Each Little World

Sweet Sunday

Ducks, chicks, bunnies, a basket of carrots and lots of sweet treats. There's a mixed bag of licorice, a chocolate tulip cup that I filled with chocolate-covered orange and lemon rind and crystalized ginger — and topped with a white chocolate and hazelnut mini "corn cob." Also included are a tin of Les Anis de Flavigny (French licorice mints) and a package of Stroopwafels (caramel waffles). All of it from Chocolaterii Stam at Greenway Station. I just discovered this Madison outpost of a Dutch chocolate maker which sells a dizzying array of beautiful and tasty treats; and you can easily see I fell prey to a delicious temptation!

Something sweet for Valentine's Day

Sophie Blackall's "Missed Connections: Love, Lost & Found" is a sweet but not sugary small confection. Blackall, an artist, blogger and reader of on-line postings of "missed connections" has turned these sometimes silly, often wistful messages — very short short stories — into a book of arresting images. Each tale is told in a single image illustrated with Blackall's watercolors and calligraphy. Sometimes the words are all part of the picture; sometimes the full text is only readable on the page facing the picture.

The book — at only $14.00 — would make a much longer lasting impression than flowers or candy at a fraction of the cost. In this time of continuing economic worries, nobody wants a gift that strains someone else's budget. If you're looking for a memento of the occasion that is both quirky and tender, Blackall's book is perfect. If you want to splurge, she has an Etsy shop where she sells prints of her charming illustrations. And if the budget is terribly tight, "Missed Connections" is available through the South Central Wisconsin Library System. Or you can read and enjoy her blog posts about her father's adventures.

Illustrations by Sophie Blackall from her Etsy shop.

We're sticking with the Pulaski band!

I had not planned on returning to the blog with a You Tube video, but I just can't help it. This is the marching band from the high school in Pulaski, WI, not far from Green Bay. These fabulous kids clearly know their town — and their school — are named after a rebel who fought in the American Revolution. This band is what democracy looked like at the 2012 Rose Bowl Parade.

The band leads off with "On, Wisconsin," but breaks into Woody Guthrie's "Union Maid" when they stop in front of the grandstand. You'll recognize the chorus: "I'm sticking with the union." The announcers completely missed this stunning bit of recall politics but everyone in Wisconsin got the message.

Memebers of the Pulaski High School Marching Band, we salute you! Here's to a great new year.

 

It may be Christmas . . .

but folks in Wisconsin don't take breaks from the serious business of getting our state back to its progressive roots. At noon today, almost 1,000 people defied Gov. Walker's unconstitutional attempt to stifle dissent and converged on the Capitol Rotunda to protest peacefully and sing holiday carols. You can read the details of today's event here in the Progressive Magazine. And you can get a glimpse of the action in the video below.

 

Christmas in Wisconsin 2011

What kind of gifts do you give friends and family in this year of living strangely in Fitzwalkerstan? Top of the list for most of my friends would be to get the required number of signatures to recall Gov. Walker. But I'm thinking a bit smaller in this instance. There's the whole buy local initiative, of course. But what about gifts that capture this moment in time, that celebrate it, link it to our past and future? There are a lot of potential possibilites out there, some obvious and others less so. Here are my suggestions:

Union Town by Tom Morello / The Night Watchman: This CD features 8 union songs; the last one on the disc was recorded live in Madison last February. The disc itself carries an image of the crowds in the Capitol Rotunda and the inside of the jacket shows one of the rallies here. In addition to the music, I like this CD (versus Morello's World Wide Rebel Songs, for instance) because it's inexpensive and has just enough music to get you fired up. Under $10.

We Are Wisconsin: The Wisconsin Uprising in the Words of Activists, Writers and Everyday Wisconsinites Who Made it Happen: Edited by Erica Sagrans. $18 paperback or you can download a PDF. The strenght of this book is that it contains the first writings, essays and blog posts coming out of public resistance to Governor Walker last winter. Farmers, politicians, students and citizens make their voices heard. First-person history in a convenient package.

 

Working Words: Punching the Clock and Kicking Out the Jams: This anthology of poetry and essays — edited and with an introduction by M.L. Liebler — is an amazing and inspiring collection and includes titles both familiar and unknown. The voices range from Ed Sanders of The Fugs to Jack White of the White Stripes; from Walt Whitman to John Sayles to Michael Moore; Amiri Baraka to Dan Berrigan to Li-Young Lee. Coffee House Press, Minneapolis. This is strong stuff and not intended for Tea-Partiers. 

Where We Worked: A Celebration of America's Workers and the Nation They Built: By Jack Larkin. This is the story of the 99%, our grandparents and theirs — all the citizens who built the mills and factories and dams and farms. While the book tells our history and our stories, it is the photos (from the Library of Congress) that speak most powerfully across time and generations. Most Americans today would be hard-pressed not to be able to find images that show the jobs members of their family have done. There's a whole section on coal mining, for example, with a number of pictures of breaker boys — the job my paternal grandfather had as a 10-year-old in Pennsylvania. Lyons Press, $40.00. 

Bill Moyers Journal: The Conversation Continues: By Bill Moyers. I picked up this hardcover book by Moyers at A Room of One's Own after the first day of the Democracy Convention in Madison last summer. Came home, sat down and began to devour it. Moyers, as usual, finds those people who speak most clearly and eloquently about the issues of the day: from poetry to poverty, gay marriage to plutocracy. This book will give you Progressive talking points and an endless list of books you want to read by the people Moyers interviews. 

Cut From Plain Cloth: The 2011 Wisconsin Workers Protests: By Dennis Weidemann. This hardcover book about the Wisconsin uprising has 150 photos and personal stories that exemplify the diversity and intimacy of this movement. I recognized old friends and new in its pages. Different enough from We Are Wisconsin that you could own both without too much overlap.

  

And, of course, you could make a donation to United Wisconsin (to Recall Scott Walker) in the name of a friend or family member as their gift this year! 

NOTE: All of these books and the CD are also available through the South Central Library System in Wisconsin.

Olbrich's Holiday Express 2011

The first rush of visitors is over making it the perfect time to visit Olbrich's Holiday Express. The annual winter extravaganza features model trains, evergreens and a gorgeous array of poinsettias. This year's visual treats include unusual birdhouses like the glass one pictured below and stained glass panels featuring images of birds. You can find more information about the Holiday Express as well as December concerts on Olbrich's web site. You can also get one free ticket to the show by taking an online scavenger hunt; deadline is Tuesday, Dec. 13.

PHOTO BY KATY PLANTENBERG/OLBRICH STAFF

The pale pink and white poinsettias (above) are a beautiful change from the traditional bright colors. I was quite taken with them when I was at Olbrich earlier this week. I noticed Olbrich's Growing Gifts shop was selling them along with Amaryllis and many wonderful gifts for gardeners and others on your list. Olbrich is also offering holiday cards with images of the gardens taken by Olbrich staff members or local photographers. You might also consider a gift certificate to the shop or a membership to the Olbrich Botanical Society (the friends organization). I just used an Olbrich gift certificate to buy myself a copy of the 2012 Madison Area Master Gardeners Journal/Calendar — a great gift with a local slant. 

PHOTO BY SHARON CYBART/OLBRICH STAFF

Holiday Express is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., except for Dec. 24 when it closes at 2 p.m. and it's closed all day on Christmas. Admission for the general public is $3 (ages 13 and up) and $2 for children ages 3-12.

A bejeweled tree

When I was right out of grad school, my roommate and I had a great old apartment that allowed us to play out our decorating fantasies; albeit on a very limited budget. That means that at Christmas we could afford a big tree but not the ornaments. So we made paper chains, strung popcorn and improvised. One of the things we did was to put all our jewelry on the tree to add a bit of sparkle.

This year I decided to resurrect that idea and hung assorted earrings on the tiny tree that I ususally decorate with miniature ornaments. I have to say that it turned out to be easier said than done. Since I was using earrings that I actually wear, I had to be careful not to damage them by bending the posts or the loops that go through my ears. I resorted to hanging a few using ornament wires — until I remembered the stash of 1950's clip-on earrings I have that belonged to my mother. They proved to be easy to attach to the branches and added the touch of glam that my little tree needed to shine!

Happy Thanksgiving

We won't be going quite as far as over the river, but we will pass some woods on our way to Thanksgiving dinner with family. Hope you are able to spend time with those you love today.

WWBD?

"What Would Bob Do?" has been the catchphrase around Wisconsin ever since Governor Walker took office. Bob, of course, is Robert M. "Fighting Bob" La Follette, one of this state's most famous sons, a renowned orator, Governor, and member of both houses of Congress. Locally his name is honored with a Madison high school as well as the UW-Madison's Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs. The great man's bust in the Wisconsin State Capitol was draped in flowers and messages throughout last winter's protests. His name is constantly invoked because of the stands he took supporting citizenry against the abuses of big business.  

In 1957, a Senate Committee selected La Follette as one of the five greatest U.S. Senators, while a 1982 survey asking historians to rank the "ten greatest Senators in the nation's history" based on "accomplishments in office" and "long range impact on American history," put La Follette first (tied with Henry Clay). 

That's why the annual Progressive Chautauqua held each summer in Wisconsin is known as Fighting Bob Fest. This year's tenth annual gathering will be held in Madison and the lineup promises rabble-rousing speechifying of the kind that made La Follette famous. It's an entertaining and inspiring way to share ideas on the issues facing Wisconsin and the nation — along with figuring out how to move from words to action. And, of course, beer and music. It's Wisconsin after all!. 

Friday night — that's this coming Friday, Sept. 16th — kicks off Bob Fest at 7 pm. at the The Barrymore Theatre with Dennis Kucinich, Thom Hartmann, Jim Hightower, Greg Palast, Ruth Conniff, Stan Gruszynski, and the usual local suspects like Ed Garvey and John Nichols. Tickets for Friday are $8.00 advance/$10.00 the day of show.

On Saturday, September 17, Fighting Bob Fest 10 with be at the Alliant Energy Center Veteran's Memorial Coliseum, running from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Pre-registration for Fighting Bob Fest is strongly encouraged and you can do it here.

To learn more, visit Fighting Bob Fest where you will find a list of speakers, the schedule for the day and more. See you there Friday and Saturday!

Bennington: Summer memories with recipe

Forty years ago this summer, my friend Monte and I packed up a home-made tent/trailer and drove 7,000 miles (or was it 10,000?) on a massive cross-country trip. We were roommates as well as art teachers, so we left when school recessed for the summer and returned Labor Day weekend. It was a great trip, resulting in lots of adventures which I remember via the first journal I ever kept.

All of this came back to me during my recent visit to Atomic Interiors where I purchased the Dansk BLT plates. Among the wonderful mid-century treasures the store offers was a set of four Bennington Pottery plates and bowls. Potter's Yard in Bennington was one of our stops in July, 1971, and we fell in love with their delightful dishes. I fell prey to temptation and memory at Atomic again and bought the eight pieces of Morning Glory Blue spatterware. Again, at $9 for the dinner plates and $7 for the bowls, Atomic's prices can't be beat. The current prices on-line at Bennington are $24 for the plate and $26 for the rimmed soup/pasta bowl. The pieces I bought at Atomic were made in 1961/62 when I was a freshman in high school; the company's been making stoneware dishes since 1948.

Along with notes and bits and pieces glued into that first journal was the this recipe for salad dressing (below) that we enjoyed at Potter's Yard. 

BENNINGTON DRESSING

• 1 tsp. Kosher salt
• 1 tsp. freshly cracker white pepper
  
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepepr
• 1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
  
• 2 tsp. finely chopped fresh garlic cloves
• 5 Tblspn. good tarragon vinegar
• 2 Tblspn. olive oil
• 10 Tblspn. vegetable oil
• 1 raw egg
• 1/2 cup light cream

Put all the ingredients in a jar and shake well to combine. Chill before serving. 

Alas, I did not make any notes as to what kind of salad this might have dressed.