from the creases...

wanted... 1 burning man ticket

sunrisedancer — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 06:11:59 GMT

this will be my amazing sister's first burn and i am looking for a ticket for her. anyone have a lead or an extra ticket sitting around? call or email me 310.343.0741 or vanessadreams (at) gmail (dot) com. blessings!

in with the new... yard sale!

sunrisedancer — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 20:47:28 GMT

i hope that everyone had a blessed holiday with your loved ones and are looking forward to the new year ahead. it's going to be an amazing one! i for one am already in the midst of so many changes ( i signed the lease on a storefront in atwater village...another blog post to follow). anyways, been cleaning house here and i'm having a yard sale tomorrow (sunday). stop by if you are around. listed below are some of the items that i'm selling: dell desktop computer (great machine from my old design firm, has lots of extras loaded) hp officejet 7110 printer, scanner, copier, fax hp psc 1210 printer, scanner, copier shade structure (needs tlc) cooler women's shoes (including frye boots) art prints lambskin rug gardening supplies books photography development supplies jewelry lots and lots of women's clothes and costume pieces lots and lots of lingerie pieces fabrics and crafty goodness and the random thing that you definitely can not live without! sunday 12/30/07 10am-2pm 1069 sanborn avenue (corner of sanborn & sunset blvd behind lovecraft biofuels) park on sunset not on sanborn! right by the best coffee in la: intelligentsia. get a cup and come visit me :)

looking for an accountant for a growing business

sunrisedancer — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 04:22:18 GMT

i need someone who can help me in the bookkeeping and financial realms of my business. if you have anyone you recommend, send them my way please :) oh, i live in silverlake, so local is even bettter! kisses loves...

urban greening project

sunrisedancer — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 21:35:45 GMT

wow! my little park(ing) installation garden on sunset got la times front page! (and my cutie pie roommates making it look real cool). la times also has a video about the creation of livable places' park online and you can read todays article. check it out: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-parking22sep22,1,1835060.story?coll=la-housegarden-underdog&ctrack=1&cset=true

. . . a little piece of paradise . . .

sunrisedancer — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 02:49:17 GMT

on friday i will be hosting a parking space / park as dialogue on the lack of quality open space in los angeles through the project "park(ing) day la." http://www.parkingdayla.com/index.html my park is designed to bring the feeling of play and joy into the landscape while exhibiting the concept of control over nature (plants in cages). there is still time to participate if you are interested in creating your own. or stop by my park at 4005 sunset boulevard (in front of circus of books) from noon and going until... ?? give me a call if you're stopping by later in the day to see if i'm still around. i'll have lovely sun tea and hopefully some of my musical roommates playing accordians in the streets.

. moon dance .

sunrisedancer — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 23:35:48 GMT

when daytime closes its eyes to the glimmering night shades the moon glow beckons me and we dance through the dust together, her blood swirling with mine, and i realize that she tastes like the softest reflections of love in my heart

. sweet desert love .

sunrisedancer — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 03:14:22 GMT

back from extraordinary desert adventures... this year was as magical as everyone has been saying, yes. i had a mellow-ish year, soaking in the love in my camp which included 3 of my roommates from la (all virgins), taking long bike rides with my love tomas, sitting alone in the open playa, sitting in the crowds of center camp, loving madly, dancing madly, living madly, loving some more. to those of you who i saw out there, thank you for adding so much joy to my life with your glimmering eyes and sparkling smiles. to those of you who i missed.... i missed you very much, let's please dance soon. i have had the flu since my return on tuesday, a blessing in giving me the time to reflect deeply on what has been a beautiful burning experience, and to, for once and all, work out anything that i brought back with me that i did not intend to. i will be hiding away, hitting the books as they say, for the next weeks as i am sitting for my landscape architecture licensure exam the 18th-20th. this is a huge deal for me, one of my life-time goals realized.... please wish me luck! afterwards, there are rumors of venturing northward to symbiosis. i hope these rumors true. until then, enjoy your new eyes to the world!

worldchanging covers the green man

sunrisedancer — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:35:23 GMT

i write a bit for worldchanging, and just noticed that they have an article on the main page about this little party in the desert that i'll be attending this week. i have been reading your blogs... i also like many of you have been on the fence about going, making my final decision this past week. burning man has lost some of it's sparkle for me honestly. but the green man theme really pulled me in. check out all of the green initiatives! well, props to kachina and the rest of the greening burning man crew! think while you pack... reduce your waste at home... reuse something from last year or from someone who is not going... recycle your packaging. and please LEAVE YOUR GLOWSTICKS AT HOME! they are the #1 most wasteful thing that i see out there. instead, invest in a reusable LED light. http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/007149.html "Burning Man continues year-round, even though the event concludes each year on Labor Day. “Burners” take the sense of community and connectedness on the playa back with them to the real world where these values hopefully have an impact far beyond the borders of Black Rock City. If you think about the 39,000 participants returning home with this newfound sense of social responsibility, the potential positive impact of Burning Man may be well worth the energy spent to get us all there."

sexy burning man yard sale this sunday!!! LA playa style!

sunrisedancer — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 01:14:02 GMT

sunday, august 13th 10am-3pm 1069 sanborn ave., 90029 (corner of sanborn & sunset, park on sunset) it's that time friends... i'm cleaning out my apartment and have tons of great stuff to send to good homes. also, i live with 12 people, many of whom will be contributing. come by, say hi, take something home :) a taste of what this will include: A LOT OF clothes & accessories A LOT OF costumes and burning man pieces A LOT OF lingerie (hand dyed) art prints dell desktop computer HULA HOOPS women's shoes size 8 to 8.5 picture frames art supplies jewelry books dvds and dvd player movies music cds fabric crafts camping gear including tent doo dads planting supplies kitchen ware et cet er a...

need work?

sunrisedancer — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 18:28:54 GMT

hey beauties... my hands are full this summer designing and building gardens here in la and am looking for awesome crew members to get their hands dirty with me. it's fulfilling and fun work removing lawns and creating low-water, edible, and permaculture-driven sanctuaries here in los angeles. immediate opportunities for part time and flexible hours, contact me at 916.397.3527 or everythinggardens@gmail.com. previous landscaping experience a plus, but i will train. gracias!! vanessa

...griffith park burns...

sunrisedancer — Wed, 09 May 2007 03:57:30 GMT

photos taken from my back yard moments ago... the lungs of our city up in smoke. i am speechless. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-ex-griffith8may09,0,5339525.story?coll=la-home-headlines

how mushrooms can help save the world

sunrisedancer — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 04:22:37 GMT

Last Friday was a typical evening in the downtown Los Angeles warehouse district housing the Farmlab crew. As I looked around, the orange hues of the setting sun reflected off the barren cement landscape in a strangely beautiful way and the sounds of cars in the distance were muffled by a train barreling by and helicopters whizzing overhead. Gathered under a bridge amongst these typical urban stimuli, a group of anxious Angelinos awaited a lecture curiously titled "How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World." keep reading this article that i wrote for worldchanging here: http://www.worldchanging.com/local/losangeles/archives/006526.html

Make This Earth Day Your Last!

sunrisedancer — Sat, 21 Apr 2007 05:29:54 GMT

"Most of the time, we go far out of our way to blog from the sunny side of the street, but today we have something important to say that involves some strong words: Sunday should be the last Earth Day..." read why in this awesome article on worldchanging: http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/006520.html

. . .b r e a t h e . . . just b r e a t h e. . .

sunrisedancer — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 01:53:59 GMT

i feel that this is an intense time for many people not just myself a time of challenge of growing pains i have personally put out some big requests to the universe some have come back much quicker and much stronger than i expected knocking me to my knees some are taking longer than i had hoped clenching my jaw then i remember... to b r e a t h e. . .just b r e a t h e the word "inspiration" the drawing of air into the lungs the movement of spirit receipt of the sacred influence reminder that i am alive! letting go of that blockage in my exhale and allowing it to radiate back as light energy... the light is shining through here and you?

. . : l o v e r s f o r l i f e t i m e s : . .

sunrisedancer — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 00:09:28 GMT

the moment that first i saw you again worlds passed us by, and through your eyes i felt the dances that we have danced all of the times before. there was never a hello, just as there will be no goodbye, only a constant remembering as your lips touch mine. and our energies intertwine... your fire fills my soul and my water fills your eyes, your breath runs along my collar and my heart pounds down your spine. for an ancient love like ours knows no boundaries, it will swim the darkest oceans and walk through burning pyres to unlock memory's door we have loved each other for lifetimes, and we shall love each other lifetimes more. ~v * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * happy lover day to my ancient loves, my lifetime lovers, thank you for your inspiration. my heart is yours always. vanessa

. : : w o r l d . . . c h a n g i n g : : .

sunrisedancer — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 20:17:34 GMT

um, excuse me for the shameless self-promotion, but i am really excited to be a part of this amazing project and i want to spread the knowledge far and wide (knowlege *is* power) : www.worldchanging.com. worldchanging is an on-line resource about solutions for our future (tagline: "most innovative solutions, ideas and inventions emerging today for building a sustainable, livable, prosperous future.") and has been called "the most important web site on the planet." you may have seen the book "worldchanging: a users guide for the 21st century" floating around that was recently published based on the website. "from consumer consciousness to a new vision for industry; non-toxic homes to refugee shelters; microfinance to effective philanthropy; socially responsible investing to starting a green business; citizen media to human rights; ecological economics to climate change, this is the most comprehensive, cutting-edge overview to date of what's possible in the near future -- if we decide to make it so." it is a must-have for worldchangers like us. this is where you and i come in. city-specific sites have just launched around the country and i was invited to write for los angeles (holla!). so if you know of something particularly worldchanging happening around these parts that you think should be covered, please drop me a line! in the meantime, you can keep up on what is worldchanging in la here: http://www.worldchanging.com/local/losangeles and on my personal blog, the urban greening project: www.ellaygreens.blogspot.com here's to continually inspiring each other on this journey... love, vanessa * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "we are called to be architects of the future, not its victims." r. buckminster fuller

president vanessa makes environmental headway!!

sunrisedancer — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 00:25:39 GMT

i reduced emissions, but left the economy in ruins and the people weren't so happy with me. hmm, try better next time?? http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/hottopics/climatechange/climate_challenge/index_1.shtml

welcome 2007.

sunrisedancer — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 22:52:14 GMT

another year came in as i moved my things into a new space a blank canvas of opportunity like the days ahead. surrounded by boxes and candles glow and our breath we curled up in our nest poured wine wrote sleepy love songs in between the sharing of stories and dreams and the sounds of the world outside. i paused to remember the place that i was just last year when missing "the party" would have sent me into a dizzying spell but this year there is nothing that i need in this empty space, i am completely full... and that person of 365 days ago is practically a stranger hit by a car i left her dead in the street while this me walked away unbruised and better for it. how incredibly blessed i am how much i have shed how much i have gained in the presence of so many wise souls who in this past year have taught me the hard lessons of growth and forgiveness and unconditional love of recognizing that which does not serve me and the peace in letting go the honor in claiming my vision and never settling for less (you know who you are) thanks runs through my veins tears freely flow i continue to learn. and i am so very present at five in the morning under the new years sky of an orange harvest moon my wings unfurling flying in the arms of my sweet lover and harvesting abundance daily to shower back into this world. welcome 2007. i am creation i am joyous celebration i am love i am the possibility of every dream i am... pop the cork. image by aya kato

meet me

sunrisedancer — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 02:10:04 GMT

the days are long when oceans separate your smile from me love, and my heart cries out when the deep winds howl and chimes clang in brilliant longing for us so i'll meet you again tonight in the dream time chambers of our crystal palace where we'll feed each other sweet stars from the sky and dance to ancient lullabyes and never say good night

the green challenge

sunrisedancer — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 20:05:57 GMT

after reading a friend's outcome from an ecological footprint quiz that she took http://www.earthday.net/footprint/index.asp , i was, of course, curious as to what my footprint was and wanted to compare notes to another green girl in el lay. well, funny enough, i got the same score as her! my enviro footprint, according to this test, is 9 acres. i felt good about being much lower than the 24 acres of an average american...but then i read that if everyone lived like me, we would need 2.1 planets!!! seeing as we only have one planet to work with here, i still have a lot of work to do! so i signed on for slate and treehugger's green challenge http://www.slate.com/id/2151739/ . when i signed up, i went through an initial quiz (found at the bottom of the slate site) about my current living that yielded these results: "Your annual carbon emissions are 33,500 lbs. That's equivalent to the emissions from 3.29 passenger cars. Average carbon emissions per year, per person: United States: 44,312 Qatar: 117,064 France: 13,668 India: 2,645 Kenya: 440" wow... i can't say that this one made me feel better. but, the only option that i have for myself is to step up to this green challenge, and put my action where my mouth is. the green challenge has a topic for each week, including transportation, heating, food, clothing, electricity, holidays, water, and home/office. with each topic comes a related quiz that challenges you to take action against your polluting ways. i have already pledged in the areas of transportation (probably the biggest for me, not that i fly or drive all that much, but this is definitely where i see my biggest changes possible), heating, food and clothing. i have set green intentions in each of these areas and will be updating you with the successes and challenges for each on my personal blog www.ellaygreens.blogspot.com . in the meantime, i invite you to take these quizzes with me. whether you're a sustainability saint or not, you will likely discover opportunities for change in your lifestyle and hopefully be inspired enough to pass it on to others.

city girl

sunrisedancer — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 07:08:40 GMT

i say i'm a city girl, but when i close my eyes i run... run far away from this uniform, this concrete grid, this i n d u s t r y, to live in the tops of trees and bury my head deep into the soul of the familiar. she calls me soft into her sweet green bosom, invites me to nourish myself in her fruits, dance to her dreamy lullabyes, and wash my bones with the river of our beginning. as she feeds me stars from the sky the juices drip down my chin, and my breath and her breath are linked to ancient existence, and so are my roots, penetrating umbilical cords trailing the lines of my flesh to disappear into the belly of her.

big oil sucks big time - yes on prop 87

sunrisedancer — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 20:09:34 GMT

prop 87, aka the clean alternative energy act, is a california ballot initiative that would tax oil drilling in california, and use the money to reduce petroleum usage by funding initiatives promoting clean, alternative energy and increased efficiency. the measure, in the next 10 years, would put $4 billion toward reducing california’s dependence on oil by 25%. passage is by no means assured, as the opposition is incredibly well-funded, by guess who... so, as we know, the negative ads alleging that prop 87 would raise gas prices are funded by the big oil companies, most notably chevron. so far, over $70 million has been put toward defeating prop 87! and the thing is, as one of my favorite green la girls, siel puts it, "since when do oil companies care ’bout OUR pocketbooks?" in their support of prop 87, grist http://www.grist.org/ has this to say about big oil and their efforts to defeat 87: "How do you do justice to the century's worth of meddling that these folks have wrought on our planet? Let's just pick one issue -- say, the looming apocalypse of global warming. Most of the world would like to deal with the problem, so as to continue living. Big Oil, not so much, and so here we are. Prop 87 represents the best opportunity you will likely ever see to get your licks in. Four billion bucks, right in the profit margin. If you let them keep it, they will just buy more Senators." california has long been a leader in promoting a clean energy future. our most recent victories – the governor’s signing of our million solar roofs bill (sb 1) and the passage of the global warming solutions act of 2006 (ab 32) – are two excellent examples of california’s landmark initiatives pushing toward a true clean energy future. so join the sierra club, the american lung association, bill clinton, al gore, richard branson, google founder larry page, and me :) just to name a few in voting yes on prop 87 on november 7th to cement california's position as the most environmentally conscious us state and to send out a precedent for greater taxations on us energy giants. for more info, go here: http://www.yeson87.com/ if you're not yet registered to vote, go here: https://www.govote.org/ctrl/sasquatcher.php?event=OVR_UserArrivesAtSite&template=OVR_index&cu__org_cmpgns_id=2&cmpgn_name=txtvoter&t1=152 * * * * * * * * * * * * for more stories such as these, and info on how you can have a greener urban experience in el lay and beyond, tune into: www.ellaygreens.blogspot.com/

party people!

sunrisedancer — Sun, 15 Oct 2006 20:58:04 GMT

decompressing from decompression here on a lovely sunday afternoon. it was great seeing everyone's glowing faces yesterday and catching up on your post burn happenins. i really felt the playa magic last night while playing amongst the el lay backdrop! unfortunately, i missed the after after party as i'm still in healing mode, but i'm sure you made me proud bringing the sunrise up together. i want to send a shout out to the decom greening group. they worked hard to offer green workshops and make sure that decom was a leave no trace event. i am proud to be a part of such a consciousness raising community. with this coming years art theme being the green man, i feel positive that we can continue to express ourselves radically, while minimizing our party footprint on the world...here's an awesome example of just that: last night, another party kicked off in rotterdam at a new club called the critical mass. hyped as the sustainable dance club, the critical mass features organic beer on tap and fair-trade clothing on sale, but that is just the beginning. enviu, an environmental ngo for youth, is working with the architectural firm döll to create a truly sustainable nightclub featuring energy-generating dance floors (excellent way to extract kilowatts from energetic clubbers), toilets that flush with rain water, walls that change colour as a reaction to temperature changes, a rooftop garden and other elements that combine to create a sustainable clubbing environment. enviu and döll aim to build a club that will be fun and profitable, yet will have a low impact on the environment, while raising awareness for social and environmental issues among the young and hip. http://www.springwise.com/eco_sustainability/hot_nightclub_minus_global_war/ i hope that this proves wildly successful environmentally and financially...and that the concept spreads around the globe! with the way that this community parties, we could probably power most of the west coast with our dancefloors :) * * * * * * * * * * * * for more stories such as these, and info on how you can have a greener urban experience in el lay and beyond, tune into: http://ellaygreens.blogspot.com/

the ground truth

sunrisedancer — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 23:50:15 GMT

(photo collage of us soldiers killed in iraq) A part of me died in the Iraqi desert. by Michael Blake He looked at me and he realized that I had been to the other side; I had seen shit that he could never comprehend; and I had done shit that he would never, in a million years, have the courage to do. A part of me died in Iraq, it will forever be buried with the men we lost and the people we killed... from the iraq veterans against the war * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * last night, at a screening of the ground truth, i heard many similar stories from veterans about their accounts of war in iraq and their difficult transitions back into the civilian world. the soldiers of the ground truth have been physically injured on duty in iraq or are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder upon their return. they shared horrifiying experiences of the killing of innocent men, women, and children, the lack of adequate mental and physical health support from the government upon their return, and the fact that these soldiers are still confused as to what their reason for being in iraq was...they had no said mission except to survive. one of the stories, was from camilo mejia, a 28 year old sgt who was sentenced to one year in prison for refusing to return to fight in iraq. after spending 6 months in combat in iraq, and returning for 2 weeks to the us, he concluded that the war was illegal and immoral, and that he would not return. in an interview with 60 minutes while in hiding, mejia had this to say about why he was in iraq: “That’s the problem. I don’t have an answer, I don’t have a good answer. I cannot say I did it to help the Iraqi people. I cannot say that it was to make America and the world safer. I cannot say that it was for democracy,” Mejia says. “I cannot say that it was to prevent terrorism. I cannot find a single good reason for having been there and having shot at people and having been shot at.” it's essential to be informed and continue to spread the truth so that this can be brought to an end...find more information and how you can take action locally here: http://www.answerla.org/ a.n.s.w.e.r. la act now to stop war and end racism. The A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition has initiated a call for locally coordinated protests on Saturday, October 28th, just days before the pitiful charade known as the 2006 mid-term elections. The people will force the issue of the Iraq war onto the U.S. political stage by taking to streets in demonstrations in cities and towns throughout the United States. Tens of thousands of people will take to the streets in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, New York, Miami, Washington D.C. and in other large and small cities and towns throughout the United States. http://www.codepink4peace.org/ code pink women for peace and here are some facts about the war in iraq (as of june 2006): - the war in iraq is now in its fourth year. - over 2,500 u.s. deaths and over 18,000 u.s. wounded have been recorded since the war began. - over 95% of the above-mentioned deaths and injuries happened after "major combat" was declared over by president bush in his "mission accomplished" speech of may 1, 2003. - from the 2003 to the 2005 calendar years, 210 active/deployed u.w. army soldiers have committed suicide. the number has risen in each successive year, and the 2005 toll is the highest since 1993. - 1 in 3 homeless americans are military veterans. - the war in iraq is costing the us nearly $200 million a day and nearly $6 billion per month. - according to the national priorities project, the $150 billion spent on iraq reconstruction could have paid for the following in the us: sending 20,385,749 children to attend a year of head start health care for 92,526,600 children for one year hiring 2,667,325 additional public school teachers for one year providing 7,461,354 students four-year scholarships at public universities building 1,385,841 additional housing units fully funding global anti-hunger efforts for 6 years fully funding worldwide aids programs for 15 years ensuring that every child in the world was given basic immunizations for 51 years -from the ground truth thanks to michelle bass and simone for hosting the event

fire dance

sunrisedancer — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 20:02:30 GMT

so when did i know, you ask, when you kissed my lips, i say, and then turned running into the red hot embers, your flowing white dress cutting the flames of my heart with your every step, and as i watched my spirit rose to join yours dancing through the pyres and laughing mady in between beauty and love and the burning reflections in our eyes.