Porch Time

One memorable year a ways back, two of my children briefly became vegetarians while they were  in school. Not at the same time, of course, because that would have been too easy for the resident chef. They transformed separately and consecutively. The girl child was moved by a film she saw in class- a somewhat brutal exposition on the beef industry. It was "the next cow watching" that sent her over the edge. The boy, on the other hand, was a committed consumer of bacon, and had always eschewed anything remotely colored green. He converted on a bet.

This teenage episode reminds me of the People's Republic of Takoma Park. Goofy and politically over correct, it's a community we love in spite of itself. A nuclear free zone which spawned Mary Chapin Carpenter, John Fahey and Root Boy Slim as well as "Cat Man," "Fox Man" and "Roscoe." Azalea City: eclectic old homes and beautiful porches.

Come Saturday afternoon, like cicadas emerging from the murky underground, musicians of many stripes will be out in broad day light for the fifth annual Takoma Porch Fest happening from 2-4 p.m.  Click the link for handy map and schedule, and check out this cool little never never land for yourself.