I love it when people write books about the way I think about things. It makes it so much easier to organize my thoughts and argue my position. That said, here is the next book I am going to read:
Life, Inc. by Douglas Rushkoff
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Built to Last Wins!
Local documentarian and friend, John Paget, won the Congress for the New Urbanism's video contest. Here is the press release: http://www.cnu.org/cnu17/node/2853. John Norquist, president and CEO of CNU said, "Built to Last made me laugh out loud... But this video is serious too."
John is an award winning documentarian, the talent behind Paget Films (www.pagetfilms.com) and the producer/director behind the local internet tv channel, truebluebuffalo.com. John produced Let's Grow Buffalo, the short film that makes a case for urban agriculture and preservation in Buffalo.
John also teams up with other friends from Southern California, Chris Elisara, Drew Ward and Aaron Lemen. It was this team, collaborating as First and Main Media (www.firstandmain.tv), that produced Built to Last.
Congrats friends! I hope to see all of you in August.
Grace and peace to all.
John is an award winning documentarian, the talent behind Paget Films (www.pagetfilms.com) and the producer/director behind the local internet tv channel, truebluebuffalo.com. John produced Let's Grow Buffalo, the short film that makes a case for urban agriculture and preservation in Buffalo.
John also teams up with other friends from Southern California, Chris Elisara, Drew Ward and Aaron Lemen. It was this team, collaborating as First and Main Media (www.firstandmain.tv), that produced Built to Last.
Congrats friends! I hope to see all of you in August.
Grace and peace to all.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Rethinking the Lord's Supper
Below is a link to a blog that I read on a regular basis. I have been thinking this way about the Eucharist for some time now. I believe that Christ's word about being present when two or three are gathered in His name is simply another way of saying, "remember me when you break bread together."Rethinking the Lord’s Supper
Grace and peace to all.
Image is the work of deb hoeffner.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Housing Crisis My A@#
Forgive the provocative title. It's all about the headline right?
I have been asking myself this ever since the word foreclosure became the most commonly used word in the national media.
What's the big deal?
The housing crisis has been in full swing for decades in my neighborhood. Of the 50 grand homes that used to sit on my block, 18 are still standing. That's 64% of the housing gone. Not in foreclosure or sitting vacant... GONE! That means that 64% of the houses on my block have already been through foreclosure and sat vacant for many years and fallen apart and been torn or burned down. Another 10% sit vacant today. This is just one block out of the hundreds like it in Buffalo and hundreds of thousands like it throughout the nations urban communities. Where is the outcry? Where are the billions of dollars of federal money to bail out these communities? Welfare right?
Welfare in the form of federally funded highways that make wealthy suburbs possible?
Welfare in the form of mortgage interest tax deductions that make middle and upper class homeownership possible?
Without these, the largest welfare programs in the history of humanity, everyone would be stuck in the 'hood. But, if everyone was stuck in the 'hood then the 'hood wouldn't exist. Instead, the 'hood would be a stable, viable community. Not perfect, but stable. Not without problems, but with solutions. Almost like it was before this mad scientist experiment called suburbanization began.
How do we move forward from here? We have moved to one of the abandoned places and are building a community here. With our neighbors we are trying to cross racial lines, socio-economic lines and spiritual lines. We are sharing the joys of new babies and the pain of mothers having to leave those babies to go to war. We are loving our neighbors but more importantly, our neighbors are loving us. "Move to the 'hood and minister" is the call but the surprise is that the 'hood has much more to give than we do.
Grace and peace to all.
P.S. Here is the news item that started this little rant: Empty neighborhoods fill Rust Belt
Also, 6 of NY State's 10 most abandoned neighborhoods are on Buffalo's East Side - our neighborhood.
The picture above is the view from our front window.
I have been asking myself this ever since the word foreclosure became the most commonly used word in the national media.
What's the big deal?
The housing crisis has been in full swing for decades in my neighborhood. Of the 50 grand homes that used to sit on my block, 18 are still standing. That's 64% of the housing gone. Not in foreclosure or sitting vacant... GONE! That means that 64% of the houses on my block have already been through foreclosure and sat vacant for many years and fallen apart and been torn or burned down. Another 10% sit vacant today. This is just one block out of the hundreds like it in Buffalo and hundreds of thousands like it throughout the nations urban communities. Where is the outcry? Where are the billions of dollars of federal money to bail out these communities? Welfare right?
Welfare in the form of federally funded highways that make wealthy suburbs possible?
Welfare in the form of mortgage interest tax deductions that make middle and upper class homeownership possible?
Without these, the largest welfare programs in the history of humanity, everyone would be stuck in the 'hood. But, if everyone was stuck in the 'hood then the 'hood wouldn't exist. Instead, the 'hood would be a stable, viable community. Not perfect, but stable. Not without problems, but with solutions. Almost like it was before this mad scientist experiment called suburbanization began.
How do we move forward from here? We have moved to one of the abandoned places and are building a community here. With our neighbors we are trying to cross racial lines, socio-economic lines and spiritual lines. We are sharing the joys of new babies and the pain of mothers having to leave those babies to go to war. We are loving our neighbors but more importantly, our neighbors are loving us. "Move to the 'hood and minister" is the call but the surprise is that the 'hood has much more to give than we do.
Grace and peace to all.
P.S. Here is the news item that started this little rant: Empty neighborhoods fill Rust Belt
Also, 6 of NY State's 10 most abandoned neighborhoods are on Buffalo's East Side - our neighborhood.
The picture above is the view from our front window.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Built to Last
A few friends of ours put together a short film for the Congress for New Urbanism's YouTube video contest. John Paget is a Buffalo based film maker behind the web tv channel, TrueBlueBuffalo.com. The contest is based on the number of views on YouTube so show your support of walkable communities and local artists by watching this thought provoking film.
Here is the link: Built to Last
P.S. I would embed the film but then it doesn't count as a view on YouTube. Now go to YouTube and watch the film.
Here is the link: Built to Last
P.S. I would embed the film but then it doesn't count as a view on YouTube. Now go to YouTube and watch the film.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Here we grow again!
Today was a huge blessing. Our neighbor took his dump truck out to Amherst's municipal composting facility this morning and picked up 10 tons of beautiful soil. He backed into the vacant lot that we own and tried to dump the load. Unfortunately for me, even his skilled driving couldn't get the soil out of the bed. I ended up climbing inside and shoveling the remaining soil out of the truck.
Duffy, a volunteer from the Wesleyan Church at Hamburg came over and spent the morning helping me remove the sod and mound our raised beds with soil. A few hours of hard labor and we have several beds almost ready for planting. Come Memorial Day we will set out 150 tomato plants and a variety of other veggies. Thanks to all who lent a hand.
Duffy, a volunteer from the Wesleyan Church at Hamburg came over and spent the morning helping me remove the sod and mound our raised beds with soil. A few hours of hard labor and we have several beds almost ready for planting. Come Memorial Day we will set out 150 tomato plants and a variety of other veggies. Thanks to all who lent a hand.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Buffalo's Urban Farms
A neighborhood friend and blogger just posted about Buffalo's urban farm history. fix Buffalo highlights the city program to establish urban farms to feed the poor and hungry during hard times in the 1890's. Ironically, Buffalo was following the example of Detroit's urban agriculture program. Today, Detroit is working to establish urban farms on its acres and acres of vacant land. Let's hope that Buffalo can again follow the example of others in developing urban agriculture.
The aerial photo above is a 150 acre farm at the Buffalo Psychiatric Asylum in 1927. In 1927 Buffalo's population was more than double the current population and we still had room for 150 acres of farm land. We now know this farm as Buffalo State College.
Links:
fix Buffalo's 1890 urban farm post
WNY Heritage Press article on 1890's urban farms
Detroit urban farm proposal
The aerial photo above is a 150 acre farm at the Buffalo Psychiatric Asylum in 1927. In 1927 Buffalo's population was more than double the current population and we still had room for 150 acres of farm land. We now know this farm as Buffalo State College.
Links:
fix Buffalo's 1890 urban farm post
WNY Heritage Press article on 1890's urban farms
Detroit urban farm proposal
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