Author Archives: Heather

FREE RANGE: FOOD, NATURE, PLACE, AND MORE

Hall of mirrors: the lost art of conversation

Posted on September 17, 2010 by Heather

Last week I found myself in a conversation with someone who doesn’t believe in AGW and has written a soon-to-be-published book explaining his position. AGW—which I had to look up—is short for anthropogenic global warming, or global warming caused by … Continue reading →

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Stubbing the giant’s toe: thoughts on Midwestern agribusiness

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Heather

Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. Corn. Soybeans. And did I mention corn? We drove last week from Austin to Gambier, Ohio, to deliver our youngest to college, and then back to … Continue reading →

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“A cup of tea, a warm bath, and a brisk walk”

Posted on August 20, 2010 by Heather

A path is little more than a habit that comes with knowledge of a place. (Wendell Berry) If you are ready to leave father and mother, and brother and sister, and wife and child and friends, and never see them … Continue reading →

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Cleaning out the mental refrigerator: Niebuhr, McKibben, and Band-Aids

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Heather

I’ve been surveying the multitude of leftovers in the refrigerator of my mind. When was the last time this thing was cleaned out? Jeez. Prodded into further examination of my last post by subsequent emails, conversations, and readings, I’ve concluded … Continue reading →

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Double vision: prophets, tribalism, eugenics, and the environment

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Heather

As I dog-paddle through the sea of books threatening to drown not just me but the overwhelmed shores of my bedside table, I found these sentences: “For those who draw near and offer themselves before God, satisfaction of hunger is … Continue reading →

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Made for you and me: thoughts on private property

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Heather

Last week I went to Woody Creek, Colorado, to visit my father, sister, and brother and their posses. Among the many pleasures I find at the family place are my early morning walks up a trail that runs behind my … Continue reading →

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The gift economy

Posted on June 25, 2010 by Heather

Martin’s last post about our entertainingly (or so we hope) ill-prepared entry into the marketplace has got me thinking. (Martin says the most terrifying words in the world are “Honey, I’ve been thinking…” when they come out of my mouth. … Continue reading →

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Home with the armadillo: a love letter to Texas

Posted on June 11, 2010 by Heather

Recently we and our three kids went to Martin’s native San Francisco to help celebrate his father’s eighty-fifth birthday. The five of us spent an afternoon walking along the cliffs of Point Reyes National Seashore, where the ground was springy, … Continue reading →

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Still more on violence: there will be blood

Posted on May 28, 2010 by Heather

The other day, I stopped my car to chat with neighbors (a frequent occurrence in our chatty neighborhood). We quickly got to the topic of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and its spreading devastation. D. told me that he’d heard … Continue reading →

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The devil’s bargain: on gardening and violence

Posted on May 7, 2010 by Heather

I spent last weekend at the ranch planning a new garden—or, rather, watching our dear friend Glee Ingram, an Austin landscape designer; Steve Diver, a horticulturist with Sustainable Growth Texas; and Robert Selement, Madroño’s redoubtable manager, plan a new garden … Continue reading →

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