I’m in Tangalle. It’s not Unawatuna and further south than Mirissa, so presumably cooler. It’s beautiful here, lush paddy on one side, lagoons and clear ocean on the other. The shelf drops and the sea is treacherous, but behind the rocks there are eddies of delight. The sea is clear and the blue green waves play with you without pulling you under.
A family friend was in from out of town and wanted to go sari shopping. I know nothing about this, but I asked around. We ended up at Rasi Silks (Wellawatte, off Hampden Rd), but there are a variety of places. To my knowledge there are numerous spots for the posh, and then spot rushes for the frugal. Personally, I think I’d recommend going to India.
I’m not making a habit of this or anything, but someone got me an action figure of Einstein. This are some photos of him in action, with Barbie and friends. I read on the back of the box that he discovered special relativity when he was 26, which disturbs me greatly. I’m 27 and still playing with dolls.
This is a dream I had, twice for some reason, so I remember it well. It’s a sort of zombie dream, I guess I was Grigoris and the girl I remember as Claire Danes. It felt very Soviet, very hard boiled, very noir. It wasn’t a bad dream, it was just like a movie. The first scene I suppose, is as follows – Grigoris was in the bedroom with the old man. He was lying on the floor, on a pillow. His daughter was waiting pensively in the living room, legs up, looking into the grey urban night.
Today is Christmas. Even in Sri Lanka, this is a holiday, and celebrated (albeit not much). Every country in the world follows a Judeo-Christian calendar. The years start from Jesus’s death and each ends, roughly, with his birth. This is one small way that religion gives us order.
At this point I’m tentatively supporting Sarath Fonseka, if only to vote for the opposition. However, I think On Politics has a cogent explanation of why he supports Mahinda Rajapakse. Money quote: “the anti-MR alliance right now is haphazard, dishonest, opportunistic, gut-less, goal-less, doesn’t have any credibility, and have fielded a candidate with dubious credentials as a politician. I don’t see any reason to kick the present somewhat-efficient otherwise-crook guy out, just to elect a whole bunch of LOSER crooks.”
The closest Colombo has to a decent beach is Mount Lavinia. The best hang out spot there is probably Buba. Closer, however, is this place I recently discovered called The Station. From Galle Road you turn right at the Williams Grinding Mills. This is Dehiwela, almost Wellawatte. If you continue all the way down you get to a beach shack with decent food and cheap drinks. The usual cuttlefish and stuff, though I got the boiled vegetables (which is nicer than it sounds). I am newly enamored of this camera and I spent most of my time photographing the candle lamp. I suppose that’s about as interesting as a bar’s navel, but here are a few shots.
I don’t support any war crimes investigation against Sri Lanka. The day Dick Cheney is tried, hell, the day Dick Cheney is not invited on TV, then OK. I do support a non-punitive reconciliation process, and I think the truth of this war needs to get out. However, I do not support any war crimes prosecution from outside.
As much as the entrenched government, Sri Lanka suffers from an entrenched opposition. Sarath Fonseka has forced this government to compete, but for four years Ranil Wickremesinghe has not. And now he hopes to be Executive Prime Minister. He doesn’t deserve it. If I vote for Sarath Fonseka, I want him to be in power. I supported Ranil Wickremesinghe, but now it’s time for him to go. In fact, he should have gone four years ago. The UNP should be running in this election, and they’re not. Ranil, if you can’t run then maybe you need to sit down.
These scientists kept getting noise on their radio telescope. They thought it was pigeon shit, or nuclear fallout, but nothing checked out. Then they discovered that it was background radiation from THE UNIVERSE BEING BORN. And then they won the Nobel Prize. True story. I read this is in a Wired article on failure. Its general point seems to be that scientists should try to learn from failure by seeking out diversity, even ignorance and avoid a human neurological instinct to filter out bad information. This may also make some sense in life.
