The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy & Hydrogen Journal

I did promise an account of the trip to Sheboygan...

I got up at five a.m. and left around six. It took me three full hours to drive to Madison and pick up Art Paul. I gave him one of my t-shirts and we both wore my design on wind energy to the benefit. We had a fairly quick breakfast at the Green Forest Cafe, which is located on Broadway in Madison. It's a good place, reasonably priced, and they were swamped, being a Sunday. On the way out of town, we stopped at Kinko's and made copies of the show flyer I had designed the previous week. The weather was kind of rough, windy and rainy. The winds were pretty strong at times, too. We loaded Art Paul's paintings in the truck and bagged them to keep them dry. The drive to Sheboygan from Madison is about an hour and a half when you're getting blown all over the highway through multiple construction zones designed to confuse you. (Would've made a lot of power that day with a good mill...)

We got to the benefit just before two p.m. and Cathy told us Art was on the schedule right away. We got him set up hurriedly and he started playing while I brought everything in. Craig set us up with a spot between two vendors and in front of the huge limestone fireplace. We didn't have a table, so I started getting creative with display technology. I was hanging t-shirts, paintings, and CD's all over the fireplace wherever the flags were sticking out! *L*

Art's show went great, and he performed some of his classics, including the Pollution Blues, I Like My Mother, (In honor of Mother Earth) and wound the show up with Purple Banannas On The Moon.

Art managed to trade a t-shirt and CD for a hand-made banjo from a guy that made banjo's out of tins and recycled materials and wood. It was pretty cool, I thought.

I went up during Art's performance at his request and did Cities On The Edge - a piece about cities on the shores of the Great Lakes and the opportunity they have waiting for them. (You can view my poems on wind at www.whizzyrds.com on the Wind Poetry page)

After a few other acts, it was my turn. The sound man helped out with the background CD, and I launched into USA Wind. I was still just a bit unused to the mike, but I got through it OK and folk took notice. I then gave an excerpted version of my speech on Great Lakes wind energy potential. (Posted earlier in this journal) Afterwards I did one of the most playful and gentle of my wind poems, Zephyr. Everyone really liked that. The soundman (I can't remember his name, shame on me) was kind enough to get up and second my speech. You see, he and his brother are fresh water surfers, and they know a bit about wind on these lakes. It turns out that Sheboygan is the best place in the world for fresh water surfing. The wo of them will be in a documentary film coming out this summer on fresh water surfing, and you can bet I am going to watch the credits so I can correct my faux pau. (Splg?)

I did give the soundman a CD in thanks for all his help, and I traded another one to a friend for some pin on buttons of a political nature. I didn't have a stock of t-shirts with to sell, but people inquired and I directed them online to the website, so we shall see. I gave out several of the post cards that the American Wind Energy Association was kind enough to send. We still have a fair amount left of the flyers and postcards left for Earthfest this August. I didn't sell any CD's either, but that's OK, as long as the message was heard, that's the main point. The whole thing was great fun in my book! Here's hoping we have great weather for the fest in August!

Anway, the food was good, and the people were kind. We made new friends there, and Cathy asked me to come back and do more at Earthfest this August. Art Paul and I will both be there. Hopefully I'll be a bit more practised with this material!