I'm putting together ideas for the visionary science library. Think about a depressed science library versus an enriched science library. I've seen a depressed science library before (but I won't name names of universities, which would be unprofessional of me, at best). It looked like no one had ever really invested love, time, energy, money, or spirituality into it. It was underground - kind of a basement-like feeling, and the books looked tired. The tired books were uninviting and the air felt stale. The science librarians were just chatting and amusing themselves with conversation behind the front desk, and they were detached from the tired books and from the psychonaut perusing them (me). To say the least, I couldn't find any book worth reading. The selection was that bad. On the community bulletin board, which also looked tired, was an advertisement that I don't know quite how to put into words. Some gal living in a rental house was in a difficult situation. There were spiders all over the house, and she was selling them for a very low price. It might've been $1 per spider. I don't remember the price. In the advertisement, she said, "Oh my God, they are everywhere!!!".
Compare this depressed science library with an enriched science library. My visionary science library. A place of all different kinds of art (all different kinds of media represented), interwoven with science books about controversial, juicy, forbidden topics (such as DMT!). Think color and powerful emotion and spirituality and beautiful interior design. As an artist, I use psychedelics for artistic enrichment. Most of work is just interior design, but I still function in other media. Up on my wall is my DMT poem that I wrote when I first got on here:
Eternal damnation?
Or the right...
To teleportation!
I want to become...
myself.
Here I am pining,
my fluorescent green elf.
Having taken a whole bunch of different psychedelics in my lifetime, my interior design has been better ever since. And, it only continues to get better and better. Psychedelics have had a very positive impact on my life and on my abilities as an artist. Long ago, phenethylamines. Most recently, DMT. The visionary science library will be, in a sense, one big interior design project. You should see my living room. I have custom-made curvy bookcases filled with different kinds of science books. On one shelf is DMT books. On another shelf is mushroom cookbooks (think chicken-of-the-woods, morels, and maitake, to name a few). On the next table over, I have Pihkal and Tihkal wedged in between 2 Buddha-head bookends. Next to that is a yellow antique schooldesk. On it sits 9 antique medicine jars, each filled with a different plant. Above it is a crystal chart. And, I could go on and on. The vibe in that living room is very dreamy and colorful, and the interior design just kind of flows. I wish I could show photos, but one of the custom-made bookcases has a certificate at the top, with my name on it.
Well, my science library (in the living room) is growing. When I'm old and gray, I want to donate my whole entire science library to a university badly in need of one. It will be a gift, of sorts. After I read all my books, it's time for someone else to enjoy them. Maybe someone will read something in of those books that will save his or her life. And, there's definitely a university out there that needs and wants and deserves a science library, and just doesn't have the funds. Where I did my undergrad was pretty prestigious, so of course, we had a science library. Whether or not a school has a science library depends on a lot of factors, such as: how strong that school is in the sciences, the prestige of the school, the endowment, geographical location, enough space, investors, faculty, students, and other parties who are interested. My donation of a whole personal library will be the foundation - something to start with - so the visionary science library can grow more and more from that starting point. The additional books will be donated, as well, from other sources besides me. I even came up with a system for accepting and rejecting books. More about that later!
Lastly, what sets my visionary science library apart from other science libraries is the fact that there will be classes offered. These are 1-night classes on a science topic, and you have to buy a ticket in order to attend. There's no homework, grades, or pressure with these classes. They won't appear on your transcript. It's just pure learning and something fun that brings the community together. One of the programs is called:
Make Your Own Medicine!
I would describe it as:
Citizen science education
Where science meets art
Very interactive and fun, hands-on
Anybody can teach, as long as they know their stuff
It's a program of maybe 10 classes, each a different topic. You can take them in any order. The first class is how to make the caffeinated hollies. I mentioned these in my last post. Yerba mate, guayusa, and yaupon. The second class could be about how to make homemade candles. I don't know how to make them. I'm thinking about taking a workshop to learn how. Eccentric/artsy/unusual-looking ones. And then, there are 7 more classes. Each one a different kind of homemade medicine. Kombucha could be the third class. More and more ideas about the 10 classes are unfolding as I go. I see myself as a visionary science library designer, and the message is clear:
Make Your Own Medicine!
Questions? Comments? Ideas? Reply to me anytime!