Cutting the cord...or rather, the cable.

Today was a day I have been looking forward to for some time now and the kids viewed as though I were packing them up into my tiny Kia Soul for a 48 hour drive to live off grid hidden deep in the wilds of Alaska. Where phone reception and internet is replaced by Ham radios and snail mail delivered on putter planes once a month.

Seriously. If you could have only heard their initial gasps and protests. From my younger two I got: "What?! But what about my shows? How are we going to watch our shows?" and of course my favorite was "Oh great, Mom. NOW what am I going to talk about with my friends when all of them are discussing the shows that were on..." Really? Who ARE you guys and where are the kids I thought I had been raising during the last 13 years? I need outdoor wilderness in a cabin somewhere for a whole summer with these kids to repair  even a little of the damage done to their minds...

                             

I am currently browsing for one of those plush Hollywood style rehab clinics that specializes in T.A. Complete with heated pool, a masseuse available round the clock and those big fluffy white robes and custom fitted eye masks to help them cope through their withdrawals...

It's called Lets go to the library or go play in the woods!

The economy has raised prices so much so that the budget we had over 2 years ago, has now been smashed   into bits. Here's my chance! So I jumped the opportunity to rid my house of far to many hours a week of disrespectful back talking Disney actors and Nickelodeon grind dances echoing through these walls. No amount of example or talk from us as parents stands a chance against what they see on television by kids their own age. If they see it, and it's often enough, they WILL imitate it. OH boy do they... 

 I managed to finally talk The Captain into going along with cutting the Cable television connection. No more paid entertainment so we could save $100 a month, immediately depositing it into savings  That's $1200 a year!

After spending 3 hours I will never regain trying to speak with someone at the infamous Time Warner cable in my attempt to simply have the cable turned off and switch to just phone & internet, I now feel zero guilt for the condition of their remote we have only had 6 months. Between the buttons that you must press in a certain angle and multiple times to change a channel, to the battery cover that went A.W.O.L some time shortly after it's acquiring and may very well be deep in the guts of this old house via floor ducts. The last one we had succumbed to it's final abuse with a dunking of milk... I even left the rubber bands on it that were for the sole purpose of holding in the batteries which also unintentionally were great for gripping in between the couch cushions.Which is where it seemed to end up every day which also may explain the need of batteries so often. Heck, I didn't even bother to dust the box off which didn't seem to matter anyway being that despite my having to pay $10 for the privilege of having the cable turned off, the cable guy never stepped foot in our yard. So now, not only do I have to spend more hours on the phone with them to have our just made old amount payment reimbursed {and we all know how much they "care" for their customers and only want to make us happy}, I now need to drive 25 minutes to drop off their box at the closest office.

Despite the headache Time Warner gave me, I am able to give them the final flip off but not giving them another dime for entertainment...O.k. For television. Because I REFUSE to not have a phone and internet as long as I live in the north with cold winters.

Besides, how else am I to read my daily dose of the worlds insanity?

Sweetest Dreams,

~Tammie

Growing Heirloom protein in the garden

The Incorporating and Consumption of Beans in our daily lives have endured a shameful neglect & decline in many areas of the U.S. That is not to say all beans, the focus I emphasize here goes to the Dry bean category.

With as much protein in  a quarter pound of dried beans equal to 3 ounces of meat per person, it is a proven fact protein from those beans require a much lower carbon footprint than the one with animal proteins.

Keeping the above in mind, why are we not focusing more on the inclusion of dry beans into our gardens and Pantry? Quoting from my current read of The Rancho Gordo Heirloom bean growers guide:*

"You could eat a different heirloom bean every day for months, each with it's own distinctive character."

As I mentioned in my last post, I in no way intend or urge eliminating meat from the diet. What I do intend & urge is for my family as well as for many others to trim down the over consumption of meat we have become accustomed to. Raising & preserving your own Dry beans in larger amounts then your use to can replace the need {and higher cost}of animal protein. With healthier personal benefits as well as less impact to the environment. Raising your own meat, for many, still means feed from a supplier. The chain goes on down the line just as the cons of buying from the local butcher or Grocer. Before you disregard beans with the instant popping up of the school yard song 'beans, beans, the more we eat, the more we... Well. It's because your not eating enough of them!

The U.S Bean council* weighs in {really? We have a bean council? Wow..}

"If high-fiber foods such as dry beans are not a regular part of your diet, the natural oligosaccharides (complex carbs.) in beans may cause temporary digestive discomfort. Research shows that adding beans to your diet on a regular basis — at least once or twice a week — reduces flatulence.."

In our garden beds of 2013, there will be a newcomer as well as a familiar. My Borlotti  Bean* was once again ravaged by the rabbit population {the typical Peter Rabbit tale will begin a new chapter. hopefully with more positive results this year}. Previously, they left just enough to seed this year's small seed only purpose crop. I am thankful for their unintentional consideration.

The new comer is the Good Mother Stallard bean*.  

Thankfully, they are available with Annie's heirlooms. Our choice of this year's Seed order.

Rancho Gordo has this to say on the Variety:

"I hate when anyone asks me to name my favorite bean. Can you name a favorite child? No! But if I had favorites, I'd certainly have to consider Good Mother Stallards. Dense and delicious, they also exude the most perfect pot liquor of any bean. Just this bean, some onion, some garlic and a splash of olive oil are all you need for cooking and the result is a luscious bean fiesta.

Please prepare them simply and avoid the natural tendency to want to make them better by fussing about. Enjoy them without all the trappings to really get the most out of them!

If pushed, I could suggest these for a chili or a soup. The texture and shape are so pleasing, I think they'd be wasted if you pureed or made refried beans out of them."

If your gardening history has bouts of seed and sprout stealers, dashing any hope for a bountiful harvest.  Use Mesh screen or make Chicken wire "tunnels"!

 Once your beans have sprouted up, lay down thick layers of newspaper and mulch around their stems to prevent the needs of weeding. The plants will be left on their own to fully mature and dry out right where they are. Plant them in a space away from the main area where other plants demand more attention.

While your waiting on their harvest, use the time to explore the low amount available Dried bean cook books. Seriously. There are not enough on this subject. Someone needs to collect hundreds of dried bean recipes that are more diverse and less common. Someone needs to taste test & share their findings into a book. Any volunteers? I'd buy one as long as it was not full of chili, mashed & baked beans. less grocery store black & pinto & navy beans. I'd like to see more main meals and gourmet results keeping cost/availability of ingredients in mind. After all, Rancho Gordo  has MANY heirloom dried beans available for purchase by the pound. Perfect for Home gardeners to try out a variety before growing on your own.

Sweet Dreams,

~Tammie

Gardens make you healthier. Preserving makes you wealthier.

Evaluating your food consumption over 2 months may reveal a surprising pattern. When I sat down to plan out the evening meals for the next 4 weeks, I noticed a huge trend. Meat and cheese seemed to dominate the main course of almost every meal. How the heck did that happen? 

Today, I feel a Fact & rant coming on.

Vegetables and fruits in non garden months have rose in price so much so, that to feed my family of 5 a meat less/cheese-less meal would not only take far more work finding recipe ideas, they cost more to make. A person can only eat so many green beans, broccoli and carrots from the frozen food aisle. Shopping the produce aisle just for Winter squash is averaging $5-7 in the amount I would need. That's not including other ingredients. Vegetarian cook books have not relieved my quest for more veggie fueled plans. They seem to have "special" or pricey ingredients, many with cheese, tofu, lots of rice or other starches dominating the pages.  In this house, there is no spaghetti pie or taco something or another served. Call me a food snob but I refuse to eat that way. Blame it on a childhood of spaghetti/mac & cheese cheapness dominating the food memories. I swear we ate that stuff almost every night of the week. Our free School lunches may have been dread for others, but to us? We looked forward to the diversity and items we almost never had at home.

 I realized, in my quest to serve healthy meals on a moderate budget, I in fact was treading on a completely different road then I intended. 

Now more than ever, America is a Nation of meat & cheese eaters. 

In 2000, total meat consumption (red meat, poultry, and fish) reached 195 pounds (boneless, trimmed weight equivalent) per person, 57 pounds above average annual consumption in the 1950's.

Average annual consumption of cheese (excluding full-skim American and cottage, pot, and baker’s cheeses) increased 287 percent between the 1950s and 2000, from 7.7 pounds per person to 29.8

pounds.

I came across a very interesting and informing read where I found the alarming rates of meat & cheese consumption our nation has taken. Take a click over here*  and further inform yourself on how our diets, the ingredients as well as our activity level has become so out of balance  We, as a nation  need to redefine priorities as well as our ways. A simple shift into healthier eating within the right portions. An increase in physical activity as well as a fresh look into our own foodie lives can make the big difference to our environment as well as to our individual lives.

I highly suggest this link for an even more alarming read on the Meat based diet dominating our country.*

 "The US food production system uses about 50% of the total US land area, 80% of the fresh water, and 17% of the fossil energy used in the country. The heavy dependence on fossil energy suggests that the US food system, whether meat-based or plant-based, is not sustainable."

Now, I am in no way saying or suggesting we eliminate meat from our diets. What I am trying to say & suggest is that we ALL need to re-evaluate our consumption amount. Look at it this way. If you were to have a garden of vegetables, potatoes, squash & fruits {no grains in the equation} with a decent self need amount of a high egg laying rate poultry as well as lets say, meat Rabbits. Putting up and preserving in amounts sustaining your needs until the next harvest. You could very well live on all you grow in that small space, decreasing greatly what you spend outwards {not factoring in store Feed where you should  include a good  portion of the garden greens,bugs and such supplementing the diets of your small livestock anyway}. Thus greatly decreasing what you would NEED to earn from your job. We have all heard it before but instead of listening, many keep on with their greed and spiraling wants. The problem? We have become a hazard nation, replicating and increasing more with each generation, a life comfortable with selfish want and convenience seen as more important then need or courtesy. 

Change should start with YOU. Stop worrying about what others will think or what they are doing. This is about your life. Your family. And your bound to have some stone wallers. Especially if you have a teen. Apparently storing bottled water in non immediate need amounts {like buying an extra 4 cases of bottled water on the last grocery trip} means you have lost your mind and it will be referred to as your apocalyptic water.. Because NO ONE ELSE DOES THAT MOM. Yet I have been doing these things for a decade. By myself. With other participants begrudgingly obliging on occasion. So now you know what I never wanted to  accept or loudly admit to myself. I do this all. By myself. With help only given when I guilt or force it to happen. I have wanted the life of gardens and animals well before I moved North. I made it very clear from the beginning, this is how I want to raise my "future" family and live our life. One of those "speak now or forever hold your peace" conversations. I was never given a rebuttal. But that does not mean it would not come long after I began striving for the dream.  I kept going and refused to change my dreams because of others who may see it as ridiculous or not within social acceptance or modern ways. 

What has this to do with Meat & cheese consumption? Think about it. If you are on the high consumption level in the two areas, then you will most likely be met with defiance within your realm. You are making changes for their own good. They may very well not agree or enjoy the healthier life. It's up to you to keep going. 

This is not a trivial "trend". This is about long term results for the health of your family and the environment we leave to our children and grand children. 

Now is the time for change. Strive for a life no longer dominated by selfish wants and convenience.

Sweeter Dreams,

~Tammie