Back in the day, when my friends and I were young and eager to be out sharing poetry and music, the coffeehouse beckoned. Public, legitimate, no age limits, no alcohol licensing requirement, coffee houses in the Chicago area often had a stage as well, many with hours scheduled for drop in performers on the “Open…READ MORE >
Food
SPRING while homebound
The daffodils are in full bloom, and that means it is time to get the garden ready to plant. Some weeks ago Michael tilled leaves into the beds of rich red clay that we are enticing along on the journey to rich brown humus. Then he hauled wheelbarrow load upon wheelbarrow load of compost…READ MORE >
Saving Seed of the New Zealand Pear – an organic gardener’s journey to the twilight zone
An acquaintance, a gardener, sent tomato seeds one year. Sharing seeds among gardeners fulfills part of the historical imperative that keeps plant varieties vital – the multiplication of seeds through dispersion. I took the important first step of planting some of the seeds she sent, and then I saved seed from the fruit of my…READ MORE >
Teaching Moments in a Desert Garden
When I arrive at Las Milpitas de Cottonwood community gardens, Josh Banno and a group of students are already working. They had taken the city bus from their downtown high school as they do every Friday afternoon as an after school option activity to work on their small piece of ground in the larger community…READ MORE >
11th Annual Mesquite Milling, Pancake Brunch, & Fiesta – A Neighborhood Event
Nov 26, 13 Pedaling quietly down tree lined streets in the crisp autumn morning, we round the corner into Dunbar/Spring Community Park and meet the sounds of gasoline engines driving mills grinding mesquite pods. It is the 11th Annual Mesquite Milling, Pancake Brunch, & Fiesta at the Dunbar Spring Community Garden, Orchard and Mini Nature park in…READ MORE >
Celebrating Local Food, Celebrating the Mission Garden
Being a food explorer in the southwest can be a demanding job, and on Saturday, November 9, there was more than one community festival calling us. Leaving Las Milpitas de Cottonwood, we headed north, traveling a couple miles to reach the party at the Mission Garden to celebrate the November issue of Edible Baja. Published…READ MORE >