Food, Music, Home and Acceptance

I have an obsession with two things - food and music. When I’m dead and gone my life’s work will have been dedicated to the incredibly visceral combination of the two. This is the kind of thing where level of intelligence is absolutely moot. It’s about that deep inward feeling that consumes us when we’re experiencing it. They are truly original forms of therapy. The heart is made up of four chambers and I’m apt to say that music and food are two of them.

Every Sunday, a tiny “Rustic American Eatery & Bakery” known as Salt of the Earth hosts incredibly talented guests for their music series. This restaurant is located in Fennville, MI which has an approximate population of only 1,400 people. You could miss driving through it if you sneezed and you certainly would regret it. This tiny town is the buckle to West Michigan’s agricultural belt. To quote their website, “Salt of the Earth celebrates the bounty of the Michigan farm, beverage, and roots music community.”. They actually partner with farmers, growers, brewers and distillers within a fifty-mile radius to provide a long forgotten quality of freshness in today’s food and it’s perfect partner-in-crime... music.

Last night we experienced, local to West Michigan indie-folk sensation, The Crane Wives for an unexpected feeling of euphoria (at seemingly the world’s best venue). They usually play to much larger crowds, but Salt of the Earth is a very special place. Their genre is outside of my go-to-music, however their enthusiastic passion still invoked something in me. They introduced The Diving Bell as their only “happy” song and then laughed because it starts off by referencing drowning. Their metaphors were raw and perfect as if they were lovingly ripened and picked from the garden of life.

I don’t mean to misquote one of their singers, but she said something to which I directly related. I wish I had it recorded, but I believe it was along these lines, “These songs are from our own personal experiences and anxieties. We interpret our emotions through our music. And that’s hard to do when you’re happy because when you’re happy...you know...you’re distracted.”. I’m telling you a huge gong crashed in my brain after she said that and life made just a little bit more sense right then.

Here we were in this perfect sized room with probably less than seventy-five people. On the table sat a bottle of Bordeaux, handmade aged cheddar pierogies with buttered red cabbage, a sweet-smoky wood-fired pizza and the best damn s’more on the planet. The timelessly enchanting melodies of The Crane Wives brought the whole experience full circle, making our toes tingle. Our server said they were “just the cutest band in the whole world”. She may have been right, but they reminded me more of a wolf-pack howling at the moon in perfect three-part harmony. Maybe a cute wolf-pack, though.

The Crane Wives @ Salt of the Earth - 10/26/14 - (photo credit: ShantsBySchantz)

The truth is our food came from the surrounding fields and our music came from our neighbors. This was more than the essence of Americana. This was more than a campaign known as Pure Michigan. This was more than West Michigan, even. This was the pioneering spirit of our home and all of us there accepted that we were a part of it together. Which reminds me, those other two chambers of our heart are exactly that - home and acceptance. Damn, that was delicious.

Scotty J ~ "If we can focus on living and loving locally, we can lead by example globally."

Check ‘em out here on the web...

http://thecranewives.com/

http://www.saltoftheearthfennville.com/index.htm

...and find your way to ‘em in person!!

Mid-Winter Break - A Rather Forward Reminder

 Needless to say, we've had a harsh winter in West Michigan this year. School closings, canceled events, tragedy-causing road conditions and sub-zero temperatures have been affecting regular everyday life as we know it. My Facebook feed has never been uglier with negative comments about our beautiful home. Let's try to get past that, my friends, and take a look at the bigger picture.

Embrace it, don't hate it!

   I drove a plow truck for a handful of years; claiming that I hated the snow and loved getting it out of peoples' way. Today when I look back on my snow-plowing years... I realize that it wasn't "hate" for the snow that kept me out there, but the adventure Mother Nature had waiting for me. I braved countless storms, helped stranded motorists and cleared a path for the "worker-bees" of my community. Ahhhhhhhh... what a refreshing and grand perspective. The winter of 2014 (alone) has offered an array of valuable life-lessons for me to not even dare continue hating something of which I have no control. 

   Mother Nature has done an incredible job of breaking up the monotony of our daily lives this winter. She proved that, no matter how much we try to defy her, SHE is in charge. She does not care about what time we have to be at our cubicles, when our next deadline is coming or catching flak from someone generically named "Management". Simply put, none of those things are natural. All we do when we complain about these things is prove that humans are capable of being much colder than the weather itself. We deserve to get snowed-in, we deserve an occasional leak in the roof and we deserve feeling helpless about it all. Many of us are desensitized from a true connection with the outside world. The fantasy that we are above all other things on this planet has been shattered by Mother Nature this winter... and it's fucking gorgeous.

"I hope you take the road less traveled and I hope you find the courage to grow." - Rebelution

   Last week I made a Facebook post that asked, "If you could take Mother Nature on a date, what would the two of you do?". The replies were adventurous, loving, honest, humorous, sexual, violent and some even sought forgiveness. I'd say the reply that made me smile the most was, "I would snow plow through her pillowy mounds and then travel south to hit golf clubs off of her well manicured fairway.", because who doesn't love a good sexual innuendo??

   If it were me, I would grab her by the hand and thank her for The Great Lakes. Together we would forage the land for the freshest bounty, head to the beach and prepare it over an open fire. She would teach me about Earth's mortality and I would write her a poem. We would spend the rest of the night laying in the sand, counting the shimmering stars overhead and letting our dreams dance together. When the early morning sun breaks over the horizon; I would gently touch her face and kiss her with passion. Our actions would speak louder than words and at that moment... I would be one with Mother Nature. Intimate, I know.

   Intimacy is a close, familiar, affectionate personal relationship. We owe that to Mother Nature - every moment of everyday. In actuality, her heart revolves around the sun and her spirit is moved by the moon. We can see it in the tides, taste it in our gardens and feel it in the air. Instead, we're too busy blaming her for our misfortunes. This is all due to a lack of intimacy with the outdoors. She doesn't blame us for being human, come on now!!

   Every season has pros and cons, but if we focus on the latter we are only conning ourselves. Here is my response to all of those shitty Facebook posts... Teachers - enough of being bitter about having to work into your summer. Be grateful that your students and co-workers are safe and sound on snow days. Snow Removal Specialists - you signed up for this, accept the glory of winter. Road Ragers - you deserve to be in the ditch. Think about the safety of your friends and family before you ride our asses and cause legitimate danger. Fake Winter Enthusiasts - you waste our lives twice by saying (in the late fall) you can't wait to hit the slopes, but when the snow actually comes you say you're "over-it". Let me be the first to correct you assholes... you're "under-it" and you probably always will be too.

   It has taken me twenty West Michigan winters to finally gain this perspective. The snow was always a love-hate relationship over those years. Now, I know in my heart that I love it here and to "hate" over being inconvenienced by something, is a waste of life. Those of you who really can't stand dealing with the snow, move. You can do it, I believe in you. I would think that's much easier than spreading hate for a few months out of the year anyway. 

   Mother Nature challenges us everyday to be better human-beings and that's because she is the boss. Every time we complain about her, we fail this challenge, we fail our fellow humans and we fail ourselves. Love her, respect her, praise her and only expect her to be unpredictable. Everything we know is because of her. She makes life, in itself, possible. One last thing... Shout-out to all of those true Winter Warriors carrying the torch out there. Your passion lights the way for the rest of us, thank you so much for leading by example!

That's a Winter Wrecking Crew right there!

Scotty J ~

"If I really wanted to stick my dick in Mother Nature, it's simple. I'd just take off my pants and walk outside."

Frozen or thawed, Lake Michigan always makes me smile. (PHOTO CREDIT: Clark Jansen - Holland, MI)

The Lake Makes Me Wet

   "The Lake". Now, what comes to mind? Swimming. Fishing. Floating. Winning. Here in Michigan, it's a way of life. The term itself holds a special place in our hearts. We use it so casually and yet it means so much to us. "The Lake" offers us endless fun and relaxation. Usually leaving us wet and refreshed with a positive outlook on our lives. 

   My most memorable experiences in life revolve around The Lake. We lived in Dallas, TX when I was in elementary school. Natural lakes were hard to come-by in those parts. My mother is from Michigan, so we made a trip to 'The Mitten' every summer. My parents, older brother and I in the car for 20 hours. Laughing, farting and jamming out to the first 2 volumes of Cruisin' Classics on cassette tape. Talk about your ultimate pre-game session (Ooohhhhhh The Jacobs!). Upon arrival, we would change into our swim-suits at record-breaking speed. We would take to the water twice as fast, blazing a path to The Lake. We didn't need the world at the palm of our hands because we had the lake at our fingertips. Simply put... It was perfect. Eventually, we relocated to Michigan.

   Once we settled into our house, fishing became a weekly event. Dad would take us to my Grandfather's place less than an hour from home. When we got there, the fish always seemed to be waiting for us right at the end of the dock. Grandfather was a retired educator, therefore The Lake was his massive classroom that he shared with us. We learned how to appreciate The Lake over those years. He taught my Dad, brother and I that the best venue for bonding was The Lake. At that point in our lives, fishing became tradition. The Lake started to become OUR way of life. 

   Nowadays my folks have a cottage out in the country on a quiet and rustic lake. I've been fortunate enough to spend the last 6 weeks living here. I've been having a blast with friends and family when they've come to visit The Lake. Hell, I've been sitting lakeside the whole time I've been writing this blog.  I'm looking forward to the rest of my summer feeling inspired here on The Lake. To this very day, one look at the water still makes me feel like a rowdy-ass 8 year old kid. My heart can't help it. The Lake is my first love and I'll never get over her. However, Her and I are open to threesomes and the occasional "group" thing because she's beautiful like that. The Lake is never a selfish lover. In fact, I've got to go. She's calling me now.... and we hope to see you soooon!

Scotty J. ~ I hope I got you with this one. Hook, line and sinker.