recently

So, last night I hosted a going away party for Stacey. 30 people crowded into my apartment. Pics of all the beautiful guests are below. Can you guess who I am in love with? (or, correctly, whom do I love?)

I am so lucky to have a wonderful group of people living with me in this area of Japan. Philosophers, religion majors, artists. Great connections. Sunday morning, 6 people who stayed over went with me to the Zen temple. Then, in the evening, I helped Mako set up her painting show at the same gallery mine was in.

Right now I am reading Ken Wilber’s "Integral Psychology," honestly a page-turner. One of the best books I have read by him. I’m excited to become part of the artists featured on integralnaked.org, for that will mean Ken Wilber will get familiar with some of my work, if he isn’t already (they recently used peekabuddha for the cover of their integral packet “Integral Ecology and Sustainability” sent to Senator Gary Hart and Al Gore.) I’m trying to put together a bio for Integral naked right now. It's tough. What angle should I take writing about myself? What story should I tell? What kind of person should I paint? Michael G. is going to help me i hope.
I’m also reading Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea series. Recently I saw the new Gibli film "Gedo Senki" based on the third book. Frankly I thought it was pretty boring. Not as stunning and beautiful as the other films. Lots of story I could not understand. Not very much action. I’m also working through this wonderful book Michaela gave me called “The Game of God.” I starting wearing a Tibetan scull bracelet on my left wrist that reminds me to live life to the fullest and embrace everything occurring as precious moments of mind. The spectrum of textures arising moment to moment as my experience are fleeting, falling away continuously like a flowing river, but they are so magnificent; they sparkle and shimmer and announce the richness and fullness of Life in the present moment. The sculls on my wrist help me see this and open as acceptance, even in the face of my own fleetingness. You know, we are all dying. We can talk about it with authority. We all are experiencing dying right now. How does it feel? This slow, luminous, living death?