Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Its a sin

The Oxford's new dictionary aimed at children has taken out words such as sin and added words like blog and MP3 player. While I understand the need to keep up with the times, the words they took out were important. (Read the story: here) Baudelaire wisely noted that: "the devil's best trick was to convince us he doesn't exist". In a world that is increasingly falling apart we would do well to remember the definition of sin. Of course there is the religious implications of a society that blurs the lines, but in the late 1800s Durkheim (a Sociologist) came to the conclusion that the moral confusion that comes with modernity led to higher suicide rates. This is a phenomenon he called anomie.

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Only so much one can do.


I look around me and see so much cruelty so much hate. I do believe love will triumph one day, but in the meantime it can be so hard to take. I wish I had an endless amount of time and money and words to give to the causes I care about, but I don't. Especially money this time of year and with the way the economy is going.... It's so frustrating sometimes. There's only so much one person can do. I feel like I'm trying to drain the ocean with an eyedropper.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Goulash

I cook much like the way I was raised (minus the meat.) For the most part it is simple cooking with non-expensive ingredients. Both my parents are decent cooks who don't really use recipes. They throw stuff together that sounds good and it usually ends up being tasty. This is why I don't really post recipes often, but for some reason I have had the urge too.

This is a meatless take on a meal growing up that my parents called "Goulash"
(measurements are basically guesses)

1 cup cooked pasta (elbow or shells)
3/4 cup spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup corn
1/2 cup garbanzo beans (also known as chickpeas)
any other veggies you want.

Throw it in a pan and heat and serve.


Now for some ideas for giving back this season:
Donate cans to your local food pantry. Canned food can be bought relatively cheaply. Here you can buy a can of veggies, fruit or beans for $1. You can spend less than $5 to help someone who needs food. All over the news is stories of longer lines at food pantries with less to go around.

An eco-tip:
There are many ways to save wrapping paper: Use bags that you can reuse or reuse old wrapping paper. Wrap presents in old paper shopping bags, cloth or old ads.

Have a merry Christmas all and a happy holiday season. :)

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Vegan Cookies part 2

Argh! The pictures aren't working.... oh well.
Here is the link to the recipe I thought some might want it:
Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup flour (I use organic, unbleached, white flour)
1/2 cup sugar (I use Florida Crystals)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 egg replacer
cinnamon and sugar for coating
http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=6394.0

The changes I made were instead of egg replacer I used a tablespoon of lemon juice and added an extra tablespoon of maple syrup. They came out a little crumbly but otherwise perfect. I also decorated them instead of putting cinnamon and sugar.

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Joyful Vegan Baking

I love Christmas cookies!
I baked and decorated sugar cookies tonight, I felt like a little kid.
I'll probably post pictures later.