Public art innovator Walter Hood speaks in Jackson July 26

Speaking of public art projects...

Jackson Hole's Public Art Initiative is still young but has launched some neat projects, with more in the works. The program recently announced that "Sky Play" (see artist's rendering above), by Wisconsin artist Don Rambadt, will be featured in the bike path underpass at the National Museum of Wildlife Art site north of town.

Renowned landscape architect Walter Hood, designer of the National Museum of Wildlife Art ’s under-construction sculpture trail, will discuss “Art in Public Places” at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 26 at the museum in Jackson. The event is free and open to the public. Known for his innovative and people-friendly designs of such high-profile public spaces as the grounds for the De Young Museum in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, Hood is expected to "share insight into his philosophy about creating multitasking public spaces that are both respectful of the land and rooted in their communities."

Walter Hood

If you're in Jackson this summer, the museum offers "hard hat tours" of its sculpture trail daily at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. through September. The new sculpture trail is set to open September 2012. The tours are free and open to the public and will meet in front of the Museum Shop.

Goal of the National Museum of Wildlife Art's new multimillion-dollar Sculpture Trail:

Further integrate the national museum’s collection with its natural Wyoming setting. The trail also will connect to a recently constructed Jackson-to-Grand Teton National Park pathway via a new underpass for easy biker and hiker access. 

Important sculptures planned for the new outdoor space include a casting of Simon Gudgeon’s streamlined bronze bird form “Isis” that was installed in London’s Hyde Park in 2009, a life-size elk bronze titled “Black Timber Bugler” by Tim Shinabarger, and eight larger-than-life bison in a sculpture by Richard Loffler called "Buffalo Trail" to be installed on the hillside with its own separate path.

Public art celebrates creativity and innovation and heritage and open minds

"Triangle" by Kirsten Kokkin in Loveland, Colo.

Public art can become a very personal thing.

I work in the arts, so know how one little statue can blow up into a huge controversy.

Today's Denver Post explored that city's public art program, and similar programs in Loveland, Colorado Springs and Grand Junction. The Denver percent for art program has been in place since 1977, which gives the city 34 years of perspective on art in the public eye. The most recent controversy raged around the bucking mustang sculpture with the crazy eyes that greets motorists at DIA. As many of you know, this is the sculpture that killed its creator. I'm not being facetious. The sculpture-in-progress fell on New Mexico artist Luis Jiminez and killed him. Now many Coloradans consider it cursed. Its nicknames include "Blucifer" and "Satan's Steed." The mustang is now legend.

To Denver's credit, its program mandates that an artwork stays up for five years once it's installed. The work passes through a review process before it's made and installed. It's not cheap to install a 32-foot horse along a public roadway. You don't want to take it down and put it back up every few months.

And then there's naked people. Loveland, epicenter of public sculpture, installed a bronze called "Triangle" by Kirsten Kokkin at a major intersection. It features three naked humans forming a triangle, thus the piece's name. My fear would have been that every teen boy in town would be climbing the sculpture searching for the naughty bits. But who needs sculpture when teen boys can prowl live sex sites via their home computer?

The "Triangle" artist has obviously studied the human form with the same attention to detail that motivated Michelangelo. I'm often amazed that people continue to care about putting sculptures in the parks and along their roads. But they do. And as in Michelangelo's time, public patrons provide the impetus and funding to do so. There may be some tussles along the way, but once a public work of art catches hold, it becomes a landmark. Witness downtown Denver's Big Blue Bear sculpture by Lawrence Argent. Witness the Lane Frost sculpture at Cheyenne's CFD Old West Museum. Witness the Chief Washakie sculpture in front of the Washakie Dining Hall at UW in Laramie. Witness Robert Russin's Abraham Lincoln head at welcome center on I-80 celebrating The Lincoln Highway. Witness the UW Art Museum and its "Sculpture: A Wyoming Invitational" with its many innovative works. Some of those sculptures were not meant to last, as in Patrick Dougherty's sculpture made of locally harvested saplings. Witness the entire city of Loveland, Colo., once a sleepy enclave between Denver and Fort Collins, home to commuters and retirees, to a lively city filled with sculptures and international sculpture shows (coming up in August).

Patrick Dougherty, "Short Cut," 2008

Many Wyoming cities have gone gaga over sculpture. Every corner in Sheridan's historic downtown features a work of art. Gillette has an Avenue of Sculpture. Cheyenne is planning the same thing along Capitol Avenue between the State Capitol and the Historic Train Depot. The newly renovated Capitol Plaza features statues of suffragist Esther Hobart Morris and Shoshone leader Chief Washakie. Across the street on the grounds of the Wyoming Arts Council, a sculpture of iconic Western artist William Gollings paints the scene (his painting of the Capitol is on the wall inside the building). At the other end of the street, a new sculpture of a pioneer woman carrying a valise and disembarking from a train celebrates Wyoming's "Equality State" moniker. In Wyoming, "Equality State" is always a work in progress.

That's also true for public art. Always a work in progress. New work goes up to admire and gawk at and maybe even complain about.

From May through October, tourist buses arrive daily in downtown Cheyenne. Groups of Japanese and Russians and Chinese tourists swarm over the Capitol grounds. They take each other's pictures by the Bison and by Esther and by the cowboy on the bucking bronco. They might go into the Capitol (if it's open) but time is short and they need some memories of their travels. Artwork on the Capitol grounds provides that.

Some of our legislators and public servants feel that art is a frill, that it provides no real benefit to Wyomingites and to the tourists that stoke the state's number two industry.

Buffalo soldier statue near Warren AFB in Cheyenne (USAF photo)

These people are short-sighted and possibly blinded by Tea Party rhetoric. The Governor of Kansas was so blinded by it that he eliminated the state arts council. Others, such as the Governor of Maine, banish works of art that they don't agree with. This negates one of the main goals of public art, which is to get the viewer to think about the site's culture and heritage. A mural of union workers can do that (although people in Maine have been spared that experience). A statue of a mountain lion can do that, as will the new sculpture at the Wyoming Vistitors' Center on I-90 near Hulett. The statue and commemorative plaques celebrating the buffalo soldier near Warren AFB's main gate opens up a new chapter in frontier and African-American history. Some of these soldiers came out West post-slavery to find more opportunities and less prejudice. It also brings up the fact that the U.S. military was officially desegregated by Pres. Truman in 1948, way before schools and businesses and transportation and your local Woolworth's counter.

It's tough to keep an open mind in these most close-minded of times. But our future depends on it.

Christian, Jewish and Muslim views of Noah and the flood Monday at "Bibles and Beer"

Noah's Ark, oil on canvas painting by Edward Hicks, 1846, Philadelphia Museum of Art (Wikimedia Commons)

From Rodger McDaniel, Cheyenne's indefatigable minister and activist:

"Bibles and Beer" on Monday, July 11, 5:30 p.m. at Uncle Charlie’s Grill & Tavern in Cheyenne. Happy hour Bible study... inviting all open-minded over 21 persons interested in learning what the Bible says! We are talking about Noah and the Flood...the Christian view as well as the Jewish and Muslim. Join us!

Look up Rodger on Facebook and RSVP.

Do some good this summer at Habitat house build and UPLIFT's mega-gigantic parking lot sale

Habitat volunteers

Some good local causes to support this summer:

Turned on Channel 5's morning show today to see Misty Heil and Kyle Aiton promoting the Habitat for Humanity house build. This new duplex is going up at 3823 Messenger Court. Habitat encourages volunteers to wear work-appropriate clothing and closed-toed shoes. Food and beverages will be provided for volunteers on Saturdays. Beverages are provided on Sundays.

Come out and pound some nails or tote some wallboard or sweep up the joint. The Laramie County Democrats will be swarming the site on July 17.  Get more info at http://www.cheyennehabitat.org or contact Elizabeth Williams at 307-637-8067.

On Saturday, Aug. 6, 8 a.m.-noon., UPLIFT of Wyoming is holding its Cheyenne Yard Sale in the parking lot of the Oregon Trail Bank on the corner of College Drive and Lincolnway. Lots of goods for sale. Prizes, and a car wash too. This is UPLIFT"s big fund-raiser for 2011. I've been a board member of this very active non-profit organization since 1998. UPLIFT's mission: "Encouraging success and stability for children and youth with or at risk of emotional, behavioral, learning, developmental, or physical disorders at home, school and in the community." A tall order, considering the huge needs in this very rural state of 97,000 square miles. UPLIFT has offices statewide and, in the past six months, its small staff has assisted 576 youth in 21 counties. Those are kids that would fall through the cracks if it wasn't for UPLIFT services funded by state and federal government agencies and donations from good people like you. A true public-private partnership. Come to this yard/parking lot sale or donate online at http://www.upliftwy.org.

Remember that state and federal funds are drying up in this very strange political climate. The State of Wyoming is raking in the dough ($50 million surplus at last count) but administrators are under the gun to cut spending so that the Tea Party won't get mad and field its own slate of selfish, mean-spirited ultra-right-wingers in 2012. Not sure how the state legislature could get any more extreme, but it's possible.

Strange times, indeed.

Photo: Space Shuttle Atlantis climbs to the heavens

Cool shot by my sister Mary Powell of today's Shuttle launch

Gulf oil spill revisited on the Montana high prairie

A year after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, caused by corporate negligence, we have a similar spill on the high prairie just north of the Wyoming/Montana border.

Get the lowdown from Button Valley Bugle and 4&20 blackbirds.

While tonight's Rachel Maddow show portrayed Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer as the Hero in the White Hat standing firm against the Black Hats of Exxon-Mobil, things aren't always as they seem. Check out the blogs to see what I mean.

Stuck outside of Hogtown with those Shuttle Launch Blues again

Insignia for the first shuttle launch

We were just outside of Hogtown when the first Shuttle went up. Other cars joined us along the side of I-75 to view history. We were disappointed, not with the launch, but with the fact that we weren't on the beach at Daytona. That was our goal when my wife Chris, my brother Dan and I left Denver two days before.

Stuff happens. A batch of bad gas in Mississippi, or maybe just an aging vehicle. We were stalled for several hours at a truck stop on the Florida panhandle. The car still wasn't running right when we pulled off the highway for the launch.

An impressive sight. Heard and felt it, too. After it climbed out of sight, leaving its contrail drifting in the clear Florida sky, we looked at each other and said, "Let's go to the beach."

All three of us had viewed many launches over the years, some from the beach and some from our backyard. My father worked for the space program out of Daytona, for NASA and G.E. Chris's father used to take her and her sister down to the beach to watch the spectacles. I heard "The Eagle has landed" via the car radio as my high school girlfriend and I were parked on the beach during a July thunderstorm (yes, I was paying more attention to the moon landing than to the business at hand).

I'd like to be on the beach today. To watch the launch and to be on the beach, my old haunt. Chris is in Daytona for her high school reunion. She'll see the launch with her sister and old Seabreeze High School "Fighting Sandcrabs" pals. I don't care much for reunions. But I'm miffed that I'm missing the last Shuttle launch.

Some of my progressive colleagues don't see the value of the space program. They contend that it's too expensive. They don't see the value in the scientific research. They don't understand why we have to send actual humans into space when robots can do the work cheaper and with less risk.

But "manned flight" (lots of women in space, too) is important precisely because it's in our genes to explore. One major benefit from the Space Shuttle are the fantastic images captured by the Hubble. They have opened up the wonders and terrors of our universe like nothing else. Colliding galaxies and collapsing stars and black holes and artistically-shaped nebulae and all of that space (what's with that dark matter?). We must go there to see these wonders and to figure out what they are and what they mean.

I grew up reading Tom Swift and then Isaac Asimov and Ray Bradbury. Sci-fi fed my imagination. And then came the space program. I had the great good fortune to live at the epicenter of Mercury and Gemini and Apollo.

One closing note: that first shuttle launch happened 20 years to the day after the first manned space flight by the Soviet Union. In 1981, we were still going toe-to-toe with the Reds in space and on the ground (Reagan was newly elected). Now that the U.S is Shuttle-less, guess who we will depend on to get groceries and extra batteries to the space station?

Those darn Russkis. History is a funny thing.

What happened to our agent of change, our Obama?

2008 seems so long ago...

The first post on this blog to carry the label "Obama" was on Feb. 6, 2008, "March 8 Dem Caucus Could Carry Clout." Read it at http://hummingbirdminds.blogspot.com/2008/02/march-8-democratic-caucus-could-carry.html.

I was late to the Obama cause. In 2004, I was a Kucinich delegate to the Wyoming State Convention. We lost. In 2008, I still was rooting for antiwar champ Kucinich, but switched over to John Edwards and, as Mike-come-lately, joined the Obama ranks as he started picking up steam in the early primaries.

My wife Chris was none too pleased with this. She was a Hilary Clinton fan from the beginning and she never wavered. We had some words over this. She made her calls for Hilary in one room and I made my calls from Barack Obama in another. She went out to the local community college to hear Hilary speak and I traveled over the mountain to see Obama raise the roof at the UW basketball arena. I was an Obama delegate at the Wyoming State Convention in Jackson and she was a Clinton alternate. Obama carried the day. I blogged from the convention and you can read about it here and here. I was an embedded blogger at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. You can read about it here and here.

I can be naive in my beliefs. All of us can. I have been disappointed in times with Pres. Obama but he is the clear-cut rational choice when compared with the kooks on the other side.

But if he abandons Democratic Party principles now, that's it for me. I will not be in his corner in the 2012 elections if he caves to the Republicans on The Big Three: Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. This is the so-called Social Safety Net that we all count on, Dems and Repubs and Indies and Greens and Tea Party and even the unaffiliated and noncommittal. This will spell the end of an America that makes sense.

Life will go on. I will continue my snarky posts and my ongoing feud with Tea Party Slim. But it won't be the same. The fire will have gone out. I will putter in the garden and write the occasional letter to the editor wondering what happened to our champ, our agent of change, our Obama.

Hurry up with those flying cars -- Wyoming roads going to hell!

I thought I was seeing things when I read in last Friday's Casper Star-Tribune that Wyoming's roads are going to hell.

The road to hell may be paved with good intentions, but good intentions won't pave the roads through Wyoming.

Money will pave the state's roads, or else they will go to hell for decades without a substantial increase in funding...

Nice lede by reporter Tom Morton. His interview with Lowell Fleenor, district engineer for the central Wyoming division of WYDOT, yielded some great quotes:

"At current funding levels, there is no way the system will not deteriorate."

And...

"Due to funding constraints, WYDOT is moving from a transportation improvement program to a pavement preservation program."

This is bad news for all of us who depend on our roads to get from one place to another. Until jet packs and flying cars assume their rightful place in Wyoming garages, we will remain dependent on driving our four-wheeled personal mobility devices on paved roads.

There are several causes. Decline in federal revenue. Lack of Congressional action on a national highway bill. Low state fuel taxes, with Wyoming's 14 cents a gallon the lowest in the Rocky Mountain region. No action by the state legislature on raising fuel taxes or turning I-80 into a toll road or on retrofitting our cars with anti-grav devices.

Just kidding on that last one. Although that may happen before the legislature ever approves an increase in the fuel tax. Can't even say the "T" word in Wyoming.

So our roads go to hell.

Interestingly enough, Gov. Matt Mead has been talking up the importance of infrastructure. He’s proposed predictable, long-term revenue streams to fund municipalities and highways. His proposals have been rejected by the state legislature. The Governor’s motto is “Wyoming First.” At the Wyoming Association of Municipalities conference in Sheridan, he reiterated that and added that now is the time to invest in the state.

“I go the National Governors’ Association convention and Wyoming is in a much better place than almost every other state. We’re in competition with other states and they can’t do this now. Now is the time for Wyoming to do this. Our municipalities need this. Maintenance and building of infrastructure does not get cheaper with time.”

“If you want healthy economic development, you must have infrastructure.”

For more on this subject, read the CST's editorial in the July 6 edition: "Lack of Wyoming highway funding an emergency."

UPDATE: House GOP plans to cut $15 billion from transportation budget. See story at http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/fiery-words-over-gop-proposal-to-cut-transportation-funds/2011/07/07/gIQAm6fo2H_story.html. Guess we'll have to make do with travel on horseback over rutted trails. Back to the good ol' days!

ANOTHER UPDATE: Not too interested in this $250,000 flying car: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2011/07/the-flying-car-is-now-cleared-for-highway-use.html

"How the Wyoming legislature became a valley floor filled with dry bones"

Former Democratic state legislator and minister Rodger McDaniel takes on the legislative redistricting process (a.k.a. gerrymandering) in his most recent column. I hadn't thought of the Wyoming Legislature as a valley floor filled with dry bones, but I don't know Biblical references as Rodger does. Other analogies come to mind when I consider the most recent legislative session. Tower of Babel. Mad Hatter's Tea Party -- or maybe another kind of Tea Party. Scenes from "The Crucible."

Excerpts from Rodger's blog post:

The huge one-Party majority in the legislature is not so much about political ideology as it is about the structure incumbents created to protect themselves from competition. The proof is in the extraordinarily high numbers of those incumbents who are never opposed at the ballot box.

Nationwide, the last election saw 28% of all state senate winners unopposed. In Wyoming it was 60%. On the house side, a third of all members nationwide won without an opponent. In Wyoming it was almost 70%.

Read the rest at Blowing in the Wyoming Wind: How the Wyoming legislature became a valley floor ...

"Freedom Riders" asks: Would you put your life on the line?

An amazing documentary. My wife and I saw it on WY Public TV several weeks ago. Donate to Truthout and get a fee copy. 

Laramie County Democrats stage a home-raising for Habitat for Humanity July 17

Jimmy Carter, well-known Democrat, works with locals on 2010 Minnesota  building project

Laramie County Democrats will be participating in a Habitat for Humanity build on Sunday, July 17, noon until 5 p.m. The location for the build house is 3823 Messenger Court.  The site is located off McCann Avenue between Pershing and Dell Range in Cheyenne. Volunteers are needed. To participate contact LCD Chair Linda Stowers at 307-220-1219. Close-toed shoes/boots are required on site.  Please wear Democratic Party and or Progressive t-shirts, pins or other gear if possible as pictures will be taken. Photos will be posted online. 

I have to hit the road for work that day but will stop by to pound a couple nails. I've been a fan of Habitat for Humanity since serving on the first board of directors for Habitat for Humanity of Laramie County. Local minister and blogger Rodger McDaniel once directed Habitat in Nicaragua. Back in the Contra War days, I spent a week in Nicaragua touring Habitat sites. We hauled a suitcase filled with Pepto Bismol and a bulky VW van windshield to Habitat builders in Managua and Esteli. During the American boycott, it was very difficult to get anything except in-country rebar and hometown beer. 

See you July 17. I'll be in my "Wyoming Democrats -- Alive and Kicking" T-shirt. Or maybe my "Wyoming for Obama" T-shirt. 

BYOH -- Bring your own hammer.

Another way to support Habitat -- shop at the Habitat ReStore near you. For directory of Wyoming locations, go to http://www.habitat.org/cd/env/restore_detail.aspx?place=76

Obama Recognizing Military Suicides w/ Condolence Letters, Reversing a Longstanding Policy

This is the right thing to do.

Over the past 5 years, over 1,000 service members have taken their lives, and in the Army, over 20% of those occurred in combat zones. This new policy will cover those who tragically take their own lives while actively serving in such zones, particularly Iraq and Afghanistan.

From Daily Kos: Obama Recognizing Military Suicides w/ Condolence Letters, Reversing a Longstanding Policy

Montana bloggers get jump on Yellowstone River spill

It took a few days for the Exxon-Mobil oil pipeline spill to show up in mainstream media.

But Montana bloggers were on the story from the get-go. Start by dialing in jhwygirl's July 2 post at 4&20blackbirds and keep reading. On July 2, we all were sitting along the shores of at least one pristine Wyoming stream while jhwygirl was sharing posts and photos of a huge spill into the Yellowstone that eventually went to the Missouri and now, according to this morning's NPR interview with Mont. Gov. Brian Schweitzer, is all the way to North Dakota.

Here's one July 2 photo from the owner of the Blue Creek Farms ranch:

The State of Montana as slow to respond and Exxon-Mobil even tardier. But the outrage was clear on the blogs (Twitter, too but I haven't checked it out).

Rob Kailey's been posting from Left in the West. Yesterday's post is particularly poignant. While he points out a report about the spill from crooks & liars, he also notes that comments to the post are particularly mean-spirited when it comes to Red-State Westerners. Go see Rob's comments to the commenters, as he says it much better than I can.

Reminder to me and my readers: "Be Kind." That was Kurt Vonnegut's favorite advice. My mother's, too. Probably your mom's too. It's so easy to say things online that you wish you could take back. I've done it. Next time disaster strikes, remember that those are people under that tornado or in the path of the wildfire or along a polluted river in Montana. People, not statistics, not "those people" who may have voted against you.

Happy 75th anniversary, "Gone with the Wind"

Poster issued for the 1936 release of the book (Hutton Archive/Getty Images)

Happy 75th anniversary to the publication of Margaret Mitchell's "Gone With the Wind."

I have no great love for the book. I read it only once. But my Grandfather Shay made an effort to read it every year. It's the only book that I remember seeing him read. Unlike Pat Conroy, who wrote a nice "fellow Southern writer" tribute on NPR Online for the novel's anniversary, Grandpa had no roots in the South. And he was no writer. He did like Civil War history -- I inherited his 1885 edition of "Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant." He also had a fondness for Scarlett O'Hara's pluckiness. He married a plucky woman, my grandmother, who did have some South of the Mason-Dixon roots from Maryland and Virginia. Family stories link us to Robert E. Lee via my great-grandmother, a Lee from Virginia. Nobody in my family has been able to establish a link. We may eventually have to do some DNA testing. There undoubtedly is a cottage industry in the South devoted to proving Lee lineage.

My grandfather went to war with the Iowa National Guard, first to the Mexican border against those pesky Pancho Villa insurgents and later to France with the American Expeditionary Force. He was born a few decades after the Civil War ended and would have known some veterans of that war growing up in rural Iowa. Grandpa was a young lad when more Iowans went off to fight the Spanish-American War in 1898. His turn came a few years later.

"Gone with the Wind" was the only book written by Margaret Mitchell. She wrote it at a tiny desk in a tiny apartment in Atlanta. She was bit embarrassed by all the attention generated by the book's success and the blockbuster 1939 film. She was hit by a car and died at the young age of 48.

Shortly thereafter, her secretary and custodian of the apartment building, burned the book's manuscript, apparently on orders from Mitchell. Only a few pages survive. 

Fourth of July made for brats and beers and blogging progressively

Happy Fourth of July to everyone, especially the progressive bloggers you see linked in the right sidebar. Fighting the good fight against the rising tide of ignorance. We may see some guest bloggers today at hummingbirdminds. Stay tuned...

UPDATE: Prog-bloggers at July Fourth party intensively engaged in bocce tournament. They will be here to guest-blog another day.

U.S.A. on Fourth of July: Made in China

SF-Oakland Bay Bridge --
Made in China

This is disgusting (from buzzflash):

Did you know that some of America's infrastructure is being repaired after all?

The only catch is that major parts of the work are being done in China, meaning that many US construction workers stay unemployed.

Take for instance the massive $7.2 billion project to rebuild the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, which was compromised by earthquake damage.

The New York Times reports about a surge of construction employment on American projects such as the bridge, in China:

At a sprawling manufacturing complex here, hundreds of Chinese laborers are now completing work on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

Next month, the last four of more than two dozen giant steel modules - each with a roadbed segment about half the size of a football field - will be loaded onto a huge ship and transported 6,500 miles to Oakland. There, they will be assembled to fit into the eastern span of the new Bay Bridge.

The project is part of China's continual move up the global economic value chain - from cheap toys to Apple iPads to commercial jetliners - as it aims to become the world's civil engineer.
Across the United States, Chinese workers are rebuilding America, according to the Times, "In New York City alone, Chinese companies have won contracts to help renovate the subway system, refurbish the Alexander Hamilton Bridge over the Harlem River and build a new Metro-North train platform near Yankee Stadium."

While Congress dithers over a rebuild America program to employ US workers, the Chinese are getting the jobs.

Can you imagine the Brooklyn Bridge having been made in China?

It might very well have been were it constructed in 2011.

Advice to seniors: Turn off the TV and go to school

According to MSN Money:

How Americans age 65 to 74 spend their day in hours(Results for the total population age 15 and older are in parenthesis.)

• Personal care activities (including sleep): 9.67 (9.47).

• Watching TV: 3.77 (2.52).

• Household activities: 2.41 (1.79).

• Eating and drinking: 1.42 (1.25).

• Working: 1.15 (3.50).

• Purchasing goods and services: 0.94 (0.75).

• Reading: 0.62 (0.29).

• Socializing: 0.59 (0.55).

• Relaxing and thinking: 0.55 (0.28).

• Organizational, civic and religious activities: 0.52 (0.35).

• Leisure computer use: 0.38 (0.39).

• Exercise: 0.31 (0.29).

• Caring for non-household members: 0.31 (0.21).

• Telephone calls, mail, and email: 0.23 (0.18).

• Caring for household members: 0.11 (0.51).

• Education activities: 0 (0.47)

Education activities zero? That seems wrong. Every spring, I teach LIFE classes through Laramie County Community College and the classes are packed. I am 60 and my students are 65-and-up. I've also taught at Elderhostel. Zero education activities? Many colleges and universities have adjacent retirement communities. Some of these look a bit scary, such as the one at my alma mater, University of Florida. Eighteen-hole golf course? No thanks. Free paleontology and literature and ag courses at UF? And tix to b-ball? Count me in. 

Turn off the TV, people, especially if you're watching FOX. It's melting your brains. 

Go to school.


P.S.: Retirement village at UF is Oak Hammock. Here are some of the classes offered in the fall:

CLASSES
▪ Alternative Energy Sources 
▪ Native American Art 
▪ The Many Aspects of Forensics 
▪ Law and the Movies
▪ Bees
▪ Jazz III - Gary Langford 
▪ The Profound Art of Cormac McCarthy: An 
Introduction– Robert Gentry
SPECIAL PROGRAMS/LECTURES
▪One day seminar on a Shakespeare play 
 Estelle Aden 
▪Lecture by David Colburn 
▪ Cutting Edge Lectures 
CONTINUING PROGRAMS
▪Understanding and Enjoying Opera 
▪Roundtable Discussion in the Algonquin      
Genre 
▪ Conversational Spanish


Nice line-up. I especially like the Cormac McCarthy course.

"Berry Prairie" taking shape on UW Biodiversity Center roof

Hymenoxys grandiflora by Susan Marsh, from Wyoming Native Plant Society web site.

This is cool (in more ways than one):

Planting is underway on a green roof being established at the University of Wyoming's Berry Biodiversity Conservation Center. Landscapers are installing a variety of native grasses, wildflowers, cacti and shrubs, among other things.

Greg Brown, director of the Biodiversity Center, that native plants are being used, ones that grow within a 20-mile radius of the campus.

WPR: Green roof installed at UW Biodiversity Center

Stories about ethnic traditions in Wyoming at Laramie County Public Library July 14

Not only did I get a cool tie-dye “One World, Many Stories” T-shirt for joining the library’s summer reading program. I will also receive a cool mug when I’ve read at leats 30 minutes a day for 25 days (done!). Also a bevy of good summer programs at the library. Here’s one:

"One World, Wyoming Stories"

When: Thursday, July 14, 7-8:30 p.m.

Where: Laramie County Library Cheyenne (map)

Description: Annie Hatch, Wyoming Arts Council Folk & Traditional Arts Specialist, and Andrea Graham, Folklorist with the University of Wyoming American Studies Program, will share stories about a variety of ethnic traditions in Wyoming. They’ll also encourage participants to share their own stories. This is held in conjunction with the “One World, Wyoming Stories,” exhibit in the library through August 16. (Adults, Sunflower Room, 3rd floor)

Bachmann’s Husband Calls Homosexuals ‘Barbarians’ Who ‘Need To Be Educated And Disciplined’

Bachmann’s Husband Calls Homosexuals ‘Barbarians’ Who ‘Need To Be Educated And Disciplined’

When trying to figure out where presidential candidate Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) gets her stringent, anti-gay views, you only have to look as far as her husband. Dr. Marcus Bachmann, who has described himself as his wife’s “strategist,” runs a Christian-based counseling center in Minnesota that has been rumored to offer reparative treatment for those looking to “ungay” themselves.

Worth repeating: Closing Netroots Nation speech by MN Rep. Keith Ellison

Tonight CSPAN was replaying its live broadcast from Netroots Nation 11 in Minneapolis. Here's Rep. Keith Ellison's inspiring speech.

1971: Eighteen-year-olds get the vote; 1972: Nixon wins in landslide

Marching for the vote in 1971

In 1971, the U.S. Congress ratified the 26th amendment, lowering the voting age to 18.

I was five months shy of 21. New amendment or no new amendment, I as going to be eligible to vote for president in 1972. My politics were rapidly shifting from conservative to somewhat liberal. I had lost my ROTC scholarship in January but still had my college deferment at U of South Carolina. This was a good thing since my draft number was 128, low enough to go if I ever was 1-A. So my politics were this: convince Pres. Nixon to get out of Vietnam before I had to go there. Or elect someone else who would get us out.

Self-serving? Of course, that's what politics is about. If it hits home, it's important at election time. It's the economy, stupid. Or, it's the war, stupid, especially if you're draft-bait.

One word about the draft as practiced by U.S. Selective Service: unfair. If you don't believe me, read the exhaustive and sometimes dense book on the subject: "Chance and Circumstance: The Draft, the War an the Vietnam Generation." The authors, Lawrence M. Baskir and William A. Strauss, were members of Pres. Gerald Ford's clemency board. The book was out of print in 1990 when I read it on microfiche for a writing project at CSU. I was lucky to find the cover art (see photo).

In November of 1972, I found myself voting in an historic church on Boston's Beacon Hill. I voted for George McGovern, a U.S. Senator from South Dakota, a World War II combat veteran, and an odd person to be an anti-war firebrand. McGovern lost, the Vietnam War continued until April 1975. More young Americans died and many more Vietnamese. This is one of the roots of my stubborn Democratic Party voting pattern and my antiwar activism.

I am astonished that everyone doesn't vote. I was astonished by this in 1972, although the polls were darn crowded on that cold Boston night -- I was outside waiting in line. But was less impressed when the results came in, with only Massachusetts and D.C. coming in for Sen. McGovern.

Young voters came out big for Obama in 2008 (read Pres. Obama's proclamation celebrating the 26th amendment anniversary here). They disappeared in 2010. What will they do in 2012, with the the future of America hanging in the balance?

It's good to remember an historic event such as the ratification of the 26th amendment. But when it's 100 years old, it may just be an historical oddity.

Olyeller clashes with Olblue

Tea Party Slim has recreation on his mind this Fourth of July weekend.

"Glendo?" I asked, mentioning a state park about 90 miles north of Cheyenne.

Slim sneered. "Too many Greenies."

I nodded. "We should put up a southern border fence."

Slim looked pensive. "Might work -- just a fence to keep out the Liberals. Colorado's crawling with them."

I laughed. "A fence with a Liberal detector? Turn back anyone with a pointy little head?"

"Or drinking a latte." He joined the laughter.

"Obama bumper sticker? Turn 'em around, tell 'em to get back to Boulder."

"Two Obama bumper stickers? Lock 'em up!"

"On what charge?"

Slim paused. "Reckless endangerment -- of Wyoming's citizens."

"DUI: Driving Under the Influence -- of Liberal Ideas."

A real knee-slapper. Slim slapped his knee. "Aiding and abetting -- terrorists."

I ceased laughing. "See Slim, there you go ruining a good time by going all Tea Party on me."

"What?"

"And we were having such a good time together bashing Colorado Liberals."

Slim tried to make amends. "Look, I was just..."

"Heard it all before, Slim. Obama is soft on terrorists. He may be one himself, seeing as he's from Kenya and his father was a Muslim. Isn't that the Tea Party line?"

"There's no Tea Party line," Slim said, looking defensive. "We're not a political party so we don't have a party line."

"That's true," I said. "Let's just say that those are typical Tea Party talking points."

"We don't have talking points."

"Yelling points?"

Slim smiled. "I just yelled once at a town hall meeting last year and now I'm a yeller?"

"Ol' Yeller?"

"That's a pretty good Twitter handle."

"I'll steer clear of your posts."

"C'mon Mike, I'll be olyeller and you can be Ol' Blue, as in blue state."

I stared at Slim. "Not bad -- Ol' Blue. But it sounds a bit like the name of a hound dog some Alabama KKK guy would own. 'Sic 'em, Blue, sic that pointy-headed Liberal. Get that colored fella next."

Slim slapped me on the back like some Alabama KKK guy. "I love joshin' with you Olblue, but I have to get rolling. The misses and the RV are waiting."

"Where are you going?

"It's a secret."

"State park?"

"No."

"National park? National forest?"

"No."

"BLM land?"

"None of those. A bunch of us own some land up around Laramie Peak. Private land, so we can recreate in peace."

I imagined a forest grove with a dozen RVs circled up like Conestogas. Slim and his fellow Tea Party windbags sat by the fire roasting Obamacare and big gubment. The little women were barefoot (too old to be pregnant) and busy cooking and cleaning and cutting firewood. I wondered what circle of Dante's Inferno this would be.

"You have fun, Slim. While you're recreating in the mountains, the Liberal misses and I will be plotting the overthrow of the U.S. Government."

"Hey," he said, standing tall, "that's our job."

Photo: Tea Party Slim is out there somewhere, plotting mischief. Photo of WY Shirley Rim/Hwy. 77 (used under Creative Commons license).

Who needs Rainbow Family Rocky Mountain gatherings when you have the Koch Brothers Platinum Lovefest?

A brave coterie of protesters gathered outside the recent Koch Brothers Right Wing Lovefest in Vail, Colorado. CommonBlog has a list of corporate aircraft that flew Right-thinking corporate CEOs and pundits to the conference. Thanks, planespotters. Target is on the list. See if your favorite corporation is there. For more, go here.

Feeling safer already as new Wyoming concealed carry law goes into effect today

I feel safer already (from the Casper Star-Tribune):

A law that allows Wyomingites to carry concealed weapons without permits goes into effect today. 

-- snip --

During the second of two seminars on the new law sponsored by the Cheyenne Police Department on Wednesday, the instructor, officer Jay Remers, told the group it still is beneficial to get a concealed weapons permit. The firearms training is valuable for gun owners who may be familiar with hunting rifles but not with using handguns, particularly if faced with someone armed with a knife, he said. 

-- snip -- 

Officer Remers, meanwhile, said after the meeting that he expects only minor problems with the new law, like people carrying a concealed weapon into a prohibited area. “I don’t anticipate carnage in the streets, as some predict,” he said, adding that more signs prohibiting firearms have been posted in the capital city recently. 

-- snip -- 

The new law, he said, appeals to citizens who are suspicious of government and don’t want to subject themselves to the scrutiny associated with getting a permit. 

During the seminar, Remers warned of the severe ramifications of shooting or killing someone, even in self-defense. “If you can avoid shooting someone, avoid shooting someone,” he said. 

-- snip -- 

Read the snipped-out parts here.

"Laramie's "Freedom Has a Birthday" includes fireworks, food, fun and a chance to get your pic taken with the Prez

This Laramie County security detail accompanied Pres. Obama at last weekend's SuperDay! event in Cheyenne.  Albany County Dems will take over security on July 4 in Laramie. Come out, sign a commitment card for 2012, and get your pic taken with the Prez. 

From the Albany County Democratic Party in Laramie: Do you like firecrackers, good community spirit, and serving as a Secret Service agent to the President? Well, do we have a volunteer opportunity for you. Please call Bryon Lee (307) 752-5972 for details about the wonderful booth the Albany Co. Dems are setting up for Freedom Has A Birthday on July 4 in Washington Park. 

Star Wars Festival "food-raiser" set for July 7

Is it possible that Darth Vader is a force for good in the universe?

We often rely on arts and music and creativity to lift our spirits during hard times. They also help turn on lights where darkness reigns.


Fellow prog-blogger and minister Rodger McDaniel announces this good (and fun) cause:


Highlands United Presbyterian Church announces its "Star Wars" Festival “food-raiser” for NEEDS. The STAR WARS FESTIVAL, is scheduled for 6:30-9:30 p..m., Thursday, July 7, at the Highlands United Presbyterian Church, 2390 Pattison Ave., Cheyenne . The public is invited to attend. Admission is FREE with the donation of any non-perishable food item or baby item such as diapers. All items collected will be donated to NEEDS, Inc. for its food bank.


A variety of events are planned as part of this family evening: 

6:30 p.m. - Intergalactic Meet-and-Greet
Want to meet Darth Vader, Imperial Stormtroopers or R2D2? Come early to the talk and meet some of your favorite characters from the Star War films. Bring your camera and take as many pictures as you like! Re-enactors include members of the Mountain Garrison of the 501st Legion -- www.501st.com. Members reside in both Colorado andWyoming.

Dr. Toby Rush presents "The Music of Star Wars"

7:30 p.m. -- Presentation: The Music of Star Wars 
This 90-minute multimedia presentation from UNC music professor TOBY RUSH, includes excerpts from all six films. Dr. Rush will present the music of Star Wars and explore how John Williams used the soundtrack to help tell George Lucas' epic tale.

9 p.m. -- Costume Contest
Wear your Star Wars costume! Guests are encouraged to dress as characters from any of the Star Wars films. A short fashion show, allowing guests to strut their stuff, will be held following Dr. Rush’s talk. Prizes will be awarded for the top outfits!

All this FREE with your donation for NEEDS! So bring the family, this is one event you don’t want to miss! And it’s for a good cause – with all foodstuffs to be donated to NEEDS Cheyenne. 

Highlands Presbyterian Church is located in north Cheyenne at 2390 Pattison Avenue. From Dell Range at Mountain, drive north onMountain Road to the intersection of Pattison and Mountain.

For more information, contact Rodger McDaniel, pastor of Highlands Presbyterian, at 307-634-2962 (church office) or rodger.mcdaniel@bresnan.net.

Photos from 6/25/11 meeting of the Laramie County Democrats

Here I am at Monday's Laramie County Democratic Party meeting explaining (choose one in comments below) 1)  the length of the fish I caught at Seminoe Reservoir the previous weekend; 2)  the span of Michelle Bachmann's nose after she told her latest whopper; 3) the vast chasm (with one millimeter representing a billion dollars) between the richest 2 percent and the rest of us; 4) the vast amount of fun I had at Netroots Nation 11; 5)  I forget.

A very lively gathering of Laramie County Democrats at Monday's meeting at the IBEW Union Hall in Cheyenne.  Pictured (l to r): Misty Heil, mom and education activist; Lori Brand, attorney and firebrand; Mike Shay, writer and activist; Sen. Floyd Esquibel, one of the brave Wyoming Progressive 14 in the state legislature; WY Conservation Voters E.D. Kate McMorrow Wright, and Wendy Soto, head of the Laramie County Grassroots Coalition. Both photos by Bryon Lee, Organizing for American-Wyoming.

Linda hits the road with poetry in her heart and a ukelele in her hands

Sign in the window at Beyond Baroque

My friend and colleague Linda Coatney just returned from a five-day road trip with The Monk -- Detroit spoken-word poet and activist M.L. Liebler -- and Peter Lewis, one of the founders of the seminal California rock band, Moby Grape. Linda is a poet and plays the ukelele. She keeps insisting that Don Ho's favorite musical instrument is making a comeback -- Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder has an entire CD of uke tunes -- but I have my doubts.

The entourage hit a few of California's literary and music hot spots, including Beyond Baroque Literary Center in Venice Beach and the Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center in Berkeley. Linda chronicled the trip in a post on the Wyoming Arts Council blog. Go to http://wyomingarts.blogspot.com/2011/06/on-road-with-monk-and-moby-grape.html

Daily Kos: "Why I'm Boycotting The Huffington Post, And I Hope You Will Too"

I do not provide free content (or any content, for that matter) to the Huffington Post, and don't plan to. I'm boycotting Huff Post until my brothers and sisters in the writing/blogging trade get paid. I just removed Huffington Post link from my blogroll.

Here's an excerpt from the Kos post:

Even Kos himself pays his front pagers for their work. He gives them fair pay and even health insurance for the work they put into this site. And for good reason. The front-pagers work very hard to put in quality work that gives the site a solid reputation for progressive activism. Arianna Huffington makes way more money from her site than Markos does (unless Kos made $315 million for this site, which I strongly doubt). She should not only pay her bloggers, but pay them damn well!

P.S.: I'm a Kossack but not a front-pager. I cross-post from my site four or five times a year, creating original material for hummingbirdminds and then sharing it with the larger world.

Why I'm Boycotting The Huffington Post, And I Hope You Will Too

Moveon.org mag looking for new-media savvy interns

Had to pass on this announcement to my fellow Progressive writers/bloggers. Sounds like a great opportunity for some of those energetic young activists I met at Netroots Nation 11. Go for it:

Backpack: paid internship: MoveOn's magazine for the Facebook era is at http://moveonorg.backpackit.com.

MoveOn.org Civic Action is looking for a couple of fiercely intelligent, hard-working, impressively creative, technically savvy interns to help develop its new media project.

Location: Anywhere. We have a virtual office, and collaborate online.
Stipend: $1,000 to 1,500 a month, based on experience, plus health benefits.
Start Date: As soon as possible, no later than July 15, 2011.
End Date: Sept 15, 2011 (but may be extended indefinitely if it works out).
If you’re interested: Please send a cover letter, writing sample, link to something amazing you’ve seen online lately, and resume to editorialintern@moveon.org. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.