~Meniscus Archives~
Summer 2004
Issue #4
Gaia
May - August 2004
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Visual Art and Spiritual Evolution
Andy Gmür
Biological evolution has advanced to the point that a 'spiritual evolution' is taking place. This natural process of growth, increase of complexity, or shift towards divinity is happening, no matter if we humans are aware of it or not, if we want it to happen or not.

The Dehydration Epidemic

Jaime Larese
Chronic dehydration has been linked to a myriad of health problems and unfortunately, it's only getting worse. Allergies, arthritis, even Alzheimer's disease is linked to chronic dehydration. Our first step is understanding dehydration and how much water we need to be drinking daily to maintain our fragile health.

What's Endangering Our Earth?
Jeff Hernandez
The everyday items that are meant to facilitate our lives, in fact may be harming us more than we bargained for. Ironically, we as consumers are the reason they are produced. Organic chemicals are extremely cheap to produce and are very effective in their job functions.

Looking Forward to Clean Energy
Jon Heinrich
Because of political uncertainty, pure and simple shortage of oil, and detrimental environmental effects from oil, we need to look for solutions for the furture before we find ouselves left in the dark—literally. Fortunately, solutions exist and if we are able to raise awareness and convince our policy makers to consider it a priority, we can all look forward to a bright, energy-rich future instead of one marked by environmental, political, and social disaster.

 

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Sustainability
Aaron Ades
You don't need to save for a rainy day if you create a system that is in harmony with the needs of the human animal. Create what you need and eliminate the reliance on things you cannot create. Utilize all available technology for meeting these goals.

Ten Things You Can Do to Help Your Earth
Chrystie Hopkins
Whether you live in New York City or Big Fork, Montana, everyday decisions that you make can impact the environment. The revolution starts at home. From the Jersey shore, to the waters of Lake Michigan, the top of Longs Peak, or the beaches of La Jolla, here are ten things that you can do to help save YOUR world.

Gaia
Derek Gumuchian
We are all one. In this article we explore the idea of the Earth as an entire entitiy and as our mother.


 

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The Fabulous Sylvan Sisters
Dan Berthiaume
An hour later, Donna was lazily reclining in the passenger seat of Melinda's cherry red Volkswagen New Beetle, consuming a brunch consisting of a can of Diet Pepsi and a low-tar cigarette. She had put on a pink halter-top, black microminiskirt and stiletto heels, which she figured would annoy Melinda even more than smoking in her car without asking permission.

 

 

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è bella Designs in Peru
Michael Weintrob
Photographer Michael Weintrob travels to Peru with è bella Designs, to capture how è bella has helped to revive the art of weaving and the Peruvuian economy.

Rough Around the Edges
Jonathan Alsop
Invinoveritas.com
Technically, first thing in the morning is the very best time to taste wine since your palate is fresh and unviolated. But I don't do it: the sight of daddy in his bathrobe on a Sunday morning slogging down a half-dozen bottles of wine could stay with a child.

 

 

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Show Review:
Pete Pidgeon & Arcoda—Six Years of friends, funk and crack horns. So where are all the groupies?
Jon Heinrich
Pete Pidgeon & Arcoda celebrate six years as a band by playing at Boston's Harpers Ferry. Opening up for Arcoda was Color and Talea and Caveman. 4.4.04.

CD Reviews:

 

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Empty Food
Kerry Rumore

Fish Pond
&
The Little Prince Discovers a Rose
Katie Molnar

Selections by Brian Gagné:

  • [It Fails to Pass]
  • Fever/Lever
  • Grief
  • Smallness annihilated in the scope of puzzlement
  • Untitled A
 

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-Our Philosophy
-Submissions Guidelines
-Advertising

Meniscus Magazine Archives:
Premier Issue #1, Aug. 14, 2003
Winter Issue #2, Nov. 15, 2003
Spring Issue #3, Feb. 14, 2004

Events:
Club Europa, Feb. 2004
State of the Art, Oct. 23, 2003
Portland ME Launch, Aug. 30, 2003
Official Launch Party, Aug. 14, 2003


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Summer Issue #4, June-August 2004

Welcome to the fourth quarterly issue of Meniscus Magazine, the most positive online art forum in cyberspace. We’re excited to present to you, our summer issue all about the earth, the environment and how we as humans interact with the overall entity known as Gaia.

We are quickly approaching an epoch in history, full of both excitement and anxiety. It is a simple fact that our planet is going to run out of usable oil before too long. We are seeing signs of that right now; gas just pierced the $2.00 limit and it doesn’t look like its going down any time soon. When all of the reserves have been tapped, things are going to change. This is a good thing. Filling the atmosphere with CO2 and greenhouse gasses is not healthy.

However, as Derek Gumuchian explains, the atmosphere is an exquisite example of the remarkable ability of our mother earth to keep its delicate system in prime form for life to exist. No matter how much CO2 we pump into the atmosphere, the oxygen level remains the same, although we are only beginning to see the effects of global warming.

But let’s take this down a notch on the intensity scale. It doesn’t take the threat of ice cap recession and species extinction to see that the world is a beautiful place. Even industry can be scenic when captured in the rapture of a mid-evening sunset, as Will Springfield displays in his photograph in this issue.

The important thing to ask yourself is, is there anything I can easily change in my life that will have a dramatic effect on the resources I use? For example, if you’re interested in avoiding cleaning products that leave a toxic cloud hovering in the air after a spring cleaning, check out Jeff Hernandez’ article “What’s Endangering Our Earth?”

Am I buying products that promote positivity and peace, or am I contributing to the problem? Nicole Linton, founder and designer at é bella designs is doing all she can to help the native Peruvian Indians revive a weaving tradition that was all but destroyed by civil war. Her contemporary clothing and home designs use ancient Peruvian weaving technique to express her love of art and nature. And Michael Weintrob has captured that culture of art and nature in a photo essay he put together on an expedition to Peru last October with Nicole.

It’s that perfect time of year in New England when things have finally warmed up and summer’s just around the corner. I was crossing the traffic-crazy Jamaica Way the other afternoon, when I heard a car run over a thin plate of sheet metal in the road. Having the opportunity between traffic bursts, I ran across and picked it up. My first inclination was to move it to the side of the road out of tire’s way. Then, thinking the next day was garbage day, I realized it would be ridiculous to not throw it in the trash. Walking down the street with this big piece of metal under my arm, I noticed a dumpster perched at the back of an apartment complex. On it was a sign that read:

For Residents Only

Perfect! That’s exactly what we are! We’re all residents of the same rock hurtling around the sun. I realized in that instant, if everyone thought that way, things would be incredibly different. If I only had a cardigan and some slippers, I could really do something with this thought, don’t you think? Neighbor?

The point is we need to be inclusionary and not exclusionary in our thinking. This is not a fundamental teaching of our society however. Take for example on May 14, 2004, when Salon magazine reported that:

The bishop of Colorado's second-largest Roman Catholic diocese issued a stark warning Friday, saying voters should not receive Communion if they back politicians who support abortion rights, stem-cell research, euthanasia and gay marriage.

Let’s just think about that statement for a minute. (This is a little off topic but it parallels my point.) First of all, we’re mixing arguably the two most controversial topics in the world—religion and politics—both putting people at odds with each other. If this is how people are taught about “morals,” we’re not going to get a society that’s going to greet our brothers and sisters with open arms, much less entertain thoughts of environmental kindness.

Despite the fact that church is about brotherly love, God, the Golden Rule and all those words, it sounds like their not very open to things like civil rights and personal responsibility. It’s especially odd when the very definition of Catholic is “comprehensive and universal.” Look it up.

(What then does the church say about politicians that send 150,000 troops to another country with automatic rifles strapped to their shoulders? Same sex marriage bad; killing and torturing Iraqis okay; I don’t get it—but I digress.)

What I’m saying is that if we’re to live in a world where we respect each other and our environment, we’re going to have to start treating each other with a little respect. Include people; embrace each other; see how we’re the same and not how we’re different.

At least in the mean time, while the powers that be realize that solutions need to be had, we can bask in the artistic genius of this thriving culture. And perhaps while we take in the radiant creative energy, we can learn something from these people that see things so beautifully.

Andreas Gmür is a perfect example of such an artist. As you will see in “Visual Art and Spiritual Evolution,” life is a holistic process. If we can learn techniques from the scholars of our species, we can realize how to channel the Cosmic Energy to mental, physical and spiritual harmony. Art is an amazing product of this consciousness, and so is a greater awareness of our relationship with nature and mother earth as a whole.

I invite you now to gambol through the summer issue of Meniscus Magazine. Considering the sunshine, I’d recommend reading in bare feet!

Jon


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