Scholar_Warrior
12-18-2004, 02:49 AM
I enjoyed this and thought maybe someone else may as well....
Dear Friends,
I will be on the road and mostly out of email contact from 16 December until 30 January. Hopefully I shall see a few of you during that time, but know that I will hold you in my thoughts and my heart.
Happy Holidays!!!
I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying life. The wheel of the year has once again come full circle and the time for my annual Holiday letter has arrived. At this time I don’t have any great tales of breathtaking weddings, adventures under ground, or daring deeds to pass on to you, but Life goes on and so do Pedro and I. So pardon the humble meanderings of this simple mind as I paint a few pictures of the life we lead.
Autumn here in the Illinois Valley of southern Oregon has proven a rather dry one this year compared to what we “normally” experience, but then, what is “normal” anyhow?! The true signs of Autumn’s arrival are the appearance of the vibrant yellow colors of maples & oaks, the wine reds of poison oak, of winter squash and the aroma of fresh apples at the local produce stands, and white tents in town, the temporary homes of mushroom buyers. “Mushroom Buyers?” Yes, mushroom buyers. Here in the Autumn we have an abundance of fungi which come alive with even the little rain we have had this year. One called ‘Matsutake,’ is highly prized in Japan and many areas of the orient. Each year people come from various places, although most seem to be Laotians living in California, to pick these tasty toadstools then sell them to the buyers who eagerly await them in their tents in the open lots of Cave Junction. This year I believe I counted about 15 such tents, more than in any of my previous years here.
The buyers pay the pickers various rates, depending on the quality of the mushrooms. This year the #1s (highest quality) brought the pickers about $31-$35 per pound. The buyers then ship them to Japan via Express Mail where they sell for $60-$100 or more per pound. Pickers can make over $500 per day, so the stakes are high. One morning as I drove to work I saw a picker getting out of his truck and putting a huge .44 pistol into the inside pocket of his coat. This is serious business. The only real problem with the entire affair is the way some of the pickers go about their task, tearing up the forest floor in such a way that can cause longterm damage to the ecosystem, including reducing the chance of the mushrooms growing in those places for many years to come. It’s part of that “There’s plenty, so why worry!” attitude which has wreaked havoc on so many wonderful places in this world. The U.S. Forest Service issues permits for those people picking in the National Forest, and has tried to teach the pickers to do it in a less destructive manner, but there are still those who think the rules are meant for others and not them.
I had the pleasure of dining on quite a few of the faintly cinnamon-flavored fungi this year, since those mushrooms not perfect enough to send to Japan get tossed aside and opportunists like me benefit from their imperfection. I like them, but Pedro isn’t crazy about them. For him the main benefit to all this activity was meeting the canine companions some of the pickers and buyers brought with them.
But the season for Matsutakes has just about ended; only 4 of the tents remain and they will leave soon. That’s a sure sign that Winter has begun, because the mushroom quality and business die off with the first hard frosts, which we experienced in the last two weeks. Another sure sign of Winter’s onset is when Oregon Caves close for the season, which we did on November 28th. That allows our bat population to hibernate in peace, unmolested by gawking tourists and rangers with loud voices. Generally speaking I work another couple of weeks beyond our closing before going on my 8 week furlough (mandatory unpaid leave), but this year they wanted me to start early and therefore have to return to work on January 31st, also earlier than in previous years. Currently Pedro and I plan to travel to Wisconsin and North Carolina to see family for the first time in 2 years. In January I will again attend Jim May’s storytelling workshop in Oaxaca, Mexico, which should provide me with plenty of good fodder for writing and telling. Sadly, Pedro can not accompany me to Oaxaca, so he will spend his longest time in a kennel to date: 10 days. It pains me to do so, but that which does not kill us makes us stronger, so they say, and I’m sure we can weather this stormy separation. I’m never quite certain who finds it more difficult, Pedro or me. I guess you could call me “co-dogpendant.”
Pedro lies curled up and sleeping on his blanket at the foot of my bed as the constant pitter patter of raindrops sounds both from my roof and the puddles outside my windows. Now that I have a moment to myself free of the burden of workdays and paychecks, and in between doctor appointments, I think of all my good friends and family scattered across this continent and beyond, and I realize how much I miss you. I wish you all well and hope sincerely that in time not too distant we can once again find ourselves together to share the warmth of our company and the joy of our smiles.
Long Life,
Honey in the Heart,
No Evil,
13 Thank Yous!
Blessings,
Tom & Pedro
Tom Siewert
almond1@earthlink.net (http://by11fd.bay11.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/compose?mailto=1&msg=MSG1102960800.26&start=4514781&len=17796&src=&type=x&to=almond1@earthlink.net&cc=&bcc=&subject=&body=&curmbox=F000000001&a=461059415e46c27a5c0fb56c6b10d0bf)
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Dear Friends,
I will be on the road and mostly out of email contact from 16 December until 30 January. Hopefully I shall see a few of you during that time, but know that I will hold you in my thoughts and my heart.
Happy Holidays!!!
I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying life. The wheel of the year has once again come full circle and the time for my annual Holiday letter has arrived. At this time I don’t have any great tales of breathtaking weddings, adventures under ground, or daring deeds to pass on to you, but Life goes on and so do Pedro and I. So pardon the humble meanderings of this simple mind as I paint a few pictures of the life we lead.
Autumn here in the Illinois Valley of southern Oregon has proven a rather dry one this year compared to what we “normally” experience, but then, what is “normal” anyhow?! The true signs of Autumn’s arrival are the appearance of the vibrant yellow colors of maples & oaks, the wine reds of poison oak, of winter squash and the aroma of fresh apples at the local produce stands, and white tents in town, the temporary homes of mushroom buyers. “Mushroom Buyers?” Yes, mushroom buyers. Here in the Autumn we have an abundance of fungi which come alive with even the little rain we have had this year. One called ‘Matsutake,’ is highly prized in Japan and many areas of the orient. Each year people come from various places, although most seem to be Laotians living in California, to pick these tasty toadstools then sell them to the buyers who eagerly await them in their tents in the open lots of Cave Junction. This year I believe I counted about 15 such tents, more than in any of my previous years here.
The buyers pay the pickers various rates, depending on the quality of the mushrooms. This year the #1s (highest quality) brought the pickers about $31-$35 per pound. The buyers then ship them to Japan via Express Mail where they sell for $60-$100 or more per pound. Pickers can make over $500 per day, so the stakes are high. One morning as I drove to work I saw a picker getting out of his truck and putting a huge .44 pistol into the inside pocket of his coat. This is serious business. The only real problem with the entire affair is the way some of the pickers go about their task, tearing up the forest floor in such a way that can cause longterm damage to the ecosystem, including reducing the chance of the mushrooms growing in those places for many years to come. It’s part of that “There’s plenty, so why worry!” attitude which has wreaked havoc on so many wonderful places in this world. The U.S. Forest Service issues permits for those people picking in the National Forest, and has tried to teach the pickers to do it in a less destructive manner, but there are still those who think the rules are meant for others and not them.
I had the pleasure of dining on quite a few of the faintly cinnamon-flavored fungi this year, since those mushrooms not perfect enough to send to Japan get tossed aside and opportunists like me benefit from their imperfection. I like them, but Pedro isn’t crazy about them. For him the main benefit to all this activity was meeting the canine companions some of the pickers and buyers brought with them.
But the season for Matsutakes has just about ended; only 4 of the tents remain and they will leave soon. That’s a sure sign that Winter has begun, because the mushroom quality and business die off with the first hard frosts, which we experienced in the last two weeks. Another sure sign of Winter’s onset is when Oregon Caves close for the season, which we did on November 28th. That allows our bat population to hibernate in peace, unmolested by gawking tourists and rangers with loud voices. Generally speaking I work another couple of weeks beyond our closing before going on my 8 week furlough (mandatory unpaid leave), but this year they wanted me to start early and therefore have to return to work on January 31st, also earlier than in previous years. Currently Pedro and I plan to travel to Wisconsin and North Carolina to see family for the first time in 2 years. In January I will again attend Jim May’s storytelling workshop in Oaxaca, Mexico, which should provide me with plenty of good fodder for writing and telling. Sadly, Pedro can not accompany me to Oaxaca, so he will spend his longest time in a kennel to date: 10 days. It pains me to do so, but that which does not kill us makes us stronger, so they say, and I’m sure we can weather this stormy separation. I’m never quite certain who finds it more difficult, Pedro or me. I guess you could call me “co-dogpendant.”
Pedro lies curled up and sleeping on his blanket at the foot of my bed as the constant pitter patter of raindrops sounds both from my roof and the puddles outside my windows. Now that I have a moment to myself free of the burden of workdays and paychecks, and in between doctor appointments, I think of all my good friends and family scattered across this continent and beyond, and I realize how much I miss you. I wish you all well and hope sincerely that in time not too distant we can once again find ourselves together to share the warmth of our company and the joy of our smiles.
Long Life,
Honey in the Heart,
No Evil,
13 Thank Yous!
Blessings,
Tom & Pedro
Tom Siewert
almond1@earthlink.net (http://by11fd.bay11.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/compose?mailto=1&msg=MSG1102960800.26&start=4514781&len=17796&src=&type=x&to=almond1@earthlink.net&cc=&bcc=&subject=&body=&curmbox=F000000001&a=461059415e46c27a5c0fb56c6b10d0bf)
Why Wait? Move to EarthLink.
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