Pura Vida in Costa Rica

December 4, 2012

Pura Vida

After landing in San Jose I found a friendly taxi driver to take me to my old high school friend, Ed Fieramosca's house. The directions I handed over to the driver went something like this: "Take Rohmeisero Road south, after 5km look for the fruit trees and turn right, go 200m and look for the corner just before the Market". I was dubious, but at least the directions didn't instruct us to take a left at the speckled cow on the hill. We made it there without trouble and I found it a pretty nice neighborhood and safe, undoubtedly because the U.S. Embassy is close by.

I spent the afternoon with Eddie and his family, had a nice meal, and tried to follow some spanish TV. More difficult to understand than the language was why they were giving weather forecasts for North America?? Oh, and I managed to stay out of jail after a couple of polizia informed me that it wasn't permissible to have an open cerveza on the sidewalk.

In the evening I sat in on a business conference call with parties in Australia, Nevada, and Austria. Ed is in the business of building "Green" residential housing and is working on franchising the "Nudura" product in Australia. A very interesting product and building method which is essentially concrete builds with one catch. Normally concrete is poured into forms and after curing the forms are removed. Nudura is actually a type of Styrofoam and is used as the forms and left in place. The result is a super strong build which is water proof, sound proof, mold proof, termite proof, maintenance free, gives off no gases and is highly insulated. It goes together like lego blocks and after the recent 6.6 Mag. earthquake they had, it apparently can also take a pretty good shaking and not suffer.

The next morning 5:30 am came way to quickly, but it was time to catch another ride to the Nacoya peninsula. An area in the North West of Costa Rica which was new to me and also home to some of Costa's best reef and point breaks. There Eddie also happened to have a couple of projects in the works so I got to see some of the work in progress as well as being introduced to a bunch of his friends, both ticos and ex-pat gringos.

I was a bit surprised by the lack of development in this area. There is the new highway that gets you to the area, but after that it's all dusty dirt roads. In fact, in Playa Negra where I'm staying there isn't even a bank or ATM! There are a few homes, a few guest houses, a few restaurants and an approximately 200 square foot grocery store "oxy-moronically"  called Mini-Super Mercado. Not surprising, after my previous  visit, is that Costa is still really expensive, on par or more expensive than the U.S. in regards to food, fuel, land, homes, vehicles, etc. A third world mystery to me.

Somehow the locals make it work though and have kept their friendly disposition. It's a place where friends and strangers alike unfailingly wave and say hello whether walking, biking or driving. The intriguing new mantra which I don't recall in past visits is the constant uttering of "Pura Vida" (pure life). Q: Como Esta? (How are you?) A: Bien! Pura Vida! (Good, Pure Life!)  Maybe the Costa Rican government has started their own version of "Just say No!"

The first few days saw less than spectacular surf, but the last couple has seen the swell rise. My first session was good even withstanding the fact that I hurt myself more in one surf than I have in the last twenty years. Nothing big, a fin scrape on one ankle and a reef scrape on the other. To cap it off I took a left barrel and got pitched. Not wanting to dive into the shallow rocks I decided to skim the surface. Well, my board had the same idea and wacked me in the back of the head. Oh well, things come in threes so I figure I'm safe for a while. Except from the sun. Living in Florida preps you pretty good for dealing with the sun. Puerto Rico kicked the intensity up a notch. However,  the sun down here is downright wicked! Hades would feel like "Shade-ys" compared to here!

Today's swell was bigger and tomorrow's.... we will see!

Voy a ir surf! 

Pura Vida!

Wide Awake and Tired in Puerto Rico

The flight from Lauderdale to P.R. is cheap on Spirit Airlines ($75 o/w) which makes a midnight departure a little more palatable. That is unless you get caught up in their new policy of charging $100 if your carry-on is a little too big. I didn't, but it's still outrageous that bringing along a large backpack could cost you more than your seat!

With a 3:30am landing time I was a bit concerned about securing transportation, especially after this summer's Spirit flight to Atlantic City, which, after delays caused me to have to sleep in the airport until the car rentals opened up the next morning. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that not only would there be taxis available at that time, but the car rentals would also be open. 

So after a packed flight and getting the car it was a short drive to the guest house owned by ex-pat Tom Luker, fellow Jersey Boy and father of high school friend Greg  who is now owner of Lex Mex Restaurant in Ship Bottom. Thankfully Tom is an early riser, really early. Around 4:30am he showed me to my room, gave me a surf map and said if I'm up for it he would be heading out for a surf at sun up. Who needs sleep? So off to "Surfer's Beach" we went. 

We were greeted with head high surf with only a few guys out and it sure was nice to get a board under my feet after 2+ years. I was on an unfamiliar board and understandably rusty so I certainly didn't getting any bonus points for style, but I made all my waves and was happy with that. Eighty something degree water temperature didn't hurt either!

Needless to say I was pretty tired as well as hungry so I went and found some pancakes and eggs. At least I think they were eggs. There was definitely something different in the texture and taste, but my stomach said keep eating and I trusted it. Then it was off for a much needed nap.

That afternoon I got in the car and drove around to get the lay of the land. The roads in PR have, unlike our waistlines, not kept pace with the increasing size and number of vehicles. Even in a Kia you need to be alert to many sections of road which won't accommodate on-coming traffic. Perhaps  playing "Chicken" is a national pastime.  Or perhaps instead of "national" I should say "US territory" possibly soon to become a state, as they have just voted to apply to become a US state.  Also, as much as I hate to say it, they could do with a few more traffic lights. Getting through crossroads can be a challenge when traffic gets heavy and further supports my "national pastime" theory. 

Late afternoon I met the other two guests and we enjoyed conversation and some adult beverages on the porch well past sunset. Jhana told her story of being robbed the day before and how things were sorted out. Although she was heading home to Massachusetts the next day, she was not dismayed and will be coming back. Tony is from Ocean City, NJ and a similar age so we played the "do you know so and so" game. We had about a 25% hit rate with that. 

I told them both to knock on my door in the morning when they headed out for a surf. It won't surprise anyone reading this that I blew them both off for a little more sleep. I did, however, get up early (for me anyway) and decided to join them at "Wilderness". I probably should have paddled out, but instead decided to check somewhere else. On the way out I hit a pot hole and the "POP" I heard did not sound good. Luckily it was only a blown tire.

That took some of the wind out of my sails so after putting on the donut spare I decided to go in search of a replacement. Having heard horror stories of price gouging in these situations I wanted to find a replacement on my own. I can't say I was surprised that no one, even Pep Boys, carried the correct brand. In the end, I had to call Enterprise and they informed me that it didn't have to match the brand and I could replace it myself or exchange the car and they would take care of it. No big whoop, but I have to remember in the future that Kia economy cars are not real good for off roading!

The surf forecast looks good so we will see what tomorrow brings, other than another trip to Pep Boys.....

Adios, Hablamos pronto!

The End of the Climate Change Debate

As the smartest guy in the world and I'd like to once and for all put to rest the "Climate Change Debate". So, what is the answer? Is humanity the cause of climate change or not? Where do I stand? Well, I’m not saying because IT DOESN’T MATTER! 

Of course, I’m kidding about being the smartest guy in the world, but I would like to and think we can put this to rest because for the life of me I can't understand why we are collectively allowing ourselves to be duped into having it. 

Consider an analogy: Expectant parents are about to give birth and they know they will have to buy diapers for the baby. However, one parent introduces the question of whether the pooping will be a result of eating or digesting. They inexplicably and irresponsibly decide they aren’t going to buy diapers until they resolve the question. The debate starts, the debate never ends! And still shit happens!  Would that be a rational exercise that benefits the child? Of course not! These parents would be considered unfit to raise the child. Similarly, anyone (politicians, lobbyists, the public) who insists on coming to a consensus on the Climate Change Debate before we clean up our act is unfit to have any say in anything. They should have to don the Dunce Cap and sit silently in the corner.

Ultimately, the only rational answer to the debate is to end it immediately and take care of the situation which is a clear and present danger. A clear a consensus on climate change is far from being reached, not so in understanding that action needs to be taken regardless. Is there any likelihood of finding a single sane person on the planet who believes that pollution (emissions, fossil fuels, etc) is not detrimental to our well being? I think not! The debate is nothing short of moot. 

Ostensibly we are having the Climate Change Debate as means to an end, to bring about positive effectual change. But the Climate Change Debate is nothing more than smoke and mirrors, a classic divide and conquer technique designed to stymie useful and desperately needed action (undoubtedly perpetrated by those who stand to lose if change is enacted).  Pollution is bad. We know this. As a rational and conscientious race of supposedly intelligent beings we should not allow ourselves to be distracted and derailed from solving a problem that undeniably needs to be addressed at once. Pollution of every kind is toxic to our welfare. Whether or not it also tweaks the Earth’s thermostat is a completely unnecessary fact in deciding to reverse the damage we know is being done.  Are we seriously going to continue to debate the unacceptability of temperature change all the while ignoring the unacceptability of suffering cancers and illnesses caused by the degradation of our water, land and air? At the risk of being unconscionably adversarial, if you are still on the fence, I suggest asking a child and following their advice. Or better yet, find a homeless person and trade them some spare change for some common sense. 

 If we must debate I suggest it is infinitely more productive to focus our debate on whether or not we should be having the climate change debate. Clearly I’m taking the negative position. I sincerely welcome challengers.

News Flash

Flash Code

Depending on whether or not you have this blog bookmarked directly or you got here via www.whereisdjtoday.com you may have noticed that my website has undergone a facelift. After five years I guess it's about time.

I have no experience building a website so I was pleased when the basic foundation came together quickly and without any real trouble. I have to give a shout out to www.thesitewizard.com for his tutorial which made it possible along with dad for help with the ftp account. The next step was to add a photo gallery so I found a plug in and plugged it in. No trouble there, but I wasn't completely happy with it. So being one who is always looking to expand my horizons and also a little bit of a glutton for punishment the thought occurred to me to build my own.

Now I have absolutely no experience with Adobe Flash programming, but I do love a challenge so I rolled up my sleeves and got to work.  I figured the first step was to learn something about Flash so I sat down and soaked up all the pertinent video tutorials on the subject that I found on the excellent site of www.tutvid.com.

Before attacking the photo gallery I decided to start with something I felt would be a little easier so I started building a Navigation Bar. It's a few days later and I'm still working on the nav bar. I've built two so far, but wasn't content with either so I tried combining some elements from each. That proved to be a small disaster, but I took another approach and now I'm back to having one basic nav bar.

Unfortunately, by looking at it you wouldn't know that it was done in Flash and that isn't acceptable to my vanity after all this work so I'm experimenting and hopefully tomorrow I can add a little something something and make it "Flashy"!

Learning coding is like learning another language, except you'll rarely hear anyone converse in it. At this point my code skills are sort of like my Spanish skills. I can read it and sort of understand what is being conveyed, but I can't put a good sentence together on my own to save my life. So when you get an code error it's worse than trying to find a needle in a haystack. At least a needle is shiny, metallic and has a distinctive shape. Finding a code error is more like trying to find a piece of hay in a haystack.  It is like being told there is a piece of hay in that stack which we don't like, now go find it!

So it's an interesting exercise, really frustrating at times, but rewarding when things work they way they should. I now have a huge semi-productive time sink in my life and lots of ideas floating in head to try so I should learn quite a bit, even if it will cost me a lot of time and a few fistfuls of hair!

Is it worth it? Well, I'll let you know.

Flying- Through Heaven and Hell

Flying- Heaven and Hell

I've done my fair share of traveling. I have to say, all in all, I've been pretty lucky whether it was trains,

planes, automobiles or even boats. Sure, there have been less than optimum moments. I've had to sleep overnight in a bus station in a country where the language was "all Greek to me" (Greece!). I've had accidents, mechanical difficulties and flat tires in automobiles. There have been train delays and anxious moments when I wasn't sure if I would make it in time. I've seen rough weather in ports and open waters. I've also had an airline snafu in Germany where they couldn't provide my flight, but in that case they set me up in swank hotel for the evening so I can't really complain about that instance.

There is no doubt about it though, traveling is one of those things where the dualistic nature of reality can become blatently apparent. As hard as we try, it's not always possible to keep the pendulum from swinging away from the pleasant, right on through neutral and on to composure trying, pain in the ass, never again instances of "life sucks".

This past trip to and from the Caribbean was one of those examples highlighting both sides of the coin.It all started off well and good. To avoid having to drive up to L.A. I took a short 20 minute commuter flight there from San Diego. From there it was a not so short layover of 4 1/2 hours before my Delta flight to Atlanta. No big deal, I've become fairly adept at killing time.

Atlanta was another story though. What was supposed to be a 2 1/2 hour layover was to become oh, so much more! About 20 minutes before we were supposed to board the Captain comes up the jetway, walks to the check in counter, picks up the P.A. mic and states, "Folks I know you all are planing on taking this plane to St. Lucia, but you aren't. There is an airconditioning leak and it will need to be repared. We are looking into either repairing this plane or switching it out for another. The good news is that since this is a Delta hub we should be able to find a replacement jet. I'll keep you posted."

So about 45 minutes later they announce that they have another jet available and they will switch them out. This of course entails a thorough safety check (go right ahead) and then provisioning and transfering the baggage. It's about noon now and they announce boarding. Everyone is comfortably seated and we await push off from the gate when the captain comes on and announces, "Sorry folks, it seems that this plane is leaking hydraulic fluid from the front landing gear. It will need to be repaired. The good news is that the problem is readily accessible and the mechanics say it won't take more than two hours. Sit back for a bit while we sort this out and I'll update you shortly. But I promise I'll get you to the island today."

At this point I start to hear all kinds of mumblings from passengers about how the day is shot and how they are loosing hard earned vacation/honeymoon funds. I myself am wondering if we are indeed going to make it to our destination today or will I wind up once again in a hotel for the evening. A little while later we find out they have decided not to repair the plane and instead swap it out for one coming in from Venezuela. They have us disembark and I for one am glad not to have to sit on the plane for two hours while they repaired it.

So, long story short, the third time was the charm and our 9:40am flight finally left the gate at 4:15 pm! I tried to contact the boat to inform them of my tardiness, but couldn't reach them. I envisioned a very irratated taxi driver sitting at the St. Lucia airport waiting for me and could only hope he was smart enough to check the updated arrival time.

I finally landed just before sunset, found the driver and then made the 45 minute drive to the other side of the

island where the yacht was docked. All in all it was 24 hours of travel time with about an hours sleep and I was really happy it was over. Delta did give us $100 vouchers for a future flight, but I'm not sure I want to use it and risk flying with them again! Honestly, it may not sound so bad, but if I had known all that was going to happen I probably would not have taken the job.

Before I go on to the yin of this yang I'd like to take a few moments to write about clouds."What is the deal with clouds!?" (said in a Jerry Seinfield voice). One can't help but wonder about them when you are looking down at them from 30,000 feet. I asked myself, "What the heck is keeping these things aloft?" Something is amiss and I don't think science has adequately come up with an explanation. Maybe they just don't know or maybe I've just never learned it. I don't know, but here is what I do know, or think I know, or have been told that we know.

1) Clouds are essentially water vapor and particulates such as dust or soot.
2) Gravity is an inevitable and inherrant force on Earth without bias or exception.
3) Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

Well I'm sorry, but one of those assumption must be incorrect or there is another force that is acting which science conveniently doesn't allude to or thinks we are all too stupid to comprehend. I may be one of those stupid ones, but it seems to me that neither water or particles are exempt from gravity. There may be some delicate balance of electromagnetic forces coming into play, but I sure don't buy the obvious explanation that convection currents do all the work. Particularly since it's like -200 F degree up there and cloud altitudes are much too stable. So if Gravity is being countered by an equal and opposite force, what is it? Please enlighten this dummy if you have a really solid explanation. (I'm not really interested in a conditioned, dogmatic, regurgitated 10th grade science book explanation.)

OK. So now to the concluding half of this travel saga.

My work was coming to an end and it was time to come up with a plan to get me home. A 7 am flight was booked for me off of Dominica and since we really didn't think it wise to depend on a local taxi to show up at 4:30 in the morning it was decided to get me a room near the airport for the evening. In the morning the guy where I stayed did wake up on time and got me to the airport for my flight on Liat Air to Puerto Rico where I would jump on to U.S. Airways back to San Diego.

We lifted off from Dominica and 30 minutes later we landed in Antigua. I knew damn well that we would be taking that very same plane on to P.R., but of course they made us disembark. Then we had to visit the transit desk and get another boarding pass. Then, even though we just got off the plane we had to pass through security. I think the whole purpose of this exercise was to entice us to spend money at the restaurant and gift shop. Five minutes later they called us for boarding. Once again we had to go through security, only this time our bags were hand checked and we were patted down! And no, even though I might be considered a shady character, it was everyone and not just myself. At this point I was just about to change my attitude from "flying is OK" to "I hate flying!"

Fortunately things were going to get better. But not until after a moment of confusion. I arrived in Puerto Rico and got the "Welcome Home" from Customs. I tried to find a Currency exchanger, but apparently no one has any interest in "Eastern Caribbean" dollars and so I'm stuck with 40 of them. Yes, if I go back I can always use them. That's if I remember to bring them. Aaah, at least they are pretty. So my email confirmation from Orbitz says I'm booked on U.S. Airways and since my phone actually worked once on U.S. soil it was again confirmed by a voicemail message that my flight on U.S. airways was on time.

Naturally I go to the U.S. Airways counter for check in. "Hi, I'm going to San Diego via Washington Dulles". "Not with us you're not, we don't fly there!". "Are you sure?", "Yes, check with United." After a moment of trepidation I found that I was indeed booked with United. Just confirms my suspicions that they are all in cohoots.

Oh, and something to keep an eye on as you travel on airlines these days. United boasts a #1 ranking for On-Time Arrivals. I guess that is something to be proud and boast of, until I realized that on every single recent flight all the estimated travel times were padded. The ticket travel times state for instance 6 hours and every time the pilot comes on and says the travel time in the air is an hour less than the the time on the tickets. So even if they take off 45 minutes late they can still get you there on time! So much for truth in advertising!

Anyway it was at this point that things became honky-dory. From P.R. to S.D. I was booked into first class. And it's true, "It's the only way to fly" unless you have your own wings, feathered or mechanical. There is nothing like a big cushiony chair, hot towells, good food and free drinks to make things more pleasant.

There was also a phone in the armrest with a light that would indicate an incoming call. How the hell someone would get ahold of the phone number for me in Seat 2D I have no idea, but the next time I'm flying first class be sure to give me a ring, won't ya?!

Off to St. Lucia

Hopefully everyone has made it to the new website address: DJandMusing.blogspot.com.

If not, I guess you aren’t reading this!

So it looks like I’m headed to St. Lucia for some work on Motoryacht Champagne Cher where my friend Chef Fran is currently working. I don’t know exactly for how long, but it looks like 10-14 days. I’m looking forward to visiting a new Caribbean Island. I’ll be taking along my new camera so hopefully I’ll come back with a bunch of great photos.

I’m leaving Friday 6:45pm from San Diego, on to LAX, then Atlanta and finally to St. Lucia. It will be a long day. So the bad news is I’ll be working on my Birthday, the good news is I’ll be on a tropical island!

I have no idea what phone service will be like down there, but I should be able to check in on the internet. I’ll keep you posted…….

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Holiday Wishes 2009

The Scene: Helicopter flying low over the parking lot, live turkeys plummeting to the ground.
Les Nessman: "Oh the humanity!!"
Mr. Carlson: "As god as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly" (WKRP classic episode available at HULU.com)


So Thanksgiving has just passed and even though it's not a high holiday for this vegetarian I suppose it would be appropriate to talk a little about for what I'm thankful. Of course I am thankful for all the typical sentimental things like family, friends and fine health, but I'd like to also express an often left out and more antithetical perspective. I'm also thankful for all the adversity in life.

Not that I am currently experiencing a lot of adversity at the moment. In fact, I could stand a little more, but all in good time. Adversity isn't on a wish list either, but I can appreciate it because without it life would be stagnant. The difficult situations we face are what help us to grow and without them we wouldn't amount to much.

According to Buddhist theology there are Heavenly realms, Hellish Realms and the Human realm (none of which are eternal). The Buddha explained that the Human realm is the optimum because the conditions are greatest for developing insight into the true nature of all things. In the Hellish realms one is in too much distress to see beyond ones own pain. In the Heavenly realms one is too happy in pleasure to question life. So the Human existence is uniquely special, it's one where real spiritual work can be done, one where true wisdom can be attained.


There is a Buddhist story which points out the precious nature and rarity of human existence with its great balance of pleasure and pain. He said that all beings have had innumerable lives. So many, that the drops in the oceans are less than the number of tears one being has shed over the loss of loved ones throughout its incarnations. Throughout these incarnations the occurrence of a human birth is akin to the likelihood of a blind man in a rowboat with a rope noose actually catching an sea turtle which comes to the surface only once every hundred years!

So the moral of the story is simply to be thankful to be alive with all the ups and downs. And try and learn a thing or two along the way.

Now on to Xmas.

I have all I want or need materially. I have no interest in Black Friday or Cyber Monday, whatever that is. All I really want materially is continued food, water and shelter and at the moment I'm good on those accounts. I am trying to learn a thing or two so I do have a few books on my wish list, but other than that, money would be better spent on someone else. Unless Santa has in his bag a gift certificate for a scenic "Instant Karma Juice" crop dusting flight over D.C. and Wall Street! Oh please, please, I've been good, really I have, please Santa! Actually, Santa you can skip the gift certificate for the flight in the crop duster. Simply lighten your load of the "Instant Karma Juice" on your fly by over those areas. Pull that off and I'll never doubt your existence again. Thanks in advance, you're the best!

This year what I really want for Xmas is to be "Good". If I can accomplish that and maintain it I figure everything else will fall into place. This idea came up the other day and it kind of fits in with things here. We all tell children that they have to be good or Santa won't bring them presents. That's bribery at best and blackmail if we are honest with ourselves, pure and simple. This would not be necessary if we taught children to think critically about being good. I'm not saying we are all negligent in this, but it could always bear a little more scrutiny.

Ask a child what he wants to be when he grows up and 50 million to 1 you'll never hear, "I want to be good." Now you might say that an answer like that is too philosophically sophisticated for children, but I'd would vehemently disagree. In fact, I'd call bullshit!

We constantly tell children to be good, we want them to be good, they are fully capable of understanding what "good" is if we take the time to explain it thoroughly and yet we often sell them short. Instead, we are so proud when they respond to the question with, "I want to be a fireman, or police officer, or doctor". None of which they have any actual comprehension of nor will they in any likelihood actually become any of those idyllic proletariat models.

Imagine fully explaining that a fireman can be burned to death or killed by smoke. That a police officer is in mortal danger daily (and will be forced to circumvent inalienable rights for government profit, but I digress). That doctors are surrounded by communicable diseases, death and nasty internal yucky parts which often don't stay completely internal. Now imagine really explaining the merits of "goodness" so that they truly understand intellectually to a degree which allows them to go out and experiment with "good" experientially. Now imagine asking the question again about what they want to be and I bet the 50 million to 1 odds drop dramatically. In addition, they don't have to wait until they grow up! If they can accomplish that and maintain it, I figure everything else will fall into place...

Of course, if one is to be a skilled teacher one has to know his subject thoroughly. So the question arises, "What is good?" Good question ;)

Before I get down off this soapbox I'd like to offer the following teaching from the Buddha to his son Rahula when he was seven years old. (I have condensed it for brevity's sake)

"What do you think, Rahula: What is a mirror for?"


"For reflection, sir."


"In the same way, Rahula, bodily actions, verbal actions, & mental actions are to be done with repeated reflection.



"Whenever you want to do a bodily action, verbal action or mental action you should reflect on it: 'This action I want to do — would it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Would it be an unskillful action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it would lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it would be an unskillful action with painful consequences, painful results, then any action of that sort is absolutely unfit for you to do. But if on reflection you know that it would not cause affliction... it would be a skillful action with pleasant consequences, pleasant results, then any action of that sort is fit for you to do.



"While you are doing a bodily action, verbal action or mental action you should reflect on it: 'This action I am doing — is it leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Is it an unskillful action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it is leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both... you should give it up. But if on reflection you know that it is not... you may continue with it.



"Having done a bodily action, verbal action or mental action you should reflect on it: 'This action I have done — did it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Was it an unskillful action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it led to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it was an unskillful action with painful consequences, painful results, then you should confess it, reveal it, lay it open to the Teacher or to a knowledgeable companion in the holy life. Having confessed it... you should exercise restraint in the future. But if on reflection you know that it did not lead to affliction... it was a skillful action with pleasant consequences, pleasant results, then you should stay mentally refreshed & joyful, training day & night in skillful mental qualities.



"Rahula, all those brahmans & contemplatives in the course of the past, present and future who purified their bodily actions, verbal actions, & mental actions, did it through repeated reflection on their bodily actions, verbal actions, & mental actions in just this way.


Excerpt from: Ambalatthika-rahulovada Sutta

May all transcend suffering and have happy holidays!

The Moon and Bust!

So I stayed up to watch the live feed (4:30am) on NASA TV Friday morning when the Centaur Booster rocket crashed into the moon followed by the LCROSS Spacecraft.I'm sorry to report that it was a dissapointing waste of time.

Other than a video of the Moon getting larger and larger as the crafts approached the moon there was absolutely NOTHING to see.(Nasa reports that one of the instruments picked up 1 or 2 pixels of evidence of a flash.One might question what exactly was the nature of the flash.)

They were attempting to kick up debris miles into the air to spy for evidence of water. Or at least that's their cover story.Recently three other spacecraft have already confirmed water on the moon. Conspiracy buffs will say that since other countries are taking a lot of interest into visiting the moon these days, that our government
thought it was time to destroy our secret moon base and any evidence of it.So we already know there is water on the moon, but a moon base is another matter.

It turns out that I'm not the only one who is a little baffled by the lack of a show that night.
According to SpaceWeather.com - "NASA scientists are grappling with a mystery. Where did the debris go?....the debris plumes that were supposed to issue from the impacts failed to materialize." Further on they are careful to point out that the experiment isn't a failure. On the contrary, they say, "by offering up the unexpected, LCROSS is teaching us something new about the lunar surface and the products of lunar impacts. That makes it, by definition, a successful experiment. All that remains is to figure out what the new information is."
I guess the glass is always full.

My first thought was that maybe the Moon really is made of cheese and the spacecrafts simply "cut the cheese" and went right in and perhaps out the other side. Makes perfect sense, doesn't it? That would be some new information for sure. It would sure update the old information which told us that the Moon is solid, rocky and dusty. Which of course can't possibly be true if this experiment was a "success". I fail to see how objects traveling at 4000 mph impacting into that supposed surface would not produce the expected debris cloud. Or at least a small dust cloud!

So I think the next logical question is, "Was this experiment a success at all?" As I mentioned, the video feed did show the moon appearing to get larger as it approached, but after watching it I was struck by the fact that we didn't appear to actually see what you would expect to see as something smashes into something else. Visualize what the bug sees before it hits the windsheild. Or what you see just before you walk into a wall. In other words, there was no "Oh shit!" moment. There was just anticipation until the feed was "lost".

Did the spacecrafts actually make it to the surface or not? If seeing is believing, I'd have to put my money on "Not". Even if we take NASA's (Never A Straight Answer) word that they did pick up a "flash" there is nothing to say that the "flash" took place on the surface and not in the air (uh, er, I mean space). You see where I'm going with this? Perhaps there really is someone or something up there who has a similar propensity to privacy and staying in one piece. Maybe cousins of the Martians who have often toyed with the toys we have sent there.

I don't know. It does make for some entertaining conversation though. Actually, I don't really care. Except that things just aren't adding up and I don't think they should just be swept under the rug. I would like to state for record though, that I am definitely not in favor of bombing things on this rock or any others in the universe!

Stange Days, strange days indeed! But enough about Me and the Moon. What do you think about Me and the Moon?

UFO Halo

Did you see the story from Moscow:” “UFO halo” in the sky baffles Muscovites””?

http://www.rt.com/Top_News/2009-10-08/ufo-halo-sky-baffles.html

It’s being dismissed as a “purely optical effect” and scientists are to begin working on an explanation for it. I’m not holding my breath. One thing is for certain, it’s not simply an “optical effect”. Everything has a cause and this halo is no exception. Is it electromagnetic forces (terrestrial or extraterrestrial craft), possibly residual effects from a rocket launch or natural forces at work? I don’t know, but it seems to me that natural wind vortexes are out of the question although nature has a way of surprising us. I don’t think it’s quite time for disclosure (of terrestrial or extraterrestrial craft) capable of producing it so I don’t think we will hear that as the conclusion. My bet is that they will go with the rocket explanation, as lame and easily debunked as it would be. Or, most likely, the story will just fade away……

Maybe our friends think that the crop circles aren’t getting the attention they deserve so they are moving into a new medium with greater visibility. That would be something! I’d like to see a bunch of “crop crushers” get up in the early morning and pull that off!

On a personal note: Davey and I have got the house to myself as Mark and Julie are back in NJ for a wedding. Mark and I got together and jammed with a couple of guys last weekend and it went well so that’s promising. I’m also having the guys from my old college band (Stop Dead) over on Saturday for a reunion jam.

And in Strange Space News: At 4:30 a.m. Pacific time NASA will be “bombing” the moon. They are supposedly looking for water. I know the mission has been underway for some time now, but it seemed like an odd idea to begin with and now since 3 other sources have recently already confirmed water up there, it doesn’t make any sense at all. It’s interesting that we hadn’t found water before. Were our instruments faulty or did it just appear in the last 40 years!? My guess is that someone on the moon base left a tap running by mistake.

So I’ll be up early this morning looking at the moon with binoculars to witness our entry into our first Galactic War. NASA TV will also be broadcasting their Shock ‘N Awe!
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

I wonder if Vegas is running odds on something (someone?) causing a mission malfunction which prevents the impact from occurring.

If you are up watching this, keep an eye out for strange cloud evidence of UFO’s and if you know anyone from the moon, please pass on my apologies. :p

Wild Wild West

It's 3:30am in the sleepy little town of Cardiff by the Sea. Nothing is stirring, not even a mouse. Or are they?

Outside, on the front lawn, the sound of a cats battle cry is heard. Cats will be cats. As it goes on for a few seconds I lift up window shade to check out the skirmish. Out of my periphary I see a tan tabby on the lawn, but no adversary. Its hissing and screeching searing my ears. Then immediately the cat is flying through the air and lands, presumably on its feet, a few feet away. More terrifying shreiking from the pussy. As my eyes focus and my pupils constrict I make out the outline of its adversary.

I'm confused. I'm unable to grasp right away what it is I'm seeing. Understandably, my brain is looking for another cat. Tonight reality is throwing my brain for a loop. Undeniably, the cat's opponent is not another cat. The predator towers over the cat, brown coloring in the moonlight, long legs, long snout, long perked up ears. The cat makes no move to escape. Calmly, exuding confidence and seemingly with all the time in the world the predator snatches the cat in its mouth. Violently shaking it's head back and forth a few times before dropping the cat to the ground.

Simultaneously, I notice the the absence of hair raising screeching from the cat and my brain finally catches up with the scene before my eyes. Through the open window I lower my mouth and let out a hiss to alert the predator to my presence and scare it off. It looks quizzingly towards me. Although it's too dark too see and I'm not that talented of a mind reader I imagine the look on its face is saying "What are you doing up at this hour?".

Not sticking around for my answer it takes the cat in its mouth and high tails it down the block. I'm left somewhat shocked at what I just saw and with the question, "What was that predator?". Dog, fox, coyote, or maybe I'm dreaming and it's the dog from Resident Evil!? So I get out of bed and begin the internet search. I'm pretty confident now that I'm not having a Resident Evil dream (I can't imagine that dream not being dominated with visions of Milla Jovovich) so I rule out the Resident Evil dog, although in the dark there was a uncanny resemblance I couldn't quite shake.

In the end, I have settled on the Canis Latrans, The Coyote. In any case, I would think twice before letting your small pets (or children) out at night in Southern California. Wild Wild West indeed!

In other news: The Congressional Budget Office will release the summer update to the Budget and Economic Outlook on Tuesday August 25th. No matter how they cook the books it won't be good news, unless its a complete work of fiction. I mention this because there is a lot chatter about an upcoming bank holiday. I doubt this will be the trigger. Then again the actual trigger could come at any time. Such as the DOW taking another big dive which I believe is on track to happen soon, probably 6-8 weeks, tops. Or another big bank failure such as the five failures announced this week including Colonial Bank with 346 branches (6th largest failure in US history). That is 3,433 bank failures in a little over a year. The point is it's a smart move to have cash, food and water stocked up. If you are skeptical about the afore mentioned points, then how about something more concrete like Hurricane Bill for you eastcoasters or an earthquake for you west coasters or a tornado for you midwesters, etc, etc. You get the point.

Be prepared. Be Safe.

Hello everyone,

On August 5 at 7pm at the La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas CA.. the documentary "Hanging FIve" will premiere.

Hanging Five is a film that follows five artists who all happen to be surfers. The film documents their work and looks

at different aspects of their lives and how those experiences have impacted their work. The film also looks at

why the surf culture embraces and supports the arts.

Trailer: http://www.vimeo.com/4079670

The artists include:

Andy Davis, Tyler Warren, Julie Goldstein, Alex Knost, Wolfgang Bloch

Director/ Producer: Christopher Cutri

Thank you for your continuing support!! Hope to see you there.

Nothing Much.

Hey all. I don't have much to write, but since a picture is worth a thousand words I guess I'm off the hook. Check out Facebook for 100,000 words worth of pictures (Album=Colors of Cardiff).

I was just strolling around town taking shots of the Flora and misc. I used my Canon S3 for the first set and the Meditation Garden pictures were taken with a Canon Rebel XTi with a Tamron 28-80mm Lens. Not that you care. If you happen to be a camera buff and would like to know the particulars for the photos (f stop, ISO, shutter speed, etc.) Tough! I've got all the time in the world on my hands, but not that much :)

I'm not sure if the Rebel seems to shoot undersaturated or it was just the lighting, my lack of skill with the camera, or all of the above. So I did some tweaking with Vista's Photo Gallery.

Other News: Surf is flat :( But the weather is gorgeous and warmer. The Solana Beach Triathalon is this weekend. I was going to enter, but then I came to my senses. Instead I'll just cheer Julie on.

I was put forward for a position on a 150 footer in New England, but I haven't heard anything so I guess that's that.

So long for now....