querrelle

 This..... was my summer vacation.

Revillagigedo [rev-vee-yah-hee-hay-doh] Islands, Mexico
‎7 days at sea
5 dive days, 5 dive sites
16 dives, 8.75 hours submerged
Maximum depth 108 ft; Average maximum depth 76 ft
Longest dive time 40 mins; average dive time 33 mins
Water Temp: 73-77F
Noteworthy Sightings: Manta rays (lots of), Dolphins, Galapagus Sharks, Silkie Sharks, Reef Sharks, Octopus, Lobster, Zebra Moray, Diamond rays
19 divers, 10 crew, 2 divemasters

After close to 5 years, I decided today to discontinue my Saturday morning Wing Chun private class with Sifu Eric (I was shocked to realise it has been so long). He’s so inscrutable that it’s hard to know how he felt about the news. I’m not giving up, just switching to weekday evening group classes. I told him I wanted to stop ‘at least for the summer’, though I don’t expect to resume in the winter.

He has taught me a lot over the course of the last 5 years - we completed the entire Wing Chun syllabus some time ago and our sessions have become repetitive and without variation.  I'm not making progress as quickly as I should because I don't train with anyone other than Sifu Eric -  we have certainly become too used to each other (he knows what I'm going to do, I (usually) know what he's going to do)

Our sessions are also intense, and completely rob me of energy for the rest of my day. I can’t go out on Friday nights, and I’m wasted for Saturday nights. If I need to do any work around the house, or on the car or bike, then that needs to happen Sunday, which means I don’t get a rest day.

I originally stopped doing the weekday classes because my classmates were too aggressive and I would come home frazzled and adrenalised.  The group sessions are two hours long and there’s a real possibility that they may be too much for me – I’m not a spring chicken any more. However these days I won’t have any qualms about packing up and leaving when I’ve had enough.

So now looking forward to having the time to finish some long outstanding projects around the house, spending more time with my husband (who I'm sure will welcome this news), doing some more art projects and getting away for some weekends on the bike while the all-too-brief window of good weather lasts, and maybe going out for a boogey once in a while.

Pencil, Gesso on Board, 2011.

My husband has deserted me for the week.

What to do, what to do?

Sunday: Arrive early evening, Airport Express to Kowloon, Check-in Mira Hotel.  Watch 'Symphony of Lights' on the harbour-front.

Monday:  Surprise Breakfast with Mark.  Explore Central.  Wan Chai computer malls. Star Ferry back to Kowloon.  Dinner in Jordan (Hunnan Mutton Hotpot ugh!).  Ladies and Temple Street markets.

Tuesday: Tram to the Peak.  Peak trail.  Ferry to Lamma Island with Pola and Roddy for seafood dinner at Rainbow restaurant.

Cross-posted to zen_buddhists

Fascinating BBC podcast, part of the "History of the World in 100 objects" series, on the earliest depictions of the Buddha.

The program asserts that the earliest images of the Buddha did not appear until about 1,800 years ago, many centuries after the historical Buddha's death, and contemporaneous with the first depictions of Christ and the Hindu deities. Interestingly, both the Buddha and Christ were referenced by symbols prior to this period (a tree for Buddha, and a fish for Christ). The emergence of the early iconography is thought to correspond with the first post-classical era societies sufficiently wealthy to support an artisan class.

Just in from seeing 'Zen - the movie' - a biopic of 13th century Japanese Zen master Dogen - at the Zen Centre. It was surprisingly not bad. It didn't fall into the trap of trying to sex up his life story - which must have been tempting given that he was a sober monk with no notable vices. His life-story is, or should be, pretty remarkable in itself but these days we're all so desensitised and addicted to drama and sensation that we expect something more.

There were some horribly cheesy special effects depicting Dogen's enlightenment, but on the whole it gave a very good overview of Zen practice and thought. Dogen was an incredibly deep, prolific and influential writer and they managed to squeeze in many of his most famous quotes.



The monastics in our little party presumably have little exposure to modern entertainment and it was striking how moved they became at incidents portrayed in the movie. It made me realise how hardened my own heart and how atrophied my ability to empathise have become through a lifetime of exposure to movies and TV.

To study the Way is to study the self.
To study the self is to forget the self.
To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things.
To be enlightened by all things is to cast off the body and mind of the self as well as those of others. Even the traces of enlightenment are wiped out, and life with traceless enlightenment goes on forever and ever.
Dogen 1200-1253

The VFR800FI Interceptor 2004, with full-stealth mode

I first saw one of these on 05 June 2006 and was immediately smitten. I've been sensible and restrained for nearly 4 years, but tonight I finally bought one.

2004, 23,000km, with matching panniers. He's played some silly buggers with the exhaust, which I'll want to have put back to standard, but otherwise it's stock perfect.

Lovely sunny morning here in Vancouver and I have (had) 25 minutes to kill before heading out to Wing Chun.

Brother-in-law was discharged from hospital this morning. Cracked vertebrae, broken hand, wrist and still some anxiety over an irregular ECG, but hopefully on the road to recovery.

I had occasion to read Canada’s “National Post” over lunch today. What a nasty insidious right-wing rag masquerading as intelligent commentary. Easy to see how those less informed and lacking critical faculties could be easily swayed. Not quite as toxic as Britain’s Daily Mail and not quite as substantial as the Daily Telegraph, but a distasteful amalgam. On reading it, one could easily have formed the impression that Canada was merely an adjunct of the US, with the same preoccupations, rather than a separate country.

Coincides nicely with my observation of yesterday:

"The spiritual path is not fun - better not begin it. If you must begin, then go all the way, because if you begin and quit, the unfinished business you have left behind begins to haunt you all the time. The path, as Suzuki Roshi mentions in 'Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind,' is like getting on to a train that you cannot get off; you ride it on and on and on."

Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, 'The Myth of Freedom'

Daily quotations from CTR on Facebook are here

P.S. And my favourite comment on the quote:

"Ha! You can't get off the train because you were always on the train. In fact you are the train and you didn't notice it until you entered the spiritual path. Constantly attempting to jump off the train is samsara, no? Choo choo. Koo koo ka choo."

Giacometti breaks auction record at Sotheby's

$105m is an entire year's work for one our larger regional teams.

2,099 days ago I became an Australian...

Today I, together with 80 others, of a bewildering range of countries of origin, became a Canadian (too).



( Lots of pics behind the cut )

I only just realised that people can send you messages on Flickr. Just came across a message from the director of an advertising agency in Toronto that wants to use my picture of poutine (above) to use in a campaign for Tourism Canada, to appear in the NY Times, LA Times, Harpers Bazaar., Aby-bloody-ssinian Vogue.....

Just one problem. Said message is 44 months old.

Another anniversary passed unnoticed earlier this month. On December 4th it was 15 years since I gave up smoking - which is significant because I have now not smoked for as long as I smoked. I am in excellent health, so hopefully I got away with it.



Amazing to think that I smoked for fully one-third of my life, before I smartened up.

The decision is made and the flight is booked. Portland it will be, next weekend. 15K Aeroplan points and $136 in taxes.

Suggestions for places to stay and things to do gratefully received.

The Portland Bears are holding a benefit on the Saturday evening to raise funds for a wounded comrade (local artist without medical insurance fell off a ladder), so that will take care of Saturday night. Looking forward to spending some time in the company of (hopefully) friendly bear-folk.

* Still ill. 8 days now. Longest I can remember being ill in forever. Never gets really bad, just won't go away. Not even anything exotic like siamese pig-flu.

* 50 days until 31 Dec 09. 50 days to get that 6-pack and get down to 34" waist so I can fit in that stack of barely-worn jeans again. Not entirely infeasible, though jawnbc is sceptical. I really need to drink much less wine - the calorie content is downright scary.

* Kitchen tiling. Is taking much, much longer than expected, but is looking faaabulous! Pictures will follow.

* CAM4 is an inescapable vortex that is keeping me up too late, and depleting my vital energies. Tonight's special guest star was a tradie (labourer) from Geelong (works for me). There is a mysterious correlation between camera angles and audience size, which I'm gradually getting the hang of.

* jawnbc is off to Europe next week, so I'm thinking of taking off for a weekend somewhere myself. Don't want to go far, so thinking maybe Seattle (where I've been) or Portland (where I haven't). Or maybe Palm Springs, Phoenix or somewhere else warm.

* Zen: celebrated punk-Zen-master (or something) Brad Warner is speaking at the Zen Centre this Sunday. Should be interesting. Given the relative austerity of my centre, I'm a little surprised he even got an invite. He's either an egotistical wanker or a crazy wisdom adept, or something else entirely. Time will tell.

* Yoga. Now hosting twice weekly classes for the ladies at work. One hard (Swenson), one easy (Schiffman). Tremendous transformation in my body since the David Swenson workshop earlier this year.

* Cantonese. Lessons with Jojo postponed due to illness, but still slogging away at it.

* Wing Chun. Sifu Derek just reached 70. I hear he had to have shoulder surgery and was forced to give up his dog. I must give him a call, but I'm still sheepish about how he's going to react to me training with Sifu Eric. Silly really.

* Work: is intense. But I love it, so I don't care.

* Hakama. Thinking of making one.