Shamanism and Plant Medicines (audio)

Xochitl, Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly; Daniel Pinchbeck, Ian Punnit (Coast to Coast)

Is reality real? Don't be so sure. Things are not what they seem. (nuestroclima)

Equations Reveal Rebellious Rhythms At The Heart Of Nature Physicists are using equations to reveal the hidden complexities of the human body. From the beating of our hearts to the ... Full article Synchronized Brain Waves Enable Rapid Learning

Read More at www.earthchangesmedia.com/ © Earth Changes Media

Daniel Pinchbeck attempts to explain

(C2C) Cybernaut Pinchbeck discusses his books Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into Contemporary Shamanism and 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl. He was on the air again on June 14, 2014 talking about our carbon-free future with simple George Noory.

• VIDEO: Levitation and the Hutchinson Effect: On the 6/27/03 show with Art Bell, inventor John Hutchison explains his "Hutchison Effect" that causes the "jellification" of metal and the levitation of objects.

Equations Reveal Nature's Rebel Rhythms - Synchronized Brain Waves and Rapid Learning

The Los Angeles River renovation

Xochitl, Wisdom Quarterly; Alice Walton (SCPR); Soumya Karlamangla (latimes.com)

Kayakers on clean stretch of the L.A. River (Alissa Walker/flickr.com/Creative Commons)

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Alice Walton

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti will announce today the Los Angeles River is receiving $1 billion to rehab 11 miles of it [where it is not paved but is allowed to percolate into the ground]. 

 

Maven's Morning Coffee daily email for Thursday, May 29, about Southern California: 

Deva-tree, cows (Fernando R. Carvalho)

Rehabbing the river from downtown to Elysian Park is seen as the first step toward rehabilitating the entire 51-mile stretch of the river. The Army Corps of Engineers will recommend a $1 billion proposal to revitalize 11 miles along the Los Angeles River, which gives Mayor Eric Garcetti one of his first major political wins, reports the Los Angeles Times:

It was never a sewer, just flood control. A $1-billion proposal to restore an 11-mile stretch of the L.A. River received support from US Army Corps of Engineers this week (Jae C. Hong).

 
Mayor thanks president for "listening" on L.A. River project

Soumya Karlamangla (latimes.com)

Soumya Karlamangla

With new backing from the federal government, city officials celebrated a step forward Thursday for a $1-billion plan to revitalize a strip of the Los Angeles River.
 

Recommended $1-billion project

After originally pushing for a cheaper $453-million plan, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced this week that it now supports a more robust, $1-billion proposal that would widen the river and restore habitat along an 11-mile stretch north of downtown through Elysian Park.

Speaking in a grassy park beside the river, Army Corps Col. Kimberly Colloton said the decision not only recognized "the importance of the river to Angelenos, but it validates its place as a waterway of national significance." More

13th Annual WorldFest (May 18, 2014)

Xochitl, Ashley Wells, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; WorldFestEvents.com UPDATED

WorldFest: LA's biggest Green, Compassionate-Living, Music Festival

(WFLA) Come spend the day with fellow lovers of Earth. Get inspired while having fun! Woodley Park is next to the Metro line, with easy freeway access, in the San Fernando Valley.
 

Ascetic Siddhartha and Mara's daughters under the Bodhi tree (jeffpartridge.tumblr.com)

 
The festivals of ancient India -- like the massive Rajgir Fest the Buddha's chief disciples attended before setting out to become spiritual seekers wandering in search of truth -- could hardly rival what we have today. And all of Mara's daughters pale in comparison to the cornucopia of Lululemon yoga pants and sheer hippie wear -- none of which distracts from our quest for enlightenment. Our illumination is guaranteed so long as we persevere. Carry on, our wayward sons and daughters. For if "Not everyone who wanders is lost," we grow as we keep touring!

• Worldfest 2014, Woodley Park, Sunday, Lake Balboa
• World Fest Los Angeles 2014 (Facebook)

Gay Pride Festival 2014 (longbeachpride.com), Sunday, May 18th

When in Long Beach, as numerous Cambodian temples celebrate Vesak today, also see the Kwan Yin/Virgin Mary in a shell (seen here at left) Sagely Buddhist monastery, across from the Queen Mary and Spruce Goose, PCH, Long Beach (longbeachmonastery.org)

Can one love one's penis too much? (video)

Pat Macpherson, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; LiveScience.com; TheFinalMember.com

This optical illusion is caused by our brain's top down processing rather than being mindful of what's there or what psychologists refer to as bottom up processing -- perceiving based on data rather than interpretation. Instead, our minds constantly "construct" our reality. Send complaints care of CC Liu. Then fish your mind out of the gutter and look below:

(VICE) Can a man love the penis too much? Acclaimed at festivals worldwide including HotDocs, SilverDocs, and Fantastic Fest, "The Final Member" follows the aging curator of one of the world's only penis museum as he races against his own mortality to complete his comprehensive collection. Opens in theaters and VOD 4-18-14.

Female Penis, Male Vagina: First Case of Genital Reversal in Nature

Charles Q. Choi (livescience.com); Yoshizawa et. al (Neotrogla aurora in Current Biology)

Female penis structure of cave insect (CB)

Females with penislike genitals and males with vaginalike organs are cases of a new extreme reversal of sex roles researchers have discovered in little-known cave insects.

 

These are the first examples of animals with genitalia that reverse the traditional sex roles, and the discovery could shed light on the conflict between the sexes in the animal kingdom, investigators said.

 

Scientists analyzed four species of insects from extremely dry caves in Brazil. All four species belong to the genus Neotrogla, just as dogs, wolves, coyotes, and jackals belong to genus Canis. The first Neotrogla was discovered 18 years ago; adult Neotrogla range from about 2.7 to 3.7 millimeters (0.11 to 0.15 inches) long. More

I am not a Dick (Nixon)
Stephen "the new David Letterman" Colbert on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

• PHOTOS: Genital-Reversed Cave Insects (Rated X-treme)

• 

  Get off me, dumbo!

  Animal Sex: How Elephants Do It
• Brazil targets sex tourism before the World Cup Brazil's government has closed down sex hotels, supported groups that work with at-risk children, and is encouraging reporting of abuse.
• AUDIO: How to be more masculine with MANtras
• Pot of Gold: Innovation helps cannabis industry
• So. Carolina town had a lesbian police chief
• Strip club owner in Valley seeks power 
• Concrete pouring for L.A.'s new tallest tower
• VIDEO: Mystery ocean sound finally explained
• Keeping Time: Why 60 minutes?
• TIME-LAPSE: Giant iceberg (8 times the size of Manhattan) breaks off glacier. Thank you, Climate Chaos
  

What does the park tell us about the drought?

Xochitl, Ashley Wells, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; Jed Kim (SCPR); Wildflowering.org

What was Los Angeles at the time of Native Americans and what can it be again? (WF)

After some rain earlier in the week, Griffith Park is a greener (Maya Sugarman/KPCC)

 

Dirty cops accused of planting guns

The drought has some people thinking: What would L.A. look like without lawns and sprinklers? Above its watered golf courses and picnic areas, Griffith Park is a snapshot of Southern California without the lattice of plastic and rusted irrigation pipes.

 

At the moment, LA's "central park" is a shining emerald of green, which may seem counterintuitive given that the state as a whole is experiencing one of the worst droughts on record.

Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants (theodorepayne.org)

• April 26: Kill Your Lawn
• May 2: Two-part Herbarium Workshop
• May 3: Native Plant Identification 
• May 10: 3-part Native Garden Design
• May 10: Many Uses of Yucca Workshop
• May 17: CA Native Plant Horticulture
• May 31: Propagating CA Native Plant

Where's the Moon? Uposatha Pasadena

Biologists say that late season rains have helped awaken plants that normally grow earlier in the winter. While flowers and flora in general are making a late rally from the searingly dry early winter months, their success does not mean an end to the drought.

 

“The plants are not a good indicator of how bad the situation is," said Dan Cooper, a biologist who conducts wildlife surveys around the  Southland. "We can be fooled by looking at all these wildflowers and greenery and thinking we’re out of the drought, but just because you see a lot of green and wildflowers, we’re definitely not out of the drought.” LISTEN

Sex controversial billboards (laweekly.com)

Leaders gather in LA to address human trafficking (and SEXUAL slavery) in California (Monica Luhar) The gathering will explore the best practices statewide to combat the crime statewide. The event features officials and lawmakers from L.A., San Diego, and Alameda counties.

EARTH DAY (WEEKEND): Wildflowering L.A. Spring Exhibition

Blooming in the urban concrete jungle

Fritz Haeg’s Wildflowering L.A. project (commissioned and organized by LAND (Los Angeles Nomadic Division) will culminate this weekend, April 26-27 at THE SHED: 1355 Lincoln Ave., Pasadena, 91103. 12:00-6:00 pm daily.

The bees and frogs are returning (WF)

LA’s emerging space for urban permaculture, planning, and land use by La Loma Development Company, the exhibit features flowers and photos fresh from project sites presented on a vast L.A. County map, along with project archives, artist-designed posters, educational activities for all ages, conversations with experts including representatives from the Theodore Payne Foundation and project participants, a live broadcast by KCHUNG, music by Pawing at the Ceiling, seasonal refreshments by Thank You For Coming, and more. See a MAP of all 50 sites and streaming #wildfloweringla updates.

Who needs a thirsty lawn when everyone can have a water-free garden? (wildflowering.org)

Wildflowering L.A. Spring and Earth Day Fest

Xochitl, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; Arroyo Seco Foundation (arroyoseco.org); Trails Council

Los Angeles is a flowering desert wonderland as seen at urban Site 37 (wildflower.org)

Wildflowering L.A. Spring Exhibition

There are no birds without bees and trees.

LAND invites all to the Spring Exhibition for Wildflowering L.A. on Saturday and Sunday, April 26-27, 2014 at THE SHED. The exhibition will feature flower cuttings, photos fresh from the project sites, artist-designed posters, educational activities...

 

Earth Month Invasive Plant Removal Volunteer Day

Help remove harmful invasive plant species from the natural streamzone below JPL/Hahamongna/Devil's Gates Dam to protect our native riparian ecosystem (sponsored by SoCalGas).

Native American/First Nations people of California (starknowledgeconference.com)

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Earth Day L.A.: Pasadena Earth and Arts Festival 

FREE all-ages event in Old Pasadena... Live music from local bands, dancing, and an interactive drum circle you can join... Singles, kids, and parents get creative with art workshops... Eco-friendly exhibitors will display and sell green products and services... Sample tastings...

North East Trees Earth Day Fest 

FREE admission, free on-site parking, plus 100 free trees to LA homeowners. Come to the Earth Day festival, where local artists, environmental organizations, and sponsors will exhibit and sell at this FUNdraiser for North East Trees. Learn what local environmental groups are doing and ways to can get involved. Be a part of the mayor's "1 Million Tree Initiative."

The foothills' watershed in the time of the Tongva Natives of Los Angeles (tongvatribe.net)

La Canada Flintride Trails Council is dedicated to preserving, developing, promoting, and maintaining are local and regional trail systems (sometimes with the help of willing horses).

Urban Oasis: turning a home into a natural wonderland (pasadenaweekly.com)

Transition Pasadena: Arroyo Food Co-op

Happy Earth Day (video)

Ashley Wells, Seth Auberon, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; Amy Goodman, John Gonzalez

In an EARTH DAY special, Democracy Now! looks at the history of the global environmental movement.

The story is told in the sweeping new documentary called "A Fierce Green Fire: The Battle for a Living Planet" (airing tonight on PBS).

Extended highlights from the film show New York housewives who take on a major chemical corporation that polluted their community of Love Canal, Greenpeace’s campaigns to save whales, to the struggle by Chico Mendes and Brazilian rubber tappers to save the Amazon rainforest.

The film’s Oscar-nominated director Mark Kitchell explains, "We were really looking to tell stories of the movement. We thought it would be a more engaging and impassioned approach to what are very difficult subjects. Usually environmental films, no matter how good they are, are an eco-bummer....These people succeeded against enormous odds. And that should give us some kind of hope..." More

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

Topanga Earth Day 2014 (April 19-20)

Xochitl, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; Moonbeam, TopangaEarthDay.org

The Herb Walk, Bee Canyon, California

Wm. Broen (FYH), Xochitl, Pat Macpherson, Pfc. Sandoval, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly

Herbalist Broen distributes Follow Your Heart water and trail mix (Wisdom Quarterly)

Beware of toxic fires! (WQ)

For the Japanese Mahayana version of the Buddha's birthday -- which we traditionally celebrate as the three-times-blessed day of VESAK on the full moon day in May (5/14/14) -- we went out on the Follow Your Heart HERB WALK with Herb Pharm herbalist William Broen into Bee Canyon in the Santa Susana Mountains.

The turn out was overwhelming, and it slowed the walk with repeated safety warnings. All we wanted to do was touch everything, nibble, and find artesian springs bubbling up after the recent rains on the drought tolerant chaparral. 

The crowd was large as we set off (WQ)

The lore was fascinating, the Sun was spectacular, the breeze was unexpected, and there was even a Native flute interlude under a coastal live oak as one participant took out elderberry branch instruments and entertained us. A kind garter snake dashed by, we were told never to touch Moon flower (datura, Jimson weed), and we planned our hike for the following day.

City denizens enter the wild (WQ)

• Medicinal Plant Herb Walks
• VIDEO: Science: Plants talk to each other
• The Real History of St. Patrick's Day
• Buddhist Dream Interpretation
• Buddhist JOKES! Do Dalai Lamas laugh?
• Buddhist Christmas: Xmas in Japan

Know Your GMO interactive board (pinterest.com/followyrheart/good-to-know)

Our "brain" on mushrooms

Pat Macpherson, Xochitl, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; Los Angeles Mycological Society

Giant puffball "brain" mushroom found in Angeles Nat'l Forest, March 30, 2014 (WQ)

 

Some mushrooms are entheogenic magic

Recently, we went hiking in the rugged mountains behind Los Angeles, in the chaparral of the Angeles National Forest behind one of the largest cities in the world.

Plant wisdom

And our Indian guide made a startling find: a giant puffball mushroom that could only be described as a "brain." It is white, with two hemispheres, cortical ridges, a brainstem fixed deep in the clay and sand soil, and an apparent gunshot exit wound out of which, had Mr. Lincoln been sporting this thinking-cap, all his memories would have oozed.

• Calendar of Events (LAMS)
• List of Natural Entheogens

Puffball skulls, UK (Nathan Lee)

The first question we had was, "Is it poisonous?" We followed that closely with, "Can we eat it?"

Like any good guide, we were taught the first rule for those who choose to snooze during survival training. As for eating wild mushrooms, "When in doubt, throw it out." This comes right out of the LAMS' playbook.

Identification

Cooking With Native Foods (Tim Martinez)

(LAMS) The fact is that there are many excellent edible wild mushrooms [and a few sacred entheogenic ones] almost anyone can learn to identify. And there are deadly poisonous species that every collector should be familiar with as well. 

Sadly, there are no simple rules to reliably tell which mushrooms are poisonous or edible. The only way to safely forage for wild mushrooms is to be familiar with the characteristics of the species one sets out to collect. Learn these characteristics by collecting with experts who can teach them those characteristics.

Haul of desert mushrooms reaching 8.5" and brain puffball (Xochitl/Wisdom Quarterly)

 

LAMS hosts several mushroom forays every season where beginners can start. Why use an expert; why not just go by trial-and-error? There is a more famous saying among mushroomers (mycologists, those who study mushrooms), and it runs: 

"There are daring wild mushroom eaters.
And there are old wild mushroom eaters.
But there are no daring-old wild mushroom eaters."

LA awash in pot as shops file to renew

These delicate fruits of the soil can be deadly. The Buddha was possibly lead out by death caps (Amanita phalloides) fed to him by a blacksmith mistaking them for a supple pigs' feast like truffles.

Beginners ought never rely solely on identifications based on a field guide -- particularly those that provide only pictures and brief descriptions

 

Find some mushrooms in need of identification? See the L.A. Mycological Society contact page. Also check the recommended reading page for Websites, books, and journals to learn to identify mushrooms in the wild.

• VIDEO: Making an Indian teepee from a tarp
• VIDEO: What's in our backpacks? Pack lightly
• Annual Lummis Day returns to NE L.A. in June
• VIDEO: U.N. Climate Panel issues dire warning of threat to global food supply, calls for action
• Inside the "Electronic Omnivore": new leaks show NSA spying on U.N., Climate Summit, text messaging
• Do Girl Scout cookies still make the world a better place?
• Rick and Kay Warren try to improve church attitudes about mental illness
• People still uninsured may turn to community clinics 
• Supreme Court loosens limits on political contributions (Now we'll have the "best democracy money can buy")
• LA County on health care plan for undocumented
• LA Heat exhibition celebrates Angelenos' love of hot sauce 
• LA hasn't had positive job growth in 23 years, report says (Wendy Lee) The UCLA Anderson Forecast says L.A. needs to improve education and make the area more business-friendly in order to increase jobs.

LA rain: showers, hail, thunder, wind, road closures Wed. (Maya Sugarman/KPCC)