Raisin Brahms

Bees and Chickens: The Urban Farmer

I just got an email from the president of our neighborhood association. It seems there is a movement afoot in Milwaukee to legalize the keeping of bees and chickens for honey and eggs respectively. Currently all domesticated livestock are banned from Milwaukee city limits (unless you’re a circus). The Milwaukee Urban Agriculture Network (MUAN) is “actively involved” in pushing through a new ordinance (currently at the Dept. of Neighborhood Services phase). Madison passed a law in 2004 allowing up to 4 chickens to live in single family yards.

Chickens and bees? That would be nice – in my yard it wouldn’t work, but for others it seems like a great alternative to Big Chicken. Plus Martha Stewart has cool designer chickens. Here are some tips from Seattle Tilth on raising chickens in the city (including some instructions on evisceration).

The Untimely Demise of Atomic Records

Atomic Records announced today that they are shutting their doors as of February, 2009. Unless a miracle bail-out occurs, it looks like Milwaukee’s number one music store is dead. Recently I have been unfaithful, buying an album or two from Amazon and iTunes. I’m sorry Atomic. But it’s too late for apologies. All we can do now is go there and buy some stuff.

Have I developed an emotional attachment to a store? Yes. It’s more than just a store to me because it symbolized resistance; stubborn existence in the face of big box value stores, suburban strip malls, and finally the internet. It was a local music store. Like in the movies. Plus it’s part of my Milwaukee experience: I mean, I’ve been dragging Greenleaf there since she was born! It’s one of “my places.” Is there a Klingon word for “sadness?”

Bob Jones Apologizes

I didn’t see this picked up anywhere last week, but it’s very relevant to the conversation i’m having at fightme. Namely: as christians are we living according to cultural values or biblical values. 2000 years later it’s really hard to tell, after all, we’ve got 2000 years of tradition and culture to pick and choose from. Score one for the good guys though, because last week Bob Jones University issued a formal apology for its stand on “race” over the last 70 years. This excerpt, from their website, speaks volumes about this specific issue but also to the bigger questions christians are facing in the 21st century:

For almost two centuries American Christianity, including BJU in its early stages, was characterized by the segregationist ethos of American culture. Consequently, for far too long, we allowed institutional policies regarding race to be shaped more directly by that ethos than by the principles and precepts of the Scriptures. We conformed to the culture rather than provide a clear Christian counterpoint to it. In so doing, we failed to accurately represent the Lord and to fulfill the commandment to love others as ourselves. For these failures we are profoundly sorry.

Read the whole statement here. For a fundamentalist to admit they are wrong about anything is virtually impossible these days. We’re so entrenched in our positions that to renege feels like betrayal of all those that went before us. God can work in even the hardest hearts, which is good news for every culture-war christian out there that can’t let go of the traditions of man. Whoever wrote the statement on “race” for Bob Jones said it best:

As believers we are committed to demonstrating the love of Christ daily in our relationships with others, disregarding the economic, cultural and racial divisions invented by sinful humanity.

Local Currency Comes to Milwaukee?

In order to encourage people to buy local, residents in Milwaukee’s East Side and Riverwest neighborhoods are considering giving up U.S. currency and switching to a local equivalent. Madison cooperatives use a local unit called the Hour, which is kind of a barter system where 1 Hour ~ $10. It is essentially a goods and services exchange. Seems like a fun idea and it would teach a thing or two to those Fat Cats in Washington. If anyone’s interested in starting a micro-local currency with me, 1 Dan ~ $8.50 ~ 3 Danish Kroners.