Standing By

After getting stung by bees when she was four, Mikaila Ulmer’s fear of bees shifted to a fascination. Ulmer became an activist after she learned how crucial honeybees are to sustaining life.

She’s a great kid with a head for business and branding

A 4-pack of her variety lemonade (pear, mint, ginger, and iced tea) goes for $17.00 USD. 

She also sells a “Busy Bee Chef Gift Set” for $22.00 USD which includes a child-sized Me & The Bees apron, a wooden mixing spoon, some of Mikaila’s original recipes, a sticker, and a personal note from Mikaila.

Someone sent me some cute photos of their coloring job.

In Memoriam

Walter Dean Myers

1937-2014

Never. Too many have died for the way they have loved. That needs stop now. 

Mary Jones aka Peter Sewally of New York City was put on trial June 11th 1836 for pick pocketing a wallet containing 99$ from a white john with whom she had done business with the night before.

During their arrest Mary had attempted to throw out two additional wallets hidden in their bosom and the police upon taking Mary’s key and entering their home found dozens more wallets, watches and trinkets belonging to dozens of the cities male Upperclass whom although knowing Mary had stolen from them had become fearful to report to police least their vices be known to an increasingly moral conservative public.

Upon Mary’s interrogation and strip search it was discovered they were born as a man and had created a leather device in the shape and form of a vagina tied around their waist to keep clients from learning Mary’s T and birth sex (Although there is some dispute that the men were well aware of her male identity that she performed in the daytime)

On trial (in as far as I know) in the earliest known first person account of Queer life in United States Mary Jones went on record stating :

"I have been in the practice of waiting upon Girls of ill fame and made up their Beds and received the Company at the door and received the money for Rooms &c and they induced me to dress in Women’s Clothes, saying I looked so much better in them and I have always attended parties among the people of my own Colour dressed in this way — and in New Orleans I always dressed in this way"

In so doing Mary Jones explained that there existed an active and known community of what would now be called gays, transsexuals, and drag queens in both the most populated city in United States and the blackest city in the United States during the pre-Emancipation era populated solely by black and mixed race people.

Of course Mary was convicted of Grand Larceny imprisoned for five years but not before being humiliated during trial and her image sensationalized by the press. Additionally days after their initial release Mary was sentenced a second time to Sing-Sing for a five month period for daring to walk about in female attire again before finally disappearing from the records.

It can be argued that this community of which Mary belonged to was the foundation of the later Black Drag Cakewalk balls known in late 19th century New York City, the queer rent parties and gay social life of 1920’s Harlem and eventually the Ballroom/Vogue community formed in the 1940’s to Present.

PLEASE TAKE YOUR CAT TO THE VET IF YOU SEE THEM DOING THIS BEHAVIOR OVER TIME.

It’s called “head pressing” and it occurs in dogs and cats. 

Head pressing is characterized by the compulsive act of pressing the head against a wall or other object for no apparent reason. This generally indicates damage to the nervous system, which may result from a number of varying causes, including prosencephalon disease (in which the forebrain and thalamusparts of the brain are damaged), or toxic poisoning.

http://www.petmd.com/cat/conditions/neurological/c_ct_headpressing

http://www.vet.cornell.edu/FHC/health_resources/toxoplasmosis.cfm (head pressing is listed as a symptom)

How to Record Police Encounters Without Losing Your Video | Police State USA

Technology is a double-edged sword.  It has enabled the government to become more intrusive than ever with its online spying capabilities.  However, cheap and discreet recording devices make it much more feasible to hold cops on the street accountable.

Police State USA encourages holding government officials accountable but advises everyone to research the laws in their own states regarding secretly recording audio conversations (Read more: The Reporter’s Recording Guide).  Encounters with police officers in public generally do not fall under such restrictions, particularly after the recent court decision in Illinois.

Here, we intend to look at the technologies that facilitate that recording.

Streaming App for Cellphone

Ustream is a cell phone application that allows a user to begin recording video and audio — and simultaneously stream the data to an online account — at the click of a button.

If you are in a tense situation with the police, click the app button and the rest is done automatically.  While running, it doesn’t look like a streaming app.

The video files will then be available online when viewing the user’s Ustream account.

Pros:

Easy to use.

Preserves video even if cell phone is confiscated.

Does not give obvious clues that the app is streaming.

Reputable app with product support.

Video/audio quality correspond to user’s phone capabilities.

Cons:

Internet uploads depend on having a sufficient phone signal.

May not be compatible with certain phone operating systems.

Presence of a cell phone will always draw suspicion of recording.

Discreet Keychain Camera

This tiny recording device looks just like a vehicle remote-starter that might be found on your key chain. It’s an inconspicuous option for video and audio recording that is unlikely to be seized by police. To recover the video, the device must interface with a computer at a later point.  The video is stored on a removable memory card.  The price is unbeatable, and with a large micro-SD card it can record for 2.5 hours.

Even if an officer confiscates a a keychain from someone, it is unlikely to be determined to be a recording device and will more than likely have its evidence intact after the keychain is returned.

Pros:

Low price!

Tiny size.

Discreet.

Easy to use.

Always with you.

Unlikely to be confiscated.

Useful even if there is insufficient cell phone tower signal.

Cons:

Not easy to aim when the keys are in the vehicle ignition.

Lower quality video/audio.

If device is lost, evidence is lost.

Cheap import item;  Little/no product support.

Mixed product reviews.  “You get what you pay for.”

Discreet Pen Camera

Stick this “pen” in your pocket for discreet video/audio recording.  It’s another inconspicuous option for documenting interactions with public servants that is unlikely to be confiscated.  To recover the video, the device must interface with a computer at a later point.  The video is stored on a removable micro-SD memory card.

Similar to the keychain camera or other discreet recording devices, this item is unlikely to be confiscated.

Pros:

Low price!

Tiny size.

Discreet.

Easy to use.

Easy to keep with you.

Unlikely to be confiscated.

Useful even if there is insufficient cell phone tower signal.

Cons:

Lower quality video/audio.

If device is lost, evidence is lost.

Cheap import item;  Little/no product support.

Mixed product reviews.  “You get what you pay for.”