tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62818834767391584892024-03-05T13:21:00.926-06:00Rayela's Fiber FocusThe focus here is on fiber art and textiles. Special interests include ethnic and tribal textiles, art quilts, and the cultural context of fiber products in different societies. Fiber Focus often has guest contributors and several who write regularly. If you are interested in submitting an article, email me. If a post moves you in some way, please leave a comment. Fiber is our common voice and I love hearing from you! Visit www.tafalist.com, too!Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.comBlogger396125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-82806936879794466942012-06-05T12:02:00.000-05:002012-06-05T12:06:16.566-05:00Bye-Bye Blogger!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Rayela's Fiber Focus: RIP</b></div>
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<b>410 posts</b></div>
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<b>March 28, 2008-June 5, 2012</b></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.rayela.com/" target="_blank">Come on over to the new site!</a></b></div>
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OK, I bit the bullet. I keep telling people that their websites should be the mother ship where people can find everything they want to know: who you are, what you do, where you are. My website was over 10 years old. I never looked at it and neither did anyone else. The contract with the server was up (they are also clunky and old) so it motivated me to finally do some housekeeping.</div>
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Wordpress. Ugh. I've worked on it a bit before, but Blogger is soooooo much easier! But, now that I decided to completely re-do the website, I knew that I also had to move the blog and incorporate it into the site. Why? Two reasons:</div>
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<li><b>Branding:</b> I made a big mistake when I named the blog Fiber Focus. It should have been Rayela Art's Blog or something like that. It's important to develop name recognition and be consistent everywhere.</li>
<li><b>Traffic: </b> Many websites get lost because they are static and don't get updated. Having a blog attached to it adds new content and moves it up in search engine rankings. It makes it more interesting, more vibrant and gives people a reason to come back. Once you have seen a website, you probably won't visit it very often. But, a blog can develop a following and can stream all over the social media world.</li>
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So, I hope that all of you who have enjoyed this blog will come on over to <b><a href="http://www.rayela.com/" target="_blank">Rayela Art's new home</a></b>. Click around, leave some comments, break it in. Let me know if anything is broken or needs revision. Learning the ropes is always a challenge and I'm sure there are many tweaks ahead. But, I am pleased with the template and look forward to wearing it out like an old rug. If you are in the market for a new wordpress template, I would recommend checking these guys out: <a href="http://www.dessign.net/"><b>http://www.dessign.net/</b></a>. The hardest part, for me, is deciding what to use and then finding all of the plugins to make the site function properly. Finding a good way to showcase images was a nightmare, but I finally bought a slideshow plugin that is lightweight and clean.</div>
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I will continue to host guests over there, so if you would like to submit a story, do contact me. As usual, I am interested in textiles, fiber art, economic development, sustainability and how we can make this world a better place.</div>
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For the past several years I have made photo collages to mark the passing of time. I thought this would be a good way to end my time here. If you <b><a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/2012/05/vet-fees-sale-40-off-on-rayela-art.html" target="_blank">read my last post</a></b>, you know that I recently lost a dog that I dearly loved, Juba, to cancer. These collages have always had my animals and also show that my editing skills have improved. These are the ones that I could find... Here is to the past and to the future!</div>
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<b>Dara Tribal Village with Abdul (partner), Chicago, 2003</b></div>
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<b>Dara Tribal Village </b><b>with Abdul (partner)</b><b> , Chicago, 2004</b></div>
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<b>Ex-husband, Paducah, 2007</b></div>
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<b>Ex-husband, Paducah, 2008</b></div>
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<b>2009</b></div>
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<b>Paducah, 2009</b></div>
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<b>New Year's, 2010</b></div>
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<b>Christmas, 2010</b></div>
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<b>New Year's, 2011</b></div>
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<b>Christmas, 2011</b></div>
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As you can see, I sometimes used the same images many times. That is like life. We take our ingredients and constantly change them, move forward, improve, and make a mark. At least, that is the hope! I look forward to what the new site has to offer and hope to see you there!</div>
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<b><a href="http://www.rayela.com/" target="_blank">Rayela Art</a></b></div>
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Of the four dogs, only Laila remains. There is a new one, Tor, who will certainly make it on this year's Christmas card:</div>
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<b>Tor and Laila</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-44397741591729952352012-05-16T13:30:00.001-05:002012-05-16T13:30:22.478-05:00Vet Fees Sale! 40% off on Rayela Art<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Juba</span></b></div>
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My beautiful Juba died of cancer on Friday. I posted a long story about her a couple of days ago, so if you have not seen it, you can learn more and see lots of pictures of her here: <b><a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/2012/05/death-of-dog.html" target="_blank">Death of a Dog</a></b>.<br />
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She was critically ill for a month, on an IV, steroids, antibiotics, special foods, etc. The vet bill ended up being around $750 and although I am truly grateful that my vet allows me to make payments, I'd like to pay a chunk of it off ASAP. I'm offering a 40% off sale on my Etsy shop to get there. <br />
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I sell ethnic textiles and vintage supplies and have lots of great pieces, including some things that I made:<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Coupon code: ForJuba</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">40% off!</span></b></div>
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<b>How it works: </b> Pick what you want and then at check out, enter the coupon code, <b>ForJuba</b>, and Etsy will figure the discount automatically.<br />
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I made a treasury honoring Juba on Etsy that I think came out pretty cool:<br />
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<script src="http://www.craftcult.com/js/trwi.js?s=1&l=NTE2OTk5OHwyNzIyODEzODQw&r=-1&t=a&m=0&u=5169998&">
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Those shepherds sure capture my heart!<br />
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Many thanks to all of you who have been so supportive! And, to any of you who make a purchase, it is greatly appreciated.</div>
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<br />Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-69433602409191658672012-05-13T18:41:00.000-05:002012-05-13T23:02:49.052-05:00Death of a Dog<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQmrqpwOQjvDmSkV3dC0O14JhypGX6Gn6IGBKCDs46gAvFIQcmp_tiKbbL8L3aP-HKj4b1Za0-2Qdq4dmvuPJDHOSJSyC6oW9g8IN1m2BcqCvsBrowuTjpqSrluUE0QngBQI1x-OIyIRnX/s1600/Juba+1209+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQmrqpwOQjvDmSkV3dC0O14JhypGX6Gn6IGBKCDs46gAvFIQcmp_tiKbbL8L3aP-HKj4b1Za0-2Qdq4dmvuPJDHOSJSyC6oW9g8IN1m2BcqCvsBrowuTjpqSrluUE0QngBQI1x-OIyIRnX/s400/Juba+1209+cropped.jpg" width="359" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Rest in Peace, Juba. 2004-2012</b></td></tr>
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A month ago today, Juba went to her regular place for dinner and then didn't eat her food. Huh? Alarm bells went off. This dog always wanted more! We went out to the back yard where I was working on my garden. I saw her crouch down to pee and my heart turned cold. The pee was black!</div>
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The next day I took her to the vet and they gave her some antibiotics and asked me to try to catch a urine sample. When I brought it in later that day, they had me turn around and go back and get her. They ran some tests and her white blood cell count was very high. She was on an IV for three days at the vet and by Friday, he said that she either had leukemia or a serious infection where she was destroying her own red blood cells. I asked if I could take her home and they said that it was fine. She probably would not last the weekend.</div>
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I was told to try to get as much protein and fluids into her as possible. If it was an infection and she could rebuild her red blood cells, she could recover. She made it through the weekend, but wasn't keeping food down. She was on a strong antibiotic and steroids, so they added an anti-nausea pill. Her strength seemed to come back and my hopes were renewed.</div>
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The next blood test showed some stabilizing. The yellow in her eyes had gone and her pee was still reddish, but much closer to normal. Yes! We can beat this! But, then she threw up globs of blood. I just knew it was over! Back to the vet and more hope: she now had an ulcer from the medication. Another pill would coat the stomach and allow her to heal.</div>
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I was nursing her around the clock. Every day she looked weaker, wasting away in front my eyes, but there was still this hope, this possibility that it was not cancer. A week later, renewed hope: her red blood cells were increasing and her kidney function had improved. But, now she looked like a cancer patient. Her head had started to cave in and her belly was swollen from the steroids. This last Tuesday her back legs became so weak that she couldn't support herself. I made a sling to help her support her back end and that worked. She could stand and walk a few steps, but edema set up and those hind legs started to swell. I began to accept that it was cancer. I almost took her in to put her down then, but she perked up. I had bought all kinds of meats, made purees, bought baby food, squirted chicken and meat broth in the side of her mouth when she didn't want to eat and she went up and down.</div>
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Through the whole thing, she talked to me. Dogs have different barks that mean different things. Most of the time, I felt like I knew what she wanted. Was she in pain? She didn't show it, at least not until the last two days. She just looked weak and sad. She was a big dog and hard for me to move around so I figured out a way to slide her into different rooms and could carry her up and down the steps outside to let her be outside. She barked at the mailman up until the last day. By Thursday night, I knew there was no hope and that I would take her in on Friday, so we had a pizza party. I wanted to see if the smell would inspire her to eat something solid (by now she was rejecting almost everything). She wolfed the pizza down. Friday afternoon I took her to the vet and she was euthanized. She was ready. I was not. I can hardly wrap my head around the notion that she is gone. She was fine and then she wasn't. Isn't that just how it always goes?</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Juba 2005</b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Juba's story</span></b><br />
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The whole thing started with Mitchie. I had had a couple of cats that were both getting quite old. I lived in an apartment in Chicago and had no intention of getting a dog. Then, Abdul, my friend and gallery partner, shows up with Mitchie who was supposed to be our gallery dog. A whole new world opened up. I now walked the city parks, made new "dog" friends, had all kinds of adventures that I hadn't had before because I rarely went out.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Mitchie</b></td></tr>
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Mitchie was extremely social and expressive. A boxer-lab mix, he loved people and was kind of a control freak, making sure that everybody was behaving the way they should. The economy collapsed, we closed the gallery and I decided that I was fed up with how expensive Chicago had become and that I wanted out. I had been there for 20 years, struggling as an artists and had several small retail shops over the years. Now my strategy was to just sell online and not do the brick and mortar thing anymore. Mitchie wouldn't have it. He would sit next to me as I worked on the computer and glare at me. Then grimace and make all of these intense vocalizations. I told him I'd get him a dog once we moved.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Laila</b></td></tr>
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In comes Laila. We were walking one day and Mitchie pulled me around the corner and there was an injured dog cuddled in the stairway of the building where I lived. Laila. She looked just like him except that she was half his size. She was torn up and pregnant. Ha! Well, I thought that since she was malnourished they would not survive. She had seven bouncing babies in my living room. I had no idea what I was doing and would research each phase online and call my dog friends. There was a courtyard annexed to my apartment which was really good as the puppies did have some outdoor space when they were old enough. Juba was the first born and the only brown one. She cried like a human baby for the first three days after she was born. It was really weird.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-lwMyUxoOJbmmtfzlnqbwTYq8vNBMhJe0t-a9xHOv4KRWvN0Hm1JpEw1Siq8_SLBPSao5WTMIzSrRwmTDvB1j0NebqjuLRajhiSNWGC9ezjDqAZ79dPYbB8UrNhOmJpSjLuYeUyXQ4q6Q/s1600/Laila+day+14+noses.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-lwMyUxoOJbmmtfzlnqbwTYq8vNBMhJe0t-a9xHOv4KRWvN0Hm1JpEw1Siq8_SLBPSao5WTMIzSrRwmTDvB1j0NebqjuLRajhiSNWGC9ezjDqAZ79dPYbB8UrNhOmJpSjLuYeUyXQ4q6Q/s400/Laila+day+14+noses.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Laila and Juba, October 2004</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Juba was the only brown one.</b></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdkUA-8dr_CbTfEpWjHcD-yJHTfZFX2C0Y3XvAE1y0VgEcaM6QEsgu5nRvtqJlgxyGFI7SfLR3qozsYdoCVEbBCg60LGw2rhWjyO6MqJ3N_X8RLEMrH7D_a_n6LB91HdPceMsPr2ALmD7/s1600/juba+and+toy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdkUA-8dr_CbTfEpWjHcD-yJHTfZFX2C0Y3XvAE1y0VgEcaM6QEsgu5nRvtqJlgxyGFI7SfLR3qozsYdoCVEbBCg60LGw2rhWjyO6MqJ3N_X8RLEMrH7D_a_n6LB91HdPceMsPr2ALmD7/s400/juba+and+toy.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I named Juba after this song of Caetano Veloso's, Leãzinho. It's a sweet song about a little lion. Juba is the lion's mane. You can listen to it while you look at the pictures... (It's in Portuguese.)</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Butter ball.</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja0KpADgQo9DNGSlDOCkbINRyhMhBteaP5JeKQdwsjGKYjfqFS9JPEQcwi0-2MdL6UN6A2qo8c_QXQUt3OB9zkVsMReqoSqI5z1WMlhCvTY-R2jOva8LYd5F4LT88J5hSdjOPncfGCKqkj/s1600/juba+bath.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja0KpADgQo9DNGSlDOCkbINRyhMhBteaP5JeKQdwsjGKYjfqFS9JPEQcwi0-2MdL6UN6A2qo8c_QXQUt3OB9zkVsMReqoSqI5z1WMlhCvTY-R2jOva8LYd5F4LT88J5hSdjOPncfGCKqkj/s400/juba+bath.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>First bath, 2004</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Christmas 2004</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>3 months old.</b></td></tr>
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So, of course I kept her. She was my golden girl, by butter ball. And, then there was her little sister, Sheba, the runt. I knew I would never go through this again, so I kept both of them. We WERE moving to a house with a yard, in the SOUTH where there was plenty of room, after all....<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Juba and Sheba, February 2005</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>February, 2005 (Still in Chicago)</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL3JMJgUxWFvyLEQH8RL7lqkYFFfiaQHlaeO1lHKC-gndJPoB8E_Q1dizu1pm8umeGrsrPMdiQzLrHt4r0hHDzYG0czjJ7hyphenhyphen25cGXmawB_A5MK4NtSaDEdncYmfESk4wJXPrp7xlJJxG_l/s1600/Sheba+1209+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL3JMJgUxWFvyLEQH8RL7lqkYFFfiaQHlaeO1lHKC-gndJPoB8E_Q1dizu1pm8umeGrsrPMdiQzLrHt4r0hHDzYG0czjJ7hyphenhyphen25cGXmawB_A5MK4NtSaDEdncYmfESk4wJXPrp7xlJJxG_l/s400/Sheba+1209+cropped.jpg" width="278" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Sheba</b></td></tr>
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So, now I've got four dogs, a pack. 99% of the time it was great fun. The 1% was a nightmare. First, the good stuff: they all got along, we went out into nature a lot. Kentucky was perfect. Woods, places to swim, and many, many great memories.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>April 2007</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>May 2007</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>May 2007</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>May 2007</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgioI98zraqtrBdjLOkKM9OT27FppnBOORw2RWO0IFZ81msB8VjmoU160ECFqlCA5wcDNygk-7fFcTcg33ASBITK_eLW7Paym2y4oZbllPlmESXPF6OOcLg_f41YRWBpIjvIH6Tp7htLLGr/s1600/0707+Juba+and+Mitchie+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgioI98zraqtrBdjLOkKM9OT27FppnBOORw2RWO0IFZ81msB8VjmoU160ECFqlCA5wcDNygk-7fFcTcg33ASBITK_eLW7Paym2y4oZbllPlmESXPF6OOcLg_f41YRWBpIjvIH6Tp7htLLGr/s400/0707+Juba+and+Mitchie+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Juba and Mitchie, July 2007</b></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEwy6RgmWRp_GAo7aLINjBW6IqJiJAbUWeMh2QU2dC84qA0GqEg7U6ZMB32arYcB-mR-ASaoj7dpNTrKtG6owraaanUSmP_VoLHvK1oRUJg6qKS_iK6p069ZovDtJEaak0v0baPOIaTeoN/s1600/tom's+0807+with+me+and+juba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="573" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEwy6RgmWRp_GAo7aLINjBW6IqJiJAbUWeMh2QU2dC84qA0GqEg7U6ZMB32arYcB-mR-ASaoj7dpNTrKtG6owraaanUSmP_VoLHvK1oRUJg6qKS_iK6p069ZovDtJEaak0v0baPOIaTeoN/s640/tom's+0807+with+me+and+juba.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Wisconsin with Tom, August 2007</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJg6CY4CATqencBLvhrHswkqzQ1XoK6uJns_lIGoHiAQqlv1bM8pcVA8erK-qMF2NW79uTuAxr1QxtHwa5LXKnIV528gCLBHmW-dnt-EZlO2TjcLafczjBxxuPIUcijUHak7GD-3RTzUZ9/s1600/Juba+1209.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="589" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJg6CY4CATqencBLvhrHswkqzQ1XoK6uJns_lIGoHiAQqlv1bM8pcVA8erK-qMF2NW79uTuAxr1QxtHwa5LXKnIV528gCLBHmW-dnt-EZlO2TjcLafczjBxxuPIUcijUHak7GD-3RTzUZ9/s640/Juba+1209.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Ice Storm, December 2009</b></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNOjLAjhUnkH988pk5BcTOYxeBmXGcJ0pweSUvPyJXxtCb31ChzIGK0bElsVD412YUpNaPnvoIPR3b783iVklY_fNYupsHQM7vX9RO5cXUdKZownsqPZ6OfoQN-AdnrPffVQRMhm4ElMEZ/s1600/Dogs+in+back+1209.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNOjLAjhUnkH988pk5BcTOYxeBmXGcJ0pweSUvPyJXxtCb31ChzIGK0bElsVD412YUpNaPnvoIPR3b783iVklY_fNYupsHQM7vX9RO5cXUdKZownsqPZ6OfoQN-AdnrPffVQRMhm4ElMEZ/s400/Dogs+in+back+1209.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I have pictures of every friend who came to visit surrounded by the dogs. All of them were social and loved having guests. I got a lot of love from them.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJvSLFi1TqAkuVdIH1FOE37nlYQ04iXqkf1lRU7aPieC1oRq1M1-_gdPH1qI0iGMO0u5AyQkIJG7e2lq1vKE84IUq0CE7Z28oO3OzOa7qgE0N_zzw9YgzoDH5nFSNkeK7aGfdf-K_IIdy/s1600/Diane+and+dogs+0408+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJvSLFi1TqAkuVdIH1FOE37nlYQ04iXqkf1lRU7aPieC1oRq1M1-_gdPH1qI0iGMO0u5AyQkIJG7e2lq1vKE84IUq0CE7Z28oO3OzOa7qgE0N_zzw9YgzoDH5nFSNkeK7aGfdf-K_IIdy/s400/Diane+and+dogs+0408+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>With Diane, who is a cancer survivor!</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqXE_odkEIlLHpOe_wxX1THtNumFlBUK6dxlIp_sL9827C8u-dDCRMF81ZSyf8ZZepw0LuOZXm1IVDReNZXGEhWX6TkxK9r45Nnri291S1B1cZDvwSR56G0mH0DSpe7FU1fQWJw0SPkEWg/s1600/me+with+dogs+0609.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqXE_odkEIlLHpOe_wxX1THtNumFlBUK6dxlIp_sL9827C8u-dDCRMF81ZSyf8ZZepw0LuOZXm1IVDReNZXGEhWX6TkxK9r45Nnri291S1B1cZDvwSR56G0mH0DSpe7FU1fQWJw0SPkEWg/s400/me+with+dogs+0609.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>June 2009</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRCHu99uvx3U7O2u0zy5ugJ3ZZiAZtwbYzZkzOmLZHTe6rsPbYbmdzdABmP6Wj6-h451lzvm8e70zyJi7291pTGfkhXfYku7hE6-cFV-6KnqTEMwIBVcvP9ngSFXtmVmgCh0dui2znJ7RL/s1600/juba+and+laila+0510.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="412" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRCHu99uvx3U7O2u0zy5ugJ3ZZiAZtwbYzZkzOmLZHTe6rsPbYbmdzdABmP6Wj6-h451lzvm8e70zyJi7291pTGfkhXfYku7hE6-cFV-6KnqTEMwIBVcvP9ngSFXtmVmgCh0dui2znJ7RL/s400/juba+and+laila+0510.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>With Laila, May 2010<br />Daughter and mother...</b></td></tr>
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Disaster struck in 2010. A utility man came into my yard without my permission. Yes, the dogs were very friendly to anyone I introduced them to, but they were also protective and could be pretty awful, barking at people walking by, etc. Sheba, especially, had a kill instinct that was becoming scary. She had attacked and almost killed two other dogs, the three girls had killed two cats that had come into the back yard, and Sheba just wanted more. She would sit for hours watching squirrels, every muscle ready for the attack. When I heard the gate open, I yelled, "Don't come in the yard!!!!" The doors and gate to the back yard were all open as I was expecting this guy to turn on water across the street. He was late and I was looking out for him. Sheba attacked and he ran down the street, leaving the gate open.<br />
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There was court and a big mess. She bit his legs and he got $20,000 for it. Then she bit the dust. I was court ordered to put her down. There is nothing worse to me than to kill a healthy dog. At the same time, I really feel like something was wrong with her wiring. I had her since she was a baby and she was just getting worse.<br />
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A couple of weeks later, Mitchie was diagnosed with lymphoma. He lasted three weeks and went down. Awful, just awful.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0DKu0p8BIYq1iKYxZbeN_dMgo1L7CS1-qm06YkgBx5zQzMeBTDyOei8NjlhaCuvqb4bzxA4kyaWyMS_X8vd2w8E6U63kS36u9Oo7zWtNnBVcVj2D7fsU0qwTWGVSiT_pwIvMZp-OrQZ9/s1600/Me+and+the+dogs+061510+Mitch+Kimball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0DKu0p8BIYq1iKYxZbeN_dMgo1L7CS1-qm06YkgBx5zQzMeBTDyOei8NjlhaCuvqb4bzxA4kyaWyMS_X8vd2w8E6U63kS36u9Oo7zWtNnBVcVj2D7fsU0qwTWGVSiT_pwIvMZp-OrQZ9/s400/Me+and+the+dogs+061510+Mitch+Kimball.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>June 2010, right before Mitchie died.</b></td></tr>
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I have to admit that things were a lot calmer though, much easier on me. Four dogs were too many, but nobody could have talked me out of any of them. Each one has their own particular essence and I wanted all of it. Of all of them, Juba was my baby. She was always near me and would stretch out her paw to touch my foot or my arm. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>June 2011, Visit from Pedro</b></td></tr>
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Now I was just down to the two, Laila and Juba. Things were good. In March, I spent a month on the road with Abdul and we went to Tucson by truck for the Gem and Mineral Show. I finally had someone who could house sit and take care of the animals, Pat. On the way there, we stopped at a truck stop in New Mexico and this little chihuahua was running around, desperate. Abdul said, "Catch that dog!" (Yes, ALL of this is Abdul's fault!) I did. He had been there, in the middle of the desert for at least three days. He glommed on to me immediately. It was clear that I now had another dog, Tor.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Tor</b></td></tr>
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What would the dynamic be now? I've never really liked little yip-yappers, but this guy is loaded with personality. Yes, Laila tried to kill him when we brought him in, but after I yelled at her, she accepted him. Tor immediately bonded to Juba and was always laying next to her.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>January 2012</b></td></tr>
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The following photos show Juba's descent during this last month. The picture above, in the leaves, was taken just this past January. Yes, both she and Laila were showing signs of aging, but at eight years old, I thought I had at least a couple of more years with her.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Visiting her at the Vet, week 1</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Back home, weak, but still looking like herself. Week 2</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>End of Week 3. Her face caving in. She can still walk.</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Juba's last day, with Tor at her side.</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>She's buried in front of the house where she used to lay all the time.<br />Nik and Pat helped dig the grave.</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Tor and Laila.</b></td></tr>
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I guess this post is more for me than for anyone else. But, I know that many of you also have had pets that you loved and have lost. Is it any different to grieve the death of an animal than that of a person? It feels the same to me. I've lost my grandparents and several friends over the years and the big hole that they leave behind, that spinning feeling, the sense of a time that is now gone.......... it is the same. I think that these four dogs also represent a last connection that I had with my life in Chicago, too. Their muzzles went white, my hair is going the same way. They are dying and I am getting old. Time is fleeting.</div>
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Several people have said that Tor showed up to replace Juba, that he was sent by God knowing what was ahead. It's true that both have this attachment to me that the other dogs didn't have, but I don't know what I think about that. I do know that he brings some youth into our aging house. Laila likes to play, too, and the two of them have some similar toy interests. Laila has been moping. I look at her with suspicion. Is she missing Juba? Or, is something wrong with her, too? Sigh...............</div>
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What is it in us that seeks this connection with an animal? I cannot imagine living without pets and apparently there is a genetic bond between dogs and humans that comes from thousands of years of mutual co-existence, more than with any other animal. I grew up with animals and recently learned something new about my childhood with dogs. My parents had a dog named Bobby when I was two years old. They had to go to a different town one afternoon and the dog followed the car. My Mom thought that he would go back home, but he never came back. Three weeks later, I was still asking about Bobby.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Bobby and I, 1963</b></td></tr>
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Notice how we are leaning into each other. And how much he looks like my black dogs... They replaced him with another Bobby.</div>
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Bobby II kind of has a Juba look about him. Here is a better picture with my brother when he was a bigger dog:</div>
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Do these early experiences get imprinted on our brains? </div>
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These thoughts have been with me during these past days. I also remembered some things that I had read by the theologian, C.S. Lewis. Those of you who don't know his religious work might recognize him for "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". I couldn't remember in which book he talks about this, but he said something like "if animals are needed to bring humans happiness, they will surely be with us in heaven". He talked about heaven as a full experience of the divine. That, whatever we know here is a faded version of what will come. He also plays with the idea that sin (the separation from God) has clouded our perceptions. When we were in a full state of grace, all of nature did, indeed, communicate with each other. Jesus could command the wind, trees could bend at will. From what I understand, he and Tolkien were friends and both explored this world where good and evil manifested themselves in how they treated the natural world and that old folk tales of fairies and giants and trolls were remnants of an actual world that has passed on.</div>
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I haven't found the text that I was looking for yet, but did stumble on a fascinating article about Lewis and his love for animals and how he saw their place within a theological context. It's quite long and I haven't finished it yet (lots to digest and think about along the way). If you would like to read it, <b><a href="http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/faith/cs_lewis_advocate_animals_gerald_root.pdf" target="_blank">click here</a></b>.</div>
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I need to end this post at some point, don't I? One of my facebook friends reminded me of a wonderful little video about GoD and DoG. It makes me teary-eyed to watch it:</div>
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Finally, there is a matter of finances. Yes, Juba's illness is costing me a bundle which I don't have: $750. My vet is wonderful and allows me to make payments when these things happen, but this is the biggest one to date. I know that if this had been in Chicago, it would have been four times that, but still.... So, I'm hoping that some of you would like to do a bit of shopping in my Etsy shop to help with this.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Use this code at checkout and get 40% off of anything in the shop: </span></b><b><span style="font-size: large;">FORJUBA</span></b><b><span style="font-size: large;">. </span></b> </div>
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I would trade all of my inventory if I could have her alive.... Sadly, it's not meant to be. I was saving up to get Tor neutered, but now he will have to keep his ornaments for a little bit longer... Heh, heh.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSJ1m-fmA8WIYGLzXDIy-tT2JwmPnvWhGGR-g1IIWdSmBBXubxcLvUuUZg_OUjZ9uRE1FWTp6I4eiKzoaEBDEDo4FxudzRj4gCQsP47ni46tcKmtAj7fL8VD-roQ-klVoVUI4oe3dNOStW/s1600/1978+rachel+and+bobby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="574" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSJ1m-fmA8WIYGLzXDIy-tT2JwmPnvWhGGR-g1IIWdSmBBXubxcLvUuUZg_OUjZ9uRE1FWTp6I4eiKzoaEBDEDo4FxudzRj4gCQsP47ni46tcKmtAj7fL8VD-roQ-klVoVUI4oe3dNOStW/s640/1978+rachel+and+bobby.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Me with Bobby III, 1978</b></td></tr>
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<br /></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-15077591469113261442012-05-07T15:36:00.000-05:002012-05-07T15:56:01.948-05:00Guest Artist Erica Harris on Scavenging in India<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Click on the images to see them full size as a slideshow. It's worth it!</b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Scrap Potential- </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Scavenging in India</span></b>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">by Erica Harris</span></b></div>
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Many folks ask where I find my materials to make collages.<br />
Here are some scraps, sources and experiences from my last trip to India.<br />
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While an Artist-In-residence at Chhaap Foundation for Printmaking Trust in Baroda, Gujarat, I used a batter of coffee grounds and tea leaves, Bindi powder, turmeric, and Celuclay (a dried paper pulp) to experiment with paper sculpture. The texture was made with a fork.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio0Prlzp3KI7CRFozDppThYJDan-xjk6tdVfZAnMwY0UpvTpR8zCDRepDH4vYpncUbidZHBtcHWTf0pghtgJw_4AZfGofsUjeMFs4Y2DuQjXIPr2m5Sk7PVuR-gWcvs7-6UTzm2q-UO90Y/s1600/2turmericpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio0Prlzp3KI7CRFozDppThYJDan-xjk6tdVfZAnMwY0UpvTpR8zCDRepDH4vYpncUbidZHBtcHWTf0pghtgJw_4AZfGofsUjeMFs4Y2DuQjXIPr2m5Sk7PVuR-gWcvs7-6UTzm2q-UO90Y/s400/2turmericpaper.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Some of this paper I've paired with old portraits:<br />
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These were found at the exquisite 'Friday Market' on the outskirts of Baroda.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4zdqSjkVxlPguW7lOndHYMFjfpJHhyphenhyphenEDkhEekGDGhPi8G2bR8pNFyqKvdGktDAq5OU71MFbx3uzeOwvHg7aNrH4ZLDPUI5BSPjUeYGBx4SL7q26ZvwclGlcdYys40Rn7eaRMeIhfUNKWt/s1600/5fridaymarket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4zdqSjkVxlPguW7lOndHYMFjfpJHhyphenhyphenEDkhEekGDGhPi8G2bR8pNFyqKvdGktDAq5OU71MFbx3uzeOwvHg7aNrH4ZLDPUI5BSPjUeYGBx4SL7q26ZvwclGlcdYys40Rn7eaRMeIhfUNKWt/s400/5fridaymarket.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is a sprawling maze of live goats, tin charms, chai carts, torn saris, wooden game pieces, broken toys and, most lovely for me, old photographs.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijrGVhK7IAJfpx9O56tRKd_OCWygfFoHNIVc3MV4AF6ZdBHHIcbuQRK8ZabYSWveBBYvU7dKywg0vr1k0ZI4tSCpzxtjhQFy7GPD2PlE_7mznss0quGIvq6DfG5gBCxbBYZIaBvcywkd81/s1600/10lovemarriagewithphoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijrGVhK7IAJfpx9O56tRKd_OCWygfFoHNIVc3MV4AF6ZdBHHIcbuQRK8ZabYSWveBBYvU7dKywg0vr1k0ZI4tSCpzxtjhQFy7GPD2PlE_7mznss0quGIvq6DfG5gBCxbBYZIaBvcywkd81/s400/10lovemarriagewithphoto.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Scavenging for mid-century photographic ephemera outside of the States is quite challenging, our Kodachrome generation being unparalleled, so this particular market was really a gem. (On a side note however, it seems India's snapshot culture of today is certainly catching up).<br />
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The upcycling at Friday Market also deserves some attention. Some wonderful hand-stitched oil-can cozies:<br />
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I experimented with using some of the found objects as stamps, such as these keys:<br />
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Moving south, in Fort Cochi, Kerala, I picked out some paper goods at Junk Junction (Kumbarramukku, if memory serves).. Looking through newspapers, game cards, old books and ledgers, this passerby wanted to document a dusty picture of a famous 70's movie star:</div>
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The language there, Malayalam, has a beautiful alphabet, and I was quite inspired by it.<br />
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I was in India for a number of teaching projects, as well as dumpster diving, and the scraps came in handy for those, too. In this bookmaking workshop at Chhaap, students rummaged through a rag bag donated by a local fashion designer, Rupali. They used the pieces to customize their book covers. It was an honor to have Jyoti Bhatt, one of India's most renowned printmakers, among my students.<br />
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In a nearby school run by the organization Koshish Milap, I brought in scraps of handmade paper and fabric in all colors and shapes. It was a great ice-breaker for them to teach me the colors in Gujarati (new to me), and having a full-spectrum palette easily accessible helped them to jump right in and start collaging (new to them).<br />
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The kids were overjoyed and seemingly not intimidated at the process of building their own beautiful compositions out of scraps.<br />
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Thanks again, India, for all the inspiration and generosity. See you next time.<br />
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<i><b>Isn't this just wonderful? I "met" Erica when she was fundraising for an India project she was working with last year (<a href="http://www.ericaharris.org/2011/10/scholarship-fund-for-buddhas-smile-school/" target="_blank">Buddha's Smile School</a>). I invited her to come on as a guest on this blog (and have been begging her to join TAFA!) and we finally have this beautiful experience that she is sharing with us.</b></i><br />
<i><b><br /></b></i><br />
<i><b>Make sure to visit her <a href="http://www.ericaharris.org/" target="_blank">website</a> (packed with great images!) and please, support her with some purchases in her Etsy shop! </b></i><br />
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<script src="http://www.etsy.com/assets/js/etsy_mini_shop.js" type="text/javascript">
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new Etsy.Mini(5576136,'thumbnail',4,4,1,'http://www.etsy.com');
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<i><b>Want a nice chuckle? Watch <a href="http://www.ericaharris.org/2008/08/chinterviews/" target="_blank">Chinterviews</a>!</b></i><br />
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<br /></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-44648374557823035542012-04-17T11:51:00.000-05:002012-04-17T12:56:13.628-05:00Book Review: "The Ideal Man" by Joshua Kurlantzick<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMFqgOW3OTzQBaZVURcS27zepL_CkbpPWjvEgCt-zR26sJatefbF4Yie_UEq_lge650AP3_9m5z2i8kRgopT4BzOCAcAFt7U7YzpkwSEqbOiRtlg3fv47_glhGUjyC_IxGQARuYLlkYAXz/s1600/theidealman-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMFqgOW3OTzQBaZVURcS27zepL_CkbpPWjvEgCt-zR26sJatefbF4Yie_UEq_lge650AP3_9m5z2i8kRgopT4BzOCAcAFt7U7YzpkwSEqbOiRtlg3fv47_glhGUjyC_IxGQARuYLlkYAXz/s320/theidealman-cover.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The Tragedy of Jim Thompson and the American Way of War</span><br />
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Jim Thompson earned the title of "The Silk King" in Thailand, back in the 1950's. One of the first Westerners to appreciate Thai Silk, he had a vision to transform the life of poor weavers, giving them ownership over their production and exporting their silks to the United States and Europe.<br />
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<b>He was also a spy.</b> In fact, he ended up in Thailand as one of the CIA's first batch of suave James Bond types, fell in love with the country and stayed. He had studied architecture and design and truly loved the old Thai way of life. <br />
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<b>Then he disappeared. </b> The story had intrigued me for years, but I had never really gone beyond the surface details. His name came up again as I wrote a post for TAFA's blog , "<b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/s-silk" target="_blank">S is for Silk</a></b>". I had seen a novel about him in a bookstore, a mystery written with a possible scenario of how he vanished, so I decided to see if my local library had it. Instead, I found this one, "The Ideal Man", and am glad I did.<br />
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As the subtitle states, Jim Thompson's tragedy is tightly linked with how the United States developed its presence in Asia. The tragedy goes beyond the disappearance. Thompson's whole life became tragic as he fell in love with this country, created a voice for the common people, and increasingly lost faith in the American role in Asia. When he arrived in Thailand, there was a vibrant democratic movement happening in the region. Within a few years, both the Royals and the United States helped ensure that these anti-colonial voices were squashed. Instead, the usual corrupt dictatorship was endorsed and led to power. We all know what the consequences were for Vietnam. Much less is told about Laos and the devastation we left there. Thompson's political position was in favor of working with the rebels in all three countries. He met with them, knew them as friends and had a vision for self-government that was way ahead of his time. He watched his friends become imprisoned, then shot, and he himself lost favor with both the Thai Royals and the U.S. government. The ideal man had ideals. They were trampled on, breaking his spirit and his vision for the region.<br />
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The book mostly covers the political intrigue that happened around Jim Thompson over a period of twenty years. It names the characters that played the main roles in deciding Thailand's future. It also describes Thompson's life, how he collected and preserved thousands of artifacts, keeping them in his home until he would one day make them available to the Thai people in a museum.
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://siam-voyage.com/bangkok.html" target="_blank">Jim Thompson's house.</a></b></td></tr>
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Even his house was one of these artifacts. He had two traditional peasant homes dismantled and reassembled in Bangkok, starting a fad among the elite to copy him and preserve traditional Thai architectural elements in an environment that was quickly modernizing into Western influences. At the same time, he built the Thai silk industry into the giant that it is today. He entertained the most famous people of the day in his peasant houses: presidents, film stars, political leaders, and wealthy tourists who had begun to explore Asia. Towards the end, the book describes Thompson as worn out, a man with a broken heart and no hope for the future. Ironically, his disappearance ensured the preservation of his life work. The house is now a museum and the silk business continues as a profitable venture.<br />
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Jim Thompson goes on a trip, a vacation, in Malaysia to visit some friends on an estate. This was March 27th, 1967. He goes for a walk and never comes back. There are woods on the estate and several searches funded by different parties look for any little clue that might lead to an explanation of what happened. Detectives are hired. For years, various groups grasp at possible leads. Nothing is ever found. Nobody knows what happened to him. Could he have walked out into a new life? Unlikely. Did anyone want him dead? Yes. It would have been a relief to the CIA, to the Thai Royals and to his silk competitors to have him gone. His political positions were embarrassing to the US and the Thai elite despised him. A tragedy, indeed.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://bangkokjam.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Cameron Highlands, Malaysia, where Jim Thompson disappeared.</a></b></td></tr>
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This story is so familiar to me. I grew up in Brazil during a time when there was great civil unrest (1970's). Students were disappearing by the thousands. Dissidents were imprisoned, tortured and killed. As a teenager, an American abroad, I was told, in whispers, to always say that Brazil was a democracy. Later, in college, I learned about the CIA's role there, about the School of the Americas, of how Latin American dictators were puppets, held in place by the US government. Of course, none of these stories are simple, black and white moments. They evolved out of many legitimate fears coupled with greed and the desire for power. <br />
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Now, both South America and Asia have become strong economic powers on their own terms. We see an economic decline in the United States that rocks our way of life, our sense of entitlement. Brazilians flock Disneyworld and fly up to Miami to shop. Thailand is party land, a center for easy drugs and prostitutes. The lesson for me is that <b>what we do is important. </b><br />
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My portal to many countries is usually through their textiles and crafts. Jim Thompson's story resonates with me because of this connection and because of his understanding of how economic development can happen through handicraft production and through the arts. He was about fair trade before the term was even coined. And, his story rings a bell because of the expat connection. When I was a kid, almost every house in Brazil had a picture of JFK hanging next to Jesus with his bleeding heart. Being an American back then was like being nobility. I learned early on that some kids wanted to be my friend because I was an American. Some were curious, some wanted "stuff". Now, being an American is considered cancerous and downright dangerous in many countries. This has not happened overnight. It's decades and even centuries of abuse on our end. This is truly the great American tragedy. With our way of war, we have lost our friends.<br />
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Everything we do has political and economic consequences. What we buy, what we eat, where we walk, drive or fly. And, this is what drives my passion behind my love for all things handmade: <b>We can be simple so that we can simply live. In peace, with one another.</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://bangkokjam.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Jim Thompson with weavers.</a></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Resources:</span></b><br />
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<b><a href="http://www.jimthompson.com/index.asp" target="_blank">Jim Thompson Website</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.jimthompsonhouse.com/index.asp" target="_blank">The Jim Thompson House</a></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">TAFA Members Working in Thailand:</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/members/tammachat-natural-textiles" target="_blank">TAMMACHAT Natural Textiles</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/members/unique-batik-fair-trade" target="_blank">Unique Batik Fair Trade</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/members/luxurylannacrafts" target="_blank">Luxury Lanna Crafts</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/members/siamese-dream-design" target="_blank">Siamese Dream Design</a></b><br />
<b><br /></b>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-64888135528845284742012-04-10T11:44:00.001-05:002012-04-10T11:44:45.817-05:00Ad Special on TAFA: 50% off for one year!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsdYiGipHfAuIkK2dOPmAyLqu4E__U549LdPxVytpoUZjbmQkn4Us532a_Yh40f9yi6Qxv1QxBUqTeS1o7mv4p-Bzt-gVcGXVXqlNPkMngYzR2ryMIhFntxJ7HuW6Gz40p_k3_Zir1gVER/s1600/ad+special+may+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsdYiGipHfAuIkK2dOPmAyLqu4E__U549LdPxVytpoUZjbmQkn4Us532a_Yh40f9yi6Qxv1QxBUqTeS1o7mv4p-Bzt-gVcGXVXqlNPkMngYzR2ryMIhFntxJ7HuW6Gz40p_k3_Zir1gVER/s400/ad+special+may+2012.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<h2>
<b>Have you visited TAFA's new site? <a href="http://www.tafalist.com/">www.tafalist.com</a></b></h2>
We have over 400 members and half of them have finally gotten their profiles up on the site! Every day a couple more get up there, adding their unique contribution to the mix. Our members are spread out around the world, representing more than 30 countries! It's truly a wonderful selection of the best in traditional and contemporary textiles and fiber arts.<br />
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<b>The new site is still not finished. </b> We went over budget by $2,500 and have many other features we want to add to the site. We need to raise some money to do that so TAFA is offering a one-year ad to non-members for half of the price ($500 for the year instead of $1,000). If you have an online business, you can help us reach our goal!<br />
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<b>Our audience is mostly women over 35 who, of course, love all things fiber! They tend to be educated, well-traveled and creative.</b> Ads that would interest our people: anything to do with art, textiles, fiber art, workshops, cultural tours, travel, health, gardening, literature, yoga, green businesses,<br />
craft supplies, and so on.<br />
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Specs are on TAFA's <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/sponsor-ads" target="_blank">sponsor ad page</a></b>. For more info, <b><a href="mailto:rayela@comcast.net" target="_blank">contact Rachel</a></b>.<br />
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<br />Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-9578603698273251502012-04-09T13:52:00.000-05:002012-04-09T13:56:55.008-05:00A Knitter's Tips on Dealing with Celiac Disease<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9di5dTz2TTaubMvyoyOsviYIyQ_4o0BHPn4WAnYB6aq8Z3cX5Xxit8EAfcM5-Rv9yTT_sqqqqKfKfKvRUYVg7Hgmr0Qrf0zHi3sCem_4ckw7W6as0Ufewu4SoSQetdNxeK4cRt8chlJMq/s1600/Diane+and+Rachel+at+Pam%2527s+0410.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9di5dTz2TTaubMvyoyOsviYIyQ_4o0BHPn4WAnYB6aq8Z3cX5Xxit8EAfcM5-Rv9yTT_sqqqqKfKfKvRUYVg7Hgmr0Qrf0zHi3sCem_4ckw7W6as0Ufewu4SoSQetdNxeK4cRt8chlJMq/s400/Diane+and+Rachel+at+Pam%2527s+0410.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Diane (left) visiting me in 2010</b></td></tr>
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When something goes wrong with me, I ask Diane. Waaaahhhhhh! Now this is hurting or aching or acting like such and such... She seems to have been through it all and most recently, has put up quite the valiant fight against breast cancer. She's diabetic, has had a knee replaced, had surgery for carpel tunnel, has sleep apnia, and the list goes on. Does that stop her? No way! <br />
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Off she traipses to some foreign country or drives to New Mexico to visit favorite haunts. A retired chemistry teacher, Diane is a scientist and approaches everything matter-of-factly. This is the problem and this is solution. Diane is also an avid knitter and I have benefited greatly from her talent: neck warmers, leg warmers, booties, fingerless gloves..... Wonderful!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Margaret showing one of her unfinished jackets.</b></td></tr>
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Then, there is Margaret from my local fiber art group. We received an email last week saying that she has been very ill and was diagnosed with celiac disease. Here is the <b><a href="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/celiac-disease/DS00319" target="_blank">Mayo Clinic</a></b>'s definition:</div>
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<i>Celiac (SEE-lee-ak) disease is a digestive condition triggered by consumption of the protein gluten, which is primarily found in bread, pasta, cookies, pizza crust and many other foods containing wheat, barley or rye. People with celiac disease who eat foods containing gluten experience an immune reaction in their small intestines, causing damage to the inner surface of the small intestine and an inability to absorb certain nutrients.</i></div>
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<i>Celiac disease can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea. Eventually, the decreased absorption of nutrients (malabsorption) that occurs with celiac disease can cause vitamin deficiencies that deprive your brain, peripheral nervous system, bones, liver and other organs of vital nourishment.</i></div>
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<i>No treatment can cure celiac disease. However, you can effectively manage celiac disease by changing your diet.</i></div>
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Our Paducah Fiber Artists group meets monthly at one of the member houses. We share a pot luck dinner and then gather around for a show and tell. The meals are usually an unplanned, sumptuous banquet and the sharing time is inspiring, a definite highlight to my month! Increasingly, however, we need to be more sensitive to the dietary restrictions of our group members. We have vegetarians, diabetics, and now, celiac disease to contend with. I guess if we all stick to salads and wine, we'll be just fine, eh?</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6es7FNrLlxnTY_C2oS8_u8N-UqDSqYegMQDaPB24T70SdXAp9fdwsUfQeuzfiTNMOwXByua3a6SyFGTzzrwpGyut0LFHylKCULcgQwFju6Vk9NhWTKLnswVYlmNdh815tLzacIC9mfGAZ/s1600/margaret+with+drawing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6es7FNrLlxnTY_C2oS8_u8N-UqDSqYegMQDaPB24T70SdXAp9fdwsUfQeuzfiTNMOwXByua3a6SyFGTzzrwpGyut0LFHylKCULcgQwFju6Vk9NhWTKLnswVYlmNdh815tLzacIC9mfGAZ/s400/margaret+with+drawing.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Margaret showing one of her pencil drawings.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div>
I asked Diane, who has been gluten free for years now, for some advice on what she would recommend for Margaret. Diane was very ill many years ago, before gluten free products were as available as they are today and along with her physician, diagnosed her problem. She excluded the top foods that produce food allergies from her diet (peanuts, wheat, soy, etc.) and then reintroduced them one by one until she got really sick on wheat. <br />
<br />
Margaret lives out in the country, so it will be especially challenging for her to get products that she might enjoy, so I thought Diane could help with some online resources. I thought her response to me was extremely valuable (that good ole' scientist again!) and could be of help to others so she gave me permission to share it here;</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_X0XOmwlQmgXR7JOTnVA9EniHxJ5vfiAQFIXtWRhBRLqNX8BzGbQBZj2Zl7cP68gAwuSEfBZo4CotYZUhmTHBrDG6A7DJtuxlcGskve5z7ylLTLfAY5JT-HgI5ERqwk9NZd7DKvaLUrWt/s1600/Diane+and+Mitchie+2+0410.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_X0XOmwlQmgXR7JOTnVA9EniHxJ5vfiAQFIXtWRhBRLqNX8BzGbQBZj2Zl7cP68gAwuSEfBZo4CotYZUhmTHBrDG6A7DJtuxlcGskve5z7ylLTLfAY5JT-HgI5ERqwk9NZd7DKvaLUrWt/s200/Diane+and+Mitchie+2+0410.JPG" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Diane with Mitchie</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<b>The single best online source I know is the Gluten Free Trading Company, <a href="http://www.gluten-free.net/" title="http://www.gluten-free.net/">www.gluten-free.net</a>, which is in
Milwaukee. They carry 1500 items, all GF. Bob’s Red Mill, <a href="http://www.bobsredmill.com/" title="http://www.bobsredmill.com/">www.bobsredmill.com</a>, is a good source for
grains, a variety of mixes, GF oatmeal, and a good GF hot cereal. There is a GF
section on their website.</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b>Health food stores often have a selection of GF foods. And here are some
other suggestions for regular supermarket shopping, where the sticker shock may
not be so great:</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b>Pasta. I have bought GF pasta (rice pasta) at Walmart. You DO need to be
careful cooking this—it can turn from hard to mush in a blink, so you have to
keep testing it. Sometimes what’s on the package doesn’t work for me. Japanese
brown rice pasta is excellent, and so are most of the ones from Italy. I can
buy tofu noodles in my supermarket, but it’s a huge market.</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b>Soup. Most soups such as all Campbells, last time I checked, are not GF.
Many of the Imagine and other brands in the cardboard quart containers ARE ok,
but you have to read every label. Avoid “modified food starch” in these and all
foods as it is often wheat starch. Progresso has a number of gluten=free soups
and Progresso labels everything for allergens. So, as long as the list at the
end of the ingredients doesn’t include wheat, you should be fine. The Vegetable
Wild Rice is my favorite.</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b>Cereals. Most cereals are sprayed with barley malt (for crispness)—a no,
no. Rice Chex, Corn Chex, the chocolate Chex, and one other variety are labeled
Gluten Free on the front of the package.</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b>Cake Mixes. Betty Crocker has several cake mixes and a brownie mix that
are labeled GF. Many other companies have GF mixes; some are better than
others. All are more expensive than the Betty Crocker. </b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b>Bread. A toughie. And most GF breads are awful and worse, even when
toasted. An exception is Udi’s bread and baked goods. Their website DOES list
two health food stores in Paducah as carrying Udi’s products, which I consider
worth the price. And Margaret probably needs to buy a new toaster, to be kept just
for gluten-free. Same goes for bread-making machines and wooden cutting
boards. They simply cannot be cleaned well enough to get rid of gluten
contamination. </b></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b><br />
<b>There are many websites online with gluten-free recipes. The problem is that you can’t just take your
favorite recipe, cookies , biscuits, or piecrust, for example, and just
substitute rice or other flour—they’ll probably turn out inedible. </b></div>
</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<div>
<b>Gluten free foods can often be much more expensive than their mainstream counterparts, causing what is called “sticker shock”. The excess expense
associated with GF foods is the reason the <a href="http://www.celiac.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=116&Itemid=207" target="_blank">IRS allows celiacs deductions for GF food when one itemizes</a>. I no longer itemize, but it seems like a lot of bookkeeping would be involved
with making this option worthwhile.</b></div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So, I hope these tips will help those of you out there who have to deal with living gluten free. I heard someone say once, and have no idea if this is true, that the best way to avoid food allergies is to eat a varied diet and to stay away from chemically processed foods. Diane's cousin has been tested for a genetic cause in her disease, one that may lie dormant until the body is stressed for other reasons. Whatever the case, my hope is to see Margaret's joyful face back in our regular meetings, full of spunky Southern spice in her wonderful stories! <br />
<br />
I did have a little chuckle in thinking about this post as it is about "fiber" AND "fiber artists". And, if you know of any other online resources or would like to share your experiences, please feel free to leave a comment.</div>
<div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="623" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTwECgouyrLwROmHseHk0ZOWFmwl6UBJNcUFnEr7qDB7YQ4JuuoBuG2nE9XhmwaHzU_jw0-xE9Anf3aHmtYts_bixZMU8WcrTC2X6D-4WkvYe5ac2H04V5MO0tb84MV6cI6LG52gMcQem1/s640/P1010018.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="450" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Margaret's husband, Fred, makes wild sculptures out of gourds.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTwECgouyrLwROmHseHk0ZOWFmwl6UBJNcUFnEr7qDB7YQ4JuuoBuG2nE9XhmwaHzU_jw0-xE9Anf3aHmtYts_bixZMU8WcrTC2X6D-4WkvYe5ac2H04V5MO0tb84MV6cI6LG52gMcQem1/s1600/P1010018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"></span></a></div>
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<br /></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-67524033238571379842012-04-06T10:15:00.000-05:002012-04-06T10:15:05.937-05:00New listings on Etsy! Suzanis, rugs, and more!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4CvHNCYsSaecDj9-HdvmNvfrXKv5yiQETw7m0o9VXl8YK_B91dfnibbMcRswb6iI0fSTtdoOBQjwaCx5svDFWnMSy_1aGQW1G2IGGw3PCULPhsio5_K2hLvmSMLAraEb9x7BLEizv117X/s1600/suzani+31.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4CvHNCYsSaecDj9-HdvmNvfrXKv5yiQETw7m0o9VXl8YK_B91dfnibbMcRswb6iI0fSTtdoOBQjwaCx5svDFWnMSy_1aGQW1G2IGGw3PCULPhsio5_K2hLvmSMLAraEb9x7BLEizv117X/s400/suzani+31.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a class="title" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/96953464/vintage-central-asian-embroidered" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; display: block; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 15px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; overflow-x: visible; overflow-y: visible; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="Vintage Central Asian Embroidered Textile, Uzbek Suzani 31"><b>Uzbek Samarkand Suzani</b></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I haven't listed anything new in my Etsy shop for months even though the photos were ready before Christmas. Finally, I am jumping in and getting it done! There are some gorgeous pieces, so I hope you will come and take a look: <b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/rayela?ref=si_shop" target="_blank">Rayela on Etsy</a>.</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOuZW7XMPFuAbgdSa8370IXA5nxv-pvchpxAN0gFam8WTnyNvMhNCRDcDdshGHi-3dSZBt2-cYN1DDClMRBWcJmohyh8-Cy4KvxoVHH0CDEsgntxLY4lLX83JjNmdKYZL6ULuJK3z8pdK2/s1600/moroccan+rug.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOuZW7XMPFuAbgdSa8370IXA5nxv-pvchpxAN0gFam8WTnyNvMhNCRDcDdshGHi-3dSZBt2-cYN1DDClMRBWcJmohyh8-Cy4KvxoVHH0CDEsgntxLY4lLX83JjNmdKYZL6ULuJK3z8pdK2/s400/moroccan+rug.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a class="title" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/96959667/moroccan-boucherouite-carpet-tribal-rug" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; display: block; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 15px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; overflow-x: visible; overflow-y: visible; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="Moroccan Boucherouite Carpet, Tribal Rug"><b>Moroccan Boucherouite Carpet</b></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYVMd2OXL3zep35SBIhSUlVH5yiyjbrhGYXCFC60RFjuarFSQTgI7vkP21QHT5_tKzcb0SEMP7q6bpIfiAtSerYAKOyZJEppm_5drvGD28jQqOWnGUwbYJdFRCAGbuzM6_Zb9ZOe6QBAp9/s1600/salt+bag+15.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYVMd2OXL3zep35SBIhSUlVH5yiyjbrhGYXCFC60RFjuarFSQTgI7vkP21QHT5_tKzcb0SEMP7q6bpIfiAtSerYAKOyZJEppm_5drvGD28jQqOWnGUwbYJdFRCAGbuzM6_Zb9ZOe6QBAp9/s400/salt+bag+15.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a class="title" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/96957499/baluchi-tribal-carpet-floor-pillow-item" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; display: block; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 15px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; overflow-x: visible; overflow-y: visible; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="Baluchi Tribal Carpet Floor Pillow, Item 15"><b>Baluchi Tribal Carpet Floor Pillow</b></a></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><script type='text/javascript' src='http://www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js'></script><script type='text/javascript'>new EtsyNameSpace.Mini(5169998, 'shop','gallery',6,2).renderIframe();</script>
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<br /></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-5319538387623540852012-03-30T11:23:00.001-05:002012-03-30T11:37:00.594-05:00C&T Publishing Goes Solar!<img alt="Press Release - contact Megan Scott, C&T Publicity Manager" height="76" src="http://www.ctpub.com/client/client_images/BE_headers/PRtitleSp2012_header.jpg" width="400" /><br />
<br />
C&T Publishing caters to the quilting and craft community, publishing wonderful how-to and other books. I am on their mailling list and received this email. I thought it was so wonderful that I had to share it here. Making a commitment to go green is a huge financial investment and I heartily applaud them for their efforts. <br />
<br />
Visit their site and support them in their good work: <b><a href="http://www.ctpub.com/" target="_blank">C&T Publications</a></b><br />
<br />
__________________________<br />
<br />
<h2>
<span style="color: black;">C&T Publishing Goes Solar! </span></h2>
<table border="0" style="width: 400px;">
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<tr>
<td align="middle" height="314" valign="top"><img alt="Solar panels on C&T's office roof" height="299" src="http://www.ctpub.com/client/client_images/media/roofshot_Solar.jpg" width="400" /></td></tr>
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<td align="left"> <strong>Concord, CA, March 29, 2012: </strong>C&T
Publishing is thrilled to announce the completion of new solar panels installed
on the company's office roof. After extensive research, negotiations, and
permits, the new solar system will soon be generating 29.9KW of power, which
will provide at least 95% of the power consumption for the publisher's 12,500
sq. ft. building.<br />
<br />
In keeping with C&T's commitment to the environment
and reducing their carbon footprint, the publishing company is proud to be
powering their offices with clean energy from the sun.<br />
<br />
"As a book
publisher, with paper a core part of our business, we are concerned about the
future of the world's remaining endangered forests and the environmental impacts
of paper production," says Todd Hensley, Chief Executive Officer. "We want to do
everything in our power to reduce carbon emissions and help fight global
warming."<br />
<br />
The company is a certified California Green Business (<a href="http://www.greenbiz.ca.gov/" title="http://www.greenbiz.ca.gov/">greenbiz.ca.gov</a>) and adding solar panels
is just one of the many steps C&T has taken in their on-going effort to "go
green". <br />
<br />
Here are a few more of the environmentally-friendly office
policies C&T Publishing has adapted:
<br />
<ol type="1">
<li>All catalogs are printed on recycled paper with high post consumer waste
content.
</li>
<li>Adopting strict printing policies has drastically reduced paper usage.
</li>
<li>Reduced water usage by installing low-flow toilets.
</li>
<li>Cut electricity use by switching to fluorescent light bulbs.
</li>
<li>Set up an extensive recycling plan
</li>
<li>Adopted green standards in warehouse operations.
</li>
</ol>
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<hr width="600" />
<hr width="600" />
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<td align="left"><strong>About C&T Publishing</strong><br />
<br />
For 28 years,
C&T Publishing has been the industry leader, providing exceptional books and
products to the quilting and fiber arts markets worldwide. C&T Publishing's
books and products are available in bookstores, quilt and fabric stores or from
www.ctpub.com, or 800/284-1114.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-90091605888061138362012-03-21T21:11:00.004-05:002012-03-21T21:12:05.892-05:00Face It!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMY3OW4Et1dn29QUJX7in7Pk0ECestTo5cS_ew8ibeOEW0NNbWYo3WQ8wLt_m_MQYnjJw04jWmCv_IiSHlKalYT5okXzW4sp2JP9W41FNKUmLIUdv2dlCMC0oe5MtnXqiHfWzYl4kXZPv/s1600/face+it.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMY3OW4Et1dn29QUJX7in7Pk0ECestTo5cS_ew8ibeOEW0NNbWYo3WQ8wLt_m_MQYnjJw04jWmCv_IiSHlKalYT5okXzW4sp2JP9W41FNKUmLIUdv2dlCMC0oe5MtnXqiHfWzYl4kXZPv/s1600/face+it.jpg" /></a></div>
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Just some of TAFA's members who have done some pretty cool faces! <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/" target="_blank">Come visit!</a></b></div>
<br />Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-459796230755153032012-03-20T13:31:00.000-05:002012-03-20T14:27:37.817-05:00TAFA Team: Old Blog, New Look!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbs6MN3HDlTKlXBe4Hesz5W2OsNQXFR9uVjPoFfG9nnXn_TZ-ww-cyBn0ApyzwDM8ueCOhlJb9Y7M0ZE6AXbveh-XQK238g6go9feirkS-nq4JI6qwTi5GuDx_7CiivsPDlwNAhrU0xNGk/s1600/flipcard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbs6MN3HDlTKlXBe4Hesz5W2OsNQXFR9uVjPoFfG9nnXn_TZ-ww-cyBn0ApyzwDM8ueCOhlJb9Y7M0ZE6AXbveh-XQK238g6go9feirkS-nq4JI6qwTi5GuDx_7CiivsPDlwNAhrU0xNGk/s400/flipcard.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="http://www.tafateam.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">TAFA Team</a></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
I just spent the last few days revising our Team Blog for TAFA members who sell on Etsy. On the old one, we had all of the members broken down into categories with tabs at the top where their Etsy minis were visible. But, it didn't seem like people were exploring the shops, so I felt like the blog needed a new look. </div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
As I was working on it, I tested out Blogger's dynamic view. It gives you several image rich ways to look at the posts. I had thought of using it before, but it does not support widgets, like the etsy mini, which is so important to drive people to the shops. Here is our mini for our TAFA Team: </div>
<br />
<br />
<script src="http://www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js" type="text/javascript">
</script><script type="text/javascript">
new EtsyNameSpace.Mini(11154607, 'favorites','gallery',8,2).renderIframe();
</script><br />
The mini can be controlled to feature different members and when you click on an image, it takes you right to that listing on Etsy, an excellent tool!<br />
<br />
There are other disadvantages to this template, too. You can't personalize it with a banner and although it does support a few sidebar links, you can't install all of the other tools many blogs use today (mail list form, widgets for facebook, any videos, etc.). <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlfiOIPOtuVDe8ifdzCEBDoASjuUa_U_H_nYlzw0ygQN2FURlWb2a17kvqvu7hIknd8JaZJKo1n2FkWFUTTmXXc-IR2tHbyBfnzK-SJlJrdQ6l1kbIdtmFLVGswkBcCZ79XsrDhyphenhyphentPeSgj/s1600/mosaic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlfiOIPOtuVDe8ifdzCEBDoASjuUa_U_H_nYlzw0ygQN2FURlWb2a17kvqvu7hIknd8JaZJKo1n2FkWFUTTmXXc-IR2tHbyBfnzK-SJlJrdQ6l1kbIdtmFLVGswkBcCZ79XsrDhyphenhyphentPeSgj/s400/mosaic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>Mosaic view of the Dynamic Template</b></div>
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In weighing the pros and cons, I went with the dynamic template because it seems like most social media platforms are going for the wow factor with images. Pinterest's success points in that direction. So, maybe having minimal information with the link to the member profile will be the way to go. Members who want to promote themselves further on the blog are welcome to submit posts which means more of their images would be there. </div>
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So, what do you think of the new look? I am very interested in feedback on this. If any of you have experience with using the the dynamic template, I would like to know if there is a way to enable codes so that they show up on the posts. </div>
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And, feel free to leave comments over there, ask the members questions, and read their member profiles. Of course, shopping from TAFA members is proven to make your day a better one. You will feel good doing it! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0JMGmlGmVgUAY7J_0JN5Zt14KwQWt7_FL-81vUY_kWK0kw0M9U6-jYLBWCz0EAe3YABaiIHveimWgpOB8tDTrgTQyCBNw0YCtPvMeU6II93PowYchNLlv_pb6yywnrKRiiJgc1_iIeS6/s1600/TAFA+Team+Blog+banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="95" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0JMGmlGmVgUAY7J_0JN5Zt14KwQWt7_FL-81vUY_kWK0kw0M9U6-jYLBWCz0EAe3YABaiIHveimWgpOB8tDTrgTQyCBNw0YCtPvMeU6II93PowYchNLlv_pb6yywnrKRiiJgc1_iIeS6/s400/TAFA+Team+Blog+banner.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-17373423006230951012012-03-15T19:09:00.003-05:002012-03-15T19:19:44.501-05:00Pinterest- To pin or not to pin? THAT is the question!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc34oRxrJu9kp_0DiGVPi1r10FHYCjU6ezXARFOVtrKwQQUwvxB6Sv9ZhV4VNrVA37m_9OEE3lFw1nnYV5s1DBzRPKqvcrYPLWKe8gWJ_aD5vdQoVrmDXg18FAJN_xIhcCzVbps2sDckre/s1600/pinterest+story.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc34oRxrJu9kp_0DiGVPi1r10FHYCjU6ezXARFOVtrKwQQUwvxB6Sv9ZhV4VNrVA37m_9OEE3lFw1nnYV5s1DBzRPKqvcrYPLWKe8gWJ_aD5vdQoVrmDXg18FAJN_xIhcCzVbps2sDckre/s400/pinterest+story.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We launched <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/" target="_blank">TAFA's new site</a></b> mid-January, then I was gone for a month. When I got back, I jumped into working on the site again. Members have been slowly adding their profiles, but so far, not even half of them are up yet. I have the site on Google Analytics and absolutely LOVE the Real Time view, where you can watch who is there, what pages they are looking at and from what country. I started to notice a lot of views coming from <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/" target="_blank"><b>Pinterest</b></a>. We have a closed group on facebook for members, so I asked if anybody had been pinning us on pinterest. Virtual hands waved, "Me! I am! I am!"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well.... that sure opened a can of worms! Pinterest has been generating heated discussions all over the web due to its user policies. I'm not sure that I understand all of it, but there are weird contradictions like, "all content belongs to Pinterest", then, "Make sure you only pin your copyrighted material", then, "Don't post just your images." Huh? How can you pin only your copyrighted stuff, but then not make your boards all of your own products? More sinister, "If there is a lawsuit, the pinner pays ALL legal fees" and "Pinterest may sell any image on the site"......... I'm not quoting here, just interpreting phrases that I have seen over and over in articles posted around the web. And, there's more, much more. Serious stuff!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">For those of who don't know what Pinterest is, it's what we call a "curating" site. You can create boards of things you are interested in: travel, hobbies, health, fashion, etc. The layout is beautiful, visually entrancing. You can go on any website and instead of bookmarking something that you like, you pin it and it links back to that page (supposedly). So, it's a handy way of keeping track of things you see and want to re-visit in the future. Everything you pin gets sent to the front page and other people see it. If they like it, they can re-pin it to their boards. What that means for those of us who have something to sell is that the viral potential is immense.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">To give you an idea, I made some boards on my page for TAFA products:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqqPEdGiTi2aXNvmCJF3Rdcya4hyphenhyphen44t5cIWJg-hw_J6-4p1O1fV91EUnewGcIqC84GOMLsDHHvxDDK5afxF0v9sSO2LaWe5aKQAz4C-L074G3gkrNusQ5-IAv2WZUSylzjbgyS4e0Pt5jA/s1600/tafa+pins-+boards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqqPEdGiTi2aXNvmCJF3Rdcya4hyphenhyphen44t5cIWJg-hw_J6-4p1O1fV91EUnewGcIqC84GOMLsDHHvxDDK5afxF0v9sSO2LaWe5aKQAz4C-L074G3gkrNusQ5-IAv2WZUSylzjbgyS4e0Pt5jA/s400/tafa+pins-+boards.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://pinterest.com/rayela/" target="_blank">Rayela on Pinterest</a></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If someone likes the content of your board, they can follow the whole theme and see new items in their feed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well! Sounds good, right? Fun!? Pinterest has been around for awhile now and is still by invitation only. You can request one.... But, it's taken off like wild cakes in the last few months. Millions are using it and if I remember correctly, it has passed Google+ in users. Wowzers!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Not so quick. Not all is well in Pinterland... Those issues that I mentioned above have made artists really angry. Why? Because Pinterest can strip their images of copyrights, other users are taking the images and setting up sites inspired by Pinterest but not giving credit to the person who owns the image, and money is being made without consent and without compensation to that owner. We had a wild flurry of articles being posted on our group with many, many arguments against using Pinterest.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The problem is that many of us long for that traffic. Although we may not like the notion of our images being stolen, some of us would rather have a potential sale and the visibility than to be left out of the loop. So, I struggled with this and decided that we needed to have a strategy.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">TAFA has made use of social media from day one. We have hubs on facebook, linkedin, google+, flickr and Etsy. My approach has always been that if a large number of the members are there, we should have a presence there, too. I went and checked my account that I had created months ago and poked around. There was a significant number of TAFA members on the site who were active AND I had almost 600 followers for my almost empty boards. Well! That told me that we needed to be there.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I sent out an email and told the members that if they wanted to be there, I would create a SAFE Board with one pin from each member who wants to be pinned. From there, members and TAFA supporters can start with that board and know that it is OK to pin that person's stuff. The pins link to the member profile and users can go from there to the blogs, shops, websites, etc. The member does not have to have a pinterest account, although many do. Here is our SAFE Board:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA10Jm_KWts9awf-yB1fgbrM971kqK0Rgx3SYjFoldq1hHMj2X0GooqfqpnJxVVbyMNI_80mzufVQfs2rN1M98rW1e1Ne1jeZHrhPrbD2_cG8Rlwjc4yrMUtY80j131HIcsDfIxpWaLAl_/s1600/tafa+pins-+SAFE+board.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA10Jm_KWts9awf-yB1fgbrM971kqK0Rgx3SYjFoldq1hHMj2X0GooqfqpnJxVVbyMNI_80mzufVQfs2rN1M98rW1e1Ne1jeZHrhPrbD2_cG8Rlwjc4yrMUtY80j131HIcsDfIxpWaLAl_/s400/tafa+pins-+SAFE+board.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rayela/pin-these-tafa-members/" target="_blank">Pin these TAFA Members!</a></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">If you are an avid pinner and you love TAFA, this is where you start. Do <b>NOT</b> pin any members who are not on this list! We must all be respectful of the complex issues that surround this site. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">From there, I created several theme boards of TAFA products (pictured above) with other items from these members. I will continue to build those boards and they are all SAFE to re-pin. We really appreciate your support with this!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I also had an idea which I thought was pretty cool. Why not do a board with TAFA members who have been supporting the site with ads? This could potentially give more bang for their buck and serve as an inspiration for people who want to advertise on TAFA. I set that board up, too, and really like how it looks:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaxdJ-C8oZCpDMbdT_e-CcVAcatPdHM03-_p1nTAQZCalDk4c0fo_lEMXB_gAftWM1eDo9w9wRUjg-weQvqVhYwJQrQP_tWe2O8oVixZpUhd3wDS1Jh1qiEH13VljzeJCzWyHiofrg1gpt/s1600/tafa+pins-+ads.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaxdJ-C8oZCpDMbdT_e-CcVAcatPdHM03-_p1nTAQZCalDk4c0fo_lEMXB_gAftWM1eDo9w9wRUjg-weQvqVhYwJQrQP_tWe2O8oVixZpUhd3wDS1Jh1qiEH13VljzeJCzWyHiofrg1gpt/s400/tafa+pins-+ads.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://pinterest.com/rayela/tafa-ads/" target="_blank">TAFA Ads Board</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The ads all link to their member profiles, but these are not necessarily sanctioned for pinning. As the images have their business names on them, it is unlikely that anyone would steal them. But, you are welcome to explore these profiles and visit their sites.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I also created a board for the TAFA members who sell on Etsy. I made this one into a group one so that members can pin their own product. It's an iffy proposition as already one of the members pinned other people's stuff..... But, intentions are good and there is a learning curve with everything.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxK9CRS2erIZr-8kCcI8LGjFc_VCNTK5rF3eSpYYgDz01sfruHYLcvHP4hUlmS-8mv7p6Q1SUt-QgeSd0y-CWiaAW_kjje1rZZTeUQGp9jIvgEiR36Q9qi1vBnC8roEaeuKruX7cpvMpbf/s1600/tafa+pins-+etsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxK9CRS2erIZr-8kCcI8LGjFc_VCNTK5rF3eSpYYgDz01sfruHYLcvHP4hUlmS-8mv7p6Q1SUt-QgeSd0y-CWiaAW_kjje1rZZTeUQGp9jIvgEiR36Q9qi1vBnC8roEaeuKruX7cpvMpbf/s400/tafa+pins-+etsy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://pinterest.com/rayela/tafa-members-on-etsy/" target="_blank">TAFA Members on Etsy</a></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">As you can see, there are many creative things that can be done with these boards to promote a business or feed an interest. But, do not underestimate how serious the concerns are around Pinterest's policies. I received an email this morning saying that the word was out on the web that the owner was meeting with lawyers to change the policies. I don't know whether this is true or not, or even if the changes would be significant enough to put out the fire. But, it was a piece of hopeful news. The concept is wonderful, but when you build your business on underhanded practices, it will fall.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Interested in learning more about this issue? </span></b> </div><div style="text-align: left;">Here are some of the articles our members posted:</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><ul><li><b><a href="http://pinterest.com/about/help/" target="_blank">Pinterest's About Page</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2012/03/08/pinterest-now-generates-more-referral-traffic-than-twitter-study/" target="_blank">Pinterest Now Generates More Traffic than Twitter</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2012/01/06/etsy-makes-it-easy-for-users-to-post-items-to-pinterest-with-new-pin-it-button/" target="_blank">Etsy Makes it Easy to Pin!</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://greekgeek.hubpages.com/hub/Is-Pinterest-a-Haven-for-Copyright-Violations" target="_blank">Is Pinterest a Haven for Copyright Violations?</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://artists-bill-of-rights.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=688&catid=23&Itemid=97" target="_blank">Pinterest: 3 Reason's for Not Using It (Bill of Rights for Creative People)</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://lovelife.typepad.com/my_weblog/2012/02/not-pining-for-pinning.html" target="_blank">Not Pining Over Pinning</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/pinterest-copyright-issues-lawyer-2012-2?nr_email_referer=1&utm_source=Triggermail&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Business+Insider+Select&utm_campaign=BI+Select+Recurring+2012-02-28" target="_blank">Lawyer Deletes Pinterest Boards Out of Fear</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://www.made-by-rae.com/2012/02/pinteresting-food-for-thought/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pinteresting-food-for-thought" target="_blank">Pinteresting Food for Thought</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://mousenotebook.blogspot.com/2012/02/pinning-matters.html" target="_blank">Pinning Matters (Link with Love)</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://www.crafttestdummies.com/craft-product-reviews/the-perils-of-pinterest/" target="_blank">The Perils of Pinterest</a></b></li>
</ul><div>That is probably enough to educate anyone on the issues behind the uproar. </div><div><br />
</div><div><b><span style="font-size: large;">What should you do?</span></b></div><div><br />
</div><div>Each person has to decide what is best for him or her. But, if you are a pinner, educate yourself and respect people's wishes on this. Do not pin anything that does not link back to the owner of the image. Have a doubt about it? Ask them. In fact, this is good practice for anything done on the web. Do you see an image you would like to use on your blog? Ask the owner. </div><div><br />
</div><div>My belief is that if you have a web presence you automatically put your images at risk with anything you post. If it's out there, even if you have code on your site protecting downloads, anybody can copy it. All they need to do is do a screen print and they have it. It's unfortunate, but it does not mean that we need to condone this behavior. Do the best YOU can to be a good web citizen.<br />
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The one solution I see is to use discreet watermarks embedded into the images. That is probably what I will do with mine in the future (IF I can figure out how to do it quickly...). And, I believe that for every scoundrel that is out there, 99% of the others are good people who would like to do the right thing.</div><div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Pin Responsibly!</span></b></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-2047253635789873162012-03-09T11:31:00.000-06:002012-03-09T11:31:14.364-06:00Win a Free Ad on TAFA! $1,000 Value!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgoUmZvpXUzovHTBlGf7yitSCgClq6e4W4edIprr7-rM7mrN_r32uNZK6goJu22ucc90X2DUobLAtbIilWlOdMB7kVPKVVWtHheVeiZhWRxjMCk1kT4USzXwF8LhxqZGVLvPET3REm46MD/s1600/1+yr+fee+ad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgoUmZvpXUzovHTBlGf7yitSCgClq6e4W4edIprr7-rM7mrN_r32uNZK6goJu22ucc90X2DUobLAtbIilWlOdMB7kVPKVVWtHheVeiZhWRxjMCk1kT4USzXwF8LhxqZGVLvPET3REm46MD/s400/1+yr+fee+ad.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/sponsor-ads" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Win a Free Ad on TAFA!</span></a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">TAFA launched its new site in January and the members have been busy getting their member profiles loaded. Each day it gets more and more beautiful! Now, we need your help to get people to come and see them! In the process, we will also help you grow your audience.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Here is how it works:</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><ol><li><span style="font-size: large;">Post the image above on your blog, facebook page, or email your list with the link to our Sponsors page: <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/sponsor-ads">http://www.tafalist.com/sponsor-ads</a></b> </span>(Your email needs to have a web version so that we can see it and link to it.)</li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Say something nice about TAFA. </span>Why do <b>you</b> think people should visit?</li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Go to our facebook fan page and leave a comment <b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150721646772650&set=a.410156877649.200214.352242502649&type=1&theater" target="_blank">here</a></b> with the link of what you posted. </span>(If you do not have a facebook account, get a friend to do it for you. We need to have these links in one place...)</li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">We will post that link on our sites giving you a public thank you: facebook, google+ and linkedin.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">On March 31st, we will do a drawing of the people who posted their and the winner will get a free ad on TAFA for a year. </span><b style="font-size: x-large;">This is a $1,000 value! </b>(We will use a random number generator to pick the winner.)</li>
</ol><div><br />
</div><div><span style="color: #45818e; font-size: x-large;"><b>Added Bonus</b></span></div><div><br />
</div><div><b><span style="font-size: large;">Get half off on TAFA Ads through March 20th! </span></b> (Non-members only) Ads are $100 a month or $1000 a year. This will give you a chance to test TAFA at a reduced rate so that you can see if it is a good place for your future ads. We need to raise some cash to finish our site and your ads will help us with that.</div><div><br />
</div><div>TAFA's audience tends to be educated, well traveled women over 40. If you have a an online business, our people might just like what you have to offer. Businesses that would probably do well on TAFA: Etsy shops, anything art or craft related, anything to do with travel, the environment, literature, decor, pets, and so on. </div><div><br />
</div><div>If you don't know what to say, feel free to use the above text as is or in your own words. Let's get some buzz happening! I happen to be passionate about anything to do with textiles and fiber art and I love the diversity of our group. They are each doing something very special in their own corner of the world and each brings in their own special talent that makes this place a better one for all of us.</div><div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Be a Winner!</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Support TAFA!</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />
</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Visit </b><span style="text-align: left;"><b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/sponsor-ads">http://www.tafalist.com/sponsor-ads</a> for more info.</b></span></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-10956160988581854292012-02-28T16:35:00.001-06:002012-02-28T16:36:38.260-06:00Tucson with Joyce<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKGGJf64Pv0KpvPVnwtabWZmFYIbv9BOpEJagMe4zwdBwmrm1v4_hPS7OiAYr5X5QI6xPXrk6yM1Q-xOCPkRvmL1yBqLcWARcRYoTVs96E940r9ZfvPJicoy8HwshYlbYU8usvxgiIX77H/s1600/tubac+joyce+2+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKGGJf64Pv0KpvPVnwtabWZmFYIbv9BOpEJagMe4zwdBwmrm1v4_hPS7OiAYr5X5QI6xPXrk6yM1Q-xOCPkRvmL1yBqLcWARcRYoTVs96E940r9ZfvPJicoy8HwshYlbYU8usvxgiIX77H/s400/tubac+joyce+2+feb2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Joyce Levy, Tubac, Arizona</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I got back from a month of being on the road with Abdul. We were mostly in Tucson for the Gem and Bead Show. Several days were spent going and coming through vast, unpopulated areas of the Western Desert states: Texas, New Mexico and then Arizona. Lots of scenes like this:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7TptsHHHlU8a4eExRs_lRlGkK8y4ip7mPcCATSWKNbZiS3Imew_FyEmxSp_EPY2WQNsTu-nUk2Xwcha3uhyDD1LjfcriIwuBo45wHIjAdvBEiMPIUSZWa-Aw96GsvSIJErH9DviZwwb_U/s1600/_IGP4314.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7TptsHHHlU8a4eExRs_lRlGkK8y4ip7mPcCATSWKNbZiS3Imew_FyEmxSp_EPY2WQNsTu-nUk2Xwcha3uhyDD1LjfcriIwuBo45wHIjAdvBEiMPIUSZWa-Aw96GsvSIJErH9DviZwwb_U/s400/_IGP4314.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">That cross is there for a reason: it's not easy to survive on the desert. Well, that one was probably from a car accident, but still.... no water scares me. Once in Tucson, my opinion did not get much better. Big gusts of winds would lift up the dust and spread it everywhere. I felt dirty all of the time. Our hotel was filthy with no upgrades since the 1950's. (Never stay at the Howard Johnson's, known as HoJo, if you can help it!) Pipes broke, flooding and soaking the stinky carpeting. I was not a happy nomad. We had to set up the show and I hadn't seen much of the city. When I did, it was at night, dark and scary looking. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUCeswvmumPJH9fXyIonLRcF6-KVdY0B7sXu6FnaMeR1tR-Rn6C8ApiJ1w80rIX6CflI0IlT8F50ItNlcD2qkS4x1EjEpfPBP48htxu84EA8_Zb0LAeYAERTVr-f6UjxENDDMa7idpiKF/s1600/tucson+at+night.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUCeswvmumPJH9fXyIonLRcF6-KVdY0B7sXu6FnaMeR1tR-Rn6C8ApiJ1w80rIX6CflI0IlT8F50ItNlcD2qkS4x1EjEpfPBP48htxu84EA8_Zb0LAeYAERTVr-f6UjxENDDMa7idpiKF/s400/tucson+at+night.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.city-data.com/picfilesc/picc28094.php">Tucson at Night</a></b></td></tr>
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Tucson has observatories and a bunch of military things going on, I was told, so there are city ordinances about how much light can be on at night. I would not like to go for a walk around the block on my own... </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Then, my friend, Joyce, rescued me from despair. She lives in Skokie, a Chicago suburb, and her father lives in Tucson. Every year she comes out at about this time and spends a month with him. I got to bop around with them for a couple of afternoons, and, although I am no convert to the desert, they showed me some lovely areas. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVKr6bZH0t_CnM8v0v8ezO5Qyx3XfMWkTegAPwZ80zp_NuTidW7jE8w70TIZo1X8KHXsyQKLQPd32i5Lc5DU7AJ_3c2lxzKi1eWncTcIus_iTq6Plo0l5ohr5-llXsJh93YVXKNVc_s8w1/s1600/freda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVKr6bZH0t_CnM8v0v8ezO5Qyx3XfMWkTegAPwZ80zp_NuTidW7jE8w70TIZo1X8KHXsyQKLQPd32i5Lc5DU7AJ_3c2lxzKi1eWncTcIus_iTq6Plo0l5ohr5-llXsJh93YVXKNVc_s8w1/s1600/freda.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">On the first afternoon, we went to see an exhibit at the Tucson Museum of Art, <b><a href="http://www.tucsonmuseumofart.org/exhibitions/frida-kahlo-through-the-lens-of-nickolas-muray" target="_blank">Frida Kahlo: Through the Lens of Nickolas Murray</a></b>. He had been a lover of hers and his photos of both her and Diego Rivera are spectacular! There was also an accompanying display of Mexican garments that was lovely. Joyce bought me a small decoupage of Frida which now hangs on my bathroom wall, a memory of a fine afternoon in Tucson! We ate a sumptuous lunch at a cafe right next to the museum, indoor gardens, chirping birds and all of that wonderful SouthWestern decor.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">From there we went to Sidney's (Joyce's father's) apartment. He is 90 but looks and acts like he just turned 60. He lives in one of those modern senior places that has a swimming pool and wonderful amenities. Both Joyce and Sidney commissioned work from me in the past and I was finally able to see his pieces in their final destinations:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqM2oQS_Tz2qNtr85_jrzBRrXxyrx-GfgPF_dVddU-WdOl7TVDYLAVe1wDMJqFhYrJIjcuFbNK_C25NOu4bpXhdJsWCU_9sZ7du0Zv2P58VAN9btB7dr6cfQzr1CIos36mjQTm65FdR9GL/s1600/Sidney+and+tie+textile+with+rachel-tucson+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqM2oQS_Tz2qNtr85_jrzBRrXxyrx-GfgPF_dVddU-WdOl7TVDYLAVe1wDMJqFhYrJIjcuFbNK_C25NOu4bpXhdJsWCU_9sZ7du0Zv2P58VAN9btB7dr6cfQzr1CIos36mjQTm65FdR9GL/s400/Sidney+and+tie+textile+with+rachel-tucson+feb2012.JPG" width="350" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Rachel Biel and Sidney Levy</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Here we stand in front of "Sidney's Ties" a weaving I made for Sidney of the ties he had worn for so many years as a professor. You can see close-ups of the piece and the process on my blog: <b><a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/2009/09/sidneys-ties-weaving-of-memories.html" target="_blank">Sidney's Ties</a></b>. Joyce had commissioned quilts made out of t-shirts worn by her brother, Bruce, who had an untimely death due to cancer. Sidney had one of them and it was great fun to see it on his bed:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSC_YrgbDhC6M8gdJTIT-DQlUdxnxywr0oEARA1uEy2MtnDvOawd2FiQIHAajlqUBiRghWacUdv-88dzFcPlpNm8j0x7rtQqPgRUqehW4LwViU5BkkiiAZ3m6xLe8FoOIHr8GNhvUtSeqP/s1600/Sidney+and+quilt-tucson+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSC_YrgbDhC6M8gdJTIT-DQlUdxnxywr0oEARA1uEy2MtnDvOawd2FiQIHAajlqUBiRghWacUdv-88dzFcPlpNm8j0x7rtQqPgRUqehW4LwViU5BkkiiAZ3m6xLe8FoOIHr8GNhvUtSeqP/s400/Sidney+and+quilt-tucson+feb2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Sidney Levy with his memory quilt honoring his son, Bruce.</b></td></tr>
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">You can read about the other quilts on my blog as well: <b><a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/2008/07/bruce-quilt-and-joyce-levy.html" target="_blank"> The Bruce Quilt</a>.</b> We swam and visited and by then it was time to take me back to the hotel from hell.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">They rescued me a few days later for a little road trip. Destination: <b><a href="http://www.tubacaz.com/abouttubac.asp" target="_blank">Tubac, Arizona</a></b>! Currently populated by about 100 families, the small town dedicates itself to a life of art. The businesses are all galleries, cafes, and support services, making it a tourist destination out in the desert. There was a huge festival going on when we went there, so that was perfect for the three of us, all art lovers. But, first, we made a detour and saw the <b><a href="http://www.sanxaviermission.org/" target="_blank">San Xavier Mission</a></b>, just outside of Tucson. The official site does not have any images of the church, very Franciscan of them, eh? This <b><a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=san+xavier+mission&hl=en&rlz=1C1GGGE_enUS431US458&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=wlJNT9HoFcWsgwfK3dnMAg&ved=0CG0QsAQ&biw=1600&bih=729" target="_blank">google search has a bunch</a></b>, but really, you have to experience it to really "see" it. Layers upon layers of detail and texture cover the inside of the church. You stand in the middle and just look around in awe. I didn't even try to capture it on my camera. The outside, though, was beautiful in its simplicity:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RX8RlTuzvetuKNZDBjD0r2liLht-MM9uESMWqEJaSPdpA4Kwlz_DfWqIRU7bGCOyhD2_gpS3oo1X8s7Rxf9PX4yCXwVblRGJvZSc_9OdIr7e1OkHm1oFjKAJ4uAY70BrLLVrAymQqrW8/s1600/mission+7+tucson+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RX8RlTuzvetuKNZDBjD0r2liLht-MM9uESMWqEJaSPdpA4Kwlz_DfWqIRU7bGCOyhD2_gpS3oo1X8s7Rxf9PX4yCXwVblRGJvZSc_9OdIr7e1OkHm1oFjKAJ4uAY70BrLLVrAymQqrW8/s400/mission+7+tucson+feb2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>San Xavier Mission</b></td></tr>
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Again, those inspiring SouthWestern lines:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3xxX2ZWW4fwmOmpWq_u6bZv5gF4fDIlAZ9o2EYN6qynv_PWTp_p1X3_Qt9b2uyl7BCLsXHHlGF-Dxf-wWeHi65mlLq_1U0ZQ9pUN8BIzSymq7RlwIKqFibcmCdkPcFfp1aqEOA3fmCAXg/s1600/mission+5+tucson+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3xxX2ZWW4fwmOmpWq_u6bZv5gF4fDIlAZ9o2EYN6qynv_PWTp_p1X3_Qt9b2uyl7BCLsXHHlGF-Dxf-wWeHi65mlLq_1U0ZQ9pUN8BIzSymq7RlwIKqFibcmCdkPcFfp1aqEOA3fmCAXg/s400/mission+5+tucson+feb2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Back to Tubac... We had planned to meet up with Fran Siegal and her husband, Andy, who are <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/" target="_blank">TAFA</a></b> members. They live in New York and were also in Tucson for the show. Finding them was not such an easy task and took up some of our time. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXHtCKtXFKv2EB1LurJX0SNol_4Y2VWOwZ4lmp5KqNewMT2AzS34a9-94RsnH3xpkgNEVyVkH_yngodM-C0OLoezJaGtjEOKdcaaqw8xxMuvbypt_SYvk-M6me9-XQErh8ULFyvcZBhLAN/s1600/tubac+fran+andy+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXHtCKtXFKv2EB1LurJX0SNol_4Y2VWOwZ4lmp5KqNewMT2AzS34a9-94RsnH3xpkgNEVyVkH_yngodM-C0OLoezJaGtjEOKdcaaqw8xxMuvbypt_SYvk-M6me9-XQErh8ULFyvcZBhLAN/s400/tubac+fran+andy+feb2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Fran Siegal and Andy with me in the middle.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">By then we were hot (but not sweaty!) so we sat at a cafe and had some refreshments. The art town of Tubac is well planned with parking around the periphery and everything else within walking distance. We explored a bit of the booths, did a bit of shopping and by then the afternoon had ended.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_7AO5Q5arfT3o5fGgbQBpBWV3JmBY3Gk0Rtix499NTPKgQFePjAAoUGdxH0Bzuvhr61dx_CfMBfOZhR9FOFYOcSE_nH9FIfDByeajL7VMuiNzHmwTQCz9HHiy5FE5Mj-l0vrmC7DG1d6R/s1600/tubac+joyce,+rachel,+sidney+feb2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_7AO5Q5arfT3o5fGgbQBpBWV3JmBY3Gk0Rtix499NTPKgQFePjAAoUGdxH0Bzuvhr61dx_CfMBfOZhR9FOFYOcSE_nH9FIfDByeajL7VMuiNzHmwTQCz9HHiy5FE5Mj-l0vrmC7DG1d6R/s400/tubac+joyce,+rachel,+sidney+feb2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Joyce, Me and Sidney.</b></td></tr>
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, Joyce brought some spice into my Tucson time. It was all very interesting and I enjoyed seeing the new landscapes, but when we were driving back towards my part of the country, I felt my spirits lift: back to the green, lush trees of the SouthEast! I am truly living where I should be.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It was so wonderful to spend time with Joyce and her father and to meet Fran and Andy. Joyce is a fountain of knowledge and always great fun to be with and now that I have met her father, I see that she is a chip off of the old block. Precious people!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-64814042942288181132012-02-08T22:59:00.000-06:002012-02-08T22:59:00.956-06:00Colorful Tucson! Portraits in Pink.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinZsBZclDyzJUO_9HD8rI2T0MaDPj5sNui3dxCDLX721mMugC282TNnCObNoaQCPBIomxOU3hW-MMK23JJ53WqdFO9qSPt8ZKre5CkRyvAgYjnpTOkNDfmcVmHwbPwWgN_fBAz00yO2Was/s1600/_IGP4374.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="538" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinZsBZclDyzJUO_9HD8rI2T0MaDPj5sNui3dxCDLX721mMugC282TNnCObNoaQCPBIomxOU3hW-MMK23JJ53WqdFO9qSPt8ZKre5CkRyvAgYjnpTOkNDfmcVmHwbPwWgN_fBAz00yO2Was/s400/_IGP4374.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We're in Tucson for the Gem and Mineral Show. It's been a fascinating time of meeting people from all over the world. Some are glassy eyed, going on and on about the stones and their healing properties and their mission in the world. But, most are just having a good time. I've been struck by the colorful dress, the happiness that so many seem to feel. It's a good feeling to take with me. Here are some portraits of colorful people who allowed me to take a quick snapshot of their smiles. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBktsA4s8tnGH-dtignZ4shCTkvoSpzMt9YMmrOwW6z0o6mAD_1yeDKF_joHSCBrs1fHL3K7zK6BNWznPnKugI-OPCAioPKS2ZY2P_dom-y8j69eq8uvEP0HG9V1JEeLDuiyA4gCmwkQ7/s1600/_IGP4375.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="510" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBktsA4s8tnGH-dtignZ4shCTkvoSpzMt9YMmrOwW6z0o6mAD_1yeDKF_joHSCBrs1fHL3K7zK6BNWznPnKugI-OPCAioPKS2ZY2P_dom-y8j69eq8uvEP0HG9V1JEeLDuiyA4gCmwkQ7/s400/_IGP4375.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Read more about our trip <a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/search/label/Tucson%202012" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></b></div></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-39103324752660202402012-02-06T23:28:00.001-06:002012-02-06T23:30:09.123-06:00Afghan Tribal Arts at the Tucson Gem Show<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU1Q4qQpm-ZoAjkkr-tjtd0NxqZV__h6mw_0fpCQtnLkBRSo8Rxg-GENBzB35D6jBWoK-qDDIHEiP9VmtZPpDG0I40GjLm5nrP-puhx1PbINCJVHhpwDtdFp8RUz5Mvp6bEIi8gK1GmRgH/s1600/_IGP4366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="557" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU1Q4qQpm-ZoAjkkr-tjtd0NxqZV__h6mw_0fpCQtnLkBRSo8Rxg-GENBzB35D6jBWoK-qDDIHEiP9VmtZPpDG0I40GjLm5nrP-puhx1PbINCJVHhpwDtdFp8RUz5Mvp6bEIi8gK1GmRgH/s640/_IGP4366.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Afghan Tribal Arts in Tucson</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Howard Johnson's, Room 149</span></b><br />
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</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Every year, for many decades now, the city of Tucson hosts one of the largest gem and mineral shows in the world. People from many nations come with their rocks, stones, fossils, minerals, beads and jewelry and set up to sell to other people who also come from all over the world to buy. It's quite overwhelming as big tents are set up with different themes all over the city. Hotels, like the one we are at, remove the bedroom furniture and make room for temporary shops. We are in an area where most of the vendors are selling big rocks, barrels of them, along with fossils and other minerals. A block away is the African Village. Down the street I have heard that there is some guy with some great stuff from Nepal. I've pretty much been hostage to my little corner as Abdul was set up at another hotel with a show that ended tonight.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Outside we have a display of textiles, wood and show specials. We only get to have one table in front of the room, while others have long selling areas. We're in a fire lane, so we have to be contained. If you look down the street, you see the others with their rocks:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Inside, we have beads along the walls on grids, then textiles and jewelry on tables. It's quite a beautiful little shop except that the sun is so strong outside that it takes a minute to adjust to less light in the room.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">So, as you can see, it's a little shop. An expensive little shop! $2,000 for the room for two weeks, $3,000 for a truck and gas, food, etc. Traffic has been slow. Old timers talk about the good old days when buyers squeezed by, shoulder to shoulder. Now, you get little bursts of action and then quiet. But, the connections made can be extremely valuable and if one does not take the risk, then it is like giving up on the whole business. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">It's been a fascinating time for me as I get to know my neighbors. The guy next to me lives in Siberia and does not speak a word of English. He expresses himself through smoke signals as he puffs at endless cigarettes and mimes his needs. How can one sell like that? Then, there are a bunch of friendly Mexicans and Germans living in the Dominican Republic, all in the mining industry. They barbecue every night and tonight I was invited. Such stories! Next, a Polish woman from Chicago and her beaded jewelry. Around the corner, a slew of Brazilians who have gobs of gems. They are party hardy and I haven't had the guts to introduce myself (I grew up down there). They are the black leather, gold watch, night-club scene and I am just a peasant from Kentucky now. (Ha!) </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The most fun for me has been another Afghan, Shah Ji, who is around the corner closest to me. Very sweet and great sense of humor. We both roll are eyes in our heads.... Tomorrow Abdul will be back here full time and the real fun will start as he is the story teller and the true salesman. I get to take the day off and traipse around with my friend, Joyce, from Chicago. And, I got to meet a couple of TAFA members here and will do something with them in a couple of days. So far, all I have really seen of Tucson is what is in front of me:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">A bunch of bushes separating the hotel from an empty lot now inhabited by Rainbow Children.... Oh, I also got to see Petsmart and Walmart at night. Woo hoo! Petsmart? Yes, the highlight of this trip, so far, has been finding little Tor, a new addition to my crew at home. A chihuahua we found, abandoned at a truck stop in New Mexico. More on him later...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLo6XKu6kVxxInh7vuvjBCApIm1Ckmg4QE4MMXuKXDKP-36Pi_nSTsXNb-rLs94WGKtZDz7tWt_pSlN8QDm1Siq_R1Fo0kpz_Z8GnEXQFsPZa0AqSh9Yu_NVijf0TLuEQiKE1nHhEWD0Zk/s1600/rachel+with+tor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="457" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLo6XKu6kVxxInh7vuvjBCApIm1Ckmg4QE4MMXuKXDKP-36Pi_nSTsXNb-rLs94WGKtZDz7tWt_pSlN8QDm1Siq_R1Fo0kpz_Z8GnEXQFsPZa0AqSh9Yu_NVijf0TLuEQiKE1nHhEWD0Zk/s400/rachel+with+tor.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Read all of the Tucson stories: <a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/search/label/Tucson%202012" target="_blank"><b>Click!</b></a></span></div></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-67236529096384939632012-02-03T00:50:00.000-06:002012-02-03T00:50:37.248-06:00Here we come, Tucson!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DHzwY3f49-daPPTnDapXnF46gJxThOLYhb04UY0I2Px2pwwhc9CP-QCcO2U24IX1QOj7urjsPr0P2CPGL3pffCEuOD4qeT8F3Yno-n7UwHcOdA5mcGBkBoOWAQ-a3gEBtXmnmZv27C9E/s1600/tucson+show+guide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DHzwY3f49-daPPTnDapXnF46gJxThOLYhb04UY0I2Px2pwwhc9CP-QCcO2U24IX1QOj7urjsPr0P2CPGL3pffCEuOD4qeT8F3Yno-n7UwHcOdA5mcGBkBoOWAQ-a3gEBtXmnmZv27C9E/s400/tucson+show+guide.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">It's been a long time since I have been able to just leave town and spend time away. Now, I have Pat Scholz, who can house sit and take care of my animals (dogs and birds) and give me peace of mind. My friend, Abdul, asked me if I would like to work the Tucson Gem and Bead show with him. I jumped at the chance! I've been wanting to see it for years!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">So, we drove and drove and drove. It took 3 days, going through territory that I had not seen before...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">It's amazing to me how so much land is still uninhabited. You can film cowboy movies here and it looks like the Old West. Someone described the landscape as "Kitty Litter Decor" and I have to say I agree.... Where have all the good trees gone?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Big open skies, vast landscapes, an Indian restaurant in the middle of nowhere, roadside crosses where people lost their lives............... Very different from Kentucky!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">We are here and have set up. More on the show very soon!</div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-16028417769554772612012-01-17T23:34:00.003-06:002021-11-18T11:38:22.500-06:00Tour TAFA's New Site!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCcUeE1Yqr9iJKEutFslbexOttltH_5YRlGgLpw5xCfAfNKPwICiRTwXJLP402096nRbKRnk7aE5eVzw8srRC__cBpxGf0_ZZILoobh_Z9JLDOz2PJz6C6wcCsLCUkbukzFsni2do3-bjT/s1600/Blurb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCcUeE1Yqr9iJKEutFslbexOttltH_5YRlGgLpw5xCfAfNKPwICiRTwXJLP402096nRbKRnk7aE5eVzw8srRC__cBpxGf0_ZZILoobh_Z9JLDOz2PJz6C6wcCsLCUkbukzFsni2do3-bjT/s400/Blurb.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Yesterday was my 50th birthday and I could not have asked for a better present than to have TAFA go live with its new site on <a href="http://www.tafalist.com/"><b>www.tafalist.com</b></a>. Two years ago, I had come to the realization that many of my peers and I were swimming in a new madness called social media. We were all bumping into each other in different places, but didn't really have a way to connect in an orderly manner. There was also so much to learn. Selling online had become extremely competitive and if we were going to make headway in this ocean of information, my thought was that we needed to do it as a group. "Together we can do great things!" So, I put the idea out there, started TAFA: The Textile and Fiber Art List using a blog format and began navigating the web to bring in potential members who were professionals and who worked with handmade textiles and fiber art.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">A year later there were almost 200 members and it was clear that we needed a new website. A bunch of us held a brainstorming session on facebook, identifying member needs and how we would use the website. In the summer we had a fundraiser on IndieGoGo and raised $5,000 towards the new site. In August, work on the site began and it took five months of hard work to reach yesterday's launch. Oh, and we are $2,500 over the budget plus there is a Phase Two in the works where the site will be completed with the original bones we envisioned. In the end, this will be a $10K site and we believe that it will become a major hub for the textile and fiber art community.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Take a Tour</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Navigation is not self-evident at this stage, although we believe we have some really cool tools to explore the site. An in-depth drop-down site map is planned for Phase Two, but we want to live with what we have for awhile as we tweak the site. Here is a map of the front page:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK8Pejoqohlozxg9IVU7LtHwbhEDg0TXfjp9A_mA01jiblhoXFpkfZLKKzTZINvMAvLjysJv60_KBxcpKI3yEc-JOaB0ufWXFFPron_qy7_oByz5gLQwz9VI_0-e4cBeKPVCL1q8u-ihV-/s1600/front+page+numbered.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK8Pejoqohlozxg9IVU7LtHwbhEDg0TXfjp9A_mA01jiblhoXFpkfZLKKzTZINvMAvLjysJv60_KBxcpKI3yEc-JOaB0ufWXFFPron_qy7_oByz5gLQwz9VI_0-e4cBeKPVCL1q8u-ihV-/s400/front+page+numbered.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><ol><li><b>Logo:</b> Click to return home.</li>
<li><b>The List:</b> Our member list.</li>
<li><b>Fresh Profiles:</b> Members who have made recent changes to their member profile.</li>
<li><b>Banners:</b> They flash and are linked to member profiles. Click to visit.</li>
<li><b>Member Stories:</b> Features on members.</li>
<li><b>Product Talk:</b> Features on products.</li>
<li><b>Events: </b> List of member events.</li>
<li><b>Member Blogs:</b> Not ready yet, but will have a stream of member blogs.</li>
<li><b>Member Map:</b> A Google map with members pinned to their locations. Click on the pin to see the member, linked to member profiles.</li>
</ol><div>The core value of the site is in finding the members and their products. The members each have a member profile page. They can each list four products (which link to their sites), one video and one event. All of these can be shared on social media sites and show up in search. They are color-coded by type of result (profiles, products, videos, etc each have a different color). Users can bookmark these in their private bookmark page for future reference. Here are some examples:</div><div><br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Profile Page</b></span></div><div><br />
</div><div>This page will be re-worked in Phase Two as it still seems a little awkward in how it displays, but all of the member's basic info is there: where they are in the web, on the google map, and a slideshow if they have one. In Phase Two, the member's blog will stream to the sidebar.</div><div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFfPIbPTowlMiSip0EKg7zhQp-tlqH53VlTrMtLaaJZoikBQig8XOFdsswLgEG3IVvmO-w9EVwNNee4blpYl8_4RohQn3pI5HYVq08XAnQevsv70KZ87Cf_7AhoWuB81klQOenATUVNvKc/s1600/member+profile.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="540" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFfPIbPTowlMiSip0EKg7zhQp-tlqH53VlTrMtLaaJZoikBQig8XOFdsswLgEG3IVvmO-w9EVwNNee4blpYl8_4RohQn3pI5HYVq08XAnQevsv70KZ87Cf_7AhoWuB81klQOenATUVNvKc/s400/member+profile.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Search</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The search bar at the top of the site needs a keyword in order to operate. Type it in and either hit enter/return on the keyboard or click on the magnifying lens. We currently have 400 members, so with 4 products each we may have an initial 1,600 products to look at. The results can be narrowed down by clicking on the drop down menu. Here is an example of a search result:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gJqhUg4JVdcz5mxsRNMTRaGw5kUirlBvXxBeFnqE9ov-fstTWfkypT92X6CrcEgWWnDdG-3GoCeNmxcPBRvwd_LQZ_DpzKb3dVHyGnkfTqL3tb7qlVBF8mhSwUowNVMDECjkZzByo0jY/s1600/search+results.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gJqhUg4JVdcz5mxsRNMTRaGw5kUirlBvXxBeFnqE9ov-fstTWfkypT92X6CrcEgWWnDdG-3GoCeNmxcPBRvwd_LQZ_DpzKb3dVHyGnkfTqL3tb7qlVBF8mhSwUowNVMDECjkZzByo0jY/s400/search+results.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This was for a search on "shibori". Note that some of the boxes are brown and others are golden. The brown ones are products and the golden ones are member profiles. Click on the product and you get a full page description of the item with a link to the member site. Click on the member profile ones and you will go to that profile.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Product Pages</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">You will see an image, a description (if the member entered any), a visit link (takes you the member's site), and a comment box where visitors can ask questions or say something about what they think about the product (hopefully, something nice!). The page can be shared on social media sites and saved as a bookmark. We also have a green flag on product pages. This is to be used to alert us when an inappropriate image is loaded (blurry, bad photo, or culturally insensitive). We will take a look at flags and work with the members on their presentation. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here is an example of a Product Page;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmYpUQiJ990TvkdUq9GqYwi0ntwO37QEG3iX6nPp-4dIDD92mv691yI5uVO5q8nkDPQ91e3lBtF1C9Fm9IadDTQdICzpJrlCoSNQEioyOzE-yNkXRqHYjhwqhAIM-S5s0lBSJkxanRgkN6/s1600/product+page.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmYpUQiJ990TvkdUq9GqYwi0ntwO37QEG3iX6nPp-4dIDD92mv691yI5uVO5q8nkDPQ91e3lBtF1C9Fm9IadDTQdICzpJrlCoSNQEioyOzE-yNkXRqHYjhwqhAIM-S5s0lBSJkxanRgkN6/s400/product+page.jpg" width="346" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Bookmarks:</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">You have to log in if you want to bookmark something. Yes, non-members can have mini accounts where they can bookmark pages, leave comments and buy ads. When you are logged in you will see a red ribbon at the top right hand corner of the site. That is our dandy bookmark. Here is a video that I liked:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfo89mR5RfM0tZdIGOE7Wz3qd7zKxE_OcqfgCdzcwuqG9mj8fYm-JuRpLK8KgNuq8IkPi_VMMohPUaDvIzhYkX7hs4A82rJ5pdkv0Y85_9nC1ItTn6BU0HQ_BiFPUmULXDJkz80a75GWx/s1600/bookmarked+video.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfo89mR5RfM0tZdIGOE7Wz3qd7zKxE_OcqfgCdzcwuqG9mj8fYm-JuRpLK8KgNuq8IkPi_VMMohPUaDvIzhYkX7hs4A82rJ5pdkv0Y85_9nC1ItTn6BU0HQ_BiFPUmULXDJkz80a75GWx/s400/bookmarked+video.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The orange arrow is pointing to the bookmark. I clicked on it and then checked my bookmark page:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlQwlTmRAy9EDRusvLJPM4lbHHO4tR1ZifmsrXgO1ZO0aji8FZvLaj0FZSOJupIPcp_j1qZtC7KPweXOd4NDay2wrn1R6dsCQ779Ni8FCSiE30n6vJjXldcxn_WaJIDwzkvoqAnFgHH2fp/s1600/bookmarks.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlQwlTmRAy9EDRusvLJPM4lbHHO4tR1ZifmsrXgO1ZO0aji8FZvLaj0FZSOJupIPcp_j1qZtC7KPweXOd4NDay2wrn1R6dsCQ779Ni8FCSiE30n6vJjXldcxn_WaJIDwzkvoqAnFgHH2fp/s400/bookmarks.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sure enough, there it is: the third to the right on the first row. Notice the color coding again. Don't want to keep something anymore? Click on the red bookmark on the item and it goes away.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Events:</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Many of our members make their living by teaching workshops or participating in competitive shows or gallery exhibits. We felt that having an event page was a huge service we could provide for them. This page still needs some tweaking and in Phase Two it will be searchable by type of event, location, and dates. For now, we have a basic list:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAyKBpxGT9GiFmSV-HpGeCX7ZgX54d2toah9Ldwh0vc8OzvrZ1VArbm7edvdsHMKoQP13eEg9hvRUPo7f5NMKF6FEVEena8YELHPpZwKHAZSyt4d1tIrn3JlqV_Hgskqgqi1Q2Av0yICM-/s1600/events.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAyKBpxGT9GiFmSV-HpGeCX7ZgX54d2toah9Ldwh0vc8OzvrZ1VArbm7edvdsHMKoQP13eEg9hvRUPo7f5NMKF6FEVEena8YELHPpZwKHAZSyt4d1tIrn3JlqV_Hgskqgqi1Q2Av0yICM-/s400/events.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Click on the event and it has its own page which links to the member profile. The event also posts on the member's profile page, on the left sidebar.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG4Got5Xc4DWmr-0hppLCtlsmG7vr38RMJzhbpdp6QH2r68eH6hSRVTUl7VOFhOIckkHZPmt9Tet00USAS9tqy9cxxXGFAVN97_cVCpBt_DQw5MpghQRPYcncT-WV1Bh5rMbaXMpLQMD9Q/s1600/events-+full+listing.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG4Got5Xc4DWmr-0hppLCtlsmG7vr38RMJzhbpdp6QH2r68eH6hSRVTUl7VOFhOIckkHZPmt9Tet00USAS9tqy9cxxXGFAVN97_cVCpBt_DQw5MpghQRPYcncT-WV1Bh5rMbaXMpLQMD9Q/s400/events-+full+listing.jpg" width="362" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The event has a full description along with a location map. Each member gets one free listing which can be renewed when the current event expires.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Member Map</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is one of my favorite site features! We are now over 400 members from over 30 countries. We are using a Google map to pin our members:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLFU8eE6nydlAKUhiPznU3bD1pMV2iL7NxVVVG-BJvg7pDj_t_FtjgZ3ydNDfrGv4hJhHLjqb9UmVNONkGPyOcsWAAp3hl-_Qf8QcJGH0qGH6kXPRhzWPycjZVbyL5rsp3XfnZShJtT9sg/s1600/map.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLFU8eE6nydlAKUhiPznU3bD1pMV2iL7NxVVVG-BJvg7pDj_t_FtjgZ3ydNDfrGv4hJhHLjqb9UmVNONkGPyOcsWAAp3hl-_Qf8QcJGH0qGH6kXPRhzWPycjZVbyL5rsp3XfnZShJtT9sg/s400/map.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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Click on the pin and you will see the member's logo and a link to their profile page. If there is a congested cluster, just zoom in to see them more closely. This is a great way for members to find each other and for buyers and students to support their local artists and businesses. I also love imagining a road trip, thinking, I can stop here and here and here and here along the way, meeting wonderful TAFA members at every step of the way!<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">The List</span></b><br />
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As our name implies, we do have a list of members. There is button next to the search bar that says exactly that, "The List". Click on it and you will see our members, 100 to a page in alphabetical order:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijXRvca6-gwMOHYTAHJ7Rkg54C9n78veYUA7DrjKneGWPlnrJ27dSU2pOR5cwVLQOuEP4MT7jDrV5gP5StRMfHqG4HAtGBDs7-oXRZxpDwzyDbsDk6S02eJJN3bSVem707K9uGlOCRJtf2/s1600/the+list.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijXRvca6-gwMOHYTAHJ7Rkg54C9n78veYUA7DrjKneGWPlnrJ27dSU2pOR5cwVLQOuEP4MT7jDrV5gP5StRMfHqG4HAtGBDs7-oXRZxpDwzyDbsDk6S02eJJN3bSVem707K9uGlOCRJtf2/s400/the+list.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The first two images link to the member profile: People photo and logo. The other four are products and link to their product pages. The name also links to the member profile. Below that is a one-liner that the member uses to describe themselves in a nutshell: We are all very cool!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If you love handmade textiles and fiber art, then you will love TAFA. And, many of our members also make or sell supplies and tools, so be sure to look for them as well. We have gorgeous hand-spun yarns, home-grown fleece, natural dye suppliers, hand-made spinning wheels, vintage textile stamps and much more. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Come and explore and if you like what you see, spread the word! So far, only a third of our members are up and we know that we will continue to grow and become better and better. We have come a long way in two years! It makes me excited to think of where we will be next year, the year after or when I turn 60! You can be a part of it. Sign into the site and start interacting with an incredibly talented group of people who have a world to offer! And, support them with your buying power, too.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Enjoy!</b></span></div><br />
</div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-60248327916259033582012-01-05T13:21:00.002-06:002012-01-05T14:09:25.314-06:00Affecting Change in Your Corner of the World<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvW7fuB3wJZfUY6xOcITXVqwiBlD7cE9NmqP_gpx8FWMAEWpl2LPfRGQlGzONiH7nXme6suYk0-iGvVR0iVkKnexNDT4LQBdZE-3EJQF_syQYIhVI8X66RjTs1XpWDmbIFgC8loEikrXtO/s1600/Ghandi+1231+x+111+pixels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvW7fuB3wJZfUY6xOcITXVqwiBlD7cE9NmqP_gpx8FWMAEWpl2LPfRGQlGzONiH7nXme6suYk0-iGvVR0iVkKnexNDT4LQBdZE-3EJQF_syQYIhVI8X66RjTs1XpWDmbIFgC8loEikrXtO/s400/Ghandi+1231+x+111+pixels.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">"Gandhi" by <a href="http://tafalist.blogspot.com/2010/02/diana-bracy.html" target="_blank">Diana Bracy</a></span></b></td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">You must be the change </span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">you want to see in the world.</span></b></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Mahatma Gandhi</span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I just watched an inspiring video by Jeff Skoll, one of the founders of eBay, at a TED conference. The video is several years old, yet still current in its message:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jeff's path is one example of one person who succeeded in harnessing his talents and ideas into successful businesses that could then allow him to give back to society. We have several leaders today, who like him, are working on the big issues that threaten our world's future: the environment, economic inequality, human rights, war, etc. Any one of those issues seems daunting enough on its own. Together, the state of world affairs seems depressing indeed. How do we move forward and hope for a future in the face of this mess?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My answer is that we have to believe that each person can truly make a difference. Diana's quilt above is made by tiny pieces of fabric, each a different shade. On its own, the piece might not seem significant. As a part of the whole, it is essential.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJsqWxY19z4p1NNlX7J5-CglPz6XouIzrjPalmLwgxlEH-8dkO0p-eEeBHosVeFUiGo8gjQ6gxEyNsLvA0AtLFjsDZDF7mIzct65Ik0SLqcqWx4l-o43guwihqh1G3eMclTWXx4Zs0b_D/s1600/mosaic_bird_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJsqWxY19z4p1NNlX7J5-CglPz6XouIzrjPalmLwgxlEH-8dkO0p-eEeBHosVeFUiGo8gjQ6gxEyNsLvA0AtLFjsDZDF7mIzct65Ik0SLqcqWx4l-o43guwihqh1G3eMclTWXx4Zs0b_D/s400/mosaic_bird_400.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.leahbrooks.com/2011/03/30-images.html" target="_blank">Many pieces make the whole.</a></span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two years ago, at right about this time, I had an idea and put it out there: I felt that those of us who have an online presence and are trying to get an audience for our work as fiber artists or textile businesses needed a better way of getting the word out. Most of my peers were starting to use social media sites, opening shops on Etsy and spending a lot of time networking and doing what we thought we needed to do get business to come to us. Swimming alone in an ocean of information..... We needed to band together and be so beautiful that the right people would come to us. <a href="http://www.tafalist.com/" target="_blank"><b>TAFA: The Textile and Fiber Art List</b></a> was born. Two years later, we are almost ready with our state of the art new website. You can preview it <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.net/" target="_blank">here</a></b>. We are now at 402 members from over 30 countries. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, I have worked hard to make this happen, but it could not have happened on my own. Many of TAFA's members have stepped forward with their time and money to help this dream come true. I've had to learn a lot along the way and have some tips on what has worked for me:</span><br />
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<ol><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Be passionate. </b>Love what you do with your whole heart and be willing to take risks for it. Expect that it will take time and endless hours of unrewarded effort.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Define your Vision.</b> Don't replicate what is already being done out there. Most of the textile and fiber art organizations that are out there serve their specific niche. TAFA embraces all of the textile and fiber art traditions, but members are vetted in based on the maturity of both their product and their presentation. Members came together in a think tank to help write the mission: <b><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">TAFA: The Textile and Fiber Art List</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"> is a membership organization of fiber artists and textile businesses on the web. TAFA showcases member portfolios through its website, provides access to larger markets, offers business resources and fosters community.</span></span></b></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Establish a Home Base on the web. </b>I used Blogger as it is easy to set up, free, and integrates with other platforms. </span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Set up your social media hubs.</b> TAFA now has active hubs on facebook, google+, flickr, LinkedIn and a team on Etsy. </span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Build your community.</b> I started with my peers and several signed on. Then, I visited thousands of websites over the past two years, inviting the cream of the crop to join. Of every 100 that I visited, 10 were invited and of those, 1 accepted. It took persistence, but as the list of members grew, it became more legitimate and interesting as a group.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Make the financial risk minimal: </b> For the first year, membership in TAFA was $25. This was an affordable amount to risk in a new enterprise. In the second year, the membership fee went up to $48. Now, in the beginning of the 3rd year, it is up to $75. Members have also supported TAFA financially with inexpensive ads.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Reward your supporters:</b> As TAFA grows and establishes itself, my main priority is, "How will this benefit the whole membership?" I have tried to build systems that benefit everyone equally. </span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Ask for help.</b> There have been times where I was stuck or against the wall. The members stepped up to the plate and helped me center my energies in a productive way. (Don't do this too often as it can get annoying.... )</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Build your financial support. </b> Once you have your project seasoned and can show something for what you have done, take it to the next level and get the financial support you need to fund your tools. We identified the need for a "real" website with a robust search engine and estimated that it would cost $5,000. We raised exactly that through the members in a fundraiser using<b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/p/indiegogo-campaign.html" target="_blank"> Indiegogo</a></b>. By the time the site is finished and does everything I want it to do, it will end up costing closer to $10,000 (Spring 2012). But, I expect the site to raise the rest of the money on its own through new memberships and advertising.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Set it free. </b> Let your dream take root and become bigger than yourself.</span></li>
</ol><div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">After two years of hard work, TAFA has established a name and identity within the textile and fiber art community. The next steps will include separating it from my personal business and making it an S-Corporation, getting it to become financially stable so that it can hire staff, and ultimately selling shares back to the members so that it can become member owned. I predict that it will take another two years before we get to that point, but when it happens, TAFA will be something beyond my own vision.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">Jeff Skoll's speech confirmed much of my own process. Some of us, creative entrepreneurs, have a gift at seeing a need and of imagining a way in which that need can be addressed. When TAFA can fly on its own, I will probably start something else as I have always been an idea person. Change does not have to happen by creating a new project like eBay, or on a much smaller scale, TAFA. It happens by each of us being conscious about everything we do. If you are an artist, think about the materials that you use. Are they toxic? Can you recycle garbage into your work? Can you involve your local community into an activity that helps them understand art in a new way? Are there local organizations that need your time or financial support? Each person's talents, resources and visions all contribute to change the world, a bit at a time, to make it a better place.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr0wqCbMOFfdx-Hod1T3_5nx0WZtyvvzAiBNnXGRccmXxho_6_5qhpj0QMmuFd79Sq9rC-lnq4KikbEfkxtnsOLx1PopP-LWcCEi-UOYBxKYyWQQlf9wtFX417et_fi6n4cCY2i_y2QR7L/s1600/the_blue_marble_mosaic.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr0wqCbMOFfdx-Hod1T3_5nx0WZtyvvzAiBNnXGRccmXxho_6_5qhpj0QMmuFd79Sq9rC-lnq4KikbEfkxtnsOLx1PopP-LWcCEi-UOYBxKYyWQQlf9wtFX417et_fi6n4cCY2i_y2QR7L/s400/the_blue_marble_mosaic.JPG" width="385" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://scaleindependentthought.typepad.com/scale_independent_thought/2009/03/index.html" target="_blank"><b>FACES of EARTH - 1972 NASA Blue Marble image of Earth as a Twitter Mosaic.</b></a></span> </span></td></tr>
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</b></span></span></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-33669498166831175512012-01-01T13:32:00.002-06:002012-01-01T13:34:17.923-06:00Happy 2012!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRnOHjKgJfHN0Q5hrO3deOewgXpifWRZLUAFCZInKN7BHZ92v972ax0AUvNBCvQucFMReuZPSb-SmOmIYVx-sSFWw_FBtqhAJ9HkjEq5xuEVheMAbfL7NDUQGP96ZezJD6UzqXz4klLd8Y/s1600/new+year+card+400+pixels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRnOHjKgJfHN0Q5hrO3deOewgXpifWRZLUAFCZInKN7BHZ92v972ax0AUvNBCvQucFMReuZPSb-SmOmIYVx-sSFWw_FBtqhAJ9HkjEq5xuEVheMAbfL7NDUQGP96ZezJD6UzqXz4klLd8Y/s400/new+year+card+400+pixels.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">2011 is history! Another year come and gone. How time flies... I remember when I was a kid and I thought about the year 2000. I was going to be 38 years old. Soooo oooold! Well, in a couple of weeks, I turn 50. Not so old, eh? Heh, heh.... It's all a matter of perspective.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The end of the year and the beginning of a new is always a time of reflection for me. If you follow this blog, you know that I have spent a great deal of time and energy in building TAFA: The Textile and Fiber Art List, an organization that helps textile businesses and fiber artists market their businesses. I launched it at about this time two years ago on a Blogger platform, wondering if there would be interest out there. At this time last year, we had grown to over 200 members and it was clear that we needed a new website. Most of the year was spent focusing on that. Several members volunteered their time and energy in a think tank that we set up on Facebook, discussing what we needed. Then we had a fundraiser on IndieGoGo and successfully raised $5,000, again from the members, to pay for the site. A local design team, <b><a href="http://horizonmediagroup.com/" target="_blank">Horizon Media Group</a></b> has been working on the site since August, with me actively in the thick of things. One week ago, we had members volunteer as guinea pigs to test the process of loading their info and using the site. There are still many glitches and we need to change servers, but you can preview it at <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.net/">www.tafalist.net</a></b>.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidPDa9dni_E83_2_vypvlA90mSUDgAEIOXv31yQ5kgqqmrGuUKZoSbX2okbjrpngWNUVt85C0k88X6LDKIthDIzfPG3eYoYLk1eLMTKHVJ5ZBg34t0eeE9FRBk8ogBlvrkAYSWVs-w8vm-/s1600/Launch+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidPDa9dni_E83_2_vypvlA90mSUDgAEIOXv31yQ5kgqqmrGuUKZoSbX2okbjrpngWNUVt85C0k88X6LDKIthDIzfPG3eYoYLk1eLMTKHVJ5ZBg34t0eeE9FRBk8ogBlvrkAYSWVs-w8vm-/s400/Launch+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.tafalist.net/" target="_blank">TAFA: The Textile and Fiber Art List's new site.</a></b></td></tr>
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Hopefully, we will be able to move to the <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/">www.tafalist.com</a></b> url by the end of this week. This has been an incredibly exhausting process, but one that has also been energizing, wonderfully democratic, and it goes to show that things can happen with no money. My motto with TAFA has been, "Together we can do great things!" and the website is the first proof of that.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It's hard to explain to people outside of the textile community what I do. I used to say I was an artist, but since I started TAFA I have poured all of my creative energy into building it, so have not done much of my own sewing or art work. Hopefully, the website will free up some of my time so that I can do that again this year. I also hope that I can travel more and actually meet some of the members who have become virtual friends. We'll see how it all pans out.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We also had our first live event last year during the Quilt Show in April here in Paducah. We suffered serious flooding in the area and it was a scary time. I don't know if we will do it again this year. I was also able to visit family and friends in Wisconsin and in Chicago during the Fall, a wonderful highlight.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">What is ahead for 2012? I haven't thought much beyond getting the new site finished. Who knows what doors will open or close? I pretty much try to live each day fully and take things as they come. Many friends have been ill in the past year, having major surgeries or having to go through chemo. As we get older, nothing can be taken for granted, so I just hope that 2012 will be a healthy one and a creative one, with no big, rude surprises.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Let's start out the year with that old favorite Gaelic blessing:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May the road rise to meet you,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May the wind be always at your back.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May the sun shine warm upon your face,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The rains fall soft upon your fields.</b></span></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>And until we meet again,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May God hold you in the palm of his hand.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May God be with you and bless you:</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May you see your children's children.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May you be poor in misfortune,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Rich in blessings.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May you know nothing but happiness</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>From this day forward.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May the road rise up to meet you</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May the wind be always at your back</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May the warm rays of sun fall upon your home</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>And may the hand of a friend always be near.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May green be the grass you walk on,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May blue be the skies above you,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May pure be the joys that surround you,</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>May true be the hearts that love you.</b></span> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-56290265675181006252011-12-24T17:55:00.001-06:002011-12-24T17:56:00.043-06:00Happy Holidays from Rayela Art!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMl6Q8L4g1zQAdaGiZxghvTB4JbL0gnQlEJdAkl2aMi72sEAaOOPnYojpv0_aumhftsdhCs9VvFKzm89hyphenhyphenhxju04aN62V6cQfbOMfb_JDtftWOcC4tVmMsxibFylC02zQh3Tlrzu1v3ijr/s1600/Christmas+card+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMl6Q8L4g1zQAdaGiZxghvTB4JbL0gnQlEJdAkl2aMi72sEAaOOPnYojpv0_aumhftsdhCs9VvFKzm89hyphenhyphenhxju04aN62V6cQfbOMfb_JDtftWOcC4tVmMsxibFylC02zQh3Tlrzu1v3ijr/s400/Christmas+card+2011.jpg" width="312" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">I had a lot of fun putting this Christmas card together. My friend, Pat, took about 20 photos of me and the dogs sitting on the porch outside of my house. My dogs HATE being photographed and I look like I am choking them in all the pictures. At least on this one, they are both sitting next to me...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I send you my best wishes for a wonderful Christmas if you celebrate it. And, along with that, may all of you have a great end of the year and receive the new one with the hope and joy that comes with new beginnings. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Peace on earth!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><b>Good will to all!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Lofty aspirations for the mess we live in, </div><div style="text-align: center;">but we can all keep on trying and hopefully make a difference...)</div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-49464801965124434282011-12-08T12:07:00.002-06:002011-12-09T11:28:27.209-06:00Art Quilt Challenges by Donna Hussain<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIoam_bJqLC_tNJxcpxhR-rPX4OVS_NKYmpRX6qAd2zoZk70p20N62igPCPU0hfCoejIYbPOkvBY9hK5_alP3juO80jMIItUuYk2hugsq00CeiSmlgJT9a8M7hxV8-3bXyxME-EctoxDQT/s1600/Connie+Horne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="622" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIoam_bJqLC_tNJxcpxhR-rPX4OVS_NKYmpRX6qAd2zoZk70p20N62igPCPU0hfCoejIYbPOkvBY9hK5_alP3juO80jMIItUuYk2hugsq00CeiSmlgJT9a8M7hxV8-3bXyxME-EctoxDQT/s640/Connie+Horne.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Monochromatic exercise, quilt by Connie Horne.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Recently a group of my quilting friends in Sacramento, California (USA) decided to form Pins and Needles, a new quilt circle that would focus on making art quilts. Most of us had mastered traditional quilting skills, but now wanted to learn about basic art and design principles such as balance, perspective and scale, concepts that painters, sculptors, and photographers apply to their work. We also wanted to use materials such as beads, stamps, mirrors, paints, and a wide range of embellishment techniques but were reluctant to experiment on our own. Group support has helped our members venture into new avenues of creativity.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2I2GPiZlknifUmMdXxs4DyjP_PZHrCU_V9lZWdks16HjisdukkbozNFyJJUJNfFtaGDZFF1G7Hf4Fgy1OWaukOoIvfIx4a4SLOfsKdVeyYgZnHR9T_1uf3GBq5pBI6Qe8rHCyj2w-U08K/s1600/Donna+Hussain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="632" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2I2GPiZlknifUmMdXxs4DyjP_PZHrCU_V9lZWdks16HjisdukkbozNFyJJUJNfFtaGDZFF1G7Hf4Fgy1OWaukOoIvfIx4a4SLOfsKdVeyYgZnHR9T_1uf3GBq5pBI6Qe8rHCyj2w-U08K/s640/Donna+Hussain.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Monochromatic exercise, quilt by Donna Hussain.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>This past year we studied one chapter a month of <i>The Quilting Arts Book</i> by Patricia Bolton and made small samples of the techniques described in each assigned chapter. Circle members also participated in two major quilt projects: the making of monochromatic quilts and sewing two panoramic quilts of the Sacramento skyline.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrz793_ZI1Ip5IyxYkGMjDP9hNDutFI2G2XOxRelcAseujZjWZkBgReQRkQtNqVnB8A8d2GHLeb7jNS70ozLG8FfdY-S4YFjtfRekQ50w_i7TJHgFh8rb8Y1k03rYmo0PbLX0XqQK-bv6D/s1600/Helen+Burke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="638" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrz793_ZI1Ip5IyxYkGMjDP9hNDutFI2G2XOxRelcAseujZjWZkBgReQRkQtNqVnB8A8d2GHLeb7jNS70ozLG8FfdY-S4YFjtfRekQ50w_i7TJHgFh8rb8Y1k03rYmo0PbLX0XqQK-bv6D/s640/Helen+Burke.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Monochromatic exercise, quilt by Helen Burke.</b></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOYmS3NDrpN4fbpEaTmCBAG6154x0AmAVc4ItmKXcJMobIoMR0jHvsDNcHvu6dN9pvzCIV4duJVMG-xvg96yc1RthcQpK90W-jBrsai8xbhJvw6mNkXPk4w1eiFmP0FDXr65Gb1_dU4gk/s1600/paint+chip+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOYmS3NDrpN4fbpEaTmCBAG6154x0AmAVc4ItmKXcJMobIoMR0jHvsDNcHvu6dN9pvzCIV4duJVMG-xvg96yc1RthcQpK90W-jBrsai8xbhJvw6mNkXPk4w1eiFmP0FDXr65Gb1_dU4gk/s200/paint+chip+%25282%2529.jpg" width="166" /></a></div>Making monochromatic quilts was an exercise in value. One of our members collected paint chips from a paint store and put them in a paper bag. With eyes closed each member of our circle drew one of the paint chips from the bag. The color of the paint chip determined the color of the 9x15 inch quilt each member was required to make. Only light and dark fabrics of the paint chip’s color could be used. The quilt design was up to the individual. After three months all of the participants brought their monochromatic quilts to our monthly meeting. We were thrilled with the results.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvzbacSHq9ZHgR_lkQ6tGDg441RPnBJR-8Kl5yLSvIokNWfbEAj3sf-0_7swgfh_eMtF_JbhHynzlTTfMajNnvC7vLhlCIa3QCIj3H0cZuWclvnrwED2ydADucFQnAHpaVUqqzKOgN1tQ-/s1600/Kim+Brownell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="632" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvzbacSHq9ZHgR_lkQ6tGDg441RPnBJR-8Kl5yLSvIokNWfbEAj3sf-0_7swgfh_eMtF_JbhHynzlTTfMajNnvC7vLhlCIa3QCIj3H0cZuWclvnrwED2ydADucFQnAHpaVUqqzKOgN1tQ-/s640/Kim+Brownell.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Monochromatic exercise, quilt by Kim Brownell.</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTIFYr33Ks9bho__sMgQtSeVieZXrX66ZdB8Ixa7EwveJ0KPUtPx8akORCZvVXdOFSIK4FaV-_6nxFT5VMQ8O0VlprYnIaHMA4Guy3mEM-oxJkxnaPPuEsBBBrm9SyIIPnFkU4atwlYVcD/s1600/BJ+Bailey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="616" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTIFYr33Ks9bho__sMgQtSeVieZXrX66ZdB8Ixa7EwveJ0KPUtPx8akORCZvVXdOFSIK4FaV-_6nxFT5VMQ8O0VlprYnIaHMA4Guy3mEM-oxJkxnaPPuEsBBBrm9SyIIPnFkU4atwlYVcD/s640/BJ+Bailey.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Monochromatic exercise, quilt by BJ Bailey.</b></td></tr>
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</div>For the second major group project our art quilt circle decided to make a panoramic slice quilt, chosing a photo of Sacramento’s skyline taken by Evan Wisheropp (the son of one of our quilters) to be the image we would reproduce in fabric.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikgvSEOjHZSGvnj2dYigFX2fk-y71fpXfYsf15T_zz8z8ME3t1wpnGP88i3wTlQh2q_M2OyIE0HZ1-cUhaz1xxMUvXsiXhS8-FttlGydYPfN0UmwaMywQuzoWwv_0GC8RI84PpKWDJg8Mv/s1600/IMG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikgvSEOjHZSGvnj2dYigFX2fk-y71fpXfYsf15T_zz8z8ME3t1wpnGP88i3wTlQh2q_M2OyIE0HZ1-cUhaz1xxMUvXsiXhS8-FttlGydYPfN0UmwaMywQuzoWwv_0GC8RI84PpKWDJg8Mv/s400/IMG.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Donna Hussain's working copy of the skyline.</b></td></tr>
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A committee of three set the guidelines and rules for the project. Since ten quilters wanted to participate in the project, the committee decided that we should make two identical panorama quilts, five slices each. After deciding what each of the finished quilts should measure (70 x 220 inches) the committee printed two enlargements of Evans’ photo that size. <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWZUsxmG5V5Al6TRIDFOb9D5-Ocy99n7ktOhExqpS-4T9wJ3dB45p8-l82hAM3ivn1bCBtHSCE5vf0y_cNvBOdjfGRDZnqHA7sOxfX29NbGZwasgqN5icQ8yp_sdhUfJ-d2mlmdZhdA3Mo/s1600/test2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWZUsxmG5V5Al6TRIDFOb9D5-Ocy99n7ktOhExqpS-4T9wJ3dB45p8-l82hAM3ivn1bCBtHSCE5vf0y_cNvBOdjfGRDZnqHA7sOxfX29NbGZwasgqN5icQ8yp_sdhUfJ-d2mlmdZhdA3Mo/s400/test2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuWkmgnjn55aaD8SaPtBEFFpmMY_krDmsi5U8RRHkhOnkaLLA1vkItddMisQJxz4I4O-4c9wFG_n49NMA3jevXkKuGjsvorXxOlXVCbzl1cRNO2Rki65UNClK6306_XS5Xx4psyXktHwt/s1600/2011+Panorama+Crtoon+rt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuWkmgnjn55aaD8SaPtBEFFpmMY_krDmsi5U8RRHkhOnkaLLA1vkItddMisQJxz4I4O-4c9wFG_n49NMA3jevXkKuGjsvorXxOlXVCbzl1cRNO2Rki65UNClK6306_XS5Xx4psyXktHwt/s200/2011+Panorama+Crtoon+rt.jpg" width="145" /></a></div>Each paper enlargement was then cut into five vertical segments (14 x 44 inches). After outlining the basic shapes on the patterns with felt pen the committee randomly distributed the slice patterns to the quilters. We quilters were advised to pay attention to the horizontal lines on the patterns so that the slices would match up when joined together.<br />
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Each quilter also received a 4x6 inch color photo of the panoramic scene to help in the selection of fabric colors for her slice. Since we planned to hang the five slices of each quilt from a single sleeve we were told to omit a traditional quilt binding. To cover the edges of my quilt I added ¼ inch to the pattern specifications for the quilt top (but not to the batting or back fabric), then folded the ¼ inch excess to the back of the quilt and secured it with a hem.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4p2d-s19g32H-UhPSXuNDvqLhFWb6R2JpCCWSiSHF8_zuwy55iE21Sad8_0BDG5i1Kqn2w0AkP7nkUpCiNXjL71C6vvSBDQJ1Ulr3LhD31z02S9bWTOsrfC6plgVCdPbPluqhWanfZXg9/s1600/Sacramento+Skyline+I.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4p2d-s19g32H-UhPSXuNDvqLhFWb6R2JpCCWSiSHF8_zuwy55iE21Sad8_0BDG5i1Kqn2w0AkP7nkUpCiNXjL71C6vvSBDQJ1Ulr3LhD31z02S9bWTOsrfC6plgVCdPbPluqhWanfZXg9/s400/Sacramento+Skyline+I.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Sacramento Skyline I, Quilters left to right: <br />
Lori Wisheropp, Denise Schmidt, Helen Burke, Judith Imel, Sunni Hamilton</b></td></tr>
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</div>The committee requested that the quilters work independently, not showing their quilts to others during their construction. We were given five months for the completion of the slice panels. As you can see from the pictures that accompany this article the panoramic quilts turned out to be spectacular.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpq_NFht74A0aT8jWMG68OkVeEnZ2YWnLDUoK5sc71afEDgh3gjADfo_Ed-GuHhz5nh4p6x4Qhb4z0PYaeknlm7uhrZ9MxHfpafgSmag54z0OpMZvOG4Mc1ffeBap7IL0YuB2DSCjKCmOh/s1600/Sacramento+Skyline+II.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpq_NFht74A0aT8jWMG68OkVeEnZ2YWnLDUoK5sc71afEDgh3gjADfo_Ed-GuHhz5nh4p6x4Qhb4z0PYaeknlm7uhrZ9MxHfpafgSmag54z0OpMZvOG4Mc1ffeBap7IL0YuB2DSCjKCmOh/s400/Sacramento+Skyline+II.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Sacramento Skyline II: Quilters left to right:</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Connie Horne, Jan Soules, BJ Bailey, Donna Hussain, Kari Bauer</b></div></td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;">At our December meeting of Pins and Needles we will be choosing an art quilt book for the coming year that has exercises to help us refine our artistic skills. In addition we will be collecting suggestions for one or two group projects for 2012.</span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">______</div></div><div><br />
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</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Note: The images and drawings on the skyline are copyrighted and used with permission here. Several people were involved in the process and are available if you would like to commission a similar pattern for your own photo:</b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Step 1: photoshot in the Yolo Causeway. Photographer; <a href="http://www.evanwishphotography.com/" target="_blank"><b>Evan Wisheropp</b> </a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Step 2: Photo manipulation: Lori Wisheropp and Sandra Torguson</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Step 3. Cartoon sketch; Sandra Torguson</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Step 4: Combining sketch and ghosted photo image and full size print output pattern: Lori Wisheropp</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Step 5: Distribution with full size pattern and small photo for reference.</span></div><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="mailto:loriwish@gmail.com" target="_blank">Contact Lori Wisheropp for more information.</a></span></b></div><div><b><br />
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</b></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10LzC-ySlSBJXLiKwB4LI1cFe-iLVL1CPcZkXc0OznSP7QTvSEWRSOmiBdfuZGN_CLmzIVLF9xpyjnBERdWPPakV5rgWX5GyCpGu5yg-_kcCsrYlnRu-kki3XPrL7BZpe-Sw9ogTcMV8l/s1600-h/Donna+and+Pascha.jpg" style="background-color: white; color: #ffed32; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268239705298533282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10LzC-ySlSBJXLiKwB4LI1cFe-iLVL1CPcZkXc0OznSP7QTvSEWRSOmiBdfuZGN_CLmzIVLF9xpyjnBERdWPPakV5rgWX5GyCpGu5yg-_kcCsrYlnRu-kki3XPrL7BZpe-Sw9ogTcMV8l/s200/Donna+and+Pascha.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0976563) 1px 1px 5px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; border-width: initial; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0976563) 1px 1px 5px; float: left; height: 158px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px; padding-top: 5px; position: relative; width: 200px;" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="color: #996633; font-weight: bold;">California quilter, <a href="http://fiberfocus.blogspot.com/search/label/Donna%20Hussain" style="color: #bba021; text-decoration: none;">Donna Hussain</a>, has exhibited in major quilt shows around the country, authored books, and is a regular contributor to Fiber Focus. Click on her name to see all of her past articles. </span><span style="color: #996633; font-weight: bold;"><br />
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The photo shows Donna with her husband, Pascha.</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"> </span></div></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-42035646095216501392011-12-03T11:54:00.002-06:002011-12-03T12:02:36.913-06:00Obsessions Manifested: Stereoviews<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWdGXaen10RR9S-Ivgy2U0VCrH7PlMYKS3R1OGO5bDHeW_eNoXg60d3JvKG3XCtHnIg6E9zENT2JTiExZqEnpwK5v60J0zNkX1aYWrG3f6owrkTC_kOALoUsAOeFpZoAXxXy9F7md7i-ac/s1600/stereograph+set+b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWdGXaen10RR9S-Ivgy2U0VCrH7PlMYKS3R1OGO5bDHeW_eNoXg60d3JvKG3XCtHnIg6E9zENT2JTiExZqEnpwK5v60J0zNkX1aYWrG3f6owrkTC_kOALoUsAOeFpZoAXxXy9F7md7i-ac/s400/stereograph+set+b.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/rayela?section_id=5122039" target="_blank">Stereoviews on Rayela Art</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">When I was a kid, I spent my allowance on two things: arts supplies and stamps. Both were obsessions. If I wasn't making something, I was organizing my stamps, spending hours and hours pasting them into my various books, eventually ending up with over 15,000 of them. Yes. I counted them! I learned a lot about the world through those stamps. How different countries called themselves, their landscapes, historical happenings. It broadened my interest in the world and I traveled around through them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Now I have a new obsession: Stereoviews. Also called stereographs, stereo optic cards, and many other names, these photos were the first 3-d images to capture the public's imagination and thirst for world travel. A special camera with two lenses captured the scene at a slight change in position. When mounted on a card, side by side and viewed with a viewer (called a stereoscope), the images popped into 3-d:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD5elrTrgqwYeB7mXiuN8zDA1zj775bZAX4zCLALHBDYK1WE-7CPRAwXCXodb5w4e7ZIbQbwc2576OMMt-O5IQK9f8PPbc21mlYec-lL5o3EVmALHl5s_EPvdE7xziaFOBbsKvz7SLvy8M/s1600/z+stereoscope.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD5elrTrgqwYeB7mXiuN8zDA1zj775bZAX4zCLALHBDYK1WE-7CPRAwXCXodb5w4e7ZIbQbwc2576OMMt-O5IQK9f8PPbc21mlYec-lL5o3EVmALHl5s_EPvdE7xziaFOBbsKvz7SLvy8M/s400/z+stereoscope.jpg" width="375" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Stereoscope</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I've picked up a couple, here and there, at antique shops, just because I thought they were interesting. But, recently, I was able to purchase a whole slew of them, around 300 cards and have started to organize and list them on Etsy. You can see them in my shop: <b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/rayela?section_id=5122039" target="_blank">click</a></b>. I didn't really have an idea of their value so I've had to do some research. Stereoviews enjoyed over 60 years of popularity and millions of copies were made. They were used as educational tools, parlor entertainment, and were treasured as windows to the world. Photographers captured the Wild West, historical buildings, everyday scenes, theatrical plays, vegetation, animals, and almost anything you can imagine. They are an invaluable record of life in the late 1800's.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The earliest stereoviews were actual photos pasted on to cardboard. Later, lithographs were made of those same photos and towards the end, collections were printed by the thousands. Of course, the most valuable are the earlier ones, dating before the 1880's and those of photographers who became famous and collectable. About half of the ones I have are lithos and the other half are the old photos. Many are in poor condition, but who knows? Maybe a couple will win the lottery! As I list them, I look them up on google and have been fascinated by the stories I am finding.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">One example is of the Cliff House:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKZHs7ewt-_X1GS4S9MgHQZgbmop_8AGWMswnCqs5H_fzpC1EWyooELlKnhzLgeNHPXLzjA2j0Kw3zrka5RMkKH9U8x9if3pnlLkOGF_zREw2iqhFtomAc6ts0GczhGTVNtH6CKACwINVa/s1600/us-ca1+cliff+house+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKZHs7ewt-_X1GS4S9MgHQZgbmop_8AGWMswnCqs5H_fzpC1EWyooELlKnhzLgeNHPXLzjA2j0Kw3zrka5RMkKH9U8x9if3pnlLkOGF_zREw2iqhFtomAc6ts0GczhGTVNtH6CKACwINVa/s400/us-ca1+cliff+house+cropped.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/87264877/vintage-stereograph-card-cliff-house-san" target="_blank">Cliff House Stereograph on Rayela Art</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The above image is the card that I have for sale. It has a fold in it and is not a great, collectible item. Looking at it, I wondered why anyone would build a big old mansion on the end of a cliff like that.... Turns out there is whole story behind it and one man has made his obsession manifest: Gary's <b><a href="http://www.cliffhouseproject.com/introduction.htm" target="_blank">Cliff House Project</a></b>. He has pages and pages of documentation on this grand old hotel in San Francisco, visited by Roosevelt and other dignitaries. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3a1UYPe7LRNj2z9bO6IhTBO-qCRNLJ1GnvoniBfA9w1_d0zzMZKxp9t5kkR4irmCDzROtDFQFJqb4LSOceUHWKePzLwDv9FRC0-kiHrA3ACkhfaNcBKQl-kgHb-CCGsW-o4K8KP0x6kHd/s1600/cliff+house+website.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3a1UYPe7LRNj2z9bO6IhTBO-qCRNLJ1GnvoniBfA9w1_d0zzMZKxp9t5kkR4irmCDzROtDFQFJqb4LSOceUHWKePzLwDv9FRC0-kiHrA3ACkhfaNcBKQl-kgHb-CCGsW-o4K8KP0x6kHd/s400/cliff+house+website.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.cliffhouseproject.com/sv/stereoviews.htm" target="_blank">Cliff House Project: Stereoviews Page</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Gary's project is a fascinating documentation of history zoomed in on one spot on the globe. The Cliff House did not last long, consumed by a fire in 1907:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwCOQVvZeckB0yiYRODQhxurLCQtluWYB1GVzmbbAV5t8th0Vy-X2l6nxkKhLQI4YGZ8jrJLX0SQyvfw7n2-pDCxE1Fwa_LQgD5l5fQFx-QPQYKYboFvuqQftlDgiG_F73-PAm6J-Bosrj/s1600/cliff+house+burning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwCOQVvZeckB0yiYRODQhxurLCQtluWYB1GVzmbbAV5t8th0Vy-X2l6nxkKhLQI4YGZ8jrJLX0SQyvfw7n2-pDCxE1Fwa_LQgD5l5fQFx-QPQYKYboFvuqQftlDgiG_F73-PAm6J-Bosrj/s400/cliff+house+burning.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.cliffhouseproject.com/history/fire/fire.htm" target="_blank">Cliff House Fire</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
His site documents the fire, news stories, reconstruction, and on to current day images of the site, a total transformation. One could spend hours going through everything he has collected. Why? Because this snapshot somehow tells us about our own history, how our collective past shaped the world as it is today.<br />
<br />
The photographers who went out and collected these images had to have an adventuresome spirit and the physical ability to face the challenges of carrying the equipment and putting up with the hazards of travel: no infrastructure, living in tents, exposed to the elements and to hostile encounters.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf-jF6JdD2vrGQQI21tN_R0J-_ZUH0_fzZwVG55WVCwPlW1LxX5kQNJ9R5pvCX5ucj_KlNgZTn_2M0NBobyPUlh5nsWCOJUka2yZCHBKcUlcs8kQhZ1RA80_HheobVkVJ9YR8tKu4dvP7j/s1600/CHGravesPhotographer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf-jF6JdD2vrGQQI21tN_R0J-_ZUH0_fzZwVG55WVCwPlW1LxX5kQNJ9R5pvCX5ucj_KlNgZTn_2M0NBobyPUlh5nsWCOJUka2yZCHBKcUlcs8kQhZ1RA80_HheobVkVJ9YR8tKu4dvP7j/s400/CHGravesPhotographer.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b><a href="http://home.gci.net/~ah/4ph-stereos.html" target="_blank">"Taking a tramp in the country"<br />
Universal Series, Stereoscopic Gems <br />
Of American & Foreign SceneryCopyright 1901 by C. H . Graves</a></b></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">One of the photographers who made his mark on history was T. Enami, a Japanese photographer who captured the late 1800's and early 1900's in Japan with thousands of sensitive, beautiful and historical images.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="585" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX1VIIt4v36Ai7iET2H_1iQ3DwTl8JmamUx5behC2p8sdC-5BJXcym21hbWSJ5uJebuZJNjWDap_4qMKLLrvytv4Uj2KzGczMkyAYGirVUXSxzW-vnnBy2cFwxHU16E18U3dYuu8LnQtfT/s400/enami.jpg" width="400" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.t-enami.org/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Nobukuni Enami (T. Enami), </span></a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.t-enami.org/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Stereoview photographer</span></a></b></div><br />
Rob Oechsle has a website dedicated to his work, <b><a href="http://t-enami.org/">T-Enami.org</a></b>, another place you can spend a good chunk of your day. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX-nCV3nnGdtPXigX6AcflN-RTVT2zrYxkDOKlVPNobK9l3W-ekS20ePg56KX62vGIyC9OienH0VXNazmVaWX8nfhc9c5gHqDvBRi3Y1USjg2X62LfthMzq65r8qVM1Vqu449YV0fsuSYc/s1600/enami+photos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX-nCV3nnGdtPXigX6AcflN-RTVT2zrYxkDOKlVPNobK9l3W-ekS20ePg56KX62vGIyC9OienH0VXNazmVaWX8nfhc9c5gHqDvBRi3Y1USjg2X62LfthMzq65r8qVM1Vqu449YV0fsuSYc/s400/enami+photos.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>Photos by T. Enami</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">As the stereoview obsession grew, so did the publishers who collected images and reproduced them, often without any thought of copyrights or ownership. I have a couple of Japanese litho cards listed, but do not know if they were originally Enami's:</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3jOpGAOqq529PiFXhaiGyqAZTKwM1fTaJ4alS3DAk2LoVaodnm4H1ZcyyK1d2gMdme95PeDjBAgm98dxnVU_PDYmTbYc-W_Z53OmSTCxnN5t4uVKsi395mcHpnEYAp77RRRapBcTLxtb/s1600/cosmo+507+vegetable+peddler+close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3jOpGAOqq529PiFXhaiGyqAZTKwM1fTaJ4alS3DAk2LoVaodnm4H1ZcyyK1d2gMdme95PeDjBAgm98dxnVU_PDYmTbYc-W_Z53OmSTCxnN5t4uVKsi395mcHpnEYAp77RRRapBcTLxtb/s320/cosmo+507+vegetable+peddler+close.jpg" width="310" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/87557908/vintage-stereoview-card-vegetable" target="_blank">Vegetable Peddler, Yokohama, Japan</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGY4yaFV4vNpbBO7QRm5cwZcxAvImE178extrduuYwIY16rTvc2mT7kXR9N53ATX_beORMnCLiHHo-n8ZFPLXsBLopjMy1b8eiEN1KP2OkX0hyphenhyphennarX3cmXp5n0uLnDqCghsTWYWi_j61R5/s1600/japan+AS2-+shinto+priests+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGY4yaFV4vNpbBO7QRm5cwZcxAvImE178extrduuYwIY16rTvc2mT7kXR9N53ATX_beORMnCLiHHo-n8ZFPLXsBLopjMy1b8eiEN1KP2OkX0hyphenhyphennarX3cmXp5n0uLnDqCghsTWYWi_j61R5/s400/japan+AS2-+shinto+priests+cropped.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/87285785/vintage-stereograph-card-shinto-priests" target="_blank">Shinto Priests in Tokyo</a></b><br />
<b> <br />
</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;">Some of the commercially printed cards have stories about the image on the back. These can provide some pretty shocking attitudes of the times, especially towards native peoples. I have this card listed of an Egyptian girl:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiazOPCSD1I5kAb0T1wtUMoEr1AlSUOKZBkQPX-6cjtfear28tQTE7jSDwSEZz7-tmUvt1hS1ONPlUNb_BFb65kWeC_1cpXxZSHyi7AGOddf4tiOsibDcSq2nVTX3JkiQZypvHSgUz5hnnE/s1600/Tribal+1-egypt+girl+close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiazOPCSD1I5kAb0T1wtUMoEr1AlSUOKZBkQPX-6cjtfear28tQTE7jSDwSEZz7-tmUvt1hS1ONPlUNb_BFb65kWeC_1cpXxZSHyi7AGOddf4tiOsibDcSq2nVTX3JkiQZypvHSgUz5hnnE/s400/Tribal+1-egypt+girl+close.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/87576970/vintage-stereoview-card-portrait-of" target="_blank">Portrait of Bisharin Girl, Stereoview</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;">The text on the back says:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">No. 1380. PORTRAIT OF BISHARIN GIRL, UPPER EGYPT</span><br style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><br style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">If beauty is but skin deep, so is ugliness, and both are a matter of taste. May we not assume that the boy in the background personifies open-mouthed wonder at the beauty of the idol of his heart? Or did the poet think that this girl when he smote the lyre, singing: "A kiss from her two rosy lips would make me hale and whole?" The man who took this picture is authority for the fact that the original was the proud daughter of the richest man in the village, who owned twenty goats, two donkeys and four camels, a wealth unparalleled among all the Bisharin tribes twenty miles around, and that she was considered a great beauty among all the marriageable young men of her race, but was held as a great prize by her father who would not give her away for less than one camel and ten goats. The background of the picture is formed by the wall of the tent, made from plaited grasses and stretched on poles which the Bisharin call a house, easily folded together and carried away on a donkey's back, when the animals have eaten up the scant vegetation in one place, and quickly set up again a few miles further on.</span></div><br />
Yikes! Ethnocentric to say the least...<br />
<br />
It will take me awhile to get all of my cards listed and I will have to re-open my shop on eBay. That is where the stereo view community congregates and I don't want to overwhelm my Etsy shop with non-textile items. I'll announce it here when that happens, so stay tuned.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">How about you? Have any obsessions manifested themselves in your life? Collectors often seem like the nut in the hood, but some of these obsessions have also preserved stories from the past for the rest of us. Is it a mis-fire in the brain that takes us to an extreme in pursuing an interest? Or, is it the same part of the brain that propels scientists to zoom into the minute details of how the world operates? Share your obsession with the rest of us. It is bound to be an interesting story!</div></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-45905814778830261132011-11-30T15:06:00.002-06:002011-11-30T15:54:44.352-06:00A Package from Costa Rica<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDWkJMm4D8nqr2q7sTVpffNcXzNpmvzkshhTPgstbdiiGj2QkiMwTUM2sPMRi3e633Et788hhgpTpem6s8_NADllI-MpdruFPXYNUKjJVaTyZONT1CqFhaA5HdJysBeMujbMKuRJ3rpSeK/s1600/coffee+from+silvia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="465" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDWkJMm4D8nqr2q7sTVpffNcXzNpmvzkshhTPgstbdiiGj2QkiMwTUM2sPMRi3e633Et788hhgpTpem6s8_NADllI-MpdruFPXYNUKjJVaTyZONT1CqFhaA5HdJysBeMujbMKuRJ3rpSeK/s400/coffee+from+silvia.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Costa Rican coffe: a gift from <a href="http://www.tafalist.com/2011/09/galeria-octagono.html" target="_blank">Silvia of Galeria Octagono</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">Yesterday I got a nice package in the mail: a gift from one of our TAFA members, Silvia of Galeria Octagono in Costa Rica. <b><a href="http://www.tafalist.com/2011/09/galeria-octagono.html" target="_blank">(See her member profile on TAFA)</a>.</b> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>coffee. macadamia candy. brochures. ornaments made by her kids workshop.</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>FUN FUN FUN</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Silvia joined a couple of months ago and has been a joy! She participates actively in several of our forums and we share many common interests with Latin America, nature, and of course, how things are made. As the <b><a href="http://surfacedesign.org/" target="_blank">SDA</a> </b>representative for Latin America and the Caribbean, Silvia has a broad range in her role as an artist, educator and member of the world textile community.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">As I was thinking of her and where she lives, I thought I would check it out on Google Earth:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVnxML5rZTj3u_hzeqaouw2gXWUXp41ipf_S9qBOBiyA5UqdpSgLTAcM6l4a3pfbEbfx-wYAepaG-epWfFe6461KlRGSWdyy5vq19dm7w18iWV-IVPwj9zH29xq8VvLLP_9e2lTEsOJSO1/s1600/google+earth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVnxML5rZTj3u_hzeqaouw2gXWUXp41ipf_S9qBOBiyA5UqdpSgLTAcM6l4a3pfbEbfx-wYAepaG-epWfFe6461KlRGSWdyy5vq19dm7w18iWV-IVPwj9zH29xq8VvLLP_9e2lTEsOJSO1/s400/google+earth.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Sil had sent a marker, which made it easier: "<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">If you look up "Bosque de la Hoja, Heredia, Costa Rica" you'll get Galería Octágono campus. We're at the intersection: the road continues north to the Divide, and we're outside a huge fancy residencial development (Residencial Ave del Paraíso)."</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">They have a small B&B with a cabin and in my imagination, I am there, hiking around in the local hills and mountains. Here is one of the photos from her husband's, Rick's, blog:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6yxEYLogdpcM0Bxt3aSJA0dy7wCNqHQ3bQg29GdYjRN_uEAQ87yurgMthWGAa1WdGfGiaEd7xI79Ycaa2gc3HBSM9G-g1hT1e1K0OGiNGJcoiHHQ42jIrsNZlOFFILqKTwSkS4vzFWLby/s1600/Providencia-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6yxEYLogdpcM0Bxt3aSJA0dy7wCNqHQ3bQg29GdYjRN_uEAQ87yurgMthWGAa1WdGfGiaEd7xI79Ycaa2gc3HBSM9G-g1hT1e1K0OGiNGJcoiHHQ42jIrsNZlOFFILqKTwSkS4vzFWLby/s400/Providencia-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Paradise, eh?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">From there, I killed a couple more hours looking at Google Earth. I went to Kabul and ran away. What an awful place! Down to where I grew up in Brazil. Now everyone in my old neighborhood has a swimming pool in their back yard! Puh-leeze.... I don't want to hear any griping from my Brazilian friends about hard times! Went and took a look at Chicago, came down to Paducah and then the bird got tired and went to bed.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Woke up this morning.... and yes... I had a wonderful cup of that Costa Rican coffee. Thought of Silvia again. She had told me she was sending me a bag of coffee, but I had no idea it was going to be so big! Looks like I will be thinking about her for weeks ahead!<br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfYf0nDF23jGvDlBtAsedZthZE8angCg0xu7TXz9YcBNHBakv6ebW5lt9qv4elYjzRdKSZwKaZtb_RggGKDu9PHb4edrNug87BaY98pdsM2AObrCEcSMDFtdDyTbcPLRB96MuAV9MNdXC/s1600/the+musician.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="584" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfYf0nDF23jGvDlBtAsedZthZE8angCg0xu7TXz9YcBNHBakv6ebW5lt9qv4elYjzRdKSZwKaZtb_RggGKDu9PHb4edrNug87BaY98pdsM2AObrCEcSMDFtdDyTbcPLRB96MuAV9MNdXC/s640/the+musician.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>The Musician, available at <a href="http://www.tafalist.com/2011/09/galeria-octagono.html" target="_blank">Galeria Octagono</a></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">Galeria Octagono is a lively place with many community programs and projects. Silvia is now a radio celebrity, with a weekly program aimed at getting regular people to think about art, nature, and other topics. It's all about education, meaningfulness, creating community, making life rich with color, texture and collaboration. I think about how each of us has the potential to impact our local communities. How we live in such faraway places, but in a click of the button, we can get a bird's eye view of our neighborhoods. How we can never meet yet still be friends. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Want to share a cup of coffee with Silvia? I doubt she can send bags all over the world, but she is there, interacting with our online communities. Visit her website, her blog, and if you can, go down and spend some time at their B&B. And, I bet that if you have some craft supplies that need a new home, Galeria Octagono would be a good place to send them. Buy their art, send donations, and make new friends. It's a beautiful world and it warms my heart that Silvia is down there, doing her piece to make it so.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Thank you, Silvia!</span></b></div></div></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6281883476739158489.post-85379794392109821542011-11-24T11:38:00.002-06:002011-11-24T11:43:56.640-06:00Black Elk's Prayer: Meditation for Thanksgiving<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0sEWnfyK43mv7X9YvLzhduMZGmO58T-qy6U81pDL60feoLT5X4HGyKRhIZxQQwiiyzmTsA2L7Utv3VOnyxfYQxSF-wWSpPzYO3JmqaOw6KkoK2GXacoGCxT6bY1NVl_qlztE4W8W5XizA/s1600/black_elk002-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><img border="0" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0sEWnfyK43mv7X9YvLzhduMZGmO58T-qy6U81pDL60feoLT5X4HGyKRhIZxQQwiiyzmTsA2L7Utv3VOnyxfYQxSF-wWSpPzYO3JmqaOw6KkoK2GXacoGCxT6bY1NVl_qlztE4W8W5XizA/s400/black_elk002-1.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Today is Thanksgiving </span></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">here in the United States.</span></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Top stories on BBC <br />
News on this day of thanks:</span></b></div><div><ul style="line-height: 16px;"><li style="color: #505050;"><div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: left;"><a class="story" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15867535" rel="published-1322121215703" style="color: #1f4f82; font-weight: 700; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Egypt army apologises over deaths</span></a></div></li>
<li style="color: #505050;"><div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: left;"><a class="story" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-15877558" rel="published-1322145250300" style="color: #1f4f82; font-weight: 700; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Afghan children 'killed by Nato'</span></a></div></li>
<li style="color: #505050;"><h2 style="margin: 6px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><a class="story" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15867149" rel="published-1322111308359" style="color: #1f4f82; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Portugal hit by austerity strike</span></a></h2></li>
<li style="color: #505050;"><h2 style="margin: 6px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><a class="story" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15871386" rel="published-1322134151775" style="color: #1f4f82; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Cameroon jails men over gay sex</span></a></h2></li>
<li style="color: #505050;"><div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: left;"><a class="story" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-15867749" rel="published-1322129453358" style="color: #1f4f82; font-weight: 700; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Mexico police find charred bodies</span></a></div><h2 style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"> </h2></li>
</ul><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Unrest, violence, and anger all over the world... </span></b><br />
<h2 style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></h2><h2 style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><br />
<a href="http://occupywallst.org/about/" target="_blank">Occupy Wall Street</a><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">has spread to major cities around the United States. As we hail on the Arab Spring, our leadership here cringes at our homegrown dissent of the status quo. Arrests, pepper spray, beatings, evacuations...<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></h2><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" id="table1" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr> <td style="text-align: center;"><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgflEGz91i7MVvoCjzrg7GWULcJ8U2vG3PymQZE9S0cmPs6hl0fm-40GwrRVFTjEDhzZ03XbbahHbKgztfcnx9aRCdiMLdOctyjU3qEVzHIDCOecfvnsQ2IAiGAszMcrsxGIG3AFiWMBVzH/s1600/Scores-arrested-at-Occupy-Chicago-protest-6SGN40V-x-large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><br />
<img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgflEGz91i7MVvoCjzrg7GWULcJ8U2vG3PymQZE9S0cmPs6hl0fm-40GwrRVFTjEDhzZ03XbbahHbKgztfcnx9aRCdiMLdOctyjU3qEVzHIDCOecfvnsQ2IAiGAszMcrsxGIG3AFiWMBVzH/s400/Scores-arrested-at-Occupy-Chicago-protest-6SGN40V-x-large.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /></a></div></td> </tr>
<tr> <td class="tr-caption" style="padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: 16px;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-10-23/occupy-chicago-protests/50876194/1" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">USA News: Scores Arrested at Occupy Chicago</span></a></b></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;">How do we make sense of it all? </span></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">How do we give thanks?</span></b></div></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><br />
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><br />
</b></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Well, I know that the only way I can keep a smile on my face is to think small, to zoom into my own back yard and try to make my little world have a positive impact on what's around me. The supposed domino effect... Everything we do has an impact on the world in some way:</span><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><br />
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</span></b></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" name="I1" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EnhTvmUUE6Q" width="400">&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;</iframe></div></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"> </b></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><br />
</b></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; text-align: left;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> Thanksgiving has become an annual tribute, for me, to the Native Americans who inhabited this land before we white people arrived. Those first whites would have died if it had not been for the natives who showed them how to plant corn and survive the winter.</span></b></b></b></span></div></div><span class="Apple-style-span"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"> </span></b></span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIVo9Bm-7_aGOGSnOLQFEMRxz0bXZ1eCl3MwZVrRU-iLPVfeFJtof7uRlL8pFZB5efwotkVS0LteM00EtHqP_XI_qZz3DF1CsCvotdfSJVsA_JXViTDupYz1by2mlxDY4vfjjgwOZxzfjR/s1600/garden+2011+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIVo9Bm-7_aGOGSnOLQFEMRxz0bXZ1eCl3MwZVrRU-iLPVfeFJtof7uRlL8pFZB5efwotkVS0LteM00EtHqP_XI_qZz3DF1CsCvotdfSJVsA_JXViTDupYz1by2mlxDY4vfjjgwOZxzfjR/s320/garden+2011+4.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="236" /></a></span></b></span></span></span></div><br />
<div style="font-size: 16px;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">I planted a Native American variety of corn this year in my </span></span></b></b><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">garden. The stalks grew really, really tall and spindly. </span></span></b></b><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> Then, we had a big storm and they all fell over. I read </span></span></b></b><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">online that when there is too much clay in the soil, the roots can't take hold and it's a problem... My uncle-the-farmer poo-poohed the idea of even trying a Native American variety of corn. "Stay away from that and go with the hybrids that are tested and true."</span></span></b></b></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
Hmmm..... Maybe I want the challenge... For sure, I would have been one of the white girls who would not have survived Thanksgiving in those early days...</span></span></b></b></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: 800;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> I don't have Indians on a pedestal, glamorizing the past or seeing them as good while the whites were/are evil. History happened as it did. It is up to us to shape the future. But, I do like the relationship that Natives had/have with the land and how God speaks to us through it. So, on Thanksgiving, I find one story and think about that for the day. </span></span></b></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></span></b></b></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">On this day, I will be thinking about </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Elk" target="_blank">Black Elk</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> and </span><a href="http://www.neihardt.com/jgn/index.html" target="_blank">John </a></span></span></b></b><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><a href="http://www.neihardt.com/jgn/index.html" target="_blank">Neihardt</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">. Here is a little ditty about this video:</span></span></span></b></b></span></span></b></b></span></div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: 800;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px;"> John Neihardt reciting Black Elk's Prayer. Neihardt wrote the prayer shortly after the 1931 historic talks he had with Black Elk at Pine Ridge Reservation. He was able to capture in poetic form what the great Sioux holy man was relating to <br />
him in Lakota conversation. In 1971 Neihardt recorded his recitation of the prayer. Thirty five years later, grandson Robin composed the music and combined it digitally with John Neihardt's recording. The old photos in the video clip were taken by John Neihardt and his daughter Hilda during the 1931 meetings.</span></span></span></b></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span"> </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" name="I2" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/duZkS0kNBeg" width="400">&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;</iframe></span></b></span></span></b></div><div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
<br />
</span></b></span></span></b></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold;"><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"></span></span></b></span></span></span></div><div style="display: inline !important; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="display: inline !important;"><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Black Elk's words resonate through time. But, even more beautiful to me is the legacy that both he and Neihardt left </span></span></span></b></span></span></span><b style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">for the future, collaborating together to create peace and understanding, a bridge between cultures.</span></span></span></b></span></span></span></b></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold;"></div></div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></div><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">May we all build our own bridges as we move ahead in </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">history, knocking down one domino at a time.</span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; widows: 2;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: x-large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Happy Thanksgiving!</span></span></span></b></div></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"></div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></b></span></span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" id="table2" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqlPgrgLuAONBnz501fg75L3Sg0ms-ahYiwrFfTcXKRCYsocV7G_6YdjP7aGZ14ig-Ix9M0YIqwRdTnKWC9vr8XZW-v4V_WF964WqyTsbGAvE0cDIKw4OODO5DyrS8UEgY3ebkR_Lk6_-d/s1600/4db4d5a4f1c4b.image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><br />
<img border="0" height="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqlPgrgLuAONBnz501fg75L3Sg0ms-ahYiwrFfTcXKRCYsocV7G_6YdjP7aGZ14ig-Ix9M0YIqwRdTnKWC9vr8XZW-v4V_WF964WqyTsbGAvE0cDIKw4OODO5DyrS8UEgY3ebkR_Lk6_-d/s400/4db4d5a4f1c4b.image.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /></a></div></td> </tr>
<tr> <td class="tr-caption" style="padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: 16px;"><b style="font-size: small;">Black Elk and Neihardt at the Sioux </b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b> Victory<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>celebration at Pine Ridge in September 1945.</b></span></div></td> </tr>
</tbody></table></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;"> </span></span></span></span></div></div>Rachel Bielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com0