Yeah Chip!

Ten years ago, I lived with my sister, Jenny, in Seattle. She and I had so much fun the summer of 1999: we climbed mountains, went to concerts, played Kadima, and ran around Greenlake. Around that time, her friend, Chip (photo right), organized a mobile-making party where friends could come and make balanced works of art that spun in the breeze. His invitation read something like, "Get Mobilized!" (I loved the pun.)

So Jenny, Chip, and I went around town to collect mobile-making supplies. Jenny zipped us over to some industrial site near Ballard. We got out of the jeep, walked up to the dumpster, and Jenny, without pause, jumped into the dumpster in her bright orange sundress. She bent down, and then popped up, holding up all of her prizes: cool, rusty metal parts that would be great for a mobile. With her big smile, she said, "These would be perfect!"

That was the same summer that Chip started his little online environmental newsletter.

I relate this story because, somewhat like a mobile, it feels like our paths have come full circle. Now, I jump in dumpsters, Jenny plays with words (with their kids, Ellis and Sebastian), and Chip just received a big prize. Go Chip! I am so proud of you.