Just back from La Belle France!!

           My nephew Neil got married on Saturday in La Ciotat. What an absolutely brilliant weekend!!

           I'm becoming a right Francophile. He got married in the town hall. Above the door in large letters it says: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. We do not have that in this country. We have God Save The Queen and we are not citizens. We are subjects.

          The laptop as usual couldn't find the phone. I joined something called One Drive. No idea what that means, but it allowed me to download the photies from the weekend. Fortunately, Basia Watters was taking proper photies, which I will see sometime.

           Strangely, despite the wedding, I had a lot more time to meditate this weekend than usual since I was on my own.

Got a schema!

           The stupid machine recognised the phone this evening so I was able to download some photies I took this week. The one at the top is of my big brother, Shoooie. The bottom one is of my favourite lama, whom I haven't seen for a while.
       
           I did some work today on the new book. Very pleased. Enough thinking and planning. I can start gettting into this next. It is not necessary for me to write now, but I was missing it. Writing makes me feel as if I'm using whatever brains I was given. Anyway, I'm very pleased with this day's work.

Another beginning

          Many times recently I have thought I was going to start writing again, but today I seem to have actually started. Or re-started. I spent a couple of hours looking at Cold Killing, the follow up to Remote Control. Some of it was alright. What I need to do now is mull it over for a while and then get a plot line written down, and probably a summary of the chapters. The story is quite complicated and may become even more complicated, so I really have to have it down efore I do much else. 

          This stage is the least fun. I wasn't going to spend time writing in future, but I really feel as if I'm missing something when I'm not working on something. And the time of the diggings and plantings is just about over, so now is a good time.

          This blog has been no fun at all since I got windows 10. I've just wasted another half hour trying to get photies to upload. The problem is that the laptop only recognises that the phone is attached very rarely. Then the google photie thing is fine. Anyway, my friend is going to have a look at it soon, probably next weekend.

          I take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. This is what you say at the start of meditation sessions. Usually, it's just a bit of rote, but there have been times in my recent past when it has been a source of great  comfort and solace. You can deal with afflictive emotions, or at least ameliorate them through meditation,

           This was the case over the weekend. Beset by afflictive emotions. The meditations were soon so wonderful. They continually get better and better. With just a little concentration, huge white light bliss. The channels continue to open; the bliss is the bliss is the bliss. Then, when you stop meditating, some of the crap returns, but keeping meditating, and especially doing the analytical stuff, really does help enormously.

            I do not know how folk who don't meditate cope. They don't seem to cope very well though they do not appear to be very happy. I'd rather lose an arm than be unable to meditate or contemplate.

          I'll stick in a photie from my trip to the Zen Mountain Monastery.