A Favorite Poem

Ah, poetry. Yes. I read a lot of it when I was young - Shakespear, Elliot, Cummings, Dickenson, Whitman, on and on. One source provided a good deal of fodder for my poetic thirst. Here's one I recall by heart from that source.

They said it couldn't be done

And he with a grin replied

I'll not be one to say

"It couldn't be done"

Till I've gone and tried.

So he buckled right in

With a trace of a grin

By golly he went right to it

And he tried that thing 

That "coudn't be done"

And you know what?

He couldn't do it.

from Mad Magazine to which I'll be forever grateful

The Painting on the Wall

Last Saturday posted a chat with early Suzuki student and painter Mike Dixon. He did the cloud paintings at Greens Restaurant and a great deal more. This is a painting painting I bought from him in a 1966 art show/sale to benefit the purchase of Tassajara - for $300. In his Cuke Audio Podcast he said that that's a Rothko painting in the painting. Later, in 1976 March or so, I moved in with Liz Tuomi in Bolinas. Her home was directly above where this painting depicts - Agate Beach - and directly above this part of it. In 1978 The painting is still on the wall in the studio where Liz and I slept and did a lot of music for nine wonderful years. It's still on that wall. Her son Ethan Okamura lives there and took this photo. See Ethan Okamura photography online.

Nothing

Lest we forget

Now here's a church I've proudly belonged to since Herb Gold first took me to a Saint Stupid day parade in San Francisco on April 1st of a couple of decades ago. Remembering again dear Saint Stupid.

US Prez election matters in terms of survival of the fitest

climate fight could be lost - argued in this Guardian article - and seems to me "could be lost" is mildly putting it but seems "could be lost" works no matter who wins. But at least there will be a bit more of a fighting chance one way over the other.

Darn! More bad news climate-wise

Major new climate study rules out less severe global warming scenarios

Rodentium

The mouse threw the die

And the mice now with dice

Ran off with them both

Singing once is good twice.

Run-in with the Law back in the States back in the day

Reading today what to say if one is being dragged off the street into an unmarked vehicle by guys with no identifying uniforms or explanation. That reminded me of some responses I've given to police in less threatening situations. Once I was stopped at the road going over the hill from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach. I was coming from Muir Beach on the way to Bolinas returning Liz Tuomi's harpsicord to her. It had been at Sam and Jan Keen's in Muir Beach for a while so Liz and Jan could play - Jan the flute. They were both excellent. I was there when they first played. "What do you do when you make a mistake?" Jan asked. "I don't make mistakes," Liz said. "I don't either," said Jan. I was driving the Keen's Volkswagon bus. A highway patrolman stopped me right by what people in the area called Four Corners - the road from Mill Valley coming up and going down to Muir Woods and the road over the hill from Highway 1 back to Highway 1. There was no tag on the liscense plate. I told the officer I was just doing a friend a favor, that it was his vehicle. Officer said that didn't matter, that the driver got the ticket. I said, "Tell you what. Sam lives right back down there in Muir Beach. Follow me, I'll get him down into the vehicle and if he fights the ticket, I'll turn state's evidence." That made him laugh pretty hard and he waved me on. 

Katrinka on the way

After four canceled flights and a 13 day wait for her negative test results, Katrinka is set to be driven by son Seth from the Oregon coast (and a nice little town with no positives yet) to SFO to say hi to son Clay at a hotel there then next morning fly off to DFW to Doha to Denpasar on Qantas. Scheduled to arrive late afternoon. So a little over four months she's likely to be here again. We'll be distancing and masking at home for two weeks, me in the guest room upstairs, making podcasts up there too. But we can be somewhat near during waking hours and walk to the beach etc. Dogette Bandita and feline Kucita will appreciate her return. Me too.

Bali using Covid-19 Blood Plasma

Fro recovered patients for treatments

Gaia's Lovelock at almost 101

Guardian interview - the biosphere and I are in the last 1% of our lives (remember the biosphere is four billion years old - give or take half a billion. So 1% of that is roughly forty million more years to go. He's such an optimist in his old age. 

Weird Body Stuff I

I wrote about this in earlier cuke.com times. I don't remember this happening for a long time, but for a few years, my calves would heat up. I think both. I mean heat up so much I'd look down to see if there was a heater behind them. It would happen now and then and didn't seem to have any consequences or significane that I could figure out. It would last half an hour or so. Sure made me wonder what the source of the heat was. Obviously my body was the source but how and why? No one ever had a suggestion as to what the heck that was. It was sort of fun. 

Climate Change ouch

Summers could become 'too hot for humans'

Lift Off Canceled

Katrinka was all set to be on her way to SF today to fly to LA tomorrow from there Qatar Airways to Doha with a bounce to Denpasar. But the results of her viral test for Covid-19 didn't come in time. So now she's scheduled to arrive a week from today Thursday rather than in three days Sunday. Her results can't be more than two weeks old when she arrives. Then she's going to isolate for two weeks. No kidding. I'll sleep upstairs in the guest room and record podcasts up there. But we can be nearby each other and walk to the beach which is open. Glad she's likely getting back soon cause this is the best time of year - windy, cool - for here. Don't want it any cooler. Would have to get out a long sleeve shirt. - dc

Number 2 and Going for Number 1!

This year already 2nd hotest on record but media coverage way down.

Where we're at here in Bali Covid-wise

What is the most irreplaceable fact in science?

Richard Feynman said in Volume One of his Lectures on Physics:

If, in some cataclysm, all of scientific knowledge were to be destroyed, and only one sentence passed on to the next generation of creatures, what statement would contain the most information in the fewest words? I believe it is the atomic hypothesis that all things are made of atoms — little particles that move around in perpetual motion, attracting each other when they are a little distance apart, but repelling upon being squeezed into one another.

And I think that he’s right. (Who am I to disagree with Richard Feynman?!)

In that simple concept, one can derive a huge amount of information. You can infer a remarkable number of things, and from it, you can derive the majority, if not all, knowledge about modern physics.

The basic principle was hypothesised by Democritus in the 4th century BC, and the atom was first ‘split’ by Rutherford in 1917.

But, all of biology, all of chemistry, and all of physics could be derived from simple principle that things are made of atoms.

A Week Away

Katrinka's flight on Qatar Airways is scheduled to land here in Bali next Sunday, A week from today (It's already Sunday here but barely.) Only those with resident visas can come in - and surely some other special cases. Her flight stops in Doha. She gts all three seats and passengre must wear a face mask and a shield. We're going to keep six feet apart for two weeks. A chaallenge, Sounds fun. We can take walks together. It's the windiest time of year so that's good and face masks are required here at all times when out. We've got our fingers crossed the flight isn't canceled as the others were earlier. She's been gone since March 17th. When she arrives she must show a certificate that she's virus free and it can't be over two weeks old. That's one of about five requirements. Another is downloading the app that puts her in a tracking system for contact tracing. They'll take her temperature. I won't be at the airport to meet her but a trusted driver, Komang, who always does our airport runs will be there. He'll see if he can get into baggage to herp here cause she's bringing back a bunch of stuff for us and friends. Fingers crossed.

Two young Bali Women Environmental Heroines

After Fighting Plastic in ‘Paradise Lost,’ Sisters Take On Climate Change

from the NY Times Wednesday Climate Change special - thanks John K. Nelson

Connected and Compounded Events

Nature do com - climate going beyond unrelated this and that

That link just goes to the home page for Nature/climate and the four individual articles there won't be visible with that link forever so here are their links. Here's the first one.

Moving beyond isolated events

70 Times around the Sun

Almost five and a half years ago, wrote this song for my 70th birthday.

Prayers in Bali

Yep, prayers for a re-opening. Here's a Reuters article (thanks D. Padwa) on it with a nice photo I won't share here cause Blogger photos are not working since the new interface went into effect. So go to the article and you'll see.  Kadek, our housekeeper and I looked at the photo and noted how almost none of those people are wearing their masks right and are right next to each other. She said it's all bad, they shouldn't be doing that, that that's the way it will get spread. Things have been pretty smooth here, lots is open and lots is closed, not all the angry people dividing into camps like I read about in the US. Beach is close but can go there if you're cool. But the virus positive cases have been increasing recently. Now 20 have died and almost 2000 cases reported. I don't think now is the time to open up. Look at Florida, Texas, Arizona. Good luck Bali.

Greta Thunberg!

The climate campaigner who doesn't like campaigning

"I don't beg to be heard. I just beg for the scientists to be heard."

Thinking of You

Recalling a song for Katrinka made into a video and sent to her five years ago. Here's the page for it on defusermusic.com. Suggest clicking on the You/Tube video link from there. She's got flights booked to bring her back to Bali leaving the 17th of this month and arriving here on the 19th. Fingers crossed they're not canceled as the earlier ones were. 

The Amenable and the Amok

America seems so crazy from afar. What a zoo of characters - spiritualists, humanists, peace-love-doveists, idealists of all sorts, libertarians, the practical, the scientific, the logical, the angry, the obstenate, the hysterical, the greedy, the violent, the confused, the pathetic, the noble, the honorable, the deplorable, the honest, the theives, the compassionate, the cruel, the hateful, the loving, the fearful, the arrogant, the humble, the enlightented, the stable, the neurotic, psychotic, sociophathic, weak, powerful, the base, the divine. It seems unmanagable. The zoo's cage doors are all opened and the zoo keeper ran off. What the heck's gonna happen next. Meanwhile, here from deep in my well looking up at sleepy Sanur, people seem so congenial, polite, harmonius, gliding along without much rancor. But then, they're just human full of various potential. The phrase "run amuck" comes to mind.  "from Malay amok ‘rushing in a frenzy’" (Oxford Languages). Early use was as a noun denoting a Malay in a homicidal frenzy." Indonesian is derived from Malay. Usually amuck or amok is thought of as one person freaking out in homicidal rage, but it's happened here in an island-wide blood bath against "communists" and Chinese in general in 1965. That was happening all over Indonesia, but I understand that Bali killed the highest percentage of any island. But it hasn't unleashed its greed, hate, and delusion on the whole world.

Favorite Things

Back where we used to live, the nearest beach by street was Segara. Often we would go to the beach by cutting through the lovely grounds of Segara Village, one of the oldest places to stay in that area. Sometimes I'd go alone and bring my laptop in a little backpack, drop it off with the staff at the bar, swim for a bit, come back and change into dry clothes, and sit with my legs crossed on a couch facing the waves beyond, my trusty laptop on a cushion in my lap. There I'd drink tea and work on the vital matters of the day. It's a snazzy place so didn't eat there much and they don't care if I just have tea, but sometimes Katrinka would join me later on and we'd order some food. One day at the couch when I reached for my cup of tea to take a sip, it stung me. Ouch! I looked at my hand and realized it was not the cup that had inflicted that pain as there was a bee between my third and fourth finger of the right hand. The bee had obviously alighted on the handle of my tea cup and I'd picked it up without looking.