Charlotte, NC's topics - tribe.net

Any people in Charlotte know about 2012?

2008-08-02T03:44:35Z

I'm new to the area and wouldn't mind meeting some like minding people.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 19 replies

Coming to Charlotte 9/2-9/7

2008-08-01T21:33:07Z

Anything good going on...?

Music, burning man esq, hippie, community?

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

MonsterCon

2008-07-31T15:35:04Z

Anyone else planning on going to MonsterCon? (Come on Achbar, I KNOW you're going!)

http://www.comicmonstore.com/convention.htm

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Zappa Plays Zappa Ticket for sale. 7/29 at the Neighborhood Theatre

2008-07-30T14:50:32Z

I bought my ticket a while ago and can't make it. $20.
cocoa_rageous at yahoo dot com

posted in Charlotte, NC - 7 replies

Bellyrama @ Lotus Dance Studio for $5

2008-06-17T15:07:12Z

Wanna find out what Bellydance and Lotus Studio is about? Stop in and get your bellydance buffet! We're going to feature 20 minutes of each specialty class currently offered at the studio. And you can enjoy them all for $5! Check out the details below, and tell a friend!

Friday June 20
Lotus Dance Studio (1001 E WT Harris Blvd Suite W, Charlotte NC)
7pm-10pm
Cost $5

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

New Dance Studio in Charlotte "World Dance Center"

2008-04-11T17:46:32Z

Dances of the world at World Dance Center - 3116-F Milton Rd. Charlotte, NC 28215.
Salsa, Belly Dance, Flamenco, Capoeira, Zumba and more!!!!
Also teaching in different areas around Charlotte! Classes and Free Wkly socials every week!

WWW.CHARLOTTESALSADANCE.COM

Rodrigo Jimenez
704-449-8112

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Fraud Alert regarding North Coast Earth First! Aka NCEF! Media. Completely independent from any activist group!

2008-02-18T21:43:42Z

20 views since posting on Sunday, December 2, 2007
Location California

enlarge photo
NCEF! Media in Humboldt County Ca.(AKA NORTH COAST EARTH FIRST!), is accused of fraud and donation embezzlement. Caution! Do not support this lone wingnut's scam! Active and legitamate groups exist in the area. Caution! Do not be fooled by NCEF! Media and his fraudulent outreach. Shunka Wakan exists completely seperate from any active affinity group.

Read about how he perpetuated a lawsuit under the guise of EF! against a legitimate environmental nonprofit:

From: northcoastjournal.com/100407/...004.html

October 4, 2007

"Money On Trees"

Big cash nearly fell into Shunka Wakan's lap. Other Earth First!ers are kinda happy it didn't.

by Heidi Walters

As the jury trial for the civil suit Kathryn Miller v. the Trees Foundation puttered to a start last week inside Courtroom 3 at the Humboldt County Courthouse, Shunka Wakan — a key witness for the plaintiff — spent mornings sitting on the hard wooden benches in the long hallway outside the courtroom. During breaks, Miller's attorney Linda Mitlyng, would come out of the courtroom to join him. But otherwise, as other people and their legal affairs swirled around him in a warm, odiferous bath of humanity, Shunka sat alone. Or, sometimes, he stood alone, straight-spined, his small, stocky body swallowed by the huge, stiff blue suit out of which his newly shorn, razor-scraped bald head poked vulnerably — as if, at any moment, the suit could gulp once more and he'd disappear completely. Always, he clutched a paper folder with a wolf's face on its cover.

The North Coast Earth First! Media guru had shaved off his woolly rust-tinged brown hair and beard the night before jury selection started, after discussing it with attorney Mitlyng. Now, it took an uncertain moment to recognize him. Then, of course: Shunka's light blue eyes in the pink-pale face, Shunka's closed-lip smile, Shunka's trademark husky murmur, "Mm-hmm, for sure," in response to a comment.

In Courtroom 3, the amiable but no-nonsense Judge Christopher Wilson's domain, the fate of a $185,000 donation dangled. Would the plaintiff, donor Kathryn Miller, prevail in her claim that the defendant, the Trees Foundation, was not in fact the intended recipient of her generous gift? That Shunka Wakan's NCEF! Media Center and the treesitters were? Or would the Trees Foundation convince the jury that, in fact, the money was intended all along for Trees, with no instructions attached for funneling it elsewhere?

Richard Idell, left, who is defending the Trees Foundation against a lawsuit filed by Kathryn Miller, confers with Doug Wallace, community support coordinator for Trees. Photo by David Lawlor.

In her opening arguments, Miller's attorney, Mitlyng, said the case came down to "fraud and broken promises." "She believed [Trees] would hold [the money] in trust, for the benefit of North Coast Earth First!" said Mitlyng. The defense's attorney, Richard Idell, countered in his opening argument that the donation was an unconditional gift and Miller never wrote letters of instruction — as Miller claims she did. "Ms. Miller ... didn't do anything. She took the check [from her mother's estate] and flipped it over and wrote on the back, 'Payable to the Trees Foundation,'" said Idell.

Miller's claim sought the return of her $185,000, plus interest.

Out in the hallway, Shunka waited to tell his side of the story. Maybe he thought about the magical donation that never materialized, and now probably never would. Maybe he thought about the other times he'd been in this courthouse — dozens of times, along with other activists, often before Judge Wilson, answering to charges of trespassing and other forms of civil disobedience in the woods. Likely, he wondered when they were finally going to call him in to testify — it was taking forever in there. He'd even sent out an e-mail prematurely to the several hundred subscribers to his NCEF! online group erroneously announcing he would be first up to testify.

By the end of Friday's court session, Miller was still on the stand. Perhaps Monday it would be Shunka's turn. Whenever it was, he would be testifying on Miller's behalf; but he wasn't a party to the lawsuit. And in the end, after hearing all of the evidence, the jury would be determining who was telling the truth about intentions and letters of instructions. Shunka was just there to provide context and evidence in a contract dispute.

But to a number of forest activists, including a half dozen or so who appeared in the audience last Friday to watch the trial unfold, that context matters more to them than the legal questions. They say this lawsuit has placed a strain on the environmental community that could do as much damage as an ill-felled redwood that takes down other giants in its descent. They disapprove of the lawsuit, and they blame Shunka for it. And, they say, it's just another example of how Shunka has commandeered the North Coast Earth First! identity and used it for purposes that nobody else in the amorphous but consensus-driven local Earth First! movement has agreed to.

"For a lot of us, when we read about the lawsuit, this is kind of like Shunka on trial," said long-time forest activist Deane Rimerman last Friday, calling from Olympia, Wash. "And, to what extent is he worthy of that money?"

Kathryn Miller wanted her money to go toward saving trees, she said on the witness stand last Thursday. The slender 59-year-old was dressed in a pink print skirt and white sweater, with her gray-streaked dark hair pulled back into a neat, thin braid tinted slightly green. (Little did the jury know that Miller had spent the night in jail, in blue jail duds, and then had been "dressed out," in court lingo, in her street clothes before being escorted into the court by the bailiff. Miller had been arrested the week before, on Sept. 17, when she arrived in civil court for the pre-trial readiness hearing; according to the misdemeanor criminal charges filed against her, Miller allegedly had made annoying phonecalls to Barbara Ristow of the Trees Foundation all hours of the day and night.)

On the stand, Miller described how she became an activist. She remembered how, when she was a child in Orinda, her mother decided to stop spraying the beautiful oak trees on their property after reading Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. "And then, when my son was 9, we were watching the news on TV about the Chernobyl nuclear power plant meltdown. And my son said to me, 'I wish I'd never been born. I don't think I'll get to live a full life.'"

She protested the building of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant. She started a peace action group in the late 1980s in San Jose. She did nonviolent protests at the Nevada Test Site. And in 1990, she came up with some of her fellow protestors to help set up the camp for Redwood Summer, and to take part in demonstrations. She's been on and off involved in Earth First! actions in Humboldt ever since, she said, including huffing in supplies for treesitters and huffing out their garbage. She'd also, at one point, bought a condo in Arcata.

In 2004, Miller sold her condo and bought an acre of farmland, already planted with coffee, in Guatemala. She put in fruit trees to shade the coffee. That same year, her mother, who lived in Sonoma, died. "The last time I saw her was in 2003," said Miller. "She told me when she died, she was going to leave me some money. I told her I'd use it to further my work for the forest. And she was pleased, because she loved the treesitters and the forest."

Shortly after learning of her mother's death, Kathryn Miller sought out Shunka Wakan in front of the food co-op in Arcata, where he "tabled" to raise funds for the North Coast Earth First! Media office — selling T-shirts, and stickers, offering pamphlets, accepting donations. She'd known Shunka for about five years, she said.

"I said to him, I was going to inherit some money: What was the best way to get that to the North Coast Earth First!?"

In the spring of 2005, Shunka Wakan was floating above the treetops. "I was so excited," the 32-year-old said in an interview a few weeks ago, sitting inside his tiny but colorful North Coast Earth First! Media office in Arcata, walls covered in art and topo maps — including one of Buckeye Mountain, where in 2000-2001, during the "Mattole Free State" action, Shunka and others hiked 14 miles through waist-high snowdrifts to save trees.

Kathryn Miller, he recalled, had come up to him excitedly as he walked along the sidewalk outside the Arcata Co-op and said, "I just donated $185,000 to North Coast Earth First!'"

She'd talked to him the year before about making the donation — she'd said she was anticipating an inheritance from her mother's estate, and she wanted to make a big donation to his group. He'd told her to make it through the Trees Foundation, which handled the NCEF! Media office's finances through an arrangement that had been established years ago. (The Trees Foundation is an umbrella organization formed in 1991 to assist smaller environmental groups. As a 501(c)3 nonprofit, it can accept large, tax-deductible donations on behalf of affiliates, and provide professional resources. And it can lead large campaigns, like the one to save the Headwaters Forest back in the '90s.)

Well, now she'd finally done it.

Miller and Shunka agreed to meet at Fiesta Café in Sunny Brae, so she could tell him how she wanted the money spent: She wanted, straight away, for someone to organize a mediated workshop for the local Earth First! activists on ageism and sexism, issues she thought were fracturing the movement. And, she wanted the bulk of the donation to help support the forest activists who blockade logging roads and hunker up in ancient redwoods to fend off loggers' saws.

Not long after, Shunka was on his way to have lunch with some folks from the Trees Foundation, where they'd talk about Miller's wishes.

"Our media outreach was going to get a big boost," Shunka said. "The donation would keep the EF! office going for many years. So I walked into the Wildflower Café feeling elated, thinking we got all this money."

Barbara Ristow and Doug Wallace of the Trees Foundation were there. "I was super excited," Shunka said, "and I said, 'This is great, this big donation. Isn't it wonderful?' We ordered food, and still I'm all excited, talking about the money, but I notice they're looking nervously at each other. [Finally], they said, 'Well, we're just shocked that you think this money was for you.' And I was like, 'I just met with the donor, and that's what she said.' And they're like, 'Well, let's go ahead and plan the workshop and deal with that later.' I remember that, because it put me at ease."

After that, Shunka said he gave Trees a list of people he thought might benefit from the mediator-run workshop. "Some were people I knew had beefs with me, but I was willing to bring 'em into the circle and talk about it."

According to some vague accounts, the workshop was a disaster. One person who was there claims that Shunka, at one point, pounded his fists on the floor, blustered, then got up and stormed out, yelling as he walked away. Shunka says that's overblown.

"The letter from Kathryn Miller to Barbara Bristow said she wanted the mediation to be a safe place, safe to be emotional," he said. "And I think people are saying 'I freaked out.' The freak-out reports are exaggerated. It's just part of this ongoing character assassination. People say I was 'red-faced.' But my face is naturally red."

In late 2005, while Shunka was in Seattle, a friend called him from Arcata to say a woman had come by asking for the office key. She had a list of equipment she wanted to take away. The friend didn't give her the key.

When Shunka got back from Seattle, he discovered his reimbursement funds from Trees had been "frozen." He also learned about a letter someone in the NCEF! movement had circulated for signatures and then sent to Mark Knipper, who handled the Trees Foundation transactions for the NCEF! Media office. It said, in essence, "We don't want Shunka running EF!"

"I called the Trees Foundation," Shunka recalled. "I was sick, it was the middle of the winter, I'm trying to table, it's raining, it's cold. And Barbara Ristow told me, 'You just need to have a meeting [with the other Earth First!ers] and come to a group consensus on what the Trees Foundation funding should be used for."

The meeting never happened — nobody could agree to meet, said Mark Knipper, also in an interview last week. Knipper is a social worker and a long-time activist who had been the contact person between Trees and NCEF! Media. "So it ate itself," Knipper said. "And although I'm former Navy, a mariner, I said I'm not going down with this ship. So I divorced myself from it ... and signed it all back to Trees."

The NCEF! Media office was dropped from the Trees Foundation altogether.

Shunka and the NCEF! Media office never did see any of the big donation. Miller didn't even know that, he said, until she phoned him up in the summer of 2006, more than a year after she made the donation, to ask about a guy named "Jungle," who had been reported as missing on the NCEF! hotline. Miller was spending much of her time in Guatemala now, where she was raising fruit trees; after she'd made her big donation, Hurricane Stan had struck — she spent the ensuing year mopping up the mess.

First, Shunka told her Jungle was still missing. Then he told her about the money.

"I said, 'Yeah, they told me it wasn't for us,'" said Shunka. "And she said, 'I meant for all of it to go to you guys.' She sounded real upset. And I was like, 'I knew it! I knew it!'"

Shunka tried to sue Trees in small claims court, but it went nowhere.

Miller filed a claim against the Trees Foundation on Oct. 5, 2006, in Humboldt County Superior Court, seeking the return of the $185,000 plus interest so she could distribute the money herself.

And if she wins? "She may just spread it out more," said Shunka. "She's got tree planting ideas. Maybe she could buy a grove. She'd maybe not give it all to Earth First! this time. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that Trees blew for us."

On an uncomfortably hot afternoon last week, four forest activists who'd agreed to an interview for this story — Jeff, Shaggy, Sparrow and Farmer — sat on the ground at the Arcata Marsh next to a log bench on which a teeming crew of red ants worked a splintered notch. Someone had come along here in 1999 and carved a grouping of faces — bearded, grimacing, possibly mourning faces — onto the log and signed it Daniel. The carving had been drenched in red paint, and burnished by years of sitters.

"It kind of reminds me of the memorial for Gypsy," said one of them. "With the red paint."

Gypsy was the forest name of David Nathan Chain, who in September 1998, during an Earth First! action at Grizzly Creek, was crushed to death by a tree felled by an enraged logger. Farmer, actually, was there — he was just 16, but had a year of activism already under his belt. And Shunka was there — it was Shunka's first forest action.

Farmer, Shag, Sparrow and Jeff first made it clear that they spoke for themselves alone, although they participate in various forest defense affinity groups: Farmer works for the Mattole Wildlands Defense Group now, watchdogging the California Department of Forestry for new timber harvest plans, and keeping an eye on a Pacific Lumber Co. watershed analysis. Shag, who saw his first redwood about five years ago, helps keep the Fern Gully treesit village in Freshwater functioning. Jeff, who grew up in the high desert, and fell in love with the woods, works with the Nanning Creek treesit just outside of Scotia, as well as other groups. Sparrow, who was drawn to forest action because the cultural landscape was "like a folktale" he couldn't resist, is with the Fern Gully affinity group. These groups are all part of the Humboldt Forest Defense Association, a collective with a website but no formal structure.

The HFDA sprang into being six years ago — about the time the entity called North Coast Earth First! had essentially dissolved. It would take a book to describe that drawn-out dissolution — a book of lost causes, won causes, waning media interest, Judi Bari's death, Gypsy's death, ego-spurred squabbles, interpersonal catastrophes, a war overseas, hurricanes. And while the HFDA activists might still cherish the Earth First! name — the movement — in their hearts, it's now been further complicated by what you might call the Shunka effect.

"I still feel in many ways solidarity with the greater Earth First! movement abroad," said Farmer. "But in this county, in this climate, if you say you're with the North Coast Earth First!, many people associate you with North Coast Earth First! Media."

Shunka revived the North Coast Earth First! office around 2002. And he did what previous office managers had done — tabled, put out news releases, wrote articles for other publications. But it wasn't like the old days, in the '90s, when hundreds of people were getting arrested in forest actions and the jail support phone and legal resources were in constant use.

Shunka first worked in an office in Eureka, then later moved to Arcata. He called his outfit the NCEF! Media Center. For a time, he and other "affinity groups" tried to work together. But he alienated some people. He took over the North Coast Earth First! website. He controlled the North Coast Earth First! email list of 300 or more subscribers to the news alerts. He sent out press releases on his own.

"I felt the North Coast Earth First! Media Center was a unilateral effort on Shunka's part," said Farmer. Whereas, in the old days, "spokespeople were decided on by the group. And if you wrote an article it was passed by everyone. I feel Shunka appointed himself spokesperson at some point."

Many also claim they've been subject to a lashing anger from Shunka.

"I won't work with him because I pledge nonviolence in my actions," said Shag. "I don't believe he pledges the same thing. He has exhibited violent behavior towards me and towards other activists in my presence."

"He's a bear," said Jeff, making claw-fists with his hands.

But the sad thing is, all of this infighting probably has done nothing to help the actual trees. And the mediation workshop Kathryn Miller wanted didn't fix matters. Now, there was her lawsuit.

"When I heard about this lawsuit, I thought, the Trees Foundation does not deserve to be attacked in that way," said Farmer. "There's much bigger issues that need to be dealt with — with Maxxam and old-growth logging. ...If you look at Fern Gully and Nanning Creek (the Bonanza timber harvest plan), there's hundreds of old growth acres still standing whose fate is unclear."

Shag put it more bluntly: "If [Miller] knew Shunka and wanted to get the money to North Coast Earth First! Media, she should've given it to Shunka. But if she was trying to get it to treesits and forest defense, then the money went to the right place.

"My problem is this whole representation thing. There's people in the trees — how do you know who to get the money to, to help them?"

Shunka knows that a lot of fellow activists aren't happy with his role in the donation dispute. He also knows how some people talk about him and say he's hard to get along with. "I'm just standing up for the truth," he said. "And people don't like it. To me, it feels like a small clique of people who don't like me. I feel a lot of love and support in this community."

He certainly doesn't come off right away as someone who's angry, or who lashes out, or who locks the office and doesn't let people in. Why, recently, he helped a young woman hook up with the treesitters so she could learn the ropes. (Shaggy said that's proof Shunka doesn't have direct connections with the people doing direct action; but you can't deny it's a connection.)

It's probably a bad idea to ask Darryl Cherney, one of the founders of the local Earth First! movement, what he thinks of Shunka Wakan, whose real name is Jason Wilson. (Shunka tells a story of how he was named by a Lakota medicine man on the banks of the Cheyenne River in South Dakota in 1995. "Shunka Wakan," meaning "great dog," is only part of it. There's a secret part after that — altogether, his name means "the humble man called horse.")

"Shunka's a wingnut," Cherney said over the phone last Friday, sounding cheerfully vitriolic. "I have a 10-verse song about Shunka."

Here are the last few verses:

Who's at the co-op spanging a donation
Shunka, Shunka
Who's got a lawsuit 'gainst the Trees Foundation
Shunka, Shunka
Shunka, Shunka
Who's gonna keep on fighting the fight
Shunka, Shunka
With four of his friends at swimmers delight
Shunka, Shunka
Shunka, Shunka (Shunka voice: It's the last of the revolution)

There's no other word for it but "mean." But Cherney and Shunka have history — not all of it sour. Cherney said Shunka laughed when he heard the song, at least the first time.

"I met Shunka in 1998," Cherney said. "And I know he knew Julia ["Butterfly" Hill, whom Shunka had come west to find]. That was a good thing, helping Julia. That was good Shunka."

Cherney had even pushed for Shunka to go to Houston to talk with Charles Hurwitz, whose Maxxam Corp. bought out the old Pacific Lumber company back in 1985 and quickly became the forest activists' number one villain. Shunka went.

But now? "The current status of Shunka and me," Cherney said, "is that Shunka has sent me five or eight or nine e-mails threatening to sue me. Shunka is a joke."

Cherney can talk for hours about the problems he's had with Shunka over the years. His main point, though, is what has Shunka done for the trees lately?

"My question is, where's your topo maps?" he asked. "Where's your wilderness preservation proposal? Where's your lobbyist team in Sacramento?"

It has to be that, on some level, even the people in the movement who don't like Shunka understand somewhat where he's coming from. So he's emotional. Passionate. Perhaps he's caught up so completely in the cause he can't let go. Or, who knows — maybe he's a phony, like he accused Knipper of being back in 2005.

But being a forest activist comes with perils beyond the obvious physical ones.

"I'm really trying to have compassion for Shunka, even though he's kind of attacked us," said Susy Barsotti by phone from Laytonville a couple of weeks ago. Barsotti is president of the Trees Foundation board, and she says the lawsuit has held Trees hostage, unable to function fully. "I've been mystified and dismayed that he's participated like this in the suit. But Shunka witnessed Gypsy's death. And I think he may have post-traumatic stress syndrome. I don't think he's recovered from it. And that can affect your behavior."

A number of people mentioned this, actually, about Shunka. And he often refers to Gypsy's death himself. In an article titled "What Luna has taught me," posted on the website of Julia "Butterfly" Hill's organization, Circle of Life, Shunka writes: "I decided to commit to doing ground support after witnessing the death of David Nathan "Gypsy" Chain on September 17, 1998 ... I remember looking across the valley as we hiked up that day, seeing the rolling hills of forests and clear-cuts, and thinking out loud, "That's why we're here!" Seeing Gypsy's life taken from him, and then seeing the corruption and lies of the Humboldt County Sheriffs ... really opened my eyes to the situation our old-growth forests face."

Later, he did ground support for Hill in her second year in Luna. And in the same article on her website, something else Shunka writes indicates how ready he was to devote himself to a cause: "Being on the support team was the top priority in my life, and I was happy knowing that everything else revolved around when I'd be needed for the next supply run. I never felt lost because I knew what I was doing. That was a feeling I had not felt in years, between feeling dissatisfaction with life in college, and then more dissatisfaction with life as a minimum-wage worker after college. Before joining Julia's ground support team I was unhappy, even to the point of tears, wondering if my entire life was going to be a minimum-wage nightmare ...."

Pure devotion, without benefit of a little hypocrisy, could drive anyone batty. Deane Rimerman, the activist from Olympia who said it is Shunka who is on trial, said it's not uncommon for intense, stressful movements like Earth First! to produce an army of walking wounded. And he's been around, in forest actions up and down the coast, for long enough to know; he was the one, in fact, who "got the maps and led the first hikers up to the hill" to the Gypsy Mountain campaign and Luna treesit.

"In the forest activist movement, there's very little that's rewarding," Rimerman said. "There's a lot of post traumatic stress syndrome. All of us get it. Once you've been through the court process, and the jail process, and seen 1,000-year-old trees get cut down that you really cared about and thought you could save — it's devastating."

That alone, setting aside the troubles with Shunka, could explain the many rifts that have occurred within the local EF! ranks over the years. Josh Brown, who moved to Humboldt in 1995 right before the peak of the Headwaters campaign, said one of the unique qualities of Earth First! is that it "is primarily a youth movement."

"A lot of people that come through are young, are passionate — and it's a wonderful thing," he said. They get thrown into leadership positions quickly — and then they get burned out. Many move quickly on to other things. Brown stayed in longer than most. "When I left [in 2001], I was 30 years old. And I'd been a full-time activist since I was 18."

Paradoxically, said Brown, the youthful draw and the departure of seasoned activists leaves the movement with "no elders to kind of sit around and coach the [new kids]."

The movement also draws strong personalities, he said. Tenacious ones, too, like Shunka's.

"Shunka, I think he really does have a big heart," said Brown. "And I think he does care for the forest."

Last Friday, following the morning session of Miller v. Trees, a group of the Humboldt Forest Defense Association activists stood on the courthouse steps talking. The door opened, and Shunka walked out and down the steps toward the group. They didn't greet him. After a time, he tried to talk to one of them, Jeff. Jeff walked away. Shunka followed him, then stopped and talked to another guy. Then he stood alone again.

From: northcoastjournal.com/101107/...011.html

"Trees Foundation Wins"

October 11th, 2007

The jury in the civil case Kathryn Miller v. the Trees Foundation decided in favor of Trees, after deliberating all day Tuesday. (See "Money on Trees," Oct. 4).

Miller is the long-time forest activist who inherited a bundle from her mother and then signed $185,000 over to the Trees Foundation. In her lawsuit, she claimed she had intended the money to be passed through Trees to one of its affiliates, North Coast Earth First! Media, run by Shunka Wakan. She claimed she had made her intentions clear, verbally and in writing, and that Trees had agreed to the conditions, then broken its promise and kept the money. Trees denied making such promises, and said it had never seen any letters or heard of instructions to give the money to NCEF! Media. (Also, somewhat relatedly, in criminal court on Tuesday Miller pleaded no contest to charges that she had made annoying phonecalls to Barbara Ristow of the Trees Foundation.)

So, that's that. Now, there are only the pieces to pick up.

For Shunka Wakan — featured in last week's Journal as a central figure in a messy nest of infighting that has fractured the current ranks of local Earth First!ians — it could be a long, lonely patching together of lost friends and broken alliances. Not only did he and Miller lose their attempt to retrieve her donation, but now he's been banned from the North Coast Co-op.

Yes, that happened last week. It was Thursday, around 4:15 in the evening, and two activists with the Humboldt Forest Defense Association were tabling — hawking brochures and such — outside the Co-op. It's an activity Shunka himself has spent many a day doing in that very same spot, raising cash to pay for his NCEF!Media outreach work and other causes. And, well, these two fellows, Jeff and Farmer, were on Shunka's shit list, now. They'd spoken gently, but unfavorably, about Shunka's doings in the North Coast Earth First! arena — said he lashed out at people, said he commandeered NCEF! resources, and so forth. Here's a snippet of Jeff's account of what happened, which he sent to the NCJ in an e-mail on Friday:

"Shunka was removed from the Arcata Co-op yesterday after a scuffle with myself and another activist around 5 p.m. Well, he wasn't exactly removed, but APD was called. He was asked to leave after threatening to flip over the HFD donation table while stating he was 'like Jesus in the marketplace ...'"

Sue Coulter, manager of the Arcata Co-op, recounted on Friday how an employee walking by heard the argument and went inside to get her. "So I went out to talk to [Shunka], because it's not the first time we've had problems," she said. "Most of the time, he's fine. Most of the time, I stick up for him." One time, she said, she even called the police to protect Shunka after someone had threatened him. "But he gets into arguments. I tried to talk to him. I told him to leave. ... He was causing a scene, right by the door, and I can't have it. He refused to leave. ... I said, fine. I went into the store. He followed me into the store, and he was still yelling at me, 'Oh, now you're going to call the police on me.'" Coulter called the police, but Shunka left before they arrived.

Shunka, waiting in the courthouse for the jury verdict Tuesday, said Coulter did indeed ask him to leave and he did, indeed, refuse to. As for the HFD tablers, he said he merely asked them why they had Trees Foundation literature on their table. "I said, 'Why do you want to represent these people?'" And then, he said, "Jeff accused me of embezzling — he said this in public. He said, 'You've embezzled thousands of dollars from the Earth First! movement through the years.' And I complained to one of the employees who was walking by. Because that's serious, accusing someone of embezzling."

But Shunka said the whole thing's yet another attack on him. "I don't consider I was yelling. We were talking. I'm an emotional person, I concede to that. I speak from my heart. I don't scream at people. I would love to — but I don't."

In his email, Jeff with HFD predicted Shunka would leave town within weeks, if not sooner. But at the courthouse, even before the verdict, Shunka said he wasn't going anywhere.

"I'm just going to continue to run the Earth First! office and continue to call Humboldt County home," he said. He's also going to write a letter to the Co-op, complaining about how he gets scapegoated and booted out of there even when other people, he says, are the culprits. And, as for the Miller v. Trees case, he said, he and Miller may now take their complaint to another venue.

-- Heidi Walters

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posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Jugglers and Contact Jugglers!

2008-01-20T04:32:17Z

There's a new facebook group for all NC jugglers and contact jugglers. If you are on facebook and from there, go and join up!

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=11379965445

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Happy New year...LET'S DANCE!!

2008-01-02T06:23:48Z

It's '08 and boy does Lotus Studios have what you need to get it started right!! Middle Eastern dance instruction for fitness and fun! Our new schedule is up, we have a new addition to the "Lotus Family"....well ok, not really new to the fam....but new as an instructor at Lotus...lol, and a brand new pricing plan that is simply unbelievable. Please check us out. Classes start back on the 3rd so that's just around the corner.Hope to see you there!!

www.lotus-studios.com

Nayna

posted in Charlotte, NC - 1 reply

Breathe Bliss!

2007-12-31T05:58:54Z

http://us3.artofliving.org/nc/charlotte

posted in Charlotte, NC - 2 replies

Yule Ball

2007-11-24T15:15:50Z

The Eidolon Foundation will be hosting its annual Yule Ball on Friday, December 14, 2007. Come out for a night of music, magic,and merriment.

What time? 8 pm to Midnight, December 14th, 2007

What’s going on? (1)The musical stylings of Chris Givens and Discordia, (2) fire spinners, belly dancers, and merriment, (3)a silent auction to benefit the Foundation and the Charlotte Metro PPD ’08, and (4) a slough of other goodies! You’ll have to come out to see all the good stuff we’ve got going on this year!!

Will there be food? Most certainly! Appetizers and hors d'oeuvres will be provided. Alcohol is welcome (BYOA).

But what will I wear? This year we’re themed!! We’ve got a theme of “Fire and Ice” going on, since it is Yule we’re celebrating. You can come in a suitably themed costume if you’d like, or you can come in your semi-formal best.

Do I need money for this? Tickets are $15/person, or $25/couple, but you need to acquire those by 12/08/07. Other than that, there will be a silent auction and a special kind of new auction, as well as some optional divinatory services rendered going on, so it might behoove you to bring some cash with you if you’d like to bid!

Tickets will only be sold in advance. There will be no at-the-door ticket sales. We will only be selling a limited number of tickets due to capacity, so get yours now before they sell out! The deadline for buying tickets is December 8th.

visit http://www.eidolonfoundation.org/content/view/76/89/ for more details

posted in Charlotte, NC - 3 replies

Tribal Bellydance in charlotte?

2007-11-15T21:37:28Z

Now has a tribe home
check it out and post your info!
http://tribes.tribe.net/charlottetribal

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

NCEF! Media sabotaged! Hijacked by lone wingnut! Accused of fraud and embezzlement!

2007-11-07T04:13:12Z

NCEF! Media in Humboldt County, Ca. is accused of fraud and donation embezzlement. Caution! Do not support this lone wingnut's scam! Other legitamate groups exist in the area. Caution! Do not be fooled by NCEF! Media and his fraudulent outreach. Shunka Wakan exists completely seperate from any active affinity group. Read about how he perpetuated a lawsuit under the guise of EF! against a legitamate environmental nonprofit:

Dog Days
From: http://northcoastjournal.com/100407/cover1004.html
October 4, 2007
Money On Trees

Big cash nearly fell into Shunka Wakan's lap. Other Earth First!ers are kinda happy it didn't.

by Heidi Walters

As the jury trial for the civil suit Kathryn Miller v. the Trees Foundation puttered to a start last week inside Courtroom 3 at the Humboldt County Courthouse, Shunka Wakan — a key witness for the plaintiff — spent mornings sitting on the hard wooden benches in the long hallway outside the courtroom. During breaks, Miller's attorney Linda Mitlyng, would come out of the courtroom to join him. But otherwise, as other people and their legal affairs swirled around him in a warm, odiferous bath of humanity, Shunka sat alone. Or, sometimes, he stood alone, straight-spined, his small, stocky body swallowed by the huge, stiff blue suit out of which his newly shorn, razor-scraped bald head poked vulnerably — as if, at any moment, the suit could gulp once more and he'd disappear completely. Always, he clutched a paper folder with a wolf's face on its cover.

The North Coast Earth First! Media guru had shaved off his woolly rust-tinged brown hair and beard the night before jury selection started, after discussing it with attorney Mitlyng. Now, it took an uncertain moment to recognize him. Then, of course: Shunka's light blue eyes in the pink-pale face, Shunka's closed-lip smile, Shunka's trademark husky murmur, "Mm-hmm, for sure," in response to a comment.

In Courtroom 3, the amiable but no-nonsense Judge Christopher Wilson's domain, the fate of a $185,000 donation dangled. Would the plaintiff, donor Kathryn Miller, prevail in her claim that the defendant, the Trees Foundation, was not in fact the intended recipient of her generous gift? That Shunka Wakan's NCEF! Media Center and the treesitters were? Or would the Trees Foundation convince the jury that, in fact, the money was intended all along for Trees, with no instructions attached for funneling it elsewhere?

Richard Idell, left, who is defending the Trees Foundation against a lawsuit filed by Kathryn Miller, confers with Doug Wallace, community support coordinator for Trees. Photo by David Lawlor.

In her opening arguments, Miller's attorney, Mitlyng, said the case came down to "fraud and broken promises." "She believed [Trees] would hold [the money] in trust, for the benefit of North Coast Earth First!" said Mitlyng. The defense's attorney, Richard Idell, countered in his opening argument that the donation was an unconditional gift and Miller never wrote letters of instruction — as Miller claims she did. "Ms. Miller ... didn't do anything. She took the check [from her mother's estate] and flipped it over and wrote on the back, 'Payable to the Trees Foundation,'" said Idell.

Miller's claim sought the return of her $185,000, plus interest.

Out in the hallway, Shunka waited to tell his side of the story. Maybe he thought about the magical donation that never materialized, and now probably never would. Maybe he thought about the other times he'd been in this courthouse — dozens of times, along with other activists, often before Judge Wilson, answering to charges of trespassing and other forms of civil disobedience in the woods. Likely, he wondered when they were finally going to call him in to testify — it was taking forever in there. He'd even sent out an e-mail prematurely to the several hundred subscribers to his NCEF! online group erroneously announcing he would be first up to testify.

By the end of Friday's court session, Miller was still on the stand. Perhaps Monday it would be Shunka's turn. Whenever it was, he would be testifying on Miller's behalf; but he wasn't a party to the lawsuit. And in the end, after hearing all of the evidence, the jury would be determining who was telling the truth about intentions and letters of instructions. Shunka was just there to provide context and evidence in a contract dispute.

But to a number of forest activists, including a half dozen or so who appeared in the audience last Friday to watch the trial unfold, that context matters more to them than the legal questions. They say this lawsuit has placed a strain on the environmental community that could do as much damage as an ill-felled redwood that takes down other giants in its descent. They disapprove of the lawsuit, and they blame Shunka for it. And, they say, it's just another example of how Shunka has commandeered the North Coast Earth First! identity and used it for purposes that nobody else in the amorphous but consensus-driven local Earth First! movement has agreed to.

"For a lot of us, when we read about the lawsuit, this is kind of like Shunka on trial," said long-time forest activist Deane Rimerman last Friday, calling from Olympia, Wash. "And, to what extent is he worthy of that money?"

Kathryn Miller wanted her money to go toward saving trees, she said on the witness stand last Thursday. The slender 59-year-old was dressed in a pink print skirt and white sweater, with her gray-streaked dark hair pulled back into a neat, thin braid tinted slightly green. (Little did the jury know that Miller had spent the night in jail, in blue jail duds, and then had been "dressed out," in court lingo, in her street clothes before being escorted into the court by the bailiff. Miller had been arrested the week before, on Sept. 17, when she arrived in civil court for the pre-trial readiness hearing; according to the misdemeanor criminal charges filed against her, Miller allegedly had made annoying phonecalls to Barbara Ristow of the Trees Foundation all hours of the day and night.)

On the stand, Miller described how she became an activist. She remembered how, when she was a child in Orinda, her mother decided to stop spraying the beautiful oak trees on their property after reading Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. "And then, when my son was 9, we were watching the news on TV about the Chernobyl nuclear power plant meltdown. And my son said to me, 'I wish I'd never been born. I don't think I'll get to live a full life.'"

She protested the building of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant. She started a peace action group in the late 1980s in San Jose. She did nonviolent protests at the Nevada Test Site. And in 1990, she came up with some of her fellow protestors to help set up the camp for Redwood Summer, and to take part in demonstrations. She's been on and off involved in Earth First! actions in Humboldt ever since, she said, including huffing in supplies for treesitters and huffing out their garbage. She'd also, at one point, bought a condo in Arcata.

In 2004, Miller sold her condo and bought an acre of farmland, already planted with coffee, in Guatemala. She put in fruit trees to shade the coffee. That same year, her mother, who lived in Sonoma, died. "The last time I saw her was in 2003," said Miller. "She told me when she died, she was going to leave me some money. I told her I'd use it to further my work for the forest. And she was pleased, because she loved the treesitters and the forest."

Shortly after learning of her mother's death, Kathryn Miller sought out Shunka Wakan in front of the food co-op in Arcata, where he "tabled" to raise funds for the North Coast Earth First! Media office — selling T-shirts, and stickers, offering pamphlets, accepting donations. She'd known Shunka for about five years, she said.

"I said to him, I was going to inherit some money: What was the best way to get that to the North Coast Earth First!?"

In the spring of 2005, Shunka Wakan was floating above the treetops. "I was so excited," the 32-year-old said in an interview a few weeks ago, sitting inside his tiny but colorful North Coast Earth First! Media office in Arcata, walls covered in art and topo maps — including one of Buckeye Mountain, where in 2000-2001, during the "Mattole Free State" action, Shunka and others hiked 14 miles through waist-high snowdrifts to save trees.

Kathryn Miller, he recalled, had come up to him excitedly as he walked along the sidewalk outside the Arcata Co-op and said, "I just donated $185,000 to North Coast Earth First!'"

She'd talked to him the year before about making the donation — she'd said she was anticipating an inheritance from her mother's estate, and she wanted to make a big donation to his group. He'd told her to make it through the Trees Foundation, which handled the NCEF! Media office's finances through an arrangement that had been established years ago. (The Trees Foundation is an umbrella organization formed in 1991 to assist smaller environmental groups. As a 501(c)3 nonprofit, it can accept large, tax-deductible donations on behalf of affiliates, and provide professional resources. And it can lead large campaigns, like the one to save the Headwaters Forest back in the '90s.)

Well, now she'd finally done it.

Miller and Shunka agreed to meet at Fiesta Café in Sunny Brae, so she could tell him how she wanted the money spent: She wanted, straight away, for someone to organize a mediated workshop for the local Earth First! activists on ageism and sexism, issues she thought were fracturing the movement. And, she wanted the bulk of the donation to help support the forest activists who blockade logging roads and hunker up in ancient redwoods to fend off loggers' saws.

Not long after, Shunka was on his way to have lunch with some folks from the Trees Foundation, where they'd talk about Miller's wishes.

"Our media outreach was going to get a big boost," Shunka said. "The donation would keep the EF! office going for many years. So I walked into the Wildflower Café feeling elated, thinking we got all this money."

Barbara Ristow and Doug Wallace of the Trees Foundation were there. "I was super excited," Shunka said, "and I said, 'This is great, this big donation. Isn't it wonderful?' We ordered food, and still I'm all excited, talking about the money, but I notice they're looking nervously at each other. [Finally], they said, 'Well, we're just shocked that you think this money was for you.' And I was like, 'I just met with the donor, and that's what she said.' And they're like, 'Well, let's go ahead and plan the workshop and deal with that later.' I remember that, because it put me at ease."

After that, Shunka said he gave Trees a list of people he thought might benefit from the mediator-run workshop. "Some were people I knew had beefs with me, but I was willing to bring 'em into the circle and talk about it."

According to some vague accounts, the workshop was a disaster. One person who was there claims that Shunka, at one point, pounded his fists on the floor, blustered, then got up and stormed out, yelling as he walked away. Shunka says that's overblown.

"The letter from Kathryn Miller to Barbara Bristow said she wanted the mediation to be a safe place, safe to be emotional," he said. "And I think people are saying 'I freaked out.' The freak-out reports are exaggerated. It's just part of this ongoing character assassination. People say I was 'red-faced.' But my face is naturally red."

In late 2005, while Shunka was in Seattle, a friend called him from Arcata to say a woman had come by asking for the office key. She had a list of equipment she wanted to take away. The friend didn't give her the key.

When Shunka got back from Seattle, he discovered his reimbursement funds from Trees had been "frozen." He also learned about a letter someone in the NCEF! movement had circulated for signatures and then sent to Mark Knipper, who handled the Trees Foundation transactions for the NCEF! Media office. It said, in essence, "We don't want Shunka running EF!"

"I called the Trees Foundation," Shunka recalled. "I was sick, it was the middle of the winter, I'm trying to table, it's raining, it's cold. And Barbara Ristow told me, 'You just need to have a meeting [with the other Earth First!ers] and come to a group consensus on what the Trees Foundation funding should be used for."

The meeting never happened — nobody could agree to meet, said Mark Knipper, also in an interview last week. Knipper is a social worker and a long-time activist who had been the contact person between Trees and NCEF! Media. "So it ate itself," Knipper said. "And although I'm former Navy, a mariner, I said I'm not going down with this ship. So I divorced myself from it ... and signed it all back to Trees."

The NCEF! Media office was dropped from the Trees Foundation altogether.

Shunka and the NCEF! Media office never did see any of the big donation. Miller didn't even know that, he said, until she phoned him up in the summer of 2006, more than a year after she made the donation, to ask about a guy named "Jungle," who had been reported as missing on the NCEF! hotline. Miller was spending much of her time in Guatemala now, where she was raising fruit trees; after she'd made her big donation, Hurricane Stan had struck — she spent the ensuing year mopping up the mess.

First, Shunka told her Jungle was still missing. Then he told her about the money.

"I said, 'Yeah, they told me it wasn't for us,'" said Shunka. "And she said, 'I meant for all of it to go to you guys.' She sounded real upset. And I was like, 'I knew it! I knew it!'"

Shunka tried to sue Trees in small claims court, but it went nowhere.

Miller filed a claim against the Trees Foundation on Oct. 5, 2006, in Humboldt County Superior Court, seeking the return of the $185,000 plus interest so she could distribute the money herself.

And if she wins? "She may just spread it out more," said Shunka. "She's got tree planting ideas. Maybe she could buy a grove. She'd maybe not give it all to Earth First! this time. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that Trees blew for us."

On an uncomfortably hot afternoon last week, four forest activists who'd agreed to an interview for this story — Jeff, Shaggy, Sparrow and Farmer — sat on the ground at the Arcata Marsh next to a log bench on which a teeming crew of red ants worked a splintered notch. Someone had come along here in 1999 and carved a grouping of faces — bearded, grimacing, possibly mourning faces — onto the log and signed it Daniel. The carving had been drenched in red paint, and burnished by years of sitters.

"It kind of reminds me of the memorial for Gypsy," said one of them. "With the red paint."

Gypsy was the forest name of David Nathan Chain, who in September 1998, during an Earth First! action at Grizzly Creek, was crushed to death by a tree felled by an enraged logger. Farmer, actually, was there — he was just 16, but had a year of activism already under his belt. And Shunka was there — it was Shunka's first forest action.

Farmer, Shag, Sparrow and Jeff first made it clear that they spoke for themselves alone, although they participate in various forest defense affinity groups: Farmer works for the Mattole Wildlands Defense Group now, watchdogging the California Department of Forestry for new timber harvest plans, and keeping an eye on a Pacific Lumber Co. watershed analysis. Shag, who saw his first redwood about five years ago, helps keep the Fern Gully treesit village in Freshwater functioning. Jeff, who grew up in the high desert, and fell in love with the woods, works with the Nanning Creek treesit just outside of Scotia, as well as other groups. Sparrow, who was drawn to forest action because the cultural landscape was "like a folktale" he couldn't resist, is with the Fern Gully affinity group. These groups are all part of the Humboldt Forest Defense Association, a collective with a website but no formal structure.

The HFDA sprang into being six years ago — about the time the entity called North Coast Earth First! had essentially dissolved. It would take a book to describe that drawn-out dissolution — a book of lost causes, won causes, waning media interest, Judi Bari's death, Gypsy's death, ego-spurred squabbles, interpersonal catastrophes, a war overseas, hurricanes. And while the HFDA activists might still cherish the Earth First! name — the movement — in their hearts, it's now been further complicated by what you might call the Shunka effect.

"I still feel in many ways solidarity with the greater Earth First! movement abroad," said Farmer. "But in this county, in this climate, if you say you're with the North Coast Earth First!, many people associate you with North Coast Earth First! Media."

Shunka revived the North Coast Earth First! office around 2002. And he did what previous office managers had done — tabled, put out news releases, wrote articles for other publications. But it wasn't like the old days, in the '90s, when hundreds of people were getting arrested in forest actions and the jail support phone and legal resources were in constant use.

Shunka first worked in an office in Eureka, then later moved to Arcata. He called his outfit the NCEF! Media Center. For a time, he and other "affinity groups" tried to work together. But he alienated some people. He took over the North Coast Earth First! website. He controlled the North Coast Earth First! email list of 300 or more subscribers to the news alerts. He sent out press releases on his own.

"I felt the North Coast Earth First! Media Center was a unilateral effort on Shunka's part," said Farmer. Whereas, in the old days, "spokespeople were decided on by the group. And if you wrote an article it was passed by everyone. I feel Shunka appointed himself spokesperson at some point."

Many also claim they've been subject to a lashing anger from Shunka.

"I won't work with him because I pledge nonviolence in my actions," said Shag. "I don't believe he pledges the same thing. He has exhibited violent behavior towards me and towards other activists in my presence."

"He's a bear," said Jeff, making claw-fists with his hands.

But the sad thing is, all of this infighting probably has done nothing to help the actual trees. And the mediation workshop Kathryn Miller wanted didn't fix matters. Now, there was her lawsuit.

"When I heard about this lawsuit, I thought, the Trees Foundation does not deserve to be attacked in that way," said Farmer. "There's much bigger issues that need to be dealt with — with Maxxam and old-growth logging. ...If you look at Fern Gully and Nanning Creek (the Bonanza timber harvest plan), there's hundreds of old growth acres still standing whose fate is unclear."

Shag put it more bluntly: "If [Miller] knew Shunka and wanted to get the money to North Coast Earth First! Media, she should've given it to Shunka. But if she was trying to get it to treesits and forest defense, then the money went to the right place.

"My problem is this whole representation thing. There's people in the trees — how do you know who to get the money to, to help them?"

Shunka knows that a lot of fellow activists aren't happy with his role in the donation dispute. He also knows how some people talk about him and say he's hard to get along with. "I'm just standing up for the truth," he said. "And people don't like it. To me, it feels like a small clique of people who don't like me. I feel a lot of love and support in this community."

He certainly doesn't come off right away as someone who's angry, or who lashes out, or who locks the office and doesn't let people in. Why, recently, he helped a young woman hook up with the treesitters so she could learn the ropes. (Shaggy said that's proof Shunka doesn't have direct connections with the people doing direct action; but you can't deny it's a connection.)

It's probably a bad idea to ask Darryl Cherney, one of the founders of the local Earth First! movement, what he thinks of Shunka Wakan, whose real name is Jason Wilson. (Shunka tells a story of how he was named by a Lakota medicine man on the banks of the Cheyenne River in South Dakota in 1995. "Shunka Wakan," meaning "great dog," is only part of it. There's a secret part after that — altogether, his name means "the humble man called horse.")

"Shunka's a wingnut," Cherney said over the phone last Friday, sounding cheerfully vitriolic. "I have a 10-verse song about Shunka."

Here are the last few verses:

Who's at the co-op spanging a donation
Shunka, Shunka
Who's got a lawsuit 'gainst the Trees Foundation
Shunka, Shunka
Shunka, Shunka
Who's gonna keep on fighting the fight
Shunka, Shunka
With four of his friends at swimmers delight
Shunka, Shunka
Shunka, Shunka (Shunka voice: It's the last of the revolution)

There's no other word for it but "mean." But Cherney and Shunka have history — not all of it sour. Cherney said Shunka laughed when he heard the song, at least the first time.

"I met Shunka in 1998," Cherney said. "And I know he knew Julia ["Butterfly" Hill, whom Shunka had come west to find]. That was a good thing, helping Julia. That was good Shunka."

Cherney had even pushed for Shunka to go to Houston to talk with Charles Hurwitz, whose Maxxam Corp. bought out the old Pacific Lumber company back in 1985 and quickly became the forest activists' number one villain. Shunka went.

But now? "The current status of Shunka and me," Cherney said, "is that Shunka has sent me five or eight or nine e-mails threatening to sue me. Shunka is a joke."

Cherney can talk for hours about the problems he's had with Shunka over the years. His main point, though, is what has Shunka done for the trees lately?

"My question is, where's your topo maps?" he asked. "Where's your wilderness preservation proposal? Where's your lobbyist team in Sacramento?"

It has to be that, on some level, even the people in the movement who don't like Shunka understand somewhat where he's coming from. So he's emotional. Passionate. Perhaps he's caught up so completely in the cause he can't let go. Or, who knows — maybe he's a phony, like he accused Knipper of being back in 2005.

But being a forest activist comes with perils beyond the obvious physical ones.

"I'm really trying to have compassion for Shunka, even though he's kind of attacked us," said Susy Barsotti by phone from Laytonville a couple of weeks ago. Barsotti is president of the Trees Foundation board, and she says the lawsuit has held Trees hostage, unable to function fully. "I've been mystified and dismayed that he's participated like this in the suit. But Shunka witnessed Gypsy's death. And I think he may have post-traumatic stress syndrome. I don't think he's recovered from it. And that can affect your behavior."

A number of people mentioned this, actually, about Shunka. And he often refers to Gypsy's death himself. In an article titled "What Luna has taught me," posted on the website of Julia "Butterfly" Hill's organization, Circle of Life, Shunka writes: "I decided to commit to doing ground support after witnessing the death of David Nathan "Gypsy" Chain on September 17, 1998 ... I remember looking across the valley as we hiked up that day, seeing the rolling hills of forests and clear-cuts, and thinking out loud, "That's why we're here!" Seeing Gypsy's life taken from him, and then seeing the corruption and lies of the Humboldt County Sheriffs ... really opened my eyes to the situation our old-growth forests face."

Later, he did ground support for Hill in her second year in Luna. And in the same article on her website, something else Shunka writes indicates how ready he was to devote himself to a cause: "Being on the support team was the top priority in my life, and I was happy knowing that everything else revolved around when I'd be needed for the next supply run. I never felt lost because I knew what I was doing. That was a feeling I had not felt in years, between feeling dissatisfaction with life in college, and then more dissatisfaction with life as a minimum-wage worker after college. Before joining Julia's ground support team I was unhappy, even to the point of tears, wondering if my entire life was going to be a minimum-wage nightmare ...."

Pure devotion, without benefit of a little hypocrisy, could drive anyone batty. Deane Rimerman, the activist from Olympia who said it is Shunka who is on trial, said it's not uncommon for intense, stressful movements like Earth First! to produce an army of walking wounded. And he's been around, in forest actions up and down the coast, for long enough to know; he was the one, in fact, who "got the maps and led the first hikers up to the hill" to the Gypsy Mountain campaign and Luna treesit.

"In the forest activist movement, there's very little that's rewarding," Rimerman said. "There's a lot of post traumatic stress syndrome. All of us get it. Once you've been through the court process, and the jail process, and seen 1,000-year-old trees get cut down that you really cared about and thought you could save — it's devastating."

That alone, setting aside the troubles with Shunka, could explain the many rifts that have occurred within the local EF! ranks over the years. Josh Brown, who moved to Humboldt in 1995 right before the peak of the Headwaters campaign, said one of the unique qualities of Earth First! is that it "is primarily a youth movement."

"A lot of people that come through are young, are passionate — and it's a wonderful thing," he said. They get thrown into leadership positions quickly — and then they get burned out. Many move quickly on to other things. Brown stayed in longer than most. "When I left [in 2001], I was 30 years old. And I'd been a full-time activist since I was 18."

Paradoxically, said Brown, the youthful draw and the departure of seasoned activists leaves the movement with "no elders to kind of sit around and coach the [new kids]."

The movement also draws strong personalities, he said. Tenacious ones, too, like Shunka's.

"Shunka, I think he really does have a big heart," said Brown. "And I think he does care for the forest."

Last Friday, following the morning session of Miller v. Trees, a group of the Humboldt Forest Defense Association activists stood on the courthouse steps talking. The door opened, and Shunka walked out and down the steps toward the group. They didn't greet him. After a time, he tried to talk to one of them, Jeff. Jeff walked away. Shunka followed him, then stopped and talked to another guy. Then he stood alone again.

From: http://northcoastjournal.com/101107/news1011.html

Trees Foundation Wins

October 11th, 2007

The jury in the civil case Kathryn Miller v. the Trees Foundation decided in favor of Trees, after deliberating all day Tuesday. (See "Money on Trees," Oct. 4).

Miller is the long-time forest activist who inherited a bundle from her mother and then signed $185,000 over to the Trees Foundation. In her lawsuit, she claimed she had intended the money to be passed through Trees to one of its affiliates, North Coast Earth First! Media, run by Shunka Wakan. She claimed she had made her intentions clear, verbally and in writing, and that Trees had agreed to the conditions, then broken its promise and kept the money. Trees denied making such promises, and said it had never seen any letters or heard of instructions to give the money to NCEF! Media. (Also, somewhat relatedly, in criminal court on Tuesday Miller pleaded no contest to charges that she had made annoying phonecalls to Barbara Ristow of the Trees Foundation.)

So, that's that. Now, there are only the pieces to pick up.

For Shunka Wakan — featured in last week's Journal as a central figure in a messy nest of infighting that has fractured the current ranks of local Earth First!ians — it could be a long, lonely patching together of lost friends and broken alliances. Not only did he and Miller lose their attempt to retrieve her donation, but now he's been banned from the North Coast Co-op.

Yes, that happened last week. It was Thursday, around 4:15 in the evening, and two activists with the Humboldt Forest Defense Association were tabling — hawking brochures and such — outside the Co-op. It's an activity Shunka himself has spent many a day doing in that very same spot, raising cash to pay for his NCEF!Media outreach work and other causes. And, well, these two fellows, Jeff and Farmer, were on Shunka's shit list, now. They'd spoken gently, but unfavorably, about Shunka's doings in the North Coast Earth First! arena — said he lashed out at people, said he commandeered NCEF! resources, and so forth. Here's a snippet of Jeff's account of what happened, which he sent to the NCJ in an e-mail on Friday:

"Shunka was removed from the Arcata Co-op yesterday after a scuffle with myself and another activist around 5 p.m. Well, he wasn't exactly removed, but APD was called. He was asked to leave after threatening to flip over the HFD donation table while stating he was 'like Jesus in the marketplace ...'"

Sue Coulter, manager of the Arcata Co-op, recounted on Friday how an employee walking by heard the argument and went inside to get her. "So I went out to talk to [Shunka], because it's not the first time we've had problems," she said. "Most of the time, he's fine. Most of the time, I stick up for him." One time, she said, she even called the police to protect Shunka after someone had threatened him. "But he gets into arguments. I tried to talk to him. I told him to leave. ... He was causing a scene, right by the door, and I can't have it. He refused to leave. ... I said, fine. I went into the store. He followed me into the store, and he was still yelling at me, 'Oh, now you're going to call the police on me.'" Coulter called the police, but Shunka left before they arrived.

Shunka, waiting in the courthouse for the jury verdict Tuesday, said Coulter did indeed ask him to leave and he did, indeed, refuse to. As for the HFD tablers, he said he merely asked them why they had Trees Foundation literature on their table. "I said, 'Why do you want to represent these people?'" And then, he said, "Jeff accused me of embezzling — he said this in public. He said, 'You've embezzled thousands of dollars from the Earth First! movement through the years.' And I complained to one of the employees who was walking by. Because that's serious, accusing someone of embezzling."

But Shunka said the whole thing's yet another attack on him. "I don't consider I was yelling. We were talking. I'm an emotional person, I concede to that. I speak from my heart. I don't scream at people. I would love to — but I don't."

In his email, Jeff with HFD predicted Shunka would leave town within weeks, if not sooner. But at the courthouse, even before the verdict, Shunka said he wasn't going anywhere.

"I'm just going to continue to run the Earth First! office and continue to call Humboldt County home," he said. He's also going to write a letter to the Co-op, complaining about how he gets scapegoated and booted out of there even when other people, he says, are the culprits. And, as for the Miller v. Trees case, he said, he and Miller may now take their complaint to another venue.

-- Heidi Walters

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

If Gunther Made Dairy Products...

2007-10-18T03:05:33Z

"Gunther Von Hagen-Daaz Dead Body Flavored Ice Cream"

(Yeah. I know. But it is almost Halloween.)

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

I'm new to tribe. Hello everyone.

2007-09-11T21:49:27Z

I'm a 43 year old, married father of two. I'd love to chat with anyone about life and love. I'm currently studying engineering and I love music and films. I play the drums and love to cook. Talk to me.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 5 replies

Challenger Football League Opening Ceremonies

2007-09-08T15:24:18Z

What do you get when you put together a few of the Carolina Panthers, a few of the Carolina Panthers Cheer Leaders, Sir Purr, and a BUNCH OF KIDS??? FUN!!!!!!
http://www.carlmillerphotos.com/football

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Looking 4 Perfromers 4 Greensboro Tate St. Fest Sept. 29th

2007-09-06T20:43:31Z

Once again it's that other time of the year that we Greensboro residents celebrate Tate St. Festival, and this time around it's carnivale themed. Anybody interested in boothing or performing should call Jamie Coggins at 336-314-0715. She is looking for tallented people to entertain the family audience of the street. If your a juggler, a burner, a drummer, or you have some other special carnival talent, you should call Jamie immediately, due to spaces being filled up. Tate St. Fest attracts hundreds of audience members, and is a blast every time. I totally recomend you all come out!
-Smokin' McQueen

P.S. you should get in touch with Jamie this weekend before she starts her massive P.R. campaign and finishes the flyer with the list of all the perfromers.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

come out, come out wherever you are

2007-08-10T22:10:41Z

Where is everyone ?? All I hear is crickets . . .

posted in Charlotte, NC - 9 replies

what up peeps and fellow tribe people

2007-07-08T04:07:52Z

my name is kenny and i just moved here from austin and am now back into the fire dance and breathing thing i have to do some photo uploads still please be patient i am not the best at the puter thing yet but i have been down to gallery call at el salvador deli and turned some sticks on and would love to have some peeps to practice with i spin in my huge private backyard a lot in charlotte by mt island lake let me know if you are intrested in throwing down some night

kenny

posted in Charlotte, NC - 2 replies

Cross Pollination: other Charlotte Tribes

2007-07-07T14:36:18Z

When I first discovered Tribe, there was not a lot of Charlotte participation. Lately, I haven't been very active myself here at Tribe, but Charlotte representation on Tribe has increased.

Here are some other Charlotte Tribes;

http://tribes.tribe.net/charlottefire
http://tribes.tribe.net/charlottehoopers
http://tribes.tribe.net/charlottesoul

And here are some interesting non-Tribe Charlotte websites;
http://www.weirdcharlotte.com/home.html
http://charlottepagans.com

Anyone know of any other sources of info about alternaCharlotte?

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

fire dancing practice

2007-07-02T02:20:43Z

hey all who are fellow fire dancers and breathers i am looking for someone to practice with and maybe shoot some video for some side jobs on weekends wanting to book parties wanting fire acts let me know if your intrested !!!!!

posted in Charlotte, NC - 1 reply

Waxhaw Farmer's Market

2007-05-31T18:35:39Z

For those who seek organic veggies and scratch baked goodies, come to the market on Saturday, 9am-3pm and have a delicious time. Hummingbird Bakery and `N Thyme Farm are a couple of the growing vendors that sell organic produce and scratch baking. Come down and see us!!!! We also fill orders. We are also open on Tuesdays 3pm-6pm.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

poker tournaments: concord, gastonia, and more

2007-03-30T16:44:17Z

There was just one Concord vs. Matthews. Tons of other ones.

http://people.tribe.net/series7pokerleague

Will be on the web soon with all the locations.

http://Series7PokerLeague.com

Totally legal, no cash betting.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

drumSTRONG needs your support!!!!!

2007-03-09T06:05:58Z

drumSTRONG is a unique, multicultural charity event held in the pastures of Misty Meadows Farm to raise funds to support those dealing with cancer, cancer education, awareness, and funding for research. It will involve people of all ages and “walks of life” but educating youth to the causes, early detection and affects of cancer is one of our primary missions and we know this event will enlighten a lot of young people and spark involvement.

The Guinnesss World Record organization has been informed that drumSTRONG drummers (and others) will keep continuous rhythm in motion for at least 24 hours starting on May 5, 2007 just outside of Charlotte, NC.

Along with local high school and college drum corps, a horde of professional artists have been invited to participate. Full stage and backline support will be on site and all present will play along with center stage activities.

health fair
There will be an area at the event with tents and tables where various health (and other) organizations will have a venue to convey their missions and methods to a large group of people. Few people are not "touched" by cancer in some fashion...

DrumsForCures is also organizing a national network of percussionists to bring rhythm into children's hospitals and clinics for the unifying, healing and entertainment values. We know that it works on many levels.

If nothing else, I’d love for you (family and friends) to come play – drum, sing, dance, enjoy…

Much more info. is shared on the website www.drumstrong.org.

I would greatly appreciate it if you would drop me a line and share your thoughts. Please don't hesitate to call with any questions.

All the best,
Scott

Scott L. Swimmer
drumSTRONG™
DrumsForCures, Inc. Founder and President
725 Providence Rd. suite #210
Charlotte, N.C. 28207
scott@drumstrong.org
704.375.7177 o. 704.996.9170 c.

“We must never be so self-absorbed as to become insensitive to the situation around us. Everyone can do something, beginning with oneself, one’s family, one’s neighborhood. We must always be mindful that ours is one world; improving it in part improves it as a whole.”
Rebbe Schneerson

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Who Likes the Snow

2007-02-02T20:30:49Z

It is small, but it is here.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 3 replies

Drumming in the Queen City

2007-01-30T23:18:23Z

I would love to hook up with some People and rum like Hell in Charlotte. Who is game?

posted in Charlotte, NC - 3 replies

help needed transfering pics to anouther location on my coumputer

2007-01-19T23:31:42Z

hi ben here any one on that can help me transfer pics from my email to desk top or where ever they have to be to down load on ebay please help thanks in advance ben

posted in Charlotte, NC - 3 replies

13MOONS RECORDS SEEKS BI-LINGUAL CO-HOST AND ALL MEDIUM OF ARTISTS FOR NEW EVENT COLLABORATIONS

2006-12-17T13:52:05Z

SOTA is a sign of the times/ reflecting off the un-inhibited expression of new paradigms...

Our tribe (tribes.tribe.net/SOTA) is a portion of the SOTA online experience...State Of The Art is the evolution of the open-mic.
By invoking the ancient traditions of call and response forums, drum circles, barter spaces, and the new ways
of the open mic, performance stage, movie screening, webcast culture and more we become the living reflection
of the State Of The Art.

This event originated in Los Angeles on the birthday of its founder, Change. SOTA returns orbit in Charlotte, NC.
If you are an artist with original works your admission is free and selling/bartering your works at the event is also free.
No one is turned away for lack of funds from this event.

We host Open:
-Mic-Stage-Runway with optional musical accompaniement and hip-hop group freestyle forum (non-competitive)
-Open Screenings of original video works
-Open Gallery
-All-inclusive drum circles and much more....

If you'd like your performance archived for release on webcast or for our compilation CD(of which ALL your copyrights will be protected/respected and you'll be partnered in distribution) then 13MOONS Records will bring you on board.

We are currently seeking multi-lingual co-hosts (women especially encouraged). If you have any art and would like to make our roster as a contributing artist for our gallery, stage, or screenings contact 13MM@care2.com and you'll be promptly responded to.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

job hunting

2006-11-26T17:50:14Z

I'm going to be in the area. Am looking for a job. Have skills in finance, training and writing. Cheers!

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Sustainable Energy and Lifestyle Non-profit Re-Forming in NC! We used to drive the veggie oil fueled bus...guess whats next....

2006-10-25T03:24:41Z

Sustainable Energy and Lifestyle Non-profit Re-Forming in NC! We used to drive the veggie oil fueled bus...guess whats next....

"Balancing peace, action, technology, raw nature, and spirituality"

http://tribes.tribe.net/angelinitiative
http://www.myspace.com/angelinitiative

Angel Initiative Non-Profit's intro

A non-profit organization about to resurrect: this movement was manifested in East Los Angeles, may of 2005 - on a city bus fueled by WASTE VEGETABLE OIL. The bus is gone now but we return with greater plans(here's the Past bus)..:

<img src="http://myspace-849.vo.llnwd.net/00658/94/85/658715849_l.jpg">

Manifested on a desire fueled by the future and a fate to fall apart. Thank god (whatever name you choose) for those pheonix wings in the back of our logo. Dont be confused this is no religious organization, this movement honors the earth as a temple in itself and works to keep the temple as clean as possible! Clean fuel for the vehicles and clean food for the bodies.Clean knowledge for the babies so they can have a choice and a voice while breaking the cycle of needing violence to manifest power. Can we tell you about how to build an electrical generator with a bicycle? Why eating certain raw foods can heal you? Are you ready to ride on waste vegetable oil for fuel? Maybe you should grab our DVD. Get Sustainable or...screw it up for future generations!

This movement was potent, visible, and loud before...now we find out if flapping pheonix wings bring winds of change.
Peace and Love Co-Founder
R.A.Callender Jr.

Who I'd like to meet:
This crew should you choose to accept is universally accepting of all those who can maintain peace and self-responsibility for consumption and evolution beyond played out cycles of pollution, sexism, stagnation, and dominance based relationships. Regardless of class, sex, ethnicity, spirituality or political inclination. Be fearless and help us heal the environment we are undeniably a part of.

posted in Charlotte, NC - 2 replies

WANT TO LEARN HOW TO SWING DANCE????

2006-10-18T22:23:03Z

One of the best ways to learn quickly and have it stick is by attending weekend long worshops! The Charlotte Swing Dance Society is Hosting a Workshop In November.....

Click on the link below to find out more info!!!

http://www.charlotteswingdance.org

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Want to get paid to try new wines?

2006-09-12T13:25:23Z

Then you should become an independent consultant with The Traveling Vineyard. Great company with tons of growth potential--now is the time to join the bunch! No experience necessary and training is free. Commission-based. Visit www.myttv.com/sara10270 or email freetlygrubb@northstate.net for more information. Cheers!

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

FULL MOON DRUMMING IN CHARLOTTE REPOST

2006-09-05T17:48:55Z

***THIS IS AN UNEDITED REPOST****

FULL MOON DRUMMING

On the Square at Trade & Tryon

by the Grand Disc

(Or at the Polk Park corner)*

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 8th

Gathering 8:15, Drumming 8:30 - 11:00

An open music circle with drums leading -
Drummers create the beat, others follow,
dancers dance, magic happens...

Bring drums and other instruments, dancing feet,
primal beat, water to drink, a chair if needed.

Children are welcome.

Special Note - If you've been coming early, you may
have noticed that Ernie has been clearing the space
for our drummings by circling the area three times
round with his shaman drum before we begin. The idea
is to create enough sound to break the tension at the
Square and make way for the drumming. This can be more
effective as others join in the procession. So, those
who would like to, please bring an instrument or noise
maker with which you can move freely. More intentional
noise making in the beginning is tension releasing, fun
for kids and grown ups too and may help get us to those
magical chords more quickly as we settle into circle.

Parents may need to calm kids down after this opening.
And all of us might remember to relax down and listen
for the common beat to get into rhythm. Doing more
than simple beat can be good too once we get in tune
with each other and the Moon.

Group drumming is a carrier wave for hopes and wishes;
this is an opportunity to put on the air with music
what we wish for ourselves, family, friends and world.

* Note: Perchance the Grand Disc plaza is occupied
we'll set up first at the Tom Polk Park corner
and move to the Plaza when we're all together.

Weatherwise: Drums play well when dry, wish for clear sky.

Our next Full Moon Drumming will be Friday, October 6th.
Mark your calendar for this and other drummings.

Special Event: All our Moon Drum cirle are invited to an
Autumn Equinox bonfire celebration Sat Sept 23rd in Waxhaw.
This event is being organized by Adam Schaeffer and friends.
Adam is a drum maker http://www.adamschaeffer.com/Drums.htm
and an organizer of NoDa drummings on gallery crawl nights
(1st and 3rd Fridays on North Davidson).

The next NoDa drumming is Friday Sept 15th 9 pm to midnight.
For more info & map: http://www.charlottedrumcircle.org/

For information about the Autumn Equinox drum celebration
see the invitation link at the close of this letter.

-------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward to friends who share love in drum and dance.
-------------------------------------------------------------

FULL MOON DRUMMING

From ancient times people have gathered under the Full Moon
to drum and dance. Dancers dance within the circle created
by drummers and other musicians. Drums tune to rhythms of
Nature, dancers move to the beat, energy flows and grows.

Drum and dance celebration can change discord into harmony;
drumming and dancing heal body, mind and soul. Most cities
have a center square or crossroads that can be a good place
for gathering to power dreams. Charlotte's center is Trade
and Tryon and a good time to be there is at the Full Moon.

MOON DRUM DETAILS

A large clay crock candle lit at center helps focus the energy
of the circle. This candle will be lit about 8:30 pm. Be there
then to put your intention into the fire - or tune in wherever
you are. (Full Moon Sunset/Moonrise is good to set intention).

The 12 stones at the center of the drum circle are a Native
tradition: there are 12 stones in the outer ring of the Native
American Medicine Wheel (See Seven Arrows by Hyemeyost Storm).
The Medicine Wheel is for joining hearts together and healing.

PARKING

Some parking may be available on South Tryon near the Square
though free spaces on week ends are getting scarce. Please
read the street signs carefully, towing is often enforced.

Bank of America/Founders Hall parking deck is usually free
unless there is a special event, then its $4. Park on upper
floors (6 or 7) and cross the elevated walkway through Bank
of America lobby to get to the Square. Walk thru closes 11pm.

A DRUM SONG DREAM

"I was in an outdoor courtyard or square. There were people
gathering and talking for some sort of festival and they were
wearing wild costumes. I also was dressed in a costume, maybe
a white flowing dress. At some point the people start to drum
and dance, I remember that the drums were different sizes.
I was holding a damaru up high in my right hand, this rhythm
just started, it had no structure. More and more people
gathered and drummed and everyone started to dance and move
together. There was this incredible singing and melody so
mysterious and magical. The drumming eventually became the
song, voices became angelic and harmonious ... It was the
combination of all the people together that invoked the melody
and created this song. It was as if everyone knew the words
to this song and the melody and it moved out from this circle
of white light that had drawn the people together. I was
amazed that such a beautiful voice could come from the
people that gathered in their funky costumes..

Note: Karen Roberts, a Buddhist friend in Memphis, sent this
about the same time I was rereading Tolkien and found the
passage about how souls create together through music:

THE MUSIC OF THE AINUR

"There was Eru, the ONE, who in Arda is called Illúvatar;
and he made first the Ainur, that were the offspring of
his thought, and they were with him before aught else was
made. And he spoke to them, propounding to them themes
of music; and they sang before him, and he was glad.

But for a long while they sang only to each alone, or a few
together, while the rest hearkened; for each comprehended
only that part of the mind of Illúvatar from which he came.
Yet ever as they listened they came to deeper understanding,
and increased in unison and harmony.

And it came to pass that Illúvatar called together all
the Ainur and declared to them a mighty theme, unfolding
to them things greater and more wonderful..

Then Illúvatar said to them: ‘Of the theme that I have
declared to you, I will now that ye make in harmony together
a Great Music. And since I have kindled you with the Flame
Imperishable, ye shall show forth your powers in adorning
this theme, each with his own thoughts and devices, if he
will. But I will sit and hearken, and be glad that through
you great beauty has been wakened into song.’

- The SILMARILION pp 15-16 by J.R.R. Tolkien

Note: J.R.R. Tolkien forsaw a time when the ring of autocratic
power would be cast into a volcano of fire. Then, through
the Music of the Ainur, music from the soul of the people,
the world would be created anew. This is the time.

MOON HARE FESTIVAL: POUNDING THE ELIXIR

At the Sun in Virgo Full Moon, the Rabbit in the Moon is seen
pounding out "the elixir of immortality." This Chinese festival
tradition describes how the sweet essence of the growing season
is extracted so the dross (all that's not fun) can be let go.
This sounds just like drumming!

Virgo is the sign of healing. Gathering the “elixir of immortality”
at the Virgo Full Moon is part of the Chinese alchemical tradition.
The Moon Hare is seen pounding herbs to extract their essence for
healing and magic. Likewise our psyches pound out from experience
what is worthwhile to preserve. This is the Moon of harvest, a time
to separate wheat from chaff just as Virgo ruled intestines discern
what is of value and what is waste to be let go. So goes creation
and recreation on every level.

The Moon cycle is a wave of creative energy uncurling from its
New Moon beginning and rising to a peak when the Moon is full.
Each Full Moon brings revelation and healing for mind, body
and soul. (Next month's Libra Full Moon brings souls together.)

Energy builds during the three days before each Full Moon.
This is the time to catch the lunar wave. Calm and emotional
balance prepare the way for receiving from la Luna. Breathing
deeply while focusing on positive intention realizes dreams.
The Full Moon is time to raise our cup to receive blessings.
The Moon is like a pitcher pouring out a healing elixir.

Full Moon energy continues to flow through the world during
the three days following exact Full Moon. Drumming, dancing,
meditation, chanting help open the way to receive the best
of the lunar tide. Full Moon revelations filter through into
consciousness in dreams, "chance encounters," and spontaneous
flashes of insight. This is more so the more we let go in
spiritual celebration.

The Moon rises just about one hour later every night. Because
Sun and Moon are opposite at Full Moon, the Moon rises just
as the Sun sets. On Friday September 8th the Sun will be set
shortly after 7:35 and the Moon will rise just about 8:25 pm.

2006 LUNAR EXTREME, OUT OF BOUNDS MOON

Full Moons in 2006 are more powerful because this is a Major
Lunar Standstill year, a year of Lunar Extremes when the Moon
spends more time outside the zodiacal boundaries.

This month the Moon is Out of Bounds (more than 23 degrees 26
minutes above or below the celestial equator) from September
12th to 17th and, again, from September 26th to October 2nd.

What are the effects of Out of Bounds Moon?

Most noticably there is flooding on all levels: physical,
psychic, emotional, a flood of new ideas and energies.

This Major Lunar Standstill year brings a tide of progressive
energy that steadily washes away outmoded social models, old
modus operandi, old rationales (like might makes right or doing
wrong for supposed good reason). All misguided mindsets can be
cleared through right rhythm in power place and time.

During a Major Lunar Standstill year, new discoveries are made,
new inventions (e.g. electric cars) change the world, new social
movements begin that bring usmore together.

During the last Major Lunar Standstill (1979), the Harmonic
Convergence was celebrated and the Berlin Wall came down soon
after. The Woodstock celebration happened in the previous Lunar
Standstill year (1969). Antiwar protests following that fall
eventually brought an end to the war in Vietnam.

Supporting positive change this Summer is a long lasting trine
between Jupiter and Uranus. This is one of the best pairings
of planets for good luck, positive innovation, taking chances,
winning against all odds. Barring Dark of Moon inturning times
(Sep 21-23), anything started this month is favored to go well.
(The best time to begin new is following the appearance of the
New Moon crescent on Saturday evening September 23rd.)

Of course our luck always improves when we make music and
dance at Full Moons and in other magic times. These times
include Out of Bounds Moon: Sep 12 8:16am > Sep 17 3:04pm;
Sep 26 11:28pm > Oct 2 5:16am

DRUM LINKS

Charlotte Full Moon Drumming
http://www.geocities.com/cltdrumming/
Thanks Michelle!

NoDa Drumming
http://www.charlottedrumcircle.org

Charlotte Community Drummers
http://www.charlottecommunitydrummers.org
The Charlotte Community Drummers welcome new members
to their practices at 7 pm on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays
each month at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Charlotte.

Drum Circle Info at Wikapedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Drum_circle&oldid=64958393

More Drumming Info on Barbara Wolf's web page
http://www.globalmeditations.com/drumming.htm

AUTUMN EQUINOX DRUMMING
http://www.evite.com/pages/invite/viewInvite.jsp?
inviteId=KCONIPFRKTMXTTBCZLPV&li=iq&src=email&trk=aei2
(Copy and paste together internet address to view evite
and respond to let Adam know who all to be expecting.)

Host: Adam Schaeffer
Location: 6517 Schaeffer Farm Rd., Waxhaw, NC
When: Saturday, September 23, 7:00pm - 11:00pm
Phone: 704.661.8217

If you are a Poet, fire-breather/dancer, hoop dancer,
belly dancer, a drummer, a singer... come join us. Or,
if you're just looking to relax and meet some people
and enjoy the music, you're invited too.

This is a special bon-fire/drum & dance celebration
taking place on 10 acres of beautiful secluded woods
and fields away from city traffic and noise, under
stars that you can clearly see.

"Musician, spread the vision that music and dance are
BIG MEDICINE for the people of 21st century Planet Earth.
Use it right! We thank all our Teachers and all the PEOPLE,
too many to name, from whatever country or walk of life,
who have helped us learn the ins and outs of drumming.
May we be worthy of our time." - Drum Circle @ Rhythm Web
http://rhythmweb.com/circle/

NOTE

If this email was forwarded and you want to be included
for future drumming announcements copy back the message:

Send Moon Drum Postings

Please write if you have comments or suggestions about
Full Moon drummings (e.g. parking tips) or other events.

Here's to drum and dance celebration, the fun way
to help our world go round right.

Take care, have fun, be well.

Happy Full Moon!
Steve

Steve Nelson

Astrologer
Event Timing
Celebrations

704-375-3759

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Hi...

2006-08-08T04:54:28Z

I have just joined and wished to say "hello" to all...I live in Rock Hill, but work in Charlotte. My profile has a bit about me. My e-mail is rjgreywolf@yahoo.com, and I do enjoy swapping mails with fun, generally wacky folks like myself!

Richard

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

oh man..

2006-07-27T12:53:28Z

i just moved to charlotte all of 2 hours ago from portland oregon..
a nice little drive.

anyway, i know a grand total of 0 people here, and really nothing about the place.
i suppose first i'll need to find a place to live..

anyone need a roommate?
wow.

i mean, where do i want to live in this city? i'm a professional opera singer, photographer, and composer -- i wouldn't mind meeting some like minded people..

xo
d

posted in Charlotte, NC - 4 replies

Found dog

2006-06-11T16:26:10Z

I've found a dog in the Kannapolis area. I've called all of the no kill shelters that I can find.
Anyone know of any no kill shelters that aren't full?

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

Any women motorcycle riders?

2006-05-11T12:30:15Z

Anyone out there going to the www.mawmr.com. It's a way cool weekend event for women who ride. They raise money for breast cancer awareness. I'm looking for someone thats going from the charlotte area that I could ride up with. 7 hours alone on a highway by myself isn't fun.

thanks!

posted in Charlotte, NC - 2 replies

Light Factory Shoot Out

2006-05-11T00:29:14Z

www.tlfshootout.org

There are still open slots for Sunday if anyone's thinking of coming out! (I know because I'm one of the photographers and I have several open slots myself.)

--
Carl Miller
Carl Miller Photography
www.carlmillerphotos.com

posted in Charlotte, NC - 0 replies

This Tribe is just like Charlotte

2006-05-03T02:43:09Z

Nothing happening. Well, I went to Ray's Corporate Challenge on Saturday and took some photos:
http://www.carlmillerphotos.com/ray

posted in Charlotte, NC - 2 replies

Charlotte, NC's topics - tribe.net

Any people in Charlotte know about 2012?

Coming to Charlotte 9/2-9/7

MonsterCon

Zappa Plays Zappa Ticket for sale. 7/29 at the Neighborhood Theatre

Bellyrama @ Lotus Dance Studio for $5

New Dance Studio in Charlotte "World Dance Center"

Fraud Alert regarding North Coast Earth First! Aka NCEF! Media. Completely independent from any activist group!

Jugglers and Contact Jugglers!

Happy New year...LET'S DANCE!!

Breathe Bliss!

Yule Ball

Tribal Bellydance in charlotte?

NCEF! Media sabotaged! Hijacked by lone wingnut! Accused of fraud and embezzlement!

If Gunther Made Dairy Products...

I'm new to tribe. Hello everyone.

Challenger Football League Opening Ceremonies

Looking 4 Perfromers 4 Greensboro Tate St. Fest Sept. 29th

come out, come out wherever you are

what up peeps and fellow tribe people

Cross Pollination: other Charlotte Tribes

fire dancing practice

Waxhaw Farmer's Market

poker tournaments: concord, gastonia, and more

drumSTRONG needs your support!!!!!

Who Likes the Snow

Drumming in the Queen City

help needed transfering pics to anouther location on my coumputer

13MOONS RECORDS SEEKS BI-LINGUAL CO-HOST AND ALL MEDIUM OF ARTISTS FOR NEW EVENT COLLABORATIONS

job hunting

Sustainable Energy and Lifestyle Non-profit Re-Forming in NC! We used to drive the veggie oil fueled bus...guess whats next....

WANT TO LEARN HOW TO SWING DANCE????

Want to get paid to try new wines?

FULL MOON DRUMMING IN CHARLOTTE ***REPOST***

Hi...

oh man..

Found dog

Any women motorcycle riders?

Light Factory Shoot Out

This Tribe is just like Charlotte

FULL MOON DRUMMING IN CHARLOTTE REPOST