october days

october days, originally uploaded by ridavio.

On a sunny if somewhat windy Halloween afternoon I take a walk in Central Park to check on the Fall colors. Full album here.

eve of Halloween

vixens, originally uploaded by ridavio.

Since Halloween was on a Sunday this year, a lot of parties happened on Saturday night. I hit two of them and ran into these vixens on the streets of Chelsea after the second one.

What is digital exclusion in Harlem?

From ridavio. The indomitable Florence Rice of the Harlem Consumer Education Council pulled together this day-long event with the assistance of Dennis Lane of Kingstreet Productions addressing the possibilities and challenges of broadband access in Harlem for elderly and disadvantaged residents. Ms. Rice refers to a report by Mark Cooper on "The Challenges of Digital Exclusion" that can be downloaded via pdf through the link. FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn spoke movingly of why she wants to bring the power of high speed access to communities of color. Thomas Kamber of Older Adults Technology Services addressed the need to connect seniors to vital resources. Monique Hedmann of Harlem Hospital explained the challenges of bringing telemedicine to Harlem. And Deepa Fernandes of People's Production House explained the importance of net neutrality and how it directly impacts digital justice in our community. This is an excerpt from a longer program that aired on Manhattan Neighborhood Network.

Securing your vote in New York City next Tuesday

From ridavio. At the September membership meeting the League of Women Voters explained the processes for making decisions within their organization and some of the voting issues they take on in the state and city of New York. In this excerpt we learn why New York State was the last to reform our voting process and get new ballot machines. They also raise the important issue of non-partisan redistricting based on recent census data. Process may not always be a glamorous thing to highlight or videotape, but it sure has a big impact on how we run our democracy and this affects our daily life. This is excerpted from a longer program that aired on Manhattan Neighborhood Network.

rock

rock, originally uploaded by ridavio.

Natural rock formation in front of the Pikes Paradise Bed and Breakfast.

view

vision, originally uploaded by ridavio.

Atop Pikes Peak. 15 F, with wind chill at 1 F.

high horse

high horse, originally uploaded by ridavio.

fall

fall, originally uploaded by ridavio.

On the last and final day of a very sunny week in Keystone the clouds moved in and a few flakes fell. Trees that had been fully golden on arrival were getting bare.

afternoon sky

afternoon sky, originally uploaded by ridavio.

Moon over Keystone

Moon over Keystone, originally uploaded by ridavio.

Leon Joseph Littlebird

From ridavio: The Cochrane Colloquium is the annual gathering of the Cochrane Collaboration, an international network of professionals in healthcare seeking to improve health care worldwide through the best information available on evidence. This year the meeting takes place in Keystone, Colorado and I was quite surprised to walk into the opening session and hear Leon Joseph Littlebird greet the international gathering with ancient words of welcome from the native culture of this country. He offered another vision of healing to the doctors, researchers and consumers gathered. As a fifteen-year survivor of leukemia his presentation was very moving and his playing resonated deep within the native DNA of all of us, as he put it.

Keystone

Arriving in Colorado to cover CUE at the Cochrane Colloquium for a week.

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ferried

 
Last outing of the season to Governors Island.
ferried, originally uploaded by ridavio.

Ms Rice

 

Today MNN asked me to record an event at a Harlem branch of the New York Public Library called Broadband Comes to Harlem. As I approached the building on the north side of Marcus Garvey Park its bright red flag made a striking impression against the wet gray of this rainy Friday morning. Inside the seemingly newly refurbished library was surprisingly quiet and beautiful (compared to my local Bloomingdale branch), although the gorgeous community room on the third floor was abuzz with activity.

The session was surprisingly informative and I certainly did not expect to hear an FCC commissioner speak with the conviction of a preacher about the digital divide, but then again, this is Harlem, so maybe I should have. 

The woman who brought the event together, Ms. Florence Rice of the Harlem Consumer Education Council, is quite the local powerhouse, and certainly a model of an engaged citizen.
I very much look forward to editing this footage and of course you should come back here to see a video excerpt posted next week.

In other news, wishing my brother in Gig Harbor a very happy birthday! If you need a contractor to build you a large concrete structure in Washington state, or anywhere in the western United States, reach out to him.

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Harlem branch

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry