Stories That Live in Bones

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Release date: 2013-10-01

1
Blue Gold

Lyrics
BLUE GOLD

HER RAIN-Her gift from the sky
They want to legalize the right to privatize so they can capitalize
On their claim to drain the collective commons of you
They want to cloud seed and bleed what we all need for their greed
They want to own you- demand repayment on a loan for you- combat zone you
if they could they’d patent, copy write and clone you- these water hunters

HER RIVERS-Her circulation system & bloodstream
They want to dam you-cram you-divert you- convert you- insert you
into their turbines and penstocks-
they want to possess you, digest you & cardiac arrest you
thinking they can lock you, block you, treasury stock you
own you, hone you, meld you, mold you
Sylvester Stalone you and your power-These water hunters

HER OCEANS-genesis, her salt water balance, her breath with the moon
They want to prod you and drill you
Salmon pen and oil spill you
Evaporate and force you through a filter
Desalinate & throw you out of kilter
Poison you, oil well you contaminate and cartel you
Change your composition on a search and destroy mission- these water hunters

HER ANCIENT AQUIFERS-Her recycling and cleansing system, generous gifts from her past
They want to drill you- unfill you- collect you and spill you
into places you weren’t meant to be
they want to pipe you and swipe you
tube well- bottle and sell you
Bechtel you
turn deserts into golf courses for a fee

These Miners for Blue Gold-wanting you to be bought and sold,
have they forgotten? or are they so bold
as to want to profit from now and into infinity
cause they know only 3% of the world’s water is absent of salinity
we are 97 % made of your divinity
your rain, rivers and oceans a holy trinity
They’ve forgotten, if they ever knew- these business plotters they’ve forgotten you’re sublime
that you belong to the global commons-that’s the bottom line
they’ve forgotten on you we rely that here the rules of the market do not apply
And they will be reminded that your gifts of water are for all of existence
And we all will remember- any act for her is an act of divine resistance

Blue Gold
2
Shock and Awe

Lyrics
Shock and Awe
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls- children of ALL ages
Step right up to the greatest show on earth
Watch as vulture capitalism performs surgery w/o anesthetic
Witness the state taking its gloves off
to hemorrhage resources out of an area and wipe the slate clean
Yes, it’s the fantasy of the rapture
You’ll be dazzled at casino capitalism’s capacity
to merge security and shopping malls
It’s the doctrine of shock and awe
It’s frontier capitalism coming to a theatre near you!
New Orleans, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and the latest hit Haiti
Hurry, Hurry, Hurry! Come one come all
Under the big top on a new hi def 3-d screen
Yes, 4 billion hours of surveillance footage a year is captured
Indeed, the system is drunk on data- but no matter
The high priests of globalization are scanning the horizon for the next disaster
Or the next circus spectacular! Behold the best brand money can buy
Brought to you by the IOC this 5-ring circus is coming to town
You’ll be amazed at the power of this remarkable little number
Why the mere mention of this fantastic 14-day festival and
Ordinary people just lose their minds in a patriotic fervour
These hypnotized hordes won’t bother you with candid critique
Perhaps this palpitating pageant of perfected pantomime partnered with
The dangerous displays of unrivaled aerial attraction
Are enough to distract from the fact that unparalleled
Numbers of homeless are being displaced
And yes it’s true the environment has been ravaged
And unceeded indigenous land stolen
Women and children are at much higher risk of global trafficking and sexual assault Communities have been impacted by gentrification
The city will pay for decades Historically the whole show is steeped in fascism but let’s not be morbid!
We have a perfectly privatized war built to have no end & we need to play
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages
Step right up front row seats now available and going fast
To an oft repeated yet always exciting
Crumbling of an empire Come one come all As there is no where else to go

Shock and Awe
3
Ballad of Bitumen

Lyrics
I heard a story of a land of rare and precious beauty
Its boreal forests and rivers so mighty

I heard wolves, lynx and caribou they all call it home
The lakes and the wetlands are where they all roam

Yes gather ‘round all ye listeners to this tale of plundered land
I speak of Alberta’s Athabaska tar sands

Now this oil sands stampede- this last act of the carbon race
Has left a moonscape of sludge and tailings ponds actually seen from space

Bitumen is the gold that these hunters all seek
‘Cause we are reaching oil’s summit its mountain top peak

Now Bitumen is heavy like molasses like tar
And without extensive refinement it can’t run a car

Canada once supplied the world with millions of beaver skins
And today we are piping unrefined Bitumen

So there’s oily footprints committing these climate crimes
They only value dollars, nickels, pennies and dimes

So, who might these doers of ghastly deeds be?
Well, it’s Suncor, Syncrude, Royal Bank, Exon-Mobile and BP

These lords of Mordor rule over this troubled land
They can’t see the beauty for the tar in the sand

Now, the Mikisen Cree and the folks at fork McKay
The Athabsacan Chipewyan this is what they all cry

There’s something in the water, in the air and in the land
‘Cause we’re burying young children again and again

I know despair lurks around every corner
And its cousin apathy whispers, “hey, why bother?”

Yet I know the earth is alive she’s awakening- her bones shifting as we speak
So, I remember my connection to her when I seem to small, too weak

I can feel there’s a change in direction- a movement on the ground
While her body is rising so are voices all around

And they say to change everything start anywhere- in anyway you can
And by this lets stop the madness that is the Athabasca tar sands

Ballad of Bitumen
4
Women's Work

Lyrics
1971 A Stats Canada report estimates that household work represents 41% of Canada’s GDP

1978 Stats Canada publishes The Value of Unpaid Work and many editions follow

In the 1994 edition the value of household work is estimated at between 210-318 billion $s

1988 Marilyn Waring writes an influential book entitled If Women Counted.

In it, she makes the compelling argument that mainstream economics does not account for

women’s work or for the value of nature.

1995 The UN Human Development Report announces women’s unpaid and undervalued work

is worth 11 trillion dollars worldwide

1996 The first Canadian census to collect data on unpaid work

Summer 2010 Stephen Harper cuts the mandatory long form census. Question 33- the long

fought for question about unpaid work, is removed

Women perform 2/3 of the 25 billion hours of unpaid work Canadians perform every year.

The invisible hand of the market must be a woman’s

I don’t ever remember my grandmother, my mother’s mother, at rest- much less still. Even as

she lay dying of cancer she was sewing us all pajamas I picture her in constant motion but in

this invisible kind of a way-ya know? ‘Cause there were no news stories or award ceremonies,

no public acknowledgements or probably not even many thank you’s

As she was: peeling, kneading, planting, seeding, digging, carrying, sewing, feeding,

pickling, knitting, washing, cleaning, canning, serving and shuffling

my arthritic, grandfather with ankles the size of thighs back and forth

From his chair to the table

From his chair to the toilet

From his chair to his bed

She cared for her own mother at home till she died- wetting her lips, changing the sheets,

turning her, turning her

Part of a community of Scotch descendants - Knox Presbyterians women who cared for each

other in times of death and birth

Carrying baked goods over to the house of a bereaved family- or preparing a meal for her own

5 children and for the mother of a newborn

The invisible hand of the market must be a woman’s

No wonder my mother could not wait to get out of the house…. or the small southern Ontario

farm town she was born in. She wanted to be seen-

I loved watching her face light us as she would show my sisters and I the newspaper clippings

- reviews of her theatre performances

How stifling the isolation of our suburban home… alone with two children at age 24 and

her live-in father-in-law who would complain about the lack of home baked goods and the

dinners- out of the 1950’s convenience can

This was the era- don’t forget, of Father Knows Best and the Donna Reed Show…women told

they should be satisfied and fulfilled getting their laundry really white

Aggressive propaganda pushing women back into the kitchen after ‘our boys’ returned

jobless from war. “Get back to tending the family Rosie”

When I see her in my mind’s eye, sitting…smoking on the couch, I love to believe she lived a

life rich in imagination- maybe as she say she was really on the Champs Elysees engaging

in intellectual conversations with fascinating artists or maybe she saw herself on a stage

somewhere far, far away….

Because my mother didn’t teach me how to sew or bake. She passed along no housekeeping

tips on how to get stains out of carpets- I can’t make gravy, piecrust, or Yorkshire pudding (all

of which she actually does very well) I don’t know how to crochet or knit or iron

No, my mother did not pass along all of these things that she did in fact learn from her mother

Instead….she taught me…

that going to school and learning is important- as I heard her fight with my father for her

return to school and would observed her taking out 50 library books a week

that having a flair for the dramatic can help tell a story and that reading a bedtime story

dramatically is an important skill to cultivate for the listener

that laughing at yourself with humility is a lovely quality

that getting up with your child at 3:00 am to sing You Are My Sunshine is what you do when

their earache will not let them sleep

that laughing out loud with abandon is our right as women and

that taking up space is a good and necessary thing

that female friendship will save your life

So although I do not remember ever hearing my mother tell me anything about feminism….

she showed me feminism in her daily resistance to what was expected and demanded of

her…in her daily seemingly small rebellions…in what she would not do…

In refusing to become and model for me June Cleaver….

And you never got news stories or award ceremonies, no public acknowledgements

and I have never thanked you for that mom

Women perform 2/3 of the 25 billion hours of unpaid work Canadians

The invisible hand of the market

perform every year

And notice I am not even talking about the other invisible work…you know what I mean- the

emotional work…the ‘being there’ work…. the listening…the watching…the attunement…. the

attending to needs before there even is a need…

Can you imagine if a method was found for counting that?

Women's Work
5
Blow the Moon Out (Only This Moment)

Lyrics
I have only this moment with her
This three year-old with the watchful eyes
As I sing a lullabye- to soothe, to steady, to soften
The look of indescribable confusion on her face
I don’t believe she has had a lullabye sung to her before
I have only this moment with her so
I sing to this three year-old as I rub her perfect, tiny feet
To settle, to smooth, to shift
Her bewilderment and fear
I rub her perfect, tiny feet as
I have only this moment with her and the pressure must be just so
I work the middle- at the arch- feel her energy shift
The meat of her foot gets my thumbs- I sing as I work
Her look of confusion melting to curiosity
I move to her toes, I say, “This is your brain. Your very smart brain”
She giggles
My nails gently tapping the tips
Now placing both my hands on either side of her ankle- I rock her foot- loosening, releasing, relaxing, unwinding the flight, fight, freeze responses trapped within
I saw daddy push mommy- her look is arresting
I nod, “How did that feel?” “Scary “
I nod and repeat, “Scary.” “You and your mommy are safe here”, I say but the emptiness of the sentence rings in the space between us. It is not enough.
The voice my head screams,
Promise her – Nothing like that will ever happen to you again!
Promise her- I will meet you here everyday and sing to you and rub your feet!
Promise her –I will keep you safe!
But I don’t
Our agency is being chocked with fiscal restraint
I don’t know how we will attend to the need
The outreach van broke down last week- they say it will be 4 grand to fix
It is a monstrous figure for our budget
But- Come on!
How much did Bev Ota spend on a glass of O.J. & a limo ride to that 5 star hotel?
I could ride this wave of anger and despair- I know this ride
But I don’t
I bring her face slowly back to the center of my gaze- adjusting my lens
to focus on her
re-inhabit the moment
These are your lungs, I say, as I knead the balls of her feet
Lets take a deep breath and fill our bellies
She is so serious. She makes her eyes big and sucks in air
I have only this moment with her

Blow the Moon Out (Only This Moment)
6
Ravens Don't Dig That Deep

Lyrics
Ravens Don’t Dig That Deep
You may have heard tell there’s something brewing
Folks getting’ organized a battle is stewing
People standing up for their desires
Gonna set the Salish Coast on fire

Cause Compliance Coal Corp wants to dig a mine
They say it will be really, really good, yes really, really fine
They want to ship coal to Asia from Port Alberni
Trucking it across the island then across the sea

CHORUS
We don’t want your coal mine
Say ‘no’ to raven Coal Mine

Imagine opening a coalmine in this day and age
I know its unbelievable I know it sounds strange
They say energy is needed for the market supply
Then they’ll use it to make plastic stuff for us to buy

So we mustn’t believe their whitewashed slogans
We know clean coal is an oxymoron
They’ll be heavy metal leakage and coal dust too
To save Fanny Bay Oysters here’s what we must do. Say!

CHORUS
Yes, the phrase Raven Project sounds really lovely
No hint of ruined watersheds or salmon tributaries
Compliance promises jobs and a strong economy
But what is that worth without clean land, air and sea

Cause we know coal is so passé
We don’t want anymore of that carbon decay
The planet is screaming for change all around
Sustainable energy is where we are bound
CHORUS

Island folks are slow to start but once they get going
They’ll move mountains our numbers growing
It doesn’t matter what the assessment will report
We will see them on the blockade we will see them in court

Cause this government is big on its energy plan
Grabbing coal, oil and gas just as fast as they can
No, we don’t need beg, plead or implore
Cause they’ll be made to listen once we’re Idle No More
CHORUS (X2)

Ravens Don't Dig That Deep
7
Menopausal Pussy

Lyrics
MENOPAUSAL PUSSY

It’s said that aging is the pits and that youth is where its at
Well I beg to differ with public opinion you ain’t met my cat

As she’s gotten older she’s gotten wiser that really is a fact
She’s dropped pretense, is more assertive her own feline to be exact

She’s my menopausal pussy and she never lets me down
She speaks her mind and then some you’ll know if she wants you around

Now I won’t deny the charm that kittens do possess
They’re small and cute smooth and soft and oh so firm of flesh

But me I’ll take a full grown feline over any of that kitten stuff
I like my cats to be their own person I’m talkin’ substance not fluff

I mean my menopausal pussy She’ll tell you where it’s at
My menopausal pussy she’s no kitten No! She’s a full-grown cat

Some say she’s rather dry but that’s not exactly true
It’s just that she won’t lie-you’ll know how she feels about you
Some will say she’s kinda cranky and hard to get along
Me I just say she’s deeply in touch yes her fire’s burnin’ strong

That’s my menopausal pussy she’s got class and she’s got style
My menopausal pussy Oh! She can go the extra mile

When she was younger often foolish she’d play with almost anything
The Tom next door, Dick down the road and Mary who liked to sing
But now she is more selective got no time for just anyone
She likes her long luxurious pets she’ll let you know if she’s having fun

She’s a menopausal pussy and she’s a force in this town
You should respect the menopausal pussies ‘cause if not [Full Stop]
They don’t want you around

Menopausal Pussy
8
Which Side Are You On?

Lyrics
Politicians’ work for corporate men

This has always been true

But now they seem to hide it less

They’re a cocky brazen few

They’re pushing Embridge pipeline

And Kinder Morgan too

There is no saviour coming to help

It’s up to me and you

CHORUS

Which side are you on now? Which side are you on?

Which side are you on boys? Which side are you on?

Bill C-38 and 45 were passed almost in secrecy

There was no voice, no vote, no poll this is not democracy

Come on all you people

lets lift our heads out of the sand

We need to Occupy our fate

Which way will you stand?

CHORUS

The planet’s heating up right now

Though some may claim it a lie

The evidence is all around

only the insane can deny

Some even want to own the water

Their thirst for it is fierce

They’ll write new laws to make it theirs

If we don’t get there first

CHORUS

Now, one more thing before this tune can come to its rightly end

A connection that must be made- one to which I must attend

Both women and the planet have been violated for too long

We need our brothers to stand with us to speak up loud & strong

Which Side Are You On?
9
Stories That Live in Bones

Lyrics
THE STORIES IN BONES
This is a poem about stories and lies. Whose stories are told, remembered, believed?
This is a poem about stories. Powerful stories. Stories that shift the ground-
Change the sky. Our stories- stories that live in collective memory- reside in bones

This is a poem about lies. Lies masquerading as stories, insidious lies- that push under the skin- like a rash, sit there itching at you, demanding attention

Persistent lies that lodge subcutaneous- become DNA
We all forget that this lie was a ‘once upon a time’ story we heard
Now morphed from myth to fact

Lies that get told to us sold to us unfold to us then seem old to us
Like the common cold to us
They get printed, broadcast and replayed at twice the volume back at us

Lies that hiss….
“She shouldn’t have dressed like that…invited him home…must have been asking for it”
LIES that trick
“Why do we talk about violence against women? Women can be violent too?”
The exception in our minds drowning out the rule
LIES that twist
“Violence against women is a women’s issue”
Flipping a switch in the male brain that shouts, “Not my problem! That’s not about me!”

There are epic lies
“You are insignificant. It does not matter what you think. What you say or how you feel. No one will believe you”
Enduring, insistent, persistent lies that shrink will that dissolve matter into dust
Becoming tattooed on our consciousness- we stop listening to our bones
There are colonial lies
The missionaries civilized savage Indians
Printed in textbooks and disseminated in schools like small pox blankets to children before cerebral cortex knows the meaning of critical thought
And grammatical lies
“Resource extraction”
As if air, soil, water, metal are nothing more than a rotting tooth
In need of a torture technique to get to the truth
Business lies
‘Resource development’
As if the earth is inert matter just waiting for a master craftsman to have at ‘er
Military lies‘
“Collateral Damage’
As if the death of children-an item in a budget line
Lies retold again and again. Lies difficult to erase once implanted
Lies posing as stories Enduring Insistent Persistent

And yet
Echoes that reside at the edge of the shadow world
A body memory more than a once upon a time
Stories that ring in our cells and reside in bones
“Yes…Ah! I know that…. I’ve felt that before….”
Stories that start as a whisper
“You are powerful beyond measure”
“Its not your fault”
“I believe you”
Stories that breath life into dust

Stories that start as a whisper
Maybe a single digital whisper- maybe a tweet
And like that telephone game we played as children
It is passed, re-tweeted; spread like a zygote in mitosis a cell splitting
Reproducing daughters
At the rate of new life

4 women one tweet
Nov 10th, 2012, Saskatoon
Indigenous and Non Indigenous
Women who translated a lie into the truth and sent out a warning
Nina Wilson, Sylvia McAdam Jessica Gordon and Sheelah McLean
I’ll say these four names once again
Nina Wilson, Sylvia McAdam Jessica Gordon and Sheelah McLean
Invited a nation to wake up
Injected truth into muscles, bones, flesh and veins
A truth that must be repeated again and again

As it vies for the airwaves with an apartheid lie
“Idle No More- that’s just an Indian thing”
Flipping a switch in the settler’s brain- that shouts, “Not my problem. That’s not about me”
We can name it, claim it, shame it- LIE!
4 women, one tweet, and a truth was whispered
A truth that could actually save us all- if we rise

United to tell our stories
One Billion Rising on this day
To speak truth to power- to dance…to say
“In numbers we will drown out the lies
We will listen to our bones. We will rise”

Stories That Live in Bones

Discography

Discography

Stories That Live in Bones