Daily Archives: November 10, 2015

Jefferson County, Our Land and Home

Mother earth is crying

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Samhain                                                                  New Thanksgiving Moon

Took down the nicest lodgepole we have on our property, about 40 feet tall and healthy. It hit the driveway with such a thump that Kate thought I’d hit the house. When she came out and saw it, Kate said, “Mother earth is crying now.”

Over the last week I’d begun to have mild guilt feelings about cutting down trees.  The ones that were deformed or diseased I had no problem felling since the act was similar to weeding in a garden, or more accurately, thinning. And, the rationale for most is fire mitigation, something necessary because of where we choose to live. The other rationale, the one that led to cutting down the 40 feet lodgepole, is the solar installation.

40 feet high means casting a long shadow and it hits the panels, taking each one it touches out of commission for as long as it covers any part of a panel. So, it was a tradeoff. A fine tree for solar generation of electricity. Not everything you do for what you believe in will feel good. And this one didn’t feel good.

Cutting it down, limbing it, stacking the branches and the top, then moving the large logs I cut the lodgepole into took almost an hour. I got one more tree down and hung a third. It’s still up because I had to take my chainsaw to Chainsaw Bob’s. More on Chainsaw Bob and his unusual business model in the next post.

Commentary on Religion, Dogs, Great Wheel, Holidays

Kuku Tihar

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Samhain                                                                               New Thanksgiving Moon

Again, highlighted by a friend, Paul Strickland. Kuku Tihar*. Kuku Tihar occurs during the celebration, in Nepal, of Diwali. (see below) This year Kuku Tihar, the second day of Diwali, falls on November 12th. Tomorrow. How will you celebrate your dog/dogs?

I was struck by the dignity of the dogs in the pictures I found of Kuku Tihar. The respect seems to carry its own profound message and bring out the seriousness of the dog.

 

 

*Dogs are especially important to Nepal’s Hindu practitioners. During day two of Tihar, Kukur Tihar, the role of dogs in human life and throughout history is celebrated. In theRigveda, one of Hinduism’s most ancient texts, Samara — the mother of dogs — assists Indra, the ruler of heaven, in retrieving stolen cattle. Hindu tradition holds that a dog is the guardian and messenger of Yama, the lord and judge of the dead. A dog is also said to guard the gates of the afterlife.

At the close of the Mahabharata, the king of righteousness, Yudhishthira, refuses to enter heaven without his devoted dog. The dog is revealed to represent the concept of dharma, the path of righteousness. During Tihar, each day is devoted to a honoring a different concept or entity: crows, dogs, cows, oxen, and fraternal relationships, respectively. On the second day, Kukur Tihar, all dogs are recognized, honored, and worshiped.   dogster.com

Humor, Politics

Peeved

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Samhain                                                                              New Thanksgiving Moon

Docent friend Tom Byfield passed this along. Since I know many of you who read this share his affection for John Cleese and the Monty Python gang, I thought I’d post it.

Thanks, Tom.

ALERTS TO THREATS IN 2015 EUROPE
From JOHN CLEESE

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent events in Syria and have therefore raised their security level from “Miffed” to “Peeved.” Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to “Irritated” or even “A Bit Cross.” The English have not been “A Bit Cross” since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorised from “Tiresome” to “A Bloody Nuisance.” The last time the British issued a “Bloody Nuisance” warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots have raised their threat level from “Pissed Off” to “Let’s get the Bastards.” They don’t have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from “Run” to “Hide.” The only two higher levels in France are “Collaborate” and “Surrender.” The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France ‘s white flag factory, effectively paralysing the country’s military capability.

Italy has increased the alert level from “Shout Loudly and Excitedly” to “Elaborate Military Posturing.” Two more levels remain: “Ineffective Combat Operations” and “Change Sides.”

The Germans have increased their alert state from “Disdainful Arrogance” to “Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs.” They also have two higher levels: “Invade a Neighbour” and “Lose.”

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels ..

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Australia, meanwhile, has raised its security level from “No worries” to “She’ll be right, Mate.” Two more escalation levels remain: “Crikey! I think we’ll need to cancel the barbie this weekend!” and “The barbie is cancelled.” So far no situation has ever warranted use of the last final escalation level.

Regards,
John Cleese ,
British writer, actor and tall person

And as a final thought – Greece is collapsing, the Iranians are getting aggressive, and Rome is in disarray. Welcome back to 430 BC.

Life is too short…