Thursday, June 30, 2016

on the mundane

which is of course not really so mundane because, after all, who has fresh chevre balls in their fridge?  Who has fresh whole grain bread?  Who has hoes that are balanced and sharp and can go through the corn row in just a few minutes, and maneuver around the purslane?



Yes, we're special.  The thing about that is, you can be too.  And it doesn't take a roll of the dice or someone else's approval to be able to either.

Let me recommend these Rogue hoes tho.  They just came today so we haven't used them much yet.  Would have liked to have bought them locally but the closest place that carried them was 100 miles one way.  Would have liked to have talked our local metallurgist into making practical tools like this but he doesn't have the foresight either.  More's the pity.  Bless his heart.  But they are sharp, heavy metal but surprisingly light tool (with nice thick long handle too) that seem to really get the job done efficiently.  Love quality hand tools.  And you could buy the best of the best of every hand tool and still hardly spend any money to speak of.

While I'm thinking of it.  Remember years ago Madcap's post (I can't find it in a really quick look see but if you do, I'd love to link it) about what would everyone contribute to their community?  And it garnered a LOT of responses mostly of coordinating this, supervising that, lots of Chiefs not many Indians (is that ok to say? probably not, probably an expression I'll edit out of future editions of myself), nobody really producing the food or cleaning the toilet.  Well, the other day a local friend did a facebook status intended to promote local businesses and no one produced ANYTHING.  Well, except the husband, I put his link up there.  Most of the various things I do are services too, so I'm not one to talk.  But in the end, someone has to make the food, the house, and clean up after, and do the stuff, and the people who do should not be the lowest rung but should be highly valued.  And the antidote to privilege is not stopping at recognizing it but refusing, as much as possible, to participate in the culture of it.

Do real stuff.  With real tools. Yourself.

2 comments:

jules said...

See, that's what I don't get either. I wonder when hard work, working with your hands, manual labor, became something to be looked down upon. Seems lots of folks think of you and treat you like dirt if you work outside, work in a service industry (unless their a/c goes out!), or sweat for a living. Once upon a time, it (hard work) was thought of as an honorable vocation, a badge of honor to be worn, something folks valued. I try very hard to honor those who do the hard work for me that I can’t do. And yes, it sure seems now days that folks that don't really DO anything get all the glory, and all the money. Seems they think that gives them license to look down their noses on the rest of folks. <- Who harvests your organic pest free lettuce?

CG said...

well, there is no organic pest free lettuce! LOL!