12.1.2000

rosa parks

just came across this.. from this day in history, from the history channel:


    rosa parks on busPARKS IGNITES BUS BOYCOTT:
    On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on a segregated Montgomery bus, and the African-American civil-rights movement began. The successful Montgomery Bus Boycott, organized by a young Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., followed Park's historic act of civil disobedience. The actions of leaders like Parks and King eventually led to the massive 1963 March on Washington, which set the stage for President Lyndon Johnson's signing of the sweeping Civil Rights Act of 1964.

for more information go to: Rosa Parks: Pioneer of Civil Rights
-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
posted by m. brooke r 1:08 PM
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world aids day

aids ribbonothers have decided to do a "day without blogs" in order to pay respect to all that needs to be done for this disease, i have decided to provide y'all with a list of (hopefully) helpful HIV and AIDS resources.


General Information:



Resources for Women


Articles about HIV/AIDS and Lesbians:

Yeah, its not a lot.. but i'm at work. And this idea of putting this up just came to me. I need to find some lesbian safer sex information.




-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
posted by m. brooke r 10:04 AM
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11.30.2000

medical marijuana, sponsons and old friends

there is an article at salon.com about medical marijuana today. i'm lucky enough to live in a state that has passed a law allowing medical use of marijuana. i've always believed in the legalization of marijuana. and if they aren't going to legalize it for recreational use, too many people are having positive results from it to help deal with cancers and other awful diseases. i became passionately conviced after spending a mere two days with a childhood friend who was battling cancer. hearing her talk about how marijuana enabled her to put on much needed weight, hearing how it made her quality of life that much better when she was battling the affects of powerful chemotherapy drugs, and knowing that even though she lost her battle her life was probably extended because of her use of marijuana has convinced me even further about positive effects of marijuana for the critically ill.

rec.boats.paddle is a vital part of my internet life. even though i'm not boating right now, i stick around the newsgroup because one day soon i know i'll go get back in one of my 3 boats. whitewater and boating and rivers course through my veins. its simply a part of my life and it can't be gotten rid of. it is only on hiatus in my life right now. anyhow, we've got a troll there. he espouses the use of something called "sponsons" as a way of saving lives. his logic is disjointed and he totally discounts that there are things that are needed a whole lot more than his product to be a safe boater. y'all-- there is not some super duper product that will take the place of knowledge and experience and plain common sense on the river. btw, let me throw in that that knowledge includes knowing to wear a lifejacket and helmet and proper clothing for the situations. if you want to paddle, get instruction. do not listen to sponson man about some product that will take the place of all that. besides all that, i'm getting rather sick and tired of this troll and his annoying antics.. i've thought about taking a break from r.b.p. for awhile just until he wears himself out.

tuesday i got an email from an old childhood friend. it was a nice surprise. he and i had known each other on and off for quite a long time, and in fact we dated on and off over a period of about 2.5 years. we ended up breaking up when he came out... he went on to tell me that i was gay too.. at the time i wasn't ready to hear that (i was only about 15 at the time).. it took me another 6 years to actually come out. anyways, its always a bit weird to hear from folks who were a part of my life back then. i've changed a lot, been through a lot.. we all have. but its nice to connect with someone from blacksburg.. out here i feel rather homesick and its nice to talk someone from there. he's only down in san francisco, so we'll get to see each other, i hope. i'm glad he's found me.

-mbr, brooke@rivervison.com
-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
posted by m. brooke r 9:43 AM
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11.29.2000

dimple rock

an article about discussions around removing the rock

a little info.. dimple rock rapid is a class iii rapid on the youghiogheny river in southwestern pennsylvania. the scale is i-iv w/ i being rapidly moving water w/ little to no manuvering needed and vi is not runnable. dimple rock is the main feature in this rapid. it has been the cause of 3 deaths there in the past year. there was talk of removing the rock. they aren't. thank goodness.

the deaths were of folks who were inexperienced rafters. one was on a guided trip, but a guided trip doesn't mean safety. i've run this section of the youghiogheny.. i ran it with folks who knew the river, i ran it with hours and hours and river days upon river days of kayaking under my belt. i had the experience to be on the river. i had the knowledge of river features, i had knowledge of self rescue. i had put in the time to gain the skills and knowledge to be able to safely run this river. and thats what is needed to safely run rivers.

folks, rivers are not amusement park rides.. when you run a river you are playing w/ mother nature.. an uncontrolled situation. you see folks on tv running some hairy ass shit.. but you know, those folks have the skill. those folks have put in hours upon hours upon days upon days on the river building their skills and their knowledge base. yes, even with something as seemingly harmless as the youghiogheny things happen (obviously). even with something as seemingly harmless as the class ii nantahala river in western nc, or the class i-ii willammette river as it goes through eugene, or.. shit can happen. you can die. but, you are less likely to die if you have training and knowledge. you need to respect the river.

remember this the next time you decide to go for a joy ride down a river. remember that it is not an amusement park ride, there is no one to turn the ride off once things start to go bad.

-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
posted by m. brooke r 12:15 PM
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various babblings

a) yes, i know i need to do something with this blog. i need to format it, i need to add archives and links and all that good stuff, and i need to link it in from my homepage. (rivervision.com/brooke).. i also need to do something with rivervision.com's homepage.. (rivervision.com).. yes, the whole domain is mine. i am the only rivervision on the net.. at least as far as i've discovered. any other rivervision out there is copying me!

b)yes, i've got other projects i need to work on on my homepage.. i'm wanting to put together a No on 9 virtual scrapbook. i've gone out and collected articles on the measure and so i'll put those up.. laura collected articles throughout the campaign and i need to check with her to see if she might have some that i don't. i also need to get working on the equality project's website (www.efn.org/~equality)..

c) a couple of news tidbits:


  • Luna has been cut!.. the tree that julia butterfly hill lived in for 2 years so that she could save the life of the tree and those around it has been cut into. this tree is legally protected. the person who did this has a heart of stone and should be locked up for the rest of their life.


  • Gore wins in Oregon.. yes, by 7,000 votes gore wins my newly adopted home state. yeah. and nader got 5% of the oregon vote. *relieved sigh*

there is a great article in ms. magazine on alix olson this month... alix is a slam poet.. i've seen her perform twice, she blows me away.. go check out an excerpt from the article: diary of a slam poet.

go check out the safe schools coalition in washington state (www.safeschools-wa.org/).. from their website..

    The Safe Schools Coalition is a public-private partnership of agencies and individuals. Its mission is to help make Washington State schools safe places where every family can belong, where every educator can teach, and where every child can learn, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation.

i'm jealous.. i wish oregon had something like this.. luckily its being worked on, and hopefully i'll get to work on the project :)

thats it for now.. my grandmother is hanging in there.. my ma is taking care of her.. wish i was closer so i could help out.. my family needs me. yeah, i could move closer.. but oregon is becomming home. luckily my family understands.

-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
posted by m. brooke r 10:11 AM
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11.27.2000

my grandmother
you know, its pretty awful that it takes something like her being really sick for me to realize the impact that she's had on my life. i guess i thought she'd live forever, and now its really hitting home that she isn't.

when my grandfather died i told everyone that i was close to him. i proudly carry his last name, his blonde hair and blue eyes, his face, his head of stone. yeah, we were close. but this seems different.

she drives me crazy. she's driven me crazy since i was about 11 years old when i started to recognize the vast differences between my emerging liberal beliefs and her strong conservative leanings.

but before i started growing up and before i started to understand the vast differences between us i was a kid. i was a kid who spent weeks upon weeks at her house during the summer. i was a kid who would wake up every morning and eat waffles while watching tv. i was a kid who would go shopping at the px with my grandmother and then come home and model all the wonderful new clothes for my grandfather. i was a kid who looked forward to christmas and spending time with her. i was a kid who knew that my grandmother was the best grandmother because she made the best fudge every christmas. i was a kid who simply loved her grandmother because she loved me back.

then i became the person who started to understand the differences between liberal and conservative. between pro-choice and pro-life, between those who believed in god and those who didn't. i always stood on the opposite side from my grandmother. and i always let her know it. and she drove me crazy because of it.

but you know, she continued to love me, and even though i viewed her as being so different from me i continued to spend time on the phone with her. i always thought i spent that time on the phone with her because i had too, but i've realized that thats not the reason. the reason is because, simply, i love her. and i enjoy our conversations, our arguments, about various moral and political subjects. both of us coming at each other not from our brains, but from our hearts.

i'm not sure why it takes something like my grandmother being this sick for me to realize how important she is too me. she is the one.. the one who watches pat robertson on tv, the one who voted for reagan, and both bushes.. the one who when i called and told her about my girlfriend wanted a picture of her.

and its awful that it has taken this illness for me to realize all that she means to me and all that she has become to me. i have fought and kicked my way to being an adult. i have demanded respect and equal treatment from her and everyone around me. i've worked to become friends with my parents, my aunts, my uncles. i always looked at her as someone who i could never achieve that with.. but i think its only with friends that you can argue about the things that you hold dear to your heart and come out on the other side knowing that you still love each other.

i've not found the words yet to properly voice what she is too me, and hopefully i will, and hopefully she'll hear them.

grandmother. boxing opponent. friend. grandmother.

-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
-mbr, brooke@rivervision.com
posted by m. brooke r 11:57 AM
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links about me:
who am i?
more about me

sites i read daily:
salon.com
cnn.com
usenet: rec.boats.paddle
usenet: soc.women.lesbian-and-bi

other important sites:
mother kalis books
rainy day records
population, environment, abortion, religion, and fatherhood
alix olson
wnba
the equality project
gay, lesbian, straight education network
pflag
american whitewater
ms. magazine
off our backs
the eugene weekly
"Finally Free" Personal Stories on Ex-Gay Ministries (this is a pdf file)

other web logs i read
living colours
viewfromtheheart