Discussions about the upcoming elections are being voiced everywhere. Issues are being debated; candidates scrutinized.
Now that Al Gore has entered the main spotlight again with his Nobel Peace Prize win, Drafting Al Gore shouts are ringing in the streets and across blogs nationwide. Head to the website and sign the petition. A man of integrity and character, Al Gore not only cares about the planet(which we cannot live without, by the way!), he seems sincere in his care of our country and the people who reside here.
Have you ever truly looked at the words to certain songs--the message?
Check out Lenny Kravitz:
Are You Gonna Go My Way
I was born long ago I am the chosen I'm the one I have come to save the day And I won't leave until I'm done So that's why you've got to try You've got to breathe and have some fun Though I'm not paid I play this game And I won't stop until I'm done
But what I really want to know is Are you gonna go my way? And I got to got to know
I don't know why we always cry This we must leave and get undone We must engage and rearrange And turn this planet back to one So tell me why we got to die And kill each other one by one We've got to hug and rub-a-dub We've got to dance and be in love
But what I really want to know is Are you gonna go my way? And I got to got to know
Are you gonna go my way? 'Cause baby I got to know Yeah
The songs created to rid the earth of war and the songs urging its occupants to replenish it are plenty.......who is listening?
"Free Hugs" signs went up this morning in Madison, Wisconsin at the Capital building downtown during the busy farmers' market.
The weather was a beautiful 70 degrees without a cloud in the sky.
My step-son Eddie and I spent about two hours walking the perimeter of the market while Firecrow played photographer.
Jump for more hugs:
When I first came across the You Tube video:
I cried at the beauty of the idea. Why not? Free hugs. What a great idea to boost everyone's seratonin level. Firecrow & I discussed organizing an outing and, like with many things, life takes over, responsibilities, etc.....
Then:
I needed to conduct an Experience project for college. I thought about the Free Hugs Campaign immediately. I had always wondered what would happen if we did this. This morning I found out.
We started receiving "customers" right away; our first was this older gay couple who were sitting by a light post resting when we pulled out our signs to begin. Their faces lit up and we got our first hugs. Eddie & I spent about five minutes talking to them; one of the gentleman has cuts and bruises on his face and explained to us how he had been beaten up the night before. He certainly had needed a hug and he thanked us for sharing ours with him.
As we continued on, we experienced an array of responses, ranging from smiles to laughter to amazement to razed eyebrows.
Interestingly enough, the three of us all had different perceptions of our adventure.
Eddie walked about twenty feet ahead of me and found the students, teenagers and college students, along with the elderly flocked to him the most.
My experience walking just a bit behind Eddie yielded 30, 40 and 50 somethings and people wanting me to hug their babies.
We both found that people seemed very fascinated with the project and wanted their picture taken with us.
Some people wanted group hugs:
Firecrow had a revealing take on the whole process as he played observer the entire time while snapping pics. He saw how many people, intrigued by what we were doing, hesitating....then asking for a hug, while others talked with their companions about us, each prompting the other to "just go ahead". He also witnessed people who were reluctant while we walked past, suddenly turn around and head towards us. One college student even came full charge across the Capital lawn just to "attack" Eddie. It was great to watch! There were only a couple incidents that you could catagorize as negative, if not, bizarre.
One man, around 60 years old, while openly wanting and receiving two hugs from me at separate times was pleasant, put up his arm when Eddie came near, not wanting to be touched, doing the same to Firecrow, although he did shake his hand.
One woman exclaimed that she gets "plenty of hugs and doesn't need any more" while another woman demanded to know what "organization" we were with before she would receive a hug. I asked, "What do you mean "organization"?" She demanded, "Why are you doing this?" I retorted, "Why not? She hugged me then.
Some people even asked us if it was a gimmick of some kind or wondering if the free hugs were really free.
All in all it was an awesome experience; my face hurts from smiling, Firecrow is taking a nap and Eddie thanked us for inviting him to come along......he wants to go back and do it again.
Its important to note that doing something like this does raise the other person's seratonin level in the brain, doing it does the same for you and people witnessing the act of kindness and a hug does the same also for someone even if they are mearly observing the act.
My dog is smarter than Bush; he at least knows when to come in out of the rain. The same tune over and over--"We are not leaving until victory"--there will never be victory. Ever. We lost a long time ago. Now, its just an excuse to sell more body bags for our troops and the citizens of Iraq. The Dems are selling out also. Where is the fight? Are we all THAT tired? I'm tired. Very tired. Maybe Bush is smarter than I give him credit for.
As a small child, I began being drawn to books. It wasn't something I thought about--why do I love books?--it was automatic. Knowledge, I wanted it. Fictional stories were facinating, yes, but it was the non-fiction....the how to, the research, the fact finding adventures that I enjoyed the most.
Art--Da Vinci, Monet and Van Gogh--Georgia O'Keefe, Jackson Pollack, and Picasso.
Rainforests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface; now they cover a mere 6% and experts estimate that the last remaining rainforests could be consumed in less than 40 years.
Nearly half of the world's species of plants, animals and microorganisms will be destroyed or severely threatened over the next quarter century due to rainforest deforestation.
Oh, how I wish it were true. Media coverage of the illegal war, the need for AIDS drugs in Africa, the massacres in Darfur, the lying of our administration, the lack of motivation of our Congress to call this administration on the carpet, and the poverty level of millions in the United States.
But, instead, a Paris Hilton smoke screen. The media and the corporate assholes that own them, litter the news with Paris. These are terribly turbulent times. Think Progress
Whoever said money can't buy you happiness obviously has never been poor. It sure helps sometimes, but does not DEFINE me. Money can help in the short term, but if I'm not happy with who i am as a person, money will not fill that emptiness.
Looking for the golden ticket outside of myself is futile. Everything that I need, I already possess. I am a heart shaped diamond.
Isolation is the dark room where I develop all my negatives.
Isolation can be beautiful at first, but it stays dark......and creates more darkness.
Our connections to others keep us alive, focused, happy and sane.
The more we isolate, the more we drift apart.
When was the last time you said "Hello!" to your neighbor?
Thursday, May 31, 2007
I found an interesting story today about the need for renewable energy on Cleveland.com.
It talks about an architect who proposes rice farmers in China have differently constructed homes and businesses with rectangular slices of farmland topping these buildings.
Like a drop of water in a pond, the ripples cascade out, touching everything around it, so does the life of a fallen soldier. His death touches us all.
If you are unfamiliar with Memorial Day History, read and honor those who have lost their lives in battle.
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