Moments in Perpetual Motion...

As you read this article, someone in this world bemoans a land, another declares his paradise. A woman gives birth to a brand new life, as an ageing one breathes their final breath. A family of six share two litres of water and a loaf of bread, as an obese woman gorges alone on two whole Chickens and a tub of Salt and Vinegar Pringles. A banker gambles away in seconds the equivalent of a family mortgage, another has just signed his lifetime away to pay-off. Money is lost, money is earned, money is burned, and money is created out of thin air.

A youngster jumps in ecstasy as his favourite sports team wins a major cup final, as another cries in sorrow from the same games outcome. The music of Justin Bieber is loved and cherished by a teenager, as a stranger a wall away wonders what the fuss is all about. A soul denounces God, as another finds them. A man watches an attractive woman, a woman holds a child, a child giggles at a Dog, a Dog plays with a Cat, a Cat eats some Tuna Fish, and a Tuna fish is being caught by a hard working fisherman, who had just spent five minutes watching an attractive woman.

Someone discovers running, somebody else discovers walking, a baby learns to crawl, and another learns to fall. A heroic soldier dies in the battlefield, as a cowardly politician orders more soldiers to replace him. A man criticizes the Police’s presence, as another begs for them to arrive. A couple have sex, someone masturbates, and a virginity is lost, as a pensioner remembers his last erection. Cars are driven, passengers hitch a lift, and someone in a wheelchair remembers the ability to drive a car. A teenager fails a test another passes, someone learns they have cancer, as another is given the all clear. A family leave a land for freedom, as another family arrive for solitude.

An old man watches Family Guy, as a young adult enjoys Laurel and Hardy. A couple fall in love for the first time, another part for the last. People become legally married, while others get divorced. A man declares Islam the true religion, another declares Christianity with the same power. Someone else wonders how stupid they both are, while another hardly bothers to care. Songs are played, items purchased, friends enjoy a beer in a quiet park, moments away from a house where friends fight and argue. Birds sing, Children laugh, and poor souls on dirty buses on a hot summers day wish for cold, as a frozen land dweller begs for the sunshine. 

There are marches of peace, marches of war, stories being told of hate, love, pain, fear, life, and death. One man judges, as another is judged. A shirt is torn, as another is sewn. Seeds are planted, as plants are destroyed. Someone is thinking about the billions of actions happening at any given moment, while another is simply trying to survive. A woman goes to sleep, a man awakes for the morning, and someone is taking a half-asleep piss in a darkened bathroom. A man begs for a silence another can no longer bear. Somebody remembers how life is constantly in motion, as another is in motion. Someone writes an article about existence, someone reads an article, about existence...

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Cats in the Café: a Review of Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium.

"Chilling on the wheel"

“They are just pimping out cats for money”...

For any business whose primary commercial selling point is based around a living creature – especially one as lauded as the domestic pussy-cat, cynicism is bound to rear its ugly head in its direction. And for the anonymous woman stood beside me, peering into the passing window of Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium in Shoreditch, East London, the thoughtless refrain of the above statement thrown from her lips is - at least in a narrow mind-set, justifiable; the building contains cats, the building makes money.

But instinct is a powerful leveller against reactionary thinking. And as a man who carries zero interest in rash statements based on ignorance - and loves cats, I was open minded. So as one stranger stumbled into the vague distance of her delusion, myself – along with my partner and two close friends of similar animal loving disposition, ventured into the pre-booked confines of Lady Dinah's; to decide for ourselves whether the cats were pulling the cart, or the cart - as expected, was in fact, pulling the cats...

Initially, we enter into a comfortable reception area, where two smartly dressed chefs busy themselves in the manner happy hired guns often do. The energy is positive and calm. On the hour, we are led to a smaller room. It is here where merchandise is sold, bookings are confirmed, and a £5 per-person visiting charge is required – in order to fund care for the cats. As my conscious mind wonders if the judgemental lady outside had a point – even though my instinct senses otherwise, I am relieved as - before allowing us to enter the final door, the assistant explains each fine detail of catering to the whims of their resident felines; followed by asking us to wash our hands in the rooms basin. 

After exchanging cash and consideration, we make our way into the café. The initial noticeable elements to the two floor coffee house are how cozy, clean, and quiet it is. While predisposed to the social combination of music and coffee, this silence; designed to service an animal which seem to have a universal disdain of any noise beyond tins opening, is refreshing. As the small volume of visitors mix with the moggies; the numbers are intentionally left low - I assume to retain as little stress to the animals as possible, patrons mix with the placid cats as toys, books and sofa chairs remain freely available. It is a peaceful environment, but also a social one. It feels like the basement living room of a good friend who loves cats - I guess in many ways, it is.

"Feeding time"

Food is a delicious mixture of reasonably priced coffees, teas, cakes and sandwiches. I merged a hot latte with red velvet cake, but the choice is varied. As for the cats? There are eleven in total - all rescues, and carry an air of a cool, contented clan. Overseen by queen bee, Mue; the naturally protective mother of seven of the residents, each has their own designated spots of rest, playful ways of being, and differing personality traits; my favourite being Wookie – the tubby, lovely and lazy tabby who happily kept guard outside, during my bathroom break.

 

Leaving an hour or so later - born from time over choice, I felt secure and sated in knowing the cats are firmly in charge. Lady Dinah’s is a delightful little café in a bustling art district of East London. And while this barely four-month-old business irons out the finer points of organising a café around the needs of its cats – as opposed to the other way around, it has the potential to secure its place as an eventual portion of English cultural significance; as time and reputation help to expand both its reputation and fanbase. I plan to book again as a regular patron; and try the banoffee pie - wondering if Wookie will wait for me outside the bathroom door again?

The £5 entry charge is a contentious issue to some, and may work against the company in the long run. And discounting this charge for regular visitors would in my view aid business. However there is little to nitpick, and the owners are doing a fine job - often against unfounded accusations of exploitation, to those who have never even visited. If you love cats, cakes, comfortable sofas, or the unique ambiance of a collection of loveable felines, Lady Dinah’s is a place I highly recommend booking a visit. I award it five cupcakes out of five... 

CLICK HERE for Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium Facebook Page 

CLICK HERE for Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium Official Website 

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Petition For Billy's Law.

There is a perception in our world that the lives of human beings are in some way of greater value, than those of other living creatures. There is zero logic behind this, beyond conditioned perception; leading us to believe that having an ability to speak with words and use tools to build civilisation, renders us Earth's most important species. It is an idea I reject. To me, no religion or financial excuse can change the idea how value – in all life, is determined through its capacity to love. Nothing more, nothing less...

This story has recently been passed to my attention and – while difficult to read as much as write, is a tale I feel vital in sharing; in order to help reach enough kind-hearted souls who see life as I do; and wish to help pass laws which shall hopefully renders stories such as this, a distant memory...

Billy’s Law is a recently created online petition; designed – amongst other plans, to fast track legislation in Cyrpus to protect animals with legal punishment for their persecutors, create a national database of animal cruelty cases, and employ animal welfare officers across the small island. The idea for this law was created from the story of ‘Little Billy’, a stray four-week-old poodle puppy, caught wandering the Anastasia Beach Hotel in Protaras, Cyrpus; likely looking for food and shelter, in order to survive another day in his tough little life. 

Following complaints from holidaymakers - and a few days attempting to catch the defenceless creature, the hotel manager ordered two staff members to ‘take care of the dog’. While any responsible, compassionate being would send young Billy to an animal shelter for food, affection and a good scrub clean, the staff decided to throw the innocent living being – alive, into a cardboard crushing machine; 'taking care of him', in their disgusting, twisted mindsets. It was only shortly after - when horrified tourists heard Billy's screams of pain, the machine was stopped and the severely injured boy was removed from his living hell. 

RIP - Billy.

Billy was left in a coma with a broken back, internal problems, and brain damage. While emergency work and much love was sent to the poor guy, he was to pass away from the extents of his injuries. It is difficult for me to write this without feeling an intense nausea and sadness at such a heartless, senseless and tragic loss of an innocent little life; while at the same trying to contain my anger at the bastards who could physically commit such an act. But I also am aware this issue needs to be addressed until Billy’s Law is passed; and I am not alone in feeling all the previous emotions documented.

Like most animals, dogs are wonderful, innocent creatures; full of love and affection. And from the first born Pomeranian of centuries past, to the Pit-bull pups who will arrive in out world today - and all canines in-between, every dog is born with a heart of pure untouchable gold. While the majority of human beings are good to the animal kingdom, we need laws such as Billy's, to protect those in the future from horrific stories like these, ever happening. While the law may begin in Cyrpus alone, it is something I believe all animal lovers would like to see extended worldwide; maybe this is the next logical step - teaching the young who may never know, just how lucky humans are to have dogs in the world, and not the other way around...

There is a perception in our world that the lives of human beings are in some way of greater value, than those of other living creatures. There is zero logic behind this, beyond conditioned perception; leading us to believe that having an ability to speak with words and use tools to build civilisation, renders us Earth's most important species. It's is just a perception; not a reality. Support Billy’s Law, sign this petition, spread this article, and remember just how beautiful and precious the humble dog actually is to our planet.

RIP Young Billy. Rainbow Bridge will take care of you now...

CLICK HERE and sign Billy's Law petition
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The Dangers of Destiny.

"You're out, that's life!"

In the classic mystical island television series - Lost, two central characters define the shows conflicting core. The first is Jack Shepherd. A pragmatic doctor and leader firmly entrenched in science, Jack carries a philosophy of ‘get the job done, and move on to the next task at hand’. As the show draws on – and Jack's eyes view sights he once never imagined, he accepts faith as a portion of life only useful when applied with action; a man with faith as it were, but always through science. 

John Locke is his polar opposite. A wheelchair bound middle-aged toy store clerk with a past loaded in tragedy, John finds himself miraculously able to walk once washed upon the island's shore. This reignites his staunch philosophy as a man of faith, and convinces him all he needs to fulfil his destiny as a commanding figure of history, is give himself up to the island and allow nature to take care of the rest. As the show draws on, John finds himself led down a narrow path of hell – dictated by blind ignorance, and is eventually strangled to death by Benjamin Linus; a wiser antagonist who exposes John as the tragic pawn to the darker side of the island's plans, he slowly came to be.

The point to these opposites, was that while Jack remained willing to accept faith has its place - even in science, John was too stupid to question the methods or efforts behind his ‘chosen path’; simply believing it was his ‘destiny’, and that was all he needed to know to prosper. He was - in no uncertain terms, a fool. The curious thing is, while a fictional character, his philosophy is not as ludicrous as you may imagine…

Throughout the 2014 World Cup, I have found myself frustrated with the self-proclaimed idea of host nation Brazil winning the tournament, as a form of ethereal ‘destiny’. Not because they have already won the trophy five times, or because I am against the notion of faith – which can be vital in times of genuine suffering. What irritated me has been - much like John Locke, their attitude of this unexplained faith being all they needed to succeed. So much so that all those unpunished servings of diving, bullying, and killing games whenever ahead against a team of richer talent - who spent hours working on tactics and technical aspects, were acceptable portions of a cause bigger than they were. By all accounts, this kind of warped thinking justifies any action; and in some tragic cases, has.

"John Locke - killed by blind faith"

Yesterday they met a nation which doesn’t operate through faith in faith alone, and views success as a rightfully earned reward, as opposed to a gift of God. Germany - who possess an iron-clad belief that destiny is in the outcome and not the possibility, exposed the Brazilian team faith of 2014 for what it was; a lazy, blind, arrogant and indignant form of it. Throughout the World Cup, they have seemed to half expect the holy one to whip his mighty finger down and flick the ball into every opposition goal, and because of this, have made little to no effort at working on almost any element of what makes not only a World Cup winning squad, but a barely adequate one at that.

I don’t know how God works exactly, but I do know he generally helps those who work hard whilst retaining humility, and simply ‘get the job done and move on to the next task at hand’. As opposed to those who sit on their arse and expect heaven to be handed on a silver platter – purely because they belong to a nation deeply embedded in Catholicism, and are hosting the tournament. 

The faith of the home fans was pure, and they have single-handedly salvaged a World Cup almost ruined by the ignorance of the team it supports. But they were let down by those who represented them, and the squad's paper thin faith was only more offensive to atheists, then it was to genuine converts. In the end - much like England's ill-fated 2006 campaign; which relied on the notion of some form of personal 'legacy' to carry them through - and echoes Brazil's in a less religious manner, the faith just never seemed pure enough as a measure for success. And while German science avoids all notions of church, their personal faith in it will always carry more genuine authority, against those whose belief is more delusional lies than professional respect…

If God isn’t real, Brazil need to begin working hard again, and deliver to the unofficial spiritual home of football a game they can rightly claim to being the true masters of. If God is real? He just delivered a severe message that hard work pays off, nobody carries a divine right to anything, and destiny is not what you expect will happen to you, but what does happen to you. Brazil’s destiny – as far as the 2014 World Cup is concerned, was to be hammered by science, for having little faith in it. 

I am sure John Locke can empathize with them…