Book Recomendation: Fifty Miles from Tomorrow

One of the great loves my of my law school career has been learning about legal progress made towards providing rights (land and otherwise) to the Indian and Alaska Native communities. Clearly, my knowledge and understanding of the challenges facing these communities is extremely limited and i have appreciated the opportunities to learn.  One arena in which i would like to work professionally is in Alaska Native Law and a substantial part of that is dominated by the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANSCA) which officially awarded (ed: it was already theirs thanks for codifying) 44 million acres of land to the Alaska Natives. Rather than having reservations as in the lower 48, the tribal groups or group conglomerates created corporations which control the lands/profits/etc.

This book:

Is pretty incredible. It is written by a brilliant man who was at the center of the push to establish land claims. Hensley served in state government and has been an incredible lobbyist and influence among government and his people--to secure their rightsand also to secure their culture under the rapidly increasing pressures of white influence/decimation of the native way of life. It is both a beautiful glimpse of life in rural Alyeska and a profound commentary on the journey of a man and a people.

You cannot go wrong reading this.

the source of today's happiness

this guy comes tomorrow...

For a whopping 46 hours, but I'm super excited because it is the last time he's coming before the wedding....which means, we are meeting with the officiant, going to see the Mariners, and going to a friend's wedding on a cruise around Seattle.  I'm a little freaked out because I am giving the welcome speech and introduction explaining the Baha'i marriage ceremony.  If you have had experience giving those talks, let me know.

But freaked out or not....i get to be with Adam :)  Crazy pic huh?

Rooeinday---aka becoming an "Citizen" as an adult

My dear friend Rooein came to the US about 12 years ago. He went to school here, worked, then graduated from law school. He learned all of our strange slang (although some of still eludes him) and eats all of our strange food. And this past week, Roo became one of us.  He bought himself an american flag tie and got all sworn in. We threw a proper BBQ with flags and lots of Apple Pie (although Celeste's homemade one was by far the best) since that's what US folks eat.

It left me thinking about it means to be a citizen of a country. Strangely, whenever i hear the word "citizen" i think i'm in some futuristic sci-fi move rather than real life. Obviously, i struggle pretty hard with this concept because in general i like to see myself as a "world citizen"--although i recognize the power my little blue passport yeilds. I grew up singing songs that started "i'm proud to be an american, where at least i know i'm free...." that honored our military. I'm not sure if it was because we lived in a state wtih a strong military presence, because my father's side were military, or because i was just honestly more patriotic as a kid--but i loved that song. I still know all the words. I don't think i know all the words to the national anthem, however.

Speaking of things i don't know, and luckily don't have to. Roo had to past some test about our history i guarentee you i cannot pass---nor can probably 75% of US Citizens. I think it is stuff you learn in high school---and of course, i went to high school in Canada. 

So, tell me what it means to you to be a citizen of a country...what kinds of responsibilities/privileges/letdowns come with that?

...just dance

my girls, with their hands up in the air

i remember the first time we danced. the memory comes in flashes like an old movie created from stills. it was hot and humid outside and the airconditioner wasn't making the club any cooler. i smirked when you asked me to dance. i was a 5 night a week bar star back then--and a beat snob. i was caught offguard when you found the beat and then found me within it. dancing with you was effortless. it was the only thing that was ever effortless between us.

the film pans to static and then back into focus. i'm reaching to take the outstretched hand of D one of my three best friends. There are few people in the world i love to dance with more than this beautiful man who is always late. We are standing outside in an atrium/indoor garden area in a swanky club by Durham standards. By DC standards, it's still a dive. The air outside is cool--it must be early fall. There are fairy lights. We spin easily to a slow salsa beat and laugh. It's been the same since we were sixteen. Dance, laugh, drink horrible coffee at Waffle House for hours, dance somemore in the living room.  The next time we dance will be my wedding.

Static again. I'm 13. There's a stage and a huge crowd and the rest of Workshop is getting ready to go on. I have no idea where i am other than somewhere in BC, Canada. The music cues and the adrenaline takes over. At the end, i have no idea if i got the steps right. It doesn't matter. People's eyes are welling with tears from this dance racism being a learned behavior. For the first time, I realize the power of dance to move souls.

More static. It's the middle east and a friend is teaching a salsa class. I haven't been before--I've been boycotting dance because i miss D and i'm not willing to go to the place in my heart dance holds. I'm scared i'll feel empty without it. People are counting--trying to make the music conform to the steps. It's painful. The movie in a movie of my life flashes to learning to dance years before and the sage advice--feel the beat in your soul before you move--rushes through me. The dance snob in me flares again. I smile at the instructor/friend and say--don't count, just turn me...inhaling the music and following him. He looks surprised as i do the step the rest are still counting out. Granted, i've been doing this for a decade longer than they have but I still. It's about the beat not the steps, I mutter.

The last few days have been a struggle. i feel like i have been forcing the steps of my life rather than letting them flow with the harmonious beat that lies under. I'm trying to hold still long enough to feel it flow again before i move.

The Office....mine.

today, for reasons i still don't get, rather than hit delete on a training requirements email that didn't apply to a lot of people, they started hitting "reply to all" to say take me off the list. After the first, oh, 30, you would have thought everyone would figure it out. The the next 30 were people saying "stop hitting reply to all" by hitting reply to all themselves. This afternoon, after the next shift started their own version, someone who shall remain nameless to protect the AWESOME!! sent this bad boy out:

TO ALL USERS OF EMAIL WHO HAVE NOT COMPLETED TRAINING


Training is REQUIRED for the use of Outlook, Webmail, and Other Email Clients with Advanced Reply All Functionality, going live on September 26, 1996.

Click on this link to be directed to the Web based training: "How many people the email address 'CIS Users' includes and why you cannot be removed from it" or click on the "Check the 'To:' and 'Cc:' fields before sending" Go-live icon on CHILD (main page of CHILD right hand side).

Drop-in Hands-On Practice Sessions for Not Replying All when Aggravated by Reply-All issues will be offered this week: M,W,F from 7 AM - 4:30 PM and Tu,Th, from 7 AM - 6:30 PM in room W3745.

Thank you

Email Support and Reply-All Compliance Team

a girl can dream right....

Sometimes...i like to imagine that if i blinked my eyes or clicked my Rocket Dog shoes three times i could end up one of these places below. the interesting thing is that everywhere i dream of has water and mountains--maybe that bodes well for Anchorage after all.

in the south Pacific in Bora Bora

http://www.boncherry.com/blog/2009/04/22/bora-bora-the-most-beautiful-island-in-the-world/

in the north of Chile near San Pedro de Atacama

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Miscanti_Lagoon_near_San_Pedro_de_Atacama_Chile_Luca_Galuzzi_2006.jpg

in the Alps

http://citypictures.org/r-europe-148-france-218-alps-france-2493.htm

Where do you dream of being when you close your eyes?