Mixed Metaphors

fer·ment– verb

1. (of a substance) undergo fermentation.
“the drink had fermented, turning some of the juice into alcohol”
synonyms: undergo fermentation, brew;

2. incite or stir up (trouble or disorder).
“the politicians and warlords who are fermenting this chaos”
synonyms: cause, bring about, give rise to, generate, engender, spawn, instigate, provoke, incite, excite, stir up, whip up, foment

The past month has been wet, stormy, and unseasonably warm.  The lack of sunshine began eroding my well-being.  The political climate continued to heat up too, becoming a category 5 shit-storm, casting a dark cloud on my outlook for the future. I realized I wasn’t spending enough time in nature during my favorite season of the year doing the things that feed my spirit. Instead I kept reading more online and watching commentators discuss the fermenting disillusionment of the electorate.

Culture

This past weekend offered a remedy to my malaise, a day spent outdoors in nature with friends, new and old, on a road trip exploring the rural beauty of our state on a “50+ mile free, self-guided Agri/Cultural excursion.”  It was fermentation of a different kind as described by the Fermentation Fest Farm/Art DTour:

“Fermentation Fest – A Live Culture Convergence is an annual celebration of live culture in all its forms, from dance to yogurt, poetry to sauerkraut. Presented by Reedsburg, WI-based Wormfarm Institute, Fermentation Fest brings together farmers, chefs, artists, poets and performers in the beautiful working lands of Sauk County, WI for nine days of tastings, demonstrations, cooking classes, art events, performances, food carts and more.”

My friend Janet and I had recently made a pact to hit the road in search of art and culture. We soon began our emails, texts and voicemail with salutations employing new nicknames, Thelma and Louise. Janet extended an invitation to spend yesterday with her friends Pat and Bruce for the Fermentation Fest Farm/Art DTour.

I immediately said yes and was pleased when the weather was perfect for a Sunday road trip through the rolling hills, winding roads, and pastures of our beautiful state. We made a pact before we got in the car to take a break from political conversation about the growing, fermenting, disillusionment with political Presidential politics. As we headed out on our journey, we weren’t perfect, but we did our best to focus our attention on the harvest of art and whimsy displayed in the gallery of our rural countryside.

Pat  proved to be an enthusiastic tour guide since she had been on the board of the organization, creating, promoting, and  celebrating the “agri/culture” of Reedsburg, Wisconsin and its neighboring community partners and sponsors, with the Wormfarm Institute, the visionary creative force behind the “cultural convergence.” The weekend before Pat had taken the Farm/Art DTour with her daughter and plotted a strategy for our trip based on her experience. Her partner, Bruce, volunteered to be our driver and Janet the navigator on this Farm/Art DTour.

Our first stop was near the mouth of a spring near a natural area, a breathtaking gorge. After we hiked towards the rocky outcropping of the gorge, with white pines and sumac, there stood the red piano and a chair, inviting players. The sound it created was glorious in the amphitheater of limestone and pine.

We visited the Reedsburg Chamber of Commerce and crossed the threshold of the arch which welcomed us to the festival. We explored the art gallery next door which featured a number of local artists and creatures forged from metal parts. I enjoyed the accidental art created by the interplay of light and shadow on the sunny autumn day.  Janet made her first art purchase, a once-in-a-blue-moon globe that could spin on its axis like a classroom earth, the moon’s craters in 3-D.

In between reading the directional signs that delineated our tour and announced the next art installation, performance, farm form, food chain offering, or item of interest, we talked about the transformative power of nature and art, the synergy it created as it transported us from the mundane moments and concerns of everyday life. The cultural convergence of art and nature, the connections between the earth and our spirits was distilled in the beauty of this rural countryside that’s our home.

We read Burma Shave inspired progressive roadside signs, contributed by members of the community for this event as we referenced the map and plotted our next destination. We discussed our lunch stop preferences and soon settled on a plan as we found ourselves in a caravan of Farm/Art tourists. We decided our main objective was to arrive at our lunch location before the trolley or yellow school bus which had been following us all day.

Our next destination was the pasture performance of Kanopy Dance in a farm field with a drone flying overhead filming the youthful dancers with music accompaniment from a soundboard in a parked black SUV as they made costume changes outdoors.

We explored the sculptural, winged, tent-like portable banquet table, entitled The Last Supper which dispensed nature’s distilled drink of endangered ingredients, Haymaker’s Punch from the trees, fruit, insects and plants, maple syrup, honey and apple cider vinegar, a punch made of nectar that could be lost to future generations, or sustain us if protected.

Next was the Zen-like tranquility of Stone Circle Studio, a restored farm house and a barn disassembled from a neighbor’s farm and rebuilt with love with a perfect melding of Norwegian and Tibetan building design, with the salvaged wood planks stained in tints and tones of mustard yellow, sage greens, aquamarine blues, and heather rose, the colors of fields, water, leaves, and sunsets. The landscaping in the yard and walking paths complemented the art showcased inside. It was a place of creativity, tranquility, and reflection. I wanted to stay.

We stopped at the Earth Bell Harvest Hut which served Kvass, a lacto-fermented beverage; we drove past an art installation, a herd of red gamble-roofed barns and down the road a bit, a busy beehive, and finally arrived at our lunch destination, Neumann’s Bar and Grill which served a lunch of cheeseburgers, beans, sweet corn and chips, prepared by volunteer firefighters as a fundraiser. We ate at picnic tables in tents overlooking the beauty of the Wisconsin countryside. We left with bellies full and ventured on.

Note: Both photos courtesy #FERMFEST 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We came upon a pasture, a field of facsimile barnyard quilts painted on plywood entitled, Gallery of Stitches II, featuring work by artists Vicky Baumgarten & Ruth Roecker. We took photos of our group there and encouraged Janet to purchase a piece of art for her home named, Elvis, a rooster surrounded by his adoring hens. We needled Janet a little during the trip, reminding her that three of us were in the letting go and purging stage of our lives while she was still acquiring. We were able to enable her art-buying which gave us some second-hand pleasure. Janet is now the proud caretaker of Elvis who now has a home indoors.

 

Soon it was time to move on and we made one last stop to investigate the food cart offerings of Jamaican food, and grilled cheese sandwiches, the wood-fired pizzas, and baked goods, and the Booyah prepared and served by members of St. Patrick’s Church. We were still full, so all we could do was feast with our eyes, which we had been doing all day.  We drove past more art installations and read one last series of Burma Shave signs.

We talked about how we planned to spend the remainder of the day, debating whether to watch the Packer Football game or Presidential Debate. We had spent the best part of the day together, so whatever was next, was simply whatever was next.  We expressed our joy and gratitude in spending the day together. Yes, it was a good day.

Politics

I’m not going to commit any characters to this page wrapping up last night’s Presidential Debate. There are many other commentators and writers willing to do so. I’m simply going to end this post by saying that I prefer the fermentation of cultural convergence, the distilling of art and nature, to the rancid, fermented brew of today’s politics. The election, campaigns, and debates are bitter drinks to swallow and we’ll certainly be guaranteed a hangover.