
Warm thanks to everyone who participated in our Sustainable Living and Garden Tour last Saturday. 200 people visited our awesome host venues and witnessed sustainability in action! Pictures coming!

Aligning the Spirit of Living and Money
Wednesday, August 18 at 7 pm
One of the largest questions coming out of the COVID-19 Pandemic is, “DO I HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN MY LIFE AND MONEY? In this instance “Life” can mean many things but, what comes rising to the surface is the fear of losing one’s Existence to the Virus and or one’s Freedom by stepping back into the rat race of work.
Randall Loop, long time Simply Living supporter and previous board member has used the 9 Steps of Your Money or Your Life (YMOYL) to create a sustainable living since 2004. He has facilitated the course since 2006 and has literally assisted hundreds to create the same for themselves. Join us for a brief introduction of the mindsets and methods of the program that was originally created by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin. Randall’s presentation will be followed by Q&A discussion.
Get started on the journey today with the YMOYL Book (amazon) If you prefer to pay a little more instead of supporting Amazon, you can buy it at a local Columbus bookstore or you can buy it online at Bookshop.org, which donates money to local bookstores.
Wednesday, August 18, 2021 at 7 pm Virtual Event Registrants will receive link via email.

The New Corporation: The Unfortunate Necessary Sequel
Film + Q&A Sat-Sun August 28-29
Co-Sponsored by Simply Living and the
Ohio Community Rights Network

Join us for the live Q&A following the film with Move to Amend Outreach Director, Greg Coleridge

The link and password to view the film will be sent out Saturday, August 28. The film will be available for a 24 -hour period before the Q&A, which starts promptly at 2:00 pm EST on Sunday the 29th.
Register here.

“Sustainability requires that every community meet the needs of all its members (including plants and animals), present and future, without compromising the needs of other communities meeting the needs of their members, present and future.
From The Small-Mart Revolution: How Local Businesses are Beating the Global Competition” Michael Shuman
Reclaim Democracy to End Corporate Control of Fossil Fuelish Energy Policies… This recent blog promotes the approach of Move To Amend. A letter in the Dispatch by Greg Coleridge explains how we can end the power of First Energy and more! Read it here.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SIMPLY LIVING’S BE THE CHANGE COMMUNITY CALENDAR

Friday, July 30 2 pm – 3:15 pm Register Now (Free)
This time on our planet is calling us all to step up and be a part of the positive change that we wish to see during these challenging times. With the launch of the 2021 Consciousness in Action Awards Nominations, we are excited to honor those who are making a positive impact with an expanded vision of reality and creative solutions to the world’s challenges from a noetic perspective. More…



We are doing something FUN this month! We’re collaborating with GREEN BEXLEY and their PLASTIC FREE JULY projects!
Kit is going to go LIVE on our Instagram and make
these delicious, flourless brownies with you. Details here…

More…

Check out the lineup for the Lunchbox Concerts below.



Positioned to Prosper celebrates people, businesses and organizations leading change in the social enterprise community. This event welcomes community advocates, business leaders, entrepreneurs and all fans of doing good together — as we gather and celebrate the growing social enterprise landscape in central Ohio. Join us! More…

Tuesdays in August from 7-8 pm* 1685 W. First Ave. Columbus, OH 43212 (map) 2021 BAND SCHEDULE
8/03 – The British Invasion (‘60s Music)
8/10 – The Conspiracy Band (R&B/Funk)
8/17 – Lil’ Red & The Rooster (Blues)
8/24 – Red Healer (Folk/Soul)
8/31 – Sean Carney (Blues)
There will be a food truck at each concert. More…

Live AND Live Streamed on Zoom! Join award-winning poet, Maggie Smith, as she launches Goldenrod, her stunning new poetry collection that celebrates the beauty and messiness of life. Smith will be in conversation with acclaimed poet, educator, editor, and literary critic David Baker. More…

How do the experts grow beautiful, vibrant plants in a variety of containers? They know the secrets of great pots, great plants, and compost. Uncover the mysteries of potting soil, plant watering, fertilizer, and the simple reason you keep killing your potted plants! Learn which ornamental and edible plants grow best in pots, and the techniques to keep them happy and healthy. $10. More…

Find many more events posted on our Community Calendar.
Browse now. Select the Monthly View to find events quickly.
HINT: Search using keywords like FOOD, ENERGY, SUSTAINABLE, YOGA, MEDITATION, MUSIC, SUMMIT, ETC.
NEWS + RESOURCES
FOR LIVING LOCAL
August Tree of the Month, Eastern Cottonwood
Eastern Cottonwood (Populus deltoides)
by Martin (Mort) Schmidt for Simply Living
Excerpts below – see the full post here.

Eastern cottonwood and sycamore are the giants of creeks and floodplains. Cottonwood is easy to spot from a distance because of its large size and because its leaves quiver in the slightest wind, like it’s close relative quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides). Cottonwood has little commercial value today, but it played an important role in American history.
Cottonwood has alternate, simple leaves. In trees with alternate leaves (and branches), which describes most Ohio hardwoods, the leaves and branches are not attached directly across from each other, as shown in the image below.
Simple leaves are distributed more or less randomly on a tree, and do not occur in regular groupings of 3, 5, 7, etc. Simple leaves are also attached to the tree with their own stem, instead of sharing a stem with two or more other leaflets.

Cottonwood leaves have no lobes, but they have teeth and are triangular in shape; hence the species name deltoides. The leaf is somewhat shiny, which makes its shimmering in summer breezes all the more obvious.
Cottonwood grows rapidly and can reach a height of 60 ft in 15 years and a diameter of 6 ft in as little as 50 years, generally topping out at around 125 ft in height (Donald Culross Peattie – A Natural History of Trees of Eastern and Central North America). The bark is deeply furrowed and light gray colored, which together with its often large size, make it easy to distinguish in winter. Of course the common name, cottonwood, comes from the cotton-like substance that keeps the tiny seeds aloft and distributes them widely in the summer.

The cottonwood tree does not provide food for humans, but like other poplars and the closely-related willows (genus Salix), cottonwood is a source of salicylic acid, the active ingredient of aspirin. Consequently, the native Americans extracted substances from cottonwood leaves to reduce pain and swelling, and as a treatment for a snakebite (Fred Hageneder – The Meaning of Trees).
A cottonwood tree was also used in the sacred Sun Dance ceremony of the Sioux Indians. A tree was selected a year before the ritual, and shortly before the ritual, cut down and placed into a hole at the ceremony grounds. Celebrants danced around the tree for 4 days and nights, and some chose to have their chest pierced with an eagle claw and attached to the Tree of Life with rope. The Sioux also saw the rustling of cottonwood leaves as a sort of prayer (Hageneder).
Likewise, let us speak well of cottonwoods. Despite their limited commercial value, cottonwood trees are things of beauty and they’ve served us well through history.
Read the full blog post on the Simply Living website here.
“I have only to break into the tightness of a strawberry, and I see summer – its dust and lowering skies.”
~ Toni Morrison, The Bluest Eye
Reconnect With Nature And Chase Waterfalls
At Rock Stalls Natural Sanctuary In Ohio

“Everything good, everything magical happens
between the months of June and August.”
~ Jenny Han, The Summer I Turned Pretty
COMMON GREENS OHIO

Special Events, New Producers, Announcements & More!
Read the full Update here
Upper Arlington (Weds 4-7, 2850 Tremont Rd): Musical entertainment by Timbre Wolves. Drank Tank pops up with nitro coffee and kombucha! FREE 60 minute yoga flow class starting at 5:30 (led by YogaSix Upper Arlington). The Finest Edge mobile sharpening truck onsite – get your knives in shape for handling fall’s root crops and winter squash! Producer list & market map.
Bexley (4-7 pm Thursdays at E Main St and S Dawson Ave): Musical entertainment by Dean Gledhill. Food truck: Havanna Mia. Producer list & market map.
Clintonville (9am – 12 pm Saturdays at Ohio History Center): Musical entertainment by Alex Burgoyne Quartet. Community table: Hixon Dance Studio. **NEW Vendor Alert** Peanut Butter & Jenny pops up at the market! Guac Shop, Beechwold Baked Goods and Royal Cottage are all on the schedule this week. Producer list & market map.
What’s Up in Local FoodAugust 1-7: National Farmers Market Week!
Dive into sector reports addressing COVID’s impact on local food and farmers markets
10 books about food and farming to read this summer – Modern Farmer
This US Forestry website is all about Celebrating Wildflowers and has activities, coloring pages and word searches just for the kiddos!
~As always, eat well, be well.~




Vilvi Vannak, director of the Care & Share Time Bank, wants to make sure everyone reads this GREAT article in The Columbus Dispatch by reporter Allison Ward! https://www.dispatch.com/…/time-banks-like…/7936290002/


E-Waste: What Happens When
We Fail To Recycle Electronics

What Is the Carbon Footprint of Video Streaming?

5 of the Least Wasteful Ways to
Build Your Forever Home




Listen on your radio or online anytime!
CALENDARS!
LIVE LOCAL, BUILD COMMUNITY #SIMPLYLIVING

Good, Cheap, Fun
- Grove City Bourbon Tasting
- Free days at U.S. national parks
- Free Concerts at Columbus Commons
- U-pick: Go peach picking or apple picking in Columbus
- Explore Columbus with Neighborhood Hops and Walks
- Sunflower Fields in Central Ohio; multiple locations open!
- Free outdoor concert roundup around Columbus in 2021
- 614 Restaurant Week Columbus
- 2021 Farmers Markets in Columbus
- Lobster Roll Days at the Hills Market
- 2021 Zoofari at the Columbus Zoo
- New Albany Founders Day Festival, Parade, and 5K at Rose Run Park
- CAPA Summer Movie Series returns to Ohio Theatre
- The top Free and Cheap things to do in Columbus
- Free Movie Admission: From Book to Film at Gateway Film Center
- ‘Museums for All’ makes Columbus attractions accessible to all

Check out Wes Williams and the landscaping services he offers:
https://www.plantconnections.net/
COLUMBUS UNDERGROUND
Mega Weekend
Comedy, Carrie, Short North Yard Sale & More!

Welcome to the weekend! Do some dancing!
Here’s a rundown of fun things to do this weekend.
Music & Nightlife & Comedy

Double Happiness welcomes Beats & B-Sides Live!
Laugh during Blomedy: Freakshow Part 2!
SAYMYNAME will perform at Dahlia.
Go dance to the 90’s at Skully’s. Enjoy some yachtopia at Ace of Cups.
Secret Studio brings Garbage Greek w/ Call Me Rita to the stage.
Fun Things to Buy and Eat

Jeni’s launches High Five Candy Bar.
Pattycake Bakery has reopened in their new spot!
Sneaker and vintage shop Heat Archive opens at their new space in Gateway. Shop the Short North Neighborhoods Yard Sale on Saturday!
Tigertree and surrounding Clintonville shops will have a sidewalk sale.
Check out the Matchmakers Market.
Go to the Union County Fair.
There’s another Olde Towne Market to shop.
ENJOY EXPLORING ART

Watch outdoor performances of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Carrie begins at The Garden Theater.
Hear some new poems at the Lincoln Cafe.
Check out what is playing for CAPA’s Summer Movie Series this weekend.
Watch Strangers on a Train.
Columbus Jazz Orchestra comes back for Big Band Bash on Friday night!
Learn block printing with artist Adam Hernandez.
Eurydice is on view at Schiller Park Amphitheater.
WHAT ELSE CAN YOU DO
THIS WEEDKEND?
Place an order for this gorgeous book of photography.
Pick up some tools at Modcon Living’s sale.
Enjoy some aloha specialties at Seventh Son.
Enjoy yoga and nature at Whetstone Park of Roses.
Get a copy of Maggie Smith’s new collection of poetry, Goldenrod.
Go to a Family Day Festival on Sunday at the Ohio Statehouse.
Thanks for reading and enjoy your weekend! A great community is an informed community. Want to help keep our news free for all and support our small, local company?
Your support helps Columbus Underground further our mission.

edited by Connie Hammond (pictured above).
Email cmhammond11@att.net to subscribe to her Community Calendar or share meeting info.
Saturday, July 31, 2021, 10:00 AM 0 12:00 PM. Human Trafficking Awareness Forum. Trinity Episcopal Cathedral’s chapter of the Episcopal Peace Fellowship will be hosting an educational forum on human trafficking. It will feature special guest speakers, an update on human services and resources in Ohio. Participants will learn about available resources and ways in which they can take action against human trafficking. On the agenda: Statements from the office of U S Senator Sherrod Brown, office of U S Senator Rob Portman, office of U S Representative David Joyce, Karen Stanton of Judge Marilyn Cassidy (special human trafficking docket), Representative from Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, Representative from The Collaborative to End Human Trafficking, Representative from Cuyahoga County Prosecutor – Human Trafficking Task Force, and more! Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86496485904. Meeting ID: 864 9648 5904, Passcode: 675166.
Saturday, July 31, 2021, 10:00 AM. The False Promise of the Public Option by Dr. Paul Song, president of California PNHP. Dr. Paul Song was most recently on the faculty of the Samuel Oschin Cancer Center at Cedars Sinai Medical Center and currently sees Medicaid and uninsured patients at Dignity California Hospital. Dr. Song is the current President of Physicians for a National Health Program – California. He served as the co-chair of the Campaign for a Healthy California from 2017-2018 and was the very first visiting fellow on health care policy in the California Department of Insurance in 2013. He is the chief operating officer/chief medical officer of NKMax America, Inc., a subsidiary of South Korean-based ATGen Global, where he oversees all translational research and clinical programs. He is also the chief medical officer of Hawkeye Bio. Dr. Song serves on the national board of Physicians for a National Health Program, Healthcare Now, and Progressive Democrats of America. Register here.
Tuesday, August 3, 2021, 7:00 PM. Palestinian Liberation Webinar Series – Building Solidarity & Community in this Political Moment. Jewish Voice for Peace North New Jersey is proud to work with coalition partners American Muslims for Palestine, New Jersey Peace Action, The Palestinian American Community Center, and People’s Organization for Progress to present a weekly webinar series in the month of July. Each webinar will have a different focus and corresponding action items to help fight for Palestinian liberation and justice. Register here.
Wednesday, August 4, 2021, 7:30 – 9:00 PM. Global Security Talks—A Discussion with Japan’s New Diplomacy Initiative.The US conversation about Japan is dominated by a narrow band of US and Japanese voices who are resistant to change, especially when it comes to reconsidering nuclear deterrence and the role of US nuclear weapons. We want to change that—and you can help. By creating opportunities for Japanese voices on security issues to be heard in the United States, we can effect much needed changes in US security policy. A better informed and more comprehensive discussion of Japanese concerns could encourage President Biden to take steps to reduce the risk of war with China, including declaring the United States would never use nuclear weapons first. The Union of Concerned Scientists and Japan’s New Diplomacy Initiative invite you to a virtual event on a paradigm shift in Japanese thinking about security. Join the wide-ranging discussion on how Japan can move beyond nuclear deterrence and become a bridge-builder between the United States and China. Register here.
Monday, August 9, 2021 08:00 PM. Ohio Poor People’s Movement Central Regional Meeting. Register here.
Thursday, August 12, 2021, 7:00 PM. Worthington Interfaith Neighbors (WIN) Community Book Discussion of Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson. Bring your own lawn chair! (Bathroom facilities will not be available.) In the event of inclement weather on the 12th, join us on the 19th. If the weather is unfavorable on both dates, the program will be rescheduled. Location: On the front lawn of Worthington Presbyterian Church, 773 High Street, Worthington or Thursday, August 19 at 7 PM, on the front lawn of All Saints Lutheran Church, 6770 N. High Street.
Saturday, August 14, 2017, 7:00 PM. Columbus Free Press Second Saturday Salon. Since we aren’t getting together in person, we can gather for a couple hours on the second Saturday night of each month. Join Zoom Meeting. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83906590837. Meeting ID: 839 0659.
MORE LOCAL CALENDARS
Columbus Free Press Activists Calendar Editor Bob Roehm
WCBE Arts & Life Calendar
BE THE CHANGE: READ OUR COMMUNITY CALENDAR
