Black Tulip

I live at a very nature-rich place, with flowers blooming wonderfully this time of year. Everywhere it is green again, with splashes of bright floral colours. There are many flowers that grow here; I particularly love the daffodils and tulips. Beside the path towards my apartment I saw this exquisite dark-maroon tulip, so dark it looks nearly black. I feel very blessed to experience such beauty.

Solar Flares and Natural Disasters

Days before last years major earthquake that resulted in the terrible tsunami that hit Japan, the sun was unusually active emitting solar flares. While the link between solar flares and earthquakes are still controversial, I am leaning towards believing in this connection.

Currently the sun is acting up again. "The sun belted out the most powerful type of solar flare Monday night, known as an X-class flare," according to the Washington Post. The report added that "the X-class flare was not directed at Earth. But space weather forecasters caution the very active sunspot region - known as AR1598 - responsible for these flares is slowly rotating towards Earth in the coming days."



Current scientific consensus generally only accuse such solar flares with causing beautiful northern lights, interfering with radio signals and at words messing with electronic devices. While yesterday's solar flare report was not aimed at the earth, the current rotations will put us in the path of these active sun spots within the next few days. If there is a connection between solar activity and natural disasters, particularly earthquakes, and if AR1598 stays active during the coming days -- which it probably will, we ought to see an increase in natural disasters, particularly an increase in earthquake activity in the weeks to come.

Things I Didn't Tell You About

This blog is supposed to function for me as a type of diary but there are so many things I haven't told you about. For instance:

I discovered a quaint little jazz club which I went to last week. Because of it's small size it has a very intimate feel to it and the music is too loud as is often the case in the bigger clubs. It has a cute French name: "La Cle", which means "The [Musical] Key".

The week before I went to another jazz bar that I had once seen while passing in a bus called Tokyo Jazz. Unfortunately the live performance started rather late (21:30) and I had already bought a movie ticket for later. I'll definitely have to go back there some day and get a feeling for their live performances.

Image Source

Yesterday I went to a jiu-jitsu tournament. It was surprisingly boring. Maybe the action and technical expertise improved later in the day, but by around 15:30 I left to meet up with my Taekwon-Do instructor.

There was this one guy standing in the back somewhere without his shirt on and at one time he did this Michaelangelo's David-pose that I just had to get a picture of.

One thing about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, it gives you nice abs.

Last Monday was Buddha's Birthday, a national holiday ion Korea. I decided this year to use this period to get to know more about Korean Buddhism, so the week before I went to a seminar on the benefits of Seon Meditaion. "Seon" is the Korean word for "Zen".

And on Buddha's Birthday I went on a tour of some of the major Buddhist temples and sights in Seoul.

There were many great photo opportunities and I also got to take some videos of some dance performances done by some of the Buddhist monks (and nuns) in their celebrations.

Two weeks ago two students, Jen and Taewon, from the ITF dojang where I am involved tested for their first degree black belts. I've been very involved with especially Taewon's training and do feel a sense of pride in their accomplishments.

About three weeks ago I visited a Korean friend of mine in her hometown, in Heongseong. She, her husband, and I went on an easy, yet beautiful mountain hike in the area. We also got to catch up a bit. It had been about a year since we had spend any time together.

It was nice to see the farm we she grew up again. The picture above is of the house she lived in as a child. Her parents still live on the farm, but they had build themselves a more modern country house in the meantime.

Two Fridays ago I went to a Taekkyeon demonstration. The photo above shows some of the traditional ("farm") musicians getting ready. Taekkyeon is a traditional Korean folk martial art that is usually accompanied with traditional folk music. I miss Taekkyeon. I've suspended my Taekkyeon training a year ago because of time constraints and in order to save money for familial matters.

In April I hosted a Jeet Kune Do workshop. The guest instructor was Dr. Zee, somewhat of a self-made Jeet Kune Do celebrity and also an accomplished Oriental Medicine doctor.

I also travelled to Chuncheon with a friend visiting from Egypt in April. It was memorable.

Also in April I went to a theatre production of a friend of mine. She was both the writer and director of the play called "The Bag". She used different bags (backpacks, handbags, briefcases, etc.) to symbolize the emotional things people carry with them: their past, their burdens, their hopes and dreams. Although the play was completely in Korean and I could therefore only understand it in part, I still enjoyed it a lot. The lighting and choreography was brilliant and the acting very engaging.

This past weekend I had to go to our department's freshmen camp. The freshmen departed for the camp on Thursday already and stayed until Sunday -- us faculty only had to go for Friday evening until Saturday afternoon. Usually I have to share a room with another faculty member, but this time we all had our own rooms, and what a room it was! A big bed, with a widescreen TV and a bathroom with a jacuzzi!

There are probably many other things I've done which I cannot remember now, such as movies I had watched. Mirror Mirror is not worth wasting your money on. Snow White and the Huntsman is. Julia Robberts' rendition of a disturbed wicked stepmother / witch sucks; Charlize Theron's is exquisite.

Cherry Blossoms

Skydive for Rhinos

We all have something we care enough about to become vocal about. Some of us even have certain charities that we support. My friend Mary-Jane, for instance, feel strongly about the protection of sharks, my friend Christine is passionate orphans that are blind or deaf, I care strongly about issues regarding liberty (religions liberty, freedom of expression, a right to privacy, etc.), and so on. Social networking is a great tool to make other people aware of the things that are worth being aware about. So when I received this forward in my inbox I thought I'd share it with you. Maybe it is something you care to get involved in too. It is a project run by my "extended" family.

...ooOoo...

Good day

Meyer Productions is proud to be a part of the Skydive for Rhinos awareness and conservation campaign to prevent the decimating and senseless slaughter of South Africa's rhinos, counted among the magnificent Five of the country's wildlife.

In support of this campaign to protect this diminishing species, Meyer Productions has produced a 1080p high resolution video, which you can view from the link below. We hope that you will watch this video and share this link with others and by so doing, help spread the message and generate support. To view the video, click on:



Here is some more background and information about this project:

Skydive for Rhinos is the brainchild of the staff of the African Conservation Trust (ACT), who in May this year, were moved beyond the point of outrage and spectatorship;, to taking personal action regarding the slaughter of rhinos in South Africa. It started small, with six women volunteering to skydive for the first time and in doing so, raise funds from their friends and family to improve anti-poaching efforts and increase public awareness of the increasing numbers of rhino being poached. But within a couple of weeks, the volunteer skydive group reached 40 and the campaign went viral.

The jumpers came from all walks of life, all ages and race groups, with 20 ACT staff members making up the bulk of the skydiving team. Others who joined in were Jabulani Ngubane (Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife's Rhino Protection Officer) and Andrew Zaloumis (CEO, iSimangaliso Wetland Park) and concerned members of the public, including varsity students, entrepreneurs, a female helicopter pilot and even a couple of youthful grandmothers. What they had in common was an over-riding passion to halt the extermination of a species that is intrinsic to South Africa's culture and heritage, voluntarily willing to put their own lives on the line for a 7 minute, 10,000ft skydiving feat that was a world-first in conservation circles.

 Skydive for Rhinos took place on 13 August 2011 at Angels Way, Durban Skydive Centre's base in Eston, KwaZulu-Natal. It was an incredible day, made possible by a group of amazing people and supported by tens of thousands others backing this campaign. Some of the skydivers had never been in a plane before - yet they put aside their nerves, embraced this new experience...and then threw themselves out of perfectly functioning aircraft in a courageous show of support for rhinos!

In just 10 weeks, these 40 people raised over R180,000 in cash from their friends and family and generated business 'in kind' support to the value of around R240,000. 100% of the funds raised are going to improve bona-fide, but under-funded, anti-poaching efforts in KZN, including aerial surveillance of threatened reserves, equipment for anti-poaching patrols, camera traps and micro-chipping identification of vulnerable rhino. In addition, a large cyber-tracking company approached us with an offer to donate their technology and we're now planning to introduce this in to the reserves in great need of this form of surveillance.

The campaign received excellent media coverage in all the major KwaZulu-Natal newspapers; as well as East Coast Radio. Some magazines also carried the story, including Africa Geographic and Wildside, as well as a large number of online media websites.

As of today, 276 rhino have been killed this year - the latest being the tragic story of the Aquila rhino in the Western Cape. We at ACT will be continuing our efforts to raise funds for those on the front line of the rhino poaching crisis.

We really hope that you will join us in helping to spread the message, generate support and keep the conservation message alive.
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To make a donation you can visit ACT's website www.projectafrica.com (click on the skydiving rhino animation), or see www.facebook.com/skydiveforrhinos - this page is also a conduit to a host of national initiatives and networks that are trying to halt rhino poaching.


Kind regards

André Meyer
www.meyerproductions.co.za

Donate now!
Bank: Nedbank
Account Name: ACT Rhino Fund
Branch: Musgrave Centre, South Africa
Branch code: 130126
Account No: 1008662976

For International Payments:
Nedbank code: 198765
Swift Number: NEDSZAJJ

How to Fall in Love with the Heavens

View full screen.

Flower Arrangement

Last month when I was father-of-the-bride, I also made a flower arrangement (the one above) for the celebration. It was my first time to make an arrangement of this sort.The closest I have come to it was to pick some flowers and bundle them together in a rough bouquet. Making an actual arrangement was a new and fun experience. I have this dream for retirement one day. I want to open a little shop that combines a flower shop, a second hand book shop, an arts-and-crafts shop and a coffee shop. I guess my little flower arrangement last month is the first step in that direction. After all, I'm  not getting any younger.

Need for Sustainable Fisheries -- Proudly South African

Typhoons, Poetry and the Case of the Vanished Basil Continues

Image Source

Typhoon Kompasu hit Seoul much earlier than expected – even before I went to work this morning. On my way to my office it was all too evident that a terrible storm had hit us, all unbeknownst to me. The campus is littered with leafs, broken branches and the odd uprooted tree.

This morning only five students showed up for the poetry class. Later the number of registered students dropped to six and I started to make my peace with the fact that I won’t be teaching it. Later the day the number changed back to seven students again. By 3pm it was still seven. I thought that would mean that everything is safe and that the class would not be cancelled. It turns out that the deadline was not 3pm today, but 3pm tomorrow. So the suspense continues.

As for the Case of the Vanished Basil, I sent the following little email to the other residence in my apartment building:

Dear Residence of Building 4,

This morning when I went to the department meeting all my herbal plants were still on the wall in front of our apartment building. When I returned an hour later, two of my little basil plants had disappeared and a new little orange pot plant stood on the wall.

If any of you had moved my basil plants could you please put them back, or if anybody you are acquainted with (i.e. movers, family, friends, etc.) took them, I'd appreciate it if you replace them. They may look a little shaggy but I am quite fond of them nonetheless.

Friendly regards,

It turns out that my email offended some of them, saying that I clearly accused two of them in particular. What can I say? If the shoe fits . . . In the meantime I’ve moved my remaining herbal plants inside to protect them from further storms or other mysterious raptures.

How does the accompanying image fit with this email? I'm not sure either.

The Case of the Vanished Basil

Image Source

Outside my apartment building I have three small pots and one large pot with basil. This morning when I went to work for our weekly department meeting (at 8:30am!) I inspected my little plants with a sense of pride. I've harvested basil leafs just a couple of days ago and the basil plants had already sprouted new leaves. After the department meeting I returned home for breakfast, but as I passed my plants two of the small plants had vanished. I have my suspicious as to whom might have taken it, but I cannot prove it. It really upsets me that people could just feel it appropriate to take something that clearly belongs to someone else. I know it is just two little basil plants; still, I'm quite fond of my basil plants. I grew them from seeds and struggled to get them to the size they are now where I can harvest from them. Not to mention that it very difficult to get basil in Korea, whether dried or fresh. I'm quite upset, too be honest. If this person had asked me for some, I would have given her/him a plant.

Thailand -- Thai Elephant Research and Conservation Fund

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One afternoon while in Thailand we visited the Thai Elephant Center for Conservation in Saraburi Province, which is part of the Thai Elephant Research and Conservation Fund.

It was quite an interesting visit as we learned more about the Asian elephants and the relationships and conflicts between elephants and humans in Thailand. I was pleasantly surprised that this elephant-related visit should be part of our program. I was under the impression that our visit would be focussed solely on the health concerns of people; however, this visit to an animal conservation centre brought a delightful extra dimension to the trip.

The director of the centre gave us a presentation on Thailand’s elephant history and human-elephant conflict. He also discussed the various programs they ran on educating people – particularly the Thai youth – about elephants, saying that as the elephant is Thailand's icon, it is imperative that the next generation be educated on this representative animal. This includes a series of booklets, known as the Elephant Curriculum, that they publish to educate children on elephants, covering a whole array of elephant related topics such as elephant evolution, elephant physiology, elephant behaviour, elephants in religions, wild elephant conservation and the mahouts (traditional elephant trainers).

Finally we went on a fifteen minute elephant ride. Honestly, having grown up with horses I’ve never really seen the appeal in riding on an elephant and after having done it I still prefer horse riding. Nonetheless, I guess it is a unique enough experience with one sitting so high up. An elephant also moves quite differently from a horse.

In the photo is John and I. His mother is a doctor at our university and a researcher in Nutrition. She presented the session on Malnutrition during the Health Education Trip.

Nature by Numbers

A Dead Owl, a Red Haired Korean, Bomb Shock and an Exhibition Decision

The owlet I picked up in front of my apartment yesterday did not make it through the night. By the time I picked it up it was already in the afternoon. Someone told me that they saw it there in the morning already. I was planning to take it to a vet today, but unfortunately when I went to check on it after I got up it was dead. I'm guessing that having sat outside in the sun may have taken its toll, not having fed for so long. Since I don't keep meat in my home I had nothing to feed it. I tried to give it some egg on a spoon but it wasn't interested. Since I have little knowledge of caring for raptors I just hoped it would survive the night so that I could take it somewhere professional. So it goes . . .

At the Taekkyeon class tonight I saw something quite interesting. There was a bearded Korean man He had a read beard. I asked him about it and he assured me that it is indeed his natural beard colour. This is the first time for me to see a Korean with naturally red hair -- or at least a read beard. I told him I want to bring my camera next time so that I can take a picture of his red beared. He didn't seem to pleased with the idea. I've seen a number of Koreans with a slight red tint in their hair, but since many Koreans dye their hair all kinds of brown and auburn shades, it is quite difficult to judge if the red tint is natural or not. I've been thinking about writing a blog post about physical (genetic) differences between Koreans and Cocasions. I hope to do it soon.

After the Taekkyeon training I spent a little time getting to know some of my fellow practitioners. One Korean man and I struck up a conversation and since we live in the general same direction we took the same subway line and continued talking for another half an hour or so. His name is Beomseok -- it sounds a little like "Bomb Shock," so that's how I'm going to remember it. He is studing Oriental Medicine. It sounds quite interesting. I would probably have enjoyed it, but life don't always present you with opportunities for all your likes, and neither am I so passionate about Oriental Medicine that I'd quite my job and enroll myself as a freshmen again. To be honest, the idea of starting my academic career from scratch again just sounds to daunting. Now if I had the opportunity to get a degree in Taekwon-Do I would seriously consider it. Korea has a number of universities with Taekwon-Do as major; acutally, it is a major in Sport Science or Physical Education, while specialising in Taekwon-Do. There are about three universities that offers the course in English. It would even be better if I could work at a university teaching martial arts -- now that would be wonderful. Combining the job I like with my passion for the martial arts.

I'm planning to go to an art exhibit tomorrow. Either Greek sculptures or Rodin's sculptures. Maybe I should do it in historic sequence -- Classical idealism before naturalistic expressionism. Greek sculpture tomorrow and Rodin on Wednesday.

Ek is wakker en daar is 'n uiltjie in my woonstel

Ek is wakker, maar ek weet nie hoekom nie. Dis na twee in die oggend. Maandagoggend. Ek hoef nie vroeg op te staan nie -- ek hoef geensins op te staan more indien ek nie wil nie. My enigste beplande prioriteit is eers more aand om agtuur. Ek kan dus slaap tot ses uur die middag indien ek sou woul

O ja; daar is iets anders wat ek more moet doen. Ek het 'n uiltjie opgetel. Die dingetjie is nog baie klein en sal beslis deur die katte gevang word indien ek dit op die blad voor my woonstelblok laat bly het. Die probleem met uile is dat hulle die beeld van hulle voerders inprent en die belemmer dan hulle kanse van rehabilitering in die toekoms. Wel dis die een probleem. Die ander probleem vir hierdie spesifieke uiltjie is dat dit deur my "gered" is, want ek het nie kos om vir die dingetjie te voer nie. Ek is grootliks 'n vegetariër. Dis nie dat ek nooit vleis eet nie. Ek eet wel sporadies vleis indien ek 'n ernstige behoefte daaraan het. Maar ek eet dit altyd buite my huis. Ek koop nooit vleis nie. Ek kan nie onthou wanneer die laaste keer was dat ek rou vleis gekoop het en gaargemaak het nie. Dit was jare gelede. Die punt is, daar is geen rou vleis in my huis nie en gevolglik kon ek die uiltjie niks voer nie. Ek het probeer om dit bietjie rou eier te gee maar was onsuksesvol. More gaan ek die uiltjie na 'n veerarts toe neem. Ek kan dit net eenvoudig by hulle aflaai -- die verantwoordelikheid onsermoniëel aan hulle oorhandig. Ek weet nie wat anders om met die gediertetjie aan te vang nie. Om dit hans groot te maak sal wreed wees want dit sal dan nooit gerehabiliteer kan word nie, en ek weet nie hoe lank ek in Korea gaan bly nie. Die verantwoordelikheid van 'n lewetjie moet nie ligtelik opgeneem word nie. Uile is nie goudvisse nie.

Ek's wakker. Ek het twee ure terug 'n bak roomys geëet omdat ek verveeld was. Ek wil nie bed toe gaan nie, want bed toe gaan is vervelig. Ek gaan maar 'n episode van Doctor Who kyk en daarna besluit wat ek dan gaan doen. Miskien is ek moeg teen dan.

'n Dieretuin. Daar is 'n dieretuin by 'n park oppad na die veearts wat ek oorweeg het. Dalk moet ek sommer net by die dieretuin stop en die uiltjie daar aflaai. Hulle sal seker weet wat om daarmee te maak. Maar die dieretuin sal die uil waarskynlik wil aanhou en nie rehabiliteer nie. Maar ek is ook nie so seker van die veearts nie. Veeartse in Korea is gewoonlik verbind aan dierewinkels en in Korea word die aardigste diere verkoop as troeteldiere. Neem ek die uiltjie na die veearts is daar geen waarborg dat die gerehabiliteer gaan word nie -- dit mag dalk as 'n troeteldier verkoop word!

En 'n wildedierhawe kan ek ook nie vind nie. Die Koreaanse Internetsoekenjins is nie uitlandervriendelik nie.

Moes ek die uiltjie maar buite op die sementblad gelos het sodat die katte hom kan vang?

Ek wil nie gaan slaap nie.

The Spill, the Scandal, and the President

President Obama in Port Fourchon, Louisiana, May 28, 2010.

This is an article well worth reading about how the Obama administration is partially to blame for the oil disaster.

On May 27th, more than a month into the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history, Barack Obama strode to the podium in the East Room of the White House. For weeks, the administration had been insisting that BP alone was to blame for the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf – and the ongoing failure to stop the massive leak. "They have the technical expertise to plug the hole," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs had said only six days earlier. "It is their responsibility." The president, Gibbs added, lacked the authority to play anything more than a supervisory role – a curious line of argument from an administration that has reserved the right to assassinate American citizens abroad and has nationalized much of the auto industry. "If BP is not accomplishing the task, can you just federalize it?" a reporter asked. "No," Gibbs replied.

Read the rest at Rolling Stone.

See the video below in which Democracy Now interviews the author of the article "The Spill, the Scandal, and the President," Jim Dickinson.

I wonder . . .

. . . why there are (wild) monkeys in China and in Japan, but none in Korea.

Lente bloeisels / Cherry Blossoms

Chicken Cravings

[Image Source]

For three days I’ve been craving for chicken. So much so, that even this morning before I woke up I dreamed about eating fried chicken.

As most of my family and friends, and some of the readers of this blog, know, my diet is mostly vegetarian. (I give a rationale here.) There was a time that I lived vegan but I didn’t find it personally sustainable, even though I believe it to be the ideal. To live a healthy vegan lifestyle one needs a vast variety of fresh produce. Unfortunately most grocers do not cater for bachelors; produce is usually sold in bundles made up for families, not for single people. So as a bachelor I find that lots of food spoils before I can eat it. While a vegetarian diet (I’m primarily ovo-lacto vegetarian) also requires a variety of fresh foods, it is a little more sustainable for a single guy. On this diet I never crave for meat. Or rather, I almost never crave for meat. I do not keep meat in my home (apart from occasional tinned fish) and cannot remember when the last time I had cooked meat was.

It is not that I never eat meat. I’m very practical about these things. If I am to visit people that made a meal where the main dish contains meat I will oblige, and if I happen to be out in town and there happens to be no palatable vegetarian options I will not starve myself. Still, my idea of a lovely meal is not a bloody steak; rather a creamy vegetarian pasta dish or a good curry.

My sudden grave urge for chicken was quite unusual – even dreaming of eating chicken, more unusual still. At first I thought that I might be lacking protein so yesterday I prepared myself some eggs. This did nothing to quench my craving. I do not know what poultry might have that fowl eggs do not, but I can attest that consuming eggs did not make the craving subside. Since the hunger for chicken continued unswervingly I decided that there must be some nutritional element that is lacking from my current diet, and my body is telling me that I can find it in poultry.

So for lunch today I went to a take-away restaurant close to my workplace that opened recently. They specialise in fried chicken and pizza. I ordered from the set menu two of their chicken and pizza combos and, admittedly, I ravished the chicken, even though I usually prefer pizza over meat.

I’m happy to say that the craving disappeared.

I’ve been feeling a little sick lately; mostly a slight sore throat and a runny nose. A common folk remedy for colds and the flu is chicken soup. I don’t know what it is about chicken soup that helps with seasonal afflictions, but I wonder if my body, which have been feeling a little down, needed that nutritional ingredient. To find out if there is something about chicken (or chicken soup) that is remedial I did a quick Internet search. It turns out that chicken soup with its other ingredients, but also the extract of chicken alone, has an anti-inflammatory action. Apparently, at least one amino acid released from chicken during preparation is similar to actylcysteine, which is a drug prescribed for respiratory ailments. (You can view a CNN-article about it and another from a health website.)

Apart from the sore throat I’ve also increased my exercise regime lately and my muscles are somewhat tender; i.e. slightly inflamed. The craving for chicken may have been my body’s suggestion for an all round remedy, not only for an inflamed throat, but also for inflamed muscles; plus the need for extra amino acids because of the increased exercise.

Speaking of chickens, have you ever heard of Mike the Headless Chicken? Mike was a chicken that survived for 18 months after his head was chopped of. The farmer that decaputated the chicken was so impressed with his will to live, that he gave him grain and water with an eyedropper. Mike actually gained some weight during this time and according to witnesses continued to act like a normal chicken. Apparently enough of his brainstem (a part of the chicken's neck) remained for him to continue to function pretty much normally. See the YouTube video below or follow the link above to the website devoted to the life-loving Mike.

Huge Mosquitoes

Apparently in Korea there are these humongous mosquitoes, known as “jontoo mokgi,” which can be translated as “Commando Mosquitoes,” so called because they can suck your blood right through an army boot. At least that is what I’ve heard from some young Korean men who, they say, have experienced these bloodsucking monstrosities first hand.

I’m yet to see such a brawny bug myself; however, I have seen some rather huge mosquitoes in South Africa. The one in the photo is from KwaZulu Natal – an “Impi Mozzie.”

I Think I've Seen Everything