a little red hen

Holidays: Ups and Downs

Walking along 50th Street yesterday, I wondered what blogs usually do at this time of year.  My relationship with November/December has always been ambivalent.  Recall delightful times caroling with friends as a teen (remember that word) in St. Louis.

My first Christmas season in New York City after college I was busy but lonely.  My family decided air fare back to the Midwest was too costly.  And beyond my own budget from a weekly salary of $50.  I was a Section Manager in the Basement of the now-defunct, Gimbel's Department Store, once famous as Macy's nearby rival.

As time went by, I often had a good time during holidays; the pleasure increased once I married, had children.  There was, of course, the familiar angst of acculturated Jewish families like ours:  what and how to celebrate.  These questions always operate within the larger commercial culture.  That was in full force on 50th Street as I walked toward Fifth Avenue alongside street vendors.

The weather had turned especially cold.  I was dressed for my destination, the weekly vigil by Grandmothers Against the War at Rockefeller Center, between 49th and 50th Streets.  Do you have flannel-lined jeans?  My three pairs are in constant circulation since moving back to the City.  In Baltimore, I was in a car more; here I'm walking--one reason cities are favored by many retirees:  "natural" exercise. 

Nydia, who went on the Granny Bus Tour this summer, was already in deep exchange when I arrived.  Note her button, War IS Terrorism.  Our line of sign-bearing old ladies always surprises people who are taking pictures-- illuminated snowflakes at Saks across the street and the lighted angels you can see in the background.  Some of them are a surprise to us!

Holiday visitors tip --Until December 31, the City offers, thanks to commerce, a clean, free bathroom in Times Square.  See all about Charmin Tissue's gift-- in living color at The Gothamist, a blog with other info about the City.  This time-limited event is also celebrated in a raunchy You Tube musical tribute.            

While we are away for a workshop week in North Carolina, please entertain yourself with this video, THE SHEEPDOG AND THE MAYOR -- works best in full screen. The dog, the kids, the Mayor, the protesters in Union Square say it all about the Big Apple--the good, the hilarious, and the awful. 

Just forwarded to me by the filmmaker, Liza Bear.  She's producing another about efforts to Preserve Washington Square Park.  Is it too "retro" to want to hold onto nature in our public spaces?   Let me know what you think, please.

Vegan Fox* & The Life, Retired

A bit dodgy way to get your attention.  I want to talk about retired, the word.  First, my credentials.

By choice, retirement occurred in 1995 for two reasons.  At 62, I was ready to close my 20-year psychotherapy practice, and we'd found a bargain apartment in New York City.  Moving back to where we began leads Ron, my spouse, to note, "We're like spawning salmon who return to their birthplace."

Eleven years have passed.  What have I learned?  Retirement is not for kids; it's hard work.  It definitely has been for me--challenged to establish a new dailyness in a new place.  People I'd known back when I last lived here, had mostly left town.  Went to art classes, workshops.  Was a docent for the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, a place you must visit if you care about 19th century immigration.  Doing that once a week kept me in shape:  5 flights of stairs, up and down.  I loved the variety of people from all over the country and world who came--some with memories of grandparents who started out in America in crowded apartments in the neighborhood.

Beside that performing, I developed Composting in Manhattan on living in an apartment with red wiggler worms.  As many early retirees do, we traveled-- Mexico, China, Canada.  Once our first grandchild was born in Portland, Oregon, more trips there.  The challenge of retirement in the 21st century--even when it is by choice--is to find an on-goingness to the days without a work schedule.

At the same time, Ron continued to do workshops around the country and in the City.  That was familiar to me, but I'd tell him that he was not really retired until there was nothing on the calendar for the following month.    But even he noticed people not responding as when he was working fulltime.   Socially, I found a resonance between identifying myself as retired and the time I was a youngish mother at home.  Another form of what Betty Freidan spoke of in The Feminine Mystique.  We become invisible without a paid work role. 

Writing today about the current "problem with no name," Ronni Bennett's blog takes a curious turn in "Choking on Being Retired."  She justifiably expresses her anger with how prospective employers respond to older applicants--just the way some do to me at parties--if they even notice the white-haired woman in their presence.  But then she stops!  As one of her commenters notes, Ronni herself has been a force in getting attention toward elders and their issues.

I've noticed since I've joined the Elderblog ranks that you out there, hardly show me your face.  Every now and then someone boldly steps forward.  Golden Lucy D, full of beans at 85, revealed herself in glam dress-up for a family wedding.  That was different.  When Claude from Blogging in Paris met up in Boston with Millie Garfield we saw a photo on Millie's blog of two women of a certain age having a great time.  No red hats required.

Please tell me you're okay with being more visible-- on your blog, in the public square.  To paraphrase ACT UP, "We're here, get used to us!"

[*Everything you need to know about knitting your own Vegan Fox is online.]

CONDOMISE, the verb*

CONDOM AMULETS in techniques other than knitting.  Left to right, copper wirecloth (similar to kitchen scrubbing pads), recycled fine brass metal container for chocolates strung on colored telephone wire, and black wirecloth (as for window screens).

WORLD AIDS DAY is DECEMBER 1...Would you wear one as a neckpiece to alert friends and neighbors

that HIV in women over 50 is on the rise?

                                                                                                                                  Whenever I mention this chilling information to a group of smart, well-informed, sexually active 50+ women, there is surprise.  So, I keep repeating the message.

*More on the "condomise" message...in New York City, one of many art shows, the history of "A Day without Art"and a film at Lincoln Center HERE.  The facts about STDs from the Center for Disease Control.  "Good Catholics Use Condoms"  is a banner to use on your blog or website from the Condoms4Life organization. 

Muffy Moose, New Film Star

Click on this photo...it's Muffy Moose, outspoken, 83 year old, new film personality from Kansas.  She does her debut star turn in FLOCK OF DODOS, a rollicking documentary that entertains while it informs. 

Last weekend marked the 30th anniversary of the Margaret Mead Film Festival, an annual event that travels around the country, is of particular interest to documentary film buffs-- 35 full-length and short films from around the world. 

Click here to see a bit of the film plus an ABC-TV interview with Muffy's son, Randy Olson.  An evolutionary ecologist, Randy (a/k/a Dr. Olson) changed careers to become a filmmaker.  An affable guy, he poses the question, "Who are the dodos...the evolutionists or the followers of intelligent design?"  The answer may surprise you.  Following the film, Muffy appeared with a panel of sciemce writers and educators--and Randy.  One important point raised: science needs to be integrated into other academic disciplines.  Will it happen?

How scary to learn that 50 per cent of Americans do not believe in evolution!  Even scarier to be introduced to the engine behind intelligent design-- very large sums of money from the Discovery Institute, an ultra-conservative think tank in Seattle.  Back to Muffy Moose, a concerned grandmother like me who wants real science to be taught in schools and colleges. 

FLOCK OF DODOS has screenings coming up around the country.  Someone you know could arrange a showing in a local high school or university.  Oh yes, let's not be smug, New Yorkers.  I heard some unsettling statistics from a panelist about teachers' knowledge and acceptance of evolution theory in our neighborhoods. 

Muffy Moose and her son Randy have created a gift to my granddaughter Zoe's future in the classroom.  I'm looking forward to a blog by Muffy; she seemed interested.

[More information on the creationist sensibility behind ID and the manufacture of the "controversy," in  Chris Mooney's article, "Inferior Design" from 2005.]

Nancy Pelosi & recent history

Does it seem to you there's not enough celebration?  When Nancy Pelosi officially becomes the first woman Speaker of the House, will you tap dance in the street with me?

Perhaps women in America have been burned too many times by high expectations--a woman candidate for high office back in 1984, the huge march on Washington to secure the future of reproductive rights.  Solidarity, endless effort, then just a memory, souvenir buttons.     

This is different.  We need to enjoy these moments, the exhilaration of being participants in change.

Congresswoman Pelosi is a 66 year old grandmother.  What could that mean about the future of legislation on health care, Social Security, children?  The Democrats' Six Point Plan gives a nod to the first two.  I'd like to know which organizations that supported their newly-achieved majority in Congress will keep them focused on the issue that got them there--ending the war in Iraq.  Your comments would be appreciated.

It is less than twenty days till WORLD AIDS DAY on December One.  Nancy Pelosi has a long history of fighting for Federal dollars for AIDS programs and supporting needle exchange.  On the international AIDS site,  AVERT,  a new word, "condomise,"  about the importance of using male and female condoms consistently and correctly.  Most sexually active older women are unaware that eleven per cent of new AIDS cases occur in people over 50. 

Another Condom Amulet                                                             from my "Safe Sex" collection. 

Crocheted and knitted flowers                                                                in the Freeform technique                                                  developed  by Prudence Mapstone                                                       of Australia.

This US Election: the glass half full

in my email today--

Subject:  November 8 in America

Dear Grandmothers for Peace:

It's dawn of November 8th in a new America--we hope.  It is NOT a
"fixed" America, but it is new.  Now, it is up to us to make sure we
never, never, ever again slip back into the horror of the last six
years.  This government was created and built on checks and balances. 
We must demand that from our Congress.  We "may" have saved our
democracy!  We will not see immediate or fast change, but at least we
have some breathing room to dialog.  The doors were closed to many of us
for so long.

Many ran intense campaigns.  Some won, some lost.  You all have stories
of your own.  But, revel in the victory of balance for now.  Then it is
back to work.  The problems are all still there, but now we have a
chance to move forward!  Congratulations to America, you didn't let us
down.  And now, let's do more...

Peace to all of us, Lorraine                                                                          Grandmothers for Peace (link to national group and chapters)

Forwarded to me by Joan Wile, founder three years ago of Grandmothers Against the War, a weekly New York City vigil at Rockefeller Center on.  From that modest effort, a more militant group emerged, The Granny Peace Brigade, the women who became known internationally for their immodest protest.  In September 2005, they simply wanted to take the place of young women and men in the military.   "Take us instead!" they said to New York City recruiters in September 2005.  They were arrested and tried for disorderly conduct.  After many months, curious twists and turns, the case was dismissed, and the grannies dodged jail time.

Today, Wednesday, is the vigil day.  It's pouring in New York City; Joan and many others--not all grandmothers--who identify with their peaceful cause will once again be on Fifth Avenue--4:30 to 5:30. Join them when you're in the City.

Yesterday's national election is a vindication of the days and hours they have dedicated to this peaceful cause.  Thank you, Joan--and all the "grandmothers."

ADOPTING A NAVAJO ELDER

If you're fortunate enough to live near Park City, Utah, on November 10, 11, and 12, you can attend The Weaving of Life, the Navajo Rug Show & Sale now in its 17th year.  Grandmothers do weaving demonstrations, Navajo veterans speak, live and silent auctions--many activities over the three days.  And 600 rugs for sale!

The event is one link in the Adopt-A-Native Elder Program that assists over 500 elderly, traditional Navajo Elders who live on reservations in remote parts of southern Utah and Northern Arizona.  Some continue to work--herding sheep and weaving rugs.  Others are homebound. 

During the recent Elderblog Phone Con, I mentioned learning about the program on line.  Now a packet of material has arrived from Joyce, an enthusiastic retiree who works in the Adopt-A-Native-Elder office in Park City.  She seemed to know that reading their material on paper would give me a better sense of the many parts of the program.  Someone has thought carefully about ways to match needs with resources.

If you decide to adopt an Elder for a fee of $25, your obligation includes providing Rainbow Food Boxes twice yearly.  Or, you can donate the money for a food box or Food Certificates.  You are put in touch with a specific elder and it is a formal agreement.  Of the many types of supplies needed are a  Grandma Box-- velvet fabric for a blouse and cotton for skirts and a Grandpa Box-- flannel shirt, socks, bandanna,and beef jerky!

In line with our interests in self-esteem for older people and fiber craft, we've opted to participate in the Women Who Weave yarn program.  Wool specifically for Navajo or Dine, the preferred word, rugs is purchased by program --six skeins and one warp to make a 2 x 3 foot rug which can be sold by the Elders.  For more details in the other programs.  The Amasani program for a small fee provides curriculum projects and activities for classroom teachers to help school children better details, call Joyce at the number listed at the site.

Voting, rain or shine in NYC...

Spike                                                                                 

on Ninth Avenue                                                   

                           

              Dads  buying   

              bread at

              Amy's 

               

 

         

         

        The girls and guys

         on the waterfront

         in Chelsea...

FIBER ART, Small Mostly

Woven on a small painting stretcher, this 5 x 2.5 inch weaving reflects my fondness for making small art-- fiber, paper, compost.   Sometimes I think it's related to my body size; I also like to live in modest-sized rooms,  ceilings not too high.

"I'm always having a good time.  There's no difference between what I'm doing now and what I do in my studio."  Sheila Hicks, Bard Gallery, September 26, 2006

In September and October, I made three visits to Sheila Hicks: Weaving as Metaphor  at the Bard Gallery on West 86th Street.  It was a handsomely mounted exhibition of 150 miniature woven works she has produced over the last 50 years.  She describes her hand held loom as "...a page of inquiry [with] invented language."  A tall woman, her reason for working on this scale is unlike mine:

I found my voice and my footing in my small work. It enabled me to build bridges between art, design, architecture, and decorative arts." 

Thanks to a New York Times review, many were alerted to the show.  first I went alone, took many notes (no photos allowed).  Next two fiber friends joined me for a presentation by the artist, the curator, and an art historian.  Though she has lived all over the world, created installations--using the small weavings as studies for the larger work-- in India, Mexico, Paris, Sheila Hicks is remarkably down to earth. 

In Paris (where she has a studio in the Latin Quarter), she was interviewed at length about the journey from her Nebraska childhood to Yale Art School in the 1950s studying under Joseph and Anni Albers, to early commissions by Knoll Furniture.  Her straightforward responses--including her selection of Syracuse University for college--reveal much about attitudes and assumptions at the middle the 20th century.

Tempted to scan the Bard handout for the images, I've restrained myself--which is why there's only my own piece here. On the final visit, Ron, who has been thinking about weaving with his handspun yarn, came along.  The work excited him too.  He's about to make  a 9 x 6 inch frame like Sheila Hicks' from scrap wood.  At her own website  are images of large work.  We returning to look again at pages in the gorgeous catalogue produced for the exhibit. With its 150 color illustrations excellently reproduced (not an easy feat for fiber), it appromaximates fairly well the texture of the work itself.

[More on small work in "Bigger Isn't Always Better",Summer 2003 issue of Fiber Arts magazine.  Includes Sheila Hicks in a survey of artists working small--and rare online image.]