New G-Sync Feedback

It appears my new Lifestyle Editor position at RapidGrowthMedia.com's G-Sync column is making an impact on the entertainment scene of Grand Rapids.

Here is a reprint of an email that Wealthy Theatre's Erin Wilson sent to his staff this morning. It highlights the real issue in our community and the dire need to advocate and promote community building events.

"In a week when the all-original "Judy Show" (10/10/08 at WT) has gotten nil advance copy...

Rapid Growth provides: http://rapidgrowthmedia.com/features/gsync100908.aspx

Big thanks to Tommy, whose own website Tanglefootstudio.com references the artist who created Wealthy Theatre's facade logo, Alynn Guerra (who has an exhibit opening next week, more info here: http://www.alynn-guerra.blogspot.com/ )

It's a small world after all. And thanks to RG, there are good people in the city of GR who know we exist and have events and all that ;-)

What a great publication... Cheers, Erin (Wilson)"

p.s. SAVE THE DATE: TANGLEFOOT 18 OPEN STUDIO is NOVEMBER 21-23. Details to follow.

Looking Forward to a Release.

Choke this Friday!

Scott Hessels Rocks The World!

My friend Scott Hessels has finally released his new art project and it is amazing. Rather than waste any time, enjoy this movie highlighting the vast scope and application possibilities of this new project.


GPSFILM "The Using Of" from GPSFILM on Vimeo.

Rock Star, Schmock Star . . .

.... I want a TRACK STAR.

(I am sure it will pass.)

Funny Link of another poll being conducted.

RNC via Craigslist (Humor from the Tubes of the Internet)

Ok, I am not meaning to pick on the GOP at their grand old party, but there are funny things to be found each day of this affair in Saint Paul.

While yesterday I briefly covered birth control for pigeons (but obviously not for children) and the painting the city's trees green.

But today with Labor Day behind us, it is time to get back to work and delve into the internet which for the GOP is truly a series of tubes...and sometimes big uncut ones, too.

Often I have remarked that the modern cartoonist should just hang it up in light of the comedy found on Craigslist.

One of my favorite bloggers who would never dare publish their passion for this comic activity sent me a highlight of my favorite activity. So without any editing I present the most recent posting from the RNC's St. Paul via my good friend.

A Children’s Treasury Of Republican M4M Ads In Minneapolis St. Paul

The Republican National Convention has brought truckloads of new visitors to the Twin Cities — and with every event getting canceled in honor of the poor black people who didn’t get killed in the hurricane yesterday, veritable dozens of GOP males were left in their swank hotel rooms with nothing to do. Let’s find out what happens when a bunch of closeted, discreet hairless dudes go looking for good clean fun on Craigslist …


Discretion Required - m4mm (Upscale Hotel)
Date: 2008-08-30, 5:19AM CDT
ATTN: discretion is mandatory. must be willing to submit to background check and strip searches. absolutely no recording devices or wireless communication devices allowed. you will be examined and scrutinized by security before you make contact. 50yo Male looking for VERY discrete four-hour party at local hotel involving more than one male with a maximum age of twenty. hairless preferred. food, drinks, and toys will be provided as necessary.

This one gets points off for redundant headline and first sentence. Otherwise A plus for spelling “discreet” correctly.

young guy in town for the convention, looking for a good time - 25 (near Xcel Center)
Date: 2008-09-01, 6:51PM CDT
Hey guys- I’m just getting in town for the convention, looking for fellow convention attendees to fool around and have a good time. No Log Cabin here, nobody knows, so must be discreet. I’m 5′8, 165 lbs, professional guy, looking for similar. We can grab a beer and talk about why Obama sucks and then get it on.

This one would be funny, if it weren’t so obvious that the poster is possibly a God.

Seeking Pig Bottom Republican for a Good Pounding - 33 (St. Paul)
Date: 2008-08-29, 9:25AM CDT

Welcome to the Twin Cities, GOP!
After 8 years of taking a hard pounding from you guys in Washington, it’s time to return the favor!
I’m looking for a Republican delegate to take for a ride like Bush & Co. have been doing to our country since they took office.
Here’s the scene: I come to your hotel room, you’re wearing nothing but your convention credentials. You blow me while I berate you for ruining our economy. Then I flip you over and slam your ass like Hurricane Gustav is gonna do to your news coverage. Then I pull out and cum on your face and you learn the real meaning of Trickle Down Theory.
ME: 6′4″, 220, Blonde & Blue, hairy, with a 9″ uncut viking cock YOU: Pig Bottom Republican

And last: in lieu of Laura Bush’s party, busting a nut will do.

Closeted RNC supporter seeking a masc smooth man this afternoon - 48 (downtown mpls hotel)
Date: 2008-09-01, 12:05PM CDT
am conservative, bi and in the closet.. but love a hard younger body for making out and oral action. my stats 5-9″ - in shape, masc , 6″ cut was planning on the IMS party for Laura Bush today but it cancelled. so would like to bust a nut and have some other fun. can trade pix thinking of mid afternoon get together


So after reading his/her email findings, I knew I could not resist any longer. I just had to jump in and find a gem to add to the mix and I did not have to go too far.

I added a twist, I searched for words Obama and RNC. As I many rose to the top of the list, this posting calling for some good old fashioned bi-partisan hard work takes the cake.

Right Wing Asshole Seeks Liberal Euphorian for Obama-gasms - m4w - 47 (Corner Office)

Reply to: pers-773410479@craigslist.org
Date: 2008-07-28, 1:47PM CDT


Please, don’t tell. Otherwise I’m going to be drummed out of the Grand Old Party for sleeping with the enemy. Our goon squad is coming to Saint Paul in a couple of weeks and I live in fear of being found out. But I can’t help it. I’m attracted to the flirty, sexually liberated, save the trees and hug the earth euphorian type of woman.

Can you blame me? Republican women aren’t the stuff of fantasy. Who wants to doink some dog-faced, humorless and stuffy caviar princess?

Give me a succulent free-range, cage-free breast each and every time.

Republican men age sophisticatedly while our women wilt like rotten fruit on the vine.

You know who you are, and I’ve seen you around town. You’re waving from the bridge tops or marching to save an insignificant animal from extinction. You ride a bike, you know your coffee and sometimes forget your bra. Being “shaved” could mean your pits or legs and your cosmetics are animal-test free.

And dare I dream? Ideally you work as a teacher or are a social worker and you read books of which I’ve never heard.

I’m your polar opposite. Global warming, to me, is nothing but a sweaty female breast and Guantanamo is really a military run Club Med. I guzzle gas, think alternative energy is a crock and am wonderfully hypocritical when I sit in church. Rush is right and Olbermann is wrong and I wish Hillary had never been born.

But I do admire parts of Franken. That man can write mean porn.

If opposites attract, then you’re in for one helluva fuckin’ ride. So instead of muttering “Screw Republicans” or “Fuck Bush” how about putting some action behind those words? Take one for the team and make me curse my political world. Plus, I’m married so your wickedness can be a delicious “Two-fer”.

Power corrupts. Turn the tables. Corrupt me with your power, instead.

“This is our time.”

I can hardly wait to see what Wednesday will bring!

Piece. Word.

Thank You, John McCain (for showing us the way)

John McCain asks us to please be civil and not make children the focus his campaign in the bright morning-after light of Bristol Palin's birth announcement.

In fact, he was so adamant about this point that in every photo where Bristol is not holding the VP's baby, she was pushed to the side and back in the photos. (I honestly thought she was shy...boy, was I wrong.)

Rather than enter into the same RNC arena as McCain (like they would give me entry anyway with my big pink American hat), I offer up this Phoenix Times News quote about his GOP fundraiser comments about another elected official's child.

"Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because Janet Reno is her father." John McCain SOURCE

Wow, it is rare that you get a chance to smack down an elected officials underage daughter and at the same time make a lesbian parenting joke.

While I agree children are off limits, this Labor Day announcement highlights the real need to be honest about sex with our children and the use of birth control. (It is not just for Pigeons.)

And while I am on a roll, people please, stop painting the trees greener than they really are in St. Paul.

Recommended DVD Viewing: The Education of Shelby Knox LINK Here.

Interesting Quote from the NY Times

"We're borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the planet. Every bit of that has to change."
- FORMER VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE, urging that the United States abandon the use of
carbon-based fuels for electricity within 10 years.

Something to think about.

3 / 1000 Reasons I Love Summer

Friends, Amusement Rides and Silliness.

Movement Turns 9, But Paxahau is 10

Ok, so the photo may not perfectly line up with all of my wants and needs.

But, butt honesty mixed with shiny, sparkling promotion is a good thing when one is sending props out to my buddies at Paxahau.

So while Movement: Detroit Electronic Music Festival turns 9, Paxahau is celebrating year ten with a light year's leap in the production of the event.

Look for great things to come from these guys in the future.


Thank you Jason, Sam, Mike and Jason C. for putting on amazing opening night show and the beautiful vision of how an outdoor festival can and should be.

Moby rocked the bowl and in a twist of fate, post-show we shared an elevator ride back up to our rooms. (I congratulated him on his heart pounding set but I had to decline his offer to read me the Where The Wild Things Are bedtime story.)

I will post more pics, but for now, get to Hart Plaza in Detroit to experience the best DEMF ever.

Weather Report and the Obama Factor

If you are planning on attending the Obama for America rally at the Van Andel Arena, one would be wise to check the weather report for the day.

This advice is not just because a rain coat is surely going to be required for waiting with the 12,ooo and more people who will take to the streets this afternoon.

Instead, check the weather.com site for the metaphor magically appearing this AM in the forecast.

Barack Obama speaks at 7 PM tonight in downtown Grand Rapids. Metaphors and their alignment with forecasts have never been sunnier.

The Electronic Event of the Universe Is Almost Here!

Movement: Detroit Electronic Music Festival 2008 is May 24 - 26, 2008 at Hart Plaza.

You have to be here to understand. But if you have been there the past two years, you know how this event continues to grow.

This year along with their great line up they have added Moby who will be spinning on Saturday night. (Also that same night Bob Sinclair will be at the MGM)

Props to the folks at Paxahau! You move us forward to the future with a steady sure beat.




Info on Tickets and the event can be found here. The VIP section is going to be awesome this year.

Artists appearing / tags:
AARON-CARL FEAT. VERONIQUE & DJ E. DUBB, ALEX SMOKE -live, ALEX UNDER -live, ALLAND BYALLO, ALTON MILLER, BENNY BENASSI, BIG JOE HIX, BRIAN KAGE & LUKE HESS "REFERENCE", CARL CRAIG -live, CASSY, COBBLESTONE JAZZ -live, DARKCUBE -live, DAVIDE SQUILLACE, DBX -live, DEADMAU5 -live, DEEPCHORD PRESENTS ECHOSPACE -live, DEREK PLASLAIKO, DERRICK THOMPSON AKA DRIVETRAIN, DIESELBOY & MC MESSINIAN, DREW POMPA, DUBFIRE, EGYPTIAN LOVER -live, ELECTROBOUNCE.COM PRESENTS DATABASS GHETTO TECH, ERIC JOHNSTON -live, GABE REAL, GIRL TALK -live, GUILLAUME & THE COUTU DUMONTS -live, HALF HAWAII -live, HEARTTHROB -live, JAMES ZABIELA, JERRY ABSTRACT, JORIS VOORN -live, JOSH DAHLBERG -live, JOSH WINK, JUSTIN KRUSE AKA KRUSE, KONTROL, JUSTIN LONG, KEITH WORTHY, KENNETH THOMAS, KEVIN SAUNDERSON, KONRAD BLACK, LAWNCHAIR GENERALS. LEE BURRIDGE, MAGDA, MARCO CAROLA, MARK FARINA, MATHIAS KADEN -live, MATTHEW HAWTIN, MICHAEL GEIGER, MIKE GRANT, MILES MAEDA, MINX, MOBY -DJ SET, MR. DE' -live/DJ, NEWCLEUS -live, OSCAR MULERO, PAR GRINDVIK -live, PAUL RITCH -live, PEANUT BUTTER WOLF, PETE ROCK, PUNISHER - DJ SET, REGGIE "HOTMIX" HARRELL, REX SEPULVEDA -live, RICHIE HAWTIN, RICH KORACH, SHAWN MICHAELS, SOUNDMURDERER, SPEEDY J -live W/ SCOTT PAGANO VJ, STACEY PULLEN, T LINDER, TECH ITCH, TERRENCE PARKER, THE COOL KIDS -live, TWONZ, TYCHO -live, ZIP

Why Is This Man Smiling This AM?

Because the CNA Hello, Neighbor social networking event
raised nearly 4k at the
Art Battle for Community: The Rematch.

Take That, Golden Gloves Champions!
Artists Rule!

Thanks for the event photos, David! ( www.humanfiles.com ) and his brother, Michael. (also a photographer)

Thank you to Brett and his great staff at Sazerac Lounge on Plainfield. (They make their food the old fashioned way.... from scratch. Ask a ninety year old woman about the healthy benefits of this act of preservation.)

Thank you CNA board, staff and volunteers.

Most of all
Thank you to our great 12 artists - without them this event could not have happened.

Shelly Klein, Michael Pfleghaar, Kelly Allen, Nathan Goddard, Michael Ingold, Lisa Price, Aneka Vanderhill, Gloria Oostema, Abbey Bradley, Cat Campbell, Tom Post and Beth Fowler.

Thank you for supporting and funding local art projects within our community and making the world a bit nicer.

(oh, and thanks to the Friend of Leonardo DiCaprio who signed the environmental DVD The 11th Hour)

United Lesbians of Baghdad

Every once in a while I get bit by the YouTube bug and on those days I find gems that are too precious to horde.

So today I polish off an oldie but a goodie c-span video about what could spell the end of our involvement in Iraq.

It is funny to think a band of women loving women could bring us to our knees.
(And some men may just enjoy watching this happen.)

The Heartbreak of Fritillaria (Reports on the Freeze)

This sudden shift in the air temps lets one know that something is coming and as history has proven there is damn little one can do except mist your flowers, cover what you are able and then hope in the AM it is not as bad as predicted.

It is still quite early and already we have been up since 6 AM moving about like Shakers in the morning dawn doing the final steps of what was begun last night.

So with frozen fingers and petals to match, I want to offer up a few images of this AM.

And the jury is still out on the showy fritillaria. (It was hit, but it may survive.)

BravoBravo in Detroit (Gala Decking Skin)

(Design In Progress)

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. (The 3 R's On Target)

In the April 14th issue of Newsweek, they devoted the magazine to the sujet du jour, Green.

In my bedroom, aI plow through the stacks of magazines that will eventually become something else, I was encouraged that the cover of this Newsweek would become a great stylish bag.

Target in looking to reduce their impact on the planet, is asking us to send back our red and white plastic bags. In exchange for this gesture, they will send us a fashionable reusable bag....Free.

So in the images to follow, I have provided a photo illustration of how it all went down this AM...and all from the comfort of my bed.

Recycling in the bedroom, who would have thought it was possible.*

If one missed this issue, I am pretty sure one will find it in a doctor's lobby or by dumpster diving in your better read neighbors curbside recycling bin. (However, on the latter activity, remember we live in a YouTube world now.)




(*While this blogger believes there are many items we can make greener in our bedrooms, he does not encourage the recycling of certain items. Please do not rinse "préservatifs" and hang on your clothes line, these are still a one shot and then discard item.)

Welcome Clover!

Ah, Spring is here.

Happy Earth Day, Grand Rapids!

( Congrats on another year without bike lanes. )

Well, Hello, Dalai

"Its so nice to have you back where you belong."

This past weekend the Dalai Lama was in Ann Arbor and the timing of his message of alleviating suffering is still a timeless goal not often obtained enough in this world.

Having been backstage for the event, it is a bizarre twist to be so close to someone and watch the many who have to safeguard his life.

I guess when someone uses words like 'fragile peace' it is easy to become a target of violence. Why is it those who advocate peace are always on the front lines of violent attacks?

As he sat cross-legged in his chair His Holiness encouraged the crowd of thousands to be the cause and the effect for peaceable change in our lives and also in our world.

In this largess of space, it felt like we were all in a living room setting as he spoke to those who lined Ann Arbor’s Crisler Arena. I doubt I can find the words to neither express the warmth nor paint a picture of such honest and peaceful serenity.

As I was leaving out the tunnel, I watched many waves flags waving in support of China. It is ironic that these people who are protesting the Dalai Lama would not have this same luxury back in China. (Freedom of expression is not just a USA thing but also a global right of all people.)

Even though I have committed NOT to buy any of their products whenever possible, it is not that I am actively seeking to mobilize an anti-China campaign.

Far from it.

This is a peaceable first step in trying to reduce my impact the same way one carefully places one's foot to a fresh spring carpet of clover.

This is easier put in a blog than in practice since those three little words “Made In China” are stamped on just about everything we consume and then toss into piles in our homes or the landfill.

It is not that I am doing this because the Dalai Lama says I should, nor because I think a free Tibet is even possible in a world of corporations versus the historical lines of national boundaries.

Instead, I step lightly out of the material world because I am alarmed at China's lack of fulfilling their Olympic bid pledge to address their human rights violations taking place in slow motion in places like Darfur and Sudan and played out on the front page of the world press.

To continue to support human suffering is nothing I would allow in my country, why in a distant land with my connected dollars. I do not want my life decorated on the backs of genocide.

I know this confessional line of thinking is troubling and may hold up like a sand castle being built on the shores of a hurricane.

But I am ok with this logic. The Olympics are supposed to highlight the best we can be. As a host country China needs to halt their practices to gain my support again.

Since President Bush has made it very clear that our economy is in need of blind consumers re-depositing their "Bush Bucks" back into the pockets of corporations hungry for more, I think he has played his hand clearly to us as Americans.

We do hold the power to change our world with the simple act of how we spend our money. (I plan to deposit my refund with a safe fund or maybe on a whim I will use it to buy a goat or two via Oxfram.)

And while I know the USA is not perfect and is also a violator of many atrocities, I can start my journey in my own land and by staring to wash the blood off my hands as I step forward into the future.

I can make the small changes that will make a big impact in ending suffering. Power must flow up from all of us working together.

There is much more to blog here but for now I will give pause on the eve of Earth Day.

The Dalai Lama was very clear that the changes we need to see happen in this world need to flow from us.... from our actions.

So I send a "kiss for the whole world*" where all of us are brothers and sisters in a noble quest to end suffering and extreme poverty.

Please step into this new season of spring and let the cool dew of the clover fields under our feet renew our spirit. It is wonderful to exit winter and see such possibilities in each bud of green.

Peace.
Tommy





*Inspired and copied from Schiller’s Ode to Joy and it’s beautiful inspiring use in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.

“Can you sense the Creator, world?

Seek him above the starry canopy.

Above the stars He must dwell.



Joy, daughter of Elysium

Thy magic reunites those

Whom stern custom has parted;

All men will become brothers

Under thy gentle wing.



Be embraced, Millions!

This kiss for all the world!

Brothers!, above the starry canopy

A loving father must dwell.



Joy, beautiful spark of Gods!,

Daughter of Elysium,

Joy, beautiful spark of Gods!.

Silpada The World! ( i wanna get off ) or How One Woman Chose A Bauble over a Pulitzer

It could be a Venus thing and if so, then I can begin to understand how someone could be attracted to Silpada (or any piece of shiny metal yarn) over a hot cast Pulitzer.

Wait, one needs the back story first.

The other day I offered a ticket to my dear Venanic friend to travel with this Marsan (me) to a lecture by the Pulitzer Prize winning author, Michael Chabon.

Since my friend is also very young and talented like the author, I figured the reply would go something like this:

Martian (me): Wanna go to a lecture?

Venanic: Shit Yeah!

Instead it went more like this:

Martian (me): Dude, I scored free tickets to the Michael Chabon lecture on Thursday. Wanna go?

Venanic friend (she): Oh, that sounds great, but I am going to swing by a fellow Venanic's home for a Silpada party.

Martian: (long pause as I pondered my poker hand made up of two tickets) But Michael Chabon is considered to be one of the greatest living (and very young) authors of our time. He won the Pulitzer for his The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay at the age of 38.

Venanic: Yeah, but Silpada has this necklace I need.

So there I was holding two worlds in a nutshell.

Martian men love prizes and worship those who labor with massive amounts of sweat in the sporting arena or with the ramming finger power of applying ink to the paper through rapid firing of keyboard clicks against all odds to tell their story.

While Venanicians love a shiny prize they can obtain in the privacy of their own home with a swift but sweet application of ink to a 6.5 x 3 inch paper payment promise.

But are Chabon and Silpada really so different, are Martians and Venanicians alike?

Chabon loves to tell his stories, to dream up fantastical scenarios and using the reference of common language and the history of space marries a universe's knowledge of stuff, he is able to transport us to worlds he has imagined.

Silpada from their website says, "Every woman" (Venanic) "has a story to tell and we feel very fortunate to have this opportunity to share our personal story with so many others." Are Venanic's just using Silpada to help dress up their story like Chabon?

I can only imagine as my mind wandered last night in the Calvin College lecture of what my Venanic friend was doing at the same time.

As I shifted in my seat to get comfortable, I imagined she slipped on her neck these hand crafted baubles. What places did she imagine and maybe dare reveal to the others in the room.

As Chabon shared stories of his Yiddish background and the world he imagined through the comic yet poetic relief language can provide, I wondered if my Venanic friend was able to find the chance to weave the word "Dickhead" the way Chabon did in this audience gathered in a church sanctuary.

Would her story, sharing the same comic device of using crude language, break the spell of celebrity stare induced by the shiny spotlight? Would Dickhead bring us all together like the magical aligning of the stars?

The questions would continue in my head as I bounced from orbit to orbit.

Would people gasp in horror at her marriage to honesty or would they laugh the loudest of the evening as they did for Chabon causing me to wonder what spring had sprung in the vocal cords of my alma mater.

How was her imagination running wild as she encountered her personal future as the shiny handcrafted beauty encircled her neck?

I thought back to Michael Chabon’s simple revelation of the time-honored advice of owning your past as you pen into the future.

Pen and Jewelry both propel us into the future story. They create a world for us that on our own did not exist until this personal encounter.

In the end I conclude oh so crudely that our worlds do pass and for a moment we feel each other's gravitational pull of being in the story...the shared moment.

Martians and Venanic love the places they have traveled and every once in a while it is totally plausible we may even receive something to place on our dresser table that reminds us of the ways we connected in making our own story out of these shared universal worlds.

God, I love those Europeans! (Except the Pope)

Over the past month I have been enjoying the leisurely activity of browsing our library's new release shelf.

And as I waddle out with my Meijer Recycle bag stuffed with over-sized books, I am finding an over-whelming amount of books with a Euro slant in every topic from gardening, art and advertising.

Today while I was sorting through the AM-mile-high-pile of spam, I discovered an Amazon.uk's offer of music that made me laugh so hard I just had to share with you.

So below I offer up the cover art from Fila Brazillia's Dicks CD.

See if you can guess which one was the cover for the USA and which one was for the UK.

Take your time, I'll hold.

Save Your Ash!

City of Grand Rapids Ash Tree Alert

I have been alerted that the Riverside Park (Knapp Entrance) and also the Fuller Street (Moving North of the 96) have seen trees coming down. The ones on Fuller appear to be Ash. We need to act fast to stop the city from removing trees until at least after the April 15th Save Your Ash community forum.

The unfortunate part is our city's policy appears to be for the mass removal of our ash trees. This removal policy HAS NOT halted the spread the pest as it has moved from each ward of our city.

I am wanting also to begin to raise the question if we have the right person in this position? Are they structured under Parks and Recreation or Traffic. We know from the past that Traffic has not been a friend to neighborhoods.

In short, the policy whispered from leaders within our community is that allegedly we have a forestry person (Bob Paasche - City Urban Forester and CNA Member) who FAVORS removing trees.

WMEAC is hosting a SAVE YOUR ASH forum next week. They may be announcing exciting new solutions to save the ash trees.

I had a great, but anonymous source answer my questions, it has been said that , "They will be treating these trees (those marked with an orange dot) with an injection method, not a drench method (drench = dumpling a bucket of chemicals at the base of a tree).

So it's not likely that much, if any, will get into the Grand River.

However, you are correct that the chemical, imidacloprid, being injected is toxic to some birds, insects (especially bees), fish and especially aquatic invertebrates. But it's also important to understand that people REGULARLY dump this chemical on their lawns to control grubs and it's WIDELY used on agricultural products. It is yet another example of a chemical NOT 'regulated' by the EPA."

We need a better solution and Riverside and ALL OUR PARKS needs to ride it out until we get this new product on the treatment list.

I am concerned that our newsletter will not reach people in time to get the word out.

So first line of defense is to organize and fast.

We need to get as many people to the Save Your Ash event. I am willing to help car pool people and will be able to take 4 people with me. (I would prefer a full car load.)

We do not have a lot of time on this matter and we need to press the city before all contracts are signed for the summer on these matters. (In truth we may be too late, but we should still try.)

Commissioner Bliss alerted us in the winter months to get geared up for this fight, now we owe it to one of Grand Rapids' greenest sections to protect our trees.

Will you join us in alerting members of your list of the event below?

Please encourage people to bring camera phones, camcorders to record these proceedings. Every little bit of viral video we can get on a public person's comment further aids our cause to make sure the people's wishes are being carried out. Allegedly from my source, Bob was laughing at a recent meeting over the idea of people trying to save trees.


EVENT DETAILS:


Save Your Ash! Public Forum
Tue, April 15, 2008 - 6:00pm
Save Your Ashes! Whether they're in your yard, block or neighborhood, the information shared at this forum will provide options and opportunities to preserve the Ash Trees that are important and valuable to you. Mark your calendar!
Click here to download a PDF flier about this event.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008, 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Plymouth Congregational UCC Church
4010 Kalamazoo SE (between 32nd and 44th streets)
Grand Rapids, MI 49508

A diverse group of speakers will share a variety of views and perspectives about your opportunities to prevent disease and/or removal of your Ash Tree(s).

Speakers include:
Deb McCullough, MSU's National Ash Tree Expert
Greg Sundstrom, City of Grand Rapids
Vic Foerster, West Michigan Tree Services
Brian Hiemstra, Bartlett Tree Services

LINKS: SAVE YOUR ASH ( with a counter! )

Art Battle for Community: The Rematch

The Creston Neighborhood Association is hosting the
2nd Art Battle for Community,
an evening where one will experience up close
the development of the artistic process.

At the beginning of the event,
the artists will be given a topic.
They will have one hour to create an original piece
based on the topic. Attendees get to view artists create works of art
from the birth of a concept to the completion of the piece.

Later at 8:00 PM,
a lively auction will be held with
the original pieces going to the highest bidder.
Please join us in this creative fund raising event
to help grow one of Grand Rapids most vibrant neighborhood association
and support our local artists.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008
6 -- 9 PM
$15.00 Donation
Limited Space / Arrive On Time

Location:
Sazerac Lounge
1418 Plainfield Ave NE
(North of Leonard)
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
Free Parking in the Rear Lot

After the weekend....light within shines bright.

This weekend was an eye opener for me. Maybe the bright light of the unexpected warm spring sun that healed my hurt provided the glow I needed to feel within.

Maybe unconsciously I had feared it may have been lost. (It was not.)

If I may have a moment to be a bit vague but suffering teaches us much. In acknowledging our pain, we can move beyond it. Good advice to read but hard advice to put in action.

I think this is what is awakening in me.

I am often reminded when I reach a turning point of an old quote that really should be posted on the walls of my heart.

As I start my week, please enjoy this quote by Marianne Williamson while I stoke the flames of my spirit.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?'

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Ahhhhh...The 1st Signs of Spring

The crotch rocket bikers have returned!


(They beat my first robin sighting of the season by one day.)

Props To Moo!

I am a big fan of handing out praise and today I am so impressed with how the online printer Moo.com handled a messed up order.

In a world of screwed up customer service departments (Nissan and Comcast), it is nice to know places that value a customer's time and money like Moo.com are still out there.

Anyone who has spent hours dealing with a company's 800 numbers multiple layers of prompts know too well what I am talking about here.

So if you are looking for a fantastic group that prints on paper from sustainable forests, please consider Moo.com.

Everybody Moo!!!!

Re-Vision: Tommy Back In The Studio

"In the future everyone will be immune to reality."


-Tommy

Thoughts on War: A Literary Snapshot

We got around to the subject of war again and I said that, contrary to his attitude, I did not think that the common people are very thankful for leaders who bring them war and destruction.

"Why, of course, the people don't want war," Goering shrugged. "Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood.

"But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship."

"There is one difference," I pointed out. "In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars."

"Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country."

History: Gustave Gilbert, a German-speaking intelligence officer and psychologist who was granted free access by the Allies to all the prisoners held in the Nuremberg jail. Gilbert kept a journal of his observations of the proceedings and his conversations with the prisoners, which he later published in the book Nuremberg Diary. The quote offered above was part of a conversation Gilbert held with a dejected Hermann Goering in his cell on the evening of 18 April 1946, as the trials were halted for a three-day Easter recess.

History reads us like a book. - Tommy

Reflection

This toad is so tiny and yet so wonderful that it can stop your day.
Please consider your footprint on this planet (and adjust your sails.)

Green Movement's Dirty Little Secret

With every movement there is a past and no movement is ever immune to its return in the media.

It is not my intention to tip off said media but the grandmother of all things earthen is making a comeback in the green's homes.

I can still recall the day I stumbled upon this fact while visiting KC's Heritage Hill home many years ago.

Upon entering the bathroom and lifting the lid I discovered the brightest of welcomes in the color yellow.

"Excuse me," I remarked entering the guest's living room, "but someone has forgotten to flush the toilet. Is it possible it is broken?"

Letting out a hearty laugh the host exclaimed, "We live by a simple code in this house."

And then the dirty little secret of the green's was out.

"If its yellow, let it mellow. If its brown, flush it down"

It may seem dirty but if you begin to think about the water saved, it is not hard to get over one's squeamishness of this revelation.

So many years have passed and I am not shocked anymore by the yellow badge of courage when I visit a host's home only to discover their environmental sensitivity enshrined in porcelain.

But every movement, even bowel movements, have their limits.

In no way will I ever subscribe to the leave no footprint mindset by asking my guests to don a shovel as then head out to the back yard.

Being green sometimes is be brave enough to say "I'm sorry, but you have to use the commode."

Writer's Strike A Super Tuesday

Did the Writers Guild Association's strike create our thirst for endless Super Tuesday news programming?

I hope we are truly engaged in a country-wide dialog and not just couch-bound-bored while waiting for new episodes of 30 Rock.

(We really miss you Tina Fey, but we understand your fight)


Word to complainers:
dialog (noun) - a conversation between two persons;
talk, talking - an exchange of ideas via conversation; "let's have more work and less talk around here"

Tom Brady Loves Tight Ends

This made me laugh so hard.

“We are witnessing what Tom Brady can do with a special group of wide receivers, and it is awesome.” -Sporting News

I cannot top this today.




Photo Feed Credit: Here.

To Those Who Wrote Blogger About My Blog.

This site is devoted to satire.

As the old saying goes, "joke'm if they can 't take a ......" And this country needs a good joke after the past 8 years.

Oh, and if you have a problem with my site, sign your name to my site and don't go crying to Big Blogger Google Daddy when you don't like what I have to say.

(A copy of the Bill of Rights is still available for public viewing in Washington, DC for those who will get up off the couch and take a gander.)

Enough said.

What This Country Needs Is A CEO

Clinton
Edwards
Obama

Hmmmmmmm.

Tommy

Tanglefoot Studio: One Amazing Night of Music

(Photo by David McGowan: Natalia Zukerman, Kristin Salerno, Drew Nelson, Tommy Allen, Trina Hamlin, Michael Pfleghaar)

Tanglefoot Studio was able to host a memorable night of music from three nationally known singer/songwriters.

If you missed it, I am sorry. The guest list was very small and sold out in a matter of days.

If you attended, then you know what I am talking about when I say this is one event that will be hard to top as we look at new events to produce within our space.

If you would love to make sure you are on the guest list, please send me an email to tommyallen @ comcast. net

Look for a video piece on RapidGrowthMedia.com

Thank you's to David McGowan of humanfiles.com, Levitationstaging.com and Kristin Salerno & Michael Pfleghaar.

Artists Links: www.drewnelson.com www.nataliazukerman.com www.trinahamlin.com



























































2008 State of Michigan House Candidate Roy Schmidt, Kristin Salerno, Drew Nelson and 2nd Ward Commissioner Rosalynn Bliss.