Power Shift 2009 and the Capitol Climate Action!

Hello! Long time eh? It seems that only massive direct actions or some huge summit gets me motivated to write a blog! This time the around I am not in Poland, Chiapas or Germany but in our nation’s very own capital! There is such an amazing buzz right now around the now 11,000 strong youth climate convergence this Friday and the culminating Capitol Climate Action shutting down the dirty coal plant powering Congress.  Read more info about the CCA below!

Life has been really amazing. January 2009 was one of the best months ever and definitely a solid start to an incredible new year.  All refined sugars eliminated from my diet since NYE. Biking 6 miles a day to transport to and from work. Yoga 4 times a week.  A magical home in Noe Valley with three beautiful, young, vibrant woman and one loving, sweetest ever pup, Bella.  And of course, my dreamy, phenomenal partner, Pete, who I am so in love with and blessed to be with.  He is moving to Esalen in a month, along the splendid Big Sur coast.  It will be a positive move for him but a bit far for us.   I am hoping we may live in the same community before long though because I miss him too much.

We’ve been in DC for a week with all of our wonderful Greenpeace students, recruiting at campuses in the area for Power Shift. We hit the 10,000 registrant goal today! Yeya, building the movement baby. Today we switched gears a bit and spent the entire day prepping for Power Shift and the Capitol Coal Action, getting legal breifings, Non-Violent Trainings, and spent hours in the Greenpeace warehouse with 50 people making all the props for CCA! 200 multi-colored flags with beautiful symbols  and words of Justice, Security, Change, Power and Community. Check out the photo below for visual! It was so incredible to see an assembly  line of 50 people: sewing machines, stenciling, spray paint, painting, hanging to dry, cutting bamboo, making into flags, tracing banners, painting them, drinking beer, music blasting, and hey we’re having a good time though freezing!

Time Magazine was out here filming as they are doing a big piece on the CCA. That was one of two times I was on camera today.  I went to Glut, a local collective co-op, not-for profit gem of a grocery store nearby, and Discovery Channel’s Green Channel was producing a show on co-ops and local food. They asked me to be an extra, and I agreed. They filmed Carling and me buying lentils, quinoa, and kidney beans, my favorites! We were interviewed and filmed for about 20 minutes, very  funny how the universe works. Just three nights ago I cried for 2 whole hours about the meat industry and processing my guilt for having shopped for 13 people at Giant grocery, feeding into the industrial monster of corporate dairy, excessive food transportation, animal cruelty, and not supporting local agriculture.  I realized that I needed to do more in my life to address this passion, and then 3 days later I’m being interviewed by Discovery on why I love local food and co-ops. Synchronicity! They’ll probably cut us because I sounded nervous and dumb, but at least I was excited and enthusiastic!

All weekend I’ll be at Power Shift training, attending workshops, hearing Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Bill McKibben, Wendell Barry, lead NASA Scientist James Hansen, Al Gore, Vandana Shiva, and bands like the Roots! It’s gonna be epic.

2,500+ to Join Biggest Climate Civil Disobedience in U.S. History
Scientists, Celebrities, Citizens from 40+ States to Risk Arrest for the Climate at Capitol Power Plant

WASHINGTON— The Capitol Climate Action Coalition announced today that more than 2,500 people have registered to participate in the March 2 Capitol Power Plant protest, ensuring that it will be the largest act of peaceful civil disobedience on global warming

in the country’s history.

In attendance, and willing to risk arrest, will be former coal miners, ministers, mothers, students, and climate activists from Arizona to Appalachia who have united to demand bold and far-reaching action on the climate and energy crises. Also attending will be leaders from the scientific and environmental community, such as Dr. James Hansen, Bill McKibben, Wendell Berry, Gus Speth, Vandana Shiva, former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, as well as Grammy winner Kathy Mattea and actress Daryl Hannah. More than 90 advocacy groups across the nation have endorsed the action.

This is a critical year for strong U.S. leadership on climate and energy, with a major domestic policy debate around the corner and a deadline for international action set for the Copenhagen UN climate talks in December. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has cautioned that the United States and other industrialized countries need to reduce their global warming pollution by 25 – 40 % below 1990 levels by 2020 to avoid the worst impacts of severe climate change.

Leading climate scientist Dr. James Hansen, who will join the protest and is willing to get arrested, has testified before Congress that the world must begin phasing out coal immediately to avoid the worst impacts of global warming, including severe economic impacts. The climate crisis, if left unaddressed, is projected to put a serious billion drag on the U.S. economy by 2025.

“This is just the moment to up the ante,” said Bill McKibben, professor and founder of 350.org. “”Barack Obama–an organizer himself–has asked us all to give him the political backing he needs to make the change that science requires. When civil disobedience works, it demonstrates a willingness to bear a certain amount of pain for a larger end — a way to say, ‘coal is bad enough that I’m willing to get arrested.’”

The Capitol Power Plant, which is owned by Congress, burns coal to heat and cool numerous buildings on Capitol Hill, and has become a powerful symbol of coal’s stranglehold on the environment and public health. Coal is the country’s biggest source of global warming pollution. In addition, burning coal cuts short at least 24,000 lives in the U.S. annually, inflicts severe damage to the landscape and water supplies, and jeopardizes the lives of miners.

“It’s way past time for civil disobedience to stop mountaintop removal and other coal abuses and to move quickly toward clean, renewable energy sources,” said Judy Bonds, co-director of Coal River Mountain Watch of West Virginia, which works to stop mountaintop removal and rebuild sustainable communities. “For over a century, our Appalachian people and communities have been crushed, flooded and poisoned as a result of the country’s dangerous and outdated reliance on coal.”

There are clean and safe alternatives to coal, like wind and solar power, which will create at least 5 million jobs and help curb global warming. A recent University of Massachusetts study found investing in clean energy projects like wind power and mass transit creates three-to-four times more jobs than the same expenditure on the coal industry. The wind power sector has grown to employ more Americans than coal mining as demand for clean energy has jumped over the past decade. Investing in wind and solar power would create 2.8 times as many jobs as the same investment in coal; mass transit and conservation would create 3.8 times as many jobs as coal.

“As Indigenous Peoples of the Black Mesa region we have come to DC to stand in solidarity with many other communities affected by coal mining and with all those who object to the continued dependence on coal,” said Enei Begaye, Co-Director of the Black Mesa Water Coalition. “It is of the utmost importance for people throughout the country to take action. We must demand a national energy policy without coal.”

A look inside blue waters

Oh, there is so much depth of emotion and sheer experience to paint on this beautiful canvass but I have weary eyes and just came out of hours of family game time — drained needless to say.    I am reading Eat, Pray, Love (a phenomenal book which could have written by my own hands and experiences), a delicious book that reminds me of how much I yearn to write my own compilation of personal stories some day.  No better way to get it all down than in a blog, right?

I am in Kauai with my dad and his wife, her son Cy, and my sister and her boyfriend Tyler.  Pete, my better half (who I am so madly in love with), was blessed to be here for the first 5 1/2 days but flew to Indiana last night (part of me wishes so badly I could be there with him and his lovely family) for Christmas.  But who am I to wish anything other than my own perfect destiny, which entails staying in paradise for another few wonderful days.

I am reminded these days how incredibly beautiful, peaceful, and rich life is on this island of blue waters, lush trails, waterfalls, fresh exotic produce and a warm breeze that never ceases to stir your senses.  I have not been here since age…6 with the fam and 2005 with Shyam, Joe and Amy for a week of adventure in Kalalau.  So far in this chapter we have hiked and slid down muddy slopes to find massive, powerful waterfalls to bathe in, spent a day in a boat along the Na Pali coast watching whales, swimming (yes, in the water, listening to their communication tools!!) with hundreds of spinner dolfin in bright blue, shimmering, crystal-clear water, and even sea turtles and sharks!  We’ve been enticed by the scents and beauty of tropical flowers falling on the ground just waiting to be picked up, eaten strawberry papayas and pineapples and pina coladas and fried bananas with ice cream for dessert and bowls of acai in the sunshine.   Oh, and we visited a crystal medicine woman who had thousands of crystals for sale around her property, one for each chakra, to open it and move the energy from one place to another and to strengthen you in certain areas.  At this same house we met “magic” the cat who does kitty acupuncture and opens chakras through healing reiki and other methods of therapy.  I have been obsessed and intrigued by crystals ever since I was given my first in 2000 but more importantly since crystal hunting in the mountains of Chapada Diamantina, Bahia, Brazil.  But even I get skeptical of kitty reiki and crystals that open your throat chakra.

Christmas is in 45 minutes Hawaii time, and I must say it feels nothing like it in the traditional sense, which is refreshing and completely fine by me! I would gladly exchange material possessions and wasteful customs for the crystalline waters of Kalalau and the laughter of my sister playing in the ocean next to me.

It feels like I’ve been on vacation for a long time, and the more time I have off the harder it is to imagine going back to work…I start dreaming about knitting, doing daily yoga, spending late mornings with my amazing new roommates in Noe Valley, or traveling to India or Thailand for a month plus of self discovery and exploration.  I have dedicated my life to activism and social change but have been struggling for 26 years to not feel like a stranger to myself when I try to talk about the issues I care most deeply about and end up offending people or making them angry.  I also take everything so personally it’s just a matter of a switch and I turn into a closed off person with anger and pain bubbling up inside my veins.  Maybe I would be a better eco warrior if I could hone my weaponry use and truly love myself.

I am in love with Pete as if it were the first month. The whole idea and philosophy of Pete Huff is just beautiful. He means everything to me, and represents all good things in the world, and I welcome him as one puzzle piece in the grand explosion of colors. But I will hold onto this shiny, playful, delicious gem until it slips through my fingers, into deeper waters with a daily prayer of blessings and gratitude.  I will treasure him and love him as I do my own spirit, granted a daily opportunity to find a sense of spiritual fulfilment.  So much to be thankful for in this bright, nourishing life. Sleeeeepy…..

Solar Generation and International Youth Empowerment

Hello!  The past two days have been amazing.  I’ve spent a day wandering around Poznan and then the entire day today with Greenpeace’s International Solar Generation Youth Delegates here at the Climate Conference in a sharing of visions and campaigns.  I’ve been on at least 10 different buses and trains in the past 2 days, experiencing the local life and meeting different people of interest like reporters covering the Conference.  The biggest and most exciting highlight, however, was today’s visit with Solar Generation and planning the Global Day of Action (one more day and then 5,000-7,000 people will make a splash in Poznan!).

Solar Generation initiated in 2003 as an international umbrella for Greenpeace youth activists and its coordination is based out of GPI (Greenpeace International) in Amsterdam.  It now has a presence in China, Egypt, France, Germany, Indonesia, the Phillippines, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand and Turkey.  The thousands of youth involved in each country take action in a variety of different ways, such as installing solar panel systems, lobbying officials for green jobs, pressuring campuses and communities to switch to renewable, and of course lots of direct actions and grassroots tactics to influence decision makers to do the right thing.

Solar Generation has 12 youth delegates here at the UN COP 14 (the 14th UN Conference of Parties) and we spent the day exchanging ideas and visions with them! Greenpeace International found these 12 youth delegates and requested their presence at this conference based on the importance of their country in the political landscape and how critical it was for them to have a presence here.  They are from France, China, Fiji, Poland, Switzerland and Germany and such amazing individuals! They have all met with their Greenpeace country delegates and spend their time in the conference with their “running shoes” on, chasing down their country delegates asking them tough questions and pressuring them, often making it into the news as powerful and refreshing voices of youth.

The Conference is comprised of three main groups: NGOs (non-governmental organizations), the Ministers, and the country party delegates.  There are 70 Greenpeace delegates inside the conference, 500 youth delegates from hundreds of organizations and countries, and at least 8,000 people total here so far.  This first week of the conference has mostly NGOs and country party delegates; the Ministers arrive early next week when things escalate a bit.  There will be a total of 11,000 people descending upon Poland during the UN Conference, a bit shy compared to last year’s 15,000 in Bali, Indonesia for the 2007 Conference (is it worth all the carbon emissions of flying 15,000 people to such a remote place to simply talk about talking about agreeing to agree?  I think so, but an interesting consideration.) Four countries have Greenpeace country delegations here: France, Belgium, India and a small EU country unknown right now.  Countries without Greenpeace delegations (most) have delegates and Ministers that are being heavily lobbied and influenced by Greenpeace youth activists and the climate field team here.  The big issues here are Energy and Forests.  However, no one of importance is actually negotiating here, they’re just talking about what to negotiate on. Yep, that’s right.

When Ministers, country delegates and NGOs agree, they are actually just agreeing to agree, setting things up for the final meeting in Copenhagen next year.  That is the most unfortunate part about this conference: people are already saying that nothing will happen during this conference.  But at least, as Abigail (Int’l Coordinator for Solar Generation) says, though the conference in Poznan is not going to come up with any conclusive solutions, it’s a stepping stone to climate change.  It’s not in vain.  We know what we want and we need to craft a negotiating text by next year to do it.  She recognizes that both the UNFCC and Kyoto have loop holes but if we decide Kyoto doesn’t work, we’ll have to back track 10 years. Is that what we want?  We must stick with these existing frameworks and move forward on solutions.  We need to declare what we want and what we need to avoid as countries.  And youth, hundreds of them, trained, empowered, and full of energy and with a vision of solidarity and a post-carbon economy in mind, are here to shake things up and speak truth to their leaders, to their communities back home, and the greater global community.

December 6th: watch the news wires!  5,000-7,000 people will take part in Poznan’s Global Day of Action alone!  In cities around the globe thousands of others will take action in solidarity with the Climate Conference.  Take Action!

For more info about any of this: www.solargeneration.org or www.globalclimatecampaign.org

I am so blessed to be here! What an incredible experience.  If only I could speak more than 3 words of Polski.

Poland and Climate Rescue: International Greenpeace Activism

Hello! Wow, it’s been almost a year since I last wrote….I guess I’m better at emailing! I figure since I’m in Poland I may as well write a word or two in case you’re interested, considering that this year’s climate conference is of massive importance around the world!  I suppose I should have done this in Germany and Chiapas earlier this year for similar trips…

The train ride through the German and Poland countryside was just spectacular.  I could ride on trains for days — it’s endless entertainment, gorgeous landscape, and so many stories told in the passing scenery.  I felt so much powerful and heavy energy from the Polish land. it was dreary, dark, desolate, and thick with history.  I could really feel the holocaust, see the images flashing before my eyes and it was a palpable sensation of sadness and despiration. It was a doorway into the horrors of Auschwitz.  Despite the intense darkness, there was a brief 20 minutes of magestic sun rays piercing through the clouds to form the most lovely art display on canvass.  Most of the journey took us through fields and forests, and some tiny shacks here and there but no real towns until Konin, where we arrived after 5 hours.

It’s just a quick stop for us here to visit the Climate Rescue Station, and we’re off tomorrow early for Poznan, the site of the big COP 14 Climate Conference.  Right now there are hundreds of people from all over the world there getting ready for the negotiations.  But the CRS was amazing! There have been activists from 20 countries there visiting the camp in the last month!  It’s a massive globe which Greenpeace activists constructed (and will put up all over the world during a tour in 2009) on the edge of one of Poland’s largest Coal Pits.  95% of Poland’s energy comes from coal.  This is dirty and dangerous.  So they have chosed to construct this Climate rescue station in Poland to bring attention to our global climate crisis.  Europe and the US are accountable for 60% of the world’s global warming emissions according to a power point I saw today, so during the Climate Conference in Poznan Greenpeace is brining attention to this country’s dirty energy source: COAL.  http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/news/the-true-cost-of-coal.

The large globe on the edge of a coal pit symbolizes our planet on the edge of collapse.  It’s a powerful image, and it will be traveling to Brazil, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and all over the world.  Inside the globe is a photo documentary of images showing climate change’s impact on Poland.  Near this site Greenpeace Poland began a 48 hour action at a coal-fired power plant.  4 climbers took over a smoke stack and will eat, sleep, and shit up there in the blistering cold 0 degrees celsius temperature with banners being dropped tomorrow.  This direct action and creative communication will garner tons of media coverage and draw attention to Poland’s energy crisis.  http://www.greenpeace.org/international/press/releases/quit-coal-says-greenpeace-fr  I also just put a few photos on Facebook, check em out!

The real excitement will begin tomorrow with all the actions we take part in in Poznan.  The UNFCCC is an international treaty of many countries working to reduce global warming.  A number of nations approved an addition to this treaty, the Kyoto Protocal, wh ich has more powerful and legally binding measures.  The Convention on Climate Change sets an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to tackle the challenge posed by climate change and has been ratified by 192 countries.  The Convention has been meeting since March 1994 on a yearly basis.    A recent IPPC report enjected a new sense of urgency into the UN climate change negotiations and all parties agreed to step up their efforts to combat climate change and to this end adopted a number of decisions at last year’s meeting in Bali, Indonesia.  This year’s meeting here in Poznan will be a continuation of these negotiations which are set to be concluded by the end of 2009 at the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.  I will be there, as well.

Although me and the 25 other Greenpeace student activists and coordinators I’m travelling with can’t go inside the conference, we will be part of a massive Global Day of Action on December 6th in solidarity with thousands of people around the US and the world. There are days of action Dec 6-8. Check it out: http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/climate-change/take_action/global-day-of-climate-action

http://members.greenpeace.org/event/view/3057/

I have so many languages swimming through my mind it’s wild…Polish, German, French, Spanish. I can’t keep any of them straight after being in Paris, Berlin, Konin and next Poznan.  I just took my first shower since saturday after 3 days of travel and i’m lying in this cute Polish bed that has a big empty pillow and a strange blanket that’s really like a big sack like sleeping bag comforter.  I feel at very much at peace, so satisfied and full (the stew we ate in the freezing cold camp of the Climate Rescue Station was delicious and nourishing for the soul).  But my mental capacity is low — I have not slept more than 7 hours in the last three days, and I’m not sure what day it is really, Tuesday i think?  But Poland and Germany have both been excellent so far.

A New Year, A Fresh Perspective

2008 is undoubtedly going to be an amazing year, for it’s already rich with an abundance of blessings and challenges (and I brought in the new year with naked, synchronized swimming, which is always a positive sign!).  I haven’t written in months because I’ve been completely immersed in this beautiful life.  I’m presently in Washington D.C. where I’ll be for a couple more weeks, training for my new Greenpeace job.  I’ll be based in San Francisco running the GOT (Greenpeace Organizing Term) with Gabriel Gerow, a very talented and passionate activist.  It’s a semester and summer training program for college students across the country.  We train them in grassroots organizing skills, corporate and legislative campaigning, non-violent direct action, meanwhile working on Greenpeace campaigns and exploring their own commitment to politics and the environmental movement.  During each program/semester (three times a year) we travel abroad to Greenpeace International offices to do campaign actions in places like Amsterdam, Germany, Slovakia and Spain.  If you want to check it out: www.greenpeace.org/usa/got.  I will be working a lot during each session, but will have time for vacations and staff retreats in between. Spring GOT: Feb. 4-April 25. Summer GOT: June 2-Aug. 8.  Fall GOT: Sept. 15-Dec. 12.  I feelincredibly blessed to have found such a great outlet for my passions and a way to carry on my path of important social change work.

Since I was hired on in November, it was wonderful to have a month plus of pure hedonistic living before my job started Jan.2 — capoeira twice a week, plentiful yoga, hiking, dancing, playing, writing, reading, and re-connecting with tons of old friends from high school, Whitman and beyond.  My 25th Birthday was a weekend of spectacular people and so much love, and I was oh so spoiled by my lover Pete (lavender-infused chocolate cake was just the beginning of an amazing weekend).  It’s interesting that I’ve reached 25 years of age, because I really feel like my life has taken on a new level.  I’m settled in an amazing home in the East Bay, I have a super incredible, real job (no more internships, Fellowships, and living on a dime — I’m making some serious money now and have health care, woot!), and I’m in a wonderfully balanced and mature relationship with someone that I can see myself staying with for a long, long time (I am not one to last in relationships over 2 years because of my flighty, spontaneous ways but this one feels very different). Pete is living in the barn on Sunhawk now (my dad’s property) and we’ve been making it a cozy home to enjoy (together on weekends, for him during the week). My heart is peaceful, strong, and optimistic. My body is healthy, grounded and alive.

I don’t know about all y’all, but I’ve been feeling like cleansing after all the Christmas excesses, so I’ve been eating lots of warming veggie soups along with other fruits and veggies balanced with healthy grains like quinoa.  If anyone is interested in Nancy’s famous “Green Drinks,” I’m going to write down the recipe here (it’s similar to the seaweed flax shake from an earlier blog).  It works best in a VitaMix. If you have a traditional blender, it may turn out chunky!

• Overnight soakings:  2 T flaxseeds, 1 handful almonds (or pumpkin seeds or sesame seeds or pecans, but only one or it will be too thick), handful raisins and cherries or dried apricots, and dried kombu and dulce seaweed
• Add in the morning: 1-3 sliced apples, 3-5 chard or kale leaves plus dandelion root, nettle, etc. plus ice and water
• Optional additions to be blended on a very low speed once that’s all blended: fish or cod liver oil (high in Vitamin D which we are all lacking during winter), hemp or olive oil (for omegas, healthy intestinal functioning, and generally super good for you), and organic keifer (liquid yogurt, high in acidophilus and good bacterias)

Happy New Year! Enjoy.

more veggie recipes!

Pistachio- Mint Quinoa Salad (serves 12) 

• 2 c. Quinoa
• 4 cups chicken (or veg) broth
• zest of 4 limes
• 1 cup frozen lime juice concentrate defrosted (I used the fresh squeezed lime juice from the 4 limes, instead of this concentrate)
• 1 c golden raisins
• 2 jalapeno pepper, split, seeded and minced
• 1 c chopped pistachio nuts
• 32 scallions, white parts only, chopped
• 1 c chopped fresh mint
• 1 cup fresh cilantro
• salt and pepper 

1.      In a med. Saucepan, over med heat, place the quinoa and broth.  Cook, uncovered for 12-15 mins, stirring occasionally until the quinoa is tender the broth has aborbed. 

2.      Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat the lime zest and juice until warm.  Add the raisins and set aside for 30 mins. 

3.      When the quinoa is cooked, transfer to a large mixing bowl and cool to room temp.  When cooled, add the remaining ingreds, including the raisin mixture.  Allow the flavors to blend for several hours at room temperature.

This dish is SOOOOO delicious and super simple!!!! Serve with a big salad!

Summer Salad

A variation of the following (use 2 heads): organic romaine lettuce, red leaf lettuce, spring mix

few tomatoes

corn

avocado

cucumber

sunflower sprouts

toasted walnuts and sesame seeds

apples

feta cheese

grated carrots and beets

(optional: olives, basil, other seeds or nuts, etc.)

Salad dressing:

1/2 cup olive oil

3/4 cup balsamic vinager or golden rice vinager

4 finely chopped garlic cloves

1 T dijon mustard

salt, pepper, and other spices

nutritional healing

so i’ve had several people now request this recipe, so I figured I’d just post it so you can all enjoy it. there are a few different variations, so feel free to experiment!

1. Flax Seaweed Shake

To soak in water the night before:

• 2 T flaxseeds
• handful organic, raw almonds and sunflower/pumpkin seeds (you can experiment with a variety of nuts and seeds. i like cashew and sesame, too)
• 1 T dried wakame seaweed (expands a lot over night in water!)

In a.m., blend with:

• banana
• blueberries/blackberries
• organic yogurt
• almond milk

You can also substitute apples or whatever other fruit you want for the banana. It’s super tasty to add cinnamon, maca powder, fresh mint, cocoa stevia and apples instead of the banana and berry combo.  It gives you tons of energy and is yum yum delicious.  You can add electrolytes, bee pollen, fruit juices, ice, hemp powder, and other additional goodies depending on your mood!

2. Corn and Mushroom Ragout with Sage and Roasted Garlic:

• 1/4 onion, sliced
• 10 garlic cloves, 2 peeled, 8 unpeeled
• salt and pepper
• 1 large yellow bell pepper, broiled or roasted
• 5 ripe tomatoes
• 3 cups fresh corn kernels and their scrapings, from 4-5 ears corn, 1 corn cob reserved
• 6 oz. shiitake, oyster, or white mushroom caps cut into large pieces, stems reserved
• 3 Tablespoons safflower or olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 8 sage leaves, finely chopped
• 1 T chopped parsley

Simmer 3cups water with sliced onion, peeled garlic, and 1/2 tsp salt. add any pepper trimmings, 1 corn cob, broken into pieces, and stems from the mushrooms. Simmer for 25 min.

Meanwhile, cut pepper into pieces about 1 inch long and 1/2 inch wide, reserving the juices. Heat 1/2 tsp oil in a small skillet over med. heat. add unpeeled garlic and cook until the skins are charred and the insides are soft, about 10 min.  Peel and mash into paste.  Sear the tomatoes in the same pan, turning them frequently, util skin begins to split. Remove skins, halve tomatoes, and squeeze the juice into the stock. Chop the flesh into large pieces.

In a wide skillet, heat 1.5 tablespoons oil over high heat. Add mushrooms and saute until they begin to color, after 4-5 min. Set them aside in a bowl. Return the pan to the heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Saute the diced onion, garlic, corn, and all but 1 tsp of sage until the corn and onion begin to color, about 5 min. Add reserved mushrooms, peppers, and tomatoes. Season with 1/2 tsp salt and bit pepper.

Strain the stock right into the pan, add any reserved pepper juices, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 5 min. Serve garnished with the remaining sage and parsley.

Enjoy this stew with warn cornbread! Serves 4. 

3. Sweet potato fries:

• slice potatoes into fries
• put on baking sheet drizzled in olive oil, lots of salt and other spices
• bake in oven at 400 degrees

Urban confessions

it is true: I now reside in in Oakland. Although the golden hills of mendo will always be my sanctuary, my home, my roots, I am now an urbanite.  So many beautiful faces mixed with a heavy weight of homeless need.  Sirens, car alarms, traffic, movement, endless opportunity and possibility in each and every day.  I left jogging with hawks and deer, swimming in the pond, making shakes, spending every night with my love and roaming barefoot.  I closed the book cover of one novel, and opened another. The pain of leaving was intense, mostly because I was not ready to leave Pete, but asi es la vida. I am feeling settled, grounded, and happy here. My bay area family has been wonderful.

I’ve applied for several jobs down here, from non-profit groups doing environmental organizing and independent media work, to Fenton Communications, the nation’s largest public interest advocacy, progressive communications PR firm. I’ve been through a multi-interview process with Fenton, but am doubtful I will be hired. I’m even more excited about the possibility of working for Greenpeace to train college students in non-violent direct action as a means to affect change, media, coalition building, etc. involving international travel.  It wouldn’t start til January though…so perhaps I will head down to South America for a bit? Who knows..

My casita here with Laurita is amazing. Please do come to the East Bay and visit!!! we have an extra bed and lots of plants: a spacious and positive ambiance to chill in. Love!!

sweetness of home

It’s been a whirlwind of amazing people, live music, celebration, adventure, and blissful relaxation during the past few weeks.  I left Pittsburgh Friday August 17th and headed to Boston for Green Corps graduation, which was a blast.  On that day, deep down in my soul a new found happiness began to brew and continues still to grow — a feeling of freedom, creativity, intense love and nourishment.  Green Corps was a true test of personal limits and challenges, and forced me to give up much of what is sacred in my life.  As I continue to develop in my career as an activist, I hope to achieve a more sustainable path and yet maintain the kind of amazing effectiveness I experienced as a Green Corps soldier.

We didn’t sleep Friday night, just danced and shared a beautiful evening with Central Staff on the “other side,” which was so nice.  Being an alumni is pretty sweet because of the respect and common ground you share with hundreds of folks around the nation, and also on a personal level, I no longer felt like Kirsten’s project, but more of a colleague. 

Saturday morning, after about an hour of sleep and lots of drunken debauchery, Jenny and I flew to California.  Warm, blue skies and a glowing Ayna awaited us and swept us north to SolFest where my family and rich community welcomed us back home into the northern california lands: millions of hugs, raw and organic foods galore, amazing live bands and dancing, herbal tinctures, starry skies that melt a weary traveler, babies and pregnant earth mamas in abundance, beautiful faces and energies, golden mendo hills and emotions of unconditional love, compassion, positivity, hope and joy.

The hedonistic lifestyle continued as I spent a weekend in Berkeley and reunited with several of my most  favorite friends. I had a sacred and spiritually connected evening with Locolukas, filling my heart to the brim with a magical and delicious contentment.  Spending tons of time with my best friend, Pete, enjoying long days at the Eel River out past Willits, trips to Mendocino and the ocean breeze, baking, eating olive oil from our vineyards, fresh fruit from our orchards, fresh basil and tomatoes from our gardens, chard, grapes, artichokes, what else could a woman ask for in life?

To top off the hedonism and unparalleled happiness, I spent a week at Burning Man with my dad, sister, pete, and friends. 50,000 people (all beautiful and quite naked), huge and unbelievable art installations, endless miles of playa desert, bike riding to the end of the moon and back, spiritual connections with truly loving beings. It was all about reciprocity, give and take.  There is no monetary currency allowed out there, just gifts.  All food, drink, and services are free.  It’s all about sharing, giving, accepting, and loving.  I reunited with many friends and spent some quality time with my dad and gorgeous sis.  Fire blazed from torches and they burned the man as well as the huge oil derrick the last night, which was totally intense.  Letting go, moving on, cleansing and renewing.   I learned what it truly means to love yourself, to BE yourself, and to allow your most true essence to shine through, unhindered.  I also learned about gritty kitties that don’t purr. 

I was a little wierded out the last night by all the techno music, glow sticks, and feeling of disconnect with the desert.  The entire week there, I experienced a deep connection with the vast desert and her spirits. I felt very much in my element, and loved the sand storms. Rather than taking shelter, we would strip our clothes off and dance, frolick, and embrace the pelting, swirling wind storms with masks on and just laughed and laughed in ecstacy.  But that last night, I felt that people became much too obsessed with their techno music and fire to the point that the desert’s heartbeat was masked by agressive energy and the human ego.  What a waste of resources to burn so many fires and put on such a show, for only the most affluent party animals (burning man is no cheap adventure, i was lucky to get in for free).  As Pete said, how many campaigns could we have launched with all that money, or how many wild landscapes could we have protected?  Nonetheless, the fluid streams of laughter that erupted from deep in my gut all night and all week, as well as the richness of lessons learned and experienced with other beings of light, was enough to satiate my soul for years to comme.

I also learned last week what true friendship feels like.  I have so much love in my heart it almost hurts.  I can’t believe what this universe has offered me already in life, I am so grateful. Now all I need is to be blessed with a wonderful job.  I am moving back to the bay area next week….woot. i will miss the country, it’s going to be good to get my life rolling again.

Poem sent to me by my dear friend Haunani who I ran into at Burning Man:

Amidst a crowd of dancing ecstasy two Goddess reunite, kissed with the
blessings of a setting sun and roar of orgasmic glee.  Dance away the pain.
Dance away the fright.  Dance, dance, dance for the freedom of song and
Light!  Behold the turbulent cry for Love, in the feet, in the arms, in the
heads swaying with the beat of the eternal drum.  Dance, dance, and dance
some more.  No one stopping us now, only the tired feet of being free in the
night’s glow.  Radiant bliss.  Radiant glow.  You, the Radiant Goddess from
head to toe!

Amazing shake recipe I’m enjoying right now:

1. a small handful of each: almonds, cashews, sesame seeds and flax seeds
2. small apple and asian pear from the orchard chopped in 1/8ths
3. 1 banana
4. a few dried cherries
5. 2 T organic, plain yogurt
6. 1 T acai hemp protein powder
7. 1/2 C almond, hemp or soy milk
8. dash local bee pollen
9. dash of carob powder
10. dash cinnamon
11. couple of drops of hemp oil
12. dash of electrolyte water
13. ice cubes
14. Mix in Vitamixer and enjoy cold!

your love gets sweeter every day

My idea of a rad August doesn’t really entail thunderstorms and air quality warnings, but hey, i’m in the midwest so anything goes.  This afternoon, just after sending our canvassers out, it began to storm more severely than I have ever witnessed in daylight.  A dark cloud descended upon us and winds were blowing so fiercely with rain that umbrellas were flying, trees were toppling over, floods, car crashes and closed roads blocked up the city.

Still there are severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings, flash floods, and power outages across the city. Officials have issued warnings about heat and air quality in the past week, in which temperatures have risen to the high 90s plus insane humidity.  Canvassing the past few weeks has felt like walking through a moist cloud, so wet and sticky everywhere, it fills your lungs with thick dampness…and pollution.  Pittsburgh is the second worst metropolitan area in the nation in terms of airborn particulate matter. Yesterday folks were advised to not leave their homes unless absolutely necessary and several people complained about having to use asthma inhalers.   I even had trouble breathing at the door after walking up a flight of stairs.  It was one of the worst air quality days this year. fun!

I have decided to can the idea of moving to Asheville, NC for the timing being (to work with Dogwood Alliance) as I am feeling a deep calling to return to Northern California.  Actually, I am super stoked that I will most likely be moving into a sweet casita with Laura Garzon on the border of Oakland and Berkeley as Ruth is heading to India.  I’m stoked! I’m thinking I will chill in Hopland, roadtrip, wander freely, backpack, and soak up as much good lovin as possible until I move in sometime mid-September.

I’m starting an intense job search, with the intention of finding a stimulating organizing job in the international, corporate campaign arena.  This is an incredibly exciting time.  I don’t want to rush into anything, so I’m just going to put the energy out there and be confident that my intentions will manifest and that the Great Spirit will guide me along my path, towards my personal history as Paulo Cuelho speaks of in El Alquimista and Annie Dillard expresses in her mental meanderings. My openness and reciprocity will surely grant me the power to recognize the blessings and opportunities unfolding before my eyes. I am sure that life’s synchronicities will move me to action when the timing is right to accept a position or choose a direction. asi es, esta vida hermosa.  As Finley Quaye sings to me now, cheering me up on this dreary summers day in pittsburgh, your Love gets Sweeter every day, and I thank you for that.  only one more week, yipee!