09.27.07 THROUGH THE EYES...

...and from the mouths of children the truth is revealed. The emperor has been wearing no clothes!

A little comic video apparently made by a young teenager in his room in front of his iMac computer came through my email recently. The young man is doing an imitation of George W. Bush giving a speech to the nation on global warming:

"...the issue of the so called global warmings ... that are happening ... For centuries the rays of the sun have warmed the surface of our earth's crust ... and ... a ... apparently those rays are intensifying ... the situation ... that is increasing lava flows, and a ..."

"Cut!"

"I'm not gonna lie to you ... I don't know what the hell I'm talking about..."

You can watch the complete video at www.StupidVideos.us.

09.24.07 "AND THE LAST...

...shall be first." Senator Hilary Clinton came to town yesterday. A fund raiser/town meeting style with John Grisham as host and moderator was held. To raise the big money, an exclusive reception was held for those who could contribute $2300 to meet the Senator. Wanting to see Senator Clinton, hear what she has to say, and maybe witness a part of history if she succeeds in becoming our country's first woman president, I volunteered my time with the catering company and served wine to the high-rolling liberals as they awaited the Senator in the private party room of the recently renovated Paramount theater/performance center downtown. The crowd of about 75 drank wine and lemonade and snacked on sweets waiting for the arrival of the Senator, her entourage, and the Secret Service. About an hour before the arrival we were "locked in" to ensure "tight security." We waited, poured more wine, and wondered what to expect. Would we be able to see the Senator from our position at the wine bar in the back of the room? Is she tall enough to see over the crowd of eager donors? Would we get to actually hear her speak? We waited and wondered. Suddenly the backdoor of the room opened next to the wine bar. In strode Senator Hillary Clinton with her group. Senator Clinton in the fore with a big smile on her face walked right up to my coworker at the bar, "Hello, I'm Hillary Clinton," and extended her hand. After asking how my coworker was doing the Senator asked for a lemonade and turned and gave me the same greeting while shaking my hand. After introducing herself to the caterer, Hillary then turned to the crowd of ticket holders and began the informal reception.

Everyone who had been crowding around the front entrance jockeying for position was caught off guard by this surprise entrance. So completely unexpected in this day of high security celebrity politics, Senator Clinton was warm and gracious with the friendly spirit of meeting new people at a church potluck. She looked folks in the eye and made them feel that she would really like to see them again.

Of course, in this super sophisticated and often jaded world of high stakes politics and sound bite media, one is quick to understand the powerful intent of Senator Clinton's "democratic" and inclusive action. And after eight years of government run by politicians with their eye on their investment accounts, with a presence scripted by professional writers and staffers, and a message of "fear" for the American people, this was a huge breath of fresh air. Senator Clinton left her glass of lemonade on the bar. My friend Emily took this tiny picture of it with her cell phone.

09.21.07 FRIENDSHIP URBAN GARDEN REVISITED

The Friendship Urban Garden is growing. Fabulously! I made a journal entry about this garden on June 15 when the ground had been tilled and compost was being delivered. It was a busy summer. Farmer Todd Niemeier and community volunteers turned this unused open space into a food producing machine. The garden is the Urban Agriculture Project of the Quality Community Council.

09.20.07 PHILSOPHY FOR KIDS

I recently came across this amazing (and award winning) children's book by D.B. Johnson, Henry Hikes to Fitchburg. In it he recounts with magnificent illustrations the anecdote Henry Thoreau wrote about walking to Fitchburg. Henry's friend remarked that he could travel to Fitchburg faster on the train, a distance of thirty miles; than Henry, who was used to walking the distance in a day. Thoreau remarked that what seems to be the obviously smart solution, to ride the train, is not necessarily the best use of one's time. While Henry's friend spends the day working hard at a number of jobs to earn the train fare, Henry is enjoying the day in a pleasant stroll through the countryside.

09.19.07 SING YOUR SONG!

Grafitti on the downtown "Freedom of Speech" Wall often makes me smile. We must be steadfast in encouraging the power of hope.

09.09.07 MY SEED OF HOPE

In the early 90s Peter Schumann and his Bread and Puppet players visited my town. They put on an eerie outdoor pageant filled with puppets, music, and stilt walkers. The venue was perfect, Thomas Jefferson's University of Virginia Rotunda and Lawn on a very misty afternoon. The play addressed the plight of native peoples and wildlife in Canada who were threatened by loss of habitat by government hydroelectric projects. A score of actors were dressed in handmade puppet costumes as caribou, Inuit, and characters of good and evil. The pageant parade, begun with a huge stiltwalking character playing a mournful fiddle and coming down the Rotunda's steps, processed across the Lawn and gathered at the university's old and hitherto often ignored amphitheater. Here Schumann had built an oven from dry stacked masonry to bake bread. As audience and players sat in the decrepit outdoor amphiteater in the fog and rain we passed fresh warm bread and bowls of aioli to share.

I have been reading about and following Peter Schumann's life ever since. He and his troupe are truly modern saints. You can learn more about Bread and Puppet in the many articles, books, and videos that have been produced about them. Visit their website at www.breadandpuppet.org. They gathered the troupe and traveled to Lincoln Center in New York City for a performance last month. This photo of puppet costumes in their museum is borrowed from their website gallery with apologies.

09.06.07 SWITCHFUEL?

An encouraging article was printed in the Washington Post yesterday about the potential use of a native American grass, switchgrass, as a biofuel. This perennial, native to the American prairie, produces a huge amount of biomass whose sugars could possibly be distilled into ethanol for fuel. The distillation process needs to be developed further and there is still some question about whether we could produce more units of energy than the units of energy needed to be invested in the process. But the idea of growing a plant for fuel that isn't also a foodstuff (corn, for example) is highly appealing. This photo is borrowed from the website of the Archive of Central Texas Plants with my apologies.