Well I put my thinking cap on and realised that in Charles Lamb’s journal Lucy Ebbs (Mother Nature personified) refers to the Earth moving (page number to follow) which is odd as the recent Earthquake’s we’ve seen all seem linked to The Haymakers Survey.  Elsewhere on our Watch we’ve already mentioned the devastating Haiti quake (sounds like Hayti).  Whilst the quake in Chile on 27 February was so powerful at 8.8 on the Richter scale that a NASA scientist has reported that the quake has literally knocked the Earth’s axis and shortened the length of each Earth day by 1.26 microseconds - uncanny that it should happen in Chile given the references to the Arctic in the novel, but more significantly we have two references in the book to the Axis Mundi - on which all things turn! (page refs to follow).

If that’s not sufficient to feed our curiousity - we have the Eureka moment. On January 9 2010 there was a quake of 6.5m in the Pacific ocean with an epicentre 33 miles west of the nearest major city of Eureka. No significant damage was reported but the amusing thing is that when the Blakesware Set gathered and thought up the Haymakers Survey questions when Malthus cried ‘Eureka’ in celebration (page 345 and on the Journal sample on the main site).

We speculate -is planet Earth protecsting against our behaviour? Our live to work, work to earn, earn to consume life style that is so stressful to many, futile and belittling to our species and threatens to destory the delicate eco-system of life on Earth. Behaviour which some argue undermines what humanity is really about. Mmm it make me wonder… let’s show our true colours… they are beautiful like the rainbow.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbZDjnWtK1A

He’s been named Miyagi after fictional martial arts expert Mr Miyagi from the Karate Kid films, he was born five days ago with a thick belt of black wool around his middle. A Lamb with a fighting flare - the little Haymaker!  Farmer William Herbert said:

‘I’ve been farming for over 50 years but I’ve never seen anything like this before. Some lambs have a spot of discoloured wool, but it’s very unusual to see a  full thick stripe. It goes all the way around. It looks like I’ve gone out to him with a paint brush.

‘He’s one of a set of triplets but he won’t be treated any differently to his  brother and sister. They don’t have any markings on them – he’s the odd one out.’

http://www.thehaymakerssurvey.com/2.PDF

The pdf also includes the opening Watch examples and the first book’s conclusion.  Please feel free to share with friends and others.

the-haymakers-survey-2008-24-feb-final-proof-part-1.pdf

On the same date, we look across the Atlantic and find the East coast of America has experienced ‘Smowmaggedon’ through the heaviest snowfall in some 100 years! Unsurprisingly the East coast was home to a couple of the Blakesware Set - Ralph Emerson and Henry Thoreau. Most poignant! We’d better take better care of our planet.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YitaEluvmaM

Scientists are calling the debate about the object ‘The Curious Case of Comet Linear’ It’s another example linked to our poser in the early part of our novel (see sample) ‘Does humanity have the X factor?’ Perhaps this is a poignant reminder to act to preserve our natural world?

Here’s a video of the whales blowing bubbles and doing other tricks…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCAUleX5h8A

But there’s a dark side to this. Should such majestic creatures be confined to a tank for human entertainment? You decide!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGkZSiENKIA&feature=related

Just 2 months after our story, we now have a state of emergency in Haiti. On January 12,  Haiti was struck by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake, the country’s most severe earthquake in over 200 years. Widespread damage resulted from the quake, with a majority of buildings collapsing due to poor structural design and construction. The capital city was devastated and up to some 100,000 people are feared dead.

Normally we would put the earthquake down as an entirely natural occurance, but the timining is odd given the phonetics of the country’s name: Haiti sounds like it begins with the word HAY probably the only country in the world with such phonetics. Did we somehow anticipate the disaster?

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. It has been struck by multiple hurricanes, causing flooding and widespread damage, most recently in 2008 from Tropical Storm Fay and Hurricane Gustav. This prompted Miami herald journalist Leonard Pitts, Jr., to ask “if the planet itself is not conspiring against this humble little nation”.

Haiti was once lush; less than 100 years ago 60% of its original forest covered the lands and mountainous regions. Since then, an estimated 98% of its original forest cover had been cut down, and in the process has destroyed fertile farmland soils, contributing to desertification. It is now extremely vulnerable to natural disasters. In addition to soild erosion, deforestation has caused periodic flooding, as seen on 17 September 2004. tropical storm Jeanne skimmed the north coast of Haiti, leaving 3,006 people dead in flooding and mudslides. Earlier that year in May, floods killed over 3,000 people on Haiti’s southern border with the Dominican Republic.

We do not in any way wish to be disrespectful to the victims in this horrific event and our deepest sympathies go to all concerned. We wish the people of Haiti well as they struggle to respond to the crisis. A huge interrnational aid effort is underway and we have already made our own donation. As their moto says ‘Strength is Unity’ - a lesson for all humanity perhaps.

Its therefore interesting that following a Facebook internet campaign, the revolutionary rap metal band ‘Rage Against The Machine’ have beaten X Factor winner Joe McElderry to top spot following an internet campaign.  The anti-establishment song is called, ‘Killing in the Name’ which is ironic as that’s exactly what the human race is slowly doing to the natural world.  So - does this mean we don’t have the X-Factor after all?

On December 20th the Facebook campaign was acknowledged by some 950,000 people including the former Beatles star, Sir Paul McCartney. In a TV interview Sir Paul said, “I like the idea of this Rage Against the Machine thing happening. I think that’s kind of interesting… it would prove a point.” The band’s guitarist Tom Morello has since claimed their success was an act of God, saying “when Mother Nature and Sir Paul McCartney agree on something its going to be unstoppable.”  Maybe that’s why Sir Paul chose to sing this at the X-Factor final….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_esOVRCDpM

So, what does this have to do with our Watch we hear you ask? Simple really - maybe its Mother Nature’s way of drawing everyone’s attention to the role of the star in revealing the hidden message in ‘The Haymakers Survey’.  In our story, the star is at the centre of the unveiling of the key message - see page 198. What’s to follow we wonder?