To my blog readers who are prim and proper, I warn you that the following post may be graphic and upsetting to you. You may not want to read on. I will use language you may never have heard me use; I will show a level of comfort with a low-brow lifestyle that may alienate you; I will, essentially, be me ... and I just wanted to warn you :)

First, it is of utmost importance to announce that the Oakland kickball season has begun. About twelve of us gathered at Mosswood Park in our fair city on Sunday evening for the season opener. Assisted by cans of PBR and swigs of whiskey, we raucously competed for two hours on the baseball diamond, kicking up dust, whipping balls at one another, and heckling the willies out of our competitors.

My team was decimated by the other team, which was stacked with experienced players and various small children from the neighborhood who spontaneously joined the game. It really wasn't fair to my team, but we stuck with it. I got some bruises and pulled a few muscles, but I'll be back next week...wiser and ready for some serious game.

Secondly, I got to play with cow dookie last night!! In my Urban Agroecology class, we built a compost pile: straw, manure, soil, coffee grounds, water, straw, manure, soil, coffee grounds, water...you get the idea. In the weeks to come, we'll stir up our (hopefully seethingly hot) compost bed and eventually start using the compost in the garden that we are building at Merritt College.

More on urban farming soon........