Poverty Is Not an Accident

Poverty Is Not an Accident
Nelson Mandela

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

sleeping in truck

Well, mostly, we slept in our truck, which is a van conversion, moving
van from Penske rentals. The box is 10 ft. tall by about 20 ft. long.

I put a futon frame & mattress inside (both dumpster finds).

The 1st nite in Kansas, it was raining HARD. By the time we were on the
outskirts of Ks. City, the rain was turning to snow & the snow plows
came out.

I was worried, of course.

We were driving around an industrial area near the airport, when I saw
this HUGE building, incomplete, with a real estate sign out front. There
was no construction equipment, so I figured nobody would be back the
next day. It was larger than a wal+mart, with HUGE doors.

So, I drove the truck inside and hid it behind a wall.

We were out of the snow, out of the wind, out of sight. YOU try to hide
a huge, yellow truck, so you can sleep in the streets!

I'll write more later. I'm facing an interruption.

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Paula Gunn Allen benefit

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> > Contact: Kerrie Lynn
> > (404) 524-0304
> > Charis Books, Atlanta
> >
> > NATIVE WOMEN WRITERS READ AT BENEFIT FOR PAULA GUNN
> > ALLEN
> >
> > Seven Native women writers will read Friday, March 2,
> > at 8 PM at Charis Books.
>
> The reading is in honor of
> > Paula Gunn Allen, the Laguna writer whose
> > groundbreaking study The Sacred Hoop, established the
> > field of Native feminist studies. Gunn Allen's home
> > was destroyed by a fire in October, and she has been
> > hospitalized as a result of injuires sustained in it.
> >
> > Paula Gunn Allen's many honors include an American
> > Book Award for her 1990 Spider Woman's Granddaughters:
> > Traditional Tales and Contemporary Writing, a National
> > Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and the Lifetime
> > Achievement Award from the Native Writers Circle of
> > the Americas. A scholar and a creative writer, her
> > many books include Life is a Fatal Disease: Collected
> > Poems 1962-1995, The Woman Who Owned the Shadows, and
> > Grandmothers of the Light: A Medicine Woman's
> > Sourcebook. She received her M.F.A. from the
> > University of Oregon and her Ph.D. from the University
> > of New Mexico. After a distinguished teaching career,
> > including professorships at UCLA, Berkeley, and the
> > University of New Mexico, she retired in 1999.
> > Writers participating in the event include Kimberly
> > Blaeser (Anishnabe), Allison Hedge Coke (Tsalagi /
> > Huron), Heid Erdrich (Anishnabe), Diane Glancy
> > (Cherokee), LeAnne Howe (Choctaw), Evelina Lucero
> > (Isleta /San Juan Pueblo), Janet McAdams (Alabama
> > Creek), and Deborah Miranda (Esselen/Chumash). The
> > writers will read from Gunn Allen's as well as their
> > own work.
> >
> > Each of the poets has recently published a volume of
> > poetry in Salt Publishing's Earthworks series of
> > indigenous writers. Erdrich's The Mother's Tongue,
> > Glancy's Rooms, Howe's Evidence of Red , and
> > Miranda's The Zen of La Llorona appeared in 2005, the
> > inaugural year of the new Earthworks series. New books
> > include Blaeser's Apprenticed to Justice and Hedge
> > Coke's Blood Run. Series editor McAdams will also read
> > from a new collection, Feral. Novelist Lucero will
> > read from her award-winning Night Sky, Morning Star.
> >
> > More information, including directions, can be found
> > on the Charis Books website at
> > http://charis.booksense.com or by calling (404)
> > 524-0304. Gunn Allen's books will be available for
> > purchase, and donations will be requested for the
> > Paula Gunn Allen Fund. Admission is free.
> >
> >
> > ^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
> > http://www.janetmcadams.org

Sunday, February 11, 2007

greetings from Larned, KS

http://larned.org/
There's nothing to do here. We got a hotel so we can take showers b4 we
meet a lady to film at the Santa Fe Trail Ctr., near Ft. Larned. We look
pretty funky, so a shower's in order. Slept 2 nites in the truck: La
Junta, Colorado and Dodge City, KS (a truly ugly town; don't bother ick,
but La junta and neighboring Las Animas, CO were nice). COOOOOOLD in da
truck!

Osa, the cat, is doing fine. Great traveling cat; likes to stay inside &
never panics.

We were in Bent's Fort, CO yesterday, filming. http://www.nps.gov/beol/

Had 2 cats follow me all over the fort. People will think they have
8,000 cats there, as I don't think I got one shot without a cat butt in
it. They don't, according to the locals, usually follow people like they
follow me. Great. I'm a cat magnet!

Well, Ma's outta da shower, so I guess it's my turn now.

C U L8ers.

Friday, February 09, 2007

Forgot to post this one

Re: I've nearly killed myself, but...

Group: news:alt.discuss.clubs.public.arts-lit.misc.rriverstone Date:
Thu, Feb 8, 2007, 5:58am (MST-1) From: (Rogi Riverstone)

I got my NM driver's license yesterday.

Took Ma to work & hit the thriftstores.

I've been thinking that a futon frame & light mattress would be more
comfortable than inflated mattress on floor. And what happens if we
spring a leak?

Well, as I was parking the truck outside the 1st thrift store, I saw
that the neighbors were throwing out thin box spring and mattress set.
Took mattress; doesn't weigh much.

Last night, I took Ma to her acting class. I saw a futon frame beside a
dumpster, threw it on the motorcycle rack and it's now in the driveway!
Free bed!
I bought spray disinfectant for the mattress. Today, I'll remake the
bed: frame over carpet, mattress on that, inflated mattress over that,
covered by thick blanket, to keep cold mattress from freezing us, eighty
billion other blankets over that.

At the Goodwill clearance center, I found two, HUGE pillows, printed and
cut out like a giant barracuda and a giant sword fish. They're 5' long
and about 2' wide, at the widest. They'll be good "huggy" pillows. We
both like pillows betw. our knees, to keep our hips from getting stiff.

This way, I won't have to take all our bedding out to the truck.

I also sewed two large pillows out of old, thriftstore beach towels,
stuffed with packing peanuts. They'll absorb sweat, dry fast, be easy to
clean. We can use them on the ground, picnic benches....whatever.

The last things I'll need to do will be to pack refrigerator foods, fill
cats' water tub, grab small litter box, pet carrier & popcorn can of
food for the 1 cat (Osa: means "lady bear" in Spanish) we're taking.
I'll have to pack clothes and video/photo/recording equipment tomorrow.
Ma changed all the litter boxes this morning; trash comes today.

Last things are turning off heaters & extra electric (like COMPUTERS!),
giving neighbors housekeys and leaving, I guess.
If I've forgotten anything, it's not cuz I haven't tried to plan.

OH! Musn't forget to pack webtv, kbd, small vcr and small tv! shoot!

cat got out

It's an hour 'til we leave, and Ivan isn't anywhere he can hear me call
him.

I hate to leave him out for nine days. I'll leave out food & there's
plenty of water, if he doesn't come home by the time we leave.

My neighbors can keep an eye on him. But I sure hope he doesn't go in
Grace's yard. She's the neighbor on the other side of our house. She's
constantly calling city agencies, incl. Animal Control, trying to get us
in trouble. She does it to the whole neighborhood, but us, in
particular. She screams, she cusses, she throws trash in our yard, she
threatens us constantly. One time, she called Animal Control on us
because there was a SKUNK in the empty lot behind her house! She told
Animal Control our goats stank. The guy came out & said, "I thought that
was strange; goats don't stink!"

I only let my cats out while Grace is at work or sleeping. He got out
last night and hasn't come back. sigh.

Well, other than that, we're just about ready to leave. Ma's packing the
last of her stuff right now & will pack the WebTV, VCR & TV in a few
minutes.

We should be well into Colorado tonight.

Thursday, February 08, 2007

powering truck

We're probably gonna buy an inverter on the road. I was talking about
one of those line splitters. I also use them to power extra lights,
radio, etc. on my electric bike.

I also hope we can buy one of those coffee pots that plugs into cig.
lighter. Ma's bringing her cell phone charger, too.

That lamp that plugs into cig lighter has long enuff cord it can stretch
into the back of the truck; it's for road emergencies, etc.

We'll need an inverter b4 we go to Burning Man festival this summer, for
sure.

Also: we found a 5500 watt generator at BigLots for $450. We didn't buy
it yet; want to compare prices, wattage, etc. first.

We'll need generator at Burning Man, so I can project my table/scope art
video. There's no electric, water, etc. on the land; you bring
everything in and take EVERYTHING out.

Monday, February 05, 2007

I've nearly killed myself, but...

the truck is packed & ready to go. We have a comfy bed on an air
mattress.

We're cooking with sterno and disposable bbqs I found on sale at the end
of last summer for a dollar each.

We have a portapotty, made of cardboard boxes with plastic garbage bag
lining.

We have an ice box, outlets for the cigarette lighter, lamp for that,
extra tires which I made into a bench inside by the bed, shelves,
clothing bar, lots of food, solar battery charger for the truck.

We also have small, solar chargers for rechargable batteries for; webtv,
video & still cameras, minidisc recorder, flashlights flashers for
bicycles (we'll chain those to the motorcycle rack on the front of the
truck), razor, cell phone, my electric bicycle, etc.

We're leaving Friday, 10am. We'll be in Trinidad, CO by nightfall, we
hope. Trinidad is kinda famous for the gender reassignment clinic there.
My g/f is m-f transexual, and would like to see it if we have time.

We're going to an historical reinactment at a fort about 100 mi. north
of there on Saturday to film.

After that, I'm not sure where we'll be, when.

The weather's warmed up here into the sixties by day. Hoping we won't
freeze to death in CO, OK, Missouri, KS.

We'll stay in hotels periodically, to check email and bathe, mostly.

I've got plenty of straw, hay, chicken scratch, kids' wading pools full
of water for goats and chickens.

I've got 6 litter boxes in the house, a 15 gal. tub of water, 32 lbs.
cat kibble in giant salad bowls all over the house for my four cats.

Neighbors will keep an eye on things, throw bread over the fence daily
for goat treats, check mail, etc.

I'm even packing laundry soap, just in case. It's a five ton moving van;
it's not like I can't take anything I want. Hell, I'm even packing some
large, stuffed animals to make the bed snugglier.

Oh, and I packed lawn chairs and this cute, wooden table that rolls up
and slides into a sack!

Man, am I tired!

Sunday, February 04, 2007

cheap long distance

I use http://www.pioneertelephone.com/

It's less than three cents/minute. There's no minimum, set-up fees,
hidden costs, ect. I also got a free 1-800 number when I signed up, so
friends can call me at no charge to them.

Friday, February 02, 2007

NOVA "Forgotten Genius"

NOVA "Forgotten Genius"
Tuesday, February 6, 2007 8 - 10:00 pm

This film tells the fascinating and largely unknown story of scientific
triumph and racial inequality. It covers the extraordinary life journey
of Percy Julian, one of the great chemists of the 20th century. (CC,
Stereo, DVI)
Build a steroid; in our online feature watch as diosgenin transforms
into adrenal hormone cortisone.

http://www.pbs.org/nova/julian

Independent Lens"Billy Strayhorn: Lush Life"

Independent Lens"Billy Strayhorn: Lush Life"

Tuesday, February 6, 2007 10 - 11:30 pm
Duke Ellington's co-composer, arranger and right-hand man, Billy
Strayhorn wrote some of the greatest American music of the 20th century.
Tune in to learn about the unheralded man who changed jazz and popular
music forever. (CC, Stereo)

Learn more about Billy Strayhorn at the companion Web site.

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/billystrayhorn

Lots of winter projects

My g/f & I are planning a 10-day trip, traveling the Santa Fe Trail from
here in Albuquerque all the way to Kansas City and back. We're shooting
video for an Independent Study project of hers at college. It'll be a
video documentary, based on a radio play she produced several years ago.

So, the truck needs cleaning out; bedding and cooking utensils need
washing; goats & chickens need extra feed (so do cats). Clothes need
packing; cameras need batteries, film, etc.

It's a lot of work. As usual, she can't help, because she works full
time and has other classes, too.

It's her last semester. She'll graduate, with honors, in May. Maybe then
I can fall apart! I've never known her without tremendous pressure on
her.

Besides all that, Dudette at http://net4tv.com Games has offered me a
job, writing about WebTV stuff for her users. I'll have a blog; it'll
have a forum, so readers can reply, etc. I'm also helping her set up
online greeting cards and email signatures.

So, I've been awful busy!

BTW: I'll be gone from the 9th through the 19th of February. We're
taking the WebTV and a small TV set with us. We'll periodically stay in
hotels. That way, we can post still photos online, check email, etc.
I'll try to post in my newsgroup and blogs then, but who knows?

Mostly, we'll be sleeping in the truck, on an air mattress, in February.
We go through Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and, of course, New
Mexico. Nothing like a camping trip, in the DEAD OF WINTER! brrr.

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Native Americans & Weapons of Mass Destruction

You are reading http://livinginthehood.blogspot.com

Compact History of Native North Americans
Great resource:http://www.tolatsga.org/Compacts.html

From: Anna G
Subject: Native Americans & Weapons Of Mass Destruction
Sent: Monday, January 29, 2007 8:02 PM
http://www.apfn.org/thewinds/1998/03/weapons_of_destruction1.html

[snip] "The news media these days continues on in its historic path of
the perversion of information and the facts. The drums of the daily news
still beat the population into a frenzy over some far-off leader who
threatens the world with mass destruction. The ignorant mob rushes off
to save the world for democracy while killing off millions of innocents.
Such is the nature of man and his media....."

[snip] English general Jeffery Amherst, 1763: "Could it not be contrived
to send a smallpox among those disaffected tribes of Indians? We must on
this occasion use every stratagem in our power to reduce them. You will
do well to try to inoculate the Indians by means of blankets to try and
extirpate this execrable race." The tribes "inoculated" in this campaign
were the Shawnee, Odawa and the Onondaga tribes. One native remarked
afterwards, "terrible sickness among us, nothing but dead bodies among
us."

[snip] "They are a dissolute, vagabondish, brutal, and ungrateful race
and ought to be wiped from the face of the earth." Rocky Mountain News
editorial March 1863. In that same year out of twenty-seven articles
dealing with Native Americans, twenty called for extermination. The
populace was fully indoctrinated with death towards the Cheyennes and
Arapahos. The Rocky Mountain News reported in August 1864 "go for them,
their lodges, squaws and all." The News inflamed the situation to the
point where men had no conscience for indiscriminate killing.

Looking forward to the Sand Creek massacre, Colonel John Chivington
expressed the thought of many when he said, "Well, I long to be wading
in gore." Chivington headed a 700-man, 5-battalion army who massacred
the Cheyennes and Arapahos at Sand Creek November, 1864. The report
Chivington gave of the senseless slaughter of the Native Americans as
reported in the Rocky Mountain News stated it was, "one of the most
bloody Indian battles ever fought." The News went on to elaborate that,
"Cheyenne scalps are getting as thick here now as toads in Egypt.
Everybody has got one and is anxious to get another to send east." The
battalion didn't meet with much resistance.

One chief, Black Kettle, flew an American flag in front of his tepee,
assuring his tribe of safety. Previously, the tribe had willingly
disarmed themselves as a gesture of non-hostility. They only kept those
weapons essential for hunting. When Black Kettle saw the firing begin,
he raised a white flag on the same pole as the American flag and told
his people to gather under the flags. Of the 600 tribal members present
only 35 were estimated to be braves. The other braves had been sent off
to hunt being assured of the protection of Fort Lyon. The rest were old
men, women and children. Only a few escaped alive. Black Kettle's wife
was shot several times but lived.

One senator who visited the horrible scene, walked among carnage more
terrible than words can portray. Soldiers who saw the battle ground the
following days described it in the following language: "All manner of
depredations were inflicted on their persons," "women and children
mutilated in the most horrible manner," "all cut to pieces", "nearly
all, men women and children were scalped," "worse mutilated [sic] than
any I ever saw before." The senator who saw and heard these atrocities
assembled an investigational debate about the slaughter. Chivington, the
Colorado Governor and the general public were invited. During the debate
the question was asked, "Would it be best henceforward, to try to
'civilize' the Indians or simply exterminate them?" "Exterminate them!
Exterminate them!" the crowd roared. Some said the roar was like a
battlefield cry loud enough to raise the Denver Opera House roof. The
congressional committee did nothing.

Almost four years later another congressional committee, composed of
generals from the U.S. Army and other officials met for seventy-two
days. The final report stated: "It scarcely has its parallel in the
records of Indian barbarity -- men, women and infants were tortured and
mutilated in a way which would put to shame the savages of interior
Africa." But the Rocky Mountain News won the day for the bloodthirsty
colonel. Nothing was done to Chivington for the slaughter, that he
termed, "the most bloody Indian battle ever fought." He took his
notoriety on the road as an after-dinner speaker.

Later, Theodore Roosevelt's comment on the Sand Creek massacre was, "a
righteous and beneficial a deed as ever took place on the frontier.".

Another comment of Roosevelt's concerning the Native American plight
was, "I don't go so far as to think that the only good Indians are dead
Indians, but I believe 9 out of 10 are, and I shouldn't like to inquire
too closely into the case of the tenth.".

Despite congressional evidence to the contrary, the Rocky Mountain News
reports still held the feeling to Roosevelt's day and, as we shall see,
far beyond.....