Wilmington NC Earth Day Celebrations today

from http://www.wilmingtonearthday.com/

Earth Day was created in 1970 to promote environmental awareness and to encourage progressive action around the world. It is officially celebrated on April 22, although individual communities around the world host celebrations throughout the month of April. (Wilmington will be celebrating on Saturday, April 18, 2009). It's all about enviornmental education and how every person can make a difference.

Earth Day's founder Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin at the time, proposed this first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda." "It was a gamble," he recalls, "but it worked."

That first year, approximately 20 million people throughout America celebrated. By 1990, 200 million people in 141 countries participated in Earth Day. As awareness and concerns spread, so did the participation in this annual celebration. In the year 2000, 184 countries and hundreds of milliions of people were on board.

Do You Remember 1970 & First Earth Day?

In addition to 1970 being the first year our communities united to celebrate our planet and begin this modern enviromental movement now known as Earth Day — it was a noteworthy year in many ways.

• The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22
• The Kent State shootings shocked the nation
• Simon & Garfunkel released "Bridge Over Troubled Water"
• Richard Nixon was President
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) began
• The Concord made it's first supersonic flight
• The average cost of a new house was $23,450
• The Beatles' recorded their last album
• Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin both died
• ...and the meltdown of fuel rods in the Savannah River nuclear plant near Aiken, South Carolina — an incident not acknowledged for 18 years.

How Will You Participate?

There are a lot of ways to get involved. Some people choose Earth Day as the beginning of their commitment to our planet by starting to recycle, grow a garden, or even walk (instead of drive) to work. Current and previous Earth Day themes for Wilmington have been:

• 2011: “Clear the Air”
• 2010: “Reduce”
• 2009: “How Do You Get Around”
• 2008: “Trees Please”

Now's the time to change a habit and invest in the Earth's future. Do something nice for the Earth, and our Earth will return the favor.

For more information on the worldwide Earth Day celebration, we encourage you to visit one of these websites:

Earth Day Network 
www.earthday.net

Earth Day (U.S. Government) 
www.earthday.gov

Environmental Protection Agency 
www.epa.gov/earthday

Shelton Herb Farm, Leland, NC

http://www.sheltonherbfarmnc.com/

Connected with Margaret Shelton at her wonderful farm in Leland at 340 Goodman Road NE. She brings her fresh organic produce to the local Farmer's Market at Riverside in Wilmington on Saturdays, Poplar Grove in Hampstead on Wednesdays and supplies many of the restaurants in our area.  

Pure joy for me to be amidst all the green of her beautiful creation. Bought some culinary herbs for my fresh kitchen supplies this summer, Basil Ocimum basilicum, Parsley Petroselinum crispum, Nasturtium Tropaeolum sp., Cilantro Coriandrum sp. and for a new fun planting for me Pineapple Sage Salvia elegans. Margaret gave me a few tips on growing them in this totally different bioregion than what I'm accustomed. Thanks Margaret!

The transplants nestling into our kitchen garden.  The Moon in Pisces (water sign) will help to feed emotional nourishment through the water element to a couple of fire signs! (It happens to be)

The Grid Book / Hannah B Higgins

http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&tid=11683

Emblematic of modernity, the grid gives form to everything from skyscrapers and office cubicles to Mondrian paintings and bits of computer code. And yet, as Hannah Higgins makes clear in this wide-ranging and revelatory book, the grid has a history that long predates modernity; it is the most prominent visual structure in Western culture. In The Grid Book, Higgins examines the history of ten grids that changed the world: the brick, the tablet, the gridiron city plan, the map, musical notation, the ledger, the screen, moveable type, the manufactured box, and the net. Charting the evolution of each grid, from the Paleolithic brick of ancient Mesopotamia through the virtual connections of the Internet, Higgins demonstrates that once a grid is invented, it may bend, crumble, or shatter, but its organizing principle never disappears.

The appearance of each grid was a watershed event. Brick, tablet, and city gridiron made possible sturdy housing, the standardization of language, and urban development. Maps, musical notation, financial ledgers, and moveable type promoted the organization of space, music, and time, international trade, and mass literacy. The screen of perspective painting heralded the science of the modern period, classical mechanics, and the screen arts, while the standardization of space made possible by the manufactured box suggested the purified box forms of industrial architecture and visual art. The net, the most ancient grid, made its first appearance in Stone Age Finland; today, the loose but clearly articulated networks of the World Wide Web suggest that we are witnessing the emergence of a grid of unprecedented proportions—one so powerful that it is reshaping the world, as grids do, in its image.

About the Author

Hannah B Higgins is Associate Professor in the Department of Art History at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is the author of Fluxus Experience.

Reviews "[I]t is...an informative and sometimes provocative meditation on the place of geometry in human life." —Bryan Hayes, American Scientist

Endorsements "The title of this book does not begin to describe how subversive its intentions are. Higgins's review of the deep history of the grid rescues it from whatever claims modernism has made to its form and function, and more precisely identifies the grid as a tool of human cognition, which has happened to have a profound effect on our visual culture throughout history." —Lorraine Wild, award-winning designer, cofounder of Greybull Press, and member of the faculty at the California Institute of the Arts "Here is a natural storyteller, with scholarly depth, apparently motivated by delight. Where another information historian might have breezily justified your cultural comfort with the net, or else made a jargon-laden assault against it, Hannah Higgins has found the right pitch. Whatever grids you are on, this brightly edited book might help you know them better or see them differently." —Malcolm McCullough, author of Abstracting Craft "Hannah Higgins's new book on grids is a confident synthesis of art, architecture, geography, geometry, urbanism, and social history. Its elegant prose and easy erudition recall the work of Lewis Mumford; its intellectual energy and subtle humor, the writing of Roland Barthes." —Stephen F. Eisenman, Professor of Art History, Northwestern University

LEARN TO MANIPULATE THE MATRIX

Loquat herb and fruit

Loquat Eriobotrya japonica                                         ©Greg Patch

Loquat Eriobotrya japonica tree in my new backyard introduces me to the medicinal/nutritional uses of this import from China, Japan and India. Its in many TCM and Ayurvedic formulas.

It is a member of the very large Rosaceae family (some 2800 species) of , ie., Roses, Apple, etc.
From Michael Tierra's http://www.planetherbs.com/discus/messages/127/1254.html?1205526588 are preparation of medicinal syrups ala Susun Weed. to prepare dried Loquat leaf for digestive and respiratory dis-ease, rising heat. The medicinal is bitter and cooling and clears phlegm. It addresses digestive distress; vomiting, nausea and belching associated with hot conditions. Its formulated into many digestive and respiratory preparations by herbalists knowledgeable in its use. It is not for long term use.

Yesterday I enjoyed an after supper sweet sour taste of the ripe fruit from the tree that reminded me of Wild Apple and Rose hips. Peel, and remove seed.

  

Webh, Web, Wave, Weave(Woven) and burial grids

Wilmington, NC National Cemetery

"Earthworks" at Projekte Gallery in Wilmington, NC

Local artists Vicki Smith, Benjamin Simon Belmont and Scotlands Leon Patchett (on video) are represented in "Earthworks" at Projekte Gallery until May 1.

Terra 31, clay, shard, gold on wood / Vicki Smith

and Leon Patchett playing his sculpture...

natural earth pigments palette...

...that I'm introducing into my work:


Venetian Red (natural earth/ochre)
Ercolano Red (oxide/hematite)
Red 140 (oxide)
Ercolano Orange (oxide)
Medium Yellow Sun (oxide)
Dark Yellow Ochre (ochre)
Viridian (oxide)
S.O.F. Green (oxide)
Medium Green Parrot (oxide)
French Ultramarine Blue Dark (oxide)
Blue MC (oxide)
Lavender Blue (ochre base w/mineral)
Ultramarine Violet (ochre based mineral)
Colonial Violet (natural hematite)
Titanium White (oxide)
Natural Black (oxide)

Happy Earth Day Every One

Am happily mixing earth pigment with beeswax for my colors and working on an Earth Day 2011 piece.
May everyone touch the earth, preserve its integrity, and honor our fortunate selves that we are gifted with
Earth and our Celestial Universe.
enThanks.

Seasonal Ayurveda

ayurvedic notes from John Immel of Joyful Belly in Asheville,

NC. www.joyfulbelly.com

John Immel writes on many seasonal approaches to Ayurvedic 

lifestyles.

April Showers & Body Moisture

Along with showers and springtime flowers, the buildup of congestion in the body peaks during the month of April. The body continues to metabolize and release winter fats from the skin. Warmer temperatures moisturize the skin. A warm day mixed with a heavy carbohydrate meal could be a challenging cocktail for your constitution. Simply put, the body has a hard time dealing with heavy foods on warm spring days. Instead of enriching the blood, the body wants to "lighten up" for summer by burning off excess. 

There are many signs of springtime congestion. Excess saliva, mucus buildup in the sinuses, achy flu-like symptoms, and a sore patch in the back of the throat are all likely signs that your whole system is congested from "rich spring blood." Spring emotions tend to vacillate as quickly as the weather between grief over loss, to the joy of rebirth and renewal. 

As the thermometer rises in April, we transition away from spices. Instead, "Eat beansand greens" for a healthy balance of astringent and bitter tastes. Foods with astringent taste make the tongue feel like sandpaper. Astringent taste restores tone and firmness to tissues. Bitter taste detoxifies the liver. Hummus Spiced with Cumin, served on a bed of arugula, is a perfect combination for April weather wetness. 

Beans are high in potassium, a diuretic that drains these excess fluids from the body. In Ayurvedic terms, potassium has dry quality and astringent taste. It’s action is the opposite to sodium in our body, relieving water retention. Parsley comes from the Greek "rock celery" is also a strong diuretic effect that flushes excess water from the tissues. The dry quality of beans and parsley can aggravate Vata.

Beans: The Musical Fruit

Beans are also high in saponins, a natural insect repellent that is also a protein digestion inhibitor. These saponins are difficult to digest and cause noxious gas. Since the primary site of protein digestion is the stomach, people who have gas after eating beans may also have an upper GI deficiency. 

Beans that are cooked properly are easier to digest. Soak beans overnight then strain before cooking. Then slowly cook beans for a long time, skimming any suds (the saponins) off the surface. Saponins are water-soluble. Changing the water several times during the cooking process reduces their concentration. Adding a small square of kombu or sea kelp to the beans can also improve digestibility. Kelp helps to break the beans down into smaller and easier to digest particles. Serve beans soft and spicy. If beans still give you gas, choose an easier bean like green beans or sweet peas. Lastly, buy canned beans instead of dried. Because canning companies recognize that gas affects their bottom line, they are invested in cooking methods that result in a fart-free product.

Beans for Fiber & Cholesterol

If your body is not aggravated by dryness, and you can digest beans without gas, they are an essential food for cleansing in the spring. Not only reducing water weight, they are high in soluble and insoluble fiber. The fiber is chickpeas is nearly 75% insoluble which remains undigested until it reaches the colon. This significantly bulks up stools for a satisfying morning elimination. As with many high fiber foods, beans have been shown to reduce cholesterol, perhaps because of its flushing effect on the gall bladder. The high protein content in beans helps rebuild muscle tissue as winter hibernation yields to outdoor activities and projects. 

new work space, medium...

The new work space installed with beeswax, pigment powders and heating element. The surface area of the table is 48"x 72" and stands 38" high. A departure from using the commercial Stockmar beeswax crayon I've been using almost completely as a medium for the past dozen years. Will be mixing the beeswax and pigment colors to work with wet and dry. The pigments are from Earth Pigments http://www.earthpigments.com (nci) and the heating element from R&F http://www.rfpaints.com (nci)
The "non toxic" pigments will provide a new palette of earth colors for me. I'll keep my Stockmar crayons and use them with my new palette and other elements ...

Webh at Work

The webh in its many dimensions is drawn by the line and shape of an existing finished closet, the unfinished legs of my new work table, the ladder to the loft/bed, floor boards and the perpendicularly dimensional lines created by negative space and ladder rungs combine in space to enscribe webh...

quote day

"Every human being is an artist, a freedom being, called to participate in transforming and reshaping the conditions, thinking and structures that shape and inform our lives" Joseph Beuys

re creating my living space

that box spring has got to go.

Ocean sands and seaweeds satellite image of the Bahamas

http://bit.ly/hxNoVA

A view of the earth though the eyes of Landsat-7 satellite.
Ocean Sand, Bahamas
Image taken October 29, 2000

Though the above image may resemble a new age painting straight out of an art gallery in Venice Beach, California, it is in fact a satellite image of the sands and seaweed in the Bahamas. The image was taken by the Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) instrument aboard the Landsat 7 satellite. Tides and ocean currents in the Bahamas sculpted the sand and seaweed beds into these multicolored, fluted patterns in much the same way that winds sculpted the vast sand dunes in the Sahara Desert. 

Text Source: NASA Image courtesy Serge Andrefouet, University of South Florida. 

Tom Deininger heart (he art) works

http://www.tomdeiningerart.com/

ENVIRONMENTALL ART DRAWS ATTENTION

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/environmentall-art-draws-attention

ENVIRONMENTALL ART DRAWS ATTENTION

Helsinki-based artist Jonna Pohjalainen has certainly and successfully ‘drawn’ our attention, (of course) pun intended, to the vast environmental issues that sadly plague modern our world. She has cleverly transformed nature into art - turning wooden logs into enormous pencil crayons or coloring crayons. It is almost insane how much these natural wood logs have been transformed to look identical to our beloved Crayola pen crayons from grade school… I mean the crayons we still use to this day - too bad they don’t actually function!! Pohjalainen dreamt up this masterpiece a few years ago when she spent a summer in Pedvale, Lativia to participate in a environmental art workshop. While on her environmental expedition, Pohjalainen was aware that the only tools she had on her person were her coloring pencils. Ta-dah! An idea was born. A brilliant idea to transform nature’s own gray aspen logs into gigantic coloring pencils! All the colors you would normal find in a box of coloring pencils are present in the real life log-crayon combo! The best part of these pieces is Pohjalainen’s engagement and remixing of nature and the natural order, by assigning new meaning and definition to already existing products of nature. Jonna Pohjalainen is on the right track in raising society’s awareness of these environmental concerns, “Environmental art is a concrete way of rising up the values of the are, to see one’s own environment in a new way and get interested in influencing it.”
She certainly has influenced it and ‘colored’ the environment in doing so!

Environmental artist Christo to lecture at U of U | Universe.byu.edu

Environmental artist Christo to lecture at U of U | Universe.byu.edu

re creating my living space ...

placing the cross braces, behind the doors are work tables and I'll be using full spectrum lights.
pigments have arrived, more later.

quote day

 The German writer Goethe said,


 “We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.”

Mercury Rx, are we having fun yet?

started retrograde Mar 30th. many feel energy of it a week or two in advance and after
Mercury turns direct. Rammy?!

from Rob Tillet, http://www.astrologycom.com/mercret.html

 Mercury Retrograde

  Mercury retro in Aries  [March 30, 2011 – April 23, 2011]

At 20:50 UT (Universal Time) Wednesday, March 30th, 2011, Mercury the wise communicator—and universal trickster—turns retrograde at 24°19' Aries in the sign of the Ram, sending communications, travel, appointments, mail and the www into a general snarlup! The retro period begins some days before the actual turning point (as Mercury slows) and lasts for three weeks or so, until April 23, 2011, when the Winged Messenger reaches his direct station. At this time he halts and begins his return to direct motion through the zodiac.

Everything finally straightens out on May 11th, as he passes the point where he first turned retrograde. Mercury normally turns retrograde three times a year, but last year he turned tail four times, which is unusual, and his shadow phase was still active in early January 2011. The effects of each period differ, according to the sign in which it happens (see box for Retrograde Periods in 2011).

A planet is described as retrograde when it appears to be moving backwards through the zodiac. According to modern science, this traditional concept arises in the illusory planetary motion created by the orbital rotation of the earth with relation to other planets in our solar system. It's a bit like travelling on the road watching another car beside you: when the other car slows down, or you speed up, it looks as though the other car is moving backwards. Planets are never actually retrograde or stationary, they just seem that way due to this cosmic shadow-play. Click here for some neat graphics and more on the science of retrograde planetary motion.

Retrograde periods, although often problematic for us earthlings, are not particularly uncommon. Each planet retrogrades, except the Sun and Moon. Although a powerful astrological influence, Mercury is quite a small planet that travels at a relatively fast speed through the zodiac. Despite being the closest planet in our solar system to the Sun, Mercury is not always in the same sign as the Sun. Mercury turns retrograde this time in Aries while the Sun is in Aries, but the solar orb moves into Taurus on April 20 (with Mercury still in Aries). Mercury turns direct in Aries on April 23 with the Sun still in Taurus, but Mercury remains in Aries till May 15, when he enters Taurus at the same time as Venus also does.

Packing Boxes Mobile

Packing Boxes Mobile             2011                ©Greg Patch

Webh Weaver(s)

Webh Weaver      2011       ©Greg Patch

Webh Weaver               2011              ©Greg Patch

webh at my new home...