Dakota

Chair with Chicken

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IMPORTANT NOTE: EVEN IF YOU DO NOT HAVE THE PATIENCE TO WEND YOUR WAY THROUGH ALL THIS LONGWINDEDNESS , YOU SIMPLY MUST CLICK THE VERY LAST CLICKIE, "EXTRAVAGANCE", BEFORE YOU GO ON ABOUT YOUR DAY.

Ah synchronicity. I wanted to post this photograph today because I just published a retrospective of chair shots two days ago, and thought it flowed along quite chairishly. You can guess, because of the prominent chicken, that I shot this picture in anticipation of an avian flu information entry.

In my quest for trustworthy, thoughtful up-to-date flu information, I went directly over to Effect Measure, only to find that Revere has changed his address. Here's a short summary of my visit there, while I'm on the subject. Revere reminds us of the problems in dissemination of accurate scientific information about the progress of H5N1. He wrote a five part summary about WHO's sluggish internal issues, but that's not all. A heartbreaking example of the difficulty of information dissemination are the conditions under which the cluster of flu deaths in Indonesia are occurring. People are impovershed and ill served anyway, and now have suffered terribly from the effects of political corruption, the tsunami, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Oh, and tourism, a major industry, will suffer if there is bad public health news. In the ensuing chaos, opportunities for distortion and miscommunication abound. In China, even though the government is trying to strictly reinforce bird flu containment measures, small farmers hide infections because their livelihood depends on their chickens.

Al Gore quoted Upton Sinclair in "An Inconvenient Truth", "It's hard to get a man to understand something when his salary [in the case of the poor, his life] depends upon his not understanding."

Then, in search of Herman van Bon's poem about solar umbrellas (which I never found, by the way, see comments in chair entry), I explored the new and elaborated Soekershof: Mazes and Botanical Gardens website. In reading about the values and intentions of the project, I understood a bit more. This is a sacred enterprise, based on an appreciation of nature, humor, play, creation, expression and respect for the land, and the growth and development of the people and plants who participate-- employees and visitors alike.

Corporate team building is now being offered in the mazes. "A maze can be very confronting; especially for very ambitious people who prefer to take short cuts. At Soekershof Walkabout they discover, in a pleasant manor (sic, wordplay), that a long way around or a dead end also have their charms." A true ecobusiness.

Although it is never explicitly stated, I suspect that Herman and Yvonne, the proprietors of Soekershof, are probably early environmental expatriots. I bet they searched the world for environmentally sound locations (upstate New York is one of the areas I know they considered), before deciding to emigrate from "'the lowest wetlands' in The Netherlands to a 'high and dry' Klaas Voogds in South Africa in April 2000". Holland, according to Al Gore's movie, is one of the countries that will not fare well if sea levels rise precipitously.

Environmental immigration is going to be an emerging phenomenon. I know a woman from Mexico City who cannot live there because of her asthmatic response to the poor air quality. As the weather becomes more severe, and the climate changes, some populations will have to shift inland, and drought will drive others to move in search of water.

So that was my journey this morning, full of delight, and as well as concern for the state of the world.

Then, when I checked my email, I found this amazing tribute to the extravagance of nature --- one that involves a bird. I actually can't tell if it's real, or a most wonderful spoof. It really doesn't matter does it?

Let's hear it for coming full circle.

Photo note: Like I said, a chicken on a chair.

Posted by Dakota at June 9, 2006 06:34 PM