I preformed this piece, which I spent hours researching and writing, for my writers group last week, and was actually filled with a new kind of fear while I read...I had this abstract feeling of impending destruction, perhaps on the line of Guillermo Vargas' destruction for creating the gallery installation he created. I'm realizing quite poignantly that one must be quite brave when one sees things in a different way then the herd, and yet one is an artist, so must self-express.

I followed the piece with Lawrence Ferlinghetti's "Dog,” --a poem I highly recommend you google and read, as it captures the spirit of the free roaming dog of the U.S. 1950s, as well as provides a great metaphor of the human spirit:)

I keep hearing the argument that we environmentalists are blocking the construction of oil refineries, which is a big reason why gas prices are so high. I found this hard to believe, so did some research. I found a lot of information, but this site puts the key facts nice and concisely. Please at least read the excerpt so we can all gage more realistically where we stand.

Thanx,

Nance

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/06/06/no_new_refineries.php

excerpt from the above link:

...the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association conceded at a May 23 Senate hearing on price gouging that gasoline supplies were temporarily tight. But the oil industry lobby went on to note that:

I keep hearing and reading anger vented against the environmentalists and the liberals for not allowing drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge...and that drilling is the solution to our suffering at the gas-pumps. I didn't know enough about it, so I did a little research.

I found that if we sucked all the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge oil into barrels, the amount would only last the United States 10 to 12 months (at 2007 rate of consumption), if we stopped importing oil.

I've enclosed some links to interesting data, because I really liked learning about this stuff and think you will too (if you haven't read up on it yet).

my "Spontaneous Prose" response to a friend, and anyone else at large...

just received this sweet work of writing, about art. It's from my stepdaughter, Marianne, whom I raised as my own. She's 24 and off, living in Chicago now. I've felt these feelings and I know many of you have too, so I want to share it with you. Comments welcomed.

for those of you who wanted to read the poems etc, that I perfomed last month at W13, here they are in reverse order of the performance:

The wikipedia on Stages of Courtly Love
• Attraction to the lady, usually via eyes/glance
• Worship of the lady from afar
• Declaration of passionate devotion
• Virtuous rejection by the lady
• Renewed wooing with oaths of virtue and eternal fealty
• Moans of approaching death from unsatisfied desire (and other physical manifestations of lovesickness)
• Heroic deeds of valor which win the lady's heart
• Consummation of the secret love
• Endless adventures and subterfuges avoiding detection
= the inspiration for this poem:

The Lovers Ritual
By Nance Broderzen ©2008

Terrorism is the "weapon of the weakest." As long there are strong and there are weak, there will be terrorism. We can kill their master-minds, but new ones will take their place. Mirror, mirror...we can not make them be like us, just like they can't make us be like them. We think we are obviously right. They think they are obviously right. Their own oppressed have to rise up against their oppressive ideologies, just like the settlers rose up against Britain, and then the Yankees rose up against the South, and then the Civil rights leaders rose up and got the black vote, then, finally, women fought for and got the vote and some equal rights, here. (more)

I got three paintings in the above named group-show at W13 Gallery, in Downtown LA! There's a courtly love theme, for the Valentine Season. They chose the work off my website, and one, "Blooming Roses," I had promised to my favorite collector so a little drama ensued. But it turned out to be cosmic, because I contacted the collector to see what she thought, and found she had just gotten out of the hospital, after surgery, so I could give her my love and be there for her! She lovingly said “by all means, put the painting

I've been questioning the DIVINE IS LIGHT--EVIL IS DARK concept lately. It keeps coming up, and has always felt untrue, because humans born blind don't know what light is.

I love the metaphor of "leaving the darkness and moving into the light," because it's so easy to SEE...but come on, kids...it IS simply a metaphor for AWARENESS.

I found myself at a Ra meeting (somewhat against my will/thought it was a yoga fest:) recently, where they described "God" as a speck of light in the darkness, and everyone seemed really happy and enthusiastic about that. Yet if "God" is "all that is," "the Universe," "Tao" and the Universe is mostly darkness, then "God" is mainly darkness, no? The LITERAL translation does not hold up.