October

coffee goes cold fast
empty cove, tide is lower
the fish have gone south

All the old showstoppers

I was pleased to learn a few weeks ago that Calvin's Student Activities Office had booked the wonderful indie collaborative band The New Pornographers to perform on-campus this fall. Then dismayed (not entirely surprised) to see the show suddenly cancelled yesterday, hardly a month before the scheduled October 15th appearance. Speculation about donor politics aside, this is an embarrassing fiasco of reactionary ignorance. Turdburgers.

The sad story: Calvin College, Pitchfork, Grand Rapids Press

Stacking stones

This year I'm adding perforated pipe to the dry stack stone retaining wall construction process (pictured wrapped in white filter fabric). The pipe's purported purpose is to provide a passage for water to flow through the wall, thus alleviating potential hydrostatic pressure that could cause rotation and failure. I'm fairly certain based on the performance of the previous installations that a good amount of crushed stone behind the wall ensures ample drainage, but we had extra pipe and filter material so I decided to give it a shot.

Portable Peaks

After spending another glorious long weekend on Peaks Island, a question emerges and remains. How to emanate whenceward the way-of-living that comes so easily there? Can the good aesthetic, social, and ecological vibes of the island be transmitted?

Photo: DTVD

Aesthetic: This is art and craft. It is an aesthetic of place, not contrived and kitschy but homegrown and authentic. It is on display in the gardens and front porches; the look of wholeness and unity.

Social: Being on a small island promotes a spirit of community. We wave to every car and pedestrian, and they wave back. Generations who return and return are bound by their mutual appreciation of what they've shared.

Ecological: The proximity to nature and the inherent awareness of island ecosystem drives a strong sense of eco-logic. The tide rises, waves crash, fog rolls, rain falls. Creation is eminent, it demands awe and responsibility.

The clues are there. Locality. Community. Place. Apprectiation. It is easy to forget about these things amongst the daily drudgery of congested roadways, monolithic megamarts, a sea of "development" that drowns ideas of vigor and beauty from our lives. In the face of a daunting challenge, small tacks in the right direction are victories. I'm starting by waving to neighbors from the car.

Bonus tracks word cloud

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haiku

hand leans into wind
hold two up for the future
hope peace victory

"objects in mirror..." [are closer than they appear] by vanessa mae

Garden goods, frankenmato, gyro burrito

lettuce, tomatoes, jalapeño peppers, green beans, carrots, beets

it's alive

braised beef, feta/sour cream/yogurt, cucumber, green pepper, olive, tomato, cilantro