i Blog . . .

New Sony Handycam !!

lowpockets — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:17:53 GMT

With a few of the dollars I received from my parents, I decided to do minor splurge and replace my older tape-based Sony handycam with one of the newer digital units which record directly to a hard drive in MPEG2 format ... wow .. this unit even records audio in Dolby 5.1 surround sound .. !! I've seen this particular unit for sale a couple of years ago, and now that the price has dropped on it, I decided to grab one while it was on sale .. I am also a firm believer in NOT picking up the latest version of a product when it hits the streets .. I'd rather other people act as beta-testers .. In addition, I now have a professional Marantz digital audio recorder which records directly to compact-flash memory cards in .wav and also MP3 format... Our next project is building a clapper board in order to sync the audio from the recorder with the video from the handycam via adobe premier elements ... This seems to be a great approach to making higher-quality videos for youtube ..

Thoughts about my birthday ....

lowpockets — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 23:05:51 GMT

My birthday was last week. I've reached the magic number of "60", and it is amazing actually ... I was also thinking a lot about my mother .. she and my father divorced when I was about nine years old, and like so many nasty divorces, I ended up with not one photograph of my mother. Any photos that my father did have were cut up so that the portions that included my mother in them were missing.... I do have a lot of memories of her, starting at about 4 years old until my parents parted ways ... Especially memorable were her favorite music tunes, and listening to them yesterday really hit me emotionally ... I decided as sort of a memorial to her, to actually put together a playlist of about 40 of her favorite tunes. For those who would like to hear some of them, here is a link to the stand-alone player that should also work... These tunes are from roughly 1952 until 1959, so for some of you, will really be "oldies" .. Let me know if any of these trip memories for you: Stand-alone player: http://www.playlist.com/standalone/7145202 Elaine

An amazing baby picture !!

lowpockets — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 01:08:03 GMT

A picture began circulating in November. It should be 'The Picture of the Year,' or perhaps, 'Picture of the Decade.' It won't be. In fact, unless you obtained a copy of the US paper which published it, you probably would never have seen it. The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander Armas, who is being operated on by surgeon named Joseph Bruner. The baby was diagnosed with spina bifida and would not survive if removed from his mother's womb. Little Samuel's mother, Julie Armas, is an obstetrics nurse in Atlanta. She knew of Dr. Bruner's remarkable surgical procedure. Practicing at Vanderbilt University MedicalCenterin Nashville, he performs these special operations while the baby is still in the womb. During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via C-section and makes a small incision to operate on the baby. As Dr.Bruner completed the surgery on Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon's finger. Dr.Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most emotional moment of his life, and that for an instant during the procedure he was just frozen, totally immobile. The photograph captures this amazing event with perfect clarity. The editors titled the picture, 'Hand of Hope.' The text explaining the picture begins, 'The tiny hand of 21-week-old fetus Samuel Alexander Armas emerges from the mother's uterus to grasp the finger of Dr.. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life.' Little Samuel's mother said they 'wept for days' when they saw the picture. She said, 'The photo reminds us pregnancy isn't about disability or an illness, it's about a little person.'Samuel was born in perfect health, the operation 100 percent successful. Now see the actual picture, and it is awesome...incredible....and hey, pass it on. The world needs to see this one!

OMG !!

lowpockets — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 23:33:14 GMT

I ran across this video yesterday and I'm simply blown away with how far women have come over the past 40 years .. Wow! .. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=bf7_1194011226 Elaine

Subject: CEPEC Issues "Earthquake Advisory" For Bay Area Counties

lowpockets — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:56:22 GMT

OES NEWS BULLETIN for: CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR'S OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES CEPEC Issues "Earthquake Advisory" For Bay Area Counties in Response to Magnitude 5.6 Earthquake FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, October 31, 2007 Contacts: John Parish, CGS, 916-445-1923 Greg Renick, OES, 562-577-8503 CEPEC Issues "Earthquake Advisory" For Bay Area Counties in Response to Magnitude 5.6 Earthquake In response to Tuesday evening's magnitude-5.6 earthquake near the junction of the Calaveras and Hayward faults, the following statement was issued by the California Earthquake Prediction Evaluation Council,a panel of scientists chaired by the State Geologist that advises the Director of the Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES) on the scientific validity of earthquake forecasts and seismic activity in areas where damaging earthquakes have occurred in the past. "A magnitude 5.6 earthquake occurred at 8:05 Tuesday evening (30 October 2007). The earthquake occurred near the junction of the Calaveras and Hayward faults in the southern San Francisco Bay Area. Both of these faults are known active faults capable of producing large, damaging earthquakes. "CEPEC believes that this evening's earthquake has significantly increased the probability above the normal level for a damaging earthquake along the Calaveras and/or Hayward faults within the next several days. However, the overall likelihood of such an event is still low. Scientists will be continuing to monitor the situation and advise OES of any changes. In response to the CEPEC evaluation of this earthquake, OES recommends that residents of the San Francisco Bay region review their family emergency plans, check their emergency supplies, identify the "safe" and "potential danger" spots in each room, remove breakables from locations from which they can fall and cause injury, and stay tuned to the radio or television for further information. OES also recommends that government agencies and businesses review their plans. The "advisory" applies to the following counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, San Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano and Sonoma. Additional information on earthquake preparedness is available on the OES Home Page at www.oes.ca.gov. # # # To visit the OES website containing this news bulletin as well as previous news bulletins,either click on this link or copy and paste it into the address bar of your browser http://www.oes.ca.gov/Operational/OESHome.nsf/ For more information contact the Office of Public Information at 916-845-8400

The Earthquake Aftermath:

lowpockets — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:27:47 GMT

This is going to sound funny .. but ... The quake occurred less than 5 miles from our home, as we live near the Calaveras Fault .. I was in our home theater building at the time which is behind our house, and was on the internet at the time .. this building sits on 8"X8" pressure-treated skids that run the length of the building and the building sits on concrete. Some stuff fell off some of the bookshelves and I was holding on to the computer LCD screen so it wouldn't fall over ... So .. after checking out our utilities to make sure that there were no broken gas or water lines, and our electrical service still okay ... the only major damage was: *****My almost full bottle of Yves St. Laurent perfume (Opium) that fell out of the medicine cabinet in the bathroom and the entire contents had run down the drain of the bathroom sink **** Yikes !! a $260 bottle of my favorite perfume (yes, perfume, **not** cologne) ... literally emptied itself down the drain .. !! .. Everything else was fine here except for some books that fell out on the floor in the house .. Elaine ..

Gee, I can be such a gadget freak !! ..

lowpockets — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 01:53:29 GMT

I purchased some really kewl gadgets this week .. The first is a special tactical flashlight that is for military use .. Well, actually I purchased two of the lights, one for Carla and one for me .. They are made by "Streamlight" and are called the "Sidewinder", and are special LED flashlights, They have RED, Blue, and Infrared LED's along with a larger super-bright white LED. All four lights have four brightness levels along with a strobe function.. Here's a link to the flashlight: http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2883 The other item I purchased is a special cross-carry shoulder bag.. The purpose of this is to help prevent against a purse-snatch scenario when out in urban areas like downtown San Francisco / Mission District, or Downtown San Jose. When I first moved to San Francisco in 1966-67, I was on Market Street downtown near Kearny and a guy came up behind me and snatched my shoulder bag .. ick, I lost my first two-week's worth of wages cuz I just got paid and didn't yet have a checking account set up. Ever since then, I've always been more than a little paranoid around what I would call the "sleazy urban areas" ever since .. Well, this tactical bag will help prevent that, and has room for my makeup bag, along with a hand-held two-way radio, flashlight, 32 oz bottle for drinking water, and special pockets for my cellphone, and iPod ... Yes, it is not exactly "pretty" but for the times that I travel to the City, like for the trip to Leslie's , it serves a functional purpose .. Here's a link to the kewl bag .. I ordered it in khaki tan along with some other accessories. Some of the photos in the links below may show items in green, however the items which should be arriving this monday are all in the khaki tan color .. It at least looks "a little less ugly" than black, woodland camoflage or the new digital camoflage colors .. http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=3006 wallet: http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2778 Extension pocket for cellphone: http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=3063 Checkbook and credit card wallet: http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2070

The Societal Changes of the 1950's

lowpockets — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 07:01:22 GMT

Wow .. I just finished watching the movie "Mona Lisa Smile", starring Julia Roberts .. It is a really deep analysis of how women's roles started changing in American Society in the early to mid 1950's .. I'm thinking that the time period of 1953 thru 1955 would have been just prior to Gloria Steinem and the actual organized start of the feminist movement in American culture .. There were soooo many songs that I remember so much hearing in our home that were my mother's favorites from when I was like 4-1/2 to 7years old ... The special features part of this DVD also has a really good analysis of the movie and the effort put into the production to really portray women of "then", and how it was "such a given" that women's roles were so rigidly defined for them. It also seems that a large percentage of the women of that era were so totally unaware of the tender trap they were walking into .. It really does seem that fish can have no comprehension of what water is ... Here's a link to a Netflix preview: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Mona_Lisa_Smile/60031284?trkid=90529

An update from Elaine ....

lowpockets — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 08:21:25 GMT

Yes, I haven't been blogging recently on Tribe, so decided to share the latest with all of my wonderful Tribe friends .. My partner, Carla, decided to actually quit smoking and she quit cold-turkey this year on June 24th She first started the smoking habit when she was 16 years old, so that means it has been about a 47 year habit ... A month after quitting, she developed a bacterial pneumonia on top of the nicotine withdrawal that she has been going through ... She was having real difficulty breathing, and she asked me to drive her to Kaiser Emergency. This was in Mid-July. ... I could tell from the distress that she was in, that it looked serious .. No , I didn't drive her .... I did the smart thing and dialed 9-1-1 ... Fire and paramedics arrived in about five minutes ... While they were enroute, the dispatcher wanted me to stay on the line, and she insisted on giving me pre-arrival instructions as though I was some kind of dummy .... I told the dispatcher that it was a lung-related problem but she insisted on asking me the "usual questions" such as, "Is She Breathing?" YES I said "Is she conscious" .. YES, I said ... "Does She have a pulse?" Of course she does, I said .. "Does She appear to be choking?" NO ... she is not choking .. it is a lung problem !! .. Next, the dispatcher asked me to place Carla on the floor or flat on the bed, which I knew that I didn't have to do, so I played along... Then the dispatcher asks me to tilt her head back and confirm that her airway isn't blocked, and that she is breathing , to which I said, look dummy, she's conscious, and I'm going outside to flag down the Fire Engine from Station #2 as I can hear them coming up the road .. (Last October, they drove right past our house so I didn't want a repeat performance of them not being able to find the house) .. Next, the dispatcher asks me if someone else can go outside, to which I replied, NO ... In the time it would take for me to find her brother who was back in his trailer at the back of the property, the Engine company will have already passed our place, so NO .. I'm not going to find someone else to flag down the Fire Engine... Anyway, they arrived and bundled her up and transported her to the ER ..... Later, Carla told me that during the trip, when they were fairly close to the hospital, her peripheral vision started narrowing down and things "started to feel like a dreaming state" and at the time, she could still hear, and heard the woman paramedic in the back of the ambulance say.... "God Dammit, I've lost her !!...." .... Carla was revived in the ER, and they had her all hooked up to stuff, and then ordered x-rays .... It turned out that she had a bacterial pneumonia infection, to which they jammed her intravenously with a major dose a new type of super-strength antibiotic... The new antibiotic is called "Azelox" (moxyfloxacin)... It turns out that a bad side-effect of Azelox in her case was a major impairment of her vision .... The next day, she developed an extreme sensitivity to light, and severe eye pain... She had a new eye exam and eyeglass prescription a month before this incident, and she went back for a return eye appointment this past week .. she not only needed a new prescription, but the other side effect was a large loss of visual acuity .. So even if text or images were in focus, she still was unable to make out details ... She says that instead of being able to read the 2nd line from the bottom on the eye chart, she could now only read the second line from the top of the chart .... We joined a COPD group at Kaiser in late July, and she has been given some tests on lung and breathing capacity, along with special inhalers such as Proair and Spiriva .. .. The nicotine withdrawal is expected to last another several weeks, so we have taken time out from any projects or activities, and have been getting her to commit to taking very short walks with me on a regular basis ..... This week, I'm on-call for Jury Duty (Sept 10th thru the 15th) ...., I really enjoy serving on a jury, and because I am not the type of person to give all kinds of excuses not to serve, I'll prolly not be selected ... anyway ... I'll keep you all posted on what it happening here .... Elaine

Where I've been hanging out lately:

lowpockets — Wed, 30 May 2007 19:00:36 GMT

A high school classmate, who actually had been trying to find me for40+ years, discovered my profile on MySpace .. Wow that was a real eye-opener .. Kathy and I had been good friends in high school... and that was in 1963-1965 ... We chatted on the phone a few days ago for about an hour and a half, and I introduced her to my partner, Carla ... The internet can be simply amazing at times, especially in reuniting friends ... It seems that MySpace can "cast a wider net" in terms of social connections, and I've taken a renewed and more serious look at MySpace .. Tribe's claim to fame seems that it attracts people mainly cuz it can be kink-oriented ... I don't think I will delete my Tribe account though, cuz there are many friends here that I've grown close to... Take a look when you have a few minutes to spare: http://www.myspace.com/wa6ube Elaine

"The Gatherer"

lowpockets — Fri, 25 May 2007 19:17:51 GMT

Some time ago, some friends gave to me the moniker of "The Gatherer", in that I tend to place energy into bringing friends and acquaintances together in order to foster communication and community .. I was searching the 'Net for the past hour and so far, no images really appeared which fit this description.. From historical perspective it seems that "Hunter" and "Gatherer" were defined in somewhat inaccurate terms as man being "Hunter" and woman being "Gatherer". Some discussion was also found that refutes this arrangement.... still, Gathering food is not the image I had in mind. Rather, gathering people together so as to create new connections... a cross-pollination of perspective, resulting in intellectual texture of a more advanced sort ... According to Soulsearch , The 87th name of God ( "The Gatherer" ) is defined as: Aj-Jami^: The Gatherer - The One who gathers the creatures on a day that there is no doubt about, that is the Day of Judgment. (3:9) . . . Well .. this one really is *NOT* "IT" either ... ick ... This image is not "it": http://www.anthroblogs.org/nomadicthoughts/archives/2007/03/portrayal_of_wo.html The search continues...still.... This happens at times . . . finding the exactly correct word which clearly describes an image or thought residing within my brain. An incorrect word only generates a distorted image in the mind of the listener or reader of the spoken or printed word . . . Hmmmm... choose 50/50 ??? or simply "ask the audience" ?? OK, audience ... what do *you* recommend as a term that I'm searching for and cannot find ? Elaine

Wow .. a classmate from high school -- 44 years ago ..

lowpockets — Wed, 16 May 2007 20:04:58 GMT

My high school classmate, Kay, recently found me via the internet and my myspace page .. She had been trying to find me on and off for over 40 years .. She is both a single mom , and a single grandma .. This has been really fantastic .. Kay and I have been exchanging family photos and emails like crazy for the past few days ... The internet can be simply sooooo grand when stuff like this happens ... heh .. now both of us are literally old ladies .. Kay is the one on the left in this photo ..

The "Dark Void" appears

lowpockets — Tue, 08 May 2007 01:56:17 GMT

My best friend, Ralph Libby, passed away on April 23rd .. yuck ... I have known Ralph for almost 30 years .. He actually sort of adopted me as a daughter cuz he was aware that my own parents have pushed me out of their lives many years ago .. Now it feels that in a very real sense I have no parents ... hence the feeling of such a dark and black void in my life at the moment .. ick .. Making matters even more disturbing is that before the funeral was even planned, his children already started with the soap opera between each other over the estate ... this development is really icky ... Ralph was a dispatcher at county communications when I was working there, and that was 27 years ago at this point .. He was also a CW4 warrant officer in the U.S. Army, and was a training officer with U.S. Sixth Army when it still existed .. He taught "Communications for Armor", so his interests meshed with my own interests in military ground tactical communications ... In fact he was the one that actually created the training and instructional material .. He was not simply an instructor in a classroom .. I visited him a couple of times when he was still with the Army and stationed at Camp Parks for his annual reserve duty.. He invited me to be a guest instructor for one of his classes, and that was a real eye opener ... The students in the class were no dummies .. they were Army Special Forces and Army Rangers ... I was even given a really nice award of appreciation for the class that I put together on HF tactical and NVIS communications for ground forces ... wow ... We went to flea markets and camera swap meets, and he and his wife, Alice (who passed away two years ago) would invite Carla and me to their home for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays ... It was like if I could choose my parents, Ralph would have been my pick as a father .... It is simply devastating that he passed away .. I knew for a while that he had cancer .. in fact I made a youtube video about that and it is on my youtube channel .. His doctors appointment for some surgery was not supposed to be anything life threatening at this point, however his heart just stopped on the operating table and they could not revive him ... I guess in a way, he may have just preferred to go when he did .. I did place a really nice personal letter, addressed to him, on his casket at the funeral .. wow it was all so sudden ... Still .... it feels like a dark void in my life at the moment with the knowledge that I'll never see him again ...

Bite me says:

lowpockets — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 22:21:13 GMT

"The last couple of bikes I had were Schwinns, but this time I'm leaning towards something with the rack on back like your new one.... as soon as I replace my stolen bike we'll have to ride together!" That would be really nice if we could do some bike riding .. Also, I'll take a pix of my bike, or post a video on youtube .. at the moment it has two side baskets that fold up, there are also baskets available for the handlebars but I'm going to change out the handlebar for a different style before I add it ... Elaine ..

Wow !! My first NEW bicycle since high school !!

lowpockets — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 07:44:38 GMT

Last week I picked up a really kewl bicycle .. It 's made by a company called Electra, and the model I picked up is the "Townie-21" .. Its claim to fame is that it is like the old fashioned Schwinn bikes of the 1950's except that it is a 21-speed bike that is designed for street use.. It is not a racing bike and is not a mountain bike .. this one is made for comfort and has a big seat on it, big tires, and a large TIG-welded aluminum frame ... Anyway, I've posted a listing on Tribe, looking for others in the South-Bay who would like to join me for short (up to 5-miles) bike trips in the Rose Garden, or North-valley areas of San Jose .. See listing: http://sanfrancisco.tribe.net/tribe/servlet/template/pub%2Clisting%2CViewListing.vm?listingid=3686fa91-cbed-4fe0-a568-a76ef2ae3a96&published=true&nextpage=http%3A%2F%2Fsanfrancisco.tribe.net%2Flocal

Onward on the Mystical Path ...

lowpockets — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 02:12:48 GMT

Gee .. I ran across a complete hardbound set (23 volumes) of the Zohar, and it is in English language .. This will make for some interesting reading of the Western Esoteric Tradition .. I never thought a complete and unabridged copy in hardbound was really available ... The Zohar is the underlying background and source of interpretation of the Kabbala, which is a source of many mystical and religious traditions.. A vendor who does business via Amazon dot com had one of the newest sets available which now includes a 23rd volume which is a massive index to volumes 1 thru 22 ... The complete set will be arriving later this week via UPS .. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1571892397/103-9433442-7801414 Quoting from the Amazon listing: "Book Description The Zohar is more than 2000 years old, but until very recently it was kept almost entirely hidden from the world, withheld out of fear that its power would be misused. Looked at it strictly as a work of spiritual wisdom, the Zohar is both an exploration and an explanation of every aspect of our physical and spiritual universe, and the connections that exists between them. Yet the real benefit of the Zohar in our daily lives is the energy imbued within each letter, each word, each phrase. For thousands of years, kabbalists have taught that simply the physical presence of the Zohar brought protection from harm. NEW ADDITIONAL VOLUME 23! We are pleased to announce that we have just completed the Zohar Index, Volume 23 of the English Zohar. For information on the spiritual forces at play in your life, The Zohar Index is your definitive resource. This index has been created after hundreds of hours of scholarly work and is the first of its kind. It lists all of the names and terms found within the entire Zohar, with page and verse number made easily accessible. When you own the Zohar Index, you have the full expanse of the English Zohar at your fingertips. Containing over X entries, you can dramatically increase your knowledge of Kabbalah, seek answers to questions, and delve deeper into this magical text." Elaine

Wish me well .....

lowpockets — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 03:06:37 GMT

For the past several months I've been studying monthly monographs and generally reaching attunement in various esoteric and mystical aspects of life ... I had joined the Order in 1977 and had dropped out for several years due to demands of career ... After reinstating my membership last summer and replacing long-lost monographs, I discovered that I had reached 3rd Degree some long years ago ... This Saturday afternoon, and early this Sunday morning are part 1 and part 2 of my First Degree Temple Initiation, in the Rosicrucian Order (AMORC) at the Americas Headquarters in San Jose ... I'm told by other members that the First Temple Degree Ceremony is quite the experience ... Wish me well ... Peace Profound Elaine ... www.rosicrucian.org/park/index.html

AMORC to open the doors of its Grand Temple ...

lowpockets — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 23:56:09 GMT

In a major break with usual Rosicrucian / AMORC practice, Harmonization rituals and Council of Solace rituals held at the Temple of the Grand Lodge in San Jose California will be open for the first time to "Sincere Seekers" (meaning those who are not members of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC) ... Harmonization rituals are on the first and third Tuesdays of the month .. In April, they will be on April 3rd and April 17th.. The actual Temple is located on the **South-East side** of the Rosicrucian campus, i.e. if you are facing the entrance to the Rosicrucian Museum, turn right and walk south-east on the sidewalk to the corner, then turn left and walk halfway down the block... It would be really great if any of my friends in the greater San Francisco Bay Area could join my partner Carla and me for this event. Carla is not a member of the order, and with this policy change, she can now attend these events with me .. Also, there is a public event on the second Tuesday of the month at 7:30 PM which discusses various mysticism topics. Yesterday's topic was Gnosticism and the various roots of the Gnostic tradition.. In April, the subject will be Egypt.. These public salons are held in the Atrium of the Rosicrucian Temple in San Jose ... More information can be found by visiting AMORC's events page: http://www.rosicrucian.org/park/calendar/index.html From the AMORC website is this updated info: "Harmonization Ritual Held on the 1st, 3rd, and 4th Tuesdays of the month.This meditation ritual for metaphysical aid, harmonizing with the Grand Lodge Council of Solace, is held in the Grand Temple. Please arrive before 7:30 pm for admittance, as the doors are closed at 7:30 pm for meditation. Open to all Rosicrucian Members and to all Seekers among the public who wish to join in this work." Elaine

AMORC to open the doors of its Grand Temple ...

lowpockets — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 02:48:54 GMT

In a major break with Rosicrucian / AMORC practice, Harmonization rituals and Council of Solace rituals held at the Temple of the Grand Lodge in San Jose California will be open for the first time to "Sincere Seekers" (meaning those who are not members of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC) ... Harmonization rituals are on the first and third Tuesdays of the month .. The first public Harmonization Ritual will be this coming Tuesday, March 20th, 2007 at 7:00PM. (The doors close at 7PM, so be sure to arrive earlier !!) In April, they will be on April 3rd and April 17th.. The actual Temple is located on the **South-East side** of the Rosicrucian campus, i.e. if you are facing the entrance to the Rosicrucian Museum, turn right and walk south-east on the sidewalk to the corner, then turn left and walk halfway down the block... It would be really great if any of my friends in the greater San Francisco Bay Area could join my partner Carla and me for this event. Carla is not a member of the order, and with this policy change, she can now attend these events with me .. Also, there is a public event on the second Tuesday of the month at 7:30 PM which discusses various mysticism topics. Yesterday's topic was Gnosticism and the various roots of the Gnostic tradition.. In April, the subject will be Egypt.. These public salons are held in the Atrium of the Rosicrucian Temple in San Jose ... More information can be found by visiting the main website at: http://www.rosicrucian.org/park/calendar/index.html Please let me know if you may be interested in attending either of these events, as a group of us usually go out for coffee afterwards ... Elaine

Attended my first meeting:

lowpockets — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 07:21:56 GMT

The "Women's Spirituality Group" of Silicon Valley meets on the second Tuesday of each month .. I attended for the first time last week .. wow, was that a refreshing experience .. many of the other women are not only my age, but some are also members of the Episcopal Cathedral that I am a member of, so was like old home week in that five were like old friends .. Most seem to be in the age group of 60 years and older (i.e. 70's and 80's) .. many are retired, many have grand children and great-grandchildren .. One is a dead ringer for Shekinah <chuckle> and she used to be a radio announcer with a local public radio station and now is a writer.. In fact, a couple of the women are authors.. Some members of Tribe have disagreed with my preference that friendships be not only online, but also friendships of the more "real" kind. By that, I mean that we actually do meet up and visit and get to know one another in IRL terms and not simply via emails or Tribe.. Some of my Tribe Friends kind of dissed me in that I prefer that Tribe Friendships be IRL friendships also, but hey... it is important to me.... For me, only being friends in cyberspace tends to lack some realness for me. I will admit that in some ways, the anonymity of an online friendship can end up being an easier venue in which to share really private things, yet for me... I still very much like the IRL friendships that can result from Tribe friendships... I have had some disappointments over the past year in that some of you that I've wanted to get to know have been far away distance-wise and it tends to be difficult for schedules and commitments of other types to allow for time to visit.. That can be <and is> depressing for me ... Perhaps a solution is to spend more energy on Tribe, youtube, and IRL friendships with those who simply live closer than 50 miles from Silicon Valley... Also, I tend to be very sensitive about people who say they want to hook up and visit and then don't .. ick ... but then .. that's just me .. Hell, I should talk .. I wanted to much to come up to RT's and visit with Lizzer and WEb, and see Max, but Carla's brother ended up on his way down here that Saturday afternoon, and kinda threw a last minuted monkey wrench into plans ... As for the latest news down here .. well, I'm more active on youtube, and also with ARMY MARS, and a new and upgraded mission that MARS has .. Also been taking time out to visit more with friends down here in the South Bay, and also attending amateur radio club meetings more often ... In fact, am going to be in Redwood City tomorrow for lunch at Harry's Hofbrau with a bunch of members of the "9AM Talk Net" , which meets up on the 145.23 amateur radio repeater that is on the Stanford University Campus .. If anyone is around the Redwood City area tomorrow (Wednesday) give me a call on my cell and you are welcome to join Carla and me .. cellphone is: 408-483-3003 ... Elaine

Well ... here it is ....

lowpockets — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 02:52:44 GMT

The start of a new year ... and a new look at the bathroom scale ... ick ... Personally, I feel that I've set a bad example for womankind in that I *could have* taken much better care of my body over the past 15 years .. instead, I promoted to management (yay!) , and an office-job which when coupled with a lack of exercise, resulted in major weight-gain over the years .. (Arrrrgh!) ..

My best video blog yet ...

lowpockets — Sat, 16 Dec 2006 06:45:52 GMT

Youtube is simply way kewl: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvFN-jtkp5w Elaine

Ah ... Winter ... just around the corner ...

lowpockets — Sat, 02 Dec 2006 10:06:02 GMT

A time for New Years resolutions, party and merriment... and perhaps some cocooning ... I've been away from Tribe for a few weeks... busy with youtube, some amount of SM play with my sweetie, and time spent in high-tech stuff ... I'm discovering that of all the tribes in which I'm a member, only a handful are the ones that I really spend time... Those of you who know me well, also know which ones they are .... Anyway, a short note to let all my tribe friends know that I'm doing well, and recovering from the pacemaker implant with no complications ... Elaine

Elaine's Answers:

lowpockets — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 01:37:25 GMT

Copy this and paste it in your blog with your one word answers. 1. Yourself: Gordian knot 2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend: very real 3. Your hair: salt 'n pepper 4. Your mother: gone 5. Your father: bigoted 6. Your favorite thing: surrender 7. Your dream last night: don't remember 8. Your favorite drink: Ovaltine 9. Your dream car: military 10. The room you are in: private library 11. Your Ex: a memory 12. Your fear: abandonment 13. What you want to be in 10 years: deceased 14. Who you hung out with last night: kinky people 15. What you're not: scary 16. Muffins: English 17: One of your wish list items: England 18: Time: never enough 19. The last thing you did: played with radios 20. What you are wearing: jeans 'n top 21. Your favorite weather: less than 72 / more than 65 22. Your favorite book: "The Secret Wireless War" 23. The last thing you ate: war won ton soup 24. Your life: expanding 25. Your mood: sour 26. Your best friend: Ralph Libby 27. What you are thinking about right now: finishing this list 28. Your vehicle: white 29. What you are doing at the moment: typing, and listening to HF radio, on 5371.5 KHz Upper Sideband 30. Your summer: Too hot ! 31. Your relationship status: uneventful 32. What is on your TV: too many commercials 33. What the weather is like: cool 'n wet 34. The last time you laughed: today 35. Odd or even numbers: odd

My first video production ..

lowpockets — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 07:15:43 GMT

Not bad for only 96 hours of learning curve via youtube Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlB4TE5Q8xw Elaine

i Blog . . .

New Sony Handycam !!

Thoughts about my birthday ....

An amazing baby picture !!

****OMG**** !!

Subject: CEPEC Issues "Earthquake Advisory" For Bay Area Counties

The Earthquake Aftermath:

Gee, I can be such a gadget freak !! ..

The Societal Changes of the 1950's

An update from Elaine ....

Where **I've** been hanging out lately:

"The Gatherer"

Wow .. a classmate from high school -- 44 years ago ..

The "Dark Void" appears

Bite me says:

Wow !! My first *NEW* bicycle since high school !!

Onward on the Mystical Path ...

Wish me well .....

AMORC to open the doors of its Grand Temple ...

AMORC to open the doors of its Grand Temple ...

Attended my first meeting:

Well ... here it is ....

My best video blog yet ...

Ah ... Winter ... just around the corner ...

Elaine's Answers:

My first video production ..

OMG !!

Where I've been hanging out lately:

Wow !! My first NEW bicycle since high school !!