For the love of Dog

Just a quick post with some new images to keep up with my 365 project.
So, today I volunteered at the Manna Food Bank here in Asheville. There were a wealth of volunteers both young and old and we had a great time sorting all the food that they have on hand into boxes for their affiliates to shop from. Manna is an amazing operation, giving away over 6 millions TONS of food last year. That's a lot of food. The problem is, the need is increasing while their food supply is decreasing. I took a tour and learned about how the efficiency of our food delivery system in the US is actually hurting food banks because manufacturers are no longer over producing, they are producing on demand. Manna used to get a lot of their food from large food manufacturers and now they are not, so their stocks are lower this year than last. What was great to hear is that in Western North Carolina, the personal donations are the highest they have ever been. In fact other food banks have been checking in with Manna to find out how they have gotten so many homes to donate food. I believe it is because the people who live in Asheville and Buncombe county truly believe in helping each other out!

So tomorrow is the big day! I am excited to watch Obama come into office and I will be at the Orange Peel tomorrow night at 7pm to re-watch the inauguration and to celebrate with Josh Phillips Folk festival. If you are not going to one of the 100 parties in town, drop by the Peel for some great music.

The Pop Asheville festival was a big hit. I had a blast all weekend long and when I sort and tweak images from that adventure I will let you know.

Hope everyone has a great day tomorrow...

Hope is alive.


"Dirty Red"
From Pop Asheville -


For the Love of Dog
Suzie - doing what she does best...

Meditation and Pop Asheville

I usually write "Hello" but I don't really think that is necessary anymore... if there is anyone out there, we're past the niceties... aren't we?
Today, for the first time in my life, I woke up and meditated. I have wanting to incorporate a meditation practice into my life for some time and with it being a New Year and all, I thought this would be a good time to start.
Now, let's get something straight. I didn't sit there in the lotus position humming "Om" until I levitated off the ground. I didn't hum or chant or any such thing. I have kept myself away from meditating for so long because I thought that's what meditation was. Sit still for hours, mind blank, back straight, chanting or humming, butterflies landing on my shoulder, floating six inches off the ground. Meditation doesn't have to be all that. I mean, that's cool if you can levitate, more power to you, if little winged creatures land on your shoulder, hey... far out... good for you. But it's not that for me and its mostly due to a book I read that helped me get my head around meditation called "Hurry up and Meditate!" by David Michie.
Michie helped me realize that the whole "blank mind" ideal some people (me) have or had around meditation is not all it is about. In fact he makes a strong case that blank mind is NOT what it is about, but I won't go in to that here. What Michie does well, is to break down all of the physical benefits of meditation, backed by scientific study, that people who meditate have known for ever. One is happier, less stressed, lower blood pressure, higher serotonin... all that good stuff. Then he provides step by step easy instructions to follow on how to get started.
So this morning, I started. I set an alarm for 10 minutes, got a pillow, sat down, closed my eyes and concentrated on my breathing. I counted my breaths as they passed through my nose. Stuff came up... what time is it? How long have I been here? Is there enough money in the bank? What do I have to do today? Each time something came up, and broke my counting, I started counting again. Before I knew it, the alarm had gone off and I was done. I must admit, it was really wonderful to sit still for 10 minutes. Each time a thought arose, it had less traction than the last one until I could sense something coming and concentrated on my breathing and it went away.
Now, those of you who know me well, if you are still reading, may think, Jon's lost it, he's gone to the deep end. Jon doesn't sit still... he talks to himself so he'll have something to do. And that's the point. I don't want the constant concern of the monkey chatter of my brain anymore. I have too much going on to let all the little annoying thoughts that have occupied my precious brain space for so long, hold down that realty anymore. I want my brain back.
I believe that Meditation is the way for me to make that happen.

So, tomorrow I will sit again. I have no expectations of what it looks like, so I won't judge myself, I'll just sit and count my breaths and see how I feel when I am done. I gotta admit, today was a pretty good day.... and I have only just begun.

Tonight I am off to Pop Asheville, a super cool independent music festival / weekend multi-venue thing. It's cheap, great music at different bars... how can I miss out? I am excited to see some good music, take some pictures, have a couple of beers and hang with some friends. And who knows... maybe a butterfly will land on my shoulder.

Enjoy the image, I shot it yesterday in my studio. The sun light was bouncing off a window in the building across the street, coming in my studio window and gently laying across my floor. I couldn't resist. That's double diffused, reflected, super soft morning light... for those of you who aren't photographer's... That's some damn fine light.