Author Archive for Taj Moore

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Denver, You’re Invited: Tu 1/13 6:30 pm – Affirmations for the New Year (at the Market)

Published on January 6, 2009 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

janus_coinThe Abundance League meets this coming Tuesday, January 13 at a location to be determined the Market in Larimer Square. This month we take our inspiration from Janus:

“In Roman mythology, Janus (or Ianus) was the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings and endings. His most prominent remnants in modern culture are his namesakes: the month of January, which begins the new year, and the janitor, who is a caretaker of doors and halls.”

—Wikipedia

Like Janus, we will take time to look back  over 2008, then look ahead to our aspirations for 2009. It will be a slightly different format than you may be used to, but deeply in the spirit of abundance. Come prepared to do some fun exercises with your fellow tALers and be surprised by what you find.

In the other spirit of Janus, we have a little housekeeping to cover. This year 2009 will bring some changes in our structure. Continue reading ‘Denver, You’re Invited: Tu 1/13 6:30 pm – Affirmations for the New Year (at the Market)’

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The Abundance League is now on Twitter!

Published on November 28, 2008 in Abundance by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

If you use Twitter, you can follow us here at the Abundance League by following username abundanceleague.

You can also just go to http://twitter.com/abundanceleague »

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Denver Meeting Notes: November 2008

Published on November 18, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Notes + Announcements from the November Confluence of the Abundance League in Denver, Colorado

Yet again we had a wonderful gathering of the Abundance League at Museo de las Americas. Museo’s development manager Elizabeth Dicapo told us that walking into the museum for the first time she thought “this is not what I expected.” I certainly had the same experience when I saw the expansive space full of contemporary art. Museo generously allow tAL to use space in the gallery to meet and share potluck appetizers while mingling and exploring.

Elizabeth’s talk covered the surprising array of activities available through youth education programs and member benefits. We were surprised to learn that the price of just one $30 membership covers the cost of 20 kids to attend one of the many Museo workshops. A handful of Leaguers signed up as new members that very night, and as a gift to the Abundance League, Elizabeth offered us to name our member fee for that night.

Hearing Elizabeth speak about how the museum has changed her perceptions—its impact on the community she has adopted—was simply moving. To learn about Museo through the perspective of someone so close to the project gave us a true sense of the passion involved in this project, and we thank Elizabeth for this glimpse into her world. Continue reading ‘Denver Meeting Notes: November 2008′

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Denver Meeting Notes: October 2008

Published on October 17, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , .

Notes from the October confluence of the Abundance League in Denver, Colorado

We had our largest meeting this month with 16 people attending; we completely took over the back section of Leela Café!

For the second half of our gathering, Dan Brazelton (aka Ranger Bunny) spoke about his personal experience with the Black Rock City Rangers, a non-confrontational mediation group that forms the backbone of the Burning Man arts festival.

Here’s what we wrote about Dan and the Rangers earlier »

And here’s another short piece we wrote about Dan Brazelton »

One thing that really struck me about the Rangers is that while community policing principles among regular law enforcement have been on the rise, many officers from various jurisdictions covering the Burning Man event specifically cite the Rangers as a direct influence on positive changes in their approach to police work. This perfectly exemplifies Gandhi’s principle “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”  Talk about changing the establishment!

Something Susan pointed out in the first part of our meeting was that we had three men present and eleven women. Interesting!

Member Passions, Needs & Gifts (PiNGs) 

Taj Moore
Passions—social networking in general, the Abundance League specifically
Needs—members to bring new friends to the next tAL meeting
Gifts—experience + advice on social media principles, i.e. social networking & creative marketing for even the smallest of projects 

Jaymee Castillo
Passions—education, financial literacy, entrepreneurial, real estate investing
Needs—to get in front of motivated and open-minded individuals
Gifts—mentoring—personal development + education, business, running numbers, FUN

Chelsea Trinka
Passions—career change into renewable energy (love to translate “techi-speak” to sales); dance … “love to dance & move my body in all forms;” investing in my first house (a duplex or triplex so I can get experience in property management too)
Needs—resources/schools/network/info on renewable engery. I’m new to the field, but love/get the science side + want to learn by “doing;” looking for a class to learn aerial fabric dance; supportive people to “cheer lead” my house purchase, specifically someone who can advise/bounce ideas about property management … someone who’s done it before
Gifts—I work with the arts non-profit Apogaea; we provide funding for artists & create events for artists. Anyone who wants to get involved in working with an arts org, we are always looking to fund, feature, and involve new people.  

Suzy Rosen
Passions—helping facilitate renewable energy projects with a particular interest in creating sustainable economies w/ tribal communities; writing a novel
Needs—to meet people with experience/ties to renewable energy projects/American Indian communities
Gifts—can help with legal issues/writing

Jennifer Hampton
Passions—singing, dance, live events planning, healing
Needs—finding work
Gifts—(see passions) 

Susan Coates
Passions—personal dynamics, group dynamics, dance; Living Laundromat Project, a public space for laundry, arts, and living
Needs—business start-up consultation, financial management, website development
Gifts—retreat facilitation, cooking/baking, life|work coaching 

Cassandra Cole
Passions—politics & painting (Obama right now, global warming series in the future)
Needs—help with living + working as an artist, supporting myself w/ my passion + gifts
Gifts—good writer, MS in environmental sustainability; can present/speak on small scale systems

John Shapiro
Passions—doing work of the non-us-vs-them social justice variety, working to truly solve problems via systemic change and/or creating alternatives, all done in a respectful way.
Currently working on: CooperativeAction.org is a nonprofit organization that uses an interactive website to allow people to participate in petitions, boycotts, and actions regarding a broad range of commonly agreed upon issues, such as health care costs, global warming, etc. When enough people participate, a “critical mass” or “tipping point” will be reached that will create enough pressure on politicians and corporations to act to address and solve these issues. This process does not advocate for exactly how these issues should or should not be solved, but rather it compels politicians and corporations to work together to find complete solutions to these commonly agreed upon issues. This process happens in a cooperative, respectful, objective, secular, non-partisan way that is geared towards raising the quality of communication, facilitating inclusion of participants that hold diverse views, and educating in an unbiased, straight forward way.
Needs—Looking for people interested in contributing to CooperativeAction.org with any relevant gifts/passions they might have.
Gifts—problem solving; technology consulting including web design/development for “greater good” projects

 
» Mark your calendars: Tuesday, November 18 is the next meeting! «

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Denver Reminder: We meet Tuesday (10/14 6:30pm at Leela European Café)

Published on October 13, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .

This is your reminder that the Abundance League meets tomorrow evening (Tuesday, October 14) at Leela European Café. 

Dan Brazelton will present the Black Rock City Rangers and their unique brand of non-confrontational mediation in the Burning Man community. 

How does this fit your life? Well, the Abundance League is part social-laboratory, and what better place than a temporary city of 50,000 people to experiment with new ways of relating? Dan will tell us about the Rangers, and how their community extends the ethos of extraordinary generosity & community that Burning Man creates. 

I strongly suggest bringing a friend to this next Abundance League meeting: you can learn a lot about somebody you thought you already knew by hearing them tell stories to new people. When we talk about our passionate interests, we tell stories.

You can find the Rangers on the Web at http://rangers.burningman.com/who.shtml

And as always, please come prepared to spend a couple minutes briefly telling everyone about a couple of your passions/projects, what you need to pursue them, and  any gifts you offer to support each other in leading inspired lives.

We start at 6:30 pm, and end around 9:30 pm, but you are always welcome to come and go at any time.

BTW, we’re restructuring our Web presence. You can now find the Abundance League social network at

http://social.abundanceleague.org

WHERE 
Leela European Café
820 15th St
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 534-2255
www.myspace.com/leelaeuropeancafe

AGENDA
6:30–7:00 pm — Mingle
7:00–7:45 pm — Member Announcements: Your Passions, Needs & Gifts
7:45–8:00 pm — Break, Eat, Mingle, Exchange Support
8:00–8:45 pm — Presentation & Discussion
8:45–9:30 pm — Eat, Mingle, Exchange Support, Clean Up, Clear Out

BRING 
– Yourself, friends! 
– Business cards, handouts, flyers 
– Share: books, CDs, DVDs or anything that you’d like to loan or gift at the meeting.

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Denver, You’re Invited: Tue 10/14 6:30pm – Dan Brazelton + non-confrontational mediation

Published on October 9, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

DENVER—The Abundance League meets this coming Tuesday, October 14 at Leela European Café again (this time no hammer drilling!). I’m very excited to bring everyone together again, especially because this month…

…we have a special guest speaker joining us the wilds of Seattle, the Bering Sea, and San Francisco: Dan Brazelton has been a volunteer community mediator for over ten years with the Burning Man organization as a Black Rock City Ranger. If you have ever been inspired by examples of people and communities living out their vision and principles, the Rangers are a sterling example.

Dan will tell us about the Rangers, and how their community extends the ethos of extraordinary generosity and community that Burning Man creates into our everyday life. Hearing Dan’s stories about the Rangers has been an inspiration for me over the years and one of the things that led me to bringing the Abundance League here in Colorado. Below is a little background on the Rangers; you won’t want to miss this event!

BTW, I strongly suggest bringing a friend to your next Abundance League meeting, and here’s why: how many times have you found out something new about a close friend by hearing them tell a story to someone else? What do you suppose your friends could learn about you? Bring them this Tuesday and find out!

Each year Burning Man attracts nearly 50,000 in the temporary community of Black Rock City, Nevada. During it’s one week peak, it’s the fifth most populous city in the state. “Black Rock City stands at the intersection of several legal jurisdictions represented on the playa by the Pershing County Sheriffs Department, the Washoe County Sheriffs Department, Bureau of Land Management Law enforcement, Nevada State Highway Patrol, and other Nevada state agencies.”

“As a non-confrontational mediating agency, the Rangers help to resolve disputes within [the] community, but they also bridge the gap between the ethos and the culture of our citizens and the needs and responsibilities of law enforcement. As first responders, [they] are often able to effectively mediate disputes and interpret [the] city’s rules in ways that avoid larger and sometimes negative results which might ordinarily result in more negative consequences for the individuals or groups involved.”  —Rangers website

You can find the Rangers on the Web at http://rangers.burningman.com/who.shtml

Dan is also a mariner and filmmaker. You can learn more about Dan Brazelton here.

And as always, please come prepared to spend a couple minutes briefly telling everyone about a couple of your passions/projects, what you need to pursue them, and  any gifts you offer to support each other in leading inspired lives.

We start at 6:30 pm, and end around 9:30 pm, but you are always welcome to come and go at any time.

WHERE 
Leela European Café
820 15th St
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 534-2255
www.myspace.com/leelaeuropeancafe

AGENDA
6:30–7:00 pm — Mingle
7:00–7:45 pm — Member Announcements: Your Passions, Needs & Gifts
7:45–8:00 pm — Break, Eat, Mingle, Exchange Support
8:00–8:45 pm — Presentation & Discussion
8:45–9:30 pm — Eat, Mingle, Exchange Support, Clean Up, Clear Out

BRING 
– Yourself, friends! 
– Business cards, handouts, flyers 
– Share: books, CDs, DVDs or anything that you’d like to loan or gift at the meeting.

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Denver Meeting Notes: September 2008

Published on September 23, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

What a great meeting! I am always impressed with fruitful even a small gathering proves to be. This month’s meeting of the Abundance League took place last Wednesday at Leela European Café and focused on personal connections as we each discussed our passions & projects. Meeting notes follow…

Our next meeting is Tuesday, October 14th. Yes, Tuesday! We’re changing it up for October. Mark your calendars. We haven’t settled on a featured speaker, artist, or activity yet. Got an idea? Just reply and let us know.

I want to point out that abundance doesn’t just happen once a month when we get together. It’s something we practice every day through the connections we make and the extraordinary generosity we practice with each other. A lot of us continue the conversations between meetings and have real impact on each other’s lives. Let’s bring some of those stories back next month!

Taj (+Susan)

MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Taj
Passion: social networking. Working on the tAL website with Neal in San Francisco to create a richer environment that fosters community between meetings.
Gifts: marketing & social networking brainstorming, recent knowledge of messenger bags (if you’re in the market for one)

Leah
Passion: Project Greenleaf … learning + teaching about alternatives to industrial food economy & agriculture. Creating social change through urban agriculture w/ youth … wants to launch in two years. Buying a house soon, where she can pilot the agriculture practices in the back yard. Also starting a 2 yr master’s in sustainable business at Goddard.
Needs: consulting/advice to learn about the existing org landscape in Denver related to project … help creating an advisory board as well as members for the board (youth & adults). Urban homesteading knowledge. Also needs a power drill.
[Susan gave Leah some excellent contacts during the mingling … abundance in action!]
Gifts: knowledge and help making farmer’s cheese and preserves; community organizing help … helping people identify their strengths and use them; also can help stretch a canvas

Susan
Passion: Facilitating group dynamics/community building; the Living Laundromat project—bring people together in a public space … cultural events, meetings, holistic health, performances, café. Also passionate about organizing & facilitating retreats as a private practice … urban retreats that are more accessible in terms of time and travel … vacation retreats outside the country. Also loves gardening & dance.
Needs: to work smaller projects that approximate the Living Laundromat. Needs co-conspirators for retreats … board members for Living Laundromat, and experienced people to help plan logistics … and a space for the Laundromat.
Gifts: facilitating retreats (individual & group). Celery & collard greens from the garden. Introductory instruction in contact improvisation (dance).

Raul
Passion: to create a space for organizers to go to create leaders. Also, wants to create a film out of a trip to north Africa, the Middle East, the Silk Road, documenting the travels as well as “vision workshops” he holds with locals along the way.
Needs: good place/teachers to learn Arabic & Farsi; money for film project … fellowship, sponsors; to know more NGOs in the geographical areas of focus; three cameras for film … one a super 8.
Gifts: can teach Spanish; organization knowledge & experience to share; film editing; vision workshops

Leah & Raul
Have a joint vision for making a zombie movie! (It sounds profound, actually, so ask them about it.) They need to find people for makeup, costuming, set building, and miniature building.

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Denver Meeting Notes: July 2008

Published on July 26, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Although we had no speaker scheduled for this month, a lively discussion and meaningful connections made this tAL one to remember. Jerry and Donna Talbert joined us this month on their trip from the Baltimore area in Maryland.

Here’s a recap of Passions/Projects, Needs, and Gifts for the group. Even if you did not attend, this is an opportunity for you to connect with others through their highlights, and even network with one another toward fulfillment of ourselves and others in our community! See a member you’d like to connect with? Send them a note, ask them for help, offer your gifts!

Upcoming tAL meetings are scheduled for August 13 and September 17 (both Wednesdays). Keep up to date here:
http://denver.abundanceleague.org

We have room in the schedule for speakers in the next six months. If you know someone you think should be a speaker at the Abundance League, please reply to this message so we can get started.

Susan + Taj

SUSAN

Passions/Projects: Clarity of intention, dance, Laundromat Project

Needs: Website development, board of directors, financial planning, people interested in laundry, arts, dance, retreat work, organic/local food, and holistic health (and any combination of these, even better!)

Gifts: Retreat facilitation, working with group dynamics, gardening/cooking, life/work coaching

JERRY

Passions/Projects: History, US, Civil War, environmental work, economically viable solutions to environmental challenges

Needs: More business for environmental consultants

Gifts: Storytelling about civil war, dream interpretation

DONNA

Passions/Projects: Making jewelry, cooking creatively for special occasions, nesting and making the house nice, bargain hunting, energy work

Needs: Courses and seed money to do more with jewelry, metalsmith classes, a good small group like her old meditation group, learn energy work

Gifts: Jewelry making, a great place to stay for a visit in historic Relay, Maryland!

TAJ

Passions/Projects: Social networking and creative community building.

Needs: in process of figuring out how various projects fit together under one concept … to find core. Getting management consulting help from tAL member Elizabeth on identifying core.

Gifts: marketing perspective and strategy ideas on your projects

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Denver Meeting Notes: May 2008

Published on May 16, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Dear Leaguers,

It was a great meeting, as always, with special gues Ernie Saracki joining us. Ernie is on an adventure around America on his 1986 Honda scooter. He has a certain social ease and knack for storytelling that can be found on his blog skooter-on-101.blogspot.com.

NEXT MEETING
Our next meeting will be Wednesday June 25. Please come prepared to tell us about your passions, discuss your needs, and share your gifts to the group so that we can support each other in leading inspired lives. Invite your friends, co-workers, or anyone else you think might enjoy what the Abundance League has to offer. I also invite you to join our online social network if you haven’t already. Our web site for tAL // Denver offers an easy way to keep in touch with other members and hear the latest announcements.
http://denver.abundanceleague.org

What: the Abundance League
When: Wednesday May 14th, 6:00 pm
Where: TBA

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Susan Coates
Is a passion finder!
Passionate about: forming her “Living Laundry” project, a community arts laundromat complex. She also loves lifework coaching.
Needs: Web help to get her small site up and running. House maintenance.
Gifts to the group: facilitating retreats

Melissa Lane
Passionate about: self exploration, finding ways to laugh, learning, her home/space, trying new things, writing, singing, health, friends/family
Needs: the space to create and the discipline to write. House project help. A business person with strategy and vision to talk shop with.
Gifts to the group: strategic thinking, editing+feedback help with your writing project

Taj Moore
Projects include: Colfax Love + the Colfax Cruise, social networking, the upcoming Colfax Marathon
Needs: for dynamic of tAL to be such that participation grows beyond his direct contacts to that of participants recruiting their contacts … reaching “critical mass” for the Abundance League. Participants for the Colfax Cruise.
Gifts to the group: marketing & social networking ideas

Ernie Saracki
Passionate about: writing, telling stories, listening to others’ stories, conversations, assisting people, teaching, seeing someone accomplish something.
Needs: focus on tasks, prioritization, sense of completion, accomplishment … discipline.
Gifts to the group: to make people laugh, write well, good teacher

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Denver Meeting Notes: March 2008

Published on April 2, 2008 in Denver Events by Taj Moore. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Heath Hillman led a discussion about tea: who it comes from & why it’s wonderful. Heath is the import manager for Two Leaves and a Bud tea company, and lent us his passion & expertise for the evening. www.twoleavesandabud.com

Tea is inherently social; it stimulates the mind and the spirit, and certainly led to a spirited question & answer session. After looking over a dozen-or-so samples of leaves and hearing about some of their outstanding characteristics, we sampled some of the best of the lot: Te Quan Yin, a jasmine-scented green, and a really “tippy” Assam black were outstanding. None of us had ever tasted teas quite like these. The Te Quan Yin was a particularly rarified treat; it smelled like honey. Heath later told us this one normally costs about $20/cup. Wow! Now that you know Heath, you never need to worry about getting good tea again!

Some interesting tidbits:

– All tea comes from the Camellia Sinensis plant (you might find these in your landscaping)

– White tea comes from the very first leaves and buds, and this honored harvest is traditionally performed only by women.

– Only black tea likes boiling water, white and green teas prefer to be brewed closer to 175 degrees to keep from burning the leaves. Of course, if you’re in Leadville, what’s the difference at that altitude?

NEXT MEETING
Our next meeting will feature Bari Tessler & Conscious Bookkeeping. Started in 2001, “Conscious Bookkeeping is for anyone that would like to integrate their relationship with money with the rest of their life and the values that they live by.” Bari earned her MA in Somatic Psychology from Naropa University. I had the pleasure of taking Bari’s level one class in 2005 and it changed my life in many ways, not least among them was meeting Maritza, co-founder of the Abundance League.

—–

MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Heath Hillman
Passions/Projects—Tea, Environment
Gifts—Tea

Jessica Hasten
Passions/Projects—design, architecture, animals, food/wine, baths, aromatherapy
Needs—a job! 10 years experience in modern furniture design
Gifts—laughter & hugs

Rachel Pickett
Passions/Projects—ideas, design, education, creative conversations, creativity, The Work of Byron Katie, love/connection
Gifts—listening, connections, passions, thoughtfulness

Jessica B
Passions/Projects—Hell, I don’t know
Needs—Help fixing my house
Gifts—brokedownhouse.ning.com [ed. added this link]

Kevin Bergthold
Passions—Photography, riding bikes, snowboarding
Projects —slowly remodeling our 1951 ranch house
Needs—To get out and do the things that used to define me: bikes, climbing, camping, skateboarding

Susan Coates
Passions—dance, Contact Improvisation, cooking & growing food, travel
Projects—Cultural Community Center Laundromat
Needs—People to be on an arts org board, Web site assistance, accountants & financial advisors

Taj Moore
Passions/Projects—the Abundance League! Post-modern Photo Safari, the Colfax Cruise, social innovation
Needs—planning/volunteer help w/ Colfax Cruise in April/May
Gifts—marketing advice on anything; I can lend you any season of The Wire

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