Saturday, January 29, 2005"complimentary medicine"
I just found a great reference site on "alternative" medicine put out by medical doctors, including information on specific herbs and supplements.
If you have an ailment you're wondering about how to treat, look it up on the conditions page.
It's good to see members of the medical establishment opening their minds to, studying, and promoting a more holistic approach to health!
University of Maryland Medical Center Complimentary Medicine Program
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/index.html
A core component of CMP's mission is to evaluate the contribution of complementary therapies to patient care and healing in an out-patient, integrated medical clinic. Our highly qualified staff of practitioners and medical doctors are dedicated to providing an optimal therapeutic environment. We specialize in whole-person, individualized care and offer an expanded range of conventional and CAM options.
posted @ 12:48 AM PDT Friday, January 28, 2005the joy of learning there is so much more to learn
after a long education
both in classrooms and
the World I am somehow
a kindergartener again
posted @ 09:43 PM PDT Thursday, January 27, 2005let's face up to our biological reality
Some members of the Catholic Church are speaking up about the Vatican's refusal to condone the use of birth control, especially condoms.
Spain's bishops reject stand on condoms
Church spokesman condoned their use to prevent AIDS
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/01/20/MNG4OAT70T1.DTL
Martinez's words, published in Italian newspapers Wednesday, created a stir in the Vatican. Bishop Jose Luis Redrado Machite, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers, asserted that use of condoms was "contrary to Catholic morality."
One Vatican official conjectured that the Spanish bishops conference may have been following the influence of Jesuit leaders in appearing to accept condom use. Jesuit clerics in Africa, where the spread of AIDS is among the most severe in the world, have openly pressed for the condom ban to be lifted.
Catholic Church and Birth Control
http://www.lisashea.com/lisabase/aboutme/birthcontrol.html
Catholics merrily maintain this differentiation between "being Catholic" and "doing what the Pope says to do", while donating millions of dollars to fund the Pope's agenda. Even more disturbing, only 17.3% of the world is Catholic - but their doctrines on issues such as birth control and abortion affect every single woman. There have been countless studies that tie birth control and abortion rights to better living conditions (and survival rates!) for females and for entire families. I.e. proper family planning ensures that the family has good living conditions - while having too many kids can cause death for the mother and squalor for the family members.
The full responsibility here lies with Catholic Church members. It's not like NON Catholics can get the Catholic church to change. 96% of Catholic women have used birth control - yet they give money and support to an institution which is the SOLE voice against birth control. It is their responsibility to force the Catholic church to change - or to withhold that income so that the church does not have the power. Otherwise they are directly responsible for the casualties caused across the entire world, because of their "paid representatives" in the clergy. Nobody else can possibly cause that change to occur.
posted @ 11:45 PM PDT Saturday, January 22, 2005not quite a GPS
Out of curiosity, I'm going to take a look in the forest behind my place and see if there are any similar patterns around here. The rain might be an issue though...
Feeling lost? Rocks can point the way
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6853431
Night has fallen, and you are lost in the middle of an unfamiliar desert. There are ways to find your bearings by looking up at the stars. But how about looking down at the rocks?
According to Leslie McFadden of the University of New Mexico, there may be a kind of compass in the alignment of cracks in certain rocks.
posted @ 10:59 AM PDT Friday, January 21, 2005Country virus
It's almost scary. I've always had diverse musical tastes, but I'm getting obsessed with Country music. This is very strange as I generally listen to electronica.
Who says I can't like Psytrance and Country at the same time? Ok, maybe only seperately :)
Most Country sucks though. I don't like that pop Nashville sound or cheezball music that's more marketing than inspiration.
Right now I have a song from the Loretta Lynn album Jack White produced (Van Lear Rose) stuck in my head. There's something about that old timey upright bass sound, plus I love the words...
high on a mountaintop
we live, we love, and we laugh a lot
folks up here know what they got
high on a mountaintop
high on a mountaintop
where the rest of the world's
like a little bitty spot
I ain't comin down no never I'm not
high on a mountaintop
high on a mountaintop
posted @ 09:02 PM PDT Wednesday, January 19, 2005scientists & lobbyists
This is another one of those jobs I can't imagine doing. How do they sleep at night?
Kudos to this scientist for speaking up!
Americans are trying to discredit me, claims Chief Scientist
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/environment/story.jsp?story=601497
"You have a group of lobbyists, some of whom are chasing me around the planet, which I'm chuffed about because it means they are worrying about what I'm saying, and these lobbyists stand up after I've given an hour's talk and say, 'There are scientists who disagree with you'," Sir David said.
"I always say, 'Which bit of the science that I've just presented to you are you challenging'? I don't get the answer."
posted @ 12:00 PM PDT Monday, January 17, 2005bricks and mortar
sometimes when
the inner mind
doth protest a
little bit too
much on slippy
subjects close
inspection can
reveal ancient
walls designed
to hide primal
natural truths
from your view
posted @ 08:53 PM PDT Saturday, January 15, 2005how they pick what gets in the news
Here's an interesting entry from a public relations blog about how to make a story more likely to get on the news:
Newsworthiness: The Psychology of News
http://101publicrelations.com/blog/archives/000171.html
Believe it or not, part of what makes a news story "newsworthy" is it's ability to entertain. After all, when it comes right down to the essence - ratings are what drive the media business, not the desire to communicate the news.
So one of the key learnings for most PR people, who probably don't represent organizations who consistently produce information that's newsworthy on its own, is to consciously step back and consider how to make a story more newsworthy. One key way to do that is through adding an element of entertainment value, or said another way, to add some element that will cause the media outlet's ratings to increase as a result of airing your particular story.
For example, consider many of the socialites like Paris Hilton, heiress of the Hilton Hotel fortune. She has steadily made herself famous, not for having done anything worthwhile, but because she keeps doing things that attract media attention.
She does things like dating Leonardo DiCaprio, showing up on every worthwhile red carpet in the world, and having regular vicious fights with high-profile people in public places.
posted @ 12:06 AM PDT Friday, January 14, 2005develop momentum today!
Today I started working in earnest on my first song! I've always been into music and writing (I did a double major B.A. in English and Music at magical Macalester College) but somehow have never combined the two. I was so stuck in my classical flute bubble (and dealing with shyness and a heavy load of homework) that I never even thought of trying. How ridiculous is that?
That was over 10 years ago, I've grown up a lot since then. I'm not sure what I was so afraid of...
Discovering the drums in 2003 changed my life. I had a small drum in my house that was being used as a decoration for over a year. I took it down from the shelf to dust it probably once during that time. I never attempted to play it. While I was packing for the Om Festival, I noticed the drum on the shelf and something in my head said, "bring it!"
My first night at the festival, I was in my tent trying to sleep and heard drumming from a nearby campfire. I got up, ran down there with the little drum, and discovered I could get into the groove instantly. All those years of classical training and I'd never noticed that I had a way with rhythm!
I enjoyed the drum circles, but craved more complexity. I wanted to be able to create several layers of rhythm at once by myself. I bought a drum kit & took lessons for just over a year with Shawn Eisenberg in Toronto and am very glad I did, because he taught me some valuable lessons about music, proper technique, & life! I'm currently looking for a new teacher in the Lower Mainland of B.C. ...
I realized that I was always a drummer but just never had the courage to try it. I always had a thing for drummers in high school, too. Though I wish I'd started playing back then, I'm glad I've got another chance at it.
It's going to be a bit of time before I'm a really good drummer, but I *will* get there. I know this because I love to play and learn something new every day. It's activating areas of my brain that I haven't used yet and inspiring me to do crazy things like write songs. It's quite satisfying!
Maybe I'll have a jazz combo in my golden years & play on cruise ships...
Don't be afraid to create! It takes time to nurture and develop creative talents. Pick something you enjoy and just DO IT without judging yourself for being "not good enough" (or letting other people discourage you!!) If you're enjoying it, you'll keep doing it and you'll get better and better. Don't be afraid to hop from one thing to the next if you feel like it.
Some of those who "don't have time" for such things might want to examine how much time they are spending watching TV and/or playing Grand Theft Auto...
If you have kids, come up with projects that include them!
Also, as grannyish as it sounds, I'm thinking of taking up knitting. Anyone have any advice on where to begin with that?
posted @ 12:24 PM PDT Wednesday, January 12, 2005why America votes "conservative"
Do you find it baffling that people who aren't billionaires actually support the Bush administration?
Here are two clues that may help explain it...
The Conservative Marketing Machine
http://alternet.org/mediaculture/20946
While the leaders of the conservative movement like to boast that the power of their movement lies in the power of its ideas, the ideas of today's conservative movement are the same old failed policies from years gone by, spit-shined and with user-friendly names. The power of the conservative movement is not in its ideas, rather it is in the marketing of these ideas, primarily through effective packaging, promotion and distribution.
The S Factor Explains Bush's Popularity
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0107-08.htm
It's the "Stupid factor," the S factor: Some people -- sometimes through no fault of their own -- are just not very bright.
It's not merely that some people are insufficiently intelligent to grasp the nuances of foreign policy, of constitutional law, of macroeconomics or of the variegated interplay of humans and the environment. These aren't the people I'm referring to. The people I'm referring to cannot understand the phenomenon of cause and effect. They're perplexed by issues comprising more than two sides. They don't have the wherewithal to expand the sources of their information. And above all -- far above all -- they don't think.
You know these people; they're all around you (they're not you, else you would not be reading this article this far). They're the ones who keep the puerile shows on TV, who appear as regular recipients of the Darwin Awards, who raise our insurance rates by doing dumb things, who generally make life much more miserable for all of us than it ought to be. Sad to say, they comprise a substantial minority -- perhaps even a majority -- of the populace.
posted @ 03:32 PM PDT Tuesday, January 11, 2005donating for Tsunami relief
The outpouring of sympathy and cash for victims of the tsunami in Asia has been incredible. I really do believe that most people are really good at heart!
However, I have my doubts about some of the new charities that have sprung up. Beware of fake charities!
Make sure that you're donating to someone legitimate who will actually be doing some good with your money.
I suggest Unicef, The Red Cross, and/or Oxfam.
posted @ 05:18 PM PDT Sunday, January 9, 2005cars of the future?
The government should be putting major dollars into pushing new ways of fueling vehicles. Unfortunately, the USA is run by oil barons who want to keep the oil economy going as long as possible for their own personal gain.
Most of the major automakers can see that the end of oil is coming, and are working on developing hydrogen powered cars.
It remains to be seen if these vehicles will become available/affordable for the general public anytime soon...
Automakers put hydrogen on fast track
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6803788
But for all the exotic gizmos on the Sequel, an experimental hydrogen-powered car to be shown today by General Motors Corp., the biggest breakthrough is that it is designed to drive as far and accelerate as quickly as the cars in most driveways.
The Sequel uses fuel-cell technology that until now has not matched the overall performance of gasoline engines. GM is introducing the car at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit as rival companies make similar announcements.
posted @ 10:52 AM PDT Saturday, January 8, 2005houses of cards
When I was a kid I would sometimes try to build houses out of playing cards, but I could never get them to stay up.
Check out some pictures of amazing card structures.
posted @ 09:03 PM PDT Friday, January 7, 2005censored news
The media analysis group Project Censored has released their list of the top 25 censored stories for 2003-2004.
Here's #1:
Wealth Inequality in 21st Century Threatens Economy and Democracy
http://www.projectcensored.org/publications/2005/1.html
During the short boom of the late 1990s, conservative analysts asserted that, yes, the gap between rich and poor was growing, but that incomes for the poor were still increasing over previous levels. Today most economists, regardless of their political persuasion, agree that the data over the last 25 to 30 years is unequivocal. The top 5% is capturing an increasingly greater portion of the pie while the bottom 95% is clearly losing ground, and the highly touted American middle class is fast disappearing.
According to economic journalist, David Cay Johnston, author of ˆ£Perfectly Legal,ˆ§ this trend is not the result of some naturally occurring, social Darwinist ˆ£survival of the fittest.ˆ§ It is the product of legislative policies carefully crafted and lobbied for by corporations and the super-rich over the past 25 years.
posted @ 06:34 PM PDT Thursday, January 6, 2005new working title for "the book"
Inspired by the gathering I went to over New Years (where the amazing people in attendance affirmed my belief that humankind is evolving amidst the "chaos") I came up with a new working title for the book I've been working on for ages:
The Latent Superhero's Guide to Self-Activation
(For Fun & Survival)
What do you think?
Stay tuned.
posted @ 06:05 PM PDT Monday, January 3, 2005happy New Year
Happy New Year!!
I've been away at a New Year's retreat in a gorgeous boat-access only campground north of Vancouver. It was good to get away from the news, from cars, and from computers for a few days!
The event consisted of workshops, amazing music, and a wide variety of other creative pursuits. I danced, I drummed, I made silly noises, I made a hula hoop, I made new friends. The scenery was awe-inspiring.
I am definitely enjoying the West Coast.
posted @ 11:56 PM PDT
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