Tag Archives: SoHum

SoHumAwareness and spring

Within a few days after this post, with the rains continuing, Humboldt County started slipping and sliding away.

Being a disaster junkie and wanting the latest up to the minute news on whether the road to town was open or not, I spent one Sunday morning, March 27, reading KymKemp.com blog and others, listening to KMUD.org and KHUM.com and checking their websites and twitter feeds, and reading Facebook pages trying to get the most current info.

Frustrated I contacted Kym Kemp, who seemed to have the steadiest flow of current info and asked if she thought a Facebook page where all this info could be compiled in one place was a good idea. She said Yes! And a few hours later I had the SoHum Awareness facebook page created, added both Kym Kemp and Estelle Fennell as admins to keep the content flowing and we were off and running. We had 300 people ‘liking’ the page within 24 hours, and over a 1000 a week later.

No sooner did Briceland Road get a temp repair to one lane, with full photo commentary on that, than the huge slide on Highway 101 happened. The inability to move around our rural area stresses people to the max. Kids at the high school were on one side of the slide and parents on the other..no way for buses to be able to travel the only other road, snowy muddy mountainous ‘local’ roads that unless you live on them, most people have never driven.

This launched the SoHum Awareness facebook page into full throttle, it was 10 days of constant updates and comments on how to get anywhere from here, the conditions of the roads that were available.

And then there was and still is the massive landslide at Dobbyn Creek threatening homes and roads, the landslide in Benbow taking away a persons land, and other slides throughout the county.

We were busy.

And then there were missing persons, accidents, other road closures.

Over the last several weeks I have been pulling the data from SoHum Awareness facebook page and Kym’s blog and other sources into a website that will act as the archive for SoHum Awareness facebook page, as well as a place for those to go who don’t want to go to Facebook for any reason (SoHum Awareness facebook page is a public page anyone can read the content.. you don’t need a facebook account) or don’t want to go to Kym’s blog either, as she has marijuana related articles on there as well as local info.

I have always been ‘into’ disaster preparedness, I look at SoHum Awareness facebook page as the beginning of gathering locals to pay more attention to how fragile our connection with the rest of the world is. We can be cut off in a hurry and for lengths of time. We need more organization around these issues, and I believe this page and website will help further that goal. We are already connected to county roads, CalTrans, Southern Humboldt Technical Response, CalFire, Briceland Volunteer Fire Department, and the list will keep growing. And as always it is the work of the few to benefit the good of the many. I hope to get more locals involved with the different tech systems available to map incidents, to help when things go terribly wrong.

The page is being used daily by local news broadcasters to gather info, (too bad they don’t acknowledge where they pull that info from in their reports).

I hope to have the website for SoHum Awareness facebook page up and live by the end of the month, it all depends on things slowing down so I can catch up to the current news.

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So that is why I haven’t worked on this blog lately or my other websites that I am moving on the WordPress platform.

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Shade House for the salad greens!

And then spring was finally here, which meant for me, getting the lettuce / herbs / salad greens beds happening.. and buying starts for everything. Planning the garden and getting it in. We also got a small greenhouse up (one of those steel pole poly types) to get some starts going and to house the early stuff till the weather in the garden is warm enough.

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And tonight maybe Rapture !

Spring Equinox 2011

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Well where have I been you wonder?

Quick recap of the last 3 months:
Digestive disorders the beginning of the year, quit eating most everything to figure out what was going on.
Heartburn (I guess I never really had that before) that made me realize why people go to the hospital thinking they are having a heart attack. Apple cider vinegar // and or apples // and or tums works for me.

Any way,
I quit coffee with cream and sugar, replaced by green tea with honey.
I quit my 2400mg of Advils a day habit.
I cut way back on sweets & breads.
I added in tons more vegetables (and we eat a lot of them any way) – steamed yams (yummm)
I added in apples every day.
I started using digestive Essential Enzymes, and mostly can eat whatever I want again.
I have to be careful with chicken, overcooked or reheated is a trigger. And it seems garlic 🙂
Oh and I lost 10 pounds so far!

And then the other big change was I quit my hormone patch!
I had 5 weeks of brain power and energy before the hot flashes started again.

During that time I started the reconstruction of another old website of mine into the WordPress format. I am still working on that but almost have it ready to be filled with the content.
Brain power is so important, and sleep.

The hot flashes are effecting my sleep some, but if this is a bad as it gets I think I can tolerate them finally. I would love to get where they are not happening at all. Maybe by 60!???

Weather wise we had beautiful spring time weather most of January and some of February. Then the winds and rain started again almost daily, and snow and hail and some freezing temps.

The latest storm (March 18) brought big redwood trees down in Whittemore Grove which we have to pass through to get to town.

Redwoods down on Briceland Road

Briceland Road down to one lane

(Photos from Jac Hargrave’s Facebook page)
More Photos here at Kym Kemp’s blog
That area of Briceland road is now one lane, with a slide above, and an undermined road to the creek..not good. It is a main artery and busy, and if it goes all the way out will really cause a major disruption in our lives as well as others.

And then more snow:
Kym Kemp’s blog

And I have been busy on the CockburnProject, as the lead in to Bruce’s latest release Small Source of Comfort was happening. Lots of interviews and reviews, and lots of work getting the lyrics and liner notes uploaded.
I also bought tickets for his show June 2 in Napa and his solo show June 26 at Kate Wolf Music Festival in Laytonville. At least I have something to look forward to 🙂

Of course I like many others have been glued to the TV and internet for news surrounding Japans 9.0 quake, tsunami (we had little ones here and bigger ones just north and south of us) and resulting nuclear disaster.
What can I say about this?
We (many of my generation) tried to stop the proliferation of nuclear plants for energy in the 70’s. Some how we failed miserably at that.
Just now solar is gaining a bit in peoples minds, even Japan’s wind power energy plants survived the 3 punch disaster they have had. NO MORE NUCLEAR POWER.
And prayers for the Japanese people.

And this is another huge shout out to Kym Kemp for being the best news source and information hub concerning all here in SoHum, be it roads, radiation, crime, or whatever else is affecting us. She beats out all other blogs and radio stations to keep us informed. Thank you Kym!

So with that, I wish new beginnings for mother earth and peace and power to the people of the planet to make it so.

Happy Spring!

Birthday Bliss

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My birthday was September 11, hard to believe I just turned 58! I really never thought I would get to be this old.

After many years of not much ‘fun’ for birthdays, this year I really wanted to have some out-of-the-ordinary fun..for me at least. Thankfully I felt good and much of my energy had returned after the months long cough issues.

We started the day going out to Ferndale, coastal farming town for the town-wide yard sale. It was a sunny pleasant day and we wandered, didn’t really find any ‘great flea market finds’ but had a nice time looking.

We did stroll into Abraxas, and a pair of leather boots caught my eye. Ok so your thinking, ‘Oh she likes shoes’, well only in that having ones that fit and are comfortable are hard for me to find. I am a hard foot to fit, always have been and I have been looking for years (yes years) for a pair of flat, leather, booties that are comfortable..and ta da!

I wore these shoes a week later to town for an all day shopping errand day, and felt like I was walking on a cloud. I just love them! And it is a big deal to me, as my other booties are 15 years old and worn out, and the only other shoes that I can even wear are SAS, which are really ugly.

Then we had great pancakes at the Main Street Cafe and then headed to Eureka for a few errands. We drove home through the redwoods along the Avenue of the Giants and stopped for awhile in Founders Grove communing with some big trees.

Then it was on to the Briceland Volunteer Fire Department BBQ & Boogie at Beginnings.

This was an event to raise money for our watersheds local fire department, these are the friends and neighbors who will show up at your place if you have a fire, and it’s all volunteer. So many generations of friends and neighbors were there, good music, good food and more than anything boogie-ing with our neighbors. It was really fun.

So all in all that was one of the best birthdays I have had in a long time. And it was also especially nice in that it was the only ‘summer fun’ I had since I felt better from the ‘cough’.

Early Summer

Summer Arts 2009

Well I missed both Summer and Winter Arts fairs in 2008 .. my head space just wasn’t open to much of anything.

Dad’s passing has been a heart drama even though I knew he was going.

This year I mark Summer Arts as the first of many, I hope, revivals of my spirit. It was a warm and (finally) sunny day. So many friends and folks I only see once or twice a year where there. Good connections many.
Especially great to see Joellen who has migrated to Brooklyn, NY for the last years or so.

And so many people I know have lost a parent just recently, friends Sharon, Charlie, and Rob lost their mothers (all with in the past month). And there are more. I guess it is our age, and the ages of our parents, that this is to be. As Charlie said to me, “We are now the old ones..!” I guess I wasn’t really ready to accept that..even though it is true.

I have been back home now since May 21. The first 2 weeks, I was so ‘not grounded here’ at all. It is getting better now. The garden is doing great and I will have some photos soon. Russel only has 2 school classes left until fall, and he leaves for Aikido summer camp next Sunday. I am trying to pull myself ‘out of the funk’ of grief and to enjoy the life we have, but I still wake with lots of anxiety and do wonder why. Also, attempting to ‘reconnect’ and solidify the relationships I have with friends.

When I was in Michigan with Dad and Sue, and all my Dad’s brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, cousins and second cousins, nieces and nephews and friends and neighbors.. it was constant visits … there was hospice and home health care nurses, and people stopping by really one after another all day and evening. There was always someone to do anything Sue needed done.. and there still is.

Family, living close to one another and family being true friends, that is what Dad had there. I have that there as well, but I am here and although I have friends … the ‘net’ doesn’t feel as strong as what I experienced in Michigan. So perhaps that is a bit of my anxiety, the reality of aging, and wondering all of the ‘what ifs?’.

Randy Foster – RIP

Randy Foster caught his last wave Tuesday November 25 at Shelter Cove.

Gone from mystery into mystery
Gone from daylight into night
Another step deeper into darkness
Closer to the light

~ Bruce Cockburn, Closer To The Light

Wave on wave of life
Like the great wide ocean’s roll
Haunting hands of memory
Pluck silver strands of soul
The damage and the dying done
The clarity of light
Gentle bows and glasses raised
To the charity of night

~ Bruce Cockburn, The Charity of Night

His bright light of being will be missed.
Randy and Sarah with their Aikido family at Benbow in 2004.

Randy Foster with Mateel Aikido family -2004

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I love the pounding of hooves
I love engines that roar
I love the wild music of waves on the shore
And the spiral perfection of a hawk when it soars
Love my sweet woman down to the core

There’s roads and there’s roads
And they call, can’t you hear it?
Roads of the earth
And roads of the spirit
The best roads of all
Are the ones that aren’t certain
One of those is where you’ll find me
Till they drop the big curtain

Hear the wind moan
In the bright diamond sky
These mountains are waiting
Brown-green and dry
I’m too old for the term
But I’ll use it anyway
I’ll be a child of the wind
Till the end of my days

Little round planet
In a big universe
Sometimes it looks blessed
Sometimes it looks cursed
Depends on what you look at obviously
But even more it depends on the way that you see

Hear the wind moan
In the bright diamond sky
These mountains are waiting
Brown-green and dry
I’m too old for the term
But I’ll use it anyway
I’ll be a child of the wind
Till the end of my days

~ Bruce Cockburn, Child of the Wind

Full Moon May

The garden is mostly in. The poppys are popping.. the sage is blooming and the wild lilac. We have had a dry spring with mild temps until the last several days of HIGH HEAT (100’s). Watching the clover yard dry up. The deer coming around less as there is less to eat. Haven’t seen the bambies yet, although we had a pregnant doe here for weeks.

Russel’s Aikido teacher from the bay area is here this weekend for a retreat. The potluck was last night and good food was had by all.
He is wrapping up the schools classes. In 3 weeks he will go to Aikido summer camp in the south bay for a week. I hope to have a lot of energy and maybe some money to do some interior work on this house.

The Michigan trip is booked for June 25 -July 11. Dad does have even more cancer. The melanoma keeps spreading, there are spots on his lungs which nothing can be done about, and a lump in his neck that is some kind of squamous, but not skin cancer kind. There is at least one more surgery ahead, if he chooses to do it. Probably just before we get there.

I have started to speak it out loud, that he may die soon… or not .. as he is a tough old guy (86) going on 60. But I need to prepare myself. This one will be hard to let go of.

My friends T and Ter from Florida are actually saying they may come visit this way this summer. I am so hoping that they do. I need them too. I need to see T… just feels like it must happen.

Not a lot of photos to brag about. Haven’t been using my camera much. Got this one in april through the hazy kitchen window:

I have been working a lot.

And Bruce Cockburn, www.cockburnproject.net is out on a short tour which is being recorded and filmed for a new LIVE-Solo CD and DVD. Wish he was doing some shows on the west coast for this, but he’s not.

There is also a lot going on locally. Too much to really go into here, but here is a link to a local blog who keeps everyone informed at least to what is going on with code enforcement, diesel concerns, 2nd district elections and Reggae wars, to name a few. I use it only as a means to being alerted and seeing what some (few) people are thinking about these issues. I do not generally agree with a lot that is posted over there as opinion.

Solstice Thoughts

Last Sunday, Russel and I were both together in town, we decided to grab lunch at Flavors, while waiting in line, a woman who I have a ‘town’ relationship with came up behind us in line. I was delighted to see her, as we only have ever spent time talking in town, waiting in line or standing in the PO parking lot.. but we are connected at some deep emotional level. I really love this woman, and we both think it is time to actually move the relationship forward to maybe at least emails? phone calls?

I know how weird this must sound, but living in the wilderness as so many of us do here, town is where we meet up. And often ‘getting together’ is in town as well, as getting to each others homes could be a 2+ hour drive on some knarly roads.

And while this was taking place, 3 other very good friends who I haven’t seen in awhile got in line, and then another… it was serendipity for sure. Being there at that exact moment, unplanned, and getting all this wonderful woman energy.

As did getting all the baby energy from friends with babies over the Thanksgiving weekend. After most of a year with none, I saw and connected with 3 different wonderful baby people. This is the best heart chakra medicine of all.

Fall has moved into Winter.. with Solstice in a few days and the beginning of the return of light. This I welcome as it will lighten my spirit.

As the calendar years draws to a close, I usually tend to think of the things I wanted to do and didn’t or places I wanted to go but didn’t.

This year I am determined to focus on the wonderful life we have, living in a place as beautiful as we do. Having our health and being
more and more self-reliant all the time. I do want to draw my family and friends closer, to make the time to connect.

Carolyn’s passing has taught me that first hand…it’s the people in our lives that make it worth living. And I want more people in my life.

“…another step deeper into darkness, closer to the light” – bruce cockburn

HAPPY SOLSTICE 🙂

Carolyn passed on today

My friend Carolyn passed today.

After 6 hard, harder, and hardest months. I was ‘caregiving’ the last few months. I was also there with her yesterday and got to love her and hold her for a few minutes.

Happy Trails Carolyn.. see you on the other side.

I am happy she has passed and yet so very sad that she has gone.

On My Beat

Living in the hills of southern Humboldt