Vegan No More

I've gone back and forth on being vegan for much of my life. There have been times where I've been omnivorous, times I've been vegetarian, and even hardcore vegan in college (not even leather shoes or belts). Since last fall, I've worked on being more vegan, though it's been hit or miss, especially when we've done restaurant reviews for 50 States Of Wine. 

Being vegetarian and/or vegan has always been inspired my manyfold issues: healthier eating, environmental concerns, animal cruelty, and maybe some leftover punk politicalness (against the status quo). Eating vegan can definitely be an answer to all those things, but only if it's done with thoughtfulness and care. I wasn't doing that.

I recently read two books way beyond my comfort zone, Brandon Baltzley's Nine Lives and Berlin Reed's Ethical Butcher, and they got me thinking about my approach to food in a very different life.

One of the things that has always bothered me about eating meat is that an animal has to die so that can happen; I just didn't like that. However, I'm happy to squash a mosquito or kill other bugs who happen to be bothersome in some way, so how do those two mindsets gibe? They don't. And really, is it any healthier to eat a processed veggie burger rather than one from a cow? GMO soybeans are taking over our world and, while I will never condone cheap, feedlot beef, it's certainly easier to defend a healthy, humanely raised grass-fed cow over processed anything.

Am I going to run out and eat a bunch of meat now? Probably not, but I'm not taking it off the table anymore either. Baltzley is opening a farmhouse restaurant, TMIP Restaurant, in Michigan City, IN. The idea is that, apart from beef (which will be raised by their neighbors), all the food in the restaurant will be grown on the very farm it sits on. That is taking locavore to the logical extreme. 

Locavorism is becoming more and more important to me, maybe because we have so little of it where we live. Depending on how you define it (25 miles, 100 miles?), we could probably become true locavores, excepting coffee and spices that don't grow anywhere near us. The area known as Harbor Country (Northern Indiana/Southwest Michigan) is an area we frequent, and there are strong connections growing there between the winemakers, chefs, growers, and public -- it's probably the reason I've been impacted by this so much.

So I'm vegan no more, not that I was really in recent times. Not sure where this is leading me, but I know that locavorism will play a bigger role for me, as will getting rid of processed foods. Eating less and in a balanced manner will be goals as well. I also want to expose my kids to more of where there food comes from; visits to cheesemakers, butchers, and farms will show them how their food is connected to the land and that, contrary to some peoples' belief, it doesn't come from a box in the store.

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Homemade Fire Starters

When camping or any other time a fire is desirable or needed, getting it going is the primary concern. You might be able to MacGuyver a fire at the bottom of the ocean or under a torrential waterfall, but most of us will need help (a Swedish FireKnife will come in handy as well). Enter fire starters. You can bring along commercially made tinder or, much more fun, make it at home.

We made these for our camping trip this weekend, but the weather forecast was so miserable, we decided to wait for better weather. Of course the weather was  no problem in the end, but with an almost 3-year old, better safe than sorry.

Homemade Fire Starters

Ingredients:

• Cardboard egg cartons
• Sawdust or dryer lint (really!)
• Paraffin or unscented candle wax - we used tea lights from IKEA, cheap
• Large aluminum can
• Pot for boiling water
• Heat source (preferably electric, wax fumes can be flammable) - I used an electric single burner I bought at a Forest Preserve auction
• Pliers or pot lifters

Instructions:

1. Stuff sections of egg cartons with dryer lint or sawdust. It felt good to reuse the lint rather than throwing it away.
2. Place wax into can - prior to this, you can crimp one edge of can to make a pouring spout, if you like.
3. Heat several inches of water in pot and then add wax-filled can.
4. When wax melts, carefully pick up and gently pour into egg carton sections previously filled with sawdust or dryer lint. I used 12 tea lights for one egg carton's worth of fire starters.
5. After wax cools, use a knife to separate the 12 sections. (I just tore them apart, but...)
6. When needed, place firestarter under kindling teepee, light, and enjoy!

This fun and handy activity was taken from Helen Olsson's The Down and Dirty Guide to Camping With Kids (Boston, MA: Roost Books, 2012).

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ADS Sports Eyewear Try Before You Buy

In our continued partnership with ADS Sports Eyewear, we opted to try out their "Try Before You Buy" program, an opportunity to try out a non-prescription version of the frames first. The Try-Out pair of glasses are shipped as soon as possible, so they may not be the exact color that you wanted, but they give you an idea of the fit and look for that particular model. If you have to try the particular color, ADS simply waits until they are available and then ships them.

"Try Before You Buy" starts by ordering the prescription version of the glasses just as if you were ordering the finished product. Order as many glasses as you would like to try on -- Laima, who needs prescription glasses, was our guinea pig and ordered 5 frames. You fill in the prescription form just as if you are ordering prescription lenses. This gives ADS an opportunity to check the compatibility of the glasses you chose with your prescription. In our case, Laima wanted to try a pair of Maui Jim Makahas, but the frames did not work with her prescription. Good to know.

Your credit card is charged for the frames, but not the prescription lenses (since the glasses you receive do not yet have prescription lenses). A 100% credit is applied when the frames are returned. Shipping is always done at no charge on orders over $100.00, as long as you live in the 48 contiguous United States.

Laima tried out the frames and then proceeded to supermodel them for me -- I had my preferences and, happily, she liked the same ones I did, the Adizero Smalls. She ad requested them in black, but they arrived in a transparent frame, which I liked better than the black, so we'll she if she opts to change that order.

Next up: we'll order Laima's prescription sunglasses, then have her try them out, and I'll report back on her response.

Disclaimer:  We did not cover the cost of the frames that they sent us (customers cover the cost of the frames usually). ADS Sports Eyewear also provided us with a prepaid return label (customers usually pay for return shipping).

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Midweek Motivation: Lift Others Up

Source: demgainz.com via Dem on Pinterest

This is something I find comes easier as I age, but we're working hard to instill it in our children now.

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