Last Monday I was in Solothurn and met with some of the administrators of the association Bibliotheca Psychonautica (BP), which, unlike gaiamedia’s archives, consists exclusively of psychedelic books and magazines. Together we own close to 2’000 titles in German, English, and other languages.
Present were Nachtschatten publisher Roger Liggenstorfer himself, board members Michael Schlichting, and Lukas Emmenegger, the new director of the Nachtschatten publishing house, as will as two BP members: Albert Rutz, and me. We all were of one mind about needing to do more to make our archives attractive and accessible. And that we need enthusiastic young helpers so that Switzerland’s psychedelic culture is not lost in nightlife and tribalism.
On my way home, I read about a Silent Reading Rave recently held in Zürich. Given a choice of books, the young participants silently read for exactly two hours. Then they went their way. What a great idea!
gaiamedia owns more than 3’500 books on a large variety of topics. Wouldn’t it be great to launch a monthly Silent Reading Rave in our gaiamedia lounge in Basel, where you can sit and read comfortably? Stay tuned.
Shortly after you will have found our November newsletter in your inbox and/or online, the United States will hold its fateful presidential election. It remains to be seen whether the world will move further to the right or not. Whether our lives will become more chaotic or move towards more self-determination and reason. Of course, these elections are our business too; the days when social trends from across the Atlantic took years to arrive in Europe are long gone. According to surveys, most Swiss people would vote for Kamala Harris. In America, this seems not so clear. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for us.
Either way, we should keep warm now.
Yours,
Susanne G. Seiler
P.S. You’ll find us at the gaiamedia lounge, in the back yard of Hochstrasse 70 (behind Basel’s SBB station, tram stop Peter Merian), every Thursday afternoon from 14 – 18 h. Welcome!