Festival of Lights ONE MORE WEEK!
Mendocino Botanical Gardens, just south of Fort Bragg on Highway 1
REVISED SCHEDULE
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday
(Closed Tuesday for Private Party)
December 10th, 12th& 13th — 5:00 ~ 7:30 pm
Friday, Saturday & Sunday
December 14th, 15th& 16th — 5:00 ~ 8:00 pm
SEE YOU HERE!
http://www.gardenbythesea.org/
COMMENT OF THE DAY: by Michael Hudson. “’Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad’.” And if they would destroy economies, they first create a wealthy class on top, and let human nature do the rest. The acquisition of power soon leads to its abuse, to economic and social hubris. By seeking to protect its gains, perpetuate itself and make its wealth hereditary, the emergence of a power elite locks in its position in ways that exclude and injure those below. The wealthy indebt them, shift the tax burden onto the less powerful, and turn government into an oligarchy."
JAMES KUNSTLER on Old Buildings: “Hubbard Hall in Cambridge, New York, a big wooden heap with its Second Empire mansardic tower, was erected in 1878 for the traveling shows and vaudevilles of the day and shuttered in the 1920s. It was rescued from oblivion in the 1970s and has evolved into a very busy center for the lively arts, which now includes two other buildings, freight barns adjacent to the defunct railroad station. There's a ballet studio, a music rehearsal room, a room for kids' art classes, and a separate building for contra dances. The programming is very rich. The old theater, where at least four plays and sometimes operas are performed by a capable local troupe each year, is the heart of the operation and that is where last week's Christmas breakfast was held. It is the kind of gathering place for people that could never be built now under the absurd burden of our construction codes. And that is finally what I want to talk about here: the magnificence of the room itself and how it affects the beating life of this struggling community. Unlike the depressing ‘facilities’ most of our festivals take place in around the USA — the gymnasiums and Holiday Inn ‘function rooms’ with their extraneous furnishings, acoustical ceilings studded with fire-prevention shower heads, off-gassing carpets, and atrocious fluorescent lighting — Hubbard Hall has a lofty painted ceiling and a graceful swooping wooden balcony in the rear. The proscenium arch is decorated in floral motifs out of the William Morris pattern book. The big room smells like old wood and history and the stairs to it creak musically.”
BONES! GUALALA! NOW!
Ask Not What Your Country Can Do for you
Ask what you can do for your local Restaurateur:
Now is the time to come to the aid of one of our local restaurants! Bones rose from the ashes, as a phoenix, soon after Bones’ previous restaurant burned to the ground on it’s first anniversary at that location (that location now houses Shoreline Restaurant). Mike and Mary Thomas, along with the staff at Bones, have been truly supportive of our local community both through making donations, sponsoring local events, and hiring local folks. Now it is time for us, as a community, to come out and support Bones and its 25+ staff. The staff represent about 100 people who live and spend in our community. This week, especially Thursday (December 13th), we are asking the community to come out in support of Bones Roadhouse by enjoying a meal, purchasing Gift Cards – think Holiday Season gifts – and/or pre-purchasing your holiday feasts. Oh, and don’t forget they carry some wonderful t-shirts and sweatshirts that are perfect for Holiday giving. When you go to Bones, let them know you are part of the “Gift Card Mob” by purchasing your items with your credit card or cash.
On behalf of the entire Bones Restaurant Team, thank you in advance for your support! — Jeremy Crockett , Bob and Roxanne Claflin, Gualala. PS. Please help us spread the word by emailing, texting, tweeting, etc. to your friends.
SELF REALIZATION cum SELF-FLAGELLATION
by John Wester
What enables self-deception
In rank artists who won’t quit?
What determines ones perception
To think it’s art when it’s pure shit?
What maker sets the scented bait
That snares the dull and second-rate?
* * *
Self-realization, should it come
Unexpected, unannounced,
Could be the trick to drive one from
Self-delusions that had bounced
Between queer dreams and stubborn fact--
That compensate for talent lacked.
* * *
Self-realization no one can teach
Resembles the violent birth
Of an infant delivered breech
Strangled by its own self-worth;
Or like a caul peeled from the eyes
Will leave babes stunned with cruel surprise:
* * *
Unraveling a tricky fabrication,
Woven by inventive thought;
Foregoing an incarnation
Of a life for which one fought,
Comes realizatios of the fool
Who had let delusions rule.
* * *
Self-realization may likely cast
Deep shadows shaped from shame and guilt
Revealing a wholly different past
From that which self-delusion built
(The grand facades, self-serving stories
Promoting the vain, imagined glories).
* * *
Sad, unwelcome, realization
Routes the flimflam from the truth;
Instead of triumph and elation
(Relished liberally in ones youth)
And thinking they’re a gift of God)
Trembles silent depths of fraud.
* * *
What before one championed loud,
Becomes a mortifying fact,
The usual bold, steadfast and proud,
Recovers the fetal form intact;
Dim stirrings of insanity
Hiding beneath the vanity.
* * *
From there it’s anybody’s guess
As to consequences next;
Once so certain of success,
Failure pays its grim respects:
Naked, raw, humiliation
Basks in self-illumination.
* * *
Whatever peeled off the caul,
Things are seen for what they are.
Some take it as a curtain call--
Dramatic finish more bizarre;
Others when dreams see light of day,
Wake up and watch them fade away.
THE BOONVILLE NEWSPAPER, distributed on Wednesdays, has reached San Francisco and Sacramento on two consecutive Fridays. It must be the Christmas crush, but even a Michigan subscriber said he got last week's paper on Saturday.
SERIOUSLY, what pops into your head when you hear the word, “Norway”? I immediately think of hyper-tidy people who enjoy an array of social benefits Americans can't even imagine. Ditto for Sweden, Denmark and even into Finland and Latvia — the whole Scando-package. So, what does Norway do Monday? They give the Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union — themselves, basically. It was laughable enough that they gave the thing to Kissinger and Obama, but the European Union, a collection of international arms dealers nearly on the scale of US?
ON SATURDAY December 22, SPACE Theater will sponsor “Night for Amunka.” at Near & Arnolds School of Performing Arts, at 508 W. Perkins St. in Ukiah. Doors open at 5pm. The festive solstice night will begin with a silent auction and special coffee, teas, desserts and snacks, along with fine area wines and beers. A concert will begin at 6pm with Spencer Brewer, Marcos Pereda, Alex DeGrassi, Joel Cohen, and Tangojazzmania, with Elena Casanova, Cherie Sheraque, Steve Baird, &Will Siegel will perform, with Capoeira Yokayo to follow. PURA VIDA and Samba Jamba will play Latin music for dancing from till 10pm. Friends of Amunka Davila call on community members whose lives have been touched by this special person to come out and support his cause, and enjoy a great night of friendship, music and dancing. This will be an all ages event. In March of this year, Amunka was diagnosed with 4th stage stomach cancer. Both his and Isa’s lives were turned upside down overnight, and he has undergone a grueling course of chemotherapy for the last several months. Although hopeful for the future, insurance will not cover any alternative cancer treatments which may become necessary if the current regime fails. To be prepared, friends and supporters are stepping up to aid their “friend in need.” For those who cannot attend the event but who want to help, there is an account open at the Savings Bank of Mendocino County where donations can be deposited. Just mention the "Davila Health Fund" at any branch of the bank to make a donation. An account number is not necessary to make a deposit. An account has also been set up to receive donations at http://www.youcaring.com/ <http://www.youcaring.com/ Donations are made through PayPal and there is no cost to donate. Just look for the box labeled "Search for a fundraiser by key word" and type in "Amunka Davila" to make a donation You may know Amunka (Eric) Davila as musician, dancer, teacher, or healer. Amunka was born in Guatemala, but grew up in Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and the Bay Area, and he and his wife Isa and their daughter Ayla have lived in Ukiah for the past two decades. Amunka was surrounded by music and dance all his life, playing in bands with his brothers and with Isa and his daughters; and performing a varied catalogue of music reflecting his cultural roots and interests, including Mayan folkloric music, Cuban salsa, Flamenco, Brazilian music, and jazz. Amunka worked as a child care provider and a massage therapist before seeking his physician assistant credential at Stanford University. He also worked at Berkeley's Free Clinic in its early days and at Highland Hospital in Oakland. After a tragic car accident, in which he and Isa lost one of their two daughters, they sought solace in the peace and beauty of Mendocino County, and, true to his values, Amunka became “Dr. Davila” to his many loyal patients at Laws Clinic, where he worked as a Physician Assistant for over 20 years. As a practitioner of the Brazilian martial art of Capoeira, and one of only a handful of “mestre's” or masters of the art in the United States, Amunka founded Capoiera Yokayo in Ukiah in an effort to inspire young people to strive for their full potential. In recent years he taught music & dance at Mendocino College, participated in plays at the Ukiah Playhouse, wrote a health column for Spanish speakers and led a Brazilian style marching band for numerous community events. Another of Amunka's notable contributions to his community was his pivotal role as lead percussionist in PURA VIDA, which became the go- to band for countless wedding celebrations, birthdays, New Year's parties, and fundraisers of all kinds. Amunka became driving force in the band, bringing knowledge, experience, and passion to the project, all while dancing, healing, teaching, and reaching out to his community.
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