After our drive through corn fields, cattle feed lots and processing plants of the of the great American prairies complete with narration on CD of “An Omnivore’s Dilemma” we arrived in Durango for our week of House sitting. When looking for a restaurant which served local food, we found Cocina Linda, run by an energetic and passionate woman to whom we both took a liking. Below is the first post in a series from our informative interview with her. Stay tuned for more the next few weeks. Watch this video to see why we love Linda and her good food. Image: Cocina Linda’s Logo
Coming soon: New series of blog posts will open your eyes.
Keep an eye out for a new series of video and text posts starting here in a few days. We think you’ll like it.
We’ve just traveled across the U.S.A, listening to an Omnivore’s Dilemma by Micheal Pollan. It was experiential education at its best, and a sobering experience.
What’s more it led to some great footage and interviews here in Durango, CO with local farmers and restaurateurs. Stay tuned for this informative series of blog posts on your food supply.
I have read this to many a program participant around camp in the mountains, and thought I’d share it here.
Hitchhiking in Labrador
The Invitation, By Oriah
It doesn’t interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.
It doesn’t interest me
how old you are.
I want to know
if you will risk
looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive. (more…)
Dutton has published Americans Who Tell The Truth, the book of the first fifty portraits in this series printed in beautiful color with short biographies and an essay by Robert Shetterly about the intent of the project. The book is suitable for all ages, but its target audience is middle and high school. We have published a free curriculum here on this website for teachers to be able to teach American history through the lives of these people.
This book has won the 2006 award of the International Reading Association for intermediate non-fiction. The Children’s Book Council has named Americans Who Tell the Truth a 2006 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People. Read more here
David Korten hit a chord with Agenda for a New Economy and its call for abolishing Wall Street. In his new revised and greatly expanded edition, David fleshes out his vision for a replacement—a decentralized economy based on resilient communities, local businesses, and ecological systems.
Greed is Out - Localism, In
Global greed is out. Local sharing is in. The Wall Street system failed us; this book is a great guide as we build the alternatives.
“… our economic crisis is, at its core, a moral crisis. Our economic institutions and rules, even the indicators by which we measure economic performance, consistently place financial values ahead of life values. They are brilliantly effective at making money for rich people. Our children, families, and communities, and natural systems of Earth have paid an intolerable price.” Read more on Korten at Yes Magazine
Ragged Mountain Equipment Leads the Way in Giving for the Environment
Donating for the Environment
Ragged Mountain Equipment in Intervale, NH is doing good work. When I was climbing in the North Conway area, Rob Nadler and Cort Hansen were just starting the store in a small space behind the Intervale post office. They made their own chalk bags, ice axe leashes and a few polypro pullovers. Since then, they’ve grown the business to one of the best outdoor and retail outlets in the nation. They might not be the biggest, but in my opinion, one of the best. There’s always a good feeling when you go into their store.
In line with their values, there now contributing .50 cents from every sale of a Ragged Mountain made product over $25.00 retail cost to the Upper Saco Valley Land Trust (USVLT).
USVLT’s mission is to protect the cultural and scenic values of the Upper Saco River Valley by preserving land for farming, forestry, recreation and education. Founded in 2000, USVLT has helped preserve nearly 4,000 acres of open space here in the area. The same program is being used by some of the restaurants and B&B’s in the valley.
Says Cort, “I think we are the only retail/manufacturer doing this at this time. I think it is a great program to raise the awareness of local land conservation issues. ” He adds, “The customer has the choice at the register to opt out and save $.50. Very few have done so.”
Every garment has a hang tag explaining their mission. Says Cort, “We are in the process of expanding hang tags to all our existing inventory which is a major task I can inform you. New styles come through with the tags already on them.”
They’re up to more good. Adds Cort, “We also enrolled the Mount Washington Valley Ski Touring Foundation in the program as well. All ski trail passes sold here at the Touring Center include a $.50 contribution the USVLT. We are the only XC ski touring center participating in this program currently. I think this is vital to making all nordic skiers aware that almost 100% of the valley XC trails use private land which is not protected from development or alternative uses.”
Climber Henry Barber approached Ragged Mountain late last fall about their participating in this this program.
If you’d like to donate and help owners Rob and Cort with this worthwhile project, contact Cort at cort(at)raggedmountain.com
Observations, anecdotes, and ruminations from our family’s year of travel in Peru and Bolivia.
Lawrence Kovacs, is author of the blog FromPeruToYou. We worked at Pacific Crest Outward Bound in the North Cascades leading mountaineering trips. Since then he has become a father, a teacher, and from a look at his blog, a gifted photographer and writer.
Check out it out. You won’t be disappointed. Images from a unique angle, some of which show Lawrence’s sharp sense of humor, and stories of living in Cusco, show a man making the most of life as it comes his way. His attitude and gusto for life not only benefits his family, but the rest of us as well. As I wrote to him in a recent message, “After having lived off and on, and guided in Peru for over ten years, I got more insight into the country by reading your blog than I normally do in my travels there.” Thanks Lawrence. Keep up the good work and see you stateside sometime soon.
Mountain Family Doesn’t Stop Exploring When Kids Enter the Picture
Junji Itagaki, Mt. Washington, NH, USA
Junji Itagaki and I were backcountry skiing from Mount Washington’s summit last week, and descended down Ammonoosuc Ravine when we passed by family encamped in the base of the ravine. They were still setting up camp in a safe area, off to the side of the avalanche zone, when I asked them for a short interview.
The families in many cultures don’t stop going outside, hiking or backcountry skiing in the mountains when their children are born. They intentionally introduce their children to camping, hiking and skiing. Here’s a great example of that in New England….
Kai Mayberger, owner of White Raven Gallery in Vermont, who makes drums, didgeridoos and Native American Flutes has one of those personalities to which one is drawn. He’s unassuming, passionate about life and has a good sense of humor. I’ve stopped in his Bridgewater Corners store a few times over the years, and last year, he was a vendor at Mountain Spirit’s “Sunapee SunFest“. We stopped in the other day to say hi, and this impromptu interview happened. Watch the interview below:
Mayberger continues the family tradition of creating art. After studying antique furniture repair and finish carpentry with his uncle, he attended Goddard College and studied a combination of ecology, shamanism, sculpture, and woodworking. The result of his Senior year at Goddard was the birth of White Raven Drumworks. Now he makes flutes, drums, didjeridus, and music. Kai displays his work at the White Raven Gallery on Route 4 in Bridgewater Corners, VT. If you happen to be passing by, he recommends you give him a call (802) 672-3055 to ensure he will be there when you visit.
On a morning bike ride around Treasure Beach, Jamaica recently, I was drawn to stop and admire a beautiful hand built sandstone building, surrounded by lush perennial herb and flower gardens, fruit trees and meandering pathways. Shirley, the owner, walked down the hillside, greeted me with a warm, broad smile and welcomed me into her yard for a chat, typical of the Jamaican residents we had met during our two week stay. It turns out Shirley is a well-known herbalist and massage therapist in town, had built the structure herself for her massage business, and within minutes I had signed up to have one of her legendary herbal sweats and relaxation massages. With this vitally important step out of the way, we toured the gardens and learned about the fragrant mixture of wild Jamaican herbs and fruit juices Shirley uses to send her clients to relaxation nirvana.
In Jamaica, the elder women pass their knowledge of herbs and plants from generation to generation, as Shirley’s mother had while she was growing up in nearby Great Bay. Shirley explained the provenence of each plant, either planted from seed, field dug, or gifted from a friend or family member. Her knowledge of the individual characteristics and uses of each plant was remarkable. When we parted over an hour later, I could barely wait until it was my turn to savor her herbal ‘detox’ treatment and relaxation massage.
So it was that the next day, I watched as Shirley chose from her yard the pimento, lemon grass and eucalyptus to help clear my lungs, and lime juice for cleansing my skin. She tossed these and other herbal delights into a cauldron of boiling water over an open fire. She then poured the boiling, aromatic mixture into a clay cauldron tucked inside a three-sided steam room with a cloth door.
In I went, with Shirley’s instructions to stir the mix, ‘breathe’ and stay hydrated with the water she provided. This was not your typical steambath! Immediately, the rich herbal smells filled the small space and I settled in to enjoy a blissful 30 minutes of total relaxation. Next came the oil massage, which included a fascinating philosophical commentary by Shirley about the history of Jamaica, the value of massage, the state of our busy lives, her world travels and education in the United States, and good humored bantering about gender differences. Shirley’s massage combined many styles, and is uniquely her own brand. I dare say it’s one of the finest massages I’ve ever had.
As I ventured back to reality toward the end of the hour, I asked Shirley when she was going to write the Book of Shirley. She laughed heartily and replied, “Everyone wants me to write a book. I say to them, come back and see me and we will continue to talk together and teach each other.” I think I will, Shirley, thanks.
Unexpected friends come into one’s life, sometimes for a brief time, but leave an indelible mark. Ron Verblauw was one of those people in my life. He and his wife, Carol, moved to Sunapee, New Hampshire, USA from New Jersey because of Ron’s love of the country and skiing. He had served as a director on the National Ski Patrol’s Eastern Division, ran a trucking company in New Jersey for 40 years, served in the U.S. Air Force in the Korean conflict and was a district governor of Rotary International.
I must admit, I was prepared not to be fond of Ron at first, because of his pro-development stance regarding our local Mt. Sunapee Ski Area and his “proactive aire” about getting things done in, what used to be, our little sleepy community, which can often rub the locals the wrong way. I later saw this as a wonderful attribute, and I quickly realized Ron was an amazing person for many reasons. (more…)
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