A few updates after a period of silence in the midst of "new post" error message

I try to create a new post, but I get the following error code: bX-3r3ejc. Anyone know what that is or where do I directly report this issue? I've tried help, but it doesn't lead to a direct email. Any help would be great.

Fortunately, I had this incomplete draft.

Anyway, I realized I had not posted in ages. Busy, like everyone else, I guess. I don't know. Sometimes, time just flies by. Then I stop, I realize it's been months since I've done this or that or seen this or that person.

I'll post a few updates.

•Zombie Survival Test. Thanks Lizette and Prof Black Woman for your responses. I agree. I didn't do so well because I just couldn't honestly respond that I wouldn't try to save my family and friends. I also could not honestly respond that I would shoot them in the head if they turned. First, I don't own a gun, and two, I just couldn't do it. I'm ok with my low scores on this test.

•Thyroid. I've been on a daily dose of 10mg of Methimazole since March. I saw my endocrinologist yesterday morning. According to my blood tests, it seems like it's all moving in the desired/right/wanted direction. To be honest, about a month ago, I felt my metabolism coming to a screeching halt. So, I'm trying to get more active. I have a water aerobics class at the local community college on sundays. It's so much fun. Also, I'm trying to get to yoga class at a local health center twice a week. That doesn't always happen... so I need to find another fun physical activity. The best news of all is that I'm sleeping throughout the night. Yeah. Sleep is good.

•About a year ago, my friend Noni and I decided to collaborate on public art projects again. We applied for a few L.A. Cultural Affairs projects, which we received both. We are currently redesigning a City Hall Annex on Central Avenue. We just finished a color version of a design for the Gilbert Lindsay Recreation Center near Avalon. I'll post pictures here soon. Collaborating with Noni is definitely a challenge on a few levels, but I love her very much and I'm glad we can work together after an almost 8 - 10 year hiatus... yikes time passed. Yep, we completed the Angeles Mesa Public Library mural titled "Education is a Basic Human Right" based on two U.S. landmark school desegregation cases (Mendez vs Westminster 1947 and Brown vs The Board of Education 1954) in 1998.

•Noni and I were invited to apply to an L.A. County Arts Commission Project at Ted Watkins Park in Watts. We didn't get it, but as finalists for that project, we were invited to work on three small public swimming pool renovation projects at Mona, Carver, and Bethune Parks in South Los Angeles. The three designs we submitted varied from abstract water based on African and Mexican pre Columbian iconography, to images of the life and work of agricultural scientist George Washington Carver, to portraits of education activist Mary McCleod Bethune and labor activist Dolores Huerta on a red and blue color field. This last design was the most incomplete and debated. This last design was met with immediate objections from Supervisor Yvonne Burke and her field deputy. I'll have to write more about this sometime soon. Basically the review meeting was lively and argumentative as soon as Noni told the supervisor that she didn't live in the neighborhood when Noni was trying to explain the inspiration for the project. The next day, for the first time ever, we were terminated from the projects. Recently, there's been a few L.A. Times articles published on Supervisor Yvonne Burke's debatable residency status.

•I have a few other projects going on... instead of writing them down, I'm just going to get to them. One of them is a XV year anniversary print at Sam Coronado Studios in Austin. I will be printing the last week of next March. If you or anyone you know plans to be in Austin around March 22 - 29 of 2008, let me know... come visit me while I labor on a silkscreen print.

Hope you are all having a good summer.

Zombie Survival Possibility Rate

Does this demonstrate that I didn't learn much all these years from my ex, a zombie/George Romero expert? I would like to think that seeing all those movies and skimming through the Zombie Survival Manual has at least helped some... like realizing that there is the possibility of such catastrophe. Ha.

40%

Boi Hair Trivia

This picture still happens in the scenes where Alice Hom walks throughout Chinatown with her mom and her mom's friend. Seconds before Alice skips back towards her mom, she points to these toy handcuffs.

Queer Latina/o Arts

Life's been a bit busy at the moment... so I haven't had much time to even think about this blog. Anywho, here's some great QueLaCo events happening in San Francisco this month.

The Queer Latina/o Arts Festival 2007
part of the National Queer Arts Festival

*

Personal Secrets - Public Space
Visual Arts Exhibit
June 3 - 28, 2007

Opening Reception
June 3 | 3pm
SomArts, 934 Brannan Street, SF
$5 | donation

artists
Nora L. Alcala, Jose Maro Alvarado, Anthony Anchundo, J. Carrillo,
Marcus Cordero, danyol, Querido Galdo, Walter Guerra Ostolaza, Juan
Pablo Gutierrez, Afua Kafi-Akua , Alma Lopez, Rigo Maldonado, Lucia
Martinez, Alma Muñoz, Rebeka Rodriguez, Rumorosa, Gustavo Joseph
Venegas

*

Mi Cuerpo, Mi Revolución
Poetry and Performance
June 15 | 7:30 pm
Galería de la Raza
2857 24th Street, San Francisco
$7 | no one turned away for lack of funds
www.galeriadelaraza.org


*

Marga Gomez & The Boys
June 30 | 8pm
LGBT Community Center / 2nd Floor
$10 - $15
www.queerculturalcenter.org

*

Frameline31
San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival
June 14-24, 2007
www.frameline.org

FREE HAVANA/ ODD PEOPLE OUT
Sunday June 17 | 12 noon pm | Roxie
$7 members | $8 general


Queer Latina/o Arts Festival, 2007
www.quelaco.org

Co-Sponsors: Amor Sin Fronteras, Galería de la Raza, San Francisco
International LGBT Film Festival, and the Queer Cultural Center.

QueLaCo acknowledges the support of the Horizons Foundation.

Please Support Self Help Graphics

Self Help Graphics & Art wrote:


Dear Friends,

Self Help Graphics & Art needs your help. Many of you know the story: since our closing in June 2005 and subsequent re-opening later in the year, the Staff, Board and dedicated volunteers have worked tirelessly to keep SHG open, continuing to provide free events to the general public, as well as youth educational programs and printing opportunities for artists.

Over the past year and a half, we have had numerous conversations with the foundations from whom we used to receive grants that supported a budget of hundreds of thousands of dollars each year, which allowed us to offer a solid base of programming. We have also started new conversations with other organizations who support the arts. So far, some have turned down our applications for grants and others are in progress. Other arts organizations have met with similar results. We simply cannot wait or rely upon such efforts. For the past year we have operated almost completely on donations, either for prints, or simply cash and in-kind gifts. We have generated more income from these sources than we ever have in the past. We cannot express to you how extremely grateful we are to those of you who have kept the faith with our organization and have continued to provide support in these difficult times.

The Board, Staff and volunteers of SHG are dedicated to keeping the institution alive. How big or small an organization we become, where we will be located, what programming we will be able to offer in the future, depends on you. Given the current near-total lack of support for the arts from federal, state and local governments and foundations, it appears we will have to rely upon the generosity of the general public for our support.

We have an international reputation as a premier Chican@/Latin@ fine art printmaker. But our reputation alone will not pay the bills. You, as a donor, will determine the future of SHG. You, as a donor, will keep the legacy of our founder, Sister Karen Boccalero, alive. Your level of support will determine what educational programs we can afford to offer young artists; what printmaking opportunities we can offer emerging and professional artists; and what events we can host to provide an exposure to art and culture to all who pass through our doors.

Please visit www.selfhelpgraphics.com to make a 100% tax-deductible donation using your paypal account, debit or credit card. Paypal also allows you to sign up for monthly donations, which we will be able to depend upon for sustaining operations. We are posting our fundraising progress online. Please participate! Thank you to everyone who has already donated, every dollar makes a difference!

Our heartfelt thanks,

The Board, Staff and Volunteers of Self Help Graphics & Art

History: Mac & I

I am a self-taught computer user. Back in the day when I was an undergrad, I was hired at the university library as a work-study student to assist in the archiving of Chicana/o special collections.

During the interview I was asked if I knew how to use a computer and a program called Procite (I think). I looked over at the brand new pc computer and the manuals neatly stacked next to it. I responded, "Of course." I asked myself, "how much more different can it be than a cash register?"

I had used cash registers during a summer job at a restaurant in Rosemead and a winter break at a shoe store in downtown L.A. I had learned how to type on summer and after school office jobs all throughout high school.

I had used one of those tiny macs with monitors (grandparent to the iMac) for spreadsheets in an accounting course, and a friend kept his pc computer in my apartment to help him write papers. It was almost the nineties, folks. Before the internet became as indispensable as cell phones.

In the mid nineties, my first computer was a Power Macintosh 7600. The desktop, monitor, printer, scanner, keyboard and mouse were beige. My earliest digital designs were done on this computer. Most likely, "California Fashions Slaves" and others from the series 1848: Chicanos in the U.S. Landscape After the Treaty of Guadalupe. With this computer I applied and received a couple of artist grants such as the Brody and the C.O.L.A.

After a while, my Power Macintosh 7600 was too slow processing and printing some of the large photoshop files. At the time, I lived in a large two bedroom apartment in South Los Angeles. The apartment was usually very clean. While the computer was rendering or printing files, I would sweep, mop, wash dishes, put away laundry, or scrub the toilet. Seriously, it was slow. I gave it to my sister who needed a computer to write papers and email.

With the help of some grants, I was able to upgrade in the late nineties to a Power Macintosh G3. I also upgraded to a larger monitor. I also purchased a new printer and scanner. The tower, monitor, keyboard and mouse were all matching blue and white. Very pretty. With this computer, I was able to finish creating the series, "Lupe & Sirena" as well as the more recognized, "Our Lady" image.

I am giving my G3 to a photographer friend who mainly needs it to open scanned black and white photographs using photoshop. I will give her the tower, a sony monitor which replaced the huge apple monitor, the keyboard, a scanner and printer.

In 2000, I moved from my beautiful huge apartment in South L.A. to a studio in Santa Monica. Primarily because it was an opportunity to live as an artist in residence at the 18th Street Arts Complex behind Highways Performance Space, and because at the time, it was a little difficult living with my ex downstairs.

In 2002, "Our Lady" and other images were in an exhibition titled CyberArte at the Museum of International Folk in Santa Fe, New Mexico. While on exhibition, Catholics (mainly middle aged men) protested the image. I was invited to speak at conferences and universities about my work and about the controversy.

In 2003, I purchased my first laptop. A G4 Powerbook. Titanium. This computer has been my absolute favorite. This computer traveled with me throughout the United States, Mexico, and Italy. I created presentations using Dreamweaver. I also created images for book covers and posters.

After all the travel, use, and a drop or two, it died last month. It's my first Mac death. Sad. As soon as I need another laptop, I will purchase another Powerbook.

My artist residency was over in 2003, and I moved to Eagle Rock. Where, two years later, I purchased a Mac Mini because neither my G3 desktop nor my G4 laptop had DVD burners. I used my Mac Mini to make my first digital short documentary, "Boi Hair."

Currently, my Mac Mini is my primary computer. I also have an external hard drive for files, an epson scanner/printer, and a jaz drive (I know, a total oldie from the mid/late nineties). The only downside is that in order to hook up the Mac Mini the the monitor purchased with the grey Power Mac G4, I have to get an adapter. The most annoying thing about Macs is that even if they are all Apples, they don't all fit nicely together. They are like apples and oranges. There's always an adaptor or a new scanner/printer or something. These upgrades/adaptors are always ridiculously priced.

The jaz drive is hooked up to a Power Macintosh G4 desktop, flat screen display, keyboard and mouse which use to be in our Tongues office. I kept the jaz drive because I still have files saved on six cartridges.

Currently, I mainly use my computer for video projects, email and other web-based stuff like writing this blog, and a few other projects. These days, I am mostly working on public art projects and small paintings.

Vote for Kiri Davis' A Girl Like Me

I just received the notice/comment below. I posted Kiri Davis' A Girl Like Me short documentary on January 8, 2007. Please vote for her.

Bronzetrinity said... If you liked the YouTube video called 'A Girl Like Me' by Kiri Davis then here is a way that you can help this shining star win a $10,000 scholarship! PLEASE vote for Kiri in the Cosmo Girl Website at http://www.cosmogirl.com/entertainment/film-contest-vote Her film has really inspired me and I think this young lady has a great future ahead of her. You can view 'A Girl Like Me' on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17fEy0q6yqc

Aqui No Hay Virgenes

If you missed the opening, and haven't seen this show, check it out before it closes on April 26. There's some really good work... and I snuck in some luchadora virgen de guadalupes and sirenas. Lupe and Sirena are peleoneras.

The L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center's Advocate & Gochis Galleries in
conjunction with Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE),
www.artleak.org with support from the UCLA Chicano Studies Department presents:

Aqui No Hay Virgenes: Queer Latina Visibility

The Village at Ed Gould Plaza. 1125 N. McCadden Place, LA 90026
(one block east of HIghland, just north of Santa Monica Blvd.)

Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday 6pm-10pm, Saturday 9am-5pm, and by appointment (ring bell at main entrance)

Participating artists: Alice Bag, Nao Bustamante w/ Matt Johnstone,
The Butchlalis de Panochtitlan (Mari Garcia, Raquel Gutierrez,
Claudia Rodriguez & Nadine Romero), Diane Gamboa, Alma Lopez, Delilah Montoya & Shizu Saldamando.

The artists in this multi-media group show present us with atypical
images of radical latina selves. They forego the compulsory iconographies associated with mainstream Latina identity - no corn husk goddesses, no Virgenes de Guadalupe. These are anarchic visions of bruisers, brooders, and romantics who will knock you out with a kiss. This the title - Aqui No Hay Virgenes - In their place, we have women of sub-cultural distinction; women with attitude and a strong sexual presence - punk rockers, malcriadas & peleoneras.

Co-curated by Jennifer Doyle & Raquel Gutierrez

Green

It's not even 7am, and my morning has been very eventful. I woke up early because I'm one of those people who goes to sleep late, wakes up early, and then naps sometime around 4pm. Partly, I think is being an artist. We tend to work at all kinds of hours. Time is a construction. Like all frameworks and language, right?

The other part, I think, is my thyroid. I'm blaming everything on my thyroid.

I woke up early because I needed to find a piece of paper to reset my password in order to submit grades which are due today at midnight. I freaked out because I couldn't find it. I remember folding and shoving it in my pocket in the hallway while talking with students. Then I went to dinner. And I've worn and washed those jeans since then.

After turning things upside down, I finally found it. Whew. What a relief. Whoa, what a mess all around me.

Instead of putting stuff away, I decided to play around with photoshop a little. I am a so-called digital diva after all, so you would think this is what I do, right? Well.

I transferred a picture I took this weekend, after I washed the bruise makeup off, into photoshop. I posterized, placed a luminosity green layer on top, rescaled, and cropped. Voila!

My bifocals! Which I don't think are so uncool after seeing one of the Queer Eye guys wearing a similar pair. But then again, those are re-runs. Well, maybe they are retro by now.

But, what was I thinking plucking my eyebrows like that! I was trying to look like the queen Justin Bond. I gave up when I realized that I didn't have a lacy glittery see-through sexy shirt/blouse. Trust, I use wear stuff like that in my late teens/early twenties during my brief gipsy-artsy phase. Some of that stuff I wore (not to mention my big hair at the time), I think may have been somewhat Lisa Lisa, Cyndi Lauper, 80's Madonna, thriftshop, and Pretty in Pink influenced.

While playing with photoshop, only a few minutes, ants began to congregate on my kitchen sink and I burnt my oatmeal.

Shortbus

I painted this bruise on my face using red lip liner and a few shades of blue and purple powder eyeshadow. After I photographed it, I was surprised how good it looked. I also know what I need to add next time. I definitely need to add some dark blue/purple shades on the lower inner side of the eye next to the nose. From what I remember, usually there's a dark bruise there even when it's healing.

I painted this bruise because I was going to a costume encouraged housewarming on Friday night. Before the party, I went to see the movie Namesake with a friend. I decided to wear my make up to the movie since I was going directly from the movie to the party. I sent a text to my movie friend who was having dinner with another friend, so that she wouldn't be surprised. She was surprised when she saw me. She was uncomfortable with my bruise. She informed the person at the popcorn stand that she didn't hit me. The young African American woman at the counter had the awesomist mohawk ever.

The reason for my choice of costume/makeup was that the night before I had seen John Cameron Mitchell's 2006 Shortbus. He is the same director of Hedwig the Angry Inch. The movie is about several couples who frequent a New York sex club. Sex throughout the movie is used to show intimacy. As the characters become more self aware, I guess, or more comfortable with sharing intimacy, the camera focuses from bodies to faces. I really liked this movie. I really liked the process of the making of this movie as well. Initially, the director did a call where he had hundreds of people send video responses about questions about sex and intimacy. These hundreds of entries were narrowed to 40 stories, and overtime, narrowed further. Those stories were workshoped , rewritten, and rehearsed for two years. The cast is composed of mainly first-time actors.

At some point towards the end of the movie, the sex club host/hostess Justin Bond wears a make up bruise. It seemed random, but maybe it was to reference difficult violent queer experiences. I don't know. I think I was attracted to the bruise because of that, but also as an outward expression of inner bruising. Also, I just finished a small series of nine small paintings of luchadoras/wrestlers. I will photograph them and place them on my website sometime soon.

Wearing a bruise was an interesting experience. Strangers stared, looked away, looked uncomfortable and didn't say anything as I parked, rode an elevator and walked through a mall on my way to see my friend at the movie theatre. My friend was uncomfortable and let everyone know that she didn't do it. She told me stories of her university students in violent relationships. At the party, friends were curious.

I am very aware of women and violence. I grew up in a violent home. When I decided to paint my bruise, I was not at all coming from a victim perspective but more from the curiosity of the randomness of the Justin Bond character. The reactions and conversations were all very interesting to me. This may be an interesting art project.

Seeds in my ear

For about two months, I've been doing acupuncture.

If you've read this blog, I started going because after my regular annual physical exam in January, my blood tests demonstrated that there was something not quite right with my thyroid.

After three blood tests and a thyroid scan, it was confirmed that I have hyperthyroidism caused by Graves' disease which is an auto immune condition. I have to read a little more on what that is.

Basically, my thyroid produces too much hormone which then makes my heart and everything else work harder. For no apparent reason, I have heart palpitations and I feel hot most of the time. Initially, I was having a really hard time sleeping because I would wake up in night sweats even when it was really cold and I was too uncomfortable to sleep. Insomnia is the worst. I was going batty. I was tired, and unable to focus.

Acupuncture helped incredibly to alleviate all the uncomfortable heat-related symptoms. As I understand it, acupuncture works to return balance of energy/hot/cold flow throughout the body. The needles used are strategically placed to remove energy blockage. Long thin needles have been placed on my feet, legs, arms, hands, and more recently on my forehead and shoulders. The needles used are sanitized, always in a new package, and disposed after use.

It's strangely odd to lay on a high medical table with needles while I try not to move, and attempt to breath deeply meditating on the flow of energy. Fortunately, the last two sessions have been great. The doctor allows me to meditate/sleep for nearly an hour. I am also taking daily herbal pills prescribed for my liver and energy.

I saw an endocrinologist two weeks ago. He prescribed a really low daily dose of methimazole (tapozole). He was very pretty. He had long legs, longs fingers, and long jet black hair. He looked very nice in black pants and white doctor's coat. He said that a person could live for a really long time with hyperthyroid. Then after 10 - 20 years most likely suffer bone disease and die of heart disease. Funny guy. But since he figured I had longer than 10 - 20, that I should consider treatment for my thyroid. So, he prescribed starting with the methimazole, then re-evaluate in two months after another blood test.

Eventually, I may need some radioactive procedure.

Those things in my ear are seeds on two pressure points. I need to squeeze them every once in a while. The acupuncturist placed them there because my blood pressure was really high when I went in on Tuesday. They fall off by themselves after a few days.

Coffee & Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

I know it's a weird snack, not to mention unhealthy, but I really like a cup of cafe La Llave with milk while munching on some Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. I sometimes like having this for breakfast, like right now. I like the combination of a hot somewhat bitter drink (cause I like my coffee strong), with the creamy smooth waxy texture of "not so real" chocolate and peanut butter.

Ingredients: Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Chocolate, Nonfat Milk, Milk Fat, Lactose, and Soy Lecithin and PGPR, Emulsifiers), Peanuts, Sugar, Dextrose, Salt, and TBHQ(preservative). What is some of this stuff? And why is some of it only indicated with initials?

Well, I gotta go help plan the revolution, and gamble tonight. Poker, baby!

This is just too sad

For Want of a Dentist
Pr. George's Boy Dies After Bacteria From Tooth Spread to Brain

By Mary Otto
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, February 28, 2007; Page B01

Twelve-year-old Deamonte Driver died of a toothache Sunday.

A routine, $80 tooth extraction might have saved him.

Deamonte Driver, sitting next to his mother, Alyce, shows the scars from incisions for his brain surgery. (By Linda Davidson -- The Washington Post)



If his mother had been insured.

If his family had not lost its Medicaid.

If Medicaid dentists weren't so hard to find.

If his mother hadn't been focused on getting a dentist for his brother, who had six rotted teeth.

By the time Deamonte's own aching tooth got any attention, the bacteria from the abscess had spread to his brain, doctors said. After two operations and more than six weeks of hospital care, the Prince George's County boy died.

Deamonte's death and the ultimate cost of his care, which could total more than $250,000, underscore an often-overlooked concern in the debate over universal health coverage: dental care.

Some poor children have no dental coverage at all. Others travel three hours to find a dentist willing to take Medicaid patients and accept the incumbent paperwork. And some, including Deamonte's brother, get in for a tooth cleaning but have trouble securing an oral surgeon to fix deeper problems.

In spite of efforts to change the system, fewer than one in three children in Maryland's Medicaid program received any dental service at all in 2005, the latest year for which figures are available from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The figures were worse elsewhere in the region. In the District, 29.3 percent got treatment, and in Virginia, 24.3 percent were treated, although all three jurisdictions say they have done a better job reaching children in recent years.

"I certainly hope the state agencies responsible for making sure these children have dental care take note so that Deamonte didn't die in vain," said Laurie Norris, a lawyer for the Baltimore-based Public Justice Center who tried to help the Driver family. "They know there is a problem, and they have not devoted adequate resources to solving it."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/27/AR2007022702116.html

Julieta venegas- el liston de tu pelo

Julieta Venegas - Me voy

Hummingbird Flower

Last November, a friend gave me this little plant for my birthday. The beautiful flowers resemble humming- birds.


This past week, I went to the hospital to have a Thyroid Uptake Scan. On Tuesday morning, I was given a tablet which has iodine and is radioactive. I was asked not to eat seafood. The technician forgot to measure my levels before the tablet so that they would have something to compare to. I didn't find this out until Wednesday morning when I returned to have the levels of how much iodine was retained by my thyroid. Also, I laid down on this machine, and there was this thing aimed at my throat which took 10 minutes per picture. I had to have 3 pictures taken. It was really hard to lay there trying not to move. I felt a little claustrophobic.

On Tuesday afternoon I went to my eastern doctor for my second acupuncture treatment. An intern took my blood pressure, measured my heart rate and asked me all kinds of questions about how I was feeling sleeping, menstrual flow, bowel movements, urine, etc. We all agreed that there was some progress. I layed down, and they inserted needles on my feet, legs, hands, and arms. They inserted two additional needles near my toes to help release heat. My left foot felt warm, and my right elbow twitched. I almost fell asleep. I feel like I was much more relaxed this time since I knew more or less what to expect. I still had lots of dreams, had trouble sleeping, but I felt nice and cold for the first time in ages. Maybe it was the acupuncture, plus the fact that I only slept with a thin blanket.

Before falling asleep on Tuesday, I watched "House." A TV program about a grumpy genius doctor who gets the most difficult and mysterious cases at his hospital. He has a team of 3 doctors. He was shot in the knee for some reason and lives with pain, and is addicted to pain medication. On this episode, there was a teenage girl who has a condition which prevents her from feeling any pain. Because he lives in pain, he is fascinated by her and wants to do a spinal procedure where he would be able to take some of her cells to help his own pain. The doctors try out different possibilities of what may be wrong with this teenager, and at some point they mention Thyroid Storm. Which is something that happens when your thyroid goes totally berserk, and folks can ultimately die.

Artist Talk in Chicago on February 26

I will be presenting my work at 6pm at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago on February 26. I need to think about how to organize this presentation. I would like to weave in my book covers and poster designs when I discuss my digital prints, paintings, and murals. I also want to weave in my activist work as a co-founding member of L.A. Coyotas, Homegirl Productions, and Tongues. And also show a short clip of my video Boi Hair. It's a lot, and I believe I only have an hour.

I'm thinking that it may be interesting to organize in a more or less timeline from past to present, and using the collaboratives as chapter markers. Most of my work has been completed while I've been a Tongues member since 1999.

I need to take time in organizing my thoughts. I've never written my presentations. Sometimes, I've written notes to remind me to discuss some points, but usually I present from whatever it is that I'm thinking. And usually I can talk for hours, especially if prompted by questions. I'm thinking that I might want to start writing down some of my thoughts on my work, especially in terms of what was going on and what I was thinking about when I did certain images.

If you are in Chicago, come by and see me there. I'm hoping not to miss Erin who is a performance artist working on her MFA, and Johana who will be there for conference.

Response to "Respectful" Doesn't Equal Censorship

My response to the Ramon Vasquez y Sanchez letter to the San Antonio Current was printed today and can be read online at the following link...

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?brd=2318&pag=460&dept_id=551337&nr=1&nostat=1

Or here...

Why is it so hard to do the right thing? [See “Virgen matricides,” December 27, 2006-January 2, 2007.] Why is it so hard for the Centro Cultural Aztlan to admit that their curatorial process is sketchy? Why is it so hard for Centro to accept the assistance offered by the National Council Against Censorship? Why is it easier for Centro and its supporters to attack the artist Anna-Marie Lopez as well as other Chicana artists for our feminist interpretations of La Virgen de Guadalupe?

Contrary to what Ramon Vasquez y Sanchez, co-founder of CCA may believe [Mail, January 7-13], I am one of the most qualified artists to interpret La Virgen. Guadalupe and I are both brown women activists born in Mexico. I grew up with her in my homes and neighborhoods in Mexico and Los Angeles. How many San Antonio Latinas/os can claim they are Mexican like us?

What does my mother think? She thinks it’s ridiculous that people protest art instead of demanding justice from an institution infamous for its sexual violations of our community. I think that it is ridiculous that a Latina-run Centro would make their art standard based on religion. Have we not seen or read any Chicana feminist work?

Aside from the proselytizing by church and patriarch-invested community, has anyone considered that perhaps La Virgen was created in 1531, after twelve years of Spaniard-inflicted hell, by indigenous activists who desperately needed to save themselves and their community from ruthless conquer-terrorists violently enslaving and torturing their bodies, stealing their lands, and attacking their beliefs? Has anyone wondered why she re-appears in times of revolution and activism such as the Mexican Revolution, the Chicana/o Civil Rights Movement and the Chicana Feminist Movement?

Like Anna-Marie, I was censored by the Centro Cultural Aztlan in 2002. I did not say anything at the time because I was exhausted from defending my work in Santa Fe, and because I did not feel that participating in the Centro’s exhibition really made any difference for me. Now I am speaking on behalf of Anna-Marie because I am grateful for the support generously given to me by curator Tey Mariana Nunn, her mother Tey Diana Rebolledo, the Cyber Artistas and countless others, many who are smart feminist Chicanas who have a personal relationship with La Virgen de Guadalupe.

Alma Lopez

Alma Lopez is a Mexican-born Queer Chicana artist. See www.almalopez.net.




“Respectful” Doesn’t Equal Censorship

It seems that the painting by Anna-Marie Lopez was not exhibited at Centro Cultural Aztlan’s Cultural Arts Gallery at the Virgen de Guadalupe exhibit December 12, 2007. [See “Virgen matricides,” December 27, 2006 - January 2, 2007.] Being one of the founders of Centro Aztlan and creator of the gallery, I got in touch with the Executive Director and she explained to me why it was not part of the exhibit. First, there were too many pieces to exhibit. Second, others didn’t get accepted; there was a process set up by peers. And third, the artist, by tradition, had to be respectful in the presentation. On Anna-Marie Lopez’s website, she lists comments by such people as Naomi Shihab Nye, Allison Hays Lane, Angelo Di Bello, Cay Crow, Brother Cletus Behlmann, Alan Heuer, and Jeanine Acguart on how good her artwork is. I came to the exhibit and I didn’t see any of them there. I feel none of these people have grown up with the “Virgen de Guadalupe” by their side. I don’t even think they have ever prayed to the “Virgen.”

Svetlana Mintcheva of the National Coalition Against Censorship has even written a letter to Centro Cultural Aztlan. All artists have a right to paint what they feel and all galleries have a right not to accept them. It was not about subject matter but space and presentation. But I wonder after seeing the website if the Guadalupanas would carry Alma Lopez or Anna-Marie Lopez images over their heart?? I don’t think so. Would they wear an image of Jesus Christ in a Bikini? I think these artists should ask their mother if this is in good taste. I personally don’t think it was in good taste. People should see the website under Annamarielopez.com It is very amusing. According to staff at Centro Aztlan, there were five other artists whose work didn’t make it to the show, and they are not crying “Censorship.”

I don’t believe in artists being censored; I do believe that the gallery has the right to not accept. You be the judge.

Ramon Vasquez y Sanchez,
San Antonio

Vasquez y Sanchez is a longtime staff member of Centro Cultural Aztlan. His work appeared in the Virgen show.

Ed note: Another artist has questioned his exclusion from the Virgen show. You can read his letter in the Mail section of our January 24-30 issue.

Dirty Tongue

Ok. I know that looks weird. That's my tongue this morning. Liz adviced me not to brush my tongue so that the acupuncturist can look at it. Which he did. He knew I had coffee this morning. Also that I had too much heat, hence those little bumps, I guess.

My doctor had three interns assisting him that he is training. I was at the accupunturist for a little over an hour; filling out papers, the consultation, and the therapy. This mtg confirmed a few issues which my western doctor had already discussed with me.

I had needles inserted in my legs, feet, arms and hands. The needle on my right elbow was making my right hand feel numb. I was given some herbs to take and lots of information all at once. Now I feel relaxed and a little sleepy. Oh, it's after 4pm, and I usually have a cup of coffee by now.

He recommended that I limit the coffee intake because it dehydrates me, makes me thirsty, and hot, and therefore, too much heat. It all makes sense.

Acupuncture for Hyperthyroidism

I have an acupuncture appointment tomorrow morning. I'm hoping that acupuncture can help my hyperthyroidism.

I don't even care to take pills for headaches, so I definitely do not like the idea of possibly having to take thyroid medication for the rest of my life. Well, I don't really know what I need to take at this point, and if I have to, then I have to.


I have an appointment for a thyroid uptake scan next tuesday and wednesday. It will be just me and my thyroid on valentine's day. As I understand it, a thyroid uptake and scan is a two day procedure to help evaluate the structure and function of the thyroid. The first day I will take an iodine pill, liquid or injection (radioactive scary stuff), and the following day I get a scan to see what my thyroid looks like.

On the recommendation of my healthy friend Aika and her natural health book, I've started taking several B supplements in addition to the multivitamin and calcium my doctor had recommended. I need to take those with meals. I just found out the hard way that coffee and a Reese's chocolate peanut butter cup does constitute a meal. I was nauseous to the point of upchucking. Yuck. And what am I doing consuming caffeine? I'm such an addict that's why.

My friend Alicia, who recently had thyroid surgery, loaned me a book to read which recommends eating stuff like broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, pears, peaches, cabbage, brussel sprouts, mustard greens, turnips, and other vegetables and fruits like that. So, I'm trying to incorporate more of those foods.

Alicia also recommended replacing sea salt and regular table salt with kosher salt. Kosher salt isn't kosher, meaning it supposedly doesn't conform to Jewish food laws, but is used to make meat kosher, which means it extracts blood from the meat. The important thing for someone like me who is going to have a thyroid uptake scan is that it doesn't contain iodine. I also need to avoid kelp/seaweed. No sushi for me.

Aika's book also said something about avoiding dairy and caffeine. That's hard.

Blogging Thoughts

I am really impressed by prolific bloggers who are consistent posters. I am also incredibly impressed when bloggers have a huge readership who regularly comment on their posts. It feels like entire communities of folks.

One such impressive blog is www.crazyauntpurl.com. Her blog focuses on knitting, cats, divorce, and health. I totally became consumed by reading her grieving process. I guess I must have lots in common with a thirty-something Southern, divorced, white woman living in the San Fernando Valley with cats. Who knew?

How do people do it? I don't even know how I respond to the few comments that I receive once in a while, especially if it's anonymous. Do I respond and have it posted on my blog? Is that how it works? Does the person check back here to read it? Is that the point? I don't know. If anyone is reading this, and you know the proper blog comment response ethiquette, would you please clue me in?

I haven't written in over a week because I've been thinking seriously about some things which I'm not too sure are appropriate to include here, mainly because I'm not sure who reads this blog. Blogs are a strange phenomenon to me. I'm sitting at home, alone, in front of my computer, typing these words. It feels like it's just me. But then I think that perhaps there are people reading this. Who are you?

Also, I've been dealing with the usual day to day stuff: work, thinking about work, trying to hang out more with friends, taking care of my health... blah blah blah... nothing all that important to write about.

Surprise! I am not the only Alma Lopez

I knew I wasn't the only Alma Lopez in the U.S. I just didn't know it was such a common name. Lopez is like Smith, but Alma? I grew up with two Almas. One was my best friend's younger sister. Later, I met Alma the poet. Also, a few years ago, I would get emails meant for the San Antonio Judge Alma Lopez.

Now that I mention the judge as well as thinking about the censorship of Anne-Marie Lopez, what is it about San Antonio? I have met some very nice people from there, namely Antonia Castaneda and Tomas Ybarra Frausto. I also met some nice NALAC people. Mostly, I regret to say, my experiences there and interactions with people there or from there have been less than pleasant.

I didn't know it at the time, but this bad relationship with San Antonio began around March/April of 2001 when I stopped by for an artist talk after a disrupted community meeting at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico and on my way to Tucson for a NACCS conference.

Sometime after my talk, I was taken to visit this community center. Two people there said something about me having all this controversy going on because I needed to reach out to community for support. What community are we talking about? Is it a very nice Latino yet homophobic community? Am I not community? Am I not an immigrant, Mexican-born, L.A.-raised Chicana who grew up with the image of the Virgen de Guadalupe in Mexico and the U.S.?

Does a gay white male archbishop reigning in an institution known for sexual violations towards community have more "ownership" of this image than me? Do the men (and women) invested or perhaps blinded to this religion's post-conquest colonialist patriarchal system have more of a "right" to set a "community standard" as to how this image should be portrayed than Chicana/Latina feminists artists/activists like Yolanda Lopez, Anne-Marie Lopez and me? Please, don't get me started.

This bad relationship with San Antonio continued at the end of 2002 when Chaz Bojorquez and I participated in a residence exchange program between the Guadalupe Arts Center and Self Help Graphics. Two artists from San Antonio came to East Los Angeles and did two great silkscreen prints. Everyone in L.A. made them feel so welcome, that one of those artists decided to move to Los Angeles.

When Chaz and I went to San Antonio we encountered the worst program director ever (who, I wasn't surprised to hear, was fired soon after), the worst working situation to the point where Chaz never finished his print, and I had to return at least twice to complete my print in Austin.

Now that time has passed, I can finally laugh about it. This was a dark comedy. Picture Chaz and I waking up early to work in the damp cold basement of an art supply store with a messy white woman supervisor who had never silkscreened before screaming at a skinny Latino male who as the day progressed would get drunker and higher. Only when he was totally plastered (usually around noon), would he have the guts to direct sexist comments towards me.

While in San Antonio, no one ever made us feel welcome. We would take ourselves out, and when asked what we did, we would be teased because we elected to take ourselves out to sushi and martinis. Huh? Is this kind of teasing and trying to make us feel bad something that they do so that they feel that they are better than us? It was the end of the year. We were determined to enjoy ourselves despite the circumstances. It was cold. And those peach martinis were yummy!

At the end of our two week residency that December of 2002, I was attacked by a gay male artist for using the "woman" card during an artist discussion, and I was censored from the Annual Virgen de Guadalupe Exhibition by the Centro Cultural de Aztlan in a similar movida as Anne-Marie Lopez.

Most recently, this bad relationship was confirmed when I met the biggest liar and anti-feminist lesbian in the world. I know that sounds weird, but I guess it's possible in a place like San Antonio. One day, I will sarcastically laugh about this too.

There's more to tell, but I just want to block all these terrible memories and move on. A yummy peach martini might help.

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 311 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Please Support This Action Alert

Date: Mon, 22 Jan 2007 18:18:55 -0500
Subject: Action Alert!
From: svetlana mintcheva
To: anna-marie oneunheardword@yahoo.com

Action Alert!

From: The National Coalition Against Censorship

A recent, troubling incident involving an art exhibition sponsored by the Centro Cultural Aztlan in San Antonio, Texas merits your attention and voice in opposition to attempts to limit artistic expression.

A piece by artist Anna-Marie Lopez, initially selected for display in the Centro’s annual tribute to the Virgen de Guadalupe, was rejected shortly before the opening of the exhibition. Ms. Lopez and the lead artist for the show, Anel Flores, who led the Centro’s three-person selection committee, both claim the untraditional viewpoint expressed in the work was the reason for its rejection.

In responding to allegations of censorship, the Centro contended that the piece was pulled for reasons of space limitation, not content or viewpoint. However, statements made by Centro officials, as well as the observations of Anel Flores and the artist, make this position suspect. Denise Cadena, the Centro’s Arts Program Manager and a member of the selection committee, stated “in reaching our final decision we considered each piece…keeping in mind community expectations and standards.” In a similar vein, the Centro’s Executive Director, Malena Gonzalez-Cid, was quoted in the San Antonio Current as saying “[w]hen a community sets a standard, it’s going to be a pretty high mark for the Virgen de Guadalupe in this town. I’m going to support that standard.”

Who has the right to determine how the Virgen of Guadalupe is presented? Should some of those for whom the Virgen is an important symbol be prohibited from making it their own and expressing their deeply held concerns through it? It appears that the Centro is denying that right to feminist Chicana artists who take the traditional image and re-create it to represent a strong and earthy womanhood. A few years ago, in 2002, the Centro rejected another artist’s digital collage of the Virgen in a floral bikini. The work, by LA artist Alma Lopez, had recently been subject to public outcry at an exhibition in New Mexico. nn

This is not only about one or two works of art. It is about the larger issue of the Centro’s commitment to artistic freedom and their respect for local artists. The Centro has to reaffirm its loyalty to those core values if it is to maintain its position in the community.

We urge you to support not only the San Antonio arts community, but artists nationwide, in their freedom to express their ideas, even when those ideas are not popular. Your signature on the attached letter will send a message to the Centro Cultural Aztlan that the choices of a community art center are to serve the whole constituency, not just an orthodoxy imposed by a vocal minority – or even majority. The National Coalition against Censorship has offered to work with the Centro to achieve this goal, but has met only with silence. Now is the time for you to become involved.

We hope that we can count on your cooperation in this important effort to protect First Amendment freedoms. You can lend your support by emailing us and requesting to be added as a signatory to this letter, indicating your current occupation, city and state of residence and any arts organizations, if applicable, with which you are affiliated. Please address your email to Svetlana@ncac.org. As this is an urgent matter, we ask that you provide your response by no later than January 31. You can also write letters to the editor of the San Antonio Current or San Antonio Express-News, as well as your own letter to the Centro addressed to:

Ms. Malena Gonzalez-Cid
Executive Director
Centro Cultural Aztlan
1800 Fredericksburg Road Deco Building, Suite 103 San Antonio, Texas 78201

Please go to www.ncac.org/art/related/aml1.jpg
to see an image of Anna-Marie Lopez’s work side by side with a traditional image of the Virgen de Guadelupe (www.ncac.org/art/related/aml2.jpg ).

Thank you for your cooperation.


Letter to be sent to the Centro Cultural Aztlan with your signatures:

Ms. Malena Gonzalez-Cid
Executive Director
Centro Cultural Aztlan
1800 Fredericksburg Road Deco Building, Suite 103 San Antonio, Texas 78201

The recent removal of Anna-Marie Lopez's work from a show at the Centro Cultural Aztlan has shaken belief in the Centro’s real commitment to the representation of a diversity of Chicano voices and has led many in the community to suspect that the Centro is censoring artists’ work.

We urge the Centro Cultural Aztlan to affirm its respect for free expression and the integrity of its curatorial vision.

Anna-Marie Lopez’s representation of the Virgen de Guadalupe was initially selected for inclusion in the annual tribute to the Virgen. However, it was subsequently rejected with no reason being given. Ms. Lopez and the lead artist for the show, Anel Flores, who led the Centro’s three-person selection committee, both claim the untraditional viewpoint expressed in the work was the reason for its rejection.

In responding to allegations of censorship, the Centro contended that the Lopez piece was pulled for reasons of space limitation, not content or viewpoint. However, Denise Cadena, the Centro’s Arts Program Manager and a member of the selection committee, stated “[i[n reaching our final decision we considered each piece. . . keeping in mind community expectations and standards set for this exhibit since its inception 10 years ago.” In a similar vein you, as the Centro’s Executive Director, were quoted in the San Antonio Current as saying “[w]hen a community sets a standard, it’s going to be a pretty high mark for the Virgen de Guadalupe in this town. I’m going to support that standard.” Contrary to the Centro’s insistence that the rejection of Ms. Lopez’ work was based only upon the practicality of space, it seems evident that a more invidious motive was at work and that acquiescence to anticipated public pressure prevailed over sound judgment based upon artistic merit.

It appears that this latest incident is not the only example of the Centro’s compromise of artistic expression in favor of public sentiment. Artist Alma Lopez noted that a digital collage of the Virgen in a floral bikini was rejected at the urging of the lead artist for the Centro’s 2002 Virgen show after public outcry at a previous exhibition of the work at the Museum of New Mexico.

The non-traditional use of religious imagery often provokes controversy. However, there are many ways to prepare for potential controversy that recognize the free speech rights of artists as well the interests of members of the community who might choose to see the work. For instance, you could place a response book in the gallery and invite the audience to write their impressions, or you could hold a discussion with the artist where different positions could be voiced. You could also put a notice in the gallery specifying that the Museum does not necessarily endorse the ideas expressed in the artwork on display. We believe that these approaches not only show a healthy respect for a diversity of viewpoints but also enhance the Museum’s reputation as a cultural center.

During the New Mexico controversy, for instance, in spite of massive community protests, the Museum insisted that its educational mission made it necessary to exhibit work with diverse viewpoints. A town hall meeting was successful in dissipating the tension. The protesters were heard and the museum's integrity as a cultural institution was preserved.

Even though some people might call for its removal, art expressing unpopular viewpoints remains constitutionally protected expression. As the director of an art center which receives public funding, you are obliged to follow First Amendment principles which prohibit government officials from discriminating against ideas on the basis of the viewpoint expressed in them.

We strongly urge you to adopt a free expression statement and a curatorial selection policy, as well as guidelines for response to objections against specific works. The National Coalition Against Censorship would be happy to help you in crafting these, as well as in holding a discussion panel on artistic freedom and community standards.

It is in the best interests of the Centro, its exhibiting artists and its viewing public to promote uncensored access to protected artistic expression regardless of controversy or viewpoint.

Cc: Elaine Wolff, Editor
San Antonio Current
1500 N. St. Mary’s Street San Antonio, TX 78215

Robert Rivard, Editor
San Antonio Express-News
301 Avenue E San Antonio, TX 78205

Hyperthyroid

The thyroid is a small gland located in the front of our necks that looks like a butterfly. The thyroid produces hormones which regulate our metabolism. It seems that I may have a hyperactive thyroid. I need to have further scans and tests done to verify this. But the first signs of this possibility were indicated by the blood tests I had done last week when I went to my doctor for an annual physical.

Of course, I immediately did some online research as well as talk with a friend who just had thyroid surgery. It was so good to see her. The last time we saw each other was at NACCS in Guadalajara last summer. But the last time we had the opportunity to talk, was more than two years ago. Time passes way too fast. We have plans to see each again soon. I really like her.

Hyperthyroidism means that your thyroid is producing too much hormone. It may seem like a minor thing, but these hormones have direct effects on most organs, including the heart which beats faster and harder. Our bodies do amazing things, but how long can they survive all revved-up?

Dentist, Optometrist, Doctor

It's official. I don't like going to the dentist, and that's why I had not gone in a while. I was very late to my last three appointments. I would call on my way there to let them know I was running late, stuck in traffic, whatever... hoping that they would say, "We can reschedule you for another day." But no. Each time, I would be told that they would wait for me. Drats.

One of my new year's resolutions was to start taking care of my health. Yeah, really, start. I began by going to my dentist, my optometrist, and my doctor.

When I went to my dentist, she said, "You have lots of work to do." Not a good thing to hear from your dentist. My team of dentists are a young Asian married couple. She checked me out first, and now her husband is doing all this work. Basically, I had two cavities, I need to have an old huge cavity capped, and I need to have a super-duper deep cleaning in order to prevent/avoid gingivitis. I to