What’s up, dawgs! You know I love to share my real opinion, as real as it can be. Call me Scrooge but what is going with the Christmas tree?? Oh Christmas tree, how dry and burnt your branches… Being from the Lake Tahoe Basin I pay attention to the environment, and with some learning in the medicines I view sickness in a broad scope. Many diseases have taken tolls on large bands of trees in North America. Including severe drought, mountain pine or bark beetles and varieties of fungus. With the world caught in the middle of such catastrophic suppositions it seems inhumane and even criminal to be chopping down a tree that would last longer than my own life and then decorating it like a drag queen for Gay Pride. The story of the tree, though, what is it? Is it the pagan holiday where we scavenge the forrest for nuts and berries and medicinal mushrooms. Placing the winter bounty under and on top of the meeting spot our elder guide arranged for us. Is is the Hanukkah bush, a representation of bounty and life…

Before modernism I can imagine it was difficult to live a single day without learning a new skill or task or fact about the world. Fast forward to 2016 and we couldn’t be further from our roots. No pun intended since you chopped them off… Humans have evolved to the extent our existence in coming years is debatable? Yet, we have harnessed almost every available resource for our own gain not the environments. OH Christmas TREE!! We still have the time and money (credit okay) to purchase a slaughterhouse Doug Fir for the delight of the season. Lest we not forget the fire hazard that this seemingly barbaric tradition offers our home. How nice that the lights we so admire gleaming off the dying branches could ruin our lives, even permanently. The floor below the tree filled with Chinese plastic, created by burning crude fuel sent to those nations. The pollution in Asia so bad it closely resembles England’s Great Smog of 1952. You cannot see the sparkling lights of a tree or on a home with the level of pollution we are talking about. Let alone gasp at the lovely sight of a glowing bush.

That’s okay, America has environmental protection laws preventing our air from filling with those toxins. Wonderful, seasonal gatherings soon to litter the landfills. The more glitter the worse for the environment, the fake tree a bi-product of oil as well. I’m not fussing with the despicably ironic, wasteful, tasteless pain in the ass, Oh, Christmas tree! Maybe you read this and you bought a living tree and you plan to plant it. Are you sure you won’t be fined?? After all it seems typical for regulation to waste money to throw you in jail for doing the right things and keeping you loose if you are prepared to pillage the Earth. How about a sponsor-a-tree program to rebuild forests? We have the technology to take a photo and create a hologram. We could even design it with an air freshener combo to spritz the room with an “evergreen” scent.Can we get some GMO trees up in here?? I hope you enjoy your tree as much as I enjoy the absence of death and destruction in my home this winter. If you plan to chop up your tree and use it for firewood or even mulch or compost… May the magic of natural light warm your path to sustainability.

What Made Robin Williams So Miserable He Took His Life? 

By: Lindsey Hitt

Many comedians and even entertainers suffer from suicidal thoughts. Suicide is a human condition and does not escape the ordinary individual either.

With thorough observation there is one aspect of this situation that is troubling. Factors that are not really considered in the aftermath of someone taking their own life. This tough topic that is mildly depressing means taking a look at our closest allies. Friends and family are a part of our life to give us a sense of unity, love, respect and encouragement. Close friends and family are meant to ground us and make us feel safe and wanted. Accounts of suicide examined a little closer may find that there was trouble in these structures prior to the life ending event. So the reason that this is not taken a look at after death is that those are the ones left behind, close family and friends.

Accountability is hard to come by believe it or not and denial and ignorance plentiful. No one wants to accept responsibility for influencing someone to despise their life and person. So much so they even consider ending it all, let alone actually completely that desperate, lonely mission. This is so important to write about and to read about. Not just for those that suffer from suicidal thoughts. For those that have loved ones that may be in that kind of state and circumstance. Society has engineered what it believes to be stability through that good ol’ 9-5er. With the thousands of tax dollars that seep out automatically, oh but the healthy benefits and 401K… So when someone wants to teeter professionally outside of the lines of the 9-5 there is often an uproar by those that surround them. This is a fascinating observation and while l reserve the understanding that these are generalizations, it is a very common occurrence.

Think of the artists that have been so often told they are “crazy.” The dreamers who sought the truth when contradiction is apparent in hindsight. To the talent, they see an outlet for their gift, their passion and their creativity. It’s not an easy road but fighting for your gift rather than money is a very important leap of faith. My brother Mike likes to say, “passion before profit” and sadly many people don’t understand this phrase. Another great word combo that comes to thought is “love is blind” and seeing in the dark is not easy because if human physical limitations. Putting faith into the process and the pursuit of passion and listening less to the fears of those around us may very well be the key to freeing a heavy heart. There are plenty of studies that show the wisdom of the heart being more powerful than that of the mind. When those we love aren’t happy with our decisions we feel the need to change and to please others and that never works.

Take a look at your surroundings. Allow your heart to let you know if you are happy. Does something inside of you whisper negative thoughts and heavy vibrations? The best thing for everyone is for you to walk away. If you cannot manage to do that, make a plan. Move to a new city, start a savings account, sit down for an hour every night and write down all of the things that make you happy. Investigate your person by taking an internal deep dive and cultivate an outcome of elation. When you look outside yourself and see sadness or feel depression move away from those things. Write down what offers you discontent even if just to identify the obstacles and expose the contrast. These small task could mean the difference between life and death. Ultimately, we need to pursue our truest desires and along that path “the ones that mind don’t matter and that ones that matter don’t mind.”