mermaidcamp

mermaidcamp

Keeping current in wellness, in and out of the water

You can scroll the shelf using ← and → keys

I was born in 1951 when this map had very little activity.  We had drills in my elementary school for bomb preparedness.  My parents voted Republican, and strongly opposed JFK.  I remember the cold war well as a formative part of my thinking.  My parents, and later the national government, seemed either unaware or unethical to me.  In my family history there are knights and military heroes. In modern times my uncles fought in WWII, but my father was nearly blind, so he did not serve.  I believe the atom bomb has changed the potential for corruption, destruction, and total Armageddon.  What was settled with swords in the middle ages is now settled by dangerous committee.  Human nature has not changed all that much, but the swiftness and anonymity with which all creation can now be destroyed is daunting.

Nuclear Age

November 16, 2013 — 3 Comments

Wampanoag Thanksgiving

November 15, 2013 — 9 Comments

Since last November I have visited my ancestral homeland at Plimouth Colony in Massachusetts.  The museum and displays helped me to more vividly picture what those Pilgrims were doing in the 1600s.  I have many ancestors who arrived on the Mayflower, and I am not overly impressed with that fact. I am, however, truly grateful to learn that I am Wampanoag.  I study history by learning about my family tree.  Thanksgiving, as taught in elementary school, has very little to do with the real events that took place at the time.  There was a feast and celebration, and there was a great deal of unease about these English people who built a fort around their town and put cannons on the second story of their church.  These Pilgrims, who are depicted to children as seeking religious freedom, only believed in religious freedom for themselves.  They had been repressed in Holland for their beliefs and wanted a place where their somewhat radical thinking would not clash with any royal Euros.  They did not propose to extend religious freedom and tolerance to the native people they encountered in America.  They proposed to convert them to Christianity, their own style of Christianity.

Thomas Dudley

Thomas Dudley

Harvard was endowed and sustained in business by conversion of native people.  The Indian College was used to educate and convert natives.  If they had not come up with donations based on this premise, Harvard may never have become the institution it is today.  My tenth great grandfather Thomas Dudley signed the charter for Harvard because he was the colonial governor when it opened.  His daughter and my 9th great grandmother, Anne Bradstreet, was a poet and wife of Simon Bradstreet, also a colonial governor.

Harvard College Charter

Harvard College Charter

I am not as proud of them as I am of Quadequina.  I have taken sides in the Thanksgiving story.  I think the Pilgrims were rude to say the least.  We build it up as a story about peace and religion, but it was a story of imperialism.  When I learned that all the historic wampum belts have gone to England to be kept in museums I became angry.  A very cool Wampanoag elder who worked at Plimouth gave me some very wise advise about that.  She told me there was no point in being angry about the past.  She is obviously correct, but my feelings have changed about history, Massachusetts Colony and all that it meant, and the fable of Thanksgiving.  There is more bitterness that the peach pie reveals.  It makes me wonder exactly how my tribe feels when they celebrate this holiday.  It looks like the tribe may open a casino on Martha’s Vineyard.  It is fair to give them access to the wealth and the weakness of the white people on that island.  There is plenty for everyone.  Turn about is fair play, even if it comes hundreds of years later.

Ending the Book Diet

November 13, 2013 — 3 Comments

Bar Book

Bar Book

bar food

bar food

bar

bar

festive friend

festive friend

I have restricted my reading of books for the last year to three, Sacred Contracts by Carolyn Myss, How to Think Like Leonardo DaVinci by Michael Gelb, and Impact Equation by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith.  This experiment was proposed by Brother Brogan about the time that he published Impact Equation.  I went for the idea because I have always read voraciously but applied the information with much less vigor.  I also have enrolled in a course to study the Sacred Contracts material which I find fascinating and endlessly useful.  I read constantly this year, and did not really read the three books much at all after the first three or four months.  By then all the other participants including Brother Brogan had all quit the program.  I stuck it out because it served me.  I found out there is such a thing as reading too many books. There is more to life than reading.

I have put more practical application and reflection into what I have read this year.  I do not hurry or skip through anything that I read now, which is new. I have been a speed reader for 40 years, having studied at the public library where I went for lessons by Dick Cavett on video.  Life is change.  If I have spent all this untold time reading it seems I should be able to write.  I should also be able to read contemplatively, a skill I have yet to acquire.  As I allow myself to buy and read books once more I have a new perspective.  I have discovered the U of A Poetry Center and my ancestor poet in it.  I have been to a few poetry readings during this diet, which I liken to being driven by a chauffeur.  The experience of a poetry reading includes everything about the ambiance and company.  I plan to return to the Poetry Center for both the readings and to read in that amazing ambiance.  I also plan to write poetry as a meditative practice.  Most of all I plan to be strategic and particular about all my reading from now on.  I think if there is a librarian at the pearly gates we will be asked to do book reports to show comprehension, not prove that we have been on a life long book binge.

Rather than yo-yo dieting, allowing myself to totally pig out at the library right out of the gate, I have purchased three practical and useful books beyond the poetry books I will read will super mindfulness.  My recent purchase, The American Bar by Charles Shumann, is a huge hit, although I have not finished reading it.  It was center stage last night when I created a signature cocktail for one of my guests.  Now that I have a fresh start I do not plan to read every book in the library before I mix my first cocktail.  Reading how-to books without doing any of the things about which one reads is probably pointless.  I think the remedy was well timed and perfect for me.  My name is Pamela Morse and I am a book-a holic.  As a recovering reading addict I will allow myself to go to libraries, but no used book stores for now.  I need to know that I can stay in control.  So far, so good.

Obstruction of Justice

November 12, 2013 — 5 Comments

Justice

Justice

What is obstruction of justice, exactly? Many of us feel that somehow our relationship with the government is unjust. We think our tax dollars are spent without enough consideration. We feel cheated.  We feel mislead.  The formal definition of obstruction of justice is complex and complicated.  Federal law defines perjury as obstruction thusly:

I. Whoever

II. a. under oath or b. in any

i. declaration,
ii. certificate,
iii. verification, or iv. statement

under penalty of perjury as permitted under Section 1746 of title 28, United States Code376 III. in any proceeding before or ancillary to

a. any court or
b. grand jury of the United States

IV. knowingly

V. a. makes any false material declaration or
b. makes or uses any other information, including any

i. book,
ii. paper,
iii. document,
iv. record,
v. recording, or vi. other material,

knowing the same to contain any false material declaration,
shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.377

So if you lie to the Feds about Federal law you will be in trouble with the court.  Richard Nixon was brought down for his mendacity.  He made an effort to mislead the judicial system.  If you were alive for Watergate his is probably the face of political hanky panky at it’s most absurd.  Since Nixon, however, we are not feeling that our democratic tax dollars are used fairly.  We see our elected officials blatantly serving the lobbyists who support them.  We see the giant and growing discrepancies between the most wealthy and the poverty-stricken.  We are watching as liberty and justice for all vanishes from the United States of America.  A sliding scale for prosecution of crime fills the jails and penitentiaries with people of color while the banker robbers of the world are still mostly loose on the town.  There is now a sense that the government spies on the citizens, lies to the citizens, and often fails to serve the interests of the citizens.  The fourth branch of government is now lobbyists.  We never see their faces, but we know they are out to lunch with our elected officials and we are not.  In  our guts we know this is unfair.

William Gifford, 9th Great Grandfather

November 12, 2013 — 1 Comment

Gifford Genealogy

Gifford Genealogy

My 9th great grandfather was born in England and died in Sandwich, MA.  He was a Quaker who was persecuted for his faith. He refused to sign the oath of fidelity to England, so he hd a hard time with the colonial authorities.

William Gifford (1615 – 1687)

is my 9th great grandfather
son of William Gifford
son of John Gifford
daughter of Yelverton Gifford
daughter of Ann Gifford
son of Frances Congdon
son of Thomas Sweet
daughter of Valentine Sweet
son of Sarah LaVina Sweet
son of Jason A Morse
son of Ernest Abner Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse
William Gifford arrived in New England after 1643, as he does not appear among those able to bear arms in that year. The first record of him is in the list of debts due on the inventory of Joseph Holiway of Sandwich dated 4 December 1647: “dew from Willi Gifford” 3s. 4d. On 4 June 1650 he served on the Grand Enquest. The original deed for the Sandwich plantation was executed by Governor William Bradford 22 May 1651. It ordered that Goodman (Thomas) Tupper, Goodman (Thomas) Burges, Sr., Nathaniel Willis, and William Gifford have the power to call a town meeting.Both Brown, and Daniels & McLean say that by 1651 he was married and had a family; that he probably married in England, and children John, Patience and Hannaniah were probably born in England. Birth records are available for only the last four of his nine children; the birth dates of the older children are estimated based upon the birth dates of their first children. There is a sizeable gap in these estimated dates between Hannaniah and William, suggesting William, Robert, Christopher and Mary may have been by a second wife. Only the last wife, Mary Mills, is of record; she is the mother of the last two children, Jonathan and James.

There is a record in England of a “Guilielm Gifford” (i.e., William Gifford) who married Elizabeth Grant on 11 February 1635 in St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London. Also, the London Merchant Taylors’ Guild shows a record: “William Gifford, son of Anthi (sic) Gifford of Dublin in the kingdom of Ireland, gentleman, apprenticed to Thomas Southerne of New Exchange, London, for a period of seven years from 7 December 1628.” Apprentices were forbidden to marry, so this would mean the apprenticed William Gifford would have been given his freedom 7 December 1635, in perfect time to be the one who married 11 February 1635/1636. Also, the records of St. Martin-in-the-Fields show that an Ananias Gifford married Maria Read on 18 November 1621. Ananias (also spelled Hananias, Hannaniah and Annaniah) is a relatively rare name. William named one of his sons Hannaniah, and the name has been carried down in the family. Also, the name occurs in the Giffords of Dry Drayton, county Cambridge, England. But it cannot be proven that these English records apply to the family of William Gifford of Sandwich.
Nor can the English ancestry of William Gifford of Sandwich be proven, according to Daniels & McLean. “English Giffords can be traced back to Normandy at the time of William the Conqueror when most branches usually spelled the name Giffard. Inevitably the temptation to connect the Sandwich Giffords with these celebrated families has produced a rash of printed accounts in which the connection is stated as fact but without solid references. (Cutter’s “Genealogical History of Western New York,” 2:901; “History of Bristol County, Mass.;” “Vineland (N.J.) Historical Magazine,” 3:32; “Seabury-Gifford Families,” Hartford (Conn.) 1941) In view of the fact that highly skilled professional genealogists have found no proof as yet of such connections, it can only be said that evidence has yet to be found to confirm these wishful thoughts.”
William Gifford of Sandwich was a Quaker, and as such, suffered persecution for his faith. “Little Compton Families” says “It is supposed that he was the William Gifford who in 1647 or earlier was ordered by the court at Stanford to be whipped and banished.” On 1 June 1658, he was one of a dozen men who “all of Sandwich were summoned, appeared to give a reason for theire refusing to take the Oath of Fidelitie to this government and unto the State of England, which again being tendered them in open court, they refused, saying they held it unlawful to take any oath att all.” At the court held 2 October 1658, they were fined L5 each. At the court held 1 March 1658/1659 George Barlow, Marshall for Sandwich, Barnstable and Yarmouth, complained against William Gifford and Edward Perry in an action of defamation, asking damages of L100, in saying he took a false oath. The defendants were ordered to pay 50s and make their acknowledgement publically, or else be fined L5 plus costs. As Quakers, they could not accept the verdict, and at the 2 October court William Gifford and 11 other Friends were fined L5 for refusing to take the Oath of Fidelitie. At the June 1660 court Gifford was again summoned to take the oath, again refused, and was again fined L5. In October 1660, for persisting in his refusal and for attending Quaker meeting, he was fined L57 — an enormous sum for those times. At this point he disappears from the records, and may have left Plymouth colony, but where he went is unknown. It has been suggested that he went to New Jersey which, like New Amsterdam, was then under the control of the Dutch. On 8 April 1665 William Gifford was one of the signers of the Monmouth (NJ) Patent, but there is no evidence he actually settled there; his sons Christopher and Hannaniah did, however. In a deed by his son Christopher William was described as a tailor.
On 10 November 1670 Mr. Gifford bought from mistress Sarah Warren of Plymouth, widow of Richard Warren, one half her share in the land at Dartmouth, which he gave equally to his sons Christopher and Robert by deed dated 6 May 1683. In 1673 William Gifford purchased land in Suckanesset (Falmouth) from the Indian Sachem, Job Noantico. Gifford continued to appear in Sandwich town records and in records of the Sandwich Friends meeting, and he married Mary Mills, also of Sandwich, at the Friends Meeting of 16 day 5 mo: 1683. Thirty witnesses signed the certificate, but none of William Gifford’s children signed the document, nor did James Mills, Mary’s brother.

Time Line Insight

November 10, 2013 — 2 Comments

Dr Kenny

Dr Kenny

In May I was asked to draw a time line of my spiritual life. The participants in Thomas Moore’s workshop at Kripalu gathered in small groups to discuss what we found drawing the timelines.  The brief discussion among 3 students was revealing and gave me much to ponder.  One of us had been drawn to church and attending mass by herself as a child, with no particular parental support for her daily devotion to Catholic ritual.  The other woman in my group had been influenced heavily by her environment and felt trapped without a known exit strategy.  My own timeline referred to my parents and briefly to church (because I only had to be a Sunday school student for a couple of years) but after the age of 16 had nothing to do with formal religion.  The exercise was quite challenging, finding the major spiritual events or pivotal points in the soul’s journey.

My studies in Sacred Contracts with Carolyn Myss also includes assignments to create archetype timelines.  I am finding this practice to be the most powerful of all the exercises I have ever used.  It seems we warp the past and forget much of what seems extraneous, storing symbols that represent the events or people rather than storing an accurate version of reality in the past.  I went to my elementary school a few months ago in the company of the people with whom I attended elementary school.  We reminded each other of the past, but we had different versions edited and stored in our vaults of  memory.  When we toured the auditorium I knew it was the scene of one of my first encounters with the rebel archetype.  On the occasion of my third polio shot I became violent with the nurse, principal and staff who were trying to inoculate me.  I curled up in a chair in the front row and used my feet to strike out at the adults.  I won the battle and did not get that shot. The school never informed my parents, so I was 3rd vaccination free until the oral type came out and we all took it again.  Victory was sweet, and I felt that I had vanquished a dangerous and vicious foe.  It was Valentine’s Day.  I returned to my classroom uninoculated in my little red and white dress. A rebel was born.

When I saw the auditorium  as an adult I found myself walking next to a classmate who has become a medical doctor.  I also found myself giving Dr. Kenny, who was extremely popular and cool as a kid, a very hard time about his decision to practice medicine.  I don’t dislike Kenny at all, but was completely involved in a highly displaced freak out over medical procedures I do not trust.  This rebel theme continues throughout my life with a special concern over medical professionals and everything they do.  Rational or not, my mistrust for all things allopathic has grown and I believe it has served me well.  What I have discovered by creating timelines to assist my memory is that these themes that started early in life have shaped our lives and decisions in profound ways.  Opposite my rebel archetype is the teacher archetype who wants to teach others healthy alternatives and self care.  Duality is inherent in looking into the past.  We are the actor, director, and the script writer of our own dramas.  Once we have edited the memory of events it is likely we have hidden our own shadow qualities from ourselves.  To make peace with past agreements and commitments gone sour it is necessary to find what part one played at the time.  Timelines are like story boards that illustrate the flow of events and emotions that created our past.  Our futures will be defined by our understanding of the past.  I think I am having a big breakthrough realizing that Kenny would never hurt me, and maybe I have vexed myself unnecessarily over fear of medical professionals giving me shots. I can probably stop striking out at the adults with my patent leather shoes.  Thanks, Dr. Kenny, for the fabulous Jungian analysis.  I feel much better now.

Mercado San Augustin in Tucson

November 7, 2013 — 3 Comments

I was told that Tucson’s Iron Chef had left Lodge on the Desert to be the chef at a new brasserie opening west of downtown Tucson at the Mercado San Augustin. The space will be renovated before opening, but I decided it was time for me to investigate what is happening at the end of the trolley line.  For years Tucson has poured tax dollars into urban renewal known as Rio Nuevo to update and improve downtown.  This often stalled project is finally showing some signs of progress.  Next year we will have a short, but very cute tram that will run through the University, downtown, and end on the west side of the freeway exactly at Mercado San Augustin.  There is building like crazy at the end of the trolley line; Residential condo lofts are being erected.  The area is showing obvious signs of growth.  The Mercado is part of that development.  New and highly desirable businesses are springing up along what will be the route of the trolley. I am encouraged by what I found at the last stop.

Mercado San Augustin is modeled very much on the open markets of Mexico.  In fact, on Thursday afternoons there is a farmers market held in the courtyard.  The small stands and store fronts offer unique food choices along with clothing, art, and jewelry.  There is a communal kitchen available for rent to producers of food products who need  reasonably priced access to a professional facility in order to  create small batches cost effectively.  I sampled two kinds of cake at the Dolce Pastello Cake stand.  Both the caramel and the chocolate were rich, delicious, and reminded me of Mexico.  In fact, the whole open mercado with snow cones, coffee specialties, and a cake stand reminded me of Mexico when I was a kid and visited open markets with my parents.  I used to be crazy about the markets in Guadalajara and Mazatlán in the 1960’s.  So in a certain way my trip west of the freeway was a flashback.  You might also say that I have seen some good news for the future of business development of downtown by using a sense of history and place.

I talked with María Elena about Day of the Dead, which was just last week.  The altar is still up at La Estrella Bakery where she works. There are still sugar skulls in the case for sale.  We talked about how the holiday is celebrated and why it is a chance to teach children that death is not something to fear.  Business is good at the bakery for this holiday because pan de muertos is featured on home altars, and sugar skulls are not found in the regular bakeries around town.  La Estrella has wrapped up a very busy Day of the Dead season, but customers stream in for hot tamales, baked goods, and basic grocery items from around the neighborhood.

Tucson’s Market on the Move

November 2, 2013 — 2 Comments

The port of Nogales, AZ is the main entry point for Mexican produce to enter the United States. There are tons of fruits and vegetables traded daily at the peak of the season. Each winter the wholesale warehouses hum with activity.  The nature of the wholesale produce business requires that losses must be accepted when the goods can’t be sold or moved quickly.  The 3000 Club in Santa Cruz County has created a wonderful program to stem waste at the border, and provide fresh healthy foods in neighborhoods that need more access to fruits and vegetables.  They partner with churches and other facilities that have large parking lots in Tucson.  The volunteer crews load semi trucks full of produce that is at peak ripe condition and send them to the parking lots where anyone can buy 60 pounds of produce for $10.  This Market on the Move is saving people money, but what I like best is the distribution of fresh foods to those who might not otherwise buy  or try it.

I enjoy the challenge of filling my box (Since there are only two of us at home, I do not overfill it.) with the selections of the week, then making tasty dishes with them.  This week I went too late to score any tomatoes, which are always popular.  Tiny watermelons were limited to two each.  They look precious, and are fun to have in November.  Zucchini, yellow squash, cucumbers, and golden bell peppers were the featured crops on special.  I decided to juice the cucumbers, roast or grill the peppers, and make soup with the squash.  The Market on the Move is like the show Chopped on Food Network, in which you prepare dishes from what you find in the basket.  I try to recruit some help from my neighbors as soon as I get home.  My friend Mindy has just returned from Philadelphia where her son in law is a fancy chef.  She passed along a roasted bell pepper soup recipe while I convinced her to take some home.  The chef makes his soup with roasted peppers, a tiny bit of stock and cream cheese.  Mindy and I decided that this was very fine, but we are going to use mascarpone since we have no allegiance to Philadelphia.  If you have some good ideas that relate to bell peppers or squash I am very interested right now.  If you live in a city that offers this sport, the ingredient challenge, I urge you to try it.  For $10 you have little to loose.

Tucson Firefighters Chili Cook-off

November 1, 2013 — 2 Comments

I attended the anual chili cook off to support our local firefighters union. Each station designs a booth and makes a chili dish. The chili is judged by a panel, and the booth design is judged by popular Facebook vote.  The annual event is a really fun way to meet locals and enjoy time downtown.  The creativity of the booth design and the costumes always amuse.  This year the Drexel Heights Station outdid themselves with a Duck Dynasty theme.  I took my calendar with me and was able to find four of the guys to give me autographs on their pictures.  They serve beer and play live music, but it differs from other community events in that the firefighters union uses all the proceeds to adopt families in need to help them.  We don’t have the opportunity to see our firefighters all together at the same time very often.  Seeing them enjoy themselves so much and serve the community too is a blast.  We love our firefighters in Tucson.  They keep us safe and represent the spirit of the town in a friendly and creative way.  I bought a tee shirt for Bob which he will like a lot, and an apron for myself, to remind me not to burn down the house.

Samhain/All Saints

October 31, 2013 — 1 Comment

The Celtic holiday Samhain is still celebrated by some on October 31. The city of Dublin is embracing the ancient holiday in new ways.  Poetry is a way to create connection with the future and also with the past.  Some poems and songs survive from anonymous authors, while ancient Greeks are preserved in drama, ode and epic.  Translation is a tricky thing, especially when translating Pagan rituals to Catholic practices.  My ancestors, the O’Byrnes, came from County Meathe where Samhain was and is celebrated.  I hope someday to visit Dublin to see these Irish in action with their ancient tradition.

Since I am in Tucson, with a strong and popular All Souls’ Day party I plan to add poetry this year by attending the reading on Friday night at the U of A Poetry Center by our new poet laureate.  He is from the border, our own very specific and special place. This border has been directly responsible for plenty of death, and plenty of opportunity.  In a spiritual sense our border has never been real, but artificial, setting a trap, catching little prey.  It makes crime irresistible to the desperate. It works to incentivize illegal behavior. If the dead are visiting this week they will have no trouble crossing the border, even though they may have died trying.  I look forward to the experience.