Very nice site!

a conversation with my future self rulezz! =)

Your words have been one of the most helpful ones since i found your writings!
I am living a time when i would need a huge change. But the change does not come. I want to trust that it will come when it is meant to be... But still i get this flashes, the feelings " will i have a future".

your words have resonated in me. change must happen - but what is important to us can never be lost. hope to meet you soon.

So true, Keri! Words I really needed to hear. I wish you luck (and happy surprises). May you flourish abundantly in your new home!

Anyone who cares about the people of New Orleans, especially our fellow citizens who were too impoverished or too old  or to sick  to afford an evacuation before the storm, should read this article and forward it/contact your local representatives and demand an explanation and accountability.

(To read the whole story after the excerpts below from the emergency management chief in NO, follow the link at the end. It is written by a senior staff writer at the Philadelphia Daily News.)

On June 8, 2004, Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, Louisiana; told the Times-Picayune: "It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq, and I suppose that's the price we pay. Nobody locally is happy that the levees can't be finished, and we are doing everything we can to make the case that this is a security issue for us."

Also that June, with the 2004 hurricane season starting, the Corps' project manager Al Naomi went before a local agency, the East Jefferson Levee Authority, and essentially begged for $2 million for urgent work that Washington was now unable to pay for. From the June 18, 2004 Times-Picayune:

"The system is in great shape, but the levees are sinking. Everything is sinking, and if we don't get the money fast enough to raise them, then we can't stay ahead of the settlement," he said. "The problem that we have isn't that the levee is low, but that the federal funds have dried up so that we can't raise them." The levee board noted in October 2004 that the feds were also now not paying for a hoped-for $15 million project to better shore up the banks of Lake Pontchartrain.

The 2004 hurricane season was the worst in decades. In spite of that, the Bush administration came back this spring with the steepest reduction in hurricane and flood-control funding for New Orleans in history. Because of the proposed cuts, the Corps office there imposed a hiring freeze. Officials said that money targeted for the SELA project -- $10.4 million, down from $36.5 million -- was not enough to start any new jobs.

There was, at the same time, a growing recognition that more research was needed to see what New Orleans must do to protect itself from a Category 4 or 5 hurricane. But once again, the money was not there. As the Times-Picayune reported last Sept. 22:

The Newhouse News Service article published Tuesday night observed, "The Louisiana congressional delegation urged Congress earlier this year to dedicate a stream of federal money to Louisiana's coast, only to be opposed by the White House. ... In its budget, the Bush administration proposed a significant reduction in funding for southeast Louisiana's chief hurricane protection project. Bush proposed $10.4 million, a sixth of what local New Orleans officials say they need."

Local officials are now saying, the article reported, that had Washington heeded their warnings about the dire need for hurricane protection, including building up levees and repairing barrier islands, "the damage might not have been nearly as bad as it turned out to be."

To read story in its entirety, go to http://www.mediainfo.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001051313

Will Bunch (letters@editorandpublisher.com) is senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News. Much of this article also appears on his blog at that newspaper, Attytood.

i am 10 days away from moving away from dear friends and family to pursue my dreams and your words in this entry ring particularly true at this moment. i've had to sit back and examine where i am at this moment, and i realize that part of me (as with most people, i guess) desires to cling to the familiar, and not to move outside of my realm of comfort. your words remind me that throwing myself into the unknown is a wonderful opportunity for growth, and to be able to truly test my strength. there are parts of myself i have yet to explore, parts of me that i frequently doubt, and this move give me an opportunity to cement my faith in myself. thanks for the reminder :) the best in your transition, newness awaits you! (ps-thanks for sharing your recommendation of sark's books...her books are a light.)

wishing you the very best with your big leap. You are inspiring, especially as I am leaping to Canada myself next year. Thank you for your bravery and words.

Wishing all the best as you make the big leap! I find you and your words very inspiring. Thank you

Walk up to the edge
Close your eyes
Spread your wings
And jump!

Hallo Keri
I really regret moving into the area as you leave it. I appreciated this entry and the others I've read since coming lately to your blog. No one can ever tell you you aren't living with your eyes open!
Very best wishes. Lunch before you go? Sunday?
L

not impossible to consume a sandwich without chips, only infinitely less enjoyable. your courage has wings keri...open them. and take a nap dammit.

i had talked to hubby for my other site http://www.discoveringartists.com and i know he said he had left already. i'm glad you're enjoying your last few days. yes, a lot of change.

Hi Keri..thsi is the first itme iahve visited yoru blog..it is equllay as intersting and inspiring as your husband's who i initially came across. I agree with what you say that we should make life happen and jsut enjoys the day as it arises, not sit there like TV slobs beign spoon fed by the mass media and popular culture - that says - buy this, watch that..., i rarely watch TV ( six feet under - exempt from this - i love it) and feel sorry for those sometimes who rely on it so much as a source of conversation and almost a way of life. Your art work is great, have you ever heard of Alfreda Benge..an artist, she designs the sleeves for her husband's albums..Robert Wyatt, another interesting artistic couple i must admit.

For "Captain" Keri :)

"Why are we Masters of our Fate, the captains of our souls? Because we have the power to control our thoughts, our attitudes. That is why many people live in the withering negative world. That is why many people live in the Positive Faith world."

Keri:

I don't have cleavage either. Truth is that all the men in my family are flat-chested. It's disappointing.

We're looking forward to seeing you, Macie & I.

Sending love & happy travels,

CK

P.S. Chips are god's way of saying: "Eat!"

This post moved me today. I am going through big life changes these days, I can completely relate. Breathe. Whew. That feels good.

I can't believe I am losing a fellow Albertan illustrator. I wish you all the best with your move, Keri!

din't = don't, sorry.

Canada is the fifth country I live in. Whenever I move to a new country, I think about the good friends I have there. The only thing about them is that they din't know me yet.

Change is hard, but it's beautiful too. It's a cycle. Enjoy it.

Hello Keri,

While I am, too, in the final stages of packing up my life in the UK (and leaving everything behind that has been my "home" and my comfortzone) to move to the US next month, I am very grateful for your words. Where I fail to express what's going on in my mind and heart I can always turn to your wonderful jar of wishes for a dash of encouragement and empathy.

Thanks. Kerstin

hi keri,
i was reminded of this poem by Robert Frost that is sad but also wise...
jessica

Reluctance

Out through the fields and the woods
And over the walls I have wended;
I have climbed the hills of view
And looked at the world, and descended;
I have come by the highway home,
And lo, it is ended.

The leaves are all dead on the ground,
Save those that the oak is keeping
To ravel them one by one
And let them go scraping and creeping
Out over the crusted snow,
When others are sleeping.

And the dead leaves lie huddled and still,
No longer blown hither and thither;
The last long aster is gone;
The flowers of the witch-hazel wither;
The heart is still aching to seek,
But the feet question 'Whither?'

Ah, when to the heart of man
Was it ever less than a treason
To go with the drift of things,
To yield with a grace to reason,
And bow and accept the end
Of a love or a season?

Again to the old addage, it's the journey not the destination. Change is inevitable and be it good or bad we are better for it. I've recently been learning these lessons and suddenly (or slowly over the past 15 years, depending on how you look at it) I'm not afraid.

chips are a very important part of a well balanced american diet. to eat a sandwich without one would be about as satisfying as fries with no catsup. ah cleavage. cheers to those who have some as well as those who don't. i must say since i've recently come into a bit, sleeping is more of a challenge. heavy boobies!
you are so right, there is no choice but to open and unfold. you can do it!

I am going through this right now and your words are so helpful. You are amazing! Thanks for inspiring. Good luck!

Your future self is so right! And so courageous! Good luck to you with the move...I'm looking forward to hearing of your adventures!

the clevage was a great image -- and trust me, so very accurate. brownie crumbs land there, too, in those times of sad, remote-wielding vegetation in front of commericals and daytime tv.

keri, you are a joy!!!
thank you for being a constant inspiration, for sharing your thoughts and life with us, and for being so honest (both with yourself & all of us).

amen.

How nice to read an entry on change. I have been thinking of this very thing quite a bit lately. In particular a quote from another site that says "change is not something you do, it's something you allow." I think it's both really.

There is a new peace in your words...it sounds as though the process of letting go of your current setting, your present home, is nearing the end. I can relate to your words and your struggle with such an enourmous change...and you are so right about letting go, that you will then immediately open yourself up to new things. new creative inspirations. new people. I am looking forward to reading your work in the future, and seeing those changes in your writing. Blessings to you...

This brings to mind an old Calvin and Hobbes cartoon, where Calvin is debating whether to stay inside and watch people on TV pretending to have fun and adventures, or to go outside and actually do stuff. Virtual life vs. real life. I always think of that cartoon when the thought of new things gets a little scary.

Sounds like an email to futureme.org might be in order before you board the plane... :)

this is exactly the kind of enty i needed. thank you :)
my boyfriend and i are comtempleting moving to another city, and while we know it's the right choice, it's a little sad and very scary. when i get home today, i am going to read this to him.

Oh how lovely the change in the seasons mirrors the change in your life...it sounds so, so lovely where you live but then there is loveliness everywhere and part of life is surely to sample some of it..go and have an adventure!

Michal

Yes, I was going to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the line "brushing the crumbs out of our cleavage". I'll be thinking about that, the next time it happens. But not with chips. They make me fat.

I wish you all the best in your new adventure.

keri~
recently pondering some big changes myself, i found myself admitting the other day that i am horrible at the "middle" part of life. the part when you have disassociated yourself from one place but not quite arrived at the next... your post today helped me relook at that awful spinning seasick feeling and embrace the excitement.
thank you
~dps

if change comes beckoning, as mere mortals does any of us truly have the power to deny it its wondrous magic? can we truly turn our face away from what is to happen and not give intot eh rolling waves of newness that envelop us every now and then...either we give in with a sense of power or we dont... but it will still happen.

Thank you! Your words are exactly what I needed, as I am facing a change of venue as well. Let us not forget that fresh starts can be oh so inspiring.

"everything is as it should be. you can breathe, and be kind to yourself, and know that you are safe everywhere. no person or path can take from you the things that are important. your love of life, your creativity, your courage, your strength are with you always. even when you doubt them."

Keri...reading your words reflected me to Glinda, the good witch of the North in 'The Wizard of Oz" as she tells Dorothy who wants to go back home....'You've always had the power to go back to Kansas.' Dorothy replies, "I have?" To which the scarecrow says, "Then why didn't you tell her?" Glinda softly smiles and says..."Because she wouldn't have believed me. She had to learn it for herself."

Here is to all of the lessons that we learn for ourselves. : )

Hello my friend...Your entry made me teary. Not only are you now called upon to release the life you created like a just-born butterfly, but you yourself are about to flutter away with new wings. May the breezes that carry you be gentle and warm.

That is so true - " either we change, or we wither"
How I long for peace in the midst of uncertainty and at the same time the ability to keep moving forward, taking risks...
Although a couch and a bag of chips sounds appealing as well !

confession: I don't have any cleavage but I thought it was a good image.

I am quite a fan of chips I must admit.

my apologies to chips and chip lovers everywhere.

and to my husband who finds it impossible to consume a sandwich without them.

i think you are being a little hard on "chips", they are wonderfully delicious, are they not...?
seriously, change is hard and it sounds like you are doing well
best wishes for your new adventure!
keep us posted,