We Made A Pie

And it was good.

"I Just Want To Say One Word To You: Plastics"

My Grandfather was, among other things, an avid fisherman. Not in any professional capacity, he was a New York City garbage-man, actually, but he fished for fun and for food. As a child I can remember watching him cutting up those plastic six-pack binders before throwing them into the trash. When I asked him why, he said it was because he'd often seen seagulls and other wildlife tangled in them. This was prior to the earth/carbon-footprint consciousness of recent decades, and was my own first awakening to this sort of consequence. There was no such thing as "recycling." There wasn't any discussion--at least in a mainstream sense--about what we were and had been doing wrong in terms of the environment. But let's be real, even with all of today's increased environmental awareness/lip-service, almost everything manufactured these days is meant to end up in a landfill (or the ocean)after it's served its purpose. We put it out at the curb, and TA-DA!, it's gone by the next morning. No second thought.

Just about EVERYTHING seems to be produced based on the idea of uber-convenience--as well as single-use--to fit our TV-shortened attention spans, perhaps. Quality is largely a thing of the past--from foods to appliances to clothing. Very few thing are manufactured anymore to actually LAST. My mom purchased a house, for example, one of those cardboard constructions in a subdivision of identical homes, that are literally not MEANT to last more than X number of decades.

I read an article a few months back about a beached whale whose stomach, upon autopsy, was found to contain something like 600lbs of plastic. See it floats in the water and they eat it thinking it's krill or plankton, their normal foods. The whale died from eating plastic. Ugh. We DID that. And worse.

More and more I'm feeling compelled to make more changes of my own as a consumer. I used to buy bottled water by the case, and though I did/do recycle, I think it's an even better idea to abstain all together, (from plastics) or at least as much as I can.

So now I'm trying to buy stuff packaged in glass or paper, as opposed to the one in plastic--even if it costs more. I try to buy natural brands, but honestly, even with them, most come packaged in plastic--dish soap, juice, salad greens, meats, coffee...I am slowly learning the brands that utilize plastic-free/plastic limited packaging. Anyway, I'm giving it a shot. I did find salad greens packaged this way--made with corn, not crude--which was definitely encouraging. It bio-degrades and recycles. (Problem is, only a few places are equipped to recycle it.) But I suppose I'd feel better about sending it to a landfill than traditional plastic.
(Obviously the best thing to do is to find a farm locally and buy from them instead. You'll receive superior quality food, (food that wasn't picked before it was ready and then refrigerated for possibly weeks prior to your eating it)support your local economy and neighbors, save the fossil fuels it takes to refrigerate and transport your produce from (sometimes) thousands of miles away!! Win win.)

Anyway, Just thinking about some changes...

This Is The Woob On Drugs

Ah, SPRING. In Indiana this means--along with the flowers and the greening of everything--inclement weather. Loads of inclement weather. This doesn't always go over so well with a lot of folks--especially when their parades are being rained on. (Like my graduation day several Mays ago when all the women wore sun-dresses and strappy sandals only to be drizzled on and chilled the entire day.)

When we think of "spring," at least when I think of "spring," bees buzzing and whatnot, I'm probably actually thinking of June. Sunny, balmy, temperate, ah...walk-outside-barefoot-and-the-ground-is-warm kind of weather. The reality of spring, though, is that it is a pretty volatile time here. Personally I don't mind it so much. It's weirdly fun waiting for those tornado sirens to sing out their Doppler-Effected warnings, hearing the windows rattle in their panes against the wind and rain, climbing into the closet (I have no basement access) with a shivering quivering dog in my arms. (The trembling dog part wasn't much fun.)I have only had to do this once in recent years, which was last summer. There was a tornado Watch. Or maybe it was a Warning. I can never remember which is which. Anyway a funnel cloud HAD been sighted, the power was out and so we went into the closet pronto.

When I say that I don't really mind the rough weather, I mean it. It's sort of thrilling, actually, kind of like taking off or landing in an airplane. You have no choice but to accept that you are 100% out of control. And you could allow this realization to induce panic, or you can choose to open to it. Whatever happens happens, man. You can calm yourself and just take a look around the chaos.

My dog has no love for the Indiana spring. She paces and shakes incessantly and her heart beats fast and hard for hours. The vet gave me sedatives, it's so bad. I don't like to give them to her too often, but it was fairly thundery this morning. Here is a pic of my stoned dog. Click on it to see the stonedness all the better. Happy spring everyone! I think it's FINALLY arrived!

Thursday Four: The "I Heart Tulips" Edition

I LOVE spring. I LOVE flowers. More than ever before, I am in love with tulips.