Thoughts

Spring Harvest 2009

Posted on by JC

Some of you know that I like to help at Harvest – a Christian Youth camp once a year in north east england. Help with the stewarding teams however I can and have done since around August 1999.

Now i’m going to try for spring harvest that happens in different locations around the UK. Its over the easter break time so minimum time off work.

I am currently awaiting the application to be confirmed. I’m just awaiting on references now. Passed the other 8 parts of application including yet another CRB check. Now i’ve had 3 of these over the past few years – why they need new ones every time i’m not sure.

It should be very different as it won’t be just young people but a mixture of young people, kids, and adults as its not particularly age specific.

It will be a new challenge, another one for this year. I hope I get on the team and look forward to the event.

Link: Spring Harvest Website

Dream Control

Posted on by JC

Ever wanted to be the director of your dreams? I have wanted to take control lots of times. To wonder if I can change the situation and remembering when I woke up that I wanted to change it but couldn’t.

I couldn’t change it then because I didn’t realise it was a dream. To actualy work out while asleep that I am asleep and the reality that while in my mind I can change the events that are happening – to re-shape the reality – That is an interesting dream/idea in itself.

I learned a long time ago that in dreams I could take control. I could change the physics of the world. Films like “The Matrix” reminded me of my dreams where I could fly when I wanted or stop something from happening.

I will tell you a way how I managed to remind myself I was in a dream but for you to take control and change the reality is all up to you. Its what I’ve used so far that I will explain – It may work for you – it may not but here goes:

1. Find a picture thats kinda normal with a distinctive marking. An example could be a Moon with a large smiley face on it.

2. Set an quite small alarm [like a beeper] for 2 hours into sleep – so if you in bed at 11, set for 1am.

3. Keep Photo/picture by alarm for you to turn off an look at.

4. Do this for around 10 consecutive days.

5. For the next 5 days, continue to set the alarm and switch off [Keep the photo if you want but you should remember it by now]

Your mind should be programmed subliminally now that 2 hours into sleep something will happen. You may initially wake up to turn alarm off or all going to plan you will see the image within your dream and realise as your mind has started to awaken that you are in a dream still and try and change things.

I’m not saying it will work, just that it seems to work for me. Enjoy!

A time of Nothingness or Everything

Posted on by JC

Walking into my room, looking through the darkness and seeing a window. The curtains open and the outside gray. No colour, no light just gray – a nothingness.

Am I dreaming while I look or seeing something that seems like life. A time where so much can happen and yet can not distinguish what I am seeing in the future posabilities.

Is there so many that its all one mesh or so little that things are picked at and the gray is just dust.

Recently I’ve been unwell, lack of energy, headaches, light sensativity aswell as many other things. Its just life – we all get ill. Its annoying – I can see all these things I want to do and can not do them – just writing a list to work through when better.

I see it all but its just a confusing pile of future – so many posabilities. Whats next?

Ginger

Posted on by JC

I love ginger things… I think its a wonderful herb, scent and food.

I use it in cooking, in remidies and have lotions of it. Quite hard to get hold of the ginger lotion I like but some friends managed for my birthday – A very excellent present.

Did you realise that if you have a cough with mucus in your throat/chest – you can reduce it by just making a kinda tea with grated fresh ginger in hot water. Fresh ginger is really cheap – I usually get about a 10cm piece for about 15 pence. You only need about 1cm cube for tea.

One of my favorite ginger dishes is simply chicken with grounded ginger. Marinade the chopped chicken in about 2 tbsp of olive oil with a 2 tsp of ground ginger and about 1/2 cm fresh ginger and then heat a hot wok and stir fry until cooked. Great over salad leaves like lettuce.

Strange random topic to write about but then again thas just me really – random with a purpose – so is it ever random?

Time Capsule

Posted on by JC

I’ve always wanted to capture a moment. To record what is my past and what my thoughts of the future would be and bury it in time to dig up later in life and read back.

What would I put into a “time capsule” and how would I store it. Origianally I thought to put it on a disk – can you remember 3″ Floppies? not 3.5″ 3″ ones… 178Kb of data that can now rarely be read. Then CDs, DVDs, What could read it in 20 years time? Paper may be the last option.

Maybe create a small device that can be packaged with instructions on paper how to power it to read the information bacK? like a mixture between a mobile blackberry device, with mirrors and magnifier to project to a large screen? or just a blackberry with plans to make a solar power cell to power it to view the data.

I don’t know – ideas to store asmuch information on as small a space as possable that can be understood in the future.

Photos, documents, objects – what would you put in? Would you describe what you have and what you use it for? the Types of music – examples of music you enjoy? Beliefs? How to power stuff? Tools?

There is so much you could record and your ideas – what could happen to the planet, to yourself, friends, government. When will the natural resources die out – were you right?

So much to think about nevermind the container for it all. I read in someplaces that you should vacume seal the container so it all stays as expected in the ground but I dunno in reality – its just another thing I’d like to do and it should be done soon really.

MSN, ICQ, Yahoo, AIM, Facebook Chat – Prying Eyes

Posted on by JC

I watched as a friend showed me how the “encrypted” traffic from MSN was easily viewable using free software he had for monitoring his network.

He knew what was said before his machine using msn had told him the message aswell as picking up other peoples conversations on the network.

It was quite disconcerting. I mean I’m not really bothered about people reading the random conversation I have with some people but on occasion I’ve known people to send passwords or usernames across MSN to help out people. Something which over a non-secure source is not a great idea.

We now use a program named Pidgin – its a multi-instant messenger that allows you to have all your contacts from multiple messengers (now including facebook with a plugin) like MSN, AIM, ICQ, and Yahoo all in one place instead of having multiple messengers open.

You can get a plugin thats like a little application that makes pidgin do more things that will encrypt traffic between your machine and your contacts machine. A friend has made up a guide to help you… if your interested that is.

LINKS:

• Pidgin.im
• Pidgin Encryption Guide

Hope its useful to you… I’ve found it useful and think its good to share.

Why.. Do people keep using unsecured wireless networks…

Posted on by JC

I want to connect to the internet. I power on our network and click connect to network on the laptop – I see a list of networks.. Mine is at the top. Its encrypted and connects fine.

I look at the list and see around 12 other networks in range of my laptop and at least one of them is unencrypted. Meaning by accident or intended people can connect and use their internet connection.

If you are paying for your internet connection, do you want others to just use it… I mean if you have a car, do you leave your keys in it to allow anyone to take a drive whenever?

Its easy to encrypt and usually you get a free guide on how to do it on or in the box the router comes with. Maybe routers should be force encrypted to help people setup – I know some are – but a lot are not.

With an open network anyone can view your traffic. They can watch your MSN conversations, see what your viewing or just go to sites using your connection that could be illegal but tracks back to you as the recipient.

Just google how to do it – you’ll be suprised at how many people will simply help you get more secure.

Run Run Run

Posted on by JC

Something I’d like to do is the Great North Run. So far I can only run for about 3 minutes and don’t have good footwear for that nevermind the several hours needed to run.

Its apparently around 13 Miles or just over.. thats about 21Km – I’ve no idea how long it would take me – At present I probably wouldn’t finish unless I just walked the whole thing.

I have about 200 or so days [about 6 months ish] to get a lot fitter and be able to run that far. I think its a posability. I’ve signed up to a few sites that help with ideas for training and IF I am good in about 3 months time (June/July) I’ll be looking for sponsership and stick up one of those Just giving pages. Hope you’ll Help me out 🙂

My current fitness isn’t brilliant, but I am active – I like the trampolining, and salsa dance and have started going to the gym and play on wii fit too.

I have a lot to do on this and not a lot of time but for a change I have something to aim for instead of “just get fitter” I have an event to go for assuming I can get entry and that I can actually do it.

But I think its something that can be done so will go for it.

Fitness – Past and Now

Posted on by JC

As many do for a new year they want to get fitter. I want to get fitter to help give myself more energy, flexability and motivation in what I can do. To see a change in myself and proove past beliefs that I can change and do things.

Several years back like in the 1990’s, I was in secondary school. I was no good at sports of almost any type.. I liked the swimming and the only ones I was any good at all at were Rounder/Softball and basketball. I was always one of the last chosen but tried to keep posative all the same.

I always thought it would be nice to be able to be good at sports but they didn’t really interest me. I’ve never enjoyed watching common sports like football or rugby. Basketball I enjoyed but was rarely on tv.

I used to try as best I could at the sports and actually enjoyed them but was never any good at them. To say I “sucked” at them was kinda a compliment.

Looking back: each year we were made to do country dancing – To move freely and as if magically to a time from past. Something I really did enjoy and wanted to do as much as possable but never allowed myself to be seen as liking it.

Althou I was one that I felt stood out as being different – I also wanted to be accepted as kinda normal at the same time. I don’t know if people saw me as different but I often felt like one of the kids that were watching what was happening rather than being in the action.

The fitness tests and the annoying bleep tests of running between two points.. How to stretch and touch your toes – I could never do it. I could reach to about my knees and then stopped.

Only a year or so (2007) ago I worked out how to touch my toes without hurting myself. Its strange how something so little felt like such an acomplishment.

About 3 years or so ago a friend invited me to go trampolining – I think as to see how funny and wrong it could go and I found something I once did from when I was little (Juniors school time late 1980’s) that I loved but lost how to do that I could do once again.

I’ve been learning to trampoline now for a while and still stuck on the basics but getting better at them. I’ve also completed the course and exam for assistant coaching for trampolining – That I could never have imagined even doing 5 years ago nevermind from when I was younger.

A few years ago around 2005 I wanted to try dancing. I wanted friends to go do it too – no one did. I put it off, something I now regret.

Last year (2008) I decided to go for it again – to try dancing of sort but what type to do? and who will go with me… Well… No one would go with me so went for it on my own with the thought of well.. No one will know me so if it all goes wrong… nevermind.

I’ve made a lot of friends since then. I initially tried ball room dance, something I don’t remember much of. Then I tried Salsa Dance and thats something I’m really loving. There are lots of opertunites to try it and lots of advice on how to get better. Very enjoyable, fast and does improve my balance, co-ordination and fitness.

So there is a lot more that I can do… Running… The Gym, Swimming – who knows – guess we’ll see.

Dream Logic

Posted on by JC

Is it dream logic actually is true logic as it allows the possability of something else. It is not just what is by laws of science but by laws of life and the posability that anything can happen.

In a dream I can fly… its a freedom to move oneself up into the air and float and be free – to get away or meet together as one in the oxygen of nature.

I can shape my reality any way I need to, be it needing somewhere warm, cold, tall, small, inside, outside – where ever I want I can be as is needed.

It doesn’t count on the laws of science, but whatever the imagination allows. Memories re-shaped so you may visit the past, or even allow you to see a posable future..

See how decisions can affect a reality and change and retry using the logics that have been taught in life to predict a possability.

I’ve been told that not many people can remember their dreams, and can not control their content – They are part of the movie but in no way a director.