PIETOPIA...PDX Food + Thoughtfulness

At the usual risk of writing too long a post--including this and that from the piles of paper to my left/right/sideways and all the images too compelling to ignore, and then tying together visual impact with social issues till the poor thing can hardly lie steady on the page, I have found something unexpected to ease my struggle.

It began with my obsession with reading newspapers.  Every day.  Two of them--New York Times and The Oregonian. The Times gets less of a close read as our year anniversary in Portland approaches.  Never our "local" paper, only all that we had in Manhattan.  The free ones--Village Voice (sadly degraded from 1960s), Free Press even worse--are no match for the local (WW) Willamette Week. The latter gets high marks in usefulness for movie reviews, things to do, and a wry perspective on city politics.  If  the NYT had got their noses out of the desperate effort to appeal to younger and younger demographics,  it might have occurred to them:  develop small, local papers for different parts of the city, provide some genuine service.

Pietopia, the idea+event,  was mentioned in both locals.   Utopia as a pie?  Maybe better than as a commune.  It was to occur on my birthday, August 5, at Buckman Farmers Market, one of many around town this time of year.    We stopped by and met Tricia who has asked,  

What does it taste like to be unemployed, starting a new job, just married, divorced, a new homeowner or desperately searching for housing? What kind of pie would describe the way you are feeling right now? Could you imagine your thoughts, concerns or joys transformed into the All-American Pie?

You are looking at first place prize winner from 2009. Hard to outdo its heartfelt text by Sabrina Miller:

The ingredients in my pie are both tart and sweet . . . similar to the recent events in my life . . . and when combined, the result is unexpectedly sublime (and a force to be reckoned with, according to my husband)!  [The rest and the recipe is HERE.]

Since the winter of 2008, two photos have remained on my desktop.  Posters in the NYC subway as the recession began.  Their intent was to reach out to people unemployed and needing support.  In a much earlier life I was among them--often.  Once around 1963, I was unable to find a new job for so long that I sublet my apartment, moved into a residence hotel.  No longer had a telephone--only a service that I'd call to see if there were messages about my next interview.  Just like, but not nearly as much fun,  the musical "Bells Are Ringing."

A frequent job-seeker, the only one I had for more than two years was my own psychotherapy practice.  Twenty!  In the 1950s, I worked for New York State Employment.  Counseled women and men under 21 as they looked for jobs.  How old was I?  Twenty-four! But I already knew much about the search, loved connecting people and jobs. 

There is a special place in my heart and psyche for job-searchers.  I've been wanting to do something since the latest meltdown.  It pulls at me.  In 2008,  Claude who was then at Blogging in Paris  must have thought I was crazed when she received a long email about my concern about jobless New Yorkers.  Did Tricia realize that all the support groups are not enough?  Some kind of doing is what's needed:  make pie, ask the cook what it represents. 

Maybe the approach that would work for other causes of mine:  MAKE PIES NOT WAR.   I'll share the outcome of the 2010 Pietopia challenge.  Meanwhile, read the winners from 2009.  Portland is a very special place when it comes to writing. I hope I catch it.

Comments

[Tricia]

Taking action, even if it is making a pie to express something deeper, is definitely healing--both for self confidence and the psyche! I didn't approach the contest via issues with unemployment. However, it is interesting that you did--because I have been "unemployed" for quite some time now--and it definitely is something I grapple with daily! Great post, Naomi, it was great meeting you at Pietopia!