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Grandma riding the train at Balboa Park, San Diego- 2008
Have you ever received a package from somewhere and when you open it an enchanting smell emerges bringing you back to a person, place, or time? That happens to me every single time I get something from my Grandma, Janet. My Grandma is one of the coolest people in my life. She is absolutley adorable and a wonderful human at that. She has been the only grandparent in my life for a very long time. Both of my fathers parents died before I was born and my Grandpa on my mom’s side died when I was a kid. So Grandma has been it…and more than I could ever ask for. She lives in La Jolla, CA…and has lived there since she was a kid. An amazing gardner and crafter she has had a huge impact on the hobbies and talents of her three daughters and her two grandkids, my brother and me. Some things that have been in my life since I can remember was handcrafter by her, my mom, and my two aunts. She is amazing. I wanted to share some of my favorite pics of her, her house, and her crafts. Love you Grandma.
tile work by Grandma & Unlce Jim
tile work by Grandma & Uncle Jim
- Grandma on Christmas morning 2006
Grandma's backyard
Emily in Grandma's backyard
- watchin the Padres, gotta have the cap!
Grandmas 85th- Grandma, Abby, Mom, Jan, Susie
Having four days off of work with not much that needs to be done allows for a lot of time to think. Time to think about the past, think about the future, think about now. I’ve been contemplating my reality for the past three days and have come to the conclusion that I really am happy with where I am in life. Where I have come from and where I still have to go. The funny thing is that throughout all of the ups and downs…it seems I have been this way for a long time. I woke up the other morning with an urge to read my old journal. The last entry I wrote in it seemed to fit exactly the way I am feeling now…so I wanted to share. Enjoy.
How do you find the words to describe utter contentment, utter happiness, such joy of your luck, of your place in the world. How do you thank those that made you that way. How do you tell them that they mean the world to you. That without them, the world wouldn’t make sense. That without the outpouring of love from people like them the world would not be a pleasant place. Because it is. Because no matter how much pain, how much suffering, there is so much beauty, so much appreciation for our world and for each other. How do you explain the soul and how profound and wonderful it is. I don’t know and I need to get it out. I need those I love to know they mean the world to me. That I will love them till the end of time. That had they never been in my life, never have been who they were, I wouldn’t be me. And I am happy to be me. More happy than I ever could have imagined.
I had the fortunate luck of going to see an early screening of the new film by Gus Van Sant, Milk starring Sean Penn last week with my friend Kelsey. The film opens today, November 26, 2008. I very much recommend this film to anyone who has interest in equal rights for all.
Milk portrays the true story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man voted into significant U.S. public office. It follows his life from the point where his true life began at the age of 40 to his unfortunate assassination eight years later. The acting is superb and the cast is brimming with astonishing talent including James Franco, Alison Pill, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, Diego Luna, and many more. Sean Penn very much steals the show, should the academy decide he is worthy of an Oscar nod, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Unfortunately the fights that the story portrays are still being fought today. While things may have improved, we are now fighting for anyone to have the right to be married to the person they love no matter race, gender, creed, or sex, instead of fighting for the simple right to keep their jobs. Hopefully this film will be able to reach out to some people and make them realize that humans are humans. Gay, straight, red, or blue we are all the same and we all deserve to live our lives in peace and full of love.
The History of Love just might be one of my favorite books of all times. I have not read it for quite some time but when I did read it I wrote down many of my favorite versus, phrases, and sayings. The way that Nicole Krauss writes is simply astounding. No one has ever quite worded things in such a way. I’m not going to give a review on the book just now because it is not fresh in my memory. However, I just found my quote list from the book and wanted to note one of my favorites.
“Even now, all possible feelings do not yet exist. There are still those that lie beyond our capacity and our imagination. From time to time, when a piece of music no one has ever written, or a painting no one has ever painted, or something else impossible to predict, fathom, or yet describe takes place, a new feeling enters the world. And then for the millionth time in the history of feeling, the heart surges, and absorbs the impact.”
I cannot believe it, but the holiday season is upon us already. Where does the time go? Sometimes it sure seems like I am flying through time at a much faster pace than I had anticipated. But, I suppose if I am doing the things that make me happy, make me feel like I’m spending my time wisely, it’s ok. We all grow old. Time always passes. It’s the journey that matters.
Anyway, with the holidays quickly approaching, and the economy in more turmoil than ever, what is one to do? I’m a big anti-consumer to begin with, but this year, I don’t think I will even be purchasing the products that support good organizations, businesses, and people. I just simply cannot afford it. A typical holiday shopping quest for me usually means browsing around all my favorite green and/or animal friendly websites searching for the perfect gift for those that matter most for me. Some of those sites are…
The Animal Rescue Sight (and others)
And My Mom!! Colorado Comfort
This year though, although everyone is hurting, I think non-profits and charities are hurting the most. When people don’t have any money (or are afraid to spend it), donations are one of the first things that if are not stopped completely, at least cut down sizably. I will be donating to charities in everyone’s name this year. For some, this was their request (as it is mine), for others…I think they will enjoy the heart behind it. I encourage you to do the same. Some wonderful groups that I will be supporting follow…
No matter what you decide to do, try to think about who you are supporting. The following facts from Plenty (bi-monthly magazine I love) may encourage you to do so. Peace.
Free Range = Good
If you know me you know I don’t really eat meat. I cannot classify myself as a vegetarian because I do, upon occasion, eat a burger or some chicken. I usually only eat it if there is nothing else on the menu that I can eat because the whole time I am eating it, I get completely freaked out. I just don’t do well with the thought of eating something that was alive.
Anyway, there are very rare occasions where I will choose to eat meat, even if there are other things on the menu I can eat, when I know it is from somewhere good. And by good I mean that the animals were treated right. Treated with dignity and fairness. And killed in an appropriate manner.
Factory Farm = Bad
For thanksgiving my brother and I don’t eat turkey, we eat homemade (from scratch!) lasagna…Bucky makes it, and completely rocks at it. But I know there are a gazillion households out there that will eat turkey. I ask that you pay attention to where you are buying your turkey from. For the sake of turkeys and your health. You are what you eat…as the saying goes…think about what life that turkey lived. Did it eat right? Was it treated right? Good karma carriers through the world, be a part of it.
SUGGESTIONS!!!
This is from the website hottopics.gay.com. Its all about equality and the right to live your life not in fear, but in love. If you support that thought, check this out tomorrow!!
Join The National Protest Against Prop 8
If you’ve been watching our brothers and sisters protesting the passage of Prop 8 in California wishing that there was something you could do to help, there is: A group called Join The Impact is planning a national protest against Prop 8, organizing simultaneous rallies on the steps of City Halls all over the country from Mobile, Alabama to Laramie, Wyoming on Saturday, November 15th at 10:30 a.m. PST/1:30 p.m. EST.
While the passage of Prop 8 is getting the most press, it should be noted that this protest is also being held to rally against Arizona’s Prop 102 and Florida’s Prop 2, both of which banned gay marriage, as well as the Arkansas Adoption Ban, which prevents unwed couples from adopting children.
Visit Jointheimpact.com to find the protest nearest you, and if you don’t see your city listed, round up a few friends to serve as organizers, and ask the group to add it to the list.
Citing the Stonewall Riots of 1969, which marked the birth of the gay rights movement, Join The Impact urges us all to come together again to show the nation that we are “one loud voice that needs to be heard.”
“We won’t solve everything in one protest, but we will fuel the fire to a conversation that can not be silenced! If we stop talking about equality for all, then we will lose the battle. If we allow others to stop talking about it, then we will lose. Hate is not the lack of love, it’s the fear of that which we do not know. This protest along with many others gives us the chance to build on the conversation and educate the masses,” a statement on the site reads. “It’s very simple: Infiltrate, Educate, and STOP HATE!”
I’m in. How about you? We need to show the rest of America we are tired of being treated like second-class citizens.
Its too bad that our society has yet to realize that discriminating against gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and trans-genders is NO DIFFERENT than what our society has gone through many times already. Society always seems to have something to pick on…whether it be the Native American’s who were here before anyone else, the African American’s who were enslaved and then discriminated against even after they were freed, and even the discrimination of women. When is society ever going to realize that we are all human. We all have a heart and feelings. We all matter.
History has been made right before our eyes. This is something that will be talked about for all time to come. And it’s happened now, right in front of our face. Barack Obama, a very young, handsome, beautiful inside and out, African American has won the 2008 Presidential Election, he is the next President of the United States.
Everyone is talking about it…for the past two days I have heard nothing else on the streets of NYC. I hear it on the subways, I hear it in the restaurants, I hear it in the office, and I talk about it too. My favorite part is that this is a true sign of change. Considering all of the remarkable things that managed to occur during the past 8 years, despite Bush trying to beat them down, just imagine what can be accomplished with a President who supports them. The environment will be protected, green technologies boosted, people, as individuals, thought about with concern, and actions will be taken to protect them. The times ahead of course will be rough, we are in deeper than ever before and it’ll take a long time to make progress, but the time has come to begin. Time has come to work together to accomplish our dreams. Just imagine the possibilities.
As I’ve said before, I read a lot. I like most books I read, simply because I love a good story. Sometimes though, there is an idea behind the story that is so compelling to me, I find myself completely enthralled. I become so deeply fascinated that I read everything by that author. One right after the other. I often try to drag it out, see if I can restrain from reading…but I’m never able to. It’s all I can do to make myself eat, sleep, and drink during my marathon of reading, and when I have to go to work, or do something of structure, it is next to impossible to tear my mind away. It’s like the thoughts, the characters, the settings are hovering around me in a slight haze. I’m always thinking about getting back to the story… what happens next…it becomes so imperative in my day to day life that when it’s over, and I finally finish, I’m lost. I don’t know what to do with myself and it takes me a good amount of time to clear my head and begin to function like normal again. Once I am clear of this haze…I always sort of laugh at myself. At how possessed I was with whatever it was that I was reading. Kind of weird, right? Well, whatever. It’s me 
So, this recently happened to me with the author, Stephenie Meyer. She wrote the Twilight Saga (Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn). I was entranced. They are simple reads, but I never wanted them to end. It’s the ultimate love story (and you know me and love) between two impossible companions, a vampire and a human, Edward and Bella. But the story was so not your typical vampire story, nor your typical love story, it was like it was real. Like it could happen any day, to any one of us. But only those lucky enough could possibly expect to attain the reality of such a profound and resilient love. So I read all four books during every second of my spare time for just about a week. When I was done, I was lost. I wanted more.
Then I discovered that Stephenie Meyer had a new book out, The Host, her first adult novel. I was hesitant… I didn’t know if it would be as good as the Twilight Saga…and I didn’t want to be disappointed. But of course, I had to give it a shot. Well, I wasn’t disappointed, not in the slightest. If anything…I was almost more intrigued. More compelled because the basis behind the story was so disturbing, so potentially possible. And the underlying theme relating to the way humans react to others, including mother earth and all of its inhabitants, is such a real issue in today’s society, I was astounded. This is from Stephenie’s website, what The Host is all about-
Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away.
Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.
When Melanie, one of the few remaining “wild” humans is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading “soul” who has been given Melanie’s body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn’t expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.
Wanderer probes Melanie’s thoughts, hoping to discover the whereabouts of the remaining human resistance. Instead, Melanie fills Wanderer’s mind with visions of the man Melanie loves—Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body’s desires, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she has been tasked with exposing. When outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off on a dangerous and uncertain search for the man they both love.
Sadly, there are no more stories. At least not yet. Thus this post… and my outburst of feelings…I had to share… even if no one understands. Take it or leave it. Read them or don’t. But personally, I think they are well worth the time. Stephenie Meyer is a very talented young writer. I cannot wait for more from her.
