Born August 4th 1961, Happy Birthday Barack Obama!  Next Year at this time I want to hear someone singing this to YOU!

In this brave new world of secret identities— screen names, avatars, and pseudonyms to represent who we think we are or how we want others to perceive us—we seem to be far more courageous with our “self“ expression.

Anonymity gives us the freedom to be “Ourselves” among others. ?? 

There have been times when the nom de plume served many women in the male dominated 19th century and provided privacy to authors of exposés.

I don’t think those times have passed, just transpired into these times in which we tout freedom of speech through the invisible gag order of patriotism and security. But I digress…

Last night, in reading a local newspaper on line, I observed cruel comments on a particular article which clearly came from folks who would never publish such things with their real names attached. Instead they used sophomoric nick names that incorporated the creativity of a porcupine on quaaludes with the scintillating expressiveness of a rusted barbed wire fence.

It disturbed me to think people could be so mean. It forced me to ponder the deterioration of things we have established as civilized behavior.

We are evolving into a society in which we no longer need to be accountable for things we say because we are protected by a false identity which we created on a keyboard. We may as well get down and dirty, eh?

Let’s all get “Courage” names!

We can send letters, text message, e-mails, and blog under these names without fear of retribution because “we” didn’t say it, our screen name did.

Our new slogan can be “My Avatar made me do it!”

No more awkward social interactions with the added stress of manners and sensitivity!

We can wear our avatar faces in public and say anything we want!

We can tell people they have bad breath, ugly clothes, and cellulite on their butts.

We can mock the less fortunate, cuss at old ladies, and say all manner of mean things that we would never imagine saying to some one if they could see our fragile Real face.

Since my real name is Lea Kelley (Lea means “meadow” and Kelley means “bright headed defender or warrior) I will make my Courage name far more powerful than “a red head defending a field of flowers”

My new courage name is …wait!

If I tell you, I won’t be able to be mean! You’ll know who I am. I will have to behave. Never mind.

A Conduit is a channel for connecting one thing to another.

Some folks are human conduits. They connect people, ideas, and human needs to energy supplies.

These folks are the “Can Do It” Conduits.

You find them at parties, introducing people to one another, on teams, offering encouragement to the underdog, in kitchens feeding the neighborhood, or at community events surrounded by lost tourists.

People flock to these “can do it” Conduits.

They are the electricity that powers humanity to stick together.

HOW TO BECOME A CONDUIT:

Plug your adapter into a reliable source

Make sure you are grounded

Keep an open circuit available

Do not try to run more power than your wiring can handle

Maintain clean connections

Remain insulated from sudden power surges by random external forces

Use your energy wisely

There are People and there are Other People.

Seriously, what’s the difference?

When do “Other People” transform into “People”?

What is the formula for ridding a society of Other People?

And if we do get rid of the Other People, who are the People that will remain?

We are beings who need to touch and be touched.

Marasmus is a form of malnutrition that occurs in babies who do not metabolize proteins. Research has shown that babies who are deprived of touch can develop and even die of this disease— even if they are well fed.

Touch is a part of our developmental process (starting in the womb, skin and the nervous system are connected in the role of primary assimilation of information).

The deprivation of human touch can cause all manner of developmental problems in babies.

The lack of human touch in adults can also cause some trouble with our sense of well being and even our physical health.

The distressing part of loneliness in our culture of individuals who pride themselves in independence and self reliance is the lack of human touch.

Yeah, we have lots of human “contact” over the phone, on the internet, on the street, at work, etc.

But if you live alone without spouse or family, many days can pass without human touch and it can actually hurt you when those days add up to a big chunk of your life.

Deprivation of touch can make your chest ache when you are trying to fall asleep. It can eventually make you jumpy, anxious, or even depressed.

I am so fortunate to have friends to hug or folks that touch my arm when they talk to me. Though I am not a real touchy-feely kind of gal, I am thankful for the touch of others and all that it adds to my  well being.

Hey, reach out and touch someone! (but do it with decorum)

Humility is  a good foundation for a cooperative endeavor.

Humiliation is just a cruelty executed by those who have turned their sense of powerlessness into an art form of blowfish illusion.

Modesty keeps us from being the target of those “bring-you-down-a-peg-or-two” folks with nothing better to do than spend their time bringing others down a peg or two.

And…what is a “peg”? Is it an implement to measure success or arrogance or social standing?

I know a couple folks who line up their pegs so they reach for the sky. That’s okay with me. I have no compulsion to humiliate them or bring them down any number of pegs.

I try to keep all my pegs in a row (laterally because I have a fear of heights)

I respect a humble person.

Though, I do recognize there is a big fat line between Humility and lack of self. I do not honor the humility coerced by religion or induced by authority.

Nor do I enjoy interacting with folks who turn into a puddle of selflessness if you strike up a conversation—I am not inspired by becoming soaked with their puddleness and walking away feeling like there was nobody there. 

But I find genuinely modest people well rooted in reality, with a balanced sense of self.

People with a healthy sense of humility seem to  know the rules about interacting with others and taking turns on the playground.  I have never seen someone with a dignified level of humility practice humiliating another.

These days we seem to thrive on the humiliation of others. We tune in to reality shows to watch people beg to be loved by a bachelor they never met and compete with each other to get rid of their dignity as fast as a camera can capture it. 

We read tabloids that depict the cellulite of celebrities, wait for politicians to make a public faux pas which we then use to point out their inadequacies.

We love bringing our initial adoration of others down a peg or two.

So why do we adore folks in the first place?

Why do we hang others on pegs that will not support the weight of their humanness?

It’s a little like building a house of cards just so you can knock it down.

I once worked as an art teacher with severely emotionally disturbed children. I watched in sadness as they worked so hard to create a beautiful painting to tear it into shreds upon completion.

Why do we work so hard to put folks on pedestals. Why do we need to create a representation of ourselves, our ideals, or our  own aspirations to tear them into shreds when they get to the top peg?

We seem to love watching humble people grow into arrogance after we hoist them above us so we can remind them that they are not really above us by humiliating them back into humility.

I find this curious and a little disturbing but it is an inspiration to maintain my humility and avoid humiliation.

It is always an honor to be a Muse for another artist. It is gratifying to inspire anyone. It makes us feel relevant.

Here’s an example:

I wrote a song over ten years ago in San Francisco.

It was recorded by the band I was playing with at the time (We called ourseves Mercy and we were not famous, just a few hippes playing small venues).

Well the A Muse ing part is this:

7th Child is the name of the song.

The song I wrote in the nineties:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=H1bNPFsRDcQ&feature=related

The song I found on Humboldt music.com by one of the band members from Mercy back in San Francisco:

http://www.humboldtmusic.com/webpage/index.cfm?Sid=2876&id=2097&page=SongDetail

History DOES repeat itself (sometimes in a different voice).

Before they open their eyes…

They are not so scary, huh?

You think hanging out with YOUR relatives is a drama?

Imagine these folks having a meal together at a big round table:

Nicolaus Copernicus sitting in the middle of the table, trying to be the center of attention while Sir Isaac Newton is hovering above it, dropping dinner rolls onto everybody’s head while  Galileo Galilei is sliding across the table, using his napkin like a sail as Henri Poincaré and Hendrik Antoon Lorentz are randomly throwing peas at the other guests while Albert Einstein sits on the floor bending his soup spoon!

Simultaneously to this drama, the Pope is burning dinner as his Energy is focused on Mass.

This story is not relative to any actual event.

You know those moments where you can barely contain yourself, those times when you have an overpowering spasm of affection for someone you love, or you see something so cute (like a kitten or a platypus) that you have to bite your lower lip and squish your hands into a tiny joy fist to keep from squealing?

Well, I have a little dance for that which will provide you with a creative outlet for those intense moments.

It’s called the Happy Buzz Dance. 

Even Ellen Degeneres doesn’t know about it (and Ellen Degeneres is, of course, the best dancer of all time!)

The Happy Buzz Dance is something anyone can do at any time anywhere without a lot of hubbub. It takes approximately 10 seconds and can be done in sneakers, high heels, or mukluks!

I sometimes do the Happy Buzz Dance while I’m waiting for morning coffee to brew or standing in line for an ice cream cone.

Okay, here’s what ya do…

Stand with your feet aligned beneath your shoulders

Bend both your arms at the elbow to make a 45 degree angle

Form your hands into little joy fists

Push your butt out just a little

Put your head back as far as it will go

Squish your eyes shut and try to reach your ears with the corners of your lips

Twist to the left and then to the right while swinging your elbows back and forth (keeping arms bent)

Do this with the speed of a hummingbird while visualizing anyone or anything that inspires a spasm of affection.

Whew! That was Great!

Yesterday was the Gay Pride Festival. The Parade went right by my building! It was Great.

The festival brought out the best in folks. Some had a difficult time with the concept but no problem!

Others just had a good time and some even played with fire without worryin’ about such things as Hell and damnation!

A good time was had by all! (’cept maybe those two guys carrying the heavy burden of those mean scary signs in the heat)

Other than that…

Fun! Fun! Fun!

HAT PEOPLE VIDEO

ABRACADABRA!

NOW YOU SEE IT…

NOW YOU DON’T…

All Things Considered, July 9, 2008 · The Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved an update of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), bringing to an end a 15-month battle over revamping electronic surveillance rules. The bill would grant retroactive immunity for telecom companies that cooperated with warrentless wiretaps

This photo was taken by RobinDude

And this Blog was written by my best friend, Linda Mystery O. Riley

They say it all.

This is obviously a spoof but wouldn’t it be great if it was so simple to fix everything as saying a prayer every night?

CLICK ON PHOTO

Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Presidency

On a busy street corner in a stroller with horns honking, dogs barking, people talking, music blaring from a coffee house, high heels clacking on the sidewalk, teenagers yelling, and a soft breeze blowing through it all…

FACES OF BELLINGHAM

Last night I heard the boom of fireworks and stepped out my back door to catch a photo of the subject of oohs and ahhhs but when I pointed my camera to the sky over the bay, I was much more impressed with this…

I did a photo shoot for the winner of FACES OF BELLINGHAM yesterday.

She was a wonderful person and so was her son.

She sent me home with a giant mason jar of the best lentil soup on Earth (she made it herself).

Her lovely face is posted here: http://facesofbellingham.wordpress.com/2008/07/04/photo-shoot-of-the-contest-winner/

No really, I mean it!

With all the fancy schmancy treats that we have to choose from on the snack aisle of every grocery store in America, isn’t it great to just get back to the basics?

mmmmm peanut butter cookies.