Everest - largest cathedral of Tibet, Nepal, India and the world

And now for something completely different: some Tibetan chants.

May 29, 2013 is the sixtieth anniversary of the first ascent of Mount Everest, or as the mountain is locally called Chomolungma. On the south side of this peak is the icefall in Nepal; on the north side, the Tibetan plateau.

In the Sherpa's Buddhist teaching, Chomolungma is home to a beautiful goddess called Miyolangsangma. She is a protective spirit that dwells high on the mountain. Many Sherpa have told of dreams where a beautiful young woman approaches them and makes her presence known before retreating to the heights of the mountain.

It was prophesied that a Sherpa would be the first to reach the highest point of the mountain and of the earth. In 1953 that prophecy came to fruition when Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary reached the summit. Hillary callously remarked that they, "knocked the bastard off." But one cannot completely blame the old chap. Though he failed to see the mountain for what it was, he did many good things for the people of the Khumbu community, building schools and medical centers in the decades after.

Following the historic climb, some of the Himalayan communities fought over the nationality of Norgay and the supporting climbers. Many porters were originally Tibetan, though the Chinese military had driven them out of their homeland. They settled in Darjeeling, India, the kick-off location for most climbing expeditions at that time. And then traveled through the heart of Nepal to reach basecamp and the summit.

The cultures and people in this area have their differences, but the Himalayan community all share one thing: the extraordinary backdrop of these mountains and their mystique. One day in the not too distant future, I hope to find myself at the base of these mountains. Anatoli Boukreev said it best:

"Mountains are not stadiums where I satisfy my ambition to achieve, they are the cathedrals where I practice my religion."

Fredrik (quasi-new album) Flora + goose

Fredrik's third album, Flora, is here for your enjoyment today. They've  crafted this atmospheric cloud of ethereal something something. Coming to you from the southern town of Malmo. That's Sweden, if you hadn't already guessed it. Curse you and your government-subsidized artistry.

I don't know why, but when I first saw the little wolf I laughed for a good five minutes. Again, I don't know why. I guess it's kind of ridiculous and quaint at the same time.

On the  topic of ridiculous and quaint, last night I dreamt that I had a pet goose. My family gathered around the dinner table to eat, but the goose slipped out of the screen door. We watched to see what he was doing, as he very deftly caught a tiny bird and brought it inside, put it on a plate at the table, wattled up into the seat and waited for everyone to be seated before digging in. There you have it: a polite carnivorous goose. I really loved him. I carried him like a football under my arm everywhere I went; he was a great pet.

Is it the 60s?

Another swipe from my hermanito's collection. As soon as he gets internet connection out in his little abode by the lake, he can co-manage this little music thing I have going. We can call it Slobek / Milo..Slolo...Mibek...Slobilo..we'll work it out. Until then, I will pass on his game.

Opossom kind of sounds like a band that was unjustly overlooked in your Sixties anthology and their video confirms it. Other than the sound/mixing quality, you'd have no inkling that they were contemporary.