project homeless: chapter 1, the bridge

i had never been here before and i wasn't really sure i knew what i was doing. but i stepped through the hole in the fence, with richie following and headed toward the bridge. there were three men hanging over the wall, talking and looking out over the city. a fourth one approached. we introduced ourselves and i offered them our water-cliff bar & orange supplies. all of the men took several things from the bag and told me it would be ok to walk about and take pictures, which of course, they knew i was there for. it's not like my camera was hiding --hanging on my neck. 

three of them walked away as i started to inspect the area of a few good shots. lamar, stayed however, and we engaged in a fairly light-hearted conversation with him. he said he'd been on  the street for about a year. he never said why. he typically "hustled" during the day where-ever he could, but he also was consistent about finding plastic and trash to take to the local recycling center. he pointed out, on the train tracks where he was able to collect materials. 

his toothless grin was charming and richie entertained him while i walked off for a few minutes to examine their living quarters. there was no way to explain it except to say: trash was everywhere. the fine art of it all was the sleeping bags strewn across the bridge or perhaps a shirt or pants hanging over a box or a fence. moreover - there were "caves" built with old mattresses, boards, tarps, and blankets where each other them slept. they basically looked like the fort you made in your back-yard as a kid....but with more dirt and trash. these men were survivors. and these men were making the best of their current circumstances. 

one of the appeals, lamar told us, of this rustic place, was the view. the city shone on every side of them. and when the lights went out at night, it was rather spectacular. he even commented on how fascinating the fireworks were on the fourth of july. certainly this "house" had enough comfort to offer men who had no other place to rest. for the most part, he noted, the train was the only heavy noise that kept them awake, but i assume they also get used to it. 

the time spent, was well served, and well learned. what i captured, i cannot forget. and there will be more to think on as i keep working through the photos....more to come.....

a mantra

counting clouds

july, it's my favorite month of the year. summer is in full swing, it's the month that i was born and there is always an excuse to "take a dip." and right now, i'm just lingering. tonight, sitting by the pool, there are clouds in the sky, but i can still see the moon. the air is cool and comfortable. such a relaxed state of mind, i want to stay right where i am. it's true, i am no longer simply referring to the weather. my brain is on and i cannot stop trying to piece together the puzzles in my head. ironically, i am aware that i do not have all the pieces...

i have always had the ability to look ahead, to, at the very least, have an idea of what might be next and how i could prepare for "its" arrival. tonight, i can barely see past the next moment. and i don't know if it is a sense of awe that strikes me or a content confusion. oxymoron? probably- but the fact remains that i am having to learn what it means to live for today, for right now and thoroughly enjoy it, should "enjoyment" be the precarious necessity. and should the moment require sadness, then that too, must also be felt and understood. these are sacred things.

my hopes are with me. my emotions about them are with me. but my fears are with me too. nevertheless, in such a moment, they come and pass until one collected thought makes sense of them all. if i am behind, i can wake tomorrow to catch-up. if i am ahead, perhaps i can slow down. if i am un-nerved, there is nothing i can do about it now, so why let it swallow me whole?

do i believe what i am writing? there are moments i do. but in my humanity, there are moments i do not. nevertheless, i am accepting that the moments exist for me, for my perspective, for my character. 

the voice of eli

tonight i watched the book of eli. needless to say, by the end of the film, tears had welled up. the story had come full circle and was truly amazing. 

a man fought to save the only copy of the bible left in the world. his survival skills were beyond that of all those he met. he had a destiny for which he was determined to fulfill. 

"the lord is my shepherd, i shall not want. he makes me lie down in green pastures. he leads me beside still waters. he restores my soul. he leads me in the path of righteousness for his name sake. yea, though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death, i will fear no evil, for thou art with me..." psalm 23

when the book itself had been stripped from him, he realized that it was not the earthly possession that was important, rather the guidance from the voice he had heard and the words that breathed life on the pages- that which he had learned. 

when he arrived at his destination, the words he had read over and over- were in his mind and heart- and he was able to record the entire book, from beginning to end that it might maintain light in the world. what's more, is that he had been blind- and the only remaining book had been in braille. so when it fell into the wrong hands, the word could not be used for evil, but for good. 

"i will bring the blind by a way they did not know, i will lead them in paths they have not known, i will make darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. these i will do for them and not forsake them" isaiah 42.16

the young woman he had befriended along the way, did something even more spectacular- she carried on his mission- to reach those who had not heard, and fight the good fight, in the name of righteousness. 

it is an apocalyptic film that not only maintains the nature of man, but shows that even in the midst of that is lawlessness, there "is a voice crying out in the wilderness, even when no one is listening, even when it is not changing people, just to keep the common untruth from changing us." (richard rohr)

persons unknown

nbc's summer drama, persons unknown, is a bit of a tag to the ending of abc's lost. now granted, i never got into lost, and i should probably give it a second try. and i'm certain, that for lost fans, persons unknown won't compare. however, the mysterious show has kept my attention and i'm interested in what happens next. s

even people wake up in an abandoned hotel - without a clue as to who would kidnap them or why. cameras surround the island ghost town as well as electro-shock security and no identifiable way to get out. there are mysterious door men and asian cuisine  that do not seem to know any more than the constituents do about their presence in the town. the camera rocks back and forth between and full screen characters and the eye of the cameras watching them- creating an eerie and bizarre horror film thriller. not only so, but from the outside - a journalist is following one of the disappearances and his interest could get him injured, if not killed. the dialog and writing are simple, maybe too simple among the characters and it's obvious that the plot is nothing new, but i suspect that the odd twists and turns of the storyline will, at the very least, keep an audience in tune. 

i do wonder, however, if the show might be too intense for a summer fling. nbc's shows have struggled for one reason or another in the last couple of years, and thus far, abc is trumping their ratings with the bachelorette and true beauty after just three episodes. it's also been reported that it was originally created for syfy -and certainly - that comes out in the various scientific problems they tackle to solve throughout the course of the show.  it is also being directed by none other than michael rymer (battlestar galactica, which i whole-heartedly enjoyed). nevertheless, nbc picked it up. 

needless to say, if you're in need of a crime, mystery-thriller, this might be worth watching. 

genevieve garcia

taken june 11, 2010

Project Homeless: Panhandling Poet

"What kind of stores are you looking for?" he asked me.
"Eh, I'm just browsing today, thanks though."
"Well if you were to give me four words, and were to hear the most beautiful poetry you've ever heard, do you think you could spare some change?"
"I don't have any change," I spouted, "but I could get you a sandwich if you're hungry."
"Yeah! Sure, Ok, so what four words do you have?"
"mmm, beautiful, untamed, place, people" I rattled them off the top of my head, and didn't put much thought into it.

But Craig proceeded to recite, indeed, fascinating poetry, more or less: spoken word with all of the noise and music around us. It was 5pm in the afternoon and Little 5 Points on a Friday was hopping. I stood and listened intently, not thinking to record the lovely poem he created just for me. After a couple of minutes: I should his hand and told him he'd earned his meal and headed for the cafe around the corner. A sandwich and a picture later, he was on his way to the next stop, where-ever that might be.

A Haggard Grace

I noticed on my FaceBook the other day that some folks I know were tagged in an album entitled "St. James Planning Party." The man behind the photos calls himself Tony Webster and St. James is the church being headed by none other than Ted Haggard. There has been a lot of commentary and controversy surrounding Haggard's desire to start another church, and mostly among Christian people: whether or not he has the authority, whether or not it's biblically legal, whether or not his invitation to all is appropriate, etc.

And I am here to say this: What is going on with Ted Haggard is between he and his God. Only time will tell if this is truly his destiny, and honestly, I would never wish disaster or failure on a man who is trying to live out his forgiveness. If he so believes that God is leading him to teach others, to receive others- then by all means that is what he must do. To those of you who say that Haggard's invitation to all people of all walks of life, including those of the gay community- is an abomination to the standard of the Church: who are you to decide that? Do you know what the Church is all about? Do you realize that your stance is dangerously prejudice and against all the Christ taught?

Jesus received everyone. No one is asking you to agree. Nevertheless, why continue to publicly punish Ted for his sins?

Interestingly enough, what I noticed the pictures, was a group of people who were coming together and choosing to be a family. The pictures portrayed touching smiles, and a receptiveness, an openness. These were people that were coming together to not only do life together but figuring out how they could bring life to others. They appeared down to earth, and there were pictures of families with children. More importantly, every one of Haggard's family was attending, available and part of the process. Thank you, Tony, for the peek.

I pray that Ted will find a way to minister to others. For we have all fallen, why not use his experience to reach out? Sometimes your most treacherous of experiences can be the grace another needs. I grew up under Ted's leadership, and if this be a new and reformed man, then I commend him, and his wife and his children for trying something. Only time will tell. God speed.

Once upon a time, a producer and musician called Danger Mouse (Brian Burton) joined forces with another musician called James Mercer, of the Shins. And together, they are the- Broken Bells.

Thursday night, Center Stage hosted their concert. It is their first tour and I have to admit that I was more than impressed, if that is possible. Danger Mouse is an astounding musician and throughout the night, made his way between the organ, a guitar and the drums. Mercer led vocals and guitar...while the rest of the band accented them both quite nicely. In fact, the sound effects from the band were phenomenal and sounded very much like their self-titled LP.

They moved easily from song to song and said very little except to acknowledge their team of musicians and their opening band, Morning Benders. The flow of the live music was thoroughly entertaining.

Their style carries a bit of an electro-rock-pop sound, and it's obvious that Burton's talent is showcased in every song, even down to the background scenes on the screen behind them. All in all, the concert was fun and despite the duo taking the stage a little later than first thought, the crowd was packed in and enthused.

First Head-Bangin' Concert

Do you remember your first concert? We all have the memory, I'm sure, and I certainly remember mine fairly well. I was about 9-years-old, I think. My mom took me...to see Degarmo & Key, a Christian "pop-rock" band (or were they trying to be "hard-rock") at the Civic Center in Lima, OH for their Heat it Up tour. We sat within about the first 10 rows of the stage and my mother forgot to bring ear plugs. Of course, as a kid, I didn't care. I loved being up-close and I loved it loud. Ha, I still do. And it's true, stacked away, I still have the cassette tape signed by Dana Key. And hey, what can I say, Eddie Degarmo's "key-tar" was a hit! It seemed like both men disappeared after that album, but in fact, they both became producers for their own music labels in the 90s and recorded solo albums (none of which I ever listened to). Nevertheless, the memory jarred my brain when I saw an article saying that Dana Key had died at the age of 56, may he rest in peace. And for good measure, enjoy...ha ha