Divinity is erotic, and mystics know it. Why else would an enlightened master write such love-saturated words as “Let these words fly though time to someone coming. You know who you are… This love has nibbled on your ear whispering secrets that don’t make sense to anyone else.” Rumi was a lover. I’m sure I don’t need to delve into tantra or the approaches to sacral sexuality found in each of the great mystic branches to express this. Eros is in all things, afterall, from spirit to seed.
It’s all well and good to be making love with everything, to be taken up in the grace of divinity, but the solid aspect of eroticism is in the sensual dances we share with each other. I don’t often go into details of my romantic and sexual life, but I’m in the mood at the moment to share some of the erotic media I’ve been enjoying lately. I find them nicely balanced in their appeal, and I hope you’ll find something to enjoy with your significant other or to warm you through these winter nights.

The image included with this entry is from Beautiful Agony, a site that I’ve been enjoying for a couple months. Beautiful Agony focuses on the faces and voices of participants as they approach, enjoy and bask in the aftermath of orgasm. I appreciate the intimacy of this focus on the personal experience a great deal, and especially like the fact that there is a diversity and genuineness in the people who submit their video.

It’s beautiful, it’s real and it’s arousing. There isn’t erotic media of any sort I would recommend more highly. You can view the clip the still above is from in Windows Media Player or Quicktime directly with these links. If you choose to sign up at Beautiful Agony, I’d appreciate it if you did so through the link here, as I receive a free month of membership for every two signups through my referral.

I discovered Violet Blue’s Tiny Nibbles and Open Source Sex just this past week. Open Source Sex is the part of her work I’ve explored most so far. Subtitled as “erotica, sex ed and more with sex educator Violet Blue,” OSS is a podcast that beams out erotica suitable for those lonely nights with your portable media player. Her selections come from a wide range of erotic writers and fall into various niches of the genre. While every story isn’t my cup of tea, she does read some really spicey ones that have left me impressed with her delivery and the quality of the writing.

Box Mag is an online magazine that embraces the weird, unusual and sexy in a distinct way. The two PDF issues so far have been a real mixed bag, but there are some definite gems among the oddities. “Big Game” from the second issue is one piece that I liked quite a lot. “Like a Virgin” from the first was hot, and that’s not just my liking for pink-haired girls directing things. “Ladies First”, a look at American “first ladies” was amusing, especially the shot at Mrs. Barbara Bush.

And here we are. I hope you’ve enjoyed my sharing of the erotic.

I’m working my last shift before I get to vote in the 39th federal election of Canada. You all know I’m concerned about the Cons gaining power, so tomorrow will be one spent on edge. So, if Canada becomes a conservative wasteland, where should I flee to? I hear Iceland is nice.

On to pleasant things. Very pleasant things indeed. Emilie Autumn released a new EP for presale today, Opheliac. I’ve been a fan for a few years now and am very much looking forward to her next album, which is rumored to be in the limbo of label negotiations. Emilie’s music is a bit hard to pin down, but she’s taken to calling it Victoriandustrial, so take that as an indicator. It’s weird, beautiful and good, which is all you really need to know. Now go give it a listen.

I’ve also been listening to some tracks from Snow Machine, Jale’s Dream Cake and the leaked Placebo album Meds this week. Snow Machine makes poppy, deep, sad music, from what I can tell, but I like it quite a lot. Jale was a short-lived local band that I’d never listened much to, but I’ve taken a liking to Dream Cake after coming across it at the library recently. Meds may very well be the best offering from Placebo to date, and I say this as someone who has enjoyed the band tremendously for years.

My beloved Marquee Club will be holding burlesque nights on Thursdays under the name Teasers for the next three weeks. I haven’t ever been to a burlesque show, but I’m thinking it might be fun. I’m hoping one or more of you will be interested in coming along. Let me know. At $6, I think it’d be an inexpensive and fun night.

The Trews will also be at the Marquee this weekend. I’m hoping to go to that as well. Some of my dear friends need to contact me about joining me for that.

And friends, don’t forget to vote tomorrow. Unless you plan to vote for the Cons; in that case you should report for moral retraining.

I’ve been feeling increasingly luminous lately. It’s hard to express the root of it without sounding trite, but the confidence and energy that comes with increasing awareness and oneness truly is illuminating. When I walk along the sidewalk or sit silently on a bus, I notice whatever is around me with a greater clarity, interest and sense of communion. Smiles seem to fall into place for both of us when my eyes meet another’s on the sidewalk more often, and that in itself is heartening. There’s nothing quite like beginning to wake up and hold deep hope in evolution.

I’ve been going non-stop for the past five days. I’ve stopped for little other than sleep, food and an occasional spell online. It’s been nice to keep so active, especially during a rather long time away from work.
On Tuesday I met with John, Mark and Nathan for lunch. It had been a while since I last saw John and Mark (how very biblical those two are), so I was pleased to be able to see them. After lunch I was able to be present and contribute to the birth of Marks finest layout for Shiny Plastic Bag yet. I’ll be sure to point you to the site again once he makes it public.
Soon after I met with Allison downtown and proceeded to spend the next few hours wandering around downtown. We stopped in at Little Mysteries and I picked up my third hematite ring. They break often for me, but I enjoy wearing them, so I get one when I think of it.
Today I dropped by the local library and picked up 7 books I’d requested, some of Rumi’s poetry and the rest the few Elfquest books I’ve not yet read. It’s a special feeling for a book worm, I believe, to be encumbered with books; as much as I prefer digital books, I can’t help but romanticize a bag of hardcovers.

I’ve been neglecting to write a new piece explaining who I am now. The last time I wrote one about 8 months ago, and I do feel I’ve changed significantly since then. I’ve taken to truly embracing change. I’m not one to speak of change and then not change anymore; I go ahead and evolve, letting words catch up when they will.

Have I mentioned that I enjoy Count Your Sheep, even though it’s far too cute?

I should be off work from the 25th until the 28th, so I’m hoping to get together with some friends over that weekend. Do any of you have any ideas? If not, I’d be up for holding some sort of gathering at my place.

A few weeks ago I wrote about the upcoming federal election here in Canada. Since that time the political situation and public opinion have taken a clear turn for the worse. The dangerous and regressive Conservative party now has a strong lead in polls, with 55% of Canadians believing a Con majority would be a positive thing. It’s sobering to hear such statistics and realize that we’ve been fortunate to keep the Cons from power as long as we have.
With 70% of the world at or lower than an ethnocentric level of development and a good portion of the populations in even countries like Canada in such a saddening, dangerous stage, it shouldn’t surprise us when the less favourable political parties gain strength. As Ken Wilber put it, and I’m taking this from memory, “If we actually had one person, one vote democracy on this planet, the facists would be running the planet.” It would be nice to think common sense and awareness would lead people toward progressive and compassionate governance, but that is simply wishful thinking. To make genuine progress we have to find ways to get people evolving faster, to break the power of fundamentalism.
If we want equal rights for people of all walks (the Conservatives have promised to try to take away rights and recognition from people in same-sex relationships), strong social services (Conservatives would rather give tax cuts to the rich, increase taxes for the most poor and not commit to much needed social programs, as outlined in their platform), environmental health (the Conservatives have vowed to remove Canada from the Kyoto accord, bringing us into the ranks of such nations as the U.S., which has refused to join the program aimed at reducing greenhouse emmissions), and other aspects of a strong, rich and progressive society, we must commit ourselves to both opposing conservative politicians and also to helping our fellow citizens increase their awareness so that they may make choices with clearer vision.
With the greatest battle for the future of Canada we have faced in at least a decade ahead of us (the election is in 5 days and we have a great fight after that), I hope you’ll join me in voting for the NDP where they can win and the Liberals, despite the corruption throughout the party, where there’s no other viable option. But my deeper wish and commitment is to a far more important mission, to enfuse our society with an evolutionary spark that can help to defuse the danger of the conservative and fundamentalist elements of our world. And in that grand play I hope we can be effective.

Sunday night’s concert was an experience I won’t soon forget. All three bands were impressive and I had a marvelous time. It was definitely nice to fill the void of live music I’d been in.
I arrived at the show and stood in line with Nathan, Andrew and Allison for a wait that was pleasant enough with good conversation. The Marquee Club is always a fine venue, and I was looking forward to being in it again.
It wasn’t long after we got into the venue that Jenn Grant stepped onto the stage. We were all very impressed by her performance (Nathan appreciated her warble, Allison envied her dress), an impressive folk-pop set. I found myself amused by one song that included lyrics that went something like “by Chocolate Lake, just off the rotary,” which happens to be just where I live. She was very endearing, and I’ll be sure to catch any shows she plays in the city when I have the chance, as she may be my new favourite local talent and at the very least an excellent emerging artist.

Next up were Shotgun and Jaybird, who stepped up with odd lyrics and loose, head-swaying rock. I was impressed by the harmonizing by who I believe was Julie Doiron; it definitely enhanced the songs done by the split leads. They gave us an infectious dose of fun that lifted the crowd up and prepared us for our headliner’s grace. Shotgun and Jaybird are another maritime band I’d not discovered before, and I’ll be keeping an eye out for the next time they play here.

Leslie Feist and her band weren’t long in taking the stage. She blew us all away with ease. I was so impressed with every element of her show, from the stunning a cappella performance that had her voice looping from bits recorded on the stage to the flawless performances of such dear songs as “Mushaboom,” “When I Was A Young Girl,” (a highlight of the night for me!) “Gatekeeper,” “Secret Heart” and “Let It Die.” She has such an incredible voice, and her band was very impressive in its own right. It was her stage presence that galvanized the crowd, however; she was as luminous as her voice, and the energy that fed the crowd was palpable. It was one of the most thrilling performances I’ve ever been present for.

After her encore, my trio of friends and I picked up albums by the openers, grabbed our coats and were off. I highly recommend Jenn Grant’s Goodbye Twentiety Century.

Oh, and Feist’s Let it Die is as fine an album as you could hope for. The song “Mushaboom” from the album was written about a small Nova Scotian community of the same name and is a longing for the simple beauty of living through a rural winter, something I remember very fondly.

I’ve shared the photos I promised in my last entry in the Friends section of my photo album. Have a look if you’d like to see some of the zaniness we got up to. You can also see us as an animated trio here.

Things have been mostly quiet here since then. I do have excitement coming up, though. Sunday night I’ll be seeing Feist in concert with my friends Andrew, Allison and Nathan, an event I’ve been looking forward to for weeks. On Monday I have plans to go walking with Pegah, a friend of April who I had a nice talk with this evening. I have two more nights free after those, so I’m hoping to come up with something interesting to do then as well.

I’ve been reading up on Sufism and Rumi lately, with my interest sparked by the calendar I recently bought and a recent Integral Naked podcast on “Living an Authentic Spiritual Life” that included a reading of a Rumi poem that begins “The lamps are different, but the Light is the same.” I find it facinating to explore the non-dual, mystic traditions that can be found in any of the major religious branches. Islam is one religion I must admit to knowing little about, but I do feel drawn to the wisdom that Sufism holds, and especially to the beauty in the words of Rumi. His insights were expressed beautifully and it has been a joy to discover them. I’ll leave you with a favourite fragment of mine.

I spent the evening with my friends Wanda and April, along with some of their friends. I hadn’t seen April in over a year, so it was wonderful to have the chance to hang out with her and Wanda again like old times. We used to have a blast when she was still living here in Nova Scotia, and today was just as good. I’m sure things’ll be awesome once she moves back this summer.
During our mall-spanning adventures we decided to look around at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. Though a location just 10 minutes from my door has been there for 7 months I somehow never stopped in to take a look. When I did, the candy apples amazed me. The selection and quality they offer blew the three of us away. I left with a New York Cheesecake apple and it was definitely a highlight of my night; it was absolutely delicious and the flavour combination was surprisingly well balanced. I’ll need to watch myself so I don’t go there too frequently; that stuff is sweet crack.
Otherwise, we shopped around, April gave me some badass puffin socks, I introduced April, Wanda and Jana to my cat Mithra, and had our usual zany conversations. I always have a blast with those two.
Over the course of the night we snapped a few photos and even crowded into a photo booth together. I don’t have a photo editor or scanner here, so those will have to wait until I’m home. I can tell you they’re full of our usual cheer.

I’ve been trying to catch up with as much of Brian Wood‘s work as I’m able to this past week. He’s fast become one of my favourite writers in the graphic novel and comics field. There are far too few people able to take the grand and the simple of everyday life and marry them with expert storytelling, so this makes Brian all the more important.
I read Channel Zero yesterday and had my esteem for Mr. Wood solidified. It’s a sharp, political and very well told story that focuses on media censorship and the power of errant government controlled by special interest groups.

Written in 1997, this work is even more important for post-911 America as media narrowness, government corruption and the influence of fundamentalism mirrors the disturbing events of this book in nature, if not scope. I especially enjoyed the attention to the difficultly involved in judging revolutionary heroes, who risk becoming part of the very problems they oppose and being overshadowed and obscured by the mythologies that rise around them.
Brian’s new series, DMZ, is even more daring than Channel Zero. Set in a war-divided America, with Manhattan a de-militarized zone between the USA and Free States, it places emphasis on the everyday lives of those living in the midst of war, giving civilians the importance they deserve.

What’s interesting to me is that, while less politically defined than Channel Zero, it holds a mirror up to the dangers governments have been ramping up in the past half decade and the terrible apathy most of us have developed for those lives torn asunder by war in a very effective way. The DMZ journal is worth a read to find out more.

I woke early this morning and prepared for a walk to and through Point Pleasant Park. As I was about to shave, I noticed that Mithra had decided to make the sink his resting spot. I must admit it’s a perfect fit, but why would a water-fearing cat sleep in a sink when he has an entire cozy living room of his own? The mysteries of cats never end, do they?
Before catching a bus that would take me downtown, I got the notion to browse at a photo and painting sale in the mall. I’m glad I did, because I found some cheap mounted prints. I bought two complimentary Shirlene Lascurain prints, Victorious and Victory and another print (I used to have a poster of it while I attended Dalhousie). I can’t recall the name of the painting nor the artist who created it. If someone is familiar with it, please let me know what you can. I’m very pleased to have these paintings hanging on the wall of my home now; each has made my rooms more alive and inviting.
After dropping those off here I finally made my way downtown and headed for the park. It was a mild and sunny, though breezy, day that I walked through today. We’ve been having an unseasonably warm January this year, which I’m welcoming of; I’d usually be sick of the snow and cold by now.
I spent a long time criss-crossing the park, visiting each spot that interests me and holds memories. It was like a homecoming to be moving along the coastal rocks, beneath the trees or amid the ruins of old battlements. I was sure to snap some photos of the park and myself while there. I discovered a laughable 666 pentagram and a seemingly incomplete message from The Lorax, both of which make me chuckle at the absurdity of such vandalism.
On the way home I decided to make a final attempt to find a calendar for 2006 at a bookstore. I was very surprised to find a beautiful calendar that matches beautiful paintings by Michael Green with the poetry of Jelaludin Rumi, a 13th century mystic Sufi poet. Rumi was a liberated master, and his work is an excellent avenue for exploring Sufism (which I have a great desire to learn more about myself).

Non-dual illumination at its finest? I think so. Just reading some of these passages has tears brimming at my eyes because of the beauty and truth of them. It’s no wonder his words have endured and been respected throughout the world.

I recently noticed that my wallet had been falling apart, and would soon need to be replaced. Not being one to just use any wallet, I decided to scour the internet to find something inventive or beautiful enough to be a worthy replacement of the best wallet I’ve ever had. My search ended when I came across The Jimi, a small plastic wallet deemed “the wallet for people who hate wallets.” I can’t say I hate wallets, but I’m always open for alternatives, so I took a look and then decided to order one.

I’ve been using my smoke Jimi for a few days now and I’m very impressed. It’s practical, durable, nice looking (especially with the Ohm sticker I added) and encourages minimalism. I had to weed out some non-essentials and put them in my bag (I always carry it when going to anywhere those cards might be needed at), which was a nice bonus. I also like the company’s commitment to consumer, environment and worker, as openly stated on the literature that came with the Jimi; it’s definitely a selling point for me to have a company conscious of its responsiblity to the world. Oh, and the “operator’s manual” is good for a laugh.

For months I anticipated Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean’s Mirrormask for months now. I’ve been a big fan of both men’s individual and collaborative work for years, and when I learned they’d created a film together, along with the Jim Henson Company, I was thrilled. I was very disappointed when it didn’t receive a wide release and never played in a Halifax theatre. It comes out on DVD on Feb. 14, but I was lucky enough to watch an advance this week. It’s absolutely everything I had hoped for. It’s one of the finest films I’ve ever seen visually and the story is definitely Gaiman at his finest. It’s been compared to a darker telling of Alice in Wonderland, and I think that’s fitting, but it has a depth and appeal uniquely its own. Definitely a neglected gem, this will be a must-have in a month’s time.

During my high school days I discovered Siouxsie and the Banshees as a side-effect of my goth period (I kept the black, the finer aspects of the music and a healthy appreciation for all those dark and gloomy things.) I had Once Upon A Time and the “Dear Prudance” single on vinyl, so when I discovered a remastered album, called Gold: Remixes, containing a lot of those tracks and some remixes, I pounced upon it. The song all sound so much better this time around, and I barely miss the pop and hiss of a record. Siouxsie Sioux has one of the most recognizable voices out there, and sounds stellar in this rejuvenated package.

I’m about to tell you about the most unusual album to have ever fallen into my music collection. Please don’t get the wrong idea about me, but it’s She Had A Taste For Music, an anthology of Italian erotic film soundtracks. It’s filled with ecclectic tracks that range from the sincerely romantic to experimental world, bouncy jazz and funk to the downright strange. But it’s actually oddly enjoyable. I want to throw a party and have this in the background.

P.S. I am always thrilled to see new postings in Audrey Kawasaki‘s journal. Go look for yourself.

P.P.S. I now have a Flickr account here.

For dinner this evening I made a faux-chicken curry stirfry with Kitchens of India’s chicken curry paste. I’ve been eating a lot of Indian food lately, following a month of Thai foods. I’m pleased to be expanding my palette more and more, and a lot of that experimentation has come as a side-effect of becoming a vegetarian. It has forced me to be mindful and curious about food in a way I was never consistantly before.
On the topic of foods, I’m actually toying with making a collection of recipes and ideas over the next year year that taps into my love of all things maple. I came up with the notion today as I was flavouring some tea with some of the maple syrup my parents gave me for Christmas. I started thinking that it would be nice to do something tied with maple because it’s such a powerful taste and scent for me. Maple products have long held a wonderful sentimental impact for me, so I’m sure it would be a very enjoyable project to undertake.

Earlier I mentioned enjoying the video for M83‘s “Don’t Save Us From the Flames.” Since then I’ve bought the first three albums from the duo-turned-solo project, and have been blown away. M83, Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts and Before the Dawn Heals Us are progressively lush and beautiful albums that resonate with romanticism and energy. Before the Dawn Heals Us hasn’t left its spot in my daily listening, and it has sent roots down into my heart. It’s full of romantic apocalypse, and has conjured up longing for putting it on repeat and having an endless cycle from coquetry to love making. It’s an album for lovers.

P.S. Be sure to go right now and download a live performance of “Easter” done by the always astonishing Stuart Davis.

Last night I read the two issues of Brian Wood‘s brilliant new comic Local that I picked up this week. It’s a fantastic series of one shot issues that are each set in a different location and chronicling a piece of life in that place. Each story is linked by the character Megan McKeenan, jumping about a year ahead in her life each issue, though she won’t always be the main character. I’ve been moved by the beautiful art Ryan Kelly has done and I’m enjoying Brian’s story very much. This is on the same level of excellence as Brian’s other standalone 12-issue series, Demo, a series I absolutely love, if not pushing higher.
After reading the comics I headed over to the Local blog and looked around until I saw something that almost literally floored me. I scrolled down and nearly fell out of my chair when I saw that the fifth issue of the series, “The Last Lonely Days at the Oxford Theater,” is set here in Halifax, the city I love so much.

The Oxford is a landmark of great significance for many of us Haligonians, and I can only imagine how great it will be to see the rest of Halifax rendered with the care and attention to detail that went into the first two issues. If my math is right, the story should be set in 1999-2000, a couple years before I moved here, so I imagine it will conjure some memories.

Yesterday I was walking around the downtown of this very city. It was amusing to see how my friends all collected together that afternoon. First I contacted my sister Ilea and arranged to meet up at Scotia Square so that I could give her back the laptop I’d fixed for her and then go get her a new keyboard for it. Then Allison called and said she would meet me there and that Nathan would soon be along. We spent the afternoon hanging out and walking around, with me looking at various places for items to send south. I did get a little selfish and buy some Jones Soda and chocolate covered coffee beans. It’s good to treat oneself now and then, right?
Allison let us know that she has plans for a silent, stop motion film staring members of our crew. Nathan will apparantly be a pirot, Chris a giant and myself a dashing pilot. It sounds like it has the makings of something truly grand. In other zany creative news, Andrew and Nathan have begun rerecording the song “Cheese Pizza,” which I co-wrote. I’ve convinced them to add a chorus line, which I’ll happily contribute to.

I discovered All Consuming a couple months ago, but yesterday morning I finally started using it. All Consuming is a website that allows us to record the media and other things we consume and share it all with our friends and other folks on the web. I’ve been adding various albums, books and films I’ve enjoyed and have incorportated it into my website‘s sidebar. I think it’s a great way to keep track of all these varied things I enjoy and I’m hoping to use it as a library hunting tool this winter. If you are ever curious about the sort of stimuli I’m bombarding myself with, you are welcome to view my profile.

Oh, i forgot to mention that I was included in Mark’s “Another Year of Stupid.”