Fun at the market!

What a great way to market your blueberries! When I saw this, I knew I had to snap the shot. A creative, eye catching display to increase your sales. Who says, art isn't important?

Vacationing in Dollywood?

It's the first morning of my vacation on Lake Huron and I'm in search of a latte. Not a coffee shop to be found in strip mall land, which does not surprise me, so I make my way to the downtown. Alas, I find a cute place called Raven Cafe. It has a lovely small town charm feel to it. A quirky layout that feels like it has been put together over the years with a pub feel to it. Nice. I was right at home. 

That is until I walk out the front door and am bombarded by county music blaring from the speakers on the light poles (see lower left). Yes, we were all treated to Shania Twain signing her heart out at loud decibels. Oh, dear. What are they thinking?

I know there are places that play music at a decibel that teens can hear and not adults, as a means to keep the teens away. But playing music in downtown as a way to keep me there backfires. I had to leave and leave as soon as possible. It did not encourage me to keep walkin'/jammin'/groovin'/or any other thingin' on down the road. I got back in my car and headed for the beach!

Expired pop

I gave up pop a long time ago. I didn't realize how long ago until I retrieved one from the back of my refrigerator today. I wanted something fizzy. The diet cheery coke I opened had an expiration date of Feb. 4, 2004! It tasted alright. Which begs the question... what the heck am I drinking!?

Broccoli and Mr. Knuckles

Yep. Broccoli. I love it. So does my cat. I first discovered this when I had two pieces left over on my dinner plate. I set the plate on my counter and walked away for a few minutes. When I came back it was gone. My cat had eaten each piece. 

I didn't realize how much he liked it until the next time I made it. I was sitting at my dining room table and he was inching closer and closer to my plate. Then he made his move and stole a piece off my plate, ran off under the table where I couldn't reach him and ate it. I realized that I couldn't eat my broccoli in peace, so I began building a barrier around my plate. Eventually I relented and gave in and now when I make broccoli, I make him his very own serving. Now I can eat my dinner in peace.

This cartoon brought back my learning curve. Fortunately, he doesn't suffer form the same symptoms as Rover the dog.

Michigan Broccoli

If you have never had locally grown Michigan broccoli, then you might count yourself among the broccoli haters like George Bush (the father, not the idiot in office now). Michigan broccoli has softer heads that have a completely different taste. It has pretty much ruined it for me for conventional broccoli. There is just really no comparison.

The other thing I noticed is that Michigan broccoli blooms. Who knew!? Take a close look at this photo and you'll see the beginnings of a yellow blossom. Broccoli is beautiful and tasty!

I love this time of year!

This is what living in Michigan is all about! August is the best time of year due to the fabulous foods available at the local farmer's markets.

This was my dinner the other evening. Two Red Haven peaches, a sliced tomato, broccoli with homemade cheese sauce and steamed potatoes with cottage cheese. YUM! All flavorful, fresh and beautiful to boot! All of the non-dairy was purchased at my local market. It is a standard dinner for me this time of year. Fabulous!

Frankin Foods

What do you know about the foods you consume? Do you read the labels? If you do, do you know what the ingredients are? 

More and more of the foods we consume are being modified for many reasons. Produce has been changed to have a longer shelf life. Did you know that food travels over 1500 miles to get to your plate on average? For it to make that distance, it has to have a longer shelf life. One way to do that is to change the cell structure of the food. If you have a fragile peach, change it to have a tougher skin and firmer body. But when you modify a peach what does that do to it's taste? Have you had a store bought peach verses a locally grown peach? There is no comparison. 

When folks tell me they don't like peaches or tomatoes, I ask, have you had a fresh off the vine/tree one before? If not, go to your local farmer's market and try one. The taste is like drinking freshly squeezed orange juice verses Sunny Delight. No comparison. Aside from the health benefits, you lower your cabon footprint since the food doesn't travel that long distance. 

Think chemical enhancement verses nature. Doesn't the latter sound better? Yep. It sounds better and it tastes better, plus it is better for you. Go support your local farmer's! Keep your economy and your body healthy! It's a win-win!

Should I be worried?

Okay. So I opened a can of mandarin oranges the other day and this is what the inside of the can looked like. (Sorry for the quality of the photo.) Is this something that I should be worried about? Does anyone know? 

I ate the oranges and lived to write about it, but should I reconsider doing that if I find another can that looks like this?

Is lettuce an animal, vegetable or mineral?

Now here is a conundrum for vegetarians. What will I eat now?

5 seconds of fun!

5 seconds of fun! I love this! 

I have an affinity for small animals. Probably comes from my first pets (not family pets) which were two female mice. The idea was they wouldn't fight, plus we wouldn't have lots more baby mice. Problem was they were already pregnant. All of a sudden we had something like 12 mice! Which wasn't crazy enough, but they would get loose and head for the big bag of food in my bedroom. I'd come home from school and find them feasting on mice mix. And in my dreams this is what they would look like when I opened the bag. 

My mom made me give them to the local pet store because we couldn't keep them all, besides who could afford to fix all of them? So, I took Cocoa, Mocha, and the gang to their eminent deaths to become snake food. It broke my heart when I realized what was going to happen to them. Every day I'd walk to the pet store on my way home from school and look into their cage. Every so often one would go missing, I'd look in the snake cages for the tell tale bump. Sometimes it was there, sometimes it wasn't. I'd like to think some of them got adopted....

It was one of the hardest lessons I had ever learned. It broke my small heart.

But not to leave you on a sad note. Watch this and you'll cheer up!

If only it were this easy....

This photo came from fridgewatcher.com which I have written about previously. The site is dedicated to the contents of refrigerators from around the world. 

This picture came from Kentwood, Michigan. If only I could post a notice and have my refrigerator filled! It probably doesn't work for this person either, but I like the concept! This would be a good trick for a cat or dog to learn. If only....!

For those that know me, you know I love food (and dogs). I love eating food, I love cooking food and I'm trying my hand at growing vegetables for the first time this year. 

Food and I are good friends. Well, that is, good food. And food that never had a head, which is why I find humor in this and a tiny bit of horror, too. 

It's another cartoon from the cartoon bank at The New Yorker magazine. 

Chocolate and math... sweet!

For my friends who are math buffs. You know, like me. I love math. Absolute. Concrete. No subjective answers. 

For my friends who like chocolate. You know, like me. I love chocolate (especially white). Smooth. Seductive. Melt in your mouth. Hmmm.

Q: So, what do the two have in common?

A: Your weekly cravings of chocolate can dictate your age! Don't believe me? Find out by clicking on the above link to take a little quiz!

Other fun stuff:

• Americans eat 13 pounds of chocolate per year.
  
• 43% of Americans list chocolate as their favorite flavor.
  
• In 1999, Americans consumed 7.1 pounds of candy!
  

Fridgerator frenzy!

Fridge frenzy!


A while back, I found a site that contains photos of refrigerators and their contents. You can search this site by country to see how they vary. Since I love all kinds of food, I found it fascinating to see what was in each countries fridges. Who knew it was going to be so much fun! The opening page is ever changing, so it is always fresh and new. Just how your produce should be!

Check out fridge watcher to see other food selections from around the world. These photos are of my refrigerator. If you look under my name, you'll find mine on their site soon too.

Finally, if you would like to feed the world and improve your vocabulary at the same time, click here. Don't believe the two can be related? Come on, give it a try. It's fun and somewhat humbling....

Great American Meat Out

Every year there is a day the public is asked to not consume meat, in other words, the Great American Meat Out. It is in the same spirit as the day that smokers are encouraged to give up cigarettes for a day. The object is to show that it can be done and with the benefit of improved health as the outcome. Not only that, but according to An Inconvenient Truth, going vegan saves over 300 pounds of carbon dioxide per year! There are many reasons to become a vegetarian or vegan (no consumption of animal products of any kind). Won't you consider learning more about how this can help you and the planet at the same time? Once you know more, it becomes harder to ignore the overall benefits. Think long term. Think for the future. Take baby steps toward a more healthful future. Begin today!