POWER OF FLOWERS * CONCERTS TUESDAY, JULY 13 * 20 YEARS FOR ADA * LOSS AT UPTOWN BILL'S * BILL'S COFFEESHOP NEWSLETTER * Vol. 11 * July 9, 2010

Bread feeds the body, but flowers feed the soul --  Quote from the Quran/Koran

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THERE IS nothing like a flower to brighten, even shake up, an ordinary day. Each week recently I have bought two flowers at the farmers market and then carried them home. Wow, what reactions I get. There are smiles, nods and other sounds of approval. And people who wonder where the flowers are going. "I'd like to know who's getting those," one woman said to me last week.

The flowers are for our apartment. My roommate and I each have a vase. One flower goes in each vase. So far, I have been getting lilies. Who knows what flowers will be next. But I am sure the reaction will be the same.

Gisela Konopka taught me the importance of flowers in our daily lives. She was a social worker -- and the mother of adolescent group work. When I was teaching high school, she would frequently call and tell me to stop and pick up flowers. In the summer, I would pick them from her yard. In the winter, I would take them from the flowers she had indoors. 

Like so many things, it took me a long time to appreciate the impact of flowers. In fact, it's been over 10 years since I last got flowers from Gisa. But eventually the message sunk in: You don't need a special event to have flowers.

When planning the move to Iowa City, I made a list of 10 things I wanted to do. Some were major: Trying to live without a car. Some were moderate: Reducing the paper files I carry with me. And one was small: Have flowers.

But it turns out that "having flowers" is a really big thing. It's not only great in the place where I live, it's also a delight to nearly everyone who sees me walking through downtown with the flowers. 

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I'M NOT really a fan of roses. They're okay, of course, but I prefer other flowers, especially wildflowers. Right now, it is lilies that enchant me. I can look over from where I am writing and see a reddish purple lily in a vase on the bookshelf. Across the apartment, another lily sits on my roommate's table. 

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IF I were to send you a rose, it would be yellow and red, picked from my favorite rosebush. It's along the fence at the home in San Jose where I once lived. It was a modest house on North 12th Street, a bungalow one might say. It's just north of downtown, in a neighborhood full of Italian roots. We lived around the corner from the Del Monte pickle factory. Trucks full of garlic and dill would roll through the neighborhoods in late summer and fall.

What made this one rosebush so special? It was not the color, though the red and yellow combination was attractive. Rather, it was the scent which made this rosebush special.

Each morning when it was in bloom I would stop and, yes, smell the roses. On the mornings after a rain, the sweet scent from this rosebush filled the air in our entire yard.

Remember, of course, that in California roses bloom their best in the winter. It seems an impossible feat for those who have grown up in the Midwest. How could this be, one wonders. 

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During my years as a newspaper reporter, I met a number of people whose lives revolved around flowers. The Stockings, for example, fashioned a rose nursery on old orchard land. And in the middle they planted redwood trees, a delightful respite on a summer day.

There was the rose man at Stanford, who took care of rosebushes at the university's front entrance for more than half a century. For years, he had to carry water to the bushes. He has died, but the roses remain. 

And there was the woman who drove out into the countryside looking for "heritage roses" -- varieties which were gone except for those places where they grew wild. She would carefully take a cutting from these roses and bring it back to her home. Her backyard was a giant living museum for these heritage roses. 

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SOMETIMES I think that buying flowers is an extravagance, not something essential. It is not an easy thought for me to overcome. But then I remember the day when my friend Michele Jurich called to tell me she'd given flowers to a friend -- not for a birthday, not for an anniversary, not for a graduation. She gave them to celebrate nothing in particular and everything in general. What a grand idea. What a brave thing to do.

Once, a few years ago, a friend sent flowers to me for no particular reason. Oh, that was nice. And the flowers not only enriched my day, but those around me as well. What could be more essential  to life than that.

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A GREAT LOSS AT

UPTOWN BILL'S

John Coolidge, longtime custodian at Uptown Bill's, died earlier this week. A memorial service is planned Sunday, Aug. 15, 1:30 pm at Uptown Bill's. You can find out more about John's life and work on the Facebook page for Uptown Bill's Small Mall. Look for the column "Just Dale: A large head" by Dale Haskins. 

BEHIND THE SCENES

OF NEW BILL FILM

Go behind the scenes. Learn more about the filming of "A Friend Indeed: The Bill Sackter Story." You'll find a link to this web page on the Facebook page for Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop. 

TWENTY YEARS

FOR THE ADA

It was back in July 1990 that the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law. Lots of celebrations are planned this month to mark the 20th anniversary. One is Saturday, July 24, 1-4 pm on the Ped Mall in Iowa City. US Senator Tom Harkin, an author of the ADA, will be among the speakers. For a link to other events in Iowa, visit the Facebook page for Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop.

GREAT MUSIC

NEXT TUESDAY

Looking for a great evening with marvelous musicians? Then plan to come to Uptown Bill's next Tuesday, July 13 at 8 pm. First, Leah Arnold will play. She played at Uptown Bill's a year ago and is back again with a wonderful set of acoustic music. (She recently moved to Iowa City; this is her first performance here since arriving a month ago.)

She will be followed by Christopher Bell. From Upstate NY, Christopher Bell is a chamber music influenced, Folk/Alt-Country multi-instrumentalist. He blends guitar and banjo with plucked and bowed viola, looped and sampled live. His Full Length "I'll Be Home" and his new EP have both been released on Silent Home Records.

Chris is on tour this summer and will be in Iowa City between gigs in Aberdeen and Des Moines. No cover, but we will pass the hat. Go to the Facebook page for Uptown Bill's Small Mall to find out more about this event.

EARLIER THAT
SAME DAY
Chris Bell and Leah Arnold will also play at Noon on Tuesday, July 13 at the original Wild Bill's Coffeeshop, 321 North Hall. Bring your lunch or pick up something at the coffeeshop.

MOVING AT END

OF THE MONTH

Uptown Bill's is moving to a new location at the end of July. It will be relocated to 730 S. Dubuque, on top of Public Access TV. 

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Wild Bill's Coffeeshop is a project of the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It has been a part of campus life in Iowa City for more than 35 years. Located in North Hall, the coffeeshop is open weekdays from 8 am to 3 pm.

Uptown Bill's Small Mall is a crosstown cousin to the original coffeeshop. It includes a bookstore, performance venue and other businesses in addition to a coffeeshop. Located at 401 S. Gilbert, Uptown Bill's is open every day from 8 am. For more information, call (319) 339-0401. 

Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter is a virtual extension of the coffeeshops and the spirit of Bill Sackter. Published since 2000, the Newsletter is written by Tom Gilsenan, a former manager of the original coffeeshop and now the director of Uptown Bill's. You can reach me at tomgilsenan@gmail.com.