Winter 2006 - Week Five Reports

From: Jennifer
Date: Sun, 05 Mar 2006 10:24:35 -0800
To: Reconciliation <reconciliation@lists.evergreen.edu>
Subject: [reconciliation] my belated 5-week report

Hola Companeros de Reconciliation,

As an inexcusable disclaimer, this report is a bit late for the simple
reason that I have been doing so many incredible things and experiencing so
much here in Venezuela.  Although it will be quite long, I hope you will all
take the time to read it at your leisure and comment/discuss if you wish!

I arrived in Caracas on January 20, with a couple days to settle in before
the start of the World Social Forum.  The Forum was at once inspiring and
overwhelming: overwhelming for the sheer impossibility of trying to hold a
democratic/self-organized event for over a hundred thousand people (from 54
countries) in a third world city, and inspiring for the incredible
collaboration and solidarity the existed through the difficulties.  It was a
meeting of movements and organizations largely related to: education, social
work, combating discrimination, art and culture, public
organization/participation, the environment, agriculture and land issues,
defending and promoting rights, public policy, and cross-border solidarity. 
I attended many forum events, from a panel discussing the use of Paulo
Freire´s Pedagogy of the Oppressed in schools, to a meeting of youth
organizers from all around the world, to a screening of a documentary called
Venezuela Rising about the referendum vote that affirmed Chavez´position as
president.  To get a feel for the broad spectrum of forum events, some other
titles were:
-US and Canadian Imperial Aggression in Haiti
-Creating a Future Free of Fossil Fuels: How to change the auto industry
-The state of the US: Resistance to war and globalization from the inside
-Youth and the Construction of Alternatives in Latin America
-Is Venezuela heading towards post-capitalism?
-The Battle of Hong Kong and Global Resistance to the WTO and to Free Trade
-Urban Land Committees and Participatory Democracy
-The Role of White People in Ending Racism

The subtitle of the forum was otro mundo es posible (another world is
possible), and the central idea that brought together all the different
groups is that we are all people trying to unite and make cross-cultural
bridges in the struggle against neo-liberalism.  Although the data is not
yet available for this year´s forum, research on the 2005 forum held in
Porto Alegre, Brazil, yielded some interesting results.  Young people were
the majority in attendance, with 42.2% of participants between 14 and 24
years old and 28.6% between 25 and 34 years old.  40.8% of participants were
students.  The top six reasons people gave for their participation in the
forum were:
-exchange of experiences among participants
-the proposal of the Forum to contribute to a fairer global society
-the democratic debate of ideas
-the possibility of contributing to the formation of alternative proposals
to the neoliberal model
-discussion of specific forum themes
-becoming part of the opposition to neoliberalism and the dominion of the
world by capitalism

The Forum was amazing, and after learning so much I was ready to explore the
Venezuelan Revolution.  I made a great number of contacts at the forum and
almost immediately after headed to Barlovento, a primarily Afro-Venezuelan
community near the coast in the Miranda state.  I first visited a cultural
center there, which serves to bind the community together to give
recognition to african and indigenous traditions.  I learned about
traditional drums and singing and attended a performance.  I then went to a
Misión Barrio Adentro I, which is the term for all the health centers that
have been established throughout Venezuela in poor communities.  They are
staffed by Cuban doctors and by Venezuelan practitioners and students.  The
Cubans have brought with them a new way to look at medicine, one that is
focused on prevention rather than on curing.  The clinics are open in the
mornings.  The Venezuelan students spend mornings in the clinic and
afternoons at school so that when they are certified as doctors they will
already have a knowledge of community members.  The doctors spend mornings
in the clinic and afternoons making house calls.  As such the Cubans have
been well-received in the communities.  All the medicine is provided by Cuba
and is FREE.  Before the clinics were established, people would have to
travel to the nearest hospital to be treated, often located too far away for
people to afford the travel, and although the care was free the medicine was
not and was too expensive.  Venezuela is also working on establishing more
Barrio Adentro IIs, which offer more advanced care such as x-rays, blood
work, and more technical services.  The Barrio Adentro Is are often located
in the front of someone´s house, in a very small space, although the
governments is working to construct new buildings.  They goal is also to
construct Barrio Adentro IIIs, which will be full-service and completely
free hospitals.

One of the problems here is that abortion is illegal.  Not only that, but it
is criminalized too.  Doctors who conduct abortions and women who have them
can both be sentenced and serve jail time.  Illegal abortion is the third
highest cause of death in girls 15-20 here.  Also, condoms are not given out
for free.  They are available in pharmacies but are quite expensive and and
so the majority of the population cannot afford to use them.  There are
people working to get them in Barrio Adentro´s but this is a bit difficult
as this is a very Catholic and machismo culture, not exactly pro-family
planning.  In fact, I have had many people tell me the women´s movement here
is about thirty years behind that in the US, for example.

Still in Barlovento, I visited a Bolivarian School.  The government is in
the process of transforming all public schools to Bolivarian schools.  In
the public schools, all kids, from kindergarten up through high school, only
attend half days, and receive no meals.  The bolivarian schools run from
8:30-4:30 and serve a mid-morning snack, lunch, and a mid-afternoon snack. 
They are required to serve balanced, nutritious and healthy meals--fatty and
fried foods are not allowed.  The meals are served by mothers and community
member volunteers who receive a small stipend for their work.  Building
repairs, painting, etc are also conducted by parents and community members. 
The curriculum is essentially the same, but with the extra half day there is
space for classes in art, music, dance, language, and Venezuelan culture. 
Also, in the Bolivarian schools teachers have more flexibility.  For
example, kids who have mild disabilities remain in the classroom all day,
and curriculum is modified as the teachers see fit to accommodate different
levels and abilities.

It is a long process making all schools Bolivarian for the simple numbers
game.  For example, a high school I visited recently had 800 students, half
in the morning half in the afternoon.  In order for the school to become
Bolivarian a whole other school has to be build, teachers have to be
recruited, community members must get involved, etc.  So far the schools
that have made the transformation have been quite successful, but it is
still a process of transformation that is not necessarily as quick as some
would like!  One problem I noticed with the educational system here is that
young kids don´t spend much time learning, it is more like play time all
day.  In fact, they really don´t start reading until 3rd or 4th grade.  I
think, and many Venezuelans have echoed this, that a change in curriculum is
also needed in the Bolivarian schools.  They believe, though, that this can
be brought up once the first transformation is complete.

I am currently living in Merida, working and volunteering.  I will talk more
about what I am doing in my end-of-the-quarter report, a few weeks away.

(As a side note, I have four documentaries related to the Bolivarian
Revolution in Venezuela, including the somewhat well-known "The Revolution
will not be Televised."  I wonder if anyone has suggestions for screening
them in May at Evergreen (where, how, etc).  Perhaps, if others have
traveled here and are interested, we could organize an event promoting
Venezuelan solidarity??)

cuidense, Jennifer Knight

Hola Raul,

For the first five weeks of this quarter, which I spent in Peru, learning
Spanish was my main focus.  Being immersed in a culture that speaks
Spanish only made it essential to learn the language.  During my last few
days in Peru I found myself upset thinking that I didn't improve my
Spanish much or at all.  Shortly after thinking this I found myself having
conversations with others speaking in Spanish that I wouldn't have been
able to have before coming to Peru.  Now that I have returned to Olympia I
will continue to learn Spanish with my friends who are fluent and also at
Spanish speaking parties.

Being in another culture gave me the opportunity to observe customs and
styles of living that a Washington boy may not be use to.  Between riding
mototaxis, swimming in irrigation ditches, or having water balloons thrown
at me before Carnival, I was given a good sampling of what life is like in
Peru.

While away I read on the Shining Path, Days and Nights of Love and War by
Eduardo Galliano, and I began A Peoples History of the United States of
America.  I also kept up with the news around the Zapatista's Other
Campaign on Indymedia along with peru.inydmedia.org.  Informally I
seminared with others on my readings.

Now that I am back I will be speaking with worker owned businesses to find
out more on how they opporate and collecting the information for a project
to go threw next quarter.

Hope all is well with you Raul, I speak with you soon.

Ryan

From: Mikey <veganmasochist@gmail.com>
Reply-To: Mikey <veganmasochist@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 18 Feb 2006 12:56:22 -0500
To: Reconciliation <reconciliation@lists.evergreen.edu>
Subject: [reconciliation] Mikey Moren's project Winter Qtr Status

FSCC Farm Update -- Week 5 Winter Quarter

We had a big snowstorm last weekend, got about 2 feet of snow.  Hopefully, will be the last big storm
of the winter.  I have been working on 2 simultaneous subprojects:

1) Building a greenhouse/hoophouse!  Using rebar, pvc, and 6mil clear polyethylene film,  I have started to make
a hoophouse.  Once it is up, we will start our seedlings, hopefully later this month or early March.  Pictures will be available
soon.

2) Ordering seeds!!! I have assembled a spreadsheet bringing together much data on what grows well in the climate here
(USDA Zone 6a) in Southeastern Connecticut, what vegetable varieties we want to grow, what seeds are available from Certified
Organic providers.  The current plan is to order from 3 sources: Seeds of Change, High Mowing, and Organica.  If anybody is interested,
I can share my data collection.  We are going to grow basil, beets, broccoli, brussels sprouts, bush beans, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, chard, chives, cucumber, edamame, kale, leeks, lettuce, onions, peas, peppers, pumpkin, radish, salad greens, shallots, spinach, winter and summer squash, and tomatoes.

Total growing area is going to be around 3000 square feet.  Our goal is to have a large percentage of our harvest available for barter, especially barter for labor.  So, if any of you all are in New England this spring or summer, come on down and check it out! ;)

As a side note, Can one of the faculty let me know who my faculty advisor is and when I should expect to give my presentation? I'm making plans to travel back West to Olympia in May, so if anybody knows anyone heading that way, let me know!

- Mikey



From: "McCarthy, Camille" <mcccam22@evergreen.edu>
Date: Sat, 18 Feb 2006 17:02:45 -0800
To: "Nakasone, Raul" <NakasonR@evergreen.edu>
Subject: 5 Week report

Hola Raul!
 
I am sorry that this is a bit late, but I just couldn;t make it to the internet for a week. 
 
Over the last five weeks I have learned invaluable lessons that could have never been learned in any classroom.  In the first couple of weeks in Peru, I spent most of my time conversing with the community and family, picking up quite a bit of spanish along the way. After visiting Cajamarca for one week, I saw the differences between city sizes and the segregation that comes along with a larger city.  The indigenous population of Cajamarca is obviously suffering due to many societal pressures.  While in Cajamarca, I also found that I prefer to be a part of a smallercommunity where I feel involved in.  I found myself missing Guadalupe greatly. Over the first five weeks I completed reading and seminaring informally on several pieces of literature including: Broad and Alien is the World, One Hundred Years of Solitude, as well as Eduardo Galleano's, Days and Night of Love and War. I am now in the Tambopata Amazona Reserve in the SE Amazon of Peru working on a conservation project with macaws and other mammals living in the immediate areal in which I am stationed.  I have been learning the local ecology as well as the specific behaviors of the populations of macaws who reside in this jungle.  I am now reading a book I have found by Jared Diamond, The Thinrd Chimpanzee, an evolutionary biology book.  I am also picking up more spanish while here due to the local population speaking no english, besides a few other researchers.  I lookforward to the next five and a half weeks here and will keep you updated.
 
Gracias,
Camille McCarthy
From: sebi stratton <sebstrat@yahoo.com>
Reply-To: sebi stratton <sebstrat@yahoo.com>
Date: Tue, 14 Feb 2006 11:05:07 -0800 (PST)
To: Reconciliation <reconciliation@lists.evergreen.edu>
Subject: [reconciliation] My Valentine's Day report

Hey Reconcilers,
Hope everyone is having a happy Hallmark Day, or if
you are like me; a happy Singles Awareness Day  (aka
SAD)harhar.  No really, love is a wonderful thing and
I am very blessed to have so much love to appreciate
and reciprocate.  For me this class has been all about
love, not that kind that makes you fall on the floor
when your lips touch those of another, or the kind
that makes you go to some ridiculous lengths to
impress that special someone on a day like today (a
holiday that wasn't at all associated with romance
until the 16th century-when the concept of romance
finally hit a few grumpy Roman Catholic men.) Love is
everything good in this world and must be shared and
stregthened every day.  I have been learning to love
myself and all the positive things that i am capable
of sharing with the world.  This has been an amazing
journey and allowed me the space to come to some of
the greatest and most important realizations of my
life!  Mainly I have found what I was looking for in
taking this program, that is what I want to to with my
time at college and beyond.  I have come to see that
this place is an amazing opportunity and one not ot be
wasted on passive "learning" and a go with the flow
mentality (by this I mean I come from an amazingly
privileged background and my life has consistently
been handed to me on a silver spoon that needs no
extra effort put in by myself.)  Therefore I have
decided to change my learning style to something a
little more traditional to get a solid foundation of
psychology and social work.  I have learned so much
about how I learn as an individual that I can see that
diving into a subject that i know nothing about and
making my own way to become an expert in it can only
teach me so much.  This quarter i have been continuing
to furhter my grasp on learning, learning styles, and
most recently the cultural impact of learning in
mordern day America.  Now that I understand where my
passions lay, I plan to work toward helping young,
underprivilaged learners get a better understanding of
thier own individuality and potential.  Part of this
journey will be traveling to Nepal or India this
summer to work in an orphanage supporting young
children.  Although I will be joining another program
in the Spring Reconciliation will live with me for the
rest of my life, and the indipenendence it has taught
me will continue to flourish.  Thank you all for
taking on this amazing challenge with me, your support
and knowledge have kept me going.  I Love you all, and
hope you quests for knowledge leads you to happiness.

               Your fellow learner  -Seb 
(one last random thing about Valentine's
Day-apparently 85% of Valentine's Day cards are
purchased by women.  Now some would say this is
because guys are selfish, lazy, forgetful heathens,
but really we are just doing our part to fight the
capitalist machine-right guys. ) yaya, now go buy her
(or him:) some flowers.  
-and so sorry this isn't in week five.

From: West, Matthew
Sent: Tue 2/14/2006 12:03 PM
To: Nakasone, Raul
Subject: RE: [reconciliation] Week five reports
 
Hello,
I applogize for my tardiness in writing this e-mail. In the last five weeks I have devoted much time to teaching both ESL and ABE classes. I teach an Adult Basic Education class for SPSCC at the Thuston County Jail four days a week for 2 and a half hours a day. I am working on refining my teaching methods especially working with students that have learning disabilities. Our class does not have very much funding to accomadate the inmates that have disabilities, but I find giving them one on one attention and learning through multiple approaches works well. I also teach English as a second language twice a week for two hours a day. I teach at a low income housing project, and we call ourselves the Bookends Literacy Project. If any one is interested in volunteering write me an e-mail. I have been working with three students. One, is a advanced student that I have been helping with the finer parts of English. I have focused my time on two older men that are very new to English. For this I have been developing lesson plans and working with different methods to assist them with thier introduction to English. I have also read two books so far, The Feast of the Goat, and Sugarball. These are to accompany my reasearch on Dominican baseball, culture and customs.
Matt West

From: moore trautman [mailto:moore_trautman@hotmail.com]
Sent: Tue 2/14/2006 7:14 PM
To: Nakasone, Raul
Subject:  Week five report
 

    My project for this quarter has gone extremely well. The beginning was y
frustrating because I was not able to find anyone who showed much interest
in being recorded. If you remember I changed my project from producing
others back to producing another demo of my own music, similar to the first
quarter. I enjoyed my work this quarter much more then the first due to the
fact that I already had experience working with pro tools from the first
quarter. I was able to relax more and focus more on the music and less on
the technical aspect of audio engeneering. I am very excited to show all of
you, and the class what I have produced. I think you will be very pleased. I
would like to thank you for providing a class where opportunities like this
are possible. I can say with much confidence that I have used my time very
well this quarter.

                               -Moore Trautman

From: satya curcio <satya_in_love@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: satya curcio <satya_in_love@hotmail.com>
Date: Tue, 14 Feb 2006 01:01:08 +0000
To: Reconciliation <reconciliation@lists.evergreen.edu>
Subject: [reconciliation] Week five report

hello reconciliation team.  I have been reconciling east and west
phsychology by studying yoga psychology and process work psychology.  How? 
well I have been reading reading reading, and writing about process work
psychology.  This has been interesting for me because I have discovered and
"edge" to writing.  I feel that I am not such a great writer and have been
working to overcome my fears.  I have writted one paper thus far this
quarter and I will soon have it viewable via web x.  I also am working on
adding to a paper I wrote last quarter.  I still feel as though I am inthe
absorbtion and integration phase.
I was able to hear Jonh perkins speak in seattle earlier in the quarter.  he
was speaking about his new book, confessions of an economc hitman. 
convienently I had just read his other book when I fould out about his talk:
  The workd as you dream it, teachings from the Amazon and Andes.
I am attending a seminar series with the founder of process work, Arnold
Mindell.  This has been like biting into the most jusiest deliciouse apple I
can think of!!!  I am also going to the oregon coast at the end of february
to partake in a four day seminar with Arny (affectionately called by his
students). the seminar is entitled Cosmic pathwalker, exploring core
shamanistic practices. This is really groundbreaking work inthe field of
psychology.  It calls for authenticity and asking the earth for the answers.
  If anyone is interested in learnig more I would love to talk with you.  I
am also spending time in therapy myself, and speaking with other therapists
in variouse filed about their dreams. after this time I am confident that I
will be well prepared for the masters program at the portland institute for
process work psychology.  yesterday I write an essay application for a
scolarcship possibility at the Kripalu Yoga center for a week long training
in prenatal Yoga!!  and then I will be completing a doula training and
attending a birth.  exciting.
I am also continuing with my artwork by participating in an artists way
support group, and photographing pregnant women.  I will have photographed
three by the end of the quarter in their ninth month!!!  yee haw!!  Also I
am continuing my study and practice of graphic design and taking baby steps
towards a nice protfolio of work.
I am teaching yoga like a mad women!!  this has been a way for me to activly
integrate my psychology and yoga studies.  I have planned a three week
intensive that starts this tuesday wich is a big break through for me.  I am
prepared. for the rest of the quarter I am going to continue as planned with
designing a yoga for depression series and teaching that, completing my
photography project and building my writing skills.  If I have time and
don't get cost up in the other aspect of my studies I would like to devote
some effrot to updating my web page and staying knowledgable about dream
weaver.
Thank yo for reading if you have read this far!!  I am hoping that yvonne
would write me back to confirm that she recieved my report.  Thanks
Yvonne!!!

books read so far this quarter:

Einstien's dreams
breaking open the head , Daniel pinchbeck
The world as you dream it, John perkins
Metaskills, Amy Mindell
I think I am forgetting one, oops!!  I'thave my complete bibliography soon
on web x!!!!

From: <schrisman@bainbridge.net>
Reply-To: <schrisman@bainbridge.net>
Date: Sun, 12 Feb 2006 03:30:12 -0000 (GMT)
To: Reconciliation <reconciliation@lists.evergreen.edu>
Subject: [reconciliation] Week five report

Howdy all,

This is my first quarter in this program, and it has been interesting to
read about what everyone else is up to... I think it's great that TESC is
willing to give us the space and trust required for truly independant,
self-motivated learning.

My project was originally conceived as a study of students' opinions on
education, with an eye towards how their experiences with education had
shaped those opinions; it has since expanded to encompass people of all
walks of life. Everyone has some sort of experience with education, either
in a formal or informal setting, and as my aim is for readers of the end
result of this project to be able to put their own experiences with
education into the broadest possible context, I feel that it is important
that the project represents the huge range of experience and opinion that
I believe exists.  Just to clarify, the "end result" will be some sort of
pamphlet/book of (edited) transcriptions of the interviews.  I also hope
that this project will shed light on how our institutions of education
function, and the attitudes those institutions’ practices engender.

Basically, I am interested in what absolutely everybody has to say:
students, teachers, moms, dads, kids, the employed, the unemployed…
everybody!  If you or anyone you know (in the puget sound area) might be
interested in being interviewed, please let me know.  I can be reached at
this email address or at (206) 842-5165.  Thanks!

I just recently got my use of human subjects permit, (which was an
educational experience in itself... freakin' litigous culture) and have
done five interviews so far.  It's been great to hear peoples' stories and
opinions, and I'm really thankful to them for sharing those things with
me.  I'm definetly still working out which questions I want to ask, and
feel a bit at a loss sometimes during the interviews, but through trial
and error, and transcribing the recordings, I trust I'll figure it out.
As far as interviewing goes I guess this projet is a bit odd because I'm
not really looking for answers to specific questions so much as I am
looking for stories.  Sometimes, that's no problem... my second interview,
I started the tape rolling, and before I even asked a question, the guy
started talking, and didn't stop for forty-five minutes.  That sort of
forthcomingness seems to be the exception though, rather than the rule.

I've also been reading various books on education philosophy and practice:
How Children Fail (John Holt), Experience and Education (John Dewey),
Walden Two [for the behaviorist perspective](B.F. Skinner), and Workin'
(Studs Terkel).  (That last doesn't really have anything to do, directly,
with education, but his work is the inspiration for my project.)  If
anybody has any suggestions as to reading material in this vein, let me
know!

Best wishes,
Simon


From: Amy Monaghan [mailto:ajm30@yahoo.com]
Sent: Thu 2/9/2006 8:32 PM
To: Reconciliation
Subject: [reconciliation] Five week Rport
 
    I am sending my five week report on my program this quarter. In
comparison to last quarter this research has been of a different sort. I
began my journey this quarter to find and get stories of Adopted Native
American people in this area and the West Coast . I began by researching
different articles and histories on the internet and during my research
last year I was connected to two people in the journey for stories. I was
able to go to Ellensburg to talk to Denny, a Native of the Yakima Nation
who was adopted by non-Indians. The other person Is still pending.
    I once heard to really learn you have to try things and do things that
are outside of your comfort zone, I didn't know but this is outside of my
comfort zone, I still love it and I am learning. I have so far learned and
I have been learning is that EVERYONE has a story and something to share.
I am constantly amazed at the numerous amounts of folks that have stories
and information to share with me.
   During this journey I am also discovering some personal things about
myself in the readings I have acquired during this quarter. I am currently
reading" Buffalo Woman Comes Singing" by Brooke Medicine Eagle, " Black
Elk Speaks"  as told by John Neihart and"A People's History of the United
States" by Howard Zinn. I personally feel and believe in "Blood Memory". I
have no direct link to my history so I feel it and I see it in my dreams
and in my experiences in this research.. In reading these books I can see
and feel that I am not alone in this belief and in my research I am
finding that a lot of my instinctual " blood memory" is guiding me toward
the path I am supposed to be on. Through the personal journey I wanted to
get a tattoo to help to signify my research and my accomplishments in my
"blood" history. The tattoo artist was adopted. He is now in his mid
fifties and due to his daughter having access to the Mormon DNA records,
she is also going to try to help me in my search. Ray, the tattoo guy, has
found through the help of his daughter, a full blood sister and nine half
brothers and sisters. I guess what I am trying to say is my work is
finding me as much as I am searching . I am also reading "American Indian
Myths and Legends" by Richard Erdoes and Alfonso Ortiz which has some
stories from Natives of this immediate area.
     As far as my personal research, I have sent all the necessary
paperwork to the Adoption Agency that I was adopted form and I will
receive medical and non-identifying information in a month or so. I have
also been researching DNA testing as suggested by a classmate and several
others. I have found that with the DNA testing I will be able to know my
biological background without any direct personal information form a
relative. Also I will be able to find anyone I may be related to if they
have also gotten a DNA test. My adopted Father is also still helping me on
the legal end. I may have a chance at a "release" of my birth certificate,
the un-amended one. That is the hardest most frustrating aspect of this
search. To know that some frickin government official who could really
careless about me or my birth mother has all this information yet can do
nothing with it. This is where I am constantly learning patience.
     I am continuing on researching adoption in our country and the ways
of adoption for the Native Americans of this country, how adoption has
influenced the coarse of history for myself and those of Native American
Ancestry.
 Thank you for your time and have an awesome day!!!
Amy Monaghan



From: Justin Honeywell [mailto:justinlittlefeather@hotmail.com]
Sent: Fri 2/10/2006 1:34 PM
To: Reconciliation
Subject: [reconciliation] Week 5 Report
 
I set out this quarter to persue writing my book and continue my studies of
writing itself and philosophy. However, due to my passion for nature and
tracking mystery I soon found myself passionate about learning all sorts of
information about biology, ecology, zoology, etc. but I am going at it from
a whole different perspective. Like I said before I am passionate about
tracking mystery. That is exactly how I am going about learning heavy
science. There are holes in my knowledge of the natural world and beyond and
I am using science to possibly fill those holes. Through the works of James
Redfield and Carlos Casteneda, I am gathering a new perspective on the
Universe and applying that directly to what I learn in science. A beautiful
blend of spirituality and science, a union far over due. I continue to write
my novel as well and continue learning about writing reading books such as
The Chronicles of Narnia, Garden's in the Dunes, etc. Overall it is forming
to be a great mystery to track. Yet there are thousands of resources, and
with a balance of indoor work blended with outdoor field work and
observation, I am learning incredible amounts of lovely information. In
addition to all that I will be spending a week at the Tracker School,
attending their Standard Class. This will compliment the work that I did for
nine months last year studying integral awareness, community building,
survival skills, animal forms, and a skill that I have only begun to venture
into: Pressure Releases. During Spring Break I plan to take all that I am
learning and head to the Oregon Dunes Recreational Area near Readsport,
Oregon. There I will spend the week tracking countless animals and hopefully
pick up a "live" trail and follow it to its source.

Above all I am dancing through my learning fueled by my passions. Books on
schedual and I hope to finish it before the end of next quarter. All my work
this quarter is leading me to my next quarter's project permaculture and
herbalism. I hope to mentor youth as well in the skills of nature awareness
and survival. All the while continuing my studies of field ecology and
philosophy. Good times Good times!

Peace and Wellbeing,
Justin

PS I am now a co-cordinator for CENSE, a campus club of sorts. We meet
Wednesdays at 3pm at the clock tower and head off into the woods to explore
mysteries of all sorts. We will be having free classes ranging topics such
as tracking, plant id and uses, bird language, awareness, etc. I will keep
you all updated. Peace.


From: Lydia Thrall [mailto:lthrall@hotmail.com]
Sent: Fri 2/10/2006 2:25 PM
To: Nakasone, Raul
Subject: Week Five Report
 
All is going well here in Peru.  I have finished reading Teaching Community
and Broad and Alien is the World.  I am currently making steady progress on
Pedagogy of Hope and One Hundred Years of Solitude. Although all of us are
working on slightly different projects, we share our learning as part of the
same academic community by discussing our reading and experienes here.  My
Spanish is coming along well also.  I have found that every day life is in
fact the best classroom, and thus, the school never took a formal shape. 
Regaurdless, I have spent a good amount of time exchanging language with
children in the community at La Barranca, as well as with other community
members.
Camille and I are planning to travel to Puerto Maldonado where we will
arrive on the 14th of February.  We will be working at the Tambopata
Research Center with the Tambopata Macaw Project.  After that our final two
weeks will tentatively be spent in Cusco.  We will be in contact via e-mail.
We will be arriving back in the states on March 29th.
See you then!
Lydia

From: jennifer leonard [mailto:gweniverewho@yahoo.com]
Sent: Sat 2/11/2006 1:23 PM
To: Nakasone, Raul
Subject: [reconciliation] Week five reports
 
Hello everyone,
 I started this quarter with plans to create a soundtrack for my film. This piece is an abstract combination of many themes. I want to touch on many images that inflict an emotional feeling on the audience. For example a mother and daughter holding each other, would have a different impact on someone that has a close relationship with their mother as apposed to someone who had an absent mother. I really just want to make people feel. As for the sound I am mixing my own soundtrack, a combination of my own creations and different loops from songs I feel assist in the emotions. Although I want this film to have an strong impact I really want to use it to showcase my editing skills. There are many creative design techniques in the editing process that I want to showcase. I plan to use this film to send to different companies and film festivals. I have been diligently gathering footage to encompass my film. The full length I estimate the film to be is around 30 minutes.  I am using
 garageband and my turntables to work on the soundtrack, and it is coming along very good. I have been reading some very interesting books, "The eye is quicker: film editing: making a good film better", by Richard D. Pepperman; "The filmmakers Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide", By Steven Ascher; "Turntable Technique: The Art Of The DJ", By Stephen Webber; "In the Blink Of an Eye 2nd Edition": By Walter Murch; "How to DJ Right: The Art and Science of Playing Records": By Frank Broughton and Bill Brewster. In conclusion I have basically been keeping up with my initial plan and if you have any questions or comments please feel free to ask. Thanks and have a good day.
 sincerely,
 Jennifer Leonard


From: Kealani [mailto:kk_2_u@hotmail.com]
Sent: Fri 2/10/2006 6:12 PM
To: Reconciliation
Subject: [reconciliation] A Rambling, Slightly Delayed Midterm/Year Update
 
The beginning of Winter Quarter found me settling into a new apartment in
Hillsboro, OR.  Why Hillsboro? Well, my domestic partner, having graduated
from Evergreen last Spring, found employment here in his desired field.
However, despite living in a different place, I still had planned to
continue my syllabus from last quarter.  However, life circumstances
continued to distract and derail me.

I had originally planned to be spending this month in China with my mother
Mililani.  She and I had planned to travel to Kunming in the Yunnan
Province to meet up with my aunt Noe who lives there.  My Fall Quarter
included extensive discussions (email, skype, and phone) between my
mother, aunt, and I about our travel plans. However, in December my mom
was unexpectedly offered a Hawaiian Homes lot. This had only been the
second year my mom had been on the waiting list, so she hadn't expected to
be offered anything so quickly.

[Side note: As far as I know, the Hawaiian Homes Commission was
established partly in reparation to the Hawaiian people (for monarchy
overthrow and seizure of lands) and partly as a result of research that
was done that showed that the massive mortality rate among Hawaiians was
largely a result from being displaced and poverty stricken.  Essentially,
this Commission was set up to parcel out land plots for Hawaiians to live
on. The process is an extensive one, requiring an applicant to prove blood
quantum of 50% Hawaiian ancestry in addition to providing other family
history documentation. While this doesn't seem complicated, due to
incomplete records and high percentage of intermarriage with other racial
groups, it has proven to be a difficult or impossible task for many
Hawaiian families. Each applicant selects a certain type of lot to be
listed for (rural/undeveloped, urban developed/undeveloped, etc.). In
addition to this lot designation and depending on which island you wish to
settle on, the availability differs greatly.  In the past, some families
have waited over 20 years for an offer.  So, needless to say, our family
was shocked that my mom got an offer so quickly.]

After some family discussion which included my aunt, my mom and I decided
to cancel our trip and funnel the travel funds into house funds instead.
Until my mom physically moves onto the land and rents it for 99 years,
only my mother and other 50%+ blood quantum Hawaiians may take over her
offer. Thus, none of our immediate family except for my mom is on the
papers.  My father is ineligible because he is German, and my brothers and
I are ineligible because of blood quantum.  However, once the paperwork is
finalized an applicant may designate any inheritor as long as that
inheritor can prove Hawaiian ancestry.  Thus, as soon as my mom moves onto
the property next September, she will put my brothers and I down as
inheritors.  This is huge news for my mother, who has never owned a home
only rented.  In addition, it will mean that my brothers and I will have a
place to call our family home. Yay!

I have gone into so much detail about this process because the journey
that my mother took in order to fill out the paperwork has opened lines of
communication between her extended family and our immediate family.  My
mom's extensive family research has enabled her to help several of her
siblings, and one uncle, to also apply for Hawaiian Homes.  As a result of
all of this, my mom, Aunt Noe, and a couple of their siblings are talking
about writing a book about their Hawaiian ancestry and family history.

Fortunately, I have been brought along for the ride.  Last year, I spent a
month with my family on Maui and a week on Molokai with my cousin,
deepening relationships with my extended family. So far this year I've
only been able to maintain email, skype, and phone contact, but it has
been exciting to learn so much about my ancestral history.  However, I
will be taking my domestic partner to Maui with me in April to meet my
family for the first time. Yay and yikes!

Essentially, I have spent much more of my time then previously expected
learning about my family history.  Along with this, I have been learning
about my family's medical history.  This in turn, has redirected the
course of the rest of my studies this quarter.  To put it briefly, my
extended family, like many indigenous peoples exposed to a Western diet,
has had various physical health problems and ailments.  These physical
ailments are only the start, mental/emotional/spiritual ailments also
revealing themselves in other ways.

As such, I wanted to focus on health (mental, physical/sexual, emotional,
spiritual): my health, my partner's health, our cat's health, my family's
health, our culture's health, how health is defined (historically,
culturally, etc.), how health can be maintained, etc.

I have included a working bibliography of the texts that I am currently
reading and/or browsing through. However, this list is limited because it
doesn't include the research I do online or the personal contacts I have.
However, in addition to my research and journaling, I am critically
looking at my habits (eating, sleeping, exercise, awareness, spirituality,
etc.). I am cooking most of my partners and my meals, trying to weed out
the fast food, and choosing healthy options at restaurants.  As part of my
culinary adventures, I am including more unprocessed ingredients and
veggies/fruits.  I am also doing yoga twice a week, and trying to maintain
a minimal 3x weekly aerobic workout.

As I am in a new town and a new state, I am also attempting to get to know
the area.  My list of activities includes taking weekend hikes, trying out
new restaurants (there's an awesome Cuban restaurant downtown Portland if
anyone gets down this way), finding new used books stores, and learning
the culture here.
     
If anyone desires clarification, or has any questions about my studies
please feel free to contact me.  I check the webx/weblist daily, and have
greatly enjoyed those who have been sharing where their own study paths
have led them. Until next time, enjoy. ~Kealani


Working Bibliography

1.Agatston, Arthur (M.D.). The South Beach Diet: The Delicious,
Doctor-Designed, Foolproof Plan for Fast and Healthy Weight Loss. New
York: Rodale, 2003.

2.Campbell, Joseph. Myths to Live By: How we re-create ancient legends in
our own    daily lives to release human potential. New York: Penguin Group,
1972.

3.Chopra, Deepak (M.D.). Perfect Weight: the complete mind/body program
for achieving and maintaining your ideal weight. New York: Harmony Books,
1994.

4.Dillard, Annie. The Writing Life. New York: Harper & Row, 1989.

5.Fiffer, Sharon Sloan and Steve Fiffer, ed. Family: American Writers
Remember Their Own. New York: Pantheon Books, 1996.

6.Foster, Patricia, ed. Minding the Body: Women Writers on Body and Soul.
New York:Anchor Books, 1994.

7.Freire, Paulo. The Politics of Education: Culture, Power, and
Liberation. Westport: Bergin & Garvey, 1985.

8.Holtzman, Barbara (MSW, LICSW). Conscious Eating, Conscious Living: A 
Practical Guide To Making Peace With Food & Your Body. Wakefield, RI:
2001.

9.Hooks, Bell. Wounds of Passion: A Writing Life. New York: Henry Holt,
1999.

10.Keen, Sam and Anne Valley-Fox. Your Mythic Journey: Finding Meaning in
Your Life Through Writing and Storytelling. Los Angeles: Jeremy P.
Tarcher, 1989.

11.Kidd, Sue Monk. The Dance of the Dissident Daughter: A Woman's Journey
from Christian Tradition to the Sacred Feminine. New York: HarperCollins,
1996.

12.Koppel, Tom. Kanaka: The Untold Story of Hawaiian Pioneers in British
Columbia and the Pacific Northwest. Vancouver, B.C.: Whitecap Books, 1995.

13.McGraw, Dr. Phil. The Ultimate Weight Solution: The 7 Keys to Weight
Loss Freedom. New York: The Free Press, 2003.

14.McGraw, Phillip C. (PhD). Life Strategies: Doing What Works; Doing What
Matters.      New York: Hyperion, 1999.

15.McGraw, Phillip C. (PhD). The Life Strategies Workbook: Exercises and
Self-Tests to Help You Change Your Life. New York: Hyperion, 2000.

16.Schlosberg, Suzanne and Liz Neporent, M.A. Fitness for DUMMIES. 2nd ed.
Foster City: IDG Books Worldwide, 2000.

17.Tiwari, Maya. A Life of Balance: The Complete Guide to Ayurvedic
Nutrition & Body Types with Recipes. Rochester: Healing Arts, 1995.

18.Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment.
Novato: New World Library, 1999.

19.Webb, Tamilee, M.A. and Lori Seeger, M.A. Workouts for DUMMIES. Foster
City: IDG Books Worldwide, 1998.

From: Sputnikk57@aol.com [mailto:Sputnikk57@aol.com]
Sent: Sat 2/11/2006 12:42 PM
To: Nakasone, Raul
Cc: Rutledge, David; petersony@evergreen.edu
Subject: reconciliation/5 week report
 
Hello,
This is Caitlin Daniel, I am registered in Reconciliation.   I have not yet
contacted the message board or faculty but my work has been going through
transition, and I believe it's made me turn inside myself for guidance a bit more
than to my community/class.   However, I take a lot of value from the
reconciliation list, and while I may not post as much, I definitely pay attention.
I wanted to write to you all to address my own past five weeks.   In the
beginning, I had planned to use photography for exploration.   I was hoping to
focus on the properties of light and darkness, to illustrate the awareness and
visibility of identities in western culture.   By this I meant to connect my
previous work in Queer Studies to art, showing subjects whose visibility is
especially compromised by imperialism, capitalism, and other such institutions,
i.e. transgender, mixed race, native people, female-bodied people.   A couple of
weeks into this, I realized I couldn't keep myself from taking pictures of
everything, and that I wasn't necessarily just sticking to visibility of human
subjects.   I decided not to stop, and I've been compiling a digital portfolio
of shots.   The photos I am taking, in my mind, stir up lots of emotions, some
of which I can't put my finger on.   I have also been making short films and
recording my own music for the soundtrack.   I am trying to allow myself to
keep my work, rather than be incredibly picky and keep 5% of what I've done,
although it's so easy to discard digital work.   Up to now, I've realized a lot
about my style of art, and really gained a new perspective on photography,
especially digital.   I am still not sure where this project will lead me, but I am
planning on travelling and doing my photography elsewhere, most likely next
quarter.   I enjoy not knowing actually, because it leaves me open to whatever
comes.   If I am inspired, I will work, period.   And I find myself inspired
by so many things, so I have decided not to limit that.   Hopefully at the end
of this project, I will find myself exhibiting much of it on campus or in
Olympia...maybe across the country, who knows!
I feel badly that it's taken me so long to put in any feedback of my own, it
was just hard to know how to present my project when it keeps changing with
each day.   Reconciliation as a learning program is a totally new experience for
me, so I am getting used to it, however I feel great being a part of a
community that allows for so much exploration.

Thank you!
Caitlin

From: crazi1885@aol.com [mailto:crazi1885@aol.com]
Sent: Fri 2/10/2006 7:10 PM
To: Reconciliation
Subject: [reconciliation] fifth week report

      Sorry this is slightly delayed, I have been having lots of stress
in my 16 credit program.
         I am taking 2 credits in this class for Winter Semester because
I decided that I wanted to do several independant studies that I felt
were necessary to share and recieve credit for.
         Lately I have been noticing how common sexually transmitted
infections are, and last semester I decided to participate in Planned
Parenthood to help, learn and share what is going on in the non profit
organization. I decided for last semester to write about my experience
working there and list ways of how we can work on being healthier and
more aware of ourselves. And this semester I am putting together a
paper on information on sexually transmitted infections since I can see
how confusing it can be and how the facts aren't always straight. There
are lots of things we do not know about this and I wanted to be able to
point them out and hopefully people will get a better idea of how
infections are transmitted, how easy it is to get it, or even how hard
it is to get it. I also am working on description of each infection and
as many facts as I found about them. Luckily I have access to Planned
Parenthood and am able to interview with them. I have lots of
information on this and this will be part of Fall semesters work as
well.
           Recently I have been finding myself in a blur, kind of lost
and going on the wrong path like not listening as well as I should, not
accepting things the way they are, and just being really hard on
myself. I decided to use this time to read Autobiography of a Yogi and
practice yoga. I have studied yoga for many years and put a sudden stop
to it one day...ever since then I haven't been in touch with my body.
So part of this 2 credit set up is to talk about my experience on
losing touch with myself and looking for ways that will be healthier
for me and will get me back on the right track.
           Hopefully this is enough for 2 credits but if you believe
that I should do more than please email me back because I am not
exactly what people look forward to in 2 credits. I personally find
this is perfect besides the heavy 16 credit program but I need to hear
what others think and see what I can do about it.
            Thanks! -Sarah Muhlenberg