Poem: This line

"This line...
where the dark blue mountains
are nippled with white fire...
as they embrace
the silver green water prairie...
This fringe...of magic and mystery...
the killer whale has skirted...
the bald eagle has guarded...
and the salmon has crossed...
since deep in the mists of time...
This place...so slowly worked
by the wave and wind chisel...
This meeting space...
where Earth and Ocean strive...
eternally...to be one...
This crack through which
mighty legends were born...
This slash...cut by a cataclysm...
that still reverberates...
in the Pacific air...
This West Coast...
will be forevermore...
the border of...
my long sought homeland...
a rambler's...
final...earthly...destination..."
....................................Quester.

Not As Taxing As Once

I put a notice out for myself...in a
conspicuous place...about doing my income tax return...early last
week. The days went by...as I engaged in other preoccupations
until Friday night had come and gone...and I knew when I got up on
Saturday...what my "mission for the day" would be. So...on Saturday
I gathered all the bits and pieces together...and started in...giving
myself until Monday...while the post office was still open...to finish
my citizen's duty. Long ago I used to tackle jobs like this...with a
great intensity...designed to bull doze my way across the chore
at hand. Somewhere along the way...I twigged that this kind of
intensity wasn't really necessary...and I could save myself some avoidable head aches...by being calm and measured instead. This is why I had given myself three days to complete this
annual ritual. On Saturday...as I filled out my form...when I came to the threshold of headache territory...I stopped...and
went out for a walk with my camera...knowing I still had two
days left...and knowing that on Sunday...[today]...I would
unwaveringly return to the task at hand. I did that...first thing
after getting up...and keeping calm...and for one of the first
times ever...using the calculator on my computer...after years of
resisting...what I might have once called..."the easy way out"...
and only for multiplications...while still depending on myself to
still put..."two and two"...together. To my pleasant surprise...
this approach...took me to the completion of my task...with a day to spare...and I enjoyed the rest of the afternoon...with a
large burden lifted from my shoulders. Somehow...this time round...the job didn't seem to be...as hard as it used to be. I
have a suspicion...that changes in me...may have made the difference.................Quester.

Black As The Ravern's Wing

[Words from song: "Black as the
Raven's Wing". Copyright-SOCAN].
"Her hair is black as the raven's
wing...
She moves like wind in the
willow tree...
Her lips are red as the setting sun...
That lights dark fires on the western sea..."

.....................................Quester.

The Carver

[Words from song: The Carver.
Copyright-SOCAN]
"Like a carver at the cedar
of your soul...
You chip the surface wood
with your knife...
And after a long time...
a shape begins to grow...
Rising from the log of your life...
And as you float...
a seed upon the storm wind...
And as you drift...
a twig upon the ocean...
If you can find within you...
sweet surrender...
You'll reach a peaceful harbour...
Beyond the wind and waves..."
.......................................Quester.

Inspiring Music

No...tonight I didn't almost miss
posting this...because I was
absorbed in making a video. That was last night...when I put the finishing touches on another
one. Tonight was my night off...
and I spent it listening to some
inspiring music on YouTube.
Including...Djivan Gasparian...
playing a most unearthly sounding flute...the Armenian duduk...Amalia Rodrigues...the
queen of fados...performing some of the songs she did in movies
a long time ago...another brilliant Portuguese singer...Dulce
Pontes...and Andrea Bocelli...singing in his effortless way...making me wonder why so many tenors...and especially anthem singers...have to huff and puff so much. Must not forget
...I also watched some videos with tango dancers from Argentina...each pair...gliding across the floor...like jaguars
stalking prey...and most gracefully. Yes...tonight I can say with
no reservation..."I needed that!"..........Quester.

Silly Pilgrim

[Words from song: "Silly Pilgrim"
Copyright-SOCAN]:
"Give yourself a star to wear upon
your shoulder...
You're as brave as any eagle on the wing...
And though every day you get a little older...
You hold on though sometimes
to a slender string...
Don't be afraid if you get called
a silly pilgrim...
Travelling on a serious journey to the sun...
Foolish as an autumn blossom...
wise as winter...
Not knowing what
you'll find...
when you are done...
......................Quester.

April Roses

On my walk this evening...some different looking flowers from behind
a wrought iron fence...caught my eye.
Perhaps...they looked somehow different...simply because I didn't expect to see them at this time of year.
On closer inspection...I saw that they were roses!. Roses...with one week still
left in April!. I had never before seen them out this early. I remember when I
first came out to live on the West Coast
one October...checking the roses into
December...to see if I would be justified
having the line..."sending me where December roses grow" in
a song...and reluctantly concluding that the roses that were still out close to the Christmas season...were too tattered to include in the line of the song I had in mind. I'm going to have to mull over...the "April Roses" reality. Perhaps I have been presented
with the title for another song.............Quester.

Winter Coats Away

It was a sunny and warm day today. Before I went out today...
I put away my winter coat...and
put on a light jacket. I confess to
being distrustful of the Canadian
weather...and how a lot of the time...it is cooler than I wish it to be...guess that's my tropical beginnings kicking in. However
...I've been caught out in the weather many a time...freezing...because I had been prematurely bold in anticipating that the warm weather had come to stay. Somehow...today...when I put away my winter
coat...I had the feeling that I wouldn't be wearing it for a while.
I hope I'm right this time.....Quester.

Yo Soy Un Hombre Sincero

Earlier today I got a nudge to write
something triggered by a line from
the song "Guantanamera". I remember how...many years ago...
when I first heard this song...it was
the line..."yo soy un hombre sincero"...[hope I'm getting the spelling right]...I instinctively knew
what it meant..."I am a sincere man". I got to reflecting on why the
writer of the song would want to say
such a seemingly obvious thing.
Didn't take long to see the reason
why he did. It's a statement very much worth making...in a world where there is so much insincerity being generated
every day in our world. If the truth be known the "wheels of commerce" would grind to a halt...if there wasn't all that
saccharine...[one of my other words for phoney words and behaviours]...oiling them...i.e. pleasant words and phoney
smiles...seem to be one of the central requirements...in most
jobs. Not having to report to a treacle factory since I left 9 to 5
behind forever at the age of twenty three...I've been helped to
stay away from having to develop an insincere persona. Yes...
"yo soy un hombre sincero"...makes a lot of of sense to me as
I've tried to live life from my authentic self...in my imperfect way. Yes...I think I know what the man meant when he wrote that seemingly obvious statement......Quester.

Unimpeded Swirling

It's been a long and interesting
day...doing experiments with my little camera...which has a
minimal number of options...
compared to cadillac camcorders. [ I've acquired one of those...but have found the learning curve a long one...there
seems to be a certain ratio operating with more complex digital instruments...i.e. the more options...and other bells and
whistles it has...the longer it's going to take for you to learn to
operate it...without blowing it to bits. Anyway...I am very
thankful for my digital camera with video option...it is with it
I've recorded the material I needed for the eight videos I have
on YouTube currently. My approach to video making...so far...
is self taught...like with everything else creative I've ever done.
It seems that being self taught...although it can be taking the long way home...and not having too many flashy options and
effects currently available...technically...has stimulated me to
get certain effects "manually"...you could say. In my neighbourhood...many people have probably come close to
calling 911...when they have noticed me...moving my camera
in a "rapid circular fashion"...over beds of multi-coloured tulips
...for instance...which...also...may make them think that I'm
engaging in "public shamanistic practices"...[there's got to be a
bylaw against that somewhere]. If they were to ask me about
what it is I am doing...instead of reaching for the telephone...I
would tell them that all I'm doing is making...a "swirl" of colours on video....with the shapes and colours blurring into
each other. This "equator boy" solution...actually works...
sometimes. There...I've gone and given away one of my "trade
secrets"...but perhaps this post will come in handy as evidence
...if the long overdue cops finally arrive...when I'm doing one of
my "manual swirls". May unimpeded "swirling" continue...
................Quester.

Northern Edge Of My Hood

Today...among other things...on
a "rich thought day"...I was thinking of my "hood"...and where I would say its boundaries
are. The east...west...and south
markers were a bit elusive to
arrive at...but it was the northern boundary that was the
most clear cut. I remember when I first moved into my apartment...seeing from my front windows...a bit before the
mountains...a piece of Burrard Inlet...with ocean going boats
parked on it. On of the first things I did...was hurry north from
my building...to get closer to the boats and the inlet. It didn't
take long to run into the docks...and train tracks next to the
water...and I had established the northernmost edge of my hood
...bodies of water have a way of stopping you in your tracks...
and underlining for you...that you are at your territory's edge.
Yesterday...I returned there...and with the brush that had been
there cleared away...I was able to get a clear view of the water
and what was floating on it. Today's picture is from that vantage
point...................Quester.

Creative Absorption

Seems I've found one of the few things these days...that can take me off my "daily blog"...
making videos. Night before last
when I looked up from my late video session...it was about 1.3o
a.m...and I had just finished
"Buck Man Knows"...which I
promptly uploaded to YouTube.
Last night it was another late night at the computer. Tonight
I made a conscious effort to get some kind of entry in...just about on the stroke of midnight. Anyway...given what it is that
these days...here and there...replaces my blog post...I am not too
concerned about having fallen away slightly from my dailyness.
That goes with the territory of being in a "state of flow" with a
new creative idiom...and as an artist...being open to breaking into new creative idioms...is an important part of my outlook...
on being creative..........Quester.

Loving Grace

[Words from song "Loving Grace"
Copyright-SOCAN]
"I leave the demons of the past
I've known...
I leave the shadows of tomorrow too
...I feel the sacredness
of this eternal moment...
I feel the oneness joining me and you..."
..................Quester.

Favourite Season Favourite City

Worked on a video last night. I was so absorbed
in what I was doing...that when I finally packed it
in...it was 2 a.m...no wonder there was no blog
entry yesterday. Today...I also worked long on this same video. I think it may be the one I've overcome most obstacles with...and worked
longest on. Tonight...I was finally able to put the finishing touches on it...and uploaded it to YouTube..."Favourite Season Favourite City-
Vancouver". It was good to get it done...I've had it in mind since Spring began...and was beginning to think that Spring would come and go...without my getting my salute in...to this special time on the West Coast. Making this
video...was also rich in lessons about making videos...which should open up the way for other
ones up ahead....................................Quester.

Return To Singing

Tonight...I did something I hadn't done in months...I picked
up my guitar...[that wasn't it...I pick it up and play it...quite
often]...I started to sing...as I played. In doing so...I broke
one of the longest times without singing a note...in my long
singing life. In this non-singing period...I've turned down opportunities to sing. For me a little gig here and there...
never defines my work as an artist...although it might be
pleasant at the time. It's my creative work that I stand or fall by...and during this time of the silent song bird...I've
written two books...and created a host of videos...I have
been preoccupied by "other matters". Still...as I croaked
out my first notes tonight...from a raspy throat...I could
tell that my voice wasn't fully there...but it was there just
enough...to make me breathe a sigh of relief...and be very
thankful...what if you finally returned...only to find it was
totally absent?...the mind boggles. Anyway...I think I need
to put in a few more song sessions...before I feel fit to stand
in front of an audience again. So here's to more singing...
from an unraspy throat....Quester.

Spring In The City

"And spring comes back...
like a thief in the night...
and strips all the ladies down...
with their hair in the wind...
and their legs turned to gold...
their blooming like buds in the town...
And the song of the birds...
turns the song of the cars...
to a big city symphony song...
and the winos climb down,,,
from their hard mission beds...
they'll be back in the parks before long..."
.......Quester.

Barefoot Soldier-2

[Words from song: "Barefoot Soldier"-Copyright-SOCAN]
"Remember all the times you fell
...deep wounded in the night...
and wondered if you'd live to see
...the bright new morning light...
but somwhere from the spring in you...the power to fight again...
has brought you through the smoke and fire...
up to the tower of love again...
And love is the song when the
battle is done...
The dance when the war is all over...
And love is a warrior his face to the sun...
And love...is a barefoot soldier...."
.......................................Quester.

Reflections On Water

Spent a pleasant afternoon...camera at work...at
Van Dusen Gardens in Vancouver. It looked to me
to be at it's spring blooming best...although there
were many species of plants and trees...waiting for
summer to do their thing. I took pictures of...
blossoming cherry...magnolia...and other trees...
bald cypress roots jutting up out of the water around the foot of a tree and looking like the "little
people" posing for tourists with cameras...petals floating on water...blossoming branches swaying in
the breeze....ripples on water...turtles catching some
rays under the afternoon sun...flowers at their freshest...a rainbow caused by the sunlight striking
fountain spray...and even reflections of various things...on water. Today's picture is one of them...I
was taking some pictures of the reflections on water
below a bridge..when this other camera lugger...came along. I kept pointing my camera down to the water...including up side down reflections of his sudden appearance. At home...on
my computer...going over the bonanza of the day...I simply flipped one of these pictures to
"right side up"...and...voila...a mysterious dark outline...of someone standing on a bridge. No
wonder I love editing my pictures!.....Quester.

"I Want To Find The Beauty":

Spent some time...on a grey afternoon...down on
the banks of English Bay. Took some pictures and video clips...of course. Noticed how grey it
was...on the way down there and back...but even
on grey days...there's beauty around the bay. As I
returned home...a realization came to me. It was that on some of the days of winter...and
spring...where day time...is actually like a long
twilight...if you went with that...along with
whatever greyness was inside of you...you would
find yourself in a very dismal state. What is it...
then...that can make the difference?. For me...it
is knowing that even on such days...shards of
beauty are available...if you have eyes to see them. I've found that having this attitude...and actively looking out...to see where the beauty lies...effectively...helps the "twilight" to come alive...taking you to a finer place...than you would
experience...were it not for...the "I want to find the beauty"...outlook...............
.......................................Quester.

Home Once Again

Came home late tonight from an Easter Sunday
family dinner. There was much feasting...vital
conversation...and some laughter. There were
two infants adding much energy...with their
quick movements...and entertaining ways. After
the exchanges of energy...and returning home
through streets made slick with rain...it was
good to return to my oasis...good to be home
once again................Quester.

My Team's Trip To The Cup

My hockey team...the Vancouver Canucks...won
their division today...and will start their playoff journey...next Wednesday. Although I am an avid appreciator of hockey...once in a
while...I can put away the blind fold...that all
fans wear...including myself. While wearing that
blind fold...every penalty the referee calls against your team...is undeserved...and is
sometimes...a downright outrage. You only have
to listen to the deep braying sound the crowd at
a hockey game makes at these times...to have
this hyper-subjectivity underlined for you. I confess to being as subjective as anyone else...
when it comes to my hockey team...but I've still
noticed this one sided mentality...that I've just referred to. Not too long ago...I came up with
what might be a good explanation...or should I say rationalization...for this "homer" mentality.
In a hockey discussion with my son...I heard myself saying...that being a sports fan...is the one
place where you can let your prejudices against the other team go...so they are let out of you...
and by so doing...in the rest of your life...you are helped...not to engage in prejudices against other human beings. Well...works for me any way...so here's to my team...and their trip to
the Stanley Cup...which no other team...deserves as much as they do!...............Peace.

The Catch Of The Day

This afternoon...I went exploring
around Trout Lake...in East Vancouver...with my camera in hand. Came home from that...with a nice haul of photos
and video clips. Trout Lake is a
nice place to head for...when you're looking for a laid back
piece of time in your life. Today
there were many mothers with
children in strollers...or just toddling along side them...and dogs
of all description...many of them taking the plunge into the lake
...to bring back to shore...some object...a kindly master or mistress...had "cast upon the waters". I've always felt that this
particular ritual...said more about a dog's kindliness...rather
than that of the stick or ball tosser...involved. Anyway...like they
say..."different strokes". All in all...it was a pleasant time...
spent in some green space...on a warm spring afternoon...and I
was thankful to be able to go there...and return home with "the
catch of the day"....................Quester.

Free Creativity...Revisited

[On March 24th last I posted this entry "Free
Creativity"...but found after...that it was hard to read because of the colour and size of the text used. For me..."free creativity"...is a very important subject...so I am going to post this entry again...in a way that makes it readable]:
I know that some people have to create...based on the commissions they've gotten to do so. I've
done a few of those myself...for the BBC in England...for the National Film Board in Canada
...for grants from the Secretary of State in Canada. I won't lie...it was good to do those in the midst of all the creativity I've been engaged in...over many years. It's funny though...how people interviewing you for newspapers...or otherwise...usually hone in...only on "commissioned creativity"...like I've mentioned before. When they do that...ignoring the life long...unshackled creativity you engage in...I think they really miss the boat...on something
fundamental...and seldom mentioned about creativity. For me...that is...not what monetary or
prestige prizes you can win for engaging in creative acts...but its tremendous contribution to
the personal liberation...growth...and development...of the individual who ongoingly engages
in it...regardless of what the newspapers or markets have to say about it. Sometimes it seems to me...that too many people who engage...in acts of creativity...let themselves be imprisoned
by the question...but will it be published...recorded...exhibited...or sell...oblivious to the value
of engaging in creative acts...to their personal growth. In addition to that...it has been my experience over many years...that it is when I engage in "free creativity"...free of the chains I've
mentioned...and others...that the joy of creating returns...and I become as fresh as a child again
exploring the world around him...and being in close touch with his imagination...and the power and beauty...that lies inside...waiting to be called upon...without any strings attached...
...............................Quester.

Computer Troubles

Looks like I've missed posting for a day...or is it
two?. That's a bit unusual for me...but I think I
can see the reason for it. On Sunday night..when
I clicked many of my computer files...they didn't
appear as they usually do. Signs with red exclamation marks appeared on my screen...and
it really looked as if...part of the contents of my
computer...would be lost to me. It looked like
the dreaded "crash" I'd heard so much about...
had happened to me...at least a serious partial one..which among many items...had made a book
manuscript "vanish". Monday was a wretched
headachy day...as I went through all the drills I
go through when a challenge hits me...re the
"it is what it is" aspect of living life...and then girding myself...for a lugging of my computer
down to the store where I'd bought it...not my favourite activity in life. Late Monday night I
noticed that the converting files to a "YouTubable" format...option...had returned. I utilized it
...and uploaded my fifth video in less than a month to YouTube. This gave me a ray of hope...
about all the other files and one or two applications that were missing. The next day...many of them returned...and late last night I was able to fish out a copy of my book from from the
capricious...frustrating...but empowering depths of my computer. Through it all I've kept up
my video making work...but one other casualty has been my blog. I'm back!.
...................................................Quester.

A Productive And Uplifting Day

Today I went on an expedition. Over by
sea bus to North Vancouver...then a long
bus ride into West Vancouver. After I got off the bus...I took a long walk...and
arrived much later than I thought I would...at a place called Whytecliff Park. This is one of the special places for me in Greater Vancouver...when friends come to town...I take them there. However...today...my mission...
was to get pictures of the gorgeous view of Howe Sound...that can be seen from this park. I did a lot of walking today...but after I returned home late this afternoon...
with some crucial pictures and video clips...I was able to get...on
my safari...I was able to complete a video...that had been hanging around for a while. The video clips I've gotten from
three successive days of picture catching...were instrumental in
getting this video completed. It has been a productive...and uplifting day............Quester.