Note: EDOM 3 was originally published on 30 July 2023.
PERSONAL UPDATES FROM SJK
The past few weeks have been pleasantly exhausting. My ideal bedtime of several hours before midnight has been challenged by nightly theatre classes that end several hours before midnight. Although I'm sleepier than usual, I am grateful for the opportunity to have done a 5-night clown intensive with Dan Grifftiths and a 5-night mime intensive with Steve Chips at the Church of Clown in San Francisco. Dan and Steve are excellent teachers of their crafts. The intensives were beautiful deep dives into physical and emotional communication. I have two more intensives to get through: devising (this week) and improvisation (next week).
Last week I took on new part-time paid work. For 1 to 2 days a week for at least the next 6 to 12 weeks, I will be a process engineer consultant at GaeaStar. GaeaStar is a startup that makes disposable ceramic cups as a more ecological and higher-end alternative to consumer plastic and paper cups. In this role I am responsible for setting up a ceramics processing lab, writing operating protocols and ensuring safety compliance. I have the pleasure of reporting to Bill Buel, who I worked with two and a half years ago at Origin (a 3D printing startup). I'm also excited to work with a new colleague, Brogan, who is my counterpart on the engineering team. I took on this work for three reasons: (1) I admire the project's goal of waste reduction, and I am fascinated by the technical challenges of manufacturing ceramics; (2) since leaving employment two and a half years ago, I have struggled to establish and adhere to a regular schedule for myself (in fact this is something I mentioned in "NEW JOB: NO JOB" in EDOM 1) and I felt that part time work might help me be more disciplined with my time; and (3) I don't mind getting paid.
Council 6 now scheduled
Council 6 is now scheduled in two weeks from last Thursday. As always, please drop in and out as you need, but we will be starting promptly. Council is an hour long.
Council 6
Thursday, 10 August 2023
15:00 (PDT)
that's 3 PM
hosted on Discord: https://discord.gg/rQkWEGKwBr
Council 5 review
Council 5 was attended by Jonathan, Brad, Rob, Matt, Jack and myself. Items we discussed were:
- project prioritizations: I listed about 10 projects related to W4VP that I'm working on (e.g. in-person and online outreach, fundraising, documentation, et al) and asked the Council which they felt would be the wisest to focus. Jonathan and others suggested that I build out more story and context on the w4vp.com website so that when I do reach out to gain attention, I have a place to bring new followers to where they can learn everything that they'll want to learn. Also Matt put forward that videos are likely the best way for me to convey a lot of the information I want to share.
- gifts for Council attendance: Since the first Council, I have mailed thank you notes, and sent gifts of flag patches and self-made art to mun1 who have shown up at one or more Councils. The gifts are a way for me to say thank you for your time, attention and energy. Also, I really enjoy sending physical objects through the mail and imagining the experience of the recipient receiving it. I announced that for the first 12 mun to attend a total of 5 Councils I will make them a tie-dye t-shirt in a design of their choosing. I appreciated Rob's and Matt's comments on how they like that the gifts are things that are personal to me and "authentic," and not generic swag.
- Decide My Day: I thought it would be interesting to offer the Council the opportunity to choose how I spend one of my days. So I said that I will spend a day doing or working on any proposal that is approved by the Council. The proposal could be anything (though idealing related to Walking for Vice President). I gave examples of volunteering, learning a skill, studying a subject or working on a specific project. Rob and Matt suggested that I attend some official local government meeting like the city council. No other proposals were made and the Council unanimously voted to approve. I loved this idea because it seems like it would be a good place to make connections and in some ways, an obvious thing to do. The first meetings that came to mind were those held by the AC Transit Board of Directors meeting and Oakland's Library Advisory Commision—I've attended both previously and both address things I care deeply about: public transportation and libraries. Due to my evening theater classes and the holiday schedule the next meetings I could attend for ACT and LAC are in the second half of September. I'm sure I can find some other municipal meeting sooner, but either of those are orgs are ones I would like to be more involved in. So, I will not be able to complete the proposal by Council 6 as I said I would in Council 5. But I do still intend to do it sooner than later and I want to make sure that we make note of that.
- office hours: I announced that I will hold a trial run of "office hours" for anymun to consult me about anything they'd like. I want to show my gratitude for you readers of this newsletter and for all who come to Council by holding space for me to offer you my attention, because you have given me yours. The first session will be Wednesday, 2 August 2023 at 11:00 to noon PDT on Discord. It'll be first come, first serve. As I wait, I'll be working on an activity that can be interrupted with little disruption (such as sewing). In the very likely event that no one shows up at all, I think I might still be glad I've taken the time to be available.
Attached are the slides from Council 5 for reference.
peace & love,
Stephen James (SJ)
Mun is a single-syllable term that refers to a person of any age or gender. It is synonymous with "human being".