Thursday, February 25, 2010

Mississippi United For Haiti

There are still more than 1 million Haitians without homes and still in need of medical attention.  Doctors Without Borders/Médecins San Frontières (MSF) continues to provide medical assistance in Haiti, and also distributes tents, blankets, and hygiene and cooking kits to some of the many displaced people stuck in makeshift, unsanitary camps.

The Oxford Maker's Market raised $63 in funds for Doctors Without Borders/Médecins San Frontières (MSF), by selling donated rings.  We continue to contribute to the cause individually.   For ongoing events in support of Haiti, check out United for Haiti - Mississippi State and Ole Miss:



Thank you so much to the patrons of the Oxford Maker's Market
We sincerely appreciate your interest in our market and your continuing support.  - Lizzie Oglesby

Monday, February 22, 2010

2 important parties tomorrow - Yappy Hour at Frank and Marlee's and Recycled Art reception at the Powerhouse


and...

 

Artist Reception
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
6:00-7:00P.M.
Show Features:
Andi Bedsworth, Besty Chapman, Emily Stone,
Janet Akers, Jennifer Hyatt, Samantha Kay Breeding,
Gabriella Delawey and Linda Jackson

8 artists creations from reclaimed objects

Free in the Gallery of the Powerhouse
Open Monday – Friday 9:00AM-5:00PM

An Exhibit in the Powerhouse Gallery Series
Sponsored by: Yoknapatawpha Arts Council,
City of Oxford, Lafayette County and the Elizabeth Firestone Foundation

Annual Jan Hawks Memorial Book Sale today and tomorrow! Proceeds go to scholarships for Ole Miss students!

The American Associate of University Women (AAUW) Annual Jan Hawks
Memorial Book Sale is today and tomorrow! February 22-23rd, 8:00am – 4:00
pm, Student Union lobby.


The O-U-T bus line stops at the student union for easy access.


All proceeds from the sale will go to scholarships for University of
Mississippi students and to the AAUW Educational Foundation, the world's
largest source of funding exclusively for graduate women. The Foundation
funds groundbreaking research, fellowships and grants, special awards, and
vital community action projects.


The book sale is in memory of Jan Hawks, long-time AAUW member and
founding director of the Isom Center.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Nobody's Free Until Everybody's Free ... Future of the South Conference at Ole Miss this weekend


Chris Myers Asch, U. S. Public Service Academy will speak on Friday, February 19, 2010 in Johnson Commons Ballroom.  He wrote The Senator and the Sharecropper: The Freedom Struggles of James O. Eastland and Fannie Lou Hamer.





The Porter L. Fortune, Jr. History Symposium/Future of the South Conference
The Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi


Sponsored by the History Department and the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi Scholarly talks and discussion will take place Thursday and Friday, February 18-19, 2010, and an unstructured discussion of the relationship between the history of the Civil Rights Movement and the future of Mississippi will take place on Saturday, February 20.


Particpants in the symposium will include:
Chris Myers Asch, U. S. Public Service Academy
Curtis Austin, Southern Mississippi University
Rita Bender & Bill Bender, University of Mississippi
Emilye Crosby, SUNY Geneseo
David Cunningham, Brandeis University
John Dittmer, DePauw University
Jelani Favors, Morgan State University
Diana Freelon Foster, Mississippi Truth Project
Francoise Hamlin, Brown University
Wesley Hogan, Virginia State University
Byron D'Andra Orey, Jackson State University
Joseph Reiff, Emory and Henry College
Chauncey Spears, Mississippi Dept. of Education
Charles Tucker, Mississippi Truth Project
Akinyele Umoja, Georgia State University
Geoff Ward, U of California, Irvine
Michael Williams, Mississippi State University
Nan Woodruff, Penn State University

PROGRAM


Thursday, February 18, 2010. All events in Johnson Commons Ballroom.
9:30-11:00am Presentations
Emilye Crosby (SUNY Geneseo)
Michael Williams (Mississippi State)
1:00-2:30pm Presentations
Francoise Hamlin (Brown)
Jelani Favors (Morgan State)
3:00-4:30pm Presentations
Akinyele Umoja (Georgia State)
Wesley Hogan (Virginia State)


Friday, February 19, 2010. All events in Johnson Commons Ballroom
9:30-11:00am Presentations
David Cunningham (Brandeis)
Joseph Reiff (Emory and Henry)
1:00-2:30pm Presentations
D'Andra Orey (Jackson State)
Chris Myers Asch (US Public Service Academy)
3:00-4:00pm Comments by John Dittmer (DePauw)

Saturday, February 20, 2010. All events in Tupelo Room, Barnard Observatory

9:00-10:30am
Discussion of Civil Rights Movement and Education: chauncey Spears (Mississippi Department of Education), Curtis Austin (Southern Mississippi), Rita Bender and Bill Bender (University of Mississippi)


10:45-noon
Discussion of Civil Rights Movement and Youth: Moderated by Nan Woodruff (Penn State), a discussion with members of the Mississippi Truth Project, including Geoff Ward (California, Irvine), Charles Tucker, Diana Freelon Foster

All events are free and open to the public. No registration is necessary.For more information on the symposium, contact
Ted Ownby at umsymp@olemiss.edu


Also, at the B. B. King Museum in Indianola -
Book Signing with Chris Myers Asch


Saturday, February 20, 2010 4:30 PM


The B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center will host a book discussion and signing by former Sunflower County resident, Chris Myers Asch. Asch will be at the Museum Saturday, February 20 at 4:30pm to discuss his book The Senator and the Sharecropper: The Freedom Struggles of James O. Eastland and Fannie Lou Hamer.

A native of Washington, D.C., Chris Myers Asch studied history at Duke University and the University of North Carolina. He first came to Sunflower County as a Teach For America corps member in 1994. He spent three years teaching at East Sunflower Elementary School in Sunflower before co-founding the Sunflower County Freedom Project, an academic enrichment and leadership development program for middle and high school students. He ran the Freedom Project for seven years before leaving Mississippi to work on the U.S. Public Service Academy.

His first book, The Senator and the Sharecropper: The Freedom Struggles of James O. Eastland and Fannie Lou Hamer was published in 2008 and earned the Liberty Legacy Foundation Prize from the Organization of American Historians and the McLemore Prize from the Mississippi Historical Society. Asch currently works as the Coordinator for the Center for Urban Education at the University of the District of Columbia. He is married to former Gentry High School teacher Erica Seager, and the couple has two daughters.

For more information, please contact:
Erin Mulligan, Volunteer Coordinator
400 Second St.
Indianola, MS 38751
662.887.9539 Ext 228

emulligan@bbkingmuseum.org

Monday, February 15, 2010

Paving paradise? Ole Miss students meet to talk transportation...


Last week I was invited to a meeting of the Oxford/Ole Miss Transportation Focus Group on the campus of Ole Miss.  The meeting served to gather information through an open discussion concerning the improvement of environmentally friendly transportation around Oxford and Ole Miss.  Information shared at this event will be used to compile a news story for The Oxford Enterprise.

After discussing issues such as improving Oxford University Transit, bike sharing, car sharing, and other methods of traveling around Oxford, this focus group overwhelmingly concluded that Ole Miss needs to build an eco-friendly parking garage.  We all determined that more parking would be a sure solution to many of the problems of transportation on campus.  Perhaps if students could use their cars to get to campus, and then park, they could take advantage of other methods of transportation during their time on campus?

Among the 12 or so people who attended this event, only one person was a frequent user of O.U.T. - Oxford University Transit (new bus pictured above.)  This is the free bus for students that runs all over town.  (Costs $ for community members, click here to read current fares.)  A few students said that they wouldn't consider the bus because they did not want to have to rely on it.  They did not want to have to wait for the bus, if their class got out early, and then they might be stuck on campus.  The bike sharing program seemed to be of little use to the students at this meeting, as they said they either didn't know much about it, or it seemed too time consuming, as in the time it would take for a student to get to a bike sharing station, rent the bike, ride the bike to class, and lock the bike on a bike rack - it would have just been faster to drive (if they could find a parking space on campus.)  A handful of students admitted to skipping class simply because they could not find a parking space on campus.  When asked if the cost of gas was an issue for travel or road trips, all agreed that it was not an issue.  And when asked about the Ole Miss solar-powered golf carts on campus (pictured below) that often offer rides to students, one student very honestly admitted that she had declined an opportunity to ride because there were no other students on the golf cart at the time and she thought she would seem weird if anyone saw her riding on it.   


A few other issues were mentioned, like recycling and energy consumption on campus.  Students were unaware of the curbside recycling program, offered by the city of Oxford, and they all agreed it was a shame that so many bottles of beer on the square that are consumed do not get recycled.  One student who had actually been to the recycling drop off center on Molly Barr Road, told us that she was surprised that she had to break down her cardboard boxes to fit them through the slot of the dumpster to recycle them.  It seemed like extra work, to have to break down the box, when her previous recycling experience in her home town did not entail having to flatten boxes.  Energy consumption on campus was dismissed as the students agreed that Ole Miss would not be interested in spending the money to make changes to old buildings.  In fact, the University has made a commitment that all new buildings on campus will be LEED Certified. The Green Buildings Program is currently in development, which will operate within the Office of Facilities Planning. Two LEED Certified buildings are currently under construction on campus- the new law school and the Center for Manufacturing Excellence.  We decided that Ole Miss might be interested in building an eco-friendly underground parking garage on campus, as they could charge money for parking during the week and would potentially make a fortune during football weekends.  Perhaps it could be a win-win situation, if Ole Miss would consider it.  After a bit of research on the web, I found this info about regular parking lots:

Parking lots can be bad for the environment for many obvious reasons. Increasing need for more parking lots may indicate that more cars are on the road, which means that more gas is being consumed and more pollutants exhausted into the air. More pavement means less green space, thereby reducing the number of trees and plants that serve as natural “air cleaners” by absorbing carbon dioxide in the air and releasing oxygen. More pavement also means less open soil that can collect rainwater, which helps to replenish natural aquifers. Areas that have less of a natural groundwater supply suffer even more from an overabundance of parking lots.

Cars are dirty pieces of machinery and leak all sorts of toxic liquids onto parking lots. Oil, grease, coolant and other fluids collect on the asphalt and sit until rain washes it into storm drains which may drain to lakes and streams. The runoff from parking lots is often highly polluted.  Another negative effect of parking lots is called the urban heat island. The asphalt or concrete in parking lots more readily absorbs and retains the heat from the sun’s rays than the surrounding ground. This in turn raises surrounding temperatures a few degrees, affecting what is called the “urban growing season.”


There are such things as eco-friendly parking garages - click here to check out this article from USA Today, in which Gloria Ohland states, "Unless there are parking spaces, you're not going to get people to use transit."

Thanks so much to Mitch McCauley for inviting me to this meeting.  It was so important to hear the honest opinions of students.  Until gas prices go up or public transit becomes glamorous, I'm afraid that the student body may not take advantage of the giant strides that Ole Miss is making in terms of transportation in this small town.  Check out the University's website - UM Green Inititative - for good news on the eco-friendly frontier: http://www.olemiss.edu/green/index.html.

Please also read this post from a lecture that I attended back in November - Red, Blue & Green - Ole Miss' Mike Mossing & Jim Morrison talk substantive change beyond "green marketing"

Thursday, February 11, 2010

News from Larson's Big Star - don't forget to check out Big Star's selection of goodies for Valentine's Day... Betty Boop Cake!

So I try to purchase whatever I can whenever I can from Larson's Big Star in Oxford.  The simplicity of the shop and the lack of frazzled patrons scurrying about makes Big Star what it is:  the antidote to Kroger.  Big Star may not have sprawling aisles of Valentine's junk, they also have not yet put out Easter (if you're all ready shopping for bunnies head over to Kroger to peruse their dueling Valentine's and Easter aisles) - but Big Star has plenty of candy in their candy aisle - to the far right of the store, a few Valentine's-themed snacks right when you walk in, a multitude of ready made cookies and crackers in the their Always Save aisle, and some awesome cakes and cupcakes in their bakery - check out the Betty Boop cake!!!!  What I wouldn't do for an excuse to buy this:


I hope kids still know of Betty Boop.  She has always been my favorite cartoon character.  If I had an avatar - it would look much like Miss Boop.


Big Star also has some great looking V-day cupcakes, to rival anything that Kroger has come up with!  If you're in a bind and don't have time to pre-order your fancy V-Day sweets from Honey Bee, this is definitely your next best option.


And for your Mardi Gras party - you definitely need this Saints cake! 


Big Star also has a great selection of asian foods!  They have wasabi peas!  I usually buy my wasabi peas from Farmer's Market, but FM sells them in a huge can, and then I'm always stuck with a big can.  I really only use wasabi peas for a goat cheese appetizer that I make, and I'm thinking about switching to Big Star's brand so I don't end up with so many peas leftover.   Here's a pic of my well-encrusted with crushed wasabi peas, goat cheese log:


I simply crush the wasabi peas with a mortar and pestle, then roll a log of goat cheese in the crushed peas, and I present the log in a pile of wasabi crumbs because as people cut into it, they always want more of the peas with the cheese.

But back to Larson's Big Star - I think it's so amusing that they stock these religious prayer candles.  When in need, you can find them in the Spanish foods section!


A sign of the times - Big Star has discontinued one of their few Organic products - Best Choice's Clearly Organic Original Pasta Sauces.  They are on sale if you're in the market for spaghetti sauce!  I'm sorry to see them go, perhaps they are being replaced with a new or better product?  In general, I think folks these days are trending more towards local foods than organic foods - at least I know that I am, but it's still good to have organic products available!  Big Star does, however, sell reusable shopping bags, and they are very friendly and kind towards those shoppers who bring their own bags.  I always apologize when I produce my bags, as I know it disturbs the regular flow at the register, but lately one employee at the Big Star replied, "Not a problem at all, people bring their own bags all the time."  So nice! 



Thank you to Chad Larson for his kind e-mail - I'm glad he noticed that I write about his family's store often!  I highly recommend that all Oxonians consider the Big Star before they make a dash to Kroger (and don't even ask me about Walmart - seriously - don't ask.)  Big Star may be a smaller shop, but the simplicity of it is what really appeals to me.  They have just about everything I need during the week, and I get in and out of there quickly and without having to rearrange shopping carts in the parking lot, and without having to wait in long lines at the register.
I don't mean to sound so down on Kroger - they certainly sell items that I need and I end up shopping there also.  I have to say that the Kroger employees are very, very nice people.  They make shopping at a larger, chain store bearable.

Coolness - old plantation diary found that was certainly a source of inspiration to Faulkner - read the article from the NYTimes



Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Donate items for auction to support the Oxford Lafayette Humane Society

February 9, 2010


Dear Humane Society Supporter,


We are pleased to announce our 11th Annual Paws for Art Charity Auction, April 6th at The Library Bar and Grill. The Patron Party will begin at 6:30 p.m. and tickets are $45 per guest or $80 per couple. The Patron Party offers a sneak preview of live and silent auction items, a one hour open bar, and admission to the Auction Party and Live Auction. The Auction Party will begin at 7:00 p.m. and tickets are $30 per guest or $50 per couple. Plan to join us for a fun evening and enjoy live and silent auctions, a cocktail buffet catered by several of Oxford’s favorite restaurants, a full bar, and live music. The auction features presenting artist, Baxter Knowlton and auctioneer, Robert Taylor.


This year our goal is to raise over $70,000 for our operating budget. Paws for Art 2010 Charity Auction is the perfect opportunity for you to promote your business and help our community’s homeless animals. Three sponsorship opportunities are available. Please see attached sheet for sponsorship benefits.


We are also seeking donated artwork, retail items, services, and gift certificates for our live auction and silent auction. To be included in the auction program, all donated items must be received by March 26th. Of course, all donations are tax deductible and you will receive a receipt for tax purposes.


On behalf of the 4,600 homeless animals we receive each year, I would like to thank you for considering sponsoring or donating to Paws for Art. Your donation will have a truly lifesaving impact on our animals.


Please call the OLHS Development Director, Hattie Alton at 662-202-4017 or email hattie.alton@gmail.com. Hope to see you there!


Sincerely,


Cyd Dunlap and Hattie Alton

559 Highway 7 South Oxford, MS 38655 (662) 236-7631 http://www.oxfordpets.com/
Oxford-Lafayette Humane Society is a 501©3 nonprofit organization, Federal Tax ID# 64-0669316
No goods or services were received in consideration of this gift.

Oxford Maker's Market raising funds for Haiti

The Oxford Maker's Market is one of the hottest venues to find locally handmade crafts, art and gifts in Oxford, Mississippi.  At the first market of 2010 last weekend at The Lyric Oxford, artist Andrea Thomasson sold handmade flower-shaped hair pins for $10 each, with half of the proceeds going to Haiti, and the Maker's Market sold donated rings for $2 each (that were not handmade) with 100% of the proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders


Andrea's table, see flowers for Haiti on the far left side


The Oxford Maker's Market's RINGS FOR HAITI - these rings were donated to the Maker's Market.  Because they are not handmade AND they were free, the Maker's Market is selling them for $2 each with funds going entirely to Doctors Without Borders.  They raised $22.00 at the first market, and they hope to continue to raise funds for their charity of choice at upcoming markets.


The Oxford Maker's Market will make it's next appearance Friday night, February 12th at the Vaudeville show at the Powerhouse in Oxford.  They will be selling Valentine's-themed art and gifts.  Tickets are $8 in advance and $10 at the door.

Honey Bee Bakery's Valentine's Day Gift Menu


Yum.
If you are headed to the Vaudeville show on Friday night at the Powerhouse, be sure to check out Honey Bee Bakery's station!  I can't wait to see what they've got for us!

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Empty Bowls - A Grassroots Movement to End Hunger

Oxford, Mississippi Empty Bowls

The 7th Annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser will be held on Thursday, February 11, 2010
at the Oxford-University United Methodist Church
North Ninth & University Avenue in Oxford, MS 38655

Reserved parking-at parking lot onTyler Avenue & 10th

11:00 a.m until 1:00 pm
$15.00 for soup, piece of bread and bottle of water

All proceeds will go to the Oxford Food Pantry of
Oxford, Mississippi

The latest wine pairing from Ravine...

Hello again,

It is that time again for ravine's monthly wine and food pairing. For those of you that missed last month's, the display of local food that we are accessing now was fantastic. Dr. Juergens made some wonderful pairings of wine, and it was a great overall experience. I hope this month's somewhat different approach will stimulate your curiosity.

This month's pairing will be held on Thursday, February 18th, starting at 6 p.m., the cost will be $25 per person. Now I realize the conflict with the basketball game, but this day seemed to work best for us in this busy month. I hope you will consider joining us, seeing as how Ole Miss will most definitely pound Vanderbilt thoroughly.

The theme this month will be of the German persuasion. Dr Juergens, Joseph, and myself had talked about a German wine pairing before, but it was not until a regular client of ours mentioned it that we said, "Why Not?" The main focus of the theme will be the wines, but I will be pushing my culinary limits and making some German cuisine to pair with the food. Dr Juergens will certainly emphasize the brillant white wines of Germany, but has also hinted at least one fabulous red will make the cut. It should be exciting to see what he comes up with that night.

So please, if you are interested, call early, and remember-- cancellations less than 48 hours in advance will be charged in full to your credit card. Please use the telephone to make reservations, as email notices are more difficult to confirm in a timely manner.

Danke,

Joel+Cori+Henry


Joel Miller ravine 53 cr 321 oxford, ms 38655 oxfordravine.com 662.234.4555

Monday, February 1, 2010

Opportunity for artists in Mississippi to sell handmade art at the Oxford Maker's Market

Dear artists and friends,

I am Lizzie Oglesby, the new keeper of the Maker's Market Artists' Roster for Winter and Spring 2010. I am thrilled to join the team, and I hope that I can be most helpful to you all. On behalf of Oxford's own Maker's Market, I wish you a very Happy New Year! We are starting our winter 2010 season with a Boom Boom!

The market will resume in February with our regular schedule - every 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month. Our regular 1st and 3rd markets will be held at the Lyric - unless we inform you of a location change. Winter market hours are from 10am to 5pm. Please email me if you would like to sell at either of these upcoming markets - Feb 6th or Feb 20th. Booth fees are $20 for pre-registration, and $25 on a market day (space permitting). After you have confirmed your interest in selling with me, please drop your selling fee off at David Molina's office on the University of Mississippi's campus (101 Vardaman Hall) or mail your fee to David Molina at 907B Cleveland Ave. Oxford, MS 38655. If you are paying with a check, please make your check out to David Molina. (We are still in the process of figuring out legal stuff so we can establish the Oxford Maker's Market as an entity, after which we will open a bank account for the organization).

Start making some Valentine's themed artwork!
We have been invited by Southern Lush and Lace to sell Valentine's themed art at the Powerhouse Community Arts Center on Friday night, February 12th at 8pm during the burlesque show, A Night at the Boom Boom Room - Vaudeville Burlesque Revue. We are very excited to be invited to participate in this event, and we hope to have a couple of tables representing Valentine's or Love-themed work from many different artists. THERE IS NO FEE TO SELL AT THIS VENUE. Please volunteer to help us sell your art! This event will not be a full-blown market, just a few tables with mixed items. PLEASE DO NOT BRING MORE THAN 3 - 5 ITEMS DEPENDING ON SIZE - SPACE IS LIMITED AS THERE WILL BE OTHER VENDORS. A few of our Maker's Market committee members will be staffing our tables, if you would like to sell but cannot attend. Tickets for the burlesque show should be available for purchase beginning Tuesday, January 26th. Please spread the word and tell people to buy tix for the show! NO FREE TICKETS TO THE SHOW FOR SELLING ART AT THIS VENUE. Tickets must be purchased in person at the Powerhouse Community Arts Center - tickets are not available online. Please email me, Lizzie Oglesby, if you are interested in selling/volunteering for the burlesque show.

We are working on updating our website, http://www.oxfordmakersmarket.com/. If you sold art at the market in the past, please send us a photo and/or description of the art that you sold at the market. If you are an artist who is planning to sell at an upcoming market, please also email us a photo and info. Please email this info to oxfordmakersmarket@gmail.com so that David Molina can upload it to the website.

Can't wait to see you all in February!
- Lizzie Oglesby

Art Show at Ravine!

Hello,

I thought I would take a moment and update everyone on our latest happenings. This Thursday, February 4th, we are having a new art show up on our walls here at ravine.

The artist is Keith Wiseman, who has done some fabulous photography of Oxford and Lafayette County past and present. He is truly talented, and we are lucky to have his work displayed here at our place.

There will be complimentary wine and hors d'oeuvres during the art show as well. The food will be a preview of our new tapas menu that will be our regular Wednesday offering. All the small plates will range from $3-10, and offers everyone a chance to sample/graze through the menu without being too costly. As well, we will have wine and cocktail specials each Wednesday to compliment the tapas.

So stop using the weekend as an excuse to go out and eat, and come join us this Thursday for a great art show. The added bonus will be the yummy bites and complimentary wine. The show is from 5-7 pm this Thursday, February 5th-- see you then.

Thanks,

Joel


Joel Miller ravine 53 cr 321 oxford, ms 38655 oxfordravine.com 662.234.4555