My ‘Back to Basics’ Journal: Thoughts on Self-Sufficiency, Sustainability and Survival

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Icheon Master Hand: Lee Hyuang Gu – YouTube Video of 5,000 Year Old Ceramic Tradition

See on Scoop.itAvant-garde Art & Design

“The American Museum of Ceramic Art is honored to present ICHEON: Reviving the Korean Ceramics tradition, an unprecedented exhibition organized by Icheon, South Korea (and featuring Icheon Master Hand: Lee Hyuang Gu).

Icheon has a history of ceramic culture that began over 5000 years ago and has a reputation for its internationally renowned ceramics cultural events. Now Icheon has reached out to an American institution for the very first time. As the premiere exhibition of its kind in the United States, ICHEON will present over 230 objects never before seen on American soil that exemplify the revival of the ceramics tradition in Korea from antique techniques to contemporary innovations.

Icheon Public opening is from October 12th- December 29th. Join us in welcoming Icheon Dignitaries as we celebrate this major exhibition on Saturday, November 9, 2013, 6:00pm‐8:30pm.Founded in 2001 and opened in September, 2004, AMOCA is one of the few museums in the United States devoted exclusively to ceramic art and historic innovations in ceramic technology. It is located in an area abounding with ceramic history and internationally recognized clay artists from the Arts and Crafts Movement, the 60’s Clay Revolution and the current Studio Pottery Era.

Geographically, the building is located in an urban downtown district where art is an important element of the continuing and successful community revitalization program. The home community consists of a rich ethnic mix and a large academic constituency with approximately fifteen institutions of higher learning within an eight-mile radius.
You can visit http://www.amoca.org for more information.” 10.23.13

 

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

What more is there to say. The video says it all.

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THE FIRST OF FOURTH: NEW FACES FOR FOURTH CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION

See on Scoop.itGlobal Evolution: Will we be in time?

It is farewell time for Carolyn McCarthy who for almost two decades has held the 4th Congressional District seat that represents parts of Long Island, NY. Therefore for the first time in twenty years, the Fourth Congressional Election will not feature an incumbent running. With the current enthusiasm of four Long Island newcomers as federal political contenders, will we be in time to learn enough about their agendas to make the right choice when we cast our votes both in June’s primary and in November’s election?fourth congressional election

What might November bring in the Fourth Congressional Election?

The four main primary contenders are two Democrats, Kathleen Rice and Kevan Abrahams. The two Republicans are Bruce Blakeman and Frank Scaturro. That race will be narrowed down to one from each party on June 24th, primary day.
At this point, I would like to quote from an article written by Frank McQuade for the longbeach.patch.com that provides the following sketches of each of the four candidates.

Fourth Congressional Election
Kathleen Rice (D) Credit: Google.com
Kathleen Rice: Kathleen Rice is the Nassau County District Attorney. She unseated 32-year incumbent Denis Dillon in 2005. Rice has sought higher office before along, unsuccessfully seeking Democrat Party nomination for New York State Attorney General in 2010, the year after her first re-election as D.A. Critics say Rice has been a mediocre D.A., presiding over a department that has lost convictions due to ongoing blunders by the police lab and for embarking on “social crusades” (such as her “flush-the-johns program”) instead of taking on violent crime head-on. She served on the Governor’s Moreland Commission investigating corruption, although she has taken campaign gifts from companies actually under investigation by the commission, and the recent, sudden disbanding of Moreland may lessen the pop on that resume line. Her personal life is often under scrutiny, especially since her admission of having “dabbled” with cocaine. However, the Democrat Party finds her an attractive candidate and a proven vote-getter. She seems a lock to win the primary.

fourth congressional elelction
Kevan Abraham (D) Credit: lipolitics.com
Kevan Abrahams: Kevan Abrahams is the Nassau County Legislature’s Minority Leader. His announcement to seek the 4th CD nomination listed an aggressive set of goals that included “reducing property taxes” (I am unsure how the U.S. House could do this), immigration reform and pay inequality of women” among others. He pledges to represent “the middle class and the socially vulnerable” (I am unsure if this is contradictory or redundant these days.) An African American, supporters in his Party hope that he can organize into an effective voting bloc the growing Black and Hispanic constituency in his district. Abrahams is an affable and talented legislator who has earned respect of his colleagues, but seems to be taking a jump he cannot traverse in his seeking Congress at this time.

Fourth Congressional Election
Bruce Blakeman (R) Credit: BruceBlakeman.com
Bruce Blakeman: Bruce Blakeman served as Majority Leader of the Nassau County legislature for its inaugural first four years, 1996-2000. He was voted out of office in 1999 during the so-called “Gulotta debacle,” when the Republicans lost majority of the Nassau Legislature. Although he made bid for New York State Comptroller and ran a campaign for the U.S. Senate against Kirsten Gillebrand, Blakeman has been generally absent from local politics since leaving the legislature. Bruce has knock-out good looks and a lot of money…not a bad start for a candidate. He is well-liked and well-regarded by Party members who recall his years in the county legislature. Blakeman’s early campaign pitches speak of his being ready to be an opposition to the national Democrat agenda, but his record and positions have in the past appeared as a moderate, rather than as a conservative crusader. Whether this will be enough to stop Kathy Rice remains to be proven on the campaign battleground. Bruce Blakeman now lives in Long Beach.

Repulbican Primary Candidiate
Frank Scaturro (R) Credit: gvgop.org
Frank Scaturro: This will be Frank Scaturro’s third bid for the Republican nomination. Scaturro lost his prior two primaries, but won a write-in nomination in the Conservative Party primary in 2012 and was on the ballot. Frank Scaturro is a soft-spoken, scholarly attorney, a Law School professor who formerly worked in a U.S. Senate office. Scaturro represents the conservative wing of the 4th CD constituency and has an extremely dedicated, albeit electorally-limited following. He well-articulates a consistent conservative message and promises to oppose in Congress many of the trends of the Obama era. He is taken seriously by the Nassau GOP organization, as evidenced by the volume and degree of contempt expressed for his races by local GOP leaders, whose bridges he has long burned.”

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

I think it is important to note that this article was written by a very conservative Republican, a decent person, but someone who himself has never been able to gain a place in public office. 

None the less, Frank McQuade has done the public a service by presenting a bio for each of the four running in both the Democratic and Republican primaries. Although I admit to not being a Carolyn McCarthy insider, I have heard her speak several times. She was thrown into the political arena on a one issue tragedy. She was a nurse, not a politician. 

I take some offense to McQuades’ comment about her. "For eighteen years, Carolyn McCarthy has been a nearly invisible, ineffective representative.  She has been a one-issue harpy on gun control, and has not even been effective in promoting legislation to address that issue.  With limited professional credentials and as a rubber-stamp for her Party’s agenda, she was never meant to be in the same league as national politics." If she was so ineffective, why was she re-elected eight times?

Anyway, as I mentioned, the writer is a Republican, as I believe McCarthy was too before switching to run for the 4th CD seat. Either way, it will be interesting to see what happens on June 24th and then in November. I think that at this time both Rice and Blakeman have the advantage of notoriety and will be shoe-ins for the primaries. (But one never knows what a grasp of social media marketing can do to change the direction of things). Either way, the election is not so easy to predict.

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Back to Basics: Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent for Only Pennies a Load

Question from Lynda A Moran, “So is there a recipe that you are wiling to share?”

Answer from Alison D. Gilbert,
“Of course, that is the whole idea of Back to Basics, to share, to educate, to inspire others.
These are the basic ingredients:
• bar of soap – Fels Naptha or Zote soap
• 20 Mule Team Borax
• Arm & Hammer Washing soda
• the fourth is essential oil for scent and optional because is smells great just with the three above ingredients

homemade laundry detergent
Basic ingredients for homemade laundry detergent

Lynda A Moran asked, “What do you do with the bar soap? Cut it up? Alison D. Gilbert answered, “Grate it and then melt it by adding to hot water on a medium light on the stove. The easiest way to learn is to read a recipe or watch one of the many videos like the samples below. Some use slightly different recipes and ingredients but all are basically the same.”

The above images from the facebook conversation. Below is the recipe from Mrs. Happy Homemaker for Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent. She said, “Buying laundry detergent can put a dent in any budget. Let me walk you through and show you how . . .” Here is her recipe in writing.

homemade liquid laundry detergent
Mrs. Happy Homemaker’s homemade liquid laundry detergent

Below are several instructional videos. There are many, many more on YouTube. These are just a few of the one’s I have found helpful. Each one is slightly different. As you can see, making the detergent does have some science to it. But it is not rocket science. So you can improvise her and there without any problem. Good luck and enjoy your abundance of affordable homemade liquid laundry detergent.


HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE LIQUID LAUNDRY DETERGENT PT. 1
In this video, I show you how to make homemade laundry detergent. This detergent…See More


HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE LIQUID LAUNDRY DETERGENT PART 2
This is part two of how to make homemade liquid laundry detergent. The detergent…See More


How to Make Liquid Laundry Detergent
This laundry detergent brightens colors, whitens whites. Nice Lemon Scent. Give …See More


How to make the BEST DIY Zote Laundry Detergent Soap Ever

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What is Low Carbon Farming? | Visual.ly

See on Scoop.itGlobal Evolution: Will we be in time?

Become a low carbon farmer. Have a look at the 12 low carbon ‘best practices’ that farmers are adopting to reduce their carbon footprint and increase

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

Will we be in time to reduce our carbon footprint while increasing farming profits?

See on visual.ly

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The Space Race is Over

See on Scoop.itGlobal Evolution: Will we be in time?

Paul Kingsnorth examines the collective fear of the future and the progressive concept of space colonization. He urges us to deflect the delusions created by our techno-industrial society.

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

We have deluded ourselves into believing that there is a real possibility that we can escape the devastation of this planet by going to inhabit another.

See on www.globalonenessproject.org

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Tweet from @FairTradeUSA

See on Scoop.itThe Food rEvolution

Did you know this is how your chocolate starts out? Follow us to learn more about where your food comes from. pic.twitter.com/afhOKMSfjQ

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

Who would imagine that something so strange a bug-like looking could be transformed into one of the world’s favorite, passion foods.

See on twitter.com

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How climate change makes Everest an even deadlier game

See on Scoop.itGlobal Evolution: Will we be in time?

After 16 Sherpas died in a horrific avalanche on Everest, a writer who climbed the peak wonders what’s next for the world’s tallest mountain.

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

It is fairly well known news at this point that towards the middle of April 2014, an avalanche on Mt. Everest killed 16 guides and injured 9 others. Primarily Sherpas, these ‘ice doctors’ are other nationalities as well.

Although all the guides are highly esteemed and well-paid compared to others in their poverty stricken region, the loss of life does not have an acceptable price tag. This tragedy takes many issues into consideration. One of them happens to be ‘climate change’ and the possibility that those who have climbed parts of Everest may be the last to have been in time to do it.

See on grist.org

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The secret life of Rust Belt beekeepers

See on Scoop.itThe Food rEvolution

In Buffalo and Pittsburgh, urban beekeepers are taking sustainable food production into their own hands — sometimes in secret.

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

Urban beekeeping is on the rise. This is good news. It makes fresh local honey available and helps with crop pollination. As colonies collapse around the rural US, this urban increase is especially important.

See on grist.org

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