Save the Town (District Representative Anne Gonzales)

Sitting at the desk in my apartment, I could hear the roar of a diesel truck firing up and pulling through the historic square of Canal Winchester, the guttural grumble of a motorcycle engine rolling by, and the occasional blast of music coming from someone's sound system as they just made it through the yellow light turning red. After shuffling some papers and getting myself ready, I picked up my phone and dialed the number for our District Representative, Anne Gonzales, who I had spoken with before in order to set up the interview.

After a few rings, the friendly and go-get'em voice of Anne broke in, "This is Anne Gonzales."
"Hey Anne," I said leaning back in my chair. I reminded her of my name and who I was with. "Do you have time for our scheduled interview?"
"Yes," she said, and with that I silently fist pumped.

I explained to her the Save the Town series I'm doing, briefly telling her of my interviews with Pastor Stuntz, Pastor Long-Higgins, and Mayor Ebert. She seemed very pleased with the whole agenda, requiring no entreating to answer the prepared questions, which interested her. We dove in immediately.

"Well," I began, "I'd like to start with this question...What can a town do to fix its economy or make it better if it's already doing well?". I asked this because she was speaking very highly of Canal Winchester and its residents.

"Canal Winchester is doing well. Mayor Ebert and the town council are doing a wonderful job. It's because they have vision and direction for where they want to lead the town. They also focus very much on economic development, bringing business into Canal and creating jobs for the people. They are forward-thinking leaders."

I nodded in ponderous thought. It seems that no matter how old people are, they are on the lookout for someone to lead them. When a person stands up to take responsibility and call the townspeople toward a vision, it does the town good.

"Cool...What are the qualities, the trends, you see in successful towns? What do they have in common?" I asked.
"Strong leadership, passion, and care for the town. The town needs citizens who take pride in it and take responsibility. Service organizations do great things, and they need people to volunteer for them. Service above self."
"Pretty much, the mayor can't do it all on his own?"
"Correct," she said.
"Hmm."

"How can a town best market itself?" I asked.
"Outreach via social-media, conferences, events, and the Chamber of Commerce." This was concordant with what Mayor Ebert told me when he listed the thousands of people that events such as Art in the Park, Art Stroll, and Blues and Ribs Fest bring to our town.

"Last question: What character quality do you wish to instill in the people to a greater degree? If there was one character quality you would capitalize on, what would it be?"
"Be passionate," she began. "Be passionate and care about your town. When you care about something, when you love something, you'll take responsibility." So true.

~The Harvest Crier~

Foodview: Summer Salmon Sandwich with Tomato Mozzarella Salad

These warmer months have been rather eventful for Harvest Moon. First, the Bison Burger took the menu board, next the Summer Salmon Sandwich was presented, and finally, the grand renovation took place. All of these changes yielded an incredibly positive response from HM's beloved customers.

Catching up with the new menu items, I ordered myself the Summer Salmon Sandwich along with the newly created Tomato Mozzarella Salad. I could feel my eyes getting healthier every second I looked at it! I mean, don't just look at it, look at it!

Refreshing celery and flaked salmon were mixed with a slightly sweet sauce and made into the pink spread of this rare sandwich. A juicy red tomato slice, curls of potent onion, and crisp lettuce made the meal even more nutritious, not to mention giving it a satisfying crunch in every bite. The texture of the spread itself was somewhat akin to tuna fish, but the taste was far more superior than stuff out of a can. The only way I can explain its taste is that it reminded me of the sea. It was real salmon! The turkey bacon gave it a good touch of flavor as well, complementing the fish with a more savory sensation. It wasn't as heavy as something like the Bison Burger, especially if you take out the turkey bacon, making it the sandwich to go for if you're thinking to yourself, "I'm not too hungry, but I want something fancy for date night at Harvest Moon."

As for the Tomato Mozzarella Salad, my palate thoroughly enjoyed the chunks of soft mozzarella and the balsamic vinegar reduction dressing topping the spring mix. It had a sense of simple yet artisan elegance to it which gave the entire plate a high quality.

Adjectives to describe this meal would be: Crisp, fresh, refreshing, healthy, light-ish, and fishy (in a good way; imagine the smell of the clear ocean's water). While I still like the Bison Burger more, I recommend giving the Summer Salmon a go if you can.

~The Harvest Crier~

Foodview: Carrot Cake Muffin

Many a changes happen in life, big changes that you need to stop and really take time to remember. These changes include going from middle school to high school, going on your first date, going from being single to being married, and greatest of all, Harvest Moon acquiring a new muffin choice. Yep, that last one is up there pretty high.

I was plated a Carrot Cake Muffin while I sat at the bar. What inclined me to write a blog post on it was the bit of icing I saw peaking out of the top of the muffin. I mean, who can resist a muffin stuffed with icing, right? I pulled off a piece of the cakey top and gave it a taste. It had a light carrot taste in it with bits of actual carrot shreds. Piecing it apart revealed slightly moist bread with walnuts and raisins throughout. From top to bottom of this fluffy masterpiece, there was taste and texture that made it more than just a nice looking hunk of carbs. The bread was rich in taste, and a perfect portion for an afternoon treat.

 A narrow filling of sweet and nutty tasting cream cheese icing plunged itself into the center of the muffin. The amount wasn't too much, which is good considering I want to experience a muffin, not a water balloon filled with icing that will explode upon touching it. It's not a cream filled doughnut of death. The cream cheese goes a good three-fourths of the way to the bottom of the muffin, but again, don't eat it because you are just dying for a hearty fix of cream cheese icing; the icing is more of a touch, not the whole sha-bang.

With raisins, carrot, and cream cheese icing, I would say that the dominant adjective for this muffin would be sweet, maybe even sacchariferous. I mean, it's not a rush of sugar or anything, but it's not like you would want to eat one of these for breakfast. I'd recommend it as a snack to take back to the office with you, a snack that will make all your co-workers quite jealous. ;)

~The Harvest Crier~

The Medicinal Ginger Ale

If you haven't tried it already, I'd recommend coming to Harvest Moon and ordering a fresh ginger ale. What you'll see coming to you won't be something out of a tap, but something organically made right behind the counter by the staff. Organic is to say the least of this drink, seeing how the ginger syrup itself is made back in the kitchen from actual ginger root. Mint leaves and ginger syrup, along with a hint of lime, make for a well dressed beverage that doesn't have one-bazillion grams of sugar in it like its soft-drink-contemporaries.

It looks really good too. I'm about 97% sure that you'll feel like a rock star upon drinking it in public.

Lastly, doing a little research at The Garden Herb Shop showed some medicinal purposes behind incorporating ginger into your diet. It is said that for 2,500 years, ginger has played an important role in Asian medicine. According to Prescription for Herbal Healing by Phyllis A. Balch, ginger has been known to help with the following:



~allergies and asthma,
~arthritis, bursitis, fibrocystic breasts, lymphedema, and pain,
~atherosclerosis and high cholesterol,
~cancer, indigestion, morning sickness, motion sickness, nausea, and vomiting,
~colds, influenza, and strep throat,
~parasitic infections,
~seizure disorders.

Do the research and get your hands on some ginger. It is important to take suggestions gingerly and look into things for yourself.

~The Harvest Crier~

Foodview: Carrot Ginger Soup

With stars in her eyes, chef "newb" (Keara) wowed all of us with her incredible creativity in the kitchen. She really did come bursting onto the scene. At one point, I saw her sitting vis-a-vis with Nate and Kelley at the interview table, then next thing I knew she was in the back flogging ingredients into delicious submission! In my opinion, she certainly has proven herself around here!

Last week, I was able to try one of her dishes. As I sat down at the sheen, reflective concrete counter of the Moon's new bar area with note-taking paper and ready pen, I was presented with a steaming bowl of Carrot Ginger Soup. It had a creamy texture with a bright orange color to it. Resting on the surface of the thick orange soup was a sprinkling of dried-cranberries (craisins) which I stirred into the soup with eager spoon.

Funny story, I once tried eating straight ginger simply because it looked healthy and I was hungry. I learned very quickly not to take honking bites out of ginger root systems and never have since then. Other than that tearful memory, I don't really have experience with ginger. And yet, I could detect a pleasant hint of it from the first bite to the last. The ginger and the carrot sensations gave me the slight impression of sweet potatoes, but not an exact comparison. While carrot is a sweet vegetable, it wasn't the sweetener of the meal. The carrots served as the base or body of the soup. It gave it a texture that made the bowl far more than just a serving of broth, but a thick, heavy soup perfect for filling you up on a rainy day. The ginger in the soup gave it a little bit of a bite, adding some character to the meal. It was the dried cranberries that served as the sweetening morsels and brought the taste and texture into delicious harmony.

Adjectives to describe this meal are as follows: filling, sweetened, colorful, different, vegetarian, comforting, diverse, textured, and warm. If you've been looking for a soup that will fill you up, you've come to the right place. Very good, and I was very full by the end.

~The Harvest Crier~

Save the Town (Pastor David Long-Higgins)

Apocalyptic morning clouds slowly floated over Historic Canal Winchester, marching to the drum of low rumbling thunder that echoed in the wind as I approached the door to David's United Church of Christ. I walked in and, being somewhat familiar with the building, headed straight for the pastor's office.

I remember meeting Pastor David Long-Higgins years ago not by going to his church, but by simply calling him up to talk about life and such. When I walked through the door of his office, he was still the chipper, insightful leader that he was then. I sat down and gave him the update on my life before motioning to the notepad and telling him of the reason why I scheduled the meeting. I told him of my interviews with Pastor Stuntz and Mayor Ebert, and how I wished to include him in this circle of advice on what the people can do to benefit the town.

It was much more informal than my previous interviews. The first thing that came to mind in my search for words was his quote which I shared with the others in my earlier meetings: "When it comes to doing ministry, don't think of it as sprinting. Think of it as running a long marathon."

"What's the marathon that one needs to run in Canal Winchester?", I asked with pen in hand. I was wondering what it was that all of the Canal Winchesterians needed to do to benefit their hometown. Essentially, what is the slow-and-steady that wins the race here? He understood the question and prefaced his answer with, "Jarred, before anything, I want to let you know that I don't claim any originality with what I'm about to tell you."

Humility, as does pride, shows in a person's life much easier than they may think, I thought to myself.

Talking with him was like being firehosed with information and insight. We took a lot of bunny trails to the point where we both stopped and wondered how we got on such and such a subject in the first place. But a consistent point that kept coming up was what Pastor David called the I/thou mindset. While there is so much more that the pastor and I discussed, I feel that this was of most importance to write about.

I/thou is a mindset where you actually see people as people and not just obstacles or means of personal gain. Opposite of I/thou is the I/it mindset, which is when you see another person and immediately start thinking about your time, your energy, your rights, your comforts, your will, and so on. An example is if you were walking down the street and see a homeless man sleeping on the bench where you usually like to sit. The I/thou mindset sees the man and thinks, "How can I help him? What does he need?", while I/it says, "That guy is disturbing me. Someone should tell him to leave." Do you understand the point? I/it doesn't see a person, just a problem. I/thou sees the person and the person's problems. If you have an I/it mindset, your heart will grudgingly ask, "What's this taking from me?", while the I/thou mindset asks, "What can I give?"

I don't mean to belabor the point, but this is a great answer to the simple question of, what can we do to make the downtown a better place? The life of a town is in its people, and if the majority of people hold this I/thou mindset that Pastor David and I discussed, what a difference that would make.

Recommended reading: I and Thou by Martin Buber

~The Harvest Crier~