Update

Some things have happened. As a result, I've been entirely uninspired to write a thing since my last post. Nothing major, in the "Grand Scheme," but I'm nonetheless finding even this sentence extremely difficult to piece together. Anyway, I've experienced a shift in the past couple days. I've been struck by a faint glimmer of inspiration, and with that I give you the following updates. I'll start with the uninspiring, and finish with the inspiring.

1) The Story Tent: After visiting Occupy Olympia in the first week of its existence, the idea occurred to me to pitch a tent. I intended to set up my camera inside and give those involved in Occupy Oly time to tell their stories. The plan was to archive the stories on this blog. I posted an ad on craigslist listing my tent needs, and sure enough a tent to my exact specifications was donated. Long story short, the timing was wrong. The tent remained in the back of my car until I donated to Occupy Oly's supply tent where I hoped it would be put to good use.

2) Oly Acts @ Mud Bay: Since the first conversation from which Oly Acts was born, we envisioned a venue through which we could serve our community and spread some love. Of all the ideas we discussed, this one caused the most excitement. Recently, it's taken an abruptly plausible turn. We've got approval to use Mud Bay after close. Jeremiah and I bought a PA system. All that's left (figuratively speaking) is booking. To this end, I (along with everyone else involved in Oly Acts who takes interest) intend to begin show-going downtown and getting to know the local musicians. I'll also be creating a booking page for the blog, which will allow musicians to contact us to book shows.

That's all for now folks.
Kaylani

The Year Long Scat

"So what do you call that," I asked Kendal Calquhoun. "A hat-scarf, a harf, a scaharfat, what?"

Kendal shrugged. "A scat I guess."

"Why aren't you wearing it right now?" I asked him.

From behind the counter at Mud Bay Coffee, between drink orders, Kendal patiently answered, "It's ultra warm, it's really heavy and just bulky. It's hard to be doing things while you're wearing it. It's more of a sitting in the cold type of hat."

Kendal knitting his hat at Moon Base about a few
days before completing the project.
photo by: Kaylani, Oct 26, 2011

In October last year, under the instruction of our community's knitting guru Claire, Kendal learned how to knit. His first effort, a small gray test-swatch, is still attached to his key chain as a token of remembrance. After that, he began his hat. One year and nine skeins of yarn later, it is finished. "I wanted a wizard's hat. I wanted it to be a little over the top," says Kendal. "I knew it was done when it was dragging on the ground. It had taken so long I was ready to be finished. I just wanted to wear it."

The red and grey portions of Kendal's hat are knit with an alpaca and wool blend. The green at the end was knit with extremely soft baby alpaca. His yarns were purchased at Canvas Works downtown. "If you're gonna start knitting one, you'd better know your a patient person," Kendal recommends. "I knew I'd be able to finish it... I had an idea how long it would take, I didn't think it would be an entire year."

As a friend of Kendal's, I can confirm the patience he speaks of. I can't say I've encountered more patience in my life. But the man is not a machine. There were times during the project where boredom set in. "I got to the point where I had to take a break. There was a couple of times where I just didn't knit it for like a month." Learning new techniques helped keep the project interesting, though. "There was a lot of experimenting with knit patterns and ways of knitting where I took my rights as the person making it to go ahead and try."

Kendal learned from his experiments, though they didn't always go as planned. "In one of my experiments doing different knit patterns I ended up adding 40-plus stitches," He says. "After I screwed that part up I probably spent a good four hours fixing it."

Kendal also kept busy while he knit, exercising his multitasking muscles. "I listened to music, watched movies, rode in cars, came to Bible Study, sat by the fireplace [at Mud Bay]." When the hat was long enough to wear while knitting, he took full licence to knit wherever he wanted. "I walked around downtown, went to the Co-op, antique shopping."

During his walks downtown, he encountered a couple very curious folks. "I'd have the tail end and yarn in my bag and the part I was working on out in front of me," he explains. "People who didn't necessarily look like they understood I was knitting, but saw I had seven sticks in front of me, would come up like 'Whoa! What are you doing?'"

Next on Kendal's knitting agenda? Mittens. With a twist, of course. "I want the sleeves to be long, long," he says. With one hand outstretched as though a mitten coveres it, he draws his other hand up his arm and out past his head to demonstrate. "I'll have to fold them over my arm in order to wear them."

Occupy Olympia's Tent Community

I've been following stories about the occupy movement, from Wall Street to Oakland to Olympia and everywhere in between. The news coverage, from what I've seen, has been negative. This is likely due in part to the fact that media networks need newsworthy stories. Peace isn't exactly a headline topic. Police brutality, on the other hand, sure grabs viewer attention.

Several weeks ago, Jeremiah and I found ourselves bored and curious. So we headed down to Occupy Olympia with our video camera to ask questions and get informed. I highly recommend that anyone near enough to any occupation makes an effort to do the same (no video camera necessary). We found that the majority of folks we spoke with were well educated, well informed, and well intentioned. We sensed nothing but a deep sense of love and community from Olympia's tent city, and our hopes were lifted for the people involved in the movement.

After multiple conversations, I began to realize that the mass media's portrayal of the movement and the people had given me an inaccurate sense of the cause. At least in the case of Occupy Olympia, which I feel is different from other occupations in some beautiful ways. What struck me is that it's not really a protest, but a demonstration. A protest, to me, just says "you've got it wrong, fix it." Occupy Olympia is saying, "You've got it wrong. Let us show you how to fix it and let us be involved in the process." They've got a community medicine tent, food tent, and supply tent. No one's really in charge and everyone is invited to get involved. It's a demonstration of real democracy (despite the anarchy misconception), where individual voices are heard and community thrives because of it.

We used every interview (except one which we didn't hit record for) we conducted in our video. Due to technical difficulties, more than half our original footage was lost and we were limited to the first five minutes of each interview. We did our best to never misrepresent the occupation or the people involved. Though I am clearly in favor of Occupy Olympia, I made every effort to ensure the video is unbiased and un-manipulated. Regardless, I perceive a positive lean when I watch it. I assure you, had we any negative footage to include we'd have done so. Our desire was to get informed and share information, not to promote the cause.

Give us your feedback, share your thoughts, ask your questions. We're into that sort of thing.

In Solidarity,

Kaylani

Hello. My name is Jeremiah. I have the pleasure of being married to Kaylani. So as you can imagine it is very hard to fall away from things that matter to her because of who she is. She lives love and God through Jesus, so anything that will further the Kingdom she brings into her life.... Since i am a part of her life we bleed into eachother. It was only a matter of time before I had a word to say on this blog.... So that having been said here is my blog post...

I have never told God to "f" off until these past few weeks... Now I can't fight with something that doesn't exist. I have my faith firmly rooted in God through the Christ Jesus. The beginning of this fight started brewing over the past few months... I got carried away and attempted to step into what i thought God had in store for me. Well easily said nothing came of it other then a frustrated Jeremiah. I found myself Broken during a midnight walk after Kay planted some very truthful things in my heart that my ears did not want to hear.... but my heart did. I went a purchased my old cigarettes that (i wasted alot of time consuming back in the day) gave me a reason to walk..... so i could get the smell off before i got back home.

I found myself in the Oly Westfield mall parking lot crying... No one was there save maybe a homeless person or two. I was shouting "PREPARE ME! GIVE ME A SUFFERER'S HEART! I HATE THE HABITS I HAVE CREATED FOR MYSELF! MUSIC IS NO LONGER MY PASSION! YOU ARE! STRIP EVERYTHING I DONT NEED AWAY FROM ME. LEAVE ME BARREN AND RAIN DOWN ON MY DRY SPRIRT!"

Needless to say i was so angry that I was fed up. Fed upi with not being satisfied with life so I turned to the one thing that gave me comfort. If other people can get joy and comfort from the creator why can't i? I thought.... So i started fasting my guitar... Now when i moved here i had plans of playing music.... with OTHER musicians... well up until this point no one wanted to get together to play other then Esa who is a close friend and he and i have never had the chance or the place. So by the end of the week a drummer popped up and so did a bass player and we had plans to play together at the end of the following week. A week of fasting guitar after having to no one to play with for months led to musicians to play with. "Thank you Lord!" So among all of this i still found myself still fighting with God. "Why can't I hear you?"

Kaylani by this time had developed a cough. She still has this cough... So if you know me then you might understand my frustration. I come from a ministry of healing and extreme faith. So everyday i would lay my hands on Kay and declare her healing in Christ. And her coughing has continued... It escalated a few nights ago when she broke into a coughing fit and in the middle i found myself screaming "IF YOU EXIST GOD THEN YOU, RIGHT NOW, TAKE THIS INFECTION AND COUGH AWAY FROM KAYLANI...." it was followed by a harsher cough fit. I have not lost faith in the creator.... I am just pissed at him right now. Whatever walls or barriers i have put up for myself to "block" God's voice do not matter. My God, the one i believe in, has no problem hitting you in the face and showing you his true self.... then where is mine? Why is my God not getting through to me? God told Kay when she decided to not use doctors or medicine that she was going to be tested. a year almost to the date she finds herself sick.... SO she is being tested cool whatever... I guess I don't fit into that equation... That angers me.

So I am writing this, not to make a point, not to denounce God.... If you are fighting with God... if you are struggling to hear His voice or to spend time with him even fighting with yourself on whether or not a "creator" exists.... Then you are not alone. You have people to talk about this with. You still have your eyeballs, ten fingers and toes. Remember that this place is not our home and we are just passing through. Even in my despair with God, I can't help but sing his praises and see him in people or in actions.... but that doesn't mean I am not fighting with him.

For added encouragement i have attached a video of a man named Dan Smith and his project Listener. If you find yourself pissed or angry or whatever... watch this video to cheer you up.

Update

Hey friends
Posting will be a bit sparse for another week or so. It's not that I don't have any stories to share; trust me the story supply is overflowing. A project is in the works however, and it's proving rather time consuming. I'm very excited about it though, and I can't wait to share. Let me give you a little preview.

I went down to Occupy Olympia for the first time two Tuesdays ago with Jeremiah. We took our video camera and spent a couple hours asking people why they were there and how long they planned on staying. There's been, in my opinion, an intense lack of media coverage of the occupation. So, we are working on a video to share the conversations we had.

Last Tuesday I went back to Occupy with my camera to check in on things. The movement had grown from 20 or so tents to around 100. I spent another few hours getting to know the folks involved, gathering information about the medical and food tents, and sitting in on a general assembly meeting. It was a thoroughly exciting and hope-building experience. I'll be creating a video to share once the first video is finished.

The idea occurred to me, after a dozen or so heart-to-hearts with Oly occupiers, that people have stories. These stories are the driving force behind the occupy movement. They give beautiful insight into the reasons for the movement, and the direction participants hope to see it take. So I posted an ad on craigslist looking for a canopy tent (http://seattle.craigslist.org/oly/wan/2674549186.html) in order to erect what will be called the Story Tent. I hope to set up my camera and give people 10 minutes to share their story. The stories will be archived on this blog as they are gathered. We got a response to the ad just today, so things are looking good!

This is the first sign I've painted to
hang on the Story Tent. 

Stay tuned for the upcoming videos and updates on the Story Tent.

Blessings
Kaylani

This is Worship Part 2

David on drums, Josh on vox standing on drums, and
Wolf on bass, at El Corazon.
photo by Kaylin Roback, October 2010

When you live in a world that caters to and fosters self image, self improvement, self gain, self expression, self loathing, self indulgence, and self preservation, it's not often you run across a group of people completely disenchanted with their "selfs".The Chariot is such a group.As I mentioned in This is Worship Part 1 (http://olyacts.blogspot.com/2011/10/this-is-worship-part-i.html), there are two reasons I'm especially fond of The Chariot. The first, as previously described, was their huge capacity to worship God no matter where they are or who they're with. The second, is this: they're genuine.

A fanged skull is a prominent symbol on much of the band's merch. It seems like a dark image for a band who's message is so filled with light. Jeremiah and I discussed the possible meanings of the skull for months before realizing we could simply go to the source for an answer.

He sent Stephen (pictured below), a facebook message with our question, and a day or two later received a response. The skull, as Stephen explained, represents death to self and living fulfilled through Christ. Wow. "Duh!" we both said. Death to self. This is profound humility. This is finding God, the infinite source of love, realizing His love is greater than anything you could hope to do or be, and surrendering your life to Him.

Every encounter I've had with members of The Chariot thus far has convinced me that Stephen wasn't relaying empty words, but words the band lives by.They've found that living instead of preaching their beliefs works better for them. Their lives reflect their hearts, and their music gives their hearts a voice.

Before the first show we ever saw them perform was at El Corazon about a year ago. Jeremiah wrote the band a letter and gave it to Stephen outside the venue. He told them about the impact their music had on him, explained exactly what he felt their music was about, and encouraged them to keep letting God guide them so awesomely. At the end of it, he wrote down his phone number and said "If you ever need encouragement, give me a call." This was before we'd ever talked or prayed with them, and I remember Jeremiah being slightly nervous that they'd read it and laugh; that he completely misinterpreted them and they were just another thrash band with nothing to say.

Guitarist Stephen Harrison at El Corazon during
our first The Chariot experience.
photo by: Kaylin Roback, October 2010  

After the first and second shows we saw at El Corazon, we had awesome conversations and prayer sessions with the guys in The Chariot. Hoping the same would happen this time, we took off outside after the band's set where we knew they'd be loading their equipment (Yes. We did happen to see them unloading before the show. And yes. We took note.).We helped them load up and chatted for several minutes until it started raining, at which point Josh, the band's vocalist, suggested as many as possible squeeze into the equipment trailer to stay dry. More than just our group had joined in the conversation at this point, and by the time a prayer was suggested there were probably twenty people huddled together.

We closed the prayer and continued to chat until Josh asked about good, cheap food nearby. Kaylin and I were cold and assumed the band was getting ready to roll out, so we sent them off with hugs and went back inside. During this time, Jeremiah got to talk to Wolf, the band's bassist, and Stephen, who plays guitar. "That name!" Wolf said. His hands pressed flat to his forehead as the realization formed in him. "You said it before and I knew it was familiar. You're the guy who gave us the note! Is that still in the van?" he asked Stephen.

"If it's not in the van, it's in my room," Stephen said. "I sent a text to that number but I never got a response." Jeremiah's hands slammed to his forehead as it was his turn for a realization to strike. He explained that he's gone extended periods with a missing phone, had at least one phone replaced, and recently changed his number.

Bassist Wolf (AKA Jon Kindler) at El Corazon.
photo by Kaylin Roback, October 2010

Jeremiah hung around until Stephen and Wolf were ready to go eat. They began walking and Jeremiah started to say goodbye. "Wait," Stephen said. "Aren't you coming?" They waited while Jeremiah grabbed me and anyone else willing to miss Comeback Kid to tag along, and we set off for a Mexican restaurant up the road. Josh and Wolf spent over an hour eating and chatting with us. We bombarded them with our curiosity and they answered with earnest patience. I left after 40 minutes or so to make sure our friends could find us if the show ended. Jeremiah and his friends Jared, James, Brian, and a few others stayed behind. The conversation continued for at least another 40 minutes.

When your motivation and focus moves beyond yourself, you can begin to live and create without the restrictions of pride. That's what The Chariot has done, both individually and collectively. They've embraced humility in its truest form. I don't mean blindly catering to the will of others, as I often see humility attempted. Rather, recognizing the limitations of self and relying on God for fulfillment. I'm convinced you can tell whether a person or group is genuinely humble, genuinely living according to their faith, two ways. Both by the imprint they leave in the lives of others, and the imprint they allow others to leave in their lives.

Stephen making creative use of
his guitar at Neumos.

photos by Kaylin Roback, Sept 26

Jeremiah's letter is a singular though not isolated example of the latter. During the time the guys spent in conversation after I left the Mexican restaurant, an example of the former was brought to light. Jared came with us the first time we saw The Chariot. Before the show started, we prayed with Wolf in the crowd. After the show, we prayed with the vocalist, Josh. Jared, a "non-believer" (for lack of a better descriptor) at the time, joined us to pray each time. After it was all over, he, Jeremiah, and Brian drove back to Wenatchee where they then lived. On their way, Jared asked "Do you guys know what you're going to say before you pray?" Brian and Jeremiah said no, and explained how they go about talking to God. "Cool," Jared replied. "Mind if I try?"

Josh screams "My brain is fixed!" from the song "The City"
At Neumos.
photo by: Kaylin Roback, Sept 26

While eating with Stephen and Wolf, Jared had a chance to tell them about his past experience with church. He explained why he'd stopped attending and basically gave up on Christianity because his encounters with Christians had been overall very negative. He shared how the first show we went to changed his perspective, and how he prayed in the car  afterward. In return, Wolf offered Jared his testimony which, according to Jeremiah, was the mirror image of Jared's.

Stay tuned for Part 3, which will wrap things up. After expanding on things, that is.

This is Worship Part 1 & 3/4

What we have here my friends, is a compilation of photographs taken by Kaylin during The Chariot's set at Neumos on Sept 26. My previous post, "This Is Worship Part 1," is my initial attempt to share the experience on this blog. I will complete my attempt in a post that will be added soon(ish). Until then, it's my sincere hope that your ravenous appetites will be sated with this eye snack. 

*Note: Clicking the image will open it on a new screen at its original, legible size.