now after realizing the evolution, what kind of theologian will God blog about today?

Huh?! So did God also blog the NoGodBlog? That sneaky Kosmic Bastard! First IOS, now this blogging thing, and podcast too. What's next? Peer-to-peer? Very fluffy.

Eat the Rich, Chew the Poor

Glenn Firebaugh, a sociological researcher at Pennsylvania State University, and graduate student Laura Tach of Harvard University, decided to test this theory and focused their research on whether the income effect on happiness results largely from the things money can buy (absolute income effect) or from comparing one's income to the income of others (relative income effect).

Firebaugh says that, in evaluating their own incomes, individuals will inevitably compare themselves to their peers of the same age, so a person's reported level of happiness depends on how his or her income compares to others in the same age group.

- News-Medical.Net: Grandma was wrong, money can buy you happiness!

If you're like me who's first reaction to this article was, Phooey! Comparing your income with your peers is not only freakin' shallow, it's pathetic too. Look again.

My parents taught me that money can't buy me happiness, but they also taught me to be thankful to God for the blessings that we have because other people are not as fortunate. So it's the same principle. We feel a little better knowing that we're more blessed (read: luckier) than other people. The catch of course is to not get drunk with that blessed feeling.

Firebaugh's data found that, while income was important in determining happiness, physical health was the best single predictor of happiness, followed by income, education, and marital status.

And there's the rub. There's a reason why Maslow's hierarchy is a hierarchy. So let's not feel guilty comparing our relative successes with our peers so that, in the process, we can honestly reflect on our own strengths and weaknesses. Then once we're tired and frustrated gauging our happiness by relative comparison, let's all thank Grandma for her golden nuggets of wisdom. But if we still don't want to believe Grandma, then maybe we'll listen to Steve Jobs.

...you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

dj rekluse Blogs

dj rekluse, aka the IN Admin and audio whiz of the "most important podcast in the world," is now groovin' in the blogosphere. Welcome, biotch! What took you so long? I also smell a dj rekluse podcast brewing. Final Scratch is way too powerful to confine to mixing dialogues. In the words of the great momo, "i weep for us all."

Fueled by Passion

I was reading Wired Issue 13.08 as the plane touches down the Houston runway when I came across this quote:

"Today less than half the web is commercial. The rest runs on passion and duty."

And it put a smile on my face.

Serendipity @ Work

serendipity at work
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

I suck at night shift. In the past few weeks I only averaged 3-4 hours of sleep. I just can't sleep during the day. I don't like taking sleeping pills, so I tried a big glass of Margarita from a nearby Tex-Mex. That did the trick. But it came with a headache. No good for night shift either.

The first few weeks I felt like I was being punished by Yamantaka by placing me under the hot Texan sun and assigning me on a project from hell. But during the last few days everything miraculously jived and we were able to pull it off on schedule. I had to grow some wings in the process, but in the end, serendipity worked its mysterious ways. I'm just glad I can now go home, wherever that is.

A Day in the Life: Googling Lunch

Here's a typical phone conversation before going to work.

Co-worker: Hey, where you at? I'm already at the lobby.

Mel: Hold on. I'm googling us a dim sum.

Co-worker: Ha ha ha! Awesome!

Mel: Found one! I'm on my way.

[upon arrival at the restaurant...]

Mel: Man, this place looks really authentic. It's no P.F. Chang's for sure.

Co-worker: Are you sure they have dim sum?

Mel: Let's ask.

Mel: Hi, do you have dim sum?

Lady: Uh, yeah.

Mel: Do you have menu in English?

Lady: No.

Mel: Uh, okay. Do you have hakaw?

Lady: No.

Mel: Do you have siomai?

Lady: No.

Mel: Do you have chicken feet, sticky rice?

Lady: No. We have pot stickers. We have Cantonese style dim sum. Not Mandarin.

Mel: Oh, okay.

Lady: You can try the place across the street.

Mel: Great. Thanks.

Co-worker: I can't read Chinese, but their catfish looks delicious.

Mel: Yeah. Let's come back here tonight.

[Co-worker and Mel crossing the street. Entering the restaurant...]

Co-worker: Hi, do you have dim sum here?

Lady Receptionist: Yes, we do.

Co-worker: Awesome! [whispering to Mel] Man, she's cute too.

Moral of the story: Google Map and Google Earth are damn cool. But the map is not the territory.

32 Flavors And Then Some

fleeting moment
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

It rained in Dallas today. Perfect. We could all use a break from the heat. I miss the most overpriced city. Night shift sucks. Vodka Red Bull is good enough to give me the buzz I need. Now I can get some sleep. One flavor a year. That's how I see my life moving forward. The rest is beyond my peripheral vision. One flavor a year and then some. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.

Weekend Boredom No More

Whenever I get bored I usually grab my Ebony by the neck and caress her until my fingers are all numb. Since I don't have my ladies with me, the only cure for my common boredom is to stop by where all the ladies are at. So I went to the nearest pimpin' superstore, bought a pack of medium picks, went inside the acoustic room, and flirt with those uber-pricey ladies I can't afford. I think I'm in love again. What a sweet tone. I wish I could take her home. The pimps at the pimpin' superstore had to kick me out just to pry me away from her.

Nooooooooo! So long my dear. It's been a pleasure to run my fingers all over you. I think I'll get over you by watching HBO. Six Feet Under and Entourage are on tonight [those four goofy guys will be staying at Jessica Alba's Malibu house on tonight's episode. w00f!].

Weekend Boredom

It's Sunday. I'm bored. I've already seen two movies yesterday: Devil's Rejects was too depressing for me to handle. Too effective. But if you want to be depressed, this is the movie for you; The Island was cool. The premise was absurd but the action and effects were very entertaining. And did I mention that Scarlett Johansson is hot?

I can't think of anything to do. Too hot to roam around outside. And I already did the geeky stuff: reading Translucent Revolution by the pool. Jeesh. I better stop doing that. Sometimes I scare myself.

It cost an arm and a leg just to get Internet access here. But how else can I blog?! Anyway, I think it's time for me to get out and get myself some lunch. Steaks and shrimps are everywhere.

Twenty-two

vhorn @ pike place
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

I remember exactly where I was a year ago when I missed my good ole homey's twenty-first birthday. Today he turns twenty-two, happily married, and geekier than ever when it comes to spiritual practice.

Happy Birthday bro-friend! Spend your mystical youth wisely, drink a glass of beer for me, and beware of Salamone puking all over your shoes.

Who's Your Daddy Now?

There. www.coolmel.com is up and running like a virus again. I transferred my domain to GoDaddy since it's probably the cheapest and most dependable registrar around (um, that is until Google does a Microsoft move). I don't care about their cool Ad or their political stance at this time. As a blogger, Bob has every right to speak his brains out. You can always tune him out. If it's good for Wikipedia, it's good enough me.

Just Can't Wait to be Up in the Air Again

Tomorrow I will be flying back to Seattle. I'm tired of the 100 degree weather here in Dallas and looking forward to some low humidity, rain, caffeine, and lazy days in the park. It's like groundhog day all over again. I remember a year ago, around the same time, I was getting ready to move to the Emerald City. But this time, instead of driving my ever-dependable coupe, I'll be flying in style. I hope I get bumped up to first class again. The food and the leg room there is way way much better.

Happy and Gay in Sickness and in Health...

MADRID, June 30 - The Spanish Parliament voted Thursday to legalize gay marriage, giving final approval to a bill that would make Spain, a predominantly Catholic country, the first nation to eliminate all legal distinctions between same-sex and heterosexual unions, according to supporters of the measure.

Good for them. Backlash in the future? Maybe. But one thing is for sure. Gay people in Spain will now experience the "real fun" of marriage. My best wishes to all of them. I wonder if this will eventually quadruple their divorce rate. What about alimony/spousal maintenance? Child support? Visiting rights? Paternity testing?! Ugh! Take me out with a bong hit and a screaming orgasm.

Bono On Meet The Press

"As a hairy person, yes. I'm very concerned about that. It is the biggest risk that we take as activists, but I've been in the room with Condoleezza Rice. I've been in the room with President Bush and Tony Blair and Chirac and Schroeder and on the Democratic side, you know, with John Kerry and all over Congress. Am I being used? In a certain sense perhaps, but it works both ways. If they deliver, we must deserve applause. We must give the respect."

- Bono (aka Paul Hewson) on Meet the Press

One good thing about staying in a Dallas hotel (aside from sleeping on a bed and having someone cleaning my room everyday) for an assignment is that I can get to watch TV on a weekend. I was flipping the channel on a Sunday morning and saw Bono with his trademark cool shades being interviewed on Meet the Press. For a non-traditional politician that guy knows how to answer well (see transcript). Talk about diplomacy. For the good of all our brethren in Africa (and all of us), let's hope for success.

Coolmel.com Domain Blues

I transferred coolmel.com domain to GoDaddy. Unfortunately I don't have access to my email right now so I can't get my account info to log in and configure my DNS. So pardon the funky behavior of coolmel.com. Will fix it soon. In the meantime, try coolmel.typepad.com.

Benevolent G8 Makes (Debt) History!

The world's richest countries agreed Saturday on a historic deal to write off more than $40 billion of debt owed by the poorest nations.

The debt relief package backed by finance ministers from the Group of Eight industrialized nations is part of a British-led effort to lift Africa out of poverty.

- G8 Agrees to Historic Debt-Relief Plan

Wow! It's about time I read something good on World News that makes my jaw drop and gets me teary-eyed. Bono, Bob Geldof, and the organizers of Live8 should be smiling by now. Of course this doesn't fix everything, but it is indeed a BIG step in making poverty history. Now the threat to watch out for is rampant graft and corruption which plague most developing countries. Hopefully, this opportunity will be used by the leaders of the poor countries to do the "right thing" and start building their nations for the better. Start with nutrition, healthcare, and education, then the hierarchy of needs will follow. There's still a long way to go. But thanks to G8, the biggest step in the right direction is on its way. And so the spiraling can now continue -- debt-free.

McDonald's-for-LIFE

Shotgun Ronald
Originally uploaded by redspotted.

Ronald's mojo got hurt real bad by a recent shotgun incident (see photo above) because he didn't have the muscles and guts to protect himself, while embarassingly wetting his yellow baggy pants and curly-fried knees in the process.

So starting today Ronald will be switching to an active lifestyle and "beef up," not only to boost his self confidence, but also to be more taken seriously as a clown. The McDonald's management fully embraced and supported Ronald's decision and saw an opportunity to use his new lifestyle in their marketing strategy. When a McDonald's spokesperson was asked as to why they would still continue using Ronald as a mascot instead of just hiring an already buffed clown, he said that Carrot Top was too pricey.

Live 8 to Sway G8

"No matter what happens in the future, rock and roll will save the world."

- Pete Townshend, BBC News quote.

Um, I wouldn't go that far, but I give Pete an "A" for passion and enthusiasm. Although I agree that most of the time, artists should just "shut the fuck up and rock," there are times when their popularity can be used to serve a greater purpose. Besides, artists are not isolated rocks. Their artistic expressions are influenced by their political leanings, consciously, or unconsciously. Live 8 is the event where they could/should freely (and nobly) express their stance, and use the hype to send a message not only to a greater number of the world population, but more-so to the powers-that-be.

On Wednesday 6th July, the eight leaders of the most powerful and richest countries in the world will gather for a summit meeting in the town of Gleneagles in Scotland.

These men can make poverty history and change the future for hundreds of millions of people – but they will only do it if enough of us tell them to.

That’s what LIVE 8 – The Long Walk To Justice is all about, and that’s why we want your voice, not your money.

Rock and roll may not save the world, the way Pete had envisioned. But with an uber-Maven (and -Connector) like Bob Geldof, and the Connector-popularity of all participating artists, they could very well start the much needed social epidemic that could tip the decisions of the mighty G8.

"Listen, I know what this looks like, rock star standing up here, shouting imperatives others have to fulfil.

"But that's what we do, rock stars. Rock stars get to wave flags, shout at the barricades, and escape to the South of France. We're unaccountable.

"We behave accordingly. But not you. You can't... See, we're actually counting on you."

Bless you Bono, bless you! I may not have a means to go to Europe or Philadelphia. But if they set up one in Canada, I'll mark it on my calendar and map it on Google.

UPDATE: 06/02/2005 - Looks like Live 8 in Canada will be in Ottawa. Drats. Too far to drive. Maybe I'll just end up watching at AOL.

Dr. Wrath @ GenSit

The transpersonal counterpart of Tom Leykis is back wreaking havoc in the Kosmos. This time dispensing his psycho-spiritual-testosterone-laced advice over at Generation Sit.

You don’t have to be a kalachakra initiate to know there’s more to romantic relationships than hand-holding, mocha lattes, and long walks through the parking garage. You pathetic humans rightly aspire to banging one of the bodacious Bodhisattva babes I hang out with for aeons up here in the Pure Land. Unfortunately, you aren’t going to get it from any individual person on your lame little planet, so give up now.

Blow me up Dr. Wrath! Heaven help us all.

Bush, Dick, Manson

What do George W. Bush, Andy Dick, and Marilyn Manson have in common? If you answer, "they're all weirdos," good guess. But the correct answer is that they're all been featured celebrity interviewees on Beliefnet. Now check out the following quotes and guess whether it's Bush, Dick, or Manson.

"Luckily, I always maintained a dialogue with God, especially in my darkest hours. You know it is like that footprints poem. It really is like that for me. When I was at my worst—I really am trying not to cry right now—I was really in contact with God, just praying with conviction to just please get me out of this."

"I used to have nightmares about the Antichrist..."

"You see, if you believe that we're all sinners, as opposed to you're a sinner and I'm not, then I think it helps you, at least for me."

Flickr Party?! Count me in!

Are they still partying? Damnit. Howcome I missed this one? Thanks for the late reminder dawg. The two and a half-hour drive would have been worth it. I could've been hobnobbin' with the rich and famous. Oh well. Good luck guys. More ass-kicking. And stay on the "good" side of the force. Always.

On Top @ Mount Si

on top @ mount si
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

Blogging will be light today. My legs, knees, and butt are still hurting from hiking up and down.

My Personal Savior is Batman

my personal savior is batman
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

"Fictionology's central belief, that any imaginary construct can be incorporated into the church's ever-growing set of official doctrines, continues to gain popularity. Believers in Santa Claus, his elves, or the Tooth Fairy are permitted—even encouraged—to view them as deities. Even corporate mascots like the Kool-Aid Man are valid objects of Fictionological worship."

- The Onion: Scientology Losing Ground to New Fictionology

I just can't help but crack up while reading this article from The Onion (via Kensho Godchaser). It's one funny-as-hell shit low blow to not only The Church of Scientology, but also to all fictional elements of all cults, including the major world religions.

What the heck, if Spielberg and Cruise dig it, why can't we? But I think one Fictionologist sums it all up quite accurately, "As a Fictionologist, I live in a world of pretend. It's liberating." Don't we all?

ADDENDUM: My other personal saviors are: Yoda, Morpheus, Neo, Trinity, Care Bears, Optimus Prime, He-man, Cookie Monster, Mr. Miyagi, Young Ken Wilber with hair, and Macgyver. If you're a Fictionologist, who's your personal savior?

Nibbàna is Cool

nibbàna for everyone
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

I was craving for pad thai this afternoon so I went to one of my favorite Thai restaurants. I got to sit on the bar since the place was packed. Then I noticed a free pamphlet on the counter, so I browsed through it while waiting for my order. Very fluffy --

"Nibbàna has nothing in the least to do with death. The word 'Nibbàna' means 'coolness.' Back when it was just an ordinary word that people used in their homes, it also meant 'coolness.' When used as Dhamma language, in a religious context, it still means 'coolness,' but refers to the cooling or going out of the fires of defilement (kilesa, or reactive emotions), while in ordinary people's usage it means the cooling of physical fires."

- Buddhadàsa Bhikkhu

Homophobia -- insecurity about being heterosexual

"There's another reason why the International Day Against Homophobia is a cause for celebration: it's one of the most interesting recent attempts to think globally about a problem (homophobia) that has mostly been addressed only on a much more ethnocentric scale. Asking most gays (or any other minority) to think globally is a hard business. We have too many other things to worry about, and local issues usually press their way to the top of the pile. But this creative step is a good start towards helping gays--and the rest of us--think and act from a worldcentric level of concern. FULL STEAM AHEAD, baby!"

Joe Perez (aka the Soulful Blogger) has a new blog -- Rising up -- and an upcoming book with a foreword by a metrosexual named Ken Wilber.

Red Sox vs. Mariners @ Safeco Field

red sox vs. mariners @ safeco field
Originally uploaded by coolmel.

Damnit. The back to back ain't no match for the Grand Slam. Red Sox fans rock!

When Your Writing Sucks...

Paul asked, "How can I improve my writing?" And the grumpy old man replied:

"In my view, which of course is correct, writing is a skill that is only refined over time. A person is born a good writer, their style will be rough but that improves with time. The underlying fact is there is recognizable talent. If you do not have this underlying talent, you will never be good at writing, and thus should not bother trying to improve."

Would you trust the crazy person on the street corner in the blogosphere to give you advice? "Bite me" doesn't quite cut it.

PaulSalamone.com Lives!

Finally, Paul now has his own personal blog. Um, very fluffy?

I do not intend for this blog to follow the "traditional" blog format of informative, newsworthy posts, links, and commentary. Nor do I see it as a place for finished essays, reviews, etc. All I merely wish to do is commit to writing, at least 10 minutes a day, in any style I see fit. Creative writing experiments, personal journaling, pointing-out instructions: mainly I wish this to serve as a daily creative outlet with which to "process" my experiences, to make sure no consumed media item goes unacknowledged, no life experience goes unreflected upon, no artistic impulse goes unexpressed. This blog intends to be the central, raw creative engine of my current lifestyle, from which all further writing-oriented projects (articles, essays, reviews, books, performance pieces, poems, greeting cards, etc) will find their nascent inception within.

Just write!

FootLoose

I was having brunch at Whole Foods yesterday when I picked up a copy of Seattle Times and come across this article: Walking Across America --

"Your belief system saturates the space around you," says Huey, in Seattle, reflecting on his walk across America nearly three years after it ended. "On the walk, I was an anomaly. Because I didn't fit anywhere, I fit basically everywhere."

It's a heart-warming and insightful story of discovery. Very fluffy. And I love his pictures too. Now, if only I can only think of something unique to do when it comes to taking pictures. Nah.

I See Trees of Green...

On this 35th Anniversary of Earth Day, are we all environmentalists, driving our SUV's to Whole Foods to purchase plastic wrapped organically grown Bok Choy? - NPR: Kuow.org

I admire Whole Foods and other companies that put profit as their secondary mission. Environmentalism maybe dead --

As individuals, environmental leaders are anything but stupid. Many hold multiple advanced degrees in science, engineering, and law from the best schools in the country. But as a community, environmentalists suffer from a bad case of group think, starting with shared assumptions about what we mean by "the environment" -- a category that reinforces the notions that a) the environment is a separate "thing" and b) human beings are separate from and superior to the "natural world."

but this should not stop us from saving the world.

Those who wish to change the world
According with their desire
Cannot succeed.

The world is shaped by the Way;
It cannot be shaped by the self.
Trying to change it, you damage it;
Trying to possess it, you lose it.

So some will lead, while others follow.
Some will be warm, others cold
Some will be strong, others weak.
Some will get where they are going
While others fall by the side of the road.

- Tao Teh Ching: An Interpolation: Peter A. Merel

The Anti-Anti-WIE Blog

Jeesh... I don't know. But the "uncensored bin" is a very cool idea...

In "The Uncensored Bin" are posts by boring old farts who are incapable of saying anything useful say about Andrew Cohen and his ragged rabble of merry men.

At "WHAT Enlightenment Uncensored" we like to consider ourselves above the devious market positioning antics of the nameless faceless censors at rival blog "WHAT enlightenment??!". If their trapping and baiting Mr. Cohen is all a charade designed to promote their business interests then shame upon them.

Thanks for the link salaTHRUSTra. This kind of animosity is just perfect for Earth Day.

Stripping the Gurus (and Pandits)

I started browsing the book Stripping the Gurus, Sex Violence, Abuse, and Enlightenment.

ONE OF MY DEAR, late mother’s most memorable expressions, in attempting to get her children to behave, was simply: “Be sure your sins will find you out.”

It may take a minute, an hour, a day, a year, ten years or more, but eventually the details of one’s behaviors are likely to surface. Whether one’s public face is that of a saint or a sinner, ultimately “the truth will out.”

This book, then, concerns the alleged sins which have been concealed behind the polished façades of too many of our world’s “saintly and sagely” spiritual leaders and their associated communities, with a marked focus on North America over the past century.

I haven't read everything yet but there seem to be a lot of "dirt tossing" about different spiritual teachers, even philosophers. There's also a chapter on Scientology (very ballsy). And of course, my favorite chapter is about Norman Einstein (aka Ken Wilber). Check it out. It has tons of hyperlinks. Looks like a fun read. Just keep this age-old maxim in mind:

Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.

- The Buddha

Thanks to Frank for the book link.

It's Alright...

old chapter closing
it was raining yesterday
now here comes the sun.

so i went to the vending machine
and grabbed a Rockstar.

If only for better health...

How appropriate and timely.

If you let them make you, they’ll make you paper mache / At a distance you’re strong, until the wind comes / Then you crumble and blow away / If you let them fuck you, there will be no fore-play / Rest assured, they’ll screw you complete / Til your ass is blue and gray / You should make amends with you / If only for better health, better health / But if you really want to live / Why not try, and make yourself / Make yourself / Make yourself / If I ha