Quote for the Day

"The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.  One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless and yet be determined to make them better."

~F. Scott Fitzgerald

A New Challenge

One reason legal slavery no longer exists in the US is that people had to see it.  Every day, prior to the civil war and especially in the southern states, citizens had to witness the horrors of slavery.  It was woven into the fabric of society.   Eventually, many people (and the Quakers were among the first) listened to their consciences and fought for its abolition.  And so slavery came to an end.  Or did it?

Guess what?  Slavery still exists - and we support it.  However, now we no longer have to witness slavery because it occurs in far-off places.  I often hear people complain about this country or that one and how they steal our jobs.  Unfortunately, most of those "job thieves" are slaves.  They really don't want to be working where they work, making crap for people in the developed world.  But they don't have a choice.  (Don't believe me?  Here's an example of a prisoner in China who was forced into slavery.  Or do an internet search; there's plenty to discover.)  Many times their traditional ways of making a living have been destroyed by international policy so they're forced to work under conditions no American would tolerate.  We have laws against such treatment whereas they do not.  And hungry people will do whatever it takes to feed themselves and their families.  They don't complain because if they do, the multinational corporations that they work for will pack up and move elsewhere.  As long as we continue our shopping habits, demanding an ever-increasing number of new things at low, low prices, slavery will continue.  It's up to us to stop it.

So here's my challenge:  to buy nothing new until March 20, the spring equinox.  I'll make a few exceptions:  food, toiletries, underwear, footwear (it's hard for me to find shoes in my size and my favorite pair of winter boots need replacing), or anything that I absolutely must have.  Not want.  Need.  And I won't go shopping just to shop, even if the items I'll purchase are used.  
I'm also doing this for the animals, for our environment, and for our health.  Manufacturing uses toxic chemicals; creates waste that goes into landfill, lakes, rivers, and streams; and contributes to a wide variety of debilitating diseases.  We don't need more stuff - we've got plenty.  And the vast amounts of things that go to landfill and thrift stores and storage facilities - every. single. day. - is proof enough.

My friend Shona is joining me in this challenge.  You may remember she was my partner in crime a couple of years ago when we did a three-month no shopping challenge.  Any other takers?  We're kicking it off on Buy Nothing Day (aka Black Friday).  Join us!

Farm Friday

We've had a few cold days here in Virginia - freezing, actually - which put some of our crops at risk.  However, the greens love the cold weather so we should still continue getting them through the winter.  The lettuces, not so much.

On Wednesday we attended the Virginia State University Small Farm Family Conference, held in Lynchburg this year.  We really get a lot out of this conference.  We have two land grant universities in Virginia, Virginia Tech and Virginia State.  While Tech focuses on Big Ag and chemical farming, VSU (the historically African American university) is all about sustainability and organic farming methods.  We're fortunate to have them as a resource as this is our third year attending the conference, plus we've attended their "goat day."

Now that cold, dark days are ahead, I'm really getting into growing sprouts and shoots.  I've been growing them for a while but I'm trying to improve on and expand what I grow.  I ordered peas to grow pea shoots.  I also dusted off my copy of Ann Wigmore's The Sprouting Book as it has lots of tips and recipes so I have more options than just adding to salads, soups, sandwiches, and the occasional stir-fry.  I've also been watching YouTube videos to learn different techniques for growing sprouts, shoots, and microgreens..  They're packed with vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients which are much needed during the winter months.

Earlier in the week I made some minestrone using a variety of vegetables, as recommended in a recipe in Everyday Happy Herbivore by Lindsay S. Nixon, and I threw in some of the shiitake mushrooms that I had dried in the dehydrator.  Delicious and a great way to continue enjoying the bounty!

Source

I also made another delicious soup from a recipe shared by one of our customers.  It called for beet greens, chard, or spinach, but I threw in some yukina savoy.  Yum!  I'll try to remember to share it - the recipe, not the soup- on the blog.  

Our CSA is winding down and we'll be reviewing what worked, what didn't, and how we can improve it for our customers next year.

Have a great weekend!

Wellness Wednesday

 I found 5 reasons to live like the Greeks on MindBodyGreen.  In order to live a healthful life we should mimic the ancient Greeks and:

1. Eat a Mediterranean diet.
2. Cook with wholesome ingredients
3. Adopt healthy and happy thoughts
4. Exercise in moderation
5. Eat with peace and calm

Time reports that not only does adopting a Mediterranean diet provide immediate benefits, the advantages follow us into our senior years, resulting in a longer, healthier life.

Interesting

Seems we've been eating apples all wrong, which wastes up to 30% of the fruit.  Here's the right way:

Quote for the Day

"The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion."

~Albert Camus

Week in Review

I wasn't able to put up "Farm Friday" yesterday so I'm doing a quick week in review, instead.

Last Saturday was our first week to sell at a new location, a health food store about 45 minutes away.  We already have a drop off point about halfway there so it's no problem driving a bit more.  It was quite a challenge for the first delivery as we had to deliver our regular CSA shares, as well as preorders for the two locations plus have some items to sell once we got set up.  Today was our second Saturday doing this and we now seem to have a system set up.  Timing the picking, sorting the orders, and packing everything into my SUV in the early morning takes some brain work!  We've also learned that getting preorders is the key to making it work the drive, at least for now, because there's not a lot of pedestrian traffic at the location.  Once the word spreads, we expect to have more walk up customers.  However, having those preorders really helps us know what to bring.

Last week I got my new food processor slicing blade to make sweet potato, Yukon potato, and other chips in my dehydrator.  The food processor manufacturer no longer makes a thin enough blade for my model and I was fortunate to find one and then secure the winning bid on Ebay.  I made a batch that turned out pretty good but I'm still going to experiment a bit.

Sweet potato chips going into the dehydrator

We attended a local production of Macbeth.  They used the original script but changed the setting to a 1920s New York City speakeasy.  They used black and white clothes and set, and grey scale makeup to give it the feel of an old black and white movie.  

The fall colors have been spectacular.  Early one morning I was working in my office and looked out the window to see the world covered in a golden glow.  I tried to take photos but my camera didn't do it justice.  

On Tuesday we joined one of Land and Table's monthly potlucks.  The group is self-described as "a grassroots, community development initiative....We are cultivating a network of farmers, food producers, food artisans, eaters, gardeners, homesteaders and neighbors who want to change the way our region eats, for the better."  They're a great group, started by friends of ours.  Unfortunately, they meet about 1 1/2 hours away so we can't visit very often.  We try to attend every now and then because we not only get to see old friends, we get to meet and connect with like-minded people in our region.

We continue to get interest in our own group which I named "Piedmont Sustainable Living" until someone comes up with a better name.  We started a facebook page to continue making connections and to share information.

Tomorrow is our first weekend day "off" in quite a while.  Nothing scheduled at all.  I'm looking forward to it.

Have a great rest of the weekend!