Walking Diary with Buddha Tree

I've walked and bicycled past this tree often. The group of three trees each has a knot or a wound or a branch-ectomy that pained me to see until I noticed the smiling Buddha face in the northward facing tree. Its sibling trees have the knots facing south. The north face Buddha is the only one smiling. Whether I walk or bike north:south or south:north I always smile at this tree, and remember that smiles are contagious, and no matter what life tosses into existence, it's good to be alive.

Prana, Qi and Biocentrism

Read Biocentrism last night by Dr. Robert Lanza, MD and Bob Berman, astronomer. I don't remember the direct route that led me to this book (I find reading science/cosmology/metaphysical in combination makes me forget my name and all my passwords.) I zipped right through the book which leads me to believe that I am already on the path, or I totally don't get it. Maybe a little of both. The book quotes a Zen saying, "Name the color, blind the eye," and perhaps putting a label to consciousness does the same to awareness. But the book addresses the questions I have right now. What was there before the Big Bang? What is the universe expanding into? Quantum physics doesn't answer. The answer cannot be nothing, because nothing is not model-based reality. Even Einstein was perplexed by the concept that physics works on a galactic scale, but not on the atomic level or below. Waves act like waves until someone spots one and then it holds its breath and becomes a particle. Oops! Spotted. Quantum physics can measure what we collectively agree, in our model-based reality of mathematics, on a large scale but it is contradictory to what occurs on a small scale. But physicists are absolutely certain that sometime in the very near future, a Grand Unified Theory (GUT) will wrap it all nicely together. In waves or strings, or M-theory, or vintage jacquard ribbon? Superposition experiments now underway might reveal something. But what if, just what if, as the authors of Biocentrism query, what if consciousness is what created it all? This gets right to the art of Einstein's "spooky action at a distance." Suppose that in the beginning there were waves of probability, and then there was awareness. Suppose that external and internal are just language distinctions. Suppose there is entanglement on an unimaginable scale, from subatomic to multi-universal? Suppose EPR correlation is behind our eyeballs, encased in bone? We're trained to accept science as it is from early on. We flavor it with a little traditional religion. Then we start asking questions that aren't answered by sources we used to trust. Saying, "Because I said so" only works for parents, quantum physicists and religious leaders for a while. What then? We look elsewhere. We look within. We meditate and see stuff we cannot believe we see. I'm a lousy meditator. I have cartoons I've drawn about how bad I am at it. But I'm getting better, not with practice, but with letting go of model-based reality. I saw something this year in meditation. Two spheres approaching each other from opposite horizontal directions, within the spheres infinite other spheres together. When and where the spheres touched, energy exploded in every scale of color from the place the spheres touched. We were called out of meditation, and I told what I had seen. Reverend Lorna Brown nodded, and said what I had seen was prana. I had to look it up. It was powerful, mesmerizing, comforting and electric to see this unfold behind my eyes. I came straight home and made a gif animation so I would remember. Perhaps one day soon, rather than let physics handle the heavy lifting, we will combine studies. I want to shake the hand of the first biophysicosmobotanicalmetaphysicalist. I will, until I learn her true name, call her Reverend Mother Doctor Wow.

Thanksgiving Day Traditions

Lions and the Packers. Grandpa, Dad, Uncle Bill, Uncle Ken taking a walk after dinner in their topcoats and fedoras. Women in the kitchen with aprons and pearls. Aunt Leota's pfeffernüsse. Auntie Mabel's trifle and blue hair. Singing "Happy Wanderer" with Grandpa playing his melodeon. An interesting piece on npr this morning about the first Thanksgiving. This year I'll remember family and loved people who are enjoying the bounty of the universe elsewhere, hug the family that will be at my sister's house, and be grateful for the memories past and those still to be experienced.

HVCA Arts&Greens Holiday Market

Huron Valley Council for the Arts put on their Arts&Greens Holiday market at Bogie Lake Greenhouse this past weekend. This event is always beautiful, well attended, and festive. We were there with Lazar, The Good Deed Dog, and my novel Chantepleure. After our book signing time, Geri and I walked the show, visited with artisans and enjoyed the company. Geri found some holiday gifts at Linda Locher's L3 Art Dolls booth. Wonderful happy art! We talked with Cindy Cillick Geist before the show. I remembered her from last year and enthused "the purse lady!" she said Mary Bajcz was there also, and she was thus only 1/2 the purse lady. Cindy wore a stunning watercolor jacket she found at Salvation Army, and recognizing the good bones bought it for $1.25 and dyed the silk. Priceless! She showed Geri and I the shawls she makes and how the fabric is a mobius (wrong side stitched at the underarm seam to right side.) She finds worthy fabric, and dyes the silk. Machine washable! I remarked. She said "you think all those folks in Asia are dry cleaning their clothes?" I'll be washing my silk henceforth. We spoke with Lynne McLean, fiber artist about her wool felted sculptures. Perched high atop her booth set-up was a handsome Wine Dragon - she is known as "The Dragon Lady" although her animals, wizards and Santas are just as stunning. A large sun with a wry expression and a single pierced ray made us laugh. She explained felting with a barbed needle, as well as soap and water wet rolling techniques. The wings on The Wine Dragon are rolled with metallic fiber, using the wet method. Fantastic sculptures, so lifelike I expected the dragon to breath fire. You'll be seeing more of her work here. I love her art and asked if she would be willing to be interviewed. She said she would, and she has a photo of The Wine Dragon to share! You may see and buy these artists' work at the Black Sheep Weavers Fiber Guild holiday show December 3rd-4th in Hartland, Michigan.

No More msnbc For Me

Tonight I turned on the television after dinner for Dad and the first words I heard on Hardball were Sarah Palin. If I wanted to find Sarah Palin, I'd go look for her. I don't. And I have no interest in Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, FoxNews either. But if we composed a tag/ or word/cloud from msnbc's shows beginning at 5 and ending at 11, I can guarantee that the top words would be these. msnbc struggles to match Fox shows' ratings, doesn't come close, and can't seem to find a clue why. Here's a clue: I'm done watching msnbc. No more watching shows that cover the competition subject matter more than any other newsworthy interest. I'll watch Rachel Maddow only. When I can stay up that late.

Lazar Is A Star!

Lazar, The Good Deed Dog was the best selling book at the 59th annual JCC Metropolitan Detroit Book Fair, held November 1 through 14, 2010 in West Bloomfield, Michigan. With 65 authors represented with premiering books, Myrna Gelman Shanker's first published children's book found an appreciative audience. Lazar himself was in attendance for the reading on November 14th and greeted many friends and relatives of residents at the Fleischman Residence/Blumberg Plaza. Mazel tov! to Lazar, Myrna Gelman Shanker, and all the wonderful people who know and love Lazar's story. A portion of the proceeds from each book sold benefits the quality of life for Jewish Senior Life of Metropolitan Life.

Introducing the New Boot

Not same as the old boot. Two boots for added impact. I like these boots and the blog will enjoy wearing them. Classy, womanly with strong character. A touch vintage, a dash kinky. Lola would like. There's enough fussiness here with all those laces and grommets that I assume the wearer is fabulously well-to-do enough to hire someone to lace the things up. On The Boots first outing: Dove Men+Care commercials for foaming shower gel for cleaning - man hide. If I was a giggler, I'd be doing that. Skin must be too girly for men with hides to have. And what's body hair, I wonder? Man fur?