they've just stopped trying

I have a love of food photography. I love it almost as much as I love food - almost. I love the way good food photography captures my senses - the colors and textures help me imagine the smells and flavors. I also really love bad food photography for its disgusting irony (think Betos - the purpose of those photographs on the menu clearly is not to make you want to eat the "food"). A new trend is simply to photograph bad food - nothing particularly wrong with the quality of the photograph, there's just no attempt to hide the industrial quality of the food. (I have to wonder if these ads are creating or answering incredibly low expectations.) Here are a few of my favorites:

                                           

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The strategically placed onions and the sponge on bottom really make this a work of art. And speaking of American "cheese" . . .

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. . . would you like a square in your Jack in the Box taco? Oh, and please don't forget the drizzle of french dressing . . . and some well placed lettuce on the plate for authenticity.

                                                                     

And last but not least, and in a category all its own:

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Finally, some truth in advertising.

to Zen and back

School's out for summer two weeks, and we're already back from our vacation (okay, this post is now officially a month old). It was wonderfully diverse - maybe the best vacation ever. 

We drove 1400 miles, flew 1600 miles, biked and walked all of Denver, hiked 5 miles, read two books, reunited with three old friends, met one beautiful baby, and took innumerable naps. We also stayed with strangers (via airbnb) and visited a couple of farmers' markets, an amusement park, a zoo, an art museum, a college campus, and a national park. There were many great moments, but the best part was spending some QT with Paul and Jess and their baby girls doing everything and nothing . . . including cooking and eating, which were our two favorite shared activities when we were neighbors. I was finally able to unwind after a ridiculously difficult, busy month of finals and other projects. I hadn't realized how crazy I was getting; I'm relieved to be feeling so much more centered again.

The ten days we were gone, I was largely unplugged - no internet, dead phone. I didn't read the news. I didn't even remove my iPod from my luggage.  It was interesting to vacation sans camera. (My old, despised camera is now part of the greater Yellowstone ecosystem). The camera phones captured a few memorable moments, but even the phones died after a while and we were forced to live each delightful moment without the burden of documentation.  Living without a lens really helped me focus on the beauty of being, and what I thought would be an inconvenience became a learning experience. Here's to vacations and living in the moment.

meatless monday

Check out Meatless Monday,

 a part of


 Healthy Monday.

Everybody's doing it.

A very good friend had us over for dinner some months back and quickly realized he had no idea what to cook. He managed to scour the kitchen and put together a very good, if slightly unconventional, mix of side dishes. Like others, this friend was baffled by the "what to eat?" question when meat was taken out of the equation. It was kind of amusing to me, and I thought it was incredibly sweet that he would even try.

I can see how eating less meat can seem restrictive, but really, doing it opened up my eyes and my tastebuds, not to mention my arteries. You can make chicken into seven very different tasting meals, but you'll still be getting the exact same nutrients day after day. Choosing to eat vegetables has helped me be more creative and venturous in my cooking and eating. 

So, how 'bout it? Can you go meatless once a week? To check out the benefits, click on the top link. It's easy to find vegetarian recipes on the internets, but I'll recommend one on the occasional Monday.This one was inspired by a recipe in my red and white checked BHG cookbook. It is called "meatless tacos" but Clark objects to it every time I propose it for dinner, so at our house, they're just "tacos" and we love 'em. An added bonus to the deliciosity - these tacos are quick to make and they're super cheap. In fact, lentils are basically free. And if you made your own tortillas or even if you used store-bought corn tortillas, you'd be eating for pennies.  (Something for your meat-eating maw to chew on :-)

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This image is of the tofu taco original. The recipe below is the "inspired by" version sans tofu.

• 1 cup water
• 1/2  cup lentils, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 12 taco shells or tortilla - if you use a whole grain tortilla like corn or wheat, the meal will have complete protein
• 5 teaspoons taco seasoning mix- make your own taco seasoning - it's so easy and it will have a gazillion fewer grams of sodium (esp. important if you are using canned ingredients)
• 1 cup black beans (either canned or soaked & cooked)
• 1/2  cups shredded lettuce
• 2 tomatoes, chopped and separated (or a can of diced tomatoes)
• 1/2  cup shredded cheddar cheese optional
• 1 avocado - or, if you're like me, 1 per person or taco  

Directions

1. In a medium/large saucepan combine water, lentils, black beans, one tomato, taco seasoning, and onion. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 25 to 30 minutes or until lentils are tender and liquid is absorbed.

2. Spoon into taco shells. Top with lettuce, tomato, and cheese and avocado. If desired, serve with salsa.

Makes about 12 tacos.

may day - and another blog

In honor of May Day, I've launched a new blog in which to write about my more controversial opinions. Visit if you like.

small humans

Love babies? Take your mom to see this for Mother's Day. It looks like so much fun.

the hardest part

At some point, blogging made its way to the bottom of mental to-do list and stayed there as other items were added to the top or inserted in the middle. The actual problem is that blogging exists on any list - I prefer to think of it as an escape from the things I'm supposed to do. But now it's been too long, and, as we all know, starting is the hardest part. Here are some random updates from my life to get started again:

• I wrote a sixteen page final project for Org Theory yesterday. Like I said, starting is the hardest part. After I got going, it wasn't so bad. I'm starting to worry about my addiction to the adrenaline associated with my procrastination habit. Is there some kind of treatment for that? If only I had something due every day, I think I could have finished a dissertation by now.
• Speaking of dissertations, I'm helping my Public Lands Policy professor with his - references, formatting, etc.  Between his dissertation and my research paper, it's going to be all public lands all the time. (I know; you wish you were me right now.)
• I have developed a mini mania for the writing of Sarah Vowell and recommend her books (I've only read two, but I imagine the others are just as great). I can't wait until May, when I can feel good about reading things that have nothing to do with hardrock mining laws, the Forest Service, or cattle grazing on public lands.
• We are going on a much needed vacation. Since the 247 Tom Petty songs on Clark's ipod are not enough to satiate his appetite for all things Tom Petty, we planned a trip to visit friends that coincided with Tom Petty Tour 2010. Three days after Clark purchased his ticket, the tour switched its dates around. Of course, this doesn't mean Clark would actually miss the tour; he's planning a pilgrimage to Canada in June so he can bask in the glory of "Free Fallin'" in the company of several thousand strangers, most of them Canadian. Under different circumstances, I might protest going such great lengths, but I have to admire that kind of dedication.
• I have eaten an avocado and an orange almost every day for the past 4 months. It's like a little bit of sunshine every day to get a girl through the Idaho winter.
• I'm making a surprise for Clark's birthday (May 17). We are both notoriously bad at surprises and secrets  because we just can't wait to tell each other anything exciting. I'm telling you to help me not tell him. Shhh!
• Lately, I spend a little time each day coming up with a new life plan. Most of them include living in a big city or another country. Sometimes both. None of them includes Idaho Falls. Next step: learn Farsi, Korean, and Russian and get a job with the State Department.
• You may have noticed here are no pictures in this post - nor will there be any personal pictures in the near future. Last time I used my camera was on a February snowshoing voyage to a ghost town near Teton National Park, an event which was well documented until said camera disappeared under melted glacier water. It may sound like near tragedy, but I actually really hated that camera.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading!

If your name is Nashina . . .

Every day I pass by a flower shop on my drive home. For the past six months they've been running a cheap campaign; on the letterboard out front is an advertisement for a free rose . . . if your name is so obscure your mom can't even spell it. Last week's was my favorite:

If your name is Nashina stop in for a free rose.

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This week, all you Delaneys are in luck. Go get your free rose at the corner of Broadway and Memorial.

as promised

This is long overdue; but I still wanted to write about our farm experience.

Fun fact: the food you eat, regardless of where you get it, comes from a farm (yes, even the high-fructose corn-syrup, even though it doesn't resemble a plant anymore). Our CSA experience was a cool farm-to-table experience. I knew exactly where my food came from, how it had been grown, that the seeds weren't "roundup ready" so I wasn't eating plants genetically altered to repel or kill bugs (I know; I have problems.).

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So, what is a CSA? So glad you asked. This is how it works: you buy a "share" of the farm's spoils upfront - which is the appropriate word because there is some risk involved. In our case, we purchased our share in the winter; the farm has to plan ahead and buy seeds, equipment, etc. At our CSA, the earlier you buy, the cheaper the share is. Your share entitles you to a portion of the spoils, but if there aren't any spoils due to bad weather or pests, you lose. Once a week you pick up your share. In our case, we went directly to the farm in Victor, ID, which was fun . . . for the first 8 weeks or so (Our share lasted 17 weeks). (In other locales, with a greater infrastructure for local food, you can pick up a share at a farmers' market or other such convenient location.) We loved it. Okay, I loved it. I learned to cook new things and appreciate a diversity of vegetables and mushrooms. I acquired a love of fennel. I have to say, if you haven't ever had fresh garlic (before the skin gets papery and dry), you are missing out. The only downside is that it was so much food, and a lot of it was pretty labor-intensive to cook or preserve. I cook, and I don't mind the time in the kitchen. But harvest time is also back-to-school time, and I took a full-time course load while working full time. Clark cooks too, but his culinary vein runs along the familiar instead of the adventurous. So, some of our fresh produce went to waste, and that is my only regret.  I would do it again in a minute and recommend it to anyone who likes vegetables, cooking, and is interested in getting the most vitamin-rich, fresh food available.

There is likely a CSA near you. You can check it out here.

this one's for haley

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Clark was helping the scouts by delivering flyers about the upcoming food drive. Here's what happened:

Clark: Hi. We're helping the local food bank and we'll be back in a week to pick up non-perishable food. If you have anything you want to donate, just leave it by your door.

Lady: Well, this is low-income housing, so I'll probably be getting your food.

Door closes.
End of story.

'baring our souls and telling the most appalling secrets'

One of the classes I took this fall was a leadership class. My classmates and I did projects and case studies and a therapy-inducing 360 review to evaluate and develop our leadership capacity. As the culminating project, we were asked to write a "This I believe" essay to help us identify our core values. Writing the essay was an interesting experience; it made me realize that while my values don't change easily or often, the way I choose to express them does. Needless to say, there were drafts and drafts of drafts before I was finished. The hardest part was knowing that I would have to deliver it as a speech to my class. How much of your soul can you comfortably share with relative strangers? Turns out, not very much; I prepared to get uncomfortable. Some of my classmates' essays were deeply personal, sharing details about losing children, finding forgiveness, and developing or losing faith. Others were more of the bullet point variety. I think mine lay somewhere in the middle of the spectrum. Anyway, I figured if I could share it with them I could share it with you, so here it is:



December 2009

This I believe

I believe a culture that values education will thrive and grow. Education bears the fruit of tolerance, self-knowledge, and positive social change. I believe learning is its own reward and that those who believe money is their reward for education, will get it, and without much trouble but likely without much knowledge. While a college degree happens to be a strong social currency, Education and its applications are not and must not be confined to classrooms. Jed, a young student I met while working as a writing tutor, showed me this (names have, of course, been changed). He returned to college after serving a sentence for a felony conviction. While working together on his essays, he confided that by going to college, learning to focus on math and sociology and writing, he has also learned to control his anger. He now has some good friends, a scholarship, and a fresh start. I believe in education. I believe it is the best solution to long-term problems because it is the only long-term, transformative solution.

I believe in the power of food as a healing instrument and a means of cultural self-expression. Every day I make choices between options that are narrowed by a culture that is powered by corporations and industry. I have the power to take back my original, now invisible options. Common sense and communion and have given way to Gogurt and Gushers, fruit loops and high-fructose corn syrup. Before they came from multivitamins, nutrients came from food. Uncomplicated, unpackaged, unprocessed food. Last summer I found a part of myself as I learned to make cheese from milk as my great, great grandmother must have done, and yet another as I visited the farm where my food was grown and grew more vegetables in my own garden. I can comprehend, though vaguely, the complexities and joys of life halfway across the world as I parse a complicated curry or burn my first souffle. I believe Food is a way to simultaneously connect with the earth from which it came and the people who create meals from its bountiful ingredients. When I make deliberate choices about food, I recognize myself as a part of the whole.

I believe the mouth is one of the most important parts of the body. It is where nourishment enters body and the mind finds expression as ideas exit in the form of words. I believe that I, along with many others, would find more happiness and health if I guard more closely what goes in and what comes out. A large ship is indeed guided by a small rudder.

I believe in the transformative nature of words and ideas. Among others, Victor Hugo, Charles Dickens, and Harper Lee have shown me the power of words and parts of me are real products of their fictions. Scout’s innocence and evolving devotion to justice, Pip’s realization of his self-destructive search for external happiness, and Jean Val jean’s story of kindness, mercy, and personal redemption express some of the best parts of me and ideals to which I aspire.

Although I had read or been read to all my life, the first book I remember getting excited about is Johnny Tremain. I was ten, and my teacher had assigned the book. I read it twice, once for fun, and answered every question with a paragraph where a sentence would have sufficed. A new world had been opened. Reading has allowed me to glimpse the wonder of science, experience the beauty of a diverse humanity, and find companions in this human experience.

I believe that we are connected in ways we do not and cannot understand that are best expressed through literature. Poetry, once inaccessible to me, has given breath and validity to my own deepest emotions and core beliefs. With John Donne, I affirm that all mankind is of one author, no man is an island and that any man’s death diminishes me. I believe, like W.H. Auden, that we must love one another, or die. These words and ideas penned by great authors and poets have allowed me to think their thoughts and become, if only slightly, the product of their ideals. God bless Gutenberg.

Okay, bloggers, Consider yourselves "tagged." If you choose to blog a This I Believe essay, post a link in the comment section; I would love to read yours, now that I've borne my soul. It's a challenge, and knowing that someone else will read it changes the quality of the experience. You'll find instructions here. Who knows? You may like it so much that you'll want to go on the record by submitting it to the NPR Essay database.