April 30, 2009

What worries me about the New Flu

My greatest concern about this latest episode of multi-genetic flu (bird, human and pig) is that, with the wide spread into the human population, there will now be abundant human incubators in which recombination and mutation of this novel and previously unseen viral entity can take place, leading possibly to increased virulence and resistance to antivirals. Such a change could cause “swine flu” to go from bruising the global economy to worse than that.

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January 19, 2009

Edible Schoolyard and related Resources

Resources and Inspiration: The Center for Ecoliteracy’s Rethinking School Lunch Guide
www.ecoliteracy.org/programs/rsl-guide.html

Food Is Elementary: A Hands-On Curriculum for Young Students
www.foodstudies.org/curriculum/lessonsummaries.htm

Edible Schoolyard
www.edibleschoolyard.org

The Headwaters/Rappahannock County Public School’s Farm-to-Table Program  
www.headwatersfdn.org/farm2table/index.html

The National Farm to School Network
www.farmtoschool.org

The Renegade Lunch Lady
www.chefann.com/blog

Virginia Cooperative Extension Service
www.ext.vt.edu

Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Farm-to-School:
www.vdacs.virginia.gov/marketing/farm.shtml

Two Angry Moms
www.angrymoms.org

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Beats using Frozen Veggies

Make your own shapeable ice pack by mixing 1 part rubbing alcohol with 3 parts water in a plastic freezer zippy bag and then toss the bag into the freezer. (The alcohol will prevent the water from freezing completely.) The next time you need to RICE something, simply take out your slushy bag and ice away. And OF COURSE label the bag so everyone know what’s in it!

As a physical therapist, this is a good tip I will pass along.

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January 18, 2009
“

If we really want to fight climate change, we should change our light bulbs and purchase hybrid cars and, above all, vote for politicians committed to a clean energy future. But we should also eat less meat, a lot less, or none at all.

I know this is true. I’ve cut my meat portions close to that “pack of cards” size. I’m not sure I’ll make it any farther towards vegan enlightenment. Sorry, world.
Audubon Magazine •

We Came We Saw We Tumbled

But why? But then I asked the same question about Twitter and now I are one.

And what could Facebook possibly be good for? And now I’ve found old girl friends, new neighbors and watched my kids play scrabble in South Dakota and Missouri.

But honestly, while I like the mid-range between tweets and blog posts that Tumbler provides, who is going to find me here?

What I don’t need is a place to talk to myself.

Yikes! Zemanta has followed me here!

So this may be my first tumble in a year, might be my last. We’ll see if there’s anybody home.

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January 15, 2008
“ Whirl-Mart is a culture jamming ritual aimed at retail superstores and described by participants as “art and action.” An event consists of a group of supposed shoppers who congregate at a large superstore (usually a Wal-Mart, Toys “R” Us, ASDA, or Sainsbury’s) and slowly push empty shopping carts silently through store aisles. Participants will not purchase anything and seek to form a lengthy chain of non-shoppers, continually weaving and “whirling” through a maze of store aisles for up to an hour at a time. Participants describe their actions as “a collective reclamation of space that is otherwise only used for buying and selling”. Whirl-Marters seek to mimic and mock what they perceive as the absurdity of the shopping process.
Whirl-Mart - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia •
January 7, 2008

We All Live Downstream: Call to Young Writers

*** CALL FOR MANUSCRIPTS & ARTWORK

BY YOUNG WRITERS & ARTISTS ***

Kentucky Publisher Seeks Submissions, Offers Prize for 

2008 Anthology of MTR-focused Work by Young Authors & Artists

MotesBooks of Louisville will accept manuscripts and artwork for an anthology to be published in the summer of 2008.  All pieces in the book will focus on Mountaintop Removal (MTR) coal mining.  Submission period closes March 1, 2008.  To accommodate elementary, middle school, high school and college writers, contributors can be any age up to 24 years.  Home-schoolers and non-students meeting the age requirement are also encouraged to submit.

Working title:  WE ALL LIVE DOWNSTREAM

Working subtitle: Young Americans Reflect On Mountaintop Removal

Edited by writer, editor, songwriter & MTR activist Jason Howard.

With a foreword by novelist, dramatist, songwriter & MTR activist Silas House.

Literary submissions on the theme may be poems, short stories, song lyrics, short scripts, essays, articles, letters, or creative nonfiction of any length up to 4,000 words.  The pieces may approach the MTR theme from any angle – human, environmental, political, cultural, economic, health, water, air, energy, tourism, jobs, coal conversion, etc.   Works submitted do not necessarily have to limit their focus to the results of MTR in Appalachia.  All points of view are welcomed.

Visual submissions may include sketches, drawings and other original artworks rendered in black-and-white and submitted in the form of a high resolution .tiff file.  They should address MTR-related themes.  High resolution color images may be submitted for consideration as cover art, as well.

Award: After publication, a panel of adult writers and activists will select the work of a single contributor to be awarded a Youth Activism+Art prize of $100.

Payment: If accepted for publication, every contributor will receive one (1) complimentary copy upon publication as payment, shipped to address provided in submission materials.  Contributors will also receive an ongoing contributor’s discount for purchase of additional copies. 

The book will be manufactured in softcover, perfectbound format.  Basic retail marketing outlets will include Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and the publisher’s websites: www.MotesBooks.com (site of MotesBooks literary imprint) and www.EvaMedia.com (site that primarily serves schools).  Wholesales will be available to retailers.  Special marketing strategies and events will also be utilized, including at least one reading by selected contributors (at the invitation of the publisher).

  Questions?  Visit www.MotesBooks.com or email MTR@MotesBooks.com using “MTR ANTHOLOGY” as the subject line.

Writers and artists retain copyright on individual pieces.  

Do not send previously published or simultaneously submitted material. 

Submission guarantees that the work is original and is created by the student whose name is affixed to it.

Include author bio and contact information (including school affiliation, grade level, age, phone, snail mail, e-mail address, and teacher sponsor, if applicable) with each submission.  Teachers may make submissions on behalf of students if individual cover letters signed by each student contributor are included.  

Send WRITING in hard copy only (no email attachments) to: MotesBooks MTR Anthology, PO Box 6034, Louisville KY  40206.  Use Arial 12 pt. font. Do not send originals; submissions will not be returned.  If you want confirmation of receipt, include SASP (self-addressed stamped postcard).  NOTE: If accepted, submissions will subsequently be requested in the form of a text or Word file.  DO NOT INITIALLY SUBMIT MANUSCRIPTS BY EMAIL — HARD COPY ONLY!  

VISUAL ART should be submitted in digital form only via email or CD.  Submission should include name, age, and all contact info, brief artist statement, and bio.  Artwork received by email attachment will elicit a return email confirming inbox arrival.  For artwork submissions, use “MTR ANTHOLOGY” as the subject line; send .tiff file by e-mail to MTR@MotesBooks.com, or mail disc to:  MotesBooks MTR Anthology, PO Box 6034, Louisville KY  40206.  No hard copy is required for visual art submissions.  Discs or other submission materials will not be returned.  SUBMIT HIGH RESOLUTION (300 dpi) TIFF FILES ONLY; NO JPG FILES WILL BE CONSIDERED.  If image files are too large to email, contact us for FTP upload instructions.

Both writers and visual artists must include a 30-40 word bio to appear in Contributor’s Notes section of the anthology in the event that work is accepted. Bios may include previous publishing credits, name of school and current level in school (if still a student), background on the piece submitted, or other information as desired.

Submission guarantees that contributors agree that selected submissions may be posted on MotesBooks and/or EvaMedia websites and used in promotional & marketing materials.

Submission deadline is March 1, 2008.  Book publication is targeted for July 2008.

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Culture Jamming: Turn off the Propaganda Machine!

Radio jamming is the (usually deliberate) transmission of radio signals that disrupt communications by decreasing the signal to noise ratio. Intentional communications jamming is usually aimed at radio signals to disrupt control of a battle. Jamming of foreign radio broadcast stations has often been used in wartime (and during periods of tense international relations) to prevent or deter citizens from listening to broadcasts from enemy countries.

Culture jamming is the act of transforming mass media to produce commentary about itself, using the original medium’s communication method. It is a form of public activism which is generally in opposition to commercialism, and the vectors of corporate image. The aim of culture jamming is to create a contrast between corporate or mass media images and the realities or perceived negative side of the corporation or media. This is done symbolically, with the “detournement” of pop iconography.

Culture jamming is based on the idea that advertising is little more than propaganda for established interests, and that there is a lack of an available means for alternative expression in industrialized nations. Proponents see culture jamming as a resistance movement to the hegemony of popular culture, based on the ideas of “guerrilla communication”.

Culture jamming’s intent differs from that of artistic appropriation (which is done for art’s sake) and vandalism (where destruction or defacement is the primary goal), although its results are not always so easily distinguishable.

FredSez: If we are to stand a chance of making the transition between the post and the possible but uncertain future relationship to each other and the planet, we must all become culture jammers and resist succumbing to the Great MindNumb Group Think.

We must become AdBusters, not unquestioning Ad Fodder.

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January 2, 2008
The runoff from urban and especially agricultural sources has turned a large swath of the Gulf of Mexico into a “dead zone”. With the push to turn more corn and such into fuel for our cars, this ocean problem will only get worse.

The runoff from urban and especially agricultural sources has turned a large swath of the Gulf of Mexico into a “dead zone”. With the push to turn more corn and such into fuel for our cars, this ocean problem will only get worse.

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ShortShorts

I find that my current dwell-time for blog posting is very short, hence my jots and shorts and such that I sometimes post at Fragments as  bulleted lists of short items.

I’m considering the way that microblogging tools like Tumblr and Twitter will sometimes fill my needs and still allow some kind of integration with the blog on WordPress.

So pardon my dust, I’ll be experimenting, once again at the bottom of the learning curve. Been here lots before, you know. 

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