twenty-5ive

1. The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation is David Wolfe's non-profit, which is dedicated to planting fruit trees in several communities. I am proud to say I am going to be working on a few projects with them in 2009, and am really excited. I know times are tight, but if anyone is looking for a good cause to donate some year end funds, they are definitely a worth cause.

2. Reservation reperations. When I was in college, I really wanted to spend some time on a Native American reservation doing something good to repair a tiny bit of the damage we, the collective American culture, have done. The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation has a program set up to do just that and through volunteering with them, it sounds like I will have the opportunity to finally do something I've always felt I needed to do.

3. Hike to Tennessee Valley. Found a new hiking spot in Marin, that was suggested by Cem Akin. It was quiet, and beautiful, and exactly what I needed to experience today. Lush green everywhere, birds galore and then the ocean and its healing sounds. It was perfect.

4. Mountain lions always make me happy when I get the opportunity to see them on my hikes.

5. Getting treated to both lunch & dinner in the same day is fantastic, especially when you're low on funds. Thanks to Cem and Noel for fascilitating my meals today.

6. The sun setting later in the day then it did yesterday. Soon it will be 7pm sunsets. Yay!

7. Rafael Casal did an awesome slam poetry piece on ADD. It's awesome.


8. Taylor Mali. While we are on the subject of slam poetry, I'd love to share some pieces by a few of the extremely talented people who have inspired me the most in this realm. This piece is called "What Teachers Make."


9. Beau Sia cracks me up. I first saw him in Slam when I was in college, and quickly sought out more of his work. He's just got such great energy and is so hilarious while bluntly and cleverly making his points.


10. Buddy Wakefield is another spoken word genius. Here's some slideshow someone made to go with one of my favorite pieces of his, entitled "Convenience Stores."


11. Saul Williams is one of the men who started it all for me...Watching him in Slam when I was 18 or 19 led to me immersing myself in the scene in NY and going to poetry slams in Brooklyn and at Nuyorican whenever I could. How do I pick one piece to contain a man who cannot be contained? I'm not sure it's possible, so I'll share the early work that got me hooked, in hopes of turning someone else into a poetry slam junkie. He makes my heart soar.


12. The Ecology Center in Berkeley has some amazing classes, events and programs from green building to permaculture to speakers about conservation photography. You can check their EcoCalendar for the most up to date event listings.

13. WWOOF Bulgaria I just got a 6 month paid sponsorship to study permaculture and biodynamic farming in Bulgaria. I'd prefer South America or New Zealand, but this sort of fell in my lap through some synchronicities, so I feel inclined to do it. The program is exactly what I am looking for, and is full of so many wonderful opportunities. So exciting! It's summer of 2009.

14. Intentional community talks with Adelaide have been abundant lately. We both really want to start a community somewhere, live off the land and be sustainable both environmentally and economically. Our visions are very much in line and I am excited to have a friend who has similar values and is equally motivated to actually do things instead of just talking. It's so exciting.

15. People's Grocery & the Mobile Market is changing the way the food system works. Frustrated by the lack of access to healthy food in lower-income neighborhoods, these folks created a community-based organization to address the quality of life issues. They worked on a few community outreach programs, and then created the Mobile Market, a grocery store on wheels that rolls through Oakland making fresh produce and bulk goods available to folks in overlooked areas of Oakland. Another great example of community in action!

16. Pacific Wildcraft Seaweed in Mendocino is a great seaweed company. Andrew, the owner, has been kind enough to allow me to go harvesting with him in April or May this year. I'm so excited to learn more about harvesting my own food.

17. Amyitis Gardens is another local gardening project I've emailed about volunteering. Started by David Stockhausen, Amyitis Gardens has started a neighborhood-based farming system that works a bit like sharecropping, providing local restaurants with produce grown in neighbors’ backyards in exchange for a discount at the restaurant. Update: You can read a great interview with Peter here.

18. California School of Herbal Studies is an herbal school in Sonoma where I am thinking of studying. Their program sounds really amazing, and will lay a good foundation for the medicinal chocolate company I want to start. I'm mostly self-taught when it comes to herbs, and really like the idea of being immersed in the study for a few months. They also have a lot of really great one day & weekend workshops for people looking to learn how to make medicinal beer from fermented herbs (as it originally was made) or how to grow their own herbs.

19. Alemany Farm is an incredible volunteer-run farm in San Francisco, where I applied for the year long Ecological Horticulture program mentioned in a previous post. This living example of community empowerment is a great place to volunteer. You can attend their regular community workdays on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of every month and the 2nd and 4th Saturdays and learn a lot about growing your own food, and often take home some delicious organic produce in exchange for your labor.

20. Tonic is positively good. I've been enjoying some really interesting green articles on their site.

21. Top Docs has enabled me to watch tons of amazing documentaries for free.