when you wish upon a star...

"Dear Faustina,

I’m so grateful for your generous contribution of 4,000 points. 

It’s friends like you who make it possible for Wish of a Lifetime from AARP to grant wishes to so many deserving older adults. 

As a part of this community, you are helping thousands of older adults to age with hope and joy.

Thank you for choosing to use your AARP Rewards points to help those in need. 

We truly value your support.
 

Warm Regards,
 

Tom Wagenlander
VP & Executive Director" 

Playing games and watching videos to better the world...

yes, that's me!

(smile!)

future of public art in savannah... and i helped

The City of Savannah is asking its citizens, and visitors, to chime in on how the dollars collected in property taxes and tourist fees should be spent.

Happy to oblige!

I declined to use the QR code, but I did respond to the 20-question survey which I received via email, taking time with each response.

That meant I spent almost 40 minutes on the survey.

Here are my suggestions for public art in this town I have loved all my life.

 

Q1: What characteristics, places, and/or values are unique to Savannah?

 

Item 1: plethora of downtown parks

Item 2: more than 200 years of history

Item 3: welcoming nature as a port city to diverse people

 

Q2: Public art in Savannah should feel like (put in order of importance).:

 

1. Representative of Savannah's people, history, and natural surroundings

2. Historical

3. Local

4. Attractive

5. Educational

6. Inclusive

7. Entertaining

8. Worldly

Q5: Where would you like to encounter public art in Savannah? Rank the following in order of priority.

 

1. As part of any new building projects in the area

2. Neighborhood gateways and gathering spaces

3. City parks and spaces

4. Major intersections and/or roundabouts

5. Government buildings or community-owned facilities

6. Unused or vacant parcels

7. Roads, sidewalks, and other pedestrian areas

8. Commercial or retail areas

Q6: Name three places in Savannah where you want to see public art.

 

Place 1: south of Victory Drive

Place 2: north of Largo Drive

Place 3: in medians on Abercorn Street

Q8: If you had a space to create a large symbol of your culture and identity, what would you put there?

 

Answer: A directional sign with arrows pointing to various countries in the United Kingdom and in Africa, where original immigrants (by free will or forced) came to the 13 colonies.

Q9: What is the role of monuments in our public spaces?

 

Answer: To educate the public about important moments in history, about important inventions, and about important artists in this area.

Q10: What is the role of public art in our public spaces?

 

Answer: To generate conversations about past history, about diversity, and about the world around us.

Q11: Identify a place in Savannah that makes you feel a sense of belonging. What were its characteristics?

 

Answer: Forrest Hills Park. An abundance of trees, a playground for neighborhood children, sports activities for adults of all ages.

Q19:  General comments.

 

Answer: Thank you for this survey. The questions gave me an opportunity to reflect upon what "art" means to me.

 

(Note: Not all questions were conducive to taking screen shots, as they contained images of types of art which might be preferred, types of settings for art, and other things of that nature. Thus, I have only included those questions on the survey for which a screen shot resulted in a capture of the question and my answers in their entirety.)

fundraiser down at tybee!

What a wonderful evening I've had at Tybee Post Theater!

I'm so glad I finally decided to go there.

Tonight, the Coastal Cohorts held a 40th anniversary reprisal of their classic storytelling concert, "King Mackerel & The Blues Are Running", and every dollar went to the theatre.

It was a sold-out show, too!

That means the $26 ticket fee I paid, and that the majority of the patrons paid, went to help this venue bring more such shows here.

I'm all in favor of that!

This is quickly becoming one of my favorite places for films, concerts, musicals, and plays.

Keep up the good work!

farewell to thee, red dye 3

Consumer Reports sent me an email: the October campaign had been successful!

No longer would that carcinogen be used for foodstuffs... including straws.

I met someone at the cinema who could not use red straws in her drinks, as she was deathly allergic and had ended up in the hospital the last time she did.

Scary stuff!

Now it was time to go after other artificial dyes the food of ourselves and our children.

 

"Much like Red Dye 3, this group of six synthetic food dyes are used in a wide range of food and drinks, but haven’t been reviewed for safety by the FDA in decades, despite recent studies that link the chemicals to serious health problems.

California passed a landmark bill that would ban these dyes – Red 40, Yellow 5 & 6, Blue 1 & 2, and Green 3 – from foods served to school kids in the state. Recent studies found these dyes put some children at higher risk of hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral issues that interfere with learning. And one, Red Dye 40, has been linked to cancer. Despite these risks, the safety of many of these dyes haven’t been reevaluated by the FDA since the 1970s and 80s.

It’s time for the FDA to catch up with the latest science and get these harmful chemicals out of everyone’s food. Sign our petition, and let’s get another big win when it comes to toxin-free food!
 
Sign the Petition »

 

Please share our petition with friends and family, and post it on your social channels to help amp up the pressure. We want the FDA to hear loud and clear that consumers expect safer food now.

Thank you,

Meg Bohne
Consumer Reports"

 

Done, Meg!

Dear Reader, won't you join in this campaign?

Many thanks!

gift to all of my brothers

Finally I had enough in my Kiva account for this gift to my brothers, as well as to those seeking the loan there to enrich their community!

Meet Mary, of Good Hope Sgbl, in Zambia.

She's the third from the right in this photo of the group she works with for loans.

She needs the $2,750 "to buy beers and restaurant dishes" for her customers.

What made her ask so compelling for me?

Today is Friday.

That's the day I get together with my brothers and their friends for the Smiths & Kamerons Friday Fiesta at Jalapenos of Sandfly.

Seriously, that's a real thing.

The men quaff beers and the women sip margaritas and we all sit and chat for at least an hour whilst munching chips and salsa.

Then, we order and we're there another hour, still chatting and quaffing.

Hugs all around before we go our separate ways at night's end.

Let me tell you, this time with them is very important to my social life.

I'm sure the people in Zambia who dine at Mary's restaurant feel the same need for a place to eat, drink, and be merry with those important to them.

So, Happy Christmas, Smitty and Dood!

keeping wiki free to all

Dear Faustina,

Thank you so much for your USD $28.60 one-time donation to support Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation. With this support, you help strengthen our nonprofit mission to ensure people everywhere can access the information they need, whenever they need it, for free.

Wikipedia only works because of the hundreds of thousands of humans who dedicate their time and energy to making it one of the most trusted sources of information online. The tireless efforts of these volunteers are what makes this website invaluable to billions of readers worldwide. This is even more important today with the changes in technology and artificial intelligence shaping our world.

So the next time you visit Wikipedia, I hope you take pride in knowing that you help make this possible. Wikipedia is a collective labor of love, and you’re a part of it. Thank you again for your dedication to this remarkable mission.

With gratitude,
Maryana Iskander
CEO, Wikimedia Foundation 

------------------------------

If you like Wiki

Like I like Wiki,

oh, oh, oh, what a site!

You can give, too, to make sure reliable information is accessible to all.

Just click here.

There's sure to be an option for your budget, too.

picking fruit from the angell tree

No, that isn't a typo in the title.

Laura Angell had been the youth minister for Asbury Memorial Church for years and when she died from cancer a few years ago, the youths became Laura's Angells.

Nice, right?

This year, the group has decorated the Angell Tree in Holliday Hall with paper ornaments bearing the names of gifts needed to help P.A.C.K. Savannah.

That group - People of Action Caring for Kids - had requested a range of items for their clients, running the gamut from sports items to dolls to warm coats in various sizes.

I don't usually participate in this drive, but I chose to be part of it this year.

The item I ultimately settled upon was "basketball", which was written on multiple ornaments on the tree.

 

My choice of which to buy was based on my belief that the toy was meant for a girl.

Here's hoping she will become as famous in that sport as the player - Caitlin Clark - whose name is emblazoned on the ball.