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Dot in the Sky ([personal profile] dotinthesky) wrote2005-08-10 04:51 pm
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The Shapes of Clouds

I once saw a ten-minute documentary on Channel 4 about the Cloud Appreciation Society. These people dedicate their lives to cataloguing, observing and searching out the most beautiful clouds in the world. Their eyes are constantly turned heavenwards, judging how exciting their days will be by the amorphous shapes that float above their heads. And the ultimate cloud? The most unique piece of fluff that all cloud enthusiast must experience one day in their life?





I love observing clouds. Maybe it has something to do with me being a Libra (air sign), but also a leftover from when I was a child and I thought I carried the power to create storms with the tips of my fingers. I've had dreams where I'm flying through clouds; I've flown a thousand times over clouds (inside airplanes that took me around the globe); I've taken photos of clouds shaping a sunset, a sunrise, or just the backdrop of a group of friends; I've laid in a dozen beds watching the clouds outside my window; I've judged my days by the clouds I saw outside the kitchen as I ate my breakfast; I've felt hopeless at being stuck at work because there were few clouds in the sky and the sun seemed so inviting. When the clouds are there, I feel hypnotized, emptied out of all my frustration and angst. Maybe the clouds are to blame for my constant daydreaming; their changing shapes reflect my changing moods, my changing desires.

Right now, my colleague has Air's album Talkie Walkie playing (how ironic, huh?) and I can observe the clouds that roam London's Southbank. They are purple with rain, but sparse-looking, like diluted watercolours. If I squint my eyes, I can discern a few shapes, a few "hills" that separate them. A plane now flies through the clouds, heading towards Heathrow. A seagull flies closer, between us and King's College. Do birds care about the clouds too?

[identity profile] desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com 2005-08-10 04:06 pm (UTC)(link)
what about Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds? good song...


I rarely get a chance to observe clouds anymore, but I love when I do. Need to trek out to the park on a good cloud day and just hang out under a tree, lettin' the world pass by.

More frequently am I arrested by the site of a beautiful tree. They intrigue me, can keep me watching, can stop me in my tracks. Plants of all sorts make me want to learn their names and how they best grow. Not that I have a garden. you'd think I did, with that last paragraph. I always want one, but never seem to make one.

[identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com 2005-08-10 04:12 pm (UTC)(link)
I hope you get to visit my farm in Brasil one day; we have so many wonderful plants, trees, flowers, but also a great sky that is constantly filled with clouds. You'd love it. :)

[identity profile] desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com 2005-08-10 04:30 pm (UTC)(link)
fabulous! I do, too. Maybe one of those retreats will work out for me some day.

[identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com 2005-08-11 09:46 am (UTC)(link)
Definetly. Next time I speak to my mom, I'm going to mention it to her!

[identity profile] desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com 2005-08-11 12:56 pm (UTC)(link)
ok! sounds good. then the freakin' price of a ticket needs to come down! too bad it's not in argentina...then my moolah would go farther.

[identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com 2005-08-11 12:59 pm (UTC)(link)
There are always out of season flights, which are cheaper!

[identity profile] desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com 2005-08-11 01:12 pm (UTC)(link)
ah! bill the retreat as that! (off season, that is)