Interbeing and Fado

Blogger, the free platform from Google, requires ownership of the content and use of it to develop linguistic elements of ever growing artificial intelligence ... which means vigilance is essential to ensure that what was written, albeit with one finger on the tablet, appears on the screen, since auto-correct often substitutes what it already knows for words and expressions unrecognised ... perhaps this is how humans learn too? Anyway, the title of this post amusingly changes to "Intervening and Dado", which would make no sense to the stories to be told today ... though, who knows, maybe none of it makes much sense anyway ...

Vento, a lawyer from Colombia and his husband, Paco, a chef from Spain, share a glass of good Dao wine ... together 11 years already, and doubtless noticing major shifts in attitudes to sexual identity in that time ...

This morning's coffee meeting with Look, from the Almond Blossom Sangha, the Algarve department of Thich Nhat Hanh's Interbeing movement, with its monasteries around Plum Village, is very deep ... our first meeting since his partner of 32 years, Jane, passed last year ... the teachings on ongoing consciousness are discussed, the suffering involved in the practical experience palpable ... the eyes show it ... Thay himself using a wheelchair and able to communicate, though not verbally, spends summers in France, winters, wisely, in Thailand, where the weather is gentler. ..

After lunch with David and Marc, a cultural outing to a concert of Fado ... nice playing, singing rather shouty, though in tune as far as this untuned ear can tell ... a big space to fill in the church and she certainly manages to project into that space ... content rather a surprise, since previous information suggested Fado originated in the sadness of the economic emigration over generations ... maybe lightened a little for tourist consumption ...

Outside, the rain returns after a dry, albeit cloudy morning .... just in time to provide an extra challenge for the cyclists enjoying the weekend of the Algarve Bike Challenge 2018 ... whilst back at the hostel Gert has left for Faro and his bed has been taken by a young Dutchman who likes to sleep a lot, according to Marc, who is experimenting with black bean dahl. .. Marina has made bortsch. ..there is rice in the cupboard and fresh veg from the market this morning ... fresh air certainly improved the head last night, maybe skip the wine as a bonus tonight ...