Sage Advice in Somerville

I meant to post about this way back in November. We were leaving a dinner party a friend had hosted outside of Porter Square when Amanda and I stumbled across a wooden gate-like structure outside of the house at the corner of Elm and Burnside. There was a container with cards welcoming folks to the "interactive garden." We followed flagstones along a twisting path into the center of the garden. There was a wooden shrine of sorts containing a big drum suspended from a chain. The drum was covered with colored cards, each containing a question on one side and an answer on the other. There were pencils and a stack of blank cards as well as simple instructions: write a question, put the card in the submission box, and come back in three days to receive your answer on the other side of your card, which would then be posted up on the drum for all to see - although all are anonymous. There were also candles to light. It was all very zen, and very odd, but kind of cool as well.

"Wheel Questions, Wheel Answers" is a public art project run by the gent who lives in the house, Johnny Monsarrat. Visit his site wheelquestions.org to learn more, or visit the garden yourself at:

123 Elm St.
Somerville, MA 02144

You can also check all the cards posted since July 2008 on the site. It's an extensive, impressive project. It reminded me a lot of PostSecret.