Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Occupy Sandy Recovery: Support our Ongoing Work



Occupy Sandy Recovery
Via InterOccupy.net View Online | Forward to a friend
The Occupy Sandy community has changed the face of disaster relief. Our network of more than 50,000 volunteers provided over 300,000 meals, remediated over 1000 homes, and provided over a million dollars' worth of donated supplies by working with our neighbors to provide mutual aid throughout the rebuilding process.

Tomorrow, we begin our 2nd year. Some folks have returned to their normal lives, but many remain affected by Hurricane Sandy. Our people-powered movement built something incredible, but we need your help to continue to move residents back into their homes, assist them in rebuilding their lives, and amplify the voice of communities in their own recovery.

We need your help to support our ongoing work.  

Many still struggle to simply return home. Staten Island resident Marina Babkina lived a few blocks from Midland Beach before being evacuated. She lost both her home and her business, a daycare with music instruction that served the local Russian immigrant community. Language barriers made the complex disaster recovery process extra difficult to navigate. Occupy Sandy was able to provide Russian translation and connect her to critical resources like mold remediation, legal advice, building materials, and new furniture, all at no cost.

But her story is not yet over. A year without income has left Ms. Babkina in debt, and fully restoring her home in the middle of an attached 5-family townhouse to livable conditions will mean more red tape.  Many others like Ms. Babkina continue to face challenges and have come to rely on the support and mutual aid ethic of Occupy Sandy.  

Hurricane Sandy left many residents unemployed, as they were unable to travel to their jobs, their jobs were eliminated by the storm or they were unable to maintain employment while engaging full time in the process of rebuilding.  Before Sandy, the members of Roca Mia Construction Inc, struggled to make ends meet between low-paying subcontracting gigs.

After Sandy, work became scarce as businesses shut down across Far Rockaway. With start-up funding and skill building assistance from Occupy Sandy, the men were able to set up their own worker-owned cooperative. After receiving their license to operate last week, they are ready to start working on home repairs in their own neighborhood. This is just one way that Occupy Sandy has been able to invest in both residents and local economies.

Please continue to participate in this vital work by making a donation,
coming out to volunteer or lending us your voice.


Another World is Possible,

Occupy Sandy Spokes Council

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Sunday, October 27, 2013

Portland joint 'selfies'

Dolores and I spent the day walking around and about Portland, ME. The sun in the morning gave way to more clouds in the afternoon and it got chilly. We were prepared.

in the morning at the Visitor's Center


about noon at Portland Lighthouse

Friday, October 25, 2013

what the birds tell me





Friday, October 18, 2013

breezy thoughts today




sassafras in color

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Monday was soup day

I spent some time on Monday to make two soups for our meals this week. One in the crock pot and one on the stove top.

The crock pot recipe came from 100 Days of Real Food and turned out delicious! I gave a small portion to taste test to Dolores and she ended up having it for lunch.

sweet potato and apple soup in the crock pot
the soup after going through the blender
The soup was easy to make and is a keeper recipe! You can find the recipe here
http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/10/02/recipe-slow-cooker-sweet-potato-apple-soup/

The second soup was our family standard: Venus de Milo. I have posted the recipe here before and you can find those links here
http://steves2cents.blogspot.com/2011/12/venus-de-milo-soup.html

http://steves2cents.blogspot.com/2006/12/venus-de-milo-soup.html



Friday, October 11, 2013

Oct 11 fall foliage





Monday, October 07, 2013

Digging into the archives

Already October hence Christmas must be around the corner, right?

Not really attempting to rush it but wanted to share these priceless photos from the archives that my sister found and shared with us. Photos mostly of my mother as she was growing up. Most of which I don't recall ever seeing before.

This of Dad and I at Christmas 1954

Jerry and Stephen


This of Mother and I at the same time

Rita and Stephen

Friday, October 04, 2013

Friday October 4th