art predator

And then there were 49: Tourism Queensland dumps Julia from Best Job in the World

March 20, 2009

tags: best job in the world, best job in the world porn scandal, Julia Russia candidate best job in the world

According to the Tourism Queensland, they have removed the Russian candidate “Julia” from the Best Job in the World selection process on Thursday, March 19 (or read a version of the story as reported by Moscow Times here):

Julia was one of the short-listed Top 50 applicants for the Tourism Queensland job to ‘caretake’ the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef from June 1 to December 31.

CEO Anthony Hayes said Tourism Queensland had been investigating media allegations that Julia’s husband was facing criminal charges in Russia.

“Julia has told us she is not involved in this matter and our investigations have not found any evidence to the contrary,” Mr Hayes said.

“However today we have been made aware of an inappropriate video of Julia posted on a public website. As such, Tourism Queensland has decided to exclude Julia from the selection process under the terms and conditions of the job.”

Mr Hayes said 49 applicants now remained and Tourism Queensland would be announcing the Top 11 candidates on April 3, Australian time.

“Given we are in the final stages of the selection process for the Top 10 and the wild card applicant we will not be replacing Julia with another candidate,” Mr Hayes said.

Honest, Tourism Queensland, you won’t find a porn scandal with me! Or my husband! (Uhh, right?) And I’m up for the challenge of being a replacement candidate!

If somehow you’ve missed my candidacy video which Imre Juhasz shot and edited, you can watch it on their site here or on YouTube

Go here for more about my application. For more Best Job in the World insider gossip, check this site out. The official Best Job site has the other 49 videos to check out here; I’m fond of Linda from Canada, Holly from UK, and Sheree from AUS. But I still think I’m The Best One for The Job. Let me know if you have a job for me!

UPDATE MAY 6: go here to read about the winner.

This Spring: Wash Your House NOT Your Hair

March 20, 2009

tags: damage from overwashing hair, no shampoo resolutions, NPR hair wash

Research confirms our great grandparents had it right when they washed their hair once or twice a month.

Washing your hair several times a week or even daily merely wastes the earth’s resources, your money, your time, and your hair by stripping it of protective oils. According to a report I heard this morning on NPR, our current obsession with hair washing is the result of a very successful marketing program.

“There’s a lot of people doing this no-shampoo movement,” says 20-something blogger Jeanne Haegele. She writes a blog called LifeLessPlastic. In an attempt to buy fewer items with plastic packaging, Haegele recently went three months without using any shampoo. Instead, she washed her hair with baking soda twice a week and conditioned it with a vinegar rinse.

So make that a New Year’s* resolution: wash your hair less!

And of course, ride your bike more!

*Spring is the New Year according to the astrological calendar as well as some cultures.

At Burning Man, out on the Playa, washing your hair rarely happens, but sometimes you get lucky and find a Brainwash where volunteers wash your hair! In the photo above while my hair is being washed others are waiting to leave the Playa; lucky me, that year I got to stay and play! In the second photo, here I am with fresh clean hair–ahhh! And some classic wayfarers!

If you don’t have them yet, better get your tickets soon!

Spring’s Fresh Start

March 19, 2009

tags: bike advocacy, how to create a bike culture, VCCool

Astrology.com reminds us, “On March 19-20 (depending on your time zone),the Sun enters Aries — the first sign of the zodiac — ushering in the Astrological New Year according to tropical astrology. This marks the Spring Equinox for those of us above the equator, and the Fall Equinox for those below. Whichever side of the planet you’re on, this is the time to embark upon a new journey. Aries is equated with fire and all ‘fiery’ attributes — vigor, aggressiveness, and unbridled passion. Harness these emotions and prepare for a cathartic Spring cleaning — both literally and figuratively.”

What better place to start on your new journey than by cleaning up your BIKE and going for a ride? And by making better riding a reality!

We’ve been calling attention to how much fun it is to ride with our monthly events First Friday ArtRide events, and there’s a move afoot to develop a non-profit Bike Coop and Bike Kitchen on Ventura’s Westside.

The Bike Pod advocacy arm of VCCOOL has been gathering comments about transit issues (due Friday March 20), and has posted a simple online public-comment form at http://www.vccool.org that you can send direct to VCTC with a click. So, get online and speak your mind before Friday. Rachel Morris’s opinion essay for the Ventura County Star outlines why. Here’s an excerpt:

You can buy healthy food at Lassen’s or Trader Joes, but if you try to bicycle there, you may not live long enough for it to matter. Statistics show pedestrians are as at-risk of injuries from automobiles as bicyclists are.

The Ventura County Transportation Commission manages the budget for much of our transportation dollars (including roads, buses, bikes, etc.). The California Department of Transportation also allocates funds. Some road-improvement funds bypass these organizations. Decision-making is also done by city councils and county supervisors. Some bus lines apply for additional funding.

So, who is paying for our auto-centric transit system with its handful of buses and trains and a “good luck!” attitude toward cyclists and pedestrians? Read more…

What’s Up with Condor Recovery: 1pm March 28

March 19, 2009

tags: chumash, Chumash word for condor, condor creation story, condor recovery

As the noted biologist Ken Brower pointed out, “When the Vultures watching your civilization begin dropping dead…it is time to pause and wonder” (Erlich et.al. 1988).

Most people know the California condor are as threatened as dark skies and starlight. The giant carniverous birds traveled far and wide for meals; they thrived when whales and other large mammals died and they could scavenge plenty of food from the carcasses–items which we don’t like to leave laying around. In the past, it was DDT and other threats; today a number of causes threaten extinction from lack of sufficient food sources to deadly lead shot laden carcasses from which they dine and other causes. Even before the prevalence of DDT, condors were killed for their long hollow quills where miners stored gold dust.

On the afternoon of March 28, from 1-4pm long before the lights go out at 8:30pm, learn what’s up with condors at Ventura’s Poinsettia Pavilion in a free presentation by Jesse Grantham, Condor Recovery Program Coordinator for USFWS. The Poinsettia Pavilion is located at 3451 Foothill Road, Ventura.

The condor is an important animal to the local Chumash. The Chumash say that Condor, Molloko, was originally a white bird. Read more…

Off with your lights: 8:30pm March 28, 2009

March 18, 2009

tags: Earth Hour

Dear Earth Hour Supporter,

We need your help in making sure America turns out for Earth Hour 2009 on March 28th at 8:30 p.m. Here are 23 things you can do RIGHT NOW to take action:

Network: Tweet and update your Facebook and MySpace pages with the latest on Earth Hour.
Talk: An ancient form of social networking where you tell two friends, and they tell two friends and so on…
Lobby: Write to your US Senator or Member of Congress asking for swift action on climate change via the automated system on www.EarthHourUS.org/raiseyourvoice.
Urge: Your mayor, governor and state legislators to turn out the lights on public buildings and facilities and issue a resolution in support of Earth Hour. You can also inspire a child to write to the president or Congress: www.EarthHourKids.org/Write.pdf
Visit: www.EarthHourUS.org/toolkits.php to bring Earth Hour to your city, town, community or school system. Read more…

KCRW Presents RADIOACTIVE 4.11.09

March 18, 2009

tags: KCRW, radioactive

RadioActive

PUBLIC TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
Tuesday, March 17 @ 10AM through KCRW.com

This event is 21 and over

RadioActive: A Dance Party for KCRW
Saturday, April 11
The Legendary Park Plaza Hotel
Los Angeles

For one night only and for the first time ever, KCRW DJs team up in a live venue in support of the station.

On Saturday, April 11, KCRW will host RadioActive, a Spring dance party featuring the station’s own skilled selectors at The Legendary Park Plaza in downtown Los Angeles, a beautiful space that is not normally open to the public.

“All of our DJs are immersed in the live music scene and this is a chance to rally their considerable talents and fans for the station they all call home. We rarely come together in one place at one time and the staggeringly beautiful Park Plaza is the best place to do it,” said KCRW Music Director and host of Morning Becomes Eclectic Jason Bentley.

The venue will feature four unique, themed rooms:

Dub House Disco Ballroom
Jason Bentley, Raul Campos, Liza Richardson, Jason Eldredge

Neo-Soul Streetbeat Sound System
Garth Trinidad, Jeremy Sole, Anthony Valadez, Mathieu Schreyer, Aaron Byrd

World Folktronic Jazz Lounge
Henry Rollins, Anne Litt, Mario Cotto, Eric J. Lawrence, Jason Kramer

Grand Voodoo Salon
Tom Schnabel, Dan Wilcox, Gary Calamar, Michael Barnes

For information and to purchase tickets visit: kcrw.com/radioactive

Doesn’t this look like FUN?? All my fav DJs spinning tunes to dance to–outside my living room? Let me know if you’re going!

What’s in store for Wine Blogging Wednesday

March 18, 2009

Two questions: Where do you cellar your wine? And what should I drink?

I am fortunate that my grandfather built a wine cellar into the hillside of his house, the floor made from water-washed Japanese stones used as ballast in a ship almost a hundred years ago.

He enjoyed his wine, but it didn’t take anything too exotic to please him–he drank chianti by the jug, the more unusual or interesting wines in the cellar supplied by friends. One day I will inventory what’s there and see if any of it is drinkable, much less valuable for more than a conversation or two.

Conveniently for me, my grandfather’s nearly empty wine cellar is less than a mile from my house as the crow flies, Read more…

GO Green? Comment by 3/20 to get better bus & bike routes!

March 17, 2009

tags: how to get bus and bike routes, how to go green, transportation needs, VCCool, VCTC

Got something to say about bike and bus routes? If you live in Ventura County Vancouver Bus with Bike Rack , your comments must reach the Ventura County Transportation Commission no later than Friday, March 20 if you want to influence how your transit tax dollars will be spent. Send a letter or a video!

Call attention to bike riding by the simple act of riding your bike! Join us April 3 for the next ArtRide–it’s the Bunny Hop

Not from around here? Find out how your local transportation distributes funds and get involved! Use VCCOOL’s efforts as a model! The bus pictured at left is in Vancouver and I found it on a site about cycling and transit in Toronto.

This action alert can also be read on line.

VCCool Action Alert March 17, 2009

Dear Friends,

Where should we spend our transportation dollars in 2009/2010? If you support public transportation, safe bicycle routs, and other “clean” transit like trains in Ventura County –

Click Here Today and Send in Your Comments! Read more…

168 hours a week: how to GO GREEN & be happy with the time you have

March 17, 2009

tags: how to be happy, how to best use your time, how to go green, how to save the world

People who get the most out of their time tend to focus on their “core competencies” — the things they do best at home and work, and that other people cannot do as well; they ignore, minimize or outsource most other things.

People who are satisfied with how much time they have focus at work on high-impact projects that get them where they wish to be going. At home they focus on nurturing loved ones — and less on housework.

In your personal life, do you focus on what makes life better: exercise, sleep, hobbies, volunteering, connecting with friends, family, community etc? Or do you find yourself spending time on activities that disconnect you from friends and family like watching TV which don’t correlate with happiness?

This spring, Read more…

GMO Loopholes: GO Green & protect agriculture now –comments close 3/17

March 17, 2009

tags: Food Demorcracy Now, GMOS, organic

Food Democracy Now writes, “If you care about the environment, human health and sustainable and organic farms: It’s time to act! Write to the USDA in these final 24 hours (before March 17!) to close the loopholes regulating genetically-engineered (GE) crops, also referred to as genetically modified organisms (GMOs).” Otherwise organic farmers like Phil McGrath of McGrath Family Farms which is hosting a spring celebration March 21, will face even more challenges in keeping their crops certified and free from GMOs.

Tell the USDA that the loopholes regarding GE crops must be closed and to suspend approval of additional GE crops until truly independent, peer-reviewed testing can be performed.

While supporters claim this technology is safe, thorough testing was never completed before GE crops/GMOs were introduced into our food chain. Already more than 60 percent of packaged foods sold in U.S. supermarkets contain genetically-engineered food that American consumers unknowingly eat everyday.

Not only is this a great concern for consumer health, but also for family farmers who must pay exorbitant technology fees for the GE seed, and for the environment and sustainable and organic farmers whose crops can become contaminated due to GE drift.

If you care about food safety, it’s time to make your concern about GE food known! The USDA is accepting public comments on a proposed rule about GE until the close of business March 17th. Read more…

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art predator )'( seek to engage the whole soul

And then there were 49: Tourism Queensland dumps Julia from Best Job in the World

This Spring: Wash Your House NOT Your Hair

Spring’s Fresh Start

What’s Up with Condor Recovery: 1pm March 28

As the noted biologist Ken Brower pointed out, “When the Vultures watching your civilization begin dropping dead…it is time to pause and wonder” (Erlich et.al. 1988).

Off with your lights: 8:30pm March 28, 2009

KCRW Presents RADIOACTIVE 4.11.09

What’s in store for Wine Blogging Wednesday

GO Green? Comment by 3/20 to get better bus & bike routes!

168 hours a week: how to GO GREEN & be happy with the time you have

GMO Loopholes: GO Green & protect agriculture now –comments close 3/17

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pawprints

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art predator: gwendolyn alley

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on the predator trail

thanks for dropping by! visitors since 8-2-08

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