Reflection Xmas in March and The April Suicide

To all back home

Hello

Christmas in March sped by

An Arab picturesque Thai final diner… now come, and been and gone

A tourist tour, many sights and many diners and some conversations, some, with friend meetings interspersed. Some wine, a mountain climb, lizzy around the bends of Cape Town, a connection in district 6, strumming Bob with bright eyes, entrepreneurial endeavors of old age friends, house purchase and the rooting and re-routing of a sister reformed and on the firm etched path of stability. The family dynamic, the scripted role, the patterns to play and to fulfill your cue, fulfill your cue. To converse without childhood branded striped printed brandmarks. A smile in the mooned night, a laugh with the wine. Shake shake shimmer on a cold cement stoep, to try and change and the sameness of it all – yes the sameness, both a comfort and both a cutting thread.

Now upon the return: Renewed vigour for full exuberant joie de vivre.. Promised hopes of good routines, morning waking, sunrise gazing, daily practice daily practice daily practice for the advancement and betterment.. The daily practice to not materialse. As corporate lies devour, laziness sours your energy and placates the joie dissolves the de and stagnates the vivre until it’s a bitter routine of aches and pains and morning groans. When sleep become the best part of a day you wonder --- yes you wonder!

So its been now 3 weeks of monkey hammering - already sped by a fast forward jog. Interspersed with sophisticated and tormentual household domestication and duties on To Do lists and lists and lists and lists to be ticked. Always to be ticked off and off and off we go.

The shopping list of To Do’s, which are destined never to be done. An Ikea home DIY build , a Hernia consultation, a Yogic philosophy understanding , doors branched open, candles flickering brighter, a Sanscirpt class, ayervedic medicine. charlatan or awakening, the swindler or the guider, a black corrupt cancer praying on the hopes or enlightened soul reborn to show us how to grow>? The wonder and intuitive soul.

The Recount of 3 weeks gone by.

Guitar by the wayside

Reading by the road

Poetry in the trenchole

Excel at the forefront

Reporting is gung ho,

documentating banalities called to attention and

,a corporate smong geling greaseball.

And so is the heat. An average peach of 33 degrees at 10 PM. Cousin Juls watch out – its gonna be biting when you arrive.

But there is also hope, new discoveries: Timothy Leary, guitar tricks , Sidartha and the river Herman Hesse and the Ferryman. There was a Howl by Allen Ginsberg, the union flux of skating, the embodiment of one to a complete absence of thought. Its the flowrider. Theres the ever hopeful pursuits , a light shimmering in the dark of the fulfillment to be found in a consulting job, the Masdar positions, and the online trader dream . It just there but not to actioned. Just there as the carrot for my donkey mind, to keep the spin spinning round . And then the ever comfort of a strumming guitar at 12pm warding off the dreaming of sleep – the lost thoughtlessness of a howl in the night over the drum drum drum of a strum. Good night Chrissie

Email the Month of January: Where is January??

Email the Month of January: Where is January??

3 minute news LETTER: Where did January go?

* Yes another expat abroad, has turned to blogging their inane activities and banal experience to an indifferent world, instead of subjecting you via a personalised email, you may come across this during your procrastination at work or home – keep avoiding your pressing admin and read further it may or may not be more rewarding * Peace

For the ADD

1. Where did Jan go

2. Finding the right Dubai Network: Cool Harvard, Columbia graduates dudes

3. Lip Service at World Future Energy Service Abu Dhabi

4. It’s a politicians life: Exude confidence and babble bullshit --- but with CONFIDENCE ( oh and also get a good script writer)

5. What do politicians actually do?

6. Flowrider: Stoked on 360 spins ( things don’t change from teenager to working professional – you still get stoked spinning around on a wave)

7. Work: Six Sigma Green Belt– The conundrum of getting people to do what they don’t want to do?

8. Park Life: So what do you do to enhance weekends – you plan lounge in the 10 parks in Dubai. Tick - One.

For the People who have nothing better to do

1. Time: Holy shot. time is getting faster its not just a rumour? 1 Month in and already New Year Resolutions are failing and faltering - what to do , life and its juggling game between money and work or life and fun – the balance is a fine line. How to get money ( not fired), skill up, develop finger skills for future guitar solo’ing (the pipe dream exists), the quality time with Chris, get good enough to compete in Flow rider in September. It’s a balancing act.

2. Finding the Dubai Network: rubbing shoulders, this nascent social network group consisting of Harvard and Columbia graduates, super intelligent dudes who are all in the grey profession of consulting. ‘ we are clever people who know nothing about your industry but will learn it in 4 days and then make it better’. It sounds a pretty cool career path – one I am envious of. Envious fo what a Harvard/Columbia stamp could bring.

3. World Future Energy Summit Abu Dhabi 2011: Attended every day. Inspired to work in Renewable Energy or energy consultancy, policy making or some affiliation with Masdar. How to do this is the bigger question.

4. Political Pigs: Witnessed first hand the artistic skill of political rhetoric and talking without saying anything. Thanks Ban Ki Moon ( the more I see of this man the more a puppy figure head he appears), Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden who services her lip through her pre written address, Asif Ali Zardari ( the thief president of Pakistan) fall asleep reading his address – his script writing had copy pasted from wikipedia ‘what is renewable energy’ and he was suffering from an all night binge in Dubai’s Burj Kalifa building.

5. Paying Political Pigs: Why do people pay actor politicians

6. Finally did 360’ spin on flow rider. You have to lean forward push down on the right hand then transfer weight to the middle of the board and quickly push on the left hand whilst falling back down the face of the wave. Ate it over the falls 100 times before spinning

7. Six Sigma Lean Systems and Green Belting away Yawn – Earning money: The major question is ? How do you get people to change what they do, if it means more work? No one wants the monkey ? So playing with the idea people management and making people do something they don’t want to do.

8. Parks – Dubai has kick ass parks Yip KICK ASS -. South Africa doesn’t. Plain and simple

(lakes and lakes, hire boat, hire a peddly, fly on a cable car, buy twinkly shit you don’t need, fly a kite, drink Indian tea, dolphins hoop jumps, Emirati footballers, abaya cellphoning, expat joggers) But you know what I do sure miss bergie meths drinkers and dodgy their bergie shit and running away from the R5 car guards – But you cant beat that mouowwntain)

30 Second News: ROCK IT 2011

30 Second News: ROCK IT 2011

Hope you all get splendidly happy drunk and maintain the perfect alcohol buzz to euphorically take you into the new year surrounded by friends and loved ones.

I hope you all have a super super cool new years – and that upon reflection you can smile on the year that has passed and passed out. If not drink some wine or your choice of vice, or make those inevitable New Year resolutions that are destined to come true (really come true) ?

So as the year closes here is the latest edition of 30 second news. A summary 2010

2010 in all aspect was a perfect year and should be considered so. I got all the things that people wish for, the shiny car, the apartment on the beach, the international travel, the freedom in work, the ability to dodge work and accountability, spare time enrich oneself with the real fun of guitar playing and surfing and the highlight of course meeting a great person who is now both cool companion and chilled girlfriend Chris ( pretty hard to find). So now standing on the pedestal that was 2010 – I look around and there is only one way now ---- down.

Jumping down the rabbit hole of 2011. It is going to be almost impossible to top 2010 – but as the Nepalese colloquial saying goes ‘what can one do?’

For those Hung Over on New Years and Facebooking here is my banal experiences of 2010, with attempted ROCK humour – Rock off!

a. Looked around the middles east a lot! Travelled to 14 countries, realized the middle east is not bomb crater, filled with lunatic suicidal maniacs with trigger finger fingers – just another religiously oppressed working class, not at all dissimilar to States – except these guys don’t own CNN and thus unfortunately faile to have a news soap box at their disposal with which to pollute all of the world.

b. Travel Highlights (( Israel, to Pakistan to Sri Lanka , to Hong Kong and Denmark)

i. Motor Biking and Longboarding in Sri Lanka with Buddhist dudes, meditated with the herb on the Himalayas with Jordanian heritage, skiing Scandanvia with a Californian, Partying Chinese New Years Hong Kong with Brazilian, Jumping at the Taj Mahal, Dodging grumpy Danes on bikes, Watching skirted Arabs booze, sleeping in deserts, sailing to the world (the man made one), scooter time in Goa, Saying no in 10 languages to junk trinket sellers .

1. jajaajajaajajajajaj etc etc

2. jjjjaaaaajajajajajaajaj -yeaaawn

c. So other shit about rocks. Dubai Rocks – deserts rock, not living at home rocks, not saving any money as you spend everything on travel – who gives rocks?? dreaming of playing like Jimi Hendrix provides motivation – to rock, and Chris Rocks

d. Xmas in Dubai – sitting with tattooed Lebanese Hells Angel Harley Gang in Dubai - a very festive Xmas. Not having to wrap presents – yes that rocked!

e. Iran skiing aint gonna rock as my passport expired – so no rocking down slopes with the Persians.

f. Learning to Stand on the flowrider – is stoking , not surf stoking but up there. Get eaten by the double pump is tame – nothing like Elands 4 foot . More like Long beach 3 foot shore break. Unrocking working.

g. Last year New Years was shooting up illegals in Transkei – this year is a quite meditation. Mixing things up – THAT definitely rocks

h. Thought of working for the man another year – certainly doesn’t rock – puke rock

i. Other people that rock – George Carlin, Bill Hicks, John Lennon, and Jim and Jimi – the legends who define ROCK.

j. Other people who are bad rocks are – the AWB, Marthinus van Schalkwyk and of course JZ – these are big big rocks.

k. Arabs do drink in their dish dashes– hypocrisy is a crucial element for the smooth flowing of modern society – unsure if this rocks or not?

l. Time for Red Wine at the Oezo bar NOW – Justin Jansen would be in his ‘element of rock’ in this place – just put it on the Clifton and it’s a winner – wine bar, jazz and soft sunsetting sand. Rock on – I say to the Cabernet – ‘the nose is a little Rocky though’

m. Hope your New Year party ROCKS and that those NY resolutions all come splendidly true. Remember careful what you wish for and in the end no one actually gives any rocks whatsoever except maybe you.

n. Rock n Roll

Embrace the absurdity and keep riding the wave.

Peace

2011