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Secret Weapons For New Year's Eve

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from Beatport

Beatport's New Year's Eve Secret Weapons

Secret Weapons For New Year's Eve

հձթթყ ռεա ყεձг ²º¹²

from Beatport

Beatport's New Year's Eve Secret Weapons

Blowing up footballers + 3 weeks till 10:10:10

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Franny Armstrong

Dearest listees,

What a fantastically bonkers time we had on the film shoot for our very own Richard Curtis-penned mini-movie last week. First we dressed up a load of friendly 10:10 volunteers as office workers and blew them up in West London. Then we took over Camden School for Girls (see article in local rag) and blew up some schoolchildren. Then we headed down to Tottenham Hotspurs' training ground and blew up some footballers (including even-taller-in-real-life Peter Crouch). And finally we went to a sound studio in Soho and blew up Gillian Anderson. With that kind of effort, surely we'll have sorted out this climate change thing by Christmas?* And when I say "we", I mean our 35-person full-on grown-up film crew, complete with lighting trucks, portaloos, paramedics and catering vans. Honestly, it was enough to get a girl completely hooked on making movies again - not to mention having to wipe away a surreptitious tear when producer/blagmeister supreme Matthew Fone explained that £400,000 pounds worth of crew, equipment and costumes had been donated by people who love 10:10. Aw.

* Hardly. See utterly sobering latest Monbiot article here which concludes: "Everyone blames everyone else for the failure at Copenhagen. Everyone insists that everyone else should move. But no one cares enough to make a fight of it. The harsh reality we have to grasp is that the process is dead. "

The strawberries, bananas, jelly and tagliatelle mixture gets its first outing...

Our next innocent lambs are Peter Crouch, Ledley King and two others (sorry, I'm an Arsenal fan). I felt bad for the one who didn't speak a word of English for whom Director Dougal's perfectly straightforward instructions - "on action, face the coach and listen to him as though you're really interested. then when I shout "bang", jump out of your skins, look towards each other in confusion and then run off in different directions" - went straight over his head.

Poor Gillian Anderson doesn't realise what's about to happen....

So that was last week's adventures, which I'm getting the feeling are just a tiny taste of what is about to hit us as it is, oh blimey, only three weeks until the big big big big day. Yes, on the 10th October 2010 - ie 10:10:10 -

the first ever "Global Day of Doing" arrives, brought to you by 10:10 and the world's favourite grassroot-stirring geniuses 350.org. (350's

founder, Bill McKibben,

kicking 10:10:10 ass on the Letterman Show is a definitely-must-watch, if only for Letterman's concluding "Thanks for scaring the crap out of me').

Anyhow, the gist of the day is that, seeing as the politicians are utterly failing to do anything about climate change, the people may as well just get on with making the practical changes in their communities which will start bringing emissions down - t

hink beach cleaning parties, but all over the world on the same day and all about cutting emissions -

thereby proving to our glorious leaders that we are ready for them to get their acts together in Mexico in December and make the new international treaty they so totally failed to agree at Copenhagen. (

If you haven't seen the Harrison Ford film Witness, where the village builds a barn in an afternoon, watch it here. It'll be just like that, all over the world... except the women won't be only making lemonade and sewing.)

Here's what you can do, should you feel so moved:

1.
Check out what's happening near you on

350's map.

is simplifying inter

is simplifying international banking transfer procedures to pay the US to pay Kenya to bring water to a maasai manyatta .. Doing it MY way!

via hellotxt

Security Advisory on Referendum in Kenya

Click here to download:

Security Advisory- Referendum Campaigns 2010.pdf (119 KB)

(download)

In addition to the attached Advice from Safaricom, AVIF wishes you to be fully informed about the situation and to take extra precaution during these times.
Please follow this additional advice:

Do not attend any rallies.
Please refrain from political debates with fellow Kenyans unless you know them well.
Nakuru volunteers should minimize movements on August 4 (Vote Day) & 5 (Results announcement).
Please advise everyone you know and meet, in Kenya, of the UCHAGUZI (Kenya decides) site enabling instant reporting of incidents and receipt of current and updated information over the referendum period. A demo video is here on the main Ushahidi's platform. You can report via SMS, sending a message to 3018, by sending an email to reports@uchaguzi.co.ke, sending a tweet with the hashtag/s #uchaguzi or By filling out this form

Please enjoy your time in Kenya and realise the majority of Kenyans wish for peaceful times.

From boys to men

We've finally received news on the results of donations for Pius and Norbert. Simon and co. kindly donated funds after the unfortunate fire at Pius' school, Ukwala Secondary School, claimed all his belongings. He now has 2 new sets of uniform, new shoes, bedding, another mattress, bag and some extra pocket money. Pius will be sitting his fourth form KCSE exams next year. Norbert Oile, also sponsored by Simon and friends, joined Jordan College last Sunday in Thika to train in Tours and Travel Operations, a career with a definite future in Kenya!

We wish them all well and thank guardian and AVIF liaison, Edward Wata.

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Ben's band "Reason"

Presenting "Reason" ...

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Jacob Bowerman & Lawrence Beeling on Bass, Richard Ellis & Oliver Bowerman on guitar, Matt Newbould on vocals and my own Ben Lowndes on drums!

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(Oliver, Ben & Rich .. more band photos soon!)

"Beat" is their first and original track written and composed by the boys age 12-13 from Yr 7 Nidderdale High School. Recorded by Rich Huxley AKA TheHuxCapacitor in the awesome Crypt Studio (link to a cool 360 panorama), in Leeds 12 July 2010.

P.S. Message from Ben, "you edited out my best fill ?!"

Branching out into the Amazon

AVIF are taking a bold new step into environmental and arts volunteering, joining forces with a deprived riberinho (river people) community in the Brazilian Amazon. Working with world-renowned composer and cellist, Diego Carneiro, founder of AmazonArt, we need volunteer teachers with a love for the arts; musical or simply creative, to help teach in an incredible, small but inspiring school in Combu, reachable only by boat, a relatively short journey from the city of Belém.

Established in 1998 the school sought to provide social and cultural development for the residents and children unable to access facilities in Belém. The school soon became the heart of the community and provides education centred around valuing and protecting the local traditions and environment. Diego Carneiro founded his charity AmazonArt to employ music and art to inspire understanding and promote the protection of the rainforest and river.

Volunteers can spend time both educating and learning with a view to assisting further development of the school. As can be expected the area is plagued by mosquitos and malaria and the current building needs windows and netting amongst other things.

Photos of the area are available on Panoramia [Rodrigo Macedo Lopes]

Contact me: Skype/

avif_volunteers_in_kenya

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Love it when a plan comes together!

I've just heard from Carolyn, working with ArrowWeb Hospital in Kayole, Nairobi that fundraising is progressing amazingly. Fundraising for hospital equipment to be shipped over, donated by Aid to Hospitals Worldwide is almost complete but this is just in time for news of a new purpose built hospital which will allow a continual improvement in the quality and scope of services provided to the people of Kayole-Soweto and to other areas within the Nairobi slums.

This is an excerpt from ArrowWeb's new-look blog, many thanks to Carolyn.

"Staff from the Japanese Embassy Ambassador’s office honoured us with a visit last year and were very interested in our work. We followed this up with a call to the Grants for Grassroots Projects department at the Embassy and were advised to submit a formal application. Bram hand-delivered the Board’s application to the Embassy in April. We are really pleased to let you know that our application has moved on to the final “screening” stage.

The Embassy has asked us to provide more information about how we can ensure the long term sustainability of a new hospital. The Embassy has advised us that more detailed plans need to be submitted for the next stage by September, as the decisions about awarding grants are made in December. Bram and the Arrow Kenya Board are working on this.

Nairobi City Council had allocated Arrow Web a plot of land nearby for a new hospital. ..Bram has now registered the plot with the Ministry of Lands for a lease period of 99 years. This makes our position much more secure."

In addition to this, Carolyn, a Dundee resident, has also coordinated NHS Grampian approving a partnership to work together. 2 dundee medical students leave next week on a 6 week voluntary visit with ArrowWeb.

is with Ben and the

is with Ben and the Brazilian Ensemble in concert with http://htxt.it/XQiV

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