Community Candid
November 19, 2009 
7 Comments
This is what community looks like:
Sometimes you just get hit with an “Aha!” moment and all the talk and striving and scheduling pays off. THIS is community in action, you say to yourself. Right here, this is what it is all about!
Most recently I felt it at Jon Snyder’s campaign party, and then at the Terrain artist reception and Sustainable Uprising before that. It is usually when something special and unexpected is happening that brings a variety of people into a context where they have something meaningful to share.
By Joe Preston of Hairline Media
We’ve attended dozens of events where speakers, bands, comedians, journalists, politicians, authors and several other semi-famous figurehead types tour through our city, and they always seem especially pleased to have discovered a new audience in Spokane. Some open with jokes about misconceptions they’ve heard about the area, others admit that they had no idea what they were in for. At the end they comment how “It’s nice to see people actually dancing,” or “Those were some really excellent questions that I’m not usually asked.” Are these platitudes repeated by all traveling spokespeople, or does Spokane truly defy expectations?
The same wow factor seems to run through the audience as well. Spokanites often appear a little shocked and excited to realize they aren’t the only ones around who are interested in the topic at hand. It’s like the gold fish and the proverbial castle, it’s a surprise every time! I hope this freshness factor never wears off. I hope event-goers never get to a point of jadedness where their expectations outstrip any possible measure of human performance.
Spokanites know how to genuinely *appreciate* special gatherings – we are raised to elevate them to almost a cultish cultural practice, i.e. fighting over lawn chair real estate at the Torchlight Parade. We seem somehow immune to the “too cool for school” attitude that plagues more urban environments. It this a saving grace? Is it in my head? Who knows, you tell me.
Meanwhile, you can savor some more community eye candy from the Sarah Kramer dinner at One World.
About the Author
Thanks for posting this. The event was wonderful and something I’m very glad to be a part of. The Spokane Vegans did a great job and I’m excited for future (community!) events to come.
i would agree with your assessment about Spokane not being ‘too cool for school.’ i get the feeling certain huge mid-western cities are.
Thank you for sharing this! I also have to agree with you that Spokane’s genuine appreciation for events like this is unique. I won’t say how I know, but a certain vegan author did not stop in certain west coast cities on her recent tour specifically because of the jadedness in those communities. She did however stop in Spokane.
I guess community is only good if said community fits your ideals, is deemed authentic by your own varying standards, and is new enough to be molded in your own image. To me, that is the definition of too cool for school. Would these vegan exclusionist’s consider a Lions club or Rotary club community? How about a hunting club gathering for their annual feast? Are some communities created more equal than others?
Chairman, don’t be silly. Of course Lion’s Club, Rotary and hunting groups are all communities. There wasn’t anything “exclusionary” about the vegans dinner. Don’t know where you are getting that. I think part of community is being inclusive. It isn’t about who is more “equal.” That statement doesn’t make any sense.
I was referring to this comment from a vegan insider-
“I won’t say how I know, but a certain vegan author did not stop in certain west coast cities on her recent tour specifically because of the jadedness in those communities.”
However I will expand my thoughts because you asked.
You sighted four events that gave you a feeling of community in action, and then said “It is usually when something special and unexpected is happening that brings a variety of people into a context where they have something meaningful to share.” The events you sighted were special on an individual basis but hardly “unexpected”. I am only an armchair sociologist but I consider what you find at these events as more of a tribalism. The Contrarian might rear his head if we get into the difference between tribalism and community, so lets move along.
I like old books so I used the “… some communities are more equal then others” line. I believe that statement to be true. You link to the Inlanders election night slide show, If you think the sequence of pictures there doesn’t prove that also, you have not noticed what is missing.
Mouth watering event pictures in color!
http://www.govegan.net/?p=3071