tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87188260231169150282024-03-13T01:53:04.021-05:00612 Stories612 Stories - Tales of Adventure!amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.comBlogger235125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-80354041800067107952016-01-12T16:47:00.002-06:002016-01-12T16:49:31.569-06:00A Post from Paul Mays, our 612 Director of Permaculture (Written 12/29/15)<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
Ice on the ground, I look over the frozen garden from Sixtwelve’s second floor and realize how much we accomplished in a little over a year. In August 2014 there was nothing more than compacted clay. After a few hundred hours of volunteer labor, aproximately 15,000 pounds of horse poop and compost, 50 bales of straw, lots of plants and trees and some water we have a pretty nice garden. We now boast a 30x30ft main garden that fed quite a few people, including kids from summer camps and pre-k. Our pre-k kids even assisted with harvesting 250 lbs of sweet potatoes, some as large as the kids heads. Twelve fruit trees, donated by Transition OKC, were planted in February with the assistance of more volunteers, the fruit trees will eventually host our Forever Food Forest, a perennial food ecosystem. A Rain Garden workshop was held, and now provides us a large water catchment area as well as providing homes and food for local pollinators. We had workshops on composting and seed saving, planting container gardens, making seed bombs and a great mycology workshop. We had another great seed exchange, and a community outdoor movie night focused around the local food movement here and across the nation.</div>
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This is a time of the year when I start really thinking of possibilities for next years garden. Now that I am part time at SixTwelve I am looking at workshop possibilities, planning gardens and camps, I am so excited of the opportunities. We are going to change the garden over to a CSA, with 5 members each paying $250 up front for a weekly produce pickup, let me know if you are interested. We have some great workshops coming up including Compost 101, I Have Worms; Kids Wormbin, Oyster Mushroom Bucket, Garden Like the Forrest, Knife and Tool Sharpening, Kombucha and Fermenting, Spirulina, plus more. We will have an Earth Day Dance Party to be followed the next day by our annual Friendship Plant and Seed Exchange. It looks to be an awesome year and I hope that you can join us in creating a better community.</div>
amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-21101586365406733612016-01-04T16:39:00.001-06:002016-01-04T16:50:14.041-06:00Resolute<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy New Year 2016! I'm sitting in the Charlotte, NC airport, on my way home from Savannah. I've had another great visit there and although I'm returning to a ton of work, I'm happy to get back to OKC. I'm lucky to have all of my friends and family in both places and now I can't imagine my life without either home. I always love that my friends in Savannah and OKC say "welcome home" when I arrive. It definitely feels that way.<br />
<br />
2015 was not without its challenges and I certainly grew stronger and more confident in myself because I was forced to, but I'm not complaining. I worked through a LOT of fear and found that I had everything I could ever want or hope for in a support system. How did I get so lucky/blessed/fortunate? I won the birth lottery with my family and can't take any credit for that, but I'd like to think that same family raised me to be the kind of friend I would want and that's the reason for the non-blood-related family that I have in my friends. I thank God and this universe for every kindness and generosity.<br />
<br />
I've had almost a week in Savannah and although my time was filled to the brim with studio visits, meetings, advice given and received, dinners, parties, work and very little sleep, I feel rejuvenated and ready to tackle what is coming in the new year. I'm sure that I will encounter challenges and I'm sure there will be more heartache. That's just life...every day and every year. But I have a feeling that the more I get the hang of running 612 and the more that I find the ability to let time flow without trying to hang on too tightly to everyone and everything that is meant to pass through, the more gracious and happy I'll be. So here are a couple of lists that I think are keys to my happiness in this new journey around the sun.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b><u>Things I'm grateful for:</u></b><br />
<br />
1. My family. (This will always be my #1.)<br />
2. My true friends who love and inspire me.<br />
3. SixTwelve<br />
4. This life that allows me to live in Oklahoma and Savannah.<br />
5. My dog, Willie.<br />
6. A sound, creative mind.<br />
7. Physical health.<br />
8. Inspiring people that I don't even know!<br />
9. A loving heart.<br />
10. Enough to have and share.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Things I hope to do in 2016:</u></b><br />
<br />
1. Sustain and enlarge the PreK program at 612.<br />
2. Sustain and enlarge the 612 residency program in OKC and Savannah.<br />
3. Gain even more confidence and peace.<br />
4. Find friends who will go camping with me.<br />
5. Take better care of my body. (This includes sleeping and resting more, not just losing weight.)<br />
6. Take more time to reflect, ponder and create. I love watercolor painting and thanks to our 612 class, I learned that I love to needlepoint.<br />
7. Blog more.<br />
8. Love more (Yes, this includes opening my heart to dating again. If the amount of flirting I did with men in Savannah is any indication, I don't think this will be a problem. Ha!)<br />
9. Organize my house and 612 in more efficient ways.<br />
10. Be even more open to all the goodness coming my way. I believe in it.amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-6893148976115257432015-10-28T07:06:00.001-05:002016-01-04T17:05:41.378-06:00What It Takes<h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Lately, I've been
trying to get in bed by 9:30pm because I need the rest in order to get
everything done the next day. (And I never can seem to get it all done. There
are just only so many hours in a day.) Other than my birthday party a couple of
Saturdays ago, I've cut waaaaaaaaay back on alcohol. I've turned notifications
off for apps on my phone and I've tried to reach at least the 10,000 steps per
day goal. All of this has helped my level of peace, but I still need to do
more.</span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: normal;">I've been giving
everything I've got to 612 because, here in the first few months of running it
by myself, I haven't really had a choice. That's just what it takes, but I have
to admit, there has been some guilt with cutting back on what I give through volunteering
and even with missing social times with my friends. That guilt can be crushing.
I end up feeling bad for saying "no," even when I know it is
what will save my health, attitude and sanity. And there are times that I don't
even have a choice. My body just says "no" for me.</span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: normal;">So to all of my
friends who have started to say that they miss me, I miss you too and I wish I
could spend more time with you as well. To all of the organizations that I
just can't give to like I used to, I'm sorry, but I promise that I'm giving
everything that I can for our community. Please know that it isn't personal and
that I want all of the goodness for you that I always have. Starting and
running a business, being responsible for the well being of others and their education,
and making sure that I'm protecting 612's physical and fiscal health all takes
so much time and energy that on the off chance that I do get a free day to be
with my family or by myself, I will take it in a heartbeat.</span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: normal;">The truth is, I
don't owe anyone an explanation for that. My family and true friends have never
once complained. They have continued to patiently support and encourage, even
during this year when I have had less and less to give. They have never once
judged me or accused me of pulling away. Those are the people who have helped
me to have faith in myself and to think I can do this. They even continue
volunteer and give, and I am so grateful.</span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: normal;">This is my dream and
I have to see it through. It is taking everything and more than I have to make
it happen, and I won't apologize again for giving it. If my family and friends,
who have been so generous with their time and money to help me do this don't
complain, no one else has the right to. To those who HAVE complained to me
lately, think about what you're doing. I've given you years and years of
friendship, service and funding and you have repaid me with selfishness, guilt
and judgement. Do you think I would really want to continue giving in return? I
have never owed you anything. I have given because I loved our community and I
thought it would help. </span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: normal;">To the people and
organizations who have been patient with me while I start over on my own,
who have been so generous even during this time of my retreat to figure it all
out, I love you with all of my heart and will never forget your kindness. You
are the people I want to invest my life in and I'm so lucky to have you in
mine. Thank you over and over again for all of your help. You are the people
who help me have faith in myself, the mission and this world. I love you. </span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-weight: normal;">p.s. I don't know why this post insists on appearing in larger, red, font. I've tried to fix it about 100 times, but it just won't let me change it. Hmmmm...</span></div>
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amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-33121103644235348152015-09-04T08:59:00.001-05:002015-09-05T09:46:11.144-05:00SixTwelve PreK Pilot ProgramThis week we began a great adventure at SixTwelve! The first steps toward making this dream a reality were taken over a decade ago when I left teaching in Norman, Oklahoma to go back to school for a Bachelor's and Master's in art history. I really wanted to start a little preschool where the kids learned through art and music. I not only finished those degrees a few years ago, but I also was lucky enough to work at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art for about 3.5 years during the time away from teaching. This gave me some much needed administrative experience.<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ht0-Ez7TUdWjVn3XUYi04pHXEKZWEQ5dxhMrKf65AWMrGPMHAvLKVKoWp9qM1AFL75bZDrjSbu56utkcj_OU6oPDQb5ojeLES6VNK54IIl3Q_XHpXGVoXgBy229GG88MCVU8Wjcfx10/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-09-04+at+8.56.17+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ht0-Ez7TUdWjVn3XUYi04pHXEKZWEQ5dxhMrKf65AWMrGPMHAvLKVKoWp9qM1AFL75bZDrjSbu56utkcj_OU6oPDQb5ojeLES6VNK54IIl3Q_XHpXGVoXgBy229GG88MCVU8Wjcfx10/s400/Screen+Shot+2015-09-04+at+8.56.17+AM.png" width="400"></a></div>
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Earlier this year, in February, I met Julia Roff. She was teaching at John Rex Elementary School downtown and I could tell that she had a real passion for preschool. So we talked about her coming to work at SixTwelve "someday." I went to visit, observe and read to her class one day and was hooked! This woman knew everything that I didn't (and apparently, that is a LOT!) I don't have the early childhood education that she does. I have the elementary school music and art experience, but together we make a great team! I'm so grateful for her.<br>
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We are holding our PreK program two days a week, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from 9am to 2pm. We capped our enrollment at 10 students so as to make sure that this pilot program really served the students individually. We also wanted to make sure that we gave ourselves plenty of room to learn. There is sooooooo much to learn. But we're doing it! We now have 7 students! Next year, we hope to expand to two classes, five days a week with before and after care. We'll see what happens with funding. I've written letters of intent to local foundations, but haven't been accepted to write a grant proposal because we aren't a full time program. And that's ok! We just want to start small and grow so that we do things organically. That's kind of a theme at SixTwelve! :)<br>
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I'm so grateful and excited and exhausted, thanks to this wonderful experience. I'm fortunate to have this chance to see this dream through. I have many people to thank for that, too. My family and friends helped me so much to get to this point. I'm a lucky, lucky woman. Couldn't be more grateful.amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-1217357160625987082015-07-27T12:43:00.002-05:002015-07-27T12:43:55.040-05:00Forward MotionThe past month has been such a crazy whirlwind of great experiences (residencies, Rock & Roll Camp for Girls, etc.) and I have a lot to share for the purpose of this blog, but I feel that there is one thing that deserves its own post before I write about anything else. After 6 months of opening 612's doors and almost 6 years of working on the project together, James and I have decided to dissolve our partnership so that he can move on to other projects, and so that I can run 612. <div>
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It has been a true adventure and I have learned so much about business, people, communities, buildings, and more. I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Sometimes you just come to a place where it's better to make a shift and move in a different direction, for the sake of what you've created. James has been instrumental in rezoning our properties, establishing the non-profit and organizing the renovations of the building. His large vision for tying historic preservation and a sustainable community together has helped to guide 612 in so many wonderful ways and I am convinced that it was our partnership that created the magic that helped bring everything to fruition. </div>
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We now find ourselves at a place where all of the dreams are pushing their way up to the surface to become reality and with that push comes some friction. This change will help to make things run a little smoother. I still love and respect James and wish him nothing but goodness. I know that James will go on to use all of the knowledge and experience he has gained to help people in other communities and I'm proud to have worked with him these past six years to help create something for Paseo that wasn't there before. </div>
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SixTwelve was always meant to bring people together and to highlight all of the great things happening in our OKC community, through the arts and sustainability. Now James and I are making a decision that will allow for sustainability in our friendship. I'm so grateful for that, because in the end, 612 is product of our love and respect for each other and our belief in our community. Those things will now live on for a long time. </div>
amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-15678240751377869472015-04-24T06:11:00.002-05:002015-04-24T08:13:21.551-05:00Residencies at SixTwelveOne of the most important aspects of SixTwelve is our residencies. We've decided that when we've raised enough funds, we will have six different residencies per year in Oklahoma City and two per year at the Savannah location. The goal is to have the residents in both locations create, collaborate, teach and plan community outreach programming focused on the arts and sustainability. We feel there is a need for more opportunities for artists, writers, chefs, musicians and those that take care of our earth. These integrated, creative experiences provide a supportive structure for meaningful and lasting transformations in individuals and our community.<br>
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While James and I are the first residents in OKC, <a href="http://www.deniseduongart.com/">Denise Duong</a>, is our first resident to work in Savannah! I am in awe of Denise and have been for years. Her work is simultaneously playful yet serious, vibrant and haunting, and it can be found all over the walls of my house. When her rep, Joy Reed Belt of <a href="http://www.jrbartgallery.com/">JRB Art at the Elms</a>, generously offered to let her be our resident, I was moved. I'm grateful for Joy too. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizqXb0X7LOhkpHJROMnTZOsDsVF9u3TepijhyphenhyphenKnxUjFX3bsuC6O8WYiXw8BoV_kP3-c14IRECf2H-g9C9EnOSs46mjsvcngnSdHSs45mpcr8Sws7d8WrgagO9aru1cQD6RzT8qawOyErE/s1600/sav+crew+slemmer+opening.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizqXb0X7LOhkpHJROMnTZOsDsVF9u3TepijhyphenhyphenKnxUjFX3bsuC6O8WYiXw8BoV_kP3-c14IRECf2H-g9C9EnOSs46mjsvcngnSdHSs45mpcr8Sws7d8WrgagO9aru1cQD6RzT8qawOyErE/s1600/sav+crew+slemmer+opening.jpg" height="400" width="300"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katherine Sandoz, Denise Duong, Vesella Valtcheva-mcgee, Lori Judge, and Lane Huerta</td></tr>
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Denise is staying in the Savannah cottage for three weeks, creating and preparing for her show at Iocovozzi Fine Art and <a href="http://www.judgerealty.com/">Judge Realty</a>. My friends Kim Iocovozzi and Lori Judge have graciously opened their doors to us so that we have a location to have an opening on May 1st and to show Denise's work for the month following. I can't believe how fortunate I have been to make these friends, because I had no idea where I would be planning to show our residents' work when I dreamed this up. I just knew that it would come to us, and it has!</div>
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In my visits to Savannah I have crashed Rotary meetings, attended art openings and music events, such as <a href="http://www.savannahmusicfestival.org/">Savannah Music Festival</a> and <a href="http://www.savannahstopover.com/">Savannah Stopover</a>. I've eaten at so many great restaurants, visited <a href="http://www.littlestsimonsisland.com/">Little St. Simons Island</a> and <a href="http://www.ossabawisland.org/">Ossabaw Island</a> and even drove up to Charleston and Beaufort. I have explored and experienced as much as I could of the area and culture during every visit, partly because I love it and partly because I wanted to do the best that I could to provide a good experience for both the people that we send to Savannah AND bring to Oklahoma City. It's important to be a part of a both communities if you really want to offer a balanced and reciprocal exchange.</div>
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We will be bringing our first Savannah artist, <a href="http://www.katherinesandoz.com/">Katherine Sandoz</a>, to Oklahoma City in June. We couldn't have asked for better, especially for the very first artist. Her work is of the highest quality and so is her ethic. This woman is creating all the time and I really respect her. Her paintings are as deep and powerful as the layers of paint that she swaths onto the canvas or board, and her illustrations inspire a focused, magical curiosity. Katherine also creates wonderful, textural fabric works, collaborates on public art and in general, just never stops. I can't wait to work with her. </div>
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We will bring in artists from all over the country, but the biggest exchange program we will provide will be with Savannah. This is a dream come true for me and I still have to pinch myself to make sure it's a realty. I was laughing with one of my Savannah friends on the phone yesterday and discussing the things that I hoped for this exchange. She was helping me to figure out the best way to get the word out about Denise's show and Katherine's visit to Oklahoma City. I told her that I had to do all of this once in order to really figure out what I was doing, and that it felt like I was just in the beginning stages of learning how to ride a bike. </div>
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She said that my group of friends were all there to help me and that I'd get my training wheels off soon. Erin is so funny! It helps so much to know that I have friends who are cheering me on (in both communities) and encouraging me to see this dream through. None of this would be happening without these brilliant, creative, imaginative, driven, focused and generous friends. Thank you <a href="http://www.judgerealty.com/">Lori</a>, <a href="https://yaupontea.com/">Lou</a>, <a href="http://meredithannesutton.com/">Meredith</a>, <a href="http://servicebrewing.com/">Kevin</a>, <a href="http://laneycontemporary.com/">Susan</a>, <a href="http://www.ellsworthhallett.com/">Frank</a>, <a href="http://www.katherinesandoz.com/">Katherine</a>, <a href="http://lovelanedesigns.com/">Lane</a>, Erin, Kim, Jason, and Jamie. So grateful for you! </div>
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(The residency application page of our website will be up soon! Just researching a little bit more to make sure I get it right!)</div>
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amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-76207179196709644392015-04-22T11:47:00.003-05:002015-04-22T21:38:51.187-05:00Round 1! Ding!<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Goodness, life is moving fast! In the past two and a half months we have seen some great things happen at <a href="http://www.sixtwelve.org/">SixTwelve</a>. We've had so many dreams for what we could provide for our community, so once we finally opened our doors, we hit the ground running. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDV8ZWP90oMVjR6YRcOzcp0hn18KnSdIlvetf_6L7S5CMAecZsXqnzx-OE_B2yYhtXjsWyGZBzfSA7_kcuu6qWuotAAhyOFR3Zorxm_rqzaMvhTKSYQizKjESOEubG-FjEFTim291x_74/s1600/open+house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDV8ZWP90oMVjR6YRcOzcp0hn18KnSdIlvetf_6L7S5CMAecZsXqnzx-OE_B2yYhtXjsWyGZBzfSA7_kcuu6qWuotAAhyOFR3Zorxm_rqzaMvhTKSYQizKjESOEubG-FjEFTim291x_74/s1600/open+house.jpg" height="640" width="480"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James and I talking to the crowd during our Open House (see #2)</td></tr>
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While James and his <a href="https://www.facebook.com/tradeshare612?fref=ts">TradeShare</a> lead facilitator, BC, have been getting ready for summer camps, I have practiced a lot of the different things that we want SixTwelve to offer through different kinds of residencies. I believe that when writing a paper, you can't edit until you've written something. The same holds true for creating a new entity or program. You have to start somewhere, so we've just tried to practice all of the ideas, gather experience, and then write up the policies, procedures and systems for everything. And this is what we've done so far:<br>
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1. We started after-school classes.<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiaYHvYGwRLNqgbQYXaIaGbZlJ-SwohQa69LmLdFWoBhDWDWX5K-LalZVy8iqs37cjlCUiaqlupF3a4ndSrNWrkKbiPisYbpaQ1Yv9nsoTDhUzhQVcSHQSoUSkePr0YAbwFSCyqsai3PU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.00.00+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiaYHvYGwRLNqgbQYXaIaGbZlJ-SwohQa69LmLdFWoBhDWDWX5K-LalZVy8iqs37cjlCUiaqlupF3a4ndSrNWrkKbiPisYbpaQ1Yv9nsoTDhUzhQVcSHQSoUSkePr0YAbwFSCyqsai3PU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.00.00+AM.png" height="363" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lauren Zuniga & Denise Duong taught a literacy + illustration class called "HeadNoise"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaQI36G_7e3niBb5srp3UORgurUX9Ac3eAfCXAZzGxskr9SsFjt98bJyrLW3F_QdpHaC06Bh2tCAELPcmUHNuVbhX81AONaqoZFdUR8dnzjvhi82iJzWh4DaywwhTwnRyIuaMsiH0344/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.00.27+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaQI36G_7e3niBb5srp3UORgurUX9Ac3eAfCXAZzGxskr9SsFjt98bJyrLW3F_QdpHaC06Bh2tCAELPcmUHNuVbhX81AONaqoZFdUR8dnzjvhi82iJzWh4DaywwhTwnRyIuaMsiH0344/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.00.27+AM.png" height="365" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Samantha Lamb & Erin Latham taught an art + sustainability class called, "Shades of Nature."</td></tr>
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2. We had a grand opening, open house which more than 700 people attended!!!<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLxxvOZRTsbuENFUuEQXOa7J3-VTl-sFePotc73jw6IVS2FRBqRxAubYABdqZmFoq06FBs0Ks3zKFGsJVJc6JGtXKMYsTOh_ApwkBYTf1-XGI0z3RIX0h4zBwKZhGB7_8ESCQ6T6i4kqw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.03.34+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLxxvOZRTsbuENFUuEQXOa7J3-VTl-sFePotc73jw6IVS2FRBqRxAubYABdqZmFoq06FBs0Ks3zKFGsJVJc6JGtXKMYsTOh_ApwkBYTf1-XGI0z3RIX0h4zBwKZhGB7_8ESCQ6T6i4kqw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.03.34+AM.png" height="376" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James & I celebrating at the open house!</td></tr>
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3. Went on the radio with the smart, witty and hilarious Mitchell in the Morning crew, KOKC 1520am talk radio. Scott and Kandyce not only let us come on and talk about our Mardi Gras party and again to chat up the spring break camp! And then to add even more goodness, they actually came to SixTwelve for events and helped us plant trees! (see #5)<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbi-wZTd7aB73wI55s7sk0UH0G12OeGPyFt-U_CfzX4saiTeB6g9vorsahBs4j1G_2e5SoxjYi-5z2_TAAcQnRsDlGYeDnCZXoZnOEpshFnSP9p6_Zj104WcSPCnWirJesq9jHAjzmgI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.56.54+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbi-wZTd7aB73wI55s7sk0UH0G12OeGPyFt-U_CfzX4saiTeB6g9vorsahBs4j1G_2e5SoxjYi-5z2_TAAcQnRsDlGYeDnCZXoZnOEpshFnSP9p6_Zj104WcSPCnWirJesq9jHAjzmgI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+11.56.54+AM.png" height="368" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rick, Me and Scott Mitchell - photo credit: Rick's Instagram :)</td></tr>
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4. We held a crazy-fun, amazing Mardi-Gras Ball, which will be our annual fundraiser for SixTwelve!<br>
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5. We held a Spring Break Mural Camp with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/rick.sinnett?fref=ts">Rick Sinnett</a> and <a href="http://artorwhatever.com/">Jason Pawley</a>. The very best reward/feedback came from Maxine's (a magical and hilarious camper) mom on Instagram. She said that the camp did so much for her self-esteem and artistic ability. THAT MAKES ME SO HAPPY!!! We even had an <a href="http://newsok.com/sixtwelve-becomes-center-of-learning-creativity-sustainability-and-healthy-living/article/5406135">article in the Oklahoman about SixTwelve and our camp</a>. I can't explain how grateful I am for Brandy McDonnell and all that she does to bring awareness to the arts and cultural affairs of Oklahoma. Thank you Brandy! We do feel like we're "Artfully Living the Dream!"<br>
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6. We've planted in our community garden and had Saturday morning work days with Paul Mays. We also held a composting workshop with Paul and a drought pod workshop with Ron Ferrell! We also had a tree planting workshop with <a href="http://goinglocalokc.com/">TransitionOKC</a>. They provided fruit trees so that we could have a small orchard and we couldn't be more grateful! We started seeds in my greenhouse at home so that we could have plants, and had a seed exchange for anyone who wanted to come. Thousands and thousands of seeds were donated! Our hope is to begin a seed library at SixTwelve for the whole community! <a href="http://www.sustainableokc.org/">SustainableOKC</a> has also been a huge partner in rain barrel workshops, seed exchange, volunteer raising and donations we didn't expect. Our sustainability community in OKC is stellar and we're happy to be partnering with so many wonderful groups!<br>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">TransitionOKC Tree Planting Day</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We love TransitionOKC and are grateful for their donation of trees and service!!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul Mays giving the Compost 101 workshop at SixTwelve!</td></tr>
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The day that we held the tree planting, Sherri and Chris Hultner, who created and own <a href="http://edmondactive.com/">Edmond Active Magazine</a> came out to interview me and to take some pictures. The result was an incredible, multi-page article in their publication with some gorgeous images! Thank you so much, Sherri and Chris!<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgo3tic2d-S7B2P0wuGZLHOpoMwkX1y1tkCzWjMSZQ_XFicwkiWPxDq0_OP4b7RgmCG-yUJFA0qTleAIN5Uy1lIFE1CoqALhFbGctvqL6ZlbGfPqvGw9GO71lZswpBJQ4yaedbq6PVRIk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+12.25.41+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgo3tic2d-S7B2P0wuGZLHOpoMwkX1y1tkCzWjMSZQ_XFicwkiWPxDq0_OP4b7RgmCG-yUJFA0qTleAIN5Uy1lIFE1CoqALhFbGctvqL6ZlbGfPqvGw9GO71lZswpBJQ4yaedbq6PVRIk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+12.25.41+PM.png" height="397" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Lisa Jean Allswede</td></tr>
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7. We've partnered with some incredible people and organizations to provide poetry slams, private parties, workshops and really fun events!<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgArLUXD2GVFKWJxJEgsgfuOHsXsz0VX_u3vX9iAT1Ck2MhFclXEfmHs0GQBzilz4Rk0L4Hn-p1n69AdF6EWg2i4ryW9jYFxuI-M42BptQm1nHq0qOE6uKN3vS4eSeog7vnCtIL4PDknXw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+12.39.57+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgArLUXD2GVFKWJxJEgsgfuOHsXsz0VX_u3vX9iAT1Ck2MhFclXEfmHs0GQBzilz4Rk0L4Hn-p1n69AdF6EWg2i4ryW9jYFxuI-M42BptQm1nHq0qOE6uKN3vS4eSeog7vnCtIL4PDknXw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+12.39.57+PM.png" height="365" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lauren Zuniga has been a great addition to our 612 team. She sets a really high standard!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm7jIjjSt27EfckUEfC4EpLgu28awXsFsjL9QwEpkwGsh2NejGO5HCfSoj5gyrgqDA_iWkBIkjF5_IeouHr41CqrsrTpq8VD5TPMpTDFViHFB2KH6UBJ9kL9fvNdZQ8QNvVKPG-4wODlg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+12.38.19+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm7jIjjSt27EfckUEfC4EpLgu28awXsFsjL9QwEpkwGsh2NejGO5HCfSoj5gyrgqDA_iWkBIkjF5_IeouHr41CqrsrTpq8VD5TPMpTDFViHFB2KH6UBJ9kL9fvNdZQ8QNvVKPG-4wODlg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-22+at+12.38.19+PM.png" height="298" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is the crowd who came in for Lauren's poetry event with Andrea Gibson!!!</td></tr>
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8. I've travelled to Savannah, GA with Denise Duong to set her up in our very first residency at the 612 Cottage. We're throwing her a show on May 1st at the Iocovozzi Gallery & Judge Realty and I couldn't be more thrilled about seeing this dream come true! We'll be bringing our first artist, Katherine Sandoz, from Savannah to OKC in June! And thus begins the residency exchange!!!! Yes!!!<br>
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We have worked so hard for years to prepare for these events and experiences. It makes me so happy to see them happen. When <a href="https://katherine-sandoz.squarespace.com/">Katherine </a><a href="https://katherine-sandoz.squarespace.com/">Sandoz</a>'s residency is over mid-June, everything that we have dreamed up so far will have come to fruition and we will have the systems in place to make it happen again and again. Our main goal and mission is "Sharing Tools to Build a Better Community." I think we're on track!<br>
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And this fall, I'll turn these things over to other people to work on starting the pre-school. So much to do! So grateful to have the opportunity!<br>
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p.s. Humongous thanks go out to my partner James Varnum, BC Summers, Lauren Zuniga, Denise Duong, Samantha Lamb, Erin Latham, Paul Mays, Ron Ferrell, Jennifer Alig, Sustainable OKC, Transition OKC, Dustin Green, our Mardi Gras committee, our board, Bumbershoot Media, Tracey Zeeck, Krystal Yoseph, Greg Elwell, Lori Judge, Kim Iocovozzi, Judge Realty, Iocovozzi Fine Art, and the countless volunteers who have helped us to get our start.<br>
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We especially thank James' and my generous families too. We couldn't have done any of this without them. We are so blessed!!!!</div>
amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-2173549306173209802015-02-04T08:05:00.000-06:002015-02-04T08:05:30.048-06:00First Days of ClassThis week marks a big milestone for SixTwelve! We are finally to a point where we can start offering programs and the building is almost ready to open to the public! We're practicing holding different types of classes here in the beginning because we've just recently moved into the fundraising phase and don't yet have everything we need to do it all at once.<br />
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In February we're providing two after school classes, Shades of Nature on Mondays and Wednesdays, and Headnoise on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Shades of Nature is a sustainability + art class for the younger kids, 1st through 5th grade, and is taught by <a href="http://samanthalambphotography.myshopify.com/">Samantha Lamb</a> and <a href="http://erinelatham.com/home.html">Erin Latham</a>, with Paul Mays, our head of permaculture, coming in every now and again. Samantha, Erin and Paul have been a part of what we're doing for a long time and we've been so lucky to have their talents invested in our project.<br />
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Samantha has her own farm and is an artist as well! In addition, she has a radio show on The Spy, Songs of the Plains, and she's incredibly kind. Erin is a print maker and installation artist and has been a wonderful assistant to me over the past semester. Both are so good to the kids and even after just one meeting, I can tell that we are going to have a lot of fun learning together. We planted peas and carrots in a little raised bed, made by Paul specifically for our younger students. They'll get to see plants grow over the month and even take some home with them thanks to the terrarium project they started on Monday.<br />
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Headnoise is an illustration and writing class for 6th-12th graders and is taught by <a href="http://laurenzuni.tumblr.com/">Lauren Zuniga</a> and <a href="http://deniseduongart.com/">Denise Duong</a>. Lauren is a nationally acclaimed poet who has traveled the nation, winning all kinds of competitions and inspiring people wherever she goes. Denise is an award winning local artist and one of my favorites! (I have four of her works on my walls.) We met for the first time yesterday and had four students. We started our class with drawing exercises with Denise, and then moved into writing exercises with Lauren. Sitting around the table with these kids, working out the assignments with them, I couldn't help but to be moved. At one point, I even had to excuse myself to go to the bathroom because I was tearing up. I'm just so grateful for the opportunity to see these dreams come true. </div>
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Both of these classes are the reward for sticking with it and not giving up over the past five years that we have been working on this project. It has taken so much patience and endurance from both James and myself. And although we are still pushing and working just as hard, it seems that in this time of transition, there is a force that is now pulling our intentions into reality, as well. </div>
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Next month, we will practice holding a spring break camp focused on Murals with Rick Sinnett and Jason Pawley. In April and May we'll send Denise and Lauren to Savannah and then this summer we'll have camps! Then get ready for full fledged programming in the fall! We'll have events throughout the year and will build slowly, adding what we can when we can. </div>
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We still need to buy furniture, so everything will take a little time, but I know that in another five years, SixTwelve will be lush with people, programming, plants and love. It's all finally happening!!!!!</div>
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(p.s. Anyone reading this can visit us this Friday for our open house during Paseo's First Friday Art Walk, and next Friday by <a href="http://www.eventbrite.com/e/inaugural-sixtwelve-mardi-gras-ball-tickets-14710131399">purchasing a ticket</a> to our Inaugural Mardi Gras Ball fundraiser! It's going to be so much fun!)</div>
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<br />amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-42259620679931618152015-01-13T16:13:00.004-06:002015-01-13T16:17:21.663-06:00Almost ThereSixTwelve is so close to opening! We're having an open house on Friday, February 6th and our first Mardi Gras ball fundraiser on the 13th. We're even going to have classes, beginning next month. I'm excited and can't believe that we're finally at this point!<br />
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The building is looking so good. James and all of the crews have done an excellent job with bringing our old gal back from the dead. This is a recent image of the interior.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3mRbpLf-t14oF-cIOaXytfmbaUFOrGBrgmYDmSulDPhXSdQflFxnqRV1Vj6AcAMvLOQx_pnVN1HpPjbqadIGp7UjcQdPtAtj8wSjif7fpFJ3WSyazIHDlYWp74F45bHKoMzF60boBfw/s1600/James+and+our+new+floors!.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3mRbpLf-t14oF-cIOaXytfmbaUFOrGBrgmYDmSulDPhXSdQflFxnqRV1Vj6AcAMvLOQx_pnVN1HpPjbqadIGp7UjcQdPtAtj8wSjif7fpFJ3WSyazIHDlYWp74F45bHKoMzF60boBfw/s1600/James+and+our+new+floors!.JPG" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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Can you believe those floors??? They are the original, 1929 floors that James, BC and crew members pulled up, hammered out the nails, and then saved for reuse. We only sanded them down lightly, mopped and then sealed them. So gorgeous! I'm proud of the fact that we reused as much as we could and that we saved original fabric from the building. I'm proud of James too. He's been working so hard and so have I. We can't keep up with all of the things that there are to do, but we've dug in and are pushing as hard as we can to get it open in February.<br />
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Everything won't be finished, but we'll have the place to a point where we can have classes and events and that's a really good thing. It's all happening!!!! 2015 will be the best year yet!<br />
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<br />amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-56990436325515792542014-11-11T21:22:00.001-06:002014-11-11T22:53:30.700-06:00Working It<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6uHUu4Fx_M-fqSBH7Ht8wNWnd3LBGJWpxvgPq5awT0JdSUd-iVzOSwNDMaLZlVDEs8Pexzaq3AFLfRPDvB_nvnwrJIJ9coPV7MNO3yGHHjYs-hpBKMO7HRgTdCl5cUTdtFsfPooi3MZA/s640/blogger-image--1922950593.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6uHUu4Fx_M-fqSBH7Ht8wNWnd3LBGJWpxvgPq5awT0JdSUd-iVzOSwNDMaLZlVDEs8Pexzaq3AFLfRPDvB_nvnwrJIJ9coPV7MNO3yGHHjYs-hpBKMO7HRgTdCl5cUTdtFsfPooi3MZA/s640/blogger-image--1922950593.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div><br></div>This has been one of the hardest weeks I've had in a long time and it's only Tuesday. I've been thrown a LOT of curve balls in preparing for the Paseo Arts Awards, but I keep trying just to roll with it. Sometimes that's easier than others. I've tried to do as much as I could to make it special for the awardees. I want Miki, Lance and Liz to know how much I respect them and how grateful I am that they do what they do. <div><br></div><div>Tomorrow night marks the last time that I will chair this event. I've got to make room in my brain and schedule for focusing on SixTwelve. It deserves my attention and it's my passion, so I'm actually excited to be at this point. I have one more event that I am going to help with. It happens in January and I only play a small part. After that, I'm taking a break from the event planning for a while. <br><div><br></div><div>We've also been pushing pretty hard at SixTwelve to get the main space ready for my friend Lindsay's rehearsal dinner. We're not finished with renovations yet, but we are getting so close, and this deadline was good for us. As of today, we have our geothermal system on and heating the building, just in time for winter! We also have a tile floor in our kitchen and lights! And maybe the biggest deal is that we now have a toilet!!!! Woohoo!!!! By Friday we should have counters, sinks and a floor that is ready to sand lightly and seal! It is really starting to come together and I think it's going to look really good for the dinner. I'm shooting for magical, but I'll be happy with gorgeous. :)</div><div><div><br></div><div>I'm excited for all of the progress, but with it comes a level of exhaustion that I haven't felt before. I took on more responsibilities in every area this past year. 2015 will be about narrowing my focus and saying, "no," to a lot, just so that I can do more in my own way. I think that's the best gift we can give this world anyway. </div></div></div>amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-76092115508872072112014-11-02T07:59:00.001-06:002014-11-02T13:23:22.238-06:00612 Progress Report<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlz9r550TEwSIjceDwY_ZLJerofjg-2b5QYUqbBMGCXEsCf9PvFQLQZj3Hsu2GEhIbBEF0QRRKjdsuywgaqbEvvsgtsJeGXXD2hz-JQSEMVDi1kj50pA0OvLgNJFT3kK0ObdGAjWa5e4g/s640/blogger-image--613155138.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlz9r550TEwSIjceDwY_ZLJerofjg-2b5QYUqbBMGCXEsCf9PvFQLQZj3Hsu2GEhIbBEF0QRRKjdsuywgaqbEvvsgtsJeGXXD2hz-JQSEMVDi1kj50pA0OvLgNJFT3kK0ObdGAjWa5e4g/s640/blogger-image--613155138.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div><br></div>Yesterday was a full and wonderful day! I have been putting together an education workshop for the past few months. It was provided for by the Paseo Arts Association, with a grant from Allied Arts, and it took place at Edgemere Elementary School. <div><br></div><div>A wonderful person, Chris Neal, contacted me months ago to meet and to see if we could possibly work together to provide something for the community. He had seen me posting all kinds of things out of support for friends who were working on creative projects. So he was enlisting support. When I heard about the nonprofit he had started, West Winds Chamber Players, I knew this would be a great fit for a lot of events. But what had I been giving most of my attention to at the time??? - Providing programming for the biannual Parent/Guardian & Student Workshop we hold at Edgemere. Perfect timing! </div><div><br></div><div>It's funny how I thought I was helping Chris. He was helping me! The musical program that he put together was stellar. I'm so grateful to have been able to work with him because it went just the way these things are supposed to go. He and his group were so professional and incredibly talented. A lot of the musicians were OKC Philharmonic members and I knew quite a few of them from my music teaching days in Norman. Fun! <br><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Our hope is to help provide and enrich instruction in all of the arts, so we had kazoo making craft time, a drumming workshop with Enid Van Treese (she was sooooo AWESOME!!!) and then West Winds Chamber Players performed a piece called "Sea Creatures." I even read the narration for them. It was so much fun! We only had 4 kids show up, but in total we had 27 people there so I was happy. (Note to self: Don't plan things the day after Halloween! We might get a better turnout. Ha!)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEOaFs5z3I-d-4gNPWjNf7l_7KcB_EQ0955ByAQhyJcPd7TBb6diDL4FglJtG7Wbb8GD0nWoa0gVBsKlYGeymKukaY-aAPxY-O7Nldd1iKqacd10lTjmfahMInktFO-M_0PaPfyAbQDd4/s640/blogger-image-1402529782.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEOaFs5z3I-d-4gNPWjNf7l_7KcB_EQ0955ByAQhyJcPd7TBb6diDL4FglJtG7Wbb8GD0nWoa0gVBsKlYGeymKukaY-aAPxY-O7Nldd1iKqacd10lTjmfahMInktFO-M_0PaPfyAbQDd4/s640/blogger-image-1402529782.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">After the workshop, James and I celebrated by going to Cheever's. I think I was celebrating a successful workshop as much as the fact that I actually woke</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">up at 6:45am on a Saturday morning after driving home all day the day before. (James flew out to Savannah to help drive me home. What a peach!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Then we went by SixTwelve to see what progress had taken place while I was gone. I'm so excited to see all of the trim stained, the walls painted and the tile going down in the bathrooms. It really is looking good! I love the dark stain. I believe it will provide a visual warmth and depth to our space, and I think it's more historically accurate for a 1929 building. I'm also in love with the hexagon tile in the downstairs bathrooms! I think we've got a really nice place and it's only going to get better! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5_sHlpU3VyB2_gOxQ2s_uvxOI17wwzqtv_62Ea4k6c_IfLFcdsNkg259kdyt9Au7faxSvFaPTSYwcHXFR2v1zWXK2urWuNAiMipXGKUbd_mFAwXKl_z78nGZ8q7ZmVeum01VjJaujOCg/s640/blogger-image-1036687387.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5_sHlpU3VyB2_gOxQ2s_uvxOI17wwzqtv_62Ea4k6c_IfLFcdsNkg259kdyt9Au7faxSvFaPTSYwcHXFR2v1zWXK2urWuNAiMipXGKUbd_mFAwXKl_z78nGZ8q7ZmVeum01VjJaujOCg/s640/blogger-image-1036687387.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Q30pCUriKqNJ9_ZFcIMx33Zb_y5zH-uigWXClE0SZqstEo4pL3V0ZhpFt_cvTuMEDbwHfX_NBzhWpFpQUIZt7kB2Bg3KPaRWywBNPzIxJDnUqhr7lb20-vhSAR2UIQ0t4YzE54Z1y3k/s640/blogger-image-296392205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMvwd7BbeFyaTSVieQt9c8EyM5VBbQwcmMvqBq7l3QvLl9iSuyHYiIZe8nH1rlSw69DWh5NqBjcqJd84V1oHqYpemWAISZDYXLLeaxiYtpot4RotX6cJCRhaqLT-hGdNirTLYxYFZL5BA/s640/blogger-image--1468671790.jpg"></a></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></span></div></div>amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-27285200508367290142014-10-30T13:20:00.001-05:002014-10-30T13:20:24.448-05:00Runnin' Down That Road<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSgS0co5aSvL5ms3WDjQ9fGNpZEE7ZKLYjHfuACk_Ol2-ehedG00u_k4S5rgnBIKyt7JjG89lM_dSXkA_C9xHSsWatkqDg-lKBPT77wB1GeyQJqF_nemYcDIptkI3cH3bSJQpOCLVjC6E/s640/blogger-image--558270084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSgS0co5aSvL5ms3WDjQ9fGNpZEE7ZKLYjHfuACk_Ol2-ehedG00u_k4S5rgnBIKyt7JjG89lM_dSXkA_C9xHSsWatkqDg-lKBPT77wB1GeyQJqF_nemYcDIptkI3cH3bSJQpOCLVjC6E/s640/blogger-image--558270084.jpg"></a></div></div><div><br></div>I'm currently sitting in the car. James is driving us home to OKC, taking a new route because we decided to visit my parents in Florida before returning from this trip to Savannah. I'm so glad we drove down to see them because I have missed them! <div><br></div><div>I love these drives because I usually get a lot of work done while James is at the wheel. We also have a lot of time to talk and figure things out, which is valuable. On this leg of the trip, we've been discussing big picture dreaming, models of schools and community groups and systems we should put into place in order to help SixTwelve run smoothly. It's fun because I feel like I can see what will happen there more clearly everyday. </div><div><br></div><div>I've decided that we will wait on starting the pre-school, even though I believe it to be one of the biggest needs in our community. I just feel like I have so many things to learn before jumping in, AND we need to take things one step at a time in order for everything to be as successful as possible. </div><div><br></div><div>So here's the new priority list for getting things open at SixTwelve:</div><div><br></div><div>1. After-school programs & Residencies.</div><div>2. Trade Share Program</div><div>3. Pre-School</div><div><br></div><div>There are things like playground equipment and safety embellishments that we will need to make for the pre-school that will take funding I haven't yet earned/raised. So I will continue to work toward those goals and implement them as I have the funds and time. </div><div><br></div><div>I believe this is not only the smartest way to proceed, but also the best! I can't wait to work with those kids and to provide experiences for people that I know have the potential to transform. After attending the Alliance of Artist Communities conference last week in Charleston, I'm fired up about getting to open our doors and get to work! (That's a whole different blogpost. What an incredibly important and inspiring conference! So glad I went!)</div><div><br></div><div>It won't be long now. In fact we're going to have an open house on December 5th, during Paseo's First Friday Gallery Walk. I think we'll open our doors in January! Can't wait! </div>amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-38727458662322495862014-08-25T18:32:00.001-05:002014-08-25T19:25:15.694-05:00Top 10 List for The Best Things That Have Happened Since My Last Blog
PostI have been bad about blogging. I'm sure that everyone could see that. No surprise there, but the truth is I used to think about what I wanted to say and edit and hyperlink and....all of the things that people do when they blog. For the past two years, I have been going and going, with little time to stop and process, let alone write about it. I'm grateful and I don't feel like I owe anyone an explanation, but obviously I do a little or I wouldn't be writing about it AGAIN! GAHHHH!!!<br>
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So instead of trying to go back and recreate my reactions to events, I'll just list my 10 favorite things that have happened since my last post and that will at least keep this entry to a length that won't drive people to drink.<br>
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1. SixTwelve received its nonprofit status!!!!!! Ahahahaha!!! So excited!!! Receiving that piece of mail gave James and me both a boost that we needed. We are both grateful to be doing what we're doing, but it has been almost five years since we bought SixTwelve and started down this road. Now it seems that I can't do anything without wishing that I was at 612 working. All I want to do is focus on the programming and the building, but that's not my reality. I'm just glad that I feel so inspired and ready to move on everything!<br>
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2. I adopted a pup named "Willie." I debated with myself as to whether this was #1 or #2 in this Top Ten list. I seriously love that little fella. He is only 4.5 months old and he is already doing tricks and following commands and sleeping through the night. Yes, I know. You get it. I'm gushing. So sorry.<br>
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3. Denise Duong & Lauren Zuniga both agreed to work at SixTwelve. This is huge to me. I admire both of these women so much and know that they will give an incredible gift to their students. I'm so proud that they will be teaching with us.<br>
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4. Romy Owens agreed to be SixTwelve's first resident that we send to Savannah!!!! I've started work and planning for the show that Romy will have at the end of her time there and I hope to have it firm later in the fall. Romy is the Sh*t. Seriously. Her work is not only some of my favorite, it's important. It's on time.<br>
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5. I got to walk the streets of Savannah as a resident and take Willie with me. It was everything I dreamed of.<br>
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6. We started planning our first SixTwelve fundraiser! It's going to be Mardi Gras ball! This next Valentine's Day (the Saturday before Fat Tuesday 2015) we will be having quite the shindig at 612 and hope to someday grow the party big enough to have floats going down Paseo Drive. It's going to be so fun!<br>
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7. I've met some really inspiring people that have helped me to look forward with important considerations and even more confidence.<br>
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8. I've slowed down a little and will actually get to be in Oklahoma for a month and a half before leaving town.<br>
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9. I've experienced the support of so many great friends. Because of them, I've learned to let myself ask for help. That's really hard sometimes. I've also had some really hilarious and fun times with these friends.<br>
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10. This may be way to personal and somewhat morbid for some reading this, but I have to write it. I got to be by my grandfather's side the night before he passed away. In fact, I think he let go of this world about 20 minutes after my sister and I left the hospital that morning. I got to spend so much time with him throughout my life. I never missed a chance to go and see him or my grandmother. They were just as dear to me as my sweet parents.<br>
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The day before he passed, he called my sister and me to his bedside and told us that he wanted to talk to us. He told us that women could make things more complicated than they needed to be. (I asked him if he thought men could too, and he said, "Oh yes, of course." lol) He said that we needed to remember that the most important thing in life is that we love each other. I agree with him. I've been so exponentially blessed my entire life and I am doing my best to let that flow through me. I want to share the love.amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-21895095576202447042014-02-27T17:12:00.000-06:002014-02-27T17:14:26.008-06:00SixTwelve Update: Geothermal!!!Ooooooooh, you guys! I have been after James to write a blog post about the geothermal system we've chosen for <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SixTwelve/197952753568312">SixTwelve</a>, and boy did he deliver! He and K Edward Van Osdol created a video where he's telling you about it! So take a look at this. I'm so proud of James and really excited about the progress at SixTwelve!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4HKQ-HAwJjU" width="640"></iframe>amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-73139695320225588332014-01-15T13:27:00.002-06:002014-01-15T13:27:26.994-06:00Greetings from Savannah!Greetings from Savannah, GA! I'm here now, trying to finish furnishing the SixTwelve artist residency. It's been a lot of fun picking out furniture and trying to make sure that everything one might need is here. I want people to feel honored to have been given this residency and I know that the location sets the tone, so I'm making it as nice as I can within a budget. Here's a little view of the living room so far.<br />
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The most exciting news from the past couple of months is that the paperwork for the non-profit status application (to the IRS) is complete and the board is completely formed! We held a meeting last week where we voted on many resolutions, assigned officers and put in motion all of the goodness that we want to give to OKC. It was a bit surreal and 100% exciting.<br />
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Because we asked so many people within one week, I'll just list them in this post, but subsequent posts will be dedicated to each new member. I think we have the best board. Jim Roth, Kathryn Mathis, Marco Rodriguez, Michael Centola, and Megan Elliott all accepted our invitations to join and we could not be more grateful!<br />
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This is really happening and it makes me so happy.amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-69112841450774587562013-11-11T23:59:00.001-06:002013-11-12T00:27:05.088-06:00Where Have You Been All My Life? (Or Over the Past Year?)2014 is going to have to work hard to trump 2013. When I graduated a year and a half ago, I decided that I needed another kind of education. I needed a quick degree in serving your community in a creative way. I wanted to know the best practices, the issues, the things you don't ever want to overlook, when trying to actually do some good for the people around you. <br />
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I knew the most efficient way to do that would be to find other people and projects that were doing great things for their communities. I went to see as many creative and sustainable projects as I could, all over the country, because I needed to figure out how to combine all of the programs I have been dreaming about under one roof. There's nothing like first hand experience and observation to help you decide things like... "no, Amy, you don't need to make your pre-school a Waldorf school. You've had all of the education, training, and experience that you need to do this." (That was my voice.) I would have had to go to school for four more years, and train/student teach at a Waldorf school during those years before ever calling myself certified. The time for study and research is always at hand, but now is also the time to act. You can research too much. Sometimes you just have to jump in and do it!<br />
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I also learned that my ideas, dreams and visions are just as important as anyone else's. The choices I make and the priorities I set are there for a reason. They dictate the things that I do and lead me towards my goals. This has helped me learn how to say, "no," without feeling guilty. And what are my goals? It's funny. A year ago, I would have said that my goals were to get SixTwelve open and to provide quality education, encouragement and care for the people of OKC.<br />
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Those are still my goals, but now, the highest priorities are to remain true to myself, to spend as much time with my family as I can, and to enjoy every step of the process of getting SixTwelve to the point where it can help people. I used to be so controlled by fear. We all are, to some extent, but I'm not afraid of this mountain in front of me anymore, largely because I've been climbing it for some time now. But I've also had the luxury of taking my time, getting to know myself and my community, and learning how to tell fear to take a hike. You have to get out of your own head and focus on the doing!<br />
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It's been a crazy, fun, exciting, scary, mind-blowing, exhausting, but thrilling experience. I've seen things that I know will play a part in our programming and I've met people that have come along, just at the perfect time. I've decided to be as open to whatever came my way as I could, while simultaneously pushing to make things happen. It's a weird, but productive, balance.<br />
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I haven't blogged about everything that I've seen or done over the past year because I kind of want some things to be a surprise. I also just took off and didn't give myself much time to write, but here's a little synopsis.<br />
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Shortly after Paseo Festival and deadCENTER Film Festival were over, I took off with my friend, Preston, to see San Francisco, Napa, the Redwood Forest, Scenic Hwy 1 along the California and Oregon coasts, and then on up to Portland. I went to San Francisco to see 826 Valencia, but they were closed for renovation when I arrived. Not to worry! I will return. We took a few days to drive up the coast after leaving San Fran, because I had never seen the Redwoods and I found this SWEEEEET little cabin on airbnb.com. I thought I would give living in a smaller house a try and I fell in love.<br />
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This little place may have done more for my understanding of what sustainable living can be like than anything else I experienced on that trip. We had the best time and I slept better there than anywhere else along the way. We even had a composting toilet. Have I mentioned that James wanted to have composting toilets at SixTwelve and I originally said, "no way?" Ha! I worried there would be a smell and that people wouldn't know how to use them. Our stay at the cabin helped me to realize that people (like me) could learn, pretty easily, in fact. And there wasn't a smell. I also felt happier with less clutter around me. Imagine that. It's had me thinking about selling my house and just building little neighborhood of tiny houses ever since. But one project at a time, Amy. (That's my dad's voice I'm hearing there. So grateful for his guidance.)<br />
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When we arrived in Portland, I visited a Waldorf Training program and spoke with the director. He told me about all of the requirements and while I could easily see myself living in Portland the next four summers, and while I truly respect Rudolf Steiner's philosophies on education, I knew that the time had come to leave further training behind and just do it! I believe that I can create a pre-school program that will be really good for many little humans.<br />
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I loved that trip. It was fun and full of beauty, but it was time to come home and prepare for the next research trip. I'll write more about that next time!amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-56659366654512767912013-10-08T10:17:00.003-05:002013-10-08T10:17:57.552-05:00I'm Baaaaaaaack!I took the summer off from blogging to travel and see many, many inspirational projects and community centers! I also continued planning for the programming at SixTwelve! I seriously was having so much fun and adventure that I didn't have time to write. Have I mentioned lately how grateful I am for my life? 2013 has turned out to be one of the best years so far! I will definitely catch up on the projects and centers that I visited over the coming weeks. I mainly just wanted to check in and get the ball rolling on the ol' blog again.<br />
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SixTwelve is moving right along. We're putting in electric and plumbing right now and Phillip has started on the landscaping just this week. James just got back from a three week trip to South Korea, Japan and Thailand. So glad he got to go! I'll be leaving for Marfa, Texas tomorrow with Joy and will only have one day when I get back to wash my clothes and pack again because I'll leave on the 16th to go to Savannah and close on the little cottage I found for a 612/Savannah artist exchange! Woohooo!!!!<br />
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Travel is important to both of us and we know that it's going to be a challenge over the next five years, while we get the business up and running, to get away. But it's a priority for both of us, so I'm sure we'll figure it out.<br />
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Today, I'll be working with kids on a recycled art project from 12-4pm at Orange Leaf Yogurt at North May and Grand. We're going to be using their spoons, cups and napkins to create little ghosts and some bigger spoon pumpkins. I hope a lot of kids come. Should be a lot of fun!<br />
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<br />amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-67723056607678781572013-07-08T11:37:00.000-05:002013-07-08T11:39:25.785-05:00Catch Up on SixTwelve and Travels!July 1st has begun what I am calling a month of travel and research. I know that I haven't had any problem working that in over the past months, but this one is especially full. I'm excited! But before I begin to explain what I'll be doing over the next few weeks, I want to catch up a little bit and highlight what I think have been the most significant experiences over the past few.<br />
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Last month, after chairing the music committee for the Paseo Arts Festival, taking a little breather in Broken Bow and then organizing the volunteers for the opening night party for deadCENTER Film Festival, I felt like I could really focus on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SixTwelve/197952753568312">SixTwelve</a>. It's so good to be able to really give this my all again. This was my third and last year to chair the music for Paseo Fest and I'm working to bring other people in to the committees that I'm on or chairing so that I can share the workload and have more time to give to SixTwelve. It's my true passion and there are only so many hours in the day, so it's time to cut out the distractions and run toward that goal! James and I have been calling it "Laser Focus." That's what we want.</div>
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On June 12th, we were so fortunate to be invited to speak at the <a href="http://www.normanarts.org/join-us/arts-organizations/">Norman Arts Roundtable</a>. This entity is made up of representatives from different arts and humanities organizations in Norman and they bring in people each month to speak about their work. Jennifer Barron, the director of the Paseo Arts Association, James and I all went on this day and presented info about the Paseo Arts District and about SixTwelve. It's so fun to share our dream with people because I feel like the more people that know about it, the more good we'll be able to do when we open our doors. </div>
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And speaking of sharing the vision, we had a fabulous opportunity to share on June 21st, when the <a href="http://www.arteducators.org/">National Art Education Association</a> Western Region came to SixTwelve during their conference. I was working at the <a href="http://www.okmuseums.org/">Oklahoma Museums Association</a>'s annual Smarties Trivia Night so James took the reigns and gave what I heard was a great tour! I couldn't believe that so many art educators would get to hear about what we're doing. We were so honored to be a part of that tour of Paseo. </div>
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On the morning of June 22nd, SixTwelve joined forces with <a href="http://www.sustainableokc.org/">SustainableOKC</a> and the <a href="http://www.greatplainscocacola.com/">Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company</a> to provide a Rain Barrel Workshop. Great Plains provided the barrels and conversion kits; SustainableOKC provided the directions and discussion and SixTwelve provided the location. We're not even finished with renovation and we're already seeing some learning and gathering taking place. I felt like I was on cloud nine during that event. I'm really proud of James for being on the board of SustainableOKC and making things like this happen for our community. We had a great crowd and everyone seemed grateful for this free opportunity to take a rain barrel home with them! IT'S REALLY HAPPENING!!!! People are learning valuable things at SixTwelve!!!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had a great crowd for the Rain Barrel Workshop!</td></tr>
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Last week, I went to Kansas City with Chandra for a few days. Our goal was to catch up and have a girls' trip, but I snuck a little research in as well. The first night that we were there, we met with our friend <a href="http://coryimig.com/home.html">Cori Imig</a>. Cori is a fabulous lady and thanks to the <a href="http://www.ovac-ok.org/">Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition</a>, OKC has a relationship with her and with the gallery and project that she and her fellow co-founding members started, <a href="http://www.plugprojects.com/">Plug Projects</a>. She is also the Program Coordinator for <a href="http://www.artistinckc.com/">Artist INC</a>, an organization that OVAC and other Oklahoma organizations, such as <a href="http://cityartscenter.org/Web_v2/classes/outreach/artist-inc/">Oklahoma Contemporary</a>, are working with in order to help artists grow in their business. </div>
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As if Cori isn't amazing enough, her boyfriend has a 24 hour, local foods grocery store, <a href="http://howardskcmo.com/">Howard's</a>, that operates on an honor system. This visit deserves (and will get) its own blog entry next, but I think anyone reading this can get an idea of why it would be fun to bring these people to Oklahoma City and to speak, teach, or share their ideas with our community at SixTwelve. I admire them so much! While we were in KC, we also took in some great art at the <a href="http://www.kemperart.org/">Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art</a> and the <a href="http://www.kemperart.org/">Nelson-Atikins Museum of Art</a>. Man, oh man! We saw some great art. We also ate some delicious food and shopped, but I'll include all of that in the next entry. </div>
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So June and the first part of July have been really fun and educational. The rest of the month won't pale in comparison either. I'm home this week and then next Sunday, I'm hitting the road for a long stretch of wanderlust and exploration. My friend Preston and I are heading to San Francisco, spending a little time there seeing a great program called <a href="http://826valencia.org/">826 Valencia</a>, the <a href="http://www.steinercollege.edu/">Rudolf Steiner College</a>, and of course, experiencing delicious art, music and food. We're then renting a car and driving up the Pacific Coast Hwy 1. I've always wanted to see the Redwood trees so I am going to work that into the time between San Fran and my final destination, Portland. There are a lot of places that I want to visit in Portland too. All of this travel is meant to provide inspiration, insight and to hopefully make contacts with people that I can bring to OKC for future SixTwelve programming. Plus, once we open, I know that it will be hard to get away. I'm sure I won't feel stuck or imprisoned by SixTwelve. I'll just want to be here, making sure I give everything I can to see it grow and flourish. So now is the time to go! </div>
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About three days after I return from the west coast, I'm going to turn around and head out to Taos and Santa Fe, New Mexico. This trip is more for fun, as the group I'm going with will be celebrating a great friend's birthday, but I know that I'll be inspired and surrounded by art and music, so I'm sure I will find places that will somehow be of importance to the 612 project there too. Every experience is important for what we're doing. </div>
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Really looking forward to these trips! So grateful for my life.</div>
amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-26325288161041432422013-06-04T00:30:00.001-05:002013-06-04T00:31:40.696-05:00Festivals Galore! The past month has flown by in such a pace that I could barely keep up. I had my last class meeting with the <a href="http://www.arts.ok.gov/">Oklahoma Arts Council</a>'s <a href="http://www.arts.ok.gov/Our_Programs/Leadership_Arts.html">Leadership Arts</a> program and I have to say that I love my classmates. They were a huge encouragement to me and helped inspire me to keep truckin. I feel like I have friends all over the state that are on the same page about promoting the importance of the arts in our state and I now feel like I have the tools to advocate for what I believe our state needs. Most importantly, I am grateful and honored to be included in a group with any of them. They are superstars in my book!<br />
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The day after our meeting concluded here in OKC, I helped to get the <a href="http://www.thepaseo.com/events/festival/paseofestival_2013.html">Paseo Arts Festival</a> set up. This was my last year as the music chair for the festival and while the last three years have been such a great learning experience for me, I am excited about working at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SixTwelve/197952753568312">612</a> during next year's festival. I want to give my energy to my baby!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Paseo's Gayle Curry created the artwork for this year's festival and I love it!</td></tr>
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This year's fest was great. We had wonderful art, food and music. My only real goals were to enjoy as much of it as I could, to try to solve problems with a clear head, and to get along with James. Ha! That can all be hard to accomplish during a festival, because of long work hours and heat. Although the weather took a break on us this year, we didn't suffer a lack of challenges. The biggest difference this year was in how I chose to respond to those challenges. I'm finding that I have more confidence in myself so I don't need to fly off of the handle when injustices happen...especially after all of the recent loss we have experienced in our state due to the tornadoes and rough weather. It kind of puts things in perspective.<br />
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I was so impressed with the musicians that performed at the festival. Almost all of them gave their tips to the relief effort. They raised $1,190.84, to be split evenly between the <a href="http://www.redcross.org/ok/oklahoma-city">Red Cross</a> and the <a href="http://www.regionalfoodbank.org/">Regional Food Bank</a>. These musicians were already playing for free to begin with! I'm so grateful for their generosity. It made all of the challenges we faced so small.<br />
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After a quick getaway trip to Broken Bow with my friend Preston, I'm back in OKC and getting ready for <a href="http://www.deadcenterfilm.org/">deadCENTER Film Festival</a>. It starts on Thursday and I'm in charge of the opening night rooftop party at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. I think it's going to be a lot of fun and I can't wait to see the films.<br />
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I love Oklahoma City. We're lucky to live in such a great place with so many wonderful things going on all the time. There's no time to be bored! The best thing about Oklahoma, though, is the people. We make these things happen and I'm so honored to be a part of it.<br />
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Shameless Plug: If you haven't gotten your passes for deadCENTER, click <a href="http://www.deadcenterfilm.org/buy/">HERE</a> now and join us this weekend. It's going to be fun!amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-2535721359229051042013-05-09T06:59:00.000-05:002013-05-09T07:00:30.799-05:00Hard Hat Tour, Leadership Arts, Paseo's First Friday, Better Block and What's coming up!The past few weeks have been flying by and I don't see things slowing down until the middle of June. I've had so many great experiences, but it's made it difficult to keep up with my blog. So I thought I'd give a little sampler post to catch up!<br />
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On Earth Day, April 22nd, we held a hard hat tour of SixTwelve and it was so fun to share our dreams with people we'd never even met. It's one thing for your family or best friends to encourage you. In fact, it might have been what kept us going over the past few years, but it's wild to see people you don't know getting excited your project and what it can mean for the community. The wonderful guys at <a href="http://www.mockingbirdmedia1.com/#!">Mockingbird Media</a>, Matt Barnett and Stewart Perryman, came to the tour, filmed and created a wonderful video that really captures our vision and then just gave it to us for free. I'm so grateful!!! Such generosity is rare these days. Take a look!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/dLkI_MHUmKc" width="640"></iframe><br />
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Just a couple of days after that tour, I headed down to <a href="http://www.beaversbend.com/">Beavers Bend State Park</a> in Broken Bow, Oklahoma for our third <a href="http://www.arts.ok.gov/Our_Programs/Leadership_Arts.html">Leadership Arts</a> class meeting. It was so beautiful down there and I have to say it was a needed break from the fast-paced rush I'm always running through up here in OKC. I'm amazed by all of my class mates. They do so many wonderful things for the arts in our state and are simultaneously so supportive and kind. We discussed ways in which the arts improve quality of life and were lucky enough to get to tour the <a href="http://www.museumoftheredriver.org/">Museum of the Red River</a> in Idabel as a part of our program. What a great museum!!!! The two things I like the most about the Leadership Arts program are the people I get to meet and the parts of the state we now feel connected to because of our great experiences. This state really does have so much to offer...we just have to get out and see it!<br />
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The following week, during <a href="http://www.thepaseo.com/calendar/firstfriday.html">Paseo's First Friday Art Walk</a>, my friends Molly O'Connor and Lauren Zuniga, the band, King Mary, Feathered Rabbit and Richard Ray Whitman all performed on SixTwelve's stage!!! Boom Horn also created a mural while the event was taking place. It was the first time anyone used the stage and I was thrilled with the caliber of talent we saw there. I wasn't in charge of anything, as we just let the group hold their event there, but I was so honored to have such incredible artists, musicians and poets inaugurate the stage. The goodness keeps on flowing!<br />
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The very next morning, we got up really early to get to the <a href="http://www.okcfarmersmarket.com/">OKC Farmers Public Market</a>. It was time for the <a href="http://www.betterblockokc.com/this-saturday-bbokc-in-the-farmers-market-district/">Better Block OKC</a> event and SixTwelve had a booth!<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mxYLrLCgg8"> Erin Latham</a> is an artist that I really admire, especially for her talent, approach and philosophy. She is concerned with the environment and sustainability, so she is a perfect fit for what SixTwelve is about. Sooooo, I invited her to join us for the Better Block event and to help provide the kid's art activity that we were asked to provide. She created dyes out of veggies and used fruits and vegetables as the stamps kids (and adults) could use to make cards for Mother's Day. All of the waste we created was then composted by <a href="http://www.fertilegroundokc.com/">Fertile Ground</a>, so we could talk to the kids and parents about the cycle of those plants we used! It was perfect!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgChmm_XbE2BIRO4r3quvNXGfkQemQ9Kflfmj4dfE2UR2O2Voy3bBzWkZlsKCZiNcIfffeKx9ksMyTU4jkx02waj56usnmLL64aKbMwj41yh96Snh93UNlSmx5z2yHhSRQFg-UcPoCtlE0/s1600/better+block.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgChmm_XbE2BIRO4r3quvNXGfkQemQ9Kflfmj4dfE2UR2O2Voy3bBzWkZlsKCZiNcIfffeKx9ksMyTU4jkx02waj56usnmLL64aKbMwj41yh96Snh93UNlSmx5z2yHhSRQFg-UcPoCtlE0/s400/better+block.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Erin Latham, holding down the fort at the SixTwelve booth - Better Block OKC</span></td></tr>
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In addition to all of this, I'm preparing for an education event, a Parent/Student art workshop this Saturday at the PAA. It's for students at the elementary schools surrounding Paseo, such as Edgemere, Sequoyah, Putnam Heights, Wilson and Horrace Mann. I'm the chair of the education committee for Paseo, as well as the chair of the music committee for the <a href="http://www.thepaseo.com/events/festival/paseofestival_2013.html">Paseo Arts Festival 2013</a>, and that festival is coming right up. Immediately after Paseo Fest, I'm a party captain for the opening night party for <a href="http://www.deadcenterfilm.org/">deadCENTER Film Festival</a> on the rooftop of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Mainly I'm just in charge of helping to recruit volunteers and to spread the word about the greatness that is deadCENTER and I'm thrilled to be a part of it!<br />
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I have to say that afterwards, it will be so nice to return to a little normalcy...whatever that is. I know one thing...I'm going to take a big ol' nap. But it sure is fun to be a part of this community and to do whatever I can to help it grow. I love OKC.amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-26204538443083421872013-04-21T01:00:00.004-05:002013-04-21T01:40:06.442-05:00Our First Press Release<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last week I had the good fortune to eat dinner with a friend that I really respect and while we were eating, I was telling him about SixTwelve's upcoming Hard Hat Tour. He asked me if I was going to do a press release. A PRESS RELEASE???? I was just inviting all of my Facebook friends to come see the building because so many of them had said they would like to take a peak inside. I didn't even think about a press release. I also thought it was way too late to do something like that. This was just an informal tour.</span><br />
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Of course, as more and more people said they would be coming, I thought, "Maybe I <u>should</u> create one...just for the experience of learning how to do that. I've never written one up before and that skill could come in handy in the future." Romy encouraged me to write one too, so I asked our awesome board member, Tracey Zeeck, if she thought I should and she said it could be good for posterity. So I decided to give it a go!</span><br />
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I totally underestimated how long it would take to write one up. I thought, "I wrote a thesis this time last year. I can handle a one page press release." Ha! It took me about an hour to muddle my way through choosing the most important information, a quote that could be used and a short explanation of what SixTwelve will be. I laughed at myself after I finally finished.</span><br />
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I sent it to Tracey, and she replied with <a href="https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=13e1e829847e877f&mt=application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document&url=https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui%3D2%26ik%3D846902852a%26view%3Datt%26th%3D13e1e829847e877f%26attid%3D0.1%26disp%3Dsafe%26zw&sig=AHIEtbSNenpSxIe4ZJRwuPYPyd9FcKV0Yg">a revamped (and much, much better) version</a>, along with this kind note:</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Ok I plan to rearrange a lot of it, so just a heads up. Don't want you to think you didn't do a fab job ;-)</span></span><br />
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I'm really grateful for Tracey. I want to learn how to do things well and I know we all have to start somewhere, but it really helps to have guidance, especially from someone like her. I respect that woman. She knows what she's doing and gets things done. AND SHE IS KIND. I realize more and more that the people we've chosen for board members are people that we want as teachers. We're so lucky to have them. Thanks, Tracey, for all of your help.</span>amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-20362980976271998692013-04-15T01:28:00.001-05:002013-04-15T01:29:11.946-05:00Hard Hat Tour of SixTwelve<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPvY-0huUykGCLB50gv3OOcia9xS11fPEQ7zBtzv6omlG3HpXdT7tY_Okk-pdTQJyVGo4yB2ywI6_eDWzCCxQmT3BTJ2C22fcPoZViRc83bLeQScBBhPpcMgY66c-bPIhqE-74PWCDZC4/s1600/IMG_4657.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPvY-0huUykGCLB50gv3OOcia9xS11fPEQ7zBtzv6omlG3HpXdT7tY_Okk-pdTQJyVGo4yB2ywI6_eDWzCCxQmT3BTJ2C22fcPoZViRc83bLeQScBBhPpcMgY66c-bPIhqE-74PWCDZC4/s400/IMG_4657.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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One week from today, we're going to have a hard hat tour of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SixTwelve/197952753568312?fref=ts">SixTwelve</a>! It will take place on Earth Day, from 7-9am, and will be an informal way of letting people come in and take a peek at what we're up to. It will be fun to share our ideas with whoever shows up. Can't wait!<br />
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/124126031115545/">Click here</a> for the Facebook invitation and more info!amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-33394174450215885272013-04-09T11:28:00.002-05:002013-04-09T18:51:05.701-05:00Traveling with Tron, pt. 2 - Austin, Texas! Two Thursdays ago, James, Trey, Ron, Katie and I all traveled south to Austin, Texas to meet with people and organizations that Ron and Trey had told us about. These people are doing great things down there and I really wanted to meet them myself, in order to develop a relationship and connection. I thought they could be potential speakers or teachers for SixTwelve, and an Austin/OKC partnership would be ideal!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4EhrxzseLVk1bTJVIVLKMNMUcLtRAmUGONNVLpOky673IpLk7rtSsrcdwoodUWM3PWc6-2BvN3ROJCEbB14Isj5LfPHzX57qckuFnH2Y9eusza0SnSXXciwi8q8UMJWGtiC_J8PHsgw/s1600/IMG_5341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4EhrxzseLVk1bTJVIVLKMNMUcLtRAmUGONNVLpOky673IpLk7rtSsrcdwoodUWM3PWc6-2BvN3ROJCEbB14Isj5LfPHzX57qckuFnH2Y9eusza0SnSXXciwi8q8UMJWGtiC_J8PHsgw/s400/IMG_5341.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ron, Trey, James and Katie at Curras Grill in Austin</span></td></tr>
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Our first stop, after some yummy mole enchiladas at <a href="http://www.currasgrill.com/">Curras Grill</a>, was <a href="http://reclaimedspace.com/">Reclaimed Space</a>. This is an organization that takes old lumber and resources from buildings that are being torn down, and builds new houses out of it that are a little smaller and eco-friendly. These spaces are beautiful! They also keep land use and preservation in mind when helping customers plan the perfect layout. This vision is also revealed in their collaborations with others in the Austin area, promoting gardening, farming, community gathering and education. I would love to live in one of these "spaces." Everything we saw at their location was inspiring!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyM3Z2TeBF1p49BWmL8-DFX-aGTACPmh0b_gxxCGyqAYp13n__Af4-DG61Up_Jf4zFS8Ki-7vWZbLfzuLmF1WEZJdHk_d0A-UH7z9oPWwilUHSVszIbZDxJgpnY72AnI0MAO3iv9328Ew/s1600/IMG_5364.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyM3Z2TeBF1p49BWmL8-DFX-aGTACPmh0b_gxxCGyqAYp13n__Af4-DG61Up_Jf4zFS8Ki-7vWZbLfzuLmF1WEZJdHk_d0A-UH7z9oPWwilUHSVszIbZDxJgpnY72AnI0MAO3iv9328Ew/s400/IMG_5364.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Reclaimed Space's outdoor community space with a new stage - </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">you can see the living space </span><span style="font-size: small;">in the background. Rad. </span></td></tr>
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After we left Reclaimed Spaces, we traveled to a micro-grocery store called,<a href="http://in.gredients.com/"> in.gredients</a>. Man, oh man, this place was just as cool as RS! Their vision is "to minimize waste and promote healthy, sustainable lifestyles by selling local food with pure ingredients, package-free." Did you know that over 700,000 tons of garbage is added to American landfills DAILY?!?! in.gredients only contributes about 1 pound/month to the landfill. Word. Some products that they sell have to be packaged, like meat and milk. But the rest of the products they sell are either dry goods that come in bulk or fresh, local produce (Mostly from Austin, but some from the state of Texas) that has no packaging at all. How does it work? You can either bring your own containers, weigh them before filling them, and then pay just for what you filled them with, or you can buy a glass jar from limited selection they offer in the store. (That would be for people like me who forget things. Ha!)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The community garden and eating space in front of in.gredients</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6OvhzBmQsaZY_nkW6wBjO5zlXacREf6C-0livWPJ8hYAbS2i4uuqjIK0Vi9MvtbOu_eFV9i3vgRJEgRLM19Fh-0sPriSSeERzPrTJ4-DqS3inZsKBZ0CzPtq188L_D5TSBP07JwHYUbA/s1600/IMG_5373.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6OvhzBmQsaZY_nkW6wBjO5zlXacREf6C-0livWPJ8hYAbS2i4uuqjIK0Vi9MvtbOu_eFV9i3vgRJEgRLM19Fh-0sPriSSeERzPrTJ4-DqS3inZsKBZ0CzPtq188L_D5TSBP07JwHYUbA/s400/IMG_5373.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">in.gredients</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifjKzkzlR0y8RV4v3YrOqQy2yTqJHYdxi3RFWeObueh_5-yki8zQyE8gN6Y3_VW3NtW8VU6Pjhk7gTl2NHPr-n_1R7JHUXO3vmboskeyatS6PO4KgQiyF2HmezpPPy9lUvnFXAvdk-S78/s1600/IMG_5378.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifjKzkzlR0y8RV4v3YrOqQy2yTqJHYdxi3RFWeObueh_5-yki8zQyE8gN6Y3_VW3NtW8VU6Pjhk7gTl2NHPr-n_1R7JHUXO3vmboskeyatS6PO4KgQiyF2HmezpPPy9lUvnFXAvdk-S78/s400/IMG_5378.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">James is excited about in.gredients!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7wi3Hrx5Y7RLA6SBXpYI_m077mzkmBcZ_gO6q7fo0329TRO6rBjQKXxIFRCADg2sDEkAEKYhOby8B0_4ovWP7SzeqNRa2YwpmEjBz5sT_e9XNBmRwVOTVy7Xzk1NsmWkVXrNOy8J9VlY/s1600/IMG_5399.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7wi3Hrx5Y7RLA6SBXpYI_m077mzkmBcZ_gO6q7fo0329TRO6rBjQKXxIFRCADg2sDEkAEKYhOby8B0_4ovWP7SzeqNRa2YwpmEjBz5sT_e9XNBmRwVOTVy7Xzk1NsmWkVXrNOy8J9VlY/s400/IMG_5399.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I'm excited too! I loved their granola!</span></td></tr>
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That evening, after checking into our hotel, we went to a place called <a href="http://www.casadeluz.org/austin/">Casa de Luz</a>. This "place that houses light" is an all-organic dining and community center. As soon as we entered this place, I could feel a change in me, and it was more than the food. I looked around at all of the plants and smiles on people's faces and instantly became inspired! I also couldn't wait for others to experience exactly that at SixTwelve. What a blessed journey I am on. I can't wait to give this to people. I heard that they also had a pre-school on location, but it was late in the evening, so we didn't get to see that. Might just have to go back to Austin soon to take a look. Twist my arm. :)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Casa de Luz is gorgeous! </span></td></tr>
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The next morning, we all loaded up and drove to <a href="http://www.urbanpatchwork.org/">Urban Patchwork Neighborhood Farms</a>. This was not only a fun trip, but informative too. I loved seeing chickens, a greenhouse, gardens, dogs, and every inch of a back yard used like a farm...right in the middle of the city!!! The women who greeted us were so willing to share their knowledge of how to organize neighborhood farms and THIS IS WHAT WE NEED! We want to learn about the best models and practices in organizing neighborhood farms, so that we can be most effective here in OKC with what we do through SixTwelve.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Urban Patchwork Neighborhood Farms</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks to Paige Godfrey who gave us a tour of her back yard! </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Katie is checking out the chickens and the crops!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Chickens!!!</span></td></tr>
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I want to make sure that everyone knows that I believe OKC already has great things going on too. There are people here farming in their back yards, valuing local food and supporting the creative, local community. We are experiencing great energy and progress here and you don't have to look too hard to find it! What we hope to do at SixTwelve is to give these people a central meeting spot (if they want it), a platform to amplify their voice and to bring in ideas from other places to share. We also hope that some of the leaders in our own community will share their ideas with people and groups in other areas of the country. The more people working together, the better (in our opinion.) We want SixTwelve to be a local node within a bigger, more global, community of like-minded people.amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-46959074638813375432013-03-17T14:03:00.003-05:002013-03-17T23:49:30.789-05:00Traveling With Tron: Geothermal SystemsA few weeks ago, James and I had the privilege of "Traveling with Tron." That's what we call traveling with two of our board members, Trey Parsons and Ron Ferrell. Ha! These two are awesome road trip partners and because of the research Trey had done, we drove out to Marion, Arkansas to see a net-zero middle school in the <a href="http://www.msd3.org/">Marion School District</a>. Net-zero buildings are structures with zero net energy consumption and zero carbon emissions annually, and the size of this school made that fact really impressive!<br />
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This school district had worked with a company called <a href="http://www.hydro-temp.com/">Hydro-Temp</a> to design a geothermal system for the middle school, which controls the temperature and humidity in the building. Because the building was so HUGE, I expected to enter a space that was quite hot, but I was really pleasantly surprised to find a very comfortable and quiet environment. We want <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SixTwelve/197952753568312?fref=ts">SixTwelve</a> to be an example of everything we will try to encourage through our education curriculum, so we have to do all that we can to build with the health of our environment in mind. This is a huge way that we can do it, as long as we can afford it.<br />
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The upfront cost can be pretty big, but heating and cooling utility bills can be dramatically reduced, by as much as 75%! James has been working on this part of our project for almost a year and he will give a much more detailed description of what we've decided upon in a future blog post. (He already promised that he would! Yay!) But for now, I'll just say that the biggest perks a geothermal system at 612 would hold for me are reduced utility bills, temperature and humidity control, which is huge for exhibiting art in our gallery as well as for comfort, and last, but not least, its health benefits.<br />
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The assistant superintendent of schools for the Marion School District said that they have been putting these systems in as many schools as they can. They have two elementary schools that are about five miles apart and built at roughly the same time period. The district only had enough money to put a system into one of the schools the first year and then the other during the second year. The first school experienced almost an 80% drop in absenteeism the first year and then the second school experienced the same the next year. CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? When these systems are combined with a UV Light purifying system, the air is actually cleaned. Our buildings have the ability to make us sick or to help us lead healthier lives. People with asthma and allergies don't suffer as much in buildings with these systems. Can you imagine the impact on student health and education we would see if all of our schools could trade out their heating/cooling systems for geothermal + UV Light purification systems? I'm hooked and am even thinking about doing this at my house.<br />
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For anyone who wants to see a video description of how this works, check out this video! There will definitely be more posts over this topic in the future. This one is just the tip of the iceberg!<br />
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Some might wonder why we went all the way to Marion, Arkansas to check out a company when we have Climate Masters right here in Oklahoma City. We are definitely trying to promote "local" in all that we are doing. The answer is that the people in Arkansas are the ones who have been creating and inventing a lot of the technology we're looking for. We think Climate Master is great, but if we use Hydro-Temp's product, we'd have more control over the different areas of our building because Hydro-Temp offers more variables in the system. Also, if we want to get LEED points for whatever we use, it needs to come from within 500 miles of our location and Marion is 449 miles away. So I think we're still doing good!<br />
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On our next SixTwelve road trip, we will be visiting Austin, Texas to see <a href="http://www.urbanpatchwork.org/">Urban Patchwork Neighborhood Farms </a>and <a href="http://reclaimedspace.com/">Reclaimed Space</a>, two entities who are leading the way in sustainable living! I'm kind of geeking out over getting to meet these people and seeing what they are doing in person. Weeeeeeee!!!!!<br />
<br />amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8718826023116915028.post-67930692985658465832013-03-05T16:21:00.003-06:002013-03-05T16:34:12.373-06:00Construction Series: Story 3, Steel BeamsHere's the third installment of our 612 construction series. When we started this round of renovations toward the beginning of the year, we were told that the idea James had for opening up the west side of the building might not happen exactly as we wanted. Without these beams, the wall supporting the upstairs hallway would have had to stay. It wouldn't have been the end of the world, but our interior definitely wouldn't have felt as spacious or appeared as architecturally appealing.<br />
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Our friend and framer, <a href="http://612stories.blogspot.com/2013/01/john-beedon.html">John Beedon</a>, told us about a structural engineer, <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/syam-mannava/10/86a/140">Syam Mannava</a>, that he had worked with before, so we called and, sure enough, he was available that day to come over and take a look. He helped us so much. (Have I mentioned enough how grateful we are for John?) Mr. Mannava was the one that led us to the solution of the steel beams. Here's a look at the arduous process of getting those incredibly heavy things into the building and up to the second floor. Wild! Thank you so much BC Summers, Colin Rosebrook, and all of the other people who volunteered and helped to get that steel beam upstairs. You are so appreciated.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cWrqSXNRmgM" width="560"></iframe>amyyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05318436992248203425noreply@blogger.com0