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Sun, 18 Apr 2004
Notes from the Creative Economy Symposium
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Lying in bed with Olympia in my arms and looking forward to tomorrow.
It stopped raining finally. By the time we pulled in to Brattleboro on Thursday the sky was blue and the sun was shining. Later that afternoon, after the Creative Economy Symposium, we drove along the rural backroads to Mass MoCA in North Adams, Massachussets, and later on took rte. 2 back towards Providence. It was late enough in the afternoon that warm sunlight was shining through the trees as we drove through the river valley. On the way out of town we had an amazing view of the Berkshires.
Tomorrow is Sunday, and it's supposed to be 70 degrees. My goal is to bike to the Coffee Exchange so I can post this article and to pick up ingredients for my vegetarian cooking workshop tomorrow. Meanwhile, it's 2 AM and my cat is curled up next to me, and I think I'd like to cuddle with her for a while before drifting off to sleep.
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Brattleboro's a cute litle town. I was up there on April 15th for a Creative Economy Symposium My favorite part by far, though, was the co-op.
My first experience shopping at co-ops was probably Wheatsfield Grocery in Ames, Iowa. Mainly what I remember is that they had a little play area for kids near the front window with one of those thermometer signs for tracking fundraisers--I think it may have been in the shape of a carrot. When I was in high school I took a lot of art classes at the Octagon, which was right next door--I would go there before figure drawing and buy fruit leathers and mango spritzers.
When I moved to Iowa City I started shopping at New Pioneer Co-op. They served some of the best sandwiches in the world. Like the Brad's potent pesto tofuwich: "Spiced organic tofu steamed with caramelized onion and Smoked Provolone, topped with sunflower sprouts and tomato. Served on Sourdough with sun-dried tomato spread and spinach pesto". Yum. I spent a lot of money on eating lunch there with my friend Ryan my freshman year (we enjoyed bonding over good food and french grammar). In the summers the Farmer's Market was help across the street, so I could very easily pick up fresh produce, horseradish cheese, and bulk olive oil all in one trip.
Providence doesn't have a real co-op. It has Whole Foods, which is good, but it doesn't have the bulk section and it doesn't have the same feel as a co-op. The good news is that Urban Greens (a buying club) and some students from Brown are working on starting one. It's about time. I know it takes years to reach the point of having a deli counter and having a wide selection, but I'll be happy if I can start buying my spices in bulk again.