I Walk In This World

IWITW Friends!  Based on numerous comments and emails I received from this post I’m going to be shining my spotlight on a variety of Ethical Eating topics and news.

The unveiling of what’s to come is in the making, and I’ll have a far more formal announcement with lots of BOLD words and exclamation points!!!!

So please note that I have read what you all have said and am surging forward in an effort to make Ethical Eating even BETTER known and easier to do!  Blog World…watch out!

It seems there is a ton of interest in this concept, far beyond the realm of just healthy eating blogs. 

I will offer up:

1. Ways to blend a healthy lifestyle and Ethical Eating; 
2. Reviews of products from companies and farms that promote an ethical mission;
3. Cost factors associated with Ethical Eating; 
4. Lists of products, restaurants, and companies that fit into my world view of Ethical Eating; 
5. ???

What else do you want to see?

I will also be offering advertising space on my blog, only to those websites, bloggers, companies, or manufacturers that fit within the Ethical Eating criteria.  For anyone interested, my site receives around 500,000 requests per month.  And that number is growing each and every month!

Please feel free to    me at esavearth [at] gmail.com with questions et al.

Yay!

Ciao,

Erin

P.S.  Punxatawny Phil saw his shadow this morning, I’m sorry to report.  Six more weeks of winter are a’comin…

I did a some light reading with Breks today…a nice summary article about balancing organic + local + seasonal foods!

Here were the eats:

• eggwhites with peppers and onions
• half a slice of American cheese
• toasted whole wheat english muffin
• coffee ala lobster

And a cutie pie hubby in his sweats!

As I was reading, I discovered how totally awesome and succinct this little article was.  Let’s let the pics do the talking.

Fresh Thinking about what it means to be organic, local, seasonal.  Where do we need to pay attention?

Welcome to the Dirty Dozen.  We all know the benefits of organic at this stage…less pesticides = potentially lower risk for certain cancers and heaps better for the environment (no nasty chemicals washing off into the soils and streams).  But if organic isn’t your bag of tricks, and conventional produce is on your shopping list, here are the Dirty Dozen to avoid in terms of MEGA SUPA TOO MANY Pesticides.

YIKES!  These are all the besties!

So, best to avoid these puppies if you’re not going to indulge in organic.  The good news is that there are some alternatives, called the Clean 15 (even though I hate rhyming, I’ll allow it here) that are conventionally grown with far less or no pesticides.

Ok, these are pretty good!  But what if I can’t find them in season…hello watermelon??

Here’s where I stand, in terms of my approach to Ethical Eating and a balanced approach to all this shit.

If you can afford to buy organic, focus on those Dirty Dozen (plus organic, free-range meat).  But pay attention to seasonality of these items!

If you’re by-passing the organic section, sometimes that’s good, b/c we ought not be supporting the mass transit of organic produce from all over the globe!  That’s a lotta truck miles and carbon we’re putting into the atmosphere.  Sometimes, it’s best to pause and think about which path you choose to protect…and if global climate change is at the top of your list, then focus on this approach below…

The IWITW house practices a balance of those tips above.  Are we guilty of buying bulk spinach trucked over from CA during cold winter months?  Yes we are.  But we also try to get our asses to the Farmers Market to buy the local kind, probably grown in a hot house this time of year. 

We tend to focus our efforts on buying local AND organic/free range where possible (at the farmers market).  If it’s not organic, I still tend to focus on local because I choose:

1. To support our local farms (versus agri-business behemoths);
2. I believe in positive efforts to reduce our carbon footprint; and
3. It’s fact that food grown locally doesn’t need a lot of chemical treatment for mass transit over long distances.

It’s all about finding your balance and what works for you.  The only thing I really ask is that y’all take a sec to just ponder these issues.  Think about the options, the environment, your body, and whatever other hefty goodies you wanna throw into your brain.

Deal?

Dinna last night!

• free-range organic chicken crockpotted with salsa and ff cream cheese (peppers and kale tossed in), seasoned with cumin, chili powder, and gahlick
• served over brown rice
• green beans with a mustard glaze on the side

Holy hell this was good!!

We also hit up the gym for a solid 30mins, and Erin threw in 30 squats just to get rid of my saddle bags for fun.

And…Day 7 of no alcohol.  Woot!

Ciao,

Er

P.S.  Thx to my BIL for passing along those articles to me!

LOL.  You know you’re not in the best shape when the Vinyasa yoga you did three days ago is STILL kicking your ass.  I can barely get up from my chair without every ab, glute, and hamstring muscle moaning in agony.

I mean.  It’s good.  But it hurts like a mo fo.

In an effort to loosen up the old lady fat muscles last night, I checked out our new gym.  Twas the only chica in there and enjoyed the solidarity.  Just me, a treadmill, and a re-run of Seinfeld the greatest show on earth.

Guess who ran 2 miles?

<————–this girl!

I’ve mentioned before that I’m NOT a runner.  Like.  Really.  Not.  Not at all.

Breks today.

Since my cell phone battery alarm clock died in the middle of the night, I was mucho lucky that I awoke at 7:40am.  I hopped my scootch outta bed and zipped thru my morning in order to get to work by 8:30am.

Quick obligatory breakfast shot…

• ww mini bagel
• eggwhites
• hot sauce
• American cheese
• COFFEE a plenty a go go

Have I mentioned that its been raining in PA every damn day this week?  I like to think I have some sort of threatening powers such that when I Declare That There Will Be Hell To Pay if it doesn’t stop raining, that this declaration actually has some meaning in real life.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  I feel badly for all the turkeys.  I wish our Thanksgivings were vegetarian based, probably much like the REAL one was oh so many years ago.

Swenyway.  Before Erin goes Off On Her Soapbox.

Din last night…

• chicken + apple sausage from the farmer’s market where yours truly has found local, vegetarian, humanely-raised chicken
• maple glazed butternut squash + sweet potato

The squash and sweet potato stole the show!

Will your Thanksgiving include turkey or not so much? 

Whatever your story, I wish you a happy day!