Not much to report on today. I’ve been working on entries for the Encyclopedia of Latino Folklore. I am contributing entries on Cihuatcoatl, Huitzilopochtli, Tezcatlipoca, Tonantzin, and Tepeyac.
Huitzilopochtli, Patron God of the Mexica (aka Aztecs)
Good thing I visited the Anthropology Museum while I was in Mexico City . . . I’ve been inspired by the images of the ancestors gods I saw while there.
Last weekend I made grape jelly . . . I’ll try to post on that tomorrow. TTFN!
Dear Readers, please do all you can to support positive, democratic, egalitarian, environmental, and social change in our communities and nation. Check out Moveon.org — you can get a free sticker while supplies last!
Although I am left of the Democratic Party ideologically . . . I have voted Democratic since for ever. I don’t think that Barack Obama is going to save the world . . . ALONE. We ALL need to pitch in and do our part. That means we all need to vote, agitate, demonstrate, recycle, eat less meat, support community based organizations, be actively anti-racist, leave the car in the garage as much as possible, etc.
Is it just me that notices the resemblance between these two?
and on a final soapbox note for the day, keep in mind that a vote for Sarah Palin is a vote to eliminate reproductive freedom . . .
One of the best things about the internet and blogging is that we can hear about people’s experiences out of the country as they occur. I received news from UNL Anthropology alumnus Brian Best who has been working in Peru for some time now.
Check out his blog, San Francisco Saludable at
http://sanfranciscosaludable.wordpress.com
The blog is in English and Spanish. I met Brian my first semester at UNL. Shortly after we met he brought in his parasite show me; it had been living in his intestinal track for about 8 months . . . ewgh! He’s an interesting guy and is a strong proponent of humanure . . . that is, composting human poop. He also worked with a community in Peru to create a recycling/garbage collection project.
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Anthropology Undergraduate Student, Emily Smith, is currently in Ecuador collecting data for her senior thesis. Her blog is a hoot to read — she includes a vocab word of the day — very funny. Emily is examining maternity care in Ecuador and has had the opportunity to tag along with doctors and staff at maternity hospitals.
Emily is on the far right. She is a real sweetie and just a fantastic student. Check out her blog, Mi Viaje a Ecuador (my trip to Ecuador) at http://emilyecuadorblog.blogspot.com
It was a rainy day today, a test of my commitment to bike to work. I was lucky — I was able to dodge rain drops to and from! The change in weather is a reminder that fall is imminent – my favorite time of the year. Readers in the Lincoln area are invited to check out my sidebar for the link to Community CROPS. They will be giving a tour of the Sunset Community Farm on Monday Sept. 15th 5:30- 7:30 pm. Additionally, Martin’s Hillside Orchard has opened apple picking season. And, the various farmers markets are still going strong. I took a little time this weekend to do some prep work for fall jams and jellies. Big thanks go out to Joan, Leslie, and Shari for sharing grapes with me. My plan is to put up mint, sage, lemon balm, grape and raspberry jams/jellies. Last fall I made cran-apple butter which was super on pancakes. I have one jar left — just enough to see us through the month.
I have added a link recommended by CROPS — 50 Ways to Help the Planet. Check it out and see how many things you are already doing and new ideas to save energy.
I FINALLY got the toy of my dreams!
Ok, I know, it is a little twisted to get so excited about a mixer. But, I figured I deserved a new toy since I’ve been really “good” lately. How, you ask, did I do it?
First, I had a long corazon a corazon platica with my Mexican Devil. He is my house protector and gives advice on living and cooking (he holds my hand back when I want to put in too much salt). Anyway, here are some of my rationales for buying the mixer:
1. I have resolved to ride my bike to school instead of driving. I live 2.5 miles from the university, the weather is perfect right now, and I need 30 minutes of exercise daily anyway. So, el Diablo said, “Nalgona, ride your bike to school.”
2. I have been recycling like a fiend for a long time now. We are averaging less than one bag of trash per week with our intensive composting and recycling program.
Here’s my homemade compost bin (I couldn’t justify spending $$ for a composter)
and here’s part of our recycle system:
We recycle glass, cardboard/paper board, paper, newspaper, cans, and #1 and 2 plastics. Lincoln does not have curbside recycling (although one can pay to have someone pick up your materials). So, every so often, we schlep our trash to the recycle bins around town. I have been trying to cut down on plastics — I reuse plastic bags and don’t buy overly packaged foods. But it is almost impossible to NOT buy some plastics. As a result, non-recyclable plastics are the bulk of our weekly trash.
3. Organic gardening. Although my garden is limited to a small raised bed and a swath along the driveway, I have been able to produce a little bit of our own food. I am still a fledgling farmer and learning to deal with bugs in a non-pesticide way (not always with success). Our lawn is NEVER watered (it is Zoyza grass) and I plant mostly locally adapted flowers for the front beds that don’t require much water.
Here’s round 2 of my raised bed. I just planted beans, chard, spinach, lettuce, and carrots. The eggplant is still flowering, the tomatoes are still producing, and I have lots of herbs that need to be cut and dried for winter.
4. We have adopted a “Flexitarian” diet. Tom and I still can’t bring ourselves to entirely eliminate animal products from our diet. However, we have really limited our consumption of meat. I buy cage free eggs (and don’t forget, by next year I plan on raising my own hens), and try to buy only fish that is non-endangered and/or raised with ecologically sound practices or wild caught (i.e., Pacific rather than Atlantic salmon). We eat vegetarian meals at least 3-4 nights a week (no fish, pork, poultry, etc.). I have to credit my daughter and her partner (they are vegans) for encouraging us to be more conscious of our use of animal products.
5. Higher energy efficiency. I have replaced at least half of our bulbs with CFLs. Some fixtures in the house don’t work with CFLs, darn! Tom also just replaced the furnace, AC, and water heater with high efficiency models.
6. A mixer will allow me to bake my own bread! This will reduce the amount of plastic we buy and we will be able to eat fresh, preservative free bread made with organic flour!
In sum, I think I have convinced myself that I deserve my new toy!
I watched the Democratic Convention last night — WOW! Great speeches all around. Obama did a fab job of hitting all the issues I care about and I hope that he has the opportunity to implement this very ambitious plan. Of course, he will need strong leaders to help him out . . . and Bill Richardson should be considered for a high cabinet appointment.
Check Bill OUT! Now that he is out of the Prez race, he’s grown a very stylish beard which makes him look very hip. I made my first ever political donation to Richardson’s campaign. Not that I was under the delusion that he had a chance to be the Dem candidate up against Obama and Clinton, but I did want him to increase his profile. Richardson’s resume is impressive and we should keep an eye on him for future leadership. Of course I am a big fan — he’s originally from California, is Governor of New Mexico, is Latino, and so unassuming. I LOVE BILL!
Yeehaw!! I won three ribbons at the Nebraska State Fair!
Canning Division: Green Tomato Relish, Third Place
Embroidery: Tea Towel, Second Place
Embroidery: Pillow Case, First Place
Here’s a full view of the Pillowcase
My grandmother taught me to embroider when I was in Kindergarten.
Mister Man ordered 25 lbs of Hot Hatch Chiles from Berridge Farms, NM — right after my mom and dad sent 25 lbs to us the week before! We gave some of them to friends, and roasted the rest last night. I am thinking of awarding Tom an “Honorary Mexican” card for being an ace roaster. He also brought out Los Lobos music to work by [plus he’s trying to learn the song ‘Mas y mas y mas”]. Tom also knows the correct response to the New Mexican State Question: “Red or Green” . . . . and he took a ritual dusting at Chimayo a couple of years back . . so, his apprenticeship is going pretty well!
Chiles in a Tub
Waiting for the coals to heat up
Skinning the peppers
Check out the nice grill table hand-made by Mister Man. It is the perfect height for working and looks very nice, too.
Pinto Beans – It’s what’s for dinner
Tonight we’ll be enjoying a pot of pinto beans (with a ham hock thrown in) and green chile. These pintos are also from New Mexico — I picked them up in Bernalillo last summer. Any Southwesterner worth her salt knows that the right bean is the pinto. Black beans, Kidney beans, Navy beans, Garbanzo beans — these area all fabulous beans in their own right . . . but for the perfect southwestern dinner, it’s gotta be a pinto!
Monday was roasting day! My mom and dad sent a box of Hatch Green Chile from Albuquerque . . . it arrived while we were out of town. For those of you not in the know, Hatch chile is the premier chile . . . and people from New Mexico and Colorado won’t settle for anything less. We will be eating a lot of this vitimine C packed chile over the winter . . . the day after my mom told me she was sending a box, Tom ordered another 25 lbs from the farm!
Step 1: Cleaning
Cleaning is important to wash off any dirt and gunk. Since the chile box sat for a few days, I also checked each chile for rot — fortunately, my neighbor Leslie brought the box indoors for me and opened it up to allow the chile to breathe. We had hardly any chiles that had gone bad.
All clean and ready to go! Note the brown paper bag — this is to “steam” the chiles after they have been roasted. It makes removing the skin easier.
Step 2: Put them on the Barbie
Yummmmmm . . . . can’t you just SMELL the chiles roasting? At this rate, the roasting took all afternoon. In New Mexico the vendors use big propane roasters that take care of the job quickly. But, once roasted, the chiles have to be refrigerated or frozen.
Step 3: Peel and Bag
I didn’t take pictures of the peeling process since it is pretty messy. But be warned – WEAR GLOVES. My daughter one time processed a bunch of jalapeños and had to call the poison control line. Their advice — soak your hands in milk of magnesia!
The final count: 25 lbs = 16 1/2 quart bags. It doesn’t seem like much, but it will do for now.
Chile, it’s whats for dinner. I had pork bones in the freezer, boiled ’em up and made green chile stew and fresh flour tortillas for dinner.
Here’s the recipe: pork (1/2 to 1 pound), fry with onions and garlic. toss in green chile (1 bag), can of fire roasted tomatoes, 1 pound of cut up potatoes, 2 cups of water or stock; salt to taste. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to simmer until it is time to eat dinner. I forgot to take a picture of the finished stew.
[you are probably wondering who keeps pork bones in the freezer . . . I was brought up with a “waste not, want not” mentality. The pork bones were from our 4th of July party — I made pulled pork and some of the pork butt had bones. I threw them in the freezer thinking that at some point boiling the hell out of them would make a nice broth and cook the bits of meat still attached.]
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