I would like to have done more sailing than I did, though I have to admit the sailing I did was sports sailing and after going round a couple of buoys six times it gets rather boring. But what never got boring was the feel of being on the sea (except the force six which…
The Subtle Storm
There are many people who look at history and see quite clearly the guiding mind of a god, citing the frequent times in history when an event benefiting human kind happened almost fortuitously. Most recent would be the election of Churchill when he wasn’t the front runner, to Prime Minister in 1940. Many others could…
The Art Of Design
I remember being taken down a London street with an architect a while ago and being told to look up at the roof tops, and upper windows. I was quite amazed to see so many different architectural statements, even small statues, so high up most people rarely see them. It made me wonder why they…
Facebook Revolutions
Let me first say the revolts in Tunisia and Egypt will not change the political map for the better in the Middle East as far as the Western idea of change is concerned. There will be no great democratic whirlwind because the leaders who are falling are old men, their time had come years ago….
Emotional Intelligence
Every mind is different, and whilst we are on the subject of mind we should all remember that every baby and child is a growing mind and however cute we think them everything we do and most of what we say, is being collated in there somewhere. This difference means that not every child is…
The Naming Of Art
My painter friends have told me in the past they have ‘problems’ giving their paintings titles, not that I don’t mull over a title or two myself but it seemed to me strange for people to lack imagination with a few words when they are so brilliant with oils and water colours. And not that…
Two Writers
There is the suburb talent that can put down in words an experience they share with other people, and others who have had that experience can see the honesty in the writing. Those who have not had the experience can none-the-less feel the authenticity and know that this is what it must be like. They…
Choice Cuts
It has been very frosty outside the past week, the ground is a solid, hard block that crunches when you walk over it. A friend of mine visited on Saturday to talk about a trip to India and in particular the Mumbai area and when she arrived she said she had heard a lot of…
The Castration of Knowledge
An admiral of the Ming Dynasty in China, Zheng he captained seven voyages to the Indian Ocean starting from 1405 at the request of Emperor Yongle. Zheng He’s expeditions also aimed to expand the Ming Empire’s influence overseas and establish an alternative trade route in place of the Silk road, which fell under the control…
Angels And Devils
We cannot go as far back as the first intellectual discussions human beings had about the world, but as far back as we are able to go we find reflected in our beliefs the dichotomy between good things happening and bad things happening. Born from the experience of everyday living and from the observation that…