These are some pics I took with my phone at the butterfly exhibit at the Natural History Museum, London. (click on them to see them better)
Freemasonry and all the secrecy that surrounds the practice has become an obsession of mine of late. The Masons are a highly ritualised organisation that has spread throughout Europe and most of the westernised world. The organisation currently claim to have over 6 million members indoctrinated and at various levels of rank and power all over the world.
The members of the Freemasons call themselves "The Lightbringers" and it is their mission to spread their light to every corner of the world. They publicly focus their rituals towards a theocratic figurehead called simply, The Great Architect. Because modern day Masons can be of any faith, The Great Architect represents which ever deity the members worship in their own religion. They claim this is so a
ll the members of the lodge can focus their energy on a single iconic figure whilst still remaining true to their own individual faiths. Interestingly enough, the majority of Freemasons last century were Protestants. The Roman Catholic Church shunned the Freemasons and so Catholics weren't allowed to be indoctrinated. I find this strange as the Protestant religion is very specific about not worshipping idols or covering their places of worship in decadance and finery, however this contradicts what you would see if you stepped into the Grand Lodge in London.
The United Grand Lodge in Covent Garden is the focal point for all the masonic lodges in Europe. Freemasonry as we see it today began with this building, formed by the merger of 4 smaller masonic lodges from around the country. Its architecture was designed and built around the strange rituals that are carried out by the Masons during their meetings. There are strong ties to the occult and Freemasonry. The two main doorways to the lodge are preceded by large Pentagrams laid into the floor. Apparently this is to "shrink a persons aura" on entry. The handles of the doors on exit and the symbols and sygils carved around the inner doorways are meant to empower Masons as they leave the lodge and enter the outside world.
The invlovement of the Freemasons in world history has been 
discussed many times before in various books, documentaries and films. If you would like to know more about this, I recommend The Illuminatus Trilogy by Robert Shea. There are many documentaries about them on line, The Lightbingers, Emissaries Of Jabulon is my favourite to date. Basically, the background is that the Freemasons have, throughout history, been composed of some of the most powerful and influential people on the planet. George Bush is a member of a lodge called Skull and Bones, Tony Blair is a Mason of the 33rd degree (the highest rank obtainable in the organisation) and so was Lenin. Using the power of their members, the grand masters of Freemasonry, it is said, manipulated the outcome of wars, destroyed cities, caused the French Revolution and are currently to blame for the wars in the middle east. The infamous Masonic motto "New World Order" can be seen on the back of every US dollar bill currently in circulation.
The dollar bill contains many symbols that are allegedly related to the Freemasons. The eye atop the pyramid is also a famous Masonic symbol which is clearly visible in photos of masons in their regaila that are decades old. The number 13 is said to be a mystical and occult number to the Freemasons. The base of the pyramid in "the great seal" below is made up of 13 sections which is said to have special masonic relevance. The phrase annuit cœptis consists of 13 letters and the ribbon beneath the image shows 13 sides.
The Masons are made up of 33 seperate degrees. a mason progresses through these degrees as he moves through the ranks of the organisation.
It is said that the 33 degrees of Masonry are represented in the flag of the united nations, covering the world. Notice the 13 leaves on the olive branches on either side of the globe.
The "Great Seal Of The United States Of America" is also full of these apparently occult and symbolic numbers. The eagle in the seal has 33 feathers in total on its wings. The 13 stars above the eagle are laid out into the star of David (the Jewish Kaballah is the source for alot of this Masonic mysticism. ) The eagle holds 13 arrows in one talon and an olive branch with 13 leaves and 13 olives in the other. There are 13 stripes on the shield in the foreground. There are also 13 letters in the phrase e pluribus unum or "out of the many, come one".
Well... It would be rude not to ...
- right?!
So due to an underground fire, an extraordinarily malicious virus or your negligence in paying the phone bill, the internet as you know it has disappeared. What better way to spend those sorrowful hours, being cheered up by some of the best drumming, the best saxophony, the best piano playing or the best and wittiest banter in the city. I am talking of course, about live jazz music.We went over to the Blue Note Jazz Club in Manhattan last night to witness some of the greats show us how live Jazz is done. With Sax, Piano, Double Bass & Drums, the James Moody Quartet played us through our dinner with a mixture of fast and eclectic Jazz and also some beautiful meandering numbers that make a listener stare off into the distance and lose themselves in thought and relaxation. The man himself, James Moody, a spritely 86 years old (!!!), was extremely funny with his crowd banter. We were lucky enough to be at the club for his 17th year wedding anniversary – so I’d like to imagine he played especially well on that night!
I couldn't write a blog about a live music event without focusing on the percussion, so here we go. We were fortunate enough to see Joe Farnsworth play in the Quartet. He is an exceptional Jazz drummer and regarded as one of the best in the world. You should difinitely look at his website or try to listen to examples of his playing if at all possible.
James Moody took us through the first half of the set, then passing
the front spot over to Jon Hendricks. James Moody is the oldest person on his bandstand, but Jon is only 3 years younger than him. The 83 year old bee bopped, scatted and sang for a good 40 minutes, giving us a great selection of Jazz and Boss nova and the history that goes with it. This Guy should know. His university course on the history of Jazz has been the number 1 course at the University of Toledo for the past three years running!
I would definitely recommend going to steep yourself in some old time jazz, especially if you are fortunate enough to witness people who have lived and breathed the music for the past few decades. New York’s Blue Note was fantastic, You could also try Ronnie Scott’s in London or Matt n Phred’s in Manchester, all of which are fantastic Jazz venues.
Get yourself down to your local museum with a camera and start hunting for dinosaurs. If you live in Manchester, London or New York, you’re in luck because each of these cities has excellent grounds for Dino hunting. There’s plenty of other cities with good places to spot ancient reptiles too! Here's a list of some beauties I spotted this weekend. Click any of the pictures to make them bigger.
Tyrannosaurus Rex: Weighed 6.8 tonnes, bipedal, 13 metres long. Carnivore. Cretaceous. 
Diplodocus: Weighed 10-15 tonnes, quadruped, had a six metre long neck and measured 25m from nose to tail. Herbivore. Jurassic.
Triceratops: Weighed 6-12 tonnes, quadruped, 9 metres long, horns 1 metre long. Herbivore. Cretaceous.
Allosaurus: Weighed 2.5 tonnes, bipedal, 9.7 metres long. Carnivore. Jurassic.
Stegosaurus: Weighed 4-5 tonnes, quadruped, 9 metres long. Herbivore. Cretaceous. Jurassic.
There is no Adam only Zool! I went up the Empire State building last night and that’s what I kept thinking to myself. If you’ve ever been up there, doesn’t it look like the building from Ghostbusters??
Anyway, I decided to go down at 10pm on a Thursday night to beat the ques, as the building and its observation platforms are open until after midnight. To my astonishment when I arrived, there was not only a large que, but it stretched out of the door of the building and almost right round the corner! It wasn’t a huge issue for me though, and the line moved pretty fast and, before I knew it, I was inside one of the most famous buildings in the world.
The main entrance hall is very impressive. I did take a photo of it but I have found a better picture on the internet so I’ll add that one to this blog (better meaning straight, not blurred and it hasn’t got half a Japanese tourist standing in the frame). Typically, the time i got to go and see it, most of the building was under construction and an awful lot of the rooms I passed through were in various stages of being painted, renovated or rewired. Nevertheless, i did get to see some very fantastic art deco. The light fixtures, the elevators, the escalators... loads of little things I recognised from movies and comics I’ve been reading all my life. It wasn’t just Ghostbusters I started thinking about, I started imagining the daily planet and Clark Kent stopping lifts from falling down the shafts or Peter Parker standing in one of the offices presenting Jameson with his latest photos of Spiderman. All of these scenes seemed to happen in a backdrop similar to the one I was walking through. I had alot of time to think about all of this, as it took me almost an hour and a half to get to the top. (click the images to make them larger)
Once at the top, the view was spectacular. You can see for miles! I managed to get outside and take a few snaps, my photography skills let me down again though. Here is the best one of the bunch.
I’m into funk music in a big way. I like some Jazz too, having spent many a Saturday night in Manchester’s Matt & Phreds sipping whiskey and listening to some real talent. I heard New York had a great music scene so I thought I’d go check out what the city had to offer.
First mission, escape Central Manhattan. Times Square is definitely a spectacle with its massive billboards and shops. At night time, it’s fantastic to look at. However, walking through it is a nightmare and it reminds me of London’s Oxford Street, which is the fore-runner for my least favourite place on the planet.
I found a club called Nublu on Avenue C which was perfect. You’d never even know it was there unless you knew what you were looking for but once you go through the front door , the interior is dark, stylish, covered in graffiti and they have a great bar. On the subject of bars, I’m still getting the hang of when exactly to tip people in America. I was politely told off by the barmaid after not tipping her after my second drink. She explained that she doesn’t get any money for running the bar, she survives solely on tips! I tipped her for my two drinks sheepishly. For future reference, it’s $1 for every drink you’re served. I think on a busy night, it must pay a lot better than what our bar staff get in the UK, she must have raked it in last night. Do I tip them in Starbucks?
Anyway, back to music. I saw a guy who calls himself Curumin and his band. They were fantastic. Brazilian Jazz, Funk & Salsa is quite difficult to play on the drums. Curumin, however, was drumming it all perfectly and singing it as well! A very talented guy indeed. He had the entire room dancing by his third song. I’ll definitely be buying his album when I get back to the UK. I’ve embedded a link to his MySpace page (go! go! go!) so if you want to listen to his stuff, my favourite track is “cidade des homens”. If you can’t bothered to go there, his music sounds a little like old school Ozomatli without Tunafish.