Back in 2000-01, I decided to try my hand at writing sudden fiction, also known as flash fiction. By using the clock on my computer desktop as a stopwatch, I timed my freewrites to 3 minutes max. Though this was a purely self-imposed exercise in trying to generate fresh prose writing, I abided by some hard fast rules. I didn't allow myself to "cheat" by bringing to the page any pre-considered characters, locations, or plot lines. And I had to stop right at three minutes. Wow, what a jumpstart for my brain this practice proved to be. I found that I could do no more than 5 sessions back-to-back, because the pressure of continuous conjuring and composing to a strict deadline took me to a higher plane, and made me light-headed like when I practice my throat singing.
Well now, fast-forward to 2009, and here am I, submitting six sentences of fiction writing to a delightful blog entitled "Six Sentences". After reading about three weeks of previously-accepted entries, I decided to take a poke at this myself, and my first submission was accepted for posting today. Take a look at what I submitted, as well as other writings--leave comments if you like.
(The text above was completed in 10 sentences and about 20 minutes...)
Monday, August 03, 2009
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Radio's Latino USA to look at Latina/Chicana writers - today, Sunday 8/2, at 5:30pm
KERA 90.1 FM has seen fit to schedule the broadcast of "Latino USA", a 30-minute syndicated program produced at UT-Austin, at a much more opportune time. Sundays 5:30pm. This week, la Barbara (Barbara Renaud Gonzalez) sent an email anuncio to let us know that Chicana writers are going to be the focus on this week's episode. Barbara herself will be featured in interviews, as will Sandra Cisneros and Josefina Lopez. I'll be tuning in; "sheck" it out.
From Barbara's email:
"Got the word from Latino USA today! "Books & Women" is a special feature to be aired on LatinoUSA's weekly program this Friday. It includes an interview/reading with Sandra Cisneros, Josefa Lopez, and me. Hope you like it."
Josefina's just released her debut novel, HUNGRY WOMAN IN PARIS. She is probably best-known as the playwright who brought us "Real Women Have Curves." Barbara's GOLONDRINA, WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME? is a novel that she had to leave Dallas (so she has told me) to finish writing. And Sandra, oh gosh, how does one begin? Sandra is the ever-busy, awards-laden and Chicago-raised poeta and novelist who has kicked open the door for burgeoning and future writers such as myself.
Adelante, mujeres de literatura en los Estados Unidos. Let's be inspired by our fellow Chicana sisters and keep focused on our own emerging literary voices.
From Barbara's email:
"Got the word from Latino USA today! "Books & Women" is a special feature to be aired on LatinoUSA's weekly program this Friday. It includes an interview/reading with Sandra Cisneros, Josefa Lopez, and me. Hope you like it."
Josefina's just released her debut novel, HUNGRY WOMAN IN PARIS. She is probably best-known as the playwright who brought us "Real Women Have Curves." Barbara's GOLONDRINA, WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME? is a novel that she had to leave Dallas (so she has told me) to finish writing. And Sandra, oh gosh, how does one begin? Sandra is the ever-busy, awards-laden and Chicago-raised poeta and novelist who has kicked open the door for burgeoning and future writers such as myself.
Adelante, mujeres de literatura en los Estados Unidos. Let's be inspired by our fellow Chicana sisters and keep focused on our own emerging literary voices.
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
upcoming coming up
Been busy with some educational focuses, grassroots-style. Submitted an app to NALAC (National Association of Latino Arts & Culture) and it was breezy-easy; I'm getting better at this grants application process. This time, decided to propose a project I've been wanting to launch for a coupla years: a spoken word choir--voicestra is how I might've referred to it in my narrative text except for the fact that ole Bobby McFerrin has nabbed the term for the name of his performance ensemble.
Here's the 50-word project summary: "I will direct the Sound Culture Spoken Word C.H.O.I.R., a performance ensemble comprised of emerging writers and underserved (marginalized) youth in Fort Worth. This C.H.O.I.R. (Cultivating Harmony with Our Insightful Rhymes) will perform my original poems--in chorus style, accented by music and digital projections--in showcases throughout Texas."
I am hopeful that this project will receive funding, and I'll certainly need to hustle up other sources of support in this community to really make this happen. I am excited for the possibilities of working with underserved youth again--it's been awhile and I have to say, I do have some skills when it comes to teaching and directing young people.
Wish me luck, write a check, whatever. You'll be hearing more about this from me in the coming months.
++++++++++
The other grassroots education thing I'm working on involves a few other cool women, and we're collectively dubbed "Sisters of the Southside" (thanks Lindsey!). What is up? Well, we're putting together a street-level self-defense without violence workshop for women ages 17 and up. It's titled "Self-Defense, Yo!" and the focus of this workshop is on becoming more conscious of the subtle ways in which our behaviors/body language/clothing/etc. somehow give off an implicit "here i am, come take me" message, as misconstrued by would-be perps and pervs. Women and girls want and need to know how to rebuff and resist in ways that don't involve physical confrontation.
Our first workshop is now scheduled!
SATURDAY, AUGUST 29th
1 to 4pm
Ella Mae Shamblee Public Library - Evans Street (just north of E. Rosedale)
Free and open to women 17 years and up
Light refreshments will be offered.
PAIN FREE Society, a fresh design company, will also be in the house.
Save the date - spread the word!!
SELF-DEFENSE, YO! - SATURDAY, AUGUST 29th
Here's the 50-word project summary: "I will direct the Sound Culture Spoken Word C.H.O.I.R., a performance ensemble comprised of emerging writers and underserved (marginalized) youth in Fort Worth. This C.H.O.I.R. (Cultivating Harmony with Our Insightful Rhymes) will perform my original poems--in chorus style, accented by music and digital projections--in showcases throughout Texas."
I am hopeful that this project will receive funding, and I'll certainly need to hustle up other sources of support in this community to really make this happen. I am excited for the possibilities of working with underserved youth again--it's been awhile and I have to say, I do have some skills when it comes to teaching and directing young people.
Wish me luck, write a check, whatever. You'll be hearing more about this from me in the coming months.
++++++++++
The other grassroots education thing I'm working on involves a few other cool women, and we're collectively dubbed "Sisters of the Southside" (thanks Lindsey!). What is up? Well, we're putting together a street-level self-defense without violence workshop for women ages 17 and up. It's titled "Self-Defense, Yo!" and the focus of this workshop is on becoming more conscious of the subtle ways in which our behaviors/body language/clothing/etc. somehow give off an implicit "here i am, come take me" message, as misconstrued by would-be perps and pervs. Women and girls want and need to know how to rebuff and resist in ways that don't involve physical confrontation.
Our first workshop is now scheduled!
SATURDAY, AUGUST 29th
1 to 4pm
Ella Mae Shamblee Public Library - Evans Street (just north of E. Rosedale)
Free and open to women 17 years and up
Light refreshments will be offered.
PAIN FREE Society, a fresh design company, will also be in the house.
Save the date - spread the word!!
SELF-DEFENSE, YO! - SATURDAY, AUGUST 29th
About tonight's MINDSHARE
Getting to the MINDSHARE was relatively easy by local bus service--basically, you get to the stop when it's due to arrive--but it sure was a pain having to wait for half an hour (probably longer) to catch the #4 home, and I was definitely on the verge of just calling a cab. But the bus finally showed, and I felt this super-endurance bravado, which when I get it, I have an automatic urge to splurge. Like on a call liquor beverage at the Chatroom. But I resisted, and walked straight home, once I disembarked from the bus. And had an ice cold bottled Shock Top in front of the computer. But I do digress...
The MINDSHARE is what I want to tell about. I got there right on time for the scheduled 30 minutes of chewing and chatting, and there was a sizeable finger food spread set up--which was nice. Fruit, tiny sandwiches, tea, and veggies for me. I greeted a few women I recognized in the friendly crowd, including Lucy from La Panorama, Marcy Paul from the YWCA's Racial Justice program, and of course, Hispanic Women's Network of Texas - Fort Worth chapter prez, Christina Elbitar (who also co-owns Chadra's Mezza Grill). The panel discussion got started right on time, with an effusive introduction by Pat Alva-Green, followed by a brief recitation of the "rules" of the session--time limits for panel speakers, dismissal of formal titles in favor of just using the women's first names "since we're like a family."
And then the women got down. The testimonials and commentaries were frank, but still socially appropriate--no mean name-calling or slurring in this setting. The HWNT ladies are too gracious for that. But it did seem that the mostly-female audience counted on ex-mayor pro tem (but still on the FW Council) Kathleen Hicks to bring out the edge in the dialogue, and she did. Thank god for that. Otherwise, it might have been a long, dull presentation. It just takes the presence of one surefire truthteller to up the ante for the others at the table, because that's just what happened. Inspirational and advocacy-oriented, but never adversarial or prissy trite, this first-time MINDSHARE allowed women in power suits to speak their powerful minds--forthrightly and sisterly.
CHOICE QUOTES--
From Kathleeen Hicks (who announced that she will be joining the Board of Trustees for Texas Wesleyan U later this year):
"Sometimes it seems that leaders [in Fort Worth] think there are twenty men who run it all."
"The bathrooms in the pre-council chambers are just for men."
From Mary Lou Martinez, the first Hispanic appointee to the Castleberry ISD Board of Trustees:
"Fort Worth is still very much a 'good ole boy' town."
The MINDSHARE is what I want to tell about. I got there right on time for the scheduled 30 minutes of chewing and chatting, and there was a sizeable finger food spread set up--which was nice. Fruit, tiny sandwiches, tea, and veggies for me. I greeted a few women I recognized in the friendly crowd, including Lucy from La Panorama, Marcy Paul from the YWCA's Racial Justice program, and of course, Hispanic Women's Network of Texas - Fort Worth chapter prez, Christina Elbitar (who also co-owns Chadra's Mezza Grill). The panel discussion got started right on time, with an effusive introduction by Pat Alva-Green, followed by a brief recitation of the "rules" of the session--time limits for panel speakers, dismissal of formal titles in favor of just using the women's first names "since we're like a family."
And then the women got down. The testimonials and commentaries were frank, but still socially appropriate--no mean name-calling or slurring in this setting. The HWNT ladies are too gracious for that. But it did seem that the mostly-female audience counted on ex-mayor pro tem (but still on the FW Council) Kathleen Hicks to bring out the edge in the dialogue, and she did. Thank god for that. Otherwise, it might have been a long, dull presentation. It just takes the presence of one surefire truthteller to up the ante for the others at the table, because that's just what happened. Inspirational and advocacy-oriented, but never adversarial or prissy trite, this first-time MINDSHARE allowed women in power suits to speak their powerful minds--forthrightly and sisterly.
CHOICE QUOTES--
From Kathleeen Hicks (who announced that she will be joining the Board of Trustees for Texas Wesleyan U later this year):
"Sometimes it seems that leaders [in Fort Worth] think there are twenty men who run it all."
"The bathrooms in the pre-council chambers are just for men."
From Mary Lou Martinez, the first Hispanic appointee to the Castleberry ISD Board of Trustees:
"Fort Worth is still very much a 'good ole boy' town."
MINDSHARE, a public dialogue sponsored by HWNT, tonight @ 6pm in FW
[This event has been coordinated by the Hispanic Women's Network of Texas (HWNT)--Fort Worth chapter. Thanks to Layne for the heads-up.]
HISPANIC WOMEN’S NETWORK OF TEXAS HOSTS FORUM TO DISCUSS SOTOMAYOR AND CURRENT SOCIAL ISSUES
Fort Worth Chapter Brings Together Councilperson Kathleen Hicks and Honorable Judge Jo Ann Reyes for Panel
HWNT MINDSHARE
Empowering Leaders through Experience
Moderated dialogue led by Dr. Valerie Martinez-Eber, co-author of “Politicas: Latina Public Officials in Texas”
July 29, 2009
Texas Wesleyan University
1201 Wesleyan Street
Fort Worth, Texas 76105-1536
6:00 p.m.
What motivates women to serve their communities?
How does the recent nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor affect our nation? In light of Sotomayor’s historic nomination as the first Latina for the U.S. Supreme Court, they will discuss how this affects women at the local level. We’ve gathered a forum of passionate female role models to break open a dialogue of social issues concerning women today. Our panelists have served or are currently serving as a public official or board member and have agreed to openly share their experience as leaders. Men and women are welcome to join the discussion in a safe, trustworthy environment where we can explore our community, and strengthen our understanding of those that serve us.
The HWNT Mindshare Forum panelists in attendance:
• Mary Lou Martinez, Secretary Board Trustee for Castleberry Independent School District (CISD)
• Honorable Judge Jo Ann Reyes
• Councilperson Kathleen Hicks - District 8
• Dr. Camille Rodriguez, former Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD) board member
• Mayor Dorothy Ortiz, Hall of Cool, TX
WHEN: Wednesday July 29, 2009 -- 6:00 PM
WHERE: Texas Wesleyan University – Louella Baker Martin Pavilion, 1112 Wesleyan St. Fort Worth, TX 76105
WHY: “HWNT advocates for the advancement of Latinas in the public, corporate and civic arena. We are truly proud to see a ‘wise Latina’ as a nominee for one of the highest political sectors in the U.S.” said Christina Elbitar, president of HWNT-FW. “Sotomayor is a shining example of the American dream and a role model to younger Latinas.
About HWNT
HWNT is the largest Hispanic-based women's organization in the State of Texas and is recognized as one of the Top 10 Latina organizations in the country by Latino Leaders magazine in 2009. Since 1987, the organization has served the Texas community by sponsoring programs which reflect the group’s vision and impacts the lives of HWNT members. For more information about HWNT and upcoming events, visit www.HWNT.org/fortworth.
HISPANIC WOMEN’S NETWORK OF TEXAS HOSTS FORUM TO DISCUSS SOTOMAYOR AND CURRENT SOCIAL ISSUES
Fort Worth Chapter Brings Together Councilperson Kathleen Hicks and Honorable Judge Jo Ann Reyes for Panel
HWNT MINDSHARE
Empowering Leaders through Experience
Moderated dialogue led by Dr. Valerie Martinez-Eber, co-author of “Politicas: Latina Public Officials in Texas”
July 29, 2009
Texas Wesleyan University
1201 Wesleyan Street
Fort Worth, Texas 76105-1536
6:00 p.m.
What motivates women to serve their communities?
How does the recent nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor affect our nation? In light of Sotomayor’s historic nomination as the first Latina for the U.S. Supreme Court, they will discuss how this affects women at the local level. We’ve gathered a forum of passionate female role models to break open a dialogue of social issues concerning women today. Our panelists have served or are currently serving as a public official or board member and have agreed to openly share their experience as leaders. Men and women are welcome to join the discussion in a safe, trustworthy environment where we can explore our community, and strengthen our understanding of those that serve us.
The HWNT Mindshare Forum panelists in attendance:
• Mary Lou Martinez, Secretary Board Trustee for Castleberry Independent School District (CISD)
• Honorable Judge Jo Ann Reyes
• Councilperson Kathleen Hicks - District 8
• Dr. Camille Rodriguez, former Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD) board member
• Mayor Dorothy Ortiz, Hall of Cool, TX
WHEN: Wednesday July 29, 2009 -- 6:00 PM
WHERE: Texas Wesleyan University – Louella Baker Martin Pavilion, 1112 Wesleyan St. Fort Worth, TX 76105
WHY: “HWNT advocates for the advancement of Latinas in the public, corporate and civic arena. We are truly proud to see a ‘wise Latina’ as a nominee for one of the highest political sectors in the U.S.” said Christina Elbitar, president of HWNT-FW. “Sotomayor is a shining example of the American dream and a role model to younger Latinas.
About HWNT
HWNT is the largest Hispanic-based women's organization in the State of Texas and is recognized as one of the Top 10 Latina organizations in the country by Latino Leaders magazine in 2009. Since 1987, the organization has served the Texas community by sponsoring programs which reflect the group’s vision and impacts the lives of HWNT members. For more information about HWNT and upcoming events, visit www.HWNT.org/fortworth.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
The Metroplex is poppin'
Starting later this evening is a Puerto Rican-flavored cultural event. I'm sure the music is gonna be great!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Asociacion Boricua de Dallas, Inc.
Cultural Activity
6:30pm - 9pm
Latino Cultural Center
2600 Live Oak @ Good Latimer
Dallas, Texas 75204
Special Performance by: Bomba y Plena by Danza Cultura/Latin Mix
FREE ADMISSION!!
For more info.: cnoemisanchez@yahoo.com
______________________________________________________
ALSO:
There's an all-day YOUTH-oriented arts fest, with graf writers, mural painters, hiphop mc's, slam poets, and more. All day at the Rose Marine Theater, in the outdoor plaza. Check it out--today, Saturday, July 25th, FREE.
1440 N. Main. St., Fort Worth, TX
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Asociacion Boricua de Dallas, Inc.
Cultural Activity
6:30pm - 9pm
Latino Cultural Center
2600 Live Oak @ Good Latimer
Dallas, Texas 75204
Special Performance by: Bomba y Plena by Danza Cultura/Latin Mix
FREE ADMISSION!!
For more info.: cnoemisanchez@yahoo.com
______________________________________________________
ALSO:
There's an all-day YOUTH-oriented arts fest, with graf writers, mural painters, hiphop mc's, slam poets, and more. All day at the Rose Marine Theater, in the outdoor plaza. Check it out--today, Saturday, July 25th, FREE.
1440 N. Main. St., Fort Worth, TX
Friday, July 24, 2009
July 25th--Dallas--for world premiere of "Crystal City 1969"
Crystal City 1969---Auditions!!!
Preliminary auditions for Crystal City 1969 will take place Saturday, July 25 at 7:30 p.m. at the Park Cities Yoga studio (5934 Royal Lane, Suite 252, 75230).
Participants are asked to bring a prepared monologue (2 minutes or less), a head-shot photo, and a performance resume or typed list of experience. No experience necessary to audition. Please arrive dressed to move. No high heels, hard-sole shoes, dresses, skirts or slacks.
Cara Mia Theatre Co. is looking for actors of all ages, from 11-years old and older, to play roles of students, parents, teachers, and general community of south Texas farm town, Crystal City in 1969. Latino, non-Latino, bilingual, English-only, Spanish-only, young, adolescent, old, middle-aged, less-than-middle-aged, short, tall, skinny, gordito/a, moreno/a, guero/a ...
WE WELCOME ALL WITH OPEN ARMS TO OUR THEATRE COMPANY SO PLEASE AUDITION!
Contact Raul Treviño at (469) 438-0692 or ritayraul@gmail.com, or contact David Lozano at dvdlzn75@gmail.com to sign up for an audition or to inquire about play.
Preliminary auditions for Crystal City 1969 will take place Saturday, July 25 at 7:30 p.m. at the Park Cities Yoga studio (5934 Royal Lane, Suite 252, 75230).
Participants are asked to bring a prepared monologue (2 minutes or less), a head-shot photo, and a performance resume or typed list of experience. No experience necessary to audition. Please arrive dressed to move. No high heels, hard-sole shoes, dresses, skirts or slacks.
Cara Mia Theatre Co. is looking for actors of all ages, from 11-years old and older, to play roles of students, parents, teachers, and general community of south Texas farm town, Crystal City in 1969. Latino, non-Latino, bilingual, English-only, Spanish-only, young, adolescent, old, middle-aged, less-than-middle-aged, short, tall, skinny, gordito/a, moreno/a, guero/a ...
WE WELCOME ALL WITH OPEN ARMS TO OUR THEATRE COMPANY SO PLEASE AUDITION!
Contact Raul Treviño at (469) 438-0692 or ritayraul@gmail.com, or contact David Lozano at dvdlzn75@gmail.com to sign up for an audition or to inquire about play.
Network ya Artwork - again at the NEW Melody Shop on Race St. in FW
i love this scene: Network yr Artwork @ The NEW Melody Shop
o, i went to the last "Network" and got my ears refreshened. Arlington's Imaginary Friends is awesome. first-time empanada-maker, Neeky D, blew me away with her homestyle foodstuffs. buena gente, young creative crowd that don't refer to themselves as "creatives"....huh?
Let the Music Move Your Soul 3 - Saturday, July 25th - SE Fort Worth
WHERE: Echo Lake Park, Ft. Worth, TX. Take the RIPY STREET exit, off of I-35 W.
Follow signs for Echo Lake Park/Community Center.
WHAT UP: FREE, ALL AGE EVENT. FREE FOOD. 2on2 CommanDOS Battle. 1on1 BBoy/BGirl.
1on1 Popping. CASH PRIZES!
More info here!
Get out there and shake it - open and free to the public - family-friendly.
Let The Music Move Your Soul 3!! JULY 25th 2009!!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Queer LiberAction is a Dallas-based, but currently VERY Fort Worth-active, group that is not afraid to be out and outspoken. Kick that kowtow(n) into action, yo!
AND--everyone please save the date (JULY 31st) for the teach-in scheduled to take place in the TCU area. Learn and live. Highly recommended.
*******************
From: Queer Liberaction ..
Subject: Queer LiberAction News - Direct Action Gets the Goods
Date: Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 7:48 PM
Direct Action Gets the Goods
Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief and other city officials know very well that stall tactics drive away interest. Ultimately all that is left of important stories such as the harassment and intimidation used at the Rainbow Lounge become whispers in the middle of the night. Moncrief et al knew the city of Fort Worth and the Fort Worth Police Department were wrong and acted under the assumption that GLBT North Texans were going to sit passively by and accept direction from our political betters. Queer LiberAction members stood up and proudly said that violence against our people will never again becomes whispers in the middle of the night.
Mayor Moncrief made an apology after being requested to do so by members of Queer LiberAction. Because he found himself in yet another politically awkward corner, the mayor has subsequently and shamefully rescinded his apology.
The agenda was ultimately restructured so that the issue regarding the raid at the Rainbow Lounge could be heard sooner.
TABC administrator Alan Steen has apologized for his officers committing “clear violations”, the Fort Worth TABC sergeant has resigned and the commission as a whole now seems eager to work openly with the GLBT community.
All this comes after weeks of street protest and agitation, culminating in the finest celebration of our freedom of speech by taking our grievances as an oppressed people to our elected officials. If there hadn’t been so much noise, history could have well repeated itself by allowing our anger to turn into whispers in the middle of the night.
Check out the Dallas Voice article where Queer Liberaction founder, Blake Wilkinson, stands up for the group’s direct action tactics. You can find the article here.
If you haven’t been to QL’s website recently you’ll want to pay a visit. All the photos, video, media links and even a new blog are now up on Queer LiberAction’s site, www.queerliberaction.org
Coming Events
Milk box
Saturday, July 25
Houston and 3rd St
Sundance Square – FW
7:00 PM
Queer Liberaction is set to take its Milk Box to Sundance Square in the heart of downtown Fort Worth this coming Saturday, July 25th at 7:00 PM. Topics sure to ring out over QL’s megaphone will primarily focus on the Rainbow Lounge raid and ensuing debacle in the city of Fort Worth but conversation is open to all. Those that were at the Rainbow Lounge raid are expected to speak on the events they witnessed.
Ambassadors and leaders from the Queer community will be setting up Queer Liberaction's Milk box outside of the gayborhood as a way to engage the public in a discussion on GLBT equality. Named in honor of Harvey Milk, our public free speech event is a fun and engaging way which encourages dialog regarding homophobia and the civil rights denied to GLBT people. Join Queer Liberaction as we stand up and speak OUT to our neighbors about how discrimination affects us all.
Ft Worth QL Meeting
Wednesday, July 29
Starbucks at 404 Houston St in FW
7:00 PM
We are very please to introduce Joe Remsik, the new Queer LiberAction Leader of Community Development in Fort Worth. This new position is part of a drive to foster visible, direct action GLBT activism in Fort Worth. We will hold meetings on the first and third Wednesday of each month, with an introductory meeting taking place on July 29th. Meetings will begin at 7:00 in the evening at the Starbucks located at 404 Houston St in Fort Worth.
Joe says that he’s “very excited to help foster the GLBT civil rights movement here in Fort Worth. I look forward to seeing you all on Wednesday, July 29th as we begin to write a new chapter in GLBT history right here in North Texas.”
QL still holds meetings on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month at Buli Café, 3908 Cedar Springs. We will have a meeting this Wednesday, July 22 beginning at 7:00 in the evening.
Queer LiberAction Teach-in
Friday, July 31
Location by TCU – TBA
7:00 PM
One of the major issues regarding the raid at the Rainbow Lounge is how the city and public officials have responded. We in the GLBT community have been angered by many of the statements of Fort Worth Chief of Police Jeff Halstead and Mayor Mike Moncrief, to name a couple offenders.
How is Mayor Moncrief supposed to stand up for our GLBT community if he isn’t even able to utter the words “Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender” in public?!? This, on top of Jeff Halstead playing the “gay panic” defense by suggesting that Chad Gibson was sent to the hospital for a week after “groping” an officer is so 1969. There is no room for homophobia in Fort Worth in 2009. A city where a GLBT community proudly stands up for itself and doesn’t tolerate homophobia is the new Fort Worth way!
On Friday, July 31 Queer LiberAction along with Spectrum, the Gay Straight Alliance at SMU, will host a public teach-in regarding homophobia and heterosexism and the consequences of it. Statements from Mayor Mike Moncrief, Chief of Police Jeff Halstead and other city officials will be enlarged and displayed for all to see. Speakers will address the public to illustrate how the LGBT community is upset by many of the remarks made by our public officials.
Witnesses of the Rainbow Lounge raid, religious and political leaders of the LGBT North Texas community will be teachers for a day as they address the damaging effects of homophobia and heterosexism.
Come and give your two cents on how you feel the City of Fort Worth has responded to the Rainbow Lounge raid crisis! This event is a hybrid between a Milk box and public education, in its most literal sense. Come and let your voice be heard and speak OUT against homophobia and heterosexism!
Queer LiberAction
lgbtliberaction@gmail.com
www.queerliberaction.org
AND--everyone please save the date (JULY 31st) for the teach-in scheduled to take place in the TCU area. Learn and live. Highly recommended.
*******************
From: Queer Liberaction ..
Subject: Queer LiberAction News - Direct Action Gets the Goods
Date: Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 7:48 PM
Direct Action Gets the Goods
Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief and other city officials know very well that stall tactics drive away interest. Ultimately all that is left of important stories such as the harassment and intimidation used at the Rainbow Lounge become whispers in the middle of the night. Moncrief et al knew the city of Fort Worth and the Fort Worth Police Department were wrong and acted under the assumption that GLBT North Texans were going to sit passively by and accept direction from our political betters. Queer LiberAction members stood up and proudly said that violence against our people will never again becomes whispers in the middle of the night.
Mayor Moncrief made an apology after being requested to do so by members of Queer LiberAction. Because he found himself in yet another politically awkward corner, the mayor has subsequently and shamefully rescinded his apology.
The agenda was ultimately restructured so that the issue regarding the raid at the Rainbow Lounge could be heard sooner.
TABC administrator Alan Steen has apologized for his officers committing “clear violations”, the Fort Worth TABC sergeant has resigned and the commission as a whole now seems eager to work openly with the GLBT community.
All this comes after weeks of street protest and agitation, culminating in the finest celebration of our freedom of speech by taking our grievances as an oppressed people to our elected officials. If there hadn’t been so much noise, history could have well repeated itself by allowing our anger to turn into whispers in the middle of the night.
Check out the Dallas Voice article where Queer Liberaction founder, Blake Wilkinson, stands up for the group’s direct action tactics. You can find the article here.
If you haven’t been to QL’s website recently you’ll want to pay a visit. All the photos, video, media links and even a new blog are now up on Queer LiberAction’s site, www.queerliberaction.org
Coming Events
Milk box
Saturday, July 25
Houston and 3rd St
Sundance Square – FW
7:00 PM
Queer Liberaction is set to take its Milk Box to Sundance Square in the heart of downtown Fort Worth this coming Saturday, July 25th at 7:00 PM. Topics sure to ring out over QL’s megaphone will primarily focus on the Rainbow Lounge raid and ensuing debacle in the city of Fort Worth but conversation is open to all. Those that were at the Rainbow Lounge raid are expected to speak on the events they witnessed.
Ambassadors and leaders from the Queer community will be setting up Queer Liberaction's Milk box outside of the gayborhood as a way to engage the public in a discussion on GLBT equality. Named in honor of Harvey Milk, our public free speech event is a fun and engaging way which encourages dialog regarding homophobia and the civil rights denied to GLBT people. Join Queer Liberaction as we stand up and speak OUT to our neighbors about how discrimination affects us all.
Ft Worth QL Meeting
Wednesday, July 29
Starbucks at 404 Houston St in FW
7:00 PM
We are very please to introduce Joe Remsik, the new Queer LiberAction Leader of Community Development in Fort Worth. This new position is part of a drive to foster visible, direct action GLBT activism in Fort Worth. We will hold meetings on the first and third Wednesday of each month, with an introductory meeting taking place on July 29th. Meetings will begin at 7:00 in the evening at the Starbucks located at 404 Houston St in Fort Worth.
Joe says that he’s “very excited to help foster the GLBT civil rights movement here in Fort Worth. I look forward to seeing you all on Wednesday, July 29th as we begin to write a new chapter in GLBT history right here in North Texas.”
QL still holds meetings on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month at Buli Café, 3908 Cedar Springs. We will have a meeting this Wednesday, July 22 beginning at 7:00 in the evening.
Queer LiberAction Teach-in
Friday, July 31
Location by TCU – TBA
7:00 PM
One of the major issues regarding the raid at the Rainbow Lounge is how the city and public officials have responded. We in the GLBT community have been angered by many of the statements of Fort Worth Chief of Police Jeff Halstead and Mayor Mike Moncrief, to name a couple offenders.
How is Mayor Moncrief supposed to stand up for our GLBT community if he isn’t even able to utter the words “Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender” in public?!? This, on top of Jeff Halstead playing the “gay panic” defense by suggesting that Chad Gibson was sent to the hospital for a week after “groping” an officer is so 1969. There is no room for homophobia in Fort Worth in 2009. A city where a GLBT community proudly stands up for itself and doesn’t tolerate homophobia is the new Fort Worth way!
On Friday, July 31 Queer LiberAction along with Spectrum, the Gay Straight Alliance at SMU, will host a public teach-in regarding homophobia and heterosexism and the consequences of it. Statements from Mayor Mike Moncrief, Chief of Police Jeff Halstead and other city officials will be enlarged and displayed for all to see. Speakers will address the public to illustrate how the LGBT community is upset by many of the remarks made by our public officials.
Witnesses of the Rainbow Lounge raid, religious and political leaders of the LGBT North Texas community will be teachers for a day as they address the damaging effects of homophobia and heterosexism.
Come and give your two cents on how you feel the City of Fort Worth has responded to the Rainbow Lounge raid crisis! This event is a hybrid between a Milk box and public education, in its most literal sense. Come and let your voice be heard and speak OUT against homophobia and heterosexism!
Queer LiberAction
lgbtliberaction@gmail.com
www.queerliberaction.org
Saturday, July 11, 2009
FDA to get tobacco regulation authority...
[Lori S, who works for the American Cancer Society, sent along the following news several weeks ago, and I forgot to post this then. Thanks, Lori.]
In an historic vote, the U.S. Senate today passed a bill that would grant the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate the manufacturing, marketing, sale and distribution of tobacco products. Tobacco is virtually the only consumable product that is unregulated, and it is a product that when used as directed kills. One-third of cancer deaths in the U.S. are attributed to tobacco use. Research also shows that 3,500 children pick up their first cigarette each day and 1,000 will become addicted. The American Cancer Society and its advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), have long pushed for this lifesaving legislation, joining more than 1,000 public health and faith-based organizations who support the bill. The House of Representatives has already passed similar legislation. Congress will now reconcile the two bills and send a final version to the President, who has already committed to signing it.
In an historic vote, the U.S. Senate today passed a bill that would grant the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate the manufacturing, marketing, sale and distribution of tobacco products. Tobacco is virtually the only consumable product that is unregulated, and it is a product that when used as directed kills. One-third of cancer deaths in the U.S. are attributed to tobacco use. Research also shows that 3,500 children pick up their first cigarette each day and 1,000 will become addicted. The American Cancer Society and its advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), have long pushed for this lifesaving legislation, joining more than 1,000 public health and faith-based organizations who support the bill. The House of Representatives has already passed similar legislation. Congress will now reconcile the two bills and send a final version to the President, who has already committed to signing it.
Thursday, July 02, 2009
Breanna, my niece, is rockin'
I am so proud of and happy for my little niece, that girl who's all of 15--round the corner from 16. She just got her first-ever payroll check today and that is a major milestone for a family member in our tribe.
We've all been pullin for her, all her life, and maybe even before she was born.
Back in late May or so, Grandma saw something in the newspaper about summer jobs for teens, 14 and up, a by-product of the "Obama stimulus package" opportunities abounding right now. Grandma told little B, and right away B's mom took her to library and B filled out her online app. Meeting, orientation, and other bureaucratic processes later--she's got a job through the Tarrant County Workforce Solution's "Youth in the 21st Century" program. At a church, doing a theater project.
Because B had taken advantage of some cool opportunities with the Rose Marine Theater and with her tia Tammy, she had some "theater experience" credentials to add to her job app. So, she got hooked up with a theater production, and we all assumed--B included--that she would be doing lights or some tech assistant tasks. Oh, no. This girl got her a gig performing ONstage, with professional (Jubilee Theatre) performers involved, and together they will be presenting LIVE at the Scott Theatre (!!) in early August. (B did reveal that 100 teens were hired to be involved with this production...)
Apparently, the show title, theme(s), and other details are a big secret to be kept from the public--til the opening night, of course. Which makes me all the more curious and intrigued. B is keeping it cool with the Jubilee folks whom she knows know me; she thinks it best not to drop my name and just earn/learn her way on her own cred (credibility and credentials).
So, with the first paycheck in hand, my little B is a "professional performer" in the 817. I couldn't be prouder and happier for her.
Hey--I'll let you know the performance date(s) and more specifics as I get them myself.
We've all been pullin for her, all her life, and maybe even before she was born.
Back in late May or so, Grandma saw something in the newspaper about summer jobs for teens, 14 and up, a by-product of the "Obama stimulus package" opportunities abounding right now. Grandma told little B, and right away B's mom took her to library and B filled out her online app. Meeting, orientation, and other bureaucratic processes later--she's got a job through the Tarrant County Workforce Solution's "Youth in the 21st Century" program. At a church, doing a theater project.
Because B had taken advantage of some cool opportunities with the Rose Marine Theater and with her tia Tammy, she had some "theater experience" credentials to add to her job app. So, she got hooked up with a theater production, and we all assumed--B included--that she would be doing lights or some tech assistant tasks. Oh, no. This girl got her a gig performing ONstage, with professional (Jubilee Theatre) performers involved, and together they will be presenting LIVE at the Scott Theatre (!!) in early August. (B did reveal that 100 teens were hired to be involved with this production...)
Apparently, the show title, theme(s), and other details are a big secret to be kept from the public--til the opening night, of course. Which makes me all the more curious and intrigued. B is keeping it cool with the Jubilee folks whom she knows know me; she thinks it best not to drop my name and just earn/learn her way on her own cred (credibility and credentials).
So, with the first paycheck in hand, my little B is a "professional performer" in the 817. I couldn't be prouder and happier for her.
Hey--I'll let you know the performance date(s) and more specifics as I get them myself.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Support the LGBT community in FW - Call for Justice in the Case of the Rainbow Lounge Raid on Sunday, June 28th
It's all over the local (DFW, TX) news--radio, television, print--and apparently, even various national media news outlets covered this in front-end broadcast segments. The newest gay bar in town, the Rainbow Lounge, is located less than a 5-minute drive from my home, and was recently the site of a now-controversial raid by FWPD and TABC (Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission) that has sent a Lounge patron to John Peter Smith Hospital with a serious head injury.
Q Cinema founder Todd Camp, present during the raid, was compelled to take action and so has created a Facebook group, "Rainbow Lounge Raid", which in less than three days time has attracted over 4,000 members.
At tonight's community policing forum, local residents spoke out against what is increasingly being labeled "excessive force" and "homophobia" on the part of the arresting officers at the Rainbow Lounge on early Sunday morning. Police Chief Jeff Halstead so far seems to be doing the right thing: promising an investigation of the circumstances surrounding the arrests and urging witnesses to step forward and offer their testimony. Of course, many folks in the LGBT community--and their allies--are alarmed by what this bodes for the future, given the historical (hysterical) homophobia of Texans in general and that of Texas law enforcement officers in specific. Because of this, local activists are mobilizing quickly to build solidarity networks and to organize public demonstrations of support for the Rainbow Lounge, its patrons, and those who suffered at the hands of the FWPD on that fateful Sunday morning.
Some folks are even calling on nationally-syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage to make a trip to Cowtown for an appearance at an upcoming protest rally...
*************************************************
UPCOMING EVENTS: NEED YOUR PARTICIPATION!
July 1 - Wednesday - evening candlelight vigil in front of the Rainbow Lounge - 8pm - 651 S. Jennings
July 5 - Sunday - "Milk Box" speak-out at Sundance Square, downtown FW - 7pm - Houston & 3rd Streets
July 12 - Sunday - LGBT North Texas Rally - Tarrant County Courthouse - 7pm - 100 E. Weatherford
*************************************************
More information, via the Equality Texas blog.
More information, via Queer Liberaction:
From: Queer Liberaction
Subject: The Rainbow Lounge Raids - Stonewall 2009
To: lgbtliberaction@gmail.com
Date: Monday, June 29, 2009, 6:00 PM
THE RAINBOW LOUNGE RAID – "STONEWALL 2009"
This past Sunday, June 28th was the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellions, the moment which sparked our civil rights movement. At Stonewall we were indignant and outraged. With this anger we got energized, got creative and got organized and stood up to society to proclaim that we are not going to be treated like any less than the human beings that we are.
Forty years on, GLBT people are still being harassed and brutalized within their own bars and clubs. At about 1:00 AM on the exact anniversary of Stonewall, the Fort Worth Police, along with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC), raided the Rainbow Lounge. A patty wagon along with several police cars were parked outside as the police entered with plastic handcuffs ready to make arrests.
The Fort Worth Police are claiming that arrests were made for public intoxication. You can’t get drunk at a bar in Texas anymore? The police are also claiming that customers made “sexually explicit movements toward the police supervisor” and that other officers were “groped'.
Customers from the Rainbow Lounge have a sharply different account of the events. First hand accounts indicate that this raid was a clear-cut case of police brutality and harassment. These sorts of vile intimidation techniques must not be allowed to pass without angry condemnation from the North Texas LGBT community.
While there is still uncertainty as to the exact number of arrests made, those who were present at the Rainbow Lounge that evening are reporting that about fifteen people were arrested.
Violence was used to such an extent that a Rainbow Lounge customer, Chad Gibson, is still in the ICU suffering from internal hemorrhaging on the brain. His condition is reported to be worsening. Our thoughts and prayers are with Chad and the Gibson family.
Please visit the Dallas Voice Instant Tea blog for a more complete story and for the latest developments. (I recommend hitting the refresh button every few hours, at least for the next week or so...)
LGBT North Texas will rally again at the Tarrant County Courthouse on Sunday, July 12 at 7:00 PM. If in the next two weeks there is city-wide condemnation of the Rainbow Lounge Raid then the rally will then be one to congratulate the city on their swift and sharp action. On the other hand, if first hand reports still contradict the official story, if arresting officers are not seriously disciplined, if the officer responsible for Chad Gibson’s brain hemorrhage is still an active member of the Fort Worth Police Department, if apologies are not issued by the mayor, Mike Moncrief, and the Fort Worth Police Chief, Jeffery Halstead then the tone of the rally will adequately express the indignation from our community regarding the City of Fort Worth’s less than aggressive response to homophobia and police brutality.
Rainbow Lounge Raid Rally
Tarrant County Courthouse
100 E Weatherford
Sunday, July 12
7:00 PM
SPEAK YOUR MIND!
Chuck Potter and Todd Camp were both at the Rainbow Lounge in Fort Worth around 1 a.m. Sunday morning, June 28, when it was raided by Fort Worth police officers and agents with the TABC. Seven people were arrested and one man remains hospitalized with a serious head injury that may require surgery as a result of the raid — which by the way, happened on the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion.
Potter, Camp and many others were outraged by what has been described as the officers' brutality during the raid, and by what appeared to many as nothing more than an effort to harass management, staff and patrons at the newly-opened nightclub. Potter and Camp organized rallies on Sunday that drew as many as 200 people to the steps of the Tarrant County Courthouse to protest the raid.
Now Chuck Potter and Todd Camp are coming to Dallas Voice's monthly "Freedom of Speech Night" on Tuesday, June 30, to talk about what happened. We want you to come, too, to get information and to give your opinion.
Come on out and exercise your freedom of speech!
Tuesday, June 30
8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Buzzbrews Kitchen
4334 Lemmon Avenue
MILK BOX – RAINBOW LOUNGE RAID
In response to the raid at the Rainbow Lounge, Queer Liberaction is set to take its Milk box to Sundance Square in the heart of downtown Fort Worth this coming Sunday, July 5th at 7:00 PM. Those that were at the Rainbow Lounge Raid will speak on the events they witnessed.
Ambassadors and leaders from the Queer community will be setting up Queer Liberaction's Milk box outside of the gayborhood as a way to engage the public in a discussion on GLBT equality. Named in honor of Harvey Milk, our public free speech event is a fun and engaging way which encourages dialog regarding homophobia and the civil rights denied to GLBT people. Join Queer Liberaction as we stand up and speak OUT to our neighbors about how discrimination affects us all.
Milk box
Sundance Square in Fort Worth
Houston & 3rd St.
Sunday, July 5
7:00 PM
All the information coming out regarding the Rainbow Lounge Raid is all very new and a single consistent story has been difficult to establish. Please keep checking Queer Liberaction’s website for the latest steps we will be taking in the coming weeks.
Queer Liberaction
lgbtliberaction@gmail.com
Q Cinema founder Todd Camp, present during the raid, was compelled to take action and so has created a Facebook group, "Rainbow Lounge Raid", which in less than three days time has attracted over 4,000 members.
At tonight's community policing forum, local residents spoke out against what is increasingly being labeled "excessive force" and "homophobia" on the part of the arresting officers at the Rainbow Lounge on early Sunday morning. Police Chief Jeff Halstead so far seems to be doing the right thing: promising an investigation of the circumstances surrounding the arrests and urging witnesses to step forward and offer their testimony. Of course, many folks in the LGBT community--and their allies--are alarmed by what this bodes for the future, given the historical (hysterical) homophobia of Texans in general and that of Texas law enforcement officers in specific. Because of this, local activists are mobilizing quickly to build solidarity networks and to organize public demonstrations of support for the Rainbow Lounge, its patrons, and those who suffered at the hands of the FWPD on that fateful Sunday morning.
Some folks are even calling on nationally-syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage to make a trip to Cowtown for an appearance at an upcoming protest rally...
*************************************************
UPCOMING EVENTS: NEED YOUR PARTICIPATION!
July 1 - Wednesday - evening candlelight vigil in front of the Rainbow Lounge - 8pm - 651 S. Jennings
July 5 - Sunday - "Milk Box" speak-out at Sundance Square, downtown FW - 7pm - Houston & 3rd Streets
July 12 - Sunday - LGBT North Texas Rally - Tarrant County Courthouse - 7pm - 100 E. Weatherford
*************************************************
More information, via the Equality Texas blog.
More information, via Queer Liberaction:
From: Queer Liberaction
Subject: The Rainbow Lounge Raids - Stonewall 2009
To: lgbtliberaction@gmail.com
Date: Monday, June 29, 2009, 6:00 PM
THE RAINBOW LOUNGE RAID – "STONEWALL 2009"
This past Sunday, June 28th was the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellions, the moment which sparked our civil rights movement. At Stonewall we were indignant and outraged. With this anger we got energized, got creative and got organized and stood up to society to proclaim that we are not going to be treated like any less than the human beings that we are.
Forty years on, GLBT people are still being harassed and brutalized within their own bars and clubs. At about 1:00 AM on the exact anniversary of Stonewall, the Fort Worth Police, along with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC), raided the Rainbow Lounge. A patty wagon along with several police cars were parked outside as the police entered with plastic handcuffs ready to make arrests.
The Fort Worth Police are claiming that arrests were made for public intoxication. You can’t get drunk at a bar in Texas anymore? The police are also claiming that customers made “sexually explicit movements toward the police supervisor” and that other officers were “groped'.
Customers from the Rainbow Lounge have a sharply different account of the events. First hand accounts indicate that this raid was a clear-cut case of police brutality and harassment. These sorts of vile intimidation techniques must not be allowed to pass without angry condemnation from the North Texas LGBT community.
While there is still uncertainty as to the exact number of arrests made, those who were present at the Rainbow Lounge that evening are reporting that about fifteen people were arrested.
Violence was used to such an extent that a Rainbow Lounge customer, Chad Gibson, is still in the ICU suffering from internal hemorrhaging on the brain. His condition is reported to be worsening. Our thoughts and prayers are with Chad and the Gibson family.
Please visit the Dallas Voice Instant Tea blog for a more complete story and for the latest developments. (I recommend hitting the refresh button every few hours, at least for the next week or so...)
LGBT North Texas will rally again at the Tarrant County Courthouse on Sunday, July 12 at 7:00 PM. If in the next two weeks there is city-wide condemnation of the Rainbow Lounge Raid then the rally will then be one to congratulate the city on their swift and sharp action. On the other hand, if first hand reports still contradict the official story, if arresting officers are not seriously disciplined, if the officer responsible for Chad Gibson’s brain hemorrhage is still an active member of the Fort Worth Police Department, if apologies are not issued by the mayor, Mike Moncrief, and the Fort Worth Police Chief, Jeffery Halstead then the tone of the rally will adequately express the indignation from our community regarding the City of Fort Worth’s less than aggressive response to homophobia and police brutality.
Rainbow Lounge Raid Rally
Tarrant County Courthouse
100 E Weatherford
Sunday, July 12
7:00 PM
SPEAK YOUR MIND!
Chuck Potter and Todd Camp were both at the Rainbow Lounge in Fort Worth around 1 a.m. Sunday morning, June 28, when it was raided by Fort Worth police officers and agents with the TABC. Seven people were arrested and one man remains hospitalized with a serious head injury that may require surgery as a result of the raid — which by the way, happened on the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion.
Potter, Camp and many others were outraged by what has been described as the officers' brutality during the raid, and by what appeared to many as nothing more than an effort to harass management, staff and patrons at the newly-opened nightclub. Potter and Camp organized rallies on Sunday that drew as many as 200 people to the steps of the Tarrant County Courthouse to protest the raid.
Now Chuck Potter and Todd Camp are coming to Dallas Voice's monthly "Freedom of Speech Night" on Tuesday, June 30, to talk about what happened. We want you to come, too, to get information and to give your opinion.
Come on out and exercise your freedom of speech!
Tuesday, June 30
8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Buzzbrews Kitchen
4334 Lemmon Avenue
MILK BOX – RAINBOW LOUNGE RAID
In response to the raid at the Rainbow Lounge, Queer Liberaction is set to take its Milk box to Sundance Square in the heart of downtown Fort Worth this coming Sunday, July 5th at 7:00 PM. Those that were at the Rainbow Lounge Raid will speak on the events they witnessed.
Ambassadors and leaders from the Queer community will be setting up Queer Liberaction's Milk box outside of the gayborhood as a way to engage the public in a discussion on GLBT equality. Named in honor of Harvey Milk, our public free speech event is a fun and engaging way which encourages dialog regarding homophobia and the civil rights denied to GLBT people. Join Queer Liberaction as we stand up and speak OUT to our neighbors about how discrimination affects us all.
Milk box
Sundance Square in Fort Worth
Houston & 3rd St.
Sunday, July 5
7:00 PM
All the information coming out regarding the Rainbow Lounge Raid is all very new and a single consistent story has been difficult to establish. Please keep checking Queer Liberaction’s website for the latest steps we will be taking in the coming weeks.
Queer Liberaction
lgbtliberaction@gmail.com
Sunday, June 14, 2009
"Howl" - a live theater adaptation of a poem- at the Hip Pocket Theater in FW
Allen Ginsberg's book-length seminal poem "Howl" has been adapted by Johnny Simon of the Hip Pocket Theater in Fort Worth. I'm going to see and hear it tonight. I've been told the performance runs a brief 45 minutes. "Howl" was written 50 years ago, and apparently still speaks volumes about the state of our society--I'll let you know my first impressions later this week.
I've also been reading that producer Christine Vachon (one of my living cinematic heroes) has been working on a narrative film which focuses on the drama and controversy that surrounded Ginsberg (and a few other Beat poets) in NYC. Titled "Kill Your Darlings", this film has been generating alot of buzz, though it's not slated to be released later this summer or in the fall. A biopic, also based on Ginsberg's "Howl" is forthcoming in 2010.
Check out some related images here, here, here, and here.
One online pundit suggested that Jemaine, of hot indie band-of-the-moment Flight of the Conchords, woulda made a great onscreen "Ginzy"--as many of us affectionately called Ginsberg over the years.
I've also been reading that producer Christine Vachon (one of my living cinematic heroes) has been working on a narrative film which focuses on the drama and controversy that surrounded Ginsberg (and a few other Beat poets) in NYC. Titled "Kill Your Darlings", this film has been generating alot of buzz, though it's not slated to be released later this summer or in the fall. A biopic, also based on Ginsberg's "Howl" is forthcoming in 2010.
Check out some related images here, here, here, and here.
One online pundit suggested that Jemaine, of hot indie band-of-the-moment Flight of the Conchords, woulda made a great onscreen "Ginzy"--as many of us affectionately called Ginsberg over the years.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Do Dance, Do Music--in Dallas, Saturday, June 13th
The city of Dallas will be host to two exciting fests in one day. First, there will be a 6-hour TangoThon at the Latino Cultural Center. Afterwards, the Dallas Symphony Latino Festival will commence at the Meyerson Symphony Center, in the downtown museum district. Both events are FREE and open to the public! Details follow.
SABOR A TANGO
Presents
THE 7TH ANNUAL TangoTHON
SPONSORED BY Latino Cultural Center and Target
(Argentine Tango Classes for FREE. ALL classes are geared toward beginners.)
Saturday June 13th, 2009
11am - 5pm
Location: Latino Cultural Center - 2600 Live Oak St. - Dallas, Texas 75204
(The Latino Cultural Center is located just east of downtown Dallas.)
Registration for the Free Classes is Highly recommended.
How to Register:
Send an e-mail to dancing@evolutiontango.com with the following information:
Subject: TangoTHON 2009
First and Last Name of all the participants
Class # (you can take one, tw,o or all three classes)
Class #1 - 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.– Intro to Argentine Tango taught by George and Jairelbhi Furlong
Class #2- 12:15 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. - Intro to Argentine Tango taught by Karen & Larry Hallman
Class #3- 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. –Intro to Argentine Tango taught by Reese Fuentez & Gail Horne
2:30pm to 3:00pm – Performances by Tango Instructors
3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. – Open Practica (This is the time to practice what you have learned in the classes)
NEW THIS YEAR: There will be a Tango Performance in between classes by Tango Students
If you have any questions, please call: 469.939.4120 or email at dancing@evolutiontango.com.
[Thank you, Jairelbhi Furlong, for sending along this tango fest invitation.]
+++++++++++++++
Dallas Symphony Latino Festival 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
7:30pm -- FREE and open to the public
Meyerson Symphony Center - in the downtown Dallas museum district - Dallas, TX
Admittance will be on a first-come , first-served basis. Please arrive 45 minutes early to ensure seating.
Vouchers can be obtained by calling: 214.692.0203
SABOR A TANGO
Presents
THE 7TH ANNUAL TangoTHON
SPONSORED BY Latino Cultural Center and Target
(Argentine Tango Classes for FREE. ALL classes are geared toward beginners.)
Saturday June 13th, 2009
11am - 5pm
Location: Latino Cultural Center - 2600 Live Oak St. - Dallas, Texas 75204
(The Latino Cultural Center is located just east of downtown Dallas.)
Registration for the Free Classes is Highly recommended.
How to Register:
Send an e-mail to dancing@evolutiontango.com with the following information:
Subject: TangoTHON 2009
First and Last Name of all the participants
Class # (you can take one, tw,o or all three classes)
Class #1 - 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.– Intro to Argentine Tango taught by George and Jairelbhi Furlong
Class #2- 12:15 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. - Intro to Argentine Tango taught by Karen & Larry Hallman
Class #3- 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. –Intro to Argentine Tango taught by Reese Fuentez & Gail Horne
2:30pm to 3:00pm – Performances by Tango Instructors
3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. – Open Practica (This is the time to practice what you have learned in the classes)
NEW THIS YEAR: There will be a Tango Performance in between classes by Tango Students
If you have any questions, please call: 469.939.4120 or email at dancing@evolutiontango.com.
[Thank you, Jairelbhi Furlong, for sending along this tango fest invitation.]
+++++++++++++++
Dallas Symphony Latino Festival 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
7:30pm -- FREE and open to the public
Meyerson Symphony Center - in the downtown Dallas museum district - Dallas, TX
Admittance will be on a first-come , first-served basis. Please arrive 45 minutes early to ensure seating.
Vouchers can be obtained by calling: 214.692.0203
GNO - live tonight - presented by WordSpace in Dallas
[Thanks to Adrienne Cox Trammell of WordSpace for the following announcement.]
WORDSPACE of Dallas, Texas, will present veteran slam poet John E. Doom aka GNO, tonight, June 12th, at Cafe Madrid in Dallas.
Date: Friday, June 12
Time: 10:00 p.m. to midnight
Place: Cafe Madrid - Bishop Arts District - 408 N. Bishop - Dallas, TX
I've known GNO for over ten years, and he always, quite capably, delivers a fun and riveting performance poetry set. He's worked solo, and he's also been on several slam poetry teams representing Dallas at the National Poetry Slam competitions over the past 12 or so years. I also booked his threesome, OIL (Ordained in Lyrics), which performed to thunderous ovations at the Texas Book Festival under the Poetry Tent (which I curated and hosted for seven years). OIL is one of the best spoken word performance ensembles I've ever heard in the great state of Texas. The first time I witnessed this trio, performing well-orchestrated group pieces with the flavor of jazz, was at Mojo's Coffeehouse in Austin during South by Southwest. OIL slicked me down and fried me deep--wow. For now, it appears that GNO is doing a solo routine for his public appearances. No worries, this man can definitely entertain on his own. Highly recommended.
More info at wordspacetexas@yahoo.com
WORDSPACE of Dallas, Texas, will present veteran slam poet John E. Doom aka GNO, tonight, June 12th, at Cafe Madrid in Dallas.
Date: Friday, June 12
Time: 10:00 p.m. to midnight
Place: Cafe Madrid - Bishop Arts District - 408 N. Bishop - Dallas, TX
I've known GNO for over ten years, and he always, quite capably, delivers a fun and riveting performance poetry set. He's worked solo, and he's also been on several slam poetry teams representing Dallas at the National Poetry Slam competitions over the past 12 or so years. I also booked his threesome, OIL (Ordained in Lyrics), which performed to thunderous ovations at the Texas Book Festival under the Poetry Tent (which I curated and hosted for seven years). OIL is one of the best spoken word performance ensembles I've ever heard in the great state of Texas. The first time I witnessed this trio, performing well-orchestrated group pieces with the flavor of jazz, was at Mojo's Coffeehouse in Austin during South by Southwest. OIL slicked me down and fried me deep--wow. For now, it appears that GNO is doing a solo routine for his public appearances. No worries, this man can definitely entertain on his own. Highly recommended.
More info at wordspacetexas@yahoo.com
Thursday, June 11, 2009
My personal Nepal anniversary
This week, this precise week, marks the 10th year anniversary of my FIRST (yes, someday i WILL return) journey to and in Nepal. I long-ago started a blog which was designed to depict at least a few of my experiences and impressions while there in the summer of 1999. So, you can go there if you want to read more details about that. For here and now, let's just enjoy these two images and some elevation stats. Yeah, I trekked up to see Everest, and yes, it rocked my world.
Uhm, some folks got me to do an interview for an August 1999 edition of the Sandhiya Times (a Nepal Bhasa-language daily that's distributed in Kathmandu). Pretty unexpected thing to happen to a Chicana from Tejas, que no?
Kathmandu, 4500 ft. elevation
Lukla, 9380 ft. elevation
(Oh, that's right: I flew into Lukla, at the "most dangerous airport in the world". Glad I didn't know this back then. You gotta watch the embedded video footage of a SAFE landing into Lukla on this site. No wonder all the passengers and flight personnel break into excited (and relieved) applause whenever this plane lands in one piece..)
Namche Bazaar, 11,300 ft. elevation
Khumjung 12,400 ft. elevation
Tengboche 12,670 ft. elevation
Pangboche 12,800 ft. elevation
Uhm, some folks got me to do an interview for an August 1999 edition of the Sandhiya Times (a Nepal Bhasa-language daily that's distributed in Kathmandu). Pretty unexpected thing to happen to a Chicana from Tejas, que no?Kathmandu, 4500 ft. elevation
Lukla, 9380 ft. elevation
(Oh, that's right: I flew into Lukla, at the "most dangerous airport in the world". Glad I didn't know this back then. You gotta watch the embedded video footage of a SAFE landing into Lukla on this site. No wonder all the passengers and flight personnel break into excited (and relieved) applause whenever this plane lands in one piece..)
Namche Bazaar, 11,300 ft. elevation
Khumjung 12,400 ft. elevation
Tengboche 12,670 ft. elevation
Pangboche 12,800 ft. elevation
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Who's Counting?
[Thanks to Lionheart, who identifies as a "Nerd for Word," for the following news and links.]
"check this out. the english language will be getting its millioneth [sic] word very sooooooon."
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/06/09/million.words/index.html
http://www.languagemonitor.com/
1. This
2. is
3. very
4. fascinating
5. especially
6. to
7. folks
8. who
9. enjoy
10. playing
11. with
12. words
"check this out. the english language will be getting its millioneth [sic] word very sooooooon."
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/06/09/million.words/index.html
http://www.languagemonitor.com/
1. This
2. is
3. very
4. fascinating
5. especially
6. to
7. folks
8. who
9. enjoy
10. playing
11. with
12. words
Thursday, June 04, 2009
I'm performing at tonight's Spoken Word Salon @ Christopher Walker in FW
There is going to be a special edition event at the Christopher Walker Salon tonight, Saturday, June 6th, from 6-9pm. Apparently, one of the owners at Christopher Walker is a poetry/spoken word aficionado and has spearheaded this first-time Spoken Word Salon--which will feature various "speaking" artists, including some mc's (rappers). I'll be on the mic too, starting sometime between 7:30pm and 8:30pm. Doing about a 15-20 minute set.
Wine/fruit/spoken word/camaraderie with creatives/Los Vaqueros tex-mex-----sounds good to me.
10 dollars at the door.
817.207.9898 to rsvp or for more info.
6-7pm wine reception
7-8:30pm performances
8:30pm more food, catered by Los Vaqueros Restaurant
Christopher Walker Salon
3065 Greene Avenue
Fort Worth, TX 76109
Wine/fruit/spoken word/camaraderie with creatives/Los Vaqueros tex-mex-----sounds good to me.
10 dollars at the door.
817.207.9898 to rsvp or for more info.
6-7pm wine reception
7-8:30pm performances
8:30pm more food, catered by Los Vaqueros Restaurant
Christopher Walker Salon
3065 Greene Avenue
Fort Worth, TX 76109
What's in your camelbak?
The one and only time i ever participated in a foot race (it was a 10k), i was about 18 years old. Near the finish line, the organizers had set up barrels and barrels filled with ice-cold cans (the 8 oz. size) of Budweiser. As the legal drinking age at the time was 18, I swigged a couple cans of Bud--ahhh. Quite refreshing, if not actually hydrating.
Back to the garden(ing).
Sometimes I fret that I am spending (my all-too-precious) time doing the wrong things. I often double up by listening to some interesting radio (KERA's Think or This American Life or Radio 360) as I move to and fro cleaning, arranging, blogging, cooking, cat-bonding, etc. Today, I decided--with utmost intent--to push everything aside so that I could finally make fresh herb bundles to share with neighbors and friends who live in my very walkable neighborhood. It was a gorgeous sunny day, with a mild cool breeze blowing, and so I knew that a walk could do me some good. As I listened to Middle Eastern students and young professionals interpret and analyze President Obama's recent speech in Cairo, I carefully arranged and tied together short cuttings of fresh rosemary and oregano from my garden. It was a little bit of a fight that I had to wage, within my mind, to keep myself from labeling this activity as frivolous and dashing back to the internet for online browsing, researching, bulletin posting, whatever, whatever. Seems that, more and more, it becomes harder to justify spending time OFF-line. This concerns me greatly. And so, I am trying to liberate myself from the cyber-hood by doing things that really matter. Er, because they deal with actual matter. Hence, I have been gardening (i.e., growing things in dirt, specifically in the dirt around my house). So far, I have the following new little lovelies soaking up sun (and water) and stretching up, millimeter by millimeter, every day--much to my delight and unwavering fascination: basil, cabbage (c'mon, little guy, you can do it!), onion, carrots, collard greens (from seed, mind you), chili peppers, squash, pole beans, mint, and parsley. I am so protective of my little growing project that I cannot imagine the pain I am likely to inflict on anyone caught trying to heist my garden edibles.
I wanna say some words about my experience of the ABC network special "Earth 2100", which I caught on the telly this past Tuesday. But all I can manage to share about this right now is that 1) the info and narrative of this program was very sobering; 2) I'm glad i've been living my "economic downturn" lifestyle for over 15 years already; and 3) we really need to grow a solid mentality and practice of living the aphorism that "we're all in this together."
If you want some fresh-cut rosemary or oregano, just let me know. I'll be happy to share the harvest.
Recommended reading
Peak-Oil Prophet James Howard Kunstler on Food, Fuel and Why He Became an Almost Vegan
* By Kerry Trueman
Alternet, May 7, 2009
Straight to the Source
I grew up in Woodland Hills, Calif., a nominally pastoral, petrocentric Los Angeles suburb, so peak oil prognosticator James Howard Kunstler's dim view of our car-crazed culture really resonates with me.
Kunstler's relentless skewering of suburbia, and his penchant for apocalyptic predictions have landed him a reputation as a cranky Cassandra. But as Ben McGrath observed while strolling around Saratoga Springs with Kunstler for a recent New Yorker piece, "Far from the image of the stereotypical Chicken Little, he was more like an amiable town crier whom the citizenry regarded fondly, if a bit skeptically."
So, when a friend and I found ourselves headed to Kunstler's neck of the woods for a conference recently, we arranged to have dinner with Saratoga Springs' resident soothsayer. Contrary to his contrarian reputation, Kunstler proved to be an affable, upbeat guy.
We chatted about food, politics, urban planning, gardening and a dozen other topics, but I'm not much of a note-taker; I'd rather eat than tweet. So our dinner conversation was off the record, including, mercifully, his ribald remarks about Alice Waters and Martha Stewart, which decency should preclude me from even alluding to.
However, he graciously agreed to answer my questions via e-mail about his conversion from carnivore to (mostly) vegan and other foodish and fuelish topics.
Kerry Trueman: Let's get right to the meat of the matter -- or, rather, the lack thereof. You used to enjoy eating "lots of meat, duck fat, butter by the firkin." What made you decide to go more or less vegan in recent months? Was it hard to make the transition to a plant-based diet?
James Howard Kunstler: It was as simple as a trip to the doctor's office. My cholesterol and blood pressure were too high. I had to take some radical action. I've enjoyed the challenge of cooking with a very different range of ingredients. But I like cooking and am pretty good at it -- I worked in many restaurant kitchens when I was a starving bohemian -- and I figured a lot of things out.
For instance, that you can make stocks and sauces by braising onions and aromatics without oil or butter. The only thing I really miss is making really bravura dishes for company, like chicken pie with a butter-saturated crust, duck-and-sausage gumbo, brownies ... you get the picture. ... I'm still excited by the challenge of vegan (or nearly vegan -- I use skim milk) cookery.
There are some excellent cookbooks out there, by the way, like Vegan With a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, The Accidental Vegan by Devra Gartenstein, and the Candle Cafe Cookbook by Joy Pierson and Bart Potenza.
KT: A study has just come out showing that although the French spend two hours eating each day -- roughly twice as long as we do -- they're among the slimmest of the 18 nations in the study. Americans were the fattest, with more than 1 in 3 Americans qualifying as obese. How would you explain this phenomenon? What compels Americans to eat so many of our meals in our cars?
JHK: Americans eat so many meals in cars because: 1) The infrastructure of daily life is engineered for extreme car dependency, and 2) because the paucity of decent quality public space and so-called third places (gathering places) for the working classes (and lower) -- and remember, it is the working classes and poor who are way disproportionately obese. The people portrayed in Vanity Fair magazine are not fat. I suspect that the amount of time Americans spend in their cars is roughly proportionate to the amount of time French people spend at the table.
Fast food is not a new phenomenon in the USA, however. Frances Trollope's sensational travel book of the 1830s, The Domestic Manners of the Americans dwells on the horrifying spectacle of our hotel dining rooms, where people bolted their food with disgusting manners. Americans have been in a tearing rush for 200 years.
KT: In The Long Emergency, published in 2005, you predicted with astounding accuracy how the subprime mortgage meltdown would unfold. Your latest novel, World Made By Hand, takes place in the near future after a massive flu outbreak that originated in Mexico. Um, what should we start worrying about next?
JHK: Worry about the "recovery" that never comes and the insidious collapse of our institutions and arrangements that will proceed from this. Worry about lost incomes and vocations that will never come back (e.g. marketing exec for Target, Inc.) and the need to find new ways to be useful to your fellow human beings (and incidentally perhaps earn a living). Worry about finding a community to live in that is cohesive enough to stave off anarchy at the local level. Worry about building the best garden you can and making good compost. Worry about how difficult it is to learn how to play a musical instrument at age 47.
KT: You recently wrote "there's no way we can continue the petro-agriculture system of farming and the Cheez Doodle and Pepsi Cola diet that it services. The public is absolutely zombified in the face of this problem -- perhaps a result of the diet itself." OK, so how will we stock our post-peak-oil pantries? Do we really need to start hoarding rice and beans?
JHK: Get some kind of a hand-cranked home grain mill. Personally, I think it is indeed a good idea to lay in a supply of beans, lentils, rice, oats, other grains and don't forget salt, boullion (soups can sustain us with any number of ingredients), dried onion flakes, spices (chilies and curries especially). Our just-in-time, three-day's-worth-of-inventory supermarket system is very susceptible to disruption. And we're very far from establishing workable local food networks in this country.
The fragility of petro-ag is being aggravated by the collapse of bank lending now. Farmers need borrowed money desperately. Capital is as important an "input" as methane-based fertilizers. I think we could see problems with food production and distribution anytime from here on.
KT: You're an avid gardener -- do you grow much of your own food? Do you worry that you'll have to guard your greens with a gun if our collapsing economy sends the mall rats outdoors to forage after the food courts run out of pretzel nuggets?
JHK: I don't grow any grains. I have successfully grown potatoes, but won't this year (I'm renting my current house and its accompanying property). This year, I'll be planting mostly leafy greens -- collards, kale, chard, lettuces, plus some peppers and tomatoes (pure frivolity). It is not hard to imagine that food theft will become a problem. The trouble, though, is that the sort of people liable to do the thieving are exactly those with the poorest skills in cooking. You have to know what to do with kale to make it worth stealing. It may be more like kitchen theft: "... what's that you got on the stove, pal?"
KT: You evidently enjoy cooking and entertaining. Who would your dream dinner guests be (limiting your guest list to those folks who are currently among the living)?
JHK: I have a pretty good revolving cast of characters among my friends locally who make regular visits to my table. This week, a farming couple who are renting 20 acres off a wealthy land-truster (and doing a great job of market gardening) are coming over, along with the Rolling Stone environmental reporter and his wife, who is writing a gardening book. I don't need no steenkin' outatown celebrities.
I wanna say some words about my experience of the ABC network special "Earth 2100", which I caught on the telly this past Tuesday. But all I can manage to share about this right now is that 1) the info and narrative of this program was very sobering; 2) I'm glad i've been living my "economic downturn" lifestyle for over 15 years already; and 3) we really need to grow a solid mentality and practice of living the aphorism that "we're all in this together."
If you want some fresh-cut rosemary or oregano, just let me know. I'll be happy to share the harvest.
Recommended reading
Peak-Oil Prophet James Howard Kunstler on Food, Fuel and Why He Became an Almost Vegan
* By Kerry Trueman
Alternet, May 7, 2009
Straight to the Source
I grew up in Woodland Hills, Calif., a nominally pastoral, petrocentric Los Angeles suburb, so peak oil prognosticator James Howard Kunstler's dim view of our car-crazed culture really resonates with me.
Kunstler's relentless skewering of suburbia, and his penchant for apocalyptic predictions have landed him a reputation as a cranky Cassandra. But as Ben McGrath observed while strolling around Saratoga Springs with Kunstler for a recent New Yorker piece, "Far from the image of the stereotypical Chicken Little, he was more like an amiable town crier whom the citizenry regarded fondly, if a bit skeptically."
So, when a friend and I found ourselves headed to Kunstler's neck of the woods for a conference recently, we arranged to have dinner with Saratoga Springs' resident soothsayer. Contrary to his contrarian reputation, Kunstler proved to be an affable, upbeat guy.
We chatted about food, politics, urban planning, gardening and a dozen other topics, but I'm not much of a note-taker; I'd rather eat than tweet. So our dinner conversation was off the record, including, mercifully, his ribald remarks about Alice Waters and Martha Stewart, which decency should preclude me from even alluding to.
However, he graciously agreed to answer my questions via e-mail about his conversion from carnivore to (mostly) vegan and other foodish and fuelish topics.
Kerry Trueman: Let's get right to the meat of the matter -- or, rather, the lack thereof. You used to enjoy eating "lots of meat, duck fat, butter by the firkin." What made you decide to go more or less vegan in recent months? Was it hard to make the transition to a plant-based diet?
James Howard Kunstler: It was as simple as a trip to the doctor's office. My cholesterol and blood pressure were too high. I had to take some radical action. I've enjoyed the challenge of cooking with a very different range of ingredients. But I like cooking and am pretty good at it -- I worked in many restaurant kitchens when I was a starving bohemian -- and I figured a lot of things out.
For instance, that you can make stocks and sauces by braising onions and aromatics without oil or butter. The only thing I really miss is making really bravura dishes for company, like chicken pie with a butter-saturated crust, duck-and-sausage gumbo, brownies ... you get the picture. ... I'm still excited by the challenge of vegan (or nearly vegan -- I use skim milk) cookery.
There are some excellent cookbooks out there, by the way, like Vegan With a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, The Accidental Vegan by Devra Gartenstein, and the Candle Cafe Cookbook by Joy Pierson and Bart Potenza.
KT: A study has just come out showing that although the French spend two hours eating each day -- roughly twice as long as we do -- they're among the slimmest of the 18 nations in the study. Americans were the fattest, with more than 1 in 3 Americans qualifying as obese. How would you explain this phenomenon? What compels Americans to eat so many of our meals in our cars?
JHK: Americans eat so many meals in cars because: 1) The infrastructure of daily life is engineered for extreme car dependency, and 2) because the paucity of decent quality public space and so-called third places (gathering places) for the working classes (and lower) -- and remember, it is the working classes and poor who are way disproportionately obese. The people portrayed in Vanity Fair magazine are not fat. I suspect that the amount of time Americans spend in their cars is roughly proportionate to the amount of time French people spend at the table.
Fast food is not a new phenomenon in the USA, however. Frances Trollope's sensational travel book of the 1830s, The Domestic Manners of the Americans dwells on the horrifying spectacle of our hotel dining rooms, where people bolted their food with disgusting manners. Americans have been in a tearing rush for 200 years.
KT: In The Long Emergency, published in 2005, you predicted with astounding accuracy how the subprime mortgage meltdown would unfold. Your latest novel, World Made By Hand, takes place in the near future after a massive flu outbreak that originated in Mexico. Um, what should we start worrying about next?
JHK: Worry about the "recovery" that never comes and the insidious collapse of our institutions and arrangements that will proceed from this. Worry about lost incomes and vocations that will never come back (e.g. marketing exec for Target, Inc.) and the need to find new ways to be useful to your fellow human beings (and incidentally perhaps earn a living). Worry about finding a community to live in that is cohesive enough to stave off anarchy at the local level. Worry about building the best garden you can and making good compost. Worry about how difficult it is to learn how to play a musical instrument at age 47.
KT: You recently wrote "there's no way we can continue the petro-agriculture system of farming and the Cheez Doodle and Pepsi Cola diet that it services. The public is absolutely zombified in the face of this problem -- perhaps a result of the diet itself." OK, so how will we stock our post-peak-oil pantries? Do we really need to start hoarding rice and beans?
JHK: Get some kind of a hand-cranked home grain mill. Personally, I think it is indeed a good idea to lay in a supply of beans, lentils, rice, oats, other grains and don't forget salt, boullion (soups can sustain us with any number of ingredients), dried onion flakes, spices (chilies and curries especially). Our just-in-time, three-day's-worth-of-inventory supermarket system is very susceptible to disruption. And we're very far from establishing workable local food networks in this country.
The fragility of petro-ag is being aggravated by the collapse of bank lending now. Farmers need borrowed money desperately. Capital is as important an "input" as methane-based fertilizers. I think we could see problems with food production and distribution anytime from here on.
KT: You're an avid gardener -- do you grow much of your own food? Do you worry that you'll have to guard your greens with a gun if our collapsing economy sends the mall rats outdoors to forage after the food courts run out of pretzel nuggets?
JHK: I don't grow any grains. I have successfully grown potatoes, but won't this year (I'm renting my current house and its accompanying property). This year, I'll be planting mostly leafy greens -- collards, kale, chard, lettuces, plus some peppers and tomatoes (pure frivolity). It is not hard to imagine that food theft will become a problem. The trouble, though, is that the sort of people liable to do the thieving are exactly those with the poorest skills in cooking. You have to know what to do with kale to make it worth stealing. It may be more like kitchen theft: "... what's that you got on the stove, pal?"
KT: You evidently enjoy cooking and entertaining. Who would your dream dinner guests be (limiting your guest list to those folks who are currently among the living)?
JHK: I have a pretty good revolving cast of characters among my friends locally who make regular visits to my table. This week, a farming couple who are renting 20 acres off a wealthy land-truster (and doing a great job of market gardening) are coming over, along with the Rolling Stone environmental reporter and his wife, who is writing a gardening book. I don't need no steenkin' outatown celebrities.
Friday, May 22, 2009
3 recommended events for this weekend in Fort Worth
Humanization 4tet--featuring Aaron and Stefan Gonzalez, Metroplex musicians who are also brothers--begins its U.S. tour this weekend here in the FW. Humanization 4tet's first release (on Clean Feed Records) won best Portuguese CD honors as selected by the biggest Portuguese jazz magazine, Jazz.PT, in 2008.
The Humanization 4tet is led by Lisbon guitarist Luis Lopes & features tenor saxophonist Rodrigo Amado. Lopes and Amado selected the Gonzalez brothers--sons of Dallas-based jazz virtuoso Dennis Gonzalez--to join them as the rhythm section to fill out this "freebop" quartet.
TONIGHT!
Friday, May 22 - Firehouse Gallery - Ft. Worth
4147 Meadowbrook Dr. - 76103 - 8 pm - $5
For more info, check out this compendium of reviews of the 4tet.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Saturday, May 23rd: Check out Jesse Sierra Hernandez' solo art exhibit opening at the Rose Marine Theater Gallery (Galeria de la Rosa), 1440 N. Main St., 5 minutes north of downtown FW. Jesse's exhibit, entitled En Una Manera Silenciosa, will surely draw a crowd of dedicated fans and friends.
I'll have to miss the opening, cuz I'm going to be in Tulsa, OK, for the premiere weekend screening of "Barking Water".
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lindsey D sent word about a free film screening, sponsored by the local chapter of the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World).
Never had heard of this doc before. Check it out.
Sunday, May 24th
1919 Hemphill, 5 minutes south of downtown FW.
The Humanization 4tet is led by Lisbon guitarist Luis Lopes & features tenor saxophonist Rodrigo Amado. Lopes and Amado selected the Gonzalez brothers--sons of Dallas-based jazz virtuoso Dennis Gonzalez--to join them as the rhythm section to fill out this "freebop" quartet.
TONIGHT!
Friday, May 22 - Firehouse Gallery - Ft. Worth
4147 Meadowbrook Dr. - 76103 - 8 pm - $5
For more info, check out this compendium of reviews of the 4tet.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Saturday, May 23rd: Check out Jesse Sierra Hernandez' solo art exhibit opening at the Rose Marine Theater Gallery (Galeria de la Rosa), 1440 N. Main St., 5 minutes north of downtown FW. Jesse's exhibit, entitled En Una Manera Silenciosa, will surely draw a crowd of dedicated fans and friends.
I'll have to miss the opening, cuz I'm going to be in Tulsa, OK, for the premiere weekend screening of "Barking Water".
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lindsey D sent word about a free film screening, sponsored by the local chapter of the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World).
Never had heard of this doc before. Check it out.
Sunday, May 24th
1919 Hemphill, 5 minutes south of downtown FW.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
"Barking Water" premiere in Tulsa, Oklahoma--where it was filmed
"Self Portrait: Homeland Series" by Richard Ray Whitman, 1986, photo collage, mixed mediaRichard Ray Whitman (the guy in the middle in the image above) is a friend who I met, quite serendipitously at a New Year's Eve party in OKC (Oklahoma City), back in 1999 when the last place I wanted to bring in the new year was in Austin. I called up fellow poet and wondering wanderer Kathianne O and told her to pick me up from the OKC airport around 10pm that night. She, not expecting this call, tried to beg off, saying that she was boring, had no friends and no food in the fridge. I told her that I didn't care, and that I was on my way nonetheless. When she picked me up from the airport, her entire mood had transformed: "there's a party happening at my house--i bought a buncha food and beer--and my Indian friends are coming over!" You never know when a random call to a distant friend can stir up a nice hot diggity. At Kathianne's later that night--and into the next morning--I got to meet and hang out with Richard Ray and his brother Joe Dale. We shared fresh poems, lotsa drink, and kindled a wonderful new friendship. I celebrate Richard Ray Whitman with this post, cuz he's the sort of quiet smoldering presence who defies description. He is a visual artist, poet, committed Yuchi Indian activist, and now--an actor. He is a caring, compassionate person whose gentle spirit can truly transform any room you find yourself sharing with him. I'll never forget the day last May (2008) when he led me to his special altar and lit some sweetgrass and gave me a special blessing mere weeks after I'd survived my closet ordeal. It was a highlight of my visit to Oklahoma City last year.
Vicki, Richard Ray, me, Kathianne in OKC, May 2008 - photo credit: Bryan ParrasI cannot wait to see him on the big screen in his first starring role.
THE EVENT: Oklahoma Premiere of "Barking Water", Native Indian indie filmmaker Sterlin Harjo’s new film featuring Casey Camp-Horinek and Richard Ray Whitman.
The film got great reviews at the Sundance Film Festival and was screened at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in New York City on the opening night of the Native American Film and Video Festival in March. That was followed by screenings at the Lincoln Center and the Museum of Modern Art.
Now, it’s opening in Oklahoma. Circle Cinema in Tulsa will host the
Oklahoma premiere, from Friday, May 22nd through Thursday, May 28th.
Circle Cinema is located at 12 S. Lewis, Tulsa, OK
Phone at 918-585-3456 for more info.
Tickets will go on sale Thursday, May 21 by phone or online.
Additional links:
http://www.barkingwaterfilm.com/
http://filmlinc.org/ndnf/program/barkingwater.html
http://filmlinc.wordpress.com/2009/03/26/ndnf-winding-roads-and-lifes-complications-in-sterlin-harjos-barking-water/
http://www.nativenetworks.si.edu/eng/orange/barking_water.html
http://festival.sundance.org/2009/film_events/films/barking_water
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Spring Issue, YELLOW MEDICINE REVIEW - now released
There is nothing like capping off an amazing afternoon of backyard gardening (also lit my firepit as it was actually cool enough outside to deal with that) with a great mail delivery. I received my contributor's copies of the latest issue of the
YELLOW MEDICINE REVIEW yesterday and put the huge yellow envelope aside 'til I was done in the backyard. Then, I took a quick bath, put on some fresh clothes, and walked--with envelope under my arm--to the Chatroom for a celebratory pint. It's my tradition to toast myself whenever a new publication credit comes to pass; typically, I've ended up at the thinks-it's-schmancy-but it's actually pretty laidback upstairs bar at the Worthington Hotel downtown. I once dragged a box of books and a box cutter up there, plopped down on a leatheresque settee and ordered a Bombay gin and tonic. Never mind trying to get a friend to join you; they're usually at work or otherwise occupied. And, what I've come to realize is that this celebration is really about you, the writer, and your book. Ain't no one else really gonna understand the import and necessity of unpacking the book from its delivery wrap with great anticipation, and the delicious feeling of first seeing the book design and cover art, and turning the book over and over in your hands--knowing that your own written words have contributed to its weight and value. Then, when you open the book to see where your poems have been placed, you marvel at how your work seems to hold its own settled in among poems written by people you have never heard of before. I try to read my poems with the eyes of a new reader, imagining what they might find or appreciate most in my words. All these gestures and rituals of welcoming a new book are a quite personal experience for the published writer. If you as friend or family member don't really understand but applaud me from afar, that's cool. Me and my new book will continue to celebrate over at the corner table, glistening with pride and good humor.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Get out, get active today - Monday, May 18th
For some reason, tonight's a big night for community action and activism in the Metroplex. I might end up at the ACT meeting; I have met a few ACT organizers and they are very cool and creative problem-solvers, and so I want to learn more about their work in Tarrant County. But right after I post this, I'm dragging my boombox out to the backyard, and I'm turning into a gardening fiend for the next few hours. Bean pole plants are looking good. My collard seeds have sprouted!
++++++
TONIGHT!
ACT's (Allied Communities of Tarrant) general membership meets at 7 pm at St. Andrew's Catholic Church in the library tonight, Monday, May 18th. The address is 3717 Stadium Dr. (west of Granbury Road, in the Westcliff neighborhood).
Tonight's agenda includes final planning for Tuesday's education action (see below), updates on the ACT May 28 GALA, and work on JPS's new community clinic initiative and the beginning of immigration workshops. Nine ACT leaders met with legislators and participated in a press conference at the state capitol last week, and they will discuss progress on legislation around job training, TAKS testing, and children's health insurance.
______________
Tomorrow, TUESDAY, May 19th at 6:45 pm, parents, congregrations, pastors and principals will meet to determine the political will for challenging the status quo in schools. This includes
• challenging how schools treat parents
• how teachers and parents can be more effective together,
• how to challenge the geography of failing schools.
Please arrive at 6:45 pm at Beth Eden Baptist Church, 3208 Wilbarger St, Fort Worth. The leadership team and Education Coordinator Tara Perez have led listening sessions with hundreds of parents, and these stories will form the basis of a summer organizing strategy.
More information on ACT (Allied Communities of Tarrant):
Jose Aguilar - 817-443-4152 (cell) - joseaguilar_58@hotmail.com
Allied Communities of Tarrant - 817-921-2228 (phone) - alliedcommunities.org
++++++
COMMUNITY POLICING FORUM
The Fort Worth Police Department will hold a police public awareness forum TONIGHT:
MONDAY, MAY 18th, 2009
7PM to 8PM
SHAMBLEE BRANCH LIBRARY (about 2 blocks east of I-35, minutes from Magnolia/Fairmount 'hoods)
1062 EVANS AVENUE
This forum will be conducted to:
- Build a better verbal dialogue between the community and the police department.
- Maintain a continuous working relationship and address the various concerns of the community.
In this meeting, community groups and residents will have the opportunity to hear about the latest projects and programs, ask questions and give feedback to numerous police officials.
Chief of police Jeff Halstead and other police department representatives will attend the forum.
Because you care about what happens in your neighborhood, please attend. For more information, please contact Office Sharron Neal at 817.392.4215.
Please invite your neighbors, your neighborhood watch groups, and your copwatch allies.
++++++
And, to close off the night, if you can get out to Denton---a benefit for the QUERENCIA COMMUNITY BIKE SHOP!
Doors open at 7pm
$7
$5 if you come by bike
8pm- Chris Flemons
9pm- The Slow Burners
10pm- Boxcar Bandits
11pm- Sara Jaffe
Bike sale, Bake Sale, Raffles, Bike Valet!!!
Help us buy some tools!
We are celebrating our recent approval of 501c3!!! We are officially a tax-exempt nonprofit organization!
http://qcbs.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/10x15qcbsbenefitwithtext.jpg
++++++
GET OUTSIDE, GET ACTIVE, the weather's gorgeous so roll your car windows down & turn OFF the a/c !!!!
++++++
TONIGHT!
ACT's (Allied Communities of Tarrant) general membership meets at 7 pm at St. Andrew's Catholic Church in the library tonight, Monday, May 18th. The address is 3717 Stadium Dr. (west of Granbury Road, in the Westcliff neighborhood).
Tonight's agenda includes final planning for Tuesday's education action (see below), updates on the ACT May 28 GALA, and work on JPS's new community clinic initiative and the beginning of immigration workshops. Nine ACT leaders met with legislators and participated in a press conference at the state capitol last week, and they will discuss progress on legislation around job training, TAKS testing, and children's health insurance.
______________
Tomorrow, TUESDAY, May 19th at 6:45 pm, parents, congregrations, pastors and principals will meet to determine the political will for challenging the status quo in schools. This includes
• challenging how schools treat parents
• how teachers and parents can be more effective together,
• how to challenge the geography of failing schools.
Please arrive at 6:45 pm at Beth Eden Baptist Church, 3208 Wilbarger St, Fort Worth. The leadership team and Education Coordinator Tara Perez have led listening sessions with hundreds of parents, and these stories will form the basis of a summer organizing strategy.
More information on ACT (Allied Communities of Tarrant):
Jose Aguilar - 817-443-4152 (cell) - joseaguilar_58@hotmail.com
Allied Communities of Tarrant - 817-921-2228 (phone) - alliedcommunities.org
++++++
COMMUNITY POLICING FORUM
The Fort Worth Police Department will hold a police public awareness forum TONIGHT:
MONDAY, MAY 18th, 2009
7PM to 8PM
SHAMBLEE BRANCH LIBRARY (about 2 blocks east of I-35, minutes from Magnolia/Fairmount 'hoods)
1062 EVANS AVENUE
This forum will be conducted to:
- Build a better verbal dialogue between the community and the police department.
- Maintain a continuous working relationship and address the various concerns of the community.
In this meeting, community groups and residents will have the opportunity to hear about the latest projects and programs, ask questions and give feedback to numerous police officials.
Chief of police Jeff Halstead and other police department representatives will attend the forum.
Because you care about what happens in your neighborhood, please attend. For more information, please contact Office Sharron Neal at 817.392.4215.
Please invite your neighbors, your neighborhood watch groups, and your copwatch allies.
++++++
And, to close off the night, if you can get out to Denton---a benefit for the QUERENCIA COMMUNITY BIKE SHOP!
Doors open at 7pm
$7
$5 if you come by bike
8pm- Chris Flemons
9pm- The Slow Burners
10pm- Boxcar Bandits
11pm- Sara Jaffe
Bike sale, Bake Sale, Raffles, Bike Valet!!!
Help us buy some tools!
We are celebrating our recent approval of 501c3!!! We are officially a tax-exempt nonprofit organization!
http://qcbs.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/10x15qcbsbenefitwithtext.jpg
++++++
GET OUTSIDE, GET ACTIVE, the weather's gorgeous so roll your car windows down & turn OFF the a/c !!!!
Friday, May 15, 2009
My cabbies
The forthcoming issue of Yellow Medicine Review will be featuring three of my poems based generally on the theme of education, including one about my international cab drivers--they're immigrant men about 99% of the time--and we share fascinating conversations as they drive me to my destination. As we all know, "it's the journey, not the..." I learn so much from these men, as they are often well-educated with colorful histories which are encapsulated in six minutes (or so) of time talking together. I often--especially in the past three months--begin to feel a particular kinship with these men, as if these drivers are long-lost brothers who need to hurriedly catch me up on the lives they've been living.
In some cases, I have tracked their journeys, before even knowing them personally: A Nepali driver seemed to appreciate that I exhibited more than a passing awareness of the current political situation in Nepal. And, when my driver this past Wednesday told me that he'd been born in Cuba and hoped to travel there someday--his parents were from Sudan--I put two and two together and realized that this young man was of "diplomat family stock". He confirmed what I'd thought, telling me that his parents were only briefly based in Cuba, and thereafter returned to Sudan where this man was raised. He told me that he could not now return to Sudan, for he is a "wanted man" and I chimed in, "like one of those 'Lost Boys' of Sudan", to which he smiled--not every Fort Worthian is gonna have a clue, after all--and nodded, "yes I am like them."
There are many "lost boys" wandering our streets as taxicab drivers in the night. I hope that they at least occasionally meet other passengers who care to hear their stories and arrive, full stop, at heartening and enlightening conclusions together.
In some cases, I have tracked their journeys, before even knowing them personally: A Nepali driver seemed to appreciate that I exhibited more than a passing awareness of the current political situation in Nepal. And, when my driver this past Wednesday told me that he'd been born in Cuba and hoped to travel there someday--his parents were from Sudan--I put two and two together and realized that this young man was of "diplomat family stock". He confirmed what I'd thought, telling me that his parents were only briefly based in Cuba, and thereafter returned to Sudan where this man was raised. He told me that he could not now return to Sudan, for he is a "wanted man" and I chimed in, "like one of those 'Lost Boys' of Sudan", to which he smiled--not every Fort Worthian is gonna have a clue, after all--and nodded, "yes I am like them."
There are many "lost boys" wandering our streets as taxicab drivers in the night. I hope that they at least occasionally meet other passengers who care to hear their stories and arrive, full stop, at heartening and enlightening conclusions together.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Sor Juana Festival - comes to Dallas on Saturday, May 16th
The Latino Cultural Center of Dallas
in collaboration with the
National Museum of Mexican Art presents
The 2009 Sor Juana Festival
Saturday, May 16
4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
"The Sor Juana Festival is a multidisciplinary festival honoring one of Mexico's greatest writers, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, a 17th century Mexican nun who valued the education of women. In addition to the Latino Cultural Center, the National Museum of Mexican Art is collaborating with over 12 arts organizations across the nation - making the Sor Juana Festival the largest Latino performing arts festival in the country."
4pm - Film Screening
"Yo, la peor de todas" / I, The Worst of All
María Luisa Bemberg (1990) - Based on the life of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz,this film will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles.
6:30pm - Intermission
7pm - Special Musical Performance
Mezzo-soprano Silvia Paola Nuñez will perform traditional 17th century songs from Mexico's baroque era
7:30pm - "Sor Juana: A Life Defined"
The illustrious Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz comes to life in this theatrical performance filled with poetry, music and color. Performed by Teatro Flor Candela. Written and directed by Patricia Urbina.
8:30pm to 9:30pm - Reception
Where?
Latino Cultural Center
2600 Live Oak St., Dallas, TX 74204
Festival admission is free - open to all!
"En este montaje teatral disfrutaremos de poesía, danza, música y títeres. Apreciaremos la voz de la Décima Musa al asimilar las culturas prehispánicas, africanas y occidentales; la compleja relación con los poderes políticos y eclesiásticos; y la batalla apasionada que libró para defender el derecho de la mujer a cultivar el conocimiento en igualdad con el hombre y a expresar sus ideas con libertad."
in collaboration with the
National Museum of Mexican Art presents
The 2009 Sor Juana Festival
Saturday, May 16
4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
"The Sor Juana Festival is a multidisciplinary festival honoring one of Mexico's greatest writers, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, a 17th century Mexican nun who valued the education of women. In addition to the Latino Cultural Center, the National Museum of Mexican Art is collaborating with over 12 arts organizations across the nation - making the Sor Juana Festival the largest Latino performing arts festival in the country."
4pm - Film Screening
"Yo, la peor de todas" / I, The Worst of All
María Luisa Bemberg (1990) - Based on the life of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz,this film will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles.
6:30pm - Intermission
7pm - Special Musical Performance
Mezzo-soprano Silvia Paola Nuñez will perform traditional 17th century songs from Mexico's baroque era
7:30pm - "Sor Juana: A Life Defined"
The illustrious Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz comes to life in this theatrical performance filled with poetry, music and color. Performed by Teatro Flor Candela. Written and directed by Patricia Urbina.
8:30pm to 9:30pm - Reception
Where?
Latino Cultural Center
2600 Live Oak St., Dallas, TX 74204
Festival admission is free - open to all!
"En este montaje teatral disfrutaremos de poesía, danza, música y títeres. Apreciaremos la voz de la Décima Musa al asimilar las culturas prehispánicas, africanas y occidentales; la compleja relación con los poderes políticos y eclesiásticos; y la batalla apasionada que libró para defender el derecho de la mujer a cultivar el conocimiento en igualdad con el hombre y a expresar sus ideas con libertad."
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/trappedNcloset
i'm re-enacting my closet ordeal,
via twitter only. it's a 2.5 day finite experimental performance work.
don't worry, i'm not actually IN the closet physically, just a little bit emotionally, psychologically, and artistically.
one friend DID panic, thinking i was actually trapped (again), and drove over to check on me yesterday evening.
sorry, Lindsey.
another thing i'm doing to celebrate my 1-year anniversary of the struggle to carve a hole in the door to get out of the closet, is that i'm EATING and DRINKING as much as i want for 2.5 days. i'm having a cup of Wild Berry Zinger tea at the moment, whereas this time last year i was enjoying (barely) "essence of saliva."
be in the moment, wherever you are!
via twitter only. it's a 2.5 day finite experimental performance work.
don't worry, i'm not actually IN the closet physically, just a little bit emotionally, psychologically, and artistically.
one friend DID panic, thinking i was actually trapped (again), and drove over to check on me yesterday evening.
sorry, Lindsey.
another thing i'm doing to celebrate my 1-year anniversary of the struggle to carve a hole in the door to get out of the closet, is that i'm EATING and DRINKING as much as i want for 2.5 days. i'm having a cup of Wild Berry Zinger tea at the moment, whereas this time last year i was enjoying (barely) "essence of saliva."
be in the moment, wherever you are!
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Festival Internacional de Poesia de Quetzaltenango - this wk. in Guatemala
Ramsey, our friend studying Spanish in Guatemala, sent word about an international poetry festival taking place there all this week (May 9-15). He's gonna be checking it out, which I'm happy he's doing. For more info on the fest, click here.
And, to read his online travel notes--which are remarkably nuanced and detailed at times--check out
RAMSEY'S TRAVEL BLOG. I recommend the additional reading implements of a strong cup of coffee and a well-cushioned desk chair.
On the subject of traveling abroad and witnessing poetry festivals, I am reminded of my own three months spent--quite often--hanging out in Kathmandu with some of the contemporary Nepali "stars" of poetry. Once word got out that a poet from America was wandering their streets, many KTM literary scholars and poets invited me to teas, lunches, and some--at times--quite pompous literary events, the likes of which I'd never experienced before. (Imagine sitting in an un-air conditioned windowless lecture hall for five hours, watching dignitary after dignitary walk up to the podium for his 10-minute honoring ceremonial introduction--now this is before you even get to hear one poem. When an actual poet is introduced, his (though there are noted and recognized women poets and authors, the great majority are men) brief reading is preceded by hugely long sonorous commentaries by a panel of (who designates them as such, I never found out) critics. Torture, I tell you.{
However, one bold shining exception to all the pomp and pretension I experienced at Nepali literary events, was getting to spend quality time--in his home, no less--with the nationally-revered poet Megh Raj Manjul, known to most as simply 'Manjul." Ah, now the memories are really flooding in. Now I have to drop everything, maybe tonight, and find that old audio cassette which contains my brief interview with Manjul (circa August 1999), and, most importantly, the poems and song that he performed for me and my tape recorder. (Dang, I hate that my minidisc battery was spent by the time I got to meet Manjul...)
Until today, it hadn't even occurred to me that my Nepali literary comrade might have a web presence this century. I guess, because Nepal didn't even get digital pagers until the late 1990s, I didn't think that folks there would even be bothering with website development and html authoring. Oh well, more the surprise and pleasure for me now, as I am finding a cornucopia of sites that are feeding my current re-fascination with all things Nepal.
You can read more about Manjul, as one of the many Personalities of Literature from Nepal on the Spiny Babbler website. Spiny B is a veritable production house of activity for all things literary in Nepal. I myself own archival copies of the "Spiny Babbler", the English-language poetry journal founded by Nepali publisher/writer Pallav Ranjan. I suppose that the print journal was only the beginning for Pallav, as the online website now evidences.
As I keep browsing, I find more sites leading me to my past. Wow, even my former meditation teacher, Wayne Amtzis, is online! I remember doing walking meditation on his rooftop one humid Kathmandu afternoon, and meeting him for Buddhist teaching sessions at a study center every so often during my summer there. Wayne is also established, as expatriate from the U.S., as a writer and translator, having played an instrumental role in the publication of dozens and dozens of poems written in both Nepali and Nepal Bhasa (one of many ethnic languages) over the years. I think I'll send him an email, and start a reconnection in earnest with the living poets of that nation.
Here's to literary expression, anywhere--be it Guatemala or Nepal, Mexicio or the U.S.--and everywhere, and to all the contemporary writers who forge bonds beyond borders.
And, to read his online travel notes--which are remarkably nuanced and detailed at times--check out
RAMSEY'S TRAVEL BLOG. I recommend the additional reading implements of a strong cup of coffee and a well-cushioned desk chair.
On the subject of traveling abroad and witnessing poetry festivals, I am reminded of my own three months spent--quite often--hanging out in Kathmandu with some of the contemporary Nepali "stars" of poetry. Once word got out that a poet from America was wandering their streets, many KTM literary scholars and poets invited me to teas, lunches, and some--at times--quite pompous literary events, the likes of which I'd never experienced before. (Imagine sitting in an un-air conditioned windowless lecture hall for five hours, watching dignitary after dignitary walk up to the podium for his 10-minute honoring ceremonial introduction--now this is before you even get to hear one poem. When an actual poet is introduced, his (though there are noted and recognized women poets and authors, the great majority are men) brief reading is preceded by hugely long sonorous commentaries by a panel of (who designates them as such, I never found out) critics. Torture, I tell you.{
However, one bold shining exception to all the pomp and pretension I experienced at Nepali literary events, was getting to spend quality time--in his home, no less--with the nationally-revered poet Megh Raj Manjul, known to most as simply 'Manjul." Ah, now the memories are really flooding in. Now I have to drop everything, maybe tonight, and find that old audio cassette which contains my brief interview with Manjul (circa August 1999), and, most importantly, the poems and song that he performed for me and my tape recorder. (Dang, I hate that my minidisc battery was spent by the time I got to meet Manjul...)
Until today, it hadn't even occurred to me that my Nepali literary comrade might have a web presence this century. I guess, because Nepal didn't even get digital pagers until the late 1990s, I didn't think that folks there would even be bothering with website development and html authoring. Oh well, more the surprise and pleasure for me now, as I am finding a cornucopia of sites that are feeding my current re-fascination with all things Nepal.
You can read more about Manjul, as one of the many Personalities of Literature from Nepal on the Spiny Babbler website. Spiny B is a veritable production house of activity for all things literary in Nepal. I myself own archival copies of the "Spiny Babbler", the English-language poetry journal founded by Nepali publisher/writer Pallav Ranjan. I suppose that the print journal was only the beginning for Pallav, as the online website now evidences.
As I keep browsing, I find more sites leading me to my past. Wow, even my former meditation teacher, Wayne Amtzis, is online! I remember doing walking meditation on his rooftop one humid Kathmandu afternoon, and meeting him for Buddhist teaching sessions at a study center every so often during my summer there. Wayne is also established, as expatriate from the U.S., as a writer and translator, having played an instrumental role in the publication of dozens and dozens of poems written in both Nepali and Nepal Bhasa (one of many ethnic languages) over the years. I think I'll send him an email, and start a reconnection in earnest with the living poets of that nation.
Here's to literary expression, anywhere--be it Guatemala or Nepal, Mexicio or the U.S.--and everywhere, and to all the contemporary writers who forge bonds beyond borders.
Thursday, May 07, 2009
Fort Worth Cactus and Succulent Show--this wk-end at Ridgmar Mall
I think i killed a cactus once, without even trying.
But am thinking of partially xeriscaping my front yard this year. The left half.
Succulents and hardy drought-resistant plants only. No more mowing, on that part of the yard.
Ain't gonna ever be any little kids playing tackle football in my yard anyway...thanks to Molly Fallis for the heads-up on this.
Fort Worth Cactus and Succulent Society is hosting its 26th annual Show and Sale at the Ridgmar Mall, 1-30 & Green Oaks Road, May 8, 9, 10, 2009. Open during regular mall hours. You can bring plants to be identified as there will be lots of pros there. Advice on care too.
Vote for your favorite plant while there.
But am thinking of partially xeriscaping my front yard this year. The left half.
Succulents and hardy drought-resistant plants only. No more mowing, on that part of the yard.
Ain't gonna ever be any little kids playing tackle football in my yard anyway...thanks to Molly Fallis for the heads-up on this.
Fort Worth Cactus and Succulent Society is hosting its 26th annual Show and Sale at the Ridgmar Mall, 1-30 & Green Oaks Road, May 8, 9, 10, 2009. Open during regular mall hours. You can bring plants to be identified as there will be lots of pros there. Advice on care too.
Vote for your favorite plant while there.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Tides 2009 JBL Awards - Call for Nominations until May 22nd.
Call for Nominations: Tides 2009 JBL Awards - recognizing individuals who advocate / organize for immigration reform
Tides 2009 JBL Awards - Call for Nominations
The 2009 JBL Awards will recognize two individuals who have advocated and organized for comprehensive immigration reform, worked to counter anti-immigrant policies and groups, and helped voices at the grassroots shape and influence the immigration debate at the national level. The award recipients will be honored with $10,000 each on September 7, 2009 at the Tides Momentum Conference in San Francisco.
Nominations are due on Friday, May 22nd 2009. Named after Jane Bagley Lehman, one of the founders of Tides and board chair until her death in 1988, these awards honor the life and legacy of this unconventional philanthropist whose insatiable curiosity was matched by her willingness to take risks. Jane was inspired by the approaches and strategies of grassroots advocates and organizers and their willingness to challenge traditional assumptions. She also cared deeply that the results of their efforts be translated into public policy.
Reforming Immigration Reform
In the absence of comprehensive reform, the U.S. immigration system continues to violate rights and perpetrate injustice. Under our current law and policy, undocumented workers are easily exploited by unscrupulous employers. Families, including those with U.S.-citizen children, are torn apart each day by immigration enforcement raids and deportations. And hundreds of thousands of immigrants sit in detention, often mistreated, malnourished and threatened, not knowing when they will see their families again.
In this hostile environment, a growing number of grassroots leaders have emerged to right the wrongs—and to pass comprehensive immigration reform. Human rights groups, elected officials, faith-based organizations, and activists from across the nation are stepping up to defend our nation’s commitment to unity, equality and opportunity.
They face a determined and vocal anti-immigrant minority, opposed to a path to legalization and, in some cases, even to safeguarding basic civil and human rights. At worst, these anti-immigrant forces have stoked a climate of hatred and fear, leading immigrants to go deeper into the shadows and withdraw further from community life.
The 2009 JBL Awards will honor grassroots advocates who are working to achieve immigration reform and working to counter restrictionist policies and groups. Eligible nominees are activists who are working at both a local and national level and collaborating with others to:
Raise awareness of the immigration debate and help educate people who are not yet aware of the issues.
Expose racist and xenophobic anti-immigrant work and inform the public of hate crimes.
Respond to anti-immigrant attacks and protect workers and families affected by raids.
Nominees will have supported local immigrant communities while elevating their work and the grassroots movement for comprehensive immigration reform to the national level. Nominees will have pushed to advance both moral and political arguments for planting real immigration reform firmly within the Obama administration's agenda.
Their work will also have called for immediate cessation to raids as well as reversal of draconian detention policies. (While the JBL Awards recognize the power of all of these roles in restoring justice to our immigration policies, any individual applicant will not have to have accomplished all of these roles.)
To learn more about the nomination process and more about the JBL Awards, please click here.
Deadline: email nominations no later than Friday, May 22nd 2009 to:
jblawards@tides.org.
Tides partners with philanthropists, foundations, activists, and organizations across the country and across the globe to promote economic justice, robust democratic processes, and the opportunity to live in a healthy and sustainable environment where human rights are preserved and protected.
Tides Foundation
The Presidio
P.O. Box 29903
San Francisco, CA 94129
Tides 2009 JBL Awards - Call for Nominations
The 2009 JBL Awards will recognize two individuals who have advocated and organized for comprehensive immigration reform, worked to counter anti-immigrant policies and groups, and helped voices at the grassroots shape and influence the immigration debate at the national level. The award recipients will be honored with $10,000 each on September 7, 2009 at the Tides Momentum Conference in San Francisco.
Nominations are due on Friday, May 22nd 2009. Named after Jane Bagley Lehman, one of the founders of Tides and board chair until her death in 1988, these awards honor the life and legacy of this unconventional philanthropist whose insatiable curiosity was matched by her willingness to take risks. Jane was inspired by the approaches and strategies of grassroots advocates and organizers and their willingness to challenge traditional assumptions. She also cared deeply that the results of their efforts be translated into public policy.
Reforming Immigration Reform
In the absence of comprehensive reform, the U.S. immigration system continues to violate rights and perpetrate injustice. Under our current law and policy, undocumented workers are easily exploited by unscrupulous employers. Families, including those with U.S.-citizen children, are torn apart each day by immigration enforcement raids and deportations. And hundreds of thousands of immigrants sit in detention, often mistreated, malnourished and threatened, not knowing when they will see their families again.
In this hostile environment, a growing number of grassroots leaders have emerged to right the wrongs—and to pass comprehensive immigration reform. Human rights groups, elected officials, faith-based organizations, and activists from across the nation are stepping up to defend our nation’s commitment to unity, equality and opportunity.
They face a determined and vocal anti-immigrant minority, opposed to a path to legalization and, in some cases, even to safeguarding basic civil and human rights. At worst, these anti-immigrant forces have stoked a climate of hatred and fear, leading immigrants to go deeper into the shadows and withdraw further from community life.
The 2009 JBL Awards will honor grassroots advocates who are working to achieve immigration reform and working to counter restrictionist policies and groups. Eligible nominees are activists who are working at both a local and national level and collaborating with others to:
Raise awareness of the immigration debate and help educate people who are not yet aware of the issues.
Expose racist and xenophobic anti-immigrant work and inform the public of hate crimes.
Respond to anti-immigrant attacks and protect workers and families affected by raids.
Nominees will have supported local immigrant communities while elevating their work and the grassroots movement for comprehensive immigration reform to the national level. Nominees will have pushed to advance both moral and political arguments for planting real immigration reform firmly within the Obama administration's agenda.
Their work will also have called for immediate cessation to raids as well as reversal of draconian detention policies. (While the JBL Awards recognize the power of all of these roles in restoring justice to our immigration policies, any individual applicant will not have to have accomplished all of these roles.)
To learn more about the nomination process and more about the JBL Awards, please click here.
Deadline: email nominations no later than Friday, May 22nd 2009 to:
jblawards@tides.org.
Tides partners with philanthropists, foundations, activists, and organizations across the country and across the globe to promote economic justice, robust democratic processes, and the opportunity to live in a healthy and sustainable environment where human rights are preserved and protected.
Tides Foundation
The Presidio
P.O. Box 29903
San Francisco, CA 94129
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Benefit for the INNOCENCE PROJECT - May 6th, Fort Worth
[Thanks to Beverly Archibald for sending this along via email. Please spread the word to get folks out to hear opera singers, but, just as important, to learn more about the work of the INNOCENCE PROJECT. According to Beverly, this concert event has been organized by Dan Okulitch, lead actor and bass-baritone singer for the opera adaptation of "Dead Man Walking" (which was first a book by death penalty abolition advocate Sister Helen Prejean and later made into a Hollywood film starring Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon), which is now playing at Bass Hall, downtown Fort Worth. Highly recommended.]
What: a benefit concert for the Innocence Project.
When: Wednesday May 6th at 7pm
Where: Rose Marine Theater - 1440 N. Main St. in Fort Worth
Admission is free. Donations accepted.
What: a benefit concert for the Innocence Project.
When: Wednesday May 6th at 7pm
Where: Rose Marine Theater - 1440 N. Main St. in Fort Worth
Admission is free. Donations accepted.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
This Friday, May 1st, at Embargo Bar downtown FW, Tejas
mic + pOetry=SPOKEN WORD allowed-->PALABRAZOS 5/1/09
Da'Shade Moonbeam - an actual spoken word capoeirista, not a Manga character name...
Natasha Carrizosa - local long-tressed poet of romance and survival, with sabor del Caribe...
Mary Melisse Mier - ex-Caravan of Dreams Theater actress/director and now poet/playwright/director based in Santa Fe (once traveled on a Chinese junk--a ship, y'all--'round the world, performing classical theater works everywhere from Germany to Kathmandu..)...
Angelo Jaramillo - bard and theater performer, teen arts educator and published poet, also from Santa Fe...
Ernesto Abraham Garcia - San Antonio-based writer and emerging filmmaker, is in love with anarchy, netflix, and a baby boy named Samuel (his son)...
All of these folks AND a few others, AND their VIDEO POEMS,
will be presented to you, on Friday, May 1st, in our
2nd Annual PALABRAZOS festival of performance literature.
JOIN US ! BRING $$ FOR BOOKS, RAFFLE TICKETS, T-SHIRTS,
and mojitos/cervezas at the bar.
otherwise, this SHINDIGGITY is FREE of charge. o dollas admission.
love the poetry that unites us. spend a great evening w/ me...
and a few other talents of note.
[thanks to INOPE for the dope flyer design!]
Da'Shade Moonbeam - an actual spoken word capoeirista, not a Manga character name...
Natasha Carrizosa - local long-tressed poet of romance and survival, with sabor del Caribe...
Mary Melisse Mier - ex-Caravan of Dreams Theater actress/director and now poet/playwright/director based in Santa Fe (once traveled on a Chinese junk--a ship, y'all--'round the world, performing classical theater works everywhere from Germany to Kathmandu..)...
Angelo Jaramillo - bard and theater performer, teen arts educator and published poet, also from Santa Fe...
Ernesto Abraham Garcia - San Antonio-based writer and emerging filmmaker, is in love with anarchy, netflix, and a baby boy named Samuel (his son)...
All of these folks AND a few others, AND their VIDEO POEMS,
will be presented to you, on Friday, May 1st, in our
2nd Annual PALABRAZOS festival of performance literature.
JOIN US ! BRING $$ FOR BOOKS, RAFFLE TICKETS, T-SHIRTS,
and mojitos/cervezas at the bar.
otherwise, this SHINDIGGITY is FREE of charge. o dollas admission.
love the poetry that unites us. spend a great evening w/ me...
and a few other talents of note.
[thanks to INOPE for the dope flyer design!]
Sunday, April 26, 2009
2nd Annual PALABRAZOS Festival of Literary Performance - Friday, May 1st - FW, Tejas
The upcoming PALABRAZOS Festival of Literary Performance
will be taking place this coming Friday, May 1st, 2009,
at Embargo Bar - 210 E. 8th Street - downtown Fort Worth.
Free and Open to the Public.
This is the SECOND annual PALABRAZOS, and we are no less excited this year to present some of the most compelling performing poets of Texas and beyond.
Natasha Carrizosa and Joaquin Zihuatanejo, both based in the DFW Metroplex, will kick off the Festival with their poignant and riveting tales of bicultural life and urban tribulations.
We will also be featuring two poets from Santa Fe, New Mexico: Mary Melisse Mier and Angelo Jaramillo. They are both theater artists, playwrights, and poets.
As well, we are excited to be hosting Da'Shade Moonbeam, an award-winning nationally-ranked slam poet and hiphop performing artist.
Three video poems, by artists from San Antonio and Santa Fe, will be screened as part of the Festival.
We hope you will join us in this exciting display of contemporary performance literature.
PLEASE HELP SPREAD THE WORD -- The event is free and open to the public.
*************
SPECIAL INVITATION!
In order to raise some needed funds to be able to produce
the PALABRAZOS Festival, we are hosting a benefit party
at
The Fox and Hound Pub and Grill
Upstairs Lounge
604 Main Street - downtown Fort Worth
6pm
on THIS COMING TUESDAY, April 28th!!
Come by for complimentary appetizers
and
the opportunity to hear about our
unique literary festival - the one and only
PALABRAZOS Festival of Literary Performance.
Your donations can help support a
grassroots project that encourages
literacy and showcases some of the
finest spoken word artists and
performing poets from Texas and beyond.
Join us this coming Tuesday, April 28th,
for our pre-festival fundraiser!!
Thank you very much for your kind consideration.
para palabras,
Monday, April 20, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Funky Finds Spring Fling
Event: Funky Finds Spring Fling
When: April 25, 2009 - 10am to 6pm
Where: Will Rogers Memorial Center,
3401 W. Lancaster Avenue, Fort Worth, TX 76107
Admission: FREE
Contacts: Jessica & Joe Dougherty
Email: springfling@funkyfinds.us
Website: http://www. funkyfinds. us/springfling. html
Description:
The Funky Finds Spring Fling is an indie craft fair that will showcase the work of over 90 artists, crafters & designers. Funky Finds focuses on promoting those who create funky handmade goods that appeal to a wide variety of shoppers. Participating vendors include those from the DFW Area, South Texas, Oklahoma & more. Our FREE family & pet-friendly event will allow consumers to experience the indie craft scene in Tarrant County. Your support of independent artisans is greatly appreciated!
Thank you for your support!
Jessica & Joe Dougherty
http://funkyfinds. us/springfling
When: April 25, 2009 - 10am to 6pm
Where: Will Rogers Memorial Center,
3401 W. Lancaster Avenue, Fort Worth, TX 76107
Admission: FREE
Contacts: Jessica & Joe Dougherty
Email: springfling@funkyfinds.us
Website: http://www. funkyfinds. us/springfling. html
Description:
The Funky Finds Spring Fling is an indie craft fair that will showcase the work of over 90 artists, crafters & designers. Funky Finds focuses on promoting those who create funky handmade goods that appeal to a wide variety of shoppers. Participating vendors include those from the DFW Area, South Texas, Oklahoma & more. Our FREE family & pet-friendly event will allow consumers to experience the indie craft scene in Tarrant County. Your support of independent artisans is greatly appreciated!
Thank you for your support!
Jessica & Joe Dougherty
http://funkyfinds. us/springfling
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Free supper @ Threadgill's in N. Austin - this week only - at the original restaurant
[Thanks to Carl for the heads-up. Ima be in Austin for the debut performance of a new solo work "Saliendo Abierta", based on the 2.5 days I was trapped in my bedroom closet last May, so i'll probably try to get a free veggie plate @ the original Threadgill's. That's the one where Janis Joplin first started playing publicly, back in the days of the open music jams. Love Threadgill's--an Austin institution. Oh, Jim Hightower--the populist rabblerouser, national radio commentator, and author- was broadcasting his radio commentaries live from Threadgill's downtown for a while. Pretty cool.]
Free supper this week at Old No. 1!
Threadgill's North store only - one per person.
It's true. Eddie is giving away free meals at the north store this week! Chicken Fried Steak, Chicken Fried Chicken, Fried Mississippi Catfish, or Vegetable Vegetarian with 28 veggies to choose from. April 13-19 from 4pm till close, so come when you're hungry! Limit one per person on the honor system.
Start Time: Monday, April 13, 2009 at 4:00pm
End Time: Sunday, April 19, 2009 at 10:00pm
Threadgill's Old No. 1
6416 North Lamar Boulevard
Austin, TX
Phone: 512-451-5440
Email: north@threadgills.com
http://www.myspace.com/threadgillsaustin
On Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=71597053275&ref=mf
Free supper this week at Old No. 1!
Threadgill's North store only - one per person.
It's true. Eddie is giving away free meals at the north store this week! Chicken Fried Steak, Chicken Fried Chicken, Fried Mississippi Catfish, or Vegetable Vegetarian with 28 veggies to choose from. April 13-19 from 4pm till close, so come when you're hungry! Limit one per person on the honor system.
Start Time: Monday, April 13, 2009 at 4:00pm
End Time: Sunday, April 19, 2009 at 10:00pm
Threadgill's Old No. 1
6416 North Lamar Boulevard
Austin, TX
Phone: 512-451-5440
Email: north@threadgills.com
http://www.myspace.com/threadgillsaustin
On Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=71597053275&ref=mf
Friday, April 10, 2009
My upcoming gigs and current productions - artistic workflow for the moment
Current projects and forthcoming:
uno-
The Second Annual "PALABRAZOS", an annual festival of literary performance poetry, is coming up on Friday, May 1st at Embargo Bar here in downtown Fort Worth. I co-produce this annual festival with Cesar Hernandez (Cara Mia Theatre of Dallas), and a great collective of literature-loving gente. This year we're bringing in for showcase presentations:
LAS KRUDAS (CUBAN FEMALE HIPHOP)
NATASHA CARRIZOSA AND JOAQUIN ZIHUATANEJO, LOCALPOWERHOUSES OF POETRY,
AND FROM SANTA FE: MARY MIER AND ANGELO JARAMILLO.
ALSO: POEM VIDEOS BY CESAR HERNANDEZ AND TREY MOORE.
dos-
Three poems by Tammy Gomez were selected by renowned writer Jimmy Santiago Baca for publication in the Spring 2009 issue of the Yellow Medicine Review, a literary journal of indigenous writing.
http://www.yellowmedicinereview.com/
tres-
I will be performing a new work entitled "Abierta Saliendo" at the upcoming SOR JUANA INES DE LA CRUZ festival of Mexican
American Women Performers on Saturday, April 18th, at the Mexican American Cultural Center in Austin, TX.
Yikes--this is in one more week, and i'm still rehearsing and rewriting the script. My new work, a one-hour one-woman monologue, is based on the 2 and a half days that i spent trapped in my own friggin' bedroom closet. I'm trying to do this experience some justice via a public performance. Wish me luck!
Download the festival brochure: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/macc/downloads/sorjuana.pdf
cuatro-
I was asked, by author Dr. Michelle Vela (TX A&M-Kingsville) to write the preface for her scholarly book on Chicana Autobiography, which will be published by the Edwin Mellen Press later this year. I submitted the preface (last November), and am just waiting to hear when the book is ready for release.
cinco-
I am also currently co-producing, with a collective of artistas and activists, a local television program for cable access. The show, titled "817 FLAVORS" focuses on the arts, culture, and grassroots organizing in the area spanned by the 817 area code. The first episode began airing in February of this year.
seis-
Yo, I still blog at xxcommunicator.blogspot.com. For the latest information about my projects and other things related to cultura and community activism, please check it out.
uno-
The Second Annual "PALABRAZOS", an annual festival of literary performance poetry, is coming up on Friday, May 1st at Embargo Bar here in downtown Fort Worth. I co-produce this annual festival with Cesar Hernandez (Cara Mia Theatre of Dallas), and a great collective of literature-loving gente. This year we're bringing in for showcase presentations:
LAS KRUDAS (CUBAN FEMALE HIPHOP)
NATASHA CARRIZOSA AND JOAQUIN ZIHUATANEJO, LOCALPOWERHOUSES OF POETRY,
AND FROM SANTA FE: MARY MIER AND ANGELO JARAMILLO.
ALSO: POEM VIDEOS BY CESAR HERNANDEZ AND TREY MOORE.
dos-
Three poems by Tammy Gomez were selected by renowned writer Jimmy Santiago Baca for publication in the Spring 2009 issue of the Yellow Medicine Review, a literary journal of indigenous writing.
http://www.yellowmedicinereview.com/
tres-
I will be performing a new work entitled "Abierta Saliendo" at the upcoming SOR JUANA INES DE LA CRUZ festival of Mexican
American Women Performers on Saturday, April 18th, at the Mexican American Cultural Center in Austin, TX.
Yikes--this is in one more week, and i'm still rehearsing and rewriting the script. My new work, a one-hour one-woman monologue, is based on the 2 and a half days that i spent trapped in my own friggin' bedroom closet. I'm trying to do this experience some justice via a public performance. Wish me luck!
Download the festival brochure: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/macc/downloads/sorjuana.pdf
cuatro-
I was asked, by author Dr. Michelle Vela (TX A&M-Kingsville) to write the preface for her scholarly book on Chicana Autobiography, which will be published by the Edwin Mellen Press later this year. I submitted the preface (last November), and am just waiting to hear when the book is ready for release.
cinco-
I am also currently co-producing, with a collective of artistas and activists, a local television program for cable access. The show, titled "817 FLAVORS" focuses on the arts, culture, and grassroots organizing in the area spanned by the 817 area code. The first episode began airing in February of this year.
seis-
Yo, I still blog at xxcommunicator.blogspot.com. For the latest information about my projects and other things related to cultura and community activism, please check it out.
Friday, April 03, 2009
Cesar Chavez Commemorations and labor organizers training in FW
“All my life, I have been driven by one dream, one goal, one vision: To overthrow a farm labor system in this nation which treats farm workers as if they were not important human beings. Farm workers are not agricultural implements; they are not beasts of burden to be used and discarded." - Cesar Chavez, labor and civil rights leader and founder of the UFW (United Farm Workers)
I've been invited to be one of the speakers at the "Awards Ceremony" happening in the evening, tomorrow, April 4th, at 7pm.
Please come out, especially if you haven't seen the new TCC downtown campus, now housed in what was formerly the Radio Shack building. All events are FREE and open to the public. Here are details for the evening program:
WHAT: The Spirit of Cesar Chavez Awards
WHEN: Saturday, Aprili 4th, 7pm
WHERE: Tarrant County College, Trinity Downtown Campus (formerly the Radio Shack Building), 300 W. Belknap, Fort Worth-
FOURTH FLOOR - ACTION A
(not sure why they call it "Action")
EXCERPT FROM RECENT DALLAS MORNING NEWS ARTICLE:
"In Fort Worth, organizers will hold the 10th annual march and rally for Chávez on April 4. That evening, three Fort Worth recipients who have worked to improve their community will receive Spirit of Chávez awards.
Among the recipients is 71-year-old Elisa Nájera, a longtime volunteer and literacy advocate. Nájera remembers the grape
boycotts and participated in one demonstration outside a local grocery store out of respect for her parents and grandparents, who were migrant workers."
++++++++++
And, speaking of labor rights and organizing, there is a 2-day labor organizing training scheduled for April 4th and 5th, at the 1919 Hemphill community action space in the southside of FW. This training, sponsored by DFW IWW (Industrial Workers of the World, will be conducted by Erik Forman of the Starbucks Workers Union (SWU) and Joe Richards, who is organizing workers at a grocery store in Florida.
What: Labor Organizing Training
When: Saturday and Sunday, April 4 and April 5 - 10am to 6pm (vegan lunch will be provided on-site)
Where: 1919 Hemphill, Fort Worth, TX
Fee: $10-30 sliding scale
More info at: dfw_iww@riseup.net
I've been invited to be one of the speakers at the "Awards Ceremony" happening in the evening, tomorrow, April 4th, at 7pm.
Please come out, especially if you haven't seen the new TCC downtown campus, now housed in what was formerly the Radio Shack building. All events are FREE and open to the public. Here are details for the evening program:
WHAT: The Spirit of Cesar Chavez Awards
WHEN: Saturday, Aprili 4th, 7pm
WHERE: Tarrant County College, Trinity Downtown Campus (formerly the Radio Shack Building), 300 W. Belknap, Fort Worth-
FOURTH FLOOR - ACTION A
(not sure why they call it "Action")
EXCERPT FROM RECENT DALLAS MORNING NEWS ARTICLE:
"In Fort Worth, organizers will hold the 10th annual march and rally for Chávez on April 4. That evening, three Fort Worth recipients who have worked to improve their community will receive Spirit of Chávez awards.
Among the recipients is 71-year-old Elisa Nájera, a longtime volunteer and literacy advocate. Nájera remembers the grape
boycotts and participated in one demonstration outside a local grocery store out of respect for her parents and grandparents, who were migrant workers."
++++++++++
And, speaking of labor rights and organizing, there is a 2-day labor organizing training scheduled for April 4th and 5th, at the 1919 Hemphill community action space in the southside of FW. This training, sponsored by DFW IWW (Industrial Workers of the World, will be conducted by Erik Forman of the Starbucks Workers Union (SWU) and Joe Richards, who is organizing workers at a grocery store in Florida.
What: Labor Organizing Training
When: Saturday and Sunday, April 4 and April 5 - 10am to 6pm (vegan lunch will be provided on-site)
Where: 1919 Hemphill, Fort Worth, TX
Fee: $10-30 sliding scale
More info at: dfw_iww@riseup.net
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Palabrazos 09 - coming soon - featuring Las Krudas from Cuba/Austin
More details coming soon. It's the 2nd Annual PALABRAZOS Festival of Multimedia Literary Performance. Acqui en Fort Worth aka "Forte Wes"--like my grandma used to say. Las Krudas are confirmed to close the festival with a set of their slammin' hiphop rhythm and rhymes. Check this video for a spot o' KRUDAS flavor:
Oh--if you want to get involved with promotion, planning, or production of PALABRAZOS 09 (the alliteration was unintended, i assure you), please send me a message via: sound_culture(at)hotmail.com. Gracias.
Oh--if you want to get involved with promotion, planning, or production of PALABRAZOS 09 (the alliteration was unintended, i assure you), please send me a message via: sound_culture(at)hotmail.com. Gracias.
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
another great day in world news reporting....april 1, 2009
"One protester dressed as the Easter bunny managed to hop through the police cordon but was stopped before he could reach the Bank of England. Another black-clad demonstrator waved a fake light saber at officers."
--excerpted from an AP article, April 1, 2009
--excerpted from an AP article, April 1, 2009
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