ganeidasnest

nicki minaj booty

2012-01-18T18:42:00.000-08:00

nicki minaj booty

emma watson in bra

2012-01-18T18:34:00.001-08:00

emma watson in bra

emma watson wardrobe malfunction

2012-01-18T18:17:00.000-08:00

emma watson wardrobe malfunction

emma watson hot

2012-01-18T18:13:00.000-08:00

emma watson hot

emma watson

2012-01-18T18:08:00.000-08:00

emma watson

NEW STUDENT IN A BURKA: INVITATION INTO THE UNKNOWN

2012-01-18T06:30:00.000-08:00

NEW STUDENT IN A BURKA. In the fall of 2011, for the first time here at the Georgia Tech Language Institute where I teach English, I noticed a student wearing a burka. For several years now, I have been observing the women in hijabs from Turkey, Saudia Abrabia, Jordan, and Libya, intrigued by the fabrics and myriad of designs as well as by the various ways that the women adjust their scarves around their temples, ears, and neck. In my art, I have allowed these women in hijabs to become symbols of what I do not understand--in other words--the GREAT MYSTERY! I am curious about this new student who has chosen to wear her burka to our international classrooms. Perhaps, it is the way her eyes glance out at all of us--seeing us in full form--as she moves down the hallway, a bit hidden and obscured. I hope in the coming weeks, I might get to know her. (art by Hallelujah Truth)

BAHAMIAN MASTER WOOD CARVER: KENNY WHITFIELD OF SAN SALVADOR

2012-01-10T05:35:00.000-08:00

KENNY WHITFIELD, MASTER CARVER OF SAN SALVADOR, BAHAMAS (all photos are taken by Chiboogamoo, aka Tony Martin)

Kenny Whitfield, a Bahamian wood carver, was born in 1964 on San Salvador in the Sugarloaf community. It is the beginning of January 2012, and my Chiboogamoo and I are sitting with him at his carving station out in front of his Sugarloaf home situated on the main road that loops around the island of San Salvador.

We have almost missed him on this small island absent of traffic lights and without one stop sign. Things move differently on “island time,” and when I had asked to schedule an appointed time to interview him, he had insisted that we come see him at his open air studio “whenever.” This request had made my task of interviewing him slightly difficult for several reasons (*which you can see at the end of this interview).

OPEN AIR STUDIO. Kenny Whitfield carves his animal figures on the main road of San Salvador. Field station students, professors, and researchers stop by to buy this master wood carver's work. Notice the national fish of the Bahamas painted on his booth. Kenny often carves a blue marlin.

It is the morning of January 5^th, and my husband and I have swung around the south end of the island in hopes of finding Kenny after dropping off two Emory University students to work on their class project at Pigeon Creek. To our disappointment, the master wood carver of San Salvador was not present at his carving stand, which hosted a variety of carved turtles, fish, and birds. Someone came out to assist us if we wanted to buy a carving but could not tell us where Kenny was. We drove off knowing with just two days left on the island, I might not get a chance to talk with this San Salvadoran artist.

But TA-DAH! We had only driven 30 meters, when we sited Kenny on the road coming towards us in his distinctive truck that he must use to haul the wild tamarind wood for his carving. We waved him down and he invited us back to his studio to conduct the promised interview. This chain of events is how things are done on “island time.”

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: How did you get started as a wood carver?

KENNY WHITFIELD: I grew up on the island, left for Nassau to find work, and then returned back home to San Salvador. Before I went to Nassau, I learned how to carve from a cousin, Wilfred Baptist. He was the Bahama’s best, but he is not around now, and I’ve been carving for 30 years.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Where do you get your wood?

KENNY WHITFIELD: I get my wood from Sandy Point from the other side of the island. The wood is called wild tamarind, and it is native to San Salvador. You can see the dark on the outside and the light on the inside, and you can see the two–toned color. Besides it is an easy wood to work with. Just chop it down and you can carve it. Carve it while it is soft. After it’s chopped, it gets harder and harder—too hard to work with.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: How did you develop as an artist?

KENNY WHITFIELD: It came easy. After being taught in school.

We had a discussion about art classes being taught in the schools of San Salvador. My understanding was that art was not included the curriculum. But Kenny said that when he was in school, there were art classes.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Describe what kind of art you make to sell tourists.

KENNY WHITFIELD: The small gifts, turtles, owls, pelicans. I find it interesting. It’s what I love to do. Otherwise, I would be in a different job.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: How long does it take you to carve a piece?

KENNY WHITFIELD: It will take an hour-an-a-half to make this grouper.

Kenny refers to the piece of wood he is carving while I interview him. In fact, he finishes the grouper, a common fish around San Salvador’s coral reefs in 45 minutes!

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Do you make art just for yourself?

KENNY WHITFIELD: No. I make work to sell.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: How does living on an island affect your art?

KENNY WHITFIELD: Pretty good. No one else does it. I’m the only one.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Does being Bahamian influence your art?

KENNY WHITFIELD: I believe so. It’s different. It is not from Taiwan, Italy, or Japan. It is made right here by hand.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: What is nationalistic about your work?

KENNY WHITFIELD: I make a lot of blue marlins, sail fishes. Basically, the majority of people like to buy stuff from the sea—9 out of 10.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Do you incorporate local stories in your work?

Kenny shakes his head “no.” He draws my attention to his carving and explains his method.

KENNY WHITFIELD: First stage is using the axe. Second stage is using the chisel to smooth it off. The third stage is to use the v-gouge to put details on.

FIRST STEP. Kenny starts his carving with a hatchet.

SECOND STEP. Kenny uses the chisel to refine.

THIRD STEP. Kenny uses the v-gouge for detail.

He has finished using the axe and is alternating between using the chisel and v-gouge.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Do you make large pieces?

KENNY WHITFIELD: The majority of times I make a big piece it is just for show. Big pieces take up so much time a lot of people can’t afford it. Small pieces move on faster.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: How many pieces do you make in a week?

KENNY WHITFIELD: Twenty or thirty. It depends.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Who buys your wood carvings?

KENNY WHITFIELD: I sell them to the field station (Gerace Research Centre), homeowners on Sandy Point. Just any tourists that come about.

STUDENTS FROM THE GERACE RESEARCH CENTRE. Some professors are kind enough to stop and let their students look at Kenny's wood carvings. Out in the field, no one carries any money with them. Kenny knows this and will come to the field station at some point before these students leave so they can have a chance to purchase something from him.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: What state of mind are you in when you are carving?

KENNY WHITFIELD: In a regular state. I always be feeling all right. Thinking about what I am doing. Happy about what I am doing.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: How did you know that piece of wood was going to be a grouper?

KENNY WHITFIELD: Basically, you are going to have a piece of wood that looks like a grouper, so it comes easy. That big piece looks like a turtle. Kenny points to a wide flat piece of wood. A piece of wood that is y-shaped (he points to a branching piece of wood), I will make an owl or a kissing fish.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Do you identify with any of the animals you carve?

KENNY WHITFIELD: Cats and dogs—people normally like them. Everybody will buy a cat or dog because they are regular animals around humans. I identify with them because they are always around humans and are easy to sell.

OUR INTERVIEW IN PROGRESS. Thank you Chiboogamoo for taking this as a memento for me!

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Have you ever created something from a dream?

KENNY WHITFIELD: Yeah. Last time I carved something from a dream, it was a marlin—a huge one—six or seven feet. It took me a while to finish it.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: Where do you see your work going in the future?

KENNY WHITFIELD: Actually, I see it developing and going over to the U.S. and all over the world on the Internet. I liked to do this the rest of my life as long as it keeps my head above water.

HALLLELUJAH TRUTH: What’s your definition of creativity?

KENNY WHITFIELD: This is what I am doing is art. Just creating for the love that the world can see.

CONTACT KENNY WHITFIELD: BAHAMIAN WOOD CARVER ON SAN SALVADOR through his sister’s email. Kenny promised me that his sister is on the internet daily.

Email: bossladycarol@hotmail.com

REASONS WHY IT WAS DIFFICULT TO GET TO KENNY WHITFIELD’S OPEN AIR STUDIO TO INTERVIEW HIM:

REASON NUMBER ONE is restricted vehicle use: At the Gerace Research Centre on San Salvador, my husband is assigned a vehicle for Emory University class and science related activities, not for hunting down local artists.

MASTER WOOD CARVER WITH MY PHOTOGRAPHER AND BOON COMPANION. Kenny came to sell his work at the Gerace Research Centre at dinner time. Students and professors waiting in the cafeteria line had a chance to talk with him and buy his work. (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

REASON NUMBER TWO is limited time: We were on a tight and challenging class schedule in order to visit the numerous various coral reefs, lagoon, and outcrops that Chiboogamoo wanted his Emory students to see. There was no “free” time for non-science related activities.

REASON NUMBER THREE is no direct line of communication. We did not have a phone number or phone to agree on an established time to meet with Kenny Whitfield. We were to rely on either word of mouth (telling employees at the Gerace Research Centre to tell Kenny we wanted to see him) or chance (he might just be at his open air studio if we were driving by and had time to visit him).

ACKNOWLEDMENTS: Thanks to Thomas Rothfus, executive director of the Gerace Research Centre, for allowing local artisans to bring their work to the field station. I am very grateful to the generosity of Kenny Whitfield, who was happy to be interviewed and answered my questions forthrightly. Great appreciation goes to my Chiboogamoo, who supports my interests in the arts no matter where we are, no matter how tight is his “scientific” schedule. Without his sincere cooperation and excellent photography skills this interview would not have taken place!

SHOWING KENNY WHITFIELD MY ARTWORK. I took a moment to show Kenny my drawings for the children's story, The (Mis)Adventures of Maria the Hutia, a conservation story about indigenous Bahamian animals. I asked him if he would consider carving a hutia. He said he could carve anything if he had a picture of it. Since hutias have not been sited on the island of San Salvador, I doubt that it will be profitable for him to carve one--unless our conservation story takes hold of people's imaginations and the hutia becomes a symbol of endangered animals (I think I will write about this idea in an upcoming blog!)

Happy New Year

2011-12-30T09:39:00.000-08:00

The time has come. We are just hours away from 2012. Time to wish all our friends the best for the coming year.

We hope you will find a place in your calendar to visit our websites and see what has been added in African Tribal Art, Native American jewelry, Native American Pueblo Pottery, Zuni fetish carvings and Arctic/Inuit art. We also have some "vintage" Australian Aboriginal art.

In any event, may your coming year be filled with the happiness of family, the prosperity of positive thoughts and the fascinations of tribal art

Susanne and William Waites

Here we go again - stolen art

2011-12-29T10:05:00.000-08:00

The Antique Tribal Art Dealers Association reports another theft of Native American art.
See more here -http://www.atada.org/theft.html#moses2-11
If these items cross your path from someone trying to resell them, they are stolen goods. Possession of stolen goods is a Federal offense. Please notify the authorities.

Aboriginals Gallery thanks you.

CYCLES OF NEW BEGINNINGS: ALWAYS WELCOMING THE GREAT MYSTERY

2011-12-27T07:17:00.000-08:00

LOOKING TO THE MYSTERY.

Hallelujah dear fellow PILGRIMS for the CYCLE! After the darkest day of the year, the light returns! One year ends, another one begins!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH welcomes the GREAT MYSTERY! 2012--What will it bring in JOY? DISCOVERY? AUTHENTICITY?

I renew my commitment to 15 minutes of creativity every day! I am the PILGRIM who does not judge. I do not proclaim GOOD. I do not proclaim BAD.

I PROCLAIM: JUST IS!

BEING PRESENT TO WHAT IS.

BEING JUST SO. BEING PRESENT. SEEING WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. ACCEPTING THE GIFTS FROM THE UNIVERSE.

ACCEPTING ME...
ACCEPTING YOU...

RECEIVING!
CREATING!
LOOKING!
and
GIVING!

Happy New Year PILGRIMS!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH. I continue to paint women in hijabs as these women are present in my life at the Language Institute at Georgia Tech, where I teach them English along with other international students. Since the middle eastern culture is relatively new to me and I am becoming acquainted with it, I allow myself to let these women from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Jordan, and other Muslim countries represent all that I am curious about--THE GREAT MYSTERY.

A Holiday Wish

2011-12-23T18:00:00.000-08:00

All of us at Aboriginals; Art of the First Person, and our websites: TribalWorks, Native-American-Jewelry, Native-PotteryLink and ZuniLink wish you a splendid Christmas, Hanukkah and New Year. May 2012 be even better than we wish for.

Another ATADA Theft Alert

2011-12-23T17:47:00.000-08:00

Antique Tribal Art Dealers Association has announced another threat alert.

This time it is for three items of Navajo jewelry stolen from a Santa Fe Gallery. View this alert at http://www.ATADA.com/theft.html#swift11.

If you encounter any of these items from resellers or at auctions, please report it ot the authorities. Possessing stolen property is a federal crime without a statute of limitation.

This message is brought to you by Native-American-Jewelry.org , a member of ATADA.

#REVERB11: JOY EQUALS LIVING WITH EASE OF A CATNAPPING

2011-12-19T09:42:00.000-08:00

JOYFUL EASE OF A CATNAPPING. Introducing new family member Tao. Thanks to Linda and her family who fostered him since he was five weeks old. At three months, you can see how Tao compares to a standard geological field scale with centimeters represented by the squares. So, he is approximately 20 centimeters long in this joyous and easeful pose. (photo by Chiboogamoo)

#REVERB11 (December 19) PROMPT: JOY. What does a joyful life look like for you? (Carolyn Rubenstein, from A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

RESTING and DREAMING equals JOY. Unselfconscious robust rest is a philosophy I practice so as to delve into my dreamy creative state frequently.

IMPLEMENTING LESSONS of EASE from FELINES. I suggest everyone live with cats and observe their frequent persistent napping. The feline form is languid, and the quadruped lolls as if not a muscle existed in their frames. We human bipeds, well, we might mimic this behavior in our daily endeavors and see how joyful life can be sans stress resulting from effort.

JOY RESULTING FROM LIVING WITH THE EASE OF A CATNAPPING (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

PILGRIMS! Hallelujah for wedding anniversaries and cats! There is great JOY to be found in both! Yesterday as Chiboogamoo's anniversary gift to me, we travelled 38 miles away from our Decatur home to lay "claim" to a young Siamese kitten in Peachtree City, Georgia, that I had seen advertised on Craigslist. This 3-month old feline had been in the care of a wondrous loving woman named Linda since he was 5 weeks old.

Deciding to LIVE LIFE WITH THE JOYFUL EASE OF A CATNAPPING was the impetus for beginning this blog in September 2009 (see At the Center of the Star, my first blog entry). The daily quest in my PILGRIMAGE to make art every day no matter what relies upon the practice of being "joyous" and working with "ease." Every day, I repeat the mantra, "Not good, not bad, just is."

The way to live a JOYOUS life is to CREATE. In the act of CREATION, we are BEING, MOVING, and DISCOVERING. Living life in this manner is challenging, hence the need to practice doing it with the languorous ease of a cat napping, suspending judgment and working from our dreams!

In November, I lost my boon feline companion and role model for easeful joyous living (see this blog and this blog). My home with Chiboogamoo became barren and lacking in JOY...until yesterday with the homecoming of Tao!

NEW ROLE MODEL FOR JOYFUL LIVING WITH THE EASE OF A CAT NAPPING. What a great anniversary gift! Tao is already exhibiting joyous behaviors. Thanks Chiboogamoo! (photo by Chiboogamoo)

DEDICATION. This blog entry is dedicated to Misha, beloved companion of 17 years. You are missed and will never be replaced. We honor you in the presence of our new feline, who had to be a Siamese because of what you taught us about the complete and utter devotion of this breed to its human companions.

FELINE ASSISTANT. On his first morning with us, our new kitty insisted on being at my Chiboogamoo's side as he worked on his next blog entry for his website, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast. (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

DAILY DRAWING DECEMBER 19, 2011

#REVERB11: ORDINARY SPARKLING MOMENTS--HOW EXTRAORDINARY!

2011-12-18T08:39:00.000-08:00

#REVERB11 (December 18) PROMPT: ORDINARY SPARKLING MOMENTS. Reflect on the ordinary moments that bring you joy. What moments would you like to relish in the coming year?

SOLITUDE IN THE WEE HOURS OF MORNING. Creeping out of bed to grind French roasted coffee beans, the release of their fragrance as boiling water seeps through the filter, lighting first a candle then nag champa or patchouli incense and having the soft candlight and fragrance create a haven around me as I draw from my subconscious seeing what surprise occurs before me on my paper, waiting for Chiboogamoo’s waking footsteps as he joins me. Repeat each day.

ACTIVITY ON TWO WHEELS. Mounting my bike, slipping my foot into the first pedal strap and feeling the force of my bike heave forward as I venture into the ride like an exuberant child. In and around my neighborhood, along the Silver Comet Trail or Mount Arabia bike trail, and the Georgia coast at Jekyll Island. Chiboogamoo is at my side!

BICYCLING WITH MY BABY! Jekyll Island, Georgia, November 2011

NEO-ICHNOLOGY. Observing animal behavior in soft earth surfaces and imagining what occurred without my presence. Feeling hardwired to interpret these animal tracks in my courtyard, along the route of my neighborhood jaunts, at Lullwater park on Emory’s campus or Sweetwater Creek, or the Georgia coast. Feeling a part of NATURE whilst in the company of my Chiboogamoo.

CREATIVITY OF OTHERS. Witnessing students and peers become exuberant as they experience a “burst” of discovery through creative acts of movement, laughter, writing, and visual art making. Being expanded by the power of EVERYONE’S imagination!

SO MANY ORDINARY SPARKLING MOMENTS:

Communicating successfully

Giving and receiving compliments

Walking, stretching—being in my body

Breathing deeply

Sipping good wine in the presence of good friends

Understanding something for the first time

Listening in a transformative way

Checking out movies and audio books from the local library

Meeting others for “coffee”

Suspending judgment

Being in awe of the GREAT MYSTERY

SOLITUDE IN THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING. I draw every day. My preference is to begin a new drawing every morning. To start a new drawing often means leaving unfinished ones behind--like this image from more than a year ago in September 2010. I allow myself to continue a painting to completion if that is what my heart is telling me. However, I also believe I will revisit images as the desire arises. During #REVERB11, I am experimenting with unfinished images and photoshop. How exquisitely fun!

For 2012, I want to observe and collect “ordinary sparkling moments” in a more conscious and thankful way!

DEDICATION. This blog entry celebrates my 7^th Anniversary of being married to my loving companion Chiboogamoo, best husband ever! We met 10 years ago via Match.com and I will be forever grateful that technology brought me this charming, fun, and intelligent friend and lover! He makes every ordinary moment—yes—extraordinary! Thank you honey!

CHIBOOGAMOO AND HALLELUJAH TRUTH 2011. Happy 7th Anniversary! This photograph was taken at the Douglas County art exhibit, where we both showed one of our respective artworks.

SPEAKING THE TRUTH CAN BE SUCH AN ORDINARY SPARKLING MOMENT! I encourage you to speak your own TRUTH now and in the coming days! You will experience unspeakable joy!

#REVERB11: HOLY TRINITY OF SHEER BLISS

2011-12-17T12:26:00.000-08:00

#REVERB11 (December 17) PROMPT: BLISS. What are three things that make you feel the most blissed out? What can you do in 2012 to invite more of that in your life?

#1 BLISS. I Am a Pilgrim.

#2 BLISS. We Are Not Alone.

#3 BLISS. LOVE.

INVITATION TO MORE BLISS IN 2012? BEING PATIENT AND TRUSTING JOYFULLY. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11: TRANSFORMATION

2011-12-16T06:21:00.000-08:00

TRANSFORMATION. (December 16, 2011) Art by Hallelujah Truth

TRANSFORMING. (During 2011)

AMMONITE BEGINNINGS. (January 2011)

#REVERB11 (December 16) PROMPT. TRANSITIONS. Over the past year have you experienced any major or minor life transitions? How has your life changed? (Tiffany Moore)

Hallelujah for JOURNEYS that bring TRANSFORMATION! During 2011, I have gone deeper and wider in the PURSUITS I love. I have gained a more confident and exuberant voice as a blogger! As an artist who draws daily, I have become surer of my line and the expression of my color. As a result of my persistent writing and drawing, I have exploded into the role of a MENTOR who supports others in their CREATIVE JOURNEYS!

THE CREATIVE WRITERS I MENTORED FALL 2011. It is a privilege to assist others in the ways they want to express their spirit. Thank you class!

TRANSFORMATION 2011. Read this series of three drawings from the ammonite origin (bottom) to the exuberant fleshy star creature (top)!

#REVERB11: COURAGE TO CHANGE RESULTS FROM CONFRONTING FEAR

2011-12-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

EASEFUL COURAGE (art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 (December 15) PROMPT: FEAR. The easiest way to overcome fear is to confront it. Rather than brainstorming reasons to avoid your “fear,” shift your attention to the reasons for confronting your fear. What fear would you like to overcome in 2012? (prompt from Carolyn Rubenstein, A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

COURAGEOUS CHANGE (CC) is the 2012 payoff for confronting my "fear of completion." I have written about courage before (here,and here). And as work on finishing "works in progress," I want even more than CC--I expect JOY! In fact, my blog motto is COURAGEOUS and SOULFUL JOY!

I am filled with the CURIOSITY of a CAT about my future TRANSFORMATION once I experience the satisfaction of completing a significant project. What happens when one spiritual art pilgrim (me) walks, runs, hops, and skips through the FIRE SCREEN OF FEAR?

I WOULD...

KICK THE GLUT OF...apprehensions, trepidations, and horrors that have accumulated around the status quo of my life. Finding new ways to "get things done" might occur.

CROSS THE FINISH LINE OF...the number one project in my life right now--the illustrations for the children's story about a small furry Bahamian animal called, The Misadventures of Maria the Hutia.

COUNT MY COUP...bravely assess all my works in progress and imagine how they might be brought into fruition.

JOURNEY INTO...a new project with my Chiboogamoo whether it be a children's book about the Georgia coast, a book about Paleontologist Barbie, or another collaborative artwork.

15 MINUTES OF CREATIVITY EVERY DAY. By speaking from your heart each day, it is possible to learn the actions you need to take to bring about positive change in your life. Being present to my creativity with such persistence brings me the courage I need to transform the status quo in my life.

In summation dear PILGRIMS, I anticipate that the act of facing my FEAR surrounding "project completion" will propel me into the next desired stage of my life's JOURNEY. By crossing the finish line, counting coup, and journeying into the unexplored outback with my Chiboogamoo, I will go DEEPER and WIDER in my PILGRIMAGE of BECOMING. To do so with the joyful ease of a cat napping is my heart's desire.

Wishing all of you fellow SOJOURNERS the fulfillment of your heart's desire in the confrontation of the FEARS that keep you from your BECOMING. That's Coffee With Hallelujah!

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE MARVELS AT LEARNING AND TEACHING IN THE FIELD: SAPELO ISLAND, GEORGIA, PROVIDES PERFECT LABORATORY FOR OBSERVING EXCITING GEOLOGICAL GEMS

2011-12-14T07:41:00.000-08:00

PALEO BARBIE MARVELS ON FERRY TO WINDOWLESS CLASSROOM. Sapelo Island does not have a bridge connecting it to the mainland part of Georgia, so Paleontologist Barbie had to take a ferry to get there, a ride that takes about 20-30 minutes. “What a tidal channel!” she exclaims as the ferry plows through the water. “I’ll bet there are some fascinating benthic organisms down there!” Paleontologist Barbie also marvels at the vastness of the salt marshes between Sapelo and the mainland part of Georgia. Georgia, despite its relatively small coastline, actually has about one-third of all salt marshes (by area) in the eastern U.S. (Photo and captions by Anthony Martin)

In early November, following the 2011 Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting in Las Vegas, Paleontologist Barbie headed to the Georgia coast with my brilliant husband and famous ichnologist Chiboogamoo, and 13 Emory University students enrolled in his Modern and Ancient Tropical Environments course. Their MISSION? To leap into the natural environment of Sapelo Island and MARVEL at what they could learn in this Georgia coast windowless classroom (see Chiboogamoo's blog)!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Paleontologist Barbie, what is this Modern and Ancient Tropical Environments course all about?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: It is probably the coolest course ever devised in the history of geology. Okay, maybe I am exaggerating a little bit, but it is a really neat course, because what it teaches the students is all about uniformitarianism.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Why take Emory students to Sapelo Island?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Sapelo is a great place to try out some of the major concepts in the course. We can look at modern environments and what plants, animals and sediments are in them and compare them to what gets preserved in the fossil record. Sapelo has all sorts of environments with a wide variety of plants and animals in those environments. So the students can see how these environments change and think about how they might look if they got fossilized.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE MARVELS AT GHOST CRAB TRACES. "I love ghost crab burrows," she exclaims as she examines the sand pile outside of a burrow made by a ghost crab (Ocypode quadrata). These crabs live in the dunes next to the beach and spend much of their time in burrows. Paleontologist Barbie notes that this means fossilized ghost-crab burrows can be used to indicate where coastal dunes were located in the geologic past. “Can’t wait to test this on the fossil record!” she says with much aplomb.(Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: In this case, is it important to know about the human history of the island?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Well, I am not so interested in humans, but the island does have an interesting history, especially related to science.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Can you elaborate?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Okay, if you insist. Sapelo Island is the home to the University of Georgia Marine Institute. This is often called the birthplace of modern ecology because of research that was started there in the 1950s. There are great names such as Eugene Odom and John and Mildred Teal (Portrait of an Island). Sapelo is also famous for studies of coastal geology, ichnology, and taphonomy, which started in the 1960s—I MARVEL at all the significant work that has been done here!

THE BEAUTY IN COASTAL DUNE CROSS-BEDDING! All paleontologists also have to understand what preserves fossils: sediments. “Hey, nice cross-bedding in that coastal sand dune!” Paleontologist Barbie says admiringly. She also notes that most of the dune is made of lighter-colored quartz sand (SiO2), whereas the darker layers are from heavy minerals. These minerals have iron and titanium in them, such as rutile (TiO2), which makes them denser than quartz. “Let’s see – quartz has a specific gravity of 2.65 g/cc, and rutile is 4.25 g/cc. Wow, so rutile is 63% denser!” she says, once again demonstrating her mental acuity for mathematics. (Photos and captions by Anthony Martin)

ARTISTRY ASSISTS SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION IN THE WINDOWLESS CLASSROOM--HOW MARVELOUS! Because Paleontologist Barbie is both an artist and a scientist, she uses these dual abilities to illustrate some basic principles in ichnology. Here she has taken advantage of the beach sand to draw a cross-sectional diagram of a typical ghost-shrimp burrow system. Here, she is seated near what she depicted as the top of the burrow, which has knobby pellets in its wall. “If this were fossilized, paleontologists would call it Ophiomorpha!” she says confidently, referring to the proper name of a trace fossil matching this modern burrow. (Photo and captions by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Since I accompanied you and my husband Chiboogamoo on this outdoor classroom experience, I know that the first day, you take the “nature walk” starting from the University of Georgia Marine Institute through the maritime forest and to the beach. Why?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: We want the students to see the incredible variety of environments that they can experience in a very short distance. But the walk also teaches them how to observe what is in those environments. I love being outside and I think the students do too, but they don’t go out often enough, especially to observe and MARVEL at nature.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Do geologists or paleontologists need to be attentive to the plants as they go out on “nature walks” like these?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Oh yes! I love plants! You have probably seen pictures of me posing with a variety of flora. Plants are very important for forming the foundation of any ecosystem and picking out ecotones. You can’t have any ecosystems without plants—well, you can, but they aren’t very interesting ecosystems to me (giggles).

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE MARVELS AT SEA OATS. As the sun sets over Sapelo, Paleontologist Barbie goes to the coastal dunes to gaze onto the intertidal environments, think about the preservation of body and trace fossils, and admire the sea oats (Uniola paniculata), which through its roots holds the dunes in place. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth, caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: What is an ecotone? Why do we need to pick them out?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I know when you say “ecotone” people think it is some environmentally correct ringtone on your phone (laughs at her own joke). But it is actually the transition between one ecosystem and another—like the area between a maritime forest and a marsh. On Sapelo, red cedars can tell you exactly where an ecotone is located between a forest and a salt marsh. We point the red cedars out to students, and then they can spot the ecotones for themselves.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Were there any joyous “finds” in the maritime forest, marsh, back dune area, and shore during your nature walk? What made you stop to MARVEL?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Everything was fantastically beautiful, and we saw many interesting things in all of the environments, which caused us to MARVEL. But one of the biggest highlights for the students was for them to watch dolphins hunting fish in one of the tidal creeks.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Can you describe this MARVEL?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: It was so MARVELOUS! The dolphins were acting like cowboys herding fish near the banks of the tidal creeks so that they could catch them in the shallow water. There was a lot of splashing and excitement. Both of my colleagues Dr. Henderson and your Chiboogamoo, said they had never see that behavior before. So the students knew they were witnessing something really special. I also wondered how that behavior might get preserved in the fossil record!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: At the end of the day’s lengthy nature walk, you gathered everyone together in the gazebo looking over the shore. The sun was setting and everything looked rosy. You lead the group in a “gratitude” or “MARVEL” circle. What was that about?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Well, I think we scientists need to stop and be really thankful for all of the MARVELOUS things out there for us to learn. And thank each other for helping one another learn. Our science wouldn’t go very far if we didn’t have special places like Sapelo and inquisitive people who come to learn and share all that this island has to offer.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: I acknowledge you for your love and MARVEL of scientific exploration and collaboration!

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Thank you! I want people to know that scientists are much more cooperative than they are competitive. I like being a cheerleader for science! (link)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Okay, so after the first day of MARVELOUS fieldwork with Emory students, what could you observe about them and their progress of being in an outdoor classroom?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Well not to pat myself on my back too much, but I think they really enjoyed seeing me get down and dirty, so to speak. I like being a role model and especially showing the female students that I am not afraid to get my hair messed up when I go out in the field! Some of the guys could learn that too. That it’s okay to “get into” the environments to learn and MARVEL about them.

BIOLOGY IMITATING ART! Lo and behold, Paleontologist Barbie discovers an exposed ghost-shrimp burrow with exactly the same knobby-pelleted wall she had drawn earlier in the sand. “It’s almost as if science has predictive abilities through the use of evidence-based reasoning!”, she giggles. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Weekend fieldwork doesn’t permit sleeping in, does it? What time on Sunday morning were you out in the field and why?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: We were out in the field by 8:30 am, which is the best time to see tracks or animal behavior going on in the forests of Sapelo Island. So we went to a freshwater pond in the forest first thing on Sunday morning hoping to see some alligators or some other animal activity around it.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: What did you find there to MARVEL?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: We were surprised not to see any alligators, but there were lots of tracks from feral cows, deer, raccoons, vultures and even insects. The most MARVELOUS of all, we found trace fossils from a Pleistocene formation that is exposed in that pond.

MARVELING AT UNIFORMITARIANISM! Time to apply some of these modern examples to the fossil record on Sapelo! Sure enough, once Paleontologist Barbie takes a look at a Pleistocene formation on the west side of the island – formed about 40,000 years ago – she instantly spots a fossil ghost-shrimp burrow. “Why, it’s Ophiomorpha!” she shouts triumphantly. “Gee, where have I heard that word before?” she asks playfully. (Photos and captions by Anthony Martin)

OPHIOMORPHA--HOW MARVELOUS! Paleontologist Barbie proudly shows off the portion of the fossil burrow she found. Is there any paleontologist who can match her observational skills? I don’t think so, but at least we can all aspire to be more like her.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Why would that be particularly interesting to students in this Modern and Ancient Tropical Environments class?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: These traces fossils were made by ghost shrimp living in shallow-marine environments, but there we were in a forest at a freshwater pond. So the students really got a lesson in how trace fossils can show you how environments have changed. Where they were standing at the freshwater pond used to be a seashore about 40,000 years ago!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: How did the students respond to these fossils?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Let’s just say my enthusiasm was contagious! Because I MARVELLED at these humble, crumbly ghost shrimp fossils, they MARVELLED too! They started looking for them like it was a treasure hunt. But once they found them, they realized that some of these trace fossils were pretty fragile—which was an excellent lesson for teaching them that not all fossils are made of hard rock.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: A few words about the shell ring. What are the MARVELOUS “must-knows”?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Well, the shell ring is this big circular pile of shells made about 4,000 years ago by Native Americans, who lived on the island. Nobody knows exactly what its purpose might have been. It has a lot old shells, which I found interesting.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Why?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: The shells were from oysters and other molluscans that lived in the marine environments around there. But because the shells are now in a terrestrial environment, it shows you how the people moved them and concentrated them in the area. Now that is taphonomy!

MERCENARIA MERCENARIA--MARVELOUS! Paleontologist Barbie visits one of the oldest Native American shellrings in the eastern U.S., exposed on the north end of Sapelo. This shellring is composed mostly of oyster shells, but includes some other molluscan shells, and is more than 4,000 years old. “Wow, look – it’s Mercenaria mercenaria, otherwise known as the Southern quahog!” she exclaims excitedly. “So this one is on it’s way to being a fossil,” she says, acknowledging that this specimen is a little too young to be considered as a real fossil by paleontologists. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth, caption by Anthony Martin)

LEAVING ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCUSSIONS BEHIND. Finally, Paleontologist Barbie can’t take it any more, and fearing that people might mistake her for an archaeologist (someone who studies human artifacts), she flees the shellring. “I like people, but I LOVE old molluscans!” she proclaims. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth, caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: And the Chocolate Plantation? I know that studying human history doesn’t excite you as much as natural history.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Well yes, (audible yawn). But I guess all learning is good. What was MARVELOUS about the plantation is how all of the buildings there were probably made out of the 4,000 year-old shells that came out of the shell ring. I guess you can say they were recycling long before we were (laughing)! I like that—“reduce, reuse, recycle” is what I always say!

OOOOOOOKKKKAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY. Not having much choice, though, Paleontologist Barbie begrudgingly goes along with seeing some 19^th century plantation ruins. These ruins are made of tabby, a combination of shells (mostly oysters) and lime mortar. Many of the shells in these buildings were made of the same 4,000 year-old shells from the shellring, as the people dug into it for their building materials. “I guess this counts as taphonomy,” she sighs, lamenting the lack of older body fossils for her to study here. (Photos and captions by Anthony Martin)

PALEONTOLOGIST KNOWS WHAT SHE WANTS AND SHE DOES IT! “That’s it, I’m out of here!” she says, again abandoning something that relates more to recent human history than paleontology. Here she easily slides off a piece of a tabby ruin, a feat most people can only dream of doing.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: I know you love and MARVEL at Cabretta Beach. Is it possible to summarize why?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Yes. Just imagine lots and lots of sand at low tide filled with marine animals and their traces. Then think of a relict marsh, 500 years old, that is exposed on part of the beach giving everybody a glimpse of how fossils are preserved. Also, think of how as sea level goes up, forests next to the beach go bye-bye. Cabretta Beach has a lot of dead trees along its shoreline showing where the forest used to be. Even better? There are these sedimentary deposits called washover fans. These are caused by storms like hurricanes, which take the sand from the beach and wash them over into the nearby salt marshes. Sometimes, these washover fans get preserved in the geologic record.

MARVELOUS MUSSELS IN A RELICT MARSH! One of the best features of Sapelo Island is a relict marsh, which is what’s left of a salt marsh from 500 years ago. This relict marsh provides a way to see how fossils get preserved in the geologic record, such as these ribbed mussels (Guekensia demissa). “Amazing, they’re in situ, sensu stricto, per se!” she says, giving a hint of her linguistic dexterity. (Photos and captions by Anthony Martin)

ASTUTE ASCERTATIONS. A cross-sectional view of this relict marsh allows for a view of burrows made by animals that lived in the marsh 500 years ago. “Those look a lot like fiddler crab burrows to me,” she astutely ascertains. Of course, she’s right. Not much gets past her, ichnologically or taphonomically speaking.

OBSERVATIONS OF SUPERB SPARTINA. Stubs of smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) are still in the relict marsh. Although these have definitely lost their original greenish color, Paleontologist Barbie is interested in seeing how these plants might be preserved in the fossil record. “No carbonization yet!” she notes, referring to how fossil plants are often preserved as mere carbon films.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: What are essential field practices that every environmental studies student or beach enthusiast should observe?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Number one is being present. Make sure you are right there in the environment. I know—some people think that I know all too well what it's like to stand still and not think of anything, but they are wrong! It is very important to be noticing what is right there and to observe and MARVEL. Like the ocean breeze on your face, the sound of the waves, the color of the sea oats and Spartina, and the organic smells from the salt marsh!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Yes Paleontologist Barbie! We all need to MARVEL at what surrounds us! One big enthusiastic MARVEL! On a more practical matter, after “being present and MARVELING,” what advice do you have about fieldwork being done in the windowless classroom on the beach?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: As you might have noticed, I am never in the field without my hat! Sure it looks good, but it also serves a purpose! It keeps the sun off my head, keeps most of my hair dry when it rains, and stops insects from biting my scalp. I don’t like that at all, and it has happened far too often—even with the hat!

CAN YOU SAY TILLANDSIA USNEOIDES? Paleontologist Barbie finds some solace from her archaeologically induced trauma through spending some time in the maritime forest of Sapleo, where the branches of majestic live oats (Quercus virginiana), laden with Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides), drape over the road. “What from this terrestrial ecosystem would get preserved in the geologic record of a barrier island?” she muses. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Can you connect this field experience on Sapelo Island off the Georgia coast with the upcoming 10-day trip to the Bahamian Out Island of San Salvador?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Sure. This field trip gets the students ready for the rough and rugged work we will do on San Salvador. The big difference is we will be swimming a lot on San Salvador, and we didn’t do any swimming on Sapelo. But this trip still got them ready to think about how each day is going to be a MARVELOUS adventure when they go outside—to the windowless classroom in the Bahamas.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: A word about food. What is the perfect “field” lunch for any geology trip?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches—no doubt about it! You can put it in your field pack first thing in the morning, carry it around all day, and it will stay perfectly delicious whenever you eat it! And it provides a wallop of energy! One sandwich is a feast, powering you to do field work the rest of the day.

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: On Sapelo Island, you love to get everybody to George and Lulu’s for a low country boil. What is that all about?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: George and Lulu Walker live in the Hog Hammock community on Sapelo Island, and the food they prepare comes out of a long tradition of African-American culture on the Georgia coast. It’s a treat, and it’s an educational experience. I also think that having a good meal at the end of a field day is a MARVELOUS way to relax and talk about what everybody learned during the day.

LEAVING SAPELO ISLAND STILL MARVELING! Paleontologist Barbie bids farewell to Sapelo looking longingly at the intertidal environments from the ferry. “I’ll be back!” she says with a vaguely Austrian accent, causing her to laugh at her own joke. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH TRUTH: Describe your feelings at the end of the field trip as the Sapelo ferry is cruising through the marsh headed to Darien.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I was a little sad and some people might even say, “wistful.” But I just know somehow, “I’ll be back.” It’s ALL
MARVELOUS!

WINDOWLESS CLASSROOM. Paleontologist Barbie and Chiboogamoo lecture students about the relict marsh on Sapelo Island. (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Thanks to The Marley in Decatur, Georgia, that serves Chiboogamoo and me (Hallelujah Truth) beers on Tuesday nights while we collaborate on these PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE interviews. I joyfully acknowledge my brilliant husband Chiboogamoo for his good cheer, knowledge of the Georgia coast, and appreciation of female paleontologists. Gratitude also goes to Dr. Stephen Henderson, Chiboogamoo’s trusted colleague, and his wife and daughter, as well as the enthusiastic troupe of Emory students enrolled in the Modern and Ancient Tropical Environments course, who accompanied us to Sapelo Island. Finally, thanks to the MARVELOUS island of Sapleo, which provides us with such a wonderful outdoor classroom setting.

#REVERB11 (December 14, 2011) PROMPT: MARVEL.

THE MARVELOUS WINDOWLESS CLASSROOM--SAPELO ISLAND, GEORGIA (photo taken by Hallelujah Truth) The students surprised us when they burst in to song, "I'm a Barbie Girl." Paleontologist Barbie laughed. She likes to see other Barbies having fun--but it's just not her style to be driven around by some guy. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE, CHIBOOGAMOO, AND HALLELUJAH TRUTH. Sapleo Island, Georgia, November 2011 (photo taken by Kitty Henderson)

For your MARVELING pleasure, observe previous Hallelujah Truth Interviews with Paleontologist Barbie:

Paleontologist Barbie Pursues Professional Development at 2011 Society of Vertebrate Paleontologist (SVP) Meeting in Las Vegas, Utah, USA

Paleontologist Barbie's Passion for Modern and Ancient Traces
Paleontologist Barbie goes to St. Catherines Island to examine reptile burrows.

Paleontologist Barbie's Gleeful Discussion of Evolution, Darwin, and Science-Related Art
Paleontologist Barbie explains her understanding of evolution by looking at the "Selections" art exhibit at Fernbank Museum of Natural History in Atlanta, Georgia. Specifically, she provides her interpretation of the importance of art done by Chiboogamoo and Hallelujah Truth.

Paleontologist Barbie's Raison D'etre: Scientific Investigation and a Passion for Art!
This is the first interview with Paleontologist Barbie! It is a must read!

#REVERB11: PILGRIM SCHOOL 2011--LOVE AND REVERENCE FOR ALL

2011-12-13T08:14:00.000-08:00

LOVE OF REVERENCE FOR ALL (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 (December 13) PROMPT: Love. What are the things (or people or animals) in this world you love the most? (Carolyn Rubenstein, A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

Hallelujah for LOVE! And Hallelujah for the entire spectrum of feelings that radiate forward and backward in a cyclone around the topic of LOVE. In 2011, I have fallen most in LOVE with REVERENCE. I am in AWE of YOU and YOU and THAT, and ME! I honor the whole shebang!

Sometimes during the past year, I have found it difficult to LOVE the DESPAIR that beckons me from the opposite end of rainbows and fireworks of REVERENCE. But being authentically ME means accepting and honoring the BLAHS with LOVE.

DESPAIR. Being on a pilgrimage in search of joy and love, despair is sometimes confronted. Blah!

When, I feel this way, I LOVE listening to the song, The Way, on my most favorite album Donovan Sutras. Here are the lyrics:

The Way

I stay behind I walk ahead
Apart yet a part of everything
Nothing done and all is well
Never used yet always full

Out of nothing comes the one
Out of one comes the two
Out of two comes three
Out of three comes all things

The more it moves the more it yields
The valley spirit never dies
The root of heaven and earth
Empty now of everything

From above it is not bright
From below it is not dark
You cannot see when it began
Follow it there is no end

It has no aim it is so small
It has no name it is so great
It is not seen it is not heard
Nothing done or left undone

The weak can overcome the strong
The supple overcomes the stiff
Everyone knows this well
Yet so few can practice it

Out of nothing comes the one
Out of one comes the two
Out of two comes three
Out of three comes all things

OUT OF NOTHING COMES THE ONE

Will it get there in time?

2011-12-12T09:09:00.000-08:00

That's a question we get a lot of at this time of year.

Folks buying gifts on line want some assurance that their purchase will arrive before Christmas.

Here are some guidelines.

USPS Priority gets delivered in 2 to 3 days. If you are shipping from one coast to the other, count on three days. USPS has announced that the last day for shipping to arrive pre-Christmas is December 21. If you want to track your shipment, there is a very small surcharge for a tracking number. Insurance also can be purchased, depending n the value of the package. You still might want to purchase a tracking number, because it one is not included with insurance.

UPS promises deliver in 5 to 7 days. UPS is more expensive but often a better service large or heavy packages.

And, of course, there always is FedEx. FedEx will deliver overnight. But you will pay for it.

#REVERB11: MISTAKE--TYRANNY OF MY SOUL

2011-12-12T06:44:00.000-08:00

MISTAKE 2011: ONGOING TYRANNY OF MY SOUL. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 (December 11) PROMPT: Mistakes. It's easy to focus on our mistakes--to reflect with 20/20 hindsight and berate ourselves for what went wrong. Bring your awareness to a mistake you've made over the past year. Unveil one positive lesson from that mistake. How can you actively use this lesson moving forward? (Tiffany Moore at Live Happy)

AWARENESS IN A WAY OF BEING. SURRENDERING TO BEING

As a Spiritual Art Pilgrim, I am on a SOUL JOURNEY. On this part of my SOJOURN ending in 2011, I have continued to cycle through a repeated behavior of mistake, realization, and positive resolution:

1. ONGOING TYRANNY OF MY SOUL.

I Judge myself, my art, and others harshly. The absolute power of my critical mind destroys the fruits of my SOUL. Suffering by all around ensues.

2. AWARENESS IN A WAY OF BEING.

After the cataclysmic destruction generated by absolute judgment, I return to the center of my HEART and SOUL. I allow myself to BE JOYFUL and I surrender to BEINGNESS. All around await.

3. JUBILATION IN BEINGNESS.

Time stops in this place centered in the SOUL. From this SOUL place all things are restored. Mirthful growth occurs. All around rejoice.

JUBILATION IN BEINGNESS. CELEBRATING THE UNKNOWN.

2011 AD INFINITUM

Acknowledgments: These images that I have drawn of Snowpeople resulted from last night's holiday outing to go see the Christmas lights in our local Atlanta neighborhoods. Thanks to Jacq Marie, Lesly, Matt, and my Chiboogamoo! Although there were engaging decorations of Santa, polar bears, penguins, reindeer, snow globes, the yard that captivated my imagination was the one with a large frightening tyrannical snowman towering over troops of about 30 small subjugated snow people in front of it. OH MY!

#REVERB11: ANTICIPATION--LOOKING FORWARD TO REVOLUTION OF THE SOUL

2011-12-11T14:47:00.000-08:00

ANTICIPATION FOR 2012: REBIRTH, RENEWAL, REVOLUTION OF THE SOUL. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 PROMPT (December 11): What is the one thing you are most looking forward to in 2012? (Prompt from Carolyn Rubenstein on A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

PREGNANT

NO MORE

NO LESS

HALLELUJAH TRUTH!

REVERB11: THE SOUL FOOD OF A CREATIVITY EVANGELICAL—GOING DEEPER AND WIDER AND SHARING THE PROCESS

2011-12-10T05:59:00.000-08:00

THE UNIVERSE AM I. Soul Food is BEING here with YOU. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

REVERB#11 PROMPT(December 10): SOUL FOOD. How do you nourish your soul? What activities are essential nutrients for your soul’s well-being? (Carolyn Rubenstein’s blog, A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

It is early morning--6:00 am on Saturday, December 10--and I am feasting on my SOUL FOOD. Surrounded by my watercolor paints and paper, micron-pens, a light wave of patchouli incense flows over me, as Donovan croons his sutras on the Bose. The red Christmas lights warm this cold winter morning as Donovan repeats the words NIRVANA, NIRVANA, NIRVANA. He sings, “with no obstacles and no fear liberates herself from illusion, now to realize perfect NIRVANA. This is a typical “awakening” for me at the table of my SOUL FOOD. I am comforted by the fact that Chiboogamoo is up in bed drinking his Gingko tea and reading the latest New Yorker.

At the table of my SOUL FOOD, I am fed by the GREAT MYSTERY! I invite the UNKNOWN to visit me through my creativity. Recently, I began developing a mission statement for this SOUL BLOG of mine. In my JOURNEY, I look for ways to “clarify” my intentions around my creativity. Why do I have a presence in the blogging community? What is the purpose of Coffee With Hallelujah? This is what I have come up with so far:

My mission is to be a joyful pilgrim in awe of the great spirit as I go deeper and wider in my journey. I connect and share with souls across generations who seek well-being and wisdom through playful artistic and scientific expression.

COSMOS EYES. I am fed by CREATIVITY. I believe we SEE the TRUTH through our understanding of the COSMOS. ART EQUALS SOUL. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

Like any food, SOUL FOOD can be shared. Sharing ways to go deeper into one’s own creativity FEEDS me (I have been called a creativity evangelical)! As soon as I had cultivated this mission statement for my creativity blog, I brought the same activity to my creative writing class at the Georgia Tech Language Institute. What a glorious way to enact my mission statement of “sharing with souls across generations”! How thrilling it was to see my students write on the top of a blank sheet of paper: WHAT IS MY TRUE PURPOSE OF LIFE? (activity adapted from Steve Pavlina). I felt their energy consolidate. They hunkered down and became committed to penning their visions of self. Here are two results from this class activity:

A Venezuelan student, Vanessa, on her blog, Embracing My Inner Jackson Pollock, developed this mission statement:

No space is left unpainted in the unstoppable and dramatic representation of the subconscious. An 18-year-old naturally seeking the creation of a complete atmosphere through strong and rapid brush movements with no frame limiting the canvas of life. Innovation, depth, passion…Experiencing chaos within order.

Another student from Saudi Arabia, Fahad, wrote on his blog, Hope in the Dark Desert: I am the hope in the dark desert. I never give up. I always believe in God. I always believe in myself. I always know I WILL DO IT, but I just don’t know when. His mission statement:

I am here to expose myself. I am here to learn. I am here to think. I am here to thank. I am here to make mistakes. I am here to learn from my mistakes.

Universe Am I. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

Shine ye spinning orbs of light

Shine ye crystal starts so bright

All ye harmonized by love

Set in motion, moved by love

Homo sapien am I no more

Beyond Beyond I soar the universe am I

From Donovan Sutras, Universe Am I

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! I will continue to share my SOUL FOOD with you and I ask that you share your SOUL FOOD with me. Let's feast together at the table of LIFE!

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Thank you Gwen Bell for the 3-month course, Align Your Website, and for being true to yourself and calling. I am so glad to have met you online last year during #REVERB10. Great appreciation to Donovan for his beautiful album, Donovan Sutras, which I have been in love with since the late 1990’s when I discovered it. Your lyrical voice and words have melted into my life. Creativity Writing Students thank you for your willingness to explore the mystery of yourselves and to "try on" something new. As always, thanks Chiboogamoo!

SOUL FOOD. Coffee with Hallelujah (photo by Chiboogamoo)

#REVERB11: SUPERHERO PILGRIM POWERS--WISDOM, COMMUNICATION, CONNECTION

2011-12-09T05:48:00.000-08:00

SUPER HERO HALLELUJAH. Dear Fellow Pilgrim, I am ALL that you see in the above image. Although you can spot Hallelujah in the red and brown skirt and polka-dotted shirt, I am also Wandjina, and the Green Mother. I am the dinosaurs, wallaby, and flowers. I am the explosion of dots. This image is what being a SUPER HERO is all about! (art by Hallelujah Truth see original post)

#REVERB11 (December 9) PROMPT: SUPERHERO. If you had super powers what would they be? (from Deborah Rubenstein)

Hallelujah is giggling because her Chiboogamoo told her that his SUPER POWERS would be to please me! Although there is some irony in his reply, I think he means it! Then my Chiboogamoo tells me that I already have many SUPER POWERS but would leave me to contemplate them by myself. As a world famous paleontologist, he is leaving early this morning to accompany an Emory University graduate student to an elementary school in Chamblee, Georgia, to teach four consecutive science classes comprised of twelve year olds about fossils and fossilization--now that's SUPER POWER!

Enough hemming and hawing! In the world of pretend and make believe, in the world of #REVERB11, my SUPER POWERS are trifold! (threesomes are so magical):

WISDOM: As a PILGRIM, I seek KNOWLEDGE of the UNIVERSE and how to use what I know. As a SUPER HERO PILGRIM, I already possess this deep understanding of LIFE. This understanding brings me PEACE.

COMMUNICATION: PILGRIM Hallelujah joyfully creates like a catnapping, easing her way into visual arts and blogistry, "hoping" to express her TRUTH. SUPER HERO Hallelujah spirals wildly like a whirling dervish manifesting WISDOM in a dazzling array of visual art, words, and teaching sizzling like sparklers! SssHHeeeEEsssZAAAaaammmmm!!!POP!!!OOOOhhhhhh!!! SUCCESS and PEACE!

CONNECTION: With the upmost honesty, as PILGRIM Hallelujah, I soul blog out of a longing to "connect" with like-minded souls. Some times my JOURNEY seems lonely, and--yes--often misunderstanding occurs, resulting in miscommunication and disconnection. Then ta-da! SUPER HERO Hallelujah, who is wise and a master communicator, connects with ALL PILGRIMS, like-and-unlike minded, resulting in

PEACE!

These triumvirate powers bring PEACE to me and to you! That's Coffee With Hallelujah. Let me know if I have communicated successfully with you. How have I connected with what's important in your heart? Share your SUPER POWERS with me by soul blogging!

FALLING IN LOVE WITH FELLOW REVERBERS! Take a look at these blogs--they pulled me in and made me feel good!

I Saw You Dancing, by Kat in Melbourne, Australia

Deborah Everton, her mandalas are so beautiful!

#REVERB11: LIMITS! HALLELUJAH FOR LEARNING HOW TO BE THE HONEY BADGER OF CREATIVITY!

2011-12-08T04:54:00.000-08:00

LIMITS TO CREATIVITY? Observe the product resulting from collaboration with my beloved ichnologist husband Chiboogamoo! Creating a work of art based on a scientific idea is tricky business especially when done with one's spouse! This triptych, Holy Trinity of Ichnology, seriously challenged my sense of creative self! (A future blog will discuss the development of our collaborative relationship!)

#REVERB11 PROMPT (December 8): LIMITS: We often learn about our limits the hard way. Were there any limits you realized this past year? Alternately, what self-imposed limits were you able to move beyond this year? (From Carolyn Rubenstein's blog: A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

Pilgrims! When Hallelujah meets limitations, boundaries, restrictions, dead ends, parameters, detours, cut-offs, she REJOICES! Yes, of course, the hallelujahs are preambled by squeaks and squeals like a delicate mouse finding herself trapped in a laboratory maze without potential rewards of moist crumbly treats. Then I summon the honey badger of CREATIVITY!

In 2011, I traveled distances on my CREATIVE PATH, becoming a co-leader for the Atlanta Artist Conference Network, collaborating with Chiboogamoo for an art exhibit at Fernbank Museum of Natural History, leading a blogging workshop for a women's writing conference, and teaching three different English courses to international visiting scholars at the Language Institute of Georgia Tech.

LIMITS TO MARIA THE HUTIA?: In the middle of two adult Bahamian hutias is Maria, the young hutia who inadvertently gets tossed out at sea and journeys far away from home. This image is the initial line drawing done in a size 5 micron pen before thickening lines with india ink and larger sized microns. Here Maria has succeeded in returning home to her parents. I feel such a parallel in my life with Maria the Hutia and Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz--both stories of leaving home and returning to it. I love journey stories. During my own journey as an artist, I have confronted my "limitations" as a drawer. So I tell myself. Is this perception of my limitations TRUTH or ILLUSION? (art by Hallelujah Truth)

In addition to these CREATIVE high roads, which clearly invited huge IMAGINATIVE energy, I completed 90 percent of the illustrations for the children's book, The Misadventures of Maria the Hutia, and took on the coordination of getting this wonderful environmental conservation story by Ronald Shaklee into book form (publication to occur in 2012).

All of the above projects were done in the LIFE of my CREATIVE MIND while drawing daily, teaching, blogging, and participating in the group Spiritual Art Pilgrims. Did I CONFRONT LIMITS? YESSSSSSSSSSSS! As I crashed into walls, I unwillingly dueled with my numerous saboteurs (see how I defined saboteurs in a #REVERB10 blog), which caused me to practice saying the honey badge mantra "honey badger don't care--nothing can stop the honey badger"!

As 2011 comes to a close, I cannot proclaim that I "removed" any limits. What is the opposite of STOPPING? I can own that I "did the work." I kept GOING. I kept JOURNEYING because of my fascination with the UNKNOWN. In 2012, I have a heaping desire to become even more of the honey badger of CREATIVITY.

THE LIMITS OF CONFRONTING SABOTEURS. 2011 has left me exhausted, exasperated, satisfied, tried and true, honey badger initiated, and ready to see what is next. This water color that I did in collaboration with Chiboogamoo challenged me all the way to its completion. I absolutely adored my husband's drawing of "imagined traces once sea level changes," which he enlarged so I could paint. Painting such a large piece of paper without a visual plan felt like it veered on disaster. Following my intuition over such an extended project took all of my guts. The project was humbling. But the honey badger "don't care" because there is always the next creative project looming! (photo by Chiboogamoo at Fernbank Museum of Natural History)

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! Soul Blog with me and tell me about your CREATIVE JOURNEY and the limitations you have confronted, survived, rejoiced in and removed! What are you the honey badger of?

MOVING BEYOND LIMITS. I gasped with joy when I saw children stop to look at my painting, Mother Earth, Mother Dinosaur. It was the first time I had seen children responding to my art! I love it that the little boy is scratching his head in thought! Look how one of the little girls slid to her knees to peer into my world of burrowing dinosaurs! It felt as if an old boundary had been eliminated! Children as viewers of my images! Wa Hoo!

Acknowledgments: Thank you Chiboogamoo for making the honey badger so present in my life! You are my little honey badger!

#REVERB11: GIVING--WHAT IS YOUR GIFT OF BEINGNESS? CREATIVE TRUTH IS MINE!

2011-12-07T07:47:00.000-08:00

CELEBRATION OF SUMMER. The true gift in life is to find YOURSELF and give THAT to others. Be sure to find kind friends who give back THEMSELVES. (Art by Hallelujah Truth, aka RuthTruth. Photography of artwork by Ty Butler of Tylight.

#REVERB11 PROMPT (December 7): "The purpose of life is to discover your gift. The meaning of life is to give your gift away." (David Viscott) What is your gift to give?(prompts by Carolyn Rubenstein)

Hallelujah for GIVING, BENEFICENCE, and GENEROSITY--knowing who you ARE and what your BEING bestows on those around you! I will be forever grateful to Father Keohane, a Catholic priest who taught art and drama at Pacelli High School in Columbus, Georgia, who helped me "discover" my GIFT. When I returned to visit this kind and creative man after I graduated from Pepperdine University in Malibu, Californina, with a bachelor's of art in Humanities, I was careening here and there looking for my life's purpose. What is one supposed to do with a dose of philosophy, literature, art history, and drama? I felt lost!

Father Keohane had charmed me with his innovative solutions to stage props, costumes, and make up while directing me in dramatic productions. He was forever cheery and loved his life of artistry and worship. He told me that he had succeeded in combining both his loves (ART and GOD) for his work life. His directive for me?

"SEEK THE TRUTH," he said passionately, tapping his heart just below the white-collared neck of his black priest uniform. "IF YOU ARE SEEKING THE TRUTH, YOU WILL NEVER BE LOST."

I left Father Keohane satisfied. He had GIFTED me with his own TRUTH. As the years past, the work I did for a living became less important than my search for the TRUTH. In my early thirties, I began signing my paintings RUTHTRUTH. As a self-taught artist, I was dedicated to pursuing the TRUTH of my psyche, painting snakes, floating figures, turtles, scary faces, and mythical figures from my nightly dreams. On each artwork, I painted RUTHTRUTH in large important letters. Protective of my artistic process, I didn't show my work publically for 10 years.

However, friends fell in love with my artistic handle: RUTHTRUTH. They called my paintings COURAGEOUS. I began to notice a longing in my friends' eyes. They too wanted to express their TRUTH. Their hunger to speak out from a deeper place taught me that my CREATIVE ACTS were ACTS of BRAVERY. This BRAVERY to SEEK, BE, and CREATE in the name of my own TRUTH is my GIFT to others.

Father Keohane's passionate words, "SEEK THE TRUTH" have manifested in my CREATIVE LIFE. By BEING my authentic self, I AM present to others. I hear their longings to BE themselves and consider it my life's work and GIFT to support other people in their JOURNEYS of BECOMING through acts of creativity! The ACT is so much more important than the ART!

That's Coffee with Hallelujah. Soul Blog with me and tell me what YOUR GIFT to OTHERS is. Tell me in what way I have given something to you. I would really appreciate that!

DAILY PRACTICE. Pilgrims! I find it fun to present to you an unfinished drawing. Seeking the TRUTH. Ever BECOMING. Giving what I know. Receiving what is given! Hallelujah for the Creative Practice!

#REVERB11: THE AUTHENTICITY OF CREATING LIFE WITH THE JOYFUL EASE OF A CATNAPPING

2011-12-06T06:20:00.000-08:00

JOYFUL EASE OF REPETITION. By suspending judgment and being present to myself, I draw without expectations. I repeat key images joyfully welcoming them as they appear in my morning drawings. (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 PROMPT (December 6, Carolyn Rubenstein, EASE: What can you do to add ease to 2012?

Hallelujah for JOYFUL EASE! Picture a beloved feline languorously stretching its furry cat body enveloped by a soft cushion basking in the sun. In the same way, I propose to LIVE in 2012! I have written before about LIVING and CREATING with the JOYFUL EASE of a catnapping (see this blog and this blog written for REVERB10).

How can I easefully add to such an amazing list that encapsulates the very ESSENCE of MY SOUL and INTENTIONAL LIVING?

1. Do NOT judge.
2. LAUGH.
3. CREATE every day.
4. RECEIVE love and appreciation.
5. LISTEN (with my physical ears and whole BEING).
6. Replace the word "work" with "FUN."
7. Experience PLEASURE regularly.
8. Use the expression, "I WANT" courageously.
9. Embrace LOVE!
10. BE PRESENT!

Taking a BIG BREATH, I release my answer to the question of adding more EASE to LIVING in 2012.

BEing AUTHENTIC!

PILGRIMS! This word confuses and befuddles me! What truly is AUTHENTICITY? And can AUTHENTICITY add EASE to one's experience of LIFE?

JOYFUL EASE OF REPETITION 2. What is to be "claimed" from doing these drawings? EASE! As I EASE into my day, practicing self-acceptance, I practice self-love that expands outward to LOVE of the OTHER--YOU (exclamation)!

Right now my idea of AUTHENTICITY is the collection of the following precious phrases:

my perspective
my thoughts
aliveness
serenity
trust
intention
sacred

Fellow SOJOURNERS! I am feeling growing pains as I write this blog entry! Hallelujah! That is what SOUL BLOGGING is all about! I am BLOGGING with you to go deeper into "my perspective" so I can entertain "your perspective"! The more I know WHO I AM, the more I can experience WHO YOU ARE with EASE.

EASE of ME--EQUALS--EASE of YOU!

Right now, I am having FUN exploring the idea of REPETITION as a way of banishing judgment and as a way of DOING my art, writing, and teaching. As I posted on the December 1st prompt for #REVERB11, I am the large long-legged bird dancing on ice, free to "slip, slide, fall, and get up to dance again"!

JOYFUL EASE OF REPETITION 3. Pilgrims! Hallelujah Truth was gleeful when she drew herself holding an alligator! The joyful EASE of a catnapping if foremost in my mind (as is the mourning of the loss of my beloved Misha, 17-year-long family feline). Repetition provides movement from what is known to what is unknown--with EASE. Wow!

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! Please write me and tell me how you are going to EASE in 2012 and live more EASEFULLY! Good luck PILGRIMS!

#REVERB11: DEEPENING CURIOSITY AND ARTISTRY THROUGH READING

2011-12-05T07:33:00.000-08:00

CURIOUS CUP LOGO. Kiona Gross, former Decatur, Georgia, neighbor and friend, requested I make a logo for her bookstore in Carpinteria, California, back in 2010. What emerged from my daily drawing practice were a series of images that were fun and surprising! (all art here copyrighted by Ruth Schowalter, aka Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 PROMPT (December 5): What has been your favorite book (or books) this year? Of course, tell us why! (Carolyn Rubenstein at A Beautiful Ripple Effect)

Hallelujah for BOOKS! Delving into books is like diving into a vast ocean. A dear friend of mine (Kiona Gross) moved to Carpinteria, California to open her own bookstore, CURIOUS CUP (see curious cup on facebook). In October of 2011, Kiona sent me a signed copy of Brian Selznick's new book, Wonderstruck, and I devoured it. Kiona knew how much I had fallen in love with Selznick's first book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Selznick's work speaks to the child in me. His books are told part in beautiful rendered images that make my SOUL gasp! As a language teacher interested in the different cultures that we humans must adapt to, I appreciated Selznick's exploring the convergence of the hearing and deaf cultures. The story is captivating and heart-full! I know that it will be made into a movie just like his first book that is now playing in theaters (Hugo).

CURIOUS CUP AND CARPINTERIA SWIMMER AND BOOK READER. Part of the practice of daily drawing. Kiona and I were working with the idea of a book and a coffee cup. It was fun when we thought that the curious cup might be a tattoo! Fun exploration! I adore collaboration!

Another book for 2011 that I would like to mention is Mark Nepo's The Book of Awakening. My sister-in-law Elizabeth Schowalter recommended that we read the daily passages and share our ideas, possibly engaging in some of Nepo's exercises. Who wouldn't love a book that quoted passages like this one from Paula Underwood Spencer:

"If you want to be truly understood, you need to say everything three times, in three different ways. Once for each ear...and once for the heart."

I was also inspired to make some artwork from his passage, "The Spoked Wheel." He writes about "the common center from where all life begins" and the spokes that emerge from this center that represent our individuality. (see a previous blog entry to see my artistic response to "The Spoke Wheel.")

CURIOUS CUP BRAINSTORM. The leaves of the book made me think of the famous sculpture, Winged Victory of Samothrace. Again as process in a daily practice, I let my mind play. Not good. Not bad. Just is.

The last book I will mention for 2011 is my beloved copy of Katherine Dunn's "Creative Illustration Workshop." I became deeply enamoured with Katherine Dunn's drawing and her relatedness to place, Apifera Farm. In addition to being a huge creative spirit, Dunn cares for donkeys and helps raise money to support castaways. How great is that (For more about my art related to Katherine Dunn, see a previous blog post)!

CURIOUS CUP AND THE SWIMMER CONTINUED. As the idea of a Carpinteria swimmer with a curious cup tattoo developed, I added a book. I envisioned a huge sign for Kiona's business! Kiona gently asked me to make the shoulders smaller, and we both thought it would be cool to add children!

OTHER BOOKS THAT MUST BE MENTIONED: Next to my bed two other significant books live! Lynda Barry generously shares her creative process in such a different and unique way in What Is (2008) and Picture This (2010). Whenever I am feeling puny, these books make me laugh and begin life all over again as an artist devoted to this mantra: not good, not bad, just is!

Finally, there is my Chiboogamoo's book, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast: Unseen lives of the Georgia barrier islands, due to be published in 2012. My brilliant husband and I continue to LIVE this book as we return to the Georgia coast and its barrier islands as frequently as we can. We are both blogging about these Georgia islands, building on the knowledge we acquired during the strenuous years of book writing that Chiboogamoo did. How can a devoted spouse not be impacted by the creative endeavors of the romantic other? (see Chiboogamoo's website and blog and one of the all time favorites of mine!)

A FUTURE CURIOUS CUP LOGO? Pilgrims how fun is the daily process of drawing and seeing what you can discover! I know that the way to surprise yourself is to lend yourself to repetition. Start with what you know and build on what you learn each day! Life is a Journey and so marvelous when each step is taken with Awareness!

DEDICATION: This December 5, 2011, blog entry was done to honor my friendship with Kiona Gross! A good good friend! I know that the town of Carpinteria, California, is truly lucky for having her and her daughter Sid in their village! Happy Birthday Kiona Gross! Thank you for the time spent with me and developing my artistic vision! Your love of the arts and artists is deeply appreciated!

#REVERB11: BEAUTY AFTER 50-- BEING MORE SPIRIT THAN BODY

2011-12-04T10:09:00.000-08:00

JUMPING FROM THE EGG (art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11 PROMPT (December 4, 2011): Has your standard of BEAUTY shifted in the past year? Thanks to Carolyn Rubenstein (author, blogger, coach), who has stepped in to organize an exciting REVERB11. Responses to her prompts can be found here and on Facebook Reverb11.

In beauty may I walk.
All day long may I walk.
Through the returning seasons may I walk.
(from a Navajo Indian prayer found on Wildmind Buddhist Meditation)

Hallelujah for the SPIRIT, and the JOURNEY! With aging comes the opportunity to relinquish the attachments to the BODY and to joyfully embrace the nuances of the SPIRIT! 2011 has deepened my commitment to understanding that which cannot be TOUCHED--the ESSENCE that exists in each of us that can only BE EXPERIENCED.

I continue to struggle with accepting the wrinkles that alter the contours of my face, the brown blemishes that emerge on my hands, and the extra pounds that encircle my waist. My knees hurt these days. Ouch! Yes, on one level, I want to be immortal and infinitely young. Yet, on another level, there is profound BEAUTY in accepting my own MORTALITY.

As that which is EPHEMERAL changes (the body), I am so CURIOUS about that which is INFINITE and unalterable (the spirit). Being 53 brings such immense pleasure in releasing little things! This past year has been the practice of letting go of expectations, accepting what is HERE, and BEING PRESENT. At this practice, I am like a NEWBORN!

The shift in my standard of BEAUTY in 2011? BEING BEAUTIFUL. BEINGNESS! The Navajo Indian prayer has lines I am particularly fond of:

With beauty may I walk.
With beauty before me, may I walk.
With beauty behind me, may I walk.
With beauty above me, may I walk.
With beauty below me, may I walk.
With beauty all around me, may I walk.

JUMPING FROM THE EGG! The image I drew for today's # REVERB11 prompt was greatly influenced by the lecture I attended last night at the Jung Society of Atlanta. Pamela Cooper White gave an exciting lecture on CG Jung as and artist by examining The Red Book which was only published in 2009. Many of his drawings repeatedly show an EGG--something with tremendous symbolic import! As a part of my daily drawing practice, I invite whatever has entered my life. This morning I invited Jung's "egg" to be the first thing I drew. Pamela Cooper White mentioned Odilion Redon as one of the artists that influenced Jung's drawings. I devoured his images on the internet once I returned home. The colors in his paintings were in my mind as I began to draw flowers around the egg.

As the "new" ideas found expression, I returned to my mode of meditation...repetition. I drew Wandjina, Hallelujah, Mother Snake, and finally, my precious Misha! Dear Pilgrims,I invite you to interpret this painting!

For now that is Coffee With Hallelujah! Soul Blog with me Fellow Pilgrim about your standard of BEAUTY. Write your responses here on my blog or join us in twittering your responses at #Reverb11.

In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk.

It is finished in beauty.
It is finished in beauty.

CONVERGENCE OF A LOVING SCIENTIST, THE GEORGIA COAST, AND DISCOVERING THE UNKNOWN: HALLELUJAH FOR POPPING EPIPHANIES!

2011-12-03T15:02:00.000-08:00

THE MAGNIFICENT KNOBBED WHELK. Along Jekyll Island's south end at Thanksgiving, my Chiboogamoo and I witnessed an abundance of this beautiful gastropod. It is the state shell of Georgia! (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

#REVERB11: December 3 Prompt--Pick one moment during 2011 that you felt most alive. Describe it in vivid detail. Dear PILGRIMS, I chose to merge the #REVERB11 prompt with my own topic of CONVERGENCE--choose three things and explain how they converged with the result being an EPIPHANY!

I am so in love with my brilliant husband and scientist Chiboogamoo, the great big exuberant natural world as expressed along our Georgia coast, and the EPIPHANIES that POP when all three of these converge! I am one lucky girl when this occurred during our 2011 Thanksgiving weekend at Jekyll Island!

HALLELUJAH TRUTH (photo by Chiboogamoo)

Our EPIPHANY-POPPING experience begins at low tide on the Friday morning following Thanksgiving. I am equipped with my 17-year-old scraped-up Giant bike, filled-water bottle, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, hand-me-down Canon camera, and one of the most knowledagble ichnologists in the world. He is equipped similarly but with a newer bike and camera (with a telephoto lens!), and most important of all—me (HALLELUJAH TRUTH) and Paleontologist Barbie, who he continues to introduce to neo-ichnology along the Georgia coast.

CHIBOOGAMOO (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

Sixty minutes into our exploratory beach ride towards the south end of Jekyll Island, meandering from surf to dune and back to surf again, the EPIPHANY POPPING is in its early stages! Excitement electrifies the ocean breeze! There is SOMETHING to INVESTIGATE! Chiboogamoo loves observing predation of any kind. In this case, it is shorebirds predating on food sources in the sand! We quickly rest our bikes above the ebbing tide and move eagerly toward the surf with its highly populated areas of dwarf surf clams, beak marks, and bird tracks. Chiboogamoo is exuberant—he sites evidence of “double” probing made by “some” shorebirds as they foraged for their breakfast.

SHOREBIRD TRACES IN AMONGST THE DWARF SURF CLAMS (photo by Chiboogamoo)

PILGRIMS! Let the TRUTH BE STATED—without my brilliant ichnologist husband Chiboogamoo, these bird hieroglyphics would have little meaning to me. Hence my dear PILGRIMS, the joy in riding bikes along the Georgia coast with an ichnologist! From traces, an ichnologist identifies the animal and interprets behavior! Here “double probes” consume Chiboogamoo’s attention.

Experiencing a low-level of euphoria, he announces that “sanderlings” have made these marks! The double probe marks, which are so distinctive of this small shorebird, surround us in an abundant dizzying array. One, two! One, two! One probe for detecting the food source. A second probe for consuming the food! “One, two! One, two! And through and through the vorpal blade went snicker-snack!”

DIZZYING ARRAY OF SANDERLING TRACKS, PROBES, CLAMS, AND WHELKS (Art by Hallelujah Truth)

While Chiboogamoo is studiously taking photos of these “one-two’s,” I become increasingly focused in following the trails of bird tracks and their double probes wanting to “imprint” these patterns in my memory, so I can interpret sanderling feeding frenzy next time—even in the absence of my brilliant ichnologist husband Chiboogamoo! I also love looking for deviations in existing patterns! As I am walking along studying--POP! It happens! I SEE SOMETHING MORE than the object of my focus!

Alone, what I SEE is inexpressible—I lack the vocabulary in order to explain it fully! But I am with one of the best ichnologists in the world, I summon him, and we learn something new for ourselves. This is the THRILL of LOOKING and yes, being with a knowledgeable ichnologist!

WHELK PATTERNS DEPICTED BY DWARF SURF CLAMS! With Chiboogamoo's foot for scale, you can see our exciting EPIPHANY! Each cluster of clams signals a burrowed whelk! How cool is that? (photo by Chiboogamoo)

Together we observe a shockingly large number of knobbed whelk shells (the state shell Georgia) of all sizes—from an inch-and-a half to almost 8-inches long. They are heavily congregated along the shore stretching out in front of us! Even more interesting to me is that some shells are inhabited by the fleshy-footed gastropod and while others have been woefully abandoned. Apparently, the strong winds and high tides had brought this abundance of knobbed whelks to the shore.

THE STATE SHELL OF GEORGIA--THE GLORIOUS KNOBBED WHELK (art by Hallelujah Truth)

As we continue our observations of living and dead whelks, we begin to see a “new” pattern emerge. The living burrowing knobbed whelks are surrounded by dense numbers of dwarf surf clams, which in turn are encircled by uncountable number of sanderling tracks and one-two probes! What IS GOING ON, we ask each other excitedly! Such an intriguing natural phenomenon! (See my Chiboogamoo’s blog on whelks for a more detailed explanation of this.)

Together, Chiboogamoo and I begin extracting whelks from their resting places, again and again until we confirm that we know how to find a whelk based on the color of the sand and concentration of the dwarf surf clams.

SUCCESSFUL PREDICTION OF WHERE THE WHELK OCCURRED! Isn't it just fine to let your eyes lead you to finding more than you knew at the beginning of your journey! Discovery is sweet! (photo by Chiboogamoo)

All of sudden, I have numerous questions:

Why are there so many whelks right here, right now?
How is it possible that we have never seen this phenomenon before?
Does this occur only at this time of the year (November) or when the moon is a crescent?
How is it that all ages and sizes of whelks are congregating at this end of the island?
Why do the dwarf surf clams cluster around the burrowing whelks?
What are these small shore birds eating?

PILGRIMS these questions fall into the SACRED realm of neo-ichnology! My dear and loving scientist who I adore photographing during our ichnological explorations takes joy hearing my questions because he is asking them too. He knows some of the answers, hypothesizes the rest, and vows to find certainty in consulting his resources once we return to our Atlanta home!

This event of SEEING what we had not seen before was the HIGHLIGHT of our day. PILGRIMS we live in a WONDEROUS WORLD. My Chiboogamoo and I take time to SEE what surrounds us and when we do, we are REWARDED! It is as if MOTHER EARTH SEES us right back, and when we stop to look at HER, SHE SPEAKS.

That’s Coffee with Hallelujah! Soul Blog with me and tell me what you know about the knobbed whelk, that state shell of Georgia. Better yet, tell me what you have SEEN today in YOUR WORLD and what MOTHER EARTH has said to you!

REVERB11:FROM HUMILITY TO DANCE--THE DIFFERENCE A YEAR CAN MAKE

2011-12-02T07:38:00.000-08:00

SELF PORTRAIT OF HALLELUJAH TRUTH

#REVERB11: December 2, Catch UP, Day 1 Prompt: Encapsulate the year 2011 in one word. Explain why you are choosing that one word. Now imagine it is one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2012 for you?

Hallelujah PILGRIMS for times of TRANSFORMATION when we can be retrospective and claim what is ours before venturing on again in our precious JOURNEYS!

HUMILITY is the word that encapsulates the year 2011 for me! I submitted myself again and again to TRYING. I jumped through hoops of new experiences willingly, ferociously at times. The result? Falling, stumbling, laughing, and trying again.

Oh I was ambitious! I would write fantastic blogs, teach inspirational ESL classes, and reach new exalted heights of artistic accomplishments in my media of water color pencils and micron pens! Hungry for the fullness of life's flavors as if it were one big banana split with extra strawberries and chocolate sauce, I wanted to eat the MAGIC of CREATIVITY!

I longed for my CREATIVE LIFE to be like the Douglas County Cultural Arts Center exhibit buffet--sausage sizzling in sweet sauce, dates stuffed with cream cheese, bacon, pineapple, macaroons, and an abundance of wine!

Yet, instead of eating comfortably, I found myself being stared at while I held my overloaded plate from the feast! Suddenly everyone is staring at me and judging my CONSUMPTION and the WEIGHT GAIN resulting from my indulgence! Oh! I have felt UGLY in 2011!

FIERCELY SUPPORTING MY CREATIVE ENDEAVORS. When I asked the juror of the Douglas County Culture Arts Center exhibit why she had selected my work, "The Mystery of the Burka and Hijab," she answered, "It was timely." No words of praise--secretly something I longed for. (photo by Chiboogamoo, November 2011)

Each step of my PILGRIMAGE, each endeavor, and every one I met on my PATH in 2011 became my TEACHER. I felt mortified because of my expectations. In 2012, I am surrendering these expectations.

DANCE is the word that I am selecting to "capture" my experience of 2012 one year from now. Oh PILGRIMS! I will not abandon my struggles and adventures into the unknown! Yet, I see myself being JOYFUL as I twirl with my paintings, tango with my students, and twist with my writing. I envision myself being a large, long-legged bird dancing on the ice! I will slip, slide, fall, and get up to dance again, perhaps--even changing the music!

The art group (Artist Conference Network) that I belong to has a saying: A BREAKDOWN is an opportunity for a BREAKTHROUGH! 2012 offers me the opportunity to be my JOYFUL AUTHENTIC SELF! Hallelujah! Hooray!

Thanks to my wonderful creative writing students at the Georgia Tech Language Institute who did this writing exercise with me in class yesterday. I hope your 2012 will become the word that you envisioned in this #REVERB11 day one writing exercise!

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! Soul Blog with me! Tell me what you envision for 2012 and how you sum up 2011!

REVERB11:AT THE MICRO OR MACRO PERSPECTIVE—NATURE IS STILL NATURE!

2011-12-01T08:09:00.000-08:00

MACRO AND MICRO VIEWS OF NATURE, ART BY HALLELUJAH TRUTH

Is NATURE that phenomenon you experience while riding a horse on the beach at sunrise? Is it the feeling of your thighs gripping the saddle of a large warm moving beast, as the wind brushes your face and you look off into the horizon of the endless ocean? The FOUR WALLS of CIVILIZATION have disappeared, and you can smell the rich organics simmering from the nearby marsh and maritime forest. You take a DEEP BREATH and your BODY and BEING fold into the rhythm of the horse’s steps, and you feel you are one with something greater than yourself, which you can only call NATURE.

I call this experience of NATURE, the exalted, romanticized state. It is real, and it is wonderful—NATURE tasted on a large scale of muted horizontal planes of sandy shore, gray blue water, endless expanse of sky. But how often can any of us city-bound folks get to a beach, one that has horse rentals, arise before dawn to go to the stables, and be lead out in a string of horses steady and patient availing themselves to their riders’ AT-ONENESS-WITH-NATURE?

MARCRO-LEVEL NATURE. Muted horizontal planes at Jekyll Island, November 2011. BIG, BREATHTAKING! (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

As bi-peds, we tend to imbibe NATURE at a MACRO-LEVEL, towering above the ground, looking off to horizons, chasing clouds and birds with our mighty glance. How AWESOME is that? Especially when we can “enhance” our presence in NATURE and ability to observe it by straddling a quadruped, a bike, or getting in some contrivance that can help us move rapidly through NATURE and far above it at an observational level? How GRAND and GREAT is MOTHER NATURE?

Then there is the MICRO-LEVEL at which we can relate to NATURE. Going small. Falling to the EARTH, holding it, patting it, putting seeds in it, and watching green LIFE emerge. Oh the critters on small multiple legs that cross our paths before our eyes when we join forces with the EARTH and ask HER to assist us in GROWING something, anything! Or when we kneel on that sandy beach, as if in prayer, to examine and snails moving in shallow tidal pools.

MICRO-LEVEL NATURE. Chiboogamoo stops to examine and photograph snails in a tidal pool on the north end of Jekyll Island, Georgia. Behind him are Pilgrims on horses viewing nature at a macro-level. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

SNAIL TRAILS. In the tidal pool is a micro world of pathways and journeys! (Photo by Chiboogamoo)

TRACEMAKING SNAIL. Seeing from the perspective of kneeling on the EARTH opens new worlds and new pilgrims! (Photo by Chiboogamoo)

NATURE to me is the LIFE surrounding us on a MACRO and MICRO level. When we stop to recognize ALL that is THRIVING in the WORLD we live in, we too become NATURE! Hallelujah!

That is COFFEE WITH HALLELUJAH! SOUL BLOG with me about your relationship with NATURE. And join me to write every day during the last month of 2010! I will be posting a new topic each day. Participate in Hallelujah Truth’s REVERB11.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE PURSUES PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AT 2011 SOCIETY OF VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGIST (SVP) MEETING IN LAS VEGAS, UTAH, USA

2011-11-25T05:43:00.000-08:00

DINOSAUR TRACK JUBILEE! The Early Jurassic rocks in and near St. George, Utah, have some of the world’s best-preserved dinosaur tracks. Once Paleontologist Barbie heard that the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) was sponsoring a field trip there, led by Andrew Milner, James Kirkland, and others, she knew this was the trip for her. “I love theropod tracks!” she said, while sitting in one. Her legs are on the digit III impression, and her arms are just above digits II and IV of this three-toed track, made by a large carnivorous dinosaur. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

At the end of October 2011, when many young professional women were donning Halloween costumes for a night filled with revelry, Paleontologist Barbie was already on the second day of a Society of Vertebrate Paleontology fieldtrip in southern Utah and northern Arizona, deepening her understanding of dinosaur tracks. On her return to Atlanta, Georgia, with my Chiboogamoo, I urged her to talk to me about what she had learned on the 2011 SVP fieldtrip and about the virtues of professional development.

HALLELUJAH: First of all, can you explain what Society of Vertebrate Paleontology is and why you are a member.

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Sure. The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, also known as SVP, is a great, fun organization filled with people who love fossils of animals that have backbones. I am a member because I enjoy being around a lot of other paleontologists and the SVP meetings, and it gives everyone the chance to be together and do nothing except talk about paleontology. It is a blast.

HALLELUJAH: It is well known that there is a group that gets together informally to celebrate you at the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meetings. Why is that?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I have heard about that group, too, and am very flattered by all of the attention. All I can think is that they really admire my enthusiasm for fossils and look up to me as a role model.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE HAS AN EYE FOR DINO TRACKS. Sometimes dinosaur tracks are not preserved as depressions, like the one she just sat in, but instead are made as natural casts on the bottoms of sandstone beds. These are formed when sand fills in the depression, similar to how plaster casts are made. “There’s one!” Paleontologist Barbie exclaims, spotting a probable dinosaur track in the bottom of a sandstone bed. Not much gets past her, that’s for sure! (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: Do you belong to any other professional organizations?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Well, because I have to know a lot of geology too, I belong to the Geological Society of America or GSA. Then there is the Paleontological Society, which I also belong to. People in that society study all fossils, not just vertebrates. I really like that organization, too.

HALLELUJAH: As a passionate ichnologist, do you fit in better in one professional paleontological organization more than others?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: That’s what is great about ichnology is that it belongs to all of the sciences. I get to do geology, and all sorts of biology and paleontology when I study traces. Ichnology is really cool that way.

TIPS FROM PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE FOR “SEEING” DINO TRACKS. Paleontologist Barbie is thrilled to visit a newly discovered dinosaur tracksite in the Navajo Formation in southern Utah with more footprints made by theropod dinosaurs. Here she demonstrates the best way to view the tracks: up close and with her head held at an angle to get maximum contrast. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

DETERMING THE SPEED OF A DINOSAUR—PALEO BARBIE KNOWS HOW! It worked! Using this method, she easily spots the next track in the distance. “Looks like we got ourselves a trackway. Let’s get out the measuring tape and figure out how fast it was going!” she says with her characteristic enthusiasm for quantitative methods. Using just a few measurements and some math (which she finds easy), you can figure out the approximate speed of the dinosaur trackmaker at this site. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: Briefly summarize the 2011 Society of Vertebrate Paleontology fieldtrip you took.

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: It is was one of the best fieldtrips I have taken in years! I loved it. We got to see Triassic and Jurassic rocks from about 200 to 180 million years ago in Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. These rocks have lots of fossils but especially dinosaur tracks. I have never seen so many dinosaur tracks in one place.

HALLELUJAH: What were the paleontological highlights for you?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: In St. George, Utah, they have a museum, the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Center, where they have preserved the rock layers that have dinosaur tracks. One of the rock layers has the trace of where a dinosaur sat down, then got up, and walked away. It is so exciting to see a trace where a dinosaur took a break from life, relaxed a little bit, and then decided to move on. I can identify with that.

ESTIMATING DINOSAUR SIZE FROM DINO TRACK—PALEO BARBIE LOVES MATH. “Wow, nice anatomical detail on this one!” she states with much admiration. Indeed, it is a beautifully preserved natural cast of a theropod-dinosaur track, showing its toe pads, claw marks and skin impressions. “I suspect this dinosaur had a hip height of about 1.6 meters, based on its 40-centimeter length multiplied by a factor of 4,” she says nonchalantly, not wanting to show off her penchant for numbers too much. This specimen is on display at the: St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm (http://www.dinosite.org/). (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

“TIME TO DO SOME MORE FIELD WORK!” Paleontologist Barbie loves going outside, and is very pleased to see some fantastic examples of physical sedimentary structures while out hiking along an outcrop of Jurassic sandstone. “Whoa – nice cross-bedding!”, she shouts gleefully. These angled layers of sandstone formed from either wind or water currents moving and depositing sand, either as ripples or dunes. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: What was the most fun moment during your fieldtrip?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: When I was at the St. George Discovery Center, where we were having dinner, I ran into a reproduction of Dilophosaurus, a local dinosaur responsible for some of the tracks I had been examining. He was the perfect height for dancing, and let’s just say we made our own tracks together!

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE DANCES WITH A DINOSAUR. After three days on the field trip Paleontologist Barbie finally meets one of the trackmakers, Dilophosaurus. “How cool – you’re one of my favorite dinosaurs! Would you like to dance?” she asks cordially. Of course, when Paleontologist Barbie dances, she always leads. And that’s because she’s a natural-born leader. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: What was your best find?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Wow! That was really exciting! I was at a Jurassic outcrop with your husband Chiboogamoo. We were scanning the strata for any fossils that might there when we both spotted a huge dinosaur track. It turned out to be the oldest large dinosaur track (Eubrontes) found in that area.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE MAKES A DISCOVERY! Back in the field again and at the last stop of the field trip, Paleontologist Barbie, along with her colleague CHIBOOGAMOO, discovers the oldest large theropod-dinosaur track (called Eubrontes) in this part of Utah. “Discoveries are the currency of science, and I’m cashing in!” she says. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: At these meetings, who do you get starry-eyed over?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I love seeing all the women paleontologists at the meetings! They are smart, confident, and are providing great role models for future scientists! Remember the saying on the box that I came in? “We girls can do anything”!

ICHNO-FASHION AMONG WOMEN PALEONTOLOGIST. Paleontologist Annette Richter, visiting all of the way from Germany to see the dinosaur tracks of southern Utah and northern Arizona, shows off the latest in dinosaur-track inspired fashion, with her dualistic and monochromatic rendering of theropod-dinosaur tracks. Between their knowledge of dinosaur tracks and enthusiasm, Paleontologist Barbie was very excited to meet so many other women paleontologists who share her passion for fossils. (Photo scale in centimeters, and photo taken by Anthony Martin; owner of hand is unknown.)

HALLELUJAH: I know that you love to speak about all things paleontological, did you present at this 2011 Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Not at this meeting, but I have some exciting things in the works.

HALLELUJAH: What tips can you give to deliver a top-notch paleontological presentation?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: First of all—enthusiasm with a capital “E!” You’d better show the audience you enjoy what you are doing. Number two—stage presence. That means connecting with the audience and doing everything you can to make your research interesting. And number three—good posture! Some times people say I'm a little too stiff, but when I'm presenting, I'm totally flexible.

A NATURAL SPEAKER—PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE. Once in the museum, though, Paleontologist Barbie cannot help but share her extensive knowledge about dinosaur tracks with some of the other field-trip participants by giving an impromptu PowerPoint presentation. “As you can clearly see from the divarication angle between digits II and IV, as well as the length:width ratio and qualitative traits, this is a theropod-dinosaur track,” she says confidently. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

EMPATHETIC WITH THE FOSSIL PAST. Following the lecture - which was very well received by her peers – Paleontologist Barbie decides to go for a swim, metaphorically speaking. The Jurassic rocks in St. George, Utah contain the greatest number of dinosaur swimming tracks in the world. These tracks, preserved as natural casts here, were made by theropod dinosaurs that touched their toes along the river or lake bottom while swimming with or against a current. “Wouldn’t it have been fun to swim with the dinosaurs?” she asks with genuine wonder. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

RELAXING WITH THE FOSSIL RECORD. Back in the museum and after a tough day in the field, Paleontologist Barbie gets in a little bit of relaxation in the museum. "There's something so comforting about large theropod-dinosaur tracks," she says while reclining fashionably next to a natural cast of one. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: What will you be presenting in the future?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I really want to finish my research on reptile burrows and present that at the 2012 SVP meeting.

HALLELUJAH: The 2011 Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting convened in Las Vegas. In 10 words or less express your feelings about this gambling center of the USA.

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Probability theory says, don’t go there. You’ll waste your money.

HALLELUJAH: Do you gamble?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Only in that I take chances when I go into the field to look for fossils. But with money, no! I don’t need more money anyway, because I am not a material girl. I am a scientist, artist, and someone who loves the thrill of discovery!

HALLELUJAH: I know you are like me in that you can appreciate the beauty of any location that you find yourself in. Can you address the artistry of Las Vegas?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: It SOOO GARISH, truly awfully, and over the top. It is like a trilobite with too many frilly spines! Give me the rock formations in Zion National Park any day.

PALEONTOLOGIST VIEW OF LAS VEGAS. Paleontologist Barbie, upon arriving at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas, is momentarily puzzled. "Oú est Le Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle?" she asked the doorman, who looked blankly at her and became even more confused than her. photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE DOES NOT APPROVE OF HO-MADE PIES. (One of the motels where the paleontologists stayed during the field trip (just outside of Zion National Park) had a restaurant with an odd way of advertising one of their desserts. But perhaps this restaurant can place its next ad in Nature. Photo and caption by Anthony Martin.)

HALLELUJAH: What is the next professional step for you?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I just got back from a field trip on Sapelo Island on the Georgia coast, which is my third barrier island to conduct field work on. Next, I will go to Jekyll Island. I hope to go to all the Georgia Islands some day, because each one is unique. I like finding and experiencing the differences! And then at an international level, I’m really excited about Ichnia 2012, which is taking place in Newfoundland, Canada! There will be ichnologists from all around the world who will come together to chat about their latest discoveries!

HALLELUJAH: If you had dressed up for Halloween as did other Barbies in the geosciences, what would your costume have been?

PALELONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I probably would have gone as Mary Anning, one of the first great female paleontologists! Or, on a more abstract level, maybe I would have had fun designing a ghost shrimp burrow costume and going as a trace fossil. Now that's cool, because fossil ghost-shrimp burrows are used by geologists worldwide to show where an ancient shoreline was located.

MUDCRACK MADNESS. Other sedimentary structures that catch her keen eye are mudcracks. These formed when a muddy area, such as on a lakeshore or next to a river, first became wet, then dried out. Many of the dinosaur tracks in this area also seem to have started the mudcracks when the dinosaur stepped into a drying mud. “Sedimentary structures rock!”, says Paleontologist Barbie. (photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE MAKES FOSSIL ART. Through the use of Photoshop™, Paleontologist Barbie took mudcracks radiating from a dinosaur track and fashioned it to look like paintings from one of her most favorite artists (after Hallelujah Truth, of course!) in the whole wide world, Cecelia Kane. See her blog, The Interwoven Heart. (original photo by Anthony Martin)

PALEONTOLOGIST DOCUMENTING PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE. Chiboogamoo and Paleontologist Barbie work as a team. At the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Center, Chiboogamoo documents his colleague swimming with the dinosaur swim traces. Photo by an anonymous donor who was on the SVP field trip.

Read previous Hallelujah Truth Interviews with Paleontologist Barbie:

Paleontologist Barbie's Passion for Modern and Ancient Traces
Paleontologist Barbie goes to St. Catherines Island to examine reptile burrows.

Paleontologist Barbie's Gleeful Discussion of Evolution, Darwin, and Science-Related Art
Paleontologist Barbie explains her understanding of evolution by looking at the "Selections" art exhibit at Fernbank Museum of Natural History in Atlanta, Georgia. Specifically, she provides her interpretation of the importance of art done by Chiboogamoo and Hallelujah Truth.

Paleontologist Barbie's Raison D'etre: Scientific Investigation and a Passion for Art!
This is the first interview with Paleontologist Barbie! It is a must read!