Dream for President Bush

Dream for President Bush (excerpt) by Colleen Redman

I want President Bush to have a dream
like the one that Ebenezer Scrooge had
I want him to be visited by the ghosts of Iraqi children
who cry out, “But mankind was your business.”…

I want President Bush to be haunted
by the ghosts of our Founding Fathers
until he learns this lesson:
that killing civilians is a terrorist act
and pre-emptive strike is invasion…

If President Bush doesn’t have a real dream soon
he should step aside for those who do
He should impeach himself
and ask for forgiveness
for imposing his nightmare on the world…

(I found this on crooksandliars, title link) I want to make clear that while I fundamentally disagree with the international policies (domestic as well) of the current administration, I do support the troops (I spent 8 years as one). Most military people I've had contact with do their jobs with integrity and the best of intentions. We do need a strong and capable military, I only wish that their mission were very different. How about focusing on intervening in genocides, protecting aid shipments, and disaster relief.

I've been crazy busy this week.

Hey kids,

I've been really busy this week and sleeping very little (all good except for falling off of a welding table today) so I've been neglecting contact and replies with my readers for a few days. So I want apologize to both of you here and now [sorry ;)]. Mushtaq left me a fun voicemail berating me for this, so blame him for today's activities here.

I'm curious about people's thoughts on income generation without having to spend all your waking hours during the week preparing for work, working, and recovering from work. I've been reading The 4 Hour Work-week by Timothy Ferriss. It is both brilliant and hilarious. Michelle Drew recommended this book (thanks Michelle). She is also both brilliant and hilarious. Timothy Ferriss is a maniac. He also happens to have an incredibly flexible lifestyle, which he gives the blueprint for in his book.

Perhaps the ridiculous number of work hours for this project has gotten me thinking again about uncoupling my time from my income. I don't want to set up a sketchy pawn shop, loan sharking operation (3% skim today to cash my payroll check issued by a bank), or internet casino. I'm looking to research legitimate streams of income to support me while doing research and activist work. Maybe I need a book or movie project. Anyone silly enough to consider collaborating should let me know. I'll be here (Cincinnati, Ohio) for a while yet, but a lot of preliminary work could be done via the internet. There are apparently myriad legit ways to generate passive income through e-commerce and I would love input on this possibility as well.

The fact of the matter is that all of the things that I want to do to get off of the treadmill, presently have me running faster to generate income with which to buy my freedom. It's a little too ironic. (OMG it must be a kleptocrat conspiracy or maybe a terrorist plot to keep us distracted and vulnerable)

I'm obviously delirious from sleep deprivation so I'm going to stop typing for now and get some dinner.

Buddha

What Would Jesus Buy Trailer

This man is totally nuts! In a very amusing (and moderately obnoxious) way, he brings into question what most people equate with Christmas: intense consumerism. He (Reverend Billy of the Church of Stop Shopping) was arrested at Disneyland on Christmas Day while filming this movie. My feeling is that kids would be better off if their families saved $$$ and spent time with them. Just a thought...(allow time for youtube to load 2 minute video)

Permaculture 101

High production values and good explanation, 3 minutes.

Houses of straw - the rediscovery of strawbale building

The end of this clip shows some beautiful examples of what's possible with strawbale construction. Some in German with English interpretor.

I'm refining my thoughts on what constitutes a home.

Hello all,

Much of the time in the weeks leading up to the move to Ohio I was living at Innovative Martial Arts with Chuck, Jeanne, and Mushtaq (and various folks passing through). After both Jamilah and then Adam & Cassie moved out in the last year or so the house started feeling more like a storage facility than a home. While the house had been crowded it was always dynamic and usually fun to hang out in. I found out that living alone is rather quiet and not nearly as interesting (I did get a lot more reading done though). So I very stealthily moved back into the dojo household (ninja). With that I've realized that for me home is at least as much about the people as it is about the built environment. With this in mind I am beginning to seriously look at various housing solutions that will be very multi-purpose in nature.

Some of the criteria I will be using are as follows: The home must be sustainable, affordable (or owner built), healthy, beautiful, elegantly simple to build and operate, site appropriate, adaptable, and fun.

An additional consideration is local land use/zoning ordinances. Many places have totally counter-intuitive laws based either on ignorance (easily remedied) or corruption. It should be mandatory that new housing use rainwater catchments, composting toilets, passive solar design, etc. as a primary option and the "conventional" means as a last resort. If tax subsidies were changed to reflect the true environmental and societal costs, this would be an absolute no-brainer.

I am exploring flexible/convertible options that will evolve with the changing needs of a "family" as well as looking into ways to integrate several households into a community with many shared resources, including food producing land and a common building (or several). Eco-village at Ithaca has two neighborhoods which share a pond and a farm. Each neighborhood has a common building including guest housing, commercial grade kitchen, large dining area, library, daycare facility, and laundry as well as rentable office spaces. This idea could be morphed a number of ways into various workshops and studios. The community could create a thriving cottage industry and market. The limiting factors would be the imaginations and financial resources of the community members.

Many styles of housing fit this profile and I will be putting examples up on this blog and I recommend checking out some books on the topic. Some keywords: straw-bale, earthship, cob house, cordwood housing, log homes, green housing, solar house, rammed earth, rastra block, off-grid, permaculture , and sustainable housing. I also recommend looking into intentional communities and eco-villages. I have become very interested in what the Japanese architects and also shipbuilders have been doing with efficient and comfortable use of space.

Buddha

Earthships 101 part II

This picks up right where Earthships 101 part 1 left off. Be sure to watch them in order. You may need to allow time to load.

Earthships 101 part I

This is absolutely brilliant and very encouraging. I will be following up with more of their videos. Please check this out if you have any interest in sustainable, off-grid optional, comfortable living.

Ecovillage and Permaculture Certification at Lost Valley

There is homework & there will be an exam.

Hello family,

I've been thinking a lot about what I want to see for us all as we move forward. With this, I have been trying to determine what to do with all of the research I've done over the past decade or so. What I've come up with is this: You poor souls are going to be subjected (voluntarily and over time) to what may (hopefully) prove to be a mind-bending and reality-altering highlight reel. You are of course free to return both your seat back and flight attendant to their proper upright position and leave through one of the emergency exits (I hope you packed a 'chute).

At the risk of sounding crazy (crazier?) I will begin with some basic concepts and a few quotes.

The first point is that we can be infinitely more effective and have a much better experience of life through cooperation, rather than competition. "I not only use all the brains that I have, but all that I can borrow." (Woodrow Wilson)

Cooperative endeavors can be beneficial in ways most people never even contemplate, but examples abound throughout the world. Some easily grasped examples are carpools (which reduce greenhouse gases as well as dependence on mid-east oil), credit unions, buying clubs, business networking groups, work bees, and volunteer organizations. Less obvious, but equally compelling are ecovillages, discussion groups, non-governmental organizations, community supported agriculture, farmer's markets, neighborhood gardens, tool lending libraries, local business and economic development groups, childcare exchange networks among friends, etc. "Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination." (Oscar Wilde)

We must change our actions to change our circumstances. In order to change our actions we must change our thoughts. To change our thoughts we must first stop repeating negative and time-wasting patterns, then fill that time with exploration (and pursuit) of better possibilities. "If we simply continue doing what we've been doing we will continue to get the same results we've been getting" (unknown). As Benjamin Disraeli said "Action may not bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action."

If we are not happy (and I mean deliriously happy) most of the time, we have as I see it two options. We can fit in and lower our expectations or we can raise our standards and work to create a more meaningful life. I personally am a trapezium peg and will never fit in the round hole of mainstream (asleep at the wheel) society. "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man." (George Bernard Shaw)

My experience has been that life is far simpler and much richer with less energy devoted to "stuff" and more focus on relationships and experiences. I am trying to pare down my stuff now, as I realize what a huge (ridiculous) burden it has become. In addition to being a burden the standard western model is horribly inefficient and tends to isolate us. I will illustrate the point by giving an oversimplification of the concept of trading life energy for cash; Every dollar (pick your monetary unit) we spend equates to x # of minutes (depending on your income per unit of time) of our lives traded away for what that dollar purchases. I personally have wasted huge amounts of my life on some rather silly things (education in any form is often expensive) while oblivious to this concept. Does every house in the neighborhood really need their own lawnmower, etc.? In addition to the wasted energy (time) there is an environmental cost associated with the production, shipping, and disposal of all of these widgets, some of which perpetuate unjust labor practices. Removing commercial media and advertising from my daily life has been one of the best decisions I have made. I pose this question for contemplation; "What is truly necessary to be fulfilled?". I can't find the quote so I will paraphrase Vicki Robin "What you do with your money determines what exists in the world".

I am going to develop a short (I'll try to keep it short) recommended reading and video list soon, which I will post as a feature on this site.

Welding in Cincinnati

I passed my welding test today, but with sleep deprivation and no food yesterday or yet today I wasn't certain how it would go. I begin work tomorrow morning at 6 a.m. Due to security measures around this project I will not be posting any photos of my work here. I don't know the hours per week for sure or the length of the project yet. Apparently these numbers and dates continually fluctuate, so I won't put much stock in the rumors until after something has already happened. If it looks secure enough I plan to get into an apartment and out of the hotel. Semper Gumby! (always flexible)

It is ridiculously hot work, so if anyone has nomex gloves and balaclava that they aren't using please let me know. (rollerblading style, hard knee and elbow pads as well) This is definitely going to be an adventure.

I'm seriously hungry, so that's it for now. I'm going to get some food, then perhaps a short nap. This photo is from Thanksgiving.

Ray Anderson on Sustainability

This man is walking the talk with his business. Worth a look.

Another successful crash landing.

Hey kids,

I'm in Cincinnati and I am scheduled to take a welding test tomorrow. I will be working on military field equipment and that's all I feel free to say about it at this time. This is a strange project for me, given my support of the troops, but absolute revulsion at the current administration's policies and actions, both at home and abroad. I was somewhat underwhelmed at first, but have connected with a sharp guy who's definitely more experienced than I am. He has been reasonably happy working here so far. He got here in September when they wanted me to start originally.

The weather here is much warmer and more clear than Michigan. I hope to come home for Christmas break or get the "Crumbgobblers" down here.

That's it for now,
Buddha

Introducing some of the Tribe

Today I'm going to begin introducing some members of my tribe. I will begin with my kids a.k.a. 'The Crumbgobblers'. On the left is my 10 year old son Takeo (tuh-kay-o) and to his right is Akayla my 7 year old daughter. They are mind-blowingly fun to hang out with. We enjoy camping at music festivals, going to the Meijer Botanical and Sculpture Gardens, various art and musical events downtown, traveling, board games, playgrounds, beaches, bike rides, being with 'extended family', and too many other activities to list. They are amazing! This is what it's all about.



Now we have come to 2 guys who are like brothers to me. Craig Gray (Ronin Martial Arts) is the menacing character to the far left. The refined gentleman on the right is Don Young (Innovative Martial Arts). Both of them are phenomenal instructors and really quality guys.
Behind me and with staff below is Jason McMillen (school name unknown at present) I have worked out with him a few times now and he consistently impresses me. Jason has a solid background in the military as well as civilian law enforcement/corrections. The guy that I'm rolling with is Aaron. He's a karate sensei from Lowell, Michigan. Aaron is quite good on his feet and a very nice guy. 4 highly competent and very humble men. This kitchen photo was taken at the most recent Gathering of the Tribes. Innovative Martial Arts hosts this crazy event twice a year and we get folks from far and wide. It is the only martial arts gathering of it's kind that I'm aware of. The host family (Chuck and Jeanne) puts everyone up for the long weekend and they feed us. I love these people! The first time I came for one I was invited by a buddy and didn't know anyone else (I ended up staying for weeks and am living here as I type this). The level of instruction is world -class and very practical (we are blessed by the presence of some legitimate masters), but it's the ego-free community spirit that sets it apart for me. Anyone can fight, that's nothing special. The positive energy and genuine concern for each other is what's truly special. Getting this large and eclectic (I'm being gentle here) group to settle down and train together is no small feat. Getting them to settle down and eat together however is almost impossible to prevent. Every Gathering of the Tribes has had great potlucks with spouses and kids hanging out for hours. The after hours exchanges are always the highlight for me. It truly feels like a family.

Just getting started.

I Buddha, am setting myself up (with assistance and an outdated long-haired photo) with a blog for my birthday. I am turning 32 as I type this post. Almost midnight now. This has been a long time coming, as I've had many friends try to convince me that I needed to start a blog. (Probably so that I would have an outlet and stop trying to save the world through them.)
The name TribalBuddha is a result of my strong desire to live in community with friends and family coupled with my interest in philosophy, self-awareness, and martial arts. I picked up the name Buddha over a dozen years ago while serving on active duty in the military. It evolved from Grasshopper to Cain (Kung-fu series) and then they settled on Buddha and it has followed me since. The name Buddha means the enlightened one. I make no such claim for myself, instead preferring to simply state that "I am awake".
This Monday I will be moving south for the winter for a short-term contract. Leaving my kids a.k.a. "The Crumbgobblers" behind feels incredibly strange as I fought like mad to maintain custody and have had them 1/2 time since the separation and subsequent divorce 6 years ago. Fortunately my ex-wife and I are friendly and this does not alter my legal standing. We will resume our standard arrangement on my return.
I don't yet have a clear direction that I want to take this site in. My best guess is that it will be as hard to pigeonhole as I have been. My hope is to use this as a vehicle to promote the vision I have of the world that is possible and the people and institutions (which interestingly enough are run by people) who are crazy enough to be traveling the same path. To those people I say "I love you all" (you know who you are). That said I do need to warn you that I am prone to rather intense 'save the planet' ramblings. Rest assured that my heart is in the right place, so if I offend you or post something that is incorrect or outdated (other than photos), by all means let me know. I hope that this will be more of an evolving discussion where we can all benefit, rather than just a madman's mountaintop monologue screamed into the wind. It's definitely gonna take a tribe to wrangle my stampeding herd of thoughts on sustainability, community, and myriad other topics. My thanks and /or apologies are offered up front.