2010.04.26 07:00 - A Moment to Moment Choice

The Guardian for this meeting was Eden Haiku. The comments are by Eden Haiku.

As Pema shows up to this Monday morning session, we are eager to hear about the San Francisco retreat. 

Eden Haiku: hello Yaku!
Yakuzza Lethecus: hey eden, hi pema
Eden Haiku: Good morning Pema!
Yakuzza Lethecus: and welcome bleu :)
Eden Haiku: Bleu :)
Bleu Oleander: hi everyone
Pema Pera: hi Eden, Yaku, Bleu!
Eden Haiku: The retreat is over now I would think? How was it for you Pema?
Pema Pera: oh, it was really wonderful . . . . I learned a lot
Pema Pera: and also enjoyed it a lot
Eden Haiku: Good to hear that!
Bleu Oleander: how was the "urban" aspect of the retreat?
Pema Pera: much as it would have been fun to have a large group of people, ten or more as we usually have, there is also an advantage in a small group, in the sense that you really get to know each other quite well during a whole week
Pema Pera: the urban aspect worked very well I think, indeed a sense of integration for me
Pema Pera: walking out into the city in the middle of the day, to find a lunch place
Pema Pera: continuing conversations from a more contemplative setting directly into a cafe atmosphere
Pema Pera: (and seeing Avatar together, and going to a jazz bar, you name it :-)
Bleu Oleander: very nice
Eden Haiku: What were the main topics that emerged from your conversations?
Pema Pera: hmmmm, how to summarize a week . . . .
Pema Pera: for me, personally, the whole notion of "play as Being" took on significant extra depth
Pema Pera: not only as the title of what we are doing, and the basic idea behind our whole community, but really a moment to moment choicebetween playing as you think you are and playing as Being
Pema Pera: in an urban setting you can watch yourself playing as the personality that you have built up your whole life
Pema Pera: and thereby see the choice to play differently
Yakuzza Lethecus: was the silent day again the highlight of the week ?
Pema Pera: it was different this time
Pema Pera: haha, each day was the highlight of the week, seriously!
Pema Pera: this time we didn't remain as silent as we did before, given that we had such a small group
Pema Pera: 4 or 5 depending on the day and hour
Eden Haiku: Was playing with my cat this morning and realized how much cats are about "play" and about "Being" :-)
Pema Pera: instead we limited ourselves to more functional talking
Pema Pera: more focused
Pema Pera: hi Liza!
Liza Deischer: hi everyone
Bleu Oleander: hi liza
Eden Haiku: hello Liza!
Yakuzza Lethecus: hey liza
Liza Deischer: (just stepping by for a few minutes)
Eden Haiku: You are starting your workshop later today aren't you Liza?
Pema Pera: (I also have to leave soonish . . . am still in San Francisco, about to head for the airport to fly back to New York)
Liza Deischer: no, next week
Liza Deischer: I need this week to arange a few things
Pema Pera: thank you for taking the initiative, Liza!
Liza Deischer: yw :-)
Eden Haiku: Oh I see Liza. And Pema, when are you leaving for Japan?.
Pema Pera: three days from now :)
Eden Haiku: And for a long stay this time.
Pema Pera: yes and no
Eden Haiku: Ah?
Pema Pera: yes, in total it will be almost nine months
Pema Pera: for a long astronomy project

--BELL--

After the bell, a birthday girl makes a brief appearance 

Yakuzza Lethecus: wow, can you tell us about it
Pema Pera: but I will come back quite often
Yakuzza Lethecus: morning lucinda :)
Pema Pera: hi Lucinda!
Bleu Oleander: hi Lucinda
Pema Pera: in fact, I will come back for three days within a week after leaving . . . .
Eden Haiku: Good morning Lucinda!
Lucinda Lavender: good morning!
Pema Pera: since I have to do the oath thing to become and American citizen in New York City . . . .
Bleu Oleander: oh congratulations Pema!
Pema Pera: ty, Bleu :)
Eden Haiku: I'm in awe about your capacity to handle jetlag Pema. You should give us some tips about that!
Liza Deischer: so a Dutchman less in PaB :-)
Pema Pera: ha, sleep and dream a lot, day and night!
Yakuzza Lethecus: they don't have dual citizenship ?
Liza Deischer: hi Luci
Lucinda Lavender: hi!
Pema Pera: well, I will still be Dutch, Liza :-)
Pema Pera: that's a complicated question, Yaku . . .
Pema Pera: in Holland there is law and there is what happens in practice . . . . .
Liza Deischer: feels different :-)
Eden Haiku: Sleep and dream, be a cat :-)
Bleu Oleander: one more thing to "drop"
Pema Pera: =^+^=
Liza Deischer: :-)
Lucinda Lavender: I am considering how to drop that it is my birthday:)
Pema Pera: oh, congratulations, Lucinda!
Eden Haiku: Oh, happy birthday Lucinda!
Bleu Oleander: HB Lucinda
Liza Deischer: congratulations :-)
Eden Haiku: ☆☆☆ ReDHoT PaRtY WhiStLe ☆☆☆
Pema Pera: :-)
Lucinda Lavender: am heading into a day of celebration...
Liza Deischer: but maybe not such a good idea to tell us if you want to drop it :-)
Bleu Oleander: fun!
Lucinda Lavender: Cool!:)
Eden Haiku: That was supposed to be a birthday sound ...:)
Bleu Oleander: :)
Yakuzza Lethecus: congratulations luci
Pema Pera: (^_^)
Lucinda Lavender: another day...
Eden Haiku: Will you let the hildren know?
Eden Haiku: I mean at school?
Lucinda Lavender: yes...and have twins in the class with same so we will celebrate together
Eden Haiku: Wonderful!
Pema Pera: how nice!
Lucinda Lavender: I am bring strawberries
Eden Haiku: Miummm...
Bleu Oleander: ice cream?
Pema Pera: a triple birthday . . . .
Lucinda Lavender: happy birthday to all of you...

Lucinda has a question

Lucinda Lavender: so I have a question...
Eden Haiku: Very important to honour one own's birthday I think.
Lucinda Lavender: is it really true that we are all made of stuff left over from the big bang?
Bleu Oleander: star dust
Pema Pera: well, our bodies are, yes, and so is the whole material universe, as far as we know
Pema Pera: and yes, Bleu, that too, after some recycling happened :-)
Lucinda Lavender: just recombined...?
Pema Pera: the constituents of our bodies were formed in the big bang and then recycled here and there in stars and gas clouds and such :)
Pema Pera: a kind of recombination yes
Pema Pera: but on a more down-home level, each day we recombine our bodies chemically, by eating and drinking and breathing
Lucinda Lavender: thanks I wanted to say something about it to my kids
Pema Pera: the big bang pedigry is more on a subatomic level
Lucinda Lavender: ah...that is what I supposed
Pema Pera: so yes, you can tell them that they are Big Bang leftovers, star dust, and this morning's breakfast, all in one :-)
Lucinda Lavender: ha ha!
Pema Pera: and a few more levels in between
Eden Haiku: In a nutshell :)
Pema Pera: nice nut to crack :)
Lucinda Lavender: I like remembering it...
Pema Pera: as homework
Liza Deischer: the process took a little bit longer then Pema is taking the time to answer :-)
Lucinda Lavender: yes...
Pema Pera: well, yes, though the Big Bang happened a lot faster

Pema Pera: a long time ago
Liza Deischer: also true :-)
Pema Pera: as far as we know about 0.000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,001 seconds or so
Pema Pera: give or take a few zeroes
Bleu Oleander: hey Zen
Lucinda Lavender: wow!

Liza Deischer: wow

Pema Pera: hi Zen!
Eden Haiku: Looking at your bionic arm Liza, it reminds me of an expression Eliza has been using around here; "I see her/his wheels turning :-)

--BELL--

Pema Pera: (have to take off now, good seeing you all !)
Liza Deischer: quite litteraly this time :-)
Liza Deischer: hi Zen, bye Pema
Zen Arado: bye Pema
Pema Pera: bfn
Zen Arado: hi all
Bleu Oleander: bye Pema .... have a good trip
Lucinda Lavender: Same..for strawberry shopping...
Eden Haiku: Have a safe return Pema!
Yakuzza Lethecus: bye pema
Lucinda Lavender: happy day...
Eden Haiku: Have a nice birthday party Lucinda!
Liza Deischer: bye Luci
Lucinda Lavender: thank you
Zen Arado: bye Lucinda
Bleu Oleander: have a great BD

Building skills

Eden Haiku: Welcome Zen!
Zen Arado: building break
Eden Haiku: Yes, you are creating an art gallery aren't you?
Zen Arado: hopefully
Eden Haiku: Building it yourself?
Zen Arado: hope to yes
Bleu Oleander: had a funny thing happen yesterday
Liza Deischer: great, so you started
Zen Arado: yes
Eden Haiku: Yes Bleu?
Zen Arado: yes Bleu?
Bleu Oleander: logged in and found part of my art gallery missing
Liza Deischer: huh?
Eden Haiku: Oh no!
Bleu Oleander: never happened to me before in sl
Zen Arado: strange
Bleu Oleander: very strange
Liza Deischer: well I experienced it once
Bleu Oleander: so had to re-build it
Zen Arado: still like that?
Bleu Oleander: more or less the same
Liza Deischer: had something to do with a boarderline to another sim
Eden Haiku: Heard it could happen about loosing inventories. Did you find it ?
Bleu Oleander: never found the missing parts
Zen Arado: that can happen
Bleu Oleander: re-built them
Zen Arado: they lost part of gallery in China legends place because it was too close to a border of a sim
Eden Haiku: That is a lot of trouble, having to rebuild...
Liza Deischer: yes, the same to our place
Bleu Oleander: so am careful to "lock" my buildings now
Liza Deischer: great idea
Zen Arado: good idea
Eden Haiku: Yes!
Eden Haiku: It can protect them from SL strangeness then?
Zen Arado: I am not good at design of buildings
Bleu Oleander: don't know Eden, but i'll do it anyway
Zen Arado: need to study some architecture I think
Eden Haiku: Yaku dear, you are sleepy...
Liza Deischer: don't know either
Yakuzza Lethecus: no :)
Eden Haiku: WB Yaku!
Bleu Oleander: Zen, you have a good imagination .... I know you'll make a nice gallery space
Yakuzza Lethecus: i was never gone, just on 2nd screen
Bleu Oleander: that "second screen" thing
Zen Arado: you can set the time before you go away very high on Emerald Yaku
Bleu Oleander: hehe, multi-tasking
Eden Haiku: Sorry, your avatar seemed to be falling asleep Yaku. I acted as a Zen master, whipping you with a stick :)
Liza Deischer: on viewer 2.0 even forever
Liza Deischer: on emerald too btw
Zen Arado: kyasaku:)
Bleu Oleander: ha! Eden
Zen Arado: handy for meditation
Eden Haiku: I'm faaaaar away from being a Zen master though :)
Yakuzza Lethecus: starting in the end :)
Zen Arado: I don't have much building imagination
Zen Arado: usually just build big boxes
Bleu Oleander: treat your building as a sculpture, Zen
Liza Deischer: well if you want somebody to have a look, I don't mind to step by
Eden Haiku: Yes Yaku, hopefully, one day I will be as zen as Zen :-)
Liza Deischer: two know more then one I suppose
Zen Arado: I have a friend who is a very good builder
Liza Deischer: okay
Bleu Oleander: feel free to ask for help Zen
Zen Arado: but I want to do it myself..
Liza Deischer: ah.... :-)
Liza Deischer: I understand that
Liza Deischer: quite well
Zen Arado: I'm not very Zen (said Zen)
Eden Haiku: Aren't you an ingeneer Zen? It must make things easier, no?
Liza Deischer: I think he talks about imagination, not about building ?
Zen Arado: I'm just me Eden
Liza Deischer: ha!
Eden Haiku: Are you hearing some music?
Zen Arado: I worked as an engineer but ....
Zen Arado: not as designer
Bleu Oleander: but you are a wonderful artist with a good eye
Bleu Oleander: for color and design
Eden Haiku: Zen is streaming music isn'it he?
Zen Arado: I can do yes

--BELL--

Zen Arado: not here though
Liza Deischer: hmmm, maybe you just don't know that yet :-)
Zen Arado: building is fun but can be addictive
Bleu Oleander: very much so
Zen Arado: as I was saying to Bleu
Bleu Oleander: I've already run out of land
Liza Deischer: pretty much yes
Liza Deischer: :-)
Eden Haiku: Sorry, I must have hit an iTunes key.., or something. I stopped it now :)
Liza Deischer: need to go, see you
Zen Arado: bye Liza
Eden Haiku: Bye Liza!
Bleu Oleander: bye liza

The conversation shifts to audio chats, salons, poetry and slam

Zen Arado: you do any building Yaku?
Yakuzza Lethecus: no
Zen Arado: you would be good at it I'm sure
Eden Haiku: Yaku builds audio conversations!
Bleu Oleander: yes, fun last friday
Zen Arado: sorry I missed it
Zen Arado: had to go somewhere else
Bleu Oleander: every friday at noon Yaku?
Yakuzza Lethecus: yes
Eden Haiku: It felt so natural and so friendly, it was nice.
Zen Arado: how many were there?
Bleu Oleander: it was funny to go back to text for the PaB session
Eden Haiku: Yaku, Bleu and I mainly. Then Qt at the end.
Bleu Oleander: felt somehow that text was lacking the depth
Bleu Oleander: it will grow i'm sure
Eden Haiku: Yes me too, when we reverted to text...I felt it lacked...
Zen Arado: look forward to hearing some of your poems Eden
Bleu Oleander: we should do another reading Eden
Bleu Oleander: it was so wonderful
Eden Haiku: But then, with maybe 20 people showing up for the regular session, it would have been cacophonia in voice.
Eden Haiku: Yes, sure Bleu, I would be delighted.
Zen Arado: yes
Bleu Oleander: when I get back from NYC I'm going to start a regular Sunday session for conversation and we can include poetry readings
Zen Arado: that would be good Bleu
Eden Haiku: I have a Poetry Night in RL on May 29, I'm working for that. But unfortunately, that is in French...;)
Yakuzza Lethecus: that's fine
Yakuzza Lethecus: french is more beautiful
Eden Haiku: Oh yes Bleu, I look forward for your voice salons!
Bleu Oleander: it was fun to hear you read in French
Zen Arado: I learned a French poem one time
Zen Arado: something about 'Le ciel est bleu'
Bleu Oleander: We'll have a salon with an sl artist also when I get back
Eden Haiku: I'm thinking about organizing poetry readings in French with my friend Ulrich at my new Totempoetry place. I will let you know Yaku.
Bleu Oleander: nice Eden
Bleu Oleander: poetry readings at the beach
Eden Haiku: Still remember the French poem Zen?
Zen Arado: no...that's all I remember
Eden Haiku: Well 'le ciel est bleu' is very true. Marcel Proust also wrote that there is a rose sky as well as a bue sky. I like that!
Eden Haiku: Le ciel est rose...Oh I could start with that Zen, that is inspiring...Thanks!
Bleu Oleander: nice
Zen Arado: there was a song on Facebook this morning in French but I didn't understand it
Eden Haiku: I'm writing a novel about Time so I'm trying to write a 4 minutes poem about Time for the Poetry Night. Each poet reads only 4 minutes. We are more than 40. It lasts the whole night.
Zen Arado: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9j...ste-de-l_music
Eden Haiku: Listening to it. What's left from the left...
Zen Arado: great Eden
Zen Arado: why is the guy in a wheelchair?
Eden Haiku: (translating the slam Zen linked us to ): Color red, generic drugs, depressed teachers, 35 hours that doubled...
Eden Haiku: Slammer speaks very fast...
Zen Arado: is that expression something to do with disability?
Eden Haiku: Maybe it is this guy called Grand Corps Malade?

--BELL--

Zen Arado: what's left from the left?
Bleu Oleander: brb
Eden Haiku: No, I think it is a famous slammer who had an accident and was paralyzed. Let me check if it is him...
Eden Haiku: The song is about the political left... that is almost vanishing...
Zen Arado: ah ok
Eden Haiku: No, the guy is called Kaem. Maybe he was inspired by this faomus French slammer who is stll handicapped but I think he can walk now. Very famous and very good. Grand Corps Malade. Let me see...
Zen Arado: what is a 'slammer'?
Eden Haiku: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb1pSnrKF-Y
Eden Haiku: Slam is a new style of poetry, very urban, very fast...
Bleu Oleander: like rap?
Zen Arado: ah
Eden Haiku: This one he talks about his body, his heart...His name means "Big Sick Body".
Zen Arado: but no music?
Eden Haiku: Yes, kind of rap but without music. Only words.
Zen Arado: ok
Bleu Oleander: yes
Eden Haiku: I once almost won a contest...
Eden Haiku: I had 33 seconds too long :-)
Zen Arado: for 'slamming' ?
Eden Haiku: Yes...
Bleu Oleander: we should do a slamming salon
Zen Arado: I learn so much here :)
Zen Arado: :)
Eden Haiku: A slamming salon woud be nice...
Bleu Oleander: does Ulrich slam too?
Eden Haiku: But then, I would have to work for it a lot...
Eden Haiku: I don't know if he does. Will ask...
Eden Haiku: That is the only time I did it. But it was inspiring
Zen Arado: hard to understand unless you speak good French though
Bleu Oleander: that's true
Zen Arado: unless the words were written
Eden Haiku: We speak an excellent French Zen!
Zen Arado: oh I know you do Eden
Zen Arado: but I don't :)
Eden Haiku: We would slam in English in SL...;_))
Zen Arado: if I saw some of it written down
Eden Haiku: Storm could participate. He writes beautiful poems!
Zen Arado: to get the spirit of it
Zen Arado: slammer haiku?
Zen Arado: yes
Eden Haiku: Maybe Yaku could be inspired as it is very audio.
Eden Haiku: Slam haikus! Yes!
Yakuzza Lethecus: i like to listen :)
Eden Haiku: Do you write sometimes Bleu?
Zen Arado: look forward to seeing them
Zen Arado: but how do I know they are slam?
Bleu Oleander: sorry i'm back now
Eden Haiku: Also, in poetry readings, we have a system where we show the written poems in written chat.
Bleu Oleander: oh that's nice Eden
Eden Haiku: We need someone to help with the logistics for that though and decided not to use it at Bleu's salon.
Bleu Oleander: I haven't written
Bleu Oleander: express my thoughts with art
Zen Arado: we cn't do everything :)
Eden Haiku: Yeah, Bleu, you haven't written yet :)
Eden Haiku: But that is true, we cannot do everything!
Bleu Oleander: yet is the key word?
Zen Arado: not enough hours in the day
Eden Haiku: Who knows what Being and Playing can lead you to...
Bleu Oleander: have to go .... cu all later
Eden Haiku: Bye Bleu. have a nice day!
Zen Arado: yes I better go now too
Bleu Oleander: bye
Zen Arado: make my dinner
Zen Arado: bye Bleu
Zen Arado: bye all
Yakuzza Lethecus: bye everyone
Eden Haiku: How you know poem is slam, will be for another ime Zen. Bye for now!
Zen Arado: sure Eden:)
Zen Arado: bye
Eden Haiku: Have fun in building Zen!