Thursday, February 28, 2008


Here's the ebetty diy.....
where I give the cute instructions for this.....purse.....bag.....tote......I made from a discarded sweater, some 60s tapestry and a chunk of calico..........then because I'm all High ON Endorphins........I made it say
GOOD FUN
I made them from some Destash letters and doo-dads I got from etsy seller...

tangerinechic

Tacoma Here There Everywhere.....


Again up to Antique Sandwich for Tuesday night Open Mike......I'm a poet and you know it...... The enigmatic David Fewster and Heidi Fosner, Folksingers in Hell, showed up because Mark asked them to go and sing....please..... and they did.

What Tacoma lacks is respect for "The Other Side Of Life".
The vitality isn't really from Russell....yawn. The vitality is from people who LIVE LIFE !
(oh boy am I in trouble now...)
People such as Steve....and not Bing Crosby.....
Reluctantly, Dale.....only because , as Fewster said:
Today I took my daughter to the Bridge of Glass!
Boy, was she disappointed. She thought the actual
bridge would be made of glass/So we could see traffic going by
our shoes.
David sang, on Tuesday night, The Ballad of the Blogger and he reminded us once again, that the archives of Exit 133 will live foreverrrrrrrrr........witness this:

ensie, there are several different layers of professional artist. there is the ‘fluff’ artist which is a favorite of Tacoma arts commission funding or who make pretty glass fruit bowls… and then there is the category of artists whom bring the inanimate into the realm of the living and or forge their will upon the world.

I am not trying to undermine the importance of the fluff artist since they provide a valuable service distracting/pacifying the civilian populations THEN provide a nice contrast when the serious artist reveals him or herself to the world.

Also, if you ever encounter a person claiming to be an artist and willing to ‘donate to the community’ beware, you are in the presence of a fifth columnist.

13 | Posted by RR Anderson | Apr 5, 02:32 PM

And then Claudia replied:

Re: RR:“there is the ‘fluff’ artist…” David Fewster is as fluffy as it gets. A real Easter bunny….... “Real” and “non-real” – what an elitist idea. Let the artist speak for her or himself. Categories such as real and non real or good and evil should vanish for good (or for real). Celebrate complexity. 14 | Posted by Claudia | Apr 5, 02:52 PM

That was not an attack against David at all, that was a response to RR calling Tacoma Art Grant Recipients FLUFF. My point was that David was NOT fluff – obviously stated clumsily. I do hope we all know David is NOT the Easter Bunny. Aapologies to all who took my comment in a fluffy way… 19 | Posted by Claudia | Apr 5, 04:33 PM

David Fewster and Heidi Fosner recently produced a concert at Barefoot Studios. I was really pleased by the quality of the work and proud to be able to have them perform in our space. Tacoma benefits from having diverse and unique artists like David and Heidi active in the community. P.S. 10X10 this Friday at 7:30 20 | Posted by paul | Apr 5, 04:38 PM

And that is what the Exit 133 archives will yield Up!




*********************************************************************************
So the Beat goes on. I am suspicious of applying for Art Grants....How can I truly explain what it is I do? I almost can't even conceptualize it in my own mind..I just DO!

People used to ask me what kind of place is Rampart.....With its Irreverent Attitude...Its loud GAY Disco Music......What the hell does a 50s Pink & Gray Sewing Machine have to do with a 70s vintage Schwinn, vintage restaurant dishes and 60s hanging lamps, and a hand-embroidered Kitten Playing with Pink Yarn picture (damn you Steve)...... All I can say, Then and Now, is it is Stuff For Living. It is not Sunset Magazine or Better Homes and Gardens.
So, I got my ass soundly taken to task this week....on my Blog and from my neighbors. My crappy neighbor, not my nice neighbors.
Since the day I got here, I've been cleaning the sidewalks and sweeping the parking lot and trying to weed and plant my Dirt Spot.... It's not my job....but it is my responsibility. I've picked up buckets full of garbage left here by the folks who come to Dome Events....the city DOES NOT clean up after our "guests". The Streetsweeper comes by, 2 times in the last 8 months (I think)
I'm OK with the City not picking up the garbage, but one of the reasons that Tacoma has languished, A JEWEL in a Broken Setting.....is because The City almost always does a half-ass job of everything. For instance..... They build a dome, sponsor events and don't clean up, don't enforce parking laws, and don't fix the streets.....But they do provide Police to do Traffic Guidance to channel "vistors" to the Pay For City Parking Lots.



If it will, rawly, make Money, the City will likely do it. If it doesn't put money in their pockets immediately, Fuggedabout it.....But what Tacoma's Arts Commission does do, is to TRY to get Art around town.....and they did give Fewster a Grant to write a book of Poetry.....and Art in Your Face, makes you a better person. It's like a WorM in Your BraiN. It goes to your happy thinking place in Your Head, and that makes you a better person. And tries to undo the damage done to you by that University you attended....and the Arts Commission does some other things like those goofy metal Palm Trees in my n'hood. Why palm trees? Why? I do love me some palm trees....but I wouldn't have chosen that. But it did get chosen, and that's the point I suppose. We get and need......Fewster and Metal Palm Trees.

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Hey Kids It's ARt in Your Front YarD

ONe of the romances of Urban Living is finding art ....guerrilla art....left for your viewing pleasure......I am torn between gathering it and keeping it and letting it live outside......What should I do????
Here's what Mark found in our front yard..ie.....the sidewalks ....of the Dome District....
Thanks ......www.myspace.com/familyteeth





A Gray Day In Tacoma

A Week In TAcomA

Tuesday we went with Glen and Mustaffa up to Antique Sandwich to catch us some Open Mike.....and we were not disappointed.
After months of listening to TacoMan on the radio oh oh on the radio.....and an amazing 3 peep group of voice and guitars....stunningly ethereal.....and the last act....who had to perform for about a half hour.....because there can be no
Dead Air.....
It was a cleansing moment....to be there with voices and low tech tech, and organic foodstuffs and Fair Trade...and a new couch, and the stairs.....
It was the calm before the Storm....

Then news of Steve's death.....and I have been in a daze......
What sustains is the human touch and only the human touch....
Which is what art is.....a human hand creates.

Some asked on Derek's blog for a place to meet where it is all human......
where it is not a bar..(no thanks to the Volcano)
Where it is not a church.......
and that place has been for about 25 years or more....
the Antique Sandwich Company...
no snotty hipster attitude, but an appreciation of home-grown
hair, home-grown food, home-grown down-home funky furniture.......
home-grown community the way it has been done since The Garden...

and there you have it.....
Dorothy.....it's been here right in your own backyard.

NOW.....on to business.....
I call on you to Light It On Fire.......Cause an ART RIOT !!!!!
and to illustrate....I give you a google-purloined Art Chantry


Thanks for Hume and Bender and all you artist types..
If I forget to remember some of you I blame grief and vodka and awe.

Thanks for coming to honor Steve and honor RampArt...
it did not pass my eye though that the windows upstairs were open.

Then up to the Silverstone, with Glen, My Beautiful Husband, My Beautiful Son, Shayne.
When Mark & I couldn't work our shift days at Rampart, we could count on Shayne to fill in for us. So, Shayne was one of the Lucky Chosen People to be a part of The Best Place in Tacoma For UnCommon Happenings.
I shudder to think what Tacoma would have been but for RampArt.
thanks to Steve, David, Eric, Patty, Kelly and those few others who had the distinct privilege to be a part of The Best Place.....
While there have been many on Antique Row, and all ran fine shops...
RampArt was a slice of City Life the very thing you are all trying to create...
kinda.
You are so afraid.
You are playing it safe.
In 25 years I've seen about 5 shows that stepped out.
One was at the gasp! Glass Museum. I loved the Penis X-Rayz.
Galleries.......you are doing a great job of Keeping Tradition Alive.
Yes, you belong.
But NOW is the TIME to step it UP.
Cut up your credit cards and Be Free.

I Dare You To Lower Your Commission to 5%. And therefore your "prices"
I Dare You to hand the reins over to artists you are not quite sure about
I Dare You to hand the reins over to artists you don't understand
I Dare You to put Art in Your Empty Bldgs
Empty Bldgs = Empty Mind
I Dare You to let go, let the love flow....
I Dare You to stop doing the same old thing.....
And if you are the 3 or 4 that are trying to meet the challenge.
Keep on Keeping on......and create space for what makes you uncomfortable

********************************************************************************************************
How do you know if you are creating space? You nodded your head in agreement.
If you got pissed off, you may need to wonder why.........all who wonder may not be lost after all.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Izenmania Asks a Question....More about Steve

The reason Steve was able to do what he did is because of his day job. I have not met anyone else in Tacoma, besides me & Mark, that would open their walls to almost any art that cared to be with us, no commission. They always are worried about Upsetting the Man In Dockers and as you can guess, If it doesn't offend someone , it ain't art!!

Now I have seen some gallery owners who have put on FABULOUS events...but, money was always a consideration, when IT doesn't have to be.....I call it the Russell Effect. Somehow, Tacoma now believes there has to be a profit motive.

Sure Steve coulda made Bank off the gallery.....(thanks to Kelly, Mark & Tressie..it got to happen) but he spent his money on it.....to have fun.....to draw people to that end of the street.......and to feed his art machine..........

A few friends of mine are always trying to put something together, we are always thwarted by money. But for Riley, no one, no other Landlord has done anything outta the goodness of their hearts.......

Don't hold your breath....will someone who has money step up as a service to the art community?
Mark and I our art-funky friends don't have money...but we have art hanging here for a no-commission.....and we do have folks come in for a look see....and buy.
And I closed the shop .....so I could concentrate on making art and collecting materials....a huge hit to my personal bank account...small anony art grant... not withstanding.

And remember ....avant garde and outsider art and guerrilla art and weird quirky art isn't understood in Tacoma....not much not yet. Look at how much crap di Nino got for the Heads Rolling.......And this is Tacoma.....I'm still pissed about the Dome committee rejecting Andy F'n Warhol......oh and now.....Steve is our Andy....yeah, Now...you claim him!

yes I will continue to talk about Steve for a long time...I have a lot to say.
and as I predicted, NOW, "friends" are coming out of the woodwork. I can count on one hand and half those people who befriended him....and it isn't who you might think it is. That is pissing me off. And I'm sure it is irritating some of the small voyeurs of this esteemed blog.

Especially one person in particular. And see, this is an ART Project right here, baby!! Did you get it? Don't worry, I often don't either. But I still show up, I still stare, I still think.....

Hey Aaron, thanks for jumping on the challenge....I called bs on bs....and I always will.
Because Art Saves Lives.....Art is Worth Dying For.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Here's Why I say "You Kids......"

I always say things like:
You kids.......
Hey kids....
The youngsters of today......
Somebodies kids......
And people look at me like I"m outta my mind.....
which I am.......
But here is why.......
Also, I tend to like almost everyone...
while being true to my opinions about things.....
Sly & the family stone......has always been one of my faves....
prolly from growing up in the BayArea......
So, Here's why I say.......You kids, etc....and my philosphy of life....
be kind, be ironic.......and dance you monkey..........

Steve

When we heard the news of Steve's death on Tuesday......we just went into a state of numbness.

Mark has known Steve longer than me. They have kids about the same age. Steve was good to us, and Steve was bad to us......but we never went around town bad-mouthing him like so many other people did.

When I opened funkoma vintage so many people came in a wanted to know "the dirt" on Steve. What dirt. He's a Jew. He works for the city. He's a loving father. He's GAY !! and so out of the closet.

Sure he sold my coyote and I'm still kinda pissed !! but he gave us more than he took.......he was good to us.
And that's all you need to know. The rest isn't your business.

We were together on New Years Eve 1999 turning into 2000...and the world didn't end.......we spent the night there and the next day we were so wrecked...........So this song will always be a Steve memory for us........And it is so Steve.....so out there. He was doing freaky when you kids were in Jr High popping zits.




And the "friends" will come out the woodwork.
Steve gave Tacoma it's first real fun spot to go....He brought The Big Shitty to Tacoma. He was the first in Tacoma, he and Dave Norton to do FUNK....to do Mid Century Modern while everyone else was doing Victorian Oak.

Everything else in Tacoma was earnest, naive and/or boring. Steve shook up Tacoma before any ART arrived here. He was the Uncle of Tacoma Art.......& not that boooooooooooring crap at the museums and straight white people galleries...............(now.....they're funky!!!)

Steve, Mark, and I commissioned John Clinton to do a Grafittistyle art piece at Rampart after Dave moved on. It's covered up now. That was waaaaay back in the day.....(yes, that john clinton)

Mark and I are just so sad.


Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Color .... Vintage .... Crafty ...Me Like You...

from tricia of bits and bobbins.....comes this blogosphere report....
I love this.......proof positive that We Are Alike But We Are Different From You........it's a uniform.....from the exactitudes project........
the last time I wore a uniform was working at Hickory Farms.....red polyester gingham, and blue denim poly blend wrap skirt, and YES, a triangular (hippie-style) kerchief bandana.....with Keds.
But subcultures wear uniforms.....which I why I wear whatever....altho I am a member of the subculture of Odd Clothes. So we all do it.....



(photo credit to ari versluis/exactitudes)

Then she posts this from The NewYorkMagazine.......Color !!!!!

(photo credit: tina tyrell/new york magazine)
------------------------------------------------------------

I get in moooods where I will wear only one color....only 2 colors....
or dress like a sky.....
or a sunset .....or a rainbow from head to toe. Also, I get the
Creeps every once in a while.....
and I purge all of one color from my life .....the last time was
brown.....that's kinda dumb...
so I've been re-adding brown, but only below the waist.
Red got purged after my divorce 13 yrs ago
....That Was Really Dumb! Red is back for me.

In the 70s, I dressed in peach and purples for a whole year......

I am a Canvas of my Desires.

Now onto my sewing area....to make some stuff today.......yeah!!

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Hi ! this is a nicer title than the post below

Not much to say right now 'scept it's a lovely day !!!!
Did you know Andy Wappler is moving on from KIRO ??? Waaaaah.
I just got off the phone with the darling Niki.....at TPU......which is not so PU.........(stinky) for an agency that wants waaaaaaay too much of my money (my fault--I like to be warm and see in the dark) TPU, has always been nice to me in the 25 yrs that I"ve lived in Tacoma,,,,,,,,but for one time..........
I have no idea what this post means but I really just wanted to bury the Jane Fonda post....oy Yeah.......
Suicide rates for 45 - 54 yrs olds, went up 20% from 99-2004 !!!!!
I'll have to read the article today....and report back. Man I will say, that personally was a very very stressful time for all of us, and me personally. I lost most of my estrogen, my chin dropped into my neck, and my favorite dog died, as did my beloved mother who is memorialized in a tattoo on my left arm.


OH, going to Antique Sandwich Company tonight............
Just saying..........

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Jane Fonda said CUNT and people are upset ???

global warming, obesity, war, torture, Hillary is running, Huckabee won't let go........Bhutto shot........and people are upset over this..........Well I had to remove the vid because it locked up my computer one 2 many times! you can google Jane fonda cunt........it's there...forever and ever and ever and ever.........

Friday, February 15, 2008

SinSation..........V DAy doing it Tacoma STyle

Hey, Michael and James......whatcha doing???

Saw so many pretty young people.....enjoy your estrogen while ya got it.....
or testosterone......as the case may be.

Since I like to look......I was not disappointed.....from Middleagedockersguy to Youngandnaked to Thefishnetbrigade......it was a naked night to remember....

And Fire !!!!!!!!
the evening reminded me of a night in Portland I had about 15 or so years ago......nakeds at Mary's and then off to Dante's to see Fire Dancers.......

So we are happy to see big city style entertainment finally come to Tacoma......
(and I don't mean Monster Trucks...)
A big Hat's Off and Panties Off to all the fab folks that worked to put it all together......................
you are the new artists that will make living in Tacoma worthwhile in spite of stupid high priced restaurants and stupid real estate.

Hi to Mel and Brian........
Hi to Kevin and Sara.....
Thanks for being the Documentarian.....


Like I always say.......Art Saves Lives.......

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Vintage Sweaters ! Let's recycle eBettyDIY

Sweet Sweater Upcycle Repurpose

February 15th, 2008

O yeah, does the Planet Earth have sweaters…..o yeah we got sweaters. They multiply while in your dresser drawers and in your closets…..they multiply in the thrift stores and in the summer, they have sex ( I swear) at yard sales.

So what shall we do about this…..let them co-mingle I say. Let them share cell walls like Randy Ameobas……. this is being typed on Valentines Day 2008 (can you tell?)

So, here we have 2 sweaters freshly extracted from a local supply house (thrift store). One is male one is female, and I am not discriminating….these 2 just went together color-wise and washing-type-wise…you will want that ..so you can clean them together.

I want to sew them together and create a dress. First I measured from the shoulder seam about 16 inches and cut across. Then, I’ll sew them together. Placing right sides together…….




and stretch and pin so the waist seam of the lady sweater is matched up with the cut edge of the man sweater. Sew and stretch as you sew. I sewed a few times , round and round , so it will hold together as I put it on and as I wear the new dress.

After I sewed the waists together…. Look, the lady sweater is upside down!! I then cut the lady sleeves off. I just followed the seam lines of the sleeves to sweater body and cut. This left me with a weird lower area and that inspired me to keep cutting. So, I chose a place to chop off based on looks alone…..I want my dress to be balanced and I wasn’t too concerned about how long it was.So….. I took the piece of the man sweater and sewed it to the bottom edge and viola !!

Yup here’s the bottom of the dress ! Below is the top.

***** Dang…I’m a bit dizzy….Top is Bottom ******

I cut off the neck and wrist ribbings and ran a line of stitching about a 1/2″ from the raw edge. I’m leaving it raw but it can be turned under and sewn. If you have great skillz and confidence, you could add lace or ribbing or whatever strikes your fancy to finish your edges. You could certainly leave it be……I chose to chop…….

I took a small chunk of the lady sweater sleeves and stitched a pocket on the dress, then sewed a vintage button on for cuteness…you knew that was coming !

Here it is !! I think it turned out better than I had imagined !!

I encourage you to chop sweaters…….to combine more than 2 if you want…..Imagine…..all the sweaters…..living life in Piece…..

They say I’m a dreamer……But now I love sweaters again…..

And I hope you do too…..

Your eBettyDIY,

Tressie from

funkomavintage.com

I Love You and You Love Me....



Here I am.......getting ready for tonight !!
and I'm working on my
A) Dress to wear to SinSational tonight......(bring small bills !)

Fashion show Belly Dancing Fire Dancing Drag Kings & Queens
Living canvas w/ chocolate paint Food Wine DJs

B) Project for ebettydiy........

C) This.


oh yes. I don't get to see
everyone that I really like, that I really love....and so forth and so on.......
So tonight ! I can't wait to see you !
Not just family and close friends, but all those peeps that I admire from afar here in T-Town........ won't name names, because there isn't enough time today.....artists, writers, movers & shakers and those who don't move or shake........

SO MUCH Going on in Tacoma that doesn't involve Bowling..
and I love Bowling.......
Tomorrow, I shall blog about CASA and
Love Apples.....
My new beginning in Urban Gardening in the Dome District !!

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Hey Watch it.....I'm Crafting Here........

well Here ---->>>actualy
The eBetty DIY Files

Cute Stuff Like This...and More projects...
something new every Thursday evening...Like: Somebunny Loves U, The Burtonesque ReConstituted
Frankenstein Happy Friendly Warm Winter Friend Maker Scarf,
Fun Phunny Soft Sweater & Fabric Monster Dolls...


I take revenge on the ugliest sweater I can find.....
and turn its EVILness into a Source for Winter Goodness.....
Well, here is an ugly 80s sweater…..and you may disagree.
You may say, "I LOVE that!!!" And that is good.
To each his own…

Visit Now!

......................

Proud Founding member of the Evintage Society



Click to Visit

Monday, February 11, 2008

New Theme song.....Hard to be Humble.......

when you're a Diva like me !!!!!!

BFF's, Twokoi, Old School Tacoma and You

another lovely dinner at twokoi ....this time with Murph and Amber........earlier on sunday the 10th we went to see Doyle and Jen and family out in the boonies and got to drive over the Big Bridge again and lose 3 bucks.
why do i send people to twokoi and not to other "new" Tacoma restaurants, etc? twokoi has worked hard not to be snotty and snooty. The food is FAB-U-LOUS ! the staff is always friendly and well-trained (tho sunday evening there was a cavalcade of goofiness...and the servers had a great sense of humor about it all!)
(there are many other newbies that also work it, but I'm just limiting it to twokoi in this post)

Just because you opened a restaurant in Tacoma, or built some housing, or "promote" Tacoma doesn't mean you are entitled to a meaningless Happy Face sticker.
I have wanted to move to downtown Tacoma for at least 10 years. I had conversations with tons of people about why there is no "affordable housing" downtown other than halfway houses and sect. 8 housing, and I'm glad they are there and I'm happy low-income people can live downtown or out in the boonies or wherever they choose.
But of course true affordable housing did not come to downtown. Expensive housing came. No artist live/work space. And what can be suitable for live/work is big $$$ ...and an up and coming artist can't live there unless you are already a Chihuly or have another pays-well day job.
Often artist live/work space in cities is a bunch of hooey. There is some affordable live/work space in Seattle, but who wants to live in Seattle?
I got to thinking about this again, after the sunday nite visit to the Silverstone and looking at the condos .......(and surrealisticaly, watching Amy Winehouse (my girl) on the Grammy's at the Silverstone)
Patrick didn't know Mark and I had an interest in Rampart.....gently one of the recent pioneers of commerce downtown and we certainly did all we could to support business down there long before it was fashionable.
Sitting at twokoi, Murph told us tales of working at the motorcylce place that was in the old Tacoma Ice bldg. that burned down. And it's that sense of history that makes the transitional time we Tacomans are living in........bearable.
The stories of our history is the real Tacoma bridge. Not the ones of glass, tho pretty. ...not the concrete and steel ones, tho impressive.

I love Union Station. I love UWT. I love all the old bldgs that have been repurposed.
A lot of the new bldgs, the condos are just unartful. But not all.
There is a definate attitude of New is Better and meh for history and for the people that have lived here for a long long time. Alan & Cheryl have stuck it out downtown and are they respected for it? I do wonder.

There is a war of words about the new v. old. That's fine. Here's what I see:
I see many old school Tacomans checking out the new stuff. We do this every few years when some new thing blows into town.
I see some of the new folks starting up things and thinking they have a blank slate here in T-Town. And being quite snobby. And assuming we didn't know we have world class views and mountains, and water and sailing.......that we were too stupid to see it. We saw it. We just didn't feel the need to gloat.......

Since I did grow up in California which is size-wise and sophisticated-wise, is like growing up in France/Spain/Germany.....I have to wonder ....
How did some renaissancers miss the fact that a thriving town was already here?
sure we weren't shiny and fast-movers........but we had a town. I think, since my friends have almost all, been here for at least a decade, if not their whole life, are just wanting to be treated as if their opinions matter.

Coming soon is the 150th anniversary of the murder Chief Leschi and likely-murder of Quiemuth. From the press release:
In reality Chief Leschi won the enmity and hatred of Issac Stevens for
refusing to sign the Treaty of Medicine Creek of 1854 and for warning other
tribal leaders not to go along with the treaty. The treaty took away
millions of acres of land from the tribes and restricted Native Americans to
reservations. The original treaty removed a good many of the tribes from
access to their rivers and their fishing livelihood. Chief Leschi and his
brother, Quiemuth, spoke and acted for the dignity and survival of their
people against the greed and ethnic cleansing that the governor was
fostering among the settlers.

Whether you see it or not, trust me on this. A lot of old-timers, a lot of working class, a lot of folks round these parts are feeling very displaced and disrespected.
It does not have to be this way.

That's why I send folks to twokoi.......a new kid on the block. They have always made Mark and I and our friends feel welcome. Even when we show up late and Jonathan has a calculus test in the morning and needs to get home to study.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Quicker Than That !!

well, I am liked in blogworld.....but Gals Who Sew......know a good sassy girl when they see one.....
I emailed erin at DressADay about this pattern...I knew she'd love it....
It has the notched neckline and a great full skirt....
Ha! Sold! before I even finished my first cup of coffee this morning........

Obama Wherefore Art Thou ??

waaahhhh Obama won't come to Tacoma....no way am I driving that far to see him. Bill is coming to UPS at 9am Fri morn. No No NO.
I might get up that early to see the Second Coming of John Lennon......but not Bill Clinton. I'm still mad about Welfare Reform.
X-(



~Re-elect Al Gore~

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Julian Bond. My Hero. Obama. The Flag Bearer.



When I was about to graduate from The Evergreen State College in 2003, I pulled my app to graduate mainly for one reason. Amy Goodman and the lily-livered student body that did not vote for Julian Bond to come and speak at MY graduation.
Therefore, I chose to wait another year and we got Derrick Jensen as our speaker in 2005.
Also Joe Carr and many other smart folks were in the 2004 graduating class
Going to college was a hard road for me. It wasn't easy for me at all. It was easy for you. You had support. I didn't. I built that path, by myself, stone by stone.
And since Julian Bond is one the worlds greatest treasures and I was soooo disappointed in the white myopic bubble-dwellers that make up the majority of the Evergreeners, I refused to graduate until 2005, and there were other reasons, but this is all you get. Today.

So Julian Bond was there from the beginning. He is a nearly flawless person. And since I have said since Day One.......and Obama is walking in the path of the Great Ones....that moves the American culture forward against their will........
NO NO NO Hillary......Her Hates Are Too High..........she's a classic backroom politician.
I am an Obama Girl for the same reason I was a Kennedy Girl (all of 'em).

Are you old enough to have really marched in the Vietnam era anti-war protests? Did you politic to get the correct people elected? I did. Sadly I don't control the world!
The fathers of all my kids are Vietnam Vets. I am old enough to have been there.

From my lofty perspective, as an elder, I had a very disturbing deja vu !
I grew up in Cali and I knew what Reagan would do to the country, .......the same as what he did to Cali. Bad.
And George Bush. (All of them)
Saw. It. Coming.

This is why I write. Because I am not In the Mix, or In the Middle, I see things from a diff perspective. I'm not middle class and I don't want to be. I'm not as white as you think I am. And aint that a Good Thing !!!
*****************
And I have a great Bullshit Detector. This is why I am always in trouble. Oh well.
Yes, I'll go see OBAMA Friday in Tacoma. Yes, I will close the shop. Hooray. OBAMA !

OBAMA ! OBAMA ! OBAMA ! OBAMA !
****************
Julian Bond

In 1960, Bond was a founding member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and served as communications director from 1961 to 1966. From 1960 to 1963, he led student protests against segregation in public facilities in Georgia.

Bond left Morehouse in 1961, returning to complete his degree, a BA in English, in 1971. He helped found the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a public interest law firm based in Montgomery, Alabama, along with Morris Dees. He was that organization's president from 1971 to 1979. Bond remains a member of the board of directors of the SPLC.

In 1965, Bond was one of 8 African Americans elected to the Georgia House of Representatives. On January 10, 1966, however, the Georgia state representatives voted 184-12 not to seat him because he publicly endorsed the SNCC's statement of opposition to U.S. policy in the Vietnam War and his sympathy for persons who were "unwilling to respond to a military draft," [1]. A U.S. District Court panel ruled 2-1 that the Georgia House had not violated any federal rights. In 1966, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled 9-0, in the case of Bond v. Floyd (385 U.S. 116), that the Georgia House of Representatives had denied Bond his freedom of speech and that it was required to seat him.

From 1965 to 1975, he served as a Democratic member in the Georgia House for four terms. He went on to serve six terms in the Georgia Senate from 1975-1986.

During the 1968 Presidential election, Bond led a challenge delegation from Georgia to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Here, unexpectedly and contrary to his intention, he became the first African-American to be proposed as a major-party candidate for Vice President of the United States. While expressing gratitude for the honor, the 28-year-old Bond quickly declined, citing the constitutional requirement that one must be at least 35 years of age to serve in that office.
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Bond is at present Chairman of the NAACP while continuing to write and lecture about the history of the civil rights movement and the condition of African Americans and the poor. He is President Emeritus of the Southern Poverty Law Center. He hosted America's Black Forum from 1980 until 1997. He remains a commentator for the Forum, for radio's Byline, and for NBC's The Today Show. He authored the nationally-syndicated newspaper column Viewpoint. He narrated the critically-acclaimed PBS series Eyes on the Prize in 1987 and 1990.

He has published A Time To Speak, A Time To Act, a collection of his essays, as well as Black Candidates Southern Campaign Experiences. His poems and articles have appeared in a Who’s Who list of magazines and newspapers.

Bond is a supporter of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered rights and marriage equality.

from wikipedia.


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Civil rights activist and politician Julian Bond was born on January 14, 1940, in Nashville, Tennessee. He and his family moved to Pennsylvania, where his father, Horace Mann Bond, was appointed president of Lincoln University.

In 1960, Bond was one of several hundred students who helped form the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). In 1965, Bond was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives. He was barred from taking his seat due to his outspoken statements against the Vietnam War. In December 1966, the Supreme Court ruled in his favor and he served four terms as a state representative and six terms in the Georgia State Senate. During the 1968 presidential election, he was the first African American to be nominated for vice president of the United States. He withdrew his name from the ballot, however, because he was too young to serve. Later, Bond hosted America's Black Forum.

Bond continues his tradition of activism as chairman of the NAACP. He also serves as president emeritus of the Southern Poverty Law Center. Bond is a distinguished scholar in residence at American University in Washington, D.C., and a faculty member in the History Department at the University of Virginia.

Bond was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on April 21, 2000.


Tuesday, February 5, 2008

rich people suck, or stupid people suck ...or something....

From a Vancouver CAN blog, The Commodified, a compiler of street fashion......
comes this disturbing post......
and informative too.

80s "fashion" is a joke. I hope you know that. It is funny to see it recycled!!
Those puffs. Those poofs. Those shoulders. That twinkle. That that stupidity!
So ......fashion does define you whether you know it or not.
If you're in Mall-purchased dark wash designer flare jeans and mid heel pointy toe flats with a little jacket.....hmm, you are playing it safe. OK.
If you are in sporty Nike polarfleece and running shoes when you are not on the track ! you are wanting to be fit and trim and maybe not quite making it. Dunno.
If you are dressed from hither and yon, in lace and leather (or vegan for you neo-hippie types) you are an arty type with an open attitude.
If you are dressed in the latest hipster fare: Short dress, bright colored tights, slouch boots, babydoll or shrunken little boy jacket, you are (hopefully) in your teens or 20s and are cool and probably share an apartment. Sweet.

ebay used to be cool and fun but now ebay is bad....

Monday, February 4, 2008

Top ?? I heard a rumor.

While I do love to go do some drinking.....and I'll try out a bar and see how comfy,or Tacoma, or whatever they are.
I like cheap drinks and cheap food. Or if I have to spend coin, I want good food, heavy drinks and nice wait staff.
So you know we tried the Top of Tacoma twice......and uh, not so good.
I always got the vibe that me and my spouse and my friends just weren't cool enough.....
That's OK. Not everyplace is for everyone.
I think it's really a Private Hipster Club.
I don't do hipster. Not even when I was young. I'm too accommodating, I think.
I like almost everyone, even if I disagree with them.......eh, so what huh?
So, I heard the TOP has a "memo".....a Get OUtta my Bar LIST.
And an acquaintance of mine was asked to leave the TOP for no reason other than being on this LIST......the MEMO !!
Is This True? I don't know. I'm just reporting the news, that's all.
Defend your self !!!

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Nanci Griffith

I've been a fan of Nanci Griffith since the early 80s
Corny I know.....but I'm pretty corny and real and sentimental
She's on Prairie Home Companion this wkend.
Listen and fall in love..........

Friday, February 1, 2008

Juno, Grand, Kimya, Me

I was shocked to see the Juno movie preview in my email from Sony pictures a few months back....what, how is a movie about a pregnant teenager a comedy.....What a ...dramedy?
And then to read Roger Ebert go all wet in the pants over the movie.
And then people fall all over themselves with JOY!
OK, so now I am happy Kimya is getting some coinage so she can stay home or travel and write or whatever she wants to do..

Remember planning a show with Kimya at the Java Jive more than a year ago?
We were. I was positive if we got together just enough money we could call her up in Oly and say "Kimya, we are BIG fans !!!" And she woulda been happy to come and play for Tacoma. (was my idea first !)
But then my dog died and I was sick all of the fall/winter of 06/07 so I couldn't do much about anything, including a fashion show with Michael, Greg, Murphy and me.
So, Juno is out.
Why, I wondered is everyone so Positive ! about a pregnant teenager that gives up her baby.
At first I was just so angry. I've been a pregnant teenager. It is not fun. It is not quirky.
There are issues about sexuality, permissiveness, bad mothering, societal hatred and oh yeah, the Best Interest of the soon-to-be-baby.
In my case, abortion was illegal. Not that that option was off the table, so to speak.
My Catholic OB was happy to take me to San Francisco and sign the papers to have it done......long before Roe v.Wade was a twinkle in a girls eye.

And all the issues.....I won't go into all the detail of that Now......I am writing a book.
It isn't fun. And everyone blames the girl. And the girl has to make the decision.
So I kept the baby because it was the right decision for me. Period.
But, why , I wondered were all these White Middle-class people going all goo-goo over a movie about a pregnant teenager.
So I gave it some thought.
Well, no one really wants to admit they are bad parents and raise their kids to be sexually promiscuous. But most parents are not as good as they think they are especially these days when families trade $$ and real estate and trips to Disney land for a real family life.
So, teenagers are having sex, and lots of it these days. Sooner or later, a sweet middle class girl is gonna find herself in that state. And the boy? More on that another day...this is a short essay. He gets off...scot free.

Then, what is the best possible outcome for a set of parents or a single mother raising kids on her own ...since women are the ones who file for divorce about 70% of the time.........Women do and the court system backs them up... dispose of fathers and cash the child support checks and everyone pretends everyone is happy and everyone is acting in the Best Interest of the child.
I digressed slightly.
So, what does a middle class parent or set of parents want to happen to their pregnant teenager? They want the baby bump to go away, they want the teenager to skip to college and just not really slow down ...go go go go.....the Modern World.
So a precocious teenager, with parents that barely have a pulse (disconnected) are too happy that said teenager chooses a Pre-Formed McMansion Yup Couple to take the Baby Bump.

Of course. The McMansions are mirror images of the parents, and therefore a safe choice to dispose of problem baby bump.
See, everyone is happy ......again.
Teenager has a few moments of Deep Angst.......Clueless Parents get to dream of themselves in their younger days becoming "involved" if things were just so slightly different.
McMansion couple gets something their money can buy.....a baby.
Everyone lives happily ever after.
Middle Class people get the problem solved so prettily.
And Middle Class people get to watch a movie made of Silly Putty at the Grand.
Yes the Grand needs a Hit every once in a while (Coen Bros...Oh Brother........)

There has been a rash of movies in which the pregger one heroically keeps the baby.
But after the baby is born, the movie ends.............is no one there to help and support young poor moms. And is this country going to do what needs to be done. It's not that hard to truly offer genuine support...it's done in other countries.....hell, we just have to strive to do it in this country.
Family support? Crappy childcare in America..everyone is on their own. Taxpayer support....food stamps, health care...all get cut every chance a CEO/MBA can slash some great social program and make people Stand Up On Their Own 2 Feet !

So it's just a Feel Good Movie that is glossier than goose poop on glass.
It's a Hollywood Movie. Even if it is an "Indy" film. ha! It's Hollywood because
everyone gets a good outcome. And teenage pregnancy is not a problem. Just a condition to power through. And in a few months everyone will be OK !
So no abortion. No social programs. Everyone solves everything neatly in a vacuum. Who wrote this? Karl Rove or Karl Marx ?

But that's not the real world.... but that's the world I live in, and do my volunteer work in.
And the baby I kept......today she's a real live Social Worker with a BS, working on her Masters. She deals with the reality of her client's difficult family lives where the answers are not glossy, are not middle class, and where people desperately need the social programs that have been so gleefully cut to the bone.........
because if we don't fund programs to make people's lives better,
then people will just Pull Themselves Up all By Themselves and...it will always be alright, right?
So back to Kimya. Support Kimya. And tell her you love her!
And buy that CD. She has a baby to support !