Similar Posts

  • |

    Karma, Dharma, and Interconnectedness

    ByElizabeth

    Near the beginning of my last morning beach walk (I’m now in Houston waiting for my connecting flight home), I met this water snake washed up on the beach. It was still pretty active, so I made an effort to get it back into the water.

    It swam into the water, and I hoped I’d saved it. On my return, it had been wave-tossed back above the water line and was looking far more feeble. I tried again, but this time it was just thrown again on the beach and no longer moving.

    It made me think about how connected are all of our destinies and how sometimes we can change things and sometimes we cannot.

  • |

    Let There Be Vegan Kimchee

    ByElizabeth

    I was at Eastern Market earlier today.  As kimchee has been on my mind (given the recent and resounding success with homemade sauerkraut), I checked for napa cabbage and daikon radish.  I didn’t see it, but decided to ask anyway (after all, if we don’t ask for what we want, it is far less likely that we will get it–whether it is ingredients for kimchee, or help from a yoga teacher, or needs met in relationship).

    Yes, they had a gorgeous napa cabbage and a big, beautiful daikon radish.  They sell their own fresh made kimchee (it’s delicious), so I thought they might have the other key ingredient I needed:  powdered Korean hot pepper.

    I said that I enjoyed their kimchee and that I guessed they made it the traditional way, with a rice flour slurry and anchovies.

    Yes, indeed, they do it that way.

    I said I was making a simpler version, but did want the right kind of pepper.  Did they have some?

    The woman serving me, said yes, went in the back, cut open an enormous bag of powdered pepper and, along with the vegetables, sold me a few ounces of the pepper.  From this enterprise, I’ve  already made a deeper connection to one of my local small businesses, and in a week or two, I’ll also have a big batch of kimchee.

    ps.  I used Michael Pollan’s recipe as a rough guide.  What I like especially about the recipe is that it expects variation based on quality and age of produce and personal taste.  The cook is invited to pay attention instead of just follow by rote.

    kimchee ingredients

  • | |

    Letter from FCNL on How You Can Help Shape the Budget

    ByElizabeth

    I just received this letter and wanted to pass it on to those who have senators and members of Congress (those of us in DC still do not):

    Dear Elizabeth Goodman,One of our lobbyists just reported to me that some members of the supercommittee are telling us they are open to cutting Pentagon spending. “We need to hear what the folks back home in our state have to say about this,” we heard.The most important voice in this budget debate is your voices as constituents. As they make their decision, your members of Congress need to hear your side of this story. They need to hear about the consequences in your communities when money isn’t invested in schools, roads, jobs, and other local priorities.Today, will you write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper? Refer to your members of Congress by name and point out the needs in your local community.Communities around the country are being squeezed. More people are relying on food banks; local governments are copying with both the neighborhood and family stress of foreclosure; schools are increasing class sizes and shortening the school year; and critical maintenance on bridges and roadways. Police and firefighters are losing their jobs.  Yet, the Pentagon budget continues to grow.Congress will take action to reduce the deficit, which means budget cuts. But if Congress doesn’t act to cut at Pentagon spending by a significant amount — FCNL and others believe that number is $1 trillion over the next ten years — then the cuts to other programs will be much deeper. Cutting the Pentagon budget and potentially making more funds available to meet the needs of state and local communities.  There is an opportunity to make this change.Thank you for your action.Sincerely,Diane RandallExecutive Secretary  P.S. If you want to know more about how much Pentagon spending is slated to rise, or more on FCNL’s views on the debt, deficit and supercommittee, visit our website. 

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.