The Jottings of Jessie Lorenz

Angeles Arrien essay: The Fourfold Way

Through the resource of power we are able to choose to be present. Through the resource of love we are able to pay attention to what has heart and meaning. Through the resource of vision we are able to give voice to what we see. Through the resource of wisdom we are able to be open, not attached to, outcomes.

The world is about to change and I can feel it.

Every time I hear Obama's voice I think to myself, "This man will soon lead the free world! Anything is possible."

That said, I am struck by the dialogue on race that is taking place all around me.

On New Years Eve an unarmed man named Oscar Grand was shot by BART police.

Standers-by captured the event on their cell phones. The video can be seen on Youtube or at AOL video.

On January 1 I moved to Oakland. I love my building and my neighbors and I don't feel that I live in an unsafe place.

On January 6 I experienced riots that took place as a result of this shooting. Protesters shut down two BART stations and did a considerable amount of damage to down town Oakland. They were appalled with inaction of the BART Board of directors and the local district attorney's office.

Cars were burned, helicopters were everywhere and most voices on the street sounded outraged.

I went outside that evening to walk my dog and my neighbor and I both ran back inside- our eyes were burning either with smoke or tear gas- I could not smell either, but whatever was out there was pretty awful on the eyes. All told there was about $150,000 worth of damage done that evening. Most all of the downtown restaurants closed that evening. I was sad to learn that my favorite coffee shop had its windows broken.

Oakland was in lock down the next day- helicopters continued to circle above and the police force in and around the BART stations was visible even to me- someone without sight.

On Wednesday January 14 another protest was scheduled based on whether or not the District Attorney decided to press charges against the officer.

This time I experienced a different Oakland from the week before.

This Oakland was filled with people talking... I saw a preacher and a group of young men talking about the city's contracting award procedures. Another group was talking about the police shooting Oscar because he is black. Still another group of people I passed on the street were talking about president Obama and whether or not he will re-vitalize down town Oakland.

So as I prepare to listen to the voices around me in Oakland tomorrow, on this historic day, I remember the words of St. Augustine, "Hope has two beautiful daughters. Their names are anger and courage; anger at the way things are, and courage to see that they do not remain the way they are."
God Bless America.
YouTube - OSCAR GRAND

Please forward this as much as possible. The time is short, but we
want as many
people to listen to this as we can get who otherwise could not take advantage
of the audio description.

To hear the audio described inauguration on ABC for January 20, go to
http://www.acbradio.org, click the World link, and then click the appropriate
Listen link for your personal setup.

4 miles before 9a.m. + an afternoon at the beach = A Great Sunday!
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"Live your daily life in a way that you never lose yourself. When you are carried away with your worries, fears, cravings, anger, and desire, you run away from yourself and you lose yourself. The practice is always to go back to oneself." Thich Nhat Hanh

Sagittarius : AstrologyZone's January Horoscope : Astrology Zone

Sometimes it is just fun to read these. :)

David Allen's first book, "Getting Things Done," (GTD) has helped me to create systems to stay organized. I use Allen's 43 folder system www.43folders.com and keep a project and next action list that I review each day. The most importent thing I learned from the GTD book is to look at projects in terms of the next action. What is the next action I can take to move this project forward? Often times this is a lot less daunting than thinking of the entire project. I am currently reading David's new book, "Ready for Anything," and I am already learning new concepts about productivity, but I don't feel ready to write about them just yet...
Omar Gallaga, who covers technology culture for the Austin American-Statesman, says the fundamental tenet of GTD is to "get things out of your head and into a trusted system."

"The whole philosophy behind it is if you clear these things out of your head that are constantly rolling around in there and cluttering things up, that you will have what David Allen calls a mind like water — everything will calm down and you will have time to think about deeper things and find deeper connections within your life,"