By Waylon Lewis

on Aug 23, 2009

Look, Dad, I’m mentioned in the NYTimes.com!

Waylon Lewis’ “I ain’t about to boycott Whole Foods” makes home page of Huffington Post (twice three times, & now with photo), is at 350 450 comments & counting (despite getting posted on dead Saturday morning), is listed as “most popular article on Huff Post, appears on home page of NYTimes.com and mentioned in Times’ blog, mentioned on Atlantic’s web site.

Now I can die a happy nerd. I’m of some small, infintesimal cultural relevance, ma! As a Buddhist practitioner who’s vowed to be of benefit to allllll sentient beings (that’s a lot of beans, as my mom likes to say), new media might just be the trick. It’s viral. It’s easy to share. And it’s free, for the most part.

Here’s the deal: John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods, wrote a Republican playbook takedown of “Obamacare” for the conservative Wall Street Journal. Big surprise—for those paying attention, he’s a Libertarian. I may have Obama’s back on healthcare (we’ve been blogging up a storm about it for a good while now), but Mr. Mackey’s political views, while “wrong” in my playbook—lack of healthcare is number one cause of bankruptcies in America, making our pricey, innefficient system not only unfair, unkind, but bad for business—that doesn’t mean that I don’t appreciate what Whole Foods has done to prove Green’s ability to make green. And if green can become good business, that’ll change everything. Or at least a lot. Conscious consumerism is what it’s all about.

Which is also why I don’t fault those who do choose to boycott Whole Foods. At least they’re thinking mindfully about how we spend our hard-earned dollars. If we all didi that, generally, all the time, the world will be a better place.

My post, as mentioned in the title, has made the home page twice. That’s a big deal, in media land, minute one or two in my 15 minutes of fame, perhaps. And now I’ve been mentioned on the New York Times’ site.

It’s only the second time in a year I’ve made the home page, and just when I was giving up on Huff Post as a medium for anything more than good google results. For a time, whenever I wrote for Huffington Post, I blogged on it, tweeted, facebooked, emailed friends asking them to comment. I got plenty of comments, every time–with thanks to y’all. But my posts weren’t getting promoted, my original editors moved on, and I was left in a sort of editorial no man’s land. So my latest post comes not only as an honor—making Huff Post’s home page despite getting posted on a Saturday morning (deadtime, media-wise) twice is like touching, however briefly, the nerve center of America and media. It’s exciting. And now, I’m in the New York Times, my idols.

It’s a small mention, but I’m a nobody, so it’s a big effin’ deal for me (and my mom, and grandma, if noone else).

Hopefully, it’s a big deal for elephant, too—our traffic has been high this weekend, which is good for our future prospects (just when I was thinking of focusing on politics or talk show, instead of elephant online, which makes good money but not enough to pay me, yet).

Founder of elephant magazine (founded: 2002, went national as indie magazine, & successfully transitioned online in 2009 [because mainstream magazine distribution is wildly inefficient from an eco-responsible point of view]) is dedicated to "bringing together those working (and playing) to create enlightened society." It's about anything that helps us to live a good life that's also good for others, and our planet. elephantjournal.com (named Top 10 in the US by over 40 sites) and host of "Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis," a national “top ten ‘green’ video blog," Waylon was born in Boulder, Colorado, raised at a Buddhist meditation retreat in Vermont, graduated from Boston University’s top-ranked magazine journalism school; and is a top columnist for Huffington Post, daily bike commuter, workaholic, mediocre climber & best friend of Redford (a rescue hound). His goals in life: to take a long bath tonight with Dwell, The Sunday NY Times, The New Yorker & a glass of Talisker with one ice cube; publish a best-selling novel (and get filthy rich); have 12 red-headed chil'n (and only one wife); run for President (and lose) & have fun all along the way. ~~~ founder: elephantjournal.com | host: Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis. Ft. on 20 sites, incl. Huffington Post. ~ 200,000 unique visitors/month: Google Analytics. ~ Treehugger: Reader's Choice "Eco Ambassador in Culture & Celebrity" + 2010 "Changemaker" ~ Discovery Network's Planet Green: "Green Hero" ~ Shambhala Sun: "Prominent Buddhist" ~ Naturally Boulder: "'07 Entrepreneur of Year" ~ 5280 Magazine: "Top Single '09" ~ MNN: Top 10 US Green Video Blog ~ Beliefnet: Top 10 Buddhist Blog ~ Shorty Awards: #1 Green Twitter in US ~~~ To connect: "elephantjournal on Facebook" "Waylon Lewis on Facebook" & "Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis" on Facebook On twitter: twitter.com/waylonlewis and our award-winning twitter account, named #1 nationally in green: twitter.com/elephantjournal