Aidan was the first one up, as usual. I woke up to Aidan and my uncle talking. I hadn’t gotten halfway through my first cup of coffee before Aidan was asking to go swimming. He remembered we were leaving to drive to Ohio today so he knew if he was going to go swimming it had to be in the morning. My uncle said we’d have breakfast, clean the pool, and then he could go swimming.
Little by little, everyone else woke up. My aunt made Aidan a ham and cheese omelet. Apparently, he greeted her with, “What are you making me for breakfast?” when she woke up. Oh, she’s a kind and generous soul, and really good with kids!
I came inside from the back porch to write and to post yesterday’s journal entry online from my laptop. Just as I was finishing, Kelley told me Aidan was already in the pool. She went to put her suit on to take the first shift with him. I made some oatmeal for my breakfast so I could relieve her in the pool. She wanted to shower so we could get started on our drive to Ohio.
I checked with Liam one last time, to see if he wanted to go swimming before we left my uncle’s. He didn’t swim at all; he stayed inside watching Nick. I went out and played in the pool with Aidan for an hour or so.
My uncle showed me a lot of old pictures from a photo album his great aunt had put together before she died. He had scanned them and was showing them to me on his Apple. He had a lot of pictures of my grandfather, his father, as a child that I’d never seen before. He said he’d burn them onto a DVD for me. I’ll have to take notes so that I remember everybody on that side of my family. I’ll have to put together a family tree for my mom’s side of the family.
I showered and then helped Kelley pack up our stuff in the car. Finally, around 1:30 p.m. we got on the road to Ohio. Both boys fell asleep in the car and didn’t wake up until we got just past Cincinnati. We made great time and soon enough we were at Grandma Carole’s house. It took us about two hours but it certainly didn’t seem that long.
It’s almost all highway, and traffic was light. We didn’t have a single slowdown. And it’s such a pleasant drive. There are so many trees and everything’s green, so different from summer in California.
The boys were excited to see Grandma Carole and Grandpa Jack. Grandma, of course, had surprises for the boys, a Nintendo DS for Aidan and a Sony PSP for Liam. Aidan was so excited; he knew he’d eventually get a DS when he was a little older, but he didn’t think he’s get one so soon. Liam was beside himself; he’s been inseparable from his PSP today.
We had a nice dinner. Peggy, Jack’s sister, and her husband, Don, had dinner with us. Carole made a pasta dish just for me. Also had a nice salad and fresh corn, right off the cob.
Jack also rented a golf cart so that we can drive around their property and neighborhood. Aidan talked several of us, Grandpa, Grandma, Peggy, Don, and me, into taking him for a ride. He just couldn’t get enough. No sooner did we park the golf cart just outside the garage than he was asking to go again.
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Well, that storm came through last night. There was quite a bit of thunder and lightning, some of it really close. We, except for Liam, also got woken up in the middle of the night by another storm that passed over us. It came from the west, again getting real close and then passing over. But even after it passed us by, we could see lots of lightning north of us. It was too far away for us to hear the thunder but the lightning was plenty strong coming in through the windows.
It was much cooler this morning as we sat on the back porch drinking coffee. The rain cooled things down nicely.
We had definitely decided to go to the fair tonight, so we didn't plan to do much today except to relax and swim. We all had breakfast and just took it easy in the morning. We drank coffee and talked for some time on the porch. We talked school and education with my aunt, and my uncle and I had a good talk about family.
Right around noon, my uncle pulled the cover off the pool. We checked the water level on the pool. The patch seems to have held, and the amount of water in the pool seems to have gone up as much as the rain gauge showed, three-quarters of an inch.
We swam for a while with t-shirts on because the boys and I got sunburnt yesterday. We took a break from swimming and had a late lunch, and then got back in the pool. We showered and got dressed.
Aidan was really cranky this afternoon. We haven’t asked him to nap at all this vacation. While Liam was playing Rayman: Raving Rabbids which I had bought at Wal-Mart when we discovered my aunt and uncle had a Wii, I sat on the couch with Aidan. He snuggled up to me and within five minutes had fallen asleep. I nodded off myself for a while. Eventually, I extracted myself from underneath him, my arm asleep, so I could eat a little something before we left for the fair.
My aunt got back from the tennis clinic she's been teaching this week. After she unwound for a bit, we all got ready to go to the Rush County Fair.
My uncle had gotten ahead of us after we parked the cars and had started toward the fair entrance. My best moment of the day came shortly after that. Aidan and I caught up with my uncle. Aidan grabbed his right hand and then I grabbed Aidan’s right hand. The three of us just walked together like that for a short while, three generations together. It was a perfect moment. It made me truly appreciate my uncle Holly, and it made me miss my dad so much my eyes filled with tears. (And my eyes welled up again writing this in my journal, and again when I typed it up for the blog.)
The boys had a great time. My uncle bought them wristbands that let them ride the carnival rides all evening long. They had a blast. You can see how much fun Aidan had on the motorcycle ride.
They rode the bumper cars three times in a row.
We all rode the big ferris wheel together. Finally, we all got something to eat or snack on: hot dogs, ice cream, funnel cake, popcorn, and lemonade. Finally, around 10:30, we headed for my uncle's house.
It was both a relaxing and busy day.
It was much cooler this morning as we sat on the back porch drinking coffee. The rain cooled things down nicely.
We had definitely decided to go to the fair tonight, so we didn't plan to do much today except to relax and swim. We all had breakfast and just took it easy in the morning. We drank coffee and talked for some time on the porch. We talked school and education with my aunt, and my uncle and I had a good talk about family.
Right around noon, my uncle pulled the cover off the pool. We checked the water level on the pool. The patch seems to have held, and the amount of water in the pool seems to have gone up as much as the rain gauge showed, three-quarters of an inch.
We swam for a while with t-shirts on because the boys and I got sunburnt yesterday. We took a break from swimming and had a late lunch, and then got back in the pool. We showered and got dressed.
Aidan was really cranky this afternoon. We haven’t asked him to nap at all this vacation. While Liam was playing Rayman: Raving Rabbids which I had bought at Wal-Mart when we discovered my aunt and uncle had a Wii, I sat on the couch with Aidan. He snuggled up to me and within five minutes had fallen asleep. I nodded off myself for a while. Eventually, I extracted myself from underneath him, my arm asleep, so I could eat a little something before we left for the fair.
My aunt got back from the tennis clinic she's been teaching this week. After she unwound for a bit, we all got ready to go to the Rush County Fair.
My uncle had gotten ahead of us after we parked the cars and had started toward the fair entrance. My best moment of the day came shortly after that. Aidan and I caught up with my uncle. Aidan grabbed his right hand and then I grabbed Aidan’s right hand. The three of us just walked together like that for a short while, three generations together. It was a perfect moment. It made me truly appreciate my uncle Holly, and it made me miss my dad so much my eyes filled with tears. (And my eyes welled up again writing this in my journal, and again when I typed it up for the blog.)
The boys had a great time. My uncle bought them wristbands that let them ride the carnival rides all evening long. They had a blast. You can see how much fun Aidan had on the motorcycle ride.
They rode the bumper cars three times in a row.
We all rode the big ferris wheel together. Finally, we all got something to eat or snack on: hot dogs, ice cream, funnel cake, popcorn, and lemonade. Finally, around 10:30, we headed for my uncle's house.
It was both a relaxing and busy day.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Slept in until about 7:30 a.m. It's already warm; it must be in the 70s. Got some coffee and sat outside on the screened-in porch out back. Liam was playing Wii and Aidan was around front with my uncle. Kelley remarked that this was what she was looking forward to, sipping coffee and watching the corn grow. An altogether pleasant way to start the morning.
Spent quite a while in the pool with the boys. Seeing the boys swim here really shows how far they've come with their swimming lessons. They love being in the water and are absolutely fearless; it's great to see. They spent a lot of time just jumping in from the wood deck.
Helped my uncle put a patch on a hole in the bottom of the pool. Now we have to wait 24 hours for the epoxy to set. We'll swim again tomorrow afternoon.
The boys stayed home with my uncle, while Kelley and I went to pick up some things at Wal-Mart. We wanted to get some new swimming trunks for Aidan and a couple of tank tops. We also picked up some food, soymilk and such so that I'd have something to drink and eat. We also had a late lunch at Chili's.
We were thinking of going to the Rush County Fair tonight, but a thunderstorm passed through while we were out shopping. It didn't rain on us out at Greensburg, but a couple of the roads near my uncle's house still had puddles in them as we got back. Don't really want to get caught outside in the rain at the fair. Maybe we'll go tomorrow night.
We sat outside until about 10 p.m. just chewing the fat, as the number of fireflies waxed and waned. We could see a storm system coming in from the east. We couldn't hear any thunder, but we could see some lightning.
Spent quite a while in the pool with the boys. Seeing the boys swim here really shows how far they've come with their swimming lessons. They love being in the water and are absolutely fearless; it's great to see. They spent a lot of time just jumping in from the wood deck.
Helped my uncle put a patch on a hole in the bottom of the pool. Now we have to wait 24 hours for the epoxy to set. We'll swim again tomorrow afternoon.
The boys stayed home with my uncle, while Kelley and I went to pick up some things at Wal-Mart. We wanted to get some new swimming trunks for Aidan and a couple of tank tops. We also picked up some food, soymilk and such so that I'd have something to drink and eat. We also had a late lunch at Chili's.
We were thinking of going to the Rush County Fair tonight, but a thunderstorm passed through while we were out shopping. It didn't rain on us out at Greensburg, but a couple of the roads near my uncle's house still had puddles in them as we got back. Don't really want to get caught outside in the rain at the fair. Maybe we'll go tomorrow night.
We sat outside until about 10 p.m. just chewing the fat, as the number of fireflies waxed and waned. We could see a storm system coming in from the east. We couldn't hear any thunder, but we could see some lightning.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Got up at three in the morning. Our taxi was late. Apparently, when Kelley called last night they didn't record our reservation. It didn't matter, because we were in line at Southwest at SFO before they were even open. Kiosks started turning on and a few people got out of line to get their boarding passes. We moved up and soon the agents were there and we checked in our bags. The agents don't do much because Kelley punched all our info into the electronic kiosk. All they do is put the tags on our luggage. So much for customer service; I guess that's the part of the price you pay for cheap fares.
The flight to Denver was great. The plane was only half full. There was hardly anyone around us. Aidan took a window seat next to Kelley while Liam took a window seat across the aisle and I sat with him. Both boys colored in their Cars coloring books. Before we knew it, we were in Denver.
We grabbed something to eat at the Denver airport and then boarded our flight to Indianapolis. The boys were a little more antsy at that point, so we broke out the laptop and a DVD. But again, the flight seemed really quick. Liam wasn't even able to finish watching Bolt. Aidan, meanwhile, had fallen asleep.
They've got a nice new terminal at the Indianapolis airport. We found the rental car desk, walked across to the garage, found our car, and then drove right out on the highway. Last time, we had to take a shuttle to the rental car parking lot. I had a hard time getting out of the airport to the highway, and then ended up going the wrong way on the highway to get to my uncle's house. This time, it couldn't have been smoother.
Of course, we stopped at the Cracker Barrel in Shelbyville. We were all starving at that point. I had the beginnings of a headache. We were all less crabby after eating.
When we got to my uncle's house, they were all in the pool. We quickly unloaded the car, put on our swimming suits, and joined them in the water.
Both my cousins were there. Rebekah's home from college, and Michael was there with his wife, Brooke, and their three daughters. My uncle's first wife, Marcela, also stopped by. It was good to see so much of my extended family. We sat around and just talked until it started getting dark and the lightning bugs came out. Then it was time for sleep.
The flight to Denver was great. The plane was only half full. There was hardly anyone around us. Aidan took a window seat next to Kelley while Liam took a window seat across the aisle and I sat with him. Both boys colored in their Cars coloring books. Before we knew it, we were in Denver.
We grabbed something to eat at the Denver airport and then boarded our flight to Indianapolis. The boys were a little more antsy at that point, so we broke out the laptop and a DVD. But again, the flight seemed really quick. Liam wasn't even able to finish watching Bolt. Aidan, meanwhile, had fallen asleep.
They've got a nice new terminal at the Indianapolis airport. We found the rental car desk, walked across to the garage, found our car, and then drove right out on the highway. Last time, we had to take a shuttle to the rental car parking lot. I had a hard time getting out of the airport to the highway, and then ended up going the wrong way on the highway to get to my uncle's house. This time, it couldn't have been smoother.
Of course, we stopped at the Cracker Barrel in Shelbyville. We were all starving at that point. I had the beginnings of a headache. We were all less crabby after eating.
When we got to my uncle's house, they were all in the pool. We quickly unloaded the car, put on our swimming suits, and joined them in the water.
Both my cousins were there. Rebekah's home from college, and Michael was there with his wife, Brooke, and their three daughters. My uncle's first wife, Marcela, also stopped by. It was good to see so much of my extended family. We sat around and just talked until it started getting dark and the lightning bugs came out. Then it was time for sleep.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009 (The Day Before)
Finished getting the boys and myself packed for the trip. Just have the usual last-minute things that we'll take care of in the morning. Otherwise, we're ready to go, and eager too.
Liam and I got our haircuts today. Short hair will be nice in the hot and humid midwest. The less to deal with, the better.
I don't know if we'll have time or not, but I would like to see the Serpent Mound. Our Ohio guidebook describes it as "in northern Adams County, 19 miles south of Hillsboro on Rte. 73." I've seen pictures of it in history books, but would like to see it for myself. I did find one website for the Great Serpent Mound of Southern Ohio. For some reason, I couldn't access the ohiohistory.org site.
I wouldn't mind seeing some nice covered bridges. Apparently, there are some in Greene County, and the "Greene County Convention and Visitors' Bureau has produced a brochure detailing a way to take in the bridges by traveling about 50 miles. The route starts in Yellow Springs and ends south of Xenia."
Liam and I got our haircuts today. Short hair will be nice in the hot and humid midwest. The less to deal with, the better.
I don't know if we'll have time or not, but I would like to see the Serpent Mound. Our Ohio guidebook describes it as "in northern Adams County, 19 miles south of Hillsboro on Rte. 73." I've seen pictures of it in history books, but would like to see it for myself. I did find one website for the Great Serpent Mound of Southern Ohio. For some reason, I couldn't access the ohiohistory.org site.
I wouldn't mind seeing some nice covered bridges. Apparently, there are some in Greene County, and the "Greene County Convention and Visitors' Bureau has produced a brochure detailing a way to take in the bridges by traveling about 50 miles. The route starts in Yellow Springs and ends south of Xenia."
Monday, June 22, 2009
Before the Trip (2009)
This time I'm thinking about some of the things we didn't do last time, such as the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, the Indiana State Museum, and the Indianapolis Zoo. All three of which are in the White River State Park.
Not in the White River State Park, but also sounding really interesting is the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, which has an on-going exhibit of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, as well as a new exhibit on King Tut that is opening on June 27.
One thing that interests me over in Ohio is Fort Ancient State Memorial. As the Moon Handbook for Ohio describes it: "The artifact-rich displays cover 15,000 years of American Indian heritage."
I want to see what else we might do in Ohio, between Cincinnati and Wilmington. I'm interested in seeing some of the mounds built by Native Americans in the Ohio Valley.
Not in the White River State Park, but also sounding really interesting is the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, which has an on-going exhibit of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, as well as a new exhibit on King Tut that is opening on June 27.
One thing that interests me over in Ohio is Fort Ancient State Memorial. As the Moon Handbook for Ohio describes it: "The artifact-rich displays cover 15,000 years of American Indian heritage."
I want to see what else we might do in Ohio, between Cincinnati and Wilmington. I'm interested in seeing some of the mounds built by Native Americans in the Ohio Valley.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
We finished packing and got on the road back to the airport. We couldn’t find Aidan’s last “binky,” his pacifier. We had managed to lose two or three of them on this trip already. But we didn’t have time to buy a new one for the trip home. We thought he’d be okay on the flight back; boy, were we wrong.
It was an awful flight. Aidan got fussy and was inconsolable without his binky. We tried distracting him and trying to get him to sleep, but nothing would work. Everyone around us was annoyed, and I don’t blame them one bit. Kelley sat with him first, while I sat with Liam, and then we traded off. The woman sitting in the window seat next to Aidan tried to help by talking to him, but the novelty of that soon wore off and he just cried and cried. Probably the worst part was the elderly man who sat in the aisle seat behind us who kept offering “advice” on child rearing. He was really insulting, basically letting us know in his passive-aggressive manner that we were bad parents and had done a horrible job raising Aidan. It’s the worst flight I’ve ever been on.
We were so frazzled getting off that flight at our layover in Las Vegas that we forgot the portable DVD player. I went back to the plane to look for it when we realized it was missing, but passengers were already boarding it for its next flight. No one had turned in the player, so somebody got a nice, free gift at our expense.
The short flight back to Oakland was uneventful. Aidan, by now, was cried out. And it was over so quick; no sooner are you up at cruising altitude then you’re descending for the landing. Kelley, thank goodness, had already arranged for a car service to get us home.
Addendum: My aunt called us about a week later and told us where she found his last binky. It was in the freezer. She has one of those side-by-side refrigerators. Aidan, apparently, had opened the freezer and put his binky in there. That particular binky, by the way, is still there.
The good news was that was the last of the binkies. He never got another pacificer after that one.
It was an awful flight. Aidan got fussy and was inconsolable without his binky. We tried distracting him and trying to get him to sleep, but nothing would work. Everyone around us was annoyed, and I don’t blame them one bit. Kelley sat with him first, while I sat with Liam, and then we traded off. The woman sitting in the window seat next to Aidan tried to help by talking to him, but the novelty of that soon wore off and he just cried and cried. Probably the worst part was the elderly man who sat in the aisle seat behind us who kept offering “advice” on child rearing. He was really insulting, basically letting us know in his passive-aggressive manner that we were bad parents and had done a horrible job raising Aidan. It’s the worst flight I’ve ever been on.
We were so frazzled getting off that flight at our layover in Las Vegas that we forgot the portable DVD player. I went back to the plane to look for it when we realized it was missing, but passengers were already boarding it for its next flight. No one had turned in the player, so somebody got a nice, free gift at our expense.
The short flight back to Oakland was uneventful. Aidan, by now, was cried out. And it was over so quick; no sooner are you up at cruising altitude then you’re descending for the landing. Kelley, thank goodness, had already arranged for a car service to get us home.
Addendum: My aunt called us about a week later and told us where she found his last binky. It was in the freezer. She has one of those side-by-side refrigerators. Aidan, apparently, had opened the freezer and put his binky in there. That particular binky, by the way, is still there.
The good news was that was the last of the binkies. He never got another pacificer after that one.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Our last full day in Indiana; we fly home tomorrow. We talked about seeing some more covered bridges. My uncle said he knew of five in Rush County. Here’s one that we drove through and then took pictures of on the far side.
It was a lazy morning, but by noon we were actually heading out the door with a box full of stuff that we were going to mail home. We stopped at the post office in Milroy and bought some tea for us and some apple juice for the boys; it was hot.
When we got back to my uncle’s house, Liam was taking a nap. He had told my uncle he hadn’t slept much the night before and was tired. We then got Aidan down for a nap and used my uncle’s computer to print out our boarding passes. Well, sort of.
I had no problem printing them out for Kelley and the boys, but mine would not print out. I got a message that said I had to get my boarding pass from a skycap, the check-in desk, or one of those self-help electronic ticket kiosks.
A call to the airline confirmed that I in fact had to drive all the way to the Indianapolis airport to get my boarding pass. Apparently, my name had been flagged on a “do not fly” list and I had to confirm who I was. We drove to the airport, showed them my driver’s license, and the agent printed out my boarding pass. A huge waste of my valuable time. There are too many Richard Walkers out there, and apparently one of them is some kind of security risk.
We had dinner at a Golden Corral, but it was not as nice as the one we ate at in Ohio. We should have listened to my cousin and eaten at the buffet restaurant she worked at.
It was a lazy morning, but by noon we were actually heading out the door with a box full of stuff that we were going to mail home. We stopped at the post office in Milroy and bought some tea for us and some apple juice for the boys; it was hot.
When we got back to my uncle’s house, Liam was taking a nap. He had told my uncle he hadn’t slept much the night before and was tired. We then got Aidan down for a nap and used my uncle’s computer to print out our boarding passes. Well, sort of.
I had no problem printing them out for Kelley and the boys, but mine would not print out. I got a message that said I had to get my boarding pass from a skycap, the check-in desk, or one of those self-help electronic ticket kiosks.
A call to the airline confirmed that I in fact had to drive all the way to the Indianapolis airport to get my boarding pass. Apparently, my name had been flagged on a “do not fly” list and I had to confirm who I was. We drove to the airport, showed them my driver’s license, and the agent printed out my boarding pass. A huge waste of my valuable time. There are too many Richard Walkers out there, and apparently one of them is some kind of security risk.
We had dinner at a Golden Corral, but it was not as nice as the one we ate at in Ohio. We should have listened to my cousin and eaten at the buffet restaurant she worked at.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Woke up, had some coffee then started scouring the house, looking for toys, stray socks, and anything else we need to pack. Our vacation is winding down. We’re starting to think about getting everything packed for the flight back to California. We all have things we bought or were given that we need to find room for.
The boys have little remote-controlled Zip Zap cars, Lightning McQueen and Sally from Cars, cars from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a Gameboy, a portable DVD player, and two dogs from Build-a-Bear Workshop, Rascal and Scrappy. Luckily, we just need to pack for the road trip back to my uncle’s house, but we’re already discussing mailing some things home to ourselves.
The boys each took last rides with Grandpa Jack on his mower, and I pushed them on the swing set down by the lake.
We said our good-byes and got on the road around 2:30 p.m. It was a quick drive – and a quiet one too – both boys fell asleep in the car.
Back at my uncle’s we just relaxed, telling my aunt and uncle about our trips to Ohio and Maryland. Liam, of course, was playing Crash Bandicoot on my cousin’s PlayStation.
As the sun set, we sat in the backyard and watched as the lightning bugs came out. Liam finally joined the rest of us outside, and the two boys chased and caught some lightning bugs.
The boys have little remote-controlled Zip Zap cars, Lightning McQueen and Sally from Cars, cars from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a Gameboy, a portable DVD player, and two dogs from Build-a-Bear Workshop, Rascal and Scrappy. Luckily, we just need to pack for the road trip back to my uncle’s house, but we’re already discussing mailing some things home to ourselves.
The boys each took last rides with Grandpa Jack on his mower, and I pushed them on the swing set down by the lake.
We said our good-byes and got on the road around 2:30 p.m. It was a quick drive – and a quiet one too – both boys fell asleep in the car.
Back at my uncle’s we just relaxed, telling my aunt and uncle about our trips to Ohio and Maryland. Liam, of course, was playing Crash Bandicoot on my cousin’s PlayStation.
As the sun set, we sat in the backyard and watched as the lightning bugs came out. Liam finally joined the rest of us outside, and the two boys chased and caught some lightning bugs.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Today is our last full day in Ohio. We drive back to my uncle’s in Indiana tomorrow.
We went for a drive to see an old covered bridge outside of Wilmington. Even falling into disrepair as it is, it was still worthwhile to see. And it ended up being a good place to take pictures.
We drove around the countryside for a bit, then headed back to Grandma Carole’s. After naps and dinner, we went back to Peggy and Don’s again. The boys loved riding in Don’s John Deere Gator. And he took us back into the woods again to play on the rope swing.
We also went next door to Peggy’s son’s house. Laurie and Randy have a beautiful home. Randy is a carpenter and he built the house with help from family members. As Laurie described it, it’s her dream house, where she’ll grow old and die in.
They were excellent hosts, and served us ice cream. Laurie provided me with lots of fresh fruit, strawberries, cherries, watermelon, and cantaloupe. We were there until 10 p.m., then decided it was time for us to head home and get some sleep.
We went for a drive to see an old covered bridge outside of Wilmington. Even falling into disrepair as it is, it was still worthwhile to see. And it ended up being a good place to take pictures.
We drove around the countryside for a bit, then headed back to Grandma Carole’s. After naps and dinner, we went back to Peggy and Don’s again. The boys loved riding in Don’s John Deere Gator. And he took us back into the woods again to play on the rope swing.
We also went next door to Peggy’s son’s house. Laurie and Randy have a beautiful home. Randy is a carpenter and he built the house with help from family members. As Laurie described it, it’s her dream house, where she’ll grow old and die in.
They were excellent hosts, and served us ice cream. Laurie provided me with lots of fresh fruit, strawberries, cherries, watermelon, and cantaloupe. We were there until 10 p.m., then decided it was time for us to head home and get some sleep.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Before our long drive back to Ohio, Kelley wanted to go to the Fractured Prune. It’s a donut shop where they make your donuts fresh to order. They start with a basic cake donut, which the proprietor said was just flour and water, but I’m sure there’s egg in there somewhere, so I’m pretty sure they’re not vegan. You tell them what glaze you want, like maple or mocha, and then what toppings you want, like coconut or chopped peanuts. They are delicious – and yes, I’ll do some kind of vegan penance.
We did take I-83 north from Baltimore toward Harrisburg, then we got on the Pennsylvania Turnpike heading west. It was a beautiful day. We drove with the windows down, enjoying the fresh air. The sky was blue and filled with white, puffy clouds. The drive back was far more enjoyable than the drive out just because of the weather.
We probably looked foolish to anyone who noticed us taking pictures out the open car windows as we made our way on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, but we were determined to try to capture how beautiful the landscape was. We even mentioned how photos don’t do justice to the real thing, but we snapped away anyway.
We stopped at what will probably be our last Cracker Barrel this trip, in New Stanton, Pennsylvania. I brought my journal in to fully record something I’d noticed earlier on their menu: turnip greens, green beans, corn muffins, hashbrown casserole, and pinto beans are made with meat as a seasoning and “are not strictly vegetarian.” This appears next to their description of their Country Vegetable Plate. I think I’ve had my fill of Cracker Barrel.
The rest of our trip back to Ohio was uneventful. It was good to get back to Grandma Carole’s and see our children again.
Addendum: While we were in Baltimore, Grandma Carole had taken the boys to Paramount’s Kings Island, an amusement park not too far outside of Cincinnati, and to Build-a-Bear Workshop. Both boys got dogs instead of bears.
We did take I-83 north from Baltimore toward Harrisburg, then we got on the Pennsylvania Turnpike heading west. It was a beautiful day. We drove with the windows down, enjoying the fresh air. The sky was blue and filled with white, puffy clouds. The drive back was far more enjoyable than the drive out just because of the weather.
We probably looked foolish to anyone who noticed us taking pictures out the open car windows as we made our way on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, but we were determined to try to capture how beautiful the landscape was. We even mentioned how photos don’t do justice to the real thing, but we snapped away anyway.
We stopped at what will probably be our last Cracker Barrel this trip, in New Stanton, Pennsylvania. I brought my journal in to fully record something I’d noticed earlier on their menu: turnip greens, green beans, corn muffins, hashbrown casserole, and pinto beans are made with meat as a seasoning and “are not strictly vegetarian.” This appears next to their description of their Country Vegetable Plate. I think I’ve had my fill of Cracker Barrel.
The rest of our trip back to Ohio was uneventful. It was good to get back to Grandma Carole’s and see our children again.
Addendum: While we were in Baltimore, Grandma Carole had taken the boys to Paramount’s Kings Island, an amusement park not too far outside of Cincinnati, and to Build-a-Bear Workshop. Both boys got dogs instead of bears.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
We slept in after our busy day yesterday. We wanted to go to the One World Café, after our disappointing breakfast yesterday. We had been there before, the one time I came with Kelley to Johns Hopkins Hospital. It was a bit of a drive as it’s near Johns Hopkins University, which is not near the hospital, but well worth it.
One World Café is not strictly vegetarian, but menu items are marked with a “V” if they are vegan. I ordered the Vegan Pancakes. You have a choice of fruit as well, blueberries, bananas, or strawberries. I ordered bananas. To drink, I ordered the Organic Peanut Butter Smoothie. It was all delicious. And such a pleasure. Having a decent vegan breakfast can be quite a challenge when you’re traveling. I was ready to order more pancakes just on general principle, but they were so filling. It was a most satisfying meal.
We then headed over to Jen’s apartment. We hung out there a while, drinking coffee and talking about movies and books.
We had discussed taking a Duck Tour. These are tours in those amphibious vehicles they used on D-Day. But a friend of Jen’s cautioned us not to, so we skipped it. We were just going to walk around Fell’s Point and the Inner Harbor. And before too long, a Duck Tour came by. The people onboard waved at us and quacked at us with their little duck kazoos. We busted up laughing. In the right frame of mind, I’m sure it would be fun, but not for us that day. Later in the day we saw a Duck Tour in the water. Again, they waved at us and we could hear the music they were playing, the Village People’s “In the Navy” and “Rubber Duckie” from Sesame Street. We didn’t need to take the Duck Tour to be amused by it.
Before we got out of Fell’s Point, Joe took me to Sound Garden, a music shop. Kelley and Jen looked at clothes and jewelry while Joe and I browsed music. I ended up buying the latest CDs by the Barenaked Ladies and Diana Krall.
When I mentioned wanting a little something sweet to eat, we stopped at Whole Foods, where I found a couple of vegan chocolate chip cookies. I also got an Odwalla Soy Smart Chai. In fact, we all picked up some sweet treats at Whole Foods, which we ate there. I’m spoiled by the Whole Foods in the San Francisco Bay Area, which offer a number of vegan sweets, but it was slim pickings in Baltimore. Still, it was just what I wanted at the time.
From there we strolled around, just taking in the sights. A couple walking by offered to take a picture of all four of us, so here we are.
Kelley and I are always impressed with the architecture of Baltimore. One, the amount of brick is astounding. You almost never see brick used in earthquake-prone California. And the number of old, classy-looking buildings is just impressive. Baltimore is a great looking city. We saw an old all-brick power plant which now houses ESPN Zone and Barnes & Noble, among other shops. For us, it was just so unusual to see such old buildings used that way. In California, I suspect the developer would have knocked down the power plant and put up something modern.
As the afternoon wore on, we made our way back to Jen’s place. Again, we relaxed a bit then went out for dinner. There is a really excellent sushi restaurant in Towson, Sushi Hana. There was plenty of vegetarian sushi, so I had no problem having a delicious, delightful, and satisfying meal.
One World Café is not strictly vegetarian, but menu items are marked with a “V” if they are vegan. I ordered the Vegan Pancakes. You have a choice of fruit as well, blueberries, bananas, or strawberries. I ordered bananas. To drink, I ordered the Organic Peanut Butter Smoothie. It was all delicious. And such a pleasure. Having a decent vegan breakfast can be quite a challenge when you’re traveling. I was ready to order more pancakes just on general principle, but they were so filling. It was a most satisfying meal.
We then headed over to Jen’s apartment. We hung out there a while, drinking coffee and talking about movies and books.
We had discussed taking a Duck Tour. These are tours in those amphibious vehicles they used on D-Day. But a friend of Jen’s cautioned us not to, so we skipped it. We were just going to walk around Fell’s Point and the Inner Harbor. And before too long, a Duck Tour came by. The people onboard waved at us and quacked at us with their little duck kazoos. We busted up laughing. In the right frame of mind, I’m sure it would be fun, but not for us that day. Later in the day we saw a Duck Tour in the water. Again, they waved at us and we could hear the music they were playing, the Village People’s “In the Navy” and “Rubber Duckie” from Sesame Street. We didn’t need to take the Duck Tour to be amused by it.
Before we got out of Fell’s Point, Joe took me to Sound Garden, a music shop. Kelley and Jen looked at clothes and jewelry while Joe and I browsed music. I ended up buying the latest CDs by the Barenaked Ladies and Diana Krall.
When I mentioned wanting a little something sweet to eat, we stopped at Whole Foods, where I found a couple of vegan chocolate chip cookies. I also got an Odwalla Soy Smart Chai. In fact, we all picked up some sweet treats at Whole Foods, which we ate there. I’m spoiled by the Whole Foods in the San Francisco Bay Area, which offer a number of vegan sweets, but it was slim pickings in Baltimore. Still, it was just what I wanted at the time.
From there we strolled around, just taking in the sights. A couple walking by offered to take a picture of all four of us, so here we are.
Kelley and I are always impressed with the architecture of Baltimore. One, the amount of brick is astounding. You almost never see brick used in earthquake-prone California. And the number of old, classy-looking buildings is just impressive. Baltimore is a great looking city. We saw an old all-brick power plant which now houses ESPN Zone and Barnes & Noble, among other shops. For us, it was just so unusual to see such old buildings used that way. In California, I suspect the developer would have knocked down the power plant and put up something modern.
As the afternoon wore on, we made our way back to Jen’s place. Again, we relaxed a bit then went out for dinner. There is a really excellent sushi restaurant in Towson, Sushi Hana. There was plenty of vegetarian sushi, so I had no problem having a delicious, delightful, and satisfying meal.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Friday, July 20, 2007
We slept in at the Ramada. It was nice to have a king size bed and have the air conditioning running all night. It was still 85° at 10:00 at night in Baltimore.
We drove over to Jen’s place near Fell’s Point, and then walked down to a local hangout, the Sip & Bite Restaurant. It’s really a small diner. It has a lot of character, but the food was just okay. I had a salad, a lettuce and tomato sandwich, and French fries. There were not a lot of options for vegetarians, let alone vegans. I suspect it’s one of those places that locals love more because of its funky charm than its food.
Jen then went with her boyfriend, Joe, to see his son’s play. But first, she dropped us off at Johns Hopkins Hospital. We went to say hello to Dr. Nguyen, who essentially saved the vision in my wife’s right eye. He got her into a study where she could get Avastin, a drug approved for colorectal cancer, but which shows great promise for treating conditions like “wet” macular degeneration. I won’t go into details here, because that’s not the point. The one time I went with my wife to Johns Hopkins for one of her treatments, Dr. Nguyen was back in San Francisco, where his wife is from. Ironic, isn’t it? I usually stayed at home with our children, while a friend of my wife’s would accompany her across the country for her hospital visits. So, while she spoke extensively about Dr. Nguyen I had never met him. Well, now I have. We stopped in the Wilmer Eye Institute, and Dr. Nguyen made time for us in his very busy schedule. By all accounts, he is a brilliant doctor and researcher, but my impression of him was that he is one of the warmest, kindest, most sincerely compassionate doctors I have ever met. He spoke with the two of us for quite some time, asking about my wife’s condition, updating us on some current research, and even sharing a recommendation or two for eating and sightseeing in Baltimore. I was glad to have met him finally and to share my gratitude for all that he has done for Kelley. He will always be an exceptional doctor and great man in my book.
We walked back from Johns Hopkins to Fell’s Point, which we walked around for a bit, then down to the harbor where we caught a water taxi over to Fort McHenry. We considered going to the National Aquarium, but it was such a beautiful day, sunny and warm without too much humidity that we decided to go to Fort McHenry. We ended up spending quite a while there. We went on a walk with one of the National Park Service rangers who gave a fascinating talk on the history of the fort. I knew it was famous for the flag still flying that inspired Francis Scott Key to pen the “Star Spangled Banner,” but was unaware of the rest of its history, including during the Civil War and as a hospital around the time of the First World War
As a teacher and as someone who loves history, I learned a great deal, including details about the Battle of Baltimore and the War of 1812 with which I was mostly unfamiliar. But I think just about anyone would find a visit to Fort McHenry worthwhile. You can take a water taxi there, as we did, or you can drive because it’s on a peninsula.
Once we got back to Fell’s Point, I wanted a snack. I was going to need something to tide me over until we went out to dinner for tapas. We found Liquid Earth, which I had looked up on Happy Cow and VegGuide.
It is described in the Moon Handbook for Maryland and Delaware as “a deluxe juice bar that serves vegetarian and vegan sandwiches for lunch and dinner daily.” It is vegetarian and the menu includes a handful of vegan sandwiches. I ordered the T.L.T., which was vegetarian “bacon,” baby greens, tomato, and Nayonnaise on whole grain bread. It was quite good and such a delight after the dearth of vegetarian options so far on our trip.
I also had a smoothie, the Oxymoron, which was strawberries, bananas, two shots of chilled espresso and milk blended with chocolate syrup and ice. Of course, I got it with soymilk, and it was delicious!
My sandwich and smoothie hit the spot and I was all set until our late dinner.
After we hung out at Jen’s place for a while, we drove back to the hotel to freshen up. Then we piled into Jen’s car to head out for dinner. It took us forever to find a parking place. Apparently, there was some event called ArtScape going on and parking was at a premium. The lot and garage across from Tapas Teatro were both full. It must have been forty-five minutes to find street parking.
The tapas were worth the wait. There were a small number of vegetarian options, but they were all excellent. They had a Mediterranean mix of green olives, which were exceptional, asparagus, artichoke hearts, and tomatoes. They had a special that night of mushrooms, which also were delicious. I also ordered gazpacho; it was good but not remarkable.
We were going to go dancing at The Depot, a club across the street near the end of the block. The play 80s music on Friday nights, but we were disappointed to find they were having a couple of live bands play that night, so no dancing for us.
We drove over to Jen’s place near Fell’s Point, and then walked down to a local hangout, the Sip & Bite Restaurant. It’s really a small diner. It has a lot of character, but the food was just okay. I had a salad, a lettuce and tomato sandwich, and French fries. There were not a lot of options for vegetarians, let alone vegans. I suspect it’s one of those places that locals love more because of its funky charm than its food.
Jen then went with her boyfriend, Joe, to see his son’s play. But first, she dropped us off at Johns Hopkins Hospital. We went to say hello to Dr. Nguyen, who essentially saved the vision in my wife’s right eye. He got her into a study where she could get Avastin, a drug approved for colorectal cancer, but which shows great promise for treating conditions like “wet” macular degeneration. I won’t go into details here, because that’s not the point. The one time I went with my wife to Johns Hopkins for one of her treatments, Dr. Nguyen was back in San Francisco, where his wife is from. Ironic, isn’t it? I usually stayed at home with our children, while a friend of my wife’s would accompany her across the country for her hospital visits. So, while she spoke extensively about Dr. Nguyen I had never met him. Well, now I have. We stopped in the Wilmer Eye Institute, and Dr. Nguyen made time for us in his very busy schedule. By all accounts, he is a brilliant doctor and researcher, but my impression of him was that he is one of the warmest, kindest, most sincerely compassionate doctors I have ever met. He spoke with the two of us for quite some time, asking about my wife’s condition, updating us on some current research, and even sharing a recommendation or two for eating and sightseeing in Baltimore. I was glad to have met him finally and to share my gratitude for all that he has done for Kelley. He will always be an exceptional doctor and great man in my book.
We walked back from Johns Hopkins to Fell’s Point, which we walked around for a bit, then down to the harbor where we caught a water taxi over to Fort McHenry. We considered going to the National Aquarium, but it was such a beautiful day, sunny and warm without too much humidity that we decided to go to Fort McHenry. We ended up spending quite a while there. We went on a walk with one of the National Park Service rangers who gave a fascinating talk on the history of the fort. I knew it was famous for the flag still flying that inspired Francis Scott Key to pen the “Star Spangled Banner,” but was unaware of the rest of its history, including during the Civil War and as a hospital around the time of the First World War
As a teacher and as someone who loves history, I learned a great deal, including details about the Battle of Baltimore and the War of 1812 with which I was mostly unfamiliar. But I think just about anyone would find a visit to Fort McHenry worthwhile. You can take a water taxi there, as we did, or you can drive because it’s on a peninsula.
Once we got back to Fell’s Point, I wanted a snack. I was going to need something to tide me over until we went out to dinner for tapas. We found Liquid Earth, which I had looked up on Happy Cow and VegGuide.
It is described in the Moon Handbook for Maryland and Delaware as “a deluxe juice bar that serves vegetarian and vegan sandwiches for lunch and dinner daily.” It is vegetarian and the menu includes a handful of vegan sandwiches. I ordered the T.L.T., which was vegetarian “bacon,” baby greens, tomato, and Nayonnaise on whole grain bread. It was quite good and such a delight after the dearth of vegetarian options so far on our trip.
I also had a smoothie, the Oxymoron, which was strawberries, bananas, two shots of chilled espresso and milk blended with chocolate syrup and ice. Of course, I got it with soymilk, and it was delicious!
My sandwich and smoothie hit the spot and I was all set until our late dinner.
After we hung out at Jen’s place for a while, we drove back to the hotel to freshen up. Then we piled into Jen’s car to head out for dinner. It took us forever to find a parking place. Apparently, there was some event called ArtScape going on and parking was at a premium. The lot and garage across from Tapas Teatro were both full. It must have been forty-five minutes to find street parking.
The tapas were worth the wait. There were a small number of vegetarian options, but they were all excellent. They had a Mediterranean mix of green olives, which were exceptional, asparagus, artichoke hearts, and tomatoes. They had a special that night of mushrooms, which also were delicious. I also ordered gazpacho; it was good but not remarkable.
We were going to go dancing at The Depot, a club across the street near the end of the block. The play 80s music on Friday nights, but we were disappointed to find they were having a couple of live bands play that night, so no dancing for us.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
We didn’t leave Wilmington until 10:30, getting a later start than I would have liked.
We stopped in Zanesville, Ohio at a Cracker Barrel. Unfortunately, they stop serving oatmeal at 10:00 so I had lunch, the usual Vegetable Plate. The sweet potato casserole was really good, basically mashed sweet potatoes with some orange juice and pecans.
We then continued east through Ohio, crossing a little splinter of West Virginia, and then into Pennsylvania. Before long we were on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Very strange concept that: paying to drive on a road. You enter through a toll booth, picking up a ticket, and when you exit the turnpike, you go through another tollbooth and pay for the privilege of having driven on it. There are no toll roads that I know of in California. We’re used to paying tolls for crossing bridges, but you pay $4 or 5 before you cross the bridge.
In Ohio, there were rest stops off the interstate. Once on the Pennsylvania Turnpike there are no rest stops. They have service plazas, where you can find restaurants and gas stations. Luckily, they also had Starbucks. Venti iced chai lattes with soymilk were a godsend to us on the road.
I had originally planned staying on the turnpike all the way to Harrisburg, then heading south on 83 into Baltimore, but we turned south sooner, following 70 into Maryland, which brought us into Baltimore from the west.
We found our hotel in Towson, a suburb north of Baltimore without any problem, then drove into the city proper to see our friend, Jen.
We stopped in Zanesville, Ohio at a Cracker Barrel. Unfortunately, they stop serving oatmeal at 10:00 so I had lunch, the usual Vegetable Plate. The sweet potato casserole was really good, basically mashed sweet potatoes with some orange juice and pecans.
We then continued east through Ohio, crossing a little splinter of West Virginia, and then into Pennsylvania. Before long we were on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Very strange concept that: paying to drive on a road. You enter through a toll booth, picking up a ticket, and when you exit the turnpike, you go through another tollbooth and pay for the privilege of having driven on it. There are no toll roads that I know of in California. We’re used to paying tolls for crossing bridges, but you pay $4 or 5 before you cross the bridge.
In Ohio, there were rest stops off the interstate. Once on the Pennsylvania Turnpike there are no rest stops. They have service plazas, where you can find restaurants and gas stations. Luckily, they also had Starbucks. Venti iced chai lattes with soymilk were a godsend to us on the road.
I had originally planned staying on the turnpike all the way to Harrisburg, then heading south on 83 into Baltimore, but we turned south sooner, following 70 into Maryland, which brought us into Baltimore from the west.
We found our hotel in Towson, a suburb north of Baltimore without any problem, then drove into the city proper to see our friend, Jen.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Today my mother-in-law had plans to take the boys to a park in the town of Wilmington.
I was feeling pretty awful and stayed home to rest. The boys had a great time swinging on the swings and feeding the ducks at the park.
My allergies are really bad here in Ohio. I think it must be all the trees. My allergies were slightly worse in Indiana than at home. I’d get stuffy overnight, but didn’t really have any problems during the day. But now in Ohio I feel like a mucus factory. And I have a sinus infection which finally caught up with me today.
I felt much better after my rest, including a nap. Of course, I’ve been taking generic Benadryl every four hours. It helps relieve some of the symptoms without too much drowsiness if I take just one pill. If I take two, the regular dosage, it really dries me out and makes me sleepy and sluggish.
For dinner we drove northeast from Wilmington to eat at the Golden Corral. It was a decent buffet and I found plenty to eat. Of course, they had a salad bar. One nice touch was the pine nuts; you don’t often see those at a salad bar. They also had vegetables like baby carrots, steamed cauliflower, green beans, and corn. Their steak fries weren’t too bad either.
Earlier in the day I caught last week’s episode of Top Chef which I missed because that was the day we flew in to Indiana. I also made myself stay up to watch today’s new episode.
I was feeling pretty awful and stayed home to rest. The boys had a great time swinging on the swings and feeding the ducks at the park.
My allergies are really bad here in Ohio. I think it must be all the trees. My allergies were slightly worse in Indiana than at home. I’d get stuffy overnight, but didn’t really have any problems during the day. But now in Ohio I feel like a mucus factory. And I have a sinus infection which finally caught up with me today.
I felt much better after my rest, including a nap. Of course, I’ve been taking generic Benadryl every four hours. It helps relieve some of the symptoms without too much drowsiness if I take just one pill. If I take two, the regular dosage, it really dries me out and makes me sleepy and sluggish.
For dinner we drove northeast from Wilmington to eat at the Golden Corral. It was a decent buffet and I found plenty to eat. Of course, they had a salad bar. One nice touch was the pine nuts; you don’t often see those at a salad bar. They also had vegetables like baby carrots, steamed cauliflower, green beans, and corn. Their steak fries weren’t too bad either.
Earlier in the day I caught last week’s episode of Top Chef which I missed because that was the day we flew in to Indiana. I also made myself stay up to watch today’s new episode.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
We took it easy again in the morning, and then did a little shopping so I’d have something to grill for dinner.
In the early afternoon, we headed over to my mother-in-law’s husband’s sister’s house. They’ve beautifully restored the house on their property. They own several acres, some of which is currently corn fields and quite a bit of woods.
We rode back toward the woods in a trailer hooked up to a John Deere Gator. We got a tour of some of the woods, stopping at one point to swing on a rope swing hanging from a tree over the trail. The boys had a good time; my youngest asked for another turn every time someone got off.
Then we unpacked the truck and set up the propane gas grill to cook some burgers and dogs. I ate a Boca burger and two Smart Dogs, as well as a lot of fruit: watermelon, cantaloupe, red grapes, and strawberries.
When it seemed that the rain was not going to let up, we headed for home. In fact, we hit some really heavy rain on the way back to my mother-in-law’s house, as well as some lightning and thunder.
In the early afternoon, we headed over to my mother-in-law’s husband’s sister’s house. They’ve beautifully restored the house on their property. They own several acres, some of which is currently corn fields and quite a bit of woods.
We rode back toward the woods in a trailer hooked up to a John Deere Gator. We got a tour of some of the woods, stopping at one point to swing on a rope swing hanging from a tree over the trail. The boys had a good time; my youngest asked for another turn every time someone got off.
Then we unpacked the truck and set up the propane gas grill to cook some burgers and dogs. I ate a Boca burger and two Smart Dogs, as well as a lot of fruit: watermelon, cantaloupe, red grapes, and strawberries.
When it seemed that the rain was not going to let up, we headed for home. In fact, we hit some really heavy rain on the way back to my mother-in-law’s house, as well as some lightning and thunder.
Monday, July 16, 2007
We drove over to Waynesville, a small town like Metamora with antique shops and such without the canal and railroad tracks. Many stores were closed because it was Monday, and the Celtic store we were going to had gone out of business. Very disappointing.
After that we stopped at Caesar Creek State Park. We hadn't planned a picnic lunch for that day, but we should have. Many people had brought picnic lunches and many more were playing and swimming in the lake.
Addendum: Grandpa Jack wasted no time in getting Aidan to ride with him on his lawnmower.
As much as Aidan loves to be outdoors, Liam loves to be indoors. Especially since Grandma and Grandpa bought him a GameBoy. We could barely tear him away from it.
After that we stopped at Caesar Creek State Park. We hadn't planned a picnic lunch for that day, but we should have. Many people had brought picnic lunches and many more were playing and swimming in the lake.
Addendum: Grandpa Jack wasted no time in getting Aidan to ride with him on his lawnmower.
As much as Aidan loves to be outdoors, Liam loves to be indoors. Especially since Grandma and Grandpa bought him a GameBoy. We could barely tear him away from it.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Today was another travel/transition day. We spent the morning at my uncle's, relaxing, talking, and packing. We hoped to be on the road to my mother-in-law's in Ohio by 11:30, but it was more like 1:30
It was a quick, pleasant drive southeast from Rushville towards Cincinnati, then northeast from there to Wilmington.
We arrived safe and sound, though we got a little lost. The directions we got from Google were not helpful. We missed a turn and ended up seeing far more of Wilmington than we needed to. I'd be curious to see if Mapquest would give us a similar route. The way I originally mapped getting to Wilmington would have worked better, but I still needed directions on how to get to their street address, which Google adequately provided.
We were greeted warmly and introduced to my mother-in-law's husband's youngest brother and a sister and their respective spouses. We sat around snacking, and then had a delicious spaghetti dinner. My mother-in-law cooks up a mean spaghetti sauce which I have only adequately been able to duplicate. She also found me some vegan Italian sausages and some meatless meatballs, so my meal looked just like what everyone else was eating.
Addendum: It didn't take Aidan long to go exploring. He loves to be outdoors. My mother-in-law's property extends quite a ways back from their house. They live in a community of houses that share a man-made lake behind all their properties. There was also a swing set back there for all to use. Here's Aidan on that swing set. You can see their house in the background.
I missed Wednesday’s new episode of Top Chef, but tonight I made sure I caught the most recent episode of Next Food Network Star.
My mother-in-law doesn’t have a computer, so I won’t be voting this time around. I’d be happy with either Amy or Rory. I think both will have an interesting show.
It was a quick, pleasant drive southeast from Rushville towards Cincinnati, then northeast from there to Wilmington.
We arrived safe and sound, though we got a little lost. The directions we got from Google were not helpful. We missed a turn and ended up seeing far more of Wilmington than we needed to. I'd be curious to see if Mapquest would give us a similar route. The way I originally mapped getting to Wilmington would have worked better, but I still needed directions on how to get to their street address, which Google adequately provided.
We were greeted warmly and introduced to my mother-in-law's husband's youngest brother and a sister and their respective spouses. We sat around snacking, and then had a delicious spaghetti dinner. My mother-in-law cooks up a mean spaghetti sauce which I have only adequately been able to duplicate. She also found me some vegan Italian sausages and some meatless meatballs, so my meal looked just like what everyone else was eating.
Addendum: It didn't take Aidan long to go exploring. He loves to be outdoors. My mother-in-law's property extends quite a ways back from their house. They live in a community of houses that share a man-made lake behind all their properties. There was also a swing set back there for all to use. Here's Aidan on that swing set. You can see their house in the background.
I missed Wednesday’s new episode of Top Chef, but tonight I made sure I caught the most recent episode of Next Food Network Star.
My mother-in-law doesn’t have a computer, so I won’t be voting this time around. I’d be happy with either Amy or Rory. I think both will have an interesting show.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Kelley, my wife, went with my aunt into Rushville this morning to shop rummage sales. Luckily, she didn't buy much, and what she did was definitely a bargain.
After that, we headed to Metamora. It's a small town southeast of Rushville. It has a number of antique and gift shops. My cousin knew of a good fudge shop, so we went there. Kelley bought fudge, the boys got ice cream, and I had popcorn. I also bought a small jar of strawberry rhubarb jam, which I'm eager to try.
They've restored part of a canal in Metamoa. You can ride in a boat pulled along the canal by horses. We went on a train ride; part of the railroad there has also been restored and volunteers run the whole operation. Stephen, our conductor, who hails from Cincinnati, Ohio, volunteers there a couple days a week. His talk was very informative. The boys enjoyed the ride in the caboose and climbing into the engine after our thirty minute trip.
Here's Aidan with one of the horses that pulls the canal boats.
We also spent time feeding the ducks in the canal. You can see the watermill in the background, which we also checked out.
We dropped the boys off back at my uncle's house, and Kelley and I drove into Morristown. This is the town I lived in before my family moved to California in 1976. We parked just down from the last house we lived in; we lived in three different houses in Morristown. From there we walked around town a bit and I took pictures. It's remarkably unchanged, as I remember it. It has been thirty-one years, so my memory may be a little hazy, but the town has changed little in that time. Shops have changed, of course, and there was a few new homes, but much of the town looks much as I remember it.
We walked down main street, Highway 52, to where the school is. Here's a picture of the Kopper Kettle. A friend's mom worked there. I remember stopping there once on the walk home from school. We walked down an alley that ran behind the restaurant, and she gave us some fried chicken that we ate as we walked the rest of the way home.
After that, we headed to Metamora. It's a small town southeast of Rushville. It has a number of antique and gift shops. My cousin knew of a good fudge shop, so we went there. Kelley bought fudge, the boys got ice cream, and I had popcorn. I also bought a small jar of strawberry rhubarb jam, which I'm eager to try.
They've restored part of a canal in Metamoa. You can ride in a boat pulled along the canal by horses. We went on a train ride; part of the railroad there has also been restored and volunteers run the whole operation. Stephen, our conductor, who hails from Cincinnati, Ohio, volunteers there a couple days a week. His talk was very informative. The boys enjoyed the ride in the caboose and climbing into the engine after our thirty minute trip.
Here's Aidan with one of the horses that pulls the canal boats.
We also spent time feeding the ducks in the canal. You can see the watermill in the background, which we also checked out.
We dropped the boys off back at my uncle's house, and Kelley and I drove into Morristown. This is the town I lived in before my family moved to California in 1976. We parked just down from the last house we lived in; we lived in three different houses in Morristown. From there we walked around town a bit and I took pictures. It's remarkably unchanged, as I remember it. It has been thirty-one years, so my memory may be a little hazy, but the town has changed little in that time. Shops have changed, of course, and there was a few new homes, but much of the town looks much as I remember it.
We walked down main street, Highway 52, to where the school is. Here's a picture of the Kopper Kettle. A friend's mom worked there. I remember stopping there once on the walk home from school. We walked down an alley that ran behind the restaurant, and she gave us some fried chicken that we ate as we walked the rest of the way home.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Friday, July 13, 2007
Slept in again this morning. Just relaxed. Finally, near noon, we headed into Indianapolis.
We stopped at a Cracker Barrel in Shelbyville and had lunch. It's one of my wife's favorite places to go. They have a Vegetable Plate where you can pick four of any of several vegetable and side dishes. Many are vegetarian, but some are not; their green beans and greens (I don't recall if they're turnip or collard) are cooked with bacon. I usually get the corn, baby carrots, fried apples, and okra. I hope the breading on the okra is vegan, though I doubt it.
They did have a vegetable soup which was one of the soups of the day. I asked if it was made with chicken stock or vegetable stock, and the waitress said it was made with beef stock. But the wife and kids like to eat there, so I make do.
We then drove through downtown Indianapolis on our way to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. My uncle gave us directions which took us by the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, the Indiana State Museum, and the Indianapolis Zoo. All three of which are in the White River State Park. We want to go to the Eiteljorg as well as the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, but I don't think we'll manage either of them this trip.
We went to the Hall of Fame Museum at the speedway, which has an impressive number of race cars and other vehicles on display. They also offer a grounds tour, and weather and use permitting, a track tour. We were really looking forward to the track tour; my uncle said repeatedly how good it was. The track tour wasn't available because some NASCAR drivers were taking some practice laps on the track.
We did watch the 20 minute video presentation which included footage and history of the speedway as well as the Indy 500. I learned a lot that I didn't know, and it put some of the cars on display into perspective.
For example, the yellow car in the middle is the Belond Special, which was driven to victory in the Indy 500 twice, by two different drivers.
We bought the boys a couple of toy cars in the gift shop, then drove back to Rushville. We went for an early evening swim, then off to bed.
Addendum: Took a lot of pictures trying to capture what the Midwest looks like. Most of then just don't do it justice. But I like this one.
We live in the very urban San Francisco Bay Area. Even though we live in the suburbs south of the city, where there are no skyscrapers or many tall buildings at all, there is nothing rural about where we live. It was refreshing to be surrounded by so much farmland. And the sky in the Midwest...! The sky where we live isn't gray or depressing, but it is like a blanket that mutes everything. And then there's the famous fog. Even though we live just a handful of miles from the Pacific Ocean and you'd think we'd always have these fabulous views of the sun setting over the water, we don't. Between the clouds and the fog, we really don't get sunsets like we saw while we were in Indiana and Ohio.
We stopped at a Cracker Barrel in Shelbyville and had lunch. It's one of my wife's favorite places to go. They have a Vegetable Plate where you can pick four of any of several vegetable and side dishes. Many are vegetarian, but some are not; their green beans and greens (I don't recall if they're turnip or collard) are cooked with bacon. I usually get the corn, baby carrots, fried apples, and okra. I hope the breading on the okra is vegan, though I doubt it.
They did have a vegetable soup which was one of the soups of the day. I asked if it was made with chicken stock or vegetable stock, and the waitress said it was made with beef stock. But the wife and kids like to eat there, so I make do.
We then drove through downtown Indianapolis on our way to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. My uncle gave us directions which took us by the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, the Indiana State Museum, and the Indianapolis Zoo. All three of which are in the White River State Park. We want to go to the Eiteljorg as well as the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, but I don't think we'll manage either of them this trip.
We went to the Hall of Fame Museum at the speedway, which has an impressive number of race cars and other vehicles on display. They also offer a grounds tour, and weather and use permitting, a track tour. We were really looking forward to the track tour; my uncle said repeatedly how good it was. The track tour wasn't available because some NASCAR drivers were taking some practice laps on the track.
We did watch the 20 minute video presentation which included footage and history of the speedway as well as the Indy 500. I learned a lot that I didn't know, and it put some of the cars on display into perspective.
For example, the yellow car in the middle is the Belond Special, which was driven to victory in the Indy 500 twice, by two different drivers.
We bought the boys a couple of toy cars in the gift shop, then drove back to Rushville. We went for an early evening swim, then off to bed.
Addendum: Took a lot of pictures trying to capture what the Midwest looks like. Most of then just don't do it justice. But I like this one.
We live in the very urban San Francisco Bay Area. Even though we live in the suburbs south of the city, where there are no skyscrapers or many tall buildings at all, there is nothing rural about where we live. It was refreshing to be surrounded by so much farmland. And the sky in the Midwest...! The sky where we live isn't gray or depressing, but it is like a blanket that mutes everything. And then there's the famous fog. Even though we live just a handful of miles from the Pacific Ocean and you'd think we'd always have these fabulous views of the sun setting over the water, we don't. Between the clouds and the fog, we really don't get sunsets like we saw while we were in Indiana and Ohio.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Thursday, July 12, 2007
We took it easy today. Slept in. Started to get used to the three hour time difference.
Went to Wal-Mart in Shelbyville and bought a new digital camera. Our old one, an Olympus, finally gave out on us. I bought a Samsung S850 for half the price of that old one with twice as many features. Yeah, that's how quickly the technology changes and becomes less expensive.
By the way, I know Wal-Mart is supposed to be evil and all, but it was a pleasant shopping experience. I didn't expect to find much in the way of vegan foods, but had no problem finding Boca burgers, chocolate soymilk, and veggie meats from Yves there.
We swam in my uncle's backyard swimming pool. The boys had a great time. Here's a picture my aunt took of the four of us.
One of the first things we've noticed is the quiet. When we woke up this morning, my aunt was surprised that we hadn't heard the small airplane that was circling a nearby field. My wife reminded her how close we live to SFO, not to mention the train tracks not too far from our front door.
It is amazingly quiet here. There is the breeze going through the ash and maple trees in my uncle's backyard. And from time to time, you can hear the cicadas buzzing. Walking down the street at sunset, we could heart the power lines vibrating in the breeze. You can't see them moving, but you can hear them.
And not long after sunset, you can see lightning bugs. I'd forgotten about them. I told my wife that as a boy I'd caught them in my backyard and put them in a glass jar. She thought that was just something from the movies.
The second thing is the sky. It's a big sky, unmarred by mountains and smog. You can watch the sun set on the horizon. Before the sun had completely set, I could find Venus and Mars in the sky, and a short while later some of the brightest stars were also visible.
And the air is clean. You can see for miles through air that's transparent instead of tinted yellow. We live not too far from the Pacific Ocean with pretty much constant onshore breezes, but our air quality is no match for what I've found here in rural Indiana.
Addendum: Obviously we talked to my uncle about things we might do while we're visiting. The next page in my journal is the address and directions for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He recommends it to visitors regularly and said they always have a good time.
My aunt and uncle's back yard has no fence. Right now rows of corn surround their yard on three sides, forming a natural fence. Here's a picture I took; this is the view from their back yard, looking out over the corn.
I took a lot of pictures that first day, experimenting with the new camera. Here's another one in that dusky light, my boys, already in their pajamas, against the back drop of the cornfield "fence."
My uncle has a dog, Maddie, that the boys love. She is the friendliest, gentlest dog. Her size intimidated my youngest at first. He kept saying, “She’s going to eat me,” when she’d come toward him. But she loves nothing better than to be petted as you can see here.
He quickly got over his fear. He wakes up in the morning and asks, “Where’s Maddie?” And he makes sure that her water bowl is constantly filled.
Went to Wal-Mart in Shelbyville and bought a new digital camera. Our old one, an Olympus, finally gave out on us. I bought a Samsung S850 for half the price of that old one with twice as many features. Yeah, that's how quickly the technology changes and becomes less expensive.
By the way, I know Wal-Mart is supposed to be evil and all, but it was a pleasant shopping experience. I didn't expect to find much in the way of vegan foods, but had no problem finding Boca burgers, chocolate soymilk, and veggie meats from Yves there.
We swam in my uncle's backyard swimming pool. The boys had a great time. Here's a picture my aunt took of the four of us.
One of the first things we've noticed is the quiet. When we woke up this morning, my aunt was surprised that we hadn't heard the small airplane that was circling a nearby field. My wife reminded her how close we live to SFO, not to mention the train tracks not too far from our front door.
It is amazingly quiet here. There is the breeze going through the ash and maple trees in my uncle's backyard. And from time to time, you can hear the cicadas buzzing. Walking down the street at sunset, we could heart the power lines vibrating in the breeze. You can't see them moving, but you can hear them.
And not long after sunset, you can see lightning bugs. I'd forgotten about them. I told my wife that as a boy I'd caught them in my backyard and put them in a glass jar. She thought that was just something from the movies.
The second thing is the sky. It's a big sky, unmarred by mountains and smog. You can watch the sun set on the horizon. Before the sun had completely set, I could find Venus and Mars in the sky, and a short while later some of the brightest stars were also visible.
And the air is clean. You can see for miles through air that's transparent instead of tinted yellow. We live not too far from the Pacific Ocean with pretty much constant onshore breezes, but our air quality is no match for what I've found here in rural Indiana.
Addendum: Obviously we talked to my uncle about things we might do while we're visiting. The next page in my journal is the address and directions for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He recommends it to visitors regularly and said they always have a good time.
My aunt and uncle's back yard has no fence. Right now rows of corn surround their yard on three sides, forming a natural fence. Here's a picture I took; this is the view from their back yard, looking out over the corn.
I took a lot of pictures that first day, experimenting with the new camera. Here's another one in that dusky light, my boys, already in their pajamas, against the back drop of the cornfield "fence."
My uncle has a dog, Maddie, that the boys love. She is the friendliest, gentlest dog. Her size intimidated my youngest at first. He kept saying, “She’s going to eat me,” when she’d come toward him. But she loves nothing better than to be petted as you can see here.
He quickly got over his fear. He wakes up in the morning and asks, “Where’s Maddie?” And he makes sure that her water bowl is constantly filled.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
This was our travel day. Up at 3:30 a.m. to get ready and to get to the Oakland airport in time for an 8:30 a.m. flight.
The flight to Phoenix was relatively quick. Our boys, ages 3 and 5, were both so excited with the airplane itself that we didn't need to break out any of our secret weapons on this flight.
We had about an hour in the Phoenix airport before our flight to Indianapolis. That was more boring for the boys so we did get out the Video Now for our youngest and the V-Smile portable video game player for our oldest.
Those helped them to pass the time on the flight to Indiana as well. Our three-year-old also colored in one of his Sesame Street coloring books. He also found the sticker page and proceeded to put every single sticker on a picture of Bert.
Overall, they were well-behaved and things went more smoothly than I expected. We even got compliments on how good their behavior was.
I think with all the safety regulations they have to tell you on flights these days, including how you cannot line up for the lavatory in the front of the plane, they should instruct passengers on how to use the lavatories, or, at least, the doors and locks. I had to use the bathroom. The rear lavatory was occupied and the front one was clear; they have lights that let you know whether the lavatory is vacant or occupied. Anyway, I made my way to the front lavatory and it was not vacant. An elderly woman was in there. She had closed the door but had not locked it, so the light showed it as vacant. I waited a moment, and then a flight steward came up and I tried to tell her why I was in the forward galley. She gave me a strange look, so I went back to my seat before she started to say something to me.
I waited back at my seat and kept checking the rear lavatory. Finally, it was clear, so I headed back. And some guy was in it. He had locked the door that it read as occupied on the outside of the door, but hadn't pulled the door all the way closed, so it still showed as vacant on the light above the aisle.
What are the odds that this would happen, that two different people on the same flight within minutes of each other would make two different mistakes that had the same result? I don't know either, but it happened. You can't make this stuff up.
Of course, with the prevailing winds blowing west to east, our flight got in half an hour before scheduled. That was great. But the flight steward joked over the intercom that we should all turn our cell phones on and call someone to share the good news, because she knew we did that with the bad news. I'm not sure they should get credit for something that happens naturally, but it was still nice getting in to Indianapolis early.
Addendum: we went to the rental place where we had a reservation, but they didn't have the size car that we reserved. This seems to be a common practice nowadays, though not a good one. What's the point of making a reservation, but not actually having a car reserved for you? Of course, they offer you a bigger car, but it costs more. I think it's all a scam.
I followed my uncle's directions to his house an did pretty well until we got really close to his house, when I turned left too soon. I found the street he lived on and turned right, but we had to drive a lot further than expected on a narrow road past cornfield after cornfield. And it had gotten dark. At one point, my oldest son said it was too dark and we should turn around. We're used to urban living where there are so many streetlamps that even at night it doesn't really get that dark. But out here in the middle of nowhere, it was dark and he got a little scared. But soon enough we were there and everything was okay again.
The flight to Phoenix was relatively quick. Our boys, ages 3 and 5, were both so excited with the airplane itself that we didn't need to break out any of our secret weapons on this flight.
We had about an hour in the Phoenix airport before our flight to Indianapolis. That was more boring for the boys so we did get out the Video Now for our youngest and the V-Smile portable video game player for our oldest.
Those helped them to pass the time on the flight to Indiana as well. Our three-year-old also colored in one of his Sesame Street coloring books. He also found the sticker page and proceeded to put every single sticker on a picture of Bert.
Overall, they were well-behaved and things went more smoothly than I expected. We even got compliments on how good their behavior was.
I think with all the safety regulations they have to tell you on flights these days, including how you cannot line up for the lavatory in the front of the plane, they should instruct passengers on how to use the lavatories, or, at least, the doors and locks. I had to use the bathroom. The rear lavatory was occupied and the front one was clear; they have lights that let you know whether the lavatory is vacant or occupied. Anyway, I made my way to the front lavatory and it was not vacant. An elderly woman was in there. She had closed the door but had not locked it, so the light showed it as vacant. I waited a moment, and then a flight steward came up and I tried to tell her why I was in the forward galley. She gave me a strange look, so I went back to my seat before she started to say something to me.
I waited back at my seat and kept checking the rear lavatory. Finally, it was clear, so I headed back. And some guy was in it. He had locked the door that it read as occupied on the outside of the door, but hadn't pulled the door all the way closed, so it still showed as vacant on the light above the aisle.
What are the odds that this would happen, that two different people on the same flight within minutes of each other would make two different mistakes that had the same result? I don't know either, but it happened. You can't make this stuff up.
Of course, with the prevailing winds blowing west to east, our flight got in half an hour before scheduled. That was great. But the flight steward joked over the intercom that we should all turn our cell phones on and call someone to share the good news, because she knew we did that with the bad news. I'm not sure they should get credit for something that happens naturally, but it was still nice getting in to Indianapolis early.
Addendum: we went to the rental place where we had a reservation, but they didn't have the size car that we reserved. This seems to be a common practice nowadays, though not a good one. What's the point of making a reservation, but not actually having a car reserved for you? Of course, they offer you a bigger car, but it costs more. I think it's all a scam.
I followed my uncle's directions to his house an did pretty well until we got really close to his house, when I turned left too soon. I found the street he lived on and turned right, but we had to drive a lot further than expected on a narrow road past cornfield after cornfield. And it had gotten dark. At one point, my oldest son said it was too dark and we should turn around. We're used to urban living where there are so many streetlamps that even at night it doesn't really get that dark. But out here in the middle of nowhere, it was dark and he got a little scared. But soon enough we were there and everything was okay again.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Before the Trip
We were not off to a good start. On July 11th, we're flying to Indianapolis, and then renting a car to see relatives near Rushville. I had no problem finding a guidebook to Ohio. After a few days in Indiana, we're driving to Wilmington, Ohio, where my mother-in-law lives. I even found a road map for Ohio at Barnes & Noble, but no book on Indiana, not even a map.
I did find some information online, but it was time-consuming and not so easy. Even the Indiana state website was not the most informative.
When I told my relatives I couldn't find a guidebook for Indiana, my aunt, who lives there, joked that it was because there's nothing to see.
Thank goodness for AAA. I went to my local office, and because I'm a member, they handed me one of their Tour Books that covered Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. That took care of travel tips and places to visit, but nothing about food.
Since I'm vegan, I wanted to find as many options for myself as I could. I wanted to find vegetarian restaurants, as well as markets where I could buy food that I could cook for myself. Since we're staying with family, and not in a hotel, I'll have access to a kitchen.
The first place I turned to was Happy Cow. I also checked out two other websites just to find vegetarian restaurants. I figure any place that's mentioned on two, or all, of those websites is probably a safe bet. I also found the website for the Indianapolis Vegetarian Society helpful with its link to CHACE (Connecting Hoosiers for Animal Concerns & Education), which had a list of restaurants in Indianapolis.
I also put a request for more input on restaurants in Indianapolis and Cincinnati with both Vegan Represent and VeggieBoards, but had no helpful responses before we left. Maybe when we get back I'll have some feedback on where we ate. (Since we never actually ate in either of those cities, I didn't have anything to contribute).
I did find some information online, but it was time-consuming and not so easy. Even the Indiana state website was not the most informative.
When I told my relatives I couldn't find a guidebook for Indiana, my aunt, who lives there, joked that it was because there's nothing to see.
Thank goodness for AAA. I went to my local office, and because I'm a member, they handed me one of their Tour Books that covered Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. That took care of travel tips and places to visit, but nothing about food.
Since I'm vegan, I wanted to find as many options for myself as I could. I wanted to find vegetarian restaurants, as well as markets where I could buy food that I could cook for myself. Since we're staying with family, and not in a hotel, I'll have access to a kitchen.
The first place I turned to was Happy Cow. I also checked out two other websites just to find vegetarian restaurants. I figure any place that's mentioned on two, or all, of those websites is probably a safe bet. I also found the website for the Indianapolis Vegetarian Society helpful with its link to CHACE (Connecting Hoosiers for Animal Concerns & Education), which had a list of restaurants in Indianapolis.
I also put a request for more input on restaurants in Indianapolis and Cincinnati with both Vegan Represent and VeggieBoards, but had no helpful responses before we left. Maybe when we get back I'll have some feedback on where we ate. (Since we never actually ate in either of those cities, I didn't have anything to contribute).
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Summer Vacation 2007
In the summer of 2007, we made a trip to Indiana and Ohio. We planned to fly from Oakland, California to Indianapolis on July 11. We were going to drive from there to my uncle's in Rushville, stay a few days, then drive to Ohio to visit my in-laws. We would visit with them a while, then leave our boys with Grandma Carole and Grandpa Jack and drive to visit friends in Baltimore for a long weekend. We were going to spend one day in Washington, D.C., it being so close to Baltimore, but we ended up not going. From there, we planned to go back to Ohio for a couple more days, then back to Indiana for a day or two, and then fly back to California on July 26.
Getting ready for the trip, I did some research on things we might like to do. I found some info on three museums in Indianapolis, the Indiana State Museum, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, and the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, none of which we ended up going to on this trip. I also looked up every Cracker Barrel that we might encounter between Indianapolis and Baltimore. My wife, Kelley, loves eating at Cracker Barrel and there are none in California. We knew they would be a reliable source of food along the way.
I also did a little research on Morristown, Indiana, were I grew up before moving to California. The population hasn't changed much, at only 1,133 people in 2000, 98.5% of them white. The people there very much reflect my own ancestry. 25% of the people are of German descent, 14% Irish, 12% English, 3% Scottish, and 3% Scotch-Irish. It's a small town, just one square mile in size.
The biggest news event connected with Morristown was the mention of a category 4 tornado that passed 6.2 miles away on April 3, 1974. It injured seventeen people and caused between $5 million and $50 million in damages. I recall that storm. We had a tornado warning while we were in school. And I remember seeing some of the damage it caused to an outdoor movie screen just a few miles outside of town.
I jotted all these notes down in the journal I bought for the trip. Of course, I made a list of all the things we would take on the trip, planning for myself, my wife, and our two boys. But I also wrote down a few favorite vegan recipes. I picked ones that I could make with ingredients that I thought I could find anywhere, nothing exotic. For breakfast, I copied Claire's Couscous Porridge from one of Sarah Kramer's cookbooks and a peanut butter banana pancake recipe. Other favorites are the Spicy Black Bean Burgers, Chickpea Toss, and Megadarra, all from one of Sarah Kramer's three vegan cookbooks.
Getting ready for the trip, I did some research on things we might like to do. I found some info on three museums in Indianapolis, the Indiana State Museum, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, and the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, none of which we ended up going to on this trip. I also looked up every Cracker Barrel that we might encounter between Indianapolis and Baltimore. My wife, Kelley, loves eating at Cracker Barrel and there are none in California. We knew they would be a reliable source of food along the way.
I also did a little research on Morristown, Indiana, were I grew up before moving to California. The population hasn't changed much, at only 1,133 people in 2000, 98.5% of them white. The people there very much reflect my own ancestry. 25% of the people are of German descent, 14% Irish, 12% English, 3% Scottish, and 3% Scotch-Irish. It's a small town, just one square mile in size.
The biggest news event connected with Morristown was the mention of a category 4 tornado that passed 6.2 miles away on April 3, 1974. It injured seventeen people and caused between $5 million and $50 million in damages. I recall that storm. We had a tornado warning while we were in school. And I remember seeing some of the damage it caused to an outdoor movie screen just a few miles outside of town.
I jotted all these notes down in the journal I bought for the trip. Of course, I made a list of all the things we would take on the trip, planning for myself, my wife, and our two boys. But I also wrote down a few favorite vegan recipes. I picked ones that I could make with ingredients that I thought I could find anywhere, nothing exotic. For breakfast, I copied Claire's Couscous Porridge from one of Sarah Kramer's cookbooks and a peanut butter banana pancake recipe. Other favorites are the Spicy Black Bean Burgers, Chickpea Toss, and Megadarra, all from one of Sarah Kramer's three vegan cookbooks.
Blog Reopened
I have decided to blog, at least for the summer. I find that while I'm working I just don't have the time to spend online.
Since I've discontinued my classroom blog, I'm less concerned about my students or their parents seeing what I'm writing. My students and their parents gets referred to my classroom website on wikidot at this point anyway.
And I want to be able to write about my personal life without worrying about it impacting my professional life. I'll deal with any problems that come up, if they come up at all.
To get started again, I'm going to post my diary from our summer vacation two years ago. We're planning another trip to Indiana and Ohio this summer, and posting what I wrote two years ago seems like a good way to get started again.
I may discontinue blogging again when school starts up again, but then I may not. We'll see.
Since I've discontinued my classroom blog, I'm less concerned about my students or their parents seeing what I'm writing. My students and their parents gets referred to my classroom website on wikidot at this point anyway.
And I want to be able to write about my personal life without worrying about it impacting my professional life. I'll deal with any problems that come up, if they come up at all.
To get started again, I'm going to post my diary from our summer vacation two years ago. We're planning another trip to Indiana and Ohio this summer, and posting what I wrote two years ago seems like a good way to get started again.
I may discontinue blogging again when school starts up again, but then I may not. We'll see.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Blog Closed
As you can see well enough for yourself, I have not posted anything here for quite some time. There are several reasons for this. One, I have been spending less and less time online. Two, most of the writing I've been doing lately has been more personal, really just for me. I've had no real desire or interest in sharing what I've been writing. Three, as a public school teacher, I've grown increasingly worrried that anything I might post might cause me problems with my students or their parents. If I do decide to blog again, I'll do so in an anonymous fashion, keeping my personal and professional lives sharply distinct.
I haven't posted anything in so long, I doubt anyone who may have been reading any of my posts has long since moved on. This will probably not be read by anyone, but in case someone does stumble across this blog, he or she will know not to expect anything new.
I haven't posted anything in so long, I doubt anyone who may have been reading any of my posts has long since moved on. This will probably not be read by anyone, but in case someone does stumble across this blog, he or she will know not to expect anything new.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Vegan Eats in the San Francisco Bay Area
I was so pleased to see the two articles (below) in my local paper.
I'm familiar with Isa Chandra Moskowitz. I own both of her cookbooks. You can find a link to her website, The Post Punk Kitchen, under Links on the right.
I had previously heard of Que SeRaw SeRaw, but I have yet to eat there. Soon, I promise. And I'll report back.
I had not heard of the vegan donut place in Berkeley, however. That was news to me, and I'm trying to figure out an excuse to drive across the bay and buy some donuts.
Nina's Kitchen
The other day I went out for lunch at a local coffee shop, and I discovered something new. They had these apple walnut cinnamon rolls made by Nina's Kitchen. I had never seen them before, and I'll try any new vegan thing I see at least once. The $3 was a little steep, but it was worth it. It was really delicious, and I'm going to keep buying them so that they keep them in stock. I checked out their website: Nina's Kitchen, and found out that they're in nearby Watsonville.
I'm familiar with Isa Chandra Moskowitz. I own both of her cookbooks. You can find a link to her website, The Post Punk Kitchen, under Links on the right.
I had previously heard of Que SeRaw SeRaw, but I have yet to eat there. Soon, I promise. And I'll report back.
I had not heard of the vegan donut place in Berkeley, however. That was news to me, and I'm trying to figure out an excuse to drive across the bay and buy some donuts.
Nina's Kitchen
The other day I went out for lunch at a local coffee shop, and I discovered something new. They had these apple walnut cinnamon rolls made by Nina's Kitchen. I had never seen them before, and I'll try any new vegan thing I see at least once. The $3 was a little steep, but it was worth it. It was really delicious, and I'm going to keep buying them so that they keep them in stock. I checked out their website: Nina's Kitchen, and found out that they're in nearby Watsonville.
Vegan fare
Here is a mini-article that accompanied Let 'em eat cake:
- Que SeRaw SeRaw offers vegan and raw food to go with many vegan desserts on the menu. 1160 Capuchino Ave., Burlingame (650) 400-8590. http://www.queserawseraw.com
- Whole Foods Market offers a wide variety of vegan cookies and desserts in their stores. 3000 Telegraph Ave. Berkeley, (510) 649-1333; 774 Emerson St. Palo Alto, (650) 326-8676; 1250 Jefferson Ave. Redwood City, (650) 367-1400; 1010 Park Place San Mateo, (650) 358-6900; 100 Sunset Drive San Ramon, (925) 355-9000. http://www.wholefoods.com.
- The People's Donuts offers vegan doughnuts in a variety of flavors at Eclair Pastries, 2565 Telegraph Ave. Berkeley (510) 848-4221.
- Author Isa Chandra Moskowitz has a Web site called the Post Punk Kitchen (www.theppk.com) which offers a variety of vegan recipes, including desserts.
- Charlotte Blackmer features recipes, restaurant reviews and other food-related musings on http://www.loveandcooking.blogspot.com
- Que SeRaw SeRaw offers vegan and raw food to go with many vegan desserts on the menu. 1160 Capuchino Ave., Burlingame (650) 400-8590. http://www.queserawseraw.com
- Whole Foods Market offers a wide variety of vegan cookies and desserts in their stores. 3000 Telegraph Ave. Berkeley, (510) 649-1333; 774 Emerson St. Palo Alto, (650) 326-8676; 1250 Jefferson Ave. Redwood City, (650) 367-1400; 1010 Park Place San Mateo, (650) 358-6900; 100 Sunset Drive San Ramon, (925) 355-9000. http://www.wholefoods.com.
- The People's Donuts offers vegan doughnuts in a variety of flavors at Eclair Pastries, 2565 Telegraph Ave. Berkeley (510) 848-4221.
- Author Isa Chandra Moskowitz has a Web site called the Post Punk Kitchen (www.theppk.com) which offers a variety of vegan recipes, including desserts.
- Charlotte Blackmer features recipes, restaurant reviews and other food-related musings on http://www.loveandcooking.blogspot.com
Let 'em eat vegan cake
This is a reprint of an article entitled Let 'em eat vegan cake by Kristin Bender in the San Mateo County Times:
Seven days a week, bakers at People's Donuts churn out blueberry, chocolate, vanilla cake, lemon poppy seed and other sugary sweet doughnuts without using any animal products.
But some days, the bakers go hog wild, if you will, making a maple doughnut with textured soy protein bacon bits on top for their most special customers.
"I feel like you shouldn't let the meatatarians have all the fun," says doughnut maker Rachael Devlin, wiping a dab of chocolate from her chin at Eclair Pastries on Berkeley's Telegraph Avenue, which is where the six-week-old People's Donuts does its baking.
From doughnuts to chocolate truffles to strawberry cheesecake, bakers are increasingly cooking up delectable vegan desserts and plenty of non-meat eaters and carnivores alike are gobbling them up.
Last year, Alicia Parnell opened Que SeRaw SeRaw, an organic vegan raw retail food store in Burlingame.
Nothing in the store, which offers prepackaged salads, soup, entrees, pizza and desserts, is cooked above 118 degrees. Still, her food doesn't skimp on flavor, she says.
"We have the yummiest (vegan) cheesecake on the planet," says Parnell.
In addition, they sell blueberry scones, chocolate truffles, pecan bliss cookies, cinnamon rolls with frosting and pies.
"I have one customer, who wants to buy a whole pie every day," she says. "We are only two people making food. Then he comes in and says he's buying it for his mother and his aunt."
Her desserts, she says, also aim to satisfy even the most serious chocoholic.
"We have a chocolate pudding that is absolutely out of this world," she says. "It handles the chocoholic's need for a fix."
The anti-Krispy Kreme
People's Donuts owner Josh Levine of Oakland spent a year studying doughnut-making and tasting doughnuts before perfecting his recipe, which he says contains no eggs or milk and is nearly all organic.
Claiming to be the first vegan doughnut operation in the state, he says even those skeptical of vegan food find the doughnuts tasty.
"I've had marriage proposals and exclamations of love," says Levine. "They are surprised because they think it's going to taste like bean sprouts and tofu."
Ryan Kellner, the owner of Mighty-O, an all-organic vegan doughnut shop in Seattle, understands the long-standing prejudice toward vegan food and is working to change it by making great-tasting doughnuts.
"There are some people out there who if you say, 'Try thisit's vegan,' they will say, 'No thanks I'm not vegan.'"
He once gave a batch of his vegan doughnuts to a group of construction workers who gobbled up every last crumb.
"Then they found out they were vegan doughnuts and then didn't want to eat them any more," he says. "I think it's really weird but it's part of human nature. Some people like to eat meat (and eggs and dairy) and they don't want to be told that their lifestyle is wrong."
But these days with people paying more attention to the evils of trans fats — thanks in part to the Food and Drug Administration's January 2006 requirement that it be listed on food labels — there is an increased yearning for delicious, healthful desserts that go beyond the hippie earthy crunchy date-oat bar sort of thing.
"Vegan baking is becoming more popular, and people are becoming more conscious of the fact that there is a lot more of it going on," says Kellner.
"The vegan movement has always been asking for it, but most of the stuff five or 10 years ago wasn't any good. But now, these people are growing up and they are willing to try different things," he says.
Beyond the table
A vegan (pronounced, VEE-gan) avoids all animal meat, chicken and fish as well as eggs, animal milks, honey and their derivatives.
But veganism also denotes "a philosophy and way of living that seeks to exclude, as far as possible, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, nonhuman animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, nonhumans and the environment," according to one description in the "Vegan Voice," a magazine devoted to the lifestyle.
Isa Chandra Moskowitz knows quite a bit about cooking and eating vegan.
The author of "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World" and "Vegan with a Vengeance," the 34-year-old New Yorker has been a vegan since she was 16.
She says vegan baking isn't more difficult than baking with eggs and milk, but there is a little more trial and error.
"You have to really learn how ingredients act together," she says. "I think a lot of people try and replace eight eggs with eight cups of apple sauce and that doesn't always work."
Moskowitz, who is working on a third cookbook, says she tried for a decade to make the perfect lemon bar.
"Every couple of months for the last 10 years I'd try and make them," she says.
Finally, it was agar agar, a vegan gelatin substitute made from seaweed, that helped her turn out the perfect lemon bar. Moskowitz keeps track of what people are saying about her vegan dessert recipes and the reviews are quite good.
"I haven't had any complaints. I look at people's food blogs and people say 'I can't believe it, it's the best cupcake I ever had,'" she says.
Got cake?
Charlotte Blackmer of Berkeley can relate. She runs a Web site and food blog called Love and Cooking, which offers her home recipes, experiences feeding the multitudes, restaurant reviews and other food-related musings.
Blackmer says while "it is perfectly possible to make a lovely fruit compote, or a crisp, or even fruit pie without use of animal products, sometimes the soul just cries out for ... chocolate cake."
For this, she got help from an "extremely non-hippie source," an acquaintance who is a convert to Orthodox Christianity hipped her to a vegan chocolate cake that is truly heaven sent, she says.
Because Orthodox Christians have strict rules about abstaining from particular foods in the seasons of Advent (before Christmas) and Lent (before Easter), as well as abstaining from certain foods on most Wednesdays and Fridays during the year, they find ways to eat dessert without cheating, according to Blackmer.
So, wrote Blackmer, "If you or a near one are vegan, or dairy-sensitive, or egg-sensitive, or trying to cut down on your cholesterol, this is just a darn tasty cake, and it couldn't be easier to put together."
And if that doesn't satisfy the sweet tooth, you can always grab a maple bar with those yummy soy protein bacon bits at People's Donuts in Berkeley. Your arteries will thank you.
Josephine's Lenten Chocolate Cake
Recipe courtesy of Charlotte Blackmer
2 cups (16 fl. oz.) very cold water
Shortening or margarine for greasing
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus some for dusting the pan
2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
Dark chocolate chips (check label to make sure they're vegan, some brands have whey) or nuts (optional)
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4cup (6 fl. oz.) corn oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and put 2 cups of water into a container in the fridge. Grease (not butter!) and flour a 9-by-13-inch pan.
Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl until well blended. If you want to add the optional dark chocolate chips or nuts, you can do so at this stage.
Mix wet ingredients together (I found my 4 cup Pyrex good for this and used a whisk). Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix together (again, my flat whisk was helpful).
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until tested done.
For topping, you have several options. Josephine either dusts it with powdered sugar, or frosts with frosting-in-a-can that passes the ingredient test. If you are a better person than I am, you can whip up some frosting of your own as long as you use margarine or shortening, not butter. What I did was put some high-quality dark chocolate chips on the cake the minute it came out of the oven, and after they melted (about 5 minutes), spread them with my spatula to cover the cake.
Serves 12.
Per serving (without topping; 1/2cup each chocolate chips and chopped walnuts added): 448 Calories; 20g Fat; 5g Protein; 65g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 391mg Sodium.
Per serving (without topping): 372 Calories; 14g Fat; 4g Protein; 59g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 390mg Sodium.
Seven days a week, bakers at People's Donuts churn out blueberry, chocolate, vanilla cake, lemon poppy seed and other sugary sweet doughnuts without using any animal products.
But some days, the bakers go hog wild, if you will, making a maple doughnut with textured soy protein bacon bits on top for their most special customers.
"I feel like you shouldn't let the meatatarians have all the fun," says doughnut maker Rachael Devlin, wiping a dab of chocolate from her chin at Eclair Pastries on Berkeley's Telegraph Avenue, which is where the six-week-old People's Donuts does its baking.
From doughnuts to chocolate truffles to strawberry cheesecake, bakers are increasingly cooking up delectable vegan desserts and plenty of non-meat eaters and carnivores alike are gobbling them up.
Last year, Alicia Parnell opened Que SeRaw SeRaw, an organic vegan raw retail food store in Burlingame.
Nothing in the store, which offers prepackaged salads, soup, entrees, pizza and desserts, is cooked above 118 degrees. Still, her food doesn't skimp on flavor, she says.
"We have the yummiest (vegan) cheesecake on the planet," says Parnell.
In addition, they sell blueberry scones, chocolate truffles, pecan bliss cookies, cinnamon rolls with frosting and pies.
"I have one customer, who wants to buy a whole pie every day," she says. "We are only two people making food. Then he comes in and says he's buying it for his mother and his aunt."
Her desserts, she says, also aim to satisfy even the most serious chocoholic.
"We have a chocolate pudding that is absolutely out of this world," she says. "It handles the chocoholic's need for a fix."
The anti-Krispy Kreme
People's Donuts owner Josh Levine of Oakland spent a year studying doughnut-making and tasting doughnuts before perfecting his recipe, which he says contains no eggs or milk and is nearly all organic.
Claiming to be the first vegan doughnut operation in the state, he says even those skeptical of vegan food find the doughnuts tasty.
"I've had marriage proposals and exclamations of love," says Levine. "They are surprised because they think it's going to taste like bean sprouts and tofu."
Ryan Kellner, the owner of Mighty-O, an all-organic vegan doughnut shop in Seattle, understands the long-standing prejudice toward vegan food and is working to change it by making great-tasting doughnuts.
"There are some people out there who if you say, 'Try thisit's vegan,' they will say, 'No thanks I'm not vegan.'"
He once gave a batch of his vegan doughnuts to a group of construction workers who gobbled up every last crumb.
"Then they found out they were vegan doughnuts and then didn't want to eat them any more," he says. "I think it's really weird but it's part of human nature. Some people like to eat meat (and eggs and dairy) and they don't want to be told that their lifestyle is wrong."
But these days with people paying more attention to the evils of trans fats — thanks in part to the Food and Drug Administration's January 2006 requirement that it be listed on food labels — there is an increased yearning for delicious, healthful desserts that go beyond the hippie earthy crunchy date-oat bar sort of thing.
"Vegan baking is becoming more popular, and people are becoming more conscious of the fact that there is a lot more of it going on," says Kellner.
"The vegan movement has always been asking for it, but most of the stuff five or 10 years ago wasn't any good. But now, these people are growing up and they are willing to try different things," he says.
Beyond the table
A vegan (pronounced, VEE-gan) avoids all animal meat, chicken and fish as well as eggs, animal milks, honey and their derivatives.
But veganism also denotes "a philosophy and way of living that seeks to exclude, as far as possible, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, nonhuman animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, nonhumans and the environment," according to one description in the "Vegan Voice," a magazine devoted to the lifestyle.
Isa Chandra Moskowitz knows quite a bit about cooking and eating vegan.
The author of "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World" and "Vegan with a Vengeance," the 34-year-old New Yorker has been a vegan since she was 16.
She says vegan baking isn't more difficult than baking with eggs and milk, but there is a little more trial and error.
"You have to really learn how ingredients act together," she says. "I think a lot of people try and replace eight eggs with eight cups of apple sauce and that doesn't always work."
Moskowitz, who is working on a third cookbook, says she tried for a decade to make the perfect lemon bar.
"Every couple of months for the last 10 years I'd try and make them," she says.
Finally, it was agar agar, a vegan gelatin substitute made from seaweed, that helped her turn out the perfect lemon bar. Moskowitz keeps track of what people are saying about her vegan dessert recipes and the reviews are quite good.
"I haven't had any complaints. I look at people's food blogs and people say 'I can't believe it, it's the best cupcake I ever had,'" she says.
Got cake?
Charlotte Blackmer of Berkeley can relate. She runs a Web site and food blog called Love and Cooking, which offers her home recipes, experiences feeding the multitudes, restaurant reviews and other food-related musings.
Blackmer says while "it is perfectly possible to make a lovely fruit compote, or a crisp, or even fruit pie without use of animal products, sometimes the soul just cries out for ... chocolate cake."
For this, she got help from an "extremely non-hippie source," an acquaintance who is a convert to Orthodox Christianity hipped her to a vegan chocolate cake that is truly heaven sent, she says.
Because Orthodox Christians have strict rules about abstaining from particular foods in the seasons of Advent (before Christmas) and Lent (before Easter), as well as abstaining from certain foods on most Wednesdays and Fridays during the year, they find ways to eat dessert without cheating, according to Blackmer.
So, wrote Blackmer, "If you or a near one are vegan, or dairy-sensitive, or egg-sensitive, or trying to cut down on your cholesterol, this is just a darn tasty cake, and it couldn't be easier to put together."
And if that doesn't satisfy the sweet tooth, you can always grab a maple bar with those yummy soy protein bacon bits at People's Donuts in Berkeley. Your arteries will thank you.
Josephine's Lenten Chocolate Cake
Recipe courtesy of Charlotte Blackmer
2 cups (16 fl. oz.) very cold water
Shortening or margarine for greasing
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus some for dusting the pan
2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
Dark chocolate chips (check label to make sure they're vegan, some brands have whey) or nuts (optional)
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4cup (6 fl. oz.) corn oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and put 2 cups of water into a container in the fridge. Grease (not butter!) and flour a 9-by-13-inch pan.
Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl until well blended. If you want to add the optional dark chocolate chips or nuts, you can do so at this stage.
Mix wet ingredients together (I found my 4 cup Pyrex good for this and used a whisk). Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix together (again, my flat whisk was helpful).
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until tested done.
For topping, you have several options. Josephine either dusts it with powdered sugar, or frosts with frosting-in-a-can that passes the ingredient test. If you are a better person than I am, you can whip up some frosting of your own as long as you use margarine or shortening, not butter. What I did was put some high-quality dark chocolate chips on the cake the minute it came out of the oven, and after they melted (about 5 minutes), spread them with my spatula to cover the cake.
Serves 12.
Per serving (without topping; 1/2cup each chocolate chips and chopped walnuts added): 448 Calories; 20g Fat; 5g Protein; 65g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 391mg Sodium.
Per serving (without topping): 372 Calories; 14g Fat; 4g Protein; 59g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 390mg Sodium.
Monday, May 14, 2007
Garden of Vegan
My current favorite cookbook is Garden of Vegan. Here are some of the recipes that have become regulars in my household. The numbers in parentheses are the page numbers. This is a reprint of a post I made at the GoVegan Forum.
The Death by Chocolate Pie (194) is a true winner. If you know someone who loves chocolate, this is guaranteed to make them happy.
The Nut Butter Cookies (184) are wonderful. I make them with a mix of peanut and almond butters.
My youngest son, who is almost three, and I can finish off a batch of the Chickpea Toss (147) by ourselves. Quick, easy, tasty!
The Megadarra (123) is awesome. I tried it for the first time just a handful of weeks ago, and I've already made it again. And my wife is already bugging me to make it again. We jazz it up with some seitan chicken.
Nana Marg's Nuts and Bolts (108) is perfect for entertaining. It has gone over well with my omnivore relatives and coworkers.
My all-time favorite homemade salad dressing is the Maple Dijon Flax Oil Dressing (98). I've made this countless times. In fact, I'll be making it tonight again because I'm bringing home a whole bunch of leftover salad from our volunteer appreciation lunch today.
The Rustic Quinoa & Yam Salad (95) is great. Quinoa, yams, garlic, red bell pepper, cumin, cilantro - need I really say more?
Auntie Bonnie's Chickpea Salad (92) is another great recipe combining chickpeas and olives.
I liked the Hungry Person Stew (87), but it didn't go over well with anyone else in my home. Oh well...
I haven't made them in quite a while, but the Raspberry Fig Breakfast Bars (47) are delicious. I've had a couple of my wife's omnivore coworkers ask for this recipe, they liked it so much when they tried hers.
For other breakfast treats, try the Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes (40) and Claire's Couscous Porridge. Can you tell I like breakfast?
The Death by Chocolate Pie (194) is a true winner. If you know someone who loves chocolate, this is guaranteed to make them happy.
The Nut Butter Cookies (184) are wonderful. I make them with a mix of peanut and almond butters.
My youngest son, who is almost three, and I can finish off a batch of the Chickpea Toss (147) by ourselves. Quick, easy, tasty!
The Megadarra (123) is awesome. I tried it for the first time just a handful of weeks ago, and I've already made it again. And my wife is already bugging me to make it again. We jazz it up with some seitan chicken.
Nana Marg's Nuts and Bolts (108) is perfect for entertaining. It has gone over well with my omnivore relatives and coworkers.
My all-time favorite homemade salad dressing is the Maple Dijon Flax Oil Dressing (98). I've made this countless times. In fact, I'll be making it tonight again because I'm bringing home a whole bunch of leftover salad from our volunteer appreciation lunch today.
The Rustic Quinoa & Yam Salad (95) is great. Quinoa, yams, garlic, red bell pepper, cumin, cilantro - need I really say more?
Auntie Bonnie's Chickpea Salad (92) is another great recipe combining chickpeas and olives.
I liked the Hungry Person Stew (87), but it didn't go over well with anyone else in my home. Oh well...
I haven't made them in quite a while, but the Raspberry Fig Breakfast Bars (47) are delicious. I've had a couple of my wife's omnivore coworkers ask for this recipe, they liked it so much when they tried hers.
For other breakfast treats, try the Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes (40) and Claire's Couscous Porridge. Can you tell I like breakfast?
Friday, May 04, 2007
Thank a Teacher
The San Francisco Education Fund put together a website called Thank a Teacher Today. On it, you can send a free E-Card to a teacher and say "thanks."
By the way, the April copy of California Educator, the magazine of the California Teachers Association has a mini-poster (see above) reminding us that Wednesday, May 9, 2007 is Day of the Teacher. The theme this year is "Celebrating the Artistry of Teaching." You can also find the poster and other information on their website and at Day of the Teacher 2007.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Study: Stress, low pay turning teachers away
Here is a reprint of an article from Sunday's San Mateo County Times written by Shirley Dang:
Sabrina Walasek loved teaching middle school science and math in Daly City and Felton, near Santa Cruz. But after six years, the Oakland resident found herself worn out from keeping kids in check.
"The amount of energy spent on discipline and behavior management just got to me after awhile," Walasek said.
Ultimately, she said, the stress wasn't worth the pay.
"It was almost impossible to exist in the Bay Area on that salary," Walasek said.
She and her husband, also a teacher, both left the profession. Now she uses her education experience and business degree to develop educational toys at LeapFrog in Emeryville, a job that comes with a much higher paycheck.
But pay isn't the only issue causing teachers to rethink their careers.
Stifled by bureaucracy, faced with poor conditions and blocked from making decisions in their own classrooms, teachers are leaving the profession in droves, according to a new study released Thursday by Cal State University's Teacher Quality Institute.
The 1,900 teachers surveyed cited the litany of rules and regulations, lack of textbooks and supplies and a test-obsessed culture as reasons they left or plan to leave within two years.
"Those kind of things aren't just driving people crazy, they are driving teachers out of the classroom," said Ken Futernick, principal author of the study and director of K-12 Studies at the institute.
About one in five California teachers abandon the field after four years, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. With this type of exodus, the nonprofit Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, based in Santa Cruz, projects a 30,000-teacher shortage in California by 2015.
At high-poverty schools, one in 10 teachers jumps ship each year, either for a different campus or a new occupation entirely.
"It's students from our most challenging schools who suffer the most," said Jack O'Connell, state superintendent of schools. "We really do have a revolving door."
Nearly half of teachers surveyed by the institute left for personal reasons, such as childbirth or retirement. The other half left out of frustration with the job.
Top reasons include bureaucratic impediments, poor district support, low staff morale, a lack of resources and an unsupportive principal. Like Goyne, more than 40 percent of those who left said they did so because they lacked authority to make decisions about how and what to teach.
"Why did I go pay all that money to go to college if I can't even apply the skills I was taught?" Goyne said.
Barbara Kerr, president of the California Teachers Association, said the study echoed the union's concerns.
"We need to have more say at the local level," Kerr said. "Teachers are feeling like they're not able to use the knowledge they have."
English teacher Paula Gocker left El Cerrito High School in the West Contra Costa school district two years ago after she was ordered to teach using more excerpts from novels and plays rather than whole works of literature.
"I knew I couldn't be culpable in that kind of education," said Gocker, a 20-year veteran and a former Teacher of the Year in West Contra Costa.
Like a quarter of teachers surveyed, she felt strait-jacketed by the required curriculum, which lays out when and how to teach a lesson. She escaped to teach English at San Rafael High School, where she said she has more input, flexibility and respect.
"If teaching is going to attract bright and creative people, they need to see they're teaching people, not just shoveling in curriculum."
Not surprisingly, low pay also tops the list of gripes in the survey. In the Bay Area, the sky-high cost of living and comparatively low salaries make it especially hard for new teachers to stick it out, particularly when the school presents a challenge.
However higher salaries won't necessarily draw teachers back, Futernick said. According to the study, teachers who ditched a campus said poor working conditions trumped pay among reasons for leaving.
"They're almost saying 'you couldn't pay me enough to stay at this school,'" Futernick said. Interestingly enough, teachers surveyed who stayed in the field and felt supported at their campuses cited their compensation as adequate, the study says.
Fewer than one in five teachers said they would return to the field for more money or "combat pay," extra cash for teaching in a tougher school.
"As long as we think of these schools as combat zones, we're not going to close the achievement gap," Futernick said. "We need to turn those schools into learning zones and teaching zones."
Futernick, also the husband of a teacher, said he remained hopeful.
Nearly 30 percent of teachers said they would return to the classroom — even if they did not receive more money — if the school itself changed for the better.
"We have to think about making them attractive places," Futernick said. "When we do that, people will want to go, and they'll want to stay there. Because they'll be doing what they came into the profession to do in the first place, which is to make a difference."
Money is a big concern. I can't afford to live in the city which employs me. This is true for many teachers. My wife also works in San Francisco - for lawyers, who pay her far more than I get paid. And yet even with our two salaries we can't afford to live in San Francisco. Well... we could. But we don't want to settle for what we can afford. And what we'd like for ourselves and our two children we can't afford.
I've commented recently on the "test-obsessed culture" which is also mentioned in this article.
The school bureacracy needs a major overhaul. District administration eats up far too much money. And the hoops they make us jump through. I often think that the people in human resources in my district forget that I am one of the human resources that keeps them employed. They work for me, not the other way around. They provide a service to me and my fellow teachers. Instead, I get excuses for their incompetence and they make it sound like I'm interrupting them when I call for assistance.
I am lucky that I have a supportive principal. I am grateful every day that I have a job at the school that I do. It's a good school. I like the neighborhood and the families that send their children to my school. I like my colleagues; some of them I even respect and admire. And I have a principal that lets me do my job to the best of my ability without getting in my way, no micromanagement, but she supports me when I need help, advice, or just an ear to bend.
I'm not going to leave the field, but this article certianly points out many of the reasons why some people are leaving teaching. If we really respected teachers, if we really valued public education for everyone, if we put our money where are mouths are, then maybe we wouldn't have these problems. But as a culture, our respect for teachers is waning. We undercut equity in education. Some schools have all the money and resources they need; others, sadly, do not. And we just don't pay teachers a salary that compensates them for all the work they do.
If we paid teachers a salary that was commensurate with the responsibility we entrust them with and the accountability we place on their shoulders, we'd have to pay them all a million dollars a year. Now wouldn't that be nice.
Sabrina Walasek loved teaching middle school science and math in Daly City and Felton, near Santa Cruz. But after six years, the Oakland resident found herself worn out from keeping kids in check.
"The amount of energy spent on discipline and behavior management just got to me after awhile," Walasek said.
Ultimately, she said, the stress wasn't worth the pay.
"It was almost impossible to exist in the Bay Area on that salary," Walasek said.
She and her husband, also a teacher, both left the profession. Now she uses her education experience and business degree to develop educational toys at LeapFrog in Emeryville, a job that comes with a much higher paycheck.
But pay isn't the only issue causing teachers to rethink their careers.
Stifled by bureaucracy, faced with poor conditions and blocked from making decisions in their own classrooms, teachers are leaving the profession in droves, according to a new study released Thursday by Cal State University's Teacher Quality Institute.
The 1,900 teachers surveyed cited the litany of rules and regulations, lack of textbooks and supplies and a test-obsessed culture as reasons they left or plan to leave within two years.
"Those kind of things aren't just driving people crazy, they are driving teachers out of the classroom," said Ken Futernick, principal author of the study and director of K-12 Studies at the institute.
About one in five California teachers abandon the field after four years, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. With this type of exodus, the nonprofit Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, based in Santa Cruz, projects a 30,000-teacher shortage in California by 2015.
At high-poverty schools, one in 10 teachers jumps ship each year, either for a different campus or a new occupation entirely.
"It's students from our most challenging schools who suffer the most," said Jack O'Connell, state superintendent of schools. "We really do have a revolving door."
Nearly half of teachers surveyed by the institute left for personal reasons, such as childbirth or retirement. The other half left out of frustration with the job.
Top reasons include bureaucratic impediments, poor district support, low staff morale, a lack of resources and an unsupportive principal. Like Goyne, more than 40 percent of those who left said they did so because they lacked authority to make decisions about how and what to teach.
"Why did I go pay all that money to go to college if I can't even apply the skills I was taught?" Goyne said.
Barbara Kerr, president of the California Teachers Association, said the study echoed the union's concerns.
"We need to have more say at the local level," Kerr said. "Teachers are feeling like they're not able to use the knowledge they have."
English teacher Paula Gocker left El Cerrito High School in the West Contra Costa school district two years ago after she was ordered to teach using more excerpts from novels and plays rather than whole works of literature.
"I knew I couldn't be culpable in that kind of education," said Gocker, a 20-year veteran and a former Teacher of the Year in West Contra Costa.
Like a quarter of teachers surveyed, she felt strait-jacketed by the required curriculum, which lays out when and how to teach a lesson. She escaped to teach English at San Rafael High School, where she said she has more input, flexibility and respect.
"If teaching is going to attract bright and creative people, they need to see they're teaching people, not just shoveling in curriculum."
Not surprisingly, low pay also tops the list of gripes in the survey. In the Bay Area, the sky-high cost of living and comparatively low salaries make it especially hard for new teachers to stick it out, particularly when the school presents a challenge.
However higher salaries won't necessarily draw teachers back, Futernick said. According to the study, teachers who ditched a campus said poor working conditions trumped pay among reasons for leaving.
"They're almost saying 'you couldn't pay me enough to stay at this school,'" Futernick said. Interestingly enough, teachers surveyed who stayed in the field and felt supported at their campuses cited their compensation as adequate, the study says.
Fewer than one in five teachers said they would return to the field for more money or "combat pay," extra cash for teaching in a tougher school.
"As long as we think of these schools as combat zones, we're not going to close the achievement gap," Futernick said. "We need to turn those schools into learning zones and teaching zones."
Futernick, also the husband of a teacher, said he remained hopeful.
Nearly 30 percent of teachers said they would return to the classroom — even if they did not receive more money — if the school itself changed for the better.
"We have to think about making them attractive places," Futernick said. "When we do that, people will want to go, and they'll want to stay there. Because they'll be doing what they came into the profession to do in the first place, which is to make a difference."
Money is a big concern. I can't afford to live in the city which employs me. This is true for many teachers. My wife also works in San Francisco - for lawyers, who pay her far more than I get paid. And yet even with our two salaries we can't afford to live in San Francisco. Well... we could. But we don't want to settle for what we can afford. And what we'd like for ourselves and our two children we can't afford.
I've commented recently on the "test-obsessed culture" which is also mentioned in this article.
The school bureacracy needs a major overhaul. District administration eats up far too much money. And the hoops they make us jump through. I often think that the people in human resources in my district forget that I am one of the human resources that keeps them employed. They work for me, not the other way around. They provide a service to me and my fellow teachers. Instead, I get excuses for their incompetence and they make it sound like I'm interrupting them when I call for assistance.
I am lucky that I have a supportive principal. I am grateful every day that I have a job at the school that I do. It's a good school. I like the neighborhood and the families that send their children to my school. I like my colleagues; some of them I even respect and admire. And I have a principal that lets me do my job to the best of my ability without getting in my way, no micromanagement, but she supports me when I need help, advice, or just an ear to bend.
I'm not going to leave the field, but this article certianly points out many of the reasons why some people are leaving teaching. If we really respected teachers, if we really valued public education for everyone, if we put our money where are mouths are, then maybe we wouldn't have these problems. But as a culture, our respect for teachers is waning. We undercut equity in education. Some schools have all the money and resources they need; others, sadly, do not. And we just don't pay teachers a salary that compensates them for all the work they do.
If we paid teachers a salary that was commensurate with the responsibility we entrust them with and the accountability we place on their shoulders, we'd have to pay them all a million dollars a year. Now wouldn't that be nice.
Why You Should Be Vegan Follow-up
Today I read my essay (see below) and had them critique/grade it based on the rubric that I also gave them.
Overall, they gave me good scores. But they did have a couple of good criticisms that I think might make it an even better essay.
First, one student suggested that I start with the argument about cost. It's factual and really hard to argue with. She said that I should then use the argument about health. "Oh, it's cheaper and healthier for me too - cool!" And that I should end with the argument about suffering and compassion because she thought that was my weakest. As she pointed out, some people just don't care that cows have to die for them to eat hamburger.
The other major criticism was that I did not address the objection about plants having feelings. A few students brought up this response which I had neglected to include. They felt that it would have been a better essay if I had addressed that. One student claimed that plants do have feelings. I challenged him to bring in evidence backing up his assertion. We'll see if he does or not; I'm not holding my breath.
Which got me thinking... How could I respond to that objection about a vegan diet? I went to the Internet and found the information below from Don't Plants Have Feelings Too?:
1. What about plants? Don't plants have feelings too?
It is very possible that plants have sensitivities that we do not yet understand. Because plants do not have nervous systems and cannot run away from predators, it has generally been assumed that they do not experience pain and suffering. Recent scientific evidence suggests that this assumption may be incorrect. However, we do know that birds and other nonhuman vertebrates have well-developed nervous systems and pain receptors the same as humans. Like us, they show pleasure and pain and they present comparable evidence of fear and well-being. Animals cry out in pain, they nurse wounded body parts, and they seek to avoid those who have hurt them in the past.
In order to live, one has to eat. However, when we eat animal products, we consume many more plants indirectly than if we ate those plants directly, because the animals we eat are fed huge quantities of grasses, grains, and seeds to be converted into meat, milk, and eggs. As a vegan (one who eats no animal products) you cause fewer beings to suffer and die for you.
I also found this response at the MadSci Network:
Plants can sense light (phototropism, photomorphogenesis, photoperiodism) and gravity (gravitropism) and some can respond to touch (thigmotropism, thigmonasty) (Salisbury and Ross, 1985). As far as botanists have determined, plants do not have feelings, do not grow better when exposed to certain types of music, and cannot communicate with humans as claimed in the bestselling book "The Secret Life of Plants." Those claims have been debunked by real botanists (Hershey, 1995). Botany is unfortunately hampered by many misconceptions. However, the scientific aspects of plants are extremely fascinating, probably even more so than the false claims (Attenborough, 1995).
Even nonvegetarians are indirectly eating plants because photosynthetic plants are at the base of our food chain. So we either eat plants directly or we eat animals that eat plants. Medical research has clearly shown that it is better for your health to eat a mostly vegetarian diet. It is also better for the environment because domestic animals pollute the environment with massive amounts of waste and eating animals is less efficient. The land area to support a human population eating plants is about one-tenth the area needed to support the same population that eats meat (Starr and McMillan, 1995). Strange as it seems, if you want to help plants, become a vegetarian.
Those ideas should help me make my essay stronger.
Overall, they gave me good scores. But they did have a couple of good criticisms that I think might make it an even better essay.
First, one student suggested that I start with the argument about cost. It's factual and really hard to argue with. She said that I should then use the argument about health. "Oh, it's cheaper and healthier for me too - cool!" And that I should end with the argument about suffering and compassion because she thought that was my weakest. As she pointed out, some people just don't care that cows have to die for them to eat hamburger.
The other major criticism was that I did not address the objection about plants having feelings. A few students brought up this response which I had neglected to include. They felt that it would have been a better essay if I had addressed that. One student claimed that plants do have feelings. I challenged him to bring in evidence backing up his assertion. We'll see if he does or not; I'm not holding my breath.
Which got me thinking... How could I respond to that objection about a vegan diet? I went to the Internet and found the information below from Don't Plants Have Feelings Too?:
1. What about plants? Don't plants have feelings too?
It is very possible that plants have sensitivities that we do not yet understand. Because plants do not have nervous systems and cannot run away from predators, it has generally been assumed that they do not experience pain and suffering. Recent scientific evidence suggests that this assumption may be incorrect. However, we do know that birds and other nonhuman vertebrates have well-developed nervous systems and pain receptors the same as humans. Like us, they show pleasure and pain and they present comparable evidence of fear and well-being. Animals cry out in pain, they nurse wounded body parts, and they seek to avoid those who have hurt them in the past.
In order to live, one has to eat. However, when we eat animal products, we consume many more plants indirectly than if we ate those plants directly, because the animals we eat are fed huge quantities of grasses, grains, and seeds to be converted into meat, milk, and eggs. As a vegan (one who eats no animal products) you cause fewer beings to suffer and die for you.
I also found this response at the MadSci Network:
Plants can sense light (phototropism, photomorphogenesis, photoperiodism) and gravity (gravitropism) and some can respond to touch (thigmotropism, thigmonasty) (Salisbury and Ross, 1985). As far as botanists have determined, plants do not have feelings, do not grow better when exposed to certain types of music, and cannot communicate with humans as claimed in the bestselling book "The Secret Life of Plants." Those claims have been debunked by real botanists (Hershey, 1995). Botany is unfortunately hampered by many misconceptions. However, the scientific aspects of plants are extremely fascinating, probably even more so than the false claims (Attenborough, 1995).
Even nonvegetarians are indirectly eating plants because photosynthetic plants are at the base of our food chain. So we either eat plants directly or we eat animals that eat plants. Medical research has clearly shown that it is better for your health to eat a mostly vegetarian diet. It is also better for the environment because domestic animals pollute the environment with massive amounts of waste and eating animals is less efficient. The land area to support a human population eating plants is about one-tenth the area needed to support the same population that eats meat (Starr and McMillan, 1995). Strange as it seems, if you want to help plants, become a vegetarian.
Those ideas should help me make my essay stronger.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Why You Should Be Vegan
The essay below is one that I wrote last year for my students as a model of a persuasive essay. I'm a teacher of fifth grade students, so keep in mind that this is aimed at ten- and eleven-year-olds. I'm planning on having my current students read it tomorrow (Thursday). If their reactions are anything like I remember, I'll post some of their comments, anonymously, of course.
As I’m sure you’re already aware, I am a vegan, which means I’m a strict vegetarian who doesn’t eat any product that comes from animals, including milk and eggs. It works for me and many other people all around the world. And it can work for you too. You should adopt a vegan diet because it’s healthy, it’s cruelty-free, and it’s cheaper than being an omnivore.
One reason being vegan is better is because it’s healthy. First of all, if you don’t eat meat, you’re not consuming cholesterol. And cholesterol you don’t need to eat, because your body can make all it needs. Scientists have found that many fruits and vegetables are not only highly nutritious, giving you all the vitamins, minerals, protein, and carbohydrates you need without all the fat, but they help prevent disease. Blueberries, for example, are one of the highest in antioxidants, which are important in fighting free radicals that could lead to cancer. The American Heart Association recommends eating “a variety of fruits and vegetables a day” because they know from all the research that a low-fat, high-fiber diet helps prevent heart attacks and stroke.
It’s cruelty-free. I mean, really, who wants to eat food with a face? It’s just gross!!! Those poor, unsuspecting animals were just trying to get by, just like the rest of us and then BAM they’re dead, cut up into pieces, wrapped in plastic, and shipped to your local neighborhood grocery store. Animals have feelings just like us, even chickens and cows, and they shouldn’t have to suffer and die for us to have a nice meal. You can have a perfectly fine meal without meat at all. Look at all the dishes from around the world that are already vegetarian: red beans and rice, falafels in pita bread, miso soup with tofu, and so on. I’m sure you can think of even more. And we don’t need to take milk away from cows either. That’s cruel too. Cow’s milk is for baby cows, not for humans. Think about it!
Have you been to the grocery store lately? When you were there did you compare the cost of a pound of beef to a pound of tofu? Of course you didn’t, so I did it for you. Yet another reason that being vegan is better than being an omnivore is that it’s cheaper. By the way, a pound of tofu costs about $1.29 to $1.49 per pound, $0.20 extra for the nice organic tofu, while even cheap, fatty, nasty-tasting hamburger I wouldn’t feed to my worst enemy’s dog still costs about $2.29 a pound. Salmon and cod cost $6.99 a pound, porterhouse steak costs $5.99 a pound, chicken strips are $4.99 a pound, and pork loin roast costs $3.49 a pound. All of those prices, by the way, are the weekly specials that are discounted more than the regular price, while tofu always costs about the same. All meats cost more than the meat substitutes like tofu, tempeh, and seitan that vegans eat, because all of those come from plants not animals. It’s just cheaper to raise plants than it is to raise animals. It’s just plain old common sense.
People are always saying to me, “What do you eat?” It’s hard not being sarcastic after a while, because I feel like I’m VeganMan, poster child of the vegan movement. So, I politely say, “I eat fruits, vegetables, and grains. You know, all the stuff on the food pyramid, except meat, fish, poultry, and dairy products, like milk and cheese.” Yeah, being vegan does take a little bit more work than being an omnivore. I can’t just walk into most fast food places and order whatever I want off the menu. But, being vegan doesn’t mean I’m deprived of anything. I get plenty of protein; you don’t have to eat meat or drink milk to get enough protein. And I still enjoy foods like cookies, muffins, and ice cream; it just has to be made with soymilk and soy margarine instead of cow’s milk and butter, which comes from cows, by the way. Now I’m not saying you’ll never have a heart attack if you’re vegan, but why wouldn’t you reduce your risk if you could? And the thing is, you can. It’s totally up to you. You choose what you want to eat. If you can talk your parents into buying you toys and other stuff you want, surely you can talk them into buying you healthy, cheap, cruelty-free vegan food.
So, I have to be a little more careful and selective. I have to read food labels and politely say, “No, thank you,” when people offer me food a lot of times. But for me, it’s worth it being vegan. I know that my food choices keep me healthy, are right for my beliefs about suffering, and it’s easy on my checkbook. Go vegan!
As I’m sure you’re already aware, I am a vegan, which means I’m a strict vegetarian who doesn’t eat any product that comes from animals, including milk and eggs. It works for me and many other people all around the world. And it can work for you too. You should adopt a vegan diet because it’s healthy, it’s cruelty-free, and it’s cheaper than being an omnivore.
One reason being vegan is better is because it’s healthy. First of all, if you don’t eat meat, you’re not consuming cholesterol. And cholesterol you don’t need to eat, because your body can make all it needs. Scientists have found that many fruits and vegetables are not only highly nutritious, giving you all the vitamins, minerals, protein, and carbohydrates you need without all the fat, but they help prevent disease. Blueberries, for example, are one of the highest in antioxidants, which are important in fighting free radicals that could lead to cancer. The American Heart Association recommends eating “a variety of fruits and vegetables a day” because they know from all the research that a low-fat, high-fiber diet helps prevent heart attacks and stroke.
It’s cruelty-free. I mean, really, who wants to eat food with a face? It’s just gross!!! Those poor, unsuspecting animals were just trying to get by, just like the rest of us and then BAM they’re dead, cut up into pieces, wrapped in plastic, and shipped to your local neighborhood grocery store. Animals have feelings just like us, even chickens and cows, and they shouldn’t have to suffer and die for us to have a nice meal. You can have a perfectly fine meal without meat at all. Look at all the dishes from around the world that are already vegetarian: red beans and rice, falafels in pita bread, miso soup with tofu, and so on. I’m sure you can think of even more. And we don’t need to take milk away from cows either. That’s cruel too. Cow’s milk is for baby cows, not for humans. Think about it!
Have you been to the grocery store lately? When you were there did you compare the cost of a pound of beef to a pound of tofu? Of course you didn’t, so I did it for you. Yet another reason that being vegan is better than being an omnivore is that it’s cheaper. By the way, a pound of tofu costs about $1.29 to $1.49 per pound, $0.20 extra for the nice organic tofu, while even cheap, fatty, nasty-tasting hamburger I wouldn’t feed to my worst enemy’s dog still costs about $2.29 a pound. Salmon and cod cost $6.99 a pound, porterhouse steak costs $5.99 a pound, chicken strips are $4.99 a pound, and pork loin roast costs $3.49 a pound. All of those prices, by the way, are the weekly specials that are discounted more than the regular price, while tofu always costs about the same. All meats cost more than the meat substitutes like tofu, tempeh, and seitan that vegans eat, because all of those come from plants not animals. It’s just cheaper to raise plants than it is to raise animals. It’s just plain old common sense.
People are always saying to me, “What do you eat?” It’s hard not being sarcastic after a while, because I feel like I’m VeganMan, poster child of the vegan movement. So, I politely say, “I eat fruits, vegetables, and grains. You know, all the stuff on the food pyramid, except meat, fish, poultry, and dairy products, like milk and cheese.” Yeah, being vegan does take a little bit more work than being an omnivore. I can’t just walk into most fast food places and order whatever I want off the menu. But, being vegan doesn’t mean I’m deprived of anything. I get plenty of protein; you don’t have to eat meat or drink milk to get enough protein. And I still enjoy foods like cookies, muffins, and ice cream; it just has to be made with soymilk and soy margarine instead of cow’s milk and butter, which comes from cows, by the way. Now I’m not saying you’ll never have a heart attack if you’re vegan, but why wouldn’t you reduce your risk if you could? And the thing is, you can. It’s totally up to you. You choose what you want to eat. If you can talk your parents into buying you toys and other stuff you want, surely you can talk them into buying you healthy, cheap, cruelty-free vegan food.
So, I have to be a little more careful and selective. I have to read food labels and politely say, “No, thank you,” when people offer me food a lot of times. But for me, it’s worth it being vegan. I know that my food choices keep me healthy, are right for my beliefs about suffering, and it’s easy on my checkbook. Go vegan!
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