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on March 20
Zev Paiss
commented on a project updateSasha - Thanks for the update. Since you were paid over $10,000 in August of 2010 and still have not planted anything, it feels like you really should be offering your supporters more than an occasional update about what is happening. Just a thought.
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on December 23, 2010
Zev Paiss
commented on a projectYou did it!!!!!!! This is so great! Congrats. - Zev Paiss
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on November 28, 2010
Zev Paiss
backed a project
Within Reach Movie [Finishing Funds] by Ryan Mlynarczyk
A documentary film about one couple's 6,500 mile bike-packing journey to visit 100 sustainable communities and find a new home.
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104% funded $26,238 pledged
- 623 backers
- Funded Dec 25, 2010
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on October 15, 2010
Zev Paiss
Posted project update #1Steve Begins to Get Suspicious
Post CommentNOTE: These brief portions of the novel are not able to be traditionally formatted.
••••••••••The noontime “Flat Tire Rally” had miraculously cleared itself up shortly after Rudi finished his prepared speech to the cameras. Steve sequestered himself upon his return to his office, bogged down by a series of very uncomfortable phone calls.
He hung up the phone from a particularity scathing call and requested that Danielle come to his office. He was sitting at his desk turning his watch over and over in his hand when she knocked on the half open door.
“Come in,” he said.
“You wanted to see me?”
“Yes, have a seat.” He motioned to one of the chairs across from his cluttered desk.
Danielle sat down and wondered what to expect. The demonstration was certainly a success from the group’s perspective. They were able to stop virtually all traffic in the city core and the nonstop online and television news reports had given the group huge exposure.
“I just got off the phone with the Mayor and he is talking about pressing charges.”
“Pressing charges? You're kidding. On who?”
“On everyone starting with that egotistical Mr. Vondershoot.”
“That's ridiculous,” Danielle replied.
“Yeah, well, sometimes I think this whole thing is starting to look pretty ridiculous.”
He took a drink from his coffee cup before continuing.
“As I arrived at the site, I noticed something very unusual.”
“Oh?” she said, attempting to hide her growing nervousness.
“One of our message signs displayed text I know we never authorized. Is there any way someone could have hacked into to the system and intentionally caused it?”
Danielle hesitated. She needed a moment to decide on an appropriate answer.
“If you like I can run a diagnostics to check for unauthorized access attempts.”
“Do it. As you know, the Council Study Session is this Monday and I want to show up with as many answers as possible.”
“I’ll assign someone to it right away.” -
on October 13, 2010
Zev Paiss launched a project
A Positive Vision of Our Future by Zev Paiss
Complete the writing, printing and distribution of my novel, an environmental Utopian mystery which shows a realistic and positive future for America.
Funding Unsuccessful (11/12/2010) -
on August 17, 2010
Zev Paiss
commented on a project updateGood to see folks out there!
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on August 10, 2010
Zev Paiss
Posted project update #7Thank you for your support
For backers only
Post Comment
If you’re a backer of this project, please
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on July 17, 2010
Zev Paiss
Posted project update #6A Very Good Day - Sneak Peek #5
Post CommentSaturday afternoon and making excellent progress on the conversion. Amazing how a stiff glass of ice coffee can so quickly catapult one into another dimension. Here is another Sneak Peek for all you who are keeping track.
Breakfast at Chez Pierre's
The morning rush is in full swing as Steve’s daughter Mariah, now five-years-old and very precocious, is coloring at a large table. In the kitchen Ernestine the dependable family nanny, cook, and house manager, places the final touches on breakfast. Steve, multi-tasking as usual, attempts to tighten up his tie, while rummaging through papers on his neatly organized desk and watching a wall mounted screen of morning news, traffic, and weather conditions.
“Now Steve, you come on over here and sit down,” says Ernestine a dark-skinned retired schoolteacher in her 60s. “No running off without breakfast.”
Her strong and skillful hands put the final touches on two steaming plates of freshly prepared scrambled eggs and crispy hash brown potatoes. She pours just squeezed orange juice from one of the many high tech appliances that line the counters of the modern kitchen. Balancing a tray of silverware, basket of baked goods, and two glasses of OJ, she walks towards the glass dining table.
“Where is Chef Pierre?” Mariah blurts out as Ernestine moves aside her crayons and drawings to make room for breakfast.
Hearing Mariah’s request, the father in Steve perks up like a man transformed. Steve stops what he is doing and intercepts Ernestine carrying breakfast from the kitchen. He gracefully places a dish towel over his arm, grabs the two plates of food from the smiling nanny, and walks over to Mariah with a quizzical look in his eyes.
With a much practiced French accent Steve politely speaks to Mariah,
“Ahhh, Mademoiselle, did you have zee lightly scrambled eggs avec toast?”
Mariah breaks into a dazzling smile and responds,
“Yes I did ... merci Monsieur.”
Steve deftly places the plate in front of Mariah, lifts her napkin from the table and expertly unfolds it upon her lap. He places the second plate down for himself and hands the towel back to the smiling Ernestine and sits down at a place setting across from his beaming daughter.
“So, sweet pea, what are you doing today?” he asks.
Mariah who sees life quite seriously for a kindergartner, considers his question carefully before responding.
“I am going to learn about bugs today.”
“Bugs? Do you have bugs in your camp?”
“No silly, we are going on a walk at the park!”
“Well good. A walk in nature is a perfect time to look for bugs.”
While they speak, Ernestine returns to the kitchen to clean up the breakfast dishes. A song begins to play. Ernistine walks over to the gleaming stainless steel refrigerator with a large video screen in the middle of the fridge door. The display shows a colorful interpretation of the music. The Chimney Sweep song from the “Mary Poppins” movie soundtrack is playing. She touches the screen and the upper torso of a young man in a valet uniform appears.
“Morning, Ernie,” said the young valet, “Mister Rubik's car is ready.”
“Oh thank you, Patrick. I'll let him know. You have a good day.”
“Feels like another hot one.”
“I bet. Summer is hotter every year. Stay cool Patrick.”
“Thank you Ma'am.”
She touches the screen again and the picture fades back to black.
Steve having heard the familiar tune, picks up the pace of his eating. He looks at Mariah and a fatherly smile comes on its own.
“I’m sorry baby, but you know what that song means.”
They lock eyes and in perfect unison recite the morning ritual.
“Time to goooooo!”
Reaching across the table toward one another, they clink their forks in the ritual workday starting “bell.” Steve quickly gobbles down the last bite of his food, gets up and brings his plate to the kitchen. He returns and gives Mariah a kiss on her forehead.
“See you tonight, sweet pea.”
“Bye daddy. I love you.”
“I love you too, Mariah. Bye Ernie. I’ll be home about 6 pm.”
Steve grabs his computer bag from his desk, walks over to the front door where he picks up his raincoat and a hat hanging from a neat coat rack, and quickly walks out the front door turning his mind to the work day ahead. -
on July 17, 2010
Zev Paiss
commented on a projectHello Michelle - Thanks you very much for your support and offer. I am very close to having a version ready for an editors eye. Might you know an editor with a positive future leaning?
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on July 15, 2010
Zev Paiss
Posted project update #5Sneak Peek #4 - The Return of the Trains
Post CommentThe Governor finishes signing several pieces of paper just as the train arrives. Lee hands her one more document to sign as the doors of the train slides open and a number of people disembark.
“Thank you Governor. Oh and here are the flowers you ordered.” Lee passes along a small bouquet of flowers to the Governor.
“You are the best Lee. These are perfect. Call me if you need anything. I should be back in a few hours.”
She takes the flowers from Lee and turns to board the train. The debate in the first decade of the century seems to focus initially around whether to go high-speed rail or to upgrade our existing passenger and freight rail lines. As the economy contracted the decision was essentially made for them. Upgrade it was going to be. So emerging wisdom suggested going with the best European trains and modeling our local industry to emulate what was learned. The sleek trains easily outran individual cars and with the additional track laid over the past 40 years, almost all destinations worth visiting were included in the network. Of course not everywhere was accessible by the train including her two destinations for this special trip.
As she steps into the train, Danielle scans her card through the electronic reader and climbs on board. The well-lit and spacious car is filled with clusters of seats down the entire length of it. She eyes a group with an elderly man about half way down. She walks down the wide isle and stops.
“Pardon me, do you mind if I join you?” she asks.
The man, in his early 90’s but with eyes that sparkled brightly, looks up and smiles at the smartly dressed woman. He recognizes her almost at once.
“Oh yes. It would be my pleasure, please have a seat.”The conductor calls out ‘All Aboard!’ and the doors silently slide shut. She takes a seat across from the man and with an excellent view out of the large picture windows. A sound reminiscent of an old dinner bell, floats out of hidden speakers and he train begins to move.
“My name is Mac, Mac Thomson. Pleasure to meet you. Ma’am.”
“Please, call me Danielle.”
“I’ll do just that young lady,” he says with a smile.
“Do you ride the train very often?” she asks.
“Use to be a conductor back in the olden days.”
“Oh really! Bet you have seen a lot of change in that time.”
“That is an understatement.”
His mind floats back to an earlier time when passenger trains almost went extinct. To think that cities could survive without trains is now almost impossible to believe. European cities had the advantage of being designed and built before the invention of automobiles. They have always understood that the efficiencies of trains could never be matched by the perceived advantages of private cars, especially in the city centers.
He let his thoughts be heard out loud. “I never thought that rocketing fuel prices, the gas rationing, and riots of the 20s would have been what turned the tide back toward trains.”
After making several stops in the urban core where a number of passengers get on and off, the train reached what use to be called the suburbs. Here the transformation of the landscape was most evident. The suburban experiment, based on less expensive energies, was once referred to by social critics as the “largest misallocation of resources in American history.” But as it turned out, the burbs provided much of the infrastructure for the creation of tight-knit villages. With little actual building or rebuilding, they were transformed into clustered mixed-use neighborhoods surrounded by areas of open space and small scale agriculture. It was the American version of the traditional hill towns of Italy. Outside the old suburbs the land has been returned to primarily open countryside.
Danielle gazes out the window at large herd of grazing buffalo that seems to stretch a mile into the distance.
“It is sure good to see the buffalo again,” she says with awe. “I remember reading that at one time, many of the herds had millions of animals.”
The dinner bell rings again and a man’s voice says, “Next Stop, Village Station.”
Out of the window, a cluster of buildings is coming into view, with the train station right in the middle. The high sun reflects brightly off the solar panels covering the station’s roof. As the train slows down and approaches the little station, Danielle gathers her bag and extricates herself from the chair.
“Nice meeting you Mac.”
She stands up and heads towards the doors. The doors silently open and the Governor and several other people, all with backpacks and hiking sticks exit the train.
Zev Paiss
Boulder, CO
As a husband and father of two pre-teen girls, our future is very important to me. For the past 35 years, I have worked to promote renewable energy, urban agriculture, collaborative neighborhoods, low carbon living and biological wastewater treatment (yuck). This exciting and moving novel comes directly out of my personal and professional experience.
