i love stop motion films

being the change

a great example of being the change that you wish to see in the world.
way to go, dancing man. way to go.

bicycle-commuting community?

http://commutebybike.com/2009/04/15/idaho-rolling-stops-yay-or-nay/

(a great little video about idaho's bike safety laws)

"idaho's bike safety record is exceptional"

until now...

http://www.idahocriminaldefenselaw.com/2009/06/articles/news/we-should-all-be-grieving-the-loss-of-another-bicyclist-killed-by-inattention/

the third boise bicyclist killed in less than a month in idaho.

c'mon folks...

we are family

several weeks ago i got to see my little brother graduate from high school. apart from being completely surreal seeing our family grow up, it was a learning moment for me. a fellow classmate of my brother's gave a great speech about the human genome project which began the year she was born. 

the human genome project began in 1990, an attempt to understand the complete human genome, our genes, the way that each being's dna makes them an individual. 

there were several significant findings of the genome project. one finding: that all human beings share 99.99% of the same genes and only .01% of our genes makes us uniquely US. 

think about that for a minute.

we are all related. 

it is ONE hundredth of one percent that differentiates me from you, and you from someone living in asia, or africa, or anywhere. 

no matter what you look like, what language you speak, how tall you are, or how smart you are... 

it doesn't matter if you agree with this study or not. whether it is morally right, or not. 

these findings are simply AMAZING. could this information change life as we know it? if we, as citizens of the world could understand that we are all brothers and sisters of this great land. we are so much more similar to one another than we are different. 

we are family.

time flies!

where did a month go?

life has been wild and crazy in wonderful boise.

the garden (www.boisegardenstogether.org) is up and running- sort of- and almost ready to grow veggies!  this week beds were installed and filled with top soil. and next week water is being installed and veggies will be planted! such an exciting time!

pictures to come...

in the meantime, here's a great article from a great magazine:

http://www.yesmagazine.org/article.asp?ID=3293

a big step

www.boisegardenstogether.org

go check it out.

the website for the community garden project that has consumed my life for the past six  months. lovely.

building the world

"I'm building the world myself and putting hats on everybody one by one... Before I go out I'm gonna have people in tutus with viking hats, priests with panties on their heads. In the world I'm building everybody shouts hello to everybody else from their car windows. People have speakers attached to their chests that pour out music so you can tell from a distance what mood they're in, and they won't be too chicken to get naked when the rain comes."

From Let Me Stand Alone: The Journals of Rachel Corrie

By Rachel Corrie

"The Invitation" by Oriah Mountain Dreamer

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dreams
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life's betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your
fingers and toes
without cautioning us to
be careful
be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand on the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
"Yes."

It doesn't interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after a night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.

It doesn't interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the center of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.
 

this one gets me every time. inspires me, makes me want to love, and gets me going. hope it works for you too.

growing like weeds

kiss me, i compost

turn it up!!

why community garden?

Imagine creating a place where every kind of person feels welcome. Everyone walks through the gate just as they are, digs in the dirt just as they are, and changes the world . 

Cultivate a better quality of life for all who enter the community garden, walk by on the street, or receive nourishment from the food grown within them.

Sow the seeds of community. In a neighborhood or city the garden provides a place for people to develop community, and forms a catalyst for social interaction. Involvement in the community promotes feeling responsibility for its well being and a safer town blooms. 

Reap the lessons learned. Teaching children in the garden sets them up for a lifetime of healthy living. When you educate a parent they become a teacher for their children. Whether parents are learning about nutritious eating or organic gardening, the impact is infinite. 

Experience the happiness of a family that has food on their table. Especially in these chaotic times a basket of vegetables goes a long way. Gardening can make a great contribution towards financial security and also heals one’s soul as they experience the therapies of working with the earth and the success of seeing a tiny seed become sustenance. 

Tend the earth. Gardening has a great effect on the environment. By working in the garden individuals become aware of the difference that they can make. In witnessing the growth that happens in the earth we learn about our own growth, the conditions that we need to live, and the way that life prospers. We learn about a little world of plant and animals and insects that we don’t consciously interact with on a normal basis. 

a breath of fresh air

i have this reoccurring dream, a nightmare really, where i am speaking and then screaming, but no one can hear me. the sensation i feel now is similar, albeit very different. below i'll copy and paste some words. wise ones, from jason mraz, a wise man. not to mention an inspired vehicle for energizing harmony and love-ly lyrics. yes, indeed. jason's words could be my own. but, on some days when my words are spoken to deaf ears, jason's gotta say it for me. as if we share a brain, and a heart. not just myself and mr. mraz, but all of the world together. one heart beat, a synchronized breath. 

i think it might be against every blog law to post something this long but, get ready. persevere. it's not thaaat long and your life will feel richer after reading. wealthier in wisdom. always good, right? 

"Last year Bob Dylan compiled a song list for Starbucks’ Artist Choice Series. In addition to offering up a keen selection of country, blues, and jazz, he also supplied notes and commentary as to why he held the songs in such regard. BUT, the best part was the forward. 

He wrote, "When I was asked to put together this collection of songs, I wasn't sure what to do. So I just grabbed a bunch of things I was into recently. Some people have favorite songs, but I've got songs of the minute -- songs that I'm listening to right now. And if you ask me about one of those songs a year from now, I might not even remember who did it, but at the moment it's everything to me.”

I bring this up as today’s lesson: Nothing is final. One day you’re high. The next day you’re low. You might have a funky, expressive, or awful haircut today, but soon it will grow into something else, something new and random. Maybe you grew up liking pop music and boy bands, but now you like a specific mash up of Electronic & Classical. You might decide you don’t want to smoke cigarettes anymore; that it’s just not who you are. Maybe you were a staunch republican but now have curiosities about the well-spoken and well-organized Democratic Nominee. Perhaps you were madly in love last week, but woke up today feeling comfort in solitude, without a desire to be held. 

Everything is fine. Not finAL.

We tend to instantly identify with “things.” And we believe in so much, when in fact, a belief isn't known to be true. It's a hope for the truth. We hold grudges because of what someone said when we were young. We store hurtful words and replay them in our minds until we think it to be true. And some of us believe a TV commercial and think we need a faster computer, a smarter phone, a stronger pill, a more relaxed-fit jean, etc. We think that certain things, thoughts, or actions make us who we are and sometimes we become addicted to those thoughts or behaviors and then become too afraid to let them go. 

I write and post a lot therefore many people assume I have every self-published word memorized or that I live these shared thoughts constantly. This is not the case. My brain doesn’t reference myself very well actually, and I’m sure I contradict myself every other day in one way or another. One day I feel like I have all the wisdom of the world and the next day my soul wears thin and I stutter just ordering ice cream. 

And everything is fine.

Because I trust in the ever-changing climate of the heart. (At least, today I feel that way.) I think it is necessary to have many experiences for the sake of feeling something; for the sake of being challenged, and for the sake of being expressive, to offer something to someone else, to learn what we are capable of. These meanderings, rants, and blogs for instance, provide a great deal of comfort just sharing it, even though i put a part of myself on the line to be criticized or considered an ass.
Oh well, Courage is triumph of the soul is guess. and an Ass can still be of great service. 

So Remember, You have the right to change your mind. 

About anything. 

Anytime. 

This is not the ending. 

P.S. – No doesn’t mean forever. It simply means, “Not right now.”

And on the topic of Not right now, whatever happened to you in the past is not happening now. 

You will be safe behind your honest decisions and mood swings. 

I promise."

did you love that as much as i did? i hope so. kinda looooong. but really goood ;)

this can also be found at jm's blog: http://freshnessfactorfivethousand.blogspot.com

check check check it out.

that was fun. and a bit therapeutic, perhaps.

25 things about me. you can also find this on facebook. oh, thankyou facebook.

1. i love people. big small short and tall. people with pretty hearts and shiny smiles. but when it comes down to it, allll people.
2. just a few things make me happier than riding my bike around town. especially downtown boise. on the sidewalks. weaving in and out of people.
3. i blog. it feels slightly self-centered, and im nearly positive that no one reads what i write. but i like it. kind of like these 25 things...
4. art. means the world to me.
and i give away most of what i create.
i feel most inspired to create when i have a specific person in mind who will receive whatever it is that im working on.
5. im a hopelessly hopeless romantic. 
6. i have a mile long list of things i want to learn and places that i want to visit.
some included: india, basket weaving, northern part of south america and central america, linoleum block printing, screen printing, more and more and more.
7. im not very good at staying in the same place for very long. wanderlust is my life and my feet are itchy itchy itchy. that said, i adore little boise. the people, the foothills, the river. i love it all. i prefer the mountains over the beach almost any day.
8. i believe that the purpose of life is to share. my life, at least. 
to share our hearts and our thoughts, our food, our love, sometimes our money. just to share a bit of what we have with other beings. 
9. africa goes everywhere with me. riding around in this little pocket in my heart. i think about the people there several times a day. someday soon ill be back there again. 
10. i despise money. not just because i have none. but because it creates monsters of people. and makes me anxious.
11. my feet dont like shoes much. unless it's snowing youll almost always find me in sandals. flipflops, maybe.
12. im currently in the later stages of starting a community garden in downtown boise. should be a nice little addition to our sweet sparkly town. working mostly w people who dont have access to local, fresh food. and kids. lots of soul-filled, soil-covered kids. i cant wait to plant the seeds, to see flowers grow, and to know that it all started as a tiny spark inside of ME. if i had known how much work this was going to be i might not have thrown myself into it so quickly, but now that im bellybutton deep i have got to keep going. 
13. i sing in the car and in the shower and to myself when im walking down the street.
14. recently switched to an apple. and i love it. my little macbook and i are getting acquainted marvelously. just tonight i discovered a teeny tiny button on the side that makes a bunch of teeny tiny lights turn green as a measure of battery life. it's neat.
15. i want to be inspired and energized and ready-to-go every single day of my life. so far, so good. especially recently. i never want to feel the constraints of a job that i dont like. 
16. i believe that people are good and on days that my hope is dwindling there is always some random act of kindness that fills me back up. like someone pushing the extra minute button on my parking meter, or a nice person bringing home a lost dog.
17. im superstitious. not sure why. not so much the black cats and stepping on cracks. more shooting stars, fortune cookies, lucky things, and other 'signs'. no clue where that came from.
18. to me, there is almost nothing more beautiful than a thoughtful handwritten letter. i love sending mail. going to the post office. picking out cards. it is all so wonderful. 
19. my pets make me so happy. 
20. washing dishes and folding laundry are meditative for me. baking also makes me feel warm inside. 
21. i would love to walk the appalachian trail someday.
22. some say i have an old soul.
23. on some days lists keep me sane. when i write a list i feel like im emptying all of these chaotic, flying thoughts out of my brain. 
24. i do my very best work in the wee hours of the night. cleaning, reading, organizing, writing. all around 2 am. 
25. im going to start bee keeping this spring. just signed myself up to 'catch a swarm'. how scary is that? but im excited! honey, anybody?

and a hurry-up-spring recipe:

guacamole salad

1 pint grape tomatoes whole

1 yellow pepper diced

1/2 cup diced red onion

15 oz. black beans (about a can. rinsed and drained)

2 T. jalapeno

1/2 t. lime zest

1/4 c fresh lime juice

1/4 c olive oil

1 t. salt

1/2 t. black pepper

1/4 t. cayenne pepper

1 clove garlic chopped

pour liquid mixture over veggies

dice avocado and mix in to salad

YUM!

make soil, not war

i've been reading a book lately called 

"plenty- eating locally on the 100 mile diet".

it's about a couple in british columbia who decide to eat a diet made exclusively from food grow or produced within one hundred miles of their home.

imagine what that would mean in boise... no salt, no curry powder (or any spices for that matter), no olive oil, no pineapple, or bananas... the list goes on and on.

on the flip side, take a minute to think about the distances that our food travels. from the plastic wrapper, to the processing and all the way to our local mega-mart. 

we have no clue where our food has been! 

the change to eating the food that surrounds us would make our world and our bellies so much happier. we have an abundance of potatoes, corn, onions, greens, all kinds of veggies in the summer that could be canned and frozen, access to local wineries- the list goes on. 

here's a passage that caught my eye, made me stop to think, and has stuck with me:

"I had run through internet lists of local farms, hoping for some new breakthrough. One, I noticed, promised olive oil. That was something we really had been missing. The farming family had a Greek name, so if anyone would know how to coax the trees along...

'No,' the woman who answered the phone replied scornfully. 'You can't grow olives here.' 

I hung up the phone, smiling inwardly. What would happen if we all stopped believing that so much was impossible? Only weeks ago I had spoken with a vineyard manager on nearby Saturna Island. His vines were arrayed on south-facing slopes wedged between the humid sea and a bank of rock walls that reflected the sun. The owners were thinking of putting in olive trees."

the seedlings i started only a week ago!

eggplant, peppers, a couple tomato varieties and more to come this week. 

and one more passage from 'plenty' to end on:

" 'We have an insane food system, one that's totally based on cheap oil.' Is it possible to build a new and different system closer to home? It is. The lesser economies of scale could be partially offset by greater employment on small farms. Subsidies, like the $20,000 the US gov't spends on every corn grower each year, could support that small-farm economy rather than factory operations and industrial monocultures. Any of this is possible, and more. 'But it's theoretical. Is it possible to do it in practice? That's politics. People have to demand it and exercise their democratic rights.' "

a long time coming

i've been meaning to write this for a WHILE.

that's an understatement.

just an update. new art, exciting life.

here's the fabulous harrison (from ghana) doing what he does best at the small village foundation auction dinner a couple of weeks ago. an amazing evening with the most perfect team of drummers sounding a steady heart beat for us all. thank you, thank you.

i can hardly believe that i was in africa almost two years ago! 

a life-touching trip with the wonderful small village foundation of boise.

where did the time go?

the garden initiative has showed me how tremendously generous people are. willing to give an

hour, to meet for a chat, to write a kind email. when you take the time to share your passion people jump over hurdles to help you reach the finish line. so inspiring.

here's just one example of this love. the turtle tree seed biodynamic seed initiative in copake, new york donated seeds! lots and lots of seeds for us to plant in our community garden. the beautiful thing about this gift, is that like a stone thrown into a pond, the ripples will never stop expanding. teaching a mother or father how to grow their own food not only helps them feed themselves, it is the beginning of a lifetime of healthy eating and education for their children. and on and on and on. forever.

beautiful, beautiful seeds.

grow into beautiful vegetables.

go now, and check out their inspired work.

www.turtletreeseed.com

some new artwork. 

before and after.

color makes quite a difference, doesn't it?

"there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people."

-vincent van gogh

and some more...

nice thoughts to leave on. soul and peace. 

peaceful soul. soulful peace.

in the quiet

almost four months ago an idea came to me.

sitting on my aunt's couch.

cozy and warm, feeling pretty lucky.

thinking about the green outside. or lack thereof.

when in africa i realized for the first time that being able to care about the environment is a luxury. being able to think about how to compost my food scraps means that my belly is full, and wondering where to toss my old plastic water bottle means that thirst has been quenched. 

after a year in ny spending time with the land i knew that i had to do something to give 'the land' to someone else. to help another being receive therapy from the earth, to help them work with the earth, and to see the way that the earth can produce. 

on my aunt's couch my next journey became clear.

i needed to start a community garden in downtown boise.

to get some fresh food to loads of folks in the area who just don't have the means.

and i didn't only want to get them the food, i wanted to give them the experience of growing it.

first the inspiration.

looking back, if i had any idea how hard this road would be i'm not one-hundred percent positive that i would have taken those steps. but, here i am, nowhere to go but forward. 

then the preparation, collaboration, organization.

meetings every single day for the first while.

writing hundreds of emails, grants, pleas.

telling anyone and everyone. whether or not they wanted to know.

next the fear.

wondering whether i was crazy to think this could work.

tears. because what do you do when they don't believe?

now the excitement, the energy, the strength to persevere.

trying with all of my might to let this passion be like a cold. 

so that all who see it in me catch it and spread it. infecting all of the land with this delightfully vibrant cold :)

soon the REALITY.

the picket fence, builders, children, soil, sun and seeds.

watering cans and wheelbarrow.

and vegetables. lots and lots of vegetables in hungry bellies that need them.

yahoooooo!

mirror, mirror

"fall in love or fall in hate.
get inspired or get depressed.
ace a test or flunk a class.
make babies or make art.
speak the truth or lie and cheat.
dance on tables or sit in the corner.
life is divine chaos.
embrace it.
forgive yourself.
breathe.
enjoy the ride."
-solbeam

a big hopeful smile with my cup of tea

a couple of days ago, sitting so happily in a little coffee shop in boise with a wonderful friend, the realities of life hit me-- my meter was about to run out and in that moment nothing was more important that adding an extra quarter. a quarter that meant fifteen more minutes of bliss and comfort and familiarity sitting across the table from me, warm belly, sweet treat in front of me- the best. i ran outside, shiny coin in tow, only to find a nice guy pushing the 'extra 20 minutes' button on my meter for me. walking his bike up the sidewalk (right pant leg rolled up, messenger bag-- yummy!) he had noticed that my meter was out and the meter-reader was on her way to write my ticket. all i could do was thank him. jaw to pavement, eyes nearly teary- thank him for being a good human being. and all he had to say in return was, 'but be careful when you push this button, if the reader sees you they give the car an even bigger ticket.'

this wasn't an extraordinary act, no lives were saved; it was a little thing.
but in this deed i remember how important the little things are.
it's the little things that inspire BIG things.
and it's the big things that change lives.

my hope is renewed :) the people of this world... they are good, if we only give them the chance.

a year in review

just over a year ago i was on a plane flying to copake, ny with no idea what the following 365 days would hold in store for me. only a few weeks prior to flying, i was applying for the americorps and deciding that my next year would be dedicated to camphill village.

new york was my answer to a life that was turning upside-down. i craved change and culture and an inspired life. at the beginning of 2008 i was searching with all of my might to find hope in a world that so often feels lost. with every step of my feet i was looking for love, and creation, and appreciation.

arriving in camphill proved numerous expectations wrong, shocked my heart and soul and body, shoved new theories and practices into every unsaturated piece of me. and like a sponge i soaked up every bit of new in my life. i relished each experience and learned so so much. maybe more than ever before.

2008 was a year of change and as it ends i'm looking contentedly back on each little moment that somehow amounted to a year. with 2009 about to take off i resolve to wake every morning and be inspired, to live creatively and honestly, to share all that i am, and to open myself to all that the world has to teach me.