I struggle with noise… be it cultural capitalist clatter or anxious apprehensive self-abuse…
It’s oh so quiet… Under the tree… in the shade, sheltered from the heat of the midday sun… We agreed “no-one can take this away from us.” I sat with my wife and daughters and just took in the moment. The cicadas sang in the nearby trees, the mountains bathed as though sleeping in the heat. Rugged escarpments carved the bluest blue sky. The brightest flowers decorated the greenest foliage in a small valley that played in to the a small Turkish Mediterranean bay.
It’s hard to explain. It’s taken a week of tempering to reach a state of heat induced contentment. It’s hard to explain, but it’s possible to forget, ignore, or perhaps swallow the worries and annoyances of the world and just be grateful for the moment. To breathe in the mountains, breathing in blue jasmine, breath in the olive tree, breath in the sweaty forehead, breath in the clutter of life that chatters around us…
We returned to the UK… Oh… it’s oh so quiet… No cicadas, tinnitus returns. The sizzle is replaced with an English tranquility. A verdant pleasant land. The ubiquitous cloud decorates the horizon. The land and humanity is reorganised… It’s still possible to forget, ignore or perhaps swallow the worries and annoyances of the world and just be grateful for the moment.
To breathe in the ancient pathway, breathe in the hedgerow, breath in the flying swans, breath in that unique evening light, breath in the clutter of life that chatters loudly around us… It’s hard to explain, because it is oh so quiet, amongst the noise…
You know when you take a roast chicken out of the oven… ? That’s what it’s like walking out the door… 38° 🇹🇷… As with a roast chicken, I am thankful for a small dose of Mediterranean heat.
Tempering is a process of heating and cooling metals to achieve greater strength by decreasing the hardness, an increase in flexibility, and decreasing brittleness.
Eucalyptus avenue
Over the last week it’s been a process of heat, cool, and repeat… you could call it tempering. You can’t fight it, you just have to be. A tall iced mango juice helps. Again I am thankful.
Let’s pretend we’re closer to heaven.
Floating in a bay surrounded by pine tree lined mountains, the bluest of blue skies backdrop a razor-sharp escarpment reaching to the skies … salty lips and a big deep breath… the view seems clearer.
Blue jasmine
Breathe, forget the challenges ahead for just a moment…
Take away the percussive beat of stuff that needs sorting, questions unanswered, annoyances and indecisions…
What we perceive is what it is.
My wife is the catalyst, and again we venture to the Mediterranean. Thankfully. I’d return to France, Spain, or the British National Parks or coast again and again, but under my wife’s suggestion, over the years we’ve stretched further, Cyprus, Corfu, Greece, and this year Turkey. I am infinitely grateful for the opportunities to experience such places.
But what is sold to us is quite separate from what is free, the treasures right in front of us..
On previous visits to the Mediterranean weve found the extreme heat is ubiquitous. The climate intensifies colours, smells, taste; life gets slower, more fervent, the view seems clearer.
As with any capitalist environment, we are sold stuff, we are sold pretentious dreams, we are sold processed products; extra-cheesy Crax, all-seeing eyes, Anatolian fizz cocktails, parascending, fish pedicures, etc. A percussive beat of celebrated pop jazz hip cool, with salt and/or cheese…
Don’t get me wrong, a cold local beer by the sea is a heavenly delight. Mediterranean food by the sea is exceptional. And a little pop-funk Lady Gaga helps keeps one young.
What is essentially more tangible in such holiday destinations is stark nature and hothoused humanity.
People come to soak up the intensified energy. Culture is the dressing on the cake of humanity and is weird and wonderful, but behind the sunbaked sales the essence of what is free is humanity and nature.
Muğla market
Human nature is behind the Turkish kofta, as much as it’s behind the Staffordshire oatcake.
What’s magnified by the Mediterranean climate is human pleasure. Take away the magnifyer and we still have humanity. Alexander is a father to two young children and businessman who’s very proud of his restaurant in the village of Icmeler.
Omar, proud of his Muğla homeland, genuinely wanted to share it’s delights, but is also keen to discover England. Just as much, Joyce loves Stoke-on-Trent, her dog, and her weekend trips to Buxton and the Peak District hills.
The treasures right in front of us…
I don’t think we need to pretend we’re closer to heaven.
Take away the percussion of cultural trappings and what do we have?
What we perceive is what it is.
Sometimes it’s clearer, it is what it is.
Rest…
When it’s not clear, I hope you can find a way to decrease hardness, increase in flexibility, decrease brittleness and hopefully find delight in something somewhere right in front of us.
Let’s pretend we’re closer to heaven. Floating in a bay surrounded by pine-tree lined mountains, the bluest of blue skies backdrops a razor-sharp escarpment reaching to the skies … salty lips and a big deep breath… the view seems clearer. Breathe, forget the challenges ahead for just a moment… distant cicadas… Take away the percussive beat of stuff that needs sorting, questions unanswered, worries and indecision… What we perceive is what it is.
A wise friend once wrote…”What we are must always come before what we do, for how we are defines our world. …what we do is almost irrelevant, it’s why we do things that reveals all.”Simon Parke, ‘The Journey Home’. “…for how we are, defines our world.” I might add, our heart defines our world.
This week I had to give a colleague a lift to work, and so after more than 10 years cycling, I was back using a car for five days – I was not looking forward to it. But to my surprise the car commutes were ok*. The drives were ok… but… unremarkable.
Why do I cycle? It’s about heart…
I was going to trope on about the benefits of cycling but I don’t think that’s the important thing.
It’s the heartful things that some of our automated auto-mobile world misses out on. With home-delivery we might miss the experience of mixing with people in the market place. With text messages we miss the voice in a phone call. With music streaming we miss that uncelebrated album track. With facetime we miss out on the tactile. With social media we miss the nuances of the handshake, look, or hug… with the automobile we miss out on some essential facets of our environment and community.
On a cycle in last week, the word ‘exhilarating’ came to mind as reflected in a mid-commute social post… as I occasionally do. I don’t think the drive would have conjured similar.
Word of the day: exhilaration (n.) “act of enlivening or cheering; state of being enlivened or cheerful,” …stem of exhilarare “gladden, cheer,” from ex “out, out of; thoroughly”
I think the main take-away this week was that although the drives were relatively easy going they were unremarkable. Automated. The cocooned conveyor of cars was… unremarkable. Rightly they are called ‘auto’mobiles.
This week highlighted the hearty extras I experience when I ride a bicycle: breathing, energy, elements, endorphins, people, animals, community, tangible animation… not so auto mobile.
Commute captures…
That’s partly why I ride a bike. It’s remarkable. It creates more cognitive, emotional and spiritual stimulation.
…how we are defines our world.
Our heart defines our world.
*For the record: The 7.5miles drives took about 25-30mins*. The traffic was fine going in at 7.30am The traffic returning at 4.30pm was ok, a bit stop-start, but still 30mins. I could get used to this, I thought.. Why did I cycle?! A perfectly reasonable question. The drive was relatively hassle free. The 7.5 bike ride takes about 30-35mins.
One thing that did give me a pang was on Thursday when I had to top-up the car’s fuel, £20. Five days would be 75miles, @ 7.5mpl, £1.45p/litre, that’s £14.50/week. £60/month. Cycling’s fuel is a banana a day.
The article below the stars, written a few years back, will soon be redundant, as Microsoft announced the end of its Publisher trinket. But this leaves us without Publishers unique hyper-useful asset!
Yes, graphics are not a problem and better on many other softwares but … here’s a challenge…
The big big loss, that no other software does in the same hyper easy useful way is print multiple pages per sheet. Publisher allows you to create bespoke page sizes and print multiple pages (mail merged and or double-sided) sheets. This is so so useful for tickets, cards, passes, slips etc.
To date there’s NO other software that offers print bespoke page sizes multiple pages per sheet!
Challenge find an alternative! ?
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Saving money, paper & time… by using MS Publisher* (“shock horror”) to create smaller sized documents that use all of the paper. Ask me!
I have been in the print industry for more than 30 years. I have lived scalpels, pixels, lick & stick, copy & paste, raster & vector… and I’ve experienced numerous graphics-for-print software platforms. While Adobe Creative Suite and the like are still the print craftsperson‘s go-to tool, I now surprise myself by recommending a more domestic tool for easy print and copy projects. People in industries such as education don’t necessarily have access to professional tools such as Adobe Creative Suite. Teachers and educators have better things to do with their teaching and learning time than play with toolboxes and layers. They tend to stick to Microsoft’s Word† (it’s good at word processing) and PowerPoint† (because the screen is their primary communication tool).
“Eeeeek!”
However, I am often sent documents with boxed items on them; to be printed multiple times, and to be trimmed out into cards or batched sets. This is fine if you want one set, but it does waste paper. If you want a dozen or more, this wastes a lot of paper… and the guillotining and sorting takes ages to avoid mixing sets up. This uneconomical unproductivity can be easily sorted – saving money**, with zero paper wastage, more print per sheet, and easy guillotining and set sorting – and we can make it look good! For the layman, I’m recommending more use of software like Microsoft Publisher*, yes MS Publisher can be a versatile tool for the non-professional user when planning for multiple batch printing. Or for simply printing economically. Your Word or PowerPoint creations can usually be transferred to Publisher, but I suggest using it as a default tool for print-based projects. Revision Flash Cards, Study Aids, Card Sortsetc.
Let’s say you want ~20 different small cards. What you could ask for is 20 A7 cards. (A7 is 8 to a sheet of A4. You could have any size card, as long as it multiples into an A4 page) So, we set one Publisher page at the desired size, see below, Duplicate a master, and create our ~20 different pages. With Publisher we can then print this on A4 as a stack of sets that can be easily electronically guillotined and banded. It’s versatile, can look great, and it saves time and paper**. You end up with multiple batches (quantity per sheet) of the set of ~20.
Don’t fret – send me the content, and given time I can create the .Pub doc for you. Just don’t spend your time in Word†, or heaven forbid Powerpoint†, trying to make it look nice.
If you need them – there are few Publisher “cards” and “label” template documents for you to download here:
*Horror, Yes, Publisher! When I first was prompted to use publisher, because the situation didn’t warrant the cost of the more professional options, I was horrified. For starters, its Microsoft, but my preconceptions about MS turned out to be a tad misplaced. Secondly, it initially looks like you’re using a child’s toy. But get over it! It’s a very versatile tool for simple multiple-page publishing needs. Projects can even look qood, if you use design elements created in Photoshop and Illustrator etc. †Word is a word processing program. PowerPoint is for creating screen presentations. **I the long-term, planning economically and productively can save an institution £1000s
Sick of being ‘the traffic’ (If you are stuck in traffic, you are the traffic), and mindful of the cost of fuel, I took the first step to discovering another way 13 years ago. I was to discover more about the real costs of our habits later*.
In February 2011 I pulled an old bike from under the ‘stuff in the garage’ and did the ‘never in a month of Sundays’ ride to work.
I remember reacting to the prospect of cycling to work once a week, I recall adamantly thinking ‘never in a month of Sundays’ it was seriously NOT an option. Never say never.
13 years since I started using a bike to get to and from work daily, what’s changed?
Roughly 40,000 miles later, I have learnt and unlearnt a few things. Perspectives have changed and the world has become quite a different place.
2024 fuel costs are similar to 2021: Driving ~7.5 miles @ 7.5mpl, £1.45p/litre, costs £1.45 each way, that’s £ 14.50/week. That means going by bike is saving me more than £55/month, just in fuel. I sold the family’s second car back in 2012.
Just to recap – if you are able to and you fancy ditching the car, give it a try!
Yes, I recognise that I’m lucky to be able to ride a bike to work, yes there are some jobs where it’s not possible, but there are a lot of jobs where IT IS POSSIBLE!
Never say never. But to date I’ve never looked back!
Main reactions: (i) I’d get wet and cold. (ii) I’d be a gibbering wreck when I got to work. (iii) I don’t fancy the ride home after a day at work. (iv) It’s too far. (v) It would take too long. (vi) The traffic would be a nightmare. (vii) I like my podcasts in the car.
Reality: (i) Inclement weather is much less frequent than you think! Weather is not often an issue if the right clothing is worn. Sit up and breathe (ii) You may discover the joy of being truly awake when you get to work. Just ‘ride a bike’, don’t look to become ‘a cyclist’ (iii) Take it from me, surprisingly the ride home is a great tonic! (iv) It’s not as far as you think. (v) In an average rush hour, by bike takes not much more than by car. Bus Bike Car… See here. (vi) Don’t be part of the traffic! Off road. (vii) Bone conduction headphones.
*The simple act of riding a bike is good for so many reasons – personally, socially, mentally, physically, community, interaction, pace, progress, ambition… all can be fed by a new way (an old way) of experiencing things.
I was referring to my 30+ year resonance with Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto.
concert (n.) agreement of two or more in design or plan; accord, harmony… bring into agreement.
Well, I have finally been and had the experience! My first classical music concert, AND Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, performed by Karen Gomyo and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, at the Victoria Hall, Stoke-on-Trent.
What can I say? A captivating performance by all! Well done all! Of course, Karen Gomyo’s violinic gymnastics were amazing.
For me, this piece has always been about the protagonists, that is, the violins and flutes, but seeing it and hearing it live, you get a sense of the other players (and non-players*). For me, all of the wind instruments stood out in an accompanying role. Specifically the oboe, clarinet, and bassoon, really played their parts and were noticeable as important elements in the composition. Of course, the French horns and other brass were triumphant also!
We all know it’s hard to put the experience of hearing and seeing (and hence feeling) live music into words. TVC was followed by Sibelius’ Swan of Tuonela; Wow! a different aesthetic.
“Music is really important… I always say to my kids music is a bit like food. You can have your sausage, burgers, and chips, and that’s fine. But there’s a lot more food out there, there’s food from other countries, there’s rich food, and music is a lot more than … Yeah, there are nice burgers, but there’s other stuff out there like TVC, like old stuff from Nina Simone, stuff from other countries… have a listen to Radio 6… and listen to Radio Three’s Late Junction.”
You can hear my 2017 Desert Island Discs, and ‘the bit where the solo violin “goes off on one’… here:
The most common answer from colleagues regarding their December break was ‘looking forward to a rest’.
I was going to look back at the Instagram snaps I have taken recently – but they are past, of little importance. They were of the moment, and those moments have passed.
And so to the Christmas hiatus… Nothing to be done… The interim is ours… ‘The rest’ is silence…
A season of sparkles and shadows.
To really see what’s before us, we first need to listen… to the unsaid, to the silence, to the rest.
In the UK our winter festivals are dominated by light and darkness, which perhaps amplifies or illuminates vulnerable aspects of our human condition. I loosely think of Plato’s cave, (loosely). At ‘Christmas’ our world is full of reflections, shadows, projections, and fables, that excite, challenge, delight, and entice… The cave walls amuse a kaleidoscope of possibility, reminiscence, hope, and delight… nothing is silent.
When the lights fade, the depth of echos can be heightened. After ‘the show’, we are perhaps left with… silence… only memories. When the action ends, the characters stop… There is little that is concrete, only memory, and the unsaid.
Now can be a time when trust can win and fear can be muted. Yes, we can delight in the reflections, shadows, projections, and fables; supreme fictions that excite, challenge, delight, and entice… nothing is silent.
But to really see what’s before us, we first need to listen… to the unsaid, to the silence, to the rest.
The ‘rest’ is a pause, or an interruption, a break in the music… (which can be a good time for a trumpet player to catch their breath!)
The Rest is also an uncelebrated but delightful compilation album from 2012 by Deacon Blue. Enjoy the rest.
As I mentioned before, trips back to Corny ignite archived memories. It’s not always a healthy thing to reminisce… Perhaps nostalgia is about the comfort of familiar patterns and routines…
A vacation (to vacate, Latin vacare ‘be unoccupied’), back to nostalgia (Greek nostos ‘return home’ + algos ‘pain’). A break can expose cleft and contrast between our current routines and the echoes of formative structures.
Patterns are what we all seek. Patterns in language, entertainment, relationship, habit… It’s what keeps us sane.
Some of us struggle to acknowledge or subscribe to our cultures’ patterns. I wonder if that’s why nature is so inspiring or captivating to some?
Nature’s patterns often outshine the structures that humanity constructs.
As I said before, interaction with our natural wild world often surpasses the framed human constructions we create.
The camouflage of routine is broken by movement.
Personally I find comfort and excitement in the curves and circles of the natural. There is a joy, play and celebration in nature, it is filled with the beauty of other colours beyond the shiny yellow of happiness. Lines create a fabric, a safe textured structure. Curves created movement. Movement breaks shapes and makes new marks. Curves grow.
As the B-side of Joni Mitchell’s ‘Big Yellow Taxi‘ spinning disc plays …
“We are stardust, we are golden We are billion-year-old carbon And we’ve got to get ourselves Back to the garden”
Postscript: Vex not thy spirit at the course of things; they heed not thy vexation… Marcus Aurelius
Day and Night– Jules P RichardsJules P Richards c.1995
Jules P Richards 