Keelan & Kiki Mode

 

Kikimode.com

 

My precious Keelan is at the perfect time of her life, at age 25 she has the world at her fingertips. She is a  maladroit millennial in a world full of war, poverty, greed and yet full of love, hope and humanity. I may sound cliché, but I am indeed a proud mother. Why? I gave birth to a beautifully amazing daughter – intelligent, precocious, challenging and brilliant.

Keelan has been struggling with Lupus Nephritis since age 15 which in itself, is a challenge. (refer to “The Many Masks of Lupus” for past post about Keelan and Lupus) Living with Lupus is painful with most days very difficult to even get out of bed. Recently, an all vegetable diet, no sugar and exercise has made the Lupus more tolerable to live with. Doctors had prescribed steroids and various medications in the past to help mask the pain and symptoms but none of these options can cure or eleviate the condition. Keelan had to also deal with taking care of her ailing grandfather who was suffering from Parkinson's for the past four years and recently passed away a month ago.

In spite of Keelan’s health challenges and taking care of her bedridden grandfather, she has managed to create and design her very own, very first fashion collection, taking her skills from the Fashion Institutes of North Hollywood and Portland, OR, to put her signature on the bohemian fashion craze. However, Keelan initially wanted to make outfits that she herself wanted to wear, fashions that she found difficult to find that were affordable to buy. From a moderately successful eBay fashion business for one year, Keelan decided to expand upon the vintage used clothing shop to designing a more contemporary clothing collection. Thus, Keelan created Kiki Mode – Fashions for the groovy state of mind.

Staying with her original love for vintage clothing, Keelan redesigns familiar styles of the 60’s and 70’s and puts a more current twist to those retro styles using some authentic vintage fabrics and notions, vintage reproduction fabrics and alternative, eco-friendly, organic materials such as hemp, bamboo, recycled vinyl and rubber, and old scraps discarded by other designers. Keelan is even recreating her own artistic designs to digitally print with water-based pigment inks and dyes that hold no chemicals, thus creating sustainable fabrics for her collections. The only cottons Keelan uses are organic cotton sateen, bamboo and organic cotton knit which are environmentally friendly and all made in the USA.

In all of my excitement, I offered Keelan financial capital and my expertise in business operations as my background in working at major department stores during my youth either as a buyer or manager certainly would give Keelan a boost.

Keelan better defined her fashion biz as a specialty, eco-friendly biz to give work to local seamstresses in the LA area. She is inspired by and revers such 60’s and 70's fashion icons as Biba and Mary Quant who operated specialty boutiques in London, along with Paraphernalia Boutiques in the US - for those one-of-a-kind fashion pieces. Keelan wanted to steer away from the mass production option, refusing to become a slave to the runway rules of the trade, basing her opinion from watching friends attempt that very direction with their own failed high fashion attempts.

I’m proud of Keelan’s sense of uncompromising fortitude and determination. I’m proud of her sense of selflessness. She may not become a millionaire in giving work to LA-based seamstresses and producing only one-of-a-kind fashions, but she believes that it sure beats the stress of dealing with mass production quotas.  One of Keelan’s newest challenges will possibly be the $15  per hour minimum wage to be implemented in the city of Los Angeles which will make it more difficult to make profit sooner. However, Keelan is determined not to ship her jobs out to China, India or any third world exploitative country sweatshops – this has no place in her world and moral sensibility. I’ve put all my eggs into this basket – my creative daughter. I’ve been representing artists since 1988, giving shows all over the world. And representing my daughter is by far the most rewarding and profitable, both financially and emotionally.

Pacific Climate Warriors Peaceful Protest in Newcastle, NSW, Australia

We, at Vodwall Live – a US-based video blog site, went to Newcastle, Australia on October 17, 2014 to film and live stream the Pacific Climate Warriors peaceful protest of Australia’s fossil fuels and coal industry. 30 Pacific Island chiefs and their entourage from 12 Pacific Islands arrived in Australia to form a flotilla blockade of hand carved canoes all brought over from their home islands. The Warriors created the blockade against coal ships leaving the Port of Newcastle as a political statement to save the Pacific waters from the destruction of coal fracking and mining. These brave warriors’ fight is fueled by the realities of rising sea levels, unprecedented massive tides, increased flooding of their homes, lost crops, critical infrastructure damaged and devastating economic loses in their island communities.

The Pacific Warrior’s protest is a continuation of the global climate change fight of September 20 & 21, 2014. And the city of Newcastle was chosen because it is the number one coal producing and exporting city in the world, exporting over 100 million tons each year.

We witnessed great courage, valor and uncompromising devotion to the cause of saving the Pacific islands from the destruction of the coal industry. Nothing deterred the Warriors from their battle. Whether the struggle of keeping their canoes afloat, or the ramming of the Newcastle Marine police boats against the canoes, or the threat of $500 citations to anyone returning to the waters to go block oncoming coal ships headed out to sea. Over 100 canoes, dingies, small sail boats, rafts, kayaks, and even a parasailing vessel were used to block the mouth of Newcastle Harbor.

The protesters were met with constant local and marine police intimidation all day, threatening to give citations to anyone who takes their rafts or canoes out to the harbor waters in protest. We witnessed marine police in black speed rafts alongside black jet-skis race from every part of the harbor to block the protesters’ path to the center of Hunter River. After the first coal ship of the day was blocked, then delayed by the Pacific Warriors, the police proceeded to push back even more fiercely the dozens of canoes and rafts in the water.

At one point, when the Australian protesters heard that there would be a possibility of receiving citations by the  police, most of them hesitated to return to the water, as if retreating from a losing battle. It took a Pacific Warrior to go on the loud speaker to start the rallying cry, “we are not drowning, we are fighting.” His loyal warrior comrades joined in on the chant – their battle cry. All warriors then took up their oars, grabbed their canoes and dashed back out to the harbor waters, defying the police threats and defying the crowd’s fear and hesitation. All the rest of the protesters followed behind the warriors, thus cementing their solidarity to the Pacific Warriors. Protest banners unfueled in the strong bay winds, while hand-painted signs reading ‘stop coal’ or ‘fossil fuels kill’ were waved in the air by children standing at Nobby Beach.

In the end, there were no arrests made, but several protesters were detained by police. There were some minor injuries reported by those protesters thrown into the water from their vessels. Fortunately, a few legal counselors were present to assist in advising the detained protesters, offering them legal representation.

Is it possible that Newcastle police and Marine police were working in the interest of the coal mining industry and not in the interest of the Newcastle community? As evidenced by their aggressive action against those unfortunate canoes that were rammed, broken and then capsized by police boats in the choppy Hunter River waters.  However, some Marine Police who were perched on their jet-skis were seen from a distance to move rhythmically to the beat of island music that played over a loud speaker during the protest. This gave some of us some semblance of humanity and hope from local law enforcement. It was a waiting game played by the Marine Police in the waters and local police on land as they hovered around the protesters. But the Warriors were undaunted. They regrouped, quickly repaired their broken canoes and instantly returned to the rough waters to form yet another blockade for the next approaching coal ship.

By 4:30pm the Pacific Climate Warriors and their hundreds of Australian supporters and environmental advocates successfully blocked or delayed twelve ships that were scheduled to pass the Newcastle Harbor, either coming in or departing Newcastle. We even saw a Japanese ship approach the harbor entrance, stop and turned itself around in retreat back to the open sea.

The battle was bravely fought. Progress was made. However, the fight continues to save the Pacific Islands.

#PacificClimateWarriors

#StandForThePacific

#PeoplesClimate

#ClimateChange

Moral Responsibility in a Capitalist Society

Youth, education, women’s rights and the environment are the issues I have increasingly become more strident and passionate about in my daily activism. It’s a lifestyle change I consciously made to better contribute to my community and eventually make a greater impact globally. To understand my lifestyle choice is to understand the journey I took to live a life as a secular humanist. I do not write this blog post for the purpose of persuading my readers to reject religion. And this is not a writing to argue the merits of science over religion. I merely wish to encourage my readers to have a more open mind toward the possibilities of doing ‘good’ on a daily basis without the dictates and approval of your church, temple, pastor, reverend or rabbi. I believe that your own personal sense of charity will dictate your sense of humanity.

I was raised in a Judeo-Christian household – half of my family Jewish and the other half Catholic. My family was very active in the community as volunteers for charitable causes. As I grew older and graduated from university, I, too became very politically and socially involved in school and in the community. When I entered the workforce during the 1980’s, I stopped going to church, but I never stopped my community involvement. I was a proud Republican at this time and I jumped on the capitalist, Reaganomics train, like so many of my friends did, where making money at all costs in corporations was the golden rule. Though over the years I earned great income and acquired ‘nice things,’ I felt a persistent urge to do more. I needed to evolve from this limited view of and purpose in life.

For 25 years I worked full time in the corporate world while I pursued more cultural and charitable endeavors on my off hours and weekends, never taking vacations and rarely getting more than 5 hours sleep per night. I never attended mass during those 25 years except to attend a funeral or wedding. I truly believed that I could make more of an efficient and worthwhile difference on my own without being part of a religious congregation. When I got involved in church fundraisers and events during my high school days, I enjoyed those times but they were tainted with in-house politics, favoritism and in some cases, racism. Yes, racism in the Catholic Church, and sometimes in the temple. This factor discouraged me which then led me to give my energies to secular causes. Though I no longer believe in a god, I still respect my friends, family and all those individuals who need and follow their religion. I fundamentally do not believe that there is an almighty being that is creator and decider of our fate and the universe. I do not cram my secular humanism down throats. It is a philosophy I believe in and try to applicate it into my daily life. I pray not, but I do affirmations and positive energy work – always striving to think good thoughts of everyone. I truly believe that every time a negative thought enters my head and I express a negative feeling, then I take a speck of positivism away from the universe, thus exposing myself and my world around me to harm and ethereal toxins.

Capitalism or laissez-faire economic society has been the business and ideological model for Western countries and in China’s case, a social economic system disguising its own form of capitalism since the late 1980’s. We have witnessed over the past century the exploitation, greed and drastic wealth inequality as a result of capitalism at its pinnacle. However, we have also seen technological development, incredible construction growth and the eradication of many deadly diseases and improved health conditions due to a wealthy society’s financial ability to achieve such improvements.  Thus, capitalism can be considered a good thing. However, it is truly possible to be a capitalist and still have a sense of responsibility for your community and thus show compassion for those who are less fortunate or have fewer opportunities than yourself.

In this sense, I feel that secular humanism can be applied to economics, politics and lifestyle as a moral and necessary ideology. It is not a religion to me. I reject religions such as Christianity and Judaism for the main reason that many of its congregants believe in this self-righteous superiority that their religion is the right and true religion. This manner of belief fosters discrimination, racism, exploitation, and intolerance – all negative factors that well known and followed prophets and holy men throughout history condemned. And charitable acts are either non-existent or simply contrived if practiced under such negative beliefs.

I foresee the world soon undergoing a change in mental and social consciousness - an evolution to a higher global understanding where the nature of morality will replace the nature of greed.  I believe in the tenet that in an equal society that all individuals have something valuable to contribute, not only economically but socially. In the real sense of secular humanism, I, along with my daughter Keelan, foster creative growth, individual responsibility, community awareness, peace and humankind by live video streaming events around the world to bring attention to social causes, environmental issues and cultural pioneering.

Furthermore, I admire and support the efforts of Bill Clinton’s Global Initiative where his mission is to turn ideas into action, and Richard Branson’s Virgin Unite where his goal is ‘to create an ethical programme based on being fair, honest, positive and creative within a capitalistic society.’ Warren Buffet’s 99% donations, Oprah Winfrey’s Angel Network and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation are also stellar examples of capitalism turned philanthropy that have contributed charitably to society while helping to build our modern corporate world. It would always be a gratifying and fulfilling endeavor to strive to make just as much of an impact as these companies have for humanity.

Thanks for reading and being human!

LINKS

http://iheu.org International Humanist and Ethical Union

http://www.owla.co.za/

http://www.gatesfoundation.org

http://www.virginunite.com

http://www.givingpledge.org

The Many Masks of Lupus

Keelan’s Story and how she discovered that she had Lupus

They say that there’s nothing like a mother’s love for her child. When it comes to my daughter, Keelan, sacrifice and unconditional love is the most challenging yet rewarding blessings of motherhood. My account of my daughter’s struggles with a disease that is debilitating and incurable, is based on her writings that she shared over the years on her blog, kikiculture.com. Keelan has experienced some good, normal days but many more painful days over the past seven years.

Keelan is a brilliant, soft spoken, creative and beautiful 25-year old, wise beyond her years. She is a mix of African American and Yemeni from my side of the family and French Caucasian from her father’s side.  At 15 years old, Keelan started showing unusual flu-like symptoms. Keelan was an honor student, very active in extracurricular activities like charity work and soccer, full of life and vitality. She started feeling weak and often nauseous in the mornings. Most mothers would suspect that their daughters had gotten pregnant.  Though Keelan was throwing up in the mornings, I felt strongly that she was not yet sexually active. As the weeks passed, Keelan’s condition had gotten worse where she was missing many days of school, though she was not sick every day. I would leave for work early, leaving Keelan in bed and then come home in the afternoon where I would find her still weak, nauseous and her kidney area hurting her. I called these episodes which occurred on an average of a few weeks per month. Keelan had no energy to get out of bed. Going to the countryside clinic on a regular basis for some kind of diagnosis was futile as doctors only gave her enemas and laxatives, not knowing how to treat her. After three months of no relief, I asked her general practitioner for a referral to have extensive tests done. We determined that the pain that Keelan was experiencing may be related to her kidneys.

Friends, family, doctors and the very concerned Taos community all offered well-intentioned advice as to what they thought could be Keelan’s problem. From sickle cell to mineral poisoning – all were trying to diagnose Keelan’s illness. Between Holy Cross Hospital in Taos and Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, Keelan underwent a battery of tests over a course of two months. The tests included an urinalysis, kidney and liver assessment, and diffusion MRI to determine if Keelan had Multiple Schlerosis,  cancer or leukemia, sickle cell anemia, MS, kidney disorder or disease, or heart disease were all ruled out. Her nephrologist sent Keelan off with more laxatives, concluding that her problem may have been blocked intestines. When I realized that Keelan would need more care, I decided to work part time at a local gallery, and I opened an art gallery at my home studio to be closer to Keelan. This was not easy, often working 16 hour days to keep up, including weekends.

Keelan moved to Los Angeles when she graduated from Taos High School in order to live with her father and attend the Art Institute of Hollywood. My art business took me to Shanghai for long periods of time. Keelan needed care and she was often too weak to hold a job and go to school simultaneously. On one of my visits to LA from China, I decided to search for another doctor who could possibly diagnose Keelan. Because I could only afford a basic Medicaid insurance policy as I claimed low income due to my business expenses in China, I took Keelan to doctors who were covered under that plan. One doctor read Keelan’s thick medical records and told me that ‘as a single mother, my daughter had been fabricating her illness all those years because she doesn’t get enough attention from just one parent.’ This doctor deduced this finding after asking Keelan questions about her episodes and then questions about her home life. I grabbed Keelan and we immediately left that office. I realized at that point that getting any more comprehensive testing and knowledgeable care for Keelan would be too costly for me in the US.

I decided to have Keelan pack her bags and we flew to Shanghai together. It wasn’t until I took her to doctors there and they ran an in-depth Antinuclear Antibody test (ANA) on Keelan which revealed that she had lupus nephritis, a form of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. I was told that lupus is a disguised chameleon of a disease. The symptoms can be diagnosed as multiple sclerosis, some forms of cancer, sickle cell anemia, kidney disease, diabetes or anemic disorders. It is not known what causes lupus nor if it is hereditary. Recent research estimates that at least 1.5 million Americans have lupus, though little research is done on the disease and the actual number may be higher.

After doing some research of my own, I found out the following facts about this incurable disease:

•    Lupus is a disease of flares (the symptoms worsen and you feel ill) and remissions (the symptoms improve and you feel better). Lupus can range from mild to life-threatening and should always be treated by a doctor. With good medical care, most people with lupus can lead a full life.

•    Lupus is not contagious, not even through sexual contact.

•    Lupus is not like or related to cancer. Cancer is a condition of malignant, abnormal tissues that grow rapidly and spread into surrounding tissues. Lupus is an autoimmune disease.

•    Lupus is not like or related to HIV (Human Immune Deficiency Virus) or AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). In HIV or AIDS the immune system is underactive; in lupus, the immune system is overactive.

•    It is believed that 5 million people throughout the world have a form of lupus.

•    Lupus strikes mostly women of childbearing age (15-44). However, men, children, and teenagers develop lupus, too.

•    Women of color are 2-3 times more likely to develop lupus.

•    People of all races and ethnic groups can develop lupus.

•   More than 16,000 new cases of lupus are reported annually across the country.

Next segment: Lupus: Searching for Answers through Clinical Trials, Symptoms Diagnosis and Alternative Treatments

List of Resources:

Lupus Foundation – http://lupus.org (research and statistical data on lupus)

Lupus International – http://lupusinternational.org (global support for lupus patients)

Life with Lupus – http://lifewithlupus.org (online support group)