One Thing Leads to Another

Isn't thought process like this? One thought - "I think I'll quickly read this article," leads to another thought "the photo that was at the top of the article was really interesting. I wonder if there's a link?" which leads to another thought, and so on, and so on.

The creative process (by Wolbot) illustrates the convoluted
pathway our thoughts can take to get from an initial
thought to an actionable idea. 

This movement and jumping of thought from one stone to another is what allows us to investigate new ideas and concepts, develop new plot lines and characters, and become men and women of "mystery" (because friends and spouses can't follow the direction your conversation has just taken). Is this jumping and movement a good idea? Well, it's not a bad one.

Jumping from one rock to another to cross the river is very
possible, but eventually someone wants to make things easier
(or more controlled - pay that roll to cross the river). 

When I think of a society where people are oppressed and highly controlled, I think of a society that has just built bridges over the rushing waters of free thought. The people are ferried onto the bridges instead of jumping across the slick, unsafe rock pathways that had been used in the past. Everyone exclaims happily about how wonderful the bridge is and how safe it is now for them to cross the river. Those leaps of thought that had gotten them to that point have been forgotten, the knowledge is now considered rote, and nobody wants to shake the new foundation.

Ah, the Flat Earth vies of the universe. It's a view that actually looks
rather familiar to my Tolkien friends since Arda is usually pictured as flat. 

But people have to shake it. Without the courage to shake, we would still be in a world where the earth was flat and the sun and planets revolved around us. We would be in a world where smallpox killed and surgery didn't have anesthetics. We would be in a world where free thought was instantly quashed because the government feared for its own stability.

Free speech can be liberating, but also can be alienating.
For me, free speech doesn't mean hate speech or racist speech or
non-tolerant speech. To me, it means thoughtful speech, not rhetoric. 

Don't live in a world like that. Push for those who jump across on the rocks. Push for free and open thought and discussion. Don't allow fear or convenience to keep your thoughts silent. Speak out! Happy Thursday ...

Schedules - Comfort Food For the Brain?

I like schedules. I like to be an organized person; know what I'm expected to do, where I'm expected to be, and when I'm expected to be there. In other words, I'd make a horrible spy because I'm totally predictable. Schedules are my comfort zone.

I like the constancy of a schedule. Guess I'm
not quite as "hippie-dippee" as I come across. 

For me, schedules are both confining and freeing. For instance, I know that I have time built in to my schedule where I can plug in whatever activity I want. Lately that's been housecleaning, but it can also be beadwork, making art of various types of media, going to see a movie, shopping, writing, reading, or just sharing time with DH. Because I have the open times, I don't have to panic about the things that have to be done daily.

The things I can find. Here's a wonderful art piece entitled:
"Bone Tree of Life Skeleton Goddess" by artist Sandra Silberzweig. I really
like her style. She's out of Toronto, Canada. 

Schedules are the skeleton of life for me. The real meat is what happens between awakening and returning to sleep after the day ends, but after the basic body of the day's schedule has been put over the skeleton, I get to form that body in any way I choose. For me, schedules provide me with a framework in which to create.

I'm not a "go with the flow" kind of person. I prefer to choose
which exit to take off the freeway of daily schedules. I guess I'd
make a horrible surfer because I can't follow the curl very well. 

What about you? Are you schedule driven or do you prefer to "go with the flow" and do things as they come? How's that working for you?

I was never a super big Eagles fan, but Glen Fry's music
changed and inspired a generation. He died too young and
he'll be missed. 

Finally, one more death to mourn - that of Glen Fry of the Eagles. He died yesterday from complications of rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia. He was 67 years young. RIP Glen Fry, Join the band and make some great music with Bowie and the others who have preceded you.

Happy Tuesday - the cold and the gym are calling to me.

A Celebration of Color and Diversity

Yesterday was grey, dreary, foggy, rainy, and generally bleh! I can't tolerate another day like that, so I'm looking for color today. But first, I want to share a video with all of you. This is a simple film that lasts less than seven minutes but expresses so beautifully why I am so adamant about LGBT rights. Although I'm embedding the video below, in case you can't get that to come through on your computer, I'm also including the link here so that you can see it one way or another. Keep your tissues handy, this one had me in tears.





The group, "Freedom to Marry", approached Richard Blanco, the poet who spoke at President Obama's inauguration, and requested him to create an original poem celebrating love the the freedom to marry. His poem is spoken in this short film and addressed, so beautifully, why I am so passionate about this issue. I urge each of you to click on the link and watch it. It will enrich your day.

Now back to color...

I hate dreary days, and since I started by talking about LGBT rights, I'm going to home in on the colors of Pride. The original Pride flag was designed in 1978 by Gilbert Baker for the San Francisco Gay Freedom Celebration.

The original flag featured eight stripes. The pink
was dropped, the blue was changed, and only a
single purple was used in the version we now see. 

Each stripe of the flag had meaning within the scope of humanity and equality. The stripes were Pink/Sexuality, Red/Life, Orange/Healing, Yellow/Sun, Green/Nature, Blue/Art, Purple/Harmony and Violet/Soul.

The current flag features six stripes.

Shortly after this premiere the pink stripe was dropped because of insufficient fabric availability and then, within a year, the flag was changed to six colors and the blue was darkened to royal blue. This is the flag we are used to seeing today.

There are other flags for PRIDE - ones that you may not see as often.

The bisexual flag celebrates the intersection of the sexes
with the smaller lavender stripe. 

This is the Bisexual Pride flag, designed in 1998 by Michael Page. It features three stripes, The magenta stripe at the top represents same sex attraction, the blue stripe at the bottom represents opposite sex attraction and the narrower lavender stripe in the center designates attraction to both genders.

The traditional baby colors of blue and pink frame the white of change
in the Genderqueer and Transgender flag. 

In 2000, Monica Helms designed the Genderqueer and Transgender flag. It features the traditional baby colors for genders - blue for males and pink for females, with a white stripe in the center designating those who are transitioning, unisex, gender neutral, or who have no gender. She designed it to be hung in any aspect.

Although this flag is less common, it acknowledges a segment
of humanity that are often ignored. 

This three-stripe flag is sometimes used for Genderqueer. Designed by Marilyn Roxie, it represents those who are genderqueer, Two Spirited, gender fluid, or androgynous. The lavender stripe is the mix of pink and blue representing androgyny. The white stripe stands for gender neutrality and the green stripe stands for those who do not identify with the traditional gender spectrum.

So celebrate color today, watch the short movie, and continue to be aware that people are complex creatures who don't fit into boxes, but instead they burst out from their societal prisons to express their own unique individuality. Celebrate diversity. Celebrate Love. Happy Friday to everyone!

Possible Activities For My Day Off

Originally my day off was supposed to be the great weather day of the week. That's turned into a lie - today is supposed to be warmer, but filled with rain. That mean, however, that I may be able to buckle down and actually get some writing down, an activity that will make me much happier.

Time to buckle down and get some writing done.

As I said yesterday, my muse has gone on vacation - a rare thing for me. I looked under a lot of rocks (as well as with a cabana boy because - well - it was a cabana boy!), but she was nowhere to be seen. She seems to be peeking over the horizon today, though, so I'm going to try and lasso her and bring her into line.

Time to lasso that muse of mine. No more cabana boys for her. She needs
to get back to work!

I have three drabbles to do, a birthday fic to continue, and I have the Dark Challenge to prep a fic for (I always look forward to indulging in my dark side). I want to catch up a bit because May is progressing and my schedule is compressing into limited hours of open space.

I loved my Alienware computer - I put it through its
paces and make it rock. I got a new computer because
it eventually just got too slow for what I needed.
It's perfect for our warehouse, though. 

We need a computer at the shop that isn't my laptop, so I'm thinking about taking my old Alienware computer, which still works fine, pulling off the non-essential information so that it will be faster, and taking that to the shop to put into the warehouse area. I can then link it to the store Wi-Fi  or cable it into the server directly so that we can do internet searches, etc without needing my laptop.

I'm sharing my space this morning. I don't share gracefully.

Well, DH can't sleep so he's sitting nearby, has the TV turned on, and my quiet time has been shattered. Therefore, I'm calling this blog post done and I'll find my pics and post. Have a wonderful Wednesday.

Finally, A Day Off

A bit more than a week ago I was fully prepared to give up my usual day off and work for Chickie who was on vacation at Yellowstone National Park and attending a family reunion in Montana. She had a great vacation and will return to work today, giving me back my weekly day off. Last week's agenda was completely tossed to the trash by family circumstances, but I'm anxious to enjoy my day today.

The hot springs are part of what makes Yellowstone so famous. Pretty cool, aren't they?

Oh, I'll have phone calls to make and laundry to do. I'll have groceries to buy and banking to drive to. And I'll have the chance to write and to talk with Aearwen late this afternoon. It's a chance to try and recapture my equilibrium and I really need it.

It seems like DH finally may have gotten a good night's sleep last night. He was totally wiped out early last night, but we caught up on last week's Master Chef and he seemed to get more alert again. He knows that I get REALLY CRANKY if I get interrupted in my early morning blogging and emails, so he was going to try to get back into his normal schedule of getting to sleep between 11 and 12 pm so that he could sleep through until 6 am or a bit later.

I'm having Le Tour withdrawl, but the USA Pro Tour starts on August 19th. Best of all, it starts with two days in Aspen, my old home. I've been really homesick over the past few years and most of all, I've been wanting to see the mountains of my youth in that little mountain valley cut through by the Roaring Fork River. At least I'll be able to see more of it than the pictures I get from my monthly Aspen Chamber of Commerce newsletter.

Night skiing down Aspen Mountain is always spectacular. I prefer Aspen in
the summer, but winter is nice too.

Maybe next year I can take some time to go back out and visit. I need to do some on-site research for one of my novels... The problem with Aspen is the expense. Far from being the sleepy, deserted mining town it was when I first started going there each summer before I was ten, it is now a high-priced getaway destination for the rich and famous. *sigh*  But, today I write, clean and relax.

Guardian of the Gate and Le Tour Day 1

I post my blog in several places - same blog, different audiences. I receive commentary from people in a variety of formats through personal Emails, comments and direct response posts. It's usually my post that creates the controversy, but earlier this week it was a response that caused it. The concerns voiced by my friends about a response to one of my posts were valid and absolutely correct. They were stunned by a comment that was angry, bigoted, and almost vitriolic, and to be quite honest, so was I. But I didn't delete the comment or moderate it although I attempted to respond to it in a kind and caring way.

I didn't strike out because I am a believer in free speech. There have been many times when I don't agree with words spoken (or written in this case), but there is a right for the person to have said them. HOWEVER, and this is a big however, I DON'T CONDONE EITHER THE WORDS OR THE SENTIMENT THAT WAS EXPRESSED. As I told several of you, I'll be watching things carefully and, if necessary, I'll act in a more forceful manner. It is my hope that the issue won't arise again but I'll be prepared to use my "delete" and my "block" options if it does. Now...on to more fun stuff.

I am a Le Tour de France addict and this year's race looks like a great one. It's the 100th time that the race has been run and the course is killer! The whole race goes through July 21st, covers more than 2000 miles, and leaves a trail of riders and events behind it that are unlike any other sporting event. I'll be glued to my TV in the mornings, we'll have it set to replay throughout the day at at the store, and on good days I'll also watch the prime-time recaps. Yes! I'm happy, I'm excited, and I'm looking forward to seeing who will be wearing the Yellow, Green, Polka-dot and White jerseys on the Champ-Elysees on the 21st. Yeah!

What a great route we have this year. We start today in Corsica, we'll hit the mountains - lots of
them, and even travel to Mt St Michel one day. Outstanding!

Today's stage is Stage 1 and it begins in Corsica with 213 km from Porto-Vecchio to Bastia. The course is relatively flat so the sprinters will be front and center for the end of this stage. By the end of the day we'll have our first jersey winners and things will be underway. I can't wait!

A Celebration Today

Today Minnesota will become the 12th state legally sanctioning same-sex marriages. It's been a long, hard road with thousands of people phoning and knocking on doors, and lots of donations both large and small poured into ads and education, but we finally have success. Yesterday in a close vote of  37-30 the Minnesota Senate passed the Freedom to Marry Act after four hours of intense debate. More than 1000 people packed into the viewing galleries to watch the historic vote and cheers broke out as it passed. Governor Dayton will sign the bill into law on the steps of the capitol today at 5:00 pm and the ceremony will be followed by a concert and celebration.

Call me happy today! If I could I'd be there celebrating with
everyone else because the bestowal of human rights should
always be celebrated.

I'm thrilled with this result. I haven't had a lot of money to put into the campaign but I did what I could by talking about equal rights in my blog and promoting it where I could. I know that there are people out there who are against same-sex marriage, many who base their decisions based on various religious platforms. But marriage is far more than a religious joining. Marriage confers certain legal rights under the laws of the state and the nation - rights that were abrogated in Minnesota for same-sex couples. Marriage takes place in a civil arena of law and doesn't have to have any religious connotation or blessing. If the parties want and the religious institution/practitioner agrees, a marriage can be combined with a religious ceremony but it is a civil right and gives civil responsibilities.

Although "shotgun weddings" are considered humorous these days,
in the past they sometimes happened and people can be pressured
into marriage by family, friends, and situations such as pregnancy.

A marriage license is granted by the state in which the marriage will be held. It is signed, after an appropriate exchange of vows, by someone who is licensed by the state as being authorized to conduct the marriage. Witnesses also sign the Marriage License and all declare that both parties were willing participants, that they were of legal age, that their identities have been proven via accepted documentation and that, if they are underage, they have parental permission. Legal names are chosen and affixed in new signatures on the legal document. These names can be a switch of last names (usually the wife taking the last name of her new husband as her own), combination names (often hyphenated names, again usually only used by the wife but equally reasonable for both parties to use), or in some cases, totally new last names are chosen. These are entered onto the Marriage License and will become legally binding.

This Marriage License is from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Notice that in
the Solemnizer section, the location of the marriage ceremony is requested.
Nowhere on the license is there a religious mandate. The bottom is where the
sex of each of the participants is designated. Nice, clean, easy to understand and complete.

Rights are now conferred. Both good and bad, easy and not so easy rights now surround the newly wed couple. A legally married couple is a distinct legal entity and cannot now separate without going through an equally legal marriage annulment or a divorce. Property acquired while a couple will be considered to be jointly held and any children will be jointly raised. Physical property such as homes may be purchased jointly and will be considered joint property in any settlements in the future. A legal divorce will be much harder and more expensive than simply packing up and moving out. What the law gives in rights it also can take away, so civil unions require as much thought as any other legal union.

A civil union isn't quite the same as a marriage, but each of the points
raised in the chart above can be dealt with through individual
legislation if necessary. It would be nice if Freedom to Marry
covered all of these issues, but every step forward is another victory.

But will it be worth it? Oh yes. More than 300 laws will now have to be changed to recognize the new status of same-sex couples and with each change gay and lesbian couples will be one step closer to true equal rights with all other heterosexual couples in the state. It is my fondest hope that the Federal government will also pass marriage equality legislation, allowing our nation to actually be the bastion of freedom that we have claimed for so many years. But for now, I'll celebrate the fact that my state has moved in the direction of equal rights for all.

My cousin Miki and her partner Regina. Two beautiful ladies!

Hey, cousin...come up and get married! It would be wonderful to see you in person again!

A Look Back at Personal History

Last night I turned on Public Television and got caught. They are in the midst of the funding drive, usually one of those times when they show some of their more popular programs, and they were showing a show called "Makers". I don't know why I had never seen this one before, but I was truly hooked. "Makers" is a three-hour program about the history of the Women's movement. Now many of you who read my blog and daily post are young - born in 1980 or later. But those of us who are older remember the various fights for equality that occupied the 1960's and 1970's, among which were racial equality and sexual equality.

Did you know that airline stewardesses could only work until
they were 32 years old? After that age they were considered
too old and unattractive to be employed in that position.

I wish this was an unusual ad for the 1950's/1960's, but
it was actually fairly common. Women were expected
to be subservient to men and were also expected to
like it and buy into that image.

I was involved in the Women's Liberation movement, a member of NOW (National Organization of Women) and a subscriber to MS Magazine. I attended rallies, listened to speakers (even one magical night when Gloria Steinem spoke at my college) and fought hard for the right to have a meaningful career with reasonable pay and expectations of job advancement.

Gloria Steinem was the perfect spokesperson at the perfect time.
Beautiful, articular, and well educated, she took the movement
one step farther and was key to the success.

This was Gloria Steinem's first poster and it was beautiful
in its simplicity and staging.

Although women in World War II took up the jobs that men left behind as they joined the military and the war, when they returned from the European and Pacific theatres, the men picked up their hammers and wrenches again and the women returned to their homes. Throughout the 1950's and into the 1960's the primary purpose for women attending college was to obtain their MRS degree. Their BA or BS was considered secondary. After marriage (often while they were still in college) they were expected to stay at home, give birth to and raise the children, and be the perfect 'Holly Homemaker' for their husbands to return home to each night. Many women were happy in that role, but all too many felt that the world had suddenly been shut away from them and that they ossified in their new roles.

Apparently we could only do it while the men were away....

Things like spousal abuse were never discussed, indeed they were shoved under the carpet and simply didn't exist in the 'real world'. Jobs outside of the home, women handling financial responsibility of any kind, women in any corporate positions - they were more than rare. Into this vacuum came Betty Friedan and her book "The Feminine Mystique", first published in 1963. Suddenly someone had put the words of frustration and emptiness onto pages. If I had asked who of my mother's generation had read this book, I'm fairly sure it would have been almost 100% of my mother's female friends. At this time Help Wanted ads were separated into "Help Wanted - Men" and "Help Wanted - Female". Those jobs available for women were generally low-paying secretarial or waitress jobs with little or no chance of advancement. Into this came Betty Friedan followed later by Gloria Steinem and the voices of women were raised in joint concert to improve their futures and their choices.

Such a small thing - just a book. But it inspired
a generation of women and is still held in
high regard, even today.

I couldn't turn away from the television last night as I watched this. I even ordered the DVD because I want to see all three hours of the show. I remember those days and I'm so proud of what we accomplished. Today's women have a world of opportunities open in front of them. There are still glass ceilings. There are still challenges and issues to be faced, fought and conquered. But the world of fifty years ago was far different than the world of today and I was a small part of that. I'm very proud of my generation and my sisters in the Women's Liberation movement.

Studio Day - 1 of 2

So, my auto repair people are pretty amazing. My DH did a total number on our car - after cleaning the throttle cable, draining the overage of gas from the engine, replacing the gaskets and spark plugs, and changing the oil (along with other things that were affected by DH's inability to start his car properly) we walked out of the repair shop much poorer. Ouch! I need to make an appointment for my own car to get a 100,000 mile checkover in February, I'm going to begin to feel as if I'm supporting these guys singlehandedly.

Today is the first of two days off in a row (if all goes well). I will spend some time on the phone or just on-mic with a friend this afternoon, just to catch up. I've missed talking with her - a LOT. And I hope to spend a lot of time with my beads, my torch and my enamels. There is a project that's been perched in my head that I really want to try out, so I'm going to play with fire. Nothing much better on a cold winter's day.

I have a lecture to give in early March that I want to start the samples for, and I have three unfinished bracelets on the desk in front of me, as well as two color samples that I've developed that need to be sewn to pack and sell. I don't think I'll be bored :-)

Oh! And I may have a mouse. At least my DH thinks that there may be a mouse sneaking around the computer room. Apparently something moved yesterday and startled him. It wouldn't be the first time we had mice in the house, it actually happens often enough that we check our traps daily. But they usually aren't on this level of the home. I'll keep an ear open today and see if I hear anything. If so, I'll set some additional traps for the little furry beasties. As much as I hate banning any living critter to the very cold temps of our outdoors, they are not welcome to share my warm cozy home and raise their children on my largesse. Nope, not at all.

Winged Visitor

I adore birds. I love their freedom, their perspective, and their music. However, I am not very keen on sharing my home with wild birds. Yesterday, that's what happened and it was quite unusual.

I had been hearing small rustlings from next to me while I was working at the computer yesterday morning, but I left at 6am as usual to meet my friend Eleanor for our weekly breakfast and chat. After breakfast, instead of going directly to the shop, I decided to drop by home quickly and pick up my sketchbook because I wanted to determine final dimensions for some copper enamel that I will be working on later this week. I went into the computer room and grabbed my sketchbook, I also took my sample embroidery to determine if I wanted to change the stitch before I got too far into the current project for embroidery. I turned the TV on to CNBC and settled down to spend 1/2 hour before I went to work. Then I heard a rustle and saw movement. Looking up at my draperies, there was a simply lovely, small, blue and white flycatcher on top of my drapery. Except that he really didn't belong there. He was quite calm and curious about what I was doing.

I took my sketchbook, purse and cape (I didn't want bird poop on my cape, nor did I want possible tears from beak or claws), turned off the light and closed the door behind me. I phone a wild animal catching company who said that they could be out within 30 minutes and it would cost just under $100 (ouch!). But I really couldn't deal with a live bird in my most heavily used room and I had to get to work. So, 30 minutes later, Dan was there with a net. Five minutes after that the bird was flying free in the great outdoors and I was handing Dan my credit card. I enjoyed the visit and loved looking at the beautiful colors of my winged visitor. I am delighted that he is free to find his friends and experience our fall weather. I wish it could have been a little less expensive of an experience, but it was a fun experience none-the-less. Lesson for the day.....allow your creativity to fly on wings today in honor of my little visitor.

Disappointments

If disappointments can be kept minimal, then life can stride forward in a positive mode. I am disappointed that we will have snow for many of the remaining days this week. Spring is supposed to be here and I'm, frankly, really tired of snow. But, it probably will look lovely, and it won't hang around for long at this time of the year. Oh, wait. I was supposed to be disappointed - to place a negative spin on things. But I find myself unable to do that. Maybe snow isn't such a bad thing :-)

One thing that I saw this morning chilled me, though. And it made me grateful (again) that I have the priviledge of living in the United States (or another "civilized" nation). OK, that may strike some people as being disparaging. But when I saw video of the Taliban enclaves in Pakistan and their whipping people in public for being addicted to drugs - an illness, not a crime.... My stomach turned over and I, once again, determined in my inner soul that leaving with nothing or dying would be preferable to living without freedom to express myself. So, those of you who read my blog and who live in a part of the world where you have that freedom of personal expression - take up your brush, your file, your clay. Create something that expresses that freedom and the determination that you will not live your life under the dictatorship of any misguided overlord. Rebellion and death in a cause of freedom is a war that can be fought on the canvas as well as in the streets. Just be cautious if you live in an area where such expression of rebellion could cause injury or death. Be cautious...