What is AMPULA?!

Many of you are understandably curious about the meaning of this Blog's name, Ampula.
I first came across this term earlier this year as the title of Me'Shell N'degeocello's upcoming CD (which has since been changed to For All(ah).
I liked the way Ampula rolled off the tounge and evoked a feeling of safety, mystery and openness to interpretation. I noticed not much comes up when Googling 'Ampula' save for references to plant biology or somethings in Italian, French or Russian. This would be, then, a cool name for the Blog I wanted to create in February '05.

And so you have it, but Ampula, as I conceive it is more than an word evoking that which I mentioned above,

Ampula is also

Cyber-spaced-out, proactive, informative & nonjudgemental

• A forum where truths are sought after
• An exploratory place, where one can share info from their internal lives or art (photos, poetry, paintings)
• A place to come for information on important issues not covered well elsewhere
• A space to enter to read and share viewpoints on issues you hold dear or are curious about
• A forum where the Ampula community share points of view that intersect, diverge and may be dissected
• A place you can come & be yourself & hopefully see youself

I'm interested in having pieces by all of the Ampula-reading community on this Blog. Once a month I'll begin a a 'Readers Write' section in which Ampula visitors write on a predetermined subject (similar to the Sun Magazine's 'Readers Write' see http://www.thesunmagazine.org/357_TakingStand.pdf).

I will also have some POV pieces that you can be a part of on issues around friendship, sexuality, politics, culture & history.

Thanks for your patience, like Jazz music, AMPULA will always be in flux & hopefully become a place that may find comfort.

-Ampula