Thursday--
We woke to a fresh blanket of snow. How thick it is we don't know yet since it is still dark.
Gene Logsdon, the Contrary Farmer, has a piece about the cranky, obstinate, and magically driven machines that rule the world. Or at least one variety of them--old tractors.
Friday--
Single digit temps this morning. The snow yesterday only amounted to a couple of inches of light, easily shoveled fluff.
I saw stories about an edible coffee cup that McDonalds (I think) is introducing in Britain. Cute idea to drink the coffee and then eat the cup. I found this item about another proposal to provide coffee cups with a life after coffee. The Kickstarter proposal involves using recycled paper embedded with wild flower seeds. Drink the coffee and plant the cup.
I am always on the look out for different plants that might be interesting to grow. I found this by way of Carolee Newsletter and followed up with a quick internet search that took me to Territorial Seed. A grafted plant with tomatoes on the top and potatoes below.
Friday, February 27, 2015
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Wednesday--
Expecting snow (more snow) today. We have small mountains of snow that won't disappear soon and the mountains keep growing. The weather people made a point of saying that even though "meteorological spring" starts March 1 winter is hanging on. I don't consider meteorological seasons. Spring equinox is March 20th at 5:45pm. That is when the shadow of the house recedes to the top of the fence and the patio gets more direct and reflected light. The Essential Herbal Blog post this morning reflects our mood: tired of another winter that is anything but what once was normal. She has some very pretty pictures that remind us of what we (hopefully) can expect in the months ahead.
I have seen more stories like this and they piss me off. Are we becoming a nation of restful, spiteful, self-righteous spies? All driven by politicians who specialize in using the politics of bitter envy to drive their ambitions.
Long ago we decided, if we ever had pets again--not likely but possible, we would prepare their foods the same way we do ours--from scratch. This is why. We have seen too many stories about pets getting sick on questionable foods many from formerly reputable brands.
We have thought for some time that the medical advice on children and allergies (i.e., avoiding things like peanuts that trigger allergic reactions) was a bit off kilter. It sounds good on the face. If something is likely to cause an allergic reaction keep it away from the child until they are older. However, the immune system has to be used to function. When we aren't exposed to allergens we don't develop a tolerance for them. When my siblings and I were old enough to go on solid foods, Mom pureed a small bit of what she fixed for the family for us to eat. None of us had serious allergies and all of us outgrew them. Evidently, doctors now have experimental evidence that small exposures at a young age reduces the number of kids with serious allergies.
Expecting snow (more snow) today. We have small mountains of snow that won't disappear soon and the mountains keep growing. The weather people made a point of saying that even though "meteorological spring" starts March 1 winter is hanging on. I don't consider meteorological seasons. Spring equinox is March 20th at 5:45pm. That is when the shadow of the house recedes to the top of the fence and the patio gets more direct and reflected light. The Essential Herbal Blog post this morning reflects our mood: tired of another winter that is anything but what once was normal. She has some very pretty pictures that remind us of what we (hopefully) can expect in the months ahead.
I have seen more stories like this and they piss me off. Are we becoming a nation of restful, spiteful, self-righteous spies? All driven by politicians who specialize in using the politics of bitter envy to drive their ambitions.
Long ago we decided, if we ever had pets again--not likely but possible, we would prepare their foods the same way we do ours--from scratch. This is why. We have seen too many stories about pets getting sick on questionable foods many from formerly reputable brands.
We have thought for some time that the medical advice on children and allergies (i.e., avoiding things like peanuts that trigger allergic reactions) was a bit off kilter. It sounds good on the face. If something is likely to cause an allergic reaction keep it away from the child until they are older. However, the immune system has to be used to function. When we aren't exposed to allergens we don't develop a tolerance for them. When my siblings and I were old enough to go on solid foods, Mom pureed a small bit of what she fixed for the family for us to eat. None of us had serious allergies and all of us outgrew them. Evidently, doctors now have experimental evidence that small exposures at a young age reduces the number of kids with serious allergies.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
The deep freeze is back right on schedule. Raw temps are bad enough but we have a bit of a breeze which drops the feel to mid-double digits below zero. Weather like this makes spring feel much further away than a month.
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Didn't see much I wanted to comment on yesterday. The post-mortem on the Oscars dominated the news but that is a topic I have no interest in. I haven't seen any of the movies and don't intend to see any of them. The (s)news machine seems intent on hyping events like the Oscars, the Superbowl, etc., Once upon a time those would have been relegated to a small segment in the entertainment, social, or sports reports but that is what dominates new reports now. That is why I no longer watch much news. And what time isn't given over to "infotainment" is dedicated to repeating whatever story, however inconsequential, that the programmers think will titillate viewers. Oh, well--enough grousing. Let's see what I might find today.
Four more new craters have been found in Siberia and scientists are scrambling to explain them. The pictures are stunning.
I follow Susan Being Snippy for her craft work but this is interesting because it reflects what I think when I see articles about retirement planning. They don't really apply to me because I spent so much of my time doing low paid work while trying to get the education that would move me into a good paying career only to find the economic ground cut out from under me each time. I had no 401k, no pension, and not much savings because every time I got a bit ahead something happened to wipe it out.
Interesting, and a bit scary. The old saying tells us that the first step in getting out of a hole is to stop digging but those figures say that even if we stop digging we can't get out of the fiscal hole.
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Didn't see much I wanted to comment on yesterday. The post-mortem on the Oscars dominated the news but that is a topic I have no interest in. I haven't seen any of the movies and don't intend to see any of them. The (s)news machine seems intent on hyping events like the Oscars, the Superbowl, etc., Once upon a time those would have been relegated to a small segment in the entertainment, social, or sports reports but that is what dominates new reports now. That is why I no longer watch much news. And what time isn't given over to "infotainment" is dedicated to repeating whatever story, however inconsequential, that the programmers think will titillate viewers. Oh, well--enough grousing. Let's see what I might find today.
Four more new craters have been found in Siberia and scientists are scrambling to explain them. The pictures are stunning.
I follow Susan Being Snippy for her craft work but this is interesting because it reflects what I think when I see articles about retirement planning. They don't really apply to me because I spent so much of my time doing low paid work while trying to get the education that would move me into a good paying career only to find the economic ground cut out from under me each time. I had no 401k, no pension, and not much savings because every time I got a bit ahead something happened to wipe it out.
Interesting, and a bit scary. The old saying tells us that the first step in getting out of a hole is to stop digging but those figures say that even if we stop digging we can't get out of the fiscal hole.
Sunday, February 22, 2015
Another wave of very cold weather coming in. Our temperature actually broke 30F yesterday but by this evening we should be only in the single digits.
For the most part we decided some time ago to ignore most "modern" dietary advice. This article explains why. Americans have essentially been lab rats for nutrition scientists for the last two generations with the result that we have epidemic levels of diabetes, obesity and other types of ill health. What really burns me is all these nutritional experts had plenty of warning that their notions were flawed. Take a quick read through the introductory chapters in Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats. And think about the furor when the new dietary guidelines were published and how loud the cry was from corporate interests who feared a hit to their bottom line. And while you are thinking, consider where the money comes from to conduct nutrition studies--those same corporations.
It used to be a sarcastic joke that you should only go to the hospital if you were likely to die anyway because the illness you could get in the hospital were just as likely to kill you. One of the persistent stories this past week involved several people, two of whom (at last count) died, infected by a particularly nasty, multi-antibiotic-resistant bacterium. Worse--the instruments which were the source of the infections was a commonly used and difficult to disinfect or sterilize--even using the recommendations provided by the manufacturer.
For the most part we decided some time ago to ignore most "modern" dietary advice. This article explains why. Americans have essentially been lab rats for nutrition scientists for the last two generations with the result that we have epidemic levels of diabetes, obesity and other types of ill health. What really burns me is all these nutritional experts had plenty of warning that their notions were flawed. Take a quick read through the introductory chapters in Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats. And think about the furor when the new dietary guidelines were published and how loud the cry was from corporate interests who feared a hit to their bottom line. And while you are thinking, consider where the money comes from to conduct nutrition studies--those same corporations.
It used to be a sarcastic joke that you should only go to the hospital if you were likely to die anyway because the illness you could get in the hospital were just as likely to kill you. One of the persistent stories this past week involved several people, two of whom (at last count) died, infected by a particularly nasty, multi-antibiotic-resistant bacterium. Worse--the instruments which were the source of the infections was a commonly used and difficult to disinfect or sterilize--even using the recommendations provided by the manufacturer.
Saturday, February 21, 2015
We have a brief respite from the brutal cold before we go back into the deep freeze late tomorrow. The temperature should get up to 30F (give or take a degree) which will feel like a minor heat wave.
Interesting and quirky story.
Evidently the cause(s) of Colony Collapse Disorder may go beyond one kind of pesticide and may be difficult to solve. That is especially true in our industrialized agriculture system where the massive application of pesticides on GMO monocultures is the quickest and easiest way to the largest profit.
We noticed some time ago that the time allotted to programs on TV (cable or otherwise) has shrunk while the number of ads are expanding. Evidently the networks are engaging in other tactics to get more ads in. Another reason we reduced our service to simple basic and got Netflix.
Interesting and quirky story.
Evidently the cause(s) of Colony Collapse Disorder may go beyond one kind of pesticide and may be difficult to solve. That is especially true in our industrialized agriculture system where the massive application of pesticides on GMO monocultures is the quickest and easiest way to the largest profit.
We noticed some time ago that the time allotted to programs on TV (cable or otherwise) has shrunk while the number of ads are expanding. Evidently the networks are engaging in other tactics to get more ads in. Another reason we reduced our service to simple basic and got Netflix.
Friday, February 20, 2015
Almost as cold this morning as yesterday. High yesterday: 5F. I am so ready for winter to leave. But we still have a month of official winter and we can get snow/cold into late April. Our average last frost date is May 15 so we have a good way to go yet.
Over the last few years we have moved away from processed/prepared foods because of all the crap (to use a polite expression) included--and that is in addition to the high levels of salt and sugars (often highly processed or fake sugars). These kinds of reports confirm our strategy and force us to consider going further in that direction.
Here is an interesting assessment on the character of the 21st century: going nowhere while very, very frightened. We have drastically reduced the amount of news we watch and our moods have improved greatly. We get a lot on line but we can more easily avoid what doesn't interest us and skim for the relevant information without getting all the drama.
A couple of questions came to me as I skimmed the outrage in certain quarters this morning that the second day of the White House conference on violent extremism because it opened with a Muslim prayer but "no other faiths were represented." What question you ask? Did the first day of the conference open with a prayer and, if so, what faith was represented? And if it was a Christian prayer were any other faiths represented? I can't find the answer to those questions. I am left to speculate that the answer to the first question may be "yes" and the answer to the second would be "no." Smacking people in the face with Christian sentiment is a fact of life in this country and Christians think they have a right to do the smacking.
Over the last few years we have moved away from processed/prepared foods because of all the crap (to use a polite expression) included--and that is in addition to the high levels of salt and sugars (often highly processed or fake sugars). These kinds of reports confirm our strategy and force us to consider going further in that direction.
Here is an interesting assessment on the character of the 21st century: going nowhere while very, very frightened. We have drastically reduced the amount of news we watch and our moods have improved greatly. We get a lot on line but we can more easily avoid what doesn't interest us and skim for the relevant information without getting all the drama.
A couple of questions came to me as I skimmed the outrage in certain quarters this morning that the second day of the White House conference on violent extremism because it opened with a Muslim prayer but "no other faiths were represented." What question you ask? Did the first day of the conference open with a prayer and, if so, what faith was represented? And if it was a Christian prayer were any other faiths represented? I can't find the answer to those questions. I am left to speculate that the answer to the first question may be "yes" and the answer to the second would be "no." Smacking people in the face with Christian sentiment is a fact of life in this country and Christians think they have a right to do the smacking.
Thursday, February 19, 2015
The weather report says Chicago has tied their record low and we still have time to break it. Minus 7 is definitely cold. They may break their record low high for the day as well.
The Contrary Farmer has another good piece on GMOs. I agree and would add that I would have no problem with them IF the foods made from them were labeled so we can make an informed decision about what we eat, IF the company compensated farmers who find their crops contaminated by nearby GMOs and for the costs of replacing seed they can't save and plant because of such contamination. And IF the process really delivered on its promises. But GMOs don't boost yield over traditional varieties. They don't allow farmers to use less herbicide and pesticide on their fields because the pest and weeds are becoming resistant and farmers have to use more and more dangerous chemicals. Over all, this is another scam designed to move money from farmers to big ag companies.
The nice thing about staying inside on these bitterly cold days is that you can enjoy pictures like this. And Chicago has set a new record low: -8F.
A little while ago I made a list of the seeds I want to start this season along with their sowing/starting recommendations. Last night I looked at the list again and made a note of the date I should start those seeds I should start indoors. So far I have scheduled all my tomatoes, all my peppers, the Moldavian balm, stevia, and bee balm for March 1. Next week I need to fill my starter pots with potting soil and move my plants around upstairs so I can set up the heating mat.
Evidently I am no the only one anticipating spring.
The (s)news media is making a big deal about Jeb Bush's claim that he is his own man even though he loves his brother, his father and his mother. However, only one report noted that his advisors are almost all people who were in this brother's and father's inner circles. In what sense exactly is he his own man when the advice he gets is from their advisor?
The Contrary Farmer has another good piece on GMOs. I agree and would add that I would have no problem with them IF the foods made from them were labeled so we can make an informed decision about what we eat, IF the company compensated farmers who find their crops contaminated by nearby GMOs and for the costs of replacing seed they can't save and plant because of such contamination. And IF the process really delivered on its promises. But GMOs don't boost yield over traditional varieties. They don't allow farmers to use less herbicide and pesticide on their fields because the pest and weeds are becoming resistant and farmers have to use more and more dangerous chemicals. Over all, this is another scam designed to move money from farmers to big ag companies.
The nice thing about staying inside on these bitterly cold days is that you can enjoy pictures like this. And Chicago has set a new record low: -8F.
A little while ago I made a list of the seeds I want to start this season along with their sowing/starting recommendations. Last night I looked at the list again and made a note of the date I should start those seeds I should start indoors. So far I have scheduled all my tomatoes, all my peppers, the Moldavian balm, stevia, and bee balm for March 1. Next week I need to fill my starter pots with potting soil and move my plants around upstairs so I can set up the heating mat.
Evidently I am no the only one anticipating spring.
The (s)news media is making a big deal about Jeb Bush's claim that he is his own man even though he loves his brother, his father and his mother. However, only one report noted that his advisors are almost all people who were in this brother's and father's inner circles. In what sense exactly is he his own man when the advice he gets is from their advisor?
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