Happy New Year 

Transformation LiDoña Wagner 2024

May 2025 be filled with

the Light of Hope

Seeds of Renewal

the Fragrance of Possibility

Solstice Greetings

Light Over Darkness LiDoña Wagner 2024

 New Moon’s Light

Opening once again

Across time and space

Through bone and blood

To the base of a tree

Where a nest of eggs 

Sheltered and hidden

Beneath moon’s surreal light

Holds seeds of promise

Light Over Darkness (center) LiDoña Wagner 2024

SOLSTICE GREETINGS

Tree of Past Solstice Greetings

MAY YOUR HEART BE FILLED 

WITH THE LIGHT OF HOPE

SAVE THE PLANET

Save the Planet LiDoña Wagner 2024
Thousands of small actions taken by individuals
all over the world will protect the future home of humanity.

Electric Vehicle Charging

by Doug Lord

Two years ago, we bought a 2023 Chevrolet Bolt. It’s an all-electric car (EV), as opposed to a hybrid that also uses gas. After driving around Eugene for around 2 years, with one trip to Portland, we decided to take a longer trip to Northern California. This was way beyond the range of our car’s battery and required using charging stations.

 

Usually, we charge in our garage at night, using the cable that comes with the Bolt, which works with both 110 and 220 household current. The 220 takes about 7 hours for a full charge, the 110 takes days. Our battery is supposed to have 259 miles of range when fully charged, but generally it won’t go above 240. This limitation gives rise to range anxiety, a common malady among EV drivers. This condition is manageable while driving near home but can be serious when on long trips. The cure on those trips is careful advance planning, which can be done using the phone.

 

There are many apps available, and my favorites for the California trip were PlugShare, which directs you to charging stations along the route regardless of the make (there are many providers of stations), and Electrify America (EA), a provider which is prevalent along I5 corridor. So, first I went to PlugShare and created a “trip,” which involves looking at a map and selecting stations along the route. Most of these on the CA route are run by EA and are located at large retailers like Walmart and Fred Meyer. 

 

On this trip, we successfully used stations in Ashland, OR, Redding and Roseville, CA. The EA app tells you if any of their terminals is available, and if it is, you just remove the pump cable, plug it in your car, and you get fast charging. In our Bolt, which is relatively slow, it took more than an hour to charge up each time - time you can use to take advantage of the Walmart bathroom and for eating lunch. 

 

In all, we had good luck. We usually found an available charger at our planned locations, and it didn’t rain on us. The good news is that there’s lots of money in the Federal Infrastructure bill for more stations, and the newer cars have more range and are faster charging.

 

Save the Planet!

Vice President Kamala Harris

An Inspirational Woman of Character

GRADITUDE   So let me say my heart is full today. My heart is full today. Full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me. Full of love for our country and full of resolve.

The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for, but hear me when I say - hear me when I say the light of America's promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.

To my beloved Doug and our family, I love you so very much. To President Biden and Dr. Biden, thank you for your faith and support. To Governor Walz and the Walz family, I know your service to our nation will continue. And to my extraordinary team, to the volunteers who gave so much of themselves, to the poll workers and the local election officials, I thank you. I thank you all.

Lotus Blossom (Kamala) Steps into Her Power LiDoña Wagner 2024

FAITH   Look, I am so proud of the race we ran and the way we ran it - and the way we ran it. Over the 107 days of this campaign, we have been intentional about building community and building coalitions, bringing people together from every walk of life and background, united by love of country with enthusiasm and joy in our fight for America's future. And we did it with the knowledge that we all have so much more in common than what separates us.

Now I know folks are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now. I get it. But we must accept the results of this election.

Earlier today, I spoke with President-elect Trump and congratulated him on his victory. I also told him that we will help him and his team with their transition and that we will engage in a peaceful transfer of power. A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results. That principle, as much as any other, distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny and anyone who seeks the public trust must honor it. At the same time in our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party but to the Constitution of the United States and loyalty to our conscience and to our God. My allegiance to all three is why I am here to say while I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign. The fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and the dignity of all people. A fight for the ideals at the heart of our nation, the ideals that reflect America at our best. That is a fight I will never give up. I will never give up the fight for a future where Americans can pursue their dreams, ambitions and aspirations. Where the women of America have the freedom to make decisions about their own body without a government telling them what to do.

An Opportunity Economy LiDoña Wagner 2024

We will never give up the fight to protect our schools and our streets from gun violence. And America, we will never give up the fight for our democracy, for the rule of law, for equal justice and for the sacred idea that every one of us, no matter who we are or where we start out, has certain fundamental rights and freedoms that must be respected and upheld.

And we will continue to wage this fight in the voting booth, in the courts and in the public square. And we will also wage it in quieter ways in how we live our lives, by treating one another with kindness and respect. By looking in the face of a stranger and seeing a neighbor. By always using our strength to lift people up, to fight for the dignity that all people deserve. The fight for our freedom will take hard work, but like I always say, we like hard work. Hard work is good work, hard work can be joyful work and the fight for our country is always worth it. It is always worth it.

HOPE   To the young people who are watching, it is okay to feel sad and disappointed, but please know it's gonna be okay. On the campaign I would often say, when we fight we win. But here's the thing.

Here's the thing. Sometimes the fight takes a while. That doesn't mean we won't win. That doesn't mean we won't win. The important thing is don't ever give up. Don't ever give up, don't ever stop trying to make the world a better place. You have power. You have power and don't you ever listen when anyone tells you something is impossible because it has never been done before. You have the capacity to do extraordinary good in the world and so to everyone who is watching: Do not despair. This is not a time to throw up our hands.

Transformation is Coming LiDoña Wagner 2024

LOVE 

This is a time to roll up our sleeves. This is a time to organize to mobilize and to stay engaged. For the sake of freedom and justice and the future that we all know we can build together.

Look, many of you know I started out as a prosecutor and throughout my career I saw people at some of the worst times in their lives people who had suffered great harm and great pain and yet found within themselves the strength and the courage and the resolve to take the stand, to take a stand, to fight for justice, to fight for themselves, to fight for others.

So let their courage be our inspiration. Let their determination be our charge.

And I'll close with this: there's an adage an historian once called a law of history true of every society across the ages the adage is…

Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.

I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time, but for the benefit of us all I hope that is not the case. But here's the thing America: if it is, let us fill the sky with the light of a brilliant, brilliant billions of stars. The light of optimism, of faith, of truth and service.

And may that work guide us even in the face of setbacks toward the extraordinary promise of The United States of America.

I thank you all. May God bless you and may God bless the United States of America.

Harris Walz Campaign LiDoña Wagner 2024

OWN YOUR POWER

We Can Win This Shar Dubois 2024

Election season is in full swing and anxiety levels are rising. It’s time to zone in and remember some of the basics of self-care, because as we’re told on every airline flight, ‘Put your oxygen mask on first so you are prepared to help others.’

. Inform yourself. Make your decisions.

. VOTE! 

Lotus Flower (Kamala) Steps Into Power 
LiDoña Wagner 2024

Then, as Michelle Obama says, “Do something!”

. Help others get informed and vote.

. Connect with those you support by writing postcards, making phone calls, knocking on doors.

The Choice Is Clear
LiDoña Wagner 2024

. Lean into the timeless. Be present to the reality that all our actions together preserve a future in which others have agency over their lives.

. Control your anxiety by setting specific times for news and social media, including cut off times.

. GET ENOUGH SLEEP. Put all electronic devices out of your bedroom.

I Voted
Shar Dubois 2024

BOLD PERSISTENT EXPERIMENTATION

When Kamala Harris laid out an economic plan for her future presidency, she invoked FDR’s motto for pulling the United States out of the great depression, BOLD PERSISTENT EXPERIMENTATION. 

Nature is the ultimate experimenter.

The same motto describes my approach to figuring out what it means to be an elder in contemporary society. And that begins with caring for a living body.

FLEXIBILITY

Two days a week I participate in a Water Aerobics class led by an 87-year-old volunteer. I have found that it helps keep my joints flexible. In addition, there is something primordially satisfying about being in water kept at 88 degrees. Perhaps it is because water provided the origin of an evolutionary process that led to Homo sapiens. Or maybe because the human embryo grows in an amniotic sac inside a womb.

Biden's flexibility led Democrats in a new direction.

BALANCE

The first question at one’s annual physical checkup is, “Have you fallen in the past year?” The desirable answer is, “No!” To achieve that answer, another two days a week I engage  in a Senior Exercise class led by a 65-year-old fitness instructor. By building overall muscle strength we enhance our balance. To engage the neuroplasticity of our brains, we learn simple dance steps.

Trees show that balance is a total body experience. 

REBUILDING

Due to repeated actions related to a persistent lifestyle, the brain-body connections of our bodies become rigid or distorted. Some muscle memories receive strong repetition and others weaken. To refresh and rebuild attenuated muscle memories, I attend Yoga once a week. Holding a pose for several deep breaths provides time for the brain/body connection to be renewed and attenuated muscle memory to be recharged.

The sentience of trees.

AGING BACKWARDS

After about a decade of illness, health challenges, societal upheaval, and the Covid pandemic, I now appear to be experiencing what my friend Catherine Marsh calls ‘Aging Backwards.’ 

Living in my body today feels more like how I felt in 2014. I attribute my enhanced wellbeing and increased body awareness to at least six factors: Diet, Exercise, Purpose, Friendships, Centered Solitude, and Engagement in the Arts.

Over the next few blogs I hope to dialogue with you about each of these topics, one at a time, and to invite you to share your own experiences with healthy body awareness. Let's begin with HEALTHY EATING.

Here’s my standard get-the-day-started-right breakfast recipe.

 

Ingredients

Place in a stovetop pan
Whole Grain: ¼ cup of rolled oats with raisons (Red Mill Country Style Muesli)

 
Protein: 

. 6-8 chopped walnuts (protein)
. A pinch of black Chia seeds (reduces blood pressure & inflammation + more)

Fruit: 
. Two tablespoons of dried organic cranberries (prevents urinary tract infections)
. ¼ cup frozen blueberries
. ¼ apple chopped (or fruit of season)
. ½ banana chopped (potassium & magnesium)

 
Seasoning: a couple shakes of cinnamon                                       

Pour enough unsweetened Almond Milk to cover (Calcium for strong bones) 

Milk Added

Stir and place on medium heat for just long enough to read Heather Cox Richardson’s daily blog. 

Milk boiling 

Remove from heat when liquid is bubbling and add
. 2 drops of liquid Vitamin D3 (boosts immune system + improves anxiety)
. ¼ tsp ground cloves (promotes healthy bones, especially teeth and gums)
. ½ tsp Tahini paste (reduces heart disease & inflammation)

 

Add ons

Allow to cool for ten minutes
Eat with prescribed medicine and vitamins

Note: I am not recommending any of these brands. I vary brands a lot; this is what I have on hand today. 

Ok, your turn! What is a meal plan, recipe, or discovery you have made about healthy eating?