"ART.FOR.THEM"

Thanks everyone for the feedback! I'll probably change the banner a lot as I am having so much fun playing with it, it's always good to see what people think of my work though. Sometimes the one the stands out is so obvious to others' eyes, and not so much to me! I've also been working on prints for Kate's art show to raise money for people to go down and serve street children in Peru. 

If you'll be in Birmingham on March, 14, come check it out! And if you won't be able to make the show, but you see something you like between now and the 14th, let me know which photo  you want, what size, and how much you'd like to donate to the cause, and I'll send you the print and give your donation to Kate's show. (email me at elaine.faith.davis@gmail.com)

1. something positive: take 2, 2. early view: take 2, 3. urban flowers, 4. late bloomers: take two, 5. andalucia wall: take two, 6. take two, 7. take 2, 8. stiches, 9. Untitled, 10. Untitled, 11. Untitled, 12. old stories, 13. pair, 14. sidewalk colors, 15. pretty, 16. joy

.History.

I tried to write a short post about the Inaguration yesterday, but I couldn't find the words. I am a firm believer that often, an image is worth more than 1,000 words, and these images speak loudly. I am honored to be a part of the generation that witnessed yesterday. These are a few of many outstanding photos on The Big Picture today.

"What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character than giving our all to a difficult task"

(above) People gathered to watch in small Kenyan town where Obama's Father was born.

"And so, to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more."

"This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed, why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall. And why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath."

(above) Children at a prayers ceremony for global peace in Islamabad, Pakistan.

"And because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace"

Poetry also stands sometimes where prose lacks: 

The Inaugural Poem by Elizabeth Alexander

Praise song for the day.

Each day we go about our business, walking past each other, catching each others' eyes or not, about to speak or speaking. All about us is noise. All about us is noise and bramble, thorn and din, each one of our ancestors on our tongues. Someone is stitching up a hem, darning a hole in a uniform, patching a tire, repairing the things in need of repair.

Someone is trying to make music somewhere with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.

A woman and her son wait for the bus.

A farmer considers the changing sky; A teacher says, "Take out your pencils. Begin."

We encounter each other in words, words spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed; words to consider, reconsider.

We cross dirt roads and highways that mark the will of someone and then others who said, "I need to see what's on the other side; I know there's something better down the road."

We need to find a place where we are safe; We walk into that which we cannot yet see.

Say it plain, that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here, who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges, picked the cotton and the lettuce, built brick by brick the glittering edifices they would then keep clean and work inside of.

Praise song for struggle; praise song for the day. Praise song for every hand-lettered sign; The figuring it out at kitchen tables.

Some live by "Love thy neighbor as thy self."

Others by first do no harm, or take no more than you need.

What if the mightiest word is love, love beyond marital, filial, national. Love that casts a widening pool of light. Love with no need to preempt grievance.

In today's sharp sparkle, this winter air, anything can be made, any sentence begun.

On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp -- praise song for walking forward in that light.

A Rabbit Trail of Web Wanderings

A few noteworthy tidbits from my web wandering this week.

• A really eye-opening and incredibly well-done media presentation about urban slums called The Places We Live.
  
  

• If you liked that one, there is also a fabulous website with many more media presentations like this one called Media Storm. A recent story called Common Ground, about an elderly farmer whose land is sold to a subdivision developer and the family whose new home is built in the exact spot where the farmhouse used to stand, is especially poignant.
• Like I said before, I discovered this week that narwhals are real, thanks to the Big Picture, a blog on Boston.com that posts amazing, really big images from around the world. About 30 are published every other day in different theme.
• Speaking of narwhals, which may frequent Alaska from time to time. Don't miss the latest installation of Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live.

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• And speaking of Sarah Palin...what in the world is up with the $150,000 shopping spree? I'd love to hear your thoughts. By the way, I would like to consider myself an expert on this matter because I watch a fair amount of TLC's What Not To Wear, and I saw the $50,000 episode. Spending that much money on a wardrobe is quite a feat!! Then I saw this statement from a news blog, "But is $150,000 unreasonable? New York magazine's fashion blog breaks down outfit costs from Saks and Neiman Marcus and discovers that just six outfit combinations alone cost over $16,000. For $150,000, Palin could purchase approximately 34 outfits." Really... words escape me.
  

• And last but not least, A peek into the life of the Birmingham Davises' Net Flix Queue:
  

First, 3 we've already watched...

1. Persepolis (2007) - A black and white cartoon about a young girl growing up in Tehran, Iran at the time of the Iranian Revolution.
2. Outsourced (2006) - Kind of a random pick, but a delightful movie about a guy whose telemarketing job (of cheesy patriotic knick-knacks) gets outsourced to India, and the culture shock (and eventual acceptance) he goes through while working there for months to set up the new office.
3. Man from Snowy River (1982) - Keith's favorite movie from childhood. He attributes many lessons in manhood to this tale.

Right now we have...

1. Cool Hand Luke (1967) - A classic favorite for Keith that I am looking forward to seeing.

And on the Queue:

1. Young at Heart (2007)
2. The Visitor (2007)
3. Edge of Heaven (2007)

Mi Sofa es su sofa.

Post about Philadelphia coming soon, but until then, I just read a fascinating article and I wanted to share. It's an article about the website, CouchSurfing, and it's founder, but really, it's about community, in the broadest sense of the word. I don't know if I'm ready to share my closest confines with complete strangers, but it certainly is an idea. There is an undercurrent, stronger everyday, of universal longing for community. The harmony in how it is apparent in so many varying pieces of society, yet fundamentally connects deeply to Christ, is exciting. I do believe these are exciting times friends.

n June of 2006, just as MySpace neared 80 million users and Facebook approached 8 million, an article, "Social Isolation in America," appeared in the American Sociological Review. The work of sociologists at Duke and the University of Arizona, it examined two national surveys of the American public, one in 1985 and the other in 2004. Their research found that the average number of people with whom Americans discuss important issues has dropped by nearly a third, from about three to two. Even more startling is that one-quarter of Americans say they have no one with whom to discuss their most important matters—twice as many as in 1984. This would suggest that in the same 20 years that saw the rise and triumph of communication technologies—the proliferation of email, cell phones, BlackBerries, and MySpace—our circle of close friends and confidants has shrunk by a significant margin. We are somehow more connected than we once were, and more isolated than ever before.