Wandering Yeti Arts Term Project

Hey y'all

This is a textual manifestation of the parameters of Greg Wandering Yeti's term project for the art as a social practice class winter 09.

The Yang aspect is the continuation of the Walking Portland blog that I started last term. This is a way for me to make more public the insights and awareness generated by a significant shift in daily practice such as quitting the car and using my own feet to get around. This term I will accept walking routes from others to find out what happens when something other than my own whimsy, habit or obligation directs the course of a walk. I will report back in the form of photos from the walk posted to blog including a coffee shop review describing anything learned via conversations with baristas or coffee addicts in a coffee shop I've never visited before. The boundaries of Yeti's natural habitat are Tualatin Mountain in the west, Mt. Tabor in the east, Alberta street in the north, and Powell blvd. in the south. I might be compelled to walk in Beaverton if the walk includes the Tualatin Hills Nature Park. Powell Butte is also a nice treat hidden in the Eastern suburbs. Seriously, if a city walk doesn't include some time on no-car roads surrounded by living wood it just wears me down. Breathing car exhaust is exhausting.

The Yin aspect of my project is allowing more than myself and a few of my closest friends to enjoy the harmonious flow of qi generated in my room/studio/temple/adytum recently enhanced by learning some basic principles of the Chinese art of harmonizing living spaces with the home world called Feng Shui. Adding the Chinese perspective helped me clear up my mental clutter which resulted in a living space less muffled, stifled, and crowded by clutterful habits than I had known previously. My clutter is finally under control enough for me to feel ok about letting other people see my studio...which happens to also be my living space. Bring a hard drive that knows how to communicate with Macintosh computers like an iPod or external hard drive and I'll give you a prototype of the next Ascension Conspiracy album plastic, fee, and shrink wrap free.

Later in the term Yin and Yang will combine to form a walk that starts from a meeting at the Yeticave. This walk I will direct. I want to hike the Maple Trail in Forest Park again and this time I'd like to have some company. It's a trail deep in a canyon where you can't hear the city and it's too far up for me to make it very often. I learned what emptiness means on that trail a few years ago. This journey will include a bus ride on the 15 Belmont where I demonstrate the technique of Bus Surfing followed by a hike in Forest Park. Bring food and water and clothes that can survive mud. This hike can have silent parts when that's the natural thing that happens. Sharing knowledge and telling stories is more the point this time.

I'll bring a schedule to sign up for Yeticave visits at our next class. Feel free to bring a friend.

Send walking routes to the email addy in the class list.

Groove on,

g