Blog Day Afternoon

Blog on Blog

soulflower — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 17:01:21 GMT

I was just on a trip of a lifetime...though I hope/suspect there will be more. Where? Israel with the Yuval Ron Ensemble and a cast of 30 wonderful characters from across the United States. One from Holland, too. Why? We were on a mission of sorts: peace through music. But it was also a historical, cultural and spiritual journey. Read about it! http://blog.news-record.com/desertdiary And for those who are local to Greensboro/Guilford County, be sure to pick up a News & Record the first SUNDAY in January (January 6th). I'll have an article in the IDEAS section. Of course even if you're not local, you can read the article online at: http://news-record.com Happy holidays! Peace, Shalom, Salam, Faun P.S. Photo credit: Me! Taken at the top of Masada; the Dead Sea is in the background.

Hooping it up with Heinz

soulflower — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 02:36:56 GMT

I entered a contest to produce a Heinz ketchup commercial! The finished piece can be seen by clicking the link below: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rj9rbuLjPZg A heartfelt thanks to all who helped me and to the COLORFUL talent! I want to especially recognize Patika who was totally welcoming of the video camera and my zany ideas at her birthday party! One quick note: Because of YouTube compression, the video quality you will see does not reflect the quality of what I shot. To experience the commercial in its fully glory and see the amazing colors pop requires the uncompressed copy. So if you're local, let me know if you'd like to see the REAL DEAL! The only thing that makes me sorta nervous is that I haven't been able to find my submission on the *Heinz* site. If anyone bumps into it, will you let me know what number it is? I'd certainly appreciate it.There are over 2,700 submissions so I definitely need eyes out there! Pass the word/link and along and wish me luck! Faun P.S. YES, my friends *are* the best!!! And boy have we got stories...

My Beautiful Goddaughter

soulflower — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 04:16:04 GMT

Siobhan- To her I'm GOD. Literally. I'm her "Godmother of Dance." What an honor. Her mother one of my soulmates, my best friend, a wise, bewitching woman with a heart of gold. Siobhan is pinchingly cute with a HUGE spirit. I miss them so much. And really, I've only had short peaks into who Siobhan is growing to be...living 3000 miles away. That makes me sad. But we've still had special moments, like choo-chooing* around a choo-choo train. My mood is immediately lifted with these kind of memories and when I look at this picture. I'm so glad I found it. Siobhan- know that I love you! *Just in case some of you may think I've lost it, a "choo-choo" is a belly dance move.

Good Guys Should Get Plugs

soulflower — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 22:07:18 GMT

I have an awesome mechanic. Most importantly, he's honest, respectful and informative. He never condescends to women either. He's reasonably priced and has a big heart (don't take advantage of that fact okay?). He allowed me to make payments when I was going through some really rough times so I could have safe tires on my car. In fact, it was his idea. Now he's gonna help me sell Rico's car...since I just can't seem to move on that. I encourage you to patronage such an amazing soul in what's often a soul-less business. His name is Brian. His business is FIELD AUTOMOTIVE in Greensboro at 931 Battleground. His phone number is (336)273-1742. If you need auto work, give him a call! Let's keep the good guys in business!

Giving Life

soulflower — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 04:10:16 GMT

A co-worker beamed while showing me her daughter's High School graduation photo. It was a beautiful shot. The message in my co-worker's smile seemed to be "I gave this life to the world, and I'm proud of the job I did." That got me thinking: where does that leave the rest of us who will never give life from our loins? Or even adopt? What legacy do we leave when we have no one to leave a legacy to? Does any part of us remain after we're gone? I obsessed a little while. I thought: once I'm gone, every effort the preceding generations made goes with me. I got very sad. That evening I went to a show featuring kids I had taught Turkish dance to. I walked in the door and was welcomed by shrieks of "Miss Faun, Miss Faun..." The kids - to the great chagrin of the Theater Arts coordinator who had just calmed them down - bolted out of the music room to greet me with hugs and smiles. I find it very difficult - and I suspect I'm not the only one - to feel a bit less of a contributor to life without having literally given it. And, truly, all the intellectual arguments in the world cannot change such feelings. But thanks to the kids today I realized I *am* a giver of life. Every one of us is. Every time we teach someone something new. Every day we show kindness and courtesy. Every opportunity we get to infect others with our passion and enthusiasm. Every moment we love.

Green Isn't Good Enough!

soulflower — Fri, 25 May 2007 21:29:46 GMT

One of my earlier blogs talks about the downward spiral of Greensboro toward urban blight and suburban sprawl by removing so many trees. A News & Record reader takes it a step further in her letter to the editor, "Tidy & Clean Isn't Sustainable and Green." I am so inspired by this reader's words, I've included them below, with a link to the original posting. I think it's time for serious INTERVENTION! CALLING ARTISTS AND FILMMAKERS OF GREENSBORO. We need something to wake people up to what's going on here! Some serious street theater. A gallery installation. Or documentary. Perhaps all of it! Got ideas? Let's talk, lets act, let's create art that will save our trees. Trees give beauty and create neighborhoods. Trees provide shade for our elders and branches to climb for our children. TREES ARE LIFE! blog.news-record.com/staff/l...ean.html [letter printed in the News & Record May 25, 2007] I take offense at the notion that bulldozing an existing tree-covered residential property and building an apartment complex on Walker Avenue is an improvement to the surrounding neighborhood because it will be "well-maintained, tidy and clean." While I commend Maddox for considering that the complex will ease traffic patterns, I wish he and the developer had done some more research. UNCG's Office of Waste Reduction and Recycling promotes "sustainability," which includes in its definition "meeting human needs within the constraints of nature" (UNCG Sustainability Report, 2003). How many tons of demolition debris were taken to the landfill during the razing portion of the development? How many of our neighborhood's mature trees were taken down to create this urban blight? Take a walk down Walker Avenue during evening hours and check out the huge fluorescent lights casting light pollution on the neighboring homes. Don't get me started on the complete disregard for neighborhood aesthetics when building this complex. I am so disheartened when I read "tidy and clean." Call me a tree hugger, but doesn't "progressive," "ecologically designed" and "sustainable" sound so much better? JoAnn Strack Greensboro

Parasol Parade

soulflower — Fri, 11 May 2007 23:38:05 GMT

Sometime this summer, let's have a parasol parade. Imagine the dance of light, color and pattern as we stroll down the streets, spin in the squares, skip through the meadows.... At first I was thinking just locally. But why not make it a national - even a world - phenomenon? One day where walking becomes meditation at PLAY! Who's in?

Killing the Green in Greensboro

soulflower — Thu, 03 May 2007 13:42:02 GMT

Okay, I know Greensboro isn't named for its Greenery. It's for Nathaniel Greene who kicked some British butt in the Revolutionary war, though he didn't technically win. But Green is what drew me to Greensboro. There's no ocean, no mountains, but lots of beautiful trees that smack you in the face so hard with their brilliant chartreuse, you come away saying, "Thanks, I needed that!" Greensboro is trading the smack of greenery for the beat down of development, and apparently trees are getting in the way. Almost daily I hear or read of more trees being taken down or scheduled for removal. This is very disturbing...especially since I'm from Los Angeles and know what the outcome is likely to be if it doesn't stop: SUBURBAN SPRAWL. One mall fits all shopping and nasty cheap eye stinging strip malls. This for trees? It's nauseating. I mention Los Angeles because there used to be more than just a few pockets of heaven there. It used to be filled with gorgeous orange groves. When grandma and grandpa (yes, same gramps you may have read about before) moved the SF Valley, it was COUNTRY! In Los Angeles, city was city and country was country and now the sprawl hits all. Please, not in Greensboro, please. A friend told me that if we just plant billions of trees right now, we could change the course of global warming. Now I haven't researched it myself, but I do remember the basics from Jr. High science. We get oxygen from trees and they take in that carbon dioxide stuff. Sounds like a pretty good partnership to me, with humanoids getting the long part of the stick, er, or branch? In any case, it's never the time to kill trees, ESPECIALLY NOW! Maybe we need a million tree march - or make that a BILLION tree march. Not just in Greensboro, but all over the planet. But we can start here, where we live. Don't give up the trees. Trees are life.

Where I get it

soulflower — Tue, 01 May 2007 23:17:39 GMT

Grandpa was a total GOOF-ball. With his martial art prowess he'd do things like shoulder roll down the middle of the street. At my wedding, we were doing a SOUL TRAIN LANE. There was grandpa, dancing and smiling from ear-to ear until -POOF- he dropped right out of the frame. You guessed it. Another shoulder roll. I just loved that about him. My uncle was telling me a story of grandpa in the historic district of Winston-Salem, NC. Uncle, aunt and gramps were touring a museum with furniture older than all my grandparents put together. The sign explicity said, "KEEP OFF ANTIQUE FURNITURE." Did that dissuade grandpa? Of course not! He climbed over the ropes and kicked it in one of the rocking chairs. The docent screamed at him to "GET OFF!" My aunt expressed embarrassment. But 'ol gramps laughed it off. He just wanted to see what it was like to rock in a chair older than he. Yeah, grandpa- You ROCK alright! I'm a GOOF-ball myself. That is, when I'm not taking things too seriously. Since grandpa passed last week, I wonder if I got my tendency to be silly from him. If so, I should honor that legacy with more frivolity than ever before. Dontcha think?