Friday, 29 March 2024

Arts & Life

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Alex White Plume working in his horse corral near Manderson, South Dakota. Photo courtesy of Prairie Dust Films.

 



CLEARLAKE – Second Sunday Cinema's free documentary for May 10 is “Standing Silent Nation.”


This quietly moving and forthright documentary introduces us to the extended White Plume family of the sovereign Lakota Sioux Nation.


When the two young women who made this film arrived at Alex White Plume's small home, he informed them that only 10 minutes earlier, the Drug Enforcement Administration had served him with a summons detailing eight federal charges against him – for growing industrial hemp, a relative of the marijuana plant, but with a THC count of 0 percent.


Hemp, the “standing silent nation” as the Lakotas call it, has tens of thousands of uses, from superior textiles and cosmetics to biodegradable plastics. It is environmentally friendly, requiring no pesticides, little water and fertilizer and no herbicides. It controls erosion, produces huge amounts of biomass and oxygen, and replaces trees in making not just paper products, but building materials. That wild-eyed revolutionary Henry Ford actually built a CAR out of hemp! Yet growing industrial hemp remains illegal in the US.


Two local speakers/presenters will be present at this screening. Ron Kiczenski is a Lake County resident who was crucially involved in the events that led up to the making of this film. He is also a globally respected advocate for industrial hemp, and he will share his knowledge of hemp and the film (which didn't turn out as he had hoped).


Lori Patozka is a Lake County vegan cook and teacher. She will present some of the many hemp food products that are increasingly available in this country. She will have enough of at least some to share with the audience.

 

The White Plumes, a hard-working family, hoped to lift themselves and their fellows out of the grinding poverty of their windswept, hardscrabble reservation land – much of it unsuited to either farming or livestock.


Unemployment in the Pine Ridge Reservation where the White Plumes live is 85 percent. Clearly, hemp production could create desperately needed and creative alternatives to poverty and despair, now that the buffalo are gone.

 

The words of an angry reviewer from The New York Times say it very well: “The story of a dirt-poor but enterprising family thwarted by shocking, stupid acts by jerks armed with red tape and guns produces a single effect: umbrage. It's good umbrage, mostly, that surging, almost euphoric response to a crusading documentary that frees you from the duty to be even-handed or hear out the other side.”


Deborah White Plume says: “As hemp is a multi-BILLION dollar a year industry, it very well can take our people – as a Nation – out of poverty and dependence. Perhaps THAT is why the US does not want us to grow hemp. If we have resources as a Nation, we won’t need welfare AND we might fight for our land, water, treaty.”


Second Sunday Cinema exists to bring important information to the people of Lake County.


Information is empowering. It allows us to make decisions that benefit us, rather than the rich and powerful.


Our films are always free, and the atmosphere is warm and supportive. Our doors open at 5:30 p.m. for snacks and socializing. The film/presenters will begin at 6 p.m.


Our venue is the Clearlake United Methodist Church at 14521 Pearl Ave. in Clearlake.


For more information call 707-279-2957.

 

 

 

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Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota. Photo courtesy of Prairie Dust Films.
 

 

 

 

 

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DEA agents walk through the White Plumes' hemp fields during eradication operations. Photo courtesy of Prairie Dust Films.
 

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Paula Samonte will be a featured performer at the May 10 concert. Courtesy photo.

 

 

LAKEPORT – The wonderful world of contemporary popular music will take place on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 10, when the Lake County Symphony presents "Another Op'nin',Another Show" – a tribute to the late Cole Porter and others.

 

The concert is sponsored by Clear Lake Performing Arts and will start at 3 p.m. at the Marge Alakszay Center at Clear Lake High School in Lakeport.

 

Symphony director John Parkinson has put together a program consisting of music bound to please Moms of all ages, including such titles in the Cole Porter Salute as "In the Still of the Night," "Anything Goes" and "Night and Day." But Porter is only one of a group of inspired composers and musicians the Symphony is saluting on Mothers Day. Others include Duke Ellington, George and Ira Gershwin and some of the best of Louis Armstrong.

 

Ellington's music is represented by such numbers as "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)", "Sophisticated Lady", "Caravan" and "It Don't Mean a Thing (If it ain't Got That Swing)."

 

A medley called "George Gershwin in Concert" includes "I Got Rhythm," "Someone to Watch Over Me,' "S'wonderful" and "Rhapsody in Blue." Others by Gershwin are "A Foggy Day" (In London Town) and "Embraceable You" featuring a beautiful Flugelhorn solo by long-time symphony member, Gary Miller. Gershwin’s brother, Ira, wrote the lyrics for most of the tunes.

 

Other enduring favorites are "Deep Purple", "April in Paris", and "Georgia". Blues man Louis Armstrong is featured in a medley entitled "Satchmo" that includes a number of his most-loved vocal numbers including "What a Wonderful World, " When The Saints Go Marching In," "St. Louis Blues" and "Hello, Dolly."

 

Vocalist Paula Samonte will be featured with the orchestra, singing more popular jazz arrangements by conductor, John Parkinson. "Don't Get Around Much Anymore", "I’ll Take Romance", and "I’ve Got the World on a String."

 

The annual Mother's Day classic has become a tradition for many Lake County families with attendance at the concert being a special – and inexpensive – way to pay tribute to Mom on her special day. Tickets at the door are $20 for general admission and $15 for members of Clear Lake Performing Arts. Young people under age 18 are admitted free. For further information contact 279-0877.

LAKEPORT – The Lakeport Main Street Association (LMSA) is excited to bring Outdoor Movie and Dinner Night on Sunday, May 24, to Library Park.


This event is a fundraiser for the 2009 Lakeport Fireworks show.


Due to financial constraints, the Lakeport Regional Chamber of Commerce is unable to fund the fireworks display for 2009, and going to the community is the method that seems the most viable, said Melissa Fulton, the chamber's chief executive officer.


LMSA has committed to a $2,000 donation and this exciting evening is our way in assisting a win/win for our community.


Imagine being in your favorite spot at Library Park enjoying that great old movie “American Graffiti” on a larger-than-life movie screen while you and your family lounge on your favorite blankets. We encourage you to bring your own lawn chairs for a more comfortable viewing and if you feel inspired come dressed as your favorite character from American Graffiti.


Dinner will consist of spaghetti and meatballs provided by Park Place Restaurant, salad with two choices of dressing provided by Molly Brennan’s Pub, garlic french bread provided by Main Street Pizza and Dessert will provided by Angelina’s Bakery.


The cost for this wonderful evening is $20 per person and children under 12 $10.


There will be a beer and wine reception at 6 p.m., with dinner at 7 p.m. The movie will start approximately 8:15 p.m. (dusk).


Major sponsors for this event are LMSA, Lake Event Designs, Park Place Restaurant, Molly Brennan’s Pub, Main Street Pizza and Angelina’s Bakery. We would like to thank each and every one of them.


The community has always been very supportive of the fireworks in Lakeport and although everyone is facing challenges in the current economy, there seems to be a widespread desire to carry on this great American Tradition.


Tickets may be purchased in advanced from The Kitchen Gallery at 302 N. Main St. in Lakeport, Hillside Honda at 460 S. Main St. in Lakeport and The Lakeport Regional Chamber of Commerce at Vista Point.


For more information please call 707-262-0422.

NAPA – Rigoberta Menchu, Nobel Peace Prize recipient in 1992, will speak Tuesday, May 5, at Napa Valley College.


The lecture will be from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. in the Napa Valley College Gymnasium followed by a book signing. The event is co-sponsored by the NVC Inclusivity Committee and Napa County Hispanic Network.


She is a Guatemalan leader known for her work in the promotion of human rights, peace and Indigenous Peoples’ rights. She was the youngest person to receive this distinction.


She was born in 1959 in the village of Chimel and, in her youth, worked in the fields. Self-educated, she became an active political worker in labor, campesino and human rights groups.


Her book, “I, Rigoberta Menchu, An Indian Woman in Guatemala” was published in 1983. She has received international recognition and several honorary doctorates.


At present, she is the promoter of the International Decade of Indigenous Peoples, mandated by the General Assembly of the United Nations.


The event is free and open to the public.


For more information contact the Office of Student Services at 707-253-3110 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..


 


 

UKIAH – Distinguished poets from Lake County will join Mendocino and Sonoma county poets Saturday, May 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., during "LitFest 2009, A Celebration for Word Lovers."

 

Readings will take place in the Lowery Library Building at Mendocino College, 1000 Hensley Creek Road. Admission is free.

 

The event will feature writing workshops, readings by the novelists and poets, and opportunities to meet the authors. Food from Schat’s Bakery and the Mendocino College Latino Club will be available.

 

For more information about LitFest 2009, call the Mendocino College Library at 707.468.3051 or visit the event website, www.mendocino.edu/litfest. The Mendocino College Foundation, along with the Friends of the Mendocino College Library and additional supporters, sponsors the one-day festival.

 

A portion of the festival is dedicated to celebrating the work of local poets, according to John Koetzner, head librarian at Mendocino College. He said it is "an honor" to present well-known poets including the current and former poet laureates from Lake County. The scheduled participants are James BlueWolf, Jim Lyle, Mary McMillan, Sandra Wade and Carolyn Wing-Greenlee, all of Lake County.

 

Short biographies and links to the poets’ Web sites can be found on the LitFest 2009 Web site, www.mendocino.edu/litfest.

 

Jim Lyle, James BlueWolf, and Carolyn Wing-Greenlee will read from their works at 2 p.m. "Things Seen in the Desert" was Lyle’s first book, released in 2001. He was selected Poet Laureate in Lake County in 1998. He has been a guest lecturer at several colleges.

 

BlueWolf is an internationally published poet who is also known as a songwriter and storyteller. His book "Speaking For Fire" earned him the honor of WordCraft Circle of Native Writers & Storyteller’s "Children’s Writer of the Year" in 2006. In addition, he is a media editor for the Smithsonian National Museum of The American Indian and senior editor for the online poetry journal Queen: Calliope.

 

Poet Laureate for Lake County from 2004 to 2006, Wing-Greenlee has written more than a dozen books. She has been a teacher of poetry and creative writing at high schools and colleges, and her poetry appears in several magazines and literary journals. She studied comparative literature with an emphasis on poetry at Occidental College.

 

Lake County’s current Poet Laureate Mary McMillan will round out the day’s poetry readings along with Sandra Wade at 3 p.m. McMillan published her first collection of poetry, "This Wanting," in 2008 following 10 years of writing poetry. During those 10 years, her poems were published in several publications, including the Santa Clara Review, Tomcat, and most recently accepted in Toyon. Before writing poetry, however, McMillan developed composition skills in journalism and fiction.

 

Wade preceded McMillan as Lake County’s Poet Laureate, appointed in 2006. She is working on a compact disc of her poetry, hoping to have it completed in time for Saturday’s event. Wade has composed poems over the past 20 years. Her poetry has been published in several journals. She also presents a weekly radio program, "Accent on Words," on Lake County’s community radio station, 88.1 KPFZ-FM.

Upcoming Calendar

30Mar
03.30.2024 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Lakeport Community Cleanup Day
30Mar
03.30.2024 9:00 am - 11:00 am
Second annual Bunny Brunch
30Mar
03.30.2024 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Lake County poet laureate inauguration
31Mar
03.31.2024
Easter Sunday
31Mar
03.31.2024 1:15 pm - 1:45 pm
Lakeport Rotary Club Easter Egg Hunt
1Apr
04.01.2024
Easter Monday
1Apr
10Apr
15Apr
04.15.2024
Tax Day

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