Greetings from Pittsburgh all! We had a grand day yesterday, and I hope your day of action, in your city was grand as well. We began our morning in East Liberty, a tidy, jazzy ‘burgh of Pittsburgh, in the lobby and entrance way of the historic Kelly Strayhorne theater,(named for Gene Kelly and Billy Strayhorne). Our plan was to set up a street festival type of environment; we had sunflowers, a dj, artists, two grills, solar panels, lots of information, signs, and eager spirits—so with that said, let me tell you how it looked and how it felt. It felt alive, it was alive,( the way family reunions feel so alive and joyous). It was glorious, and it brought an energy, and vitality to the street that I have not felt in a long time.
Our day of action was live, and hopeful. We filled the side walk and the lobby of this great theater with tons of color, tables and book shelves of information; we created a space that was inviting and engaging to all who passed by. Something magical came over us! We were able to talk with, and share all levels of information with people, to engage them right where they stood so they could see for themselves the promise of Green Jobs. And it was inspiring. Did I say that it was inspiring! To show up in the morning, early, right after the church across the street opened the doors to its sleep shelter, letting out the house-less men and women, all of whom were eager to help us unload and set the street up. But there was one guy, John, who showed a with a wholly different feeling about him, he showed up and helped unload, and fix up and hang signs, and he soaked up tons of information, helped cook food—all with the widest, most gracious heart. We can all take a lesson from this, from John’s yearning to belong, to be a useful giving contributor to a community, and he so was, in everyway! From his smile, to his willingness to climb up the ladder and hang our “Green Jobs Now” sign. Don’t we all want to belong, and feel useful, and loved? Yes, verily I say unto you, we do.
Speaking of hope, I must have talked to one hundred people! Hundreds of passerby’s wondering what was going on with the music, and all the activity. The best conversation starter was, “what’s a green job…?” For me, this day of action was about the power of people to rise up in the light of their own power. So from our time on the street in East Liberty, some people went to service projects in Larimer, about 2 miles away, to do a sunflower field harvest, or they went to Garfield, about 3 miles away, to harvest vegetables on an urban farm. After service projects, they returned to base camp in East Liberty and we had a press conference, sans press! Lot’s of elected officials, but by the time they got there it was raining. The real sun and power of the day came in the everyday on the street folks, who joined us in celebrating the passion and potential of all human beings, and the future of the Green Economy! No, kidding. For real man… I would not lie to you about this…

Oh it was awesome and awe-inspiring!
Such a great day! Not only did we help the community but we helped ourselves learn.
I can't possibly type everything that happened, however it was a great day and I hope everyone who attended learned something valuable, both in their hearts and minds.