Monthly Archives: January 2011

Monday night – Connor Menning

This morning we learned that Connor Menning, a 15 year old kid at Mount Mansfield died by his own hand while at school .Connor was in Gabe’s math class and one his LAX team.. he was a really good kid..

like everyone else in our community, I’m grieving tonight .. and sending my love out to Connor, his family, his classmates and our whole community.

I’ve tried several times to wrap some words around what I’m feeling . I wish there was something in our experience around Sam’s death  and our slow healing that would help .. I want to say something that will make it make sense. to try and bring some comfort to others… But.. I know there are no good words..

Connor’s friends are organizing a memorial for him tomorrow at MMU. The organizers are asking everyone to wear purple in Collin’s memory.

Please keep Connor in your hearts and let your response to this tragedy come from love respect and caring for Conner, his family and for each other. Our community is at its best when we come together in love. That’s how the healing will start…

I wish you all peace.. , nite sam

-jc

Monday evening – off-line

on the road again.. writing form JFK airport.. How many evening have I been just like this.. waiting for a flight.. with not enough time to get anything done.. .As I sit and think about it.. I’ve come to really appreciate these periods of forced inactivity. When else do I allow myself to sit and think.. or better yet not-think. Travel has become a kind of moving meditation for me.. Most of the time I have some sort of pressing work with me.. but inevitably, batteries run out, the book is finished, the magazine’s been read..  and I’m left ‘just’ sitting there. Those times used to weigh heavily on me..my monkey mind would  start to obsess about something.. usually work….   For some reason.. that rarely happens now. .. I can go from thinking to not much more easily.. I just kind of switch off and time stops .. Maybe it’s because I’m meditating regularly.. maybe because I write every night.. maybe it’s because I’m becoming boring… who knows..

I guess I kind of like it.. .

OK.. boarding soon.. time to hiburnate..

nite all, ntite sam

-me

Sunday night – post pongal preachings

I gathered from some of my friends Facebook posts that yesterday was Pongal .. a harvest festival celebrated in India.. It’s a time where you are supposed to “rise above petty preoccupation and mundane melancholy”.. not a bad sentiment  !..   I celebrated by eating some of Diane’s Chole.. She’s an awesome Indian cook.  I used is as an excuse to dip into my huge collection of Indian pickle.. (makes my mouth water even typing that !)

Including 5 different bottles of chili pickle.. some of them 3 years past date.. the BEST KIND !

Aside from eating weirdly preserved vegetables, I had a slow and peaceful day.. Diane and I took a great snowshoe  wiht the dogs in the 18 inches of snow out in the woods.   I spent  most of the rest of the day working on my tesla coil .. Still got a few bugs.. but seems to be working .. I’m now working on the music interface.. Here’s a half power demo at various frequencies.. .. the sparks are just over 2 feet.. I hope to tune it to get another foot or so..   Sorry the video is so shaky.. I was twisting knobs and trying not to get zapped.. It looks better than it feels.. 🙂

OK.. all for now.. gotta sleep.

Nite all, nite sam

-me