Of Other Earths and Mother Earth: An Interview by Allison

1. What's your take on this new planet that supposedly could support life? It's 120 trillion miles away!

I'm so glad you asked! Gliese 581 c has not been directly observed, but isn't it amazing how much information we can decipher from analyzing the data of gravitational effects on it's star? We know that it is in the habitable zone of temperature...that slim margin where water is in liquid state. It's MUCH closer to it's cool little red dwarf star than we are to our main sequence G2 (more commonly referred to as "the sun"), is 50% larger with 5 times the mass of Earth, and is tidally locked(doesn't rotate on it's axis) on it's 13 day orbit! Want to know more? So do I, but guess what, here is where all my gripes about the GOP budget cuts to NASA's unmanned science programs such as the Terrestrial Planet Finder have real implications. We need specialized instruments up there doing a spectral analysis to see what these extrasolar planets are really made of. Europe knows whats up, and when they launch Darwin in 2015 so will we.

Until then, I'll humor you with my speculations...
Let's imagine said planet is found to have a stable atmosphere capable of harboring life...it's entirely possible that it could be a waterworld, and maybe instead of Planet of the Apes, we have Planet of the Sea Monkeys, with deluxe castle wonderlands, and they really can play with you as the packaging has always claimed. Life gets a little more complex when you put land into the equation. Remember that the gravity there is about twice that of earth and our feeble frames wouldn't stand a chance. You might find animals low to the ground and slow moving like turtles perhaps. If anything evolved to stand like us their legs would need to be the size of tree trunks. Since one side of the planet is always daytime and the other night, prime real estate might be along the terminator where one could bask in perpetual sunset!

2. Exactly how many crafts do you know how to do?
I got, you know, like...sewing skills, knitting skills, spinning skills, embroidery skills, macrame skills, screen printing skills, jewelry-making skills, nunchuck skills, computer hacking skills....


3. Maybe too personal, so feel free to ignore, but will you ever try for a girl?
We are neither trying, nor artificially preventing. If a little Famke or Clark are in the cards that's cool, embracing the chaos is just how we roll.

4. What would be your ideal job?
I really like working at the coffee shop, but my dream job I think would be planning indie DIY events for Etsy. Putting together craft fairs is the ultimate in making stuff as your are making stuff for people who make stuff so they can sell the stuff they make and inspire others to make stuff.

5. What small thing has made you happy in the past week?
The kids and I switched to soy milk. Though I'd never deny us cheese, yogurt or the like... it's just a really good for you sort of thing. Along the same lines I haven't had even one soda in 4 months. Instead I make pitchers of iced green tea at home and avoid anything that I can with high fructose corn syrup when I'm out. I've made a lot a lot of little changes for the better like that over the past year, my personal ideal bites if you will, and once they become ritual I always feel great about it :)

Bonus happy small thing embed....I also watched Charlie the Unicorn again today.

6 (optional) What are your favorite flowers?
I'm not really into flowers, they are all pretty in their own way...I'm more of a forest and fungus kinda girl... but this is great way to preview my next post which is the makeover of our balcony deck! Behold my glorious herb garden...

In your face...basil (yes, I realize you know very well what this looks like, Allison :P), english thyme, rosemary, greek oregano, parsley, dill and chives.

That's french lavender alongside salvia and marigold. I don't know what the purple thing is. It's fuzzy and cute. I also have hildicote lavander in this box.

Meet Chocolate Mint! This one gets mulled in the bottom of my glass before I make cafe su da (strong chicory coffee with sweetened condensed milk over ice).


And finally we conclude our tour with lemongrass and lemon balm. They are finding their way into tea and spring rolls. I see spearmint peeking in on the left, she is destined for mojitos.

Of Other Earths and Mother Earth herself..I give you Bjork's new single, Earth Intruders. She has an album coming out a week after Tori...I'm going to be on music overload in May!

BJORK - Earth int...

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Thanks Allison, that was fun! This is a pay-it-forward meme sort of thing, so if anyone wishes me to interview them for their blog, request it as a comment and I will reply in my comments with 5 questions to you. Shun the non believers! Shuuuuuuuuunnnn.

The First Craftinental Congress

Here is the little something I've been meaning to blog on for so long, but had such a vague idea of what to expect that I couldn't even put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard) about it. Here is a snippet of the press release:

"Craft Congress, the first-ever gathering of the diy/indie craft movement’s leaders will be held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on March 31 and April 1, 2007. The goal is to build connections between the movement's organizers who have been primarily working in their communities; Craft Congress attendees will share knowledge and experience, creating a network and fostering the movement’s growth. Fifty participants from across the U.S., Canada, (and one from England), will attend this gathering of leaders in the increasingly popular craft subculture. Many attendees will stay in the homes of Pittsburgh hosts."

Congress in was in session Saturday and Sunday at the Spinning Plate Artists Lofts.

So basically I hoped on a plane all by my lonely for a weekend in Steel Town with a bunch of like-minded DIY delegates to discuss everything from corporate sponsorship to business entities to crafty politics and a short but interesting delve into "what the heck do we call ourselves?"

I also fancy how Deb Dormody(Craftland) put it,
"I went to the Craft Congress this weekend in Pittsburgh where 50 organizers of DIY craft shows came together to eat sandwich wraps."

Ariel (DE-Part-Ment- Chicago) Me! , and Michelle(Pretty Crafty Things - Leeds, UK)..Michelle was my roommate with host, Gloria Forouzan (Handmade Arcade), we had a smashing good time, and she brought me tea from England for extra cool points.

It was amazing to meet everyone, and who knows where all this networking and newly forged friendships are going to take us. I can't say we made any decisions, and really that wasn't the point, but rather to share ideas and open up dialogue in a series of facilitated sessions. I imagine the details of these sessions will start to make their way onto the web via transcripts and podcasts soon and will be sure to pass that info on!

The Friday night dinner at Remedy consisted of yummy crabcakes and brocolli and a beer called ying yang or ylan ylang or something like that. Yes Rachel (on right, Pandora's Trunk- San Francisco, CA) and Micaela (Indie Craft Documentry) think I have cooties.

Me, Michelle, Julie (Handmade Arcade), and Lish (Handmade Detroit) during the Saturday night reception at AIR. They had like, 5 different kinds of cupcakes there, and art, and screen printing of donkey posters(see all that and many more pics on our Craft Congress FlickR Pool).

I'm on information overload, but I also have a lot of great new ideas for Strange Folk, and a super secret new project I'm concocting. Special thanks to Gloria Forouzan, my Pittsburgh host, and to all the Craft Congress contributors and the O'Fallon Arts Commission for sponsoring my trip!

The Postal Service...