|
 |
 |
|
Last month I took Aria to the International Ocean Film Festival in San Francisco. We couldn't do the whole day but we saw two short films and one feature-length documentary, BLUE, by Australian director Karina Holden.
Powerful. Made both of us tear up. Especially the parts with the sea turtles and seals caught up in fishing nets. And finless sharks being dumped back into the sea, slow motion.
I felt conflicted, bringing a child to watch such a heavily charged subject. At the same time though, the world we live in is heavily charged. Always was. Today it's more complicated than ever. When I was about her age, I was beginning to recognize the painful differences between the various geopolitical realities of Central Europe vs. their "Western" neighbors. I knew where it all sat.
The politics back then were just as bad as they've gotten recently. But my mother never had to teach me the difference between regular food and processed food. To read ingredient labels to make sure I wasn't eating various petrochemicals and oils from plantations across the globe. To give me time limits on smartphones and tablets. To tell me to go play outside.
When Aria and I got out of the film festival, we went over to a Safeway across the street to get some food before the long trip home. We bought a few healthy things: a fruit bowl, fresh bread and turkey slices. All packaged in plastic. Oh, we need a fork... plastic, again.
Since then I've become obsessed with plastics and how they're infiltrating every corner and crevice of our global food chains. Data shows we are now literally drowning the world in plastic. Great. Another feel-good story about how we're doing amazing things for this planet.
It's not sexy. It's not fun. It's so incredibly, impossibly overwhelming that I feel nauseous if I think too much about it. But you know what? Like any other world-shattering problem, this too we can fix. Plastic straw by plastic straw.
Here's why, here's how, and here's when.
~ Birgitte
|
|
 |
What's the little artist up to? Right now she's painting. Seriously. As I write this, Aria is in art camp for spring break, exploring the old masters, and I'm weaving through the inner guts of our latest eBook (aka, reviewing the code). Pretty clear who's got the sweeter end of the deal...
Anyway, I owe you an update on the fundraiser we did for the communities impacted by the Northern California fires last year, with Aria's Dragon Storm mural. After a fair amount of research, we decided to donate the funds to the Latino Community Foundation, in large part because minority communities tend to get the short end of the stick, including, sadly, when it comes to natural disasters. This non profit is doing a lot of good for the Latino communities here in California.
In other news, we added a new section on Aria's site, called Faces & Figures V (as in, the work she did when she was five). There will be a few more groups of faces, from her 4- and 6-year-old work. We put up number 5 because this group has probably the most diverse and most varied faces. Very telling about how children view the world... and how more of us adults should.
And, and...
...we launched an Instagram account for her. Come visit!
It's been fun... posting images instead of text, and doing it for someone else besides me. I'm starting to like Instagram. I know, a little late to this social media party, but we're all dressed up and bringing dessert.
|
|
|
 |
We've just birthed another book. Remember the "unfinished" one I mentioned in an earlier issue? It's out now. The Unfinished Book About Who We Are is a heady mix of philosophy, science, religion and spirituality. With a little quantum physics thrown in. Like salt in your soup.
Originally, the "Unfinished" book was a massive tome... about 100K words. Together with the author we decided to break it up into four separate books, largely to save the sanity of everyone on the editing and production team, but also that of our readers.
Also, news about our other new title, Scofflaw. Within a month of its release, it climbed the ranks of Amazon's lists, becoming a best-seller in two different categories, and even hitting #1 in International Political Treaties at one point.
Then The New York Times published an op-ed by the author, Columbia University scholar Ariel Garfinkel.
I am one proud publishing mama.
|
|
|
 |
The next chocolate talk I've got scheduled is at the International Chocolate Festival in San Mateo, right here in Northern California. Can we ever get enough chocolate, ever? Of course not. That's why we need to keep going to chocolate events!
International Chocolate Festival
Sunday, April 22, 2018
Time TBD—please check the site prior to the date
Fiesta Hall, San Mateo County Event Center
1346 Saratoga Drive
San Mateo, California
Thank you so much to everyone who has come to my talks over the years. I appreciate it more than you can know.
|
|
Connect with me:
|
|
|
 |
You are receiving this message because you have signed up for my mailing list, registered with a user account on my author's web site, sent me flowers or dark chocolate, survived a live television program with me, or otherwise communicated with me and/or shown interest in my work or the official Birgitte Rasine author web site, or because you are someone I know personally. If you have any questions, please contact LUCITÀ via email at info@lucita.net or by telephone at +1 408.542.9942.
Copyright © 2018 LUCITÀ Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.
|
|
