I'm knitting.. I said I wouldn't, and then I did. Mostly little stuff for little people. I got two knitting books - on my kindle! - on a cyber-monday deal. Last Minute Knitted Gifts and More Last Minute Knitted Gifts. Both of which might as well be titled "The Only Knitting EllaJac Will Try."[That's not entirely true. Three years ago I bought the yarn and began a poncho/capelet thing. I've had my needles pulled out, my needles scratched, bent, straightened, broken, and lost, and I'm still only on the edge trim]
I'm making Christmas gifts of the caloric version. Nothing too extravagant, but I'm laughing because I'm using organic popcorn... along with butter, marshmallows, and M&Ms... :P
I'm planning a brief trip out of town, and appropriate foodstuffs to feed us at various holiday events (pizza party? Not if you're gluten or dairy-free!).
I'm trying to send off my Christmas cards/newsletters. I posted jpgs of them on facebook, but the real-live ones which need to reach the mailbox... well, they're still somewhere in my van.
Considering how/where to give more. There are a few families I know who I'm looking forward to blessing, but also thinking about how to give more where it makes a bigger difference. Compassion has a gifting option, as does World Vision and Heifer Project. There are probably more, too.
I'm reading books. About compost, about farming, history and just for fun. One of my best friends (who I obviously don't spend enough time with) was recently a little surprised to hear me mention my weakness for Vince Flynn spy/assassin thrillers. :) Brad Thor is good too...
On the subject of reading, might I recommend Being George Washington? It's a history book, written like a novel, with commentary highlighting some of the qualities Washington had and who he was. And how we can aspire to be the same kind of good, have the same kind of integrity. BE what this nation needs. Each of us.
We replaced our dead tv (with another hand-me-down), and while not *huge*, it's still big enough (and not flat like the new ones) that we didn't want to try to get it upstairs into the tv room. So it's in our living room, and has been just the right kind of blessing, without being a curse (and I hope it stays that way)... We got a Roku thingy (I think that's the official term), which gives us a handful of internet channels (and complete control over *what* channels we have). Netflix works through it, and there are other premium/paid channels, plus some free ones (like pandora radio). And because we had to get the high-end Roku to work with our ethernet, we also got the Angry Birds game, which has offered some surprisingly fun family time... :)
Mostly I'm enjoying the season. Yes, it's getting busy, and I have moments where I'm overwhelmed with the balancing act of trying to keep everyone eating as they should, without offending guests or hosts, but most of the time I'm basking in Christmas music, loving my girls, and thanking God for this time.
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Monday, December 19, 2011
Friday, November 25, 2011
Now that you've finished off the turkey, dressing, pie and potatoes...
I've gotten through most of Wheat Belly. Have you read that yet? There are several interviews with the author online (here, here, here, and here, are some I read. Google "wheat belly interview" for more), if you don't know what I'm talking about.
I won't recap the book; you can find that in the interviews and reviews, I'm sure. But I am going to tell you to read it. :)
I'll tell you what surprised me.. I expected to read some non-politically-correct information about America's favorite grain (favorite food?). I expected to be fascinated by his (and he's an MD; a preventive cardiologist, I think) take on the effect of wheat on weight, health, etc. I love reading that kind of thing, and do so often. :)
I did not expect to be mad.
And I'm not mad because I dislike hearing negative things about wheat (despite the fact that my mom used to say I had a "love affair with flour" when I was a teen). I'm mad because if - if - the claims this doctor makes are even half true, then there are people I love whose lives could be so much better, but no one has told them. I'm mad because while I might be able to shift our household further away from wheat, the thought of all the cultural influences just turns my stomach. You can get away with bringing your own food to a potluck if you have a bona fide diagnosis, but if not.... oi. It's hard. And I don't necessarily mean that people are offended and despise you (although that does happen), it's just... cultural. You've stumbled upon what may be, for you, life-changing information, but the rest of the world doesn't even question the status quo. It makes me mad that what should be unifying, nourishing, and beneficial to individuals, family, and community, instead is often harmful, sterile, and (if you try to step out of that), divisive. Ugh.
I'm mad that agriculture has used science to develop food that is not more healthy or nourishing, but that produces more, faster, cheaper. Easier to harvest, store, process... and nary a question as to whether their tinkering might be responsible for the many-fold increase of celiac disease and gluten intolerance in modern times (quick; when you were growing up, did you know ANYONE with a wheat allergy? Did you EVER see a 'gluten-free' product advertised on store shelves?). And no, it's not just more-diagnosed now (read the book).
I haven't double-checked every journal article or study or research result that the author has cited (and there are a LOT), but he has implicated wheat in far more than just celiac and obesity. How about heart disease and arterial sclerosis? Diabetes (and Pre-diabetes)? Acne? IBS? Hair loss? ADHD? Arthritis? Dementia? Seizures? High blood pressure? Poor cholesterol/triglyceride profile... It just doesn't end. I don't know about you, but I have close friends and family members who suffer with some of these things. What if they could be helped by eliminating this one thing from their diet? Do their doctors know this? Would they recommend it? Would they just decide that a(nother) prescription is in order?
I don't think wheat should be outlawed, by the way. :) I don't even think everyone would be wise to eschew it in all its forms, forever. I DO think that this information should be available to each person, to weigh and decide, to double-check and pray and think through... There is no such thing as choice, or consent, if you lack the appropriate information. I encourage you, if you or your loved ones have any minor (or major) health issues, or can't lose that 'belly fat', or feel like you're lacking mental clarity at times (ahem)... Give this a read. It's an easy read, with some fun, unexpected pop-culture references, but includes enough science to satisfy my appetite for "But HOW does it do that..?" I paid about $10 for it on my Kindle, but I wish I'd gotten the hard copy, so I could loan it out. :) [this title currently doesn't have the loan feature enabled, by the way, so you can't even borrow it from me if you have a Kindle.]
So now that I've told YOU about it, I'll try to stop being mad. And start being thankful ('tis the season, always!) that this information IS out there now, and it might be just what someone has been needing. There is hope. :)
***
Here are a few more interviews/overviews which I hadn't seen before:
MacLeans
Wheat Belly Blog (what?? I might've saved $10? :) )
YouTube results for this book/author
I've gotten through most of Wheat Belly. Have you read that yet? There are several interviews with the author online (here, here, here, and here, are some I read. Google "wheat belly interview" for more), if you don't know what I'm talking about.
I won't recap the book; you can find that in the interviews and reviews, I'm sure. But I am going to tell you to read it. :)
I'll tell you what surprised me.. I expected to read some non-politically-correct information about America's favorite grain (favorite food?). I expected to be fascinated by his (and he's an MD; a preventive cardiologist, I think) take on the effect of wheat on weight, health, etc. I love reading that kind of thing, and do so often. :)
I did not expect to be mad.
And I'm not mad because I dislike hearing negative things about wheat (despite the fact that my mom used to say I had a "love affair with flour" when I was a teen). I'm mad because if - if - the claims this doctor makes are even half true, then there are people I love whose lives could be so much better, but no one has told them. I'm mad because while I might be able to shift our household further away from wheat, the thought of all the cultural influences just turns my stomach. You can get away with bringing your own food to a potluck if you have a bona fide diagnosis, but if not.... oi. It's hard. And I don't necessarily mean that people are offended and despise you (although that does happen), it's just... cultural. You've stumbled upon what may be, for you, life-changing information, but the rest of the world doesn't even question the status quo. It makes me mad that what should be unifying, nourishing, and beneficial to individuals, family, and community, instead is often harmful, sterile, and (if you try to step out of that), divisive. Ugh.
I'm mad that agriculture has used science to develop food that is not more healthy or nourishing, but that produces more, faster, cheaper. Easier to harvest, store, process... and nary a question as to whether their tinkering might be responsible for the many-fold increase of celiac disease and gluten intolerance in modern times (quick; when you were growing up, did you know ANYONE with a wheat allergy? Did you EVER see a 'gluten-free' product advertised on store shelves?). And no, it's not just more-diagnosed now (read the book).
I haven't double-checked every journal article or study or research result that the author has cited (and there are a LOT), but he has implicated wheat in far more than just celiac and obesity. How about heart disease and arterial sclerosis? Diabetes (and Pre-diabetes)? Acne? IBS? Hair loss? ADHD? Arthritis? Dementia? Seizures? High blood pressure? Poor cholesterol/triglyceride profile... It just doesn't end. I don't know about you, but I have close friends and family members who suffer with some of these things. What if they could be helped by eliminating this one thing from their diet? Do their doctors know this? Would they recommend it? Would they just decide that a(nother) prescription is in order?
I don't think wheat should be outlawed, by the way. :) I don't even think everyone would be wise to eschew it in all its forms, forever. I DO think that this information should be available to each person, to weigh and decide, to double-check and pray and think through... There is no such thing as choice, or consent, if you lack the appropriate information. I encourage you, if you or your loved ones have any minor (or major) health issues, or can't lose that 'belly fat', or feel like you're lacking mental clarity at times (ahem)... Give this a read. It's an easy read, with some fun, unexpected pop-culture references, but includes enough science to satisfy my appetite for "But HOW does it do that..?" I paid about $10 for it on my Kindle, but I wish I'd gotten the hard copy, so I could loan it out. :) [this title currently doesn't have the loan feature enabled, by the way, so you can't even borrow it from me if you have a Kindle.]
So now that I've told YOU about it, I'll try to stop being mad. And start being thankful ('tis the season, always!) that this information IS out there now, and it might be just what someone has been needing. There is hope. :)
***
Here are a few more interviews/overviews which I hadn't seen before:
MacLeans
Wheat Belly Blog (what?? I might've saved $10? :) )
YouTube results for this book/author
Wednesday, November 09, 2011
Veganism is Ecological?
I've run across (in surprising places, sometimes) the argument that a vegetarian or vegan diet is more 'environmentally friendly' than an omnivorous diet that includes animals and animal proteins. I felt, more than knew, that this thinking was faulty (the documentary "Forks Over Knives" notwithstanding). I did know that there has been no successful or healthy people group (the world over, historically) who did not include animal protein in their diets. There were no indigenous vegetarians. :) Whether the Maasai who harvest blood and milk from their cattle (as well as eating some meat) to shellfish-eating islanders, caribou-eating northerners, fish-eating Gaelics, etc, no one ever subsisted (as a people group or civilization) without animal protein in their diets.
I have been listening to an audiobook, "Folks, This Ain't Normal" by Joel Salatin, my favorite farmer, who first introduced me to the difference between factory foods and natural, and who has inspired me for years (even if I haven't implemented much) towards producing food on our land. While this book covers a wide swath of subjects, there is one fascinating element that I'd never heard before (and I love nothing if not learning some new, interesting thing).
In a word, it is this: We need animals, specifically herbivores (that would be cattle, deer, moose, goats, sheep, etc), to heal the earth - whether you mean air, water, or soil, doing without them would be terribly damaging to our environment. I'll try to give a brief reason as to why that is...
Herbivores graze green plants, which are solar-powered protein - protein you and I cannot access - turning it into meat and milk (proteins we CAN access). Properly managed, herbivores on pasture add to the soil. Their grazing naturally suits the strengthening of perennial grasses and legumes (plants that return every year) and weakens the annuals and weeds (things that put out seed, but whose roots do not tend to deepen and widen yearly). Their hoof-pressure also helps aerate and loosen soil, breaks down decaying matter, and allows water to soak down and microbial activity to increase. Their manure is truly an essential element for returning fertility to the soil. This is part of why a rotationally grazed pasture will strengthen over time, reducing weeds and increasing fertility, while a continuously grazed pasture will help the annual weeds and weaken forage. Grass also sequesters carbon dioxide as well or better than trees, for those who worry about carbon overload in our air.
So, to draw the line between these subjects, well-managed herbivores add greatly to soil health and atmospheric balance. Were we to all eschew beef, venison, milk, etc, what would these pastures be instead?
Well, barring the idea of just abandoning them to weeds (we have to eat SOMETHING, after all), let's assume we're vegans and plant something appropriate to our new diet. This is going to require tillage, which exposes (what was) soil rich in microbial activity to the elements. This immediately reduces that biological activity. [we could use a no-till method, but that requires copious herbicide, which also has it's downsides, obviously]. Next we will seed it with our crop of choice - usually soybeans (which have a host of reasons to NOT use as people food), perhaps a small grain like wheat or rye or barley or oats, or maybe even corn, amaranth, or teff? Kidney beans? Garbanzos? Pintos? The options are myriad, but one thing they all have in common... They are annuals. While a stand of grass puts a good portion of it's solar energy into root development (which adds to the soil, when these roots die), an annual lives to produce its seed. The bean, the grain head, whatever. So all the energy it could spare, all the minerals we expect to find in that food, are pulled from its resources and put into that seed. Plant energy (from solar), nutrients and minerals (from soil). The next step is harvesting that (each of these maneuvers probably requires petroleum-powered tractors and equipment, keep in mind), processing, storing, and finally, eating. But then what? What do we do with the field? There may be some plant detritus (straw, if it were wheat or barley, etc) but we need to eat next year too, so what will we do? One might assume that we would plant again... But remember, a huge amount of that soil fertility was taken up into our crop.. That crop was harvested off the field, so with what do we replace it? We could add (using big trucks and tractors, again) expensive, transported loads of compost, but... compost is hard to come by, since we're not raising animals for food anymore (and we can only support so many pets, right?). Barring that, we have to get some chemical (petroleum!) fertilizer to artificially prop up the plants. Keep in mind this field, were we to continue in this manner, would require more and more inputs (fertilizer, pesticides, etc) as the years go on, and our crop would be a little more deficient in trace minerals and nutrients, if it ever manages to produce as much as the first year.
Tell me which of these scenarios is better for the earth? Which adds to carbon sequestration, natural (not petroleum-based) management and fertility?
Joel goes into the historical practices, why pastures required five years of herbivores + grass to = one year of grain, why pork and chicken (omnivores, who often eat grains/seeds) are really less 'environmentally friendly' than grass fed beef (no one thinks grain-stuffed feedlot beef is good for any people or soil or air, right?), and how much we could restore to our earth (and ultimately our health), were we to shift away from grains and annuals (70% of grain produced is used for livestock food - much of it to herbivores which do not require it) and towards pasture-based animal production.
So the next time I run into the argument that veganism = environmentalism, I will want to find out if the person has considered this facet of it. I know I hadn't.
I have been listening to an audiobook, "Folks, This Ain't Normal" by Joel Salatin, my favorite farmer, who first introduced me to the difference between factory foods and natural, and who has inspired me for years (even if I haven't implemented much) towards producing food on our land. While this book covers a wide swath of subjects, there is one fascinating element that I'd never heard before (and I love nothing if not learning some new, interesting thing).
In a word, it is this: We need animals, specifically herbivores (that would be cattle, deer, moose, goats, sheep, etc), to heal the earth - whether you mean air, water, or soil, doing without them would be terribly damaging to our environment. I'll try to give a brief reason as to why that is...
Herbivores graze green plants, which are solar-powered protein - protein you and I cannot access - turning it into meat and milk (proteins we CAN access). Properly managed, herbivores on pasture add to the soil. Their grazing naturally suits the strengthening of perennial grasses and legumes (plants that return every year) and weakens the annuals and weeds (things that put out seed, but whose roots do not tend to deepen and widen yearly). Their hoof-pressure also helps aerate and loosen soil, breaks down decaying matter, and allows water to soak down and microbial activity to increase. Their manure is truly an essential element for returning fertility to the soil. This is part of why a rotationally grazed pasture will strengthen over time, reducing weeds and increasing fertility, while a continuously grazed pasture will help the annual weeds and weaken forage. Grass also sequesters carbon dioxide as well or better than trees, for those who worry about carbon overload in our air.
So, to draw the line between these subjects, well-managed herbivores add greatly to soil health and atmospheric balance. Were we to all eschew beef, venison, milk, etc, what would these pastures be instead?
Well, barring the idea of just abandoning them to weeds (we have to eat SOMETHING, after all), let's assume we're vegans and plant something appropriate to our new diet. This is going to require tillage, which exposes (what was) soil rich in microbial activity to the elements. This immediately reduces that biological activity. [we could use a no-till method, but that requires copious herbicide, which also has it's downsides, obviously]. Next we will seed it with our crop of choice - usually soybeans (which have a host of reasons to NOT use as people food), perhaps a small grain like wheat or rye or barley or oats, or maybe even corn, amaranth, or teff? Kidney beans? Garbanzos? Pintos? The options are myriad, but one thing they all have in common... They are annuals. While a stand of grass puts a good portion of it's solar energy into root development (which adds to the soil, when these roots die), an annual lives to produce its seed. The bean, the grain head, whatever. So all the energy it could spare, all the minerals we expect to find in that food, are pulled from its resources and put into that seed. Plant energy (from solar), nutrients and minerals (from soil). The next step is harvesting that (each of these maneuvers probably requires petroleum-powered tractors and equipment, keep in mind), processing, storing, and finally, eating. But then what? What do we do with the field? There may be some plant detritus (straw, if it were wheat or barley, etc) but we need to eat next year too, so what will we do? One might assume that we would plant again... But remember, a huge amount of that soil fertility was taken up into our crop.. That crop was harvested off the field, so with what do we replace it? We could add (using big trucks and tractors, again) expensive, transported loads of compost, but... compost is hard to come by, since we're not raising animals for food anymore (and we can only support so many pets, right?). Barring that, we have to get some chemical (petroleum!) fertilizer to artificially prop up the plants. Keep in mind this field, were we to continue in this manner, would require more and more inputs (fertilizer, pesticides, etc) as the years go on, and our crop would be a little more deficient in trace minerals and nutrients, if it ever manages to produce as much as the first year.
Tell me which of these scenarios is better for the earth? Which adds to carbon sequestration, natural (not petroleum-based) management and fertility?
Joel goes into the historical practices, why pastures required five years of herbivores + grass to = one year of grain, why pork and chicken (omnivores, who often eat grains/seeds) are really less 'environmentally friendly' than grass fed beef (no one thinks grain-stuffed feedlot beef is good for any people or soil or air, right?), and how much we could restore to our earth (and ultimately our health), were we to shift away from grains and annuals (70% of grain produced is used for livestock food - much of it to herbivores which do not require it) and towards pasture-based animal production.
So the next time I run into the argument that veganism = environmentalism, I will want to find out if the person has considered this facet of it. I know I hadn't.
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
My New Treasure
I have been thinking about these for some time now. My Granny has one (an older version, obviously), and my brother consistently refuses to let me "babysit" his while he's on deployment. They just weren't 'worth it' to me at $259.
Then, this summer, they introduced the newest version of the contraption, and had a few price wars with Barnes & Noble's Nook... and the price was $189. Well, that almost did it for me, but I still didn't have the $$ to put towards it. Then, as I waited and watched, they introduced a wi-fi only version for $139.
Then, this summer, they introduced the newest version of the contraption, and had a few price wars with Barnes & Noble's Nook... and the price was $189. Well, that almost did it for me, but I still didn't have the $$ to put towards it. Then, as I waited and watched, they introduced a wi-fi only version for $139.
Now THAT was something I could get behind. I didn't care if it had 3G coverage if it could read a book. And when I got paid for a photography job, I pre-ordered it (they weren't set to release until late August, and 2 weeks into pre-ordering, they were already 'out of stock' and pushing back ship dates). At this point I'd had more than one person ask me about and encourage me to look into the Nook, so I began to do that, keeping my 'place in line' with the Kindle anyways (it wouldn't charge me until it shipped anyway, and in case I decided to get the Kindle, I'd have less time to wait.). It was a hard decision! I went back and forth a few times. I read reviews at tech-geek blogs, I went to B&N to get my hands on a Nook and ask, "So, what makes this better than Amazon's Kindle?" My Nook-desperate cousin bought one and made me borrow it for an evening, certain I'd come to the "right" decision after that. :)
Well, from the picture I'm sure you can tell what I settled on. These are the things that 'sold me' on the Kindle:
- It's a lot lighter in weight than the Nook. Nook is almost half again as heavy as the Kindle, and that was important to me.
- I have always used Amazon.com far more than Barnes & Noble, and it is a site/system that I was familiar with and preferred.
- While the touch-screen was cool (very, very briefly), I wasn't willing to trade off 2/3 of battery life for the cool factor. Kindle can go up to a month between charges, they say. Nook advertises up to 10 days. I also found the touch-screen more of a liability than an asset the evening I borrowed my cousin's Nook. Everything outside of page-turns required I first 'wake up' the touch screen, which was tedious for me.
- Kindle was $10 cheaper on the sticker price, but add the fact that sales tax wasn't an issue with amazon orders I saved more than $20. THEN I used a $5 gift card earned from swagbucks, and it shipped to me for $134.
- The 2-year warranty was $40 for Kindle and $45 for Nook. Since I was interested in that, it was another price benefit.
- I comparison-shopped e-books (from Ambleside Online's booklists, primarily) and when there was a price difference between B&N and Amazon, Amazon was cheaper on all but one item.
- The Kindle sported much faster page-turns than the Nook.
- The Kindle has higher screen-contrast than the Nook.
- The Kindle now offers 'collections' - that is, you can organize (like with files) different categories of books. I have one for kid lit, Year 1 Ambleside stuff, Year 3, Bibles and Bible Study, etc.
Areas that the Nook prevailed:
- Expandable memory. While Kindle 3 now comes with 4 gigs of memory, Nook has a memory-card slot to make it virtually infinite.
- Replaceable battery. The Kindle can have it's battery replaced, but you have to return it to the factory, yada yada (the extended warranty does cover a one-time battery replacement, if need be).
- It uses the ePub format, which is more common. Larger libraries sometimes offer digital book 'loans' in this format, and other online ebook sellers often use this format as well (so far there's one book I'm interested in that CBD offers in ePub that I can't get through Amazon). However, older ebooks can be converted into a Kindle-friendly format, as long as they don't have DRM (copy) protection. This frees up all the free 'googlebooks.'
- It has a 'loaner' feature - you can 'loan' a book from your Nook to a friend's Nook for a couple weeks, at which time it magically returns to you. This was probably the hardest thing to give up. I hope Amazon will take a hint and do this someday.
Things I LOVE (that are not necessarily Kindle-specific):
- I converted my favorite bible study from pdf to Kindle (kindle reads pdf, but interacting with the text is a bit more complicated), and can read, search, and take notes at bible study with one-tenth of the effort that my binder required. And since I'm now using the same 'updated version' as everyone else, my page numbers are spot-on. It thrills me, too, to see my dear friend's name as author on one of my kindle books. It's not published - yet? - but this makes it feel pretty close. :)
- I can increase the font size to read in low light while I nurse baby... and make silent, one-handed page turns. This is huge! How did the tech-geeks miss THIS one???
- I can put the 'book' down with one hand, let it flop off the pillow, and it never loses my place.
- Organique cannot pull my bookmark out and lose my place.
- My mom got one too, on my account, so we 'share' (both have access to) whatever either of us purchases. Since we use the same homeschool plan, this has made tracking down the books a little easier for her, and enables me to help 'manage' some of their homeschool things from afar.
I don't have wi-fi in our home (it'll kill ya, you know), but using my computer to transfer books into my Kindle couldn't be easier. Drag-and-drop, done. I DO have a mac, so that might simplify things, but my good friend (yes, she got one too. And she was one who encouraged me to look into Nook. I'm contagious.) uses her windows machine and doesn't have any trouble that I've heard of. :)
There are more features I didn't mention, but any review will touch on them (be sure to google reviews of Kindle 3, as that's the latest unit). Here are a few reviews to get you going. Here. Here. Here. There are also reviews on Amazon, but they're obviously going to be a little biased. :) Many reviewers also own Nook, or iPad, and can offer their comparisons though.
Do you have an e-reader? Do you want one? What is your preference and why?
Friday, May 28, 2010
Deals & Steals
Since Hubby got home after 8pm last night, and there was no "Costco Shopping in Lieu of Anniversary Date" (um, there was nothing in lieu of anniversary date. Maybe someday we'll change our anniversary to February when he's not working at all?), I had to go to town today with all four lovelies. And I'm a little bit worn out.
Last time I took them in the late afternoon to their Grandma's (when she was off work) while I shopped and picked them up to come home. But as the weather is COLD and WET and DREARY I couldn't do anything in the garden, and was compelled to do something productive with the bulk of my day (watching 2 vats of beans soak doesn't count).
I found a gem at Costco. Perfect for Little Artist (the bird lover) and in good time, as we've gotten very close to some swallows who think they might like to build their muddy nest above our front door (Hubby strongly disagrees with them, which is probably why they choose this time of year to try).
Last time I took them in the late afternoon to their Grandma's (when she was off work) while I shopped and picked them up to come home. But as the weather is COLD and WET and DREARY I couldn't do anything in the garden, and was compelled to do something productive with the bulk of my day (watching 2 vats of beans soak doesn't count).
I found a gem at Costco. Perfect for Little Artist (the bird lover) and in good time, as we've gotten very close to some swallows who think they might like to build their muddy nest above our front door (Hubby strongly disagrees with them, which is probably why they choose this time of year to try).
It's a good-sized book, and nearly 2 inches thick. It's softcover, but with the full-color pages common in the DK books. I've been thinking of getting a field guide or something for birds, since we have a nice collection of them around here. The best part? It was $22 at Costco. Even cheaper than Amazon, and way cheaper than the $35 retail price tag.
Another blessing I ran across inadvertently was some of this salami:
I've grabbed this on clearance before, and it did okay on pizza. The retail price for this 4 oz package? $7.49. Not part of my regular grocery list, ya think? However, they were nearing their expiration date, and were marked down. To ninety-nine cents. So, yeah, I bought a few. Like, ten. What a blessing.
Also, I got a free, locally grown (if not organically... knowing the grower, he probably feeds them the spent grain from his bathtub moonshine operation) ham. Well, I've been helping out some friends, and they're helping us out by sharing their abundance. So nice!!
I also ran across a bunch of baby formula in the formulation some friends use.. It was also nearing it's expiration date (I'm just loving expiration dates), and the $14 cans were marked down to just under $6. I called her up, and picked up several for her. [I know, *me* buy formula? Trust me, Mama is doing all she can, and hasn't given up on nursing yet!] I'm not sure how well the "raw liver baby formula" recipe in Nourishing Traditions would be received, but I suppose I could offer that too. ;) [okay, there are other homemade versions too... less freaky ones. Do you know anyone who has made their own baby formula?]
All in all, though it was a fairly taxing day, it was obviously not without its blessings.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Moral Eating
I've been posting about Joel Salatin's book, Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal.
I also wrote about watching Food, Inc, and was troubled by the idea that organic production models couldn't reasonably feed the world, that they just don't produce enough.
I was surprised to be struck by something in the Animal Welfare chapter at the end of Joel's book. He actually is quoting another author, but it really has me thinking...
He begins by discussing the animal-welfare people who are very against inducing abortion in third-trimester cows for the sole reason of putting more weight on the beast (in a feedlot, where her future is to be meat, not milk). This is obviously poor animal husbandry! But,
Ouch.
Really ouch.
I've pondered this. Why did God make animals? Why did he make them each different? Was it for His pleasure, as well as our benefit? If so, if He delights in having "cattle on (a thousand) hills" and not on cement, lounging on mountains of excrement, wracked with bacteria, disease, and pain, while their very life is drawn out of them on a daily basis... If this is how we can "afford" to drink milk... Does this please Him? If He gave a chicken feathers, a beak and the instinct to peck, feet and the nature to scratch in dirt.. Is He pleased if they spend their entire lives with 8 others in a 16"x16" cage, having their beak tips cut off, never seeing the light of day or breathing anything but the dust and mites and manure from thousands of others under the same roof? Is this God's preferred way of providing "affordable" eggs and meat for His children? Does He want us to consider this?? Are we responsible to consider where and how our dinner got to our plate?
This doesn't seem small to me. It doesn't seem inconsequential at all. Joel (or Matthew Scully) is right. I've read more than one blog - operated by well-meaning stay-at-home Mamas, determined to steward God's resources responsibly, to feed their families well - who find great virtue in frugality... and haven't even looked at this perspective. Many pursue "organic" food when possible, but even when they don't or can't, the extent of their thought seems to be, "I just pray that God will protect us from any risk..." In light of this, that seems awfully self-focused. When we buy that tray of 'affordable' meat, are we righteous because we didn't 'waste' money, or are we unrighteous for propping up a system that abuses people (illegal immigrants, among others), poisons water and fish and great swaths of soil, and, to use a word from the quotation, "disrespects" the very nature of the thing which we eat? Cows don't naturally eat grain, legumes, or chicken manure (you read that right. As of 2007 anyway, that was/is an approved practice near Joel's home). Should this factor in to our purchasing decisions, along with pricetag and nutrition?
The other issue, the question of whether or not people would starve to death if we didn't chem-farm and feed-lot. Joel briefly refers to this in his book.
I also wrote about watching Food, Inc, and was troubled by the idea that organic production models couldn't reasonably feed the world, that they just don't produce enough.
I was surprised to be struck by something in the Animal Welfare chapter at the end of Joel's book. He actually is quoting another author, but it really has me thinking...
He begins by discussing the animal-welfare people who are very against inducing abortion in third-trimester cows for the sole reason of putting more weight on the beast (in a feedlot, where her future is to be meat, not milk). This is obviously poor animal husbandry! But,
"Amazingly, the people who are so concerned about abortions in the third trimester of a bovine pregnancy tend to support that action in humans. Isn't that incredible? It's as inconsistent as the pro-lifers eating disrespected factory farmed meat out of Costco. I agree with Matthew Scully, author of Dominion: The people who should be most concerned about respecting and honoring animals are the members of the religious right. Instead these folks defend the right to abuse animals, to disrespect their chickeness and pigness. And they even applaud their own ability to find the cheapest food. I wonder if they think the best church comes from hiring the cheapest pastor."
Ouch.
Really ouch.
I've pondered this. Why did God make animals? Why did he make them each different? Was it for His pleasure, as well as our benefit? If so, if He delights in having "cattle on (a thousand) hills" and not on cement, lounging on mountains of excrement, wracked with bacteria, disease, and pain, while their very life is drawn out of them on a daily basis... If this is how we can "afford" to drink milk... Does this please Him? If He gave a chicken feathers, a beak and the instinct to peck, feet and the nature to scratch in dirt.. Is He pleased if they spend their entire lives with 8 others in a 16"x16" cage, having their beak tips cut off, never seeing the light of day or breathing anything but the dust and mites and manure from thousands of others under the same roof? Is this God's preferred way of providing "affordable" eggs and meat for His children? Does He want us to consider this?? Are we responsible to consider where and how our dinner got to our plate?
This doesn't seem small to me. It doesn't seem inconsequential at all. Joel (or Matthew Scully) is right. I've read more than one blog - operated by well-meaning stay-at-home Mamas, determined to steward God's resources responsibly, to feed their families well - who find great virtue in frugality... and haven't even looked at this perspective. Many pursue "organic" food when possible, but even when they don't or can't, the extent of their thought seems to be, "I just pray that God will protect us from any risk..." In light of this, that seems awfully self-focused. When we buy that tray of 'affordable' meat, are we righteous because we didn't 'waste' money, or are we unrighteous for propping up a system that abuses people (illegal immigrants, among others), poisons water and fish and great swaths of soil, and, to use a word from the quotation, "disrespects" the very nature of the thing which we eat? Cows don't naturally eat grain, legumes, or chicken manure (you read that right. As of 2007 anyway, that was/is an approved practice near Joel's home). Should this factor in to our purchasing decisions, along with pricetag and nutrition?
The other issue, the question of whether or not people would starve to death if we didn't chem-farm and feed-lot. Joel briefly refers to this in his book.
"They really believe, like our Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Mason Carbaugh in the 1980s wrote in his annual bulletin, 'If we went to organic farming, we would just have to decide which half of the world would starve.' These officials actually believe this. They make statements like this and go to church and feel exceptionally good inside about protecting the world from lunatics like me.
How did he come up with such a silly notion? Simply. The land grand college researches organic production this way:
Pick several plots of ground.
These plots have been used previously in research regarding herbicides, pesticides, and chemical fertilizers. The soil is dead.
Identify three as the organic plots and three as conventional plots.
Organic plots receive no soil amendments; conventional receive full complement of fertilizer, pre-emerge weed killer, grubicides, etc.
Plant hybrid corn - genetically selected to require chemical fertilizer - nutrient vacuum cleaners.
Leave the plots to their own devices. Organic plots get weedy. So what. Herbicide kills weeds in conventional.
Harvest corn.
Measure yield. Organic pitiful; conventional excellent.
Extrapolate production volume over worldwide corn acreage.
Conclusion: Organics will kill half the world's population.
Folks, I'm not making this up. This is exactly how the research is conducted. Now can you see why science is not objective? Anyone with a lick of sense understands that chemicalized soils take at least three years to detoxify. The native soil flora and fauna take a long time to recolonize dead soil. Notice, too, that they didn't plant hardy open pollinated corn. And nobody cared about the nutritional quality of the corn; the only thing that mattered was volume This is Modern Science 101, the foundation of official press releases and government-sponsored research.
If organics would kill the world half-over, then why are the 'big guys' so determined to keep neighborhood farms and farmers from feeding the people nearest them? Have you seen what Joel Salatin produces? Have you seen articles about what people are growing on their city lot, or their quarter acre? Have you researched the biointensive method? It's incredible. And all organic. Too, if conventional means raping and pillaging the soil and the animals, I have a hard time believing God would love the increase of people as much as He seems to. God would not tell anyone to "fill the earth" if we had to abuse the rest of His creation to do so... would He?
I can hear people saying, "whoa now... hold on. I have several children to feed and clothe on my husband's salary. How exactly am I supposed to afford stuff like that? And my moral compass may be calibrated incorrectly?!?" I hear the same thing in my own mind. A recent YouTube video I watched featured Daniel Salatin (Joel's son) teaching others how to cut and package chicken pieces... The whole chicken was $3/lb, and boneless, skinless breasts were $13/lb! I don't know how current it was, but even Azure has similar prices for such. And I about choked. That may be doable for a couple, or small family, but that starts getting crazy as you go up in family size. What about the price for beef? Grains? Veggies?
I don't have any easy answers, but 2 things come to mind. First, conventional food isn't really cheap. You hear about "the Farm Bill" every year? That spells out what the government is going to do with, to, for, about food production. Whether they will pay Joe Smith to NOT grow wheat, etc. You hear a farmer mention that bean prices were the same for his grandpa... How can that be? Grandpa probably had a cheaper tractor, smaller mortgage, cheaper inputs.. How then is today's farmer even paying the property taxes? Government "subsidies?" [There is a lot about this that I don't know. I would love to know more about how this works, if anyone can help!] Americans spend a smaller proportion of their income for food than ever before. America "sells" corn or whatever to Mexico and Haiti... and the imported American stuff is EVEN CHEAPER than a local subsistence farmer can grow it for. How else does this happen, without taxpayers propping up the industry? So we're paying for it, just not when we write a check to the grocer.
Another cost of today's food is in medical expenses. Obesity is such a huge problem, we have skyrocketing rates of diabetes, heart disease (in younger and younger people), cancer, chronic diseases. MUCH of this is the result of the daily choices people make, when it comes time to eat. And we're lazy, and ignorant. Even food bank recipients (often) refuse dry beans, or other higher nutrition, more effort, foodstuffs. Most people don't see the purpose in taking time to make beans, or soup, or anything, when you can get (seemingly!) "the same thing" from a can or box or package in 1/8 of the time, with 1/12 the effort. And in short order, they're spending how much per month on prescription medications to deal with the problems they've developed. How 'affordable' was that food again?
I don't have any ways for you to opt out of the first hidden costs. Tax evasion is not looked at lightly. :) The second you have much more power over. Not complete power mind you; things happen, certainly, but we know enough to know that some things are "bad for you" and others notsomuch. Use that knowledge, and better your odds in that department. Don't know? Well, if you're reading this, you have access to a world of information. Get some. :)
Small organic producers don't get the corporate welfare (big organic might, I don't know). They're not picking your pocket; anything they get from you is entirely voluntary, entirely transparent. We have to respect that at least. :) As such, their prices are higher than that of their conventional counterparts. A farmer, or market gardener, needs to be compensated with a living wage. We shouldn't decry that. If we do, what is their incentive to continue?
But what can we do... Is there an option outside of doubling our grocery budget?
I think so. We eat *darn good* and have extra food stocked in the pantry and freezers, yet we *still* fall within the lowest average spending for a household our size. How do we do it? Well, first, we don't eat out. Hardly ever. The way I hear things from Dave Ramsey, that's a huge expense for some families. I know people who, both working and both tired, eat dinner out a couple times a week or more. Some lunches are in restaurants too. Cutting back on this could easily free up a LOT of grocery money. Second, we buy bulk when possible, and from buying clubs/co-ops. This is a GREAT way to get healthy, organic foods at decent prices. I find the best buys are (of course) on the least-processed foods. If you're going to buy organic canned soups, they're expensive anywhere you find them. Azure Standard is one I've mentioned more than once. Almost anyone can raise a few laying hens, or if not, give up a $3 latte and buy a dozen or two eggs from someone local. Grass-fed, organic beef is horrifically expensive. At least, in my mind. :) But buying a whole beef (or a half, or a quarter, or finding a dozen family members to split it) is much more economical. Where do you find such a thing? Well, the last one we bought I discovered through a local organic grocery store. They were stocking $5/lb hamburger from a neighbor who farms organically, but I wondered if they knew of anyone else in the area that raised beef completely on pasture. They gave me a name, and I called, and the rest is history. That was 2 years ago, and we're about due for a refill. :) Sometimes these stores have bulletin boards; keep an eye out there, or put up your own name and number, "in search of" grass-fed beef. You could do the same thing at a feed store. Probably the best place to find information right now is a farmer's market. Ask any vendor there if they know of someone, even ask other patrons. You can tap into a great network this way. You might find someone raising chickens, rabbits, turkeys... A lot of people in this area would consider bartering, and I bet that's true elsewhere. You never know until you ask. Personally, having someone I could call to tend these chickens when I'm gone would be worth a bird or two! Now, who wants to share a milk cow?
This is a long post. I thought about dividing it up, but I didn't like it that way. One point leads to the other. And I want to encourage you, if you were struck like I was by that first quote, that it is not a catch-22. We trust God "to provide" right? Is He not capable of providing in line with His own design? Let us trust Him to provide well. If He calls us this direction He is faithful to equip.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Further Book Thoughts
On that book, Joel Salatin's Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal.
I mentioned that both the political left and right are oppressive to Joel Salatin and others like him. I just love this book. Every chapter had me shaking my head, determined to be more conscious in my food-acquisition efforts. He blasts both sides: The big businesses who lobby for special status in a sea of burdensome regulations - or support those very regulations, knowing they're the only ones who have the ability and resources to jump through such hoops (this is applies to far more than food production, by the way), and the do-gooder environmentalist that thinks government is the answer to all the earth's ills, and in his ignorance makes things worse. Joel gives an example of the poor agricultural practices that were polluting the Chesapeake Bay... Dairy farmers were applying their slurry to their fields on a daily basis - rain, shine, winter, summer... unless the grass was growing and thriving (spring, summer, no rain), the stuff wasn't metabolized, and would run into the Bay. Legislation and regulation and government money provided for a great new innovation (so the environmentalists claimed), to make manure lagoons to hold the slurry. Joel managed to eventually get an interview with one of the higher-ups in this department, and showed him how they managed to hold onto their valuable manure until the pasture was ready to receive it - and without $50,000 worth of cement and steel. The guy admired Joel's system before explaining that there was no research money available to study something that was already working (huh?) and no grant money for the same thing. THEN he admitted that things were actually worse for the Bay... that the lagoons allowed farmer's to hold the slurry for up to six months before dealing with it. Which they DID - and usually only ended up taking care of the big mess during their down-time - winter. The WORST time to do it. Before, at least, they applied it hit-and-miss.. Some days were good. Now none of it was being applied at the right time. Why not repeal the whole thing? Impossible.
WOW.
As much as anything else, Joel writes to compel people to question everything. If it has a government approval stamp, if the research was paid for with government money (or by someone who has an interest in the results), if a politician has an opinion on it - believe it at you own peril.
Joel challenges the "right" tendency to think bigger and faster = better, and the "left" tendency to assume that if someone is selling something, they're trying to rip you off.
He challenges the idea of "food safety" on both sides. It shouldn't be what the fat-cats say it is, the ones willing to wine and dine the politicians who make the regulations, and it shouldn't be what the 'government = savior' camp claims, either. Forget the paperwork, he pleads. Forget the pages and pages of how to do this, the temperature for that, the screens and windows and drains and inspections. Go to the end-game: Test the darn thing. If it tests clean, it's clean! Who cares if it was processed in someone's kitchen, or even dunked in the toilet, if it's CLEAN. But that's too simple. It's apparently not "safe" even if it tests clean... Safe only equals 'jumping through all the government-decreed hoops.' If it actually kills someone (E. coli recalls, anyone?), there was just a breakdown somewhere, that shouldn't have happened. Ya think? But - produce a clean product without those hoops? Well, that can't be safe.
Both sides are corrupt, and you can't trust a thing they say. Even if they're promoting something with good intentions, they're wrong. Foolish. Destructive.
He advocates for an "opt out" program (isn't that my dream world!?!). Sign a paper absolving both the government and any producers from liability, and retake the freedom to decide what you eat on your own terms. Take responsibility for your choices and gain the freedom to do so!
I love this guy.
More tomorrow.
I mentioned that both the political left and right are oppressive to Joel Salatin and others like him. I just love this book. Every chapter had me shaking my head, determined to be more conscious in my food-acquisition efforts. He blasts both sides: The big businesses who lobby for special status in a sea of burdensome regulations - or support those very regulations, knowing they're the only ones who have the ability and resources to jump through such hoops (this is applies to far more than food production, by the way), and the do-gooder environmentalist that thinks government is the answer to all the earth's ills, and in his ignorance makes things worse. Joel gives an example of the poor agricultural practices that were polluting the Chesapeake Bay... Dairy farmers were applying their slurry to their fields on a daily basis - rain, shine, winter, summer... unless the grass was growing and thriving (spring, summer, no rain), the stuff wasn't metabolized, and would run into the Bay. Legislation and regulation and government money provided for a great new innovation (so the environmentalists claimed), to make manure lagoons to hold the slurry. Joel managed to eventually get an interview with one of the higher-ups in this department, and showed him how they managed to hold onto their valuable manure until the pasture was ready to receive it - and without $50,000 worth of cement and steel. The guy admired Joel's system before explaining that there was no research money available to study something that was already working (huh?) and no grant money for the same thing. THEN he admitted that things were actually worse for the Bay... that the lagoons allowed farmer's to hold the slurry for up to six months before dealing with it. Which they DID - and usually only ended up taking care of the big mess during their down-time - winter. The WORST time to do it. Before, at least, they applied it hit-and-miss.. Some days were good. Now none of it was being applied at the right time. Why not repeal the whole thing? Impossible.
"The environmentalists won a huge victory with this program. How do you think they would look if they had to admit they'd caused more harm than good? And do you really think I can take on the entire scientific community at Virginia Tech? I'd be laughed out of town. And the politicians that passed the legislation - do you t\really think they will admit they made a mistake? They would look like fools to their constituents. Once a program starts, no matter whether it's working or not, the inertia to keep it going is stronger than anything else."
WOW.
As much as anything else, Joel writes to compel people to question everything. If it has a government approval stamp, if the research was paid for with government money (or by someone who has an interest in the results), if a politician has an opinion on it - believe it at you own peril.
Joel challenges the "right" tendency to think bigger and faster = better, and the "left" tendency to assume that if someone is selling something, they're trying to rip you off.
He challenges the idea of "food safety" on both sides. It shouldn't be what the fat-cats say it is, the ones willing to wine and dine the politicians who make the regulations, and it shouldn't be what the 'government = savior' camp claims, either. Forget the paperwork, he pleads. Forget the pages and pages of how to do this, the temperature for that, the screens and windows and drains and inspections. Go to the end-game: Test the darn thing. If it tests clean, it's clean! Who cares if it was processed in someone's kitchen, or even dunked in the toilet, if it's CLEAN. But that's too simple. It's apparently not "safe" even if it tests clean... Safe only equals 'jumping through all the government-decreed hoops.' If it actually kills someone (E. coli recalls, anyone?), there was just a breakdown somewhere, that shouldn't have happened. Ya think? But - produce a clean product without those hoops? Well, that can't be safe.
Both sides are corrupt, and you can't trust a thing they say. Even if they're promoting something with good intentions, they're wrong. Foolish. Destructive.
He advocates for an "opt out" program (isn't that my dream world!?!). Sign a paper absolving both the government and any producers from liability, and retake the freedom to decide what you eat on your own terms. Take responsibility for your choices and gain the freedom to do so!
I love this guy.
More tomorrow.
Sunday, May 09, 2010
What A Book
I've been reading a book (okay, several of them, but I want to discuss one in particular) lately, and it's really one of those I wish everyone would read. The perspective isn't one that many of us have, yet we should really all be aware of it.
It's by Joel Salatin, Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal; War Stories From the Local Food Front.
Blogger's photo upload isn't working, else I'd post a picture of the book. It's worth a look; a tank emblazoned with "USDA" has run a farmer and his wares off the road, and he stands with hands up before the chickens, pigs, and cows.
After reading of his experiences, I'd say that isn't too far off.
This is not like his 'how to' farming books, more a testament to how the system (both left and right!) oppresses 'the little guy,' the real innovators, and hinders both opportunity and progress. Collusion with big business favors no one but big business (and their politicians) and his is a call to end this. Everyone should read this book, whether you are into farming, food, politics, or just the American Way of life.
Many are the stories like this: Joel would like to sell a pound of hamburger to his next-door neighbor. But, REGULATIONS REQUIRE that such a pound of beef come from a beef slaughtered and processed at a USDA-inspected facility - father away, more expensive, staffed with dozens of illegal aliens... So let's say he does that, and is ready to sell this (now more expensive, possibly commingled with lesser-quality animals) hamburger to the neighbor. Wait! You can't bring that back to the farm! It's now a value-added product, and a farm is not a retail site, you know? Where's your dual-lane road from the highway? Proper signage and commercial access? Handicapped parking? Restrooms? Inspected buildings? Business license? The list goes on and on, until the small start-up farmer, who would sell superior, local food to his neighborhood would have to put $500,000 worth of infrastructure in before selling the first T-bone steak. No wonder the big guys, with their centralized production and processing have all the advantages.
Joel is libertarian in his philosophy here. And I must say, after reading, I lean that way a little more now myself. What business is it of the government's if I want to buy beef from my neighbor? Am I not a big enough girl to choose that for myself? Lest you think "no one really cares," read about the heavy-handed bureaucrats who have (time and time again) harassed Joel and his family about "compliance" with everything from their own milled lumber (to build their own house), chicken processing, eggs, zoning... it's unbelievable.
Joel touches on the above, calls for changes, addresses the illegal immigration issue, labor laws, housing, organic certification, taxes, bioterrorism, mad cow/bird flu, NAIS, endangered species, and more.
Read it. Request it from your library. Buy it and let your neighbor borrow it.
The fact that Joel, and others like him, have had the success they've had in the face of such tyranny is a testament to the product they offer, and to the character of the farmer, persevering in spite of it all.
I come away from this, somewhat surprisingly, feeling like, "I want to do that!" I was puzzled by this, considering I was reading about ALL the roadblocks to such a thing, until I realized it was more a reaction of wanting to "opt out" of The Government's Food System. Be done with it! And I'm ever grateful for my little Black Marketeer who is still under-the-radar enough that I brought home a bag of "Not For Sale" labeled hamburger the other day. :)
Can you imagine? It's not poisonous (it's fine if she were to give it to me free, or host a barbecue and feed my children with it), in fact it was processed by the same guy we hire when we buy a whole beef. But it's illegal. Unbelievable.
It's by Joel Salatin, Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal; War Stories From the Local Food Front.
Blogger's photo upload isn't working, else I'd post a picture of the book. It's worth a look; a tank emblazoned with "USDA" has run a farmer and his wares off the road, and he stands with hands up before the chickens, pigs, and cows.
After reading of his experiences, I'd say that isn't too far off.
This is not like his 'how to' farming books, more a testament to how the system (both left and right!) oppresses 'the little guy,' the real innovators, and hinders both opportunity and progress. Collusion with big business favors no one but big business (and their politicians) and his is a call to end this. Everyone should read this book, whether you are into farming, food, politics, or just the American Way of life.
Many are the stories like this: Joel would like to sell a pound of hamburger to his next-door neighbor. But, REGULATIONS REQUIRE that such a pound of beef come from a beef slaughtered and processed at a USDA-inspected facility - father away, more expensive, staffed with dozens of illegal aliens... So let's say he does that, and is ready to sell this (now more expensive, possibly commingled with lesser-quality animals) hamburger to the neighbor. Wait! You can't bring that back to the farm! It's now a value-added product, and a farm is not a retail site, you know? Where's your dual-lane road from the highway? Proper signage and commercial access? Handicapped parking? Restrooms? Inspected buildings? Business license? The list goes on and on, until the small start-up farmer, who would sell superior, local food to his neighborhood would have to put $500,000 worth of infrastructure in before selling the first T-bone steak. No wonder the big guys, with their centralized production and processing have all the advantages.
Joel is libertarian in his philosophy here. And I must say, after reading, I lean that way a little more now myself. What business is it of the government's if I want to buy beef from my neighbor? Am I not a big enough girl to choose that for myself? Lest you think "no one really cares," read about the heavy-handed bureaucrats who have (time and time again) harassed Joel and his family about "compliance" with everything from their own milled lumber (to build their own house), chicken processing, eggs, zoning... it's unbelievable.
Joel touches on the above, calls for changes, addresses the illegal immigration issue, labor laws, housing, organic certification, taxes, bioterrorism, mad cow/bird flu, NAIS, endangered species, and more.
Read it. Request it from your library. Buy it and let your neighbor borrow it.
The fact that Joel, and others like him, have had the success they've had in the face of such tyranny is a testament to the product they offer, and to the character of the farmer, persevering in spite of it all.
I come away from this, somewhat surprisingly, feeling like, "I want to do that!" I was puzzled by this, considering I was reading about ALL the roadblocks to such a thing, until I realized it was more a reaction of wanting to "opt out" of The Government's Food System. Be done with it! And I'm ever grateful for my little Black Marketeer who is still under-the-radar enough that I brought home a bag of "Not For Sale" labeled hamburger the other day. :)
Can you imagine? It's not poisonous (it's fine if she were to give it to me free, or host a barbecue and feed my children with it), in fact it was processed by the same guy we hire when we buy a whole beef. But it's illegal. Unbelievable.
Monday, February 01, 2010
Lately Reading
I've enjoyed several books lately, spending birthday and Christmas gift cards online, borrowing from people, going to the library. When I sit down to nurse the baby, settle into bed at night, ride (not drive!) in the van, I enjoy learning and (hopefully) expanding my mind. In keeping with my multi-tasking lifestyle, I also read a couple (few?) books concurrently, though I never did so in my former life. :) Here's a sampling of my recent/current/upcoming reads:
In the Kitchen:
Fix, Freeze, Feast: Prepare in Bulk, Enjoy by the Serving. Love this. It's geared towards warehouse-shopping (Costco or Sam's), with recipes that use an entire 6-lb tray of ground beef, or chicken breasts, thighs, etc. There are also handy bulk side-dishes (potato recipes that use 10 lbs of russets - great way to make those organic ones last now that they're going to be sprouting and not on the market), breakfast ideas (granola), desserts, as well as the main dishes. I requested it from the library and they finally got a copy and let me borrow it. Which saved me some money, because I was able to type up the 23 can't-live-without recipes. It's higher-than-average on my Weird Nutrition Scale, and that is nice. Of course, I don't buy much meat at the warehouse store, and I'm unlikely to pluck a dozen chickens just to get fresh breast meat, but I think I can work around this.
Once-A-Month-Cooking: Family Favorites. I haven't had this one long, but I do like the idea. It's one of those super-organized plans that give you the month (or 2-weeks) of meals, and walk you through everything from the shopping, the dicing, cooking, freezing, etc. Because it's so regimented, it's a little harder to adjust for preferences, though there are quite a variety of meals presented. There are 2 month menus, 2 2-week menus, and additional summer and gourmet 2-week menus, though the recipes can stand alone.
Family Feasts for $75 a Week. Seeing a trend here? This one is written by Mary of Owlhaven, and it's well done. The thrust is towards frugal meals instead of make-ahead or bulk cooking, but it's not just beans and rice. The first part is full of her frugal tips and tricks, including a survey to assess your own habits and find where you can make the biggest difference in your grocery budget. I feel fairly experienced on pinching pennies, but there were still more ideas than I expected. I especially love the "pantry" section, where she offers ways to 'make your own' staples, like taco or spaghetti seasoning, teriyaki sauce, ranch or onion soup mix. I love the healthier "cream of soup" methods.
Don't Panic, Dinner's in the Freezer. This one is a cross between Family Feasts and Fix, Freeze, Feast. It's not a set-out menu, but each recipe can be made individually, or they have done the math for 3X, 6X, or more recipes to do at once. I made their freezer pizza-dough, and some EXCELLENT caramel cinnamon rolls, though of course there are many main-dish recipes. This one is a little heavier on the 'already made' ingredients - ready made pie crust, cans or jars of stuff - than I prefer, but I have several recipes tagged to try.
In the Sewing Room:
Fit for Real People: Sew Great Clothes Using Any Pattern. This is another library request. But I'm afraid I might have to buy it, if I can ever have time to sew again (maybe if I quit reading cookbooks?). It walks you through every element of doing your own body map and tissue-fitting and altering for your own body. One shoulder slopes more? Have a flat backside, or a swayback? Bigger or smaller in the bust? Waist a little higher or lower than normal? Hips even or not? I have no doubt that following their step-by-step instructions will lead to the best-fit clothes I've ever had.
A is for Apron: 25 Fresh and Flirty Designs. One I longed for from the library for so long. Loved it enough to buy it, though it's more for fun than enlightenment.
Homeschool:
Charlotte Mason Education, A How-To Manual. A brief but clear look at the day-to-day implementation of different Charlotte Mason philosophies. I have yet to read the original Charlotte Mason books, though they're available for free in pdf (I believe) from Barnes & Noble.
A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning. A much bigger book about Charlotte Mason Education and ways it played out in the author's family. Many ideas and encouragement are presented here. I borrowed it from a friend, got it from the library, and then found my own used copy reasonably priced on Amazon.
Handbook of Nature Study. Wow. This is somewhat dated (1911, I think, or 1939), but much of science is relatively timeless. Recommended in the CM Companion, above, I'm so glad I invested the $17 or so for it. It's nearly 900 pages of natural science. This paperback is like 3 inches thick! Animals, birds, plants, bugs, weather, astronomy... I believe it's also available for free in e-book format, but for looking up something for the kids (without a computer), it can't be beat for that price.
Favorite Poems Old and New: Selected for Boys and Girls. A BIG poetry anthology for children. Includes so many classics!
Spiritual:
How to Stop the Pain. I'm about half through this, and have latched on to several good tidbits. While I don't live in a place of "abiding torment" over anything in particular (I think, anyways...), it is still relevant. Those frequent hurts we experience from others don't have to hurt!
Beautiful Girlhood. This could also file under Homeschool, I think, as it's mostly intended for girls/young women. I've read the first chapter, and skimmed other parts. It's old-school, but lovely, and I'd certainly take the old-school over the new-school any day. :) Addresses many growing-up issues like modesty and industry and honor.
Don't Make Me Count to Three. I haven't actually read this, but the reviews at Amazon were interesting to say the least. It's recommended (by some) as a good companion for Shepherding a Child's Heart, which I love. Other reviews say it's more like a tortue/abuse manual and shows nothing from the heart of God. I'll let you know what I think.
Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets Them Free. I've heard and read good things about this, and found it for a great used price on Amazon. The table of contents tells me it will be good for me.
Weekend Makeover: Go From Messy to Magnificent in 48 Hours. Well, it's been more than 48 hours, and I haven't quite read through it yet. I know this is an odd thing to have in the "spiritual" department, but I think it fits for me. Keeping the house maintained is a constant effort for most people, but I think for me it's as much in my head/heart as it is in my doings.
The Clutter Cure. Ditto for the above. I REALLY like this one. I've checked it out from the library twice now. It deals with the emotional side of why we get (or hold on to) stuff, and gives some good advice on dealing with the guilt (or fear or whatever) and taking back control of our environment.
For Me:
Going Rogue: An American Life. This is Sarah Palin's recent book. I really enjoyed it, though of course it's her own account (and one would expect it to come across well). Her life seems so very normal and reasonable, and her ideas seem to be the same. I loved that she included her salvation testimony in her life's story, and I hope the Palin Family's future is good. I was amazed and incredulous at "the machine" that was the VP campaign in 2008. From my perspective it was enjoyable to see a normal, reasonable person not totally embrace the nonsense that is American politics today.
***
What have you been reading lately? Do you read half-a-library at one time?
In the Kitchen:
Fix, Freeze, Feast: Prepare in Bulk, Enjoy by the Serving. Love this. It's geared towards warehouse-shopping (Costco or Sam's), with recipes that use an entire 6-lb tray of ground beef, or chicken breasts, thighs, etc. There are also handy bulk side-dishes (potato recipes that use 10 lbs of russets - great way to make those organic ones last now that they're going to be sprouting and not on the market), breakfast ideas (granola), desserts, as well as the main dishes. I requested it from the library and they finally got a copy and let me borrow it. Which saved me some money, because I was able to type up the 23 can't-live-without recipes. It's higher-than-average on my Weird Nutrition Scale, and that is nice. Of course, I don't buy much meat at the warehouse store, and I'm unlikely to pluck a dozen chickens just to get fresh breast meat, but I think I can work around this.
Once-A-Month-Cooking: Family Favorites. I haven't had this one long, but I do like the idea. It's one of those super-organized plans that give you the month (or 2-weeks) of meals, and walk you through everything from the shopping, the dicing, cooking, freezing, etc. Because it's so regimented, it's a little harder to adjust for preferences, though there are quite a variety of meals presented. There are 2 month menus, 2 2-week menus, and additional summer and gourmet 2-week menus, though the recipes can stand alone.
Family Feasts for $75 a Week. Seeing a trend here? This one is written by Mary of Owlhaven, and it's well done. The thrust is towards frugal meals instead of make-ahead or bulk cooking, but it's not just beans and rice. The first part is full of her frugal tips and tricks, including a survey to assess your own habits and find where you can make the biggest difference in your grocery budget. I feel fairly experienced on pinching pennies, but there were still more ideas than I expected. I especially love the "pantry" section, where she offers ways to 'make your own' staples, like taco or spaghetti seasoning, teriyaki sauce, ranch or onion soup mix. I love the healthier "cream of soup" methods.
Don't Panic, Dinner's in the Freezer. This one is a cross between Family Feasts and Fix, Freeze, Feast. It's not a set-out menu, but each recipe can be made individually, or they have done the math for 3X, 6X, or more recipes to do at once. I made their freezer pizza-dough, and some EXCELLENT caramel cinnamon rolls, though of course there are many main-dish recipes. This one is a little heavier on the 'already made' ingredients - ready made pie crust, cans or jars of stuff - than I prefer, but I have several recipes tagged to try.
In the Sewing Room:
Fit for Real People: Sew Great Clothes Using Any Pattern. This is another library request. But I'm afraid I might have to buy it, if I can ever have time to sew again (maybe if I quit reading cookbooks?). It walks you through every element of doing your own body map and tissue-fitting and altering for your own body. One shoulder slopes more? Have a flat backside, or a swayback? Bigger or smaller in the bust? Waist a little higher or lower than normal? Hips even or not? I have no doubt that following their step-by-step instructions will lead to the best-fit clothes I've ever had.
A is for Apron: 25 Fresh and Flirty Designs. One I longed for from the library for so long. Loved it enough to buy it, though it's more for fun than enlightenment.
Homeschool:
Charlotte Mason Education, A How-To Manual. A brief but clear look at the day-to-day implementation of different Charlotte Mason philosophies. I have yet to read the original Charlotte Mason books, though they're available for free in pdf (I believe) from Barnes & Noble.
A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning. A much bigger book about Charlotte Mason Education and ways it played out in the author's family. Many ideas and encouragement are presented here. I borrowed it from a friend, got it from the library, and then found my own used copy reasonably priced on Amazon.
Handbook of Nature Study. Wow. This is somewhat dated (1911, I think, or 1939), but much of science is relatively timeless. Recommended in the CM Companion, above, I'm so glad I invested the $17 or so for it. It's nearly 900 pages of natural science. This paperback is like 3 inches thick! Animals, birds, plants, bugs, weather, astronomy... I believe it's also available for free in e-book format, but for looking up something for the kids (without a computer), it can't be beat for that price.
Favorite Poems Old and New: Selected for Boys and Girls. A BIG poetry anthology for children. Includes so many classics!
Spiritual:
How to Stop the Pain. I'm about half through this, and have latched on to several good tidbits. While I don't live in a place of "abiding torment" over anything in particular (I think, anyways...), it is still relevant. Those frequent hurts we experience from others don't have to hurt!
Beautiful Girlhood. This could also file under Homeschool, I think, as it's mostly intended for girls/young women. I've read the first chapter, and skimmed other parts. It's old-school, but lovely, and I'd certainly take the old-school over the new-school any day. :) Addresses many growing-up issues like modesty and industry and honor.
Don't Make Me Count to Three. I haven't actually read this, but the reviews at Amazon were interesting to say the least. It's recommended (by some) as a good companion for Shepherding a Child's Heart, which I love. Other reviews say it's more like a tortue/abuse manual and shows nothing from the heart of God. I'll let you know what I think.
Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets Them Free. I've heard and read good things about this, and found it for a great used price on Amazon. The table of contents tells me it will be good for me.
Weekend Makeover: Go From Messy to Magnificent in 48 Hours. Well, it's been more than 48 hours, and I haven't quite read through it yet. I know this is an odd thing to have in the "spiritual" department, but I think it fits for me. Keeping the house maintained is a constant effort for most people, but I think for me it's as much in my head/heart as it is in my doings.
The Clutter Cure. Ditto for the above. I REALLY like this one. I've checked it out from the library twice now. It deals with the emotional side of why we get (or hold on to) stuff, and gives some good advice on dealing with the guilt (or fear or whatever) and taking back control of our environment.
For Me:
Going Rogue: An American Life. This is Sarah Palin's recent book. I really enjoyed it, though of course it's her own account (and one would expect it to come across well). Her life seems so very normal and reasonable, and her ideas seem to be the same. I loved that she included her salvation testimony in her life's story, and I hope the Palin Family's future is good. I was amazed and incredulous at "the machine" that was the VP campaign in 2008. From my perspective it was enjoyable to see a normal, reasonable person not totally embrace the nonsense that is American politics today.
***
What have you been reading lately? Do you read half-a-library at one time?
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Duggar Book Opinion
I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted! What a crummy blogger I am! I'll have newsworthy information to share someday after I use the camera...
I read this book a while back, The Duggars: 20 and Counting!
And thought I should be very put-together and informative by writing about it here.
Overall, I really enjoyed the book. It really is the nuts-and-bolts of not only how they manage their lives, but how they got to this point. It begins with each of the parents' childhoods, and chronicles their lives until the present. They include helpful ideas about child training (including a good description of blanket training, potty training, etc), teenage-mentoring, homeschooling, organization (and moving!), etc. I found some of their testimonies of God's provision very inspirational, and that is a big one for me.
I sometimes find myself the opposite of inspired when I hear of God's dealings with others. I'm not sure why. I used to know a lovely, godly woman who was literally FULL of incredible, amazing stories of God's moving and direction. I'm talking about showing up at an airport because she felt like God told her to "go" - and she had NO money. It would be handed to her, or otherwise miraculously show up before departure. She'd be diverted to a different city, and stuck a while, and while walking along somewhere a man would come up and say, "You are so-n-so" (which was accurate) and give her some special "word" from God -- there, in a place she was never 'supposed' to be. She could stop a stranger on the street (under direction from God) and read her life story, and prophesy to the tiny life inside that was about to be aborted. The woman lived like this daily, I think.
And while her stories and messages were intended to inspire and encourage, I frequently came away with the opposite. Feeling either that something was wrong with *my* relationship with God, or I wasn't listening to Him, because things sure didn't happen that way with me! OR, that I was somehow not 'chosen' to be used by Him in that way, and that made me feel (again), like I was unworthy.
The Duggars' stories were somewhat incredible, but I was encouraged by them. Whether because I could at least relate on the premise of making ends meet for the home and kids, or something else, I enjoyed seeing God move mountains in their lives.
The one drawback, for me, was their many recipes (except the laundry detergent - that one looks worthwhile). I'm somewhat surprised at just how many convenience foods they buy and consume, though obviously I don't know what it's like to manage mealtimes for such a number! But for me, nearly all were unuseable. I just don't use cream-of soups, frozen tater-tots, pre-made sauces, Velveeta, or the like. Canned vegetables, canned beans, these things just aren't in my arsenal of a pantry. :) A few recipes could be altered obviously, using pre-cooked frozen beans, frozen or fresh veggies, homemade pie crusts, white sauces, etc, but I haven't been moved to try my hand at them thus far. I don't know if it was from the book, or an interview I saw online, but I think they mentioned spending about $3000/mo for groceries. I'm not sure if that includes other household items, but I wonder if or whether that could be pared down if they did away with some of the 'spendier' foodstuffs. With their commercial kitchen, I bet they could cook up a year's worth of beans in one batch, and save a few hundred dollars too! But I don't know if there's a natural/healthy/homemade counterpart to velveeta....
Again, though, I must say I enjoyed the book for the most part. I find myself rereading tidbits here and there before bed some nights -- ok, and drooling over their laundry/closet organization and the general floorplan of their home. :)
Have you read it? What did you think? Do you want to?
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