Music in Our Lives

I am one of those you may find wearing headphones on the ride to work. Some days I prefer the natural sounds, but I often enjoy the music's affect on mood.


At home, I do the same thing. But more often than not I turn on Pandora to listen to my personalize radio stations. I like internet radio because it provides an alternative to the collection of music I have on my iTunes. I would rarely discover new music if it weren't for this form of listening. I don't have a car, a home radio, a TV, and I'm certainly not a music store junky. Occasionally, I get suggestions from friends, but even then I go to internet sites to tests the music. I appreciate this form of expression and would hate to see it disappear from hiked up licensing fees. Today is a Day of Silence for internet radio sites. Any of my music listening will be done from my current collection of music. But I hope that this won't be my future. SaveNetRadio.org is challenging the new rates and attempting to keep internet radio in business.

Seeing People

Truly seeing people for who they are, how they want to be perceived, or who they want to be is a time-consuming/challenging task. When I seeing someone out in public, I often with just a glance pick them out as someone I have seen before--categorize them (is categorizing an innate human habit??) into one of the groups I have come to know and more likely one of the groups of people I've come to prefer. Example: If I like people who are athletic, I'm more likely to decide this random woman on the street in tennis shoes is an athlete. I suppose this is to make my surroundings feel more familiar or comfortable. If I decide that I like/can relate to athletic people, then wouldn't it be nice to live in a society full of them?

These first notions of people are not always true, however. We must see much more of a person to perceive them as they are. And we must get to know people through conversations and several different interactions over time to understand them. I have begun reading a book with a friend: Reading People by Jo-Ellan Dimitrius about getting to know people by their image, body language, conversation and much more. Dimitrius is a long-term Jury Consulter and has had to perfect this "art" over many years. She reinforces often the importance of seeing the whole person and an image of a person based on small things. Still I find it challenging to read about signs of say 'frustration' through body language or how clothing can represent a person. I understand that there is some validity in these things, but it goes against everything I stand for in not judging a person. I will keep reading, however, before I judge the book.

Below is an example of how I saw a man on BART in two different ways just based of how much I could see him and his actions.




I know judgment is a necessary tool to humans, and I use it often. I just hope that I and others can constantly improve our judgment to be used for safety and understanding.

Deschooling

I've been spending some time reading the essays in Deschooling Our Lives. I love the different discussions of learning through experience and developing a love for learning and self reliance. Looking for more information from some of the resources, I found an example of a school Windsor House in British Columbia, Canada. I really enjoyed how the video expressed the lives of the Windsor House school community.

Wise is in the Wrinkles

I often draw while on BART. When I keep in practice, my figure drawing improves. Not to say that these are the best drawings, but I do learn each time I draw. This day was the discovery of wrinkles. Drawing someone to look older proved to be a challenge some days. But the wrinkles, that is what creates age in figure drawing. Hence "Wise is in the Wrinkles". It is a thing of beauty.

Memories of emotions

These are good weekends. Relaxing outside with your feet up. Contemplating life... What are memories? A thought of a feeling such as love is never the same as that exact feeling. It's something we create in our head--"expressed" in a way we keep it. It's either with words or pictures or an intangible understanding, but not the physical deep feeling of something such as love. How is this related to expressing oneself in poetry or prose or art or photography or videography or whatever other means? Do these forms of expressing help one understand a feeling better? Do these things form memories that are somehow more "real"?

Creativity & Motivation

I'm looking forward to some time to spend journaling, drawing, reading, and other hobbies. These things are all great motivation to being creative and happy. Just started listening this two part podcast Be Happy, Dammit! It's great to hear examples of people who make a point to practice these forms to creativity and happiness.

And here begins a more frequent posting...

From the days of floating school-to-school, I often got bored with no paper-work or planning outside and could be found reading or drawing. This was a reflection of myself at the computer-backwards hat and headphones on. Later the next day, I went to the Poetry Slam in Berkeley. I love that place and it's expression. SO MANY ways to express oneself!