Recommendations

I have to chop my Carson Animal Shelter story down if I want to sell it. It's at nearly 10,000 words, so I have some work to do. Polishing and selling it is taking longer than expected when I should have expected nothing less. That's life, at least on this end. I'll keep you posted, and thank you so much for your support.

Since I did it last year, I'll do it again and call it a tradition. I want to plug a few friends' projects. Arnal Kennedy, who spent more than two decades homeless on the streets of Skid Row, is quietly becoming an underground brand name in L.A. That doesn't mean he makes money. It just means he makes a lot of appearances to read his stuff. His book of poetry, You Woke Me In the Dark, is truly beautiful, plumbing the depths of the human soul as well as the love we are capable of. Arnal works as the dishwasher at the Los Angeles Catholic Worker soup kitchen.

Jeff Dietrich, who also works at the soup kitchen, has authored his second book, Broken and Shared. Jeff has lived in the LACW community for more than 40 years, and his writings reflect on his work in Skid Row as well as living among the poor. I'm not a religious person, but I enjoy Jeff's take on the Bible. Here's a quick excerpt:

Though we have been conditioned to think that the focus of the Gospels is the twelve male disciples, the truth is that women disciples hear and respond immediately to Jesus's message, while the male disciples consistently miss the point. The Gospels aren't anti-male. Rather, they are in opposition to the political, economic and religious structures of the world founded and administered by men.

Proceeds from Broken and Shared benefit the Los Angeles Catholic Worker and its soup kitchen that serves thousands of poor and homeless people every week.

Lastly, my former photo editor Dan Habib has made a documentary about his son with cerebral palsy, how it shaped his family as well as a look at the inclusive movement for the disabled. I learned a lot. Including Samuel is incredibly moving and informative, which is probably why it has won a couple awards. If autism and inclusion are issues you care about, or if you just want to watch a really good documentary, I highly recommend it.

Dan also happens to be gearing up for the release of his second documentary, Who Cares About Kelsey? The film looks at how kids with emotional and behavioral challenges can be included in regular education classes. There's a sneak preview and discussion with Dan on Monday in L.A. I'll be in attendance.