One of the great joys of the Northwest Flower and Garden Show is getting together with friends from out of town, which I celebrated last night by going out to dinner at Boom Noodle (my new favorite restaurant with fabulous food and reasonable prices) with, among others, Ketzel Levine, formerly of NPR and my dear friend Alice Doyle of Log House Plants. Ketzel is visiting from Portland, Alice from Cottage Grove, near Eugene - stay tuned for posts about the very cool new flowers and vegetables from Log House this spring.
Over green tea, seared green beans and rice cakes, I told them about how I couldn't get the PETA protest scene on Tuesday afternoon, outside of the Convention Center, out of mind...how could painted people lying on the sidewalk stick in my mind more searingly than the gorgeous gardens inside? After I'd passed around my I Phone photos, they urged me to post them so you could also enjoy - if that's the right word - this most unusual scene.
When I arrived at the Convention Center to judge gardens, these protesters were lying on the sidewalk. They weren't protesting the flower show, but an aquaculture conference going on simultaneously (hence the "schools" referred to in the poster). I know nothing about the merits of their protest, but as a near life-long vegetarian I was moved by this piece of guerrilla theatre, but mostly drawn by how beautiful and powerful the still and quiet tableau was there on the sidewalk. Take a look for yourselves - it didn't last long as the police were already on their way to stop it when I snapped my last photo.
Val - I'm so glad you posted these wonderful pix. It's always dicey to write the word PETA! on a blog; people who are normally sane suddenly start foaming at the mouth with(bad) PETA stories. So even if you're burying the lede here (I'm afraid I don't know much at the substance of the aquaculture protest either but I can guess), this was one hell of a piece of guerilla theatre you captured. Thanks for being there to see it, and share it.
Posted by: Ketzel Levine | February 24, 2009 at 07:58 PM
Wow, I missed that entirely! I have been almost-veg since 1981 but seafood is the only thing I have never completely given up. I do try to stick to the Safe Seafood list and only buy what the PCC has for sale, but still... your photos of that demonstration give me pause once again for sure. That would be an interesting challenge, to take mermaids/men to jail with all that slippery body paint and no (visible) legs!
Posted by: Karen | June 07, 2009 at 11:06 PM