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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (June 27, 2018)
Wednesday, June 27, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon 5 Marijuana Mermaid spotted at Fir Street Park growers turning to hemp for CBD extract By Jodi Schneider McNamee Correspondent By Gillian Flaccus Associated Press SPRINGFIELD (AP) — A glut of legal marijuana is driving Oregon pot prices to rock-bottom levels, prompt- ing some nervous growers to start pivoting to another type of cannabis to make ends meet — one that doesn’t come with a high. Applications for state licenses to grow hemp — marijuana’s non-intoxicating cousin — have increased more than twentyfold since 2015, making Oregon No. 2 behind Colorado among the 19 states with active hemp cultivation. The rapidly evolving market comes amid skyrocketing demand for a hemp-derived extract called cannabidiol, or CBD, seen by many as a health aid. In its purified distilled See CBD OIL on page 29 The mermaid is one of the most popular figures in world folklore. They have long cap- tured the imagination of the public. So, when mermaid Cthulha (Clue-luh) splashed down in Fir Street Park dur- ing Sisters Farmers Market last Friday, she caught every- one’s eye. Especially the kids. Madelyn Wilson, 10, visiting from Riverside, California has always longed to see the mythical creature that is half girl and half fish. “I think their tails are so unusual, and I always believed they would be nice to humans,” Wilson told The Nugget. Mermaid Cthulha, or Prairie Emrich, grew up in Sisters living near Whychus Creek. “I grew up on Whychus Creek,” Emrich said. “The creek was my highway every day on the way home from school.” Swimming was second- nature to Emrich, and she thinks of herself as “The Mermaid of Whychus Creek.” “I went swimming in rivers and lakes in the area since I was little, including Whychus Creek,” she added, smiling. Wilson’s eyes lit up when Mermaid Cthulha spoke about all the wildlife she’s spotted along the creek. “I’ve seen otters and baby beavers, fish, butterflies and deer,” she said. “It’s such a special place and we’re so lucky to live near it.” Emrich also helped keep the creek clean by picking up any garbage she would find and dispose of it the proper way. Why would a mermaid like being at Fir Street Park every Friday, besides being able to show off her bright pink scaly tail and beautiful necklace made from drift- wood found in Whychus Creek? “Imagination is good for us, and being a mermaid is a fun way to raise river aware- ness,” Emrich said. “I want to inspire young people to connect with and to protect Whychus Creek and all our local waterways.” And the kids think she is fintastic! Before her mermaid trans- formation, Emrich left Sisters to attend college at Portland PHOTO BY JODI SCHNEIDER MCNAMEE A mermaid has been sighted at Fir Street Park. State University and received an academic arts degree in theater. “I’ve done performance art at COCC, CTC in Bend, Lincoln Hall Performance Arts Center Portland (at PSU), and Artist Repertory Theater Portland,” she said. And now she’s performing at home, close to water at the Fir Street Park splash pad.
