Category Archives: local

I Had Forgotten…

…That I was sharing my essays for the newspaper with you all. Here is the one I wrote in December. As the daylight fades, the winds pick up, and we prepare to settle in for another long Northwest winter, readers … Continue reading

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In the Local Newspaper

 I recently received the honor of being one of several guest columnists from the community for our local newspaper. Our only restrictions are the deadline, word count, and politeness, though we are encouraged to focus on local issues. Since access … Continue reading

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A Tale of Two Outings, Part Three: False Start

After I saw the young bull moose calmly stroll past me that afternoon on Kamiak Butte, I figured the day could get no better and I should head back to the world. I lingered a few minutes, vainly trying to … Continue reading

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A Tale of Two Outings, Part One: A Solo Mission

On this anniversary of the birth of the great Charles Dickens, it seems only appropriate that I have a story of two opposite outings which I undertook on consecutive days. First, I must apologize for the undue delay in posting. … Continue reading

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I’m Not Alone Here

Jackie Wheeler agrees that Locavorism seems harder in the (desert) West, as she writes in High Country News. Phoenix must be a far tougher growing area than where I am in the Inland Northwest, and I’ve had my fair share of … Continue reading

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An Embarrassment of Riches

It seems I’m not alone in trying to eliminate food waste from our caloric cycle. I’ve still been using the kitchen compost bin, although I stopped tracking the daily amount when our kitchen scale broke. Without taking the time to … Continue reading

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Something’s (Not) Happening Here

This time last year, we were awash in both apples from our backyard tree and plums from the trees along the lane behind the house. This year? Not so much. I’ve noticed a squirrel or two with an apple here … Continue reading

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Fall Focus (or, It’s Fall: Time to Focus!)

After consultation with my (new)* adviser, I’ve decided to narrow my focus a bit from what I had been thinking of before. I was having a hard time trying to separate one idea (the community garden) from another (local-food resources … Continue reading

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Checking out skills…from the Library

One of the big lessons I’ve learned over the past year is the value of knowledge, skills, and some specialized equipment in trying to shift to a more local and sustainable means of obtaining food. It’s a terrible loss when … Continue reading

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Back on the Home Front

I will write more about our travels another time, and perhaps in another place. If so, I promise to post a link. Meanwhile, it’s time to write about “here” again. Since our experimental garden plot failed earlier this summer, we needed a new … Continue reading

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