NightMonkeyShines

"Wilson!"

2010-10-28T08:00:00.000-07:00

It is the end of an era. Today is my last day at Wilson Library at Western Washington University. I will miss library work and the students, especially. Working on University campuses and in academic libraries over the last 15 years has been a privilege that I have appreciated deeply.

My tenure at Wilson Library has not been without excitement and growth. I was laid off due to "budgetary cuts" and after giving my choice to stay in another position a serious amount of consideration, I opted to leave.

Certainly I have learned things about myself in that library - things that one could never find in a book. Who knew that I was so difficult and that a "good job" comes with no guarantees of happiness or even stability? These are blind spots and unconscious expectations that needed to be revealed and addressed when deciding what I need in a work environment. There was difficulty. I am difficult. Everyone is. How we manage our complexities in our relationships with others determines who we are. In this case, I carry my complicated ways and my new awareness out the door and on to new horizons with a renewed sense of what is valuable and productive within me and my relationships with others.

The day that I was told that my position at the Music Library had been cut, I came home curled up on my couch and watched "Castaway". Films, stories, poetry, music help when words fail and it was a capitol day for language dysfunction. Art can take the worst day and make it the first day. So it was as I watched Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland struggle to hold on to the plane and his precious time piece as his aircraft plummeted into the Pacific Ocean. I took comfort in the story of his process of surviving an impossible situation by using only what knowledge he had and what happened his way.

I cried with renewed appreciation as he mourned the loss of his best friend and constant companion, Wilson. Grief and loss. It seems that I've seen plenty of this in the last five years. I laughed again appreciating the subtlety of the symbolism of the whale that kept an eye on him on his floating journey home, reminding me that whatever element you are thrown into someone or something calls it home and wants to love you.

I started this blog NightMonkeyShines back in 2007 as a Library 2.0 exercise. That was back in the phat days when we had time to actually learn things and try to develop a sense of integrity and involvement to our work in serving others. That was before Golem and the great baggage of budget woes darkened the door blowing out the side of my cargo plane.

I've maintained two blogs. I suppose many people keep two blogs but I see no reason to continue. This one was primarily for work and for my association with a group of Elder Bloggers I enjoy at Time Goes By. It was my thought that keeping two blogs would allow the option of sharing the tamer writing and putting more radical thoughts in the other blog. Initially, as well, I thought I would be blogging more about things work related. That is not what happened. I've used this blog for more local notices of events and such. I never hid the other blog but I realized that most people would not bother with digging any deeper. I often double posted.

I also have come to realize by now that I underestimated the mettle of my elder blogger friends. There is little of strong language or scurrilous thinking that they have not already dealt with in spades! The rest of cyberspace will just have to endure or skip my local fixations when they are posted.

I'm feeling hopeful, if a bit tremulous. So in the in the spirit of change - doors closing and discovering others and opening them - I leave Wilson Library and this blog NightMonkeyShines with a link to my other blog and a nod of thanks to everyone who made my last six plus years an often enjoyable and an always enlightening enterprise.

"...And I know what I have to do now. I gotta keep breathing. Because tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?"

~ Chuck Noland,
Castaway

Hopefully, I will see you at my other digs and I will find something of interest to write about:

http://cilesfineline.blogspot.com

Cile

Look Who is Voting While you Choose Not to

2010-10-25T09:22:00.000-07:00

SHE'S VOTING!

THEY ARE VOTING!

This is not a good time to pass on politics, should that be an inclination for you this week. What happens in the coming weeks will cast either a light or a giant shadow across all the choices to made in the future. Stay informed; stay the course for change and a better world for yourselves and those you hold near and dear to your heart.

I'm Gonna Go Get My Weary Bones Saved

2010-10-08T22:00:00.000-07:00

Antje Duvekot, singer/songwriter, chanteuse extraordinaire announces that she has been writing songs again. No better news can be heard across the land. If you are not familiar with Antje's music please let me introduce you. You will never regret the introduction, I promise you.

Go to her website. Listen to her music. Get on her mailing list to make sure you do not miss her when she performs near you.

I find her so talented that I made my first grandchild be born on her birthday...Ok, well...I had nothing to do with that but I am thrilled none the less. It was: "Oh GOD!! I'm a Grandmother and my little angel shares a birthday with Antje Duvekot! Holy Cow!!" True story.

I trust you will be charmed and her music just might become part of your personal soundtrack as it is mine.

Your welcome.

Hitchhiker

2010-09-25T20:00:00.000-07:00

I am on the cusp of being unemployed with my position being eliminated due to budget cuts. Consequently, I'm up at 4 AM this morning . I'm 57 - not old enough to retire - not young enough to hire. I'm not marketable. That is the fact of it. What I bring to the work place of skill, enhancements and vision are not recognized as valuable by current standards. In the bleary predawn I was trying to amuse myself after a restless night by scrolling through songs. I spent some time watching Johnny Cash videos, seeing as how that is the only cash I can spend right now. I then moved into songs about the heart of the matter: work and the economy...

For a long time I have been thinking in terms of the last twenty years when I think of America's dependence on oil and an inflated economy but as I looked at this video I realized that our dependence is really embedded deeper within the American psyche and it goes back farther than that. It actually seems to reside on the level of myth for those of us born into the automobile culture.

Given that the oil industry provided the groundwork for the American economy for so very, very long, it stands to reason it will take some time and creativity to realign the structure of the economy on a new foundation. With all the pressure for social reform, tea parties, posturing, posing and denial it seems I am part of a collective group of people who have driven the combustible engine to the end of the line and we just can't stand it. Right and left both seem apoplectic over how they have been "wronged" by each other. I contend that the arguments are somewhat distracting from what has really happened to us all. The gas guage is empty and we have run out of road.

Just as sure as I have skittered along as a wage slave all of my life on the high tide of other people's wealth, taken my directives as a worker bee and carved out my niche of happiness, so have I reached the end of my working day as I have known it. Nobody took me where I didn't want to go and the same goes for my post-war baby clan because on some level, we flow together and we are identified as a group. We are the aging; we contributed ; we deserve respect for that because our work added to the greater good. We will never be young again and...I must say it, though it raises the shackles of my friends who design their very lives around raging against the tide of age, "I'm sorry, but young is NOT better than old; it is other than old".

When it comes to speed and efficiency in the workplace, we are not young and uncomplicated. We bring the depth of experience into the bigger picture. In most work environs, the older worker spells problems and without an understanding of the need for depth and value in the work environment, we become parodies of ourselves and a farce in the workplace. We are living history and history has a vital and rewarding place in all aspects of society. Not recognizing this fact is not only ageist (and a financial bonanza in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic field), but it is detrimental to the greater good of any organization or nation. Elders are in jobs or needing work to make ends meet. Some of the ends are not going to meet because, frankly, some people just don't "get" it. Sadly, some of the worst offenders are the old themselves who are so afraid of their own reflection that they can't stop staring at their wrinkles long enough to recognize the strength staring back at them.

Clearly these are hard times for everyone but if we do not allow ourselves to be overwhelmed and defeated over the loss of what was by busying ourselves with criticizing and commiserating over bits and pieces of our lost youth and arguing over our entitlements, we may just find the things that are possible and have enough strength left over to help develop positive changes. I see this economic stop as a chance to build something not born of war or built on greed, self interest and suffering. Anyway, this is my strategy for the time between now and my next mortgage payment. ( I hear a Greek chorus in the chambers of my mind chanting, "Good luck with that.")

This flashback of Lucas' film "American Graffiti" as it is edited into this song inspired these thoughts in me. The combustible engine gave us a tremendous lift, didn't it? Look where it took us all! Some made piles of dough that they spent right away on novelties or adventures. Some made a haul that they saved and lost in the stock market by trusting people who were greedy and disguised themselves as the status quo. Some made the money and invested it in a better future for others. Some made so much they did all three and then some! I think it is time to park it and take honest stock in what we think is our entitlement here. It seems to me, if we did not enjoy the ride we were given when we were given it, we should check our complaining at the door. Whether we get paid for it or not, there is elder work to be done.

Thanks to AK47bandit for the "Get a Job" video

Ball of Confusion (that's what the world is today)

2010-09-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

I'm in the third quarter of my word of the year Clarity with the autumnal equinox today. In moving along with this, I've learned a bit about the world and myself and this word, I must say. I'm not the sharpest tool in the box but I think I have a moment or two of inspiration that allows me an egress into an occasional area of something close to validity and value. I am posting this video to maybe give some idea of the kinds of situations I have been trying to clarify for myself. This has been one hell of a week for me, defining clarity has been a harsh mistress this year and it all rests on the close of one hell of a decade. I found this video with the help of those noted below and it just says it all. The lyrics are included below. The fact that the song was a hit single 30 years ago makes me wonder how we could all be so incomprehensibly dense. So it goes. Anyway...

Here's to living in interesting times.

Everybody DANCE!

People movin' out
People movin' in
Why, because of the color of their skin
Run, run, run, but you sho' can't hide
An eye for an eye
A tooth for a tooth
Vote for me, and I'll set you free
Rap on brother, rap on
Well, the only person talkin'
'Bout love thy brother is the preacher
And it seems,
Nobody is interested in learnin'
But the teacher
Segregation, determination, demonstration,
Integration, aggravation,
Humiliation, obligation to our nation
Ball of Confusion
That's what the world is today

The sale of pills are at an all time high
Young folks walk around with
Their heads in the sky
Cities aflame in the summer time
And, the beat goes on

Air pollution, revolution, gun control,
Sound of soul
Shootin' rockets to the moon
Kids growin' up too soon
Politicians say more taxes will
Solve everything
And the band played on
So round 'n' round 'n' round we go
Where the world's headed, nobody knows
Just a Ball of Confusion
Oh yea, that's what the world is today

Fear in the air, tension everywhere
Unemployment rising fast,
The Beatles' new record's a gas
And the only safe place to live is
On an indian reservation
And the band played on
Eve of destruction, tax deduction
City inspectors, bill collectors
Mod clothes in demand,
Population out of hand
Suicide, too many bills, hippies movin'
To the hills
People all over the world, are shoutin'
End the war
And the band played on

Clarity, vision and transparency are words that I have heard tossed around relentlessly over the past year. From a distance is it so much easier to spot the very large problems. Up close we are so myopic it is nearly impossible to even figure out who to ally oneself with when the suffering becomes commonplace. Sometimes there is no way for one person to stop a poorly constructed concept from gaining momentum, however, one less feast for the beast might gain the one day necessary for the recovery of the what is progressive and positive. As long as there is time; there is hope. I've isolated the bad guy in myself and I will have my hands full with that. In the end, sometimes walkin' the talk means walkin' away when the bottom line is moved too far to accommodate in good conscience.

Thanks to Citizen K and Just a Song blogs for helping me find this video by terris1958

The Elephant in the Room

2010-09-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

This isn't a post about events at work as might be suggested by the title. This is a post about how I was invited to explore the music of a band who is going to be playing at he the Wild Buffalo in Bellingham WA at 9:45 pm on Thursday, September 16th . There is promotional work to be done; there are posters to hang; there is word to get out. So it was that I found myself up to my earlobes this weekend in the music of Elephant Revival.

I first heard the Elephant Revival on Sue DuMond's Gleanings Lopez Island radio show that is streamed through KLOI on Tuesday evenings and I asked her about them. She waxed poetic about the band and then someone yelled "Squirrel!" and I was off on to the next thing...until this weekend.

Elephant Revival hail from Colorado. I've never been to Colorado. I think DeVotchKa likes it there so it must be fabulous and everything DeVotchKa does makes me a little light headed. What is beautiful about Elephant Revival is not the Colorado Rockies, though I DO hear a hint of that country Rocky Mountain High whispering through the pines on a few tunes. It would be understating what I've been hearing in their music to isolate their sound by a location as there is some sweet layering of musicianship and genres at work. Here is a taste of what I have been spending the weekend enjoying:

The press says that Elephant Revival transcends folk. I have not heard enough of a panoply their work at this juncture to say but I do hear Celtic, country, folk, bluegrass and a touch of tribal melding into their sound. I look forward to being able to define this clearer after seeing them play live. Of course, they have violin and I've a weakness for this instrument. My name is Cile (no last names please) and I love me some fiddle, God help me. The fiddle player, Bridget Law, in this band is wunderbar and when added to the rest of the pachyderm, well...there is something lovely at work whether you call it transcendent or not!

An elephant is like a rope; an elephant is like a wall; an elephant is like a fan; an elephant is like a pillar...on and on it goes. This Elephant Revival will be like whatever will touch us in time and space and they invite us to listen. We may even transcend to being able to recognize the elephant in the room.

See you at the show.

video credit: mystic111mike
photo credit: Anne Stavely

Hamell on Trial into the Great White North

2010-09-11T11:17:00.000-07:00

It was the perfect night to celebrate Nancy and Jim La Hatt's 40 year anniversary with Hamell on Trial at the Green Frog Acoustic Tavern in Bellingham, WA. I hope my elder readers enjoy this video as an example of what was enjoyed last night. It seemed appropriate for the occasion...

I have to envy this person hosting such a talent in their living room. House concerts are indeed the saving grace of many musicians who choose not to perform as trained circus acts supported by sponsors.

Ed Hamell is headed to Anchorage so I want to post this for my Alaska chums (the pals and music enthusiasts - not the fish) in case they are knocking around Anchorage or Palmer in search of the real deal this weekend [Saturday, September 11th and Sunday the 12th]. Check out his website, keep an eye on his touring schedule and enjoy him if you get the opportunity. I certainly had a great time. He's not for everyone but he may be more for Alaska than one might suspect!

Thanks Jim and Nancy for sticking it out and making marriage look so easy at your 40 year mark and thanks, Ed Hamell, for stopping in Bellingham. I hope your trial goes well in Anchortown and Palmer you don't get the hangin' judge.

What Happened to Cile's Indy Day News?

2010-08-27T12:00:00.000-07:00

...thanks for asking.

I am not vested in my Christian upbringing. I think of myself more pagan. The 4th of July is close enough to the Summer Solstice that I feel it is a good time to reflect. The truth is there is less math with trying to remember four cycles of the earth around the sun, no rules regarding celebrations and less commercial interruption from what I consider to be the point. I can make it up. That is the appeal.

For a few years now one of the things I made up was sending out an annual Newsletter, Cile's Independence Day News to friends and family. Traditionally I would spend the 4th of July constructing the thing. It provided for me a way to sit back and assess my past year giving me a sense of continuity. I sent it out to people because I wanted to share. It was my thinking that I receive updates from friends whom I have been long separated by circumstance (usually at Christmas time) and that I enjoy hearing from them. When I received these updates, there was a sense of relief that I was still somewhere in the orbit of their lives. So it was that I began sending out the newsletter to friends and family. My first attempts at this were dreadful but I improved it. Sometimes I included a CD of music that found tight rotation for me on my MP3 player that year.

I stopped doing the newsletter this year. I stated in it last year that it was becoming cost prohibitive but that isn't the only reason. I truly enjoyed the putting together the publishing of it and the copying the CD and updating the addresses and writing the individual letters to everyone over the course of July. It felt like I was really active in the lives of those I often think about but rarely have time to follow through with tracking down. I trust they think about me in a favorable light. For that kind of fun, I could have found the dough. What happened is that the footprint became to big.

The BP oil spill this year really shocked me into realizing how disastrous ignoring the overuse of resources has become. There's the 60 sheets of high gloss 11" x 17" paper and the 2 sided printing with colored inks, the 60 CD's and their envelopes with printed information on them. Then there are the mailing envelopes, the stamps and the miles of travel and useage of fossil fuel to get the things where I send them. It is too much.

I've long since stopped buying out of season produce that flies all the way from places like New Zealand to my vegetable bin and opted to stave off until it is in season for my part of the world. Likewise I began to see my newsletter as a bit of overkill that required a reassessment. There are a lot more resources available to me electronically than ever before. Some of them I have been utilizing all along but I never insisted that my relatives and friends step up and visit me this way. It never really occurred to me to ask until I sat down at my computer on July 4th of this year.

Facebook was probably the tipping point for me. I began to use this social networking site in spades as my granddaughter was born and it has kept me close to my son and daughter-in-law and the progression of this family event in a way that is nothing short of miraculous. I went to visit this month and it was as if I just stepped out of the Facebook page. It seems to me this was because we have been communicating and sharing all along. I haven't even explored the telecommunication possibilities of applications like Skype and individual, specialized chat rooms! My point is there are alternatives.

The great sun giveth; the great sun taketh away. In this case I feel I've been given an opportunity to explore an alternative way of sharing which is fortunate. More often than not, valuable things just disappear without such an obvious replacement. My challenge is reconstructing my habit of the way I "used" to do it with a new way. The obvious alternative would be to post the newsletter as an electronic attachment. I opted out of doing it that way this year. It has taken me longer than I expected to get my bearings with the changes. It will take me some time to construct how I want to do it and I need a better understanding of why I do it at all. An annual assessment of what happens in a year in my life will always be necessary, however, I feel the strain of a crowded time-line stretching behind me already from not doing it this year.

So this is my explanation. A certain amount of people never even read the newsletter. I know they don't because they ask me questions that I already covered in detail in the newsletter! [I'm laughing] I liked to pretend everyone reads the the thing and listens to the music. Those times of dilution have passed, however, and if I can let go of a cumbersome yet satisfying enterprise for the sake of the greater good and make a change, those who are inclined, can catch up with things electronically as I try and bring a more consistent sharing on the interwebs.

Well, I feel certain that the sun knows I'm sincere when I say I can only love you all as much as I love my life and my life is loving you.

Happy Birthday, Millie

2010-08-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

I found out about Millie through Ronni Bennett, of the blog Time Goes By. I've met a lot of cyber friends there. Older voices. Elder brainstorming, free associative thought, in-depth analysis of elder issues and storytelling that looks and feels more natural to me than the posturings that prevail in a multi-faceted younger perspective. We age; things look different. Things ARE different; things are fleshed out and clearer with age. Experience adds power and love in the world in a different way. As I age, I'm becoming more economic in my thinking and I find that I really prefer to "cut the crap and get to the point". I feel a companion in the awareness of how little time there is to get to the essence of things...

Blogging is a perfect elder past time and a possibly the most valuable tool for those of us willing to learn a few new technical tricks. Millie is one of the pioneer elderbloggers in the cyber sphere. She has been blogging since 2005. She was 80 years old when she started My Mom's Blog By Thoroughly Modern Millie and Millie turns 85 years old today. That's right she started talking on the intertubes at 8o years old! I think this speaks rather loudly for her intrepid spirit. I can only hope that I have a small amount the fortitude and pioneer spirit that this woman has exhibited should I make it to 80! You are an inspiration, Millie!

Dear Millie:

I understand that you like Sunflowers. I want to share with you a clip from one of my favorite movies, Everything is Illuminated. I'm not sure of the lyrics but I'm trusting what I found below on the internet about them.

to quote the commenter, kerbed "...the lyrics are lines from an Alexander Pushkin poem called To A.P. Kern. in English:

In the torture of hopeless melancholy,
In the bustle of the world's noisy hours,
That voice rang out so tenderly,
I dreamed of that lovely face of yours.
That voice rang out so tenderly,
I dreamed of that lovely face of yours.
Then to my soul an awakening came,
And there again your face appeared,
Like a vision, fleeting, momentary,
Like a spirit of the purest beauty.
Like a spirit of the purest beauty. "

Happy Birthday, Millie!
Many happy returns of all the love you give!

Subdued Stringband Jamboree ~ Year 10

2010-08-09T07:00:00.000-07:00

The blackberries are ripening and it is soon to be Subdued Stringband Jamboree time again. Fri-Sat, August 13th and 14th. I wait all year for this local festival. I love it. It is year 10 this year and the line up is stellar, as par. I've only been to the last 6 jams but it is such a thing with me now that if I could not go, well, I'd have to kill myself. There are about 15 other sacrifices before that one to make, so I think my life is relatively safe but you get my drift. Still, if you live around here you are crazy not to go. That's just all there is to it. It's 7 miles east of town, its inexpensive, its fun and its family oriented...did I mention it was FUN? These are some of the nicest musicians and music lovers to walk the planet and they converge here annually like it's a calling. The music they play goes all day. It also goes all night as people visit and jam at campfires situated across the log show grounds. You can come for a day to play or stay and revel in the merriment by camping. I camp and though I try and stay up all night, I end up falling asleep to live music and the soft sounds of people laughing and enjoying themselves. Then I begin snoring and everyone moves 50 feet from my tent so they can hear themselves sing.

If you don't live around here then, well...I know you all live in swell places but this weekend, I feel sorry for you... this weekend you are missing the most joyful noise in the greatest place on earth. You can ameliorate your loss by looking at this slide-show of last year's fun. If you are still irreparably unrequited and if you would like to look at prior years from THAT there are pictures of those years on the Flickr site too. (I thinking here that I have turned into one of those people I used to make fun of who would drag their friends through boring slide shows of their trip to Italy!) and if you still cannot brave the future without partaking of this musical extravaganza, make it a point to join me next year. It is the second weekend in August. I will take your picture.

Geezerville picture credit: Nancy La Hatt.

Boy Howdy! Carrie Elkin is in town!

2010-07-27T20:03:00.000-07:00

News FLASH!!!!

Carrie has agreed to return to Bellingham after her gig in Portland on Saturday to play here once more. She will be playing at Vartanyan Estate Winery, 1628 Huntley Rd., Bellingham this Sunday, August 1, 6 to 8pm. The show is $8.00 dollars [and it all goes to Carrie]. If you missed her at the tavern, you missed a lot. Here is the opportunity to see and hear her perform in an entirely different venue. Don't miss this opportunity. You won't be sorry. Directions are here.

********************************

Carrie Elkin is a singer/songwriter who hails from Austin, Texas. She's on the road and she's here! I know her music from hearing her perform Whole Wheat Radio Concerts on-line and hearing her music streamed there. I've heard enough to confirm that she has a spirited and joyously infectious presence not to be missed. She is a gem of a song writer and performer. Do not miss her should she pass through your town. Here is her tour schedule. I suggest you get on Carrie's mailing list or friend her on Facebook to make sure you do not miss her.

For those of you here in Bellingham-town, do yourself a favor and get thee to the Green Frog Acoustic Tavern, 902 State St. Wednesday, July 28th. The music starts at 9:30pm and that cold, refreshing beer [No Crap on Tap] awaits you as soon as you cross the threshold! Sure you can stay home and watch another rerun of CSI with a can of Bud or you could do something for yourself and the health of traveling troubadours all across this great land in supporting artists who live and work where the rubber meets the road. Treat yourself to an earful of great talent and do some friendly canoodling with your like-minded music lovers in the bargain. It's summer. Come on out and play.

Here's a listen to Carrie singing "Questions about Angels".

Cr Avery ~ Quakin' not Slurred

2010-06-11T15:00:00.000-07:00

For some reason my local berg has been host to artist CR Avery on a lunar cycle of late. Perhaps you are tired of listening to me wax perpetually about this man's talent and ability to claim a room but it is my blog and my party, so....

I'm not sure how he stakes his claim. I don't want to know. I just want to be there when he happens because to see CR Avery ply his trade is to go to a happening in the good old fashioned sense of the word. Everything is somehow tolerable and worth it by the end of the show and with the kind of psychic weight lifting we've been doing lately, that is no small blessing.

CR's show can be something on league with a spiritual revival meeting one minute and a monster truck show the next- neither of which is going to appeal to every one - but let's just say for those of you who like your spoken word shaken and quakin' not stirred and blurred, you should not miss CR Avery at the Green Frog Accoustic Tavern, this Tuesday night, June 15th, 9:30pm...and if that is not doable then know that it is rumored he will be gracing the main stage of the Subdued Stringband Jamboree in August. If you miss that too you'd miss Mt. Baker on a clear day...you are a clown.

Sometimes CR performs alone...sometimes he has his band "The Boomchasers" with him and sometimes he has the magnificent Noah Walker in tow as in this video clip I shot winter of 2008.

Though this is a better example:

See you there.

The Treasure of Time - A Streetcar Meditation

2010-05-27T10:12:00.000-07:00

My brother sent me this video and I found it a fascinating historical meditation. It made me wonder if, when it was filmed, it was a folly or a lark. Look what a fascinating spectacle it is 105 years down the line!

I want to share this as a special post for my Elder Blogger friends at Time Goes By and the Elder Story Place for their willingness to follow through on sharing the larks and follies within their hearts. The stories and the experiences are amazing to me and can only increase in value over time. You never know where a legacy may be hidden, The treasure of time and the ability to recognize what is truly important...one of the blessings of aging.

The first track from Airs' Moon Safari
album, accompanied by scenes from a video
shot from a streetcar traveling down Market Street in San Francisco in 1905.
Before the earthquake/fire of 1906 destroyed the area. Remarkable footage of the turn of the century lifestyles in California.Made by cleaverb!

Thanks to cleverb for producing this clip.

Entitlement - Love You Some of What Loves You

2010-05-14T08:34:00.000-07:00

There has been much gnashing of teeth of late, it seems to me, on the issue of entitlement. I'm picking this up from musicians. People who are sensitive types - aware types. They receive the world this way. It is what they do. I have been wondering why we are not recognizing their situation and valuing their circumstances? If I can generalize here for a moment, I suspect that our ignorance in conjunction with world events may be subjugating artists we love to an abundance of unhappiness.

This subject surfaced last week when Dayna Kurtz, in an attempt to garner support and funding for an upcoming artistic goal, invited people to participate. This was seen by a fan as soliciting and unbecoming of an artist of Dayna's standing. Dayna composed a strong and articulate response to this fan and shared it with all utilizing social networking [Facebook]. It made me wonder a bit about how it is that we have come to expect so much from our artists.

I also see another factor preying on artists. Mass disasters, war and human suffering. An artist that is trying to piece together a living does not get to choose in the same manner that fans and listeners who hold labors do. An artist, being sensitive to these extremely painful worldly concerns, has to still try and garner support and comes up against the one thing that they intend to translate or record or somehow interpret. The money that would fund their enterprise wants to fly to the disaster of the week. Now there is a moral conflict.

I then read in a blog post of Krista Detor who in a moment of reflection, seemed to questioned whether she should allow herself something that you and I would never even think twice about giving ourselves. Is it bougeois to have a place to sit in her back yard where she could enjoy friends, sit with a cup of coffee or have space to write a song out in the bright out-of-doors? I read this, frowned and I thought to myself that this is just not right.

Later I was reading David Byrne's on-line Journal and I stumbled upon this March 25th entry:

"...Some see any presumed cleverness or market savvy on behalf of an artist or performer as distasteful. They feel that serious work should be driven primarily by passion or some kind of authenticity and purity, and that financial considerations — figuring out how to monetize one’s work and activity, as it is phrased in dot-com terms — is tacky, and goes against the rules. What rules? Where are these rules written down? Shouldn’t artists be cheered for making money if they can, if they don’t dilute their work?
The “rules” as I intuit them say that cultural production takes place on some moral and ethical high ground where money is not a consideration. According to these rules, for an artist or musician to take financial factors into consideration is to automatically lower and demean work that is supposed to stem from and engage our higher impulses. The work, once money enters the picture, is now assumed to be “work for hire,” to use the legal term. This is why fine artists often look down their noses on craftspeople, illustrators and graphic designers. During the Renaissance, they worked hard to separate themselves from the laborers of the trade guilds, and worked hard to gain acceptance for the idea that they were more than mere craftspeople — so to risk slipping back into that ignoble territory is completely unacceptable…
...According to the old fine art rules, it’s nobler to be poor — which is a cliché for sure, but one that is still held on to dearly. The assumption is that being paid well allies one with the bourgeois one is supposed to be busy offending and shocking. As if anything is shocking today...

There is something about fans maintaining this perception of exception that has to be recognized as destructive to an artist's creative process. I think there is an investment for fans to believe that art is divinely actualized and we should consider leaving off the faux religious aspect and embrace the reality of the situation. The internet - what I like to refer to as The Great Equalizer - has brought all of us an opportunity to democratically participate in supporting and interacting with our favorite artists like never before. We need to evolve as fans. At the very least, we need to encourage our artists towards abundance. Everyone benefits. Pay for the art you enjoy. Be a part of the solution and healing a world of hurt.

I.C.G.B.W.B.Y.C.G.* Look it's Danny Schmidt!

2010-05-04T09:00:00.000-07:00

...I might write a bit about my jealousy of your having this Sunday night off but that is a given....Have I written enough about how great Danny Schmidt is? It is somewhat embarrassing....okay. I'm over it.

*I.C.G.B.W.B.Y.C.G. means: "I Can't Go Because of Work But You Can Go" and you would be a fool to miss this special early 6pm show on Sunday, May 9. To quote, James, the benevolent proprietor of the Green Frog Acoustic Tavern that is to host Danny Schmidt:

Sunday, May 9: Danny Schmidt, 6pm.

Okay, folks. Here is a treat. We are going to have to put the Slow Jam on the back burner this week, but it is for a really good reason. Danny Schmidt is one of the best songwriters in the country. No joke. This guy will tear your heart out, hold it in his hand, convince you to swallow it and it will magically start beating again right where it is supposed to be. You will not have any opportunity to have your own thoughts. You will not be able to move. He is that good. Take notice that the start time is really early, at 6pm. You don't want to miss this. I promise from the bottom of the heart that this man has made me swallow.

That's the word on the street via James. This being an early show allows a rare special treat to early Monday morning risers. Not only because you will be home at a comfortable hour but sweet dreams will enhance your week as you bask in the wake of being in the presence of Danny's talent on Sunday night. This is also Mother's Day. You may want to leave off giving the women in your life the embossed potholders and treat them to something you will BOTH enjoy...your heart with a beer chaser. This is a special treat. Don't miss it...and don't let anyone you love miss it either.

Those of you in the greater cyber-spacedance, here is a link to Danny's touring schedule. Join his email list. Don't miss the opportunity to see him play live, if you can help it.

Did I mention that I'm fond of Danny Schmidt's work?

Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life [you pathetic jewel of a human being]

2010-04-23T11:31:00.000-07:00

To be a fan of music and not be a musician is to be a person of questionable stability. This is what I have understood about myself for 40 + years as I went about my business leaning into my speakers in slack-jawed amazement as "a listener". A listener. Every time I write it or post this I think to myself, "That kind of sounds suggestive and hopelessly lame as in: I like to watch". Thanks to Steve Almond and his accurate definition of drooling fanatic I realize that I am so much more than a listener. I crawl from the muck of the river Denial to face the music and realize that I'm closeted. In reality and in the eyes of oh so many who are too kind to mention it, I'm a nut job.

I do not usually buy books as I work in a library as a minimum wage slave but it was the perfect storm. I ordered the book, "Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life" by Steve Almond when it was suggested by Dayna Kurtz on Facebook. It all happened so fast...

I can't say enough about how much I enjoyed reading "Rock and Roll will Save Your Life". Even if you are not into openly admitting you are a popular culture whore, you will relate to the engaging way Almond tells his stories. He has a strong command of the language and it provides him with a larger palette than many who I have read who approached sharing these types of experiences. It is just the broad stroke of his storytelling that give this personal discourse their snap and will knock you into laughing in spite of yourself.

Through the mishaps and the discoveries you get to follow along as Steve tears his life up and puts it all together again as he wants it. There is just too much packed into this tiny book to even begin to describe it's delights to a music lover. I have to say what I personally liked a LOT - even more than the the hysterically funny bits - was the way Almond tied up his story. I can't really call it an ending because it isn't and he subtly seems to incorporate this. It was a dignified and pleasant surprise twist and I will not spoil it for you but I will tell you this: I feel better about myself and my penchant for being spasmodically devoted to people who are creative and dedicated to sharing their talents....and I do so because of the charming way this book dandled my perceived weakness and returned it to me as a strength.

Rock on you crazy Almond...and thanks for the melodies.

You Can Leave the Light On

2010-03-31T08:20:00.000-07:00

I don't draw much anymore so when the opportunity presented itself to contribute art to a local arts organization, Allied Arts here in Bellingham, I was a little apprehensive. I decided I would try. The task was to decorate donated lampshades to be auctioned off as a fundraiser for the arts in education programs the organization supports in the community. I had some paper that was given to me a few years back and I thought I would draw on that to make a design for the light to enhance when turned on. I'm pretty much a one-trick pony when it comes to visual art. I draw abstract pen drawings on just about anything. This time, a lampshade.

I've never taken my interest in drawing with pen and ink any further than doodling. Consequently I'm not trained as an artist so this is a risky situation when I take on making something someone else is going to put in their home. It crosses my mind, "Will this burn someone's house down, strapping me to them artistically and karmically like Ahab shackled to Moby Dick?" (but perhaps I read too much John Irving)...I have no idea what will work and what is archive quality, let alone what's flammable! In spite of this I decided to try it, using my artistically inclined friends to help when I'd get stuck. Aye, there's the rub....no training...

No doubt, when you attend any school that is going to have you manually wrestling with any medium, one of the first things they are going to tell you is, "tie your hair back". It never occurred to me that I should consider my unruly mane before I undertook an art project. Consequently my lampshade has embedded in a seam for all time a genetic thread to the artist, a long streaming hair from my ponytail. I considered withdrawing my donation when I discovered this after I lacquered the entire shade (of course it would be at the very end that I find it). I then found the original pleated voile covering that I removed to decorate the shade and it occurred to me that maybe if I covered the shade with a negligee it would disguise the blemish. It occurred to me that there is some other word for a garment that is thrown over a negligee but I could not recall it. My muse using Google eventually came to my rescue with the word I sought: a "peignoir"... which is a garment worn by a woman to brush out her hair to keep the all the hair from sneaking about into unwanted places while she's grooming. No kidding... So I took the cover and designed a little removable peignoir for the shade, which covers up the special present in the seam, should that be disconcerting to the lampshade owner.

I imagine partnered people putting the peignoir on the lamp as a discreet sign to let each other know when one or the other might be inclined to " change the oil in the Buick" or something....I've heard that couples sometimes create special messages for each other....As for myself, I prefer the universal means of non-verbal communicating to the world. I turn my porch light off when I don't want to be tricked or treated.

So here is my imperfect offering. I took a lot of pictures because, frankly, I was kind of surprised that I could draw at all and I suspect that this ability will be lost to me in the somewhat near future...plus I'm happy the way it turned out. I hope that someone else likes it and Allied Arts makes some money by selling it.

"You Can Leave the Light On;
Enlightenment with Peignoir"

Peignoir: A long outer garment for women frequently sheer and made of chiffon or other translucent fabrics. The word comes from the french peignoir, to comb the hair describing a garment worn while brushing one's hair, originally referring to a dressing gown or bathrobe.

I can't wait until the first Friday Art Walk this weekend when I get to see all the artists ideas in a room together. It is always pretty amazing where creative people will run to with an idea when given the opportunity. Hope to see you there.

There's No More Stories 'bout Bridges

2010-02-11T10:24:00.000-08:00

Tonight is my Friday night so when I got a message from Danny Schmidt that Radio Station KALX in Berkely CA was streaming a retrospective of Danny's work at midnight tonight, I was ON it. Don't get me wrong. I like sleep. I'm a big fan of it but I can't think of any dream more eloquent and beautiful than a sit down with a glass of wine and a ponder with Danny Schmidt's muse. I encourage you fans and insomniacs alike to join us at midnight PST and give this show a listen.

Sometimes you have to stay up late and peer into the darkness to get the satisfaction of the big think. Below is a video I captured of Danny Schmidt singing "Grandpa Built Bridges" that he performed at the Green Frog Acoustic Tavern in Bellingham, WA. Danny is sharing here a bit of his inspiration for the song and I apologize for the lack of sound and video quality.

I encourage you to listen to the proper recordings of his work to be found here . Some singers you listen to and they bring you a melody and some singers you listen to and they bring you news from a sacred place. Danny brings both. Give his work a listen, if not tonight then sign on to his email list so you will not miss him when he travels through your town. He travels a lot. He's the real deal.

"...Grampa built bridges with crestview spires
With braids of wires and wings of steel
Til he walked on over with his heels on fire
And the bridge burned back with a captive haze..."

Thank you John Grubb of Rockslide Photography for the picture of Danny.

Independent Music 101

2010-01-23T09:44:00.000-08:00

Marian Call is a talented musician who, after years of studying music, found the music industry lacking. She's one of the first of many musicians raised in a world of technology and entitlement who do not easily buy into existing business models of earning a living. She's wise for her years in that she suspects (I think rightly) that being sponsored and supported by an industry comes at a cost. She is also savvy enough to cultivate her own fanbase through the internet. A tremendous amount of focus and work goes into this on her behalf. Her fans are financing her next album.

There are many singer/songwriters who do this already and many, it seems, where initially forced into learning how to do it for the sake of survival. I find Marian unique (but my no means alone) in that her embracing technology grew alongside her cultivation of her talents. In this short video Marian talks about that process and how it fits her values.

I found as I listened that we have much to learn from those who come after us wanting the same things that we want: freedom, independence and choice. They deserve our interest and support. I'm not so sure that they are not born to bring us greater understanding in how to live large in freedom and prosperity. I think they may be hard-wired for nothing less and I think we should pay attention to what they are doing and saying.

Thanks to "Alaska Dispatch" for posting this video.

For the Man Who Has Everything: Throwing Grandma Out with the Bathwater

2010-01-18T14:03:00.001-08:00

It seems like too much of my life is spent trying to identify the good guys from the bad guys lately. I wonder how it is that this line became so blurred...but it has. My current conundrum involves the debate about Social Security. I have always heard that the program was in trouble and there would not be enough money to help my children and grandchildren. Everyone has heard this so much that it has become fact even though it is a myth. Now I understand upon further investigation that there is an strong element of grandstanding and posturing for private agendas involved in cultivating that rumor. What to do?

There is currently a bill: Senate Bill 2853 that appeals strongly to everyone's sense of responsible fiscal action in government. It proposes a shortcut to expediting policies. Behind this bill is a fellow with a LOT of money by the name of Peter G. Peterson who has decided, I understand, that his legacy to the American Public will be to dismantle what he deems as a worthless program: Social Security. (He has his eye on Medicare and Medicaid as well but that is an addendum to this issue). You might recall in 2004 when then President Bush was rallying to reform Social Security by investing all that secure money into the stock market, Mr. Peterson was all for that idea...

( ....I will stop here for a minute to allow your imagination to work with your hindsight a moment. Imagine the current scenario that would have been the result of that action, should it have been enacted by the American people....).

It was the democratic process of open debate that saved all those elders from having to loose everything (often little anyway) when everything tumbled in winter of 2008. You think it is a crime to see dead bodies piled up roadside in Haiti due to a poor infrastructure and political philandering and think that disasters such as this could never happen here? Put America's financing on a "fast-track" so we can "get 'er done" and you will see things worse than New Orleans post Katrina. You will see your own Grandma and Grandpa denied care and funding that they paid into by working all of their lives. What's more you will have the opportunity to help them directly perhaps with the funding that was earmarked for your child's eduction.

Yes there are things to be done to improve Social Security and you can read about those things in simple language here at Ronni Bennett's Blog, Time Goes By. The Senate Bill 2853 that reads at the the onset to be so practical is really a way to circumvent the system to act swiftly on making financial cuts that could eviscerate the stable existing lifestyles of millions. We are talking cuts made by politicians with minimal debate done behind closed doors.

(...again let me pause a moment while the imagination has a chance to confer with hindsight regarding unchecked politicians, policy makers and lobbyists...)

Venture capitalists are very wily people. That is how they became so wealthy. When you get powerful and affluent people wanting to make a name for themselves like Mr. Peterson things can become very scary very quickly. Certainly that is the case here. Money talks in American politics and too often all it REALLY wants to talk about is itself. Be careful of this bill working it's way into our lives.
There is a recourse strategy. Tomorrow, 19 January, is Call-In-Day. The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, who are, understandably, all over this bill, are joining with other elder advocacy groups to inundate the Senate with telephone calls against this bill. There is more about this in T ime Goes By with links and explanations. To cut to the chase, the number to call is 800-998-0180 and the details of the bill can be found here . I encourage you to join me in making sure that reform does not spell deconstruction of programs that are, fundamentally honorable and sound and are simply in need of some compassionate attention.

Staying Warm

2009-12-04T11:36:00.000-08:00

"All at once, the weight has lifted
Forgotten the weeping all last night
She's wearing a frown borrowed from her father
Her head is tilted a little to the right.."
~ Peter Mulvey
Tender Blindspot,
The Trouble with Poets, 2000

Years ago when I first moved to Bellingham WA, I went to a concert that was held in an ungodly hot office up four flights or so in a commercial building in town. I had heard Peter Mulvey on Whole Wheat Radio and found his music great and that is what set me to attend. He was playing with David Goodrich that evening along with a local upstart, Korby Lenker. I recall this concert not only because it was insanely hot in there but because the force of the talent in the room was unrelenting. Peter Mulvey is a musician's musician and, I think, an awe inspiring songwriter and poet. I hear his influences in others music all the time and when I do, I'm always returning in my mind to that steamy little House Concert in back in 2004. When Mulvey plays time stops, period. The relationship that he has forged with his craft is that strong and apparent when he plays. Any chance to see or hear him perform should be sought out and savored.

Fortunately for all of us we can get a taste of this talent without even leaving our comfort zone tonight a 9 pm (PST) because he is playing at Whole Wheat Radio tonight and it is being simulcast for everyone's enjoyment. Just click on this link and you are there and ready to listen in. Information about Peter, his opening act Anais Mitchell, and a chat room to discuss the concert or leave messages for Peter and Anais will appear. I hope you allow yourself the experience of Peter Mulvey. As for me, I'm going to pour myself a glass of wine, listen in and maybe turn up the heat...you know, just for old times sake.

Saturday has left the building...

2009-09-09T12:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 1996-2009

Saturday, born in Phoenix, AZ in 1996 and tossed into a gutter, found his way to food on my niece's porch in the barrio and into my heart soon thereafter. Weighing no more and 3 ounces and with ears as big as a fruit bat, he hissed down two adult cats to get to the food that was there. Before the adult cats could make a meal of him, my niece Leslie, called me to come pick up the foundling.

"Poppy and Nugget are going to KILL him if you don't come get him!" she shouted over the phone - only I couldn't hear for all the noise from a party that was going on at her place.

"What?" I said.

She shouted. "Saturday! A kitten showed up here on Saturday on my porch and the boys are going to kill him! Come get him!"

"What?" I repeated, struggling to make sense of what I could hear. "You have a cat named Saturday and you want me to come pick him up?" I asked.

I guess she was feeling that was as close to a complete communication that she was going to get from me because she shouted, exasperated, "YES! Come and get him! NOW!"

That is how Saturday came to be my companion for these last 13 years, through living in three states and often unbelievable living conditions. Always by my side; always somewhat subdued about just about everything yet passionate about me and a full food bowl. Saturday, a bit of a legend on-line and always number one in any reality for me.

************************************
Rest in peace my dear feline companion. There is no more pain for you now. I will learn to live without you but it will be a lonely journey for lack of your sweet company and the great comfort that you never failed to bring me.Hold your pet close tonight and love them up. The acquaintance is always too short.

Esther Golton and News from the Northern Lights

2009-09-06T11:01:00.000-07:00

I received my CD of Esther Golton's "Aurora Borealis: Conversations with Alaska's Northern Lights" just as I was arriving home from a music festival. I slapped it into the player as I was unpacking the truck. I didn't get very far with the unpacking before I found myself sitting in front of the speaker mesmerized by the music that she was producing. The first thing I thought of was "How in the name of God did she capture so much of that atmosphere so clearly?" How, indeed.

Esther is a fabulously gifted musician but even more, that she can actually translate a natural phenomena like the Aurora Borealis in such an accessible and fantastic way musically is awe-inspiring. She shares here what is essential of a natural occurrence that leaves many of us doomed to observe slack-jawed, wordless and in awe. She just keeps going deeper and deeper into the layers of music and brings us closer and closer to the radiance of that phenomenal experience.

I hear so many different influences in each cut that they rise above mere tunes. They truly are conversations with the Aurora itself, just as the title suggests. She has achieved her goal in this. This is subtly different from what you hear as a ambient music in the bookstore or yoga class. She has listened, observed, received the information and translated it in her very individual way for us to enjoy. I've listened to the CD several times (my favorite mode being intimately on my iPod) and I'm convinced I hear an invitation from the Aurora herself. Aurora, the goddess of dawn and new beginnings, speaks here and this CD clearly invites us to open our eyes and see the natural world with all the spectacular gifts this earth displays every moment, as if it is our first morning and our beginning, too.

Esther is having a special CD release party that anyone can attend on-line on Saturday, September 12th at Whole Wheat Radio. These live concerts can be attended on-line and are as easy to access as clicking a link to listen which can be done here. The party starts at 7 pm Alaska time [fashionably later Eastern - you can do the math here]. These concerts are a lot of fun and they are interactive, if you wish. It is Esther's birthday on that day, too. Judging by listening to this CD and her conversations, she has much to be proud of in the company she has kept this year.

Health Care Reform - Is there a Doctor in the House?

2009-08-19T09:20:00.000-07:00

I didn't really know what to write about to my Congresswoman in regards to Health Care Reform. I choose Maria Cantwell because she did not have as much on her website regarding the issue. Unlike Patty Murray,who is actively culling stories to support her case for reform as top billing on her site , or Rick Larsen, who is currently on the ever critical House Budget Committee; he clearly has a strong grasp on this important issue on his site. I felt Cantwell needed the most encouragement.

I decide a pep talk was in order. I mean if I had this tremendous battle playing out in front of ME, I'd want to here the roar of support from the troops behind me as I stepped up. I went with what I feel most comfortable with in an unfamiliar terrain. I can only hope I haven't made too big of a fool of myself by dabbling in politics.

Good luck to Ronni Bennett at Time Goes By with her online campaign and Good Cheer to all of us on this one.

My submission, forthwith:

The Honorable Maria Cantwell

511 Dirksen Senate Office Building

Washington DC 20510

August 18, 2009

Regarding H.R. 3200

Hello Senator Cantwell,

I am writing to you regarding H.R.3200: America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009. I suspect that I am preaching to the choir here but you are my representative for a success in this endeavor and I want to make sure you don’t throw in the towel before every last hope for the best Health Care reform possible has been utilized and provided. This bill must be strong and lasting for generations to come. I count on your keeping this vision intact.

I am an elder who lives and works in Bellingham WA. I have worked for the better part of forty years doing one thing or another to keep mine and my family’s head above water. I have two grown children. One of my children is just starting a family. I hear it through the news that it is a common belief amongst those in political circles that seniors are not supporting Health Care reform. I hear, as well, that there’s a great deal of fact [link} being sullied in the name of special interests. I don’t watch a lot of television myself so I had to do a little digging to look at what the general population is viewing. I then took a look around me and realized that no one that I see in my circle of working seniors thinks the current Health Care System is sustainable nor is (save for possibly the health care provided by the Veterans Affairs Administration) there currently a foundation sturdy enough to build upon. As for concerns of losing Medicare, I understand that reforming a cumbersome bureaucratic mess does not necessarily mean that improvements will not be made. This monopoly by the health insurance industry must end to avoid the suffering of many Americans.

I do not write or call politicians often so you will have to excuse my lack of familiarity with this type of discourse. I simply want to say I am aware that these are critically important times for the fate of our country and this is a very complicated issue. I do not envy your job. I need to tell you, too, that I am hoping that you persevere in trying to keep H.R. 3200 as intact and protected from private interests as is humanly possible. I recognize that we all have a unique opportunity at this time to make a tremendous improvement on scores of lives across this country by setting a policy in place that provides for fair and equitable health care for all. Please do not loose heart or think that elders do not care and that we are not doing what we can in our own way to support these changes. We are online, we are paying attention and we are not afraid of change. We are right here with you in thought and spirit when you are required to go that extra distance to secure this very important improvement to the American Health Care System.

I thank you for all your work and service and I thank you for taking the time to read my letter.

Respectfully,

It would feel good to be a part of moving this improvement of our Health Care System into law. May we all live long healthy lives and prosper in the knowledge our children have the care they need and deserve....

Do you remember November?

2009-08-15T12:12:00.001-07:00

This is it. It happened this month, August 2009.

*Please make a note of it.*

All of us who were ecstatic about the election of Barack Obama – all of us who solemnly nodded to ourselves in thanks to the Powers-That-Be that we were given an opportunity for a second chance – all of us who readily admitted that we became too complacent in letting our leaders do all the heavy lifting in maintaining a democracy – all of us who cheerfully said, “Oh YES! We know we are going to have to help Obama! We know the election is just the beginning…” Well, recess is nearly over, literally. If we do not make a strong presence when class reassembles on health care reform, we are going to be witness to a great deal more suffering and disappointment than is necessary.

This Thursday, August 20^th is the day set aside for elders to rise in a clear cry of unity to, at the very least, break the stronghold the spinning media has on projecting the belief that seniors are against health care reform. From TGB:

“…not all of us want to keep our single-payer system – Medicare – and deny everyone else similar benefits, which is how it appears…in widespread media coverage of town hall meetings and interviews with elders.”

Thursday there will be blogging. There will be dust raised as conservative and liberal elders have it out. Don't send us to the front lines alone. This fight is an important one and will be resonating for decades and effecting generations - To put a finer point on it: this one is for you and those you love.

If you are unsure where you stand, go here for the debate. If you are not sure who to write, go here to get the correct cage to rattle. If you don’t know what to write, consider what not writing anything could ensue - then open a notepad on your computer and look here for a simple outline.

Be polite. Be heard. Be a part of history in clarifying your support for the Unites States as a responsible, caring and compassionate government for its citizens. Let’s show ourselves, our children and the world that we can follow through with what we swooned and swore over last fall. I am going to post what I have written to my Congress on this matter on Thursday, August 20^th and send the link to As Time Goes By . Ronni Bennett of TBG wants to try a show of force on the internet that one day. I don’t suspect what I write will be the most the eloquent thing I’ve ever written because I’m a bit shy about politics, frankly, but I’m passionate about freedom and liberty for all and I suspect that counts. If you blog, you can share your letter there, too.

Also, in truth, I’m about ready for another wave of that heady feeling of our November win. How about you? Well, it did not happen because it was left to gravity. It happened because we collectively held up the sky.

Making Sure That Music Never Dies

2009-07-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

I'm not in the habit of posting things on my blog that consume more than 10 minutes of anyone's time but I'm going to post this because sometimes, it takes more than 10 minutes to examine an important issue. Besides I want it handy to refer back to. This issue is close to my heart and it might be to yours too. It is very inspiring as well as insightful, therefore worth the attention. I encourage you to take the time to watch it.

Hardly any of us, even if we do not watch television or listen to radio lives in a vacuum that excludes the lives of the young we mentor or humor or herd through their lives. This video holds within in it a strong message on how we can help understand our role in seeing to it that the talents of the young are not bartered to the highest bidder of popular culture. We have given our children dollars and robbed them of sense in the process. We have also let our guard down as corporations have swallowed up the forums for talent to be shared. This video, shows in no-uncertain-terms how manipulative the record industry has become and how confused young people are. This video shows, too, how powerful the music business is becoming as it separates from the record industry and regains it's integrity. It is deeply inspirational in this regard.

Art and success can be an artist's destiny. The responsibility really falls on us to step up with this knowledge and share it to encourage and support the talented and aspiring in defining themselves.

Before Music Dies

Thank you Whole Wheat Radio for posting this on Facebook and thank you to Annette Shacklett for bringing it to Jim's attention.

This Too Shall Pass

2009-07-14T22:34:00.000-07:00

...and you will miss it if you don't get yourself down to the Green Frog Acoustic Tavern Monday night, July 20 by 9 pm. I have written about my love of Danny Schmidt's work in my blog before here. Perhaps you missed it and perhaps you did not but I assure you that you will not be disappointed in being in the audience when Danny performs.

Danny has something to say and to play he delivers it in a manner that simply blows the mind. If you go early, save me a seat because I don't get off work until 9:15 and I will be arriving fashionably late. [call me!]

Danny is also playing a house concert on Tuesday night where someone has had the incredible insight to book him. The info for that concert is here:

Tuesday 7/21 - Bellingham, WA
House Concert
Doors at 7pm. Show starts at 8pm.

Meanwhile, please join me and do yourself a favor in enjoying a memorable evening at the best watering hole in Bellingham! Warning. You will want very much to go to the house concert the following night.

There will be no whining! It's not like I have not warned you here.

Thank you gimmegimmemomo for making this video.

Time Enough to Be

2009-06-07T12:02:00.000-07:00

I came across an interesting, contemplative, personal discourse on art and art history that includes how it is critiqued, valued, accessed and evolving. Written by David Byrne he recalls his experience with libraries (which would include a similar consciousness raising experience for us all, undoubtedly). I'd like to share it here. He writes this, in part, about a displaced library supplanted by a gallery expansion:

...But where did the books go? Reading, the part of the Victorian outreach that involved more interaction and could actually be brought into one’s house for a while, is gone.
Maybe, with the sheer volume of text on the Internet, it isn’t deemed as important to make books available for free to the poor and newly arrived in the East End. Art you have to visit and see, for the most part, and books you can buy, browse at bookstores or now download. Maybe part of the museum or gallery’s attraction is the social aspect — reading is solitary. The Whitechape l was crowded, and people would presumably discuss their visit later over dinner, or at the office the next day. Picture viewing is also fast, while on the other hand, it takes many hours to read a book — which is another reason the literary experience has such a profound effect. Viewing an exhibition can be done in an afternoon or much less, and if you don’t like it you just walk out. The speed of the visit doesn’t make it less deep — a short experience can also be profound — and visual experiences can imprint if we are receptive enough. (Movies and music, I’ve noticed, are like books — you have to commit a sizable block of time to the experience.)

I found the entry quite sincere and thought provoking. I find myself rethinking how we are working over our concept of time or time is working us over as a bi-product of our willingness to speed it up (...or both) and how this has affected my personal relationship to art. Is experiencing art at a clip or in a meditative focus of equal or lesser value? These are some of the questions I find myself contemplating.

The journal entry in it's entirety can be found here along with many other interesting entries. Treat yourself.

Rose

2009-06-03T10:35:00.000-07:00

My week has been spent in a sad and reflective state. Rose Johnson, gentle, spirited and impassioned woman, artist and cohort in all forms of southwestern warmth passed away in Bali last Sunday. She left us in a storm of her being. She was doing what she loved - traveling and finding treasured hearts and passionate luxuriant colors to add to her palate; filling herself to the brim of life to such a degree that all who came to her even just in passing would recall her pleasantly.

I have been looking at all the bits of Roses life available on line and I like the interview by TheBisbeeChannel the best, I think, as it exhibits her sweet generosity of spirit (thank you for making it!).

The details regarding her death is the stuff of legend and Shakespearean tragedy with tainted wine being sipped and a flurry of grief and loss. Some of this news can be read here

.

Rose is gone now as if passing into the brilliance of her very own work and I am stunned, saddened and grateful to have been able to have met such a tremendously creative and compassionate woman. I imagine what Rose would like me to do to honor her passing and I hear her whisper, "Create something and put all the joy in your heart into it!". That's the kind of woman Rose was and the kind of inspiration she leaves in her wake. I see a million mermaids floating and waiving with goblets to their lips and stars in their eyes; they are waving goodbye...

I hope our paths cross again, Rose, till then...

My Life - Version 2

2009-05-27T12:05:00.000-07:00

I bring to you ...the danger here that comes from the old town...

This is a wonderful 7 minute video I received from DailyMotion that is whimsical, charming and cradles a loving message. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

The Day the Robots Woke Up
Uploaded by SFLTV. - Full seasons and entire episodes online.

Strategic Plan - The Movie

2009-05-22T10:23:00.000-07:00

This is for all the fine folks who worked so hard on the Strategic Plan for the Library. I think, perhaps, a thankless job in some ways. Well, I read it and I was very moved by the hard work and resourcefulness that obviously went into it. This morning when I read the story below, I thought immediately of the critical importance of these changes and the inherent difficulty in maintaining a vision that will obviously enhance the lives of so many employees and those who utilize the services the library provides. This post is for:

Tamara Belts, Dennis Matthews, Clarissa Mansfield, Rick Osen, Paul Piper, Andrea Peterson, Elizabeth Stephan and all of those on the sub committees.

Well, okay, it is a bit dramatic and whimsical but so is a strategic plan, when it comes right down to it. I hope you enjoy it:

***************************

THE LEGEND OF SHAHBAZ
.
Nobody gets through life without troubles but there was once a king who got himself into a terrible fix. He wasn’t bad, just a man who lost his way. Nothing new there.

Plenty of people, kings and commoners alike, head straight into trouble, never once looking back. This man did stop and think, and that made all the difference. The land he ruled was far from the sea, far from the overland trade routes, far, it seemed, from any place anyone wanted to be. Still, his subjects were a sturdy lot. They endured, meeting hardship with a laugh and a smile whenever they could. The people comforted each other with the old saying, “A poor man living in peace is better off than a rich man in the midst of strife.” Deep inside, they held the hope that, someday, things would get better.

Early in his reign, the king kept to his father’s custom of moving among the people, listening to their stories, laughing at their jokes. He held court so that the people could seek justice from him. As years went by, the king set aside these old ways. He began staying up all night, scheming with his ministers and playing the lords and ladies against each other.

Heavy black curtains were hung over the windows in his room and he slept till noon. After lunch he called for his falcon and went hunting. This he loved above all else. At dinner, his belly full of ale, he roared, “Shahbaz,” for that was the falcon’s name, “has never failed and that is more than I can say for any of you.”

Life did not get better, it got worse. The kingdom grew disorderly. Fights broke out. Bandits patrolled the ridge tops and forests. Brother turned against brother, friend against friend. The people became afraid and Shahbaz saw it all. Her keen eyes found a house in flames, a woman crying, a child dressed in rags. She returned each day with game for the king’s table but something was changing inside of her. One day as she wheeled overhead in the sky, Shahbaz saw a man stumbling in a thicket. He had been chased from the roadway by a band of brigands and now had lost his way. Shahbaz lifted her left wing and arced toward the man as she came to the place where he was lost, she saw that he was cowering. In front of him was a mountain lion. The beast had him cornered and was now preparing to pounce.

Shahbaz felt her heart as it filled with compassion for the old man. Then, as never before, this compassion filled her entire being. Compassion settled into resolve and Shahbaz tucked her wings and dove. Streaking out of the sky like some angel of mercy she thrust out her talons and buried them in the lion’s neck. The beast whirled and roared as it struggled to free itself from the falcon’s grip. Teeth claws, beak and talons whirled in a frenzy of struggle until, at last, the lion signaled her submission. Shahbaz released her grip and took to flight, the lion fled into the brush. The man was safe. Shahbaz returned to the king but without any game for the dinner table. The king berated her, never noticing how worn and weary she appeared. The next day the king went out to hunt with Shahbaz on his arm. In the heat of the mid day he released the jesses and Shahbaz took flight. Immediately she set a course for where the area where the old man was lost. She found him even further from the road, in a ravine where there was no food or water. The old man looked wilted under the hot sun.

Again Shahbaz brimmed with compassion, forgetting the task of bringing food to the king, she hurtled out of the sky and landed in front of the astonished man. Some kind of power filled Shahbaz and she knew what to do. With a short hop, she came to a stone. She struck the stone, once, twice, thrice and the rock split apart and water, clean cold water flowed from its depth. The thirsty man drank. Shahbaz took wing and hunted, returning to the man with game. Then before leaving she approached a pile of brush striking it with her beak once, twice, thrice and with that it burst into flames. Having sustained him with food, water and fire she took wing and returned to the waiting king. Again she failed to supply the king’s table.

“Perhaps I have been feeding you to well,” he snapped, “a night without supper might focus your mind.” The next day the king took Shahbaz to the hunting grounds and released her. Again she hurtled skyward in search of the lost man. She searched long and hard for him and was ready to give up when she glimpsed him in the distance. Weak with hunger she made her way to him. He sat alone and in despair. Shahbaz came to rest on a branch near the man. He looked up at her through tear filled eyes. Here again was this remarkable bird that had fought off the mountain lion and fed him and given him water and a fire. The bird sat looking at him.

Thinking that perhaps this magical creature might understand his grief, he poured out his heart to Shahbaz. His brothers were dead, as was his wife and his children. He had been seeking the village of his father when the brigands had accosted him. He spat the name of the king and said that the man was a fool. As the great falcon listened, she was filled with compassion and her sense of rightness and justice boiled inside her. When the man finished his tale, the powerful sense of justice welled up and burst.

The falcon, in that moment found the gift of speech for the first time. She spoke of knowing love and loss. She spoke of all that she had seen in the many years she had soared above the kingdom. She told the man not to despair, because she knew the way home for him. She stayed with him through the night lulling him to sleep with stories of the great and noble people she had seen and known. When the morning dawned, she took flight and led the man to a stream that led to the river which flowed past the village of his fathers. This being done she returned to the king’s castle.

Alighting on the wall of the castle she found the king preparing to begin his hunt, another falcon on his arm. As the hunting party rode forth, she settled onto a low branch that hung over their path. The king saw her and called out that she was an unworthy traitor and that she did not deserve the right to be a royal falcon, another would take her place with no matter to him. The king raged at Shahbaz. The bird did not stir but concentrated her gaze on him.

Finally, his rage spent, the king fell silent.

Then Shahbaz spoke. “I have watched you and I have watched your kingdom. You are full of your own bravado, but you have ruled poorly. The people suffer, they cry but from fear, from hunger and thirst, they are lost and yet you hear them not.” The entire party sat stock still and listened. A royal counselor cried out, “This is an abomination. A dumb beast can not speak, this must be evil of the most terrible kind. I plead with your majesty to destroy this foul creature at once.” At this, an archer drew his bow and aimed at the falcon. Shahbaz did not hesitate, did not move, she kept her unwavering gaze on the king. There was silence until she spoke again. “You are not a bad man, you could do much for the people of this land, even yet. But all must change.”

Again the counselor asked for permission to kill the bird. The king waved him off.

The truth of these words was powerful. Shahbaz offered the king a partnership. She and her kind would sail in the skies above this land seeking always to protect, sustain and nurture the people. The king would set aside his scepter and become a royal falconer, and devote himself to the training and well-being of these great birds.

With time, the king was transformed into a great falconer. All of these great birds came to be known by the name of the first, Shahbaz. The people were comforted then they would look up into the great blue sky and see the Shahbaz circling gracefully overhead. The time of the King and his servants passed from memory and a new partnership was created which has endured since.

Adapted from What Are Old People For? How Elders Will Save the World
by William H. Thomas, M.D.

We Don't Need No More War

2009-05-19T12:42:00.000-07:00

Playing For Change is at it again...valiantly holding up the sky...placing peace above violence by singing to the world about loving one another.

Or watch on On YouTube.

I watch and listen to this video and I think "...we get it, already, about war and killing and suffering. Can we move on to building a better world?" Then I wonder, "...who am I taking to, anyway? Does it matter? I don't think so..." Let us make more of that life-affirming sound!

Thank you Mark Johnson for all you and your PFC crew do to keep us mindful and encouraged to engage in a better world; a better way.

What Are Old People For?

2009-05-08T09:18:00.000-07:00

I had an compelling conversation on just this subject with one of my student assistants regarding the treatment of elders in his native culture. He is from Eritrea. I listened with interest as he explained to me the approach his culture has to the older and the elderly and some of his young perspective on this influence in his life. In listening, I realized that this subject that I have been trying to work into my interior conversations of late on the value of aging is more than a solitary dialogue. In my student's case, he was raised by his Grandparents and knew nothing of an alternative perspective until he came to the States. His frustration in Africa was, understandably, never being allowed to openly disagree with an elder. When he came to this country, he was shocked by the conversations that reflected a total lack of respect that his American relatives engaged in. The culture shock has receded but this reconciliation continues in him as he is caught between two worlds. It continues in me too as I expressed to him my frustrations in the culture expecting me to be more matronly than I feel and having to meet that expectation of my age in order to illicit respect. The conversation sort of faded away between us as the work at hand encroached on our conversation. Still, I found myself spinning in a tiny eddy of our exchange.

Thursday I came to reading my daily dose of Time Goes By and was introduced to the geriatrician, Dr. Bill Thomas. He is the author of "What Are Old People For?" and ChangingAging.org as well as being the creator of Eden Alternative and he was making an intelligent and compassionate appeal to Oprah Winfrey to consider what her influence in pitching constant youth has on the aging population of America.

I like to poke fun of Oprah Winfrey along with many others. She seems to get a little suckered by her own PR sometimes and she's an easy target. I too get a glimpse of my own folly of self perception and I am made fun of, too, for far less success and joy than Oprah has created in people's lives. Just walking across the room can illicit any number of mostly unconscious judgments from my girth to my odd hair. I cannot help but have sympathy for Oprah or anyone who is older, in this way. Bottom line, when it comes to the mass media, Winfrey wields a tremendous influence of the perspectives of millions of Americans who, right or wrong, turn to her as an authority on everything from nail polish to Hospice Care. It just is. I think Dr. Thomas does a pretty good job of appealing to, what I consider is essential in Winfrey: her strength of character and ability to grow into new and interesting thought and action.

Granted just because my wondering what old people are good for doesn't make it interesting but the thought that there are unused resources of life-giving, life-supporting and life-enhancing abilities at our fingertips in the cumulative wisdom of the our older years that no one can get to because we are building Club Meds on the river Denile, simple breaks my heart. Especially when I realize that that high rise is going to completely block my view of a satisfying end of my life and cast me and millions of others into it's shadow until we draw our final breath.

In reflecting on my conversation, I realize that my young student assistant needs to have frustration in not being able to openly argue with an elder. He cannot yet see how this has strengthened him. The young cannot understand that this frustration has an actual function that manifests in their adult life to hone a strength in temperament. It creates a stronger adult presence and an ability to fuse thought and action in life. It gives one enough self reflection to temper one's belief in ones own PR. The elders carry the depth of intention and love from the roots of the family to the young, new growth. It is essential and spiritual and cannot be recognized for what it is when we are new to the world. I didn't get to tell him that and I wonder what he would have heard, if I did. We were called away as there is a Club Med with a picture book view of the horizon we are busy building.

Picture: Filimon Ghilbretinsae preforming a traditional dance from his country, Eretria, at Western WashingtonUniversity's AfroCaribbean Club Celebration (and also displaying the fact that, no matter where you are from, everyone has a little bit o'Elvis in their soul!)

Love your MOTHER!

2009-04-20T12:46:00.000-07:00

We have many Mothers. No one knows this better than women - especially women who have given birth or realized children in their lives because as soon as this happens (in reality or in a spiritual sense) there is a keen awareness that we are not and will never be "alone". Many women have come before us. We are but spawn, essentially, of an accumulated experience of women. Like Chief Seattle stated,

"The earth does not belong to us; we belong to the earth"

...so it is with our Mothers. We sometimes refer to the Earth as our Mother. Replace the words The Earth with the Our Mother in the quote above and you begin to feel the weight of it. My word of the year is value. In these terms, I find myself contemplating the value of all of our Mothers these days.

I can hardly turn a blind eye to the opportunity these times are offering at every bend for our reinventing the economy. Not with a word like "value" wending it's way into my daily thoughts. So lets take a look at what we commonly buy for our Mothers on Mother's Day, shall we? Florist flowers and potted plants that have been genetically altered to last 48 hours longer than the plant you bought last year. A dinner at a restaurant, perhaps? There are any number of things that might be a tradition. I want to explore outside that tradition here for a moment and look at the bigger picture.

We all are beginning to understand that we have a responsibility to learn new ways to get where we are going, whether it is opting to taking a bus or biking downtown or sending a message that actually speaks from our hearts. I am thinking now of gift giving - shopping, if you will - that is an act of supporting Motherhood while honoring our sisters and womankind and, while we are it, the earth as well. Shopping as a political act?

As I stated in a previous post, I blew through Portland town in March and had the good fortune to visit with my friend Kristi Jo Lewis. KJ is a new mother of a beautiful baby girl and the creator of a business that she shares with her sister and associates called Global Sistergoods. KJ is a woman of conscience and when she imagined her ideal job she did so with her compassion for women of the world and alternative ways of economics firmly in mind. Recognize a woman's talent, support it and let her support her family. Yes she can! ...and she did. Basically KJ and Global Sistergoods fences finely crafted goods made from artisans who are Mothers and Sisters themselves....are you following where this is going?

From "About Us":
Global Sistergoods was founded in 2006 by two sisters, Beth Kapsch and Kristi Jo (KJ) Lewis, who combined their professional backgrounds in living wage issues, international development, public policy and women's equality and their personal love of beautiful, handmade goods to create this marketplace for women artisans from around the world.

We provide a living wage to economically disadvantaged women in fragile economies by supporting entrepreneurship, self-reliance and microenterprise development through fair trade. We partner with international non-government organizations who provide resources to women, governmental trade associations who support women's economic empowerment, women's cooperatives/collectives, and individual women artisans. We sustain traditional craftmaking techniques, provide high-quality products and educate consumers about women's issues in the countries our partner artisans live in.

I am suggesting you take a few minutes and take a look at what Global Sistergoods is offering. I'm suggesting, as well, that we all begin to realize that our spending habits are essentially a political act. When one trades with Global Sistergoods, this is what happens: You get a superior gift for your Mom made by women who are Mothers and you support a woman who is supporting her family. When you choose to trade with conscience, perhaps forgoing the florist's forced attempt at beauty, you are supporting much more than some strange person 1000 of miles away. You are engaging in an alternative way of doing business that gets you what you want while supporting the people that you want to help.

Kristi Jo and her sister are people who are dreaming of a better way and giving birth to it everyday. Love your Mother and hold your sister close. They just might be able to show us how to heal our economy by trading in new, alternative and exciting ways. These are brave and intelligent women who are teaching a new meaning of value. I am learning that conscious action coupled with value has a strange and powerful positive implication, while tacit in its employ, it is dynamic in its execution. Making a conscious choice is one of those things that requires doing to understand. I'm suggesting you try it and see how it feels.

The best way to spend time with your Mother on her day is to sit with her and ask her who she is on her own terms. Perhaps go for a walk with her or enjoy the outdoor market with locally supported goods on display. Or even go to an independently owned bistro for lunch. Whatever you choose to do make it an active choice with intention and love at it's core...like a Mother's love.

Photo credit: blawk359

Let us converse about the elephant in the room

2009-04-05T11:49:00.000-07:00

I wish I had someone to talk to in conversation about all the turmoil that everyone is experiencing in the room, in the workplace, at the University and in the country. It is a load.

I have just finished reading a book I wish my co-workers would read and we could join in conversation about. The book is called, "Crossing the Unknown Sea; Work as a Pilgrimage of Identity". If I hadn't stumbled upon David Whyte's work through the back door of my own personal troubled voyage, I would run like hell from that title myself, likewise I don't suspect many will be thrilled at the prospect of reading it. I urge you to move past that because I must say that it has helped me immensely to understand - if ever so slightly - how I might have an opportunity to play a positive role in these horrendous changes that are underfoot. After ordering the title through ILL, I got 30 pages into it and knew I had to go buy my own copy if I was going to make it through these "interesting times" at work and in the world at large. It resonates quite loudly within me to seek some sense of this situation to which I have opted for. Finding a place to stand and function at one's best abilities seems to be the order of the day at work. At least for me, I am finding a welcome if tenuous solitary grip within these writings. It occurred to me this morning that others at work might also find strength here.

It is the business of poets to live and examine the edges of things and when a poet with the vision and scope of David Whyte says the game has changed forever for business, I have to pay attention. I am reading something everyone senses, of course, and he goes one step further. He gives tools for facing disease, the unknown and really, really bad weather endemic to these types of changes that we all feel are coming but really do not know how to acknowledge well. We are on the threshold of what will be and hurling towards the essence of our work in a very different work world from whence we entered. In this book, I realize, if we take the time to understand the language of these changes, we can move this troubled situation from invisible ideas onto welcoming and sustainable shores. It is a journey we could do better with wise council. I haven't found better than Whyte:

"In order to get a real conversation with the world you have to drop artificial language, you have to drop politics, and you have to drop an environment based on fear and hiding. People must be encouraged not only to know their craft, their products, their work and the people they serve, but to know a little of themselves. In order to respond to the world of wants, they must know something of what they want themselves. Just as importantly they must know what they do not want. They must also look at their inherited fears around conversation, particularly the conversation about their own gifts. This personal conversation can be very frightening but it is an increasingly necessary one, especially for those who have any leadership role in the organization."

If you have already read it or you read it as a result of this posting, I would be interested in your thoughts.

"Good work is grateful surprise." ~D.W.

...and why not?

Oh, What you will see!

2009-04-02T12:32:00.001-07:00

Every year in the spring my family and I meet in Bandon, OR for a reunion by the sea. One of the pleasures of this journey is my annual visit to my friend David Lewis and his family in Portland, OR. on my way down. They have been very gracious in hosting me for years. Portland is exactly half way to my destination.

This year's visit featured my official introduction to the newly arrived member of the family, Linden (named for the marvelous trees in the park near their home) and interesting conversations on business with David's wife, Kristi Jo, who has a fantastic on-line concern called "Global Sistergoods" (more on this later). David was busy setting up for a show at the Attic Gallery , 206 SW 1st Ave., Portland, OR on April 2 through May 2 2009.

I want to tell you about David's show at the Attic Gallery opening this Friday, April 3rd, 6 pm to 9 pm. I've included here a few of the paintings that will be featured at this show as a taste but it by no means covers what you will enjoy should you see his work in it's entirety. This show will also feature the intriguing plien aire paintings of Nathaniel Praska.

Please stop by and meet David. Tell your Portland friends and have them tell David Cile sent them and I'm sure he will be mortified ...impressed rather...with my omnipotent reach through the inter-tubes to the public at large. When you go, whether you drop by for the reception on Friday or just stop in the gallery for a look during the month, you will be in for a real treat - as the sampling in this posting implies. David's work just gets more spectacular and vivid with each year. As an added plus, he's a really interesting person and a nice guy! You will want to meet him.

Pictures shown: "Logging Road" (above) and "Neighbors".

Yet another bonus: David be BLOGGING! and AllTheArtOutThere Woot! ...become a follower....

Oh Child, You're right on Time

2009-03-14T16:08:00.000-07:00

I've spent about a week with Danny Schmidt's new offering, "Instead the Forest Rose to Sing". All the while, in the back of my mind trying to formulate words of praise for it, since I figured I would blog about it as I found the offering very moving.. Everyday that I listened I would find a new jewel of phrasing or harmony and scratch what I thought I would write the day before.

The thing about great art is that it is never static. It seems to move with us adding something to our lives as we stir through time. At one point I thought to myself that Danny's work is like a color that has been there all along but you never really saw it in a sense because you were never able to call it by name. As in, "Oh my God! That's vermilion? THAT'S vermilion!" and even though the color has been there all our lives it is somehow more real and intimate for its naming. Danny's music and lyrics are like that...like the color...then the naming...and then the connection...then the growth. Vermilion, once just a word, is now an experience.

There is a turn of phrase and melody in each song on "Instead the Forest Rose to Sing" that will turn you on, turn you in and turn you out but never turn you away. That's the kind of artist Danny Schmidt is. Do yourself a favor and buy this CD and the forest will rise to sing to you too.

Is it only a dream that there'll be no more turning away?

2009-01-20T00:30:00.000-08:00

It just goes to show if you stay alive long enough, you may actually live to see a dream come true. The trick, it seems, is surviving all the torturous bits that keep testing it in an unrelenting manner and getting through it without poking out both your eyes in shame and horror.

Sometimes it takes awhile for dreams, art and truth to make their journey out into the universe and cycle home to remind us who we truly are. All the more reason to speak it and make it and cherish these things for their power to heal. Twenty years ago this song was performed - in hindsight - at the dawn of the dark decades for democracy. It seems appropriate to listen to it and contemplate its message today with the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States.

I hope we will all be as brave and smart as we want to be. Probably not; being human... but at least for a day or so we can feel like we've done something right. Perhaps we have reached a tipping point on our spin. On this day, we will collectively stand and not turn away; gather our strength towards wasting less and applying our Yankee ingenuity to dreaming up an even better world with all of the extra time we have not pounding the floor of a big box store...be a part of something larger than ourselves that is inclusive, wise and transparent in its intention.

On the turning away

On the turning away
From the pale and downtrodden
And the words they say
Which we wont understand
Dont accept that whats happening
Is just a case of others suffering
Or youll find that youre joining in
The turning away

Its a sin that somehow
Light is changing to shadow
And casting its shroud
Over all we have known
Unaware how the ranks have grown
Driven on by a heart of stone
We could find that were all alone
In the dream of the proud

On the wings of the night
As the daytime is stirring
Where the speechless unite
In a silent accord
Using words you will find are strange
And mesmerized as they light the flame
Feel the new wind of change
On the wings of the night

No more turning away
From the weak and the weary
No more turning away
From the coldness inside
Just a world that we all must share
Its not enough just to stand and stare
Is it only a dream that there'll be
No more turning away?

~Pink Floyd
A Momentary Lapse of Reason

Thanks to Jimmy Toast for posting the above video to You Tube.

You look so beautiful tonight

2009-01-19T13:53:00.000-08:00

U2 has quite an investment in the election of Barack Obama as they are so passionate about liberty and have always been a force for the White House to contend with. I recall seeing them perform in Tempe, AZ on the Zoo TV tour at Arizona State University Activity Center in October 1992. I laughed with my heart breaking as Bono would dial up the White House from the stage to try and talk to George Bush. A bit he did, no doubt, from every performance. I'm so happy for all of us and for Martin Luther King's Dream that lives on in the name of love.

Here is a video from a White House party in D.C. yesterday that includes two songs, "Pride" and "City of Blinding Lights" leading us into a Martin Luther King Day to remember.

Thanks to IllBeBackCall for posting the video.

Life in 'Kindle'garten

2008-10-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

Late this summer I had the opportunity to use a Kindle . I had to promised to blog about it and not use it for a Frisbee. I agreed on both counts and here on my thoughts on that:

A Kindle makes you popular with people who are gadget nuts. They say, "Hey! Let ME see!"

A Kindle falls out of its cover a lot causing people who are gadget nuts to ask in alarm, "Uh, how much to they cost?"

A Kindle has an incredibly easy screen to read in all types of light causing the gadget nut to exclaim, "Whoa how do they DO that?"

I had the Kindle for about three weeks and I read two existing items that had been uploaded to it. I enjoyed the compact nature of the Kindle. It is wild to think that you can have so much reading material at the tip of your fingers as you go about your life. The problem is I don't live my life like that (yet, perhaps). This technology brings me the kind of refreshing joy the iPod did in that it happily minimizes the clutter by reducing material to bites and reduces the piles of paper in real time around me. However, unlike my iPod and music and audio files, I handle books and stories differently. I couldn't help but think if I read something on the Kindle that really floated my boat, that I would want to go and buy a copy of the title for my bookshelf. Perhaps this is just an adjustment I would need to make to evolve, it occurs to me.

I enjoyed the stories that I read on the Kindle and I'm a bit embarrassed that I didn't take the online tutorial available at Amazon.com and instead choose to fumble around wishing there was an instruction manual. How dumb is THAT???? Of course, there is a manual ON the Kindle.

The positives are that Kindle connects to Amazon through wireless cell phone technology and there is no charge. If you come across a word you need a definition for it is very easy to look it up on the Kindle. With a simple tap on the line that has the puzzling word, it will take you to the definition of the most likely confusing words on that line. It does not translate languages, however, if there is something written in Latin, so I found out. Another positive is that you can highlight and save interesting passages to use in your blog later! Also if there is a concept that completely escapes you, there is free access to Wikipedia at your fingertips to help you sort it out.

The frustrating thing that I found with the Kindle was the design. I'm not sure what they were thinking when they put the whole thing together. There is hardly any place to put your hands without causing a page to turn or hitting the keyboard. I'm not comfortable putting my hands on any screen so most of the time I felt as though I was handling a porcelain Hummel. Also I noticed, in the helpful videos from Amazon, they didn't even show the outer book-like case that it does not fit comfortably in. Still, the case made it easier for me to handle the devise without turning pages. Would a back light option for reading in bed be impossible I wonder?

There is another issue however that preys on my mind about the Kindle package that I'm not comfortable with. The fact that one can only access items through one source "Amazon" is a flaw. To improve this item it would be available as an open source tool where a person could go to any site and upload whatever wares any artist was selling, including Amazon.

I think the technology of the Kindle is absolutely fabulous even if they need to go back to the drawing board in regards to the design of if it. I want to see this technology in every student's backpack with a full compliment of their textbooks therein. I want every textbook publisher to offer their product in this format and I want Western Washington University to be the first school to institute this as standard for every student. Something to lighten the student's load financially and physically would be a profound and positive change for everyone...except the lumber mills and publishers, of course...and maybe a Chiropractor or two. But perhaps they have had their day.

Zen and the Art of Service with Sincerity

2008-10-18T12:10:00.000-07:00

My colleagues and I wanted to give a presentation to our students on customer service. We had a movie about customer service. I was thinking there has to be something more than following a set of good “practices” so I decided I would explore sincerity at work at a public desk.

One of my student’s requested a copy of what I wrote (sadly I am not a very coherent public speaker as I fight with the sensation of wearing a collar of bees as I speak, I sometimes can’t breathe) and so I thought I would blog about what I presented. I’m sure it will be easier to follow written down than how it stumbled out of me.

Be Here Now

I want to talk to you today about the work experience and I want to start with a few facts I wish someone would have reminded me about when I was in my twenties. Here goes:

There is a voice in your head that will kill your courage and deprive you of every happiness known to humanity if you let it.

This voice is you and it is comprised of every sound bite your parents and the great American wall of advertising has hurled at you - amongst other things. The Bad News: it is the time of your life you can assimilate all that and default to becoming your parent's or someone else’s expectation of you. The Good News: this is the time of your life when you can choose to step out of that carnival of noise and decide what is true for YOU and decide what you want to think.

Behold the self fulfilled prophesy! No one is doing your life but you.

The voice says: “ that person (situation, event…whatever) is making me crazy!” Actually you are allowing yourself to be made CRAZY by something. Everyday we get up and choose who we want to be, like it or not. The Bad News: we invite most despair into our life and we find it certain miseries comfortable; The Good News is we are in charge of our own comfort zones and we have tons of control over how our life plays out.

Happiness and satisfaction is not contingent upon outside forces.

This one everyone gives lip service to and no one seems to actually understand how it unreels out in our heads. Everyday this voice blabs: I need to graduate! I need money! I need to loose 10 pounds! I need to gain 10 pounds! I need a boyfriend or girl friend! I need a boyfriend AND a girlfriend! I need to see if that person accepted my facebook invite! I need to be more! Blah blah blah…and when this happens I will experience great joy and be happy. Actually, happiness does not arrive as a contingency. Happiness is available to us all everyday in every way. It is totally provided and built in to every breath. Happiness does not evade us because of things that we are not – it appears to take its ball home and leave us to chase after it but, in truth, we remove ourselves from the game by not showing up or running away. We cannot be present to play if we are spending all our time cultivating the habit of listing out everything that we are NOT with everything that has not yet happened. The Bad News: We all want to be right more than we want to be happy. We have a lot more training in our culture in finding the right answer than we do in discovering what makes us happy. The Good News: we can all learn to recognize our habits of distraction and find what allows us great joy. We can be honest about why we are not playing.

Down with “THE MAN”: Transparency and Changes in the American Workplace

Nobody is asking you to be insincere.
How to apply the above to the task at hand.

Consider these Scenarios:

Someone approaches the desk and they are wearing a really neat hat. You think to yourself “MY GOD I love that hat! I wish I had that hat.” And then you fantasize a mini-sized fantasy about wearing the hat and your friend Sam sees it and cracks up, and you have a good experience thinking that…blah blah blah…by this time the person is at the counter and you smile and help them and you watch them walking away wearing the hat that you love. Then the phone rings – and you are off into the next thing - end of story.

Someone approaches the desk and they are wearing a really neat hat. You think to yourself “MY GOD I love that hat! I wish I had that hat”. You make eye contact with the person who is now at the counter and you smile and say, “I love your hat!” They smile back and maybe they tell you a story about the hat or just say thank you…any number of things can happen from this exchange. You helped them and you shared yourself a little in a sincere manner. At the very least you have initiated a positive exchange with another individual. You stepped up and allowed yourself to be present.

Both of these experiences are pleasant – both of these scenarios are correct. One, however, happens primarily in your head and one happens in real time with a real individual. Again, you are choosing how rich your experience can be. Your day is full of these kinds of choices. Get the dialog going with yourself about what you’re choosing to do in this way.

Being a library assistant is declared as your job but it can also be a part of your school work. While you are at University, you are formulating your pattern of approach to work and laying the foundation of how YOU do work in the world. I think it is important to remember that this is not something that magically happens LATER when you have a REAL job. That is what the voice in your head may tell you. The truth is you are doing it now. You are developing the habit of being yourself everyday – right now.

On the plus side this is a little easier to examine when you have just a few hour chunks of time to do so. When you work 9 hours a day (with commute, maybe 10) at a job and you find yourself in the mix of the life you have created, it is hard to find time to reflect on these things and fine tune your presence.

Consider your library assistant job as a lab.

You have an opportunity in this job to track the voice in your head and make choices that are better suited to the you you intend on being. Try and define what is performance from you and what is sincere in yourself through what you share with people as an exercise. If you are feeling forced with people, ask yourself why and answer the question honestly. If you feel stuck and stubborn, sometimes it is just a matter of putting habitual thinking of being distant on hold and smiling at someone to break out.

Being disinterested is a habit and possibly an ill fitting by-product of being a teenager – it is a valuable survival skill as a teenager to allow space to develop as an adult and it will mess you up in any attempt you make to leave its confines. It gets under control by our simply opting out and choosing an alternate behavior that satisfies. The dirty job in this is finding an alternate behavior to replace it that works for you and reflects a little more of who you really are. Start an adult dialog with yourself on these issues. Know you are choosing what you want to do - try and understand the consequence of choosing to stay disengaged and distant from what is going on around you and accept the responsibility for it.

Having said all of this, I hope we, as your supervisors and confidantes, do not let you down in your efforts. The work world is changing from a hierarchal system to a transparent one making the playing field more level and everyone’s creativity and input more valuable. Many of us are still not used to listening and we want to.
The workplace is going to be the structure of your work/playground where you make your mark in the world. This change is happening now in the library and across the campus. You have a unique opportunity to be involved in how this complex transition evolves. At the library we certainly invite you to do so! For one thing, you can make customer service videos on-the-fly that work better than what is available currently! You KNOW you CAN! There is actual support existing within the library to help you be involved that way, if you choose.

Then I thanked everyone and no one had any comments. Well, Jenny wanted a copy of what I said. That made me feel good and a small swarm of bees lifted gracefully aside to accommodate my smile. I find it truly sad that somewhere across the trajectory of my life I managed to loose my ability to speak in public and draw people out because much of what I spoke to the students about is what I am actually going through myself – only the 55 year old version. With all the changes in the workplace and inspiration rising from the upheaval of the existing status quo, I would have liked to have been persuasive enough in the sharing to have stimulated a conversation and had a chance to hear to what their experiences are. Perhaps they will share them with me in time. I hope I remember to listen. As it is, that was my 10 minutes.

Share the love

2008-09-26T11:41:00.000-07:00

I saw this today and I thought it interesting to share with all my colleagues. Surely we all know one or two sophomores who might want to jump on this bandwagon! This could be a terrific opportunity for our computer science students.

Google is offering summer internships for computer science students, specifically:

"students who are a member of a group that is historically under-represented in the technology industry are encouraged to apply, including Women, Native American, African American, Hispanic, and Disabled students."

Deadline to apply: October 10, 2008

More information here.

Thank you Jim Kloss of WWR for sharing this in his reader and Amit Agarwall for posting the article.

Back to School Sale

2008-09-10T07:40:00.000-07:00

Something everyone can afford: the truth about attending school.

The more one listens to people telling the truth, the more one develops an ear for it.

What is right with the world?

2008-08-22T12:44:00.000-07:00

I received an interesting video feed from my friend, singer-songwriter, Esther Golton, today . She shared a clip that she found and I think I may be dropping the baton here if I don't share it in light of the Trust Workshop that was attended yesterday.

My co-workers and myself were treated to the consciousness raising experience of Janet Ott, writer, speaker and relationship coach yesterday. The focus was on issues of trust. One of the many things that Janet spoke about was our relationship to our stories or our perceptions of what we are seeing and how it is seen through a series of choices we make in how we look at it. This video clip that Esther sent seems particularly relevant in light of this subject. I feel compelled to share it.

It is a preview called Celebrate what is right with the world, by DeWitt Jones, photographer for the National Geographic. In it he shares his process of learning to see things differently and I found it quite illustrative of what happens when we trust to take something one step further and alter the perspective. The revelation one tiny twist of perspective can manifest can be quite astounding. I think it is interesting too that Mr. DeWitt comments that:

"...it's a national sacrilege to throw away a Geographic because it celebrates what is right with the world and nobody wants to throw that away."

When I heard him say that, I realized he could have been talking about libraries just as easily as National Geographic Magazine. I don't think our culture wants to throw out libraries either because libraries, too, celebrate what is right with the world.

The video is about 22 minutes long and I don't think you will regret taking the break in such good company.

Rod Picott Concert

2008-06-10T11:47:00.000-07:00

One of the nice things about live music events is the sense of being with the musician in the same room. Doubly nice is the intimacy of a house concert where you get the feeling you have just gathered with friends to settle into hearing some good music. You cannot reproduce that sensation on a recording...even on a live recording. What you may not know is that you CAN share in a virtual real time house concert experience by attending a concert on line. It may surprise you how intimate it feels as you listen in real time. Check it out.

There is a good one coming up this Saturday on Whole Wheat Radio at 8pm (Bellingham time). Rod Picott.

Do this:

Listen by clicking here.

Open this page to find out about the artist.

Open this page to join the fun during the concert.

Settle in with a favorite beverage and try this experience. You may be surprised. There will be a little chat room to discuss what you are hearing as you will be with other listeners sharing the experience, should you desire or have any questions. It is fairly easy and straight forward. Seriously, the hardest part about the whole thing will be getting the cork out of your wine bottle.

I have picked this video to share because one of the things I love about a live performance is the stories that sometimes shake out. Enjoy and join me this Saturday evening.

Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

2008-04-22T11:59:00.000-07:00

Being the youngest in my family I'm not afraid to be bring up the rear on anything noteworthy going on anywhere in this world or even in nether worlds. It is what I do. So it is not beyond my type of person to be passing on to you something you have probably already heard about ad infinitum since December 2007 when it was presented. Most things I assume everyone is already aware of. Then I thought, "Gee, did I already, over the course of the last 5 months, hear about this somewhere and passed it by?" Actually, I think I did. Which just shows-to-go-you if it is something worth finding, it will find you eventually...in spite of yourself...if you live long enough...

So I picked this video off WWR's Jim's Links (basically, his Google reader) and he got it from "Open Culture" by Dan Coleman (who may also be the youngest child - he posted April 20th) ...I would have no idea. I can't tell who he is. Perhaps if I spent an hour trying to figure out what 'track back' means but it sounds like something the FBI would use to send me to Guantanamo Bay or if I kept linking and linking forever. I wont post this if I do that. Thank you Dan, anyway...My point is it got to me, eventually, and now it is my turn to play it forward because it obviously carries an extremely important message. It seems especially vital to anyone in the educational field...anyone who works with youth or, frankly, anyone who had a youth of their own.

It has been jangling in my mind to ask the students what they want in terms of library services but it wasn't until I saw the entireity of this presentation did I understand what I was fishing for in terms inclusion. I had missed the part where I actually have to listen...Okay...also, after I listen...THEN what? Embedding in this video is a map to then what for anyone who is willing to open up to it...for anyone who might toy with the thought they could make a small improvement in a student's life. Within is a clue to a place to stand and help.

The fact the man is dying notwithstanding, his entire life up to this point is a great gift to everyone who listens to what he has to say about what has worked for him in merging the creative with the technical - the artist and the engineer - the right and left brain - the past with the future - the us and the them. After I watched this I came to understand something clearer regarding my role in the lives of the people around me and education, in general. Embrace the familiar of what is like us, the predictable, the family, the known; for it is there that rest resides; and go ahead to encourage the opposites of what is love; for it is there that the creative spark of life brings motion, action and growth into our lives and into the evolution of humanity. A great gift, understanding.

Thank you Randy Pausch. May your light of a life lived well shine on.

Am I free?

2008-03-23T13:53:00.000-07:00

"These eight qualities require a new skill set. Success in the free-copy world is not derived from the skills of distribution since the Great Copy Machine in the Sky takes care of that. Nor are legal skills surrounding Intellectual Property and Copyright very useful anymore. Nor are the skills of hoarding and scarcity. Rather, these new eight generatives demand an understanding of how abundance breeds a sharing mindset, how generosity is a business model, how vital it has become to cultivate and nurture qualities that can't be replicated with a click of the mouse."
~ Kevin Kelly, The Technium

The above excerpt is from a blog entry that was brought to my attention by a co-worker and as I read it, I got really excited about the content.... This open sourcing business is on everyone's mind these days from libraries to artists to business people. Then I remembered how excited I get when someone tells me what I want to hear.

I think it wise to consider some of the points made by Prokofy Neva in the comments section below Kevin Kelly's blog entry.

Especially the part in mentioning that tired old saw that everyone keeps forgetting about in talking about technology. At the risk of being the kid shouting about the naked Emperor, what if the lights go out? Gas pumps pump on electricity too, you know. It's not like it could never happen! Everything just stops if there is no electricity. It is like the perfect storm for an end of the world scenario for the United States and makes me cloud over. I think we have all gone a little bit crazy living under the dark lord's reign of war terror. I think, too, there is a rat in the kitchen and no one wants to deal with the messiness of being self-sustaining. I see a two year old child frantically running away from a stern and over-bearing parent - off she scampers after the shiny free object with untied shoe laces - Untied States of America. In a decade, will people even know how to feed themselves if the power goes out? There are already some young people who do not know how to cook anything without a microwave. They have never even turned on a stove, let alone built a fire to boil water! We are doing ourselves a disservice in not understanding the value of balance and protecting our product; whether that product be art, democracy, our children or our ability to provide nourishment and care to our people....You know, the real ones who fall down and hurt themselves or are hit by a UPS truck delivering our Amazon order.

I think we get a little too excited and caught up sometimes. I know I do. The seizing of an opportunity and being the first and the best is both America's glory and her Achilles heel. We need to be tempered without being oppressed. We need guidelines and communication without banishment and berating for error.

There is a whole cross culture of people who get up everyday to an alarm clock and flesh out to make real what we take for granted like it just appears off of the internet! Billions of souls are maintaining the parts of the story where the rubber meets the road. It is a sorry statement of our values that we should forget that these people even exists. I think the second lifer fellow, Prokofy Neva, makes more than a few good points regarding our ease in accepting the concept of everything becoming free. I mean, seeing how good we all are in maintaining a democracy already! The quick fix if things run out of control is rather daunting and when you consider the consequences of just loosing electricity for 30 days ...well, Katrina and bin Laden spring to mind. Everything has a price in an economic based society. We ARE an economic based society, like it or not. It is a solid and fair question to ask and it requires debate: What will we pay for free?

Thanks to David Carmack Lewis for the use of the painting "Loser"

Stars at Noon

2008-01-19T13:24:00.000-08:00

I haven't written in this blog for awhile mainly because I've not been very interactive with Web 2.0 but I do enjoy the posts that others are maintaining. When I have a minute, I pop on to read "the regulars". I'm glad they are there.

I was on the treadmill today and thinking about a book I just finished reading that Paul recommended to me months ago, Stars at Noon. I don't actually recall what brought the title up for Paul right now but it was something within our conversation made him recommend that I read it.

Stars at Noon is an autobiography of Jac queline Cochran. A rags to riches story that unfolds from 1906 to the year I was born, 1953. This is not an easy read and I'm sure the difficulty for me was much different than Paul's experience reading it. I don't recall him sharing any information about the disturbing nature of it. Perhaps, this is because, from a feminist point of view it could be perceived as political nightmare. For some hard left feminists, no doubt, its a clarion call for everything that is wrong with this country. I bit the bullet, however; tended my wounds with Bactine ( a very 50's treatment for minor cuts and burns) and trudged through the tome as it unavoidably took me back to my childhood. I tried to maintain a perspective and, yes, appreciation for this woman who aggressively pursued her career as racing pilot; altered American aviation for women by establishing a woman's military pilot program; plundered her connections for political gain and piously took advantage of the poor while appearing to be benevolent. (Somewhat like McDonald's does today. Unfortunately an acceptable, if dirty and unimaginative application of democracy.) Her political enthusiasms and giant ego notwithstanding, I don't think it is fair to toss the woman's accomplishments aside in such a cavalier manner for the sake of current political correctness. I think we might be in danger of missing the point when we approach history without the consideration of the actual pressure of the"times" and the anecdotal information therein. I mean, overlooking the reality of the times in history threatens to throw the baby out with the bathwater. Thomas Jefferson springs to mind as a contradiction yet he's obviously a profoundly gifted person of historical merit.

Unlike our own media mavens of today like Ann Coulter who have nothing much to contribute but rhetoric and attention to themselves, Jackie Cochran actually manifested something and despite her huge ego, attempted to divert attention from herself in regards to the public eye on political matters. I grew up in the shadow of unbelievable stories of Americans like Jackie Cochran and the threatening propaganda of the cold war. I read about the war machine and great American heroes in little pamphlets that were supplied to me by the modern American educational system. Often reading them while I was waiting for a bomb drill in the perceived danger of a nuclear attack. Most of these stories were clearly American propaganda. I sometimes think my younger friends think that fear mongering in America is a current thing. It is not new; it's just tempered and more subversive. What was once dumped by little slips of paper on the unassuming public from low flying aircraft to find and read, is now fed to us via advertising and the media. Just to keep things in perspective, patriotism was at a fevered pitch in the 50's when this book was written.

In spite of the fact that Jacqueline Cochran claims she carried water for elephants while helping with the circus - alarming me and undermining her credibility, I still found her story interesting. I suppose the sucker punch in finishing this book is the fact I cannot wrestle free of the feeling that I may be cut from a bit of the same cloth as Ms. Cochran in terms of absent parents and having to live by my wits as a child. Foster homes and lack of a higher education are an intimate part of my personal history and I can wince at the fact that I sold koolaid at a fire in the 60's only understanding it was an opportunity to take advantage of a gathered crowd. (An event that made the local paper much to my dismay in later and more enlightened years.) We conveniently forget about these embarrassing incidents from our pasts and only an idiot would forget that they weren't good enough for achievement, right?

No one talks about this (an added taboo, certainly, within the university setting) but there is more than one way to gain knowledge and success in this country. There can be an advantage to living on the edges of society. You are forced to pay attention to survive and it gives one a perspective that the inner circle may not even consider. This information allows a person an arsenal of information and opportunity and, sometimes, enough delusion to produce an inordinate amount of luck. Subsequently a type of faith develops. It's the same faith as church and steeple but not delivered in the same way to those who live primarily with their feet on the ground. (I say this, too, with my privilege as a white woman, knowing full well the abundance of knowledge a woman of color may gather on the edges of society would not buy her a 10th of the chances I would have.)

I think the courageous tale that Jackie Cochran begs us to consider is underneath the ribbons and bows of her cosmetics industry ego/persona and aviation prowess. It rests quietly as a spawn of her own personal history. I don't even think hers is really a gender tale. Just knowing and applying what can be done when someone, for whatever reason, be it survival or moxy or hard-wired extroversion, are compelled to follow a hunch or a dream. At any rate, I think she would agree with me that it is sad that so much of American ingenuity is consumed by our own country's lack of imagination and compassion. Unlike me, she would do something about it. Jacqueline Cochran's real tale is about wrestling the finest aspect of democracy and liberty from the constraints of our own good intentions and filling ourselves up with opportunity and life. She lived a life of making things happen. She reminds us that, for so many of us, we have our stars at noon and they are still there but for the asking.

I can't go, but YOU can

2007-11-12T14:24:00.000-08:00

I'm detecting a pattern in the schism of my social life here....

I MOURN that I cannot attend the Antje Douvecot concert on-line at Whole Wheat Radio because Antje is such an incredibly talented singer/songwriter besides being just, plain lovely.

What's more, listening to live concerts on-line with Jim and sharing the experience with others in chat is such a fun time - Jim makes it fun, filling listeners in on the action in his own enthusiastic way. I highly recommend that you tune in and at least get a taste of this virtual time sharing, if for no other reason than to add it to your 2.0 experience.

Here's Antje:

It's Antje's birthday on Thursday. Jim's brewed a special beer in honor of her concert. The enchantment will be infectious. Don't deny yourself. I will be working - trying to keep an eye out for hooligans who are seeking all night refuge in the library. Somehow it has happened that I've become a cop in some horrid twist of irony.... but I will attend this concert in spirit, you can be sure.

Thursday, November 15, 2007, 6pm, Bellingham time. www.wholewheatradio.org . Enjoy.

Live music alert!

2007-10-14T20:08:00.000-07:00

Hello All!

This is a very important post informing you all that my dear friend and artist, Esther Golton is coming to Bellingham to start her tour promoting her CD “Unfinished Houses”.

Esther is a mountain dulcimer player and singer/songwriter…but she is so much more. Please read about Esther here. I think you will agree that, besides being talented and industrious, Esther is a marvelously interesting person. Her engagement with and passion for life is clearly captured in her music. I hope you will take a look too at her schedule. She will be touring between Bellingham and the San Francisco bay area. If you know anyone who many be interested in attending these events, please spread the word.

Independent artists only have the love of music to carry them through. It is more than just “making nice” to go see a grass roots performer, you are making history as the music comes back from corporate America to the people who love it.

I thank you for your kind attention and I hope you will get a chance to see Esther. I work in the evenings so she’s out there on here own, poor darling! …So if you are out and about and/or you fancy doing something interesting in the evening, do stop by and tell her hello.

Bellingham:

Wed. October 17^th – 8pm (open mic)

Wild Buffalo

208 W. Holly

Thur. October 18^th – 8pm (opening for the Can’t Hardly Playboys)

Green Frog Acoustic Tavern

902 State Street (near to Terra Barganica)

Fri. October 19^th - 12pm (playing for the lunch bunch for an hour)

Old Town Café

316 W. Holly

Here is a sample of Esther’s music….

Thanks.

Extend Thyself

2007-08-31T11:04:00.000-07:00

OK...I'm all over the map! Jumping from one assignment to the next. It's like someone threw me into a blender, for crying out loud! I installed my first regret last week and that broke my stride. Worse, I can't figure out how to get rid of it. I assumed anything that would simonize Iguana's socks must be quite splendid. So I uploaded Zotero right away without, uh, doing the research on it and reading carefully. I was wrong. I will never use this. It is clutter in my life. It leers at me from the bottom of my screen like a giant dust bunny. It seems like a superior tool for academic research, however... meanwhile, if anyone can help me get rid of this thing, I would be very appreciative!

Holy cow! Look at all the toys to add to my browser!!! This really more my speed.

Thanks to Library Laughter for turning me on to Google calendar. I had a group calendar but I did not realize what a great organizing tool this was until I took time to look into it closer. I can have calendars from everyone (groups, kids, friends etc.) all in one place and turn them on and off at will! This is really great for me because my schedule changes all the time and my people never know where I am at and when! It is also great because I really was getting tired of carrying around a day planner and I've no patience for gadgets like Blackberry and such. Google they name is Savior, I'm becoming a believer.... I have a lot more to learn about these extensions and I'm planning on investigating more. In fact, the Usage Counter might be prudent....

It seemed like a good idea at the time....

2007-08-18T17:35:00.000-07:00

I missed Bob's House warming party this Saturday. I had commitments that involved painting my ceiling with a new paint that goes on one color then magically turns to white. You see this impeccable white ceiling the next morning when you are quietly gazing upward, sipping your coffee in your $300.00 white, terrycloth bathrobe. This is how it works - I know this because it is exactly how it was shown on TV...

It was prominent in my mind, however, that I was missing the festivities while I was working and I thought, "Why don't I make Bob a nice card on my ceiling with this big, long roller thingie sos he knows that I was wishing he and his family well even though I was not physically present!" I balanced the roller up over my head and painted the words BOB IS HOME! ...a rather sophomoric effort, admittedly, and I apologize for that but...well, my arms were getting kind of tired. I took the picture and then set about getting back to work finishing the painting.

It was about 4pm when I was admiring my handiwork that I noticed that as the ceiling dried, you could actually read my housewarming message to Bob even though I painted over it! oops. Well, the writing is right over where the little fireplace is going to go so I guess when I sit down to relax this winter, I can look up in divine repose and enjoy the sobering reminder from above that Bob is Home and not at work thinking up some new technical gizmo for me to learn about!

Welcome to the 'Ham, Bob!

Wanna Wiki Radio, Part II

2007-08-09T19:51:00.000-07:00

...anyway! The point I wanted to make about Wiki's is this...and it is going to sound corny so put on your foil hat now....

I have experienced in my fifty plus years in the United States a slow and somewhat disturbing waning of opportunities along with what I consider to be affordable tools at my disposal - whether it be tools for survival or or inspiration, I feel a squeeze - a palpable loss of personal space. Much of what was valuable when I was younger is no longer available. There is something that has happened in my country that I find troubling. Something beyond the obviously twisted and horrible political situation. There has been a loss of ingenuity and inspiration. It is as if, as individuals, we have been beaten down and dis-empowered by advertising and speculation and fear.

I was adjusting to all of that loss as a cruel inevitability until I was thrown into the world of Wiki. Suddenly I'm faced with democracy, of all things! Someone is being naughty and we all have to figure out a decent way of dealing with the situation. We are all working on the project so there is sharing and suddenly I need manners, too! Mistakes are made. Now I have to have compassion for my co-wiki when they flub?!

Being hurled into a democratic microcosm has made me think along different lines regarding the Internet. My surfing, dipping and doodling about on-line this past decade has made me aware of how empowering it is. Now that I am in a virtual relationship with people I can't help but wonder if this isn't the one empowering tool that will allow people in the United States to regain their balance. People are communicating and sharing and growing in their passion for each of their little projects, whether they are involved with a wiki or just "into rating things". What I find astounding and different is that everyone can participate - meaning that all of the people who may be oppressed or timid or disenfranchised in one way or the other can have an equality. They may need guidance with the tools but it exists with a minimal amount of effort. New ideas and perspectives can be utilized once again in a brand new way in America. This is what I always expected my country to be about and it is the one thing I miss about my modern world...ingenuity and inspiration. I think the Internet is as big as the advent of the printing press and will be just as threatening to the status quo, at some point. One can only hope.

Democracy is hard..actually, it's a huge pain in the backside but it is also food for individuality and it begets freedom and fantastic opportunity. Who among us does not live a fuller and more meaningful life as a result of democracy when it works well? ...as well, who among us doesn't enjoy the occasional joy of sporting foil hat? ...You know you want to.

Wanna Wiki Radio, Part I

2007-07-31T10:26:00.000-07:00

I came to know a bit about the wiki format because it was forced on me. A streaming radio station that I have been affiliated with since 2002, Whole Wheat Radio out of Talkeetna, Alaska became too unwieldy for it's creator, Jim Kloss, and it was transformed into a wiki format.

Over the years CD's flooded in and needed to be added to the library. As word got out that Jim played only RIAA safe (unsponsored and independent artists) the job grew considerably and that wasn't all. The listenership was growing and house concert production and streaming was also building to a crescendo. Jim gave a courageous stab at keeping it all up. Still, he yearned to plant flowers and do stuff he loved - things he did before he decided to design a radio station from the computer at the foot of his bed in 2002. It was either shut the streaming WWR down or devoted listeners where going to have to learn to love wiki. Of course, after years of listening, it was threatening to consider life without WWR so the website was transformed and we all began to learn how to help maintain the station so Jim could do other stuff.

In many ways I've already gone through the "AWWWW I've gotta to do THAT, too??" stage of wiki awareness...the little html bits! and I can no longer just load a picture into the chat room with a copy paste, I have to format things!...boo hoo...that whining has long since faded into history as the website has been wiki now since January 2006....The picture of my cat, Saturday, looking at the monitor on the header of this blog is a shot of the pre-wiki Whole Wheat Radio chat room page - WWR received honorable mention from the 2007 Web 2.0 Awards and because we are wiki we can all take some of the credit for that success (though, of course, it is our benevolent dictator, Jim, who is truly the heart of Whole Wheat Radio).

If you have a love of music, especially live music, I hope you will enjoy the clip that I have added from a house concert held at WWR in Talkeetna last winter. This is a clip from a concert that was broadcast (streamed) live over the Internet, remember...so besides the people in the audience, there are maybe 50 people listening on-line and a handful of the on-line listeners are communicating in the chat about their experience to each other while they are listening. They also leave messages that are read to the performers later and can call in to leave an adio message for the performers, the listeners or the audience.. Also, on line, during the concert there is the ability to instantly purchase all the recorded material the artist has to offer that will be delivered by mail and signed by the artist (even with your name, if you ask!) There is a tip jar for the on-line listeners to add to, if they wish, during concerts with all of the proceeds going directly to the performers. I can't tell you how much fun these concerts are...it's one of those, "you had to have been there..." sort of situations. The videos don't do the live experience justice but you can get the idea. If you like this video, there are a few more video clips of WWR house concerts here.

How does Jim pay for all of this "labor of love", you might wonder? It is supported by donation. There is tally observable by all in the upper right corner of the chat room of all of the money needed to make the monthly bills. At other parts of the site all the disbursements are openly recorded for anyone to see. Jim insists it is to be like this and I think it is honorable of him to do it this way.

I want to make a statement about what I have discovered about my personal experience with wikis and experiencing them but I'm going to save that for another post....this one seems too long already. For now enjoy the music by Ann Pence, Robin Hopper and Radoslov Lorkovic among others......

The Feast

2007-07-23T21:36:00.001-07:00

Where have I been????? Stuffing my del.icio.us and my Library Thing and every other 2.0 orifice I've been introduced to this past few weeks! It's like a great, bottomless maw of information!!!

First del.icio.us...it's yummy. I say this BECAUSE when I was much younger two years ago, I had the horrible misfortune of loosing my mother board. A complete meltdown. I managed to hire someone to retrieve most of what I had on my hard drive but do you know what was like a stake into my heart??? Loosing 10 years of BOOKMARKS!! ARRRRGHHHH I thought to myself, "Self, there ought to be a way to have my bookmarks FOREVER!!!" Well! From my lips to the ears of the powers that BE! Voila! del.icio.us!!!! For anyone who's lost their mother.

Next Library Thing. I was so bummed! I don't own books. I work in a bloody library! What do I need to own BOOKS for? I have 6+ floors of books plus the consortium!!!! (I can feel my co-workers recoiling! Hands flying up to their mouths...gasps... Blasphemer!) Well, it's true. My name is Night and I have no personal library....well, none to speak of... So, well, I cheated when it came to Library Thing because I'm a Virgo and I can't resist a list! I thought of a few books that I really have enjoyed in my reading history and I listed them....if some stranger emails me and and wants to borrow my copy of Dharma Bums, I will direct them to their local library. Having said that, I'm not real clear about how all the sharing thing works and, frankly, I'm not totally comfortable with it yet. I need more time with that to decide.

Now you now know my dirty little secret about books. Please don't judge me harshly. There's only so much do-re-mi to go around and my nickels go to non-RIAA, independent musicians...the poor gypsies, anyhow....

I can't imagine either one of these features NOT being important in one way or the other to our library.

PS: Thanks for bringing in Anne Marie to talk to us last week, oh, technical ones......

PSS: Photo credit to Stacey Nightmare. I found this wonderful photo of hers on Google Images. I hope she doesn't mind that I used it.

Let Your Freak Flag Fly

2007-07-13T07:05:00.000-07:00

I have to say one of the really great things about being able to read peoples feedback about these assignments is stumbling upon the one thing that makes the whole thing sing. That happened to me when I was reading the article in Positive Change blog. The article was by Stephen Abrams. He talks about all of these tremendous technical abilities that seem to be already hardwired into our young when they are born - among other things. At the bottom of his article, he listed the web sites of everything he was refering to.
It was here that I started using my spidey sense and one thing led to another until I found myself watching YouTube vidoes of a fellow named Torey teaching people how to make stuff in his Second Life world. I watched several clips (at home - no audio/video or time at work...sigh). Initially I was fascinated with Torey's enthusiasm for what he was doing. He cracked me up! Soon I realized, however, I had enough technical knowledge to actually figure out what he was doing! Then I kinda got jazzed! What if there was a Wilson Library in Second Life? For one thing it would be so new, every student would be on it like love itself - at least the gamers! No body was interested in having a virtual personality page on social sites just a few years ago except a few designers.
I predict all of these young people raised on Harry Potter fantasies would fall all over themselves eventually for a virtual library that had cool stuff in it. All the service desks could have alter personalities of wizards and gnomes or talking trees! It would be a hoot and, of course, the students could run through the library with their flags and what not. Students could come into the library as a guest personality or actually develop themselves an avatar and flounce around finding information! They could take their avatar to their social site and bring even more people to the library. They could meet them on a skybridge in Wilson Library that really WAS in the sky!
I am already designing my Second Life personality in my mind....I hope you enjoy Torey's tutorial as much as I did!

My Face Space Book

2007-07-12T17:46:00.000-07:00

I have a MySpace account and I rather dislike it. It’s too BUSY…there are people shaking their booties at me and saying they like me….if they only knew! What kind of Maynard thinks that is cool, anyway? It may be MY space, but it’s not a good fit for me, personally. I keep it up, however, because I find it is a good way to keep contact with students.

I started the account because I was curious as to what the appeal was. Also I had students here handy to help me set it up (a big PLUS). I really liked the concept but I was soon to turn sour on it for any part of my social life. It continues to be an excellent way for me to say "howdy" to my students without the implied need for an answer that an email suggests. If I'm thinking of Suzy Jones all I have to do is go to my own MySpace and click on her picture. Perhaps I will find out she's just back from hiking the Appalachian Trail. I can leave a little message about that for her. A pleasant way to interchange niceties....

After reading others blogs about Facebook, I opened an account but was really upset when I was asked for my personal email password. This was to check if there was anyone in my contacts list that had a Facebook account so they could search their data base. I tentatively gave that information only to have a list shoot back that had every name checked in the list. If you went too fast through this screen, it would "appear" that the checked boxes were all people who had Facebook accounts but if you read the fine print you see that it defaults to sending everyone in your address book and invitation to open a Facebook account... ergo it sends SPAM!!! I happened to notice my deceased mother's name on the list and that's when I pulled up short of clicking on through! I'm sorry but I closed my Facebook account then and there. That is just sneaky and uncalled for in MY mind! If I would have clicked on that I would have been VERY embarrassed to have sent that sort of thing to my friends in-boxes! Too close for comfort.

I suspect I will always keep my MySpace account. I don't go there often but when I do, it is nice to see a little greeting from someone. They are like little cyber postcards the shout outs, pictures, bulletins and announcements.

The library could easily have a library MySpace. There are some students besides the ones who work here who are regulars that might be interested in being "friends". Interesting things could be posted on there regarding events here. Also links to things library related like events could be posted. I'm not at all an expert on this type of site but think we should be careful not to try and make it a web page. It is really only used on the fly for most people with the intent for some sort of contact or the possibility of contact through some extra curricular activity (read: party/gathering)....at least that's MY take on it.....ok. MOVIN' ON....

Got film?

2007-07-10T18:29:00.000-07:00

Isn’t digital photography grand? I’ve already long forgotten how to fill out a film submission envelop at Costco! I'm wondering....what else did I put in that extra real estate I acquired in my cranium?

For 10 years I had a MSN Groups photo album and it did not change much in that decade while I had that account. In that time, I managed to get about three of my relatives to figure out how to look at pictures there… (There are at least 150 people in my immediate family.) I switched to Flickr when I explored the site and became intrigued by fancy things like “slideshow” Hey! …there’s no slideshow in msn groups…so much for loyalty!

I have had a Flickr account for quite awhile. I even subscribe. Simplicity was important to me in photo sharing with my rather analog-inclined family members. Either they are finally getting up to speed with technology or the site is superior - perhaps a little of both. I also keep a Shutterfly account for printing pictures and put my favorites there so the family can order prints if they want to hold something in their hand. I found Shutterfly’s printing quality exceptional.

I use this Flickr account, too, to link up with graduated students who are shutterbugs. As well there is a feature for groups, which would be nice for the student assistants to link to, if it was set up properly for the library. I have a lot more exploring to do in Flickr and I think it could be a fun tool in the library as a Student Supervisor…could all the assistants have Library Assistant Cards to put on their MySpace??? I’m going to try and make a badge tonight!…but I'm behind in my assignments!

and I’ve got to MOVE ON! …

(R)andi (S)anders (S)ervice

2007-07-09T20:25:00.000-07:00

Needless to say, living on “spidey-sense” can inevitably take one away on time-consuming adventures revolving around crime and injustice and all of that. Let’s just say, "I been busy"….all the while I have been plugging away at the Learning 2.0 tasks. I really enjoy reading everyone’s blogs and even if I slack on an assignment, I rarely miss a blog entry!

I started a Bloglines account and put all of my Learning 2.0 blogs and faves from around the globe in there. I wrestled with RSS feeds but I still default to asking Randi about current events and I don’t really know if there will ever be a better interactive news source for anyone than turning around in your chair at your desk and asking your friend sitting behind you. The woman’s BRILLIANT! She knows everything! So, the RSS feed is a hard sell for me. Maybe later, I’ll try again. I’ve got to MOVE ON....

"Go web. Fly. Up, up, and away web! Shazam!"

2007-06-13T18:05:00.002-07:00

I have been learning about the RSS feeds this week and it was a little hard for me to figure out. I finally realized that my difficulty was nested in the fact I don’t seem to use the web the same way other people use it. I don’t know why that hadn’t occurred to me before. Perhaps because this is the first time I’ve ever really been able to examine and compare my surfing habits with others in a controlled setting. Suddenly, I’m not sure what the internet really is.

I had an Ah HA moment superimposed on a state of extreme disorientation….don’t stare!

I use the web like Spidey. I rarely read news or articles on the web. I don’t watch American news on television and I don’t have cable or NetFlix. If it didn’t pop up on the MSN homepage as newsworthy as I headed into my hotmail account, I didn’t hear about it. Now if something surfaces of great interest to me, I will shift gears…. (Usually I will ask Randi about it when I get to work….) No, really… I will Google the item for additional information and check Wikipedia (if that is pertinent) because news is compiled so efficiently and in a manner in which I find easy to follow.

This made me wonder, how did this happen that I am so different from everyone else? I think it is because I came into an interest in what the internet could DO by virtue of accidentally finding a chat community. My web-jones is the spawn of socializing on-line. Just about all of my skills (or lack of them) sprouted from interaction within that chat room, in one way or another. When the SYSOP would add something new to the site or a chatter would get excited about an innovation, they explained it to us and we all went and investigated it, if it interested us. Is it any wonder why I have enjoyed this summers Learning 2.0 project so much!! This is SO my sandbox!

Prior to that experience I used the web much like I would use the Encyclopedia as a child: Start out looking up one thing and find a bunch of other stuff that was thrilling, then Mom calls me for dinner….oh, and I used the web for shopping, of course. I like to shop on-line.

So when it came time to line up things to put on a RSS feed there was not much for me to put on there, really. Who needs Bloglines when you have Spidey-Sense? I did find it efficient for putting everyone’s Learning 2.0 blogs in a handy spot so I can see who is currently posting. Otherwise, until my research habits evolve, I’m going to just continue using my favorites.

Perhaps when I learn a little more about the tools a newsreader can provide, I will press myself into more sophisticated internet habits. I look forward to that.

Blogging: the wheat and the chaff

2007-06-09T14:49:00.000-07:00

I found this link in a favorite blog of mine called "As Time Goes By" and I want to share it with you because I found it valuable in explaining to me the importance of understanding blogging in terms of how information is processed these days. It is about freedom of speech in the form of blogging and how it has sometimes supplanted a rather cumbersome mass media in America.... among other things...

From As time Goes By,

"....On Tuesday, Jay published a story on alternet.org (reprinted from Huffington Post) titled, “A Blog is a Little First Amendment Machine.” Due to blogs and the emerging two-way nature of the web, Jay explains, media is no longer a one-way street from producer to audience...."

We have the good fortune to be born in a time when we can be empowered to express ourselves and communicate in innovative ways, if we choose. We have the additional fortuity to be employed in a library during these exciting times.

Kindness

2007-06-06T18:47:00.000-07:00

“…Let’s be like David Dangeli, let’s pray on our knees in privacy – Let’s say 'Oh Thinker of all this, be kind'- Let’s entreat him, or it, to be kind in those thoughts – All he has to do is think kind thoughts, God, and the world is saved – And everyone of us is God – What else? And what else when we’re praying on our knees in privacy?...I’ve said my peace.”

Jack Kerouac
Desolation Angels

I've been reading a lot of Kerouac lately and so when something in my day happens...or doesn't happen, I'll open up my reading material and there will be something there for me - What else?

...thats all I have to say about that.

Those on the front will be bringing up the rear

2007-06-05T16:34:00.000-07:00

First of all, this is a wonderful idea. Kudos to all who have organized this.

Second of all, please be gentle with us service desk folks! We rarely have large slots of time that we can dedicate to technical problem solving with the people needing help at the counter and the phones and gates ringing....you get the idea. So be kind and spare us the, "Haven't you done that yet?" and consider some patience and perhaps an, "Oh! you've done that already? ...and with all that interruption? Well DONE!" Okay...I guess that's a bit much to ask for but thanks in advance for your consideration.

See me for help with your rubber spatulas.