Today my folk's place is quiet. My parents left this morning for northern California and I am watching their place-Embracing life in a transitional sense that seems to be accompanying the Northwest's belated dance with precipitation, puddles, and profound variations on the color green. Lush life, still life, and life like describe life west of the mountains and as I sit here watching the sky dump, I'm very homesick for the more arid terrain of home.
Having said that, I suppose today a general theme is just out of the question. All because it's a rambling, rainy day in Seattle, for us in the sunny Aquarian mindset, that inspires chaos.
So dear reader work with me here. What you get today is a serious of news blurbs...
~~~First, today's art comes via Watercolor Artist Barbara Field, who lives near my folks in Des Moines, Washington, but who also has Pend Oreille Country connections. Unfortunately this is the only picture that turned out, but luckily for you folks, you can view more of her work online at the ArtWorks Gallery, Sandpoint, Idaho. www.sandpointartwork.com
~~~Next, a special hug and a thank you to Karina in Mexico City. Yep folks scary as this is, the HMR website, and the blog hug the entire planet, which hopefully will encourage those of us that still give a damn to reach out and do the aerobic we are the world thing before one of those next major world events leaves us shocked and questioning the purpose of our species.
When I hear from bright shiny people, angels in the America's, like Karina, well, my faith is restored. Maybe the lot of humanity that's not bought and owned by a corporate trademark still has a chance at hope. Now Karina and I haven't known each other that long, but she's a risk taker and wrote to me as a result of something I wrote and put out there. We've gotten into this habit of writing back and forth and I am slowly learning a few Spanish words. A little late, maybe. Especially considering that I am no longer hauling loads of produce out of Salinas and Yuma and Nogales and Calixeco- God, what I would have done a few years back to have understood the dock workers laughing about the fact they'd just shipped 24 pallets of mostly moldy strawberries on my truck...but, I digress.
Anyway, yesterday Karina writes me and tells me that she has just had this amazing connection happen between her fine self, and a Hip Hop artist out of Lebanon named Clotair K. (And no folks we are not talking Lebanon, Oregon, or Lebanon, Tennessee...we are talking the real legit Lebanon-the ancient mysterious place-hot bed of hot, yet a region so at ease with itself that tolerance weighs in like sea mist, and blankets everything with a sense of measured time. Yep, "That" Lebanon.)
So Karina finds out that Clotair K is coming to Mexico City and so she writes the dude, and offers to show him around. Not really expecting a response, or that if she did get one, it would be a formal "thanks but no thanks" from the publicists gang. Because she's brave, she still hit "send" and went back to living her daily life.
Now here in her own words is what happened next...
"...Its amazing all about the web... yesterday I was writing with a Lebanese musician that he will be in my city at the end of this month, and we already arrange to meet him at the only one concert that he will play here. I wrote an email like 2 weeks ago, only to give him like the welcome to my country... expecting that someone of his staff or someone will ask me in the future, and HE, himself, answers me... so we're planning to have a little city tour (only as a Mexican girl can give a Mexican tour... not from the tourist guide). His name is CLOTAIRE K and you can see a little sample of his music at http://www.clotaire.com It's like hip hop music in French and Arabic... so much different as I already hear some hip hop music on English or Spanish languages. And of course, I will let you know some details about the city tour and concert! Tomorrow I will buy the tickets!..."
How dang cool is that? For anyone with highspeed Internet action and an openness to different world beats, culture, and the world beyond the Rocky Mountain West, click away. Especially intriguing are all the shots of Beirut...and the commentary that accompanies the photos. For those of you that would like to meet Karina...here is a link to her world: http://karinaluna.tripod.com/
~~~Next on the agenda, well I mentioned yesterday the inspirational wisdom of the Toltec-and again thanks to buddy Howard for that introduction...Now I seriously have a who new way of life to stumble through and have issues with. Its fairly disturbing how quickly failure can announce the difficulties new perspectives really present.
Yesterday my mom and I sorta had tension. I even tried incorporating the Toltec way into our conflict. Risking everything, I gave the Toltec approach at least a good 20 second try. I hoped my new enlightenment would help me deal with my sudden, interpersonal, parental-child unresolved issue(s). Unfortunately I can only report that incorporating this stupid, completely unrealistic philosophy is way too damn hard. It's so much easier to take things personally, only do your best when someone else does it first, and assume like hell about everything. So give Tim a big honking F on immediately ascending toward the master level.
Now, just because I've just gone down in flames on my first attempt at walking among the cloud bound set, I'm not giving up. Yet.
I've decided to try the whole approach over again, today. I'm relieved that success is on the horizon, especially since my folks left this morning before I had another round of failure to sulk over. With them gone, I can proudly report I'm actualizing the transcendent world of the ancients. In the silence of my parent's absence, dining party of 1, the Toltec does seem so way easier than the alternative of screaming, shouting, plotting revenge, and all that old school teenage rebellion stuff.
I'm suddenly inspired all over again! Why didn't I try this Toltec stuff sooner?
Indeed I'd even like to take it one step further and plug one of my all time favorite novels. I read the book The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon several years ago and was very moved by the pace, the language and the imagery of the major characters. Being surrounded by lifelong Native American influences, this work became a very real journey. One theme is repeated over and over again by the author and that's this model for clean living that seems to resemble many aspects of all things Toltec-
Keep your promises, Keep clean, Keep going.
Another aspect of the novel that rings true is the protagonists refrain, that the best stories are true stories. If you haven't read a good book lately, here's my recommendation. http://www.google.com/print?id=W-EIjXL0YZ0C&dq=The+Man+Who+Fell+in+Love+with+the+Moon&oi=print&prev=http://print.google.com/print%3Fq%3DThe%2BMan%2BWho%2BFell%2Bin%2BLove%2Bwith%2Bthe%2BMoon&prev=http://www.google.com/search%3Fhl%3Den%26q%3DThe%2BMan%2BWho%2BFell%2Bin%2BLove%2Bwith%2Bthe%2BMoon
~~~Final thoughts in this random collision...This morning I met with my friend and mentor John Boril. For those of you who aren't familiar with the name, John started editing my work a few years back and we've shared more than a few adventures together. The guy simply astounds me-his perspective is refreshing and while he has extensive background in the cynical world of journalism, he remains very insightful. Always producing the freshest angle on pop cultural, political events, and human interaction, to spend a couple hours at Starbucks with John is like sitting down with the ancients.
Today we discussed the screwed up Washington State Governors Race, now heading for the courts, and with fresh ballots found in both Pierce and King County, it looks like no one will ever know who really won the political skirmish. We also discussed trucking, meth, and small kitchens. Not in that order.
John has this new word he's trying out. Its very Toltec. Its the word "Newsume" or "Newsumption". The definition of his word goes something like this. When one media outlet makes an assumption, often various outlets will repeat the first new's media's assumption, mistake, or guess without questioning. This gives the "assumption" legs, until the newsumption actually becomes part of the story itself, accepted without question, and in the end, it's taken as fact.
Here's an example. John pointed out recently that the Pope was seen on Palm Sunday waving something green and plant-like from his papal window. At least one news outlet reported this detail, but unfortunately because of religious ignorance as to the significance of this Christian High Holiday, the reporter assumed that the Pope was waving an olive branch. The Olive Branch conspiracy theory was then repeated over and over again by various news outlets until basically everyone believed the pope was offering a statement of peace and finally surrendering the will of the entire Catholic Church to the Anglicans and the Episcopalian.
The only problem with this wonderful development was that the original reporter took this humble, inconvenient fact for granted:
It's a Christian Tradition on Palm Sunday to wave around Palm Tree fronds. It's a lot of fun, green houses do great business, and if you are really good with those fronds, you can make sure your little sister needs plastic surgery for the rest of her life. In fact, the only time the Olive branch is even thought of is when, post Palm Sunday Services, the Baptist crowd races the Assemblies of God crowd to the closest Olive Garden Restaurant. As both crowded mini vans jockey for the right exit, out of nowhere appears an old Chevy Vega full of lost Lutherans looking for Dairy Queen. At the very last minute, both competitors let the poor, lost Lutherans into the exit only lane. That's the ONLY time the olive branch is ever considered part of Palm Sunday.
Ever.
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