Yikes! We are snowed in just east of Cleveland in a motel. Level 3 emergency declared in the county so I am going to stay over for the day and the night and head out tomorrow.

I went out to get some food. It's great out there. You can't see the road at all, and it's snowing pretty hard, so everyone has to drive slowly and pay attention, there really is no choice. Something about more intense climate stuff brings out our common humanity.

These long drives offer me time to think, to be, to sing, to cry, to laugh. It's like review time. All of what I've been experiencing is somehow distilled into intense emotions. It's good. I feel connected with a lot of people all over the world. I feel the connections. I know they love me, and are thinking of me. I love them and am thinking of them, and they know it. I remember when I lived in Vermont I used to feel lonely, mostly for a partner. Now I feel ... well the opposite of lonely, I feel connected with so many partners. I sure do love getting older.

Talking with people when I buy gas, or food, or whatever, is always interesting. So far I have had some really great experiences. I don't even start the conversation about how challenging things are in the US these days. People must detect a sympathetic ear and it just comes out when they are with me. I just read how the FDA doesn't want to release the names of companies selling recalled tainted meat because it would be bad for business. I see that, and I think about the people I meet, and there is such a total disconnect. The FDA is just one example of how government is now blatantly against the people.

I was driving through South Dakota. I heard radio station KINI FM, out of St. Francis, a Native station. The gentleman was speaking slowly and deliberately. he said "Today we are going to talk about what is good for the people." He went on to discuss respect for elders, and then introduced two high school girls who each shared a little about how they grew up with their mothers, aunties, and grandmothers. They both talked about how they had been taught to be kind and generous and to respect elders, and how when they made a mistake their grandmother (usually) would sit down and explain to them what they did and why it was wrong and how to correct it. I was struck by the dignity and especially by the attention to kindness and caring and respect as important practices.

We just crossed the Mississippi River. I send my love into the beautiful living river, may it carry my love south all the way to New Orleans and the Gulf.

I'm experiencing lots of gratitude as I drive. I'm so excited about the Healing Magic class. People are enrolling, and from many countries. This can really be the start of a fantastic international healing project, community, school, life!

I had more to say when I planned to blog today, but somehow it's all evaporated.

New blog feature...music for you! Today's song for the day is For Everyman by Jackson Browne. You can listen to and download it on my new page, Music for you! Listen to the words.

Here we go! Early tomorrow morning we climb into the truck and start heading east. It may be snowing, but once I get out of the Montana mountains the weather looks pretty clear until the Great Lakes region.

I *think* I have enough gas money. With oil at $102.65 a barrel today, I wonder what I will encounter. My fingers are crossed!

One of the things I love is that when I set out to do a project, with all of the preparatory steps it takes to get there, by the time it's time for me to show up and do the gig, I'm ready. I feel that readiness building in me as I prepare to go "out there" and teach. It's an exciting feeling. I know that I don't know what I will encounter, and that there is no way to prepare for the unknown, and I'm traveling on faith. It's not the first time, most likely won't be the last.

I hear from friends in various places that there is a lot of sickness, flu, pneumonia. I am hearing this from California, New Mexico, Montana, Vermont...feels like a plague, eh? The bugs sure do get tougher and more virulent. It makes me think of the algae bloom and it's ultimate fate.

But, possibly depressing thoughts aside, I have loved being in the Bitterroot Valley and expect to return here in the not too distant future.

I'm thinking of all the people out there who I love, and how good it feels to love you all.

Everything's coming together. The Healing Magic class is all set to go! The lessons are online, the discussion boards are set up...now it's ready for more enrollment! My kit for travel is coming together. The truck and camper are both for sale and in process...lots of interest.

This is a quickie entry...I am looking for funds for tires. My tires are getting smooth and I am about to drive across the country. I can get new ones for around $120 apiece. Anyone want to help out with part or all of a tire? I only need 4!