At CHA community benefit conference. On promoting community health: It makes more sense to build a fence at the top of a cliff than park an ambulance at the bottom.
Now that's food for thought...
-- Post From My iPhone.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Scapegoats?
And now for a very important message on unemployment... note this story comes from here in Issaquah!
http://tinyurl.com/2aw5r7m
http://tinyurl.com/2aw5r7m
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Running in Bear Country
I miss trail running... I was reminded how much this morning when I ran with a friend and we did a couple of small trails. Bear activity has been low this month (I think!) but I was reminded of this sign. Thought it would be fun to share! :-)
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Anyone can garden
I am the only person in my family who was not born with the gardening gene. So imagine their surprise when our quest to go organic/unprocessed led to this in our backyard:
We also have 14 potted tomato plants, an eggplant and a few other potted goodies on our patio. Amazingly enough, I haven't killed anything yet!
I love picking fresh salad every night. The hubby isn't totally hip on some of my more creative organic dishes, like this one:
Flat leaf parsley, pepper and quinoa salad.
He'll come around.
I'm looking for new kale and parsley recipes... Any good ones out there?
-- Post From My iPhone
We also have 14 potted tomato plants, an eggplant and a few other potted goodies on our patio. Amazingly enough, I haven't killed anything yet!
I love picking fresh salad every night. The hubby isn't totally hip on some of my more creative organic dishes, like this one:
Flat leaf parsley, pepper and quinoa salad.
He'll come around.
I'm looking for new kale and parsley recipes... Any good ones out there?
-- Post From My iPhone
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
On my healthy food bandwagon again...
It really doesn't matter if your kid "looks proportionate" now. This crap will catch up to their health. Childhood obesity rates in America have tripled since 1980. Please pay attention to the food you buy and feed your family!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32965279/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32965279/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Interesting Read. What do you think?
Ephphatha Poetry: "Imagine if the Tea Party Was Black" - Tim Wise
ephphatha-poetry.blogspot.com
Let’s play a game, shall we? The name of the game is called “Imagine.” The way it’s played is simple: we’ll envision recent happenings in the news, but then change them up a bit. Instead of envisioning white people as the main actors in the scenes we’ll conjure - the ones who are driving the action - we’ll envision black folks or other people of color instead. The object of the game is to imagine the public reaction to the events or incidents, if the main actors were of color, rather than white. Whoever gains the most insight into the workings of race in America, at the end of the game, wins.
So let’s begin.
Imagine that hundreds of black protesters were to descend upon Washington DC and Northern Virginia, just a few miles from the Capitol and White House, armed with AK-47s, assorted handguns, and ammunition. And imagine that some of these protesters —the black protesters — spoke of the need for political revolution, and possibly even armed conflict in the event that laws they didn’t like were enforced by the government? Would these protester — these black protesters with guns — be seen as brave defenders of the Second Amendment, or would they be viewed by most whites as a danger to the republic? What if they were Arab-Americans? Because, after all, that’s what happened recently when white gun enthusiasts descended upon the nation’s capital, arms in hand, and verbally announced their readiness to make war on the country’s political leaders if the need arose.
Imagine that white members of Congress, while walking to work, were surrounded by thousands of angry black people, one of whom proceeded to spit on one of those congressmen for not voting the way the black demonstrators desired. Would the protesters be seen as merely patriotic Americans voicing their opinions, or as an angry, potentially violent, and even insurrectionary mob? After all, this is what white Tea Party protesters did recently in Washington.
Imagine that a rap artist were to say, in reference to a white president: “He’s a piece of shit and I told him to suck on my machine gun.” Because that’s what rocker Ted Nugent said recently about President Obama.
Imagine that a prominent mainstream black political commentator had long employed an overt bigot as Executive Director of his organization, and that this bigot regularly participated in black separatist conferences, and once assaulted a white person while calling them by a racial slur. When that prominent black commentator and his sister — who also works for the organization — defended the bigot as a good guy who was misunderstood and “going through a tough time in his life” would anyone accept their excuse-making? Would that commentator still have a place on a mainstream network? Because that’s what happened in the real world, when Pat Buchanan employed as Executive Director of his group, America’s Cause, a blatant racist who did all these things, or at least their white equivalents: attending white separatist conferences and attacking a black woman while calling her the n-word.
Imagine that a black radio host were to suggest that the only way to get promoted in the administration of a white president is by “hating black people,” or that a prominent white person had only endorsed a white presidential candidate as an act of racial bonding, or blamed a white president for a fight on a school bus in which a black kid was jumped by two white kids, or said that he wouldn’t want to kill all conservatives, but rather, would like to leave just enough—“living fossils” as he called them—“so we will never forget what these people stood for.” After all, these are things that Rush Limbaugh has said, about Barack Obama’s administration, Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama, a fight on a school bus in Belleville, Illinois in which two black kids beat up a white kid, and about liberals, generally.
Imagine that a black pastor, formerly a member of the U.S. military, were to declare, as part of his opposition to a white president’s policies, that he was ready to “suit up, get my gun, go to Washington, and do what they trained me to do.” This is, after all, what Pastor Stan Craig said recently at a Tea Party rally in Greenville, South Carolina.
Imagine a black radio talk show host gleefully predicting a revolution by people of color if the government continues to be dominated by the rich white men who have been “destroying” the country, or if said radio personality were to call Christians or Jews non-humans, or say that when it came to conservatives, the best solution would be to “hang ‘em high.” And what would happen to any congressional representative who praised that commentator for “speaking common sense” and likened his hate talk to “American values?” After all, those are among the things said by radio host and best-selling author Michael Savage, predicting white revolution in the face of multiculturalism, or said by Savage about Muslims and liberals, respectively. And it was Congressman Culbertson, from Texas, who praised Savage in that way, despite his hateful rhetoric.
Imagine a black political commentator suggesting that the only thing the guy who flew his plane into the Austin, Texas IRS building did wrong was not blowing up Fox News instead. This is, after all, what Anne Coulter said about Tim McVeigh, when she noted that his only mistake was not blowing up the New York Times.
Imagine that a popular black liberal website posted comments about the daughter of a white president, calling her “typical redneck trash,” or a “whore” whose mother entertains her by “making monkey sounds.” After all that’s comparable to what conservatives posted about Malia Obama on freerepublic.com last year, when they referred to her as “ghetto trash.”
Imagine that black protesters at a large political rally were walking around with signs calling for the lynching of their congressional enemies. Because that’s what white conservatives did last year, in reference to Democratic party leaders in Congress.
In other words, imagine that even one-third of the anger and vitriol currently being hurled at President Obama, by folks who are almost exclusively white, were being aimed, instead, at a white president, by people of color. How many whites viewing the anger, the hatred, the contempt for that white president would then wax eloquent about free speech, and the glories of democracy? And how many would be calling for further crackdowns on thuggish behavior, and investigations into the radical agendas of those same people of color?
To ask any of these questions is to answer them. Protest is only seen as fundamentally American when those who have long had the luxury of seeing themselves as prototypically American engage in it. When the dangerous and dark “other” does so, however, it isn’t viewed as normal or natural, let alone patriotic. Which is why Rush Limbaugh could say, this past week, that the Tea Parties are the first time since the Civil War that ordinary, common Americans stood up for their rights: a statement that erases the normalcy and “American-ness” of blacks in the civil rights struggle, not to mention women in the fight for suffrage and equality, working people in the fight for better working conditions, and LGBT folks as they struggle to be treated as full and equal human beings.
And this, my friends, is what white privilege is all about. The ability to threaten others, to engage in violent and incendiary rhetoric without consequence, to be viewed as patriotic and normal no matter what you do, and never to be feared and despised as people of color would be, if they tried to get away with half the shit we do, on a daily basis.
Game Over.
Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S. Wise has spoken in 48 states, on over 400 college campuses, and to community groups around the nation. Wise has provided anti-racism training to teachers nationwide, and has trained physicians and medical industry professionals on how to combat racial inequities in health care. His latest book is called Between Barack and a Hard Place.
-- Post From My iPhone
ephphatha-poetry.blogspot.com
Let’s play a game, shall we? The name of the game is called “Imagine.” The way it’s played is simple: we’ll envision recent happenings in the news, but then change them up a bit. Instead of envisioning white people as the main actors in the scenes we’ll conjure - the ones who are driving the action - we’ll envision black folks or other people of color instead. The object of the game is to imagine the public reaction to the events or incidents, if the main actors were of color, rather than white. Whoever gains the most insight into the workings of race in America, at the end of the game, wins.
So let’s begin.
Imagine that hundreds of black protesters were to descend upon Washington DC and Northern Virginia, just a few miles from the Capitol and White House, armed with AK-47s, assorted handguns, and ammunition. And imagine that some of these protesters —the black protesters — spoke of the need for political revolution, and possibly even armed conflict in the event that laws they didn’t like were enforced by the government? Would these protester — these black protesters with guns — be seen as brave defenders of the Second Amendment, or would they be viewed by most whites as a danger to the republic? What if they were Arab-Americans? Because, after all, that’s what happened recently when white gun enthusiasts descended upon the nation’s capital, arms in hand, and verbally announced their readiness to make war on the country’s political leaders if the need arose.
Imagine that white members of Congress, while walking to work, were surrounded by thousands of angry black people, one of whom proceeded to spit on one of those congressmen for not voting the way the black demonstrators desired. Would the protesters be seen as merely patriotic Americans voicing their opinions, or as an angry, potentially violent, and even insurrectionary mob? After all, this is what white Tea Party protesters did recently in Washington.
Imagine that a rap artist were to say, in reference to a white president: “He’s a piece of shit and I told him to suck on my machine gun.” Because that’s what rocker Ted Nugent said recently about President Obama.
Imagine that a prominent mainstream black political commentator had long employed an overt bigot as Executive Director of his organization, and that this bigot regularly participated in black separatist conferences, and once assaulted a white person while calling them by a racial slur. When that prominent black commentator and his sister — who also works for the organization — defended the bigot as a good guy who was misunderstood and “going through a tough time in his life” would anyone accept their excuse-making? Would that commentator still have a place on a mainstream network? Because that’s what happened in the real world, when Pat Buchanan employed as Executive Director of his group, America’s Cause, a blatant racist who did all these things, or at least their white equivalents: attending white separatist conferences and attacking a black woman while calling her the n-word.
Imagine that a black radio host were to suggest that the only way to get promoted in the administration of a white president is by “hating black people,” or that a prominent white person had only endorsed a white presidential candidate as an act of racial bonding, or blamed a white president for a fight on a school bus in which a black kid was jumped by two white kids, or said that he wouldn’t want to kill all conservatives, but rather, would like to leave just enough—“living fossils” as he called them—“so we will never forget what these people stood for.” After all, these are things that Rush Limbaugh has said, about Barack Obama’s administration, Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama, a fight on a school bus in Belleville, Illinois in which two black kids beat up a white kid, and about liberals, generally.
Imagine that a black pastor, formerly a member of the U.S. military, were to declare, as part of his opposition to a white president’s policies, that he was ready to “suit up, get my gun, go to Washington, and do what they trained me to do.” This is, after all, what Pastor Stan Craig said recently at a Tea Party rally in Greenville, South Carolina.
Imagine a black radio talk show host gleefully predicting a revolution by people of color if the government continues to be dominated by the rich white men who have been “destroying” the country, or if said radio personality were to call Christians or Jews non-humans, or say that when it came to conservatives, the best solution would be to “hang ‘em high.” And what would happen to any congressional representative who praised that commentator for “speaking common sense” and likened his hate talk to “American values?” After all, those are among the things said by radio host and best-selling author Michael Savage, predicting white revolution in the face of multiculturalism, or said by Savage about Muslims and liberals, respectively. And it was Congressman Culbertson, from Texas, who praised Savage in that way, despite his hateful rhetoric.
Imagine a black political commentator suggesting that the only thing the guy who flew his plane into the Austin, Texas IRS building did wrong was not blowing up Fox News instead. This is, after all, what Anne Coulter said about Tim McVeigh, when she noted that his only mistake was not blowing up the New York Times.
Imagine that a popular black liberal website posted comments about the daughter of a white president, calling her “typical redneck trash,” or a “whore” whose mother entertains her by “making monkey sounds.” After all that’s comparable to what conservatives posted about Malia Obama on freerepublic.com last year, when they referred to her as “ghetto trash.”
Imagine that black protesters at a large political rally were walking around with signs calling for the lynching of their congressional enemies. Because that’s what white conservatives did last year, in reference to Democratic party leaders in Congress.
In other words, imagine that even one-third of the anger and vitriol currently being hurled at President Obama, by folks who are almost exclusively white, were being aimed, instead, at a white president, by people of color. How many whites viewing the anger, the hatred, the contempt for that white president would then wax eloquent about free speech, and the glories of democracy? And how many would be calling for further crackdowns on thuggish behavior, and investigations into the radical agendas of those same people of color?
To ask any of these questions is to answer them. Protest is only seen as fundamentally American when those who have long had the luxury of seeing themselves as prototypically American engage in it. When the dangerous and dark “other” does so, however, it isn’t viewed as normal or natural, let alone patriotic. Which is why Rush Limbaugh could say, this past week, that the Tea Parties are the first time since the Civil War that ordinary, common Americans stood up for their rights: a statement that erases the normalcy and “American-ness” of blacks in the civil rights struggle, not to mention women in the fight for suffrage and equality, working people in the fight for better working conditions, and LGBT folks as they struggle to be treated as full and equal human beings.
And this, my friends, is what white privilege is all about. The ability to threaten others, to engage in violent and incendiary rhetoric without consequence, to be viewed as patriotic and normal no matter what you do, and never to be feared and despised as people of color would be, if they tried to get away with half the shit we do, on a daily basis.
Game Over.
Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S. Wise has spoken in 48 states, on over 400 college campuses, and to community groups around the nation. Wise has provided anti-racism training to teachers nationwide, and has trained physicians and medical industry professionals on how to combat racial inequities in health care. His latest book is called Between Barack and a Hard Place.
-- Post From My iPhone
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Flash Mob Time!
I am still working on the food blog. In the meantime. This is what I have been up to... rehearsals leading up to a day full of Flash Mobs (three to be exact) in and around downtown Seattle. Check it out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5PyIVVKoWU (the official video)
and
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/flatpages/video/mediacenterbc3.html?bcpid=30884189001&bctid=77259215001 (a video montage of all three)
What a hoot!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5PyIVVKoWU (the official video)
and
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/flatpages/video/mediacenterbc3.html?bcpid=30884189001&bctid=77259215001 (a video montage of all three)
What a hoot!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Coming Soon - The Sellie Family Food Revolution
No, not turning this completely into a food blog. However, be prepared for some yummy posts coming this way soon. Think farm fresh, non processed, organic... yum!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Daylight - are we really saving?
Here's a little history: http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/daylight_time.php
What it means to me: Lost sleep, cranky family, guilt over not doing more while it's still light out.
On the bright side, the clock in my car is FINALLY right. Now, how long will it take me to stop subtracting an hour in my head everytime I look at it?
So confusing... why can't we be more like Arizona or Hawaii?
What it means to me: Lost sleep, cranky family, guilt over not doing more while it's still light out.
On the bright side, the clock in my car is FINALLY right. Now, how long will it take me to stop subtracting an hour in my head everytime I look at it?
So confusing... why can't we be more like Arizona or Hawaii?
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Simple Words
It says:
First, I was dying to finish my high school and start college
And then I was dying to finish college and start working
Then I was dying to marry and have children
And then I was dying for my children to grow old enough so I could go back to work
But then I was dying to retire
And now I am dying…
And suddenly I realized
I forgot to live
Please don’t let this happen to you
Appreciate your current situation
And enjoy each day
…old friend
To make money we lose our health,
And then to restore our health we lose our money....
We live as if we are never going to die,
And we die as if we never lived....
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Some Music on Valentine's Day
Happy Valentine's Day to all! Take the time to listen to this guy on Ukele. He's amazing...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puSkP3uym5k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puSkP3uym5k
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
I love the Olympics, but...
I love the Olympics, but… I am not looking forward to NBC's SELECTIVE and DELAYED Olympics coverage. The opening ceremony is three hours from my house and it is still three hours delayed. We are so tired of catering to the east coast schedule.
And don’t get me started on those cheesy athlete profiles…
Where or where is CBUT???
-- Post From My iPhone
And don’t get me started on those cheesy athlete profiles…
Where or where is CBUT???
-- Post From My iPhone
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Labradors Rock... 'nuff said :-)
I'm quite certain my dogs would do this, if given half the chance :-)
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Remembering When...
None of us will ever forget where we were on Sept. 11, 2001. I had just climbed in my car, headed for work as a contract writer with a high tech gaming company in Redmond. By the time I hit the freeway, I was in tears. I spent the entire morning listening to the radio and reading news online. It was not a day to write glowing reviews of silly computer games.
One thing I remember in the hours, days and weeks after the attacks was how nice people were to each other. No one cut off the car in the lane next to them in their rush to get to work. No one tailgated their neighbor in an attempt to get their kid to school on time. Everyone in the grocery store, the gas line, the coffee shop seemed to take an extra moment to make eye contact with the person next to them. To smile or at least nod. We had become a community. The sadness and devastation had pulled us together, united us against a horrible act that was beyond something we had ever imagined could happen.
But as the weeks turned to months and months turned to years, that feeling slowly ebbed away. Gone was the eye contact, the extra gesture of generosity, the “no, you first” attitude. Many people resumed their rushed, “don’t bother me” attitudes. Road rage and violent crime again topped the news. And now, as we slog our way through an ailing economy and witness our friends, relatives and co-workers lose their jobs, health care and even their homes, and as we watch the devastation in Haiti, can we pause for a moment? Can we take a deep breath and remember to smile at the young mom in the grocery store who is trying desperately to quiet her screaming child? Can we slow down and let the car next to us merge? Can we stop to help the confused, elderly gentleman on the sidewalk instead of averting our eyes?
I guess I just wish it didn’t take a crisis to pull us all together and make us care about our community.
And speaking of community, if you have the capacity to help Haiti, a member of our global community, please see my last entry on some very worthy organizations.
-- Post From My iPhone
One thing I remember in the hours, days and weeks after the attacks was how nice people were to each other. No one cut off the car in the lane next to them in their rush to get to work. No one tailgated their neighbor in an attempt to get their kid to school on time. Everyone in the grocery store, the gas line, the coffee shop seemed to take an extra moment to make eye contact with the person next to them. To smile or at least nod. We had become a community. The sadness and devastation had pulled us together, united us against a horrible act that was beyond something we had ever imagined could happen.
But as the weeks turned to months and months turned to years, that feeling slowly ebbed away. Gone was the eye contact, the extra gesture of generosity, the “no, you first” attitude. Many people resumed their rushed, “don’t bother me” attitudes. Road rage and violent crime again topped the news. And now, as we slog our way through an ailing economy and witness our friends, relatives and co-workers lose their jobs, health care and even their homes, and as we watch the devastation in Haiti, can we pause for a moment? Can we take a deep breath and remember to smile at the young mom in the grocery store who is trying desperately to quiet her screaming child? Can we slow down and let the car next to us merge? Can we stop to help the confused, elderly gentleman on the sidewalk instead of averting our eyes?
I guess I just wish it didn’t take a crisis to pull us all together and make us care about our community.
And speaking of community, if you have the capacity to help Haiti, a member of our global community, please see my last entry on some very worthy organizations.
-- Post From My iPhone
Monday, January 18, 2010
We Need to Care
I am tired of hearing people say, "Why should we care?" Why? I'm too tired to even answer that question. Instead, here's HOW you can care, in case you've been avoiding the media:
Haiti Relief
Doctors Without Borders www.doctorswithoutborders.org
American Red Cross www.redcross.org
Mercy Corps, Portland www.mercycorps.org
Northwest Medical Teams, Portland www.nwmedicalteams.org
World Concern, Seattle www.worldconcern.org
World Vision, Federal Way www.worldvision.org
If you receive unsolicited e-mails seeking donations for the relief effort, remember to be careful because there are jerks out there who use fraudulent messages to solicit contributions.
There!
More later...
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