NQ Garlic and Arts

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THE CHRONICLE OF STURBRIDGE COUNTRY LIVING

STURBRIDGETIMES

THE

MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER, 2011


2/4

The circumstances were not auspicious.

There had been a violent storm before and

attendees had to go through some soggy

areas to reach the first ever North Quab-

bin Garlic & Arts Festival. Yet, as the sun

came out and the day warmed up, the

crowd, respectable, but not huge, got into

it. There is just something about garlic.

Art isnt all that bad either.

That was about 13 years ago. The fes-

tival is now at the more accessible and spa-

cious Forsters Farm on Chestnut Hill

Road in Orange, Massachusetts, not too

far from Route 202. One hesitates to say

that an event so young is a tradition, but

people look forward to it all year and even

though the weather did not cooperate on

October first and second, folks came any-

way.

There are art festivals galore and garlic

festivals are not unknown. Why are garlic

and arts together? It was in 1998 that

farmer Ricky Baruc was lamenting the lack

of outlets for his beautiful garlic in the re-

gion. Woodworker Jim Fountain felt the

same about the lack of area galleries and

shows. You can see where this is going a

mile away. Ricky and his wife, Deb Habib

and Jim and wife Alyssa with neighbor

artist, Lydia Grey planned it out at a

Taking in

theNorthQuabbinGarlic&Arts

FestivalBYRICHARD MURPHY

Continued on page 19

THE STURBRIDGE TIMESMAGAZINETHECHRONICLE OF STURBRIDGECOUNTRY LIVING 17

Ricky Baruc talks garlic with the red pepper lady.

2011 SturbridgeTimes photo by Richard Murphy


3/4

potluck dinner.

Deb and Ricky are not only farmers.

They are the pioneers behind the Seeds of

Solidarity Education Center. It is morethan an education center. Teens come

and learn how to garden and live. A big

part of that is not leaving a big footprint

on the Earth. Deb and Rick run Seeds of

Solidarity off the grid and were driving

biodiesel-fueled vehicles years ago. The

festival is an expression of that passion for

sustainability.

You couldnt miss that as you walked

through Forsters Farm. The energy issolar and for all the thousands of atten-

dees, there are only three bags of trash.

Everything else is recycled or composted.

There are numerous exhibitors who are

in tune with that message. Most of them

proffer low-tech methods. These are peo-

ple who will not be offered large loan guar-

antees by the administration a la Solyndra.

That does not mean their ideas do not

work. One man, who has been prosely-

tizing for years a simple, but effective

method to reduce waste, is Ben Goldberg.

We need to be delicate here, but his prod-

uct will turn human waste into food, sort

of. It will also avoid the Title V problemsand expense that many homeowners face

when septic systems fail.

Bens product is a composting toilet

that you use in the same way as a conven-

tional system, except that the waste is not

flushed away. After about a couple of

years, depending on usage you have com-

post. Most of us are used to regular flush

systems and its not a subject everybody is

excited to think about. Such alternativesystems are gaining traction. Thanks to

interesting weather events, FEMA is uti-

lizing composting toilets. Due to our for-

eign adventures, the Department of

Defense has taken up the idea. We are

leaving a lot of stuff behind overseas and

something has to be done.

The next man had the fervor of a mis-

sionary, yet the simplicity of his idea was

charming. With Brian Nugents Winserts

you cut your energy bill by adding two

extra layers of glazing. You dont have to

cover your windows in winter with all that

plastic and they are easy to make by most

everyone except the mechanically hope-less. If you get a workshop group together,

Brian, of North Quabbin Energy, will

show you how its done.

What if the design of your home and

landscape were self-sustaining in a way

that fit into the natural surroundings?

That is the idea behind the permaculture

movement. Representing the Western

Mass Permaculture Guild was Jono

Neiger. Jono, a faculty member at theConway School of Landscape Design, has

been advocating permaculture for decades

in the region. At his exhibit, he was pre-

senting the idea of edible perennials, food

that you can eat and not have to replant

every year. He was also demonstrating the

use of the Austrian style of scythe. The

scythe is far cheaper than mechanical sys-

tems of haying, but more labor intensive.

Our American model wore out many a

farmer. The Austrian version is far easier

on the body.

Alternative technologies and practices

are important, but its the garlic that is,

with the arts, star of the festival. There isno dearth of the herb, to eat or plant.

One could start with the rite of passage,

garlic ice cream. Local company, Barts

makes it special for the occasion. It is im-

portant to try it to get into the spirit. Not

an unpleasant taste, but garlic ice cream

will never be Barts top seller. Enjoyable

as it is, you are within your rights if you

have another flavor on subsequent visits.

Arguably, garlic is more suited to otherdishes. The Peoples Pint, a Greenfield

brew pub and restaurant sent their travel

team. Travesty it was that they could not

bring their famous hop based beverages,

yet we were compensated. The peanut

noodles they served were not harmed by

the large dollop of pulled pork on top,

with sufficient garlic, of course.

It is a gross unfairness to single out

Continued on page 22

THE STURBRIDGE TIMESMAGAZINETHECHRONICLE OF STURBRIDGECOUNTRY LIVING 19

FramersGallery

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For Art Lovers

Garlic and more at Forsters FarmContinued from page 17


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N. Quabbin Garlic Festival

Open auditions to beheld at Stageloft for twoupcoming productions

THESTURBRIDGE TIMESMAGAZINE THECHRONICLE OF STURBRIDGECOUNTRY LIVING22

Continued from page 19

only one food vendor, but it would be difficult to detail

all the wonderful garlic laden possibilities that were on

offer. To help attendees bring garlic to the home, chef

demos were scheduled throughout the two days.

After lunch, there is still much to experience. The

arts aspect of Garlic and Arts is not slighted. Everything

from painting and jewelry to hand turned bowls. Ask

yourself, where else could you get mittens made from

recycled woolen sweaters? The visual experience and

contrasts were a feast for the eyes. There was so much

color despite no help from the Sun. Music added to

the day, performed continuously on a stage with solar

power provided by PV Squared. Workshops about

growing garlic and other subjects abounded. If you were

tired, a massage was available.

In the thick of it were Deb and Ricky, the co-impre-

sarios. Deb was efficiently serving up the garlic lovers

plate while Ricky was amongst garlic and peppers an-

swering questions. After it was over, and they had time

to rest, Deb gave us this reflection on behalf of herself

and the committee, we are heartened by the numbers

of people who continue to show up on a field in Or-

ange with families members of all ages in tow, to expe-

rience the richness to be g athered when artists, farmers,

performers and enthusiasts unite to envision and cele-

brate the strength to be found in our communities.

In spite of the weather, as advertised, it was Two

Days of Peace, Love and Garlic!

For more info and to keep in touch for next yearthe website is http://garlicandarts.org/.

For years, Ive heard thatif youve done wellin life, you should

give back. It was, in my memory, associated with theKennedys.They had been given so much, they had an obligation to give

back. This was why they chose public service. When I hear

such a formula,my firstthoughtis, what didyou steal if youneed

to give back?

Now, many speculate that Joseph P. Kennedy, the family pa-

triarch, made hismoneyin illegal booze during prohibition. Ac-

cording to Cari Beauchamp, he probably didnt. In her book,

Joseph P. Kennedy Presents: His Hollywood Years*, he certainly

took what he could get. It wasntstealing only in thelegal sense.

If you are a thief, you should give back to whomever yourobbed. If you didnt steal something, youre not giving back.

You are giving. What is so difficult about theEnglish Language?

Most of the great industrialists were philanthropists. Your

public library was possibly funded by the fortune of Andrew

Carnegie. Today, noblesse oblige is thought of as government

disbursement.

In the video of the Warren speech, she also had a few points

that made sense. The best wasnot fighting wars on a creditcard.

She also pointed out theunfunded money losing Medicare pre-

scription program. The Bush tax cuts for the rich mantra wasalso mentioned. Her dont do dumb things comment worked.

What was odd is what she didnt mention. Our present diffi-

culties havemuchto do with the largemoney center banks. They

had taken risky positions andneeded to be bailed out. You and

I bailed out the financial geniuses that live lives on a scale well

never know. Why didnt Elizabeth saydont do that?

Professor Warren is smart and will be a better candidate

against Senator Brown than the hapless Martha Coakley. That

is if the two can raise the level of debate above who looked bet-

ter in college.Next month, Ill eviscerate a Republican to even things out.

*Reviewed in the September 2009 issue of the Sturbridge Times

Magazine.

Continued from page 20

Liz Warren

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Stageloft Repertory Theater will hold open audi-tions on Monday, November 7 and Wednesday, No-

vember 9 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. for their

upcoming comedy Get Smart, to be staged in late

January, 2012. They are casting for 10 male and 17 fe-

male roles.

Stagelofts upcoming comedy Dont Drink the

Water will be open to auditions on Monday, Novem-

ber 14 and Thursday, November 17 from 7:00 to 9:00

p.m. There are 12 male and four female roles avail-

able.Appointments are not required for either audi-

tion. Stageloft is located at 450A Main St., Stubridge.

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NQ Garlic and Arts