We went up the windy staircase, across the walkway and into the temple. I’m not sure what we were expecting. It was different. Inside the stupa, there were many paintings of the Buddha, temples and scenes. It was massive.
Jardin de cendres / Garden of Ashes
Another superb poem fromFrederic.
Dans le jardin de cendres
les fleurs vivent dans le déni.
De leurs vives couleurs
monte un parfum d’insolence :
contre la sombre évidence,
elles ne croient qu’en la Vie.
Dans mon jardin de pierres
je veux vivre comme elles,
mentir à la Mort
et au noir crépuscule oser parler à Dieu
pour lui dire en retenant mes larmes
“le Paradis c’était ici”.
© Frédéric Georges Martin
~
In the garden of ashes
flowers live in denial.
They have vibrant colors
and a fragrance of insolence:
against the dark evidence
they only believe in Life.
In my stone garden
I want to live like them,
I want to lie to Death
and if I can hold my tears back
at dusk I will tell God
“Heaven was Here”.
© Frédéric Georges Martin
~
Illustration: Corner of a Garden (John Singer Sargent, c.1879)
The Corona Diaries – Day 181
Today was the first day I haven’t been for a long walk. We had a BT engineer in to fix our slow internet (who seems to have made it much worse – we have another one coming in two days time – nightmare). We had a ton of gravel arrive which needed moving. Ironically, despite working all afternoon moving gravel, my fitbit says I’ve only done 12 minutes exercise! How frustrating!!!
I was having a discussion with our neighbours about the ineptitude of government. Surprisingly they are all in agreement – it’s been lamentable.
The one this we all agreed on is that they keep wasting money and resources trying to recreate the wheel.
We already have systems in place that can Track and Trace very effectively – they are called the doctors’ surgeries. If they had used local resources and extra funding for that instead of creating a whole new system, using amateurs, that doesn’t work. It would have been effective and cheaper!!
The same goes for the vaccinations when they happen.
The same goes for the app.
Why don’t they use existing systems and put some extra funding in? Nuts!!!
Across the UK the virus is on the increase and government is, once again, dithering. Probably Johnson is wondering what Trump would do.
What a mess. I predict we’re in for a lousy winter!
In the UK we’re around the 4000 new cases and 18 deaths. I reckon we’re in for a dire few months!
In the USA there’s another 34,586 new cases and 213 deaths
In Brazil it’s 16,386 new cases and 363 deaths.
Stay safe everyone!
A Song for the Wind
Good to have you back Frederic. I’ve missed you and your great poetry!
I feel like singing a song in the wind
a song for the wind.
But nobody hears, nobody knows.
I feel lonely, and so does the Earth.
The stars speak to me,
my little heart grows.
“Please sing a song in the wind
a song for the wind,
God hears and so do we.
You still have plenty of time,
everything will be fine
as long as we shine.”
© Frédéric Georges Martin
Saturday Smiles – Mostly Cats and Dogs
Funnies from Raili.
The Ballad of Dominic Cummings
Thank you Shirley Gibson (Check out her blog)
The Ballad of Dominic Cummings
The Ballad of Dominic Cummings
There once was a couple called Domie and Boris
Who hosted a party in their garden of roses
All their pals and the media had gathered there
For Domie Cummings, his soul to bare
We had a pandemic in the World you see
The people were told they were no longer free
To go outside and socialise
Nor visit their loved ones as they died
But that rule was not for everyone
And Cummings broke it with impunity
He got a story drafted for us
Knowing that Boris would provide immunity
After all Boris had nothing else on his plate
Just the pandemic and that could wait
So he and his cronies supported their buddy
As the truth, his tale, was intended to muddy
Fairy Tale of Barnard Castle
[Based loosely] on the tune of “Fairy Tale of New York”, The Pogues]
“ My eyes were fuzzy and I could not see so good
So we all got in my car. I’m really quite a dude
And then we had a trip to Barnard Castle town
But going back again, we had to stop”
Then the river was calling so we took a little walk
Alongside it’s rippling flow we passed the time
But then we had to leave to drive back home again
Then came the miracle, my sight was fine
Now that bit is the truth there will be no regrets
And I’ve always got Boris to watch my back
Though I spread the beastie
through our green and pleasant land
I am pretty sure that I’ll not get the sack
Chorus
We’ve got cars big as bars
We’ve got bank accounts to match
So we really don’t care much
For daft rules on our patch
Just let all the low paid keep this country fit
While we open the champagne and dream of Brexit
He’s a bum
He’s a twit
He’s gotta be on smack
If he thinks we believe him
He’s buttoned up the back
As the boys of the right wing syndicate
were singing Jerusalem
The bells were ringing out for Dominie
Shirley Costello Gibson 02.06.2020 copyright
The Magic is Here: Buk 100
I have it right here – sitting on my desk to dip into!
KICKING OUR ASH: CALIFORNIA FIRES
Oh Global Warming you are not real
Climate change is such a thrill!!
KICKING OUR ASH: CALIFORNIA FIRES
Well Tubularsock is guessing that it is daytime here in Oakland, CA -USA on Wednesday, September 9, 2020.
It is according to the clock 11:50AM but when Tubularsock looks out of his top floor corner office from the underground bunker overlooking Washington, DC (see Bunker Tour) it appears to be night!
Tubularsock is not kidding!
The California Fires are so intense in the surrounding area of the SF Bay Area (even though they are a couple of hundreds of miles away) that the sky is a intense gold color with little light. And there is a light fine ash resting on every horizontal surface.
If Tubularsock didn’t know better Tubularsock would guess it was about 9PM-ish in the evening.
Very, very weird from Tubularsock’s normal psycho state! Ohhh, where’s Tubularsock’s butcher’s knife anyway?
It gives Tubularsock a very disturbing overall feeling.
It also reminds Tubularsock…
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No rules Brittania, Brittania waives the rules. Britons ever, ever, ever shall be fools!
A man of his word! A deal that he assured us was not only oven-ready but the greatest deal that was ever done, now something so bad that Johnson thinks it is worth discarding our international reputation for.
The question is – if it was so bad why did he sign it???? Why was it considered so brilliant before but now stinks like a sewage farm??? Why is Britain prepared to tarnish its reputation and renege on this agreement??
My conclusion is that these Tories are so arrogant they think they are above the law. We have Cummings and Johnson Snr flouting the law. It seems that the laws only exist for other people – lesser people like us!!! They don’t care about us or what foreigners think. They don’t care about rules or laws. They have no morality!!
A more honest national anthem to suit these disgusting times. When a nation reneges on promises made it is a time of shame for us all! We put a liar in charge and now his lack of moral character reflects on everyone one of us!
No Rules Brittania
No rules Brittania, Brittania waives the rules.
Britons ever, ever, ever shall be fools.
When Britain first at Johnson’s command
Created the nation’s pain
This was the charter of the land
And guardian angels sang the strain:
No rules Brittania, Brittania waives the rules.
Britons ever, ever, ever shall be fools.
The nations so much more blest than thee
Must watch us led by fools
While they shall flourish great and free
The dread and envy of us all.
No rules Brittania, Brittania waives the rules.
Britons ever, ever, ever shall be fools.
Still less majestic shalt thou fall
More dreadful…
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Oman – the beaches near Salalah.
We drove along miles of beautiful beaches with hardly anybody on them. It was hot. The sun shone. The water was warm and inviting. Where we the people? Too many sharks?
