Seasons of Yolanda: Tales of a Traveling Writer on Facebook

If there's any reason at all one needs to continue to write and travel, this is it. As I created this PowerPoint as a tribute to Yolanda Steiman, a friend and member of Company of Writers, a writers group I also belong to, I was struck by how much traveling and writing add depth and breadth to one's life. Also, what genius can be found in Facebook. All the text was culled from Yolanda's Facebook pages starting with the year before she died and ending with her last entry. Several of the photos were taken by her husband or Yolanda. Some were culled from Flickr.

You'll see one slide that has all the people who commented on Yolanda's Facebook pages during the year after she died. (She died last October.) My word, Yolanda, you sure touched a lot of people and brought the world together in an special way. Poland, Japan, Texas, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio--that's some of the world I enjoyed by savoring the flavors of your life. Thanks!

Yon: A Gambian Correlleware Story: Holding on and Letting Go

With the 50th anniversary of Peace Corps kicking off in October in Ann Arbor, Michigan, my Peace Corps days in The Gambia have been in my thoughts. This past spring, when I took a class at Ohio State University on digital storytelling, a certain Correlleware mug and Nescafe came to mind. If anyone is interested in what a Peace Corps experience is like, the mug is a metaphor. Watch. You'll see.

Hither: Gay Pride Parades

Each year, I go to the Gay Pride Parade to join in. Usually, I'm with the Human Rights Campaign. I love being one of the holders of the gigantic banner, particularly when we do a pinwheel--running in a circle in the middle of the street.

Yesterday, however, I couldn't find the Human Rights campaign, but I did find Greg Phelps, my generous friend who was in the parade with his art car, THAT CAR. It was great fun passing out Greg's postcards to parade watchers and waving a rainbow flag that I bought from a vendor.

Last year for Gadling, I wrote a post about Gay Pride Parades around the world. The Gay Pride Parade in NYC is next week during New York Pride.

If you have a chance to go to a pride parade, do. They are family friendly, joyful and welcoming. They even put up with those folks on the sidelines who hold up signs that say things like "You're going to hell." Interesting. During the entire parade, I felt like I was in heaven.

View from Greg's car looking towards downtown Columbus

*photo credits: Both pictures taken by Greg Phelps