Loess, longboards, and secret handshakes

Hello Fishtrap Friends,

A dozen local high school students recently completed a Fishtrap College writing course in argumentation here at Fishtrap’s Coffin House. You may find that an odd name for our headquarters. The house is named after Gwen and Gladys Coffin, the previous owners. Gwen was the long-time publisher and editor of the Wallowa County Chieftain, our local weekly newspaper. Rich is fond of pointing out that Gwen was one of the first editors to decry the U.S. internment camps for Japanese U.S. citizens during World War II. When Fishtrap was able to purchase this house in 2001 with the help of over 400 donors, foundations, and the generosity of the Coffin children, we named the house in the Coffins’ honor.

Anyway, our very own Janis Carper’s son Joe(y) took the class, arriving on his long board each day. (I once called it a skateboard, but was oh-so-quickly corrected.) I noticed his LONG board leaned up against the old manual typewriter that Gwen Coffin once used to write his editorials. Janis likes the photo, and Joe(y) likes his new-found skills in argumentation.

THIS WEEK

This Thursday, April 29, at 7 pm, Gypsy Java, the new coffeehouse at 118 West Main Street in Enterprise, will be hosting a Speak Easy event. “Share original poetry or a story, make believe or real,” says host Rose Caslar, one of that generation of young adults who grew up in Wallowa County, left for parts unknown, and decided that the old stomping grounds looked pretty good in retrospect. Rose is an exceptional young lady, and everyone I know is thrilled to have her back.

There are a few of us in Enterprise who habitually get around by foot or bicycle. Like drivers, we can recognize each other by our “rigs.” Rob has an orange mountain bike with 3-gallon white plastic buckets on either side of the rear wheel. I have an old green Trek road bike with faded red nylon panniers hanging from the front wheel. And Peter Donovan has one of those big lattice milk crates perched on top of his rear rack.

Peter may also be one of the smartest people I know. He keeps a low profile, but is always working on something interesting. Lately that interesting something is loess – the deep, fertile, wind-blown soil that makes up the Palouse (of which, I heard once, Wallowa County’s Zumwalt prairie is considered a part).

On Friday, April 30, at 7 pm at the Coffin House (now you know what that means), Peter, who founded the Soil Carbon Coalition, will host a film and discussion about loess – in China. Those interested in climate change, big government, watershed restoration, or desertification will find this a worthwhile evening. The event is free.

LESSONS FROM THE LOESS PLATEAU is a superb and fascinating 52-minute documentary about fixing poverty by restoring ecological function. The scene is north central China's loess plateau, the cradle of Han civilization, where centuries of poor agricultural methods had resulted in horrific soil erosion and persistent poverty. In the 1990s a project the size of Wallowa, Union, and Baker counties, combining land reform with massive restoration and terracing of erodible slopes, was initiated by the Chinese government with the cooperation of the World Bank. Filmmaker John Liu spent years documenting the project, gaining a deep understanding of the underlying social and ecological realities. This carefully crafted and moving film is an engaging look at rural China in the midst of changes that few have heard about.

COMING SOON

We had a heck of a thunderstorm here the other night. I had planned to go to a Ukalaliens ukelele workshop with Steve Einhorn and Kate Power. They’ve been spreading ukalalienism all over the country lately. As Arlo Guthrie taught us, “if one person, just one person does it they may think he's really sick,” but if three people do it, “they may think it’s an organization.” And if fifty people do it, “friends, they may thinks it's a movement.” So I, being one of those habitual walkers in Enterprise, was walking over to the Woodshed to join The Movement, and I decided to carry an umbrella. And it’s a good thing I did, because coming back, it rained 3-gallon buckets.

But, it occurred to me, this was one of the cultural differences between you city folks and them country folks. Country folks don’t use umbrellas, except maybe if they’re sittin’ watchin’ their kids play baseball. You don’t see cowboys herdin’ cows with a lasso in one hand and an umbrella in the other. But city folks do. Carry umbrellas, that is, not herd cattle.

I digress. Steve and Kate put on a great Ukalaliens workshop, including the teaching of the secret handshake. For those of you who know and love them, or who ought to know and love them, you should plan on going to Fishstock in The Dalles on Saturday, May 15. There will be a few other musicians and writers there, too. Rosalie Sorrels, who was probably singing “Alice’s Restaurant” along with Arlo way back when. Dan Maher of Inland Folk fame. And Clem Starck and Robin Cody will be reading. Tickets are $25, available at http://fishstockoregon.net. I’ll be there, and hope you will join us.

Gotta run,

Rick Bombaci
Executive Director