Personality of the week

For those of you who regularly read the blog you have probably noticed two things:

1) posts are a less frequent at the moment

2) Personality of the week is often late.

My apologises for these two issues. Owing to exams, however, I doubt neither will be properly fixed until the end of the exam season. Be assured that I will keep at least a couple of items for you in the week.

Without further a do then, this week’s personality of the week is….

SAKI also known as Hector Hugh Munro, congratulations to you.

Saki, and his favourite character Clovis lies somewhere between Wilde and Wodehouse both chronologically and in some ways content.

Born in India in 1870 Saki was an active writer of satirical and comic stories from around 1900 until the outbreak of World War 1.
His stories usually feature dapper and witty young Edwardian men who delight in the discomfort of their elders. In one Clovis story for example, the main character argues that really there is no value in anything – just look at Nietzsche. Lest things get too morbid, however, on another occasion Clovis finds tremendous meaning in his sartorial elegance.
Saki is like Wilde in the sense his stories can sometimes be quite biting, but like Wodehouse in the sense that his characters tend to be wealthy and slightly childish.

Here are some nice quotations from Saki to round off the entry. Saki, your free drink awaits at the bar - but remember no smoking in public places comes into effect soon!

“Romance at short notice was her speciality”

“The stage, with all its efforts, can never be as artificial as life.”(he even sounds like Wilde!)

“The cook was a good cook, as cooks go; and as cooks go she went.”(but this word play reminds me more of dear PG!)

Let the music play!

Tonight the café will lay out what music typically plays here. Tomorrow is live music night. We especially hope Mr. Autumn Blake will be able to play a few numbers on his guitar. There is also a piano in the Café, which my brother (who is very musical) will play for us. When he has finished doing that, he will sing whilst I play the piano.

• Mr Blake will leave his music choices secret until a later time.
• My brother will first of all play, a number of Rags by Scott Joplin and a little Chopin
• Then, he will sing a number of Gilbert and Sullivan songs including tit willow and the policeman’s song.

During a more normal day, however, we let recorded music play. This is the sort of thing that is currently playing:

Maroon 5, Daniel Powter, the Beatles, the Feeling and the Kinks.

Requests for music can of course be made at the bar. We have a pretty good collection of music, but we also welcome CDs of personal compilations.

Sometimes, we have classical music nights. When we do, the programme is likely to feature, the Brandenburg concertos, Holtz’s Planets and Chopin. Elgar and Mozart also make appearances, though not in person.

If you have a choice of music in mind, which is tasteful, feel free to post your request and we will do our best to play it.

A glimpse of the future

As regular readers will know, the café is always keen to support new forms of transport that will reduce harmful emissions to our environment. For many there is considerable debate about which form of green transport and green solution represents the best option to pursue.

The café believes that it is too early to rule out any particular form of greener energy.

It is pleasing to note, however, that there are already some electric vehicles that are beginning to become viable alternatives to the internal combustion engine. Here is a look at just some of them. Below are vehicles you might just see around and about.

The London Bus

A London bus, but with a difference… this one has a hydrogen powered motor, which produces nothing but steam. To be fair, there is also a small diesel motor that can be used to power up the hydrogen engine. The overall fuel comparison is impressive: 89% less nitrogen oxides, 83% less carbon monoxide and the bus uses 40% less fuel than an equivalent conventional bus.

The Smart Car EV

This Smart Car is probably the most affordable of the vehicles featured here. It is congestion charge exempt, but with a range of 72 miles it probably needs a little more development before it becomes main-stream. An interesting development nonetheless.

The Nissan Altra,

This car is proving very popular in California, where owing to liberal state laws, people are able to avoid all sorts of costs through leasing an electric car. Unlike some of the other cars featured here, it is a very normal family car. Ranges of up to 120 miles and £1.50 to fill up; no wonder Gordon Brown has not seen fit to grant this car subsidies to encourage more people to drive them!

The Tesla Roadster

The manufacturers claim that this electric vehicle has an incredible 250 miles range before needing a charge – that’s about the same range a Ford Fiesta has on a full tank. Even more impressively, the car can achieve reach 60 mph in around 4 seconds. Unless you are feeling a little rich this month though, you might want to give the $92,000 car a miss until the price come down. I think my Fiesta is safe for a while. Still it is lovely to see that the technology is becoming available to the market.

The Venturi Fetish

Another sports car, this one with a lower range of 155 miles, but it weighs less than a tonne and the batteries can last for around 10 years. The batteries are made musing lithium-ions, which seem to be the most efficient type available on the mass market at the moment… but watch this space for developments.

Of all these, I think I will have the Tesla Roadster, but with the number of clients at Cafe Lumiere, perhaps the bus would be more appropriate.

(My thanks to Microsoft and the BBC for the pictures)

You are what you see on TV: what are we training our children to be?

As you will have seen on the whole, café Lumiere does not focus on what is going wrong that much. On this occasion we feel compelled to say something about the state of the environment we expose our children to.

Currently, society has an unacceptably hypocritical attitude towards the effects of television and other media sources upon children. On the one hand, many television bosses say that showing violence on television has no effect. On the other, these same media bosses tell companies behaviour can be changed from an advertisement of as little as 10 seconds. Where is the sense here?

The outcome is that children today are more accustomed to violence than ever before, since they see it so much more often. Video games that encourage aggression also have pass on a message that children pick up all too easily. If you want a sobering thought, do you know what many soldiers are given in order to become used to killing in an instant, yes video games. Some children are even given toys in the shape of guns and encouraged to dress up as soldiers. Then, we wonder why young people today seem so accepting of violence.

So what’s the solution? Surely, we must radically change what we tolerate on our televisions and what we expose our children too. Instead of denying that what children see has an effect on their world view, change what we expose them to. Where many advertisements extol the virtues of games that involve killing, ban advertisements of these games altogether and promote games with the values we want as a society. These would include, I expect, more images of cooperation and unity within our communities. This does not mean television need be boring. One of the most moving scences of war I know, the end of Black Adder 4 does not even feature a dead body. I would also hold up the Shaw Shank Redemption and Shooting fish as excellent films which has very little violence in them. Comedy programmes often avoid violence eg. The Diary of a Nobody on Radio 4 at the moment Dead Ringers and ‘allo ‘allo to name but a few. The message is clear more fun, less violence would be better for all, and it need n’t be at the cost of a good night’s entertainment.

It is encouraging that a first step has been taken in Britain at least, with the banning of advertising of unhealthy food products to young children.

My thanks to the website http://www.musicbulletinboards.net/boards/cooperation.htm for the lovely picture.

A trip to Worcester

As you will know by now, I am quite a fan trips to places around the UK. In today’s post I would like to continue that proud tradition of days out with some pictures from Worcester, one of England’s finniest cities.

We start our tour at the front of the cathedral which was completed during the 11^th and 12^{th Centuries.}

It was here that Enigma Variations by Elgar was first performed in 1899. The cathedral currently features on the back of the £20 note, though not for much longer: as Adam Smith features on the back of the replacement note now in circulation.

Inside, to the tomb of King John and Prince Arthur, the elder brother of Henry VIII, who died in childhood.

And looking up some lovely ribbing:

By climbing the tower you can get a wonderful view…

There is also a prestigious cathedral school which hangs out in these rather attractive grounds.

A fleeting visit to the Royal Worcester Factory and Museum… On this occasion, the cafe did not stock up with any new cups or saucers.

And home on the charming M40 via Oxford.

Willingness to find a better life: God as father or friend.

I offer this post, mainly with believers in God in mind, but also to anyone who is interested. Lest I offend, I offer my apologies here and now. Please don't get me wrong, I am not arguing that everyone should be a Christian., only that in religions that use a paternal figure as their conception of God, this can cause problems that could be resolved with a change of emphasis...

For many people, God is someone who is not really very nice. A rather stern father figure who requires things in order to allow you into heaven is often how people conceive of their God. For this reason, many people fear this God, or react against it, by saying they refusing to believe in such a tyrant.

Readers in the UK, will understand how our cultural heritage potently encourages people to conceive of a deity as a stern parent, rather than trusting friend. If you don’t meet arbitrary demands given by this parent you are not into heaven - to be part of the family. Does this sound like love? I can’t say it does. Café Lumiere would not treat its customers this way…

Does that mean God is faulty or does that mean our idea is faulty or both? Within a monotheistic context, it does not make much sense to have a God, who as the creator of the whole universe spends a portion of its time punishing itself. If God were universal, part of its time would be spent punishing itself (for those of a Christen bent among you consider Psalm 82.6) "I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High".

The notion of God as stern parent means that this same God created experiences which felt good to it when in human form, which it was then to punish at a later time. A sort of sadomasochist, which hardly seems very likely for the force of life. The notion of a judging father figure, however, is very potent for some people; especially those who feel that spirituality has nothing to offer them because of their ideas about God as a critical parent. No wonder, so many people fear judgement day, if such a thing were to exist. For this reason, even many believers say that they fear God, and don't seek much contact. Yet, surely if you did believe in a force that had created a world of possibilities you would want more contact with it.

A more realistic model of God, for those who believe and those who don’t, must surely be that of a friend. Looking at God in this way would make people value contact with God much more than that with a needy parent and pursue that connection more willingly. Good friendships are ultimately based on trust. How can you trust a needy parent? So the model of God as friend is a more convincing model than that of parent.

How does this friendship happen? Many people react violently against the suggestion that they could do more to find a satisfying friendship with a deity, even if they believe in one. Part of the reason must surely be because for many people the model of God they work with is so limited and unattractive.

Changing the conception of God from a judging father to friend, presents a great challenge, but one which if accomplished would lead to improved well-being for those who made that change. A considerable challenge for many people is to find personal meaning from events that have happened to them, for themselves.

As Basil Hume once said (roughly), 'people don't have difficulty in believing in God... they have difficulty in believing in a God who is nice.'

(my thanks to Friendship With God, a book by Neale Donald Walsch, who has written more eloquently than I have on this topic, and also the awe community for the picture)

Picking up some atmosphere at the café

For those who have not been able to visit café Lumiere, you may like to get a feel for some of the facilities we have and food we offer. In particular our fish tanks cause much comment from the customers who often like to look at the fish and contemplate life at a slower pace than they are used to. For their part, the fish sometimes contemplate the customers, but on one seems to mind.

Refreshment is also important at the cafe. During the mid-afternoon, when Lunch is only a distant memory, sometimes cakes and tarts are available, as you will see below.

My apologies for the fact that the fish camera used was rather old and so the picture quality is not as high as I might have wished for.

First, some pictures from our main fish tank. As you can see from these photographs the backing sheet gives the impression the tank is a lot larger than it really is. You can just see the castle in the first picture.

Here is the second tank, which was imported from Barcelona. It is very small, but provides a suitable holiday location for fish bored with the main tank.

Finally, our new tank. We have only had this new facility for a few days. This one houses our new gold fish and was a present to my youngest sister. The red and white fish is called Ermintrude or Winston Churchill according to personal preference.

Now some tasty tarts!

And finally cakes. Don’t be alarmed by the red and blue appearance; it is food dye used to make the cakes more distinctive.

See you at the café soon!

(My thanks to the Cheif, aka mum! and the fish for swimming so nicely)

One nation two histories: Winston S. Churchill and Norman Davies National stories compared.

For those of you who find this a little heavy going, I promise something lighter tomorrow!!

History is a fluid a thing. The same facts can mean different things to different people and peoples. Rarely was this statement truer than in a comparison between the great historical narratives of Winston S Churchill and Norman Davies. Polar opposites in terms of their political ideology, these two important figures provide an interesting counter balance to one another.

Winston Churchill’s a History of the English Speaking People’s takes its cue from the works of Gibbon and Macaulay. Faintly imperial, confident and wide ranging, Churchill’s history relates not only the development of England, but also English speaking peoples throughout the world. His account is lengthy and uses some, though hardly too many, primary sources.

Great developments in political systems occur, in his account, by opposed groups of elites battling it out in some way – be it intellectually, physically or by the forces of practicality. Magna Carta for example, was the first time an English monarch had his power limited through the concerted actions of a group of powerful men, the barons. Through this often bloody conflict, however, a civilised and worldly point of view developed which equipped the English speaking peoples sufficiently to play a leading role in the development of world governments, commerce and religion. For Churchill, the Uk formed by gradual and almost inpercepibly increments starting during the Middle Ages. By the end of the book, Churchill concludes that the best thing for the world would be an alliance of English speaking nations: working together for the shared good of the world; a British Commonwealth with teeth and the USA in short.

Norman Davies is a man who wears his political allegiances equally openly as Churchill. For Davies, the idea of an English speaking Commonwealth with teeth would be an alliance with fangs. Instead, he advocates European integration. Whereas Churchill’s history emphasizes individuals and personal power, Davies highlights circumstances and Europe. Where ever possible, Davies points to European parallels in English and British development. The growth of the British Empire, for example, is put into a context of general European mobilisation. Magna Carta is shown to be no more than the English take on a Europe wide phenomenon on limiting the power of the monarch. Wars between England and France during the Middle Ages are interpreted as a waste of time money and lives. For Davies the Uk and Britain were a creation of the 18^th and 19^th centuries and is simply a justification for England to rule the countries that make up ‘the UK’.

When read in close succession they provide something like a balanced opinion for the interested reader to learn more about English, and to some degree British history. Of the two, Churchill’s is the longer and more interesting read. His sentence construction alone makes History of the English speaking peoples worthy of a place on the Café Lumiere book shelf. Churchill is limited though because his account does read a little like a world war two film made in about 1950. One feels that in the light of recent shenanigans in Iraq and elsewhere; the English speaking world does not always get it right and a close alliance may not be justified by its current achievements.

Norman Davies is also a good read and can also be found in café Lumiere. Davies is obviously an idealist, very nice in its way, but his book does sometimes sound a little too much like a party manifesto for the European lovers party. For example, at the end of his account, when he argued that Britain should have joined Europe very soon after the end of World War 2, he seems to forget (wilfully) the very great hostility French governments felt towards Britain joining the European club.

The most fitting thing to say, by way of conclusion, must be… ‘vive la difference’. Let both accounts stand as worthy partners in understanding ourselves and this thing called Britain.

Personality of the week....

For some time, commentators have been speculating on who this week's personality would be. After all the hype the cafe is delighted to be able to announce that it is:


His Royal Highness King John of England – our congratulations to you – a free cup of coffee awaits you at your convenience.

In the style of an online quiz, here a few responses John might have given to interested parties:

Name: King John of England, you may call me your highness or my Lord.

Occupation: Ruler of England, Ireland, parts of Scotland and Wales and bits of France (sigh)

Favourite Activities: eating, drinking, having a bath, reading, aristocratic sports, women.

What are you doing at the moment? Giving orders to my many servants and thinking about how to improve revenues after that spend thrift brother of mine – maybe a few taxes might help…

Favourite films: I like entertainment so anything on the comedy channel, I especially like Black Adder.

Least favourite things: That awful portrayal of me by Disney! Someone should be locked up for that! What were those idiots taking when they made me out to be a stupid lion with a snake side-kick? One thing is for sure, whatever they were taking it was not real ale as we used to make it in Worcester!!

Favourite place: Odiham Castle, I feel comfortable there.

Now for the proper bit.

King John is a name that for some people ignites feelings of loathing, mistrust and depravity. In the view of most authorities and lay people, John rightly deserves a reputation for lechery and perfidy. Accounts left to us by contemporary chroniclers such as Ralph of Coggershall, are generally damning. Unable to keep even his supporters close to him he was forced to sign a humiliating peace with barons in 1215 at Runneymede. Ultimately, only his timely death saved the Kingdom of England from another French invasion.
Though the cafe recognises King John was not always the best behaved and tactful of monarchs, there are nevertheless many people and organisations who have cause to be grateful to him.


1. The inhabitants of Worcester: John requested to be buried in the cathedral in Worcester and his effigy remains there to this day. John paid for the gatehouse very close to the cathedral, which still stands. In the modern period tourists and historians visiting the effigy bring money to the local economy.

2. The royal bastards of John. John seems to have provided a pretty good life for his illegitimate as well as legitimate children many of whom entered royal service. One such bastard, Odo Fitzroi even went on crusade with his legitimate half brother Richard.

3. Historians and reformers in the 16th century including Thomas Cromwell and William Tyndale.

4. Believers in democracy, especially in the English speaking world. To stretch a point to its limit, one could argue that the moment John's seal was set to the document now referred to as Magna Carta was the most in the development of democracy in the English speaking world. For when King John assented to the contract at Runnemeyde he implicitly acknowledged that there were limits to the royal prerogative. From that moment on, royal power had boundaries over which the monarch could not trespass without correction from his subjects. Few people are aware that the treaty at Runneymede was only intended as a negotiating point for the next round of talks, rather than a definitive end to the crisis between king and the rebellious barons. Perhaps a little surprisingly, it was the rebellious barons who initially broke faith with the first charter, forcing John to seek the document's annulment from the pope of the day, Pope Innocent III.

Some might speculate that academic history has been unnecessarily harsh on John in the past and that latterly a move towards a more sympathetic portrait of him can be seen. To extend this line still further, few, if any historians, seem to have considered whether it is fair rely on church chroniclers for the bulk of our understanding of John’s personality; when the church had such a vested interest in portraying him in the worst light possible. Had John not quarrelled so violently with the Papacy during his reign, perhaps contemporary chroniclers would have been more sympathetic in their assessment of his highness.

For these reasons then, John more than deserves a nice cup of coffee from the cafe!

(my thanks to the Cafe Lumiere photography department and a 13th century chronicle for the images of King John).

A little news from me...

Greetings to you regular readers; I hope you did not find my temporary absence too perturbing. The main reasons for the lack of posts were: 1. my girlfriend, whom I rarely see, visited for a few days and 2. work both academic and paid prevented blogs.

In these three or so weeks before my exam season starts, however, I hope to be able to submit articles regularly. In the mean time then, a little news from me. My activities of late have revolved around trips work and sorting out paid work for the summer.

I recently visited Brighton (see yesterday's blog) and Worcester (see day after tomorrow's blog). Both trips went well. Worcester was especially pleasing for its abundance of medieval memorabilia in the cathedral. Any excuse to go down the M4 (one of my favourites motorways) is always appreciated.

I also worked at my regular jobs including the Sainsbury petrol station. I also worked at a wedding: this must have gone well since not single glass was broken, unlike other times! The menu included Pork with cider sauce, which the cafe proprietor may attempt himself after the exams. Invitations to that happy event are strictly limited.

For those of you who do not yet know, I will be marking exam papers this summer; I am looking forward to it very much. In particular I will be delighted to see what the mark scheme requires for the highest grades.

Just in case there is any kind of prohibition on discussing the work, I will not mention specifically what papers I am marking or which board I am working for. Suffice it to say that I will be marking history scripts for a well known exam board that operates mainly in the UK. I will be assessing work from various time periods but I hope to move more towards the Middle Ages as I gain experience. The perennially popularity of the Nazi orientated papers, however, means I should probably pay that period attention as well in order to ensure regular work.

I might ask if they would let me assess Psychology papers next year if this period of work goes well. Work at dear old Heathrow airport might also be worth doing.

Tomorrow, I am going to be buying a present for my younger sister. I expect we will buy a tropical fish - but it is possible something else will catch her eye.

If you are taking history papers this season you might find that it was marked in the apartments above the cafe; lucky old you! Attempts to influence my marking through singing in the main cafe will not have any effect on your marks - I can't say fairer than that...

(my thanks to Mr. Wikipedia.org for the use of the image).

A day at the Brighton Pavilion

As you may have guessed, the cafe likes to give its staff interesting trips when they have days off. For this reason a correspondent was sent to Brighton for the day, to sample the delights of the Royal Pavilion there. The pavilion was recently voted the best palace in the country by Sky television viewers. The cafe would have preferred Hampton Court Palace or Buckingham Palace to be awarded this distinction, but it is pleased that people are interested in England’s great national buildings sufficiently to express an opinion at all.
The current building is very large and is an amalgam of several different construction phases. Believe it or not, the pavilion is built on a farmhouse that was once the (modest) residence of the Prince Regent. George IV first rented the site in the Old Seine area of Brighton in 1786. After some time, the house was bought and developed with the prince’s funds into a large riding school and residence. This first stage was completed by 1803. Sometime later John Nash was employed to redesign the palace into broadly the form it is in now, which was completed by 1822. Surprisingly, the original house remained underneath a complex network of frames and supports. Queen Victoria did little to change the palace, except to take out almost its entire contents and put the palace up for auction; it was purchased by Brighton Council in the 1850s. Since the 1940s, considerable effort has been taken to produce as faithful a recreation of the interior and exterior appearance as it would have been in 1822.
If you happen to be in the area, the pavilion is well worth a visit. Here is a brief introduction to some of them.

Here is a shot of the Banqueting room. Be in no doubt, this room was designed to make an impression. A large chanderlier hangs magestically from the ceiling supporting nearly 1 tonne of ornamental lighting! Paintings in a Chinoiserie style adorn the four walls in a surprising backdrop to a room that exudes luxuary over every inch.



To the right is an image of the Price's living room, which in comparion with other parts of the palace is rather subdued. The wall paper and colours are well balanced in this room and its atmoshere is surprisingly pleasant. Personally, I would have chosen a different carpet, but fashions to do change and perhaps I would have felt diferently 200 years ago.

For the music lovers among the cafe clientel, it only seemed fair to include an image of the music room. This particular illustration was provided to us by John Nash. As you can see the room is capacious and even contains a small organ. On occasion great artists of the day such as Roissini came to play in this room. George IV even played there somtimes.

This is a view of the William IV gate, one of the few changes to the palace that took place after the death of George IV. As you can see, it retains the spirit of exotic splendour found elsewhere in the palace.

A parting view of the palace brings us full circle. Until next time, probably tomorrow, good bye from the cafe.

(my thanks to John Nash, Brighton Pavilion and the Cafe's photographers for their pictures in this blog)

Some forms of becoming greener you may not have considered…

How to become greener has become a regular talking point, given the levels of concern over unhealthy climate changes among so many people. For this reason, it seems appropriate for the Café to bring up a number of propositions that reduce the emission of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases.

Our aim is to present ideas that would work and be empowering to the greatest number. Many current notions that hope to reduce negative changes to the climate involve the reduction of liberty rather than the enhancement of it. They also fail to address the underlying causes of global warming and at best act as a stopgap. Such injunctions include the assertions that we should fly less, use the car less, only work close to home etc. Here then are some alternatives:

1. Force the various petrol companies to release patents that allow for more efficient petrol engines. Back in the 1970s, an improvement for car engines was suppressed that allowed cars to do 100 miles per gallon (that is in the region of three times the average fuel efficiency from 2005!). As a palliative, the oil companies could receive 50% of the profits from the products as they are rolled out – the other 50% would go towards subsidizing these devices for cars in the third world. This could impact car users and potentially other forms of engines as well.

2. Sub-aqua turbines and other hydroelectric power sources could be installed all around the UK, allowing electricity to be produced with very limited environmental impact. Any negative impact the installation of the equipment would have on the local environment, would be more than offset by the number of animal lives the electricity would save through equipping vets properly. Britain might even become energy as efficient. We are after all surrounded by water!

3. Use hemp instead of paper. Hemp has been used since the Middle Ages to make goods such as rope, clothes and pulp (for paper). It can grow almost anywhere and grows very quickly once planted. It is a cousin of the cannabis plant, but unlike the cannabis shrub, it does not produce a potentially brain altering substance without the use of a scientific laboratory.

4. Use Linseed rape and other plants to produce the oils we need like ethanol. Since these oils come from plants, they will be carbon neutral by definition. Replace nutrients taken out of the soil with other crops in a cycle similar to that advocated by ‘Turnip’ Townsend.

5. Use bamboo instead of wood. Bamboo will grow almost anywhere and at a very quick rate. Unlike trees, which take many years to mature, bamboo can be harvested with in a matter of months and can be treated to behave in a way very similar to that of wood. By using bamboo, we can preserve the rain forests, which are the lungs of our earth; whilst also experiencing the benefits wood can bring to modern living.

6. Use money gleaned from green taxes on aeroplanes to maximise their efficiency or on making railway journeys cheaper. In a recent article in the New Scientist, it was estimated that emissions could be reduced by 30% at the least from aeroplanes with a number of improvements including streamlining. Railways could also be used, which could get electricity from the green sources outlined above.

7. Use the Sahara Dessert and other areas with lots of sun but not many people, into a giant solar panelled area. Such a place would produce enough energy for a very sizable part of the world’s population. And of course, if such a job were undertaken, by perhaps the UN, the cost of solar panels for the rest of us would come down too.

If I come across more, I will post them. In the mean please post yours as well! Together, we can make the environment really healthy!

(my thanks to Nasa for the use of the photograph of Earth - our home - unless you are reading the blog from outside Earth)

A little light relief…

Blogs over the last few days have been on the long side. In order to keep things relatively light, here are some photographs and a brief description of some of my favourite trips through photographs. They include visits to Salisbury and the Isle of Wight; though more anon. Whilst the beauty of these locations is best experienced at first hand, I hope these snippets will inspire - enjoy! First up the exterior of Salisbury. A truly lovely exterior is seen to advantage here. The cathedral was built during the 13th century with the exception of the spire, which was constructed by 1320. This spire remains the tallest (standing) pre 1400 example in the world!

The font in Salisbury Cathedral is idyllic. Moments spent in meditation in front of it are never regretted.












The cathedral also boosts a working medieval clock from around 1386, or possibly earlier. The clock was found in 1796 and was restored in 1956. Notice the lack of clock face on this piece. This is because clock faces were not thought of when it was made. Instead you can ascertain the time of day by listening for the bell instead.







Now to the Isle of Wight, and on this occasion Osbourne House, the location where Queen Victoria spent many happy days and eventually passed away here. It is now open to the general public.



This is the main entrance and as you can see, the scale of the palace is fitting monument to Victorian confidence and prosperity. Built on an impressive scale the house contains relics and influences from across the globe, whilst also retaining a distinctly English feel.









I could n't resist ending with this beautiful view of the extensive gardens around the House.



Miles of parkland stretch away into the distance. When one beholds it, one feels very calm and comfortable.

In pursuit of certainty: the avoidance of doubt and other methods

In the modern age in which we live, there is often considerable emphasis placed on the need to prove logically a statement; so that no other explanation could stand. This approach can be traced back to Descartes and was the precursor to the modern scientific method. It is, however, no real way to produce a sensation of certainty in our lives.

The problem is a little difficult to describe easily and clearly, but I will do my best here. Essentially the problem is whether you place greater value on feelings or on the intellect. Some look for certainty through logic, others accept the possibility of doubt but look to their sense of self and feelings to make the best of the situation.

Some psychological models have used the idea of human beings as driven by desires and beliefs. Beliefs may be thought of as the way you perceive how to get your desires, and desires are wishes to experience – whatever they may be. Experience is made up of lots of things, but one thing it always includes is feeling. So, feelings are inescapable. For many people, some feelings occur more often than others. Indeed, it can even be that some feelings happen so often, people forget what the various other states ‘feel like’. Instead they concentrate only on a very narrow band of feelings. In some cases this may be a good thing, such as with positive emotions, in others, in the case of negative moods, it is not so good for the experiencer.

For some people life is racked with doubt. In order to try to escape from doubt and experience a more pleasant way of looking at the world, many modern minds seek out the pleasures of science, or more specifically the use of formal logic to solve their problems about life’s deepest issues. When something is logically provable, there can be no grounds for doubt and as such, feelings concerning doubt should disappear, so the logic goes: leaving behind on the experience of certainty.

It is quite natural to be doubtful about almost anything. Doubts are often caused by a feeling that a piece of information that is important has been has not been considered sufficiently. This is distinct from a piece of information that is not important and that has not been factored in. For example, ‘dinosaur fossils, when analysed by carbon dating, show the world must be at least 65 million years old; and very probably much more than that. But perhaps 1 in 1 million carbon dating tests is wrong. It is a subjective decision whether you think the problem with this piece of information is worth causing you to dispute the fossil evidence or not. Whatever decision you make, it could be doubted. This situation is subjective; and intellect and feelings are not necessarily in alignment.

There are a few situations that are logically provable and cannot be seriously debated: for example, all triangles have three sides. In such a case, it is not possible to argue with the validity of this statement. There is no room for doubt since, by definition, all triangles have three sides. In such a case, feelings and the intellect are in alignment.

As a result, even some of the best known theories in science today, such as the Theory of Evolution, remain just that, theories. They may be very good theories, but there is always a possibility that there something will discovered tomorrow that breaks the rule. So the elusive sense of certainty is not found with this method.

One defence strategy is to deny the subjectivity of the self and try to write it out of the equation altogether. However, such a move would be do deny experience – experiences have to be subjective, since no two people ever have quite the same experience. Consequently each viewpoint is subjective. To a point, there is no such as objectivity without some degree of contamination from the subjective viewpoints observing the ‘objective’ phenomenon.

Instead, in order to actually experience certainty from the real world, you do best to look to the feeling of certainty and consciously choose to focus your attention on that most of the time. Thus, if certainty is what you want to experience, focus your attention on that, rather than trying to prove something by fruitlessly trying to prove something with tools that are debatable in the first instance.

Here’s the punch line: you could only experience (feel) certainty by knowing what a lack of certainty feels like. Experience would numb without a sense of one thing being different from another. Consequently, look to your feelings. In order to experience certaintity, you have to be out of your mind…. Literally!

My ideal career progression: me in 10 years time.

I have decided to practice what I preach. Many self-help and Positive Psychology experiments have pointed to the power of envisaging where you want to be in the next 5 years and 10 years and working back from there using realistic goals as a means for making your dreams manifest. This method is likely to help you clarify what you want to do and the progression that will take you there. By breaking the large task into a series of related small episodes, you make it easier to see how each will happen – improving your chances of persevering with your goal. Without further a-do them:

10 years hence, I would like to be established in a promising career in some area of Positive Psychology/Social Psychology, or something very similar. I would like to mix both teaching and research. During the summer I would like to give lectures on how those who wish to can improve their emotional well being; find greater meaning in lives and help them find themselves. Ideally, I would own a house, or partly own a house by this time and be living with my girlfriend.

5 years hence, I hope to be just starting on my career in academia. I also hope to have passed my PHD with an excellent grade. I would be especially pleased if my viva went well, as I have thought for a long time, I perform very well in the spoken spontaneous environments.

1 ½ years time, I would like to be starting my PHD. I think my area of specialisation will be some aspect of self identity, though it might possibly be in some aspect of history and psychology or emotions and well being.

6 months, I hope to be starting my Masters course in Psychology research methods, probably at the University of Leicester. Money from various part time jobs I have will be enough to see me through the course with plenty left over for other projects such as trips abroad and saving for the house/flat.

3 months, ideally, I would to get a 2.1 for this year’s postgraduate conversion course. That is not easy, given the amount of hard work that has been set; and my continued job at Sainsbury. However, I think it is possible. If this proves beyond me just now, as long as I get a 2.2, I will be able to study a Masters course. That will give me the time needed to raise my game to a PHD standard.

So now you know how it is done. All you have to do now is pay a visit to the blog to see how I am getting on!

Image copyright, Mark Weislogel