(no subject)

[helwen]

Local university does good! UMass Amherst cut their potable water usage by at least 36 percent since 2004, saving lots of water and fuel. They are buying sustainable seafood for the dining commons. And as well they are getting veggies from local growers (15% of their budget). Details here: http://www.umass.edu/fp/hatchawarded/

The reduction in water usage and savings in monies spent means they can give the town of Amherst more money for fire protection and other emergency services, plus the town doesn't have to try to find enough water for UMass anymore. Should help to improve town and gown relations.

***
I planted the grape tomato seeds yesterday. Many of the tomato seeds I planted before this have already come up, and are now all in the sun room. Once the weather warms up a bit more, I'll move one of the black water containers off the window shelf so all of them can get more direct sunlight than they're getting right now. Looks like marigolds are on the list of seeds to plant (I have some from a friend in CT) -- they help protect beans and other plants from various pests.

Since the beans family apparently doesn't like to be soggy, I'm planning on putting at least some of them at the top of the largest garden plot, as it's on a slope, so excess water will drain down from them. I may put some in the side yard plot next to the house, since I've been growing mostly tomatoes there the past few years -- time for a change. Some of the lettuces may stay in that plot, in front of the beans. There's likely going to be another plot in front of this one (sunwise) - the driveway plot - but there's a path between them and it's a sunny spot, so it shouldn't affected the plot next to the house much.

***
Bought more kidney beans and ground turkey to make chili this week :) Think I'll make a double batch so I can freeze some of it... I got the ground turkey from a company called the Turkey Store, or something like that. I don't care for Perdue's cleaning practices, so at least I didn't have to buy their meat. Sometime in the future I may look into buying local turkey and making my own ground meat, but I'm not ready for that yet... Or I could just cook it up and cut some of it up in small pieces for chili, soup, etc. Nothing says that the meat in chili has to be ground, after all (or that there has to be meat, if you're doing a veggie chili, but that's another story).

***
Did a tiny bit of moving, sorting, and packing yesterday. Re-read a children's book that I'll try to type in as an LJ post later today, before boxing it. Mondays seem to be my veg day, where I don't get much done.

Comments

[oakmouse]

You can make a great chili with chopped or diced meat. A good friend of mine and fine cook makes his chili with half stewing beef and half cubed pork, then simmers it long and slow. It's excellent!

[helwen.livejournal.com]

Mmm! And I was just wondering about trying it with some ham we have in the fridge.

Thanks for the idea, and the support for processing the meat differently. As I was saying to alphasarah, with all the changes we're making these days, I think sometimes my brain hesitates at 'breaking tradition'. It's good to hear what other people are doing, and that it really isn't as adventurous as it might sound. Sometimes the small things are harder to change than the big ones...

[oakmouse]

You're welcome! I've had all sorts and kinds of chili, excepting only the kind that is red from spices and not from tomatoes, and all of them have had their own type of goodness. (I'm sure the red-from-spices kind does too but I'm allergic to capsaicin so will never know first-hand.) It's mainly a matter of finding various types that work for you and enjoying them. I'd bet ham would be mighty tasty in chili; think of what it does for spanish rice!

I understand about the difficulty of changing small habits. Often the small things can be very resistant, and harder to see than the big things.

[alphasarah.livejournal.com]

Or I could just cook it up and cut some of it up in small pieces for chili, soup, etc.

Shredding cooked poultry is superfast and supereasy. Cook however you like, let it cool, and pull apart. I haven't tried it, but pulled meat would likely freeze quite well, too.

[helwen.livejournal.com]

On freezing it, yes it works. I did it a couple of times with turkey and chicken, so I could just pull out a container and throw it in a soup or salad. I'm just so used to seeing chili look a certain way, that I'm a little hesitant to 'break tradition'.

We're making changes constantly now, so sometimes I think my brain needs to stop in one of the eddies in the river :)

Thanks for the support!