I don't generally post too much about politics, mostly because I'm sure there are gobs of people out there who know way more than I do on the subject. But, in reading this article it seems like Bush has finally acknowledged that global warming exists and that the US will take steps to reduce emissions. Great news, and kudos from our UN counterparts.
The thing is, we should have been doing our part long ago - all of us. I'm not saying that we should all be granola crunching, vegan eating, non-leather wearing people. We have to live after all. But, we can be a little more cognisant of doing things that aren't wasteful.
Bottom line is I'm not sure where Bush is really going with this plan - is he for real or is it a stunt to bolster the republican party? Whatever the reason, at least we're moving in the right direction.
*k*
Showing posts with label random rants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label random rants. Show all posts
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Milestones
I'm happy to announce that I have reached a few milestones in the past few days. Milestones that I never even imagined when I started on this blogging journey. I can thank my loyal readers, and occasional, but never enough commenters ;) for helping to keep this blog alive and vibrant. Here are the recent milestones:
- over 100 posts
- over 1,000 visitors
- 40 recipes
Thank you and I hope you continue to enjoy the Healthy Foodie!
*k*
- over 100 posts
- over 1,000 visitors
- 40 recipes
Thank you and I hope you continue to enjoy the Healthy Foodie!
*k*
Sunday, September 2, 2007
bees and their honey
I have been obsessed with reading about CCD - colony collapse disorder - since I first heard about the masses of bee populations dying off for reasons that are befuddling most scientists. I saw this article today on CNN Money, which is probably one of the most informative articles on this subject that I've found in a while.
First of all, to get everyone up to speed, Rob told me about this bee thing a few months ago. He mentioned that bees are dying off at unprecedented rates and that if they all go away, humans would have four years left on this planet. I immediately started researching this all over the web (because we all know if it's on the web it must be true....), and decided that I better start stockpiling. My friends all thought I was crazy when I went out and purchased a 20 lb. bag of rice. Maybe I was and it's definitely going to take me about 10 years to eat it all (even though I make a lot of rice, I don't always post the recipe. Maybe I should and you'll see how much rice I actually have!). Upon further research, I realized that just like Albert Einstein who hypothesized that man would have 4 years left, I was probably taking an alarmist attitude by stockpiling canned goods and sustenance food.
While my worries about humans becoming extinct in my lifetime have subsided, this article solidifies my worry about the fate of our fruit and vegetable crop. Hence, one of the reasons I started my own vegetable garden this year. This article brought to light a few things:
- I had no idea that bee colonies are transported from coast to coast seasonally to assist with the growing seasons of various crops. This seems utterly ridiculous to me. In fact, it's almost as ludicrous as buying an apple that has been hauled from New Zealand. It seems like there would be local beekeepers, but I guess because of the trouble in keeping hives vibrant, many local beekeepers have retired.
- I worry about the crops most at risk, like cherries, oranges, carrots, broccoli, blueberries, onions, garlic, soybeans, apples and almonds. Even if the population of bees diminishes significantly, the price for these staples will become cost prohibitive for many of us to afford. No more blueberry pancakes? *sniff*
- One theory is that the pesticides used on staple crops, like corn and soybeans, may be a cause of the bee die-off. Even if it's not, I suspect that many other things suffer from our over zealous use of pesticides (including our water supply, a post for another day).
- Lastly, I understand that the world has lots of problems, but we continue to subsidize corn and soybean harvesters (whose prime use, by the way, is to feed cattle, not humans), and do not provide any funds to determine what is killing the bees. Sure, we'll have high fructose corn syrup, twinkies and rice, but what about all the other nutritional sources required for our dietary needs.
I'm quite certain that I won't be solving the world's problems with this post, and I'm not even sure what I can do about it. I'm not worried that the bees will become extinct any time soon. I'm also not worried that humans will disappear four years after bees do. But I do worry about the affordability of nutrition, and the not so subtle side effects, like heart disease and diabetes, that will occur from opting for cheaper and, most certainly, less nutrient rich foods.
I'm off to eat a [locally grown] apple.
*healthy foodie*
First of all, to get everyone up to speed, Rob told me about this bee thing a few months ago. He mentioned that bees are dying off at unprecedented rates and that if they all go away, humans would have four years left on this planet. I immediately started researching this all over the web (because we all know if it's on the web it must be true....), and decided that I better start stockpiling. My friends all thought I was crazy when I went out and purchased a 20 lb. bag of rice. Maybe I was and it's definitely going to take me about 10 years to eat it all (even though I make a lot of rice, I don't always post the recipe. Maybe I should and you'll see how much rice I actually have!). Upon further research, I realized that just like Albert Einstein who hypothesized that man would have 4 years left, I was probably taking an alarmist attitude by stockpiling canned goods and sustenance food.
While my worries about humans becoming extinct in my lifetime have subsided, this article solidifies my worry about the fate of our fruit and vegetable crop. Hence, one of the reasons I started my own vegetable garden this year. This article brought to light a few things:
- I had no idea that bee colonies are transported from coast to coast seasonally to assist with the growing seasons of various crops. This seems utterly ridiculous to me. In fact, it's almost as ludicrous as buying an apple that has been hauled from New Zealand. It seems like there would be local beekeepers, but I guess because of the trouble in keeping hives vibrant, many local beekeepers have retired.
- I worry about the crops most at risk, like cherries, oranges, carrots, broccoli, blueberries, onions, garlic, soybeans, apples and almonds. Even if the population of bees diminishes significantly, the price for these staples will become cost prohibitive for many of us to afford. No more blueberry pancakes? *sniff*
- One theory is that the pesticides used on staple crops, like corn and soybeans, may be a cause of the bee die-off. Even if it's not, I suspect that many other things suffer from our over zealous use of pesticides (including our water supply, a post for another day).
- Lastly, I understand that the world has lots of problems, but we continue to subsidize corn and soybean harvesters (whose prime use, by the way, is to feed cattle, not humans), and do not provide any funds to determine what is killing the bees. Sure, we'll have high fructose corn syrup, twinkies and rice, but what about all the other nutritional sources required for our dietary needs.
I'm quite certain that I won't be solving the world's problems with this post, and I'm not even sure what I can do about it. I'm not worried that the bees will become extinct any time soon. I'm also not worried that humans will disappear four years after bees do. But I do worry about the affordability of nutrition, and the not so subtle side effects, like heart disease and diabetes, that will occur from opting for cheaper and, most certainly, less nutrient rich foods.
I'm off to eat a [locally grown] apple.
*healthy foodie*
Saturday, September 1, 2007
crepes and courts
I had the wonderful opportunity to go to the US Open yesterday. If I have not already, I'm quickly turning into a sports fanatic. I like to play and to watch and it almost doesn't matter which sport it is, if I'm watching it in person, I'm into it. Yesterday was a great day to be at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Long Island. It was a little overcast, not too hot, and there were lots of juicy matches. Granted, I'm not completely familiar with many of the entrants, but the competition, endurance and determination is contagious. The highlight match of my day was watching first time US Open entrant, France's Alize Cornet (96) give Serbia's Jelena Jankovic (3) a run for her money. Of course, with a number 3 ranked athlete playing a number 96 ranked athlete, I thought this match was going to be a no brainer. Maybe Jelena did too. Alize quickly won the fans over with her smile and sheer determination. At one point, she looked to be feeling burned out and the crowd exploded into an uplifting cheer. Alize pumped her fists, gave a quick smile and looked to say to herself "yes, I can do this." However determined Alize was, it wasn't enough to get past the number 3 seed. After 3 sets of trading wins, Jelena pulled out the win.
Even though I ate before I went, it was a long day (we were there from 11 until 7!). I definitely got hungry sometime around the middle of the afternoon. We walked through the food court and I must say there were a TON of options. Many more than I would have imagined. They had the traditional ball park fare like hamburgers, hot dogs and chicken fingers. They had Italian specialties like pizza, spaghetti and meatballs, and pasta primavera. They had Japanese fare like soba noodles and sushi. They had sweet and savory crepes wrapped smartly in a carrying container for toting around the park. This list goes on. I opted for an 8-piece California roll and a giant bottle of water - the total came to $14.25. Sure, it's expensive but it's on par with NYC stadium food prices. In the food court, if you're smart about picking your seat, you can get a great view of any one of several giant screen TVs airing the matches from Louis Armstrong Stadium or Arthur Ashe stadium on the parks grounds.
We had a great day, and we'll be back on Sunday for a center court match - that should be fun!
*k*
Even though I ate before I went, it was a long day (we were there from 11 until 7!). I definitely got hungry sometime around the middle of the afternoon. We walked through the food court and I must say there were a TON of options. Many more than I would have imagined. They had the traditional ball park fare like hamburgers, hot dogs and chicken fingers. They had Italian specialties like pizza, spaghetti and meatballs, and pasta primavera. They had Japanese fare like soba noodles and sushi. They had sweet and savory crepes wrapped smartly in a carrying container for toting around the park. This list goes on. I opted for an 8-piece California roll and a giant bottle of water - the total came to $14.25. Sure, it's expensive but it's on par with NYC stadium food prices. In the food court, if you're smart about picking your seat, you can get a great view of any one of several giant screen TVs airing the matches from Louis Armstrong Stadium or Arthur Ashe stadium on the parks grounds.
We had a great day, and we'll be back on Sunday for a center court match - that should be fun!
*k*
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
you're just going to have to look at this one....
Monday, August 27, 2007
freecycling is the [new] recycling
It's not really all that new, but while I have been part of their group for some time now, I never had the opportunity to participate. Until now, that is. Freecycle is basically a group of Yahoo groups, all over the country (and maybe farther and wider than that), where you can post:
OFFER - to get rid of your stuff
TAKEN - to announce that you have taken someones offer
WANTED - to request something
RECEIVED - to announce that someone has given you your item
People are posting constantly. I see many things that people want to get rid of, like baby furniture, clothes, electronics, I even saw a car one time. More often than not, there are plenty of folks out there looking to pick up that old junk - you know the line, one man's trash is another's treasure.
Over the weekend, I was looking at bundt pans. I have been wanting one for a while, but not when I saw the price. Granted, I was in William Sonoma where you can't get out of there without spending at least $20 on a coffee cup. I figured there was someone out there who had one they wanted to get rid of and I was hoping for a cake plate as well. So off I went to the freecycle board, posted, received and picked up - all within a six hour time frame. And the pan was brand new in the box to boot. INSANE and wonderful all at the same time.
The next time you're thinking of throwing something in the trash, because you don't feel like driving it down to the Good Will or Salvation Army, put up a quick post. Who knows, maybe you'll be surprised. Similarly, next time you're thinking about buying something that could easily be a second-hand item, try it out. If you take this simple step you too can be part of the thousands of people trying to keep all those things that aren't trash out of our landfills. It may seem like one man can't move a mountain, but collectively we can make a difference and become part of the climate change solution!
Oh, and don't be surprised if you see a few photos of a bundt cake sometime soon.
*k*
OFFER - to get rid of your stuff
TAKEN - to announce that you have taken someones offer
WANTED - to request something
RECEIVED - to announce that someone has given you your item
People are posting constantly. I see many things that people want to get rid of, like baby furniture, clothes, electronics, I even saw a car one time. More often than not, there are plenty of folks out there looking to pick up that old junk - you know the line, one man's trash is another's treasure.
Over the weekend, I was looking at bundt pans. I have been wanting one for a while, but not when I saw the price. Granted, I was in William Sonoma where you can't get out of there without spending at least $20 on a coffee cup. I figured there was someone out there who had one they wanted to get rid of and I was hoping for a cake plate as well. So off I went to the freecycle board, posted, received and picked up - all within a six hour time frame. And the pan was brand new in the box to boot. INSANE and wonderful all at the same time.
The next time you're thinking of throwing something in the trash, because you don't feel like driving it down to the Good Will or Salvation Army, put up a quick post. Who knows, maybe you'll be surprised. Similarly, next time you're thinking about buying something that could easily be a second-hand item, try it out. If you take this simple step you too can be part of the thousands of people trying to keep all those things that aren't trash out of our landfills. It may seem like one man can't move a mountain, but collectively we can make a difference and become part of the climate change solution!
Oh, and don't be surprised if you see a few photos of a bundt cake sometime soon.
*k*
103?!?
I found this life expectancy calculator, and it told me that I'm going to live until 103. I guess we all think about how much longer we have in this world, but I never took a test to tell me how much longer it would be. Of course, there are a bunch of disclaimers and I could easily get hit by a car tomorrow (did I just jinx myself?), or contract some ridiculous disease. While it's great to think about living to 103 in the abstract, it means I have 67 more years to tool around this earth, provided we still have an earth. It makes me reflect on what the world was like 30 years ago, what it might be like 30 years from now and how I might fit into all of that as a little old lady. Well, maybe not little, more like Bea Arthur from the Golden Girls - keep laughing, I'll see you at 103 ;)
Living to 103 means:
- at least another 50 years of work (ugh!)
- another 24,455 blog entries (I'm not sure I have that many recipes)
- seeing Lindsay Lohan get arrested for DUI at least 5 more times
- watching the Yankees win another 17 World Championships
It all means nothing unless I keep exercising 5 days a week, eating fruits and veggies for my snacks, don't gain any weight, and don't get hit by a train while text messaging.
*healthyfoodie*
Living to 103 means:
- at least another 50 years of work (ugh!)
- another 24,455 blog entries (I'm not sure I have that many recipes)
- seeing Lindsay Lohan get arrested for DUI at least 5 more times
- watching the Yankees win another 17 World Championships
It all means nothing unless I keep exercising 5 days a week, eating fruits and veggies for my snacks, don't gain any weight, and don't get hit by a train while text messaging.
*healthyfoodie*
Sunday, August 26, 2007
wii workouts
I found this article on wii workouts and I just had to laugh to myself. Don't get me wrong, it's a great idea. When Rob first got his wii, I told him it wouldn't be long before wii came out with workout games. So the other day, I stopped over Rob's house for a little while to wait for him to get home. I turned on the wii and played about an hour of tennis (my favorite wii sport, I've been trying to get to pro status) and boxing. The next day, I was so incredibly sore. My arms were killing me, my abs hurt. It was kind of funny, but at least I felt like I went to the gym and it's way more fun than Turbo Jam or Denise Austin.
*healthyfoodie*
*healthyfoodie*
Saturday, August 25, 2007
the good 'ole jersey shore
I hate to start off with a little bit of a gripe, but this one has been eating at me. Not sure if you remember last weekend at all, but it was a little chilly. Quite chilly, actually, especially for a summer morning. When I woke up on Saturday, it was a brisk 55 degrees. We were scheduled to play a volleyball tournament at Point Pleasant. So, I got myself together and left the house in warm yoga pants and a fleece sweatshirt. I arrive at Point Pleasant at around 8 am, and pull into the parking area at the north end of the boardwalk. The sign said $18, which seemed very steep to me. I think I remember it being more like $10 or $12. So, I politely asked the young man if the prices had gone up. He let me know that depending on the day, the price varies. If it's going to be a nice beach day, the price gets very high and if it's not going to be such a nice day, the price comes down. I guess this is simple economics - supply and demand, set the price point based on the maximizing profits, etc., etc. But, I couldn't help but be annoyed at what seemed to me, to be an exorbitant parking fee.Of course, I really had no other choice but to pay it. While it was a crisp, clear day, it ended up being a marginal beach day because of how chilly it was. Until 2 pm, it was way to cold to be on the beach without having a sweatshirt. Lucky for me, I was running around in the sand, so I wasn't too cold most of the time. The good news is that the beach is always a great place to hang out in a very relaxed atmosphere, despite the high parking fee, and here are some great pics of the Jersey shore.
*k*
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