ben Posted September 19, 2005 Hello, I have been plundering the Tao Bums for wisdom for a while now so I guess it's time I gave something back. My name is Ben.Ringer and I am 24 years old. I was living in Australia but have recently moved to Brighton U.K. where I am enjoying the partying and the seagulls. Â I have had a passion for religion, mysticism,the occult, martial arts,dance etc since I was a wee lad and currently I am enjoying playing with Taoist alchemy, Wu style Tai chi and 'spontaneous practice'. Â I feel forums like this are important as they address the need for spirtual friendship . Sometimes I have felt like my interest in cultivation has isolated me from my family and my friends, partly because of there ignorance and partly because of a lack of skill on on my half on how to intergrate my practice smoothly. It is soo-oo important to chat. Chow 4 now , Ben. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cameron Posted September 19, 2005 Another Aussie, welcome! Â I have a goal to visit the motherland(Australia) for a few months after I get my MBA in a couple years(hopefully). Â get some fish'n chips in Sydney harbor and then drive into the outback! Or the Great Barrier Reef if I get real adventurous. Â G'day! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ben Posted September 20, 2005 Cool. If you come over visit Noosa Heads, it's a beautifull beach town north of Brisbane. Now I feel home sick, bye. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Trunk Posted September 20, 2005 I feel forums like this are important as they address the need for spirtual friendship . Sometimes I have felt like my interest in cultivation has isolated me from my family and my friends, partly because of there ignorance and partly because of a lack of skill on on my half on how to intergrate my practice smoothly. It is soo-oo important to chat. That's a big topic, that the community hasn't really talked about much. I know that, for me, social integration has definately been a challenge w/ my spiritual path. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sean Posted September 20, 2005 I feel forums like this are important as they address the need for spirtual friendship . Sometimes I have felt like my interest in cultivation has isolated me from my family and my friends, partly because of there ignorance and partly because of a lack of skill on on my half on how to intergrate my practice smoothly. It is soo-oo important to chat. 7180[/snapback] Yeah, this is a big one for me too.  Hey, welcome aboard Ben. Just curious, what kind of dance were you into? I've dabbled in breakdancing and also took balllet for a bit. (Don't laugh ).  Sean. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ben Posted September 22, 2005 Sorry that I take a long time to reply, I do not have access to a computer at the moment. Sean the dance styles I have studied are salsa, contemporary (lots of pretending to be a tree!) and a little bit of Jazz. I came to dance late after having team sports shoved down my throat in school. The best thing about dancing is that it is a great way to meet girls ,though I have embarrassed myself plenty of times. I think balet is beutifull to watch, I recall a T.V. documentry which said that balet dances sustain more injuries than football players. I know from my own experience that dance plays havoc with the knees. Â ahh i have only a 2 mins remaining chow 4 now Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sunshine Posted September 22, 2005 That's a big topic, that the community hasn't really talked about much. I know that, for me, social integration has definately been a challenge w/ my spiritual path. 7198[/snapback]  my thoughts on that topic here:  http://www.thetaobums.com/forum/index.php?...st=0entry7271 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites