Hearts Of Fire Project

Some Time Later...

2008-12-15T21:52:00.000-08:00

Hello World! Lots of things have been happening in my life and probably yours if you are living. I have had the pleasure of speaking with people about the Hearts Of Fire Project and the vision I have of who homeless people are. I love who they are and am committed to bringing that essence of humanity that inspires me, to the world.

Sometimes, it is difficult for me to maintain the vision, to carry on no matter what. My money situation has not been good for quite some time and it starts to wear on me after awhile. The eternal question "how do I do what I love and prosper financially at the same time?" Both things I am passionate about - the beauty and majesty of people and creating music - don't seem to pay very well, at least not yet.

I am often reminded of who I am and what I am standing for by people I meet at our Hearts Of Fire Project events. Like this Saturday at our Ojai show.

Late in the day, a middle-aged, turban wrapped woman stopped by and we began to talk. Gwen (not her real name) said she had been homeless for several years, but recently began sleeping on a friend's coach, so she is not technically homeless right now. She had been living near the river bottom off East Ojai Ave., in back of the Animal Humane Society facility on Bryant St. Gwen and her fellow travelers slept in tents or lean-to's out there and stole blankets donated to the animal shelter for the animals. She said they were cold and needed the blankets.

This is a good example of what is not humane about humans. We care more about pets than our brothers and sisters. We honor animals more than people. The sad part is that this behavior illustrates that we are not yet aware that we are all one human family. Not honoring and caring for one person is not caring and honoring everyone. We are connected, we are one consciousness.

Ventura Venue

2008-11-17T22:42:00.000-08:00

Not a very sexy title, but hey, it's getting late (again)! I can see why I haven't been writing here as much as I said I would - it just gets too late and I am too tired. But you are in luck, I am staying awake until I do this no matter what.

Have been extremely busy but also stopped and discouraged sometimes. When I am about my circumstances, suffering shows up. When I create and live into an inspiring future, joy and excitement abounds.

We had a great event at Mediation Mount in Ojai on Nov. 6, the two-year anniversary of the making of the Not Like Him video, the impetus for it all. About 50 people attended and I did a great presentation. The highlight of the evening was the performance by the people from LA Mission. Willie and Leilani were just spectacular. And July from Santa Barbara was great too.

Twice this past week, I set up and did a minimized version of my art show at Juice and Java (see picture) in Ventura. Margarete, the manager, was simply amazing and totally supportive. I am so grateful to her. It really makes my day when people really step up like she did. She even helped me carry all the gear in and out, including our big display board!

Well, it is REALLY past my bed time (I can tell, my eyes are closing) now. So good night and see you soon.

Light, Love and People

2008-10-20T11:40:00.001-07:00

How do I say it? How do I convey how inspired I am by people?

Some amazing things happened to me at the Center of the Heart spiritual center in Santa Barbara this past Sunday. We held our art show and reception there.

Before the service, we meditated in the sanctuary. On the walls hung the paintings the homeless people created on our 2008 tour. A vision came to me while I meditated. I saw beams of light shining through all the paintings, converging in the center of the room, and shining outward through the paintings into the world outside. The paintings glowed with this light, like stained glass. And I realized that this is why the paintings where there, on the walls at the Center Of The Heart. They were there to focus and amplify the light of love from within the sanctuary and spread it out into the world. The paintings are the windows in the windowless walls of the sanctuary. I see the people who created the paintings as windows into the heart and soul of humanity. Light shines through them.

Another amazing event, or should I say person, occurred - July Millane. She was a homeless person I met at the Casa Esperanza in Santa Barbara a few months ago when we visited the shelter. We recorded her music and video taped the recording session. I didn't expect to see her because we had lost touch with her after inviting her to the Center Of The Heart a few weeks ago.

When she saw me, she literally flew off the ground and hugged me with all her might. She walked most of the morning to get there. July couldn't wait to tell me all the great things that have been happening in her life. She now has her own room in a house and a job too. The day before, someone gave her a nice 12-string guitar which she loves to play even though it only has 5 of the 12 strings so far. She is working on her songs and poetry and looking forward to attending classes at an audio recording school. That was why she came to California from Nebraska last year. But she had some bad experiences on the way and lost all her stuff, arriving with nothing in Santa Barbara.

July told me about her vision of a house in Ojai with 12 acres where homeless artists and musicians could heal and create together and raise money through their collective work to help others. I told her about my vision - the Hearts Of Fire Healing Center - which is remarkably similar to hers. Visions are like that, they spread and grow without words, gathering strength in our hearts until they burst into the world with power, inspiring us with our own greatness.

I truly live a blessed life and it is blessed by people, by people like July. Love abounds around me.

Another Inspiring Weekend!

2008-10-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks!

Not sure if anyone is reading my posts here, but it does me good to speak what I hear inside my head.

We had another fabulous art show extravaganza this past weekend, Oct. 11 and 12! About 50 lucky people stopped by at the Ojai Enrichment Center here in Ojai to see the first, comprehensive display of the art work that we collected on our 2008 tour. We raised about $190 too!

The most important part of the event for me and our team was the great conversations we had with people about being human. We talked about homelessness but not about homeless people per se. It was more about what is missing in our culture that allows homelessness to persist.

Community is a big missing. In our quest for fulfillment, we work and buy, work and consume and vainly hope this will bring us peace and happiness. But it as we all know, it doesn't. Why? Because the fundamental need and desire of human beings is love and connection with other human beings. Working to buy and buying to work doesn't meet these needs. In a real community, people not only help each other but they trust and rely on each other. In a real community, people are valued for their contribution to the community, whatever that is for each person.

In our culture, contribution is measured by money, by property, by things. Sure, we acknowledge people for their good works but this is a rare event, which is why it takes place at the annual good citizen award banquet or some such.

We also talked with people about housing. Today, houses are standing empty, their owners evicted or bankrupt, while thousands of people including the former owners, sleep in the parks, in the forests, in cars and on the streets. New eco-friendly and inexpensive building techniques exist like cobb and straw bale, but are banned by antiquated building codes that were originally intened to promote public safety but now serve the economic interests of big business and oppress the people.

In summary, we learned that regular, ordinary people really do care about others. And are beginning to see that there is no person, no goverment, no authority, no anybody to look to that will create a world that really works for people. WE are the only ones who can do that. We are are working on that in our own way. I hope you join us!

What Has Albert Got To Do With It?

2008-10-09T12:23:00.000-07:00

"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." - Albert Einstein.

This seems like an obvious statement, doesn't it? We don't really need a genius to figure this out, do we? Yet we keep doing this again and again.

We created a culture that values people by what they have and what they consume. Thus, those that have less and use less, ARE Less. Less than what? Less than human, less deserving of respect, love and compassion?

We live in this culture, in a collective judgment of who we and others are. And there is a lot of suffering because we really believe who we are is what we have, or don't have.

As Mr. Einstein deduced, we can't find answers to homelessness using the same thinking, the same judgments, the same view of humanity that created it. A new view of humanity, a new paradigm if you will, is required to find answers. This new view is not really new - it has lived inside most religions for centuries. However, these religions also exist inside the economic, survival based paradigm and thus do not effect fundamental change in the world.

I don't have all the answers, but I know that we can start with being human and loving humans simply because we share this planet, the experience of life and a deep connection that transcends this world. Let's start with love, love for no reason. Just love. You love me and I love you.

(above, "Wilson" a watercolor by Ray, Turning Point Foundation, Ventura, CA)

The Answer Is GIVING!

2008-10-08T16:52:00.001-07:00

As we hear more and more bad economic news and people get more frightened, more afraid - what happens? What happens to people when they are scared? People feel like their survival is threatened, that they may loose the things they have - the money, the car, the house - things that they believe are essential to life.

What has happened is that we have invested who are in what we own and those things have become us. Our ego, our identify actually convinces us that we ARE those things. How did we go from a sharing, connected society to one where our value is determined by what we have and what we buy? For decades, capitalistic beliefs have undermined and literally polluted our world. The myth of the self-made success keeps us all at the grindstone; the elusive image of wealth and freedom few achieve. Somehow the spectacular success, the money and fame, of the few keep us striving for that dream. Our culture reinforces these beliefs from birth with a constant barrage of messages from the media, from friends and from our family. The message is: who you are is what you have; your value is in your possessions. Consequently, we must buy more and more, but there is never enough because our ego always wants more. Then we work more to buy more. And as we now see, working more is not enough. Borrowing more became the only way to buy more for most people.

So as we get more frightened, we hold on ever tighter to the things we have. As we hold on, we worry more about loosing what we are holding on to and others do the same. A collective worrying permeates our society and soon, everyone is afraid of everyone else because they might want what WE have. This is an unnatural, inhuman way to live and that is where we are.

But there is another way, a way out of this maze of worry and fear.

GIVE !! Give away the things you are holding on to! Yes, give more than you have ever given in your life! Wow, what would our world be like then? Instead of paranoia and fear of loss, we would see joy spreading as people received more than they ever have before. We would see joy in the faces of people as they give away their concerns replacing the anxiety we now see. And to top it all off, everyone would feel grateful and connected to the only real source of peace and happiness on this earth - other PEOPLE !

The homeless boy in this video lives with his mom at a shelter in Oxnard, CA. He is happy and his happiness has NOTHING to do with what he owns or doesn't own. He has love and he gives love. That is all anyone needs.

Amazing Grace

2008-09-30T12:54:00.000-07:00

In my attempt to avoid inconsequential stuff, I spend some time each day contemplating who I am and what I am doing here on this Earth. In so doing, some interesting things come up for me.

For example, the other day I was thinking about all the miraculous things that have been happening with this project and my life (mostly the same thing) lately. I realized that I have tapped into an energy flow, like a cosmic beam of light. It is invisible to our eyes, but powerful and has picked me up and taken me with it. I am serving the purposes of the universe and it is using me completely. I feel blessed.

A few of the great things that have been happening:

A grant from Modest Needs Foundation in NY, their first ever to a non-profit organization. The funds are earmarked for fixing up our RV. Now we won't have to wonder if we will make it to the next shelter.

We are creating a "Face Of Homelessness" web site. It is a mosaic of a human face comprised of hundreds of paintings and other art work created by the homeless people in our project. When you click on the tiny images that make up the face, they blow up to show the full size painting! And it is all free courtesy of a great company we will be announcing in our next newsletter. They are very excited about building this for us and putting it on our web site. We may even be able to use it an online art gallery with a built-in customer purchase option. And they are using our idea as a template for a whole new product line. Wow! Talk about win-win!

Another great thing is that I have some serious interest from a world-famous documentary film maker. We met the other day with his partner and they are very excited about filming our Temperature's Rising Tour in January! This is going to be AWESOME!

I also got a look at the scanned artwork that was created in LA and it is amazing! I will post a sneak preview here (see above).

Although it has taken me a few of days to get back to this post and finish it, at least I am doing it! I guess I should just write whenever I can instead of trying to fine tune it. Aahh, the self-critic is the toughest of all.

Bye for now!

In Touch With My Reality

2008-09-25T14:53:00.001-07:00

Hi there! Wow, I am really staying on top of this Blog!

I realized that it helps me to create, to get in touch with the magic that I am experiencing in my life by writing about it. This process is accelerated by sharing it with you.

Today, I am generating plans. Plans for our Temperatures' Rising Tour in January 2009, plans for our upcoming events and plans for the documentary films we are making.

So far, the 2009 tour is shaping up wonderfully. People are lining up who want to come and the schedule fit in perfectly with the time allotted for it. In fact, we may soon have more people coming than we can accommodate! This so amazing and so far out there - I can feel my whole stretching w a y o u t to hold it!

Several other events are happening, two in Ojai and one in Santa Barbara. I am also creating a donation week with Java and Juice in Ventura where they will give a percentage of all sales for the week to us.

I scheduled the repair of the RV and should have the check from Modest Needs any day! Wow, now that is amazing too! We received a grant from Modest Needs Foundation (http://www.modestneeds.org/) to fix the RV, $1817! They will pay the repair place directly. They told me while I was having a fit of excitement, that it is the FIRST grant they have ever made to a non-profit! In the past, they funded requests by individuals and just started their own non-profit program in July. So we are the first! I am hoping for some great publicity from this one!

I guess this is a good use of this Blog too: announcing things that are too exciting to hold back for the newsletter.

Well, I don't want to try your patience, so I will hang it up for now.

'Til next time!

Bob Ballard

Founder & Executive Director

Hearts Of Fire Project

http://www.heartsoffire.tv/

Can't Stay Away!

2008-09-22T22:11:00.000-07:00

Well, I did it! I am back here on the Blog in only a few days. Even though it is late and I am getting tired, I am really committed to communicating my vision with you and creating a new world for humanity.

What I am really doing is shifting the listening that we are for homeless people, and by doing that, creating a new view of who we are. I had a marvelous time reveling in this conversation today far up in the mountains above Ojai, CA, the amazing community where I live. Up there in the stratosphere with my new friend Lotte, I could see everything in perspective. We talked for hours about the power and majesty of people, of the fear that separates us and the love we all feel for each other.

My friend Steve and I are writing a book about all this, so it is obviously way too involved to go into here. But essentially, we are all (us Hearts Of Fire Project people) talking about the beginning of the new paradigm for humanity. In the new paradigm, the value of human beings is based on who we are rather than on what we have. Homeless people are already living in the new paradigm, either by choice or accident. When they get there, a new value system takes over because the old one doesn't work; no one has anything so no one has any value. However, as life unfolds, it becomes quickly apparent that the value of being alive goes on, without regard to possessions, to money, to owning.

So suffice to say, it was a great conversation with Lotte and we are planning a wonderful retreat up there in the clouds above Ojai where she lives. The place is filled with energy and light and beautiful gardens with stone benches and walls for meditation. Our team is going to meet there next week and create a new future for humanity. I can't wait!

I had a fabulous time at our Santa Ana art show this past Saturday night. Wow! It is amazing to see how people are moved by the paintings they see (see image above). When they get who created it and read the narratives that go with the paintings, they are transfixed and moved. Several people signed up to volunteer and we sold some art work too. Nidia was amazing AGAIN! She created the workshop AND set up the venue for us at her friend Stacey's loft in the new Santiago Street art district in Santa Ana. Thank you STACEY, you are AWESOME!

One last thing, I found an amazing film maker! We are meeting later this week. Now that is VERY exciting! More on that later.

Thanks for listening. See you soon!

Bob Ballard

Founder & Executive Director

Hearts Of Fire Project

I'm Back!

2008-09-17T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

I apologize for being away so long (about 10 months)! I am committed to being the Source of the conversation about the greatness of human beings expressed by homeless people. To be that Source, I will regularly communicate with you and the world. So here I am!

A lot has happened since the last post. At that time we were completing our 2007 tour of the homeless shelters. We just completed our 2008 tour and are processing the results and planning what to do next.

I want this blog to be my way of personally interacting with people and I think that is what Blogs are for. I will speak for me here and let you know not just what is happening, but what I am thinking and who I am being.

Thank you for listening. I will be back soon!

Bob

Last Stop, Toussaint Academy

2007-11-19T16:46:00.000-08:00

After an amazing day and night at Father Joe's Villages, we left the RV in a secure lot and drove the short distance to Toussaint Academy in the car. Crystal had departed on her 6AM flight back home to Providence, RI, so our new friend, Kent showed up to do the filming. Unfortunately, we soon learned that strict privacy laws prevent the filming of teenagers at shelters, so we bid Kent goodbye until next time. He was great about it and I hope we get to work together in the future.

Toussaint Academy is named after Pierre Toussaint, a legendary freed slave who lived in New York in the 18th century. His life story is absolutely amazing, but a little too long to go into here. Check him out on the web for sure! (see photo)

Deb led a wonderful art workshop for the 12 students who participated and everyone had a lot of fun. Since Toussaint is an alternative arts and sciences high school, the kids produced some amazing art work. Some of it was so good that the kids decided to keep it instead of giving it to us for future exhibition. But that is fine, all of our activities are strictly voluntary.

Although we couldn't film the kids in the shelter, we did film our tour of the facility lead by the Jodi, the amazing program director. We also enjoyed some great coffee and food next door at Pierre's Place, a cafe owned and operated by Toussaint. We video taped great interviews with two Toussaint graduates who work at the cafe. Jodi made a short documentary film a few years ago about the school and a few of its students and has agreed to find it and let us use it in the project. Since Toussaint has a great in-house recording studio and music program, we decided to skip our recording session, but expect to receive a CD with some of the students' original music.

At the end of the day, we headed for the San Diego Zoo (not home) where Gayle and I spent the night in the RV in preparation for the annual zoo walkathon early the next morning. After that, we headed (not home) to Santa Monica where I performed with my side kick Joe Cicero before really heading home to Ojai.

God it's good to be home!

Father Joe's Village Voyage

2007-11-16T10:20:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!

We reluctantly left our friends at N. County Interfaith Community Council early in the morning. Several people came out to say good bye and everyone wants us to come back soon. It was a challenge finding I-15 to get to San Diego, but eventually we found our way through the traffic and arrived just in time.

What an amazing day we had at Father Joe's Villages in San Diego! The place is huge and simply amazing; it is a city within a city and is home to many homeless people. We parked our RV in front of one of the buildings, immersed in a sea of humanity, an experience that was totally incredible. We went to sleep and woke up to the sound of many different voices and conversations, many of them talking about the RV, Hearts Of Fire and why we were there. Many people wanted to know about our project and wished they had known sooner so they could participate.

Once again, Deb Ogburn did a fabulous job leading the art workshops - we had two, one in the morning, one in the afternoon. We had a wonderful time with the adults and children who participated. Ruth, the Excecutive Director, was simply incredible and attended to our every need. She even found soy milk for my coffee! We didn't get much sleep the night before, so the coffee was a necessity. As usual, the participants created some fascinating drawings and engaged in a great discussion about what the drawings meant to them. Since Deb is an art therapist, she uses the art to really make a difference for each person and helps them develop insights from their work. We are constantly amazed by what people say about their work and their lives (See Photo)

A woman and mother of four children told us about her trip to a local suburb to take advantage of a modeling job offered to two of her daughters. As we have heard from many people, she and her family have difficulty getting to appointments, interviews, etc. using public transportation because of the limited availability. The modeling appointment was at 7PM and they stopped at a grocery store to pick up the pictures they needed for the appointment. As is also the case with many families, they had ho child care, so the whole family pretty much goes everywhere together. By the time the appointment was over, it was too late to catch the bus back. They had only $40, so it was eat or try to take a taxi. The kids were hungry so they ate then walked along the train tracks in the dark to find a commuter rail station, eventually getting home around 11PM. While participating in the art work shop, her husband got a call inviting him to start a job tomorrow, his first in over a year.

A couple of adults in the workshop explained what it was like to be homeless and how they are treated by non-homeless people. I can't paraphase it well enought to do it justice, but we captured it all on film. I can't wait until we have it ready for everyone to see; it is incredible. We plan to have a first cut of the video by the end of the year.

At the end of the workshop, Deb lead a "community" discussion about the experience of being with everyone in the workshop and about the artwork taken as a whole. A participant said she was surprised by how similar everyone was to her and how much she was like everyone else. Another person said she felt like anything was possible for her; she creates that for herself every day no matter what. Actually, we have heard very similar comments from many of the participants in the project.

Our music recording sessions were also amazing. When we arrived, no one had signed up for the session; by noon time we had a waiting list. Once we decided to set up the recording studio, musicians just appeared off the street. We recorded five or six people over the next several hours and Crystal did it all herself as I filmed the art workshops. Some people played more than one song and everyone was great. They were very appreciative and wished we could record more music. They all knew many more homeless musicians and wanted to bring them to a session. When we were packing up, the maintenance woman who was helping us said that more and more musicans were playing on the street each night outside shelter and she was mystified by this because it hadn't happened before we announced our arrival.

Although it may be redundant at this point, being part of the community at Father Joe's Village was a unique and amazing experience for all of us. I really have no words to describe my experiences this week; it is unlike anything I have imagined. I will have go write much more to try and impart the experience to others; I think this is important for me to do.

We dropped Crystal off at the airport for a 6AM flight to Providence; she was sad to leave and we were sad too. After returning to the RV for a couple more hours sleep, we packed up and headed for Toussaint Academy - a high school for homeless teenagers. The school is operated by Father Joe's Villages and emphasizes art and science. We are really excited about working with the people there!

Visit To Vista & Excitement In Escondido!

2007-11-14T19:16:00.000-08:00

What an amazing experience we're having at the shelters here in San Diego county! We have been so busy having fun that we haven't posted here for a couple of days. Apologies to all you loyal blog watchers out there!

On Tuesday, we had an incredible day at Solutions For Change in Vista, CA, a very innovative family homeless shelter. We were warmly welcomed by everyone we met there; the residents were all very friendly. We parked our RV on the plaza between the beautiful, Southwestern style buildings that graced the spotless grounds where we were literally the focus of the community.

After a slow start and some technical difficulties with our studio, we recorded and filmed a couple of performers on piano and guitar. Later, we filmed two amazing art workshops - one for the parents and one for the kids. Deb Ogburn and her associates lead both workshops. The adults created some wonderful portrait drawings using special "blind" technique and beautiful oil-based colors. Then everyone engaged in a great group discussion about their work. The kids had a blast too; they worked in the crayon medium and made two drawings each - one for us and one to take home.

Our first night in the RV was pretty amazing too and certainly unique in our experience. Sleeping in the RV in the midst of this amazing community was just plain inspiring and FUN! We have never slept in an RV and barely figured out how turn the lights off and on. What an adventure!

Tuesday night we packed up and headed to our next stop, the N. County Interfaith Community Council shelter in Escondido. We rolled into the parking lot around 9PM and glided into our specially designated spot right next to our water and electric hook-up's. Larry, the property manager, was a huge help and attended to our every need. We had total access to the facilities all night and even took a hot shower. (Yes, the RV has a shower, but as RV neophytes we have yet to figure out how to use it; and the holding tank aspect is especially intimidating.)

Today was the most incredible day of the tour so far; it was just exceptional from start to finish. Amazing musicians performed their music and we captured it all on audio and video. Their songs were moving beyond words and everyone crowded around the glass window in the conference room that served as our studio to catch a glimpse or a note. Bobby, who spent 15 homeless years in San Diego, came all the way from Mississippi just participate in this project and "give back" as he puts it. He was simply incredible. Another amazing singer/songwriter, Kimberly, inspired everyone with her music; no one had a dry eye when she finished. Her 25 years on the street gave her a powerful voice for the homeless and an unstoppable spirit. We even recorded the uniquely talented Sergio, the leaf player (yes, a real leaf off a real tree, it was still green).

Deb's art workshops were just as amazing as the music. The participants were inspired and produced some wonderful portraits using Deb's special techniques. We wish we had pictures of the drawings to post here. We will have them soon, Deb is taking shots of each one. We captured some amazing footage and incredible interactions that came up during the workshop. Each participant explained the meaning of their creation to the group and inspiration flowed freely through the room. We can't wait to show the video of this segment because that is only way we can possibly convey the experience of being there with these great people! (Attached is a picture of Bill, a homeless veteran who set up his own art show during the workshop and contributed several of his works to our project.)

Gayle has provided wonderful support for us and everyone at the facility. Her hospitality experience has been invaluable and has engendered warmth and compassion with everyone she meets. Crystal has been simply amazing; her unique combination of technical and communication skill has elicited great performances from all the musicians. Her video skills run the gamut: director, camera person, gaffer, etc., etc., she does it all.

A reporter from the local free paper came to the facility to cover another story and instead spent most of his time with us covering the Hearts Of Fire project. He interviewed all us and several performers and participants, and took lots of photos. We really made difference here - a group from a bank foundation touring the facility was unexpectedly moved by what they saw us doing and immediately made a large donation to the Interfaith Council.

We are spending another quiet night in the parking lot at N. County Interfaith Community Council. We love being at each place and hate to leave and the feeling is mutual. All the staff here have been wonderful and Suzanne Pohlman, the Executive Director made us feel so at home. Thank you!

Tomorrow morning, we leave for an early start at Father Joe's Village in downtown San Diego. We expect a large turn out for the art workshops and Deb has been working overtime preparing for the sessions.

San Diego Tour Underway!

2007-11-12T22:13:00.000-08:00

We arrived home in Ojai late Saturday night with the RV after a wonderful drive down I-5. We unloaded Gayle's intrepid Saturn.

Sunday, we spent the day doing errands and preparing for the tour. Since we are totally new to RV's, we had a number of challenges with its operation First issue was repairing dead headlight and replacing wiper blades in the rain (yes, it does sometimes rain in S. California).

Eventually, I found the owner's manual and that made things a little easier I tested the external water hookup and got that working and figured out the electric hookup too. I noticed a lot of things about the RV once I realized we actually were going to sleep, eat and live in there.

Today, we packed up and headed to our first stop on the tour - Solutions For Change in Vista, CA. After circling the area for awhile attempting to follow some erroneous Mapquest directions, we enjoyed a triumphant arrival this afternoon.

Gayle picked up Crystal, our amazing video & audio director, at the airport and drove her to the site. Although Crystal arrived safely on her flight from Providence, RI some of her luggage didn't. So we are on our back to the airport to get the luggage now.

Walter, the property manager, gave us a wonderful tour of Solutions For Change; we met lots of residents who made us feel very welcome.

We are very excited about tomorrow's activities and about our first night I the RV! This is a blast already!

Bob Ballard
Project Director
www.heartsoffire.tv

California At Last!

2007-11-10T21:52:00.001-08:00

We continued across beautiful northern Nevada, through Sparks and Reno and Lake Tahoe. What amazing views, especially over Donner Pass, high in the Sierras. It was getting dark as we drove through this area, following I-80 along the Truckee River. Ominous clouds had been streaming across the Nevada sky all day and we heard rumors of a coming storm. High in the Sierras, it looked like it would snow any minute and we gazed cautiously at the "add chains here" signs that appeared frequently along the mountain roadside. Then we careened down the steep western slopes toward Sacramento, dropping 7,000 feet over the 40 mile descent. It was a pretty scary drive, many curves, a lot of big rigs and a little too much speed. (Picture above is approaching Reno from the east; didn't get any "careening" shots, sorry)

We ran into our first city rush hour traffic of the whole trip in Sacramento, but it wasn't bad by east coast standards. After leaving the city, we drove north along San Francisco Bay through San Rafael. Our hunger forced us into Wendy's for some semi-edible nourishment. We jumped back on the road and headed to Paul and Georgia's place in Cotati, CA. Paul was the caretaker of the RV which Joost so generously donated to the project.

We finally reached Cotati around 8:30 PM. We were graciously received by Paul and Georgia and had a wonderful conversation with them. One of the great pleasures of this trip has been meeting so many kind, generous and interesting people, and Paul and Georgia were no exception. We spent a very comfortable night in a beautiful sleigh bed and awoke refreshed and excited - today we were picking up the RV!

Paul and Georgia drove us to the farm in Windsor, CA where the RV was parked. Although the weather was dreary and a steady rain was falling, our excitement was not damped in the least. We jumped out of the car to see the RV and it was BEAUTIFUL! A 1991 Winnebago Warrior!

More about the RV and our maiden voyage tomorrow! Stay tuned.......

Wyoming To Wendover, Westward Ho!

2007-11-09T14:45:00.000-08:00

Wyoming is really amazing and different than other states. The high prairie was rolling but also quite flat. Some places looked mountainous like Colorado while others looked like a desert but with more groundcover and water I guess you just have to see it to understand.

I felt a very strong presence of the old West, especially the native Americans and the buffalo that once lived there in abundance. I could easily imagine how it must have felt to have lived there in the mid-19th century - it must have been amazing.

I took a lot of picture but can only post one using my cell phone link, it's hard to pick which one.

We stopped for dinner at the Perkins Café just west of Salt Lake City. Hot food tastes good after a long day on the road. Unfortunately, it was too dark to see the Great Salt Lake by the time we got on the road again. (We took advantage of the rare wireless network that emanated from the nearby hotel.)

We drove off into the night and finally came to a stop in Wendover, Utah-Nevada. Some confusion arose over which state the town is in; part of the town has casino gambling and part does not, so I think the town straddles the state line).

The Motel 6 was quite nice and a real bargain at $32 a night. We slept well until we were awakened by the nearly continuous loud grinding of the starter in our neighbor's very late model pick up truck parked directly outside our door.

Today, we are travelling across beautiful northern Nevada. The northeast section is particularly magnificent. Snow-capped mountains rise majestically to the south while the stark beauty of the high desert stretches away to the horizons. I love it so much here I actually picked up a local real estate magazine and created the possibility of having a part time place to stay here. There is even an old time operating saloon-casino-bed & breakfast for sale out here!

The weather has held up and we are well on our way to Cotati, California to pick up the RV!

Bob Ballard
Project Director
www.heartsoffire.tv

Across Nebraska and Into the Wilds of Wyoming!

2007-11-08T17:43:00.001-08:00

Nebraska is a pretty place with lots of rolling hills and
cattle. Historical connections to the Old West like wagon
trails, famous cowboys and forts abound - there is even a huge
wooden archway over highway 80 announcing the start of the
Oregon Trail. Even the rest areas are beautiful out here, we
took a walk around one that was like a park.

The weather has been great; it was so sunny and warm we ditched
our coats and sweaters for the day. However, it has been quite
windy most of the way (see picture)

We had some interesting conversations with people. At a gas
station we met a couple going to the same place we are to pick
up the RV. Later, when we pulled into Motel 6 in Cheyenne,
Wyoming for the night, a car with Conn ecticut plates parked
right next to us. Turns out that the guy is from Norwich, 30
miles away from where we started from on the way back. It's a
small world!

The Motel 6 was rather nice, no frills but clean and
comfortable. Aside from the regular horn blasts from passing
freight trains, we had a restful night. At this point, most of
our physical discomfort consists of muscle cramps and soreness
from spending so many hours in the car. We are really looking
forward to being free of the car for awhile!

Our dining experiences have been a little spotty on this trip.
However, we had some good food at Penny's Diner in Kimball,
Nebraska. I was definitely enrolled in the pioneer spirit as I
devoured a "monster buffalo burger." I also had a lot of fun
drawing on the diner wall with the kid in the booth next to us.

Now we are cruising across the mountainous prairie of southern
Wyoming. Lots of photos here; don't know how I will pick just
one to show you tomorrow.

We expect to stop tonight somewhere outside Salt Lake City,
Utah; we have never seen the salt lake there. Tomorrow we make
the final push to California!

Bob Ballard
Project Director
www.heartsoffire.tv

Iowa, Nebraska and Points West

2007-11-07T14:30:00.000-08:00

We spent a wonderful night in Altoona, Iowa with our hosts, Michelle and Dirk. Our only complaint was that our stay was way too short! (see attached picture)

Altoona is a charming little town east of Des Moines. A couple of huge concrete grain silos dominate the sky line and the people seemed very friendly Altoona appeared to be an interesting mix of a traditional agricultural community and a bohemian college town.

The Iowa and Nebraska landscape rolls away to the horizon and is filled with empty cornfields, cows and the occasional farm house surrounded by trees. We are really surprised by how similar the scenery is - rural New England looks a lot like rural Ohio which looks a lot like rural Illinois, etc., etc. right on out to Nebraska.

We expect to stop somewhere in Wyoming (sounds like a song) tonight. We don't know anyone there (yet), so we will have to create another good place to sleep tonight.

Everyone is excited and looking forward to arrival in San Diego and so are we! We are also looking forward to our one night stay at our home in Ojai, CA on the way to San Diego.

We are looking for a video camera tripod and dolly to use in San Diego next week. Please let us know if think you can help with that.

Bob Ballard
Project Director
www.heartsoffire.tv

On The Road Again, San Diego Here We Come!

2007-11-06T10:45:00.000-08:00

After a hiatus in New England, we are off on the next Hearts Of Fire tour! Actually, we weren't really on hiatus, we were having a wonderful time with friends and family. We also took a couple of "side trips" to Grand Manan Island off the coast of New Brunswick, Canada to see a lighthouse inn that is for sale and to an innkeepers convention in Louisville, Kentucky. So we didn't really get all the time with friends and family that we would have liked. But we sure had a blast!

Right now we are I-80 heading through a strong head wind across the fields of Indiana. We ran into a lot of rain last night in Pennsylvania which made our close encounters with the tractor trailer beasts even more exciting. After dueling with them for several hours, we pulled into a rest area somewhere in Ohio and fell fast asleep in our Saturnia Motel; we chose the Ion room. The accommodations were warm and cozy but the beds left something to be desired. (Attached picture is from the lull before the storm in PA)

This morning, we awoke refreshed and invigorated, stepped into a biting wind and some snow flurries and scurried to enjoy the weather from the indoor food court at the surprisingly elegant rest area. After savoring some hot coffee and oatmeal, we took off to our next stop - Altoona, Iowa - where we will be staying with Michelle Bliss, an innkeeper friend of Gayle's.

Stay tuned!

Bob Ballard
Project Director
www.heartsoffire.tv

D.C. Tour Huge Success!

2007-10-19T11:04:00.001-07:00

On our last day in DC, we returned to two of the shelters to conduct interviews and capture some exterior shots. We had a great interview with Amy Vokes at Jobs Have Priority (a program at the Community for Creative Non-Violence shelter) and then taped some exterior shots at Bright Beginnings.

We headed out of town around noon and were tooling along nicely until we ran into a huge traffic jam at the Memorial Bridge in Delaware. Our late model station wagon conked out and coasted to a stop in the left hand breakdown lane. After resting a few minutes, the engine sputtered back to life and we almost made it to the toll booth before the engine quit again. We patiently waited for the engine to cool down then made a run for the nearest exit and gas station.

We filled up with gas, cooled down the engine and resumed our journey. Fortunately, with constant movement and lower night time temperatures, we reached our destination in CT without further incident.

Our first tour was a great success. We touched many people's lives and they touched ours. From the moment we arrived at the first shelter to the last night with the teens recording music in the basement at Community of Hope, we were filled with energy and excitement. We had so much fun and made a lot of new friends.

We learned a lot that will help us on our next tour, San Diego County Nov. 12 - 16. Everyone is excited about the tour and some great events are planned. Our next newsletter will be posted on our web site and sent to all our supporters next week. We will continue to post our adventures on the blog, so come along with us. And
Please keep those donations coming (see Donations at www.heartsoffire.tv)

Community Of Hope, Washington, DC

2007-10-18T07:02:00.001-07:00

After some coughing and sputtering, our vehicle found its way to
the alley behind Community Of Hope. Mark, the Assistant
Director, ran out to help us bring in the gear and we took it to
a perfect room for recording in the basement. A little while
later, Igor and his wife (DC graduate art students from Alaska)
arrived to teach the art workshop for the kids. We strung our
Hearts Of Fire banner and soon a boisterous crowd of kids filled
the room as they arrived from school. With Igor's expert
assistance, the kids really went to work and created some
amazing drawings. The workshop was very interactive; everyone
posted their creation on the wall and described what it meant.
(See attached photo)

After the art workshop, several teens showed up to perform some
music in our makeshift recording studio down the hall. Although
most were "mic shy", we all had a great time. As we were
hauling out the gear, one of the counselors took me aside to
explain what it meant to the kids for us to be there. Three of
the teenage girls who participated in the recording sessions had
just arrived at the shelter a week ago with their mom after
their older brother had gone to jail. According the their mom,
two of the girls had stopped talking and the other was acting up
a lot. She said that because of the girls' participation in the
recording sessions, they had totally opened up and were feeling
much better, more like they were before they came to the
shelter.

We also had a great interview with Abdul Nurdeen, the Executive
Director of the Community for Creative Non-Violence, the large
shelter that we visited on Monday. We returned to talk with him
because he was very enthusiastic about our project and the
difference he sees it makes for the people at the shelter.
Abdul is also preparing a letter of recommendation for us!

As we come to the end of our first Hearts Of Fire Tour, I am so
grateful to Dan and Amy for hosting us for four days at their
beautiful home here in Washington, D.C. Without their gracious
support, we would not have been able to make the difference we
have made here with people. Not only did Dan and Amy provide
wonderful sleeping accommodations, but they also gave us
breakfast each day and even a fabulous dinner and great
conversations! Thank you SO MUCH DAN and AMY!!!!

A Fun Day At Bright Beginnings

2007-10-17T07:45:00.000-07:00

The people were great at Bright Beginnings, especially the
children. Bright Beginnings is a day and evening care facility
for homeless children from all over Washington, D.C. Families
staying at other shelters bring their children to the shelter
and/or children come there after school. Bright Beginnings
provides a wide variety of innovative programs for the the kids
- they even have a jewelry making program and a small store
where they sell their creations.

Everything went smoothly; we even had a elevator this time.
However, our vehicle had an oil emergency and refused to move
until we fed it a couple of quarts of oil. After that, it was
fine.

Dave Quammen, our incredible art instructor who is committed to
the homeless, delivered a very interactive session to the 4 year
olds at the shelter. All the kids had a great time with Dave
and I think I had even more fun than them (see attached
picture). After the art class, we recorded parents and children
who performed for us in the upstairs conference room. We taped
an interview with Erika Bugai, the great program director at
Bright Beginnings; she is very supportive of Hearts Of Fire and
our effort to bring musical and artistic self-expression to the
homeless.

The only concern that we heard from the participants was why we
couldn't stay longer or come back right away.

We again spent the night at Dan & Amy's very comfortable home
and enjoyed a wonderful dinner and great conversations. Thank
you!

A Fabulous First Day In DC

2007-10-16T06:10:00.000-07:00

What a fantastic first day we had at the City Center Shelter, the largest shelter in the city - over 600 beds! The people were wonderful and we were welcomed like heroes!
Hearts Of Fire event posters announced our arrival as Amy Vokes, program director, helped us lug our equipment up 3 flights of stairs and down a very long hallway. The City Shelter is housed in a run down surplus federal building without a nearby functioning elevator. Dave Quammen, an amazing man who owns & runs the Museum of Contemporary Art here in DC, appeared at the perfect moment to lead the art workshop. Not only did he provide his skill and the materials, but he had a remarkable affinity with the participants which captured on film.
After a long delay, we finally found a vacant room to conduct our recording sessions. By the time we started, we had an excited throng of musicians vying for our attention.
The musicians were incredible people and several were very talented. Two musicians from Gil Scott Heron's (a famous jazz artist) band showed up to record with Greg, their homeless friend. They made an amazing recording which we burned on CD for them. Andre, the incredible bass player, invited me to be on his live internet radio show this Thursday for an interview! Aside from a computer crash and the incessant wheezing of the ventilation system, Crystal and I performed impeccably and all the participants were quite pleased. They only thing they didn't like is that we weren't coming back (at least not this year). People were taking our flyers and running around the neighborhood to let everyone's know we were there. We didn't have time to see everyone, and many wanted to follow us to the next shelter.
When we packed up, we found another way out, through the building to the working elevator at the other end of our floor. It took us down to the basement and out to the back parking lot. While I was returning the flat bed truck we used to haul out the equipment, I discovered an amazing mural on the wall with a great message (see attached photo).
There were so many wonderful experiences, it is hard to describe them all. I guess I can best sum it up as life affirming, an experience of the love of humanity.

Day 7, We Are In Washington, DC!

2007-10-14T19:28:00.000-07:00

Live from DC!
Crystal Counts, our intrepid film maker & audio engineer and I loaded (or should I say jammed) Crystal's Saturn station wagon and drove down from Providence, RI. (Seems like we just can't get away from those Saturns.) Aside from adding some air to the tires to support the extra load, our ride was smooth and easy. Our friends Dan & Amy graciously welcomed us to their lovely home in DC and gave each our own suite! We are very excited about the official start of our tour tomorrow when we visit our first shelter.

Day 6, A Great Saturday In Connecticut!

2007-10-14T10:47:00.000-07:00

We really enjoyed our first day NOT on the road. We hung out with family and relaxed for a change. Gayle's sister Kate provided a luxuriously appointed room at her country home and we were treated to some fine home cooking. Looking forward heading to DC on Sunday with my friend, the multi-talented CrystakCounts.

Day 5, Columbus To Connecticut

2007-10-13T10:09:00.000-07:00

After another marathon drive - 750 miles - we arrived at sister Kate's house in Brooklyn (CT, not NY) about 11 PM. The Pennsylvania country side was filled with rolling green hills and sunny skies. We dined again at our favorite place - Subway - and discovered a route that took us around NYC right into CT. We trudged into Kate's place and fell into bed.

Day 4, St. Louis To Columbus

2007-10-12T08:26:00.000-07:00

Our shortest drive yet - only 417 miles. We spent Wednesday night in St. Louis with our friends Marsha & Michael. We left the house on time but the car didn't, it refused to start. However, we were patient and gave it some more time to rest and it finally woke up. We had to slow down several times to negotiate the orange cone obstacle course but enjoyed the rolling hills filled with bucolic pastures and black & white cows.
About 7 PM, we arrived in Columbus at Laurie & Jeffrey's place as the skies filled with rain clouds. The held off while enjoyed a wonderful Chinese meal then a glass of wine and good conversation back at the house. Even the cats, Generous and Mittens (with two 7-clawed paws) had a great time. Our hosts greeted us with this flowering cascade of beauty upon our arrival in Columbus.

Day 3, The Heartland

2007-10-11T11:50:00.001-07:00

Wednesday was marathon day - 780 miles from Limon, Colorado to St. Louis, Missouri. Allthough it was a long day and night, we had lots of fun and great conversations. More donations came in from the web site (thank you!) and we had a wonderful lunch at a beautiful park in Russell, Kansas. Just after crossing into Missouri, we stopped at new gas station and filled up at $2.39 per gallon!
People and events continue to show up in support of the project and everyone is excited.

Utah & Colorado Adventure

2007-10-10T09:10:00.000-07:00

We spent the Monday night in lovely Richfield , Utah, a small town nestled in a high valley among the mesas. The drive from there to Limon Colorado where we spent Tuesday night was filled with spectacular sights and great beauty. We took a slight detour to engage in our "have we left yet" game again as we wandered around Grand Junction, Colorado looking for a Saturn dealer in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to fix a blown auxiliary power jack After that little detour, we climbed up, over and through the 11,000 ft. Eisenhower Tunnel careening down the pitch black eastern slope into Denver for an emergency bathroom break. From there, we followed a false I-70 detour sign for several miles before stumbling upon an entrance to the interstate. We sauntered into our hotel in Limon about 10PM Mountain Time after sampling the cuisine at the local, all night gas station. Aaahhh, life is Good! All is well.

Did We Leave Yet?

2007-10-08T19:03:00.001-07:00

This is the question we kept asking ourselves today as tried to head out of town on our journey. As we criuse through the great Nevada desert, we are still wondering what took so long. Well, first it the car. Since we hadn't planned to use it on this trip, it needed a tire alignment. That turned into an oil change and then 4 new tires. We needed them now to avoid problems on our 7,000 mile journey.
We flying along now though and Gayle is at the helm. Here is a picture live from the desert! It is woderful having all of you along for the ride!

We Switched Horses!

2007-10-05T20:40:00.001-07:00

We were making final preparations and running errands when our Trailblazer lost a door on E. Matilija St. in Ojai. Someone driving by got a little too close just when I cracked the door. Fortunately, my arm did not leave with the door and no one was injured. However, the Trailblazer will be laid up in the "hospital" for awhile.

As a result, we have switched horses! We are now traveling in Gayle's Saturn Ion, a wonderful car that carried Gayle and her son Don to California from Connecticut in December 2005. We will be traveling a little lighter and we will be using a lot less gas! It is good for me to learn to pack more compactly anyway; I have been hauling huge packs on almost every trip I have ever been on. Most of my luggage collapsed from exhaustion!

All this excitement and we haven't even left home!

Let The Tour Begin!

2007-10-04T17:01:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are folks! Ready to launch our Pilot Tour! Not sure how it will all look but I know the world will never be the same!

My wife Gayle and I are leaving Oct. 8 for a cross-country drive to our first tour destination - 4 homeless shelters in Washington, D.C. We are still not packed but we are really excited.

We will be posting during our 6 week journey so that all of you can share in this with us. We have cameras, video cameras, music equipment, clothes and love from all you to make this a trip we will never forget.

Thank you for your support. You will be with us every step of the way.