A Fun Day in L.A.

What an amazing day! So many things happened that were fun, inspiring, moving, and satisfying.

Mother Meera
I attended my first darshan today. I was introduced to this practice of Amma's by Elisa, but then this opportunity came up through Stephanie to attend during Mother Meera's visit this year. I was very curious as to what this experience would be like for me. For the past few months, the topic of Hinduism has been on my mind after several fun conversations with people like Stephanie and Elisa. I haven't pursued connections with any classical sorts of Hindi practices aside from the yoga I've learned from Joy.

I could understand there was protocol to be followed during the darshan. The point of the event is to meet with Mother Meera, an avatar. There are other avatars living and some/many of them also offer opportunities like this for people to have a spiritual experience via communion.

To make a long story short, I was in a terrific emotional and mental space. I had given myself some time to meditate before getting on line to accept the blessing. I had spent some of that watching others as they went through the practice. I also spent time feeling the clumsiness of being managed along with so many other people -- this gave me a wonderful sense of joyful acceptance for all the people doing their best to move the attendees along with order and efficiency. It was an excellent opportunity for me to practice patience and, in witnessing the volunteers' efforts, to also experience loving acceptance of how imperfect we all are as humans.

When I got onto the final line to meet Mother Meera, I was very energized. The time preceding that had my mind filled with song, happiness, and peace. I really couldn't help myself from smiling inside or out. There was little anxiety of my properly following ritual when I got in her presence and the contact of her hands to my bowed head was very relaxing and gentle. When our eyes met, though, I was still basking in the happiness within myself and I found myself sharing a smile with this kind, generous, compassionate woman. I think I detected the slightest lift at the corners of her mouth. I hope that was real because I like the notion of having shared those few moments of time and space with her in joy.

As I left, I would have to describe my state as if I had just gotten off an exhilarating ride at Magic Mountain. I felt buoyant, energized, happy, and very much at peace.

On the way out, Stephanie and I were met by one of the ushers, a vibrant woman who shared her experiences with Mother. They were profound and moving for her and she also conveyed a sense of empathizing with Mother's receiving of wants and needs from the multitudes. I had no doubt that those experiences and perceptions were real and I felt a deep sense of gratitude for Mother's willingness to receive all those intentions from others.

Later when conveying my experience with Stephanie, I felt so clear that my time with Mother was profoundly unlike this volunteer's. Stephanie shared this sentiment with me as well. It was much more like we had simply met this kindred spirit without want or need. We met Mother as Just Another Human Being on this planet. Having said that, we agreed on a sincere appreciation for Mother's efforts and intentions through this practice. She embodies deep, generous compassion and love for all who desire it. I was deeply moved by her example.

Sunset Drive -> Rodeo Blvd -> Wilshire Blvd
Jason Priestly and Johnny Depp -- you both were sorely missed.

Dinner at Sushi & Kushi Imai a la Taka
We had some amazing sushi today. If you get the chance, go to this sushi bar and ask Taka at the sushi bar to "get creative". This man made wonderfully delicious dishes and we even got to name one of his creations The Avatar in tribute to Mother Meera. Before The Avatar roll, he gave us a platter of salmon sashimi alternating with cucumber slices marinated in a white pepper dressing, all served with a garnish of shredded beet and fresh greens. For the third dish, he gave a roll combining fresh eel, avocado, and crab. By that time, I was in heaven on automatic pilot simply relishing each mouthful.

Here's a picture of Taka followed by The Avatar roll:




Amoeba Records
Oh. My. God.

Once again, I am struck by the greatness -- the Mecca -- that is Amoeba Records. Each time I go up there, I am compelled to purchase large quantities of audio and video. Tonight's spree was my largest yet even though I bought over 90% used materials. I spent enough to get a free 3/4 tee shirt, a free canvas tote bag, two free bargain CDs, and a couple stickers.

I went through my customary practice of grabbing lots, and then reviewing and returning some. I did that three times at various sections of the store: the electronica section, brief stops at jazz and industrial/gothic, bargain new arrival DVDs, then used DVDs. On the audio side, I got a bunch of inexpensive electronica, a full multi-disc set of Andre Segovia, and a Juno Reactor release (described below). On the video side, I recorded a list of 20+ videos that I decided NOT to get and leaned heavily towards apparently less common releases and history/documentary type videos.

Here's the complete list of what I bought:

DVDs

Music
Riding home with Juno Reactor's Labyrinth
This was one of the few full retail priced purchases I made at Amoeba. It was also a recommendation from a fellow Stephanie met in the store named Robert. Turns out Roberts was a kindred spirit in music and he has lots of knowledge and familiarity with this genre of music. He recommended two releases by Juno Reactor along with a hearty recommendation to see them live. I chose the more recent release entitled "Labyrinth" and I'm glad I did.

On the way home, we listened to this from start to finish and it was engrossing, entertaining, and evocative. I never realized how rich and varied their music was but I truly enjoyed the entire CD.

Aston Martins are really fast and The Cool Tow Truck Driver
While getting on the highway, we were right behind an Aston Martin Vantage. We started talking about those cars and I wanted to show Stephanie how beautiful they were (the "sculpted brawn" that they have nailed down). I swear I'm not that slow driver, but this car kept leaving us in the dust. Within 4 or 5 miles, it was literally out of sight.

Later, about 5 or 6 tracks into Juno Reactor, we caught a sweet looking car on a flatbed -- a Saleen IIRC. We had passed it, but I wanted a closer look so I slowed down. Having done that, the flatbed driver accommodated us and turned on the lights behind his cab that shone behind him lighting the car. Here's a picture that I got Stephanie to take:



I think we can all agree that it's a sweet looking car.

The Home Stretch
We finished the quick drive home with some Firesign Theater and the first few tracks of BT's This Binary Universe. A most excellent soundtrack for the drive home.

The day was inspiring and exciting enough that I've written the bulk of this at 2:30a that night. Edits to follow, publishing after that.

Posted by Blo at 4/13/2007 02:44:00 AM
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