GOODBYE TO MY NANA

The very special woman who raised me as her own. The high flying bird known as my "Nana" who loved to dance, laugh, bake, play cards, and strum the ukelele, has left our world at the age of 97.


She passed away this afternoon peacefully in the arms of the family that she created and loved with a special beauty and a guidance that was simply brilliant.


An incredible woman with a huge zest for life, she lived with a vigor and fiestiness that was truly heaven sent.


She had some definite ideas about how to live in this crazy world, and you would be better off if you just listened!!.....So we all did..


Always one to have a tender word of encouragement and guidance for me personally in so many transitional situations over the years. I feel like I have no way to repay her.


She was right there when I horrifically broke my leg as a child, when I ran head first into a brick wall in my youth. When I sang my first song in grade 1. When I ran the marathon road race as a young teenager, and when I returned from my last trip to Asia....


Her husband, my Grandfather Bill Bromley (a wonderfully soft spoken like able working gent )passed away a full 31 years previously on Christmas day, but stubbornly Nana blazed a trail of love and hope all on her own.


From children, to grandchildren, to great grandchildren she held a special place in her heart for all of us. Sometimes she mixed up a name here and there, but that just put a wider smile on our faces.


She really can never be replaced and it seemed very foreign to me to step onto the street tonight with the knowledge that this beacon of light in my life will no longer be around for guidance. I will never forget you Nana.


I could go on and on, but I feel blessed, just to have known her. My words simply don't do her life justice.



Pure love and respect, that is the message that she imparted to me.




Here is a video from her birthday a couple of years ago.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6RJDEJUmA4



Goodbye nana.......I am glad you are free of your burdens of the last two years. It's time for you to fly again.



I am certain you will.



And if I didn't cry it to the heavens enough today, let me make it clear one more time........I love you.

THE DANCER IN MY DREAM

Here is a little experiment for myself, I am writing this literally after just waking up. I am still in that foggy, I could go either way place, but I need to remember this dream I just had.



Before I try to recreate it, I wanted to touch on a set of photographs I just took in. A friend of mine on facebook has posted some shots of her and her boyfriend in some majestic mountain setting somewhere in Alaska I think.


These two people are just incredibly dynamic as a couple. They seem to be the perfect compliment to one another if that is still possible.



He is this young tall athlete type turned Portland musician or something and she is this high cheekboned goddess that is a throwback to the time of Jean Harlow. They are both intelligent, funny, approachable and wreak with creativity.


I was only around them for a very short time, but man, I would love to...I don't know, come up with a short film script, send it to them and fly over there and film it. I bet it would work. All this before I am really awake.


Anyway, enough about them......to the dream.......it's all about my youth now.




THE DREAM.



In my last REM sleep moments seconds before I came to, I had just relived a real gorgeous memory that I had completely forgotten, it had happened 23 years previously.



How did I know it was 23 years previous? I had to look up the songs history....




INT. DANCECLUB. NIGHT



I blindly wonder up the multiple staircases of a converted mansion. Double fisting a Kokanee and a Double Rum and Coke. God,am I at the very top of this place? Don't tell me there is a 4th dance floor up here somewhere.....Does anybody actually go all the way up here?.


My instincts are correct.
There is another staircase, another dancefloor, and soon, the girl..............



I pushed through a black curtain that was leaking flashbulb lighting. Not much of a room. Not much of a crowd either. However, there is a small dancefloor.


I plop myself down in the corner and start inhaling my drinks. For some reason I am exhausted. (This was vivid) Must have been dancing up a storm downstairs.


I melt into the vinyl as the music changes. There is a little elevated area beyond the stage, a second stage?.....To my surprise, an ethereal young woman leaps up there all alone.

She dances with her cigarette. I don't know if it was lit, but she was a little ballerina badass, that I definitely am seeing.


The first song, I could lie and tell you it was Billy Idol "Hot in the city" or The Cults..."she sells sanctuary". Possible, but my memory couldn't pull that one up.


What I do see though is this young WARHOL girl with short cropped white blond hair, huge green eyes and bright red lips. She is wearing some kind of concoction of tight shorts over black pantyhose and a ripped tshirt.


She spins, twirls and interjects to the melody so effortlessly and harmoniously. It's like she is making love to the entire room at the same time. Was there an alternative cover charge? I am devastated. Screw it, I am walking over there. This is a beyond surreal moment.


I move to the side of the second stage, 7 feet away and just stare at her.
She must be some kind of professional dancer, I have never seen somebody move like that. She is simply the most remarkeable dancer I have ever been this close to.


She looks over at me here and there, but I am lost in an out of body experience. She is the young director and I am surely just one of her many extras.

I know that I must speak with her. I don't have a clue as to what I should say. Adreneline is rushing. Maybe I should just start dancing beside her. Oh god, the pressure.


Are you out of your 80's mullet mind RICK? You are not dancing beside this modernly oblique Karen Kain, it would be an embarrassing mess. Social death. What am I wearing anyway? What are my choices?



As the song ends and there is a moments silence. I SUDDENLY WALK OVER TO HER WITH A MESSAGE.



RL: I need to tell you that you are the most magnificent dancer I have ever seen.

No, i would never use the word magnificent. Lets try that again.........

RL: You are an incredible dancer, I needed to tell you, I couldn't take my eyes off you. I am sorry if I was staring.


DANCERGIRL: Thanks, that was nothing. (Taking a drink)


She is dripping sweat, but her rosy cheeks are an indication that she could continue on all night. This could go 5 sets if necessary.



THE MUSIC CHANGES. CUE THE MUSIC.


THIS IS THE PART THAT IS REAL. THIS HAPPENED. (That night and this morning)



THE SONG IS "UNDER THE MILKY WAY TONIGHT" by the CHURCH.


SHE QUICKLY LEANS INTO ME RUBBING MY CHEEK WITH A GENTLE SMILE.....


......

DANCERGIRL: Dance with me to this? .. I LOVE THIS SONG.


RL: Ummmmm....OK.




CUE: THE OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE



(In the dream this moment was super vivid and completely colourful and the audio BLASTING was stadium like. The bass was tangibly pushing me through the roof.)



She moves inside and outside of my body with ease. Pushing and then removing obscure energy's. I followed and tried to expand her theatrics, hoping that I was adding something, anything to her expression.

Who knows, I was feeling tremendous and fluid up there. This was my little high wire act for sure.


She truly worshipped this song and everybody within 50 feet knew it. This was her religion.... All eyes were fixated on us.



CAUGHT IN TIME.


This was the dance of a lifetime, there was no mistaking that. (although I had no way of knowing it) It would be over in mere seconds or was it hours?



Near the end, after light years of penetrating smiles and enough honest eye contact to make me wince..... she actually put one of her legs over my shoulder effortlessly as she spun, pivoted and twisted around on the other foot. She was levitating, taking off.



"It leads you here despite your destination, under the milky way tonight"



What can I say. It was perfect and I had forgotten it all, until today. She gave me a quick peck on the cheek ....
and then....she was gone to another floor...............to another decade...........




My twenties would soon come to an end as well.............................It seemed alright though at the time.......


I would never see her or anyone quite like her again. What can I say, it's all about moments.



Here are the lyrics to the song.



Under The Milky Way Tonight lyrics

Sometimes when this place gets kinda empty
the sound of the breath fades with the light
I think about the loveless fascination
under the milky way tonight

lower the curtain down on Memphis
lower the curtain down on me
I got no time for private consultation
under the milky way tonight

wish I knew what you were looking for
might have known what you would find

and it's something quite peculiar
something shimmering and white
it leads you here, despite your destination
under the milky way tonight

wish I knew what you were looking for
might have known what you would find
wish I knew what you were looking for
might have known what you would find

and it's something quite peculiar
something shimmering and white
leads you here, despite your destination
under the milky way tonight

wish I knew what you were looking for
might have known what you would find
wish I knew what you were looking for
might have known what you would find

under the milky way tonight
under the milky way tonight
under the milky way tonight


Now the version I just watched of the Killers doing a cover version of it with their opening band Chairlift. Enjoy:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvDmov5HmJM&feature=related



Back to the stark reality that is the crisp morning in the here and now in 2011. It's alright.



RICK

BREAKING FREE OF ADDICTION AND THE BEAR

I have been working with a man who is the owner and director of a unique rehab program in Alberta.


This is not my full time career, I simply have had the opportunity to get close to his work by helping people on my end here in Ontario find the place. get more information, and see if it is a good fit for their needs and challenges.



If this issue doesn't personally effect you in any way, you most certainly know somebody in your inner circle that has been hit hard. On the larger more social scale, addictions cost North Americans 100's of Billions of dollars a year and are a leading cause of death.




As many months go by personally since I last ingested a drink or a drug, I sometimes feel like I should give something back. An inspirational idea or a personal observation, anything that might help some of my friends that I know struggle with this area of their lives.


I am no guru but I know alot about this subject and about the professional options that are available, public and private. (I can at least offer an informed opinion)


I am not trying to recruit anybody, this isn't Rick's marketing call on a Sunday night. There is absolutely no pressure.


If you want to talk to me about any struggles that you may have in any areas such as alcohol or drugs, smoking, eating issues or depression, I would be glad to speak to you on the phone or by email, and hopefully give you some powerful ideas and possible solutions that are out there for you.


Maybe you don't want to commit to solutions.....That is fine too. It sometimes feels good to just talk about things, with no judgement, agenda or pressure. I know this for sure.


If you are not sure if you have a problem. Here is the now infamous Alcohol Quiz from John Hopkins university. You can replace the word alcohol with another substance if you wish.

http://alcoholism.about.com/od/tests/l/blquiz_alcohol.htm





Here again is my info:
rlynn1@gmail.com or 416-655-0751.



Maybe you are drinking 6 beers a night every time that you feel emotional or maybe you need to buy a bag of cocaine every friday night, just in case you meet a lady.



The process of starting to question yourself about your lifestyle choices, although it feels shitty is actually a very good beginning.



Forget about the "what if somebody I know hears that I am looking at this issue, they will think I am over the edge". The odds are simply that they will pat you on the back or have figured this one out from a distance a long time ago, but didn't want to tell you. Do it for yourself, forget what your partying friends have to say, they will abandon you 9 times out of 10 in the end anyway.



Maybe you always felt like you "didn't fit in". This by the way is one of the most common feelings that addicts articulate. Maybe you always felt better when you could just take the edge off.


What is the edge? Social awkwardness? Boredom? Fear? Whatever it is, you know that you can get rid of it for a few hours with substance A or substance B, or a combination of both.


As humans we gravitate towards pleasure and away from pain.. They say that in almost every situation, we are looking to feel better. Nothing is ever good enough, we want to feel better.


The problem isn't only a moral one. You are effecting your children (they might start to pick up in their early teens) or your friends are a nervous wreck wondering if you are just going to die on them one night soon.


The challenge might be that you have just crossed the line physically. What used to be fun and was really a solution to your problems, is now more of the real problem than anything else you're dealing with. Your body is forever altered. You can't reach the same high anymore. That really sucks.



You might swear to yourself behind closed doors that no matter how much anybody wants you to quit using your special vice, it ain't happening, not in this lifetime. They can go jump in the lake because the reality is that you are never giving it up.


You are not giving up that Vodka, or the Coke or that Burger under any circumstances.


It's your life. Ok..... then, keep doing what you are doing but continue to monitor your causes and effects. Write down in a journal all the seemingly unconnected events that seem to be happening to you and your loved ones on a weekly basis. Any reason to change the equation?


When you think you might be done, the time could be ripe to take some personal responsibility and duck out of that pity party. Easy for me to say from my computer.


I will say this as well. You can crawl out from behind the ruins of guilt and shame and emerge honest, trustworthy and self-deprecating no more. Drop the ego, forgive yourself and start moving on. One day at a time. (Sound familiar?)


The American Medical Association classifies alcoholism as a disease.....lets understand the ramifications of that statement but not go there right now.



TAKE A BREAK AND TAKE A LOOK

At the very least, it feels good to cleanse your body for a week and to see where you're at. Emotionally, financially, relationship wise, career wise, family wise. Do some personal writing about your experience. Is everyone on your case?


Take lots of fluids and fresh vegetables in. Throw in some vitamin B-12. (that painful butt injection would be more than good if you can get it) Maybe some time in a sauna if you can manage it.


There are many solutions out there for people that really want them. You simply have to decide if you might be one of those people. Tell your party buddies the truth, you need to get off the merry go round for a few days. They should understand that much.

There is absolutely no shame in it. (Don't start taking their inventory and telling them that they are much worse than you are, and they should do the same, this is definitely a no win situation, slightly amusing, but a no win situation)



If you want abstinence, sobriety and health, are you willing to go to any lengths to obtain it and all the good things that will eventually come with it?


Don't believe that little dark voice inside your head that says that you will have to join a cult and give up all your fun for the rest of your life. Don't believe the dark voice that says there is no way you are going to do it.



Self talk is very important. The words that we say to ourselves, about our lives, need to be more positive. ..... Usually they are unbearably critical. This is really toxic.

(At some point you might want to start your day by saying something positive about yourself in the mirror, this takes time)


Your thoughts create your words, your words create your actions. Your actions become a measuring stick to who you are or who you think you should be. (This area is often out of balance with the inner self)



Lots to remember. Actually, number one thing is if you are thinking you need a break for whatever reason, just stop right now and give yourself a break. It might hurt, but do it. It's a good signal to your psyche for the future.


If somebody needs a medical detox, I have some information for you.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Oh, and one more thing. RESENTMENTS..lose them......."He did this to me. She said that about me. I could kill that person,they just don't understand me.... pour me another one"...


Take a look at them, resentments tend to be one of the number one causes of using and justifying it. Even if you know this, people can be annoying, impossible to get over them all and be like Ghandi I know.


Personal story, I used to be friends with this Woman that
I was sleeping with off and on who was a heavy user, she had an issue with the fact that I was friends with a mutual friends children, i loved them. She told me...."you will never be in those kids lives, more than I am , I will do all I can to make sure of that" She had no kids of her own and was extremely possessive of these two kids.


I didn't realize how serious she was . After I jerked around during a couple of years, travelling and stumbling into function after function, she made it clear to the kids and the family that I was crazy. A lunatic that was at the very least a terrible role model, and at the very best a sociopath.


I really loved these kids, and as her mad plan seemed to perpetuate, I couldn't see or talk to the kids or send gifts etc anymore. Even as I was teaching children English in Asia, i was banned.


I started to grow a very big resentment towards this person. When I pictured their unattractive face, arrogance and lack of depth I could quickly become incensed and see red. I started to figure out elaborate plans that I would stew on, that not only would bring a terrible humiliation to her, but show her for the ....blank that she really was. Why?


Moral of this story.Nobody is perfect, we all suffer..she has to deal with the energy of her own choices..Let it go..You can't change the person, only the way you react to them.


I finally had to give this resentment up completely. I just did it. I needed to. Once i did, my life became lighter in many ways. I wished her well in my mind and hoped that she succeeded in what ever she was doing.


Took me a while, but I got there. I never really thought about her again. This is the kind of thing I did for me, it was just too much to carry around on my already loaded plate. It really worked well in that blockage area. I use this technique with all major resentments now.



So, think about how serious you are about getting healthy. Try not to awfulize your entire world as you are thinking about it. You are human. Reframe it... If you really want it, you can do it.


Everything starts with an idea, then an action and then a real move towards a different lifestyle.



If you really want it, it can be done. No more patios but lots more quality time with the kids. (I am not referring to any Fathers I know specifically)



There is an old saying that states.........ADDICTION is a little like slow dancing with a BEAR........the dance is over, when the BEAR says it is.



Something to watch out for.



Note to readers:

I am not the new "poster boy" for clean living, simply a person with some relevant information that could be of some help".


That's it for tonight. I hope I wasn't rambling, there is so much to say.



Rick

OUT OF MY AFRICA

In Africa, it's the early 20th century just after the first world war ended. A man has invited his platonic friend of 20yrs to go on a Safari with him.


He says that he asked her to accompany him through the wild terrain with no real idea of what the next day would bring.........because...."he knew she would understand".


He has a strange new habit of bringing his phonograph with him out into the jungle. He loves to play Mozart for the chimps to see their reaction, which is usually one of puzzlement and curiosity. Beautiful imagery. He washes her long hair out by hand. Tender is the day.


After a luxurious dinner in the open air which includes some dancing and some wine, the woman starts to tell a story that she is making up as she goes along; it ends up on a white sandy beach somewhere, that seemed "so wide".


Befuddled and lost in her thoughts, she excuses herself, puts her hand on his shoulder as she passes, and heads to her tent to retire as every night previous. After a few enduring seconds, he opens the tent flap to see her pulling off her blouse bathed in the moonlight.


"I'd like to do that". he whispers to her.



SHOCKED she turns to meet him eye to eye.

He traces her bottom lip with his forefinger.


"Does it hurt?"
"NO"



The restraint is too much. They kiss.



It's at this moment that she utters the line of the movie.........

"IF YOU SAY ANYTHING NOW......I WILL BELIEVE IT".





A little much maybe, even for me........ a sometimes grouchy, cynical guy who mistakenly thinks he has seen and done it all.


I was right there, buying my ticket and getting on board... I bought it.....Yes I thought, it's all fkn worth it. That's me up there on that screen, sort of.




Yeah, I like films and yeah I am taking some course now here in the middle of Siberia, but why is this remotely important or interesting? It might not be, you can skip it.



Perhaps to most of us it really doesn't seem believable or familiar and is much too saccharine. In real life it's often hard to get the right words out at the right moment. Or is it?



I know that on some level, it is really the measure of a person to see how they inspire people around them with their rhetoric and their unselfish actions, amongst other things.



What about the measurement of the solitary human being that is faced with a moment, a second to communicate the entire essence of their soul to another. Succeeding in this moment, in real life, there are no substitutes. (The price of failure might only be boredom and monotony)



We are always interested to see whether characters will get it right in the movies, or in the books we read. It makes up for lost areas and imperfections in life.



That's one of the responsibilities of the WRITER that I find fascinating. Fascinating and alternatively sickening.




Here comes the preachy bit. If you have a happy positive relationship, skip this part and refer back to the beginning and the osculating in a tent scene.....




Most people couldn't give a toss about telling their spouse or girlfriend that they they look... brilliant tonight, or that they... wouldn't want to change anything about them, even if they could. They just go about their business of making money, blowing off steam, and ultimately entertaining themselves, taking themselves very seriously in the process.



Two people buy into this dark unwritten contract of awkward silences, dwindling desires and missed vacations; and sooner or later, there is no Safari left to book.



Maybe the only thing left to really enjoy together is that antiseptic movie for 12 dollars down at the multiplex or some thoroughly mechanical sex, taking place back at hoarding central. Sad but true.



So, for the next two hours of chosen vicarious bliss down at the cinema, some protagonist that you can relate to better be overcoming some version of insurmountable odds that lead to an appropriate exhilarating social conclusion.



Just please make me believe it, they subconsciously think, I am not sure I want to believe in my own reality anymore. Suspension of disbelief it is called.



If all else fails, there is always some Zoloft in the medicine cabinet or some cheese in the fridge. It's extra old.



Maybe, I am being too negative. Where did this come from?



Maybe you think that you try your best and succeed most of the time, the lines of communication are open and you don't need some 30 year old writer to tell you what people should be doing, saying and wearing.


You are living in the moment and so is your partner. Bravo, really. Set up a workshop and I will actually attend. Anything available on the west coast?



If this is really the case, then you might want to be thinking about immediately booking your next trip for two to the Galapagos. The adventure of a lifetime(who cares if you are just platonic), You'll have all the time in the world to say the right thing in the flesh, mean it and deliver it....or I will....(humour)


It really is all about me. (re-occurring theme?)



Where did all these pedantic intimacy lessons come from tonight?

I simply thought that it looked like a really cool and romantic thing to do, to wash someone's hair in the middle of AFRICA.



Hmmmmm. A piece of work.



(As a side note to my friend that suggested that I start reaching for the SPARKS. It's happening, I swear.)



Time for some green tea, I might be slightly delirious by now. I will blame it on that. I am suffering from some sort of fever, nothing life changing though.



Waterspout, Sunray, Soap, Kisses, Trees, Wild Jungle Cats, Eye Contact. Oh forget it.


I have got to get out of the house more. Oxygen is often good I hear.



Rick

SPRING HAS SPRUNG TO MIND

Making it through the winter in Toronto this year has been a little like taking a very long ascetic course that you really had no intention of ever signing up for.

This will be my last winter in TORONTO I hope, I will not go through this kind of antiseptic cryogenic solstice ever again. However, I CHOOSE to be HAPPY.
Oh man.


They say that out of every challenge you overcome lurks a meaningful lesson...Ok, I am waiting, and waiting. It has been especially brutal, and the good news is that it really isn't close to being over.


I was speaking with my cousin Chris on the weekend who lives in Vancouver and he was telling me that they have been having some warm, springlike days and that the buds are trying to burst through. People are playing golf. Sitting outside. What?


Why did I move back? Hey I didn't always love putting on a fresh Suit and then getting drenched before I hit the car, but it sure beats this FELLINI like polar bear world.


Ok, enough of the complaining. I will deal with it. However, If I am not in Asia by the summer, I will certainly be back in Vancouver.



Today I was searching to see if the spiritual bookstore in Vancouver that I liked so much was still there. It really has been around for so many years. It is still there Banyen Books, yes. Actually here is there web site. http://www.banyen.com/



There are a couple of inspiring ARTISTS that have websites and they are located in the area. Wonderful writing and beautiful photography. A great place to visit for inspiration. The sites are very female friendly but shouldn't be much of a stretch for you guys to wrap your head around.


This fist site is run by an old friend of mine Madelyn Mulvaney and it is a real joy to behold. If spending time in her world doesn't inspire you and put you in an inquisitive mood, nothing will.


Warm, fuzzy and a little on the cerebral side, this is really a work of art personified. If you can't escape the snow right now, this is the next most effective cure all: Persisting stars.


http://www.persistingstars.com



Also, another site that I found through the persisting stars website is run by a real interesting woman named Amanda Ford. An author and photographer and an avid bicycle lover, she is also a real treat to get to know from a distance. Her website is :


http://www.oholive.com/index.htm


These are very lyrical and honest environments, perfect to take a good look at the sacrifices and the joys that artists experience in their daily explorations and meditations. How to experience pure love and synthesize it and pass it on. (They give you the real feeling that it would me much more of a sacrifice to not try and be an artist at some point, and by doing that, encourage you to become the most authentic artist possible)



On another personal note, once in a while in between doing work online, I will visit a site that has great architecture, fabulous photographs of whole foods, fresh coffees and baked goods. I imagine sitting there in Portland or Seattle, having a piece of pie and writing. It kind of makes you feel good for a second.

Kind of like the virtual fireplace that they have on Rogers. Although the feeling there doesn't last long.


You can't get satiated by looking , but the visit doesn't hurt. Losing it? Maybe. Starbucks is always on the corner Rick.


Now it is time to face the outdoors and the people, all those crazed, cold people. They all look so worried....They just need a little humanity or a sprouting bud to put a smile on their faces.


Rick

MEG AND JACK BLOWING IT WIDE OPEN

THE WHITE STRIPES broke up.




This was in the back of my mind this week. Somewhere stuck in between family tragedy and rekindled love affairs.


Weren't they a couple that pretended to be brother and sister that produced some of the most unabashedly powerful music ever put together by a duo? (they were brother and sister) I forget.


Why didn't I see them live? You idiot RICK, procrastinating mule. Bad move.......


Wait, lets forget about the Beiber concert movie sweeping the country endorsed by`
cousin Drake. Options.


Wait..there is hope...The music lives.......There was a White Stripes documentary made a little while back, filmed in Canada I think? Hmmmmmm.


Put Y Tu Mama Tambien on pause and watch this thing online immediately.


This is the type of thing people like me do when they need a quick shot of something. Something to make them get up and scream.....I am fucking alive....Aren't I? Vicariously alive in this case, but alive. "I am going to Wichita".


So I found it!...........It is a wild, intimate, fantastic romp that ultimately rips you apart.....I loved it. Meg White is simply....kick your ass ethereal.(she barely speaks but I think everything she utters is an esoteric pearl)...I don't really know how to describe her......watch the film.




It is called.."UNDER GREAT WHITE NORTHERN LIGHTS" and is their celebration of their ten years together. Filmed on tour throughout Canada in all types of Northern Towns. From the Yukon to Yellowknife, great black and white footage.



DAVID BOWIE SAID..... "OFTEN, THE JUXTAPOSITION OF TWO OPPOSITES CREATE A THIRD KIND OF STATEMENT”. He was speaking of a set that he designed for his Serious Moonlight tour, but it really was a mechanism he often used in his most successful and profound lyric writing.



When you think about it, some of the best art emerges through this kind of process, in film, photography, paintings and poetry.


That is my own idea, perhaps you disagree, and you believe that it is all about the similarities and the intricacies in similarity. Tough one to call. With the WHITE STRIPES there is a definite juxtaposition of opposite energy thing going on though.


Jack and Meg White are irresistible, prolific and shyly incomprehensible, any way you spin their live persona and personal life. You really do want them to come over for dinner.


You want to know more about their relationship. How does it work? Bowling in every country around the world, what? How could it ever work?


There is some sort of secret pact going on, is there not? Is this Love? Sibling love never looked quite so.....hot.


Let me just say it, their music is kind of like some sort of sexual animal being ripped apart, slowly......


Have they made some sort of clandestine deal with the devil? And now.......they break up...What does that even mean?


Also......How does he USE REVERB LIKE THAT. COMPLETELY INSANE! (Juxtaposition)


Before you lose interest in all these words. I understand, words take alot of effort to move through your brain. One after the other. Move through this little film.


Put aside some time to watch these two GENIUSES (and I don`t use that word lightly)
RIP IT APART with honesty and with style.


It`s a great way to spend an evening. Throw in some ice cream, a thermal blanket, a fellow conspirator, and a bong or two, if that is your desire. Enjoy.


For me, the only reason to not watch this film would have been if I was busy creating some piece of work myself in that moment that was so inspirational, I really couldn't afford to stop the momentum. That was obviously not the case.


Maybe tomorrow.



Rick

PAUL HAGGIS VS THE CRAZY LITTLE MESSIAH BEHIND SCIENTOLOGY

I just finished reading a 26 page article in the NEW YORKER magazine about the Canadian Director Paul Haggis leaving SCIENTOLOGY after 35 years of practice. Fascinating and disturbing.

Here is the article if you are interested.


http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/02/14/110214fa_fact_wright


I was never a Scientologist but I do know a little about the organization and how it works. It's all about 'wins'.


About 8 years ago, I heard through the grapevine that the son of one of my mothers friends was involved in Scientology. He was a successful musician travelling the world and had a great relationship with this lovely girl, and he always seemed to be in an up mood. He had a certain exuberance. I wasn't sure how he did it, but I wanted some of it, despite some of the negative rumors I had heard.



Couldn't I just buy it and ingest it?

Apparently I could make some expensive purchases immediately.


He met me at a coffee shop right away and before I knew it I was in the Toronto 'org' filling out forms. Whether you are the most emotionally leveled person, cleverly verbose with a lot of ambition or you are a procrastinating, misogynistic oaf, they are going to tell you the same thing. You could use a couple of communication courses at the bare minimum to start.

The first thing he talked to me about was PURIFICATION RUNDOWN. The was a process that he sweared upon. I was trying to stop Drinking and doing Cocaine at the time and nothing seemed to be working longterm. If you haven't heard of one of their most famous techniques, it goes something like this....

You sit in a hot SAUNA for 6 hours a day, exercises intermittently and taking vitamins, actually a special concoction called CALMAG. A calcium and magnesium cocktail. Combined with NIACIN, this helps cleanse the body of all TOXINS,(getting itchy) and purportedly coloured gunk from the shit in our environment, will start oozing out your pours. (possibly black gunk) When it is over after nearly a month of treatment, you will feel euphoric and reborn, if not severely dehydrated.
The process cost about $2500. This was necessary for sure if I was going to give it a good shot at being clean. (Due to a heart issue that I had just developed at the time, my doctor under no circumstance would clear me for this process)


Because my friend was about to open up his own offshoot of the main scientology church, called a MISSION. It was communicated to me that maybe I should take a course in 'auditing' and that way I could help these two people out by eventually being their 'phychotherapist' (never use that word) on staff.

Before I could learn how to run other people through there most intimate stories.... to relieve them of their 'engrams' or bad memories, that were subconsciously ruining their lives; I had to come clean about my entire past and put it on paper. After signing it, the church put it away in a desk somewhere and said that it would never be used against me. Ok. sounds reasonable if I can get these other personal results on the road.


Scientologists say that there mandate is to create a world that is free of crime, drugs, violence, lies etc, the list goes on. They are big on 'ethics'. It all sounds wonderful in theory.

Here is a link that I find freaky:
http://www.scientology.org/videos.html#/videos/category/beliefs-and-practices/the-creed-of-the-church-of-scientology


There is a big emphasis on the soul and reincarnation which is always a big seller. Maybe I am here to correct some of my past mistakes. Maybe with this technology, it is doable and then I will live again at a higher level. Are you with me?


I understand why we want to find some sort of meaning to this absolutely bizarre and difficult existence. I am down with that part.


You know, environmentalists have their marches, pot and vegetarianism. AA has its meetings and coffee. Christianity has their tradition, resurrection and guilt. Scientology seemed to have alot of friendly people that wanted to put a perma smile on my face. Although they often seemed a tad forced. It all didn't seem that abhorrent.


One of the things that turns me off of these so called spiritual technologies is that it cost thousands of dollars to take these courses. In the case of scientology, as much as 200,000 dollars or more by the end, and then what?

You are not told this, but once you become dialed into their programs, you are encouraged to spend most of your free time at the church volunteering in return for free courses.


I get that they need money to stay open and to turn the heat on, but why is that the leader of Scientology David Miscavige is living in a palace with cooks and servants and private planes.

Apparently he is still a real downer. No fun at all. Mr Dour. Tough life David.


Back to my experience. I was auditing people. The idea was that if I ran through an incident with them that they picked out from their past, enough times, over and over, the pain would eventually subside for them.

The truth is that actually, many times the person did seem truly elated after the session. They definitely felt happier and lighter and were often smiling and thanking me.

When I thought about it later it made sense, isn't that what we really look for in a therapist as well or a good friend? Isn't it really part of human nature to feel the need to vent our problems to somebody that will listen to them unconditionally.(Difficult)

With the auditing, we wrote everything down and I am not sure what was done with that information, where it was stored. (Don't fck with the church obviously is the message)


One day i was auditing this bright and friendly young boy of about 10.
Here is why: Check this.
http://www.scientology.org/videos.html#/videos/category/dianetics/dianetics-an-introduction


He seemed to know the process better than I did. He was going easy on me. Afterwards I questioned if maybe I might be doing some damage to him by going through these memories with him. I didn't know his parents, was this ethical?

I don't know. No harm appeared to be done. Then it was time for more courses and more money and more time and commitment.

Bottom line is I walked away after a few weeks, never to return, and felt a definite sense of relief.


I never did sign the BILLION YEAR CONTRACT that I had heard so much about. It was at this point as well that I first heard about XENU and the Clustered Thetans Insanity.


Is it really a cult with all those good intentions?
Here is the definition of a cult:



UNIVERSAL DEFINITION

CULT - Any group which has a pyramid type authoritarian leadership structure with all teaching and guidance coming from the person/persons at the top. The group will claim to be the only way to God; Nirvana; Paradise; Ultimate Reality; Full Potential, Way to Happiness etc, and will use thought reform or mind control techniques to gain control and keep their members. This definition covers cults within all majopr world religions, along with those cults which have no OBVIOUS religious base such as commercial, educational and psychological cults. Others may define these a little differently, but this is the simplest to work from. THE 'ORTHODOX BIBLE-BASED CULT'

A group is called a cult because of their behaviour - not their doctrines. Doctrine is an issue in the area of Apologetics and Heresy. Most religious cults do teach what the Christian church would declare to be heresy but some do not. Some cults teach the basics of the Christian faith but have behavioural patterns that are abusive, controlling and cultic.
The key is that they will be using mind control or undue influence on their members.

An excellent book on this subject is "Churches that Abuse" by Dr Ronald Enroth.

OTHER IDENTIFICATION MARKS

(a) The group will have an ELITIST view of itself in relation to others, and a UNIQUE CAUSE. e.i. THEY ARE THE ONLY ONES RIGHT - everyone else is wrong. THEY ARE THE ONLY ONES DOING GOD'S WILL - everyone else is in apostasy.

(b) They will promote their cause actively, and in doing so, abuse God-given personal rights and freedoms. This abuse can be THEOLOGICAL, SPIRITUAL, SOCIAL & PSYCHOLOGICAL.




I want to say that my two friends or former friends, (i may have been deemed a subversive person or SP by now)these two people still seem very happy and have technology that they use for business and relationship issues and money issues and much more. They swear that this is the answer. Try it for yourself they would say, don't believe what you here.


Since then I have looked into another alternative spiritual technology that touches more on ridding yourself of the negative aspects of the ego and the desire to receive things for yourself alone. It all seemed very helpful until I asked myself again..............why is it so bloody expensive?


Maybe I can get some people together and we can start are own technology and make it FREE. CMON DOWN, ENLIGHTENMENT IS FREE...The only issue is to come up with a suitable philosophy that will take the pressure off for the time being. I don't know.

What about selling them on no reincarnation? That ain't going to be easy. Oh lord.


Rick

BUKOWSKI'S SECRET PACT