Technology. And King Solomon's Mines.

Technology. I suppose it will be a couple of generations before mature citizens are intuitively comfortable with both the advantages and mastering smartphones, cloud-based capabilities, mobile computing, big data, blogging, and social media. And by the time these generations are mature adults they will be living in a world of other new technological innovation.

Technology. It can be the bane of our lives - and yet it can be an indispensable part of our lives - and for some, even life itself.

I read quite some time ago that there is now a large group of youngsters who consider that home is where their phone is. And while I'm not entirely sure about the precise meaning of this phrase it suggests that for some, as long as they have their smartphone, they have what they consider to be their life, their place in the world, their unique social circle, and their preferred tool for connecting with 'the world'. It's an interesting, if perhaps scary thought, are we really now comfortable with being so transient? For a long time it was said that an Englishman's home, and in this tiresome, politically correct world I suppose I should say it's probable that the same is true for English women, was his/her castle, by which we meant refuge, protection; the place to which they retreated. It seems possible that now a smartphone for some serves the same purpose.

My life is greatly shaped, and eased, by technology. I can write anywhere at any time and know that what I have written is accessible to me on my laptop, my smartphone, and my slender book-sized tablet; and this accessibility is also true of my own library, millions of published books and magazines, news, and the entire Internet for research, entertainment and much more.

I take a picture of an exotic tropic blossom and it can be with a friend in a microsecond, as I walk I can dictate thoughts for later recall, if I really wanted to destroy my day I could contact my government, I can email friend or foe, I can record my expenses, I can message my doctor, I can identify a song I hear, check my spelling, thoroughly research any subject, modify a photograph, listen to my favourite music, relax along with a meditation program, and even check my daily bio-rhythems.

What about King Solomon's Mines then? Well again it's a pleasure that has come my way because of how I now read. I have always loved books but having lived in two countries now for ten years heavy and voluminous paper books are no longer practical and so my entire library is stored in the cloud, and many of the same books also reside on my tablet and smartphone - these books are with me wherever I go.

I have discovered that many out of copyright books are now available for free, or near-free, from many sources including the ubiquitous Amazon.

If you love adventure stories, the kind that were the inspiration for Indiana Jones, then you should read the stories of H Rider Haggard whose most famous literary work is King Solomon's Mines. Fierce natives, big game hunting, mysterious caves, long dead royalty and witches - and that's just the first chapter. Old fashioned? I suppose so. But if from your armchair, or your back verandah, or from under a palm you want the whiff of the wild, if you want to hear the roar of lions or a giant waterfall, the sigh of the wind across a desert, or imagine diamonds cascading through your fingers then let technology put these experiences within your grasp.

Imagine. 67 works of classic fiction, in one volume; perhaps hundreds of hours of exciting reading.

Mastering technology. It's the closest we'll ever get to sailing for new worlds. And we can do it without stepping outside our home.

Toolkit.

http://www.amazon.com/Complete-H-Rider-Haggard-Anthology-ebook/dp/B00H5A9QUI/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1417302940&sr=1-1&keywords=rider+haggard

Maybe you think your parasailing days are over?

It's so easy to get bogged down in reality - or at least what we consider reality. Sometimes reality is just another word for being lost.

The other day, in the late afternoon, I was walking along the beach when I was passed by the final parasailing sortie of the day on it's way to a beach landing - or perhaps a 'splash-down'.

I got to thinking how interesting the view would be from up there; for example, I could see over the headland that I have never bothered to explore; I could clearly see the relationship between beach and township; I could get a much closer look at the small island on the horizon that fascinates me; and I could get a very different view of the Big Buddha perched on the crest of the range.

Getting a broader view, a less detailed view, can sometimes help a great deal when thinking about life; well it helps me anyway.

For some years I flew light aircraft and during my early navigation exercises, over some of Australia's most remote regions, my instructor hammered the message: when lost climb higher because the wider the view the better able the pilot is to visually fix their location in relation to their map; at 10,000 feet it's much easier than when down in the valley.

So when confronted with making decisions about what to do, or not do, I often try to eliminate the detail, the minutia of every minute living, and try to see the wider horizons; I try to climb higher above the hilltops; I try to get a wider picture. Sometimes knowing what's around the headland can make a big difference to a decision that I am making.

Maybe you think that your parasailing days are over? Even so, don't give up taking a wider view of your landscape.

"As the shadow follows the body, as we think we become."

There are issues raised by this quote. One issue is whether we want our shadow to follow our body; alas we have no choice. But I'd like to be on record as saying I'd prefer a slimmer shadow - which is, I suppose, one of the reasons I try to walk the beach at least once each day.

In the Dhammapada, the collected teachings of the Buddha, the scribes wrote: "The thought manifests the word; the word manifests the deed; the deed develops into habit; and habit hardens into character. As the shadow follows the body, as we think we become."

As I stroll the beach it's hard for me not to see my shadow and it causes me to I recall these words: As the shadow follows the body, as we think we become."

As we think, we become.

That's pretty scary when I think about my thinking.

I think about how I dislike certain people. I think about how unfair the world is. I think about people that have cheated me and now they have more money, bigger houses, better cars. I think about the stupidity that now passes for corporate behaviour. I think about hypocritical politicians. I think about the  imposition that terrorists now impose on me and my life. I think about future difficulties - even though they may never materialise.

I think about bad stuff. Stuff that makes me angry, resentful, frustrated and bitter. And this will become, or worse may have already become, my character.

Imagine if I spent more time thinking about good stuff. The warm breeze on the beach. Being on a beautiful beach. My eyesight which still allows me to enjoy the colours of my world and the words of storytellers. My hearing that still functions enough so that I can hear my favourite Fleetwood Mac songs - and all the other 'sixties' and 'seventies' music which form the soundtrack of my younger years. My sense of taste and smell that put me in touch with my chosen home. My memories to which I add great experiences daily. My vigour that powers me. 

If I spent more time thinking about good stuff - the stuff that I love, enjoy and embrace - then Buddha's teaching suggest that I will become a happier person, a more fulfilled parson, a person more in love with life - and myself. That's the character I'd rather be.

I check my shadow on the beach daily.

Have you checked yours recently?

Arriving at old age is like arriving at a strange country.

 

I've been sailing along and now, suddenly it often seems, I have arrived on expected, and yet unfamiliar shores.

 

Arriving at old age is like arriving at a strange country.

 

The journey has been interesting, and the signposts along the way have announced the destination. But I'm surprised now I am here. And I don't know what the main attractions of this destination are. In fact whether there are attractions or not depends - - on our state of mind.

 

What is there to see? Where can I go? What is there to do?

 

Well, I've discovered there's little difference to my choices of 10 or 20 years ago.

 

There is still plenty to see; there may be some differences in the looking - for example it's likely that I have to decide to go looking rather than sink down into that comfy chair. I perhaps have to be more determined. And perhaps I find myself looking is different places, for example I am enjoying discovering previously unexplored land- and mind-scapes; I am unearthing new perspectives of past recollections; I continue to learn - but often it's knowledge of a new, or different, kind. And the Internet can be like a magic carpet - it can whisk us to faraway place in the tap of a key or the motion of a wrist.

 

And where can I go? Easy. Anywhere. Certainly mobility may have some influence on our wanderings - but whether we are travelling physically, or whether we are more often an armchair traveller,  we are free to travel - mores than perhaps ever before. In fact those of us that travel mostly in our armchairs we are lucky because borders and transport logistics bother us not at all. And it's never been easier to travel physically no matter our circumstances.

 

And what is there to do? Where to start? Read. Write. Volunteer. Support. Encourage. Travel. Teach. Lead. Listen. What we can do, within our capabilities, is limitless.

 

The real question is do we want to to? Can we be bothered? Do we think we have the energy? Do we have the confidence? Are we interested?

 

When I was a younger man we talked of GOYA; get of your ass! Perhaps people still do use the expression - I don't know. But it's sound advice because, irrespective of age, it's in our hands alone to look, and discover, and explore, and wonder, and challenge.

And be.

Defy the might of a whole unjust empire

I was recently looking for quotes about diversity and during this search I came across this quote attributed to Mahatma Gandhi:

"It is possible for a single individual to defy the whole might of an unjust empire to save his honor, his religion, his soul, and lay the foundation for that empire’s fall or its regeneration."

It perhaps sounds dramatic but it sent a shiver up my spine.

Day after day I scan news blogs, not because I want to know about the news, but because I feel naked without having at least a passing familiarity with what is happening in the world; what politicians, and bureaucrats, journalists, and business tycoons are doing in my name and in the names of my fellow citizens, including you.

I can really only speak with some authority of Australia - my one-time home. And in my opinion if there is anything Australia needs right now it is one or more people to defy what I now percieve as an unjust empire.

Let's not make this a political debate with it's inevitable 'sides' of Labor, Liberals, Greens and self-interested independents; let's not make it an intellectual debate in which esoteric ideas become the focus rather than on the reality.

Let's think and talk about the people governing Australia, the bureaucrats that draft and administer regulations, the judiciary that sit in judgement, and the news media producers and their journalists, educators and corporate decision-makers; lets talk about the Australia they are crafting for tomorrow's generations.

Again I have only Australia to use as an example but our nation is held hostage by fractious minorities. Our budget is being held to ransom and essential savings cannot be made because self-interested and self-serving rogue politicians - probably rogues - representing their personal interests and those of a handful of the electorate. The government has made promises it cannot keep - not because it was dishonest but rather because it is naive. Law enforcement is weak and has become the refuge of criminals rather than the wronged. Children have never been more educated and yet less capable. The reporters of news have become manipulators of news. Our corporations, in pursuit of profits, have lost sight of a fair wage; and workers have lost sight of delivering a fair day's work. 

Where is honour in all this?

If in their minds those responsible for all this can see no lack of honour - then god help Australia. 

Winston Churchill said "The empires of the future are the empires of the mind"; without honour in the forefront of our minds then Australia's future - and perhaps that of other first world nations - will be ghettos and gulags.

Which of us will defy the might of a whole unjust empire? Perhaps it's up to aging warriors to show the way?

Image - the main character from the movie V for Vendetta:

From Wikipedia: Following world war, London is a police state occupied by a fascist government, and a vigilante known only as V uses terrorist tactics to fight the oppressors of the world in which he now lives. When V saves a young woman named Evey from the secret police, he discovers an ally in his fight against England's oppressors.

Give - to live happier lives

As I walk the beach early most mornings I often reflect on my previous day's reading; this phrase kept returning to my mind this morning.

'Whether giving money or practicing generosity in other ways, like giving blood or volunteering for a charity, we are happier when we give. This impact is greatest of all among older people, where there is even evidence that volunteering helps improve health and longevity.'

So writes Australian resident David Michie in Enlightenment to go.

Give to live?

Well it seems so and if you are ageing - or better yet an ageing warrior, evidence and traditional wisdom both clearly establish that generosity - of every kind - make you happier. And don't we all want to be happier?

I do try to be generous, especially as I live in a country where even if I were poor, my western heritage and life circumstances makes me comparatively wealthy.

I can modestly tip after enjoying a delicious - and cheap - Thai meal and it will be more than some individuals have to spend on eating in one day.

I am increasingly spending time with Thai people in conversation - just to give them confidence in using their English.

I have, and do, help Thai families achieve their modest aspirations which may otherwise denied them.

But this is not about what I do, about my generosity, and the increased happiness I enjoy in return; I'm hoping this causes you to pause and ask of yourself, 'Are there ways in which I can be more generous?'

Being generous is humanity at work. And it's an investment in happiness.

Tool Kit

Enlightenment to Go.

http://www.amazon.com/Enlightenment-Go-David-Michie-ebook/dp/B0042JSP7K/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1416534596&sr=1-2&keywords=enlightenment+to+go

The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom

http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Hypothesis-Finding-Modern-Ancient-ebook/dp/B003E749TE/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1416532420&sr=1-1&keywords=the+happiness+hypothesis

So as I look at this motor scooter I always feel inadequate

 

Well here I am walking Kata Beach on the Island of Phuket - I'm just back having been in Australia  since March.

 

I've turned into the white, fat people that I laughed at back then; of course I've had a birthday since then and on that day the change happened right then and there; the fries, the chicken parmigiana, the pasta, pizza, the beers and the red wine have played no part.

 

It gets worse - now my back is a lurid pink after only 30 minutes and that would not be so bad except that I am podgy enough to have folds of skin which means the tanning - read burning - has been unequal and so I am mottled; I am like one of those dolls squeezed into a glass container; it's not an attractive sight! I am not looking like a warrior; aging yes, but a warrior, no.

 

As I rode to Kata Beach this morning my Harley snarled as I leaned into one curve after another up over the forested range that separates where I live from the beach; at least that's what my imagination was doing but in the real world my modest, and responsible Honda motor scooter did the same leaning but without the snarling; or the vibration!

 

My Honda is a constant rebuke.

 

Mr Honda was a pinup boy for the perseverance set; his first great idea for a revolutionary piston ring was rejected by Toyota; eventually several years later Toyota bought the idea and Mr Honda needed to build a factory to make the piston rings but in WWII Japan he could not buy concrete; he and friends and colleagues invented a new way to make concrete; and then he couldn't get the raw materials to make the piston rings and so he had his employees collect metal fuel cans that were dropped from bombers; and then an earthquake destroyed his factory and so he had to sell the business to Toyota. Phew!

 

But there's more. Because fuel was rationed Mr Honda could not drive his car to market to collect food for his family so he found a small motor, rather like a lawnmower engine, and he attached it to his push bike; he made so many of these bikes he ran out of the small engines and so he needed to build a factory to make more - but he had no money; so he wrote to 18,000 bicycle shop asking for money and 3,000 sent what they could and Mr Honda manufactured a first shipment - but the engine was too heavy and was a disaster; so he stripped the engines down to make the engine lighter and smaller - he named it the 'Cub' and it was described as an 'overnight' success.

 

So as I look at this motor scooter I always feel inadequate.

 

This story is told in the Anthony Robbins book Notes from a Friend; it's a great read if you think that a kick in the pants could get you doing more, and enjoying it more! I frequently need such a kick.

 

Toolkit

 

http://www.amazon.com/Notes-Friend-Simple-Taking-Charge/dp/068480056X/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1416797131&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=notes+from+a+friend+robbins

Irony #1. My writing has been hijacked.

I've mentioned the book The Age of Absurdity before; it's a marvelous text dedicated to highlighting and contemplating many of the insane perversions that have occurred to what I had long considered 'normal' life.

I know the world in which we live has to change. Indeed I welcome change. As long as the changes  makes sense for the majority, a generally long-suffering and silent community segment that is rarely considered when change is being promoted and mandated.

Much of this change is brought about by encroaching technology.

My own life has numerous, and a growing number, of examples of how nonsensical change now imposes on one's life.

For example, a few months back I decided, again, that I would place some of the pieces I have written over recent years with a service from which publishers can purchase them for use in magazines. Some handy spare income I had hoped.

I sent off a sample 500 words, edited from a much longer piece and received a very prompt response which declined my offering explaining it had been previously published.

I knew that couldn't be true so I responded and assured the organisation that I had written the words and I asserted that these words had never been published.

It has, they responded; apparently they use a service that trawls the internet and some functionary entered the text I offered into a search engine and discovered that it appeared on several blogs. And the assumption therefore is that I was plagiarizing someone else's work; a further assumption is that my assurances about authorship were lies, or at least to be doubted.

And they are correct of course, because the original text is included on this blog.

So it seems my writing has been hijacked. By me.

To me it's  another example the innocent being punished. The Age of Absurdity indeed.

Toolkit:

http://www.amazon.com/Age-Absurdity-Modern-makes-Happy-ebook/dp/B007ZCOJE4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1416714058&sr=1-1&keywords=the+age+of+absurdity

I need to find a new battlefield.

 

I spend my days in commerce; it keeps me interested, satisfies my need to be useful by employing my talents such as they are and, to date, has saved me from being a financial burden on others.

I need a new way of achieving these three objectives; I'd like to share the reasons why I believe this.

Commerce. The very unpretentious dictionary on my laptop defines commerce as: noun. 1 industry and commerce: trade, trading, buying and selling, business, dealing, traffic; (financial) transactions, dealings.

And that's OK I suppose; except in my experience commerce is very few of those activities. And no matter what price I paid I don't suppose I'd find a dictionary that defines commerce as I've come to experience it: talking about doing business; meeting; planning, without executing; being careful to never offend imagined sensibilities; allowing everyone to have, no matter how little talent, experience or competence, equal say in making important decisions; confusion about purpose; obfuscation; and lack of conviction and commitment. There is more but what's the point in listing more, if these realities don't eventually kill commerce I don't know what will.

It's just possible that the idiom let's not do anything in case something happens may have become an unspoken mantra for many in commerce; when things happen there are consequences - and consequences represent risk.

So for me, as an aging warrior, I need to find a new way of remaining relevant.

I need to find a new battlefield.

A humble orange.

Don't let an old person move into your body