The Church of Jay

“Religion is sort of like a lift in your shoes. If it makes you feel better, fine. Just don't ask me to wear your shoes.” –George Carlin

For those of you hate my long-winded “back story” and set ups, you can skip this part and go right the next section.

I can’t wait for the reaction to this one. I can hear it now… “Why you write this stuff during Islamic Holy Month?” “You are the Devil’s child” “You’re going to hell” blah blah blah…

Actually, it was Ramadhan that inspired me to write this piece. Throughout the world, for Muslims, if you don’t already know, it’s Ramadhan. It’s a time of fasting and rebirth, testing your faith and patience, learning and reconnecting, families and festivities. It all ends in Hari Raya, a wonderful time of celebration and togetherness.
But, as always happens in Malaysia during this time, we’re in the middle of some “saber-rattling” as one of the very “right-wing ultra-conservative” Islamic political parties try their level best to make headlines and get their names in the papers, etc.. So we have things like banning alcohol sales in stores, Muslims being charged with “proximity” (look it up if you don’t know) much more than usual, and of course what in my humble opinion is the worst case of bad press we could have here in my adopted country, the caning (whipping) of a Muslim woman for drinking a beer. Damn, I’m SO glad I’m not trying to run the world marketing campaign for THIS country! That’s GOT to be a tough fight!
“Malaysia, Truly Asia… (IF the rest of Asia beat people for having a beer!)

Now look, I’m not trying to convert anyone, if you’re Muslim, stay Muslim. If you’re Christian, stay Christian. That’s one of the beauties of the church of Jay, you don’t have to convert. More on that later.
Anyway, let’s get off that and on to what my original intention was for writing this.
Backstory: When I was born, my parents were Catholic, consequently and not my choosing, I was baptized a Catholic.
One day, during Catechism, (church school), the nuns told us the story of the “End of the world” They preached about God coming back to earth and fire and damnation and people dying in the streets and thunder striking the bad people (read: non-Catholics) dead on the spot.
So, after class, everyone’s parents had picked them up from the church and it was only my sister Kathy and I left. The nuns also left and there we were, alone on the steps of this enormous church.
Guess what happened next? Yup… An enormous thunderstorm rolled in. There we are, huddled together, my sister Kathy and I, remembering the lessons we’d just been force-fed. Two freckle-faced little country kids, alone with a darkening sky, thinking of all the bad things we’d done in our short lives that we were about to pay for. From across the distant mountains comes the roaring sound of thunder and lightning, or maybe hell fire and brimstone!
Needless to say, when Mom and Dad arrived to pick us up, they found two VERY frightened kids!
About a month later they left the Catholic Church and became Protestants.

Now, my parents have to have been the coolest on earth. They raised us with a faith, but when we got “old enough” to make up our own mind, that’s exactly what they let us do. Choose for ourselves.
My Mom always said, “We gave you a good foundation for life, now… whatever you choose to believe, or not believe, is up to you. You’re old enough to decide.”
Bless you Mom! Parents could really take a lesson here!

During my teenage years, I was actually fascinated by religion, or more accurately, Faith.
What makes people faithful? What makes some people willing to do literally anything for their faith? What drives people to kill for a faith and what makes people SO need to cling to an idea or a faith, that they turn their mind off to anything contrary? Faith or people’s IDEA if faith, has always, ALWAYS captivated my imagination. If I’d thought of it first, I would have written “Angel and Demons” and “The DaVinci Code”!

Because of this, I have studied about, and with, so many different faiths… Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical, Lutheran… I was a Jehovah’s Witness for a while. Interesting bunch and NOT as quirky as most people think! I have studied Judaism and the Hindu faith. Buddhism and all it’s hundreds of forms is amazing, although I found Theravada Buddhism, more dominant in Thailand, to be more to my liking.
My adventure in Malaysia, and having so many Muslim friends, has given me a new understanding and appreciation of Islam. I even have an English translated copy of the Holy Quran, which yes, I HAVE read!
Not just read the ‘headline’ version of these faiths, but really studied them, talked at length to people who believed, a lot. Dug in deep to try and understand where they were coming from. Like I said, people’s Faith fascinates me.

The closest I ever got to finding something that “clicked” with me (better sit down)… is Wicca.
Yeah, I know. Witchcraft may not be your cup of tea. Because most people don’t bother to take the time to find out more and better understand it, they have some preconceived notion about it. But trust me. We don’t sacrifice babies, drink blood and burn animals! It’s NOT the Hollywood version of Witchcraft just to make interesting stories and sell cinema tickets. The idea of everything having a kind of “energy” is an interesting one. Earth, Wind, Fire, Water. The elements.
The Wiccan Rede: ‘An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will’ may sound a bit morally “loose” to most, but honestly, if you think about it, basically it means, mind your own business, do what you will, but harm NO ONE in the process! What could be better than that?

Anyway, while for some time, my life has been lead by a strange adaptation of Wicca, I was a bit turned off by the Gods and Goddesses and all. But therein lies another great part of what Wicca teaches. How’s THIS for a faith… Imagine your church saying THIS to you…
This is paraphrased from several books on Wicca:
“If any part of what we write here ‘feels like’ it’s not right for YOU, that’s okay. Find the way, the path, that feels right to YOU and that’s what you should follow”
In other words, you don’t follow a hardcore set of rules and regulations. No one is trying to RULE your life. No one is trying to pass any moral judgment on you. As long as it harms no one, do as ye will!
Seriously, if you take a bit and honestly, with an open mind, read about Wicca, you’ll find it’s not what you think!

But again, I’m not truly Wiccan. I gave up being a witch a while ago! I moved on. Now when people ask what faith I am, I have an entirely different answer. I have answered that question the same way for about 5 years now, although I think I’ve lived nearly all my life with these beliefs. It just took some time to put them into perspective. (fade to black)
-o-
(fade in from black) About 2 years ago, I nearly died. Seriously. Sparing you the gory details, I was in hospital for a month plus, had a very bad time of things, and the doctors really didn’t know if I’d survive. I did…
And even that, even being that close to the end of my life. It didn’t shake my faith, my belief system. And what is that? What faith has finally made me a believer? What religion has convinced me it is THE way?

“The Church of Jay”

It’s simple really. So simple, it’s easy to live your life by it’s teachings.
We don’t have any funny costumes. We don’t believe women are any different than men. We accept anyone. We don’t have any religious icons. We don’t pray to anything.
You cannot join my church. It exists only in your mind. You cannot donate millions of dollars to my church; we don’t want any of your money. You don’t have to burn incense, cover your head, or prostrate yourself on the ground. In fact, we don’t want you to join; we just want you to read our rules, think about them and try to follow them.
We have only three rules.
Ready? Here they are…

1- Be a good person
2- Try and help out when you can
3- Do the right thing

By ‘good person’ and the ‘right thing’, what I mean is: That ‘gut’ feeling we all, as human beings, have. You just KNOW when something is right or not; knowing that what we are doing, is truly being a good person, that it is the right thing to do.
So, what am I? I guess I’m a mix, rojak. DO I believe in a “Supreme Being”? Honestly? Not really.
But what I do believe is we really don’t know what’s next, do we? That’s what faith is, belief in something that cannot be proven. So what DO I believe? I believe I’ll follow my simple little rules and live the best life I can NOW… THIS time around.
If there’s something else, some other road to travel after this old body’s worn out, I’ll be content in knowing that I did the best I could.

It’s just that simple. Think about it.

Amen.

Dead Baby Cigarettes

I smoke. I hate smoking. I have tried everything to quit. From acupuncture to hypnotism to patches and gum and pills. Nothing works. I am addicted to nicotine and that's that. Don't send me all those stupid quit smoking ideas, they are useless and they do not work for me.(more)... I don't smoke in my house, I respect and am careful about smoking around non-smokers. I hate the smell of smoke when I'm eating and sit in the non-smoking section of restaurants.
That having been said (climbs up on soapbox)

Celebration time! We now have our own Dead Baby Cigarettes here in Malaysia.
Featured prominently on the front and back of most packs of cigarettes now are disgusting pictures designed, in theory, to make you quit smoking. We have lots of varieties. The Gangrene foot pack, The Blackened Lungs pack, The Mouth Cancer pack and (my personal favorite) the Throat Cancer pack. That one's REALLY gross, with hanging flesh and red bulbous pus sacks.
But by far, the worst ones are the Dead Baby packs. Get your's today! Collect them all!

One is for miscarriages and the other for premature births.
Written below these lovely pictures are the words on the front in Bahasa Melayu and on the back in English, "Smoking causes _______" (fill in your favorite disease)
First, let me state that smoking does NOT CAUSE miscarriages. The only way it could CAUSE a miscarriage is if you were riding on your boyfriend's motorcycle down a very bumpy road on your way to BUY cigarettes! It IS a contributing factor in miscarriages, but does not CAUSE miscarriages.
Get your freakin' facts right.
Whoever decided to allow these pictures to be placed on these pack, probably the Ministry of Health or something, if they think this going to stop ANYONE from smoking, get real.
Do you think, in this day and age we do not KNOW what happens to some of us if we smoke?
We do. and we have decided to accept those risks and we smoke anyway because we are addicted to nicotine. Some disgusting pictures on our packages are going to what...? Make us decide there and then to stop. Can you see it at the store....
"I'll have a pack of Dunhill Lights pleas... oh wait, are those dead babies on that package!? Never mind. I guess I'll quit smoking now!"

Here is actually my biggest problem, with these pictures.
I live in a country where two heterosexual people (man and woman for those of you who believe pictures on cigarette packs!), can not be shown kissing on television, and I believe in the cinema too.
Again, you can NOT show two straight people KISSING. Forget anything ELSE!
But, right there, across the counter in every 7-11 in the land, where young people tall enough to see over the counter, (say above the age of 7-8) can see someone's throat rotting away. Can see a dead baby laying a pool of it's own blood.
We'd rather they looked at that, than a couple of people in love, expressing their feelings for one another, by kissing...?
Go figure!
okay, I've probably bored you to death by now and besides, I need a cigarett... oh wait... look! A dead baby... I guess I'll quit smoking now...

What is it about a book?

Today I received a package from my publisher and inside was one of the biggest thrills of my life.
Now, it may not seem much to you, but to me this was a moment.

As you may have read or seen on my official site www.jaysheldon.com I wrote a children's book about a year ago. Well, after much futz'ing around I managed to find a place to publish it. Today my first copy arrived.
I had seen this book in soft copy from concept to design to illustrations and now here, in my hands, was the actual book!
Now look, I've been on stage in front of over 15 thousand people performing, I've been on the air doing shows on radio with hundreds of thousands and television with millions watching before, I've seen myself up on the big screen in the cinema, but somehow, this is different.
What is it about books?
Somehow they have more of a permanence than those other mediums. Somehow, they seem more real!
You can feel and touch and smell a book. They last longer! Hey, the Holy Bible and The Holy Quran weren't a tv special, They were WRITTEN! ...and they're still here today!

I'm not looking to make money by writing this children's book. In fact, I am actually not making one single cent (or sen here in Malaysia!) I was just for the thrill of seeing myself in print and now that dream has come true.
Oh sure, I'd love for you to buy a copy and frankly, if you have children, it's a very cute little fantasy story about a little boy in Malaysia and what happens when he meets and makes friends with a warthog!
I think you and your kids will thoroughly enjoy the story. At the same time, they'll be learning something about the culture here in my adopted country.
But, at the end of the day, even if you don't buy a copy, it's perfectly ok. I couldn't be happier with the first box of them and while I've had a number of requests for autographed copies, Most of you are so far away, it's be impossible to get them to you.

What's next?
Well, actually, I'm in the middle of research and writing for my next book and this one will be VERY different from the first. This one is a story about a gay massage parlour and the happenings behind the scenes. The life and true stories of massage boys.
Working title "Behind a Batik Curtain"
Here's the synopsis:

Call boy, Escort, Massage Boy, Masseur, Money Boy…
Call them what you will, each in the business for his own reasons. Be it missing love, quick easy money, lack of any formal education, the thrill of experience; join a group of Massage Boys as they make their living plying their particularly unique trade.
Young, handsome and willing to explore places few of us every see. In this small group of masseurs you’ll find every kind of personality type, and in spite of what your ideas might be, not all necessarily gay. They fight over customers, they bitch behind each other’s backs, but in most cases, the other boys are the only family they know.
At times the sex becomes routine, sometimes passionate, always interesting. Some boys find a way out; some find a rough life of the constant demands of customers in all shapes, sizes and fetishes.
This insightful and intriguing look at life in a massage parlor explores the day to day, with tales of love, drama, freaky clients and money. Stories that are at once poignant and funny, along with heartbreaking and tragic.
A life lived “Behind a Batik Curtain”.


I'll be sure and keep you up to date on this one when it's ready.

Thanks for reading and if you'd like to order a copy of "Willy and The Warthog" there is a link on the left side of my profile page, or you can go here:

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/602599

FIRE!!!!!!!!!!

A friend of mine, on his Facebook account posted an article and made a comment, which sparked a long discussion from readers about the Freedom of the Press.
To briefly summarize, some people, a few famous faces, were arrested in a hotel in Kuala Lumpur after the room was raided by police. There were allegedly drugs involved, and they labeled it as some sort of sex party...Whatever.
So, the discussion of what the press should and should not have reported started.
Then it turned to how much freedom the press should have. You know the usual, "The press killed Princess Diana" etc, etc...
Well, since this is a topic near and dear to me and since it often strikes a nerve with me, especially in Malaysia, my adopted home country, I commented too.
But there's a limited amount of space for comments on Facebook, and I got SO riled up I wanted to continue my rampage here.
So, to begin by quoting what I wrote there...

Freedom of the press?!?! In THIS country? You've GOT to be kidding me! Look, I love this country, I'm not from here, but have NO desire to go back to my home country. I've been living and working (legally) here for almost 8 years now. I'd take a PR here in a second, if they weren't so impossible to obtain.
Believe it or not, Malaysians actually have more freedoms than those egotistical "Americans" like to shout about. BUT... having said that, there is ONE area in which the M'sian government has, and continues to maintain an iron fist control. The press. TV, radio, newspaper, magazine, books, film and to some extent, the net.
That's the ONE place I still very much disagree with Malaysian laws and philosophies.

Without a free press, you can not truly have freedom. Absolute freedom of the press. The right to say, print, broadcast or film whatever you feel. While you can not shout "FIRE" in a crowed theater, for obvious reasons, but you should be able to express your personal feelings without being afraid of arrest, or being locked away under an antiquated and miss-used ISA.
Look, in case you didn't know, in America, you could publish an Islamic paper
(or insert your favorite faith or anti-government group here) calling for the complete overthrow of the government and criticize all you want.
Here, it seems that even the hint of anything anti-government, even on an internet blog, can get you a date with the ISA boys! (Internal Security Act). If you're outside of Malaysia, Google: "Malaysia ISA", you'll see.

Will we ever have that freedom in Malaysia? I doubt it.
Look people, the government, in spite of what some think, isn't stupid. They are VERY well aware that if you can control the press, you control the people.
When a country invades another (and the USA is more than famous for this dirty trick!) what's the very FIRST thing they do? Take over, or shut down, the radio and television stations. Why do you suppose they do this?
Simple... Repeating: If you control the press, you control the people!
Just in the past few weeks we here in Malaysia have been in the middle of a fight over whether or not a Catholic newspaper can publish in Bahasa Malaysia (the official language of Malaysia).
WHAT?!?! Can a newspaper publish itself in the official language of the country?!?!
The Malaysian government says it can NOT! Wanna know, (in my opinion), why?
Since this paper is Catholic, I believe they are afraid the teachings of Christians will somehow "pollute" the minds of Muslims, if they can read about it. Especially in rural areas, where English isn't as widely spoken or understood. (Note for people outside Malaysia, if you didn't know: Islam is the official religion of Malaysia)
What does this mean? The government doesn’t think you’re smart enough to make an adult decision for yourself? Or perhaps they think your faith isn’t strong enough, that simply what someone writes or says will make you leave the faith?
That's another topic for another day, if I REALLY want to piss people off and put myself in danger of an ISA raid! (haha!)

OK, back to my point about freedom and rights...
Most importantly of ALL is... with that freedom comes RESPONSIBILITY! Just as with "rights", you don't just get rights, you have the responsibility to use those rights. Most people shout about their rights, but forget that they are responsible for what they say, do, and write about, and the consequences of those actions.
Americans are famous these days for dumping their responsibilities. It's one of the most annoying problems WITH the USA. In the past few decades, with the court systems being so screwed up, NO ONE has to take responsibility for their actions anymore.
And, of course, it doesn't hurt that there's a lawyer on every street corner just waiting to take up your case.
A lady sues McDonalds because she spilled coffee on her lap and it burned her? She sued because the coffee was HOT?!?! WHAT?! Idiot! But worst of all is the judge who allowed this case to go to court. The judge SHOULD have just laughed and told this stupid woman and her attorney to stop tying up the court system with stupid lawsuits. Honestly, I don't blame irresponsible people, or cold-hearted, shark-like lawyers, as much as I blame judges. They have the power to throw these ridiculous cases out. But they do not. They let them continue. This ability to sue just about anyone, over just about anything, is screwing up nearly everything. From tying up the court system to even raising prices! Do you KNOW how much insurance business' pay for just this problem?
We Americans have over legislated ourselves to death!
You slipped on the ice in front of my store? Well, too bad. next time be more careful! It's ICE moron, it's SLIPPERY! Duh!
But no, I'll sue your business and probably win, and own your ass for he rest of your life!
Look, I grew up in a time when if you slipped on the ice, you laughed about it... Eventually. Even if you hurt yourself, you realized that YOU were the stupid one who wasn't careful enough, and fell. But forget that now. We don't have to be responsible for anything we do.
Remember "The Twinkie Defense"? Look it up.

This all brings me back to my original point. (See? It was there somewhere!)
Be responsible!
Freedoms and rights, yes, but only with the responsibility to enjoy them.
Freedom of the press? Yes, complete freedom. Freedom to print whatever you want, even if it's anti-government or anti-religion. The public should be, or needs to be educated enough to read ANYTHING and make a sound decision as to what's good and what's crap. If your beliefs are strong enough, what you read won't change your mind. If your faith is strong enough, what you see, hear or read, won't make you question your faith.
You'd be surprised to know just how many silly Americans actually believe what they read in newspaper rags like the National Enquirer or The Weekly World News.
"Aliens ate my ears off!" Come on people! Get real! Geeeez!
If people or the government agrees with it or not....Print what you like, say what you like, broadcast what your like, film what you like. but damnit, be responsible for it.

I am now getting down from my soapbox. Wow, what the hell did I write?
See what happens when you get me started and touch a nerve?!
I'll go back to writing about bird-watching or OB the cat or something now!

Just a thought...

Ahmad & OB

I have two very special people in my life, and I haven't really written about them.
One wasn't sure he wanted to be written about, and the other is a cat, so he rarely gives me his opinion, unless he's hungry or wants attention.

Let me start with my partner, lover, life mate and friend...

Ahmad



I wasn't sure which shot to use first for him, but since he has this as his facebook profile picture, I figure he's okay with that!

Damned cute, isn't he!!!??


We met, strangely enough, online. He sent me a message and asked if I'd like to meet for coffee. (cheap date, since he worked for a major American coffee chain! hahaha!)

Actually, the first time we met, it was through the window of my car. I didn't have a moment to meet him, but wanted desperately to see him in person. You know how people NEVER look like their profile pictures!?

Well, he didn't either, he was even more adorable in person! ha! So, I went to where he worked and pulled up in my car and called him. he was sitting out in front with some friends, and I didn't tell him I was parked right across from him. As we talked I told him to look over at the car I was in and that's when he first saw me!

Since he didn't run away screaming, we decided to meet again, in a more normal "date" kind of way.
To make a long story even longer... we developed a fast friendship, which grew into more and more, and eventually we were spending every moment we could together.

After a socially acceptable amount of time (about 3 weeks!) he gave up his apartment and moved in.
We have been together ever since. I love him so very much and he has been there for me through some very difficult times. A lesser person would have run away long ago.


So, in spite of the fact that I did not get permisson to post these, I'm gonna anyway.
Some of my favorite pictures of Ahmad!



















Previously, he worked for Malaysian Airlines (MAS) so this is a shot of him in his "trolly-dolly" uniform! Handsome, huh?!












Being studious and trying to look like he's concentrating on his work!









and finally, since you are NEVER supposed to post pictures of people eating, here's another shot him when we had pancakes the other day. By the way, they were DELICIOUS! But I guess you can tell that from the look on Ahmad's face!
Don't get mad sayang. I'm just kidding.
He truly is an amazing guy... A wonderful lover... and my best friend!


Finally, the "other" man I live with!

"Woo Hoo!" I hear you say?!?! Well, just a minute before you start all those nasty rumors, I probably deserve anyway....

The other man I live with is.... our cat! Obsidian!


OB for short!

If you don't know, Obsidian is a deep black beautiful glass formed from lava. Since OB is black with yellow eyes, I thought the name was perfect.

I got him from someone who was giving him away because she had too many cats. He's been "fixed" of course, and you should be sure and do the same to YOUR animals! It only makes sense!

He's a pain in the ass.





This is what OB looks like most days, when he's playing (fighting) with Ahmad!

Check out the claws! Kinda reminds me of myself!















So... that's them. The two men in my life. I love them both dearly.

One's just a bit more hairy than the other...

2008

A dear friend of mine sent me this sms on this New Year's Eve:

"Life never seems to be the way we want it, but we LIVE it the best way we can. There is no perfect life, but we CAN fill it with perfect moments..."

Brilliant! What a great way to think about the year past and look forward to the year ahead. Here I go again "waxing" philosophical, but I'm allowed, it's New Year's Eve!
Take a look at this picture:



That is the Mirror of Erised from Harry Potter.
Inscribed on the mirror is:
"erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi"
and as Dumbledore explained, the Mirror "shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts... the mirror gives neither knowledge nor truth and men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they see."

Ok, so it's a fantasy children's story, but let's think about that for a minute.
Men have wasted away looking in the mirror, entranced by what they see.
We spend a great deal of time "looking back", Looking in the mirror, wishing for things that cannot be or cannot be changed.

To get back to that quote about a perfect life, It is true. Life never seems to JUST the way we want it, but instead of looking back and longing for things the way they might have been, look ahead, see through the looking glass to the future. Live your life for those perfect moments. make those moments perfect for YOU. They won't seem perfect to everyone, but if they are perfect for you, that's all that counts.

As I'm writing this, 2008 is just hours away from being done. If I can break my own thought and rule here, looking back, it has been an interesting year.
I have had the absolute worst time of my life for reasons I won't bore you with now, and some of the absolute best times, 'perfect' times. In the end, they all balance out.
I've made new friends that I can only hope will last a lifetime. I have lost friends that I miss every day. I have spent a wonderful year rediscovering just how much I love my partner- Ahmad, and just how much he means to me.
I've created some great works, and some pieces of crap too!
And so, that's it. I'm closing the door on 2008.
I've read the last chapter, enjoyed the story and I am looking forward to beginning a new book titled "2009".
Don't waste away looking in that mirror. Don't worry that you don't have the "perfect" life. Make those perfect moments, and look ahead. There is so much yet to appear...

"And there’s a hand, my trusty fiere !
And gie's a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll tak a right gude-willy waught,
For auld lang syne."

Happy New Year my friends!

Blue Tailed Bee Eater

What a great name, huh?!

I knew that would get your attention!

Ok, now to start, I'm NOT a bird-watching geek.
No offense to bird watchers, but come on, let's be honest. Most people don't put bird watching way up on their list of things to do. It's a niche market and the public in general think of bird watchers as geeks. Ok? There I said what you were thinking!
(I have a habit of doing that)
That having been said, I spend a lot of useless time out on my back balcony, which overlooks a row of trees, which does a very bad job of hiding the LRT (Light Rail Transit) tracks. Try living next to an LRT track. You DO eventually get used to the noise, but it IS a pain in the ass. In fact I'm ALMOST at the point where I've had enough and thinking about moving. I was out in O.U.G. (Overseas Union Garden) the other night with my Significant Other having dinner at Steven's Corner and the ONE thing I noticed, besides how good the Tandoori Chicken and Garlic Cheese Nan was, is the quiet! No city noise, no LRT...

Ok, back to the bird watching.
This morning I had again noticed a bird which I'd seen for the last few days. It was beautiful. Greens, blues, almost iridescent... Now we have the usual variety of city birds here: pigeons, crows, morning doves, a few sparrows, and in the evening, catching flying bugs-Swallows. But this morning I saw a gorgeous green and blue colored small bird which, when it flew looked like the coloring of a parrot, although much much smaller.
So, Jay did what he always does when something interests him and he doesn't know much about it. "Googled" it.
Turns out, it's a bird with the coolest name!
A Blue Tailed Bee Eater!
Ha! I love that!
Here's a picture I stole from Nelson Khor's website. He's one of those geeky bird watchers, but with all due respect, he has some beautiful photos of birds!

Turns out the Blue-tailed Bee-eater, (Merops philippinus) eats... no surprize... BEES!
Well, insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets. It catches them mostly in the air and then, because it has a long slender beak, can keep the stingers away until it gets to a spot where it SLAMS the bee into the ground and kills it!

Damned violent, huh?
One down side is, it also east Dragonflys.


I LOVE Dragonflys. They are one of my most favorite things about life on earth. But hey... everyone's gotta eat, right?






Ok, I've gotten little carried away with the info on a bird here. But look it up, it's a cool bird, and a really beautiful one!
From what I read I can't think of a single reason why it'd be around here. It is native to South East Asia, but it nests in spots nowhere like the place I stay.
Guess I'll just be grateful while it's around and enjoy the view.
Stop and look around. Take a moment. You'll be surprised what you'll see.
Just a thought...