Mel's Blog

2010-05-24T11:39:00.003+10:00

I started a new work related blog last week. It's a place to hold all my sharings of coastal management bits and pieces.
It's called Dune Designs

Singing bowl

2010-02-26T16:40:00.002+11:00

My head is a singing bowl. When it's empty it hums with perfection

The seeds we sow

2009-09-27T16:29:00.001+10:00

Each year at around this time, the seeds that i have sown begin to poke up their little shoots. Some of the shoots survive and flourish, others don't. Some are weeds, not intentionally planted and not wanted, but they pop their heads up too nonetheless. As the shoots start to emerge, i check in with myself, it reminds me "what have i been sowing lately?"

This time of year also reminds me that it's not too late to plant some new seeds. And it also reminds me of the importance of keeping the ground fertile, moist and free from obstructions so that the seeds that I want to flourish will do so.

And as for the weeds, you've gotta get in there aggressively and get rid of them while they are still young, before they get established, before they reproduce and maybe this time next year, there won't be as many of them to contend with.

Untitled

2009-09-22T11:39:00.001+10:00

I am white hot buddha nature - fuzzy love to y'all.

Posted via web from buddingbellobuddhist's posterous

walking then sitting

2009-09-17T14:45:00.001+10:00

I read just recently that doing walking meditation just before sitting really ramps up the value of the sitting. So I tried that for the first time today and I agree. Thanks for the tip.

Posted via web from buddingbellobuddhist's posterous

Spring time dreaming

2009-09-16T12:25:00.001+10:00

It's at this time each year it seems that I start daydreaming and future planning, sowing seeds I suppose. It's the time of the year when the journal gets dragged out and thrown into my bag so that it's available for spontaneous entries.

It a reflective time, a creative time, a whispy thoughts time of the year. I wonder if this is a spring time phenomenon for everyone, or perhaps its just me, perhaps it being a spring baby that makes me reflective at this time???

There is just an uncontrollable flow of thoughts and feelings that need to be jotted down, gotten out of my head, reflected back on and then left. In fact I think my jotting practice has the same effect as noting practice - looking at it, naming it, then watching it leave the mind.

Posted via web from buddingbellobuddhist's posterous

Beach meditation - not as tranquil as it may seem

2009-07-30T15:51:00.000+10:00

Focus on the breath - in, out

wind,
seagull,
wind,
seaweed smell,

oops, the breath, in, out,

waves crash
the wind

back to the breath - in, out, in out - you're doing well Mel - bugger - thinking, focus on the breath

Wind, waves, smell, oh how nice is that sun that's just come out, so warm

oops, back to the breath - in, out, in, out
Thinking - well at least impermanence is really obvious - stop thinking now - back to the breath mel, in, out, in, out..........

Life without insurance...unimaginable

2009-05-19T12:05:00.003+10:00

With the collapse of all these big financial institutions lately, i've been thinking - what would life be like without "insurance". We've got house insurance, contents insurance, car insurance, life insurance, health insurance - the list goes on... we pay a premium, so that if shit happens, someone else can bail us out.

But what if insurances didn't exist - how would our behaviour change? We probably wouldn't sink so much of our hard earned into big expensive possessions. We wouldn't borrow heavily, wouldn't go into debt, wouldn't spend what we didn't have, incase shit did happen, and you lost those possessions or damaged them, and then had to spend the rest of your days paying off something that was no longer worth anything.

Little wonder governments are prepared to throw any amount of money neccessary to bail out failing insurance giants - the alternative to a world without insurance would be catastrophic for economists - imagine, people only spending what they had, on the modest neccesities of life... unimaginable.

First days...

2009-02-23T15:46:00.000+11:00

Reflections of first days of school

and

first days of uni.

School... Little people, all unsure, all unknowing, all a little bit lost, all excited, but not concerned about being unknowing, unsure and lost. Not concerned about appearances, not yet controlled by their egos...but it won't take long...

Uni... Egos, big ones, frail ones, worried ones, rebellious ones, insecure ones ... all behaving badly. Making their owners seem like yucky people.

If we let go of our egos' desire to run our lives, told our egos to bugger off, we would accept and know that its OK to be unknowing, unsure, lost and excited - because what else could we be in our first days...

More big things

2008-12-05T16:08:00.000+11:00

There is a great google map on the web at the moment of Australia's big things, anyway, I stumbled across this beauty on my travels yesterday... what a corker. Check out Australia's facination with big stuff here

Pelicans at Harrington

2008-12-05T16:03:00.000+11:00

Yesterday was another great day at the coast - the weather wasn't as great as earlier in the week, but I had the chance of getting up close and personal with some great pelicans at Harrington breakwall. These guys seem to live at the fish cleaning table on the breakwall, waiting for their next feed. They were really cruisy and not at all wary of people, 'cause, I suppose people are the providers of all those yummy fish heads and fish guts!

Just another one of those blessed days!

A perfect day at the coast

2008-12-02T10:31:00.000+11:00

December 1st 2008. Happy Coastcare Day - it seems even the coast knew it was Coastcare Week yesterday as it turned on the most spectacular weather to draw us down to the beach. Who could resist sapping up this amazing spectacle.
This is Charlesworth Bay, just north of Coffs Harbour. My office (the National Marine Science Centre) is about 100 metres back from this beach. I am so blessed.