'Its not my revolution if I can't floss'

Texas.

Culture.

Shock.

Tassie to Texas is a huge dislocation and as a few days ago I walked to a Taquareia (Taco & Burrito shop) by six lanes of traffic and a huge flyover with giant Hummers and SUVs thundering past and above under the bright plastic signs of the strip malls and gas stations... I felt pretty overwhelmed. Hey Toto.. I'm not in the forest anymore.



Probably doesn't help that whenever I shut my eyes I am back in the Florentine, under the leafy green light walking the forest paths or high in the tree tops listing to the kookaburras laugh below me. The camp I've been living at was busted and there have been many arrests and violence out there.

So what am I doing in Texas?



Snap Displace
My Resource Rebels adventure has switched countries & continents and brought me to Austin, Texas to meet up with the New Rising Tide North America (RTNA) to travel with them on their US roadshow.. although I should be saying 'our' as I have been rapidly assimilated into RTNA by hours & days of consensus meetings..

So to get into the activist lingo.. I'm going to be 'bottom lining' the tour blog that can be found here: risingtidetour.blogspot.com With updates from the road and all the cool folks we get to meet on the way.

Meeting Meeting Meeting Meeting
Well after hankering for more meeting protocol in Australia..(Although there was some great stuff in places.. so big ups to the fab facilitators over there!) I was excited to get to such a crew with strong meeting process - However I feel like I've been in a perpetual meeting since I arrived! We spent weeks camped out in Austin at The' Brownfield' (see RT blog) with the wider Rising Tide crew before we got onto the road, restructure in the RT Network.



One meeting even started around while I was asleep in my crashbag under our big tarp... Another morning I awoke was to a mass flossing session around me... with a worried discussion about how they were going to floss after industrial collapse.

No really.

Flossing aside, The RTNA folks are very exciting & cool folk. There is activists from all over and also Artists from the Beehive Collective & Musicians from Riot Folk.



The Roadshow bus broke down.. and our lives we taken up by meeting after meeting.. so I don't feel like I saw that much of Texas! Apart from the many cacti and spiky things at the Brownfield earning Texas the title of 'Brillo-pad of America'. What I did see was pretty cool - lots of Vegan fun.. amazing big food co-ops full of Yummy Vegan treats, ice-creams places.. Pizza places that have soy cheese.. mmmm. Austin seemed way cooler and more chilled out than I expected, but does have the reputation of being the 'Eye of the redneck hurricane'.

Anyhow check out the roadshow blog for tour news! - risingtidetour.blogspot.com