Happy Harvest Moon!
“When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.”
~ Audre Lorde in The Cancer Journals, Special Edition, Aunt Lute Books, San Francisco, CA, 1997, p. 13.
AUTUMN!
Monarch butterflies float in the barranca,
grapes harvested and crushed for wine,
pumpkins getting bigger on the vine,
sun, lower on the horizon,
pours light into my living room by day;
by night I watch the harvest moon grow large.
Celebrate this time
of change by joining the MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL “Moon Festival of Children” SATURDAY (9/29/2012) at the An Lac Mission 901 S. Saticoy at Darling Road in east Ventura, CA 93004.
From 2-pm, enjoy lion dances, music by The Together Band, a magic show, and vegetarian Vietnamese food including tofu pancakes, fresh banana cakes, sugarcane juice, and fried…
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Romney: Fight Like The Dickens? Disclose!
BE AMERICA’S LATEST FAUSTIAN BARGAIN?
By Grant Marcus, 9/23/2012
like the dickens” for us, and something awakened in me that I had
not felt toward a Republican for quite some time. It made me reach
for that one cigarette in the gold case that hadn’t been touched in years.
important: What does Romney mean when he says he wants to, “fight
like the dickens” for us?And so, you might have guessed it, I went on the net, and googled
in that square box of SEARCH this: “‘fight like the dickens,’ origination
of the term,”–Because, after all, my vote is important (well, it’s all the
power I have) and I hadn’t heard that expression in such a long time–
And I wanted to know–So, this is a condensation of what I discovered:”Dickens” is related to “dickin,” “dickon,” or “deuce,” all terms
meaning “devil.” It was said to derive from the surname, Dick. (Such
as Dick Cheney). Read more…
Dreaming of Pinot: 3:15 Experiment Poetry
Strange this glass I bring to my lips
to sniff has no scent no taste
the pinot noir in it not real
the glass none of it all of it
an act of active imagination
of the dreamworld
it just seems so real
I could pinch the people around me
and they would squeal
This next yes a winery
glasses on hand wine poured
this is not real either
we are hosting tweeting
there are young men
talking to my lovely young college aged daughter–
except I have no daughter–
I can’t read my notes on the wine
& I don’t remember actually tasting it.
I’ve moved onto another dream
another lifetime a different dreamtime
come visit over or 2
will tidy you
3/22/12 August 22, 2012 3:15am Ventura, CA
I started this blog in November 2007; in blog years, it’s quite the senior citizen. Over that time it’s amassed over 450,000 page views which is also quite a lot considering it is such an eclectic collection of poetry, politics, and various shenanigans and adventure like Burning Man, wine and bicycling as performance art.
Over the years, I have tried to post poetry on Mondays–a nice way to start the week, I figure. Many of the poems have come from the 3:15 experiment where poets around the world wake to write every night at 3:15am during the month of August; the experiment is in its 20th year and for the 20th anniversary, we are editing an anthology. I’ve been reading through the poems on the 3:15 website looking for those we might want to include as well as looking for synchronicities, convergences, divergences, and just anything that might be of interest considering what we have is a 20 year collection of writing from poets who are half awake and half asleep, writing as individuals and collectively, writing at home and together around the world all at the same time.
The poem above is from this year’s 3:15 experiment. It was written not long after I returned home from the 2012 Wine Bloggers Conference.
I’ll also be posting some links to poems that I am finding and liking on the website, organized by year, that we might include in the anthology. Of course, these will be just the ones I like; I’d love to hear about your favorites.
Related articles
- 3:15 Experiment Celebrates 20 years of writing in altered states of consciousness (artpredator.wordpress.com)
- Oh, The Places You’ll Go: Burning Man 2012 (artpredator.wordpress.com)
- #PinotSmackdown: How To Taste Pinot Noir according to Robin Pfeiffer (winepredator.wordpress.com)
- Wines for Burning Man and Other All Terrain Occasions (winebiznews.blogspot.com)
- I can not be a poet, the poems are in me: An online interview with Lisa M Brown (copyleftwebjournal.wordpress.com)
A Grenache Toast for Peace!
A toast on Grenache Day to the last day of summer, International Peace Day, and World Gratitude Day!
Guess what I’m grateful for today? Guess what brings me peace, too? That’s right–a glass of grenache! Cheers!
Have a wonderful weekend full of surprises and celebrations of all kinds, great and small!
Please join me in celebrating Grenache Day, today, Friday September 21, 2012 by enjoying a glass of this delightful varietal! You can share what you’re drinking on twitter by using the hashtag #grenacheday.
What is there to say about Grenache?
How about it’s one of the most widely grown varietals on the planet! However, since grenache is used primarily in blends, many people don’t know they’ve had it or that they like it!
I am one of those people who definitely enjoys grenache –with or without its traditional Rhone blending partners, mourvedre and syrah. In case you’ve heard the term GSM –the g is for grenache, the m is mourvedre and the s is syrah. I prefer my GSMs to be heavier on the grenache and light on the syrah.
On its own, Grenache can be a bit light for some people, and too fruity. Personally, I like its fruit…
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In Celebration of “Talk Like A Pirate Day”
In honor of September 19 being “Talk Like A Pirate Day,” here’s an “I Am” poem from a workshop I did with four kindergarten and first grade boys, including my four year old son. After we wrote the poem, my son wanted to make a video, so we did. He found and selected the images and the music, then we did the poem as a “call and response” where I did a line and he repeated it.
Just recently, his fourth grade class was doing “I Am” poems so I went in and shared the poem and video with them. They loved it! And we all got a kick out of how young my son’s voice was–and how creatively he “talks like a pirate.”
Happy Talk Like A Pirate Day! Enjoy!
I Am A Scary Smelly Skeleton PIRATE!
I am a scary, smelly skeleton PIRATE!
I wonder where the treasure is.
I hear black rusty shooting fire cannonballs and swords slapping. Read more…
Bikes & brews! New Belgium’s Tour de Fat hits LA; Beer Festival comes to Ventura! Go for a ride, go to the beach, head for the mountains! Enjoy the Indian Summer!
What is it about bikes and brew?
While the kid was at a birthday party, we 
grabbed the tandem out of the garage and rode to Barrelhouse 101 on Thompson at California in Ventura for Happy Hour beers and burgers.
Lucky for everyone, happy hour lasted all night in celebration of the Drakes Dry Hopped IPA and the Beer Fest in downtown across the street from the Mission. If you go during Happy Hour (usually M-F 4-7pm), you MUST get the $2.5o house made chips!
Also this weekend,according to the New Belgium Website,
“New Belgium Brewing’s cycling circus, Tour de Fat, is coming back to L.A. for one day on Saturday, September 15 at L.A. State Historic Park. Tour de Fat rookies and veterans alike are encouraged to grab a bike and join us for a whimsical day of entertainment and two-wheeled revelry, all while raising…
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“Say Hey I Love You”–2 more Burning Man 2012 Videos (can you say Hula Cam?)
In 2010, KJ and Stefan made a soulful music video at Burning Man to Al Green‘s “Full of Fire.”
In 2011, KJ and Stefan created a Burning Man music video to the joyous whistling “Home” using the song from Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes.
This year, KJ and Stefan’s gift from the Playa uses, with permission, Michael Franti‘s upbeat, playful “Say Hey, I Love You” with Burning Man 2012 as the backdrop for the music video. Once again, it’s a winner. Check it out.
And then, if you haven’t seen it yet, check out the Burning Man Hula Cam video…I say if you haven’t seen it yet because, in just two hours, the Burning Man Hula Cam video went from 70,000 views to 270,000 views. The #BurningMan hashtag has been full of tweets and retweets for this video! So I’m guessing by the time you see this post, you already know about the Hula Cam Burning Man video…but you’ll enjoy c it again!
Hula Cam video filmed by attaching a GoPro to a Hula Hoop at District during Burning Man 2012 where it was picked up and hooped by an assortment of attractive and talented women, then edited by Rob Volkel with music by Porter Robinson – http://btprt.dj/IpdA7X
Yes it has its own Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hulafantastica
Related articles
- Heading Home? Burning Man 2012 (artpredator.wordpress.com)
- Oh, The Places You’ll Go: Burning Man 2012 (artpredator.wordpress.com)
- Fly Me Home to BRC: 2 Amazing Aerial Tour Videos from Burning Man 2012 (artpredator.wordpress.com)
- Relics from Burning Man 2012 (artpredator.wordpress.com)
Fly Me Home to BRC: 2 Amazing Aerial Tour Videos from Burning Man 2012
This first aerial tour of Burning Man is a bit on the somber side, in keeping with the tone of yesterday’s post about 9/11. It turned up yesterday on the Burning Man pilots list. You can see the airport at 4:28. To get this aerial video footage of Black Rock City, the camera is mounted to a drone. The night shots at the end are amazing; I understand this short 5 minute vid is a teaser for a project in the works.
Why am I on a Burning Man pilots list? In 2011, I joined the Burning Man pilots list in hopes of finding a flight so my husband could join us; my son and I left
the previous Saturday. I stayed on the list because it is an interesting and different Burning Man community. I am definitely a lurker there! This year, 2012, I hoped to catch a flight for myself but I ended up staying home and doing a backyard burn. I dream about having that experience of seeing the city from the air myself. One day I’ll fly in or out or at least get up in the air! Many pilots gift flights–hundreds of Burners get up in the air every year.
In the meantime, video is as good as it gets, and it’s a great way to get a sense of the scale of the city. These two videos were posted on the pilots list yesterday and between now and then, they’ve gone from 1000 views to 10,000!
There are a multitude of sources and lists to find out all that’s going on Burning-Wise which you can check out and subscribe to. The website, of course, is jam-packed with official information and so is Jack Rabbit Speaks, which lands regularly in your email box. Then there are other less – or unofficial lists for various interest groups from pilots to Burning Moms to Burning Scouts to Kidsville–all of which I am on, and you could join too if you are interested.
Suffice to say, I hear about more galleries, videos and news than I could ever get around to reading, watching, and posting here. But I do make an effort, when something stands out as special, to post it for my readers and subscribers (yes, you can subscribe and get me in your inbox every time I post something new!)
The second video is much more upbeat and energetic. The music “Ready To Fly” by Clayton Joseph Scott is by a Burner, who gifted the videographer “Flyer” a cd in Black Rock City this year. Flyer realized it was the perfect soundtrack and the musician agreed to its use.
One of the reasons I really like this video is because the filmmaker points out the various sites. As a long time Burner, these sights and more familiar to me. But for people who have never been, or only a few times, of not for a few years, the guidance is helpful. Click for more to see the next video and to read more about how they filmed it using drones. Read more…
Obama: Even the smallest act of service, the simplest act of kindness, is a way to honor
“We were united, and the outpouring of generosity and compassion reminded us that in times of challenge, we Americans move forward together, as one people,” said President Obama in 2011 during his August weekly address.
“Even the smallest act of service, the simplest act of kindness, is a way to honor those we lost, a way to reclaim that spirit of unity that followed 9/11,” President Obama said.
Because the first anniversary is after the first year, today, eleven years later, marks the 1oth anniversary of the Twin Towers getting hit and going down. Read the whole speech that President Obama gave last year:
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2011/08/presidents-weekly-address-mark-9-11-by-serving/1#.UE9bbhj5nCk
Read my Sonnet for September 11 here.
Related articles
- Pause and Reflect ~ 9/11 Memorial, NYC (marinachetner.com)
- Sonnet for September 11: written 9/13/01 (whisperdownthewritealley.wordpress.com)
- Obama marks 9/11 in weekly address (politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com)
art predator 