picture update...

Our house...

Warehouse next to the bike shop

The start of our new house band called Bears Did This... stay tuned.

Hay ride with our st johns family...

Dance party with Junior in our kitchen...

Microloans... bringing global justice?

I think so!

I made my first micro-loan today to a woman in Nigeria named Mabel who is trying to run a grocery store...
http://www.kiva.org/ if you are interested in more info about micro-financing etc.

It is basically providing a non interest loan to the poor who are attempting to start businesses in order to survive in undeveloped countries.

You can give as little as $25 and eventually (hopefully) the loan will be repaid by the entrepreneur at the success of their work. There is a risk that it won't be paid back in instances like natural disasters, health issues, crop failure etc. To me it seems like a risk that is worth taking for the sake of global justice!

City wants to register vacant residences

Article from the Columbus Dispatch... I am going to check it out if anyone is interested last minute!

Wednesday, October 21, 2009 3:15 AM

Columbus officials have crafted legislation that would require owners of vacant and abandoned houses to register them with the city and hire local property managers to inspect and maintain them.

The proposal is aimed at curbing the blight and damage that foreclosures and the economy have inflicted on many of the city's neighborhoods.

It targets out-of-town property owners who buy up cheap properties and sit on them in hopes of making a financial killing down the road.

A registry like this would track the owners so the city can hold them responsible, said Assistant City Attorney Jody Spurlock.

The proposal would require owners to carry liability insurance on vacant properties and provide their neighbors with emergency contact numbers.

And it would make them file "statements of intent," including how long they expect their properties to remain vacant and a plan to fix up, demolish or sell the property.

But there's been no discussion on how the city would implement the proposed changes, which will likely be tweaked, Spurlock said.

"We threw in everything but the kitchen sink, presuming a lot would come out in the end," she said.

Charleta B. Tavares, the Columbus City Council member who chairs the health, housing and human-services committee, will host a public hearing on the proposal at 5:30 p.m. today at City Hall, the first of at least two hearings.

"We looked at some of the best practices around the country and came up with what we felt were some of the best measures to combat the problem," said James Ragland, Tavares' aide.

Snowbirds who flee Columbus for weeks or months during the winter would not be required to register, Tavares said.

Columbus has more than 5,300 vacant homes, many of which attract arsonists, thieves, squatters and drug dealers. Many fall into disrepair and threaten neighborhood property values.

Columbus already has an ordinance that requires owners of vacant and abandoned properties to register with the city, but only if they fail to fix problems after the city cites them.

Another problem is that the city can't find the property owners.

"If what we have on the books didn't work, maybe we need to look at other measures," Tavares said.

Laura Swanson, the executive director of the Columbus Apartment Association, said she believes the proposal would require owners to register a single apartment that has been vacant for 30 days, even if it's the only vacancy among hundreds of units.

Donna Hicho, executive director of the Greater Linden Development Corp., said the city needs to track owners and make sure they keep properties in good shape.

"Anything we can do to regulate them and have more accountability can only benefit the neighborhood," she said.

Here we are...

... full from a delicious dinner that Greg whipped up in a matter of minutes consisting of homemade egg noodles, eggplant parmesan, and tomatoes from our garden.

Sitting around listening to music... a beautiful thing this is. A good and beautiful thing without a doubt. Somehow it still feels hard, and a bit gray. The suffering that is constant all around us, all the time, feels heavy. We are trying to learn to have fun and enjoy life in the midst of all the heaviness. Time will help. Prayer and conservation probably will too.

I also think I have some of my own soul searching to do... some things to deal with... some feelings and emotions to sort though... and I need to choose my words carefully.

In other news, we have another person moving in this coming month. A guy from PA who is looking for an escape and, through some mutual friends, found us to put him up for a few months. This will bring our grand total to 8. We will surely keep each other warm this winter. I am really looking forward to providing some longer term hospitality to a brother in need.

On that note, off to enjoy silence... and search around my soul and my scattered mind a bit...

I'll leave you with some love from the Buddha...

"Chaos is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence."

From Kelly's blog...

My thoughts exactly...

" Tonight at femma we wrote letters to legislators regarding domestic violence as a pre-existing condition for health insurance coverage and baked chocolate-chip cookies. Even while passionate letters were handwritten, a funk hung about the group, not unlike the funk that has been plaguing us the past few weeks.

It is hard to live in this neighborhood. When the boys lived here and we drove in from Cville almost nightly, I didn’t notice it. There’s something about the hopelessness that permeates every street corner interaction or handful of broken glass littering the street. Though the neighborhood was the first settled of our state, the trees are young and small. Everything is decayed and nothing is colorful except for neon signs and pawn shop windows– and even those are covered with “the Franklinton film.” That’s what I call the dull and filmy coat hanging over everything from Mount Carmel to the Hilltop. Cigarette smoke, city pollution, oil and dirt rubbed off of last months clothes, and spilled Cobra. This morning biking to street church, Ashley heard a man yelling violently at his wife (an obscenely regular occurence on front porches and streets) and she yelled, “I HATE THIS PLACE!”

It’s just that ills are not kept behind walls in Franklinton. Everything is so overwhelmingly not behind walls that it is, in fact, strewn all over the overgrown lawn. It is this explicitness that makes for a difficult transition. Or, at least, a sudden and undiluted one.

We do have new neighbors to our left, which we have been waiting for. It is a family of six, and the three boys play football in our front median. They are a delightful family– we have already gotten to share some tomatoes and yard tools with them. So far we have seen them communicate very lovingly and respectfully to each other, which is a relief.

It is nice to finally see our homeless friends in passing throughout the week instead of at one designated time, and indeed helps the area feel like home. I would feel more threatened by random passersby if they didn’t smile familiarly and call us “sissy.”

I paint a bleak picture. It’s what I see but not what I hope for."

New house... new fun...

The woman in the middle is our rev

The St Johns crew came over to do a house a blessing for our new place. Those Episcopals... they have prayers for every occasion, including moving into a new house. They have really been behind the seven of us through our transition to the west side and our attempts to bring justice where we desire to see it. They are all ages and all personalities but all incredible justice seekers and freedom fighters (and they like to go out and get a beer afterward). There is much to learn from this group of people. It is nice to have a community in the bigger sense of the word to support us like this.

Did I mention that the six of us just became the seven of us? We had another brother move in with us... and his name is Jonathan too. We decided to stop accepting Jonathan's to be our friends because now we have three of them living in this house. So our family of seven is getting comfy in our new home.

Thoughts on community... and sharing

The move is complete (thankfully). We fit the six of us into our first communal house in, of all places, the bottoms of Columbus. The house is incredible. Our house sits on three lots and we have a few vegetables growing right now but the potential garden (farm) that I see every time I get home is something to really believe in. We have so much room in the yard to farm, and yesterday we finally started getting serious with our overgrown weeds that are consuming our yard. We put on our gardening boots, gloves, and music (which, in case you were wondering is Dead Prez and Mos Def), made some slammin iced tea with nectarines in it, cranked up the jams, gathered some friends, and got to work. The yard is definitely a place of peace, life, growth, death, Resurrection, and joy. The inside is even more wonderful... we have crazy colored walls, bikes hanging all over them, and a collection of not one but six peoples belongings. We have a lovely little chapel in the basement with stone walls and a stone bench all the way around it. We have some Jesus and Mother Mary candles in front of this delicate little confessional alter next to our wailing wall, a place of solitude and power.

I feel as though there is a large misunderstanding about the choice of neighborhood, or the choice of living in community… but here is one small example of why it makes sense to me…

Sunday night, Kelly and I took our free bread we get from street church, hopped on our bikes and went to the T.G.'s house which is about seven blocks, we chatted with them, scored some sweet corn growing in their garden, and were on our way. Then we went up to the Kauffman's house, dropped off our bread to them, peeped in on the chickens, and went home with our corn to cook dinner with our 4 other housemates. We made a delicious stuffed zucchini, all with vegetables that are growing in season, and in our gardens, sat around the table and got to share our meal with others living in the community, Heather, Rachel, and Jon. Then the boys took off for some "guys time", and us girls stuck around and watched some slam poetry that was inspiring, as usual. Sharing in this manner helps me to believe that we could face anything in this world and get through it together by sharing what we have and depending on each other. What beauty in this community.

Then on Wednesday night, Kelly and I were out near our house getting some dinner when we were approached by a younger guy asking for a ride if we were heading west. The furthest west we were going was only about three blocks, but decided to talk to the kid anyways. He was traveling from Virginia to Utah to visit his family and decided to hitchhike the entire way. He had made it this far and got dropped off in the bottoms. He was looking to camp in the area and we strongly advised him not to. He was exhausted, needed a shower, and somewhere comfortable to sleep. After some discussion with the others in the house, the boys went back to get him and bring him in for the night. Paul, the traveler, was able to stay with us, shower, and eat with us because this is something we believe in. We believe in hospitality even if it inconveniences us. We believe in taking care of people and the freedom to do so because we have shared resources and shared space which really does make things safer. We take good care of each other so we can then take care of others. It is beautiful how these situations can arise simply from where you plant yourself.

It is nice having people coming in and out all the time, it is nice having visitors and people to feed and people to share meals with, it is nice to show people around who have heard about what is going on and are interested in community and taking care of their neighbors, it is nice having new neighbors knock on our door and ask if they can cut our grass to make some money when they don't have other forms of work, it is nice waking up to 5 other people and being able to laugh and enjoy each others company in the morning. Much to learn, much to experience, and so very much to do.

Back to the garden with our iced tea and dead prez, and in his words...

"Ain't nobody in the hood got hope in this fucked up system and that's why we don't vote"

Odd note to end on, I realize, but that lyric has been on my mind.

Hope.

Yellow Springs adventure...

Yesterday, Patience and I decided to take a last minute day trip down to Yellow Springs to do some hiking at John Bryan State Park. The car ride down was just as fun as the rest of the day... we jammed out to a variety of things... including Phantom of the Opera which Patience put me to shame at.

We packed a picnic, a camera, some sun screen, and some reading material and set off on a five hour hike into the woods. No one was around which made it feel like a real adventure. We admired the sights, jumped in the water, climbed some rocks, and talked to mother nature (and naturally) she talked back.

We found a spot at the top of the gorge, over looking the water, with a blue heron wading below us catching herself some fish that seemed very fitting for some slam poetry. We pulled out our "Daughters of Wisdom" book ( a gift from Ben) and our Thich Nhat Hahn, climbed up the wooden overlook and read to the blue heron, each other, and all of nature.
It was hugely liberating and incredibly empowering and I think I even saw the blue heron throw up her freedom fist.



Our picnic ended up getting smushed, but we enjoyed the PB & J sandwiches anyways... along with five hours of conversation. If you are looking for an escape and a day of peace... take to the woods!

We came home and slept and eventually ended up in the flooding streets of Franklinton, without power, in the pouring rain. It was liberating to be out there and feeling the rain come down that hard. It was cleansing. Then we finally made one of our dreams come true... we grabbed a bottle of shampoo from the house, and washed our hair in the rain. That, my friends, is true.

Community

Aboriginal activists group, Queensland, 1970's:

If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.

West side wiffle ball...

An impromptu game of wiffle ball came upon us last Tuesday which started what I think will be a weekly event...

Our rain brother friend Jonathan called the game together so we congregated on Martin and headed over to Dodge Park for the big game. We had an awesome turn out and a lot of fun.


This weeks wiffle ball Tuesday consisted of playing ultimate frisbee in the West Park median... next week will be kick ball.

Nothing like a good old game of wiffle ball in the ghetto...

It's a west side time...

This is an exciting time for our community...

Brian and Heather T.G. just closed on their yellow west side house yesterday... and it was a holy moment. Kelly, Jonny, Jed, Hannah, Greg, Brian, Heather and I all gathered at the new house last night... taped up the kitchen for painting purposes and worked side by side til it was done. Then, in the empty house, we opened a bottle of champagne and had a toast... to Brian and Heather and their new home, to the kingdom in the bottoms, to jed and hannah and their plans to move with us, to our new community house on west park, to kelly's birthday, and to each other... to our little family.

It was a powerful time to say the least. More than anything, this is so exciting because our dreams are coming true... and we are doing it together...

More to come...

...with the grace of a woman and not the grief of a child.

Life is flying by. I say and think this a lot but I wish I could just pause time right now so I have a chance to really absorb and enjoy all the life happening around me. Things feel alive, and surreal, and so damn lovely. Having freedom and love and the ability to do what I want, when I want it has never felt so good. It is certainly a time to cherish.

Women's night at St Johns with the church ladies was a holy time. There was lots of laughter, lots of dancing, lots and lots of tears, lots of empowerment, lots of celebrating womanhood, lots of freedom and healing experienced. It was a righteous time. I am definitely thankful to be apart of that group.

The sun is shining, it is 83 degrees out... and the grass in the front yard is calling my name.

be peace. and freedom.

Hoppy Easter

I (thankfully) had Friday off. A good way to start the Easter weekend. Even better, Marvelyn came to town to visit Patience which meant we got to all hang out Friday afternoon, eat together and have a quick dance party before I headed home to hang with the family. Saturday was spent sewing chair covers and dress shopping for Heather's wedding. I think we are all glad to say that all the dresses are found and we are done with that part of the planning. Now we have 155 chair covers to make...

Saturday night was refreshing with some PBR and pizza at Houndogs with Marvelyn, Patience, Nate, Blake, Jon, Jy, and Kelly. It is good to laugh with them. It is very healing to laugh with them. We headed over to the Tawd and Sharon's for a serious dance party that lasted quite a few hours. Time flies by when you dance that hard. Mostly we jammed to 80's music which couldn't get any better when your friends have the dance moves that mine do. Every single one of them. Thankfully Rachel and Kyle were there and carried our team with their endless dance energy. At one point, Kelly, Marv, Patience, and I started some very authentic tribal moves which somehow swept everyone else off the dance floor. We decided to tone it down and realized quickly that the dance floor was meant to be shared.

It was a hopeful night. Dancing in a circle with your friends, laughing, chanting to the west side, celebrating life through dancing... life is sweet. That was the thought on my mind all night. Life is very sweet. And very good to me. I am very lucky to have the people that I do. I would want it no other way.

He is risen indeed!

Happy Sabbaths.

A day for the ducks... and the best day of our lives...

Too bad today isn't as beautiful as yesterday. Yesterday was sunny with a high of 75 (for real)... and we enjoyed every minute of the day. As expected, we spent a lot of time on the front porch. Had a quick little picnic with our neighbor Matt (who we love). We put our faces in the sun, turned on some jams, and ate our leftovers from the dinner party we had with our neighbors the night before.

Then I took the lotus out for a special ride up to Goodale Park to meet Jason and Shannon and we had another picnic in the grass. We got to share nurse stories and laugh and roll around in the grass. It was good to catch up with those boys. They are two of the finest nurses I know.

I reconvened with Kelly in the afternoon and we biked up to have some margs and chips/salsa before the economics discussion. Jy joined to help us finish the margs, then we met up with Heather, Brian, and Greg for a lecture open to the public on the economic state of our country which was kind of interesting, kind of over my head. Lesson learned: keep everything local (banking especially).

After the lecture, we all met up with Patience and Jonny and visited the dube. It is a wonderful thing having that many people you care about sitting at the same table.

Today we woke up early and met Jy at the new house. The demolition work has been started and the house is stripped to the bare minimum. We got to walk through and hear about all the pending renovations. It is perfect. The overwhelming feelings of peace and joy and hope were profound. Our dreams are coming true!

Unsolicited advice to adolescent girls with pink hair...

The latest slam poetry we just can't get enough of...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCErQ4bviIY

Slam it!

I'm not going to speak when I'm spoken to... I'm going to speak when I choose.

A day for the bums...

We finally got Greg back from New Orleans last night and we had a reunion at the Monster House to watch Blake, Nate, and Jon's show... which was incredible. Well done boys. There we decided that everyone who had nothing to do on Monday (today) would join forces and do nothing together.

Half of the group doesn't have jobs at all... the other half either a) called off or b) didn't have to work today. This left me, Kelly, Blake, Greg, Nate, Jon, Jonny, and Rachel free to be bums together all day.

After a quick episode of south park with Greg, we met up with Kelly, hit the North Market, and then met the rest of the bunch at Goodale Park for a picnic. The food collection, mostly made up of food left over in our fridges that were about to be thrown out, turned out to be a splendid selection.

We ate and talked and laughed and got photographed by the newspaper. We listened to music and played frisbee and scoop ball. We laid in the grass with our faces in the sun. We climbed trees. We enjoyed our community and each others presence. We missed Jy and Patience. We decided that we should all have sick days more often.

After a few hours had passed we decided we should move on. Kelly, Greg, Jonny, and I headed back to Martin and eventually met up with Jy, made some pizza and mashed potatos... had a trip to the "convienent" store... and enjoyed the sun setting on the front porch.

I wish everyday would be a bum day. I think we would all live longer and happier because of it.

I find myself, yet again, deeply loving community and deeply loving life.

Young hearts, be free!

We woke up early at the Martin House to see our brother Patrick off on his crazy journey. He is walking from Columbus to NYC as an act of peace and repentance and to stand against the war. His letter to the community...

hello fellow peacemakers,

recently i have been wrestling with how i--as a military veteran who has bent his sword into a plowshare--might publically speak against the u.s.-led wars in iraq and afghanistan and advocate for peace. in the process, i came across some material for the “yes we can” campaign. this is an intense four-month national campaign by an organization called united for peace & justice (www.unitedforpeace.org). the campaign--which marks the sixth anniversary of the iraq war (march 19th) and is centered on martin luther king, jr's speech "beyond vietnam"--calls for both an end to the wars in iraq and afghanistan and the redistribution of military funds for housing, healthcare, education, jobs, and environmental stewardship initiatives. the campaign culminates, in part, on april 4th with a national peace march in new york city. at that time hundreds of thousands will convene at the heart of that city's financial district in order to call for peace and the reinvestment of funds into the nation's communities.

after some reflection, i not only feel compelled to participate in the march on april 4^th, but also to walk to the event as an extended witness for peace. on this journey i will walk approximately 550 miles over a fifteen-day period, relying solely on the hospitality of others along the way. i will arrive in the new york city area on april 3rd, with the journey coming to its climax the following day with the peace march itself.

while this walk, in and of itself, will not bring peace in iraq, afghanistan, or any other violent part of the world, i believe that God can use small, foolish acts such as this in order to highlight the ugly realities of violence and awaken people's imagination to the transformative power of love.

karen and the kids plan on accompanying me by car for the first couple days of the walk. they will then return home until it is time to meet up with me in new york city for the march. i would love to have others from the community join me as well--whether along the way or for the march. please join us on sunday, 3:00pm in order to conspire further.

peace,

patrick

We joined at 6 this morning... 11 of us from the community... j meier read some scripture of the disciples going out like this which was encouraging to hear... we all took (emotional) turns to anoint his head with oil and say a blessing over him. Then we laid hands on him and prayed for his journey and together sang a hymn and set out to watch him walk off.

Pray for Patrick, his feet, his soul, and for hospitality for him.

On and on and on...

I am enjoying the last half of the sabbath on my front porch with Kelly... surrounded by my beautiful green plants and the basil seeds I just started. We just scored a great new vintage table from our neighbors trash and it makes a great addition to our porch. We are sipping some cheap wine and eating some delicious dip we got from kelly's mom. Most of all we are enjoying conversation, the sunshine, each others company, and the neighborhood cats.

The morning was spent at my future home in the bottoms... worshipping with our homeless friends, biking around the neighborhood, touring people in the bike shop, sitting on the front porch of martin, and hanging out with our future neighbors. Life is very full... and very meaningful... and very joyful.

Yesterday reminded me of the gift and the fullness of community of friendships. I spent most the night at the bike shop with Greg and Jy. They were hard at work and in between my tasks I was dancing to the hip hop (Lauryn Hill and Nas) playing in the background and riding the shop bike (the destroyer) around the rain barrels til I got dizzy. Then we went to see a folk concert at a bar on high street and got to dance with and enjoy patience, jy, blake, jon, and nate while doing so. What else do you need in life than a community that offers love and peace and support and fun and affirmation and everything else we need to get by in this world?

Wendi Weekend

Thursday and Friday of this week consisted of us six faithful friends finishing out the 340 minute movie/ documentary called Country Boys about the struggle of young people in Appalachia. It took us three nights total to watch the whole thing. The first night, earlier in the week, the six of us piled onto the the pull out couch in the living room, shared some chocolate milk, guacamole, and laffy taffy, and got involved in the lives of Chris and Cody (the country boys themselves).

Thursday we continued the journey into the lives of these two boys... and Friday after our meeting about the new house on West Park and a celebratory dinner at the tip top, we (tearfully) wrapped it up and ended our relationships with Chris and Cody.

Saturday was a significant and memorable day to say the least. Kelly's sister-friend Wendi was in town from NY and came to stay for the night. We potlucked here with Greg, Jy, and Jonny, and had tacos courtesy of the Clintonville Community co-op. Despite the cold weather, we bundled up, got out our bikes, and hit the city to show Wendi around. We showed her (parts) of Franklinton... and naturally took her to our favorite place, Tip Top. We enjoyed some PBR, good conversation, sweet potato fries, laughter, and love before we headed back to the boys.

We got back and played on the new homemade key-tar as well as dueled with harmonicas in attempts to play Billy Joel's "Piano Man". I was not very good at it, but desperately want to be. We lost a few to sleep shortly after but Greg and I decided to hit up Blake, Nate, and Jon's house warming party... and good thing we did because Patience was drowning without us. We danced around like there was no tomorrow, and the boys even put on Love is a Battlefield to honor our presence. We danced late into the night and I realized I will never be sick of dancing around and looking a fool when music is on because it is so freeing and so joyful.

Dancing might be one of the most soulful things I can do. Dancing with the people you care about most makes it even better. It's spiritual.

I'll leave you with the precious words of Tolstoy in the latest of his essays I am immersed in...

On Anarchy,
" To use violence is impossible; it would only cause reaction. To join the ranks of the Government is also impossible- one would only become its instrument. One course therefore remains- to fight the government by means of thought, speech, actions, life, neither yielding to government nor joining its ranks and thereby increasing its power.

This alone is needed, will certainly be successful. And this is the will of God, the reaching of Christ."

Whew.

Picture update...

Last week, mama Jan invited Kelly and I up to her house to have a cooking day. A few months ago we had attempted to make a broc ched soup and it failed. Not miserably, but it failed. It was her recipe we followed, so in attempts to make us better at life, she decided to teach us how to make it. This time was a much better success. The soup turned out perfect. We also got to make some amazing scones, laugh, and talk about love, the past, marriage, and the bondage of women in certain roles and how to handle it. It was a hopeful day.

Group shot of team cook.

Also last week, I had the day off, and my comrade Kelly sort of had the day off... so we spent the day having a luncheon, making patches (our new hobby), cooking dinner, dancing and wine drinking with Patience, and then dumpstering with the boys and Daria...

Here is our lunch, our stencil book, and our sewing machine.


A closer look at our lunch...


Our first two patches... we are very very proud of them.

Making dinner and enjoying sisterhood (which seems like a constant thing around here, thankfully)


Here is our PA love, Patience Lovermore. She is in the process of moving in. And sometimes sleeps in the bed with kelly and i. ha!

Midst of the dance party. Note Kelly reppin our new patch. Note me reppin that awesome vest. Note Patience and her broadway pose.

Daria

Our beautiful russian comrade and soulful friend Daria ventured with us to the dumpsters last night. The reason I call her my comrade and soulful friend is because I have never heard her address us or introduce us any other way.

That is just the start of her. I learn so much from this women its incredible. Her genuine intrest in peoples thoughts and opinions on things. Her way of communicating. Her laughter. Her honestly. Her incredible gift of hospitality. Her love for the over 500 library books in her apt. Her love for books period. Her russian accent. Her auora of peace. Her radiance of peace.

Being around her, I instantly become more peaceful. She is a refreshing soul to be around. She was a great addition to the dumpster team that consisted of kelly, jonny, greg, and I.

I am itching for summer and all the feelings of freedom that come with it.

Hurry up summer.

Patience and Kelly

I got to spend some much needed time with two of the most powerful and strong women I will ever know. We had a "girls night," which does not look at all as some may think "girls night" should look.

Yes, we watched a movie, ate some ice cream and chips and salsa, and talked about boys... but that was just the start.

We turned off the lights, lit eight candles, huddled on the couch together under blankets, and read aloud by candle light. We read excerpts from the vagina monologues, which I am now convinced you could only read aloud with people you are more than comfortable with. We also read an essay from a book Kelly and I got from the library by Gloria Steinem, who was one of the most influential feminist activist and authors of all time (in my opinion that is). It was a spiritual and mighty thing to behold with those girls, and a night I will never let slip from my memory. To be reminded of the gift of womanhood and what a powerful force that can be is something not done often enough. We ended the night, or at that point, the early morning, by blowing out all eight candles to different things, to Rachel in hopes she would join us next time, to our grandmothers, to Gloria Steinem and her work, to us three and being women... eight things were not enough. Mostly it was to the love and non judgement of women everywhere, oppressed women and free women, happy women and miserable women, confident women and self conscious women, to every woman, knowing each is powerful and beautiful in her own way.

More than a feminist, were humanist... and I try to remind myself of that every time I am around another human being. Unite.

Brilliant Banksy

old friends... new friends... and stranger friends...

I took a journey (along with Kelly, Jonny, Jy, Seth, and Dexter) to a new bar downtown that shall remain nameless. Jpo invited us to come meet up with her, carl, alan, and some other friends downtown to share some drinks. We combined crews, and added a little bit of Kyle, and a little bit of Patience (two of our awesome new friends) and had a hell of a time.

We danced a bit... didn't get judged as much as we thought... mingled a lot... met lots of new friends... and combined lots of old friends.

I think one of my favorite things is having lots of different friends all together in one room and watching them all get along, learn about each other, interact with each other, exchange numbers with each other, and laugh together. It actually might be my favorite thing to do. Everyone looked like they had known each other for years and everyone had a good time and it was just a very successful night.

One that should happen way more often...

"the truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off"...

I am making a vow today to stop losing my stuff.

Its a chronic problem, really. Car keys, debit cards, house key, drivers license... the list goes on. Those are just the important things.

Advice from my family has been "get your shit together" or "take better care of your stuff"

So today, my friends, I am going to "get my shit together" and stop losing stuff.

Help.

Ramblings...

My soul is sort of crying out for a break. It's sick and tired of being sick, and being tired. I am longing for more peace, more truth, more love, and more freedom... which inevitably come with seeking... and waiting... and complete and utter silence. I have been estranged from meeting my creator in stillness... in quietness...

I find hope in my spirituality in strange and beautiful ways... none compare though to entering into that almighty presence and silently sitting.

Snowed in oh nine...

Snow has struck the city of Columbus in a fierce way... and Kelly, Patience and I are snowed in at the boys house. Everyone has work/school off except for JY. We are waking up to Iron and Wine right now... captain crunch with berries for breakfast... movies and lounging all day... ahhh, snow days.


We attempted to make some vegan cookies last night as a start to our snowed in time... unfortunately, they didn't turn out as we hoped... so we drank some Killians instead.

Time to take a trip in the snow!

Brilliant

Thoughts on private property

I do not believe in the concept of private property... (usually)

and I definitely do not believe in the concept of not sharing.

awesome.

Nice job Connor...

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1tzgw_be-when-the-president-talks-to-god_music

When the president talks to GodAre the conversations brief or long?
Does he ask to rape our women’s rights
And send poor farm kids off to die?
Does God suggest an oil hike
When the president talks to God?

When the president talks to God
Are the consonants all hard or soft?
Is he resolute all down the line?
Is every issue black or white
?Does what God say ever change his mind
When the president talks to God?

When the president talks to God
Does he fake that drawl or merely nod?
Agree which convicts should be killed?
Where prisons should be built and filled?
Which voter fraud must be concealed
When the president talks to God?

When the president talks to God
I wonder which one plays the better cop
We should find some jobs. the ghetto's broke
No, they're lazy, George, I say we don't
Just give 'em more liquor stores and dirty coke
That's what God recommends

When the president talks to God
Do they drink near beer and go play golf
While they pick which countries to invade
Which Muslim souls still can be saved?
I guess god just calls a spade a spade
When the president talks to God

When the president talks to God
Does he ever think that maybe he's not?
That that voice is just inside his head
When he kneels next to the presidential bed
Does he ever smell his own bullshit
When the president talks to God?
I doubt it
I doubt it

Thoughts on taking sides from Thich Nhat Hanh...

"If we take one side, we can't fulfill our task of reconciliation in order to being about peace.

Are there people who can be in touch with both Israelis and Palestinians, Pakistanis and Indians, black and white? Without them, the situation gets worse. There must be people who can get in touch with both sides, understanding the suffering of each, and telling each side about the other. We need people who can help bring meditation and reconciliation to nations in conflict. Can Americans be more than Americans? Can we be people who understand deeply the suffering of both sides? Can we being the message of reconciliation?"

something to think about...

So this is the new year... again...

We had a lovely ringing in of the new year over at the boys with lots of really great company. The boys, Kelly and I, jy's sister, Kelly's cousin, Heather and Brain T.G., Jed and Hannah H.D., Patience and John and then Aaron, Ben, and Kristin.

We danced a lot... drank a lot... laughed a lot... danced some more... had a cheers to the new year, new us.

The girls and I have put a list of new years resolutions on the fridge... things like try more recipes, make dill rice, plant basil/ garlic, love people better, fuck body image concerns, drink more water, laugh more. Those kind of resolutions are fun... and attainable.

If you are looking to take a stand against the violence in Gaza here is how...


January 2-5, 2009

Protests against attacks on Gaza

Friday, January 2, 2009, 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM, Protest Israel's Massacre of Gazans. Ohio Statehouse (Broad St. & High St., Downtown Columbus). For more information contact : Wendy Ake @ 614-595-8650 or wendy.ake@gmail.com. Parking available at meters on streets surrounding Statehouse and parking garage underneath Statehouse Building. Statehouse Parking garage can be accessed from 3rd Street or State Street.
>br? January 2, 2009, 2:30 PM. Cleveland Ohio Protest. Contact Khaled Alabaddi for more info 216-374-7625.

Friday, January 2, 2009, 6:00 PM. Women in Black Vigil. End the vicious cycle of violence!! Bridge on Lane Ave. (West of High St.) Silent vigil (no speakers). Please bring candles and wear some black in mourning for victims of violence. Everyone welcome. For carpooling or more information, contact Connie – 614-531-4146.

Sunday, January 4, 2009, 5:00 PM. End Military Occupations Sunday Night Action. Location: 15th and N. High Street.

Monday, January 5, 2009, 4:30 PM. State of Ohio Public Action at Statehouse. begin gathering infront of it by 4:30pm by 5pm everyone should be there. This Public Action is for the entire state of Ohio and will be HUGE, so spread the word!!! For more information, contact cjp.at.osu@gmail.com6:00-7:00 PM. This vigil is dedicated to protesting the recent escalation of violent attacks on the Gaza Strip that have left nearly 300 people dead in a massacre carried out using U.S. taxpayer-funded weapons. More than 700 people, including women and children, have been injured in the attacks. Everyone is welcome – please wear some black. Bring a sign promoting the power of non-violence (or we will provide one) or expressing solidarity with the people of Gaza.

"promoting the power of non violence and expressing solidarity with the people of Gaza"

Doesn't get much better than that...