taste where we are and play the music loud...

all dogs go to heaven

2008-01-02T00:50:32Z

it's the new year. i'm feeling overwhelmed. i havent written in this for a while... i wonder if i've outgrown livejournal in some ways. since namibia i havent really read or written any entries, friends or otherwise. its not that i dont care... i'm just not good at keeping in touch so much and makign the effort to cultivate friendships with all of the amazing people i know. maybe i just need to go out and "find myself" like i am in this whole new section of my life.

it feels like its time to go out and be on my own, travelling a more lonesome road. some solitude and space to think and really be independent. not sure how much i want and how much i feel like its an inevitable time for x y or z. this is also a "year of death" for my family and i feel strangely unaffected by it. i know that doesnt make me a horrible person, but i'm just not expressing an grief like the rest of them seem to be. my dad sent this email out to our family:

*****"Dear all,

We were returning from visiting Sarah’s family on the 29th, when Julia called us. She was watching Buckeye and the house while we were gone. She told us that Buckeye had a seizure where he lost control of his bowels and bladder and was having trouble walking. After we got home, we were able to see Buckeye stand for a bit, but by that evening, he could not stand. Through the night, Buckeye continued to lose body function control and was throwing up. His eyes were rocking back and forth and he could not get out of his bed. Sarah and I took turns cleaning him, his bedding, and trying to make him comfortable. We ended up speaking with two vets, who are members of Sarah’s church. The bottom line is that our primary vet and good friend, Jim Ford, suggested we come in on Sunday to put Buckeye down. I spent part of the last night on the floor sleeping with Buckeye. I was surprised how hard it was for Sarah and me to see Buckeye suffer such. It was also a struggle to watch Buckeye being put to sleep. Anyway, as of yesterday at 3:15 PM, Buckeye transferred his walks to Dad, Kate Zasio, and Uncle Johnny.

Buckeye was with us for over 13 years and is missed.

While Julia got to see Buckeye before he passed, Daniel did not want to see him before we left for the vet. Daniel was very close to his dog. The kids were 5 and 8 when Buckeye came to live with us. They have all grown up together.

I called Mom last night to tell her about Buckeye and I could hear her tearing up. I have only seen or heard Mom cry a few times in my life, so I know it was difficult for Mom, too.

Lori called this the year of death, it started with Dad on Jan 5th and ended with Buckeye on Dec 30th. In between we lost a very good friend of DeLayne—Janice and lost two of Lori and Sheila’s pets as well: Kitty and Georgia.

Buckeye loved people, treats and having his belly rubbed. He was a great watch dog and family pet. He touched many people in his short stay. He was also a great Buckeye fan and will be rooting for OSU to beat LSU on Jan 7th. He will have a better seat than we do.

I’m asking you all to do something to celebrate the life of Buckeye.

Thanks,

Dave" *****

I'm just not sure what to think or how to feel. Still I feel like I'm just stringing along, making unimportant and banal decisions about how to be in this world. i am here. i am okay. things feel slower but horribly sped up and rushed at the same time. i want to travel and see new places. like joni mitchell, i feel the "urge for going" and living out of a suitcase somehow. even though i do remember how much i longed for a "home" when i was in africa. here i am at "home" but this is the first year its starting not to feel like a home... not stable or *truly* comforting. its a false comfort. an easy comfort. i want to be doing the real hard and independent work of creating my own handmafde life. starting from scratch, making mistakes, working toward something good.

soon enough.

i'm in Namibia youuuu know

2007-10-24T21:31:04Z

hey all... long time, no see. since i'm pretty lame at updating in eljayland... if you are at all curious-o about my whole being gone and in namibia thing, i am keeping a sporadic travel blog with photos at: http://jcharvat.multiply.com

the internet is slow here. i'm okay with that, but it also makes me sort of suck at keeping in touch. that and i just got back from travelling all around for 3 weeks. good stuff!

i'll be back in wheeling come december and back in worcester come january. really dont know what classes i will take or where i'm gonna live... trying to get a job and figure out my life in general. it's all good though.

alriiiiight time to do homework! adios, amiga/os.

summer life

2007-07-06T03:01:03Z

in the spirit of most of us (minus kat and lindsay) being absent from eljayland, i've been gone too. but i'm updating now! (home for a few days on a farm break). actually i have internet access and an "office" of sorts on the farm, but don't do much other than researching and printing stuff about sustainable agriculture, slow food, eating locally, rbgh, blah blah blah. many such cool things.

currently reading "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver. AMAZING. check it out!

right now luke is gone to a weeklong grateful dead music festival (gratefulfest) in ohio with his dude buddies. it's interesting how much i miss him. we've been living together on the farm since the beginning of june and our relationship has really evolved into this funny yet intimate friendship. for those who don't know, we're basically going our separate ways come august. it's sort of funny having an end date in sight after 3 and a half years of an "US"... now becoming something where i go to africa and he stays and becomes an elementary school teacher. it's just time for us to have our own space. we say we will try to stay friends but who knows what will really happen. it's time for me to do my own thing and not plan my life totally around him. as much as i love him and man it's gonna be HARD, its something we both need to do. for the rest of the summer though, i want to enjoy the "us" and have fun and love and laugh together. life's too short to do anything else, you know? part of the reason i'm home now is because the RV is really lonely without him! kinda feels creepy to stay there by myself in the middle of the woods... i'm a silly girl.

enough of that. things are pretty good here. i sure am learning A LOT about agriculture, community, freaking hard work, how to cook swiss chard (it's my new favorite leafy green!). i definitely have a new appreciation for FOOD. there is a hell of a lot of work that goes into it when its gorwn with love and time and care, not chemicals and machines. it's really incredible how little our generation knows about where our food comes from. i mean, what would we do if the grocery stores went empty? people would freak out. the more i farm, the more i appreciate the tiny revolutions people make in their lives to move toward sustainability. even having a little tomato plant or herb garden in your apartment is SOMETHING anyone can do, you know? or going to farmers markets. gosh i love farmers markets.

we visited the wheeling soup kitchen this week and brought them about $75 worth of fresh produce. we talked with the executive director about the work they do and the challenges they face. they work so hard to serve meals to people in wheeling who need them with basically NO govt support... hundreds of meals served every day. the best thing (i think) is that they have an open door policy, meaning that the soup kitchen doesnt interrogate you in order for you to get a meal. no questions asked, just good food. another thing we learned: apparantly wheeling's drug problem is worse per capita than in NYC. crack cocaine especially... and lots of related joblessness/homelessness that we sure don't see in woodsdale. i think i'm going to volunteer and wash dishes a few days a week when i'm home for good in august.

well i'm going to enjoy these few days at home and head back to the farm on saturday probably! it's nice to come home now and then and hang out with my mom, enjoy running water and warm showers, and yes, um poco de television.

adios.

that wheeling feeling

2007-05-10T14:01:09Z

I'm HOME!!! it's nice to have landed finally. albeit i still have a group statistics paper to turn in (fuckitidontcare!). but whatever. i'm enjoying the gorgeous weather, luke, my family, my dog, my room, a nice clean kitchen to cook in, and a yard to fix up. i'll be chillin here, working a bit at the salsa cafe and starting my summer reading for South Africa/Namibia (Kaffir Boy is on the list).

Where are you? Let me know. (304).238.8363.

Oh also it's great to be able to have a 6 pack of organic beer in the fridge at my mom's house. haha. (even though its organic, it's actually pretty good pale ale).

"sorry hun but we're trying to find the best... and that was so far away from it" (nice work.)

2007-01-17T01:14:30Z

oh no! american idol is on and its TERRIBLE and painful to watch..... eep. i am here in the universitycenter and its on in the background.

its so good to be back at clark but kind of weird also to readjust.
great 1st day of classes
great room
FABULOUS roomie
sweet suitemates
yummy organic food in my fridge
starting back at work tomorrow

mostly everything is right where it should be.

i guess i'm waiting for the stress to happen.
but enjoying the calm right now.

if you need something beautiful,
look here: http://eros.usgs.gov/imagegallery/imageDetail.php?page=29&img=Malaspina+Glacier&id=2046&col=Earth+As+Art

heading back!

2007-01-13T05:26:24Z

so now i am excited to report that my laptop is actually fulfilling its destiny... since i am typing with it ON MY LAP! yay. ok well also i am attempting to transfer all of my music (some 3000 songs) from my old computer to my new baby. it takes FOREVER... i'm only on "c" so i might not be able to have my whole library. oh well. we'll see how much i can get done... mom and i are leaving tomorrow at sunrise to drive to worcester. should be a fun 10-12 hour ride. yeaaaah woo. i will get to help, which will be good. i said goodbye to luke tonite. i really love us. its a good goofy imperfect love and makes me happy.

thanks to all who have been supportive after my grandpa passed away. i really appreciate your kind words and thoughts. the viewing was tough and weird, the funeral was sad and beautiful. i'm glad its all over to be honest... my first real experience with death. so much more to say but i dont really feel like this is the right place. suffice it to say, i was glad to have spent the time with my family during this time. and man i ate SO much food. geesh. i feel like thats all i've been doing- eating and driving. when i think about it though, we're pretty lucky even if we're crazy and odd in so many ways. we're okay.

i'm SO looking forward to worcester: vegan food, lots of hugs, maybe some cold and ice, meeting professors, working and paychecks!$, capoeira?, tea, feminists, da lat, accents, funky clothes, and general comfort. cant wait to nest into 114 woodland (1st floor with erica!). cant beleive we gt placed there but oh well- should be fun to make a space there.

love,
julz

we have one chance to get everything right and if we're lucky we might...

2007-01-05T18:00:30Z

my grandpa died this morning. the viewing is sunday and the funeral monday and i guess it will be a pretty intense military 21 gun salute kind of deal. i've never been to a funeral before. my aunt and her partner were on vacation in hawaii and are trying to get here as soon as possible. the rest of my family is having dinner and probably working things out tonight. my poor grams... i'm so glad that my cousin and i visited grandpa yesterday and took grams out to lunch. i feel like i said goodbye in my own way... he wasnt really conscious. and most likely he was not in pain, so thats the most you can ask for i guess. he was saying before that he wanted to die, and it really has sucked seeing him deteriorate in a nursing home/the hospital having surgeries and broken bones and whatnot. i'm really glad he can finally rest and be wherever you go when you die. it was time. its just going to be really difficult for our family... he was such the patriarch and a good guy for so long and its been a weird transition to the point where he no longer is around. my grandma was telling us stories yesterday about them when they were young, and thats kind of a comforting thing for all of us. thank goodness luke is coming to the funeral with me. its going to be hard to watch my family cry. my mom even cried this morning and i havent really cried much in front of anyone because its not something i feel i need to do to express my grief. its just weird in general. death. i dont think it will hit me until i see him at the viewing. so i will be around today until maybe 4:30 if anyone wants to hang out... i'm really okay. just reading. luke is coming over soon, so i'm gonna go.

c'est la vie

2007-01-02T20:50:20Z

my grandpa is dying. i don't know what do to because there simply is nothing to do. its just really hard for my grandpa. he wont eat and sleeps all the time. i know this is a natural progression, but it is so terrible for my family because it just takes this toll. so much energy expended... i hope he is not in too much pain. i don't like visiting him, because he doesnt remember and it doesnt make him happy. he just wants to be left alone basically. but i am going to visit him on thursday morning and then take my grandma to cabela's because she's never been.

i think i'm all set to begin classes in a few weeks... i'm taking lots of sciency classes, and one on food production and food security- good stuff. i just need to come up with $200 for books.

right now the holidays are over and i feel low and unsure of what to do with my time. my room is all cleaned up, i went walking with carey, and i'm sick of tv. if i had any $, i might go get some coffee, but i am lacking that right now. can't wait to start working and getting a paycheck again! i'll be back at curry printing, making course packets and sending faxes. woo hoo.

so tomorrow night- drover's? sounds good to me!

call me if you want to do something now, as i am out of money and ideas and gas at the moment.

not much else to say really. life is okay... would be better with a touch of snow.

merry merry merry!

2006-12-26T17:28:16Z

yes indeed i've had a nice christmas. i've been kinda sick, which may or may not be turning out to be a small and annoying cold, but other than that, things have been good. had a nice round of fast crazy present opening at my grandma's, and even luke got some presents (for some reason, my aunt got him a fruitcake. how cliche for christmas! haha. but anyways...) of course the nicest thing ever is that dad got me a new computer. its much needed though! my old gateway weighed like 20 lbs and made crazy noises when it got pissed off/tired of working... so its nice to have a functional computer, and i'm even able to take advantage of neighboring wireless networks!! so i can be typing this in my room! its fabulous really.

today i am mostly going to be cleaning up, organizing, etc. and reading. there is a certain boy i must call and catch up with, as it is his birthday today! maybe if time and gas permits, we can visit each other.

i'm also pretty excited about this morgantown for new years business. are we still thinking themes? i say that we all wear what we want and be as pretty or as comfy or classy as we all want. i will be making yummy caipirinhas and bringing my friend, kristina. cool cool?

kat and i may be getting coffee today- if you're free, give us a call! ; )

hoooome home on the range!!!!!

2006-12-18T06:07:43Z

and we're open for bizniz.

okay! i'm home yay. i am semi-busy as i need to spend time with my family and am volunteering a bit, too. but i want to see folks in wheeling so so much so please if you want, come bowling tomorrow... (after i return from the amish country. so maybe 7pmish?) me luke eileen andy carey some boys so far. you should come too. that's all. let's have real conversations.

anyone want to have a holiday party at my house? think of times/dates that are good for you this week and let's do it up.

leave message here.

love,
julz

love love love!

2006-12-13T01:27:25Z

my german roommate is listening to this hardcore rap music which includes the lyrics: "thug til i die" which i think is pretty hilarious. also we are on small smile/speaking terms now so i feel better. yay.

holidays! yay! www.simplifytheholidays.com let's have a cookie party and nice togethery things that dont cost a lot of money. none of us really has any money and thats not what the holidays should be about anyways. in any case, eileen and i had a nice conversation and we have some cool ideas for holiday cheer if you are down.

new years! is it cool if i invite some friends from le washington semester to motown? andy this is for you... 2 girls, very cool. only 1 might be able to come though. whadduya think?

in the most exciting news of all: i really feel like i know what i want to do with my life and i'm so glad for that. obviously i need to graduate, get experience, training, etc... but i feel good about this. we'll see. there's so many possibilities for life and thats kind of stressful but more exciting than anything else.

gotta finish this paper agora. ate lago.

oh lord...

2006-12-11T04:10:49Z

1. I've come to realize that my ex... (was Oliver really my only ex?) not much to say... because that was in 8th grade.
2. I am listening to... Mean Girls!!!! love it. (pandora IS the shit, laura. love it!)
3. I talk... a lot when I feel nervous or need to control/de-awkwardize a situation.
4. I love... luke och, bubble baths, chocolate, soft socks, pretty colors, interesting people, sunsets, cute dogs, sparkly things, funky food, kayaks...
5. My friends are... amazing and I miss them! Psyched for new years...!
6. My first real kiss... was in 8th grade after a dance. wow.
7. I lost my virginity... when i was 16. hate that phrase... its not like i lost anything. it was an experience, plain and simple. it doesnt have to be so negative-sounding.
8. I hate it when people... are stubborn to a point that they won't listen to other people.
9. Love is... real, amazing, and hard work sometimes.
10. Marriage is... looking more like something I could be ok with.
11. Somewhere, someone is... watching cartoons.
12. I'll always... care about my family.
13. I have a secret crush on... lots of people. But usually they are strangers and it last 5 minutes.
14. The last time I cried was... in Brazil.
15. My cell phone... basically works, and has a camera function.
16. When I woke up this morning... i was in hunters bed, and kinda hungover.
17. Before I go to sleep at night... I watch too much tv.
18. Right now I am thinking about... baking christmas cookies.
19. Babies are... cute, but also a lot of work. hold that thought.
20. I get on MySpace... never. its creepy.
21. Today I... went to booeymonger's, packed up the car, said bye to luke, worked on my paper, went to neisha's for dinner, wasted tiiiiime.
22. Tonight I will... watch more mean girls, practice my research presentation, sleep.
23. Tomorrow I will... give my research presentation, say goodbye to some of my classmates and professor, interview an AIDS activist lawyer, write more of my paper, and of course- procrastinate.
24. I really want... to snap my fingers and have my researc paper write itself so I can go out and play... and also have some $ to spend on nice christmasy things and a dress for new years.
25. The person who is most likely to repost this is... ANDY!!! do it up, biatch!!!

one day i'll be sand on a beach by the sea

2006-12-11T03:49:50Z

this song is really beautiful to me. although i guess the lyrics are a bit depressing. i love the girl's voice tho...

alright. life. its good. really fabulous actually. as much as i have been enjoying getting to know this city, i'm pretty okay and ready to leave it on friday. i'm so glad i've gotten to do a lot of things i wanted to, and meet some awesome people, and many other experiences. i could definitely see myself in DC someday... probably not forever, but maybe a year or 2. who knows where i'll end up!

luke came to visit this weekend, which was so fun! unfortunately we had a roommate conflict/misunderstanding and now one of my roommates is no longer speaking to me. thats fun. but whatever- she can hold a grudge if she wants, but i'm gonna be pleasant as i can be for the next 5 days. it is frustrating though; i hate having someone mad at me and there be nothing i can do to make things right. oh well. back to luke- we went to the museum of natural history and the native american museum too! so awesome! i really liked the mammal hall in the nat. history museum. and the native american museum was totally a unique experience- i loved the way it was set up. last night we got some tasty ethiopian food with josh and went back to georgetown to play edward 40-hands.... hahahha!!!! so ridiculous. josh- post those pictures ASAP! good times, even though i ended up breaking one of my beer bottles and puking my dinner up- good times.

now i have to get crackalackin to finish my research paper by thursday. part of me is really laid back and wants to watch mean girls. part of me is really anal and wants this paper to be perfect... hopefully a balance will come! tomorrow is our last day of class- mostly goodbyes. and i need to give a presentation about my research paper to all the other students/my professors. i'm not really worried, but maybe i should be. i just feel that i know the topic SO well at this point, i'll be fine without notecards or freaking out. will probably practice with a friend tonite anyways. yay for friends. i am so bad about keeping in touch though... yai.

ok. mean girls break. hah.

Call Starbucks Today & Tell Them to Go rBGH-free!

2006-12-05T18:54:58Z

www.holdthehormones.com

come with me there

2006-12-03T23:34:27Z

ooooh i looooove peaches! i cant believe she was in dc a week ago! rawr. hung out with tim last nite and we got to catch up about stuff, eat some yummy vegetarian indian food, and get some hot chocolate. good times in the district. i'm trying to do things i havent been able to yet- my time here is growing short but i have SO much work to do! ack. tomorrow we have a 6-8pg "reflection" paper due. how does one write a paper on this semester? no idea but i have about 3.5pgs so far. it'll be ok. but also we have a huge group project and the looming research paper. bah humbug! this weekend i tried to "reflect" (a.k.a. procrastinate) by walking around georgetown, reading, and visiting the smithsonian art museum. guess its time to get a-writin!

but first i gotta have dinner, you know. i'm so sick of caf food! blah. i think i am getting a little meal plan when i return to clark, just to make things easier, but will try to buy from the ARTichoke and living earth when i can to make my own yummy food.

i'm not going to work over winter break. i dont really NEED $, when i think about it, and i want to enjoy one of my last college breaks. i think i will volunteer 1 or 2 days a week at valley hospice with my mom- save gas by driving there with her and i would be glad to help out in the office or do something needed. luke and i have also been talking about volunteering at the soup kitchen. the organic farm that we'll be working on next summer actually donates tons of their surplus produce there- actually nutritious food!

oh also, if anyone is interested in ordering The Body Shop products from me, let me know- they make really nice (and socially responsible!) presents. And 25% goes to the "help the hardworking super broke Julia" fund. but seriously, they use a lot of community trade ingredients, recycled packaging, and donate a lot of $ from various products to help victims of domestic violence. and they don't test their products on animals! gotta love it. ; )

back from brazil!!!

2006-11-21T17:32:53Z

whoaaaaa back in the US and pretty glad about it. just sifted through a million emails, attemoted to work out some of my job/classes/housing situation next semester back at clark. its so funny to think i was in SOUTH AMERICA last night and now here i am back in my comfy dorm room while it is actually cold november outside. i love it! most of the last 3 weeks we were hot and sweaty, so the cold is a nice change. i'm carpooling back to wheeling with josh tonight and will be there until sunday, so maybe if anyone wants some coffee or tea, etc., give me a ring. right now i'm going to get my thai food i ordered... mmm peanut sauce!

como vai?

oh facebook...

2006-10-18T04:45:34Z

from facebook- wise words from someone i went to school with in 3rd grade...

About Me:

I guess you could say I'm @ a point of realization.
I realized that 50% of the ppl in the Ohio Valley ain't shit.
I realized why my haters really exist.
They try to bring me down bc theyre triflin jealous hoes,
mad cause I got what they want (or could very easily get it)

From my mom...

2006-10-18T00:40:08Z

"Why Parents Drink"

A boss wondered why one of his most valued employees had not phoned in sick one day. Having an urgent problem with one of the main computers, he dialed the employee's home phone number and was greeted with a child's whisper.

"Hello?"

"Is your daddy home?" he asked.

"Yes," whispered the small voice.

"May I talk with him?"

The child whispered, "No."

Surprised and wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?"

"Yes."

"May I talk with her?"

Again the small voice whispered, "No."

Hoping there was somebody with whom he could leave a message, he boss asked, "Is anybody else there?"

"Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman".

Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked, "May I speak with the policeman?"

"No, he's busy", whispered the child.

"Busy doing what?"

"Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman," came the whispered answer.

Growing more worried as he heard a loud noise in the background through the earpiece on the phone, the boss asked, "What is that noise?"

"A helicopter" answered the whispering voice.

"What is going on there?" demanded the boss, now truly apprehensive.

Again, whispering, the child answered, "The search team just landed a helicopter."

Alarmed, concerned and a little frustrated the boss asked, "What are they searching for?"

Still whispering, the young voice replied with a muffled giggle... "ME."

i hear my baby callin my name and i know that she's the only one...

2006-10-06T03:21:40Z

last nite was one of the BEST concert experiences of my life. i went to see old crow medicine show, a young and hippish bluegrass band that luke and i like a lot. they were playing at the 9:30 club here in dc... and they were amazing! such great energy- spectacular stage presence! the crowd was so fun, too, because it was this great mix of middleaged bluegrass fans and a lot of young hipsters, punk, indie rock fans. i was up on the balcony and could see this couple on the floor- both the chick and the guy had tattoos and mohawks and they were sort of moshing sort of swing/western/dosido dancing! it was awesome. then during the second set they played "wagon wheel" which is luke and my song... and how crazy and cosmic was it that RIGHT as they began to play it, he called me and i held my phone up for him to hear it while i was dancing to the music. i wasnt sure if he was able to hear it or not but he told me tonite that he was and it was so weird... he was just getting ready to go to bed and just happened to call when they played OUR SONG! even he thought it was a bit more than a coincidence. luke is actually going to see them, as they are playing in pittsburgh tomorrow. in any case, it was pretty sweet and i was very happy. ; )

that is all for now

good nite!

"oh, i made it down the coast in seventeen hours
pickin' me a bouquet of dogwood flowers
and i'm a hopin' for raleigh
i can see my baby tonight...

floating in the summer sky...

2006-09-03T03:44:31Z

tonite i went out to georgetown and hung out with josh and hunter. we got tasty vegetarian indian food and went shopping! so expensive, such cheaply made unneccesarries. i already have too much crap. why do i want more? oh well. its still fun to look around and smell things and touch (and not break!) things. i bought some funky pink earrings and a small blue throw rug for our room. then we saw a fortune teller... there are quite a few! i persuaded the guys to head up and check it out. hunter and i each had our palms read... it was kinda weird and kinda funny. the psychic told me that i would be married within 4 years and have 2 kids (a boy and a girl), and i would overcome any illness that i got and live a long life and maybe move to chicago or california and be successful. she saw my life surrounded in art or fashion? (pfft!) and said some other funny things as well. haha. who knows. the weird part was that she said i would travel twice this year and meet people and do interesting things... which matches up with my plans to travel to brazil and namibia. so who knows? it was a kind of fun and different way to spend $10. haha. then we walked around some more and got ice cream then they made sure i got on a bus (thanks!) and i came home! voila!

sxeroxishness @ 2006-08-15T16:17:00

2006-08-15T21:17:56Z

Toronto is amazing!!! Last night I got to see Bill & Melinda Gates speak at the Opening Ceremony- they're focusing a lot of their resources towards microbicide funding (yes!). I've been trying to balance activist time with personal learning time going to workshops, exploring the Global Village area, walking around the city, etc.

This morning I participated in a Womens & Girls March & Rally where I got to see Stephen Lewis speak!!!!! Then after walking around the Global Village for a while, I went to the CN Tower. It costs about $22 to just go up to the top, etc. but if you buy a main course at the super fancy revolving restauraunt on top then you don't have to pay... so I treated myself to probably the nicest lunch I've ever had, in my activist T-shirt and backpack (haha!). After lunch I got to go to the observation deck and stand on the glass floor! (Will show you pictures when I return!) Apparantly its the tallest building in the world; the glass elevator is kind of scary, as it shoots you up & down at 15mph!!!!

In a few hours I am going to a workshop to hear Paul Farmer (Partners in Health) speak, perhaps my favorite AIDS "personality". Then who knows?!?!

The subway system is wonderful here- like NYC but far cleaner. They also have lots of underground walkways and skywalks... probably engineered for the long Toronto winters.

I'm meeting people from all over the world!!! Many from Canada, the UK, Kenya, France, etc. One of the coolest ladies I met is from Cleveland, OH- she has been HIV+ for 18 years and runs a non-profit org to help HIV+ people and their partners to go on retreats, etc. (Even if their partners are NOT HIV+).

More to tell you but my "free" net session is almost expired.

sxeroxishness @ 2006-08-03T19:41:00

2006-08-03T23:43:32Z

i miss you when you're around

anyone interested in watching this with me?

2006-07-29T19:16:54Z

Plot Summary for
Rize (2005)
Reveals a groundbreaking dance phenomenon that's exploding on the streets of South Central, Los Angeles. Taking advantage of unprecedented access, this documentary film bring to first light a revolutionary form of artistic expression borne from oppression. The aggressive and visually stunning dance modernizes moves indigenous to African tribal rituals and features mind-blowing, athletic movement sped up to impossible speeds. We meet Tommy Johnson (Tommy the Clown), who first created the style as a response to the 1992 Rodney King riots and named it Clowning, as well as the kids who developed the movement into what they now call Krumping. The kids use dance as an alternative to gangs and hustling: they form their own troupe and paint their faces like warriors, meeting to outperform rival gangs of dancers or just to hone their skills. For the dancers, Krumping becomes a way of life--and, because it's authentic expression (in complete opposition to the bling-bling hip-hop culture), the dance becomes a vital part of who they are.

Summary written by Sujit R. Varma

how cool?!?!?!

2006-07-21T18:01:26Z

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Today's Featured Articles on http://www.idealist.org
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* From PC World: Geeks for a Good Cause
How's this for appropriate technology? Rather than dishing out
$300 for a wireless internet antenna, a Malian student fashioned
a wifi antenna out of a plastic bottle and some scrap parts at a
cost of about $1. It's just one of the innovations to come out
of Geekcorps, a nonprofit that specializes in making high-tech
tools that meet price and functionality requirements for people
developing countries.

i'm gonna drink that sun!

2006-06-29T16:44:32Z

Leave a comment here and...
1. I'll respond with something random about you.
2. I'll tell you what song/movie reminds me of you.
3. I'll say something that only makes sense to you and me.
4. I'll tell you my first/clearest memory of you.
5. I'll tell you what animal you remind me of.
6. I'll ask you something that I've always wondered about you.
7. If I do this for you, you must post this on your journal. You MUST. It is written.