Quick Bit with Michael Pollen

I picked up The Omnivore's Dilemma right before I started school. I'm sad that I haven't finished reading it. I have lots of other reading that, while very enjoyable, interesting, and thought-provoking, seems a little more necessary and a little more like "work." I still keep buying Michael Pollen's books though.

He has a new book, In Defense of Food, An Eater's Manifesto. I will likely buy a copy at the University Book Store which will give me a free ticket to hear Michael Pollen speak at Town Hall in Seattle.

In the mean time, here's a snippet from an interview I ran across today:



I have eaten locally and seasonally for years now, although I used to supplement my farm share frequently. I would buy meat, cheese, fruit, out-of-season veggies, and loads of "pantry items." I now find myself supplementing my farm share with less, although I frequently buy fruit. More importantly, I'm actively working to supplement it less. I'll expound in a later post. I have lots of reading to catch up on right now!

On Thin Ice

I don't even know where to begin here.

Tim and I came across this product while wandering around Whole Foods yesterday. They're called "IceRocks." For $4.00 you get four blister packs each containing twelve sealed compartments of water. Pop 'em in your freezer, and guess what!?! You get ice!

This is ludicrous on so many levels. I have tried to think of situations where this product would be beneficial, but none of the resulting situations (mostly dealing with widespread, emergency aid) involve a $4.00 purchase at Whole Foods.

Doesn't everyone have the recipe for ice? If not, isn't it easy enough to learn? If you don't want to use tap water for ice, why not buy bottled water? Better yet, why not install a filter on your tap or use a BRITA? I'm trying to understand the rationale of buying pre-portioned water to put in your freezer. I'm also trying to understand the energy costs associated with such a product.

Here are some gems from the IceRocks website:

"Do it for yourself." (WHY is this one of their mottos? This doesn't even make sense.)

"Think blue, be green." (Greenwashing anyone?)

"ICEROCKS® is sold in its unfrozen state (liquid), making it a product offering substantial savings in terms of delivery costs, in that it does not require trucks to be refrigerated for transportation."

It's hard to pick a favorite line from their site, but this one might be it:

"These ice cubes will be an enjoyable way for children to experience and practice healthy eating habits and pure ice." (Yes. Think of the children.)

I expect I will be writing a letter to Whole Foods today. WF carries a lot of crap and does a bit of greenwashing itself. But this one is the ICE-ing on the cake.

Come back here you evil snack cake!

The folks at Free Range Studios (who also produced The Meatrix) have come up with a silly, biased, yet entertaining and short little video about the Farm Bill.



I also bumped into a really excellent podcast available from NPR's Science Friday show. The podcast includes commentary by Michael Pollen and Marian Nestle, two authors I really enjoy. I haven't been doing any reading for pleasure lately, but Pollen's latest book is probably at the top of my "Must Read" list. As is the full text of the farm bill.

Clamor

I don't think about fried clams very often. They certainly aren't part of my cooking repertoire. But oh how I love them! When I lived in Boston I spent many a late summer afternoon (having been at the beach all day) enjoying the fried clams at Woodman's, The Clam Box , or Essex Seafood. These clam shacks, like many of the foods I enjoy most, are seasonal. Summer only. It was at Woodman's where, in addition to fried clams, I enjoyed my first lobster roll and my first raw clams and oysters. I'm still not a fan of raw clams, but everything else has an honored place in my food psyche.

What got me thinking about this was David Leite's mouthwatering article in today's New York Times -- "In a ’64 T-Bird, Chasing a Date With a Clam".



As the summer winds down, I'd like to think I'll be eating some good fried clams soon. Unfortunately, I just don't see how that's going to happen.






Photo by *reesie / Reese used under Creative Commons license
"Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0"

Jib Jab Test

Thanks to my (hopefully) very understanding friends :-)

Meat Fest 2006!

Not to be confused with Ham Fest 2006.

Clockwise from left:
Tim L.
Kevin N.
Craig V.
Me
Sarah B.

Dave H. took the picture.

Can you spot the lint brush? Somehow "lint brush" doesn't belong in the same post as "meat fest."

Why I Stopped At Mountain Home

I woke up in Moab and headed home through landscape that looked not-of-this-world. I completed some kind of karmic circle by stopping for gasoline in Brigham City where I spent the first night of this trip. I continued driving until I could drive no more, but this time I stopped not because I was exhausted. I stopped because I could no longer see.

Throughout the trip I was concerned and alert about hitting an animal -- a deer, a squirrel, an armadillo, a rabbit -- all plausible hits. Unfortunately, I hit and killed no fewer than 2000 bugs.