Your Daily Thread

November 9, 2009 Written by Joli Selten

Miguel Nelson and Sherry Walsh are the eclectic, environmental visionaries responsible for the reconstruction and redesign of two of L.A.’s greenest event spaces, Marvimon House and SmogShoppe. Both are indoor and outdoor fortresses lusciously filled with native vegetation and vintage decadence where people ceremoniously congregate dance and devour delicious edibles and libations!

Opened in 1924 by an Italian race car driver, Marvimon House was originally an automobile showroom. Just East of Chinatown and just north of Los Angeles State Historic Park (site of 2009 Burning Man Decompression and Cirque Berzerk) the 7,000 square-foot event venue can now accommodate 200 people for standing events and 130 people for formal, sit-down dinners—but now the cars stay outside at valet instead of being inside on display!

Nelson and Sherry recycled what was a virtually abandoned building and turned it into a “permeable, living oasis” using Woolly Pockets—Nelson’s current living art business project—and by reusing materials in different ways such as salvaging lumber and using it to build Marvimon’s benches and tables.

“We both enjoy thinking about and experiencing architectural space. The idea of a manmade environment that is in harmony with nature is exciting to us,” says Nelson.

For their next trick, the dynamic duo transformed a 1980’s smog-check center into a 100% solar-powered, indoor and outdoor event space—Culver City’s SmogShoppe. This fortress is covered with native plants held in Woolly Pockets and is dripping with vintage style. In fact, there are far too many ways this building is classified as “green” to list here, but according to their website, the space qualified for 55 out of 57 “points” by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Platinum Certification.

Both locations holistically meld living art, architecture, design, and recycling. “We don’t really care for many new designs so we hunt for and reclaim older worn-in stuff to furnish and build with,” says Nelson. “It’s really all about the mix(ing) and the layering of real and fictional history. Our designs are filled with little jokes and shrines and mistakes … Marivmon and SmogShoppe are both … more personal and handmade than most commercial spaces.”

When asked what his dream is for LA and how his event spaces are helping to accomplish this dream, this thrift-store frequenting futurist replied by painting a clean and honest picture to which I say, “here here:”

“I’d like to see one thousand times more plants growing in Los Angeles by 2020. This is totally possible and realistic. I’d also like to see one hundred times less new construction. I think we have plenty of buildings already that are underutilized that could be carefully restored and converted to better uses … Finally, and this may sound harsh, please don’t take it the wrong way, but I’d like to see 20% less residents in LA by 2020. There are too many people who live here that don’t seem to want to live here anymore (maybe they came for the wrong reasons, or their situation has changed, or they’ve grown up, whatever). I don’t fault them, but wish they’d take a leap of faith and follow their heart to a better place. This would decrease LA’s environmental impact, alleviate congestion and make room for those of us who love it here.”

If your searching for the perfect destination to hold your next eco inspired event, you can’t ask for much better (or greener).

Marvimon House  1411 North Broadway Blvd.  Los Angeles, CA 90012  310-837-3610  kara@marvimon.com
www.marvimon.com

SmogShoppe 2651 South La Cienga Blvd.  Los Angeles, CA 90034  310-837-3610  kara@marvimon.com
www.marvimon.com

Photos Courtesy of www.marvimon.com

June 29, 2009 Written by Joli Selten

Do you feel the earth in your community screaming for help? Are you enraged by browning, deserted plots of land camouflaging your beautiful neighborhood? Do you have what it takes to be a guerilla warrior-fighting for our planet and the posterity of Los Angeles’ ground and air?

If you’re ready to move to action, either with permission from the city or without, become a guerilla gardener and take matters into your own hands. Begun in London circa 2004, the Guerilla Gardening movement, as the organization’s website states, sprouted to life in an attempt to, “wage war against neglect and scarcity of public space.” Here in L.A., green-thumb revolutionaries as young as 10 and as old as 80 have come together to be a part of the L.A. Guerilla Gardeners-our local chapter-making a difference by getting down and dirty to transform barren or rundown spaces into thriving gardens.

Garden Before LA Guerilla Gardeners

Don’t worry, there are ways to contribute to this movement without potentially getting arrested for renegade, middle-of-the-night missions to rip out dead space and replace it with life. LAGG’s website talks of ways to make seed bombs for your private lands, tips and tricks on starting your own garden, ways and tools to donate and how to volunteer on one of their planned, not-so-illegal digs.

Animo Film and Theater Charter High School student, Blanca Perez, helped to organize LAGG’s Seed Bomb Workshop at her school. She thinks this type of radical environmental movement brings light to dark places in our cities. “Coming together to beautify our community brings us closer and makes a safer environment,” she said. Seems like a win-win situation…solidarity and beautification in the name of safety for our environment and our youth.

Join the army of gardeners in the Revolution of Consciousness by getting your hands in the dirt and filling your belly with home-grown food planted by Comrades in the fightto go green!

Here are some organizations walking the walk, ready for you to walk with them:

L.A. Guerilla Gardeners
http://www.laguerrillagardening.org/

Southern California Resistance Youth
http://www.myspace.com/southcentralyouthgarden/

Los Angeles Food Not Bombs
http://www.lafoodnotbombs.org/

Images courtsey of LosAngelesGuerrillaGardners.org

Garden After Guerilla Gardeners

May 27, 2009 Written by Joli Selten

Breathing is innate. “Following the breath” is a Buddhist concept that requires discipline, it is a tactic for focus during meditation and the practice of being mindful (meaning being present and aware).

Learning to have a mindful focus in a place like Los Angeles can be a challenge. We are afflicted by road rage, claustrophobic because of overpopulation, and in ill health because of pollution. These are all truths of our hometown that if not counterbalanced can trump even our best efforts to be kind, loving and present, as the Buddha suggests.

Lucky for us, there are many hiking trails, day spas and social hotspots to which we can retreat for a quick fix of escape and serenity. But for those of us who have an underlying desire to learn how to achieve Buddhist enlightenment-a way to live that centers around love, kindness and community-, we needed a place to learn…and Noah Levine answered our prayers.

Against the Stream is that place. Levine is an author (Dharma Punx and Against the Stream both available at www.againstthestream.org) and the founder of this punk rock, Buddhist meditation society that currently has two locations, one in East Hollywood and one in Santa Monica. It is a place where the teachings of the Buddha are made accessible to anyone interested in learning them, regardless of finances or religious commitments. Scholarships for classes are offered as freely as possible, so people who want to know more don’t miss out because they can’t afford a suggested cost.

The class list and online calendar at Against the Stream have a wide spectrum of activities. Offerings include meditation retreats, AA meetings, weekly social gatherings, meditation classes for every age group and special workshops such as Mindful Singing and a year-long group titled “A Year to Live” that, according the website, takes you through the “spiritual process of facing death and waking up to the life we are living.”

Levine is the founding father of an American Buddhist movement called Dharma Punx. Tired of drugs and destructive abandon, they turned their focus inward and discovered how the practice of quiet meditation works as an active way to combat anger and mental suffering. Against the Stream’s website tells the tale in simple terms:

“The Buddha said that his path to awakening was one of rebellion, a subversive path that is against greed, against hatred and against delusion. In order to awaken he taught that we have to travel against the norm of society and against our own self-centered tendencies. In his own language he said the path he had traveled and that all who wished to follow was “Patisotagami,” which literally translates “Against The Stream.

Whether you’re dealing with anger or grief, seeking a path away from addiction, looking for a new crowd, or if you’d like to learn about Buddhism and meditation, Against the Stream offers a warm welcome.

Against the Stream Buddhist Meditation Society
4300 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles CA 90029
1-323-665-4300
service@againstthestream.org
www.againstthestream.org/

images via flickr hylah and againstthestream.org

March 23, 2009 Written by Joli Selten

Los Angeles is a fashion-friendly city and Angelenos like to buy clothes! Fluctuation in styles and body size mandates the exchange of old clothes for different ones, and for L.A.’s 9 million inhabitants, this is a closet-cluttering process. So what do we do to make way for the new: throw away our used clothes? NO! We first try and pass them off to friends and/or family members, and if that doesn’t work we can find our clothes new homes at consignment and/or second-hand stores-and what a way to save some money buying “new” clothes for ourselves, too!

There are so many reasons to steer clear of buying new clothes. The fashion industry is riddled with inhumane work conditions and wasteful practices. Sweatshops hire young children to work in unsafe environments for a penny’s wage, and in the U.S., clothing is filling up our landfills by the ton. The EPA states: “An estimated 11.9 million tons of textiles were generated in 2007, or 4.7 percent of total municipal solid waste (MSW) generation.”

Here is a list of some local shops that add a bit of green and/or affordable flair during these financially hard times in which we are holding ourselves a bit more responsible for how the world treats the land and the people.

Jet Rag’s Dollar Sale happens every Sunday starting at 9:00 a.m. Each piece-jeans, lingerie, kid’s clothes, belts, dresses, everything- strewn out across their driveway costs only $1 and they’re cash only so raid the piggy bank the night before. It’s a bit of a zoo, and requires pile climbing and searching, but it sure is fun to find a vintage dress for a buck!

At Buffalo Exchange, if you don’t need a satchel to carry your goodies home in, they hand you a “token” which you place into a number of different charity bins. For each token in the bins, Buffalo will donate 5 cents to that charity. Also, between now and Earth Day (April 22, 2009), bring in your real fur items, even if they’re in bad condition and Buffalo Exchange will donate them to Coats for Cubs, a Humane Society of the United States nonprofit that is seeing to it that orphaned and injured wildlife around the country have comfortable and warm bedding.

Every year, there is a huge children’s items (clothing and gear) sale in Van Nuys, called LA Kids Consignment. Their tagline says it all, “Kids are expensive! Their stuff doesn’t have to be!” This year’s spring sale is from Friday March, 27th from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm in Van Nuys and volunteers for the sale get to shop before the public.

Clothes are just as eligible to be reused and recycled as a plastic bottle or cardboard box, so head down to any of these locations for fashion that’s stylish, affordable, and it’s rejuvenation is part of the big-picture solution. If you need more inspiration, check out these ydt approved, pre loved, clothing store destinations:

Buffalo Exchange
131 N. La Brea
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 938-8604
www.buffaloexchange.com/

Children’s Orchard
20929 Ventura Blvd. #45
Woodland Hills, CA 91364
(p) (818) 884-6446
www.childorch.com/

Jet Rag
825 N La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, 90038
(323) 939-0528
*Note this company does not have a website, so just link the title to the yelp review.

LA Kids Consignment
City-Art
7733 Hayvenhurst Ave.
Van Nuys, CA 91406
www.lakidsconsignment.com/

Twerps
5060 Eagle Rock Blvd.
Los Angeles, 90041
1-877-489-3777
www.twerps.com/

March 2, 2009 Written by Joli Selten

Some of us dance because it is in our souls. An inner fire lights when we hear music and we start to move—transcending time and space, politics and difference, while simply prioritizing the movement of our bodies and “feeling the groove.”  Technically, if we’re feeling that groove, we’re exercising. And for those of us who are non-corporate-gym-minded folks, dance class is a fantastic way to keep our bodies in motion and sweat out stress (especially when most of us sit at desks all day!).

Los Angeles is home to many professional dance studios where the air is thick with competition—not a loving, fun atmosphere for the rest of us who are simply soul dancers. Which begs the question, where can Angelenos who want to exercise by dancing go to class and not feel as though we’re auditioning for America’s Next Dance Crew?  The answer is Heartbeat House—a neighborhood, non-competitive dance/workout/fitness studio in Atwater Village. On its website, you’ll find words of inspiration describing the studio’s philosophy:  “Heartbeat House is home for people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds looking for creative self-expression and to achieve physical fitness through the joy of dance…Heartbeat House invites you to explore the rhythms and fundamental moves of various dance styles to your favorite music and release the dancer within you.”

There’s something for every dancer in the schedule of classes and unique to this studio are class titles as intriguing as, “Yogalates,” “Awesome 80’s Dance Party” and “Burlesque Ballet.” Eclectic, inspiring and welcoming, the friendly, community-oriented staff is waiting for you to come on in with your inner dancer and sweat for your soul!

Heartbeat House  3141 Glendale Blvd.  Los Angeles, CA 90039  323.669.2821

January 19, 2009 Written by Joli Selten

Join the revolution of consciousness and President Elect, Barack Obama, and celebrate Dr. King’s birthday by volunteering in your community. Whether your high school student needs to satisfy his or her community outreach requirement for graduation, or whether you feel like turning your frown upside down by being of service, here’s a list to help you get involved and make a difference in our world by starting at a grassroots level and volunteering in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles Volunteer Centers:

L.A. Works:

“L.A. Works is a nonprofit, volunteer action center”

323.224.6510
www.laworks.com

HIV/AIDS

Being Alive: People with HIV/AIDS Action Coalition

(323) 874-4322

http://www.beingalivela.org/

The Life Group:

“The Life Group LA is a coalition of people dedicated to the education, empowerment and emotional support of persons both infected and affected by HIV/AIDS so that they may make informed choices and decisions regarding their healthcare and personal well being.”

888-208-8081

http://thelifegroupla.org/volunteer.html

Union Rescue Mission: Homeless Shelter and Soup Kitchen

(213) 673-4814

http://www.urm.org/site/c.hdJFKNNoFiG/b.4465499/k.9BB3/Volunteer_Center.htm

Hospitality Kitchen aka Hippie Kitchen

(323) 267-8789

http://lacatholicworker.org/visiting-and-volunteering

Los Angeles Public Library: Adult Literacy Program

Central Library Info: 213-228-7272

http://www.lapl.org/literacy/volunteer.html

Volunteer Center of Los Angeles

818-908-5066

http://www.vcla.net/

Reading to Kids: Monthly reading clubs

310-479-7455

www.readingtokids.org

Literacy Network of Greater Los Angeles

213-237-6643

http://literacynetwork.org/literacynetwork_la/

Our House:

Non-profit bereavement center

310-475-0299

818-222-3344

http://ourhouse-grief.org/

I Have a Dream Foundation

213.572.0175

http://www.ihadla.org/getinvolved.aspx

The Painted Turtle:

The Painted Turtle is the sixth addition to Paul Newman’s family of Hole in the Wall Camps for seriously ill children.

310.451.1353

http://www.thepaintedturtle.org/turtle/

Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens

323-644-4703

http://www.lsazoo.org/volunteer/

SPCALA: Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

(323) 730-5300 x255

http://spcala.com/volunteers/voluninf.shtml

Heal the Bay:

“Heal the Bay is a nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to making Southern California costal waters and watersheds, including Santa Monica Bay, safe, healthy and clean.”

800-HEAL BAY x145

http://www.healthebay.org/volunteer/default.asp

826 LA

“826LA is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.

Our services are structured around our belief that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention, and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.”

826LA West (310) 305-8418

826LA East (213) 413-3388

http://www.826la.org

Tree People

“TreePeople is a nonprofit organization that has been serving the Los Angeles area for over three decades. Simply put, our work is about helping nature heal our cities.”

(818) 753-4600

http://www.treepeople.org

August 25, 2008 Written by Joli Selten

Sabrina Helas got herself fired from corporate America so she could work for real people like you! Tired of the fake and drawn to the genuine, she abandoned the entertainment industry and followed her soul’s longing to bring people joy through her professional endeavors.

She’s an eco-conscious “Anti 9-5”er who runs two boutique photography businesses and an urban refuge to mainstream life in her home—complete without television

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Her flagship business, Cookies and Water Photography mixes the vintage perspective of documentary-style photography with a genuine understanding of dogs and their nuances. She shoots our canine companions in their space, on their time, because she understands capturing their essence is only possible when they feel free to be playful and comfortable on familiar ground.
In her newest endeavor, Milk and Cookies Photography, she specializes in exhibiting every child’s spontaneous and gigantic personality by using natural light and organic setups found at home or parks, or the like. Helas’ childlike spirit guides her intuitive way of shooting kids, and her understanding of light and circumstance bring honesty to each photo.
After spending her whole life in the urban environments of San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles; and being sensitive to the current state of the world, she has made it her mission to take things back to basics. Everything is shot digitally, which eliminates film and its chemical processing.

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All supplies in her home-office are recycled (including her desk), and all business is conducted online eliminating carbon-footprint paper trails. She is currently transforming her home into a sustainable homestead by growing her own fruits, vegetables and herbs and replacing lawn with draught resistant succulents and alternative ground covers. Though she dreams about having chickens and goats some day, at the moment the only non-human in her house is her personal joy—a rescued, huggable hound named Kramer.
For more information, please contact Sabrina Helas at www.cookiesandwaterphotography.com or www.milkandcookiesphotography.com.