Monday, November 14, 2011

3 Easy Ways To Thank A Farmer This Thanksgiving


By Judy Gerber
Thanksgiving Week,  is also National Farm-City Week (November 19 – November 25, 2010). It’s a week designed by the National Farm City Council to highlight the important roles that urban and rural partnerships play in food and fiber production and to enhance the links between farm families and urban residents.
Since 1955, the President of the United States has annually proclaimed the week leading to and including Thanksgiving Day as National Farm-City Week.
This makes it a great time to thank our local farmers because without them, we would have no fresh food or most of the products we use on a daily basis. Many people, especially those who grow their own food may think that agriculture doesn’t directly affect them. But, this is simply not true. From the time you crawl out of the cotton sheets on your bed in the morning, until you brush your teeth at night, agriculture is there. And, if we want a sustainable system of agriculture then we must do all we can to help support and protect it.
First, educate yourself on farm issues. This means learning all about legislation and policy. A good starting point is to familiarize yourself with the Farm Bill. Also check out the issues and actions that are the focus of family farm organizations like Farm Aid and American Farmland Trust. The mission of both of these groups is to keep family farmers on the land. They not only advocate on behalf of legislation, but also support our small and family farmers in numerous ways.
Next, make sure whenever possible, that you buy directly from farmers. Even those of us living in urban areas can shop at a local farmers’ market or join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).
Buying from farmers not only helps them keep farming, but it helps keep the dollars in the local economy. You can also look for locally grown produce and other foods when shopping at the supermarket. Look for “Buy Local” or “Locally Grown” signs showing that the food was made in your region or at least, your state. If you don’t see them where you shop, then ask where your food is grown, and if it isn’t grown locally, ask them to change their buying habits and buy local.
Use social media to thank our farmers, to spread the word and encourage others to thank them as well. Are you on Twitter? Then send out a message with the #ThankAFarmer hashtag in it. Or, share links to Farm Aid or other farm organizations on your Facebook wall and encourage others to do the same.
Judi Gerber is a University of California Master Gardener with a certificate in Horticultural Therapy. She writes about sustainable farming, local foods, and organic gardening for multiple magazines. Her book Farming in Torrance and the South Bay was released in September 2008.



Wednesday, November 9, 2011


Mindful eating is a term that gets thrown around a lot. Sure, I know that I shouldn’t inhale my pizza at warp speed or plop myself in front of the TV with a bag of chips. But as the holidays (and the stress that comes with them) approach, my knowledge of mindful eating goes out the window. Three hours into stuffing my face with Thanksgiving dinner, I can barely button my pants.
So, in a conscious effort to cut back on the pecan pie, I’m reminding myself of the principles of mindful eating. No better time to appreciate my meal and savor the experience like Thanksgiving. The Center of Mindful Eating gives tips on how to make eating a positive and nourishing experience. Here’s how:
  • Be aware of the positive and nurturing opportunities available through eating and preparing food.
  • Choose to eat food that is both pleasing to you and nourishing to your body by using all your senses to explore, savor, and taste.
  • Acknowledge your responses to food (likes, neutral, or dislikes) without judgment.
  • Recognize physical hunger and satiety cues, and let them guide your decision to start (and stop) eating.
I’m glad to have the reminder of how to mindfully eat. Thanksgiving isn’t the only time I eat on auto-pilot–on more than one occasion have I realized I’ve eaten an entire bag of cookies without noticing I’m full. This Thanksgiving, I’m planning on slowing way down during the meal, so that I can enjoy the people around the table more than the mashed potatoes.
How are you spending your Thanksgiving holiday? Are you as nervous as I am for the free-for-all at the dinner table? What are your tips to keep from overeating?
Natural Solutions: Vibrant Health, Balanced Living offers its readers the latest news on health conditions, herbs and supplements, natural beauty products, healing foods and conscious living. Click here for a free sample issue.

Monday, October 31, 2011

10 Safe Halloween Pranks

Michelle Dennis/stock.xchng
By Philip Schmidt, Hometalk

Smashing pumpkins is a cliche, and only serves to make a mess. TP-ing a house isn’t a good Halloween prank because you can do it any time of the year. And vandalism is downright thuggish – the preference of the slightly imbalanced kid in the group who has to take everything too far. No, a Halloween prank is worth its weight in blood only if it scares the pirate pants off of someone or gives them the willies deep inside their skeleton. Of course, a funny gag played on trick-or-treaters is equally apropos on this night of heightened emotions. Boo!
1. Servin’ up over-easies
Handing out inappropriate “treats” to trick-or-treaters is an old classic, but one of the all-time best comes from Geoff “Peter Pan” Dodd (my uncle-in-law), who answers the door holding a spatula and a frying pan full of fried eggs, ready to drop one in the nearest treat bag.
2. Junk drawer treats
A variation on the terrible treat gag: Tell trick-or-treaters that you’re sorry but you’ve just run out of candy. Then say, “Well, wait a minute…I’m sure I can find something here that’s good…” Step away from the door briefly (and make voluble sounds of rummaging through a drawer or closet, if desired), coming back with “treats” like an old hairbrush or toothbrush, leftovers from the fridge, one dirty sock…anything you can think of. Be completely earnest and ask, “Who wants what?” to really make them squirm.
3. Living dead scarecrow
This timeless classic requires careful setup, but it scares the candy corn out of trick-or-treaters of all ages. Dress up as a scarecrow or other suitable character so your body and face are completely concealed. Slump down onto a hay bale next to your front door, as though you’re a dummy. When visitors have rung the bell and await the door opening, you come to life in any variety of ways: jump up and scream hideously, slump over and moan, say “hello” as though you’ve been waiting for them to arrive…anything will get a good reaction.
4. Table manners
Set up a card table on your front stoop or concrete stairs with a self-serve bowl of candy, and darken the house as though you’ve gone out trick-or-treating. Cover the table with a tablecloth, and post a sign that says, “Please take one piece only.” Have one person hide under the table while another is in the house secretly watching the bowl of candy, communicating to the table person via cell phone. When the watcher catches a kid taking a handful of candy (as many inevitably do), he signals to the table person, who yells out from his hiding place, “ONE PIECE ONLY!!!” or a similar admonishment. There’s also the option of jumping out from under the table to reveal a frightening getup.
5. Leaf of your senses
A simpler variation on the scarecrow: Hide inside a pile of leaves near the driveway or walkway leading to the front door, and jump out with a monster howl at the appropriate time. You can also scare them coming and going by having a friend hide inside a bagged trash can next to the leaf pile.
6. Rubber rat floating in toilet
This is a simple family prank for Halloween night. Please don’t try this unless everyone in the house has a healthy heart.
7. Thick glasses
A funny prank for trick-or-treaters: Answer the door wearing ridiculously thick-lensed glasses (costume or real) and pretend to have extremely poor eyesight, repeatedly missing the mark when trying to drop candy into the treat bags. You’ll be amazed at how many kids fall for this and try desperately to move their bags underneath your misguided hands.
8. Caramel onions
Another classic for family and friends: Wrap an apple-shaped onion in a caramel-apple wrap (available in grocery stores this time of year). Add a Popsicle stick, melt the caramel slightly in the microwave for an authentic look, and let it cool. Serve to the sucker of your choice. Credit for this idea goes to Safepranks.net.
9. Double surprise
This one requires some acting ability. Open the door for trick-or-treaters wearing a bathrobe and slippers, with your hair wrapped in a towel (for women). Act completely surprised by the commotion, saying, “Oh, geez! I forgot it was Halloween. I was just getting ready to take a bloodbath.” Follow this with whatever ghoulish behavior you choose—bare your teeth to reveal blood-stained fangs, pull the towel from your head to show a bloody skull cap pierced with a spike or saw blade, etc.
10. Sick at work
Show up looking terribly ill and complain of unusual and odious symptoms. Explain to coworkers in confidence that you knew you shouldn’t have come to work today but you just couldn’t miss the Halloween party. And scratch a lot.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Have A Greener Halloween


Halloween2


Halloween can be a pretty wasteful holiday if you let it, but it doesn’t have to be! And you don’t have to give up the spooky good times to keep it green.

From costumes and candy to decorations and clean-up, there are lots of places where you can make more sustainable choices this Halloween. Of course, you don’t want your green routine to take the fun out of this spooky day. I think that one of the keys to getting folks on board with making eco-friendly life choices is showing that not only is it better for the planet, but it’s delicious and festive, too!
 Whether you’re just going trick-or-treating or if you’re planning a full-on Halloween shindig, we’ve got you covered so that you can reduce your waste without cutting back on the fun!

Green Trick-or-Treating 
 Halloween-candy

Planning to head out and collect candy? Instead of a boring plastic pumpkin, you and the kiddos can make your own candy-collecting bag out of recycled materials. Here are a couple of tutorials to get you going:


  • Turn a thrifted pillowcase into a customized treat bag. You can make this even more fun by letting the kids embellish their bags with cut out spooky shapes. Either sew them on or attach with fabric glue.
  • Make a recycled felt trick-or-treat bag. You can find Kunin recycled felt online - it’s made from plastic water and soda bottles that would have otherwise been landfill-bound!
  • Transform an old tank top into a treat bag: turn the tank inside out, sew across the bottom to seal it up, flip it right side out again, and you’re ready to trick-or-treat! If the tank top is too long, you may want to cut the bottom down a bit before sewing, so it won’t drag on the ground.
  • Use a basket. Thrift stores usually have pretty hefty stashes of baskets, which are perfect for collecting candy! If you want to get crafty, you and the kids can decorate your baskets to personalize them!
If you’re planning to stay in and hand out candy, you’ve got a great opportunity to make a positive impact.  Opt for fair trade chocolates and candies that are sweetened with real sugar. Your local co-op or health food store will have plenty of options, or you can find fair trade candy online. Just remember: a lot of parents will be wary about letting their little ones accept unwrapped candy, so you’ll want to go for “bite sized” treats, unless you want to give out full sized candy bars!

Eco-Friendly Costume Ideas


Felt-superhero-badges
Store-bought Halloween costumes are often far from green. Usually, they’re heavy on the plastic and polyester, and to keep the price down, they tend to involve sweatshop labor. This year, you can whip up your own DIY costumes, and you don’t even need sewing skills to do it!
      • Got a little superhero in your life? Make him a simple, felt mask out of the Kunin recycled felt we mentioned on the previous page! You can complete the costume by pinning on a pillowcase "cape" and a felt superhero badge.  Voila!
      • For an easy witch costume, dress your little one in all black, give her a broom, and whip up a witch's hat out of an old coat hanger.
      • Grab a couple of cardboard boxes from the recycle bin, cut arm holes in one, eye holes in another, and decorate to make a quickie robot costume that you can recycle or compost when Halloween is over.
      The key with an eco-friendly costume is to get creative! Hit up your local thrift store to find fun, second-hand elements. You can also look for costumes on sites like Freecycle or Craigslist, or arrange a costume swap with friends to reuse costumes from previous years.

      Eco-Halloween Decor 

      Mummy-candle-holders

      If you’re throwing a Halloween shindig, you’re going to need some spooky-ooky decorations! Sure, you could head to the party store, but most of the supplies you find there are intended to be used once and tossed. They’re also often made from plastic and other not-so-eco materials. With a little bit of planning, you can whip up your own green Halloween decor that will last for more than just one holiday! Here are some decoration ideas to get you started:
        • Spookify your tabletops with a Mummified Glass Candle Holders.
        • Raid your fabric scrap bin and whip up some super simple, fabric bunting!
        • Good old Jack-o-lanterns are an eco-friendly choice. When the party's over, toss them into the compost bin.
        • Go for natural decorations like gourds, pine cones, leaves, sticks and twigs.
        With just a bit of planning and a pinch of crafty know-how, you can make Halloween as green as it is spooky!

        Monday, October 24, 2011

        Your Kids Are The Gym

        Via Zen Habits | Leo Babauta

        I’m a big subscriber to using whatever you can find to work out: pullups on trees, throw big boulders, flip logs or big tires, jump over things, sprint up hills.

        As a parent and a minimalist, I’d like to share my ultimate minimalist workout secret: my kids are my gym.

        Fellow parents, if you’re not doing this yet, I can’t recommend it highly enough. How are they my gym? Instead of paying hundreds of dollars (even thousands) a year for a gym, I use my kids to get in shape.

        How? Every way I can, but here’s a few:
        • I carry them on my shoulders as we walk around town.
        • We race each other to the corner, sprinting. Often up hills.
        • I do pushups with them on my back.
        • I lift them up in the air — it’s like lifting weights.
        • I’ll let them hang on me as I do chinups.
        • We climb and jump around in the playground.
        • We play with the soccer ball — getting lots of sprints in as we do.
        • We jump around in the ocean. A great workout.
        • We wrestle.
        • We challenge each other to do pistols (one-legged squats) or handstand pushups (what they sound like). Mostly we can’t, but it’s fun.
        • We do lunges while walking up a hill.
        • I carry them slung across my shoulders — a fireman’s carry — which is a great workout btw.
        • I’ll carry one on my back, piggy-back style, while racing another kid up a hill. Yes, I love hills.


        More awesome than a gym

        So why is this so awesome?

        1. We bond. Instead of spending time away from the kids at a gym, I spend time with them. And get a great workout in throughout the day. It’s two birds, one stone, saving time while helping me bond with my kids.

        2. Work becomes play. It’s not exercise, it’s not a workout, it’s *play*. And that’s a whole different ballgame. Play is fun, it’s challenging, it’s easy, and yet it’s a great way to get in shape.

        3. No cost. OK, kids aren’t cheap — but I have them anyway, so why not use them? I’m saving money and getting fit — that’s all kinds of win.

        4. I’m being a role model. Kid learn most of all from what they see others doing, especially their parents. You can tell them things all day long, but unless they see you doing it, you’re not teaching them much. When we go to the gym, they don’t see us working out. When we workout as we play with them, they’re learning how to be healthy, and that is a gift that will last a lifetime.

        5. It’s a lifestyle. I don’t work out at one time during the day, and then stay sedentary the rest of the day. It’s all throughout the day, every day, which means it’s woven into my life, not a small segment of my life. This is what a healthy lifestyle looks like.

        6. It’s functional. When you do a bicep curl with a dumbbell, you’re making a motion that you never would do in real life — when have you ever lifted something heavy while keeping your upper arm fixed to your torso? Instead, when we lift heavy things, we bend at the knees, and use our legs, our torso, our shoulders, our arms — basically most of our body at once. When I lift my kids, that’s the same motion I’d use to lift anything else. Functional exercise is much more useful than isolated lifts.

        Working out using my kids as equipment is the best thing I’ve done with my fitness. It’s fun, so I never want to stop. It’s functional, it’s cheap, and best of all, I get to do it with my kids. I love it.

        Friday, October 21, 2011

        From Overweight To Healthy

        Via Zen Habits | Leo Babauta

        Make one change today.

        If you’re overweight and unmotivated to change your life drastically, just make a tiny change.

        You’re not alone. There are more overweight people today than ever before, as a percentage of our population and in sheer numbers. I’ve been overweight (65 pounds heavier than I am today) and I know that it doesn’t feel good.

        I also know that when we’re overweight, we often go into denial. We think it’s not a problem, or that we’re not that unhealthy, or that it’s something we can fix later. Or more likely, we try hard not to think about it. But it’s there, at the back of our minds if nowhere else, making us feel bad about ourselves and our lives, influencing the rest of what we do.

        If it were just a body-image thing, I’d say learn to love your body — and I believe that. Forget the cover models on magazines, the perfect people on TV and in movies. They’re just being used to sell us stuff, but the result is that we get bad body images for not having rock-hard abs. Forget about that. What worries me, though, about friends and family who are overweight is their health — having a big belly puts you at risk of heart disease, diabetes and other similar problems.

        Scary stuff.

        But how do you start getting healthier and fitter? How do you change a whole slew of habits, from eating too much to eating fried and sweet and fatty foods to drinking sodas and sweet coffee drinks to being sedentary?

        You make one change. A tiny little one.

        For me, it started with quitting smoking (which is a big change), but then I took up running (starting with just 10 minutes), and then I started changing my diet in little ways.

        One small change leads to another, forming a spiral of success. But you don’t need to worry about all the other changes you’re going to make later.

        What Change to Start With

        Really, you could start with almost any positive change. What matters is that you start.

        But if you’d like a recommendation, here are a few:

        1. Eat more veggies. Go to the store today and buy a basket of veggies. Eat them raw as snacks (dip in hummus if you like, not fatty dressings), steam them as side dishes for lunch and dinner, puree them and put them into your usual recipes, eat a salad before your meal. You can start with just one of these changes, and slowly add more veggies each week. This is an easy change but it’s actually huge — more fibre, more vitamins and minerals, fewer calories equals leaner you.
        2. Walk. Best exercise ever. Just walk for 10 minutes to start with. Get a friend or your significant other to walk with you and enjoy the conversation. Enjoy nature. After you’ve gotten used to walking, try intervals: 3 minutes of fast walking, 3 minutes of conversational walking, repeat.
        3. Drink water. People drink too many calories — soda, beer, smoothies, mochas, frappucinos, shakes, juice, Gatorade. None of those are necessary. Get used to drinking water, which is refreshing, delicious and healthy.
        4. Get rid of the junk. This is actually a bit of a drastic change but it makes a really big difference. Take all the junk food in your house (chips, pastries, ice cream, cookies, prepared foods of any kind, fried foods) and toss them. Clean out your fridge and pantry. Buy fruits, veggies, nuts and beans instead, and try some new flavorful recipes. If the junk isn’t around, it won’t tempt you.

        How to Make That One Change

        You’ve picked your one small change … but how do you get started?

        Just take the first small step. Nothing huge or scary. Just a really, really easy one.

        Make a list of your favorite veggies, or set a time today to stop at the grocery store for veggies (later try a farmer’s market). Or find a recipe or two that incorporates veggies.

        Set a time to walk today or tomorrow. Talk to your spouse about walking together. Get your walking shoes ready. Any of these steps will do — just do one.

        Fill a thermos with water. Buy a reusable water bottle. Get rid of the sodas in your fridge. Choose one of these.

        Get a garbage bag and toss your junk food.

        Choose one, and do it. Celebrate (in your mind, not with a sweet treat). Do another small tiny easy step. Celebrate again. Tell people about the changes you’re making. Do another tiny step. Celebrate some more.

        You’re on the road to healthy.

        Wednesday, October 19, 2011

        A Simple Way To Lean Fitness


        Via Zen Habits | Leo Babauta
        I’m in the best shape in my life.
        I’m incredibly happy to say that. For years (as many of you know) I was in terrible health — I was overweight and sedentary and addicted to junk food and a smoker and overworked.
        Today after more than five years of living healthy I am about 65 pounds lighter. I’m leaner than I’ve been since probably high school with the same pants size as I had in high school (31 inches) — while being much stronger than I was back then. More importantly I am fitter: I can run and play sports and hike and do activities of all kinds better than ever before.
        How have I achieved all of this? Slow change. I’ve done no fad diets or quick weight loss. I’ve done nothing extreme. Everything is about living healthier and eating whole foods and being active most days. And about enjoying the journey.
        Today I thought I’d share a bit about how I eat. It’s not meant to be copied exactly but to inform others trying to make a similar journey. Also see the next post: How I Train.

        Overall philosophy

        My general philosophy of eating:
        • I don’t go for anything extreme. I’ve made small changes to my diet over the years and have found this works best: if you try for drastic changes you’ll hate it and won’t stick to it for long. But add a few extra fruits and veggies and it’s not hard. Change soda to water next month and it’s not deprivation.
        • eat slowly. OK … not always but most of the time. Eating slowly allows me to fully savor the taste of the healthy food I eat and at the same time eat less while still feeling satiated (not stuffed).
        • I eat real foods. I try for veggies and fruits and raw nuts and seeds and beans and some whole grains. Sometimes my food is processed but mostly it’s just the stuff you’ll find in the produce and bulk sections of a supermarket (or farmer’s market).
        • I eat plants. I do that mostly for reasons of compassion (killing animals for pleasure doesn’t feel right to me) but I’ve found it’s also an extremely healthy way to eat. Sure it’s possible to be vegan and unhealthy (eat processed fake meats and sweets) but if you’re a whole-food vegan it’s hard to go wrong. And yes it’s easy to get protein as a vegan.
        • I enjoy myself. I look for healthy foods I love — berries for example — and savor them. I’ll eat sweets now and then but in small portions and truly enjoy the few bites I have. I have red wine and love it. I drink beer sometimes and it’s wonderful. I have pizza about once a week and it’s delicious. Eating healthy isn’t about deprivation but about finding ways to enjoy yourself while living a healthy life.

        My Diet

        This month I’ve cut my less healthy choices down to Saturdays — as inspired by Tim Ferriss’s book The 4-Hour Body. That means I only eat pasta and pizza and sweets and beer and French fries on Saturdays. This has gotten me even leaner and I recommend this way of living.
        The rest of the week I eat my own version of Tim’s Slow Carb Diet — the Leo version. That means I eat a little fruit and a few whole grains and I don’t eat the meat. I don’t eat fried foods or drink calories (other than red wine at dinner) or eat white carbs (pasta bread rice potatoes pizza).
        What I eat:
        • Beans – lentils and black beans and kidney beans and pintos and soybeans.
        • Nuts and seeds – raw almonds and walnuts and seeds and olive oil and avocadoes.
        • Veggies – lots of greens like kale and spinach and chard and broccoli. Carrots and various bell peppers and sprouts and so on.
        • Fruits – berries and apples and oranges and a little dried fruits like raisins. In moderation.
        • Whole grains – steel-cut oats and Ezekiel flourless sprouted-grains bread and quinoa (not technically a grain). That’s about it — I don’t eat pastas or whole-grain muffins or the like.

        My Meals

        My typical day usually goes like this:
        • Breakfast: Every day I eat steel-cut oats for breakfast late in the morning (usually between 10:30 and 11:30). I cook it and then mix it with flaxseeds and cinnamon and blueberries and raw almonds and a few raisins and maybe a small amount of banana or raspberries.
        • Lunch: Typically a big-ass salad with kale and spinach and sprouts and avocados and beans and raw nuts and a little fruit with balsamic vinegar. Sometimes I’ll eat a tofu stir-fry with greens.
        • Snack: If I’m hungry in the afternoon I’ll eat some raw nuts and dried fruit or veggies and hummus.
        • Dinner: Beans and veggies or a tofu-stir fry or veggie chili with beans. This meal varies. Sometimes the beans will be Indian style or Mexican style. Usually the veggies will be greens like kale or broccoli or chard. Sometimes I’ll have quinoa. Red wine with dinner.
        And that’s about it. Over time I’ve found I need less food than I used to. Eat slowly and you’ll find yourself full on less food.

        The Results

        I used to spread my “cheats” throughout the week — a whole-grain muffin here and some pizza there and beer more than I’d like to admit. But putting everything on Saturdays has helped me be honest the rest of the week.
        I honestly enjoy eating whole foods. I enjoy being lighter and leaner. I’ve gained muscle eating these foods though I might focus on building more muscle later in the year.
        I run faster than ever. I can do more intense workouts than ever before. I was tested for various health indicators recently and everything was perfect. Eating this way has absolutely changed my life.

        Notes

        A couple notes to answer potential questions:
        • Soy is not unhealthy. You might have read various scare articles on the Internet about soy (usually based on misleading articles from the Weston A. Price Foundation) but they’re misinterpretations of science. I eat soy in moderation and try for whole soy in natural forms (tofu, tempeh, edamame, some natural soy milk). I don’t have man boobs and I’m absolutely healthy. Instead of pointing to “scientific” explanations of why soy is unhealthy show me the actual peer-reviewed studies that show that moderate amounts of natural soy (not soy protein isolate) have caused health problems.
        • You can absolutely get enough protein and calcium and iron on a vegan diet if you eat whole foods and not junk.
        • Sugar is junk and that includes white flour pasta and breads and French fries. It’s worthless calories. Whole grains in moderation provide nutrients and fiber.
        • A little meat in moderation is not unhealthy — especially if you choose grass fed and free range. Most people eat unhealthy amounts of meat and eggs and dairy. Those foods in any amount are unethical in my opinion — even if they’re grass fed and free range. Exploitation of animals as objects and their suffering for our pleasure is not compassionate. We don’t need animal products to live healthy lives — as my example shows — so the only reason to eat them is for our pleasure (we like the taste).