:::magickal meanderings:::

It is now 2008. 2+8=10 1+0=1

all-is-one — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 02:20:05 GMT

1=The beginning, 10=the end. It seems to me that this year will bring much completion, finality, and closure to that which we have been striving for and lay fertile soil in which we can plant new seeds. I am also undergoing my 29th revolution around the sun. Yup. It's saturn return time, folks. In the first week after my 28th birthday I started to feel it. Everything I have neglected to look at in myself is becoming so readily apparent that sometimes, I feel like I am walking around with a giant mirror strapped to my face. Ya know? So anywho, I found this while browsing a friend of a friend's blog and it really struck a chord for me. I thought some of you might appreciate it as well: Now is the time... A time comes in your life when you finally get it . . . When in the midst of all your fears and insanity you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out - ENOUGH! Enough fighting and crying or struggling to hold on. And, like a child quieting down after a blind tantrum, your sobs begin to subside, you shudder once or twice, you blink back your tears and through a mantle of wet lashes you begin to look at the world through new eyes. This is your awakening. You realize that it's time to stop hoping and waiting for something to change or for happiness, safety and security to come galloping over the next horizon. You come to terms with the fact that he is not Prince Charming or she is not Cinderella and that in the real world there aren't always fairy tale endings (or beginnings for that matter) and that any guarantee of "happily ever after" must begin with you and in the process a sense of serenity is born ofacceptance. And there's nothin wrong with being single too. I love it most of the time. But it gets lonely too. You awaken to the fact that you are not perfect and that not everyone will always love, appreciate or approve of who or what you are . . . and that's OK. (They are entitled to their own views and opinions.) And you learn the importance of loving and championing yourself and in the process a sense of new found confidence is born of self-approval. You stop bitching and blaming other people for the things they did to you (or didn't do for you) and you learn that the only thing you can really count on is the unexpected. You learn that people don't always say what they mean or mean what they say and that not everyone will always be there for you and that it's not always about you. So, you learn to stand on your own and to take care of yourself and in the process a sense of safety & security is born of self-reliance. You stop judging and pointing fingers and you begin to accept people as they are and to overlook their shortcomings and human frailties and in the process a sense of peace & contentment is born of forgiveness. You realize that much of the way you view yourself, and the world around you, is as a result of all the messages and opinions that have been ingrained into your psyche. And you begin to sift through all the crap you've been fed about how you should behave, how you should look and how much you should weigh, what you should wear and where you should shop and what you should drive, how and where you should live and what you should do for a living, who you should marry and what you should expect of a marriage, the importance of having and raising children or what you owe your parents. You learn to open up to new worlds and different points of view. And you begin reassessing and redefining who you are and what you really stand for. You learn the difference between wanting and needing and you begin to discard the doctrines and values you've outgrown, or should never have bought into to begin with and in the process you learn to go with your instincts. You learn that it is truly in giving that we receive. And that there is power and glory in creating and contributing and you stop maneuvering through life merely as a "consumer" looking for your next fix. Your learn that principles such as honesty and integrity are not the outdated ideals of a bygone era but the mortar that holds together the foundation upon which you must build a life. You learn that you don't know everything; it's not your job to save the world and that you can't teach a pig to sing. You learn to distinguish between guilt and responsibility and the importance of setting boundaries and learning to say NO. You learn that the only cross to bear is the one you choose to carry and that martyrs get burned at the stake. Then you learn about love. Romantic love and familial love. How to love, how much to give in love, when to stop giving and when to walk away. You learn not to project your needs or your feelings onto a relationship. You learn that you will not be more beautiful, more intelligent, more lovable or important because of who is on your arm or the child that bears your name. You learn to look at relationships as they really are and not as you would have them be. You stop trying to control people, situations and outcomes. You learn that just as people grow and change so it is with love. . . and you learn that you don't have the right to demand love on your terms just to make you happy. And, you learn that alone does not mean lonely . . . And you look in the mirror and come to terms with the fact that you will never be a size 5 or a perfect 7 and you stop trying to compete with the image inside your head and agonizing over how you "stack up." You also stop working so hard at putting your feelings aside, smoothing things over and ignoring your needs. You learn that feelings of entitlement are perfectly OK . . . . and that it is your right to want things and to ask for the things that you want and that sometimes it is necessary to make demands. You come to the realization that you deserve to be treated with love, kindness, sensitivity and respect and you won't settle for less. And, you allow only the hands of a lover who cherishes you to glorify you with their touch . . . and in the process you internalize the meaning of self-respect. And you learn that your body really is your temple. And you begin to care of it and treat it with respect. You learn that fatigue diminishes the spirit and can create doubt and fear. So you take more time to rest. And, just as food fuels the body, laughter fuels our soul. So you take more time to laugh and to play. You learn, that for the most part, in life you get what you believe you deserve . . . and that much of life truly is a self-fulfilling prophecy. You learn that anything worth achieving is worth working for and that wishing for something to happen is different from working toward making it happen. More importantly, you learn that in order to achieve success you need direction, discipline and perseverance. You also learn that no one can do it all alone and that it's OK to risk asking for help. You learn that the only thing you must truly fear is the great robber baron of all time. FEAR itself. You learn to step right into and through your fears because you know that whatever happens you can handle it and to give in to fear is to give away the right to live life on your terms. And you learn to fight for your life and not to squander it living under a cloud of impending doom. You learn that life isn't always fair, you don't always get what you think you deserve and that sometimes bad things happen to unsuspecting, good people. On these occasions you learn not to personalize things. You learn that your deity isn't punishing you or failing to answer your prayers. It's just life happening. And you learn to deal with evil in its most primal state - the ego. You learn that negative feelings such as anger, envy and resentment must be understood and redirected or they will suffocate the life out of you and poison the universe that surrounds you. You learn to admit when you are wrong and to build bridges instead of walls. You learn to be thankful and to take comfort in many of the simple things we take for granted, things that millions of people upon the earth can only dream about; a full refrigerator, clean running water, a soft warm bed, a long hot shower. Slowly, you begin to take responsibility for yourself by yourself, and you make yourself a promise to never betray yourself and to never ever settle for less than your heart's desire. And you hang a wind chime outside your window so you can listen to the wind. And you make it a point to keep smiling, to keep trusting and to stay open to every wonderful possibility. Finally, with courage in your heart and a renewed spirit you take a stand, you take a deep breath and you begin to design the life you want and begin to live as best as you can. ~Sonny Carroll~

SIFF project: call for Filmmakers and Editors

all-is-one — Thu, 03 May 2007 23:35:57 GMT

Hey all, myself, along with climate activist Phil Mitchell and filmmaker Amy Burgess are partnering with SIFF on a really cool project. If you're interested in having your work screened before films at SIFF and/or you are stoked on working towards solutions to climate change, have a look at the call and let me know if you're interested in participating! Our first meeting will be next Thursday, May 10. :::Call for videographers, editors and filmmakers: SIFF Climate Dialogues::: Want to use your video skills to help stop global warming? Want your work screened at SIFF? The Greater Seattle Climate Dialogues is partnering with SIFF this year to turn the festival into a dialogue about the climate. We will have videographers at every venue interviewing people and capturing climate pledges and conversation. These clips will be screened throughout the festival, so the festival can listen in on itself. To make this unique event happen, we need a pool of videographers and interviewers. We also need finishing editors. Earn SIFF credits, filmmaker passes, get exposure and know that you're participating in a project to help the planet. We need you! And it's going to be a blast ... Please contact me here or via email if you'd like to get involved. The SIFF Climate Dialogues is part of the Greater Seattle Climate Dialogues, a year-long, community-based campaign of learning and dialogue about the keystone sustainability issue of our time.

Free Yoga... yaaaay!

all-is-one — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 06:38:44 GMT

Hello my dear friends. Welcome to spring! I am certainly feeling the blossoming of a new time. With that comes a desire to further activate- to stretch and bloom like the crocuses... I do have a daily yoga practice that I have been keeping for the past year, but spring brought with it a desire to do more. So I did a little investigating and found some really cool online yoga videos. The first is http://www.yogatoday.com - a free HD yoga class daily. This one is mostly ashtanga based and will definitely kick you into high gear! The second, and my most favoritist is http://www.myyogadaily.com which is basically yoga on demand. They have a whole bunch of practices, mostly hatha, for all levels. They also have pilates, meditations and some office yoga- which has been keeping the aches in my editing back to a minimum! This one is a paid subscription, but it's only $10/month (less than 1 class) and I am sooo digging it. They sent me a promo code today that allows you to try it for free for a week. I thought I'd share it with all y'all cuz I am really great~full for these practices and I thought some of you might enjoy it as well. The promo code is MYR1356 and all you have to do is enter it on the JOIN NOW page in the Promotional Code Box. And just so ya know, I don't get anything from this 'cept for some hottie patattie friends in their yoga groove =) Ok, over and under and down-dog and out.

No Polar Bears Were Harmed in the Making of this Video...

all-is-one — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 05:19:39 GMT

http://truths.treehugger.com/video/i_am_a_climate_activist.php Vote for us!!! Give us 5 Leafs! Pretty pretty please? With polar bear poo on top? As you may or may not know, I submitted an entry to the treehugger.com "Convenient Truths" video contest. The objective was to make a pragmatic, inspiring, 1-2 minute video outlining practical solutions to global warming. I shot and edited the video and Amy Burgess did the animations. Phil Mitchell, real life climate activist and founder of http://www.2People.org wrote the whole thing and was our on-camera talent. There were 80+ submissions and the top 20 go on to the next round of voting, which means they get seen by the fabulous panel of celebrity judges which include Ariana Huffington, Daryl Hannah, Paul Hawkins, Perry Ferrel, John Fleuvog and a host of other lovelies. The voting ends at midnight on Tuesday (which is today). We are currently in the top 20 but we need your votes to help us sail on into the next round of voting! Our video is pretty dern good if I do say so myself. So please take 2 minutes, go check out our video and give us a big ol' 5-leaf rating. You might find some inspiration there while you're at it... http://truths.treehugger.com/video/i_am_a_climate_activist.php *muah* Y'all are the best!

A Blessing for the New Year

all-is-one — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 18:06:05 GMT

http://one.revver.com/watch/130262/flv/affiliate/26718 Well, I'm off to Canadia for Intention in a matter of moments... I'm getting excited! But before I go, I just wanted to share with you all the video I made in gratitude for all that you are and all that you do. It's a slight twist on the old classic, Sarod Lang Syne, with a collage of imagery from a shoot I did two days ago and also from my trip to India and Thailand. Yes, that's right. I finally dug the footage out of the archives! I think I was resisting because up until this point, the memories were a bit too tender. But I think I've healed all that. I feel like a new person, having made safe passage through to the other side I am ready to face 2007 with open, yet discerning arms. May you find beauty. love. radiance. abundance in the new year. Blessed Be! http://videogallixsee.blogspot.com/2006/12/blessings-and-laughter-for-new-year.html

...:::this emergent culture:::...

all-is-one — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 01:30:32 GMT

Call us what you like: intentional dance culture, neo~tribalists, emergent culture, evolutionaries, ravers, zippies, neo~hippies, feather mafia- while there is no agreed upon term to define the (r)evolutionary culture we are co~creating, one fact stands crystalline and clear: we are doing something truly different. Having worked with Anthropologist and filmmaker Jeronimo this summer on his ethnographic film about our culture, I have been doing a lot of thinking about the way that we define and identify ourselves, both from an internal and external perspective. It's mind-boggling to even begin to categorize all of the experiences I have had with the beautiful participants in the west coast underground dance culture, so I'll save the full download for a later time. One question I'd love for you to ponder on this note, though: how do you explain your community, your tribe, your lifestyle to outsiders? I've always found myself at a loss for words when trying to really capture the essence of this tribe in words. Perhaps images will do a better job. We'll find out next summer when Jeronimo's film is released... The real reason I'm writing this is because for the past, oh say 6 months (maybe more?), my dear friend (and yours!) Cinnamon Twist has been passionately filtering, compiling, embellishing, and otherwise collecting ALL of the juiciest tidbits relating to our (nameless) culture on his emergent information portal, E Blips. For those who don't know, Eblips began as an email newsletter, sent out now and then to the lucky crew in-the-know. It was one of those emails that I looked forward to and always read thoroughly to catch up on the latest events, stories, publications and tidbits from the West Coast Krew. Somehow, Twist knew it all. And if you were lucky, he shared it with you. After much coersion from friends and community, Twist decided to turn his humble little newsletter into a much wider-spectrum endeavor. And hence, emerged Eblips.net: emergent cultural metafilter. This is the absolute best resource online that I've found ANYWHERE for all the info on books, films, events, workshops, gossip, etc from our culture. Twist does all the work for us. I don't know if many of you know about it- I read it almost daily and find myself inspired and informed by nearly everything he posts. Seriously, check it out. I'll bet you'll say to yourself (like I did),"self, why didn't I know about this until now?!" http://www.eblips.net

Queen of the VLOG

all-is-one — Thu, 13 Jul 2006 00:49:55 GMT

I'm not so sure I'm the queen just yet, but that remains to be seen... but I've done it now. I've finally started a Vlog, the Video gALLIxSEE: http://www.videogallixsee.blogspot.com . I've been wanting to do it for so long now but just haven't found the time. So here it is. I'm working on importing and editing a bunch of my footage from Thailand and India so check back for some of those fun things. I also have started posting my email travelogues from my trip along with photos on a separate blog, image~ination: http://www.image-ination.blogspot.com . I know, I know, another travelogue. I thought that too when I was writing it. But I had so many people respond to my entries saying that they were touched and inspired that I thought I would make the journal available to others as well, and this time with pictures so no one thinks I am making this all up... Hope you're all doing well and working those creative muscles regularly... ~A~

Onward to Thailand and India I go...

all-is-one — Wed, 22 Feb 2006 22:49:41 GMT

Yup, that's right. I leave the mighty USofA for the land of Smiles in less than 10 hours. James and I are flying to Bangkok to laze around for a couple of days and adjust to the time change before diving in to the beautiful chaos and craziness of Kolkata, India. I am still in shock that I'm actually leaving today. Ohmygoddess... I have travel butterflies in my stomach. I think I'm a travel addict. No really. Being away from my comfort zone and my familliar culture and my native language gets me off. There is nothing I love more in the world than foreign cuisines, landscapes and customs~ being away allows me to be more myself. Is that strange? So from Kolkata we take a train to Siligury in the NE for Deepayan and Gina's wedding. After the wedding our itinerary is tentative, but right now we're hoping to head up to Sikkim, a Tibetan Buddhist enclave nestled at the base of the Himalayas between Nepal and Bhutan. From there, we'll do the 48 hour train haul to Rajasthan in the NW and then another crazy train ride to the Southern tip of the country to chill in Kerala for a week. We fly out of Kolkata to Bangkok exactly one month after our arrival and we have 8 days in Thailand to do some serious beach bumming. I can't wait to get under the water again to swim with the fishies! *whew* I know it sounds crazy. It is, actually, but for some reason I think its all gonna be just perfect. Who knows where we'll actually end up. It's the journey that matters, really, not so much the destination. I'll probably be posting occasional updates here... if yer interested. I'm bringing a small video camera and James is bringing his DAT so we should have some delightful media magick to share when we return. Creation and Travel and Love all together in one lovely little trip. Does life get any better than that? Oh, and I thought I would just let y'all know, as well, that I got my website up and running. It's in its development stages still, but there's a little bit of fun content there and I would love some feedback-- the url: http://www.gallixsee.com ~ check it out and let me know what ya think! Much love to all of you. I'll be sending some sunshine and South Indian Cuisine deliciousness in your direction very soon now... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

::More Digital Representations of Real~ity::

all-is-one — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 02:39:20 GMT

I posted a bunch of photos in my gallery... mostly from my trip to the Southwest in, uh, SEPTEMBER (?!) Quite a time lapse, but I thought that perhaps images of the warm desert sun might go a long way towards brightening up these increasingly dark winter days... I do hope they warm you up just a bit...

::Super News!!!::

all-is-one — Sat, 10 Dec 2005 02:57:50 GMT

If this isn't the greatest cure for the winter blues, I'm not sure even a S.A.D. light will help you. =) This is the animated political news cartoon from Current TV, Al Gore's new Cable Network Television station. If you haven't checked out current yet, this is a great reason to do so... Ha! I'm still laughing about Pat Robertson's conversation with the hippy Jesus... http://www.current.tv/pods/supernews/

Argh...

all-is-one — Wed, 02 Nov 2005 22:52:19 GMT

Last night while I slept a slimy crackhead fukker weaseled his way into my car (parked directly below my window thankyou very much) and stole my laptop out of it. He left a mess and everything else behind, but he took my beloved G3 Pismo (which I had totally forgotten was in there) with all of my photos from my travels to Central America on it... sad. I feel violated. =( If any of you happen to come across a G3 Pismo (the best computer Apple ever made)~ they are the black Powerbook models that came out before the shiny silver ones~ for sale on craigslist or in a pawn shop around Seattle or what have you, would you be so kind as to let me know? If it helps, there were cute little butterfly stickers on the edge of the screen and one of Nemo's beautiful eye in the hand stickers on the keyboard. May it be returned to me quickly. Thanks to all of you for helping me find it =)

::fabulous secret powers::

all-is-one — Wed, 26 Oct 2005 19:46:07 GMT

They say laughter is the best medicine... and last night I was really f-ing sick until I saw this: http://www.whoomp.com/articles/163/1/He-Man-does-4-non-blondes If this doesn't give you a good belly laugh, I can't think of much that will. Hooray for random humour. =)

::taking flight::

all-is-one — Thu, 20 Oct 2005 21:43:34 GMT

WOW. I just watched Jacques Perrin's Winged Migration last night. Can I say WOW again? I don't know why I waited so long to see this one. For the entirety of the film, my jaw was hovering just above the floor. What grace, beauty, and determination our winged friends have to share. What really got me was the equal level of commitment and innovation necessary to make a film like this. Watching the making of featurette absolutely inspired me. For a long time I have felt frustrated with filmmaking, feeling that the intense amount of time and energy necessary to make a film never seemed worth it. I have argued with countless filmmakers about the beauty of reality unfolding and the value of spontinaety. But here, for the first time in my experience, is a film that manages to incorporate both- the determination and fierce passion of true filmmaking with the spark and surprises of real life. Did I already say I'm inspired? Oh, I guess I did. Well I am. Guess it's my turn now to do something with all this inspiration. hmmmm... What films have inspired you to dig deeper, go further, see the world in a new way? I've got a netflix account just crying out for more inspiring films to add to my queue...

-->The HIGHEST Bridge in the World<--

all-is-one — Tue, 04 Oct 2005 22:56:35 GMT

yes, I walked across it. no, I didn't need anyone to hold my hand. it's funny, I always thought of myself as someone who had an above-average fear of heights, but for some reason, when I was 1,200 feet high above the royal gorge canyon in Colorado, I felt exhilarated. full of life. i was like a little kid, running back and forth, peering cautiously over the edge, snapping pictures of the breathtaking drop and skipping up and down while nervous onlookers gripped their partners all the more tightly. tee-hee. I'll post more pics in my gallery when I get a moment to upload 'em from the road. funny what we learn when we do the things we fear most...

Yoga Snobs

all-is-one — Fri, 23 Sep 2005 03:21:15 GMT

So I finally pulled myself out of bed early this morning, all excited to finally do a yoga class in Seattle at a for now unnamed Capitol Hill Yoga 'boutique'. Geez... I thought LA studios were snobby. No one returned my smile, the receptionist appeared to have a pickle in her downward facing dog and I got the distinct feeling that my teacher thought that only people who knew her particular brand of sun salutations should be allowed in her classroom. Has anyone else noticed that EVERY teacher does sun salutations differently? Gosh, guess I'll take my $15 elsewhere... To her credit, the teacher was actually pretty good- I learned a lot from her and she actually instructed instead of just leading the class. But holy omnamahshivaya, could you go easy on the attitude people? We're supposed to be 'spiritual' here! It's been awhile since I took a yoga class in the US. Has Yoga been demoted to an elitist hobby like polo or low-carb dieting? I guess I didn't get the memo that dictated you have to be 5'8", 120 with perfect hair at 9am and impeccable chattarunga to attend a yoga class. So does anyone know of a small(ish), more down-to-earth yoga studio in the capitol hill vicinity? I'd like to kick my practice back into high gear, but hold the pickles please. =)

New Orleans Afloat...

all-is-one — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 23:21:35 GMT

*sigh* such a tradgedy it is, when mother nature bares her kali teeth, leaving death and destruction in her wake. my first comment when i heard of the caliber of destruction was, "well folks, looks like we're coming up here on the end times". but don't take my word for it... that was just a knee jerk reaction. I got a fantastic link this morning from current.tv to a firsthand video account of civilian rescuers in New Orleans. If you care to see a bit of the destruction sans the media propaganda that goes with it, check this out: http://current.tv/blog/items/401941.htm In the aftermath of this tradgedy, many important questions are being raised... this article which I also received this morning is very interesting. read it and draw your own conclusions: ************************************************************ From Molly Ivins, Creators Syndicate September 1, 2005 AUSTIN, Texas -- Like many of you who love New Orleans, I find myself taking short mental walks there today, turning a familiar corner, glimpsing a favorite scene, square or vista. And worrying about the beloved friends and the city, and how they are now. To use a fine Southern word, it's tacky to start playing the blame game before the dead are even counted. It is not too soon, however, to make a point that needs to be hammered home again and again, and that is that government policies have real consequences in people's lives. This is not "just politics" or blaming for political advantage. This is about the real consequences of what governments do and do not do about their responsibilities. And about who winds up paying the price for those policies. This is a column for everyone in the path of Hurricane Katrina who ever said, "I'm sorry, I'm just not interested in politics," or, "There's nothing I can do about it," or, "Eh, they're all crooks anyway." Nothing to do with me, nothing to do with my life, nothing I can do about any of it. Look around you this morning. I suppose the National Rifle Association would argue, "Government policies don't kill people, hurricanes kill people." Actually, hurricanes plus government policies kill people. One of the main reasons New Orleans is so vulnerable to hurricanes is the gradual disappearance of the wetlands on the Gulf Coast that once stood as a natural buffer between the city and storms coming in from the water. The disappearance of those wetlands does not have the name of a political party or a particular administration attached to it. No one wants to play, "The Democrats did it," or, "It's all Reagan's fault." Many environmentalists will tell you more than a century's interference with the natural flow of the Mississippi is the root cause of the problem, cutting off the movement of alluvial soil to the river's delta. But in addition to long-range consequences of long-term policies like letting the Corps of Engineers try to build a better river than God, there are real short-term consequences, as well. It is a fact that the Clinton administration set some tough policies on wetlands, and it is a fact that the Bush administration repealed those policies--ordering federal agencies to stop protecting as many as 20 million acres of wetlands. Last year, four environmental groups cooperated on a joint report showing the Bush administration's policies had allowed developers to drain thousands of acres of wetlands. Does this mean we should blame President Bush for the fact that New Orleans is underwater? No, but it means we can blame Bush when a Category 3 or Category 2 hurricane puts New Orleans under. At this point, it is a matter of making a bad situation worse, of failing to observe the First Rule of Holes (when you're in one, stop digging). Had a storm the size of Katrina just had the grace to hold off for a while, it's quite likely no one would even remember what the Bush administration did two months ago. The national press corps has the attention span of a gnat, and trying to get anyone in Washington to remember longer than a year ago is like asking them what happened in Iznik, Turkey, in A.D. 325. Just plain political bad luck that, in June, Bush took his little ax and chopped $71.2 million from the budget of the New Orleans Corps of Engineers, a 44 percent reduction. As was reported in New Orleans CityBusiness at the time, that meant "major hurricane and flood projects will not be awarded to local engineering firms. Also, a study to determine ways to protect the region from a Category 5 hurricane has been shelved for now." The commander of the corps' New Orleans district also immediately instituted a hiring freeze and canceled the annual corps picnic. Our friends at the Center for American Progress note the Office of Technology Assessment used to produce forward-thinking plans such as "Floods: A National Policy Concern" and "A Framework for Flood Hazards Management." Unfortunately, the office was targeted by Newt Gingrich and the Republican right, and gutted years ago. In fact, there is now a governmentwide movement away from basing policy on science, expertise and professionalism, and in favor of choices based on ideology. If you're wondering what the ideological position on flood management might be, look at the pictures of New Orleans--it seems to consist of gutting the programs that do anything. Unfortunately, the war in Iraq is directly related to the devastation left by the hurricane. About 35 percent of Louisiana's National Guard is now serving in Iraq, where four out of every 10 soldiers are guardsmen. Recruiting for the Guard is also down significantly because people are afraid of being sent to Iraq if they join, leaving the Guard even more short-handed. The Louisiana National Guard also notes that dozens of its high-water vehicles, Humvees, refuelers and generators have also been sent abroad. (I hate to be picky, but why do they need high-water vehicles in Iraq?) This, in turn, goes back to the original policy decision to go into Iraq without enough soldiers and the subsequent failure to admit that mistake and to rectify it by instituting a draft. The levees of New Orleans, two of which are now broken and flooding the city, were also victims of Iraq war spending. Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, said on June 8, 2004, "It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq." This, friends, is why we need to pay attention to government policies, not political personalities, and to know whereon we vote. It is about our lives. ---------- Molly Ivins is a syndicated columnist based in Washington. ************************************************************* One last point I would like to raise is that of the blanket acceptance of the red cross as THE organization to send relief funds to. I have heard over the years many stories of how the red cross failed to distribute or even release funds to the places where they were most needed. I also have a friend who, after starting a red cross chapter in her town, told me that she would NEVER give relief moneys to the red cross because she knew that at least 50% of it would get caught up in the "red hole"; beauracracy, politics, and inefficient, ineffective administration. So does anyone know of a more reliable charity that one could give money to for disaster relief? Many blesssings to you all. I give thanks that we are here and well enough to be browsing tribe on our computers, but I know full well that this kind of disaster could strike anytime, anywhere. So Instead of being consumed by fear that this could someday happen to me, I choose instead to be grateful for today and to send love and light to those who have been affected by the storm.

I WANT MY OLD TRIBE BACK!!!

all-is-one — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 18:47:02 GMT

arghhhhh. i woke up all bleary-eyed, ready to get to work... right after, of course, i log in to my favorite place in the whole of cyberspace and *BAM!* what is this? banner ads on my friends listing? banner ads in the third pane of my beloved tribes? and what is this piss~yellow cast that has marred my beautiful tribes list? someone at tribe ate too many vitamins before breakfast. i was wondering why tribe was so sloooooooow yesterday. hmph. i'm irked. if you are too, you can publicly show your distaste for the new, improved sleezy version of tribe.net by joining here: tribes.tribe.net/thistotallysucks lest you think that i do not understand that it takes money to run a for-profit business (i studied marketing for three years, after all), i thought i would re-post the letter i sent to Wade, the tribe.net marketing director: Dear Wade, What oh what have you done with our beloved tribe?!?!?!?!? I do understand the need to make things profitable in a capitalist society, and that is the reason I politely click on the skyscraper ads on the side from time to time, even though they annoy me like crazy and take up monitor real estate that could be used to display purdy pictures of my friends and cool places people have traveled to. But ads in the third pane of every tribe thread??? You've got to be loony. The tribes are the heart and soul of this place. We bare our hearts and souls in these tribes. We share recipes, gossip, confess deep crushes, cry on friends' shoulders and discuss deeply personal, highly relevant topics here on tribe. Capitalizing on that makes many of us loyal tribe users feel very very betrayed. I feel like I've been stabbed in the back by my best friend. I stopped using friendster for this very reason; I had to scroll through ads to get to the message pane to send a friend an email. I think that if you leave these ads in place, many loyal (and might I add, vehemently anti-capitalist) users will go elsewhere for their networking adventures. Have you seen the number of members in the burning man tribe? Are you aware of your target market? This feels very much like the Coca-Cola corporation showing up on the playa and putting billboards up around black rock city. If that happened, Burning Man would die very quickly. Please Please Please... find another (more creative) way to bring in revenue to Tribe.net . Or at the very least, try and attract more interesting, conscious, holistic-related sponsors for these highly intrusive ads. I don't think many of us are going to be clicking on circuit city or Phoenix University ads anytime soon. The ads just don't appeal to us. I would be willing to bet that if you appealed to the tribe.net members for help, you would be overwhelmed with the ideas and even financial support you would find. We love TRIBE! Thank you kindly for your attention to this matter! Many blessings, All~is~one

ooooh! lookie here! somebody thinks i'm sexy!

all-is-one — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 23:27:08 GMT

i've been chosen for one of the most prestigious awards on tribe... the (temporary) avatar for the sexiest smile tribe! heheh. ok, well it's not really an award, but i thought it was awfully sweet, anyway. thanks, miss temptress for bestowing upon me such a high honour! http://tribes.tribe.net/sexiest-smile

::girrrrl, he's just not that into you::

all-is-one — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 03:22:10 GMT

ok, so after many years of allowing men to walk all over me, drink from the nectar of my body and then never call again, string me along like a puppy dog, engage me in ridiculous mind games and otherwise disrespect the temple that is all-is-one, it finally hit me: I AM A GODDESS! I DESERVE MORE!!! this revelation came to me while sitting on the cliffs overlooking the magickal lago de atitlan in guatemala, and after pondering the ramifications of this realization, i decided to test the waters. that night, i found myself in a situation with a beautiful man who wanted more than i was willing to give. i stopped him mid-kiss and looked him in the eyes and said, "i am a goddess and a priestess. i deserve to be treated as such." heheh. i'm not sure if he understood exactly what i was talking about, but he dropped his hot and heavy act right then and commenced sweet, gentle cuddle mode. we snuggled and fell asleep in each others' arms and woke up and made breakfast together. he still writes to me regularly... anywho. my point in all of this meandering is that we as women have a responsibility to stand up for what we deserve. that is different for each and every one of us, but the concept is always the same. if a man doesn't call you, doesn't kiss you softly, doesn't look at you with that little spark in his eye, HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU, as Greg Behrendt, author of "He's just not that into you" would say. It's as simple as that. Let it go. Seek a man who IS into you. There are sooooo many out there who would be blessed to have you in their lives! So on that note, i started a lil' tribe for exactly this purpose~ women (and men) supporting each other in standing up for what they deserve. Come and join and have a part in raising the standard for how we relate to each other in our intimate encounters: http://tribes.tribe.net/hesjustnotthatintoyou i love you all!!!

::tonight we're gonna partay like it's the best night of our lives::

all-is-one — Fri, 29 Jul 2005 20:53:13 GMT

yup, that's right. we're throwin' down big time tonight, folks. and all y'all best be gittin' yer lil' arses over here for the biggest blingity bling fling of the summer. two sound systems. good food. more beautiful people (inside and out!) than you can shake yer magick wand at. fire galore. musica by: UP>>>>Michael Manahan::CoryM::Yuba::Shapeshifter>>> DOWN>>Osiris Indriya::Waater::Advent::Amanita>> ::hip hop::breaks::funky::house::downbeat::world:: bring yer own libations. we'll provide the mixers. located at the goddess temple fountain house in the C.D. if ya don't know where it is, message me and i'll send you the address. 9pm til 5am... come decked in your finest blingear and ready to rock out. it's gonna be a soiree of epic proportions. see ya tonight!

doing the abunDANCE

all-is-one — Thu, 28 Jul 2005 21:10:36 GMT

*sigh* why does it always seem to come down to : SHOW ME THE MONEY?? i have had four different friends call me in the last week to discuss their relationship woes. not sure when i became the expert on how to deal with rocky rides, but that's beside the point. what i've noticed, however, from all said accounts, is that MONEY is a commonality amongst of all my friends' relationship turmoil. it seems that financial struggles are one of the dilemmas that we as magickal beings in the world of the muggles have yet to master. in talking to my friends, i have heard many of them say that it is money and money alone which puts stress on an otherwise healthy, harmonious relationship. many times this worry manifests itself in other forms like power struggles or gender role issues. but really, what it all boils down to is how food is getting put in the fridge. if you're familliar with maslow's hierarchy of needs, a fundamental psychological theory from psych 101, you know that if basic needs such as food, shelter, and water are not being met, other higher level needs such as emotional stability, creation of community and self-actualization (the realm of creativity and innovation) are automatically tabled. thus, under the stress of rent not being paid, an empty pantry, or hungry children, we as artists, visionaries, and creators are unable to truly do our jobs and thus bring in a stable income. it's a giant catch-22. i personally count my lucky stars that i've been able to manifest abundance in my life on a regular basis. i'm not sure how i got dealt those cards, but i do know that since i left the parental nest 7 years ago i have fought the battle with lack of resources and for the most part, come out victorious. of course i still have the occasional bout of "holy shit rent is due in 3 days and i only have $100 in my bank account", but on almost every occasion, i have managed to do a little hokey-pokey with a sprinkle of ritual magick and come out ahead. so i thought i would share with y'all a few of my recipes for abundance and a couple borrowed from other friends. i was telling my friend last night that what seems to work best in all instances for me is a constant giving of thanks for what i DO have and a sending of blessings to those who don't have. after all, if you can give it away, you must have it in the first place. here is a link to a thread in the prosperity tribe where madame7 talks about a little charm she has created using tonka beans and intention. i also shared in this thread a little about my work with sex magick and sigils: http://seattle.tribe.net/thread/8e7c1ff2-99a2-4114-8305-f16de8a768c6?tribeid=b7ca7473-77a7-4b60-ae0c-7a3636787830&r=10302 another fantastic idea for using physical action to bring an abundant consciousness into 3-d reality is the blessed bucks money spell, posted by harley in the wicca tribe. i just read this one yesterday and i'm going out to get me some blessed onesies and try this today. i'll let you know how it goes. http://seattle.tribe.net/thread/dd8cc83b-13ce-4eaf-8127-9bcc4abf1ceb?tribeid=31920906-b704-48e2-b139-2c265151e190&r=10302 may you find abundant beauty, prosperity, and harmony in all that you do!

on brides and blind tradition...

all-is-one — Mon, 11 Jul 2005 02:33:48 GMT

as you may (not) know, i work in the summers as a wedding videographer and assistant photographer. it's not as bad as you might think. i actually love the work. couldn't ask for a more flexible, varied jobscape or more interesting, creative coworkers either. but that's not what this is about. nor is this about the institution of marriage. i'll save that rant for another day. this is about the empty traditions that we perpetuate as a culture. the blind faith that we have in the ceremonies that our grandparents and their parents instituted as meaningful illustrations of their time and cultural norms which are now archaic and devoid of any ritualistic intention. what better illustration of this phenomenon than the traditional american wedding? take, for example, the cake cut. do you know how much a wedding cake goes for these days? the bride (or her parents) spend a week's salary on an immaculately decorated, tirelessly tiered, sugar~stuffed confection only to painstakingly cut two slices and then unpolitely smear said slices all over each others' faces. it's fun, yes. but is it worth all the planning and the time and the money for such an empty tradition? i guess maybe i'm a bit jaded because i see these things at least once a week and i get tired of having to rush around trying to anticipate where the best man is going to stand to deliver his inevitably beer-coated and insightless toast or which door the bride and groom are going to make their overanticipated grand entry through. perhaps these traditions do have meaning to someone? grandma perhaps? but on the day where we publicly announce our commitment to another do we really want to play it out in a style that will please only our more traditional relatives? i could go on and on about the things i've seen when stressed out brides and control freak grooms collide with caterers, photographers and wedding planners. but that's not really my point here either. my point is that i believe we can create new traditions in all of our ceremonies. traditions that have personal meaning. rituals that bring light to our deepest intentions instead of continuing in the vein of our hegemonous society's expectations. what if the bride and groom cocreated their own ceremony, their own vows, their own post-celebration? what if instead of a stuffy standstill ceremony the entire union ritual was performed as a dance? what if instead of an expensive cake baked by a faceless cook the mother of the bride baked her favorite cookies and the groom's mom baked his and they fed each other their childhood sweet treats? i dunno. just an idea. this could extend far beyond weddings, too. baby showers, funerals, bachelor parties, coming of age celebrations and various graduation ceremonies could become infinitely more meaningful and goddammit far more interesting forever. i do moon ritual twice a month and have learned quickly how incredibly powerful the casting of a sacred circle and the intuiting of manifestation rituals can be. so who knows... perhaps if our cultural traditions become more meaning~full and magickal the landscape of culture as a whole could be altered forever... in whatever direction we may choose. maybe entire weddings could be devoted to the union of two families towards the end of world peace or somethin' sweet like that. i know, too, that there are people out there who are doing this already. i have heard of a couple, but i have yet to witness a large public ceremony of this kind yet. and that's what y'all are good for. any good stories/ideas/rants to share? i'm listening... maybe we can start a ceremonial (r)evolution here. or maybe not. guess it's up to us, isn't it?

eye can see the mountain for the clouds

all-is-one — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 00:52:51 GMT

yes. you know you're in seattle when you see this. it's always a breathtaking sight for me, the tippy top of mt. rainier peeking out from the inevitable low-lying seattle cloud cover. i love flying into seattle. this return was particularly wonderful. after spending the most maddening 60 minutes solid at LAX checking my bag and waiting in a four-block-long security line (i'm not kidding- the line was out the door, onto the sidewalk, and down the street to the next terminal. i had to walk 10 minutes just to reach the end of the line!), the serenity and chilled out vibrations of seattle coaxed out of me a 10-day- long-held sigh of relief. as soon as i saw the mountain i noticed a familliar lalaland-induced tension dissolving into the excitement of a return to a city that is very much my home for now. i thoroughly enjoyed my time in los angeles and even more thoroughly savored reconnecting with old friends and deepening new connections, but i am happy to be back. i love travel for its ceaseless ability to swing new perspectives on one's home into view. and truly, it's all about perspective.

i heart my wiener

all-is-one — Thu, 30 Jun 2005 02:59:42 GMT

heh. heheheh. i was cracking up all night. treavor. heh. is it just me who thinks this is ridiculously funny in a strange perverse kind of way?

>dreams of hollyweird<

all-is-one — Wed, 29 Jun 2005 22:50:55 GMT

...well this whole trip has felt like a strange time warped dream . but returning to my ol' stomping grounds at the base of the hollywood hills felt a little like an extended deja-vu. i actually found a parking space (!) visited the old magick house and my ol' roomies, took a tour of my old room which i still think of often and took a stroll down the franklin strip with my $5 bourgeoise latte, giggling the whole time at how entranced i once was with the glimmer of hollywood promises. *sigh* it would be so easy to get pulled back down here. but again, when even the valet parking senors refused to make eye contact with me, i was slapped back into the reality of why i left in the first place. so the whole time i'm strolling and reminiscing about the time i almost lost my soy chai on drew barrymore's lap at the sushi restaraunt or the endless artistic conversations and afternoon love affairs that began and ended at the bourgeoise pig, i'm simultaneously trying to put my finger on this eerie feeling that it really hasn't been two years since i've walked these streets. and then the big *ah hah!* came. i realized that these streets, these walls, these smells, these characters are all key players in my dreams and my astral travels. i have been in la many many times since my physical body left. *big sigh* it always feels good to finally put a flavour to that hauntingly familliar ice cream. i want to continue returning to the lands of my dreamscapes. i've been visioning the crystalline waters of the caribbean incessantly. next stop: roatan (?)