Support Green Investments & Do Your Part for the Planet: Contact Politicians Now & How
Keep Green Investment in the Budget Package
The largest national budget in history just passed in the House. Among other things, it contains over $100 billion dollars of “Green Investments.” Some organizations are concerned that business as usual will be the flavor of the day in the Senate – and that clean energy and conservation funding will be stripped out of the package.
Here are links to some of these voices. Get involved in this critical national dialog.
Call Your Senator – 1 Sky
Call the Switchboard – League of Conservation Voters
Local House Meetings – Alliance for Climate Protection
Don’t Let Congress Drop the Ball Petition – Transportation for America
Petition – Economy and Environment – Union of Concerned Scientists
Thanks to Rachel & VCCOOL for this info! Subscirbe to VCCOOL’s montly newsletter and this blog!
February Fun: Party w/Planet Lovers 4 Change
FFFArt Ride: Pajama Party
(aka February’s First Friday Art Ride)
Friday, February 6
First Friday Art Ride
5:30 pm
Artists’ Union Gallery
330 S. California St., Ventura
So what is a FFArt Ride? It’s a bunch of bicyclists going out for an evening ride the First Friday of every month during the First Friday’s Art Walk, and having a blast! Members of the new VCCool Bicycle Advocacy Pod are putting this ride together: BE RAD IN RED! Dress as flamboyantly as you dream–negligees anyone?–for a preValentine’s Ride and PAJAMA PARTY Friday February 6!!
Nowtopia: Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists & Vacant Lot Gardeners at work & play
By a strange fluke of the universe, a friend sent me a book he meant to send to another friend. The book, Nowtopia: How Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists, and Vacant-lot Gardeners are Inventing the Future Today by Chris Carlsson, immediately grabbed my interest.
Afterall, I’m an active blogger about progressive causes as well as poetry (almost a pirate programmer!), I planted what I called a guerilla wildlife habitat garden of native local plants on a vacant lot on Thompson, and I was in the midst of planning a Santacon ride to various art spaces in downtown Ventura when the book arrived at my door.
Nowtopia: How Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists, and Vacant-lot Gardeners are Inventing the Future Today by Chris Carlsson, author of Critical Mass: Bicycling’s Defiant Celebration from (AK Press) discusses work, the emancipation of the working class, biodiesel, Burning Man, Critical Mass, Bicycle Kitchens, permaculture, urban gardens and more as it offers perspectives on practices we can participate in to change the world to one we want. Nowtopia reminds us to ask: Is who we are what we do–our job? Or is what we do as creative individuals shaping the world who we are? What is our “work”?
Richard Walker, a profesor of Geography at UC Berkeley, highly recommends Nowtopia saying, “Chris Carlsson is one of our most original and compelling voices for radical social change in America. Nowtopia opens a window onto today’s vibrant subcultures of technical experimentation and cooperative work…these renegade innovators are pioneers of new ways of living beyond the market and ordinary jobs.”
Not only will the revolution not be televised, it will be accomplished through the articulation and the understanding of how to be in NOWTOPIA. Or as Chris Carlsson puts it, “Nowtopians work in the invisible corners of daily life.”
Chris Carlsson will be in the Los Angeles region this weekend talking about his books (below):
- FarmLab at noon on Friday,
- LA Ecovillage talk on Friday night
- Booksoup LA on Saturday,
- Monday 9 am-12 noon at CalArts Valencia
Next time we’ll get him to come visit us in Ventucky–and maybe he’ll bring his Burning Man bike and ride with us on a First Friday ArtRide!
Nowtopia
How Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists, and
Vacant-Lot Gardeners Are Inventing the Future Today!
Available now from AK Press!
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From City Lights Foundation
Edited by Chris Carlsson
City Lights Foundation / ISBN 1-93140-405-4 / $17.95
Reflections by 25 San Francisco activists and writers on elections, war, urban hell and transformational politics.
Join us in the invisible corner of daily life! And let’s make the invisible visible–Light up your bike! check this site out: http://vibelights.com/index.html
FFArtRide Pajama Party: Some Do’s & Don’ts
Light up your bikes and the night with a new monthly ride the First Friday of each month to coincide with the monthly First Fridays Artwalk! This month, BE RAD IN RED! Dress as flamboyantly as you dream–negligees anyone?–for a preValentine’s Ride and PAJAMA PARTY Friday February 6!!
Friday is National Wear Red Day sponsored by the American Heart Association: One in every 3 female deaths in the United States is due to cardiovascular disease.
Some people have asked: is this a Critical Mass ride?
Well, it depends on what you think a Critical Mass ride means!
Are we out on our bikes to raise awareness that riding is fun? YES!
Are we out on our bikes to harass motorists and cars? NO!
Are we out on our bikes to create a culture FOR bikes? YES!
Are we out on our bikes hoping a MASS of people will join us? YES!
Also–it’s a RIDE not a RACE!!
Here are some ride “Dos and Don’ts” from Chris Carlsson, one of the original instigators of Critical Mass and author of Nowtopia who is speaking this weekend in SoCal:
DO
• talk to stranger, bystanders, bus riders, motorists
• welcome people to join us next time
• help cars stuck in mass to exit to the right
• stop regularly if you’re in front (no matter how slowly you think you’re going, gaps are opening up behind you)
• stop at red lights when in front to allow the rest of the ride to “mass up” behind.
• keep going in dense packs through red lights to stick together and keep it safe for everyone (hopefully, we will make it through lights safely)
• fill gaps; Critical Mass depends on bicycle density to displace cars.
• remember that pleasure and friendliness are more subversive than anger and blaming
DON’T
• race ahead to block cross traffic before the Mass has arrived
• ride into oncoming traffic on the wrong side of the road
• pick fights with motorists, even (especially) if they’re itching for one
• fail to turn and twist through the city to make the ride more interesting
• forget to smile and wave and talk to strangers!
• imagine that you are morally superior just cuz you’re on a bicycle (you’ll be in a car again soon enough)
• hesitate to tell other Massers what you think of their behavior, whether good or bad. Talk to each other!
• forget—we are all responsible to make Critical Mass what we want it to be.
Here’s a link to more Critical Mass info.
Below are some links to help us ride with more safety and knowledge:
Bicycle Safety: How not to get hit by cars
- Bike to Work 2008 Flyer (PDF)
- CalTrans Bike Program
- Bicycle Safety: What Every parent should Know
- 10 Reasons Exercise is important for your child
- Links to Ventura County Bicycle Resources
- Employer’s Guide to Bike to Work Week & Rideshare
- CO2 reduction calculator
- Safe Bicycling Tips
- Bike Commuting Checklist
- Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute
- Bicycling Street Smarts
Here’s more ride info:
First Friday ArtRide Pajama Party 2/6: Wear Red!
First Fridays ArtRide: it’s a PAJAMA PARTY!
WEATHER? Yes, it looks like we’ll have some. That’s right, after weeks of unseasonably warm weather, it’s finally going to cool off and actually rain this weekend. Too bad we don’t have a bunch of these Burning Man Camel Back Bikes to protect us from the elements! From weather.com comes this prediction:
Friday: Rain. High around 60F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
We will meet ANYWAY! And we might even RIDE! Lynne Okun from the ArtBarn is Gallery sitting the Artists Union and promises to share her LED lit bike with us to inspire us for next month’s ride–The Electric Light Parade! or is it March? (It is March–March 6!)
If we’re on bikes, from the Artists Union, we’ll ride the promenade to Main and up the Avenue to Bell Arts and see MB, then down the Avenue and up Main to Chestnut. We can lock our bikes up behind Wild Planet or in the parking garage if the weather dictates. We may stop to roam Main a bit and stop to eat or get a beer; if so it will probably be Anacapa Brew Pub. Otherwise, we’ll ride to Laurel Street to Seabreeze where a fire is promised along with red wine and velvet cake!
If we’re not on bikes, we’ll likely follow the same route possibly by trolley or carpool.
And when the First Friday ArtRide is over, consider heading to the LA Natural History Museum for their event with live and dj music and more! Info here and FEB 06, 2009
First Friday ArtRide Pajama Party 2/6: Wear Red!
Join with millions of women, as well as companies, organizations and cities across America on National Wear Red Day, Friday, Feb. 6, 2009. By wearing red (and making a donation!), you’ll help the American Heart Association support ongoing research and education about women and heart disease.
So wear red this Friday where ever you are–and maybe you’ll be on a bike with us for the First Friday ArtRide as we roam the streets of Ventura, visiting various art galleries and ending up with a party at Anacapa Brewpub on Main! More details here.
In addition to wearing red, we’re encouraging EVERYONE to dress spectacularly–it’s the Friday before Valentine’s, a real RED letter day so RED is RAD, and so is lingerie or pajamas or? Surprise us! And remember to LAYER: boys and girls, put that RAD RED negligee on top of your cycling tights!
PreValentine’s Ride & PAJAMA PARTY
Friday February 6!!
5:15 Park and meet at the City of Ventura San Jon Road Maintenance Yard
5:30 Park and meet at the Artists Union Gallery, 33 S. California St
5:45 Ride off into the sunset en mass along the promenade, up the river trail and onto Main St to enjoy the open Art Galleries and spaces in downtown Ventura and the Westside
Not sure where all we will ride to once we leave the Artists Union Gallery where California meets the sea, but chances are, Bell Arts Factory up Ventura Avenue and Seabreeze Gallery on Laurel will be on our itinerary…so check the following out!
First Fridays, February 6, 5-9 pm
Bless Me Ultima Murals by MB Hanrahan
On Friday, February 6th starting at 6PM the Bell Arts Factory will host a Preview Party for the new mural by Ventura’s premiere muralist, MB Hanrahan. The Bless Me Ultima Mural is based on the 1972 classic book and wondrous novel of the same name by acclaimed New Mexican writer Rudolfo Anaya. Hanrahan’s quite extraordinary mural takes the legendary, folkloric, stylized writing and transforms the story into an exquisite and provocative visual delight.
The mural project springs from The Big Read, a nationwide literacy project sponsored by the National Endowment For The Arts, in which the City and County of Ventura participated. Future plans include displaying the mural publicly in downtown Ventura’s Historic District. This event is also part of the First Fridays Gallery Crawl where downtown and Westside art galleries and studios are open to the public. The Bell Arts Factory is located at 432 N. Ventura Avenue, Ventura, CA 93001. For more info: (805) 258-1160.
Seabreeze Gallery First Friday Event: “Heart’s Desire”
February 6th, 4 – 8 pm.
In honor of the
American Heart Association’s
“National Wear Red Day”,
please join us for red wine (good for the
heart), chocolate (for stirring passions and following one’s heart), red velvet cake
(for feeding the appetite of Love), affordable
Valentine art gifts (for expressing
your heart’s desire), and a romantic fire pit
(to fan the flames of the amorous)!
YOU TOO Can Plan a Wear Red Day!
It’s easy to be a part of this special day. Consider organizing a National Wear Red Day a free, downloadable tools. It’s a great way to raise awareness and help us fight our No. 1 killer – heart disease.
- Start by registering as a Wear Red Day Coordinator/Host. You’ll get free, downloadable tools to help you plan and execute your Wear Red Day. They’re available on your registration confirmation email. (Already registered to host a Wear Red Day event? Then please visit this page.)
- Download our free Conversations from the Heart: A Go Red For Women Discussion Guide to get the conversation going about heart health. Share it with your HR representative, employer, coworkers, family, friends.
- Make a connection with your local American Heart Association.
And last but not least, a reminder that Nowtopia author Chris Carlsson will be in the SoCal region this weekend–maybe even locally! Find out for yourself how “Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists, and Vacant Lot Gardeners Are Inventing the Future Toay!” Watch for more details in a coming post!
Above is the first 9 minutes: “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” then “Born To Run” then “Working on a Dream” and finally, below, “Glory Days”:
I know millions of people saw the Super Bowl on Sunday. But that also means millions of people (like me!) didn’t–and some of us who might enjoy seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E street Band’s half time show, so here you go! And if you’ve seen it already (maybe more than once!)
Start the top one and then the next—- I dare you!
The mash-up is great–you’ll see!!! Let me know what you think in the comments!
Both of the first two songs, “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” and “Born to Run” are off of the Boss’s Born to Run Album which came out in 1975, which many consider to be his break through album, and established Bruce as a great songwriter, musician and performer. These two songs as you can see from the video are real crowd pleasers–the choice of “Tenth” surprised some Bruce fans but Read more…
Fire at School in 7 Haiku
Didn’t they call you?
Marley’s mom asked. They let out
school. There was a fire.
No. I said. No. Fire?
Yes, she said. Seven engines,
one helicopter.
Didn’t you pick up
your son? No, no, no, no one
called, I didn’t know.
The kids are ok,
a thermostat went bad, an
electrical fire
this morning, one room
destroyed, everything gone, ruined–
the kids are all right.
Later, my husband
asks why didn’t they call us?
Money, I say.
If they call us and
cancel school, they lose money.
Attendance money.
Unlike last Thursday’s poem, where the speaker is not me, this is a true story that happened today at my son’s school. I am still in shock that no one called to tell me there’d been a fire of this magnitude at my son’s school, and that considering the toxic fumes that pervaded the neighborhood hours later, they didn’t choose to contact parents, to let them know what had happened, and to offer them a choice about taking their children home. The children in that classroom lost all their artwork, the teacher lost all materials, and the frogs and other pets died in the fire.
For more poetry, catch a ride on Train.
#450:: January Wrap-Up : : February What’s Up
In this post: a review of January and what to look forward to in February–on this blog, in the local lit scene, in the skies, and astrologically too!
For January 2009, my birth month, I set a goal of writing at least one post a day, getting over 50,000 page views, and having at least 50 subscribers.
How did I do? Well, I have published a total of 450 posts so far, and I published 35 posts this month, with at least one every day except on my birthday, and I want to thank you for helping me get there on the page views–as of this minute, on Feb 1, I’m at 50,800! I need a few more subscribers to get close to my goal–a BIG thank you to those of you who have subscribed! If you’re not a subscriber yet, I hope you will click the little box in the upper right on the home page (click the banner image to get there) and not miss another word! I also achieved a google page rank of 5 (0-10, with 10 being o
ne of 1,000 best sites on the web), a technorati rating of 45 and a rank of 126, 551 (that’s out of the millions of blogs out there…).
This month started off with a bang with a lot of interest in the New Year’s eve astronomy and astrology! That post has had almost 1,000 page views! I took you along to Joshua Tree National Park for New Year’s Eve weekend where I wrote 17 American Sentences, then to Macworld in SF where I wrote several posts (and picked up Guy Kawasaki’s book, and have a few more to come in February on people and products!) The following week I took you to the California Cultural Tourism Symposium (I have a few more posts up my sleeve on that too). I also wrote a series of posts along the theme of “Sing Songs, Heal the World” celebrating the Obama presidency; the blog To the Wire chos
e the one on Bruce Springsteen as a Top Blog post for the week which brought me many new readers. I ended the month with a posts about taking action and changing the world by riding bikes, and finished it with more music: Radiohead & Springsteen.
February will bring more global advocacy posts and updates on the bike rides we are planning in hopes you will join us or create your own! Also I plan a series of book reviews–that’s right, I have a collection of awesome, exciting, world changing books that I’m somewhere in and my goal in February is to spend some time soaking i
n the hot tub and reading and reviewing: The Puzzle Box by Paul Squires, Tribes by Seth Godin, Reality Check by Guy Kawasaki, Nowtopia: How Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists, and Vacant-lot Gardeners are Inventing the Future Today by Chris Carlsson, author of Critical Mass: Bicycling’s Defiant Celebration from (AK Press), on recommendation of Danika Dinsmore, Pronoia by Rob Brezny and on 
the recommendation of the Burning Moms, Groundswell by new Burning Mom Charlene Li (and Josh Bernoff).
In fact, this month, look for more book reviews and less poetry..unless life intervenes to inspire, of course! Plus I have a series about ski vacations that I plan to put up this month! If you have books or wine or anything else you’d like me to review, send it along or direct me that way, and let the Art Predator have at it! If there’s something you’d like to see me take on, please let 
me know!
Also on the calendar: for this Wednesday 2/4: Explodity: An Evening of Transrational Sound Poetry Contemporary sound poets Christian Bök and Steve McCaffery will be joined by scholar Oleg Minin for an evening of readings in conjunction with the exhibition “Tango with Cows: Book Art of the Russian Avant-Garde, 1910-1917.” Getty Center, 1200 Getty Center Drive, L.A. 7 p.m. Reservations required. (310) 440-7300…
Saturday 2/7: Chris Carlsson, the author of Nowtopia will present and sign his new book. Book Soup, 8818 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. 7 p.m. Free. (310) 659-3110…
and another trip to LA for a Santa Lucia Highlands wine tasting Monday Feb. 9 and maybe to the Moonday poetry reading in Pacific Palisades to see Steve Williams and M with a stop in between for burgers at Fathers Office in Santa Monica..
and locally, Mary Kay Rummel at the Artists Union Feb 10, and Dian Sousa on the last Saturday of the month at Bell Arts Factory.
And what’s up from an ASTRONOMICAL perspective in February? Well in addition to this week’s smiling moon and winking Venus (the closest it’ll be for 3 years and visible at sunset for one month more only!), according to my 2009 Tidelog, the most interesting event in the sky is the full moon lunar eclipse February 9–which most of us in the US won’t even notice, but early birds on the west coast may see some rosiness in the morning’s setting moon (from about 615am-645am). If you’re up early, you’ll also see Jupiter.
And from an astrological perspective, check into Rob Brezsny’s Free Will Astrology or read what astrology.com has to say:
The first month of 2009 is almost over and February is upon us. The cosmos signals that the times, they are a changin’, and we wish everyone the best in these tumultuous economic times.
Mercury turns direct on January 31 (or February 1 depending on your time zone like here on the West Coast), and the first Mercury retrograde of 2009 is now officially over. Let the misunderstandings, confusions and fuzzy thinking end and new conversations begin anew!
Mercury turns direct in pragmatic Capricorn (my sun sign), so it’s time to get a stable plan together. Finish projects that may have been on hold during Mercury retrograde. Whether it was due a muddy mind, unforeseen delays, someone’s non-committal behavior or any other confusion, the barriers should lift now and give way to progress.
The gates have been lifted, encouraging you to charge forward. Whether you want to move ahead with a new job, fresh business venture, creative project, relationship, you name it (or all of the above!) — get going! Cosmically speaking, there’s nothing stopping you! Mercury’s trine to serious Saturn indicates that the support you need is there for you. However, Mercury’s wide conjunction to feisty Mars, and a square to the impetuous Aries Moon, caution you to not overreact to anything. As you move forward, let things develop at a sensible pace!
February begins with feisty energy Read more…
Limbaugh Hopes Obama Fails — How 80,000 Respond
Remember my inaugural day post reporting on Rush Limbaugh’s bad faith words about Barack Obama’s presidency: “I hope he fails”? Over 80,000 outraged and disgusted people like me signed a Democratic Congressional Campaign petition about that issue–so many people that MSM (mainstream media) outlets picked up on the story!
Here’s a short video where you can hear Limbaugh’s words yourself and find info to sign the petition, too. No matter what your politics, maybe you even agree at times with Limbaugh–in this case his negativity is outright WRONG! Let’s make it a million signers on that petition!
Vodpod videos no longer available.
Dear Friend,
This week, you did what seemed impossible – you drowned out Rush Limbaugh. Thanks to you, Rush and his Republican followers in Congress got a taste of what they’re in for if they keep attacking President Obama and Democrats working for change. Rush himself predicted that we would exceed our goal in signatures to our petition drive against him. Maybe for the first time ever, he was right about something. Over 80,000 of you signed our petition to break the back of Rush Limbaugh style politics. Your response was so overwhelming that you caught the attention of media outlets like CNN, Fox News, and Air America. Not to mention Rush himself. More than ever, the party of Rush Limbaugh has proved that they are out of touch, out of ideas, and just plain out to lunch. And thanks to you, those Republicans in Congress who keep supporting Rush by standing against change will soon be out of a job. Thanks again for standing strong.
Brian Wolff, Executive Director, DCCC
UPDATE February 2–Also from my in-box:
Dear MoveOn member,
President Obama has a plan to create or save 3 million jobs. But did you hear what Rush Limbaugh said?
“I hope he fails.”1
Limbaugh might just get his way: he already helped convince every single House Republican to vote against the bill.
Now his listeners are calling Congress to oppose the stimulus plan, and senators are mostly hearing from folks who oppose Obama’s plan. The calls are scaring swing-vote senators—even Senate Democrats are saying they may oppose the stimulus.2
The vote is expected any day. We’ve got to turn the tide quickly. Read more…
Radiohead’s “House of Cards” video: make one yourself
While I was doing the research for yesterday’s music post about Bruce Springsteen, Coachella line-up 2009, and Radiohead’s Grammy nominated Album of the Year In Rainbows video animation contest, I came across some other Radiohead videos and it reminded me how much I love the song “House of Cards” and what they did with it.
So this post offers two versions of “House of Cards” : the first the traditional version at top, and the second from Scotch Mix, plus a “making of” video below, plus links to do your own!
Go to: http://code.google.com/radiohead to find additional pieces of data to create your own visualizations.
Upload the results here: http://www.youtube.com/group/houseofc…
Go here on KCRW’s site to see more about this year’s Grammy nominees and various in-studio interviews and guest appearances or here for the list of nominees. BTW, while you’re at KCRW–subscribe! It’s the right thing to do and you get cool stuff in addition to the best radio on the planet. Pledge through Monday Feb 9.
Up next: a January wrap-up and what to look forward here in February!
art predator 