Frames of mind

roaming around Naples frame of mind

In a different frame of mind currently. A beautiful, gloomy late morning up here in Büyükdere. The Bosporus is in a different frame of mind too. Agitated slightly, perhaps at the inconvenience of the current kinda inclement weather- in the sense that remembrance to last weekend's splendid sunshine was so welcoming of... spring. Sigh.

Yea, coffee. Cup Number 2 is going down especially sweet this morning, mostly because Cup Number 1 & Cup Number 2 was separated by a spirited morning run along the brooding Bosporus. Runner's high frame of mind; it's pretty addictive.

Always check your headwinds before you take off downwind during kinda inclement weather. So yea, I didn't really catch on to the impending headwinds until I actually turned around in Tarabya. "I feel great", I kept thinking to myself. HELLO strong, cold, windy return-voyage. Yet she persisted...

Incredulous were these thoughts of greatness because last night was a typical pau hana (end of work week ) Happy Hour Friday gathering frame of mind starting early in the evening. Three vokda/tonics later and I was in a bit of a different frame of mind, full well knowing that my future frame of mind would (still) embrace a morning run.

Morning runs and Büyükdere are pretty dear to me. The joy experienced engaged in this endeavor burns deep in my soul, that ethereal energy storage space, and aids in reaching back to that dream-time that I can go through when living in different countries whereby I'm concentrating deeply on a past experience somewhere and wish to feel/smell/touch that moment in this moment...yea. That is where I travel to sometimes, when I wander off into that frame of mind. Deep gratitude in knowing this is possible to attain when in union with spiritual energies. That's the kinds frame of mind I'm talking about. Sweet spots rock.

Yesterday I ran, too, along My Bosphorus. Yesterday My Bosporus was less... 'sarcastic' is the word that eventually comes to mind. Unassuming- except for the Kireçburnu part, which was full of debris and loads of jellyfish, all clinging to life against the water's edge, ebbing and flowing with the changing tides. Fascinatingly gross. I lamented how trash-strewn the area was and how society really needs to get their collective shit together and keep our public lands/waterways CLEAN. Oh yea, #45 is a complete idiot BTW.

I mean, life is increasingly more stressful at this time, in my humble opinion. The entire world seems to be aware of politics, (politricks), and yet citizens can hardly get to the heart of matters. There is so much confusion with news, certainly for us Americans now, and with Turks on their upcoming elections next month, France, etc. All sides are spinning webs of deceit at this point. I'm burnt out. *starts reading BOOKS again instead (winning)*

Speaking of the upcoming election here in Turkey next month... So to give a quickie, it's about constitutional amendments. The biggest issue is getting rid of parliament while instituting an executive presidency. Nuff said.

I digress... So, I was running yesterday and on the ground everywhere is spray painted stampings of 'evet' (yes in Turkish). The main political party's youth organizations, etc. must have came out in force and stamped up streets throughout the city. Billboards as well now greet every person waiting at the bus-stops, etc. around the city saying that 'Turks say 'evet'. They don't say 'hayir' (no in Turkish). This is supposed to be a reminder to Turkish citizens to be good citizens of the Republic, IMHO. All countries, of course, use propaganda during elections, as far as I know.

As the story goes... some early voter-type opinion polls showing statistics not considered favorable enough for the ruling party, so... well, you guys can just read it here if you're interested:

http://time.com/4677051/turkey-erdogan-constitution-referendum-akp/
or here:
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/turkey-referendum-erdogan-tone-policing-backfires.html
or here:
http://fortune.com/2017/01/27/social-media-turkey/
or here, etc...
https://www.dailysabah.com/columns/merve-sebnem-oruc/2017/02/28/yes-to-change-in-turkey-or-no-thanks

I think I provided a few POVs in the above articles...  *resistance  *persistence

Back to the story... As I ran and looked down on the pavement, there was a sea of 'evet' markings. Noticing the random patterns, every step I saw more and more. Today as I ran and noticed the circle shapes on the pavement, I remembered back to yesterday, but then I saw a 'hayir' marking. Then I saw more and more of them! The battle of the 'evets' and the 'hayirs' right there in front of me, guiding me on. Where will it end?

So, the opposition youth parties, etc. were out last night challenging one group framework's propaganda with another. Such is life, I think. It made me smile, and perhaps gave me a boost of energy to see this new development.Grateful for the experience. Grateful for The Persistence of The Resistance global movements.

Anyway, the things I observe on my Bosporus runs are precious memories that shape a frame of mind, that I can channel my energy back to, whenever desired, and just soak it in. Yea, that energizes me for the as-of-yet-unknown future! Stoked.

Peace