A Howard Watson Intrigue

I must admit I am pretty proud of my little vegetable garden. After several months of tilling, watering, pulling weeds, pruning and tying and lacing, I am ready for a rest - except I can’t rest. Now I have to get my produce to the market, in this case – my friends, who are eagerly waiting to crunch down on cucumbers, tear apart some basil, parsley, oregano and tarragon and bite into some of the biggest reddest tomatoes around. Although the tomatoes won’t be ready until late next month they are already showing signs of bursting into the world. I can’t believe it, my little tomatoes I grew from seed are now real plants that will produce real fruit. When I deliver these vegetables and fruits to others they will know exactly where they came from and exactly who grew them. They will also know that there were NO insecticides or herbicides used to protect their food – only me. They will also know that no vehicle transported them or no refrigeration preserved them, or no warehouse housed...

I don't know about you, but I have been working my butt off trying to make sure that beaches in Chicago are free of contaminants and litter. Why am I doing this? Because I want to not only swim in Lake Michigan, I want to be able to at least believe the water won't kill me if accidentally swallowed. This week, Congress is debating proposals that would strip the federal Clean Water Act of its power and cut clean water funding. What the hell am I working for? Am I spitting in the wind? Tell your representative to oppose HR 2018, the “Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act of 2011.” For 40 years, the Clean Water Act has enabled the EPA to create a level playing field for water quality that has improved our waters and protected public health. In the Great Lakes, the Clean Water Act is the driving force for reducing dangerous toxic pollutants. It requires EPA to help the states implement Great Lakes water quality criteria that keep our beaches clean and our drinking water saf...

Have you ever visited a place that was so tranquil, so beautiful or so nurturing that you had to claim it as your own spot, only to find others already claimed it for the same reasons? The Osaka Japanese Garden in Chicago's Jackson Park is just such a place. Last week I was feeling unbelievably stressed out due to budget cuts at work, everything climbing but my my paycheck, CTA incoveniencing me for a myriad of reasons, and of course family issues. No matter how much I wanted to run away to Mexico or Cuba or Belize, I decided that maybe, just maybe my stress would be reduced by simply visiting the Garden. So last week I trudged over in the evening right before the sun was getting off work. The Garden is as amazing in the summer as it is in the spring and fall. The beauty of the garden, the babbling brooks, the whistle of birds flying low, the slight bend of the pussy willows and the "not in a hurry" movement of the li...