On, in , and around Mondays: Cyclic

anxiety because he didn't show again... and is giving me the silent treatment.
but then peace, as we cross the WV border with bluegrass blaring on the radio... and a life-giving talk with my sister, ensuring that everything is and will be fine.

a memorial service for a spit-fire hillbilly woman who inspired me to fight... who stood up to a giant and fought for her beloved mountains.
but then guilt, when little one asks to leave because it's making him sad.
we walk around a while and then come back. he joins in chanting, "what would judy do? fight harder!" and stomps his feet. "this IS the year mountaintop removal will end!!"

driving in the dark to the lodge... nestled in the west virginia hills.
a much needed reprieve for both of us.
me, downtrodden, because no matter how much glue i apply, it just won't stick.
because i opened my heart up again... and failed.
him, hopes aroused but unmet.... tears over homework assignments that ended up being tears of a deeper nature. tears over something i can't fix.

but in all this cycle of sadness, anxiety, disappointment, we wake to a sunrise over the deep canyon. blue mountain majesty. bringing peace to a mother and son.
nature is crying out over judy..... nature is crying out over broken things...
because even the rocks and hills will cry out.

and then this verse.... "he will quiet you with his love".

The Don Shows His Hand........

THIS is why we can't get anything done about the devastation being caused by the coal industry in our state:

As you can see, our politicians in WV are mostly bought.... and not just our politicians, but our states' DEP. Despite all of this controversy, Spike Maynard is running for re-election. And on the Republican ticket, running unopposed, is Beth Walker, wife of the Vice President of Walker Machinery, the company that makes millions of dollars selling equipment for MTR sites.

And Don Blankenship, the CEO of Massey Energy, who attacked the reporter in the video? He just told the Wall Street Journal that his goal for the upcoming year is to open a new mine every 17 days. Denny posted about it on our End MTR blog here. It's absolutely maddening...

Meanwhile, study after study is showing the ill-effects coal is having on people's health in the coalfields, how it is the major contributor to global warming, and how more and more mountains are being blown to smithereens to extract it. Our state is being raped daily. And when the Coal is gone, there will be nothing left. The hills that have sustained the mountain people here for generations will be no longer and WV residents will be left with nothing.

It's wrong on every level.....

( This is my post in support of Blogging for Appalachia week.... a challenge issued by Outdoor Bloggers Summit , encouraging people to post about Mountaintop Removal Mining this week. Even though I post regularly about this issue, I wanted to participate as a show of support. The following is a Letter to the Editor I submitted in September to local papers.)

Dear Editor,

In the midst of our beautiful West Virginia mountains, there is a wolf in sheep's clothing. This wolf touts what a great thing he is for our state, how we wouldn't be able to survive without him. And he is on the prowl......

This wolf is King Coal. For over a century, Coal Companies have been making billions of dollars by extracting coal from our mountains, while West Virginia's people remain the second poorest in the nation. And now Coal Companies have found an even MORE profitable way to mine coal, that basically takes the coal miner out of the picture. This process is called Mountaintop Removal Mining.

Everyday in our state, three million pounds of explosives are used to literally blow the tops off of mountains to get to the coal seams below. So far, over 470 of our ancient mountains have been destroyed. All of the debris is then dumped into the valleys and streams below, so far burying over 1200 miles of streams. And now, with Governor Manchin's announcement that he wants to expand coal operations to make WV a coal-based economy and build 10 coal-to-liquid plants, Mountaintop Removal practices will continue to expand despite the fact that mountaintop removal accounted for less than 5% of US coal production as of 2001. According to a report from the US Geologic Survey in 2000, the Appalachian coal basin will not continue providing coal for much longer.

This is a very short-sighted energy goal, leaving WV's landscape devastated for short-term energy needs for the rest of the country. What does this mean for the residents of Appalachia's coalfields? So far, it has meant catastrophic flooding from the burying and re-routing of streams, the destruction of the mountains that their ancestors have lived in for generations, and contaminated drinking water from leaking toxic sludge dams. Impoundments are notoriously leaky, contaminating drinking water supplies in many communities, and are also known to fail completely. A sludge dam breach in Martin County, KY, in 2000, sent more than 300 million gallons of toxic coal sludge into tributaries of the Big Sandy, causing what the EPA called, “The biggest environmental disaster ever east of the Mississippi."

So far, Governor Manchin and Senator Byrd have turned a deaf ear to the residents of the coalfields, who have been crying out, "Our children are sick, our water is poisoned, and our mountains are no longer there!" Our politicians are only hearing the voice of Coal and its money. Mountaintop Mining is devastating Appalachia and no one knows or cares. It's time to speak up and help our fellow West Virginians. Call your representative and urge him/her to support the Clean Water Protection Act (H.R. 2169). This Act is necessary to protect clean drinking water for many of our nation’s cities and to protect the quality of life for Appalachian coalfield residents. You can go to ilovemountains.org and 700mountains.org to find out more.

"I look to the hills from whence cometh my strength......"

But what if there are no more hills to look up to?

(Sidenote: You can scroll down to Monday's post, to access the ever-growing list of who else is participating)

Blogging For the Mountains.........

A very exciting project is in the works, folks! As you all know, I am very passionate about putting an end to the destructive practice of Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining. I have to temper my posts about it, so that I don't drive all my readers away. :)

Well, in the process of blogging about MTR issues and action steps, I have connected with some other bloggers who are spreading the word, including Denny, over at Backwoods Drifter. He is just as passionate about ending MTR as I am, and some lively discussions have been going on over at his site.

In the same conundrum as I about the topic being somewhat all-consuming, he is beginning a blog entirely devoted to MTR awareness, issues, and action steps and has invited me to be a contributing author, along with another blogger. The link is in my sidebar: 'Stop Mountaintop Removal Blog'. I invite you to stop over and tell Denny 'Hi', and continue to check in regularly to see what is going on in the fight against the destruction of our mountains. I am sure more lively discussions will be happening and I am excited that the word is spreading and people are uniting against this atrocity.

"A strand of three cords is not easily broken....."

(Oh, and just a side-note... to get an idea about how bad the Coal propaganda is in our mountains, go to This post by Denny. It's about these ridiculous commercials that Walker Machinery (which supplies the big machinery for MTR sites) has out. )

On My Plate.....

Besides the usual after-holidays crashing period, there has been a lot on my plate this past month. A cold virus has been present in our little family of three since before Christmas, and just seems to keep making the rounds. Sir Laughsalot was home sick from school for almost a week, and we had lots of middle of the night awakenings when cough medicine wore off. Now hubby has it, but everyone seems to be on the mend overall.

Also on my plate has been writing letters to the editor, making phone calls, and being a general nuisance about a mining permit that got approved in our county, with another pending. Despite our county government opposing it, along with the mayor and residents of the town it will affect, our state's DEP approved it. The decision is being appealed and two people are in the process of taking the decision to court, so all is not lost yet. This particular mine will be mostly underground, but some strip mining is involved. The reason it is being heavily contested is that it will take place near a water reservoir that services over 900 residents of our county. Residents of this community have already had their water supply disrupted by previous mining activity, and even in underground mining, there is acid mine drainage that runs off and is deposited in our streams. The second permit that is being sought will dump waste directly into the main river that flows through our town. This river is already struggling in water quality and health and has seen an abundance of fish kills in recent years. It seems absurd after last year's drought that a mining company is being allowed to come into our county and pollute and disrupt our water even more.

And lastly (is that a word? ) on my plate has been some music projects. I have been practicing with Fiddlegirl for an upcoming coffeehouse performance and I have also put up a music page on Myspace. The music page will serve as a way to pass along the mountain songs I love so much, and I will also use it to help spread the word about Mountaintop Removal, as it will be a wide open venue for me. There are already some songs up, and I hope to put some live music up from when Fiddlegirl and I perform locally.... You can check it out here.

Whew! :)

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!

Hello all! First, let me just say that I miss everyone and I hope to start posting again soon. I have had several things going on, not the least being caring for a croupy Sir Coughsalot. :) He is better now and back in school this week. Meanwhile, Coal Companies are going full forward and trying to win the propaganda war and make their last billions before any more people find out about Mountaintop Removal. Please read these links and help!!!!

Shop Kroger.....

Here's Why and Here's How (You have to order the card directly from OVEC)!

These stores take Kroger gift cards, too:

Also, Blogging friend Brandy needs help for her friend, whos community is about to be overtaken by a very toxic coal-fired plant. Please go over to THIS link and see how you can help. Everyone's help is needed to stop this ravaging of Appalachia by the coal industry. Letters to the editor are great, no matter where you live.... and calls only take a few minutes of time. I have been busy with similar projects, one going on in our county. I will post again soon... PROMISE!!!!!

Take care everyone!

Miss Dorothy.....

Click To Play

Miss Dorothy is just one of hundreds of citizens in Appalachia who have been driven out of their homes because of Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining. A lot of these properties are ancestral homelands that have been in a family for generations. If you refuse to sell your property to the coal company, they make living conditions unbearable. To help stop this nonsense, go here. Also, call your congressmen and urge them to sponsor The Clean Water Protection Act, which will help end this atrocity.

Who's linking to this post:

1.Two Square Meals

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I want to give a very, VERY sincere thank-you to all of you who have been taking action against the destruction of our mountains here in Appalachia. It has been such an encouragement to me and gives me hope. Here is one more step you can take......Enter your zip code above and find out if your electricity comes from Mountaintop Removal Coal. If it does, please take the time to contact your electricity provider and ask them not to buy coal from companies that practice MTR mining. The link will let you know how. This is a wonderful tool and I believe it will have great impact..... If your electricity does come from MTR coal, the link will also tell you what community the coal is coming from. I'd be interested in hearing back from you once you do find out...... It will be interesting to see how many companies buy such coal. Thanks for joining the fight.... the people in Appalachia need your help!

Grandfather Ed.......

Another Hero fighting for his family and community..... Ed Wiley. After seeing his granddaughter and her classmates getting steadily sicker from attending Marsh Fork Elementary School, sitting below a huge coal processing plant and Mountaintop Removal Site, he committed to walk 455 miles...... from Charleston, WV, to Washington, D.C. to try to get our politicians to take notice and build the children a new school.

A blog chronicling his journey is here . You have to scroll down to the bottom for the first post. For more info about Marsh Fork Elementary, go here.

It's been a year since Ed's march and despite commitments from state politicians, nothing has been done.

Keeper of the Mountain......

Hello my friends..... I am back from the Stream Buffer Zone Hearing with a renewed passion and energy to fight the evil of Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining. I finally got to meet some of the heroes of the battle.... the people in the midst of the struggle, enduring great hardships because of Coal, but standing up to the giant. I am not quite done processing the whole experience yet.... but after seeing everday folks stand up and testify, bring filthy water in from their wells and creeks, despite the jeering and laughter of big, intimidating men all around the room sent out by the coal companies, I see the need to fight even harder. I, myself, was jeered as I spoke and was able to see the true nature of the industry that we are fighting. They had absolutely no respect for any of the speakers, even a little 71 year old lady who spoke on behalf of her community.... they constantly interrupted her and one even yelled out: "You're senile, Sit Down and Be Quiet!"

So while I am processing it all, I am going to feature some of the heroes fighting for their land, lives, and community. Firstly, Larry Gibson , a.k.a. 'Keeper of the Mountain', whom I was so honored to meet. Here is his story:

Larry Gibson's family has lived on or near Kayford Mountain since the late 1700's. More than 300 relatives are buried in the cemetery on Kayford Mountain. Larry and his family used to live on the lowest lying part of the mountain, and looked "up" to the mountain peaks that surrounded them. Since 1986, the slow motion destruction of Kayford Mountain has been continuous -- 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Eighteen years after the "mountain top removal" project began, Larry Gibson now occupies the highest point of land around; he is enveloped by a 12,000 acre pancake in what was previously a mountain range.

(As a sidenote.... just recently, part of Larry's family cemetery was bulldozed through, even though the coal company knew it was illegal..... )

HOPE?

Received in my e-mail box last week:

'You are receiving this email in response to your request relating to the proposed rule that the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement published on August 24, 2007. Among other things, the rule would place additional restrictions on the construction of excess spoil fills and clarify the stream buffer zone rule.

After reviewing the requests that we received, OSM has decided to extend the deadline for receipt of comments on the proposed rule until November 23, 2007. We also will be holding public hearings to accept testimony on the proposed rule at four locations on October 24, 2007. All hearings are scheduled to begin at 6 pm and end at 9 pm.

The hearings will be held at the following locations:

· Holiday Inn Charleston ( Charleston House), 600 Kanawha Boulevard East, Charleston , West Virginia .

· Hazard Community & Technical College , Hazard Campus, Jolly Center , Room 208, One Community College Drive , Hazard , Kentucky .

· Pellissippi State Technical Community College , Goins Auditorium , 10915 Hardin Valley Road , Knoxville , Tennessee .

· Ramada Inn Washington, 1170 West Chestnut Street , Washington , Pennsylvania . '

It's still not too late to comment. The link is HERE. Hubby's taking off of work next week so we can go to the hearing nearest us to voice our concern on this new Concession to the Coal Industry. If any of these locations are near you, please go and let your voice be heard.... or just show up for support.

P.S. Blog Post of Note:

Here is one blogger's first-hand encounter with Mountain-top Removal... It's worth taking a look and really shows the scope of the devastation....

Black Water.......

"I come from the mountains, Kentucky's my home, Where the wild deer and black bear so lately did roam; By cool rushing waterfalls the wildflowers dream, And through every green valley there runs a clear stream.

Now there's scenes of destruction on every hand... And only black waters run down through my land. Sad scenes of destruction on every hand,

Black waters, black waters, run down through my land..."

- 'Black Waters' by Jean Ritchie

I know I have been single-minded in my posting as of late. But my heart is extremely saddened and angered by Mountain-top mining. It is destroying the beautiful state where I live....and the state that I grew up in. When you see your fellow Appalachian people suffering because of the negligence of a few in power, it is hard not to speak up.

The above picture is of a stream filled with Coal sludge. The water in West Virginia and Kentucky is literally being poisoned. I am very grateful that PBS recently did a special on this issue....they are the first media outlet to do so. You can view it here. It is a longer clip, but it is a worthy endeavor of your time as we all use electricity....much of which is powered by coal mined in my state.

THIS is the price of coal...... Should the Appalachian people continue to suffer, be sick, and in some cases, die, to supply our nation with electricity? President Bush just recently made a statement that our nation needs to make this sacrifice to take us from dependency on foreign oil. I have to say that I strongly disagree.......

This new website has made it easier to let your voice be heard about the new Regulation passed by the Bush Administration to allow Coal Companies to basically have free reign for Mountain-top Removal.... with little to no accountability. It also features a moving preview of an upcoming documentary about the people of Appalachia's suffering and fight to end Mountaintop Mining.

PLEASE, please take the time to view these clips and let your voice be heard.....

Your Comments Needed..........

Before this happens to any more mountains:

The Bush Administration just issued a regulation to allow for the expansion of Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining practices. The new rule would allow the practice to continue and expand. Mountaintop Mining has already destroyed more than 450 mountains and ravished the communities that surround them through the burying of streams and headwaters, flooding, and toxic waste and debris being dumped into the valleys below.

This new regulation is open for a 60 day comment period. Fred First has set up a site with instructions on how to comment here

"Mountaintop Removal is occurring right at the heart of one of the nation’s main hotspots of biological diversity. According to the Nature Conservancy, the mountain region including southwest Virginia, southern West Virginia, eastern Kentucky and northeastern Tennessee contains some of the highest levels of biological diversity in the nation. This region is also at the headwaters of the drinking water supplies of many US cities"........ This is something that affects us all.

This is not an issue of coal vs. no-coal. It is not a political issue. It is a matter of doing what is right and not what is most profitable. The production of coal is up but mining jobs are down..... Coal Companies are making more profit than ever because of this practice, but the regions where they are mining are still some of the most impoverished in the nation. Communities are being left with nothing but polluted water, flooding, and a ravished landscape.

Please let your voice be heard on this issue. And a big thanks to L.L. Barkat,

June, Colleen, Brandy, and Fred for helping spread the word. If you post about this topic, please let me know and I will link to it.......

Wordless Wednesday.......

'Playing In the Shadow of Coal'

(photo courtesy of 'Pennies of promise' website)

To find out how Massey Energy and the Coal Industry are endangering the lives of these children go here.

For more info on how Mountaintop Mining is destroying the beautiful Appalachian mountains, go here.

For more Wordless Wednesdays, go here.

Please Help...........

How You Can Help.........

My dear readers, there will not be many times that I bring up 'issues', so to speak, that I urge you all to act on. It's not really the purpose of my blog. But Mountaintop Mining is something that is so wrong and so destructive that I have to get the word out. It is devastating my part of the world. I think until we picture this happening in our own communities and not think of it as someone else's problem, nothing will be done. Because it's happening in some of the poorest and most isolated areas of Appalachia, the local people's voices are not being heard over King Coal's and it is a practice that has been veiled in secrecy. But there is something we can all do right now.

The Clean Water Act was enacted by Congress in 2002 to “restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters,” and prohibited the dumping of material into waterways for the purpose of waste disposal. In 2002, the Secretary of the Army changed the definition of “fill material” in order to include mining waste. Since debris from mountaintop removal is no longer considered “waste,” coal companies are dumping millions of tons of mine waste into streams, so far burying more than 1000 miles of streams and headwaters...

Representatives Frank Pallone and Christopher Shays introduced a bill that reestablishes the original intent of the Clean Water Act: to protect our waterways, not give industry permission to pollute and bury them. By the end of the 109th congress of 2006, the bill had 77 co-sponsors. If this bill gets passed, it will be a huge blow to the practice of Mountaintop Mining. Please go here to see if your representative is co-sponsoring the bill, and if not, call or write them to urge them to. Sometimes it takes more than one phone call or letter.

Also, our representatives will be home during the month of August. I have set up a meeting with mine while he is home, although he is opposed to the Act. I live in the main battlefield, where Coal Money runs our politics, but I will still continue to bug. If you live in TN, WV, VA, or KY, you'll have to fight extra hard..... and setting up a meeting in person, as a constituent, would be great. You can contact Appalachian Voices, and they can help you in this process.

This is something we all can do as a collective blogging community. Also, if you feel led, please re-post about this to help spread the word. If you do, let me know and I will link to it.

Who's Spreading the word...........

1. Nameless Creek

2. Fragments From Floyd

3. Green Inventions Central

4. Spatter

5. Simply Brandy

(Mountaintop Removal is an atrocity that is taking place here in my beloved Appalachian mountains. It's a cheaper way to remove coal that basically eliminates the coal miner. But in the process, it is destroying the landscape and lives of people in rural Appalachia. Flying over some parts of West Virginia and Kentucky, you would think you were flying over a war zone. Please help me spread the word. Here is an e-mail I received and ways that you can help.)

Before Mountaintop Mining........After.........

Today, I want to tell you about a place that is ground zero in the fight to stop mountaintop removal coal mining..... a place called Coal River Mountain.

Located in westernmost Raleigh County, West Virginia, Coal River Mountain is under threat from Massey Energy. Massey has applied for two mountaintop removal permits, and is considering a third, that would destroy nearly 6,000 acres of Coal River Mountain, effectively decapitating it. They would fill 18 Appalachian valleys with toxic coal mining waste and destroy the tallest peaks ever to be mined in West Virginia.

But a coalition of grassroots organizations, led by Coal River Mountain Watch, have joined together to protect Coal River Mountain - and bring the attention of the nation to the ongoing tragedy that is mountaintop removal coal mining.

Effort to stop the Coal River Mountain project is gaining momentum at the local level. Just last week, more than 100 local citizens filled the bleachers at a public hearing held by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection at the Clear Fork Elementary School to speak their minds about the massive proposal.There has never been such a turnout to a public hearing on a mine permit in West Virginia... but even more incredibly, every single citizen who spoke, spoke in opposition to the mine.There are many reasons that local citizens oppose the mine: it will pollute their drinking water, heighten the risk of local flooding, and destroy the mountains and the beautiful landscape that have been their family home for as many as nine generations.The mine, too, would destroy the long-term economic future of Coal River Mountain. As many citizens said at the hearing, for just a few years worth of jobs and a few years worth of coal, the mine would wipe out the opportunity to build a wind power facility that could provide long-term jobs and enough power to meet the needs of more than 90,000 homes forever.

Yet despite the united - and, at the hearing, unanimous - opposition to the plan to destroy Coal River Mountain, local citizens hold little hope that their testimony alone will stop the mine - because the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection has never denied a permit application for a mountaintop removal mine. Never.

Even though most Americans would never support the destruction of this beautiful mountain and irreplaceable landscape, the people living near Coal River Mountain believe that their mountain will be destroyed because most Americans simply don't know what's happening in the hills and hollows of Appalachia.

There really is no such thing as clean coal...... to learn more about Mountaintop Removal and how you can help, go to Ilovemountains.org.

Mountaintop Removal...

Dear Readers.....Please take the time to watch this video. It is a very important issue that affects us all, but especially those of us who live in the Appalachian region.



I cried when I watched this.... to see our beautiful mountains being destroyed. It makes me unspeakably sad. Mountaintop removal is literally changing the landscape of the Appalachians. It is a crime against nature and Creation in it's most literal and deep sense. So far, over 450 mountains have been destroyed and communities have been ravaged by the side-effects. Please go here to find out more and to see what you can do to help.