Theeeeere Heeeeere!

Saturday morning had me up and out much earlier than my usual hour, but was well worth it. The vultures have returned in a huge venue this year and they like to ride the breeze high above my house. I do feel a bit jealous at their calm floating on the winds as they drift along, as long as I don't remember they're looking for a dead meal.

Well, Saturday, they took a break from the sky and settled onto the trees in the backyard.

Here's half of the venue


And here's the other half (about one house down)



Closer pictures


This one seems to like showing off



much more effective than an alarm clock!
Maimun

Twas the Night Before Eid, Christmas, Hanukkah, birthdays and All Other Special Days All Rolled into One

Driving home from work tonight, I realized a growing sense of anticipation. It's been a very long time since my birthday or Eid generated much excitement. Christmas and Hanukkah were school celebrations once removed when I was little, fun, but nothing overly exciting.

Its the night before Eid, Christmas, Hanukkah and birthdays all rolled into one. That's how I'm feeling tonight. Tomorrow's that day of magic that seemed to only be a someday dream as how for children those days are always too far away to be real until suddenly it's the night before.

Election Night was amazing. I was captivated by watching the results of Congressman Michael Arcuri's re-election. The television was turned on and the volume turned down, as we tallied the numbers of that campaign. From across the room, the commotion on the screen distracted me from the scrolling numbers along the bottom and I knew something had happened.

Sadly, fear crept up my spine before any other reaction set it.

Then I saw the cheering... the tears of joy... the screams of ecstasy... the flags waving of pride.

I can still feel the sudden shock, the breath choked in my lungs and my heart pounding, as I realized that it was not the close of a journey that I'd just witnessed but rather the next step of this amazing journey that is America.

President-elect Obama.

A nation, my home, that has grown from slavery to Presidency. Not someday or in the future or some other when that doesn't feel real, but right now, right before my eyes as I live and breath.

Election Day was amazing, but tomorrow it becomes real.

To all of you who called me a derogatory name, or thought I couldn't be enough, you who told me on Sept 11, 2001, that I should just be 'nuked to oblivion,' and you who just wouldn't see me:
Thank you for reminding me that we're not done yet.

To all of you who expected more of me, who not just saw me, but also listened, you who shared yourself and demanded the same of me:
Thank you.

The magic of tomorrow is the reality. And as all things real, it requires hard work, tending and expectations.

Thank you, Barack Obama and your family, for what you are about to attempt. To again put forth Reverend Robinson's prayer for all of us:

A Prayer for the Nation and Our Next President, Barack Obama

By The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire

Opening Inaugural Event
Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC
January 18, 2009

Welcome to Washington! The fun is about to begin, but first, please join me in pausing for a moment, to ask God’s blessing upon our nation and our next president.

O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will…

Bless us with tears – for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women from many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.

Bless us with anger – at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

Bless us with discomfort – at the easy, simplistic “answers” we’ve preferred to hear from our politicians, instead of the truth, about ourselves and the world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.

Bless us with patience – and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be “fixed” anytime soon, and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.

Bless us with humility – open to understanding that our own needs must always be balanced with those of the world.

Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance – replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences, and an understanding that in our diversity, we are stronger.

Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world.

And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of President of the United States.

Give him wisdom beyond his years, and inspire him with Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for ALL the people.

Give him a quiet heart, for our Ship of State needs a steady, calm captain in these times.

Give him stirring words, for we will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.

Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership, there will be neither red nor blue states, but the United States.

Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination, that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.

Give him the strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods.

And please, God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking FAR too much of this one. We know the risk he and his wife are taking for all of us, and we implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand – that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and peace.

AMEN.

It's nice to feel this excitement. It's anticipation and hope. YES, WE CAN do anything we commit to do. What's next? And what do I have to do to get there?
Maimun

Even though I love wire work, I'm pretty sure I'd have never thought of creating a "wire drawing." But this is amazing.


New wire drawing from michael murphy on Vimeo.

I'd love to find the size of this piece. I can see a cat being that curious, but if the piece is really that big... wow.
Maimun

Wishing Everyone a Blessed New Year

Happy New Years, everyone!Maimun

First Democrat Re-Elected in 1934

Usually, Election Day comes and sometime after 9:00PM, we either celebrate or commiserate, might get home early or not, but the job is done, the big question of the night answered and the new campaign begins.

Not so this year. At least we didn't have to wait until Dec 12th for someone else to choose!

Two weeks after CNN, MSNBC and even Faux News did it, Hanna today accepted the fact that Congressman Arcuri will continue being our Congressman.

New York most always gets put in the blue column, but around here, its red.

As if Election Day 2008 wasn't exciting enough.
Maimun

Yes, I Can... the Eternal Motto of Folks who Make

To say that this election cycle has been different than 2006's doesn't even begin to cover it. I'm not all over the place and the hours are much kinder to my 2 year older body and soul. And that there's a Presidential Election this year just adds a whole other dimension to the days.

There are some volunteer-made Arcuri buttons still floating around, I don't know how well all those iron-oned tee shirts have held up, and this was the one other craftiness I was able to do then:


I first got into politics with the Clinton-Gore election in '92. One of the features of the office back then was a a stock pile of white poster board and markers. There were probably times when the number of hand-made campaign signs outnumbered the official ones.

Well, in the years since, I've discovered the crafter in me and have found great joy in making... cards, prints, jewelry, pottery, beads, books, centerpieces, and who knows what else.

So, it's been really exciting to see the creativity that the Obama campaign has inspired, directly or indirectly, formally or informally. And it has been as frustrating with not having the time to add my craftiness to the mix.

Two night of insomnia resulted in these from me
These are some creations of others that I really like:
yea.. it's made of beans and a whole lotta patience by boogaloo on Craftster.

Moveon-org held a craft contest and this piece honoring That One was made before he was dubbed that:

Spelling for Obama:



Design for Obama has over 300 posters that you can download and print. Seriously... over 300. This one
is breath-taking in it's detail. It's done by an illustrator. Each line is hand written (yes words) and the poster really needs to be printed out to be appreciated.


This:pretty much sums up all the visual candy here


The Obama Craft Project not only exceeded its campaign fund raising goal, but also works hard to collect all the creativity in one place.

The Obama Art Report lets readers know what's happening in the print art Obama world and where to get your hands on some. If you are fast enough.

Ok, pumpkin carving season is pretty much over, but take a look at what's offered at Yes We Carve.

30 Reasons offers a poster every day.

Then, there are the official Barack Obama campaign creative efforts.

Clothing designers at Runway to Change

Musicians at Yes We Can. Listen here.

Visual Artists at Artists for Obama.

I like creative people. They make things. They make things happen.
Maimun

The Party of Hope

"We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics who will only grow louder and more dissonant in the weeks to come. We’ve been asked to pause for a reality check. We’ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope. But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope. For when we have faced down impossible odds; when we’ve been told that we’re not ready, or that we shouldn’t try, or that we can’t, generations of Americans have responded with a simple creed that sums up the spirit of a people.

Yes we can."

-Obama

GOP says, "PLEASE, Please, Please Be Stupid"

While an Observer-Dispatch article by Bryon Ackerman is also an issue of the campaign newsletter from Congressional candidate Richard Hanna...

While the OD, Hanna, and the NRCC don't know the difference between a correlation and a causation...

While Hanna's stands on any issue is left to the interpretation of what his endorsers say... (and if you think that statement's hard to grasp, try looking up any of the following on Hanna's campaign website: education, health care, tax, immigration, war or any other issue that's important to you.)

let's take a look at what Open Secrets offers (on Oct 22, 2008, 11:55PM):

Self-financing:
Arcuri: 0%
Hanna: 49%
This simply shows that if Hanna were not supporting himself, just short of HALF OF HIS SUPPORT would be gone.

Top Contributors (categorized by me, not Open Secrets):
Arcuri: political PACs, labor groups,
Hanna: privately owned companies, Exxon Mobil, Meryl Lynch
I'd rather have the support of people who work for the betterment of others rather than the likes of Exxon Mobil. And seriously, Hanna bellyaching about Fannie Mae while taking money from Meryl Lynch would be just as crazy as McCain calling Obama a pop star while his own VP shops like Paris Hilton. OH. Oopps!

Quality of Disclosure:
Arcuri: Full Disclosure 94.4% Incomplete 0.0% None 5.6%
Hanna: Full Disclosure 41.8% Incomplete 3.6% None 54.6%
FULL DISCLOSURE: Includes full name and occupation / employer
INCOMPLETE DISCLOSURE: Occupation listed gives no indication what the person does for a living. Examples of unacceptably vague disclosures are such "occupations" as "businessman", "entrepreneur", "self-employed", and "executive".
NO DISCLOSURE: No information about the donor's employer and / or occupation was listed.
Seeing this was what prompted this postcard. When Hanna kept repeating "I don't know" at the debate last week, he really meant it when it came to his donors.
The FEC requires this information, it's super simple to collect, and it discloses the industry incentives supporting a candidate. What 54.6% of that is being hidden from the voters 13 days before the Election?

I don't understand the GOP's desire, assumption and need for Americans to be stupid. You'd think that anyone would instead expect and demand rational thinking and intelligence from voters, candidates, students, mothers, fathers, teachers, doctors, snow-plow driver and everyone else on the planet.

Hanna may be new to actively doing something in the community but he sounds like the same ol GOP.
Maimun