New West Living
Yoga On & Off the Mat
Guru Guidance: Teaching is a Fundamental Aspect of Yoga
Yoga has always has been a student-teacher affair. And though many modern yogis practice at home sans guidance, they have likely gleaned some part of their practice, at some point in their life, from a mentor.
This week I consider the role of guru in yoga under the tutelage of modern scholars and modern mother/teacher/fashionista extraordinaire Tane Talalotou.
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Spade & Spoon: Localizing the Way Westerners Eat
Ground Beef Recall a Serious Downer for Montana SchoolsOn January 30th the Humane Society of the United States released an undercover and extremely graphic video that shows meat packers of the Westland/Hallmark Meat Company kicking sick cows. These animals, referred to as “downers” by the meat industry because they fall down with illness or fatigue, were prodded and pushed with forklifts in order to get them on their feet and pass the USDA inspection. The cows passed the inspection and promptly collapsed. Rather than tell the on-site regulators of the animals' changed condition (as required by law), the Westland/Hallmark employees went ahead slaughtered them.
Such actions are clearly inhumane but the processing of downer cows has also been linked to mad cow disease, making such treatment an issue of human health.
With the release of the year old video, the USDA put a hold on all meat sold through the company, meaning that those with the meat should simply hold onto it rather than cook and eat it. 18 days later, the USDA made the largest meat recall in United States history: 143 million pounds of ground meat.
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April 24-25 in Bozeman
Top Regional Architects, Designers, Planners Gather for “Designing the New West”We're delighted to announce the initial speaker lineup for our upcoming conference, Designing the New West: Architecture and Landscape in the Mountain West. This new event, produced in cooperation with the Sonoran Institute, will cover a rich array of topics including the economics and politics of green design, urban revitalization, historic preservation, land design and rural development, resort design, and much more.
Among the many prominent professionals joining us for the event are Lori Ryker, author of Off the Grid and founder of the Artemis Institute; Paul Bertelli, who among his many achievements led the reconstruction of the historic conference venue itself, the Gallatin Gateway Inn; James Tuer, lead designer of the proposed Bitterroot Resort project; Ray Calabro of Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, who designed the new Grand Teton National Park visitor center; and Grant Jones, one of the nation's most prominent landscape architects.
Our sponsors include Morrison-Maierle, O'Berry Cavanaugh, WGM Group, and Locati Architects.
Early bird registration ends March 7. Click here for the conference Website, and click here to register now. Email conferences@newwest.net or call 406-829-1725 with any questions or to inquire about sponsorships. We look forward to seeing you in Bozeman!
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Spade & Spoon: Localizing the Way Westerners Eat
Reel to Real: A Food Film Festival Comes to Missoula
This weekend, the first annual "Reel to Real Food Film Festival" will take place at the Roxy and Crystal theaters in Missoula as a way for interested eaters to, “Feast Your Eyes, Feed Your Mind, and Nourish Your Soul.”
Organized in part by the Community Food and Agriculture Coalition, the festival will include a showing of “Eat at Bill’s,” a documentary about the Monterey Farmers' Market and "Two Angry Moms," which links the health of our children to school food. On Sunday, the event will culminate with the acclaimed film, “The Real Dirt on Farmer John.”
In this personal reflection on the agro-food system, Farmer John begins by asking, “What do you do when nothing is left?” In response, he takes a bite out of his soil.
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Commentary: Farm Policy
New Farm Bill Should Make Room For Beginning Farmers
A couple of weeks ago, I walked into the Library of Congress where people bustled about, draping white cloths on tables, surrounding them with chairs, and setting up displays that read, "State of the Union 2008", followed by a list of sponsors -- insurance, auto, tobacco, and technology companies. A woman taping a poster to a wall at the bottom of some stairs said it's a pre-State of the Union reception. So do you kick everybody out of the Library, I asked. Yes. Who gets to come? It's for members of Congress and their staff, CEOs of corporations, and presidents of think tanks.
A group of farmers and ranchers, including me, had been flown in to Washington by a coalition of sustainable agriculture groups to meet with our members of Congress about beginning farmer and rancher provisions in the farm bill. The trip happened to coincide with the President's address to the nation, an event seemingly devoid of any citizen participation beyond staring at a television and suffering through empty oratory and canned applause.
Corporate CEOs and think tank presidents may get to dine with our members of Congress, but the recent debate over the latest farm bill has shown that in farm policy at least, the average citizen, and moreover, the average farmer, matters.
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Yoga On & Off the Mat
Yoga, Sleep and Attachment: Part IILast time I shared my sleep ritual—attachment, ear plugs and all. This week I consider sleep and yoga under the tutelage of Ann Dyer, a yoga teacher in Oakland, California, who Yoga Journal calls the “near-perfect sleep guru.”
Ann hosts as many as 10 “snor-a-thons” a year, during which she uses asana, chanting, and meditation to help people fall asleep. She is a senior faculty member and teaching associate of Rodney Yee at The Piedmont Yoga Studio. Ann's training is rooted in the Iyengar tradition, complemented by 10 years studying Nada Brahma, yoga of sound, with Mukesh Desai.
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Spade & Spoon: Localizing the Way Westerners Eat
“Class C:” Basketball, Identity and Loss in Rural Montana
On Saturday night the film “Class C” premiered at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival. The movie details the lives of a handful of Class C women basketball players in Montana, and as they play each other and make their way to the state championships we learn that basketball is more than a sport for them. It is not just a part of their identity; it is a part of their town’s identity. When they travel to games their hometowns shut down and folks follow the girls across the state to watch them play. At late night parties, they discuss strategy and tournaments won in the past.
But the film is most striking for what it reveals about the loss of small towns and an agricultural way of life in Montana. There is a common sadness among these young women as they talk about their small hometowns. They are not melancholy that they are 255 miles from the nearest mall, but that towns across the Highline and in eastern Montana are shrinking in population and dying.
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"I wuff you"
Puppy Love on Valentine’s Day
“You Can’t Hurry Love” serenades shoppers from the PA system as a middle-aged woman stops to eye the Pet Smart Valentine’s Day display, overflowing with heart-shaped squeak toys, pink dog beds embroidered with hearts, and sleeveless dresses for the dainty pooch.
Turns out Valentine's Day is a popular holiday for pet owners. “People kind of treat their dogs like their kids,” says store manager Jason McCulloch.
One pet lover says, “That’s what happens when you get old and crazy and your kids go away."
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Yoga On & Off the Mat
Yoga, Sleep and Attachment: Part IOh, sleep. For some blessed souls, slumber comes quickly each night. Tired bodies and minds fall into bed and sleep naturally. For some, like me, it takes teas, tinctures, visualizations—it takes the dependability of ritual. And over the years, as my ritual has gained steam, attachment has snuck into my transition to shut eye.
This week I share my sleep ritual—what helps and what hurts. Next time I'll post an interview with Ann Dyer, sleep guru and my new hero.
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Spade & Spoon: Localizing the Way Westerners Eat
Pick your Ticket: How the Presidential Candidates View Agriculture
Just a few months ago when Iowa was on the mind of every presidential contender, agriculture was a well-discussed issue (especially ethanol). But it seems like an eternity since the presidential candidates left Iowa and the cornfields that dictated much of their talk. Since then, candidates have mostly left agriculture off the campaign trail, and only a few have posted their stance on agriculture on their websites.
As much of the Rocky Mountain West heads into Super Tuesday, here is some of what the current front-runners think about agriculture...
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