Chat

there is nothing here really

a small town

but stuff is coming together i guess

i'm going out to a village on thursday

to start trying to introduce myself to the communities

i need three - and this will be the first one - i hope

i don't know about the maya though

are you enjoying yourself so far?

umm... it's ok - people are really nice

but i've been a bit bored and lonely

so...does there seem like there might be people to get to know?

well... i don't know... there are a lot of people doing work here from the states

well - not a lot

but some

and the locals are really nice

i don't know

i mean.. i've talked to a whole bunch of people.

i'm kind of thinking of just doing my own thing to a certain extent

but we'll see i guess.

besides that

i don't know

it's different down here

everyone speaks creole

which i'm starting to understand a little already

i don't know what anyone is saying when they're talking amongst themselves

but they all speak english too

but - i've been hearing it so much and i'm realizing that i understand it a little

some times more than others

and the people are from all over too. it's heavily african and mayan

but there's chinese

and east indian

which i'm not sure what that means

there's nowhere to hike or no beach and there's nothing to do in town

so it's really got nothing

but maybe once i start getting out of town, i'll feel better about it all

i'm not sure why any tourists would come here really

besides to see a small water side community that is really friendly

Five Years Left...

Author and freak, Daniel Pinchbeck, has penned an interesting read titled 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl. It's a story about the Maya. It's a story about time. It's a story about the end of time. Drawing from an array of sources, from anthropology, history, physics and other hard sciences, philosophy, and literature, among others, Pinchbeck brings together the many thinkers who believe we are entering a period of planetary change and even human evolution.

I want to just bring out a quote from the book by John Jenkins (on page 245) that I found interesting and thought provoking:
"The highest Maya political office required the taking of hallucinogens... imagine the U.S. president ingesting psilocybin mushroomes ten hours before giving the State of the Union address. Such an idea seems far-fetched to the modern imagination, but it made sense to the Maya. The leaders of society should be able to journey into the deep psyche, to access the fount of all creativity and genius, to communie with the ancestors and beings from other realms and times, and to deliver into their country the organizing frequencies emanating from the cosmic source. Our incapacity to envision such a situation is part of the intrinsic incompatibility in worldviews. Something very basic to the Western mindset prevents us from understanding the full profundity of Mesoamerican cosmovision."

What we often forget is that the Maya are still living and practicing their ancient techniques and methods today throughout the Central American region. The Maya are a people who have survived and prospered through the centuries - an example of what we call a modern-day indigenous group which, through intimate knowledge of and respect for their surroundings, has managed their environment in a largely sustainable manner, and continues to do so to this day.

Perhaps it is time that we begin to look at these ancient traditional cultures, and begin to identify what has made them so successful, along with the practices and beliefs that we in the "Great West" know nothing of...

What could be behind Facebook?

It seems like just about everyone has a myspace or facebook page these days. And why not? These sites provide users with fun and convenient ways to stay in contact with friends from around the world. Sharing pictures, quotes, favorites, stories, and more, users of these sites end up providing a good deal of personal information to the public and the site in question - whether it's myspace, facebook, tribe, friendster, or one of the countless others out there. The question arises then, is there something to be worried about? Well... check out the link below to a short video-doc that traces the origins of facebook to a not-so user-friendly ideal. It may have you thinking twice about posting your pics from the 'cinco de mayo' party the other night.

http://www.albumoftheday.com/facebook/

Happy Earth Day!!!

Take care of this planet while we still have time left to spend on her. Take this day, take anyday, and do something kind. Make change. Be positive. Show some love...

VIVA PACHAMAMA!!!

Ousting the Wolf...

Sick of Paul Wolfowitz?
So is the rest of the world. The folks at AVAAZ.org have created this video based on the show, 'the Office', accompanied by a petition for the firing of this corrupted individual.
Let's keep the changes rolling.

now now...

will i fall?
can i make it through
this...
who is there
around me?
who is there
that will
also
come on down...
i want to
have hope.
i want to
know.
know that
things will be...
and
i suppose
there it is.
things
will
be.

Refugee Crisis

I was just forwarded this great article from Salon.com concerning the African refugee crisis. This article uses an event in Egypt when 5000 Egyptian riot police stormed a protest being held by Sudanese refugees trying to get official 'refugee status' from the UN. If you are unfamiliar with what is going on, read the article, and consider this: the situation has only become worse.
Here is the 'must-read' article by David Morse: Murder from Darfur to Cairo