Food - So 'everyday' and such a cool subject

And here you have it.... "Rich" Americans and their food. They must be rich, right? They spent over $159 for their food this week!

Week's worth of food in a Sudanese Refugee Camp at a market value of $1.23

German Food - Look at all those bottles!

Isn't food such an amazing subject? Those of you who know me, know that I spend many of my waking hours thinking about it, planning for it, searching new ways of combining, cooking and presenting it, shopping for it - from as many different, unique stores as possible - thinking about where it comes from, wondering whether the food choices I'm making are the best, wondering why some food choices are 'normal' in some cultures, and why they'd gross out another. I wonder how some foods became foods, while other grains, seeds, fruits and vegetables became ignored, and became "weeds" or "inedible." I just found out that dandelion root is so good for us.... why do we spend so much money on Roundup trying to get rid of it? Why do we eat cows and not pigeons. But they do eat pigeons in some parts of the world, I'm told. Why do we think that eating bug larvae is disgusting, when we think that eating the muscles of animals is okay? And, why do we settle for sub-standard 'fast food' that makes us so sick, when we could cook foods that are better for us, put them in a tupperware, and eat them instead when we're on the run? WHy do we allow hormones, antibiotics and goodness knows what else into our food? Why have we become so detached from our food? WHy do we let our food manufactures take all the good stuff from our foods and let them get away with calling their products (i.e. flour) "enriched"? And, while we're on the subject of flour, what the hell does "bleached" mean? Why are gastro-intestinal diseases such as Chron's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis mostly concentrated in "modern," rich and industrialized countries (i.e. western Europe, Japan, Australia and North America).
I found a FASCINATING book just a couple of weeks ago in my local Woodland book store called Hungry Planet: What the World Eats. Its a fantastic book published by a Northern California publishing house that shows photos of families from all around our globe with a week's worth of food arranged around them. Here are some of the photos. While studying each of them, I couldn't help asking myself who the truly rich people are.

This family from Bhutan spent $5.03 for this week's food. Most of it was home-grown. If they were to buy it at a local market, they would have had to spend $29.

This family from Egypt spent $68.53 for this week's food. They spent the most (a little over $33) on protein, such as meat, fish and eggs; $11 on dairy items such as milk, yogurt and cheese; just over $10.50 on fruits, veggies and nutsand only 9 cents on already-prepared food.

Did you have a chance to look at the American family's food? What were the most striking images to you? For me, I just wonder "what the hell" are we thinking? Are we so far away from our food sources that we have to eat most of our needed nutrients packaged in cardboard, plastic, pumped with preservatives, made more 'palatable' with dyes, constructed with ultra-concentrated sugars to satisfy our addiction? How have we gotten ourselves into this mess? Eating low-quality, high-filler crap? I'm not saying that eating low-processed, straight from the local fields lentils for breakfast, lunch and dinner (like it seems the Sudanese do) is ideal, (God knows I like a little variety!). But, I wonder why we are so easily persuaded to eat packaged fake food? How the hell did a cute little freckled-face "little Debbie" and her cheapest quality bleached flours, hydrogenated oils and high-fructose corn syrups ever make it onto our store shelves?

I hope you know, while reading this, that I'm trying not to be jugemental. I'm just angry. I have fallen victim to this high-calorie low nutrition crap, packaged, salted and sweetened 'just right' so that I'd gobble up as many as I could get my hands on. I've had to make a real conscientious effort (actually many millions of efforts!) to change my food habits. I've had to work hard to change my taste buds, to actually let them know that eating a non-sweetened piece of fruit was actually good, that eating real 1/2 and 1/2 cream in my coffee is preferable to hydrogenated coffee-mate oils, to enjoy the somewhat tart and sour taste of real yogurt without sugar or asparatime (or realize I could sweeten it up with dried fruit). And, none of this came easy. It still doesn't. I still long for a tweenkie from time to time, damnit. But I have to call on my higher thoughts and intentions during these 'weak' moments. I don't want to be a slave to that crap. I don't want to support their further creation, packaging needs and transportation consequences.

That's it on that.

Lammy-Pie (Grass Fed)

This weekend Bernie and I became more "at one" with our earth. Through one of his workmates, he found us a local Woodland "farmer" who raises sheep, and who was willing to part with one for a mere $100. Buying an animal to eat opened up all kinds of excitement and questions for us. Some of the questions were just about logistics.... who's going to kill it? Where are we going to store the meat? How are we going to butcher it? Do we know how to butcher it? Some of the questions were a bit more weighty. Do we really want to get that intimate with our food sources? Are we willing to kill an innocent animal, transport it, then butcher it? And we love lambies.... they're so cute! But we also love lamb chops and gigot d'agneau spiked with garlic and served with gooey green mint jelly. So we decided that we were up for it. The farmer from "Keene's Acre" here in Woodland was nice enough to shoot it in the head before we got there, and just 20 minutes before-hand, no less! Bernard was prepared to slice the animal's throat ("egorger"), but I'm not sure our neighbors would have appreciated the noise. I'm not sure I could have stomached it either. We loaded the corpse into the back of our Highlander on a plastic tarp, and its eyes were all glazed over with a green sheen over them....looking kind of like a cataract. Bernie said that was how they all looked. He had blood coming from its nose and mouth, and his body was still really warm. When we got it home we hung it from a contraption Bernie set up. He hung it from its ankle, where he made a slit between two bones there. Ingenious. Then he did something else that impressed me. He made another small incision under his knee-cap, and inserted the nozzle of his air compressor, and turned it on reverse mode to pump air in between the muscle and skin so as to slowly detach the tissues. Amazing.... and it worked beautifully. As he began to cut the skin off, it was clear how much easier it was. Gutting the animal was VERY interesting. I didn't touch any of it, but I sure could smell it. Pee-yew! I just held my nose though, and watched as each of the organs came out. All of this animal's organs looked so healthy, and just like the pictures I'd seen in books. The liver was dark red-brown, the intestines all squiggly and greyish, the heart was red, and the lungs were so perfectly shaped, right down to the aveoli. What a miracle a body is. The larynx looked like a decompressed tube that I see coming from my clothes' dryer vent. I remember discecting a rat in college, and being amazed at that too. I know that discecting isn't the most pleasurable activity for many (including me), but it has given me the opportunity to observe nature's miracles up close. I know, it may sound corny, but I do have a lot of respect and love for this sheep who gave his life for us, to nourish us. Seeing a life given up for me (and my husband) makes me want to not waste, to respect, and to appreciate where my food comes from. Bernie must have been feeling the same thing, because since the sheep's death on Friday, he's eaten the head (yes), the heart, liver and sometihng else I forget now. I would have liked to have saved the wool for some project (maybe a sweater for each of my rats :)), I was a little overwhelmed at the time. I did touch it, though, and could feel the lanolin between the fibers. No wonder someone way back when decided to use this "material" as a (human) skin moisturizer.

So, there's that story.

grass fed lamb

food around world

michael pollan

vespa license

organic gardening

compost

strawberries & cream

lentil soup

Lammy-Pie (Grass Fed)

This weekend Bernie and I became more "at one" with our earth. Through one of his workmates, he found us a local Woodland "farmer" who raises sheep, and who was willing to part with one for a mere $100. Buying an animal to eat opened up all kinds of excitement and questions for us. Some of the questions were just about logistics.... who's going to kill it? Where are we going to store the meat? How are we going to butcher it? Do we know how to butcher it? Some of the questions were a bit more weighty. Do we really want to get that intimate with our food sources? Are we willing to kill an innocent animal, transport it, then butcher it? And we love lambies.... they're so cute! But we also love lamb chops and gigot d'agneau spiked with garlic and served with gooey green mint jelly. So we decided that we were up for it. The farmer from "Keene's Acre" here in Woodland was nice enough to shoot it in the head before we got there, and just 20 minutes before-hand, no less! Bernard was prepared to slice the animal's throat ("egorger"), but I'm not sure our neighbors would have appreciated the noise. I'm not sure I could have stomached it either. We loaded the corpse into the back of our Highlander on a plastic tarp, and its eyes were all glazed over with a green sheen over them....looking kind of like a cataract. Bernie said that was how they all looked. He had blood coming from its nose and mouth, and his body was still really warm. When we got it home we hung it from a contraption Bernie set up. He hung it from its ankle, where he made a slit between two bones there. Ingenious. Then he did something else that impressed me. He made another small incision under his knee-cap, and inserted the nozzle of his air compresser, and turned it on reverse mode to pump air in between the muscle and skin so as to slowly detatch the tissues. Amazing.... and it worked beautifully. As he began to cut the skin off, it was clear how much easier it was. Gutting the animal was VERY interesting. I didn't touch any of it, but I sure could smell it. Pee-yew! I just held my nose though, and watched as each of the organs came out. All of this animal's organs looked so healthy, and just like the pictures I'd seen in books. The liver was dark red-brown, the intestines all squiggly and greyish, the heart was red, and the lungs were so perfectly shaped, right down to the aveoli. What a miracle a body is. The larynx looked like a decompressed tube that I see coming from my clothes' dryer vent. I remember discecting a rat in college, and being amazed at that too. I know that discecting isn't the most pleasurable activity for many (including me), but it has given me the opportunity to observe nature's miracles up close. I know, it may sound corny, but I do have a lot of respect and love for this sheep who gave his life for us, to nourish us. Seeing a life given up for me (and my husband) makes me want to not waste, to respect, and to appreciate where my food comes from. Bernie must have been feeling the same thing, because since the sheep's death on Friday, he's eaten the head (yes), the heart, liver and sometihng else I forget now. I would have liked to have saved the wool for some project (maybe a sweater for each of my rats :)), I was a little overwhelmed at the time. I did touch it, though, and could feel the lanolin between the fibers. No wonder someone way back when decided to use this "material" as a (human) skin moisturizer.

So, there's that story.

grass fed lamb

food around world

michael pollan

vespa license

organic gardening

compost

strawberries & cream

lentil soup

Planted Today

3/3/08
French Green Lentils (lentils themselves, whole, unsprouted)

2/20/08
"Early Girl" tomato 6-pack
strawberry plants
"Yukon Gold" potatoes
"Fingerling" potatoes
Garlic (already sprouting on my kitchen counter)
spinach seeds
mustard seeds
rutabaga seeds
cleri "Rave" seeds
lettuce 6-pack
butter lettuce seeds
shallots (starts)
red onion (starts)
leeks (seeds)
rhubarb 6-pack
chives
carrots

Who Wants To See My Babies?

I have so much love for the little souls who live with us. I know, many think that we're silly, or that the love we receive from them is just "conditioning," that they've been positively reinforced to come out of their cages to see us because we're food/pellet providers. I don't think its as simplistic as that. Love can't be explained. Its not logical, but I know it when I feel it.... and who in their right mind can't feel a little "something" when they see these little precious bundles of fur?

Have you ever seen something so cute that you wanted to crack?!? Or eat it up? Or squeeze it? Of course I'm not talking about hurting it.... but I just dunno!?! Words fail me....

Our Bimpki and Timki watching TV with us. They really like the hours between 11:00 and 1:00 when there are back-to-back episodes of Dallas. They're still waiting to see who shot JR. Don't worry.... I won't ruin it for them.

Okay...the real deal. This is what we see every night around 10:00 pm: two little party girls wondering why their parents are heading to bed. Jeez...those humans have it all backwards!

Who wants a Timki kiss???

Two of our ckickens in their akward teenage stage.... can you see how Cici ("see see") is growing in facial stubble? Lulu was supposed to start showing her black polka-dot spots, but has still yet to do so... So much for sales promises at the feed store...

The "Grande Dame" of the garden, Suri Maya. She is THE sweetest cat I've ever known, not one of these aloof types. She comes when she knows you're around, and wants to make your lap her permanent home. Oh.... she's a good mouser too!

And this is the dog I hope to have one day. Growing up, my aunt and uncle had two of these beautiful and sweet Shetland Sheepdogs, Hector and Mandy. They provided such a beautiful model of a happily married couple to me. When they laid down together, Hector or Mandy would put their paw on the other's, and when tired, would sleep with their noses tucked into each other's.... How beautifully romantic.

Baby chickens again... when they just started out.

Last, but certainly not least..... P-I-M-I!!! Pimi, the one-eyed miniature hamster. Even though this little spirit could only see from one side of his face, was infested with some mystery skin infection, lost his upper and lower teeth, yetdarted out in spooky snake fashion whenever a finger came near him (only to be bitten by his pink gums), he managed to find his way into our hearts as no other rodent ever has. We love you Pimi.... We miss you....

Canning Watermelon Pickle.... Really!

Hello There! I'm writing to you from the world of domestic bliss. I have been on vacation for two days now, and I'm starting my summer canning, and I couldn't be happier.

Starting last night I began the process of canning watermelon rind pickles. These little ole pickles harken back to my childhood summers spent in Bakersfield with my aunt, uncle and cousins Johnny (now he likes to be called "JC" - I guess he's earned the right to be called what he wants now, he's nearly 40) and Heather. As we ate our watermelon at the breakfast, lunch or dinner table, poolside or sitting in front of the telly in our pyjamas, aunt Terri always made sure we saved our rinds for her pickle!

Yes, I thought it was bizarre....gross actually. But isn't it amazing how growing older increases our appreciation? I've heard our taste buds actually mature. I'm sure that my sentimentality is increasing....

So anyhoo.... as an homage to old Bakersfield hot summer days, and aunt Terri, here's my adventure with watermelon rind pickling. Oh, my mom said that these are good served with cooked bacon wrapped around them, with a nut, and broiled.... the salty, sweet and sour flavors together..... my mouth is watering right now!!

Okay, first thing's first. You have to get as many friends and family as possible to eat, eat, and eat some more watermelon. Then make sure that you keep your eyes on the rind, not for a moment letting them even think about throwing those rinds away. It took a little convincing to get Bernie (hubby) to comply, but eventually he did. You'll need 4 quarts watermelon rind (that's about the rind from one whole watermelon).

Here's the recipe:
4 quarts cubed rind, white part only (pink and green removed)

1 cup canning salt (yes, it has to be "canning" salt - table salt isn't appropriate)
OR
3 tablespoons pickling lime (yes, you can find this with canning equipment, pectin, etc.)

2 sticks cinnamon (each broken in half)
1 tablespoon whole allspice
1 tablespoon whole cloves
1/4 teaspoon mustard seed
1 thinly sliced lemon
2 pices fresh ginger, sliced
7 cups white sugar
1 quart white vinegar
Take the watermelon rinds, cut off most of the pink bits. Then, cut off the green outer layer. I found it easier to cut the rind in pieces prior to doing this this. If you waited, cut pices in one to two-inch squares/rectangles/triangles (whatever you like) now. Set aside.

Here you have to make a decision. Do you want crisp or soft pickles?

1. If you want crisp pickles, soak the rind for at least 2 hours in pickling lime dissolved in 2 quarts water

2. If you want regular, soft pickles, cover rind pieces with salt dissolved in 1 gallon of water. Let stand at least 12 hours, or overnight.

Drain the rind pieces, rinse and rinse several times more. Place pieces in stockpot, cover with water, and cook until fork tender. This took about 35-45 minutes when I did it. The aroma is interesting.... a little sweet, and pleasant. It brought my rats out of their cage, wondering what their next treat was going to be! Drain, and set aside.

This is a good time to get your spices together. Take a piece of cheesecloth or muslin, place all spices in it, and tie. I used a piece of embroidery thread laying around.

Aren't these spices pretty? I just love cooking with real ingredients in their natural state....

In another saucepot, combine sugar, vinegar, lemon slices and ginger. This smells so good! Add spice bag. Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add watermelon rind pieces, and simmer all together until rind pieces are transparent (yes, they turn almost se-through! They take on an almost candy-like appearance.)

Pack the rind, lemons (if you like, I do!) and liquid into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles by slipping a spatula around pieces and gently tapping botton of jar to release hiding bubbles.

Heat lids, place on jars and screw on bands.

Place jars with lids on in a big ole canner (this black and white-speckled tub on the right). Normally your canner should have a matching lid, but mine apparently got lost along the way. So, I'm using my copper saucepan that I got in France. It looks cute though, non?

"Process" (let the jars boil in the speckled canner) for 10 minutes.

With the canning jar lifter thingamijig, lift the jars out of the boiling water. Set on a towel 1/2 inch apart, and let cool for 12-18 hours.

They say that you should let the pickles rest for at least 3 months in order for all the flavors to get to know each other. So, maybe you can serve the rind, bacon and nut hors d'oeuvre for you Halloween party? Or Thanksgiving...even Christmas?

Bernie and I have jumped into the world of dehydrating. We purchased this Nesco "Gardenmaster" dehydrator at our trusty ole Davis ACE Hardware, and have been de-hydrating like mad since! We've done one batch of apricots (yum!) that I picked Thursday from a neighbor's overloaded tree (yes, there was a sign out front begging neighbors to help theim out), and we have also made a batch of beef jerky. Bernie is going to probably go into jerky overdose schck any moment now....not to mention the rats! Oh, that movie Ratatouille came out this weekend, and I have to say that I'm amused. I know, the idea of a rat being a "foodie" sounds perposterous (sp?) to some, but not to me and daddy... We have experienced, first hand the sophisiticated and at times, persnikity palates of our rodent "daughters."
Anyhoo.... I got off track. So far we LOVE our dehydrator. Tomorrow I'm planning on starting some canning. I am in the summer domestic mood! My mother thinks I'm crazy, my friends think I'm crazy, but in my own way, I'm starting my own "slow food" movement here in my corner of thw world. Yolo County is so full of fantastic, fresh, sweet produce, and I feel that I'd be more of a fool if I didn't honor it. Plus, I have the time off work, so why not?!? Getting started in canning/dehydrating isn't cheap though. I guess it might be if I had a grandma or mom or aunt around who canned and whose equipment I could borrow. But alas, I'm a lone ranger on this frontier. I wonder if my great grammie is chuckling, either wondering what the ($*% I'm fussing about when there's perfectly good canned/dired food available at Bel Aire, or she's feeling a little summer-time chore connection with me. I prefer to fantasize the latter....

Count of Monte Cristo & Chateau d'If

The Count of Monte Cristo and the Chateau d'if and Napoleon and Mercedes are rolling around in my head lately just like old pals. Isn't it amazing how intimate one becmes with the charachers and places in novels one reads? They become like family members, friends, even intimate enemies.

This is a really hot Napoleon!

Here's the "Count" with his lovely Mercedes. Isn't she cute? How sad that he had to live all of those lonely dark years without her... and not even knowing why! Poor fellow....

Okay, another hot rendition of Napoleon.

Le chateau d'if. I want to try to visit it this summer if I ever get to Marseilles. I remember sitting in my jr. high English classroom reading The Count of Monte Cristo and envisioning what this awful, dreary place looked like and felt like, even smelled like. I want to see if the real place is anything like what I imagined. I know, its a lot like Alcatraz here in my own back yard, but somehow being a continent away and several centuries old makes it far enough removed from anything familiar so as to make it a little less creepy. I hated Alcatraz. I think I still do.

Hunt For Tricolor Rosette Ribbon

Okay, who knows where I can find a red-white-blue rosette ribbon?
Remember Segolene Royal. During her campaign to be France's president in the spring of 2007, she wore a tricolor ribbon somewhat like the ones here, but I think with grosgrain ribbon. It was stunning!
If I can't buy a ribbon like it, then does anyone know where I can get directions on how to make my own?

The Nose Bidet

Okay, here's another fun thing. My guinea pig (Bernie) has recently started using the Nose Bidet (aka Neti Pot) for his allergies. With this and the honey regimn (see previous entry), he's laying off the Benadryl and prescription nose sprays. Bad for the pharmaceutical industry, good for us. Here's the definition of neti pot from Wikipedia:
The Sanskrit term Jala neti refers to an ancient yogic cleansing technique, meaning literally "water cleansing," where the practitioner rinses out the nasal cavity with water (usually salted) using a neti pot. The technique is starting to be recognized by Western medicine under the term nasal irrigation.
Jala neti, though relatively less known in western culture, is a common practice in parts of India and other areas in South East Asia, performed as routinely as using a toothbrush. It is performed daily usually the first thing in the morning with other cleansing practices. It may be useful at the end of the day if you work or live in a dusty or polluted environment. When dealing with problems of congestion it can be performed up to four times a day. Jala neti can be done at a bathroom sink without a special pot using just your hands and fresh water. Wet the palms and fingers of your hands and wet the inside of your nose. After, you can maybe tilt your head back and let the moisture enter your nasal passages. Later, blow your nose into the sink. Using warm water might be helpful.

Dinner Tonight

Crock Pot Split Pea Soup

1 (16 oz.) pkg. dried green split peas, rinsed
2 cups diced ham
3 carrots, peeled and rough diced

1/2 cup chopped onion
2 ribs of celery plus leaves, chopped
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, or 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 tbsp. seasoned salt (or to taste)
1/2 tsp. fresh pepper
1 1/2 qts. hot water

Layer ingredients in slow cooker in the order given; pour in water. Do not stir ingredients. Cover and cook on HIGH 4 to 5 hours or on low 8 to 10 hours until peas are very soft. Mash some peas to make it thicker.

Garnish with fresh parsley (if you have it), ham and why not a slice of baguette? You know what else would be really good with this? Some Frommage d'Affinois or Brie cheese on the bread. Yummmmmmm.

Does Ayone Love Their Rats Like I Do?

I love my rats. I adore my rats. They are such gentle, joyous, loving, precious beings, and so curious! Little Bimpkie came down with something last weekend, and I can't believe how emotional I got over it. She spent most of Saturday in her igloo while her sister did her normal thing.... begging for food, taking shoulder rides, eating her cookies, drinking and, of course, sleeping. When we pulled her out of her igloo for just a look, her eyes were all set-in, and she seemed really lethargic, just sittling light dead-weight in our hands. My heart just dropped, and I was so sad for the baby girl. I wished she could tell me what was wrong, where it hurt, if there was anything we could do for her... Bernie force fed her some water infused with a little Advil, and after a few doses she seemed to perk up a bit. But when we picked her up again Sunday, we could feel a big bump (cyst, tumor?) in her lower belly. Its still there today, and is pretty prominent, about the size of a grape. You can really see it when she stands up, begging for food. I'm so glad to see her beg though, and she seems to have gotten back her apppetite and desire to drink. We see and hear that she and Timki are resuming their beauty-shop routine (we can hear the little squeaks, I think of pleasure?), and that makes me relieved. I hope that precious little baby can live wiht us and her sister for a long time (without pain, of course). I can't believe that I'm so attached to them, but I am. I love my rats. I adore my rats.

Honey, Miraculous Honey

Yes, I'm a hippie at heart. When I head that honey made by local bees could help with allergies, I enlisted my husband as a guinea pig. I started him on a regimn of one-to-two teaspoons per day.

We both cautioned ourselves that it might take some time to take effect, if it were to actually work at all. I'm not exagerating when I say that he seemed to become less allergic within days. This time of year was really difficult for him, sneezing, stuffed up, runny eyes and nose, going through way too many tissue boxes, and way too much complaining....
So, you'll understand when I say that this honey success was truly exciting in the Maza household! Every time we see a bee (whether it be a honey bee or other funny looking bee-like creature, black and hairy, long and buzzing, whatever....) we blow it a little kiss and thank it. If its in the garden, we voyeuristically watch it loving our flowers, but if its in the pool, we try to encourage it to get out of the water before one of the little kids tries to smash it.

I've heard that there's a crisis with honey bees lately; that there are not enough of them around anymore; that their numbers are dropping, and nobody (even local UC Davis entymologists) dont' know why. Someone proposed that the cell phone waves are somehow disorienting to the poor little creatures, that they somehow lose their way from field to home. What are we gonna do? We need baby bees? Bernie needs baby bees!

Yogurt

Yes, I'm a health-nut wannabe. After my gastric-bypass surgery in January I feel like I got a second chance to do this healthy food thing. I'm still quite the carnivore (yes, I do need all of that protein), but am being a little more picky about other foods I put in my tummy. One of the things I've tried recently is home-made yogurt. Yes, I got the idea from "French Women Don't Get Fat," and I think its kinda fun! Since ordering it from Amazon.com, Bernie started reminicing his home-made yogurt days when he was a kid. I guess his mom made it regularly, never letting any of her kids eat "that last bottle," making sure that she had that starter for the next batch. He thinks my little appliance is overkill (after all, his mom just set her yogurt to cure next to a pilot light), but I'd probably forget the bottles in my closet where the heater is, and we'd probably have a nasty smell on our hands.

So, I've been adding blueberries to my yogurt, and am feeling extra healthy about it. Apparently blueberries have a lot of good stuff in them, and they'd better at the price I'm paying for each little box! I'm getting back into fiber cereal too, and the strawberries have been divine lately.

The "nonfat" French lady recommends that we eat the yogurt "nature," (i.e. without any sugar), but I just can't bring myself to put it into my mouth that way yet. I know that white sugar is the "white devil," but I guess I'm no angel. Maybe one day....

Anticipating Summer

This is where I'm going to spend much of my summer, as long as the summer gods are in agreement. This is the pool at our Cross Court athletic club here in Woodland. Bernard and I both love it. The people who work here are cheerful and relaxed, and most of the members are friendly. There aren't a ton of swim lanes as you can see, but usually I can find my way down a straight line without kicking too many kids underwater. I don't think it hurts too much when I do (at least that's what I'm telling myself :)

This year I started out doing about 12 laps ( I think one lap is about 25 meters), and now I'm up to about 40. I'm doing my best to get my leg, hip and behind muscles to pull their fair share, as I tend to usually rely on my arms to move me through the water. So, I've been using the kick-boards a lot lately. I feel like I move very little, very slowly, and am almost embarassed about it. But, embarassment hasn't gotten in my way a lot lately and I'm not going to let it stop me. I think I'm making some progress (i.e. moving a little faster these days). Yippee!

I've found a new beauty goodie. This Neutrogena "Build a Tan" has become part of my new after-shower regimn. You (I) do have to remember to blend it all in, and not leave any extra cream sit on the skin, or else risk looking like a tan-and-white zebra in the morning. Yes, I've got a couple of those lines on my calves as we speak.