tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13833370572239328432024-03-08T04:49:55.329-08:00TheThresholdMichellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-41888520572963143082013-02-24T05:23:00.000-08:002013-02-24T05:54:41.812-08:00Reflections on a Year - A Vegan RantIn three weeks, about, I will have been trying to maintain a vegan lifestyle for about a year. Although, I am not truly vegan, which is hard to explain. I have not thrown out all of my leather, or wool clothing. However, I do now try to purchase animal free products. Other things such as lotions, face wash, etc, I found ridiculously expensive (vegan or traditional) so I now try to make my own.<br />
Food, however, has been easy. It seems weird to me that I ever ate any other way. I think the biggest surprise is how few choices there are for vegans. Well, that and the fact that people still feel the need to profess to me their undying love for bacon. But it doesn't bother me, it just sort of startles me that either they think they are the first to come up and say, "Ooooh, I could never give up bacon." Or they think it never gets old for them to share with me their addiction, passion, obsession, whatever the relationship is at the moment with this meat. Totally different from the people who will come up and say, "Oh, I could never give up cheese." and then get this sort of dreamy look in their eyes. But on the whole I would have to say that people have been so super supportive. I've realize how truly blessed I am to have such good friends. I want to thank them. The people who came with real questions, concerns and even advice. People who came with connections to others. And people who have gone out of their way to make my experiences with my choices easier for me. The greatest gift of this choice has been the realization of the wonderful people around me. And then there are some other people. <br />
I try very hard not to be a bother with my eating choices. I'm not doing this to make a statement or to make others feel guilty. I'm not all that interested in what you are eating. This was my choice. So, I thought I would put together a list of reasons I didn't go vegan:<br />
1. I didn't do this for you, to you, in spite of you. I did this to align my actions with my conscience. Which, yes, makes me feel better about myself but <i>not better than you</i>. I am actually very self centered - outside of my children - I tend to think about me. So really, I'm not thinking about you - more than likely I am wondering if I can do more or if everyone is staring at the grey hair on my head. <br />
2. This isn't just about the animals. But it isn't not about the animals either. People are carnivores, I get that. However, to me, the impact on the planet, the cruelty to a living thing, the price to the small farmer as factory farms and fewer slaughter houses take over was just to high a price to pay to eat. So it is about the animals, but it is about so much more. <br />
3. This isn't just about the environment. Although that is a motivating factor, it is not the largest factor. Because, as usual, it is the people with the least amount of power who reap the worst consequences. It is more about the people. The people who have no choice, or their choices are ninety-nine cent value meal, or some prepackaged junk from the cheapest supermarket - if they have a supermarket in the area.<br />
4. I didn't do this so you could read the menu for me. I can still read, I haven't developed an allergy to meat, cheese, eggs, other dairy. This is my choice. I firmly believe that, for me, a person of limited means, my power remains with the choices I make. I can eat anything, the power is in the choice.<br />
5. I didn't do this in the hopes you would go vegan. Really, I didn't. Although, let's face it, if enough people went vegan I would probably have greater choice as the mighty markets would have to respond. See? All about me. Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-24616292055723221202013-01-07T07:28:00.003-08:002013-01-07T09:19:49.112-08:00Crumb Counter's and New Year's ResolutionsIsn't it funny how the things you aren't particularly proud of in yourself really annoy the hell out of you in others? One would think that we would have more empathy seeing our own foibles in others, and I know in the right time and circumstance I can. But often, it just sends me right out of my skull.<br />
I am a crumb counter by nature. Maybe it is because I am the middle child in a large family, maybe it is just part of my DNA. Whatever the reason I often find myself with the sulky "It's not fair." drifting around in my mind. When I see people of means, people who didn't have to pay for their own college (or aren't burdened by massive debt because of it) or can afford things I just can't. People who don't have to live paycheck to paycheck, I become petulant. I resent the fact that I seem to have so little compared to others. It is a very small feeling and one of which I am not particularly proud. There are times that I float around and never count the crumbs and other times I find myself so furious at what I don't have, I forget to be grateful for the amazing life I do have. It seems during these times that I am a raging calculator out of control, with positives in every other life but my own.<br />
I think some of this stems from the belief that part of my self worth comes from my standing in society. The more financially solvent I am, the further up the social ladder, the better I am. Obviously, right? I deserve to be here because I am better. So when I am feeling less financially, my mind seeks to buttress itself from the logical conclusion of this thinking: I am not good enough. If I were a better person, smarter, prettier, more practical, innately somehow deserving, I wouldn't live paycheck to paycheck. I would deserve to have more because I am better. A little sick, isn't it?<br />
Maybe that is why when I see so many Facebook posts complaining about what people may or may not buy with their government assistance it enrages me. Let's face it, it is crumb counting, just with a different group of people This prevalent thought that people can afford something I can't, but are somehow less deserving of it than I am. They obviously made the wrong choices, weren't smart enough, just weren't good enough to not need financial assistance. That's kind of the underlying logic, right? I work hard and you don't. Of course we don't really know these people, we may see a small window into their life at the super market, where we judge their groceries, their clothes, their electronics and sum up the group. Not fair! Why should they have an iPhone, expensive clothes, or potato chips? Undeserving. <br />
I guess it makes me angry because I don't want to be judged for what I think I lack. I don't want to be judged for every choice I make, and I resent even an inkling that someone else feels they have the right to tell me how to live. But of course, it is just a different form of what I do, so I should be more understanding.<br />
Originally, my New Year's Resolution was going to be nothing this year. This year I was going to accept myself as I am. It seemed like a great idea and lasted two weeks. Me being me, it just didn't work. I have to have something to work on. So this year I am working on not crumb counting. Instead of looking to others for what they are doing wrong, judging people I really don't know, and getting angry for what I don't have, I am going to try to be grateful for everything I do have. I am going to try to avoid comparing my life with others, or use a judgement of others to somehow justify my own place in this world. <br />
Hopefully, I will be successful at least some of the time. Wish me luck!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-33126978940523002652012-12-14T06:35:00.000-08:002012-12-14T06:46:03.472-08:00Stranger In A Strange Land<style>
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“Here. Here. Here.” <a href="http://www.saes.org/directory/profile.aspx?pageaction=VPSFaculty&LinkID=13649&DirectoryModuleID=20">Rodney Glasgow’s </a>words reached out to
the audience, to the students and invited them into a space where they could be
themselves. A space where they didn’t have to monitor their words, seek out
clues or dial up the right code. A place where there isn’t a constant need to
build credibility, to prove over and over again that you belong. A place where
there wasn’t a need to do more and be better to be considered just as good and
still considered the anomaly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A place
where there isn’t a need to combat every message perpetuated in the media,
culture and the air that we breathe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here you could breathe. </div>
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But I was drowning. </div>
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Last week I was excited and nervous to attend the<a href="http://pocc.nais.org/Pages/default.aspx"> People ofColor Conference </a>(POCC) in Houston. To be clear, the POCC is not a diversity conference;
it is not a place for people of color to educate white people on their
experiences, or to workshop race relations. It is space created within the
independent school community for people of color to come together to network,
support, learn, and share with each other. It is a safe space. It is not
created by or for white people. It was the first time in my life I had ever
been in such a space. Even when I was not in the majority, when I may have been
one of a handful of white people in the room, the structure of the environment was created by people who looked like me for
people who looked like me. I always
knew how to navigate the waters. For four days last week I was lost.</div>
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Really, it happened sort of slowly and beyond my consciousness
that I was only minimally aware of the dynamic. But at the end of the day I was
exhausted. I was tired of having to watch everything I said, lest I be outed as
ignorant or a racist. I was tired of having to constantly re-establish my
credibility my right to have a voice in the conversation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I constantly remembered that I was a
guest and worried that I was making a good impression.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t want to let my colleagues
down. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t want to be exposed
as just another white person who didn’t really get it. Although, I have often
wondered how I can, being white. </div>
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It’s really important for me to acknowledge that even though
I was the only white person attending from my cohort, I came with seven colleagues;
they really worked to protect and care for me. They cared for me as though I
was their child. I was not excluded or isolated in any way, except that I was. I
couldn’t join in on the collective cultural experiences because they weren’t
mine. The multiple cultures reflected back during these four days, for the
first time ever, did not include my experiences or me. It was hard.</div>
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By the third day, I succumbed to the exhaustion and sought
out my bed. I needed to be alone in my own head, in my own me. The tipping
point was a brief, exchange at a workshop I had been most looking forward to.
<a href="http://www.seattlegirlsschool.org/faculty-staff.php?id=121">Rosetta Lee</a>, an amazing speaker and facilitator was giving a workshop on how to
guide conversations on race. I sat in a diverse group of people to brainstorm
why these conversations are so difficult. Within seconds the African American
woman sitting across from me, dismissed me. It wasn’t anything loud or dramatic
but it was there. It was as though I didn’t exist in the group for her. I felt
the anger flicker through my veins, almost making me shake. I wanted to scream
at her, “How dare you! You don’t know me! You don’t know anything about me! How
dare you dismiss me!” But of course I didn’t. I turned to the young Asian woman
on my right and we had a pleasant and thoughtful conversation. But even with
that, the wonderful experience I had with one woman of color, what stuck with
me was the dismissal. I had enough. I was exhausted. I wanted to cry. I
couldn’t breathe. I went to bed. </div>
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In the room next door my female colleagues had gathered for
a sleepover, a kiki they called it. I could hear them laughing. I dug deeper
under the covers, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. I hurt. At some points
I slept. A friend’s laughter drifted through the room and for some reason
brought clarity. The words from the speakers of the last couple of days came to
my head. “Here. Here. Here.” “White people don’t know, they just outed
themselves.” “In order to build the identity of the slave you also have to
build the identity of the slave master.” </div>
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I was tired of having to make my way in those days. Rosetta
Lee uses the analogy of a fish out of water. A fish trying to make their way on
land where everything is foreign and they can’t breathe. I was a land dwelling
animal in the water, trying desperately to keep my head above the water with
the waves constantly coming down. Sometimes softly and gently as when I was
with my friends and sometimes rough and crashing, tossing me around. I was too
tired to swim anymore.</div>
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This is what it is like every single day for people of
color. Every day people of color have to build credibility, live within a
culture that not only doesn’t reflect their experience but also takes the
liberty of re-writing it. Every day worrying about what they say, how they say
it. Every day making up for the images that continuously misrepresent their
culture. Every day having to find a way to be true to themselves and still live
in a place that wasn’t created for them. Every day people of color have to ask
for entry into a white world. I only had to do this for four days. And I was so
wrung out. </div>
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The thing is, if you would have asked me about this even the
week before, I would have said that I already knew this. I could even have
spoken at some length on why and how this happens.<i> I knew this!</i> Except I didn’t.
I knew it the way I know my multiplication facts, or some science theory, or
even an event in history. But I didn’t really know it. It was separate and
outside of me, because I couldn’t really know it. I had never experienced what
it was like to be other so how could I know? Until these four days in Houston. The
most painful gift I think I have ever received. </div>
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So now I know. Now what?<br />
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Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-30405568609523117932012-04-27T12:38:00.004-07:002012-04-27T12:38:52.092-07:00Battle of the Banana Breads<br />
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<span id="zw-136ef8efe763fgT8B83f514">So a couple of weeks ago we hosted the Battle of the Banana Breads at my house. The event was sparsely attended, only Katie and myself for most of it. Although Thomas did show up for the actual tasting of the bread. This was my first recipe to veganize, is that a word? Anyway, I chose it because it is one of my children's favorite desserts and it is a recipe from a low fat cookbook. I figured that this would make for less of a transition. The only animal products used in the original recipe are egg whites, yogurt and two tablespoons of melted butter. The only other change I made was vegan chocolate chips, which are indistinguishable in taste from non-vegan chips. Most semi-sweets don't list animal products as an ingredient but they do warn that they may contain milk. </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomkat75/7119184907/" title="Photo 128 by mpodulka, on Flickr"><img alt="Photo 128" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7042/7119184907_b3bc446440.jpg" width="500" /></a>
<br />
<div id="zw-136ef94a0d4ZsefpA83f514" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span id="zw-136ef94a0d4JXEHCS83f514">The eggs gave me pause. According to The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, applesauce and bananas can both be used in place of eggs. Since this recipe has bananas, I debated on whether to use the egg substitute or try the applesauce. Finally, I decided on the substitutes. Mostly because I had bought the damn box of powder and wanted to try it. Okay, I have to be honest that this is one of those places that I am conflicted. I understand not using animal products, especially from factory farms. However, since these were never going to be chickens - my eggs come from a Farm Share, I wonder if it is better to use powered egg substitute. Then again, I am realizing that my idea of humane may not agree with what my farmer considers humane. I know that sounds arrogant, but I have often heard that it is necessary to burn off the chicken's beaks so they don't peck at each other. However, I have since learned that chickens actually have a sophisticated social structure and when that structure is left in place, they don't peck at each other. It is only when we attempt to modernize by cramming the chickens in together that the pecking becomes a real problem. Still, it appears that the practice is fairly common. You can read more about this in <a href="http://www.eatinganimals.com/">Eating Animals</a> by Jonathan Safran Froer or on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debeaking">Wikipedia.</a> I haven't worked up the courage to ask my farmer if they burn the beaks off their birds. I mean really, what would I say? It might be worse than the "Do you keep guns in your house? Because I don't want my kid to die."<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>talk. Okay, not worse than that, but still not comfortable. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 1em;"><br /></span><br />
<span id="zw-136ef99ec77RSMUiS83f514" style="font-size: 1em;">Still using a substance with a long list of ingredients was not feeling too natural to me so I researched it. Here is some of what I found out when I decided I needed to learn more about what was in this box of egg wanna be's. Ener Ge Egg Replacer (the brand I bought) is made from </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal; text-align: left;">potato starch, tapioca flour, leavening (calcium lactate [non-dairy], calcium carbonate, citric acid), cellulose gum, carbohydrate gum. <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000035/">Calcium carbonate</a> is the same stuff that is in antacids, like Tums. <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000035/">Calcium lactate</a> is a mineral found in dairy products, red beans and rhubarb. It helps the body absorb calcium. </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.ehow.com/about_6656576_cellulose-gum_.html">Cellulose gum</a> </span><span style="line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal;">is a thickener. It is derived from wood pulp and purified cotton cellulose. Check your <a href="http://www.foodfacts.com/NutritionFacts/Sherbet-Sorbet-Yogurt-Soy/Breyers-Carb-Smart-Frozen-Chocolate-Yogurt-175-qt/74171">yogurt</a> and <a href="http://www.foodfacts.com/NutritionFacts/Sherbet-Sorbet-Yogurt-Soy/Breyers-Carb-Smart-Frozen-Chocolate-Yogurt-175-qt/74171">ice-cream</a>. </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal;">Chances are it has cellulose gum in it. If you want to learn more about cellulose gum you can do that <a href="http://www.livestrong.com/article/448293-is-cellulose-gum-harmful/">here.</a> </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal;">C<a href="http://carbohydrate gum">arbohydrate gum </a>comes from pine trees or cotton and is modified to create a binding agent. When small amounts are put in water it forms a thick sticky liquid. And citric acid comes from, you guessed it citric fruit. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>So there you have it, everything in the box. </span><span style="font-size: 1em; line-height: normal;">Although now at least I know a little more, I can't say that I am in love with the idea of using them. I will definitely be playing with egg substitutes. Still, I am not as tentative as I had been in the beginning. If you compare the ingredients to the ingredients in say <a href="http://www.foodfacts.com/NutritionFacts/Yogurt/Breyers-Nonfat-Strawberry-Yogurt-6-oz/73102">Bryers Strawberry Yogur</a>t (</span>milk non-fat grade A pasturized, concentrate, gelatin kosher, flavor(s) natural, aspartame, acesulfame potassium, tricalcium phosphate, red40, blue 1, vitamin A palmitate, vitamin D3, contains yogurt cultures active including L acidophilus and bifidobacterium lactis)<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a class="-6- -7- -13-" href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1383337057223932843#overview" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "Arial"; line-height: normal; text-decoration: underline;"> </a></span></span><span id="zw-136f48594f0N8zrXi83f514">, it sort of puts it in perspective</span><span id="zw-136f48594f0N8zrXi83f514">. </span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span id="zw-136f491cc1ebKOIA83f514">So here is the original recipe:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: small;">1 1/2 cups</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;">flour</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: 'Crimson Text'; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; orphans: 2; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 2.5em; padding-right: 2.5em; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 1/2 tsp.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;">baking powder</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 tsp. baking soda</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 tsp. salt</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 tsp. cinnamon</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 cup sugar</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">2 egg whites</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 cup fat-free or low-fat vanilla yogurt</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">2 tbsp. butter, melted</span></li>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">3 ripe bananas</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span id="zw-136f4933ef5y7uJw883f514">1/4</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips</span></li>
</ul>
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<span id="zw-136f497061eX1FUPR83f514">It's a simple recipe where you mash the bananas, melt the butter toss the dry ingredients in one bowl, mix the wet in another and then combine the two. This isn't one of those recipes where I ever worry about timing. It tosses together pretty quickly, add the mashed bananas and chips at the end and bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes. Bing! Done! How easy is that? </span></div>
<div id="zw-136f49b80fc641B1R83f514" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span id="zw-136f49b80fcn-XuR83f514">I only changed a few things. First, I obviously used the egg replacer. I chose to substitute for two eggs as I didn't know how to substitute for two egg whites. That meant three teaspoons of egg replacer mixed with four tablespoons of water. Second I used vanilla soy yogurt. By the way, I buy the yogurt (both soy and milk) in the personal sizes which are about six ounces. So both had more yogurt than the recipe called for. And I used Earth Balance in place of the butter. Also I used unbleached unbromated flour. Flour is often bleached, and sometimes this process includes using animal bones in a charring process. Also, potassium bromate is added to flour to help age it so it performs more reliably when baking. It seems that when wheat is first ground, it forms lovely gluten but after a few weeks it stops. Aging allows the flour to settle down and again perform more reliably. Some smarty decided they could age the flour more quickly by adding the potassium bromate. <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1567851/">Unfortunately it is also a carcinogen</a> that has been <a href="http://www.livestrong.com/article/549792-long-term-health-impact-of-bromated-flour/">banned in Europe</a> as well as many other countries. Who knew? Finally, I used four bananas in the vegan bread as opposed to three. I did this because I had four bananas left that were banana bread material and I wanted to use them up. I did use the three larger bananas in the traditional banana bread in an effort to be fair. </span></div>
<br />
<div id="zw-136f4a653cdcwloG83f514" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span id="zw-136f4a653cdW21RWL83f514">And the winner is..........</span></div>
<div id="zw-136f4a6691cvlhbr683f514" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomkat75/7119185135/" title="Photo 133 by mpodulka, on Flickr"><img alt="Photo 133" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7097/7119185135_dd05e30ccc.jpg" width="500" /></a>
<span id="zw-136f4a6691cO38LTh83f514">The vegan banana bread by a landslide. I kid you not. My children loved the texture more, which could have been the egg substitutes or the extra banana. And they said it tasted better. Since I didn't taste both it is hard for me to determine. However, the vegan bread was gone in two days, while I still have a piece or two frozen of the traditional banana bread. </span></div>
<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-5192492921670688892012-04-12T07:18:00.004-07:002012-04-12T10:37:19.675-07:00Micro Activisim The feeling of powerlessness has been a recurring theme in conversations in the past week or so. How can one person sort through the massive amounts of information and mis-information? How can one person effect change? How can we know, in our very busy lives, what is actually happening? And once we know, what then? The feeling of being overwhelmed and powerless is daunting. How do individuals make a difference? What does it mean to be active? How do we activate people to make change and is this even our right?<br />
I have been thinking about this more and more as I reconnect with this part of myself. In some way, I have always been active. My sense of social injustice was lit early by teachers who were from the hippie genre, balanced by a side of nuns. Most of my teachers were young, socially minded individuals who taught at a Catholic school. They were missionaries who believed in saving the world. One video that stands out for me was shown in sixth grade by Sister Thomas ( I loved Sister Thomas). It was about a boy who envisioned himself doing all of these amazing acts. I vividly remember his one fantasy of standing in the dessert and feeding the poor (by the way, it is only now that I am realizing the innate racism in this since of course the poor were always people of color from a foreign country dressed in next to nothing.) Throughout the film, he has plenty of opportunities to share or make a small difference and he doesn't recognize them because they are not on a grand scale. At the end of the movie he does break up a fight. Whatever may not have stayed with me from my Catholic schooling, the ideas from this film and the strong prodding to go out and be a change in the world were planted deep in me.<br />
Even as I grew up and began to question the Catholic church, my faith and what it meant to be a good person, the vestiges of my early experiences stayed with me. And the <a href="http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Categorical_Imperative">Categorical Imperative</a> by Emmanual Kant became my road map or touchstone as I tried to make choices. I know some people - if anyone actually reads this - are nodding with a that totally makes sense sort of nod. It should help to explain my concrete black and white mentality when it comes to what I hold myself accountable for. In a nutshell, the Categorical Imperative states that you do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. Not because you are trying to garner favor with God, or for the rewards you may receive. You make your choices based on an ethical stance, simply because it is right. Period. Later as an undergrad in a theology class I explored the difference between <a href="http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-justice-and-charity/">justice and charity</a>. Justice is what is fair, and social justice is working to fix whatever is unfair. Charity is trying to supply immediate relief to the problem. It is not justice. This is an important distinction.<br />
But as I grow older (just a tiny bit), I am beginning to pull away from these ideas, and rethink my philosophy on justice, activism and doing what it right. Social justice shouldn't be qualified as a subset of justice, to me it diminishes the reality of what justice is. Somehow "social justice" makes justice appear optional. Justice is; and the opposite is injustice. There can't be a social injustice that is somehow just. (Although we are constantly being told this in one form or another.) But I am also starting to <i>really</i> believe that justice can and will happen through small acts. It doesn't need to be on a grand sweeping scale. (Okay, I still fantasize about being able to make these huge amazing impacts. But lets face it that is more about vanity than justice.) I <i>really </i>think that the world can be changed with many, many people making small changes and different choices. The emphasis is necessary because you have to really believe it before you start making the decision. Otherwise, you will continue to think that "it doesn't really matter, it's just a small thing." One person dropping a can of food into a food drive box isn't going to feed the world. But most people dropping a can in could make a huge impact. But you need that one. All of the ones. One person going vegan won't end factory farms, many people choosing to not buy meat from their grocery store and instead buy from local farms will help to eliminate these horrors. But you need that one.<br />
And here is another small piece of the puzzle. The environment, poverty, human rights, animal rights, all of these violations of humanity are interconnected. So when you make a small impact in one, however tiny, it is destined to cause a small ripple throughout all. Even if you can't see the ripple or the connection. Although, if you continue to inform yourself, read, search out information you will begin to see how small acts create great change. Over time. Become aware and you are becoming involved. <br />
Finally, feeling overwhelmed, like guilt, is useless. There is power in choice and we always have a choice. Whether it is searching out food from local farmers, putting money in a collection bin for the poor, adding to a food drive, turning off the water when you brush your teeth. There are no contributions to the greater good that are too small. So make all the tiny, seemingly too tiny to matter, choices that you can. They matter. Celebrate yourself every time you make a great decision. The impact is greater than you think. And hold onto your other power. Hold onto your joy.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-8520774283052930782012-04-06T17:51:00.005-07:002012-04-06T18:01:04.380-07:00A Vegan Shopping TripSo today I took the plunge and attempted a real vegan food shopping adventure. Since I still get meat and dairy from my farm share, for the rest of my family, I can basically bask in total veganism with my weekly shopping. So in I walk, all bright and shiny with my new vegan self and start looking for stuff. Previously, I spent quite a bit of time working my way through several vegan cookbooks to plan a week's menu and from there a shopping list. Normally when I do this, I find myself at the store wondering what I needed a particular ingredient for and was it really necessary? This happens during my second phase of sticker shock. The first phase is always, WTF! Are they Fing kidding me? What's in this shit anyway? But in person I tend not to speak text. No, going vegan did not clean up my language, but it is early there is still hope.<br />
Anyway, I promised myself, in order to give myself the very best start, I would buy what was on the list. This meant actually spending five dollars for a small jar of vegan mayo, even though I didn't really eat mayo much in my pre-vegan existence. Well, I must need it for something right? And of course I had to buy organic. Most vegan products seem to be soy based. Soy is a market that is rife with<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetically_modified_organism"> GMO's</a> which means supporting <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/05/monsanto200805">Monsanto</a>. Since I swore off <a href="http://organicconsumers.org/monsanto/index.cfm">Monsanto</a> long before I swore off meat, I need to buy organic soy, or products that are specifically marked non-gmo. I did post on Facebook a<a href="http://www.nongmoshoppingguide.com/"> list of products</a> that are non-gmo but I am freakish enough at the grocery store without Googling every single product to see if is is <a href="http://www.naturalnews.com/GMO.html">GMO</a>. ( By the way, if you have an app for that, I'll take it. Specifically, if a product it is <a href="http://www.rodale.com/rodalecom-gmo-free-challenge">GMO</a> or not.) The third phase of sticker shock is, "hmm, maybe I can just skip this ingredient."<br />
If the highlight of my shopping trip was finding everything, I think, on my list, (except for Braggs Amino Acid, what is that anyway?) the lowlight was walking past the cheese. And if you shop at Whole Foods or any other store that really has an extensive cheese selection, you understand how truly sad this moment was. I did buy some vegan cheddar but I really am not holding out too much hope for this. And I almost broke out into full blown sobbing when I walked by the brie en croute. I LOVE brie. To make myself feel better, I grabbed some fresh guacamole, something I wouldn't usually buy because it is too expensive, and it <a href="http://www.kitchensavvy.com/journal/2007/04/how_to_stop_gua.html">goes black</a> after it is opened for a time. And of course then there was the moment at the check out when the super pleasant and friendly register person (obviously I was at Whole Foods), held up one of my many bulk items I had forgotten to label and asked me what it was. Hmm, not a clue. I literally had no idea what was in the the little green baggy. The little brown circular suckers could have been anything. Which brings me to another problem. If you ever decide to go vegetarian or vegan, bring an experienced shopper with you. I wish I would have done this, but the only two or three I know were not available. Okay, and honestly I felt like a total loser saying, "Hey, could you help me go shopping? I have absolutely not idea what half of this stuff is, let alone where to find it. " But really, it is very good advice for any normal person who is thinking about adopting this life style. Bring a veteran. You will save yourself time, probably money, and funky exchanges at the register about the mystery product in the little green baggy. Sesame seeds. Those little suckers were sesame seeds.<br />
Which brings me to my final thought. Here I sit with ten or so bags of vegan groceries overflowing in my kitchen shelves, fridge and somewhat in my freezer. (There aren't many frozen items for vegans, it seems). I have the food and the recipes. Now who is going to teach me how to cook?<br />
<br />
<i>So I feel I need to add that the links I added very much represent my own views. Except for the guacamole. That just is what it is. </i>Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-7105284447055860152012-04-03T16:31:00.000-07:002012-04-03T16:31:14.142-07:00Vegan : Desperation and InspirationI knew this was going to happen eventually. Trying to keep vegan suddenly became bumpy and I became cranky. I am hungry and I miss cheese. I feel unprepared, even though I thought I shopped for the right stuff. Suddenly, rice, vegetables and noodles don't seem to "hit the spot" and my eyes keep wandering to the cheese from my Farm Share. And there is something else happening, a weird sort of mourning process that is hard to explain. The idea of baking differently for the rest of my life leaves me feeling so sad. I like my whipped cream and our traditional birthday cakes, and around Christmas my oven really cranks. up. I don't know if I am ready to give all of that up. And yes there are substitutes, but so far I haven't tasted any vegan baking that I thought came close. Sort of like diet cake. By late yesterday afternoon I was really cranky and feeling defeated. It was time to re-evaluate. To remember what made me start this and how I plan to continue. And to remember that it is always my decision. Each and every minute and each and every bite.<br />
And so there it is: the choice. The choice that I have that <a href="http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/us_hunger_facts.htm">so many don't</a>. The choice that I don't have to participate in a system that systematically <a href="http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/animalwelfare/">abuses animals</a>, and the <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/03/the-fda-enters-withdrawal-the-future-of-antibiotics-on-farms/255236/">consumers of their product</a>. A system that is <a href="http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/environment/">destroying our land and our water</a>. A system that continually uses its' power to drive small farms out of business. The accumulated knowledge of <a href="http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/food-inc/">documentaries</a>, books and conversations, holds my one hand and my own mirror holds the other. Because once you know, you can't really pretend you don't. But my hands aren't tied. I am free to choose, to the best of my knowledge and ability. <br />
So there I am yesterday, sad and tired and hungry. And wanting to quit. I posted to Facebook and soon after went to bed. But not before reading more of the book <a href="http://www.eatinganimals.com/">Eating Animals.</a> It helped me remember why I am doing what I am doing. And then when I woke up this morning, a bunch of friends posting back messages of support and suggestions. Not all of them vegan or vegetarian, but all helping to hold me up. And another friend, lending me cookbooks and some sound advice. That this is a new and different way of eating and I have to let go of the other. It is a change. But it can be a good change. It is probably going to get hard again. But there really are plenty of foods for me to eat. And I know that tastes do change. I use to drink my coffee with cream and sugar and now I drink it black. It just doesn't taste right the other way anymore.<br />
So this is my transition phase and it is hard. But it is also inspiring. Because not only do I have choice, but I am also surrounded by so much love and support.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-3985343331777811422012-03-27T06:30:00.000-07:002012-03-27T06:30:47.302-07:00Me? Vegan?So, I have been trying to eat vegan for almost a week now. In the beginning, I was sure that I would die without cheese and butter. It is a staple in my life. But so far, with only two slip ups, I am still alive. I still feel somewhat conflicted about this choice, which I know inhibits my chance for success, but it wasn't a snap decision. Besides, it's not like I've been barred by the egg and dairy industry, if need be I can always have a piece of brie or reach for an egg when I bake. Which is part of what helped me make the choice.<br />
I knew that I wanted to be a vegetarian. This is difficult when you live with three other people who are not particularly interested in this. Well, Katie wants to be a fishatarian, she is fine without eating land animals. Except for McDonald's chicken nuggets. As Katie points out, they aren't really chicken. And they come with a toy. Since I don't go to McDonald's this isn't an issue. (She goes with her grandmother, as I know you are wondering how she knows about this faux chicken delicacy.)<br />
I was discussing this with a friend one day when she said that she and her husband watched the movie <em><a href="http://www.forksoverknives.com/">Forks over Knives </a></em>and made the decision to not eat meat. Naturally I queued it up on <a href="http://movies.netflix.com/WiHome">Netflix </a>and my husband and I viewed it together. At the end of the movie he turned to me and said, "Let's do it." I was floored. "It" isn't vegetarian, "It" is vegan with little to no added oil. "It" is a totally plant based life style. I smiled and said okay, but inside I was thinking, "Noooooo! I love cheese!" But I can't debate the health value of the diet and I love my husband. I wanted him to support me, so I want to support him. We made the decision to wait until after Easter and try it for 28 days. Of course there is a book, which I borrowed. We are trying the recipes and seeing what we like and don't like. We want to set ourselves up for success.<br />
So why go vegan now? Two years ago, on Easter Sunday, I walked into the living room on a conversation my vegan sister was having with my brother in law. My sister has been vegan for a couple of years now. She doesn't pontificate and simply brings dishes to events she knows she will eat. She is also a marvelous cook. Her food is amazing. She was explaining, because she had been asked, about the cruelty on <a href="http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/food/factoryfarms/">factory farms</a>. My first thought, honestly, was "Shit! Now I know." Because once you know something you can't <em>un</em>know it. It is just there and you have to make a choice, ignore it or learn more. I choose to learn more. I sought out information from such sources as <em><a href="http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/food-inc/">Food Inc</a></em> (an amazing movie), <a href="http://www.peta.org/">PETA </a>websites, and books. Specifically I am reading <em><a href="http://www.eatinganimals.com/">Eating Animals</a></em> and have finished <em><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:SkinnyBitch_cover.jpg">Skinny Bitch</a></em> and <em><a href="http://www.righteousporkchop.com/">Righteous Pork Chop.</a></em> I haven't even picked up <em><a href="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Slaughterhouse/Gail-A-Eisnitz/e/9781591024507/">Slaughterhouse.</a></em> But, oddly enough, it was the movie <em><a href="http://www.theendofpoverty.com/">The End of Poverty?</a></em> that really helped me to make the decision. This movie is not about factory farms, but as its title implies, poverty. And it is this movie, which I think everyone should see, that my own privilege was heightened. How lucky I am that I drew this life. That I have this amazing family, both in my house and extended. We may not agree, but we are here for each other. I have - so far - managed to retain my job in a time of economic turmoil and my health. I have choice. It is a gift that so many of us have that we so often ignore or take for granted. With this choice comes power. I can choose to use my privilege to support a system that I deeply believe is wrong because it is easier or I can choose to not eat animals or animal products. I don't know if I believe that it is wrong, as many vegans do, to use animals for food or clothing. But since I don't need to right now, I'm not living off the land by my wits (thankfully) and I don't need to strap seal fur on to stay alive I don't see why I would. This doesn't mean I am going to toss all my wool or leather products into a landfill. I will try in the future to buy more humanely.<br />
So, me vegan? Apparently.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-13281091567363416422012-03-07T06:56:00.000-08:002012-03-07T06:56:29.246-08:00Benefiting From the InjusticeRecently I have been thinking about the short story <a href="http://harelbarzilai.org/words/omelas.txt"><em>The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas</em></a> by Ursula K. LeGuin. It is a story about a Utopian society that relies on the misery of one child. Everyone in Omealas knows the child exists and understands that their happiness relies on the misery of that child. Some leave but most stay. It is, to me, an obvious analogy of our own lives. After watching <a href="http://www.theendofpoverty.com/"><em>The End of Poverty?</em></a>, I am so aware of how much we do have. I often tell myself that trying to live sustainably, besides being hard and time consuming is simply too expensive. I am not rich, and organic, humanely raised food is expensive. Beyond the expense is the difficulty in ascertaining where my food actually comes from. The labels are so deliberately misleading.<br />
Watching <em>The End of Poverty?</em> was in fact a real wake up call for me. I really have so much. So much that I find it difficult to find places to put everything, there is simply not enough room in my house. And I have come to realize that this stuff, these material goods have become like an anesthetic or a drug. My stuff keeps me sedated, keeps me locked into this self designed cage. It helps me tell myself the story that I don't have enough and I am incapable of changing society. It doesn't help me sleep, it keeps me unaware. Well, not really. I am aware, but I am still maintaining my position. As I try to find my way out, try to rethink a culture and society I have been born into and contribute to the existence of, I find myself tangled in conversations I don't have the answers for. Both with myself and with others.<br />
I feel like the young child who wakes before the rest of the family. Although I am trying to be awake without bothering anyone else, it is just too difficult. The silence is too uncomfortable and the life of what I know just wants to continue spreading. <br />
So here I am, pondering not why the world is so unjust, but rather my own privilege and how I continue to allow the injustice. How I actually benefit from the way the world is structured. How my own ego and need to feel accomplished have been defined by the wrong measure. And of course, the hardest thoughts of all: What am I going to do about it? What am I willing to change?<br />
For me, I guess working from the environmental road has been the easiest. However, there isn't one road. None of this work can be done in isolation. Equity, environment, humanity - our own -<em>my own</em> humanity are deeply connected.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-5284616425506755962010-10-23T05:33:00.000-07:002010-10-23T05:40:30.466-07:00Thinking On Education<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U&ref=nf">Here is a link to an animated talk by Sir Ken Robinson</a>. I have been aware of the economic, industrial template, of education for a while now. This is the first time I've seen it connected with the Enlightenment model. As a product of parochial and public schools in the seventies and eighties, this was an ingrained mentality. Those who could do well in the school system and raise their social standard and those who couldn't. I had always seen the two intertwined, most children of factory workers were educated to replace their factory worker parents, children from a higher economic standard were educated for college. <br />
Reflecting on this, I think about how I define what it means to be educated and how that has changed over the years. There are reams of papers and vats of books that almost parallel my thought evolution from the Core Curriculum to Howard Gardner's Intelligences, to even Sir Ken Robinson's writings. There still remains a constant struggle over development, growth and talents of children against necessary skills and knowledge.<br />
As a product of a blue collar education, there was a sense that there were pieces of information that students from better schools were getting and that if I could locate and master this information I could cross the divide. What was missing from this scavenger hunt was the platform for the learning process. It wasn't necessarily the content, although there were large missing chunks. I never read any of the classics until college and read maybe four Shakespeare plays in all of high school. It was in fact, the vehicle of the content. The way the content is used to help children learn to analyze information, understand events and new information relevant to what they know. Understanding how to find faults of logic, however small, and unpack them, even if it meant the whole structure fell. This template was the large treasure, that was missing in the educational system.<br />
If I'm not alone in this sort of misunderstanding of what it means to be educated throughout a lifetime, and I don't think I am, I take a large leap here and think it is possible that many parents also feel this way. Even if the education they received did give them more than the higher content.<br />
I can't let this post go without addressing the ADHD. I do think many children are over medicated but I don't think denying a possible growing problem of ADHD is the answer. This is the first time I've seen this ADHD map of the United States. It is too deep a problem, and too serious for many children to disregard such a statistic so whimsically, funny as it was. IF this is true, then maybe we should start finding reasons, instead of the assumption that we medicate students to keep them quiet. Perhaps there is a fine line of what is the optimal dose, or perhaps there is an environmental factor that isn't being considered here, such as <a href="http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED385030&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED385030">pesticides in foods</a>.<a href="http://news.discovery.com/human/adhd-pesticides-children-behavior.html">(Links</a> for <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37156010/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/">ADHD & Pesticides</a>, a place to start.) There is too little information to dismiss this, and it is too large of an innuendo in the animation to be ignored.<br />
So, as always, I am interested to hear what your reflections are on your education and your children's. How do you evaluate a good system? What do you think your own educational experience did for you, and what are you looking for in your child's?Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-86498922932585770562010-09-30T13:00:00.000-07:002010-09-30T13:10:52.344-07:00Looking for SuccessThe past six months have had a lot to do with looking for success, or actually creating success. I have participated in a book group, reworked and in some cases created curriculum, intensely reviewed curriculum and spent a lot of time speaking with minds that I really respect. It's an interesting concept, success. As a teacher at an independent school we use the term often to describe learning environments, professional development, and even our physical environment. How do we create a space, time, group that will ensure success?<br />
But of course we need to define success. What does it mean to be successful? And can we ever really claim it as a permanent status, or is it a fleeting feeling that we can only aspire? Do we have to have full success? Do all areas of our life have to align like some majestic star pattern that screams to the world that we are the chosen, the ones that actually figured it all out. For some, success is the easiest and most pain free road. Others would scoff that this is simply laziness. Some seem to need to struggle through a painful almost unachievable process before they feel championed. Others would find this pointless. <br />
We all have to define it for ourselves. Sometimes I feel really successful. I have found a person to share my life with, and most of the time feel deeply in love and happy with where I am. Two beautiful children light up my life and continue to grow into amazing people despite my constant struggle with parenting. (A blog post in an of itself). I feel successful this year in my professional life, I feel I am finally getting the rhythm of the school and able to pull together my growing knowledge and skill base to be a successful teacher, integrator and leader.<br />
In truth, I felt pretty comfortable and even cocky about my understanding of success and even my place in the greater scheme of things. And then there is death, unexpected, in the worst possible way and all that goes to shit. My definition of a successful life is shattered and I wonder how I can confidently attempt to contribute to conversations about this nebulous and fleeting concept. Now that I have tilted my view of the world and wonder if I am off kilter or actually seeing clearly for the first time.<br />
So where does this conversation go? How do we return to an even basic understanding of what it means to be successful? Pat Bassett, President of the National Association of Independent Schools, recently described the qualities students needed to be successful in the world:<br />
Character<br />
Collaboration<br />
Creativity<br />
Critical Thinking<br />
Communication<br />
It seems like a pretty encompassing list. But what does this mean? Successful where? For who? By what standards? Do we continue to define success in terms of dollars and family in tact? It is definitely the easiest tool to measure, but as an educator I know that doesn't mean it is the most informative.<br />
If you are looking for an easy answer, or a pithy heartwarming wrap up to this commentary - ramble?, you have come to the wrong place. I don't have the answers, and I shun the hallmark storybook ending, because maybe in fact success means ending. How can we know if we are really a success until we get to the end? And then who really gets to determine it?Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-54232711829204466862010-05-07T09:51:00.000-07:002010-05-07T09:53:50.161-07:00Healthier LivingOkay, so we have been going to <a href="http://creekside.coop/farmers-market/">Creekside Co-op Vender's Marke</a>t for a couple of weeks now. We are buying the meat from <a href="http://www.mbfarviewfarm.com/">M&B Farview Farms</a> out in Hamburg. The goals are to be be free of any chemicals and to not support the inhumane treatment of animals at factory farms. We did not throw out everything in our freezers. I didn't see the need for some big, pointless gesture. After all, the money was already spent so we are moving forward from where we are now.<br />
Shopping at the Vendor's Market is not easy. First of all, I had this idea that I would be able to do most of my grocery shopping there. I don't know why, because in retrospect it seems stupid even to me. Maybe I am not attending to what I am reading. Maybe it was because it was billed as a farmer's market, but then really local farms aren't exactly producing right now are they? So really it is a meat truck, a vegetable stand, which by the time I get there basically has lettuce, the honey guy and some bakeries. Well, there is a coffee guy and my son found some great kettle-corn, but other than that you are pretty much not getting your grocery list there. Still, it is pleasant and the whole family seems to really enjoy going each week. And they are adding more every week. We stand in front of the meat truck and sort of ponder how we are going to be able to afford to live this lifestyle. Then, we get the meat home. I avoided it for the first few days. I simply didn't know how to approach it. I know that sounds silly, but really I'm not the least bit earthy so anything that looks too close to the living thing is turning my stomach. For instance, I took out the half chicken, which was slim by any one's standards (no worry about steroids here) and the neck was very much still there. Yuck. That went right into the trash as soon as I hacked it off. That in and of itself was a process. Then I cooked it and fed it to the kids. Last night we sort of ruined the ribs. We both worked late and they were still frozen by the time we got home so my husband thought we should boil them. I am no fan of boiled meat in any form, but since we were going to put them on the grill it seemed okay to get them started. Besides, it was getting close to seven and the Flyers were coming on. The smell coming from the pot of water was nauseating. The taste, in my opinion, could not be hidden by the barbecue sauce. However, the rest of my family thought they were fine. My son even declared himself a happy carnivore. My husband said they tasted very piggish. I flashed back to the part of the Farm <a href="http://www.mbfarviewfarm.com/Blue-Butt-Old-Spot-Pigs-For-Sale.htm">website </a>where the owners talk about the pigs and their bunny like ears on the farm with their little pig ears just bouncing away. I don't know if this was the pig I was eating but I just could not eat it. Just broccoli for me tonight, thanks.<br />
But we are soldiering on, especially since I - the one who sort of got this whole thing rolling - seem to be the only person unnerved by the meat experience. We have also moved on to free range organic eggs and organic milk. At six dollars a gallon I am making sure that my children finish it. If they don't (or can't as they claim) I put the extra in Tupperware containers and give it to them in their cereal the next day or put it in our tea or coffee. We are loving the granola cereal and they do love Vann's waffles which I can get at Giant. Trader Joe's has the best price that I've seen for the milk. And the eggs are coming from the same place we are getting our meats. The meats I can't bring myself to eat. <br />
<object height="300" width="400"> <param name="flashvars" value="offsite=true&lang=en-us&page_show_url=%2Fphotos%2Ftomkat75%2Fsets%2F72157623891023210%2Fshow%2Fwith%2F4535715884%2F&page_show_back_url=%2Fphotos%2Ftomkat75%2Fsets%2F72157623891023210%2Fwith%2F4535715884%2F&set_id=72157623891023210&jump_to=4535715884"></param><param name="movie" value="http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649" allowFullScreen="true" flashvars="offsite=true&lang=en-us&page_show_url=%2Fphotos%2Ftomkat75%2Fsets%2F72157623891023210%2Fshow%2Fwith%2F4535715884%2F&page_show_back_url=%2Fphotos%2Ftomkat75%2Fsets%2F72157623891023210%2Fwith%2F4535715884%2F&set_id=72157623891023210&jump_to=4535715884" width="400" height="300"></embed></object>Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-31917756164897027182010-04-09T10:05:00.000-07:002010-04-09T10:05:57.516-07:00The Way We EatEating is one of my favorite things to do. I love to go to restaurants, try to cook, read through cookbooks, taste new recipes, etc. Since I love eating so much, I am constatntly trying to eat healthier as well as cook healthier food for my family. It is the constant struggle of a foodie who really wants to be, if not thin (okay, I really want to be thin!) then at least healthy. But of course this takes on a whole new dimension when we begin to look at eating from another view, the view that we really can't accomplish this goal in any form if we continue to eat from the supermarket. This isn't healthy for our bodies, our minds or our souls. I was always sort of aware of this, but refused to face it because of the convenience grocery stores offer. However, after a recent family gathering, my sister tossed aside my blinders with a few short comments. Explaining why she went vegetarian first, and then eventually vegan. she gave just a few examples of the unnecsessary torture animals recieve at factory farms. She was truly not evangalizing, just explaining her point of view as to how and why she came to this vegan lifestyle.<br />
This was the catalyst my lazy soul needed to investigate. After some time spent looking through the many sites that are posted on line I came across this article at thee Huffington Post, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nicolette-hahn-niman/avoiding-factory-farm-foo_b_353525.html">Avoiding Factory Farms.</a> What I like most about this article is the practical advide given by Ms. Niman. It helps to know that this is a process and not something that should be taken as a huge step.<br />
Taking her advice I have begun to research and ask for suggestions for finding CSA's, <a href="http://www.localharvest.org/csa/">Community Supported Agriculure.</a><br />
Wow! What a lot of great people are already moving in this direction or are already there. I am so excited to begin investigating this for so many reasons:<br />
1. My children will no longer get all of the junk that is put in meats and vegetables. (Hooray, maybe my daughter won't get her period at nine! Long live childhood.)<br />
2. I will be challenged to find recipes that are based on season vegetables, but the vegetables will be fresh, and once again free of all of the chemicals that I have been given my children.<br />
3. I will be supporting local farmers and hopefully stopping yet another development from taking over the farmland. (This, by the way, is what got my husband on board.)<br />
4. I will no longer be supporting a system that not only likes to load our food up with chemicals, but just in case we missed ingesting them, tosses it out to the air as well.<br />
5. I will no longer be supporting the absolutely disgusting treatment of animals.<br />
Now, I have to qualify the last one, because anyone who knows me knows that I am not exactly an animal lover. The truth is I prefer them in pictures. I know, it makes me somewhat less of a person but I just have enough trouble keeping my house clean without worrying that it smells like dog, or worse yet wet dog. And I don't find it cute when they go out and roll in something disgusting and then bring that stench and whatever is creating that stench into my house. My children lay on that floor. Just not that earthy. However, after listening to my sister, and reading online the absolute horrors of what happens in this farm it made me want to go home and hug my dog. It also made me realize the full responsibility we have in keeping this world a healthy place for those who have no power. I include in this category children, plants, animals and anyone who doesn't have the means, financial or intellectual to truly control their environment. Sometimes this includes me. Sometimes it doesn't. When it comes to having control over what food system I choose to support, it doesn't.<br />
So here is the list of resources I am checking out to begin my new adventure ino healthier eating:<br />
<a href="http://www.myerovfarm.com/index.asp">Myerov Family Market</a><br />
I like the work option one on this one and am planning to go to Perkasie to visit the actual farm. I also like the idea that I can pick up my groceries once a week. However, my husband has no intentions of going vegetarian so I would need to supplement this with some other CSA that included meat as well as eggs and dairy.<br />
<a href="http://www.lancasterfarmfresh.com/fourseason.asp">Lancaster Farm Fresh</a><br />
This was recommended by two different people so it is worth checking out. I am having trouble figuring out the portions. I do admit, even after what I stated as a challenge, I am worried about trying to cook all of this fresh food. Do I really want to eat radishes and mushrooms in June? I don't even like mushrooms.<br />
<a href="http://creekside.coop/">Creekside Coop</a><br />
This is a brand new coop so I could get in on the ground floor so to speak. Additionally they are holding a Farmer's Market on Sunday that is open to everyone. I am planning on attending this week to investigate what will actually be available, why I should join if they are going to continue to have the coop and what the prices will be like.<br />
I'll post pics and my thoughts in a future post.<br />
Happy Eating.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-16180334865443600992010-04-06T06:09:00.000-07:002010-04-06T06:09:07.127-07:00My Mission Statement<a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/1868771/My_Mission%22%20%20%20%20title=%22Wordle:%20My%20Mission%22%3E%3Cimg%20%20%20src=%22http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/1868771/My_Mission%22%20%20%20alt=%22Wordle:%20My%20Mission%22%20%20%20style=%22padding:4px;border:1px%20solid%20#ddd%22%3E%3C/a%3E"></a><a href="http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/1868771/My_Mission" title="Wordle: My Mission"><img alt="Wordle: My Mission" src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/1868771/My_Mission" style="border: 1px solid #ddd; padding: 4px;" /></a><br />
<br />
<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">My Mission Statement: A Beginning</div><div class="MsoNormal">To live feely, wholly and fully.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To experience life on as many levels as possible and be present in the gift each moment is. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember the quality of mercy for myself to myself as well as others. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Connect with kindred spirits thought words, music, food and art.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Create. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Create beauty, create space, create freedom, create joy, create laughter, create understanding, create a sanctuary, create what is yet to be understood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take risks and fail well or succeed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Enjoy my success and learn from and enjoy my failures. Find patience, patience within myself for myself and for others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find the opportunities in all moments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Believe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Believe in myself, believe in others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Believe in what I don’t see and fully understand but know deeply in my soul. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love. Love fully, love deeply, love without fear, love without expectation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love myself and others this way always. Love all and love fully.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Laugh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Laugh everyday, laugh at myself, laugh at the world laugh for the joy of it.</div><!--EndFragment-->Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-76714022043906997972010-03-18T12:43:00.000-07:002010-03-19T11:44:33.978-07:00From the Fear LineI have come to realize that I am making decisions from a place of fear, very possibly the worst way. I don't mean to, I think I am being cautious, but really I am hiding. Even in these posts, I don't market or show them. They are public but I would be worried sick if I thought someone was actually reading them. I don't know why I do it anymore. I feel out of step right now professionally, and I think that has a way of insinuating itself into other aspects of your life. Maybe I'm just not good enough. So what does it mean to be good enough? Will I ever be good enough? And who gets to decide this? Is it me? My bosses? My students? My family? The list goes on and on. How can we ever know? In school, if you have a good teacher, you are given constant feedback. In work we are given little to no feedback and so if you are not seriously confident you can, I can, begin to doubt, question and interpret every look, word and gesture. What does that mean? Why did he say that? Or, the absolute worst, Why did I say that? At least if you have been drinking and you have that moment you can sort of shrug it off but if you weren't then there is nowhere to hide. Yep, naked me. I really did say that. Can you believe it? What does that mean? I hate those moments. And yet, I don't (okay sometimes I do) define others by one or two comments. But then maybe it isn't so bad to be defined as long as it isn't a permanent definition. People grow and change. Maybe I don't allow for that. Yeah, I probably don't. I think I pretty much sum people up and then move on. Maybe that is normal. <br />I once heard that what you dislike in other people are often the things you dislike in yourself. <br />One thing I do know about myself. I can't be afraid for too long. It is too exhausting to always worry about what people think.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-79422662860587264542010-01-28T08:54:00.000-08:002010-03-19T11:44:34.004-07:00Pictures in the SandThis is an amazingly beautiful video that just captures you. Watching it makes me wonder how anyone can be so talented with their fingers and sand. What made her start doing this? How does she create such beauty that will only remain in memory? Well now it is there on video, but still there is something just so transient. Here is yet another way to tell a story, and in my mind fuel to my own fire. It highlights the importance of stories in our lives and is helping me reconnect to something inside of me.<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vOhf3OvRXKg&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vOhf3OvRXKg&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383337057223932843.post-19846756312598040122010-01-28T08:43:00.000-08:002010-03-19T11:44:34.015-07:00StoriesOne thing that I keep coming back to is how much I love stories. Whether they are told in the form of a conversaion, a movie, a song, a book, a play or even a single photo. There is something about a story that reaches out to us and moves us in some way. Sometimes, it is just the thrill and solace of knowing that someone else out there is thinking the same way you are, feeling what you feel or experiencing a similar experience. Sometimes it is the idea that there are new experiences that we haven't tried, but gain confidence and understanding from watching someone else, even a pretend someone, manuever their way through it. As I ramble around inside what feels like an almost empty room that is me, this is the only thing that I seem to find. I like stories, I love to share them, find them, create them, hear them. For me it is all in the human connection. Words can be so much like water just flowing over you when they are used well. When someone can just put something you have been feeling into a sentence or photo there is the moment of joy and relief and exploration all at once. Yes!! That's it, that is what has been ratteling around in me, now I can name it.<br />Stories won't save most lives, or cure diseases, but they can connect people to others and more deeply to themselves.<br />I know that I really want to dig more deeply into this process, flesh out what I already know and learn more about different mediums for stories. I think I would like to focus on learning photography, playing more with video editing and writing. I am considering starting yet another blog of this ficitional story that has been just taking up way too much room in my head. I think I may also post poems and other creative written thoughts as they occur to me.<br />If this then is my reflective space, I think I may make that my creative space. It will be interesting to see, with time in such a short supply, where this leads me.<br />I also sometimes wonder what I would do if anyone actually found these posts and even replied.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066387934068615634noreply@blogger.com0