That’s some big tomatoes! They’re an heirloom variety; unfortunately the person we got them from couldn’t remember the name. My tomato-loving wife likes them, though, so that’s all that matters.
My newsletter subscriptions are shifting in the right direction: less cultural criticism, more woodworking.
Picked up an unusual (to me), older nativity set today. The images are decals/stickers, not painted. Nevertheless, it caught my eye and it was inexpensive at $15.
Entrance to the back yard. Watch out for hanging cucumbers!
Bad news: I got a minor cut from one of my chisels. Good news: I’ve successfully put a sharp edge on a chisel.
Today is Darcy’s first day on her new job at Bath and Body Works. It’s a new chapter for her!
In episode 17 of the M&T podcast, Joshua mentions his influences and it’s all the usual suspects:
- Wendell Berry
- Ivan Illich
- EF Schumacher
- Albert Borgmann
I’ve recently discovered Borgmann but I haven’t read much at all of his work. I read Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful many years ago but I’d like to read it again.
Also, when they start writing his biographies, it will be amazing how influential Wendell Berry has been, despite being virtually unknown to the general public.
As with all opinions that don’t matter, I hold firmly to the idea that the Midwest consists of Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. It seems to me that the historical roots of the Midwest lie in the Old Northwest Territory (named because it was northwest of the Ohio River), which consisted of the states named above plus a piece of Minnesota.
The Midwest is also characterized by industrial centers–Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee. The further you get from those classic industrial cities the less Midwestern you are. Honestly, here in southern Indiana we’re more of a border region between the Midwest and the South.
But you know what’s even better than state line and arbitrary region names? Watersheds. It grounds our sense of geography in something more real than political boundaries. In this post, Todd writes about one way to do that. If we use his system of naming regions after river watersheds, I live in the nation of Ohio, state of Wabash, county of Patoka-White, and city of East Fork White.
Rachel and I are now lifetime members of our county’s historical society. This is not step one of my Grand Plan to Change the World. It is, however, step one in connecting with my community, warts and all. Localism doesn’t mean much if it’s all just in your head.
We’re shifting to late summer and that means the buzzing drone of annual cicadas. Nothing sounds more like summer than that.