A New Blog for Readers

I always want to know what my friends are reading and what books they loved/hated. So I have set up a blog where some friends and family can post and review books they have read recently. Its called Desperate For a Good Read. Check it out!

Cynical Tirade

Oh my, oh my, how I love an election, (I say this as I roll my eyes). The other day my neighbor with patriotic pride told me, after I expressed my belief that anyone running for president has at some point had to make a deal with the devil in order to get where they are, said scoldingly, "I am just so grateful there are men willing to serve our country in the capacity of president." Hah! I wish I felt like she did. But I don't. Not at all. As if these men and woman care about anything but money and power! I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Don't worry, we are still friends, but I certainly won't be talking politics with her anymore.
I am way too cynical. In general I deeply beleive that politicians are a bunch of hypocritical, wheeling, dealing, money grubbing, corrupt, ego-maniacal, jerk-heads. I believe that from the bottom of my heart, with every fiber of my being. Our dear dear dear John Edwards (who, praise be, is done and hopefully we never have to hear from him again) who cares so deeply about the poor people of this country, is as hypocritical as they come. First, when asked what his greatest weakness, replies, "I care too passionately about the plight of the poor." Oh good grief. That man doesn't know the first thing about poverty. He made millions as an ambulance chaser, a noble calling that has driven up the cost of practicing medicine, and has helped make health care completely unaffordable to the poorest folks he cares so very much about. After the unsuccesful White House bid in '04 he settled down to help solve the plague of poverty at the University of North Carolina. While solving the great evil of poverty in Chapel Hill he built himself a 5 million dollar home, got himself $400 hair cuts, and apparently raked in a few more million via Wall Street wheeling and dealing. None of this is illegal, but don't try and sell me the line that you care passionately about the plight of the poor. I'm not that stupid. I know people who care passionately about the poor and they are in the trenches doing something about it and actually making a difference.
And then there is our hero, Hillary. Promising change. Change? We all know Bushie is the monkey boy of the uber-powerful oil industry (for crying out loud his administration cronies have all made billions via oil. Condie even has a tanker named after her, and this topic is such a kettle of fish I can't even go there). So we want change, and she tells us she is different. She owes her allegiance to the same folks as Bush. One of the biggest donors (shhh its a secret) to the Clinton presidential library were Saudis and other oil rich Arabs. Of course don't let that secret out of the bag, right? The Clintons, in Bush fashion, have been completely unforthcoming with handing over and making records available publicly. In fact there are still millions of documents (incriminating I suspect) they have refused to make public. Why? Because they are typical corrupt politicians.
And then there is Mitt. I don't exactly know if he has sold his soul to the devil and made crooked deals in back rooms, but people are hailing him as the next Reagan! Is that a good thing? Under Reagan our country took the plunge, once and for all, into complete materialism, corporate greed, backhanded foreign policy, and complete disregard for the environment. I don't think Reagan style capitalism is something I want much to do with. Maybe Mitt has good principles, but he wants to expand Guantanamo where human beings have no right to trial and are incarcerated indefinitely? Human rights groups have proven that many of the detainees are completely, irrefuteably innocent, and yet, since they have no right to habeus corpus (a god given right in my book) will spend their lives in custody, never getting the chance to prove their innocence. It is sad. Listen to some of their stories and you will be in tears. Come on, Mitt, what would Jesus do? And the environment? He is in denial, like many good righteous republicans. I'm scared for my children about the legacy we are leaving them. No, actually, I am terrified of the environmental legacy we are leaving our children. So no thanks to you, Mitt.
And Huckabee? Evangelical, enough said. By the way, just for the record, I wish we Mormons would stop trying to let the world know we are "Christians". We aren't "Christians" in the sense that the world means it. We don't believe in the Nicene Creed, which is what "Christians" do. The Nicene Creed defines them. Not us. For us the Nicene Creed is bogus. For heaven sake, that is what Joseph Smith figured out in the Sacred Grove. We don't believe in the "Christian" god. We believe that God communes with Men today and always. We are not "Christians". We follow Christ, but we are not "Christians" and believe me there is a difference. Lets just stop trying to joing that club right now. I no more want to be alligned with the "Christian Right" than I do with any other "religious" fundamental groups like the Taliban or the FLDS.
Okay, so that leaves McCain and Obama. Both have millions of dollars donated to them. Therefore they are monkey boys of someone. And I don't know enough about either to say much more.
But I will tell you this. I am cynical. I think this country is corrupt and I don't think there are many good folks left in politics. Sorry if this offends anyone, but I had to rant.
I wish I could just not vote, but my conscience won't let me off the hook. Too many suffragettes fought way too hard to give me the right to vote, and so I have to excercise my right, even if it is just in honor of their hard fought battle. Maybe I will write in Susan B. Anthony. She might be dead, but she may be better than what we have to pick from.

Ready For This:

At long long last! I'm excited. Just re-watched the last episode last night with the fun pop-up commentary. Who is in the coffin?

What Should I Do With My Old Cell Phone?

Going Green: Installment 4

Okay here are a few ideas to help you reduce your "carbon footprint".  For those that don't believe climate change is a political ploy, reducing energy consumption and thus reducing your carbon footprint is a big deal.  Why?  Because carbon emissions contribute to global warming, or climate change, or whatever it is en vogue to call it these days.  There are a lot of EASY things you can do now to use less energy.  It wouldn't be bad to be using lots of energy if our energy was derived from waves, water, geo-thermal, wind or the sun, all plentiful and totally renewable.  But the majority of our energy comes from dirty, non-renewable sources which create pollution and severe destruction of eco-systems (think coal mines/oil spills/coal sludge ponds etc), wars and rich tyrants (think Saudi princes and the American oil capitalists that patronize them), and all sorts of problems that we just don't want to keep contributing to, right?

So for starters  switch to using compact fluorescent lightbulbs.  
They use 75 times less energy than standard incandescent bulbs.  In fact more forward thinking countries have banned the sale of incandescent bulbs altogether.  CFLs cost a wee bit more than standard bulbs but last up to 10 times longer.  If you aren't sure what to look for in buying a CFL, look for the energy star logo

In fact when you buy new appliances make certain you buy one that has the energy star logo, as this to will save gobs of energy. Old appliances use a ton of fossil fuels to run.
Another thing you can do is see if your power company offers renewable energy. In Utah, our company is Rocky Mountain Power. They offer a program called Blue Sky. This program allows you as a consumer to purchase units of renewable energy, on top of your normal bill, for $1.95 per unit. A typical monthly bill is about 7 units. Anyway, what you do when you purchase a unit is allow the company to expand their acquisition of wind generated power. They add wind power into the power grid. You aren't necessarily going to be getting wind generated energy in your household, but you are paying to drive up the demand for renewable energy. Money is what is going to drive change. It won't be legislation that brings the renewable energy revolution (too many lobbyists and inane politicians stand in the way of change). If the consumer demand for renewable energy exeeds supply, then voila! Change will happen. The good news is the technology and the resources already exist in abundance to run our country off of renewable energy. With a little more demand the infrastructure to deliver that renewable energy can easily be built. If we demand it, we will get it. So consult your power company and see what options they offer for renewable energy. And just for some good news here are some tidbits that warm the cockles of my heart regarding renewable energy: In Germany all buildings are now required to use solar power to heat their homes and water. In Iceland 90% of the buildings are heated with geo-thermal energy. In Algeria they are building the worlds largest solar power plant that will be able to export energy to Europe. In the UK, in the near future, a significant percentage of energy will be harvested offshore in the oh-so-windy North Sea. In New Zealand they have a plan in place to be running the country using renewable energy by 2020. They also plan to plant a half a million trees which will be able to process a HUGE amount of carbon, cleaning the air in the way God provided! I believe it is in Hong Kong where they have captured the energy from the excercise machines at a gym and run their gym off of human generated power.  In Texas they are developing a HUGE wind power project that will be able to power a lot of homes, with no environmental costs.  In Florida, once Jeb Bush was out of the picture, the new govenor put a moratorium on the building of more coal power plants.  So now they are building clean clean clean solar energy plants.  Hoorah! Anyway, the future looks bright and smart people are investing in clean energy, because frankly, its the future!  Oil and coal are soo last year.  Think how nice it would be to be free of oil entanglements and coal pollution. And then, if our electric power is clean, we can plug in our electric cars and drive guilt free. Plus the asthma rates are totally going to drop.  Anyway it makes me excited just thinking about it.
Okay, a couple more easy ways to cut down energy use:
Turn off the lights when you aren't using them.
Turn off your car when waiting in a carpool line or a parking lot, even when it is cold.  You will survive, I promise.
Ride your bike or walk when you can.
Consume less. (It takes a lot of energy to make and deliver stuff).
Grow a garden. The produce from your garden won't have to travel across the country to your plate.

Eat less meat (or eat it sparingly as the scripture says).  The meat production industry is one huge dirty energy culprit.
Take shorter showers. Making hot water uses a lot of energy.
Insulate your pipes. (Good insulation is a big deal. It can save you gobs of money and wasted energy).

Use power strips and turn them off when not in use so your tvs and computers aren't using energy in standby mode.

Turn your thermostat down 1 or 2 degrees and put on a sweater.
There are a TON of ways to save energy. Look into it and become informed.
Lastly, and this is my favorite idea. Plant trees. Plant a tree to celebrate a special event. Plant a tree every birthday. Plant trees! Trees are what we need more of. Use less paper, plant more trees, keep the planets natural filter alive and well.

Cure For Cabin Fever

Yup, it's the end of January and I officially have an acute case of cabin fever. Rob, doctor that he is, took us all out of the house on Saturday in hopes of lifting all of our sagging moods. We went up Little Cottonwood to White Pines with Todd and Court. The snow was DEEP! It was beautiful and we had a very good time and rediscovered the fact that we actually have muscles in our bodies. We tromped through the woods and snow which was hard work with the snow so deep. We made a fun sled run as well. Add to that a great evening spent with good friends and you have the perfect cure for cabin fever.

  I think the popsicle baby had a good time too.

 For a sense of scale this sign is about six feet high.

What's On My Mind or Sleep Deprivation

Sheesh, I couldn't sleep at all last night.  The wind was howling around our house and I seriously thought the roof was going to blow off, or at the least the giant trees outside of our kitchen were going to blow over.  I've been paranoid about this since our big front yard tree blew over this fall.  Oh well.  The obnoxious wind coupled with the fact that I couldn't stop thinking about all that I need to do for this Friday's school talent show (which sadly I am in charge of) was wreaking havoc with my ability to sleep.  I was also needlessly worrying about a girl in our ward who is from Brazil and is having a baby soon kept me up all night.  The poor girl won't have any family around to help her out when she has her baby and they are poor as church mice.  Anyway, the bottom line is I didn't get any sleep, but not for any good reason at all.  Sometimes I wish my brain had an off switch.

Of course another thing on my mind is the death of President Hinckley. When I told Lucy this morning she started to cry.  It is sad, but I bet he excited to relax with his wife!  I know they say there is plenty of work to be done when we die, but I sure hope he gets to enjoy a taste of retirement.  It was such a shock to hear about his death last night.  I know he was almost one hundred, but still, it surprised me. What I loved best about President Hinckley, well two things, really were his sense of humor and how he just asked us to do little things to be better people.  Just be a little kinder.  Just be a little better.  Just to a just try a little harder than you are now.  It was that simple message that he always used to conclude conference with that I found most inspiring and most motivating.   

Totally changing gears now....I absolutely, and disappointingly HATED Mansfield Park last night.  I hated almost everything about it, from the costumes to  the acting. I couldn't stand Billie Piper's portrayal of Fanny and I was pretty sure whoever adapted the script forgot to read the book.  At least others that stray from the plotline stay true to the spirit of the book, but I am pretty sure this screenwriter never so much as read the novel.  And the film felt more like a cleavage homage than anything else.  How many shots of the buxom Billie Piper's chest can we get?  And the lavender picking thing....ick.  Okay, I absolutely hands down despised this version.  I'm sad.  I wanted to like it.  Oh well.

Last I would love to recommend the clip my cousin Ellie posted on her blog. Watch and listen to both clips. It is the work of a Mormon comedien named Elna Baker. Quite funny. I especially recommend the hilarious, yet very dark, tale of working at FAO Schwarz on NPR's This American Life (a show which I am a HUGE, huge, huge, fan of. I've got a few tales for Ira Glass myself).  

I Can Read!

(yes, I realize my nightstand is a disaster...I'll work on that today).

Bipedal

 Clara has been walking more and more lately.  She certainly isn't a pro, but where there is a will there's a way.  Her top two teeth just broke through for a grand total of 4 teeth.  Now, if we could just convince her to start growing her hair! 
 
                                               

                                              

Going Green: Installment 3

This bit is about stuff. We all have stuff. Lots and lots of stuff. Big houses filled with stuff. Last month Rob and I went to the mall. I hadn't been to the mall in about a year (and quite frankly hope not to go back for at least another year). Not a big fan of malls I guess. As I looked around it was shocking to see how much stuff was being sold under one big roof. I mean gobs and gobs of stuff. The majority of which all fit under the want, not need, category. And the place was filled with people buying said stuff, me included. Now consider, that was only one mall filled with people and stuff. Try to imagine that multiplied across the United States, and then across every Westernized country in the world. That is A LOT OF PEOPLE BUYING A LOT OF STUFF! And just think, each item was made somewhere, by someone, from finite resources, and each item had some small (or large) impact on the earths delicate balance. And consider, a huge percentage of the stuff we buy ends up in a landfill within a couple of years! Wow.
I have as much stuff in my house as the next guy, and sometimes feel an overwhelming desire to acquire more stuff. I love the new kitchen aid colors as much as the next person. I drool over the Pottery Barn magazine with greediness and have for years. Our world seems designed to foster this lust for stuff. It is hard to escape it, if not impossible. I mean, for crying out loud we live in a society where even a toothbrush can be packaged to beguile and seduce us!
I became aware of just how much stuff I have, not because I need it, but because I want it, when I read Hugh Nibley's Approaching Zion a few years back. This book, hands down, has had more influence on me than anything I've read. (I suppose I should say the scriptures have been the most influential, but those have had a subtle lifelong effect whereas Approaching Zion issued a "Holy Crap" kind of wake up call to me). The booked helped me to make a paradigm shift (or at least want too. It's hard, man!) It basically is a book that explains the gospel in relation to stuff and how stuff is so terribly destructive and addictive, and has been since, well Adam and Eve (okay that is a very simplistic explanation, but I think it is the books essence). There is God and there is Mammon. Choose who you serve. You get the idea.
Anyway, I have thought a lot about stuff over the last couple of years, since reading Approaching Zion. And I think it is important that all of us evaluate how our stuff is actually affecting us spiritually, emotionally, and furthermore what the heck are our children learning from our vast stuff collections? Also what effect is our stuff having on this planet that we are commanded to be good stewards of? Are we like the people in the scriptures, proud of our riches, believing our riches and stuff are great blessings that we have earned? Do we feel entitled to our stuff? Are the poor, poor because they aren't as blessed as we are? When you start thinking of your stuff in these terms it is eye opening.
Is our stuff, the vast treasure troves we store in our closets, garages, sheds, basements, under our beds, in our toy rooms, and eventually our dumps having an impact on the environment? You better believe it. All stuff comes from somewhere (usually pretty far away), is mined or farmed or compiled from chemicals (often toxic) somewhere, is made by someone (usually an expolited worker in China or some other third world slum), and comes to you packed in pretty plastic and paper.
Then of course how long do you hold onto your stuff? Do those jeans get replaced as the fashions change? Does your cell phone look ugly every year so you go out and buy a cute fashionable new one? Is the whole country going to have to buy new TVs because we won't be able to watch TV next year because of new Digital technology? That is a lot of TVs going to the dump. It is ludicrous. What effect is our garbage having on the planet? Why on earth are we making so much garbage?
Anyway, my tip is to become more thoughtful consumers. Buy things locally when possible. Then you know your goods haven't had to travel across the planet using fossil fuels to get to the Boxmart nearest you. Look for fair trade labels so you know the people who made your stuff are using sustainable methods and aren't being exploited. I mean, really, if you knew that the gourgeous pottery barn rug you are walking on was made in some sweatshop by a 12 year old girl that had to drop out of school so she wouldn't starve, would you really want that rug? Would you want it if you knew the pesticides used on the cotton plants had destroyed an entire eco-system that had been running just great until you needed more stuff?
Are you a slave to fashion? Maybe you could do some reevaluation so you don't have to buy new bags and shoes every few months. Maybe you could start thinking of clothing as not such a disposable commodity.
I think an important thing we can all do is learn to discern our wants from our needs. That alone would have a revolutionizing affect on the amount of stuff we consume/dispose of.
Anyway, (and I certainly include myself in this, lest you all think I am the world's biggest hypocrite) is to remember that stuff comes with a pretty hefty price tag: emotional, spiritual, moral, and environmental. Just think before you get sucked into buying up the way cute, super enticing, new spring decorations at Target or whatever it is that you MUST HAVE. Just be a little more conscientious, that is all.
My cousin Millie suggested I visit The Story Of Stuff. I second her suggestion. Take a peek at what this site has to say.


By the way could someone who knows please tell me when to use affect and when to use effect? Thanks.

Personality Test

Okay, so here is what I want to know. Do you think some people come out Black or Puce? "Your personality sucks, no likes you. You are selfish and arrogant and should hate yourself if you already don't. The world doesn't revolve around you, you materialistic scumbag."

 

What's Your True Color?

My Result: Green

You're green, the color of growth and vigor. Good-hearted and giving, you have a knack for finding and bringing out the best in people. Green is the most down-to-earth color in the spectrum — reliable and trustworthy. People know they can count on you to be around in times of need, since your concern for people is genuine and sincere. You take pride in being a good friend. For you, success is measured in terms of personal achievement and growth, not by status or position. Rare as emeralds, greens are wonderful, natural people. It truly is your color!

Take this test >

MLK Day Sledding

We got some new snow yesterday. We wanted to head up one of the canyons but sadly they were closed.  So instead we headed over to a nearby park for some sledding.  The highlight (lowlight?) was when Tucker picked up such momentum he went right underneath the chain link fence at the bottom of the hill and stopped just short of the fence shredding his face.  Yikes!  The other highlight was Clara really enjoying her runs on her Dad's lap.  I was suprised because frankly the powder spray mixed with the chilly wind was really rather painful, if you ask me.  But she didn't complain.  Maybe that is because of her limited vocabulary, but she was grinning wide.  Sadly I didn't capture any Clara footage.  Next time.

I Loved It!!!!

A Little Late...

...but highly recommended.

Today

Today there are several things I would really, really, really like to do.
I would love to go stroll around Kew Gardens.
I would love, love, love to eat gelato, visit Santa Croce without my Baedeker, and meander through the Duomo in Florence.
I also wouldn't mind wandering the streets of Paris, eating a delicious treat from a patisserie, and eating a baguette under the Eifel Tower.
But well instead I guess I will try and tackle these bad boys (I can't believe I am actually going to show you what a wreck my house is):



Oh, well.  C'est la vie!

Celebrity Endorsement: An Analysis

In the confusion and indecision that accompanies presidential elections I am so grateful for celebrity endorsements of the candidates.  It really saves me the trouble of having to research the issues to find where each candidate stands.  I mean, celebrities do all the hard work, and then I can just choose which celebrity I like best and vote accordingly.  Lets see, what do we have?

Well for starters there is Mike Huckabee and his political bedfellow, Chuck Norris.  But, I thought Christians weren't supposed to have bedfellows, and besides, is Chuck Norris really a celebrity?  Chuck won't be getting my vote.  Mike, you really should try a little harder.

Next we have the big O team.  Yup, Oprah and Obama.  Now, I am a little worried that this endorsement may backfire on Obama.  When push comes to shove, I think the whole country wants Oprah to be president.  Oprah knows how to get the job done;  talk about ability to bring change.  That lady has money, experience, and she is a woman, and she is black.  The perfect combination.  I think I might vote for Oprah.  Maybe Obama can be her running mate? 

McCain seems like he needs to try harder.  I saw a picture of him campaigning in New Hampshire with some famous actor standing behind him, but for the life of me I can't remember who it was, so I suppose that means, his endorser isn't much of a celebrity.

And Mitt.  What about him? Well as far as I know, no celebrities of note are currently endorsing him, but I am assuming that since he is Mormon and Marie Osmond is Mormon she may publicly endorse him soon.  That might be good, because she was really great in Dancing With the Stars, especially when she fainted.  I also hear Chevy Chase is Mormon, so maybe he could help Romney out.

Hillary was lucky enough to get Barbara Streisand's endorsement.  This is good because it will help her capture the votes of a few sixty-something, Jewish New York women who live in Queens and think Barbara is....well "Barbara."  Hillary really lucked out there.

Now, I guess I am holding out to see who some of the more politically opinionated celebs will endorse.  People like Rosie O'Donnel, Susan Sarandon, and Jane Fonda.   Of course I think we should all be looking to Keifer Sutherland at this time because he really cares about national security and he has single-handedly done more for the war on terror than any member of the current administration.  Or maybe I will see who Jennifer Anniston and her ex-hubby hotty Brad endorse, cause they are super stars.  Or perhaps seeing who Paris Hilton endorses is the best course because, really, Paris is, after all, the very essence of America.

Feeding the Birds

The kids made some pinecone birdfeeders, with their Grandma, that we got in an activity swap a few weeks ago.  Anyway, it has been so fun to watch all the birds feasting in our backyard.  Frankly, I didn't realize that their were any birds around in the winter, but alas, there are lots and lots of them.  The birds made quick work of the pinecone feeders so we bought a wooden feeder at Target last week.  A good friend had a great post on some of the birds they had seen in their backyard. Thanks to her, I now know what some of the birds are called.  I'm stealing some of her pictures to show you what we've had in our backyard.  

Oregon Junco

 Black Capped Chickadee

                                                      White Breasted Nuthatch

 House Finch

 Northern Flicker

Don't Forget

Masterpiece Theatre's Jane Austen season kicks off tomorrow!  Check your local listings for the time, (in fact the MPT link is on the side of my blog).  Enjoy!  I have been looking forward to this for two years now!  

I Would Listen to This When You Have A Minute

Will posted this link on his blog.  I would really recommend listening to this, in keeping with my 2008 going green theme.  Thanks Will, for the heads up.  If people become informed, change can happen.  (P.S. Let's hear it for good ol' NPR)

Slightly Pathetic

It's January; a useless month.  I mean it is cold, we are getting cabin fever, no great holiday to look forward to, and this month, I am feeling a bit pathetic.  Why?

Well it is the 11th and my Christmas tree is still up!  There are a few reasons for this.  One, it is so fresh still, and in fact is producing new shoots!  Second, at the mention of taking down the tree the kids protest, and I inwardly protest too.  Third, and this is probably the biggest factor which is why I am so pathetic;  I am way too lazy.  It would be a lot of work, and I don't want to spend an afternoon doing it.

Another thing: my acne is out of control.  I mean that.   Oh it is bad.  And yes I have tried Proactive, meds, masks, etc.  It's just bad, and I suppose I will just have to deal with it.  

And one more thing.  Lucy is learning her times tables....and well, as it turns out so am I. Math was never my passion. Pathetic, no?

Lastly, and this one isn't me.  It's Clara who is being pathetic.  The kid WON'T NAP AND I AM MORE THAN A LITTLE ANNOYED.  When she finally cries herself to sleep, she wakes herself up within at least 20 minutes with a fully loaded, icky diaper.  Every time.  PATHETIC!

Okay enough whining for now.  I'm off to contemplate taking down the tree.

Check it out!

(Emily S. thanks for the link)

Pizzeria 712

Going Green: Installment 2

Okay, the next plea I have for all of you is to become informed about what it means to "Think globally, act locally."   Food is a tremendously important part of the green movement.  I have found it quite empowering to choose to spend money on produce, meat, and dairy products that I believe are more sustainably grown (on the good/better/best scale I'm not all the way to best in all areas, but I'm trying).  How your food is raised, where it comes from, how far has it traveled, what has it eaten (antibiotics, massive amounts of pesticides, growth hormones, a natural diet), why is a burger and a coke cheaper than a pound of carrots, why have the farms in Iowa stopped growing edible crops and grow almost exclusively commodity (inedible unless processed) corn;  all of these are important questions.  I think when we understand these issues and then go back and read D&C 89 we can better understand the reason we are told to eat things in their seasons, eat meat sparingly, and to beware of conspiring men in these nutso times.

Here are some great jumping off points to begin your education:

 Omnivores Dilemma  (a very good description of the current food chains that exist in America: Industrial, Industrial organic, and beyond organic).   

Watch the following very short clips to understand why meat and dairy products from factory farms are bad for you, bad for the environment, and a pretty bad state of affairs (the meat/eggs/cheese/milk/butter we eat comes from factory farms, unless you consciously look for better options)The Meatrix

Sustainable Table learn a bit about locally grown food and its important role in going green.

Slow Food is a movement that began in Italy as a revolt against a McDonalds opening at the Spanish Steps and has become a world wide movement to promote healthful, delicious, and eco-friendly food.

American Farmland Trust is a good place to go if you want to help influence farm policy in this country and help end some of the food craziness in this country.

Learn  about Corn Subsidies and Why the Farm Bill matters a lot!  I mean A LOT!

Learn why Grass Fed meat is a good alternative to factory farm meat. 

Why isn't organic always a good choice: Beyond Organic

Read about Polyface farm and how important diversity and good sustainable management of a farm is.

Learn how sustainable eating has been influenced by Alice Waters

Learn why farmers markets are a great place to start your quest for sustainable eating.

I know this may seem like information overload, but if you are serious about being a good steward of the Earth, dive in!

And once you are informed you will understand why the prophets directive to plant a garden is so relevant!  And that will be another post.

Again, thanks for listening.

 

Happy Birthday Court!!!

Happy Birthday Kwan-Wei!  Hope it's a good one!

Going Green

(Soap box warning) Over the last few years I have done a bit of reading up on "going green".  I feel pretty passionate about trying to be a good steward of the earth.  I know that global warming and climate change are controversial and are merely political issues to some people.  I think whether or not we are changing the climate of the earth with our massive amounts of waste is irrelevant, we should still try to be less wasteful and more thoughtful. I think we need to get over looking at environmental awareness as a left wing vs. right wing issue and think more in terms of morality and ethics. We live in a culture of complete materialism and waste. It seems immoral to me to not to try and understand our impact upon the planet.  So I hope no one will mind, but occasionally I want to post a few things I think are easy and important to do to become less wasteful and tread a little more lightly on this planet.  I don't mean to be condescending, but I can't help myself.  Todays plea:

Use less paper and plastic.  (Just a little by the way; plastic is pretty darn toxic.  Google it)

1. Buy cotton bags or reusable bags (the super cute reusable Ikea bags were on sale for 50 cents a few days ago), stick them in your car (this is important or you will always forget them when you go to the store), and never again use paper or plastic bags.  Easy, easy, easy.  Cheap, cheap, cheap.  Way too easy not to do.

2. Don't use paper napkins, but switch to cloth.  It takes a lot of energy, water, and trees to make and ship napkins.

3. Instead of ziploc bags use tupperware or pyrex containers, over and over and over.  Or better yet, wash out your sour cream containers and use those.  It's not a pain, I promise.  We've only used a box of ziplocs this year and Lucy takes a lunch every single day.  Just do it, it is easy.

4. Instead of getting magazines and newspapers get online subscriptions.  It takes a lot of energy, water, and trees to make a magazine or a newspaper (plus trucks use gas to drive your magazine across the country and to your mailbox).  It creates unnecessary waste.  Use the Internet.  Get online subscriptions.  If you must, make sure you recycle. (Newspaper makes a fine organic mulch for your garden and composts well as long as it doesn't have a lot of colored ink).

5.  Stop using plastic utensils, paper plates, and disposable dishes.  Just use your regular plates, cups, and silverware.  Doing dishes is a lot easier than decomposing toxic plastic. For picnics go to D.I. or Goodwill and buy stuff you don't care if it gets lost, or at least reuse the plastic stuff you have.  Again think of the energy, water, and trees wasted on the production of these items that we use once and throw away.  

6.  Stop junk mail.  Google "stop junk mail" and you will find oodles of organizations that will help you do just this.  Some organizations charge a small fee but will also plant some trees as an added bonus.

7. Buy foods that are minimally packaged.  This will not only reduce waste, but help you eat healthier.  The healthier the food (i.e. the less processed) the less packaging it usually has.

8. DO NOT BUY BOTTLED WATER.  It is a huge huge waste of resources. Again massive amounts of energy are used to produce and deliver this product.  Municipal water is safe safe safe. (You are most often just buying municipal water anyway).  If you are afraid to drink municipal water than buy a Brita or Pur filter pitcher.  Use a reusable water bottle, preferably not made of plastic.

9.  Use email as much as possible for your communication needs.  It is easy and takes no paper.  Also if we all reduced our margins and used a smaller font we would use a lost less paper.  Check it out.

10.  Method products, which are sold at Target, makes a reusable cloth that can be used in lieu of paper towels.  Not too pricey, and much less wasteful, and again reuse, reuse, reuse, is key.

11. DUH--RECYCLE!!!!!!!

Thanks for listening.

Keeping Warm in Our Refrigerator House

Blogging is Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon

I swear it is uncanny how people I know are connected to each other in ways I never would have guessed.  A few months ago I was on a good friends blog and clicked on a link to a blog that happened to belong to a sister (which at the time I didn't know) of a girl (by the way, this girl happened to be a student of my Dad's when she was at BYU and has a very very popular blog, that I find a link for on most peoples blogs) who was married to someone from my High School.  Anyway when I went to that blog I found a link for a good friend who used to be in New York with me.  Then on that New York friend's blog was a link to a blog where in a photo the people were wearing t-shirts from my cousin's husband's new restaurant, Pizzeria 712.  Anyway, those people, who I don't personally know had a comment on that post left by a long lost good high school friend, so I clicked on that link and discovered that long lost friends blogs.  Hope you were able to follow that convoluted ramble.

What Would You Do?

Our house is currently a balmy 50 something degrees.  A part on the furnace is broken.  We could wait until Monday and Rob could easily buy and replace the part for $50 or we could have someone come today (Saturday....of course) and pay $300+.  Have I ever mentioned how much I love home ownership?

I am FREEZING!!!!

Mom and Dad, you may have some weekend visitors.

Anyone But Hillary

I've been abnormally apathetic to the presidential elections this cycle.  This year I have been annoyed beyond belief at the press coverage of the elections.  "Giuliani wore red and sneezed three times last week, what does this mean in Iowa to black fundamentalist sushi eaters?" "Mitt blinked more than average, so will this affect his chances with the moderate Republican women who like carpooling but hate root beer?"  Anyway, I've been pretty unconnected.

 In '04 I practically could think of nothing else.  I know, it was annoying, but I couldn't think, read, or talk about much else  Perhaps it was because of my very very strong dislike and distrust of Bushie and his cronies and I was so anxious to see him lose power.  It was a bitter disappointment when he was reelected.  I think I sort of forced myself to tune out after that.

 Last night when I heard that Hillary had come in 3rd I actually felt a rush of excitement over the elections.  I still don't know if I will vote Democrat or Republican on this one, and I think we have a pretty poor selection of candidates but one thing I know: I want anyone but Hillary.  Lets end the Bush/Clinton era.  I can see Jeb and Chelsea running next time....Heaven help us.  Now that she doesn't seem quite the inevitable candidate she was portrayed to be maybe I will be able to tune in more.

So here is to anyone but Hillary in '08!!!

Christmas 2007...Sadly Now Just a Memory

It's back to real life I guess.  Our tree is still up, and fresh as ever (in fact it is growing new shoots!!!), and I am not ready to take it down or admit that Christmas is over.  Usually I really am good and ready for everything to wind down, but not this year.  Oh well.

It was a very nice Christmas around here.  Rob's family was in town and my parents were back from London, my sister and her family up from Arizona, my cousins here from North Carolina, and my other sister back from her mission.  I wish I had taken pictures of everything.  Briefly, here are some of the highlights:

• Cousin Candybar swap for the kids at Mom and Dad's.
  
• A good old fashioned Taylor style slideshow with the "Taylor Tiger" cousins, where we got to watch and comment on our lives from birth through childhood etc. (We used to gather spontaneously almost every Sunday for these slideshows as we grew up, but haven't watched slides in years...so this was great fun).   
• Yummy Christmas Eve dinner at Mom and Dad's with the Taylor cousins. After dinner a brief portrayal of the nativity by the kids.




The Kids in their Christmas Eve P.J.'s


• Turkey Dinner at Todd and Courts with Tutu/Papa/Whit in town. Yummy.
• A fun Christmas day with puzzles, games, legos, chocolates, and a lot of lounging around.





• Ice Skating for the kids with Tutu and Papa and Whit and Dad.



• Sister/Mom day out.  We went to lunch and to see Juno (which was GREAT).
• Hastings Family Party (I stole this pic from Bill's blog...thanks)


• Pizza, playing in the snow, and some old fashioned slides of our time in London way back in 1978 with my family here in the WVC.
• A trip down to Pizzeria 712 for delicious food with the Hastings.
• A visit from Rob's cousin Danielle on New Years Eve.
• A day of skiing for Rob, Court, and their Dad.
• Kids playing and playing with Tutu while Rob and I shopped.
• Lucy's baptism.

Here are the kids in their new Christmas clothes...Clara was being very photogenic!

I guess it is now back to carpooling and homework and not being able to sleep in.  I love holidays!  I hope you all had a great Christmas as well.