To get the most out of this blog, please click on many of the images, underlined words, etc. for links to more information, interviews, music, etc.
As Mr. Rogers’ mother would say, “Look for the helpers.” In honor of 9/11 and courtesy of my friend Eileen who shared this story with me.
three things we love
Kiss the Ground Documentary
photo courtesy of istockphoto.com
If there is one thing I might recommend right now, it's a 2020 documentary that has now made it to Netflix called "KISS THE GROUND. We are so distracted by so many things these days that we have a hard time differentiating between the big problems and the small ones. And if you are anything like me, you are just plain overwhelmed with so many scary issues afflicting our nation and the planet--I feel paralyzed. But the message of this film Kiss the Ground is an optimistic one, and just for that it is worth watching. The film begins by examining how tilling and the use of pesticides have led to soil erosion, and then traces the damage done to our ecology, health and climate as a result. It argues for regenerative farming and the healing power of soil through its ability to sequester carbon, explaining some very complicated climate change details in understandable ways for the general public to understand. I for one walked away with a much better understanding of the issues at hand.
Kiss the Ground provides a thread of hope and somewhat of a roadmap to at least a partial way out of our march towards extintion...Highly recommend watching it.
Haiku
Writing poetry always seemed like a daunting task but I do remember really enjoying trying to come up with great Haiku in my younger days…Seemingly simple, this Japanese form of poetry is based on just seventeen syllables--a line structure of 5/7/5, but is anything but easy. More modern English versions can be found and are a perfect example of postmodern minimalism, although the literary world barely pays attention. Here are a few classic and contemporary haiku I came across that I thought were beautiful. Always fun to try and come up with your own as an exercise in creativity.
by Katsushika Hokusai:
I write, erase, rewrite
Erase again, and then
A poppy blooms.
And probably the most famous haiku of all time
by Matuso Basho:
An old silent pond!
A frog jumps in—
Splash! silence again.
by Yosa Buson:
A summer river being crossed
how pleasing
with sandals in my hands!
by Richard Wright:
From across the lake,
Past the black winter trees,
Faint sounds of a flute.
Theranos
I have always had a fascination with white collar crime--don't ask me why--and the Theranos story is a very juicy one! It has all the ingredients of a very engrossing thriller. It involves a young Stanford dropout, Elizabeth Holmes, who became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire, her start-up health care company Theranos (that proclaimed to revolutionize the blood testing industry without ever panning out), very high profile investors including some of the biggest politicians and military men in America (Henry Kissinger, Rupert Murdoch, George Shultz, Larry Ellison, General Mattis to name just a few), her very wealthy dot.com boyfriend/investor at the time, Sonny Balwani, and partnerships with some of the biggest companies in the U.S (Walgreen's for one). Founder Elizabeth Holmes is on trial right now for defrauding investors, patients and doctors and could be jailed up to 20 years if convicted.
The whole Theramos empire story began to crumble with the excellent investigative reporting of John Carreyrou, who smelled a rat very early on and began reporting on it back in 2015 for the Wall Street Journal. The trial is not being televised but there are numerous ways to follow the story and court case. Carreyrou's 2018 book on the subject (with updates), Bad Blood, is on the list of One of the Best Books of the Year (2018) by NPR, Fortune, Bloomberg and Science Friday to mention a few and his podcast Bad Blood: The Final Chapter is following the trial currently. ABC News has a very good podcast too entitled The Dropout, hosted by Rebecca Jarvis. And if you want more, there is an HBO documentary available entitled The Inventor.
I hope you find this story as interesting as I do.
painting of the week
Gert Mathiesen, Woman with Flowers on Head, original is mixed media on rice paper (also available as giclee print). Call for more information.
artSHOP: tree of life series
Donate to Help Families in Afghanistan
Another Self Portrait going grey in the time of Covid…
About The Author
New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow created the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by the Hammond Museum's Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.