Eliza Daley ~ Wordcraft & Musing on Home & Hope
I tossed out what many seem to have construed as a slur on Western Americans last week, mostly, I confess, for the alliterative qualities of the phrase. (Because I do like me some euphony.) I said Burqueños are “laconic and lazy” (and not much interested in your specialness). Far from being derogatory, this is high… Continue reading In Praise of Laziness
I’ve been an armchair archeologist/anthropologist for most of my life. I’ve always had a fascination with deep history. I’ve spent a lifetime trying to tease out the Story of Us not mediated through the words of the privileged few; and deep history, pre-history, is where you find the story before it was broken. Further, when… Continue reading Gatherers
We often talk about justice in terms of the harvest. There is a certain poetic fitness in this. The work that goes into creating a harvest, the sowing and cultivating, is balanced by a commensurate reward. You get out something proportional to what you put in. When applied literally this reward is nourishment, food —… Continue reading False Harvest
Recently, I was involved in a discussion about the things we do and do not teach our children. I’ve already said quite a bit on this subject. But after talking with a few other people about education, and especially secondary education, I realized I approached the subject from the assumption that the purpose of school… Continue reading Educating for the Prime Directive
It is nearly Lughnasadh, fair season. This is the time of year when we gather together to celebrate and share and boast about our handicrafts. The Irish have a such a deep passion for these crafty clan gatherings, they put a deity in charge. Lugh was the primary god of the Tribe. These days, he… Continue reading Lugh’s Blessing
In the past couple weeks I’ve encountered two new books from people who should know better claiming that our big brains and social systems are rooted in hunting. This is the bad penny of origin stories — Man the Hunter. It is time someone bites down on this one and shows once and for all… Continue reading Further Exegesis of A Man
Recently, I read an essay by a high school teacher, Belle Chesler, describing her plague year. Near the end she writes this: The skills and the knowledge we promote as most valuable are tied to workforce demands — not to what should count as actual life learning or growth. When you narrow achievement to what’s… Continue reading On Education
Do Nothing: How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and Underliving Celeste Headlee Harmony Books, 2020 There’s a good deal to think about packed into this little book. Its essence is yet another reminder that much of our culture, and especially our work culture, is rather bad for our health. (It’s bad for the planet’s… Continue reading Do Nothing: Review
Last week I talked about the things that you can do. I think a follow-up is necessary. These are the things we need to build into society, things we must do collectively. This list is just as important, but it will take much more work. Very likely a good deal of pain. These are problems… Continue reading Tear It Down to Build It Up
We may be approaching cataclysm. To avoid that, I believe it is essential that most of us take up essential work, that we level out responsibilities and rewards, that we meet our own needs. We need to truly value necessary work, not just bang pots and pans. And we all need to do this work.
By My Solitary Hearth 