2 Earth Days: National Mall and Takoma Park

Hallelujah, it didn’t rain after all and a good (observed) Earth Day was had by all, one assumes.  So first stop, the co-op two blocks away from me, where lots of unneeded stuff was being recycled, trees given away, and later, a darn good 12-piece jazz band entertained the crowd.  And our Sunday farmer’s market was as lively as usual, what with all the commerce and this popular banjo-player, but for Earth Day we were offered cooking and gardening demonstrations, too.   Nice.

Then I caught a train into the city to see the big Earth Day whoopla on the National Mall.  No real schedule was posted – anywhere, for anything – so I can only report that there were lots of speeches and some big-name musicians, prominently Sting.  There was also NASA, the Department of Energy, some corporations and a few nonprofits handing out literature and demonstrating aquaponics, lightweight cars, what plastic bags look like in a big wad, and whatever it is that PETA thinks they’re selling by – yet again -  displaying naked women (or the illusion they’re naked, here on federal property).

Now dare I weigh in on which experience I enjoyed the most?  (See, no judgments, y’all, just a preference).  I think the photos tip you off that the local celebration was the livelier of the two, probably because it was mainly what neighbors are already doing, every week, and not intended to demonstrate anything at all.

But I DID get into the spirit of the Mall event when I saw these adorable students from my alma mater, one of whom hugged me when I ID’d myself as an alum.  They and 30 others had taken a six-hour bus trip to be part of these event and will be schlepping right back to Northern Ohio this afternoon.   I hope they’re glad they came.