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mermaidcamp

Keeping current in wellness, in and out of the water

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Brazilian Othello

January 10, 2014 — 1 Comment

In Shakespeare’s Othello the protagonist Moor is a military commander and the action takes place during a time of war.  The twists and turns of the story are typical of a tragedy written by The Bard.  There is much misunderstanding and treachery leading to the deeply tragic ending.  The play has been performed in all kinds of settings and time frames because it has eternal themes that work well for any time or place in history.  Racism, betrayal, jealousy, and war are always in style, sadly enough.  It has been adapted into movie and opera in the past, and now it is being presented as a modern fusion of the latest technology possible combined with an ancient story.

The star and creator in this new production is from Salvador do Bahia, Brazil and has deep cultural and artistic roots in that city.  He has been fascinated with this play for many years.  Elisio Pitta wanted to use his talent and experience as a dancer and artist to produce a sharp protest against domestic violence, a worldwide problem. He  created a working collaboration of the most artistically gifted people he knew for this project.  Working as a team, they focused on the ideas they wanted to portray.   This new version of Othello has been merged with the cultural treasures and foundations of  Bahia.  Slavery, racism, liberation, and natural magic are strong themes in the artistic backgrounds of these artists.  They intentionally explored the similarities and dramatic meaning present in Shakespeare’s drama, and adapted it to their own time and place to send a message and make an emphatic statement.  They worked on it for over 3 years, and were ironically interrupted during rehearsal when Mr Pitta was badly injured in an incident of violence last August in his home city.  Elisio is a master martial artist in capoeira, but 10 large young angry men were more than he could handle.  This attack only strengthened his resolve to present his artistic response to violence, which is too common today.  In this show, since it is based on modern issues, Othello kills himself  in the end with a gun rather than a sword.  It is fortunate for everyone that the young punks who beat him up did not have  guns during that fight.

Now the show has opened in Brazil to sold out theaters and will be opening next week in Liverpool, England for an engagement.  A giant celebration is planned all year for the 450th anniversary of the birth of the most famous poet of all time.  I believe that William Shakespeare will be impressed with all the creative energy honoring his work and keeping it alive.  If you want to know more the largest festival ever honoring him, check out The Year of Shakespeare.  You can follow it on twitter and like it on Facebook to read and write reviews all year.  Enjoy!

Clear The Active

January 7, 2014 — 3 Comments

My Clean Office

My Clean Office

Clean desk, clear mind, well defined goals, and a new practices are being planned for the new year. Finishing what one starts is a big lesson in my life since I like to start everything all the time.  My declaration of the war on clutter has revealed how much of an overstock I had in some parts of my life and space.  Dilligence to stay clean is a constant effort, since tax season is upon us and the paper will be flowing in and sorted for that fun activity.  I know taxes are an excuse, and not a good one, to pile up papers rather than file or discard them on the spot. I have had a remedial session with a house keeper deep cleaning as I deep organize and toss.  I have a box of paper I need to sort, but I created a temporary clean desk for the week, and will not return to the stack of paper lifestyle in 2014.  I am dedicated to wasting less space and less time on distraction.  Nothing is more distracting than a bunch of really important tax documents mixed and stacked in a pile of all the latest AARP junk mail and bank offers, taking up the space around you.  It is very silly to allow that junk mail to get to the desk..Just like wiping one’s feet at the door, it is easier to keep the unwanted schmutz from entering in the first place.

In order to take off the runway must be cleared of any obstructions.  The glass top of my desk is to remain clean and clear beyond National Clean Desk Day.  I will not allow this achievement to drown in a sea of paper.  I vow to throw it out at the mailbox and edit it before it comes to the office.  Every day I will file, use or throw out  the papers that I keep.  Sticking to this practice will make me a happier person and therefore a better writer.  I am enthusiastic about the #CleanDeskDay contest launched in celebration of this wonderful concept.  Let’s get clean and stay clean all of 2014!!!  I can’t wait to see what will be posted in instagram under #CleanDeskDay to enter the contest.  The real prize is the clean desk.

GUEST BLOG: Social Media and Crime – by Sandra Mills

January 7, 2014

Social Media is changing the way crime is done. Be aware of the connection. Keep yourself save and secure by knowing the odds and the methods, which are constantly evolving. Since the big fat Target at Christmas event we need to evaluate how and when we do anything on line.

Vero Amore, True Love at First Bite

January 6, 2014 — 1 Comment

Vero Amore Pizza has opened a new and very snazzy location near my home, so we tried it yesterday. Everything about it was outstanding. The new space is super open and contemporary, with a view of the kitchen and wood fired oven at work.  The staff is friendly and very prompt with service.  We had beer and a cocktail, both unusual and delicious.  Bob loves prosciutto, so he enjoyed a personal pizza without sauce.  In our minds pizza is all about the crust, and at Vero Amore the authentic Neopolitan style pizza is light and crisp.  I ordered manicotti which was rich and well balanced.  The sauce was garlic enhanced just perfectly.  My Oso Nero cocktail with honey bourbon and blackberries was fresh and complimented my seriously cheesy good manicotti.  I am glad I had not ordered anything else because I just a rely was able to finish my dinner, with a little help from Bob.  Next time we want to go for happy hour so we can sample smaller plates which all look very good.

We gave our server Matt a challenge by asking him to prepare a take home pizza checca to be ready when we finished our meals.  He did it perfectly, presenting the bill right when we finished with exactly enough time to settle it and walk out with our fresh from the oven pizza to share with a neighbor who stayed home.  We give Matt A plus in service.  In fact, from the manager to the bartender to the kitchen staff everyone is genuinely pleased to serve the guests and it shows.  We will return to explore the extensive menu and outdoor party patio.  This is a wonderful addition to the dining options in our neighborhood.

For catering the company owns a mobile fire truck with a wood fired oven that they bring to a party.  The pricing on this fabulous service is reasonable, and I am sure any event would be popular with authentic pizza cooked on site rather than boxed and delivered.

Robots

January 3, 2014 — 1 Comment

If you had a robot to live part of your life you preferred not to live, what would that machine do?  I saw a news segment on PBS last night featuring Sherry Turkle, author of Alone Together.  She was appearing with robots who are built to illicit emotions from humans.  I had heard of her book from friends who read it and were very impressed.  Her ideas already made sense to me, but the robot segment  clenched the deal.  I always think of slot machines when I think of machines that are built to beguile.  Now there are robots in development to “care” for seniors.  This is pretty freaky, gentle readers.  I know I do not want robot care in my dotage.

The medium used to be the message; now it is the messenger as well.  There is growing evidence that the ties that bind us are the same ones that are making us lame.  I am a big fan of technology, but it needs to be the servant not the master in the relationship.  What strikes me as most ironic is that devices are used for self hypnosis of a kind.  In the trance state induced by too much busy busy update/like/comment one is an easy target for marketers and anyone with ulterior motives.  I believe it is time to reel in the relationships with devices in favor of more time connecting to nature (which includes other humans in real life).

Metanoia and Spirit

January 2, 2014 — 1 Comment

We are influenced daily, and there are people claiming to representing us daily, but we are unaware of most of it. As we forge our futures we find obstacles to happiness of both physical and spiritual natures. Our quest is never a solo, even if we think we act alone. We are slaves to certain beliefs and we ensalve others to our beliefs as much as we can.  If we do not transform the way we look at our habits and our regrettable past behavior we are likely to be stuck in repeating, regretting, and then repeating the same patterns.

Metanoia is the concept of repentance that has been badly used and understood.  Confession can be way to act temporarily sorry to absolve oneself of  responsibility for past transgressions.  As a practice it may teach that we are out of control, will repeat, and then feel very guilty about our behavior ad infinitum.  This constant cycle of guilt and repeated undesirable action has little hope of creating liberation or happiness.  The guilt is an almost certain sign that the action will be repeated.  It is the currency of pain.  Repentance of the depressing kind is a revolving door or shame leading to more guilt.

My favorite author, Thomas Moore, has written a new book, A Religion of One’s Own, which will be zapped into my Kindle in a few days.  To warm up for this book he translated the Gospels from the original Greek language.  To warm up for reading the new book I am reading Writing in the Sand, a book Thomas Moore wrote about the meaning of the Gospels. Chapter 2  of Writing in the Sand is about Metanoia, but not of the shameful kind.  This word refers to a change of mind so profound as to cause a shift in vision.  Thomas breaks down the literal meaning to bring a completely different sense to the word and what it represents.  His knowledge of the original language brings back the meaning of the Gospels.  I agree that we all need a spiritual and a soulful context for living.  Thomas Moore is an ethical  voice with a powerful message.  I hope you will have a chance to read his work.  It constantly inspires me.

Joan I Navarre, 22nd Great-Grandmother

December 30, 2013 — 8 Comments

Joan I Navarre
Joan
College
Joan I Navarre
Queen of Champagne
tomb

Jeanne I Navarre married the king of France when she was 13 years old.  She founded a college and died either in childbirth or was killed by her husband.

In 1274, upon the death of her father, she became Countess of Champagne and Queen regnant of Navarre. Her mother Queen Blanche was her guardian and regent in Navarre. Various powers, both foreign and Navarrese, sought to take advantage of the minority of the heiress and the “weakness” of the female regent, which caused Joan and her mother to seek protection at the court of Philip III of France.

At the age of 13, Joan married the future Philip IV of France on August 16, 1284, becoming Queen of France a year later. Their three surviving sons would all become Kings of France, in turn, and their only surviving daughter Queen consort of England. Queen Joan founded the famous College of Navarre in Paris.

Joan led an army against the Count de Bar when he rebelled against her.

Joan died in 1305 either in childbirth or one chronicler even accused her husband of having killed her. Her personal physician was the inventor Guido da Vigevano. Following her death the crowns of Navarre and France were united for almost half a century.
Family Name:de Blois Given Names:Joan

Titles: Countess of Champagne (1274 – 1305)
Queen of Navarre (1274 – 1305)

Born:14 Jan 1273
Bar-sur-Seine, France Died:2 Apr 1305
Vincennes, Paris, France
(Age 32)
English/Scottish Royal Blood: 11.71875%

Father:Henry I, King of Navarre (Henry III of Champagne) About 1210
– 1274
Mother:Blanche d’Artois (daughter of Robert I, Count of Artois)
About 1247 – 2 May 1302

Marriage: Philip IV, King of France (The Fair) About 1268 – 29 Oct
1314
Date: 16 Aug 1284His Age: 17Her Age: 12
Place: Unknown place
Offspring:
+2 Louis X, King of France 1289 – May 1316
+4 Isabel of France (wife of King Edward II) 1292 – 22 Aug 1358
+2 Philip V, King of France (The Tall) 1294 – 3 Jan 1322
+3 Charles IV, King of France (The Fair) 1294 – 1 Feb 1328

Notes:
Joan was a patron of the arts and founded the college of Navarre.

Joan died in childbirth.

Jeanne Joan I Navarre (1273 – 1305)
is my 22nd great grandmother
Lady Isabella England D Capet (1292 – 1358)
daughter of Jeanne Joan I NAVARRE
Edward Plantagenet (1312 – 1377)
son of Lady Isabella England D Capet
John Gaunt Plantagenet (1340 – 1399)
son of Edward Plantagenet
John Marquis Somerset BEAUFORT (1374 – 1410)
son of John Gaunt Plantagenet
Joan Beaufort (1407 – 1445)
daughter of John Marquis Somerset BEAUFORT
Joan Stewart (1428 – 1486)
daughter of Joan Beaufort
John Gordon (1450 – 1517)
son of Joan Stewart
Robert Lord Gordon (1475 – 1525)
son of John Gordon
Catherine Gordon (1497 – 1537)
daughter of Robert Lord Gordon
Lady Elizabeth Ashton (1524 – 1588)
daughter of Catherine Gordon
Capt Roger Dudley (1535 – 1585)
son of Lady Elizabeth Ashton
Gov Thomas Dudley (1576 – 1653)
son of Capt Roger Dudley
Anne Dudley (1612 – 1672)
daughter of Gov Thomas Dudley
John Bradstreet (1652 – 1718)
son of Anne Dudley
Mercy Bradstreet (1689 – 1725)
daughter of John Bradstreet
Caleb Hazen (1720 – 1777)
son of Mercy Bradstreet
Mercy Hazen (1747 – 1819)
daughter of Caleb Hazen
Martha Mead (1784 – 1860)
daughter of Mercy Hazen
Abner Morse (1808 – 1838)
son of Martha Mead
Daniel Rowland Morse (1838 – 1910)
son of Abner Morse
Jason A Morse (1862 – 1932)
son of Daniel Rowland Morse
Ernest Abner Morse (1890 – 1965)
son of Jason A Morse
Richard Arden Morse (1920 – 2004)
son of Ernest Abner Morse
Pamela Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse

Break with Butterflies

December 27, 2013 — 2 Comments

ornament
butterfly
orchids
orchids
moth
nature study
close examination

In the dark of winter I love to visit the tropics by going to the Butterfly Magic show at the Tucson Botanical Gardens.  We are fortunate to have such a special nature spot with a controlled environment.  Kids and grown ups are all delighted by a short stay in a world of unusual beauty.  It is also fun to be hot and steamy in a greenhouse when the wind is blowing cold outside.

Time and the Trickster Archetype

December 26, 2013 — 8 Comments

How is your relationship with time?  A busy, rattled life may or may not bring satisfaction. One thing it can’t bring is free time. This is a gift you must find for yourself.  How can we define free time?  Is it doing something that is free of cost?  Is it free form, without a preconceived schedule or goal?  Is it free from all previous habits and delusional thinking?  Clearing the schedule involves being clear about priorities.  Find time in your life by observing carefully what happens to your time.

  • Schedule practice times for skills you want to improve
  • Budget time to find new pleasures
  • Eliminate time spent in unhappy pursuits
  • Liberate one day a week to do things differently
  • Examine the trickster in your emotional landscape
  • Learn a meditation practice to follow

It is time to plant the seeds to be harvested later.  Contemplative use of time and seasons brings meaning and depth to daily life.  Without perspective we often fall deeply into habitual use of time that is both wasteful and depressing.  The spark of new joy can be consciously brought into being by doing things differently on a regular basis.  This can be as simple as taking a new path to work, trying a new food, an art gallery, or activity.  It is not important to spend money to change the habitual use of time; It is important to notice how much time is invested in unhappy activities.  We can distinguish between duties that are unpleasant and bad habits by confronting the inner trickster who will always identify with your shadow instincts.  The trickster inhabits the emotional territory enforcing crazy concepts that keep you stuck in emotional sludge.  Look for a tendency to make excuses and flake out on your own best intentions.  Meditation is the remedy for trickster tendencies, because it clears the mind allowing spacious, free time.

We have a finite amount of time, and once it has been spent in one way, it can never be retrieved or recycled.  As the new year approaches, why not take a new look at time and happiness?  They are closely related.

Sounds and the Soul

December 23, 2013 — 2 Comments

Sound is a powerful meditation tool.  Chanting has been used around the world by all people to celebrate and honor spiritual beliefs.  All the senses are engaged in the holiday customs of now, with little time to be still and know why we are celebrating in the first place.  If you are a singer in a choir or caroling ensemble this is a time when you can share music with others in many ways.  I love to hear acapella choral music because it requires intense listening on the part of each singer.  There is much rehearsal to arrive at the harmony and balance each musical piece requires.  Gothic architecture creates superb acoustics for this art form which is still popular in religious services.  If you have no gothic cathedral, elegant concert hall or well rehearsed choir, please enjoy this heavenly break from your daily routine.  Harmony, in my mind, is the greatest of all human achievements.