Can you still hear the birds singing or the fan of your computing humming. Or are you trying pick up the pace so you get to your next task and goal in life?

Does every single person in the world have to become rich and famous and powerful, and at the same time consume half of the planet, to understand that those things have nothing to do with happiness. We are facing a massive destruction of our species, and other species as well, and yet we keep believing that “happily ever after” idea that we picked from all the children books and Hollywood movies. There are no surfers, bankers, politicians, champions and loosers. There are only concentrations of cells, atoms, vibrations and electricity that keeps these linked entities together.

The new summer/spring 2012 collection doesn’t change what you are. The created need and the manufacturing of the collection however does change the environment for seasons to come, and eventually us along with it. The cycle of desires keeps getting shorter with our attention span. We have too much information and no idea what to do with it except make new laws that are suppose to keep those rising desires under control. Trusting someone else to tell us what is good, bad, right and wrong, is limiting our potential of growing as self aware human beings that do not need to be told these things. We already know but choose to ignore.

The laws of nature are simple. A seed grows into a tree. Your desire for a sweet mango tree is pointless if you planted an oil palm. Plant something new. Wake up.

If we just keep reacting to things we will always be just passengers. Determination and persistency can lead to action. It’s the intention that matters. Don’t lie to yourself.

Combo-Points: 3 out of 8.

“Elsewhere they do what they can,
here we do what we want.”

Unusual winter. It’s warm and still no snow.

The sun rises and sets. The depression arises and passes. But to stay in the dark, to stay miserable, is mind twisting. Moods are ever changing and they are made up by our mind. The quest for finding a place where it’s always sunny leads only to suffering. A space station rotating at a certain speed around Earth and you could have the sun all to yourself. How wonderful.

Hot or cold, sunny or dark. Everything changes, the only thing constant.

pss. It’s never too late to wash carpet if you eat enough vitamin C. Unfortunately all the carpet washing places were already closed at this time of the year so I had to do it by the lake…

I guess photos are meant to be shown.

Some months ago I was still somewhere deep in China. The place was called Zhangjiajie. Thousands of stairs take you from one spectacular view to another. All the views are named with interesting names that are something like: ‘King reaching between his legs’, ‘One step to the heaven’ etc.

If you are more of a pop-traveler, maybe you want to go there because the movie Avatar was inspired by the place. And if you’re more into being a rock star between marveling breathtaking views, this might be your place. There must be millions of visitors yearly to the park but most of them are “locals”.

Word of warning: after two days or hours the amazing and unique views and sights might start loosing the Wow!!! -factor and your memory card starts getting full. Being a superstar is ‘so last season’ anyway.

At the time I think I was inspired by my hand copied French grammar  from German booklet. Schö ve dü cafe?.

Summer 2010. As it is.

Warm thanks to both boats!

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Summer – It’s short, it’s bright and this year it has been very warm. It has also been busy in the woods. City life, not as nice. Shortly put – a perfect way to acclimatize.

The monastery in East China had been destroyed by the Cultural Revolution. Now it had been rebuild but the hundreds of monks were a thing of the past and the walls were starting to crumble. Most of the time one or two monks held morning ceremonies. The hot afternoons they watched soap operas from tv, practiced chanting, and some smoked cigarets. Through my closed eyes it seemed that the real boss of the place was an older woman who took care of the garden, cooked 3 times a day and held the place together in general. She had a habit of shouting all the time. When disappointed, giving recommendation or talking, she always shouted. It was a loving shouting and had more spirit in it than the monks in their chanting. There was noway one could dislike her. Her main concern was the wellbeing of any person in the monastery. She and the Master seemed to be the only permanent residents there.

Apparently the pond in front of the monastery was the Master’s plan to attract more people to visit the place. The 80 000 euro project was to build a sanctuary pond for the local wildlife and put a big shining Buddha in the middle of it. All that was missing was the funding for it. It seemed the construction men came when the master got new donations from the visiting guests and locals.

The most amazing thing with the place was the wildlife around it. Crickets, frogs and birds changed shifts the entire day. The sounds were music to ones ears. Only the occasional air conditioning from neighbors and loud TV might overtake the symphony of the nature, and of course the shouting..