Happy Birthday to my Husband!

So far, the fall has been absolutley wonderful...

Not only were Tom and I married on September 26th, but it was also Tom's birthday on October 7th. We celebrated over this past weekend by going with a bunch of people to El Sol in Barre for Karaoke :) We've had many reasons to celebrate just being alive recently.

Yes, so far, this far was been pretty fantastic.

Awesome Baked Tofu

While I was stumbling about on the internet last night, I found a recipe for Baked Tofu (you can find the original recipe here). I didn't have all the ingredients that they called for, so I improvised--with success! Even Tom liked it, and that's weird--he doesn't like Tofu (or so he claims). Anyway, below is the recipe that I used. Enjoy!

Stacie's Awesome Baked Tofu

1 pound firm tofu
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup vegetable broth

1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion granules
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/4 teaspoon rosemary
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon parsley
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste

(or use whatever spices you've got on hand!)

Cut the tofu into 1/4″ slices and wrap in paper towels. Place a weight on top for about an hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a shallow bowl, combine the breadcrumbs and the 11 herbs and spices and mix well. Dip the tofu slices in the veggie broth and then in the breadcrumbs mixture, coat well on both sides, place the coated pieces on a oiled baking pan.

Bake for 12-15 minutes on each side.

Serve with a dipping sauce like soy sauce, or just use ketchup. :) Mmmmm. For sides I served corn on the cob and cucumbers with oil and vinegar.

A Pescatarian Eats a Ripton Chicken

Those poor chickens.

The ones that died before the rain, that is. The others got a stay of execution...for a time.

I'm talking about Chicken Murder Death Day, of course.



Last weekend, it was slaughter time at the Ripton Farm that we've all grown so used to reading about. We were slated to kill 35 chickens, but the rain made us stop before we could get past 18.

And, yes, I'm a Pescatarian....I haven't touched poultry or red meat since March. Truly! Except for this one time.

My values around meat-eating are not of the traditional sort. I eschew any meat that comes from factory farms (and that's most of the meat you eat, b's and g's) or any meat that goes through traditional or kosher slaughter houses. Since labeling does not go so far as to say something like: "This chicken hatched from it's egg on March 18, 2008. It was given 8 hours of free range time in a grassy meadow every day; it was given feed that contains only healthy ingredients (no forced cannibalism); the cage environment was humane, and the slaughter was as un-traumatic as possible," I won't buy it.

Allow me to be more clear--my problems with the meat industry are many, and that's were most of my objections to eating meat are. Add that with my firm conviction (and the conviction of many nutritionists as well) that eating meat is not necessary for a healthy diet, I chose to eat mostly plants, grains, vegetables, fruit, dairy and fish. (And, yes, I know that fish feel pain).

However, I will make exceptions.

One annual exception is the Chicken Murder Death Day. We all participate in the slaughter of the chicken, from plucking the poor innocents from their coop (they're normally running all over the yard, but they need to stay where they can't find food for 24 hours before the slaughter) to storing the carcass in ice water.

Below is a photo montage of a chicken killing: (the photos below may be kinda gross to some people. It's my opinion that if you can't stomach it, you should probably consider yourself a hypocrite if you eat chicken, but that's just me. Seriously, though, don't look if you've got a weak stomach for dead things.).

In the first photo, you can see my friend slitting the throat of the chicken, while keeping her hand around the chicken's head (the chicken goes to sleep if it's in the dark). In the next, the dead chicken is dunked into hot water to loosen the feathers which are then plucked; in the third, my other friend eviscerates the chicken carcass.

Although I do feel moderately bad for taking the life of a chicken just to eat it, I do enjoy this yearly event. I feel that the chickens on the farm lived a much better and healthier life than most factory farm chickens, and that as a result, I'm eating much healthier meat.

What do all of you think? Are factory farms fine for the animals? Should we all aim to eat "happy" meat? What are your guidelines around eating in general?

Between the Athiests and Everyone Else

I had an interesting conversation with a friend this past weekend, which is the reason for writing this blog. They had some misunderstandings about my religious opinions that I imagine are quite common to people who don't ask questions, so I decided to clarify.

I'm an agnostic. That means that although I don't believe in the existince of a god--I don't rule out that possibility altogether. Sometimes I label myself as an athiest, because more people seem to know the term, but I am technically not. Basically, my motto is that I don't know the answer! Although I've tried many religions, none have felt quite right for the same reason--I couldn't get around the idea that, for me, an omnipotent being just felt to be a falsehood. I couldn't pray or create a ritual for a deity that I felt did not exist. A god does not exist, in my opinion. It does not seem true to me. But, hey, it might be true.

A lot of people confuse Atheisim and Agnosticism. An atheist denies even the possibility of a higher power, while an agnostic keeps that possibility open in his or her eyes.

To me, the lack of a God or gods and the lack of heaven and an afterlife makes life all the more valuable and precious. Consider: if there is no reconnection with your loved ones in heaven, you need to enjoy what you've got right now. If there is no Devil making things right by torturing your enemies, you've either got to make things right in this lifetime, or let things go. If there is no one coming out of a Lotus flower to make the world make sense, seems like it's up to us. Makes sense to me.

However, that does not mean that I feel that people with religious values are stupid or wrong. In all honesty, I feel a little jealous that they have a happy and close-knit community to go to every Sunday or Saturday or Flying Spaghetti Monster Day. I will not judge someone on their religious beliefs. I do not sneer as I drive by churches or temples or mosques or prayer circles. Do I, however, sleep in on Saturdays and Sundays? You bet.

I feel that everyone's opinion is important, and since there is absolutely no way to know who is right and who is wrong, it would be ignorant of me to condemn others for their beliefs.

Religion, in my opinion, can serve great good. (It can, also, serve great evil). However, in most of my experiences, I've noticed that the people who have become a member of a religious organization or have adopted religious beliefs have been able to make positive changes for themselves. For example, one of my uncles and his family have recently entered into a church that has taught them to be more loving and accepting of others, and to be happier as a family. I am proud of him for making that decision and for the positive steps that he and his family has taken.

I truly believe that all people with all beliefs serve a purpose in this world, and that they are all necessary. Perhaps my job as an atheist is to serve an an antidote to people who live too frequently in their religious vision--to bring them back to earth a little. Perhaps the people who are religious are to show me that there are possibilities that I haven't considered.

I don't want to be seen as a person who hates Christians or Jewish people or Muslims or any religion for the mere fact of their religion. I am not a bigot--my mind is open to possibilities. Just because my opinion is different than the majority of people in this country, does not mean that I hate them or feel uncomfortable around them. I feel that people who truly feel a calling to the ministry or to the priesthood should do so! People should follow their hearts, because that's where their truth is.

My agnostic beliefs are not about hate, or about the denial of the happiness and good that a religious following can bring. It's about being open to possibilities. It's about letting go of the idea that I can be right about religion. It's about accepting that a higher power might be beyond my ability to understand. It's about being who I am.

Mass Transit? Not in Vermont...

As oil prices continue to rise ($4.10 a gallon the last time I put gas in my car--I can't say "filled the tank," because I couldn't afford to) I keep searching for a solution that would allow me to get to where I need and want to go, but still have some sort of green in my wallet. Most internet sources tell you to "ride the bus or walk," but since I live in Vermont, that seems to be an option only some of the time. For instance, the bus system here is hardly statewide, and does not have routes that run everywhere you'd want to go every day of the week. Walking to where you need to go is almost a joke--most people I know work in a different town than where they live.


For instance, Tom takes a trip to Burlington every week. I had initially suggested that even though he is carpooling with our friend Mike, that they look into taking a bus. We did, and we found that even though GMTA has a commuter bus that goes from Montpelier to Burlington several times a day every day of the week, they don't have a bus that follows that route on the weekend. It's these types of problems that make finding alternative transportation a little trickier in the Green Mountain State. For readers who don't live in Vermont, let me make myself clear--we can be talking about distances of up to 30 or 40 miles--one way. People commute this distance every day, because, up until recently, that was a viable way of life for many people here. Not any longer--if you use your car.
So what's a Vermonter to do?

Well, here are some ideas that I hope will spark debate and inform conversation:



Buy a scooter. Better yet, have your boyfriend's dad give you one. A few weeks ago, Tom's dad gave us a 1982 Honda Passport with low miles and a clean maintenance history. It runs great--and gets 100 miles to the gallon! I'll be able to cut my commute gas bill down by 1/4. For those of you who don't have a really generous father-in-law to be, I suggest searching Craig's List or the local newspapers for scooters, motorcycles, or mope-heads.

Carpool. Back when I worked at People's Academy High School, I was broke. I mean eating-ramen-and-pb and j-broke. I carpooled then out of an economic necessity, and it helped a bunch. Also, if you get the right combination of people, it can be a friendship-maker: both of the ladies that I carpooled with are now invited to my wedding! Try putting up a poster at work, send a mass email, or chose from the offerings at Vermont Rideshare.

I want to ride my Bicycle...
Even if you don't live close enough to work to bike there, perhaps you live lose enough to where you do your grocery shopping, the library, or the park. Instead driving (even your scooter), take a bike. Especially in cities, it's just as speedy as a car. It takes a little getting used to if you're like me and grew up taking bike rides on lonely, not oft-traveled dirt roads, but once you do, it's kinda fun. :) Of course, you'll want to wear a helmet and make sure that the bike works well, and spiff up your hand-signal skills. There is a bike co-op in Montpelier where you can buy a bike or fix up the one that you own, and Onion River Sports has a bike swap every year. Bikes are also a common item at yard sales, and of course, on Craig's List.

Work from home, if you can.
This is becoming an increasingly popular option for some people. It used to be a luxury--and now, no joke, it's becoming a necessity. It's good for the employee because they can save on a day's commuter cost, and it's good for the employer because the employee is happy. If you're in a position to do so, talk with your boss and see if you can't work from home one day a week (of course, you've got to actually work). If this isn't a possibility, see if you could set up a vanshare with your co-workers at the company's expense.

Do a combo-deal.
Perhaps the bus will take you half of the way to where you need to go. Bring your bike with you (some of GMTA's buses have bike storage), and bike the rest of the way. Or carpool with someone in the mornings and take the bike/bus thing on the way home if you can't carpool on the way back. Walk to the carpool spot, or take your bike. Take your scooter on the days that you don't have meetings that you need the flexibility of your own car for. Take the bus to the places where it does go--increased riderships will mean more routes and more buses. I'm assuming that I don't really have to mention that walking is, of course, technically transportation (the oldest form that there is!), and if you live within walking distance of work and food and entertainment, of course you have no need to even be reading this blog. (I'm glad that you did, of course).

What I hoped that I expressed is that in Vermont, as with many other rural states, you have to think outside of the box for 'alternative' transportation. I've given you my ideas; I hope that you'll comment with other ideas if you have them. We've all had to deal with the rising gas prices--if we help each other out with what we're learning, we'll all fare much better.

In closing, it's important to call GMTA and our representatives to let them know that we've got a real growing need. We need reliable transportation that isn't car-based. We need buses, trains...hell, even a flippin' subway! We will only get what we want if we can show that there is a need, so if you have a particular route that you'd travel if there was a bus there, let them know. Advocate for yourself!

See you in the carpool lane (or at the bus stop)!

Apartment Environmentalism

My little brother (who's not so little anymore--he's got like eight hundred feet of height on me and is actually going gray and was married long before me) was the inspiration for this blog. It started off with Tom sending me this link to a $500 Eco-Friendly home. I sent it to Andy and his wife and some other friends, and when Andy received it, he asked a really good question: "what can the apartment dweller do to make their apartment more eco-friendly?" As we and most of our friends are still in the "we'll move into houses one day...but not this year" mindset, this is important to us. It's an important consideration, because these days, more likely than not, being green is saving energy...which is saving you money. If your budget is anything like mine, it's being re-vamped every two weeks (literally) by the rising gas prices. Less into savings, more into the gas tank! Yikes! But! We are not naysayers! We can have a savings account and an apartment that is comfortable (with it's security deposit intact)! We can also not leave behind a Superfund site when we go. How? A listy list of ideas:

• Switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs. I know, I know, you've heard it before. So do it! Yes, the bulbs are more expensive than traditional bulbs. However, they last longer, making them better value for your money. Also, you'll have a smaller electric bill for it. This is truly the first step that you should take--it's simple and you'll see rewards right away.
  
• Turn off stuff that you're not using. Is that guitar amp just sitting there in between sessions? Unplug it. Is that DVD player just sitting there, and you're not watching Steel Magnolias for the 1,000th time? Unplug it. If you've got a lot of stuff that you'd have to unplug, invest in a squid or a surge protector with an on/off switch. That'll make the "un-pluging" into an easier task. The appliances draw electricity even when they're not being commanded by you to do something, which draws on the earth's resources and your wallet. Nip that shit in the bud, man!
• Switch to a low-flow showerhead and install airators to your faucets. These changes take just a few minutes, will not cost you much, and you can put the original hardware back on before you move out. You'll save money on water, if you're charged for it, and you'll also be conserving water (remember, eco-friendly = eco-awesome!)
• Ditch your air conditioner. Yeah, I know, this is a hard one. But, it's not like I'm asking you to live on sprouts and tempeh (although I do ask that of Tom). Hear me out: we've had extremley high temperatures here over the past few days, and we're keeping the apartment livable by keeping the windows open and fans going all night, and then closing the windows and drawing the shades during the day. It does keep it cooler inside, and only costs us electricity for the fans. Awesome-sauce!
• Turn down your heat. If you're reading this when it's winter, turn down your heat. Even if you don't pay for heat, (you lucky bastards) the environment does. It's tempting to forget the true costs when you don't have to open your wallet for stuff. And, it doesn't have to be a big change--just going from 70 to 68 will have an impact. Better yet, go from 68 to 65 and put on a sweater.
  
• Air-dry your clothes (after washing them in cold water). I know, it seems hokey. But Tom and I have been doing it since we moved in, and it's really not a big deal. We even air dry in the winter! We have a clothes drying rack that my mom gave us, and if the weather is nice, we plop that bad boy outside and let the sun do what some quarters and an hour in the dryer would do (read: for FREE). In the wintertimes, we just stick the drying rack in our study and dry in there. It takes longer in the winter, but you learn to deal with that. Also, if you've got cats, it'll double as a play area for the cats. If you really want to be an eco-dork like me, use the Bio-Kleen laundry detergent (concentrated, you only use 2 tsp. per load) and recycle your container.
  
• Use eco-friendly cleaning products. The stuff that you pour down your drain goes into the real world, remember? So act like it. The chemicals in many cleaning products are harmful to the environment and the ecosystems within that environments. So! What to do? Well, you could buy a bunch of cleaners that are costly and have pretty labels, or you could buy these few things: castile soap, baking soda, vinegar, and non-petroleum based dish soap. Want to clean your toilet? Pour some baking soda in the bowl, then the vinegar. Watch it foam! See, you're having fun already! Close the lid and clean the outside of the toilet with castile soap (or a vinegar and water solution if you're a germy-phobe). Then use your toilet brush and swab the inside like you would with any other cleaner. Flush, and done! Sparkly. Nice. Clean. Also, in a spray bottle (buy a new one, or reuse one) mix castle soap and water. There's your all purpose cleaner. In another spray bottle, mix water and vinegar. Use that as a window washing solution and germy-go-away solution. Use the non-petrolum dish soap for dishes only--conserve it because it's usually more expensive. (You can use castile soap for dishes and even washing yourself, I just haven't yet, since we can still afford the Seventh Generation dish soap. However, I have done so before).
  
• Turn off lights when you're not using them. Any trip longer than, say, 30 seconds should warrant a light turn-off. Oh, and also: you're probably not performing surgery in your living room while you're watching The Office. Turn off the extra lighting. (The T.V. has a light in it, remember?)
• Buy in bulk, reuse your containers. If you're lucky enough to have a food co-op around your area, I bet they have a great bulk section. If not, most mega-marts have some bulk stuff--think produce and candy. Bring your own bags or other containers.
  
• Recycle. Enough said. I mean, come on already!
  
• Bring your own lunch in reuseable containers. You'll save a ton of money by doing this, and if you bring it in a reusable bag that holds reuseable containers, you won't throw anything away! Yeay, you!
  
• Stop buying bottled water. Seriously! Unless you live in an area where the water isn't drinkable, you don't need to buy bottled water. The bottle of water that you hold in your greedy little hand took four times the amount of water that it holds inside of it to produce that bottle! And think of the energy costs that it takes to get it to you! Do you think that it's cheap to travel from Fiji? And I don't give me that crap about how Fiji is planting trees to save it's image. So what? They're still in a wasteful industry. Buy a reusable water bottle (metal, please!) and fill it from-gasp!- the tap. We are lucky enough to live in a country that provides it's citizens with potable drinking water as a matter of course. We are being pompous and arrogant to "prefer" water from other areas of the flippin' globe. You like their water? Fine. Move there. Get out of my ecosystem. (Also: most bottled water is simply tap water).
  
• Need a...something for your apartment? Borrow! By not generating the demand for a new item, you will be helping to keep down waste. If you need a drill, or a fancy tablecloth, or a caulking gun, ask your dad or your uncle or your best friend's cousin's stepson. I bet you can find what you need for free rather than buying...and you'll be helping to solve our garbage problem, too.
  
• Furnish from Craigslist or yardsales! You don't need new stuff all the time. Keep down demand for new goods (which uses electricty and generates waste) and recycle your neighbor's couch and the bookshelves from the dude down the street. Heck, they may want your crockpot and your faux antique ladel!
  
• Read books from the library. You don't need a printed forest inside of your house. There are, of course, some books (like reference books) that are good to have around...because you may reference them. However, that's why you can't check them out of a library...to ensure that they're always on hand for someone who would want to read them. Why cut down a tree just so that a book will be seen by your eyes only? On a similar note, rent movies. How many times are you really going to watch that copy of Gladiator? Yeah, thought so.
  
• Bring canvas bags with you as a matter of course. Whatever you bring into your apartment is your responsibility to dispose of, and that counts on your apartment eco-score.
  

This, of course, is not a complete list. I'd love for you readers to post comments with your own ideas. (Please?!) I truely do feel that if we as a generation and a socieity work together, we can solve the world's energy crisis--and maybe much more. Crisis can either wreck a society or brig it closer together--and solving problems usually helps bring people closer together. Let's plan on telling our grandchildren that we were part of the solution.

In addition, there are additional considerations for going green that stretch beyond our apartments and into the world beyond. Issues like transportation and buying local are issues that I will explore in my future blogs.

As always, thanks for reading!

The Proposal...

It's finally happened! I'm wearing my engagement ring...and it's more beautiful than I ever imagined!

And, because Tom is awesome, he made the actual proposal as unique and surprising as he is.

On Friday night, Steph and Tom and I were hanging out. I was craving something sweet, and so I asked Tom to get the maple candies that were in the cupboard for me. He did, and after awhile I opened the box and handed one to Steph, and took one for myself.

"Trade with Stacie," Tom orders Stephanie. We exchange a worried glance: what's wrong with that candy?

But, because we're suckers, we traded. I noticed that my candy was heavier, but I thought that I was just making things up.

It was only when I took the candy out of the wrapper and saw what was written on the bottom that I understood. "Marry Me?" was written on the bottom of the wrapper. Pressed into the bottom of the candy, was the engagement ring.

I probably squealed or screamed. I'm not really sure...I remember discarding the maple candy in a way that is probably sacrilegious, and thrusting the maple candy at Tom so that he could put it on my finger. I didn't even say "yes" until he asked again! But, needless to say, the answer was, of course, affirmative. The ring is also engraved in the style of us: "We are super, super awesome" it says on the inside. And, yes, we are!

Water, water everywhere...

So, for awhile now, Tom and I have had trouble with our hot water. It's been inconsistent (or maybe consistently annoying is more like it)--we run out of hot water really quickly, or we don't have any hot water at all. This problem began awhile ago, but only recently has been so annoying as I felt the need to blog about it.

First of all, I haven't been able to have a shower since the weekend. Every time I try, the water is ice cold. Or, like this morning, it's hot long enough for me to get in, and start my shower, and then it turns freezing, at which point I bolt from the shower. It was so frustrating this morning that I was standing over my coffee pot and crying. I just want to be clean.

Thankfully, our landlord is going to be fixing the system this weekend. Hopefully by Monday I'll be squeaky clean again. I'm well aware of our legal rights in this, and I'm not afraid to withhold rent or call the tenants association; but at this point, there's a plan in place, which is okay with me.

Anyway, this is all really ironic because there are flood warnings flying willy-nilly across the state. Water, water everywhere...but none that is warm.

Yummy Veggie Soup!

As a relief from the preachy blogs that I've been posting lately, I'm going to share with you the fantastic soup that Stephanie and I created last night. It was devoured too fast for me to take a picture of it, so you'll just have to try it for yourself! This soup works well when served with a hearty bread. (And make sure that you buy organic produce when you can!)

Stacie and Stephanie's Early Spring Veggie Soup

What you'll need:

2 boxes veggie broth
5 or 6 medium sized carrots
5 or 6 medium sized potatoes
1 celery root
1 red bell pepper
1 onion
1 large portabella mushroom
2 large handfulls of spinach
Fresh basil (6 leaves)
Fresh garlic to taste
Shallots to taste
Olive oil
Butter
Oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

What you'll need to do:

1. Pour the veggie broth into a large pot, start to heat.
2. Chop the basil, garlic, and shallots, add to broth.
3. Chop the potatoes (after washing!) and add to broth.
4. Chop the carrots (after washing!) and add to broth.
5. Chop the bell pepper and onion and add to broth.
5.5. Grate the celery root (you'll want about a handful), add to broth.
6. Chop the mushroom into bite-sized pieces, and saute with olive oil, butter, garlic, and oregano. Add to soup when the mushroom has turned soft and dark.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Allow to simmer until potatoes and carrots are fork-tender.

Enjoy! :)

Oil and Corn: Brought to You by Our Greed

After attending Dr. Vecchione’s training (see my previous blog), I started to do some reading. I started with Diet for a New America, and have moved from there to Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Plant, Miracle, and I’m currently reading Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma.

It seems to me that our current modern life is highly toxic—more than any of us know, or are inclined to find out about. Our air and water are polluted; our food is reconstructed bits of nutrients that have been shipped halfway around the world; we are increasingly sedentary creatures who are suffering the effects of over nutrition, such as diabetes; the list goes on and on.

Having such a list makes it seem as though all of those issues are separate, but in reality they are not. It’s difficult to imagine our global ecosystem when we buy our food in a well-lit isle of our grocery store, but in reality all of our food is still (mostly) derived from some natural source, even the final processed result is many steps away from the original food source, and is a different food source than is actually advertised on the package (corn is in everything).

The way that we are currently choosing to buy our food is contributing to the sickness of our food in ways that are widespread and impact almost every system on earth. For instance, CAFO’s (Commercial Agriculture Feedlot Organizations) are where most of our animal-based protein sources are “raised”. These animals are subjected to unnatural living situations for most of their lives, and create pollution for the immediate and surrounding ecosystems that house these animal cities.

CAFO cattle are fattened on a mixture of corn (which their stomachs cannot tolerate, although new breeds are being developed that will allow their stomachs to deal with the grain for as long as they’d need to—which is, of course, only until slaughter), soybeans, and fat; sometimes beef tallow. This mixture is ground into a paste three times a day to fatten the creatures at an unnaturally fast rate, so that the companies can maximize their profits. All of this feeding creates a huge amount of waste, which on a farm of yesterday would be used for fertilizing the plant crops, which is actually toxic because of the hormones and antibiotics that are in them. This sits in manure pits that the animals are forced to interact with on a daily basis. When slaughtered, the animals are usually covered in their own waste, which inevitably makes it’s way into our food supply. Similar, and worse, conditions exist for chickens, pigs, lambs, turkeys, and all of the other animals that we consume.

Our national desire for all types of food, all year ‘round, has contributed to the global oil crisis. At any point of the year in Vermont, you can purchase oranges, bananas, pineapples, mangos, star fruit, apricots…the list goes on. These foods have their origins in a vastly different climates. These foods are harvested before their prime and hauled for thousands of miles so that they can be put into plastic based containers and then put into plastic bags and driven to your home, consuming even more oil. The banana that I just finished eating, although organic, has a huge carbon footprint.

Our collective greed and impatience has created problems that are huge, vast, and quickly overtaking our lives. It is for these reasons, and many others, that I have become (again) a vegetarian, with the intent to be a (mostly) localvore-vegetarian starting this summer. I have been meat free for a few weeks now, and with the help of soy products for when I have a craving for bacon (my favorite meat product), I am making a fairly seamless transition. I enjoy knowing that I, by eliminating an unnecessary protein source from my diet, I am not taking part in the atrocities that occur in the CAFO’s. When I start on the localvore part of my diet this summer, I will reduce my carbon footprint by a ton!

What I find interesting are the reactions that I have gotten for this choice that I’ve made. Some people express their sympathy; some people give me disdainful looks; some people ask questions; some people feel that meat is an absolute necessity for a healthy lifestyle. Vegetarianism seems to be an affront to some people. It’s interesting, since a vegetarian lifestyle, by eating lower on the food chain, is healthier for the people and the planet. I’m not sure why that would piss people off!

I certainly don’t want to tell people what to do; vegetarianism and local-eating is simply what I feel is right. However, something has to be done, by every person on this planet, or else we might desire ourselves into a (really big and stinky) grave. Please read, please educate, please make a change.

http://www.peta.org/

http://www.reusablebags.com/

The Sick State of our Food...and Ourselves

I was fortunate enough to attend a training put on by Dr. Elia Vechhione, the director and guru of the Francis Foundation, for whom I audit medical and program records. I was moved enough by the information that I wanted to share it with all of you. The presentation lasted for 3 hours, and was very in-depth, so please know that this is only a highlight.

Every year in this country, 200 billion dollars is spent on medication. That cost goes up 15-19% per year. Now, before we blame the Health Care industry, or the government, or the inflated cost of medications, let's consider what our first line of defense is : our food. Here's a radical (and not new) idea: our food and lifestyle can combat many of the illnesses, both physical and psychological, that currently plague our Westernized society.

Now, before I step fully onto my soap-box, let it be known that I love my potato chips and soda and fast food and barbeque just as much as anyone else.

I don't want to put you readers off because I fully beleive that the message that I'm trying to send is important. Living a healthy lifestyle is important for us as individuals, for us as a society, and for the planet as a whole.


Allow me to give you some interesting information:

• Numerous studies show that the effectiveness of replacing fatty, salty foods with healthier options and food supplements improve the attention and self-control in children with ADD and ADHD just as much as Ritalin.*
• Eating well and getting a reasonable amount of exercise can help alleviate the symptoms of many illnesses, including depression.
• One half of the people in this country will have a psychiatric disorder at some point in their life. They usually will be treated with medicine as a first course of action...and their lifestyle is never taken into consideration.
• RDA's (Recommended Daily Allowances) set by the FDA are set to prevent physical illness, not mental illness. We need higher levels of these nutrients to prevent most mental illnesses.
• High Fructose Corn Syrup is the first ingredient listed on many baby formulas.
• If you lower your triclicerides (by lowering your fat intake) you can lower your depression levels.
• Meat and dairy consumption have been connected with many of the "Diseases of Western Society."
• Children who eat at home just four times a week in a sit-down, family-style meal, (read: not in front of the T.V.!) have higher attendance at school, better grades, and lower rates of asthma attacks.*
  

Here's a basic plan to make sure that we don't fall into the trap of empty calories and non-foods:

1. Eat healthy, whole foods.
2. Eat at home.
3. Eat with family and friends.
4. Don't eat anything from a box, bag or can.
5. Make all foods from scratch.
6. Eat lots of colors (different vitamins and minerals hide in different colored foods).
7. Eat local and organic foods.
8. Balance carbs with protein and veggies.
9. Read all labels.
10. NO fast food.
11. Drink water, not soda. Drink 8 cups of water a day.
12. Consider this: You are only as good as your last meal.
    
13. Don't go hungry!!
14. Exercise at least 5 times a week.
15. Practice good sleep hygiene.
    

Some books for your reading list:

1. Overdosed America by John Abramson, MD
2. The Omnivore's Diet by Michael Polan
3. Crazy Makers by Carol S
4. Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy by Walter Willard
5. In Defense of Food by Michael Plan
6. Your Miracle Brain
7. Diet for a New America

I feel very strongly that we are able to take into our own hands our own damaged health. I feel that we can take back from the pharmaceutical industry our bodies and minds; and that we can learn on our own what our doctor's don't know enough to tell us. Read, experiment, and learn. It's your life, your body--own it.


*Alternative Medicine Review.
*NPR.

I Used To Hate Valentine's Day

It's really not cool to like Valentine's Day. You're supposed to be either ambivalent about it or hate the holiday outright. I used to hate it, too. It was a day of unfulfilled promises, a day of basking in other people's real or perceived happiness, of substituting chocolate for happiness and diamonds for love.

But, you know, life has some strange turns. I'm okay with Valentine's Day now. Not that I think that Tom will present me with a 14 karat diamond, or that we'll go out to a fancy dinner, or that he'll give me my engagement ring. I'm okay with Valentine's Day because we have so few days that are simply about love. Whether it's romantic love, or friendship, or the love between family members, there are never enough days to celebrate that. If we need a cheesy Hallmark holiday to remind us to take a few moments to say "I love you," then so be it.

Granted, I'm not single. I know that it hurts to be single on this day of love and cupids and mushy commercials. I know that it sucks, and I hope that you've taken the time to make a voodoo doll of someone/something that you hate and are wounding it with lollipop sticks and drowning it in conversation hearts. But I also hope that you know that if you are friends with me, you're loved.

So, I'm preparing for a great evening with Tom--we'll be working together at the co-op, actually. We'll have dinner at home, and play with our cats. I'll enjoy the tulips that he gave me yesterday, and I hope that he will like the present that I got him. And you know what? It will be great.

May you all have a good Valentine's Day. I love you all.

Hooray! Sparta's Back!

 

Sparta seems well on the way to making a full recovery. She slept with us last night (it's been awhile since I'd had the pleasure of a purring cat on my head all night) and she's eating with vigor. Tomorrow, we'll try giving her some food without the appetite stimulant, and see how that goes. So, hooray! Sparta's back!

Cross Your Fingers for Sparta

 

Sparta seems to be doing better.

She's eating more (still with the help of the Cyproheptadine), she's cuddly, she's more interested in things. She's stopped being a poo volcano and is currently sitting behind me, watching me type. So, it seems as though we might be reaching the end of the forest.

Donations of catnip and money can be sent to our mailing address. :)

Poor Sparta. She's had a bad run of luck latley.

She was neutured a few weeks ago (since she's TG, we've called it her sexual reassignment surgery). She was terrified of the car ride, and Tom rode all the way to Colchester with his hand behind him, nuzzling Sparta's face. She got through the surgery like a champ, and seemed to recover in the appropriate amount of time.

Awhile after that, though, Sparta lost interest in food. Before all of this, she would meow like crazy--often geting up on her back legs and pawing at the air in front of her--while we were fixing her food. She would then proceed to eat all of her food and try to steal Moo's food. But when she lost interest in food, that stopped. We tried soy milk in the food (which she loves), tuna, chicken broth...nothing helped.

Then she started to vomit--a lot. We got her to the vet, and discovered that she probably had a blockage in her intestine--like a string or some stuffing from a toy. We were to give her laxative, and wait for it to pass. They also gave her some fluids and an appetite stimulant.

We brought her home, and discovered the wonderful world of cat laxatives. Man, she hated that stuff! She fliked it around and off of herself like she was possessed. I'm still fiinding little Polluck-splatters of it around the house.

We continued with that treatment for a day or so, until she got diarreah so bad that she couldn't leave the bathroom (rather, she could, but we wouldn't let her). It was so sad. Her front was covered in laxative, her rear was covered in poo, and the middle was all skinny...

So, we brought her back to the vet. They gave her a bath (thank god) and some more fluids. They also discontinued the laxative, and put her on a special diet. In addition, they prescribed an appetite stimulant, and a round of de-worming. She seems to be eating a little better, but she's still tired and weak.

I'll keep you all posted on the progress of the world's cutest (short-haired) kitty.

Tom and I are Engaged!

Tom and I are formally engaged! We are planning a very low-key outdoor potluck wedding here in Montpelier in early September (theme=barefoot?).

So...mark your calendars! Invitations will be sent out...er...sometime. :)

Cloverfield

Warning: this blog contains spoilers! If you haven’t seen the movie, you should stop reading now, or be disappointed.

I was lucky enough to see Cloverfield with Steph, Mike, Tom and assorted others on Friday. I have to say that I went in pretty cynical—I wasn’t sure that a movie that could have had the tag-line of “Blair Witch meets Godzilla” could have been good or even worth movie theater ticket prices. However, I am pleased to report that I was wrong. Wrong, I say! I was wrong! I highly recommend this movie.

At the beginning of the movie, we are greeted with a (somewhat cheesy) graphic announcing that what we are about to view is film that was retrieved from the area once known as Central Park after a horrible disaster. The film is now, of course, U.S. Government Property. It sets the basic premise – during a horrible disaster of epic proportions, someone had a movie camera, and filed the horror. Somehow, the tape survived.

The taping is authentically amateurish enough that I was kind of sick in the beginning of the film. It was difficult to capture all of the detail that I wanted to, but that’s also where some of the horror came from. In other horror movies, you’re looking away because you’ve seen too much—but in this one, your gaze is taken away, which has an entirely different effect.

The disaster is actually filmed over another day in the life of the main character. It serves as both counterpoint to the horror and to give you a glimpse of where the horror came from (in the final scenes of the movie, watch closely). The little glimpses into the days before the party also give you an idea why the main character was so invested in returning to Manhattan, even though all signs point towards running, as fast as you fucking can, in the other direction.
So, basically, we’re at a party for the male lead who has gotten a big job in Japan. The party is not without drama—the girl that the lead’s been sleeping with, and falling in love with, comes to the party with another guy. The party is being filmed by the lead’s best friend, and the lead’s brother and the brother’s girlfriend are there as well, along with about a bazillion other people. Goddamn, that was a big apartment.

You’re just getting into the story of the drama when **FUCKING BAM!!** a huge eruption comes from outside. You could see the explosion over the shoulder of one of the people. Everyone rushes inside, where there is news coverage of it on the television. Everyone rushes to the roof to see if they could see the explosion, when another hits. Everyone runs to street level in time to see the Statue of Liberty’s head come bouncing down the street. Of course, it’s only a matter of seconds before people are taking pictures of it with their cell phones.

The crowd is heading out of Manhattan, and our characters are going along with the crowd. Until the guy with the sweet job waiting for him gets a call from the chick who he was sleeping with…and she’s hurt. She can’t get out of her apartment. He, of course, being the manly man that he is, goes back for her. And that’s where the real shit starts.

I’m not really interested in re-telling the whole movie, but you should know that this movie feels authentic, and doesn’t let up. It’s supposed to be an amateur movie shot by a guy running around for his life, and it looks and feels like it. If you’re looking for a good doomsday flick, this is your movie.

And no, there’s not a happy ending.

Green, or Pretending?

So, I’ve been working at Hunger Mountain Co-Op for awhile now. I’m a core member worker, which means that I’m a Member-Owner who works two hours every week to earn a pittance and a 6% discount on groceries.

When I first started working there, I expected everyone to be granola-crunchy types who might talk about the energy fields of the food or some bullshit. To my surprise, everyone was pretty much like me: liberal types who just happened to wanted to incorporate green buying practices (and eliminate the hand of corporations) as much as possible into their food. As I came to find out, though, that means different things to different people.

For instance, I always felt kind of guilty if I didn’t bring a cloth bag to use at the co-op. But now that I’ve been bagging for awhile, I can say with authority that while the percentage of bag-bringers is higher at the co-op than at other grocery stores, it is by no means 100%. Perhaps one in five people bring a bag to reuse. Considering the amount of cheap canvas bags that are now readily available (Shaw’s, Hannaford’s and Wal-Mart all have cloth bags for $1.00, and an organic canvas bag is available at the co-op for their cost, which is about $7.00), I find this annoying and, frankly, typically American. Other countries actually do the reverse that we do: they expect people to bring their own bags, and when they don’t, they charge their customers for the paper or plastic bags that the store provides. This makes an incredible amount of sense to me. What better way to make sure that people bring bags than to charge them when they don’t? Most people say they’ve forgotten: how much thought does it really take?

The amount of waste that goes over that conveyor belt towards me just astonishes me. Wrappers, bags, boxes, bottles…all these things that probably won’t be recycled because it’s too damn hard to find the facilities to do that here in Vermont. Or the things can’t be recycled, period. Take soy, rice, or almond milk, for instance. You can buy the refrigerated versions, but there are handy boxes of the stuff that don’t need to be refrigerated. That’s handy as hell. But, the boxes are made of the same stuff that juice boxes are made of—which you cannot recycle.

I appreciate that much of the merchandise at the Co-op is made with greener practices than their counterparts at Hannaford’s or wherever, but I would argue that it makes just as much difference for the shopper to be intelligent about their shopping habits—and that starts before they even get into the car. By taking a cloth or canvas bag along, you’re reducing waste. By making a meal plan ahead of time and sticking to the list, you’re reducing the amount of food that you’ll waste with poor planning. By thinking ahead, you can buy in bulk, which reduces packaging. Buying whole foods and actually cooking reduces waste by a ton. Sure, buying local is great, but if you’re buying wastefully, you’re not helping anyone.

I would challenge anyone (and myself) to look critically at their shopping habits. Are we buying true eco-friendly products, or ones that are just packaged to look like it? Are we truly doing all that we can to reverse the trends that are currently destroying our world? Are we making excuses that will seem all the more implausible when we don’t have any choices? From my observations at the greenest store in Montpelier, it’s clear that we still just don’t care.

A Day in the Life of Vermont January

This morning, as I was driving to work, it was warm and foggy. The rivers were high, and the ice broken along the sides of the banks.

Right after I got to work, it poured.

Then the sun came out for awhile.

Then it poured again.

Then the sun came out.

Then it went away.

Now it’s out again, and there’s a bit of a breeze.


...How typical.

Here's My Fuckin' Day For Ya

It’s been one of those days.

For those of you lucky enough to not be in Central or Northern Vermont, I’ll let you know what the weather has been like in two words: fucking cold. I mean in-my-bones-my-eylashes-are-freezing-oh-god-why-did-I-wear-a-scoop-neck-today kinda cold. While I’m writing this, it’s -15 degrees outside. Crippled Wheelchair Jesus.

Tom and I had to leave the house at 7:45 am today, and we were running late (when aren’t we?)…so of course the car wouldn’t start. I mean, it’s freezing outside, and my car is so tiny…I kinda felt bad for the little import. But never you mind! My feelings of pity had no bearing on the fact that while Tom was inside calling work to tell them that he would be late, I was outside whaling on the Ford’s shell of ice and snow with my ice scraper for all I was worth. Which turned out to be not much, ‘cause after four or five good whacks, the sonofabitch broke.

Despite the fact that Tom thought that we should wait for the magical fairies of Springtime to allow my car to start, I convinced him that a better process would be to jump-start the Hampster Mobile (henceforth referred to as the H.M.) with the Ford. Tom used his manly muscles to free the hood of the Ford from the snow, while I stood by demurely. (Ha!) Miracle of miracles, we were successful in jumping the H.M., and off we were. Tom was only about 15 minutes late, which was not bad, considering.

Since I had to drop Tom off at the co-op, and I hadn’t had time to make coffee, I decided to traipse inside for a cup of some Artisan coffee with raw sugar and soy milk. Yum. I made my way back to the coffee counter, and I put my newly-purchased-pretty-blue- travel-mug under the pumpy coffee thingie and…no coffee. Bastards. I move to the next (not quite so awesome) coffee, and got most of a cup. Okay, so a couple of lost sips wasn’t going to kill me. However, when I moved over to the sugar and the milk and there was no soy milk, I decided that I was not going to give myself a stomachache in order to not inconvenience the dude behind the counter. Here’s the conversation:

“Excuse me, do you have any more soy milk back there?” Says me.

“I’m pretty sure that one’s full.” Says the dude behind the counter, hardly turning around.

“Nope, empty. I just tried.” Says me, with a slightly testy tone of voice. “By the way, you’re out of regular coffee, too.” I feel better when I think about how he has to do some work now.

So the dude sighs, grabs the soy milk container, and bends down to rummage around in the fridge, granting me a nice sight of his generous ass. A few minutes later, he manages to find the soy milk. He pours in a generous dollop, and hands the container back to me. I fix my coffee, and go around to pay the asshole. Despite the fact that I was the first in line, he allows some other guy (who just had to get cash back, the fucker) to go before me. And then when he sees me standing there, waiting to pay, he says, “What?” I should have just grabbed my coffee and left. But no, I’m nice, so I paid my $1.15. The asshole.

Anyway, so I finally get to work, and my day goes pretty smoothly until I get to what I thought was my 12:30 meeting. I notice that there are no familiar cars in the parking lot at the New School, but I figure that’s because I was early. And yeah, I was: a week early. I wrote the wrong date wrong in the book. I drove a freakin’ half hour to find that out. Awesome.

So, currently, it’s 1:21. I wonder what the rest of the day will bring…

Hasta, 2007: Bring it On, 2008!

2007 was a year of change, a year of turmoil and love, a year of loneliness and celebration. Despite the sometimes strange circumstances, I've managed to overcome-- and here I'll celebrate my successes. Yes, I'm bragging. I don't give a shit!


Moving in with Tom
I bid adieu to my bachelorette pad in June, and Johnson along with it. Montpelier is a great little city to hang out in, and our apartment (and our kitties) are great. I'm very, very happy about where (and with whom) I live.

Getting a New, High(er) Paying Job
In June, I started my job at Upper Valley Services, in Moretown, Vt. I practically doubled my income, and my self-esteem with it. I started out reviewing the medical and program records of one organization that Upper Valley oversees, and progressed from there to auditing the medical and program records of Upper Valley, and just recently I've been asked to review the documents, policies and procedures for all three of the Upper Valley offices. I've received more financial reward at this job than I ever have, and the organizational challenges are custom-fit for my anal-retentive nature.

Exercising
In late summer and early fall, I noticed a sad and strange thing...I could no longer fit into my jeans. After a long summer of eating out with Tom and mostly not smoking, I had gained a lot of weight. A startling revelation came when the doctor proclaimed my weight at 190 pounds and told me to start exercising. I started running, which didn't suit my knees too well, and continued to walk every morning until I proclaimed it to be too cold. I've since moved indoors, doing several different intense yoga routines 5 days a week. I've also started to become more intelligent and rational about my food choices. The results are starting to slowly reveal themselves! (Slooooooowly).

Taking Care of the Mental Shit
I've always been considered moody by my friends, but I don't think many people realized how drastic those changes were or how deeply they affected me and the people to whom I was most close. I've dealt with unhealthy thinking patterns and ways of dealing with my emotions for a long time…mid-fall was my breaking point. I finally decided to put a stop to it and called a psychiatrist, who wrote me a nice little 'scrip and recommended talk-therapy. I've been attending regularly, and am just starting to figure things out. I hope to grow continually more healthy, both mentally and physically. I can't really hold on to the bad shit anymore, sorry to say. It's time to make my life my own, and make it the way that I need it to be.

The Money Pit: Climbing Out, and Making a Plan to Stay Out
I've done a lot of blaming when it comes to how much money I've got, but the real and brutal truth is that I've never done much in the way of managing my money. I receive a paycheck, and I spend it. That's all. I've never really stuck to a budget, or saved any of my paychecks (except for a very few times). The amount of money that I've spent since my income has grown is embarrassing. I always said that I would spend wisely if I "could just afford it." Well, seems like that wasn't the case—I just spent more. More on groceries, more on going out, more on clothes, more on bullshit. I really don't know where the last few months of money has gone. So. Enough is enough. If I ever want to become debt-free, if I ever want to have a house and children and a retirement, I've got to smarten up. So. My first bit of business in that department is to start to balance and reconcile my checkbook (balance at least weekly, and reconcile as soon as the statement comes out). I will also create a budget—and do my very best to stick to it. The most painful bit of business will be to call the first of the credit cards that I've defaulted on—and start to pay them back. It'll hurt, but it's got to be done. Once I pay the first one off, I'll start on the second, and then with the other bills. I'm looking ahead and forward to the day when I can open my mail without anxiety!

Keep On Truckin'…
In 2008, my goal is to continue to climb out of the money pit. I will continue to be frugal in my spending; I will continue to put aside at least a small amount of my paycheck into my savings account; I will continue to pay off my old credit cards and various bills. I would like to be debt free (except for my student loans) by the end of 2008. After the bills are paid off, I'll move on to some serious saving—for an as yet undefined goal. It could be a house, or a trip…I'm not sure yet. The main goal right now is credit repair. It wouldn't be a bad thing to just have a nest egg for awhile, and see where my life takes me.

I'm a much different person than I was at the beginning of 2007. I'm a more goal-oriented, secure, and much happier than I was. I have a smaller circle of close friends, and a wider circle of colleagues. I'm more honest. I'm no longer afraid of making changes, or of making mistakes. I no longer need as much approval from others before feeling okay. I'm older, and that's okay, too.

I hope you all had a great holiday season, and have an awesome (in whatever way you define that to be) New Year!