In My Mind’s Zen Garden

I am appalled at the recent, significant jump in gas prices! In California, the price of gasoline has risen to more than $4.00 a gallon! Obviously, this affects the price of everything else, your basic means of survival… food, clothing, and shelter.

And yes, I’ve especially noticed the rise in food prices, particularly organic produce. The soaring gas prices especially impact truckers, who transport the food to the marketplaces.

As you may know, I’ve been trying my best to live a more frugal lifestyle. But it looks like I’ll have to try even harder to save a dollar here, a dollar there… Being a working musician is truly a blessing and a unique lifestyle, but I’m not making a six figure salary just yet. So, I’ll need to be more creative with the budget, and keep a close eye on the pocketbook.

I think I’m ready for my “economic stimulus check” now.

Found a cool video of jazz trumpeter Tom Harrell and his quintet, live in Paris, France. Very cool! Love the groove, the vibe and solos.

Tom Harrell usually stands back, away from the microphone with his head down in silence, motionless, when not playing the trumpet at that moment. He suffers from paranoid schizophrenia:

Tom Harrell (born June 16, 1946) is a renowned American post bop jazz trumpeter and composer. However he has a disability which profoundly affects his life away from the stage. He suffers from paranoid schizophrenia. On stage he stands away from the microphone, off to the side, his head bowed and his hands clutching his trumpet. When called upon to play, he walks slowly to the microphone, head still lowered, raising it only to play. When finished, he bows his head and resumes his original place.

He takes antipsychotic drugs for his condition, but has to deal with the side-effects such as weight gain and muscle spasms, depending on which drugs he is taking. Newer drugs appear to control his condition with fewer side effects.

Recently, during Spring Break, my son and I went to the flower fields in Carlsbad. And I took lots of photos. But, I wasn’t happy with them overall. Thinking back, it was midday and the sun was directly above us.

I must remember… never to take photos during midday when the sun is directly overhead.

From my experience, the best times to take photos are early in the morning, or late in the afternoon, or whenever it’s slightly overcast.

Some of the best flower photos I’ve taken were on cloudy days. And some of the best overall photos have been taken in the late afternoons. So, (and I haven’t read any photography books on this lately) my logic tells me that it’s best to take photos when the sun is at a 45 degree angle to the horizon in relationship to the object being photographed. And, anything less than that, as long as there is still sunlight, is ideal.

Of course, this doesn’t apply to underwater photography or night time photography. But, I do know that photos taken in the middle of the day just don’t look as good, unless I use a special filter.

Perhaps, someone more experienced can elaborate on specifics, or suggest ways in which to successfully take photos during midday. For now, I’m going to focus on taking photos in the afternoon and early evening. I seem to have the best success taking photos during this time.

Appetizer
Name something you would categorize as weird.

Anything related to the paranormal I find very weird. And I’ve experienced some pretty weird stuff throughout the years, like the vanishing woman at Starbucks.

Soup
What color was the last piece of food you ate?

Green… I just got back from the sushi bar and the sushi chef was able to make me some raw vegan mixed-vegetable sushi.

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy being alone?

Nowadays, being a dad, a husband, and working musician, I enjoy being alone. I need time alone. So I would have to rate it close to a 9. The other ten percent is when I’m feeling this type of aloneness.

Main Course
Fill in the blank: I will _________ vote for ___________ in _______.

I will NOT vote for A PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE in THE NUDE.

Dessert
Describe your sleeping habits.

My sleeping habits are definitely not consistent. Sometimes I fall asleep late at night while watching a DVD. But most of the time I’m asleep in my bed. Lately, I’ve been sleeping very well… a deep sleep, and typically I don’t dream, unless I have one of these strange dreams. I typically sleep on my right side in a semi-fetal position, and sometimes I need two pillows to support my head.

[ link via Raw Food Chat ]

This person does a good job of explaining the protein myth.

Enzymes are biomolecules that catalyze (i.e. increase the rates of) chemical reactions. Almost all enzymes are proteins.
—from Wikipedia.org

For the raw vegan, s/he can get an abundance of enzymes from fresh fruits and vegetables. And coincidentally, almost all enzymes are proteins. In addition, amino acids can be found in virtually all foods, and are the “building blocks” of protein.

The ultimate fringe food culture sexes it up for the mainstream…
—from Raw Food Chat

Earlier this morning I had an epiphany about Whole Foods, that hip, expensive place that’s pretty much the ONLY supermarket where I can buy organic, raw vegan foods in mass quantities.

Yes, I think its time has come, that the Raw Food Movement is ready for the mainstream.

Not Just A Fringe Group Anymore

Formerly a “fringe” group of vegans intent on going that additional step toward a 100% raw food diet, raw foodists (or raw vegans) are beginning to benefit as large health food companies like Whole Foods is really beginning to embrace the whole raw food movement completely.

I recently have been able to buy organic raw vegan meals at Whole Foods. Mainly courtesy of Leaf Cuisine. And, being a raw vegan who’s been having trouble creating my own raw gourmet dinners at home, it’s a blessing that now Whole Foods offers a more complete experience for the raw vegan, and not just organic fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds.

Leaf Cuisine Does Good

Leaf Cuisine seems to be the main supplier of organic raw vegan meals, averaging between $5 to $10 per entree. Available meals include: Raw Vegan Pad Thai, Rawsagna (yes, a raw version of Lasagna!), Bombay Burrito, Veggie Sun Burger with Salsa, and Falafels with Tahini Sauce… all raw, vegan (vegetarian with no animal products), and 100% certified organic!

Raw Caesar’s Salad Dressing

One item that’s a “godsend” for raw vegans is Leaf Cuisine’s raw caesar salad dressing! I’ve tried it and it’s delicious, though it doesn’t really taste like traditional caesar salad dressing with the anchovies of course. I mean, where else can one get a raw vegan caesar’s salad dressing that’s certified organic?

Availability Of Raw Vegan Meals on the Rise

Anyway, knowing that there is a growing availability of raw food meals out there is very reassuring for someone like myself who’s been struggling with creating my own gourmet meals at home. Of course, nothing wrong with the big hearty garden salad. You can always add whatever raw ingredients you’re in the mood for at the moment. But it’s good to know there are more choices out there.

[ This post is my contribution to RBJ's April Collaboration Project... in connection with Earth Day ]

Question: In this modern age where practically everyone (even in the poorest third world countries) owns a cellphone… do YOU still own a “land line”?

I’ve been asking various people I know, and I’m finding out that more and more people are ditching their land lines because of the redundancy of owning both a standard “land line” phone and a cellphone. Added to this, the fact that in many families like my own, everyone has a cellphone. My two boys, ages 15 and 19, have their own cellphones.

So, if my wife, my two boys and I all have cellphones, what’s the point in owning the land line?

And, with more options out there such as email, instant messaging, and texting, it just makes it more and more obsolete to have the old land line. In addition, I’m slow with this, but more people are opting to communicate with phones via the internet. Granted, I’m a bit slow getting into this possibility, but I am now doing all my research and am intent on investigating all the possibilities in saving on my overall phone expenses.

Just the other day, I found out that my youngest son had been texting way more than usual, and a couple of months ago he racked up $50 of text messages alone. That’s like, a dozen Venti Lattes at your local Starbucks, but still, money is money and it’s important (with the gasoline prices now around $4.00 per gallon and more) to save as much of that money as possible.

Anyway, one of my current goals is to explore all avenues of communication and come up with ways to save money and adopt ways to communicate better and more efficiently with my family and friends. So, if you have any thoughts and ideas, or ways in which you better communicate with your friends and family, while saving money, please let me know….

Yes, folks! Today has been designated as Earth Day, so in celebration of our beloved Earth I’ll share some links commemorating this day:

The Official Earth Day Network

Earth Day on Wikipedia.org

Ten Things You Can Do This Earth Day

The History of Earth Day

The Official Site of International Earth Day

How To Celebrate Earth Day

Earth Day Contest on YouTube (sponsored by Whole Foods)

Happy Earth Day!!!

The Mexican migratory worker…

The Mexican migratory worker in southwest America is regarded as a necessary part of the bustling harvest season. The need of U.S. employers to import foreign manual labor was heightened first by the expansion of cattle ranches in the Southwest, and by the increase of fruit production in California in 1850 and 1880.

Before Mexican workers supported American agriculture, it was the Chinese who filled the labor hole. Nearly 200,000 Chinese were legally contracted to cultivate California fields, until the Chinese Exclusion Act. Then it was the Japanese who replaced the Chinese as field hands.

There has always been a need for foreign workers here in America, thus the whole concept of immigration… America has need workers at all levels of society.

“We don’t need 5,000 more illiterate peasants in the state of Colorado,” Rep. Doug Bruce, R-Colorado Springs.

This bit of news kind of struck me with sadness. I mean, Mexican laborers and farmworkers may be poor and do menial labor, but they are hardworkers and are a vital part of society. Their work, however humble is just as important in society as highly skilled, wealthier workers. Maybe in the literal sense he is correct though not ‘politically correct’, but his even trying to justify he is right just kind of struck a wrong chord with me.

Here’s the video.

Lawmaker Calls Mexican Farmworkers ‘Illiterate Peasants’

A Colorado legislator who was censured for kicking a newspaper photographer in January was booted from the podium today after he called Mexican farmworkers “illiterate peasants.”

Republican Rep. Douglas Bruce’s remark, which drew gasps from the House, came during debate on legislation to help immigrants get temporary federal visas to ease Colorado’s shortage of farmworkers.

“I would like to have the opportunity to state at the microphone why I don’t think we need 5,000 more illiterate peasants in Colorado,” said Bruce, who represents Colorado Springs.

“How dare you!” snapped Democratic Rep. Kathleen Curry, who as debate chairwoman ended Bruce’s privilege to speak.

Legislative leaders are deciding what to do next. They could open a formal ethics complaint and hearing, which could lead to suspension, censure or expulsion.

Bruce defended his remarks afterward:

“I looked up ‘illiterate’ in the dictionary and it means somebody who is lacking in formal education or is unable to read and write. I don’t think these people who are planning to come over here and pick potatoes or peaches are likely to have much of a formal education. I looked up the word ‘peasant.’ The word ‘peasant’ means a person who works in agricultural fields.

“These people, most of them, don’t speak English. Most of them haven’t had any formal education, that’s why they’re coming over here. I don’t blame them for trying, but I don’t think we should pave the way for more aliens to come here.”

I just think that even unskilled, illiterate workers (whoever they may be) are an important part of country because they are willing to do the kind of work the typical American won’t do. And for that they deserve their dignity and respect. Calling them “illiterate peasants” might be correct but it isn’t “right”. It just feels more condescending to call them “illiterate peasants” (as if those who call them that sit high on their pedestals).

And to continue the idea of a landlord versus peasantry type of society would simply place us back in the dark ages. Perhaps we are still in the dark ages… many of us are kept in the dark concerning a lot of things…

Everyone deserves their dignity and respect.

After several attempts at writing a new and meaningful entry, I opted to do last Friday’s Feast. Thank God for that in helping to prevent writer’s block. So here goes…

Appetizer
Name a color you find soothing.

I find certain ‘greens’ extremely soothing because of it’s connection to nature… like forest green, or lawn green. But it would have to be a lush sort of green.

Soup
Using 20 or less words, describe your first driving experience.

First driving experience? Was both exhilarating and terrifying. But technically easy, since I learned on a car with automatic transmission.

Salad
What material is your favorite item of clothing made out of?

Cotton - the fabric of our lives, right? My favorite item of clothing is my Indian-style drawstring pants. Very comfortable!

Main Course
Who is a great singer or musician who, if they were to come to your town for a concert, you would spend the night outside waiting for tickets to see?

Hmm… tough one! Nowadays I’d be rather lazy to camp out overnight for concert tickets… but if I did it would have to be… Keith Jarrett performing once again at the Opera House in Koln, Germany! That would be worth camping out for.

Dessert
What is the most frequent letter of the alphabet in your whole name (first, middle, maiden, last, etc.)?

Carlos Belmonte Rull, Jr. - It looks like the L’s have it!

I would never in a million years do what this lady had done… airing out her “dirty laundry” like that. Do that in private please… this all could backfire, y’know? Anyway, I wish her luck and hope she gets a good settlement…

A while back I posted an article entitled Boosting Your Energy Level With Smaller Meals.

I still stand by that bit of advice. I firmly believe that overloading the body with one huge meal is very detrimental to one’s overall energy level. It causes all the body’s energy to be drawn toward the digestive system in order to handle the overload. Not only that, overeating at any given meal is just hard on the body, period. One might feel in “food coma” heaven, but it doesn’t really help maintain a higher energy level for performance and efficiency.

Raw Foods and Performance

But let’s talk about the relationship of energy level and what goes into our body that can help boost that energy level. I believe raw foods is a way to improve one’s energy level and performance.

Caffeine and Sugar versus Raw Foods

By performance, I mean everyday activity and how one is generally feeling minute-by-minute. Usually, foods and beverages that contain sugar and caffeine can boost energy levels for a brief time. But then, as everyone knows, the body “crashes” and we lose that energy and drive, so we try to re-energize with another dose of sugar and/or caffeine.

Raw Foods are Easier To Digest

Raw foods contain live enzymes that aid the body in digestion and other internal processes, and because raw foods are in their raw, original state, they are very easily digestible, and thus the body doesn’t have to spend too much of its own energy in digesting the food eaten.

Better Nutrition To Calorie Ratio

Another value of raw foods is that generally they are packed with more nutrition than cooked foods. And when one primarily eats a raw food diet, this pretty much doesn’t include all the junk food and fast food that’s readily available out there, and which is not healthy for the body. Junk food and fast food also contain lots of empty calories, less nutritional value, and also contains additives, preservatives, residual pesticides, etc, etc… that the body doesn’t need.

Raw Vegetable Juices For More Energy

In my own experiments with raw foods, I’ve found that I get the most energy when juicing vegetables like carrots, cucumbers and celery. In fact, any kind of raw vegetable juice is ideal for boosting energy levels consistently. And trust me, being a 50 year old drummer, I need the same energy level I had when I was a 20 years old in order to maintain the same level of drumming at 50. And to be perfectly honest, I am a better, more energetic drummer now than I was back then. I just had youth on my side at 20.

What To Eat On A Raw Food Diet

So, what foods does one eat while on a raw food diet?

In Summary

I could go into another article about the benefits of raw juices. But, just to share with you some favorites for boosting energy levels, I like to juice watermelons, carrots, cucumbers, and celery. And beet juice is quite good too.

After about a week on a mostly raw foods diet, you’ll notice a dramatic increase in your energy level. And it won’t be a quick, fleeting boost like what coffee or tea can give you… it’ll be a dramatic, constant energy boost that can carry you for the remainder of the day. So, if you’re interested in experimenting with a raw foods diet to give you more energy for performance, try it for a week and see what it can do.

I’ve recently enabled the display of gravatars on my blog…

So, I am encouraging everyone to create their own “gravatar” at gravatar.com. And, I think it would just be “spiffy”, don’t you agree?

In today’s blogging world, having a universally recognized image of yourself (or some graphic that represents who you are) is nice to have. Especially whenever you comment on people’s blogs, your gravatar will be displayed, providing the blogger has the proper code set-up.

So, what is a Gravatar?

A gravatar, or globally recognized avatar, is quite simply an avatar image that follows you from weblog to weblog appearing beside your name when you comment on gravatar enabled sites. Avatars help identify your posts on web forums, so why not on weblogs?

I realize that any time is a good time for thinking about one’s finances. And believe me, I’m the last person on Earth to think about that. I am no financial wizard…

But… I need to get my act together so to speak…

and building my first budget is a good start!

More great articles:
How To Build Your First Budget
How Budgeting Can Improve Your Life
How To Budget Effectively
A Simple Budget Spreadsheet

So, a few days ago I got one of those emails that says someone is now following me on Twitter.com.

Well, it turned out to be the famous author of The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho. And, I had to check his blog and sure enough it actually was Paulo Coelho. I am now honored! And have since reciprocated by following him. Thank you, Paulo!

Hi, Randomguru.

Paulo Coelho (paulocoelho) is now following your updates on Twitter.

Check out Paulo Coelho’s profile here:

http://twitter.com/paulocoelho

You may follow Paulo Coelho as well by clicking on the “follow” button.

Best,
Twitter

Okay, let’s set the way-back machine to 1993, and explore a new thing call “Internet”. Haha… we’ve come such a long way since then, watching this is soooooooooo funny! :o)

A Network called “Internet”.

Punctuation marks that look like smiley faces express happiness on a new communication tool known as “Internet.”

Just stumbled upon this, and I really think this is quite creative and cool…

New Online Stores Added!

Recently, I added a couple of online stores to my site. This is through the Amazon.com Associates program. Basically, you can add an aStore (your very own store at Amazon.com) and mine’s here. But, what’s even more cool is the fact that you can insert your store “inline” into your blog. I’ve created two so far:

1. Recommended Products
2. Randomguru’s Jazz Store

Recommended Products

This is my main online store, and I’ll be featuring all kinds of stuff from CDs to DVDs to books and electronics… I add new products individually here, so whenever I come across a cool new gadget, a great book, or a new DVD, I’ll be sure to add it to the store.

Randomguru’s Jazz Store

This special store features the latest and best-selling Jazz music… Full Spectrum Jazz, so it’ll always show the top Jazz Music from smooth jazz to bebop to big band. All the latest, top-selling Jazz will be featured.

. . . .

Between Nothingness and Eternity

Well, back to the main topic of this post…

The Mahavishnu Orchestra - Between Nothingness and Eternity

This is a “LIVE” performance recorded in Central Park NYC, way back in 1973 when the Jazz-Fusion movement was bursting onto the music scene. Guitar virtuoso and bandleader John McLaughlin was simply amazing with his double-neck guitar, and dressed all in white (he was a devotee of Indian guru Sri Chinmoy).

From Wikipedia.org:

John McLaughlin “is regarded by many as one of the most influential and technically gifted guitarists of all time, having mastered a remarkable range of styles and genres, including jazz, Indian classical music, and fusion. He has also incorporated aspects of Flamenco music in some of his acoustic periods.”

I would give this album 5 stars if it weren’t for some sonic issues with this live recording. But, recording limitations aside, the energy and virtuosity of the musicians surely makes up for that. I won’t go any further because I reviewed this album before on my old blog over here.

It was re-mixed and re-mastered so the recording is a better improvement over the original vinyl version as I remember… the miracle of modern technology.

The Mahavishnu Orchestra was one of my favorite jazz-fusion groups… probably the best, fastest, loudest, and most technically brilliant of all the jazz-fusion groups of 1970’s… and drummer Billy Cobham was simply amazing… the odd meters played in ultra-fast pace were mind-boggling… one odd meter time signature seemed to appear to be in 15/8…

…15 eight note beats per measure played at a mind-boggling tempo, with the musicians playing fast sixteenth and thirty-second note triplet and quadruplet “flourishes” over this time signature with uncanny accuracy…

I remember thinking the album was a disappointment at first because it just sounded like glorified noise… garbage… then one night I had the time to spend on listening to it and gave it another try… with headphones.

I then realized that they were highly sophisticated and astonishingly accomplished at what they were doing, once you got past the noise and volume!

Incredible music… and today I feel it is even more of a masterpiece than back when I first realized it was so, years ago.

If you are a Jazz fan, or have an appreciation for the history of the Jazz-Fusion movement of the 70’s, then this album is a must-have! Buy this CD now from Amazon.com!

This is a wonderful homemade video documentary of the Barstow Family’s dream trip to Disneyland in 1956, won by entering a nationwide Scotch Tape contest. Ah, the good ‘ol days! Reminds me of my childhood, watching homemade movies with the family’s 8mm film projector!

[ Link courtesy of BoingBoing.net ]

This is cool… :o)

BoingBoing.net has a lot of video, news and more links on the Tibet Uprising.

Athletes Taking A Stand For Tibet Will Be Expelled From The Olympics?

Athletes who display Tibetan flags at Olympic venues — including in their own rooms — could be expelled from this summer’s Games in Beijing under anti-propaganda rules.

Here’s an interesting fact:

In 1980 62 countries – the biggest number in history – boycotted the Moscow Games in protest against the intervention of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan

Will history repeat itself?

From The Olympic Charter…

The question of what will constitute propaganda when the Games are on in August and what will be considered opinion under IOC rules is one vexing many in the Olympic movement. The Olympic Charter bans any kind of “demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda” in any Olympic venue or area.

This includes the opening and closing ceremonies, the medal podiums and the Athletes’ Village.

What this means is… if anyone is going to demonstrate and protest, now is the time to do it, as even the Olympic Charter prohibits any kind of demonstration, whether political, religious or racial.

Well, I hope the Tibetans will at least be able to fly their flag!

I was wondering about this the other day, then found this video on YouTube. Very interesting:

Forgive me, readers… for being so vocal about Tibet’s situation. But I confess that my heart is deeply embedded in this matter. In fact, if you’ve known me long I’ve always been an avid supporter for a “Free Tibet” and wish for their independence from China.

Dalai Lama: No one can tell protesters to ’shut up’

Kill Them With Kindness

I’ve also been an admirer of the Dalai Lama and his teachings of compassion, his call for world peace, and non-violence.

China is spreading propaganda and lies that the Dalai Lama has been the mastermind behind violent protests in Tibet and around the world. The fact is, he’s always promoted world peace and non-violent resolutions, and has even won the Noble Peace Prize for his efforts in promoting world peace.

It is understandably the Dalai Lama’s nature to speak of peace, compassion and good will toward others. And the freedom to express and protest when it is necessary. Any actions by any violent protestors are actions not supported by the Dalai Lama.

China’s Acts of Suppression, Propaganda and Oppression

Another fact is that China has been suppressing news of the protests from the outside world. They have been the ones “crushing” the protests in a violent way, and spreading lies that the opposite is actually happening.

Read: China Regime Implicated in Staging Violence in Tibet Protest (photo)

Given China’s reputation for censorship and suppression, it’s obvious that China is going out of its way and to great lengths to silence the protests and to post propaganda to confuse and/or steer people away from the truth.

Another problem is that Western countries and corporations have a LOT invested in the upcoming Summer Olympics in Beijing. Big companies like Sony, McDonalds Corporation, etc. have their hands economically tied behind their backs. On personal levels, the athletes themselves (who have trained to compete and to win gold) want to be a part of the Games and not have to back out because their country has decided to Boycott.

The Dalai Lama Has Always Supported The Olympics

The Dalai Lama has said that he supports the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

The Dalai Lama said he supports China’s hosting of the Summer Olympics on Thursday, but insisted that nobody had the right to tell protesters demanding freedom for Tibet “to shut up.”

“We are not anti-Chinese. Right from the beginning, we supported the Olympic games,” he told reporters outside Tokyo on a stopover on a trip to Seattle. “I really feel very sad the government demonizes me. I am just a human, I am not a demon.”

But it’s the protestors worldwide who are calling for a boycott of the Olympics in Beijing.

Remembering Tiananmen Square

The ruling Communist Party in China may have the power and military might to silence the protests, and to keep the media out of Tibet. They have tried to do something similar before with the Massacre at Tiananmen Square. But, as always happens, the truth always comes out.

The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, widely known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, in China referred to as the June Fourth Incident to avoid confusion with the two other Tiananmen Square protests and as an act of official censorship, were a series of demonstrations led by labor activists, students, and intellectuals in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) between April 15 and June 4, 1989. While the protests lacked a unified cause or leadership, participants were generally against the authoritarianism and economic policies of the ruling Chinese Communist Party and voiced calls for democratic reform within the structure of the government. The demonstrations centered on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, but large-scale protests also occurred in cities throughout China, including Shanghai, which stayed peaceful throughout the protests. In Beijing, the resulting military crackdown on the protesters by the PRC government left many civilians dead or injured. The reported tolls ranged from 200–300 (PRC government figures), to 400–800 (The New York Times), and to 2,000–3,000 (Chinese student associations and Chinese Red Cross).

Silly me, I wrote to my congressman this morning about the whole Tibet and China issue. What good will that do? I don’t know, but I haven’t been able to go out and protest, so I had to do something.

You too can write to your congressman.

Tell them anything that bugs you! Here’s the letter I sent. And I plan to write another, better written letter. This was just a quick one:

Please… I humbly beg you to use your influence in our government to voice American opposition to the crisis in Tibet, and the cruel and unjust actions of the Chinese government.

I believe that to simply ignore Tibet’s request for independence, and their wish to freely practice their religion and culture, is an important one. And the United States goes out of its way worldwide to help those countries that need help as far as basic human rights are concerned.

In this modern age we are a global community, and we are affected by events that may shape our lives on a global scale. Human Rights, the ability to practice one’s culture and religion and personal philosophies are everyone’s God-given right.

Surely, if the Chinese government wins here because of its economic power and military might, then globally, we have lost the battle.

Hopefully, something can be done or said on our side to help sway the tide in Tibet’s favor and help win its independence, just like other countries in the past have won their independence, like India from the United Kingdom, and the Philippines from Spain and the United States.

Sincerely,
Carlos Rull

Doing a search on YouTube.com with the words “Free Tibet”, I come upon many videos that feature Communist propaganda against Tibet. This angers me greatly. It is apparent that thousands of new accounts have suddenly been created that are spewing a lot of Communist propaganda against Tibet and its people.

YouTube has been hacked! YouTube has been compromised!

It proves that the struggle for human rights and the truth is very real! God bless Tibet and its people!

Today the Olympic Torch passes through the only American city on its route toward Beijing, in San Francisco.

Already there has been much protest against the atrocities committed by the Chinese Government against Tibet and its People:

Protesters Gather For Shortened Olympic Torch Relay

San Francisco: Olympic Torch Draws Protests

Tibet Omitted From Olympic Declaration

China has been claiming for decades that Tibet has always been part of China. Tibetan Buddhists, Monks and Nuns are forbidden to mention the Dalai Lama, or acknowledge him. And religious practice is outlawed in Chinese occupied Tibet. And for decades Tibetans (especially monks and nuns) have been arrested and tortured. The powerful might of the Chinese military and now, the Chinese ecomomy is just becoming too powerful for its own good. And what are we to do?

Many are protesting on Tibet’s behalf. The Dalai Lama is accused by the Chinese Government for instigating all the violent protests and demonstrations. Even powerful Internet giants such as Yahoo and Google are somewhat powerless to China, agreeing to censor certain websites within China and trying to control the information.

Does the evil Galactic Empire from Star Wars come to mind?

The Chinese Government’s bullying of Tibet, amidst its ever continuing growth as an economic superpower, and now host of the coming Summer Olympics in Beijing, is a perfect example of how evil they are. They seem to gloat at all this, despite protests from around the world.

Human Rights… a serious issue, doesn’t seem to matter to the Chinese Government, nor to all those countries and corporations who are courting China’s economy for their own profits and interests.

Meanwhile, the Tibetan people are slowing being abolished; their religion and culture threatened to extinction as the power of China continues to bite down hard on the heart and soul of Tibet. Llasa is looked at as a novelty tourist attraction by the Chinese, as more Chinese come, as more bars and brothels take the place of Buddhist temples and monasteries.

It would seem that all is hopeless for Tibet. They are powerless to fight back against the Chinese Military, and most Tibetans are Buddhists who practice non-violence, compassion, and peaceful resolve. With the passing of the Olympic Torch through Tibet itself, it is like a dagger going through its heart at the hand of the Chinese Government.

But many people around the world are protesting… because they know that Human Rights violations should not be tolerated. If this is one example of how a powerful oppresive communist government can intimidate and trample on the human rights of others, then, this is something that one day might happen to us. And the logical thing to do is to protest, and to show the world that these kinds of actions will not be tolerated by the citizens of the world.

Somehow, we must protest and fight back!

If you have a pro account at Flickr.com, you can now upload video clips to your account! The news here.

Video! Video! Video! The rumours are true and “soon” is now. We’re thrilled to introduce video on Flickr. If you’re a pro member, you can now share videos up to 90 glorious seconds in your photostream.

90 seconds? While this might seem like an arbitrary limit, we thought long and hard about how video would complement the flickrverse. If you’ve memorized the Community Guidelines, you know that Flickr is all about sharing photos that you yourself have taken. Video will be no different and so what quickly bubbled up was the idea of “long photos,” of capturing slices of life to share.

Personally, I’m not really set up to begin uploading video clips. But that may change soon…

This month, since my wife and I can’t fly to New York City to attend the Met’s production of Puccini’s La Boheme, we’re going to see (instead) the San Diego Opera’s production of Aida by Giuseppe Verdi.

We’ve seen Aida before and my wife loves this opera. And being that our anniversary is coming up this month, this will be a good anniversary gift. If you’re in the San Diego area check out this great San Diego Opera production, and support the arts!

Aida Has It All

AIDA has it all—treachery, love, power, jealousy, betrayal and death. A Verdi classic! She’s an Ethiopian slave and he’s an officer in the Egyptian army. Though their countries are at war, they secretly fall in love and he betrays his homeland. He’s captured, tried and condemned, but the passion they share can be extinguished only by death as the lovers are entombed alive, together for eternity.

Elton John and Tim Rice have also created Aida: The Musical. I’d love to see that one too, but for now it’s the classic opera by Verdi.

My Gig With Ian Campbell

Though I’m not an opera singer or working in the orchestra pit, I have gigged with San Diego Opera director Ian Campbell. Actually, he sat in to do a couple of numbers at this big charity gala event, and I remember he sang, I’ve Got You Under My Skin. He’s a cool guy, friendly and charismatic. I didn’t know he’d been director of the San Diego Opera for that long… wow.

Ian Campbell has been the General Director and Artistic Director of San Diego Opera since 1983. Campbell was born in Australia, and is a graduate of the University of Sydney. He also holds the two designations of Fellow, and Certified Professional Manager, from the Australian Institute of Management.

Nathan sent me this video, and this solo performance of “Caravan” is amazing!

Being mostly a Keith Jarrett fan, I often neglect other great jazz pianists. And I’ve known about Michel Petrucciani. I just never really got into his music until now. Great stuff. His solo piano performance of “Caravan” is full of virtuosity and power. For a little guy, he’s definitely getting a “big” sound out of the piano. His technique is right-on-the-money. And I love the part where he just uses his right hand to solo through the changes while resting his left arm on the piano. I really need to learn this song on the piano. Don’t know why I never learned it. It’s part of the standard jazz repertoire.

I’m way late on doing this, but I can’t think of anything else to write right now, so… Better late than never!

Appetizer
Invent a new flower; give it a name and describe it.

Coca cola flower. It would be red and white like all the logos. And it would have a scent reminiscent of Coke. It’s flowers would be shaped like an upside-down Coca cola bottle? Well, maybe…

Soup
Name someone whom you think has a wonderful voice.

I always thought Charlton Heston had a great voice. Heroic, charismatic… and I guess that’s why he portrayed so many heroic characters… Ben Hur, Moses… Today I just found out he’d passed away. And he’d been an all-time favorite actor of mine since childhood. Rest in Peace, Ben Hur.

Salad
On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being highest, how clean do you keep your car?

5! I’m really bad about keeping my car clean, period. This is something I’ve always needed to improve on.

Main Course
How do you feel about poetry?

Love it! I love to write poetry and prose, although I haven’t been very prolific lately. But I’ve written many poems throughout my lifetime.

Dessert
What was the last person/place/thing you took a picture of?

Some flowers in the backyard.

With all the things that have been going on in my life right now, it felt good to just do some simple chores around the house.

There’s something about mowing the lawn and doing some gardening that calms me down. It IS a form of meditation that was much needed.

Caregiving for the terminally ill patient who was staying with us was very hard. It was an around-the-clock sort of thing. I had to adjust my schedule. And I couldn’t do all the things I usually do.

On friday, the day after the patient left to go home to the Philippines, I was utterly exhausted. I slept in and was pretty much catatonic for most of the day. Though, the following day I had to put things back in order around the house. My sister-in-law didn’t want her bed back, so I was stuck with having to get rid of a bed I didn’t want. This frustrated me further, because it’s not my bed. It should’ve been her responsibility to get rid of the bed. It’s hers. But, I just put the bed outside in the front yard with a sign that said “FREE”. And soon enough, some Mexican laborers rang my doorbell and asked for it politely. I was glad and said, “sure!” And they loaded the bed on their truck and drove off.

Today, I was trying to take it easy. But, I needed to work on my much neglected garden, and mow the lawn and do other things in the yard. There is so much work to do now. I need to take it a step at a time. This is my workout. This is my meditation. And for now I embrace it.

My wife is in the Philippines right now and things are definitely not the same without her.

I miss her…

Wow! With the webhost moving me to a new server, and me uploading the new Wordpress 2.5… I’m having tons of problems that I can’t quite figure out!

Okay. I’ve had to revert back to an older, cleaner wordpress theme… until all the problems get weeded out.

Update: Eliminating some or all of the plugins gets rid of some of the problems. So, many of my plugins simply aren’t compatible with Wordpress 2.5… drag.

I just upgraded to the newest version of Wordpress, and I had some problems because conflicting plugins. And my problems were compounded because of the move to the new server.

So, please forgive the dust, as I try to patch things up around here…