Grilled Cheese
October 29, 2011
Who Are The Oppressors?
“If you’re not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.” -Malcolm X
October 23, 2011
Kneel & Kiss The Ground
Orange Stairs flickr photo by The Wandering Angel
“Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.” —Rumi
October 16, 2011
The Pursuit of Truth & Beauty
Children Creating Wonder flickr photo by Peruisay
“The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our lives.” -Albert Einstein
October 15, 2011
Occupy Movement
I may have a job, a paycheck, a roof over my head, and food on the table, but what we all need to realize is that all those things can be taken away in the blink of an eye. That’s what the Occupy Wall Street protesters are saying. Most people who’ve been struggling and fighting their whole lives, who got screwed by the system, never saw it coming either. Things can change so quickly you don’t even have a second to prepare for it, to see it coming, to breathe before you go under water.
Here’s the thing about the Occupy Wall Street/Occupy Chicago/Occupy Together/Occupy Everything movement… It’s about all of us. What most of those 1% don’t realize is that the whole world would be a better place if they listened up to the 99%. It would be a better place for all of us. It would even be a better place for the 1%. Listen UP! Hear what the 99% are saying. This here is important.
The only loan I’ve ever made on Kiva that defaulted was to a woman with a small clothing sales business in Texas. (I’ve made 25 loans to women all over the world.) I see this as a huge problem, and an indicator. How come my lendee in Sudan could pay me back but not my lendee in the United States? What is going on here? Something is very, very wrong with this picture.
Is this really the same place we stood with millions of people watching and hoping and cheering as Obama won the Presidency? Of course it’s the same place, and we’re there for the same reason. It’s about humanity, nothing more, nothing less. Instead of Lennon’s Give Peace A Chance, I want to say Give People A Chance.
Learn More or Get Involved:
http://www.livestream.com/globalrevolution
http://www.facebook.com/OccupyChicago
http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt
October 11, 2011
Why National Coming Out Day Matters
My name is Rachel. I live in a pretty white, kind of boring suburb of Chicago. I work in real estate. My favorite tv show is Project Runway. I like to design beautiful things. I love shoes. I played a bunch of sports in middle school and high school. I was involved in band and club leadership. I always got fantastic grades. I studied politics, international development, Africa, and public communications in college. I lived in South Africa for a few months. I love to travel. I like to hike and camp and be immersed in nature. I have a 4 month old german shorthaired pointer puppy. I’m buying a house with my partner. And I’m gay.
Today is National Coming Out Day, and whether this is the first time you’ve come out to someone or the thousandth time, coming out still matters. Why does it matter? Coming out matters because you never know who’s perceptions you might be changing just by being yourself around them. It matters because we are everywhere and we could be anyone. Not very many people in general fit our stereotypes, so it makes perfect sense that not very many gay people fit the stereotypes. It matters because we all have a lot left to learn.
Photo by Matt Beaty of Northern Arizona News
September 22, 2011
To Bring to Life the Taste of a Cardamom Pod
Cardamom Women by Sarah and Iain on flickr
Wow! I haven’t been here in what seems like forever! Ok, almost a month doesn’t compare to forever, but still.
I stumbled across this post today that suggests you draw your favorite sound, and I kind of fell in love with this idea. I love this concept of giving something a visual that only has a feeling, or vise versa, making someone feel something from solely a visual. This is a kind of art, or design. Every day that I create something on this level I literally feel better, more at ease. It’s awesome.
I have some ideas for this, like I want to draw what Africa feels like. I want to find the exact color of the sun there, because it’s different than the northern hemisphere. I want to draw what my favorite spices taste like – cardamom, coriander, cumin, etc., etc., etc. What would you draw or paint or write or sculpt to make someone feel something?
August 25, 2011
A Girl Can Dream
EmersonMade Fan Leaves Dress
I’m in love with EmersonMade clothes right now. Not that I can afford any of this stuff at the moment, especially with a new puppy in full force and a glimmer of hope at closing soon on a short sale home we’re trying to buy…but a girl can dream.
EmersonMade India Tunic
August 24, 2011
Court Them With Emotional Generosity
“Decide the friends, mentors & leaders you want in your life, in your inner circle, and court them with emotional generosity. Make it matter.” -Gary W. Goldstein
August 21, 2011
Visualize Your Reality
● Welcome to my world ● One in a million ● Different by design ● Reinventing ● Feed your passion ● Bring joy to people ● Plan to be inspired ● Make dreams happen ● No limits ● Possibilities ● Imagination ● The ultimate renewable resource ● Next-generation ● The road less traveled ● Collaborate Innovate Inspire ● A philosophy of living ● Explore unexpected places ● Add a new ingredient ●
I made these panels are few weeks ago. They are clippings from magazines glued on to canvas. I like to visualize things the way I want them to be, and I also like to put things together in a design that looks beautiful. I could spend hours, even days, making these if I’m in the right mood.
I believe in visualization as a powerful tool, but not in the way of The Secret. In fact, I think the Law of Attraction is basically crap. J.D. Roth at Get Rich Slowly offers a good explanation of how The Secret is a bunch of baloney. Do I think you have a better chance of getting what you want if you have a clear picture of it in your mind? Yes. Do I believe that’s all it takes? No.
The type of visualization I believe in is more in the vein of the Zen Basketball concepts Phil Jackson, former coach of the Chicago Bulls, describes in his book Sacred Hoops: Spiritual Lessons of a Hardwood Warrior. I played basketball from about 2nd grade until my sophomore year of high school, and this was during the 90s and the heyday of Bulls Championships and the phenomena known as Michael Jordan. So it was quite a few years ago that I read Jackson’s book, but his descriptions of team-building and how spiritual direction can lead you to success on the court stuck with me.
Everything in basketball happens so fast. You have to be able to get clear in your mind and be very present in the moment to have any chance at producing a successful outcome. This is where meditation and visualization come in handy. Meditation can allow you to clear your thoughts of all the junk. To quiet your mind. This is very much a tenant of Buddhism. When you are able to get a clear headspace, you suddenly have room for the important stuff to come find you. The next step is to visualize the reality that you want. It might be driving down the center of the lane in the heat of a playoff game. It might be that job you’ve always wanted and know you’d be better at than anyone else around. Whatever it is you need to picture it like it’s already reality. But here’s the important part. The work does not stop there. This isn’t The Secret. You don’t get to just visualize checks coming to your mailbox, sit back, relax, and get rich quick. You have to then go out and make the things you’ve visualized happen. The key is action. All of the visualization in the world isn’t going to get you what you want out of life unless you combine it with preparation and determination. You have to make it happen.
“Our own life is the instrument with which we experiment with the truth.” -Thich Nhat Hanh
adventurati 