Before you read any further, please take a look at the following video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWs9G-c_pcs
---
"In this country of 25 million people where the average income is $3,490 a year, the youth music program's budget is $29 million annually, most of it from government funding.."
"Young musicians in Sarria are not allowed to take their instruments home because of the risk of being mugged, and some come to class with headaches because their families cannot afford food."
"The talented musicians of the National System of Venezuelan Youth and Children's Orchestras are a source of national pride, like football stars in other Latin American countries."
"When a poor child begins to play an instrument in his home, it begins to transform the household and the neighbors, and his dedication becomes a model for other children," the bespectacled, balding maestro said. "When he leaves the slums and starts playing in public places wearing a uniform, it builds his self-esteem."
"Poverty generates anonymity, loneliness. Music creates happiness and hope in a community, and the triumph of a child as a musician helps him aspire to even higher things."
---
I was in the car one evening, on my way home from work (or was I heading to/from the driving range? I don't remember) or vice versa, listening to ABC Classic FM. I must have switched on partway through a conversation; a lady was commenting on a youth orchestra that she thought was amazing and inspirational, or something to that effect, and I was intrigued enough to want to know more.
So when I recalled this commentary I'd heard, I did a quick search on YouTube for the Venezuelan Youth Orchestra (she mentioned there was a YouTube clip available). I found what I was looking for - their performance of Bernstein's "Mambo", one of the symphonic dances from West Side Story. And it was spectacular to say the least.
These kids are a real inspiration. The amount they have achieved, and continue to achieve, despite the troubles and hardships they face in their immediate environment - it puts people like me to shame. I go on and on about how I wish I was a musician, or how I'd be a better musician if I only had the time and the freedom to rehearse.. but it can't be true. If I really meant it, surely I'd be living the dream right now?
But this isn't about me.
What I want to say is, music changes lives. It really does. This is a clear example of the fact. Music transcends all the barriers we've built for and against one another.
Music makes the world go around with a sway and and a smile.
Additional reading:
"Venezuela youths transformed by music"
"For Venezuela's poor, music opens doors"
----------------
Now playing: John Mayer - Why Georgia (live)
Sunday, September 30, 2007
making the most of life
While searching for news articles related to my gen. ed. subject at uni (Science & Religion), I came across this interesting article about 4 guys in America, who are literally trying to live out their dreams* while helping others do the same*.
*to some extent.
These guys are roughly my age, i.e. one or two years older than me. Like me, they've realised life is too short. Unlike me, they're doing something about it.
So they came up with a list of 100 things they wanted to do before they die. When I read through the list, I figured that most of the items were fairly trivial. But having a second think about it, I suppose these things mean a lot to those guys, in one way or another.
You don't have to have a life-changing experience for something to mean a lot to you - for instance, having fun and being happy means a lot to me. Might not happen as much as it used to, but that's a result of my own decisions, and external influences. As much as I could blame it on somebody or something else, ultimately I claim responsibility over who influences me or affects me with their opinions and commands etc.
But again, I digress.
Back to the topic - I visited the guys' site (www.theburiedlife.com) and decided to read the blog posts from the very beginning. I kept having mixed emotions, because I was initially attracted to their mission after reading that they're helping other people achieve [some of] their dreams where they can.. but at the same time, the guys are having a blast on the road, being supported by sponsors, doing crazy things like successfully passing through security and making their way into the MTV awards, etc etc. Essentially, the message I'm getting is that they're not selfless (a la charity/relief organisations), but they're not selfish either. When they say they're "4 regular guys", they mean it.
I enjoy visiting their blog, it makes for some fun reading. And when my internet picks up speed again, I'll definitely be checking out their videos on YouTube (their ultimate plan is to create a film of their experiences).
Yes, they are making a difference to people's lives, here and there.
But are they inspirational? I'm not entirely sure about that.. yet.
A response to the news article "Students help others discover buried dreams"
----------------
Now playing: John Mayer - Message In A Bottle (live)
*to some extent.
These guys are roughly my age, i.e. one or two years older than me. Like me, they've realised life is too short. Unlike me, they're doing something about it.
So they came up with a list of 100 things they wanted to do before they die. When I read through the list, I figured that most of the items were fairly trivial. But having a second think about it, I suppose these things mean a lot to those guys, in one way or another.
You don't have to have a life-changing experience for something to mean a lot to you - for instance, having fun and being happy means a lot to me. Might not happen as much as it used to, but that's a result of my own decisions, and external influences. As much as I could blame it on somebody or something else, ultimately I claim responsibility over who influences me or affects me with their opinions and commands etc.
But again, I digress.
Back to the topic - I visited the guys' site (www.theburiedlife.com) and decided to read the blog posts from the very beginning. I kept having mixed emotions, because I was initially attracted to their mission after reading that they're helping other people achieve [some of] their dreams where they can.. but at the same time, the guys are having a blast on the road, being supported by sponsors, doing crazy things like successfully passing through security and making their way into the MTV awards, etc etc. Essentially, the message I'm getting is that they're not selfless (a la charity/relief organisations), but they're not selfish either. When they say they're "4 regular guys", they mean it.
I enjoy visiting their blog, it makes for some fun reading. And when my internet picks up speed again, I'll definitely be checking out their videos on YouTube (their ultimate plan is to create a film of their experiences).
Yes, they are making a difference to people's lives, here and there.
But are they inspirational? I'm not entirely sure about that.. yet.
A response to the news article "Students help others discover buried dreams"
----------------
Now playing: John Mayer - Message In A Bottle (live)
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
week 9 discussion posts #1-3
On the topic of Prayer
Like Miroula, I also think that having more people pray for a particular person doesn't necessarily imply that they're competing in a popularity contest against other "teams" or prayer groups. I take a slightly different slant on this concept - maybe its more the peoples' way of telling God that here is this fellow comrade, who needs extra care, or extra strength, as they battle through whatever obstacle or difficulty or illness they are faced with.
And as for the "orphan with no friends" - I think there are many people in the world who pray for "all the disadvantaged", or "all the poverty-stricken families", etc. And if they're really passionate about that prayer, i.e. not just going through the motions, that's fantastic.
---
Anthony wrote:
"I am not sure why God would help the sick or the invalid if he was the instigator of the illnesses originally. It would be like changing your mind and if you are always right as he is supposed to be then he just wouldn't."
This raises a different perspective in my mind - perhaps God isn't always right. Perhaps the concept of 'perfection' and 'Godliness' is a completely delusional goal created by humans.
And another idea - what if God didn't create or instigate illnesses, and such bodily malfunctions were a by-product of humans' interactions with one another, which God may not necessarily have control over (assuming free-agent theory)?
Because the more I think about it, the more illogical it seems for God to be able to know every single little detail of our lives, or to be 100% correct, from start to finish - it's like having to eternally sit through a movie(s) that you already know the ending(s) to.
And Ariella wrote:
"I am not sure that I would interpret G-d being always right as Him being right in every decision that He makes, but rather that He is always right ... in His process, in His sequence of decisions. I think that allows Him room to change His mind."
This makes a little confused - correct me if I'm wrong, but that comment seems a little redundant.. because if God is right in his process, that means he has made the right decisions, doesn't it? If the sequence is correct, then the decisions were also spot-on? Perhaps I've misinterpreted :)
This is a little off-topic, but I think what I'm having difficulty with the idea that God has laid out all His grand, perfect plans, and is now sitting back to enjoy the show, and therefore He has no reason to change his mind.
Rather, it makes more sense to me that He is an active participant in our lives and the universe, tweaking things as He goes because He doesn't know what lies at the end (if there is such a thing).
----
Anthony wrote:
"Does this mean that you don't believe that God is all-powerful and all-knowing?"; and
"If you think that god's relationship with his children is so inspirational, why does he let come to harm?"
To answer the first, I think it's quite possible that God is not all-knowing and all-powerful - in which case, prayer (to me) becomes more of a communication with somebody or something who is more of a friend, albeit a friend who has a bit more power that you do (perhaps). Not perfect, but not human either.
And heck, He might not even exist! In which case prayer is a way of making ourselves feel better, self-therapy so to speak.
To answer the second (which was actually asked to Claire but anyway) - people need to make mistakes to learn. A child knows to stay away from a flame after being burnt. No amount of "Don't do this, don't do that" will teach a child, nor stop them from doing what it is they've been prohibited to do, unless they're really obedient/un-inquisitive. The more overprotective a parent is, the more rebellious a child will be.
Everybody learns through their experiences (an easy example - you learn more in the workplace that you do reading a textbook about your job), and sometimes those experiences aren't pleasant. There will be pain and hurt, and there will be things that you instantly regret. But you become stronger and wiser. It's the whole concept of "you wouldn't appreciate happiness so much, if you didn't experience sadness every now and again"
If God were to protect us from all the "bad" things, we'd just be living, breathing potatoes. Your life is enriched by the plethora of emotions and events you experience.
That response was a little on the not-really-related-to-religion side, but oh well :)
Like Miroula, I also think that having more people pray for a particular person doesn't necessarily imply that they're competing in a popularity contest against other "teams" or prayer groups. I take a slightly different slant on this concept - maybe its more the peoples' way of telling God that here is this fellow comrade, who needs extra care, or extra strength, as they battle through whatever obstacle or difficulty or illness they are faced with.
And as for the "orphan with no friends" - I think there are many people in the world who pray for "all the disadvantaged", or "all the poverty-stricken families", etc. And if they're really passionate about that prayer, i.e. not just going through the motions, that's fantastic.
---
Anthony wrote:
"I am not sure why God would help the sick or the invalid if he was the instigator of the illnesses originally. It would be like changing your mind and if you are always right as he is supposed to be then he just wouldn't."
This raises a different perspective in my mind - perhaps God isn't always right. Perhaps the concept of 'perfection' and 'Godliness' is a completely delusional goal created by humans.
And another idea - what if God didn't create or instigate illnesses, and such bodily malfunctions were a by-product of humans' interactions with one another, which God may not necessarily have control over (assuming free-agent theory)?
Because the more I think about it, the more illogical it seems for God to be able to know every single little detail of our lives, or to be 100% correct, from start to finish - it's like having to eternally sit through a movie(s) that you already know the ending(s) to.
And Ariella wrote:
"I am not sure that I would interpret G-d being always right as Him being right in every decision that He makes, but rather that He is always right ... in His process, in His sequence of decisions. I think that allows Him room to change His mind."
This makes a little confused - correct me if I'm wrong, but that comment seems a little redundant.. because if God is right in his process, that means he has made the right decisions, doesn't it? If the sequence is correct, then the decisions were also spot-on? Perhaps I've misinterpreted :)
This is a little off-topic, but I think what I'm having difficulty with the idea that God has laid out all His grand, perfect plans, and is now sitting back to enjoy the show, and therefore He has no reason to change his mind.
Rather, it makes more sense to me that He is an active participant in our lives and the universe, tweaking things as He goes because He doesn't know what lies at the end (if there is such a thing).
----
Anthony wrote:
"Does this mean that you don't believe that God is all-powerful and all-knowing?"; and
"If you think that god's relationship with his children is so inspirational, why does he let come to harm?"
To answer the first, I think it's quite possible that God is not all-knowing and all-powerful - in which case, prayer (to me) becomes more of a communication with somebody or something who is more of a friend, albeit a friend who has a bit more power that you do (perhaps). Not perfect, but not human either.
And heck, He might not even exist! In which case prayer is a way of making ourselves feel better, self-therapy so to speak.
To answer the second (which was actually asked to Claire but anyway) - people need to make mistakes to learn. A child knows to stay away from a flame after being burnt. No amount of "Don't do this, don't do that" will teach a child, nor stop them from doing what it is they've been prohibited to do, unless they're really obedient/un-inquisitive. The more overprotective a parent is, the more rebellious a child will be.
Everybody learns through their experiences (an easy example - you learn more in the workplace that you do reading a textbook about your job), and sometimes those experiences aren't pleasant. There will be pain and hurt, and there will be things that you instantly regret. But you become stronger and wiser. It's the whole concept of "you wouldn't appreciate happiness so much, if you didn't experience sadness every now and again"
If God were to protect us from all the "bad" things, we'd just be living, breathing potatoes. Your life is enriched by the plethora of emotions and events you experience.
That response was a little on the not-really-related-to-religion side, but oh well :)
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
mini reflections on discussion posts
While catching up on a few discussion threads, one Jeff's posts caught my eye.
He said: "After all, if God gave you life, it is his choice to do whatever he wants with it."
But, is it really?
I would have thought that God would have created us so that we could be independent beings, i.e. let us do whatever we want, even if it means that some people will be non-believers.. by creating us as individuals, that's the risk He should be willing to take, right?
Although I suppose that would be a bit stupid. I think we naturally take pride in our work, and similarly, God would like to do the same, so perhaps it makes sense that He should have the ability to steer us in whichever direction He desires, whether it's instilling fear in us so that we don't recklessly jump off a cliff in the name of extreme fun, or whether it's making love blossom between two people, so their lives become brighter.
Jeff also wrote: "Sometimes I have to side with the logic that God knows, but God can't help."
Maybe not a case of can't help, but chooses not to help..
He said: "After all, if God gave you life, it is his choice to do whatever he wants with it."
But, is it really?
I would have thought that God would have created us so that we could be independent beings, i.e. let us do whatever we want, even if it means that some people will be non-believers.. by creating us as individuals, that's the risk He should be willing to take, right?
Although I suppose that would be a bit stupid. I think we naturally take pride in our work, and similarly, God would like to do the same, so perhaps it makes sense that He should have the ability to steer us in whichever direction He desires, whether it's instilling fear in us so that we don't recklessly jump off a cliff in the name of extreme fun, or whether it's making love blossom between two people, so their lives become brighter.
Jeff also wrote: "Sometimes I have to side with the logic that God knows, but God can't help."
Maybe not a case of can't help, but chooses not to help..
week 8 discussion posts #3-4
On the topic of Providence, Free Will & Suffering
Discussion posts below altered slightly for the purposes of this blog
Responding to Priyanka - I felt that Ariella was implying that humans will inevitably live in a world that includes evil and suffering, because it is not possible for them to be "free-willed" and make the "right" decisions all the time. And I agree with this to an extent, in that yes, humans will inevitably make mistakes, the wrong decisions, etc. But that doesn't necessarily mean that we as humans will breed an environment with lots of negativity and general unpleasantness.
Perhaps such an environment would exist temporarily - but surely it would be possible for humans to exist co-operatively with one another and their surroundings - a Utopian ideal, I know, but if you can dream it, perhaps you can live it too. (I hope all the above makes sense!)
---
Miroula had a really interesting question. Perhaps humans had to develop an understanding of right and wrong, good and evil. So the basic emotions such as joy, fear, anger, sorrow were (and of course continue to be) an inherent part of human beings, but perhaps it wasn't until humans were exposed to different situations and a variety of interactions with one another, that they began to develop certain reactions to particular events.. and maybe then they developed a like/dislike of that event, which then caused their mind to separate the 'good' from the 'bad'.
Basically what I'm trying to say is, perhaps humans developed a sense of what was evil and what it meant to suffer, from their own feelings during certain life experiences.. so it didn't actually exist to begin with, it was a human concept, in a similar way that Time is considered to be a human concept (I think?).
Discussion posts below altered slightly for the purposes of this blog
Responding to Priyanka - I felt that Ariella was implying that humans will inevitably live in a world that includes evil and suffering, because it is not possible for them to be "free-willed" and make the "right" decisions all the time. And I agree with this to an extent, in that yes, humans will inevitably make mistakes, the wrong decisions, etc. But that doesn't necessarily mean that we as humans will breed an environment with lots of negativity and general unpleasantness.
Perhaps such an environment would exist temporarily - but surely it would be possible for humans to exist co-operatively with one another and their surroundings - a Utopian ideal, I know, but if you can dream it, perhaps you can live it too. (I hope all the above makes sense!)
---
Miroula had a really interesting question. Perhaps humans had to develop an understanding of right and wrong, good and evil. So the basic emotions such as joy, fear, anger, sorrow were (and of course continue to be) an inherent part of human beings, but perhaps it wasn't until humans were exposed to different situations and a variety of interactions with one another, that they began to develop certain reactions to particular events.. and maybe then they developed a like/dislike of that event, which then caused their mind to separate the 'good' from the 'bad'.
Basically what I'm trying to say is, perhaps humans developed a sense of what was evil and what it meant to suffer, from their own feelings during certain life experiences.. so it didn't actually exist to begin with, it was a human concept, in a similar way that Time is considered to be a human concept (I think?).
Monday, September 24, 2007
keep your friends close, but your enemies closer?
I read this article about a priest who was attacked by an intruder attempting to rob their Divine Word Mission. When interviewed, the priest said:
"I need to pray for the one who attacked me... I feel when I pray for him in the future he can be better - everyone wants to live in harmony."
It's not like it was a peaceful hit and run either. The priest goes on to say:
"At the time I was shocked. After he attacked me I didn't recognise he used a knife to attack me. He hit me but then when I saw my blood shedding I thought 'What happened?' I didn't feel any pain at the time so I was shocked. It was terrible."
Most other people would try and hunt down their attacker to ensure justice and appropriate punishment or penalty. But despite the shock and the injury, the priest chose to forgive his attacker by praying for him. To some people, such behaviour would be viewed as ridiculous. Why pray for somebody who almost killed you?
To me, I think the priest is showing God that he is capable of accepting that we must endure suffering throughout our lives, no matter how big or small, or how frequent, and it is the behaviour we portray in our most trialling moments, that illustrates our faith.
The reason I'm writing about this is because this priest's reaction to his attacker reminds me of the South African church congregation that was mentioned in the Week 8 lecture on Providence, Free Will & Suffering, where "On 25 July 1993 St James church in Capetown was attacked by men with rifles and grenades during the evening service. Several people were killed and many wounded."
And one of the church members then goes on to say that despite the tragedy, they are thankful that God thought them worthy of receiving this suffering. It's a totally different reaction to what you would expect of most people.
I have mixed emotions on this topic. Part of me respects the strength of these peoples' faiths in praying for their attackers, but another part of me feels 'odd' (for lack of a better word), because their attackers won't care about whether or not they're being prayed for. Although I suppose it's not that the victims are trying to communicate with the villains; rather, they're communicating with God in the belief or hope that God will make the villains seek repentance and therefore step away from a path of destruction and darkness, onto the road of truth and light.
A response to the article "Stabbed priest prays for attacker"
"I need to pray for the one who attacked me... I feel when I pray for him in the future he can be better - everyone wants to live in harmony."
It's not like it was a peaceful hit and run either. The priest goes on to say:
"At the time I was shocked. After he attacked me I didn't recognise he used a knife to attack me. He hit me but then when I saw my blood shedding I thought 'What happened?' I didn't feel any pain at the time so I was shocked. It was terrible."
Most other people would try and hunt down their attacker to ensure justice and appropriate punishment or penalty. But despite the shock and the injury, the priest chose to forgive his attacker by praying for him. To some people, such behaviour would be viewed as ridiculous. Why pray for somebody who almost killed you?
To me, I think the priest is showing God that he is capable of accepting that we must endure suffering throughout our lives, no matter how big or small, or how frequent, and it is the behaviour we portray in our most trialling moments, that illustrates our faith.
The reason I'm writing about this is because this priest's reaction to his attacker reminds me of the South African church congregation that was mentioned in the Week 8 lecture on Providence, Free Will & Suffering, where "On 25 July 1993 St James church in Capetown was attacked by men with rifles and grenades during the evening service. Several people were killed and many wounded."
And one of the church members then goes on to say that despite the tragedy, they are thankful that God thought them worthy of receiving this suffering. It's a totally different reaction to what you would expect of most people.
I have mixed emotions on this topic. Part of me respects the strength of these peoples' faiths in praying for their attackers, but another part of me feels 'odd' (for lack of a better word), because their attackers won't care about whether or not they're being prayed for. Although I suppose it's not that the victims are trying to communicate with the villains; rather, they're communicating with God in the belief or hope that God will make the villains seek repentance and therefore step away from a path of destruction and darkness, onto the road of truth and light.
A response to the article "Stabbed priest prays for attacker"
one of the most beautiful songs I've heard
Ennio Morricone's Love Theme from Cinema Paradiso.
It begins on the piano.
At first, the notes resonate up from the bass, pure and deep.
Then an alto melody floats down from above,
free of tempo and full of emotion.
The two hands complement each other well, flowing in delicious harmony..
And then the piano is joined by a violin, filled with desire and longing.
You can hear a certain wistfulness in the strings.
A chorus of violins sweep onto the musical scene, singing in unison with the piano.
Bit by bit, the melody grows..
A saxophone shadows the piano in another repeat of the main theme as the violins continue to sing passionately in the background.
The melody pulses with life, bursting into full bloom,
Ebbing and flowing like the waves that are pulled to and fro by the ocean.
Bit by bit, the melody slows..
and the soul is soothed.
---
When you think about it, it's a really simple song.. and that's what makes it beautiful.
Like Leonardo da Vinci said,
It begins on the piano.
At first, the notes resonate up from the bass, pure and deep.
Then an alto melody floats down from above,
free of tempo and full of emotion.
The two hands complement each other well, flowing in delicious harmony..
And then the piano is joined by a violin, filled with desire and longing.
You can hear a certain wistfulness in the strings.
A chorus of violins sweep onto the musical scene, singing in unison with the piano.
Bit by bit, the melody grows..
A saxophone shadows the piano in another repeat of the main theme as the violins continue to sing passionately in the background.
The melody pulses with life, bursting into full bloom,
Ebbing and flowing like the waves that are pulled to and fro by the ocean.
Bit by bit, the melody slows..
and the soul is soothed.
---
When you think about it, it's a really simple song.. and that's what makes it beautiful.
Like Leonardo da Vinci said,
"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."
----------------
Now playing: Ennio Morricone - Love Theme, Cinema Paradiso
Sunday, September 23, 2007
did God create life on Mars before Earth?
"An orbiting spacecraft has found evidence of what look like seven caves on the slopes of a Martian volcano, the space agency NASA said...
..'Whether these are just deep vertical shafts or openings into spacious caverns, they are entries to the subsurface of Mars,, said USGS researcher Tim Titus.
'Somewhere on Mars, caves might provide a protected niche for past or current life, or shelter for humans in the future.'"
Although the article notes that it was unlikely that these particular caves would have sheltered any kind of lifeforms (due to their immense altitude), the article got me thinking. What if we really are in a cyclic kind of universe? Maybe we're the nth civilization, and God created life on Mars before creating life on Earth, and once Earth is over and done with, he'll move onto Jupiter.. maybe not, but you get the idea.
It's an interesting thought. There's no real way to prove or disprove it, because we only know ourselves, our own Earthly existence. Perhaps our methods of measuring the ages of the planets are wrong, and they've been around for longer (or shorter) than we think. Of course this is all under the assumption that God exists as Creator, and He's been busy building all these universes, and different planets of different sizes and orbits..
Come to think of it, He must really like circles..
A response to the article "NASA spacecraft finds possible Mars caves"
..'Whether these are just deep vertical shafts or openings into spacious caverns, they are entries to the subsurface of Mars,, said USGS researcher Tim Titus.
'Somewhere on Mars, caves might provide a protected niche for past or current life, or shelter for humans in the future.'"
Although the article notes that it was unlikely that these particular caves would have sheltered any kind of lifeforms (due to their immense altitude), the article got me thinking. What if we really are in a cyclic kind of universe? Maybe we're the nth civilization, and God created life on Mars before creating life on Earth, and once Earth is over and done with, he'll move onto Jupiter.. maybe not, but you get the idea.
It's an interesting thought. There's no real way to prove or disprove it, because we only know ourselves, our own Earthly existence. Perhaps our methods of measuring the ages of the planets are wrong, and they've been around for longer (or shorter) than we think. Of course this is all under the assumption that God exists as Creator, and He's been busy building all these universes, and different planets of different sizes and orbits..
Come to think of it, He must really like circles..
A response to the article "NASA spacecraft finds possible Mars caves"
it's all about perspective
I'm a big fan of the National Geographic, mostly for their articles on wildlife and natural habitats, and the visual splendours they provide with their photographs from all over the world. I was just browsing a section of their website titled "Your Shot", which I think is basically a compilation of the best photos submitted by readers of NG.
There's this photo of a flower where the shot has zoomed in on its centre - I think it's a tropical flower of sorts. The colours are quite rich and vibrant, and it's not a bad photo. The shot was taken by a reader named Tomasz, and his caption reads,
My instant reaction was "Of course they do". But after a moment's reflection, I found myself applying this comment to life situations. Every day we get caught up in all the little things, and we stress, and we fret, and we fight about things we really don't need to be worrying about. The saying "making mountains out of molehills" comes to mind at this point.
What I'm try to get at, is that I think we lose perspective all too often, because it's easy to lose sight of something that is right before your eyes. Every now and then we should take a step back from our lives, take some time out to reflect on our position, and step back into the fray, feeling refreshed and re-energized. I've found that this works best if you drive out and sit on a beach, or a cliff overlooking the sea, at a time when there's nobody else around (late night, early morning).. the sound of the waves breaking against the shore or the rocks is a cleansing harmony.
There's this photo of a flower where the shot has zoomed in on its centre - I think it's a tropical flower of sorts. The colours are quite rich and vibrant, and it's not a bad photo. The shot was taken by a reader named Tomasz, and his caption reads,
Isn't it amazing how different things look up close?
My instant reaction was "Of course they do". But after a moment's reflection, I found myself applying this comment to life situations. Every day we get caught up in all the little things, and we stress, and we fret, and we fight about things we really don't need to be worrying about. The saying "making mountains out of molehills" comes to mind at this point.
What I'm try to get at, is that I think we lose perspective all too often, because it's easy to lose sight of something that is right before your eyes. Every now and then we should take a step back from our lives, take some time out to reflect on our position, and step back into the fray, feeling refreshed and re-energized. I've found that this works best if you drive out and sit on a beach, or a cliff overlooking the sea, at a time when there's nobody else around (late night, early morning).. the sound of the waves breaking against the shore or the rocks is a cleansing harmony.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
translation: dos gardenias
I fell in love with the music and words of this song while watching the documentary Buena Vista Social Club". The film shows Ibrahim Ferrer singing the song in concert, with subtitles for DVD viewers. It's something about the minor key that the song is in, and the way in which the song is like a profession of love but a warning at the same time.. it's a kind of gentle ominous-ness, if you can imagine such a thing.
Dos gardenias
Buena Vista Social Club
Dos gardenias para ti
Con ellas quiero decir:
Te quiero, te adoro..
Mi vida.
Ponle toda tu atención
Porque son tu corazón y el mío.
Dos gardenias para ti
Que tendrán todo el calor de un beso
De esos besos que te dí
Y que jamás encontrarás
En el calor de otro querer.
A tu lado vivirán y se hablarán
Como cuando estás conmigo
Y hasta creerás que te diran:
Te quiero.
Pero si un atardecer
Las gardenias de mi amor se mueren
Es porque han adivinado
Que tu amor me ha traicionado
Porque existe otro querer.
Two gardenias for you
With them I want to say:
I want you, I adore you..
My love.
Show them all your attention
Because they are your heart and mine.
Two gardenias for you
That have all the warmth of a kiss
Of those kisses that you give
And that you never encounter
In the warmth of another desire.
They will live by your side and talk to you
Like when you are with me
And until you believe that they say to you:
I want you.
But if one evening
The gardenias of my love are dead
It's because they have guessed
That you have betrayed your love for me
Because there exists another desire.
----------------
Now playing: Clare Bowditch/Feeding Set - The Thing About Grief
Dos gardenias
Buena Vista Social Club
Dos gardenias para ti
Con ellas quiero decir:
Te quiero, te adoro..
Mi vida.
Ponle toda tu atención
Porque son tu corazón y el mío.
Dos gardenias para ti
Que tendrán todo el calor de un beso
De esos besos que te dí
Y que jamás encontrarás
En el calor de otro querer.
A tu lado vivirán y se hablarán
Como cuando estás conmigo
Y hasta creerás que te diran:
Te quiero.
Pero si un atardecer
Las gardenias de mi amor se mueren
Es porque han adivinado
Que tu amor me ha traicionado
Porque existe otro querer.
Two gardenias for you
With them I want to say:
I want you, I adore you..
My love.
Show them all your attention
Because they are your heart and mine.
Two gardenias for you
That have all the warmth of a kiss
Of those kisses that you give
And that you never encounter
In the warmth of another desire.
They will live by your side and talk to you
Like when you are with me
And until you believe that they say to you:
I want you.
But if one evening
The gardenias of my love are dead
It's because they have guessed
That you have betrayed your love for me
Because there exists another desire.
----------------
Now playing: Clare Bowditch/Feeding Set - The Thing About Grief
translation: murmullo
When I'm not procrastinating or doing what I should be doing (work, uni, golf), I'm either playing music, drawing, reading, watching Scrubs, or translating passages from Spanish to English.
I don't do this often, but I do derive a lot of fun from it, and hopefully one day I'll actually invest enough time into Spanish to be able to speak it conversationally, or at least write and understand the language.
This is a song from the Buena Vista Social Club's self-titled album - it's a really beautiful, gentle song (in this instance, sung by Ibrahim Ferrer et al) that makes me close my eyes and sway to the gentle "guun, guun" of one of the percussion instruments. It wasn't until I translated the lyrics that I discovered the beauty behind the words as well.
I know, I know - it's pretty easy to find pre-translated lyrics online.. but that's beside the point. DIY involves constant flicking through the dictionary and trying to recall words I've already come across in previous dictionary searches.
Time-consuming, but educational.
Murmullo
Buena Vista Social Club
Hay un suave murmullo
En el silencio de una noche azul
Son dos enamorados
Que, encantados, gozan del amor.
Y ríe la vida y qué dice así: Ahh, ahh..
Y ríe la luna y qué dice así: Mmm, mmm..
There is a gentle murmur
In the silence of the blue night
There are two lovers
That, delighted, enjoy their love.
And Life laughs, and speaks thus: Ahh, ahh..
And the Moon laughs, and speaks thus: Mmm, mmm..
----------------
Now playing: Buena Vista Social Club - Candela
I don't do this often, but I do derive a lot of fun from it, and hopefully one day I'll actually invest enough time into Spanish to be able to speak it conversationally, or at least write and understand the language.
This is a song from the Buena Vista Social Club's self-titled album - it's a really beautiful, gentle song (in this instance, sung by Ibrahim Ferrer et al) that makes me close my eyes and sway to the gentle "guun, guun" of one of the percussion instruments. It wasn't until I translated the lyrics that I discovered the beauty behind the words as well.
I know, I know - it's pretty easy to find pre-translated lyrics online.. but that's beside the point. DIY involves constant flicking through the dictionary and trying to recall words I've already come across in previous dictionary searches.
Time-consuming, but educational.
Murmullo
Buena Vista Social Club
Hay un suave murmullo
En el silencio de una noche azul
Son dos enamorados
Que, encantados, gozan del amor.
Y ríe la vida y qué dice así: Ahh, ahh..
Y ríe la luna y qué dice así: Mmm, mmm..
There is a gentle murmur
In the silence of the blue night
There are two lovers
That, delighted, enjoy their love.
And Life laughs, and speaks thus: Ahh, ahh..
And the Moon laughs, and speaks thus: Mmm, mmm..
----------------
Now playing: Buena Vista Social Club - Candela
Thursday, September 20, 2007
it's about time
After enjoying the freedom of writing a blog that nobody but I knew the address of, I've now decided to share it with my friends on Facebook. I've decided to stay away from the site meters that count how many people have and haven't been to the site - I don't give a shit about how popular or unpopular I am, and I'm not going to write to impress specific people, I'm going to write to express myself and my opinions, and to rediscover who I am and where I'm headed.
I don't think it's particularly interesting at the moment - most of the posts are for my Science & Religion gen. ed. subject. There's a few movie and music reviews around, and a few posts where I've just decided to vent my spleen about things that make me angry/upset, or I've gone all airy-fairy/arty-farty and written some spontaneous poetry.
In my opinion, poetry is the writer's version of art. The classics are spectacular, but some of the 'contemporary' crap that gets loads of kudos and is highly acclaimed.. it only reiterates the fact that arts are so subjective, being of a highly personal nature..
But I digress.
To whoever stumbles across this blog, I hope you enjoy it, but if you don't, that's okay, we probably don't or wouldn't connect well in real life. Like everybody else, I've got my own quirks I suppose! :)
If you're planning on reading this blog on a regular basis, I would suggest you start at the beginning - this space is only 2-3 months old.
Feel free to leave comments; don't be offended if I don't respond.
If you come across a music review and you want to hear the music I'm talking about, let me know - I love sharing music and introducing people to new sounds.
----------------
Now playing: Stevie Wonder & Babyface - How Come, How Long
I don't think it's particularly interesting at the moment - most of the posts are for my Science & Religion gen. ed. subject. There's a few movie and music reviews around, and a few posts where I've just decided to vent my spleen about things that make me angry/upset, or I've gone all airy-fairy/arty-farty and written some spontaneous poetry.
In my opinion, poetry is the writer's version of art. The classics are spectacular, but some of the 'contemporary' crap that gets loads of kudos and is highly acclaimed.. it only reiterates the fact that arts are so subjective, being of a highly personal nature..
But I digress.
To whoever stumbles across this blog, I hope you enjoy it, but if you don't, that's okay, we probably don't or wouldn't connect well in real life. Like everybody else, I've got my own quirks I suppose! :)
If you're planning on reading this blog on a regular basis, I would suggest you start at the beginning - this space is only 2-3 months old.
Feel free to leave comments; don't be offended if I don't respond.
If you come across a music review and you want to hear the music I'm talking about, let me know - I love sharing music and introducing people to new sounds.
----------------
Now playing: Stevie Wonder & Babyface - How Come, How Long
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
summer sounds
He reminds me of a balmy summer evening, where the gentle breeze makes you smile as it glides over your body. Or a night on a beach on a remote island, sitting around a campfire on the beach with some friends and enjoying each others' company. Or perhaps, a lazy holiday afternoon, looking up at the azure sky, framed by the palm fronds from the trees that are gently swinging your hammock.
I'm talking about Jehro and his self-titled album.
From recollection, Jehro is French (his real name is Jérôme), but if you listen to his music you'd think he was from the islands, with a Caribbean infusion in his melodies, and the rhythms that are laid-back, but upbeat enough to keep you dancing gently. You'll also feel folk and reggae when you hear his music; overall it's a nice mix.
I love unique voices, and Jehro's is no exception. Reminds me of a light coffee colour (not really sure why) - smooth, with a little roughness around the edges.
And it's not just the music; you have to listen to his lyrics, some of which are sung in Spanish, others of which are heavier than my musical description implies. For instance, in "I Want Love" he sings of a child soldier going through tough times. His words are far from the usual, and I also like that uniqueness about him.
Stand-out tracks:
#1. Everything "And I will learn to say / Goodbye a thousand different ways.."
This the opening track, and it really sets the mood for the album. I can picture it being used as an intro for a film, where you're seeing the characters in their environment for the first time, and a story quickly develops without any dialogue. I think it's because the minor chords of the song sound elusive and mysterious to me.
#3. Long Is The Way "Oh Lord, I made it through / I'm gonna lay down my load.."
This song is the reason why I fell in love with Jehro's music. The song begins with a beautiful guitar (?) intro that makes the notes sound as though they're dancing, sparkling on the water on a hot summer's day, and the light reggae-style beat supports the lyrics of lost love and a sad longing.
#4. Sweet "Sweet, sweet / The taste of my lover / Sweet, sweet / The smell of her skin.."
One of the lighter songs on the album, the violins initially pave the way for what really is a sweet-sounding set of vocal harmonies. The lyrics are of the nature-infused romantic kind - and by that I mean that Jehro sings of the little things that we do with lovers, that make life happy and perfect. I love the trumpet interlude in the middle of the song, reminds me of Cuban music! :)
#9. Shantytown Carnival "Tonight is free / Tonight the streets / Echo the sounds / Of the carnival.."
A catchy little song with a more upbeat sound, as the percussion keeps you moving to the rhythm while the guitar paints its colour all over the piece.. can't forget the piano either, providing a lovely background wash to the canvas of the song.
I first discovered Jehro in 2006 through an mp3blog, called aurgasm (the actual post is here).
To digress, I really, really adore this site and the music it offers - I've discovered some real gems from this site that I would have never heard otherwise; and all the other mp3blogs I've come across are usually fairly genre-specific, and/or not as aesthetically pleasing as aurgasm. Even the name looks good when you write it out - although I've had one or two weird looks when I've tried to plug the site in conversations, hehe.
I think Jehro was the first impulse buy I'd made when it came down to music albums and hearing mp3s from blogs. I mean, prior to Paul's post on his blog, I'd never heard of Jehro.
The tracks that were posted on the site were "Everything" and "Long is the Way". As soon as the music started playing, I was intrigued - and seconds after I'd heard both songs, I was totally hooked and very determined to buy the album. And I did not regret the purchase one single bit.
Magnetic and mysterious. Unwind with Jehro.
Additional reading:
http://jehro.free.fr/htmlen/bio.htm
---
After writing this blog, I visited YouTube to watch the music video for Jehro's "Everything", and I've just discovered that his song "Master Blaster" (track 13 off the album, it's only a demo version though) is actually a cover of Stevie Wonder's original song! I had no idea!
----------------
Now playing: Jehro - Master Blaster Demo Version
I'm talking about Jehro and his self-titled album.
From recollection, Jehro is French (his real name is Jérôme), but if you listen to his music you'd think he was from the islands, with a Caribbean infusion in his melodies, and the rhythms that are laid-back, but upbeat enough to keep you dancing gently. You'll also feel folk and reggae when you hear his music; overall it's a nice mix.
I love unique voices, and Jehro's is no exception. Reminds me of a light coffee colour (not really sure why) - smooth, with a little roughness around the edges.
And it's not just the music; you have to listen to his lyrics, some of which are sung in Spanish, others of which are heavier than my musical description implies. For instance, in "I Want Love" he sings of a child soldier going through tough times. His words are far from the usual, and I also like that uniqueness about him.
Stand-out tracks:
#1. Everything "And I will learn to say / Goodbye a thousand different ways.."
This the opening track, and it really sets the mood for the album. I can picture it being used as an intro for a film, where you're seeing the characters in their environment for the first time, and a story quickly develops without any dialogue. I think it's because the minor chords of the song sound elusive and mysterious to me.
#3. Long Is The Way "Oh Lord, I made it through / I'm gonna lay down my load.."
This song is the reason why I fell in love with Jehro's music. The song begins with a beautiful guitar (?) intro that makes the notes sound as though they're dancing, sparkling on the water on a hot summer's day, and the light reggae-style beat supports the lyrics of lost love and a sad longing.
#4. Sweet "Sweet, sweet / The taste of my lover / Sweet, sweet / The smell of her skin.."
One of the lighter songs on the album, the violins initially pave the way for what really is a sweet-sounding set of vocal harmonies. The lyrics are of the nature-infused romantic kind - and by that I mean that Jehro sings of the little things that we do with lovers, that make life happy and perfect. I love the trumpet interlude in the middle of the song, reminds me of Cuban music! :)
#9. Shantytown Carnival "Tonight is free / Tonight the streets / Echo the sounds / Of the carnival.."
A catchy little song with a more upbeat sound, as the percussion keeps you moving to the rhythm while the guitar paints its colour all over the piece.. can't forget the piano either, providing a lovely background wash to the canvas of the song.
I first discovered Jehro in 2006 through an mp3blog, called aurgasm (the actual post is here).
To digress, I really, really adore this site and the music it offers - I've discovered some real gems from this site that I would have never heard otherwise; and all the other mp3blogs I've come across are usually fairly genre-specific, and/or not as aesthetically pleasing as aurgasm. Even the name looks good when you write it out - although I've had one or two weird looks when I've tried to plug the site in conversations, hehe.
I think Jehro was the first impulse buy I'd made when it came down to music albums and hearing mp3s from blogs. I mean, prior to Paul's post on his blog, I'd never heard of Jehro.
The tracks that were posted on the site were "Everything" and "Long is the Way". As soon as the music started playing, I was intrigued - and seconds after I'd heard both songs, I was totally hooked and very determined to buy the album. And I did not regret the purchase one single bit.
Magnetic and mysterious. Unwind with Jehro.
Additional reading:
http://jehro.free.fr/htmlen/bio.htm
---
After writing this blog, I visited YouTube to watch the music video for Jehro's "Everything", and I've just discovered that his song "Master Blaster" (track 13 off the album, it's only a demo version though) is actually a cover of Stevie Wonder's original song! I had no idea!
----------------
Now playing: Jehro - Master Blaster Demo Version
a quick reflection
It's week 9, and for me the midsemester break is now here. I've been meaning to write a reflection on the Science & Religion course for the last week or two now, but as usual I've been lazy and unmotivated to do much uni work.
The course has been a lot tougher than I expected - in fact, it was different to my expectations to begin with. I must not have really focused on the "science" part of the course when I enrolled, because I definitely wasn't expecting to learn about elements of quantum physics! But that was a good surprise - I've wanted to read about quantum physics for a while now, but never got around to it. Now I've had a bit of a taste test with this gen. ed., and it's pretty fascinating (albeit trippy) stuff!
I was also hoping to be learning more about the different religions in the world, rather than having discussions mainly based on a Judaeo-Christian belief system. Admittedly I can see how it would be quite difficult to maintain a coherent discussion on topics such as Creation and Evolution (etc) while trying to learn about different religious beliefs at the same time - it would probably make the course quite disjointed. That said, I didn't realise we'd be discussing topics like Creation and the Big Band or Evolution to begin with.
Keeping up with the weekly discussion has been difficult for me, mostly because I've been too tired to concentrate after work - the weekly resources and lectures, while exciting and interesting and sometimes fascinating, aren't exactly what I would call light reading, and I always need to be reading the materials in silence (i.e. without music playing in the background) otherwise the words just don't sink in. I'm not a particularly fast reader either, so I've been falling behind and not participating in the discussions as much as I should be. Now my main concern is that I hope I pass the course! I'd hate to fail a gen. ed. subject, and a subject that I chose to do because I wanted to do it, not because I had to do it.
----------------
Now playing: Jehro - Long Is The Way
The course has been a lot tougher than I expected - in fact, it was different to my expectations to begin with. I must not have really focused on the "science" part of the course when I enrolled, because I definitely wasn't expecting to learn about elements of quantum physics! But that was a good surprise - I've wanted to read about quantum physics for a while now, but never got around to it. Now I've had a bit of a taste test with this gen. ed., and it's pretty fascinating (albeit trippy) stuff!
I was also hoping to be learning more about the different religions in the world, rather than having discussions mainly based on a Judaeo-Christian belief system. Admittedly I can see how it would be quite difficult to maintain a coherent discussion on topics such as Creation and Evolution (etc) while trying to learn about different religious beliefs at the same time - it would probably make the course quite disjointed. That said, I didn't realise we'd be discussing topics like Creation and the Big Band or Evolution to begin with.
Keeping up with the weekly discussion has been difficult for me, mostly because I've been too tired to concentrate after work - the weekly resources and lectures, while exciting and interesting and sometimes fascinating, aren't exactly what I would call light reading, and I always need to be reading the materials in silence (i.e. without music playing in the background) otherwise the words just don't sink in. I'm not a particularly fast reader either, so I've been falling behind and not participating in the discussions as much as I should be. Now my main concern is that I hope I pass the course! I'd hate to fail a gen. ed. subject, and a subject that I chose to do because I wanted to do it, not because I had to do it.
----------------
Now playing: Jehro - Long Is The Way
Saturday, September 15, 2007
week 8 discussion posts #1-2
On the topic of Providence, Free Will & Suffering
Discussion posts below altered slightly for the purposes of this blog
In response to the discussion of God creating a world devoid of evil and suffering, I think I've interpreted the question differently to Ariella and Priyanka. I think it's possible that God could create a world without evil and suffering, because I also think its possible that as free agents, humans are the ones who create the evil and suffering amongst themselves.
Ariella/Priyanka/others who agree, I apologise if I've misinterpreted your own repsonses, but that's my 2 cents worth :)
---
After reading Rachel's post on the discussion of how the good die young, I was reminded of how I used to think that "It always seems to be the good people who die early/prematurely..." and I couldn't understand it either. But the idea that came to me was, perhaps God takes the good people away from Earth because they don't deserve to suffer all the stress, the trauma, the evils and the dangers of living in human society. Like Michelle wrote, maybe we do live in a "relatively 'good' world" - after all, we could have been living out WW #101 rather than watching the news on the "War in Iraq", but I still think it's a world which is not as good as it could be.
But back to my main point - perhaps God handpicks the really good people and seriously takes them to a better place..
Discussion posts below altered slightly for the purposes of this blog
In response to the discussion of God creating a world devoid of evil and suffering, I think I've interpreted the question differently to Ariella and Priyanka. I think it's possible that God could create a world without evil and suffering, because I also think its possible that as free agents, humans are the ones who create the evil and suffering amongst themselves.
Ariella/Priyanka/others who agree, I apologise if I've misinterpreted your own repsonses, but that's my 2 cents worth :)
---
After reading Rachel's post on the discussion of how the good die young, I was reminded of how I used to think that "It always seems to be the good people who die early/prematurely..." and I couldn't understand it either. But the idea that came to me was, perhaps God takes the good people away from Earth because they don't deserve to suffer all the stress, the trauma, the evils and the dangers of living in human society. Like Michelle wrote, maybe we do live in a "relatively 'good' world" - after all, we could have been living out WW #101 rather than watching the news on the "War in Iraq", but I still think it's a world which is not as good as it could be.
But back to my main point - perhaps God handpicks the really good people and seriously takes them to a better place..
Friday, September 14, 2007
on providence & good will, amongst other things
So Larissa asks the question,
"Is it logically possible for God to create a world in which there is no evil or suffering, but where humans still have free will?"
To answer this question on a bit of a tangent, I think it's us, the humans themselves, who create the evil and suffering. This of course, assumes that we are created as free agents, and not somebody else's puppets.
Alexander wrote:
"There is the cliched argument that "What is light but absence of darkness?""
It's such a simple yet profound statement.
Reading on further through the discussion posts, I see the topic/question of "Why do bad things happen to good people?", and my fellow students' confusion and failure to understand just why it is that the nicest people seem to be the ones who suffer from terminal illnesses and the like.
I've thought about this before, primarily because of events that had affected me in some way. My kindergarten teacher, her name was Mrs Batty. However she was far from crazy, and did a wonderful job as the teacher of our class, Kindergarten Rainbow. I remember her peaceful smile, and she was all warmth and love. I don't recall seeing her after kindergarten; it's possible that she moved schools, who knows. I was too young at the time to pay attention to such things. By the time I was in Year 5 or 6, I discovered from my teachers that Mrs Batty had passed away due to cancer. It was a shock, and I felt sad.
And when I was in Year 4 or 5 (the years are a blur now), the mothers of one of my best friends passed away on the operating table, while having a brain tumor removed. That was also a shock, and saddening news. She was such a lovely person, really nice and kind, and she left behind 3 wonderful daughters and a loving husband. I felt terrible.
Taking my case to the realm of celebrities et al, Eva Cassidy & Princess Diana are the first who come to mind.
Eva Cassidy was an American singer blessed with an amazing voice. According to friends and family she was very shy, but very generous, and overall had a wonderful heart and soul. However she died at the young age of 33, battling cancer. Why did such a lovely and talented person have to leave so soon?
If you listen to some of her songs, even the ones that weren't ready for album release, you'll soon realise how incredible her vocal talent is. One can only imagine what potential was not realised due to her early passing.
Jeff Buckley is of a similar situation, although he disappeared in the Mississippi River one evening. His albums Grace and Live at the Sin-e are precious recordings of a genius at work. According to his mother, he was a good person too, kind and gentle.
"The good die young."
It's a cliche, but it's cliched because it's true.
And just about everybody would know about Princess Diana. I remember her most for her enormous contribution to humanitarian activities. Of course, there are many, many people around the world doing exactly the same thing, if not better, but my respect for her is from the perspective that she was royalty. She was very well-off; why would she have any reason to go out of her way to do something for people she doesn't know? But Princess Diana used her celebrity status to bring awareness into people's living rooms during the news. And I'm sure we were only seeing the tip of the iceberg on screen.
I respect celebrities who use their celebrity status to do good for the world - but only those who are genuine about their cause. Angelina Jolie was known for working in humanitarian activities long before the news articles on Bono, or Bob Geldof, or Madonna, etc. The most prominent (i.e. receive the most amount of TV coverage for what they do, based on my experience) celebrities who I think are genuinely dedicated to the cause, are Angelina Jolie and Bono.
The fact that being humanitarian has become "trendy" nowadays, is both a blessing and a curse in my opinion. It's great because that means more people are getting involved, donating money, aiding good causes. The bad thing is, what are their ulterior motives? Are they doing it because they think it's 'cool', or because they genuinely feel that everybody should have equal rights in the world, and poverty is unacceptable considering the affluence of many urbanised areas around the world?
"Is it logically possible for God to create a world in which there is no evil or suffering, but where humans still have free will?"
To answer this question on a bit of a tangent, I think it's us, the humans themselves, who create the evil and suffering. This of course, assumes that we are created as free agents, and not somebody else's puppets.
Alexander wrote:
"There is the cliched argument that "What is light but absence of darkness?""
It's such a simple yet profound statement.
Reading on further through the discussion posts, I see the topic/question of "Why do bad things happen to good people?", and my fellow students' confusion and failure to understand just why it is that the nicest people seem to be the ones who suffer from terminal illnesses and the like.
I've thought about this before, primarily because of events that had affected me in some way. My kindergarten teacher, her name was Mrs Batty. However she was far from crazy, and did a wonderful job as the teacher of our class, Kindergarten Rainbow. I remember her peaceful smile, and she was all warmth and love. I don't recall seeing her after kindergarten; it's possible that she moved schools, who knows. I was too young at the time to pay attention to such things. By the time I was in Year 5 or 6, I discovered from my teachers that Mrs Batty had passed away due to cancer. It was a shock, and I felt sad.
And when I was in Year 4 or 5 (the years are a blur now), the mothers of one of my best friends passed away on the operating table, while having a brain tumor removed. That was also a shock, and saddening news. She was such a lovely person, really nice and kind, and she left behind 3 wonderful daughters and a loving husband. I felt terrible.
Taking my case to the realm of celebrities et al, Eva Cassidy & Princess Diana are the first who come to mind.
Eva Cassidy was an American singer blessed with an amazing voice. According to friends and family she was very shy, but very generous, and overall had a wonderful heart and soul. However she died at the young age of 33, battling cancer. Why did such a lovely and talented person have to leave so soon?
If you listen to some of her songs, even the ones that weren't ready for album release, you'll soon realise how incredible her vocal talent is. One can only imagine what potential was not realised due to her early passing.
Jeff Buckley is of a similar situation, although he disappeared in the Mississippi River one evening. His albums Grace and Live at the Sin-e are precious recordings of a genius at work. According to his mother, he was a good person too, kind and gentle.
"The good die young."
It's a cliche, but it's cliched because it's true.
And just about everybody would know about Princess Diana. I remember her most for her enormous contribution to humanitarian activities. Of course, there are many, many people around the world doing exactly the same thing, if not better, but my respect for her is from the perspective that she was royalty. She was very well-off; why would she have any reason to go out of her way to do something for people she doesn't know? But Princess Diana used her celebrity status to bring awareness into people's living rooms during the news. And I'm sure we were only seeing the tip of the iceberg on screen.
I respect celebrities who use their celebrity status to do good for the world - but only those who are genuine about their cause. Angelina Jolie was known for working in humanitarian activities long before the news articles on Bono, or Bob Geldof, or Madonna, etc. The most prominent (i.e. receive the most amount of TV coverage for what they do, based on my experience) celebrities who I think are genuinely dedicated to the cause, are Angelina Jolie and Bono.
The fact that being humanitarian has become "trendy" nowadays, is both a blessing and a curse in my opinion. It's great because that means more people are getting involved, donating money, aiding good causes. The bad thing is, what are their ulterior motives? Are they doing it because they think it's 'cool', or because they genuinely feel that everybody should have equal rights in the world, and poverty is unacceptable considering the affluence of many urbanised areas around the world?
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
an idol of mine
"I'm not into genre," she says. "I'm a singer who tries to communicate through song. I write songs because I need to write them. It's almost like cheap therapy."
Katie Noonan.
Blessed with a beautiful voice, her new album Skin is a great album with loads of class and silky smooth grooves. I personally think it's a bit of a step away from her previous George days, as this album is more pop than not, but I really dig it. After all, how could you not love a voice as heavenly as hers?
Standout tracks:
#3. Time To Begin "Time to begin / Let the sun shine back in..." This is the first single off the album, and as such it has a nice little music video to go with it. I think it sets the tone of the album well - you can sit back and relax, unwind with these silver tunes washing over your body, or you can chat with friends at a cruising party or bar on a Friday night. The rockin' bass line gets me in that Friday night mood - in fact there's a taste of House (dance music) & Jamiroquai to the song, it's great - and the (jazz?) flute IS NUTS! Makes me wish I'd kept up with my silver woodwind.
#4. Love's My Song For You "As we lay here in the darkness, chatting away the hours, I wonder / If I could, lie here forever..." One of my boy's faves actually. She's more breathy in this song, and it's really nice and easygoing, something for a sunny day outside, or when you're indoors and the sunshine's so bright it's lighting up the whole house.
#5. Little Boy Man "You're the greatest gift / You're the sweetest kiss.." I personally find the title rather catchy. Possibly because it does and doesn't make sense, both at once, and they're the first words she sings. The groovy-sounding keyboard and the drumbeat that feature throughout most of the song, get my head nodding and my feet tapping. Every time.
#6. Sunshine "I look up, and I see that smile again / I look up, and I see sunshine again / I look up, and I see your face again..." Again, the keyboard and drums get this song going. They definitely bring the groove to this album, and complement Noonan's voice very well.
If you manage to get a hold of the special edition of this album, which includes an additional CD with b-sides, you'll find that she does a fantastic cover of the song "Crazy" (of Gnarls Barkley fame). Can't rave about it enough!
Katie Noonan. Haunting. Heavenly. Magical. Must-listen.
A repsonse to the article "Katie Noonan hits the road"
Katie Noonan.
Blessed with a beautiful voice, her new album Skin is a great album with loads of class and silky smooth grooves. I personally think it's a bit of a step away from her previous George days, as this album is more pop than not, but I really dig it. After all, how could you not love a voice as heavenly as hers?
Standout tracks:
#3. Time To Begin "Time to begin / Let the sun shine back in..." This is the first single off the album, and as such it has a nice little music video to go with it. I think it sets the tone of the album well - you can sit back and relax, unwind with these silver tunes washing over your body, or you can chat with friends at a cruising party or bar on a Friday night. The rockin' bass line gets me in that Friday night mood - in fact there's a taste of House (dance music) & Jamiroquai to the song, it's great - and the (jazz?) flute IS NUTS! Makes me wish I'd kept up with my silver woodwind.
#4. Love's My Song For You "As we lay here in the darkness, chatting away the hours, I wonder / If I could, lie here forever..." One of my boy's faves actually. She's more breathy in this song, and it's really nice and easygoing, something for a sunny day outside, or when you're indoors and the sunshine's so bright it's lighting up the whole house.
#5. Little Boy Man "You're the greatest gift / You're the sweetest kiss.." I personally find the title rather catchy. Possibly because it does and doesn't make sense, both at once, and they're the first words she sings. The groovy-sounding keyboard and the drumbeat that feature throughout most of the song, get my head nodding and my feet tapping. Every time.
#6. Sunshine "I look up, and I see that smile again / I look up, and I see sunshine again / I look up, and I see your face again..." Again, the keyboard and drums get this song going. They definitely bring the groove to this album, and complement Noonan's voice very well.
If you manage to get a hold of the special edition of this album, which includes an additional CD with b-sides, you'll find that she does a fantastic cover of the song "Crazy" (of Gnarls Barkley fame). Can't rave about it enough!
Katie Noonan. Haunting. Heavenly. Magical. Must-listen.
A repsonse to the article "Katie Noonan hits the road"
and you. the big guy.
Sure, I'll write you an email when you want me to.
Sure, I'll try and keep in touch.
Sure, I'll share music.
WHAT
ABOUT
YOU
Sure, I'll try and keep in touch.
Sure, I'll share music.
WHAT
ABOUT
YOU
Sunday, September 9, 2007
initial thoughts on evolution
Questions:
I thought I'd write up my initial responses to the following questions, before I read the lecture material.
1&2. Have humans evolved from vastly simpler organisms? Have other animals and plants evolved from simpler organisms?
How much simpler are we talking here? As in, from a single cell or amoeba, to some kind of amphibious being, to a simian being of sorts, then to neanderthals and finally to the modern homo sapiens we know and (sometimes) love today?
Perhaps.
I guess we all have to start from somewhere, right? I'm not much of a science buff, and I haven't really thought a great deal about where we all 'began'. My mind mainly thinks as far back as primitive humans, and anything beyond that, I've not contemplated. To me, this then implies that I've believed in God to an extent, in that I assumed that we started out as a simple form of human, and developed from there.
3&4. Does a belief in evolution lead to dire theological, moral and social consequences? Can a Christian believe in evolution and still be a "good Christian"?
"Dire" is a bit of an extreme word, wouldn't you think? I can see how a belief in the theory of evolution could affect a Christian's morals, and cause a inner conflict- I'm sure it would be fairly difficult to reconcile the notion of our beginning from a Big Bang, and the creation of Adam & Eve.. unless you were a bit of a religious scientist, and accepted the Genesis book in the Bible as more of a poetic description of God's Creation process, rather than believing that Eve was really created from one of Adam's ribs (I think that's how the story goes). I suppose that answers Q4 as well - I don't see why a Christian can't believe in God and Evolution at the same time, unless there's a passage in the Bible that specifically denies the concept of Evolution, and writes it off as a sinful belief.
Perhaps something more solid than a belief, i.e. an undeniable proof of Evolution, would stir a crisis in the theological world, and therefore have a social impact on the actively religious. Maybe you'd find a lot of people losing their minds, upon realising that there isn't a God. Or maybe they would not believe the proof, choosing instead to believe that the scientists had faked the evidence.
5. Does it matter whether we regard evolution as a "fact " or merely a "Theory"?
Of course. Accepting evolution as a fact, in my opinion, is to virtually write off the concept of God - unless you believe that God created the Big Bang. Then it wouldn't really matter. But if we consider evolution as a theory, no more and no less, then it allows us to keep our minds open to other possibilities of how we came to be, or how the world/universe began, et cetera.
Ok, now to read the lecture material.
I'm not sure whether I like this discussion on probability- that is to say, it feels as though our very existence is being dulled down to statistics and chance and complex mathematical equations that calculate the probability of things such as the chance of coin-flipping 100 heads in a row.
Continuing along this line of thought, based on chance and probability it is quite possible that human beings share a common ancestry with primordial slime, as William Provine suggests. Jumping back to Michael Denton's words that "to suggest that hundreds, thousands or possibly even millions of transitional species... were all unsuccessful... is verging on the incredible" - well yes, it is incredible. But I think it's possible too. We as humans like to think that we know everything, or we're on our way to knowing everything, but realistically we're nowhere near. For example, scientists and animal/insect experts (I've forgotten what kind of "-ologist" they are) are constantly discovering new species in the Amazon, just take a look at the news posted on the National Geographic website. And I'm sure that they've also missed a heap of flora and fauna too, what with all the incessant logging that's going on over there.
I think I have to eat some of my earlier words above, where I've said that I don't like the probability discussion - I've just read the review of the Theory of Evolution, and the concept of "survival of the fittest" is essentially boils down to probabilities. You have to be lucky enough to have the right genes or characteristics, or be able to adapt to your surroundings in such a way that you continue your lineage from generation to generation, and that's got a lot to do with chance.
The Selkirk and Burrows diagram reminds me of an article I read earlier this year (or possibly last year), about a new discovery that horses and bats are closely related. If scientists continue to find new links between different animal species, and perhaps even plant and insect species, maybe it's possible that scientists will reshape the concept of evolution as we know it today?
I thought I'd write up my initial responses to the following questions, before I read the lecture material.
1&2. Have humans evolved from vastly simpler organisms? Have other animals and plants evolved from simpler organisms?
How much simpler are we talking here? As in, from a single cell or amoeba, to some kind of amphibious being, to a simian being of sorts, then to neanderthals and finally to the modern homo sapiens we know and (sometimes) love today?
Perhaps.
I guess we all have to start from somewhere, right? I'm not much of a science buff, and I haven't really thought a great deal about where we all 'began'. My mind mainly thinks as far back as primitive humans, and anything beyond that, I've not contemplated. To me, this then implies that I've believed in God to an extent, in that I assumed that we started out as a simple form of human, and developed from there.
3&4. Does a belief in evolution lead to dire theological, moral and social consequences? Can a Christian believe in evolution and still be a "good Christian"?
"Dire" is a bit of an extreme word, wouldn't you think? I can see how a belief in the theory of evolution could affect a Christian's morals, and cause a inner conflict- I'm sure it would be fairly difficult to reconcile the notion of our beginning from a Big Bang, and the creation of Adam & Eve.. unless you were a bit of a religious scientist, and accepted the Genesis book in the Bible as more of a poetic description of God's Creation process, rather than believing that Eve was really created from one of Adam's ribs (I think that's how the story goes). I suppose that answers Q4 as well - I don't see why a Christian can't believe in God and Evolution at the same time, unless there's a passage in the Bible that specifically denies the concept of Evolution, and writes it off as a sinful belief.
Perhaps something more solid than a belief, i.e. an undeniable proof of Evolution, would stir a crisis in the theological world, and therefore have a social impact on the actively religious. Maybe you'd find a lot of people losing their minds, upon realising that there isn't a God. Or maybe they would not believe the proof, choosing instead to believe that the scientists had faked the evidence.
5. Does it matter whether we regard evolution as a "fact " or merely a "Theory"?
Of course. Accepting evolution as a fact, in my opinion, is to virtually write off the concept of God - unless you believe that God created the Big Bang. Then it wouldn't really matter. But if we consider evolution as a theory, no more and no less, then it allows us to keep our minds open to other possibilities of how we came to be, or how the world/universe began, et cetera.
Ok, now to read the lecture material.
I'm not sure whether I like this discussion on probability- that is to say, it feels as though our very existence is being dulled down to statistics and chance and complex mathematical equations that calculate the probability of things such as the chance of coin-flipping 100 heads in a row.
Continuing along this line of thought, based on chance and probability it is quite possible that human beings share a common ancestry with primordial slime, as William Provine suggests. Jumping back to Michael Denton's words that "to suggest that hundreds, thousands or possibly even millions of transitional species... were all unsuccessful... is verging on the incredible" - well yes, it is incredible. But I think it's possible too. We as humans like to think that we know everything, or we're on our way to knowing everything, but realistically we're nowhere near. For example, scientists and animal/insect experts (I've forgotten what kind of "-ologist" they are) are constantly discovering new species in the Amazon, just take a look at the news posted on the National Geographic website. And I'm sure that they've also missed a heap of flora and fauna too, what with all the incessant logging that's going on over there.
I think I have to eat some of my earlier words above, where I've said that I don't like the probability discussion - I've just read the review of the Theory of Evolution, and the concept of "survival of the fittest" is essentially boils down to probabilities. You have to be lucky enough to have the right genes or characteristics, or be able to adapt to your surroundings in such a way that you continue your lineage from generation to generation, and that's got a lot to do with chance.
The Selkirk and Burrows diagram reminds me of an article I read earlier this year (or possibly last year), about a new discovery that horses and bats are closely related. If scientists continue to find new links between different animal species, and perhaps even plant and insect species, maybe it's possible that scientists will reshape the concept of evolution as we know it today?
Saturday, September 8, 2007
strength.
I've been hosting my own little experiment lately - I've asked my friends to choose a song for me. Perhaps it reminds them of something we did together, or they think the song represents me in some way, or they think that I would like a particular song. It doesn't matter why they choose it, but telling me the reason for their choice is a bonus to me.
And today I received a not from a friend, who quoted 4 songs for me. I knew the artists but I didn't know the songs (except for one, who I didn't know at all), so I visited YouTube to see and hear the songs.
I felt a bit brighter afterwards. Jen reminded me of the person who I think I used to be. Perhaps I'm still the same, but my circumstances have brought out another side of me that my previous environment, i.e. high school, didn't really call for.
This is probably the second time that a feeling of reconnection has built up inside of me - I mean, a reconnection to the 'old' me. The feeling that I used to be stronger, and more vibrant, and the belief that I can still be that person again, if only I let myself.
I don't really understand why I cling to old memories so much. Like how I've just been reunited (via Facebook) with primary school friends whom I haven't seen since Year 1 or 2, and how I have a habit of searching through high school photos for a good display picture of me, when really, those days are at least 2 years old and not reflective of who I am now.
And now, time for a mini rant, because I've just been reminded of it:
I don't like prissy people. People who are constantly very showy, posting blogs about how they only spent $300 on clothes this weekend, or how they haven't been out on a Friday night for the last two weeks, ohmygoodness what a tragedy. Get over yourself. Do something better with your time and money.
I'm sick of seeing your pouted lips, the left side of your face, your oversized designer sunglasses, the deliberately widened eyes to try and beautify yourself that little bit more. Why don't you take some more relaxed photos, I've seen your jawline and your collarbone and your slimmed waist enough times. I'd love to see you take some more friendly photos, casual snaps - stop being such a poser. I liked you better when you weren't such a priss.
Maybe I'm just bitter.
I'm pretty stubborn, and don't like change most of the time. That's something I'm trying to fix though - I want to embrace change, take them as challenges, tackle them head-on, instead of moping and moaning about them.
I'm sick of being a pessimist.
I'm trying for no more tears, no more fears.
And today I received a not from a friend, who quoted 4 songs for me. I knew the artists but I didn't know the songs (except for one, who I didn't know at all), so I visited YouTube to see and hear the songs.
I felt a bit brighter afterwards. Jen reminded me of the person who I think I used to be. Perhaps I'm still the same, but my circumstances have brought out another side of me that my previous environment, i.e. high school, didn't really call for.
This is probably the second time that a feeling of reconnection has built up inside of me - I mean, a reconnection to the 'old' me. The feeling that I used to be stronger, and more vibrant, and the belief that I can still be that person again, if only I let myself.
I don't really understand why I cling to old memories so much. Like how I've just been reunited (via Facebook) with primary school friends whom I haven't seen since Year 1 or 2, and how I have a habit of searching through high school photos for a good display picture of me, when really, those days are at least 2 years old and not reflective of who I am now.
And now, time for a mini rant, because I've just been reminded of it:
I don't like prissy people. People who are constantly very showy, posting blogs about how they only spent $300 on clothes this weekend, or how they haven't been out on a Friday night for the last two weeks, ohmygoodness what a tragedy. Get over yourself. Do something better with your time and money.
I'm sick of seeing your pouted lips, the left side of your face, your oversized designer sunglasses, the deliberately widened eyes to try and beautify yourself that little bit more. Why don't you take some more relaxed photos, I've seen your jawline and your collarbone and your slimmed waist enough times. I'd love to see you take some more friendly photos, casual snaps - stop being such a poser. I liked you better when you weren't such a priss.
Maybe I'm just bitter.
I'm pretty stubborn, and don't like change most of the time. That's something I'm trying to fix though - I want to embrace change, take them as challenges, tackle them head-on, instead of moping and moaning about them.
I'm sick of being a pessimist.
I'm trying for no more tears, no more fears.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
week 6 discussion posts #1-3
On the topic of Chaos and God acting in the World
Discussion posts below altered slightly for the purposes of this blog
Ariella posted up on the discussion board, a link about the Red Sea and the contemporary findings via physics - I find it fascinating how people have the ability to create such mathematical equations and formulae to describe or explain something which people previously believed at face value. And to me this is an example of somebody choosing to believe in the miraculous event, then realising they don't have a logic proof that can be presented to the non-believers, so they go about creating the mathematical proofs that say yes, Moses really did part the Red Sea... albeit with the aid of some freak weather conditions.
---
Alex wrote:
"Firstly, everyone knows about the ark of the covenant. Well, the temple of God had three progressively more holy sections, separated by curtains, and if the wrong person were to enter the wrong section, he or she would die."
Firstly, I don't know anything about the Ark of the Covenant, and I think he's being a bit presumptuous in assuming that everybody in this tutorial will have a basic knowledge of the Bible and/or Biblical stories - after all, not everybody is Christian.
Anyways, I did a quick search on Wikipedia* and noted that the Ark was in effect, a big treasure chest of sorts which contained the original 10 Commandments, plus a few other historical mementos - didn't find any further information on the temple and the 3 holy sections within that temple, but will try to keep looking when I have more time :)
*disclaimer: I have difficulty in fully relying on the authority of Wikipedia (I mean, really - random people collaborating facts on a website? ...Well then again, it's not like I know the people who write Britannica or Encarta etc) so whatever I say is quite possibly inaccurate.
---
Priyanka for posting these great YouTube links about quantum physics (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfPeprQ7oGc / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWyTxCsIXE4) - although unlike Genevieve, I think I've been totally spun out by that double slit video - it left my mind reeling, and I loved it!
In further response, I think Priyanka makes a valid point when she writes:
"It is only through the existence of free will that man can be held responsible for his actions, which compliments most religious teachings."
After all, if God was completely in control of the us and the universe, well - where's the purpose in life? I think there's more purpose to life when there is an element of chaos and free will, in comparison to when we have a God who we must follow perfectly and undoubtedly, because then we just become robots - we live a mechanised existence. Trying to push through all the chaos, or making the best use of chaos to make life as vibrant and unexpected as you need it to be, I think that's where the fun and purpose lies. And if you want to believe in God, that's fine too, that's your way of tackling the chaos we live in.
Take for example, Dr. Frankenstein and his creation. Sure, Frankenstein created a (quasi-)human being, but he didn't have complete control over the creature- he had to let it do what it wanted. I think our relation to God is similar; perhaps He doesn't want us to run a-muck (amok?), but if we want to follow Him and praise his Son and His teachings, well, He's not going to stop you.
And the concept of a "caring, loving God", and Ariella's "there are many things which I wonder why He allows" - perhaps He isn't caring or loving in the sense that He strives to protect us from harm. Just to put a different spin on things, maybe He lets us experience war, and terror, and sadness, in order for us to wake up to ourselves, and make us realise how precious life is; for example, who really cares if you're wearing odd socks or if you're having a bad hair day; what's more important is the question- have you done something nice for your family lately?
Rhetorical question of course. What I'm trying to get at, is that maybe He lets us experience the bad times so that we can better appreciate the good times. And to cherish better, the people we grow up with, and learn from, and share joy with. In such a materialistic society/developed world, it's easy to lose focus of what's actually important.
Discussion posts below altered slightly for the purposes of this blog
Ariella posted up on the discussion board, a link about the Red Sea and the contemporary findings via physics - I find it fascinating how people have the ability to create such mathematical equations and formulae to describe or explain something which people previously believed at face value. And to me this is an example of somebody choosing to believe in the miraculous event, then realising they don't have a logic proof that can be presented to the non-believers, so they go about creating the mathematical proofs that say yes, Moses really did part the Red Sea... albeit with the aid of some freak weather conditions.
---
Alex wrote:
"Firstly, everyone knows about the ark of the covenant. Well, the temple of God had three progressively more holy sections, separated by curtains, and if the wrong person were to enter the wrong section, he or she would die."
Firstly, I don't know anything about the Ark of the Covenant, and I think he's being a bit presumptuous in assuming that everybody in this tutorial will have a basic knowledge of the Bible and/or Biblical stories - after all, not everybody is Christian.
Anyways, I did a quick search on Wikipedia* and noted that the Ark was in effect, a big treasure chest of sorts which contained the original 10 Commandments, plus a few other historical mementos - didn't find any further information on the temple and the 3 holy sections within that temple, but will try to keep looking when I have more time :)
*disclaimer: I have difficulty in fully relying on the authority of Wikipedia (I mean, really - random people collaborating facts on a website? ...Well then again, it's not like I know the people who write Britannica or Encarta etc) so whatever I say is quite possibly inaccurate.
---
Priyanka for posting these great YouTube links about quantum physics (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfPeprQ7oGc / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWyTxCsIXE4) - although unlike Genevieve, I think I've been totally spun out by that double slit video - it left my mind reeling, and I loved it!
In further response, I think Priyanka makes a valid point when she writes:
"It is only through the existence of free will that man can be held responsible for his actions, which compliments most religious teachings."
After all, if God was completely in control of the us and the universe, well - where's the purpose in life? I think there's more purpose to life when there is an element of chaos and free will, in comparison to when we have a God who we must follow perfectly and undoubtedly, because then we just become robots - we live a mechanised existence. Trying to push through all the chaos, or making the best use of chaos to make life as vibrant and unexpected as you need it to be, I think that's where the fun and purpose lies. And if you want to believe in God, that's fine too, that's your way of tackling the chaos we live in.
Take for example, Dr. Frankenstein and his creation. Sure, Frankenstein created a (quasi-)human being, but he didn't have complete control over the creature- he had to let it do what it wanted. I think our relation to God is similar; perhaps He doesn't want us to run a-muck (amok?), but if we want to follow Him and praise his Son and His teachings, well, He's not going to stop you.
And the concept of a "caring, loving God", and Ariella's "there are many things which I wonder why He allows" - perhaps He isn't caring or loving in the sense that He strives to protect us from harm. Just to put a different spin on things, maybe He lets us experience war, and terror, and sadness, in order for us to wake up to ourselves, and make us realise how precious life is; for example, who really cares if you're wearing odd socks or if you're having a bad hair day; what's more important is the question- have you done something nice for your family lately?
Rhetorical question of course. What I'm trying to get at, is that maybe He lets us experience the bad times so that we can better appreciate the good times. And to cherish better, the people we grow up with, and learn from, and share joy with. In such a materialistic society/developed world, it's easy to lose focus of what's actually important.
holes in the universe / week 5 discussion post #6
A response to the article "Cosmic Blank Spot Puzzles Astronomers"
While surfing the web for news articles that could relate to my studies, I came across a really interesting article. Here's the first paragraph or two:
"Aug. 24, 2007 — Astronomers have stumbled upon a tremendous hole in the universe. That's got them scratching their heads about what's just not there.
The cosmic blank spot has no stray stars, no galaxies, no sucking black holes, not even mysterious dark matter. It is 1 billion light years across of nothing. That's an expanse of nearly 6 billion trillion miles of emptiness, a University of Minnesota team announced Thursday."
Continuing on the topic of that article, I find it really difficult to comprehend that there is something out there which is actually *nothing*. Because, for example, you have a empty jar, but when you say there's nothing in it, technically that's not true because when you closed the lid on that jar you effectively captured the air, or some carbon dioxide or whatever other gas(es) is floating around in your midst.
But to respond to Nerissa's post:
"If the voids are nothingness, I am assuming that there is no time as well. So ... if the voids are without time, and God is without time, perhaps God exists within the voids?"
Thinking along these lines, and how it's possible that there are these gaps in the universe where time does not exist - does that mean we have the ability to exist in a timeless nothingness, if we can somehow enter these voids without killing ourselves (or whatever it is that happens in space)? And if God exists within the voids as well, then we can literally 'live' with God?
This is probably totally off topic but thought I'd ask the question anyway :)
While surfing the web for news articles that could relate to my studies, I came across a really interesting article. Here's the first paragraph or two:
"Aug. 24, 2007 — Astronomers have stumbled upon a tremendous hole in the universe. That's got them scratching their heads about what's just not there.
The cosmic blank spot has no stray stars, no galaxies, no sucking black holes, not even mysterious dark matter. It is 1 billion light years across of nothing. That's an expanse of nearly 6 billion trillion miles of emptiness, a University of Minnesota team announced Thursday."
Continuing on the topic of that article, I find it really difficult to comprehend that there is something out there which is actually *nothing*. Because, for example, you have a empty jar, but when you say there's nothing in it, technically that's not true because when you closed the lid on that jar you effectively captured the air, or some carbon dioxide or whatever other gas(es) is floating around in your midst.
But to respond to Nerissa's post:
"If the voids are nothingness, I am assuming that there is no time as well. So ... if the voids are without time, and God is without time, perhaps God exists within the voids?"
Thinking along these lines, and how it's possible that there are these gaps in the universe where time does not exist - does that mean we have the ability to exist in a timeless nothingness, if we can somehow enter these voids without killing ourselves (or whatever it is that happens in space)? And if God exists within the voids as well, then we can literally 'live' with God?
This is probably totally off topic but thought I'd ask the question anyway :)
Saturday, September 1, 2007
refreshing conversation
Today I caught up with a mate who lives in Melbourne, and is in Sydney for the weekend - hadn't seen him for about 2 years, so it was really good to catch up and just be able to chat in person. Chocolate overload at Lindt Cafe, a study break in between, and then dinner with him and a few other friends at Pepper Lunch.
Over and after dinner, we had this great conversation about music, and the music industry, and what music used to be and what it has become today. And it was seriously like a breath of fresh air to me.
Some of the things we discussed were:
B4MD
No, this isn't the name of some weird underground band that only 'musos' know and appreciate. However, it IS a DVD that I don't think many people know about. To cut a long story short, it's about the American music industry, and the filmmakers' quest to understand why music has become so commercial now, and the impact that the major record labels and corporations have, the demise of radio, etc etc... the interviews are what makes the film great. My description doesn't do the film any justice whatsoever, I would recommend (especially to all those who consider themselves musicians) that you check out their website - www.b4md.com
Music then and music now
Fitzy and I had a good rant about how music is so produced nowadays. Doesn't matter if you sing off-key, or if you're tone-deaf, the technology available in this day and age can make you sound as good as you want - and you could probably sound like whoever you want as well. If you've got the money, you've got the capabilities to make some really great sounding music. The problem I have with this, is that its so manufactured. Sure, there's nothing wrong with a perfect-sounding album - but you're not gaining much respect from me if you can't deliver the goods live.
Take one, take two, take three, take etc. Compare that to the musicians of yesteryear, e.g the 50s and 60s and even earlier, where they only had the means to perform a single take. So the whole group, the percussionists, the vocalists, the instrumentalists, had to be on the ball. In some cases I'm sure that they only had one recording session as well, so they would have to get all their songs right, in one sitting.
And so what if the track didn't work out to be perfect. So what if you can hear the drummer dropping his drumsticks at 3 mins 35 seconds in the song, or a back-up singer forgets a word in a chorus. It's the little imperfections that make the song and the recording unique! You don't have to get rid of stuff like that.
Fitzy was telling me about a friend of his, who had managed to acquire a copy of Marvin Gaye's recording of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" in its 8-track original - as in, the drums recording, and the vocals recording etc in different 'files', so to speak (I'm pretty poor on the musical terminology). So they were able to muck around with all the different levels and what-not, making the different instruments louder or softer etc.. and at one point his friend pulled down all the tracks except the vocals - and Marvin Gaye is missing lyrics here and there, there's sounds where there shouldn't be any.. what I'm trying to get at here, is that we all know and love Marvin Gaye's music (or at least you should do), and yet here is an example of music that hasn't been produced to the shit. It's a 'raw' recording, in comparison to the polished tunes that we hear today.. and it's great!
That's not all we talked about, but it's what I remember the most. I was learning from these conversations, and slowly taking up a different attitude to music and my own performance habits. Who cares if you make the odd mistake. Don't stress about it, just enjoy the ride, make your next solo even better than the one before. The passion and energy you exude is what makes the audience disregard those mistakes.
Imperfection, improvisation, spontaneity - the beauty and awesomeness of live music.
On a tangent. I also brought up the topic of the Dave Matthews Band (DMB) and their music. If you have a listen to their albums, you'll find that they write some pretty awesome songs. And if you listen to them over and over, sometimes through speakers, sometimes through a good pair of stereo headphones, you'll discover sounds that you hadn't heard in previous listenings. It's because they have so many intricate melodies intertwined throughout their tracks, and it makes for a really interesting and fun set of songs. But how do you write/transpose that kind of stuff to paper? And how do you rehearse the kind of 'extended jam sessions' they have during their live performances? It's absolutely nuts. But DMB has been together for about 15 years now, if not longer.. I guess you fall into a smooth groove, and you know each other so well that the music and its performance becomes second nature.
To digress once again. I discovered this great YouTube video, of the amazing bassist Victor Wooten, performing his own rendition of Amazing Grace (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mx2vuK5pGTg). This guy is as musically insane as Carter Beauford is with his drums.
Over and after dinner, we had this great conversation about music, and the music industry, and what music used to be and what it has become today. And it was seriously like a breath of fresh air to me.
Some of the things we discussed were:
B4MD
No, this isn't the name of some weird underground band that only 'musos' know and appreciate. However, it IS a DVD that I don't think many people know about. To cut a long story short, it's about the American music industry, and the filmmakers' quest to understand why music has become so commercial now, and the impact that the major record labels and corporations have, the demise of radio, etc etc... the interviews are what makes the film great. My description doesn't do the film any justice whatsoever, I would recommend (especially to all those who consider themselves musicians) that you check out their website - www.b4md.com
Music then and music now
Fitzy and I had a good rant about how music is so produced nowadays. Doesn't matter if you sing off-key, or if you're tone-deaf, the technology available in this day and age can make you sound as good as you want - and you could probably sound like whoever you want as well. If you've got the money, you've got the capabilities to make some really great sounding music. The problem I have with this, is that its so manufactured. Sure, there's nothing wrong with a perfect-sounding album - but you're not gaining much respect from me if you can't deliver the goods live.
Take one, take two, take three, take etc. Compare that to the musicians of yesteryear, e.g the 50s and 60s and even earlier, where they only had the means to perform a single take. So the whole group, the percussionists, the vocalists, the instrumentalists, had to be on the ball. In some cases I'm sure that they only had one recording session as well, so they would have to get all their songs right, in one sitting.
And so what if the track didn't work out to be perfect. So what if you can hear the drummer dropping his drumsticks at 3 mins 35 seconds in the song, or a back-up singer forgets a word in a chorus. It's the little imperfections that make the song and the recording unique! You don't have to get rid of stuff like that.
Fitzy was telling me about a friend of his, who had managed to acquire a copy of Marvin Gaye's recording of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" in its 8-track original - as in, the drums recording, and the vocals recording etc in different 'files', so to speak (I'm pretty poor on the musical terminology). So they were able to muck around with all the different levels and what-not, making the different instruments louder or softer etc.. and at one point his friend pulled down all the tracks except the vocals - and Marvin Gaye is missing lyrics here and there, there's sounds where there shouldn't be any.. what I'm trying to get at here, is that we all know and love Marvin Gaye's music (or at least you should do), and yet here is an example of music that hasn't been produced to the shit. It's a 'raw' recording, in comparison to the polished tunes that we hear today.. and it's great!
That's not all we talked about, but it's what I remember the most. I was learning from these conversations, and slowly taking up a different attitude to music and my own performance habits. Who cares if you make the odd mistake. Don't stress about it, just enjoy the ride, make your next solo even better than the one before. The passion and energy you exude is what makes the audience disregard those mistakes.
Imperfection, improvisation, spontaneity - the beauty and awesomeness of live music.
On a tangent. I also brought up the topic of the Dave Matthews Band (DMB) and their music. If you have a listen to their albums, you'll find that they write some pretty awesome songs. And if you listen to them over and over, sometimes through speakers, sometimes through a good pair of stereo headphones, you'll discover sounds that you hadn't heard in previous listenings. It's because they have so many intricate melodies intertwined throughout their tracks, and it makes for a really interesting and fun set of songs. But how do you write/transpose that kind of stuff to paper? And how do you rehearse the kind of 'extended jam sessions' they have during their live performances? It's absolutely nuts. But DMB has been together for about 15 years now, if not longer.. I guess you fall into a smooth groove, and you know each other so well that the music and its performance becomes second nature.
To digress once again. I discovered this great YouTube video, of the amazing bassist Victor Wooten, performing his own rendition of Amazing Grace (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mx2vuK5pGTg). This guy is as musically insane as Carter Beauford is with his drums.
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