from the desk of Suzy Nees

Leviticus 14:33-45...A warning against complacency toward mold

2009-07-06T06:43:00.000-07:00

And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

When ye be come into the land of Canaan, which I give you for a possession, and I put the plague of leprosy in a house of the land of your possession;

And he that owneth the house shall come and tell the priest, saying, it seemeth to me there is as it were a plague in the house:

Then the priest shall command that they empty the house, before the priest go into it to see the plague, that all that is in the house be not made unclean: and afterward the priest shall go in to see the house:

And he shall look on the plague, and, behold, if the plague be in the walls of the house with hollow strakes, greenish or reddish, which in sight are lower than the wall;

Then the priest shall go out of the house to the door of the house, and shut up the house seven days:

And the priest shall come again in the seventh day, and shall look: and behold, if the plague be spread in the walls of the house;

Then the priest shall command that they take away the stones in which the plague is, and they shall cast them into an unclean place without the city:

And he shall cause the house to be scraped within round about, and they shall pour out the dust that they scrape off without the city into an unclean place:

And they shall take other stones, and put them in the place of those stones; and he shall take other morter, and shall plaister the house.

And if the plague come again, and break out in the house, after that he hath taken away the stones, and after he hath scraped the house, and after it is plaistered;

Then the priest shall come and look, and behold, if the plague be spread in the house, it is a fretting leprosy in the house: it is unclean.

And he shall break down the house, all the stones of it, and the timber thereof, and all the morter of the house; and he shall carry them forth out of the city into an unclean place.

Oni wa soto!

2009-07-04T07:23:00.000-07:00

Hello my relations,

Hope you are having a beautiful day this 7-4. Things here are fine. The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming, our takoja is at peace and everyone here has had a well-deserved good breakfast. Hopefully, your takoja is enjoying a similar morning.

As many of you may already know, today is the grand opening of the Ayuwa’si Holocaust museum, and to celebrate this occasion our family has collected an array of artistic works with more Ayuwa’si firepower than the most extravagant hanabi display imaginable.

Trial by Ayuwa’si Fire, the opera that documents the creation of these works, will be presented for the first time today in the Ayuwa’si Industrial Zone as a FREE thank you gift from my family to our community to express our appreciation for its support and good wishes.

If you live too far away from Ayuwa’si to witness this event personally, don’t despair…the opera has a built-in function designed to help folks like you feel like Ayuwa’si itself has arrived at your doorstep.

If you do not find our theatre before dawn tomorrow, please don’t give up on seeing its latest production. The creation and presentation of artistic works as diverse and stunning as those featured in Trial by Ayuwa’si Fire requires time, natural resources, and lots and lots of exorcism supplies. Also, some of the participating artists have not yet been made aware of their role in our family production, but this will happen in due time.

While you are waiting to witness this unique pageant of talent and good intentions, please feel free to join the growing contingent of volunteers who are helping to re-stock our production team’s exorcism supply kit, which is always in need of replenishment. As a volunteer on this production, your donated exorcism supplies will be converted into delicious snaques etc. and served to you personally at a Snaque Shaque near you just as soon as each and every participating Trial by Ayuwa’si Fire artist has enjoyed a good breakfast as compensation for their artistry.

If you are at a loss for ideas about how you can donate exorcism supplies to our production team, here are a few hints.

-Exorcism supplies can be new or used
- Maps, Bibles, quit-claim deeds and flutes are all suitable as exorcism tools
-Homemade “Secession, not hate” flags, Traces Library inheritance claim tickets, and pictures of the Blue Hole are ideal for purposes of exorcism

Folks who have no access to the items above are encouraged to seek safer ground than the ground they are currently inhabiting by reciting phrase below loudly, clearly, and in a spirit of uncowed independence tempered with sober respect for all victims of the American Holocaust.

---…---

Jigoku ja nai desu yo, kono hen wa!
Tengoku desu yo, Ayuwa’sishima wa!
Oni wa soto!

---…---

I need to go now to help the players get ready for the opera, and wish you a day full of illumination and blessings. Thank you for reading, and thanks in advance for supporting the mission of the American Holocaust Museum in Ayuwa’si, Katuah.

Namaste,
Nantoka
7-4-09

Happy 7-2

2009-06-07T10:47:00.000-07:00

Hello my relations,

Hope you are all doing well and feeling spry, un-defiled, creative and safe.

Those of you who are in the process of cramming for exams at the Ayuwa'si Academy of Ninjutsu are extended a special set of wishes for health and happiness. Your studies are important to our Nation, and your diligence and efforts are vastly appreciated.

I am getting some advice now and then that I need to take a break from my own training in this field of study, since this education can be a harrowing, and even nauseating, experience at times.

Although I do not disagree with this sentiment, I fail to see a window of opportunity in which to make use of such advice. Terrorism against our Nation is at a turning point in many ways, since evil acts against our people have reached such staggering proportions that evildoers themselves are showing signs of deep exhaustion as a result of their exposure to visibility and traumatizing incidents.

Terrorism and duplicity are difficult, dangerous, mind-warping tasks, and as good farmland keeps getting scooped up for use by non-terrorists, the odds keep getting slimmer and slimmer that bad people will enjoy good breakfasts in the days and years to come. It is my firm belief that once the good breakfast thing goes away permanently for these people, nutritional science and well-deserved nightmares will not take long to reclaim what is left of the enemy's morale and stamina.

I leave you today with an excerpt from Sun Tzu's The Art of War, in the hopes that it will cheer and inspire you, and enable you to successfully defend your own takoja from evil, in all its various disguises.

Have a beautiful day! -Suzy

---...---

"Standing your ground awaiting those far away, awaiting the weary in comfort, awaiting the hungry with full stomachs, is mastering strength."

-Sun Tzu
The Art of War

Takai, ne, ethnic cleansing wa!

2009-06-07T05:31:00.000-07:00

Dear friends & readers,

Hope you are all doing well. Many thanks to all of you who have helped my family and I through our recent adventures. Despite an assortment of challenges to their safety and well-being, Cleo, Dracola, Ninja, Princess and Nuti the Goldfish are all doing well, thanks to your support and encouragement.

Sadly, however, Nuti lost her partner, Rati the Goldfish, yesterday. And although nothing about Rati’s passing suggests that racially motivated foul play has occurred, Nuti’s loss should give us all good reason to reflect on the vast expensive-ness and the toxic effects of ethnic cleansing in all its forms and disguises.

Nuti’s namesake is a silly-looking critter I drew many years ago. An eyeball floats in space in front of her, bringing to mind one way in which the Japanese express the concept of sticker shock. “Your eyeballs will out,” my teacher used to say when describing something incredibly “takai” (expensive).

In memory of innocent beings like Rati, and in celebration of those that survive him, our little patch of the Romany Rez in Katuah is currently busy examining, through writings and artwork, the out-of-body eyeball phenomenon as it relates to the evils of ethnic cleansing. I hope you will join us here soon to help co-create this body of work so that Rezidents like Rati can be properly mourned when they pass, and by this I mean that their passing will be framed within a sober awareness of the fact that many of us on Earth still live in a Holocaust-shaped world.

Buried radioactive waste is sometimes marked with glyphs as a way of providing language-independent instructions to future generations about embedded hazards within their world…but could it be that this practice would be put to much better use in documenting the half-life of ethnic cleansing? Great waves of suffering, churned out by tides of Holocaust denial, suggest to me that in Katuah, at least, there is no time like the present to scrutinize past acts of violence and genocide for clues about creating a functional and harmonious future.

Warm regards,
Suzy

Fun scripture selections for visionary gardeners

2009-06-04T04:53:00.000-07:00

Ezekiel 34: 27-29

And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them.

And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.

And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.

---...---

"Green shoots" of economic progress just more schwag industries in the making?

2009-05-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

Dear reader,

While browsing recent issues of financial newspapers as of late I have noticed many a reference to food security, liability concerns with respect to abandoned properties, etc.

Your assistance in clipping and/or interpreting such articles is vastly appreciated, as is any help you can offer in quantifying and/or documenting the growth of shoots of so-called progress, green or otherwise.

I will be happy to trade you View by the pound if you can furnish my fancy new arts factory with nicely presented items from the list above. If you like, you can also volunteer on site. Your View must be 100% satisfactory or I will give you the cash equivalent of items or assistance provided.

With your help, and a bit of help from the County of Floyd, Virginia, we can help ensure that the green shoots of progress some of us are seeing do not turn out to take root and become pure Schwag.

Please stay tuned to learn more about doing battle with Schwag in Floyd County, VA and beyond.

Sincerely,
Suzy

P.S. My arts factory is very reasonably priced at just 109K and since it seems to be raining arts every day here (adding exponentially to my curatorial burden) let us just say that I am entertaining all even-more-reasonable offers!

It is a good day for the Schwag industry to die!

2009-04-19T08:39:00.001-07:00

Dear Willie Nelson-sensei,

Happy 4-19! And much Aloha from the warm heart of Ayuwasi's busy industrial district, where I have been sent on an important Bear Magic Hockey Team bank mission: Eradicating Schwag from planet Earth. My teammates in this effort are the workers of the AIZ, the Ayuwa'si Industrial Zone, a realm that was born this very morning.

Some folks out there might be asking why folks in Ayuwa'si have chosen a peaceful Sunday morning in one of Earth's most gorgeous places to create an industrial zone which is focused on ridding the planet of sucky brown cannabis.

Sucky brown cannabis, in our minds, represents just a small portion of the Schwag industry iceberg, so our mission is not as simple as getting rid of this sort of pollution. Schwag, for the purposes of the Ayuwa'si Industrial Zone, is defined as any sucky work or product, and is not a term that is only applied to low grade cannabis.

This means that for us, fighting the Schwag industry is highly complex pursuit which demands much of its warriors, including a deep understanding of how any product, agricultural or otherwise, that is created un-mindfully and without compassion has the potential to unleash tsunami after tsunami of misery and violence.

That being said, I should mention that a recent newspaper article brought in from the Big World has spurred many of us to action in reducing the harm caused by Schwag cannabis trading between Mexico and the United States. Stories of decapitations, communities lost to gangs, and violence against law enforcement have scared the apathy right out of us, and we now have an industrial zone to prove it.

I sure wish you could be here with us today in the AIZ to spend your Bear Magic realty credits and to witness history in the making, but folks here are planning to make history every day for many days to come so please don't be too miffed at them for not giving you a heads-up about the big opening ceremony this morning.

You should also know that an honorary table was set for you and your creative team at the company cafe's breakfast celebration this morning, so anyone that asks should be informed that you and your teammates are VERY important around here and have been so right from the start. If anyone doubts this please have them call my office to make arrangements to see the gigantic "right to farm" pennants that were lovingly set in storage this morning after the Bear Magic team cleaned the breakfast table they festooned.

Here in Ayuwa'si, Sunday is considered by many to be a super-lucky day and a great time of the week to dig up Scripture with just the perfect amount of zing in it to scare the you-know-what out of Schwag manufacturers and other nefarious characters. Here, for example, is a nifty reading I found in Micah 2 this morning:

- --...-- -

WOE to them that devise iniquity, and work evil upon their beds! when the morning is light, they practice it, because it is in the power of their hand.

And they covet fields, and take them away by violence; and houses, and take them away: so they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.

- --...-- -

Lucky finds like this bit of Scripture make this Sunday a perfect day to introduce our entrepreneurial spirit to the wider world.

Willie Nelson-sensei, I have lots to do today and need to wrap this letter up, but I hope that you will feel welcome to visit our little beehive of anti-Schwag activity soon so that you can join us in taking a bite out of drug violence, Ayuwa'si style.

I have hand-picked some choice properties in your Bear Magic realty credit price range and taken the liberty of putting them under Bear Magic contract to prevent their abuse or misuse by less qualified settlers while you and your creative team decide which places in Ayuwa'si you would like to inhabit and/or set up business in or near the hub of all that is anti-Schwag.

Once our team succeeds in deflating the sub-universe inside which Schwag weed is grown, traded for capital, and otherwise used to lend credibility and resources to a sinking, parasite-ridden economic raft, I am sure that so many doors of hope and opportunity will open that many folks will be hard pressed to choose which sort of Heaven they want to inhabit.

Until that time, you will find me and my teammates here, in a "Heaven just waiting to happen," as our pitchmen have so aptly put it.

By the way, my Bank President door is always open to you, so please don't hesitate to stop by for some financial advice, or for snacks.

Thank you for your continued efforts to advance human culture. May this missive find you and your dear ones well, un-persecuted, and at the height of their creativity.

Sincerely,

Suzy Nees
Bear Magic Hockey Team Bank president

PS. Have a good day tomorrow!

"Willful blindness" to apartheid lands IBM, others in hot H2o with US courts

2009-04-09T19:43:00.000-07:00

Link

Happy 3-24

2009-03-24T03:20:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Hope you are all doing well. Things here are fine.
If you have not yet heard about the "asphalt is awesome" campaign that started fairly recently in what used to be my neck of the woods, here is a start.

bye, thanks for reading, take care. -Suzy

From the desk of the Burning Book

2009-03-22T08:24:00.000-07:00

---...---

The Beehive Collective presents The True Cost of Coal – a picture lecture to be understood by anyone, not just the experts and analysts!

This Monday, March 23rd

Whittimore 300

7:30pm

With huge portable murals of collaboratively-produced illustrations and an engaging narrative…the bees will take you on an interactive visual tour of the connections between MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL, CLIMATE CHANGE, the “AMERICAN DREAM”, and the STRUGGLE for JUSTICE in Appalachia and throughout the world.

www.beehivecollective.org

This event is sponsored by Mountain Justice Blacksburg and the Burning Book.

Art studio closure sale in Blacksburg Va

2009-02-24T03:51:00.000-08:00

Sculpture & homesteading supplies for sale, barter, or FREE

All items sold or bartered "as is" and need to be off site by 2-28-09.
Location: Montgomery County, VA

Please dial
540-529-3777
for more info.

Six Grandfathers project participants take note - You may find this soon-to-be-vacated artist's lair a real treasure trove!

Handy negotiation tip: Anything that does not fit in a compact car is extremely "JAMA" at this point so make an offer!

---...---

HAVE -

---...---

Air compressor. Worked fine just a few years ago.

---...---

Dryer. Heating element not currently working but may be fixable.

---...---

Boulders. Modestly sized for your convenience. Sculpture quality.

---...---

Soil amendments. Perlite, vermiculite, etc.

---...---

Locust poles. Recently hewn. About 12 ft tall.

---...---

Firewood. All seasoned hardwood.

---...---

Chainsaw. Made by McCullogh.

---...---

Artworks. Prints, paintings, sculpture, etc.

---...---

...plus much more!

---...---

NEED -

---...---

Milk, eggs, pet food, veterinary assistance, timbering help

---...---

From the desk of Old Man Kelly

2009-02-19T03:15:00.000-08:00

Ahoy, lads and lassies --

This serves as your 24-hour conscription notice that Old Man Kelly and his
crew shall set sail from Gillie's around 7pm on Thursday. Accordion
music. Sea shanties. Stories from the road, one-man-band shenanigans.
If you miss out, you'll have missed out! And all of your friends will
think of you as the kind of person who would rather be home cleaning the
bathtub than out indulging in good cheer and raising your voice in song.
You don't want that, do you?

Lyric sheets have been printed and will be provided. I hear that Gillie's
has taken on extra galley slaves for the night to provide you with your
grog, so take advantage.

What shall we do with a drunken sailor? I don't know, either, but you can
bet I intend to find out.

--
Yar,
Liam

http://www.mcviking.org

Waiting for Nelson-sensei...Part 11

2009-02-17T04:03:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-sensei,

Ohayogozaimasu! Asa gohan o dozo! This breakfast table has been set with great amounts of love and affection for you and your dear ones as a way of honoring your contributions to the arts and culture in this and other realms.

If it does not look quite like a breakfast table to you right now, please be patient. An outright war on culture takes a bit of time to reverse. When this table's elements are taste-able, palatable, and yielding ikigai, our teams need to meet up and smash a big old "Wovoka was Right" themed pinata, because a milestone and a half will have been passed at that point.

By the way, if you should notice a sign in the cabin of our aircraft which indicates that it is time to stow your dinnerware and such to keep it from flying about, please feel free to ignore it. This sign does not apply to the breakfasts served aboard Air Katuah, as they are designed to be extremely low-impact, both in a literal and a figurative sense.

Once again, thank you for your commitment to humanitarian issues in this region, and thank you for trusting the Bear Magic Hockey Team bank with your business resources. We appreciate your patronage, and hope that you will be in touch immediately as soon as you land in Katuah, so that we can get your team's feedback about breakfast, and begin preparing lunch etc. for your team.

Please enjoy your stay in our sacred realm, and do not hesitate to contact me for any reason whatsoever should you require our banking and/or food security services.

May the spotlights in Roanoke, VA treat you extra-well tonight!

Sincerely,

Suzy Nees
Bank president
Bear Magic Hockey Team Bank

---...---

Waiting for Nelson-sensei...Part 10

2009-02-16T02:35:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-sensei,

Greetings from beautiful* Willis, Katuah, where the Bear Magic Hockey Team Bank is busily preparing for the work opportunities you will be bringing to our region tomorrow.

Tomorrow at this time, our bank will begin cooking a breakfast which is designed to meet your personal nutritional and artistic needs by surrounding you with well-fed, un-grumpy team members who are skilled in the art of Legend Care.

A recent call to the Local 55 turned up some interesting info: Our breakfast should include at least 8 stagehand meals if we are to comply with the stringent food security regulations set forth by the Snaque Shaque, which governs our budget.

Legend Willie, if you are SURE that this will be enough stagehand breakfasts to enable you to deal with the crowds that will undoubtedly be facing this 2-17, please begin your day tomorrow with confidence. The IATSE 55 is a professional and highly skilled team of workers who take your musical career very seriously. If the breakfasts wind up being shared by additional workers who need to be hired on an emergency basis to accommodate the throngs tomorrow, I am sure that nobody will pass out, since a third party Snaque provider will be on hand to prevent this from happening.

You will be entering this realm with so many accumulated Bear Magic Real Estate Credits, though, that it seems to me to make sense to get re-acquainted with IATSE headmen in this region and others to see if more Breakfast Credits might possibly be issued tomorrow from your personal stash.

In any case, please enjoy your journey through Katuah, and please do not hesitate to contact me for any reason whatsoever. It is my wish that your newly issued Bear Magic Hockey Team bank card will function flawlessly tomorrow, and every day, regardless of the cultural weather.

Thanks very much for your investments in this region, and thank you for choosing the Bear Magic Hockey Team Bank.

Sincerely,

Suzy Nees
Bank President

P.S. If you should find our banking center up in flames tomorrow please do not be alarmed. This is a normal event within the Burning Dollar music & arts festival. Special precautions are taken to ensure that no critters or people are harmed in any way by this activity.

Your snaques & such WILL be toast if such events do unfold tomorrow, though, so I would encourage you to call well in advance if you wish to inquire about the cost of contingency breakfasts in this region. I recommend Gillie's in Blacksburg, or Dino's in Willis, for this purpose.

---...---

* The Bear Magic Hockey Team Bank does not advocate offering access to U.S. currency to persons based on the fact that they live in a beautiful region, since all this really seems to do is enrage Pele-sama and encourage lending institutions toward co-dependence on regional tax harvesting mechanisms.

Waiting for Willie-sensei...Part 9

2009-02-04T22:29:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-sensei,

Warm greetings from the vibrant heart of Katuah! I hope that this communique reaches you in time to wish you and all your relations a very blessed 2-14.

Rumor has it that one of those naughty Bear Magic hockey players helped themselves to my passwords a short while ago to post a missive in which they begged you for ikigai etc.

Willie Nelson-sensei, did you feed those bears ikigai? They are pro beggars, so I am not scolding you; as their certified nutritionist I simply need to know what you gave them. They are going absolutely bonkers today (in a good way) and their ikigai levels are off the charts. If these critters keep absorbing ambient ikigai there is no telling how many hockey pennants they might win. In situations like this I am VERY glad I have chosen to work as the Bear Magic team's certified nutritionist and not the pennant manager. Managing those pennants is a hockey game in itself, sometimes.

(If the Bears are just feeling this way due to recent sequestration from "The Internet", please feel free to share this info with me also so that I can note that in our files.)

Now I really need to get down to business so I hope you will pardon any accidental brusque-ness. A VERY special lady named Janet might be visiting Katuah soon and she is a fan of your music and I owe her a mighty big favor as she recently help the team upgrade to some incredibly luxurious headquarters.

Also a VERY special doggy may be coming home soon, much to the potential delight of his tribe. "Orson", who left his home on Blue Springs road on 12-24-09, seems to have set himself up with a makeshift lair close to the Boy Scout Land around the Sacred Springs in Ayuwa'si. His gorgeous, medium length black fur, slightly curled tail, and trademark white chest patch have all been noted by eyewitnesses in the area. Dare we hope that this beloved son of Katuah will be able to join us on the Detsanunli this 2-17? I can hardly think of it without shedding an ikigai-rich tear. Luckily Baby Cleo, my daughter, has offered to dance in his place at the festivities should he not be home by 2-17, so her immense talents in this arena, and her trademark Yeti patch, should be somewhat of a consolation to the crowds.

(If, by some chance, you are not Willie Nelson, but instead a Virginia resident living near Mack's Mountain or Ayuwa'si (some call this area "Hiwassee") please note that your help in keeping Orson safe, warm, and within tracking distance is hugely appreciated by a very large community of folks.

Also, a handsome cash reward is being offered for the return of this valuable farm helper and family member. And if U.S. currency is not your reward of choice, Orson's dad would be happy to barter Willie Nelson concert tickets, goat milk, etc. to thank you for putting his ikigai farm back in order.

Orson is a widely beloved dog, and many have said that they would gladly return their reward to a Potlatch 2.0 kitty to celebrate his return. Folks who can help to make this much-awaited celebration happen are encouraged to watch for locally posted signs, which will help them get in touch with this dog's owner.)

So, Willie Nelson-sensei, here is your mission, should you choose and/or have the ability to accept it: Bear-proof the Honeysuckle Rose, shine up your best Dog Dancin' shoes, and get ready to claim over $1,000,000,000 in Bear Magic real estate credits! Air Katuah is going to come fetch your ENTIRE takoja (minus the tax burden, of course) so you can sing your most awesome rendition ever of "You Were Always on my Mind". If Janet and Orson are in the audience when you sing this song you MIGHT just get an even better prize than Bear Magic real estate credits so keep this in mind when making your song introductions this 2-17.

As always, thanks for your help in creating a universe in which the outright bludgeoning of creative impulses, or their corruption for purposes of profit, is a definite no-no. I thought this universe was shrinking at an alarming rate but then I left Montgomery County, Virginia forever and the feeling went away.

See you on the Detsanunli!

Your very devoted fan,

Suzy Nees
Willis, Katuah

P.S. Holy Bat Crap is this freaky or what: I just found out that the Sacred Springs are "on the market" for EXACTLY $1,000,000,000 in Bear Magic Real Estate Credits. Call it my Romany Intuition if you wish but I really think this is a sign that you should at LEAST visit the Springs when you visit our area in a few weeks.

---...---

Waiting for Dr. Willie...Part 8

2009-02-04T02:43:00.001-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-sensei,

We are back for medicine. Please, please, please, Nelson-sensei, make our Aunti feel better. If you have a bit of medicine left for us after you have worked on her, that is great since the Heartbreak Plague seems to be spreading, but if not we are cool, don’t worry about us. We will get by. Our Aunti is the most important thing in the picture right now.

We would not beg if we did not have to, but our Nation is in great danger so please, have your People call our People to get you and your healing team on the next Air Katuah flight to Ayuwa’si. Our Aunti might be dying of a broken heart, and none of the markets here sell the medicine that can keep her among the living.

Please, Nelson-sensei, come sing our Aunti the beautiful song you wrote for her just a bit ago to un-break her heart. In exchange for this medicine, our tribe will give you whatever you want when you get here: Furs, firepower, you name it! Nothing we own is too dear to be spared for our Aunti’s existential ransom. Not even our lairs!

(Our lairs are somewhat snazzy, I might add, thanks to some mighty smart investments made by the Bear Magic Hockey Team Bank.)

(I should also add that the “furs” will still be wrapped snugly around their living owners, making them EXTRA valuable, and that our fire gift to you will derive its power not from violence, but from its origins in the gentle, ancient, un-subdued heart of Ayuwa’si.)

If return travel is a concern to you, please be advised that we have obtained authorization to keep our private jet at your disposal should you need it for any reason, whether it is to return to The Land That is Not Katuah once you are done healing Aunti, or to jet back and forth between our realm and yours or to build enthusiasm for your healing projects. We offer the use of this gadget to you freely, as we know that your powers as a doctor justify the enormous impact this sort of craft has on Mother Earth.

(Our jet has become a mostly terrestrial creature these days, but don’t picture a cobweb-draped scenario when you imagine its appearance. Though it is usually grounded, Air Bear Magic is hardly un-used, as we find it a wonderful gathering place in which to lounge, sip drinks, and discuss new Hockey Etc. strategies.)

Willie Nelson-sensei, someone has probably warned you at some point in your life to not feed any bears which make themselves apparent to you, and although we endorse that advice for the most part, we offer the following amendment:

“Please do not feed the bears anything but ikigai, and bear-compatible Snaque Shaque products, which you should offer freely when loss of habitat etc. seems to have pushed the poor critters to the brink of starvation, existential or otherwise.”

Willie Nelson-sensei, like many folks these days, we Bears are in serious need of some ikigai. (We don’t mind Snaques, either, though we are very fortunate in that we have an official team nutritionist who sees to it that we never need to beg for food, which is why we appear so radiantly healthy and fat-un-deprived.)

Nelson-sensei, thank you very much for considering our request, and thank you for taking the time to read this missive. I hope that you and your dear ones are feeling well-fed, un-persecuted, and vastly creative. May the Creator bless you and all your relations abundantly.

Much love,

The Bear Magic Hockey Team
Ayuwa’si, Katuah

Exhibit opportunity info from Ferrum College

2009-02-03T15:25:00.000-08:00

link

Waiting for Willie-san...Part 7

2009-01-27T03:39:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-san,

Hello! I just wanted to clarify a few items from yesterday's post, and get in touch with you as to how many folks we will be needing to feed and re-hydrate when the Honeysuckle Rose drifts into the squishy yet ever-so-solid wall we have built to welcome her when she begins descending into the cradle of Katuah.

Yes, the wall I promised you is already in place! I don't know how it happened, but Aunti's heart got mended all of a sudden yesterday, and her household, along with her ikigai mill, got up and running again, and the next thing you knew a massive wall of What We Do Best Here went up.

But I digress. My main reason for writing to you today is to comment on my "old and crinkly" comment of yesterday, since I am concerned about it being misconstrued to mean that "old and crinkly" equals "ugly, un-love-able, and unworthy of jealousy".

For the record, I would like to say right now that Old is awesome, and crinkles are beautiful. Anybody who disputes this should just reflect on Katuah! Every year, and every day, young men and old become smitten anew with this elegant lady, whose charm is in no small part due to her great elder-ness as well as her ultra-crinkled topography.

And as far as crinkles on humans goes...sure, not everyone takes care to collect crinkles in a manner which will ensure that memories of smiles, and not frowns, are traced on the face, but for the most part, no crinkle is a bad one if the owner regards it as a sort of a trophy upon which the word

SURVIVOR

is engraved.

Now I would like to clarify one last thing. And that has to do with the way I signed my missive yesterday:

"A young moneyless relative of Aunti Nantoka"

Lest the Bat Crap Trader tabloids run wild with this claim, I wish to issue the following statement:

- --...-- -

I am currently in the process of ridding my lair of all traces of United States currency as a means of complying with the Six Grandfathers divestiture project. However, a thorough search of the Traces Library in which I dwell MAY turn up an odd coin or two.

These remnants of Babylon Empire do not belong to me! These are the new Caesars' property, not mine.

- --...-- -

Thanks for taking the time to read this missive, Willie Nelson-san! I hope you are enjoying your 1-27, and I hope all of your relations are feeling genki and creative.

Waiting for Willie-san...Part 6

2009-01-25T03:05:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-san,

Nantoka O-ba-chan* has an utterly broken heart this morning. Can you please, please fix it?
Rumor has it that stories of a 14-year-old Gazan heart attack victim left her devoid of all ikigai.

The good news about Nantoka the Elder and her ikigai profile is that if you should decide to help her out this morning by writing the ultimate Country and Western Anti-Holocaust Song, you will probably fix many, many more hearts than just one.

Aunti N. has a heart whose shape and size is rather typical of persons from Katuah. Writing her a song this morning, or perhaps later this afternoon, just might inject enough ikigai into this realm to ensure that by the time the Honeysuckle Rose crosses into Katuah this spring, she will run smack into a solid wall of What We Do Best Here.

Obviously, I do not possess the resources or strength to make good on this promise all by myself, but I have great faith in your ability to make music which will kick-start the great ikigai machine that is our Aunti Nantoka's household by putting a smile on the dear old lady's face. And once our Aunti's house is running like a top, it is all but impossible for it to churn out What We Do Best in inconceivable quantities.

Perhaps you are worried that the media will begin to speculate as to your romantic connections to Aunti N if you should write her a song. Now, if I were the most powerful artist in TX I would be utterly un-worried about crap like that. But the sad reality is that stupid rumors like those can really hurt, and cause mistrust, when they reach the ears of the artist's Valentine. So, if you like, I will tell your Valentine myself about how old and crinkly Aunti Nantoka is, so that your 2-14 date this year will not be spoiled by any ill-founded jealousy.

In any case, thank you very much for your time and consideration. And thank you for your work towards peace on our planet. May the Creator bless you and your dear ones abundantly.

Very sincerely yours,

Suzy "Nantoka Nei-chan" Nees
(A young moneyless relative of Nantoka the Elder)

---...---

O-ba-chan = "Aunt"

Weekend news from the desk of the Black Twig Pickers

2009-01-23T02:34:00.000-08:00

Friday 1-23-09

...the Black Twig Pickers haul the fiddles, washboards and many, many banjos up the Floyd plateau for the Country Store's venerable Friday Night Jamboree's stomping dance frenzy -- we've said it before, but there's no better way to fight frostbite, at least not in, you know, public places. The Twig slot is at 7:30 p.m. -- Statement Gospel is playing beforehand and Patrick County fiddle ace Clyde Williams and his band are up after. Come out early and hear it all --------

Saturday 1-24-09

...the Twigs have the high honor of playing up in Marlinton, W.Va., at the Pocahontas Opera House. Showtime's at 7:30 p.m. in this ancient and gorgeous pile of a building -- come out if you're in the area, or if you know anyone that-a-way, please pass this along to them. The program is for a varied and rambling exploration -- a couple members of Shawsville's Thornton family are on the hook to help out, so expect flashes of banjo-uke and dulcimer, some multi-fiddle numbers, maybe some a capella stuff if the moment's right ------

and really, is there a moment that's truly wrong?

---...---

Waiting for Willie-san...Part 5

2009-01-22T03:10:00.000-08:00

Aloha Willie Nelson-san! Warm greetings from the frosty slopes of beautiful Brush Mountain.

I hope that you and your dear ones have been staying warm and feeling well and un-persecuted. The Ayuwa’sifest mood is still lingering here after an extremely successful performance at Kirk Avenue Music by Charlie Parr, the Black Twig Pickers, and the Rootstone Jug Band.

The events of the past few weeks leave me at a loss to know where to begin to prepare you for your upcoming visit to the Magic City. The sheer volume of family news is just one element of this news sharing burden I carry. Alas, things here have not been easy at times. I cannot lie to you about this.

Since my wish is not to depress you, and since the order in which I present recent Bat Crap Trader Bulletin headlines to you could mean the difference between breaking your heart and getting you back the dog, lady, truck, job, etc. that you never knew you had, the news today will be very brief and cheery. If you choose to pass along this news to persons who help to develop policies for the appraisal of real estate in Virginia PLEASE make sure to follow up with them later, once you have a fuller picture of life in our area, so that Tax Harvesters will think twice before eyeing the assets of landowners in the counties of Roanoke, Floyd, Pulaski, and Montgomery and saying, "My, my, what a wonderful quality of life we have here, don't we? You are rich, give us money."

So here is installation 1 of today's headlines:

---…---

A 1-21 pack walk turns into a herd walk in the Ayu'wasi Ginza

"Mr. January" chosen for "Boys of the Lending Industry Apocalypse" ninja school fundraiser calendar

A “Katuah-rific” winter vision by Nantoka about the Blue Hole begins melting into the local arts scene

Pele-sama and the Antrolana People still guarding the Bear Skeleton Cavern

---…---

I am sorry I cannot give you more info than this today about events in Ayuwa'si. BUT I can tell you about the Twig Pickers shows happening tomorrow and Saturday in Virginia and West Virginia. I can ALSO tell you the intriguing story by which I came to find out that Jello Biafra and I are practically kin!

I will transmit these news etc. items to your tribe's news harvesting team as soon as time permits. I must go see to the needs of the working animals at this library and plan to re-transmit some news in short order IF the long-term food security planners at work on this mountain have seen to it that our news team members will be safe from bears, bobcats, etc. this morning.

Really, there is just an outside chance of this since our branch has recently made MASSIVE expenditures in the bear-and-bobcat proofing department.

Very warm regards,

Suzy Nees
Shouseki Library Artist Relations

2009-01-21T07:58:00.000-08:00

Fast facts on four heavy metals

---…---

Arsenic facts

- Headaches and lightheadedness can be symptoms of arsenic toxicity.
- One to three cloves of garlic per day may help move arsenic out of the body.

---…---

Mercury facts

- Sensory impairment and a sense of disturbance may occur as a result of mercury toxicity.
- A medical preservative called Thiomersal has drawn scrutiny from many for its mercury content.

---…---

Cadmium facts

- Flu-like symptoms may be a symptom of cadmium toxicity.
- On average, folks who do not smoke cigarettes will have 4-5 times less cadmium in their blood than smokers.

---…---

Lead facts

- Cognitive abilities can be reduced as a result of lead toxicity.
- Vitamin C has offered promise in past lead poisoning treatment regimes.

---...---

Charlie Parr info

2008-12-18T14:53:00.000-08:00

---...---

http://www.dlpconcerts.com/music-calendar/304.html

Charlie Parr

Thursday, January 15, 2009 - 7:30 PM

Kirk Avenue Music - Roanoke, VA

Tickets: $8 at the door

Charlie Parr

"Charlie Parr is one of the greatest musicians and human beings I know. So many country-blues artists are crippled with retroism and purism, but he has brought wonder and excitement to this music. Even Charlie's foot coming down on the floor boards screams with more soul and life than most anything - past or future." - ALAN SPARHAWK - LOW

I think he’s just wonderful and he really reminds me of a young Dave Van Ronk; he’s got that kind of solid deal to him.
– Greg Brown

Charlie Parr's a singer-songwriter and heavy-duty National steel/12-string/banjo player whose accounts of life on the down and out, and of the struggle to retain some shred of dignity in the face of everyday disaster, ring with a sound that can only be called truth. Long a fixture of the bar and festival circuit in his native Upper Midwest, Parr has toured the United Kingdom repeatedly in recent years, appeared on NPR's A Praire Home Companion, shared the stage with players like Greg Brown and Spider John Koerner, and issued a string of well-received albums -- most recently "Roustabout," which came out in late November. Possessed of a battered howl of a voice and a common-man touch informed by years of homeless outreach work and maybe just by the cold of his Duluth home, Parr's country blues carry a chill that raises neck hairs even as they prompt listeners to raise a glass or jump up and shake it.

Watch a Video

note that the event also includes participation by the Black Twig Pickers and by local artist Sue Nees

and here's a few other links to some live clips:

God Moves on the Water: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=851LEY-e7lk

Miners Lament: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cxwC3mHE3w

Dead Cat on the Line: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cjSGa_PhBM

1922: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNcOyMLJ1xI

Waiting for Willie-san...Part 4

2008-12-05T05:33:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-san,

Happy 12-05-08. Today brings a mixed bag of news from our realm.

First the possibly unpleasant news: Due to a potential scheduling conflict, your tribe's Snaque Shaque meal on (date censored) might need to be served just a bit earlier or later than expected. I have committed to a fiscal responsibility education event which, as it turns out, may be happening at the exact time that I had been planning to serve Thanksgiving 2.0 to your team.

If this commitment was not directly linked to the United States judicial system, I would of course blow it off in a heartbeat, but such is not the case. You see, I am in the process of filing for bankruptcy in the United States courts, and this process requires me to follow certain procedures, including taking a special course in managing what remains of my financial resources. Hopefully, I will be able to take this class about a month before the Thanksgiving 2.0 event I have been planning for your tribe, but if this class is full I seem to have only one other option for completing it: attending class on (time and date censored), just when I had hoped to be sharing a toast to your health with our tribes and a bottle of Dogs on Trucks Expensive Champagne.

As of yet the Snaque Shaque has not appointed an assistant manager, so it is forced to close its "doors" when I am not personally available to manage its kitchens and tables. Almighty Jah willing, this will change soon, but for now I must advise you to brace for a temporary interruption of Snaque Shaque services on (time and date censored). I am extremely sorry to bring you this news, and hope sincerely that in the days and weeks to come I will be able to amend it. Thanks for your understanding, and thanks for letting the United States court system "borrow" me for this short period so that I can avoid provoking its wrath and powers of appropriation.

Now for the happy headlines:

---...---

"Him" and other tribal leaders to attend a special concert in Katuah this February

AKA Nantoka, separated from her lucky bank fighting hat, offers a unique reward for its return

Bat Crap Trader News will soon publish its mid-winter issue

Crying Helicopters stock shares split for the hundredth or so time

W. Nelson advance ticket sales "looking great" according to low-key promoters at the Hawaiian Embassy

Secret chef M. likely to be named Interim Snaque Shaque Manager

"Trial by Ayuwa'si Fire" set to hit bookshelves in early Spring of 2009

Shouseki Ninja school cookie fundraiser a "massive success", say organizers

---...---

These are just a few of the pleasant headlines from Katuah today. As you can see, the ocean of good news from this realm just keeps growing and growing, and it is a formidable task just to decide which headlines to publish. For this reason, and for reasons of National Food Security, I must ask you for your patience as these stories are released.

In due time, you and your tribe will be provided with official Snaque Shaque credentials which will make it easy for you to drink from our fountain of good news at any moment you choose, but for now the existence of yunwinigiski etc. among Internet readers forces me to be extremely selective about what I make readable to the general public.

I must close now so I can tend to the Snaque Shaque emblements, but I promise to try to let you know immediately if any important news develops in Katuah.

Yours very sincerely,

Suzy Nees

Waiting for Willie-san...Part 3

2008-12-03T05:39:00.000-08:00

Dear Willie Nelson-san,

Happy 12-3-08. I have wonderful news for you in a rainbow of delicious flavors.

The first wonderful piece of news is that our great friend and living cultural treasure Mitsunori Koike-sensei is okay, and will be returning to his lair in Hara Village shortly. So, please do not feel obliged to check in on him via the Harmony Arts Foundation or the Hannoki Studio. I spoke with a Hannoki Studio associate at around 11 pm Katuah time last night, and learned the above from a reliable source.

The second wonderful piece of news has to do with your upcoming performances in Katuah: Your stages are getting warmer by the day, as folks in Katuah continue to do battle with the culture-hating demons known to haunt the borders of this realm. Last night, for example, I had the honor of meeting Pastor Jay & Associates, who will share their skills in acting and stagecraft with the public tomorrow and Thursday in a theatrical piece whose content is extremely well suited to folks who are suffering from the effects of the lending industry apocalypse.

Other upcoming events likely to set a festive mood for your performances in Katuah this spring include a December 6 performance by the Alliens in Floyd, a show I would love to see myself had I not already pledged to help with a Snaque Shaque event to honor Pastor Jay & Associates on that same date.

This mention of the Snaque Shaque brings me to a third wonderful piece of news: Among Snaque Shaque patrons and associates, there were no known casualties yesterday as a result of terrorist acts, making our safety record a perfect one yet again. And although I cannot provide you with scientific data to support this claim, I hope that you will accept it as legitimate enough proof that the Snaque Shaque's policies of proactive failure to senselessly beat up on culture are working as a powerful anti-terror weapon.

Since I need to go assist an area resident with her food security chores, I must close now but I promise to be in touch again soon the moment I obtain more news which is relevant to your upcoming visit to this realm.

Yours very sincerely,

Suzy Nees
Brush Mountain
Katuah