Creative Economics

Did you know it takes 500 miles, 400 gallons of gas and countless stops and lots of hands to get food from the farm to your table? It's no wonder people are sick and broke from high produce prices.
I am pretty proud to say my food comes from me. We grow our own veggies and have over a dozen fruit trees, and plenty of vines that grow watermelon, cantaloupe etc; I "can" my winter supply of fresh vegetables, then I use what is left to barter for what we don't grow.

We also trade produce for meat from rural neighbors that raise animals the old fashioned way, hormone free, grazing on grass and hay.

The secret I am sharing with you is this. We are in dire straights and if we don't get creative, things will not turn around. We can blame Obama, bailouts, or whatever but we can turn things around one person and one idea at a time. Having a job is great, a degree or two better, but recent turn of events prove if we are going to get financially stable we got to do things differently. I mean really differently.

You need to find a creative niche not only to feed yourself safe food but to add another source of income to your household. You don't need much to start your own little garden and it's a great family/ friend activity. Extra veggies can be gifted to the elderly neighbor down the street or your local food bank. Neighborhood veggie stands teach kids good nutrition as well as provide an excellent opportunity to get some exercise and family bonding time.

Start small, you can grow just about anything in a pot or an herb window sill garden. What do you think?

Black White Indian French

In a check out line at the grocery store I saw this amazingly beautiful young girl. The only word I could mentally think of to describe her was "exotic." When it came time for her to check me out I was compelled to ask her ethnicity. She looked up at me with these incredible doe eyes and quipped, "I'm the same as you." I didn't expect that answered and it showed. "I'm B.W.I.F she said nonchalantly, Black White Indian and French.....like you."

It was revolutionary for me to hear this young woman speak so boldly and honestly about my ancestry, our ancestry. She was spot on. We are people of color, all colors. It is freeing to not only recognize yourself in others but embrace it.

I have always seen myself in others. Not in denial of the history of America but as a silent observer of shames of the past. In the white woman at the hair salon with hair kinkier than mine, we steal quick glances at each other, an unspeakable knowing. I see myself when I look into a pair of blue eyes surrounded by blond hair and a face characterized by thick lips and an even wider nose.

If I don't say anything I blend in perfectly with my Native American friends. In New York on a subway I look like a myriad of folks from all over the world as well as all over America.

Yes my grandmother spoke creole french and broken English. Her hair sandy blonde, her eyes transparent green. A proud defiant black woman.

Just as I am reminded by a new generation of my place in America, just as I replaced the mindset of "thinking outside of the box," with "there is no box," I am fully aware that there are no black people or white people. There are only people.

Black history is really American history. Those boxes labeled black, white, Hispanic, and Asian are for people in denial. If we all delve deep enough into our hearts, found and accepted the truth, the only appropriate box to check would be human !

Amazing Grace and Arlee

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that brought together writers, authors, bloggers, poets, illustrators, storytellers, lovers of music, readers, geeks, the published, the unpublished, editors, mentors, advisers, philosophers, movie buffs, trivia fanatics, DREAMERS and everyone in between in one place at one time to;

Challenge one another, support, give awards, receive awards, hug, love, care, befriend, follow, cheer,
and be who you want to be through your blogs. A is for Arlee who started it all and prepared us to receive this Amazing Grace.

All are welcome here. Let the Challenge Begin!

1953-20?? Happy Birthday To Me

Nothing makes you more aware of your mortality then celebrating a birthday. As those years click by you wonder more and more about the life you are living. The life (your life) is immortalized by a dash separating the year you were born and the year you died.

THE DASH
(Author Unknown)
I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone,
From the beginning...to the end.

He noted that first came her date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth...
And now only those who loved her,
Know what that little line is worth.

For now, it matters not, how much we own;
The cars...the house...the cash
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard...
Are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what's true and real,
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile.
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy's read

With your life's actions to rehash...
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?

On your birthday I hope all of you have a long "dash" filled with all the dreams you've made come true for yourselves as well as others. How is your dash looking right now? How do you most want your life to be remembered?

BLOG CHALLENGE

The blog challenge did three things for me.
It gave me an opportunity to see if I could cut the pressure of blogging to the alphabets which took creative management, late nights and something I really needed in my writing world ...consistency of writing every day. The lack of these things have contributed to what I call my failure to publish.
Why write if no one wants to read your stuff? Every writer wants to feel validated by having people read their work. I didn't want just "followers" though. I wanted relationships with my peers. I am a writer but I am also a reader. I wanted people to value what I write and at the same time read blogs that I valued.
Lastly I wanted to advance my platform of intelligent, compassionate conversations.
I wanted a place my friends can come to ponder over my topics on religion, race, spirituality, dreams, set backs, accomplishments, failures etc; And we could laugh and cry together. We could support one another. Learn something together.
I've gotten all this from the past challenge and I am changed forever. I didn't acquire friends and peers I found my family. That's what good writing does. It forever binds you to the characters and the story becomes your own.
Thanks Arlee you did real good! Kudos to all the co-hosts and good writing to all who has accepted the challenge. What do you want from the A-Z challenge?

Rush To Judgement

You have to be a jerk not to be upset over the words Rush Limbaugh used to describe the young lady speaking in favor of government aide to purchase birth control pills for those that cannot afford them. Some say Rush is just an entertainer. The truth is, to a conglomerate of people, Rush is the voice of reason, the one that influence how they think. Rush's words carry power.

What is more powerful though is what Rush is not saying. The words he don't let drip from his fowl mouth. Did you know the government pays for Viagra for its Vets? Yep, its a fact...google it.

You see in this world of trick mirrors and smoke screens you have to have the gumption to seek the truth for yourself.

So why aren't we debating that funding? I'm not saying it's wrong or right to pay for Viagra for our Veterans, I'm just asking why no one brings that fact up. Are these men sex addicts, and sluts for whom we demand that they make sex videos for us to watch? Do you appreciate that your tax dollars pay for erectile dysfunction medicine?

My point is this. Compassion warrants that some people in society have medical necessities that they can't afford to pay for. Medical necessity should be determined by the one that is suffering not by the one's that are watching the suffering. Humanity to try to alleviate one's suffering is what distinguishes us from the Rush Limbaughs of the world. What do you think? Really.

SEVEN TIPS TO HAPPINESS

Someone remarked how I always had a smile on my face. What's my secret? Here are seven things I live by that keeps a smile on my face.

1. Forget about the numbers that make you unhappy like age, weight and days til Christmas.

2. You are who you keep company with. Keep only positive friends.

3. An idle mind is the devils workshop. Keep learning something new.

4. Bad things happen, grieve, endure, pray and move on.

5. Don't take guilt trips. Go to New York, Arizona or to my blog instead.

6. You are your best friend. Treat yourself to what you love.

7. Laugh, love, and live. Enjoy the journey that is your life! And SMILE!!!!!