Here Comes the Sun, a review

Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization

By Bill McKibben

This new book is an insightful and wholistic look at our planet’s climate crisis and the innovations in solar and wind energy to transform our energy needs and abilities to reduce carbon emissions. In this well-written, fast paced and instructive book, the reader is well-informed on economic forces, technology, and innovative approaches to greatly reduce our dependency on petroleum and replace it with cheap, available solar and wind power resources.

McKibben is well informed and does both his field work and his conversations with a wide range of experts and leaders in progressive thinking, as well as sharing “boots on the ground” experiences with people from all over the world. He offers insights, and suggestions for changing our thinking and our utilization of energy sources, with a great deal of common sense. He makes this exploration fascinating, and challenges us to approach energy resources and climate change with new approaches and fresh applications of science and technology.

The reader gains insight and a sense of hopefulness, with the book being a positive approach to difficult challenges and crisis management. I learned a lot and came away with greater understanding of our challenges and our abilities to take on and solve challenging problems.

As Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs The Climate, says, “Trust Bill McKibben to find light in the darkness – and oh what a light it is. This is the energizing vision and game plan so many of us have been waiting for, and of course it comes from one of our era’s most imaginative and trusted voices.”

—Neal Lemery

The Kindness of Strangers

By Neal Lemery

(published in the Tillamook County Pioneer, 12/29/2024)

“Every time you do a good deed, you shine the light a little farther into the dark,” — Charles DeLint.

My world recently brightened up, all due to the kindness of a stranger, a hard-working and talented government worker. I needed a particular certification from a state agency, and the process compelled me to sign up for a three-hour class and an exam, as well as filling out the application on line.

I plunged into the process, my day otherwise quiet, a time between holidays, the weather wet and windy. I needed to set up an account, a user name, and a password, and then begin my online classes. Yet, the program didn’t let me access the classes or even get into my new account. The process involved a variety of security questions and complex passwords, a not unfamiliar pattern in this age of technology and “convenient, efficient” computerization of what used to be dealing with paper applications. As we all know, “convenient” is a relative term.

Finally, after an hour of frustration, I e-mailed the agency and soon received a helpful response. Still, I kept hitting a brick wall and wrote another e-mail, seeking some more direction and guidance. In a few minutes, my phone rang and a courteous worker, who soon became my guiding angel, took me by the virtual hand and walked me through the process.

It seems that the software platform also drove the agency’s workers nuts, and my plight was a common malady of the “new and improved” version of the software. We changed browsers, which sped up the process, and hand-copied my password. It seems the new and improved software, if left to its own devices, would delete my password and insert one of my answers to a security question, guaranteeing failure and no access. My angel helped me work around that disaster, and I soon was able to access the three hours of online classes.

When it came to finalize the completion of the classes and move on to the formal application for the desired certification and the qualifying exam, the last module of the class speedily identified the new web page link I was to go to, (information I couldn’t copy) but didn’t provide a button for the link, leaving me stranded in cyberspace. Nowhere in the module was an easy route to move ahead.

Yet another e-mail to my guiding angel quickly produced another work around, going back to the agency’s website and saying a forever goodbye to the private vendor’s online classes and module. With new directions and guidance, I was able to quickly access the application process and exam, and take and pass the exam with a 100% grade. This brought a cheer of jubilation and a happy dance around the dining room table and my laptop. My printer soon cranked out the desired certification. Success! My seven hours of labor finally came to an end.

It seems that this snafu is the norm, and the agency’s staff complaints are being echoed by applicants from the public. My e-mail of gratitude was forwarded to my angel’s supervisor, and my angel applauded my plan to write to the agency’s director. Enough is enough.

In this busy season, we all tend to be in a hurry and to experience glitches and irritating problems. Yet, I’ve seen many guiding angels at work, taking on and solving problems, calming crises, and bringing smiles again to irritated and frustrated customers and workers alike. Rules are often bent, protocols shortened, and people are helped on their way with a smile and a handshake.

Yes, there are joymakers and wish granters out and about this holiday season. But there are also the problem-solvers, the solution finders who are able to turn disaster and sometimes downright outrage, into a smooth and efficient process, taking on technology and lighting the candles of salvation and answers. It is to them that I give thanks during the holidays, the people with patience and the ability to get me to take a breath, to find the answers, and work my way through the perils of a “more efficient, convenient” process of getting the work done.

I’m working on my letter of complaint to the head of the agency, planning to lament about nearly impossible and unresponsive software. But, I’m also going to praise my guiding angel, who took the time and had the patience to transform my grousing and kvetching, my irritation and developing rage, into a satisfied customer and a successful applicant. That angel gets the gold stars this holiday season. They are my Santa Claus and Good Fairy Mother.

12/28/2024

Looking at the Content of My Character

(published 9/27/24 in the Tillamook County Pioneer)

By Neal Lemery

Almost seventy years ago, I remember watching soldiers on our grainy black and white television, escorting kids my age into a school. I asked my mom why the soldiers were doing that, and her answer left me confused, unsettled.

“It’s because of their race, the color of their skin, and that the school and the white community doesn’t want them to go to that school,” she said. “But it’s the law. They have a right to go to that school, and the soldiers are enforcing the law.”

My mom’s answer upset me, scaring me that soldiers in our country would have to make sure kids like me could go to school, and that would happen with soldiers armed with rifles and bayonets walking with school kids the same age as me. I was a naïve kid and it was the first time I remember experiencing racism.

I’m still scared and unsettled by that scenario, those responses, and all the racist conduct and talk in our country. It’s all around me. Still.

And the news. There are still the videos of racism and violence, and people living as if the color of someone’s skin really mattered. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s wisdom that the color of one’s skin doesn’t matter, but the content of their character does, still reverberates in me, still makes a lot of sense to me. Why don’t we, as a country, grasp that seemingly elemental observation?

The other day, I talked with a man who was telling me about his accident, how he is still hurting, and that the guy that T-boned him was careless, and didn’t have insurance. I’d been in a crash like that a few years ago and I expressed my sympathy and wished him a speedy recovery. I’d struggled with the pain, and the good results I had in working on my own forgiveness and compassion.

“He was ***, you know,” he added. “One of those ***** ***, who don’t belong here,” he added. He ranted and raved some more, about immigrants and “those people” being lazy and “good for nothing.” It seemed his view of the world was neatly divided into “them” and “us”.

His face reddened and he kept flying off the handle for several minutes, leaving me still mystified about the connection between someone’s ethnicity and speculative immigration status, and a traffic crash with whiplash and a concussion. I’m doubting if the guy had actually done some fact checking and checked on someone’s citizenship status. And, I recalled another conversation I’d had with him several years ago about how proud he was of his grandparents’ emigration to this country, and how they had worked hard and succeeded, living the American dream. He would go on and on about how proud of them he was, and how hard they worked to be part of America. He didn’t see the connection, the commonality of his family and the man he was angry with, or deal with the idea that most of us are either immigrants or that our ancestors were immigrants.

I’m still wondering if I shouldn’t have been a bit more vocal, and a lot more assertive about this blatant expression of racism and bigotry. It’s not the 1950s in Arkansas now, nor the Oregon of 1859, but we still seem to stay in our racist ways, a common expression of bias, prejudice, and downright ugliness. And, I’m hearing high elected officials and candidates for national office being forthright and outspoken on their racism and bias, seemingly deaf from the outrage of much of the population.

Maybe I need to be more intolerant, and more biased against bigotry and hate.

My state, Oregon, has a long and sordid history of racism and bigotry, beginning our statehood by prohibiting Blacks and Chinese people from even living here. My town had a “sundown” law on the books until the 1980s. I still hear the “N word” in public conversations.

And, until last week, a nearby creek’s legal name contained a racial slur. I came home to see a note from another friend, a celebratory announcement of his ability to prevail with the state geographic names board. He’s a historian, and his research discovered that a creek still bore a racist reference to an early homesteader. Well, its 2024 and my friend thought some reform and rehabilitation was in order, so he petitioned the board for a name change, which was promptly granted. The old name had been on maps since the 1870s. Didn’t anyone notice? Or worse, feel uncomfortable enough to seek a name change?

A few weeks ago, a clerk bragged to me that she didn’t need to learn Spanish for her job. “They can just learn English,” she said. Then I watched her struggle to handle a simple transaction for the next customer, whose native language was Spanish. I ended up helping them, with my limited skills, but I was able to smile and make an attempt with both of them, receiving smiles and appreciative nods from both the stubborn clerk and the customer. It was a good reminder to me that I need to work on my own language skills, that I need to practice what I preach, and to keep on learning and growing in our culture, and a reminder that while others are learning English, that I and other English speakers could work on our Spanish. The issue seems to be one of developing a good character.

I’m not sure the clerk got the memo, but the exchange was a good example of the benefits of bilingual skills.

Racism seems to be still infested in our community, and our nation. I find myself often confronted with my own biases and prejudices, and need to realize that I’m a product of our culture, a lot of subtle bigotry, and that it’s never too late for some introspection and to be on the smart side of the 21^st century. I need to smarten up.

9/27/24

Planting for Tomorrow

By Neal Lemery

(published in the Tillamook County Pioneer, 8/8/2024)

It is the height of “no left turn season” and I find myself waiting and waiting to get out into the highway, or simply drive down the road to my destination. My personal frustration level reached a high point yesterday with a very leisurely drive from Rockaway Beach to Wheeler at a snail’s pace of 25 mph. The offending tourist finally pulled off, with me and 40 new friends behind them able to speed up, in time for the speed limit zone in Wheeler. Ah, the joys of August.

My newest travel game is to spot the most gigantic vehicle combination on the road. This week’s winner is a jumbo Winnebago coach, hauling an SUV and a 25 foot sport fishing boat with the extra large outboard motor. For extra points, I looked for the gas barbeque that would have fit in the boat, but, alas, I was disappointed. Maybe I’ll luck out tomorrow.

I tried to count my blessings of running my errand on a beautiful sunny day, with some good tunes playing and not having any strict deadlines. Being “on time” anyway this time of year is only an aspiration, and there’s always that acceptable excuse for being late because of the traffic. My friends and associates accept these excuses, and we usually have a five minute commiseration session before our meeting.

I know that all these visitors bring money, and that our economy depends on them for their cash. While I am inconvenienced, I do welcome the economic benefits, and also the ability to show off the natural beauty of our home. I see a lot of visitors simply taking a breath, chilling out, absorbing a scenic wonder, and being able to enjoy nature with their families. Maybe I need to think of our tourism as a form of health care for the nation.

Despite my seasonal grousing, I see many good things happening in our little corner of the country. Merchants are refurbishing storefronts, new affordable housing buildings are springing up in many communities, and the new health clinic and pharmacy is starting to grow in Wheeler. The fiber optic cable folks on the Wilson River Highway are about done with their work of adding more internet service, and I eagerly await the arrival of cell phone service on that dangerous and well-traveled highway.

The south jetty on Tillamook Bay is getting new rock, and new bridges and repaving are improving our roads. These projects have been on the community “to do” list for a long time and it is satisfying to see the work getting done this year. The new Cape Meares Loop road is a wonder, showcasing part of our coastline with views we haven’t seen before. The designing engineers should get an award for their artistic vision.

There are several new non-profit organizations starting up, filling needs for education and cultural events. Their vision looks far into the future. The farmers’ markets around the county are flourishing, and farm stands are well-stocked. We are busy taking care of community needs and sharing the bounty of farmers.

Artists and their beautiful work are everywhere, with art shows now commonplace and exciting. Public murals brighten community buildings, and there’s an abundance of music and dance. We are even having Shakespeare in the park, at the main library’s new stage at Tillamook’s newest park.

My garden grows well this summer, and I’ve been focused on the art of propagating with seeds and cuttings. I’m practicing new skills and techniques. I’m seeing my time in the yard as a laboratory, and as a metaphor for what most everyone in the community are doing this summer, growing a healthy and thriving future.

8/8/2024

The Power and Gift of Time

Posted on the Tillamook County Pioneer on October 18, 2023

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By Neal Lemery

Like most Americans, I’m impatient, wanting to get things done, to see the fruits of my labors right now. Let it happen, but now, not later. Waiting, let things happen when they are ready, well that’s not me, that’s not my “lifestyle”, my method of living and working.

One of my holiday traditions is to make vanilla extract. It is a simple recipe, a simple process. Last winter, I made a large batch, setting it aside in a seldom-used kitchen cabinet to age. Now, after a kitchen remodel and in the process of emptying all the cabinets for the contractor, those bottles have disappeared, hiding somewhere in a “special place”, currently missing in action and becoming part of the mysteries of the house.

I became irritated and edgy, mostly at myself for losing track of that project. Also, I wasn’t ready for the holidays, and needed to replenish my supplies of the delicious baking ingredient. The extract isn’t something that can be done in a few hours; it takes time and patience, which is always in short supply during the holiday madness.

After a few hours of somewhat frenzied searching for the missing bottles and that “special place”, I decided to start over, and make a new batch. I found my recipe, learning that I had plenty of time to let my project age and ripen. That is, if I started right away, I could get a “reboot” and have plenty of time to let the concoction age. I could choose not to be stressed and anxious, and instead, take charge and find a remedy, a solution to my forgetfulness and anxiety.

I found new supplies on line, and when they came the next day, I started anew. It is a simple recipe: vodka, cut up vanilla beans and pods, and small bottles. And, time of course. Within a half hour, all was well, with the concoction starting its soaking time. It is an infusion process, allowing the alcohol to soak up the vanilla flavors and turn the vodka into an attractive caramel color. I put my collection in the same cupboard where the other extract had been stored and then disappeared, with both me and my wife verbally reminding us where the new project was stored.

All I had to do was shake the new bottles once a week, and wait. Oh, and remember to do that and keep its location in my memory banks. I trust myself to engage in those rather simple, easy tasks.

For this project, it is all about time. Allowing time to work its magic seems almost un-American, contrary to the “want it now” attitude of society. Respecting time seems to now be a lesson for me to relearn, and to incorporate into my life.

Other projects seemed to ripen that day, with several ideas and tasks that were awaiting others’ approval or participation, also came to life. Meetings came to life, ideas ripened into easy tasks, and things moved along. Check boxes were checked and advances were made. There was an air of accomplishment now, apparently contagious, infecting other sleeping ideas into their action stage. From what had been a grumpy, unfulfilling day was turning into a most productive experience. Time and patience were bearing fruit.

Other projects came to mind: an overdue letter to a friend, the writing of a sympathy card, updating my to do list, adding items to the grocery list that were needed, but hadn’t risen to the status of urgent necessities. Getting some things done, mundane though they may initially seem, was turning into a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment, and having time to be happy with how I was getting through the day. The idea that I was an idiot for not remembering where the vanilla extract had vanished to was fading away, in the bright light of all of this accomplishment.

Patience and the impact of taking time is also woven into our community life. Some really good ideas and actions seem to take an inordinate amount of time. Some problems I want to have addressed immediately, to be solved, so we can move on. Yet, I should be patient, knowing that some community issues are intricately complex and challenging, and all aspects of a solution aren’t yet ready to be assembled. People need time to process, to look at different solutions and methodologies. They aren’t quite yet ready to act, or to accept some needed change. For some things, its not yet time for it to happen.

I’m that way, too, though I’m hesitant to admit it. I can be a stubborn mule, and don’t often like changing my mind, or agreeing that someone else’s idea is better, more practical. My impatience gets in the way of real progress and success. I need to remember my vanilla extract, and let time work its magic. And, when things have ripened and matured, all the waiting will be worthwhile, and delicious.

Guerrilla Gratitude: Bringing Light Into Our World

by Neal Lemery

(Published in the Tillamook County Pioneer, 9/12/2022)

Any act, any kind word, is capable of making a change for the better in our world. Each of us has so many opportunities to make it a better place. A few kind words at the grocery store or post office, a simple act of kindness to help someone along in their day, maybe a cheery note or a phone call. It can all make a difference.

I was in a hurry last week as I came into my favorite coffee shop, intent on getting to work on what I thought was an important project, one that couldn’t wait.

I pulled open the coffee shop door, focused on ordering my coffee. I nearly ran over a woman holding two cups of coffee and looking stressed. I looked behind her, seeing her frail mother, struggling with her cane and trying to keep up with her daughter.

It was time to pause and show a little kindness. I pulled the door fully open and held it for them, letting the woman with the two hands of coffees navigate outside, as she offered her arm to her mother. They shuffled out the door, both of them thanking me, and breaking into smiles. I muttered “no problem,” and smiled back.

It was time for me to take a breath, admire the beauty of the fall day; time for some gratitude. The world had given me an opportunity to be kind, make people happy and take care of the community.

The opportunities continued. A couple had followed me in, seemingly in a hurry to get their coffee and resume their journey. I stepped back, letting them have first place in the queue for the barista. The man gave me a funny look, like I was doing something strange, out of the ordinary.

“No problem,” I said. “I’m taking it easy today.” I repeated the smiles I’d received from the mother and daughter, and felt my day brighten.

He just nodded, likely not knowing how to respond. There was a lesson or two there. At least, a lesson for me, taking time to let things unfold, to be part of an accommodation in someone’s day, making things go easier. But, I got my reward: a nod, perhaps a sense of someone being kind and gracious to them, maybe some reflection on what the day was about.

I’d assumed they were on vacation, which is hopefully a time for some rest, a pause from the routine of daily life, and simply enjoying a sunny fall day in a beautiful place, topped off with some great coffee. The least I could do for them was to be kind.

My coffee shop punch card was filled by my usual order, and I gave it to the barista, asking them to use it to treat the next person who would come through the door. I’ve been reading a book about “guerrilla gardening”, where you surreptitiously add beauty to public space. Perhaps this is “guerrilla gratitude”. We can all be rebels with a cause.

When I checked in at a hospital last week for some lab work, a very kind man gently and efficiently guided me through the process, even walking me over to the lab and then guided me to my next appointment. He was extraordinary. Yet for him, it seemed just an ordinary day, just doing his job. He made my wife and me laugh and feel at ease, as he went about his work. His saintliness was just what I needed, calming my anxiety and frenzy.

Other employees were also extraordinarily kind and helpful, bringing to me an atmosphere of gentleness, welcoming, and professionalism. You could tell they loved their work and were proud of their competence, knowing they were saving lives. It was nice to see that a large organization doing important work appreciated great customer service.

“If you light a lamp for someone else, it will also brighten your path,” said Buddha. We need to be a society of lamplighters, and not keep our compassion and kindness hidden away. It is the treasure we need to share.

Life, real life, a good life, is really about kindness and accommodation and patience. Life is paying it forward, diffusing the crisis of the moment, and quietly getting things done and put in order. The cost is really non-existent. A little time, perhaps a few more minutes spent with someone, some kind words, a few deep breaths, and exuding calmness and service to others. We get that back, at least tenfold, in our lives.

I keep re-experiencing those lessons, and the need to be patient and kind, both on the giving and the receiving parts of life. Such wisdom bears repeating, along with a whole lot of doing, part of “guerrilla gratitude”.

9/12/2022

What I Learned This Summer

-by Neal Lemery

(published in the Tillamook County Pioneer, August 29, 2022

The calendar and the changing light in the mornings and evenings tells me that this season is in transition. We are leaving summer and moving into fall. Perhaps it is also the appearance of all the teachers’ cars at the nearby school and the chill in the early morning air.

September always seems to be the real new year for me. School starting back up, vacations ending, the lazy warmth of late summer days, the harvests from the garden, all signal a new beginning. The county fair and all the summer weekend festivals are over. There’s an optimism in the air, a time for something new, different. There’s an expectation of change.

And, there’s nothing like a bout of Covid in the middle of summer to make one appreciate their health, and the power of one’s body to fight off a potentially fatal illness and to be able, once again, to be active, to do the things one loves to do. I’ve had the time to reflect on what I’ve learned this summer.

There is power in collective action and organization. The real work comes from the collective actions of a small group of people. I’ve gained new appreciation for the power that small groups of people have for deciding to get something done, and then going about getting it done. This has been a summer of reunion and reorganization, with groups again putting into motion their activities, and moving ahead in their lives. By attending these events, I’ve become reacquainted with friends and neighbors, and celebrated the power of togetherness. From signature gatherers on political issues to re-invigorating social events, things have gotten done. It is grass roots work and it wouldn’t have happened unless people got moving and worked together.
Relationships are Essential. Our family gathered for a wedding this summer, resulting in some deep and loving conversations, emotional support, and shedding a lot of the loneliness and isolation of the pandemic. We realized the importance of family, and became reacquainted with what brings us together. I took the time to talk with people at the grocery store and on the street, reaffirming our common ties and interests, re-weaving the frayed fabric of what the media often paints as a divided and angry society. Those brief conversations have taken on a new value, and a new relevance for me. I’m again realizing the importance of good friends, and deep conversation.
Connecting with your own creativity brings joy to your heart. I’ve taken time to play my guitar again, to paint, to take photos, to garden with others, to explore and honor my own creative juices. I again feel the joy of what children experience when they free themselves to simply be, to create and bring joy into their lives. I joined an art group, which meets every week to simply paint together, without judgment or criticism, and simply enjoy the communal act of creation.
Take time to do the right thing. I sometimes let things go undone, and I neglect to take responsibility for my own mistakes and missed opportunities. Sometimes, I need to apologize, to make amends, and to focus on doing what is right. I sometimes neglect relationships, or let a wondrous act of kindness and service go unrecognized. I’ve humbled myself, and reached out, making connections, sometimes apologizing, and often simply recognizing and appreciating the good works of others. I’ve learned the power of the sincere sympathy card or note of thanks, and how why that may seem insignificant, receiving that acknowledgement moves people to tears. The price of a card and a stamp is incredible, and changes lives. Appreciating others and embracing them, loving them is really what we are here for. I need to do that more often.
Experiencing nature is an essential part of self-care. I often forget to take care of myself. Having Covid this summer was a re-set on that value for me. Self-care can keep you alive and upright, and able to get back to your to-do list, and the things that bring you love and joy. The other day, I was at loose ends, and the things I thought I needed to do that day dropped off of the calendar. I took that time, and went outside. I went to the beach, the forest, and sometimes just looked up into the sky. I spent the day enjoying the day for what it was, an incredible gift. I was reminded that life can be beautiful, that we live in a gorgeous place, that I can find peace and contentment anywhere I look. I took photos of flowers, really looking at a single flower, examining and taking in all of its beauty. I need self-care. If I was frank with my doctor about my need for self-care, they’d put it on my medication list, and expect me to follow through. Take time for me. Respect and honor me. And let me take myself outside and into the fresh air and sunshine.

8/29/22