It’s not what you might think, although things are verging on f-like chaos these days. Putin has killed Alexei Navalny and now won’t return his body to his mother (and who will slap his hand? — certainly not Tucker Carlson); Ukrainian fighters have lost the strategically important city of Avdiivka; at the same time instead of voting to send more aid at this critical juncture, GOP House members have gone home for a two week winter break; climate scientists have taken a new look at the data and think we’re closer to a tipping point than originally thought. Ho hum.

But, hey, if we just keep our heads down we might be okay. Crabs are filling borrowed crab pots; donations for our crabbing families keep pouring in; there are some great live music programs coming up — including a hysterical play (how do we get those bodies out of the morgue?), “Nunsense,” opening March 8. So what’s not to like? Read on — good things are happening all over our region.

Fisher Poets this weekend!

First, Fisher Poets — its 27th year! — takes place this weekend, Feb. 23-25. If you’ve never been, treat yourself to some wild verse, wilder characters, good food, great music and quirky merch. If you’ve been before you know just what I’m talking about. It’s a local gem that’s been featured in the NY Times, Smithsonian magazine, the Wall Street Journal, NBC and the BBC and other media outlets. It’s even been recognized by the U.S. Library of Congress. (More info and the complete schedule here: www.fisherpoets.org.)

The happenings take place all over town: Astoria Brewing Co. (formerly the Wet Dog Café), the Ten-Fifteen Theater, Fort George Brewery, the Columbian Theater, KALA performance gallery, Xanadu (formerly the Voodoo Room) and the Liberty Theatre. And, if you don’t feel like going out, you can hear large segments of it on KMUN. There are too many people now on the organizing committee to name them all, but special fishy kudos go to Jon and Doreen Broderick and Hobe Kytr who’ve been keeping the action going from the beginning.

And there may still be some volunteer shifts to cover. If you’d like to help, drop Amanda Gladics a note at amanda.gladics@oregonstate.edu. She writes, “We need dozens of friendly folks at our venues Friday and Saturday evenings to check, and often sell, admission buttons and to offer errant FisherPoet fans good directions. We also need some intrepid souls to help at the Gearshack, our pop-up bookstore, all day Friday and Saturday.” Lend a hand if you can, or just head over the river and soak up the oh-so-local fun.

Food Bank

There is more good news at the Ocean Park Food Bank. A couple years ago, the dedicated folks running the food bank thought it was time to look for a new location. They didn’t really want to move, but there were some questions about whether they could stay in their long-time digs kitty-corner from Jack’s. They looked around; they asked around; they considered some other spots, but nothing was really as ideal as where they had been established for so many years ago.

Finally circumstances changed and in December of last year they were able to purchase the building from Don and Jenny Sheldon. Charlotte Paliani, food bank treasurer, said, “We really didn’t want to move. Our clients are used to coming here and it’s a location that gives everyone good, safe access — our clients can walk, ride bikes, ride the bus. And we have parking available.”

In order to get the building in better shape, the east side — which had been Granny Annie’s and then Bernie’s — had to be demolished. Since the purchase, the crew at the food bank — Michael Goldberg, president; Charlotte, treasurer; Cheri Hoyer, vice president; Kathy Condron, volunteer coordinator; and Sheryl Wren, warehouse manager — have made several upgrades. They bought a spanking new food cooler, and with help from volunteers, had a walkway and roof built so that on rainy days it’s a little more pleasant to load and unload inventory.

The inside of the food bank is sparkling clean with gleaming aluminum garbage cans holding canned goods. There is a tiny office, but one of the future goals is to add on to the building and create a bigger and more efficient office space for administration. They’d also like to have a place for donations of clothing, jackets, feminine supplies, diapers, baby formula and other non-food items. Right now space is limited, but the need is there.

The food bank is run completely by volunteer labor; there is no paid staff. Yet the need for feeding our community keeps growing yearly. Last year 546 families were served, nearly 1,400 people.

Pull Quote

The food bank is run completely by volunteer labor; there is no paid staff. Yet the need for feeding our community keeps growing yearly. Last year 546 families were served, nearly 1,400 people.

Charlotte sent me a few other impressive factoids: “We received a total of 17,165 pounds of food from local donations, Northwest Harvest and Coastal Harvest. We spent $9,434 on food to supplement what we received. We purchase milk, eggs, bread, peanut butter, bananas and meat every month and also other items such as cereal, canned items when we are running low. We try to buy local and our grocers work with us. As you know prices are way up, especially dairy and meat.”

One challenge is how to keep up the stock of peanut butter. For some reason the price of this popular item has gone through the roof in many grocery stores. Though most of the groceries can be purchased at Jack’s, Okie’s, or Sid’s, Michael makes a trip over the river sometimes weekly to buy peanut butter at Costco.

Consistent community support

In a surprise to no one, Charlotte raves about the community support. “We’ve been very fortunate with this amazing supportive community as donations are our only income and we never have to turn anyone away. We now have a mortgage and utilities we didn’t have before and repairs and remodeling, but we feel confident that we can raise the money needed to continue our much needed program.” Direct donations are always welcome. Another way to help is to participate in the Green Bags program. Stop by and pick up a handy green bag, fill it with appropriate canned and other goods and just leave it on your porch. Every other month drivers will stop by and grab your bag. It’s a great way to supplement what the food bank receives through other avenues.

Another opportunity to give is coming up April 24 at the Peninsula Senior Center. A fund-raising dinner is being planned by John Vale and the kitchen crew at the center. Dinner will be at 6 p.m.: Chicken Parmesan with pasta and chef Nanci Main’s Italian herb rolls, salad, and a dessert buffet. There will also be a silent auction with many items donated by local artists. More details soon.

As I walked through the food bank with Charlotte last weekend, she stops by a palette of canned garbanzo beans and holds one up. “These are so great, healthy and there are so many ways you can use them. I’ve been requiring that everyone who comes in takes some with them,” she says laughing.

Homemade hummus

Homemade hummus is so much better and so much more cost effective than buying it in the store. So, as a community service, here is a basic recipe (there are plenty of variations online):

• 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained

• ¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 ½ to 2 lemons), more to taste

• 1 medium-to-large clove garlic, roughly chopped

• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste

• ½ cup tahini

• 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water, as needed

• ½ teaspoon ground cumin

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Basically you just toss all this in a food processor and tinker to suit your taste. Serve topped with olive oil, or garnish with paprika or chopped fresh parsley. You’ll make Charlotte so happy!