The following passage if from Meagan O’Nan‘s blog entry 10/12/2011:

“Imagine having a conversation with someone whom you don’t know or someone whom you think you know…what would you ask them? Perhaps, you would ask them what they do for a living, if they are married or have kids, where they are from, their favorite things, etc.

BUT, what IF all conversations started with questions like, what do you want to be remembered for? Or, at the end of your life what will you look back on and value the most? Yes, I know, these are the questions I have asked in my survey. I feel as though if we were to ask each other these questions then we have a wonderful opportunity to really get to know someone.

Why don’t we get to know someone with questions like these initially? My thoughts are that we don’t want to expose ourselves in fear that we might be rejected by the other person. Just a hunch, and perhaps a bit deep, but a good guess nonetheless. We don’t ask the questions because we don’t want someone to ask us the same questions…not because we don’t love to answer questions like those, but because we want to be heard and we are not sure if that person is really going to hear us AND accept us.

Maybe from now on, I will ask these questions to everyone who crosses my path. Afterall, I want to be remembered for loving others. I believe that loving others is truly taking the chance to hear them and love them for who they are. And if I want to be remembered for loving others then I must be willing to expose myself as well – to be ready to answer the same questions that I ask.”

On October 1st a diverse coalition of organizations, businesses and individuals will begin to march from the Historic Flatbush Food Co-op in Brooklyn, NY to the gates of the White House to ask the Obama Administration to support labeling of genetically engineered foods, also termed “Genetically Modified Organisms” or “GMOs”. The GMO Right2Know March will feature daily events between New York and Washington, DC October 1-16 as hundreds of marchers are expected to walk part or all of the 313 miles to the White House. The route and details on daily events can be viewed at Right2KnowMarch.org.

“Pesticide companies develop Genetically Engineered food crops by combining DNA from plants, animals, bacteria and viruses, to contain or resist pesticide, which results in more pesticides sold and sprayed,” says Michael Hansen, Chief Scientist of Consumers Union. “Genetically engineered foods contain untested novel foreign compounds that can be detrimental to our health, just as they are to the environment and farmers’ livelihoods. American consumers deserve the choice whether they want to eat GMOs, just like their counterparts in Europe and Japan,” says Hansen who will join the Oct 1 NYC Right2Know March kick-off rally at Prospect Park at 11am to 1pm followed by marchers walking across the Brooklyn Bridge to the United Nations.

Dreamriver Press author, Eric Herm, will be one of the keynote speakers when the march ends up in Washington DC on October 15-16.

See the complete press release for the march, or visit Right2KnowMarch.org for more details.

This is an excerpt from an article by Derek Singleton. Follow the link below to read the complete article.

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Most of us would eat better if we could afford to. I know I would. Even though I’m a proponent of organic farms, grocers and food, I tend to lose my organic appetite when I see the hefty price tag that comes along with it. It may just be a few cents here or there, but multiplied over an entire bill – and then multiplied over weeks and months – the difference adds up.

So what makes organic food more expensive? A major factor is scale. Because most organic farms don’t operate at economies of scale, the amount of man hours required for harvesting and post-harvesting activities is much greater than conventional methods. For the same reason, the cost of marketing and distributing organic food is higher as well.

“The national options really boil down to two distributors: Tree of Life and United Natural Foods. With them being the only major distributors, products often get discontinued and then we have difficulty stocking the item.” – Dan Gilotte, Wheatsville Co-op

In addition to scale, organic food also suffers from an inefficient distribution network that’s still largely based on word-of-mouth business. To manage the organic distribution network, distributors will need to adopt technology that automatically informs grocers of available inventory and pricing. At the same time, grocers will need to invest in technology that allows them to find the right organic distributor at the best price.

Further pushing the price up is the fact that the demand for organic food far outweighs the available supply. All things combined – scale, distribution, supply, and cost – the consequences are creating unequal access to quality food for many Americans.

Read more: http://www.softwareadvice.com/articles/distribution/organic-food-distribution-network-108161/

Living Your Perfect Life Now.
A Discussion with Richard A. Singer

When: Saturday July 23, 12:00-2:00pm
Where: The Association for Research and Development of New York
241 West 30th Street, 2nd Floor, Buzz in #102, Manhattan, NY

Cost: ARE Members $20, Non-Members $25
For reservations and further information call the ARE Center, tel.212-691-7690

When you realize how perfect everything is you will tilt your head and laugh at the sky.
-  Buddha

Do you desire a perfect life? You may not realize it but to obtain this life is quite simple. Based on my study of spiritual figures and philosophies, I truly believe that it comes down to two simple practices:

• Live Now! Live completely in the miraculous energy of the present.

• Help another member of your human family. To help humanity is to truly live.

Join us to explore ideas on how to perfect our lives, as found in my latest book, Now: Embracing the Present Moment, as well as in Eastern Wisdom for Your Soul.

Richard Singer is an award winning author, trained psychotherapist, Asst. Professor of Human and Social Services, and most importantly a seeker of truth. He continuously searches for wisdom to use in his life, as well as helping other human beings in their precious journey. He seeks to impart this knowledge to the world through his writing. Richard states that “My books are not only for reading, they are meant to be lived.”

Richard has been featured in many magazines, on various radio and television shows including BBC News in London. His books have been reviewed by, amongst others, Publisher’s Weekly, Library Journal, and Martha Stewart’s Body and Soul.

For more information you can visit Richard’s website at www.EmbracingthePresent.com.

After visiting Word Up, the new Pop-up bookstore in upper Manhattan. I wondered how hard it would be for more such stores to make their appearance throughout New York City or even other cities. Commenting on my thoughts, a friend of mine said: “It is not hard at all. All you need is to partner with a real-estate company with store front property they are trying to rent or sell.”

Apparently, real-estate companies would prefer to have a furnished & functioning store to show perspective clients, rather than an empty space. So, it could turn out to be a win-win situation: you could create pop up store, with no rent fees (!) for a limited amount of time, and the real-estate agency would have a nice store to show clients.

I’m sure pop-up stores could sell various items. But, more bookstores would be great!

Find out more about “Word Up” by visiting: http://wordupbooks.wordpress.com/

We are looking forward to this year’s BEA in New York City. It is the largest Book Fair in the U.S, and presents an opportunity to network with everyone in the publishing industry: authors, printers, publicists, distributors, agents … Dreamriver Press will not have a booth this year, but our distributor, the National Book Network will be at booth #3604. For anyone going, hope you enjoy the Book Fair!

The Women of Wisdom Foundation is a National Women’s Organization based in Seattle WA, providing diverse and innovative programs that offer women opportunities for personal growth and transformation. WOW promotes women’s spirituality, creativity and wholeness, and empowers women’s voices and their contributions to the world, honoring the Divine Feminine in all. Womens events include a range of mind body and spirit topics for a full healing experience.

Dreamriver Press author Teri Degler has been invited to conduct a workshop  in this year’s 19th Annual Woman of Wisdom Conference.  Her workshop, titled Unveiling Your Creative Fire, is taking place on Monday, February 21st at 9:00am.  See the following link for details:  http://www.womenofwisdom.org/2011conference/MondaySchedule.php

When: Thursday January 27th, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Where: Birch Coffee (in the loft Library)
@ The Gershwin Hotel
7 East 27th Street (between Fifth & Madison), New York, NY

Free and open to the Public
Coffee, tea, beer, wine, food are available to purchase from Birch Coffee.

About the author:

Richard Singer is a trained psychotherapist, college instructor, and a seeker of truth. He continuously searches for wisdom to use in his life, as well as helping other human beings in their precious journey. He has studied Eastern Psychology, Buddhist Healing, and Non-Violence at the Doctoral Level; in addition, he has spent years devoted to the study of wisdom recorded throughout history. He seeks to impart this knowledge to the world through his writing. Richard states that, “My books are not only for reading, they are meant to be lived.” Richard has written two meditation books and co-authored an inspirational children’s book.

He has been featured in many magazines, on various radio and television shows including BBC News in London.  His book, Eastern Wisdom for Your Soul, has received positive reviews from the Library Journal, Martha Stewart’s Body and Soul Magazine and many other review forums.

Richard will be leading a discussion on the topic of Mindfulness.  As Richard states in his book, Eastern Wisdom for Your Soul:

Mindfulness is the secret of life. A life lived mindfully is a life filled with peace, tranquility, joy, truth, bliss, ecstasy and compassion. Mindfulness is our direct link to the universe.

We look forward to seeing you on the 27^th.

The evening will be co-presented by Dreamriver Press and Strangers Gate Books

Cosponsored by:
Manhattan Valley Radio’s The Urumqi Hour with Iskandar Andrews
The Remembrance Project

Birch Coffee is dedicated to sustainable practices and good living. Coffee, tea, beer, wine and food are available to purchase before and during the event.

Publishers Weekly did an article on Dreamriver Press for their online edition, on November 24th. The article is by Judith Rosin.

Read the article below, or click here to read it on the Publishers Weekly website:

Dreamriver: Four Years of Positive Change

Determined to counteract the general negativity carried by the media, former Peace Corps volunteer Theodore Poulis, an economist by training, founded Dreamriver Press in Brooklyn in December 2006. “There is also much violence, or fear/guilt messages, portrayed in movies and books,” Poulis said.

Taking as his goal “creating change through words,” Poulis began publishing in the areas of the environment and spirituality, starting with Dreamriver’s first book, Richard A. Singer Jr.’s Eastern Wisdom for Your Soul (2007). In the press’ most recent release, fourth-generation farmer Eric Herm’s Son of a Farmer, tackles commercial farming and what it does to the land. Altogether Dreamriver has published six works of nonfiction, and will do one or two more in 2011.

Poulis founded Dreamriver after working with a small press in Athens, Greece, Anagnosis Books, which specializes in books for the International Baccalaureate program. “I pretty much did everything,” he said, “other than editing or design.” He sold the press’ list to local bookstores, processed orders, contacted international distributors, and helped Anagnosis become a distributor for other English-speaking publishers in Greece. And he was inspired to think globally by Greek publishers he met like Denise Harvey, whose eponymous press on the island of Euboea does books on modern Greek culture.

Poulis said that he decided to focus his list on environmental and spiritual topics, because he likes the balance. “There are many encouraging steps being taken by people to live environmentally sustainable lives as well as have more harmonious relationships. I feel like actions—for example, changes that transform our agriculture industry by moving it away from the excess use of pesticides—are often coupled with a ‘shift in consciousness,’ where we reevaluate our lives and our goals,” he says.

For its last four releases Dreamriver moved to publishing in paperback on 100% recycled paper; its books are also available as e-books. Since it signed with National Book Network just over a year ago, sales have tripled, said Poulis. The press’ bestselling book to date, Teri Degler’s The Divine Feminine Fire, which has been praised by Marian Woodman as “crucially important for our times,” was the first to benefit from NBN’s sales push. However, publicity for the Herm is just kicking into high gear this week with the author/farmer’s visit to New York City, where he has made several promotional appearances, including one on the Leonard Lopate Show.

Eric Herm, author of Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth was interviewed yesterday on The Leonard Lopate Show.

Listen to the interview here.