electric flower?
November 8, 2004
November 6, 2004
respledent pelican
Found a dead pelican by the haul-out pit. Found out that pelicans have no eyelids, and that the repeated diving into the water eventually makes them go blind.
Then they start missing. The water.
Bummer.
Is there a lesson here?
November 3, 2004
what the fuck is wrong?
Last night (election night) i was watching a bit of C-Span, and caught a couple interesting lectures by political science profs. It was only just then, on the night of the election that i actually came to understand what the Electoral College is all about.
i feel left with the feeling that America, the so-called champion of freedom and democracy, is actually the worst example of democracy that i can actually understand first-hand. i voted for the first time this year, out of principle more than anything else. However, i now understand that my voting in a “locked” Democratic state didn’t do fuck all towards dethroning Bush. Maybe if i’d been a voter in Ohio, i might hold onto some belief that my vote wasn’t worthless.
Then there’s the salt in the wound; the popular vote went to the Republicans! If the Electoral College hadn’t been in play, Bush still would have won. What’s with that? i can feel disenfranchised, and point a finger at a failed democratic process, but who do i blame for a popular Republican victory? The politicians? The media? The spin and hype? Nope… there’s only one place to put the blame.
Americans. You sheep. We sheep. What a bunch of fucking losers. All of us.
Americans represent the utter pinnacle of the 3% of the “haves” in this “have-not” world. In a few states, Nader got 1-2% of the popular vote. How does this read to me? 3% of the world has the power to make everything better for the other 97%, but only 3% of those elites are voting their conscience? What does that work out to? Something like less than 0.1% of the global populace is both able and willing to affect positive change in our world through direct democratic action! The rest are essentially just doing as they’re told.
Yeah, okay, Serious and Professica; you told me so. Still, what’s better; be on the losing team, or rant from the sidelines? i’m not so sure myself.
October 31, 2004
i’m there
Well, i made it. i’m finally back in the BVI. About time! Things are different, things are the same.
Busy busy busy with work. Today (being Sunday after all) i only worked a part-day. Scott and i took his little dingy Rough Rider around the point to Smuggler’s Cove, to go for a swim and play in the nor’easterly surf. The water is great! It’s warmer than what my showerhead produces, that’s fer sure.
By some strange coincidence, James rented me a room near work… the same room Kim and i had when we were here! It was a strange yet good feeling coming back to the same place. i drank an orange-juice toast to Kim, and settled in. There’s a spare bed, and room enough for friends to crash. Huzzah!
The landscape is much greener, lusher, and wilder. Pathways and shortcuts i had come to know have been completely changed or overgrown. In the spring, the plants were brownish and dry from a generally rainless winter, but after this summer of hurricanes and humidity, everything is growing like crazy here.
Things are just beginning to get going here. The seasonal regulars are trickling in, and boats are slowly getting put back into the water after a summer of storage ashore. The beaches and channels are still pretty free of tourists and bareboats. The somewhat frantic energy of The Season is in remission, and it’s a good time for working; there’s been little in the way of after-work rum-ups and hourly breaks for beer.
i haven’t gotten out to take pictures yet, but i’ll have to post some here as soon as i have some ready.
i’ll end this with an invitation to all my friends, near and far; come visit! The weather and water are great, and you’ll always have a place to crash! Happy Days!
