Me Food: Chicken Lamborghini

At Chez Louis Restaurant this dish would surely sell for $25, but that's because the name is top tier and Louis wouldn't use leftovers like I did. I call it Chicken Lamborghini because I can make it really fast and it goes down the same way.

Start your engines.

["Chicken Lamboghini scores top points in Me Food Book"]

Fry pan at medium hot. Drop in small pad of butter, nice oil, and thinly sliced garlic.

While the smell of garlic fills the kitchen, dice a couple of mushrooms, 2" of zucchini, a few thin slices of red pepper. Toss into the pan from where you stand.

Chop up a leftover baked potato and half a grilled chicken breast. Toss into the pan.

["Not bad. Not bad at all"]

Before covering the pan sprinkle in pepper and dribble a wee bit of red wine onto the mix. Stir with a wooden spoon. Take a deep breath and enjoy a few sips of wine for about three minutes.

Fuss a bit over your own leftovers, and enjoy.

Photos by GH

***

Please click here to read Food-E: It Strikes Me Funny

Austerity without Anxiety: Practice does make perfect, eh

The more I practice my wrist shot (once a thing of beauty) the more fear will grow in the hearts of goalies in the 50-plus league. Perhaps everywhere.

And the more I practice austere measures today the more prepared I’ll be for tougher, thinner, pricier times ahead on Planet Earth.

Already I have a few austere habits. (Please follow the ‘Please click here’ links below.) They’re in my genes, eh. I cook my own oatmeal, brew my own coffee, make a Frontier Stew that costs less and tastes better than canned.

Why, I even cut my own hair. I’ve been doing so for almost 20 years, and am on my second set of electric clippers and attachments.


* [“Q: What are the ear plugs for?”: photos by GH]

Total cost in 20 years - about $80 ($35 - $40 per set).

Total savings - 10 - 12 haircuts per year x 20 bucks (incl. tip) = $4,000 - $4,800.


[“I don’t care if Bob thinks I’m square.”]

Truth be told, I also save time by cutting my own hair, and by keeping it so short I’ve stopped using shampoo (more savings). I just give my hair a quick swipe with my face cloth and ordinary soap while nabbing a shower. My wife says she has not noticed any dandruff for 20 years... on me!

Of course, she can’t run her fingers through what’s left of my hair anymore but that’s another story.

***

Do you cut your own hair? How much have you saved? I bet it’s substantial.

Please click here for more Austerity without Anxiety.

* [“A: My wife uses the ear plugs. She checks the back of my head when I’m done and once nicked my ear when she zipped a spot I’d missed. I screamed like a baby.”]

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Live Small and Prosper: Gord’s Frontier Stew is a winner PT 2

[Consumers will eventually feel the impact of a 40% rise in basic agricultural commodities in the past year. “That will work its way down to the grocery stores...” Apr. 8, London Free Press]

I pay less than 10 cents for a large mug of coffee.

And that includes milk and sugar and 15 seconds of ‘silly dance’ as the caffeine enters my system whilst I stand at the kitchen counter.

I pay less than 20 cents for a healthy bowl of homemade breakfast cereal.

And that includes diced banana on top. Gotta have my diced banana. It also powers the silly dance.

But what do I pay per serving for my ever-popular Frontier Stew?

I can fairly accurately determine the cost of my latest batch. I bought a few supplies for $13.70 and added supplies I already had at home.


The $13.70 covered a can of peas, can of corn, two cans of maple-flavoured beans, two cans of five-bean medley, one Spanish onion and a boneless pork rib roast ($5.32 @ $4.49/kg; on sale). These supplies were halved ($6.85) in order to make two batches of slow-cooker stew.

From ‘on-hand’ supplies I added half a bottle of dark ale ($0.65), 3/4 cup of red wine ($1.00), seven potatoes ($1.00) and five carrots ($1.00) to each batch. ($3.65)

Total cost of one full, large pot of slow cooker stew (enough to fill two large casserole dishes) - $10.50.


["Delicious stew and photos by GH"]

Cost per serving varies, of course, depending on my appetite, but (and I’ll be honest) I’ll easily get a dozen or more meals from each batch. And when I compare my stew to even the cheapest restaurant or fast food offerings, I have to say (and I’ll be honest), Frontier Stew is cheaper - AWESOMER!

Every other day the media will announce that hard times are coming, grocery-, mortgage-, taxes-, and lifestyle-wise. I also proclaim - regularly - “reduce spending, pay down debt, save money for the tough times ahead” because I know (I’ll be honest here) they are coming.

However, here in North America we are a very capable, creative bunch. We know how to shop for deals (Oh, do we ever know how to shop!), we know our way around a kitchen, which is the most expensive and under-used room in most new houses. A little more self-reliance won’t hurt any of us at all.

If higher grocery prices move us toward (for example) our own kitchens and healthier eating, I say, the sooner the better.

In the same way, if higher fuel costs drive us toward other healthier lifestyle choices (e.g., smaller homes and less furniture, smaller closets and fewer clothing items, smaller cars and fewer driving kilometers and more mass-transit, smaller meals and fewer manufactured individual servings, etc.), I say, the sooner the better.

Okay, where’s the darn spatula?

***

Please click here to read Gord’s Frontier Stew is a winner PT 1

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Live Small and Prosper: Gord’s Frontier Stew is a winner

[Doug Porter, deputy chief economist for BMO Capital Markets warned consumers will eventually feel the impact of a 40% rise in basic agricultural commodities in the past year. “That will work its way down to the grocery stores but it will take about 10 to 12 months.” April 8, London Free Press]

I spent part of yesterday afternoon in the kitchen, then visited my workshop wearing a big smile.

And why the Cheshire grin? I realized, while peeling spuds, I get paid good money to cook supper in my own house. Really good money.


Already my brain registers delight daily when I brew morning coffee. The $19.38 I paid one week ago for 1.6 pounds of fresh beans has already been repaid (thanks to my 2 - 3 cups per day habit), and most of the coffee has yet to be brewed.

I bet, including the money I save by not driving to a coffee shop on a regular basis, the price of a cup of coffee is under 10 cents. When it goes up in price, say 40%, I’ll still be paying less than 15 cents per mug, for a savings of $1.35. Why, it’s like paying myself almost $5 every time I brew a pot of coffee. Brilliant.


["Better than bacon and eggs any old day": photos GH]

Already I feel I pay myself $20 or more, after the cost of supplies, every time I make a large batch of porridge. Ten servings cost very little compared to one or two restaurant breakfasts. And my heart thanks me for the mix of oatmeal, Red River cereal, bran, flax seed, raisins, currants and dried cranberries.

But what about the cost of my ever-popular Frontier Stew? I never thought about it closely, until yesterday.

Stay tuned.

***

Please click here for “I Ask You” and more about the price of coffee.

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I Ask You: How much is one cup of coffee?

I know I already get a deal when I fill up my travel mug at The Red Roaster. (I am charged the ‘one mug’ price and grab my own refill when the staff is distracted).

And I know I get a better deal - price per cup - when I buy bags of Red Roaster coffee and brew my own at home.


But... and this is a big but... how much is one cup of coffee when I brew it at home?

Why do I ask?

We’re going to hear a lot of news and negative reaction related to rising food costs; but the move toward brewing our own coffee and cooking our own meals (in order to save money) will seemingly take forever.

Some people will react like this reader who emailed the following in response to an earlier post about ‘dropping the drive-thru’ coffee habit and making java at home:

“I don’t have to. I don’t want to. And I won’t.”


["How much does a hearty breakfast really cost?": photos GH]

So, when people start complaining I want to be able to tell them - honestly - how much they’ll save by using the room in their house with all those shiny appliances.

I ask you: What’s that room called again?

***

Please click here for more I Ask You.

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It Strikes Me Funny: The exciting conclusion of 'A sale on lasagna and the ultimate chef challenge'

[The following column was first published in The Londoner in May, 2003. I dusted it off because it relates well with a recently posted story, i.e., Live Small and Prosper PT 3: It’s time for Frontier Stew]

A sale on lasagna and the ultimate chef challenge

[Oh. Please click here to read the exciting first half of the story. You know, for context.]

... A cashier said she had stopped making her own lasagna because she couldn’t match the price for 5 pounds of the PC brand. I pressed ahead.

With noodles, mozzarella, pasta sauce, tomatoes, cottage cheese, beef, peppers and mushrooms. I figured I had about 8 pounds of ingredients. Total cost $17.08. It was going to be close.

On an icy morning in early April I assembled the ingredients, sliced and diced, grated cheese and cooked noodles. By 11 a.m. the delicious aroma of fried onions, peppers and spice filled the house and by noon all was ready to spoon into two casserole dishes.


["I also make Frontier Stew. So good it will draw tears": photo GH]

An Italian sausage, onions, garlic and a few spices brought my costs to approximately $18.50 so I needed 9 pounds of very tasty lasagna to win household glory.

“How are you going to weigh it?” Pat asked innocently.

I stopped stirring the sauce and replied, “I hadn’t thought of that.”

After a short pause I suggested confidently, “We’ll go by total volume. I’ll measure the sides of each pan and multiply by how deep it is.”

I arranged fat layers of noodles, cheeses and sauce in the greased pans, and quietly celebrated as the ingredients approached the rim of each dish.

After careful measurements and calculations I estimated I had 24 cubic inches more lasagna than two pans of store-bought - for $1.50 less.

After 35 minutes at 350 degrees the steaming lasagna was served.

“It’s delicious,” Pat stated. “Perhaps I’ll take some to mother’s tonight.”

One vote of confidence was reward enough.

***

‘One vote of confidence’ and a big serving of household glory! Fantastic.

Then there’s the savings. Incredible.

Rising food costs are not to be feared. Buck up. We can cook our way to cheaper grocery bills and good health.

Please click here to read more about rising food costs.

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The more I think about it, the more peeved I get

Can we keep chickens in backyard coops in our city?

Can we not?

The more it was debated by city council the more I leaned toward egg-laying hens in the matter. A free omelette. Nothing wrong with that, I thought.


["Still singin' them egg-layin' blues"]

Okay, and though the door was closed on chickens at this time I can live with that. We can’t collect eggs for that omelette but someone on council is at least collecting more education. (It’s all about public education, as I said earlier).

But I’m still squawking about the following:

“Council was told by city solicitor Jim Barber zoning and animal control bylaws would prevent a pilot program.”

I can understand if it is a money issue. E.g., we can’t afford another pilot project until we pay all the bills on the green bin pilot project.

And sure, we spend millions on crackers and cookies every year in this town but can’t afford a project that might lead people a few steps back from a highly industrialized, fertilized and fossilized agribusiness culture. Really, I can almost understand how backward our thinking is on many things.

But to have bylaws that stand in the way of pilot projects is something else.


I mean, we’re already vulnerable to greater money shortages in the future (oil won’t last forever and our country’s debt - at all levels - is growing quickly), so, to be barred from progress toward better self-reliance by our own bylaws seems ludicrous to me.

Thank you. I feel better now.

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Pt 2 Why do I suffer Deforest City Blues at times?

Three reasons today.

First - unfriendly bylaws. Want to learn about raising chickens to support a great idea, i.e., eat local? You can’t. There are bylaws that won’t even allow a pilot project inside city limits.

Second - an unreasonable Deputy Mayor, and trust me, I don’t throw the phrase ‘unreasonable Deputy mayor’ around very often. (However, I use the word ‘reasonable’ a lot.)


["Where's Gord? Out of tune?"]

This from Tuesday’s issue of The London Free Press:

Deputy Mayor Tom Gosnell said it’s better to leave raising eggs to the professionals, who in Ontario are raising some of the best food in the world.

Yes, the professionals. All you amateurs out there, take note. Forget how good fresh eggs or meat or vegetables or fruit or bread or jam or home preserves or any homemade product tastes - the pros do it better. Yeah, right.

“This is not the 1920s,” Gosnell said. “We are a very urban society.”

That’s right. No one can argue that. We don’t live in a time, like 90 years ago, when the majority of people were more self-reliant and could raise some of their own food or make some of their own clothes, if need be. Now we rely on others, from the womb to the tomb, to do perfectly healthy chores for us, all on the back of cheap oil, thereby leaving our society vulnerable to any changes in the price per barrel.

Mr. Gosnell continued:


["What? We can't grow red pepper for our omelette? There's a bylaw?"]

He said he’s “shocked” at the debate about backyard chickens in a city like London.

“We’re becoming a sophisticated research and development, high-tech community.”

And we can’t do both?

I.e., we can’t raise a few hens, collect fresh eggs and make a healthy, low-cost omelette (better than the professionals) while becoming a high-tech community?

We can’t multi-task or appreciate natural processes while making, what... a better cellphone?

If I was Carla on Cheers I’d say, “What a maroon.”

But I’m not, so I’ll just keep singin’ the blues.

***

More to follow.

Yeah, we’ve dropped the egg on this one.

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The door isn’t closed on chickens in London. Good thing too.

Keeping egg-laying hens inside city limits didn’t get the thumbs up last Monday night at City Hall but council at least voted '11 - 7 in favour of a motion looking at food security and reviewing bylaws of other cities that allow chickens.’ (Today’s issue of The Londoner)

With a reasonable amount of public education, I think the majority of Londoners could live with chickens in their backyard - or neighbourhood at least. But, for certain, public education is needed.

Chickens require safe, secure, clean, heated coops and urban-centered citizens need more information.

This is just my opinion, but I think there are some similarities between keeping chickens and riding a motorcycle.

As a motorcyclist I can honestly say that riding a bike is not as easy as falling off a log or making an omelette. Training is required, and the three-tiered licensing system makes sense.

You want chickens? I think you should take a course of reasonable length. And pass a reasonable test. And get a reasonably priced license. And give a thumbs up to an initial and (thereafter) annual inspection of the coop.

Fewer neighbours would squawk if reasonable measures were in place.

They might even learn that there is such a thing as a free lunch (well, almost) and get into the act themselves one day.

***

Public education is the key to the backyard henhouse.

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Climate Change Concerns Pt 5: Will chickens come home to roost?

I’m talking real chickens, real homes, real roosts in London, Ontario.

City councillor Stephen Orser is preparing to ask London’s council to consider allowing residents of Deforest City to raise chickens in their backyards.

“Growing your own chemical-free eggs is not a silly idea,” said Mr. Orser. He added that the practice would benefit the poor. (April 17 issue of The London Free Press)

His idea will be discussed at a council committee meeting tomorrow at 4 p.m., and I’m going to listen in on the discussion because the issue interests me from a personal and writer’s perspective.

For example, the issue of personal interest because my Dad raised chickens and was rewarded with free eggs and chicken soup for decades. I like the sound and taste of free eggs!

As well, the issue has drama. Some are in favour, others are not.


["I met these birds, and purchased organic eggs, while motorcycling toward Algonquin Park in 2006": photo GH]

On the same day that I discovered Leo Phillip’s letter to the editor re reducing meat and dairy (the same letter I used as a spring board into this exciting - and brilliant - series) another letter appeared that opposed Mr. Orser’s proposal.

“In this era of food safety, traceability and animal welfare, S. Orser’s proposal runs contrary to these important issues. It would represent a huge step backwards in avian disease prevention and animal welfare... As for his assertion this would benefit the poor, this is unlikely, since safe, chemical free, reasonably priced eggs are readily available throughout the city.” John Miller, Rodney.

Good points?

Not really.

With proper education, many people are fully capable of caring for hens and collecting eggs. Dependence upon factory farms located miles from London needs to be questioned.

The issue is also timely. Buy local, some say more frequently now. Reduce meat and dairy, say others. Lower fossil fuel use and reduce carbon emissions, say others.

And another letter writer said, “If they can do it in beautiful Victoria, B.C., (for the past 30 years) and now in Surrey, I do believe London could handle it.”

(At least three other Canadian cities allow backyard chickens as well, i.e., Niagara Falls, Brampton and Guelph, all closer to London than the two cities mentioned above).

Will Mr. Orser’s proposal pass muster? We’ll soon find out.

I feel I’ve come full circle at this point.

I’ve gone from ‘reduce meat and dairy,’ to fertilizer, to fossil fuels, to environmental degradation (Part 4), to backyard chicken coops that would help people reduce meat and dairy production and consumption in some small ways.

The last thing on my list for this series is to attend tomorrow's meeting at City Hall to see if chickens will come home to roost.

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Fun and Fitness: New way to measure healthy body size

Under the heading of ‘Keeping Fit,’ a topic that’s near and dear to my heart, C. Castagna writes about a new way to measure healthy body size in the Aug. 19 issue of The London Free Press.

Out with BMI (Body Mass Index, in with MWL (Maximum Weight Limit? Please read for yourself.

[Please click here to link to article and MWL height/weight chart]

But it makes sense to me.

At 5 ft. 5 in. tall, under MWL proposed by Prof. G. Fernandez, my maximum weight should be 155 pounds.

While marathoning (1995 - 2006), my weight was usually 140 - 145 pounds, most of it made up of blue twisted steel - insert laugh track here - and I looked under weight.


Now, I’m slightly over 155, know I could lose a few pounds (there’s one pair of jeans that just doesn’t feel right) and am trying to do so by walking where I can, riding an exercise bike (I’ve upped the mileage goal per week) and mixing fun with a regular fitness activity, i.e., hockey with the boys twice per week.

I'm motivated because...

... the majority of Canadian seniors (age 65 plus) have 5 prescriptions or more

... 37 cents out of every dollar my home province (Ontario) spends now goes to health care

... a vast number of prescriptions are tied to poor lifestyle choices and diet.

I think trying to hit the MWL target sounds like a good idea.

Good luck with your own fun and fitness goals.

And if you’re holding a KFC Double Down - put it down and back away slowly.

***

Does the MWL chart seem to make sense to you?

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Link and Learn: Plant seeds while snow cover is on the ground?

Even though some burly Canadians want winter to last until April (lazy toots - one I know just doesn’t want to cut the grass), there are those who want to get their hands dirty in pots of soil or in the garden.

My oldest sister is one of them and is likely reading a seed catalogue right now.

For her, and others with green thumbs looking for winter to end, I recommend an interesting article found in the London Free press recently entitled ‘Sowing The Seeds Of Change.’


In it I read the following:

"There's an exciting new movement sweeping the globe that focuses on local sustainability in response to peak oil and climate change."

"One goal of this movement is to grow and buy more food locally. This simple, logical concept aims to improve food quality, reduce exposure to pesticides and genetically modified crops, and save resources."

I bet some people are thinking about their garden right now.

"Instead of buying foods grown far away, heavily packaged and shipped long distances, growing your own food or buying from local producers helps you control how it's grown and treated and eliminates the need for packaging. You can harvest fruits and vegetables at their absolute peak for freshness and outstanding flavour."

Heck, now I’m even thinking about my garden, and I don’t have a green thumb.

Maybe I’ll start a few cherry tomato plants inside this year. The article tells me how to go about it.

***

Are you waiting for seeds to arrive?

Do you make an early start on gardening each year?

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Would we miss KFC if it grilled its last chicken tomorrow?

KFC is promoting the crap out of its grilled and fried chicken (5,000 US stores to soon give it away for free) but a restaurant analyst (Larry) recently said KFC’s latest performance report was disappointing.

I thought, will we miss it when it’s gone?

The majority of the bones in my body (82%, incl. the little ones inside my inner ear) say NO.

Reasons we won’t miss it:

There will still be 3,489,842,909 fast food joints out there. KFC could disappear at noon and we wouldn’t even burp at its passing


["One that got away": photo GAH]

There are 4 billion other distractions to occupy our frazzled brains. E.g., where are my car keys?

Many people are too busy making their own sandwiches to care. They’re thinking of saving money instead

Of all the reasons (yes, there are likely others), I like the last one best.

Tuna on whole wheat is not only healthier but it’s always nice to learn a new skill.

***

Do you know how to make a healthy sandwich?

What’s for lunch?

KFC who?

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Zoom w a View: Bumper elderberry crop for purple pies ahead

While motorcycling last Sunday I passed through elderberry country, SE of London, and stopped to see how healthy some of my favourite plants appeared.

in my opinion, with a bit more heat (you know, when summer arrives), folks who love purple pies as much as I do will find elderberry plants loaded to the max.


What are elderberries? A: Small, tart, purple berries that can be used in delicious pies and tarts and for unique syrups and wine.

Where can they be found? A: You need a good eye, but most plants are along fence lines in rural areas.


They're in bloom right now and easy to spot. The flowerets remind me of the wild carrot plant.

Where exactly? A: I'm not telling.

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Green Ideas 2009: My garden needs one more final victory

If memory serves, I came up with the plan to turn sod and plant my next Victory Garden way back in the fall of 2008 [see right margin for complete list of my brilliant ideas].

Not because my genes supplied me with a green thumb or Puritan work ethic but because gardening relates to ‘eat local’ and a cluster of other earth-friendly benefits.

I may also have been eating a cucumber sandwich at the time and thought, “I can grow my own for Pete’s sake. How hard is that?”

Not too hard, really. I turned soil with my hybrid garden fork, added compost, planted cherry tomatoes, Big Red tomatoes, Brussel sprouts, peas, Spanish onions and green beans - all quite handily.


["The hybrid fork: Fork from Austria, used handle from Fenelon Falls": photo GAH]

But then came a very wicked gray squirrel to my wee patch and the sprouts disappeared. So did most of the beans - twice.


["At present, the last of my beans": GAH]

In the last two weeks I’ve trapped three squirrels but not the wicked gray. His turn, however, will come. I guarantee it. And in the meantime I’ve planted more beans. (I’ll check a gardening center for Brussel sprouts soon).

Two pieces of information for the faint of heart:


First, I use a humane trap and release the squirrels in a park two miles from my garden. One beat me back home, I think - and I was driving my Civic at the time.

Second, I found a Brunswick stew recipe that includes squirrel meat. Seventy of the little beggars in fact.

The sound of it will seem unusual for Canadians I admit, but early North Americans and present-day Brits would be quite familiar with the taste.

What will become of that wicked gray squirrel? Time will tell.

***

Brunswick stew now usually contains beef, pork or chicken because meat is so plentiful.

I think, not forever. As we choose more food close to home, squirrel meat will make a comeback.

Do you agree?

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The Simple Life: Can I keep chickens inside city limits?

Last year, while out for a morning jog, I heard a rooster crowing near the Thames River in downtown London.

I thought, what’s a chicken doing down here? Did it escape from a backyard coop? Can Londoners keep chickens in their yard?

I’d now like to find out the answer to the last question.

A recent CBC radio program informed me that more people are keeping chickens in England for a variety of reasons.

The benefits of eating fresh, local eggs and real chicken soup come to mind.

Though I write in an upcoming column I’d like to keep chickens myself I don’t think local by-laws will permit it.

***

Will trying to find someone at City Hall to answer my question be a challenge?

Stay tuned.

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My Point of View: Canadian economic slump like a bad tooth ache, only worse Part 1

If the global recession was a toothache, it would be unlike any toothache most people alive have ever had.

And for Canadians (count me in), the pain will go on and on and on and...


Consider the following:

“Canada will fare better but may take longer to emerge from the longest and deepest global recession since the Second World War.” [The Canadian Press, March 26]

So, wake up Canada, your toothache (conceivably) won’t hurt as bad as many of your global friends but will last longer. Youch.

(And...) "This is the deepest and longest world recession in the postwar era," said Nigel Gault, a chief economist in the U.S. "The global depth and reach of this downturn makes it much more difficult for any individual country (e.g. Canada) to pull out because there's such a drag coming from the rest of the world."

So, an individual or country may try to brush regularly, floss before going to bed and reduce the intake of sweets but will find "we're all in this together."

(When have we ever had such global unity?)

Can we individually and collectively agree to reduce our intake of all things material?

Our teeth will last longer.

***

Who is in charge of global reductions of sweets?

Which countries or organizations should be leading the way toward a healthier lifestyle?

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It Strikes Me Funny: There might be such thing as a free lunch

The way I look at things, if I can build a solar oven using materials left over from the house reno rather than buy one ready-made [link to ‘Sport’ Solar Oven], then a free lunch is definitely within my reach.

I’ll insulate the oven with wool from one or two of my old sweaters. There’s that bulky one I seldom wear.


["Just dreamin'. I haven't built it yet.": photo link]

And hinges? I’ve got spare hinges downstairs in the basement tool cupboard.

Cookware? I could use one of our old casserole dishes.

Food? I guess I’ll have to buy food until my garden comes to the rescue... unless I swipe some from the kitchen while grandson Ollie distracts my wife.

OK, even though we’ll always have to buy groceries, I’ll feel lunch is free if I use solar power alone.

For a review of different types of solar cookers click here.

***

BTW. Does anyone know at what temperature bulky wool sweaters spontaneously burst into flames? Not that I’m worried. I haven't built it yet.

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Link and Learn: Wood-stove buns, alfalfa sprouts, do-it-yourself

Maybe there’s no such thing as a free lunch but link up with Theresa at Pondering the Myriad Things and you’ll see one that’s pretty darn close.

Isn’t it amazing how many talents are found in human beans? We’re such a creative bunch, aren’t we?

I bet in even a small community you would soon find people who know how to bake (really well, like Theresa - among other things), sew, sing songs, play instruments, turn scrap lumber into 101 useful items, teach useful skills, produce a healthy garden, nurture strong families, paint pictures or -if absolutely necessary - stippled ceilings.

The list would on and on.

Scroll down Theresa’s posts, read about alfalfa sprouts and soon you’ll be producing and eating your own salads.

Though circumstances can challenge villages, towns and cities, confident and creative people will keep them vibrant.

Cheers. GAH

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The Simple Life: Oatmeal beats out Kellogg’s Muslix

Motorcycling season is coming soon (hey, a guy can dream) so I’m spending this week and next painting ceilings and kitchen cupboards for a client in order to pay for a new back tire for my Virago.

I’m breathing in paint fumes now so I can enjoy fresh air on country roads later.

Rather clever of me, isn’t it? (Not really. The ceiling has plaster stipple and is taking forever!!!)


But, and this is a big but, every morning I’ve been thankful I recently made a big batch of oatmeal Red River cereal combo with about eight additives (millet, bran, quinoa, apricots, raisins, currants etc.). One heaping bowl for breakfast fuels 1,000 trips per day up and down my stepladder.

My wife said I could try her new box of Kellogg’s Muslix.

Ha! I really had to laugh.

Compared to my oatmeal, Muslix won’t even help me open a can of paint.

***

Ever heard of an oatmeal drawer? (I keep mine in the fridge and nuke it in the a.m.)

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