Queen_CalifiaCalifia (aka Calafia) is
the name of a legendary Black Amazon warrior queen
The collection of over 10,000 Carnaval San Francisco
photographs at the internet's #1 photo site is dominated
by Shapeshift with almost half of the
top 25 "most interesting" fotos
"Shapeshift
lives up to his handle in that the "shapeshift" he
applies to some of his photos is very tastefully done,
and enhances the feel of what the picture is all about.
His are amongst the first photos I look at when logging
onto Flickr as I'm keen to see what new "feel" he's
applied to yet another good picture!" [more]
You may know the song by the Grateful Dead in which the
song refrain is "I need a miracle everyday."
I think any reasonable person can conclude that the
redemption of the world, if it is to be achieved, can
only be achieved through magic. Its too late for
science. Its too late for horatory politics....
"you can't go back and you can't stand still. If the
thunder don't get you the lightning will."
---Terence McKenna Lectures on Alchemy.
Get ready for Carnaval SF 2009 at our following
URLs:
The Fifth Dimension was simply jamming with the universe,
in five dimensions:
Florence said, "It was a real fluke. We were performing in
New York City and Billy lost his wallet in a taxi. The man who
returned it invited us to see a play he produced.
[Interesting how the music weaves together perfectly.] The
play of course was
Hair.
Well we heard Aquarius and we all just looked at each other and said
'We've got to sing this song. It's great.'" It was producer Howe who
suggested splicing Aquarius together with lyrics from another number
in the musical which became "Let The Sunshine In". [No coincidence:
If you've become aware of 5D, you'll know how the solar star fits
in.] He got together with arranger Bob Alcivar & put the two songs
together, making them work as one single. "We recorded that song in
Las Vegas, in this small studio," says LaRue. "Our voices were all
tired, we'd been performing there for over a month. It was
the quickest thing we ever recorded and it was one of our biggest
hits." [Yup 5D simply glides.] They were very close to the
railroad tracks, and while they were singing the final chorus, a
train rumbled by. You can still hear the locomotive, though, just
barely, on the final master.
"Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In" remained in the #1 spot on
Billboard's chart for 6 straight weeks and remained in the Top 40
for 16 weeks. Both the single and album "Age Of Aquarius" went Gold
and received two Grammy Awards for Record Of The Year and Best
Contemporary Vocal By A Group. They were also nominated for Album Of
The Year. The song was also nominated for Best Arrangement
Accompanying Vocalist. The song eventually sold over three
million copies, making it the biggest selling single that year.
The original song was over 7 minutes long and it was Bill
Drake of a Los Angeles radio station who suggested the song needed
to be shortened to about 3 minutes; so Howe released 2 versions, one
just over 3 minutes and one under 3 minutes." -
The Fifth Dimension, profile from
ClassicBands.com
The
oldest well documented Carnival comes to us from Egypt.
The best known festival reenacted the passion of Isis
and Osirus where but over the course of 2500 years there
were many large scale festivals including one presided
over by Bast the Cat called the festival of inebriation.
Our favorite Egyptian Carnival story relates to why
there are just 5 special days of Carnival. These were
known as days beyond time and space and were needed to
make the 360 calendar complete.
Our myth and magic piece for 2008 got away from us and you can expect
things to be further cleaned up and enhanced over the
summer. In the meantime we believe you'll find these
pages worthy of your attention
PyramidsSphinxcarnaval.com/isisIsis RisingGolden Ass EgyptBastet the
Cat goddess
Year round symbol of SF Bay Area Unity
The Mount Sutro Tower represents the unity at the center, at the center
of the tri-metro region [SF. SJ, Oakland], at the creative center of the
planet.
The City columnist Herb Caen once said,
“I keep waiting for it to stalk down the
hill and attack the Golden Gate Bridge.”
The tower will always stand taller than any other structure
in the Bay Area. While San Francisco has approved plans for
structures taller than its 977 feet (298 metres)
It rises from the ground at 1,800 ft (549 m) above sea level. It
was built on the site of Mayor Adolph Sutro's mansion, one of
San Francisco's greatest visionaries.
The original design of the tower called for white lights
longitudinally rising along its three legs to the top. When
opened, these lights were lit. However local resistance forced the operators to turn off the
lights and it is not known if they are still operational.
How
great it would if they could be used since for special
occasions like Christmas and Carnaval.
Former
King of Carnaval
Mario Pablo Chacon brought an entourage of over fifty
dandies to the Carnaval at the de Young Museum
event who would have wowed the salons of the
Venice Carnevale
For three decades, Carnaval San Francisco has
been a much-cherished occasion for many cultures to come
together in one spirit: to share in the exhilaration and
creative expression, the abundance of beauty and community, the
sheer joy and good times that makes Carnaval San Francisco such
a rich experience and a spectacular sight to behold. This spring
will see a major cause for celebration, with Carnaval San
Francisco's 30th anniversary bash taking place in the Mission
District over Memorial Day weekend, May 24 and 25.
California's largest annual multi-cultural celebration, Carnaval
San Francisco 2008 – themed "Many Cultures - One Spirit" – will
showcase the very best of Latin American and Caribbean cultures
and traditions with a diverse array of food, music, dance and
artistry, including works created by the talented community of
Mission District residents and Bay Area artists.
CarnavalCity.com/SF -
Carnaval SF 2009 Home Page -
2009 Foto Guide Page
"Shapeshift
lives up to his handle in that the "shapeshift" he
applies to some of his photos is very tastefully done,
and enhances the feel of what the picture is all about.
The
oldest well documented Carnival comes to us from Egypt.
The best known festival reenacted the passion of Isis
and Osirus where but over the course of 2500 years there
were many large scale festivals including one presided
over by Bast the Cat called the festival of inebriation.
Our favorite Egyptian Carnival story relates to why
there are just 5 special days of Carnival. These were
known as days beyond time and space and were needed to
make the 360 calendar complete. 
