GRAB BAG book shelf • glimpse • wildlife • pop culture • words • q&a • food • fun
Photo by Matt Love
Empty chairs await a presentation at Powell’s Books in Portland.
A G LIMPSE I NSIDE
An occasional feature by MATT LOVE
Fishermen in Powell’s
On a Thursday night in
March, my 52nd birthday,
I sat on a bench in the
event space of Powell’s
City of Books in down-
town Portland. A few feet
away, a couple hundred
empty chairs seemed to
stare at me. In 90 minutes,
my presentation of my
debut novel, “The Great
Birthright,” would com-
mence.
I wasn’t thinking about
the show. Rather, I won-
dered what 32 of my stu-
dents from Astoria High
School were doing inside
the biggest and best book-
store in the country. They had
joined me on the trip from the
Oregon Coast, and we rode
a magic school bus togeth-
er. Most had never been in-
side Powell’s. Many had never
bought a book before.
Yes, the prospect of 32
teenagers roaming around a
four-story bookstore the size
of a city block made me slight-
ly nervous. But all you can do
as a teacher in these unscript-
ed scenarios is place trust and
keep the faith in young peo-
ple. I’ve never grown as an
educator unless I put myself in
these precarious positions,
and yes, I’ve sometimes
been burned. Nevertheless,
when I finally start to feel
safe with my teaching, I am
done.
At the appointed time,
15 minutes before the gig,
all 32 students rallied back
in the event space. They
were eager to show me
all the books they’d pur-
chased. Some of them had
really loaded up!
I did the show, and we
walked out into the big city
night and boarded the bus.
After I made the last head
count and all 32 were safe-
ly into the fold, I breathed
a sigh of relief and then
passed out the birthday
cupcakes my mom had
brought to the event. A cup-
cake never tasted so good.
On the way home, some
of the students requested
the bus driver leave the
lights on. They wanted to
read their new books.
Mission accomplished.
The students didn’t even
know they were on one.
Matt Love is the author/editor of 14
books, including a detective novel
called “The Great Birthright.” His
books are available through all
coastal bookstores (except one) or his
web site, nestuccaspitpress.com
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The Bu d Ten d ers ha ve m a d e a specta cu la r d ea l w ith severa l ven d ors to su pply
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$6 . 0 0/ G r a m !
D ire
ct
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xes)
C o n cen tra tes a t $25 /ON E FU LL G ra m
a n d $18/H a lf Gra m on m u ltiple stra in
fla vors.
Prices good w hile
su pplies la st
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Bu d Ten d ers a re
m a k in g a M a rch
M a d n ess O fferin g to
Y OU !
GE T IN W H IL E SE L E CTIO N
IS BE ST !!
E a s t I n t r o d u c in
Mo
g
H and untain B
ud
Grow
Q
n
ualit
O n ly
y
t
t o p u h e B e s t f o
t to t
r
he te you
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Vi si t u s in RAY M O N D , W A. D AILY 10 AM - 7 PM
Anyo ne fro m a ny sta te , a g e 21 a nd o ve r c a n
purc ha se pro d uc ts a t M r. D o o be e s.
On Hw y 101 betw een Raym ond & South Bend M ile M aker 56
This pro d uc t ha s into xic a ting e ffe c ts a nd m a y be ha bit fo rm ing . M a rijua na c a n im pa ir c o nc e ntra tio n, c o o rd ina tio n a nd
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w ith c o nsum ptio n o f this pro d uc t. F o r use o nly by a d ults tw e nty-o ne a nd o ld e r. K e e p o ut o f re a c h o f c hild re n.
22 | March 31, 2016 | coastweekend.com
2870 O cean Ave Raym o n d W A 98577
r d o o b ees.co m •m r d o o b ees@ g m a i l.co m •360-875-8016
Lysichiton americanus
American skunk cabbage
Story by LYNETTE RAE McADAMS
Widespread from north-
ern California all the way to
central Alaska, L. americanus
thrives in wet, low-lying
woodlands and swamps across
the 3aci¿c 1orthwest, Eloom-
ing profusely (and dramatical-
ly), from March through early
June.
Known commonly as
Western skunk caEEage, yel-
low skunk caEEage, or swamp
lantern, this fascinating plant
emerges as one of spring¶s ¿rst
offerings, rising up from the
soggy ground with a luminous
yellow spathe (a kind of spe-
cialized leaf) wrapped around
a Elossom-Eearing central
stalk, called a spadix.
In the language of science,
the plant takes its name from
two Greek words, “lysis” and
“chiton,” which, in comEina-
tion, mean, “loosening tunic”
— a perfect description for
this well-dressed woodland
native.
But make no mistake: while
its looks are certainly striking,
it¶s the skunk caEEage¶s pun-
gent smell that really makes it
stand out.
Flowering when tempera-
tures are still too cool to sup-
port our planet’s more glamor-
ous pollinators — the Eees and
EutterÀies — this plant, still
governed Ey the need to repro-
duce, is forced to follow one
of nature’s ¿rst rules: Make
do with what you have. To that
end, it releases a foul-smelling
odor that comEines the aromas
of skunk spray and rotting
meat — essentially the Chanel
1o. of the insect world —
attracting carrion Eeetles and
scavenging Àies, who move
from one stinky spadix to the
next, ful¿lling an age-old part-
nership in Eotanical procre-
ation.
Beloved Ey Elack Eears Must
coming out of hiEernation (or
in our area, torpor, which is
more like a lazy grogginess),
skunk caEEage acts as a natu-
ral laxative and helps the Eear
get its digestive tract up and
running after a long nap.
But don’t get any ideas: all
parts of the plant carry nee-
dle-sharp crystals of calcium
oxalate, which, when con-
sumed Ey humans (or most
critters, for that matter), pierce
the lips, tongue, and throat,
causing painful swellings, pa-
ralysis, and in extreme cases,
death.
Of course, there are ways
around that.
1ative Americans discov-
ered that the toxic effects were
nulli¿ed when the roots of the
plant were Eoiled or the leaves
dried, and they used skunk
caEEage as a starvation food
(read: complete last resort) and
also medicinally, to treat Eurns
and inÀammation. More hap-
pily, the large, tough leaves of
the plant (which can grow to
feet in length), also served to
line Easkets and wrap ¿sh for
the ¿re, earning the plant its
¿nal common calling: Indian
wax paper.
Submitted photo
Lysichiton americanus, or American skunk cabbage, growing in the wetlands of Beard’s
Hollow in Seaview, Wash