Sarah A.'s Photo Of The Week!

found this guy sun bathing while paddle boating at the redondo beach pier.

Shanty Cheryl's Photo of the Week!

This is a outtake photo from a recent stop motion video I made in San Pedro.

The model is Sarah Elise Roessler (K.O.'s other weekly photo girl).

She is an amazing photographer and person. If you ever get a chance to meet her or see

her work at a art show, you're a lucky person.

If interested in viewing the video from this outtake click below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUY7Si15tUk

Earthship: The Future Home

The first time I heard of an Earthship was when my friend was trying to break down the details of it. I didn't understand what she was trying to explain. I kept picturing what I imagined E.T.'s home would look like if he were to put it upon Earth. I was then shown a video on YouTube, which showed in depth what an Earthship actually looks like and why it's beneficial to own one as soon as the means are provided.

Michael Reynolds had an idea for a radically sustainable living that did something about the amount of waste that came from building design. Michael is a former architecture turned into a now self-proclaimed Earthship Biotecture who, in 1972, built his first house from recycled materials that came from everyday trash such as aluminum cans and plastic bottles. He used beer cans wired together like bricks are. Michael then mortared these materials together and then plastered over them. He later realized how any old tire or pop bottle could be a durable insulation when it's filled with dirt. This utilizes thermal mass construction to naturally regulate indoor temperature. Earthships are usually off-the-grid homes, which makes it so that they don't have to rely on public utilities and fossil fuels.

Earthships use many natural resources. One major source is energy from the sun. The buildings will often be horseshoe-shaped to heighten natural light and solar-gain during winter. In the summertime, the thick walls are effective insulation against summer heat.

Earthships uses rain water, snow, and condensation, then gets filtered so it doesn't have bacteria and contaminants. The roof of the house will collect water which will then go into a silt-catching device and into a cistern and is used for: laundry washing machines, dishwashing machines, kitchen and bathroom sink water, shower water, drinking water, and even toilet flushing water. To better explain, an Earthship takes Greywater, which is used water that's unsuitable for drinking after already used, still has other purposes later on. The Greywater gets channeled through a grease and particle filter then into a rubber-lined botanical cell, a miniature living machine. This filter with built in plants can also produce food from a fruit tree. In the botanical cell, filtration takes place by passing the water through a mixture of gravel and plant roots. Due to the nature of the plants, oxygen is added to the water as it filters, as nitrogen is removed. Water taken through the plants and transpired at the top humidifies the air. Bacteria natural grows and helps cleanse water in the botanical cell. The low-end water of the cell goes through a peat-moss filter and collected in a well. The reclaimed water travels to a Greywater board and used to flush toilets.

Electricity in Earthships come from them collecting and storing their own energy from various sources. Most of the electrical energy is from the sun and wind. The energy is stored in different deep-cycle batteries. Earthship provides a prefabricated system, which is called, the Power Organizing Module that is adjusted to the wall on the interior and wired in a conventional way and uses circuit breakers and converters. This module is then used for any household appliance such as: computers, print machines, washing machines, vacuums, the list goes on.

A huge downfall about Earthships are the price which can range from $50,000 to several million dollars but, the plus is that once you own an Earthship, you wouldn't have to worry about bills. Of course, celebrities have caught on and it helps that they can afford not one but several if they wanted and environmental activists have been drawn to owning an Earthship. The Government won't be spreading this knowledge as fast to the public mostly due to them not wanting to lose out on all the money that they are getting from mortgage payers, renters, and all the tax money that goes to good old Uncle Sam but if you're all for living an eco friendly lifestyle that also helps fill your pockets then maybe investing in an Earthship someday is something to consider.

The following links will show you what an Earthship looks like and more information on how they're designed.

http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/earthship.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ENIhmDskmY&feature=related

By Khadeeja Coonrod

Sarah A.'s Photo Of The Week!

Alpine Village Swap Meet and its many treasures.

Book It!

All Things Forever (2010)
By Izzy The Artist

All Things Forever, written by Ishaqq A. Rahim, is a poetry book conjured of inspiration and heart felt passages. Ishaqq, also known as IZZY The Artist, wants readers to feel connected to life, feel closer to the divine, know the important value of their soul, know how one good person can make all the difference, and that the book is pleasing to read yet challenges the current position of their life towards betterment.

The first opening poem is titled, Live it be 180 to eternity;

Live it be 180 to eternity

Live I want to be. In 180 degrees. To complete all that I can dream,
Inside of me lives eternity, So much to create it seams,
from my eyes to my hands, from a voice to the feet moving on solid land
Direction to my purpose, 180 to it’s soul,
Eternity knows you better than it’s clay in solid mold

As one who travels and moves often, it's important to take in every moment and appreciate life no matter where you may find yourself calling home or what season it is. Seasons Come Home holds the little details that are huge;

Seasons Come Home

In those cozy moments, cooking fried rice, telling stories accumulated.
Fresh organic juices on ice, how these moments so nice, reading books
at the coffee shop, taken away by conversation, winter brings such cozy situations,
from simple moments to long amazing vacations

IZZY introduces a part of himself to anyone viewing into his shared world in I am;

I AM
I am created, I worship, The One
I am a visionary, A leader, of self and inspire, thee, I am an artist A soul,
Build in ingenious as I unfold- Genius, I AM so I state this and I mean this.
The resolution to inform the reform, The First form aware, this self aware of self…
I AM be and I was, I AM be and I AM.

The title of the book, All Things Forever, is a poem which reminds us of how we can continue on by striving towards a better future for not just ourselves, but for everyone in the world who wants to learn to grow and enrich their lives;

All Things Forever

Pass on some knowledge
lived wisdom, for them to use, re-use and teach,
Put in and up foundations for outreach,
let your life live on and seek,
The winners the doers the makers, the dreamers,
All things, and
for the ever

All Things Forever will be released around early Spring 2010. It will be made available on ebook and paperback at the same time. You will be able to purchase this book on Amazon.com, Estore, Artist Website, and book stores nationwide ISBN 1450512712.

IZZY The Artist is an artist, sculptor, poet, producer, graphic designer, community organizer, and entrepreneur. IZZY The Artist is also the founder and director of YOU R A CREATOR, Inc. His interests include: break-dancing, traveling, meditation, astrological psychologist, life, inventing, love, truth, reform, understanding, peace, fun, and work.

To find out more about this book and author visit these sites:

http://www.youracreator.com/video/spoken-truth-ep4-exclusive-ft
https://www.createspace.com/Customer/EStore.do?id=3423498
http://www.surrealstudiosone.com
http://www.izzytheartist.com
www.myspace.com/izzytheartist
http://www.youracreator.com

Review by Khadeeja Coonrod

Reel Good Things

Girls Rock! (2008)

Directed by Arne Johnson, Shane King



I rarely ever say this, but I wish I knew more little girls simply because they must see this movie.

Girls Rock! follows a group of girls who attend a female-only band camp in Portland, OR where they learn how to play and write music in five days. Indie darlings like Beth Ditto and members of Sleater-Kinney, as well as a number of other talented female volunteers, do more than teach music. They also show the developing ladies how to defend themselves and conflict resolution.

The movie focuses on four campers, all with very different backgrounds. Distortion-obsessed Amelia has already created her own notes (or at least she calls them that) and is set to record what I believe is the first artist to write a 14-song album about her dog Pipi. Laura loves death metal, no matter how many naysayers tell her Asians aren't supposed to like that type of music. Misty is recently out of rehab, music being one of her only escapes from a very tough life. And Palace, the youngest punk rocker I've ever seen (and not in the look-how-cute-my-kid-looks-with-a-mohawk way), has her own issues bottled up inside, which she surprisingly ends up taking out on one of her band mates (luckily a punch from a girl as tiny as her couldn't have hurt).

This film has a positive, if not quite happy, ending that highlights how these four girls were changed from just five days. You realize that after it's all over these girls will go back to their normal lives, the ups and downs of growing up. Despite that, you hope these five days have made them better-equipped to deal with the lows.

In the end, you'll be wondering where rock band camps were when you were young. And then you'll tell all your friends to find their favorite little lady of rock and watch this movie.

Shanty Cheryl's Photo of the Week!

Hannah Dancing in the Rose Garden outside the Los Angeles Coliseum