tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9387361136516439652024-03-12T23:37:08.609+00:00Now Look What I DidRichard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-71153742200573799462020-11-18T17:05:00.018+00:002022-04-26T18:47:52.586+01:00Separated From Nature and Now Separated From Each Other<p style="text-align: justify;">There was a time, in the distant memories of the past, when people were more connected to the natural environment. These days, only a few tribes and Shaman around the world still have this connection. The rest of us experience a cold detachment of a few beautiful sunsets, weather conditions that are not always favourable to our chosen activities, and natural disasters we cannot understand. Oh, and not forgetting all those pesky animals needing space to roam free, when we want to use their land for our crops and conurbations.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO2Py25QJRf4cK14m-y7fh1E-PtiCscxyEy4uZuMOcz7ktIJngl5mwOw3nfK5Cy_jCKCfvgxYZ71O5Q1OoJ0iZqDpnin1peSZeNzA2CaXD-TBnvmFu_idkL30x1Cz_0jMiWFY7kLica2k/s1600/Elephants.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1600" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO2Py25QJRf4cK14m-y7fh1E-PtiCscxyEy4uZuMOcz7ktIJngl5mwOw3nfK5Cy_jCKCfvgxYZ71O5Q1OoJ0iZqDpnin1peSZeNzA2CaXD-TBnvmFu_idkL30x1Cz_0jMiWFY7kLica2k/w400-h250/Elephants.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In the pandemic world of COVID-19, human populations have been shown a stark example of how life can be when things taken for granted are taken away very quickly. Our perceived position, at 'the top of the evolutionary hierarchy', is not the stable place we have assumed it to be. People, en masse, have been forced to experience separation from each other, in a way that nature must feel at times, separated from people.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The planet was created with many autonomous systems, working in harmony and is underpinned by an intelligent consciousness which connects everything. Humans cannot even begin to appreciate the complexity of what is involved. Take this simple water droplet. All the natural laws which govern the behaviour of this slow motion capture, come together perfectly, even when we do not understand enough to know whether everything has occurred correctly:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/RLn1ErhxOPo" width="560"></iframe></center></div><div><br /></div><span style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;">Now imagine for a moment, everything else that is happening in our world, in perfect ways. Unified consciousness controls all of it, in perfect synchronicity.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Instead of seriously considering our ways to reduce our impact – like closing down a lot of unnecessary mass production and factory farming – we instead come up with alternative ways to use cleaner material processes to maintain or expand our production – in this case, electric vehicles: </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-54981425" target="_blank">https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-54981425</a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I personally feel that Hydrogen might be a better, or at least parallel, move:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2020/11/16/diesel-engine-giant-cummins-plans-hydrogen-futurewith-trains-coming-before-trucks" target="_blank">https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2020/11/16/diesel-engine-giant-cummins-plans-hydrogen-futurewith-trains-coming-before-trucks</a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Animals will often find ways to die, if their environmental conditions become unsustainable to support more of them, or their quality of existence becomes unbearable. Humans will not address this in any way, but rather act as Locusts – until there's nothing left to sustain them. Instead of addressing the problems head on, they instead propose the habitation, and perhaps terraforming, of barren planets in our solar system. Why can't we focus on looking after the one we already have?</div></span><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwrzMDXWaNceO8HpeNPG66bif4fsDgA1l-ifcEl0CAK-WA-wGjYU7AiKHxROznCDpWsvVyd8o_xBCPmsZozvNXiHlP-hGObAPe5BJa2ib81pFOda0rUuT8PvETLZp8f3uuxinLa0E7-sc/s768/Deforestation.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="768" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwrzMDXWaNceO8HpeNPG66bif4fsDgA1l-ifcEl0CAK-WA-wGjYU7AiKHxROznCDpWsvVyd8o_xBCPmsZozvNXiHlP-hGObAPe5BJa2ib81pFOda0rUuT8PvETLZp8f3uuxinLa0E7-sc/w400-h229/Deforestation.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">The Coronovirus pandemic should be a wake-up call and, quite frankly, if commerce, industry and governments don't start acting more responsibly after this, I hope we have another pandemic or disaster which holds us to account.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have included a few timeless Seth quotes, delivered through Jane Roberts between 1973 and 1980 – but which never lose their relevancy:</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"A scientist examining nature studies its exterior, observing the outsideness of nature. Even investigative work involving atoms and molecules, or [theoretical] faster-than-light particles, concerns the particle nature of reality. The scientist does not usually look for nature’s heart."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">—The Nature of Mass Events (NoME) Chapter 3: Session 817, January 30, 1978</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"You divorce yourselves from nature and nature’s intents far more than the animals do. Nature in its stormy manifestations seems like an adversary. You must either look for reasons outside of yourselves to explain what seems to be nature’s ill intent at such times, or its utter lack of concern."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">—NoME Chapter 3: Session 817, January 30, 1978</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"As creatures you are a part of nature. The change of thoughts, feelings and beliefs into physical, objectively perceived phenomena is as natural as water changing into ice, for example, or a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. You not only form the structure of your civilizations and social institutions through the transference of beliefs, thoughts and feelings; but in this natural exchange you also help on quite intimate levels in the “psychic manufacture” of the physical environment itself, with all of its great sweeping variety, and yet seasonal stability."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">—NoPR Chapter 17: Session 664, May 21, 1973</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"Animals do not read or write books, but they do “read” nature directly through the context of their own experience, and through intuitive knowing. Man’s reasoning mind adds an atmosphere to nature, that is as real, say, as the Van Allen Belts (or radiation fields) that surround the earth."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">—The Magical Approach (TMA) Session Eight: September 3, 1980</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The world's human population is predicted to continue expanding – although I once attended a 'remote viewing' workshop and discovered a significant decrease by 2052. But, whatever happens, we should at least imagine a cleaner and more sustainable environment. We can certainly come up with some great ideas... but whether or not we now have the physical timeframe to implement them, remains to be seen.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/N-_a0TCWb6E" width="560"></iframe></center><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"Man likes to think of himself as the caretaker of nature and the world. It is closer to the truth, however, to say — in that regard, at least — that nature is man’s caretaker; or that man exists, physically speaking, as the result of the graceful support of nature and all of its other species."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">—TMA Session Eight: September 3, 1980</p><p style="text-align: justify;">So how good have we been as joint custodians? It's still going well, then!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbOmfqi6L5iZnLmGT7Es_F_-zZMLv5VXaHAJASoX-5XtJYo0PYKiFN8RvymrLGOkoWeLDcu5P_C532TPxMhzR3SRUrxAtcr5nVJcFWIn3CV_aHWbDQBzKmtIsFbkNrzGdGcy6D2zZnPSc/s2048/PPE+Pollution+2.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbOmfqi6L5iZnLmGT7Es_F_-zZMLv5VXaHAJASoX-5XtJYo0PYKiFN8RvymrLGOkoWeLDcu5P_C532TPxMhzR3SRUrxAtcr5nVJcFWIn3CV_aHWbDQBzKmtIsFbkNrzGdGcy6D2zZnPSc/w400-h225/PPE+Pollution+2.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">Never has there been such a time, of blatant disrespect for our environment.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5IWADlzpnFmYtnHtZBF0Hz94twws-8u5rDvV_trv2anJIzj8k-zPHs38mhhCFZP9Kgfulmm-0bhjXTm0r0tThRtYftJar4f2eYXClsDIR0QPZEfAJ4RiUfiIXn3I985yn1PB6PF5VHHk/s2000/PPE+Pollution.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1125" data-original-width="2000" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5IWADlzpnFmYtnHtZBF0Hz94twws-8u5rDvV_trv2anJIzj8k-zPHs38mhhCFZP9Kgfulmm-0bhjXTm0r0tThRtYftJar4f2eYXClsDIR0QPZEfAJ4RiUfiIXn3I985yn1PB6PF5VHHk/w400-h225/PPE+Pollution.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">How many of these people would have a shit on their kitchen table and then sit around it, eating their breakfast? Why do so many people continue to discard their waste, wherever they happen to be sitting or standing? And as I've said in a previous posting – there should be a ban on sending domestic waste to other countries.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"You must return, wiser creatures, to the nature that spawned you — not only as loving caretakers but as partners with the other species of the earth."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"Religious, scientific, medical, and cultural communications stress the existence of danger, minimize the purpose of the species or of any individual member of it, or see mankind as the one erratic, half-insane member of an otherwise orderly realm of nature."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>"Your beliefs have generated feelings of unworth. Having artificially separated yourselves from nature, you do not trust it, but often experience it as an adversary. Your religions granted man a soul, while denying any to other species. Your bodies then were relegated to nature and your souls to God, who stood immaculately apart from His creations."</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">—NoME Chapter 2: Session 805, May 16, 1977</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO7YKgd5eSlgKxG_Wfxs3safnFJiymkkME8eayiHNid78448PnaC0fEltJgIsGf4aeQeZqnAu1jC3axWpMkgHb81mG0s6kYb8sPQbj_5M3BMvIYYfW5jZaa0rCAD4uPf_7eFUU9gAXOCw/s671/Mongolia.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="671" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO7YKgd5eSlgKxG_Wfxs3safnFJiymkkME8eayiHNid78448PnaC0fEltJgIsGf4aeQeZqnAu1jC3axWpMkgHb81mG0s6kYb8sPQbj_5M3BMvIYYfW5jZaa0rCAD4uPf_7eFUU9gAXOCw/w400-h265/Mongolia.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p></div>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-79893637148370625752020-06-08T12:21:00.003+01:002022-04-26T19:44:37.941+01:00The People's Protests<div style="text-align: justify;">
Once again, racism against non-white's has exploaded like a pent-up volcano, with hot lava flowing throw the indignant masses, who are sick of the time it takes for political procedures to address their growing anger on the lack of progess being realised in equality for all.<br />
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This clearly shows that leaders and politicians have not done enough to address the concerns of <span style="text-align: justify;">Black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) </span>groups - not only in the USA and UK, but across the world.</div>
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<b>So what have our politicians done to show their concern and understanding? </b></div>
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It seems that most have metaphorically reached for their petrol canisters, climbed to the top of their official residences and sprayed fuel onto the protester's fires, before continuing to fan the flames through the media. They have then resorted to waving their law books, but quite frankly, there are times when the law is indeed, an 'ass',* when through changes in a society's understanding over time, have brought people to new awarenesses and understandings about the way people behave towards one another. What use is there in a society becoming more enlightened, only to then be held in check by its [often ancient] laws that have truly lost their relevance?</div>
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The argument over whether or not Edward Colston's statue should remain on prominent public view in Bristol, with its offencive plaque proclaiming 'a character of virtuous deeds', has apparently been smouldering for about 20 years! What part of a 'no brainer' do those responsible for keeping such a monument in place, not understand? It could rightly have been placed in a museum, with a proper explanation of its removal, years ago.</div>
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Here's another virtuous person who gave a lot of money for helping others: Jimmy Savile. Bestowed with the title, 'Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile OBE KCSG' and laid to rest on a Scarborough cliff, facing out to sea, topped with a grand headstone. Well, that was very swiftly removed within days of the story reaching the press about his sexual predatory, paedophile behaviour.</div>
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And yet, in both of the above examples, a certain cultural and historical acceptance of such behaviours being 'of their times' were either largely ignored at the time, by the majority, or even accepted as normal activities. Move forward to where we are now, and such behaviours are considered abhorent by society, so much so, that many of these, 'now deviants', have been retroactively hunted down like Nazi war criminals, or the 'witch hunts of McCarthyism, when hundreds of Americans were accused of being "communists" or "communist sympathisers". We blame the past, but limit our action in the present, to properly addressing these issues.</div>
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Rather than addressing our new views and beliefs with understanding, and honestly discovering some of the causes, we have a society encouraged to 'be out for blood'; to blame others for, "allowing" these things to happen. We have not become wiser; we have become pious and self-righteous - where those who have not been involved in such activities, or even previously had them in their minds, take the moral high ground, justifying loudly that they have no stray thoughts or debaucheries to declare!</div>
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The result of this - and many other spotlights on issues that now come under the tags of 'right', 'wrong' and 'political correctness' - is that we rarely get to talk with the oppressed, openly; to listen to their views, or fully understand why there are problems with the ways we have been carrying on, and what we can really do about them - not in several more years time - but now!</div>
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In my opinion, Britain has, over the past 34 years, become a country that has continued to lose faith in both its "experts" and its "politicians". This has largely come about through the dishonesty of self-protection, endemic among those who can hold on to their status through wealth and influence. This is not some 'lefty' comment against right-wing oppressors, but a statement of bi-partisan impartial observation. It's not only the Black, Asian, and minority ethnic societies who are feeling repressed and unheard - it's everyone. From the proletariate to the traditionally privileged middle classes - people want change. The real trouble however, is that many do not know what change they want! Having said that, most know what they feel is inherently unfair, and whoever you are, humans do seem to have an inner sense of justice and when that sense of justice is threatened and it seems to have no voice that will be heard, they feel deep pain, stress, and anguish.</div>
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Mahatma Gandhi** is widely cited as saying: <b>"Be the change you want to see."</b> In other words, start to behave towards others, on a day to day basis, as you wish others to behave towards you. Show kindness and a willingness to co-operate with others and stop fighting against everything - whether it be people, diseases, or rights. Stop using confrontational language. Do not immediately take offense or umbrage. Remember the school bullies who did not have the vocabulary to express themselves? If they didn't like you, they just hit you! We all have emotional reactions to things and I am not saying we should simply suppress such feelings. It's how we manage those feelings by yes, accepting them, but also by turning them into something powerful in positive ways.</div>
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In our current world experience, many feel disenfranchised. This has not been helped by those wielding their might over others. There are definitely times when burning a bra or toppling a statue does more to bring something into stark focus, than writing a polite letter or email. If people will not be noticed through polite democracy, it is no surprise that eventually, other means will be resorted to. But when this happens, it is not going to help when those in authority insist on resorting to inappropriate or out-dated laws and heavy handedness, leading to arrests and incarceration. When thousands of people come together to protest, they obviously have some valid points to make. It is then beholden for those who have the means, in this case, politicians, to take positive action to address the concerns expressed and not simply fight against them. I believe, for example, that in the case of recent events, the approach taken by the leaders of Bristol, was the right one. How this is followed up of course, remains to be seen</div>
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<b><i style="text-align: justify;">"As a politician, one of your jobs is to understand your country" </i></b></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">- Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol</span></div>
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If only all people could be as intelligent and eloquent in their use of language, as Marvin:<br />
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Conversely, what a shame that Krishnan Guru-Murthy of Channel 4 News and [in other interviews] Home Secretary, Priti Patel, Secretary of State for the Home Department, have to tow their party lines, with no indication of understanding or empathy, for the actions which unfolded.</div>
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And surely, if we can be outraged by those who committed historical sex offences, we have an equal right to feel outraged by the practises of a slave trader - regardless of how much money he gave to his city! Which brings me to the very big Elephant in the room - money. How often have we seen those in elevated positions, using their wealth to influence the outcomes of justice?<br />
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In conclusion, I believe we need to come up with much better ways of addressing complaints and upsets in our societies. We have become too used to hollow promises of change only resulting in bureaucratic committees spending thousands or millions of pounds or dollars, taking years to explore every detail, in order to only aportion blame to someone, producing a lengthy report that comments on a few things that went wrong and recommending changes that need to be implemented in some distant futue. Job done - let's move on! But no; it's not 'job done' - it's merely ticking boxes. Normal people at street level know exactly what needs to be done. Things need to be implemented immediately to properly address the very real concerns of so many. And where money is concerned, we now know that our UK Government, at least, can lay its hands on whatever amount of money is needed, when something has to be done. So that's one excuse they can no longer use. Now let's get rid of all their other excuses for not properly addressing inequalities in our society.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Charles Dickens:<br /><br />
“It was all Mrs. Bumble. She would do it," urged Mr. Bumble; first looking round, to ascertain that his partner had left the room.<br />
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That is no excuse," returned Mr. Brownlow. "You were present on the occasion of the destruction of these trinkets, and, indeed, are the more guilty of the two, in the eye of the law; for the law supposes that your wife acts under your direction."<br />
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If the law supposes that," said Mr. Bumble, squeezing his hat emphatically in both hands, "the law is a ass — a idiot. If that's the eye of the law, the law is a bachelor; and the worst I wish the law is, that his eye may be opened by experience — by experience.”<br />
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**Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi<br />
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An Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethicist, who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful campaign for India's independence from British Rule, and in turn inspire movements for civil rights and freedom across the world.</span></div>
<br />Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-19282297051762610562020-03-28T16:01:00.002+00:002022-04-26T19:47:05.190+01:00Time To Examine Your Beliefs About Reality<div style="text-align: justify;">
Most people live their daily lives as part of the 'official line of consciousness' - normal people with normal beliefs and interests, comfortably going along with the status quo, or accepting that things are just the way they are - without ever really questioning life any deeper than the surface they reside on.<br />
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Now, in these very different and challenging times, our mental outlook is more important than ever. A friend of mine used to say: "If you can't change your situation, change your attitude." This wasn't meant to be as condescending as it sounds and the advice is basically sound. In addition to this advice, let's look at the metaphysical approach. Whatever you focus your attention on, becomes more apparent in your mind and through 'law of attraction' draws more of the same to it.<br />
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In the week previous to writing this post, it occurred to me that some people spend a lot of time in isolation; some we give little thought to, such as those who might spend several months on the ISS (International Space Station). This inspired me to create the image shown below, which I posted on social media:<br />
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Since then, two other posts were made, offering suggestions of how to cope and ideas they were given as Astronauts:<br />
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<a href="https://slate.com/technology/2020/03/nasa-hi-seas-space-travel-coronavirus-isolation.html" target="_blank">Living Life at a Distance</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/valeriestimac/2020/03/20/former-astronauts-share-ways-to-cope-with-isolation--social-distancing" target="_blank">Former Astronauts Share Ways To Cope With Social Distancing & Isolation</a><br />
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Many people say they weren't expecting this pandemic situation and asking 'why didn't anyone know this was coming?' Well, I have news for you: lots of people knew this was coming - including (love him or hate him) Bill Gates:<br />
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<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/6Af6b_wyiwI" width="560"></iframe></div>
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I asked my Astrology friend, Christine, if she could see what Astrology shows:<br />
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"March suggests a completely new cosmic energy as stern Saturn arrives in the innovative sign of Aquarius on the 22nd. Prepare for a challenge, Saturn has not been in this sign since 1994 and it will remain in Aquarius until March 2023. We will all feel the volatile impact of Uranus ruled Aquarius as we question the boundaries we have created in our life and begin the process of restructuring them. Rather than holding on to old habits, we should become more interested in experimenting and breaking free from whatever the status quo has been." - see the full details at <a href="https://yourguidinglight.org/your-monthly-horoscope-march-2020/" target="_blank">Your Guiding Light</a>.<br />
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Back in 2000, I attended '<a href="https://lynnemctaggart.com/the-field/" target="_blank">The Field</a>' Conference, in London, organised by <a href="https://lynnemctaggart.com/" target="_blank">Lynne McTaggart</a>. Lynne has always been interested in the connections between spirituality and science and has researched to discover commonalities in both. During the conference, I participated with others, in a 'remote viewing' session. This is something that first gained public attention with the Russians and involves being given an envelope containing coordinates to a specific location, anywhere in the world. Using 'blind' experiments, it was found that a remote viewer could mentally travel to the location and see what was happening there. In the 'Cold War' years, both the Russians and the Americans trained remote viewers to 'visit' and make drawings of locations - often military - and describe what they could see from a distance. A couple of strange things occurred with early experiments: 1) the envelope containing the coordinates didn't need to be opened or seen by the remote viewer and 2) it was realised that remote viewers had to be given a date for the viewing. On one experimental occasion, a remote viewer drew an aerial image of buildings which included 2 big circles. The person who had provided information on the 'target area' said that there were no circular buildings in the location. It wasn't until the researchers examined past photographs of the site, that they realised that several years in the past, there had been 2 large silos on the site.<br />
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Anyway, to return to my point. I lay on the floor with about 200 other people, whilst we were guided through a remote viewing exercise. Remember, this was year 2000. Many people already had in mind, the Mayan Prophecy of 2012, where the world could end, or at least change considerably. 21 December 2012 was the end of the 'Mayan Long Count'. Our remote viewer instructed us to go to the year, 2052. I remember thinking, 'that's a bit pointless, if the world ends in 2012'. But anyway, I went along with the instruction.<br />
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Population experts had always predicted an exponential growth in the world's human population. At the time, we had just hit 7 billion people on the Earth and now there are 7.8 billion. It seemed inconceivable to many, that this trend would not continue. However, without exception, myself included, the people in the room reported afterwards that the world's population had diminished considerably. We were informed that this remote viewing exercise had been repeated in locations around the world, with the same resultant feedback. What I had personally noticed, were people living together in small communities and special interest groups. In the UK, most were only a little more than hunter-gatherers, but people seemed relatively content. Government had long gone and in America, a reduced governance was in place, but nothing like the current Federal behemoth. I noticed one group of people who were interested in militaria, but they were not interested in invading anyone - they just enjoyed the lifestyle. It seemed in general, that people were getting on well with one another - perhaps appreciating the past, in relation to their current experience, and not wishing to repeat that.<br />
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Moving forward, I became very interested in other research, namely that of Graham ['stuff just keeps getting older'] Hancock - an explorer of ancient civilisations with a journalist background, both as writer and broadcaster, who was very interested in the sudden demise of ancient civilisations around the world.<br />
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In 1995, he wrote <a href="http://grahamhancock.com/fingerprints/" target="_blank">'Fingerprints Of The Gods'</a> where he first shared his ideas on planetary catastrophe. In 2015, he revisited his findings in more depth and with fresh eyes, in <a href="http://grahamhancock.com/magicians/" target="_blank">'Magician's Of The Gods'</a>, uncovering strong evidence of a Comet (or part of a Comet) impact that caused almost total annihilation of an advanced human civilisation and many of the Earth's species, between 12,800 and 11,600 years ago.<br />
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I attended one of Graham's many book signing events - not only up and down the UK, but also internationally, and found the book to be extremely well written and researched with plenty of cross-referenced evidence. What I have always liked about Graham, is he is not what I call an 'armchair explorer', like most of us. Graham goes out to all the locations he writes about and examines firsthand, the material he is going to write about... and occasionally, some of those places may be modern-day war zones! What surprised me though, wasn't the content of Graham's discoveries, but the bombardment of, quite nasty at times, disparaging comments by mainstream geologists and archaeologists. However, I am pleased to say, that since the publication of Graham's book and many guest appearances on talk shows, scientists and researchers around the world are now admitting, Graham was correct in his assertions.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcEnoFFXucxof2YhC6AZUYoY6TBXzZ3gn0FI1EfAR7reFvDQpZqQ0dBkmzO6w1IW6CFccmlqKoFaWWPdrfF3VLXN4IP82CGLTEju4wj8oBwigEeuexZ_CkCs3KjLwZm1T73Wtw5luhWw/s1600/Gobekli+Tepe+%25E2%2580%2593+Overview.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="719" data-original-width="1024" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcEnoFFXucxof2YhC6AZUYoY6TBXzZ3gn0FI1EfAR7reFvDQpZqQ0dBkmzO6w1IW6CFccmlqKoFaWWPdrfF3VLXN4IP82CGLTEju4wj8oBwigEeuexZ_CkCs3KjLwZm1T73Wtw5luhWw/s320/Gobekli+Tepe+%25E2%2580%2593+Overview.png" width="320" /></a></div>
One of Graham's most striking pieces of evidence was a 10,000 year old site, unearthed by archaeologists in the Southeastern Anatolia Region of Turkey, Gobekli Tepe. What makes this site more incredible than most, is that its intricately carved stone circles, once completed, were then physically filled in and hidden by its makers. This is why it has been possible to date the site so accurately - the infill was deposited at the time and not windswept in over many centuries, like most other ancient <br />
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monuments around the world. So what's so special about Gobekli Tepe, you might ask? Well, not only is it unique as already described, but it provides detailed information of the cataclysm that took place between 12,800 and 11,600 years ago and predicts that we have once again reached a point in time when this is going to recur. And this from a site that has still only been partially uncovered!<br />
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Now, if you had mentioned Coronavirus (COVID-19) a few years ago, it would hardly have got any further in public acceptance than the many science fiction and horror movies exploring similar subjects. So when we now talk about a catastrophe of cosmic proportions - is anyone really going to take this seriously? What a far-fetched piece of scaremongering nonsense!<br />
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Since Graham published his discoveries, he has constantly said that organisations, such as NASA, should really be developing more awareness of, and tools to combat, potential near Earth objects (NEAs), so that we can be ready if a Comet, Asteroid, or sizeable space debris, enters our atmosphere and gets through. And it probably won't take anything particularly big to trigger an extinction level event - but its speed and mass on impact, will be devastating.<br />
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We already have recorded examples, in our own recent history, of space originating materials entering Earth's atmosphere. The Tunguska event was a large explosion that occurred near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in Yeniseysk Governorate (now Krasnoyarsk Krai), Russia, on the morning of 30 June 1908:<br />
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Even to this day, nothing has grown back</div>
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More recently, we had Shoemaker-Levy 9, first spotted in March 1993 by three veteran comet discoverers: Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker, and David Levy.</div>
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The collisions ended up occurring for a number of days, from July 16 to 22, 1994. 21 separate fragments of the comet smashed into Jupiter's atmosphere, leaving blotches behind. Commentators at the time said, 'this proves that planets can still be hit.'</div>
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Some of you may remember the Chelyabinsk meteor - a superbolide that entered Earth's atmosphere over Russia on 15 February 2013.</div>
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Certainly another close encounter and a warning shot across our bows.</div>
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Anyway, this post is getting a bit long, so I'll stop now. All I am saying in conclusion is, examine your beliefs about the realities you experience. Know that despite what people may tell you, nothing is impossible. We live in an amazing universe and our physical experience goes beyond what most of us understand... and it can change very quickly.</div>
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-18077515215086777992020-03-15T10:03:00.003+00:002022-04-26T19:48:19.810+01:00Coronavirus - An Opportunity Or Temporary Inconvenience?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Do you remember when UK schools were asked if they wanted to opt out of local authority control?</b> For many, this seemed to offer a tremendous opportunity to become autonomous from the restrictions of the National Curriculum. Unfortunately, most of those managing the schools decided, that wasn't the opportunity they were looking at. In the end it came down to managing their own budgets and largely, carrying on as normal, in all other respects! An opportunity for real and meaningful educational change was lost. Education, previously 30 years behind society's changes, was hurled backwards a further 70 years. Stress levels among staff and pupils is now at stratospheric heights and the knock-on effects will remain with society for decades.</div>
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The same could be said for Coronavirus (Covid-19). The world has been given a wake-up call. If you think we're being inconvenienced now, what would happen in a full climate crisis? Now don't get me wrong, I'm not a climate activist. However, I do understand that continued mass production, human population expansion, and the raping of Earth's resources, with little concern for sustainability, is not the way to carry on. Using jobs and the benefits of a strong economy as the excuse to create further damage, is not a solution - it's deranged thinking!</div>
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The danger of a pandemic is that it is treated like a temporary and inconvenient blip in our otherwise normal carry-on. But this is an opportunity for people to reflect on what's really important? How much an individual really needs for a basic quality of existence? Interesting too, that one of the symptoms of Covid-19 is difficulty breathing. A planetary climate disaster could potentially leave us unable to breathe at all.</div>
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Like so many situations of peril, many people do not realise when they are in genuine danger. I'm not talking here about being mentally fearful of things for no good reason, I'm talking about finding yourself in a genuine risk to life situation, when the right action then needs to be taken. A good example of this, is going for a hike and the weather suddenly changing. You have practised, or 'read up on', survival skills, but you cannot quite believe that you are running into a problem. Instead of creating appropriate shelter and keeping warm and protected, you carry on walking. By the time you realise you are cold and the weather is not changing, it is much harder for you to take the action required - potentially leading to hypothermia and death.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2tW-x7XGNLOgTEJDi12HupbeQoFmTWCECkOYWVWPRrv-qOopEfnzAbdmSboA55857vPFgfvpQafmwaiQAG2L_I7tONnREkE_-M4q6M_pLULe0y6dZfISvRuThKXGg3tkIk1z14Y3Ji0/s1600/industry+and+waste.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="1200" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2tW-x7XGNLOgTEJDi12HupbeQoFmTWCECkOYWVWPRrv-qOopEfnzAbdmSboA55857vPFgfvpQafmwaiQAG2L_I7tONnREkE_-M4q6M_pLULe0y6dZfISvRuThKXGg3tkIk1z14Y3Ji0/s320/industry+and+waste.jpg" width="320" /></a>We cannot allow ourselves to reach this situation on a global scale and yet, this is where we are on the planet right now. We are carrying on with global and exponential expansion of human business, not fully realising where this is leading. There are things that can be done to improve the situation, but continuing to blindly walk along in the same way, is not the answer. On an individual level, we can visualise the world we would rather be living in; we can visualise countries and their leaders adopting better choices. <br />
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<b>"Immediately stop mass-producing things that are not really essential"</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDS7rxgXFUBiPMHRNZHgN8BAizVg5gifRLXfBiifq5yOfomDOJwvFGLhXYG80c2AL53f6-a0TMxPC2Qk2GohKqtfe9RxRQc7Dam5-rO9Afu4gU2HUWJxS0vfd5VzeWFoMMb4D_QQ8vJw/s1600/highways.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="977" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDS7rxgXFUBiPMHRNZHgN8BAizVg5gifRLXfBiifq5yOfomDOJwvFGLhXYG80c2AL53f6-a0TMxPC2Qk2GohKqtfe9RxRQc7Dam5-rO9Afu4gU2HUWJxS0vfd5VzeWFoMMb4D_QQ8vJw/s320/highways.jpg" width="320" /></a>Despite what you may say, this collective desire for improvement can and does affect the world and those who inhabit it. At a physical level, we all need to change the we think, as much as the way we live. This does not mean we should return to being hunter-gatherers (although for those who are left, this may be the outcome). However, we can immediately stop mass-producing things that are not really essential. We can stop insisting that everyone has to work and have a job, to survive. We have technology that can environmentally provide many of the things we all need, leaving more time to enjoy being alive in a physical world. Radical societal change is needed. Political ideologies and out-dated business models, need to be put aside and people need to reflect on how they are carrying on.</div>
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The new aim should be to give people joy and value fulfilment - not enslavement in unwanted employment, producing unwanted junk, purely for the sake of turning a fast buck.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4Zsom-UGftscvu973s0R5dJrFsvPX_oM9Wfw1Hx2n4ttcSpSsRerg2h2cxzwYv_CrYfkSj0d-sgDu1GwsDK0yBakOaE9zvJZPfmZVaW9odxgYgx-tNqmbHF0KC7Ky8BO_y0pjoejxBI/s1600/scooters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4Zsom-UGftscvu973s0R5dJrFsvPX_oM9Wfw1Hx2n4ttcSpSsRerg2h2cxzwYv_CrYfkSj0d-sgDu1GwsDK0yBakOaE9zvJZPfmZVaW9odxgYgx-tNqmbHF0KC7Ky8BO_y0pjoejxBI/s320/scooters.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
When enough people in a society lose hope and feel restricted in their ability to enjoy and express life, they create circumstances which can potentially remove them from the game. Covid-19 is an example of a physical manifestation of human upset.* Similar things have arisen throughout the history of humans on the Earth. The destruction of Atlantis and the catastrophic Comet extinctions, are all examples when humanity has lost control and sight of its true and higher nature.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*When I say, Covid-19 is an example of a physical manifestation
of human upset, I am saying that the circumstances for the creation or appearance
of Covid-19, are brought into being, initially by the most appropriate means to
match the collective emotions - even if someone was inspired to manufacture such a virus which then 'escaped'. </span> <br />
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<b>Here are some quotes from Seth. An entity residing outside of the restrictions imposed by our three dimensions and one of time:</b><br />
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“The kinds of diseases change through historical periods. Some become fashionable, others go out of style. All epidemics, however, are mass statements both biologically and psychically. They point to mass beliefs that have brought about certain physical conditions that are abhorrent at all levels. They often go hand-in-hand with war, and represent biological protests.<br />
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"Whenever the conditions of life are such that its quality is threatened, there will be such a mass statement. The quality of life must be at a certain level so that individuals of a species—of any and all species—can develop. In your species, the spiritual, mental and psychic abilities add a dimension that is biologically pertinent.<br />
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“There simply must be, for example, a freedom to express ideas, an individual tendency, a worldwide social and political context in which each individual can develop his or her abilities and contribute to the species as a whole. …<br />
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“More and more, the quality of your lives is formed through the subjective realities of your feelings and mental constructions. Again, beliefs that foster despair are biologically destructive. They cause the physical system to shut down. …<br />
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“Such conditions, however, are the <u>results</u> of beliefs, which are mental, and so the most vital work must always be done in that area.”<br />
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Seth - The Individual and the Nature of Mass Events, Session 804<br />
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“The dynamics of health have nothing to do with inoculations. They reside in the consciousness of each being. In your terms they are regulated by emotions, desires, and thoughts."<br />
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The "Unknown" Reality, Vol. 1, Session 703<br />
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“The facts are that you choose even the KIND of illness that you have according to the nature of your beliefs. You are immune from ill health as long as you believe that you are.”<br />
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The Nature of Personal Reality, Session 624<br />
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“The act can be a very simple one. … In health terms, it involves conducting yourself once a day as though you were not sick in whatever way given you. But the belief in the present, reinforced for five minutes, plus such a physical action, will sometimes bring literally awesome results.”<br />
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The Nature of Personal Reality, Session 657<br />
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“The inner self always attempts to maintain the body's equilibrium and health, but many times your own beliefs prevent it from coming to your aid with even half of the energy available to it.<br />
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“Often only when you are in dire straits do you open up the doors to this great energy, when it is much too clear that your previous beliefs and behavior have not worked.<br />
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“You have at your disposal the means to insure your health.”<br />
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The Nature of Personal Reality, Session 623<br />
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“However it is your duty, and the duty of every individual insofar as it is within his power, to maintain his own psychic health and vitality; according to the strength of this vitality he will protect himself and others.<br />
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“Negative expectations, far from protecting either the individual or those with whom he comes in contact, will actually, to a greater or lesser degree, turn as destructive as any epidemic.”<br />
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The Early Sessions, Book 3, Session 143<br />
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“In the medical field, as in no other, you are faced directly with the full impact of your beliefs, for doctors are not the healthiest, but the least healthy. They fall prey to the beliefs to which they so heartily subscribe. Their concentration is upon disease, not health.”<br />
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The Nature of Personal Reality, Session 659<br />
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“The naming and labeling of ‘diseases’ is a harmful practice that to a large extent denies the innate mobility and ever-changing quality of the psyche as expressed in flesh. You are told that you have ‘something.’<br />
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“Out of the blue ‘it’ has attacked you, and your most intimate organs, perhaps. You are USUALLY told that your emotions or beliefs or system of values <u>have nothing to do</u> with the unfortunate circumstances that beset you.<br />
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“The patient, therefore, often feels relatively powerless and at the mercy of any stray virus that might come along. The facts are that you choose even the <u>kind</u> of illness that you have according to the nature of your beliefs. You are immune from ill health as long as you believe that you are.<br />
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“These are quite practical statements. Your body has an over all body consciousness filled with energy and vitality. It automatically rights any imbalances, but your conscious beliefs also affect this body consciousness. Your muscles believe <u>what you tell them</u> about themselves. So does every other portion of your physical body.<br />
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“While you believe that only doctors can cure you, you had better go to them, because in the framework of your beliefs they <u>are</u> the only people who can help you.<br />
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“But the framework itself is limiting; and again, while you may be cured of one difficulty, you will only replace it with another as long as your beliefs cause you to have physical problems.”<br />
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The Nature of Personal Reality, Session 624<br />
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You can denounce this blog as utter rubbish, but if this is your belief, then unlike me, you have not researched deeply and broadly. Since our individual realities are quite different, all I will end with is the famous, Spock from Star Trek, sign off... 'live long and prosper'.</div>
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<a href="https://elearningcentral.info/docs/News%20articles.pdf" target="_blank">Link to articles written about schools opting out</a><br />
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Link to a later article from 25 March 2020: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/25/coronavirus-nature-is-sending-us-a-message-says-un-environment-chief" target="_blank">Nature is sending us a message</a><br />
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<a href="https://mysteriousuniverse.org/2020/04/nasa-plans-test-of-device-built-to-redirect-apocalyptic-asteroids" target="_blank">NASA Plans Test of Device Built to Redirect Apocalyptic Asteroids</a></div>
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-34661874923601576762019-10-11T20:30:00.005+01:002022-04-26T19:49:06.905+01:00Climate Change - We must now try some radical solutions<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP21fqUhG2VT3ZMVQb2c0SkNX3QCb-S_wRay8j6S9VGVKcr9yjkdX2CHY_c6vwAXqBO9A5KDSAHVoE8-0fhjEd0qUASp4aTYmCf8zL5HQ0w-neBTfufPwF8fPU4pd1eGj3tC1jWCtMc0o/s1600/Neighbourhood.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="820" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP21fqUhG2VT3ZMVQb2c0SkNX3QCb-S_wRay8j6S9VGVKcr9yjkdX2CHY_c6vwAXqBO9A5KDSAHVoE8-0fhjEd0qUASp4aTYmCf8zL5HQ0w-neBTfufPwF8fPU4pd1eGj3tC1jWCtMc0o/s320/Neighbourhood.jpg" width="218" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">'There Goes The Neighbourhood'<br />
by Mike Gentle (circa 1987)</td></tr>
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Whatever your beliefs about climate change on planet Earth, it is clear that humanity cannot continue on its present path of consumerist expansion and consumption of the Earth's resources. Although the Earth will survive humankind, and doesn't itself need saving, we on the other hand probably do!</div>
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Piecemeal actions of recycling waste, not using plastic food packaging, plastic straws, or disposable cups, is simply missing the point entirely. You have to begin at source. Like an illness, patching the symptoms is never going to address the causes. Put a plaster on one area and before long you'll need another plaster somewhere else. Once we have 'burnt our underwear' and come out to fight on the streets, it serves little purpose to carry on doing more of the same. People like Greta Thunberg periodically remind us that we cannot continue to be complacent, and social media can certainly capture the mood of worldwide peoples to jump on popular bandwagons. But then we need real action at higher levels than street protests. We need the protesters not only to shout 'enough is enough' - we need them to expound realistic solutions, too. It is true that, as someone said, 'a strongly worded email' is hardly going to have the same effect as masses demonstrating on the streets - even though the values of our democracy would prefer it if we did write a nice 'middle class' letter of, 'yours very irate, from Boston'.</div>
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<b>So let's grab the nettle and ask sincerely, 'where is all this problem coming from?'</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArSdUxPQAXam8F3Sdqp3ms9tlzVQPujyUIOoc2IO15CuJyyTeM0zWKWCoMi-p1D81vWZqHH7WUqslXqjiPBOBFrEUea4ZNR4gyq37oXoOmZYSV2z9l6ftvzrTiRdcC3PnMDlp5VhYnqg/s1600/factory+farming.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="403" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArSdUxPQAXam8F3Sdqp3ms9tlzVQPujyUIOoc2IO15CuJyyTeM0zWKWCoMi-p1D81vWZqHH7WUqslXqjiPBOBFrEUea4ZNR4gyq37oXoOmZYSV2z9l6ftvzrTiRdcC3PnMDlp5VhYnqg/s200/factory+farming.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgzF7jiKHi-xvhL85mk0YL18Waf-yPmEO06obRvMePn5YF_JHdDkBKOgUTYzWHk0Fcs3xa5MrwWPwu6LNdkpxihV6KFJN942JInFOzeQoUszf-ZgFeCSDrh6klOVUAPmuq_tyJAtWcxZ8/s1600/car+production.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="650" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgzF7jiKHi-xvhL85mk0YL18Waf-yPmEO06obRvMePn5YF_JHdDkBKOgUTYzWHk0Fcs3xa5MrwWPwu6LNdkpxihV6KFJN942JInFOzeQoUszf-ZgFeCSDrh6klOVUAPmuq_tyJAtWcxZ8/s200/car+production.jpg" width="200" /></a>The short answer is mass production and over consumption. And I mean everything from the mass destruction of forests and factory farming slaughter of animals, to the manufacture of ever more vehicles and single-use items that quickly become waste.<br />
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If you make something, you might begin by supplying a need and find that you then have to expand to meet increasing demand. But very soon, after investing in your production, you are having to create a need, in order to sustain your position and encourage further growth. At this point, you are creating waste, rather than any real benefit - and don't start lecturing me on how it's now about creating wealth through providing more worker's with jobs. It's time to get out of the mentality that everyone needs to work hard and suffer, in order to live in reasonable comfort. We are in a position in the world where we can produce many things with ease and do not need everyone to be involved in the process.</div>
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<b>Stop all unnecessary production</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZyjY05sVW1A9iWirRh66iCB7G1XAumYjGP9hKRwCYP6RlP7MznkWKYnmYzhk4Cp4NknDRSOCkCoGkAcpOtTVLVWByBaXTvLe4mKHocvdCFY2djzdLPOXXjPM1LV9qdZaII44rDxLPRAk/s1600/plastic+toys.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="860" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZyjY05sVW1A9iWirRh66iCB7G1XAumYjGP9hKRwCYP6RlP7MznkWKYnmYzhk4Cp4NknDRSOCkCoGkAcpOtTVLVWByBaXTvLe4mKHocvdCFY2djzdLPOXXjPM1LV9qdZaII44rDxLPRAk/s320/plastic+toys.png" width="320" /></a></div>
One solution would be to immediately stop the mass manufacture of anything that is not really essential to our lives. It may actually be useful for us to wrap some food in plastic, but perhaps pretty pointless manufacturing plastic toys. Politicians worldwide will do little or nothing until perhaps, we reach a point where disaster strikes... and then for many, it will certainly be too late. Historically, in western societies, the only things that motivate people on mass, to come together in unison, are the death of a much loved celebrity, the loss of an historic building, a major famine, or a military war on home ground. Don't leave it up to individual people, living essentially normal mainstream lives, to take the lead. Our consumer-based society is set up in a way that if something is available, someone will always oblige by buying it. If it's not available, we make do with alternatives.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb6WTKTIp1HPJht-T30NaKYKqyfyO6VdfYyFInfFuo263zkjDUpUKXZqrA2vx0WuDok0tfbRL7FxJiHuapmOnTY2CCUFZEf-3yWV1H8uWKDiz3DedQ7izQqroXEWaaW2OBMxeXDDevWpE/s1600/want+to+work.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="768" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb6WTKTIp1HPJht-T30NaKYKqyfyO6VdfYyFInfFuo263zkjDUpUKXZqrA2vx0WuDok0tfbRL7FxJiHuapmOnTY2CCUFZEf-3yWV1H8uWKDiz3DedQ7izQqroXEWaaW2OBMxeXDDevWpE/s320/want+to+work.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Of course, to suggest banning certain types of manufacture also implies a loss of work, which in turn implies a loss of income for many people involved in those jobs. My suggestion is as complex as also saying we need to reform personal, public, and freight transportation, health care, and state education. To give this any hope of being achievable, we must also encourage cooperation with others, rather than this ridiculous persistence of applauding a 'survival of the fittest' attitude, where value is only bestowed on first place winners, and assessing everyone based on worth is decided by a minority of leaders who think they know best.</div>
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At every stage, we encourage our societies to be fearful of lack and envious of monetary wealth and celebrity status. Instead, we could put proper thought and resources into balanced growth and sustainable development. Most people want to experience a sense of fairness and justice, surrounded by beautiful environments that feed their souls, but rather than seeing this better picture of our world in our mind's eye, we look at what we have created and rail against it - not actually making things better, but attracting more of the same, leaving us feeling worse.</div>
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When I say fairness and justice, many might retort with the cliché, 'the world is not fair' and justice is personal based on the individual's beliefs and desires. But I am always happy to see someone better off than me, enjoying their life, without feeling it's unfair. It's the same difference as equality and equal opportunity. We aren't all equal, but we can feel that we should be able to access opportunities for our own growth and value fulfilment. In many ways, if everyone did, or wanted, the same things, the world might seem to become a boring place to be. But there is plenty for everyone if you don't try and keep it all for yourself.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdnEqnpTR8URTxRL1pJ_kefaxdNQVAHizsbaECLLOYBKTA-_XPP18l0RuVgkR7Sd9hVSymIYGWujU6z34EOclbixtcEG_GYluAWsE6xlYPq3hNYvXDYxxHrGEVqCr-j6ML4WlkjaPWYQY/s1600/Monopoly.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="698" data-original-width="1000" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdnEqnpTR8URTxRL1pJ_kefaxdNQVAHizsbaECLLOYBKTA-_XPP18l0RuVgkR7Sd9hVSymIYGWujU6z34EOclbixtcEG_GYluAWsE6xlYPq3hNYvXDYxxHrGEVqCr-j6ML4WlkjaPWYQY/s200/Monopoly.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
When she was only about 8 years old, my daughter regularly thrashed me at the game, Monopoly. Within the hour, she'd be turning her houses into hotels, right across the board. Eventually, I had to point out to her that the game would now have to end, since I had no more resources to play the game with her. So in effect, we both ultimately became losers. The joy of winning is comparatively short-lived and if you keep taking, no one will be able to, or want to, play with you anymore.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf_-Q3WaL_50LQLA9fNExW-RwNm7IY-cUluHyLKg1aJtvZ5FRth78vBrIITQYb-tFWawA_YIoR9pN0ECRH-7vXDylaV2FAeitHY7PEY3JPdxE-8b22Ng-FJqc7vHtNcTsileqmBkrCZTM/s1600/trashed+playground+2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="560" height="115" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf_-Q3WaL_50LQLA9fNExW-RwNm7IY-cUluHyLKg1aJtvZ5FRth78vBrIITQYb-tFWawA_YIoR9pN0ECRH-7vXDylaV2FAeitHY7PEY3JPdxE-8b22Ng-FJqc7vHtNcTsileqmBkrCZTM/s200/trashed+playground+2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
The way we treat our planet is like a bunch of youths smashing up a children's playground for fun and without any thought for the feelings of others, or for what it might take to restore what was broken. As I say in my book, '<a href="http://keekoo.co.uk/book-descriptions-2/#wdyt" target="_blank">What Do You Think</a>?' "Do you really want to trash the playground?" Other people want to enjoy their time in physical reality, long after you've left it.</div>
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In a society driven by targets and avarice, how many times have we heard reports of companies that failed to make a bigger profit than the year before, and everyone is suddenly upset? Surely, a profit is still a profit! Why have we permitted, through various loopholes of legislation, multinational businesses to trade tax free? Perhaps one reason is that companies and individuals don't want to pay into a black hole of central government, where money is squandered on lengthy debates and expenses. Perhaps, instead of receiving a tax bill for money, they are instructed to 'adopt' a town or community, and pay the equivalent of 'owed taxes' into that. Make it personal. Give them a plaque or a statue, if it helps make them feel acknowledged publicly. This would be a modern-day equivalent of some Victorian factory owners providing houses for their workers. There's nothing wrong with a bit of altruism and quid pro quo.</div>
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<b>Manage our own waste</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUtFn-gGAIZQua0GmqID6DyI_-M1WQVVDlOLbNSEN1hXU-NXZwOLAu6i_C-XwMpTu91t2aJAznBWPX0eKvOIIkBI4ejG7cqt6raKCI92IokA6colFCFBfU-JNYsJmNCqlvMAahcHRc5y4/s1600/exported+waste.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="487" data-original-width="728" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUtFn-gGAIZQua0GmqID6DyI_-M1WQVVDlOLbNSEN1hXU-NXZwOLAu6i_C-XwMpTu91t2aJAznBWPX0eKvOIIkBI4ejG7cqt6raKCI92IokA6colFCFBfU-JNYsJmNCqlvMAahcHRc5y4/s320/exported+waste.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
No country should be allowed to send its waste to another country. This to me ranks alongside feeding animals the offal from their own species. If we're going to accept this behaviour, let's can the remains of dead humans and serve them up with chips!</div>
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I don't particularly want to live in an arid desert without home comforts and some of the material things that make my life easier or more enjoyable, but I don't see the need for the vast range of choice we are given, with several companies not only competing with each other, but competing with themselves - producing several variations of a similar product. We have to accept that competition to produce more variations en masse, cannot be sustainable in our present physical environment, the Earth, resulting in more waste to get rid of. </div>
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<b>A move to cooperation and 'sharing nicely'</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWct7oov9WG1RHkrNXabhlY8Ic95WtawLW1fLavMR2jS6J_ZMmtLjRwWNG4nIidO9HpAQy_tx4b2DOtt-RaxDJNtlA17GHGb7OoibAU-4bJug_SdWvAYuO3NUcMmRKlMImJ7Q2Hqz_UmM/s1600/cooperative+working.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="710" height="119" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWct7oov9WG1RHkrNXabhlY8Ic95WtawLW1fLavMR2jS6J_ZMmtLjRwWNG4nIidO9HpAQy_tx4b2DOtt-RaxDJNtlA17GHGb7OoibAU-4bJug_SdWvAYuO3NUcMmRKlMImJ7Q2Hqz_UmM/s200/cooperative+working.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
Here's a suggestion: Amalgamate everyone from each industry sector and produce one or two really good [needed] items, instead of 7,000 different items that all essentially do the same and then end up in landfill. So what? if that reduces customer choice. How many different can openers do we need to open a tin without a pull ring?</div>
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<b>Change the way we work</b></div>
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Stop insisting that everyone has to work. Pay people to stay in their own communities - cut down on needless travelling each day, to work several miles from their homes. Remove the need to maintain a wardrobe of work clothing. Remove unnecessary congestion from the roads. Whether worked for or not, people will still put their money back into the economy. Get rid of set hours. Just say that certain things need to be completed in reasonably required time frames and trust workers to manage their own timetables for completing their tasks.</div>
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<b>Regain a personal connection with nature</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1ytNLDhwhf4LzCdDApsPbQiD1g3q8zxvrDoBxGEw7A-tu0cwgj9Pz4cPhMSRAIGxXZ8Ha8ksDXypH1QEPcW8CP2KR_1a4-ev24Ph5Rq9A14NfznVcPaUX4xjk2MY5GWMR47zkKxg_2Q/s1600/11120006.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1ytNLDhwhf4LzCdDApsPbQiD1g3q8zxvrDoBxGEw7A-tu0cwgj9Pz4cPhMSRAIGxXZ8Ha8ksDXypH1QEPcW8CP2KR_1a4-ev24Ph5Rq9A14NfznVcPaUX4xjk2MY5GWMR47zkKxg_2Q/s320/11120006.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
We have become so complacent with the success of our protected home environments and reliance on the services of others, that we have lost contact with the very world that supports us. For a year, between March 2002 and April 2003, I moved out of a rented house and bought a caravan, locating it in a farmer's orchard. Although it took a few weeks to get used to the remote location, reduced space, and complete darkness at night, unless the Moon was visible, I quickly realised how little I needed to live comfortably. Having to manage everything, from water and waste, to cooking and heating, really brought home to me what I had normally taken for granted in a house made of brick. Let's face it, many of us have become so molly-cuddled in our well-ordered lives, that if the electricity or water goes off for more than thirty minutes, we think we're back in the Second World War! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWimyX6b2ThYmdddR84SyNHtRKvptdBfC3MyHZUIthIIF-ptkncYARrzILr8OGjUiNpfbjFGFJlBtYRbTmW_iBCEPYp6bjdnUksDY5X4Vvkhyphenhyphen1z0hYhZ8mVjgXDdt88u03W4gHHdRpAg0/s1600/woodland+meet.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWimyX6b2ThYmdddR84SyNHtRKvptdBfC3MyHZUIthIIF-ptkncYARrzILr8OGjUiNpfbjFGFJlBtYRbTmW_iBCEPYp6bjdnUksDY5X4Vvkhyphenhyphen1z0hYhZ8mVjgXDdt88u03W4gHHdRpAg0/s320/woodland+meet.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Some might say that going for walks, or having country holidays, can connect us more with nature, and this is true. Others have gardens or allotments and grow their own vegetables. But living away from the amenities of a regular house also makes us face and understand some things differently - not least about our self. Indeed, a few years ago, I went off fairly regularly, in a self-converted campervan, getting together and meeting with other people in fields and woods - sharing conversation and fire-cooked food. Although I currently, once again, live in bricks and mortar, I have an appreciation for what it takes to survive in other situations and I try not to take my circumstances for granted. We can all benefit from understanding how much we depend on our natural world, its abundant giving, and the way it feeds our bodies, minds and souls.</div>
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<b>Move into eco-friendly sustainability</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDNopNXFqsbi0ro6GCo-luMurRsIpQwNUxGwEvJtoi5GQ4vmBpSDlzKwA3-sxrhOGT3gZhAbn6rNLPfKOmUqUmUxoEzdNQpNMxOI4aHWjnL34sektGV6nML1ofBK-UwD1W-uJifvE1tg/s1600/flatp+pack.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="321" data-original-width="468" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDNopNXFqsbi0ro6GCo-luMurRsIpQwNUxGwEvJtoi5GQ4vmBpSDlzKwA3-sxrhOGT3gZhAbn6rNLPfKOmUqUmUxoEzdNQpNMxOI4aHWjnL34sektGV6nML1ofBK-UwD1W-uJifvE1tg/s320/flatp+pack.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We have many options now, on alternative energy production and natural materials for building sustainable and affordable rentable and purchasable housing. Government needs to positively encourage a move towards smaller, wooden, flat-pack style systems and move away from expensive brick and stone. There are more alternative ways of generating power and wave energy, often dismissed, has been proven to be viable but just needs proper investment. Solar power can still help on individual houses.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP8zW9Jc96Bm_FnPX7kOe2jUB8u5UinysLOM7vasYAfpb0xgvLaTmhAAT-EiVqZNg8JZyu56PJKck-zrn11TikpJM-PzB559RcIokg5wkiFJl3xA5wzNjFb_gwxYNAvOLPZSjwgDEg9JM/s1600/alternative+energy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="286" data-original-width="1200" height="95" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP8zW9Jc96Bm_FnPX7kOe2jUB8u5UinysLOM7vasYAfpb0xgvLaTmhAAT-EiVqZNg8JZyu56PJKck-zrn11TikpJM-PzB559RcIokg5wkiFJl3xA5wzNjFb_gwxYNAvOLPZSjwgDEg9JM/s400/alternative+energy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>Change the way we educate our children</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglZBzEp9u2jQHYI0AfT3p_wcNZYkjVTgJZvpqBAtDjkqT0UesLhQ6m7-K0po0j0hl7JpqKEeFsX0iXejz20gNB24QzM3s-Lu0pG-b4pi_fuM8-VHZ9l9LxNyMO28zA2PHgJXulrt1g9dU/s1600/children+playing.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="852" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglZBzEp9u2jQHYI0AfT3p_wcNZYkjVTgJZvpqBAtDjkqT0UesLhQ6m7-K0po0j0hl7JpqKEeFsX0iXejz20gNB24QzM3s-Lu0pG-b4pi_fuM8-VHZ9l9LxNyMO28zA2PHgJXulrt1g9dU/s320/children+playing.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Let children play more. Base them at home. Make schools resource centres. Trust that young children, teenagers, and adults, naturally want to find things out; want to learn and discover. Okay, have some mandatory time in designated lessons in those resource schools, to get to grips with the essential basics required to manage living in your society, but then have bookable drop-in sessions, covering every subject on offer. You still have professional and knowledgeable teachers, and resources that cannot be provided at home, but you have developing trust in the community that more openness and freedom will provide the environment where people want to develop their skills and understanding. Stop being afraid that society will become apathetic and spiral into violent anarchy. </div>
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A friend once said to me: "If something isn't working - stop doing it!" And don't try to convince me that our current education system in the UK is working. It's a fucking disaster zone! We quite literally have reached a point where we have nothing to lose and only something new and exciting to gain.</div>
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Look. Realistically, I cannot give you all of the necessary detail of the things I have flagged up in a short blog and I know, in places, it jumps around a bit. But I'm not writing this for you to pull me apart on every shortcoming and missed detail. I simply state here, there are other ways to reach solutions for our perceived problems, but they are far more radical than our leaders are willing to entertain. To use another cliché, it's time to 'think outside the box'. It's also time to be much braver about taking risks with 'how things have always been'. You might complain about changes I have touched on if they started to be implemented, but at least you might be alive to try them. If we do not try a different approach, most of the populations of humans on this planet, to be quite frank, will not be here to argue the toss!<br />
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-56642636690409631382017-07-14T11:27:00.006+01:002022-04-26T19:52:41.096+01:0019 Days of Chicken Sitting<div style="text-align: justify;">
Back in May 2017, some good friends asked if I would be interested in house sitting for them - and looking after their hens. They live in a very old and delightful house, slightly remote and deep in the countryside of West Yorkshire. I have always enjoyed sitting in their gardens, drinking tea or beer and often thought how nice it would be to 'live in a place like this'. I therefore accepted their request and said I would take on the second two weeks while they were away, abroad. Another friend of theirs was allocated the first two weeks and their son stepped in to cover the weekend, in the middle, when the rest of us would also be away. By the time we all started our house sitting duties, there were, in addition to the main hens and cockerel, four new chicks to watch over.</div>
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Throughout this blog, <span style="color: #800180;">comments in {brackets}</span> are my silent thoughts. <span style="color: #38761d;">My general commentary is in</span> <span style="color: #38761d;">green</span>. Names of people have been changed to letters or Owners, to preserve privacy.</div>
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<b>Sunday 25 June</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">The hens were in their hutch and the mother and chicks were in their barrel, fenced in. A simple matter of closing the hutch door.</span></div>
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<b>Monday 26 June</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">All hens and chicks present and correct. Let out the cockerel and 2 hens.</span><br />
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<b>Tuesday 27 June</b><br />
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Mr Owner: Hopefully the four chickens are still extant along with cockerel and a couple of hens? I forgot to empty the two dustbins of hen house clearings so asked AA to fetch another empty bin up [from the garden].</div>
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R: When I took over from AA, there were 2 orange hens and the cock and one white hen with 4 now quite big chicks.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvSTRKO4lpTaJrDcCccXy_NZp1w9-K3OxT9qHk6Opw0SD5TUBw4Z0oOWnU2YJWModMEZOWffevpNCJBXHZW6pesAQy10F5E9KlLTMZtBfvFhJYTgzCLTNzw7baG7UWKVArvYx0NlLgs_A/s1600/hens.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvSTRKO4lpTaJrDcCccXy_NZp1w9-K3OxT9qHk6Opw0SD5TUBw4Z0oOWnU2YJWModMEZOWffevpNCJBXHZW6pesAQy10F5E9KlLTMZtBfvFhJYTgzCLTNzw7baG7UWKVArvYx0NlLgs_A/s200/hens.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF5p93UlZItRqrBLcuZePCIsz-oYN5_oxMgF2cqaR0qQCa2bSaEp862D68cbOG3mFLMHFkiokYJMVxdBYeWpRTC93cDOzwDKYNBto7p_9lNzXhiIFjtHQHgR1F0RmzOLrgo30QSA32VPY/s1600/Hen+and+Chicks+01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF5p93UlZItRqrBLcuZePCIsz-oYN5_oxMgF2cqaR0qQCa2bSaEp862D68cbOG3mFLMHFkiokYJMVxdBYeWpRTC93cDOzwDKYNBto7p_9lNzXhiIFjtHQHgR1F0RmzOLrgo30QSA32VPY/s200/Hen+and+Chicks+01.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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AA excommunicated the cat! He said I shouldn't encourage it, so although it's been back, apart from stroking it, I've not fed it or let it back in the house. If you'd like to overturn that decision, I will look after it again.</div>
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<b>Wednesday 28 June</b><br />
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Mr Owner: Please yourself about the cat. Mrs Owner likes it; AA complained that, like the cockerel, it woke him up! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzNBoCOyaJSKN74Si44gVABijebucMev9Lo_cW9vqTXtItJZbFF3N9L1s0RHmtPQX0uE3DRv61EJeRFdnzrQKMQlR1lmfDYh2vJxQxH7axKpb4tRqBU9_LWj3thl9VD9mUNXz6FsRS0HQ/s1600/Cat+Feature+01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1034" data-original-width="1200" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzNBoCOyaJSKN74Si44gVABijebucMev9Lo_cW9vqTXtItJZbFF3N9L1s0RHmtPQX0uE3DRv61EJeRFdnzrQKMQlR1lmfDYh2vJxQxH7axKpb4tRqBU9_LWj3thl9VD9mUNXz6FsRS0HQ/s320/Cat+Feature+01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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R: I talk to the cat and stroke it. {I don't know its name*, and since it's another thing around the garden, I call it 'Cat feature'.} I've also been talking to the hens and the cockerel and they've been behaving quite well. {Apart from being in a seed trough!}</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1crjSZWfUt3nTBD2v1cZ0rHt8ZEL6DBbIZIM1u792wHWovJrpzUEV77dlI2kaVzfmgBCiK6ES82VzqpiCJ_-PR8o9TbYnnOaHqqos_V-NUJzlwqM2eGZ42OLH_A5iD-eig1UumM8Wj4/s1600/seed+tray+01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1crjSZWfUt3nTBD2v1cZ0rHt8ZEL6DBbIZIM1u792wHWovJrpzUEV77dlI2kaVzfmgBCiK6ES82VzqpiCJ_-PR8o9TbYnnOaHqqos_V-NUJzlwqM2eGZ42OLH_A5iD-eig1UumM8Wj4/s200/seed+tray+01.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHdswvpawS0-_sGT0IrR61wYvxg1XNA9eFIeHs3KCU7TtutI_V8pQ4P64IftJ6npfcRErn26eLwySuNVxnt4WTV8GKf_mObc3OmFKrptFGbTbJNiV4DZMrNfAmtdG-7mDqLqANJw46yxg/s1600/seed+tray+02.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHdswvpawS0-_sGT0IrR61wYvxg1XNA9eFIeHs3KCU7TtutI_V8pQ4P64IftJ6npfcRErn26eLwySuNVxnt4WTV8GKf_mObc3OmFKrptFGbTbJNiV4DZMrNfAmtdG-7mDqLqANJw46yxg/s200/seed+tray+02.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b>Thursday 29 June</b><br />
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I spent most of the day pruning shrubs, trees and hedges. I also ate and picked raspberries.<br />
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I cleaned out the hen house and chicken's barrel and gave the chicks new, soft hay bedding.<br />
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<b>Friday 30 June</b><br />
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R: The hens are all okay, as of tonight. I cleaned out the hutch and the little barrel, yesterday and put fresh material in (the wood shavings for the hutch and some hay for the little ones). The cat's okay too. I've started giving it a bit of food outside the kitchen in the morning, but not letting it in because I don't want to lose it in the house if I pop out anywhere. {For goodness sake, Cat feature - leave me alone for 5 minutes!}</div>
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<b>Saturday 1 July</b><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Mr</span><span style="text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="text-align: justify;">Owner</span>: Glad to hear chickens still living. {You're not the only one!}<br />
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<b>Sunday 2 July</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: How big do the chicks need to be, before they can go free range? - or is it better to keep them in their pen until you get back? - it's only another week and a bit, I suppose. I was wondering which plants I could poke through for them - without killing them with something poisonous. I know they like chick weed, but I've not seen any of that.</div>
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<b>Monday 3 July</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d;">I let out the cockerel and hen, this morning - gave them corn. Fed the chickens. Made sure they all had water. The cockerel and hen proceeded to roam free around the gardens.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: The chickens were LEFT free range! Free to roam with the mother hen. she should be taking them into the hen house at night by now; that little wire enclosure must be a right mucky mess by now. Perhaps BB fastened them into it 'to keep them secure'? Are they still sleeping in the barrel? If so, after dark take them out and put them into the hen house, but leave the window and the exit whole open so the cockerel can accept them without annoyance at being put-upon; then the next night they may make their way into the house on their own. If you can catch the chicks and put them in, {yeah, right} the mother hen will follow on her own, but leave the exit open. {Not sure that's a good idea} Also, window fully open for air. Wow! Have they still been confined to that little pen all this time? {Sorry, didn't realise... feel a bit bad, now} BB being extra careful re foxes? Will hopefully start new system re chicks in future.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Ah, right. I don't know who locked them in. When you first gave me the hen and chicken tour, you said that's where they were being kept. Mind you, over the last week, the chicks have started to become what all hens eventually become - great escape artists! A few days ago, one got out and this morning, 2 welcomed me on the wrong side of the wire.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: I have been keeping the chicks barrel dry and refreshed, but I will let them out now. I was closing the cockerel and 2 hens' door at night and leaving their window half open. As per your new instructions, I will leave the window open fully and also leave the door open, from now on. {Still don't think the door open at night is a good idea.} I had thought they needed to be closed in at night, in case of the fox, but I suppose the fox doesn't have a clock or a watch, and could come at any time of day!</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: Sorry, my fault. I thought I had made it clear to AA and BB that the four with the mother hen had been wandering free for some time! Also I had ceased to lock up the big ones from well before we left! That one night I locked them in, because of the crowing annoying AA, was the time I was severely pecked! {I'd thought he had put the cockerel back into the hutch and shut the door.}The fox took the hens and the new little chicks that had taken to living in the front garden, which was a shame! Leave them all free to roam, but if you see ANY of them out of the bottom garden and on the lane, or going into the field, usher them rapidly back up. {Ooops!}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
It used to be people with dogs out of control who were more of a problem than were foxes, in the old days, otherwise enjoy the change. Hopefully the cockerel will not peck the new entrants to the house.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: The hen and chickens have had a nice day, today. </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d;">It always surprises me that the hens not only find their way back to the hutch, but actually start roosting on the perches while it's still daylight. Bedtime seems to be around 5 pm. I shut the hutch door at 6 pm - just in case they wanted to come out again for a while beforehand.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d;">R: I've left the hutch door open, but not entirely sure about leaving it open overnight re the Fox potential... but I'll give it a go. When I used to keep hens [when I was around 15 years old] , I always closed their hutch at night. The funny thing is that your cockerel and hens have seemed quite content to be closed in until 8:30 each morning - and I haven't been pecked yet.</span></div>
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<b>Tuesday 4 July</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: There seems to be one of the two golden hens missing today. The Cockerel is walking around with just one. The cat's vanished too!</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: I don't think he liked the other one much, as he kept chasing her off. No sign of any struggles or feathers anywhere, so she may have hidden somewhere. I'll let you know if she suddenly turns up. All the others, hen and 4 chicks, are fine.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: Funny for cock to be chasing one of them; have they plenty of access to water as well as food - do chicks now live in hen house? {No they don't - I'm still not sure how to get them in.}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: They have plenty of food and water. I think I should close the hen house door tonight. Rounding up the chicks isn't the easiest thing... and we've had a bit of cheekiness going off with some of the livestock around here.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Do you think it will be okay to shut everyone in the hen house tonight, together? I don't suppose the cockerel will have a go at the chicks - they seem to mingle quite well when roaming free.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: Mrs Owner says hen house door should be shut at night. Leave window fully open. {That's what I thought. When I used to keep hens, I always locked them in at night and let them out in the morning.}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Yes, I've done that tonight. I am still trying to get the chicks and hen to be in a position to add them...</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: You are the best judge as to what to do, being on the spot. My feeling is that, if the chicks are NOT staying in the hen house at night, then the big cockerel should be free to come and go to protect them at all times. {Oh dear, I've upset him now.}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: I will do my best. Any time I cannot get them into the hen house, I will lock them into their barrel run. Either way, all of them are let out in the morning to roam free. {Still feel I've been told off, but this chicken lark isn't straight forward.}</div>
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<b>Wednesday 5 July</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d;">I couldn't see the golden hen and the cockerel seemed to be on his own, every now and again, crowing. After an hour of typing, I heard rustling and scratching in the garden; looked out to see the cockerel, and then, a little way to his right, the previously missing hen.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Well, yesterday, not only did I lose a hen, but I lost the cat - didn't see either all day. Started writing the epitaph for the hen... However, on a brighter note, there were 2 eggs in the hen house, after nothing laid all week. (AA had told me they had stopped laying by the time he arrived).</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Suddenly, the cat returned... and so did the hen, who I am now naming after a great women explorer, aptly named, Isabella Bird.</div>
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R: I am calling the other hen, Annie Peck.<br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Isabella Lucy Bird, married name Bishop FRGS, was a nineteenth-century English explorer, writer, photographer, and naturalist. With Fanny Jane Butler she founded the John Bishop Memorial hospital in Srinagar.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Annie Smith Peck was an American mountaineer. She lectured extensively for many years throughout the United States, and wrote four books encouraging travel and exploration.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: The Cockerel welcomed her back, by giving her a good ticking off.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: Incidentally, I'm going to have to do a re-write of a well-known poem by Edward Lear. Already got the name, after dropping the whole Owl thing:</div>
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'The Hen and the Pussy Cat'.<br />
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The Hen and the Pussy Cat went to see<br />
a beautiful pea green field<br />
They took some seed, and plenty of bread<br />
Wrapped up with a sword and a shield.<br />
The Hen looked up to the stars above,<br />
And sang to a small guitar,<br />
'O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,<br />
What a beautiful Pussy you are,<br />
You are,<br />
You are!<br />
<br />
I might need help with the other verses.<br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Mr</span><span style="text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="text-align: justify;">Owner</span>: Glad to hear hen has returned. Cat is a nuisance.<br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: The white hen and her chicks are being a bit annoying and keep going into the field by the double gate where you drive in to park your car. I had to pop out this morning, only to discover them, this side of the field hedge, on the other side of the track - but I couldn't stop to try chasing them. When I returned, they were still there, so I herded them back under gates. I have had words with them all, and for a while they behaved. But later, they returned to the field by the gates - what seems to be their favourite spot, in long grass beneath a shady tree.</div>
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<b>Thursday 6 July</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: The hens/chicks are not going to last long if they are consistently on the lane! Too many dogs come along. Ah well. {I'm being told off again, but what does he expect, when the hens are free range with no barriers!}</div>
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R: I will keep chasing them back.<br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: After turning up the other day, the missing hen went missing again. This morning there were feathers all over the lawn. I guess Isabella met her Waterloo this time. {Bit of a disaster, really - but no real surprise. I looked everywhere for her and never found where she had been hiding out.}</div>
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<b>Friday 7 July</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: Do your best to see that the four chickens stay round the back R, or they will be gone as well - especially at night, obviously, and early in the morning; that is why they should now be living in the hen house with the cockerel and being fastened in. If they survive I will have to wire off the back garden from where the dog kennel is I think. {I'm still trying to work out how to get the chicks and mother into the main hen house. Mr Owner is starting to get impatient with me.}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: {Feeling a bit on the defensive.} I think this is what you have to accept when everyone is free range. Hens don't understand boundaries, unless you put them in their way. The chicks stayed in the garden yesterday, partly because I gave them a bit of my old brown bread. Every time they were edging to the drive, and saw me, they followed me back for a bit more bread. (I don't give them much bread, as I'm not sure if it's good for them to have too much). It became a bit Hitchcock's, 'The Birds', as they started to perch on the garden seat outside the cottage and heads appeared at the window.</div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">R: Can you tell me how you normally get the new ones into the hen house? I'm really not sure of the method. If I try to catch the mother hen and push her through the door, she will just come out again. I don't want to upset them by chasing them.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Owner: I thought we had covered everything re the hens and chickens! {Oh dear - he's really annoyed with me now!} The young ones are still at an age where they need a proper meal in the mornings. When you buy your bread, buy a loaf for them and some milk. Make them a meal of bread and milk and mix some of the small bird seed in it. Feed them that in the mornings, fresh. Any not eaten, scrape into compost feed outside kitchen window, in front of garage, or if they stay up there, outside observatory. {I remember him telling me about the bread and milk, now. Ooops!}I thought you had put them into hen house a while ago - are they still living in the barrel? {Yes, they are still in the f**king barrel!} When cock and hen(s) have retired to perches, lift up barrel and pick up the chicks and put them into the house through the door, {yeah, right - that sounds easy - not!} with the bolt having first shut the little door. Forget the mother hen; she will make her own way in. {You really think so? And the chicks by that time will have run back out!} You may have to repeat the manoeuvre and it is best well after they have all settled for the night. If chicks are following you for bread, they are OBVIOUSLY hungry. {Another telling off.}BB was feeding them all day on and off. {Bugger. BB's better at this job than I am.} Also, the cock and hens. I would take a cup of corn about with me and the cock would ask for it if not enough food where they were. {Slave to the chickens.} I have obviously been remiss, but I thought you had experience with fowl. {Yes, I kept 14 hens between my ages of 14 and 16. It was a long time ago, and unlike yours, I fenced mine into a big run.} Please see there is water in all places they frequent. {Yes, there is.}They will all tend to stay where they are fed most, but if those four chickens have survived up to now, despite wandering into the lane... If you feel up to it, use the wire netting that comprised their little coup enclosure to cover the little wooden gate and brown painted antique metal fence that crosses to the garage from the dog kennel. The cockerel will not be pleased and they have all got used to eating opposite the kitchen window, but explain to them, that into all lives, some rain must fall. Pick up chicks, two at a time, to move all food/water tins up to outside kennel? {I might be able to do some fencing, but I won't be picking anyone up.}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: {Trying to calm the situation and act nonchalantly and in control.} Okay, that's all fine. I do feed the hens and the chicks throughout the day, {on the defensive, again} mainly near the kitchen area, as you originally mentioned, and I have placed water all around the gardens, and by the garage, and AA (I think) created a big drinking trough for them to the left of the big shed, fed by a hose from the barrel, so I keep checking it is topped up. I also make sure there is corn in the tin tray at the big shed, which they mostly eat in the mornings. {That should have sufficiently validated my competence!}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
R: All the hens and chicks have been having a lovely time and finding all sorts of exciting grubs in different parts of the garden and if I'm outside they come and sit under my feet. {Trying in vein to show that they probably don't need too much extra food.} I will give them additional bread and milk. None of them wandered into the track today. I can put some wire on the gates, as you suggested, as you may get more chicks in the future, so it will be good for them, too. {Later had a look at the fencing situation, but haven't needed to do anything, as chicks behaving better.}</div>
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<b>Saturday 8 July</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I prepared some bread and milk for the chickens and went up to let everyone out. The cockerel immediately went for the chicken's food, instead of doing his usual, and running in the opposite direction to get his grain. Despite an attempt to fend him off, he was determined to get his way, so I cursed and left. I'm really going to have to move the chickens tonight.</span></div>
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Mr Owner: Thank you. {Oh, good. I'm back in favour.} The doves and big hens like the sunflower seeds and you may feed the chicks from the cereal packets if there is any cereal left. When they wander afar, they are searching for food. {Okay - point taken. I've learnt something.}</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d;">Everyone seemed settled and quiet by about 8 pm. I walked towards the chickens, only to see that a pigeon had got into their wire encased enclosure. As I approached, it started flapping. Without thinking, I went to rescue it. This woke up the hen and all the chickens started coming out. The cockerel, hearing the commotion, suddenly appeared at his door and walked down the ramp. For f**ks sake! Mission aborted. I returned 30 minutes later, after normality had resumed, and shut the hen house door. The term 'crest fallen' doesn't apply only to hens. </span></div>
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<b>Sunday 9 July</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I have decided, that today is definitely going to be chicken moving day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I let the cockerel and hen out and then fed the chicks some bread and milk mixture, in their pen - so that the cockerel wouldn't try getting it - like the morning before.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Around 10 am I went to buy more bread and milk. I returned to my house and put the milk in the fridge and a note to remind me, on the table. At about 12:30 pm I put everything I needed in the van and drove back to check on the hens. Having arrived, I suddenly realised, I'd got the bread, but had left the milk in the fridge at home! At least I have a bit of my own milk left I can give them.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I went up to the chicken pen and cleared anything that would stop me covering the barrel's entrance and lifting it from its position. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihJCdJ1fnZU8LbxfsRX8Gsh2nVvVJvqdxOO6p4muD94DZRL7gRDX7rD16wtoqKOoIe-rxvr5GbCMgRSG_SyOWnWGeTIZ6SOi86-qDaqdbOjE3nqcXtfrA4m-6pl5CLdIG5UOrbdE5CFx8/s1600/chick+run+01.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihJCdJ1fnZU8LbxfsRX8Gsh2nVvVJvqdxOO6p4muD94DZRL7gRDX7rD16wtoqKOoIe-rxvr5GbCMgRSG_SyOWnWGeTIZ6SOi86-qDaqdbOjE3nqcXtfrA4m-6pl5CLdIG5UOrbdE5CFx8/s320/chick+run+01.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I then had to come up with an idea for opening the big hutch door, without the cockerel and hen, who perch right in front of it, flying out, over the top of the barrel whilst I'm holding it in position. I thought about trying to raise the wire mesh upwards from the front of the barrel, but in the end, decided to cover the doorway with chicken wire - allowing it to be clipped on and off, as I don't suppose Mr Owner wants me to leave it there as a permanent fixture.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibTPWXPGAJ9bBOcFuIwQeNPK1etfHIKh1tMnxtPNDdlrvStjJjrgviuOQj9Hvh-shMt5vS58ayS0TEUq3L_de1vKcxOq_KF0FWCnT9m3So6LO_Pf6leJWxhpKz-0rwzThq78ih384q2gA/s1600/chick+run+02.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibTPWXPGAJ9bBOcFuIwQeNPK1etfHIKh1tMnxtPNDdlrvStjJjrgviuOQj9Hvh-shMt5vS58ayS0TEUq3L_de1vKcxOq_KF0FWCnT9m3So6LO_Pf6leJWxhpKz-0rwzThq78ih384q2gA/s200/chick+run+02.jpg" width="149" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">First, I needed a bit of wire. Mr Owner had some spare wire curled around inside the main chicken enclosure. I worked out that I could reach in with some cutters and then pull out a piece of the right size, without dismantling the run. In the process, I noticed some red appearing on the back of my right hand. I had managed to catch my skin on a bit of the sharp cut wire. I dabbed some kitchen roll on my hand and carried on.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I managed to produce a nicely fitting wire door, within the limits of the big closing door. I cut a hole for the barrel entrance area and folded in any sharp bits of wire, so no chickens would get caught on anything. Everything was now ready for the evening.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I crept towards the hen house and chicken run, carefully lifted the mesh gate and dropped it in front of the barrel. I then returned to the hen house and closed the little door. Everything was now in place. I lifted the barrel and mesh and carried everything to the hen house. I opened the big door and thrust the barrel towards the wire, removing the barrel mesh at the same time. The cockerel and hen looked a bit put out and no one would come out of the drum. I gave it a little shake and one chick walked out, eventually followed by mother and one more chick. The last two chicks were determined to stay put. Another few gentle shakes and they were all in. The cockerel had dismounted from his perch and was now scratching up the extra bedding I'd put in a far corner for the chicks. I withdrew the barrel and shut the big door. After quite a kerfuffle and much wing flapping, the hens began to accept their new group situation. I returned a few minutes later, when all was quiet, and some of the chicks were actually on the perch with the cockerel.</span></div>
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<b>Monday 10 July</b></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Today's big question is: 'Will the chicks go back into the hen house tonight?'</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">It was raining when I got up. I let out the hens and fed them. Today was going to be lawn cutting day, but it was looking unlikely, with the weather. However, there was a possibility of it drying up later. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">The hens were all over the place again! I've given up trying to be in control - it's impossible.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Fortunately, the rain stopped and the ground dried a bit. I went to check on the hen house. They were all inside, on the perch. What a relief. I shut the door. I could now mow the lawns.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I started mowing at about 7 pm. The petrol driven rotary mower was excellent and quite a recent purchase. I even had an optional power drive assist to the rear wheels - very useful when going up inclines. It was still quite demanding work and certainly got me sweating. By the time I had cut 6 of the 7 lawn areas, most of my clothes were wet with perspiration. However, the results looked good and I was glad I'd managed it. I gave the mower a clean all around and underneath and returned it to the garage.</span></div>
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<b>Tuesday 11 July</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I'm so glad I cut the lawns the night before. It's raining again today. In fact, it was still raining beyond 8:45 pm. I let the hens out and after eating, they began their daily foraging. I fed the cat and returned to my bit of the house.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Later, feeling a bit sorry for the cat, I decided to try and improve its sleeping area. Currently, it was just an open shelf area in an old kitchen unit, outside, below the main house kitchen window. I looked around for a cardboard box and eventually found a suitable one in the garage - not being used for storage. I shook out the cat's blanket and discovered it was on top of an old canvas bag for extra padding. The bag fitted perfectly (no pun intended) and once the blanket was on top, I placed the box in the open cabinet. It was an exact fit to the sides, and left about 5 inches of space at the open end. This would keep the cat warmer at night and also protect it from any further rain.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">At about 6:30 pm, I went to shut the hen house. The cockerel was perching on his own!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">'Where are your hens and the chicks?' I asked. 'I thought you were looking after them.' He looked at me with a nonchalance that was like a person shrugging their shoulders. I went off to look for them and discovered the chicks at the other side of the house, now huddled by a bush near the front door. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">'What are you all doing here?' I asked. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I went and got some corn in a plastic tub and started to shake it, whilst calling to them to follow me. It was quite a distance to the hen house and normally, they start following me, but after about 20 feet, they lose interest. To my relief, I managed to get them all the way to the front of the hen house, by which time, the cockerel had come out to see what was happening. He initially looked at me accusingly, as if I was doing something to his hens. But I quickly put him right.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">'Here you are Mr Cockerel. It's up to you to get them inside, now.' And I walked away.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I returned 30 minutes later, and everyone was inside. I shut the little door and left.</span></div>
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<b>Wednesday 12 July</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">As per usual, I spent a few times, throughout the day, trying to herd the chicks back into the garden. This time they were in another part of the farmer's field, in long grass, scratching about and sunbathing. I made several attempts to encourage them to follow me and after about half an hour, managed to get a couple of them all the way to the garden side gate, adjoining the field. However, getting them through the gate wasn't going to happen. I gave up and closed the gate. A few hours later, they were all back in the garden again - pestering me for food and pecking at my shoes. I made them bread and milk with some grain.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">At about 6:30 pm, I went to see if everyone was in the hen house. What a relief to find them all inside. I tried to count them, but it was hard to see through the air vent mesh. I went to the egg box door and tried counting from there. Not an easy task, as you'll see. I have no idea how they manage to perch in a bunch like that! It's like being given a mansion-sized bedroom and choosing to sleep in a closet.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmM3Bz_ltIgPL5hYsU8G6svemAj4o2LiiU6T6JRwal4D4BPNcyMklvyihZZwU8EwekwYk_GBtSw3Lc-sytQoZTpXSLGTtORPIw8H1GtQW7EHithQmRTwCIavSV17mwmgrjIibssoXpLyo/s1600/goodnight+hens.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmM3Bz_ltIgPL5hYsU8G6svemAj4o2LiiU6T6JRwal4D4BPNcyMklvyihZZwU8EwekwYk_GBtSw3Lc-sytQoZTpXSLGTtORPIw8H1GtQW7EHithQmRTwCIavSV17mwmgrjIibssoXpLyo/s320/goodnight+hens.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Thursday 13 July</b><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">My last day of hen and chicken sitting. In the morning, I had to go to an exhaust centre for a new rear silencer. The job took them longer than anticipated, but it didn't matter, as I had taken a portable seat and read my book, across the road under some trees, as I had done on a previous occasion.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixCQUYmxhXuRgh-kHiuAo1iX6CCkEmreNUO-ezdvpTpsOR-u6zEAZcEB-OI5KQv6jBgTBHH0Fg0z7yUSktVRCZr_n3zC1evrolceQmeiIUcO3hfzH_KqNOBXBruXWb6GYv0RhVm_c24tY/s1600/Waiting+for+the+car+exhaust.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1154" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixCQUYmxhXuRgh-kHiuAo1iX6CCkEmreNUO-ezdvpTpsOR-u6zEAZcEB-OI5KQv6jBgTBHH0Fg0z7yUSktVRCZr_n3zC1evrolceQmeiIUcO3hfzH_KqNOBXBruXWb6GYv0RhVm_c24tY/s320/Waiting+for+the+car+exhaust.jpg" width="230" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">By the time I returned to the hens, at about 12:20 pm, I was pleased to discover they weren't on the track or in the farmer's field. However, they didn't appear to be anywhere else, either. </span><span style="color: #38761d;">This was the day of the owners' return and I wanted everyone to behave.</span><span style="color: #38761d;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">After a brief search, I came across the cockerel and his hen, but no sign of the mother and chicks, so I talked to the cat for a while. He was asleep in his new cardboard box bed, but meowed at my arrival. Normally, he follows me around wherever I go, but the box was certainly keeping him in check. (As any cat lover knows, cardboard boxes make excellent cat traps - wish I'd thought of this a few days ago). </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I started doing a bit more garden trimming and pruning. Everything done in the previous week was rapidly growing again, having had sun followed by 2 days of rain and now sun, again. After a while, the chickens turned up and began following me around as I pruned. I gave them a bit more food throughout the rest of the afternoon, and I was hoping they would behave and stay in the house garden areas. Fortunately, they all behaved perfectly and didn't stray onto the track or into any fields. By the time the owners returned, the chickens and hens were happily scratching around the gardens, the cat was lying neatly on the garden bench, and all vestiges of the week's earlier chaos and feeding in all the wrong places, had disappeared. The owners arrived back to a hot and sunny scene of perfect tranquility.</span></div>
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*The cat turned out to be called Boo<br />
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<br />Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-78451325584510642892017-06-05T10:57:00.001+01:002022-04-26T19:55:07.946+01:00Distortional Representation - The New Politics<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOwoaZegO2nMX5p-XUllqoH-AChbPAhEzmH7KsIPw0vQIRlP_eWrYkpH0PxkXBPaSUSKxmloOXaB-RqB2Wbm_udmBDY0pVE6xpH2X_YbbRN4W4fKgp6kbLAITP-_08sdGNNkk-JKTaWIg/s1600/Picasso+Tete+de+Femme.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="470" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOwoaZegO2nMX5p-XUllqoH-AChbPAhEzmH7KsIPw0vQIRlP_eWrYkpH0PxkXBPaSUSKxmloOXaB-RqB2Wbm_udmBDY0pVE6xpH2X_YbbRN4W4fKgp6kbLAITP-_08sdGNNkk-JKTaWIg/s320/Picasso+Tete+de+Femme.jpg" width="222" /></a></div>
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<b>Distortional Representation: </b>When a statement is made by a person with one intention, but is twisted around by a receiving person, or people, and repeated in a provocative way to mean something different. As a result, no amount of come-back explanation will then be accepted in support of the originally intended meaning.<br />
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Distortional Representation can be accidental or deliberate. <b>An accidental example</b> might be a text message or an email, sent with one intention, but interpreted by the recipient in a completely different way. This is quite common and is a result of not being able to interpret other simultaneous signals, such as, facial expressions or voice intonation. Another reason for misinterpretation, could be the mood of the recipient at the time of reading the message. If the person is already feeling annoyed, this angst could be conveyed to what is being read. This is why it is important, when you send a written message, to re-read it in different ways, to see if it could be misunderstood. One way to help reduce misunderstanding, is to use emojis :-) or abbreviations (lol). Accidental examples:<br />
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'If you'd done what I told you, we wouldn't be in this mess!'<br />
'If you'd done what I told you, we wouldn't be in this mess!' (lol)<br />
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'Will you tell Steve...'<br />
'Could you ask Steve...'<br />
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<b>Deliberate examples</b> of the type we typically see in media reporting, are like these. Notice too, the use of upward intonation, at the end of the replies, to convey indignation in the form of a question:<br />
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Person A: "I believe we should always try to resolve conflict through discussion."<br />
Person B: "So you're saying, you wouldn't hit anyone?"<br />
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Person A: "It would be more cost effective to use some of the left-over paint for this job."<br />
Person B: "So you're suggesting we should make do with out-of-date and inferior materials?"<br />
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Person A: "We need a time for reflection before acting inappropriately."<br />
Person B: "So you're just going to do nothing?"</div>
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To accomplish Distortional Representation effectively, the transmitting party must illicit a particular response in the witnessing receivers. Being forceful and charismatic, repeating any emotive words, in a provocative manner, is used to create an emotional trigger response in receivers. Those receivers will often feel a resonant connection, in their own life experience, whether actual or believed, and if a further link can be connected to, or associated with, for example, past historical atrocities, in ways that the receiving audience feels should be off-limit, taboo subjects, then outrage is complete and the deflection through Distortional Representation, is complete.</div>
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<b>Politics is possibly much more about marketing than it is about policies. </b>Several approaches have been tried over the years, from the rule of threes - 'no, no, no.' and 'a better this, a better that, and a better the other.' All the way through to patronising platitudes - 'hard working families' and the 'great British public.'</div>
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It often feels as if a team of people have put together special political training resources... oh, hang on a minute... they have:</div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">The 'Plausible Deniability Pack'.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">The 'Unthreatening Hand Gesture Training DVD' (with free mirror).</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">The 'Paul Daniels Misdirection Manual'.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">The Groucho Marx, 'Ask and Answer All Your Own Questions' (worksheets).</li>
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The always now used personal favourite, has to be answering one's own questions - stopping the interviewer from changing <i>your</i> subject, whilst giving the listeners what they <i>really need</i> to hear: 'Do I want a fairer Britain? Yes I do. Has our party got the right policies in place? Yes it has.' </div>
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Then we went through a period, when politicians started to carefully hide small untruths and, when found out, used various techniques of misdirection to smooth over the cracks. There then followed a policy of declaring outrageous changes, letting the public express their upset and anger, and once that had died down, bringing in the changes, largely unannounced, a few months or a year later, to little, if any, protest - often at a time when something else was stealing the headlines, such as a major death in the story plot of a TV Soap, or better still, a terrorist event.<br />
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Anything that frightens and causes panic in people, provides an opportunity to bring in sweeping changes, that under other circumstances, would never be permitted by a society.</div>
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Over the past few years of governance, politicians have stopped worrying about covering their tracks. Blatant dishonesty and lying has become the norm. Outrageous true stories have beggared belief. It is no wonder that similarly generated stories, linked together with the popularity of social media and 'click bait' monetised articles, have resulted in a lot of 'Fake News'.</div>
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But what about the 'facts'? Why are we not listening to, and taking notice of, all the rational and educated 'experts' when it comes to making informed choices about our personal and our country's future? Well, there could be a number of reasons:</div>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Losing faith in experts, when we were convincingly told something that later turned out to be incorrect.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Feeling that our opinions will be overruled - 'they' will do it anyway.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Feeling innately uncomfortable with something we are told is for our own good.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Not being able to relate our own experience, to the information being promulgated.</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li><div style="text-align: justify;">
Going back a few years, the first time we began to openly lose trust in our 'experts', was around the BSE cattle crisis. Other instances followed, such as insistence on an MMR vaccine, rather than separate vaccines, where expertise started to sound more arrogant than informed. </div>
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</li>
<li><div style="text-align: justify;">
We have also now reached a point where politicians have stopped caring whether or not they will be 'found out' when telling us porkies and despite their lies being quite transparent, we have got used to this being 'the way it is'.</div>
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<li><div style="text-align: justify;">
Imposing restrictions on a populace, because of the generated perception of personal threat, enables a government to quickly pass into law, measures that could be far-reaching in detrimental ways to, for example, freedom of speech and information, or human rights.</div>
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</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">When a politician talks about 'hard working families', it comes across as their patronising way of trying to placate an underclass of people who's lives they know little about - the well-to-do, standing shoulder to shoulder with the proletariat and often, financially dispossessed.</li>
</ol>
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But now, there is a new tool in the political armoury - what I am calling, <b>Distortional Representation</b>. We have already seen it occur in the recent past, with Ken Livingstone's comments, misreported in a way to suggest strong anti-Semitism - effectively ending Livingstone's credibility and political career. I am not saying I am a fan of Livingstone, but I did observe the distorted reporting at the time, offered up with loud, provocative, and often charismatic anger, lodging in the minds of people ready to be outraged by well chosen sound-bite extractions for media dispersal. </div>
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We now witness the same approach, applied to the leaders of the two main political parties - Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn. However, given that the Conservatives currently hold the power, it's easy to see why the mainstream media sways towards May and away from Corbyn. Political commentators can have a lot of influence in the way a public audience receives information, through audio-visual broadcasts and other media, and if they repeat a distortion of what is said with particular intonation or emphasis, it's quite easy to influence opinion in many of the listening, reading, or viewing public. This technique is made easier by the fact that few people really listen, and fewer still, bother to think about anything in any depth. Dramatisation, outrage, and shock, are the things we naturally react to.<br />
<br />
It's very challenging to write an article on this subject, because I know that everyone has a personal opinion, based on their own understanding of the reality they experience. We always gravitate towards those who agree with our own opinions. You might call it a tribal approach to living. Personally, I can see, and to varying degrees understand, merits in most opposing opinions on a variety of subjects. No one has the perfect answer and no one really holds the truth. In fact, truth only becomes accepted as truth, when enough people agree on something - regardless of whether that truth stands up over time. Unfortunately, we have developed a world where 'fighting' for one's truth then takes over. Instead of the truth unveiling itself, it comes down to a battle of the physically superior. The people who can bomb the shit out of any opposition hold the rightful truth.<br />
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Quantum Mass Structure of different beliefs</div>
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In 2011, I gave a talk to a small group of scientific researchers, in Barcelona, called 'Quantum Mass Superstructures'. A year later, this became a book by the same name, with the additional strap line of: 'creating the world you experience'. Within this book, I talked about how the world was now full of different creative thoughts and opinions and how the advent of the world wide web (Internet) had enabled all these views to be expressed and easily accessed. However, build-ups of strong views would ultimately meet in varying degrees of collaboration or opposition, often creating equal divisions of beliefs about reality. At such times, you either get great positive, and creative changes, or horrifying and upsetting, negative disturbances.<br />
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-55920569622201610872017-06-01T10:03:00.002+01:002022-04-26T19:55:38.337+01:00Manifestos To Go<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
<h2>
Searches online for the main two Manifestos arrive at
Labour's slightly quicker than the Conservatives - and you can then download pdf
copies.</h2>
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<b><a href="https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/manifesto2017/Manifesto2017.pdf" target="_blank">The Conservative Manifesto</a></b> (used to link to a a pdf file) totals 88 pages, and appears to be written (as a friend said) 'like a report of accounts, rather than
information for normal people.'</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.labour.org.uk/page/-/Images/manifesto-2017/Labour%20Manifesto%202017.pdf" target="_blank">The Labour Manifesto</a></b> (used to link to a pdf file) totals 128 pages, and appears to have content that is easier to digest.<o:p></o:p></div>
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One of the big issues I have had with some of the rhetoric,
particularly from the Conservatives, is their American approach to selling
their ideas. You speak for several minutes on the benefits of what you are
offering, but refuse to let on what, exactly, you are offering that will produce
those benefits. You get this a lot with American selling of personal development programmes. Half an hour of how great the programme is and what wonderful
benefits you will receive, and how you will be much richer, in every way, by
the end of the course. At the very end, it offers a single payment option of $500
or 4 payments of only $125 each. But of course, there are no guarantees that
the programme will live up to its hype, or enable you to earn back your money in
the first year of putting the training into practice.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
<i>You speak for several minutes on the benefits of what you are offering, but refuse to let on what, exactly, you are offering that will produce those benefits. </i></h3>
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If nothing else, one thing we have all learnt about
Politics and Politicians, of any side, is that you cannot believe promises made
to get into power and you cannot believe monetary figures relating to how things will be paid for. The
truth is, that no politicians can know for certain, exact figures. Everything
is based on positive projections of best possible outcomes - not on what is in
the vaults. Having worked in a number of organisations over the years, I have lost count of the times that bids were won on low outlay promises, but once won, suddenly required additional support to continue. Those that put in more realistic [higher] bids, often lost out. As another friend once said: 'Better to ask for forgiveness, than beg for permission.'<o:p></o:p><br />
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The remit laid out in the Conservative Manifesto is impressive in its scope and breadth and if I were to accept it at face value, I'd certainly be tempted to vote for them. However, it is promising much more than can reasonably be achieved or delivered - given that the past few years of essentially Conservative led governance has failed to come close to achieving most of the promises now being re-presented in new wrapping. Having been trained in secondary teaching, at the time of the introduction of the then new 'National Curriculum', the aims and objectives were both noble and encouraging. However, the reality, once at the cutting edge of the classroom, left much to be desired.</div>
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In trying to decide on who you should vote for in this
coming UK Election, ignore the focus on glamorous spin; forget talk of where
money is going to come from; and do not get groomed into thinking that the
slickest presentation is going to give you the best desired outcomes. In addition to taking the time to consider, first hand, the Manifesto pledges, go with your
gut instinct and your heart. If something sounds too good to be true, on either side, then it most likely is. The time for easily conjured statistics and manufactured 'rational' argument, has passed in this country. There are too many disconnected public opinions to wade through and both camps will argue for their own truths with immovable conviction.<br />
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Read through the Manifestos carefully
and make sure you understand fully, what is being said and offered. If necessary, shut
yourself in a silent room without distractions of people, newspapers, mobile smart devices, and
television, and see which Manifesto produces the clarity you are really looking
for and consider the implications of your choice, both for yourself and for society as a whole. Ask more questions, do some further research on and off line, if you need greater clarity. Ask yourself this question: What do I believe and why?<br />
<br />
Now might also be the time to recall the expression, 'a Leopard cannot change its spots', when you read through these Manifestos. You may justifiably reflect on some of the woes of the previous Labour Government, but also bear in mind, that the Conservatives have now had a considerable amount of time to improve many of the things they are now talking about improving. Why have we not already seen some indication of these 'improvements', at street level? Despite their protestations, our society is showing a lot of cracks at present. A lot of those infamous 'hard working families' have not seen measurable improvements in their circumstances for several years and many young people are struggling to start out on their own. If you really feel you can say, 'sure there have been improvements', then how long has it taken thus far, and by a process of considered extrapolation, how long do you realistically expect it to take, to reach the final promised outcomes?<br />
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The current Government talks about delivering its promises, and perhaps at a country level of 'holding our heads above water', this has some truth. However, where it needs to be felt, at domestic street and home level, it is evidently not being felt.<br />
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Click on the images below, to read the Manifestos.<o:p></o:p></div>
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One of the complaints we hear a lot, is that the different political parties cannot produce accurate clarity on their funding.</div>
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Presumably, after the pro-Brexit campaigning, some lessons have been learnt about bandying about monetary figures - better not to mention too many specific costs that could come back and bite you later!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Apart from this, we surely have to accept that leaders on all sides are bound to make a few gaffs along the way, when doing the endless and tiring rounds of media promotion for their respective causes. Furthermore, the snap [U-turn] election, took everyone by surprise, and to be able to put together detailed Manifestos in such a short space of time, is quite an achievement.</div>
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A big bone of contention, between the parties, is the situation surrounding Britain's National Health Service. The Conservatives haven't endeared themselves to supporters of the NHS and May has said very publicly, that she is a supporter of the Naylor Report, which essentially puts the current NHS Trusts in a difficult position.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/tx3hrpDCct8?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br />
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In a somewhat surprising turnaround of recent events, the concern that George Osborne's running of the London Evening Standard, might lead to biased reporting in favour of the Conservatives, now labels <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/george-osborne-theresa-may-election-campaign-disastrous-manifesto-history-conservatives-tory-labour-a7763631.html?cmpid=facebook-post" target="_blank">Theresa May's manifesto as the 'most disastrous in history'</a>.</div>
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One of the issues facing the Labour Party, is their traditional approach to solving problems. Whilst the Conservatives make promises of growing a meritocracy, Labour could, if it's not careful, foster a mediocracy of dependency.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1-SahP8Z-IN_NHhk4gxIcCPDgTXoWXX7MeK6ErBz4yTyBJiu5Ypq1nFChu1aRH-ygLVmOWj2J8B03oxEVMvSGSs3yX-jH-fE75LwW5qiVUpv4fPHx42uGhWX1jIbqVSURDAEvRuJR1K4/s1600/corbyn+01.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="634" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1-SahP8Z-IN_NHhk4gxIcCPDgTXoWXX7MeK6ErBz4yTyBJiu5Ypq1nFChu1aRH-ygLVmOWj2J8B03oxEVMvSGSs3yX-jH-fE75LwW5qiVUpv4fPHx42uGhWX1jIbqVSURDAEvRuJR1K4/s320/corbyn+01.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The issue with meritocracy, is that some people will never be able to compete in the assumed intellectual fashion - slipping through the net into a dark, underclass void. Conservatism is still very much about competition and 'survival of the fittest', but forgets that those of a less competitive nature and perhaps therefore, deemed to be lower down the pecking order, have an important role in maintaining the underlying structure and quality of life and value fulfilment in a society - supporting those 'higher up', with service industries and the creative arts. We have an odd, even somewhat perverse, practice in Britain, of rewarding those who bring in money and punishing those who struggle to generate even moderate levels of their own income.</div>
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The issue with mediocracy, is that some people will simply become dependent on others and not take responsibility for their own lives and the lifestyles they end up experiencing. There has to be a balance of both accepting personal responsibility and knowing that practical support for personal advancement is available to anyone who seeks it.</div>
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When it comes to Brexit, Labour is openly criticised for not being strong enough to negotiate for Britain's best interests, despite actually offering more detail than the Conservatives, in respect of how it intends to manage the process. The argument that Corbyn thinks 'money grows on trees' does not stand up to scrutiny, when you see that the Conservatives appear to have even less idea of where their money for reform is going to come from. There's a lot of bluster and hyperbole, but exactly, what is being helpfully presented?</div>
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<b>On another note...</b></div>
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<o:p>Aside from the whole Brexit thing, one of the areas making the headlines is the potential raising of corporation taxes. </o:p>Perhaps we shouldn't take higher taxes from corporations, as money that goes back into the Government's pockets. Perhaps we should instead, make it a law, that the amount of that proposed increase in corporation tax should instead be given directly to community and social causes within Britain - decided on by the companies affected, and enabling everyone to see the contribution being made. It could also be a way to dispel a lot of the resentment poorer people have for richer people doing so well.<br />
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<i>Corporation tax should instead be given directly to community and social causes within Britain</i></h3>
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I liken this idea to that of paying everyone in the country, a minimum cost of living income - particularly as we move towards more roles being taken over by automation. Great idea in some ways but totally inappropriate in others - namely, that many people would not use that income in the way intended. Better to give a percentage of free gas and electricity or similar help that then releases any additional income or conventional earnings, for having a better lifestyle.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Putting up a basic minimum wage, at the same time as increasing cost of living, is the same as leaving everything as it is. It does not work to give more money and then immediately put in systems and policies that allow it to be taken away again, or in the case of many situations, leave people actually worse off after an increase.<br />
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We must also accept, that not every member of our society has the same capabilities. You cannot say to an Elephant, that all animals should be able to climb trees, to prove their worth to the rest of the animal kingdom.</div>
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Anyway... good luck, and may you get the Government you truly deserve!</div>
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-79987404539062109392016-06-28T15:47:00.002+01:002022-04-26T19:56:21.487+01:00Thoughts of Adventure<div style="text-align: justify;">
Many of us have thoughts and ideas about how we might escape into an adventure somewhere, but like many, the conjured reality in the mind often prevents us from taking steps outside our comfort zones. For a while, it's easy to find excuses but as, one by one, these start to disappear, you are suddenly faced with the real possibility of having to follow through. Such was the case recently.</div>
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I knew I wanted to travel around a bit more, but with my love of vehicular transport, it had to be more adventure vehicle than public transport. Furthermore, 14 years of self-imposed social exile wasn't easy to brush off. The sort of thing I imagined, was this:</div>
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But then, I wasn't sure if I wanted to be in a group. I thought about going it alone in something ex-military. Four-wheel drive and good ground clearance with large enough accommodation to live in. Something a bit more robust and secure than a tent. The first vehicle that I discovered back in 2002 that met the criteria, was a Russian Gaz-66 from a site called 'Tanks For Sale'.</div>
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I also thought about adding a workshop in the form of a 4-wheel steer trailer:<br />
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There were a few drawbacks to these vehicles. Although they had that purposeful, rugged look I liked, they barely managed 15 mpg and a top speed of about 60 mph if you were lucky... and driving them was probably an experience in itself, since they only had the most basic of interior comforts. In fact, to even use the term 'comfort' in any description of these dinosaurs is potentially oxymoronic. In the past, a couple of my cars parked in a shared yard with my neighbours had just about scuffed acceptability, but at something in the order of 18 feet in length and around 8 feet in height, it wasn't going to be easy to hide the Gaz in a corner. I also considered 4x4 regular trucks and self-building my own back end accommodation... or failing that, getting a Jeep or Land Rover conversion - something smaller that would be easier to live with on a day to day basis and usable in Britain's, often cramped, villages and towns.</div>
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Through Pinterest and also learning that these vehicles actually had the name 'expedition vehicles', I discovered more of them. By now, I reckoned that a Unimog conversion (bottom right) would probably serve me best. It was big enough to carry accommodation but small enough to be driven unobtrusively anywhere on a daily basis.</div>
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However, reality struck again when I realised how expensive these vehicles were and also how sought after. I kept searching the Internet and in particular, eBay. I came up with a few possibilities, but they were either too expensive or didn't have the right back boxes for accommodation conversion. Since I had decided that four-wheel drive was my essential baseline, I decided to run new searches using that criteria. This narrowed things down a lot and certainly made searching faster. What started to show up were various variants of Volkswagen campers, Mazda Bongo's, Toyota's and Nissan's. It gradually dawned on me that I already knew a couple of people who owned Mazda Bongo's and I recalled how much they said they liked them. One suddenly appeared locally, so to cut the story short, I arranged a visit to view... and bought it.</div>
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In addition to some suggestions from the seller about fitting a water level alarm on the expansion tank, I did a bit of further research. The water level alarm turned out to be a popular addition, along with immobilizers and trackers. I also had the driver's side sill renewed, and although not essential for its remaining 11 months of MOT, I nevertheless decided it would be one less thing to bother with the following year. I also had the van looked over by my mechanics on a ramp and everything, apart from a slight weep on a front off-side shock absorber, was deemed fine. I had the flat, spare wheel tyre refitted by my tyre people for a tenner and did one or two other small jobs. However, for the first 3 weeks of ownership, other things took up my time and I wasn't actually able to go anywhere in the van. (I call it a van, since it is actually classed as an 8-seater multi-purpose vehicle or MPV. Apart from the raising roof tent, there is no camper conversion - see more on this below).</div>
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Another thing I discovered, was that Mazda Bongo's have quite a developing following and a growing network of advice, clubs, and spares. Originally privately imported from Japan, by individual's and not by commercial dealers, these vehicles have started to get the sort of status normally associated with VW Campers of the 60s and 70s. For a vehicle now 20 years old, mine seems in pretty good condition... and I have to add here, that the James Bond style (see 'The Spy Who Loved Me', Karl Stromberg's sea palace, 'Atlantis') electric window blinds are pretty neat too.</div>
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As someone who has camped under canvas and also had a few different caravan types in the past, I realised quite early on, you don't need much to survive quite comfortably. Seasoned caravaners would probably disagree with me, but I really can't see why a fitted kitchen with sink, a big cooker and big fridge, is really so necessary. All I need is a plastic washing-up bowl, a small suitcase gas cooker, and a 240VAC/12VDC portable cooler. Anything more, in a relatively small space, simply takes up room and adds weight. This is one reason why I like my Mazda being devoid of a full conversion. It preserves its utilitarian practicality whilst offering comfortable accommodation when required. So far, the only additions that I may invest in are a removable table and a side awning tent.</div>
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An inaugural visit to Filey, North Yorkshire (as it was forecast to have two hot, sunny days, together) went seamlessly, with the van performing well.</div>
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Experiments with interior layout and roof up or down suggested that for one person, you couldn't get much better. As someone with an interest in survival skills and associated equipment, I often find that I tend to take more than I actually need, let alone use. Sometimes, covering every eventuality isn't really necessary - particularly if one is within a short distance of modern-day population. With this in mind, I decided to make some notes of what I actually used and found useful, and what I could have done with, if I'd thought to bring it, or them, with me.</div>
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The first surprise, was how pleased I was that I had taken my computer laptop as well as a smart phone. This gave me access to all my usual activity, helped pass the later part of the evenings, and enabled me to email a few photos, in addition to anything uploaded by mobile. Since I was on a regular camp site (for this first test trip) I also had access to WiFi, albeit unsecured. Although I didn't manage to connect on the first evening, by the second day I'd sorted it. If I needed to log in to anything more important, I switched to my own secure data via a tether hot-spot to my phone.</div>
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The second surprise was how quick I could make toast - or at least I'd forgotten this from past usage. I have a little wire trapezoid toasting frame that lies across the gas burner. After slightly burning the first toast, in the time it took to reach into the van for my cup of tea, I realised it only took 12 seconds per side. Of all the gas appliances I have used, I have to say that these cheap little single burner stoves are excellent. You can get them from supermarkets for £10 and the gas cylinders last longer than you might expect.</div>
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Other things that I was grateful for included the cooler box, my shorts and sandals, some spring clips for gripping shut the van's end curtains, extra guy ropes to secure my windbreak, and my proper camera to capture anything of interest throughout the days.</div>
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What I missed most, was not having a female companion, or for that matter, anyone to talk to or share things with. Perhaps next time, I will try a wild camping trip - simply parking up somewhere remote. Eventually, I might even try venturing abroad... but ideally, not on my own.</div>
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<br />Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-898106767037004182015-10-19T22:43:00.004+01:002022-04-26T19:56:55.629+01:00National Arts Education Archive - the new Fahrenheit 451<b>Few of you may have heard of the NAEA - let alone have visited it! </b><br />
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Based in the grounds of the YSP (Yorkshire Sculpture Park) and an easy 2-minute walk from the lower car park towards the old Bretton Hall, the National Arts Education Archive '...was established in 1985 to provide a documentary trace of the development of arts education in the UK and worldwide, by collecting children’s and students' work and the papers, letters and work of key educators and artists in the visual arts, music and language. This material, comprising more than 100 catalogued collections, is based in the purpose-built Lawrence Batley Centre at YSP and is available to researchers, lecturers and the general public by appointment.'<br />
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I was working at Bretton Hall College as an audio-visual technician when Lawrence Batley visited to view the new archive in 1985. I was asked to take a photograph of the occasion and recall quite vividly that Lawrence had forgotten to bring a red rose for his buttonhole - and steadfastly refused to have his photo taken without one! Bizarrely, that very same morning, someone had left a bunch of red roses in the Media Centre sink, which I had earlier come across by accident, since that was my base at the time. As a result, I was permitted to take the required press photo (which still appeared in the 89 edition of the college prospectus).<br />
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At the time of writing, there is an exhibition running in the NAEA put together by Eileen Adams, (educator and writer, member of the Expert Group for Art and Design Education) and the archive team, led by Anna Bowman and Leonard Bartle.<br />
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On Saturday 17 October 2015, I attended '<b>(R)EVOLUTION: NAEA 30th Anniversary Celebration</b>' where talks were given by Eileen Adams, together with some of the founders of the NAEA initiative: Dr John Steers and Professor Ron George. Artist, Bob and Roberta Smith (one person), also gave a talk in support of his exhibition running in the YSP Bothy Garden Gallery spaces and around the parkland: '<b>Art For All</b>'.<br />
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For me, the event brought up feelings of both nostalgia and coming full-circle. My father, Keith Gentle, played an intrinsic and pivotal role in the Arts Education covered by this period of reflection, both through his work with the Schools Council [when living in Leicestershire] and from 1972 in his role as an Art Adviser for the West Riding, Yorkshire. It was during his time [as an Art Adviser], that he was instrumental in producing the 1978-79 exhibition and book, '<b>Learning Through Drawing</b>'. Over the years, he had also worked alongside some of those both on the podium in front of me and in the audience with me. Growing up in the 1960s and 70s, I recognised the ethos of the period now being discussed, having lived it first-hand. I too played my part in its evolution, both as a child who, with his two siblings, unwittingly contributed to the inspiration of his father's work and who later received a Fine Arts Degree in Sculpture from Sheffield City Polytechnic, before its satellite centre at Psalter lane (Sheffield College of Art) was closed down in August 2008 and, a couple of years later, demolished.<br />
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Between 1968 and 1975, we [the children] produced a variety of drawings and constructions, many of which were used as source material for my father's courses (many held at Woolley Hall when it was a centre for in-service training) - supporting school art teachers in their professional development. With emphasis on the creative process of child development, he [among other things] demonstrated the value of the direct experience of learning in a contextual environment. (Also see <a href="http://www.landofgobeyond.co.uk/" target="_blank">Land of Gobeyond</a> and <a href="http://www.elearningcentral.info/lightboxes/pechakucha.htm" target="_blank">slide show here</a>).<br />
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Since the beginning of the 1980s, successive political parties (though mostly the more right-wing ones) have denigrated the value of the arts in our British culture - first art & design and more latterly, music - and through adverse media reporting and political criticism, have produced a 'hit-list' of things to remove from the mainstream school curriculum by diminishing their importance to that of hobbies or extracurricular activities that must be paid for outside of the normal school day.<br />
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As I watched and listened to these [now elderly] presenters, I felt both the sorrow for something lost and the sense of urgency for something that must be preserved. These were people who had not only lived the experience of a free arts education, and met or worked alongside some of the most influential arts figures of our time, but who had also been instrumental in promoting the values of art and art teaching, perhaps not witnessed since the German Bauhaus movement of the early 1900s. <br />
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As I continued to listen, I was reminded of the book, Fahrenheit 451 - a dystopian novel by Ray Bradbury published in 1953. It really started to feel as if the current attitude of political policy makers towards the arts in education, was like a living version of the outlaw of books in the story; where exiled drifters each memorised books for a future time when society would once again be ready to rediscover them. Likewise, there are fewer of us now left who remember the quale experience and value of true education with thoughtful pedagogy, alongside academic rigour, and independent of any future commercial relevance. The NAEA is the modern-day exiled drifter, preserving our educational arts heritage.<br />
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<b>Information</b><br />
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The steering group includes YSP Executive Director Peter Murray CBE; YSP staff; former NAEA trustees Prof. Ron George and Dr. John Steers General Secretary NSEAD; Emma Hunt Dean of Arts, Huddersfield University; Emeritus Prof. Patsy Cullen York St. John University; and in the chair Dr. Helen Rees YSP trustee and Head of Museology, Manchester University.<br />
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NAEA Contact<br />
Leonard Bartle/Anna Bowman<br />
Tel: +44 (0)1924 830690<br />
leonard.bartle@ysp.co.uk<br />
anna.bowman@ysp.co.uk<br />
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<a href="http://www.ysp.co.uk/page/national-arts-education-archive/es" target="_blank">www.ysp.co.uk/page/national-arts-education-archive/es</a><span id="goog_1941672981"></span><span id="goog_1941672982"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><br />
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<br />Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-66930626275729385562015-05-18T09:16:00.006+01:002022-04-26T19:58:26.846+01:00Zen and the Art of Motor Vehicle Maintenance<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw4I_WOj2ARhNqt1EfCKdQojVCqLsaSGlGIayo__86vkOzcGOghMjQ6aaJLE9Eslza_RZAqrNS4XYS_tVhSskY0oJF3hLcPas-nQh-efOW17zv3m30hCfxhu6DSmrbZP7sP66T3gJuDFQ/s1600/Mini_Clubman_200.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw4I_WOj2ARhNqt1EfCKdQojVCqLsaSGlGIayo__86vkOzcGOghMjQ6aaJLE9Eslza_RZAqrNS4XYS_tVhSskY0oJF3hLcPas-nQh-efOW17zv3m30hCfxhu6DSmrbZP7sP66T3gJuDFQ/s1600/Mini_Clubman_200.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;">I'd passed my driving test at age 17 and at age 18 I took possession of my first car - an old Mini Clubman (not the one shown here) with hydrolastic suspension - a mixture of 49% alcohol, 49% distilled water, and 1% each of two other additives to put people off drinking it! It was admittedly a comfortable but [on an old car] useless system - always letting the ride down on one side. There were a number of quirks to get used to and on one occasion the oil pressure dropped and I was informed of a trick to prevent it happening again by a former rally mechanic. In the 70s rust was still a major issue for most cars in the UK and a South Yorkshire farmer and neighbour suggested I "coat the underside with old Indian oil". On further questioning, I realised he was actually saying, "old engine oil".</div>
<br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Fortunately, I had considerable mechanical aptitude as a child, so approaching automotive problems as a young man didn't faze me. I have always been happy to launch myself into disassembly, with little fear or doubt in my ability to reassemble. Having said this, when it came to cars, it was almost mandatory to acquire a Haynes Manual - just in case... but more on that later.</div>
<br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I could probably describe myself as a "creative improviser" - being able to see solutions beyond what seems apparent. When it comes to vehicles, part one is understanding what needs to happen for something to function. Part two is being able to see the potential in any available objects and resources that might be to hand - no matter what their originally intended use or how they appear. Part three is focus and experimentation to arrive at a viable solution. Most of the time, this is all that is required. However, there are times when solutions seem to be illusive. So part four is "asking the universe for help". Part five is surrendering control and opening up to inspired thought that may offer new ideas. I could probably go on with various "parts" to round things up to some magical number of implied significance, but really its a constant flowing interaction between rational thought and inspired action. Here's one example...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhouzXzjxxOD0cRENoxvRabDyxZOai-1MPHsIbvEKtx3rD3h6nb2Myb6Ikm8ejyA_mp-NrD3nwZ11iW4ZX0fK6ssuWgNOxYUp6XfBOno8BDv877uyyeHpGm4w-3RY92qjptPbl5axU0xs/s1600/rg_morris_minor.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhouzXzjxxOD0cRENoxvRabDyxZOai-1MPHsIbvEKtx3rD3h6nb2Myb6Ikm8ejyA_mp-NrD3nwZ11iW4ZX0fK6ssuWgNOxYUp6XfBOno8BDv877uyyeHpGm4w-3RY92qjptPbl5axU0xs/s1600/rg_morris_minor.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;">My second car was a black Morris Minor with red interior, a spoked steering wheel, pull start, and a cranking handle! Changing gear was getting progressively more difficult and the clutch pedal was almost to the floor. I jacked up the car and looked underneath. The linkage was visible and I could see that the side connected to the chassis runner had split through the side of its rusty metal location bush.</div>
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As I pressed the pedal with my foot, the linkage rod pivoted away instead of moving in a rotary motion. Rationally, I couldn't see how I could easily repair the problem. I didn't know if a new bush could be purchased, or even if I could remove the old one and refit a replacement. I relaxed<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoRJr7pi0gb7JaoQDidkhI3cnbtnagFiDlgAYimFEyQTuyDEkg1oCnYwBKsfW1ZCDaedmp-DKLlOj5d8M0skbDKt3xq__amCqU3XoWEfIYnkE2ZUYQotImW2kqSvO6QbQJGhOYVbq6P4/s1600/clutch03b.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoRJr7pi0gb7JaoQDidkhI3cnbtnagFiDlgAYimFEyQTuyDEkg1oCnYwBKsfW1ZCDaedmp-DKLlOj5d8M0skbDKt3xq__amCqU3XoWEfIYnkE2ZUYQotImW2kqSvO6QbQJGhOYVbq6P4/s1600/clutch03b.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;">my mind and surrendered to the futility that faced me. At that moment, it occurred to me that all I really needed to do, was keep the pivot rod in what remained of the existing bush. Suddenly, a solution presented itself. Get a piece of 2" x 1" wood and wedge it from the bush's broken side to the next available cross member of the chassis. Held in place with coat hanger wire, this improvised solution enabled me to once again change gear and was still working perfectly the day I sold the car.</div>
<br /><div style="text-align: justify;">It was around this time that I started to discover that Haynes Manual's rarely, if ever, had any instructions on how to repair most of the things that went wrong on my cars! It seemed that they were predominantly concerned with major engine and gearbox components - usually only accessed by qualified mechanics - or rarely going wrong in the first place. Instructions on removing the steering wheel horn switch on a Morris Minor, or locating any number of smaller electrical or mechanical components on a range of other cars, seemed to be omitted from Haynes' expertise. In fact, I can state quite categorically, that in my experience I have never found Haynes' Manuals to have the answers to the majority of my vehicle problems. Furthermore, the manuals do not discuss the difficulties likely to be encountered in relation to the removal of components that are covered in dirt or have nuts and screws welded into the body with rust. It appears that all Haynes' work has been done on new vehicles as they came out of the factory - nice and clean with no mileage. It's a shame really, that someone like Donald Shimoda (from Richard Bach's 'Illusions') couldn't have been on their team!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlT0-d31lPq-4_HOlAKNky5q7v-YlLWVJFeFcCVGq4rNFSTsyTjcqj1-BHs2GoTFQH8jO9cLUvS1QUj4x1Up4N9_XGCMMa9u8co7wWnEzEqki6ElrmMqDZpwzmatq9h2a8KCWFmi-0aEk/s1600/alfa02.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlT0-d31lPq-4_HOlAKNky5q7v-YlLWVJFeFcCVGq4rNFSTsyTjcqj1-BHs2GoTFQH8jO9cLUvS1QUj4x1Up4N9_XGCMMa9u8co7wWnEzEqki6ElrmMqDZpwzmatq9h2a8KCWFmi-0aEk/s1600/alfa02.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguJ-z8kTlcuVZj7ua_8Z24Q5QTdF_nzyiGGBRqPx9XX5WsLHGfjpV-16l9dsIN1UsvMG-0sCDFTkOKa0_RK5PD9OIJIcctj2muGL_iX7ilSsSseQtx8phWus8LyRMhSYfFfne17MN3a48/s1600/alfa01.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguJ-z8kTlcuVZj7ua_8Z24Q5QTdF_nzyiGGBRqPx9XX5WsLHGfjpV-16l9dsIN1UsvMG-0sCDFTkOKa0_RK5PD9OIJIcctj2muGL_iX7ilSsSseQtx8phWus8LyRMhSYfFfne17MN3a48/s320/alfa01.jpg" width="320" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;">As cars have become ever more complex in their reliance on gadgets and sensors, the new Haynes Manual is the Internet or more precisely, discussion forums and YouTube video clips. I have to say, most of my vehicular issues have been solved through this rich resource. Of course, the Internet is not infallible and there have been several occasions when no one has provided the solution to my enquiry. I suppose I should admit here, that I rarely, if ever, drive cars of the masses - preferring instead what I consider to be either more exciting, interesting, or versatile, purposeful vehicles. These have included four Alfa Romeo sports cars, a Range Rover, and four Jeeps.</div>
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In addition to the cars mentioned here, I've probably owned about 30 others over the years - some of them more 'normal'. Cars have always been an interest - perhaps even a hobby. They have also created as much stress in my life as they have enjoyment!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwY_E2vC2E8jzoii8c259aEEWktke_VUxLykZNqKGi1sd051-aDiJrHm0yChYvKXgjt1myemfv5XsqzVxKzUMAsjdY64k17ngjwuR2fHRLfkEKbcG6rPa-ckVzOPWHfjoE-gqP3NpVFBU/s1600/jeep4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwY_E2vC2E8jzoii8c259aEEWktke_VUxLykZNqKGi1sd051-aDiJrHm0yChYvKXgjt1myemfv5XsqzVxKzUMAsjdY64k17ngjwuR2fHRLfkEKbcG6rPa-ckVzOPWHfjoE-gqP3NpVFBU/s1600/jeep4.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;">So here I was with Jeep number 4, trying to get the rear wiper's wash jet to work again. Without an assistant to work the controls, it wasn't easy to see or hear if the small pump motor in the engine bay was working properly above the noise from passing traffic on the nearby road. There was plenty of water in the bottle and I had already tried poking a pin into the water jet without any result. I decided I would have to remove the water bottle and also the rear jet assembly, in order to blow down the linking pipe. I used a little syphon pump I'd previously bought and emptied the screen wash into a bucket to return later. Initially it seemed that I also needed to remove the back door trim panel, but having done this, I quickly realised the water jet wasn't accessible from there! I then did an Internet and YouTube search to see if anyone knew how to get the jet out of the door frame. I guessed that it was probably prized out, but if possible I wanted to check before accidentally breaking something. With so many different model variants of the same vehicles these days, finding a matching example is often a further challenge. Someone mentioned prizing the jet out of another model, but all other posts focused on issues with general blockages or failed pump motors. Anyway, I decided carefully prizing was probably right and soon I had the part removed.</div>
<br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I tried to blow down the pipe from both ends - first from the front of the car and then from the back. The pipe seemed well and truly blocked. I had a garden hose so instead, used gaffer tape to secure the adjustable hose jet attachment in line with the tube now sticking out of the top of the tailgate. Pressured water sprayed everywhere but nothing arrived at the front. It then occurred to me that there might be a one-way valve somewhere, to stop water travelling back down to the water bottle after the jet had been used. This might explain why water pressure sent from the back did nothing. I didn't bother trying it from the front as I didn't want to soak the engine compartment. I decided there was nothing else left that I could try. Perhaps I'd have to put up with no rear washer. If I was a garage, I'd blast it with an air hose.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEpwNZIXMPlDw-Rqr7FOIbGHFYyUx-E90zS7l6UmJFo2C8Ce44tzJWORpi-A2dRi43mnzhuENfaYXPwMQHtBXkhbVL_MFu3QoATC76TcUHcZM6qzrkUcWet4-8ka5LnsLaiw8SDTnv-OI/s1600/pump.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEpwNZIXMPlDw-Rqr7FOIbGHFYyUx-E90zS7l6UmJFo2C8Ce44tzJWORpi-A2dRi43mnzhuENfaYXPwMQHtBXkhbVL_MFu3QoATC76TcUHcZM6qzrkUcWet4-8ka5LnsLaiw8SDTnv-OI/s1600/pump.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;">Suddenly, I remembered one of the accessories that had come with the syphon kit. It was a little tyre valve clip - the sort you have on tyre foot pumps to fix the hose on the valve. It had a small pipe coming off it, but I couldn't see anything else in the kit that could be attached. Still in a semi-surrender mode, I suddenly received an inspired thought. I had the components to make my own air compressor! Perhaps I could get a spare wheel and rest it on the roof and take a short line from the wheel to the washer tube. Then I remembered that a few years previously, I had bought a length of fine tube from a garden centre's aquarium shop, thinking that I would use this on my last Jeep to add some extra winter-proof water jets. In the end I didn't bother, but I'd been looking for something else a few days previously and had come across the tubing in a drawer - so I knew where it was. I also remembered buying some tube-linking connectors and realised that it might be possible to use one of these at the other end to link the thin tubing to the car's screen wash tubing. I didn't need another wheel - the tube I had was long enough to go from any wheel on the car.</div>
<br /><div style="text-align: justify;">With everything set up to blow air from the front to the back, I clipped the pipe to the car's rear tyre valve and sent a strong jet of air through the pipe. The rear end of the tube spluttered and air was definitely getting through. After switching the tube from front to back a few times, I was getting a consistent splutter of air and water exiting the pipe. However, it still seemed that the pipe was blocked and I doubted that the washer jet would work properly again.</div>
<br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I decided to reassemble everything and call it a day. I refilled the water bottle and tried the rear washer from its switch. To my amazement, a good spray of water covered the rear window. Somehow, everything had worked out okay after all.</div>
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<br />Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-55006534636148370222015-02-24T13:37:00.003+00:002022-04-26T19:59:31.472+01:00The Last Adventure of Humanity<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNaOLuIg_ue223RWYX2ACQS8BNUL52X8gOlKFEvy0PQa02_Y71hEVqFUl519oGPgeHiGlU9DA7Br6QaHpm8NE7w5psrXb8uPCC-kUoErvv2d0b7LO3eHd0lxkDq7qzMBOzOWQETbHBvd0/s1600/The+Last+Adventure.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNaOLuIg_ue223RWYX2ACQS8BNUL52X8gOlKFEvy0PQa02_Y71hEVqFUl519oGPgeHiGlU9DA7Br6QaHpm8NE7w5psrXb8uPCC-kUoErvv2d0b7LO3eHd0lxkDq7qzMBOzOWQETbHBvd0/s1600/The+Last+Adventure.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I spend a lot of time alone - you should try it sometime. Whilst most of us chase around to meet the stressful targets of our 'spreadsheet living' (a term I coined in 2004), some of us reside in stillness and contemplation - questioning those things that others accept as fact. Not joining in with the frenetic and oft enforced frivolity of a cultural media, keen to exploit our inadequacies for not attending the party, some of us now reside on the side lines, living a vicarious lifestyle, watching the passenger express passing us at speed en route to oblivion. People are now so busy 'doing' that they are no longer 'being'.</div>
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Like the screaming kid who shouts, "It's not fair!", at the parent doing his or her own 'best' to cope with a situation of no definition in a new shared experience, it seems we set ourselves up for failure because of a need to get everything right first time. Children are permitted to make mistakes - adults are not. And yet, while we continue to deal with the issues of our shared physical reality, few of us question the absurdity of the situations we become involved with, or notice how they multiply like a swarm of wasps whose nest is stirred by a well-placed stick!</div>
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The computer revolution that was intended to make our lives easier and more efficient, has gone the same way as nuclear power to make our energy cheaper. Someone always sees the potential to profiteer from any situation, whether it be to sell more or to produce more. With an increasing population comes increasing accountability, together with additional controls to prevent radical thought and action, not in keeping with society's contrived and often distorted values. More of us are now involved in tracking and documenting other people's lives than we are in living our own! Bureaucracy has to now come before any decision to engage with anything. A mental risk assessment is mandatory before leaving the house, and taking on just that bit more gives us kudos among our peers but more stress on our health.</div>
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So I decided something had to change. Not necessarily that my experienced version of the world had to change, but that I had to change. The choice was stark: Join in with the rest, or step out of the field.</div>
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Having decided I couldn't join in whole-heartedly, I then had to decide how I was going to live my own truth. It's one thing to say you've had enough of what everyone else is doing, but quite another to buck against the trend with inner conviction. For over 30 years, I had explored what might be termed, the more spiritual and metaphysical side of life. This exploration began with a feeling of disquiet around conventional viewpoints, progressed through reading the works of eastern Gurus, and ended up following the advice of channelled off-world 'entities'.</div>
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The basic assertion goes something like this:</div>
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<li>The world as you perceive it is not real; it is illusory</li>
<li>Linear time does not exist - there is only one spacious present</li>
<li>The individual creates his or her own reality - in every moment of 'now'</li>
<li>Physical experience is feedback to your own inner output</li>
<li>Your beliefs about reality are only beliefs - not facts</li>
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So that's clear then! The funny thing is, that intellectually, it is very clear to many. The difficulty is knowing it and living it, rather than believing it might be a vague possibility. The problem at a personal level is that if I slap the top of the table with my hand, it slaps me back with equal force... and yet science can view my table through a powerful electron microscope and inform me that nothing is solid and everything is in constant motion. So if nothing is solid, why can't I push my hand through the table? I have answers to this but, not wishing to take up more space here, I will move on.</div>
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In 2011, I gave a talk to a select group of scientists and researchers in Barcelona entitled, 'Quantum Mass Superstructures' and the following year I published a book on the subject with the added strap line: creating the world you experience. In it I present a case for conscious action on the quantum field, resulting in that well-used cliché, 'thoughts become things'.</div>
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"We all create our physical world from our inner projections"</div>
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Perhaps by now, you are wondering, "what is this 'last adventure of humanity' all about?" Simply put, it is the realisation that we all create our physical world from our inner projections and our last stage of evolution is to develop a working understanding of co-creating our physical experience. This means that more of us have to fully understand that if we focus on our fears and multiply them through sharing with others, we continue to create a physical environment that becomes less and less, the world we wish to experience. The last adventure is an integral one to our progression; for individuals, and cultures. It is about taking more control over our thoughts and full responsibility over our actions and experiences. Almost exclusively, putting into our imagination the world we wish to experience - not dwelling on the world we do not want or have. Contrast undoubtedly helps focus our attention between what is happening and whether or not we want to perpetuate or change it.</div>
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You might think that this is easy, but I assure you, it takes practice. Most of us are caught in habitual behaviour - rarely taking the time out to consider our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Those of us who think we are 'mindful' will quickly slip into conversation that shows we are not. We might decide not to involve ourselves in the judgement of others and in the next breath agree with our friend that all Politicians are tyrants; that big multinational businesses are reaping the world of its resources; that divisions between rich and poor are becoming wider, and so on. None of this is necessarily true. If you perceive this as such, then you have created it to experience it in your version of physical reality. You have even created those who will agree or disagree with your viewpoint.</div>
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So you agree with my comments and you start your personal adventure into inner focus. At least you start. However, it's not long before you give up. It's too hard. You aren't seeing quick results. Be honest... the physical world is definitely here and solid. Let's just go back to our work routine, pay the mortgage and plan our retirement. Opting out of what we know and are comfortable with - because we are used to its familiarity - is too much of a risk outside of our comfort zone. We all know that a worthwhile and fulfilling life is about having enough to pay our bills, meet our needs, and go on holiday... or have a few jars down the pub with our mates - putting the world to right - watching a bit of sport or the soaps on TV... It's just luck and favourable circumstances that the wealthy in the world enjoy a charmed existence... something we are told we can aspire to if we follow some rules, but few believe they can reach.</div>
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The real adventure to change our circumstances begins within ourselves. It takes courage and, to begin with, perhaps it's easier to 'play at it' like a child in a make-believe world without limitations - something we adults are encouraged to turn our backs on. We must all raise our personal vibratory output and we can start this by feeling good about something - anything! If you really want to join this adventure and change your life's experience, you can find out more here: <a href="http://www.richardgentle.com/" target="_blank">http://www.richardgentle.com</a></div>
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<a href="http:/#top" target="_blank">Top</a>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-54846431089684631892015-02-11T17:35:00.003+00:002022-04-26T20:00:49.227+01:00Beyond the Spiritual Fringe<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When one used to mention “spirituality” to most people,
the usual things that came to mind were beardy old gurus from the East or “flower-power
Hippies” from the West. Of course, it’s not really as clear-cut as that and
there are now many things that define spiritual proclivities. Often separated
from the conventions of spirituality, as it relates to formalised religion, we
have a plethora of subjects from Astrology and Numerology to Dowsing and Angel
Cards and techniques from Meditation to Energy Healing – not to mention
zillions of books, multimedia offerings, courses, workshops – and everything
imaginable in between! What began as an honest search for meaning and truth
has, over recent years, become a somewhat confused message of commercial marketing
for abundance acquisition, led by a handful of now famous and often unreachable
pundits – mostly American, who have been bestowed with the honour of ‘expert in
the field’ and examples of rags-to-riches through Law of Attraction practices.
These individuals now hide behind marketing and publicity teams who manage social
media profiles on their behalf and charge enormous amounts of [usually] Dollars
to make stage appearances or share their wisdom with select paying audiences.
We are told that we too can be like these people – if we pay out first and
learn second. <o:p></o:p><br />
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<i>What began as an honest search for meaning and truth has, over recent years, become a somewhat confused message of commercial marketing for abundance acquisition...</i></h3>
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Despite what we may be led to believe, there are no
assurances and no ‘quick-fixes’. In fact, some of these new ‘masters’ have had
quite a tough ride to their life of apparent ease, or they have developed a
particular set of personality skills that most people do not naturally have at
their immediate disposal. Indeed, Reid Tracey (Hay House Publishing) has a
favourite saying: “It takes ten years to become an overnight success.” This
helps us to understand that when a new celebrity seems to appear from nowhere,
it has probably taken quite a lot of background experience and preparation to
reach the point of recognition.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unfortunately, many of these ‘new gurus’, who undoubtedly
set out with good intention to share their wonderful discoveries with other,
‘less fortunate’ souls, have become so popular among a sycophantic, celebrity
obsessed public, that they have had to employ others to lighten their workloads.
Perhaps they are unaware of the pernicious marketing and avaricious marketeers who
now profess to act on their behalf, but instead open their masters and
mistresses to pillory. Success for a majority in our western society seems to
equate to monetary wealth and stability. The opening gambit of many spiritual
teachers seems to be along the lines of: “I spent two years sleeping on park
benches and last year turned over $6,000,000!”<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b><i>“I spent two years sleeping on park benches </i></b><b><i>and last year turned over $6,000,000!”</i></b></h3>
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Personally, I cannot recall
someone ever saying: “I was leading a fairly routine and ordinary life, just
getting by, but now I am filled with joy every day and easily attract all that
I want in life.” Furthermore, the marketing videos, with their hidden controls
so you cannot advance or see how much time is left, will go on and on for
thirty minutes or so, about how wonderful something is, without actually
telling you what “it” is! And right at the end, you too can have this
marvellous opportunity for only four monthly payments of 295 Dollars… and if
you give us your name and email [so we can bombard you with other products
every week for eternity] you can download instantly, a free
‘get-it-now-for-nothing’ workbook!</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2bqGXk2F4tf0zvgNTCjS-7sh_voP9VyvBU6b_HAsHYGCQGKcfyTPbI-NsZw8_-sq816vpGXR3Qo7kvuSfibQh2FjG9Wg8JATEM084N2mKBLP5ZXa2YLktuWk_4HblGW5zNNdz-aXzr_Q/s1600/Richard+Gentle+-+Quote+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="It’s not that anything is particularly new, but more that it is being shared in a way that westerners, particularly, can engage with it." border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2bqGXk2F4tf0zvgNTCjS-7sh_voP9VyvBU6b_HAsHYGCQGKcfyTPbI-NsZw8_-sq816vpGXR3Qo7kvuSfibQh2FjG9Wg8JATEM084N2mKBLP5ZXa2YLktuWk_4HblGW5zNNdz-aXzr_Q/s1600/Richard+Gentle+-+Quote+2.jpg" title="" width="320" /></a></div>
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Of course, it’s not all as negative as portrayed above and
one thing that these people and their exploits offer is a gateway to
spirituality for those who wish to dip their toe in something deeper than the
tepid waters of intellectual understanding. With the added assistance of a
number of “channelled entities” (‘beings of non-physical form’) contemporary
understanding of the nature of our universe, and the reality of people within
it, has taken a refreshing and exciting direction. It’s not that anything is
particularly new, but more that it is being shared in a way that westerners,
particularly, can engage with it. We have moved from East-West cultural
disparity and cryptic parables to multicultural awareness and a plainer, more
relevant contemporary language for our 21st Century mysticism. Perhaps we can
finally reach the promised land of new conscious understanding, abundance, and the
joyfulness we have always yearned for… Well, not quite. We now have to become
expert sifters – deciding which information is right for us as individuals. We
have to actively choose what we wish to focus our attention on; to stop acting
by default in a world of ‘the way it is’ and change to a world of ‘the way we
want it’.<br />
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<h3>
<i>We have to actively choose what we wish to focus our attention on; to stop acting by default in a world of ‘the way it is’ and change to a world of ‘the way we want it’</i></h3>
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And now you begin to see our dilemma. We live in a world
we have become used to and we reinforce what we experience from what we have
already produced. We surround ourselves with negative news and expectations –
constantly looking out for the things we fear most. Whether it is illness,
violence, or poverty, we cannot turn away. Like the proverbial rabbits caught
in headlights, we freeze to the spot as our destiny hurtles towards us – not
realising that we can make a new decision to move at any moment of our
choosing. Our society battles, fights, and wages war over everything. We turn
the most mundane into magnificent drama. The person who was not run over was
“very nearly killed!” – Only no one died. No one was even touched. A tragedy of
apocalyptic consequences was fortunately averted. And so we search out the next
potential disaster for our salivating audience to boost our ratings.</div>
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Mother Teresa said she would “…not attend an anti-war
rally.” Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see.” They both knew that
holding the vibration of war or retribution was only going to perpetuate, or
further attract, the very conditions that were not wanted. They knew that it
was far more powerful to focus on a new desired outcome, than it was to push
against an already established opposite.<o:p></o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdku7pZnqfgV6dn0yEPrEkUsNmC8xYbE1nRFX1H0DSJZacLocdWIdHLmKpJ1DBGW7itBfUbUCzH4EZpE7qGZdahgcYLQmEAY58rSpzp8g4NzJPq7oQRP9LmI4JFk3wNhuE7q1FiM2jjU/s1600/Teresa+and+Gandhi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi" border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdku7pZnqfgV6dn0yEPrEkUsNmC8xYbE1nRFX1H0DSJZacLocdWIdHLmKpJ1DBGW7itBfUbUCzH4EZpE7qGZdahgcYLQmEAY58rSpzp8g4NzJPq7oQRP9LmI4JFk3wNhuE7q1FiM2jjU/s1600/Teresa+and+Gandhi.jpg" title="" width="320" /></a></div>
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And yet, even in reading that last paragraph, the
majority of you, whilst nodding in agreement, will pass it by and never
consider the implications of truly living in that way; taking personal and full
responsibility for everything that you experience or that happens in your life.
Can you imagine for instance, not making a judgement against something or
someone you disagree with? Could you be at the receiving end of a difficult
situation and say “I love you” – no matter what the next minutes, hours, days,
or weeks may continue to bring? The default position for most is to rail
against injustice and to promise vengeance against the perpetrators of negative
expression – spurred on by those around us who look towards our democratic fair
play as the best solution. Rather than trying to constantly control people in
our society, by adding rules, regulations and accountability assessments,
perhaps we would be better promoting the natural universal laws of attraction
and trusting individuals to find their own paths – whether through sexuality,
drugs, rock & roll, or something completely different. Right and wrong are
human constructs of control to help some people feel better about things they
find difficult to accept in their own make-up. Right and wrong are not a true feature
of the universe, any more than linear time is. It is more about contrast and
having a sense of time to decide and experience our choices.</div>
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So by all means, stay on the fringe of spirituality,
playing with the illusion of understanding through buying into all sorts of
diversionary tactics available through ‘mainstream’ offerings, but be aware
that to experience real changes in your life, you must work on how you think
and react to the emotions that arise within you, when faced with the feedback
from the world you have created up to this point. You do not need money for
this. You do not need to buy anything; just practice being mindful of your
thoughts, feelings and reactions. Practice moving your focus more towards the
things you would like and halt the spiral of anxiety that delivers the things
you cannot control. For some of you, this will be the hardest work you have ever
been asked to undertake. For others, it will be a joyful release and expansion
into new possibilities. For all of you, this practice will show positive
results – and often much faster than you might imagine.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-23489467807176172152014-11-30T20:51:00.001+00:002022-04-26T20:01:27.816+01:00The Turbulence Between Changing Worlds<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">For most people on Planet Earth, physical reality, linear time, and the messages of media and rational science, are all anyone should need to live a good and worthwhile life. However, there are a growing number of people who feel that this is not the way things really are and that the illusion of reality, although very convincing, is not the only experience we have access to.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Although I have researched and explored what some might call 'the spiritual alternatives' to mainstream living for most of my life, it has only been recently that I have really started to 'walk my talk', so-to-speak. This isn't to say that I wasn't following values personal to me before this time, just that my understanding has now deepened.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The start of the spiritual journey tends to follow this pattern:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Something sounds interesting - let me take a look - let me try it... while I'm still doing what I usually do.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The next stage is to develop an intellectual understanding. You know it makes sense but you have difficulty proving it in your own life. The problem is you lack the necessary faith to progress - what if you are wrong about what you think you know?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwCDf1Lz4zTp_YkA19gEq_XQXNqxcJOsaCSGR41Mnd0l1FAU_EBrdPYNG80fhc7xg9XeiXeLz2cI8IT2ciuYxWVFjyEPLdo6Iyx4eCg1V09MGv5DHtebCyimdZY-pHToiaVuoKpdTAT7w/s1600/faith2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwCDf1Lz4zTp_YkA19gEq_XQXNqxcJOsaCSGR41Mnd0l1FAU_EBrdPYNG80fhc7xg9XeiXeLz2cI8IT2ciuYxWVFjyEPLdo6Iyx4eCg1V09MGv5DHtebCyimdZY-pHToiaVuoKpdTAT7w/s1600/faith2.jpg" height="241" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Taking the leap of faith requires moving out of your usual 'comfort zones'. It also requires that you do this whole-heartedly. The problem we create for our selves is that the overwhelming evidence showing up in our regular physical experience convinces us that our new spiritual course of action is misguided and not to be completely trusted. As the saying goes:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"Trust in Allah, but tie your Camel."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What most people are missing at this stage, is a recognition of the part they play in creating the reality they experience; taking 100% responsibility for all personal thought, emotion, and action. To help you to understand this, consider too that the physical world you experience is like a hard-light reflection of all that you project out from within your being. Put another way, what you experience in your physical life is only feedback from your conscious creating. Once you begin to accept this willingly, you become more mindful, both of what you think and what you express - to your self and to others.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At this point, you may have let go of the fence and suddenly found yourself standing on the other side of where you were before. However, it is still within reach and offers the possibility of climbing back. On the other hand, i</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">f you continue to travel further from the security and familiarity of the fence, you start to feel like this:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuoJWUGMuBPB9MM6UxcCiOk1aQ4nEqufKZJ0cW5P-j1CliKwksT8k7g6Cxixez6dsfMVK7Ug22JdJAe3o5q49KK5reHCpyPwThl697klZFeKZoP_nJAYjOP1gAu0mAsyaggRU7J9rouio/s1600/boat02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuoJWUGMuBPB9MM6UxcCiOk1aQ4nEqufKZJ0cW5P-j1CliKwksT8k7g6Cxixez6dsfMVK7Ug22JdJAe3o5q49KK5reHCpyPwThl697klZFeKZoP_nJAYjOP1gAu0mAsyaggRU7J9rouio/s1600/boat02.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A few months after having that feeling, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lynda.mail?fref=ts" target="_blank">Lynda</a> posted a Seth quote which I have added to a visual scene:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9PaMwMyLTncFxbx1z2xt8pg2d3g6iXtHF_grMHrTPDepuE909ALSiYskdkIRQHb5g78ytLYiTkHnqAjaAC_eLqONDvp_u-6gLIVGuA4J1ioS-BHMyO9L_KtvEHPJcBMuBWK1a53O9JKI/s1600/valley03b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9PaMwMyLTncFxbx1z2xt8pg2d3g6iXtHF_grMHrTPDepuE909ALSiYskdkIRQHb5g78ytLYiTkHnqAjaAC_eLqONDvp_u-6gLIVGuA4J1ioS-BHMyO9L_KtvEHPJcBMuBWK1a53O9JKI/s1600/valley03b.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I also noticed that a few of my friends were experiencing varying degrees of the same realisation - that they also were no longer in their old familiar places, yet had not reached the places they wanted to experience! This got me thinking about the transition from one state of being to another. As you leave the world you know, and enter unfamiliar territory, you pass through what I describe as 'turbulence' - where aspects of each world 'interferes' in the present. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">However, you must now keep going, despite some noticeable features of this part of your journey. These can include losing old friends and gaining new ones; various disruptions in finances and living arrangements; feelings of loss and depression as well as relief and enthusiasm.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-38347764069589152732014-06-28T15:09:00.003+01:002022-04-26T20:03:08.267+01:00Joe Vitale - Genuine 'Good Egg' or Opportunistic Materialist?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A little while ago, I received a connection request through my LinkedIn site from Joe Vitale:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfPSoFsiwGaMZuyRYlwPnMcnqF18n3m7_1CrfkxUsuJOvLfVD2t-Q1xDlDC8KbLCO01K-rt_JwCae-B1BhaJuS2PED7-_ZiFCvw8EDB7SFz4ioz4qIOP4XXKnFhbWvWBxJvKhC7KLjY4/s1600/Joe+Vitale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfPSoFsiwGaMZuyRYlwPnMcnqF18n3m7_1CrfkxUsuJOvLfVD2t-Q1xDlDC8KbLCO01K-rt_JwCae-B1BhaJuS2PED7-_ZiFCvw8EDB7SFz4ioz4qIOP4XXKnFhbWvWBxJvKhC7KLjY4/s1600/Joe+Vitale.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"Hi Richard, </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I saw that we are both members of Mastering the Law of Attraction. I viewed your profile and based on your expertise and experience feel you would make a great connection and that we could really benefit each other. Would you mind connecting? </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Thank you!"</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had previously attempted to contact Joe through his website, but received no reply. So, after a few months had passed, it seemed like a nice surprise to receive Joe's contact request. I responded with a personal (and slightly longer reply than I normally give) outlining my own background and time spent also studying the law of attraction. I took the opportunity to mention that I also write books, but could benefit from reaching a larger audience. I never asked Joe for anything, but thought perhaps he might show interest and offer a few personal insights or suggestions that might assist me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first time I came across Joe, was in the DVD, 'The Secret'. However, he also wrote a very well known book called 'Zero Limits' - of which I discovered I had a copy. It's an excellent book and introduces another practice I use called, Ho'oponopono (Dr Hew Len).<br /><br />Joe, like many celebrities, has started using social media to extend his market reach, beyond his own personal website. However, like many who become famous in their fields, Joe is now quite detached from newcomers to his work, in the sense that he doesn't appear to answer any new contacts personally. Instead, I'm guessing that he has people who manage this for him. On the one hand, it is perfectly understandable, since to respond to a huge following personally is perhaps an unfair expectation. However, the marketing department only wants to promote Joe's work to gain further sales - resulting in any possibility of personalization being impossible! Now, I wouldn't mind if a third party individual from a team read my reply and responded with relevance, but I do object to receiving this:<br /><br /><i><span style="color: #999999;">"Thank you so much for connecting with me! </span></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>As a special token of our new connection, please accept my free guide to visualization, and after you accept that, my powerful video about attracting what you truly desire. In life!"</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />In other words, this response has no bearing or relevance to the content of my reply to his first message - thinking that perhaps Joe himself had made the initial request to connect - and instead, I receive a rather cynical and overt plug to receive information I do not require. Not only that, but if I did wish to accept his offer, I would have to do something which absolutely all people in the law of attraction, self-help, personal development, and publishing fields now do: provide my name and an email address.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Everyone (including myself to a lesser degree) has realised that building 'targeted' email lists to notify potential customers of new products is essential to business expansion. My problem with this is that emails are then received on a weekly (and even sometimes daily) basis. The marketing machine goes into full swing and you receive these annoying mailings forever after! What's more, the emails received are often plugging the same product for weeks and even months on end; it's like water torture! The hope is that the subliminal message of needing the product will sink in and eventually you will be ready to press the 'buy' button. Repetition creating reaction. (Because of my own feelings about receiving 'junk mail', I make a promise to only send occasional emails - and I mean very occasional - perhaps only 3 or 4 a year. I also keep my email list private and do not pass, or sell, details to others).<br /><br />So, in summary, it seems that Joe has people who are acting on his behalf. The question I would ask is, does Joe know that his representatives are impersonating him on LinkedIn?<br /><br />Of course, if I have all this wrong, I'd welcome Joe's response to put me right and the opportunity to apologise for doubting his authenticity. In the meantime, I will ask of myself, Dr Hew Len's favourite question: What is it within me that attracted this experience?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On 25 September 2014, Joe invited people to join his "live event" podcast to promote his new Abundance Project. Initially, it was thought that Joe would actually be "live" and answer questions through a text box system. However, it soon became apparent that Joe was delivering his information via a pre-recorded video while a media accomplice was replying to questions - the only live component.<br /><br />I stuck with the event and it was fair to say that Joe delivered information and a few techniques that were fine and would help a few people. If the event had then ended after its hour, most of this would have been fine. However, Joe suddenly went full force into his sales pitch. Okay, it's fair enough to mention a few options for buying into a few things. However, Joe was like an over-energised kid with ADHD, shamelessly going on and on about purchasing his product - for almost another hour without drawing breath! And if that wasn't hard enough to endure, it became clear that even after 40 minutes, people weren't sure if he was offering something for free or expecting deferred payment by instalments.<br /><br />Like many well known spiritual "teachers" in the last 10 years, several have become consumed by mainstream corporate greed - or at least now come across in this way. It's a shame that their initial good intentions to be of help and service to others have turned into a 'cash-cow' that is allowed to be manipulated by third-party organisations.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Personally, I don't care how much monetary wealth these individuals accrue, but I do feel a little more grace could go with it. Joe isn't the only one. Neale Donald Walsch has also succumbed to commercial pressure to keep on turning out and producing more sales for his publishers and product producers. There are others too. All these people came up through genuinely hard times and have 'made it big'. They all have very genuine and moving stories to tell. Some of their work has positively affected the lives of millions. But when the focus moves from caring spiritual help to ways of making increasingly large sums of money - let's face it, from those who can least afford to pay - then they are no longer helping. I would much rather have seen Joe say at the end of his session: <br /><br />"This course is usually sold at $296 but I'm going to give it to you free - period. I would only ask, that if your situation in life improves, that when you are able to do so, you send me a donation somewhere in the region of this cost - and I trust that not only will my course benefit you, but that you will also honour this when you have the money to be able to with ease."<br /><br />People who are prepared to 'put their money where their mouth is' and 'walk their talk' will receive much more than the fees they are charging. Let's see so real faith in the universe - not artificially manufactured. It reminds me of an old wise-saying:<br /><br />"Trust in Allah, but tie your Camel."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The universe does not do things by half. It has to be all or nothing where trust and faith is concerned!</span>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-69286705653883556902014-06-08T10:22:00.001+01:002022-04-26T20:03:59.290+01:00Ai Weiwei<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A rather nice tree recently appeared at the YSP. Made of rusting iron, cast from pieces of actual trees, it is the work of a Chinese artist. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ai_Weiwei" target="_blank">Ai Weiwei</a> (<i>pronounced I way way</i>) was born in Beijing in 1957, spent time in New York from 1981 and returned to China in 1993. Like many eastern artists who openly express any dissenting opinion about their political leaders and their records on human rights, Ai has had "trumped-up charges" brought against him in a clumsy attempt to silence his views and limit his influence. As a result, he is currently prevented from travelling internationally.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnS_fmN3HHmaeVWOSoN7-kAiqLkYsHloJkeNuZvRRfUThUfspOeeE5FVf3RBBWXcnjVLRgPUJSTtdtu5epDmhntWArQf34VnUzLhRlOemYKvctvp3fGDbMbn8gFpSd7DRJiZkXCWhq0g/s1600/tree01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnS_fmN3HHmaeVWOSoN7-kAiqLkYsHloJkeNuZvRRfUThUfspOeeE5FVf3RBBWXcnjVLRgPUJSTtdtu5epDmhntWArQf34VnUzLhRlOemYKvctvp3fGDbMbn8gFpSd7DRJiZkXCWhq0g/s1600/tree01.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The tree is located in the grounds of the recently restored Chapel and provides an additional feeling of Zen serenity when entering through the Chapel's wrought iron gateway. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkacYnKsvuNFxe3vrAKtA0nqEoxZV8PyNO6TExtxJk7r9gjsUjiPO_vkmdfZxoxj__uxlwqUizrqreEcZ-6QzKbCRjcaCylo9PMTBlpo-oMmXfTeVSoznYJPviWJEbHIz-mMW-oA8ky88/s1600/ysp_chapel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkacYnKsvuNFxe3vrAKtA0nqEoxZV8PyNO6TExtxJk7r9gjsUjiPO_vkmdfZxoxj__uxlwqUizrqreEcZ-6QzKbCRjcaCylo9PMTBlpo-oMmXfTeVSoznYJPviWJEbHIz-mMW-oA8ky88/s1600/ysp_chapel.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Chapel itself had become very rundown over the years and inside it was quite dark and a bit poky. Now it has been carefully restored and affords a bright but calm exhibition space.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Interested to see if the rear of the Chapel had been left unmolested, I was pleased to see that it was still intact. This area displays some of the names of the original residents of Bretton Hall, carved in marble slabs, along the Chapel wall.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikmWGK19uhtCViv7vJM96zserKgxe_6nnwhku1T1IjZdo1Pjl9Mtqs6uCEftyXwus7h5pQQ4ysIPjYh-UovCiXfNOEMMwp4phzGUgowEA0a4GUSfSMIU747EmZAjvVGi66CaIl3A44sw4/s1600/ysp_chapel02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikmWGK19uhtCViv7vJM96zserKgxe_6nnwhku1T1IjZdo1Pjl9Mtqs6uCEftyXwus7h5pQQ4ysIPjYh-UovCiXfNOEMMwp4phzGUgowEA0a4GUSfSMIU747EmZAjvVGi66CaIl3A44sw4/s1600/ysp_chapel02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Inside the Chapel, photography is not permitted of exhibitions and therefore I must resort to scanning an image from the YSP's June 2014 Summer Update Issue 10.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymytEFuaWIdM2bv9DuzzQ-W2drXv8bsqYIoZb-VFvVfrAHqvn1bEptmxFf2lW8yDQB1hDZOfuquhUVqfzI_VCF32UJxqlWDhn7ZcN0Gnp6VXZGNO7jK7ngLZmE7XFRBcSMD2GwMi-Zac/s1600/45chairs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymytEFuaWIdM2bv9DuzzQ-W2drXv8bsqYIoZb-VFvVfrAHqvn1bEptmxFf2lW8yDQB1hDZOfuquhUVqfzI_VCF32UJxqlWDhn7ZcN0Gnp6VXZGNO7jK7ngLZmE7XFRBcSMD2GwMi-Zac/s1600/45chairs.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">These are 45 of Ai's 'Fairytale-1001 Chairs', described as "inviting audiences to consider freedom and sanctuary in an environment bringing together history and culture." The number 45 relates to Forty-five Qing dynasty (1644-1910). The full 1001 chairs were used to highlight "the difficulties for Chinese citizens to travel, by enabling 1001 of them to visit Germany." Although you cannot take photos, you can sit on the chairs. The chairs have been collected by the artist, rather than made by him. Interestingly, small carved emblems on the chairs include some with swastikas which might at first cause some people to question their place here. However, remember that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika" target="_blank">swastika</a> had been in existence long before the Third Reich adopted it as their emblem for the Nazi Party.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Visitors can still, as previously, access the Chapel balcony area, with its now cleaned wooden floor, and feel the intimacy of the space and its cramped pew seating areas overlooking the contrasting expanse of the hall below.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As I sat on a middle chair, one row back from the front, and not bearing a swastika, I read through the artist's card loaned to visitors at the entrance. For 5 minutes I was the only visitor, sitting in the tranquility of this historic space, feeling two vibrations merged into one: the message of the artist; the past of the Chapel. I can only describe this combination as producing a physically heavy, but mentally calm, atmosphere. A feeling of physical oppression contrasted by an expansion and freedom of thought...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.artsy.net/artist/ai-weiwei" target="_blank">For more information on Ai Weiwei and his work, have a look here</a>.<br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.artsy.net/2016-year-in-art" target="_blank">Also check out 'The Tear In Art 2016</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-49737785106148498152014-02-25T12:35:00.001+00:002022-04-26T20:07:53.592+01:00Penistone Grammar School: The Rise and Fall... and Rise Again<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I spent 7 years at Penistone Grammar School, from 1972 to 1979.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.penistonegrammarschool.co.uk/" target="_blank"><img alt="Penistone Grammar School" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHCuj8cDpzY_Mw9cjuHODFGVv_MzMrBKQvN0X0waFGqFl0BJrrRbRdOKh3mp51fQM5m_eMgv8wlJczvaJNfIzZIo8U2__bOCWZ67A6hTGoSW_uYumjYx3jFD0o1HyzxLnuykESIFmkKw/s1600/pgs_1982.jpg" height="640" title="" width="424" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is an aerial shot I took sometime around 1982 from a Cessna light aircraft at about 10:30 in the morning. I remember thinking at the time, that the playing field looked as if someone had been over it with a staple gun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1992, I attended the 600 Years of PGS reunion event. This was a major event in the school's history and I seem to recall it was spread over several days to allow visitations by many former pupils covering several years and forms. Unfortunately, the time I could spend there was limited and I had to leave long before I wanted to! Given my former experiences of the school, I couldn't believe how much I actually enjoyed attending the event. Meeting old friends - and a few old adversaries - there just wasn't time to get around everyone... even if I'd stayed all night. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some 30 years later, after another reunion of my old form (Friday 14 November 2008), I arranged with a friend who still worked at the school, to give me a tour of some of the buildings and grounds - prior to proposed redevelopment work taking place. It was during the Summer Holiday that I visited and, without any kids about, it was eerily quiet.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRR_DWopDK4L-EtG4sxg-sP3X89Vn-MIeLNZI8LAsoPB_GJLlRtkwsTalz8mKM0kO-IHUABXa4qDvuT6FaSuPlOL0t85CgC9z-029ftvbDAo87gK7LIXxDc1hPSQQEgLcwsCn8iiuhLA/s1600/fulford+800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRR_DWopDK4L-EtG4sxg-sP3X89Vn-MIeLNZI8LAsoPB_GJLlRtkwsTalz8mKM0kO-IHUABXa4qDvuT6FaSuPlOL0t85CgC9z-029ftvbDAo87gK7LIXxDc1hPSQQEgLcwsCn8iiuhLA/s1600/fulford+800.jpg" height="192" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After my tour, I wrote a few words that included the following:</span><br />
<i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />I asked if we could look inside Fulford first. It was a building that somehow was more significant to me than any of the others. The first two years of most of our lessons had been spent in there and a couple of years ago I had spent some time walking the corridors on both floors in one of my dreams!</i><br />
<i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />The biggest shock for me was the extreme run down state of the school buildings, both internally and externally. Although the usage and furniture of many rooms had changed, the flooring and décor had not altered since I had left in 1979.<br /></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.gentle-enterprises.org/pdf/Return%20to%20PGS%202008.pdf" target="_blank">I didn't really complete the writing, but you can see the rest of it here</a>. (pdf file)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Little is now left of the original school, but the first, and possibly oldest building, Weirfield, is going to remain for flats. Although my personal memories of being at the school were not the happiest, I was sorry to see that one of the most important of the original buildings, Fulford, had been demolished instead of refurbished as flats - the original intention. Possibly every pupil who had ever been to the school (in my lifetime) would have spent at least the first 2 years frequenting that building - the heart of 'lower school'.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A friend of my brother's, Stuart Gibbins, contacted me to ask if I had any photographs he might be able to use for the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pgs.archive" target="_blank">PGS Archive Project</a>. Stuart has done a fantastic job of photographing the whole of the old school and building a 360 degree site which shows both the history and the process of <a href="http://pgs-archive.co.uk/tour_v2/tour.html?startscene=saundersonRoofThreeSE" target="_blank">development - demolition - and redevelopment which you can view here</a>. After looking at the work Stuart had already accomplished, I really didn't have any photographs better than those he already had - but I sent what I did have.</span><br />
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-39251916815937233312014-01-28T14:12:00.003+00:002022-04-26T20:10:52.605+01:00The Cost of Value<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Yesterday, I responded in a private message to a post on my facebook timeline. To my surprise, the message window appeared again seconds later with a reply. I say surprise, because the person I messaged is not only extremely well known in his field of exploration and authorship, but recently apologised to his followers en masse that, due to an exceptional workload, he was unable to respond in person to the many who had contacted him. However, he kindly added that he really appreciated everyone's contributions. I just assumed that my message would be pertinent to his posting and that he might read it sometime.</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">We then engaged in a brief exchange, during which I mentioned some information I had related in one of my own books that might be of interest in relation to one of his current topics. He wanted to know more and then said he would buy the book.</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br /></span><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">It wasn't until I had sent him the Amazon purchase link, that I remembered the cost of the book. For a moment I wondered if I had over-priced it - due in part to the cost of production being higher than other books I have written because it necessarily has to contain colour images. The book is also rather thin - actually being more akin to a booklet. He seemed a little surprised at the price and I apologised with the explanation just given.</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><i>"Bought it."</i> He typed.</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">I thanked him and we ended our conversation. After about 10 minutes of elation, that someone of such standing had bought a book off me, I thought I'd better have a quick read through and see if it stood up to the scrutiny it would no doubt receive... and at that cost!</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">It may seem odd to some, but I often read through my own books. I actually believe I write well and it is testament to my diligence that I rarely feel anything needs to be changed in hindsight. I write precisely and concisely, with little unnecessary padding. Of course, the downside of this is that I often end up with booklets more often than books! As a writer, I choose my words very carefully. It is very important to convey what I mean to be received. QMS was originally a talk given to scientists and researchers in Barcelona. It came from inspiration and the words flowed easily through me. For over 30 years, I have explored the more 'hidden' aspects of physical life, and QMS suddenly made a lot of sense.</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">I realised that the 'Worry Monster' (as my friend puts it) was dancing on my shoulder as I read through my work. "Is this value for money?" it goaded. "Are you actually saying anything new?"</span><br />
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">I woke in the early hours, still thinking about the book and what apology or recompense to offer, should it be rejected on receipt. Perhaps I could offer to return part of the cost, or maybe offer a second complimentary book free. "Stop it!" I thought. "Think of all the things people spend money on. Think of that same amount of money you put into the car as fuel every few days!" The Worry Monster wouldn't let go. "Yes, but look at the thickness of his books - and you can buy them for less than £10." I just hoped that my book was appreciated as substance over quantity.</span><br />
<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br /></span><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Check out my books at <a href="http://www.richardgentle.com/" target="_blank">www.richardgentle.com</a> and here: <a href="https://keekoo.co.uk/books">https://keekoo.co.uk/books</a></span><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br /></span>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br /></span>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-31460609879573639062014-01-08T23:28:00.001+00:002022-04-26T20:11:21.031+01:00Stopwatch TV<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until a few months ago, I hadn't realised how invasive TV advertising had become on Freeview channels. On the old terrestrial stations, 3 minutes of advertising during programme breaks was normal and whilst it was still annoying, most of us learnt to live with it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, I now find myself having to endure 4 breaks of between 5 and 6 minutes each in a 1 hour programme! That amounts to some 20 minutes of wasted time. It means that an hour's programme could actually be shown in less than 40 minutes (I include here the fact that most programmes on advertising channels end a few minutes before the full hour).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These intrusive marketing interruptions are wasting my life! In an attempt to avoid them, one might just say: "Mute the volume." But quite frankly, I would still be sat there, wasting my time. No - that is not an option... and neither is missing my programme by leaving the room and returning too late!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since I do not want to take the other option of recording the programme and then viewing it at a later date - skipping through the often scare-mongering sales-pitches... You could get Cancer if you don't do... You could lose all your teeth or get horrendous disease if... I choose instead a different tactic of avoidance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me introduce you to my solution: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have timed the adverts on some of my favourite programmes and now I can start my stopwatch as soon as the interval begins. I now mute the TV and leave the room, taking my stopwatch with me. I can go to the loo; I can make a drink; or more often than not, I can check my emails or social networks... there's certainly plenty of time and I am doing things I would otherwise do if I wasn't watching the TV adverts! When the clock reaches the 5 minutes or the 5 minutes and 15 seconds, or the 6 minutes - depending on the programme and which advert break we are on: 1, 2, 3 or 4 (for the average hourly episode), I return to the TV just in time to see the start of the next segment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>The bottom line is: The ad breaks are now too long! </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I know that many channels rely on advertising to finance their programmes, but this is an invasion of my time and when we reach a point where we have to sit through almost as much time in adverts as the programme or film we are watching, something is seriously out of order. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm never going to be interested [even subliminally] in any of your stupid mis-information, your high-cost services, or expensive household products - so stop bugging me! The only people who gain anything from these adverts are the broadcasting channels who charge the advertisers. In fact, the same goes for most advertising. The winners are the people selling the space - not the people selling the products - and certainly not the people having to sit through so much drivel. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Actually, the same applies to hosting conferences and other public events. The winners are the owners of the accommodation and those providing catering. We all need somewhere to go and we all need something to eat and drink. We don't need most of the products alongside these.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I suppose that the ultimate solution is to just stop watching TV altogether. Indeed, I have one or two friends who have taken this path and ditched their TVs forever! It's not that I watch a lot of TV, but when I do watch it, I really don't want to be interrupted every 14 to 17 minutes for a 5 minute... and always increased volume (did I miss mentioning that?) delivery of verbal and visual excrement!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And it's not just adverts that waste my time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am sure I hardly need to mention that most hour-long programmes could be condensed into about 20 minutes! Because after the adverts, many programmes insist on giving a complete synopsis of what has so far happened - just in case we are either switching the TV on part-way through, or in a stupefied state of catatonia have suddenly contracted a pandemic outbreak of TV amnesia!</span><br />
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-42584285641437572592013-11-03T13:59:00.002+00:002022-04-26T20:12:31.809+01:00The ARCHITECTURE of BELIEF<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A busy half term week started with collecting my daughter from the West Midlands and ended with putting up an exhibition of my Dad's artwork in Cambridge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />We arrived at St Michael's Church, Trinity St, Cambridge, on Thursday 31 October at 4.15 pm. To reach the Chancel, we passed through the very nice Michaelhouse Café.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Chancel side walls are lined with curtains hanging from pelmets and this is where the exhibition had to be hung from. The pelmets are about 9 feet from the floor of the seating and access with a ladder is complicated by the proximity of the pews:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />However, we managed to position the ladder at an angle - even though it felt almost vertical when standing near the top! By about 7 pm all but one of the paintings was hanging. This was due to the curtains on the left wall being longer then those on the right wall, since the last arch on the right was only half an arch to accommodate a through-way to another area of the building. This meant we had to move some of the paintings along and place another in an area with no pelmet:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />(You can see the painting on the right in the area it has to be hung).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next afternoon, we arrived at 4.30 pm to put up the last painting and adjust the spacing between everything. An extra spar of wood had to be used to bridge the gap, since there was no other way to secure the wire fixings:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />This is the main synopsis for the exhibition:</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"Everyone believes in something, however practical or abstract. At the centre must be "The Architecture of Belief" we have in SELF. Imparted in family; embedded in community; developed by groups and associations; sharpened and made more inwardly and deeply personal by individual thought, experience, reading and reflection. This belief can lead to striving beyond limitations; extending physically and imaginatively our lives and way of life or the opposite, withdrawing and defending what we believe and how we live.</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: purple; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Across this broad spectrum we can witness and have placed before us instances and images of human activity across our planet. This kind of broad view, however partial, can help us recognise that there, somewhere, but for the chance of being where we are, we could have been conscripted, regimented, deprived, abandoned, to any of the other conditions of life we are shown that are not ours. Any overview, however simplistic and 'detached', should induce feelings of compassion, wonder, sadness but also hope; even as we are not placed in dire positions to defend our belief but want peace of some sort for those who have to defend theirs.</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: purple; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Each of the twelve images evoke aspects of humans conducting their affairs and the hope that belief in the diversity and range of human life can release its spirit rather than kill it." - Keith Gentle 2013</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The exhibition will be visible to the public from now until the end of November 2013:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St Michael's Church, Trinity St, Cambridge CB2 1SU</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Phone: +44 1223 309147</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hours: Closed on Sunday</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.michaelhousecafe.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Michaelhouse Café</a></span></div>
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-53720764639249555012013-09-18T14:37:00.002+01:002022-04-26T20:13:15.253+01:00Felt Up The Wrong Way!Last Sunday, the weather produced a small gale where I live - the result being that on Monday morning, I noticed the felt from my shed roof folded in a neat heap on the ground next to it. A year previous, the wind had lifted one length of the felt and left it dangling down the length of the long side of the shed. As the felt was mostly intact, I managed to flip it back over the roof and make a reasonable repair with some more felt nails and a couple of wooden strips. However, after inspecting the latest damage I discovered about a quarter of the felt now missing and it was obvious from other tears and gaps that the only solution, to save the contents of the shed from rain damage, would be to re-felt the lot!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaxF_Lc_ZQprgFf65B11Ocg69fNnOEgS3L2c-TfLP6QTAfFJNbq4-SEVIFSiCG9VYjeFKoIP5fol6jS99pBtoTwnSp-oWTEnXqPyWu-QAy24ejQ9jkcoABPk6fo6n9sP7U1SI6AguDqJg/s1600/old_felt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaxF_Lc_ZQprgFf65B11Ocg69fNnOEgS3L2c-TfLP6QTAfFJNbq4-SEVIFSiCG9VYjeFKoIP5fol6jS99pBtoTwnSp-oWTEnXqPyWu-QAy24ejQ9jkcoABPk6fo6n9sP7U1SI6AguDqJg/s200/old_felt.jpg" width="133" /></a>I managed to find a place to buy felt in Wakefield, together with more felt nails and some bitumen-type sealer for the felt overlap areas. Despite having had rain showers on and off for most of the morning, a gap in the weather allowed me to complete the re-fit in just over an hour in warm sunshine. After completing the felting, I realised that only one of my original edging fascia boards was free of rot. The two ends were well past being reusable.<br />
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In the past, I have always bought my wood locally at the Timbernest in Clayton West. Sadly, the last time I went it was closed for a week, and a couple of weeks after that, it looked like this!<br />
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In the end, I remembered Ernshaw's Timber (even more local to me) and they had the wood I needed for about £3. I added two new ends and a further strip along the back:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ4wVXxkfhwbN0ScoaSyyakh9T8dQCktZ19bxcrJIAVarnEhiXbq9tOzObyKLNc5MK4hMwWRmTUl9VaUW14C4fo_j0QSuZwVakMRPlszl1ZEVDaK4mvHBfN8hRsvK9PAcnpgxVmMiBxI/s1600/new_felt01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ4wVXxkfhwbN0ScoaSyyakh9T8dQCktZ19bxcrJIAVarnEhiXbq9tOzObyKLNc5MK4hMwWRmTUl9VaUW14C4fo_j0QSuZwVakMRPlszl1ZEVDaK4mvHBfN8hRsvK9PAcnpgxVmMiBxI/s320/new_felt01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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As soon as I'd finished, it started to rain. The only thing left to do, was paint the ends to match the rest of the shed colour.</div>
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Work complete (between rain showers), it should last the winter now - and hopefully, several more years. </div>
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The garden area has continued to flourish and it's now a nice place to sit out.</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ4wVXxkfhwbN0ScoaSyyakh9T8dQCktZ19bxcrJIAVarnEhiXbq9tOzObyKLNc5MK4hMwWRmTUl9VaUW14C4fo_j0QSuZwVakMRPlszl1ZEVDaK4mvHBfN8hRsvK9PAcnpgxVmMiBxI/s1600/new_felt01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ4wVXxkfhwbN0ScoaSyyakh9T8dQCktZ19bxcrJIAVarnEhiXbq9tOzObyKLNc5MK4hMwWRmTUl9VaUW14C4fo_j0QSuZwVakMRPlszl1ZEVDaK4mvHBfN8hRsvK9PAcnpgxVmMiBxI/s1600/new_felt01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ4wVXxkfhwbN0ScoaSyyakh9T8dQCktZ19bxcrJIAVarnEhiXbq9tOzObyKLNc5MK4hMwWRmTUl9VaUW14C4fo_j0QSuZwVakMRPlszl1ZEVDaK4mvHBfN8hRsvK9PAcnpgxVmMiBxI/s1600/new_felt01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-35525717549274291952013-08-12T19:27:00.001+01:002022-04-26T20:14:47.729+01:00Garden Plants and Classic Cars<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">August is one of the busiest months for me - mainly due to it being the school summer holiday for my daughter... which in turn means complying with numerous requests for various activities... not to mention her birthday in the same month!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, I managed to complete the patio seating area and a local gardener helped by supplying several plants at little cost.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We attended both Woolley Horse Show and Emley Show - taking numerous photos we will probably never do much with... Here are a couple:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">No one that I know, but the goat was delighted (Emley)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of you may be mistaken in thinking that the focus of my attention and the main event here (at Woolley) is the horse and rider...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">...but actually, the horse was in the way on that previous shot:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've always liked that commentary box - it would make a great motorhome / travelling workshop. For much of the year it is parked not far from where I live and I often drive past it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">More to my liking was the Gala and Classic Car event at Barnsley's Locke Park:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've not been to the Locke Park event before and previously have had my classic 'fix' by going to the Thornes Park event in Wakefield. However, this year they got the date wrong - changed it twice and I ended up missing it!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's a small sample of some of the Locke Park vehicles:</span></div>
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-48618365866996367852013-07-21T22:27:00.001+01:002022-04-26T20:15:40.338+01:00Sun, Seats and Sangria... well, almost<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=938736113651643965" name="garden"></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've spent the last few days making a patio garden/seating area. I recently discovered that the end of my house is a real sun-trap and after my friend Helen gave me a couple of chairs, I thought it really needed 'beautifying'. Eventually, I bought a couple of rolls of fence material and then wondered where I could get some wood from. In the end, I discovered the perfect solution. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All the wood is reclaimed and was given to me by my farmer friend Rob and another friend, Lynette. When I drove home after my wood collecting, the Jeep was crammed to the roof - I actually wondered if I'd ended up with too much!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After removing nails and sawing off rough edges, I had to buy some screws (since I couldn't remember where I'd put the ones I had from a few years back). Once I had screws and tools sorted out, I started by making a few planters. They had to be free-standing and durable enough to take the weight of soil and plants... and not get blown over on windy days. A further complication was the multidirectional sloping of the paving. All the legs had to be cut to different lengths for everything to appear level.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I wanted to have different levels to add interest and an arrangement that would give a cosy, private and enclosed feel. Another friend donated a little 'Turkey Oak' tree (shown left).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the last of the wood, I decided to make a personal chair...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Notice the folding drinks table on the arm</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />The shaped back spars were originally used to keep clay drainage pipes apart when stacked. After doing a sketch to show my friend George, he said it reminded him of an Adirondack chair design. (I'd never heard of them, but a web search brings up loads). Here's another view of the layout:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amazingly, I ended up with exactly the right amount of wood for the whole project. All I had left at the end was one small bin bag of sawn-off rough bits - which my neighbour said he would take for kindling to light a steam traction engine's boiler.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So... Time to think about the next phase...</span><br />
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-57973097751098347172013-07-17T09:52:00.001+01:002022-04-26T20:16:44.839+01:00The Art of Allowing<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=938736113651643965" name="allowing"></a>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's been an interesting few days - but they almost didn't happen! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I finally gave up using Hotmail after 18 years after the version of Outlook provided ground to a stop and several times I couldn't access my account. I'd put in a 'forward' to another of my accounts, expecting everything to come through. However, when I went to check my Hotmail, the spam folder was unusually full and some items hadn't been forwarded. Given that I had 465 items to go through, I wondered about simply emptying the whole lot. However, I knew there were a few things I diverted there and occasionally viewed, so I started going through them. On the third of four pages, I suddenly noticed a message from my author contact form:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Comment or enquiry:</b> Would like to talk to you about your books. I am a radio talk show host on the Law of Attraction Radio Network.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometimes when I receive messages through my websites, it's people simply wanting to increase my search ratings or offer some service I don't require. However, when I get something like the above, I go and check it out. I arrived at <a href="http://fulfillingyourpurpose.com/blog/show/" target="_blank">Fulfilling Your Purpose</a> and found the Law of Attraction Radio Network talk show page. The first person I recognised was <a href="http://jackcanfield.com/" target="_blank">Jack Canfield</a> (from "The Secret" film and author of "Chicken Soup for the Soul") which certainly added credibility. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I then replied to the host, Constance Arnold, and apologised for my late reply - since her initial contact had been made a week previous and I usually reply to people on the same day as receiving messages.<br /></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCKHoy5rzQcqCvxZPeXr7G-shFpeWRKsXT6w0zBR30riJBrDk_0VMQPw6dJh27BnumFXR7pd_rGDZJ5dOLHgj53hi1EDxNdRbJG1T-4t5LQnKrTEHq6YVgA18SzeIeNZgavX6V-AKi74/s1600/constance_arnold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Constance Arnold" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCKHoy5rzQcqCvxZPeXr7G-shFpeWRKsXT6w0zBR30riJBrDk_0VMQPw6dJh27BnumFXR7pd_rGDZJ5dOLHgj53hi1EDxNdRbJG1T-4t5LQnKrTEHq6YVgA18SzeIeNZgavX6V-AKi74/s1600/constance_arnold.jpg" title="" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We arranged an initial Skype video chat and got on really well. Constance informed me that she "has millions of regular listeners" and people who contact her requesting to go on her show - but in my case, she had simply come across my author site through her own searching and she liked what she found on 'law of attraction' - a topic her listeners are most interested in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We talked for about 45 minutes and arranged to do a proper interview for the show this weekend - which could go out live either Sunday 21 or 28 July at 7:00 EST (4:00 PST - 12:00 GMT).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, what I forgot to mention to Constance, was how 'law of attraction' had brought us together from my perspective. As mentioned in a previous blog, I had spent the last 30 years of my life practising invisibility - not wanting to draw attention to myself in any way. However, since developing my writing full-time, being invisible hasn't helped people to find my books! After almost a year's effort in self-promotion, followed by some thoughtful consideration, I decided that conventional methods to regain visibility were falling short of expectation and when I really thought about it, I'd need a very expansive and potentially costly, marketing campaign to get anywhere near started! At this point, I decided to hand over the task to the universe, along the lines of: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"I need to stop being invisible; I need people to know I exist. Please help me to attract the right people who will be interested in my books and help me to become more noticed."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Following my own practice with 'law of attraction', I then removed myself from 'interfering' in the process or outcome, made a coffee and sat in the sun for a while. Over the next days, I relaxed and let go of concerning myself with publicity and potential wealth generation, since I finally admitted the truth to myself: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Cold marketing is not something that comes naturally to you; you don't have to be good at everything; and you don't have to kill yourself with strenuous effort to "make" yourself good at something if it really doesn't interest you!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-938736113651643965.post-87446149856608298732013-06-30T17:34:00.001+01:002022-04-26T20:17:19.814+01:00Crystal Healing Wands<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=938736113651643965" name="wands"></a>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yesterday, I bought some more leather for wand making:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.handoflight.org/shop.htm" target="_blank">The above wands are for sale here</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />I started making wands in the early 1980s and wrote a booklet about how to make and use them:</span><br />
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<img alt="Crystal Wand Healing book" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTMHxD0P2Pliumc-Smkm1aSkavyEGm67jO78V6-NZFnKO4_a9vBk-BUqcj4DDWQA70tsEwOBuEkpSQOrEFw7v_SqicfmDEC7Y1jyR7LMOZ4XKvnTiMwzQ9FHD_3AOUJQphaau362Xw2E/s320/2012_V1600.jpg" title="" width="209" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I began experimenting with healing in 1981 after combining breathing and 'Chi' energy techniques from my practice of Kung-Fu with information I had started to gather on healing and crystals. Throughout the 80's, I attended talks and workshops relating to healing, including a weekend workshop with healer, <a href="http://matthewmanning.net/" target="_blank">Matthew Manning</a> when he visited Newcastle. (Matthew was in some ways the English Uri Geller - but devoting his abilities to healing). The information Matthew shared on healing was very much inline with my own philosophy at the time and it was good to know that I was having parallel thoughts on how healing could be most effective.<br /><br />In 2006, I published the book shown above. By that time, I had already fine-tuned my own technique and received positive feedback from a number of friends and clients - many of whom commissioned their own wands.<br /><br />Each wand takes me between 1 and 2 hours to make, depending on the time taken for preparation of materials and setting up of work space. The wands are then programmed for general healing use, activated and tested. (Individuals who buy or make their own wands are encouraged to program (or reprogram) them as described in the book).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The healing wands have some interesting properties. In addition to speeding up the natural healing process, they are particularly good at:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">alleviating rheumatic pains </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ending bone aches (my term to describe what feels like a persistent ache inside a bone)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">preventing raw blisters after receiving burns</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">preventing the development and/or spread of infection - acting as an antiseptic</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">quickly reducing many injury pains</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The wands may appear to be rather plain-looking, but it is important in their design that they are kept simple. Users are free to embellish their wands on the outside (if they really want to), but should leave an area untouched where they intend to hold or grip the wand. The regular wand shaft is 12 inches in length with a diameter of approximately 1 inch. Variations on this are available, but for most purposes, these are the preferred optimum dimensions.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can read more at </span><a href="http://www.richardgentle.co.uk/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Richard Gentle</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><a href="http://www.handoflight.org/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Hand of Light</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><br /><br /><br /> </span><br />
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Richard Gentlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08312028539510980832noreply@blogger.com0