Lyrics for the best song in the world

Girl From The North Country

Well, if you're travelin' in the north country fair,
Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline,
Remember me to one who lives there.
She once was a true love of mine.

Well, if you go when the snowflakes storm,
When the rivers freeze and summer ends,
Please see if she's wearing a coat so warm,
To keep her from the howlin' winds.

Please see for me if her hair hangs long,
If it rolls and flows all down her breast.
Please see for me if her hair hangs long,
That's the way I remember her best.

I'm a-wonderin' if she remembers me at all.
Many times I've often prayed
In the darkness of my night,
In the brightness of my day.

So if you're travelin' in the north country fair,
Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline,
Remember me to one who lives there.
She once was a true love of mine.

- Bob Dylan

Gandhi's birthday

Ahimsa, sanscrit for non violence. This is the word of the man. Do no harm in the quest for peace and freedom. We are all living here, surely peace and freedom are all of our quests?
Ahimsa should therefore be a familiar mantra to us all.

Gandhi lived and died a simple man who progressed through a world of complexity with calmness and sobriety.

It's his birthday today. So we remember him well.

Namaste

Oprah Winfrey Black Eyed Peas Flash Mob

Everyone wins with a flashmob. Oprah was launching her 24th season with Black Eyed Peas and 21,000 people in Chicago. What was just supposed to be a concert was actually a flashmob arranged by T Mobile. Genuis, they piggybacked on Oprah, Black Eyed Peas and the current marketing favorites; socal and viral vehicles. I'm calling this'SOVIAL'. In other words those long in the tooth marketeers that don't have an ear to the ground on contemporary street culture will miss out. A movement apart its competitors this brand is taking a risk, a very culculated one at that. You got Oprah so how far wrong can you go. I'll be glad to see the old boring marketing mix gathering dust on the shelves of the American congolmerates being chucked out the window for now, that is until the next big idea comes along.

So does everyone win? Oprah does, she gets to be part of the SOVIAL revolution and keeps her hip happening, Black Eyed Peas, well they are supercool anyway but this ups the ante with online video sharing, spreads there name and the illegal downloading increases. Hmmmm. T Mobile wins as they have these two cool names by assosiation, a viral ad and to date 600,000 views, not bad not bad. The dancing people win, they had a cool dance, enjoyed themselves and have endless mileage for dinner party chat.
The consumer, yeah that guy, does he win? He has to buy the phone, spend $200 and think he's cool. Of course the TMobile G1 is cool as it is a first for Google. If that's what gives you kicks. The real winner is so called media progression and bravery. Both of those are the reason this risk will pay off.

Waiting for love

The guarantee will be inner. It will be a commitment from the heart, it will be a silent communion. If you enjoy being with somebody, you would like to enjoy it more and more. If you enjoy the intimacy, you would like to explore the intimacy more and more.And there are a few flowers of love which bloom only after long intimacies. There are seasonal flowers too; within six weeks they are there in the sun, but within six weeks again they are gone forever. There are flowers which take years to come, and there are flowers which take many years to come. The longer it takes, the deeper it goes.But it has to be a commitment from one heart to another heart. It has not even to be verbalized, because to verbalize it is to profane it. It has to be a silent commitment; eye to eye, heart to heart, being to being. It has to be understood, not said. (Osho)

Educating in the wild

Mushilila School is situated in a remote region in Zambia's Lower Luangwa Valley. It is relatively close to Munyamadzi Game Ranch, whose shareholders have recently launched a pontoon across the Luangwa River and opened basic access roads. New access made it possible for a small group from Munyamadzi to visit the school late last year, and their visit brought to my attention the dire plight of the children. This is best expressed through the words of one of the visitors, Deborah.

"The school seems to have been cut off from the rest of the world.... The resident teacher, who has been there over 20 years, explained that 264 children attend school daily, many of them from a distance of 40km away. It takes them the whole morning to walk there, and as long to get back, many leaving and arriving home in the dark. Many are as young as 6 years old. Remember, this area is wild: A man-eating lion had attacked and killed a man while we were there, and a small boy had been mauled the day before we visited the school, his injured leg an open, fly-infested wound that had not been dressed due to lack of medical supplies.”

“When the children finally arrive at school there is no food for them. There is one classroom with makeshift desks, many children sitting on the floor to learn. A single room with a bare dirt floor serves as an overnight shelter for around 50 children who can’t make it home every day. Once a year, the children have to walk 90km to Nyimba to collect school supplies and text books – and they do!!”

“It seems that education is a top priority in Zambia and, as can be seen by the regular attendance of the children even from so far away, it is recognized as their only hope of self-betterment.”

The new owners of Munyamadzi have pledged to support the school, but the amount of upgrading and rehabilitation required is immense.
Mushilila School Project has identified initial main goals to assist the school:

1. To install a borehole to ensure a fresh water supply
2. To provide solar power
3. To build a new classroom block
4. To build and equip a new hostel to accommodate weekly boarders
5. To develop land around the school as a kitchen garden
6. To supply basic food on a regular basis
7. To provide basic school supplies, including stationary, desks, chalkboards, play equipment
8. To establish a school-based primary clinic equipped with medical supplies

Go to http://www.mushilila.blogspot.com/ to support it

Where to next........?

Brazil, Bahia, Lesotho, Swaziland....been to all those places but want to go back. I'm off to Cape Town again next week, was there last week. I was also in the bush in Northern Zululand where mating leopards kept us entertained all night. My tent has never seen so much action! Uhh hmmm. Now I'm thinking of Senegal, Mali, D'jbouti, Rwanda, Ethopia....the list is long long long.

Africa is my priority travel for the next two years. But I have some friends wanting me to party with them in Bahia. So what to do?

Restless legs

Restless legs is a symptom of anxiety and stress. It means your legs twitch or move uncontrollably. Mine do that, at night. I lie down in bed and off they go. I toss and turn, frustrated beyond belief. I'm supposed to be relaxing, taking time out, breathing deeply but not tonight or any of the last four months worth of nights.

So these restless legs, what are they all about? My thinking is I want to get the hell out of here and be on the move again. My travel list suddenly appears in my mind, I look around to chat but there is no one there. They are all married and multiplied so who will want to hear my next adventure plan?

My next adventure was supposed to be calming down, staying in one place, meditating...being still. What good is that doing me if I STILL have restless legs?

The wandering spirit is alive and kicking!