No Time Like the Present

Someone said "God made time to keep everything from happening all at once." Whatever time is and where ever it came from, our concept of it stumbles when we try to grasp time in chunks longer than the breadth of a human life--the longest segment of it that any of us experience. We are drops in an ocean of time. The occasional glimpse of that immense sea can be as grounding as a summer night under the heavens that shows us our place in the vastness of space.

You'll find this kind of wide-angle view of time in the marvelous illustration of the geological ages created by the US Geological Survey. [http://goo.gl/Vrlak]  Knowing where Earth has been can help us think about where she and we are headed. We can only study the past, but we can use what we learn of Earth's history towards shaping the future, a work of non-fiction we all help to write.

The time illustration I mention begins at a distant point some 4.5 billion years ago when the matter of space formed a consolidated mass called a planet.

The graphic's rising spirals of time each span hundreds of millions of years. Along this ribbon are depicted events associated with any given age: the earliest simple life forms, then life in the oceans, plant and animal life on land--mosses and algae, fish and amphibians, reptiles and mammals--and the formation of the land masses by "continental drift" about 200 million years ago. 

All along the course of geological time have been events, often cataclysmic--super-volcanoes, meteor impacts, ice ages--that brought about marked changes in the air and oceans and mix of living creatures. Science speaks of these new periods as geological epochs. They are often marked by significant abrupt or extended episodes of extinction followed by periods of (relatively) rapid expansion of new creatures, who, in turn, leave their marks in the geological record.

The spiral stops when it reaches the present. Just before the very end of the spiral, the Ice Age of the Pleistocene epoch ends. The more stable period called the Holocene then begins (about 11.5 thousand years ago) and mankind settles down, and civilizations grounded by agriculture and religion flourish. In this whole span of Earth time, we have only just arrived. 

We've set up housekeeping on Earth for such a fleetingly short while. And yet in that time, we have left our mark on every aspect of the planet--so much so that future scientists could see clearly the age of mankind's presence. This is especially true since 1950 when our population surged. Since that time, our resource footprint has grown much larger.

This new age is evident, too often by damaging changes, in the soil, the water and the fragile atmosphere. It is evident by what is being called the "sixth great period of extinction", and every day now, 200 species cease to leave a next generation. Our living on Earth has become the most recent cataclysm of change in the planet's history.

A name has been proposed for the geological epoch ushered in by the industrial revolution: the Anthropocene. The age of man. And while the name (still unofficial) finds humankind the source of recent alterations and disturbances, it also offers to our species alone the opportunity to care for the home planet. At this unique juncture in Earth's history, we have the knowledge. We have the technologies. We have yet to accept the responsibilities to use these gifts cooperatively, globally and justly. We are running out of time. But I think I see reasons to hope.

Fred First will present "What We Hold In Our Hands: The Possibilities of the Anthropocene" at the Land's Sake event, May 5, at Floyd County High School. Doors Open at 9:30 am. Program details can be found online at http://goo.gl/4r9I0. 

Green Machine Expo at Land's Sake 2012

Gas prices are rising.  Air pollution is increasing.  What can we do?

More than 50% of our air pollution comes from vehicles and small engines.  Trucks, cars, tractors, ATVs,  lawn mowers.  Carbon monoxide and sulfur compounds are toxic.  Carbon dioxide is acidifying our water and contributing to climate change.  Particles in the exhaust blacken the lungs of humans and animals.  More people have asthma and respiratory problems than ever before.

Walking is better.  Push mowers are better.  Hike through the woods instead of driving an ATV or motorcycle.  Use a rake not a leaf blower.  Save money on gas.  Don’t buy machines you don’t really need.  Much better for your health and the health of all those around you.   Better for animals and forests. Doing things without machines makes you physically stronger and saves you money!

Sometimes machines are required.  All pollutants can be reduced if we buy more efficient products.  The less fuel that is used, the less pollution is produced the more money we save - on gas and health costs.

Land’s Sake 2012 is a free full day event on May 5 to bring you all kinds of information to save you money, improve your health and preserve these beautiful farms and land here in Floyd County.

There will be more than 35 presentations about farm, field, forest and energy with speakers, posters, brochures, information and conversation.  Topics from organic gardening and soil testing to bee keeping and hunter education will be discussed.

There will be a Green Machine Expo that will include small electric vehicles to use around the farm or just around town.  Cars, trucks and tractors that are designed to use less gasoline will be there for you to evaluate.  New 2012 technology as well as vehicles owned by local folks  can tell you how they like them.   A biofuel converted tractor will be displayed by the high school students who made it work.

So come to the Floyd County High School on May 5 from 9:30 AM till 3:00 PM.   Come for an hour or a day for this FREE community event sponsored by the Partnership for Floyd.  A full schedule of speakers and presenters are on board.   Email PartnershipForFloyd@gmail.com for more information.

Program Details for May 5 Now Set

The details and schedule for this year's program are available and can be seen or the page downloaded from this link or see the PROGRAM tab on this site.

And while the list for vendors is fixed on this page, there are still spaces for tables for vendors of land care and sustainability-related products and services. See the vendor form for information.

As some of you will remember from last year, this event goes on, rain or shine. Matter of fact, a sudden cool snap and threat of rain might just encourage you to take a break from your garden and yard, and join a hundred or more neighbors and new friends to eat, chat, think and plan.

Articles from the auditorium presenters and other program participants will be published in the Floyd Press over the weeks of April, and then included here in case you miss them or want to read them again or follow web links and such.

There has never been a more important time for communities to work together, with each other and with the soil and water. You can go home from Land's Sake 2012 encouraged, equipped and enlightened, and share that information and energy with your family and friends to keep Floyd County a great place to sink roots--human and otherwise!

Land's Sake 2012: Forest, Field and Farm May 5

Details regarding the day's program will be coming soon for those who will join us at Floyd High School as participants, speakers and vendors. Check back from time to time for updates.

Note: Vendors of land-related services or products can sell if approved by the committee. Forms for vendors are available now.  Forms must be submitted for approval in order to secure a table. If you wish to do a presentation or to speak to a small group in the vendor area, indicate this on your form. Thanks!

10 Reasons to Eat Floyd Food

On April 16 many of the Farmers, Gardeners and Naturalists of Floyd County will gather to exchange stories and tips.  Below are some reasons.

1. Local Food Tastes Good!  Straight from your own garden and onto your plate .  Everybody knows it doesn't get any better than that.  Buying food  from your neighbor is the closest you can get to growing your own.  There is nothing like a ripe Floyd tomato right off the vine!

2. Eating local means more money for the local economy.   A dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for the local economy.  When businesses are not owned locally, money leaves the community at every transaction.   Buy from your neighbors rather than from those big businesses in the next town or state.  When neighbors do better financially they contribute more to taxes and local economy and your roads get fixed faster.

3. Locally grown foods are healthier.  Produce that ripens on the vine has a longer time to absorb a full nutrient content.  It will be handled less and more likely be grown for flavor than for ability to withstand shipping.  Good flavor in produce is often a sign of good nutrition.  Our bodies recognize that.  Highly processed foods are known to increase obesity.  A piece of local fruit is FAR healthier than a granola bar filled with sugar, labeled with strange chemicals, covered in wrappings and shipped all over. Nature does it best. Right in our own back yard.

4. Local Food uses far less Fossil Fuels.  They don't need to be transported very far.  That reduces need of fuel.  It also reduces fuel needed for  building the trucks used for transport, for factories that build those trucks, for mining metals for trucks and factories.

5. Eating local is better for air quality and pollution.  Less fossil fuels equals less pollution.  Less factories that make trucks for transport means less pollution.  Less factories means more room for forests which filter pollution.  Want to breathe fresh air?  Ditch the food transport.  Eat and drink local.  Save the Forests. We really NEED the forests!

6. Eating and Drinking  Local saves Natural Resources.  Forests and natural ecosystems filled with wildlife have to be cut and cleared to make all those factories and trucks.  Land will be covered in asphalt for parking and roads.  Wildlife erased. That can of soda is bad for you. Bottled water can have carcinogens and processed food is linked to obesity.    They left a path of destruction on their way to you.  Drink local, Floyd water.  It is cleaner here in our mountains than most places on earth. Instead of  recycling that can,  drink local water and don't buy aluminum cans, plastic bottles, packaged processed food.    Better for you.  Better for the Earth! 

7. Locally grown food is fresher.  Many fruits, vegetables and even meat comes from long distances.  Sometimes across the world.  Produce is not ripe when picked and often old when purchased.  Disease bacteria have longer to multiply.  Nutrition declines.

8. Buying local food keeps us in touch with the seasons.  By eating with the seasons, we are eating foods when they are at their peak taste, are the most abundant, healthiest and the least expensive.   Stick some in your freezer for the winter.  Freezing is quick, easy and actually uses a little less resources than canning and you don't need a factory somewhere to freeze it for you.  Learn more about foods that grow well here in Floyd so you can garden some of your own.  You might even try learning about some terrific wild foods and eat some weeds instead of using pesticides on them.

9. Supporting local Farmers supports responsible land development. When you buy local, you give farmers an economic reason to keep their farmland healthy and productive.  Farmers that can sell their food locally can stay in business instead of selling their land to the highest bidder.  Good farmers protect their soil and are more attuned to keeping their land productive for generations into the future.  Here in Floyd we all love this beautiful land.  We want to keep our forests and our farmland healthy.  Support our Farmers.

10. And last - but not least - Buying locally grown food is good for the Soul!  Everyone knows that good community is important to mental and physical health. When you buy local you get to see your neighbors more often.  You get to meet more folks at the local stores and markets.  You can find out what is happening in our town.  Get to know and connect to the people living around you. You get more smiles in your day.  Maybe even some hugs.  You will be happier and so will your neighbors!

Land's Sake - Floyd's Journey Ahead.  This FREE event will take place on April 16th at the Floyd County High School from 9:30am to 3:00 pm.  Partnership for Floyd is sponsoring individuals, businesses and organizations sharing ideas about our land – how to use it, preserve it, protect it, and better understand our relationship to it.  There will be information on agriculture,  natural resources, local products, energy efficiency, and more.   There will be good coffee, tasty local food, Entertaining, educational presentations and lots of great conversation.

     For more information,  please contact Karin Grosshans at (540)239-0375 or Lynn Carden at (757)355-0010 or email Jane Cundiff at PartnershipForFloyd@gmail.com. See http://is.gd/o3bE3j for more details. 

Article by Jane Cundiff / Photo by Fred First