1AM just took the puppy outside to water the grass. Waiting for sleep to overtake me. Turned very cold outside.

http://ping.fm/Ej7Z0 Check out these cool Japanese food erasers Iwako Food Erasers

Hey this is cool. Updates twitter, Facebook and my wordpress blog all at once. Technology-will the wonders never cease

Updating Blog

just signed up to ping.fm we will see how this goes – may be good may be bad but at any rate it will be a learning experience

Not that anyone really cares perhaps this is all pointless but now my blog will be updated automatically.

Yesterdat and today

From iPhone

Pictures of the pooch, hot cinamon raisin mochi over vanilla ice cream, and fresh baked pumpkin rum raisin bread.

Take time

From iPhone

Wake up to hear Bush admin wants to take it’s time on deciding how to handle the auto bailout. Since when did they start taking time to get something right? Wish they would have taken time on Iraq, Patriot Act, Gitmo, wire-taping, financial bailout and much more that they screwed up.

Photo is actually a glob of seitan I cooked yesterday. But it could easily pass for the brain of….

Finding an old friend

From iPhone

Today after searching on and off for years and almost giving up I was able to track down one of my two best friends from high school and college.

In all honesty I almost have no memories of my younger years except those which involved one or the other of these two people.

Yes I can recall things and people other than these two but none bring forth the emotions like those I have with Donny or John.

When I made that call today to see if I had indeed finally found Donny, and found that I had succeeded I was so excited.

I know that the two of us are entirely different individuals from who we were in HS & college. And perhaps we have nothing in common other than our past. Still it is good to know he has survived.

John, as I learned from Donny has remianed elusive to both of us. Many years ago my parents told me they thought he had been killed in Viet Nam. I don’t know.

Today Donny told me that another of our good friends had died of an overdose. I hope that I can get some more details I would like to add him to my memorial book and offer prayers.

I had feared that something too might have happened to Donny and it was good to hear to the contrary.

What a good day today has been.

Tonight begins a monthly lecture series I will be giving on the Lotu Sutra. In my heart I will dedicate tonight’s lecture to my past friends, wherever they may be.

Some recent photos

World AIDS Day – 2008

I attended the Charlotte World AIDS Day Interfaith Service last night held at Covenant Presbyterian Church and sponsored by RAIN (Regional AIDS Interfaith Network).  The service was a very moving and inspiring one.  The planning for the service showed great care and forethought, and the service was truly an inter-faith one.  There were Christians, Muslim, Hindu, Jew and Buddhist who gave presentations, prayers, readings, and performances.  The folks from RAIN really poured their hearts out in planning and preparation.  

Sadly, the attendance at the event was low.  Of course it was a Monday evening and it did follow a weekend holiday, however that same kind of complacency is actually the view of many in society.  Consequently as the complacency towards AIDS increases so do the infection rates among all segments in our society.  

I wonder what I can do?  Is there more I can do to increase awareness, to increase aid, to increase community involvement?  I will ponder this more.

Unfortunately I was not in a very good position to take photos of the many happy and hopeful participants.  I do not want to sound too negative, since even if one or two people remember and commemorate and vow to continue the work, then we should celebrate.