It's a New Day!

Never before in my life was I interested in watching an inauguration ….or anything to do with one. I don’t even watch T.V. really but on Tuesday I watched the entire days’ events, from the ceremony to the parade straight into the balls. Thirteen hours of it! I felt like I was celebrating a new era along with the whole world! And I think it may have been one of the most emotional days of my life. I must have cried ten times. I loved every minute of it!
After I watched the events with family all day, I went home and turned on a channel with no commentary or voices, only the sounds of the parade with Mr. And Mrs. Obama watching it. Most everyone else had left the viewing stand already but the Obamas stood watching with delighted interest until the very end. Right then a carnival krewe from San Antionio, Texas came through and I watched as the two of them shared a moment. I saw a look in their eyes that proved to me that they are sooooo in love with each other. And I realized, as well as everything else, that we had gained a wonderful role model, a couple who are genuinely in love with one another other.
And the day just kept getting better! The parade was one of the best parts to me of course. It was incredibly diverse. I loved seeing the Special Olympics marching right before the Peace Corps, then hundreds of uniformed service men marching in perfect sinc and later on the Native American representation. The stateliness of it all was just so amazing.
But my very favorite part of the parade was the Gay and Lesbian Band of America. Their band leader was so incredibly flaming! I loved seeing him strutting down the avenue, head held high, marching to the tune of his own drum! I can’t remember seeing someone so proud to be alive! I just burst into tears then because that is when it really hit me…..I knew then that I was witnessing history. It had to be the first time ever that the Gay and Lesbian Band of America had been permitted into a presidential inauguration parade. At that moment it was truly evident that the Obama Administration really would embrace diversity. It was beautiful! And then at the end came NASA and the astronauts in their space suits and I just burst into tears again!
The American dream of, we can accomplish anything, is happening and I believe we have manifested a brilliant leader. When I look at Barrack, I feel like “ I know this man. This man is just like me.” He is really just an average person wanting to live up to the fullest potential and do his best to help humanity. Someone who recognizes the diversity of all people and accepts them for who they are.
I have been singing this song for two days now. The dream that I’ve been dreaming, finally came true! It’s a new day! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHWByjoQrR8
And if you were not inspired enough, go check this out! ? http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1603121/20090120/story.jhtml
I pledge to spend more time to work for the rights of indigenous people and animals. What’s your pledge?

Happy Birthday Martin Luther King!

I love this Stevie Wonder song. It must have been written in the 70’s because it’s all about how there should be a day dedicated to Martin Luther King, Jr. I heard it for the first time just a couple of days before Barrack was elected President and I just could not stop thinking about how much he reminds me of King. His acceptance speech was so eloquent, just like King was. Then I heard a lot of others saying the same thing about him.
Anyway, for the first few days after the election I would just sit at my altar listening to this song over and over and just crying tears of joy. Realizing “the Dream” really was coming true, for humanity and for myself as an individual. When I was young, M. L. King was my greatest hero and my whole life I have wished for someone else who could be a great leader to us all. And now I believe humanity has finally been gifted with him, a man who is for the people, who is genuine and peaceful and will listen to us for a change! Let’s hope so!

Now it does’nt make much sense
Oughta be a law against
Any one who takes offense
At a
Day in your celebration

Cuz we all know in our minds
That there oughta be a time
That we can set aside
To show
Just how much we love you.

And I’m sure you would agree
What would fit more perfectly
Than to have a world party
On the day you came to be!

Happy Birthday to Ya!
Happy Birthday to Ya!
Happy Birthday!

I just never understood
How a man who died for good
Could not have a day that would
Be set
Aside for his recognition

Because it could never be
Just because some can not see
The dream as clear as he
That they
should make it become an illusion

And we all know everything
That he stood for
Time will bring
Or in peace our hearts will sing!
Thanks to Martin Luther King!

Happy Birthday to Ya!
Happy Birthday to Ya!
Happy Birthday!

Why has there never been a holiday
When peace is celebrated
All throughout the world

The time is overdue
For people like me and you
Who know the way of truth
Is love
and unity to all gods children

To be afraid of it
In the hope that should be spent
In full rememberance
Of those
Who lived and died for the wonders of our people.

So let us all begin
We know that love can win
Let it out!
Don’t hold it in!
Say it loud as you can!

Happy Birthday to Ya!
Happy Birthday to Ya!
Happy Birthday!
Haaapppppy!
BiiiirthDaaaay!
Haaapppppy!
BiiiirthDaaaay!

We know the key
to unity of all people
Is in the dream you had so long ago.
A glimpse in all of the hearts of people
Who believe.
We’ll make the dream become a reality.
I know we will,
Because our hearts tell us so.

Quit Buying So Much Stuff and Use What You Already Have!

My sister gave me a great poster for Christmas, which I’ll use as my new motto’ “Give Love, Buy Nothing”.
Like most Americans I have tons of stuff. I have stuff to decorate my house with (like tons of draping fabrics), stuff to make my job easier in the kitchen (like two pizza cutters), stuff to keep the house clean (like 3 brooms), and stuff to just have (like an altar to Fairies). But how much of it do I really need or even use?
Lately I have decided that the point to having this stuff is to use it, so I have been going through all my stuff to find stuff that is not being used and use it. Being a costume artist I have lots and lots of it so what I have done, for starters, is to compile as much of my stuff as possible into my best costumes, so that now my favorite costumes are even more spectacular! It’s a great feeling knowing you are using what you have!
I am no longer going to buy stuff for the hell of it. It’s a total waste. We are wasting money, natural resources and people’s energy just to make all this stuff. Somehow we all came to believe that to consume is part of our duty to keeping the economy alive. In fact we were told that and have been taught that since the 50’s.
You see we all collect stuff we need, or think we need, stuff for fun and stuff to make our lives more comfortable. But I bet if you looked around you would see a lot of stuff that you have that you never use! How much clutter do you have in your house when you really look at it?
I recently heard that 99% of the stuff we obtain gets trashed or becomes useless soon after we buy it. Here is a great link about the Story of Stuff. It will really make you think about the wastefulness of such massive consumerism and has lots of enlightening facts to consider. http://www.storyofstuff.com/
And let’s not forget what a distraction all this stuff is too. We are so involved in our stuff (moving it, reorganizing it, shopping for it and earning money to buy more of it) that we don’t seem to have enough time for the things that are really important to us like family, friends and relationships.
Just start to pay attention to it and you will see how all your stuff even wastes your time just thinking about it constantly. It is time for us all to reconsider how we spend our time and money, how we consume and how we really truly support the economy. Take time to think about how we can best support the economy without being so damb wasteful! Please, for the sake of every one of us (and the planet) quit consuming and use what you’ve already got!

Proof That Mary Jane Has Been Used by Medicine People for Millenia

The World's Oldest Stash: Scientists Find 2,700 Year Old Pot
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/12/08/the-world%E2%80%99s-oldest-stash-scientists-find-2700-year-old-pot/

Save Troy Davis

A couple of months ago my Mother and I went to a vigil for Troy Davis. Troy has been on death row for something like 17 years, is presumed innocent and was scheduled for execution.
We were there with a couple of hundred others on the State Capital steps in protest of his execution. Troy was accused of killing a policeman in Savannah after 9 witnesses claimed that he did it. Since then 7 of the 9 have taken back their confessions. One said he could not even read but the police were telling him to sign the statement or else. And there is also no physical evidence to prove that Troy did it, not even a murder weapon or DNA.
Why, in the year 2008, is our court system so antiquated that it still feels it has the right to take anothers life, regardless of the circumstances? Should’nt that be the Creator’s job?
I don’t believe in the death penalty.
I think it’s a system that should be abolished all together. Too many times people are executed without enough evidence to rightfully call them guilty or after execution it is discovered that they indeed were innocent. Not to mention the surmounting evidence that indeed the execution drugs used are inhumaine and cause tremendous pain. The drugs used for execution are not even used by the Humaine Society because of their torturous effects.
And here are a few other facts, from the Amnesty International website:

The death penalty is broken!
• 130 people since 1973 have been exonerated from death rows (5 from GA)
• GA has not fully funded legal defense for the poor
• Race, poverty and county often play a stronger role in sentencing than the brutality of crimes
• 80% of Georgia death sentences have been reversed due to serious error

T h e G e o r g i a G e n e r a l A s s e m b l y s h o u l d :
Ta k e a t i m e - o u t o n e x e c u t i o n s , s t u d y a n d a d d r e s s t h e s y s t e m a t i c p r o b l e m s
P r o t e c t t h e s a f e g u a r d o f h a v i n g a l l 1 2 j u r o r s d e c i d e o n d e a t h s e n t e n c e s
En s u r e l a w e n f o r c e m e n t f o l l o w s s t a n d a r d s f o r a c c u r a t e e y e w i t n e s s i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s
Fu l l y f u n d t h e p u b l i c d e f e n d e r’s o f f i c e s o t h e p o o r h a v e e q u a l j u s t i c e

It looks to me more like a broken system where people are do not have the priviledge of their full human rights. Where especially the underpriviledged are treated with distrust and disrespect as though they do not deserve the same treatment as others. It is just another power trip and it is obviously not working to scare people from commiting crimes (seeing as how our prisons are more full than ever in history or even anywhere else in the world).
In the end however, it looks like our efforts and those of many others may pay off. In October Troy's case arrived in the high court of Georgia just two hours before he was to be executed. We are still waiting to see if the judges will rule on whether there is enough evidence to grant Davis a new trial. There has been no date set for when the panel will issue its ruling.