Hope is the Thing with Feathers: Time to Fly Into Action
I’m Fine by Ukrainian artist Oleksiy Sai displayed at Burning Man 2024
“I’m fine.” Yeah, right. I’m as fine as this sculpture “I’m Fine” by Ukrainian artist Oleksiy Sai made up of shot up and mangled signs from the war that Russia is engaging in against Ukraine (bikes in front for scale). Current mood:
Art by Michael Mahaffey
In my search for hope, as I search for a way to dig myself out of this depression, I turn to art and authors like historian Heather Cox Richardson who reminds me that more people voted for someone else than voted for him instead of HER. And Rebecca Solnit; more from her below. And Robin Wall Kimmerer. And Emily Dickinson; see below. And Dianne Bennet; see below. And Wendell Berry; see below. And Octavia Butler who said “The very act of trying to look ahead to discern possibilities and offer warnings is in itself an act of hope.” And Wings of Desire by Wim Wenders; read my Jungian analysis here.
“Hope” by Dianne Bennett– I purchased this from her in October 2024
“Hope” is the thing with feathers says Emily Dickinson:
Vote!
Leave Democracy Better
Happy Election Day! This has been one heckuva an election season! For some of you, due to age or apathy, this may be your first presidential election! No matter where you live, if you haven’t voted yet, it is important to vote TODAY before your polls close– usually around 8p– because TODAY is the FINAL DAY to VOTE.
vote is a prayer
In California, if you haven’t already voted, you have until 8pm to vote in person, drop your ballot in a mailbox for today’s postmark, or drop off your absentee ballot at a number of places. Where I live in Ventura County, that includes the Wright Center at Ventura College, the Ventura County Government Center, and Ventura City Hall. You can also vote at any Vote Center in Ventura County.
Didn’t get registered by the deadline? Read more…
17 Years Ago: This Happened
WordPress 17!
“Happy Anniversary with WordPress.com!
You registered on WordPress.com 17 years ago.
Thanks for flying with us. Keep up the good blogging.”
And what a flight it’s been! Burning Man, Italy, Portugal, France, and more! Read more…
Fall for Poetry
Cisneros Quote
“People know when you’re speaking from el Corazon,” Sandra Cisneros writes. “You have that pain. Take that pain and do something with it. That’s very powerful.” Read more…
Borderlands: Sending Loving Kindness To The Crossroads
Love all the parts
“Send loving kindness into the elbow. Don’t be embarrassed to have this much love for some part of yourself,” says Stephen Levine. We don’t always love all of ourselves. While it’s not usually an elbow, we are often embarrassed by this or that part of ourselves. We judge ourselves. And we don’t always judge ourselves kindly or with loving kindness.
We also judge others, Read more…
Every breath, each breath of your life, is a precious jewel: Laurie Anne Lawrence Ludwig– sister, mother, daughter, grandmother, artist, teacher
breath breathe
Ganesh visits earth when there’s an eclipse like we had Tuesday night with the full harvest moon. He comes to take away our fear, to remove any obstacles, to show us the light. On that night, artist, teacher, fitness trainer Laurie Anne Lawrence Ludwig went to the light taken by cancer. Brilliant, she touched many lives, and she will be missed. My sister had a heart of gold and she saw the best in everyone. Read more…
Don’t Throw Away Your Vote! Check Your Registration TODAY!
vote is a prayer: Warnock
“A vote is a kind of prayer about the kind of world you want to live in,” says Rev. Raphael Warnock. And today is National Register to Vote Day — the perfect day to make sure you are registered or get registered if you are not; check here.
Voter Reg Day
AND it’s National Constitution Day today, when we celebrate the signing of the Constitution more than 200 years ago, which set all this in motion!
To get you motivated to VOTE this November, check out this video from the cast of HAMILTON– The Musical.
And then get out there and VOTE!
Save Earth For Tomorrow Using Divergent Thinking and Saving Diversity
TT Wiliams
How can we save our planet? ourselves?
Two quick thoughts here. It’s going to take diverse and divergent thinking. Read more…
We ARE Nature, We NEED Nature: National Heirloom Expo Returns to Ventura
Heirloom Expo 2024 in Ventura Sept. 10-12
“We often forget that we are nature. Nature is not something separate from us,” reminds Andy Goldsworthy. “So when we say we have lost our connection to nature, we’ve lost our connection to ourselves.”
How do you spend your days? Do you get outside to walk, hike, garden, explore, camp, read, or even just sit and see the sun set or the moon rise on a regular basis? Do you hear the birds? Do you listen to them? Can you smell when the rain is coming? Does it smell like fall to you? Have you noticed the return of the monarch butterflies?
Do you need NATURE?
“Most learning is not the result of instruction. It is rather the result of unhampered participation in a meaningful setting.” Ivan Illich, author of Deschooling Society (1971). Many places can serve as meaningful settings. But nature is one of the most important.
Fortunately we have many opportunities to learn about our natural world — and how we can grow our own food. Today is the second of three days of the National Heirloom Expo in Ventura CA at the Ventura County Fairgrounds located on the beach at the end of Harbor Blvd near the train station on Sept 10th – 12th from 9am-9pm. Read more…
What Goes Up Must Come Down: Womantree and Burning Man 2024
taking down all the things
After spending months planning and building, and a week or more in the Black Rock Desert installing, what goes up must come down. While yes there are a number of large significant burns like The Man, The Temple, and other burnable pieces like this year’s Safety Cone, much of the large art is packed up and taken away to be stored. Read more…
art predator 