The Rescue

On an early morning this past summer, while walking next to Sycamore Pool, I came upon a trapped Acorn Woodpecker clinging to the pool’s edge to escape the water.  On seeing me, the poor bird, frightened, let go and tried to “swim” back across the pool.  If the bird were in the water much longer it would almost certainly die of hypothermia. I ran to get help.

This is Kyle, who works for the Parks Dept., checking out the poor bedraggled Acorn Woodpecker he’d just rescued.  Kyle, like the other Park workers, spends a lot of time making repairs and improvements to the Park’s infrastructure along with the never-ending chore of cleaning restrooms and picking up trash. I’m grateful for Kyle and the other workers who, day after day, work to keep the park in order and yet take time to save the life of a little bird.  The Parks Dept. works on a slim budget and it’s all that a small staff of only 7 workers can manage just to keep up with the demands put upon them. Personally, whatever the cost, I gladly pay taxes for the work they do.

Author’s note:  I created this photo story several years ago and at that time the GRUB CSA wasn’t selling at the Saturday Farmers’ Market.  I include them now along with Bruce as one of the local organic family farms that serve to bring farm and table closer together.

In times like these, when many people are suffering from economic hardships and the Earth is suffering from environmental degradation, it’s not sustainable to have our food trucked in to us from hundreds or even thousands of miles away.  The Saturday Chico Farmers’ Markets provides local, small family farmers a central place to truck their crops a short distance and sell directly to their customers.  It’s less costly to the farmer, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and provides fresher food for the customer.  Farmers and customers meet each week, building a relationship that’s not possible when buying from corporate grocery outlets whose suppliers are often distant and unknown to the buyer. My photos tell the story of Bruce, a local, organic farmer who lives and grows his crops on acreage within two miles of the downtown Farmers’ Market, and his relationship to a customer who lives within one mile of the Market and buys from him each week.  Bruce says it’s important to keep our nearby valuable farmland productive and secure from the ambitions of developers who would convert the land to other “more profitable” uses.  And with the price of gasoline continuing to rise and the threat of GMOs in unlabeled foods, it’s to the customer’s advantage to have a source of fresh, organic food that’s close by and accessible.

Tree Bones                        

I saw them

lying at the base

of the old sycamore,

in a pile of dry,

brown leaves -

broken limbs,

bleached white

by the sun.

Old tree bones.

by Karen Laslo 11/08

 

KZFR 90.1FM, Chico

The big billboard behind Pullins Cyclery, corner of 8th St. and Main, reads, “Together we’re community.” And the “community” referred to is that of the KZFR Programmers shown on the billboard and, by implication, that of the community shared by KZFR listeners.

But a billboard by its very nature is necessarily selective and I want you to see some of the other faces of Programmers who make up the diverse KZFR volunteer community. It was a great pleasure for me to photograph 31 Programmers whose voices reach you on the dial at 90.1FM week after week throughout the year.

To view the entire collection of Programmers (and some staff and supporters)  photos click on this link: People.