Sunday, March 20, 2022

Out & About With Some Visual #RandomThoughts on the Eve of #Nowruz

 It is the eve of Nowruz--a tradition that is celebrated in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Turkey that signifies the renewal and the beginning of spring.  I decided to in that spirit to capture Visual #RandomThoughts as Nowruz Looms in about 3 Minutes in Iran: 






Onward...


Sunday, March 6, 2022

Out & About with #RandomThoughts



I've hit the ground running and it has been a challenging month already.   I've had the pleasure to be focused on public service and education projects along with commitments to the Daily Outsider.

It is also a hopeful month as spring is in the air and as Nowruz is about to arrive for those of us who celebrate it.  I just started my Haft-Sin at my "Casa De Esparanza".

It has also been a tough 10 days in our World as Russia launched a War on Ukraine and I have been quite busy on the social grid.  This momento "moment" reflects that just this past Saturday, I released some 96 Tweets:


Congressman Roy of Texas apparently noticed one of my Tweets:


I released a nominal contribution in support of the noble work by World Central Kitchen: 



logo
 
 
 
​​​​​​​​Thank You for Your Donation!
 
​Dear ​Mike​, 

Thanks to supporters like you, World Central Kitchen has served tens of millions of nourishing meals to people affected by disasters and crises across the world—from hurricanes to wildfires to violent conflict zones, to a global pandemic, our fight to feed the hungry has taken us more places than we ever could have imagined. 

On February 24, Russia launched a large-scale attack on neighboring Ukraine, invading the country on several fronts. As a result, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian families are fleeing their homes in search of safety. Working at a 24-hour pedestrian border crossing in southern Poland, WCK began serving hot, nourishing meals immediately. Now, we've expanded our efforts to serve accommodation centers in Poland as well as in Romania, Moldova, and other locations supporting refugees. WCK is also partnering with restaurants inside of Ukraine to get hot meals to anyone in need.

Your support will help us continue to use the power of food to heal communities and strengthen economies while serving as a beacon of hope for people in times of crisis. We look forward to continuing to work with you to nourish, uplift, and inspire.

Join me in fulfilling the inspiring words of John Steinbeck: “Wherever there’s a fight so hungry people can eat, we will be there.”

We must be there.

 

 I captured two key images of the week that was in Ukraine: 





I had the honor to be witness to a celebration as the 40th Infantry Division Korean War Veterans Retired the colors and the Commanding General, Major General Yeager, spoke: 


Iran is also consistently on my mind as the new year dawns as I note this image that brought me to near tears: 14,000 people making their living from digging through trash to make a living: 




May the spirit of spring be a springboard for a renewal and a sense of hope.