FIELDS OF GREEN

In 1900, James Lane Allen of Kentucky wrote about the hemp as "fields of living emerald". He might be seeing red today if he knew about the status of hemp under the law; his book was titled Reign of Law, but today he would not have hemp to write about; just lots of lawlessness as the politicians rip off the taxpayers. It's called 'organised crime'.

The hemp issue and other environmental issues are now hot topics, even hotter than the weather (which has been rather cool here in the UK and many other parts as well, with monsoon rains here and villages under 9 feet of water - water, water everywhere). So of course the Big Green Gathering will have someone there talking about hemp, namely me. I am already laying out my green clothes, from Braintree trousers to a Minawear limited edition tie-dye shirt to a pair of green sunglasses (for a trip to the Wizard).

So look for the jolly green hempster at the Moon Marquee on Friday, 3 August, at 8:30 pm. This year the event will be at Fernhill Farm above the Cheddar Gorge in Somerset. Last year there were 20,000 attendees, and it looks like we will have quite a crowd again. For info click here. Tickets can also be ordered over the phone at (44) 01458 830 281.

BTW, it may be a cool idea to have a hemp bag to carry around the farm, and this month The Ecologist has a reader offer on one that says: "REAL ECO BAGS ARE MADE OF HEMP". It is 100% organic hemp, made in the UK. It is the real thing, no cotton involved in it, unlike the Anya bags and other ersatz bags being foisted on us by the cotton lovers. (see related posts for full story on cotton and the bag wars). The bag can be ordered from The Hemp Shop while supplies last, click here for info.

I got this bag in the post last week, delayed a bit by the strike, but soon after I was using it I got mugged; just like when you wear an Rolex in a rough neighbourhood, my bag got taken off me. The perpetrator was one of my co-authors, as a matter of fact, who wanted it to walk around Manhattan with. So if you are in the Big Apple, an you see a woman with a burlappy grey bag sporting the above-mentioned logo, quite possible hanging out at the Galaxy Global Eatery on 15th & Irving, that is one of the hemp team from London (though she is actually from New Jersey, but likes lots of rain, so she moved to London, where she lives with her husband Nick).