Tranquillity: The sea is black and there are three suns in the s...

Tranquillity: The sea is black and there are three suns in the s...: "Today, 29th November 2010, the sea in Carlingford Lough appeared to be black.Black is bad, I always take the colour of the sea to be indicat..."

The sea is black and there are three suns in the sky.

Today, 29th November 2010, the sea in Carlingford Lough appeared to be black.Black is bad, I always take the colour of the sea to be indicating something about the weather.The sea reflects the sky, the sky is the weather, the weather is coming from the Arctic, and I am remembering an old 'Tomorrow's World'   BBC TV programme  making the case that global warming is accompanied by global cooling. The only  meteorological  thing Ireland has going for it, an island on the same longitude as Newfoundland where the sea freezes over, is the gulf stream. Rostrevor, where I live, similar to parts of the south west coast of Ireland, is known for its mild climate, not today.If we were in Newfoundland the Lough would be frozen over and our children might use skis for getting to school.The gulf stream simply means we don't/shouldn't need snow mobiles, sleighs or winter tyres. So this is how it works- global warming melts the ice cap, this lowers the temperature of the North Atlantic and cools the gulf stream, Ireland ( and England?) freezes over.

   The colours of the sea and sky when there is bad weather on the way is interesting. We all know the saying, 'a red sky in the morning is a shepherd's warning.' This simply means bad weather is coming from the east, the sky is very clear,  accompanied by cold Siberian wind creating the record conditions of cold that we have today in South Down.

     Other things you might look for if you have a mind to: red sky at lunch time in December, always always followed by very severe snow; green sky, what? Yes green sky, the last time there was green sky  a thunder storm of biblical proportions exploded over England; we heard it in Ireland.

     Other bad weather signs observed today that may or may not indicate the severity of the weather- up at Aldergrove airport three suns appeared to be in the sky, we have to presume this is an optical illusion, the ice in the air having a mirror effect, or it is the end of the world, take your pick; and I spotted a lapwing pecking about on the side of the road near Killowen.That lapwing has been seriously blown off course. I hope it doesn't get run over, or frozen, and that its not on it's own.  It may stay here and even produce some offspring, if it's not the end of the world.

Tranquillity: Winter Garden

Tranquillity: Winter Garden: "The year dies, the shortest day approaches and the garden is a mess. At least I got some tidying up done a couple of weeks ago so there is a..."

Winter Garden

The year dies, the shortest day approaches and the garden is a mess. At least I got some tidying up done a couple of weeks ago so there is a flower pot full of primulas in bloom. Why are they in bloom? Why was I able to pick a handful of blue berries last week? Why was my aunt still picking strawberries at the end of October in her garden? Why are the winter vegetables the red cabbage, the leeks and the spinach not thriving, yet I will be able to pick enough broad beans tomorrow to include in a rice dish?Is this global warming?

Tranquillity: Good Luck Aung San Suu Kyi.

Tranquillity: Good Luck Aung San Suu Kyi.: " I have just searched 20 hours of twitter posts; there is only one mention of Aung San Suu Kyi's release from 15 years of house arrest i..."

Good Luck Aung San Suu Kyi.

     I have just searched 20 hours of twitter posts; there is only one mention of Aung San Suu Kyi's release from 15 years of house arrest in Burma; a woman who was elected to government there and then incarcerated by the ruling elite who have ran a military dictatorship during that time.I was surprised because whilst most of those I follow are within literary circles, I am linked up to the Irish Times, RTE and the New York Times as well as several local journalists, so I would have expected some recognition of the weighty events in Burma yesterday. Many of the posts over the weekend are about x-factor, football, what to do at the weekend, NY Times: free trade,OK that's alright and you were the only one mentioned events in Burma, then there were one or two mentions of Remembrance Day.On the BBC World  News the item is only 7th on the most watched list after something about Elvis getting drunk and something about James Blunt.
   
     Good luck Aung San Suu Kyi, you are going to need it. I hope you have a chance to link up to twitter,set up a facebook page and study news feeds from around the world.You will find that in fifteen years things have changed, celeb is God, the world is bankrupt and it is a very dangerous place for  brave women who raise their heads above the parapet.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11752919

Tranquillity: Virtual Telepathy

Tranquillity: Virtual Telepathy: "Science fiction often explored the possibility of telepathy.Some in the genre promote the idea that as civilisation becomes more advanced, s..."