Oro offers opportunity...

Gold, Au, Oro evokes the feeling of prestige; the meaning of gold is illumination, wisdom, and wealth. Gold often symbolizes high quality. Gold is on the up...well up...650USD an ounce. 650...coincidentally that's the same number as the recorded year that gold was first minted as a coin, short history here. The gold miners may not be too happy but the investors could be: "This year, the price of gold is up as much as 25 percent as investors diversify into precious metals. The incentives for investing in gold have included record oil prices, tension over Iran's nuclear program and concerns that global inflation could pick up pace." NEW YORK (Reuters) 29th April 2006.

So get out there and buy/trade some! It's a very handy global electronic currency - egold

The idea of prospectors seems centuries old but today there are still people out there doing it, and finding nuggets! Only last month for instance: [edit: link dead] gold nuggets were found by Rod Fitzhugh (ArizonaGoldProspectors.com) and Ted Scott (GoldPlacer.com) on March 26th 2006 in Arizona. Photo by Rod Fitzhugh.

I've done some panning in my time and been panned too! However I like to dig and there's always the chance you'll find some nuggets of your own; I found [edit: link dead] every one of them pure gold. Link in place of image found to be offensive to some readers... :-)

As an aside, and only slightly connected with these jewels, is that I went to a swimsuit show in the Marina Yacht Club in Callao (nr. Lima) yesterday, for Abtao Fashion; I had arrived on the plane to be greeted with TV and press crowding the airport exits...not for me...but for Daniela Cicarelli, a Brazilian beauty, model and Ronaldo's ex-girlfriend (I think it's ex), we had shared the front seats on the plane so I felt obliged to go and see her semi-naked...ahem. She has a lovely, natural beauty and a great sense of humour - here's a picture she let me take after the event: OK, as you may have guessed, that last bit's a complete lie: she said I shouldn't take it!!!

S.O.
1. Ows adds 01/05/06: As I commented to Mags, by pure (gold) coincidence, this week is the Seventh International Gold Symposium here in Lima. Today in El Comercio is a special supplement about it: Peru is the world's 5th principal gold producer, "Oro: brillos y sombras. Con motivo del Séptimo Simposium Internacional del Oro a realizarse esta semana en Lima, Día_1 [the supplement] ofrece un especial sobre el sector".
To make things even more weird, in the same section, there is also a comment re Gold's Gym (see comments) and Olenka, a Peruvian model, "¡Nadie como tú! Dime, por dónde es que van tus piecitos, cuál es el viento que sopla tu cabello, el cambista que le abre paso a tu sonrisa. Dime, Olenka, por qué eres así, por qué fuiste al Mr. Universo y no avisaste . Sí, sí, la rompieron los chicos del Gold's Gym, se sabe, pero nosotros queremos saber de ti, diosa eterna, Caballera de los Mares, Bruja de los Andes... ¡aaaaaaaaayy!"
2. Ows adds 01/05/06: Back to Gold: May 1 (Bloomberg) -- Prices of gold, which reached a 25- year high today, may surpass $700 an ounce by the end of the year as investors seek alternative investments and supply can't match demand, said Australian miner Bendigo Mining Ltd.

Oro offers opportunity...

Gold, Au, Oro evokes the feeling of prestige; the meaning of gold is illumination, wisdom, and wealth. Gold often symbolizes high quality. Gold is on the up...well up...650USD an ounce. 650...coincidently that's the same number as the recorded year that gold was first minted as a coin, short history here. The gold miners may not be too happy but the investors could be: "This year, the price of gold is up as much as 25 percent as investors diversify into precious metals. The incentives for investing in gold have included record oil prices, tension over Iran's nuclear program and concerns that global inflation could pick up pace." NEW YORK (Reuters) 29th April 2006.

So get out there and buy/trade some! It's a very handy global electronic currency - egold

The idea of prospectors seems centuries old but today there are still people out there doing it, and finding nuggets! Only last month for instance: these gold nuggets were found by Rod Fitzhugh (ArizonaGoldProspectors.com) and Ted Scott (GoldPlacer.com) on March 26th 2006 in Arizona. Photo by Rod Fitzhugh.

I've done some panning in my time and been panned too! However I like to dig and there's always the chance you'll find some nuggets of your own; I found these...every one of them pure gold. Link in place of image found to be offensive to some readers... :-)

As an aside, and only slightly connected with these jewels, is that I went to a swimsuit show in the Marina Yacht Club in Callao (nr. Lima) yesterday, for Abtao Fashion; I had arrived on the plane to be greated with TV and press crowding the airport exits...not for me...but for Daniela Cicarelli, a Brazilian beauty, model and Ronaldo's ex-girlfriend (I think it's ex), we had shared the front seats on the plane so I felt obliged to go and see her semi-naked...ahem. She has a lovely, natural beauty and a great sense of humour - here's a picture she let me take after the event:

OK, as you may have guessed, that last bit's a complete lie: she said I shouldn't take it!!!

;-)

S.O.

1. Ows adds 01/05/06: As I commented to Mags, by pure (gold) coincidence, this week is the Seventh International Gold Symposium here in Lima. Today in El Comercio is a special supplement about it: Peru is the world's 5th principal gold producer, "Oro: brillos y sombras. Con motivo del Séptimo Simposium Internacional del Oro a realizarse esta semana en Lima, Día_1 [the supplement] ofrece un especial sobre el sector".

To make things even more wierd, in the same section, there is also a comment re Gold's Gym (see comments) and Olenka, a Peruvian model, "¡Nadie como tú! Dime, por dónde es que van tus piecitos, cuál es el viento que sopla tu cabello, el cambista que le abre paso a tu sonrisa. Dime, Olenka, por qué eres así, por qué fuiste al Mr. Universo y no avisaste . Sí, sí, la rompieron los chicos del Gold's Gym, se sabe, pero nosotros queremos saber de ti, diosa eterna, Caballera de los Mares, Bruja de los Andes... ¡aaaaaaaaayy!"

2. Ows adds 01/05/06: Back to Gold: May 1 (Bloomberg) -- Prices of gold, which reached a 25- year high today, may surpass $700 an ounce by the end of the year as investors seek alternative investments and supply can't match demand, said Australian miner Bendigo Mining Ltd.

Olympic olid odorivector...

A bad smell from ...more pigs...at the trough this time, or New Labour verging on corruption again. This and the post below are two Olympic stories that caught my eye over the weekend.

"A COMPANY chaired by one of the businessmen at the heart of the Labour loans scandal is bidding for a £100m Olympic contract overseen by Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary."...that woman again... From the Sunday Times (16th April).

"The firm’s chairman is Rod Aldridge, who lent Labour £1m as part of the party’s secret £13.9m election fund."

"The Olympics contract will be awarded by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA). The authority’s board is appointed by Jowell, to whom it reports."...OK appointed by her and reporting to her...

The ODA’s documents for bidders states that unresolved conflicts of interest can lead to firms being barred. However, the ODA denied any conflict of interest, saying the culture secretary would have no role in choosing the successful bidder." ...say again...'denied any conflict of interest'...pigs might fly too! Gorge, you corrupt NL swine: the slaughterhouse is where you'll end up; where you belong!!

S.O.

Olympic olid odorivector...

A bad smell from ...more pigs...at the trough this time, or New Labour verging on corruption again. This and the post below are two Olympic stories that caught my eye over the weekend.

"A COMPANY chaired by one of the businessmen at the heart of the Labour loans scandal is bidding for a £100m Olympic contract overseen by Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary."...that woman again... From the Sunday Times (16th April).

"The firm’s chairman is Rod Aldridge, who lent Labour £1m as part of the party’s secret £13.9m election fund."

"The Olympics contract will be awarded by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA). The authority’s board is appointed by Jowell, to whom it reports."...OK appointed by her and reporting to her...

The ODA’s documents for bidders states that unresolved conflicts of interest can lead to firms being barred. However, the ODA denied any conflict of interest, saying the culture secretary would have no role in choosing the successful bidder." ...say again...'denied any conflict of interest'...pigs might fly too! Gorge, you corrupt NL swine: the slaughterhouse is where you'll end up; where you belong!!

S.O.

Olympic oink oinks...

"Olympic" pigs put through their paces - Reuters - Saturday April 15
Hundreds of Russians gathered for the first day of the annual "pig Olympics" on Saturday, cheering a field of 12 piglets who competed in three events: pig-racing, pig-swimming and "pigball".

Alexei Sharshkov, vice-president of the Sport-Pig Federation, which claims 100 members, said the competitors had a happy future ahead of them, win or lose.
"They go on to produce a new generation of sport pigs. They don't get eaten," ...ahem, of course they don't.

Aren't piggy-wiggies cute? I love 'em...hmmm...baaaaacon.

Olympic oink oinks...

"Olympic" pigs put through their paces - Reuters - Saturday April 15
Hundreds of Russians gathered for the first day of the annual "pig Olympics" on Saturday, cheering a field of 12 piglets who competed in three events: pig-racing, pig-swimming and "pigball".

Alexei Sharshkov, vice-president of the Sport-Pig Federation, which claims 100 members, said the competitors had a happy future ahead of them, win or lose.
"They go on to produce a new generation of sport pigs. They don't get eaten," ...ahem, of course they don't.

Aren't piggy-wiggies cute? I love 'em...hmmm...baaaaacon.

Oil oligopoly over…

Or Orinoco overflow!

‘Sowing the oil’ was a phrase much in the news when I was in Venezuela recently. It is a phrase that has a long history, since 1936 in fact, and was coined by Arturo Úslar Pietri; if you're interested I found a good translation at The Devil’s Excrement blog, here. He made at least two other pertininent and insightful speeches - these can be read via links on the same site.

“Why Is The Economy Growing? This reinvigoration of the Venezuelan economy is direct — although nonexclusive — result of the increase in oil prices to an average of 57.4 dollars per barrel (Brent blend, December 2005). The hydrocarbons are — and will continue to be for years to come — a pillar of the economy. But, then, what else is news in Venezuela? The novel thing is that definitely the country is sowing or planting oil in the productive sectors of the economy, as required by Arturo Uslar Pietri seventy years ago.”, taken from Luciano Wexell Severo’s long but nonetheless reasonably fair article “In Venezuela, Oil Sows Emancipation”.

Venezuela's Minister of Energy and Petroleum, Rafael Dario Ramirez Carreno outlining ‘Popular Distribution of Petroleum Rent’,"…under the leadership of President Chávez, the people defended our main resource and rescued it, in order to make it serve our Nation. Under this same orientation, it is also the people who will be the beneficiary of petroleum rent: the popular distribution of this rent constitutes the revolutionary dimension of our oil policy, beyond its eminently national character. It is, at the same time, a popular vision of the sowing of oil. The sowing of the oil in the past failed, certainly, because it rested on an elitist vision of an exclusionary Venezuela." The rest here, OK, OK! "Anti-imperialist" rants are what really bug me about Chavez the man of whom I have been an outspoken critic – especially his clowning on the ‘International stage’ – but I have also supported his social programmes boosted by high oil revenues.

He is also not squandering it as many critics are saying. I now believe he is using it well to try to boost Venezuela to where it should have been decades ago. From the Energy Bulletin, "We have the largest oil reserves in the world, we have oil for 200 years." Mr Chávez told the BBC's Newsnight programme in an interview to be broadcast tonight [3rd April] "$50 a barrel - that's a fair price, not a high price."…anyone see the programme? Full, original article here.

On March 30 he said this, telling the oil giants to pay their way or get out, and on March 31st he signed a deal with 17 oil companies (not all – some didn’t sign). He spoke for nearly 2 hours and I watched the whole thing, when he speaks of Venezuela and it’s people he can be quite a good orator and somewhat convincing – except he always has to go off on a tangent and waffles about US imperialism – in this case it was re the US envolvement in the 1964 Brazilian coup that had it’s anniversary the same day.

Whilst there I also heard him speak in Apure State, my home from 1987 – 1995 (apart from a one year break in the Orinoco Delta [1989] the photos in the link are what I saw every day but they do not do it justice: the fauna and flora are wonderful) re the endogenous development schemes he is undertaking; again he was convincing and honest; whilst there (all on TV) he spoke with my ex-boss who has just signed a deal that saw them collect 4 million US dollars for a ranch that had been invaded by 'settlers' but they also donated another massive ranch in Apure that will now be used by dozens of small cooperatives. “El acuerdo contempla una indemnización de 4,1 millones de dólares por la expropiación de una finca de 12.950 hectáreas en el céntrico estado de Cojedes hasta ahora propiedad de Agroflora, que adicionalmente donó otra finca de 43.000 hectáreas en el occidental estado de Apure, valorada en 4,7 millones de dólares.” Unfortunately on the same TV programme he said that he thought the opposition may not field a candidate in the December Presidential elections and that if so he would propose a change to the Constitution to allow for his reelection....indefinitely...DOH!

Anyway, what I’m getting at (because this post could go on for ever) is that the country has turned a corner; where before there was no overt inversion or investment and things were looking bad, now I see improvements everywhere, money being well spent on infrastructure, people at work everywhere, the roadsides being cleared and cleaned, people getting educated where before they were the ‘forgotten’, the money being spent countrywide is incredible - they are importing cememnt not because the national production is poor but because so much is being used! The waiting list for new cars increases as people everywhere spend, spend, spend!and those that can’t see the improvements don’t want to see them. I am enthused and happy because this is what should have been happening years ago – you may have guessed that Venezuela is ‘mi segunda patria’, and why not, my children are half Venezuelan and I may move back soon!

S.O.

Oil oligopoly over…

Or Orinoco overflow!

‘Sowing the oil’ was a phrase much in the news when I was in Venezuela recently. It is a phrase that has a long history, since 1936 in fact, and was coined by Arturo Úslar Pietri; if you're interested I found a good translation at The Devil’s Excrement blog, here. He made at least two other pertininent and insightful speeches - these can be read via links on the same site.

“Why Is The Economy Growing? This reinvigoration of the Venezuelan economy is direct — although nonexclusive — result of the increase in oil prices to an average of 57.4 dollars per barrel (Brent blend, December 2005). The hydrocarbons are — and will continue to be for years to come — a pillar of the economy. But, then, what else is news in Venezuela? The novel thing is that definitely the country is sowing or planting oil in the productive sectors of the economy, as required by Arturo Uslar Pietri seventy years ago.”, taken from Luciano Wexell Severo’s long but nonetheless reasonably fair article “In Venezuela, Oil Sows Emancipation”.

Venezuela's Minister of Energy and Petroleum, Rafael Dario Ramirez Carreno outlining ‘Popular Distribution of Petroleum Rent’,"…under the leadership of President Chávez, the people defended our main resource and rescued it, in order to make it serve our Nation. Under this same orientation, it is also the people who will be the beneficiary of petroleum rent: the popular distribution of this rent constitutes the revolutionary dimension of our oil policy, beyond its eminently national character. It is, at the same time, a popular vision of the sowing of oil. The sowing of the oil in the past failed, certainly, because it rested on an elitist vision of an exclusionary Venezuela." The rest here, OK, OK! "Anti-imperialist" rants are what really bug me about Chavez the man of whom I have been an outspoken critic – especially his clowning on the ‘International stage’ – but I have also supported his social programmes boosted by high oil revenues.

He is also not squandering it as many critics are saying. I now believe he is using it well to try to boost Venezuela to where it should have been decades ago. From the Energy Bulletin, "We have the largest oil reserves in the world, we have oil for 200 years." Mr Chávez told the BBC's Newsnight programme in an interview to be broadcast tonight [3rd April] "$50 a barrel - that's a fair price, not a high price."…anyone see the programme? Full, original article here.

On March 30 he said this, telling the oil giants to pay their way or get out, and on March 31st he signed a deal with 17 oil companies (not all – some didn’t sign). He spoke for nearly 2 hours and I watched the whole thing, when he speaks of Venezuela and it’s people he can be quite a good orator and somewhat convincing – except he always has to go off on a tangent and waffles about US imperialism – in this case it was re the US envolvement in the 1964 Brazilian coup that had it’s anniversary the same day.

Whilst there I also heard him speak in Apure State, my home from 1987 – 1995 (apart from a one year break in the Orinoco Delta [1989] the photos in the link are what I saw every day but they do not do it justice: the fauna and flora are wonderful) re the endogenous development schemes he is undertaking; again he was convincing and honest; whilst there (all on TV) he spoke with my ex-boss who has just signed a deal that saw them collect 4 million US dollars for a ranch that had been invaded by 'settlers' but they also donated another massive ranch in Apure that will now be used by dozens of small cooperatives. “El acuerdo contempla una indemnización de 4,1 millones de dólares por la expropiación de una finca de 12.950 hectáreas en el céntrico estado de Cojedes hasta ahora propiedad de Agroflora, que adicionalmente donó otra finca de 43.000 hectáreas en el occidental estado de Apure, valorada en 4,7 millones de dólares.” Unfortunately on the same TV programme he said that he thought the opposition may not field a candidate in the December Presidential elections and that if so he would propose a change to the Constitution to allow for his reelection....indefinitely...DOH!

Anyway, what I’m getting at (because this post could go on for ever) is that the country has turned a corner; where before there was no overt inversion or investment and things were looking bad, now I see improvements everywhere, money being well spent on infrastructure, people at work everywhere, the roadsides being cleared and cleaned, people getting educated where before they were the ‘forgotten’, the money being spent countrywide is incredible - they are importing cememnt not because the national production is poor but because so much is being used! The waiting list for new cars increases as people everywhere spend, spend, spend!and those that can’t see the improvements don’t want to see them. I am enthused and happy because this is what should have been happening years ago – you may have guessed that Venezuela is ‘mi segunda patria’, and why not, my children are half Venezuelan and I may move back soon!

S.O.

Oslo's official output...

Shit happens...The future's bright; the future...smells? Recycling the do-dos, the shit not hitting the fan but powering it instead!

From Reuters: "In an extreme energy project tapping heat from raw sewage, Oslo's citizens are helping to warm their homes and offices simply by flushing the toilet."

"We believe this is the biggest heating system in the world using raw sewage,"...oh, I don't know: I can think of a few other candidates - except for the heating system bit!

"In Oslo, a problem is that the flow in the sewers is irregular -- Monday mornings between 4-6 a.m. are especially dry because people go to bed early on Sunday. But at weekends, the flow is good."...Irregular? Hehehe...

"At the opening ceremony for the plant, Oslo mayor Per Ditlev-Simonsen was given a new toilet seat for his office. "It will be an inspiration," he said....translated he means that with all the shit he has to put up there could be a power surge.

S.O.

Oslo's official output...

Shit happens...The future's bright; the future...smells? Recycling the do-dos, the shit not hitting the fan but powering it instead!

From Reuters: "In an extreme energy project tapping heat from raw sewage, Oslo's citizens are helping to warm their homes and offices simply by flushing the toilet."

"We believe this is the biggest heating system in the world using raw sewage,"...oh, I don't know: I can think of a few other candidates - except for the heating system bit!

"In Oslo, a problem is that the flow in the sewers is irregular -- Monday mornings between 4-6 a.m. are especially dry because people go to bed early on Sunday. But at weekends, the flow is good."...Irregular? Hehehe...

"At the opening ceremony for the plant, Oslo mayor Per Ditlev-Simonsen was given a new toilet seat for his office. "It will be an inspiration," he said....translated he means that with all the shit he has to put up there could be a power surge.

S.O.