the luminous blog

Luminous New Beginning

2012-12-12T07:33:00.000-08:00

As a new era of luminescence dawns upon this website - the original construction block of the entire TLB Prime Network, TLB Prime itself, the luminous blog! - we start anew with renewed hope for the world at large, serenity cradling our spirits and love outpouring from our hearts in such an abundance as never before in our entire lives!

Because one has but to open one's eyes to see it: there still are Miracles happening, all around us. It is not just glumness and strife, pain and suffering, gloom and doom all about the globe - Miracles are also to be found out there. And each and every day a new Miracle happens; in every form and every type that one can imagine!

For LIFE ITSELF is a Miracle.

And as our friend Terri McPherson Buckley clarions it so very, very well - WE are all Miracles of God, each and every one of us

Just click on the image above (copyright Terri McPherson Buckley)

The cosmos is LUMINOUS - and we are all a part of it!
An intrinsic part, we might add...
We are all linked in this universe -
no matter what our many differences may be!
We are all ONE - in essence.

Copyright - Hubble

For you know that
no energy is ever lost;
when our earthly shells die,
the energy within them
returns to the cosmos
whence they came!

That energy
is our SOUL.

BEYOND death - BEYOND our fears - there is... LIFE

And LIFE is in THE LIGHT

And PRAYER can bring you to this Light - the Light that you need in order to shed all the fear, all the regrets, all the pent-up aggression and left-up hatred of years gone by: prayer in song and praise, in the written word and the spoken one as well. And we here, at TLB Prime, value various forms of artistic expression, many forms of spiritual expression and, above all, all forms of meaningful expression of purity, beauty and Light.

Here are samples of all that:

1 Thessalonians 5:5
For ye are all sons of light and sons of the day: we are not of night nor of darkness.

1 John 1:7
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light
we have fellowship with one another
and the blood of His Son Jesus [Christ] cleanses us from all sin.

1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation,
a people whom God took to proclaim the praises of Him
who called you out of darkness into His marvelous Light.

Ephesians 5:8-9
For ye were sometimes darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord.
Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is
in all goodness and righteousness and truth)

Revelation 22:5
And night shall be no more, and will not need the glow of light or sunlight,
because the Lord God giveth them light.
And they will reign forever and ever.

We are THE LUMINOUS BLOG -
and we are here to help!
+++

Luminous Snow

2012-01-12T08:18:00.000-08:00

Snow being the form of precipitation
that is generated around an ice nucleus
it is very disappointing when we do not get snow at all
but ice rain instead...

Winter is not at all our favorite season

Yet there are concessions that we are

Luminous Zeitgeist

2011-12-31T23:59:00.001-08:00

Google has put together a gem of a video;
Zeitgeist 2011 - Year In Review
You can watch it here,
over and over,
and on The Google Channel
along with other videos as informative as this one
- and possibly even better than it too.

For, as good and touching as this one is,
as moving as each and every event,
passing, turning point, trial
that is evoked within less than 3 minutes here,
certain vital and key moments are missing from there
while others are overfocused on
for the umpteenth time.

Osama Bin Laden's death,
for instance,
does not avenge the 9/11 victims.

The final lift-off of Atlantis
has about as much importance here
in the TLB Prime Universe
as the last time Little Petey
made a delivery
for the corner store.

The 7 BILLION mark being a "crossroad"
in the history of humanity
and 2011 being a year of "adversity"
should not be suggesting that either
is exceptional or uncommon -
because, first off, we knew we'd hit 7 billion one day
and all the other years were years of adversity too...

To dub 2011 "a year of revolution"
might be insulting, too,
to all previous revolutions that were,
shall we say, more productive...

A year of remembrance, of possibility...?
Also applies to every previous years
of our earthly sojourns...

As for the St-Louis Cardinals' improbable
ascension to World Series champions status
due to the absence of Phillies and Red Sox
from their path to the big dance,
dubbing that as "inspirational"
as it was Tony LaRussa's last great victory as a manager
is an overstatement of "plain old lucky"
and overdoing it too -
as LaRussa had won enough for a career,
earlier on in said career...

Wars are not "coming to an end" - alas.
No matter how it looks,
with Obama recalling troops now
and soldiers coming home -
the worst war is still to come.

A partial list of those who are no longer with us
is simply too partial, also -
what is it trying to imply,
that we should only miss those who were googled about the most
and not the rest of the departed...?
Everyone was googled about - if only once -
from Jobs to Evora,
and she passed on way too late in the year
to have a chance of being included in this.

Now, do not get us wrong here -
this Zeitgeist video collage
is terrific, magnificent -
from the quickness of the images
that overwhelms, as it moves you
to the musical piece chosen for the occasion
-Sooner Or Later by Mat Kearney-
everything is tremendous here.

The problem is not that they fast forward
through a whole lot of things
while overstaying some topics' welcome -
missing out on a single freeze frame shot
for a minimum of three seconds
of events so traumatic that
they actually rate higher than those
chosen for the video:
the famine in Somalia and unrest in Libya
were as big as the Japanese earthquake,
tsunami and Brazilian floods...
(And there were floods in Cambodia and Pakistan too.)
And what of events that people had waited for
for a long, long time,
such as the Boston Bruins' championship.
Was it only the subsequent sore loser riot
that got to be googled about, really?

The real problem with this video is that
it is made with very narrow data in mind -
the data gathered from Google searches.
The topics that people knew about
or wanted to know the most about -
throughout the year of 2011 -
never mind that there were many more awful things
happening all over the globe, in 2011.
This Google Zeitgeist focuses only on search results -
high volumes of that - and nothing else.
And the intrinsic problem with that
is the simple fact that
the vast majority of people
do not know what they should truly be
searching for - or about.
However, if this montage was unable to include
the passings of Cesaria Evora, Joe Simon and Václav Havel -
or the demises of other legendary names in the last days of the year
- at least, it did not include the hoax about Jon Bon Jovi,
which was heavily sought via Google too, recently...

Google is a tool -
that gets to be misused as any other tool gets to be.

Search and you shall find.

But, first, you must know what you seek.

Seek something true, something worthy.

Seek not as others jump on the bandwagon.

As the 21st Century marches on,
we will all, hopefully, open our eyes
and see beyond appearances,
decipher what has true meaning,
reach out for the Worthy and the Truth
and not simply follow a collective movement.

The real revolution,
the true remembrance and fulfillment of both
potential as of all possibilities
will come when we achieve that.

Such is our wish for us all,
here at the TLB Prime Network -
Truth in 2012.

Nothing less than the Truth.
You can handle it!

+++

Luminous Season

2011-12-25T17:15:00.000-08:00

Last Christmas,
people seemed not to have a heart
or we were too busy
to notice that they did...?

This year,
have no fear,
everyone is back on the right track!

Take the initiative of a hospital
specializing in sick children
somewhere up north
just for a first example now -
they called their campaign
"offrez la lumière"
which literally means "to gift LIGHT"
as in gifting hope, love, joy
and promptly changing the lives
of the children hospitalized there
and their families
at this most crucial time of the year
that is the Holidays;
the time of the year in which
we all need our hopes renewed,
our resolve strengthened
and our hearts warmed over again
with happiness, warmth and just a hint
of that undefinable thing that they call
"the magic of Christmas".

Click on the luminous tree below
to see the actual glimmering tree
live, through the lens of
the NoelCogecoCam, set up
right in front of the hospital
and lit up every evening at 4:20pm exactly...

It is not the only example of
a luminous season spirit
floating around in that part of the globe
- but it is certainly the most
shall we say féérique...!

Clicking on that tree will also give you the opportunity
to donate to this campaign -
a mere 5$ will be enough to make a difference
and it is all that is asked of you!
If you've already made a donation,
you will be able to trace back
the message that was left attached to it!
Truly luminous all around...!

But the only luminous thing going around
this Christmas Time...!

Elsewhere,
perhaps to shed their image
so recently tarnished
due to some sore losers
on the night Beantown won,
VanCity has been extremely generous
to all the needy, all the poor
this Christmas Season:

In and by itself
any act of charity
is sort of a miracle
in these secular days
of rampant commercialism
and neo-centric consumerism
- especially during the Festive Days
(they do seem to be more than twelve)
that we are in the midst of
at blogging time here...!

And yet, verily,
there is no greater miracle
than the one we are supposed to remember
on this day, in this season -
and no more generous gift
than the one Gifted to us by God
for the Salvation of humankind!

Christmas cheer
and Holiday magic may be all you truly seek though -
this year as every other year
in recent memory...
It is the most wonderful time of the year -
it is a celebration of love
that supersedes that of St-Valentine
and it is far more assembling
than any other special day of the year...

Natal é muito mais de que
uma festa como as outras -
Natal é Deus conosco!

Ainda assim...
And still...

Yes, you can always have nothing but fun
come Christmas Time

Party on, eat, drink,
feast as it is a Great Feast
and the quintessential Festive Season indeed

You can always watch some of the classics
come Christmas Time
and have a good laugh
with friends and family:

Or you can focus on the BEST
- the best Reason for this Season -
and the connection that was made
between the slow, progressive return
of light into our lives
via longer daylight hours
starting now, with the winter solstice,
and the Light that Returns to us
each time we invite Him to -
The Light that is, was and shall be
and that will Return in Glory
to each and every one of us that
accepts His Sacrifice for us -
verily *the* reason why He Came
to be born in a manger
in the very first place!

To give us Light.

This Light:

For the parallel between both lights is a given
and it only makes sense to honor it
- even if Christ was born in July
or some other date like it...!

Thus... CELEBRATE IT IN EUROPE
CELEBRATE IN THE AMERICAS
CELEBRATE DOWN UNDER
AND CELEBRATE IN BOTH POLES!
CELEBRATE IT IN THE THIRD WORLD
CELEBRATE IN THE LOST PARADISE
CELEBRATE ON EVERY OCEAN
AND ON EVERY PEAK!
CELEBRATE IT WITH GREAT CHANTS
AND BEAUTIFUL MUSIC -
CELEBRATE IT IN LOUD VOICE
AND NOT JUST AT THE MIDNIGHT MASS!

CELEBRATE IT
ALL YEAR THROUGH
IN YOUR HEART TOO!
+++

Luminous Crusade

2011-11-11T09:22:00.000-08:00

Want to do something

really special on this date,

this all-important,

all-original,

unique and luminous

date

of our calendar,

11/11/11...?

Embark on a

LUMINOUS

CRUSADE!

For the Holidays

(they are

Holy Days

after all)

For Lent

(it is

a small

rent

to pay

after all)

For Easter

(it is

the true

destiny

of that

time of

the year

after all)

For any given day

or season,

in truth!

Because

such terrific,

mind-blowing,

sense-shattering

NEWS as THIS

- ANY TIME

is the

RIGHT TIME

to spread them,

share them,

dispense them

for the entire world

to see, hear, feel

just how

wonderful

it all gets

to be!

After all,

these are not just

"the Good News"

here -

such tremendous

information

transcends

everything

and every label

that could be applied

to It:

for It is

more than news

- It Is The

Truth!

+++

For everyone that ever

knew, sensed,

believed

that there is a

Greater Meaning

to everything

that surrounds

one and all -

such News

are to be

passed around

RIGHT NOW

and

AT ANY TIME

INDEED:

AMEN!

+++

Luminous Occupation

2011-10-22T07:13:00.000-07:00

Everyone has heard of the Occupy Wall Street movement, these last few weeks...

The gap getting wider and wider between the rich and the poor, the numbers being unequivocal on this subject (400 individuals in Canada owning 56% of the riches - 1% of the good ol'USA having the same that 99% of the rest have to split amongst themselves) - what else is there to do than blow the lie off this crap and shout "IT'S NOT FAIR" - for the whole world to hear?

The whole world has heard and soon joined in the movement, occupying every spot that made sense across the map - trying to rally the majority to DO SOMETHING about it and not allow the minority to get away with it anymore.

The movement appears to be running out of steam now - as winter approaches, all North American towns exposed to it are surely going to stop occupying outdoor space when it gets too cold and unpleasant to do so.

They are not so used to it as the denizens of the Tundra seen above!

And speaking of whom...

The "Occupy Movement" has spawned new and innovative ideas on how to FIGHT BACK - peacefully.

New and, some, age-old concepts regarding the best methods to prioritize when one wants to generate some very real CHANGE...

We, at the luminous blog, can only advocate one thing:
Do like MLK, Rosa Parks and Gandhi

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Rosa Parks
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
- just three of the countless luminaries
(many of which remain nameless,
and thus illustrious unknowns)
who paved the way for change in their own way
and never raised their voice in anger in order to do so.

However, if an angry tone is not required, the ability to promptly deliver the suitable retort in a timely manner will be immensely important -
perhaps even the key to success...

Proverbs 15:23
23 A person finds joy in giving an apt reply—
and how good is a timely word!

Better yet to follow the example of the artistic protester - realist that nothing will ever truly be changed by the hands of man, altruist enough to share what he has with his fellow man but conscious enough that the time for true Sharing, the true Change, it has yet to come and only He Will Bring it about...

And, in closing, a quote...

¤☮♥ PEACE ♥☮¤
The most
valuable possession
you can own
is an open heart.
The most powerful weapon
you can be
is an instrument of peace.
~ Carlos Santana ~

Luminous Return

2011-09-19T07:37:00.000-07:00

It all began something like this...

Never mind the fact that
there was a three-hour delay
before take-off -
it was poetical and lyrical
once we got up in the air
with Air France!

And then it was onwards
to sight-seeing
and luminous tourism!
Here's all the evidence:

Alas, as always, the journey
had to end - and we had to return home, soon enough...

Returning home after a long journey? Have you ever done that?
Of course you have - probably countless times!
Then you know the feeling - one of sorrow mixed with joy. Anticipation mired with sadness of letting go of the new territories ventured into while you are set to come back to your home base, your turf, your old stomping grounds. Trepidation mixed in with resignation - as we know we will soon be embracing routine again and not partake of the free schedule that we had while on our trekking away - be it far away or just in the countryside for a week or less.

Here is the perfect soundtrack for that return trip -
and we at the TLB Prime headquarters provide you with
the appropriate pictures that chronicle it all;
so many snapshots of so many journeys
voyages and explorations
of a world that all belongs to us
and that is so out of reach at the same time.
A parallel universe, verily -
a mere ten hours of flight away...

So, not that the video's cinematography is bad
but we strongly suggest these visuals instead:

More snapshots to be found
on our sister site, Luminous Photography!

Oh, and one would be remiss not to add here,
in closing, that the overall feeling is surely
one of longing indeed -
as we retrace our steps back to the starting point,
we long to go on that journey again.
We long for the original destination all the more.
For the return home
is also, quite paradoxically
and singularly,
leaving home -
one's second home.

Home is where the heart is, they say -
and we can console ourselves
with the knowledge that
there is no distance for the heart
- and time has no effect on it either.

Sempre Por O Melhor
+++

Luminous Cinema

2011-05-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

So rarely do we get to see,

these days,

a truly brilliant use

of cinematography

coupled with

the most worthy

of subject matters

as well...

This is one of the few cases

to come to mind

in recent times:

Are we movie
compatible?

My Flixster
profile

DES DIEUX

DES HOMMES

(Of Gods And Men)

A title that,

at first glance,

might have seemed

highly pretentious -

but it is not at all

for it takes its roots

in The Word:

This movie

redeems many a career:

starting with

lead actors

Lambert Wilson,

Michael Lonsdale

and also

Olivier Rabourdin.

The likes of

Jacques Herlin,

sublime as

Frère Amédée,

and Loic Pichon,

also find here

the roles of their

respective

careers.

The directorial work

is perfectly fit

for the tale retold here:

the story of heroic

courageous

and luminous

indeed

fortitude

in the face of

terrorism

and savagery.

And all of it fueled

by that most

wonderful

sustainance

of all -

FAITH.

+++

I cannot say enough

about this movie,

verily -

so I invite all

to see it

ASAP.

Here is the preview:

+++

Luminous Anniversaries!

2011-05-08T12:34:00.001-07:00

25 years -

since 1986...

20 years ago

(18 May 1991)
Helen Sharman

became the first

British citizen

to go into space

20 years ago

(15 May 1991)
Edith Cresson

became first woman

Prime Minister of France

40 years ago

(30 May 1971)
NASA launched

the space probe

Mariner 9.

It became the first spacecraft

to orbit another planet

(November 1971)

40 years ago

(19 May 1971)
Death of Ogden Nash,

American writer

of humorous poetry

50 years ago

(25 May 1961)
U.S. President John F. Kennedy

gave his famous

‘man on the moon’

speech, in which

he urged Congress

and America

to commit itself,

before the end of the decade,

to landing a man on the moon

and returning him safely to earth

If you believe

they put a man on the moon...

50 years ago

(5 May 1961)
Alan Shepard

became the first American

to travel into space

75 years ago

(27 May 1936)
The British ocean liner

‘RMS Queen Mary’

began her maiden voyage

75 years ago

(22 May 1936)
Aer Lingus,

Ireland’s national airline,

began operating

80 years ago

(1 May 1931)
The Empire State Building

in New York City, USA

was officially opened

To think that

it could have crumbled

to dust

at the age of

70 -

if there hadn't been

another prime target

in NYC...

200 years ago

(14 May 1811)
Paraguay

declared its

independence

from Spain

Take that,

colonialist

spaniards...!

Oh,

and there were

two or three more

*significant*

anniversaries

this month,

too...

But that would be

too much information

now...!

Source

Light - Luz - Lumière - ΦΩΣ - светлина

2011-04-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

JESUS HAS RISEN

The Son of God made man
rose from the dead
as He Had resurrected
the dead Himself.

JESUS-CHRIST
THE CHRIST
THE MESSIAH
rejected by the unbelievers
discredited in the most idiotic ways
by those who were foolish enough
to be led to unbelief
by the adversary's tactics -
and they are many, those tactics,
so very many...

JESUS IS THE WAY
and that, despite all attempts to it,
can never be denied.

FOR HE ALONE VANQUISHED DEATH
HE ALONE CAST OUT DEMONS
HE ALONE DIED FOR OUR SINS

THIS EASTER
we at The Luminous Blog
aka TLB Prime
celebrate the Resurrection
the Salvation
and the Promise of Our Lord
in total and complete ORTHODOXY -
complete with the beautiful chants
that are as unique as they are
divinely inspired and beautiful!

THIS EASTER
I, luminous luciano,
reiterate my conviction that
GOD ALMIGHTY
looks not at our differences
He Looks not at how many
different denominations
we have and at what
divides us all -
THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY
God of Israel and all mankind
Looks only at our HEARTS -

And so, we are all welcome
to His Table
just as JESUS SAID...

JESUS

HAVE MERCY ON THIS WORLD

THAT BELIEVES IN THEE
LESS AND LESS
AS THE DAY APPROACHES...

But it was prophesied
to be that way
in the End Times...

GUIDE US
BLESS US
DELIVER US FROM EVIL

AMEN

+++

Luminous Song

2011-04-24T08:08:00.000-07:00

Quinto Aniversário

2011-03-28T06:53:00.000-07:00

````````````````

````````

````

1934-2006

````

```````

``````````````


Homemade memorial para um santo pai

From March to March

From Dust to Dust

The Greatest Pimèntel There Was,

The Greatest There Still Is

And That There Will Ever Be Truly

- For He Was The

Most Patient

The Most Humble

The Most Honest

The Most Dedicated

And The Most Dependable

Of Them All -

Has Been Gone

From Our Midst

For Half A Decade

Already...

He Remains

And Will Always Remain

An Example For Us All.

+++

I shall make sure

of that.

So vows

Luminous Luciano

Nunca me esquecerei de ti,

santo pai

Никога няма да забравя

````````````````

````````

````

1934-2006

````

```````

``````````````

Luminous Women's Day!

2011-03-08T20:00:00.000-08:00

Finally,
it is the
100th
International
Women's Day
recorded in
History!

Never mind the fact that it truly originated
in 1908... So what - some dames skipped a few years,
that's all: routine procedure, especially for those who worked
in the entertainment industry in the 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s!
But that is another story...!

International Women's Day
is the day when we remember
the importance of
women's contribution
to the workforce
- the undeniable need
for their services
in virtually any job
that there is out there
- and the necessity of
both acknowledging that
and rewarding it
with equal pay,
equal benefits
and equal opportunity!

Aye, verily,
it could easily be called
International
Working Women's Day
or better yet
International
Career Women's Day!

But most women,
in truth,
prefer it to be
a simple ode to
Femininity
in modern society!

And we at TLB Prime
agree wholeheartedly with that!
:)

Luminous Review of the Year 2010!

2011-01-09T16:55:00.000-08:00

And so now 2010 is in the record books.
And it would be time to summarize what it has been,
what it has meant for us, here,
at the TLB Prime Network
and everyone that we have known,
whether in the flesh or on the web,
that have supported our writing here
and elsewhere too!
Those who have supported us,
individually or as a team,
and all of our erstwhile colleagues,
friends and family,
- all of them already know
how great 2010 was for us here at TLB!

Verily, 2010 was a Blessed Year!
+++

It was so easy to feel blessed... privileged... anointed even! For, in the year of Our Lord 2010, it all came together for us, on so many levels; it was, truly, the greatest year of our lives!

And we can only say AMEN to that!

Terrific Tyberius saw it happening:
he spotted the signs, upon our arrival there!
Europe expected our arrival, evidently!
Europe expected a king - and queen - to come to them!
And so we did honor them with our presence.
Of all the continents we chose to do this at, Europe was the logical place to choose
- as it owed us, it owed our heads, fitting hardware of gold...
Thus, 2010 was the year of the crowning of the king... and queen too!
Luminous Luciano got his crown -at long last- during his passage in Europe;
how fitting was that!
What's more, and most preciously of all, he got his Queen as well!
And she got him - and her own crown as well!
All of their faithful subjects over the years got dessert too!
Thus, everyone had a grand time
and they all will live ever happily ever after!
AMEN!
+++

At a blue hotel even Chris Isaak could not fathom during his short time as a singing star, the Royal Luminous Couple spent the time of their lives - and then some! The sun never stops shining for them - and even now, as winter endures back upon a North American landscape that has nothing to do with the paradise that was *our* blue hotel...!
The sun still shines on!

Not only did we get to be crowned, my most radiant bride and I got to drink wine from our very own blessed chalice, a Holy Grail that symbolizes our Love Everlasting and one that we shall treasure always!
+++

On foreign land, Luminous Luciano never got too nervous - even when his cell phone was seriously out of range within normal roaming parameters and he could not call anybody anymore! Leaving his beloved bride in the hands of a foreign dentist, he courageously obtained the desired service with all three words that he had mastered of that most exotic language! The rest, of course, is all Greek to him! The rest is a bit of a blur to him - but that is a good thing as it shows how focused on the important things he really was: all that mattered was his queen's smile! If the radiance had not been delivered by the dentist, Luminous and mostly Radiant would have shown sparkles of their legendary righteous zeal! And to think that they were still miles away from their destination - if that had occurred...! Thankfully, Luminous and Radiant visited the land of Aristotle and Plato way before the craziness erupted; thankfully for the rioters, that is!

Amazing paradox it is to behold: whenever one sees two neighboring countries so close to each other, divided only by an imaginary boundary such as a man-made borderline, populated by the very same type of people with common roots trackable back to antiquity... And yet the idiosyncrasies are so very different indeed, as are the languages and cultures. The political climates are as similar as they are distinct too; the particularities and complexities of it all being so vastly different even as they affect the population in the very same ways on each side of said border! Two that could easily be one - and yet they are not. And even the weather seemed to reflect that, as the snapshot we took indicates so clearly (above: in-between the two borders, while we still rode on a train; the clouds immediately dissipated and were never seen again for the whole week that we treaded upon the ground that Alexander The (so-called) Great once upon a time stood upon...! And yet, for luminous' personal taste, it is far sunnier a climate in the village of German than it is in the troubled streets of Themiscyra right now!
But we are digressing now...)

Equally disparate was the atmosphere in CDG airport and France overall - for, as Québec is, also, the land of le fromage is truly rotten at the core! Do not be duped by the Euro and the legacy of Louis De Funès, Fernandel and Jean Gabin! Sarcophaguzy and the stench of 1001 others are enough to undo all that - and more! However, quite mercifully for us and, once again, thankfully for the Frenchies, Paris was a mere stopover for the Luminous Couple on their way to and back from the Grandest Tour of all...!
+++

Great Things take time; they may not even come all at once, even! And it definitely applies to the Grand Event of 2010 - an event that took place in five separate chapters, verily! February: relocation - which coincided with not only Saint-Valentine's Day but also the Festival Lumière; truly a great coincidence, doubly so if not triply so! June: civil bliss - or making things okay with the law; the flawed earthly side of things though - so flawed it is that it accepts gladly nothing more than common-law dalliances... That might be fine and dandy with the Witnesses, but that is beneath the Luminous Couple! And so onward to August we go: and the Grand Crowning in Europe, before GOD and man... men and women, really... as seen in the picture above! Crowds and crowds battled it out for a peek of the Luminous Couple...! Tyberius The Terrible snapped a few shots here and there, from the back of the august church! We had another paparazzo on the scene too - but he kept his work to himself! To sell it for high ransom on e-Bay, no doubt. September: la Bénédiction Nuptiale, at another august place of worship - Saint-Joseph's Oratory - Luminous Luciano's father's most favorite place on the entire North American continent! The songstress and diva of the Pimentel Clan, Sâo, was present for the ceremony. And then November: the Change! Of pace, of surroundings, of mercantile hobbyism! Followed by another magical twelve days of Christmas...
To sum it all up, it was all simply divine!

And so we met so many friends, new and old, on this glorious year of 2010!
On two continents - and all five islands we know best,
plus innumerable more, throughout the web!
What would be more fitting than to leave them the last word here;
as they wished the luminous couple such wonderful things for the next millennia - and more!
Because true love is forever - and that is what we have!
Two have become one in the Lord's Eyes: and that will indeed last for all time!

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Luminous Christmas Time

2010-12-24T19:05:00.000-08:00

It is -

oh yeah, it sure is

the most wonderful time

of the year!

******** Share It.********

No matter which way you can.

God Bless
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Luminous Science!

2010-10-11T11:10:00.000-07:00

When science and religion combine - either in principle or via their aim and principal objectives - one call verily call it *luminous science* indeed!

Take for example the very first example seen below - of a scientist who sought to find a way to truly travel through time as countless science-fiction yarns have dreamt of doing; and all this to simply please his father. Even though he will not be able to accomplish his ultimate dream -of going back in time and meeting his deceased father when the latter was his own age, for example- he still believes he made use of his scientific mind in such a way that has surely made his father proud. No matter where his father's essence might be, now, his living energy and awareness is proud of the direct descendent he left back on Earth - indubitably.

Recently we saw what dreadful things one can find on youtube.com, especially when dates like "10/10/10" come along...

Today, TLB Prime presents the scientific gems one can find on youtube.com instead - in a way that is practical for us, as well! We chose to post each video that we found interesting one by one - so that you, our luminous online visitors, can discover even more affiliated and related content!

Plus, doing it this way instead of putting on just a single tiny (or not so tiny) embedded screen-of-a-playlist (as youtube makes it so easy to do) we cover much more space so that the posts match TLB Prime's pride and joy - our matchless, extra-long sidebar full of luminous features!

;)

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Luminous Date!

2010-10-09T21:45:00.000-07:00

As in *date on the calendar* - duh!
And, for sure, such a date as *10/10/10* could affect so many, in a myriad of ways...

Ah indeed, all these lives that could change - if they were not lost on a daily basis. All these lives that have gone and will continue to go wayward, misguided, led astray... By whatever teachings that can be. And these "whatever teachings" are everywhere on the web - all over it and, most notably, on websites such as youtube.com! From the boisterous to the outright ridiculous and even blasphemous, these twists on the ominous date of 10/10/10 do not stop. Here are some glaring examples:

Verily, I have found only the hyperlinks kindly provided by Google AdSense and the like along with these videos to make any kind of sense.

Et les voici, here they are:

Future's End
Read a Novel of the Coming Currency
Collapse and Global Apocalypse
www.amazon.com/Futures-End

Armageddon and Beyond
What does the Bible say about Armageddon, and what comes next?

Luminous Sightseeing

2010-09-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Tis time, verily, for another round-up of the best snapshots taken by us, the luminously yours truly, during our grandiose tour of European landmarks... Aye, tis once again but a sample of luminous photography - and we share it here first rather than on any photo-sharing site! (So, sorry, Picasa & Flickr!) For this is, after all, TLB Prime; the original online luminous place and the founding rock of this entire luminous network here! (And, please, Blogger, do not offend us any further by asking us to "upload only pictures that we have the license to use" -for we took all of the following ourselves, using the world-renowned, not-to-mention luminous, Lumix camera! So, there!)

Hence, we simply had to share it here!
Enjoy!
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+++

Luminous Voyage

2010-09-01T20:09:00.000-07:00

Travelers worldwide will chronicle their journeys abroad with ample amounts of digital photography... video recordings via many means of various degrees of high definition results... maybe even some audio recordings, for the technologically-impaired...? Whatever the case, there will be tangible mementos of most every moment, there for posterity - in glorious glossy-color and in terrific two-dimensional splendor!

To capture the MOTION but, mostly, the EMOTION of the events - that is the all-important purpose of it all here!

However, most truly sensible souls will admit that whatever pics that they may have taken during their trips, even at the very right split-second that it is needed to be snapped, they all fail to capture the moment in any real way. As good as the pictures are, they do not capture even one percent of the all-important emotion, which is 90% of the moment right there. And they do not even capture all that the eye was relishing right there and then; no, not even that.

Yet, keeping some record remains a must for most everyone. Some will choose to do so in writing; and such is the most sensible choice, or so do we believe here, at TLB Prime... Alas, not everyone will write fluently; but those who do will do as this edition attempts right here and now - a captain's log! Aren't we all the captains of our lives? Note the difference between this and the traditional diary, which is the path chosen by and the style of many-a-blog here on Blogger and elsewhere... This, in contrast, is an atypical captain's log - with entries at specific times, enumerating events and impressions in as crystalline a way as possible. It is about this site's webmasters' trip to Europe - and Luminous Luciano's much awaited tour there; the first of many... indubitably!

Now that it is all said and done, memories might blur from the departure on with the return trip - but it doesn't truly matter at this point in time...

For all that matters is the EMOTION felt.

Enjoy the account - as it is all real.

==============================================================

August 15th, 2010 - five o'clock in the afternoon, just about...

Trepidation and anticipation are au rendez-vous as we prepare to head for the airport for this long, long journey... Nearly ten hours in the air is suddenly a daunting test to pass with, er, flying colours - quite literally so too! The drive there, long in itself, does a nice prepping up for our spirits to put up with the concept that we will be suspended in extremely high altitude for so many hours - locked inside such a heavy juggernaut as a jumbo jet...! (Ok, OK - it was only an Air France "airbus" to be exact) But nothing shall leave us perplexed on this day - for it is our midsummer journey's beginning!

Five forty-five PM

Right off the bat, the annoying procedures one has to go through in order to finally be allowed to embark on the blamed plane, makes one annoyed beyond description... If one only remembered that -and if this be purgatory- then there can be no doubt that the arrival at one`s () ``final destination`` can only be the apex of the experience itself! (I would have called it ``heaven`` - but let`s avoid going there just yet, ok? If you get what I am screaming...!)

August 16th 2010 - time-difference makes it hard to pinpoint what time it really is - one thing is for sure: it feels like 3AM ETERNAL right now...!

Paris is so glum as we arrive there; gray skies, no sun at all, gloomy! But we care not about that - we will enjoy our time here, no matter what, and then move quickly on to the next city - Sofia!

August 18th 2010 - say, circa midnight?

Sofia is, for our money, a far-more romantic city than Paris could ever be! Pin it on simple things: our frame of minds, personal memories, the history of the place... All we have to do is make abstraction of the poor condition of the 30-year old sidewalks, the sad heritage of the old communist regime there and the innumerable gypsies - and Sofia is the best!!! Paris? Paris sera toujours pourri!

August 24th 2010 - early in the morning...

We have reached Greece! All we could say, for the first few hours, was: ``wow... Calli mera!``

Next Few Days -
Cloud Nine floats through Athens... Lisboa... London...

September 14th, 2010 - time to return; oh no!!!

We shall return abroad - fear not!
And when we do... watch out, Europe!

Sempre Por O Melhor
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Luminous Vacation!

2010-08-14T22:02:00.000-07:00

and, of course, I have to throw in my favorite town from my ol neighborhood... my own backyard... my old stomping grounds... BOSTON!

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For The Luminous Cat Person (And Dog Dude Too!)

2010-07-27T06:51:00.000-07:00

Is it a holiday, today?
Never mind if it is or if it is not - the fact of the matter is that we have finally noticed, after nearly seven years here, that the song with a most fitting title (HOLIDAY) for this blog has *never* been featured on TLB PRIME - aka The Luminous Blog! We cannot be sure about the rest of the TLB Prime Network (too much bandwidth to cover, you know...) but we can safely say that we have indeed skipped this one here, despite the fact that it is a natural for this site in many and mostly certain aspects...!

Let us remedy to this situation right here and right now, then: and with style, on top of that! For Mad-Onna has a rightful successor, a heir apparent that has fans going *gaga* over her - and there's this latest hit playing all the time these days, everywhere -the latest hit on an impressive string of consecutive hits for the budding "star"; although we may have mentioned before our reserve in mentioning "stars" and "superstars" for anything that is not indeed a celestial object- but that is digression right there...

Hence, that hit song -Alejandro- which could, conceivably, be about the name of some saint out there - was recently amalgamated with the previously mentioned Holiday by the Mad One; and the result amalgamation (aye, amalgamation, we said; not abomination!) is titled "Holiandro"...!

Enjoy the meeting of the minds - and of two eras - that follows:

That was something else, was it not!
:p

Many thanks, for the discovery of this remix, to the new addition to the blogroll bunch of brilliant blogs, linked here, somewhere, on the long -and luminous- sidebar. Upon finding it (or simply clicking here) you will discover the brilliant blogger in question, all the latest news on these so-called "stars" (that are not, for they are but mere flesh -flawed flesh; oh-so-very-flawed...!- and bone -bored bone; oh-so-very-boring...!) and much, much more! It is an exciting blog to visit often, for it is up-to-date and fresh; all that and funny as well! Thus, look up the kitty kitty person - soon!
(Just keep on scrolling down and looking on the right end of the screen, if you are using Internet Explorer -whatever version- or look on the left if you are using Mozilla Firefox! They're diametrically opposed, those two - you know...)

I would be remiss if I didn't add my own two cents of entertainment news - the sort of thing I usually reserve for a plethora of other blogs, part of the TLB Prime Network - but exceptions can always be made, quite obviously...!

Last week-end, there was this event called "Heavy Mtl" - with the clear implication that the two vowels missing there are "e" and "a"... It made us think, here, at the TLB Prime Network, if there could be one such thing as "luminous metal" too...? We pondered the question some more and came up with a list of... suggestions. Or subject-cases. Submitted for your approval...

Corny thing, if there ever was one - Korn, a band that was present and one of the headliners to boot, at this Heavy Mtl thing, was not to be found anywhere on playlist.com... Too bad. Another fascinating subject-case, P.O.D. I think they are called, was nowhere to be found either. There were only a single song-per-case to be added there, in any case...

"Heavy Mtl" wasn't a rowdy thing - by the way, surprisingly... Only one lone ambulance was required to be on the scene, rumor has it... Heavy Metallists can behave themselves - so there is hope for the zealots and radicals out there, yet! But that is another story...

I would be remiss, once more, if I ended on that note, without leaving you a chance to listen to the original "Alejandro" - other stuff to go "gaga" over - AND plenty others, from this latest crop of "new talent" that could never hope nor dream to ever replace the singing and artistic talent of yesteryear...

But they keep on trying - kudos for that, kiddos!
;)

+++

Luminous Top Ten

2010-07-17T21:46:00.000-07:00

+++

C'est Ça, La Canada!

2010-07-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

LA (not 'le') CANADA!

This year, I will tell you what LA CANADA really is, folks!

An historical mistake, a geographical anomaly, brought forth by France's stubbornness at trying to be as good as the British were abroad and in general...!
But, of course, they were not - as plainly evident on those Plains of Abraham, where the sheepish Montcalm fell prey to Wolfe and company...!
Louis-Joseph, malgré tout son calme, fut le premier a s'essoufler avec un "James!" - bien avant quelconque Bond Girl...!
Waterloo allait bientot confirmer tout ça... right, Nap?

The Act of Quebec, upon the arrival and taking over by the victorious British, was an unnatural act if there ever was one in all of HISTORY...!
The Brits were just too civilized, that is what the problem was (initially, anyhow - because the problem soon grew, and grew, so disproportionally that, from mere annoying tiny wee-bit French presence on the continent where they never belonged in the first place, to a major pain you know where...! But I am digressing right here and now...)
The Brits should have simply kicked back all those ruffians and Filles du Roy back where they came from - that's right, they should have simply deported the whole lot of them and started anew with fresh new rabble; the bowery-dwelling unwanted from London instead of the miserable French rejects from Paris!
Alas, that is not what they did - the British Commonwealth soon was born with, in its midst, a bastard mish-mash of French, Métis and assorted rebels as its very obvious -painfully obvious- balck sheep of the family...

Some of these rebels were deemed LOYALISTS rather than anything else - because they fled the recently freedom-intoxicated (and newly-created) "United States" and were simply relocated themselves - to the newly-acquired colony nearby... la Canada!
They just came, en masse, to add to the burgeoning problem there; in Nova Scotia but, most of all, in Quebec!

In fact, the Canadian Mistake is in so many ways an offshoot of the insurrection and creation of the USA, that it isn't even funny!
LA CANADA - IS A SIDE-EFFECT!!!

As mentioned before, on this and other blogs from my network, the very name "CANADA" has at least five different possible origins - all intertwined too! What most likely happened is that they all chain-produced the other: the Portuguese said "nem cana dà aqui" and then the Spaniards inspired themselves of it to coin their cute little designation for a channel and then the Natives borrowed, liking the sound of it, and christened their primitive village like that! The other likely origins of the word come from a five month-old brat circa 1536 and a dead drunk aborigène named Poked-Eye Skunk...

Due to the monumental mess in Europe during the Napoleonic Wars, on one hand, and the similarly humongous madness going on the American side (with natives like Tecumseh involved) LA CANADA was left to... flourish, actually! As much as any wasteland ready to give away up to a thousand acres to any so-called "loyalist" (be he German, British, Native or even French!) willing to take up residence there and start populating it WILL...!
And they say the USA is a melting pot - LA CANADA was at it CENTURIES before them, dudes...! But I am digressing again - eh.

And this new country that wasn't one had ONE crucial foundation for its financial stability - no, it wasn't gold, as had hoped the foolish king of France and his emissary Jacques Cartier, and no it wasn't the riches of 1001 spices, as other foolish ones, still dreaming of the famed passage to the Indies, were dreaming of... No, it was FUR - to be more specific, BEAVER FUR. Gross, EH. How long could that last! Not long at all, of course, and, as the "NorWesters" and Hudson Bay company started noticing that decline, some new arrivals began to, timidly, try and make this infertile land produce more than CANA - and more than a measly four months per year or so too!!! 1835 was a horrible year - but they would get a hang of handling four seasons... eventually! All they had to do was hang in long enough for their more enterprising and far more resourceful neighbours, the Americans, to find a way to export to them all of their produce and know-how: and there wouldn't be a famine for all twenty-five of the settlers and their cows, just yet! (Okay, I jest - there were more than 25 by then...! And if anyone thinks of slamming my anti-canada tone here, I shall direct you to feu TCH, wittiest soul of Nova Scotia and father to one Sam Slick...! Irrefutable evidence, once again, that even among abysmal masses, a sharp intellect can arise - once in a blue moon!)

Then it was insurrection time for la Canada as well: of course, it was rather pitiful if you compare it with the Terrible Thirteen that fought back the British Empire and became the United States of America! La Canada's insurrection was, first, in 1837 - some folks voiced their preferences towards a more British-style of life, others were impressed of the newly-created American way and still others just wanted to go back to the woods and commune with the raccoons and the beavers - that still lived, that is!
In fact, ever since the pathetic Constitutional Act of 1791, that was meant to prevent another USA happening in La Canada, all the battles had petty bickering between religious factions and budding political clans...! No wonder that all it begat, some 150 years later, was an idiotic oxymoronic QUIET REVOLUTION...!

Montréal began its lamentable tradition of rioting that leads nowhere fast right there and then, in 1837 - the PATRIOTES were the cause that time, not the paradoxically-named (for a town that heads a province that wants to SECEDE from la CANADA) Montreal CANADIENS...!!!

Places where nothing happens like EVER (like St-Eustache) were the primary battlegrounds between the doomed-to-lose-from-the-very-beginning Patriotes and the regime in place... And to think that all this was NOT kick-started at all by a French dude (as it should have been - right?) but by an "IMPETUOUS IRISHMAN" instead, one Edmund Bailey O'CALLAGHAN!!! Makes complete sense... Next, South American guerillas will come and train the FLQ how to get things done...!

Pathetic - La Canada!

I could go on with the history lesson - like, forget the Colbert Report, read the Durham Report - and weep! (Maybe due to laughter - but still!)

Think Dubya sucked eggs - watch the likes of W. Laurier and Mackenzie King administer a messy nation!

La Canada's inflated ego, and the way it is de facto perceived by all the other nations worldwide, betrays the truth of its origins as, indeed, but an off-shot of the US of A...

Amidst the G8 or the G20, La Canada is but a lackey to either its former colonial power or its super-power neighbor...

Any so-called nation that treats its people the way La Canada treated Louis Riel and André Mathieu doesn't deserve much respect, anyway...!

That is exactly what the artistic community does for it - as their funding diminishes and dwindles to next-to-nothingness with each year that goes by, the nation without an identity becomes one without arts too. It finally becomes one without class with this crude new "dance" called... La Canada! Local by-product André-Philippe Gagnon created his masterpiece with this one, while he mainly impersonates Julio Iglesias, quite paradoxically... (I mean, Iglesias has absolutely NOTHING... NADA... to do with NEM CANA DÀ!)
Still, the video linked here, still found on YouTube after all these years, remains the truest tune about this country that there ever was - and the gem in Gagnon's entire career (sort of like his Amish Paradise - rejoice, A-P, I compared thee with an American - albeit Weird Al!)

Enjoy, most especially, Gagnon's impersonation of http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Chrétien (playing the tambourine!) and those of Montreal local celebrities such as the former Montreal Canadien, then New Jersey Devil player Stéphane Richer, then-Prime Minister Pathetic Brian Mulroney and some gay gossiper who used to be on French television a lot... All that and the presence of two actual Montreal Canadiens players who do not seem to understand what this song is really saying, otherwise, one would think, they wouldn't have been a part of it, right? Right!

LA CANADA -
THE COUNTRY THAT TAKES THREE STEPS FORWARD
AND TWENTY-FOUR STEPS BACK!
(Anytime of the year -
twice more often when they're being the USA's patsy!)

It is EXACTLY as the song says...!

With all that,
Happy Canada Day... EH

:p

The Longest Yawn

2010-06-21T19:23:00.000-07:00

Today was the longest day of the year!
The Longest Day Of The Year 2010!
The longest day in the northern hemisphere, which automatically means that June 21st is, de facto, the day of the year 2010!
The best day of all, for it is the one with the most sunlight!
The day with the most light may not necessarily mean the day with the most enlightenment, but then that dubious honor could be given to just about any other day of the year in which multiple monumental goofs are inanely committed worldwide, so there...!
The longest day of the year simply means one thing, above all: the longest stretch of uninterrupted daytime we can ever possibly hope for around these parts - barring any intervention from dark clouds and a stormy weather forecast, that is!

The Longest Day 2010 is also the Summer Solstice 2010 – aye, the longest day of the year is a benchmark of the seasons too; a watermark that helps us set apart the meaningful days of the year from the bogus holidays such as, say, June 24th in Quebec or July the 1st in both Quebec but mostly Canada - just to give a couple of examples, eh... We call them summer solstices (or the longest days of our years) when days are, quite magically enough, longer than nights - and not just in appearance either! Of course, deep down, we all wish our nights to be longer, especially when we have to rise early the next day... The only ones who have ever wished for the opposite are either sado-masochists or the cast of From Dusk 'Til Dawn - but that is another story...!
Solstices are practical thingies too - being a barometer that regulates the time between Spring planting and Autumn harvesting; or harvesting and planting anew, as the cycle continues! Trees are still growing (amazingly enough, with all the abuse humanoids put mother nature through...!) and so is (practically) everything else (a miracle in itself - one that confirms the Existence of God, by itself! Aye - tis another story too...) thus we can carry on yawning as if nothing important has ever occurred in the course of the Days Of Our Lives...!
(Nothing ever did either - not since season 12, I think...!)
(It is another story, yes - again.)

The Longest Day of the Year, hence...

And have you done with it... eh?

+++

Quatrième Anniversaire

2010-03-22T18:49:00.000-07:00

Faz agora quatro dias, santo pai
que tu partiste;
quatro dias para ti -
quatro anos para nôs.
Olha por nôs
como nôs olharemes por ti
pelo os ultimos tempos

Que a Vontade de Deus
Seja Feita
+++

I always looked at Peter Gabriel's body of work as something that could release emotion in you - especially the most nostalgic of emotions. How surprising it was to learn that he felt that said body of work did not include a song worthy of such a thing - and so he created one, back in 2002, to help people cope with the pain of September 11th of the previous year...

He titled the song, quite fittingly, "I Grieve."

How fitting, also, that I discover the song as I sat here, watching one by one again all the videos (those that are still available, granted) that I had embeded onto the famous Honor Page dedicated to my father, back on the ill-fated GeoCities (fear not - the highlights of the Honor Page are preserved here - almost a whole year before GeoCities' own unceremonious demise...)

And so it was that, after viewing for the umpteenth time Peter Gabriel's "San Jacinto" (which, to me, is a song that contains precious hope and enlightened lyrics about the afterlife, an afterlife in which "we will walk... on the land... we will breathe... of the air... we will drink... from the stream... we will live... Hold The Line!" - all this in a song that is titled with my father's middlename!) that I discovered... I Grieve.

So fitting.

I Grieve.

And I still do, four years later...
Aye I do.


Homemade memorial para um santo pai

+++

Et La Lumière Fût!

2010-03-03T18:19:00.000-08:00

Luminous Luciano Was There!

Luminous Lumiere 2010

2010-02-26T08:44:00.000-08:00

I can finally be truly proud of being stuck in the dead of winter - with the dead of winters past, the dead (in spiriti - no typo) of winter present and the soon-to-be-dead of winters future...!

For, this year, there shall be light indeed!
Aye, there shall be light on the dreary streets of Montreal - streets that remain covered in slush (that disgusting mixture of snow, rain and car emissions! NOT for the weak of stomach!) and other detritus...
But I find myself digressing yet again - deviating from the core subject here, so soon, and it must not be, because the core subject is... LIGHT!

Hence the fact that it gets to be spotlighted here - on the Luminous Blog!
(Duh.)

Every year since... well, not all that long ago really... there is a festival that comes along, way ahead of the season of festivals, that truly stands out from the rest of the pack for me - and that is, of course, the MONTREAL HIGH LIGHTS FESTIVAL - better known as (truly better known as) the MONTREAL EN LUMIERE festival! Because, indeed, for once, the French appellation is infinitely better than the English one - merely due to the fact that it evokes much greater incandescent things than mere "highlights" (which could be, ultimately, no more than a scoreboard, a recap of the events and unevents of the week and some sordid blow-by-blow report as well... see what I mean?!?)

LUMIERE alone is a word that evokes so much more - and it is unquestionably the key word here!

The expression "mettre en lumiere", which is heavily implied here, also evokes much more than a mere succession of spectacles and showmanship - for me, at any rate, it does and so should it *for thee*...!

For there is so much to shed light upon in and around Montreal - as much as there are so many to enlighten out there...! Digression, I know...!

Mind you the same applies to any other town, village, township or whatever - but that is a given... I just focus on this particular sleazy city for the specific reason that it is where the festival is at; that is all!

This year, though, the festival is honoring a portion of its mosaic that deserves the spotLIGHT indeed - Montreal High LIGHTS its Portuguese community in 2010 (and I am not sure why! Is it the original immigration wave"s anniversary, again...? Or a subsequent wave"s? I have no clue! And it matters not anyhow!)

The evidence is here:

Further more, every Montrealer is invited to refine their taste buds as well - put away the damn beer and drink some fine WINE, at last! Not just any wine either but the fine wines of Portugal:

And, on top of all that, this year, they have invited everyone "that matters" in relation to the theme bestowed upon the festival - and that means every Portuguese stalwart there can be (by the flavor of the moment standards) in various fields of expertise too...

Guests of honor include, thus, the likes of gastronomic chefs such as Rita Chagas, Rui Paula and Leonel Pereira as well as singers of all styles (still mostly fado though) from Misia and Ana Moura to the multi-talented thespian Maria de Medeiros (pictured below) who can indeed also SING...! I had no idea, until this festival revealed this tidbit of trivia to me! Thanks, Montreal En Lumiere! Thank you very much (I guess...!)

Just what we needed - a Portuguese version of Carla Bruni.
Viva Portugal!

Of course Montreal En Lumiere tries to tack on some artists, chefs and others that have no business being remotely associated with Portugal - such types as Yann Perreau, Matt Herskowitz and (yikes) Zachary Richard...! The only thing these guys have in common with Portugal is their envy of its climate, fine wine and fine weather, and liking to travel there in order to escape the dreariness of the Montreal winter...!

That is nothing though compared to the affront of seemingly pairing up this "tribute" to Portugal with the "mid-life crisis of Dionysus" - in all its orgiac excesses... Shame on you, festival organizers, for lumping all that crap in with the "honor" to Portugal...! (Although I am sure that the star of "Henry and June" on the silver screen and star of "Sextet" on stage, Medeiros, does not mind this convergence at all - but that is her prerogative and hers only... It is her forte and niche as well - but this is yet another digression, I am afraid...!)

Oh - and was the presence of Tony Gouveia truly necessary, tell me?

Or rather - do not!

+++

Luminous Reminder...

2010-01-27T19:45:00.000-08:00

He
Died
for you

Believe It

+++

2010 Is Here!!!

2010-01-01T17:42:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Now

do considerably

BETTER

than you did

the last time out...!

WILLYA?!?

+++

Simply Having A Luminous Christmas...!

2009-12-25T10:00:00.000-08:00

Luminous Memory Gospel

2009-12-12T19:20:00.000-08:00

This... is TLB Prime!
First in a series of sites collectively known as
the TLB Prime Network!
For a rudimentary first glimpse at said network
check out this profile -
hyperlinks found here as well as
on the portfolio site titled "Luminous Writings"
will lead you to realize the full breadth of this network
and see its entire scope too...!

Prepare yourselves to be dazzled
in song... word... and image!
All throughout this network, verily...!

All in the spirit of sharing Truths
and the collective memory -
and speaking of which...

Images Put To The Music By Moby (Of The Same Name)
The Greatest B-Side Ever, For My Money - "Memory Gospel"

(See the playlist below, actually...!)

(What Did I Tell You About Never Dismissing B-Sides
And Tracks 9 Through 13
On Any Given CD - Hmm?
But that is another story...!)

This Trip Down Memory Lane Is Brought To You In Conjunction With
The Saudades Blog
- as it well has to be!

Luminous Playlist above
includes the immortal track
right here:

'Tis either a fan of mine

or the actor chosen to portray *me* -

LP!

Luciano Pimentel -
aka Luminous Luciano
your friendliest superhero!
(For, as you can well see,
my stunt double is running
to a crime scene -
to be of some succor,
surely!
I'm always there to help, too!
Never mind that my stunt double,
in fact, really looks like
a former colleague of mine
and not me at all!
But it is another story too...)

My personal anthem sure is
a tad bittersweet though...!

Aye -
It comes with the territory!

One cannot reach out for
Luminescence
without having to make
several sacrifices...

Luminance is not
easily obtained -
not even by proxy!

Luminosity,
even when one uses mirrors
(but never any smoke -
never! TLB Prime is,
quite mercifully,
a no-smoking zone!)
Luminosity, hence,
is not for all...

Alas...

Many are those, out there,
who would agree with such a statement -
many of them are on my side,
many more are my adversaries...!
They have my number and I have theirs...!

But I am digressing now...

It's all good, still -
as long as my memory doesn't play tricks on me!
It won't, either, mind you;
this last bit (about adversity and such)
is purely rhetorical, really...!
Just make sure you listen to
Memory Gospel
while you browse around here...!

***Luminous Loitering!***
allowed!

God Bless!
+++

!!!

2009-10-30T08:25:00.001-07:00

What Do You Have To Be Thankful For On Canadian Thanksgiving... Eh?

2009-10-12T10:45:00.000-07:00

Not that you have to be *Canadian* per say in order to be *Thankful* about anything, now...!

After all, isn't it Thanksgiving Day in Australia, too, mate...?

Thus, basically, if you are a flawed HUMAN BEING (and aren't we all just that - flawed, that is)

Be thankful for...

the air you breathe
the food you eat
the water you drink
the comfort you enjoy
the love you share

More specifically, though...

if your name is GATES... be thankful all the cheap tactics made you rich and it's allowing you to hire a squadron of pettifoggers that keep (most) of the millions right where they are...!

if your name is BUSH... be thankful your reflexes are still good enough to dodge shoes - and were never tested by he need to dodge other projectiles...!

if your (attributed) name is BENEDICT (XVI)... be thankful they don't poison popes nowadays - not anymore; not in these highly mediatic days...

if your name is (supposedly) MADONNA (LOUISE, really)... be thankful the competition is not as long-lasting as a Duracell battery - or you!

if your name is (purportedly) "LADY GAGA"... be thankful Lady Godiva cannot sue for defamation and blatant ridiculization of character!

if your name is JESUS LUZ... be thankful Heaven does not employ lawyers - unless It Does So in Mysterious (dare I say Luminous) Ways That actually better this world by extracting one injustice (at least one) from its sorry record of a beaten butt-faced landscape...!!!
But I am digressing all of a sudden...

if your names are ANAHEIM ANGELS... you can likewise be thankful Heaven's Genuine Articles never sued your sorry hides; but most of all be thankful you never run across Hell's variety...
Of curse... I mean, of course... you can also be thankful the Boston Red Sox played of the part of slumbering giants that never woke up, this year - sort of your Anakim... Just don't expect that your reversal of fortune will emulate the Sox' own role-reversal twist against either Cleveland Indians or New York Yankees (circa 2004-2005)...
Remember my luminous phrase: "hope for the best... expect the worst... that way, you'll be primed and ready for any eventuality!"
(So what - either this phrase is in constant evolution or I paraphrased myself! Proof positive I typed all this the old-fashioned way; didn't just copy and paste it like some would do...! But don't make me digress... again!)

But to veer back towards the 49th parallel...

if your name is HARPER... be thankful; you DON'T own a BAZAAR - no one would ever shop in it. Be thankful you DON'T make a career singing "with a little help from your friends" - you would never get any help at all! Be thankful you ARE heading a minority government - that way, you can say that you made so many blunders due to lack of effective ressources...!

I could go on...

But I will not.

Happy Thanksgiving... folks!

+++

A Luminous Example!

2009-06-01T06:59:00.000-07:00

How fitting it is that such a luminous example of courage, perseverence, resilience, generosity and triumph of light over darkness as HELEN KELLER is brought to us by a website inspired by the illustrious and himself luminous (quite so!) NIKOLAS TESLA...!
Two of my all-time favorites, reunited in one place (or two, really - counting this here, TLB PRIME!) on this rainy first of June...!
It helps cope with the lack of sunshine - indubitably!

LikeTelevision Embed Movies and TV Shows

This Day in History - June 1st
Starring - Helen Keller
Directed by - Luminous Anonymous
(2001) - Color - 1 min
The LikeTelevision™

History channel

proudly presents,

This Day in History - June the 1st

On June 1, 1968, Helen Keller died at the age of 87. In infancy scarlet fever had left her blind, deaf and mute. When she was 6, her parents appealed to Alexander Graham Bell for help and he referred them to a semi-blind teacher, Anne Sullivan, who taught Helen to speak with an alphabet communicated by touch. She graduated from cum laude from Radcliffe and gained recognition as a writer. To Mark Twain, her life and accomplishments were equal to Napoleon's. Tirelessly helping others with similar afflictions, Helen Keller left a legacy of light in the face of darkness.

Mark Twain couldn't have been more RIGHT!
Kudos, too, to Mr. Bell (yes - THAT Bell, of course! A kindred spirit of Tesla's, surely...) and of course the astonishing Anne Sullivan, without whom Helen Keller wouldn't have become MIRACULOUS... and so LUMINOUS!

For many more such great examples,
go to the teslaliketelevision website!

+++

+++ A Luminous Truth +++

2009-04-12T12:12:00.000-07:00

Victory over death -
Prophecy fulfilled -
The Promise of Everlasting Life
In The Holy of Holies -
With Our Creator

It is relatively easy
for the skeptical mind
and the unbelieving heart
to dismiss all of this
as just another fable;
yet the evidence is all there.

If this is all but a fable,
why does the Name of Jesus-Christ
strike fear in the hearts of demons

Then again, one has to admit
the very existence of demons
in the first place
in order to accept this bit of evidence
but it truly shouldn't be all too hard at all
for a mere stroll around the block
will fetch all the evidence that you need
in order to prove THAT...!
There are far more evil souls among us today
than are angelic, saintly ones...
And those evil souls that have truly
gone off the deep end
will tremble at their core
when you'll invoke Christ;
for THEY know Who He Is
better than the most devout-in-appearance
lukewarm church-going "believer"...
Now don't read me all wrong here;
I am not encouraging the career choice
of demonic evolution - at all.
Stay as you are:
still a redeemable sinner
that is bad enough as it is!
And that is as bad as it needs to get...!
Stay as you are,
avoid getting any worse,
sinking into sin further more,
and you may yet be saved indeed
by the Lord of lords - Jesus.

JESUS Was Born
He Was Sent
to Redeem us all.
His Coming,
Triumph over death
As His Return
Are Prophesied
By more than a single source.
The mere existence of evil
corroborates His Holiness
and His Being Our Messiah.
Our Saviour.
Our Redeemer.

It has gotten to a point, nowadays,
that His Suffering,
Sacrifice On The Cross
for all of our sins
is nearly not enough -
as the Adversary has sin
at an all-time high
across the globe.

That is why there is still
so much suffering on the planet:
we all have to chip in, too -
suffer our lot
as Simeon, the man who was called
out of the blue
to help Christ Carry His Cross
all the way to Golgotha.
We have to carry the Cross too.
Until the end of time -
until He Returns.
Sword in His Holy Hand -
to chastise those evil ones
who will never accept Him
as their Lord of lords
and King of kings.

KING OF KINGS
LORD OF LORDS
AND THE WAY
HE IS
whether they accept Him
or not.

Profession de foi : Je crois en dieu

Je crois en Dieu, le Père tout-puissant,
créateur du ciel et de la terre.

Et en Jésus-Christ, son Fils unique,
notre Seigneur,
qui a été conçu du Saint-Esprit,
est né de la Vierge Marie,
a souffert sous Ponce Pilate,
a été crucifié, est mort et a été enseveli,
est descendu aux enfers,
le troisième jour est ressuscité des morts,
est monté aux cieux,
est assis à la droite de Dieu
le Père tout-puissant,
d'où il viendra juger
les vivants et les morts.

Je crois en l'Esprit Saint,
à la sainte Eglise catholique,
à la communion des saints,
à la rémission des péchés,
à la résurrection de la chair,
à la vie éternelle.

Amen.

+++

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth.

And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord:
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell;
the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven;
sitteth at the right hand of God
the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge
the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Catholic Church,
the communion of Saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.

Amen.

+++

Creio em Deus Pai, todo-poderoso,
Criador do céu e da terra.

E em Jesus Cristo,
seu único Filho
nosso Senhor.
Que foi concebido pelo poder do Espírito Santo,
nasceu da Virgem Maria,
padeceu sob Pôncio Pilatos,
foi crucificado, morto e sepultado,
desceu a mansão dos mortos,
ressuscitou ao terceiro dia,
subiu aos Céus
está sentado à direita de Deus Pai Todo-Poderoso,
donde há de vir julgar os vivos e mortos.

Creio no Espírito Santo,
na santa Igreja católica,
na comunhão dos santos,
na remissão dos pecados,
na ressurreição da carne,
na vida eterna.

AMÉM!

+++

Have A Luminous Easter Now...!

2009-04-10T15:00:00.000-07:00

He Spoke of loving your enemies
and praying for them.
He Spoke of a greater Commandment
than all other Commandments:
that which consisted of,
quite simply,
loving one another
and forgiving all the times
that one would cross you,
hurt you... betray you.
His reward was to be betrayed too
and beaten mercilessly,
bloodily whipped and tortured,
mocked and ridiculed
by all the lesser-than-He
who finally crucified Him
at the end of a long, long
night and aborning day,
The Day
when
Prophecy Was Fulfilled.

Through all His Preachings,
He Spoke of Love;
God's Love for us all,
The Love That He Embodied
and will always embody.
His Message
was simply not received.

Receive it

now

already

It's still time to do so.

+++

Images courtesy of CrossDaily.com

~+++~

2009-03-28T11:34:00.000-07:00

JoaoJacintoBorgesPimentel

Music dedicated to Joao Jacinto - by Maria Adelina

>

Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel
my father

Born in 1934; Married in 1964 to Maria Adelina; Reborn To The Kingdom Of God in 2006...

Joao Jacinto was a hard-working man from the very beginning - laid back, he would do it as his own pace, much to the chagrin of his brothers who were hard-pressed to finish with work so they could go have some fun... Joao Jacinto was not like that - a quiet, taciturn man even as a young man, his only "peche mignon" was wine-tasting - and that was totally understandable as the family made their own wine. He and his brothers worked on their father's land - cultivating vegetables and grapes; and life was plentiful and good. Their father was very strict and even a bit tyrannical on the side though; and so, the three brothers eventually decided to leave it all behind to start from scratch in a new country susceptible of providing sufficient employment: the Americas! In those days, Canada and the USA were just about one and the same in many Europeans' minds... Canada was easier to get into - and so it was the one all of the Exma Sra. Maria Clara's boys went to, at first...
Unfortunately, once there, the three sons forgot all of a sudden who their envious enemies were - to forgive and forget is an admirable thing, but there is a limit to the forgetting part of that equation... Back in Portugal, the Pimentels were the envy of all - everybody else for miles around were jealous that they owned land, were their own bosses and had never, EVER been domestics - as they were. These envious people were sometimes even sort-of related to the Pimentels - via ill-conceived marriages, again - the bane of many a family... Once in a foreign country, all that was forgotten and all the Portuguese immigrants started to hang out together - the 3 Pimentel Boys actually hanging out with rabble that was beneath them. But, hey - it was all about national unity, kind of... And besides - they all had to start over in the same way - on a same-level-playing field, learning a new language (two eventually) and with no one else around that was a familiar face... Familiar faces are not always friendly faces though...

Their sister stayed back home - with their saintly aunt, Tia Estrela, their mother (who would soon pass away though) and their father (who'd die soon after) - it was actually Avo Anica, Maria Clara's mother, their grandmother to all, who would live longest; she'd be taken into her granddaughter's husband's house. As her granddaughter left for the Americas as well, with her husband, she stayed with that "grandson-in-law"'s family - and they would benefit greatly from it come inheritance time... The land and home of the Pimentels, that had once bristled with life and so much abundance (to the point of being the envy of ALL THE ISLAND OF SAO MIGUEL ACORES) was actually left ABANDONED... Some of it was sold and the sum was split up between the four heirs now residing in North America - with a lot of it going to the caretakers of Avo Anica. They actually had a greater share of the inheritance, because of that, than Joao Jacinto and his brother Jose for instance... The great house was dilapidated. The land, which now could be the basis for a fortune, was left uncultivated for DECADES... But this was nothing compared to the backstabbers Joao Jacinto (and Jose too) would find in "the Americas"...
All of this erroneous distributing of the heritage was directly caused by the poor foresight that dictated to most Europeans verily that "Canada and the USA are the promised land - the economical paradises of the future" (no matter how bad winters can be there!) while, judging from things in the 50s, it appeared to be a pretty bleak future for Europe... No one foresaw the advent of the Euro and the European Union; and that is a crying shame. All they had to do was read the Bible: the "rebirth" of the Roman Empire was clearly prophetized in there...
But, once in Canada, Joao Jacinto realized very quickly that he could not count on anyone but himself. He noticed treachery among those other Portuguese individuals and soon cut all ties to them - his wife, whom he had chosen well, agreed whole-heartedly with that decision, as she had in fact seen that treachery first... Alas, through his wife, Joao Jacinto was linked, once again via some ill-conceived marriage elsewhere on the family tree, to rabble just as bad as those he had just cut ties with - his sister-in-law's husband and the family that came with that... It is deplorable to note, but in his own family, Joao Jacinto would see disappointments - in a cousin in particular, who tricked him with money questions... He never spoke to him again. With all that, it comes as no surprise that, amongst co-workers, Joao Jacinto trusted few (his son is like him!)
Joao Jacinto's own brothers were questionable allies - his brother Jose was a party animal in his younger days (all the way to his latter days, really - only illness slowed him down...) but Jose too would be stabbed in the back by all those so-called friends he seemed to value more than his very own brothers... A certain couple he befriended up in the suburbs of St-Jerome turned out to be nothing but turncoats and no more than party pals - the kind that turns your back on you when you really need a true friend. Jose had many acquaintances like that - he was blind to the truth about them all. Joao Jacinto saw more clearly in most cases - and when he was in doubt about a certain individual, his wife was there to pinpoint the truth about him too...!

Of all the Pimentels, Joao Jacinto is the one most like his mother,
Maria Clara Borges, a true lady - fit for a Royal Court. His mother could have enjoyed the European renaissance, had it been given to happen in her time; truly though, she is far better off in the Court of Courts now - the Kingdom of God, where her own mother, saintly sister-in-law Estrela, sons Joao Jacinto & Gilberto and several others have joined her since...

Joao Jacinto left us way too soon though - his days were not numbered and his departure was sudden, unexpected and avoidable.
It truly is Heaven's Gain - and Earth's loss - as I said during my eulogy in church, during the 2006 funeral mass we held for him. I, his only son, should have done even more for him.
These websites are my way of doing it.

- Luciano Pimentel, March 2007

~The Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi~

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:

where there is hatred let me sow love

where there is injury, pardon

where there is anger, peace

where there is doubt, faith

where there is despair, hope

where there is darkness, light

where there is sadness, joy

O Divine Master,

grant I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console

to be understood as to understand

to be loved as to love

-Show me Your mercy, o Lord, and give me your salvation...

O, infinite Wisdom come and lead me the ways of salvation.

O, Brightness of the Father's Glory, come and enlight me by the shine of Your virtues.

O, the Sun of justice, come and give the light and liveful light to one, who is plunged in darkness of death.
O, King of kings, come to direct me.

O, the Tutor of folks, come and teach me.

O, the Saviour of the world, come and redeem me. (L. da Ponte).

- Father Gabriel of the St.Mary Magdalene

Love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, thy whole soul and thy
whole mind

the highest, purest and most excellent part of this love is absolute
conformity to the Divine Will and having in all things no other will
but God's!
â€¦

He and he alone whose will is perfectly united to God's possesses the
peace of God which surpasses all understanding.

- Blessed Claude de la Colombiere, Trustful Surrender to Divine
Providence

Oracao a SÃ£o Benedito, o mouro

Click here for the original version of this prayer with all the proper punctuation that Geocities and Yahoo appear to abhor...

Glorioso Sao Benedito, bem aventurado seja pela mansidao, paciencia, sofrimento e outras santas virtudes, sempre abenÃ§oado com a cruz da Redencao.
Por vossa humildade e vossa caridade fostes remido na terra para gozar o fruto de vossas obras no ceu, junto ao divino coro dos anjos, uma gloria eterna.
Glorioso Sao Benedito, sede meu protetor amado, concedei-me a graca de que necessito para poder imitar as suas virtudes e as virtudes dos outros santos.
(diga aqui a sua graca pedida)...

Dai-me vigor e constãncia pois sou fraco.
Sem vossa ajuda nao poderei alcança-los nessa vida de espinhos e tropecos.
Ajudai-me, com sua Divina Luz e livrai-me das tentacoes do pecado para que me torne digno da felicidade eterna.
Sede meu guia para a bem-aventuranca eterna. Amem

Sao Benedito, grande confessor da fe, com toda confianca venho a implorar a vossa valiosa protecao.

Vos a quem Deus enriqueceu com os dons celestes, impetrai-me as gracas que ardentemente desejo, para a maior gloria de Deus.

Confortai o meu coracao nos desalentos! Fortificai minha vontade de cumprir os meus deveres!

Vinde orientar-me nas horas decisivas da vida!
Dai-me confianca nos desanimos e sofrimentos. Sede o meu companheiro nas horas de solidao e desconforto.

Assisti-me e guia-me na vida e na hora da minha morte para que eu possa bendizer a Deus nesse mundo e goza-lo na eternidade com Jesus Cristo a quem tanto amastes. Amem.

Psalm 91

New International Version (NIV)

Copyright Â© 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
[NIV at IBS] [International Bible Society] [NIV at Zondervan] [Zondervan]

1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. [a]

2 I will say [b] of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."

3 Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare
and from the deadly pestilence.

4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,

6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.

7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.

8 You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 If you make the Most High your dwellingâ€”
even the LORD, who is my refuge-

10 then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent.

11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;

12 they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

13 You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

14 "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.

16 With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation."

Maria Clara Borges Pimentel - like saintly mother, like saintly son

Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel should have remained in Portugal - taken charge of the family domain and land - been the NEXT PATRIARCH. For only he, among the three sons, deserved to be. He was the more level-headed; the one with the kinder heart and the hardest-working. It would have been an honor to work with him. As it is, I only got to defend him - represent him - take care of his interests - care for him - speak for him, when he lost his speech or even when he bothered not with French...! Dear dad - you never should have bothered with French or English - ever! His hometown of Rosario, Lagoa is not a HAVEN for the well-to-do... And he, who was BORN there and came from a family that OWNED LAND THERE, SINCE ANCESTRAL TIMES, he never went back... I feel that is an injustice, one among many... But he can go back now, as often as he wants - God Permitting! He is free. He is with God.

Rita, Joao Jacinto's niece and Maria Clara's grand-daughter from her son José's marriage to Maria Margarida - Rita is said to look just like her grand-mother (in her mother's opinion)
I respectuously disagree - and so does my own mother; Rita resembles her own mother. The late Paula Ana Pimentel, Rita's sister, did not resemble either her grandmother, mother or even sister - she was rather unique although, in the years before her untimely death, she had grown to resemble her father.
I repeat that, if anyone has facial traits that closely mimic those of Maria Clara Borges, it is my dear father, Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel

Joao Jacinto's older brother, Gilberto. Tio Gilberto was convinced, back in 1993-1994, that my father was going to die first... It was Tio Gilberto himself, the elder, who passed on, in 1996. I bought a condolences card to send, upon learning - Hallmark and all - but it was never mailed by my mother, as she was offended that he had, among other imbroglios, appeared to wish his younger brother dead...?!?
I remain convinced that Tio Gilberto was a kind-hearted man who was often misunderstood - sort of like I can be... The fact is, Maria Clara's first born grew up to resemble his father in many ways; and he died around the same age too... May his soul rest in peace as well.

Sao, filha de Lionilde Pimentel
She has no clue how close it came that she too would be an heir of Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel (not that she needs it!)
Well, now, I guess she will know - upon reading this and her mother's page, linked above! Her mother would have gladly and enthusiastically responded in the affirmative if my father had proposed - but he never did. He never even considered it a possibility...!
See you around - sister! ;)

And then there's me - the son of Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel -
Luciano Pimentel, the 1st...!
Notch one for originality; my father chose a name for me that had previously never been seen in the entire Clan!
With my mother's consent, of course!
For her picture - and my true picture too - you will have to befriend us and, most importantly of all, prove to be trustworthy as well!
Artists like Sao share their picture - I have published here pictures of a younger Rita (nothing too recent - although she is splendid as ever nowadays) and pictures of the departed; but pictures of myself are for close relations only!
Until further notice anyways... (I may no longer have the choice, once celebrity hits me like a truck careening down the main highway always taken by the rich and famous! But, until then...)

Dad's Favorite Films

2009-03-25T17:53:00.000-07:00

Incredible Coincidences
Synchronicity
Everyone has experienced the pleasantly surprised feelings left behind by a meaningful coincidence. The situation itself may be insignificant - the book whose title you couldn't remember falls off the bookstore shelf or an acquaintance who seems to enter your life again and again - but the message inherent in the coincidence may not be. Synchronicity, or the unlikely conjunction of events, can be an eye-opening experience. Psychologist Carl Jung theorized that synchronicities occurred when universal forces were aligned with the experiences of an individual, leading to coincidences that appear to be more than just chance. These incidents happen because everything is innately connected. He believed that such events can be called forth by an individual's unconscious needs. Nothing occurs randomly. Rather, we draw certain people, situations, and blessings to ourselves.

A synchronistic event such as a chance encounter can be positive, negative, or neutral, and feel deeply mysterious or commonplace. Some coincidences are obvious while others are not apparent until after careful analysis. Perhaps during an ongoing financial crisis, you always found just enough money to get by. Or a recurring dream prepares you for an eventual physical event. Many times, synchronicities represent opportunities to learn about ourselves and the external world. If you feel touched by multiple coincidences or intrigued by a single one, ask yourself why you may be attracting the people involved or the situations. Is it highlighting some aspect of your life or suggesting a course of action? The soul, believed Jung, whispers to us through synchronicity calling us to attention.

Seeking the meaning behind a synchronistic event can help you know yourself better, kick start your creativity, or show you future pitfalls to avoid. The most profound coincidences often occur at life's crossroads, stopping us in our tracks and leaving us to find the meaning within.

And remember:
NOTHING ever happens by mere chance.
EVERYTHING has a meaning - every single event, no matter how trivial it may seem "right on the spot" is an opportunity to learn, to grow - spiritually.
Yes, that means that the way you react towards your fellow aggravating man, or a simpleton or in the face of outright evil is GOD'S WAY OF TESTING YOU.
Even when it seems to be but an insignificant few seconds to get through before your next all-important activity (and it is only "all-important" in your flawed perception - of course.) - IT IS FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOU THINK!
So, you really should show curtsey towards all, even the rabble - how can you know that the rabble is not angels in disguise, sent to test you?

;)

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Some Kind Of Luminous Blabbering...!

2009-03-24T17:47:00.000-07:00

Every warrior of the light has been afraid to enter a combat.
Every warrior of the light has betrayed and lied in the past.
Every warrior of the light has lost faith in the future.
Every warrior of the light has trodden a path which was not his own.
Every warrior of the light has suffered because of unimportant things.
Every warrior of the light has doubted that he is a warrior of the light.
Every warrior of the light has failed in his spiritual obligations.
Every warrior of the light has said yes when he meant no.
Every warrior of the light has hurt someone he loved.

That is why he is a warrior of the light: He has endured all this, and not lost the hope to improve.
-Paulo Coelho, "The Manual of the Warrior of Light"

I been reading a book about Spiritual Warriors this is written by a African American Vaishnava and also graduated of Princeton who became a true guiding light for many people around the world i most admire His simplicity and humility in talking about this matters.
I've never been really clear on just what is a "spiritual warrior". In my practice we use the term "disciple", so maybe it's the same thing, because we struggle against the Dweller on the Threshold as we make our way toward conscious awareness of ourselves as the Solar Angels (Soul on Its own plane).
Are you speaking of someone who helps other people without thought of return? Who serves Humanity in a spirit of altruism? That would be the same thing as a "disciple", so we may be talking about the same thing, only using different lingo.
The hero within...
i do not know if you are familiar with carol pearsons book the hero within-six archetypes we live by. it was written in 1944 and i have been reading and rereading it for 20yrs. anyway there is a chapter that describes the warrior within " the warrior has learned to trust their own truths and act on them with absolute conviction even in the face of danger" "They claim the authority to fight dragons and right wrongs" "They accept responsibility for what happens around them and the attitude that I must do what i can to make this a better world for myself and others"
we are all called at one time or another to be spiritual warriors, to stand and fight, sometimes to the death, for our beliefs. Martin Luther King jr is a good example of the spiritual warrior. i don't know if this helps answer any of your questions or not.
Spiritual Warrior is a contradiction in terms of the meaning of each word. Spirituality has nothing to do with war, conflict with others, weapons, etc. Warrior is about the willingness to stand up and fight for something physically and with weapons.
my opinion is being a true warrior has nothing to do with physical weapons. but this is just my opinion. i think the media has tainted our vision of what a warrior is. one can find many definitons for the word, my personal favorite is " One who is engaged aggressively or energetically in an activity, cause, or conflict: neighborhood warriors fighting against developers."
Physical warriors engage in physical battles with weapons of destruction and their end result is destruction. Spiritual Warriors engage in protection, righting wrongs, teaching. Nonviolent, but create change-cause people to evolve-a spiritual warriors battles create and nurture.
but if anyone finds the word offensive they have every right to use a different term.
<>
Those are wonderfull tools of the warrior
When we reverse them we can see the weapons, of what we can call our (symbolic) foe! or if I may borrow a term- Nancy used the Dweller! If we think of this negativity more as a Loki character filled with mischief and deception-it doese not appear that powerful
There is one other, although we here, understand materialism also includes our outer shell. We can not all be marathon runners but if we are at our physical best then our power over ourselves is also at its highest!
Ill term attraction and repulsion rather than the obvious, As when we make serious progress the stakes will get higher (cosmic law)
So first aid kit- just in case!
(A)earth, (B)air, (C)fire, (D)water, (E)spirit (F) sound
(A)crystals minerals organic life, (B)inscence organic smells (C) colours temprature (D) fluids (E) will intent- already covered. focus! (F) what we say, music the sounds of our world
(A) better folk than me should say!
(B) As with the list some attract some repel -good and bad and obviously affect us also. most of them we already know or can work out! the smell of babies would bring forth positive energies as well as dispelling that which cannot concieve- whereas the smell of myrrh and frankenscence will just attract anything! Sage rosmary lavender repels all negative and binds positive.carefull though too much can relax our organs- the smell of blood attracts negative as doese the things we dont need to mention!
ive gone on too much ------ Yshua taught us much as to what to say and many other great teachers from whichever path we follow!
This is a subject, very close to my heart...
I think that in using such a name, we need to consider 'our' individually perceived concept of the term, by viewing such in the broadest sense...
This cannot be done from within a restricted mind, with blinkered vision; or from within an absolute, where nothing but conformity is considered practical or ethical ...
To be a 'Spiritual Warrior' it would seem logical for one to be outside all barriers and restrictive practices, because it is from that stance or perspective only, that a full spectrum of all that is available, can be seen and appreciated for its many or true values - in any conflict...
The first step to becoming a Spiritual Warrior, is, without doubt, the abolition of fear... For such will close many or most avenues of negative thought and practice: so detrimental to such a cause...
It also enables the conservation of positive energy, which can be used in more practical ways, to promote or further any cause; or dispel conflict: in which such a character might be engaged...
The Dweller on the Threshold is the sumtotal of all the forces of the lower nature as expressed in the personality prior to illumination. So it's more than a jokester kind of figure, it's in dead earnest to keep its position as top dog. We could, I suppose, use the term "Spiritual Warrior" to describe the one who seeks to fearlessly overcome all these lower forces.
The only problem for me is that "war" has its roots deep in matter, and is not the opposite of peace. It seems to me the concept of "spiritual warrior" may be an attempt to create an antidote for the physical violence of war. Any thoughts? Namaste
The funniest image just came to mind as I was reading over the posts. A beefeater. You know, not as in vegetarian vs. meat, but the guards in England with the tall black hats and red suits.
So this topic seems to want to have to do with those who stand their ground at all costs in the name of being the ambassadors or agents of change for a cause.
I'm thinking warrior sounds too active in the aggressive sense. One who goes out and seeks the competition. Whereas a guard would be someone who stands their ground in the face of opposition to keep the palace or individuals therein safe from harm.
How about "Spiritual Guardians" rather than "Spiritual Warriors"?
Spiritual Warrior is a term that I like to look at archetypically instead of literally, and only makes some sense if one views it from a dualistic view.
I first was introduced to the term "Spiritual Warrior" when I was a member of a traditional Christian demonination. Spiritual warfare was a term used in that sector as the "Holy" vs. "Evil" camps...Jesus vs. Satan, that sort of thing.
It seems that in the New Age arena, "Lightworker" may be another term closely related to this idea of spiritual warrior.....the 'war' (if you will) is to bring Light to bear upon the Dark....healing to bear against dis-ease....Love to bear against fear.
To a certain extent, the whole Care2 community that is involved in environmental protection, political activism, human rights, holisitic healing, and organic living as Spiritual Warriors!
As an archetype, I see the Spiritual Warrior as one who strives to bring Heaven to Earth, so to speak. They are engaged in doing what they can to bring liberation to the oppressed, hope to the lost, and comfort to the hurting. They stand in full awareness and accountability as Godd's emissaries on the physical plane. They understand that the physical is subject to the spiritual - and view their lives as channels for Divine intentions of peace, love, and joy.
Namaste,Janey (aka Sweet J)

The Beefeaters are a wonderful example.They have to stand their ground whilst the general public mock them throw things at them,but they do not flinch.Unless you try to pass through them! this was one of the ideas behind the use of negative force within the golden dawn and gnostics.If we can control the negative forces when manifest As with the example of jesus in the wilderness.However developement to this level takes a lot of work and the negative energy is much stronger now! and i would strongly recomend that people do not follow this path.
Sweet J -
seems to have summed it up nicely. I would only like to add a bit of emphasis to truth. It take a real spiritual warrior to find and face the truth about himself/herself and the world in which we live. The greatest and most critical battles occur within ourselves. Truth is the light by which we see clearly to chart our course and it often takes real courage to accept the truth and stand by it in the face of opposition within and without,but this is the way to make things better.The real spiritual warrier,I think,opens his/her eyes fearlessly to truth,however much it hurts.
my intent is not to offend anyone with my ideals for i realize they are just mine and would never present them as a dogma that must be followed by all or anyone. Everyone has their own paths, their own enlightments, their own spirituality. As for me though i am proud to be a warrior. i joined care2 in order to battle, not with weapons of destruction such as guns or bombs but with the weapons of change--my voice,my signiture, my time, my finances. i believe that i am only a small living organism that is a part of a larger organism, i am part of a community (local, national, and global). i warrior against my country slaughtering thousands of people in a war, i warrior against countries that participate in slave marketing of women and children, i warrior against hunger,poverty, i espically warrior against the destruction of the larger living organism i am a part of-earth. my list could go on and on. my belief is that as a spiritual being i must also reconize and face the realities of my physical existence, tempered with the wisdom,love,and compassion of my spirituality. i am a physical being, a intellectual being, as well as a spiritual being and my goal is to live in a balance and harmony of my triad. so i also must warrior against my own inner dragons and beast. so please forgive if i offend you by stating i am proud to be a spiritual warrior, for it just may be that i have not evolved yet to that higher spiritual level, but my goal is to evolve and allow others to also.
Spiritual Witnesses
There is nothing new in heaven or earth. We are empowered by our spirituality to witness love, care, upliftment, peace, harmony, etc. to ourselves and fellow travellors. How often do we listen to this still, small voice within our human breast?
Nancy's examples of some wonderful witnesses to spirituality certainly listened and acted upon their own voice of reason and love.
I think of warriors archetypically as well. Carolyn Myss says that warriors have the light attributes of strength, skill, discipline, and toughness of will. Heroism, stoicism and self-sacrifice in conquering the ego. She says the sharow attributes of the warrior are trading ethical principles for victory at any cost, and indifference to the suffering inflicted on others.

Sandee Sousa wrote: I'm going to stick my neck out on this one. I've just read many of these posts. All threads are very interesting and good different points of views. Spiritual warfare has been since the very beginning of time. The most important one I've ever learned is not in this realm, but a much higer one. There are many principalies and levels. From the Bible, you can learn how to fight this "evil" with the Armour of the Lord. I know that sometimes I feel overwhemled with almost feeling all things coming at me at one time. If I do not put the "Armour"on, I find myself even in worse shape. Sometimes I feel as if I'm in the "matrix" with no way to get out. I am a very open person to all things. However in greatest times of need, I do believe when I realize and take the time to "smell the roses," that when I feel like I'm being attacked, I must put all things in God's hands and wear my armour to protect me from all evil. This is much easier than said. MJy "self" is always getting in my way. I need blinders to jeep me from allowing my spirit from going down "hill"There are many ways that I know that I can deal with it. I don't think about it until it's too late most times. When I breathe slowly and go into praying in toungues and then staying quiet for a time, ANSWERSenerally come. They don't always seem like the right ones, but eventually I do see the ends to the means. In my family, there are many things that do go on that I can not explian to most. I do know that if I do the best I can, no matter what the circumstances or how bad they are..I will have the strenght in the end to make it through. This does not make me any better than anyone else. I try to keep myself at a very basic level all I can. Then my personality will not get in my way. Spiritual arfare can be from others or straight from satan himself as he dominates today's world. For those who believe, I need to say No more, for those who do not, nothingh will suffice. I hope that this is recieved with the love that I intended it to have. To me karma is just another way to fell things. In one's soul we can dfeel many things as well as karma and I do believe in that concept as well. The most vital part to me is still fighting with the "Battle belonging to the Lord." There are two things that I do not believe in only. reincarnation " I don't want to keep coming back in different forms.. and Not having any faith that there is nothing but the now times. I must believe that somewhere in this Universe that there must be a superior being to guide us. To me it is God. Even Aristotle believed in the "soul. Italia Again, This is my view and am not trying to offend anyone.

Holly R. wrote: many ideas, similar meanings...
I consider myself as a spiritual warrior, spiritual seeker, spiritual devotee, spiritual mystic... you get the picture.
I find it helpful to clarify the meaning of warrior... it too often gets confused with soldier. To be a warrior, spiritual or no, requires a strength, courage and purpose directed by the mind and soul of the warrior.... towards whatever end the warrior deems neccessary to redeem his purpose. A spiritual warrior, uses the guidance and fealty of his own soul to determine the use of force or action through will. The spiritual warrior is his own king, needing no other loyalty than to his own soul. The soldier on the other hand, requires all the extraneous acreutrements of a warrior, like courage, strength, skill, etc, but professes obediance and loyalty to a sovereign nation, religion, or other motivating force outside himself. OM Shanti
A Spiritual Warrior first fights against Himself like Robbie said to face our own ugliness and egos we have thus changing and nurturing a more positive less selfish personality,A Spiritual Warrior fights for those who are suffering and are opressed in all levels not only physical,and a Spiritual Warrior not only feels and shares the pain of Humanity but of the Earth and other beings on Her.A Spiritual Warrior respects Him/herself as much as respects others not only on religious views but in all areas this are some of the Shields a Spiritual warrior wears but there are many many more as he walks he is growing and learning more and more.
We want to become powerful spiritual warriors who can offer love in any situation, even to our so-called enemies. In order to achieve this end we focus on two more deeply spiritual aspects of love: compassion and love of God any concept you might have. As we grow spiritually, we will be constantly amazed at the amount of love we can experience and share. Compassion sees profoundly into the heart of each situation and offers unconditional love as a remedy. Unconditional love of God is actually the ultimate goal of our spiritual quest, which is the only remedy to satisfy the deepest longings of the soul.
love to all, tulsi dasi
In the Name of... Sunday, 12:28 PM

One sometimes finds it difficult to understand, how those, who have never felt the Spiritual Warrior's rush of blood, pounding through their veins and the welling up inside, of the need to fight for a cause considered worthy, can be so negatively censorious about the use of such a title...
It is not a lable, that one promotes as would be a banner, or a standard on a battlefield - it is more akin to a feeling that dominates the entire fabric of those who unite under such a designation...
Just my thoughts...Robbie D....

warriors?, yep
Some people I think really are like spiritual warriors. They work to deal with negative energies, negative entities and "evil" if you like.
Some of this goes on globally and the majority of the general population would be unaware of what was being done.
Some of these "spiritual warriors" spend a lot of energy cleaning up the bad energies around entire countries especially those affected by war. Much of this work is voluntary and comes with risk, those doing this thankless task can get attacked by those forces they work to control. Life is far more interesting than many realise
So perhaps think quite different to the term "disciple" although you find that term also used in dark cults so I guess they are kind of spiritual warriors as well but on the other team!
Perhaps it is just these archetypes
that have created wars, abuse, conflict, weapons on our earth world. Maybe by misunderstanding a battle of the soul. Perhaps if a more loving example had been set, we would have realized there is nothing that works like Love and would never have been a warrior at all?
Just some random thoughts...
God bless, J (aka Judy M - not Sweet J...)

Verily, to me, Spiritual Warriors are Spiritual Survivors - whose awareness and vigilance are just a tad more elevated than the norm.
One has to be aware of the source of any affliction in order to cure it - and Spiritual Warfare is much akin to a chess game than actual warfare - a game of chess with dark influences that we must overcome. Being aware of their very existence is a huge step forward towards accomplishing just that. *yes* - Luminous Luciano

Carol O. wrote in response to that:
"Verily, to me, Spiritual Warriors are Spiritual Survivors - whose awareness and vigilance are just a tad more elevated than the norm."
Wow - that's it Luciano. You hit the nail on the head.

I sure did!
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Terceiro Aniversario

2009-03-22T18:00:00.000-07:00

Faz agora três dias, santo pai
que tu partiste;
três dias para ti -
três anos para nôs.
Olha por nôs
como nôs olharemes por ti
pelo os ultimos tempos

Que a Vontade de Deus
Seja Feita
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NOTA BENE: The fact that the video "Heaven" has been taken away by a copyright dispute on YouTube's service does not constitute a sign whatsoever that the soul of the man honored here is not in Heaven presently - no matter what you unbelievers out there would like to infer with it...

Ditto for the song above.
There are more songs available below on this page.

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Ce fût en ce jour
du 22 Mars,
il y a trois ans,
jour pour jour,
que je le vis partir...

Je m'en souviendrais toujours
aussi sûrement
que je le reverrais un jour.

Un jour prochain.

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The following was, between the years 2006 and 2009, available to be viewed
on the defunct web service called GeoCities.
Photos no longer seen here were hosted by GeoCities as well.
GeoCities was a service provided by Yahoo, a provider often rumored to be on the verge of being acquired (swallowed whole) by Microsoft.
It is now best viewed here, probably due to all this, on an Explorer browser.
My apologies to all Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and other browsers users - but it's true.
It is not the HTML that is the culprit: it is your browser that makes it look so.
And you can do as I do: thank monopolistic Microsoft for that.

A Tribute to Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel

>

~~~~~Welcome To The JJBP Honor Page~~~~~
please scroll down (best when viewed with Mozilla Firefox)

A Luminous Tribute
In Honor of a Saintly Man:

Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel - Santo marido e santo pai - que Deus te deia todas as honras que so tu mereces

A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on.
- John F. Kennedy (1917-1963)

Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel
(1934-2006)

Um homem que amou Deus e amou os seus - e que foi vitima de gente mau na sua vida terestra. Agora estaje nos Céus, Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel - com tia Estrela, a tua mae Clara, o teu primo e afilhado Domingos, a tua prima Lionilde, os tios Manuels, a mae da tua sogra Maria Augusta, a tia Constantina e a tua santa avo - alminhas santas, todas, sem excepçao; que Deus permeta que voz todos olhares por nòs que ficamos aqui na Terra - até o fim dos tempos.

A tua mancidao fui exemplar - tu estas com Deus, pai - eu lhe sei muito bem

Quer ser como ti - e nao consigo.
- Luciano Pimentel
(Mancidão - c'est pas mon fort, des fois...
Ele, sim.)

OBITUARY: On this, the year of our Lord 2006, on the 28th of March,
Joao (Jean/John) Pimentel has passed on. He leaves grieving him his wife, Maria Adelina, his son Luciano, numerous relatives and precious few true friends.
Jean Pimentel n'est plus. Il nous a quitté le 28 Mars de l'an 2006. Il laisse dans le deuil son épouse, son fils, un frère et une soeur de même que de nombreux neveux, nièces, cousins - ainsi que de précieux amis qui se fîrent rares, eux aussi...
No ano 2006, faleceu Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel, que deixou de luto a sua esposa, o seu filho unicò, varios familiares e caros amigos escolhidos com o dedo da mao direita...

Patience is the companion of wisdom.
- Saint Augustine

Genius is eternal patience.
- -- Michelangelo

Suivra ici un extrait des paroles que j'ai prononcé le jour des funérailles - ce fût totalement improvisé comme eulogie. Je dirais plutôt - inspiré par une sainte âme... Desolé du manque occasionel de ponctuation en Francais sur ce site - GeoCities ne semble pas aimer le Francais parfois... Ni le Portugais d'ailleurs.

""Je n'ai jamais connu d'homme plus honnête... intègre... patient... devoué à sa famille...
que Joao Pimentel... mon père.
(...)
Ce monde était meilleur - et enrichi - avec sa présence.
Ceux qui enrichissent ce monde nous quitte plus vite.
Ceux qui souillent ce monde durent plus longtemps.

Mon pere n'était pas "quelqu'un"... il ne ft pas un politicien... il ne fut pas un homme d'État... il n'était pas un grand Orateur... ni un magnat quelconque... mais on gagnait à le connaitre.
C'etait un saint homme.
Et le perdre est notre perte à nous tous... et le gain du Paradis, qui a d'ores et dejà un saint de plus.

Que Dieu Te Bénisse, Papa""

Il avait 36 ans quand je suis né
J'avais 36 ans quand il a été délivré
Je l'ai vu partir deux fois
Il m'a donné la vie deux fois

Peut être que je suis trop sévère envers les autres
Maybe I am being too harsh on the rest of them
Mas a verdade é esta mesmo
Joao Jacinto Pimentel Borges -como ele assinava, ponde a sua santa mae asima do seu pai- é mesmo O MELHOR DE TODOS OS PIMENTELS
Melhor que qualquer um tambem
Melhor de que os SOUSAS
A gazillion times better than "os FANAZES"...
Il a le Ciel Garanti
He is certifiably in Heaven with God -
while the rest of them are all question marks AT BEST...

And in the Grand Scheme of Things, he is greater than the most accomplished one among the living
For he, at least, did not achieve what he did achieve on the back of anyone else
nor by hurting anyone else...

Testimonials
(prickled from all eras really):

"Eu gosto dos meus outros primos tambem; do meu primo Jose, do meu primo Gilberto... mas o Joao é o melhor de eles todos - o mais bom de eles todos. Docil... paciento... fino... que bom marido ele vai ser."
- Lionilde Pimentel, mae da Saozinha

"Joao Pimentel tinha tanta finura e mancidao; e o seu filho e todo igual a ele."
- Ines Rebelo

"Um homem com tanto bom coracao... que nunca fez mal a nimguem mesmo... com mais mancidao de que eu mesma... um santo... que Deus te deia tudo de volta, querido Joao."
- Maria Adelina Caldeira Pimentel,
sua esposa e minha mae

"Tio Joao - nos sempre tivemos tantas saudades"
- Rita Maria Pimentel Miranda

"Ele estava se treminando (...) Ele é o meu irmao - o meu sangue."
- Gilberto Pimentel

"Mon cher cousin - que Dieu te bénisse!"
- Sao Medina des Productions Sao

"Nao hà ninguem nesta familia que se compara a ele - ninguem de vivo e poucos dos mortes! Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel era e *É* o melhor dos Pimentels mesmo - sem duvida nemhuma! Ele nunca criticava de ninguem - nunca disse mentira de ninguem - nunca chatiava ninguem! Nunca rebaixou ninguem tambem... So disse a verdade! Na cara mesmo - de chapa! Como eu fasso-lhe tambem; eu, o seu unico filho, Luciano Pimentel. E as verdades que ele disse - eu vou repetir. E vou dizer *mais* por sima! É so esperar e vai ver o que vai acontecer, caras amigas e amigos! Inimigas e inimigos! Para Tudo e para todos - A Luz Vai Ser Feita! Por nòs todos..."
- Luciano Pimentel

"We all prayed for him - what was meant to be happened - I am sorry - he is with God now - your dad is still with you in your head and heart and always will be if you believe"
- Sharon Lowe

"First I will say, that you have honoured your father in the best possible way I can imagine and I am sure he is feeling very happy. I have followed and felt your emotions and pain and, even if no person can really feel another person's emotions as we are individuals, I believe, that I have been able to feel at least some of your pain today. Your father has been and is a very beautiful person as well as God's spiritual idea and with this closeness you two have had, I understand how much you miss him now. His beauty, the beauty from God, is living on in him now as well as before and before he was born here, as I believe, that this life we have now - no matter how real it seems - is a mere illusion from which we return the day we choose or are called by God for another purpose. By growing spiritually, by trusting only God, the missing of loved ones lessens. Of course I sometimes miss my father and am overwhelmed by it, but Everything is possible for those who believe - not only if you are spiritual at a high level - no - it is possible IF YOU BELIEVE - no conditions attached. And if you open your mind to that these things are not impossible, they will happen the way that God knows is the best for you and the best way for you to grow spiritually. God wants you - and me - and everyone to be happy. And it is possible for those who believe. Do good and you have divine authority to demand harmony - through divine authority. My mother died in 1986 and I also shut down missing her, partly because I was not able to deal with it - the loss was to me a complete nightmare. I wrote a mini-poem about it saying:

The only good thing

about your passing on is,

that now

I will never again

be afraid

of losing you.

My father died in 1993 and it has taken me at least 10 years not to cry for him if not daily then weekly, and still I do it and I miss him too often for sharing thoughts. It is not something I do by dwelling in the sorrow, no, as it all comes by an association and it explodes like a waterfall and then I either deal with what I am missing and the thoughts or try just to move on with my things. I always have carried God with me from childhood. What I am saying here is what I have learned from all these years of holding on to life and God and finally finding the shore - and through hard lessons and confronting many fears, I now have started a more steady spiritual journey. So you have to start loving yourself as God loves you, see yourself as perfect as He sees you, forgive yourself for whatever mistakes you have made, expect good for yourself in spiritual growth and, not the least, expect all your dreams to be fulfilled asking God for guidance in all in your life. You shine as well as your father - only you forgot to take off your dark glasses and look in the mirror!"
- Annette Bruun, artist and author

"Senhor Joao era muito boa pessoa mesmo. Ele e o seu afilhado, Domingos, irmao do meu marido, eram os dois muito boms iguais. As suas alminhas estao num bom lugar, com toda a certesa."
- Lurdes de Photo Galicia

"Goodbye Padrinho"
- Rosa Maria McMaster Conrod De Sousa

"C'est triste notre fin..."
- Manuel Pimentel, on the day of the funeral in 2006. Something to which I reply to here and now with "Non, Manuel, ce n'est pas la fin - mais le COMMENCEMENT. Garde la tristesse pour toi-même."
I couldn't reply on the day itself because I was standing there, as they lowered the coffin into the ground... Couldn't be as sharp at the time; having too much on my mind...
Ye of little faith, Manuel...

"Je me rappelle très bien le souvenir de votre père même si je ne l'ai vu qu'une seule fois. Par suite de sa maladie, il semblait très innocent, et les innocents sont bien reçus par le Christ au ciel. Le Royaume des cieux est à eux. Nous devons être comme lui, si nous voulons un jour le rejoindre la-bas.
Salutations à votre mère, et Courage."
- Armand Gargoura

Above: The Rebellious Allure of 1953 - The Saintly Man of 2006

Another Important Obituary

As This One Is ~ For Me ~

And For Those In The Know

O Melhor

Dos

Pimentels

1959: He arrived in Canada.
He was 25 years old.
Native of Rosario, Lagoa, on the island of Sao Miguel - one of nine islands that comprise the Acores in the Atlantic Ocean
He had worked, as his two brothers and lone sister, on the family's holdings - orchard farm, a vineyard and agricultural land - all of which the Pimentels owned and were envied for.
Once he came to Canada, he would work for OTHERS... That, in itself, was a travesty.

He made, for better but mostly for worse, another island his home for what was to be the rest of his life...
The island that was briefly known as "L'Ile Jesus" - but it proved not to be worthy of such a name I suppose and was palindromically renamed "Laval" just about when... I was born, actually.
Me, Luciano... Joao Pimentel's only son
Mon père n'aura eu qu'un seul fils - et je fus ainsi l'élu pour prendre soin de lui - parler pour lui - defendre ses acquis et avoirs - ainsi je suis le candidat tout choisi aussi pour garder son souvenir vivant en cette Terre - le souvenir d'un homme pieu et bon - qui méritait des jours bien plus longs en ce monde - ainsi que plus de joie, de bonheur et de chance dans cette vie qui fut écourtée au début de 2006 - alors qu'il venait de faire ses 72 ans.
Toute sa vie durant, mon père fût charitable, sans être plus heureux ou plus apprécié pour autant; il donna sa voiture usagée -au jeune du quartier qui conduisit ainsi son premier véhicule, gratis- plutôt que de la vendre...
Il prêtait de l'argent à tous ceux qui lui en faisaient la demande - son frère José, pourtant plus vieux mais fort moins assagi... son beau-frère et "compadre"... ses co-locataires, alors qu'il était nouveau venu au Quebec et n'avait que 25 ans... Il était leur BANQUIER, pardieu! Devrais-je collecter aujourd'hui les prêts non-remboursés, papa? Dis-le moi...
Il supporta financièrement sa belle-mere, l'oncle de son épouse, poussa le mécènât jusqu'à supporter même sa belle-soeur veuve depuis 1996 et un jeune né dans un pays sous-developpé, via le Christian Children's Fund of Canada
Et il fût mon support constant aussi - comme je fus le sien, en d'autres conditions (logistiques entre autres), durant les 13 dernières annees de sa vie sur Terre.
Je suis heureux, qu'au moins, il n'ait pas souffert excessivement durant ces treize ans. Il avait une attitude de saint - vraiment. Il accepta tout ce que la vie lui amena -absolument tout- et ne se plaignait au grand jamais. Un Saint, je vous le dis.

Thirty odd years ago, he was pacing the halls of that hospital...
As I came into this world.
He had lit a candle to the Holy Virgin.
So that both his wife and child would survive.
I was pacing the halls of that same hospital
In March of 2006... DEMANDING that they keep him alive.
In this cold cruel world
-and despite that fact- when death comes, we do not want to give in.
In our case, especially not in that same hospital
where they have kept a 95 year-old woman alive, on a respirator,
in a neuro-vegetative coma, for MONTHS...
and me, I had to fight with the medical staff
to get my father the same thing for barely a week!
Dr. Bellemarre is a name I will never forget, that is for sure...
Pre-destined name that you have there, dispenser of death.
In a hospital rife with pre-destined names...
They have a Dr. Lacharité...
a Dr. Labrecque... a Dr. Ferron, a Dr. Moussette and a Dr. Marsolais
Some do a terrible job.
Others are just adequate - for small tasks.
They profess to lead the way in all the major areas of their profession
and, thus, they believe to be meritorious of the new E.R. in the fall of 2007
but when it comes to actually saving lives
they are found to have not enough of a budget all of a sudden
To refurbish an old hospital, they could find millions
to save the earthly life of one precious kind soul they could not find reasons to pursue that goal.
They invoked "l'acharnement thérapeutique" and even "la profanation de cadavre"...
They invoked the hopelessness of any possible recuperation...
They even invoked the possibility of another, more "salvageable case" coming in
into intensive care...
All to do the opposite - and not save but snuff out that life that was dear TO ME.
Hence, we had to clear the spot.
Because we had no hope.
We were stripped of it early.
By the good hypocrites
who swore Hippocrates' Oath.
God Will Give You The Adequate Payment For This
nurses and quacks
who contributed to the hasty departure of a good man.
And I bless his name
Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel
O Meu Santo Pai
whom I will see again
on Judgment Day.

The first video to be found at the onset of the bottom half of this Honor Page is an allegorical presentation of what leaving this world is like. The performing artists are collectively known as Sigur Ros. The little blond drummer boy in the video, who is leading the "revolution", reminds me a lot of my dear saintly dad - who was blond when he was very young... The children in the video all go to sleep mid-way through the clip and then their souls continue the pilgrimage they were on - and their souls take off. My father went to sleep on March 22nd, 2006 - an afternoon nap that he would never wake up from. And his spirit soared.
And he is in the Light.

LINKS:

TLB Prime Homage

Care2 Album

My Father Was A Miracle

And Is One Now

The last thirteen years of his life were spent for the most part on his bed - and so he would have had the point of view that the first video, at the top of this page, has. The music is one of his favorite pieces too, as are the other ones selected. Listening to these would always bring an outburst of emotion in him - he would appear both tearful and serene; blissful and closer to heaven, all at once. It is where he is now - closer to God. And serene. And blissful ~ at last. No further tears shall be shed - not even of joy I think. No tears need be - in Oneness with the Lord.

Pray for us down here, dad

More than any other song, Sigur Ros' Glosoli helped my family
get through this grieving period of our lives -
and renew our hope for the afterlife.

"Cavaleiro Monge" sung by fado diva Mariza ~ a musical style that dad loved
Le fado - un style de musique qu'affectionna mon pere toute sa vie. Celui-ci est l'un des meilleurs de tous les temps - chante par Mariza, diva de Lisbonne.
O fado do meu santo pai - vai ser o Cavaleiro Monge. Ele é o Cavaleiro que està Longe - e pertinho ao mesmo tempo - com perfeita ubiquidade.

La gran actuaciÃ³n de Luciano Pavarotti en la apertura de los juegos olimpicos de invierno de Torino. "Nessun Dorma" ~ Vincero... Vincer-ooooo!

I had to have something here from my namesake
- who passed away virtually at the same time as my father.

And what else for a finale now:
San Jacinto - Live - Para O Santo Joao Jacinto
(It is pronounced "Jah-Shin-toh" though - not as Peter Gabriel says it.)

This song lends itself so very well to the hope of seeing your loved ones again, in the hereafter:
we will walk on the land,
we will breathe of the air,
we will will drink from the stream,
we will live (again) HOLD THE LINE!

If you have any commentary whatsoever
on this Honor Page and its contents and links,
please e-mail me at:

luminous.luciano@gmail.com

The Pimentels ~ Le Clan Pimentel ~ A Familia Pimentel

The Doctor Is Out

.............................................The Only Doctor You Will Ever Truly Need Is Him

Goodbye Papa

After Terry Jacks' Seasons In The Sun, Kansas' Dust In The Wind is the quintessential 70s song
- Dad was in his prime in those days...

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

- Martin Luther King Jr.

The Saviour Is Never Silent.

The Word Speaks - Always.

O Melhor

Dos

Pimentels

Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel

É bom repetir porque: O meu pai é (não era - ele é) um homem da mancidão e da paz, trabalhador, honesto, economico, com bom coração e sinceridade para todos durante toda sua vida conosco

e a paga que ele teve foi so traisão, inveja e odio.

Mas, ficam sabendo, familiares com remorsos, que NÃO É DE VOCÉS QUE SE TRATA quando eu falo de invejosos, traidores e ainda PIOR DE QUE ISTO... CLARO?

Não sei se està claro ainda nas suas cabeçinhas... Vocés não são o centro do mundo, sabem? Nem a minha preocupação principale - muito longe disto!

Por isto, coloquei o texto mais severe que estava aqui antes numa outra pagina
por ai...
Aqui merece estar é sô élogias para O MEU SANTO PAI.

Mas, eu repito, NÃO SÃO VOCES OS "DEMONIOS" DE QUEM EU FALO, familiares ignorantes da verdade... Mesmo se vocés quaz todos venham da Lagoa e/ou das ilhas... TEM OUTROS QUE VIEREM DE LÀ TAMBEM - claro. E tem bom peixo como tem mau peixo de TODO O LADO...

Porque é que vocés pensem que eu ia falar SÔ de vocés...? Vocés não são o centro do mundo, jà ouvirem?

Eu e o meu pai tivemos inimigos de veras - não sô entenicaçaos como vocés, nesta vida! Se tivesse sido sô isto; as suas estupidezes e mau compreensaos... a sua enteniquenta proua e seberba... as suas palavras ignorantes... A VIDA DOS MEUS PAIS, COMO A MINHA, TERIA SIDO TANTO FACIL!

Quanto a respeito do meu santo pai, ele està é jà com DEUS, no Céu, onde ele merece estar como recompensia do seu sofrimento nesto mundo. Se vocés não acreditem, a falta é toda vossa.

13 anos de doença - 13 anos sem fala. Quer querer que durante estes anos ele teve o perdão completo pelo todos os seus pecados e ofensas.

Se o meu pai ainda està a espera do seu lugarinho no Céu, està a espera num lugar cheio de LUZ, como ele merece.

E não tem ninguem que sabe melhor nesto mundo de que EU, que santo que o meu pai é de veras.

2007 TLB Prime Commemoration - March 22nd

2007 Saudades Commemoration

2007 TLB Prime Commemoration - March 28th

O ultimo reposo do meu santo pai nesto mundo

e as fotos delo -antes e depois de anos de sofrimento- com imagems em pintura de Nosso Salvador e de Nossa Senhora (é, de facto, a imagem miraculosa de Fatima, Portugal)

Publicado nesto sito no dia da festa dos Pais, 2007

15 meses depois dos funerais

December 24th, 2007 -

On the eve of a second Christmas without my father, the author of this commemorative honor-webpage thinks back to the times that went by so fast -too fast...

Those Christmas Eves that you had to work still, Dad - the nuns that administrated your main employer's daily affairs were long gone by then (although they remain on the administration council board to this day.) Those same nuns used to give you preferential treatment, Dad, because THEY, unlike many others in a temporary position of authority, were good judges of character and THEY KNEW you deserved to have the actual *Holidays* off. It wasn't the case when secular laymen took over the administrating chores in that joint...

I think back to those holidays spent with other family - how proud I was always to travel with you. We were like the two men of the family - the only true men in the entire family! We were a formidable team! We still are - even moreso now...

I think back to more recent Christmases too; you were not the same man anymore - but I could still confide in you and, when I spoke to you, I would see it in your eyes that you approved of what I'd just shared.

And now - I remember the things you liked the most - clementines, tangerines, wine, peanuts, orange juice, figs (figos passados) and grapes. I want to honor you by partaking of these, in your memory, as it is customary to do in Portugal. Portugal - land of true Faith, a second Holy Land, verily. And yet, I feel as though I don't deserve to treat myself to any of these good things given to us by The Good Lord - because you are not here with me to partake of it, too.

The truth is, of course, that you are seated at a far better table, more splendidly garnished than any on Earth; the Lord's table, where the abundance is everlasting.

And you deserve every bit of that, Dad.
Every bit of it.

The above angel pin is very similar to the one that I wear on my lapel on a daily basis, for it symbolizes -to me, it always shall- my once and new guardian angel, Dad.
One of the relatives who could not attend the funeral (could not be reached in time) allowed a bit of pent-up aggression towards a priest to become outright resentment towards the Church overall; and so, upon seeing my angel pin and ignoring what it represents to me, the relative in question wondered out loud why I was so pious, etc...
She carried on and on (as she always does - as they always do) on that tangent - without ever hearing from me about the true meaning of the angel on my lapel.

I thought I'd post the significance of the angel pin here. Maybe she'll READ about it now... Maybe she'll be taught a valuable lesson by this, too (like many a relative has been taught a lesson by me, lately...) - to shut up and listen, sometimes...

2008 TLB Prime Commemoration - March 22nd

2008 Saudades Commemoration

2008 TLB Prime Commemoration - March 28th

May 2009.

My (many - oh, there are so many of them, it's not even funny - nor gloomy) enemies will be rejoicing for this site has its days numbered. However, even if GeoCities is dying - I am not. I cannot die, nor did my father, truly; for our souls will live on forevermore! Will yours, haters? No need to answer that. For this site is not for my witticisms nor to shoot arrows in your direction(s) - this site is for the memory of my dear saintly father, Joao Jacinto Borges Pimentel. And this site is but a testimony, one among million others, that certify of one truth: the immortality of the soul.

This site will survive; as surely as his soul survived his earthly shell's demise. As surely as mine will as well. As surely as THERE IS A GOD who Created the universe that is, was and will be - this site will survive in MANY forms, on MANY platforms; you just wait and see.

It is still sad, though, that Yahoo has not the honor or quite simply not the intestinal fortitude to keep its word and maintain these sites that were attributed to all as one of their myriad services. They wanted to achieve a zenith, the top level of diversification of their services and they certainly had reached that goal. And now they simply go back on their word, with both 360` and GeoCities. Sad - but in the near-apocalyptic financial age we live in, all foreseeable. Heaven Forbid other services follow that very same path; but even if it does happen, God Will Provide A Way to safekeep all the worthy memories of unrecognized (by earthly authorities) saints and martyrs.

Besides - all earthly things are bound to end; only that which is from the Divine will endure. FOREVERMORE.

I guess that means the internet is not emanating from the Divine - at all - after all. We always suspected so much...
Following are some more links to commemorative posts on various blogs part of the TLB Prime Network that I founded - for, even if the net is unholy in some way and vastly used for the worst things, there are still a myriad worthy, good and just uses of it and, one dares hope, ours is one of those indeed.

2009 TLB Prime Commemoration - March 22nd

2009 Saudades Commemoration

2009 TLB Prime Commemoration - March 28th

Hurt - Johnny Cash

Ao Passar Um Navio

Angels

UPDATE -
In the years that followed,
there was a fourth and fifth commemorative series of posts, as well -
they are to be found on TLB PRIME itself,
aka the luminous blog
were we reflect His Light...
This one right here is the core salute
since it is the one reviving the Honor Page
and the cornerstone third year after...
The second lost GeoCities page can also be found here -
it was salvaged as well, in the nick of time.
I thought I'd stop with five
- or perhaps I'll stop with a holy number, seven?
But then if we go seven, we should go ten...
And then every "marquee" anniversary that follows
(15th, 20th, 25th... Lord Willing...)
will be honored, commemorated, remembered...
Truth is, grieving is not anniversary-like.
It is a daily affair.
It never really leaves one's mind
and it resurfaces at any time,
for so many different reasons.
Anything and everything
can remind us...

Grieving is a lifelong thing.

As such, maybe we can stop with three -
the holiest of numbers.

Knowing myself, though, we most likely won't.

Sempre Por O Melhor

+++

Having A Luminous Perspective Is Also... This!

2009-03-17T17:20:00.000-07:00

With all due respect
to the fabled accomplishments
of one Saint Patrick
whom we "honor"
supposedly, today,
while drinking green beer
and acting like
barstool fixtures
and foul-mouthed
humanoid cotton swabs
imbibés à l'alcohol...
that happen to be wearing green
for this occasion only!

Lady Irish
says "hi"...?
Sheesh!
Who...?!?
(In green blazes -
I have to presume!)
The shamrock
may not be a sham
but it sure doesn't rock
either!
But I'm digressing -
again!

I think the saint
that loves not just the Irish
but anyone who loves God,
does not take much pride
in these festivities
that bear his name -
he has that in common
with the following saints:
Nicholas...
Valentine...
Sylvestre...

But I digress;
for this is NOT
an edition of
"Saints & Angels:
The TLB Prime Series"

Rather,
it is an addendum
to my series of posts
about LUMINOUS
PERSPECTIVE - indeed!

Hence, here it goes...!

This week,
I am light years away
from being in a "festive mood"
- only, not in the sense
that you may imagine!
I am festive -
the luminous way!
It shall be three years
to the day -
but three days,
in the spiritual realm,
the true reality,
that my Dad joined
that side of Things;
The Right Side
and The Light.
+++

No wonder
I prefer to think
of a saint that is
near and dear
and my patron saint
and protector
EXCLUSIVELY -
for not you,
not anyone else,
much less the Vatican
know how much of a saint
he was... and is!
I get to know it
and benefit from it
all by myself
(well, not counting
my luminous readers here
of course!)
and I would be mad
to prefer St-Patrick
or any other saint
to the one I knew
during his pilgrimage
here on Earth:
St-Joao Jacinto!

This is his week -
his week of ASCENSION!
The third anniversary of which
is nearly upon us...
I can only use
the age-old phrase
in those parts
that Dad adopted as home
to AN EXCELLENT USE
(at long last!)
Je me souviens
+++

Feel free
to be green with envy
enemies o'mine!

And on days like this,
henceforth,
I simply have to suggest that
instead of going with the crowd
you pause and think for a second -
IF IT WAS YOUR NAME,
ON A FESTIVE DAY...
WOULD YOU LIKE IT TO BE A DAY
THAT RESEMBLES YOU TRULY
OR FOR IT TO BE
SIMPLY SOME VAGUE,
ALL-TOGETHER HOLLOW EXCUSE
FOR BEER CONSUMPTION?

I thought so too.

Honor the saint now -
send a Crosscard
there's still time!
Or do as I say
and not as I do;
and postdate it!
;)

+++

A Luminous Milestone

2009-03-14T11:32:00.000-07:00

This is the third year.

The third winter

and third spring -

spring to be, really -

that I go through

with this newfound

luminous perspective...

Aye,

it is depressing

on the surface

to look at it

this way:

as spring beckons,

I can only

relive

in the mind's eye,

in sad memory,

the passing,

departure,

demise

of a near,

dear one.

An end

when all about us

we see signs

of a new beginning.

Quite frankly,

it could not have been

any better than this!

Thank you, God
for having made it all
come to pass
the way it did.
Dad is better off
as our faith is renewed
simultaneously.

Even the rain at the funeral
was like a downpour
of blessings
washing over me,
over him,
over us all who were there.
Even the ones
I've since grown apart from!

The rain
symbolized the opening
of Heaven's Gates;
as so beautifully expressed
in Michael W Smith's
classic song
Let It Rain

Or this piece right here:

The rain symbolized
a torrent of blessings.
- as well as
the spring season
in and by itself
symbolizes
RESURRECTION.
And everything about us,
verily everything in nature,
in the Cycle of Life,
all of it reeks of
the immortality
of the soul;
see it
for yourself
in the neverending cycle
all about us,
in the flowers that bloom
only to wither;
and then grow again.
Observe it again and again,
with luminous discernment
even in the decay
of every form of matter...
The Essence Remains!

I'll see you again
father -
when we both see
Our Father...
Until then...

Happy Birthday Dad.

It's your 75th.

+++

Who cares about other
petty mortal concerns, Victor...
When the true luminous heartbeat
is that of the soul
which never dies.
+++

Luminous Tunes!

2009-02-05T15:29:00.000-08:00

Here is an assortment
-just an assortment-
of songs that can be considered
"luminous" -
either due to their excellence
or even, miracle of miracles,
by the divine glow that might
emanate from them...
Most, yes, are of the
former category - alas!
A Good Friend These Days
Is Hard To Find;
some have sung...!
A good tune is harder to find
nowadays...!

Certainly one that can be called
"luminous" -
in the latter sense!

By definition
(by my definition)
a luminous tune
is one with
MEANING...
That is found
in the lyrics, of course -
not the melody!
(Got that, Mike?!?)

Although, I must add:
one has to use
proper discernment
in order to see
what the meaning
truly is...!

This playlist
courtesy of project playlist.com
is only one meant to
wash away the troubles of the day
- "pour décompresser"
as certain Frenchies would say!

Play on...
(Well,
I hope it plays for you!)

As always, with my playlists
published here, on TLB PRIME,
over all these years,
there is an underlining message
between the lines...
between the tracks!
Here are a few extra clues:
a resolution is coming -
don't bug me, gnats -
no virus will keep me down long,
so quit trying hackers -
yes, I'm keeping up
the tradition of
fighting the good fight -
God Knows...
and
sorry, foes, I'm still alive!

~+++~

Now...

Of those classics heard in there,
I'd rather have the lyrics
of the King's "Trouble"
be switched around
in favor of my version right here:
"If you're looking for trouble
You came to the right place, evidently
If you're looking for trouble
Look right at my face - grrrr!
I was BORN in trouble!
And I fought my way out of it!
But now I'm gonna give up all this singing
'Cause I don't even know the words
OF THIS SONG...!
Oh I am so anguished, here yeah
Yeah, I am so anguished
So don't make me mop the floor
with your sorry hide!"

And ad lib the rest...

You must admit
it is much better
than wanting to be "evil"
as the "king" sang...!
All earthly kings
are as if nothing anyway;
but DUST IN THE WIND
eh?

+++

A Luminous Perspective

2009-01-29T12:02:00.000-08:00

Here is what a luminous perspective

is truly all about:

Nothing is ever as bad

as we make it out to be...

Life is a battle -

an uphill climb

sometimes perilous

other times

quite educative

and nothing else.

Each and every day

could be our last on this Earth;

make the most of it then

CARPE DIEM!

Be reverent

only to those

who truly deserve it -

AMEN!

That would be

GOD

and the last few saints

left anywhere -

hint: there's not

a whole lot of them!

BE ABLE TO USE

DISCERNMENT -

for if you cannot,

you will likely sin

in the worst way yet;

a way so very common

nowadays too...

The wrongest R'n'R -
reversing roles,

calling bad what is good

and vice-versa...

BE EVER VIGILANT

not to succumb

to these temptations

and misjudge,

portray out of

proper character

or outright

misrepresent...

BE EVER VIGILANT

also,

not to

choose

the easy path

in any

of your

endeavours...

You will pay the price
if you so do choose -
not in any afterlife, no;
RIGHT NOW!

Now,

resume

thy battle...

+++

Lost Prisoners Shall Be Set Free

2009-01-19T16:54:00.000-08:00

There are two things we can be truly sure of, in this life - no, not death and taxes but rather trials and a resolution to them, a LIBERATION by any other name...!

Anything else comes either in spades or not at all - and it is all trivial, ultimately, I assure thee! Trivial on this side of things, that is; scoring points for the afterlife, as Al once sang, is nothing trivial at all. Ask these two, the Prisoner and the Robot, they'll confirm that illico now.

Patrick McGoohan could have been a name on everyone's lips, circa 1963 - and if a cerebral James Bond had been what the masses wanted, he could have been that too. As it is, he was considered for the role anyway - but womanizing while pretending to do a tedious and dangerous (in real life, it is) secret agent's job was not his inclination. He prefered to move on to write, direct and produce his own brainy brainchild of a "spy show" - and the result was the cult favorite The Prisoner.

Now, as his earthly passage came to an end, that is the role he is most remembered for - that of a number, not a man. Number 6. Although he fought throughout the series' short tenure to avoid being "stamped, briefed, debriefed..." - shouting in the end that he was "not a number, (but) a free man!"

Number 2 always laughed at that.
Maybe the way God laughs at us, his silly children...?
Without actual malice but with that look that says "you poor thing!"
But that is another story...!

McGoohan was at the height of his fame when he took on this pet project of his - the Prisoner coming hot on the heels of Danger Man/Secret Agent (Man) and gathering him a loyal, devout following, though not as large as the Secret Agent fanbase. The Johnny Rivers song of the same name must have played a large part in the success of this British actor on American soil. Here it is:

The song even prefigured the following project for McGoohan; as the lyrics say, "they've given you a number, and taken away your name" - and that is Number 6 right there. Whatever the creative process that truly occured there, McGoohan made history with his truly original project that followed - and then there was... nothing. Years went by, and there wasn't much of anything aside from minor roles here and there, homages, nods, cameos, stints as director that even garnered him two Emmy nominations and wins (again, he'd managed to pierce onto American territory, somehow; evidence enough that you can't keep a good man down - eternally. Indeed, McGoohan succeeded in this thanks to old friend Peter Falk, Columbo himself, who gave him the chance to reintroduce himself to American audiences when he guest-starred on several episodes of Columbo, which were, by then, two-hour in length. He directed two more in which he did not appear on-camera -another old friend, Robert Vaughn, did instead- and those were the Emmy-clinchers.) But truly; aside from all that, appearances in films ranging from Scanners to Braveheart were it for McGoohan (my favorite remaining his role in Mary, Queen of Scots, which starred Vanessa Redgrave in the title role) - and it was and is quite a shame for such a refined talent as his to be so underused.

Truly, Patrick McGoohan never attained the level of notoriety that he richly deserved. Even in his death, he was shoved aside by mighty CNN and other news agencies, as the latino pioneer Ricardo Montalban passed away on the exact same day as McGoohan and had all the calamitous spotlights firmly set on his own demise instead. Even the CBC, which had re-aired The Prisoner fairly recently, frowned upon McGoohan to focus on Montalban as well... Favoritism, even in death, is quite ignominious - wouldn't you agree? You won't see any of that on my own lugubrious blog; but that is another story once again. Here is the headline I penned myself for said lugubrious blog post though:

"Prisoner" Patrick McGoohan Liberated At 80

Almost next to it, is the one for Montalban. And then there is this one:

'Lost in Space' actor Bob May dies at 69 from congestive heart failure

Dying at 80 is one thing - but not even making it to 70 is quite another. Bob May is another character-actor who never got his just desserts; his reward was in the undying affection he found amongst fandom, those knowledgeable fans, that is, who knew him for the man inside The Robot suit...! From 1965 to 1968, Robert May was The Robot on "Lost In Space," one of my most favorite shows on television while growing up. Save for the voice which was in fact series narrator Dick Tufeld's, The Robot and Bob May were one and the same indeed. And, in recent years, fans didn't forget that one iota. Mr. May was always honored for his most patient work (as being cloistered within that metallic shell for such long hours was anything but easy) and the affectionate feelings the audience had for that Robot character translated into admiration for the man who animated it for all of those wondrous adventures - timeless as they are, for there never was a conclusive end to those adventures...! For all we know, within the storyline, The Robot and the Robinsons, along with that execrable/loveable Dr. Zachary Smith, are still "lost in space" out there... Books and sequential art works have been written in order to bring a satisfying resolution to that saga; a movie was made (more like a remake, really - and a bad one at that) but nothing takes away that timeless feeling because nothing has ever brought us that final episode in which The Robot would utter something like "there isn't any more danger, Will Robinson!" Hence, one can imagine that there was no end to those trials there - though fictive they are.

Real life, mercifully, is not like that. The Robot can most definitely say it now: "there isn't any danger here now, Robert - we're in Heaven!"

Like Patrick McGoohan, but on another level, Bob May never got what he deserved either. He proved his great talent by taking on the most difficult role of all: that of Adolf Hitler, on an episode of another Irwin Allen show/favorite of mine, The Time Tunnel! This he did in brilliant, most convincing fashion, years before all these revisionistic, intimistic films about Hitler's last days ever graced the silver screen... Bob May proved to have a talent and flair for comedy as well - guest-starring with Jerry Lewis, Ernest Borgnine and Red Skelton himself on The Nutty Professor, McHale's Navy and Skelton's television show. Did that translate into more roles for Bob May? In a word - no. He was soon seeking work as a STUNTMAN of all things; which makes me wonder if his story wasn't the inspiration -somewhat, at some point- for another favorite TV show of mine, The Fall Guy...? Wouldn't it be neat if it was, hmm? Yeah - but that's another story too!

Lately, Bob May had had much bad luck. His health wasn't a concern - however, his home had been one of the many destroyed by the California wildfires that hit the Los Angeles area just this past November. (No one must ever think of naming a baseball, football or any-other-ball team "the California Wildfires" - ever.)
And after this event, Bob May suddenly took ill and died, very quickly.
It always happens so fast, when the Reaper snatches someone near and dear - and, here, he snatched The Robot and The Prisoner as well, two old faves rather than one, simultaneously. Heck, "Mr. Roarke" was a fave too, for that matter...

Their memories remain with us -
as they are now set free to roam the vast mysteries of the universe.
For, allegorically (and allegories were always dear to these guys - all of them) The Robot's suit was a prison for Bob May; one which he did not come out of often, for it was so difficult to get that costume in place, he'd stay in it even during breaks from filming...! The Fantasy Island host played by Mr. Montalban, "Mr. Roarke," was a prisoner of his own choosing and even of his own destiny as well. As a latino actor in those early days, Montalban felt like he was doing time in a myriad other ways too, surely... And then there was The Prisoner; no need to say more there! McGoohan, for his part, was a victim of his own excellence and refinement; one might even say his own eccentricity as well, as the Brits always look different to Americans, no matter what.

Life itself, as the TEST that it is, is a long-term sentence, we could say; sentences vary in length and intensity, that is all.

All of these jail sentences have been revoked now -
they are liberated, forevermore.

They are free to join other stalwarts like them, who deserved more - sometimes MUCH more: Oliver Reed, Leo McKern, Philippe Noiret (to name, once again, some of my notable favorites) and countless others, oftentimes unknown others...

They are headed, ahead of the rest of us who remain, for the place where the deserving are not ignored nor forgotten; much less shoved aside and left to fend for themselves.

They were lost - now, they are found.
They have truly found themselves, that is certain.
They were imprisoned in frail mortal vessels; well, not anymore.

They are headed for the true freedom now.

Yes -
Now, They Are Free

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