Meet Us Up The River

Now that I am not on the computer as much as I have been & the kids and I are on break from co-op, I have had some time to get caught up on some household organizing. I was getting ready to toss my flyer for the Fair Trade Festival into the recycling bin when I noticed the following essay. I had to sign on & share it with you all. 

Once upon a time there was a small village on the edge of a river. The people there were good and the life in the village was good. One day a villager noticed a baby floating down the river. The villager quickly jumped into the river and swam out to save the baby from drowning. 

The next day this same villager was walking along the river bank and notived two babies in the river. He called for help, and both babies were rescued from the swift waters. And the following day four babies were seen caught in the turbulent current. And then eight, then more, and still more. 

The villagers organized themselves quickly, setting up watch towers and training teams of swimmers who could resist the swift waters and rescue babies. Rescue squads were soon working 24 hours a day. And each day the number of babies floating down the river increased. 

The villagers organized themselves efficiently. The rescue squads were now snatching many children each day. Groups were trained to give mouth to mouth resuscitation. Others prepared formula and provided clothing for the chilled babies. Many people were involved in making clothing and knitting blankets. Still others provided foster homes and placement. 

While not all the babies...could be saved, the villagers felt they were doing well to save as many as they could each day. Indeed, their priest blessed them in their good work. And life in the village continued on that basis. 

One day, however, someone raised the question, "But where are all these babies coming from? Who is throwing them into the river? Why? Let's organize a team to go upstream and see who's doing it." 

The seeming logic of the elders countered: "And if we go upstream who will operate the rescue operations? We need every concerned person here."

"But don't you see," cried the one lone voice, "if we find out who is throwing them in, we can stop the problem and no babies will drown. By going upstream we can eliminate the cause of the problem." 

"It is too risky," [decided the elders].

And so the numbers of babies in the river increase daily. Those saved increase, but those who drown increase even more. 

MEET US UP THE RIVER!!!

Today is the Day

The Fair Trade Festival has finally arrived! Don't know much about Fair Trade or the festival? Read about it here. I am really looking forward to seeing the belly dancers & Scythian this evening, not to mention the chocolate tasting - yum! Hope to see you there =)

What can you do with three minutes?

Last night, I went to the Surry County Public Hearings on whether to grant local zoning approval for the ODEC - proposed coal plant in Dendron, VA. The meeting began at 7:00pm and did not end until 11:45. I was really impressed with the fact that the council willingly stayed and listened to everyone. Here's what I had to say (which I managed to keep to three minutes or less, the allotted time given): 

Within the last two weeks there have been at least four different articles in the Virginia Pilot regarding mercury in our water and/or fish. One article in particular spoke of a report by Environment America which ranked our state #2 in the nation for the dirtiest waters. Yet another article announced that Lake Gaston walleye fish have been designated inedible due to high levels of mercury. Where does this mercury come from? Coal. 

This proposed coal plant will be built right in the middle of the very same water sheds that supply the Hampton Roads region with water. Why on EARTH would we willingly agree to poison ourselves? 

As the debate rages nationally in regards to healthcare, I have often wondered who will need healthcare if we don't have a land base? Our water is already horribly polluted as is our air & soil. This plant will only make these issues exponentially worse. As a mother of two young children, I want to know that we are working to fix these situations, not continue to dump fuel onto this ever-growing fire of pollution & destruction. We should be investing in renewable energy sources, not these antiquated destructive means of energy. I want to know that we are leaving our children a sustainable land base, not a polluted waste land. 

In closing, I'd like to leave you with the following Cree indian proverb: 

"Only when the last tree is cut

Only when the last river is polluted

Only when the last fish is caught

Only then will men realize that they cannot eat money"

They conducted the two public hearings and then decided to continue the rest of the proceedings until Dec. 14th. I would say that well over 50 people spoke and only about 10 people were for the proposal, if that. You can see those 10 people highlighted on ODEC's website. I must admit I had a really hard time refraining from pitching objects at the ODEC lawyer as he spoke, especially when I heard him refer to the environmental impact as being "passive and benign". It was overall an empowering experience and I am hopeful that the council will, at the very least, insist on an independent study being done before agreeing to the rezoning. 

      

Tonight: Say No To Coal

For those of my readers who are friends with me on Facebook, this will be a repeat. Sorry. You can smack me the next time you see me for making you hear/read the same thing over and over again...
In the meantime, for the rest of you out there in the blogosphere:

Coal is not and cannot be clean. Every week yet another article shows up in the paper reinforcing this reality ( See here , here and here). So can anyone tell me why Old Dominion Electric Cooperative is looking to build Virginia’s largest coal burning power plant to date in Dendron, VA?

Yes, you read that right. A measly fifty miles away from us they are planning to commission the state’s largest coal fired plant dab smack in the middle of the waters that feed our water supplies. You feel helpless you say? So did I, until I received the following message:

    YOUR VOICE IS DESPERATELY NEEDED!

Old Dominion Electric Cooperative wants to build the largest coal plant in Virginia in the Hampton Roads region. On Monday, Nov. 23rd, the Surry County Planning Commission is holding a public hearing on whether to grant local zoning approval for this controversial plant. This is a crucial time to speak out against this monstrosity of a coal plant!

Community members fighting the plant have asked for YOUR support by showing up to this public hearing and voicing your concerns!

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5020/t/3211/signUp.jsp?key=1490

The meeting starts at 7:00. We are going to get there early and stand in line so that we can get seats....ODEC has a nasty habit of showing up and trying to take up the front rows of important meetings.....so we gotta race 'em!

Because this is a zoning issue, neighboring communities are invited to voice their concerns. We are all going to be impacted, we are all neighbors.

The proposed plant, located only a few miles from one of the
Commonwealth's greatest treasures, the Chesapeake Bay, would poison
surrounding waterways with 116 pounds of mercury per year. The plant
would create nearly 60 tons of poisonous coal ash a day, to be stored
in Surry County, and would increase the demand for coal extracted
using mountaintop removal mining. In addition, it would add nearly 15
million tons of global warming pollution to our air every year.

 

I am going to be there at this hearing tonight to ensure that my voice is heard. You should be there too. If enough of us show up, they might just have to listen to us. The address for the event is the Surry County Government Center 45 School St Surry, VA. We must take a stand right now at this critical juncture. If we don’t speak up for the health of our land base, then who will? I don’t know about you, but I want to be able to trust that my water will be clean and that I can eat what I grow without poisoning myself or my kids. "At the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends" ~MLK

Fair Trade Festival

I just received this in my mail the other day: 

QUICK RESPONSE NEEDED!

Dear Fair Trade Fans,

The time has come to commit to the Fair Trade Festival!

The festival this year will be at WATERSIDE!!!!

Same time frame, Sat December 5, 10am to 10 pm,  and Sunday Dec 6 12:00 pm-5pm.

The good news: BEAUTIFUL venue, lots of space, built-in sound system, dedicated poetry space, indoors, but with a giant window to the outdoors!  Great publicity help! Additional table space: I am planning on 50 tables rather than 40.  Dinner tentatively planned for Friday night... 

The bad news: Slight increase in table price to $50, and... we can't leave merchandise over night.  Your tables, racks, etc can stay up over night, but they said we absolutely could not leave merchandise set up on the tables over night. Sigh.  Apologies. I will try to have additional volunteer help available for pack-up Saturday night.

If you are a previous vendor or a performer, you want to be included in the festival, and you have the first weekend in December available, please drop me a quick email right away saying "YES", and I will assume you are coming.  I need to get the press release written in the next week, and will only be able to mention people who have said they are coming!  New vendors, we'll handle applications later- right now I just need to know you'd like to come.

Immediate needs:

A FUNDRAISER

A VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR

A FESTIVAL "INTERN" who'd like to learn how to do this!

Thanks, y'all!

-Susan Posey, 

Fair Trade Festival Coordinator

cel (757) 581-5672

fairtradefun@gmail.com

Last night Susan and I talked extensively about what is still needed to get this off the ground. She *really* needs someone who is good at fundraisers. The festival needs companies that jive with the Fair Trade mission (like a donation from Wal-Mart won't work) and/or individuals who are willing to donate anywhere between $50 to $1000. Obviously the more money she is able to raise, the more she will be able to pay the performing artists as well as just make things happen. Speaking of performing artists - she is in need for musicians, poets, dancers, etc. Anyone who can perform during the festival is what she is looking for! 

Oh! Don't know why Fair Trade is important? Then check these links out to learn more: 

http://www.fairtradefederation.org/

http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/fairtrade/coffee/

Looking for local stores to purchase Fair Trade items? Check these places out: 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Norfolk-VA/Elliots-Fair-Grounds/135203385931#/pages/Norfolk-VA/Elliots-Fair-Grounds/135203385931?v=wall&viewas=0

http://www.greenalternativesstore.com/

http://newportnews.tenthousandvillages.com/php/stores.festivals/store.homepage.php

Laundry Etiquette

1. If you only wore it once & didn't get it dirty, PUT IT AWAY! Unless, of course, the item of clothing is your underwear or socks. These are one time wear items. I don't mean "put it away in the laundry hamper". I mean "Put it away in your drawer". 

2. Do not put any items in the washer machine unless you are starting a load of laundry. This especially applies to wet items like damp beach towels. Nothing quite like the aroma of bacteria & fungus breeding for a week and a half in the summer heat! 

3. If you are doing a load of laundry, please pay attention to the washer's settings. A new brightly colored shirt should not be washed in hot water. A load of regular cottons should not be washed on delicate. There is a reason why they give you dials to change the settings.

4. If you start a load of laundry, take it through the whole process. Do not assume that someone else will step in & take over. So, if you started the load in the washer, ensure it gets into the dryer. It also super nice if you take it out of the dryer & fold it too. 

5. Rule #3 also applies to the dryer. Do not put the "Tumble Dry Low" items on high heat! 

6. Back to rule #4.... If you see a pile of clothes sitting on top of the dryer that you started through the process yet did not complete by taking it out & putting it away, then this is your clue to do so. DO NOT put it back in the dryer. 

Phew! I feel better now. 

The Never Ending Story

Today was the BIG day. I would finally be able to put all of the nonsense behind me, right? Wrong. Sergeant A.J. Bostjanik didn't bother to show up to court today. 

My four character witnesses, my mother, and I sat in a packed waiting room, shoulder to shoulder, that had no air conditioning or air ventilation whatsoever (It is 93 degrees with a heat index of 102 today) for forty five minutes without knowing what was going on. My lawyer appeared in the waiting room to break the news about the officer's no show. He explained that the officer's representative was seeking a continuance but that he would fight it. It was another thirty minutes before we were called into the courtroom. 

As promised, my lawyer pushed for dismissal. He did so in an incredibly tactful manner. He gently pushed the judge but stopped before he crossed the line. Unfortunately, the judge was in a bad mood today. My lawyer had warned me about Judge Massey's volatility. I witnessed it first hand. Apparently, he had yet to hear a case because, one case after the other, there were no shows. He did indicate that "the only good news he had heard all day" was the fact that we were all present & ready for our case to be heard. This was when my lawyer went full-fledge into his argument for dismissal. The judge's response? A mother once left her seven month old in the car for 45 secs to drop a letter in the slot of the post office only to turn around and find her infant gone. What one has to do with the other is still beyond me. Anyway, I digress. He turned down the motion for dismissal and set a new hearing for September 16th @ 9:00am. He dismissed us and doled out his "one word of advice" to me: Netflix. 

Can we say major suckage? There are SO many different side stories I could delve into here: the waste of tax payers money, the abuse of power, the "blame the victim" mentality this judge demonstrated today, etc. I just don't have the energy. My girlfriend has my kids for the day. I have some time to myself. I am going to get off this machine & go take some alone time to regroup. 

HUGE thanks to everyone out there that has been here for me through this. I love you all.