Stop, what's that sound? Everybody look what's goin' down.
"It's frightening to see these flash mobs . . . they come in swarms like bees," Warrensville Heights Councilwoman Ruby Wilson was quoted in a Plain Dealer article as saying.
I've read the articles chronicling the flash mob phenomenon in Cleveland's inner-ring, and raised my eyebrows at some of the quotations. My initial conclusion: We as a community are afraid to see large groups of black teens assembled in public places when we don't expect it AND we want them to leave when we say so. We feel so strongly about this that we are willing to detain individual teens for being out in public after 6pm.
I took a brief glance at the American Community Survey and I believe it should be perfectly normal to see large groups of black teens assembled here in Cleveland. Almost 30% of the population is under 18 years of age and 52% of the population is African American.
What if, instead of thinking of flash mobs as a problem; we envision their potential. What if we were pleased that groups of black teenagers have the organizational skills and connectedness to assemble in large groups at a moment's notice. This is a demographic that is historically technologically disadvantaged, disempowered and disenfranchised.
Perhaps they don't know what to do with themselves when assembled, but let's not throw the baby out with the bath water. The right to assemble is in the Bill of Rights. The ability to assemble equates to power. The teens know it and so does everyone else. We should be encouraging these teens to exercise their power, to feel part of something larger than themselves, to connect with others in the community.
Maybe the flash mobs are appealing to teens because they know they are inspiring fear and they know that is not fair. Instead of squashing the flash mobs, maybe we should be putting energy toward guiding teens to use this skill for good. For example, teens in Chicago protested the closing of a hospital's trauma center, and teens in Barington, Illinois assembed to draw attention to their schools' budget cuts. I see civic potential in the flash mob.
6/28/11
Bounty
Somehow I managed to get my garden planted on time this year. I started seeds indoors in March and was pretty much determined to get early spring vegetables planted in April. I planted some from seed outdoors in June. I will admit that I likely risked the whole endeavor by planting some seeds and seedlings when there was potential for frost. I also wallowed in the rain and mud and planted some seeds in a garden that resembled a swamp. I will confess to planting pea seeds in early April and poking them back down into the dirt repeatedly after they floated out of the ground.
After that long disclaimer about all of the things I did wrong, what I did right was get stuff planted before June so I can have a 3-season garden. Here's the update:
Cucumbers are fruiting. I started these inside in April and planted them outside in early June.
Kohlrabi is getting there. I started inside from seed in March and transplanted outside mid April
Butterhead Lettuce-- started inside in early March. Transplanted outside in mid April
Other Kind of Lettuce-- I've been saving these seeds myself and can't remember the variety. Same timing as the other lettuce.
Herb Spiral-- I started most of the herbs inside, but some wintered in the house/outside: sage, oregano, marjoram, lemon balm, basil, cilantro, chives, dill, stevia, tarragon, rosemary.
Tomatos are starting to blossom. I'm experimenting with pruning this year to yield more fruit and reduce risk of damp-loving diseases. I've planted brandywine, paste, cherry and numerous volunteer hybrid tomatoes.
Strawberry patch is doing ok and radishes were puny, but delicious
Not pictured: Cabbage, beans, asparagus, squash, kale, beets, radish, garlic and chard. The community garden plot has burdock, parsnip, carrots and shallots.
6/18/11
"Further In"
further in, grandmother; grandfather, hold my hand
as I go on through this life and try to understand
the beauty of your faces I will never see again
but I know you're with me now leading me further in
further in, you friends of mine, they led me further in
I know I've hurt you many times and I've helped you and I will again
you to me and me to you, and us to all of them
the circle that will ever grow as we go further in
further in, O my love, take me further in
past the place where love hides its face and down to where we begin
so deep in this mystery, my tears on yours depend
and they like some wild river flow as we go further in
-Greg Brown
Rest in Peace Pop Pop
6/12/11
Don't be a "fake ass green yuppie"
Tango Till You're Sore's Sustainable Living post calls some folks out for being lazy and living a green-washed lifestyle. Avoid being a "fake ass green yuppie" and recycle the packaging and products you have invited into your life by choosing to buy them. Here are all of the recycling drop off locations in Cleveland. (click the image to see the full picture or to zoom in)
More information about recycling services.
I take my recyclables with me in my shopping bags on the way to the grocery store. When the bags are empty, then I can fill them with groceries. My friend calls it "reverse shopping".
6/3/11
Global Cleveland
Today in a downtown drugstore an elderly Indian man with jet black hair--white at the roots-- was buying a box of hair dye and other sundries. The check-out clerk rings him up and then leans over to the clerk who was ringing me out and asks, "you have his coupons?". My clerk glances at his purchases and then ruffles through a stack of coupons and hands over two.
His clerk announces in a loud voice apparently reserved for those who don't speak English well, "you saved ten dollars". The Indian man raises his eyebrows, smiles, and starts fumbling with the gum at the counter. He hurriedly grabs 3 packs of orange Trident and adds it to his purchases.
He pays and gives a pack of gum to each clerk in gratitude. "For you, for you, for me," he says.
My clerk looks at me and explains, "I always keep his coupons for him. He never remembers to bring them. He's been coming here for years. He doesn't understand much English, but he understands ten dollars."
5/22/11
Crooked River Dancing
I made a Weebly today. After a conversation about artistic collaboration last night with Kate Sopko, I decided it was time I had a choreography website-- an online portfolio of sorts. I know that someday I'll have a real website, but I think it will do for now. Next step? Make a dance so I have something to put on the homepage. www.crookedriverdancing.weebly.com
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