http://gizseriouz.friendlinkup.com/ Observations on things that move. Or that don't. en http://gizseriouz.friendlinkup.com/2009/04/07/near-to-drowning.html In the introduction to a soon to be published book by my friend Ken McAlpine, he explains the thinking that passed through his mind which led him to write Islands Apart, (A Year on the Edge of Civilization).  He describes spending time in his yard at the end of sundown, looking at the stars as well as feeling that he is “…missing something.  I doubt that I am alone.  Almost every day I encounter people who, like me, do not feel empowered by these abundant times.” Ken sights Tennyson as well as the actions of Thoreau.  But more importantly, he shares a feeling that numerous of us feel but may not be able to describe.  Or are too distracted or shallow of thought to explore ourselves. About this busy world we reside in he says “Some are mildly unsettled; others near to drowning.” Wrote Tennyson, “The ghost in man as well as the ghost that was once man are calling to each other in a dawn stranger than the earth has ever seen.” He tells of his thoughts when there's no distraction, no noise.  It’s a pattern of his - an earlier book Off Season took Ken on a trip along the eastern seaboard during the winter, in a counter intuitive northbound route, alone. It’s through these independent crusades that Ken does his best thinking, perhaps through the lens of loneliness, away from his family as well as friends.  The new book is a journey to the islands without escort, solo.  Perhaps we would be better off if more people would manufacture the time to explore themselves as well as the world around them without distraction, a quite contemplative examination that might give rise to better thinking as well as relationships among us. It’s a wonderful introduction to a book that takes McAlpine to the barely occupied Channel Islands right off the coast of Ventura.  As Ghandi said:  “There is more to life than to increase its speed.” I can’t wait to read it. Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:32:34 -0400 gizseriouz