mermaidcamp

mermaidcamp

Keeping current in wellness, in and out of the water

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Probable Cause

November 11, 2013 — 5 Comments

I became familiar with this legal term when my parents were robbed by lawyers who worked for a care home owner.  A young lawyer obtained the signatures of my severely mentally impaired parents in front of no witnesses and proceeded to use those signatures to rob them at the bank, destroy all their civil rights, trapping my dad in the care home, as was the plan.  Two weeks after they robbed and attacked my parents they ran away but kept about $8000 or so for the so called services they had performed.  To recover from this attack my parents’ real lawyer had to work and be paid to restore their estate plans and civil rights. It was costly and destructive as well as blatantly criminal.  I wrote to everyone including John Evans, the Federal prosecuting attorney in Tucson.  I was told that since they had obtained the signatures, even though they did not know my parents and had drastically damaged their health and well being, as well as their finances, they were allowed to pretend for those two weeks to represent my parents and be paid for it.  The FBI initially investigated the case and told me there was obvious fraud. Later they told me they had to drop the case because the border issues demanded all the man power in Tucson.  It felt distinctly as if the Feds decided that lawyers can commit crimes because they will fight back if you attempt to bust them for their obvious crimes.  It is easier to pick on border crossers than your friends at the AZ Bar.  Eventually the Bar did slap the young lawyer on the wrist, but he had already left the firm where he had robbed my parents. To say that I lost all respect would be an extreme understatement.

I have now owned a home that is supposed to be governed by an HOA.  The people on our HOA board have refused to do anything that AZ law requires of them, but have insisted that they have a right to invite the general public here to donate to a charity scam they have run in the condo next door to me and at the curb for many years. Feeding the Homeless in Tucson Parks is the philanthropical outreach our HOA board has used to express their special jurisdiction here in our public areas.  This 100% criminal operation has been been in operation in this same location for many years.  Since they have never been stopped breaking AZ law or stealing money from the dues directly they decided to give themselves the right to use the non profit corporation (our HOA) and our public areas and driveway to operate this charity scam.  None of the volunteer hours, or truck loads of bread, or cash donations that came in the mail, or items left in the driveway for many years has ever been reported to the IRS.  I have been informed by the HOA lawyer that the board has broken no laws by using our property to run this criminal scam. That means they plan to continue to use the fire lane in front of my home to invite the public here to be hostile to the entire neighborhood and pretend they are doing philanthropy.  The latest known solicitation for donations was done to Tucson Appliance for a new stove this spring.  That stove belongs in a homeless shelter or the food bank, not in a residential condo that has been used for criminal purposes.  If soliciting drive by donations and pretending to be a charity is not a crime against the neighbors and society I think it would be very hard to find one. My neighbors and I have reported these crimes for years, but law enforcement has not been available to stop this.  I have the impression that law enforcement cares very little about stopping crime or enforcing laws.  I may be wrong, but we shall see.

If you are asked for donations from anyone, ask to see the 501C3 the IRS issues legal charities. It is apparently easy to operate fraudulent philanthropical donation sites for many years with no interference from the IRS. Our local law enforcement has practiced and advised willful blindness to these crimes, which I think is incredibly weird.  I have hired and put  a lawyer on retainer because this has gone on for too long and seriously damaged our property value. I think we are entitled to law enforcement from the agencies we pay to enforce the law.  However, if you need to hire and pay a lawyer to show those agencies probable cause it is better than allowing crime to trash your neighborhood.

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.

Cops and Rodders Car Show

November 6, 2013 — 2 Comments

trucks

trucks

classic

classic

classic

classic

VW camper

VW camper

Woody

Woody

Woody

Woody

T Bird

T Bird

T Bird

T Bird

T Bird

T Bird

TPD Bomb Squad

TPD Bomb Squad

bomb squad gear

bomb squad gear

bomb robot

bomb robot

bomb dude

bomb dude

TPD SWAT

TPD SWAT

trucks

trucks

cop-o copter

cop-o copter

cop truck

cop truck

Ford

Ford

Ford

Ford

the dude

the dude

baterior

baterior

batmobile

batmobile

Bat guy

Bat guy

Karmann Ghia

Karmann Ghia

Karmann Ghia

Karmann Ghia

electric Karmann Ghia

electric Karmann Ghia

electric

electric

cute

cute

hot rod

hot rod

vintage

vintage

racer

racer

Pontiac

Pontiac

fun

fun

kids enjoy

kids enjoy

fire engine

fire engine

fire engine

fire engine

fire engine

fire engine

pick up

pick up

VW club

VW club

classy

classy

logo

logo

The Tucson Police Foundation produces a great car show at Reid Park every year. This year was no exception. The Cops and Rodders show provided entertainment and a fabulous social setting for meeting enthusiasts who share a love for vehicles.  I enjoy seeing all the variety and the extreme care that has gone into restoring and decorating the vehicles. I sometimes go to the Volkswagon show, but this one is my favorite because they have everything from old panel trucks and fire engines, to low riders.  The paint jobs impress, and the creativity amuses.  If you live in Arizona you might like to attend next year.  It is always free to the public.  The Police Foundation raises money through raffles and entry fees.  It is almost always perfect sunny weather here in November, so the paint jobs shine and glow.  To me it is like an art gallery, curated by the individual car clubs.  I love it.

The Power of Written Words

November 3, 2013 — 8 Comments

My father read Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn aloud to me when I was very young. There were other books that followed, but he really loved those two stories, and made them come alive while reading them.  He liked to sing and recite poetry.  We sang at parities all the time.  Since we had a player piano, talent was no barrier to musical contribution.  I pumped happily away for hours singing with the piano rolls.  I still know the words to most of those songs, or could with some prompting, remember the lyrics. I wrote songs myself as a teen, but do not remember them at all, which is funny.  I do remember The Cremation of Sam McGee by Robert W Service, which my father knew by heart.  As an Okie in Pennsylvania I know he identified heavily with Sam McGee because he frequently and randomly said “Since I left Plumtree, down in Tennessee, it’s the first time I’ve been warm.”

My dad was a funny troubadour of sorts who did not know that his 8th great grandmother was Mistress Bradstreet, Pilgrim poet.  He did often say,” You’re a poet, your feet show it, they’re Longfellows.”  Now that I have discovered the Bradstreet connection I am revising the rhyme:

Keep the beat,

Think on your feet,

You’re a Bradstreet.

Since I found Mistress Bradstreet at the Poetry Center I am wondering about my own relationship to words and poetry.  Do I have any poetic DNA that I need to develop?  Curious, I attended the inauguration of Arizona’s new poet laureate, Alberto, Tito, Rios of Nogales, AZ.  He addressed the crowd, read some poems, then answered some questions from the audience.  He is a professor so he found it easy to teach the group.  His style includes plenty of comedy, which holds the attention.  An audience question was, “What is the difference between writing poetry and writing prose?”  His answer was perfect and memorable.  He said, ” Each line in a poem should be able to stand by itself.  If one of my poems shattered and all the lines were left alone, each should be strong enough to get a good job in another poem.”   I love that. I also love the Poetry Center which is very near my home.  I don’t really think the lines in my poem above could find work elsewhere, but if I work on it, perhaps the spirit of Mistress Bradstreet will guide me to achieve better outcomes.

The other fine advice Mr Rios gave, which he illustrated with a story from his youth, was that you observe events and happenings in your life that will die without a story if you do not tell them.  His attitude is that all of us have the potential to use words in a poetic way, and the experience enhances our own lives when we do it.  We also liberate objects and events that want their stories to be told.  This magical reality view of the objects comes naturally from his bilingual and bicultural background.  In Spanish reflexive verbs make the world a highly animated place in which things take action.  I believe Tito Rios is the perfect artistic and cultural representative who could have been chosen as our official poet.  I am pleased to have been in the special inaugural audience.

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.

Beer Dinner at Zona 78

October 28, 2013 — 2 Comments

Last night I took Bob on a dining date featuring his favorite beverage, beer. I used to drink beer, but have all but given it up these days. I still like the taste, so the beer and food pairing was very appealing to me. I drove, so after the taste, I generally gave the rest of the glass to Bob. There was one exception, the Imperial stout. It was my favorite of the evening so I wanted to drink all of it. They poured 4 ounces for each course because the beers were very high in alcohol content.

The chef worked with Mission Brewery of San Diego to create tastes that paired with these strong beer flavors.  I did write on my reservation request a few weeks ago that I am vegetarian, but to make sure I mentioned it to our server when we arrived at the dinner.  It became obvious that they did not have the information.  I am not sure if the server did not mention it, or they do not read the reservations that people write down on paper. I give them points for thinking on their feet and kicking out very good samples for me.  The favorite of all the people at our table was the corn and ricotta fritter, which was a veg. item anyhow.  My plates were visually as good as Bob’s real street food with meat.  The ruben sandwich was superb; Mine had kale instead of corned beef.  The meal ended with a very light beer that I delivered straight to Bob.  We thought the meal and the company, as well as the education we got from the chef and beermeister were well worth the price and the short drive from our home.  This is our second theme dinner at Zona.  Our new beer drinking buddies at the table had been to dinners there featuring other craft brewers, which they enjoyed. The reasons we will return to Zona 78 for special dinners in the future:

  • The staff really enjoys putting on the special events, and it shows
  • The experts work hard to make a gourmet memorable meal
  • The learning component is just right, not too sales oriented
  • The people we meet there are fun, interesting, and jovial
  • We discover new recipes or new combos to try at home
  • The made from scratch food is always tasty and original

I Endorse Michael Ray

October 1, 2013 — 2 Comments

Michael Ray is a friend and colleague I met in  a business development forum offered by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Tucson.  A small group of us continue to meet once a month to focus on the model we learned and the progress being made by individuals.  Michael’s project is interesting to me because I garden in the desert with more and more difficulty myself.  I also like to watch the way he solves his design problems because I too am an inventor.  Some serendipity and some  failure accompany all inventors.

Initially one may not even plan to invent a product, but an issue or problem starts to fascinate the inventor.  Failing fast has a lot of merit when you don’t know where you are going anyhow.  Eventually the prototype will show/teach the creator new ways to  remedy design problems.  I endorse Michael because his core concept is strong, and his creative spirit is guiding him to keep experimenting until he finds solutions.  I know the long and winding road through “one size does not fit all”  from my own work.  I believe when the Nursetree Arch comes on the market it will benefit many gardeners, both new and experienced.  I know I want one.

shade

shade

Environmental Creativity #DooFrudumpsdogdoo

September 29, 2013 — 4 Comments

message for dog owners

message for dog owners

practical design

practical design

Our midtown Tucson neighborhood has pride of ownership issues. The landlords are not prone to take care of  rental properties and the residents have become used to a very low level of environmental pride.  Tagging of gang signs is chronic and dog owners leave waste behind everywhere.  Doolen-Fruitvale Neighborhood, or DooFru for short, has an elementary school, an art college, and a Boys and Girls Club all adjacent to each other.  I am asking the kids interested in art and design to enter a competition.  The DooFru Design Derby  will be an annual competition to design the best small enhancement to our neighborhood environment.  We want to create a positive artful outlet that says we care about the space in which we live. We don’t have a place for mural art or sculpture, but we can do small, individual projects that make a difference.

This year we are designing dog doo bag dispensers out of used plastic containers.  When filled with plastic bags, they not only remind dog owners to do the right thing, but provide the means with which to do it.  Some other neighborhoods have employed the bag dispensers with great success.  I walk my dog in one of these adjoining areas and have noticed a big improvement in the waste problem since they put up the bag dispensers.  We hope by involving kids and art we will have an even bigger impact to create a cleaner and more well cared for environment.  The kids from Boys and Girls Club have joined in many neighborhood clean up efforts, only to see the same trashy behavior arise.  I believe they can have a bigger influence than adults if they sincerely take on the #DooFrudumpsdogdoo initiative.   They can shame the adults and set a standard of awareness simply by making art for the good of the neighborhood.  My own design is designed to give the idea to the kids, but definitely not to win the derby. My #DooFrudumpsdogdoo lady is a neighborhood spokesperson in need of kids’ art.

Tori-no-Ichi in Tucson November 2, 2013

September 27, 2013 — 3 Comments

We are fortunate to have an excellent specialty museum in our neighborhood, The Mini Time Machine.  Because the miniature art requires great concentration to appreciate the work, it is a perfect place to have a party.  While enjoying food and music one can also study the museum’s well protected displays.  I am a very slow and detail oriented museum patron, but really prefer the membership arrangement so I can come an go all year at my whim.   I adore the doll houses with all manner of intricate trim and realistic design elements.  Like other art, it is possible to discover new aspects of the work each time you observe it.  Unlike most pieces, the minis always draw you in to examine the tiny achievements of scale and artistry.  My museum membership is shared with my neighbor Heidi for maximum pleasure.  It is a short ride from our homes, and enhances our ‘hood in a special way.  We can drop in or stay all day if we feel like it.

On November 2, 2013 at 6:30 pm Vergrandis will celebrate a traditional Japanese day of the rooster known as Turi-no-Ichi with a lucky rake festival.  This coincides with the fall exhibit of Netsuke and diminutive carvings from Japan.  We will have a chance to enjoy foods from east and west, musical entertainment, and a silent auction that includes some desirable items.  The whole museum will be lit with lanterns for the evening.  I hope we will get to clap and make lucky rooster baskets like the Japanese people above, but that remains to be seen.  We do have a great troop of traditional taiko drummers who will be on the scene.

The proceeds will be used to provide outreach and museum field trips for every second grade student in Pima County.  I imagine there are plenty of kids in Pima County who have never been to a museum, so this one would be a really good starter experience.  The $60 tickets are not tax deductible, but one can add an extra $40 which is deductible, to be a Lantern Luminary.  The Luminaries are given a choice to designate their donation to a particular school or teacher if they like.  It might seem like a miniature donation to give $40 toward a field trip for kids, but you will not know how big the impact might be.

Sand Mandala in Tucson

September 20, 2013 — 5 Comments

We are lucky to have a tradition of sand mandala making at the U of Arizona Bookstore. Monks have been visiting to draw them on the floor in the basement for years. This is the third one I have been lucky enough to witness.  This time they are making the Buddha of Compassion.  After they create the image the sweep up the sand and dispose of some of it in water, in a ritual representing the cosmos.  This demonstration of attachment and enlightenment is illustrated clearly when the sand is swept and the American viewers rush in to get a bag of the magical sand to take home and keep.  The monks don’t need to do that; they are off to draw and destroy many more mandalas all over the world.  They do it to show the futility of attachment. It is a beautiful way to illustrate the point.