well, some of you might have been wondering where the hell I had disappeared to.. it is not that i did not want to update my blog and it's just that i did not even had the time to do it~~~~~
some may say: "oh, that's something new" LOL
but it's for real that I was working for like 60-70 hrs/week in the past two weeks without normal weekend off. For a person that used to work in the 9-5 office environment, the nature of my work sort of shook me a little at first, cause I had no idea when I would be able to get sometime off even to take care of some personal things, but now it's been over two weeks since I started my job, I got kind of used to it now...
This weekend, luckily, there were no events happening, so I could sleep in a little this morning, and went into work for a meeting with my boss and the executive chef at the restaurant. My boss kindly gave me a lift home, so I went to do some laundry (the laundry machine at my apartment sucks) in my neighborhood, grabbed a piece of pizza for my dinner (meah) and came home deciding whether to go out dancing or not.
Well, it has been way tooooooooo long since I went out for dancing, so I said to myself: "if not tonite, I wouldnot even know when I could go out next", and called up my dancing all nite long buddy and we went out. I thought that John Beltran was in the house tonite, but a phone call from my friend proved me wrong when he said: "I do not think this is the place that we were supposed to be tonite". I was about to leave the place and was having my soho and orange juice as I talked to him, and did a quick research once again. Dang. It was YESTERDAY and not on SATURDAY NITE>>>>> :(((((( I felt so aweful learning that my friend already paid to get inside at this club that was having top british pop of some sort. I offered to pay him back the cost and for the cover to the place that we both agreed to go. So we went out to footwork, where some local deephouse djs were playing.
I got there at like 12:45am, and the crowd definitely wasn't a typical deephouse peeps, but people were having good time, so it was fun watching people enjoying themselves on the dance floor. It has been way too long since I went out dancing and actually *danced my ass off*, so not sure how I would dance..but as time went by, I became more relaxed and actually started enjoying dancing on the floor. Towards the end of the nite, a girl came up to me asking me to teach her how I dance etc..it was such a sweet compliment, and it always makes me feel kinda flattered whenever people approach me like that at a club (especially straight girls, cause I know that they are not trying to get something off me like some straight horny dudes may do..lol)..so I told her to just feel the music, and imagine how you want to dance with the music and move your body..we dance a little together, and it was very FUN :) I love to dance with people!!
So I was very glad that I got my ass off the bed and went out tonite. :)
I feel very energized after doing something that I feel very passionate about. I decided to keep this in my blog, so that I will try to make time to go out more frequently even I may have to work the next day, cause nothing can beat the power of energizing oneself by doing something so passioate and exciting you know!! :) anyway, hope you all are having great weekend!
tomorrow, I want to do some grocery shopping, cleaning, shopping and writing letters to my family and friends. Peace and love always, Kumi
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Saturday, September 10, 2005
1step closer to my dream
Well, I would like to announce to all my friends and loved ones that I was recently given and have accepted this great job opportunity to work as a supervisor for a company for their launch of restaurant at an Air Canada Center (loads of concerts are held there and we will be providing catering services etc there) and supervision of stuff in two other restaurants they have in Toronto.
Yes, I know! I am one step closer to my ultimate dream to open, own and manage my own restaurant as an extension of the restaurant that my family has been running for over 80 years, and this is very exciting to me!!
Life is funny.
Because everything fell into the right place, as soon as I have determined to stay true to who I was and made a commitment to take any necessary actions to turn my dreams come true.
I did not have the courage to explore my opportunities to work in the restaurant management business, because I felt that such things are usually taken care of within the owner's network of people and never advertised in public, you know? So I accepted such fact as that and continued looking for jobs in the corporate companies. Stupid, I know, but very lucky, cause I just got what I wanted, I tell you ;)
Growing up seeing my parents working in the restaurant socializing with the customers and accommodating them with Japanese serving skills and manner, I think that this *serving people* in the restaurant business is in my blood. Although I am interested in the management side, I believe that one needs to understand what needs to be taken care of in the order to present ourselves professionally, serve customers providing them a precious restaurant experience that could brighten up their day/spirits, you know?
But the reality is, I do not have much deep understanding and experience working in the Canadian restaurant business. I must know how it works and its challenges.
I feel that working with the owner of the restaurant (a very warm hearted Jewish gentleman) and the chief cook (humble Japanese cook whose hard work that I admire and respect) will bring more than what the money can buy. I already learned and gained something very inspiring and passionate just by talking to them.
The energy is right. I feel the door has finally opened for me. and I feel that all the experience that I have had in the past were only the preparationary thing for me to get where I am right now :) I feel that I am now ready to explore my adventure pursuing my dreams working in the restaurant business and this is very exciting to me. I am very thankful for this, and will devote my passion, energy and soul into the project and can't wait to see myself, our team and the company growing in near future!!!
:)
Today is my first day. I am about to head to the gym and get ready for my day.
You all have a wonderful day. Life is what you make out of, and we have our powerful minds to turn everything into the positive!
Peace and love,
Kumi
Yes, I know! I am one step closer to my ultimate dream to open, own and manage my own restaurant as an extension of the restaurant that my family has been running for over 80 years, and this is very exciting to me!!
Life is funny.
Because everything fell into the right place, as soon as I have determined to stay true to who I was and made a commitment to take any necessary actions to turn my dreams come true.
I did not have the courage to explore my opportunities to work in the restaurant management business, because I felt that such things are usually taken care of within the owner's network of people and never advertised in public, you know? So I accepted such fact as that and continued looking for jobs in the corporate companies. Stupid, I know, but very lucky, cause I just got what I wanted, I tell you ;)
Growing up seeing my parents working in the restaurant socializing with the customers and accommodating them with Japanese serving skills and manner, I think that this *serving people* in the restaurant business is in my blood. Although I am interested in the management side, I believe that one needs to understand what needs to be taken care of in the order to present ourselves professionally, serve customers providing them a precious restaurant experience that could brighten up their day/spirits, you know?
But the reality is, I do not have much deep understanding and experience working in the Canadian restaurant business. I must know how it works and its challenges.
I feel that working with the owner of the restaurant (a very warm hearted Jewish gentleman) and the chief cook (humble Japanese cook whose hard work that I admire and respect) will bring more than what the money can buy. I already learned and gained something very inspiring and passionate just by talking to them.
The energy is right. I feel the door has finally opened for me. and I feel that all the experience that I have had in the past were only the preparationary thing for me to get where I am right now :) I feel that I am now ready to explore my adventure pursuing my dreams working in the restaurant business and this is very exciting to me. I am very thankful for this, and will devote my passion, energy and soul into the project and can't wait to see myself, our team and the company growing in near future!!!
:)
Today is my first day. I am about to head to the gym and get ready for my day.
You all have a wonderful day. Life is what you make out of, and we have our powerful minds to turn everything into the positive!
Peace and love,
Kumi
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
"I feel absolutely fabulous!!"
I had such a fabulous day!
Great news with a lot of career opportunities that are coming on my way.
Until things are settled, I shall keep it personal and confidential, but things are looking GREAT :)
Most importantly, I had such great meetings with a couple gentlemen who shared similar idealism and passion for carrer (business) and personal development with my own. While talking to them, it brought such great sense of comfort, assuring me to stay who I am. I have been doubtful about it (staying true to who I am), because of a difficult time cultivating a path to my ultimate career having had not so much luck in gaining the opportunities that I would drool on. But it is also true how I have only recently became empowered by insightful comments and feedback by people who shared a similar vision on life philosophy, so I can not claim that things have been that difficult, because I have not been sticking to my own true calling for so long!!! LOL (no complaining if no actions taken! ;) )
But now that I feel very much tuned with my own inner self, I feel much stronger, empowered and fully aware about changes that go thru within me and in my life, and I feel GREAT, because I know I can accept the reality and adapt to it with my flexible mind and open attitude and heart :)
Starting this week, my gym is having a member appreciation week.
And a lot of new adult fitness classes are having demonstrations as well.
Today I participated in the Jazz dance and NIA class.
The Jazz class was fun, but after taking the NIA class, I was blown away and felt: "this is what I have been waiting for!! this is soooo my stuff!!!!!"
For those who do not know NIA, please visit this website that gives you a great overview of this fitness medicine :) and it is important that you understand its philosophy to fully understand this spiritually nurturing and highly touching experience that I had.
The instructor gave us an oral description of NIA in the first 5 minutes of our 30 minutes demonstration, and started the class.
During the exercise, she would encourage us to feel the space and our body, and gather specific emotions that we experience on our daily basis as a human. We gathered negative emotions and threw them away by engaging in vocal expressions and through many different bodily movements. We also nurtured and healed our spirituality by acknowledging our self respect and love.
During the class, the instructor's instructions and warm messages were so touching that I became emotional and felt like crying. I also felt that I have been exercising alone for way too long. I discovered a joy of self-nuturing and healing with others by openly sharing our true emotions.
Towards the end of the class, we did a little exercise to empower ourselves as women. The instructor asked us to repeat after her, and we loudly claimed ourselves to be: "strong, aleart, aware, conscious, feeling gorgeous and fabulous and sexy". :)
I felt that NIA would help me develop and improve my body launguage and movements to express my emotions to myself and with others.
I got so interested in this that I am curious to learn more and find ways to practice it on my own. But I am very determined to enroll in this NIA class now (not so much sure about Jazz after participating in this NIA class and realizing that I like more of cultural body movements), so I hope that enough people will show their interests by next Tuesday.
Peace and love,
Kumi
Great news with a lot of career opportunities that are coming on my way.
Until things are settled, I shall keep it personal and confidential, but things are looking GREAT :)
Most importantly, I had such great meetings with a couple gentlemen who shared similar idealism and passion for carrer (business) and personal development with my own. While talking to them, it brought such great sense of comfort, assuring me to stay who I am. I have been doubtful about it (staying true to who I am), because of a difficult time cultivating a path to my ultimate career having had not so much luck in gaining the opportunities that I would drool on. But it is also true how I have only recently became empowered by insightful comments and feedback by people who shared a similar vision on life philosophy, so I can not claim that things have been that difficult, because I have not been sticking to my own true calling for so long!!! LOL (no complaining if no actions taken! ;) )
But now that I feel very much tuned with my own inner self, I feel much stronger, empowered and fully aware about changes that go thru within me and in my life, and I feel GREAT, because I know I can accept the reality and adapt to it with my flexible mind and open attitude and heart :)
Starting this week, my gym is having a member appreciation week.
And a lot of new adult fitness classes are having demonstrations as well.
Today I participated in the Jazz dance and NIA class.
The Jazz class was fun, but after taking the NIA class, I was blown away and felt: "this is what I have been waiting for!! this is soooo my stuff!!!!!"
For those who do not know NIA, please visit this website that gives you a great overview of this fitness medicine :) and it is important that you understand its philosophy to fully understand this spiritually nurturing and highly touching experience that I had.
The instructor gave us an oral description of NIA in the first 5 minutes of our 30 minutes demonstration, and started the class.
During the exercise, she would encourage us to feel the space and our body, and gather specific emotions that we experience on our daily basis as a human. We gathered negative emotions and threw them away by engaging in vocal expressions and through many different bodily movements. We also nurtured and healed our spirituality by acknowledging our self respect and love.
During the class, the instructor's instructions and warm messages were so touching that I became emotional and felt like crying. I also felt that I have been exercising alone for way too long. I discovered a joy of self-nuturing and healing with others by openly sharing our true emotions.
Towards the end of the class, we did a little exercise to empower ourselves as women. The instructor asked us to repeat after her, and we loudly claimed ourselves to be: "strong, aleart, aware, conscious, feeling gorgeous and fabulous and sexy". :)
I felt that NIA would help me develop and improve my body launguage and movements to express my emotions to myself and with others.
I got so interested in this that I am curious to learn more and find ways to practice it on my own. But I am very determined to enroll in this NIA class now (not so much sure about Jazz after participating in this NIA class and realizing that I like more of cultural body movements), so I hope that enough people will show their interests by next Tuesday.
Peace and love,
Kumi
Monday, September 05, 2005
Insightful Comment for Daily Life Decision Making...
Below is a very insightful comment that was given to me upon making my career decision.
I thought that the commenter ROCKS and wanted to keep it in my own blog for me to reflect on whenever I may need to do so later on whenever making any kind of important life decisions.
I personally think in times like these you have to find a balance between the two (learning to tilt the scale towards the side you are passionate about). Spiritual consciousness should come first in any situation you approach. But there will be times you have to do things to survive (food, shelter, transportation). Getting a regular job isnt less spiritual than owning your own business. It's the type of job that matters. If it's a thing you are struggling with being on your conscious then you have to pass or sacrifice for a better momentary situation. Always view life as your last chance to find and act upon your "purpose". Everyone can attain a car, house, whats considered a good job but will you be that person that is an impact on inspiring others, promoting positive change, leaving behind a great name/legacy and most of all expressing yourself freely with out constraints. Times are hard for all of us at this moment. I think this is the time your spirituality has to be nutured do to so much tradegy, evil spirited acts, natural phenomena and economic depression. Remember all good things come to those who wait and put their hearts/souls into. Compromise enough to surive but invest in what you are spiritually connect to. You are human before anything. Meaning your net worth, riches, status quo acceptance as being "successful", material assets, and status are things rated by a man made system. On a meta-physical & spiritual thing they mean nothing. You do need to survive in a world that practices a rating system. But inner happiness which reflects outward is more than this and shouldn't be looked over for no one, nobody or anything..
Thank you very much, Shannon for sharing your wisdom with me. Peace and love,
Kumi
I thought that the commenter ROCKS and wanted to keep it in my own blog for me to reflect on whenever I may need to do so later on whenever making any kind of important life decisions.
I personally think in times like these you have to find a balance between the two (learning to tilt the scale towards the side you are passionate about). Spiritual consciousness should come first in any situation you approach. But there will be times you have to do things to survive (food, shelter, transportation). Getting a regular job isnt less spiritual than owning your own business. It's the type of job that matters. If it's a thing you are struggling with being on your conscious then you have to pass or sacrifice for a better momentary situation. Always view life as your last chance to find and act upon your "purpose". Everyone can attain a car, house, whats considered a good job but will you be that person that is an impact on inspiring others, promoting positive change, leaving behind a great name/legacy and most of all expressing yourself freely with out constraints. Times are hard for all of us at this moment. I think this is the time your spirituality has to be nutured do to so much tradegy, evil spirited acts, natural phenomena and economic depression. Remember all good things come to those who wait and put their hearts/souls into. Compromise enough to surive but invest in what you are spiritually connect to. You are human before anything. Meaning your net worth, riches, status quo acceptance as being "successful", material assets, and status are things rated by a man made system. On a meta-physical & spiritual thing they mean nothing. You do need to survive in a world that practices a rating system. But inner happiness which reflects outward is more than this and shouldn't be looked over for no one, nobody or anything..
Thank you very much, Shannon for sharing your wisdom with me. Peace and love,
Kumi
New Orleans
Subject: Notes from New Orleans Friday, 4 p.m.
Sent: Saturday, September 3, 2005 5:22 AM Very interesting read from someone who has directly experienced the strife and has just composed this letter...
Notes From Inside New Orleans
by Jordan Flaherty
Friday, September 2, 2005
I just left New Orleans a couple hours ago. I traveled from the apartment I was staying in by boat to a helicopter to a refugee camp. If anyone wants to examine the attitude of federal and state officials towards the victims of hurricane Katrina, I advise you to visit one of the refugee camps.
In the refugee camp I just left, on the I-10 freeway near Causeway, thousands of people (at least 90% black and poor) stood and squatted in mud and trash behind metal barricades, under an unforgiving sun, with heavily armed soldiers standing guard over them. When a bus would come through, it would stop at a random spot, state police would open a gap in one of the barricades, and people would rush for the bus, with no information given about where the bus was going. Once inside (we were
told) evacuees would be
told where the bus was taking them - Baton Rouge, Houston, Arkansas, Dallas, or other locations. I was told that if you boarded a bus bound for Arkansas (for example), even people with family and a place to stay in Baton Rouge would not be allowed to get out of the bus as it passed through Baton Rouge.
You had no choice but to go to the shelter in Arkansas. If you had people willing to come to New Orleans to pick you up, they could not come within 17 miles of the camp.
I traveled throughout the camp and spoke to Red Cross workers, Salvation Army workers, National Guard, and state police, and although they were friendly, no one could give me any details on when buses would arrive, how many, where they would go to, or any other information. I spoke to the several teams of journalists nearby, and asked if any of them had been able to get any information from any federal or state officials on any of these questions, and all of them, from Australian tv to local Fox affiliates complained of an unorganized, non-communicative, mess.
One cameraman told
me "as someone who's been here in this camp for two days, the only information I can give you is this: get out by nightfall. You don't want to be here at night."
There was also no visible attempt by any of those running the camp to set up any sort of transparent and consistent system, for instance a line to get on buses, a way to register contact information or find family members, special needs services for children and infirm, phone services, treatment for possible disease exposure, nor even a single trash can.
To understand this tragedy, its important to look at New Orleans itself.
For those who have not lived in New Orleans, you have missed a incredible, glorious, vital, city. A place with a culture and energy unlike anywhere else in the world. A 70% African-American city where resistance to white supremecy has supported a generous, subversive and unique culture of vivid beauty. From jazz, blues and hiphop, to secondlines, Mardi Gras Indians, Parades, Beads, Jazz Funerals, and red beans and rice on Monday nights, New Orleans is a place of art and music and dance and sexuality and liberation unlike anywhere else in the world.
It is a city of kindness and hospitality, where walking down the block can take two hours because you stop and talk to someone on every porch, and where a community pulls together when someone is in need. It is a city of extended families and social networks filling the gaps left by city, state and federal goverments that have abdicated their responsibilty for the public welfare. It is a city where someone you walk past on the street not only asks how you are, they wait for an answer.
It is also a city of exploitation and segregation and fear. The city of New Orleans has a population of just over 500,000 and was expecting 300 murders this year, most of them centered on just a few, overwhelmingly black, neighborhoods. Police have been quoted as saying that they don't need to search out the perpetrators, because usually a few days after a shooting, the attacker is shot in revenge.
There is an atmosphere of intense hostility and distrust between much of Black New Orleans and the N.O. Police Department. In recent months, officers have been accused of everything from drug running to corruption to theft. In seperate incidents, two New Orleans police officers were recently charged with rape (while in uniform), and there have been several high profile police killings of unarmed youth, including the murder of Jenard Thomas, which has inspired ongoing weekly protests for several months.
The city has a 40% illiteracy rate, and over 50% of black ninth graders will not graduate in four years. Louisiana spends on average $4,724 per child's education and ranks 48th in the country for lowest teacher salaries. The equivalent of more than two classrooms of young people drop out of Louisiana schools every day and about 50,000 students are absent from school on any given day. Far too many young black men from New Orleans end up enslaved in Angola Prison, a former slave plantation where inmates still do manual farm labor, and over 90% of inmates eventually die in the prison. It is a city where industry has left, and most remaining jobs are are low-paying, transient, insecure jobs in the service economy.
Race has always been the undercurrent of Louisiana politics. This disaster is one that was constructed out of racism, neglect and incompetence.
Hurricane Katrina was the inevitable spark igniting the gasoline of cruelty and corruption. From the neighborhoods left most at risk, to the treatment of the refugees to the the media portayal of the victims, this disaster is shaped by race.
Louisiana politics is famously corrupt, but with the tragedies of this week our political leaders have defined a new level of incompetence. As hurricane Katrina approached, our Governor urged us to "Pray the hurricane down" to a level two. Trapped in a building two days after the hurricane, we tuned our battery-operated radio into local radio and tv stations, hoping for vital news, and were told that our governor had called for a day of prayer. As rumors and panic began to rule, they was no source of solid dependable information. Tuesday night, politicians and reporters said the water level would rise another 12 feet - instead it stabilized. Rumors spread like wildfire, and the politicians and media only made it worse.
While the rich escaped New Orleans, those with nowhere to go and no way to get there were left behind. Adding salt to the wound, the local and national media have spent the last week demonizing those left behind. As someone that loves New Orleans and the people in it, this is the part of this tragedy that hurts me the most, and it hurts me deeply.
No sane person should classify someone who takes food from indefinitely closed stores in a desperate, starving city as a "looter," but thats just what the media did over and over again. Sherrifs and politicians talked of having troops protect stores instead of perform rescue operations.
Images of New Orleans' hurricane-ravaged population were transformed into black, out-of-control, criminals. As if taking a stereo from a store that will clearly be insured against loss is a greater crime than the governmental neglect and incompetence that did billions of dollars of damage and destroyed a city. This media focus is a tactic, just as the eighties focus on "welfare queens" and "super-predators"
obscured the simultaneous
and much larger crimes of the Savings and Loan scams and mass layoffs, the hyper-exploited people of New Orleans are being used as a scapegoat to cover up much larger crimes.
City, state and national politicians are the real criminals here. Since at least the mid-1800s, its been widely known the danger faced by flooding to New Orleans. The flood of 1927, which, like this week's events, was more about politics and racism than any kind of natural disaster, illustrated exactly the danger faced. Yet government officials have consistently refused to spend the money to protect this poor, overwhelmingly black, city.
While FEMA and others warned of the urgent impending danger to New Orleans and put forward proposals for funding to reinforce and protect the city, the Bush administration, in every year since 2001, has cut or refused to fund New Orleans flood control, and ignored scientists warnings of increased hurricanes as a result of global warming. And, as the dangers rose with the floodlines, the lack of coordinated response dramatized vividly the callous disregard of our elected leaders.
The aftermath from the 1927 flood helped shape the elections of both a US President and a Governor, and ushered in the southern populist politics of Huey Long.
In the coming months, billions of dollars will likely flood into New Orleans. This money can either be spent to usher in a "New Deal" for the city, with public investment, creation of stable union jobs, new schools, cultural programs and housing restoration, or the city can be "rebuilt and revitalized" to a shell of its former self, with newer hotels, more casinos, and with chain stores and theme parks replacing the former neighborhoods, cultural centers and corner jazz clubs.
Long before Katrina, New Orleans was hit by a hurricane of poverty, racism, disinvestment, de-industrialization and corruption.
Simply the damage from
this pre-Katrina hurricane will take billions to repair.
Now that the money is flowing in, and the world's eyes are focused on Katrina, its vital that progressive-minded people take this opportunity to fight for a rebuilding with justice. New Orleans is a special place, and we need to fight for its rebirth.
-----------------------------------------------
Jordan Flaherty is an editor of Left Turn Magazine (http://www.leftturn.org
).
-----------------------------------------------
Below are some small, grassroots and New Orleans-based resources, organizations and institutions that will need your support in the coming months.
Social Justice:
http://www.jjpl.org http://www.iftheycanlearn.org http://www.nolaps.org http://www.thepeoplesinstitute.org/
http://www.criticalresistance.org/index.php?name=crno_home
Cultural Resources:
http://www.backstreetculturalmuseum.com
http://www.ashecac.org/ http://198.66.50.128/gallery/ http://www.nolahumanrights.org http://www.freewebs.com/ironrail/ http://www.girlgangproductions.com/
Current Info and Resources:
http://neworleans.craigslist.org/about/help/katrina_cl.html
----------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for reading.
"It is through reflection that we develop our will and determination to follow certain practices. For example, let us examine the basis of the benefits which come from giving. When we give, we respond to the needs of those who have less than us. Thus we contribute, according to our capacity, to the alleviation of their suffering. Their well-being also gives us an immense feeling of satisfaction and joy. And since this joy gives rise to peace and serenity, it helps both us and others to be more happy. Our happiness is deeply connected with that of others".
For those interested in supporting the victims of this tragedy, please kindly visit below links:
http://www.worldvision.ca
http://donate.wvus.org/OA_HTML/xxwvibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?item=394&cmp=EMC-131
5220&xxwvCampaign=1315220
Thank you for your kind heart and compassion.
May you have happy and at peace always,
Sincerely,
Your friend,
Kumiko Yajima
Sent: Saturday, September 3, 2005 5:22 AM Very interesting read from someone who has directly experienced the strife and has just composed this letter...
Notes From Inside New Orleans
by Jordan Flaherty
Friday, September 2, 2005
I just left New Orleans a couple hours ago. I traveled from the apartment I was staying in by boat to a helicopter to a refugee camp. If anyone wants to examine the attitude of federal and state officials towards the victims of hurricane Katrina, I advise you to visit one of the refugee camps.
In the refugee camp I just left, on the I-10 freeway near Causeway, thousands of people (at least 90% black and poor) stood and squatted in mud and trash behind metal barricades, under an unforgiving sun, with heavily armed soldiers standing guard over them. When a bus would come through, it would stop at a random spot, state police would open a gap in one of the barricades, and people would rush for the bus, with no information given about where the bus was going. Once inside (we were
told) evacuees would be
told where the bus was taking them - Baton Rouge, Houston, Arkansas, Dallas, or other locations. I was told that if you boarded a bus bound for Arkansas (for example), even people with family and a place to stay in Baton Rouge would not be allowed to get out of the bus as it passed through Baton Rouge.
You had no choice but to go to the shelter in Arkansas. If you had people willing to come to New Orleans to pick you up, they could not come within 17 miles of the camp.
I traveled throughout the camp and spoke to Red Cross workers, Salvation Army workers, National Guard, and state police, and although they were friendly, no one could give me any details on when buses would arrive, how many, where they would go to, or any other information. I spoke to the several teams of journalists nearby, and asked if any of them had been able to get any information from any federal or state officials on any of these questions, and all of them, from Australian tv to local Fox affiliates complained of an unorganized, non-communicative, mess.
One cameraman told
me "as someone who's been here in this camp for two days, the only information I can give you is this: get out by nightfall. You don't want to be here at night."
There was also no visible attempt by any of those running the camp to set up any sort of transparent and consistent system, for instance a line to get on buses, a way to register contact information or find family members, special needs services for children and infirm, phone services, treatment for possible disease exposure, nor even a single trash can.
To understand this tragedy, its important to look at New Orleans itself.
For those who have not lived in New Orleans, you have missed a incredible, glorious, vital, city. A place with a culture and energy unlike anywhere else in the world. A 70% African-American city where resistance to white supremecy has supported a generous, subversive and unique culture of vivid beauty. From jazz, blues and hiphop, to secondlines, Mardi Gras Indians, Parades, Beads, Jazz Funerals, and red beans and rice on Monday nights, New Orleans is a place of art and music and dance and sexuality and liberation unlike anywhere else in the world.
It is a city of kindness and hospitality, where walking down the block can take two hours because you stop and talk to someone on every porch, and where a community pulls together when someone is in need. It is a city of extended families and social networks filling the gaps left by city, state and federal goverments that have abdicated their responsibilty for the public welfare. It is a city where someone you walk past on the street not only asks how you are, they wait for an answer.
It is also a city of exploitation and segregation and fear. The city of New Orleans has a population of just over 500,000 and was expecting 300 murders this year, most of them centered on just a few, overwhelmingly black, neighborhoods. Police have been quoted as saying that they don't need to search out the perpetrators, because usually a few days after a shooting, the attacker is shot in revenge.
There is an atmosphere of intense hostility and distrust between much of Black New Orleans and the N.O. Police Department. In recent months, officers have been accused of everything from drug running to corruption to theft. In seperate incidents, two New Orleans police officers were recently charged with rape (while in uniform), and there have been several high profile police killings of unarmed youth, including the murder of Jenard Thomas, which has inspired ongoing weekly protests for several months.
The city has a 40% illiteracy rate, and over 50% of black ninth graders will not graduate in four years. Louisiana spends on average $4,724 per child's education and ranks 48th in the country for lowest teacher salaries. The equivalent of more than two classrooms of young people drop out of Louisiana schools every day and about 50,000 students are absent from school on any given day. Far too many young black men from New Orleans end up enslaved in Angola Prison, a former slave plantation where inmates still do manual farm labor, and over 90% of inmates eventually die in the prison. It is a city where industry has left, and most remaining jobs are are low-paying, transient, insecure jobs in the service economy.
Race has always been the undercurrent of Louisiana politics. This disaster is one that was constructed out of racism, neglect and incompetence.
Hurricane Katrina was the inevitable spark igniting the gasoline of cruelty and corruption. From the neighborhoods left most at risk, to the treatment of the refugees to the the media portayal of the victims, this disaster is shaped by race.
Louisiana politics is famously corrupt, but with the tragedies of this week our political leaders have defined a new level of incompetence. As hurricane Katrina approached, our Governor urged us to "Pray the hurricane down" to a level two. Trapped in a building two days after the hurricane, we tuned our battery-operated radio into local radio and tv stations, hoping for vital news, and were told that our governor had called for a day of prayer. As rumors and panic began to rule, they was no source of solid dependable information. Tuesday night, politicians and reporters said the water level would rise another 12 feet - instead it stabilized. Rumors spread like wildfire, and the politicians and media only made it worse.
While the rich escaped New Orleans, those with nowhere to go and no way to get there were left behind. Adding salt to the wound, the local and national media have spent the last week demonizing those left behind. As someone that loves New Orleans and the people in it, this is the part of this tragedy that hurts me the most, and it hurts me deeply.
No sane person should classify someone who takes food from indefinitely closed stores in a desperate, starving city as a "looter," but thats just what the media did over and over again. Sherrifs and politicians talked of having troops protect stores instead of perform rescue operations.
Images of New Orleans' hurricane-ravaged population were transformed into black, out-of-control, criminals. As if taking a stereo from a store that will clearly be insured against loss is a greater crime than the governmental neglect and incompetence that did billions of dollars of damage and destroyed a city. This media focus is a tactic, just as the eighties focus on "welfare queens" and "super-predators"
obscured the simultaneous
and much larger crimes of the Savings and Loan scams and mass layoffs, the hyper-exploited people of New Orleans are being used as a scapegoat to cover up much larger crimes.
City, state and national politicians are the real criminals here. Since at least the mid-1800s, its been widely known the danger faced by flooding to New Orleans. The flood of 1927, which, like this week's events, was more about politics and racism than any kind of natural disaster, illustrated exactly the danger faced. Yet government officials have consistently refused to spend the money to protect this poor, overwhelmingly black, city.
While FEMA and others warned of the urgent impending danger to New Orleans and put forward proposals for funding to reinforce and protect the city, the Bush administration, in every year since 2001, has cut or refused to fund New Orleans flood control, and ignored scientists warnings of increased hurricanes as a result of global warming. And, as the dangers rose with the floodlines, the lack of coordinated response dramatized vividly the callous disregard of our elected leaders.
The aftermath from the 1927 flood helped shape the elections of both a US President and a Governor, and ushered in the southern populist politics of Huey Long.
In the coming months, billions of dollars will likely flood into New Orleans. This money can either be spent to usher in a "New Deal" for the city, with public investment, creation of stable union jobs, new schools, cultural programs and housing restoration, or the city can be "rebuilt and revitalized" to a shell of its former self, with newer hotels, more casinos, and with chain stores and theme parks replacing the former neighborhoods, cultural centers and corner jazz clubs.
Long before Katrina, New Orleans was hit by a hurricane of poverty, racism, disinvestment, de-industrialization and corruption.
Simply the damage from
this pre-Katrina hurricane will take billions to repair.
Now that the money is flowing in, and the world's eyes are focused on Katrina, its vital that progressive-minded people take this opportunity to fight for a rebuilding with justice. New Orleans is a special place, and we need to fight for its rebirth.
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Jordan Flaherty is an editor of Left Turn Magazine (http://www.leftturn.org
).
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Below are some small, grassroots and New Orleans-based resources, organizations and institutions that will need your support in the coming months.
Social Justice:
http://www.jjpl.org
http://www.criticalresistance.org/index.php?name=crno_home
Cultural Resources:
http://www.backstreetculturalmuseum.com
http://www.ashecac.org/
Current Info and Resources:
http://neworleans.craigslist.org/about/help/katrina_cl.html
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Thank you for reading.
"It is through reflection that we develop our will and determination to follow certain practices. For example, let us examine the basis of the benefits which come from giving. When we give, we respond to the needs of those who have less than us. Thus we contribute, according to our capacity, to the alleviation of their suffering. Their well-being also gives us an immense feeling of satisfaction and joy. And since this joy gives rise to peace and serenity, it helps both us and others to be more happy. Our happiness is deeply connected with that of others".
For those interested in supporting the victims of this tragedy, please kindly visit below links:
http://www.worldvision.ca
http://donate.wvus.org/OA_HTML/xxwvibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?item=394&cmp=EMC-131
5220&xxwvCampaign=1315220
Thank you for your kind heart and compassion.
May you have happy and at peace always,
Sincerely,
Your friend,
Kumiko Yajima
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Final Decision
So after spending literally 24 hrs/day in the previous few days (to be exact, until the last minute LOL), I made a decision to reject the job offer that I received for the translator position 2.5 hrs north of Toronto.
I have never had this much of trouble/difficult time making a decision in my life before.
I usually use the comparision of pros and cons strategy wheneve making a decision or simply based on my primal needs, but more and more I thought of things and considered different perspectives, more I got confused.
Last Thursday, I was on the stair masters doing my cardio when my close friend, Tomo came by to my gym for her yoga class. We made an arrangement to see each other after her class at 8:30pm.
We went to a cafe closed to her neighborhood and she kindly listened to all the things that I was finding difficult in my life. She (as usual) gave me insightful comments and advise while we were there, and we left the cafe and went to her place.
We started watching *big size me*, but she handed me a book that caught my full attention.
In this book titled: "The Life you were born to Live-a guide to finding our life purpose", the author, Millman invites readers into the world of The Life Purpose System, a method of life-purpose analysis that is similar to numerology yet more practical, using the time of our birth as the indicator of right livelihood. Millman doesnt stop at discussing the eleven basic life paths or their several variations, but has much to say about the influence of spiritual laws, from flexibility and balance to discipline and perfection.
Anyway, the book pointed out how I tend to make my decision based on money. This also meant my tendency to limit my potential/opportunity because of it too. It's true how I did make my career decisions based on it in the past, simply because I had to take care of my self financially. The recent job opportunity that I gained would definitely put myself free in my finance providing me financial security and materialistic comfort and all, but I realized that as long as I continue making my decision based on such a thing, I can never reach to the ultimate/ideal career goal that I visualize myself to be in future.
So I decided to clarify what I want in my life in the order to start taking small actions to get to where I want to be.
I gotta learn how to count my blessing and be fully appreciative for what is given to me without letting my stress put me down.
Right now, I am chilling in my apartment listening to a great music set by Hali by tuning into the netmusique.com radio station, and am about to write my goals that I want to achieve 6 months from now.
Thanks for reading and your continued support!
Sincerely,
Kumi
I have never had this much of trouble/difficult time making a decision in my life before.
I usually use the comparision of pros and cons strategy wheneve making a decision or simply based on my primal needs, but more and more I thought of things and considered different perspectives, more I got confused.
Last Thursday, I was on the stair masters doing my cardio when my close friend, Tomo came by to my gym for her yoga class. We made an arrangement to see each other after her class at 8:30pm.
We went to a cafe closed to her neighborhood and she kindly listened to all the things that I was finding difficult in my life. She (as usual) gave me insightful comments and advise while we were there, and we left the cafe and went to her place.
We started watching *big size me*, but she handed me a book that caught my full attention.
In this book titled: "The Life you were born to Live-a guide to finding our life purpose", the author, Millman invites readers into the world of The Life Purpose System, a method of life-purpose analysis that is similar to numerology yet more practical, using the time of our birth as the indicator of right livelihood. Millman doesnt stop at discussing the eleven basic life paths or their several variations, but has much to say about the influence of spiritual laws, from flexibility and balance to discipline and perfection.
Anyway, the book pointed out how I tend to make my decision based on money. This also meant my tendency to limit my potential/opportunity because of it too. It's true how I did make my career decisions based on it in the past, simply because I had to take care of my self financially. The recent job opportunity that I gained would definitely put myself free in my finance providing me financial security and materialistic comfort and all, but I realized that as long as I continue making my decision based on such a thing, I can never reach to the ultimate/ideal career goal that I visualize myself to be in future.
So I decided to clarify what I want in my life in the order to start taking small actions to get to where I want to be.
I gotta learn how to count my blessing and be fully appreciative for what is given to me without letting my stress put me down.
Right now, I am chilling in my apartment listening to a great music set by Hali by tuning into the netmusique.com radio station, and am about to write my goals that I want to achieve 6 months from now.
Thanks for reading and your continued support!
Sincerely,
Kumi
Thursday, September 01, 2005
Analyzing my mind to better make my personal decisions
Last nite, I caught my good friend, Tatsu, who has been on his journey travelling southeast Asia (currently at Cambodia) online on his MSN that I was able to engage in a good conversation with him and helped me come to a page that I wanted myself to be dealing with my given scenario with my job search.
I made a note on my August 30th entry how I have been wondering how much of given circumstance to accept as reality of my life and when and how much of my humble self to let get into actions respecting my personal desire as an internal truth...
Tatsu mentioned how dealth is everywhere in
He told me how everyone there is so desparate to work, any kind of jobs that they can get.
Hearing this story (reality in
And thusly it led me ponder on the *how much reality to accept and how much humble self to kick in* while talking to him.
Unfortunately, he had to go before we complete our conversation, but while writing an email to him actually helped me clarify some of my confusion, so I would like to share the conclusion that I have came with on this topic.
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I think that we must ask the origin of our own desires whenever we get lost unable to decide a good balance between accepting a given scenario (although it may not be the most ideal situation) and fighting against it and trying to turn things around for our favour.
If accepting lowers the level of our suffering, then surely, we should definitely accept what is given to us.
But one may find it difficult to accept the reality.
One must ask why it is so difficult for us to accept.
There should be reasons why. Usually it is because of our internal desires that are against the reality.
So here we go, we must ask the origin of our desires.
And if our desires are pure positive kind of energy, then we need to use our creative mind and patience to stick with what our heart tells us.
We must bare the challenge to stay respectful to our own thoughts after all....
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So I think that I must map out all these thoughts that I have in my mind with regards to my job search.
I am in a shoe where I must make up my mind to accept a job offer that commences in October 1st by tomorrow afternoon.
If I accepted this job offer, I must relocate myself 2.5 hr north of Toronto. My friends tell me that it will be very difficult to live there without a car during the winter time. I do not know how well I will handle this challenge mentally considering that I will not have the support system there (no friends). I know that I could come here to Toronto during the weekend, but spending 5 hrs on the Greyhound bus does not sound too bright neither. On a positive side, this challenge shall help me grow into a stronger individual, and it should allow me to gain some confidence and strength that I need dealing with my PTSD. But it is also true that I am a type of an individual who find herself passing out on the ground by burning herself out before her mental self realizes (runner's mentality I guess, LOL), so I must watch out for potential down time by moving there and I do not want to be in a shoe where I can not reach out to people I would feel comfortable to share my own thoughts (weakness) with. So I must make sure that I will have a good network of support system before I make a decision to move there. I have contacted my counsellor to see if there is any support group that I could rely on in this small city. I need to make a list of my short term goals (what I want to achieve) and narrow down necessary sacrifices to get where I need to be. So that is what I am going to do right now.
Peace,
Kumi
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