What happened at Nightmare B4 Xmas?

The Nightmare Before Christmas | voice actors | live vs. animation | side by side comparison

What's scarier than the color orange?

As the Buddhist Rains Retreat (Vassa) period is ending with a giant celebration of Kathina in Los Angeles, Halloween is just kicking off at the Hollywood Bowl with Danny Elfman presents Disney presents Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas (LIVE). It is a spectacular psychedelic show with live classical music performances, voice actors, a female violin solo, a rock band doing old Oingo Boingo songs as the encore, and lots of amusing music. The Oogie Boogie song got a new performer after the passing of the former voice actor, and he did a magnificent job of some kind of jazz blues low bass reminiscent of Kelsey Grammar singing his show's opening song or The Grinch song.

• VIDEO: Nightmare Before Christmas w/ Danny Elfman

Annular Solar Eclipse Easter Island (live)

LIVE: Annular Solar Eclipse, Oct. 2, 2024

Titan Rahu causes eclipses.

(timeanddate) Started streaming ~10:20 am (Pacific). Let's watch timanddate.com’s LIVE show of the annular solar eclipse on Oct. 2, 2024 — weather permitting, visible from super remote Easter Island and parts of southern Chile and Argentina.

Surrounding countries, including Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay, will get a partial solar eclipse.

Hop on timeanddate.com to see the livestream and follow live blog with real-time progress reports and background information. Timeanddate.com has real-time animations, maps, times, and much more for this spectacular eclipse.

The 36th Annual Elves’ Faire (11/18)

Elves-Faire.com; Ananda (Dharma Bu Meditation), Jen Bradford (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Raising kids to be mindful and creative in a big city is easier with the Waldorf system.

WHAT HAPPENED? Thousands attended under cloudy skies, it rained a small amount, and everyone enjoyed the multiple stages, games, booths, food trucks (cenavegan.com was especially yummy), gluten-free, vegan and other pastries, wandering minstrels, disaffected teens milling about in packs, face painting, socializing, and general elfin behavior. Cody lit up the rainbow stage, accompanied by Korean singer then followed by a Jewish-lute player with a guest vocalist, and more good cheer than is usually seen in LA County under misty mountains. Plan for next year.

Event

Cody takes rainbow stage at 1 pm

The Pasadena Waldorf School (PWS) Machris Mariposa Campus sees the return of the 36th Annual Elves’ Faire. Family friendly event.

Crafts for all ages, games for kids, live music and various stages of entertainment, delicious drinks, food trucks, homemade pastries, the Angel Room, and much more await an expected 4,000 guests.

I'll be there, too, with my friends

It takes a village to produce this special event. PWS parents and students volunteer to make the magic happen since it's the school's largest fundraising event every year.

• FREE, Elves' Faire
• Pasadena Waldorf School
• 209 E. Mariposa Street, Altadena
• Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023, 10:00 am-4:00 pm

FREE parking options. Street parking or at the parking lots of nearby Mountain View Cemetery (2400 N. Fair Oaks Ave.) and Mountain View Mausoleum (2300 Marengo Ave.) with a free shuttle to the gates of the event. If parking on available neighborhood streets, please be sure not to block neighbor’s driveways.

P-22 Mountain Lion Festival, LA (10/22)

Fiona Ng, LAist.com, Oct. 21, 2023; Xochitl, Crystal Q. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

A mountain lion stalks by hillside homes in the LA suburbs. Long live P-22 (Johanna Turner).

.

Nearly a year after its death, the Mountain Lion Spirit of P-22 lives on in Los Angeles

I thought I loved my cat. I love this one!

This Sunday (10/22/23), Griffith Park is celebrating its most influential transplant: LA's Lion King.

It's a native son who made the trek from the Santa Monica Mountains to its new digs by crossing the 101 and 405 Freeways — and in so doing inspired Los Angeles to dream the impossible dream of building the world's biggest freeway overpass for animals to use, the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing.

"We were told we were crazy, and here we are. It's underway," said Beth Pratt. "It actually started because of the P-22 story and the effect it had on me."

A drawing of a bridge for wildlife to cross over a busy freeway A rendering of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, slated for completion in 2025 (National Wildlife Foundation).

Pratt leads the Save LA Cougars campaign, which helps support efforts to get the historic wildlife crossing built.

The organization is also behind the annual P-22 Day Festival at Griffith Park, where all of Los Angeles is invited to celebrate the city's urban wildlife and its titular king.

LA's Lion King

P-22 Day Festival, Oct. 22 (urbanwildlifeweek.org)

Like the majority of the city, Pratt first heard about P-22 in 2012, shortly after she started working with the National Wildlife Federation.

"I couldn't believe the headlines I was reading that a mountain lion had made a home in Griffith Park," she said.

She learned from biologists working in the area about the plight of P-22 — having arrived after a treacherous journey in Griffith Park only to be trapped there.

"It wasn't just P-22, there were mountain lions all around the Santa Monica Mountains that were facing the same struggle. I asked that day how I could help."

Beth Pratty, Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing

More than a decade later, Pratt and Save LA Cougars have raised some $100 millions toward the construction of the wildlife crossing near the Liberty Canyon exit on the 101 Freeway.

The project broke ground last year. Currently, Caltrans crews are putting up the support system on both sides of the freeway for the bridge to be placed across early next year. The entire crossing is set for completion in 2025. Source (LAist.com) laist.com/news

[Let's kill P-22 then feel sorry for it, like we did the Native Americans, the Palestinians, and most of the other wildlife that used to roam wild throughout the basin, from the foothills to the bay.]

Summer begins with an eclipse (video)

Learning to respond rather than react

Wait. I'm fine. Breathe.

(TaraBrach.com) When stressed we often react with looping fearful thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that cause harm to ourselves and others. This talk offers three interrelated strategies that can serve us when we’re triggered by stress. It will help us find our way back to our natural wisdom, empathy, and wholeness of being. By de-conditioning habitual reactivity, we are increasingly able to respond to our life circumstances in ways that serve healing and awakening.

Buddhist teacher Tara Brach reminds us that we are not our thoughts.

Indian Film Festival of L.A. (April 11-15, 2018)

Indianfilmfestival.org; Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly

I love Indian films in LA!

Explore IFFLA

• Purchase All-Access or Fest Pass today!
• Watch IFFLA alumni interviews on YouTube
• Become a patron
• Volunteer for IFFLA

Announcements

• The 16th annual Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles hosts a Master Class with Kunal Nayyar, announces jury, and adds world premiere screening
• The 16th annual Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles announces lineup and gala screenings
• 16th annual Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles announces 2018 dates and call for entries
• Tweets by @iffla

• 
• 
• 

Int’l Buddhist Women Conference opens

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam - The 11th Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women (SICBW) opened here today, Dec. 28, attracting the parti-cipation of more than 2,000 Buddhist women from more than 47 countries and territories around the world.

Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan was also present at the opening ceremony of the conference. The week-long event will discuss the role of Buddhist women in the world and ways for them to perform well in various areas.

The participants will discuss the most burning social issues, including environ-mental pollution, women and child trafficking, and domestic violence. The conference will also provide an opportunity for participants to exchange views on Buddhist women’s role in promoting friendship and solidarity worldwide.

In a letter sent to the conference, State President Nguyen Minh Triet spoke highly of the 2,000 year history of Vietnamese Buddhism. He stressed that the Vietnamese State always respects and ensures the people’s right of religious freedom. Mr. Triet expressed his wish that Vietnamese Buddhist women, together with their peers around the world, would make active contributions to preventing conflicts and contradictions, eliminating poverty, and highlighting the Buddha’s teachings on social life.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, President of the Vietnam Women’s Union Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa suggested that Buddhist women continue to share and cooperate with various women’s organizations to help them improve their behavior. Source

• Website: sakyaditha.org

Summer solstice in NY: Yoga in Times Square

Over 200 people practice yoga on the morning of the summer solstice in Times Square, in New York, on Sunday June 21, 2009. During the seventh annual free yoga classes, held in the "Crossroads of the World," participants sought peace and calm in the center of urban chaos (Reuters/Chip East). Preceded by file photo of lunar eclipse of the sun over Indonesia (AP).