What’s in the ground:

Once again, we’ve reached a nice lull between harvests and cover crop. All we can do now in the mid Atlantic is keep track of the weather and keep mindful of when the frost will set in. Philadelphia’s date is Halloween, and even with all of the rain and cold, temperatures have not dipped down low enough to warrant worry. So, enjoy your Halloween weekend and we’ll start preparing for battening down the hatches next week.

What’s going on in sustainability:

This time of year is always a joyous yet trepid time for the sustainable minded person. As much as we can revert back to the traditions of Halloween treats, apple picking, pumpkin carving and homemade costumes, the holiday has been high jacked by the corporations. This past week, while watching those Phillies barrel through the playoffs-Go Phills, I couldn’t help but see a commericial for Wal-Mart. Since cable is not a neccessity in my homestead, I rarely get to glimps into people’s living rooms, but I do like taking a look around, seeing what the rest of America is up to. Aside from the cheesey, Chinese made costumes, the food was horrible. Watching the commercial, I thought it to be a good advertisment for why you should not one-stop shop a party.

But, as we’ve grown further and further apart in our communities, the parents of tricker-treaters may not appreciate your home dipped caramel apples you prepared to give away. A good alternative would be to go to a local sweets shoppe and buy the packaged treats that will placate the nervous parents. But if your situation provides more time than money, don’t back down. As I said with my last article, sustainablility will never be achieved if we as a movement keep backing down to the conventionalists and their need to safe guard and make conveniently comfortable every bit of existence.

So, rather than being discouraged, use this time to get out there and get to know your neighbors. Sure, you may want to throw that Burlesque themed Halloween party you’ve been dreaming about all year, and by all means, you should. But in the day, have a pumpkin carving on your front porch, or be present when the kids are shoiwng off their costumes. I realize it may be too late, but keep these things in mind for next year.

Besides allowing you to give out treats that aren’t poisoned with harmful chemicals from the major candy distributors, this course of action will allow you to really build some community and get to know the people you live around. There’s no more important piece to sharing your sustainable lifestyle. So, have some fun while you do it.

Until next week, this is the note from the Urban Homestead.