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Wednesday, 05 October 2005 |
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Of course tons has happened since the last entry (including going to Germany for a weekend and celebrating my aunt's birthday there as a suprise guest and then going voting for the first time in 12 years - whole lot to say about that...). But one of the reasons I have not had time to update this site is that I am having the great pleasure to help organize the following conference. Just finished the program for it (learned a lot about graphic design that I never wanted to know). I also have the utter pleasure of sitting on the Consciousness panel, which I am really looking forward to. There will be some amazing people at this conference and I can't wait to connect and talk with some of them...
Storytelling
and the
Future of Content
Oct. 7–9, 2005 |
...Over
60 Authors, Agents, Editors and Authorities from the
Transmedia & Consciousness worlds ...Over 40 Workshops,
Panels & General Sessions ...Keynote Speakers
Friday, Saturday & Sunday...
... and much more!
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THE
WORLD HAS CHANGED.
Or have we changed the world? As writers and content
creators, change is the very fabric of our existence.
As storytellers, our charge is to engage the audience
with tales of characters overcoming obstacles that
result in purposeful change. Regardless of genre,
from international thrillers to intimate portraits
of personal transformation, our stories offer visceral
validation of who we are, or who we are not, or who
we most aspire to be.
For
those involved in writing, developing, or producing
stories for the commercial marketplace, the trends
of tomorrow are being shaped by four factors today:
Science, Technology, Creativity and Consciousness.
Whether it be for books, video games, film & TV
or Podcasts, and regardless of genre, one irrefutable
truth remains absolute: story must transcend technology
if it’s to have any lasting value.
Digitainment
is extending the reach of storytellers. Coupled
with a heightened mainstream interest in consciousness
and spirituality, as evidenced by the popularity
of The Da Vinci Code, or movies such as
What the #$*! Do We (K)now!?, National
Treasure and Pay It Forward, and the
prospects for affecting inclusive, positive change
through our fiction and nonfiction in this growing
global market is like never before.
The
SCWC has empowered writers with the vital tools
for getting to market for 19 years, having facilitated
nearly $3 million in book and screen deals. This
year in Los Angeles we explore the trends, technology
and future of creative convergence. In Los Angeles,
we explore the potential of possibility
Taisen
Deshimaru once said that "Time is not a line,
but a series of now points." Well the time
is now. Join us at the Fourth Annual Southern California
Writers’ Conference *Los Angeles.
Now
is the time for you to write and create!
SCWC*LA 4 LOCATION
The
conference will be held at the Manhattan
Beach Marriott, which sits on some 26 acres
of manicured majesty, a mere three miles away from
LAX.
Address:
1400 Parkview Avenue, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266.
Phone: (800) 228-9290.
Discounted lodging rates are available to SCWC*LA
conferees. Conference dates are October 7-9, 2005.
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Here are some of
the exciting sponsors who are supporting this event:
Founded
by professional authors devoted to addressing the
needs of writers of every level, in its 19-year history
nearly $3 million worth of book and screen deals have
been signed as a result of material and contacts nurtured
at the Southern California Writers' Conference. In
2004 alone, four past conferees' books were published
as a direct result of our efforts.
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Wednesday, 31 August 2005 |
Inviting artists to your home to present what they are passionate about is probably one of the best ways to feed your mind and encourage transformation. Last Saturday I had the pleasure of hosting yet another PoetrySoup event. I started these nearly two years ago as an answer to the poetry readings my friend Stosh dragged me to all over town. Some amazing talent here in LA, but the environments were often a bit of a bore, so we decided to invite them over, cook some soup for them and see what happens. Pretty much all of the events have been lovely, but this one definitely stood out. The caliber of art (poetry and music) this Saturday was amazing. I am deeply grateful I got to be there and experience it.
For those who missed out, here at least the recipes for the soups I made (which I was told were quite delicious):
Cold Tomato Soup
Chopped cucumbers into little pieces. Added fresh parsley from our garden and dill. Skinned tomatoes by briefly boiling them and then shocking them with cold water. Added tomatoes to the mix (including the seeds as the juice around the seeds is often the most flavorful). Then I blended the mixture together until fairly smooth. Added a bit of vegetable juice and chilled the soup. Later I added finely chopped mixed bell peppers and cucumbers (thank you Shaunti and Dyana!). Chilled the whole thing for a few hours before serving.
Cantalope Champagne Soup
Quite delicious on a hot day, this is even easier to make. My brave friend Shaunti scooped out tons of cantalopes. Put them in a pot and added some lemon juice and lemon zest. Blended the mixture. Then added chopped freshly picked mint and blended it some more. Chilled the whole thing and just before serving added some chilled champagne to the soup... Topped the whole thing with a basil whipping cream. Might sound a bit odd, but try it sometime!
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Wednesday, 24 August 2005 |
 "Home is where the heart is" they say... Well, if that is indeed the case, my home is all over the place ;-) I just returned to Los Angeles to the littlehouse a bit over a week ago after the 8 week gig in Europe which was all about learning how to be centered wherever, in airports, hotels, different countries, and all about being home in myself). My head is still spinning a bit as the transformation that occurs with traveling is still settling. Most of all, I enjoyed the amazing diversity this planet has to offer (so sad that people seem to have issues with that and consider it a reason to blow each other up, whether with smart boms or bombs in backpacks). Images from the different countries I visited are still coming up in my head, some of the delicious food I got to eat, the different styles of buildings, and most of all the people. A dear friend of mine once said that you haven't traveled if you haven't made a friend. Well, I guess I did travel in that case. I met some lovely people all over Europe and some of them, I know, will be in my life for a while. I look forward to how that will unfold.
A whole lot of new projects came up while I was in Europe and I am eager to get working on these, but for now I need to focus on the tasks at hand...
My computer just died on me, which means that apart from the project work I did in Europe, I lost all of my data from the last two months. Lovely when that happens, liberating in a way...
Apart from that, it's all about finishing up what I had started (the Six Sigma for Your Life project went quite well, and is now ready for revision). Then it's on to two conferences that are coming up: one is organized by the Institute for Global Transformation, and features a variety of organizations dedicated to service, ranging from Boeing to Waldorf Schools, to Course in Miracles, and of course the Center for Conscious Creativity. Then, there is the Writers Conference this fall, which should be quite exciting with organizations like the Noetics Institute, the Philosophical Research Society, transformative and consciousness based authors and on the other hand presentations on writing for new technologies like podcasting, DVDs, or gaming.
Lots of good stuff coming up... For now, I am going to be treating myself to a PoetrySoup party and there is some good music and art coming up. Dean Chamberlain, Alex Grey and some others have a show coming up, which I look very much forward to. Apart from that, it's all about continuing to plug away and keep living life as art ;-)
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Tuesday, 12 July 2005 |
 In airports you can see all kinds of different people. I like to get there early and sit and watch the stream of faces from places all over the world pass by. Airports are one of my favorite places to do a Sufi exercise I once learned: In observing your fellow humans say to yourself: "I am looking at the faces of God".
Changes one's perspective... On this little planet we live on, everyone is your neighbor. The space between the particles that make up your body is that very same space that permeates everything and everyone else. While you are separate, you are also one with everything - the beautiful core paradox of life...
Today, I am leaving London for a tour all over Europe to visit the local offices of my client. There will be plenty of airports along the path and I am already looking forward to seeing "God" in hir many faces.
Being in London for the last few weeks has been interesting in many ways. It was sad to be here and witness human beings blowing each other up - especially when knowing that this happens all day long all over the world. It is amazing that today there are still people who think that "God" can be separated. That we can have different ones each more omnipotent and omniscient than the other, that "God" can be separate depending on where on this lovely planet one gets to grow up.
It was curious to me that only a few days prior to the bombs exploding in London, a friend of mine send me a link to a speech that was made in 1953 declaring a world government (the Ellsworth declaration). It was saddening to read and infuriating at the same time considering that more than 50 years have past since, and that we still don't seem to be any further in making this one planet with one population.
Until we all consider ourselves one species, humans, and until we look at our home as this planet rather than arbitrarily determined nations, we will continue to suffer from separation and all the terror it brings with it.
It starts with each and every one of us. I, for my part, look forward to sitting in the airport and doing my Sufi exercise today and over the next couple of weeks while traveling all over Europe. It might be a small thing, but it's definitely a start...
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Monday, 04 July 2005 |
"Berliner Luft" (Berlin air) has already been praised in a song of the past.... Got to inhale some of it during a short visit over the weekend. Do have to say it was noticable. Los Angeles is not really known for its air quality in spite of the many improvements (personally, I like the dryness of the air and the smell of flowers). London is battling with 3 million cars and in spite of a few lovely parks that act as the lungs of this place, the air is not that great. Being in Berlin, I definitely noticed the difference. So many streets are lined with trees, the air smelled fresh and lovely...
Air was on my mind this weekend, I guess. Talked with my lovely cousin and her boyfriend about yoga a lot. Breathing, such an incredibly simple thing, so at the core of our being, is so often neglected. To consciously inhale (air that is), is such a beautiful treat, and one of my favorite results of doing yoga. It reminds us that we are here, allows us to suck the marrow out of the bone of life... Just as art does...
 Art was actually my primary reason to come to Berlin. My cousin Kay Vygen had an art opening called "Koerpersprache" (Body Language) in a charming gallery/ wine store. With my life in flux as it has been, his opening was the one date I committed to in Europe this year. And I made it! The joy that comes from living up to a commitment can honestly not be underestimated. Such a treat it was, too. Saw lots of my family, which was wonderful, got to have some beautiful conversations with friends of my family, and all around had a most lovely time. Even ended up buying some art... Although my living situation is a bit open at the moment, I could not help it. Broke the spell a couple of months ago when I bought a beautiful photograph of the desert and mountains in Bolivia by my gifted friend Linka (still don't have a picture of it, funny enough... will put it up eventually). Since, my cousin Kay's sculpture (in the picture) is the latest addition to my collection... ahhh art.... the dual process of transformation that occurs in the making and beholding of art is for me at the core of human existence (here a paper I wrote on the topic).
Just read a lovely book on C.G. Jung's new myth for man this weekend, which essentially talked about Jung's idea that the meaning of life lies in conscious living. Consciousness being "knowing with", existing willingly as a means for the underlying Consciousness that we all share, "God" if you will, to experience itself in actuality. Conscious living as a means to continue to make unconscious parts of our transpersonal selves conscious, bringing to light all there is. Art is a crucial tool in this process in that it allows to bring to light things that are hard to explain in words, that loose their magic in scientific rationalization. As Goethe already stated, we cannot experience the divine, truth, directly, but only in symbol and example. Art appears as both.
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Friday, 24 June 2005 |
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 Ahhh..... London.... one of my favorite cities in the world. When I grew up and first learned English, I always wanted to live there, but then got sidetracked into living in the states. Never lost my love for it, though.
And here I am again. After unexpectedly spending the last five and a half months in Los Angeles, I am now unexpectedly in London, and it looks like I might see a whole lot of other lovely European cities in the next few weeks. Am in London for a consulting project for Universal Studios, and might also "have to" visit Paris, Berlin, Munich, Milan, and Madrid in the next weeks. Fun, fun, fun... We will see what happens, but it looks like the travels continue. Am hoping to make it back to Los Angeles mid-August, as I have two conferences coming up for the Center for Conscious Creativity. Very much looking forward to those - if you are interested in the current paradigm shift and how it relates to projects of transformation and to changing myths, I highly encourage you to check out those conferences. Should be quite interesting ;-)
Took the picture above with my phone this morning on a little walk. Did not have my camera or proper attire with me, although I of course took the monk regalia with me on my travels and might have to redo the shot in that. You can see Big Ben and Westminster Abbey in the distance. |
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Wednesday, 01 June 2005 |
 Finally! When I left for the Swiss Alps, I was hoping to spend a lot of quality time writing this program I came up with last year called "Six Sigma for Your Life".
Essentially, it combines Quality Management (Six Sigma was invented by Motorola for improving the output of widgets in manufacturing processes and later adopted by GE to become a generic tool to improve any process) and a variety of traditions and systems for personal improvement, including yoga, depth psychology, NLP, and even some aspects of Quantum Physics.
I am running a FREE prototype to help my brother's PhD research on Stress Management. If you are interested, make sure you sign up before June 2! To sign up, go to the Six Sigma for Your Life website.
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Thursday, 24 February 2005 |
 It looks like I will have to interrupt my monktour for a few months... Will be in LA for a while thanks to the Center for Conscious Creativity and a whole load of other things... Too much going on here. Such a buzzing place LALAland is at the moment... Several of my friends have some beautiful projects going on as well, and I am excited about being here and supporting them. We will see what comes forth in the next weeks.
The last two have definitely been quite amazing. My brother was here to visit for two weeks. Am working with him on Six Sigma for Your Life, a course I have been developing, and which he is investigating in the context of his PhD on stress management. It was great to spend some quality time with him here in LA. Wish the weather had been better as I had hoped my brother could get some sunshine while he is out here, but contrary to common belief, it does rain in LA sometimes ;-)
Had a most lovely time full of adventures while he was here, though. Had a little impromptu event at the little house, made soup, and invited some of my lovely musician friends. Chris and Thomas came by without instruments (think they wanted to chill for once), but my friend who has a one-man band called The Lonliest Monk, brought an array of curious instruments with him, my friend Frankie "Fingers" sat down on the piano, and everyone was jamming before you knew it ;-) Quite lovely. The picture on the bottom is my brother after the party - not very charming picture as he was making a funny end-of-the-party face ;-) Light the light over his ajna, though...
Met two lovely gentleman that evening who are in the midst of shooting a documentary on addiction (they came to my place that night via Beverly Hills and Skid Row). Made me think about addiction quite a bit. Think that initially every act or thought is creative, conscious and willful. As we keep repeating it, it can turn into a habit without mindfulness. At some point, all the will is with the habit - and at this point, it has turned into addiction. From there, we can become conscious of it, turn it back into a habit as we reclaim our will over it, and finally, each act/thought becomes willfull again, without projection, conscious and creative. Hmm... will work on that one ;-) Am currently playing around with some of my habits, primarily smoking. Has been quite interesting and a good exercise in will. The mind is such an amazing thing...
Life is such a different experience when we exercise our will. Most of the time, we spend in slumber states, pulled by projections and imaginary rules we assumed often without questioning. If we actually pull all that energy back, take time to know and exercise our will, life suddenly becomes a whole new game of conscious creativity. Will write plenty more as I am putting together a book on the topic. So watch out ;-)
Much more to say, but no time right now... |
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