Welcome to Litsy!

In our society most people think prosperity comes from money. They think that without money there is no food. But there is food without money. Wild land is not empty; weeds are wilderness, and the wilderness is a kind of wealth. And there is wilderness in the city.

“There‘s a thin line between badass & dumbass.” I‘m not sure on which side of that line Lerner falls. She seems pretty flaky, as are many of the people she writes about: a survivalist; a shoplifting activist; a woman who invented her own religion & language. I was entertained by Lerner‘s adventures in urban foraging, even while I found her medicinal advice highly suspect. Still, I‘m an avid wildcrafter myself and enjoyed this overall.

There‘s a rumour that some species have acorns that are palatable raw, but their existence is disputed and even controversial. They live somewhere between the tooth fairy and honest politicians.

Plants are scientifically proven to make us feel good. […] It‘s why commercials for antidepressants are set in glowing, sunlit fields. They know we are seeking nature, so they sell us its image.

(Photo: a flower field in downtown Tokyo)

Sit in front of a tree and you are looking at the incarnation of a three-hundred-million-year-old being that eats sunlight and drinks rain.

In Minneapolis, a study found that urban trees remove 384 tons of air pollution per year, a service valued at $1.9 million, and that they sequester nearly nine thousand tons of carbon annually.

(Photo: my front yard is practically a forest. Can you spot the blue jay?)

Humans living today are Stone Age hunter-gatherers displaced through time to a world that differs from that for which our genetic constitution was selected. Although our genes have hardly changed, our culture has been transformed almost beyond recognition …

I saw this plate decorated with dandelions when I was at the Tokyo National Museum. The tagged book is currently in a stack on my nightstand. #dandelionlove

On accessing edible chestnuts: ‘pin them with my shoe...then drag my foot across the ground... It‘s fun, and you have the added benefit of looking ridiculous to passersby‘ 😂👌🤪
#keepportlandweird #foraging #feasting #nature #urbanforaging

Congrats on your milestone and happy birthday @Molly_the_mezzo This is my princess Leia.

#mollysbdaygiveaway