MacArthur "Geniuses"

Each year, the MacArthur Foundation names 25 new MacArthur Fellows, otherwise known as the "Genius Prize." Each of these Fellows receives $500,000 over five years, no strings attached. There is no public nomination process - the whole thing is done in secret - and the winners have no idea they were even being considered until they get a phone call from the Foundation.

(side question: how do they know they are not being punk'd?!)

This year's winners include a writer, a farmer, a geneticist, a musician, a sculptress, and a stage lighting designer.

I LOVE reading about these folks! Meet the "Geniuses" here.

The Power of Positive Thinking

The Power of Positive Thinking - is there a bigger cliche than that? Well, there might be something to it...

Today I did my usual Wednesday morning volunteer gig - I volunteer with cancer patients at a local hospital. It is, without a doubt, the best part of my week. I love chatting with the patients, usually about what's going on in the news or what they are reading or whatever silly TV show they are watching to pass the time. We don't necessarily talk about their cancer, unless they bring it up first.

Today, I was so inspired by a patient who I always enjoy "hanging out" with; we'll call him Mr. J. He was describing to me and another patient how, when he was diagnosed with a very serious form of cancer, his disease was so advanced that he was basically given no chance to live.

Mr. J. is such a positive, sunny person. I had no idea that his cancer was so serious. The way he chats and jokes around... he seemed like he was barely sick.

He was saying that his recovery has been so miraculous, so unprecedented, that the doctors at the hospital are bringing in specialists to study him and figure out what worked so well. He credits his recovery to 2 things: his chemotherapy, and his positive attitude.

Chemo does work wonders for many patients, but Mr. J's recovery is really above and beyond all logic. I asked him about his positive attitude, and he said he's always been a positive person. Of course, he has had his dark moments in dealing with cancer, but his overall disposition is just positive and sunny.

I think some of us are born this way, and some of us (like me) have to work at it a bit. But this "positive thinking" stuff really does seem to work. I'm not really sure why, or how, but again and again you hear stories about how important it is.

I think that the universe sent Mr. J. to me today to try to tell me something. (something along the lines of: "get over yourself, and think positive thoughts!") Even if I don't really understand its power... I think I'll keep trying to return my mind to a positive place.

Back to the Source

Look down at the shirt you are wearing. (and if you are not wearing a shirt, I don't wanna know about it). Touch the fabric. Look at the color.

Who made it? Who cut the fabric, sewed the edges, attached the tag at the back of the neck?

And... who made the fabric? If it's a cotton shirt, who picked the cotton?

Crazy to think about, right?!

The September/October issue of GOOD magazine highlights a guy in Brooklyn named Scott Ballum who has pledged to spend a year meeting the people who produce the things that he buys. For example:

To drink his morning coffee, Ballum first introduced himself to the owner of his local cafe, then to the man who roasts the beans and, finally, to the Nicaraguan woman who grows them (conveniently, she was visiting Brooklyn). A lot of work for a cup of coffee, sure, but for Ballum, the rewards are obvious and tangible. In a disconnected world, he actually knows where his stuff comes from. ("Consumer Connection" by Andrew Price, GOOD Magazine, Sept/Oct 08, p. 30)

While I would love to make another trip to India to meet the guy who picks the leaves for the tea that I drink, I don't see that happening anytime soon. However, I do think I can do this on a smaller scale, e.g. buy produce at the farmers market and meet the folks who pick my veggies.

What's the point?:

• The more stuff I accumulate, the more fuel and resources it takes to get the stuff to me. There is some value in knowing where my stuff comes from and trying to stick to local sources.
• In a world where we can sometimes feel disconnected or isolated (take it from someone who works from a home office!) it's nice to remember that almost everything I use and own has been touched by human hands.

Scott Ballum is blogging about his experiences - check out his blog to learn more.

Community Organizing - Why the bad rap?

If you were as disgusted as I by Governor Sarah Palin's derogatory, condescending remarks about Barak Obama's community organizing days - or heck, even if you think Gov. Palin was right! - please read on...

I can't figure out how community organizing suddenly became a derogatory term. Some of these organizers are true heroes, helping people with few resources and no political clout to obtain health insurance, job training, and safe neighborhoods - resources to which all Americans should be entitled.

Why would someone bash such a profession?

So I decided to do a little digging and find out just what Obama was accomplishing in his community organizing days. According to an article in The Nation ("Obama's Community Roots," April 16, 2007, by David Moberg), here's what Obama was up to:

"Obama and DCP [Developing Communities Project - which focused on black neighborhoods on the south side of Chicago] protected community interests regarding landfills and helped win employment training services, playgrounds, after-school programs, school reforms and other public amenities. One day a resident at Altgeld Gardens, a geographically isolated public housing project surrounded by waste sites, brought a notice about planned removal of asbestos from the project manager's office. Obama organized the community to find out if there was asbestos in their apartments. They persisted as officials lied and delayed, then took a bus--with far fewer people than Obama had anticipated--to challenge authorities downtown. Ultimately, the city was forced to test all the apartments and eventually begin cleaning them up."

Employment training? After-school services? Protecting residents from dangerous carcinogens? It takes a lot of ... ummm ... "guts" to stand up in front of millions and say that such work doesn't matter. I don't think the lower-income, minority residents with whom Obama worked would say he was wasting his time... Palin's comments about this work are insulting to those community members, and to me.

Obama and McCain to speak about public service on September 11th

Obama and McCain have agreed to speak at ServiceNation Summit, an event taking place on September 11th in New York City. The event is being organized "to celebrate the power and potential of citizen service, and lay out a bold policy blueprint for addressing America’s greatest social challenges through expanded opportunities for volunteer and national service."

I can't think of a better way to commemorate September 11th than to transform it into a day of service. Check out My Good Deed to learn about an organization of 9/11 families and friends who is working to do just that. My Good Deed also is asking for suspension of political campaigning on that day.

Start planning now for ways that you can volunteer or make charitable donations on September 11th!

Funds of Love

"Let us insist on raising funds of love, of kindness, of understanding, of peace. Money will come if we seek first the kingdom of God." -Mother Teresa

I'd rather be Bronze than Silver

The Washington Post's always-interesting "Department of Human Behavior" column has a great article today called "Happiness on the Medal Stand? It's as Simple as 1-3-2." Basically, the article notes that people who win Bronze medals at the Olympics tend to be much happier than the people who win Silver. The Silver medalists are caught up in "if only..." thinking (e.g. "If only I'd gone a little faster... jumped a little higher... tried a little harder"), while the Bronze medalists are just happy and grateful to be on the medal stand. In one study of Judo competitors, researchers found that Silver medalists were about as happy as those athletes in 5th place, while the Bronze medalists were about as happy as those who had won the gold.

Of course, this spills over into the life of us mere mortals, as well. So many of our moments of unhappiness come when we jump into "if only..." thinking: if only I had that job, that house, that spouse, those kids, that body, that money...

All of those self-help gurus who tell us that gratitude is a key to happiness aren't as cliche as we might think. This is where philanthropy and volunteering can come in. If you are not a person who automatically thinks about how lucky you are to have what you have, volunteering with those in need can really put things in perspective.

When I was volunteering at Georgetown Hospital last week, one of the cancer patients I was talking to said "My wish for you is that you never have to be at this hospital like the rest of us (fighting cancer)."

I'll take a Bronze medal any day.

Gratitude

I found this "gratitude guide" in the September '08 issue of Body + Soul magazine. Being grateful for what we have can really put us in a philanthropic mindset!

The Olympics and Team Darfur

I LOVE the Olympics, and I am really trying to get into the spirit. In fact, I'm having friends over for dinner tonight to watch the opening ceremonies. But those Chinese government officials are really workin' my last nerve...

As you may have heard, they have revoked the visa of Joey Cheek, former US Olympic speedskater and founder of Team Darfur. While the government did not give a formal reason, it is most likely because he spoke publicly about China's involvement in the Darfur genocide. The Chinese government has revoked the visas of several other athletes who are involved in Team Darfur, an organization that encourages athletes to help raise awareness of the crisis in Darful.

There was a good opinion piece in the Washington Post about this on Wednesday. Sally Jenkins wrote:

Cheek has been exceptionally careful to frame his organization as more of a charitable and humanitarian endeavor rather than a political one, and unlike the most passionate Darfur advocates, he never has advocated a boycott of the 2008 Games. He's not a firebrand, he's just a do-gooder -- and an intelligent, committed one at that.

But when his visa was suddenly revoked Tuesday -- without a reason -- Cheek spoke out boldly. "The denial of my visa is a part of a systemic effort by the Chinese government to coerce and threaten athletes who are speaking out on behalf of the innocent people of Darfur," he said.

I wonder how this will play out during the rest of the games - and I wonder if our President, who is attending the Opening Ceremonies, will have anything to say about it.

Where's the love for Bono?

Evidently, there's an online petition and fundraising effort aimed at getting U2 frontman Bono "to retire from public life (so he'll stop leading misguided counter-productive philanthropy efforts)." As a huge U2 and Bono fan... I'm not even gonna tell you where this petition can be found! Whether you think he's a genius, a saint, a publicity hog, or just a big blowhard, you can't deny that he's brought enormous public attention to some of the most pressing needs of our time. Come on, where's the love for Bono!