Art By Tali Landsman

In the past few days, I have felt a little dispirited.... One reason was that I did my corporate tax return for the past year, and that brought me face to face with the sad reality....that I sold so little art in the past year. In fact, last year my income as an artist was WAY below the minimum wage in the USA. Oh... I know... You could argue that I was not very focused on marketing my art... You could say that I just finished a big Art project and did not even have much time to work on my new art projects, resulting in the fact that I have only a few pieces of artwork available for sale.... Or you could say that this past year I traveled so much...that we spent more than half of the year cycling around China, visiting Nepal, Japan, Indonesia, Cambodia, Morocco.... And you could also say with all honesty that in the past year, I have made many personal and emotional strides on my path in life... But still.... Looking at my income on paper.... Made me feel so....well....... So.... small...

We had a great day of skiing today. It was a nice and warm day, and the sun was shining, making the snow on the slopes, glisten and sparkle. In Mid-Vail, I saw people taking their photos by the new warning signs, that the management of the ski resort posted, after some fatal accidents. In one accident, a girl stopped to rest on a slope, where she could not be seen by skiers who were coming down the mountain. One skier collided with her, breaking both her ankles. There are also a few deaths every ski season on the mountains, and many accidents. People are relaxed about skiing backwards, and alcohol is sold in every ski lodge on the mountain.... Often leading to people skiing into trees, which is often fatal. A wonderful thing about ski resorts in the USA, is that you cannot sue them if you are injured or if a loved one dies, even if it seems to be their "fault". It is explained on the ticket that skiing is a dangerous sport and that it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY.... If you do not ...

There are stages to the development of each human soul. Our journey on earth, is a karmic journey of life's lessons and growth. It may not seem that this is true, when we look at how much crime, destruction and negative focus on fear based ideas, exist in the world... People do NOT seem to be learning,...... Nor to be progressing.... But each human soul is indeed on an evolutionary journey. An evolutionary journey back into full awareness of its true identity beyond the body, and into a realization that we are STRONG SPIRITUAL BEINGS, experimenting with ideas on many levels of consciousness. Each lifetime, we believe that we are "born" into a new baby body. As we "grow up" through childhood, we explore and learn the joys and limitations of our bodies. We learn what brings us joy, and what feels terrible, mostly through experimenting with bodily sensations. Our sexual urges are as normal and natural as hunger for food, or thirst for water.... But we do NOT come ...

The sun was shining brightly, warming the morning air. Along the water, people were sitting in outdoor cafes and pizzerias, enjoying the sun and the parade of costumes and masks. Dozens of little stalls were offering face paintings, which you can wear instead of a mask. We decided to visit the Naval maritime museum. Venice has a long history of being a strong maritime republic, and the museum offers a wonderful retrospective of the development, design and decorations of ships. Beside the war weapons, which I had very little interest at, the museum houses a wonderful collection of model boats, and original parts, sculptures and decorations that were used to decorate the old and very beautiful boats. It is a wonderful museum and it really gives a good glimpse into the intricate work that went into making boats, in old times. The most impressive was the model of the ceremonial ship of the Duke of Venice, which used to be so ornate, that EVERY column and pole, was a sculpture. It had lions...

The "Republic Della Serenissima," (the Republic of Serenity) Was Venice's previous name. And the Venice Carnival started in the year 1162. The people simply started to dance spontaneously in San Marco Square, as a celebration of their liberation. The Carnival went on for hundreds of years, And it become an official annual event, during the Renaissance. After that, during the war torn industrial revolution era, it had a long absence. The Italian government decided to renew the interest in the history and culture of Venice, and it renewed the traditional Carnival in 1979. Masks were always central to the Venetian carnival. In the old days, people were allowed to wear masks, between Ascension day (October 5) and Christmas. People were ALSO allowed to wear masks, from St. Stephen's Day, (December 26) and the carnival season (in February.) This meant that many people spent a large portion of the year in disguise. Maskmakers were considered true artisans, and had their own...

When Shakespeare wrote the 'Merchant Of Venice,' depicting a rich covetous Venetian Jewish merchant, he must have dreamt up the character in his mind, because the history of the Jewish people in Venice, is gloomy, filled with inhumane conditions, poverty, restrictions and death. In fact, right here in picturesque Venice, the very first ghetto in Europe was created, well before the rise of Nazism in the 1900's. The rain drops gently knocked on my window as I woke up this morning. The weather forecast called for a rainy day until 3pm. You really cannot walk with an umbrella in the narrow streets of Venice. Some of the streets barely fit two people side by side, with very little room for much else. We decided to see the Jewish ghetto area of Venice, located in the neighborhood of Cannaregio. A long stroll along a lovely canal, take you to a small courtyard with old water wells, which was the Jewish ghetto. Today, there are only a few building left, a few old synagogs, some bak...

How blessed are we.... Who woke up this morning, to the bells of churches, And the sound of merchants opening their shops. They rolled up the metal guards covering their stores, And they brought out tables or signs, with their daily specials... It is the closing WEEKEND of the Venice Carnival, Although the carnival goes on for two more days... And the narrow streets are exceptionally full of people Most wearing beautiful costumes and masks... The lines of people snakes slowly down each road..... The Carabinieri police is guiding foot traffic... Armed Carabinieri are blocking access to the busy streets...to regulate traffic... I have not seen this many people on any other day of the Carnival... It must be the closing weekend crowds... In a bakery on a very busy street, The friendly owner got tired of giving people directions... So she made and wore a hat-sign, Showing people which direction is Rialto Bridge, Which direction to San Marco Square..... Fun and humor warmed the cool winter a...